B

       Most musicians agree that the best violins were first made in Italy．They were made in Cremona, Italy, about 200 years ago．These violins sound better than any others．They even sound better than violins made today．Violin makers and scientists try to make instruments like the old Italian violins．But they aren’t the same．Musicians still prefer the old ones．No one really knows why these old Italian violins are so special, but many people think they have an answer．

Some people think it is the age of the violins．They say that today’s violins will also sound wonderful someday．But there is a problem here．Not all old violins sound wonderful．Only those from Cremona are special．So age cannot be the answer．There must be something different about Cremona or those Italian violin makers．  

Other people think the secret to those violins is the wood．The wood of the violin is very important．It must be from certain kinds of trees．It must not be too young or too old．Perhaps the violin makers of Cremons knew something special about wood for violins．

But the kind of wood may not be so important．It may be more important to cut the wood in a special way．Wood for a violin must be cut very carefully．It has to be the right size and shape．The smallest difference will change the sound of the violin．Musicians sometimes think that this was the secret of the Italians．Maybe they understood more than we do about how to cut the wood．

Size and shape may not be the answer either．Scientists measured these old violins very carefully．They can make new ones that are exactly the same size and shape．But the new violins still do not sound as good as the old one．Some scientists think the secret may be the varnish, which covers the wood of the violin and makes it look shiny．It also helps the sound of the instrument．No one knows what the Italian violin makers used in their varnish．So no one can make the same varnish today．

There may never be other violins like the violins of Cremona．Their secret may be lost forever．Young musicians today hope this is not true．They need fine violins．But there aren’t very many of the old violins left．Also, the old violins are very expensive．Recently, a famous old Italian violin was sold for about US $ 300,000!

60．This passage is about _______．

　   A．making violins 　　　　　            B．musical   instruments

　   C．scientific ideas 　　　　              D．the old Italian violins

61．The best violins _______．

       A．are made with modern techniques 　    B．were lost   many years ago

       C．were made in Italy 200 years ago       D．were made by scientists．

62．Some people think that modem violins ______．

       A．will sound better in the future 　   B．will sound worse in the future

       C．sound wonderful naturally          D．will never be as old as those from Cremona

63．Violins made today _______．

　   A．look the same as the old ones

　   B．sound the same as the old ones

　   C．are better than the old ones　  

       D．have the same varnish as the old ones

A new weapon is on the way in the fight against smoking in Europe.

Soon when smokers buy cigarettes, they might see a shocking photo of

a blackened lung or a cancer patient staring back at them from the packet.

       Some boys may think of smoking as cool and sexy. Their friends won’t

agree when they see their packets of cigarettes lying on the table.

The European Union announced on October 22, that it had chosen 42 photos that showed the damage cigarettes could do to the body. It called on member nations to put these pictures on packets to discourage young smokers.

To catch the attention of teenagers, the special packets warn of long-term medical dangers, like cancer. Short-term effects, like bad skin, are also on the list.

“The true fact of smoking is disease, death and horror. That is the message we should send to the young,” said David Byrne, an EU health official. “Hopefully these pictures will shock students out of their love for cigarettes.”

The EU head office hoped the pictures would work better than current written warnings on packs of cigarettes. The warning included “smoking kills” and “smoking can lead to a slow and painful death.”

So far, Ireland and Belgium have shown interest in the photos. Canada has used similar pictures and warnings on cigarette packs since 2000．The country has recently seen a fall in the number of smokers.

According to studies, smoking is the single biggest cause of avoidable death in EU. Every year more than 650,000 smokers die, more than one person a minute.

68．What would be the best title for the text?    

       A．New Ways to Stop Smoking.  B．Pictures to Shock Smokers.

       C．New Packers of Cigarettes.     D．Dangers of Smoking.

69．We can learn from the test that _______.

       A．The EU countries have put the new warning method into practice

       B．only a small number of the EU countries have used the new warning method

       C．the new warning method has worked in some EU countries

       D．countries in the EU still use the old warning method

70．Which country is most successful in stopping smoking?

       A．Ireland.    B．Belgium.  C．Canada.   D．EU

71．The underlined sentence in the last paragraph suggests that ________.

       A．It’s hard to stop smoking in EU

       B．deaths caused by smoking could have been avoided

       C．smoking is the biggest cause of deaths in EU

       D．EU has the largest number of deaths caused by smoking

A popular saying goes, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” However, that’s not really true. Words have the power to build us up or tear us down. It doesn’t matter if the words come from someone’s else or ourselves --- the positive and negative effects are just as lasting.

    We all talk to ourselves sometimes. We’re usually too embarrassed to admit it, though. In fact, we really shouldn’t be because more and more experts believe talking to ourselves out loud is a healthy habit.

    This “self-talk” helps us motivate ourselves, remember things, solve problems, and calm ourselves down. Be aware, though, that as much as 77% of self-talk tends to be negative. So in order to stay positive, we should only speak words of encouragement to ourselves. We should also be quick to give ourselves a pat on the back. The next time you finish a project, do well in a test, or finally clean your room, join me in saying “Good job!”

    Often, words come out of our mouths without us thinking about the effect they will have. But we should be aware that our words cause certain responses in others. For example, when returning an item to a store, we might use warm, friendly language during the exchange. And the clear will probably respond in a similar manner. Or harsh（刻薄的）and critical language will most likely cause the clerk to be defensive.

    Words possess power because of their lasting effect. Many of us regret something we once said. And we remember unkind words said to us! Before speaking, we should always ask ourselves: Is it loving? Is it needed? If what we want to say doesn’t pass this test, then it’s better left unsaid.

    Words possess power: both positive and negative. Those around us receive encouragement when we speak positively. We can offer hope, build self-esteem（自尊）and motivate others to do their best. Negative words destroy all those things. Will we use our words to hurt or to heal? The choice is ours.

The main idea of the first paragraph is that ________.

A. not sticks and stones but words will hurt us 

B. inspiring words give us confidence

C. negative words may let us down

D. words have a lasting effect on us

There is no sense for us to feel embarrassed when we talk to ourselves because _______

A. almost everybody has the habit of talking to themselves

B. we can benefit from talking to ourselves

C. talking to ourselves always gives us courage

D. it does no harm to have “self-talk” when we are alone

The underlined part in the third paragraph means that we should also timely _______

A. praise ourselves                                                         B. remind ourselves

C. make ourselves relaxed                                              D. give ourselves amusement

The author would probably hold the view that ___________

A. encouraging words are sure to lead to kind offers  

B. negative words may stimulate us to make more progress

C. people tend to remember friendly words

D. it is better to think twice before talking to others

A popular saying goes, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me．” However, that’s not really true．Words have the power to build us up or tear us down．It doesn’t matter if the words come from someone’s else or ourselves --- the positive and negative effects are just as lasting．

       We all talk to ourselves sometimes．We’re usually too embarrassed to admit it, though．In fact, we really shouldn’t be because more and more experts believe talking to ourselves out loud is a healthy habit．

       This “self-talk” helps us motivate ourselves, remember things, solve problems, and calm ourselves down．Be aware, though, that as much as 77% of self-talk tends to be negative．So in order to stay positive, we should only speak words of encouragement to ourselves．We should also be quick to give ourselves a pat on the back．The next time you finish a project, do well in a test, or finally clean your room, join me in saying “Good job!”

       Often, words come out of our mouths without us thinking about the effect they will have．But we should be aware that our words cause certain responses in others．For example, when returning an item to a store, we might use warm, friendly language during the exchange．And the clerk will probably respond in a similar manner．Or harsh（刻薄的）and critical language will most likely cause the clerk to be defensive．

       Words possess power because of their lasting effect．Many of us regret something we once said．And we remember unkind words said to us! Before speaking, we should always ask ourselves: Is it loving? Is it needed? If what we want to say doesn’t pass this test, then it’s better left unsaid．

       Words possess power: both positive and negative．Those around us receive encouragement when we speak positively．We can offer hope, build self-esteem（自尊）and motivate others to do their best．Negative words destroy all those things．Will we use our words to hurt or to heal? The choice is ours．

The main idea of the first paragraph is that ________．

       A．not sticks and stones but words will hurt us

       B．inspiring words give us confidence

       C．negative words may let us down

       D．words have a lasting effect on us

There is no sense for us to feel embarrassed when we talk to ourselves because _______

       A．almost everybody has the habit of talking to themselves

       B．we can benefit from talking to ourselves

       C．talking to ourselves always gives us courage

       D．it does no harm to have “self-talk” when we are alone

The underlined part in the third paragraph means that we should also timely _______ ．

       A．praise ourselves              B．remind ourselves

       C．make ourselves relaxed    D．give ourselves amusement

The author would probably hold the view that ___________

       A．encouraging words are sure to lead to kind offers

       B．negative words may encourage us to make more progress

       C．people tend to remember friendly words

       D．it is better to think twice before talking to others

A new study by Penn State College of Medicine research team found that honey is a better and safer treatment for children than cough medicines.

   Ian Paul, the study’s lead researcher, was motivated to test honey because treating coughs in children has recently become a sticky subject. Coughing is the body’s way of cleaning irritated (受刺激的) airways to help you breathe. But too much coughing can irritate your lungs and throat even more. It can also make it tough to get the sleep your body needs to heal. Hoping to ease the suffering of their children, parents often give them cough medicines.

But there have never been any good studies showing that they work. Cough and cold medicines may also cause serious side effects. Hundreds of kids die in the hospital each year after receiving too much cough medicine by mistake. Last October, the US Food and Drug Administration suggested that parents should not give cough medicines to children under 6.

In order to search for a different solution, Paul designed a study that involved 105 kids who were sick with coughs and other cold conditions. At bedtime, the kids took buckwheat(荞麦) honey, honey-flavored (蜜蜂味的) DM (one of the most common ingredients成分in cough medicine), or no treatment. Parents and kids in the no-treatment group knew they weren’t getting anything, but the other two groups weren’t told which treatment they were getting.

The surveys showed that kids who swallowed about 2 teaspoons of buckwheat

honey before bedtime coughed less and slept better than kids in other groups.

“When parents want something for their kids to take,” Paul says, “honey seems

 like the best option.”

But what gives honey its healing power? Substances called antioxidants(抗氧化剂) may be part of the answer. All honey contains antioxidants that protect our cells from damage. Studies show that antioxidant levels in the body rise after someone swallows honey.

Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?

A. Sweet solution to kids’ coughing

B. No cough medicines to children

   C. Best treatment for your cold

   D. Cough medicines don’t work

We can learn from Paragraph 2 that coughing ______.

   A. can cure lung and throat diseases

   B. is more harmful to children

C. sometimes does good to people 

   D. helps improve children’s die

During Paul’s experiment, the kids who received treatment __________.

   A. seemed much worse than before

B. had no idea what they swallowed

C. knew they weren’t getting anything

   D. coughed less and slept better

According to the passage, Paul’s experiment proved that ____.

A. honey may have real healing power

B. cough medicines may cause side effect

    C. cough medicines don’t really work

D. buckwheat honey contain more antioxidants