第三部分：阅读理解（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）
请认真阅读下列短文，从短文后各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

A
When women sit together to watch a movie on TV, they usually talk simultaneously（同时的）about a variety of subjects, including children, men, careers and what' s happening in their lives. When groups of men and women watch a movie together, the men usually end up telling the women to shut up. Men can either talk or watch the screen -- they can' t do both -- and they don' t understand that women can. Besides, women consider that the point of all getting together is to have a good time and develop relationships -- not just to sit there like couch potatoes staring at the screen.

During the ad breaks, a man often asks a woman to explain the plot and tell him where the relationship between the characters is going. He is unable, unlike women, to read the subtle body language signals that reveal how the characters are feeling emotionally. Since women originally spent their days with the other women and children in the group, they developed the ability to communicate successfully in order to maintain relationships. For a woman, speech continues to have such a clear purpose: to build relationships and make friends. For men, to talk is to relate the facts.

Men see the telephone as a communication tool for sending facts and information to other people, but a woman sees it as a means of bonding. A woman can spend two weeks on vacation with her girlfriend and, when she returns home, telephone the same girlfriend and talk for another two hours.

There is no convincing evidence that social conditioning, the fact that girls' mothers talked them more, is the reason why girls talk more than boys. Psychiatrist Dr Michael Lewis, author Social Behaviour and Language Acquisition, conducted experiments that found mothers talked to and looked at, baby girls more often than baby boys. Scientific evidence shows parents res the brain bias of their children. Since a girl' s brain is better organized to send and receive speech ,we therefore talk to them more. Consequently, mothers who try to talk to their sons are usually pointed to receive only short grunts in reply.

56.While watching TV with others, women Usually talk a lot because they
A. are afraid of awkward silence with their families and friends
B. can both talk and watch the screen at the Same time
C. think they can have a good time and develop relationships
D. have to explain the plot and body language to their husbands

57. After a vacation with her girlfriend, a woman would talk to her again on the phone for hours in order to .
A. experience the happy time again B. keep a close tie with her
C. recommend her a new scenic spot D. remind her of something forgotten

58. What does the author want to tell us most?
A. Women' s brains are better organized for language and communication
B. Women love to talk because they are more sociable than men.
C. Men do not like talking because they rely more on facts.
D. Social conditioning is not the reason why women love talking.

59. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A. Women Are Socially Trained to Talk B. Talking Maintains Relationships
C, Women Love to Talk D. Men Talk Differently from Women

B
It was the first mow of winter -- an exciting day for every, child but not for most tether. Up until now, l had been able to dress myself for recess(课间休息), but today I would need some help. Miss Finlayson, my kindergarten teacher at Princess Elizabeth School near Hamilton, Ontario, had been through first snow days ,tony times in her long career, but I think struggled still remember this one.

I managed to get into my wool snow pants. But I straggled with my jacket because it didn’t fit well. It was a hand-me-down from my brother, and it made me wonder why I had to wear his ugly clothes. At least my hat and matching scarf were mine, and they were quite pretty. Finally it was time to have Miss Finlayson help me with my boots. In her calm, motherly voice she said, "By the end of winter, you will be able to put on own boots. “ I didn’t realize at the time that this was more a statement of hope than of confidence.

I handed her my boots and stuck out my foot. Like most children, I expected the adult to do an the work. After mush wiggling and pushing, she managed to get first one into place and then, with a sigh, worked the second one on too.

I announced，“They’re on the wrong feet．”With the grace that only experience can bring，she struggled to get the boots off and went through the joyless task of putting them on again．Then I said，“These aren’t my boots．you know．”As she pulled the offending boots from my feet，she still managed to look both helpful and interested．Once they were off．I said，“They are my brother’s boots．My mother makes me wear them，and I hate them!” Somehow，from long years of practice，she managed to act as though I wasn’t an annoying little girl．She pushed and shoved．less gently this time，and the boots were returned to their proper place on my feet．With a great sigh of relief，seeing the end of her struggle with me，she asked，“Now，where are your gloves?’’

I looked into her eyes and said．“I didn’t want to lose them．so I put them into the toes of my boots．”

60．According to the passage，the little girl got from her brother．
A．the wool snow pants and the jacket B．the jacket and the boots
C．the jacket and the hat D．the boots and the gloves

61．What made it so hard for the teacher to help the little girl put her boots on?
A．The gloves in the toes of the boots． B．The slowness of the teacher．
C．The wrong size of the boots． D．The unwillingness of the girl．

62．It can be inferred that before the little girl finally went out to enjoy the first snow of winter，the teacher had to help her put on her boots ．
A．once B．twice C．three times D．four times

63．Which of the following sentences from the text BEST indicates that the teacher is very considerate?
A．In her calm，motherly voice she said，“By the end of winter，…”(Paragraph 2)
B．With the grace that only experience can bring，she struggled to…(Paragraph 4)
C．…．she still managed to look both helpful and interested．(Paragraph 4)
D．…，she managed to act as though I wasn’t an annoying little girl.(Paragraph 4)       

C   

Transport Guide
The Brisbane City Council(BCC)is responsible for bus and ferry services with in the city limits and suburbs．Most buses will either arrive at the city or an interchange where connecting buses can be caught．BCC buses operate from 5：30 am to 11：00 pm Monday to Thursday and 5：30 am t0 12：00 am on Fridays .On weekends and public holidays buses operate less frequently Pre—paid bus tickets can be purchased from the QUT (Queensland University of Technology)bookshop，the campus newsagency．most other newsagencies and general stores，and any BCC Customer Service Centre．Short-term students at QUT cannot use their ID cards to gain a discount fare on BCC public transport．You will need to buy an adult ticket to travel．Bus fares are dependent on the number of zones you have to travel．There are several types of tickets：

Single：one way ticket to reach your destination，including transfers within 2 hours．
Daily: unlimited travel within the zones．
Off-peak’ Daily：discounted unlimited travel between 9：00 am and 3：30 pm and after 7：00 pm

Monday to Friday, and all day on weekends and public holidays．
Weekly：unlimited travel within the zones for one week from the date of issue．
Monthly：unlimited travel within the zones for one calendar month from the date of issue．
Ten-trip Saver: 10 trips at any time within the zones on buses and ferries only．

Transport routes．timetables and fare information are available from:Public Transport Information Centre 

69 Ann Street (corner of George St)

Brisbane City

Phone l3 12 30(Transport Information Service)

64．The transport guide above is most likely provided by ．
A．Public Transport Information Centre
B．the Brisbane City Council
C．Queensland University of Technology．
D．BCC Customer Service Centres

65．We can learn from the passage that ．
A．buses are scheduled as usual on weekends and public holidays
B．regular students at QUT need to buy adult tickets
C．Pre—paid tickets can be bought from the Public Transport Information Centre
D．Ten-trip Savers can be used at off-peak time

66．An exchange student staying at QUT for five days has to travel between zones every day．What type of ticket would he probably buy?
A．Single． B．Weekly． C．Off-peak Daily． D．Ten—trip Saver．

D
Have you ever noticed the colour of the water in a river or stream after a heavy rainfall? What do you think caused this change in colour? It is soil that has been washed into the river from the riverbank or from t}le nearby fields．

Components of Soft

Soil is made up of a number of layers(层)，each having its own distinctive colour and texture．The upper layer is known as the litter．It acts like a blanket．limiting temperature changes and reducing water loss．The topsoil layer is made up of small particles of rock mixed with rotten plant and animal matter called humus(腐殖质)，which is black and gives the topsoil its dark colour．This layer is usually rich in nutrients，oxygen，and water．Below the topsoil is the subsoil，a layer that contains more stones mixed with only small amounts of organic matter．This layer is lighter in colour because of the lack of humus．Beneath the soil lies a layer of bedrock．

Soil forms from the bottom up．Over time bedrock is attacked by rain, wind，frost, and snow．It is gradually broken down into smaller particles in a process called weathering．Plants begin to grow，and rotten materials enrich the topsoil．Most of the soil in Eastern Canada．for example．Was formed from weathered rock that was exposed when the ice disappeared l2．000 years ag0．

Water Beneath the Soil

Surface water collects and flows above the ground in lakes．ponds．and rivers．Once in the soil or rock，it is called groundwater．Gravity pulls groundwater through the soil in a process called percolation(渗透)．Eventually the water reaches a layer called the water table．Under this is bedrock through which water cannot percolate．

As water percolates downward，it dissolves organic matter and minerals from the soil and carries them to deeper layers．This causes a serious problem because plants require these nutrients for growth.

Soil pH

Soil can be acidic．neutral．or basic．The pH of the soil is determined by the nature of the rock
from which it was formed．and by the nature of t}le plants that grow and rot in it．

The acidity of rain and snow can lower the pH of the groundwater that enters the soil．By burning fossil fuels such as coal，oil and gasoline，humans have been contributing to higher levels of acidity in many soils．When fossil fuels are burned．gases are released into the air and then fall back to earth as acid rain．Acid soil increases出e problem of carrying nutrients to lower soil levels．As nutrients are removed，soil is less fertile．Plants grow more slowly in acidic soil，and also become easily attacked by diseases．

67．The layer of soil that provides necessary nutrients for plant growth is called．
A．1itter B．topsoil C．humus D．subsoil

68．According to the text．which of the following is NOT true?
A．Soil forms from weathered rock on the earth surface．
B．The deeper layer of soil is darker in colour than t}le surface soil．
C．Air pollution is partially responsible for acid soil．
D．Groundwater tends to carry away nutrients for plant growth．

69．We can infer from the passage that the water table lies ．
A．between the topsoil layer and the subsoil layer
B．in the subsoil layer above bedrock
C．between the subsoil layer and bedrock
D．in the bedrock layer beneath the subsoil

70．The underlined word “dissolve” is used to express the idea that organic matter and minerals from soil are ．
A．rushed away into the river
B．cleaned and purified by water
C．destroyed and carried away by water
D．mixed with water and become part of it