第十七組(建議用時：25分鐘)閱讀理解A

　　The lights go out—another power failure.“Get the candles，” Mom says, and I do.My younger brother and I search every room to collect the tall candles and votives (燭臺) spaced around the house.I hurry from shelf to shelf gathering wax(蠟) sticks in my arms and place them in the living room, t really, I am enjoying the stillness.I like to watch the candle burn and feel that life is simple.I like to look out of the window into an immediate darkness unspoiled by unpleasant light.I love these silent moments when I feel as if I can live the way they lived, the people of the past—the Egyptians，the Pilgrims(朝圣者), ght, in this disturbed state, is the closest a person can get to experiencing the past.

　　So, what was night really like for them? Night, as we know it now, is a pleasant, loving thing compared to the incomprehensible darkness that covered Earth抯 first peoptle.Even its beauty seemed unmatched.

　　What did a farmer抯 family do at night?e Of course, the darkness must have brought them together, forced them into each other抯 company as it has done to us tonight梔eveloped a close relationship in a time of fear and pluncertainty.A fire probably burnt brightly in a central room where the family gathered to talk and relax. Night was a time when men and women were liberated from work and socialized.They had no computers or TVs, and had to make do with books, religion, and conversation.At their bedside, they prayed to God, and felt a sense of security that they were out of the darkness and harm抯 reach.

　　Nevertheless, to run a risk of going outside was sometimes necessary, and the threat of robbers, wolveso，even the ethereal (太空精靈),

　　Did they witness a deep bright blue cloud across heaven? What would it have been like to

　　feel the night, heavy and damp against my back? Would it have taken me, choked me with its powerful hands, separated me from other people? Or would those have been awful dreams, and dreams only?

　　I imagine a young girl, stepping outside her home and into a desert for some air.A cool, earthy smell would greet her.There抯 a sky with millions of stars梖ar more than at

　　person could see today—and there’s the moon.It’s the largest object in the sky, the midnight sun that shines in the world, the traveler抯 torch.It inspires stories of uncertainty, stories of power.I imagine this girl amazed at the moon and stars.If she wa nders too far, she needn抰 worry, for the stars will lead her back home.

　　Bzzz!. The lights return.Everyone cheers and abandons the room, happy that their period of being lonely is over, everyone except me.I pull my candle closer, and stare into the night.The glory is gone; it has been made less bright by street lamps, electric signs, TVs, and all other manners of artificial light.But in those moments, when every light in every house was off，people may have had a taste of the old world.They may finally have touched upon the slight fear，the admiration, and the respect that our ancestors felt for the night.

　　1．We can learn from the passage that the writer thinks the power failure ________．m artificial lights

　　C．brings too much inconvenience to people

　　D．gives people a time to taste the old lifestyle

　　2．By saying “This is boring” (Paragraph 2), the writer’s brother most probably means that ________． sudden power failure

　　B．he lacks interesting books to entertain himself

　　C．the writer’s book is really uninteresting

　　D．it’s dull to see wax fall on the book

　　3．From Paragraph 4, we can learn that the farmers of the past ________． a really simple and boring life

　　B．had nothing in common with modern people

　　C．didn’t have to work as hard as modern people

　　D．might have no choice but to stay indoors at night

　　4．It can be inferred that when they stayed outside at night, the people of the past ________．________．people to explore a desert

　　B．show his love for the beauty of night

　　C．to inform people of what to do at night

　　D．provide suggestions for traveling at night

　　6．Why does the writer not feel happy like others when the lights return?

　　A．Because the stars will lose their power.

　　B．Because he’s already been used to candle light.

　　C．Because the candle must be blown off right away.

　　D．Because he’s cut off from his spellbound journey into the past.

　　B

　　By today’s standards, my mobile phone is pretty rubbish.It’s a Nokia 1616.If that doesn’t mean much to you (it’s not the kind of phone you see advertised on television), all you need to know is that it抯 a small, not very heavy device with which you can send and receive tel

　　ephone calls and text messages.It also has a very handy torch on the top for when you can抰 find your keys, or when you drop something on the floor in the cinema.Other than that, my phone doesn抰 do much.Well, it has an alarm, and it probably has a cal Aculator and things like that, but it抯 nothing compared to a smartphone.Why would I wa nt one of those?

　　I have often been told that the big advantage of having a smartphone is that “you can do everything with them！” But when was the last time you saw someone doing “everything” with a smartphone? Okay, ome on my laptop.

　　As far as I can tell, the best thing about having a smartphone is that you can be connected to the Internet all the time.Don抰 get me wrong, I love the Internet, but I just don抰 see the point of constantly being online.I can抰 remember tthehe last time I received a Facebook update which was so very urgent that I had to read it as soon as it appeared, and I can抰 imagine ever having a job which was so important that I would need to read work? related emails immediately.I would think that if someone needed me urgently, they would just ring me rather than send an email.And my trusty Nokia can manage that.

　　One of the most peculiar effects of the smartphone is, in my opinion, the newly璮ound addiction to maps and navigationl(導(dǎo)航) systems.Is there anything more boring than knowing exactly where you are all of the time? How do you get to know an area if you don’t get

　　lost there a few times? And if you are dependant on online maps, what happens to those great places you find just by chance? You can’t exactly find out from google maps the journey from “here” to “that hidden cafe with the tasty-looking cakes”， or to “that pond next to the church which looks really pretty in the evening sun”. It is, of course, true that we all occasionally need to be pointed in the right direction, but I find that there are often real life humans you can ask.

　　There are many benefits of having a very basic mobile phone, like the fact that it costs me about twenty pounds, and that I don’t have to worry too much about it being stolen.But the main benefit has to be the fact that it provides me with the world’s greatest excuse for my bad habits.Whether it’s turning up late to events, or getting lost on a trip, or missing buses or trains, or forgetting about an appointment at work, I’m pretty sure I’m covered with the following explanation：“I’m really sorry.I don’t have a smartphone.”________．ke calls and text messages

　　8．It can be inferred from the above passage that ________．onnected to the net

　　D．a(chǎn) Facebook update is usually very important

　　9．According to the passage, if you use navigation systems, you may ________．e persuaded to eat in a certain cafe

　　D．be misled to a totally wrong place

　　10．To the writer, one benefit of having a basic mobile phone is that ________．t is stolen

　　C．it can be used as an excuse for his bad habits

　　D．it can save him the trouble of catching trains

　　11．The writer’s purpose for writing this article is to ________.

　　A．explain why he doesn’t want a smartphone

　　B．warn readers of the risks of using smartphones

　　C．complain about the troubles caused by smartphones

　　D．inform readers of the latest development of mobile phones

　　閱讀理解

　　A

　　1．解析：選D。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第二段中的“I love these silent moments when I feel as if I

　　can live the way they lived，the people of the past—the Egyptians，the

　　Pilgrims(朝圣者)．..”，并結(jié)合最后一段倒數(shù)第二句“But in those

　　moments，when every light

　　in every house was off，people may have had a

　　taste of the old world”可知，停電給人們提供了反思并品味舊時生活方式的時間。故選D。

　　2．解析：選A。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第二段前三句“‘This is boring，’he says.A drop of wax

　　falls on my book.‘I know，’I say，but really，I am enjoying the

　　stillness.”，并結(jié)合第一段最后一句“A sigh escapes my brother’s lips.”可知，作者非常喜歡停電時的寂靜，而他的哥哥在停電時感到很無聊，并為此而嘆息，因此作者的哥哥不喜歡突然的停電。故選A。

　　3．解析：選D。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第四段第二句中的“Of course，the darkness must have

　　brought them together，forced them into each other’s company as it has done

　　to us tonight”，并結(jié)合下文內(nèi)容可知，在過去，晚上沒有電，外面漆黑一片，農(nóng)民也許除了待在室內(nèi)別無選擇。故選D。

　　4．解析：選C。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第五段第一句“Nevertheless，to run a risk of going outside

　　was sometimes necessary,

　　and the threat of robbers,

　　wolves,

　　even

　　the

　　ethereal(太空精靈)，was present.”可知，有時晚上外出是難免的，需要面臨強盜、狼等的威脅，因此過去的人們晚上出門可能心存恐懼。故選C。

　　5．解析：選B。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第六段第三句“There’s a sky with millions of stars—far

　　more than a person could see today—and there’s the moon.”以及對本段的整體理解可知，夜晚的天空繁星點點，那是一個非常美麗的景象。由此可知，作者很喜歡夜晚的美麗。故選B。

　　6．解析：選D。推理判斷題。根據(jù)最后一段第四句“I pull my candle closer，and stare into the

　　night.”以及本段最后兩句可知，來電之后大家都?xì)g呼起來，但是作者卻高興不起來，因為突然的來電打斷了他穿越到過去的思緒，因此D項與題意相符。故選D。

　　B

　　7．解析：選D。細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第一段第三句中“...all you need to know is that it’s a

　　small，not very heavy device with which you can send and receive telephone

　　calls and text messages.”可知，作者使用Nokia 1616主要是來打電話和發(fā)短信的。故D項正確。

　　8．解析：選B。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第二段最后兩句“...they are used for checking social

　　networking sites，playing games，and receiving and replying to emails... just doing all of those things at home on my laptop.”可推知，智能手機和筆記本電腦有許多相同的功能。故B項正確。

　　9．解析：選A。細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第四段第四句“And if you are dependant on online maps,

　　what happens to those great places you find just by chance？”可知，導(dǎo)航儀會使你錯失一些偶然發(fā)現(xiàn)的好地方。故A項正確。

　　10．解析：選C。細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)最后一段第二句“But the main benefit has to be the fact

　　that it provides me with the world’s greatest excuse for my bad habits.”可知，擁有非智能手機的好處之一是可以為自己的壞習(xí)慣找借口。故C項正確。

　　11．解析：選A。寫作意圖題。根據(jù)第一段最后一句“Why would I want one of those？”和最后一段最后一句“Whether it’s turning up late to events，or getting lost on a

　　trip...the following explanation：‘I’m really sorry.I don’t have a

　　smartphone.’”以及全文內(nèi)容可知，文章旨在告訴讀者作者為什么不想要智能手機。故A項正確。

　　第十七組(建議用時：25分鐘)閱讀理解A

　　The lights go out—another power failure.“Get the candles，” Mom says, and I do.My younger brother and I search every room to collect the tall candles and votives (燭臺) spaced around the house.I hurry from shelf to shelf gathering wax(蠟) sticks in my arms and place them in the living room, t really, I am enjoying the stillness.I like to watch the candle burn and feel that life is simple.I like to look out of the window into an immediate darkness unspoiled by unpleasant light.I love these silent moments when I feel as if I can live the way they lived, the people of the past—the Egyptians，the Pilgrims(朝圣者), ght, in this disturbed state, is the closest a person can get to experiencing the past.

　　So, what was night really like for them? Night, as we know it now, is a pleasant, loving thing compared to the incomprehensible darkness that covered Earth抯 first peoptle.Even its beauty seemed unmatched.

　　What did a farmer抯 family do at night?e Of course, the darkness must have brought them together, forced them into each other抯 company as it has done to us tonight梔eveloped a close relationship in a time of fear and pluncertainty.A fire probably burnt brightly in a central room where the family gathered to talk and relax. Night was a time when men and women were liberated from work and socialized.They had no computers or TVs, and had to make do with books, religion, and conversation.At their bedside, they prayed to God, and felt a sense of security that they were out of the darkness and harm抯 reach.

　　Nevertheless, to run a risk of going outside was sometimes necessary, and the threat of robbers, wolveso，even the ethereal (太空精靈),

　　Did they witness a deep bright blue cloud across heaven? What would it have been like to

　　feel the night, heavy and damp against my back? Would it have taken me, choked me with its powerful hands, separated me from other people? Or would those have been awful dreams, and dreams only?

　　I imagine a young girl, stepping outside her home and into a desert for some air.A cool, earthy smell would greet her.There抯 a sky with millions of stars梖ar more than at

　　person could see today—and there’s the moon.It’s the largest object in the sky, the midnight sun that shines in the world, the traveler抯 torch.It inspires stories of uncertainty, stories of power.I imagine this girl amazed at the moon and stars.If she wa nders too far, she needn抰 worry, for the stars will lead her back home.

　　Bzzz!. The lights return.Everyone cheers and abandons the room, happy that their period of being lonely is over, everyone except me.I pull my candle closer, and stare into the night.The glory is gone; it has been made less bright by street lamps, electric signs, TVs, and all other manners of artificial light.But in those moments, when every light in every house was off，people may have had a taste of the old world.They may finally have touched upon the slight fear，the admiration, and the respect that our ancestors felt for the night.

　　1．We can learn from the passage that the writer thinks the power failure ________．m artificial lights

　　C．brings too much inconvenience to people

　　D．gives people a time to taste the old lifestyle

　　2．By saying “This is boring” (Paragraph 2), the writer’s brother most probably means that ________． sudden power failure

　　B．he lacks interesting books to entertain himself

　　C．the writer’s book is really uninteresting

　　D．it’s dull to see wax fall on the book

　　3．From Paragraph 4, we can learn that the farmers of the past ________． a really simple and boring life

　　B．had nothing in common with modern people

　　C．didn’t have to work as hard as modern people

　　D．might have no choice but to stay indoors at night

　　4．It can be inferred that when they stayed outside at night, the people of the past ________．________．people to explore a desert

　　B．show his love for the beauty of night

　　C．to inform people of what to do at night

　　D．provide suggestions for traveling at night

　　6．Why does the writer not feel happy like others when the lights return?

　　A．Because the stars will lose their power.

　　B．Because he’s already been used to candle light.

　　C．Because the candle must be blown off right away.

　　D．Because he’s cut off from his spellbound journey into the past.

　　B

　　By today’s standards, my mobile phone is pretty rubbish.It’s a Nokia 1616.If that doesn’t mean much to you (it’s not the kind of phone you see advertised on television), all you need to know is that it抯 a small, not very heavy device with which you can send and receive tel

　　ephone calls and text messages.It also has a very handy torch on the top for when you can抰 find your keys, or when you drop something on the floor in the cinema.Other than that, my phone doesn抰 do much.Well, it has an alarm, and it probably has a cal Aculator and things like that, but it抯 nothing compared to a smartphone.Why would I wa nt one of those?

　　I have often been told that the big advantage of having a smartphone is that “you can do everything with them！” But when was the last time you saw someone doing “everything” with a smartphone? Okay, ome on my laptop.

　　As far as I can tell, the best thing about having a smartphone is that you can be connected to the Internet all the time.Don抰 get me wrong, I love the Internet, but I just don抰 see the point of constantly being online.I can抰 remember tthehe last time I received a Facebook update which was so very urgent that I had to read it as soon as it appeared, and I can抰 imagine ever having a job which was so important that I would need to read work? related emails immediately.I would think that if someone needed me urgently, they would just ring me rather than send an email.And my trusty Nokia can manage that.

　　One of the most peculiar effects of the smartphone is, in my opinion, the newly璮ound addiction to maps and navigationl(導(dǎo)航) systems.Is there anything more boring than knowing exactly where you are all of the time? How do you get to know an area if you don’t get

　　lost there a few times? And if you are dependant on online maps, what happens to those great places you find just by chance? You can’t exactly find out from google maps the journey from “here” to “that hidden cafe with the tasty-looking cakes”， or to “that pond next to the church which looks really pretty in the evening sun”. It is, of course, true that we all occasionally need to be pointed in the right direction, but I find that there are often real life humans you can ask.

　　There are many benefits of having a very basic mobile phone, like the fact that it costs me about twenty pounds, and that I don’t have to worry too much about it being stolen.But the main benefit has to be the fact that it provides me with the world’s greatest excuse for my bad habits.Whether it’s turning up late to events, or getting lost on a trip, or missing buses or trains, or forgetting about an appointment at work, I’m pretty sure I’m covered with the following explanation：“I’m really sorry.I don’t have a smartphone.”________．ke calls and text messages

　　8．It can be inferred from the above passage that ________．onnected to the net

　　D．a(chǎn) Facebook update is usually very important

　　9．According to the passage, if you use navigation systems, you may ________．e persuaded to eat in a certain cafe

　　D．be misled to a totally wrong place

　　10．To the writer, one benefit of having a basic mobile phone is that ________．t is stolen

　　C．it can be used as an excuse for his bad habits

　　D．it can save him the trouble of catching trains

　　11．The writer’s purpose for writing this article is to ________.

　　A．explain why he doesn’t want a smartphone

　　B．warn readers of the risks of using smartphones

　　C．complain about the troubles caused by smartphones

　　D．inform readers of the latest development of mobile phones

　　閱讀理解

　　A

　　1．解析：選D。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第二段中的“I love these silent moments when I feel as if I

　　can live the way they lived，the people of the past—the Egyptians，the

　　Pilgrims(朝圣者)．..”，并結(jié)合最后一段倒數(shù)第二句“But in those

　　moments，when every light

　　in every house was off，people may have had a

　　taste of the old world”可知，停電給人們提供了反思并品味舊時生活方式的時間。故選D。

　　2．解析：選A。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第二段前三句“‘This is boring，’he says.A drop of wax

　　falls on my book.‘I know，’I say，but really，I am enjoying the

　　stillness.”，并結(jié)合第一段最后一句“A sigh escapes my brother’s lips.”可知，作者非常喜歡停電時的寂靜，而他的哥哥在停電時感到很無聊，并為此而嘆息，因此作者的哥哥不喜歡突然的停電。故選A。

　　3．解析：選D。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第四段第二句中的“Of course，the darkness must have

　　brought them together，forced them into each other’s company as it has done

　　to us tonight”，并結(jié)合下文內(nèi)容可知，在過去，晚上沒有電，外面漆黑一片，農(nóng)民也許除了待在室內(nèi)別無選擇。故選D。

　　4．解析：選C。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第五段第一句“Nevertheless，to run a risk of going outside

　　was sometimes necessary,

　　and the threat of robbers,

　　wolves,

　　even

　　the

　　ethereal(太空精靈)，was present.”可知，有時晚上外出是難免的，需要面臨強盜、狼等的威脅，因此過去的人們晚上出門可能心存恐懼。故選C。

　　5．解析：選B。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第六段第三句“There’s a sky with millions of stars—far

　　more than a person could see today—and there’s the moon.”以及對本段的整體理解可知，夜晚的天空繁星點點，那是一個非常美麗的景象。由此可知，作者很喜歡夜晚的美麗。故選B。

　　6．解析：選D。推理判斷題。根據(jù)最后一段第四句“I pull my candle closer，and stare into the

　　night.”以及本段最后兩句可知，來電之后大家都?xì)g呼起來，但是作者卻高興不起來，因為突然的來電打斷了他穿越到過去的思緒，因此D項與題意相符。故選D。

　　B

　　7．解析：選D。細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第一段第三句中“...all you need to know is that it’s a

　　small，not very heavy device with which you can send and receive telephone

　　calls and text messages.”可知，作者使用Nokia 1616主要是來打電話和發(fā)短信的。故D項正確。

　　8．解析：選B。推理判斷題。根據(jù)第二段最后兩句“...they are used for checking social

　　networking sites，playing games，and receiving and replying to emails... just doing all of those things at home on my laptop.”可推知，智能手機和筆記本電腦有許多相同的功能。故B項正確。

　　9．解析：選A。細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第四段第四句“And if you are dependant on online maps,

　　what happens to those great places you find just by chance？”可知，導(dǎo)航儀會使你錯失一些偶然發(fā)現(xiàn)的好地方。故A項正確。

　　10．解析：選C。細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)最后一段第二句“But the main benefit has to be the fact

　　that it provides me with the world’s greatest excuse for my bad habits.”可知，擁有非智能手機的好處之一是可以為自己的壞習(xí)慣找借口。故C項正確。

　　11．解析：選A。寫作意圖題。根據(jù)第一段最后一句“Why would I want one of those？”和最后一段最后一句“Whether it’s turning up late to events，or getting lost on a

　　trip...the following explanation：‘I’m really sorry.I don’t have a

　　smartphone.’”以及全文內(nèi)容可知，文章旨在告訴讀者作者為什么不想要智能手機。故A項正確。