13.They are trying to design generations that will produce high-pressure steam as _ as possible.

1、In China it is relatively usual to ask people their age， but in the West this question is generally regarded as impolite. This is particularly true _11()women， and even more so if the inquirer is a man. However， it is very _12()to ask children their age， and some adults may not mind being asked either. In fact， some elderly people are quite happy to _13()their age， especially if they feel they look young for their age. Nevertheless， it is not very wise to ask a direct question like “How old are you?”.If elderly people want to talk about their age， they may easily14()_the topic themselves， and ask the other person to guess how old they are . They normally expect to be complimented on their youthfulness， though rather than()15() that they look very old. Even tbough Westerners do not usually ask people directly how old they are， this does not _16() that they are not interested to know how old other people are. They may ask _17()for the information， or else they may try to 18() the topic indirectly. Sometimes discussions about educational_19()and the number of years of working experience may provide some clues， but this is not always the 20().11. ( )

A. of

B. to

C. for

D. with

3、A centuries-old tradition， illustrated in a modern children＇s book， link the sweetness of honey with the joy of learning to read. ＇The grandpa held a jar of honey so that all the family could see.He then dipped a spoon into it and put some honey on the cover of a small book. The little girl had just turned five.”Stand up， little one， ＇he asked the girl softly.＇l did this for your mother， your/uncles， your older brother， and now you!’ Then. He handed the book to her.Taste!＇ She touched the honey with her finger and put it into her mouth.＇What＇s that taste?＇ the grandma asked. The little girl answered， ＇ Sweet!＇ Then all of the family said in a single voice， Yes， and so is knowledge， but knowledge is from the bee that made that sweet honev. vou have to ao after it throuah the pages of a book!＇ The little girl knew that the promise to read was at last hers.Soon she was going to learn to read.”This is the beginning of a profoundly moving children＇s book entitled Thank You， Mr. Falker. In this book， Patricia Polacco writes of her own passion to read， inspired by the honey on the book.It wasn＇t until fifth grade that she met her beloved teacher who provided the help that she needed to finally unlock>the magic of the written word. Reading this book， we are in fact acquainted with some enduring traditions of child education that stress the importance of verbal capacity at a very early age. The child learning to read is admitted into a collective memory by way of books. And with the printed words that are active with meaning， the child becomes acquainted with a common past which he or she renews， to a greater or lesser degree， in every reading. Much as the author of the book Thank You， Mr. Falker puts it， “ Almost as if it were magic， or as if 1ight poured into her brain， the words and sentences started to take shape on the page as they never hzd before···And she understood the whole thing.··Then she went into the living room and found the book on a shelf， the very book that her grandpa had shown her so many years ago.She spooned honey on the cover and tasted the sweetness···Then she held the book， honey and all， close to her chest. She could feel tears roll down her cheeks， but they weren＇t tears of sadness-she was happy， so very happy.”2.It can be inferred from the passage that()( )

A. the girl＇s mother and uncles were good scholars

B. Mr. Falker helped Patricia Polacco write her book for children

C. the honey-on-the-book tradition has been practiced for many generations

D. the girl who tasted the honey on the book writes the book Thank you， Mr. Falker

2、It is often said that politeness costs nothing. In fact， it seems that a little more politeness could save businesses £ 5 billion every year. Frequently hearing the phrase” thank you” or” well done” means the same to staff as modest pay rise. Praise and encouragement also makes employees more likely to work hard and stay in their jobs. In this way the business companies can save the cost of finding new employees. A third of 1， 000 workers surveyed by a consulting firm said they did not get thanked at all when they did well—and a further third said they were not thanked enough. In both cases， staff said they felt undervalued， meaning they were less likely to exert themselves and were more likely to look for employment elsewhere. The result of the survey shows that there would be around f 5.2 billion loss in productivity if the employees felt less appreciated.According to the firm， praising staff has the same positive effect as a 1 per cent pay rise—and works out much cheaper for bosses. Three out of four employees said that regular acknowledgement by their bosses was important to them， but only a quarter said they were actually owen as much praise as they felt they needed. The survey found that those in blue-collar and manual jobs were less likely to be given any recognition for doing well. But it seems that they most need such praise. In regional terms， Scottish staff felt most undervalued.Four out of ten workers said they were never thanked and eight out of ten said they would like more praise. However， workers in the North-East are less impressed by being praised by the boss， as only 69 per cent said they felt the need to be told “well done”regularly.Older employees and women need the most reassurance， according to psychologist Averil Leimon. She said that words of praise did more than creating a pleasant place to work—they could even promote profits.4.The survey shows that those who do not pay much attention to praise are()( )

A. staff from Scotland

B. workers in North-East

C. older and women employees

D. employees of blue-collar and physical jobs

3、Believe it or not， optical illusion(错觉)can cut highway crashes. Japan is a case in point. It has reduced automobile crashes on some roads by nearly 75percent using a simple optical illusion. Bent stripes， called chevrons (人字形)， painted on the roads make drivers think that they are driving faster than they really are， and thus drivers slow down. Now the American Automobile Association Foundation for Traffic Safety in Washington D.C. is planning to repeat Japan＇s success. Starting next year， the foundation will paint chevrons and other patterns of stripes on selected roads around the country to test how well the patterns reduce highway crashes. Excessive speed plays a major role in as much as one fifth of all fatal traffic accidents， according to the foundation will conduct its tests in areas where speed - related hazards are the greatest - curves， exit slopes， traffic circles， and bridges. Some studies suggest that straight， horizontal bars painted across roads can initially cut the average speed of drivers in half. However， traffic often returns to full speed within months as drivers become used to seeing the painted bars. Chevrons， scientists say， not only give drivers the impression that they are driving faster than they really are but also make a lane appear to be narrower.The result is a longer lasting reduction in highway speed and the number of traffic accidents.4.The American Automobile Association Foundation for Traffic Safety plans to()( )

A. try out the Japanese method in certain areas

B. change the road signs across the country

C. replace straight， horizontal bars with chevrons

D. repeat the Japanese road patterns

30.She was very interested in the work of certain charities， and made a regular()to them.( )

A. subscription

B. contribution

C. allowance

D. tribute

31.She () everything else andconcentrated on the task before her.

A. set off

B. set back

C. set aside

D. set up

4、Many people think New York is a noisy city. In fact， scientists who study noise say that the average noise level in New York is 72.5 decibels. This is a little louder than normal conversation， which is 65 decibels. The noise level is the result of so many people and cars in the same area. Now even the insides of taxis are noisy. When you get into a taxi， you hear the voice of a well-known singer sports reporter， or Broadway actress giving instructions. That＇s right. The voice of a famous person tells you what to do.One popular singer gives this message:” Cats have nine lives， but you have only one， to fasten your seat beat!”Other voices say things such as “Don＇t forget to collect all your belongings.”【People often leave hats， umbrella， and bags in taxis. 】 There is a good reason for the messages. There are more than 12， 000 cabs in New York， and every year taxis get into more than 15， 000 accidents. In an accident， people who don＇t wear seat belts hit the partition， the glass wall separating the driver and passengers in the taxi. They can hurt their foreheads or break their noses or chins. Every year， about 11， 000 people are injured in this way. Many people are annoyed by the voices. Cabdrivers in particular dislike the messages.”I play the messages 12 hours a day.I hear the same voices 60 times a day. It makes me crazy， “ says Atnis， a 45-year-old cabdriver.”But if I don＇t play the messages， I get fined 100 dollars.” A lot of passengers complained， too.”It＇s too much noise， “ says a passenger， “l asked the driver to turn off the message， but he said he can＇t.” Other people think the voices are a great idea. One taxi driver says， “ People like to hear the famous voices， and they put on their seat belts more often.” And passengers from out of town really like the idea.”Most of the time， taxi drivers are in a bad mood， “says Melanie Benton， who visits New York often on business， “It＇s nice to hear a cheerful voice when you get into a cab.”5.The author of this passage seems to believe that()( )

A. Now York is the noisiest city in the U.S.

B. messages played by taxi drivers are useless

C. messages in taxis should be voiced by famous people

D. voices from taxis partly caused the high noise level of New York

39.We must ()that the telegram arrives in time.

A. secure

B. ensure

C. assure

D. certify

16.Scarcely had he gone out()

A. that it started to snow

B. than it started to snow

C. when it started to snow

D. and it started to snow

42.It is highly desirable that a new president ()( )for this college.

A. appointed

B. be appointed

C. was appointed

D. is appointed