1、阅读下列四篇短文，从每小题后所给的A,B,C或D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。Kingda Ka, the tallest roller coaster （过山车） on Earth, drops its passengers a life-flashing 418 feet. Ferrari Worlds Formula Rossa, the fastest, takes riders breath away at speeds of up to150 mph. BRC Imagination Arts, a Southern California design firm, has propos
2、ed something entirely new: a ride that creates the sensation of zero gravity for up to eight seconds at a time.BRC drew its concept from the Vomit Comet, the plane NASA uses to train astronauts. Its proposed theme-park ride would travel up and then back, similar to the existing Superman: Escape from
3、 Krypton coaster at Six Flags Magic Mountain in California. But unlike Superman and other open-car coasters, the vomit-comet ride would be fully enclosed. Riders would enjoy the illusion of floating within a stable chamber.To create that illusion, a special motor system would speed coasters up the t
4、rack with great precision（精确度）. As the coaster approached a top speed of more than 100 mph, it would suddenly and ever so slightly slow downjust enough to throw the passengers up from their seats and then quickly adjust its speed to fly in formation with and around the passengers. As the coaster rea
5、ched the top of the track and began to drop back down, the computer system would continue to match its speed to that of the falling passengers, extending the sensation of weightlessness for several additional seconds, and finally rapidly slow down to a stop back at the base station.Roller coasters t
6、ypically cost no more than $30 million, but the zero-gravity ride would cost $50 million or more, to a large extent because the precision-response propulsion system（推进系统） is so complex. But if someone were to write a check today, Rogers says, his company could be sending riders on weightless journey
7、s by the end of 2014.1. What makes BRCs coaster different?A. Its the tallest roller coaster in the States.B. Its the fastest roller coaster on Earth.C. It can bring a sensation of zero gravity to its riders.D. It is a NASA product.2. Why would people in BRCs coaster have an illusion of floating in t
8、he chamber?A. Because its designed with the inspiration of Superman.B. Because a special functioning motor system is applied to it.C. Because the coaster can approach a top speed of more than 100 mph.D. Because the coaster would cost $20 million more than normal ones.3. At what point could a rider b
9、egin to feel weightless?A. When the coaster reduced its speed immediately after it reached its top speed.B. When the coaster began to increase its speed.C. When the coaster reduced its speed to a stop back at the base station.D. When the coaster reached the top of the track.4. What can we infer from
10、 the passage?A. BRC is a famous design firm.B. You feel like a superman when riding BRC coaster.C. BRCs budget cant make the project complete until 2014.D. Kingda Ka and Ferrari Worlds Formula Rossa will close down soon.【参考答案】14、CBAC阅读理解。 I stood outside New Yorks Madison Square Garden and just star
11、ed, almost speechless. I was a farm boy from County Kilkenny, a child who some thought would never walk, let alone go as far as I had in the world. From the day I was born, there was a problem. The doctors at the Dublin hospital told my parents I had phocomelia, a deformity that affected both legs b
12、elow the knee, which were outward and shorter than normal and each foot had just three toes. Life was tough. I couldnt stand, much less walk. I rarely, left the farmhouse-and then only in someones arms. Mam bundled me up whenever she took me to town, no matter the season. “The world will see him whe
13、n he can walk,” she told Dad. “And he will walk.” Mam devoted herself to helping me. She tried everything to get me on my feet. When I was three, she and Dad took me to a clinic in Dublin. A few weeks later we returned to Dublin with my artificial limbs (肢). Back home I practiced walking with my new
14、 limbs. “Theres nothing anyone can do but you cant,” Mam said. “You and I are going to walk through town.” The next day Mam dressed me in my finest clothes. She wore a summer dress and fixed her hair and makeup. Dad drove us to the church. We stepped out of the car. Mam took my hand. “Hold your head
15、 up high, now, Ronan,” she said. We walked 300 meters to the post office. It was the farthest Id walked, and I was sweating from the effort. Then we left the post office and continued down the street, Mares eyes shining with a mothers pride. That night, back on our farm, I lay exhausted on my bed. I
16、t meant nothing, though, compared to what Id done on my walk. Then I began to pursue my dream of singing. And at every step Mams words came back to meRonan, you can do anything anyone else can doand the faith she had in God, who would help me do it. Ive sung from the grandest stages in Europe, to mu
17、sic played by the worlds finest musicians. That night, I stood at the Madison Square Garden, with Mams words chiming in my ears. Then I began singing. I couldnt feel the pulse of the music in my feet, but I felt it deep in my heart, the same place where Mams promise lived.11.What was the problem wit
18、h the author as a baby? A. He was expected unable to walk. B. He was born outward in character. C. He had a problem with listening. D. He was shorter than a normal baby.12 The underlined word “deformity” in the second paragraph most probably means . A. shortcoming B. disadvantage C. disability D. de
19、lay13.Why did Mam dress him and herself in finest clothes? A. To hide their depressed feeling. B. To indicate it an unusual day. C. To show off their clothes. D. To celebrate his successful operation.14.From the story we may conclude that his mother was . A. determined B. stubborn C. generous D. dis
20、tinguished15.According to the writer, what mattered most in his success? A. His consistent effort. B. His talent for music. C. His countless failures. D. His mothers promise.【参考答案】ACBAD阅读理解。Do you know about a series of books that say they are “for dummies”? These American self-help books have been
21、translated into more than thirty-nine languages including Chinese, Arabic, Russian, French, German, Greek and Spanish. “Dummy” is a word for a stupid person. The dummies books are not really for stupid people. They are designed to show people how to do something they may never have tried before, lik
22、e painting a house or learning a language. The books all say in a funny way that they are for dummies, such as World History for Dummies, Rabbits for Dummies, Chinese Cooking for Dummies, and Wedding Planning for Dummies. The first such book, DOS for Dummies, was published in 1991. It helped people
23、learn how to use the DOS operating system for computers. Since then, more than one hundred fifty million dummies books have been sold. The website explains the idea behind the books. It says that they show that people can be taught to do anything. First they can make fun of ideas that are difficult
24、to understand. Then they show how the information can be interesting and easy. The publishers say that the books do not provide more information than necessary. They give readers just enough information to do what they want. They say that the dummies books give the best and easiest way to do somethi
25、ng. And the books use simple and easy language.There are more than one thousand different dummies books. A report in New York Times says that the top-selling dummies books are those that explain technology and personal finance.The publishers say that the best-selling dummies books are those providin
26、g information many people need-like information about diseases, education and cooking. People interested in opera, car repair and wine can also find dummies books to help them. And there are even more dummies books to come. The publishers say that they publish about two hundred new dummies books eve
27、ry year. 16 hich of the following can be the best title of the passage? A. Books for Dummies B. The Easiest, the Best C. Books for Stupid People D. New Ideas Behind the Books 17 ccording to the website, people can _ with the help of dummies books.A. do some personal things B. learn any foreign langu
28、ageC. become expert in cooking D. do anything they want18 The dummies books have been popular because _. A. they provide just what is needed and are easy to understandB. they provide abundant information on the concerning subjectC. people can learn to do anything with just one copyD. people can save
29、 lots of money through self-teaching19 According to New York Times, we know that books on _ sell best. A. diseases and education B. opera and car repairing C. technology and personal finance D. cooking and world history 20 What can we learn from the passage? A. The first dummies book was on Chinese
30、cooking. B. The dummies books will continue to be popular. C. Fifty million different dummies books have been published. D. The simple language was intended for child readers. 【参考答案】ADACB【2014四川省资阳市第一次诊断性考试】阅读表达（共5小题；每小题2分，满分10分）阅读下面短文并回答问题，然后将答案写到答题卡相应的位置上（请注意词数要求）。Brazil has become one of the deve
31、loping worlds great successes at reducing population growth but more by accident than design. While countries such as India have made joint efforts to reduce birth rates, Brazil has had better result without really trying, says George Martine at Harvard. Brazils population growth rate has dropped fr
32、om 2.99% a year between 1951 and 1960 to 1.93% a year between 1981 and 1990, and Brazilian women now have only 2.7 children on average. Martine says this figure may have fallen still further since 1990, an achievement that makes it the envy of many other Third World countries.Martine puts it down to
33、 among other things, soap operas and installment (分期付款) plans introduced in the 1970s. Both played an important, although indirect, role in lowering the birth rate. Brazil is one of the worlds biggest producers of soap operas. Globo, Brazils most popular television network, shows three hours of soap
34、s six nights a week, while three others show at least one hour a night. Most soaps are based on wealthy characters living the high life in big cities.“Although they have never really tried to work in a message towards the problems of reproduction (生育), they describe middle and upper class values: no
35、t many children, different attitudes towards sex, women working,” says Martine. “They sent this image to all parts of Brazil and made people conscious of other patterns of behavior and other values, which were put into a very attractive package.”Meanwhile, the installment plans tried to encourage th
36、e poor to become consumers (消费者). “This led to an enormous change in consumption patterns and consumption was incompatible (不相容的) with unlimited reproduction,” says Martine.56. What is the passage mainly about? (within 8 words)_57. Whats Brazils population growth rate between 1981 and 1990? (within
37、4 words)_58. What are the two main factors in helping Brazil lower its birthrate? (within 6 words)_59. How long does the most popular television network in Brazil show soap operas every week? (within 2 words)_60. What changes have soap operas brought to Brazilians? (within 8 words)_【参考答案】56. Brazil
38、has successfully reduced its population growth.57. 1.93% a year.58. Soap operas and installment plans.59. 18 hours.60. They have changed peoples values and behaviors. / They have gradually changed peoples way of life.二、评分意见1. 意思相符，语法、结构正确，拼写无误，得2分。2. 每题按5个档次给分，依次为0分、0.5分、1分、1.5分和2分。3. 语法与拼写错误，错误1到2个，扣0.5分，3个及3个以上扣1分；相同错误按1个计算。大小写和标点出错原则上不扣分。4. 超出字数扣0.5分。