第二部分：閱讀理解（共兩節，滿分40分）第一節（共15小題；毎小題2分，滿分30分）閱讀下列四篇短文，從每小題后所給的A、B、C、D四個選項中，選出最佳選項，并在答題卡上將該選項涂黑。

A

What brings a nation together? Of the four choices — shared values, language, history, and religion, it’s shared values. In our latest poll (民意調査), seven out of 16 countries chose values as the greatest factor (因索）bringing a nation together, and six preferred language. Both choices scored high in the poll, suggesting that our values and how we express them are closely linked Still, history was not forgotten in some countries, particularly in Mexico and Russia. Even Canada and the United States chose national histories as the second-most important factor uniting their people. The biggest surprise? Not one country picked religion as its top choice.

Respect your elders

In most countries, the oldest generation considered values more important to a nation than did those who are under 45 years old.

Do you speak Canadian?

Language scored lower in Canada than in all other countries polled, perhaps because the country speaks two official languages, French and English.

Church and state

Most people polled do not connect their religious beliefs to their national pride. Religion ranked last in 13 countries — with France scoring it at 1%, the lowest of all.

46. According to the poll, what was the most important factor in bringing a nation together?

A. Language. B. Values. C. History. D. Religion.

47.In which country did language score the lowest in their national pride?

A. Canada. B. Mexico. C. France. D. America.

48.According to the charts, shared values and language were considered equally important in .

A. Australia B. Brazil C. China D. India

B

Three Boys and a Dad

Brad closed the door slowly as Sue left home to visit her mother. Expecting a whole day to relax, he was thinking whether to read the newspaper or watch his favourite TV talk show on his first day off in months. “This will be like a walk in the park,” he’d told his wife. “I’ll look after the kids, and you can go visit your mom.”

Things started well, but just after eight o’clock, his three little “good kids”—Mike, Randy, and Alex—came down the stairs in their night clothes and shouted “breakfast, daddy.” When food had not appeared within thirty seconds, Randy began using his spoon on Alex’s head as if it were a drum. Alex started to shout loudly in time to the beat（節拍）. Mike chanted “Where’s my toast, where’s my toast” in the background. Brad realized his newspaper would have to wait for a few seconds.

Life became worse after breakfast. Mike wore Randy’s underwear on his head. Randy locked himself in the bathroom, while Alex shouted again because he was going to wet his pants. Nobody could find clean socks, although they were before their very eyes. Someone named “Not Me” had spilled a whole glass of orange juice into the basket of clean clothes. Brad knew the talk show had already started.

By ten o’clock, things were out of control. Alex was wondering why the fish in the jar refused his bread and butter. Mike was trying to show off his talent by decorating the kitchen wall with his colour pencils. Randy, thankfully, appeared to be reading quietly in the family room，but closer examination showed that he was eating apple jam straight from the bottle with his hands. Brad realised that the talk show was over and reading would be impossible.

At exactly 11:17, Brad called the daycare centre (日托所）.“I suddenly have to go into work and my wife’s away. Can I bring the boys over in a few minutes?” The answer was obviously “yes” because Brad was smiling.

49. When his wife left home. Brad expected to .

A. go out for a walk in the park B. watch TV talk show with his children C. enjoy his first day off work D. read the newspaper to his children

50. Which of the following did Randy do?

A. Drawing on the wall B. Eating apple jam C. Feeding the fish. D. Reading in a room

51.Why did Brad ask the daycare centre for help?

A. Because he wanted to clean up his house. B. Because he suddenly had to go to his office C. Because he found it hard to manage his boys home. D. Because he had to take his wife back

52. This text is developed .

A. by space B. by comparison C. by process D. by time

C

Eating too much fatty food, exercising too little and smoking can raise your future risk of heart disease. But there is another factor that can cause your heart problems more immediately: the air you breathe.

Previous studies have linked high exposure (暴露）to environmental pollution to an increased risk of heart problem, but two analyses now show that poor air quality can lead to heart attack or stroke (中風）within as little as a few hours after exposure. In one review of the research, scientists found that people exposed to high levels of pollutants (污染物）were up to 5% more likely to suffer a heart attack within days of exposure than those with lower exposure. A separate study of stroke patients showed that even air that the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) considers to be of “moderate” (良好）quality and relatively safe for our health can raise the risk of stroke as much as 34% within 12 to 14 hours of exposure.

The authors of both studies stress that these risks are relatively small for healthy people and certainly modest compared with other risk factors such as smoking and high blood pressure. However, it is important to be aware of these dangers because everyone is exposed to air pollution regardless of lifestyle choices. So stricter regulation by the EPA of pollutants may not only improve environmental air quality but could also become necessary to protect public health.

53. The text mainly discusses the relationship between .

A. heart problems and air quality B. heart problems and exercising C. heart problems and smoking D. heart problems and fatty food

54. The underlined word “modest” in Paragraph 3 most probably means .

A. relatively high B. extremely low C. relatively low D. extremely high

55. What can we learn from the text?

A. Eating fatty food has immediate effects on your heart. B. The EPA conducted many studies on air quality. C. Moderate air quality is more harmful than smoking, D. Stricter regulations on pollutants should be made.

56. The author’s purpose of writing the text is most likely to .

A. inform B. persuade C. describe D. entertain

D

Spring is coming, and it is time for those about to graduate to look for jobs. Competition is tough, so job seekers must carefully consider their personal choices. Whatever we are wearing，our family and friends may accept us, but the workplace may not.

A high school newspaper editor said it is unfair for companies to discourage visible tattoos (紋身）nose rings, or certain dress styles. It is true you can’t judge a book by its cover, yet people do “cover” themselves in order to convey (傳遞)certain messages. What we wear, including tattoos and nose rings, is an expression of who we are. Just as people convey messages about themselves with their appearances? so do companies. Dress standards exist in the business world for a number of reasons, but the main concern is often about what customers accept.

Others may say how to dress is a matter of personal freedom, but for businesses it is more about whether to make or lose money. Most employers do care about the personal appearances of their employees (雇員),because those people represent the companies to their customers.

As a hiring manager I am paid to choose the people who would make the best impression on our customers. There are plenty of well-qualified candidates, so it is not wrong to reject someone who might disappoint my customers. Even though I am open-minded, I can’t expect all our customers are.

There is nobody to blame but yourself if your set of choices does not match that of your preferred employer. No company should have to change to satisfy a candidate simply cause he or she is unwilling to respect its standards, as long as its standards are legal.

57. Which of the following is the newspaper editor’ opinion according to Paragraph 2?

A. People’s appearances carry messages about themselves. B. Customers’ choices influence dress standards in companies. C. Candidates with tattoos or nose rings should be fairly treated. D. Strange dress styles should not be encouraged in the workplace.

58. What can be inferred from the text?

A. Candidates have to wear what companies prefer for an interview. B. What to wear is not a matter of personal choice for companies. C. Companies sometimes have to change to respect their candidates. D. Hiring managers make the best impression on their candidates.

59. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

A. Employees Matter B. Personal Choices Matter C. Appearances Matter D. Hiring Managers Matter

60. The author’s attitude towards strange dress styles in the workplace may best be described as .

A. enthusiastic B. negative C positive D. sympathetic

第二節（共5小題；毎小題2分，滿分10分）

根據短文內容，從下框的A～F選項中選出能概括每一段主題的最佳選項，并在答題卡上將該選項涂黑。選項中有一項為多余項。

A. Be well-organised.

B. Close with a Q & A.

C. Don’t be contradictory.

D. Bring it to a specific end

E. Speak slowly and pause.

F. Drop unnecessary words

Speaking to a group can be difficult, but listening to a bad speech is truly a tiresome task—especially when the speaker is confusing. Don’t want to confuse your audience? Follow these suggestions:

61.

When it comes to understanding new information, the human brain needs a little time. First, we hear the words; then, we compare the new information to what we already know. If the two are different, we need to pause and think. But a breathless speaker never stops to let us think about what he or she is saying and risks confusing us. Slow it

62.

Sometimes we all start a sentence one way and then switch directions, which is very difficult to follow. When you the audience confuse your listeners with opposing information, you leave the audience wondering what part of the information is right and what part they should remember. Instead of relying and keeping correcting yourself, work to get the facts clear and straight.

63.

Jumping from point to point as it comes to your mind puts the onus (責任）on your listeners to make up for your lack of organisation. And it’s confusing for them to listen, reorganise, and figure out what you’re saying all at once. But going smoothly from one point to the next helps them understand information more easily. You can arrange things from beginning to end, small to large, top to bottom or by some other order. Just be sure to organise.

64.

Repeated use of um, ah, like, you know and some other useless noises can drive an audience crazy. It makes the speaker sound uncertain and unprepared, and it can leave listeners so annoyed that they can’t pay attention. Recently I attended a speech that was marked by so many ums that audience members were rolling their eyes. Was anybody grasping the intended message? Um, probably not.

65.

Many speakers finish up their speeches with question-and-answer (Q & A) sessions, but some let the Q & A go on without a clear end. The audience is often left confused about whether the meeting is over and when they can get up and leave. Do your listeners a favour by setting a time limit on questions, and close your speech with a specific signal—even if it’s something simple like, “If you have any more questions, you know where to reach me.”

Or even more to the point, conclude your speech with “Thanks for your time. ”