Edmund Halley was an English scientist who lived over 200 years ago. He studied the observa-tions of comets( 彗星), which other scientists had made. Calculating the orbit(轨道) of one particu-lar comet was a very difficult mathematical problem. He could not figure it out. Neither could other scientists who dealt with such problems.
However, Halley had a friend named Newton, who was a brilliant mathematician. Newton thought he had already worked out that problem, but he could not find the papers on which he had done it.
He told Halley that the orbit of a comet had the shape of an ellipse(椭圆形).
Now Halley set to work. He figured out the orbits of some of the comets that had been observed by scientists. He made a surprising discovery. The comets that appeared in the years 1531,1607, and 1682 all had the same orbit. Yet their appearances had been 75 to 76 years apart.
This seemed very strange to Halley. Three different comets followed the same orbit. The more Halley thought about it, the more he thought that there had not been three different comets, as people thought. He decided that they had simply seen the same comet three times. The comet had gone away and had come back again.
It was an astonishing idea! halley felt certain enough to make a prediction of what would hap-pen in the future. He decided that this comet would appear in the year 1758. There were 53 years to go before Halley´s prediction could be tested.
In 1758 the comet appeared in the sky. Halley did not see it,for he had died some years before.
Ever since then that comet had been called Halley´s comet,in his honour.
第43题单选 Edmund Halley figured out the orbit of __________.
A.some different comets appearing several times
B.the same comet appearing at different time
C.three different comets appearing three times
D.several comets appearing at the same time
第44题单选 Halley made his discovery __________.
A.by doing experiments
B.by means of his own careful observation
C.by using the work of other scientists
D.by chance
第45题单选 Halley made a surprising, but correct prediction in the year__________.
A.1704
B.1705
C.1706
D.1707
第46题单选 This passage in general is about __________.
A.Halley and other scientists
B.the orbit of a comet
C.Newton and Halley
D.Halley and his discovery
A few years ago it was fashionable( 流行的 )to speak of a generation gap, a division between young people and their elders. Parents complained(抱怨) that children did not show them proper re-spect and obedience (服从), while children complained that their parents did not understand them at all. What had gone wrong? Why had the generation gap suddenly appeared? Actually, the generation gap has been around for a long time. Many critics argue that it is built into the fabric (结构)of our society.
One important cause of the generation gap is the opportunity (机会) that young people have to choose their own life style( 方式). In more traditional (传统的)societies, when children grow up,they are expected to live in the same area as their parents, to marry people that their parents know and approve of, and often to continue the family occupation (职业). In our society, young people often traveling great distances for their educations move out of the family home at an early age, marry or live with people whom their parents have never met, and choose occupations different from those of their parents.
In our upwardly mobile (流动的)society, parents often expect their children to be better than they did : to find better jobs, to make more money, and to do all the things that they were unable to do. Often,however, the ambitions( 抱负 )that parents have for their children are another cause of the division between them. Often they discover that they have very little in common with each other.
Finally ,the speed at which changes take place in our society is another cause of the gap be-tween the generations. In a traditional culture, elderly people are valued for their wisdom, but in our society the knowledge of a lifetime may become out of date overnight. The young and the old seem to live in two very different worlds, separated by different skills and abilities.
No doubt, the generation gap will continue to be a feature ( 特征 ) of American life for some time to come. Its causes are rooted in the freedoms and opportunities of our society, and in the rapid pace (速度) at which society changes.
第47题单选 The main idea of Paragraph I is that__________.
A.the generation gap suddenly appeared
B.the generation gap is a feature of American life
C.how people can reduce the generation gap
D.many critics argue over the nature of the generation gap
第48题单选 The underlined word "around" in Paragraph 1 means__________.
A.on all sides
B.in every direction
C.near
D.in existence
第49题单选 Which one is NOT the cause of the generation gap?
A.Young people like to choose their own life styles.
B.American society is changing very fast.
C.Parents place high hopes on their children.
D.Modem education makes them think differently.
第50题单选 In American society, young people often __________.
A.rely on (依靠)their parents to make a life
B.stay with their parents in order to get an opportunity for higher education
C.seek the best advice from their parents
D.have very little in common with their parents
五、补全对话(共5句;每旬满分为3分，共15分。)
根据中文提示，将对话中缺少的内容写在线上。这些句子必须符合英语表达习惯。打句号的地方，用陈述句;打问号的地方，用疑问句。
根据下面资料，回答试题：
提示：Joe和Henry谈起报上的一篇文章，Henry问什么报，什么文章。他没有读这篇文章，但表示下午要读，然后告别。
六、书面表达(满分30分)
第56题简答 请根据提示写一篇100词左右的短文。
假定你是一名导游，陪同美国旅游团游览泰山(Mount Tai)，下车前你讲了一段话。
(1)简单介绍一下泰山的情况。
(2)讲话时间是8点半，在山上逗留8个小时，下午4点半离开，游览车在人口处等候，记住车号。
(3)贵重(valuable)物品随身携带，下车前关上窗子。
(4)祝大家玩得愉快。
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