Frank Lloyd Wright probably is the greatest architect that the United States has ever produced. He was very gifted and had a natural ability to design buildings. His buildings were not only beautiful, but they were also practical and useful. They fit their purposes very well. Wright’s churches, for example, make people feel like thinking and praying. His office buildings make people enjoy working, and his houses make people feel comfortable at home. However, Frank Lloyd Wright’s beautiful, practical and useful buildings are not the only reason that he is famous. There is another reason.

Frank Lloyd Wright is called the greatest American architect because he started an American style in architecture. Most of the architecture in the United States before Wright was really European, not American. Wright’s buildings do not look like old European buildings. They have their own style. Wright’s ideas about style are still used in the United States and in other parts of the world.

The most important idea in Frank Lloyd Wright’s Style of Architecture is that a building must fit its purpose and the land around it. His houses are often called “grass-land houses” because their lines are similar to the lines on the grassland. Both the lines of the grassland and the lines of Wright’s house are parallel（平行的）to the horizon, the place where earth and sky seem to meet. They are horizontal lines. Most European style houses, in contrast, have many vertical lines that form 90°angles with the horizon.

46. Frank Lloyd Wright’s style in architecture was _________.

       A. learned from some European countries

       B. not only limited to the U.S

       C. no longer popular

       D. somewhat similar to the European style

47. Which of the following best describes the character of the houses that Wright designed?

       A. They were very large and beautiful.

       B. They were very comfortable.

       C. They could be used as churches.

       D. They were beautiful in design but not practical in use.

48. What’s the most important idea in Wright’s style?

    A. Architectural design should match natural surroundings.

    B. A building must have grassland around it.

    C. American style in architect should be different from the European’s

    D. Design should be more important than use.

49. Which of the following is NOT true about Wright’s “grass-land houses”?

       A. The lines of “grass-land houses” are similar to lines on the grassland.

       B. The lines of “grass-land houses” are horizontal.

       C. The color of the lines of “grass-land houses” is green.

       D. They are different from European style houses.

50. The best title for this passage would be _________.

       A. The Differences between the American and European Styles in Architecture

       B. “Grass-land”” houses Designed by Wright

      C. How to Make Your Houses More Beautiful

       D. The Influence of Wright on American Architecture

Five years ago, David Smith wore an expensive suit to work every day. “I was a clothes addict(迷),” he jokes. “I used to carry a fresh suit to work with me so I could change if my clothes got wrinkled(皺的).” Today David wears casual clothes — khaki pants and a sports shirt — to the office. He hardly ever wears a necktie. “I’m working harder than ever,” David says, “and I need to feel comfortable.”

More and more companies are allowing their office workers to wear casual clothes to work. In the United States, the changes from formal to casual office wear have been slow. In the early 1990s, many companies allowed their workers to wear casual clothes on Friday(but only on Friday).This became known as “dress-down Friday” or “casual Friday”. “What started out as an extra one-day-a-week benefit for workers has really become an everyday thing,” said business adviser Maisly Jones.

Why have so many companies started allowing their workers to wear casual clothes? One reason is that it's easier for a company to attract new workers if it has a casual dress code. “A lot of young people don't want to dress up for work,” says the owner of a software company, “so it's hard to hire people if you have a conservative dress code.” Another reason is that people seem happier and more productive when they are wearing comfortable clothes. In a study made by Levi Strauss and Company, 85 percent of employers said that casual dress has a side effect on work. Supporters of casual office wear also say that a casual dress code helps them save money. “Suits are expensive, if you have to wear one every day,” one person said. “For the same amount of money, you can buy a lot more casual clothes.”

41.David Smith refers to himself as having been “a clothes addict” because ______________.

A. he often wore khaki pants and a sports shirt

B. he wanted his clothes to look tidy and clean all the time

C. he couldn't stand a clean appearance

D. he didn’t want to spend much money on clothes

42. David Smith wears casual clothes now, because ______________.

A. they make him feel at ease when working

B. he cannot afford to buy expensive clothes

C. he looks handsome in casual clothes

D. he no longer works for any company

43. According to this passage, which of the following is FALSE?

A. Many workers don’t like a conservative dress code.

B. Comfortable clothes make workers more productive.

C. All the employers in the U.S. are for casual office wear.

D. A casual clothes code is welcomed by young workers.

44. According to this passage, which of the following is TRUE?

A. “Dress-down Friday” was first given as a favor from employers.

B. Company workers started to dress down about twenty years ago.

C. Dress-down has become an everyday phenomenon since the early 1990s.

D. Many workers want to wear casual clothes to impress people.

45. In this passage, the following advantages of casual office wear are mentioned EXCEPT ______________.

A. saving worker’s money

B. making workers more attractive

C. improving worker’s feeling

D. making workers happier

Brenda Bongos was a happy, artistic girl. She had one big ambition—to play the drums in a band. But one big problem lay in her way. To be good enough to play in a band, Brenda had to practice a lot, but she lived next-door to a lot of old people. Many of them are sick. She knew that the sound of beating drums would really get on their nerves. So, she had tried playing in the strangest places: a basement, a kitchen, and even in a shower. But there was always someone it would annoy.

    One day, while watching a science documentary on TV, she heard that sound cannot travel in space, because there's no air. At that moment, Brenda Bongos decided to become a sort of musical astronaut.

    With the help of a lot of time, books and work, Brenda built a space bubble. This was a big glass ball connected to a machine which sucked out all the air inside. All that would be left inside was a drum kit（成套設(shè)備） and a chair. Brenda got into the space suit she had made, entered the bubble, turned on the machine, and played those drums like a wild child.

    It wasn't long before Brenda Bongos came very famous. Many people came to see her play in her space bubble. Shortly afterwards she came out of the bubble and started giving concerts. Her fame spread so much that the government suggested that she be part of a unique space journey. Finally, Brenda was a real musical astronaut, and had gone far beyond her first ambition of playing drums in a band.

    Years later, when asked how she had achieved all this, she thought for a moment, and said: ''If those old people next – door hadn't mattered so much to me, I wouldn't have found a solution, and none of this would have ever happened.''

36. Why did Brenda try to play in the strangest places?

A. Because she didn't want others to hear her play.

B. Because she didn't mean to disturb others.

C. Because she didn't have her own room.

D. Because she didn’t like her neighbors.

37. Brenda started to give concerts _______.

A. after she practiced in her space bubble

B. when she became part of the unique space journey

C. after she became a real musical astronaut

D. when people came to see her in the space bubble

38. Brenda became famous because _______.

A. she was good at music and science

B. she became a real musical astronaut

C. she invented a special way of practice

D. she played well and had a talent

39. Which of the following can be used to describe Brenda?

A. Kind, hardworking and clever.   

B. Brave, kind and hardworking.

C. Lovely, brave and kind.         

D. Nervous, kind and clever.

40. It can be inferred from the text that: " _______".

A. He laughs best who laughs last    

B. It's never too old to learn

C. Two heads are better than one     

D. One good turn deserves another

I spent two months with an American family last year when I studied in America. It is said，“The best house is in the USA, the best wife is in Japan, and the best food is in China．” So I took 16 and pleasure to 17?_“the best food” for my American family．Each day，regardless of my poor skill of cooking，I performed（表演）my play in 18_ way：changing the dishes’ color，the meat’s type or the soup’s style（風(fēng)味）．Thus，my American friends could discover the19_of eating Chinese food． Because of my“ 20_” job，I was often rewarded（獎(jiǎng)勵(lì)）by their21_of appreciation （感激）such as “very tasty”，“excellent”, etc．

　 But the joke was here: yesterday , I cooked Sichuan－style22_for dinner．I was23_at my achievement（成就）．

　 When all the family members arrived at the table，they first looked24_at the fish，then looked at me．“Why do all the fish have their25_？” they asked，“It’s horrible！”

　 Horrible or beautiful？I don’t know．But I 26_know that fish heads are delicious. The 27_is the best part of fish；in 28_only the respectable（受敬重的）guest can have the special 29_of enjoying it．

　 Another 30_thing is：the American friends often said to me“31_”as they 32_fruits or other things．According to Chinese tradition（傳統(tǒng)），I would simply smile in answer to their kindness 33_actually helping myself to any of the food．34_，I said “help yourself” to them whenever I brought home fruits．Dear me，no matter how much or how often I brought home food，as long as it was nice to their taste，they35_hesitated（猶豫）to use their hands to “help themselves” until all was finished．

16． A． worry　　　　　 B. attention　　　　 C. delight　　　 D. pride(自豪)

17． A． buy　　　　　　 B. fetch　　　　　　 C. cook　　　　　 D. leave

18． A． their　　　　　 B. a new　　　　　　 C. the same　　　 D. a simple

19． A． way　　　　　　 B. joy　　　　　　　 C. trouble　　　 D. importance

20． A． hard　　　　　　 B. daily　　　　　　 C. good　　　　　 D. new

21． A． expressions　　 B. sentence 　　 C． doing　　　　 D. smile

22． A． meat　　　　　　 B. fish　　　　　　 C. soup　　　　　 D. egg　　　

23． A． praised　　　　 B. pleased　　　　　 C. bad　　　　　 D. surprise

24． A． pleasedly　　　 B. excitedly　　　　 C. surprisedly　 D. worriedly

25． A． bones　　　　　 B. flesh(肉)　　　　 C. tails　　　　 D. heads

26． A． do　　　　　　　 B. will　　　　　　 C. want to　　　 D. should

27． A． tail　　　　　　 B. head　　　　　　 C. soup　　　　　 D. flesh

28． A． fact　　　　　　 B. China　　　　　　 C. USA　　　　　 D. the West

29． A． honour　　　　　 B. seat　　　　　　 C. table　　　　 D. plate

30． A． real　　　　　　 B. exciting　　　　 C. interesting　 D. easy

31． A． please help us　　　　　　　　　　　 B. excuse me

　　　 C． help yourself　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. eat them please

32． A． brought home　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. wanted

　　　 C． were buying　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. were eating

33． A． not　　　　　　 B. but not　　　　　 C. without　　　 D. nor

34． A． At last　　　　 B. Above all　　　　 C. After all　　 D. In return

35． A． usually　　　　　 B. often　　　　　　 C. never　　　　 D. had

--- Shall I turn down the TV set a bit?

--- _________ . It makes no difference to me.

A. It’s up to you　　　　　 B. I’d rather you didn’t

C. Come on D. With pleasure

 It was at 8 o’clock _____ we left London by train .

A. when    B. that    C. in which    D. on which

The weather turned out to be fine yesterday. I _____ the trouble to carry my umbrella with me.

A. should have taken B. could have taken　　

C. needn’t have taken D. mustn’t have taken

--- Have you got the news about Jack? I haven’t seen him for many years.

--- He _____ in a company for two years. Now he is a teacher.

A. worked　　 B. has worked　　 C. had worked　　　 D. would work

 Kate is only two years old. She has difficulty______ English words.

A. pronounce     B. to pronounce      C. on pronouncing      D. pronouncing

 All happy families resemble one another ____ each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.

A. because    B. while     C. when    D. if