高中英语阅读理解专题训练,第一节：阅读理解（共 15 小题；每小题 2 分，满分 30 分） 阅读下列短文，从每题所给的 A、B、C 和 D 项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该 项涂黑。 A (words:311 they had to find out for themselves. A further report on maths teaching shows that teachers seem to give more attention to boys than to girls. Most teachers who took part in the study admitted that they expect their male students to do better at mathematics and science subjects than their female students. All of this tends to encourage boys to work harder in these subjects, gives them confidence and makes them believe that they can succeed. Interestingly, both boys and girls tend to regard such male subjects like mathematics and science as difficult. Yet it has been suggested that girls avoid mathematics courses, not because they are difficult, but for social reasons. Mathematics and science are mainly male subjects, and therefore, as girls become teenagers, they are less likely to take them up. Girls do not seem to want to be in open competition with boys. Neither do they want to do better than boys because they are afraid to appear less female and so, less attractive. According to scientific studies, girls can learn maths as well as boys if . Those who made extraordinary contributions in mathematics and science . Why are boys favored over girls when it comes to mathematics and science? . What caused girls to give up mathematics courses? .,keys given enough encouragement. had the abilities of solving problems by themselves. Because teachers expect boys to do better in mathematics and science. Social reasons. （二） In 1901, the citizens of Colorado Springs in the USA decided to collect everyday items and to seal (密封) them in a steel box. The box was marked “To be opened after midnight, December 31st , AD2000”, and was stored in the Colorado College library. One hundred years later, on the appointed day, 300 people gathered to watch the opening of the box. Many in the crowd were the descendants (后代) of people who had placed things inside the box. When the box was opened after midnight, the contents were in very good condition. There were newspapers, photographs, diaries, name cards, family trees, books and dozens of letters, including one written by Theodore Roosevelt, who became the President of the USA later that year. One of Roosevelts friends lived in Colorado Springs at that time. Many of the letters were addressed to their descendants. They describe the hopes that people of 1901 had for the people of the next century. At that time, Colorado Springs had just a few thousand residents, Now nearly half a million people live there. Colorado College Library has scanned the material and put them on a website. Cecil Muller, whose grandfather had placed a collection of postcards in the box, said that the time capsule was a great treasure. “This is a wonderful educational resource. We can learn so much about our history,” he said. “I never knew my grandfather, but now I feel very close to him.” In April 2001, a committee filled the time capsule with items from modem Colorado Springs and resealed it for another hundred years. According to the passage, when was the box opened? (no more than 5words) What did many of the letters in the box talk about? (no more than 5words) . What does the “time capsule” refer to according to the context in the passage? . What can be concluded from Cecil Mullers words? . Keys January 1st, AD 2001 hope for the future.,10,11,It refers to a collection of items from people in the past. He learned a lot about the local history from the collection. （三） Credit and debit cards are expected to overtake cash this year as Britains most popular method of payment, according to a new industry report. It will be the first time that card payments have outstripped cash outlay for goods and services. There are 246 plastic card transactions made every second. Total plastic card use is expected to exceed 269 billion in 2004, just a whisker ahead of the predicted 268 billion for cash payments, said banking industry body the Association for Payment Clearing Services. The group, which represents the major banks, said credit cards had become “demonized”（魔鬼化） as one of the main causes of ballooning debts, but added: “Without plastic, our society would virtually grind to a halt.” Last year, the number of plastic cards in use in Britain grew by 13 million, or 9%, to 160 millionthe equivalent of 3.5 cards per adult. Two-thirds of card transactions are now made using debit cards. Plastic accounted for 244 billion of spending in 2003. “This year, total plastic card use, if business card usage is included, is expected to top 269 billion. In 2005 it is expected that personal plastic card usage alone will overtake cash payments,” said Apacs. In terms of numbers of transactions, cash will remain much bigger than plastic for some time to come, it added. “Cash will always remain there for low-value payments.” Meanwhile, 2003 was the year that e-commerce “came of age” in the UK. More than 18 million people bought g