第二部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2. 5分，满分50分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D国个选项中，选出最佳选项。
A
History Fair Competition
Understanding history is vital to understanding ourselves as a people and as a nation.
History is much more than the study of dusty old objects and events long past. It is an essential part of who we are today and who we will become. Thornton Middle School History Fair Competition makes understanding history exciting, engaging, and fun！
This Year’s Theme
All participants must address how communication or transportation technology has promoted the quality of life for Americans throughout history. To many people, technology means computers, hand-held devices, or vehicles that travel to distant planets. However, technology is also the application of scientific knowledge to solve a problem, touching lives in countless ways.
Individuals or groups may enter one of the following categories：
•Performance
•Documentary（纪实作品）
•Essay Writing
Category Requirements
Performance: A dramatic presentation of the topic no more than 10 minutes long. If special clothes are used，they should truly represent a given period.
Documentary: A visual presentation（such as a video，slide show，or computer project）no more than 10 minutes long. A desktop computer, screen, projector, and loudspeakers will be available. Students must provide their presentations on CDs before Friday, March 23.
Essay Writing: An academic paper of 2，000 to 2，500 words. No illustrations（图解）are allowed. Please do not include covers. A list of references must be included.
Important Dates
January 5 Submit a topic proposal to your history teacher. The teacher may require a second proposal if the first is off-topic or unclear.
February 5 Submit a first draft of your essay，performance script（剧本），or documentary highlights.
February 19 A committee of teachers will evaluate materials and give opinions. Students then have an opportunity to improve their products.
March 9 Submit a final draft of your essay.
March 15 Performance and documentary committee preview
March 24 Thornton Middle School History Fair Competition
7：00 A. M—9：00A. M Participants signing in at the gym
10：00 A. M. —6：00PM. Competition and judges’ review
7：00 P.M. Awards ceremony and picnic
36. According to Paragraph 1, what is the major goal of understanding history?
A. To preserve national traditions. B. To prepare for a history competition.
C. To better know the present and future. D. To further explore historical mysteries.
37. What is the theme of this year’s competition?
A. Technology advances science. B. Science interacts with technology.
C. Science has made the study of history easy. D. Technology has improved the life of Americans.
38. Among the items provided by the school for a visual presentation are __________.
A. special clothes and a screen B. a desktop computer and a CD
C. a projector and special clothes D. a desktop computer and loudspeakers
39. What would a participant have to do with an essay of 1,500 words to meet the category requirement?
A. Include more information in the essay. B. Remove the references.
C. Provide a cover for the essay. D. Explain the details with illustrations.
40. What will the committee of teachers do on February 19?
A. Preview performances and documentaries. B. Make comments on the materials.
C. Improve the participant’s first draft. D. Collect a second proposal from the participant.
B
I must have always known reading was very important because the first memories I have as a child deal with books. There was not one night that I don’t remember mom reading me a storybook by my bedside. I was extremely inspired by the elegant way the words sounded.
I always wanted to know what my mom was reading. Hearing mom say, "I can’t believe what’s printed in the newspaper this morning," made me want to grab it out of her hands and read it myself. I wanted to be like my mom and know all of the things she knew. So I carried around a book, and each night, just to be like her, I would pretend to be reading.
This is how everyone learned to read. We would start off with sentences, then paragraphs, and then stories. It seemed an unending journey, but even as a six-year-old girl I realized that knowing how to read could open many doors. When mom said," The C-A-N-D-Y is hidden on the top shelf," I knew where the candy was. My progress in reading raised my curiosity, and I wanted to know everything. I often found myself telling my mom to drive more slowly, so that I could read all of the road signs we passed.
Most of my reading through primary, middle and high school was factual reading. I read for knowledge, and to make A’s on my tests. Occasionally, I would read a novel that was assigned, but I didn’t enjoy this type of reading. I liked facts, things that are concrete. I thought anything abstract left too much room for argument.
Yet, now that I’m growing and the world I once knew as being so simple is becoming more complex, I find myself needing a way to escape. By opening a novel, I can leave behind my burdens and enter into a wonderful and mysterious world where I am now a new character. In these worlds I can become anyone. I don’t have to write down what happened or what technique the author was using when he or she wrote this. I just read to relax.
We’re taught to read because it’s necessary for much of human understanding. Reading is a vital part of my life. Reading satisfies my desire to keep learning. And I’ve found that the possibilities that lie within books are limitless.
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