1 . The African elephant, the largest land animal remaining on earth, is of great importance to African ecosystem (生态系统). Unlike other animals, the African elephant is to a great extent the builder of its environment. As a big plant-eater, it largely shapes the forest-and-savanna (大草原) surroundings in which it lives, therefore setting the terms of existence for millions of other animals that live in its habitat (栖息地).

It is the elephant’s great desire for food that makes it a disturber of the environment and an important builder of its habitat. In its continuous search for the 300 pounds of plants it must have every day, it kills small trees and underbushes, and pulls branches off big trees. This results in numerous open spaces in both deep tropical forests and in the woodlands that cover part of the African savannas. In these open spaces are numerous plants in various stages of growth that attract a variety of other plant-eaters.

Take the rain forests for example. In their natural state, the spreading branches overhead shut out sunlight and prevent the growth of plants on the forest floor. By pulling down trees and eating plants, elephants make open spaces, allowing new plants to grow on the forest floor. In such situations, the forests become suitable for large hoofed plant-eaters to move around and for small plant-eaters to get their food as well.

What worries scientists now is that the African elephant has become an endangered species. If the elephant disappears, scientists say, many other animals will also disappear from vast areas of forest and savanna, greatly changing and worsening the whole ecosystem.

1. What is the passage mainly about?

A．Disappearance of African elephants.

B．Forests and savannas as habitats for African elephants.

C．The effect of African elephants’ search for food.

D．The eating habit of African elephants.

2. What does the underlined phrase “setting the terms” most probably mean?

A．Fixing the time.

B．Worsening the state.

C．Improving the quality.

D．Deciding the conditions.

3. What do we know about the open spaces in the passage?

A．They result from the destruction of rain forests.

B．They provide food mainly for African elephants.

C．They are home to many endangered animals.

D．They are attractive to plant-eating animals of different kinds.

4. The passage is developed mainly by______.

A．showing the effect and then explaining the causes

B．pointing out similarities and differences

C．describing the changes in spare order

D．giving examples

2 . William Butler Yeats, a most famous Irish writer, was born in Dublin on June 13, 1865. His childhood lacked the harmony that was typical of a happy family. Later, Yeats shocked his family by saying that he remembered "little of childhood but its pain". In fact, he inherited (继承) excellent taste in art from his family — both his father and his brother were painters. But he finally settled on literature, particularly drama and poetry.
Yeats had strong faith in the coming of new artistic movements. He set himself the fresh task in founding an Irish national theatre in the late 1890s. His early theatrical experiments, however, were not received favorably at the beginning. He didn't lose heart, and finally enjoyed success in his poetical drama.
Compared with his dramatic works, Yeats's poems attract much admiring notice. The subject matter includes love, nature, history, time and aging. Though Yeats generally relied on very traditional forms, he brought modern sensibility to them. As his literary life progressed, his poetry grew finer and richer, which led him to worldwide recognition.
He had not enjoyed a major public life since winning the Nobel Prize in 1923. Yet, he continued writing almost to the end of his life. Had Yeats stopped writing at age 40, he would probably now be valued as a minor poet, for there is no other example in literary history of a poet who produces his greatest works between the ages of 50 and 75. After Yeats's Death in 1939, W. H. Auden wrote, among others, the following lines:
Earth, receive an honoured guest:
             William Yeats is laid to rest.
             Let the Irish vessel (船) lie
             Emptied of its poetry.
1. Which of the following can describe Yeats's family?

A．It filled Yeats's childhood with laughter.

B．It was shocked by Yeats's choice.

C．It was a typically wealthy family.

D．It had an artistic atmosphere.

2. According to the passage, what do we know about Yeats's life?

A．Yeats founded the first Irish theater.

B．Yeats stuck to modern forms in his poetry.

C．Yeats began to produce his best works from the 1910s.

D．Yeats was not favored by the public until the 1923 Noble Prize.

3. What kind of feeling is expressed in W. H. Auden's lines?

A．Envy

B．Sympathy

C．Emptiness

D．Admiration

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A．Yeats's literary achievements	B．Yeats's historical influence
C．Yeats's artistic ambition	D．Yeats's national honor

3 . It's generally believed that people act the way they do because of their personalities and attitudes .They recycle their garbage because the care about the environment .They pay $5 for a caramel brulée latte because they like expensive coffee drinks.

It's undeniable that behavior comes from our inner dispositions (性情), but in many instances we also draw inferences about who we are, as suggested by the social psychologist Daryl Bem , by observing our own behavior .We can be strangers to ourselves .If we knew our own minds, why would we need to guess what our preferences are from our behavior? If our minds were an open book, we would know exactly how much we care about the environment or like lattes .Actually , we often need to look to our behavior to figure out who we are.

Moreover, we don't just use our behavior to learn about our particular types of character—we infer characters that weren't there before .Our behavior is often shaped by little pressures around us, which we fail to recognize .Maybe we recycle because our wives and neighbors would disapprove if we didn't .Maybe we buy lattes in order to impress the people around us .We should not mistakenly believe that we always behave as a result of some inner disposition.

Whatever pressures there can be or inferences one can make, people become what they do, though it may not be in compliance (符合) with their true desires .Therefore , we should all bear in mind Kurt Vonnegut's advice: “We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be.”

1. According to the passage, personalities and attitudes are commonly believed to___.

A．determine one's behavior

B．reflect one's taste

C．influence one's surroundings

D．result from one's habits

2. Which of the following would Daryl Bem most probably agree with?__

A．The return of a wallet can indicate one's honesty.

B．A kind person will offer his seat to the old.

C．One recycles plastics to protect the environment.

D．One buys latte out of true love of coffee.

3. What can be inferred from the underlined sentence in the passage?___

A．We fail to realize our inner dispositions.

B．We can be influenced by outside pressures.

C．Our behavior is the result of our true desires.

D．Our characters can shape our social relationships.

4. What does the author mainly discuss in the passage?___

A．Personalities and attitudes.

B．Preferences and habits.

C．Behavior and personalities.

D．Attitudes and preferences.