PASSAGE 16
Bees and Colour
On our table in the garden we put a blue card， and all around this blue card we put a number of different grey cards. These trey cards are of all possible shades of grey and include white and black. On each card a watch-glass is placed. The watch-glass on the blue card has some syrup in it； all the others are empty. After a short time bees find the syrup， and they come for it again and again. Then， after some hours， we take away the watch-glass of syrup which was on the blue card and put an empty one in its place.
Now what do the bees do？ They still go straight to the blue card， although there is no syrup there. They do not go to any of the grey cards， in spite of the fact that one of the grey cards is of exactly the same brightness as the blue card. Thus the bees do not mistake any shade of grey for blue. In this way we have proved that they do really see blue as a colour.
We can find out in just the same way what other colours bees can see. It turns out that bees can see various colours， but these insects differ from us as regards their colour-sense in two very interesting ways. Suppose we train bees to come to a red card， and， having done so， we put the red card on the table in the garden among the set of different grey cards. This time we find that the bees mistake red for dark grey or black. They cannot distinguish between them. This means that red is not a colour at all for bees； for them it is just dark grey or black.
That is one strange fact； here is another. A rainbow is red on one edge， violet on the other. Outside the violet of the rainbow there is another colour which we cannot see at all. This colour beyond the violet， invisible to us， is called the ultra-violet. Although it is invisible， we know that the ultra-violet is there because it affects a photographic plate. Now， although we are unable to see ultra-violet light， bees can do so； for them ultra-violet is a colour. Thus bees see a colour which we cannot even imagine. This has been found out by training bees to come for syrup to various parts of a spectrum， or artificial rainbow， thrown by a prism on a table in a dark room. In such an experiment the insects can be taught to fly to the ultra-violet， which for us is just darkness.
1. The experiment with bees described in the first and second paragraphs tell us that bees regard blue as a colour.
A. True
B. False
C. Not mentioned
2. The third paragraph tells us that bees also regard red as a colour.
A. True
B. False
C. Not mentioned
3. The experiment described in the second paragraph aimed to find out that bees are not able to see grey as a colour.
A. True
B. False
C. Not mentioned
4. An artificial rainbow was created for the experiment to see whether bees can recognize the ultra-violet as a colour.
A. True
B. False
C. Not mentioned
5. The fourth paragraph tells us that bees may be harmed by ultra-violet light.
A. True
B. False
C. Not mentioned
6. We can conclude from the passage that bees recognize colours in the same way as human beings.
A. True
B. False
C. Not mentioned
7. Bees are more sensitive to colours than human beings.
A. True
B. False
C. Not mentioned
KEY： ABBACBC
PASSAGE 17
Look After Your Voice
Often speakers at a meeting experience dry mouths and ask for a glass of water. You can solve the problem by activating the saliva in you mouth. First gently bite the edges of your tongue with your teeth. Or， press your entire tongue to the bottom of your mouth and hold it there until the saliva flow. Or you can imagine that you are slicing a big juicy lemon and sucking the juice.
Before you begin your talk， be kind to your voice， Avoid milk or creamy drinks which coat your throat. Keen your throat wet by drinking a little sweetened warm tea or diluted fruit juice.
If you sense that your are losing your voice， stop talking completely. Save your voice for your speech. You may feel foolish using paper to write notes， but the best thing you can do is to rest your voice. If you need to see a doctor， perhaps you can get some advice from a professional singer. In the meantime， do not even talk in a low voice.
What about drinking alcohol to wet your throat？ I advice you not to touch alcohol before speaking. The problem with alcohol is that one drink gives you a little confidence. The second drink gives you even more confidence. Finally you will feel all-powerful and you will feel you can do everything， but in fact your brain and your mouth do not work together properly. Save the alcohol until after you finish speaking.
Perhaps you want to accept the advice， but you may wonder if you can ever change the habits of a lifetime. Of course you can. Goethe， who lived before indoor skating rinks or swimming pools， said， “We learn to skate in the summer and swim in the winter”。 Take this message to heart and give yourself time to develop your new habits. If you are wiling to change， you will soon be able to say that you will never forget these techniques because they became a part of your body.
EXERCISE：
1） To solve the problem of dry mouths， one is advised to take cool milk.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
2） The first paragraph mention three ways of activating the saliva in the mouth.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
3） The writer suggests that you go to see a doctor when you feel you are losing your voice.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
4） The writer advice about alcohol before you make a speech is to take one or two drinks so as to give yourself some confidence.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
5） Due to the effect of alcohol， your thought and your mouth will not coordinate properly.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
6） Goethe often did outdoor skating and swimming.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
7） The writer cites Goethe to prove that one can change one's habits.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
KEY：B A B B A C A
PASSAGE 18
The Education of Benjamin Franklin
History has given Benjamin Franklin a place of enduring fame. He was a writer， an inventor， a scientist， and a statesman. His life history has enjoyed popular success for more than 200 years.
Franklin's education at school stopped when he was ten years old. But he never stopped learning. For him， books held the key to living happily and successfully. They were precious gifts.
In his early youth， he had a friend who worked for a bookseller. Sometimes his friend would lend him books， which he was careful to return quickly. Often he sat up in his room reading most of the night in order to return a book before his friend's employer noticed its absence.
But Franklin was not a lonely scholar. For him， learning was a social experience. In his Autobiography， he tells about organizing a club called the “Junto”， which met every Friday night to improve its members' minds：
“The rules I made required every member， in turn， to produce one or more questions on any point of Morals， Politics， or Natural Philosophy. The question would then be discussed by the whole group. Also， once in three months， each member was required to read an article he had written on any subject he pleased.
“Our discussions were directed by a president and conducted as an honest search for truth. We were to avoid unpleasant arguments or a desire for victory. Any member who did not obey these rules had to pay a fine.”
The Junto which Franklin organized continued for many years. It was the best group for the discussion then. The questions were given to the members during the week before they were to be discussed. This encouraged the members to read carefully about each subject so that they might speak with more understanding.
When the Junto was organized， before the middle of the 18th century， there were no public libraries. There was not even a good bookstore south of Boston. Franklin decided to improve this situation.
Each member of the Junto owned a few books. A room had been rented in which the members held the meetings. Franklin suggested that all the members should bring their books to the room. In this way the book would be a help to all during the weekly discussion. Also， each member would be allowed to take and read at home any book be chose.
Throughout his life， Benjamin Franklin continued his education， learning from human contacts as well as from books.
EXERCISE：
1. Benjamin Franklin stopped his education because his father could not afford the tuition.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
2. According to Benjamin Frank
lin， living happily and successfully lies in reading.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
3. He often read most of the night to finish a book that he borrowed from his bookseller friend.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
4. Every member of the Junto should present an article he wrote in regular intervals.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
5. Every time the Junto members met， each brought with him some questions for the group to discuss.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
6. Franklin organized a private library for the Junto because there was no public library in his city.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
7. The weekly discussions were held at Franklin's.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
Key： CABABAB
PASSAGE 19
Plants in Deser
Only special plants can survive the terrible climate of a desert， for these are regions where the annual range of the soil temperature can be over 75℃。 Furthermore， during the summer there are few clouds in the sky to protect plants from the sun's ray. Another problem is the fact that there are frequently strong winds which drive small， sharp particles of sand into the plants， tearing and damaging them. The most difficult problem for all forms of plant life， however， is the fact that the entire annual rainfall occurs during a few days or weeks in spring
Grasses and flowers in desert survive from one year to the next by existing through the long， hot， dry season in the form of seeds. These seeds remain inactive unless the right amount of rain falls. If no rain falls， or if insufficient rain falls， they wait until the next year， or even still the next. Another factor that helps these plants to survive is the fact that their life cycles are short. By the time that water from the spring rains disappears —— just a few weeks after it falls-such plants no longer need any.
The perennials have special features which enable them to survive as plants for several years. Thus， nearly all desert perennials have extensive root systems below ground and a small shoot system above ground. The large root network enables the plant to absorb as much water as possible in ashort time. The small shoot system， on the other hand， considerably limits water loss by evaporation.
Another feature of many desert perennials is that after the rainy season they lose their leaves in preparation for the long， dry season， just as trees in wetter climates lose theirs in preparation for the winter. This reduces their water loss by evaporation during the dry season. Then， in next rainy season， they come fully alive once more， and grow new branches， leaves and flowers， just as the grasses and flowers in desert do.
EXERCISE：
1. Ordinary plants are unable to survive in the desert mainly because of the changeable weather.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
2. Grasses and flowers in desert are able to survive because they stay in the form of seeds to wait for the right amount of water to come.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
3. Grasses and flowers in the desert whose life cycles are short shows their ability to adapt to the quick disappearance of rainwater there after it falls in spring.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
4. Winter is the toughest season for grasses and flowers to survive.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
5. The shoot system of perennials can help the plants absorb less of the sun's ray.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
6. The theme of the second last paragraph is why the perennials can survive as plants for several years.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
7. Desert perennials lose their leaves after the rainy season just lose theirs in wetter climates before winter arrives， but the reasons for this feature are different.
A） True B） False C） Not mentioned
Key： BABCAAB