2012高考英语真题及答案（湖北A卷）

第三部分:阅读理解(共20小题;每小题2分，满分40分)

阅读下列短文。从每劝短文后所给各题的四个选项(A、B. C和D)中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

A

You've just come home, after living abroad away, has this country changed for the better-or for a few years. Since you've been for the worse?

If you've just arrived back inthe UK after a fortnights holiday, small changes have probably surprised you-anything from a Iocal grcengrocer suddenly being replaced by a mobile-phone shop to someone in your street moving house.

So how have things changed to people coming back to Britain after seven, ten or even 15 year:' living abroad ? What changes in society can they see that the rest of us have hardly noticed ----or now take for granted ? To find out, we asked some people who recently returned.

Dcbi: When we Ic几Cheltenham, my home town, was a town of white ,middle-class families-all very conservative(保守的).The town is now home to many eastern Europeans and lots of Australians, who come here mainly to work in hotel and tourism. There are even severai snops only for foreigners.

Having been an inunigrant (移民) myself, I admire people who go overseas to find a job. Maybe if I lived in an inner city where unemployment was high, I'd think differently, but I believe foreign settlers have improved this country because they're more open-minded and often work harder than the natives.

Christine: As we flew home over Britain, both of us remarked how green everything looked. But the differences between the place we'd left behind and the one we returned to were brought sharply into focus as soon as we landed.

To see policemen with guns in the airport for the first time was frightening-in Cyprus, they're very relaxed-and I got pulled over by customs officers just for taking a woolen sweater with some metal-made buttons out of my case in the arrivals hall. Everyone seemed to be on guard. Even the airport car-hire firm wanted a credit card rather than cash because they said their vehicles had been used by bank robbers.

But anyway, this is still a green, beautiful country. I just wish more people would appreciate w，that they've got.

51. After a short overseas holiday, people tend to

A. notice small changes B. expect small changes C. welcome small changes D. exaggerate small changes

52. flow dots Debi look at the foreign settlers?

A. Cautiously. B. Positively. C. Sceptically. D. Critically.

53. When arriving at the airport in Britain, Christine was shocked by

A. the laced policemen B. The messy arrivals hall C. the tight security D. the bank robbers 54. Which might be the best title for the passage? A. Life in Britain. B. Back in Britain. C. Britain in Future. D. Britain in Memory.

B

When my brother and I were young, my mom would take us on Transportation Days.

It goes like this: You can't take any means of transportation more than once. We would start from home, walking two blocks to the rail station. We'd take the train into the city center, then a bus, switching to the tram, then maybe a taxi. We always considered taking a horse carriage in the historic district, but we didn't like the way the horses were treated, so we never did. At the end of the day, we took the subway to our closest station, where Mom's friend was waiting to give us a ride home-our first car ride of the day.

The good thing about Transportation Days is not only that Mom taught us how to get around. She was born to be multimodal (多方式的). She understood that depending on cars only was a failure of imagination and, above all, a failure of confidence-the product of a childhood not spent exploring subway tunnels.

Once you Ieam the route map and step with certainty over the gap between the train and the platform, nothing is frightening any more. New cities are just light-rail lines to be explored. And your personal car, if you have one, becomes just one more tool in the toolbox-and often an inadequate one. limiting both your nobility and your wallet.

On Transportation Days, we might stop for lunch on Chc.rnw Surd or buy a new book or toy. but the transportation was the point. First , it was exciting enough to watch the world speed by from the train window. As I got older, my mom helped me unlock the mysteries that would otherwise have paralyzed my first attempts to do it myself. How do I know where to get off? How do I know bow much it costs? How do I know when I need tickets, and where to get them? What track. what line. Which direction, where's the stop, and will I get wet when we go under the river?

I'm writing this right now on an airplane .a mean, we didn't try on our Transportation Days and .we now know, the dirtiest and most polluting of them all. My flight touted me through Philadelphia .My multimoda1 mom met me for dinner in The airport. She took a train m meet me.

55. Which was forbidden by Mm on Transportation Days?

A. Having a car ride. B. Taking the train twice. C. Buying more d m ate toy. D. Touring the historic district.

56. According to the writs. what was the greatest benefit of bet Transportation bays?

A. Building confidence in herself. B. Reducing bee use of private am. C. Developing her sense of direction. D. Giving her knowledge about vehicles.

57. The underlined word 'paralyzed ‘ (in Pares 5) is closes in morning to“ ”

A. displayed B. justified C. ignored D. ruined

58. Which means of transportation does the writer probably disapprove of?

A. Airplane. B. Subway. C. Tram. D. Car.