C) scientists have managed to identify all the asteroids orbiting the sun D) there is no immediate threat to the Earth from an asteroid right now

37. We can infer from the passage that __________________________.

A) larger asteroids are more likely to smash into the Earth B) an asteroid will probably just miss the Earth in 2880 C) asteroids will eventually destroy everything on Earth D) no asteroid was noted in astronomy logs before 1950

38. Judging from the context, the word \________________________________.

A) kept turning around

B) went into and out of its orbit quickly C) moved very fast D) exploded all the while

39. According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?

A) Scientists have managed to know everything about asteroid 1950 DA. B) Many people seem to be worried about the predicted asteroid smash. C) Scientists are still quite optimistic about man's future. D) The Earth is faced with frequent threats from space.

40. The best title for the passage is _____________________________.

A) Possible Asteroid Smash in 2880 B) New Discoveries about 1950 DA C) Asteroids in the Solar System D) Earth -- an Unsafe Place for Life

Vocabulary and Structure (20 minutes)

Directions: There are 30 incomplete sentences in this part. For each sentence there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Choose the ONE answer that best completes the sentence. 41. As people's living standards improve, the health and beauty business is __________ with more sophisticated products than ever before.

A) astonishing

B) flourishing

C) exaggerating

D) diminishing

42. The __________ of older persons is relatively low in developing countries, but it is growing much faster than in the West.

A) addition

B) majority

C) percentage

D) statistic

43. Makers of consumer electronics will pay for environmental sanitation services to collect and __________ used refrigerators, computers and televisions under the new rules.

A) discharge

B) distribute

C) dispose of

D) deal with

44. As some of the rules concerning foreign trade ran contrary to the principles of the WTO, the government decided to __________ them as soon as possible.

A) abolish

B) accomplish

C) distinguish

D) establish

45. As the semester is drawing to an end, the student union is calling on all the students to __________ the temptation to cheat on exams.

A) refuse

B) reject

C) resist

D) resolve

46. In the last few years, the Internet and the World Wide Web have become __________ words; almost everyone has heard of them.

A) family

B) home

C) house

D) household

47. Vicki never worried or hesitated about anything, she just __________ it and almost always got whatever she wanted.

A) went by

B) went for

C) went over

D) went with

48. The reason 800 million people go hungry today is not that there isn't enough food in the world, __________ that these people cannot get the food anyway.

A) but

B) despite

C) even

D) except

49. As she matured as an artist, she __________ realize that \culture.\

A) came to

B) kept to

C) took to

D) went to

50. My son failed to come back home last night. This morning the police came to our house and __________ my worst fears that he was injured in a car accident.

A) advocated

B) confirmed

C) insured

D) promised

51. Because of the mad cow disease, the European Union __________ a worldwide ban on British beef and beef product exports.

A) challenged

B) charged

C) forged

D) imposed

52. The exhibition at the Shanghai Science and Technology Center _____________ such endangered animals as the giant panda and the Siberian tiger and describes the work being done to protect them.

A) detects

B) exploits

C) features

D) demonstrates

53. A computer file is a collection of __________ data, used to organize the storage and processing of data by computer.

A) electrical

B) artificial

C) electronic

D) genuine

54. To protect the environment, scientists and engineers are researching ways to __________ electricity more cheaply from such renewable energy sources as the wind and sun.

A) generate

B) manufacture

C) construct

D) transform

55. In social dancing, the participants dance for their own pleasure rather than for the __________ of an audience.

A) appreciation

B) entertainment

C) leisure

D) temptation

56. Wireless waste from cell phones, pocket PCs, and music players __________ special problems because they have toxic chemicals in batteries and other components.

A) expose

B) commit

C) pose

D) transport

57. Scientists have discovered many planets orbiting distant stars, all are __________ to life.

A) unlikely

B) unfriendly

C) forbidden

D) vulnerable

58. A healthy and better-educated new generation is a __________ for sustainable economic and social development of all countries.

A) guarantee

B) security

C) demand

D) target

59. Parks and open spaces are essential to the quality of life in dense __________ areas such as New York City.

A) agricultural

B) rural

C) suburban

D) urban

60. My trip to the small village under the control of the enemy fire was full of delays and difficulties, but I eventually __________.

A) got by

B) turned it over

C) hit the sack

D) made it

61. For traditional Chinese painters, fame and fortune come late, and it is __________ for artists to hold their first exhibitions when they are over seventy years old.

A) hardly common

B) less frequent

C) not unheard of

D) just usual

62. A remote-controlled bomb exploded outside a hotel near the town square yesterday, __________ at least 12 people.

A) having been injured

B) having injured

C) injured

D) injuring

63. When energy is converted from one form to another, some energy is always lost as heat. __________, no energy conversion is ever 100% efficient.

A) In other terms

B) In other words

C) In another way

D) In some way

64. While freshmen are considered part of the academic elite, some of them appear to lack common sense __________ following traffic regulations.

A) coming to to

65. A man who is good enough to shed his blood for his country is good enough __________ a fair deal afterwards.

A) being given

B) been given

C) given

D) to be given

B) when coming to

C) when it comes to

D) when they come

66. NASA's Mars program was set back when two spacecraft failed up reaching Mars, one __________ up in the planet's atmosphere and the other __________ after a software failure.