Part Ⅲ Reading Comprehension (40 minutes)
Section A
Directions: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to select one word for each blank from a list of choices given in a word bank following the passage. Read the passage through carefully before making your choices. Each choice in the bank is identified by a letter. Please mark the corresponding letter for each item on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. You may not use any of the words in the bank more than once.
Neon (霓虹) is to Hong Kong as red phone booths are to London and fog is to San Francisco. When night falls, red and blue and other colors 26 a hazy (雾蒙蒙的) glow over a city lit up by tens of thousands of neon signs. But many of them are going dark, 27 by more practical, but less romantic, LEDs (发光二极管).
Changing building codes, evolving tastes, and the high cost of maintaining those wonderful old signs have businesses embracing LEDs, which are energy 28 , but still carry great cost. "To me, neon represents memories of the past," says photographer Sharon Blance, whose series Hong Kong Neon celebrates the city's famous signs. "Looking at the signs now I get a feeling of amazement, mixed with sadness."
Building a neon sign is an art practiced by 29 trained on the job to mold glass tubes into 30 shapes and letters. They fill these tubes with gases that glow when 31 . Neon makes orange, while other gases make yellow or blue. It takes many hours to craft a single sign.
Blance spent a week in Hong Kong and 32 more than 60 signs; 22 of them appear in the series that capture the signs lighting up lonely streets—an 33 that makes it easy to admire their colors and craftsmanship. "I love the beautiful, handcrafted, old-fashioned 34 of neon," says Blance. The signs do nothing more than 35 a restaurant, theater, or other business, but do so in the most striking way possible.
A) alternative B) approach C) cast D) challenging E) decorative
F) efficient G) electrified H) identify I) photographed J) professionals
K) quality L) replaced M) stimulate N) symbolizes O) volunteers
答案解析：
26. 根据“a hazy (雾蒙蒙的) glow over a city lit up by tens of thousands of neon signs”，可知霓虹灯发出光笼罩城市，C选项“cast(投射)”符合语境，所以选C。
27. 根据“by more practical, but less romantic, LEDs (发光二极管)”，可知霓虹灯被LED灯替代，L选项“replaced(替代)”符合语境，所以选L。
28. 根据“but still carry great cost”以及常识，可知LED灯是节能的，F选项“efficient(高效的)”符合语境，所以选F。
29. 根据“trained on the job to mold glass tubes”，可知制作霓虹灯招牌的是经过培训的专业人员，J选项“professionals(专业人员)”符合语境，所以选J。
30. 根据“shapes and letters”，可知是要把玻璃管塑造成各种形状和字母来装饰，E选项“decorative(装饰性的)”符合语境，所以选E。
31. 根据“They fill these tubes with gases that glow”，可知给玻璃管通电气体才会发光，G选项“electrified(通电)”符合语境，所以选G。
32. 根据“more than 60 signs; 22 of them appear in the series”，可知是拍摄了60多个招牌，I选项“photographed(拍摄)”符合语境，所以选I。
33. 根据“that makes it easy to admire their colors and craftsmanship”，可知这是一种能让人欣赏到招牌色彩和工艺的方式，B选项“approach(方式)”符合语境，所以选B。
34. 根据“handcrafted, old-fashioned”，可知说的是霓虹灯手工制作、老式的特质，K选项“quality(特质)”符合语境，所以选K。
35. 根据“a restaurant, theater, or other business”，可知招牌的作用是标识出餐厅、剧院或其他商业场所，H选项“identify(标识)”符合语境，所以选H。
