第三部分 閱讀理解 (共20小題；每小題2分，滿分40分)

　　閱讀下列短文，從每題所給的四個選項(A、B、C和D)中，選出最佳選項, 并在答題卡將該項涂黑。

　　　                              A 

    “Soon, you’re going to have to move out!” cried my neighbor upon seeing the largest tomato plant known to mankind, or at least known in my neighborhood.

    One tiny 9-inch plant, bought for $1.25 in the spring, has already taken over much of my rose bed, covering much of other plants, and is well on its way to the front door.

    Roses require a good deal of care, and if it weren’t for the pleasure they give, it wouldn’t be worth the work. As it is, I have a garden full of sweet-smelling roses for most of the year. Bushes must be pruned(剪枝) in early spring, leaving ugly woody branches until the new growth appears a few weeks later. It was the space available in the garden that led me into planting just one little tomato plant. A big mistake.

    Soil conditions made just perfect for roses turn out to be even more perfect for tomatoes. The daily watering coupled with full sun and regular fertilizing(施肥) have turned the little plant into a tall bush. The cage I placed around it as the plant grew has long since disappeared under the thick leaves.

　　Now the task I face in harvesting the fruit is twofold: First, I have to find the red ones among the leaves, which means I almost have to stand on my head, and once found I have to reach down and under, pick the tomatoes and withdraw(縮回) my full fist without dropping the prize so dearly won. I found two full-blown white roses completely hidden as I picked tomatoes in June. But they were weak and the leaves already yellow for lack of light.

　　Here I am faced with a painful small decision: To tear up a wonderful and productive tomato plant that offers up between ten and twenty ripe sweet tomatoes each day or say goodbye to several expensive and treasured roses. Like Scarlett in Gone With the Wind, I’ll think about that tomorrow.

56. What are the requirements for the healthy growth of rose?

A．A lot of care and the right soil.

B．Frequent pruning and fertilizing.

C．Tomato plants grown alongside.

D．Cages placed around the roots.

57. The writer planted the tomato because _________.

A．it cost only $1.25

B．the soil was just right for it

C．there was room for it in the garden

D．the roses’ branches needed to be covered

58. This year the writer’s roses were __________.

A．removed from rose bed

B．picked along with the tomatoes

C．mostly damaged by too much sunlight

D．largely hidden under the tomato plant

59. In the situation described in the text, one good thing is that ________.

A．the roses cost the writer little money

B．the writer has a daily harvest of tomatoes

C．someone will help the writer make the decision

D．the writer can now enjoy both the roses and tomatoes

B

　　  Olaf Stapledon wrote a book called First and Last Men, in which he looked millions of years ahead. He told of different men and of strange civilizations, broken up by long ‘dark ages’ in between. In his view, what is called the present time is no more than a moment in human history and we are just the First Men. In 2,000 million years from now there will be the Eighteenth or Last Men. 

　　However, most of our ideas about the future are really very short-sighted. Perhaps we can see some possibilities for the next fifty years. But the next hundred? The next thousand? The next million? That's much more difficult.

　　When men and women lived by hunting 50,000 years ago, how could they even begin to picture modern life? Yet to men of 50,000 years from now, we may seem as primitive in our ideas as the Stone-Age hunters do to us. Perhaps they will spend their days gollocking to make new spundles, or struggling with their ballalators through the cribe. These words, which I have just made up, have to stand for things and ideas that we simply can't think of. 

　　So why bother even to try imagining life far in the future? Here are two reasons. First, unless we remember how short our own lives are compared with the whole human history, we are likely to think our own interests are much more important than they really are. If we make the earth a poor place to live on, because we are careless or greedy or quarrelsome, our grandchildren will not bother to think of excuses for us. 

　　Second, by trying to escape from present interests and imagine life far in the future, we may arrive at quite fresh ideas that we can use ourselves. For example, if we imagine that in the future men may give up farming, we can think of trying it now. So set your imagination free when you think about the future.

60. A particular mention made of Stapledon's book in the opening paragraph ______.

A. serves as a description of human history    

B. serves as an introduction to the discussion

C. shows a disagreement of views           

D. shows the popularity of the book

61. The text discusses men and women 50,000 years ago and 50,000 years from now in order to show that ______.

A. human history is extremely long          

B. life has changed a great deal

C. it is useless to plan for the next 50 years    

D. it is difficult to tell what will happen in the future

62. Spundles and ballalators are used in the text to refer to ______.

A. tools used in farming           B. ideas about modern life 

C. unknown things in the future     D. hunting skills in the Stone Age

63. According to the writer of the text, imagining the future will ______.

A. serve the interests of the present and future generations    

B. enable us to better understand human history

C. help us to improve farming              

D. make life worth living
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