After so many days without rain, the ground quickly（）the little rain that fell last night.

A．dripped

B．soaked

C．absorbed

D．drained

听力原文：W: Hey, Joe. What's all this talk about a benefit walkathon this weekend？

M: Don't you know？ Most of the residents in Parker Hall are going to try to walk the seven miles from the Engineering Library, across campus, and down to City Hall in an effort to raise money for the new children's hospital.

W: Sounds like a good ideal But I don't understand where the money comes from.

M: Well, a few days before the walkathon, each participant goes around asking people to pledge a certain amount of money for each mile that he or she expects to walk in the event. Then after the walkathon is over, the participants go back to those same people, collect the money pledged, and send it to the hospital.

W: So you mean if you pledge, say, a dollar a mile and you walk five miles, then you get five dollars.

M: That's fight. Of course most of my friends aren't such big spenders. The biggest pledge I've gotten so far is 25 cents a mile.

W: And how many people have made pledges for you？

M: Eleven so far. Say, how about making it a dozen？

W: Sure. If you'll do the same for me. The walkathon sounds like the perfect opportunity for me to break in my new pair of sports shoes.

(23)

A．Hospital employees.

B．City Hall officials.

C．Packer Hall residents.

D．The engineering students.

听力原文：W: Why do you think Harry Potter is so popular these days？

M: Because there are not many good children's books available.

Q: What does the man mean？

(18)

A．He thinks children are normally silly.

B．He thinks we are short of good children's books.

C．He thinks we need to produce more interesting books.

D．He thinks children have no taste at all.

M: Well, it's a long process. We start off by deciding who the official candidate for each political party will be. Usually, a person first announces that he or she wants to run for President. If you want to be your party's official candidate, you need to raise money and gather support from party members. Candidates usually campaign to let people know what they represent. They give speeches, meet with community leaders, and participate in debates. This process lasts for several months, and then the party members vote to decide who they want to back in the election.

W: Do you have to be rich to become President？

M: You don't really have to be rich to become President, but it helps. Usually rich people have more connections and can raise money more effectively. Most of our Presidents in the past have been relatively rich men, but not all of them.

W: So, how do you make the final decision？

M: After several months of television ads, interviews, speeches, and kissing babies we have the presidential election. Citizens go to a voting center and cast their ballot for the candidate of their choice.

W: You sounded a little cynical when you said "kissing babies". What did you mean by that？

M: Well, it's quite common for politicians to have themselves photographed kissing babies. It's their way of trying to appear in touch with the average American, but it looks really phony. These days, becoming President is all about acting. The candidates try to appeal to so many different people that they end up abandoning their own opinions. Sometimes, it feels like the parties are all the same.

W: How many parties are there？

M: We have many political parties in the United States, but most of them are quite small. There are really only two with significant power, the Democrats and the Republicans.

(20)

A．Raising money.

B．Gathering support from others.

C．Giving speeches.

D．Choosing the official candidate for each political party.

听力原文：W: Why do you think Harry Potter is so popular these days？

M: Because there arc not many good children's books available.

Q: What does the man mean？

(18)

A．He thinks children are normally silly.

B．He thinks we arc short of good children's books.

C．He thinks we need to produce more interesting books.

D．He thinks children have no taste at all.

听力原文：W: Can you recognize me, David？

M: Why, are you Margaret？

W: Sure, I am. We haven't seen each other for over twenty years.

M: You haven't changed so much.

W: You haven't either.

M: Remember the days when we were together？ We used to go out for a walk every evening after supper.

W: And my mother used to say that we are more like brother and sister than friends.

M: Those good old days!

(8)

A．Colleagues.

B．Friends.

C．Brother and sister.

D．Husband and wife.

听力原文：W: Hey, Joe, what is all this talk about the benefit walkathon this weekend？

M: Don't you know, most of the residents in Packer Hall are going to try to walk the seven miles from the engineering library, across campus and down to city hall, in an effort to raise money for the new children's hospital (22) .

W: Sounds like a good idea. But I don't understand where the money comes from.

M: Well, a few days before the walkathon, each participant goes around asking people to pledge just a certain amount of money for each mile that he or she expects to walk in the event. Then after the walkathon's over, the participants go back to those same people, collect the money pledged and send it into hospital (25) .

W: So you mean if someone pledges, say, a dollar a mile, and you walk five miles, you get five dollars (23) 7

M: That' s right. of course, most of my friends area' t such big spenders, the biggest pledge I've gotten so far is 25 cents a mile (24) .

W: And how many people have made pledges for you？

M: Eleven so far. Say, how about making it an even dozen？

W: Sure, if you do the same for me. The walkathon sounds like a perfect opportunity for me to break in my new pair of sport shoes.

M: You are definitely warm-hearted.

W: You bet. And I tell you, I am also a good walker.

M: Hope to see you in the walkathon.

W: I will be there.

(26)

A．Hospital staff only.

B．Many officials.

C．Many Packer Hall residents.

D．The art students.

M: Well, it's a long process. We start off by deciding who the official candidate for each political party will be. Usually, a person first announces that he or she wants to run for President. If you want to be your party's official candidate, you need to raise money and gather support from party members. Candidates usually campaign to let people know what they represent. They give speeches, meet with community leaders, and participate in debates. This process lasts for several months, and then the party members vote to decide who they want to back in the election.

W: Do you have to be rich to become President？

M: You don't really have to be rich to become President, but it helps. Usually rich people have more connections and can raise money more effectively. Most of our Presidents in the past have been relatively rich men, but not all of them.

W: So, how do you make the final decision？

M: After several months of television ads, interviews, speeches, and kissing babies we have the presidential election. Citizens go to a voting center and cast their ballot for the candidate of their choice.

W: You sounded a little cynical when you said "kissing babies". What did you mean by that？

M: Well, it's quite common for politicians to have themselves photographed kissing babies. It's their way of trying to appear in touch with the average American, but it looks really phony. These days, becoming President is all about acting. The candidates try to appeal to so many different people that they end up abandoning their own opinions. Sometimes, it feels like the parties are all the same.

W: How many parties are there？

M: We have many political parties in the United States. but most of them are quite small. There are really only two with significant power, the Democrats and the Republicans.

(20)

A．Raising money.

B．Gathering support from others.

C．Giving speeches.

D．Choosing the official candidate for each political party.