questions 22 to 26 are based on the following passage：
california is a land of variety and contrast. almost every type of physical land feature， sort of arctic ice fields and tropical jungles can be found within its borders. sharply contrasting types of land often lie very close to one another.
people living in bakersfield， for instance， can visit the pacific ocean and the coastal plain， the fertile san joaquin valley， the arid mojave desert， and the high sierra nevada， all within a radius of about 100 miles. in other areas it is possible to go snow skiing in the morning and surfing in the evening of the same day， without having to travel long distance.
contrast abounds in california. the highest point in the united states （outside alaska ） is in california， and so is the lowest point （including alaska）。 mount whitney， 14，494 feet above sea level， is separated from death valley， 282 feet below sea level， by a distance of only 100 miles. the two areas have a difference in altitude of almost three miles.
california has deep， clear mountain lakes like lake tahoe， the deepest in the country， but it also has shallow， salty desert lakes. it has lake tulainyo， 12，020 feet above sea level， and the lowest lake in the country， the salton sea， 236 feet below sea level. some of its lakes， like owens lake in death valley， are not lakes at all： they are driedup lake beds.
in addition to mountains， lakes， valleys， deserts， and plateaus， california has its pacific coastline， stretching longer than the coastlines of oregon and washington combined.
22. which of the following is the lowest point in the united states？
a. lake tulainyo.
b. mojave desert.
c. death valley.
d. the salton sea.
23. where is the highest point in the united states located？
a. lake tahoe.
b. sierra nevada.
c. mount whitney.
d. alaska.
24. how far away is death valley from mount whitney？
a. about 3 miles.
b. only 100 miles.
c. 282 feet.
d. 14，494 feet.
25. which of the following is not mentioned in the passage as being within a radius of about 100 miles of bakersfield？
a. the pacific ocean.
b. san joaquin valley.
c. mojave desert.
d. oregon and washington.
26. which statement best demonstrates that california is a land of variety and contrast？
a. the highest lake in california is lake tulainyo.
b. it is possible to go surfing and snow skiing in some parts of california without having to travel long distance.
c. sierra nevada， san joaquin valley， mojave desert and the pacific ocean all lie within a radius of about 100 miles.
d. owens lake， in death valley， is not really a lake at all.
questions 27 to 30 are based on the following passage：
the destruction of our natural resources and contamination of our food supply continue to occur， largely because of the extreme difficulty in affixing legal responsibility on those who continue to treat our environment with reckless abandon. attempts to prevent pollution legislation， economic in-centimes and friendly persuasion have been met by lawsuits， personal and industrial denial and long delays —— not only in accepting responsibility， but more importantly， in doing something about it.
it seems that only when government decides it can afford tax incentives or production sacrifices is there any initiative for change. where is industry's and our recognition that protecting mankind's great treasure is the single most important responsibility？ if ever there will be time for environmental health professionals to come to the frontlines and provide leadership to solve environmental problems， that time is now.
we are being asked， and， in fact ，the public is demanding that we take positive action. it is our responsibility as professionals in environmental health to make the difference. yes， the ecologists， the environmental activists and the conservationists serve to communicate， stimulate thinking and promote behavioral change. however， it is those of us who are paid to make the decisions to develop， improve and enforce environmental standards， i submit， who must lead the charge.
we must recognize that environmental health issues do not stop at city limits， county lines， state or even federal boundaries. we can no longer afford to be tunnel-versioned in our approach. we must visualize issues from every perspective make the objective decisions. we must express our views clearly to prevent media distortion and public confusion. i believe we have a three-part mission for the present. first， we must continue to press for improvements in the quality of life that people can make for themselves. second， we must investigate and understand the link between environment and health. third， we must be able to communicate technical information in a form that citizens can understand. if we can accomplish these three goals in this decade， maybe we can finally stop environmental degradation， and not merely hold it back. we will then be able to spend pollution dollars truly on prevention rather than on bandages.
27. we can infer from the first two paragraphs that the industrialists disregard environmental protection chiefly because ______.
a） they are unaware of the consequences of what they are doing
b） they are reluctant to sacrifice their own economic interests
c） time has not yet come for them to put due emphasis on it
d） it is difficult for them to take effective measures
28. the main task now facing ecologists， environmental activists and conservationists is ______.
a） to prevent pollution by legislation， economic incentives and persuasion
b） to arouse public awareness of the importance of environmental protection
c） to take radical measures to control environmental pollution
d） to improve the quality of life by enforcing environmental standards
29. the word tunnel-versioned （line 2， para.4） most probably means ______.
a） narrow-minded
b） blind to the facts
c） short-sighted
d） able to see only one aspect
30. which of the following， according to the author， should play the leading role in the solution of environmental problems？
a） legislation and government intervention.
b） the industry's understanding and support.
c） the efforts of environmental health professionals.
d） the cooperation of ecologists， environmental activists and conservationists.
questions 31 to 33 are based on the following passage：
british universities， groaning under the burden of a huge increase in student numbers， are warning that the tradition of a free education is at risk. the universities have threatened to impose an admission fee on students to plug a gap in revenue if the government does not act to improve their finances and scrap some public spending cutbacks.
the government responded to the universities' threat by setting up the most fundamental review of higher education for a generation， under a non-party troubleshooter？ sir ron dearing. one in three school-leavers enters higher education， five times the number when the last review took place thirty years ago. everyone agrees a system that is feeling the strain after rapid expansion needs a lot more money —— but there is little hope of getting it from the taxpayer and not much scope for attracting more finance from business.
most colleges believe students should contribute to tuition costs， something that is common elsewhere in the world but would mark a revolutionary change in britain. universities want the government to introduce a loan scheme for tuition fees and have suspended their own threatened action for now. they await dearing's advice， hoping it will not be too late —— some are already reported to be in financial difficulty. as the century nears its end， the whole concept of what a university should be is under the microscope. experts ponder how much they can use computers instead of classrooms， talk of the need for lifelong learning and refer to students as consumers.“ the confederation of british industry， the key employers’ organization， wants even more expansion in higher education to help fight competition on world markets from booming asian economies. but the government has doubts about more expansion. the times newspaper egress， complaining that quality has suffered as student numbers soared， with close tutorial supervision giving way to pass production methods more typical of european universities.
31. the chief concern of british universities is ______.
a） how to tackle their present financial difficulty
b） how to expand the enrollment to meet the needs of enterprises
c） how to improve their educational technology
d） how to put an end to the current tendency of quality deterioration
32. we can learn from the passage that in britain ______.
a） the government pays dearly for its financial policy
b） universities are mainly funded by businesses
c） higher education is provided free of charge
d） students are ready to accept loan schemes for tuition
33. what was the percentage of high school graduates admitted to universities in britain thirty years ago？
a） 20% or so.
b） about 15%.
c） above 30%.
d） below 10%.
22. c
23. d
24. b
25. d
26. c
27. b
28. b
29. d
30. a
31. c
32. d
33. a