TEXT E
First read the question.
51. The passage mainly discusses ____
A. Flight International.
B. world accidents.
C. pilot error accidents.
D. an aviation magazine.
Now go though Text E quickly to answer question 51.
Airplane crashes caused by pilot miscalculation during descent killed 640 people in 1997， more than in any previous year， according to a new report out last week.
Flight International， a respected aviation magazine， said its survey showed such crashes remained the biggest cause of airline passenger deaths.
Major airlines were still vulnerable to such accidents， despite improved technology， it said.
The accidents， known officially as “controlled flights into terrain，” or CFITs， happened in clouds or darkness， usually on the descent towards an airport. The crew members made a navigational error or descended too low， or both， so that the aircraft hit the ground without the crew realizing the danger.
Special efforts had been made in recent years to reduce CFITs， Flight International said.
“Although small carriers and non-passenger operations tend， in most year， to account for the majority of the CFIT accidents， major carriers are manifestly vulnerable，” the magazine said.
Flight International added that CFITs were thought to be responsible for the Korean Air Boeing 747 crash in Guam in August and the Garuda Airbus A300 accident in Sumatra， Indonesia， in September. Together， the accidents accounted for 462 deaths.
The previous record for CFITs in a single year was 582 in 1989.
The magazine said there were51 fatal airline accidents in 1997 resulting in 1，306 deaths. That compared with an annual average of 49 fatal accidents and 1，234 deaths for the preceding decade.
Areas with normally good safety records such as Western Europe， Australia， North America and the Middle East had a safe year， Flight International said.
Africa had no airline fatalities， and Latin America only one， but the southern part of the former Soviet Union， parts of Asia and the Asian Pacific regions fared less well.
TEXT F
First read the questions.
52. The passage focuses on ____.
A. the location of the valley.
B. the temperature of the valley.
C. the rivers， animals and plants of the valley.
D. the general features of the valley.
Now go through TEXT F quickly and answer question 52.
Death Valley is an arid， depressed， desert region， southeastern California. It was given its name by one of 18 survivors of a party of 30 attempting in 1849 to find a shortcut to the California goldfield. Much of the valley is below sea level， and near Badwater at 86 meters below sea level， is the lowest point in the western hemisphere. Death Valley National Monument （established 1933） has an area of 8368.1 sq km and incorporates the valley and surrounding mountains.
The valley is from 6 to 26 km wide and about 255 km long and is almost entirely enclosed by mountain ranges， volcanic in origin， bare and brilliantly colored. The Panamint Range on the west， which rises to a maximum altitude of 3367 m in Telescope Peak， shuts out the moist Pacific winds. On the east are the peaks of the Amargosa Range.
The summer temperatures in Death Valley， one of the hottest regions known， exceed 51.7 C in the shade and rarely fall below 21.1 C. The National Weather Service recorded 56.7 C IN 1913， the highest temperature ever recorded in the US. Average rainfall in a normal year is less than 51 mm. Sandstorms and dust whirlwinds of several hours' duration are common.
Several watercourses enter the valley， among them the Amargosa River from the south and Furnace Creek from the east， but it is only after heavy rains， which are rare， that they contain water. The lowest parts of the valley floor are salt flats， devoid of vegetation； higher portions contain a mixture of sand and salt grains， occasionally forming dunes. The western side of the valley floor is bordered by stunted mesquite， and in a marsh in the northern section a growth of tall， coarse grass is found； the east and west slopes have a sparse vegetation of cacti and desert shrubs and grasses. Animal life is confined to a few species of desert reptiles， such as horned toads and lizards and such mammals are as rabbits， rats， and the desert bighorn sheep.
Gold has been found in Death Valley， and silver， copper， and lead have been taken in paying quantities. The famous borax deposits of Death Valley were first mined in the 1880s.
First read the question.
51. The passage mainly discusses ____
A. Flight International.
B. world accidents.
C. pilot error accidents.
D. an aviation magazine.
Now go though Text E quickly to answer question 51.
Airplane crashes caused by pilot miscalculation during descent killed 640 people in 1997， more than in any previous year， according to a new report out last week.
Flight International， a respected aviation magazine， said its survey showed such crashes remained the biggest cause of airline passenger deaths.
Major airlines were still vulnerable to such accidents， despite improved technology， it said.
The accidents， known officially as “controlled flights into terrain，” or CFITs， happened in clouds or darkness， usually on the descent towards an airport. The crew members made a navigational error or descended too low， or both， so that the aircraft hit the ground without the crew realizing the danger.
Special efforts had been made in recent years to reduce CFITs， Flight International said.
“Although small carriers and non-passenger operations tend， in most year， to account for the majority of the CFIT accidents， major carriers are manifestly vulnerable，” the magazine said.
Flight International added that CFITs were thought to be responsible for the Korean Air Boeing 747 crash in Guam in August and the Garuda Airbus A300 accident in Sumatra， Indonesia， in September. Together， the accidents accounted for 462 deaths.
The previous record for CFITs in a single year was 582 in 1989.
The magazine said there were51 fatal airline accidents in 1997 resulting in 1，306 deaths. That compared with an annual average of 49 fatal accidents and 1，234 deaths for the preceding decade.
Areas with normally good safety records such as Western Europe， Australia， North America and the Middle East had a safe year， Flight International said.
Africa had no airline fatalities， and Latin America only one， but the southern part of the former Soviet Union， parts of Asia and the Asian Pacific regions fared less well.
TEXT F
First read the questions.
52. The passage focuses on ____.
A. the location of the valley.
B. the temperature of the valley.
C. the rivers， animals and plants of the valley.
D. the general features of the valley.
Now go through TEXT F quickly and answer question 52.
Death Valley is an arid， depressed， desert region， southeastern California. It was given its name by one of 18 survivors of a party of 30 attempting in 1849 to find a shortcut to the California goldfield. Much of the valley is below sea level， and near Badwater at 86 meters below sea level， is the lowest point in the western hemisphere. Death Valley National Monument （established 1933） has an area of 8368.1 sq km and incorporates the valley and surrounding mountains.
The valley is from 6 to 26 km wide and about 255 km long and is almost entirely enclosed by mountain ranges， volcanic in origin， bare and brilliantly colored. The Panamint Range on the west， which rises to a maximum altitude of 3367 m in Telescope Peak， shuts out the moist Pacific winds. On the east are the peaks of the Amargosa Range.
The summer temperatures in Death Valley， one of the hottest regions known， exceed 51.7 C in the shade and rarely fall below 21.1 C. The National Weather Service recorded 56.7 C IN 1913， the highest temperature ever recorded in the US. Average rainfall in a normal year is less than 51 mm. Sandstorms and dust whirlwinds of several hours' duration are common.
Several watercourses enter the valley， among them the Amargosa River from the south and Furnace Creek from the east， but it is only after heavy rains， which are rare， that they contain water. The lowest parts of the valley floor are salt flats， devoid of vegetation； higher portions contain a mixture of sand and salt grains， occasionally forming dunes. The western side of the valley floor is bordered by stunted mesquite， and in a marsh in the northern section a growth of tall， coarse grass is found； the east and west slopes have a sparse vegetation of cacti and desert shrubs and grasses. Animal life is confined to a few species of desert reptiles， such as horned toads and lizards and such mammals are as rabbits， rats， and the desert bighorn sheep.
Gold has been found in Death Valley， and silver， copper， and lead have been taken in paying quantities. The famous borax deposits of Death Valley were first mined in the 1880s.