The researcher organized an experimental tournament(锦标赛) involving four youth teams. Each match lasted an hour divided into three periods of 20 minutes during which different referees were in charge.

　　Observers noted down the referees’ errors, of which there were 61 over the tournament. Converted to a standard match of 90 minutes, each referee made almost 23 mistakes, a remarkable high number.

　　The researcher then studied the videotapes to analyse the matches in detail. Surprisingly, he found that errors were more likely when the referees were close to the incident. When the officials got it right, they were, on average, 17 meters away from the action. The average distance in the case of errors was 12 meters. The research shows the optimum(最佳的) distance is about 20 meters.

　　There also seemed to be an optimum speed. Correct decisions came when the referees were moving at a speed of about 2 meters per second. The average speed for errors was 4 meters per second.

　　If FIFA, football’s international ruling body, wants to improve the standard of refereeing at the next World Cup, it should encourage referees to keep their eyes on the action from a distance, rather than rushing to keep up with the ball, the researcher argues.

　　He also says that FIFA’ s insistence that referees should retire at age 45 may be misguided. If keeping up with the action is not so important, their physical condition is less critical.

　　1. The experiment conducted by the researcher was meant to ______.

　　A.set a standard for football refereeing

　　B.reexamine the rules for football refereeing

　　C.analyse the causes of errors made by football referees

　　D.review the decisions of referees at the 1998 World Cup

　　2.The number of refereeing errors in the experimental matches was ______.

　　A. quite unexpected                   B. slightly above average

　　C. as high as in a standard match         D. higher than in the 1998 World Cup

　　3. The finding of the experiment show that ______.

　　A. errors are less likely when a referee stays in one spot

　　B. the more slowly the referee runs the more likely will errors occur

　　C. the farther the referees is from the incident the fewer the errors

　　D. errors are more likely when a referee keeps close to the ball

　　4. The word “official” (Line2,Para.4) most probably refers to ______.

　　A. the researchers involved in the experiment

　　B. the referees of the football tournament

　　C. the observers at the site of the experiment

　　D. the inspectors of the football tournament

　　5. What is one of the possible conclusions of the experiment?

　　A. Age should not be the chief consideration in choosing a football referee.

　　B. A football referee should be as young and energetic as possible.

　　C. The ideal retirement age for an experienced football referee is 45.

　　D. An experienced football referee can do well even when in poor physical condition.

　　Passage Ten

　　Toronto: A 300-pound adult Siberian tiger escaped from its four-meter high chain-link-pen at the Toronto Zoo yesterday, on one of the busiest days of the year.

　　Though no one was hurt, the dangerous animal was separated from the public for a time by nothing more than a four-foot fence. The escape occurred after one of the animal’s handlers left the pen gate open. It prompted a swift response from officials. Staff were sent immediately to arrest the runaway tiger.

　　General Manager Calvin White told reporters that staff were preparing for the worst. “I ordered a tranquilizer (麻醉剂) gun so we would have tranquilized her, but thankfully we didn’t have to,” Mr. White said. The tiger was successfully led back into its cage after the brief escape.

　　The incident occurred during the Toronto Zoo’s 28th annual Christmas Treats Walk, where admission is free in return for donations of food that does not easily go bad.

　　Thousands of people attend each Boxing Day to see the animals fed by their handlers.

　　1.The tiger escape happened ______.

　　A. owing to the lack of food                  B. due to its separation from the public

　　C. because of the handler’s neglect of duty      D. as a result of the damage chain and fence

　　2. Who is Calvin White?

　　A. A managerial staff of the Zoo.               B. A journalist from National post.