A typhoon was coming, and at ten P.M. the news said school would be closed. My sister and I clapped in the living room. (11) The wind began at four in the morning. By seven our sidewalk had turned into a river, and a million leaves lay on it, and the old tree by the gate had lost half its leaves. We could not go out, (12) the power went off at noon. We ate cold rice, drank warm Coke until our stomachs hurt, and told stories in the dark. (13) that day is the one my sister still talks about, more than any trip we have taken. A free day is not the same as a good one, (14) sometimes a bad day makes the better story.
People often laugh when the weather report is wrong. (15) A report for tomorrow is right about nine times in ten; a report for next week is closer to six. The reason is simple to say and hard to live with: small things grow. A change too small to measure this morning can decide whether it rains on Sunday, (16) no machine can measure every corner of the sky. (17), weather experts do not tell us what will happen; they tell us what is likely. A chance of rain of seven in ten does not mean it will rain, (18) that is exactly what most of us hear.
✔ 正確答案：(D) In fact, reports are better than we think.
解析空格後給出九成、六成的準確數字，是在為預報辯護，所以空格要先說「事實上比我們以為的準」。
16
Aand
Bbut
Cbecause
Dif
✔ 正確答案：(A) and
解析「小變化決定週日下不下雨」與「沒有機器能測遍天空」是順向補充，用 and。
17
AHowever
BBy chance
CAt first
DFor this reason
✔ 正確答案：(D) For this reason
解析根據前面的道理得出專家只能說可能性，用 For this reason。
18
Aand
Bbut
Cor
Dsince
✔ 正確答案：(B) but
解析「不代表一定下雨」與「我們卻聽成那樣」形成對比，用 but。
3
閱讀理解 Reading Comprehension
共 12 題／4 個題組
請閱讀下列短文，並回答相關問題。
NOTICE
Messages and a Weather Notice
Mom: The school sent this. Read it before you go tomorrow.
SUN HILL SCHOOL · Typhoon Notice
Classes on as usual Thursday
Decision for Friday at 20:00 Thursday
Check the school page, not the radio, for all information
If you are already at school, stay inside
Wei: So Thursday is as usual? I have a violin class until six.
Mom: Yes, but come straight home after. The rain gets heavy after seven P.M.
Wei: All right. I will take an umbrella and leave the motorcycle at home.
全文中譯
媽媽：學校傳來這個。你明天去之前先看一下。
陽光國中 · 颱風通知
星期四照常上課
星期五是否上課，於星期四 20:00 公布
所有資訊請查看學校網頁，不要以電台為準
若已在校，請留在室內
偉：所以星期四照常上課？我有小提琴課上到六點。
媽媽：是，但下課後直接回家。晚上七點後雨會變大。
偉：好。我會帶傘，機車留在家裡。
Questions 19–21
19When will the school decide about Friday?
AOn Thursday at 20:00
BOn Friday morning
CAfter the violin class
DWhen the radio says so
✔ 正確答案：(A) On Thursday at 20:00
中譯學校何時會決定星期五的上課與否？
解析Decision for Friday at 20:00 Thursday。
20Where should students look for the decision?
AThe front gate
BThe radio
CThe school page
DA message from a teacher
✔ 正確答案：(C) The school page
中譯學生應該到哪裡看決定？
解析Check the school page, not the radio。
21Why will Wei leave the motorcycle at home?
AIt is broken
BHis mother needs it
CHeavy rain is coming after seven
DThe school does not allow it
✔ 正確答案：(C) Heavy rain is coming after seven
中譯偉為什麼要把機車留在家裡？
解析The rain gets heavy after seven P.M.，而他的課上到六點，回家路上會遇到大雨。
NOTICE
What to Do in a Storm
Keep this page where the whole family can see it.
Fill a bucket with water before the storm; the water may stop
Put a light and a radio where you can find them in the dark
Stay away from windows when you hear thunder close by
Do not go out to look at the river, even if the rain seems to have stopped. Water can rise again in twenty minutes, and the ground near a river gives way without a sound.
If the power goes off, do not open the refrigerator. Food inside stays cold for about four hours if the door is kept shut. Check on any neighbor who lives alone once the wind drops, but do not knock after ten P.M. if you are not worried.
22Why should people fill a bucket before the storm?
ATo clean the floor later
BTo put out a fire
CTo give it to a neighbor
DBecause the water may stop
✔ 正確答案：(D) Because the water may stop
中譯為什麼暴風雨前要先裝一桶水？
解析Fill a bucket with water before the storm; the water may stop。
23Why is it dangerous to go and look at the river?
AThe rain never really stops
BThunder comes from the river
CThe ground near it can give way
DThe bridge will be closed
✔ 正確答案：(C) The ground near it can give way
中譯去看河為什麼危險？
解析the ground near a river gives way without a sound，而且水可能再度上漲。
24What does the notice say about the refrigerator?
AKeep the door shut so food stays cold
BTurn it off before the storm
CMove it away from the window
DFill it with water
✔ 正確答案：(A) Keep the door shut so food stays cold
中譯公告對冰箱有什麼說明？
解析do not open the refrigerator. Food inside stays cold for about four hours if the door is kept shut。
EMAIL
A Letter from a Cold Country
Dear Ming,
You asked what a real winter feels like. Today the temperature was minus twelve. That is not a story; it is Tuesday here.
The strange part is not the cold itself. It is what the cold does to time. Nobody stands outside to talk. You walk to the shop with your head down and you do not look up. By four in the afternoon it is dark, so the day feels as if it had been cut in half.
I miss the humid air at home more than I thought I would. I used to say I hated it. Now I would give a lot for one bitter, wet August afternoon with thunder over the hills.
25What is the main point of the second part of the letter?
AThe shops close early
BThe cold changes how the day feels
CWinter is longer than summer
DPeople do not talk there
✔ 正確答案：(B) The cold changes how the day feels
中譯信中第二段的重點是什麼？
解析It is what the cold does to time ... the day feels as if it had been cut in half，重點在寒冷改變了對時間的感受。
26How does the writer feel about the weather at home now?
AShe thinks it is the same
BShe has forgotten it
CShe still hates it
DShe misses it more than she expected
✔ 正確答案：(D) She misses it more than she expected
中譯作者現在對家鄉的天氣有什麼感覺？
解析I miss the humid air at home more than I thought I would。
27What is the purpose of saying that minus twelve is not a story?
ANobody would believe it
BIt happens often there
CShe made the number up
DIt only happened once
✔ 正確答案：(B) It happens often there
中譯作者說零下十二度不是在說故事，目的是什麼？
解析That is not a story; it is Tuesday here，意思是那裡平常日就是這種溫度。
ARTICLE
Weather We Remember
Ask any voter about the weather last March and they will not know. Ask about the typhoon of ten years ago and they will tell you where they were standing.
We do not remember weather; we remember what the weather made us do. A storm that kept a family in one room for two days is stored as a family story, not as rain. This is why old people say the winters were colder when they were young. Some were, but the ones they remember are the ones that changed a day.
Climate is measured in numbers over eighty years, and almost nobody feels it directly. That is the hard part: the thing we can feel is the storm, and the thing that matters is the slow line under it.