Passage Two
England is not a big country: from north to south and [29]from east to west it is only about three hundred miles across. But for a small country [30]it has a surprisingly wide range of climates. People who have never visited England or who have visited only part of it often make the mistake that it is a very cold and wet country. Except for the summer months of June to September, this is probably true of the north of England and the Midlands. In the south, however, the climate is much more pleasant. One result is that when people retire from their work in the north, they often prefer to move down to the south.
Perhaps the warmest part of the country is the southwest, which consists of the counties of Devon and Cornwall, where palm trees, bamboo and many semitropical plants grow well. [31]Flowers and vegetables ripen as much as a month earlier than those elsewhere. Farmers in the areas gain a higher price for their vegetables and flowers because they are ready earlier. In winter there may be several feet of snow in other parts of England but there will probably be no snow at all in the southwest. This may be one of the reasons why the southwest is one of England's most popular holiday areas.

Questions 29 to 31 are based on the passage you have just heard.
29. What's the distance from the centre of England to the south coast?
正确答案：C
解析：数字计算题。根据录音首句“从北部到南部，以及从东部到西部，只有大约300英里的距离”，那么从centre到coast就是其中一半的距离，即150英里，故选C。
30. What is said about the climate of England?
正确答案：D
解析：细节题。of great variety是a wide range的同义表达，故D正确。
31. Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
正确答案：A
解析：本题考查对细节的记忆与理解。长句子要在听到主语后将谓语、宾语或表语与原文进行对比，能够匹配的往往是答案。本题选A。其他选项多是利用原文中出现过的词进行干扰。