James Cleveland Owens was the son of a farmer and the grandson of black slaves. His family moved to Cleveland when he was 9. There, a school teacher asked the youth his name.
“J. C.” , he replied.
She thought he had said “Jesse”, and he had a new name.
Owens ran his first race at age 13. After high school, he went to Ohio State University. He had to work part time so as to pay for his education. As a second-year student, in the Big Ten games in 1935, he set even more records than he would in the Olympic Games a year later.
A week before the Big Ten meet, Owens accidentally fell down a flight of stairs. His back hurt so much that he could not exercise all week, and he had to be helped in and out of the car that drove him to the meet. He refused to listen to the suggestions that he give up and said he would try, event by event. He did try, and the results are in the record book.
The stage was set for Owens’ victory at the Olympic Games in Berlin the next year, and his success would come to be regarded as not only athletic (体育的) but also political. Hitler did not congratulate any of the African-American winners.
“It was all right with me,” he said years later. “I didn’t go to Berlin to shake hands with him, anyway.”
Having returned from Berlin, he received no telephone call from the president of his own country, either. In fact, he was not honored by the United States until 1976, four years before his death.
Owens’ Olympic victories made little difference to him. He earned his living by looking after a school playground, and accepted money to race against cars, trucks, motorcycles, and dogs.
“Sure, it bothered (烦扰) me,” he said later. “But at least it was an honest living had to eat.”
In time, however, his gold medals (奖牌) changed his life. “They have kept me alive over the years,” he once said. “Time has stood still for me. That golden moment dies hard.”Owens got his other name “Jesse” when _______.
A. he went to Ohio State University
B. his teacher made fun of him
C. his teacher took “J. C.” for “Jesse”
D. he won gold medals in the Big Ten meet In the Big Ten meet, Owens _______.
| A．hurt himself in the back | B．succeeded in setting many records |
| C．tried every sports event but failed | D．had to give up some events |
We can infer from the text that Owens was treated unfairly in the U.S. at that time because _______.
| A．he was not of the right race | B．he was the son of a poor farmer |
| C．he didn’t shake hands with Hitler | D．he didn’t talk to the US president on the phone |
When Owens says “They have kept me alive over the years”, he means that the medals ________.
| A．have been changed for money to help him live on |
| B．have made him famous in the U.S. |
| C．have encouraged him to overcome difficulties in life |
| D．have kept him busy with all kinds of jobs |
Which of the following is a suitable title for the text?
| A．Jesse Owens, a Great American Athlete |
| B．Golden Moment—a Life-time Struggle |
| C．Making a Living as a Sportsman |
| D．How to Be a Successful Athlete |
FRANCE has destroyed the hopes of those who had planned to take refuge（避难）in one of the few places on Earth which some believe will be spared when the world ends on December 21 ．Local officials banned access to the Pic de Bugarach，a mountain in the southwest where rumor has it that the hilltop will open on the last day and aliens will appear with spaceships to save nearby humans.
Eric Freysselinard，the state’s top representative in the area，said he was blocking access to the mountain for public safety reasons to avoid a rush of New Age fanatics(盲信者），sight-seers and media crews. Believers say the world will end on December 21，2012，the end date of the ancient Mayan calendar，and they see Bugarach as one of a few sacred mountains sheltered from the cataclysm(大灾难）．
Mr Freysselinard said the 100 police and firefighters will also control approaches to the tiny village of the same name at the foot of the mountain，and if too many people turn up，they will block access there too.“We are expecting a few people who believe in this end of the world，but in extremely limited numbers，” he said in the. nearby city of Carcassonne.“We are expecting greater numbers of people who are just curious，but in numbers we cannot determine. Above all，we are expecting lots of journalists，”he said.
Films，documentaries and websites have promoted the idea that the ancient Mayan calendar predicts that doomsday is on December 21．The culture ministry in Guatemala-where half the population are of Mayan descent-is hosting a massive event in the capital just in case the world actually does end，while tour groups are promoting doomsday-themed getaways.Many people plan to go to Pic de Bugarach mainly because ．
| A．they want to take refuge on December 21，2012 |
| B．they want to meet aliens with spaceships to save humans |
| C．they want to visit the scenery of the mountain |
| D．they want to make profits by attracting tourists |
Eric Freysselinard was blocking access to the mountain for ．
| A．forbidding the rumour spreading | B．improving environmental protection |
| C．protecting public safety | D．avoiding destroying natural sources |
What kinds of people would come to Pic de Bugarach？
a. Tourists. b. Journalists. c. Local officials. d. Visionaries. e. The Mayans.
| A．a. b. e. | B．a. b. c. | C．a. b. d. | D．b. d. e. |
Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
| A．The World Ends on December 21 | B．The Ancient Mayan Calendar Ends |
| C．A Massive Event in The Capital | D．French Say‘No’to The Refugee |
Switzerland is the best place to be born in the world in 2013，and the US is just 16th. A new study made by the Economist Intelligence Unit says American babies will have a dimmer（暗淡）future than those born in Hong Kong，Ireland and even Canada. The EIU，a sister company of The Economist，tried to measure how well countries will provide the best opportunities for a healthy，safe and prosperous life in years to come.
People born in Switzerland will tend to be the happiest and have the best quality of life in terms of wealth，health and trust in public institutions，according to the analysis. The Scandinavian countries of Norway，Sweden and Denmark also all make the top five in a‘quality-of-lif e’index(指数）where it is best to be born next year.
One of the most important factors is being rich，but other factors come into play including crime，trust in public institutions and the health of family life. In total，the index takes into account 11 factors. These include fixed factors such as geography，others that change slowly over time such as demography (人口学) social and cultural characteristics, and the state of the world economy. The index also looks at income per head in 2030，which is roughly when children born in 2013 will reach adulthood. Small economies take up the top 10 countries，with Australia coming second and New Zealand and the Netherlands not too far behind.
Half of the top 10 countries are European，but only one，the Netherlands，is from the eurozone. The crisis-ridden south of Europe，including Greece，Portugal and Spain，falls behind despite the advantage of a favourable climate. Interestingly，the largest European economies-Germany，France and Britain-do not do particularly well. Nigeria has the unenviable(不值得羡慕的)title of being the worst country for a baby to enter the world in 2013.According to the passage，the happiest people live in ·
| A．Denmark | B．Switzerland | C．Germany | D．Nigeria |
The factors of telling the best place to be born don’t include ．
| A．economy | B．geography |
| C．trust in public institutions | D．pollution |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the text？
| A．The Economist Intelligence Unit is a company. |
| B．The Economist attempted to measure the best place to live. |
| C．The Scandinavian countries are hardly at the top of the list. |
| D．Half of the top 10 countries are from the eurozone. |
The purpose of the text is to show people ．
| A．the best place to be born in 2013 |
| B．a new study made by the EIU |
| C．the worst country to be born in 2013 |
| D．the factors of measuring the best place to be born |
Once there was an island where all the feelings lived: Happiness, Sadness, Knowledge, and all of the others, including Love. One day it was said that the island would go down, so all made boats and left except Love.
Love was the only one who stayed. Love wanted to offer her help until the last possible moment. When the island had almost gone down, Love decided to ask for help.
Richness was passing by Love in a great boat. Love said, “Richness, can you take me with you?” Richness answered, “No, I can’t. There is a lot of gold and silver in my boat. There is no place here for you.”
Sadness was close by, so Love asked, “Sadness, let me go with you .” “Oh, Love, I am so sad that I need to be by myself!”
Happiness passed by Love, too, but she was so happy that she did not even notice when Love called her.
Suddenly, there was a voice, “Come, Love, I will take you.” It was an elder. Love was so excited that she even forgot to ask who the elder was. So Love asked Knowledge, another elder, “Who helped me?” “It was Time,” Knowledge answered. “Time?” asked Love. “But why did Time help me?”
Knowledge smiled with deep wisdom and answered, “Because only Time understands how valuable Love is.”What would happen to the island?
| A．It would grow bigger. | B．It would sink. |
| C．It drove feelings away. | D．All the feelings lived. |
Sadness didn’t see Love when he passed by Love, did he?
| A．Yes, he did. | B．Yes, he didn’t. |
| C．No, he didn’t. | D．No, he did. |
Why didn’t Happiness help Love?
| A．Because Happiness didn’t like Love. |
| B．Because Happiness didn’t hear Love calling her. |
| C．Because her boat was so small that she couldn’t take Love with her. |
| D．Because she needed to be by herself. |
Who helped Love out of danger?
| A．Sadness. | B．Knowledge. | C．Happiness. | D．Time. |
What does the underlined word “valuable” mean in Chinese?
| A．令人喜爱的 | B．珍贵的 |
| C．吸引人的 | D．有爱心的 |
| Going to Disneyland is a dream vacation for kids. You may have been to the Disneyland in Hong Kong or in other places. Soon you will be able to enjoy a Disney Park in Shanghai. Shanghai Disneyland started building on April 8, 2011.There will be many Chinese characters in Shanghai Disneyland. It is different from the others. There is a 10-kilometer-long river. It goes around the whole park. Shanghai Disneyland will cost 24. 4 billion yuan to build. It will open in five years. |
| In order to keep the road safe, European Commission (欧盟) says that buses and taxis can be fitted (安装) with “black boxes.” The black boxes can help the police to find what happened after an accident. |
| The Beijing-Shanghai High Speed Railway was put into operation at the end of June, 2011.Now the journey can take about five hours. The train can reach the speed of up to 380 kilometers an hour. The passenger volume (容量) can reach 160 million a year, marking a great step in China’s Railway development. |
| On the evening of May 8th, 2012,a middle school teacher Zhang Lili from Jiamusi , Heilongjiang Province , saved her students in a terrible accident. She was badly hurt and lost her legs. Her brave deed moved the people around China deeply. She is called “the most beautiful teacher.” The whole society is trying to save her life. As a young teacher, her bravery sets a good example to us all. We all hope she will get better soon. |
The Beijing-Shanghai High Speed Railway was put into operation at the end of __, 2011.
| A．June | B．July | C．August | D．September |
Shanghai Disneyland will open ___________.
| A．on April 8, 2011 | B．in 2012 |
| C．on May 8, 2012 | D．in 2016 |
Which of the following is TRUE about Shanghai Disneyland?
| A．A 10-kilometer-long river goes in the middle of the park. |
| B．There will be many Chinese characters. |
| C．It is the same as the others. |
| D．It opened 5 years ago. |
In order to keep the road safe, European Commission wants to
| A．make buses and taxis go slowly. |
| B．fit buses and taxis with "black boxes". |
| C．make the police find out what happened. |
| D．find out what "black boxes" can do. |
According to the news, we can learn___________
| A．Now we are able to enjoy a Disney Park in Shanghai. |
| B．The black boxes can help the police predict what will happen. |
| C．The passenger volume can reach 380 million a year. |
| D．“The most beautiful teacher” Zhang Lili is our good example. |
Steven Jobs, the designer of Apple Computer, was not clever when he was in school. At that time, he was not a good student and he always made troubles with his schoolmates. When he went into college, he didn’t change a lot. Then he dropped out（退学）. But he was full of new ideas.
After he left college, Steven Jobs worked as a video game designer. He worked there for only several months and then he went to India. He hoped that the trip would give him some new ideas and give him a change in his life.
Steven Jobs lived on a farm in California for a year after he returned from India.
In 1975, he began to make a new type of computer. He designed the Apple Computer with his friend in his garage. He chose the name “Apple” just because it could help him to remember a happy summer he once spent in an apple tree garden.
His Apple Computer was so successful that Steven Jobs soon became famous all over the world.
He often said, “I live in order to change the world, there aren’t any other reasons. The only way to have a great achievement is to love your own career. If you can’t find your favorite career, go on looking for it and never give up.”
This is Steven Jobs, though he is dead, his spirit and achievements still influence our lives.Steven Jobs was not a good student in school because he ________.
| A．never did his lessons | B．dropped out |
| C．always made troubles with his schoolmates | D．he was full of new ideas |
Why did Steven Jobs go to India?
| A．Because he wanted to be a video game designer. |
| B．Because he wanted to get some new ideas. |
| C．Because he wanted to make a new type of computer. |
| D．Because he wanted to have a happy summer. |
Steven Jobs was famous for his ________ all over the world.
| A．new ideas | B．Apple Computer | C．video games | D．saying |
From this passage we know Steven Jobs ________.
| A．didn’t finish his studies in the college because he hated his schoolmates |
| B．liked traveling in India and California |
| C．liked trying new things and making his new ideas come true |
| D．thought he had many reasons to live in the world |
Which of the following sentences is NOT true according to this passage?
| A．The only way to have a great achievement is to love your career. |
| B．The name “Apple” helped Jobs to remember a happy summer in an apple tree garden. |
| C．If you can’t find the career you love, give it up and try another one. |
| D．People remember Jobs because of his achievements. |
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