On Saturday, millions of people around the world will celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day, which honors Patron Saint (or main religious figure) of Ireland. Communities across the United States will host parades, parties, and other festivities to mark the occasion.
This year, cities like Boston, New York, and Chicago have organized massive events celebrating Saint Patrick’s Day. In New York City, hundreds of thousands of people will gather to watch the Saint Patrick’s Day parade—the nation’s largest. It is one of the most watched parades in the world. Last year, almost 2 million spectators（观众） and more than 150,000 participants （参与者）filled the streets. The parade, first held in 1776, is also one of the oldest.
Chicago also throws a big celebration. Every year, the Chicago River, which crosses the city, glows green as event organizers dump about 40 pounds of fluorescence, a powerful dye(染料), into the water.
Boston keeps its parade rolling for three hours or more. It is the nation’s second-largest parade. The city will also salute one of its most famous former residents, President John F. Kennedy, by opening the exhibit “A Journey Home: John F. Kennedy and Ireland,” at his official library.
Patron Saint lived in Britain in the early fifth century, when it was still part of the Roman Empire. He was captured （抓捕）and sold into slavery（卖为奴隶） in Ireland when he was only 16．He eventually escaped slavery and turned to a life of religious devotion. He trained to become a minister（牧师） and set out to spread Christianity throughout Ireland. After 30 years as a religious leader, Patrick died on March 17, 1461．Saint Patrick’s Day is always celebrated on March 17．In Ireland, it is an official holiday.
1．What’s the best title of the passage?
A．History of Saint Patrick’s Day B．An Official Holiday in US
C．The Largest Parade in the World D．Celebrations across the Country
2．What do you think is the official color of St. Patrick’s Day?
A．Green B．Red. C．Black. D．Yellow.
3．The last paragraph is mainly about _____.
A．the cruel slave trade. B．Saint Patrick’s contribution.
C．activities during Saint Patrick’s Day D．Ireland’s Patron Saint
4．Which of the following is not correct according to the passage?
A．Parade is a most important event to observe Saint Patrick’s Day.
B．Saint Patrick’s Day is a religious holiday.
C．Saluting the former president has become a main event on the occasion.
D．The Saint Patrick’s Day parade has a history of over two centuries.
The way people hold to the belief that a fun - filled, pain free life equals happiness actually reduces their chances of ever attaining real happiness. If fun and pleasure are equal to happiness then pain must be equal to unhappiness. But in fact, the opposite is true: more often than not things that lead to happiness involve some pain.
As a result, many people avoid the very attempts that are the source of true happiness. They fear the pain inevitably brought by such things as marriage, raising children, professional achievement, religious commitment （预担的义务）, self - improvement.
Ask a bachelor（单身汉） why he resists marriage even though he finds dating to be less and less satisfying. If he is honest he will tell you that he is afraid of making a commitment. For commitment is in fact quite painful. The single life is filled with fun, adventure, excitement. Marriage has such moments, but they are not its most distinguishing features.
Couples with infant children are lucky to get a whole night’s sleep or a three - day vacation. I don’t know any parent who would choose the word fun to describe raising children. But couples who decide not to have children never know the joys of watching a child grow up or of playing with a grandchild.
Understanding and accepting that true happiness has nothing to do with fun is one of the most liberating realizations. It liberates time: now we can devote more hours to activities that can genuinely increase our happiness. It liberates money: buying that new car or those fancy clothes that will do nothing to increase our happiness now seems pointless. And it liberates us from envy: we now understand that all those who are always having so much fun actually may not be happy at all.According to the author, a bachelor resists marriage chiefly because ________ .
| A．he is reluctant to take on family responsiblilities |
| B．he believes that life will be more cheerful if he remains single |
| C．he finds more fun in dating than in marriage |
| D．he fears it will put an end to all his fun adventure and excitement |
Raising children, in the author’s opinion is ________ .
| A．a moral duty |
| B．a thankless job |
| C．a rewarding task |
| D．a source of inevitable pain |
From the last paragraph, we learn that envy sometimes stems from ________ .
| A．hatred | B．misunderstanding |
| C．prejudice | D．ignorance |
To understand what true happiness is one must ________ .
| A．have as much fun as possible during one’s lifetime |
| B．make every effort to liberate oneself from pain |
| C．put up with pain under all circumstances |
| D．be able to distinguish happiness from fun |
For more than twenty years scientists have been searching for signs of life on other planets. Most of these searches have been done over the radio. The hope is that someone in outer space may be trying to get in touch with us. Scientists also have sent radio and television messages on spaceships traveling through space, on the chance that someone may be receptive to such messages.
Scientists are using powerful radio telescopes to listen to signals from about 1, 000 stars, all within 100 light years of earth. In addition, they will scan（扫视）the entire sky to “listen” for radio messages from more distant stars. Using a computer, they will be able to monitor more than eight channels at one time. Scientists are looking for any signal they stands out from the background noise.
Of the 200 billion stars in the Milky Way galaxy（银河星系）, scientists find that five percent are like our sun. Perhaps half of them have a planet like earth. Such a planet would be a reasonable distance from the star for temperatures to be right for the evolution（进化）of life. Based on the inhabitable（that can be lived in）planets in our galaxy, most scientists agree that chances are likely that one or more of these planets support some life.
However, many scientists wonder whether intelligent（有智力的）life exists on other planets. Some believe that twenty years of searching without any intelligible messages shows that no one is out there. They say that the evolution of intelligence comparable to ours is unlikely.
Other scientists believe that our search hasn’t been long enough to rule out the possibility that intelligent life exists in our galaxy. Although our sun family is only about five billion years old, our galaxy is about 20 billion years old. In that time, some scientists think it is likely that civilization（文明）much more advanced than ours have developed. Perhaps these civilizations send us no signals; perhaps we have not recognized the signals they have sent us. If we hope to find intelligent life, these scientists believe that we have to keep looking.According to the passage, how many planets in our galaxy might be inhabitable?
| A．5 billion． | B．10 billion. |
| C．15 billion. | D．200 billion |
The first paragraph in this passage is mainly about ________ .
| A．how scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets |
| B．why scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets |
| C．where scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets |
| D．when scientists are looking for signs of life on other planets |
The underlined word “monitor” in the passage means“ ________ ”.
| A．find | B．follow |
| C．check | D．form |
Which of these statements is true based on the information in the passage?
| A．The earth is one of the oldest planets in our galaxy. |
| B．Most scientists believe that there is intelligent life on other planets. |
| C．Scientists are trying different ways to find signs of life on other planets. |
| D．Scientists don’t believe that there might be life on other planets. |
The leaders of Russia and China vowed to support each other’s fight against Muslim separatists and urged peaceful solutions in Iraq, during a meeting in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People on December 2, 2002.
Russian President Vladimir Put in and China’s Jiang Zemin signed a joint declaration calling for a “multipolar world”.
His two - day visit comes shortly after the conclusion of the 16th Patry Cogress which elected the new CPC leadership. Put in said that Russia wants to “work hard” with the new generation of Chinese leaders.
The Treaty（条约）of Good =" Neighbourliness" and Friendly Cooperation, signed in July last year, has provided a solid legal foundation for lasting friendship for generations to come, according to Jiang, “China and Russia will be good neighbours, friends and partners forever.”
The Russian Government, in return, said it would continue to give priority（优先权）to relations with China in its foreign policies.
Put in spoke on the morning of Dec. 3rd at Peking University and took questions from students on his understanding of Chinese literature, Russian reform（改革）and NATO enlargement.
He said a growing number of young people in Russia are interested in Chinese literature and one of his daughters is learning Chinese.We can infer from the last paragraph that ________ .
| A．many young Russian people hope to study Chinese in China |
| B．China is richer and stronger than Russia |
| C．Russia will give some support to China |
| D．The relation between China and Russia is developing healthily |
It is implied, in the sentence“Put in said that Russia wants to‘work hard’with the new generation on Chinese leaders”, that ________ .
| A．Russia will co - operate closely with China |
| B．There are many differences between Russia and China |
| C．Put in knew little of the new generation of Chinese leaders |
| D．It will be long before Put in gets to know the new generation of Chinese leaders |
The underlined word“multipolar”is likely to mean ________ .
| A．equal | B．peaceful |
| C．balanced | D．fair |
Which of the following is mentioned in the passage?
| A．Put in agreed that NATO was enlarged． |
| B．Put in was invited to the 16th Chinese communist Party congress. |
| C．Russia puts China first. |
| D．Muslim separatists make trouble only in Russia. |
HOLIDAY HOMES IN MALLORCA
Holiday houses in Mallorca sailing and fishing port - quiet even in summer season. Beautifully situated houses with sights of sea and mountains, yet near to shops and restaurants. Cars and bicycles for hire. Sailing and sports clubs nearby.
ITALY IN COMFORT
Luxury coach（ - carriage） trips of Italy, out of normal holiday season. 21days to visit five Italian cities starting from London 1 st May, 1 st September . The trips are guided by profess or Martin Davis. Head of Italian Studies, London University . See the arts and culture of historic Italy.
KIBBUTZ HOLIDAYS IN ISRAEL（以色列）
Working holidays on a kibbutz（ co -operative farm） in Israel. All nationalities welcome for one to three months, if prepared to work morning with kibbutz members. Accommodation （住宿）, food and trips to historic sights all provided free - you pay only for the special low- cost return flight.
TWO WEEKS ON A CARIBBEAN ISLAND
Two- week holidays in the Hotel Splendid , on a lovely beach with golden sands and deep- blue sea. Tennis, golf, sailing and all water sports, trips around the island arranged. Near to town of Castries with lively evening entertainment - dancing.
1 st November - 31 st March = ￡ 720 per person
1 st April - 30th October = ￡ 850 per person
Jack and his wife Mary, who have recently retired, want to see places of cultural and historic interest abroad, but Mary hates flying.
Peter and Maria, university students, want to travel as far as possible on little money, and would like to get to know a country by working there for three months with other young people.
Michael, a young computer programmer, has been working hard and needs a holiday to relax in winter. He would like to go somewhere warmer and sunny, where he can swim in the sea, and he enjoys sports and dancing.
Herry and Kate, both teachers, and their two sons, have to take their holiday during the school summer holidays. There must be plenty for the boys to do, although Harry and Kate just want to have beautiful scenery, good food and wine- and peace.Michael would most probably go to ________ for his holiday.
| A．Italy | B．Israel |
| C．Mallorca | D．a Caribbean island |
The most suitable place where Peter and Maria can enjoy their holiday would be________
| A．an Italian city | B．a kibbutz in Israel |
| C．a Caribbean island | D．the port in Mallorca |
The best holiday for Jack and Mary would be________.
| A．the 21 - day coach trip of Italy |
| B．the 2 -week stay in the Hotel Splendid |
| C．the 14 -day trip around a Caribbean island |
| D．the working holidays for 1 -3 months on a kibbutz in Israel |
Harry and Kate and their sons would like________.
| A．a holiday working on a kibbutz in Israel |
| B．a holiday visiting cities by coach in Italy |
| C．a holiday house in the fishing port in Mallorca |
| D．a holiday hotel on a lovely beach on a Carribean Island |
From the very beginning, Martin felt that he was bound up with（与……紧紧地在一起）his lovely little patient. One day, following some tests , Betty gave the doctor a big hug（拥抱）.
A few months later the doctor removed not only the tumour（肿瘤）, but also the entire lower left side of Betty’s gum（牙龈）and jawbone. Because Betty was so young, Martin was hopeful that her jawbone might regenerate.
Within three months, Betty’s tumour grew as large as an orange, changing the natural appearance of the left side of her small, delicate （ =" thin;" not strong）face. Soon she couldn’t even close her mouth, and as her eating problems worsened, Betty ‘s weight dropped from 20 kilos to 15. Martin knew from experience that it might invade the brain.
The only other possibility was thorough radiation therapy （放射疗法）. Night after night, Betty's father gave her injection, but the tumour remained as big as ever. Then one evening. Morgan noticed that the tumour had begun to change. It was actually becoming smaller! For two months her tumour appeared to be going away for ever. In the coming months, Betty’s tumour continued to appear. She was able to eat solid food once again. Her jawbone was regenerating. The tumour was gone.
If Betty’s jawbone didn’t regenerate, the doctors ________ .
| A．would rebuild her jaw |
| B．would continue the treatment |
| C．would use new medicine |
| D．could do nothing else |
If the brain should be invaded, the result would ________.
| A．prevent her growth |
| B．reduce her weight |
| C．cause her brain damaged |
| D．affect her eyesight |
What did the doctors do two months later?
| A．They continued their observations. |
| B．They gave up the operation on Betty. |
| C．They found out what caused Betty’s strange disease. |
| D．They declared that Betty’s strange disease was cured. |
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