I am here to announce my retirement from the game of basketball. It won't be another announcement to baseball or anything to that nature1.
Mentally, I'm exhausted; I don't feel I have a challenge. Physically, I feel great. The last time in 1993 I had other agendas. I felt that I wanted to play baseball and I felt that at my age, it was a good opportunity and time to do it. And with the death of my father, and I was basically trying to deal with that.
Actually I talked to Jerry last year once the season ended and I told Jerry at that time, mentally, I was a little exhausted. I didn't know if I would play next year. I wanted to put him on awareness so that he could possibly prepare going into next season. And Jerry, once we had our conversation, wanted me to take time as I did in 1993 to make sure that it was the right decision because it was going to be the final decision. I retired the first time when Phil Jackson was the coach. And I think that even with Phil being the coach I would have had a tough time, mentally finding the challenge for myself. Although he can somehow present challenges for me. I don't know if he could have presented the challenge for me to continue on to this season. Even though middle way of this season I wanted to continue to play a couple more years, but at the end of this season I was mentally drained and tired. So I can't say that he would have restored that. I will support the Chicago Bulls. I think the game itself is a lot bigger than Michael Jordan.The underlined sentence tells us Michael Jordan will retire from any games.
Michael Jordan once made an announcement of his retirement.
Michael Jordan isn’t strong enough to continue his games.
Michael Jordan thinks the game itself is more important than the player.
The main reason for Michael Jordan’s retirement is that the coach have had him suffered a tough time.
The film “Avatar” has received great popularity around the world. It turned out to be a great success. The film got ＄1 billion in ticket sales in a very short time. The story in the film happens on an alien planet called Pandora where many strange species live. Among the planet’s inhabitants(居民,栖息动物)，the one that has the most similarities with humans is the Na’vi, and it is the struggle between the Ma’vi and human invaders(入侵者) that forms the story of the film.
As to the factors(因素) leading to the film’s success, many think that the entertaining feast(盛宴) for the eyes and the wonderful story shouldn’t be forgotten, but the new language invented especially for the film which provides audiences with a new experience also plays an important part.
In order to increase the truthfulness of an alien race（外星人）, the film’s director James Cameron asked an expert in languages from the University of Southern California to invent a language for the Na’vi. Professor Paul Frommer combined the languages spoken among Indians, Africans and mid-Asians and worked with James Caneron for four years to create the Na’vi language based on the original 30 words that the director had already come up with.
According to Professor Frommer, the most important characteristic of the Na’vi language is that it could be pronounced. “This is an alien language but obviously it has to be spoken by human actors and actresses,” Professor Frommer told the BBC, “it has to sound natural and it should make human beings comfortable when using it.”
The language has a vocabulary of around 1000 words but Progessor Formmer hopes to enlarge the vocabulary in possible follow-ups to the film and in video games. The professor hopes that one day his creation will be as successful as the Klingon alien language from the “Star Trek”films. “There’s a translation of Hamlet into Klingon and it has received great popularity among the audiences,” says Professor Frommer，“if anything like this happens to the Na’vi language, I’d be very happy.”
1. What do we know about“Avatar” from this passage?
A. The story in it is a moving love story.
B. It brings the producer ＄1 billion in total.
C. The story in it happens on an alien planet.
D. It talks about humans and aliens’ friendship.
2. The director of “Avatar” James Cameron had a language invented for the Na’vi to
A. make the film a whole mystery B. make the Na’vi more believable
C. make the Na’vi different from humans D. make the film have specific characteristics
3. Who first created the basic words of the Na’vi language?
A. Paul Frommer. B. An Indian. C. James Cameron D. Hamlet.
4. The important feature of the Na’vi language is that
A. it can be spoken by humans B. it has just 30 original words
C. it has a vocabulary of 1000 words. D. it is like the Klingon alien language
5. We can infer from the passage that
A. James Cameron will produce follow-ups to “Avatar”
B. the Na’vi language is another kind of the Klingon language
C. the director believes the Na’vi language will be popular
D. Paul Frommer hopes to add new words to the Na’vi language
New Year’s Eve is a time to celebrate and enter the new year with a smile on your face. This year, there’re plenty of local activities for all ages and interests, so the smiles will come easily. 
BLUE CONCERTBlues band the Coyotes is playing at the Dance Barn，at 8 Barn View in Sudden Valley, The show will start at 9 p. m. and benefit the charity Bikers Fighting Cancer. Tickets cost $10 in advance and $15 at the door. Call 224-2308 for more information. NEW YEAR’S LAUGHS
Ring in the New Year and laugh out the old one at the Upfront Theatre Comic improvisers will hit on all the highlights of the year with The Last Laugh of 2008. The 9 p. m. show will cost $15 and is open to all ages. The 11 P. m. show is to 21 and older and costs $18, which includes a champagne (香槟酒) toast. Call 733-8855 for more information.
MAZE
For a fun activity earlier in the evening，walk the labyrinth (迷宫) at the Leopold Crystal Bellroom. Wander through the maze, based on the French Chartres Cathedral, for free from 4 to 9 P. m. Call 752-0048 for more information.
COUNTRY DANCING
At the Bellingham Eagles Hall, live local music will help get the dance started at 8 p. m. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for students and free for kids 12 and younger. For more information, call 676-1554.
1. In what way do these activities have in common?
A. They’re all held in the same day. B. They’re all held by the same organization.
C. They’re all organized for children. D. They’re all about the dancing and music.
2. Which of the following activities may be free for Tom aged 16?
A. COUNTRY DANCING. B. NEW YEAR'S LAUGHS.
C. MAZE. D. BLUE CONCERT.
3. If you want to know something about the Coyotes at 8 Barn view, you'd better call .
A. 676-1554 B. 733-8855 C. 752-0048 D. 224-2308
4. Which of the followings will be the highlights of NEW YEAR'S LAUGHS?
A. Wander through the maze. B. The champagne toast.
C. Its live music. D. The Last Laugh of 2008.
5. It can be inferred from the text that .
A. $10 is enough to book a ticket to Blue Concert B. you can read the text on a telephone book
C. all these activities are international ones D. New Year’s Laughs will hold shows three times
四、阅读理解（2分×15=30分）阅读下列短文,从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项。
Talk about a real-life hero! Ten-year-old Larry Champagne from St. Louis，Missouri, hit the brake (刹车) on a runaway school bus. He saved himself and 20 other kids on board from disaster.
It all happened in one terrible accident. On the way to school, the bus driver, Ernestine Blackman, suddenly fell ill. Seeing the car was running away, the other kids started to scream, but Larry ran to the front and stopped the bus.
“At first I thought, ‘We’re going to die,’” says Larry, “but after I pressed the brake, I felt safe.”
Larry’s speedy reaction made news all over the country. He appeared on TV shows as a hero. The bus company gave Larry a big gift. His school hung a medal of honor around his neck.
“My grandmother always tells me to do what’s right,” says Larry. He thanked his brother, Jerrick, 9, who “helped me get the bus driver up” during the emergency（紧急情况）. How did he know how to stop the bus? Larry is something of a mechanic（机械师）. He helps his grandfather work on his old truck. “He gets his hands dirty,” says his grandfather. One thing is for certain: Larry knows where to find the brakes.
1. What did Larry do to save the runaway bus?
A. He parked it for the sleeping bus driver.
B. He helped all the kids climb out through the windows.
C. He dialed 911. D. he pressed the brake.
2. When did Larry finally feel safe?
A. When the kids finally stopped screaming. B. When the police officers arrived.
C. Once he pressed the brake, and the bus stopped. D. When the bus driver started driving again.
3. Larry got the following as praise for his hero action Except .
A. appearing on TV shows B. a scholarship from his school
C. a big gift from the bus company D. a medal of honor
4. Larry thanked his brother Jerrick for .
A. helping him get the bus driver up B. helping him work on his old truck
C. teaching him how to find the brake D. teaching him how to stop the bus
5. The underlined sentence“Larry is something of a mechanic” tells us that .
A. Larry’s job is a mechanic B. Larry knows something about machines
C. Larry is a robot D. Larry knows nothing about machines
America is growing older. Fifty years ago, only 4 out of every 100 people in the United States were 65 or older. Today, 10 out of every 100 Americans are over 65. The aging of the population will affect American society in many ways — education, medicine, and business. Quietly, the graying of America has made us a very different society — one in which people have a quite different idea of what kind of behavior is suitable at various ages.
A person's age no longer tells you anything about his/her social position, marriage or health. There's no longer a particular year in which one goes to school or goes to work or gets married or starts a family. The social clock that keeps us on time and tells us when to go to school, get a job, or stop working isn't as strong as it used to be. It doesn't surprise us to hear of a 29-year-old university president or a 35-year-old grandmother, or a 70-year-old man who has become a father for the first time. Public ideas are changing.
Many people say, “I am much younger than my mother — or my father — was at my age. 'No one says Act your age' any more. We've stopped looking with surprising at older people who act in youthful ways."
1. It can be learnt from the text that the aging of the population in America _______________________.
A. has made people feel younger
B. has changed people's social position
C. has changed people's understanding of age
D. has slowed down the country's social development
2. The underlined word "one" refers to "__________________."
A. a society B. America C. a place D. population
3 "Act your age" means people should __________________.
A. be active when they are old
B. do the right things at the right age
C. show respect for their parents young or old
D. take more physical exercise suitable to their age
4. If a 25-year-old man becomes general manager of a big firm, the writer of the text would most probably consider it _________________.
A. normal B. wonderful C. unbelievable D. unreasonable
The Great Fire of London started in the very early hours of September 2, 1666. In four days it destroyed more than three-quarters of the old city, where most of the houses were wooden and close together. One hundred thousand people became homeless, but only a few lost their lives.
The fire started on Sunday morning in the house of the King's baker in Pudding Lane. The baker, with his wife and family, was able to get out through a window in the roof. A strong wind blew the fire from the bakery into a small hotel next door. Then it spread quickly into the Thames Street. That was the beginnings.
By eight o'clock three hundred houses were on fire. On Monday nearly a kilometer of the city was burning along the River Thames. Tuesday was the worst day. The fire destroyed many well-known buildings, old St Paul's and the Guildhall among them.
Samuel Pepys, the famous writer, wrote about the fire. People threw their things into the river. Many poor people stayed in their houses until the last moment. Birds fell out of the air because of the heat.
The fire stopped only when the King finally ordered people to destroy hundreds of buildings in the path of the fire. With nothing left to burn, the fire became weak and finally died out.
After the fire, Christopher Wren, the architect, wanted a city with wider streets and fine new houses of stone. In fact, the streets are still narrow; but he did build more than fifty churches, among which was new St Paul's.
The fire caused great pain and loss, but after it London was a better place: a city for the future and not just of the past.
1. The fire began in ___________________________.
A. a hotel B. the palace C. Pudding Lane D. Thames Street
2. The underlined word "family" in the second paragraph means “________________________________”.
A. home B. children C. wife and husband D. wife and children
3. It seems that the writer of the text was most sorry for the fact that ________________________________.
A. some people lost their lives
B. the birds in the sky were killed by the fire
C. many famous buildings were destroyed
D. the King’s bakery was burned down
4. Why did the writer cite(引用) Samuel Pepys?
A. Because Pepys was among those putting out the fire.
B. Because Pepys also wrote about the fire.
C. To show that poor people suffered most
D. To give the reader a clearer picture of the fire.
5. How was the fire put out according to the text?
A. The king and his soldiers came to help.
B. All the wooden houses in the city were destroyed.
C. People managed to get enough water from the river.
D. Houses standing in the direction of the fire were pulled down.
6. Which of the following were reasons for the rapid spread of the big fire?
(a) There was a strong wind.
(b) The streets were very narrow.
(c) Many houses were made of wood.
(d) There was not enough water in the city.
(e) People did not discover the fire earlier.
A. (a) and (b) B. (a), (b) and (c)
C. (a), (b), (c) and (d) D. (a), (b), (c), (d) and (e)
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