高中英语阅读理解

High school announcements
Do you have a high school announcement to make? Are you hosting a high school sports event or tournament? Are you looking for a coach? Let us know, and we’ll share it with “Tribune” readers.
August 21---- Sacred Heart is looking for two assistant baseball coaches immediately. Practices and games are held after school at 3:30 pm. Some experience in playing or coaching is preferred. If interested, e-mail Ron Schwartz at [e-mail].
August 7 ----- Loyola Academy will host its 12th Rambler Baseball Winter Workshop for students in fourth through eighth grades on Aug. 26. the early registration(注册) fee is $70 and registration at the door is $85. contact(联系) Loyola coach Bill San Hamel at 847-920-2523 to register early.
July 17 ----- St. Patrick will host a Youth Holiday Baseball Camp for boys in grades three through eight Aug. 26 through Aug. 28 from 6:30 pm to 9 pm in St. Pat’s gym. The registration fee is $90. for more information, visit www. stpatrick.orgor contact Coach Kusinski at [phone] ext. 242 or [e-mail].
June 12 ----- The Marist Girls’ basketball team is looking for a game for the new season. The team can play all levels. If interested, please contact Mary Pat Connolly at [phone], or e-mail
[e-mail].
June 1 ----- Bartlett is hosing a high school football camp June 13-30 and July 11-28 from 8-11 am. The registration fee is $180. to register go to www.athletic2000.com/bartlett. Contact coach Tom Meaney with questions at 630-372-4700 ext. 8105.
May 27 ----Hinsdale is hosting youth wrestling camps June 20-23 and June 27-30. There is no minimum age required. Even wrestlers in kindergarten are eligible to participate. The cost of registration is $80 per person. Contact head wrestling coach Jason Hayes at 815-762-1568 or e-mail [e-mail] for more information.
If a fourth–grade girl wants to learn baseball, she may contact______.

A．Ron Schwartz	B．Mary Pat Connolly
C．Kusinski	D．Bill San Hamel

Which of the following high schools wants to have a match?

A．Sacred Heart.	B．The Marist.
C．Bartlett.	D．hinsdale.

If one wants to choose a relatively cheap sports camp, he may ______.

A．phone [phone] to register early

B．e-mail [e-mail]

C．visit www.athletics2000.com/bartlett

D．contact head wrestling coach Jason Hayes

The underlined word “eligible” in the last paragraph probably means _____.

A．prepared	B．supposed
C．determined	D．Allowed

Kellyanne O’Niell had not even completed her first aid course when she was called upon to put her skills into action.
Just halfway through her course, which was offered by Kilcooley Women’s Education Group, Kellyanne was walking home when she found herself faced with an emergency.
A youngster on the street had fallen onto broken glass. Describing the situation, Kellyanne said：“I noticed she fell onto some glass, and when she got up, I spotted a big wound starting at the thumb(大拇指)and finishing at the ring finger. I started applying pressure to the bleeding wound at once and sent someone to bring my first-aid box from my house.”
She continued: “I phoned for an ambulance and gave the lady every last detail that she wanted to know. I got another person to keep an eye out for the ambulance. The young girl was in great pain so she couldn’t stay still. I was scared she was not going to respond to me. I held her hand above the heart so that the bleeding could at least stop a little bit.”
“Once the person came back with the bandage, the ambulance was there. The nurse got me to hold a flashlight for her while she bandaged the wound. Once the girl was all bandaged up, I helped her onto the seat in the ambulance and she was taken to hospital.”
Margaret Pridgen, the British Red Cross trainer who had been teaching Kellyanne, was full of praise for her swift action. She said：“I think this is quite an achievement for this young girl, I have really seen her confidence grow during the training and am delighted she had the poise(镇定)to be able to deal with the situation and put her new skills into practice.”
We can learn from the text that __________.

A．Kellyanne is a first-aid worker

B．Kellyanne felt proud of herself

C．Margaret is the boss of Kellyanne

D．Margaret was satisfied with Kellyanne.

When Kellyanne dealt with the emergency, she was ________.

A．calm	B．hesitant
C．hopeless	D．Frightened

What’s the correct order of the things Kellyanne did to save the girl?
a. she called for an ambulance.
b. she took steps to help stop the bleeding.
c. she asked someone to fetch her first-aid box.
d. she helped the nurse put the girl into the ambulance.
e. She got someone to keep an eye out for the ambulance.

A．b-a-c-e-d	B．b-c-a-e-d
C．c-a-e-b-d	D．c-a-b-e-d

In December, 2010, many American newspapers publish a list of the best books of the year. Freedom by Jonathan Franzen is one of the most repeatedly praised books on this year's list of favorites. It tells about the ups and downs of the Berglund family over many years. Mr. Franzen fills the book with sharp observations about American politics, culture and society.
Jennifer Egan's book A Visit from the Goon Squad takes place in 13 chapters over 40 years. The story moves back and forth in time, from different viewpoints. One main character is former rock musician Bennie Salazar who works for a record company. The other main character is a troubled young woman named Sasha who works for Bennie. The reader learns about their pasts and those of their friends.
The main character in The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman is a failing English Language newspaper published in Rome, Italy. Each chapter of the book tells about a reporter or editor working for this paper. Their stories are filled with intelligence and great personality.
Two of the most popular nonfiction books of 2010 were about rock and roll stars. Just Kids is by rock singer Patti Smith. It tells about her friendship with the artist Robert Mapplethorpe in the 1960s and 1970s before they became famous. Life is the autobiography of Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards. It is an honest and exciting look at the development of rock and roll and the wild times this famous band has experienced.
Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand tells about a man named Louis Zamperini. She tells about his extraordinary survival story after his plane crashed into the Pacific Ocean during World War Two.
Stacy Schiff has received great praise for her book Cleopatra: A Life. It tells about one of the most misrepresented and famous women in his story, Cleopatra. She ruled ancient Egypt about 2,000 years ago. One critic said Ms. Schiff has brought Cleopatra to life again by unearthing her story from centuries of lies.
The following books are related to music EXCEPT________.

A．The Imperfectionists	B．A Visit from the Goon Squad
C．Just Kids	D．Life

If your major is the history of ancient Africa, you may pay attention to ________.

A．Freedom by Jonathan Franzen

B．Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand

C．The Imperfections by Tom Rachman

D．Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff

Which book will give you a practical understanding of the USA?

A．Life	B．Cleopatra: A Life
C．Freedom	D．A Visit from the Goon Squad

The last sentence of the passage implies that ________.

A．Stacy Schiff is an archaeologist

B．the critic finds the character in the book very real

C．the critic speaks highly of Cleopatra in history

D．Stacy Schiff tells a story about an imaginary Egyptian queen

While reading a story on 20-somethings complaining about how the economy is ruining their life plans, I couldn't help but think the 20-somethings sound like a bunch of spoiled children who grow up expecting everything to be easy for them. As a 20-something myself, I certainly share their disappointment –my husband and I probably won't be able to buy a house until we're in our forties, and we two are burdened by student loans. But why should it be different? Being young people in America, shouldn't they take up all of the challenges and opportunities that this country offers?
Consider some of these views shared in the story: Jennifer, 29, owner of a two-bedroom apartment with her husband, worries that she won't be able to have children for at least a decade because they can't afford to buy a house yet.
I read that, and I thought what planet she is living on where you need to own a house in order to have kids? Has she ever visited a developing country, or even downtown areas in this one? Home ownership is a luxury（奢华）, not a fertility requirement.
A 26-year-old man in the story is disappointed that he can't afford to get a Ph. D. in literature. Well, that sounds a bit like expressing disappointment that no one will pay you to write poetry on the beach in Thailand for five years.
Yes, it's sad that these young people feel so lost. But I think the problem is their extremely high expectations, not economic reality. Beth Kobliner, author of Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance in Your Twenties and Thirties, says that she thinks people's expectations grow up when their wealth appears to be increasing. Their parents probably see their home values rise along with their investments. "So we have people who have grown up in an environment where people have great expectations of what living well means," says Kobliner.
This recession（经济衰退） will certainly play a role in forcing those expectations into more realistic group. In the meantime, it seems much better for our mental health to focus on being grateful—for our one-bedroom apartments, for living in modern cities, or perhaps just for being able to eat three meals a day—than on longing for some kind of luxurious life.
What makes the author think the 20-somethings sound like a bunch of spoiled children?

A．They expect everything to be easy for them.

B．They complain that the economy is ruining their life plans.

C．They are unwilling to face all of the challenges.

D．They are burdened by student loans.

Which of the following is NOT one of the complaints of the 20-somethings?
A. They can't have children for at least a decade for they can't afford to buy a house.
B. They have only a one-bedroom apartment to live in.
C. They can't buy a house until 40 and are burdened by student loans.
D. They despair of not being able to afford to get a Ph. D. in literature.
What's Kobliner's attitude towards the 20-somethings with high expectations ?

A．Unbearable.	B．Opposing.
C．Doubtful.	D．Understanding.

What is the best title for this passage?

A．Young people afford to continue their education

B．Young people can't afford to buy a house

C．Young people's high expectations lead to despair

D．The 20-somethings' high expectations

Time and how we experience it have always puzzled us. Physicists have created fascinating theories, but their time is measured by a pendulum（钟摆）and is not psychological time, which leaps with little regard to the clock or calendar. As someone who understood the difference remarked, “When you sit with a nice girl for two hours it seems like a minute, but when you sit on a hot stove, a minute seems like two hours.”
Psychologists have long noticed that larger units of time, such as months and years, fly on swifter wings as we age. They also note that the more time is structured with schedules and appointments, the more rapidly it seems to pass．For example, a day at the office flies compared with a day at the beach. Since most of us spend fewer days at the beach and more at the office as we age, an increase in structured tune could well be to blame for why time seems to speed up as we grow older．
Expectation and familiarity also make time seem to flow more rapidly. Almost all of us have had the experience of driving somewhere we’ve never been before. Surrounded by unfamiliar scenery, with no real idea of when we’ll arrive, we experience the trip as lasting a long time. But the return trip, although exactly as long, seems to take far less time. The unfamiliarity of the journey has become routine. Thus taking a different route on occasion can often help slow the clock.
When days become as identical as beads（小珠子）on a string, they mix together, and even months become a single day. To fight this, try to find ways to interrupt the structure of your day—to stop time. Learning something new is one of the ways to slow the passage of time. One of the reasons the days of our youth seems so full and long is that these are the days of learning and discovery. For many of us, learning ends when we leave school, but this doesn’t have to be.
The quotation（引用语） in the first paragraph is used to indicate ______.

A．psychological time is quite puzzling

B．time should not be measured by a pendulum

C．physical time is different from psychological time

D．physical theory has nothing to do with the true sense of time

Why do units of time fly faster as we grow older?

A．Our sense of time changes.

B．We spend less time at the beach.

C．More time is structured and scheduled.

D．Time is structured with too many appointments.

What is the main idea of the passage?

A．It gives various explanations about time.

B．It describes how we experience time psychologically.

C．It shows the different ideas of physicists and psychologists on time.

D．It explains why time flies fast and how to slow it down psychologically.

When we’re young and we dream of love and fulfillment（满足感）, we think perhaps of moon-covered Parisian nights or walks along the beach at sunset.
No one tells us that the greatest moments of a lifetime are short, unplanned and nearly always catch us off guard.
Not long ago，as I was reading a bedtime story to my seven-year-old daughter, Annie， I became aware of her focused look. She was staring at me with a faraway, blank expression. Apparently, completing The Tale of Samuel Whiskers was not as important as we first thought.
I asked what she was thinking about.
"Mommy," she whispered, "I just can't stop looking at your pretty face."I almost dissolved（溶解） on the spot.
Little did she know how many trying moments the glow of her sincerely loving statement would carry me through over the following years.
Not long after, I took my four-year-old son to an elegant department store, where the sweet notes of a classic love song drew us toward a tuxedoed ( 穿晚礼服的 ) musician playing a grand piano. Sam and I sat down on a marble bench nearby, and he seemed as astonished by the pleasant theme as I was.
I didn't realize that Sam had stood up next to me until he turned, took my face in his little hands and said, "Dance with me."
If only those women walking under the Paris moon knew the joy of such an invitation made by a round-cheeked boy with baby teeth. Although shoppers openly chuckled(咯咯笑) and pointed at us as we glided（滑行） and whirled（旋转） around the open space, I would not have traded a dance with such a charming young gentleman if I'd been offered the universe.
From the passage we know_______.

A．Annie knew how important she was to her mother.

B．shoppers didn’t notice the author dancing with her son.

C．there are bedtime stories in the Tale of Samuel Whiskers.

D．Sam was not surprised at the music which was played in the store.

When the author knew her daughter could not stop looking at her pretty face, she felt_______.

A．sad	B．deeply moved
C．annoyed	D．ashamed

Why wouldn’t the author trade a dance with her son even if she was given the world?

A．Because she knew she wouldn’t be given the universe .

B．Because her son was the most important person to her .

C．Because she thought she was the happiest one at the moment.

D．Because it was very important for the author to dance with her son.

What does the author want to prove by showing two examples of her kids?

A．Her kids love her very much.

B．She enjoys staying with her kids.

C．The greatest moments of a lifetime always come unexpectedly.

D．Those women walking under the moon should enjoy the happiness with kids.

“OK,” I said to my daughter as she bent over her afternoon bowl of rice. “What’s going on with you and your friend J.?” J. is the leader of a group of third-graders at her camp-- a position Lucy herself occupied the previous summer. Now she’s the one on the outs, and every day at snack time, she tells me all about it, while I offer the unhelpful advice all summer long.
“She’s fond of giving orders, ” Lucy complained. “She’s turning everyone against me. She’s mean. And she’s fat.” “Excuse me,” I said, struggling for calm. “What did you just said?” “She’s fat.” Lucy mumbled(含糊地说).“We’re going upstairs,” I said, my voice cold. “We’re going to discuss this.” And up we went. I’d spent the nine years since her birth getting ready for this day, the day we’d have the conversation about this horrible word. I knew exactly what to say to the girl on the receiving end of the teasing, but in all of my imaginings, it never once occurred to me that my daughter would be the one who used the F word-Fat.
My daughter sat on her bed, and I sat beside her. “How would you feel if someone made fun of you for something that wasn’t your fault?” I began. “She could stop eating so much,” Lucy mumbled, mouthing the simple advice a thousand doctors have given overweight women for years.
“It’s not always that easy,” I said. “Everyone’s different in terms of how they treat food.” Lucy looked at me, waiting for me to go on. I opened my mouth, then closed it. Should I tell her that, in teasing a woman’s weight, she’s joined the long tradition of critics? Should I tell her I didn’t cry when someone posted my picture and commented , “I’m sorry, but aren’t authors who write books marketed to young women supposed to be pretty?”
Does she need to know, now, that life isn’t fair? I feel her eyes on me, waiting for an answer I don’t have. Words are my tools. Stories are my job. It’s possible she’ll remember what I say forever, and I have no idea what to say.
So I tell her the only thing I can come up with that is absolutely true. I say to my daughter, “I love you, and there is nothing you could ever do to make me not love you. But I’m disappointed in you right now. There are plenty of reasons for not liking someone. What she looks like isn’t one of them. ”
Lucy nods, tears on her cheeks. “I won’t say that again,” she tells me, and I pull her close, pressing my nose against her hair. As we sit there together, I pray for her to be smart and strong. I pray for her to find friends, work she loves, a partner who loves her. And still, always, I pray that she will never struggle as I’ve struggled, that weight will never be her cross to bear. She may not be able to use the word in our home, but I can use in my head. I pray that she will never get fat.
The underlined sentence in Paragraph 1 indicates that Lucy ______.

A．often makes fun of her friend J.

B．has turned against her friend J.

C．gets along well with her friend J.

D．has begun to compete with her friend J.

Why does the author want to discuss with Lucy?

A．Because she wants to offer some other helpful advice.

B．Because she has prepared the conversation for nine years.

C．Because she is really shocked at Lucy’s rudeness.

D．Because she decides to tell Lucy a similar story of her own.

What does the author want to tell her daughter?

A．It is not easy to take the doctors’ advice to eat less.

B．People shouldn’t complain because life is unfair.

C．She herself was once laughed at for her appearance.

D．People shouldn’t be blamed for their appearance.

It can be inferred from the passage that_________.

A．the author earns a living by writing stories.

B．the author is a fat but good-looking woman.

C．the author will stop loving her daughter for what she said.

D．the author’s daughter agreed with her from the very beginning.

We can learn from the last paragraph that_________.

A．Lucy was deeply moved by her mother’s prayer.

B．a mother’s prayer will shape her daughter’s attitude towards life

C．the author allows her daughter to use the F word in her head

D．the author hopes her daughter will never have weight trouble

The author’s attitude towards her daughter can be best described as _________.

A．loving but strict

B．indifferent but patient

C．satisfied and friendly

D．unsatisfied and angry

Birthdays often involve surprises. But this year's surprise on the birthday of the great British playwright William Shakespeare is surely one of the most dramatic.
On April 22, one day before his 441st birthday anniversary, experts discovered that one of the most recognizable portraits of William Shakespeare is a fake. This means that we no longer have a good idea of what Shakespeare looked like. “It's very possible that many pictures of Shakespeare might be unreliable because many of them are copies of this one,” said an expert from Britain's National Portrait Gallery.
The discovery comes after four months of testing using X-rays, ultraviolet light, microphotography and paint samples. The experts from the gallery say the image —commonly known as the “Flower portrait”— was actually painted in the 1800s, about two centuries after Shakespeare's death. The art experts who work at the gallery say they also used modern chemistry technology to check the paint on the picture. These checks found traces of paint dating from about 1814. Shakespeare died in 1616, and the date that appears on the portrait is 1609.
“We now think the portrait dates back to around 1818 to 1840. This was when there was a renewed interest in Shakespeare's plays,” Tarnya Cooper, the gallery's curator (馆长), told the Associated President.
The fake picture has often been used as a cover for collections of his plays. It is called the Flower portrait because one of its owners, Desmond Flower, gave it to the Royal Shakespeare Company.
“There have always been questions about the painting,” said David Howells, curator for the Royal Shakespeare Company. “Now we know the truth, we can put the image in its proper place in the history of Shakespearean portraiture.”
Two other images of Shakespeare, are also being studied as part of the investigation and the results will come out later this month.________.
What makes the birthday of Shakespeare dramatic this year?

A．It was found that he painted a portrait in 1814 instead of in 1609.

B．The Flower portrait has been found to be a fake.

C．Three portraits of Shakespeare are being tested to identify a real one.

D．It was found that there was a renewed interest in Shakespeare's plays around 1818 to 1840.

Which statement is True according to the passage?

A．Portraits of Shakespeare are all unreliable.

B．“Flower portrait” was a portrait of Shakespeare given to Desmond Flower.

C．1814 might be when the portrait was drawn.

D．The Flower portrait is not often used as a cover for Shakespeare's play.

How many methods were used to test the portrait?

A．Not mentioned.	B．Two
C．Three	D．At least four.

The best title for this passage is ________.

A．Birthdays often involve surprises

B．The surprise on the 441st birthday of Shakespeare

C．One portrait of Shakespeare is a fake

D．How can we know Shakespeare's appearance?

Which is the best sentence to fill in the blank in the last paragraph?

A．Soon we'll know which portrait is reliable.

B．Maybe we cannot find a real portrait of Shakespeare.

C．If the two portraits are found to be false, they will test more.

D．For now what Shakespeare really looked like will remain a mystery.

The day when the jobs were handed out was one of the most exciting moments for all the children in the class. It took place during the first week of the term. Every kid was given a job for which they would be responsible for the rest of that school year.
Some jobs were more interesting than others, and the children were eager to be given one of the best ones. When giving them out, the teacher took into account which pupils had been most responsible during the previous year. During the previous year Rita had carried out the teacher’s instructions perfectly. All the children knew Rita would be given the best job.
But there was a big surprise. Each child received a normal job. But Rita’s job was very different. She was given a little box containing some sand and one ant. Though the teacher insisted that this ant was very special, Rita felt disappointed. Most of her classmates felt sorry for her. Even her father became very angry with the teacher and he encouraged Rita to pay no attention to this insignificant pet. However, Rita preferred to show the teacher her error by doing something special with that job of little interest.
Rita started investigating all about her little ant and gave the ant the best food, and it grew quite a bit bigger.
One day, a man, who looked very important, came into their classroom and declared, “Your class has been chosen to accompany me, this summer, on a journey to the tropical rain forest, where we will investigate all kinds of insects. Among all the schools of this region, your class has best cared for the little ant.”
That day the school was filled with joy and celebration. Everyone thanked Rita for having been so patient and responsible. And many children learnt that to be given the most important task you have to know how to be responsible even in what are the smallest tasks.
What did the teacher base his decision on when giving out jobs to the children?

A．Their characters and interests.

B．Their class performance during the previous year.

C．Their working performance during the previous year.

D．Their ability of managing their accounts during the previous year.

What does the underlined sentence mean?

A．Each child got an important job.

B．Each child got an interesting job.

C．The perfect student got the job of everyone’s preference.

D．The most responsible student got the job of least interest.

What is Rita’s attitude to her father’s suggestion?

A．Negative.	B．Uncertain.
C．Totally positive.	D．Acceptable

We can infer that the man who made the declaration is a _________.

A．hunter	B．director
C．biologist	D．principal

What would be the best title for the passage?

A．Never complain about life.

B．Small tasks can lead to fortunes.

C．Men are best known by their friends.

D．Responsibility and intelligence bring good luck.

Did you know that a bowl of rice could save your iPod if you drop it in a swimming pool by accident? Or that the camera on your phone could tell you what’s wrong with your TV remote control? The experts at Geek Squad (geelsquad.co.uk) have made a gadget (小机件) rescue guide. So, let’s take a look at some of their useful advice.
♦How to get more juice out of your phone batter
If your battery goes dead but you need to get a number or send one last text, try warming it up. That may give you a tiny bit of power. Take the battery from the phone and rub it between your hands. Or warm it under your arm for a few minutes. Then try to start the phone but use it quickly.
♦What to do if your gadget gets wet
First, try drying it out with a vacuum cleaner (真空吸尘器). If a vacuum cleaner isn’t at hand, fill a pot or bowl with uncooked rice and put your wet gadget inside. The dry, uncooked rice will absorb all the water and, after a few hours, you should be able to use the gadget. Don’t forget to remove the battery and SIM card before you dry it.
♦What to do if your TV remote control stops working
If replacing the batteries doesn’t work, get the camera function up on your phone and point the remote at the lens (镜头). When you press a button on the remote, if it is working, the glass bobble (小球) at the front of the remote will light up when you look at it on the screen of your phone. This is because the screen on a phone or digital camera picks up infrared rays (红外线), even though your eyes don’t. If the glass bobble doesn’t light up, the remote is broken. If it does, the receiving device (装置) is broken.
If your cell phone falls into a sink, you can _________.

A．warm it up under your arm

B．remove the battery after you dry it

C．put it into the uncooked rice

D．press it with both of your hands

Why can a phone be used to prove the TV remote control works well? Because it can _____.

A．improve the TV remote control	B．receive infrared ray
C．picture the TV remote control	D．reflect infrared ray

In which section of a newspaper can we possibly read this text?

A．Life	B．Entertainment
C．Finance	D．Culture

The purpose of this passage is to give people __________.

A．personal opinions	B．professional guides
C．necessary warnings	D．practical tips

Does your local town have a nickname (绰号)? If so, what does it say about the area and the people who live there?
Many cities are recognized across the world by their unofficial titles. New York is the Big Apple, London is the Big Smoke, and Los Angles is famously called La La Land (used to mean that the people who live there are slightly crazy).
Now Britain’s national mapping agency, Ordnance Survey, and the British linguistics charity (语言学慈善机构), the English Project, are launching a project to uncover the nicknames people use for local places.
The project, which got started last week to coincide with English Language Day, is called Location Lingo. It aims to identify the names people use every day, whether it’s a term of endearment(昵称) or a hate name.
The University of Winchester’s Professor Bill Lucas is a supporter of the English Project. He explains that unofficial place names often show what people think about a place. “The name that people create for a place forms an emotional connection,” he says. “So Basingstoke becomes Amazingstoke, Swindon is known as Swindump and Padstow, hometown of chef Rick Stein, is nicknamed Padstein.”
Basingstoke is a town in central England. The local nickname, Amazingstoke, shows the affection that locals seem to have for the area Swindon, on the other hand, is sometimes called, Swindump, showing that some people think it’s a dump (垃圾场). Stanford Le Hope in Essex is called Stanford No Hope by locals. And Padstow in Cornwall is so closely associated with the local celebrity Rick Stein that it’s become known as Padstein.
Since launching the online database last week, the creators have already received 3,000 alternative titles for places and famous buildings.
Glen Hart, Ordnance Survey’s head Of research, says the information could be very helpful to the emergency services. For example, “By having the most complete set of nicknames we could help the emergency services quickly locate the right place, and maybe even save lives,” he says.
According to Bill Lucas, unofficial place names ___________.

A．are mostly positive

B．make many people confused

C．don’t show the real condition of a place

D．are a good way for people to express their feelings

We can learn from the passage that Swindump is probably ___________.

A．a hate name	B．a place of interest
C．a term of endearment	D．a famous person’s name

In the opinion of Glen Hart, Britain’s nickname survey ___________.

A．is of little value

B．has a practical use

C．will face lots of difficulties

D．will honor local celebrities

Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．London is called La La Land.

B．Swindon has many nicknames.

C．People consider Basingstoke a dangerous place.

D．People in Stanford Le Hope are disappointed with it.

What’s the main idea of the passage?

A．Organizations collect unofficial place names.

B．Cities across Britain have special features.

C．Unofficial titles are bringing cities trouble.

D．People have a great affection for their cities.

A single letter written by Albert Einstein was sold for more than $400, 000. But could an e-mail printout or an electronic file reach similar heights? That’s the question facing those who deal in the literary artifacts of public figures, as they struggle to work out how to do business in the electronic world where information can be copied and spread out more easily than ever before.
“Booksellers, collectors and libraries are already trading in digital objects,” Joan Winterkorn, a researcher told people. When Emory University Library bought author Slaman Rushdie’s archives (档案) in 2006, it received a desktop computer, three laptops, a hard drive and a smart phone along with his paper flies. And the writer John Updike, who died last month, started using computers in the 1980s, Winterkorn pointed out, so his “papers” will include a big store of electronic documents.
So far, however, digital archives have been traded as just a small part of a larger, mainly paper-based archive. Indeed, no one is quite sure how much the digital documents of a historical figure are worth.
“I don’t feel the same way about the printout of an e-mail as I do a letter,” said Gabriel Heaton, a literary manuscript specialist, adding that more tangible (有形的) digital objects were easier for auctioneers (拍卖商) to price and sell, “What about a laptop? For example, the one used by J. K. Rowling to write Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in an Edinburgh cafe has real value,” he said. “Because she used it.” Even if the hard drive had been cloned by a library, the artifact would still be valuable.
Gordon Bell, from Microsoft Research, suggested that prices will actually fall to almost nothing. “Once it’s been copied and spread out the value is gone. It’s just a piece of memory.”
What is the purpose of the example mentioned in Para. 1?

A．To introduce the topic of the passage.

B．To show that some written letter are of great value.

C．To get readers interested in electronic documents.

D．To tell us to pay attention to public figures, artifacts.

According to the text, the trade in digital archives ___________.

A．has been well developed

B．is still in its early stage

C．is enjoying a period of prosperity

D．is developing very rapidly

The underlined part in Para. 4 implies that ___________.

A．the printout of an e-mail has no value to keep

B．the auctioneers like to sell tangible digital objects

C．the printout of an e-mail is difficult to price

D．Gabriel Heaton likes to keep famous letters

Who doesn’t think digital archives are of great value?

A．Joan Winterkorn.	B．Salman Rushdie.
C．J. K. Rowling.	D．Gordon Bell.

What is the author’s attitude towards the trade in electronic documents?

A．Negative.	B．Positive.
C．Neutral.	D．Hopeful.

How to improve our life? Many people think that they have to accept whatever life throws at them. They’ll say, “This is my destiny (命运). I cannot change it.”
Of course not! You don’t have to suffer needlessly. Your life depends on you, not on any other external (外部的) factor.
I know a woman who says she just accepts what life gives her because she has done everything she can to improve it. Guess what her lifestyle is? She wakes up in the morning, goes to work, comes back home, relaxes, chats with people, watches TV, and then goes to sleep. Next day, the same routine cycle follows.
Huh! Is this what she calls “doing her best”? She believes she has tried her best and just accepts it in her heart that this is the life that has been intended for her, and that her luck can only change if God wills it. She hasn’t realized that we have to do our share of making the effort to live the life of our dreams.
Remember that you harvest what you sow. You have to get off the sofa, get your eyes off the TV screen, get our hands off the phone (unless it contributes to your success), and get your mind and body to work! Don’t expect your luck to change, unless you do something about it. If something goes wrong, don’t just regard it as a temporary setback; instead, learn your lesson, make the most of the situation, and do something to solve the problem. It’s not enough to think positively; you also have to act positively.
If someone’s life is in trouble, do you just hope and pray that things will turn out fine? Of course not! You get to do anything you can to save the person. So it is with your own life. It is not enough to hope for the best, but you have to do your best. In other words, don’t just stand (or sit) there, do something to improve your life.
According to the woman mentioned in Para. 3, her life __________.

A．doesn’t need improving	B．couldn’t be improved
C．will be better someday	D．will be worse in the future

What does the author think of the woman’s life?

A．Positive.	B．Passive.
C．Colorful.	D．Boring.

Which of the following statements is the author’s opinion?

A．Your temporary problem is not discouraging.

B．Your luck can be changed by your efforts.

C．You can only achieve success when God wills it.

D．You should treat yourself in the way you treat your friends.

In Para. 5, the author emphasized the importance of __________.

A．positive thinking	B．positive action
C．hope for the best	D．intention to succeed

The text is mainly written to advise you to __________.

A．understand yourself	B．improve your life
C．believe in yourself	D．change your normal way

This is a story from 28 years ago. My dad was a used car salesman. Every Thursday night, he would head off to Shreveport, LA for an auction (拍卖会). Most of the time, I drove a car over there for him so he could sell it at the auction.
One day I was riding with my dad when he noticed a hitch-hiker(搭便车的人) with a backpack. Without hesitation, he pulled the car over and offered him a ride. Dad asked him his name, and proceeded to talk to him about all sorts of things. Dad asked him where he was going. The hitch-hiker told him that he was heading for the west. I can’t recall why but he told Dad a lot of things that had occurred to him and that persuaded him to make that decision. He talked about the tragic events that occurred to him several years before. He was low in spirits, but t could see that the hitch-hiker’s attitude was changing as someone was really listening to him.
We drove 45 minutes before the hitch-hiker got off. We pulled over and Dad told him to keep his head up and things would start looking up for him soon. He reached into his pocket and handed the hitch-hiker a twenty-dollar bill. The guy smiled. He nearly lit up right there on the cold, dark highway.
We drove on and my dad did not say a single thing. I was still completely amazed by what I had just witnessed. I was always told by everyone never to pick up a hitch-hiker and yet my dad did it every single time he saw one. While reflecting upon that story I came to understand that just one single kind act could change someone’s life, and I am sure that my father’s deed made that poor man’s day.
The underlined words “that decision” in Para. 2 refer to “__________”.

A．catching the car

B．heading for the west

C．talking about his experiences

D．driving 45 minutes

What made the hitch-hiker become less upset?

A．The writer’s father offering him a free ride.

B．The writer’s father really listening to him.

C．The writer’s father agreeing to drive him to his destination.

D．The writer’s father talking to him about all sorts of things.

When his father helped the hitch-hiker, the writer __________.

A．was deeply moved	B．strongly disagreed
C．admired his father	D．couldn’t understand

Which of the following words CANNOT be used to describe the father?

A．Willing to help.	B．Easy-going.
C．Far-sighted.	D．Full of sympathy.

The author wrote the text mainly to __________.

A．show his respect for his father

B．tell a story of his father

C．prove his father is the best teacher

D．advise people to learn from their father

British writer John Bunyan was born at Elstow, Bedfordshire, England, in November, 1628. His father was a maker and mender of pots and kettles, and the son followed the same trade. Though he is usually called a tinker, Bunyan had a settled home and place of business. He had little schooling, and he describes his early surroundings as poor and mean. He became much interested in religions, but it was only after a tremendous spiritual conflict, lasting three or four years, that he found peace. His struggles are related with extraordinary vividness and intensity in his “Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners.” His writing began with a controversy against the Quakers (教友派), and shows from the first the command of a homely but vigorous style.
Like most working men at the time, Bunyan had a deep hatred for the corrupted, hypocritical rich who accumulated their wealth “by hook and by crook.” As a stout Puritan(清教徒), he had made a conscientious study of the Bible and firmly believed in salvation (拯救) through spiritual struggle.
Bunyan’s style was modeled after that of the English Bible. With his concrete and living language and carefully observed and vividly presented details, he made it possible for the reader of the least education to share the pleasure of reading his novel and to relive the experience of his characters.
Bunyan’s works include Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners (1666), The Life and Death of Mr. Badman (1680), The Holy War (1682) and The Pilgrim’s Progress (1684).
The Pilgrim’s Progress is the most successful religious allegory (寓言) in the English language. Its purpose is to urge people to observe Christian doctrines and seek salvation through constant struggle with their own weaknesses and all kinds of social evils. It is not only about something spiritual but also bears much relevance to the time. Its predominant metaphor — life as a journey — is simple and familiar. The objects that Christian meets are homely and commonplace, and the scenes presented are typical English ones, but throughout the allegory a spiritual significance is added to the commonplace details. Here the strange is combined with the familiar and the trivial joined to the divine, and, a rich imagination and a natural talent for storytelling also contribute to the success of the work which is at once entertaining and morally instructive.
“The Vanity Fair,” is an excerpt from The Pilgrim’s Progress. The story starts with a dream in which the author sees Christian the Pilgrim, with a heavy burden on his back, reading the Bible. When he learns from the book that the city in which he and his family live shall be burnt down in a fire, Christian tries to convince his family and his neighbors of the oncoming disaster and asks them to go with him in search of salvation, but most of them simply ignore him. So he starts off with a friend, Pliable. Pliable turns back after they stumble into a pit, the Slough of Despond. Christian struggles on by himself. Then he is misled by Mr. Wordly Wiseman and is brought back onto the right road by Mr. Evangelist. There he joins Faithful, a neighbor who has set out later but has made better progress. The two go on together through many adventures, including the great struggle with Apollyon, who claims them to be his subjects and refuse to accept their allegiance to God. After many other adventures they come to the Vanity Fair where both are arrested as alien agitators. They are tried and Faithful is condemned to death. Christian, however manages to escape and goes on his way, assisted by a new friend, Hopeful. Tired of the hard journey, they are tempted to take pleasant path and are then captured by Giant Despair. Finally they get away and reach the Celestial City, where they enjoy eternal life in the fellowship of the blessed.
According to the passage, Bunyan hated the rich people mainly because ______.

A．his father was making and mending pots and kettles

B．Bunyan had poor and mean early surroundings

C．the rich usually got their wealth in dishonest ways

D．Bunyan studied the Bible to save the human souls

What are the main characteristics of Bunyan’s works?
①The languages are concrete and living.
②The stories are carefully and vividly described.
③The plots are romantic and twisting.
④The works are easy to understand.

A．①②③

B．②③④

C．①③④

D．①②④

John Bunyan wrote the book The Pilgrim’s Progress in order to ______.

A．advise people to obey religious principles for salvation

B．add spiritual significance to the commonplace details

C．to combine the strange things with the familiar things

D．tell people that life is a simple and familiar journey

What moral does the story of the last paragraph convey to us?

A．Any imaginable things might happen in a pilgrim’s dream.

B．Christian the Pilgrim likes reading the Bible with a burden.

C．People can enjoy eternal life in the fellowship of the blessed.

D．People can struggle against weaknesses and evils for salvation