In 1977, a dead author of detective stories saved the life of a 19-month-old baby in a most unusual way. The author was Agatha Christie, one of the most successful writers of detective stories in the world.
In June 1977, a baby girl became seriously ill in Qatar, near Saudi Arabia. Doctors were unable to find out the cause of her illness with confidence, so she was sent to Hammersmith Hospital in London. She was then only semi-conscious and on the "Dangerously Ill" list. A team of doctors hurried to examine the baby only to discover that they, too, were confused by the very unusual symptoms (症状). While they were discussing the baby's case, a nurse asked to speak to them. "Excuse me," said Nurse Marsha Maitlan, "but I think the baby is suffering from thallium (铊) poisoning."
"What makes you think that?" Dr. Brown asked. "Thallium poisoning is extremely rare."
"A few days ago, I was reading a novel called A Pale Horse by Agatha Christie," Nurse Maitlan explained. "In the book, somebody uses thallium poison, and all the symptoms are described. They're exactly the same as the baby's."
"You're very thoughtful and you may be right," another doctor said. "We'll carry out some tests and find out whether it's thallium or not."
Tests showed that the baby had indeed been poisoned by thallium, a rare metallic substance used in making special glass. Once they knew the cause of the illness, the doctors were able to give the baby the correct treatment. She soon recovered and was sent back to Qatar. Later it was reported that the poison might have come from an insecticide (杀虫剂) used in Qatar.
【小题1】The one who first suggested the correct cause of the baby's illness was _____.

A.a doctor in Qatar B.Dr. Brown
C.Nurse MaitlanD.Agatha Christie
【小题2】As far as we can tell from the passage, Agatha Christie _____.
A.had spent a long time studying the baby's case
B.visited the baby in the hospital at Hammersmith
C.had never met this baby
D.gave Nurse Maitlan some advice on the phone
【小题3】It seems likely from the passage that the baby's illness had something to do with _____.
A.a harmful substance used to kill insects
B.a dangerous pair of glasses
C.the water in Qatar
D.a dead writer

Millions of people are now using what are called“peer-to-peer”networks. Basically, you link your computer to other computers all across the country, mostly so you can give something in exchange for music for free.“But here's the problem,”“Early Show”Consumer Correspondent Susan Koeppen says as part of the broadcast's series, “Somebody's Watching You”: thieves are using the same networks, and they're not interested in music-they're seeking access to your financial information.
Beth Pope learned the hard way. When she put peer-to-peer software on her computer, she had one goal in mind: increasing her music library.“I thought I could get access to other people's music folders and they could have access to my music folders,”she says,“and that was about it. I didn't think it went any further than that.”
Are Your Medical Records Watched? That is, until she was contacted by the Secret Service-with shocking news-someone had stolen personal information from her computer-using the very software she used to trade music. With the help of David Dunn, a member of the Secret Service Electronic Crimes Task Force, Koeppen decided to see what personal information she could find using a peer-to-peer network.
Thieves typically seek documents such as credit reports, tax returns, or the federal financial student aid application, Dunn says.“Obviously,”says Dunn,“we aren't going to download it, because it's someone's personal information. I'm sure that, whoever (this file sharer) is didn't want her (student aid application) confirmation number available online for somebody to download.”Pope says she's done using peer-to-peer.“I've gotten all of that off my computer, ”she says.“I pay for music now. It's the best way to do it. There's no way that I would ever do that again.”
The trade group for file sharing software companies says they are working on better systems to prevent the misuse of the peer-to-peer networks. Still, Koeppen urges that people, for instance, delete Lime Wire from their computers, or make sure they have the latest version, which should have updated security features.
【小题1】Thieves are trying to get access to your computer in order to     .

A.find your personal information
B.see how your computer is working
C.talk with you
D.help you with your system
【小题2】Why did Beth Pope use peer-to-peer software?
A.Because she wanted others to use her information.
B.Because she wanted to try it.
C.Because she wanted to increase her music library.
D.Because she wanted to get others' financial information.
【小题3】Susan Koeppen tried to      .
A.warn the readers of dangers of sharing music files with others.
B.warn the readers not to share music files with others.
C.tell us a true and funny story
D.advertise the peer-to-peer networks.
【小题4】 From the passage we get to know      .
A.we shouldn't believe others.
B.computers make our life easy and comfortable.
C.softwares help us to share music with others
D.everything has two sides, the good side and the bad one

It was five days before Christmas.  My co-workers were excitedly   26 their  plans. “Doing anything special ?” they asked me.  I  27  my head.

I was 3,000 miles from my family in Hawaii, pursuing my lifelong 28  of becoming a nurse.  I attended classes all day, and then went straight to my full-time  29    job at night .  My weekly plan left me extremely tired and homesick.

I had  30   looked forward to the holidays.  But this December I felt unable to go on.  Rent, textbooks and other expenses left me with no  31  cash .  Money to go home ?  I hardly had  money to eat.

“I,m on my 32    .  Cover for (顶替)me,  will you?” asked Mavis, another waitress, as  she  33  me on her way to the employees room.  “  34   , theres this guy at Table Five,” she said.  He,s been  35  there for more than an hour, not making any trouble but not  36  anything either. ”She paused.  “It,s like hes  37    for somebody. ”

I looked in the corner.   38   enough, there was a slim, good-looking man  39  in  a worn shirt, and a black baseball cap, just sitting alone.  I went over,  trying to   40   a  smile.  “Im Cory,” I said. “Please let me know if you want anything. ”

I was turning to walk away  41  the man spoke.  He had a soft, low voice, but  somehow I could hear it clear and plain in the  42  restaurant.  “I,d like an order of chips,”he said,“and a glass of water.  ”My heart  43  . Chips were the cheapest thing on the menu,  which I wouldn,t get much of a(n) 44    . But maybe this guy was broke, and I sure knew how that felt.   45  I decided to try my best to make him feel okay.

 

26. A. expressing

B. changing

C. discussing

D. announcing

27. A. used

B. lifted

C. nodded

D. shook

28. A. scheme

B. dream

C. satisfaction

D. demand

29. A. waitress

B. actress

D. assistant

D. maid

30. A. seldom

B. always

C. merely

D. hardly

31. A. other

B. rest

C. any

D. extra

32. A. way

B. duty

C. break

D. work

33. A. stepped

B. ignored

C. passed

D. jumped

34. A. By the way

B. On the contrary

C. Above all

D. After all

35. A. shouting

B. sitting

C. crying

C. whispering

36. A. calculating

B. eating

C. drinking

D. ordering

37. A. searching

B. waiting

C. caring

D. longing

38. A. Excitedly

B. Luckily

C. Desperately

D. Sure

39. A. dressed

B. wore

C. carried

D. put

40. A. force

B. return

C. break

D. contribute

41. A. before

B. when

C. after

D. while

42. A. quiet

B. large

C. noisy

D. wonderful

43. A. sank

B. beat

C. hurt

D. lost

44. A. praise

B. tip

C. allowance

D. prize

45. A. But

B. Otherwise

C. So

D. Or

 

One day in early December, we woke up to discover a heavy fall of snow. “Mom, can we go __31__ after breakfast?” my eleven-year-old daughter Erica begged. I didn’t want to __32__ her request, so we headed towards the only __33__ in our town.

When we arrived, the hill was crowded with people. We found an open spot next to a thin man and his three-year-old son. The boy was already lying in the sled (雪橇), __34__ to be launched. “Come on, Daddy!” he called.

The man looked over at me. “Okay if we go __35__?” he asked.

“Sure. Looks like your son is ready to go,” I said. With that, he gave the boy a huge __36__, and off he flew! And the father ran after his son at full speed.

“He must be afraid that his son is going to __37__ somebody,” I said to Erica. “We’d better be __38__, too.”

Then we also skied down the hill at a great speed. As we returned to the top, I noticed that the man was __39__ his son, who was still lying in the sled, back up to the summit(山顶). When we reached the top, the boy was ready to play again. Again, the father __40__ him down the hill, and then pulled both the boy and the sled back up. The little boy was terribly spoilt by his father, I thought. __41__ he was small, the child could pull his own sled up the hill once in a while. This __42__ went on for more than an hour, but the man never __43__, and he was very happy instead. Finally, I could __44__ it no longer. I called to him, “You have tremendous __45__!”

The man smiled and said, “He has cerebral palsy (脑瘫). He can’t walk. ”

I was dumbstruck (惊呆的). It had all seemed so happy, so __46__, that it never occurred to me that the child might be __47__. Although I didn’t know the man’s name, I told the __48__ in my newspaper column. Either he or someone he knew must have recognized him, __49__ shortly afterward, I received this letter:

Dear Mrs. Silverman,

The energy I expended on the hill that day is __50__ compared to what my son does every day. To me, he is a true hero.

31. A. skiing              B. hiking                       C. shopping                      D. camping

32. A. answer               B. allow                        C. refuse                      D. accept

33. A. lake                    B. hill                           C. market                    D. gym

34. A. waiting            B. advising                    C. promising                 D. warning

35. A. too                         B. second                            C. first                        D. last

36. A. wave                  B. ability                       C. touch                             D. push

37. A. look at                B. come across            C. run into              D. call on

38. A. careful                B. honest                      C. natural                     D. special

39. A. attracting            B. pulling               C. following                 D. forbidding

40. A. chased                B. found                       C. drove                             D. noticed

41. A. As if                   B. Now that                 C. Even though         D. Ever since

42. A. accident                  B. signal                       C. adventure                D. pattern

43. A. doubted                     B. laughed                    C. cried                       D. tired

44. A. stand               B. interrupt                   C. change                    D. demand

45. A. value                  B. energy                      C. skills                       D. attitude

46. A. fair                     B. normal                         C. frightening               D. unlucky

47. A. homeless             B. technical                   C. disabled                    D. creative

48. A. joke                    B. news                        C. meeting                   D. story

49. A. if                     B. unless                      C. because                   D. although

50. A. nothing               B. everything                C. something                D. all      

任务型阅读:Helen 信箱是一个报刊栏目,主持人Helen 回答读者提出的各种问题。第1至第4题
是4位读者的来信,请从A. B. C. D. E 中为每封来信选出最合适的回复,
(     )1. Dear Helen, 
                 I'm a boy in a middle school. My problem is that I want to make friends, but I don't know how.
            My classmates seem to be OK, but I just know I'll do something wrong. Please help me.
                                                                                                                                                  xx
(     )2. Dear Helen,
                 My best friend is a nice young girl, but she has a serious shortcoming. She is always late. When 
            we're planning to do something together, she always keeps me waiting for her. Once she was 30
            minutes late for our meeting. What can I do?
                                                                                                                                                   xx
(     )3. Dear Helen,
                I'm feeling very upset these days because the result of my last English exam was very bad. Even
           though my teacher told me that I could do better the next time, I'm still feeling very bad. I need your
           help. 
                                                                                                                                                   xx
(     )4. Dear Helen, 
                I'm a girl student in a middle school. One day a boy in my class gave me a love letter and he
           wanted me to be his girl friend. I know we are just students and it's not a proper time for me to fall
           in love with somebody. I also do not want to hurt that boy. What can I do?  
                                                                                                                                                    xx
A. Dear xx,
         I understand how you feel about your problem and it's very important for you to find more chances to
     communicate with your classmates. You can ask your classmates about their likes and dislikes. Also, you
     can join them in discussions and show your interest in their ideas. You can change the situation!
                                                                                                                                                  Helen
B. Dear xx,
        You could try talking to her about the importance of being on time, and you can also tell her that you are 
    very unhappy with her about this. If she really cares about your friendship, she will not always keep you 
    waiting for long.
                                                                                                                                                  Helen
C. Dear xx,
         Scores are important for a student, but you don't have to care too much about the result of one test.
     You are learning. Maybe it is more important o find out why you failed to achieve your goal. Try to do
      better next time.
                                                                                                                                                   Helen
D. Dear xx, 
         "Be yourself" is the best solution. If I were you, I'd tell him to leave me alone. At least tell him, "That 
     was hurtful. Please don't say things like that to me. I'm a football fan and like watching football games.
      I can make my own decision."
                                                                                                                                                   Helen
E. Dear xx, 
        You're right. As a student, it's not a proper time for you to fall in love with a boy. If I were you, I would 
     make it clear to the boy that you could not accept his love. If possible, you can tell the boy you two can be
     friends if he can forget it. I hope it can help you. 
                                                                                                                                                   Helen

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