His first successful fight was for the equal rights of black people in South Africa. Then, as the first black president, he fought to unite the country and organize the government. Now Nelson Mandela has set his sights on a new enemy, AIDS.
On March 19 the 82-year-old, former president, hosted his second AIDS-awareness concert. He warned that 25 million people in Africa were already infected with the fatal disease.
Mandela was born in a small village in South Africa in 1918. He was adopted by the chief of his tribe and could have been a chief himself and lived a happy country life.
But he refused to be a chief when his people lived under racial discrimination(歧视). He decided to fight for equal rights for all the people in South Africa. Before 1990, under the country’s Racial Segregation Law, colored and white people lived separately. Black people were treated unfairly even when taking a bus. Blacks had to stand at the back of the bus to make room for white people even when there were only a few of them on board.
For his opposition to the system, Mandela was arrested and spent 27 years in prison. He was freed in 1990 and became the president of the country after the first election were held in which everyone could vote.
Mandela was not only a political fighter who attacked with speeches. He was also a trained boxer and fought in the ring when he was young.
“Although I did not enjoy the violence of boxing, I was interested in how one moved one’s body to protect oneself, how one used a strategy both to attack and retreat”, he wrote in his autobiography.
As a skillful fighter, he chose music as his weapon against AIDS. He hopes to win another victory against AIDS.
【小题1】When was Mandela arrested? 

A.In 1963B.In 1990
C.When he refused to be a chiefD.When he became the president
【小题2】Nelson Mandela succeeded in doing the following except _______.     
A.winning the equal rights for the black people in South Africa
B.Uniting South Africa
C.organizing a government in South Africa
D.controlling the spread of AIDS
【小题3】If Nelson Mandela hadn’t fought against racial discrimination, he_______. 
A.could have been the president of South Africa
B.could still have lived a happy life
C.could have been in a difficult situation
D.would have been an excellent boxer
【小题4】Which of the following statements can best describe the life of Nelson Mandela?
A.struggle is his life
B.sports make his fame
C.fight for equal rights
D.a great fighter against government.

Mothers and daughters go through so much — yet when was the last time a mother and daughter sat down to write a book together about it all? Perri Klass and her mother, Sheila Solomon Klass, both gifted professional writers, prove to be ideal co-writers as they examine their decades of motherhood, daughterhood, and the wonderful ways their lives have overlapped (重叠).

Perri notes with amazement how closely her own life has mirrored her mother’s: both have full-time careers; both have published books, articles, and stories; each has three children; they both love to read. They also love to travel — in fact, they often take trips together. But in truth, the harder they look at their lives, the more they acknowledge their big differences in circumstance and basic nature.

A child of the Depression (大萧条), Sheila was raised in Brooklyn by parents who considered education a luxury for girls. Starting with her college education, she has fought for everything she’s ever accomplished. Perri, on the other hand, grew up privileged in the New Jersey suburbs of the 1960s and 1970s. For Sheila, wasting time or money is a crime, and luxury is unthinkable while Perri enjoys the occasional small luxury, but has not been successful in trying to persuade her mother into enjoying even the tiniest thing she likes.

Each writing in her own unmistakable voice, Perri and Sheila take turns exploring the joys and pains, the love and bitterness, the minor troubles and lasting respect that have always bonded them together. Sheila describes the adventure of giving birth to Perri in a tiny town in Trinidad where her husband was doing research fieldwork. Perri admits that she can’t sort out all the mess in the households, even though she knows it drives her mother crazy. Together they compare thoughts on bringing up children and working, admit long-hidden sorrows, and enjoy precious memories.

Looking deep into the lives they have lived separately and together, Perri and Sheila tell their mother-daughter story with honesty, humor, enthusiasm, and admiration for each other. A written account in two voices, Every Mother Is a Daughter is a duet (二重奏) that produces a deep, strong sound with the experiences that all mothers and daughters will recognize.

1.Why does Perri think that her own life has mirrored her mother’s?

A. They both have gone through difficult times.

B. They have strong emotional ties with each other.

C. They have the same joys and pains, and love and bitterness.

D. They both have experiences as daughter, mother and writer.

2.The word “luxury” in Paragraph 3 means ______.

A. something rare but not pleasant

B. something that cannot be imagined

C. something expensive but not necessary

D. something that can only be enjoyed by boys

3.What is Paragraph 4 mainly about?

A. The content of the book.           B. The purpose of the book.

C. The influence of the book.          D. The writing style of the book.

4.How are women’s lives explored in this book?

A. In a musical form.                B. Through field research.

C. With unique writing skills.         D. From different points of view.

 

Dog Translation Products Coming to U. S.

A Japanese toy maker declares that they have developed a gadget that translates dog barks into human language and plans to begin selling the gadget——under the name of Bowlingual——in U. S. pet stores and gift shops this summer.

Tokyo-based Takara Co. Ltd. says about 300, 000 of the dog translator gadgets have been sold since it was on sale in Japan late last year. It is forecasting far bigger sales once an English language translation for dogs comes to America in August. The United States is home to about 67 million dogs, more than six times the number in Japan.

"We know that the Americans love their dogs so much, so we don't think they will mind spending $ 120 on this product," the Takara marketing manager said during an interview at a recent pet products conference in Atlanta.

Regarded as one of the coolest inventions of 2002 by Time magazine, Bowlingual is made up of a 3 - inch long wireless microphone that is fastened to a dog collar and sends out sounds to a small console (控制台) that is connected to a database (数据库). The console divides each bark into six emotional types——happiness, sadness, disappointment, anger, threat and desire——and shows common phrases, such as "You're ticking me off," that fit the dog's emotional state.

Takara says it has spent millions of dollars developing the gadget in cooperation with famous sound experts and animal behaviorists.

One thing that does appear certain is that the markets for animal translation products will likely remain a dog's world since Takara has no plans to develop a similar gadget for cats. "They are too unpredictable (反复无常) , " the marketing manager said.

1.This passage mainly tells us that Bowlingual ___________.

A. was invented in Japan         B. has developed quickly

C. will be sold in America        D. sells well for its price

2.The underlined word "they" in the last paragraph refers to ___________.

A. markets    B. products     C. plans      D. cats

3.When was this passage most probably published?

A. In the winter of 2002.       B. In the spring of 2003.

C. In the summer of 2002.       D. In the autumn of 2003.

4.From the passage, we can see that Takara Co. Ltd. is ___________ the sale of its new product.

A. proud of             B. satisfied with

C. confident of           D. worried about

 

Dear Florence,

We arrived in India last week, and the voyage was the worst experience of my entire life. I’m lucky to be alive!

The first part of the journey was terrible, because the ship hit bad weather almost as soon as we left Liverpool. But much, much worse was to come. Later, we were involved in a collision with another boat and we had to abandon ship!

We had been at sea for about two weeks and we were in the Mediterranean. There is now a canal between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea called the Suez Canal, which opened last year. Our boat stopped at Port Said, the Egyptian port at the entrance to the canal. I remember looking through the porthole of my cabin and wishing that I could go ashore and visit this fascinating place, but mummy had ordered that I was to stay in the cabin because I was feeling ill. “you must stay here for at least another two days.” I remember her saying. How wrong she would turn out to be! The ship left the port and headed towards the canal . I was alone in the cabin and I watched the port disappear into the distance. Suddenly there was a loud bang, followed by the most awful crunching(嘎吱的)sound, and the ship shook and turned slightly on its side.

There was an eerie silence for a moment, then people started shouting. Mummy came running into the cabin and told me that we had collided with another boat. She took my hand and we ran along the deck towards the lifeboats. There was a lot of shouting and people were running everywhere, but the crew were all acting calmly, helping people into the lifeboats and telling people not to panic.

Well, clearly we survived, as did all the passengers and crew of the ship. The other boat wasn’t so lucky. It sank and several lives were lost.

I will write about the rest of the journey soon. Please give my love to Aunt Claire and Uncle Eric.

Your loving cousin,

Jane

56.1.When was the letter written?

A.Before the author went to India.

B.In the mid – 19th century.

C.When the author arrived in Egypt.

D.Just after the author arrived in India.

57.2.Why was the journey to India such a bad experience for the author?

A.She was sick when it started and nearly died in Egypt.

B.Her ship left England in bad weather and crashed into another ship near the Suez Canal.

C.She was seasick when her ship sank.

D.She was alone when her ship hit another boat and she got sick.

58.3.The author’s mother didn’t allow her to go ashore and visit the port city, Said because      .

A.she was homesick at that time

B.she didn’t feel very well then

C.she could meet some danger ashore

D.she could see the city through the porthole on board

59.4.The underlined phrase “eerie silence” in the sixth paragraph means         .

A.pleasant calm silence

B.long peaceful silence

C.sudden long silence

D.strange uncomfortable silence

 

A few years ago I asked my children’s governess, Julia Vassilyevna, to come into my study.

  “ Sit down, Julia Vassilyevna,” I said.“Let’s settle our accounts. Although you most likely need some money, you stand on ceremony and won’t ask for it yourself. Now then, we agree on thirty rubles a month…”

  “ Forty.”

  “ No, thirty. I made a note of it. I always pay the governess thirty. Now then, you’ve been here two months, so…”

  “ Two months and five days.”

  “ Exactly two months. I made a specific note of it. That means you have sixty rubles coming to you. Subtract nine Sundays… you know you didn’t work with Kolya on Sundays, you only took walks. And three holidays…”

   Julia Vassilyevna flushed a deep red and picked at the flounce of her dress, but--- not a word.

   “ Three holidays, therefore take off twelve rubles. Four days Kolya was sick and there were no lessons, as you were occupied only with Vanya. Three days you had a toothache and my wife gave you permission not to work after lunch. Twelve and seven---nineteen. Subtract…that leaves…hmm…forty-one rubles. Correct?”

Julia Vassilyena’s left eye reddened and filled with moisture. Her chin trembled; she coughed nervously and blew her nose, but---not a word.

“ Around New Year’s you broke a teacup and saucer: take off two rubles. The cup cost more, it was an heirloom, but---let it go. When didn’t I take a loss? Then, due to your neglect, Kolya climbed a tree and tore his jacket: take off ten. Also due to your heedlessness the maid stole Vanya’s shoes. You ought to watch everything! You get paid for it. So, that means five more rubles off. The tenth of January I gave you ten rubles…”

“ You didn’t ” whispered Julia Vassilyevna.

“ But I made a note of it.”

“ Well…all right.”

“ Take twenty-seven from forty-one ---that leaves fourteen.”

Both eyes filled with tears. Perspiration appeared on the thin, pretty little nose. Poor girl!

“ Only once was I given any money,” she said in a trembling voice, “ and that was by your wife. Three rubles, nothing more.”

“ Really? You see now, and I didn’t make a note of it! Take three from fourteen… leaves eleven. Here’s your money, my dear. Three , three, three, one and one. Here it is!”

I handed her eleven rubles. She took them and with trembling fingers stuffed them into her pocket.

“ Merci,” she whispered.

I jumped up and started pacing the room. I was overcome with anger.

“ For what, this ---‘merci’?” I asked.

“ For the money.”

“ But you know I’ve cheated you, God’s sake---robbed you! I have actually stolen from you! Why this ‘merci’?”

“ In my other places they didn’t give me anything at all.”

“ They didn’t give you anything? No wonder! I played a little joke on you, a cruel lesson, just to teach you … I’m going to give you the entire eighty rubles! Here they are in an envelope all ready for you… Is it really possible to be so spineless? Why don’t you protest? Why be silent? Is it possible in this world to be without teeth and claws--- to be such a nincompoop?”

She smiled crookedly and I read in her expression: “ It is possible.”

I asked her pardon for the cruel lesson and , to her great surprise, gave her the eighty rubles. She murmured her litter “merci” several times and went out. I looked after her and thought: “How easy it is to crush the weak in this world!”

1.When the employer called Julia Vassilyevna in to talk with him, what he really wanted to do was _______

A. to settle their accounts

B. to criticize her for neglecting her duties as a governess.

C. to play a joke on her so as to amuse himself.

D. to teach her not to be so spineless.

2.The employer made all those criticisms about Julia Vassiliyevna’s work because __________

A. she had neglected her duties.

B. he wanted to pay her as little money as possible.

C. he wanted to make her realize that she was being cheated and protest against it.

D. he wanted to make her feel miserable.

3. Julia Vassilyevna accepted everything her employer said because ________

A. she had in fact neglected her duties.

B. she was a very dumb girl.

C. she thought it was of no use to protest to her employer.

D. she loved the children she taught.

4. The employer became very angry when Julia Vassilyevna said “ Merci” because ________

A. she didn’t say “Merci” loudly.

B. she didn’t protest to him.

C. he thought that by simply saying “ Merci” she wasn’t polite enough.

D. he didn’t like the way in which she stuffed the money into per pocket and expressed her thanks.

5. The text is about _______

A. how a governess was cheated by her employer.

B. how an employer tried to teach the governess a cruel lesson.

C. how a governess was fired by her employer for being a nincompoop.

D. how an employer punished the governess for not having done a good job.

 

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