题目内容
D
While the rest of the world carried on cycling during the 1950s and 1960s ,America forgot how; even high-school children would drive to school .Recently there has been something of a renaissance(复兴) in cycling, and in many areas it is a very useful way of getting around, especially where bike paths or bike routes have been built. You may well want to buy , hire or borrow a bike.
There are two important consequences (后果)of this earlier drop in cycling in the U.S.A. One is that many people do not to know how to cycle. That is, cyclists often behave more like Pedestrians(行人)than motorists: they ride on the sidewalk or on the wrong side of the road; they don't care for stop signs or traffic lights; they ride without lights at night; they give no hand signals .The other consequence is that cycling is regarded by many people not so much as a way of getting from one place to another but as a way of life, a form of exercise, etc. As a result, a large number of young Americans have ten-speed racing bikes. These are very high and fast and great if you are cycling long distances, riding up mountains or racing. At first , though, you may find them awkward (使用不便)for cycling in town. Sight-seeing or shopping ----they are expensive, uncomfortable and hard to control until you get used to them, and unsuitable for rough stony roads.
There are also ordinary bikes around. If you get hold one of these ,you may find that brakes work by pedaling(踩踏板)backwards. This is perhaps safer than ordinary brakes when it is wet, but it seems to be less effective. This arrangement also means you can't pedal backwards in order to get the pedals in the right place for getting on or moving off.
68. The passage gives us a brief introduction to _______________________.
A. advantages of bikes B. cycling in America
C. American transportation D. how to ride a bike
69. Young Americans prefer racing bikes because they_________________.
A. can help keep fit B. are easy to learn
C. are safer to ride D. are expensive and popular
70. Which of the following does NOT result from the early drop in cycling in the U.S.A?
A. Cyclists do not care for traffic lights.
B. People ride on the wrong side of the roads.
C. Cycling is not considered a way of transportation.
D. People have to pedal backwards to stop the bike.
68---70 B A D

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THE BRONTE FAMILY
Yorkshire, England was the setting for two great novels (小说) of the 19th century. These were Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre and Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights. The youngest sister, Anne, was also a gifted novelist, and her books have the same extraordinary quality as her sisters’.
Their father was Patrick Bronte, born in Ireland. He moved with his wife, Maria Bronte, and their six small children to Haworth in Yorkshire in 1820. Soon after, Mrs. Bronte and the two eldest children died, leaving the father to care of the remaining three girls and a boy.
Charlotte was born in 1816. Emily was born in 1818 and Anne in 1820. Their brother Branwell was born in 1817. Left to themselves, the children wrote and told stories and walked over the hills. They grew up largely self-educated. Branwell showed a great interest in drawing. The girls were determined to earn money for his art education. They took positions as teachers or taught children in their homes.
As children they had all written many stories. Charlotte, as a young girl, alone wrote 22 books, each with 60 to 100 pages of small handwriting. Therefore, they turned to writing for income. By 1847, Charlotte had written The Professor; Emily, Wuthering Heights; and Anne, Agnes Grey. After much difficulty Anne and Emily found a publisher(出版商), but there was no interest shown in Charlotte’s book. (It was not published until 1859.) However, one publisher expressed an interest in seeing more of her works. Jane Eyre was already started, and she hurriedly finished it. It was accepted at once; thus each of the sisters had a book published in 1847.
Jane Eyre was immediately successful; the other two, however, did not do so well. People did not like Wuthering Heights. They said it was too wild, too animal-like. But gradually it came to be considered one of the finest novels in the English language. Emily lived only a short while after the publication of the book, and Anne died in 1849.
Charlotte published Shirley in 1849, and Villette in 1853. In 1854 she married Arthur Bell Nicholls. But only a year later, she died of tuberculosis(肺结核) as her sisters had.
【小题1】We know from the text that .
A.Jane Eyre was published in 1847 |
B.Charlotte Bronte wrote 22 books in all |
C.the Bronte sisters received good education |
D.Patrick Bronte helped his daughters with their writing |
A.Shirley and Villette | B.The Professor and Agnes Grey |
C.Agnes Grey and Wutheriing Heights | D.The Professor and wuthering Heights |
A.Their novels interested few publishers. |
B.None of them had more than two books published. |
C.None of them lived longer than 40 years old. |
D.Emily was the least successful of the three. |