A young man was getting ready to graduate from college．For many months he had admired a beautiful sports car in a dealer's showroom, and knowing his father could well afford it, he told him that was all he wanted．
As Graduation Day approached, the young man awaited signs that his father had purchased the car．Finally, on the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his private study．His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him．He handed his son a beautiful wrapped gift box．Curious, but somewhat disappointed, the young man opened the box and found a lovely, leather-bound Bible, with the young man's name embossed in gold．Angrily, he raised his voice to his father and said, "With all your money you give me a Bible?" He then stormed out of the house, leaving the Bible．
Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business．He had a beautiful home and a wonderful family, but realizing his father was very old, he thought perhaps he should go to see him．He had not seen him since that graduation day．Before he could make the arrangements, he received a telegram telling him his father had passed away, and willed all of his possessions to his son．He needed to come home immediately and take care of things．
When he arrived at his father's house, sudden sadness and regret filled his heart．He began to search through his father's important papers and saw the still new Bible, just as he had left it years ago．With tears, he opened the Bible and began to turn the pages．As he was reading, a car key dropped from the back of the Bible．It had a tag with the dealer's name, the same dealer who had the sports car he had desired．On the tag was the date of his graduation, and the words．"PAID IN FULL"．
How many times do we miss blessings because they are not packaged as we expected? Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; but remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for．
Sometimes we don't realize the good fortune we have or we could have because we expect "the packaging" to be different．What may appear as bad fortune may in fact be the door that is just waiting to be opened．
(1)
According to the passage we can infer that ________．
[ ]
A．
the author’s father was once very rich．
B．
the author’s father didn’t love him．
C．
the author’s father had not enough money to buy a run car．
D．
the author’s thought was wildly unrealistic．
(2)
When author graduated from his school, his father sent him ________．
[ ]
A．
a beautiful run car
B．
a new leather-bound Bible
C．
a gift he hoped for
D．
only an empty box
(3)
After graduation, author ________ before his father died．
[ ]
A．
often went to see his father
B．
had never gone home
C．
went home once in the while
D．
always contacted his father by phone
(4)
The passage can imply that ________．
[ ]
A．
Good fortune lies within bad, bad fortune lurks within good．
Perhaps you will visit New York one day．You might be a student there．Here is some advice．
Get a good map of the city．It will also have subway and bus maps．Remember the directions－uptown, downtown, east and west．Feel the excitement of New York．Have fun!
NEW YORK CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAU
Address：90 East 42nd Street,N．Y．100017
Telephone：6871300
TIMES SQUARE INFORMATION CENTER
Address：43rd Street between Seventh Avenue and Broadway
Emergency(Police, Fire, or Ambulance)：911 or“0”for operator
A doctor：8971000
USEFUL BOOK
Seeing New York; The official MTA Travel Guide, published by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority．
(1)
What would be the best title for the passage?
[ ]
A．
Introductions and directions
B．
This is New York
C．
Information and advice
D．
Have fun here
(2)
If you lose your passport in New York, you may probably get help from ________．
[ ]
A．
CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAU
B．
TIMES SQUARE INFORMATION CENTER
C．
USEFUL BOOK
D．
TRAVEL INFORMATION
(3)
If a visitor wanted to take a train, he could get some help by dialing the number “________”．
[ ]
A．
8971000
B．
3301234
C．
WE 61212
D．
911 or“0”
阅读理解
I needed to buy a digital camera, one that was simply good at taking good snaps(快照), maybe occasionally for magazines．Being the cautious type, I fancied a reliable brand．So I went on the net, spent 15 minutes reading product reviews on good websites, wrote down the names of three top recommendations and headed for my nearest big friendly camera store．There in the cupboard was one of the cameras on my list．And it was on special offer．Oh joy．I pointed at it and asked an assistant,“Can I have one of those?”He looked perturbed(不安)．“Do you want to try it first?" he said．It didn't quite sound like a question．"Do I need to?" I replied．"There's nothing wrong with it?" This made him look a bit insulted and I started to feel bad．"No, no．But you should try it," he said encouragingly．" Compare it with the others．"
I looked across at the others：shelves of similar cameras placed along the wall, offering a wide range of slightly different prices and discounts, with each company selling a range of models based around the same basic box．With so many models to choose from, it seemed that I would have to spend hours weighing X against Y, always trying to take Z and possibly H into account at the same time．But when I had finished, I would still have only the same two certainties that I had entered the store with：first, soon after I carried my new camera out of the shop, it would be worth half what I paid for it; and second, my wonderful camera would very quickly be replaced by a new model．
But something in the human soul whispers that you can beat these traps by making the right choice, the clever choice, the wise choice．In the end, I agreed to try the model I had chosen．The assistant seemed a sincere man．So I let him take out my chosen camera from the cupboard, show how it took excellent pictures of my fellow shoppers…and when he started to introduce the special features, I interrupted to ask whether I needed to buy a carry-case and a memory card as well．
Why do we think that new options(选择)still offer us anything new?Perhaps it is because they offer an opportunity to avoid facing the fact that our real choices in this culture are far more limited than we would like to imagine．
(1)
The shop assistant insisted that the writer should ________．
[ ]
A．
try the camera to see if there was anything wrong with it
B．
compare the camera he had chosen with the others
C．
get more information about different companies
D．
trust him and stop asking questions
(2)
What does the writer mean by "it would be worth half what I paid for it"(Paragraph 2)?
[ ]
A．
He should get a 50％ discount．
B．
The price of the camera was unreasonably high．
C．
The quality of the camera was not good．
D．
The camera would soon fall in value．
(3)
The writer decided to try the model he had chosen because he ________．
[ ]
A．
knew very little about it
B．
didn't trust the shop assistant
C．
wanted to make sure the one he chose would be the best
D．
had a special interest in taking pictures of his fellow shoppers
(4)
It can be inferred from the passage that in the writer's opinion, ________
[ ]
A．
people waste too much money on cameras
B．
cameras have become an important part of our daily life
C．
we don't actually need so many choices when buying a product
D．
famous companies care more about profit than quality
阅读理解
Hee-haw!Scores of farmers across the country are opening up to overnight guests．The best have all the appeal of a first-rate inn－plus here a moo, there a moo．
Sure, you and your kids plan to conquer the theme parks．In the meanwhile, why not make a little hay?Farm stays are fast becoming the great American alternative to the pre-packaged vacation．
LIBERTY HILL FARM
Rochester, Vt．; 802/767-3926;
www.libertyhillfarm.com．Adults$75, teens $50, kids 12 and under $35, including breakfast and dinner; shared baths．
Beth and Bob Kennett run a farm straight out of a storybook．You’ll find Beth in the kitchen, rolling out dough(生面团)for a pie．Bob’s busy with other work．Guests sleep in seven sunny bedrooms right in the farmhouse and can participate in any of the farm jobs．Maybe you and your kids won’t be up at 6 a.m.to meet the milk truck, but you can help with the milking twice a day, collect eggs, and pick sweet corn and wild blackberries in season．
HULL-O FARM
Durham, N．Y．; 518/239-6950; www.hull-o.com; Adults $110, kids 10－14 $60, 5－9 $50, 2－4 $35, under 2 free, including breakfast and dinner; private baths．
It started in 1993 as a way to bring in some extra money at a time of falling milk prices．But soon after Frank and Sherry Hull opened their Catskill Mountains dairy farm to overnight visitors, they discovered they loved it．As you drive up, Sherry greets you on the porch of the 1825 farmhouse with a cow-shaped cookie jar．Before long your kids are playing around with the cows, sheep, ducks, goats and getting ready for a hayride．
(1)
The underlined sentence in the first paragraph implies that ________．
[ ]
A．
you can enjoy the best cuisine(烹调)at the first rate restaurant
B．
some farm provide country experiences as well as good accommodations
C．
farm work is hard, but you can enjoy it a lot, playing with the animals
D．
if you want to hear a cow’s cry, please stay on a best farm
(2)
We can learn from the ads that ________．
[ ]
A．
Hull-O Farm was not built for overnight visitors
B．
Frank and Sherry Hull run a farm out of a storybook
C．
kids can sit on a gentle cow’s back on Hull-O Farm
D．
you can’t milk a cow if you get up late on Liberty Hill Farm
(3)
The Browns have a 13-year-old son and 11-year-old daughter．If they stay on Liberty Hill Farm for one night, how much will they pay?
[ ]
A．
$175．
B．
$220．
C．
$235．
D．
$250．
阅读理解
A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on each end of a pole which he carried across his neck．One of the pots had a crack(裂缝)in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water at the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house, the cracked pot arrived only half full．
This went on daily．The perfect pot was proud of its accomplishment．Of course, the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection．After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream．
“I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologise to you．”
“Why?”asked the bearer．“What are you ashamed of?”
“I have been able, for these past two years, to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back．And you do no get full value for y our efforts”the pot explained．
The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, “As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path．”
As they went up the hill, the cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and this cheered it a little．
The bearer said,“Did you notice that there were flowers only on your side of the path, but not on the other pot's side?”That is because I have known about you, and I took advantage of it．I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we walked back from the stream, you have watered them．For two years, I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table．“Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty to grace his house．”
(1)
Why did the cracked pot feel ashamed?
[ ]
A．
Because it didn't hold water．
B．
Because the water bearer didn't like it．
C．
It couldn't water the flowers well．
D．
Because it could only accomplish half of its load．
(2)
How would the cracked pot feel at the end of the story?
[ ]
A．
Delighted with itself．
B．
Disappointed with itself．
C．
Prouder than the other pot．
D．
Still ashamed of itself．
(3)
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
[ ]
A．
There were flowers on both sides of the path．
B．
The cracked pot was more useful than the perfect one．
C．
We sometimes don't have to mind too much the way we are．
D．
The water bearer preferred the perfect pot to the cracked one．
(4)
Which of the following proverbs can best go with this passage?
[ ]
A．
Every dog has his day．
B．
Every man has his price．
C．
Every picture tells a story．
D．
Who laughs last is the best．
阅读理解
The Erie Canal was the first important national waterway built in the US．It crossed New York from Buffalo on Lake Erie Troy to Albany on the Hudson River．It joined the Great Lakes with the Atlantic Ocean．The canal served as a route over which industrial goods could flow into the west, and materials could pour into the east．The Erie Canal helped New York develop into the nation's largest city．
The building of the canal was paid for entirely by the state of New York．It cost＄7 143 789, but it soon gained its price many times over．Between 1825, when the canal was opened, and 1882, when toll charges(过运河费)were stopped, the state collected＄121 461 891．
For a hundred years before the Erie was built, people had been talking about a canal which could join the Great Lakes and the Atlantic Ocean．The man who planned the Erie Canal and carried the plan through was De Witt Clinton．Those who were against the canal laughingly called it “Clinton's Ditch(沟)”．Clinton talked and wrote about the canal and drew up plans for it．He and Governor Morris went to Washington in 1812 to ask for help for the canal, but they were unsuccessful．
Clinton became governor of New York in 1817, and shortly afterwards, on July 4, 1817, broke ground for the canal in Rome, N．Y．The first part of the canal was completed in 1820．As the canal grew, towns along its course developed fast．The length of the canal is 363 miles．
(1)
We can see that the Erie Canal ________．
[ ]
A．
joined the Great Lakes together
B．
crossed New York from north to south
C．
played an important part in developing New York City
D．
was the first waterway built in the US
(2)
It can be inferred that ________ into the Atlantic Ocean．
[ ]
A．
the Great Lakes flow
B．
the Hudson River flows
C．
Lake Erie flows
D．
the Erie Canal flows
(3)
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
[ ]
A．
The Erie Canal brought profits of over ＄114, 000, 000．
B．
It's 363 miles from the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean．
C．
The West was more advanced than the East when the canal was built．
D．
Many other states helped New York built the canal．
(4)
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
[ ]
A．
Clinton broke ground for the canal at both ends．
B．
Clinton started building the canal before he became governor．
C．
All parts of the canal were completed at the same time．
