When 7-year-old Warren Buffett said,“I will be the richest man one day,” his friends made fun of his “daydreaming”．But ever since then the little boy has set about learning how to make money by selling drinks, delivering newspaper and buying stocks．The American had already earned ＄9,000(equal to ＄90,000 today)by the time he graduated from high school．
And this month the 78-year-old man, who earned his fortune by making a lot of sound investment in the stock market, took the place of Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, as the world's richest man．Gates' worth declined ＄1.5 billion to ＄55.5 billion in 33 days after the recent financial storm, according to Forbes Magazine．
Buffett, the only son of a stockbroker, was ready to think outside the box to develop his business from a very early age．At 8, he went to golf courses collecting and selling the used balls．At 11 when he sold soda pop door-to-door with a friend, the pair collected lids on streets to judge which flavor was the most popular．
As a paper boy during high school, Buffett delivered two competitor papers, so that even when customers canceled one of the subscriptions, he could still make a profit from the other．With his paper delivery savings, Buffett bought 162,000 square meters of farmland and collected rent．Young Buffett stepped into the stock market at 11 but earned only ＄5．The experience taught him one of the virtues in investing, patience．
After graduating from university, Buffett started his venture with stocks with his childhood earnings and money from friends．He researched the stocks and just bought those of solid companies that were undervalued and inexpensive at the time．By sticking to companies such as American Express and Coca-Cola, Buffett has become rich．
“Learning is important to Buffett's success．He is a learning machine who can spend his entire day reading．He keeps learning from books, street smarts and investigation, from both success and failure．In this way, he over-achieved his aptitude(能力)．” said Charlie Munger, his longtime business partner．
(1)
The passage is mainly about ________．
[ ]
A．
why Buffett took the place of Bill Gates as the world's richest man
B．
what effect Buffett's childhood experiences had on his success
C．
how Buffett earned his fortune and achieved his aptitude
D．
what Buffett dreamt about when he was a child
(2)
Which of the following is true about Buffett?
[ ]
A．
His worth is more than ＄55.5 billion now．
B．
He is next to Bill Gates in wealth at the present time．
C．
He achieved great success on stepping into the stock market．
D．
He bought 162,000 square meters of farmland by selling soda pop．
(3)
How did Buffett behave at the stock market?
[ ]
A．
He often prefers some inexpensive stocks．
B．
He will buy the stock whose price is lower than its value．
C．
He always borrows money from his friends to buy stocks．
D．
He will sell the stock if its price doesn't go up．
(4)
Which is the main factor that determines Buffett's success?
[ ]
A．
His education．
B．
His family background．
C．
His desire to learn．
D．
His cooperation with his partner．
(5)
What can we infer from the passage?
[ ]
A．
Buffett is an immediate success in the stock market．
She took up skating at age 85, made her first movie appearance at age 114, and held a concert in the neighborhood on her 121st birthday．
Whe n it comes to long life, Jeanne Calment is the world’s recordholder．She lived to the ripe old age of 122．So is 122 the upper limit to the human life span(寿命)?If scientists come up with some sort of pill or diet that would slow aging, could we possibly make it to 150－or beyond?
Researchers don’t entirely agree on the answers．“Calment lived to 122, so it wouldn’t surprise me if someone alive today reaches 130 or 135,”says Jerry Shay at the University of Texas．
Steve Austad at the University of Texas agrees．“People can live much longer than we think,”he says．“Experts used to say that humans couldn’t live past 110．When Calment blew past that age, they raised the number to 120．So why can’t we go higher?”
The trouble with guessing how old people can live to be is that it’s all just guessing．“Anyone can make up a number,”says Rich Miller at the University of Michigan．“Usually the scientist who picks the highest number gets his name in Time magazine．”
Won’t new anti-aging techniques keep us alive for centuries?Any cure, says Miller, for aging would probably keep most of us kicking until about 120．Researchers are working on treatments that lengthen the life span of mice by 50 percent at most．So, if the average human life span is about 80 years, says Miller,“adding another 50 percent would get you to 120．”
So what can we conclude from this little disagreement among the researchers?That life span is flexible(有弹性的)，but there is a limit, says George Martin of the University of Washington．“We can get flies to live 50 percent longer,”he says．“But a fly’s never going to live 150 years．”
“Of course, if you became a new species(物种)，one that ages at a slower speed, that would be a different story,”he adds．
Does Martin really believe that humans could evolve(进化)their way to longer life?“It’s pretty cool to think about it,”he says with a smile．
(1)
What does the story of Jeanne Calment prove to us?
[ ]
A．
People can live to 122．
B．
Old people are creative．
C．
Women are sporty at 85．
D．
Women live longer than men．
(2)
According to Steve Austad at the University of Texas, ________．
[ ]
A．
the average human life span could be 110
B．
scientists cannot find ways to slow aging
C．
few people can expect to live to over 150
D．
researchers are not sure how long people can live
(3)
Who would agree that a scientist will become famous if he makes the wildest guess at longevity?
[ ]
A．
Jerry Shay．
B．
Steve Austad
C．
Rich Miller
D．
George Martin
(4)
What can we infer from the last three paragraphs?
[ ]
A．
Most of us could be good at sports even at 120．
B．
The average human life span cannot be doubled．
C．
Scientists believe mice are aging at a slower speed than before．
D．
New techniques could be used to change flies into a new species．
世纪百通期末金卷系列答案