One of the greatest contributors to the first Oxford English Dictionary was also one of its most unusual. In 1879,Oxford University in England asked Prof James Murray to serve as editor for what was to be the most ambitious dictionary in the history of the English language. It would include every English word possible and would give not only the definition but also the history of the word and quotations (引文) showing how it was used.

   This was a huge task,so Murray had to find volunteers from Britain,the United States,and the British colonies to search every newspaper,magazine,and book ever written in English. Hundreds of volunteers responded,including William Chester Minor. Dr Minor was an American surgeon who had served in the Civil War and was now living in England. He gave his address as uBroadmoor,Crowthome,Berkshire”,50 miles from Oxford- Minor joined the army of volunteers sending words and quotations to Murray. Over the next 17 years,he became one of the staffs most valued contributors.

    But he was also a mystery. In spite of many invitations,he would always decline to visit Oxford. So in 1897,Murray finally decided to travel to Crowthome himself. When he arrived,he found Minor locked in a book-lined cell at the Broadmoor Asylum (精神病院) for the Criminally Insane.

Murray and Minor became friends,sharing their love of words. Minor continued contributing to the dictionary,sending in more than 10,000 submissions in 20 years. Murray continued to visit Minor regularly,sometimes taking walks with him around the asylum grounds.

   In 1910,Minor left Broadmoor for an asylum in his native America. Murray was at the port to wave goodbye to his remarkable friend.

Minor died in 1920,seven years before the first edition of the Oxford English Dictionary was completed. The 12 volumes defined 414,825 words,and thousands of them were contributions from a very scholarly and devoted asylum patient.

45. According to the text,the first Oxford English Dictionary.

   A. came out before Minor died

   B. was edited by an American volunteer

   C. included the English words invented by Murray

   D. was intended to be the most ambitious English dictionary

46. How did Dr Minor contribute to the dictionary?

   A. He helped Murray to find hundreds of volunteers.

   B. He sent newspapers,magazines and books to Murray.

   C. He provided a great number of words and quotations.

   D. He went to England to work with Murray.

47. Why did Dr Minor refuse to visit Oxford?

   A. He was shut in an asylum.

   B. He lived far from Oxford.

   C. He was busy writing a book.

   D. He disliked travelling.

48. Prof Murray and Dr Minor became friends mainly because.

   A. they both served in the Civil War

   B. they had a common interest in words

   C. Minor recovered with the help of Murray

   D. Murray went to America regularly to visit Minor

49. Which of the following best describes Dr Minor?

   A. Brave and determined.

   B. Cautious and friendly.

   C. Considerate and optimistic.

   D. Unusual and scholarly.

50. What does the text mainly talk about?

   A. The history of the English language.

   B. The friendship between Murray and Minor.

   C. Minor and the first Oxford English Dictionary.

   D. Broadmoor Asylum and its patients.

   Whether you are a native English speaker or are learning English as a second language,you can benefit from learning how to improve English language skills. This article delivers the top five methods of improving your English language skill set in the shortest amount of time. 51

   Get a Dictionary

A dictionary can be a great way to improve your vocabulary—after all,it is filled with words. 52 Wherever it is,as long as you find yourself with a few extra free moments,take out your pocket dictionary and learn a new word.

53

    Two quick examples are Elements of Grammar by Strunk & White and Essentials of English by Hopper,Gale & Foote. Grammar books typically help with not only grammar,but also with the correct usage of punctuation and even tips to improve the clarity of your speech or writing.

Learn to Use Words in the Correct Order Words are used in different orders in different languages in the world when trying to express the same meaning. In order to speak English fluently as a native would speak,you are going to have to learn the proper order of words in English sentences. 54

   Speak English with Native English Speakers Probably the single best technique for learning a new language is immersing yourself in the language. 55 Take an English Course

These days,you can find a course tailored specifically to how you learn best —a visual course,an audible course or even a course led by an interactive instructor. You can take any of these types of courses live or on the Internet.

   A. Improve Your Grammar

   B. How to Learn English

   C. Get a Book on Grammar

   D. Practise often,and you will significantly improve.

   E. If you force yourself to speak the language,you will no doubt improve.

   F. The best way to learn is to study and pick apart English sentences.

   G. You should take a pocket dictionary that you can carry around with you.

  The Pacific island nation of Nauru used to be a beautiful place. Now it is an ecological disaster area. Nauru5 s heartbreaking story could have one good consequence—other countries might learn from its mistakes.

    For thousands of years,Polynesian people lived on the remote island of Nauru,far from western civilization. The first European to arrive was John Feam in 1798. He was the British captain of the Hunter,a whaling ship. He called the island Pleasant Island.

   However,because it was very remote,Nauru had little communication with Europeans at first. Then whaling ships and other traders began to visit,bringing guns and alcohol. These elements destroyed the social balance of the twelve family groups on the island. A ten-year civil war started,which reduced the population from 1,400 to 900.

   Naum's real troubles began in 1899 when a British mining company discovered phosphate (憐酸盐) on the island. In fact,it found that the island of Nauru was nearly all phosphate,which is a very important fertilizer for farming. The company began mining the phosphate.

    A phosphate mine is not a hole in the ground;it is a strip mine. When a company strip-mines,it removes the top layer of soil. Then it takes away the material it wants. Strip-mining totally destroys the land. Gradually,the lovely island of Nauru started to look like the moon.

In 1968,Nauru became one of the richest countries in the world. Every year the government received millions and millions of dollars for its phosphate.

   Unfortunately,the leaders invested the money unwisely and lost millions of dollars. In addition,they used millions more dollars for personal expenses. Some people realised that they had a terrible problem—their phosphate was running out. Ninety percent of their island was destroyed and they had nothing. By 2000,Nauru was almost financially mined. Experts say that it would take approximately $ 433,600,000 and more than 20 years to repair the island. This will probably never happen.

36. What might be the author's purpose in writing the text?

   A. To seek help for Naum's problems.

   B. To give a warning to other countries.

   C. To show the importance of money.

   D. To tell a heartbreaking story of a war.

37. What was Nauru like before the Europeans came?

   A. Rich and powerful.

   B. Modem and open.

   C. Peaceful and attractive.

   D. Greedy and aggressive.

38. The ecological disaster in Nauru resulted from

   A. soil pollution   B. phosphate overmining

   C. farming activity   D. whale hunting

39. Which of the following was a cause of Nauru^ financial problem?

   A. Its leaders misused the money.

   B. It spent too much repairing the island.

   C. Its phosphate mining cost much money.

   D. It lost millions of dollars in the civil war.

40. What can we learn about Nauru from the last paragraph?

   A. The ecological damage is difficult to repair.

   B. The leaders will take the experts’ words seriously.

   C. The island was abandoned by the Nauruans.

   D. The phosphate mines were destroyed.


    A special lecture began Thursday morning,given by a teacher aboard a space module about 340 km above her students on Earth,the first such attempt by Chinese.

   Female astronaut Wang Yaping,one of the three crew members of Shenzhou X spacecraft,greeted about 330 primary and middle school students at a Beijing high school,through a live video feed system. uHello,everyone. I am Wang Yaping. I will host the lecture today”> she said,smiling towards the camera,on board of the space module Tiangong I.

   The students on her class included children from migrant workers’ families,of ethnic minorities (少数 民族) and from Hong Kong,Macao and Taiwan. They were gathering at the High School Affiliated to Renmin University in Beijing. More than 60 million students and teachers at about 80 ,000 middle schools across the country were also watching the live broadcast on TV.

   The first section of the class was all about weight. Nie Haisheng,commander of the crew,made a bit show of crossing his legs into a meditation (沉思、) sitting posture in the air,which only a martial art (武术) master could do in the movies but was impossible for real people on Earth. Thanks to the weightless condition,we are all masters,M Wang joked.

   Then,Wang Yaping introduced the special scale on board of the orbiter,which was designed on basis of the Newton's second law of motion,or measuring the mass of an object through the net force and the acceleration.

    The lesson was aimed at making space more popular,as well as inspiring enthusiasm for the universe and science,according to Zhou Jianping,designer-in-chief of China manned space program,who added that the lesson would also accumulate experience for similar larger activities.

41. What's the best title for the passage?

   A. Chinese Astronaut Gives the First Space Lecture

   B. Students Watch Shenzhou X Spacecraft

   C. What the Conditions Are like in Space

   D. Ordinary People Act like Martial Art Masters

42. The lecture given in space is intended for

   A. students from Beijing

   B. students from special areas

   C. students all over the country

   D. students interested in space module

43. From the passage we can know that .

   A. special training makes the astronauts stay in the air like martial art masters

   B. astronauts are experiencing weightless conditions when in space

   C. astronauts are showing to the students how they study and live in space

   D. the Newton's second law of motion proves to be wrong in space 

44. Why does astronaut Wang Yaping give the lecture in space?

   A. To show us what weightless conditions are like.

   B. To give a further explanation of weightlessness.

   C. To show it is not easy to stay in space at present.

   D. To make more of us interested in space science.

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