The Atlantic Ocean is one of the oceans that separate the Old World from the New. For centuries it kept the America from being discovered by the people of Europe.

　　The Atlantic Ocean is only half as big as the pacific, but it is still very large. It is more than 4,000 miles (6,000 km) wide where Columbus crossed it. Even at its narrowest it is about 2,000 miles (3,200 km) wide.

　　There is so much water in the Atlantic that it is hard to imagine how much there is. But suppose no more rain fell into and no more water was brought to it by rivers. It would take the ocean about 4,000 years to dry up. On the average the water is a little more than 2 miles (3.2 km) deep, but in some places it is much deeper. The deepest spot is near Puerto Rico. This "deep" measures 30,246 feet --- almost six miles (9.6 km).

　　Several hundred miles eastward from Florida there is a part of the ocean called the Sargasso Sea. Here the water is quiet, for there is little wind. Today the Atlantic is a great highway. It is not, however, always a smooth and safe one. Storms sweep across it and pile up great waves. Icebergs float down from the Far North across the paths of ships. We now have such fast ways of travelling that this big ocean seems to have grown smaller. Columbus sailed for more than two months to cross it. A fast modern steamship can make the trip in less than four days. Airplanes fly from New York to London in only eight hours and from South America to Africa in four!

From the third paragraph, we can learn that ______ .

A. the Atlantic will dry up in 4,000 years' time

B. no river flows into the Atlantic ocean　　　

C. it's hard to imagine how much water there is in the Atlantic ocean

D. the Ocean floor is rather flat

Suppose it's February 27th, 2000. You take a steamship to cross the Atlantic to North America, when will you probably get there?

A. On March 2nd　         B. On March 3rd 　　

C. On February 28th 　　　  D. In eight hours' time

What can you learn from the last paragraph of the passage ?

A. The Atlantic has grown smaller than it used to be.

B. The Atlantic had grown wider than it used to be.

C. Fast ways of travelling make the ocean grow smaller.

D. Fast ways of travelling make the ocean seem to grow smaller.

阅读理解

　　In the past few years telephones in cars have become increasingly popular in the United States. At first they were very costly. And then they cost less, so many people ate now buying and using them. The police say people with car phones are reporting crimes they see and helping catch criminals.

　　In the southern State of Florida, more than 125,000 people have telephones in their cars. Almost one car in every 30 has a telephone. A man in a bug city of Florida is one of these car phone owners. One evening as he arrived home, he saw two people he did not know leaving the house next door. He called the police on his car telephone and followed the strangers in his car. The police caught the two men. A woman in another city of Florida sew a man shooting at another man during an attempt of robbery. She called the police on her car phone and followed the gunman as he fled in a car. She told the police where he was driving. With her information, the police stopped the man and caught him.

　　Many people use their car phones to report other drivers who seem to have drunk too much wine. They also report accidents. This helps doctors and nurses get to an accident sooner to provide medical aid. All those car telephones are like having many more sets of eyes and eats on the road. They help the police to do their jobs better. Car phones also help drivers find the best way to get to a place. In some Florida cities, car phone owners can make Gee calls to radio stations to report when roads become blocked by accidents or too marry cars. The stations then broadcast warning to other drivers to find different roads to use.

1．Recently telephones in cars have become more popular because ________.

[　　]

A．the police want people to use them to report crimes

B．they are very handy and useful

C．they are much cheaper than many years ago

D．people in Florida can call others on their car phones

2．Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

[　　]

A．Every person has a car phone in the State of Florida.

B．The number of people who own car phones is not known in the State of Florida.

C．One in every 30 cars has a phone in the State of Florida.

D．A car phone is a necessary part in the State of Florida.

3．The man called the police on his car telephone because ________.

[　　]

A．he wanted to see if it worked properly

B．he saw two strangers passing the house next door and thought they were thieves

C．he did not know the two men who were driving away

D．he saw two strangers coming out of the house next door and going away

4．Which of the following can he the best title for the passage?

[　　]

A．Car Telephones and Grimes in Florida

B．Car Telephones Help People in Many Ways

C．Car Telephones Reduce Traffic Accidents

D．Do You Know Anything about Car Telephones?

The Atlantic Ocean is one of the oceans that separate the Old World from the New. For centuries it kept the America from being discovered by the people of Europe.

　　The Atlantic Ocean is only half as big as the pacific, but it is still very large. It is more than 4,000 miles (6,000 km) wide where Columbus crossed it. Even at its narrowest it is about 2,000 miles (3,200 km) wide.

　　There is so much water in the Atlantic that it is hard to imagine how much there is. But suppose no more rain fell into and no more water was brought to it by rivers. It would take the ocean about 4,000 years to dry up. On the average the water is a little more than 2 miles (3.2 km) deep, but in some places it is much deeper. The deepest spot is near Puerto Rico. This "deep" measures 30,246 feet --- almost six miles (9.6 km).

　　Several hundred miles eastward from Florida there is a part of the ocean called the Sargasso Sea. Here the water is quiet, for there is little wind. Today the Atlantic is a great highway. It is not, however, always a smooth and safe one. Storms sweep across it and pile up great waves. Icebergs float down from the Far North across the paths of ships. We now have such fast ways of travelling that this big ocean seems to have grown smaller. Columbus sailed for more than two months to cross it. A fast modern steamship can make the trip in less than four days. Airplanes fly from New York to London in only eight hours and from South America to Africa in four!

1. From the third paragraph, we can learn that ______ .

A. the Atlantic will dry up in 4,000 years' time

B. no river flows into the Atlantic ocean　　　

C. it's hard to imagine how much water there is in the Atlantic ocean

D. the Ocean floor is rather flat

2.Suppose it's February 27th, 2000. You take a steamship to cross the Atlantic to North America, when will you probably get there?

A. On March 2nd　         B. On March 3rd 　　

C. On February 28th 　　　  D. In eight hours' time

3. What can you learn from the last paragraph of the passage ?

A. The Atlantic has grown smaller than it used to be.

B. The Atlantic had grown wider than it used to be.

C. Fast ways of travelling make the ocean grow smaller.

D. Fast ways of travelling make the ocean seem to grow smaller.

　　"Mark Twain" was the name used by Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835-1910) when he wrote books. His father was a lawyer, but a poor one, who lived at Florida, Missouri. The family was so poor that Samuel did not receive much teaching. He had to learn all that he could from the people whom he met. His father died when he was very young, and then there was even less money than before.

　　Many of the men in this part of America worked in the ships on the great River Mississippi, and he did this himself at one time (1857).

　　Where did he find the name "Mark Twain"? It came from the great river itself. It was part of one of the cries used by men who worked in the ships. When a man called "By the mark twain!"  he meant that the river was "two marks deep" there, that is to say, six feet deep ( "Twain" is an old form of the work "Two".) Samuel Clemens often heard these words when he was young, and he used them as a penname all his life.

　　During his work on the Mississippi he met travelers of all kinds, and this helped him a great deal when he started to write. But the number of travelers became smaller when war started in America in 1861. Many of the great ships on the river stopped work. Samuel left then and went to Nevada with his brother, who was at that time Governor of Nevada. There, near the town of Carson, Samuel became a gold miner, but he never made much money at the time. He soon saw that life in the gold mines was not for him. He also tried writing for the newspapers in Nevada, and this seemed more hopeful. He found that he could write.

　　He went to Europe in 1867 and visited France and Italy. In 1870 he married Olivia Langdon, and two years later he was spending nearly all his time writing. Among his books is his own story (1908).

　　He is now always known as Mark Twain, and many people do not even know that his family name was Clemens. He traveled in America and in England, and went to Oxford in 1907. He was one of  the great American writers of the time, and could make his readers laugh – a thing which few writers can do. He died in 1910.

"Mark Twain" was _________.

      A. a famous American writer  B. name of a book

      C. a great river in America  D. a large ship

As a child, Samuel did not get much education because _________.

A.his father died too early

B.the family was very poor

  C. he disliked school very much

D. he could learn what he liked from the people he met

What gave him a great deal when he started writing? _______

A. His poor childhood     B. The Mississippi river 

C. All kinds of travelers he met  D. His brother

We can infer from the passage that ________.

A. Samuel loved writing from his early age

B. Samuel did not love writing at the beginning

C. his writings to the newspaper were successful

D. his brother encouraged him to write more

According to the writer of the passage, a good writer could _________.

A. write a lot for his readers

B. make a lot of money for his family

C. cause his readers to laugh

D. travel everywhere he wanted

　　"Mark Twain" was the name used by Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835-1910) when he wrote books. His father was a lawyer, but a poor one, who lived at Florida, Missouri. The family was so poor that Samuel did not receive much teaching. He had to learn all that he could from the people whom he met. His father died when he was very young, and then there was even less money than before.

　　Many of the men in this part of America worked in the ships on the great River Mississippi, and he did this himself at one time (1857).

　　Where did he find the name "Mark Twain"? It came from the great river itself. It was part of one of the cries used by men who worked in the ships. When a man called "By the mark twain!"  he meant that the river was "two marks deep" there, that is to say, six feet deep ( "Twain" is an old form of the work "Two".) Samuel Clemens often heard these words when he was young, and he used them as a penname all his life.

　　During his work on the Mississippi he met travelers of all kinds, and this helped him a great deal when he started to write. But the number of travelers became smaller when war started in America in 1861. Many of the great ships on the river stopped work. Samuel left then and went to Nevada with his brother, who was at that time Governor of Nevada. There, near the town of Carson, Samuel became a gold miner, but he never made much money at the time. He soon saw that life in the gold mines was not for him. He also tried writing for the newspapers in Nevada, and this seemed more hopeful. He found that he could write.

　　He went to Europe in 1867 and visited France and Italy. In 1870 he married Olivia Langdon, and two years later he was spending nearly all his time writing. Among his books is his own story (1908).

　　He is now always known as Mark Twain, and many people do not even know that his family name was Clemens. He traveled in America and in England, and went to Oxford in 1907. He was one of  the great American writers of the time, and could make his readers laugh – a thing which few writers can do. He died in 1910.

1."Mark Twain" was _________.

      A. a famous American writer  B. name of a book

      C. a great river in America  D. a large ship

2.As a child, Samuel did not get much education because _________.

A.his father died too early

B.the family was very poor

  C. he disliked school very much

D. he could learn what he liked from the people he met

3. What gave him a great deal when he started writing? _______

A. His poor childhood     B. The Mississippi river 

C. All kinds of travelers he met  D. His brother

4. We can infer from the passage that ________.

A. Samuel loved writing from his early age

B. Samuel did not love writing at the beginning

C. his writings to the newspaper were successful

D. his brother encouraged him to write more

5.According to the writer of the passage, a good writer could _________.

A. write a lot for his readers

B. make a lot of money for his family

C. cause his readers to laugh

D. travel everywhere he wanted