Albert Einstein (1879～1955) was one of the greatest and most original scientific thinkers of all time.

　　Born of Jewish parents at Ulm in Germany, he completed his education in Switzerland and got his Ph. D at the University of Zurich. He went to live in the United States in 1933 because of the rise of Nazism（纳粹）in Germany and Hitler’s persecution（迫害）of the Jews.

　　In 1905, while still at Zurich, he published his Special Theory of Relativity, which was based on things everyone may have noticed. If two trains are standing alongside each other and one train starts to move, a person sitting in the train may wonder whether his own train is moving or the other is moving, and before he finds out what is happening, he can see that one train is moving relatively to the other. From this and also from other more complicated facts, Einstein came to the conclusion that all motion is relative and that there are really no such things as absolute（绝对）motion. Some of the other conclusions he drew are that nothing can go faster than light, and that if something such as a ruler was moving faster and faster it would seem to get shorter and shorter as its speed was near the speed of light. By 1915, Einstein had made known his General Theory of Relativity. He also improved on Newton’s theory of gravity. Most of his theories have been tested and found to be true though some may sound strange. For his important work he was awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize for Physics.

(1) In 1933, Einstein wanted to live in the United States because ________.

A．he loved the USA．more than his own country

B．he had got some friends there with whom he could work together

C．he wanted to live quietly in the USA

D．he could no longer work in Germany when Hitler came into power

(2) Einstein published his Special Theory of Relativity when he was ________.

A．in the United States

B．in Ulm, Germany after he got his Ph．D

C．still in Switzerland at the age of twenty-six

D．still at the University of Zurich at the age of thirty-six

(3) One of the conclusions drawn by Einstein is that ________.

A．places go faster than trains and buses

B．people couldn’t run as fast as vehicles

C．light gobs the fastest of all the things

D．two trains can go in different directions

(4) Einstein added that if something such as a ruler was moving it would seem to get shorter and shorter ________.

A．because the ruler itself was short

B．when it was moving faster and faster

C．because we can’t see it clearly

D．because the ruler was broken into pieces

(5) Einstein was world-famous for his ________.

A．Special Theory of Relativity

B．General Theory of Relativity

C．improving on Newton’s theory of gravity

D．all of the above

He lived his whole life as a poor man. His art and talent were recognized by almost no one. He suffered from a mental（精神的）illness that led him to cut off part of his left ear in 1888 and to shoot himself two years later. But after his death, he achieved world fame. Today, Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh is recognized as one of

the leading artists of all time.

　　Now, 150 years after his birth on March 30, 1853, Zundert, the town of his birth, has made 2003 “The van Gogh Year”in his honor. And the van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, home to the biggest collection of his masterpieces, is marking the anniversary（周年纪念）with exhibitions throughout the year. The museum draws around 1.3 million visitors every year. Some people enjoy the art and then learn about his life. Others are first interested in his life, which then helps them understand his art.

Van Gogh was the son of a pastor（牧师）. He left school when he was just 15. By the age of 27, he had already tried many jobs including an art gallery（画廊）salesman and a French teacher. Finally in 1880, he decided to begin his studies in art.

Van Gogh is famed for his ability to put his own emotions into his paintings and show his feelings about a scene. His style is marked by short, broad brush strokes（笔画）.“Instead of trying to reproduce exactly what I have before my eyes, I use color more freely, in order to express myself more forcibly,” he wrote in a letter to his brother in 1888.

Van Gogh sold only one painting during his short life. He relied heavily on the support from his brother, an art dealer who lived in Paris. But now his works are sold for millions of dollars. His portrait of Dr. Gacher sold for $89.5 million in 1990. It is the highest price ever paid for a painting. “I think his paintings are powerful and the brilliant colors in them are attractive to people,” said a Van Gogh’s fan.

1.All through his life, Van Gogh __________.

2. Van Gogh killed himself because of ___________.

3. One of the characteristics of Van Gogh’s paintings is ______________.

4. The selling of his paintings is considered to be the most successful because ________.

5. We can infer from the passage that _______.

He lived his whole life as a poor man. His art and talent were recognized by almost no one. He suffered from a mental（精神的）illness that led him to cut off part of his left ear in 1888 and to shoot himself two years later. But after his death, he achieved world fame. Today, Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh is recognized as one of
the leading artists of all time.
　　Now, 150 years after his birth on March 30, 1853, Zundert, the town of his birth, has made 2003 “The van Gogh Year”in his honor. And the van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, home to the biggest collection of his masterpieces, is marking the anniversary（周年纪念）with exhibitions throughout the year. The museum draws around 1.3 million visitors every year. Some people enjoy the art and then learn about his life. Others are first interested in his life, which then helps them understand his art.
Van Gogh was the son of a pastor（牧师）. He left school when he was just 15. By the age of 27, he had already tried many jobs including an art gallery（画廊）salesman and a French teacher. Finally in 1880, he decided to begin his studies in art.
Van Gogh is famed for his ability to put his own emotions into his paintings and show his feelings about a scene. His style is marked by short, broad brush strokes（笔画）.“Instead of trying to reproduce exactly what I have before my eyes, I use color more freely, in order to express myself more forcibly,” he wrote in a letter to his brother in 1888.
Van Gogh sold only one painting during his short life. He relied heavily on the support from his brother, an art dealer who lived in Paris. But now his works are sold for millions of dollars. His portrait of Dr. Gacher sold for $89.5 million in 1990. It is the highest price ever paid for a painting. “I think his paintings are powerful and the brilliant colors in them are attractive to people,” said a Van Gogh’s fan.
【小题1】All through his life, Van Gogh __________.

　　Albert Einstein (1879～1955) was one of the greatest and most original scientific thinkers of all time.

　　Born of Jewish parents at Ulm in Germany, he completed his education in Switzerland and got his Ph. D at the University of Zurich. He went to live in the United States in 1933 because of the rise of Nazism（纳粹）in Germany and Hitler’s persecution（迫害）of the Jews.

　　In 1905, while still at Zurich, he published his Special Theory of Relativity, which was based on things everyone may have noticed. If two trains are standing alongside each other and one train starts to move, a person sitting in the train may wonder whether his own train is moving or the other is moving, and before he finds out what is happening, he can see that one train is moving relatively to the other. From this and also from other more complicated facts, Einstein came to the conclusion that all motion is relative and that there are really no such things as absolute（绝对）motion. Some of the other conclusions he drew are that nothing can go faster than light, and that if something such as a ruler was moving faster and faster it would seem to get shorter and shorter as its speed was near the speed of light. By 1915, Einstein had made known his General Theory of Relativity. He also improved on Newton’s theory of gravity. Most of his theories have been tested and found to be true though some may sound strange. For his important work he was awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize for Physics.

(1) In 1933, Einstein wanted to live in the United States because ________.

A．he loved the USA．more than his own country

B．he had got some friends there with whom he could work together

C．he wanted to live quietly in the USA

D．he could no longer work in Germany when Hitler came into power

(2) Einstein published his Special Theory of Relativity when he was ________.

A．in the United States

B．in Ulm, Germany after he got his Ph．D

C．still in Switzerland at the age of twenty-six

D．still at the University of Zurich at the age of thirty-six

(3) One of the conclusions drawn by Einstein is that ________.

A．places go faster than trains and buses

B．people couldn’t run as fast as vehicles

C．light gobs the fastest of all the things

D．two trains can go in different directions

(4) Einstein added that if something such as a ruler was moving it would seem to get shorter and shorter ________.

A．because the ruler itself was short

B．when it was moving faster and faster

C．because we can’t see it clearly

D．because the ruler was broken into pieces

(5) Einstein was world-famous for his ________.

A．Special Theory of Relativity

B．General Theory of Relativity

C．improving on Newton’s theory of gravity

D．all of the above