Charlotte’s Web by E．B． White is a children’s book．

As the story opens,eight-year-old farm girl Fern Arable stops her father from killing a baby pig who is weaker than his brothers and sisters．The little pig,Wilbur,becomes one of the main characters in the story．Later he will be treated as a friend by Charlotte,a wise and loving spider living on the same farm．Wilbur slowly realizes that the farmer will kill him for his meat in a few months ,and Charlotte decides to help him out．She tries many things to keep Wilbur alive．She writes words in her web describing how wonderful Wilbur is and this makes the farm famous．

White creates a sort of modern animal fable（寓言）,in which animals can speak both with each other and with Fern．Also there are many great characters in this book．

The society of animals has many lessons to teach children and adults:friendship,sacrifice（牺牲），hope,determination,love,duty,fairness,respect,and many more．

Part of this novel’s success is the fact that the author makes a heroine（女主角）out of a spider,a creature that many people probably dislike．Unlike a lovely little pig or other creatures,a spider is a creature greatly different from humans．White’s Charlotte is a truly wonderful character．He tells the story of Charlotte and her friends in a special way．This is a book that no one could ever dislike．It has much to offer to children as well as to older teens and adult readers．

55．According to the descripion of the book,Charlotte ______．

A．is a nice and clever spider

B．often teaches her friends good lessons

C．always sacrifices herself for her friends

D．is disliked by many animals around her

56．According to the writer,which of the following is a factor in the success of the book?

A．That there are many animals in the book．

B．That the author of the book is very famous．

C．That the author knows children very well．

D．That the author makes a heroine out of a spider．

57．We learn from the passage that Charlitte’s Web ______．

A．is the most interesting book for children

B．is E．B． White’s only book written for children

C．is a good book not only for children but also for adults

D．is mainly about how animals get along with each other

58．What is the purpose of the writer in writing this passage?

A．To introduce the book Charlitte’s Web

B．To discuss what kinds of books are good to read

C．To explain why Charlitte’s Web is a good book

D．To tell us the importance of friendship in our life

      The motor vehicle has killed and disabled more people in its brief history than any bomb or weapon ever invented. Much of the blood on the street flows essentially from uncivil behavior of drivers who refuse to respect the legal and moral rights of others. So the killing on the road may be regarded as a social problem.

       In fact, the enemies of society on wheels are rather harmless people---- just ordinary people acting carelessly, you might say. But it is a general truth both of law and common morality that carelessness is no excuse when one’s actions could bring death or damage to others. A minority of the killers go even beyond carelessness to total negligence .

       Researchers have estimated  that as many as 80 percent of all automobile  accidents can be attributed to the psychological condition of the driver. Emotional upsets can distort（歪曲） drivers’ reactions, slow their judgment, and blind them to dangers that might otherwise clear. The experts warn that it is necessary for every driver to make a conscious effort to keep one’s  emotions under control.

       Yet the irresponsibility that accounts for much of the problem is not confined to drivers, Street walkers regularly violate traffic regulations, they are at fault in most vehicle walker accidents, and many cyclists even believe that they are not subject to the basic rules of the mad.

       Significant legal advances have been made towards safer driving in the past few years. Safety standards for vehicle have been both at the point of manufacture and through periodic mad-worthiness inspection. In addition, speed limits have been lowered. Due to these measures, the accident rate has decreased. But the accident experts still worry because there has been little or no improvement in the way drivers behave. The only real and lasting solution, say the experts, is to convince people that driving is a skilled task requiring constant care and concentration. Those who fail to all these things present a threat to those with whom they share the mad.

71．What is the author’s main purpose in writing the passage?

A．To show that the motor vehicle is a very dangerous invention

B．To improve understanding between careless drivers and street walkers.

C．To discuss traffic problems and propose solutions.

D．To warn drivers of the importance of safe driving

72．According to the passage, traffic accidents may be regarded as a social problem because ____.

A．autos have become most destruction to mankind

B．people usually pay little attention to law and morality

C．civilization brings much harm to people

D．the lack of virtue（德行）is becoming more serious

73．Why does the author mention the psychological condition of the driver in Paragraph Three?

A．To give an example of the various reasons for road accidents

B．To show how important it is for drivers to be emotionally healthy.

C．To show some of the inaccurate estimations by researchers.

D．To illustrate the hidden tensions in the course of driving.

74．Who are not mentioned as being responsible of the road accidents?

     A．Careless bicycle-riders.                    B．Mindless people walking in the street.

   C．Irresponsible drivers.                       D．Irresponsible manufactures of automobiles.

75．Which of the following best reflects the author’s attitude toward a future without traffic accident problem?

   A．Doubtful yet still longing for             B．Happy and rather confident

    C．Surprised and very pleased.              D．Disappointed and deeply worried

Silence is unnatural to man．He begins life with a cry and ends it in stillness．In between he does all he can to make a noise in the world, and he fears silence more than anything else．Even his conversation is an attempt to prevent a fearful silence．If he is introduced to another person, and a number of pauses occur in the conversation, he regards himself as a failure, a worthless person, and is full of envy of the emptiest headed chatterbox（喋喋不休的人）.He knows that ninety-nine percent of human conversation means no more than the buzzing of a fly, but he is anxious to join in the buzz and to prove that he is a man and not a waxwork figure（蜡塑人像）.
The aim of conversation is not, for the most part, to communicate ideas; it is to keep up the buzzing sound. There are, it must be admitted, different qualities of buzz; there is even a buzz that is as annoying as the continuous noise made by a mosquito （蚊子）.But at a dinner party one would rather be a mosquito than a quiet person. Most buzzing, fortunately, is pleasant to the ear, and some of it is pleasant even to the mind. He would be a foolish man if he waited until he had a wise thought to take part in the buzzing -with his neighbors.
Those who hate to pick up the weather as a conversational opening seem to me not to know the reason why human beings wish to talk. Very few human beings join in a conversation in the hope of learning anything new. Some of them are content if they are merely allowed to go on making a noise into other people's ears, though they have nothing to tell them except that they have seen two or three new plays or that they had food in a Swiss hotel. At the end of an evening during which they have said nothing meaningful for a long time, they just prove themselves to be successful conservationists.
【小题1】According to the passage, people usually talk to their neighbors_____.

Silence is unnatural to man．He begins life with a cry and ends it in stillness．In between he does all he can to make a noise in the world, and he fears silence more than anything else．Even his conversation is an attempt to prevent a fearful silence．If he is introduced to another person, and a number of pauses occur in the conversation, he regards himself as a failure, a worthless person, and is full of envy of the emptiest headed chatterbox（喋喋不休的人）.He knows that ninety-nine percent of human conversation means no more than the buzzing of a fly, but he is anxious to join in the buzz and to prove that he is a man and not a waxwork figure（蜡塑人像）.

The aim of conversation is not, for the most part, to communicate ideas; it is to keep up the buzzing sound. There are, it must be admitted, different qualities of buzz; there is even a buzz that is as annoying as the continuous noise made by a mosquito （蚊子）.But at a dinner party one would rather be a mosquito than a quiet person. Most buzzing, fortunately, is pleasant to the ear, and some of it is pleasant even to the mind. He would be a foolish man if he waited until he had a wise thought to take part in the buzzing -with his neighbors.

Those who hate to pick up the weather as a conversational opening seem to me not to know the reason why human beings wish to talk. Very few human beings join in a conversation in the hope of learning anything new. Some of them are content if they are merely allowed to go on making a noise into other people's ears, though they have nothing to tell them except that they have seen two or three new plays or that they had food in a Swiss hotel. At the end of an evening during which they have said nothing meaningful for a long time, they just prove themselves to be successful conservationists.

1.According to the passage, people usually talk to their neighbors_____.

A．in the hope of learning something new

B．in the hope of getting on well

C．about whatever they have prepared

D．about whatever they want to

2.According to the author, people make conversation to______.

A．achieve success in life

B．exchange ideas

C．overcome their fear of silence

D．prove their value

3.What is the author's purpose in writing the passage?

A．To persuade people to stop making noises．

B．To explain why people keep talking．

C．To discuss why people like talking about weather．

D．To encourage people to join in conversations．

4.By "the buzzing of a fly"(Para.1), the author means"_____".

A．the voice of a chatterbox

B．meaningless talk sound

C．a low whispering

D．the noise of an insect