阅读理解

　　The modern sailing ship was developed by a man who never went to sea. He was Prince Henry of Portugal, the younger son of the Portuguese King and an English Princess.

　　Prince Henry lived in the fifteenth century. As a boy he became devoted to the sea and he dedicated himself to improving the design of ships and the methods of sailing them. In 1416, when he was twenty-two, Henry founded a school for mariners, to which he invited everyone who could help him-Jewish astronomers, Halian and Spanish sailor, and Arab mathematicians and mapmakers who knew how to use the crude compass of the day and could improve it.

　　Henry's goal was to design and equip vessels that would be capable of making long ocean voyage without having to keep close to the shore. The caravel, which he helped design, carried more sails and was longer and slimmer than any ship was made, yet was tough enough to stand up against gales at sea. He also developed the carrack, which was a slower ship, but one that was capable of carrying more goods.

　　The world owes credit to Henry for the development of craft (工艺) that made oceanic exploration possible. He lives in history as Henry the navigator.

1．Prince Henry started his school for the purpose of ________.

[　　]

A．helping mariners

B．improving ship design and sailing methods

C．studying astronomy and mathematics

D．improving his own skill as a sailor

2．Prince Henry's goal was to design vessels that could ________.

[　　]

A．make long deep sea voyage

B．travel faster than those in use at that time

C．explore the coastline of Portugal

D．carry larger crews and more goods

3．Compared with his caravel, Henry's carrack was ________.

[　　]

A．longer and slimmer

B．able to carry more sails

C．able to carry more goods

D．shorter

4．Prince Henry's main achievement was that of ________.

[　　]

A．making oceanic exploration possible

B．improving the compass

C．founding a school for mariners

D．inventing caravel and carrack

5．The best title for this selection is ________.

[　　]

A．The First Modern Sailing Vessels

B．The Mariner Prince

C．Prince Henry's Role in the History of Ship-building

D．The First School for Sailors

　　A．trip

　　B．travel

　　C．journey

　　D．voyage

Mark and his brother Jason both were looking at the shining new computer enviously. Jason was determined not to go against their father’s wishes but Mark was more adventurous than his brother. He loves experimenting and his aim was to become a scientist like his father.

“Dad will be really mad if he finds out you’ve been playing with his new computer” Jason said, “He told us not to touch it.”

“He won’t find out,” Mark said, “I’ll just have a quick look and shut it down.”

Mark had been scolded before for touching his father’s equipment. But his curiosity was difficult to control and this new computer really puzzled him.

It was a strange-looking machine — one his dad had brought home from the laboratory where he worked. “It’s an experimental model,” his father had explained, so don’t touch it under any circumstances.” But his father’s warning only served to make Mark more curious. Without any further thought, Mark turned on the power switch. The computer burst into life and seconds later, the screen turned into colours, shifting and changing, and then two big white words appeared in the centre of the screen: “SPACE TRANSPORTER.”

“Yes!” Mark cried excitedly, “It’s a computer game. I knew it! Dad’s only been pretending to work. He’s really been playing games instead!” A new message appeared on the screen:

“ENTER NAMES

VOYAGE　１

VOYAGE　２

Mark’s finger flew across the keyboard as he typed in both of their names.

“INPUT ACCEPTED.

START  TRANSPORT  PROGRAM.

AUTO-RETRIEVE  INITIATED(自动回收程序已启动).”

The screen turn even brighter and a noise suddenly rose in volume.

“I think we’d better shut it off, Mark,” Jason yelled out in terror, reaching for the power switch. A beam(光束) of dazzling white light burst out of the computer screen, wrapping the boys in its glow(光芒)，until they themselves seemed to be glowing. Then it died down just as suddenly as it had burst into life. And the boys were no longer there. On the screen, the letters changed：

“TRANSPORT SUCCESSFUL．

DESTINATION:  MARS.

RETRIEVE DATE:  2025

1.Why did Mark touch the computer against his father’s warning?

A．He wanted to take a voyage.               B．He wanted to practice his skills.

C．He was so much attracted by it.             D．He was eager to do an experiment.

2.Where did the boy’s father most likely work?

A．In an electronic factory.                  B．In a computer company.

C．In a scientific research center.              D．In an information processing center.

3.Mark thought “SPACE TRANSPORTER” on the screen was the name of ________.

A．a computer game                       B．a company website

C．a software producer                     D．an astronomy program

4.Why did Jason want to shut off the computer?

A．He was afraid of being scolded.

B．He didn’t like the loud noise and light.

C．He didn’t want to play games.

D．He was afraid something dangerous might happen.

5.What happened to the boys at the end of the story?

A．They were blown into the air.

B．They were sent to another planet.

C．They were hidden in the strong light.

D．They were carried away to another country.

56­year­old becomes 1st woman to swim Atlantic

(AP)－Jennifer Figge pressed her toes into the Caribbean sand, excited and exhausted as she touched land this week for the first time in almost a month. Reaching a beach in Trinidad, she became the first woman on record to swim across the Atlantic Ocean—a dream she'd had since the early 1960s,when a stormy trans­Atlantic (飞越大西洋) flight got her thinking she could wear a life vest and swim the rest of the way if needed.

The 56­year­old left the Cape Verde Islands off Africa's western coast on Jan.12,2009, swimming 19 out of 25 days battling waves of up to 30 feet.The distance from Cape Verde to Trinidad is about 700 miles.Crewmembers are still computing exactly how many miles she swam.

The original plan was for her to swim to the Bahamas—a distance of about 2,100 miles—but inclement (恶劣的) weather forced her to change her plans and she arrived at Trinidad on Feb.5.She now plans to swim from Trinidad to the British Virgin Islands,ending her voyage at the Bitter End Yacht Club in late February.

Her journey came a decade after French swimmer Benoit Lecomte made the first known solo trans­Atlantic swim,covering nearly 4,000 miles from Massachusetts to France in 73 days.No woman on record had made the crossing.

Figge wore a red cap and wet suit,with her only good­luck charm (护身符) underneath:an old,red shirt to guard against chafing (磨痛),signed by friends,relatives and her father,who recently died.The other cherished (珍惜) possession she kept onboard was a picture of Gertrude Ederle,an American who became the first woman to swim across the English Channel.“We have a few things in common,”Figge said,“She wore a red hat and she was of German descent (血统).We both talked to the sea,and neither one of us wanted to get out.”

1.When did Jennifer Figge want to swim across the Atlantic Ocean？

A．After she reached a beach in Trinidad.

B．After she pressed her toes into the Caribbean sand.

C．After her stormy trans­Atlantic flight in the early 1960s.

D．After her graduation from a university.

2.Jennifer Figge had to change her plans 　　　　.

A．because she wanted to shorten her voyage

B．because of bad weather conditions

C．because she wanted to end her voyage in late February

D．because she wanted to set a new world record

3.When did Benoit Lecomte probably make the first known solo trans­Atlantic swim？

A．In 1999.          B．In 1988.           C．In 1978 .          D．In 1968.

4.For what purpose did Jennifer Figge keep a photo of Gertrude Ederle？

A．Figge would like to follow her example.

B．She had the same red cap as Figge always wore.

C．Figge also wanted to swim across the English Channel.

D．They were both born in Germany.