The space shuttle Columbia flared and broke up in the skies over Texas on Saturday, February 1,2003, killing the seven astronauts on board in what NASA and President Bush called a tragedy for the entire nation. NASA launched an investigation into the disaster and began searching for the astronauts' remains. It said that although there had been some data failures it was too early to nail down a precise cause. The break-up, 16 minutes before the shuttle was due to land at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, spread possibly toxic debris(有毒的残骸) over a wide swath of Texas and neighboring states.

Dramatic television images of the shuttle's descent clearly showed several white trails(痕迹) streaking through blue skies after the shuttle suddenly fell apart. It was almost 17 years to the day that the Challenger shuttle exploded on Jan. 28, 1986, killing all seven astronauts on board.

Take-off and re-entry into Earth's atmosphere are the most dangerous parts of a space mission. In 42 years of US' human space flight, there had never been an accident in the descent to Earth or landing. Challenger exploded just after take-off.

Rescue teams scrambled to search for the remains of the crew, which included the first Israeli to fly on the shuttle, former combat pilot Col. Ilan Ramon. There were warnings that parts of a vast 120-mile-long corridor of debris could be toxic because of poisonous rocket propellant(推进器).

"We are not ready to confirm that we have found any human remains," Nacogdoches County Sheriff Thomas Kerrs said. He added that among the roughly 1,000 calls reporting debris, some people said they found remains of crew members.

"The Columbia is lost. There are no survivors, …Their mission was almost complete and we lost them so close to home. … America's space program will go on," said a grim-faced Bush in a message broadcast on television, which included condolences to the families of the dead astronauts.

1. The word “descent” in the passage means ________.

A. taking off   B. landing      C. orbiting     D. walking down

2. Which is true of the Israeli astronaut Ilan Ramon?

A. He was the first Israeli astronaut to fly on the shuttle.

B. He was the first foreign astronaut to fly on the American shuttle.

C. He used to be a passenger plane pilot.

D. He was the only survivor in the Columbia disaster.

3. The Columbia disaster and the Challenger disaster were similar in that ________.

A. there were seven astronauts killed on board

B. both the shuttles exploded when they took off

C. Both the shuttles exploded when they were about to land

D. no human remains were found

4. Which of the following is wrong according to the news?

A. The U.S.A. will give up the space program because of the accident.

B. NASA hasn’t found the cause of the Columbia disaster.

C. Before the Columbia disaster, no shuttles had exploded in the course of landing.

D. Take-off and re-entry into Earth's atmosphere are the most dangerous parts of a space mission.

认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。

注意：每个空格只填1个单词。请将答案写在答题纸相应题号的横线上。

Mirriam Websters online dictionary defines happy as: enjoying good health and satisfaction. Sounds nice, doesn’t it? I know a secret that can lead to happiness. Now you may ask, what secret is that? It’s a well-known secret, in fact. Perform a random(随意的) act of kindness per day.

Positive psychology is the scientific study of the strengths and virtues that enable individuals and communities to grow. According to University of Pennsylvania’s website, positive psychology has three central concerns: positive emotions, positive individual character, and positive systems. Understanding positive emotion includes the study of satisfaction with the past, happiness at present, and hope for the future. Understanding positive individual character consists of the study of the strengths and virtues, such as love, courage, creativity, curiosity, self-knowledge, self-control, and wisdom. Understanding positive systems needs the study of meaning and purpose as well as the strengths that help the growth of better communities, such as responsibility, leadership, teamwork, purpose, and tolerance(忍耐力).

Positive psychology focuses on strengths as well as weaknesses, on building the best things in life as well as repairing the worst. It asserts(断言) that human goodness and excellence is just as real as sadness and illness, and that life consists more than seeking the answers to problems. All these things can be summed up in one concept: giving can equal a meaningful life, i.e. happiness.

But you are probably wondering how. Well, let’s examine the research, shall we? A 1996 study showed that wealth is only weakly related to happiness both within and across nations, particularly when income is above the poverty level. So money does not mean happiness. In 2000, a different study showed that activities that make people happy in some way—such as shopping, good food and making money—do not lead to satisfaction in the long term, indicating that these have quick diminishing returns(收益递减).

However, on the other hand, we also know that people who witness others perform good deeds experience an emotion which drives them to perform their own good deeds. Making a contribution to the lives of other people may help to extend our own lives.

This is why I make a point of trying to do something nice every day. Sometimes I tip much larger than I need to. Sometimes I just smile at someone who looks like they really need it. A random act of kindness is an act that receives just as much as it gives. You’ll be happier. They’ll be happier. And you’ll live longer. So, please, perform a random act of kindness each day.

阅读理解

　　The space shuttle Columbia flared and broke up in the skies over Texas on Saturday, February 1,2003, killing the seven astronauts on board in what NASA and President Bush called a tragedy for the entire nation. NASA launched an investigation into the disaster and began searching for the astronauts'remains. It said that although there had been some data failures, it was too early to nail down a precise cause. The break-up, 16 minutes before the shuttle was due to land at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, spread possibly toxic debris (有毒的残骸) over a wide swath of Texas and neighboring states.

　　Dramatic television images of the shuttle's descent clearly showed several white trails (痕迹) streaking through blue skies after the shuttle suddenly fell apart. It was almost 17 years to the day that the Challenger shuttle exploded on Jan 28, 1986, killing all seven astronauts on board. Take-off and reentry into Earth's atmosphere are the most dangerous parts of a space mission. In 42 years of US' human space flight, there had never been an accident in the descent to Earth or landing. Challenger exploded just after take-off.

　　Rescue teams scrambled to search for the remains of the crew, which included the first lsraeli to fly on the shuttle, former combat pilot Collan Ramon. There were warnings that parts of a vast 120-milelong corridor of debris could be toxic because of poisonous rocket propellant (推进器).

　　“We are not ready to confirm that we have found any human remains”, Nacogdoches County Sheriff Thomas Kerrs said He added that among the roughly 1,000 calls reporting debris, some people said they had found remains of crew members.

　　“The Columbia is lost. There are no survivors,……Their mission was almost complete and we lost them so close to home……America's space program will go on,”said a grim-faced Bush in a message broadcast on television, which included condolences (吊慰) to the families of the dead astronauts.

1．The word“descent”in the passage means ________.

[　　]

2．Which is TRUE of the lsraeli astronaut Collan Ramon?

[　　]

A．He was the first lsraeli astronaut to fly on the shuttle

B．He was the first foreign astronaut to fly on the American shuttle

C．He used to be a passenger plane pilot

D．He was the only survivor in the Columbia disaster.

3．The Columbia disaster and the Challenger disaster were similar in that ________ .

[　　]

A．there were seven astronauts killed on board

B, both the shuttles exploded when they took off

C．both the shuttles exploded when they were about to land

D．no human remains were found

4．Which of the following is WRONG according to the news?

[　　]

A The U.S. A will give up the space program because of the accident

B．NASA hasn't found the cause of the Columbia disaster.

C．Before the Columbia disaster, no shuttles had exploded in the course of landing.

D．Take-off and re-entry into Earth's atmosphere are the most dangerous parts of a space mission.

   BEIJING, Aug．4（Xinhua）--The whole U．S．squad joined the post—game press conference for the celebration of their come-back to the top of the world after they beat Spain by 118—107 in the final of the men’s basketball tournament here on Sunday

   Kobe Bryant．who had 1 3 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter, definitely had the right to roar, “Rock it up．baby!” to call an end of the commitment of the U．S．team to the 29th Olympics after they had been absent from the throne for eight years．

   The U．S．kept an unbeaten record of 8-0，averaging 27．9 point victory margin per game in the tournament and beating world champions Spain；runners—up Greece and defending title—holders Argentina on their way to the crown．

   “I want to thank all the members of the U.S.team and Jerry Colangero，the national director，for the three—year program，we showed great characters in the tournament，maybe the greatest in the international basketball history．No other team had the same characters as us because if we don’t have them．we won’t be here at the top of the world.” U．S head coach Mike Krzyzewski said．

   Colangero，who asked most of the squad for a three-year commitment to bring the U．S．basketball back to the top，said that the U．S．Basketball would discuss the possibility of setting up another program after the Beijing Olympics．

   “Did I say it is a six—year program?” he joked at the press conference，which was attended by about one hundred journalists around the world．

48. The underlined word “tournament” in the first paragraph probably means          .

A. the 29th Olympic Games    B .the three—year program

   C. competition in the Olympics   D. discussion in the whole U.S. squad

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

   A. The U．S．has been the world champion for eight years.

   B. Spain beat the world champion--the U.S. in the Olympics.

   C. Greece ranked second in the 29th Olympics.

   D. Argentina ranked first in the 28th Olympics.

50. Who played in the final of the men’s basketball tournament in the passage?

   A. Kobe Bryant  B. Jerry Colangero     C .Mike Krzyzewski   D. All of them