Playing basketball isn’t ladylike. That’s what Jewell Chapman’s high school headmaster told her in 1961 when he was against the girls’ basketball program.

“We were very discouraged, ” said Chapman, a forward（前锋）for her high school team of Des Moines.

Nearly 50 years later, Chapman is back on the playground. She’s 62 and plays for “Hot Pink Grannies”, joining about 10 other women on a team whose uniforms are black trousers and hot pink socks. They play in the Iowa Granny Basketball League.

It’s one of dozens of basketball leagues for women over 50 that have arisen across the country. For some, it’s a chance to exercise and meet people; for others, it’s a once – refused chance to make up.

“You see more and more elderly women’s teams taking part in state and national competitions,” said Michael Rogers, a professor in sports studies at Wichita State University. “In the future it will be something common to have leagues like this.”

Yearly surveys by the National Sporting Goods Association show the number of women aged 55 and older who play basketball at least 50 times a year has grown from 16,000 in 1995 to nearly 131,000 ten years later.

The women on the Hot Pink Grannies are good – natured but competitive when game time comes.

“I think I’m tough” says Colleen Pulliam, 69, showing off her strong arms at her challengers in a game against “Strutters”, known for their bright yellow socks.

Granny Basketball Leagues and similar groups spread quickly through much of the country, including California, Louisiana, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C.

1.Which is right about Chapman?

A．She thinks playing basketball isn’t ladylike.  

B．She is now 62 years old and feels discouraged.

C．She plays basketball again about 50 years later.

D．She is a forward in the Hot Pink Grannies.

2.The underlined sentence “it’s a once – refused chance to make up” in the fourth paragraph means          .

A．it is chance to realize their old dream

B．it is chance to take part in sports

C．it is chance to earn a reputation

D．it is chance to compete for medals

3.Who is probably a player of “Hot Oink Grannies”?

A．Des Moines.        B．Colleen Pulliam.  C．Michael Rogers.  D．Strutters.

4.Which of the following statements is true?

A．Some elderly women play basketball with the purpose of getting wealthy.

B．Granny Basketball Leagues have spread all over the USA.

C．The women on the Hot Pink Grannies are good – natured and less competitive.

D．The number of women aged 55 and older who play basketball has greatly increased.

5.From the passage we can infer          .

A．in the 1960s, playing basketball wasn’t considered as a girls’ sport

B．the color of the socks is of great importance to granny players

C．more and more granny players are confident about getting higher scores

D．Jewell Chapman’s high school headmaster has already changed his attitude

On March 5, 2009, Michael Jackson stood in front of crowds of fans. Before screaming fans, he pronounced with pumping arms: “This is it!”

A few months later, Jackson was dead. With the late pop star’s return to radio, television and the cultural events, Forbes judges that Jackson has made $90 million since his death June 25. This figure is based on his royalties（版税） from album sales, radio play, rights to his name and royalties from his stock in the Sony/ATV music catalog (编目权).

Jackson’s music was his most easily-seen source in the last months. “Nothing increases the value of an artist than death ... an untimely death,” says Barry Massarsky, a music industry economist.

The music’s immediate value was clear. Since June, Jackson has sold more than 5.9 million albums in the U.S. and another 4.5 million overseas. In the first weeks after his death, there were 5.6 million single downloads across North America, Europe and Australia. Jackson recently has three of the top 20 best-selling albums of the year in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan. His 2003 hits album Number Ones is the best seller of the year, beating Taylor Swift’s Fearless.

More than 500,000 Jackson ringtones and 100,000 music videos were sold. In the week following his death, songs by The Jackson 5, The Jacksons and Michael were played over 100,000 times on the radio, according to Nielsen BDS.

Jackson’s estate（遗产）will likely see more money by the end of this year, as it has rights to some of the profits from This Is It as well as the two-disc album of the same name. The estate will share 90% of the film profits with AEG.

Ticket sales from an exhibit opening in London will also contribute a likely profit. Hundreds of Jackson’s personal belongings－his L.A. Rolls Royce etc－will remain on show for three months at the O2 for fans willing to shell out $25 for a view.

The pop singer bought ATV Publishing, for $47.5 million in 1985. Ten years later, he sold the catalog to Sony for $95 million and took a 50% stock in Sony/ATV, which is now worth about $1.7 to $2 billion. So he still owned half the Sony/ATV catalog at his death.

Jackson’s future earning potential is based on his stock in valuable music and as well as the value of his image（肖像）. As many musicians, actors and artists before him, Jackson’s fame could have a long tail on the market with allowable products, advertising and entertainment events.

What do Barry Massarsky’s words in Paragraph 3 imply?

A. Jackson died at the time as expected.

B. Only at death can an artist become famous.

C. Jackson became more famous at death than when he was alive.

D. Jackson’s unexpected death raised his value as an artist immediately.

All the following is true EXCEPT that _____.

A. “This is it” is the last concert that Jackson gave

B. Jackson has sold 10.4 million albums since June

C. Jackson’s L.A. Rolls Royce is now for show and will finally be sold

D. Jackson’s stock in music and his image will keep on earning money in the future

What can be inferred from the passage?

A. Jackson’s album Number Ones beat Taylor Swift’s Fearless in 2003.

B. Taylor Swift’s Fearless is the second best seller of music albums of 2009.

C. AEG takes in more film profits from “This is it” than Jackson’s estate.

D. More Jackson’s music videos were sold than his ringtones right after his death.

What can we know about the Sony/ATV catalog?

A. Jackson sold ATV catalog to Sony in 1985.

B. Jackson had half right of ATV Publishing at his death.

C. Jackson sold ATV catalog to Sony for $ 47.5 million in 1995.

D. Jackson’s stock in Sony/ATV now has a value of about $ 1.7 billion to 2 billion.

What is the main idea of the passage?

A. Why Michael Jackson’s music is so popular all over the world.

B. How Michael Jackson has earned $90 million in the months since his death.

C. What Michael Jackson’s future earning potential is based on.

D. How much Michael Jackson earned in the first few months after his death.

On March 5, 2009, Michael Jackson stood in front of crowds of fans. Before screaming fans, he pronounced with pumping arms: “This is it!”
A few months later, Jackson was dead. With the late pop star’s return to radio, television and the cultural events, Forbes judges that Jackson has made $90 million since his death June 25. This figure is based on his royalties（版税） from album sales, radio play, rights to his name and royalties from his stock in the Sony/ATV music catalog (编目权).
Jackson’s music was his most easily-seen source in the last months. “Nothing increases the value of an artist than death ... an untimely death,” says Barry Massarsky, a music industry economist.
The music’s immediate value was clear. Since June, Jackson has sold more than 5.9 million albums in the U.S. and another 4.5 million overseas. In the first weeks after his death, there were 5.6 million single downloads across North America, Europe and Australia. Jackson recently has three of the top 20 best-selling albums of the year in the US, according to Nielsen SoundScan. His 2003 hits album Number Ones is the best seller of the year, beating Taylor Swift’s Fearless.
More than 500,000 Jackson ringtones and 100,000 music videos were sold. In the week following his death, songs by The Jackson 5, The Jacksons and Michael were played over 100,000 times on the radio, according to Nielsen BDS.
Jackson’s estate（遗产）will likely see more money by the end of this year, as it has rights to some of the profits from This Is It as well as the two-disc album of the same name. The estate will share 90% of the film profits with AEG.
Ticket sales from an exhibit opening in London will also contribute a likely profit. Hundreds of Jackson’s personal belongings－his L.A. Rolls Royce etc－will remain on show for three months at the O2 for fans willing to shell out $25 for a view.
The pop singer bought ATV Publishing, for $47.5 million in 1985. Ten years later, he sold the catalog to Sony for $95 million and took a 50% stock in Sony/ATV, which is now worth about $1.7 to $2 billion. So he still owned half the Sony/ATV catalog at his death.
Jackson’s future earning potential is based on his stock in valuable music and as well as the value of his image（肖像）. As many musicians, actors and artists before him, Jackson’s fame could have a long tail on the market with allowable products, advertising and entertainment events.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
【小题1】What do Barry Massarsky’s words in Paragraph 3 imply?

Moving to a new town or even a new neighborhood is stressful at any age, but a new study shows that frequent moves in childhood are related to poorer well-being(幸福) in adulthood, especially among people who are more introverted(内向的) or neurotic(神经症的).
The researchers tested the relationship between the number of childhood moves and well-being in a sample of 7108 American adults who were followed for 10 years.
“We know that children who move frequently are more likely to perform poorly in school and have more behavioral problems,” said the study’s lead author Shigehiro Oishi. “However, the long-term effects of moving on well-being in adulthood have been overlooked by researchers.”
The study’s participants, who were between the ages of 20 and 75, were contacted in 1994 and 1995 and were surveyed again 10 years later. They were asked how many times they had moved as children, as well as about their psychological well-being, personality type and social relationships.
The researchers found that the more times people moved as children, the more likely they were to report lower life satisfaction and psychological well-being at the time they were surveyed. The research also showed that those who moved frequently as children had fewer quality social relationships as adults.
The researchers also looked to see if different personality types affected frequent movers’ well-being. Among introverts, the more moves participants reported as children, the worse off they were as adults. “Moving a lot makes it difficult for people to keep long-term close relationships.” Said Oishi. “This might not be a serious problem for outgoing people who can make friends quickly and easily.”
The findings showed neurotic people who moved frequently reported less life satisfaction and poorer psychological well-being than people who did not move as much and people who were not neurotic. However, the number and quality of neurotic people’s relationships had no effect on their well-being, no matter how often they had moved as children. In the article, Oishi thinks this may be because neurotic people have more negative reactions to stressful life events in general.
“We can guess that moving often creates more stress,” Oishi said. “But we need more research on this link before we can conclude that moving often in childhood can, in fact, be dangerous to your health in the long-term.”
【小题1】What can be learnt about the new study from the passage?

Moving to a new town or even a new neighborhood is stressful at any age, but a new study shows that frequent moves in childhood are related to poorer well-being(幸福) in adulthood, especially among people who are more introverted(内向的) or neurotic(神经症的).

The researchers tested the relationship between the number of childhood moves and well-being in a sample of 7108 American adults who were followed for 10 years.

“We know that children who move frequently are more likely to perform poorly in school and have more behavioral problems,” said the study’s lead author Shigehiro Oishi. “However, the long-term effects of moving on well-being in adulthood have been overlooked by researchers.”

The study’s participants, who were between the ages of 20 and 75, were contacted in 1994 and 1995 and were surveyed again 10 years later. They were asked how many times they had moved as children, as well as about their psychological well-being, personality type and social relationships.

The researchers found that the more times people moved as children, the more likely they were to report lower life satisfaction and psychological well-being at the time they were surveyed. The research also showed that those who moved frequently as children had fewer quality social relationships as adults.

The researchers also looked to see if different personality types affected frequent movers’ well-being. Among introverts, the more moves participants reported as children, the worse off they were as adults. “Moving a lot makes it difficult for people to keep long-term close relationships.” Said Oishi. “This might not be a serious problem for outgoing people who can make friends quickly and easily.”

The findings showed neurotic people who moved frequently reported less life satisfaction and poorer psychological well-being than people who did not move as much and people who were not neurotic. However, the number and quality of neurotic people’s relationships had no effect on their well-being, no matter how often they had moved as children. In the article, Oishi thinks this may be because neurotic people have more negative reactions to stressful life events in general.

“We can guess that moving often creates more stress,” Oishi said. “But we need more research on this link before we can conclude that moving often in childhood can, in fact, be dangerous to your health in the long-term.”

1.What can be learnt about the new study from the passage?

2.What is the purpose of the study?

3.According to Oishi,            .

4.The fifth and sixth paragraphs mainly talk about             .

5.It can be inferred from the passage that           .