Long long ago, there was a small village． This village had a  1  tradition． At the beginning of every year, any boy who had reached the age of majority （the state of legally being an adult） was given land and money to build a home． The boy had to   2 his home before winter． If his home failed to endure the cold weather in winter, the villagers could not  3  him in any way．
One  4 , Paul and Marc reached their majority． They  5  their land and money and decided to search nearby villages for ideas on building their homes． In each village, they found the nicest  6  and talked to the owners． Each owner gladly offered  7 ．
After Marc saw several homes, he  8 the best ideas and went back to his own land． Paul, 9  , continued collecting more ideas． Soon he had so many great ideas that he began to  10 some of them． But he always believed he could find even better ideas in the next village．
Marc began building his home． He had several false starts,  11  his home gradually rose from his land． By fall, Marc had finished his home． It wasn't perfect, but it was strong and he could  12 it later． Paul enjoyed all the beautiful homes and   13  with home owners． The first snow came and Paul, realizing he was running out of time,  14  back to his land． He built the best home he could in the time he had, but it was   15 ． The first winter storm destroyed his home and he froze to  16 ． The villagers mourned for him．
Marc  17 the winter． Each year, Marc searched for other good ideas he could use to make his own home look better． He became a leader in the village,  18 a family, and lived a happy, content life．
We all build and improve our own mental homes． It’s   19  and fun for us to search for ideas from other mental home owners, but we only improve our own mental home if we actually  20   the best ideas．

Stand Beside You Forever永远站在你身后

The passengers on the bus watched sympathetically as the attractive young woman with the white cane made her way carefully up the steps. She   1    the driver and, using her hands to feel the   2    of the seats, walked down and found the   3    which the driver had told her was empty. Then she settled in.

It had been a year since Susan, 34,   4    a medical misdiagnosis (误诊), was suddenly thrown into a world of   5   . Mark, her husband, was an Air Force officer and he loved Susan with all his heart. He   6    her how to rely on her other   7   , specifically her hearing, to determine where she was and   8    to adapt herself to the new environment. He helped her befriend the bus drivers who could   9    for her, and save her a seat.

  10   , Susan decided that she was ready to try the   11    on her own. Monday morning, she said good-bye and for the first time, they went their   12    ways.

On Friday morning, Susan took the bus to work as usual. As she was   13    the bus, the driver said, “Boy, I   14    envy you.” Susan had no   15   what the driver was talking about, and asked, “What do you   16   ?”

The driver answered, “You know, every morning for the   17    week, a fine-looking gentleman   18    a military uniform has been standing across the corner   19    you as you get off the bus. He   20    you cross the street safely and he watches until you enter your office building. You are one lucky lady.”           

Tears of gratitude poured down Susan’s cheeks.     

1. A. thanked      B. asked           C. discovered         D. paid

2. A. location      B. shape           C. size         D. cost

3. A. ticket         B. bus              C. seat         D. bag

4. A. according to   B. instead of        C. thanks to    D. due to

5. A. anger         B. darkness          C. happiness    D. light

6. A. asked         B. encouraged      C. taught        D. praised

7. A. feelings      B. sights           C. senses         D. abilities

8. A. how               B. when           C. where         D. who

9. A. make out           B. watch out        C. find out      D. work out

10. A. Finally     B. Luckily           C. However    D. Besides

11. A. visit          B. trip              C. bus         D. work

12. A. opposite           B. separate           C. difficult      D. usual

13. A. getting on    B. getting in        C. getting off         D. getting up

14. A. must         B. may             C. will         D. do

15. A. idea          B. opinion           C. way        D. thought

16. A. want         B. mean           C. say          D. suggest

17. A. next         B. old              C. past         D. following

18. A. by         B. on               C. with        D. in

19. A. searching     B. watching         C. calling        D. noticing

20. A. looks out     B. takes up          C. believes in         D. makes sure

The US first lady Michlle Obama is among the world’s 100 most powerful women in a list topped by German premier Angela Merkel for four years in a row, according to a Forbes ranking released on 19 August.

    Michelle Obama debuted at No.40, coming in ahead of Talk Show host Oprah Winfrey at 41 and Britain’s Queen Elizabeth at 42.

   Sheila Bair, chair of the US Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, which insures bank deposits, remained No.2 after debuting on the Forbes list last year. She has gained increased fame as the US recession lasts.

   The list is based on factors such as politics and economic impact ,media reach and career accomplishments.

   The chief executives of Dupont and Sunoco are new to the top 10, replacing the Xerox Cop. Chair, who dropped to No. 15, and the former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who fell off the list after leaving office in January.

   Rice’s successor, Hillary Clinton, came in at No.36,dropping from No.28 last year when her presidential bid made her the woman with the highest public profile on the list.

   Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the US House of Representatives, retained No.35.

   “Woman in power are rising to leadership positions in business, government and philanthropy(慈善)by making daring and unconventional moves,” Forbes said. “Gone are the days of women feeling they have to stick with one employer and patiently wait for promotions.”

    “Highly ambitious women are moving across companies and industries, making big leaps with each change, and repositioning themselves for opportunities that allow them to gain a breadth of experience.” The business magazine said.

    Merkel , 55, became the first female premier of Germany in 2005 and was successful in retaining power in a federal election on September 27.

   Michelle Obama, 45,has won the support of fans for her down-to-earth personality, her views of healthy eating and the arts, and her fashion sense that has seen her grace several best-dressed lists.

41. What does the underlined word “debuted” in Paragraph 2 mean?

A. Go on stage for the first time .              

B. Make the first public appearance.

C. Appear on the list for the first time.

D. Introduce a film to the public for the first time.

42. Condoleezza Rice was not included in the list probably because ________.

A. she exercised  less influence              

B. she kept her new job a secret

C. she is no longer a public figure            

D. she was silent after resignation

43. Hillary Clinton ranked 28 last year because __________.

A. she was the former first lady                 

B. she was running for president

C. she frequently appeared in public           

D. she got support from her husband

44. We learn from the text that powerful women today ______.

A. change their jobs more frequently          

B. are better political leaders than men

C. are not content with being housewives    

D. have changed their traditional concept

45. What is the author’s attitude towards Angela Merkel?

A. Admiring.       B. Neutral.     C. Objective.      D. Extreme.

An old man who lived in a small back street of my hometown had to tolerate（忍受） the nuisance（讨厌的人或事） of boys playing football and making a lot of noise outside his house at night.

One evening when the boys were particularly_21__，he went out to talk to them. He explained that he had just retired(退休) and was_22__when he could see or hear boys playing his_23_game，football. He would_24_ give them ￥25 each week to play in the street at night. The boys got_25_，for they could hardly believe_26_they were being paid to do something they__27_.

短文改错（共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分）

下面短文中有10处语言错误。请在有错误的地方增加、删除或修改某个单词。

增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（∧），并在其下面写上该加的词。

删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。

修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写上修改后的词。

注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；

2.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。

It was 7:15 in the morning of February 8, 2007. I was walking along Park Road towards the east while an old man came out of the park on the other sides of the   street．Then I saw a yellow car drive up Third Street and made a right turn into Park Road．The next moment the car hit the man while she was crossing the road. He fell with a cry. The car didn’t stop and drive off at full speed heading west. I noticed the driver was young woman wore a pair of glasses and the plate number was AC864. After two minutes later, I stopped a passed car and took the old man to the nearest hospital．