Have you ever thought of taking a train and having an adventure (奇遇)？Riding the train can be a real adventure.That is how I feel every time I take Amtrak.I often take a four?hour trip to visit my children.Every time I take this trip I never know what will happen.

Last week when I was on the train and over an hour into the train ride，there was a man sitting by himself in the back of the train carrying on a mobile phone conversation— in another language.It was loud and disturbed most of the people on the train.I think it was annoying.

Fortunately I sat next to a wonderful old lady who was taking a two?day trip by train.She said her two daughters were distraught at the thought of her driving for three days to reach her home，although she had no trouble driving.The train ride was the only choice for her.She loved to look out of the window and watch the world go by on the train.

She was fun to talk to and asked me when my children started being parents.That is a very good question.Both of us are old and have children.She asked that same question from time to time.

There are always many people on the train from all walks of life，different countries，and many languages.Riding the train is a great way to increase your knowledge and take in all kinds of cultures.If you get hungry，you can buy food in the food car at any time.If you need to use the restroom there is always one available.

It sure beats driving the car，which has to stop for food and restrooms.And it is better than taking the bus.

1．According to the passage，the purpose of the author’s train ride was________.

A．to do business　　　　　　　　　　　　 B．to see her children

C．to visit places of interest 　　　　　　　　　 D．to see her old friends

2．Which of the following is the closest in meaning to the underlined word “distraught” in Paragraph 3?

A．Disappointed. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B．Satisfied.

C．Worried. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D．Pleased.

3．Which of the following is TRUE about the old lady sitting next to the author?

A．She is too old to drive now.

B．She does not like to take trains.

C．Although she is old，she has a good memory.

D．Her daughters live far away from her home.

4．In the author’s opinion，on the train Amtrak________.

A．the services are quite good

B．the food is terribly expensive

C．all the passengers are polite

D．all the passengers are American

5．What is the best title for this passage?

A．Train ride—a cultural experience

B．A painful experience on the train

C．The history of Amtrak

D．A wonderful lady

When your school doesn’t have a bus, and you live too far away to walk? How do you go to school?  “Let’s carpool! ”most US middle school students will get that cool idea. Carpooling is a group of people sharing the responsibility(责任) of driving to school in the morning. There are usually four or five kids in a carpool and their parents take turns driving the kids in their cars.It might be the kids’ first experience with real teamwork. Teamwork is really important in the carpool because nobody wants to make everyone else late. It’s a great lesson in resposibility.

Carpooling is coming into fashion everywhere now. You can find lots of informations of carpooling on the internet. Carpooling is cool! Why?
It’s good for the environment. In today’s culture of everyone needing to try their best to protect our environment, carpooling is one of the best ways. By taking 3 cars off the road, the pollution can be cut a little. Take that over a town, a city, a state, a country and think about how much less pollution is going to be in the air over the course of even one year.
Gas(汽油) now is much more expensive than it used to and if you need to watch the cents(美分), then it’s possible that carpooling could be the answer to your prayers. Even if you have to use your car once a week instead of two, that’s one round trip of gas you’re saving. So carpooling helps you save money.
Carpooling is a great way of getting to know people better. If you’re carpooling grade school kids, then you’ll find that slowly you’ll get to know your child’s peers(同龄人) and friends better. It's a great opportunity to meet people while saving the environment and your money. 
【小题1】The word “carpool” means         .
A. 合伙用车                B. 共同租车             C. 让人搭车
【小题2】One of        drives the car in a carpool of middle school students.
A. their teachers              B. the students           C. their parents
【小题3】If you carpool with two persons to work every day,      will be taken off the road every day.
A. no car                   B.one car               C. two cars
【小题4】There are        advantages of carpooling mentioned in this passage.
A. three                    B. four                  C. five
【小题5】We can know from the passage that carpooling          .
A. is much more convenient than taking the school bus.
B. can help you save the money because you use your car less.
C. isn’t a good means to understand people better.