For a while, my neighborhood was taken ever by an army of joggers. They were there all the time: early morning, noon, and evening. There were little old ladies in gray sweats, young couples in Adidas shoes, middle-aged men with red faces. “Come on!” My friend Alex encouraged me to join him as he jogged by my house every evening. “You’ll feel great.”
Well, I had nothing against feeling great and if Alex could jog every day, anyone could. So I took up jogging seriously and gave it a good two months of my life, and not a day more. Based on my experience, jogging is the most overvalued form of exercise around, and judging from the number of the people who left our neighborhood jogging army, I’m not alone in my opinion.
First of all, jogging is very hard on the body. Your legs and feet need a real pounding（追击）running down a road for two or three miles. I developed foot, leg, and back problems. Then I read about a nationally famous jogger who died of a heart attack while jogging, and I had something else to worry about. Jogging doesn’t kill hundreds of people, but if you have any physical weaknesses, jogging will surely bring them out, as they did with me.
Secondly, I got no enjoyment out of jogging. Putting one foot in front of the other for forty-five minutes isn’t my idea of fun. Jogging is also a lonely pastime. Some joggers say, “I love being out there with just my thoughts” Well, my thoughts began to bore me, and most of them were on how much my legs hurt.
And how could I enjoy something that brought me pain? And that wasn’t just the first week: it was practically every day for two months. I never got past the pain level, and pain isn’t fun. What a cruel way to do it! So many other exercises, including walking, lead to almost the same results painlessly, so why jog?
I don’t jog any more, and I don’t think I ever will. I’m walking two miles three times a week at a fast pace, and that feels good. I bicycle to work when the weather is good. I’m getting exercise, and I’m enjoying it at the same time. I could never say the same for jogging, and I’ve found a lot of better ways to stay in shape.
【小题1】From the first paragraph, we learn that in the writer’s neighborhood ______.

What he said didn’t mean to hurt Mary, but he felt ________ it differently.

A. he could express                             B. he could have expressed      C. he would express                               D. he must have expressed

 Misery and setbacks are not always as terrible as one imagines. Hard times can offer new ways of looking at life that would otherwise never be known. And, if you are a writer, this can be the source of much of your success.

     Popular British author, Charles Dickens' （1812-1870）family could hardly make ends meet. They could only afford to send one of their six children to school. Dickens was not that child. His parents chose to send a daughter, who had a talent for music, to an academy. Then at the age of 12, Dickens' life took another turn for the worse.

His father, a clerk, was placed in prison for unpaid debts. And, being the oldest male left at home, Dickens took up work at a factory. His horrible experience there became the fuel for his future writing. His father was freed three months later and inherited a small amount of money. Dickens was then sent to school.

From 1836 to 1837, he wrote a monthly series of stories. Thus the Pickwick Papers, came into being, which brought fame to the 23-year-old man.

Throughout his career, Dickens covers various situations in his novels. He wrote about the miserable lives of the poor in Oliver Twist, the French Revolution in Tale of Two Cities, and social reform in Hard Times. He also wrote David Copperfield, a book thought to be modeled on his own life.

“I do not write bitterly or angrily: for I know all these things have worked together to make me what I am,” he once said. His difficult childhood did indeed shape the person he became, as well as his writing career. There are shades of young Dickens in many of his most beloved characters, including David Copperfield and Oliver Twist.

Like the author, all these characters come from poor beginnings and are able to rise above their setbacks and achieve success. “Minds, like bodies, will often fall into an ill-conditioned state from too much comfort,” he once wrote. On June 9th, 1870, aged 58, Dickens died, leaving one unfinished work．The words on his tombstone read: “He was a sympathizer to the poor, the suffering and the oppressed, and by his death, one of England's greatest writers is lost to the world.”

1.The book that first called public attention to Dickens was ______.

       A．the Pickwick Papers               B．Oliver Twist

       C．Tale of Two Cities                D．David Copperfield

2.The phrase “shades of” in bold means “_____”.

       A．various shapes of            B．situations of

       C．different experiences of     D．reminders of

3.How did Dickens see his childhood?

       A．He felt grateful for it．

       B．He felt it a pity that things weren’t in his favor．

       C．He loved writing about it．

       D．He chose to forget the bitterness about it．

4.From the story, we can see Dickens’ attitude towards an easy life is ______．

       A．to enjoy it                    B．to hate it

       C．not to abandon yourself to it     D．to work hard for it

I was eleven years old, waiting for my exam at Saraswati Vidyalaya, my school in Nagpur. “No. 12, please come forward.” Kirti, a very fat girl from my class, stepped ahead. I heard my classmates laughing and so I tried to stop them with my eyes. But my good intentions were mistaken. The next morning, my teacher, Mrs. Kamble, told me, “Ashwini, I’ve received a complaint about you.” I was shocked. The girl I was protecting thought I’d been laughing at her.

I tried to explain but the teacher refused to hear me out. She punished me by making me stand by the door. I knew I was right. Such punishment to a class topper was simply unheard of. But, slowly, my pride disappeared. Instead of being angry, I understood the other students who have been punished at times. For the first time, I felt humbled (谦逊的).

Three years later, I was in the math class. Mr. Prabhuraman, wrote an equation (方程式) — one he’d taught us the day before — on the blackboard. “Anyone who doesn’t know how to solve this,” he said, “please leave the class at once.” I knew I could solve only the first two steps. But my pride made me stay there. Unfortunately, the one who was asked to solve it was me. I just stood there, chalk in hand, trying not to look foolish. I prepared myself for a good talking-to (斥责), but Mr. Prabhuraman told me kindly, “Go back to your seat.”

Today, two decades later, those incidents have made me think. One teacher punished me for something I didn’t do; the other forgave me for something I did wrong. Both experiences had an effect on me. They remind me that no matter what you accomplish (完成), you must always be humble.

1.When the very fat girl appeared, Ashwini _____.

A．took no notice of her                    B．laughed at her

C．said hello to her                        D．tried to stop others making fun of her

2.After receiving a complaint, Mrs. Kamble _____.

A．said nothing about it                     B．was disappointed

C．felt very angry                          D．tried to find out the truth

3.Why did Ashwini refuse to leave the class?

A．He felt it would make him lose face.

B．He could work out the equation.

C．His teacher believed in his ability.

D．His teacher never asked him any questions.

4.The text is a story about _____.

A．how to communicate with others

B．how to get along with teachers

C．the ways to protect others

D．the danger of pride

He’s not just a pretty face! Famous actor Josh Duhamel leads a group of youngsters in a two-mile charity beach run. He may be an attractive movie star, but there’s more to Josh Duhamel than a pretty face. The 40-year-old actor led a youth charity fun run for the third year running on Sunday, in aid of the Red Cross giving a hand to countries and places suffering natural disasters.

Josh sported the charity’s T-shirt and black baseball cap with black jogging bottoms as he joined a group of youngsters in the two-mile effort on Santa Monica Beach. Josh was clearly enjoying himself today, sprinting across the finish line raising both arms in a victory salute.

In March last year and January of 2010, Josh led thousands of runners and raised over $200,000 for both Japanese and Haitian earthquake relief efforts. And donations collected at this year’s Youth Run will go towards the American Red Cross PrepareSoCal campaign which helps Southern Californians get ready for disasters.

“I do the youth run because I feel that younger people may not be able to donate a lot of money but that doesn’t mean that they can’t contribute and make a difference,” Josh told the Red Cross website. “Bringing students of L. A. together for these events not only raises a lot of money, but also raises the spirits of those affected by any disaster and helps everyone young and old.”

Duhamel had won the title of Male Model of the Year in an International Modeling and Talent Association competition in 1997. Duhamel began his acting career as an extra in the music videos for Donna Summer’s song, “I Will Go With You” in 1998. Later that year, he won the role of Leo Pres on the ABC soap opera “All My Children”. He then began appearing in films, and his acting in the film “Transformers” as well as its sequels was so successful that he became a pop film star.

1.Josh Duhamel led the beach run to help the Red Cross ________.

A. raise money for places suffering from disasters

B. raise money for people suffering from diseases

C. find more young volunteers especially teenagers

D. build up a fame of having the spirit of entertainment

2.How did Josh Duhamel feel about his joining in the beach run?

A. He felt it the best way to kill time especially on weekends.

B. He disliked it when there were reporters coming here.

C. He thought it a best chance to make himself famous.

D. He found it enjoyable and exciting to be a member.

3.What will the received donations of this year be used for?

A. Helping Japanese and Haitian defeat earthquakes.

B. Helping Southern Californians get ready for disasters.

C. Helping Northern Californians get ready for disasters.

D. Helping relieve Southern Californians defeat earthquakes.

4.What is the aim of the youth run of L. A.?

A. To persuade more young people to keep the earth green.

B. To make the young realize the influence of famous people.

C. To inspire those affected by disasters and give them a hand.

D. To raise as much money as possible to help the old and young.

5.What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A. The importance of the youth run started by the Red Cross.

B. The methods to join in the youth run led by Josh Duhamel.

C. The reason why Josh Duhamel leads the youth run.

D. The experiences and achievements of Josh Duhamel.