May: Happenings from the past

May 5, 1884

Isaac Murphy, son of a slave and perhaps the greatest horse rider in American history, rides Buchanan to win his first Kentucky Derby. He becomes the first rider ever to win the race three times.

May 9, 1754

Benjamin Franklin's Pennsylvania Gazette produces perhaps the first American political cartoon(漫画), showing a snake cut in pieces, with the words “ Join or Die" printed under the picture.

May 11, 1934

The first great dust storm of the Great Plains Dust Bowl, the result of years of drought(干旱)，blows topsoil all the way to New York City and Washington, D.C.

May 19,1994

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis, former first lady and one of the most famous people of the 1960s, died of cancer in New York City at the age of 64.

May 24,1844

Samuel F. B. Morse taps out the first message, “What hath God wrought, "over the experimental long-distance telegraph line which runs from Washington, D.C. , to Baltimore, Md.

1. We know from the text that Buchanan is ______

A. Isaac's father　　　　　　　　　B. a winning horse

C. a slave taking care of horses　　　D. the first racing horse in Kentucky

2. What is the title of the first American political cartoon? 

A. Join or Die　　　                B. Pennsylvania Gazette

C. What Hath God Wrought            D. Kentucky Derby　　　       

3. In which year did the former first lady Jacqueline die? 

 A.1934.　　　　B.1960.　　　　C.1964. 　　　D.1994.

4. Which of the following places has to do with the first telegram in history?

A. Washington, D. C.　　　　         B. New York City.　　　　　　　　

C. Kentucky                          D. Pennsylvania

完型填空

　　Have you ever imagined that you could be cloned like Dolly the sheep in the not too distant future?

　　The news that a human embryo (胚胎) has been 1 cloned for the first time has caused mixed reactions (反映).

　　The 2 was carried out by scientists from the Advanced Cell Technology Inc (ACT), in Massachusetts, US. The group 3 the news on November 25.

　　“This is 4 human being. A clone is alive, it walks, it breathes,” said Jamie Grifo, 5 on the study of cloning at New York University School of Medicine.

　　“This is a set of cells in a lab that will be used to 6 someone's life. ”

　　Such research could lead to treatment for 7 such as heart diseases, AIDS and even cancer, 8 scientists.

　　Despite high hopes from other scientists, the news raised concerns immediately from religious and political leaders. Several 9 in the US do not allow human cloning. President George W. Bush also made it clear that he is 10  any type of human cloning. However, the scientists at ACT said they have no interest at present in 11 an early embryo into __12__.

　　Animals have been cloned repeatedly since Dolly the sheep 13 in 1997. And there were no real technical 14 to stand in the way of scientists making a cloned human embryo.

　　This time the research group used traditional cloning technology with a human 15

　　 16 it was given DNA from an adult cell, the egg began to __17__.__18__ it was stopped from becoming a baby--at a stage in which it was 19 a ball of cells. The 20 technology has been used to clone sheep, cattle and monkeys.

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B. including

C. besides

D. argued

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A. developing

B. building

C. inventing

D. discovering

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We often hear the phrase:“You’ve a greater chance of being struck by lightning.” It is used to describe something that hasn’t got much chance of happening. However, the common saying undermines(掩盖) the very real dangers of lightning. Last Friday, at least 5 people were killed by lightning in Nepal. Lightning strikes are the second most common cause of deaths during natural disasters in the US. The first is floods. Around 400 people nationwide are struck by lightning each year, and of those73 people die. That means more people are killed by lightning than by tornadoes and hurricanes. Because lightning kills only one or two people at a time, its danger does not receive as much attention as other disasters.

So to raise awareness, the US has made June 22 to 28 National Lightning Safety Week. It aims to warn the public of the dangers of lightning and provide safety tips during thunderstorms. “If you hear thunder , you are in danger from lightning,” said Rocky Lopes, a disaster educator at the American Red Cross.“Thunder means that lightning is close enough to hit you at any minute, so you should move indoors immediately and stay there until after the storm has ended. The single most important thing to remember is to seek hiding place,”Lopes said.

Summer is the high time for lightning storms, so when lightning strikes across the sky, remember these safety tips:

Stop working, fishing, swimming or playing in open fields.

If you can count less than ten seconds between a thunder and a lightning flash, take cover inside the nearest building.

Do not stand under a tree.

Get off bicycles or motorcycles.

Crouch down(蹲下)if there is no hiding place.

Avoid open spaces, wire fences, metal objects and electrical objects such as hair driers.

The popular opinion about being struck by lightening is that 　　　.

A. there is a greater chance for being killed by lightening than any other natural disaster

B. it is the most dangerous among all the natural disasters

C. the chance for a person to be struck by lightening is very small

D. it is impossible for people to be killed by lightening

The average death rate of being struck by lightening in US is about 　　.

A.18%　　　　　　　B.50%　　　　　C.30%　　　　D.73%

Among all the safety tips, the most important one is that when you hear thunder in the open air， 　　　.

A. just stand by your bicycles and motorcycles

B. quickly find a place to go inside

C. count ten seconds between a thunder and a lightening

D. don’t have a hair drier in your hand

According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?

A. There are more people killed by tornadoes and hurricanes than by lightening in US each year.

B. There are on average 5 persons killed by lightening in Nepal each day.

C. The death rate of being stuck by lightening is much higher than by other natural disasters.

D. The National Lightening Safety Week is made to warn the public against lightening.

This is my third story. When I was 17，I read a quote that 1 something like，“If you live each day 2 it was your last，someday you'll most certainly be right.”Since then，for the past thirty?three years，I've looked 3 the mirror every morning and asked myself：“If today were the last day of my life，would I want to do what I am about to do today？”And whenever the answer has been“No”for too many days in a 4 ，I know I need to change something.

　 About a year ago I was 　5 with cancer. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable，and that I should 　6 to live no longer than three to six months. They advised me to go home and get my 7 in order，which is doctors' code for“prepare to 8 ”. Later that evening when the doctors 　9 the cells taken from my pancreas(胰腺)under a microscope，they started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is 　10 with surgery. I had the surgery and，11 ，I'm fine now.

　 This was the closest I've been to facing death，and I hope it's the closest I get for a few more decades. Death is the 12 we all share. No one has 　13 escaped it. And that is 14 it should be，because death is very likely the single 15 invention of life. It's life's change agent. It clears out the old to make 　16 for the new. Your time is 　17 ，so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma(信条)—which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of 　18 opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most importantly，have the courage to 　19 your heart and intuition(直觉). They 20 already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

（1）A. said　 　　 B. described　 C. went　 　　 D. expressed

（2）A. unless 　　 B. as if　　 　 C. even if 　　 D. as long as

（3）A. in　　 　　　B. at　　　　 C. through 　　 D. On

（4）A. row　 　　 B. minute　　　 C. sense　 　　D. word

（5）A. connected 　B. infected　　 C. affected　 D. diagnosed

（6）A. want　 　　B. dream　　　 C. expect 　　D. imagine

（7）A. duties 　　 B. businesses C. affairs 　　D. life

（8）A. work　 　　B. start　　　 　C. talk　 　　D. die

（9）A. looked 　　B. viewed　　 C. realized 　　D. noticed

（10）A. curable 　　B. possible　 　 C. acceptable D. suitable

（11）A. carefully 　B. thankfully　　 C. anxiously 　D. hopefully

（12）A. possession B. destination　 C. expectation D. position

（13）A. ever　 　　 B. even　　 　 C. never　 　　D. still

（14）A. when　 　 B. while　　 　　C. as　　 　　 D. since

（15）A. better 　　B. worst　　 　　C. worse　 　　D. best

（16）A. use　 　 B. a difference　 C. sense　 　　 D. way

（17）A. endless 　B. repeated　　 C. countless 　　D. limited

（18）A. others' 　 B. others　　　 C. anyone's　 　 D. some others

（19）A. listen 　　B. follow　 　　 C. take　　 　　 D. accept

（20）A. however B.whatever 　C.somehow　 D.Somewhat

In my dual (双重的) profession　 __36__　 an educator and health care provider，I have worked with many children infected with HIV. They have taught me so many things, but I have especially learned that great　 __37__　 can be found in the smallest individuals. Let me tell you about Tyler.

Tyler was　 __38__　 infected with HIV；his mother was also infected. From the very beginning of his life，he was dependent on medications to　 __39__　 him to survive. When he was five, he had a tube inserted in a vein(静脉) in his chest. At times, he also needed extra oxygen to support his　 __40__.

Tyler wasn't　 __41__　 to give up one single moment of his childhood to this deadly disease. It was not　 __42__ to find him playing and racing around his backyard, wearing his medicine?loaded backpack and　 __43__　 his tank of oxygen behind him in his little wagon (小手推车). All of us who knew Tyler were impressed by his pure　 __44__　 in being alive and the energy it gave him. Tyler's mom often　 __45__　 him by telling him that he moved so　 __46__　 she needed to dress him in red. That way，when she peered through the window to check on him playing in the yard，she could quickly　 __47__　 him.

This deadly disease eventually　 __48__　 down Tyler. He grew quite ill and, unfortunately,　 __49__　 did his HIV?infected mother. When it became　 __50__　 that he wasn't going to survive, Tyler's mom talked to him about　 __51__. She comforted him by telling Tyler that she was dying too，and that she would be with him soon in heaven.

A few days before his death，Tyler　 __52__　 to me to come to his hospital bed and　 __53__，“I might die soon. I'm not　 __54__. When I die，please dress me in　 __55__ . Mom promised she's coming to heaven, too.I'll be playing when she gets there, and I want to make sure she can find me.”

36．A.in B．for C．as　 　　　 D．on

37．A.pleasure 　 B．pain 　C．sorrow D．courage

38．A.seriously B．born 　C．unlucky　 　　 D．disappointingly

39．A.cause 　　 B．enable C．make 　 D．lead

40．A.breathing B．living 　C．running D．walking

41．A.happy　 B．willing C．daring 　 D．discouraged

42．A.common B．unusual 　C．surprised 　　 D．ordinary

43．A.dragging B．carrying 　C．pushing D．taking

44．A.character B．joy C．moment　 　　 D．excitement

45．A.comforted 　　　 B．scolded C．teased 　 D．praised

46．A.slowly 　　 B．happily C．quickly D．fast

47．A.know　 　 B．spot 　C．stop 　　 D．observe

48．A.tore　 　　 B．broke C．wore　 　 D．kicked

49．A.neither 　　 B．so C．such　 　 D．nor

50．A.apparent　 　　 B．hopeless C．sure 　　 D．terrible

51．A.life B．dream C．future 　 D．death

52．A.waved B．said 　C．signed 　　 D．explained

53．A.whispered 　　　 B．shouted 　C．cried 　　 D．spoke

54．A.excited　 　 B．surprised C．scared 　 D．happy

55．A.red　 　　 B．white C．bright　 D．beauty