A morning rarely began so perfect. I took in the fresh air and felt my heart run into an enthusiastic rhythm. Though cool, the sun warmed my back as it rose over the horse from not far from my house. The slightest wind danced on my skin. Just enough to keep a runner form overheating. My ever-faithful jogging partner, a black dog named Nika pulled my leg with her mouth, mirroring my eagerness to start our run.
We raced forward with determination, ready to leap tall buildings and race against speeding trains. We pushed harder and ran faster, demonstration our skill and impressing passing motorists and neighbors.
We kept on running until we hit the Beast, a name for a very difficult, nearly two-mile long steep climb.
Only a few paces into the Beast, I gasped for air. Far short of superhero status, my enthusiasm and active steps were lost somewhere at the base of the hill. A vision of the newspaper and a cup of coffee waiting in my kitchen appeared, attracting me to turn back toward home.
With a glance I noticed Nika wasn’t doing any better. She continued to faithfully follow me, putting one paw in front of the other, but without her former eagerness. Her tiredness touched me. And in that moment, I felt a sudden spark of renewed determination to press on. I couldn’t allow this mountain to get the better of us. To improve both our spirits, I managed to shout, “Good girl, Nika! Keep going…you can do it!”
“I’m encouraging a dog, for heaven’s sake!’’ I needed to pull myself together. With a few simple words, I changed our course. One moment we were on the edge of quitting. The next, our feet picked up the pace and we continued. Though tired and discouraged myself, with a few kind words I impacted a dog’s ability to go further. I’m sure I could have completed the opposite with ill-chosen comments and an unpleasant tone. Instead, the Beast was defeated and we flew like heroes the rest of the way home.
Life is full of beasts to conquer. For some, it is the seemingly impossible climb of cancer. For others, their beast takes the shape of parenting a child or a teenager. Uphill climbs come in all shapes and sizes, common only in their ability to defeat, discourage and tempt tired travelers to quit. Sometimes all that’s needed is a few spoken, well-timed words of encouragement from a fellow runner – someone who sees the struggle, dares to jogs alongside, and cares enough to say, “Keep going! You can do it! You’re not alone. I believe in you!”
【小题1】 The writer starts the text by describing________.

A lazy Susan is an addition to a table, which is designed to assist in moving food from one person to another while dining. This is accomplished through the use of a turntable(转盘), which usually moves the food in a circle when pushed by those at table. In this way, the food never has to be picked up and passed around the table. Instead, it remains in place as the lazy Susan is turned about.
A lazy Susan may also be a part of a kitchen cabinet. One may spin the lazy Susan in order to find certain goods stored in it. From the outside, a lazy Susan appears to be two cabinets. When one of these cabinets is pushed, however, both doors move and the lazy Susan is revealed inside.
Whether the lazy Susan is on a tabletop or within a cabinet, it can be made of a variety of materials. Most commonly, a lazy Susan is made of either plastic, wood or glass. Some people believe that Thomas Jefferson invented the lazy Susan, though it was referred to as a dumb waiter(上菜升降架) at that time. It is said that Jefferson invented the lazy Susan because his daughter complained she was always served last at table and, as a result, never found herself full when leaving the table. Others believe that Thomas Edison was the inventor, as he is believed to have invented the turntable for his phonograph(留声机), which later developed into the lazy Susan.
Regardless of who invented it, it wasn’t until 1917 that the term lazy Susan was created in an advertisement for the invention. In Britain, however, the term dumb waiter is still used rather than the term lazy Susan. The reason for the name lazy Susan remains a mystery. One theory is that it was named after either Jefferson’s or Edison’s daughter, both of whom were named Susan.
【小题1】 According to the passage, a lazy Susan _____.

A．is a person who serves food at table

B．is a waitress who helps move dinner tables

C．is an additional round table in a dining room

D．is a turntable that passes food around the table

A．the lazy Susan was invented earlier than the phonograph

B．Susan was the name of Jefferson’s and Edison’s daughter

C．Jefferson and Edison invented the lazy Susan at the same time

D．When people talk about a lazy waitress they use the term “Susan”

D
Antarctica is the southernmost place on Earth, and it is larger than the United Sates and 95% of it is covered with ice. The ice is 5 kilometers thick at places and it never melts. At least that is what we thought, but let us keep it that way for now.
The ice seems to be alive as it works its way towards the seA． It forms an ice shelf over the water. The edge breaks away from the shelf and falls into the seA． From here it drifts. Now big pieces of ice become icebergs that can be 160 km long. They now drift north until they finally melt and become part of the ocean. This process is part of a bigger process which in turn forms a cooling system for Earth. This is so important that no country is allowed to control this areA． The treaty (agreement) signed by 12 countries at first and later joined by more, was to prevent any country harming the planet with irresponsible behavior.
The treaty basically states that:
Antarctica can be used for peaceful purposes only.
No country may build a military base there.
No country may do a nuclear test there.
No country may dump nuclear waste there.
Scientists working there will share their information.
Some other rules are there to protect the penguins and seals.
No dogs may run loose.
No planes may land near large groups of animals.
No guns, explosives, or tractors may be used near the animals.
Most important is that every member can inspect any of the other bases if he suspects that the treaty rules are being broken.
While the treaty is not foolproof（万无一失的）, it does play a very important part in the protection of AntarcticA． The more people realize the effects that pollution has on this continent, the bigger the pressure will be on Governments to change the way they look at pollution.
69．Why was it important to sign a treaty for Antarctica?
A．Because the ice on Antarctica will finally melt into the ocean.
B．Because Antarctica is covered with 5 kilometers thick ice.
C．Because Antarctica balances the temperature of Earth.
D．Because there are many big icebergs in AntarcticA．
70．What is the process of the movement of ice in Antarctica?
A．Ice shelf---sea water---iceberg---ice.
B．Sea water---ice---iceberg---ice shelf.
C．Iceberg---ice shelf---ice---sea water.
D．Ice---ice shelf---iceberg---sea water.
71．What is included in the Antarctica treaty?
A．There is no secret research information in AntarcticA．
B．Dogs are not allowed to be raised in AntarcticA．
C．Waste can’t be thrown away in AntarcticA．
D．People can’t bring their guns to AntarcticA．

B
According to the report by Baekeland and Hartmann, two American authoritative psychotogical research centres, the "short sleepers" had been more or less average in their sleep needs until the men were in their teens．But at about age 15 or so, the men voluntarily began cutting down their nightly sleep time because of pressures from school, work and other activities. These men tended to view their nightly periods of unconsciousness as bothersome interruptions, in their daily routines.
In general, these "short sleeps" appeared ambitious, active, energetic, cheerful,, conformist （循规蹈矩的） in their opinions, and very sure about their career choices．They often held several jobs at once, or workers full - or part - time while going to school．And many of them had a strong urge to appear "normal" or "acceptable" to their friends and associates．When asked to recall their dreams, the "short sleepers" did poorly．More than this, they seemed to prefer not remembering．In similar fashion, their usual way of dealing with psychological problems was to deny that the problem existed, and then to keep busy m the hope that the trouble would go away．The sleep patterns of the “short sleepers" were similar to, but less extreme than, sleep patterns shown by many mental patients categorized as manic （疯人）.
The "long sleepers" were quite different indeed．Baekeland and Hartmann report that these young men had been lengthy sleeps since childhood．They seemed to enjoy their sleep, protected it, and were quite concerned when they were occasionally deprived （剥夺） of their desired 9 hours of nightly bed rest．They tended to recall their dreams much better than the "short sleepers．" did．Many of the "long sleepers" were shy, anxious, introverted （内向）, inhibited （压抑） , passive, mildly depressed, and unsure of themselves （particularly in social situations）．Several openly states that sleep was an escape from their daily problems．
50．According to the text, which is probably the writer' s real attitude towards these two living habits ____．
A．both of them are healthy habits  
B．not both of them are unhealthy habits
C．either of them is not unhealthy habits
D．neither of them is healthy habits
51．When sometimes they cannot enjoy adequate sleep, the long sleepers might ____．
A．feel extremely depressed        B．become energetic
C．appeared disturbed         D．feel disappointed
52．The writer implies （暗示） that short sleepers _____ in the text．
A．are ideally vigorous even under the pressures of life
B．often neglect the consequences of inadequate（不足的）sleep
C．do not know how to relax properly
D．are more unlikely to run into mental problems

B
“It was all his own idea, ” says Pat Peters, the 38-year-old wife of Palo Alto, California high school football coach Bob Peters, 39. Bob had just drawn up a “motherhood contract” --a document stating that for 70 days this summer he would take over the care and feeding of the couple’s four children, plus all household chores. Although he didn’t even know how to make coffee when he signed, he was quite confident.(He thought the experience would make a nice book.)
After 40 of the 70 days, he was ready to give up. “I was beaten down, completely humbled（挫败的）,”  admits Peters. Three weeks later he spoke to the local press, stating, “Not only is motherhood a difficult task, not only is it never-ending, it is an impossible job for any normal human being.”
Bob and Pat were high school sweethearts. After they were married in 1960, she worked as a secretary to help put him through university. Since then Bob has been the football and wrestling coach at Palo Alto’s Cubberley High while Pat raised the kids. Then two years ago Pat went back to work as a secretary at Cubberley. “I had been around children so much,” she sighs, “I couldn’t talk to a grown-up.” She continued to run the household, however----until Bob signed the contract, therefore, she decided to relax and enjoy it. 
Although Peters had consulted(咨询) with his school’s home economics teachers and the head of the cafeteria, his meals were sometimes a disaster. “I tried to slip the butter I’d forgotten under the eggs after they were frying, ” he says. For the last three weeks, the family ate out a lot—sometimes having Macdonald’s hamburgers for lunch and dinner.
As for housekeeping, a home economics teacher had told Bob that a room always looks clean if the bed is made. “I found an easier way-I shut the doors, ” he says. Soon the kids were wearing the same clothes for a week. “I made them wear their shirts inside out, and when we went to pick up Pat at work they turned them right side out so they would look clean.”
Now that Bob has publicly admitted he was wrong, he is routinely sharing the child-raising and household tasks with Pat. The tentative（暂时的） title of his book about the summer is taken from something he shouted at the kids one day.
45. The couple signed the contract because _______.
A. Pat complained a lot about her doing the housework all by herself
B. Bob loved taking care of children and wanted his wife to have a good rest
C. they agreed that husband and wife should share household tasks
D. Bob thought it easy to take care of the family and wanted the experience for a book
46. It was agreed that if Bob failed to keep to the contract, he would have to _______.
A. pay a certain amount of money
B.  admit publicly he was wrong about motherhood 
C. say sorry to his wife         D. do all the housework for years
47. What can we learn about Pat Peters?
A. She was hard-working and selfless.   B. She was pretty and kind-hearted.
C. She was tired of the child-raising and household tasks.
D. She did not love Bob any longer.
48. Which of the following can best end the news story?
A. “Wait till your mother gets home!”    B. “My experience of being a mother.”
C. “I’m proud of you all, my dear!”     D. “Motherhood: an impossible job for anyone.”