Several European countries rang in the New Year in new ways.

    The smoke -filled cafe became a thing of memory in France. Cigarettes were forbidden in all indoor locations such as dance clubs, restaurants, hotels, casinos (赌场) and cafes from Jan. 1, 2008. President Nicolas Sarkozy gave the first traditional New Year's greeting of his presidency, with a "message of hope, faith in life and in the future".

    In Russia, Vladimir Putin delivered the last New Year's Eve address of his eight year presidency, boasting of (夸耀) economic improvements and claiming to have restored a sense of unity among Russians, who are likely to see him stay in power as Prime Minister after he steps down in a few months. In Moscow, thousands gathered in Red Square, watching a concert beneath the onion domes (圆顶) of St Basil's Cathedral, and fireworks above.

    Along with the innovatio, old traditions were maintained.

More than a million people in New York's Times Square cheered at the 100th drop of a giant ball. A century ago the tradition began with a 700 - pound ball of wood and iron, lit with 100 25 - watt bulbs. This year's event featured an energy - efficient ball clothed in Waterford crystals (水晶), with 9,576 light - shining diodes (二极管) that generated a lot of colors.

    In London, people gathered in Trafalgar Square and along the banks of the River Thames to watch a firework display and hear Big Ben welcome the New Year with 12 resounding bongs.

    In Sydney - one of the first cities to celebrate the New Year - one million people cheered as fireworks were launched from the Harbor Bridge on New Year's Eve.

68. How many countries are mentioned in this passage

    A. Four.          B. Five.            C. Six.              D. Seven.

69. The word "innovations" here means ______.

    A. strange ideas    B. new ways        C. scientific ideas     D. traditional ways

70. According to the passage, which of the following New Year celebrations can be TRUE?

    A. Tom and Tony enjoyed themselves in a cafe in Paris on Jan. 1, drinking and smoking.

    B. Jenny watched a concert and colorful crystal balls in Red Square.

    C. Cindy and Polly walked along the bank of the River Thames and enjoyed fireworks.

    D. Kate stayed at home, watching Australian president's New Year address through TV.

71. We can infer from the passage that ________.

    A. cigarettes will be forbidden in all places in France in the future

    B. Valdimir Putin will stay in power as Prime Minister after he ends his presidency

    C. in New York's Times Square, high -tech played an important role in the celebration

    D. Sydney is one of the first cities to celebrate the New Year

—It’s a good idea. But who’s going to ____the plan?

—I think Tom and Mike will.

A. carry out   B. get through   C. take in   D. set aside

Lying in the sun on a rock, the cougar(美洲豹)saw Jeb and his son, Tom before they saw it. Jeb put his bag down quickly and pulled his jacket open with both hands, making himself look big to the cougar, It worked.  The cougar hesitated, ready to attack Jeb, but ready to forget the whole thing, too.
Jeb let go of his kacked, grasped Tom and held him across his body, making a cross.  Now the cougar’s enemy looked even bigger, and it rose up, ready to move away, but unfortunately Tom got scared and struggled free of Jeb.
“Tom, no” shouted his father.
But Tom broke and ran and that’s the last thing you do with a cougar.  The second Tom broke free; Jeb threw himself on the cougar, just as it jumped from the rock.  They hit each other in mid-air and both fell, The cougar was on Jeb in a flash, fotgeiting about Tom, which was what Jeb wanted.
Cougars are not as big as most people think and a determined man stands a chance, even with just his fists.  As the cougar’s claws(爪子)got into his left shoulder, Jeb swung his fist at its eyes and hit hard.  The animal howled（吼叫）and put its head back. Jeb followed up with his other fist.  Then out of the corner of his eye. Jeb saw Tom.  The boy was running back to help his father.
“Knife, Tom,” shouted Jeb.
The boy ran to his father’s bag, while Jeb started shouting as well as hitting, to keep the cougar’s attention away from Tom.  Tom got the knife and ran over to Jeb. The cougar was moving its head in and out, trying to find a way through the wall Jeb was making out of his arms.  Tom swung with the knife, into the cougar’s back.  It howled horribly and ran off into the mountains.
The whole fight had taken about thirty seconds.
52.  Why did Jeb pull his jacket open when he saw the cougar?
A.  To get ready to fight   B.  To frighten it away
C.  To protect the boy      D.  To cool down
53.  What do we know about cougars?
A.  They are afraid of noises      B.  They hesitate before they hit
C.  They are bigger than we think D.  They like to attack running people
54.  How did Jeb try to hold the cougar’s attention?
A.  By keeping shouting and hitting    B.  By making a wall out of his arms
C.  By throwing himself on the cougar D.  By swinging his fists at the cougar’s eyes
55. Which of the following happened first?
A.  The cougar jumped from the rock B.  Tom struggled free of his father
C.  Jeb asked Tom to get the knife     D.  Jeb held Tom across his body

 Last summer Tom and his friends George and Bill wanted to take a vacation, but they did not have much      . They decided that a short mountain climbing expedition(探险) was the only       they could afford (负担得起). Since each of them liked climbing, the vacation would be a lot of        .

   Tom     all the plans. He decided that they should       the expenses(费用) for food and gas         and that each one should bring some    _____ clothes because the weather there was usually cold.

   The boys were        in a hurry, so they climbed slowly the       day. The weather was pleasant, and they enjoyed the fresh         as they climbed up a narrow path. Tom expected the        to stay nice,        late in the afternoon there was a heavy rain. The boys rushed toward a        and decided to camp there that       .

   When the sun rose the next morning, they continued       . As the boys went higher, the climbing became        dangerous, and by that afternoon the trip appeared        .

   When they finally reached the        of the mountain, they saw a beautiful sight. The         of the sunset were yellow, red, and gold. The boys were very happy and they enjoyed the view. The farms and fields of wheat and corn       appeared very small. In the distance, they could see trees, hills and valleys. They spent four more days in the mountains. They really had great fun.

1.A. work                    B. time                         C. money                     D. fun

2.A. vacation              B. sport                        C. game                                 D. trip

3.A. fun                       B. happiness               C. trouble                    D. difficulties

4.A. took                     B. made                       C. had                              D. kept

5.A. need                    B. share                       C. make                                 D. provide

6.A. surely                            B. fully                         C. equally                    D. freely

7.A. extra                    B. few                          C. less                                    D. thin

8.A. always                  B. nearly            C. not                                    D. ever

9.A. fine                      B. rainy                        C. all                             D. first

10.A. sky                     B. air                            C. weather                           D. water

11.A. weather            B. air                            C. trip                                    D. path

12.A. and                    B. for                            C. so                             D. but

13.A. top                     B. tent                          C. cave                                  D. river

14.A. day                     B. night                        C. time                                  D. way

15.A. sleeping            B. camping                  C. climbing                           D. watching

16.A. less                    B. more                       C. very                                  D. little

17.A. easy                            B. tired                        C. excited                    D. endless

18.A. foot                    B. side                          C. middle                     D. top

19.A. scene                          B. view                         C. colors                      D. beauty

20.A. below                         B. far                            C. aside                                 D. ahead

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