Rome had the forum. London has Speaker’s Corner. Now always-on-the-go New Yorker has Liz and Bill.

    Liz and Bill, two college graduates in their early 20s, have spent a whole year trying to have thousands of people talk to them in the subway station and on busy street corners. Just talk.

    Using a 2-feet-high sign that says, “Talk to Me,” they attract conversationalists, who one evening included a mental patient, and men in business suits.

   They don’t collect money. They don’t push the religion. So what is the point?

   “To see what happens,” said Liz. “We simply enjoy life with open conversation（交流）.”

Shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks, they decided to walk from New York city to Washington, a 270-mile trip. They found they loved talking to people along the way and wanted to talk with the strangers after their return.

    “It started as a crazy idea,” Liz said. “We were so curious about all the strangers walking by with their stories. People will talk to us about anything: their jobs, their clothes, their childhood, anything.”

    Denise wanted to talk about an exam she was going to take. She had stopped for the second time in two days, to let two listeners know how it went.

    Marcia had lost her husband to a serious disease. “That was very heavy on my mind,” Marcia said. “To be able to talk about it to totally strangers was very good,” she explained.

    To celebrate a year of talking, the two held a get-together in a city park for all the people they had met in the past year. A few hundred people showed up, as well as some television cameramen and reporters.

They may plan more parties or tried to attract more people to join their informal talks. Some publishers have expressed their interest in the book, something they say they’ll consider.

1.What did Liz and Bill start doing after September 2001?

A. Chatting with people                     B. Setting up street signs

C. Telling stories to strangers             D. Organizing a speaker’s corner

2. What they have been doing can be described as ______.

A. pointless       B. normal           C. crazy            D. successful

3.Why are Denise and Marcia mentioned in the text?

A. They knew Liz and Bill very well.  

B. They happened to meet the writer of the text.

C. They organized the get-together in the city park.

D. They are example of those who talked to Liz and Bill.

4.What will Liz and Bill do in the future?

A. Going for publishing.                B. Do more television program.

C. Continuing what they are doing.      D. Spending more time reading books.

I was very disappointed not to be able to go to the jazz concert last Friday. The announcement in the paper said that you could buy tickets at the theater box office in Richland Hills any day between 10:00 and 4:00. Since I work from 9 o’clock to 5:30, the only time I could go to the theater was during my 45-minute lunch break. Unfortunately, the theater is on the other side of the town, and the bus service between my office and Richland Hills is not very good. But if you are lucky, you can make the round trip in 45 minutes. Last Monday, I stood at the bus stop for fifteen minutes waiting for a bus. By the time I saw one come around the corner, there was not enough time left to make the trip—so I gave up and went back to the office. The same thing happened on Tuesday, and again on Wednesday. On Thursday, my luck changed. I got on a bus right away and arrived at the theatre in exactly twenty minutes. When I got there, however, I found a long line of people at the box office. I heard one man say he had been waiting in line for over an hour. Realizing I would not have enough time to wait in line, I caught the next bus and headed back across the town. By Friday I realized my only hope was to make the trip by taxi. It was expensive, but I felt it would be worth hearing the concert. The trip by taxi only took 10 minutes, but it felt like an hour to me. When I got to the theatre, I was relieved to see that nobody was waiting in line. The reason, I quickly discovered, was that they had already sold all the tickets.

1.The writer is probably ______.

    A. a worker                             B. a college teacher   

    C. a boss of a company                  D. a secretary

2.He learned ______ that there would be a concert last Friday.

    A. from his friends                         B. from one of his colleagues

    C. over the radio                              D. from the newspaper

3.He could go and buy the ticket ______.

    A. any day before work hours                B. both before and after work hours

    C. only during lunch time                   D. on Saturday and Sunday

4.The word “relieved” in the last two sentences may best be replaced by “______”.

    A. surprised            B. pleased          C. puzzled          D. sorry

5.  The story is about ______.

    A. a good concert      

    B. someone enjoying a good concert

    C. someone trying to buy concert tickets for his friends

    D. someone failing to buy the concert ticket

The GUARANTEE ON THIS WATER HEATER IS IN EFFECT ONLY WHEN THE HEATER IS INSTALLED AND OPERATED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THESE INSTRUCTIONS. READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS THOROUGHLY BEFORE STARTING.

LOCATION:

　　Select a location accessible to water lines and power supply. Do not locate the heater where water lines could be subjected to(受…影响) freezing temperatures. It is recommended that the heater be located near the center of greatest hot water usage to prevent heat loss through the pipes.

ELECTRICAL CONNECTIONS:

　　Before any electrical connections are made, be sure that the heater is full of water and that the valve(阀门) in the cold water supply line is open.

OPERATION

When the switch is closed, the operation of this electric water heater is automatic. The thermostats are preset to the "HOT" setting to provide a water temperature of approximately 120oF to reduce the risk of being burnt.

MAITENACE

Shut off the electric power whenever the water supply is turned off.

Shut off the electric power, water supply and drain the heater completely to prevent freezing whenever the building is left unoccupied during the cold weather months.

SERVICE

The trip–free devices on this heater will cut off all power if temperature of water is above 190F. If there is no hot water after a reasonable period of time, check the main fuse(保险丝) box. In the event that the fuses have not blown, call a serviceman.

72.The location of the water heater shall ___________.

A. be close to water lines and power supply

B. be subjected to low temperature

C. be in the centre of the house

D. have a longer distance to hot water usage.

73.Before any connection of power , make sure that one thing you have to do is _____.

A. to have the heater in the water     B. to open the cold water inlet valve.

C. to shut off the thermostats         D. to replace wiring diagram

74.When you are not using the heater in winter months, it is better for you to________.

A. have the tank full of clear water    B. drain the heater

C. to leave it untouched             D. prevent it from losing heat

75. What will happen to the heater when the temperature of water is above 190F?

A. it will cause damage         B. It will break off automatically.

C. It will produce cold water.    D. It will blow the fuse.

Farah was sitting in the kitchen going over the party list with her mother. The exams were over and Farah wanted to invite her friends for a party.

    “Farah, aren’t you going to invite Hafsa?” her mother asked. Hafsa had been her best friend since childhood.

    “Mother, you know I am now a part of Purple Girls Club and we have some rules about people we can be friends with,” Farah answered.

    “Really? And what are the rules?” her mother asked.

    “Well, only very pretty girls can be part of our group. And Hafsa is so…you know …dark.”

    “I cannot believe it,”her mother said angrily.

    As Farah left the kitchen, her father called her from the living room.

    Farah went to her father and paled when she saw the exam report in his hands. “Farah, what has happened to your grades? You have failed in Mathematics,” her father said.

    Farah had no answer. The truth was that the activities of Purple Girls Club left her with very little time for studies.

    “Farah,  it says that you can take part in supplementary exams（补考）. If your grades don’t improve then, I’ll cancel（职消）your trip to Spain.”

    Farah went to her room and called Gina, the leader of Purple Girls Club. “Gina, can you help me to complete my notes before the exams?”

    Gina laughed. “Exams? Who cares about exams?”

    One by one, she called her friends in the club but no one seemed to care or wanted to help.

    Farah knew Hafsa would help her. Farah also knew Hafsa had been hurt by her, but Hafsa said, “If you need any help, just let me know. We can study together till your exams.”

    Next Monday, as two friends entered the school together, Gina called out.

    “Farah, you know our rules. You cannot be friends with those who do not belong to our club.”

    “Gina, I have a new rule about friendship,” Farah replied.

1.After Farah became a member of Purple Girls Club, she chose a friend according to a person’s      .

A．looks     B．usual activities        C．grades       D．favorite colors

2.Farah became pale after going to her father because     .

A．he didn’t allow her to go to Spain    B．she didn’t do well in her exams

C．she had to leave Purple Girls Club   D．he asked her to improve her grades

3.．Which word can best describe Hafsa?

A．Silly      B．Beautiful            C．Rude     D．Kind

4.From the passage, we can know that        .

A．Hafsa is a member of Purple Girls Club 

B．Gina will help Farah with her exams

C．Gina doesn’t care about exams   

D．Farah would like to invite Hafsa to the party

5.What lesson can we learn from the passage?

A．A friend in need is a friend indeed.    B．A perfect friend will never be found.

C．Be slow in choosing a friend.         D．Friendship can be developed easily.

After a year of preparing herself, Laura Dekker has been given permission to sail around the world. “I was so happy that I almost jumped into the river,” Laura said, after learning of the court’s verdict(判决).

The 14-year-old was born on a ship in the South Pacific, and currently lives with her father on a boat. When child protection agencies heard about her plan to sail alone, they took the case to court and prevented her from making such a dangerous voyage.

Since the decision, though, Laura had been preparing with her father to convince the court that she was ready. Later on, she received the books and other materials she would need for school while she was at sea. She added safety equipment to a new, big ship. And she took her first aid course to learn several survival skills, like how to put out fires on the boat, take care of her own injuries and deal with lack of sleep. She also planned a safer course --- adding alternate routes(备用路径) to avoid pirate attacks, and planning a course that would have her on dry land as she moved from port to port across the globe.

Even with all of the added preparations, the trip still has its risks. In early June, 16-year-old Abby Sunderland, an American, had to abandon(放弃) her attempt to become the youngest sailor to travel around the world. Her ship’s mast(桅杆) broke due to rough waters in the Indian Ocean, and she was rescued by a French fishing ship.

Laura plans to take longer than Abby for her voyage, and is using a larger and more stable boat. If she finished successfully in less than two years, she will take the title from current record-holder Jessica Watson, of Australia, who was 16 when she completed the journey.

1.Which of the following is TRUE of Laura?

    A. She prepared the voyage at the age of 12.

    B. She lost her mother after she was born.

    C. She was allowed to sail around the world finally.

    D. She wanted to donate money made from the voyage.

2.At first, child protection agencies were against Laura’s plan because ____.

    A. it was considered to be a dangerous trip

    B. Laura had to finish her schooling first

    C. it would cost Laura too much time and money

    D. Laura wasn’t prepared for the sailing alone

3.What is Mr. Dekker’s attitude towards Laura’s trip?

    A. Doubtful     B. Supportive   C. Uncertain        D. Neutral(中立的)

4.Paragraph 3 mainly talks about ____.

A. how Laura convinced the court   

B. why Laura needed to study at sea

C. how Laura prepared for the voyage

D. where Laura could avoid pirate attacks

5. The person who keeps the record comes from ____.

    A. Holland  B. America  C. India        D. Australia