E

Larry Walters is among the relatively few who have actually turned their dreams into reality. His story is true, even though you may find it hard to believe.

   Larry was a truck driver, but his lifelong dream was to fly. After graduating from high school, he joined the Air Force in hopes of becoming a pilot. Unfortunately, poor eyesight disqualified him. So, as he sat there in his lawn chair, he dreamed about the magic of flying.

   Then one day, Larry Walters got an idea. He went to the local Army-Navy store and bought a tank of helium (氦) and forty-five weather balloons. Back in his yard, Larry used straps to attach the balloons to his lawn chair, the kind you might have in your own back yard.

   He fixed the chair to the ground and filled the balloons with helium. Then he packed some sandwiches and drinks and loaded a BB gun, figuring he could pop (打爆) a few of those balloons when it was time to return to earth.

   Being ready, Larry sat in his chair and cut the fixing rope. His plan was to lazily float upwards and then lazily back down to land. But, things didn’t quite work out that way.

   Instead, he shot up as if fired from a cannon! He climbed until he finally reached eleven THOUSAND feet! At that height, he could hardly risk shooting at any of the balloons, for fear of losing the balance! So, he stayed up there, sailing around for fourteen hours, totally at a loss as to how to get down. Eventually, an airliner pilot radioed the airport about passing a guy in a lawn chair at eleven thousand feet ... with a gun in his lap (腿面).

   At nightfall, the winds on the coast made Larry drift out to sea. At that point, the Navy sent a helicopter to rescue him. Eventually they were able to fly over him and drop a rescue line with which they gradually get him back to earth.

   On hitting the ground, he was arrested. When led away in handcuffs, a television reporter called out to ask, “Mr. Walters, why did you do it?” Larry stopped, eyed the man for a moment and replied, “A man can’t just sit around. What happens tomorrow depends on what you do today.”

Are you doing something to improve your life ... or just sitting around?

57. It is the fact that Larry _______.

A. was a qualified pilot                      B. was an amazing bus driver          

C. failed to become a pilot                   D. popped a few balloons

58. While pulled by the helium balloon, Larry took off to fly by _______.

A. shooting at the balloons to get the up-pushing power

B. using straps to attach the balloons to his lawn chair

C. fixing the chair to the balloons filled with helium

D. cutting the rope fixing his chair to the ground

59. Larry’s being arrested suggests that _______.

A. he is a wanted criminal by the police         B. it is against law to fly without a license 

C. an air liner pilot found a gun in his lap      D. he intended to steal military information

60. What might the writer think of Larry?

A. He is stupid enough to get arrested.            B. He is wise enough to be a success.

C. He is brave enough to reach his goal.    D. He is violent enough to go against law.

E

Teachers have long said that success is its own reward. But these days, some students are finding that good grades can bring them cash and luxury gifts.

In at least a dozen states this school year, students who bring home top marks can expect more than just thankfulness.

The most ambitious experiment began in September, when seven states—Arkansas, Alabama, Connecticut, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Virginia and Washington—won spots in an Mobil?funded program that, in most cases, pays students $100 for each passing grade on advanced placement(AP) college?prep exams.

It’s an effort to get low?income and minority students interested in the courses, says Tommie Sue Anthony, president of the Arkansas Advanced Initiative for Math and Science. “We still have students who are not sure of the value, who are not willing to take the courses.” she says, “Probably the motivation will make a difference with those students.”

Gregg Fleisher of the National Math and Science Initiative, which runs the seven?state program, says the effort is modeled on a program adopted by Dallas in the 1995-1996 school year that saw AP course?taking jump obviously. That program is now statewide.

While many educators would be against offering kids cash for good grades, Fleisher and others say the idea is simple. “It’s an encouragement to get them to basically make the right decision and choose a more strict class.” he says, “This teaches them that if they work at something very hard and have a lot of support, they can do something they didn’t think they could do.”

An analysis of the Texas program last month by Cornell economist C.Kirabo Jackson found that it linked to a 30% rise in the number of students with high SAT and ACT scores and an 8% rise in college?going students.

(Notes:1.SAT:美国学术能力评估考试; 2.ACT:美国大学入学考试。)

51.What does the passage mainly talk about?

A.Success is its own reward.           B.Success makes a difference.

C.Good grades deserves gratitude.      D.A new motivation for students.

52.What’s the purpose of the experiment?

A.To get relatively poor students interested in their studies.

B.To help poor students to keep on with education.

C.To offer poor students luxury gifts on their birthdays.

D.To make an effort to raise the value of money.

53.Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A.Students who top at college?prep exams get $100.

B.The program was probably first adopted by Dallas.

C.The program has been going on half a dozen states this year.

D.The program didn’t have any effect on student’s achievements.

54.What is the writer’s attitude toward offering kids cash for good grades?

A.Favorable.     B.Worried.        C.Opposed.          D.Confident.

55.According to the passage, the program_______.

A.makes everything possible            B.encourages students to study harder

C.helps students choose right classes      D.teaches students to spend money

E

Thousands of people in the world are a hundred years old－or more and certain parts of the world are famous for the long lives of their inhabitants: the Vilacamba Valley in Ecuador, and the home of the Hunzas in the Himalayas．

Why do so many people live to a healthy old age in certain parts of the world? What is the secret of their long lives? Three things seem to be very important: fresh air, fresh food and a simple way of life．People work near their homes in the clean mountain air instead of travelling long distances to work by bus, car or train．They do not sit all day in busy offices or factories, but work hard outdoors in the fields．They take more exercise and eat less food than people in the cities of the West．For years the Hunzas of the Himalayas did not need policemen, lawyers or doctors．There was no crime, no divorce and not much illness in their society． They were a happy, peaceful people, famous all over India for their long, healthy lives．

Do you want to live to a hundred years old? Here are some rules for success．Firstly, choose your parents and grandparents carefully．If they lived or live to a good old age, so will you．Secondly, live in the right place．Thirdly, choose the right  kind of job．Doctors, dentists and bus-drivers die young．Farmers, priests and orchestral conductors live much longer．If you are in the wrong kind of job, you can still improve your way of life．

An old man in the Caucasus was talking about his past life．"I was young then," he said, as he described his 87th year．His secret was: "Think young and stay young．" An old woman from Missouri, USA, gave this advice, "Drink a little whisky and some warm beer every day．" An English lady just said, "Take a cold bath every morning．" The shortest, simplest piece of advice came from Mr．Jim Chapman, aged 103．"Just keep breathing," he told reporters．

72．Who is most likely to live a long life?

A．A doctor．    B．A bus-driver．    C．A dentist．    D．An orchestral conductor．

73．We can see from the passage that long-lived people avoid ____．

A．working hard             B．drinking

C．eating too much             D．taking cold baths

74．The passage indicates that we can change our _____to live a long life．

A．jobs    B．places of living   C．ways of living   D．ways of thinking

75．What is mainly talked about in the last paragraph?

A．Whose advice is the best．

B．Who is the most long-lived person in the world．

C．Lifestyles of long-lived people．

D．How long-lived people think of their life．

1．It is said that 75% of the Internet users f_____________(经常) browse news, send and receive emails on line.

2．The dictionary will be of great b_________________(益处) to me.

3．The young writer owed his success to his teacher’s e__________________(鼓励).

4．I am lucky to have the opportunity to have a f______________(美妙的) trip to Europe.

5．She devoted all her e_____________(努力) to her work.

6．We can surely defeat them if we are d___________________(下定决心)。

7．O______________(占据) the heart of New York City, the sidewalks are full of bright lights.

8．The whole class was d_______________(分成) into three groups.

9．With some of the world’s greatest football players, Real Madrid enjoys great popularity w______________(世界范围内)。

10．He can run fast, so it’s hard to i_________________(想象) his legs were once broken.

I am a good mother to three children. I have tried never to let my profession stand in the way of being a good parent.

     I no longer consider myself the center of the universe. I show up. I listen. I try to laugh. I am a good friend to my husband. I have tried to make marriage vows(誓约) mean what they say. I am a good friend to my friends, and they to me. Without them, there would be nothing to say to you today.

     So here's what I wanted to tell you today: Get a life. A real life, not a desire of the next promotion(提升), the bigger paycheck, the larger house.

     Get a life in which you are not alone. Find people you love, and who love you. And remember that love is not leisure(空闲), it is work. Pick up the phone. Send an e-mail. Write a letter. And realize that life is the best thing and that you have no business taking it for granted.

      It is so easy to waste our lives, our days, our hours, our minutes. It is so easy to exist instead of to live. I learned to live many years ago. Something really, really bad happened to me, something that changed my life in ways that, if I had my choice, it would never have been changed at all. And what I learned from it is what, today, seems to be the hardest lesson of all.

      I learned to love the journey, not the destination. I learned to look at all the good in the world and try to give some of it back because I believed in it, completely and totally. And I tried to do that, in part, by telling others what I had learned. By telling them this: Read in the backyard with the sun on your face. Learn to be happy. And think of life as a deadly illness, because if you do, you will live it with joy and passion(热情) as it ought to be lived.

The best title of this passage probably is            

      A. Love your friends                        B. Live a real life

      C. Don't waste time                         D. Be a good mother and wife

The underlined sentence "It is so easy to exist instead of to live" in the fifth paragraph probably has the same meaning as               

      A. it is so easy to keep alive but not to live a real life

      B. it is very hard to live a real life

      C. it is so easy to make a living

      D. it is more difficult to exist than to live a happy life

What's the author's attitude toward work?

      A. Do it well to serve others.

      B. To earn enough money to make life better.

      C. Try your best to get higher position and pay.

      D. Don't let it affect your real life.

It can be inferred from the passage that          

     A. the author is a success in personal life

     B. the author didn't try her best to work well

     C. the author spent all her time caring for her children

     D. the author likes traveling very much