Officials in the Midwestern U. S. town of Joplin, Missouri, say the death from Sundays’ big tornado reaches 116 and that search efforts continue for possible survivors trapped in rubble (碎石). Search and rescue teams are conducting their third sweep through the nearly 10 kilometer – long and one – kilometer wide area of destruction left by the tornado. They are working as quickly as possible while weather conditions remain relatively stable. More storms are forecast for the area.

Joplin Fire Chief Mitch Randles said there are areas with large piles of rubble that might hold survivors. “We are still finding individuals. We did rescue seven individuals from underneath rubble yesterday and, of course, we are also finding dead folks as well.” Said more folks and that is why we are doing these searches. We want to make every opportunity that we can to find everybody that is in the rubble and that has survived to this point.”

Randles said the current sweep involves a slower pace that previous searches and that he plans a fourth search, possibly on Wednesday, using specially trained dogs. “We are searching every structure that has been damaged or destroyed in a more in-depth manner, “he said.” I have dogs and dog handlers coming from all over the country do help us in that effort.”

Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr said the Red Cross and other volunteer organizations are helping people who were left homeless by the tornado and that the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, is on hand to help. “Joplin is a great city. We have suffered a great loss, “said Rohr.” We will recover and we will recover strongly and we have a lot of help and a lot of volunteers to make that easier.”

The tornado that struck Joplin was classified by the Natioonal Weather Service as an F – 4, with winds of more than 300 kilometers per hour. It lasted only 20 minutes, but it killed more that 100 people, injured more than 400 others, and destroyed or heavily damaged some 2,000 homes, businesses, churches and a hospital. Authorities have registered more than 1,700 calls about missing people and they hope to resolvemost of those cases soon, as victims are identified and survivors come forth and reunite with loved ones.

This was the worst tornado to strike the United States in 60 years. It was the latest in a wave of violent storms that have swept Midwestern and southern states in recent weeks, leaving more than 300 people dead an causing more than $2 billion dollars in damage.

1.What kind of disaster (灾害)of this article is talking about?

A．tornado           B．earthquake        C．flood             D．drought

2.The best headline for this newspaper article would be          .

A．Difficulties in the Rescue

B．The Great Loss Brought by the Tornado

C．Search for Survivors After the Disaster

D．Worst Tornado in the USA

3.The word “resolve” in Para 5 probably means         .

A．cover            B．settle             C．overcome         D．challenge

4.The number of death caused by the tornado that struck Joplin reached more than       .

A．100              B．300              C．400              D．1,700

5.From the text, it can be inferred that           .

A．many victims might be under the ruins

B．it was impossible to find out survivors

C．the tornado lasted several weeks

D．the bad weather influenced the rescue greatly

Taking children to school on time doesn’t have to be a battle against the clock. Here are some rules for you to follow.

Lay out children’s clean clothes the night before. Who wants to be looking through unsorted clothes for three pairs of matching socks at 8:00am? Just have the clothes you know they will wear and the food they like ready and waiting. It makes life easier when you can’t spare the time in the morning.

Allow time for yourself. Whether it’s a hot shower, a cup of coffee or five minutes’ peace, leave yourself enough time. This doesn’t include “Just five more minutes” in bed, which will often turn into oversleeping followed by mayhem.

Stick to a routine. Make sure your children know what you expect from them every morning and stick to that routine, whether it’s that they should be fully dressed before breakfast or that they should brush their teeth straight afterwards. My personal top tip for the easiest way to a pain-free morning is no TV the night before.

Keep calm. If the bus is late or you have forgotten where you parked the car, or if you are late, don’t get angry and blame the children. Every one has such a bad morning. But if your children are often late for school, it’s up to you to start a more organized morning routine.

1.The passage is mainly intended for __________.

A．parents

B．teachers

C．students

D．early birds

2.The underlined word “mayhem” is closest in meaning to __________

A．the bad habit

B．the sleeping hour

C．some preparation

D．some trouble

3.What’s the author’s first choice to have a pain-free morning?

A．Have clothes ready in advance.

B．Allow enough time for peace.

C．Get dressed before breakfast.

D．Don’t watch TV the night before

4.How many rules are mentioned for your reference in the passage?

A．Five                                 B．Four

C．Three                                D．Two

Paul was a good athlete when he was a middle school student. He liked running and jumping and won some medals at the sports meetings. So he was tall and strong. Suddenly war broke out and the young man joined the army. He was sent to the front and killed several enemy soldiers. Two years later he raturned to his home town and found a job at the police station. People had known about his bravery by then and they all liked the polite young man.

One day a few young men had drunk too much before they came in a cinema. They danced and sang there and the film couldn't be shown. Paul was ill that day and went to the hospital. When he was passing there, the young men were beating an old man. He went to stop them and they began to fight. He caught them all and sent them to the police station. Since then all the bad men in the town were afraid of the brave policeman.

It was a summer evening. The weather was hot and few people could stay indoors. Paul was on duty and sat by the telephone. Suddenly in rushed a beautiful girl with a book in her hand. She stood there, shaking in her shoes.

“What's the matter, madam? ”asked Paul.

“I wish you could protect me sir, ”answered the girl.

“Protect? ”Paul said in surprise. “For what? ”

The girl showed the book to Paul. The young man understood at once: it was a book about Ghosts（鬼）！

Paul won some medals because ____.   [    ]

A. he was a middle school student

B. he was tall and strong

C. he kept doing morning exercises

D. he was good at running and jumping.

Paul was ____ after he joined the army. [    ]

A. a good athlete

B. a brave soldier

C. a polite policeman

D. a brave policeman

Paul sent the young men to the police station because ____.       [    ]

A. they made some trouble（闹事）at the cinema

B. they drank much in the restaurant

C. they wouldn't see the filin

D. they wanted to fight with him

Paul sat by the telephone that evening because ____.   [    ]

A. he was waiting for an important call

B. he was going to call somebody

C. he was on duty

D. he wasn't afraid of hotness

As the pace of life continues to increase, we are fast losing the art of relaxation. Once you are in the habit of rushing through life, being on the go from morning till night, it is hard to slow down. But relaxation is essential for a healthy mind and body.

Stress is a natural part of everyday life and there is no way to avoid it. In fact, it is not the bad thing it is often supposed to be. A certain amount of stress is vital to provide motivation and give purpose to life. It is only when the stress gets out of control that it can lead to poor performance and ill health．

The amount of stress a person can withstand depends very much on the individual. Some people are not afraid of stress, and such characters are obviously prime material for managerial responsibilities, others lose heart at the first sign of unusual difficulties. When exposed to stress, in whatever form, we react both chemically and physically. In fact we make choice between “flight or fight” and in more primitive days the choices made the difference between life or death. The crises we meet today are unlikely to be so extreme, but however little the stress, it involves the same response. It is when such a reaction lasts long, through continued exposure to stress, that health becomes endangered. Since we can't remove stress from our lives (it would be unwise to do so even if we could), we need to find ways to deal with it．

1.People are finding less and less time for relaxing themselves because ________.

A．they regard working as their greatest enjoyment

B．they believe that work is superior to relaxation

C．they are traveling fast all the time

D．they are becoming busier with their work than ever before

2.According to the author, the most important character for a good manager is his________.

A．strong will to hold out stress

B．knowing the art of relaxation

C．high sense of responsibility

D．having control over performance

3.Which of the following statements is TRUE, according to the passage?

A．We can find quite a few ways to avoid stress．

B．Stress is always harmful to people's health

C．It’s easy to change the habit of keeping oneself busy with work．

D．Different people can bear different amount of stress．

4.In the last sentence of the passage, “do so” refers to ________.

A．“expose ourselves to stress”

B．“find ways to deal with stress”

C．“remove stress from our lives”

D．“establish links between diseases and stress”

If you are having trouble falling asleep, you are in good company. About 65% of Americans said they have sleeping problems a few nights each week, according to a recent study by the National Sleep Foundation. Sleeping too little can lead to a higher risk of becoming fat and getting depressed(沮丧的). But before you go to a doctor for advice, it is worth examining your sleeping habits one more time. Some of your favorite evening habits may have something to do with the sleeping problems.

Setting a Bright Alarm Clock

The light of your bright alarm clock can prevent you from falling asleep. You can make your room as dark as possible. Cover the bright numbers with a book or consider buying a small travel clock. Your cellphone alarm may also do the trick.

Counting Sheep

When you just can’t  fall asleep, it’s useless to stay in bed to count sheep. If you’ve been trying to fall asleep for more than 30 minutes, the National Sleep Foundation suggests you get up to do some reading or watch TV for a while. Such activities will make you sleepy. Before you know it, you’ll be going back to bed really tired.

Exercising Late at Night?

Daytime workouts(锻炼) will keep you full of energy for hours. That’s why you don’t want to exercise within three hours of hitting the sack. Fierce(剧烈的)  physical activity raise your body temperature and pumps your energy level—both are bad for a good night’s sleep.

1.What can we learn from the first sentence of the passage?

A．It’s not good to fail to fall asleep at night.

B．People in a good company often have sleeping problems.

C．There are many people who have sleeping problems.

D．You should find someone to talk to if you can’t fall asleep.

2.The underlined part “hitting the sack” in the last paragraph means “______”.

A．going back home                        B．going to bed

C．going to the gym                        D．falling asleep

3.Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

A．The bad results o f getting too little sleep.

B．Why the bright alarm clock keeps you awake.

C．What to do if you can’t fall asleep after 30 minutes.

D．Why watching TV and reading books make people sleepy.

4.By writing the passage, the writer mainly wants to tell us _______.

A．why so many people can’t sleep well at night

B．how to enjoy a good night’s sleep

C．that sleeping problems are troubling more and more people

D．that people may solve their sleeping problems by some habits