Doreen Sykora is now a junior at McGill University. She had a difficult time when she first began college. She said, “I was always well prepared for my examinations. But when I go into class to take the exam, I would fall apart. I could just blank out because of nervousness and fear.” Hitoshi Sakamoto, an anthropology(人类学) student at Temple University in Tokyo reports similar experiences.

These two young students were experiencing something called test anxiety. Because a student worries and is stressed(加压力于) about a test, his or her mind does not work as well as it usually does. The student cannot write or think clearly because of the severe tension and nervousness.

Now there are special university courses to help students. In these courses, advisors and psychologists try to help students by teaching them to manage test anxiety. Such a course helps students learn to live with stress and not fail because of it. First students take a practice test to measure their worry level. If the tests show that their stress level is high, the students can take a short course to manage the fear. These courses teach students how to relax their bodies. They get training to become calm in very tense situations. By controlling their nervousness, they can let their minds work more easily. Learned information then comes out without difficulty on a test.

Doreen Sykora saw immediate results after taking such a course. She now has enthusiasm about the relaxation methods. “Mostly, what I do is imagine myself in a very calm place. Then I imagine myself picking up a pencil. I move slowly and carefully. I breathe easily and let all the tension out. With each breath, more worry leaves me. It really works too. My grades have improved greatly! I’m really doing well at McGill now. This relaxation method works not only on examinations, but it has improved the rest of my life as well.”

For Hitoshi in Tokyo, the results were much the same. He is enjoying school a lot more and learning more.

1. What is the similarity between Doreen Sykora and Hitoshi Sakamoto?

A. They are students from the same university.

B. They failed in all the examinations.

C. They both had experiences of test anxiety.

D. They both had the same poor studying habits.

2. The phrase “blank out” in Paragraph 1 refers to “_______.”

A. lose interest in the exam           B. refuse to take the exam

C. get an extra paper                  D. be unable to think clearly

3. What’s the purpose of some special university student-help courses?

　　A. To help students to reduce test anxiety.   

　　B. To show a stress level experienced by students.

　　C. To learn more knowledge about test anxiety.

　　D. To have a better understanding of test anxiety.

What made Joan Ryan decide to be a sports writer?“Ten years ago, I was ?　36　? news stories at the Orlando Sentinel in Florida—my first job ?　37　? college. I didn't know any female sports writers. But I wanted to be ?　38　?.?　39　?,the best writing in the paper was sports.”

“Furthermore, I had the ?　40　?.I grew up in a(n) ?　41　? family: Three boys and three girls and a coach for a dad.”?

Soon after describing her ambition to a coworker, the ?　42　? of her paper reassigned Joan to the sports ?　43　?.She started out by editing other people's stories,?　44　? within a year, she was writing her own sports column.?

Today, Joan is the sports ?　45　? for the San Francisco Examiner in California. When she ?　46　? her job eight years ago, she was the ?　47　? woman sports writer on any major American newspaper.

Was it tough to ?　48　? as a female sports writer??　49　?!Take, for example, the first time Joan tried to get an interview in the men's locker room. “It was the U.S. Football League. I wanted to interview one of the players—Joe Cribbs, because he had just broken a finger. As soon as I ?　50　? into the locker room ?　51　? all sports writers interview athletes—the room went ?　52　?.Guys started yelling at me—closing in on me. It was really frightening. One guy was sitting on a bench in front of me, tapping up his ankle,?　53　? a long-handled razor for cutting the tape. Suddenly, I felt something move up my leg. It was the ?　54　? of the razor. I yelled at him and walked out.”

Joan ?　55　? interviewing Cribbs—outside the locker room.“In retrospect(回忆),I feel this was a defining moment for me as a journalist. I went back and wrote my story and made my deadline. Now I know that nothing can interfere with getting the story.”?

36. A. writing B. finding       C. editing       D. sending?

37. A. in B. out of C. into    D. before?

38. A. one      B. the one       C. it D. that?

39. A. However     B. Therefore   C. Above all   D. First of all?

40. A. knowledge   B. experience  C. Background       D. interest?

41. A. big       B. athletic       C. athrete       D. warm?

42. A. editor   B. Manager     C. Director     D. workmate?

43. A. column B. field   C. department D. paper?

44. A. and      B. So      C. however     D. but?

45. A. columnist    B. writer C. journalist    D. female?

46. A. did       B. left     C. landed D. wanted?

47. A. abed     B. only    C. brave  D. wisest?

48. A. work    B. writer C. interview    D. pioneer?

49. A. You bet       B. You believe       C. Unbelievable     D. You guess?

50. A. stepped B. entered       C. rushed D. moved?

51. A. that      B. which C. where D. when?

52. A. warm   B. crazy  C. down  D. full?

53. A. held     B. playing      C. used    D. using?

54. A. cap      B. cover  C. handle D. movement?

55. A. started  B. ended up C. Made     D. wrote??

He was once referred to as the Picasso of poetry.Beloved by Chileans(智利人)of all classes，he is one of the most widely read and respected poets in history. And this year is the 100th birthday of Pablo Neruda(1940—1973)．

Born with the name Neftali Ricardo Reyes Basolto，he was a tall，shy and lonely boy.He loved to read and started to write poetry when he was ten.The American poet Walt Whitman，whose framed picture Neruda later kept on his table，became a major influence(影响)on his work.

However，his father did not like the idea of having a poet for a son and tried to discourage him from writing.To cover up the publication of his first poem，he took the pen name Pablo Neruda.

In 1924 Neruda gained fame with his most widely read work “Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair”．Yet his rich experience as a diplomat(外交官)and exile(流亡)made him go beyond the theme of love.His work also reflected the political struggle of the left and development of South America.He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971.

Neruda loved the sea which he saw as creative(创造性的)and forever moving.He found inspiration(灵感)in the power and freedom of the waves and the seabirds on the coast.“I need the sea because it teaches me”，he wrote，“I move in the university of the waves.”He loved how the sea forever renewed itself，a renewal echoed(回映)in his work.

1．The underlined word “Picasso” can probably be replaced by “______”．

A．most important person　　　　　　　　 B．famous person from Picasso

C．freedom fighter in Picasso　　　　　 　D．poem fan

2．Neftali Ricardo Reyes Basolto took the pen name Pablo Neruda because______.

A．literary greats usually used the pen name

B．his father encourged him to use the name

C．he wanted to prevent his father knowing the publication

D．he was greatly influenced by other poets

3．Which of the following is NOT the theme of his works?

A．Love.　　　　　　　　　　　　 B．Political struggle.

C．Social reform.　　　　　　　　 D．The development of South America.

4.The last paragraph mainly tells us ______.

A．the sea gave Neruda vast writing inspiration

B．the beautiful scenery along the Chile coast

C．Neruda’s poems were widely read overseas

D．Neruda loved to write his poems near the sea

5．Which is TRUE according to the text?

A．Young people especially love and respect Neruda.

B．The first collection of Neruda’s poems was published when he was ten.

C．Walt Whitman was Neruda’s most admired poet.

D．He became famous when he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature.