阅读理解

　　In November 1965, New York was blacked out by an electricity failure. The government officials promised that it would not happen again. Pessimists(悲观者) were certain that it would occur again within five years at the lastest. In July 1977, there was a repeat performance which produced different degrees of disorder throughout the city of 8,000,000 people. In 1965, the failure occurred in the cool autumn and at a time of peace and good situation. In 1977, the failure was much more serious because it came when the number of people out of work was large and the city was suffering from one of its worst heat waves.

　　In 1965, there was little stealing during the darkness, and fewer than 100 people were caught by the police. In 1977, hundereds of stores were broken into and stolen. They broke shopwindows and helped themselves to jewellery, clothes or television sets, nearly 400 people were sent to the police but far more disappeared into the darkness of the night. The number of the policemen at hand was far from enough and they were wisely stopped from using their guns against the mobs(暴徒)that were far more than them and that included armed men.

　　Hospitals had to treat hundreds of people cut by glass from shop windows. Banks and most businesses remained closed the next day. The blackout started at 9:33 p. m. when lightning hit and knocked out vital cables(关键的电缆). Many stores were thus caught by surprise.

　　The vast majority of New Yorkers, however, tried to help strangers, handed out candles, and tried to get through the dark world without traffic lights, refrigerators, water and electrical power. For 24 hours, New York realized how helpless it was without electricity.

1．Look at the 1st paragraph, who were right, the government officials or the pessimists?

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2．In what way was the blackout of 1977 different from that of 1965?

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A．There was much more disorder.

B．This time the electricity supply failed.

C．It was quite unexpected.

D．It came in the cool autumn.

3．Why did many persons manage to escape the police?

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A．The police could not see them in the darkness.

B．Many of them carried guns.

C．There were not enough policemen to catch them all.

D．They were hidden inside big buildings.

4．The 1997 New York electricity failure lasted ________.

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Erik Weihenmayer was born with an eye disorder. As a child his eyesight became worse and then, at the age of 13, he lost his sight completely. However, he did not lose his determination to lead a full and active life.

       Erik became an adventurer. He took up parachuting, wrestling and scuba diving. He competed in long-distance biking, marathons and skiing. His favorite sport, thought, is mountaineering.

       As a young man, Erik started to climb mountains. He reached the summit of Mount McKinley in 1995 and then climbed the dangerous 1000-metre rock wall of EI Capitan. Two years later, while climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in Kenya with his girlfriend, they stopped for a time at 13,000 feet above sea level－in order to get married. In 1999, he climbed Aconcagua, the tallest mountain in South America. And then , on May 25, 2001, at the age of 33, Erik successfully completed the greatest mountaineering challenge of all. He climbed Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world.

       Erik invented his own method for climbing mountains. He carries two long poles: one to lean on and the other to test the way ahead of him. The climber in front of him wears a bell to guide him. Erik is a good team member. He does his share of the job, such as setting up tents and building snow walls.

       Although he could not enjoy the view, Erik felt the excitement of being on the summit of Everest. He hopes that his success will change how people think about the blind. “When people think about a blind person or blindness, now they will think about a person standing on top of the world.”　

When was Erik born?

       A. In 1968.                   B. In 1995.                   C. In 1967.                   D. In 1969.

What was unusual about his wedding?

       A. He got married on the summit of Mount McKinley.

B. He got married when climbing Mount Everest.

       C. .His wedding was held after he prepared a lot.

D. His wedding was held at 13,000 feet above sea level.

What is Erik’s special method for climbing a mountain?

A. He takes his girlfriend with him.　　　　　　　B. He does his share of the jobs.

C. He uses two long poles to help himself.　　　  D. He keeps a good team around him.

Which of the following shows the right order of what happened?

a. He topped Mount McKinley.

b. He became blind.

c. He challenged Mount Everest.

d. He reached the peak of Kilimanjaro.

e. He climbed the rock wall of EI Capitan.

A. b, e, d, c, a 　 　B. b, a, e, d, c      　　 　C. a, b, e, d, c   　 　　D. b, d, a, c, d

Andy was born with a developmental(发展的disorder. The two sides of his brain were not        normally together. The right side of his        could not communicate with the left.  At the age of three, it was      for him to walk, speak, and play. He could only echo (重复) back a few words, and walked        while someone held each of his hands.

Then came the     . He attended an all-day center where he       every unimaginable treatment. He struggled, sometimes in        , to get stronger. Andy hated it when his parents would       him there in the

mornings. However, they       —against all odds(逆境)—that he would grow up to live a       healthy life. They believed it for themselves, and for Andy.

It      .Today Andy is a successful 13-year-old high school student and has won the gold medal for his math competition. His _____ has been nothing short of a wonder. He receives special help with a few things, but _____ his friends in all the activities he loves. Andy overcame a lot of      to move from adversity (逆境) to victory.  

Ask yourself: “What are the seeds of       hidden in my struggles today? If I get up when I      , what will that make possible tomorrow? ”

Erik Weihenmayer was born with an eye disorder. As a child his  eyesight became worse and then, at the age of 13, he lost his sight  completely. However, he did not lose his determination to lead a  full and active life  Erik became an adventurer. He took up parachuting, wrestling and scuba diving. He competed in long-distance biking, marathons and  skiing. His favorite sport, thought, is mountaineering.  As a young man, Erik started to climb mountains. He reached the summit of Mount McKinley in 1995 and then climbed the dangerous  1000-metre rock wall of EI Capitan. Two years later, while climbing   Mount Kilimanjaro in Kenya with his girlfriend, they stopped for a  time at 13,000 feet above sea level－in order to get married. In 1999, he climbed Aconcagua, the tallest mountain in South America.  And then , on May 25, 2001, at the age of 33, Erik successfully completed the greatest mountaineering challenge of all. He climbed Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world. Erik invented his own method for climbing mountains. He carries two long poles: one to lean on and the other to test the way ahead of  him. The climber in front of him wears a bell to guide him. Erik is  a good team member. He does his share of the job, such as setting up tents and building snow walls.  Although he could not enjoy the view, Erik felt the excitement of  being on the summit of Everest. He hopes that his success will change how people think about the blind. “When people think about a  blind person or blindness, now they will think about a person standing on the top of the world.

1.When was Erik born?

A. In 1967.        B. In 1995.       C. In 1968..         D. In 1969.

2.What was unusual about his wedding?

A. He got married on the summit of Mount McKinley.

B. He got married when climbing Mount Everest.

C. His wedding was held at 13,000 feet above sea level

D. His wedding was held after he prepared a lot.

3.What is Erik’s special method for climbing a mountain?

A. He takes his girlfriend with him.  B. He uses two long poles to help himself

C. He does his share of  the jobs.　  D. He keeps a good team around him.

4. Which of the following shows the right order of what happened?

a. He topped Mount McKinley.

b. He became blind.

c. He challenged Mount Everest.

d. He reached the peak of Kilimanjaro.

e. He climbed the rock wall of EI Capitan.

A. b a e d c 　　 B. b e d c a　      C. a b e d c 　     D. b a c d e

Being sociable looks like a good way to add years to your life. Relationships with family, friends, neighbours, even pets, will all do the trick, but the biggest longevity (长寿) boost seems to come from marriage or an equivalent relationship. The effect was first noted in 1858 by William Farr, who wrote that widows (寡妇)and widowers  were at a much higher risk of dying than their married peers. Studies since then suggest that marriage could add as much as seven years to a man’s life and two to a woman’s. The effect holds for all causes of death, whether illness, accident or self-harm.
　　Even if the odds are stacked against you, marriage can more than compensate. Linda Waite of the University of Chicago has found that a married older man with heart disease can expect to live nearly four years longer than an unmarried man with a healthy heart. Likewise, a married man who smokes more than a pack a day is likely to live as long as a divorced man who doesn’t smoke. There’s a flip side, however, as partners are more likely to become ill or die in the couple of years following their spouse’s death, and caring for a spouse with mental disorder can leave you with some of the same severe problems. Even so, the odds favour marriage. In a 30-year study of more than 10,000 people, Nicholas Christakis of Harvard Medical School describes how all kinds of social networks have similar effects.
　　So how does it work? The effects are complex, affected by socio-economic factors, health-service provision, emotional support and other more physiological (生理的) mechanisms. For example, social contact can boost development of the brain and immune system, leading to better health and less chance of depression later in life. People in supportive relationships may handle stress better. Then there are the psychological benefits of a supportive partner.
　　A life partner, children and good friends are all recommended if you aim to live to 100. The ultimate social network is still being mapped out, but Christakis says: “People are interconnected, so their health is interconnected.”
【小题1】William Farr’s study and other studies show that _________.