The triathlon(铁人三项运动) promises to be one of the most popular Olympic sports.Recently it has drawn huge crowds attracted by athletes swimming 1,500m，cycling 40km，then running 10km without stopping.But what makes an attractive 17?year?old girl give up everything for the doubtful pleasure it offers?

Melanie Sears has not yet learnt those often?repeated phrases about personal satisfaction，mental challenge and higher targets that most athletes use when asked similar questions.“You swim for 1,500m，then run out of the water and jump on your bike，still wet.Of course，then you freeze.When the 40km cycle ride is over，you have to run 10km，which is a long way when you’re feeling exhausted.But it’s great fun，and all worth it in the end，” she says.

Melanie entered her first triathlon at 14 and she won the junior section.Full of confidence，she entered the National Championships，and although she had the second fastest swim and the fastest run，she came nowhere.“I was following this man and suddenly we came to the sea.We realised then that we had gone wrong.I ended up cycling 20 kilometres too far.I cried all the way through the running.”

But she did not give up and was determined that she never will.“Sometimes I wish I could stop，because then the pain would be over，but I am afraid that if I let myself stop just once，I would be tempted(诱惑) to do it again.”Such doggedness draws admiration from Steve Trew，the sport’s director of coaching.“I’ve just been testing her fitness，” he says, “and she worked so hard on the running machine that it finally threw her off and into a wall.She had given it everything，and she just kept on.”

Melanie was top junior in this year’s European Triathlon Championships，finishing 13th.“I was almost as good as the top three in swimming and running，but much slower in cycling.That’s why I’m working very hard at it.” She is trying to talk her long?suffering parents，who will carry the ￡1,300 cost of her trip to New Zealand for this year’s world championships，into buying a ￡2,000 bike，so she can try 25km and 100km races later this year.

But there is another price to pay.“I don’t have a social life，”she says.“After two hours’ hard swimming on Friday night，I just want to go to sleep.But I phone and write to the other girls in the team.” What does she talk about？Boys？Clothes？“No，what sort of times they are achieving.”

1.How does Melanie differ from other athletes，according to the writer?

A．She worries less than they do.

B．She expresses herself differently.

C．Her family background is not like theirs.

D．Her aims are different from theirs.

2.What upset Melanie during the National Championships?

A．She was tricked by another competitor.

B．She felt she had let her team?mates down.

C．She made a mistake during part of the race.

D．She realized she couldn’t cycle as fast as she thought.

3.What is Melanie trying to persuade her parents to do?

A．Buy an expensive bike for her.

B．Give her half the cost of a bike.

C．Let her compete in longer races.

D．Pay for her to go to New Zealand.

4.What does Melanie say about her relationships with her team?mates?

A．She would like to see them more often.

B．She only discusses the triathlon with them.

C．She thinks they find her way of life strange.

D．She dislikes discussing boys or clothes with them.

“Dash” is a symbol which represents every day we’re spreading alive on earth. Therefore, how you spend your “dash” is important.
Recently I  1  about a little girl named Hope. After learning more about her life, I couldn’t help but feel it was not by 2 ,nor happenstance, that she had been named “Hope”. The strong feeling of sympathy and generosity 3 in her young heart made a lasting impression on me and countless others. 4  I never had the opportunity to meet her, I wish I had. It seems as though she was beyond her tender years and very, very special. Hope was a twelve-year-old girl who was 5 a “wish” in early December 2010 by the “Make-A-Wish” Foundation after being 6  that she had a rare type of bone cancer. However, when she found out that more than 150 7 in her area like her were waiting for their wishes to be granted, she unselfishly used her wish to 8 that those children have their wishes granted. She also hoped that it could be done 9  January 16, 2011.Unfortunately, however, the organization told her that her 10  request couldn’t be granted as the funds were simply 11  . They calculated that they would need to raise more that one 12  dollars in thirty days in order to grant her wish. 13 , but not discouraged, she turned her disappointment into an enthusiasm that inspired warm-hearted 14 to take up helping grant the wishes of the other children, and eventually 15  as well. Newspaper columnists and reporters for radio and TV stations 16  the story of this 17  young girl who had touched the hearts of so many and as word spread, the community was challenged. Committees were fanned and schools, corporations and various organizations assisted in 18 money to help make Hope's dream come true.
Her efforts were not in vain as they continued to help others, not only 19 , but spiritually and emotionally as well. At the gathering to celebrate her life, “A Celebration of Hope” on January 16,2011, the 20  was made that they had indeed received donations totaling more than one million dollars. Her wish had been granted!

根据对话情景和内容，从对话后所给的选项中选出能填入每一空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该选项涂黑。选项中有两个为多余选项。

Dorothy: Debbie！I can’t believe it！I haven’t seen you for ages. 

Debbie: Dorothy！It’s really a nice surprise！  1.

Dorothy: Pretty good. 

Debbie:   2.  

Dorothy: I wish I could. But I’m on my way out. I have to be in the city in an hour.

Debbie    3.  

Dorothy There’s a lot of traffic and I really have to get going. You know where I live, so why don’t you drop in one evening?

Debbie: I’ll do that.   4.   . Let’s keep in touch.    

Dorothy: I’d really like to. I’ll talk to you soon, Debbie. I’m glad I ran into you.

Debbie:    5.  

A. It’s been a whole year since we saw each other last time.

B. Where have you been?

C. How are you?

D. Can you join me?

E. And you should feel free to call or visit me.

F. Come on. Just for a minute.

G. Me too. Take care.

Have you ever thought, “I wish I could take a year off and just travel around the world”?

Well,three lucky American teenagers were able to do just that．The teens—two males and one female--got an all-expenses paid, yearlong hike to five continents.

    This trip didn’t include any five-star hotels or shopping funs．Eighteen-year-old Jamie Fiel from Keller, Texas, 17-year-old Arsen Ewing from Canyon, California, and 16-year-old Tyler Robinson from Lincoln, Massachusetts, didn’t expect fancy treatment．They signed up for the experience of a lifetime, which included hard work, often uncomfortable accommodations, and encounters with（遭遇） some of nature’s most dangerous animals and environments.

Jamie, Arsen, and Tyler were among hundreds of high school kids nominated by their science teachers to take this trip．Earthwatch Institute sponsored this adventure．Each year, Earthwatch employs thousands of volunteers worldwide to help with scientific research projects．

The group went all around the world to get a close look at the most pressing environmental issues of our time．Their assignments were as varied as their locations, and included measuring and attending pink flamingos in Kenya’s Great Rift Valley, and tracking giant sea turtles in Costa Rica.

As they worked with the Earthwatch scientists, Jamie, Arsen, and Tyler began to understand that we are at a critical moment in the life of our planet．Time for change is running out．As the teens went from country to country and witnessed different environmental dangers and challenges, they understood that solutions to important environmental issues start with the power of one person's actions．They realized that each of them can make a difference.

These teenagers went on the journey around the world _____.

    A．to experience the most serous environmental problems on the earth

    B．to bring the kindness of America to the other parts of the world

    C．to go on sightseeing around the world

    D．to call on more teenagers to join Earthwatch Institute

What’s true about their journey?

    A．They had to pay for their journey at their own expense.

    B．They often had to move from one hotel to another.

    C．They had to take great pains to collect environmental information.

    D．They received a warm welcome every time they arrived at a new place.

It can be inferred that Earthwatch Institute could be _____．

    A．an international university that takes in students from all over the world

    B．a TV station that makes programmes on the beautiful scenery of the earth

    C．a travel agency that organizes adventure trips specially for school children

    D．an organization that brings science to life for people concerned about the earth’s environment

What did they these teenagers learn from the journey?

    A．It was high time that people protected the environment.

    B．Long journey was not suitable for school children.

    C．It should take the whole world to help the children.

    D．Environmental problems can be solved if school children take part.

Our “Mommy and Me” time began two years ago. My next-door neighbor and fellow mother, Christie, and I were out in our front yards, watching seven children of age 6 and under ride their bikes up and down. “I wish I could take one of my children out alone,” said Christie.

   Then we worked out a plan: When Christie takes one of her children out, I’ll watch her other three. And when she watches two of mine, I’ll take someone out.

   The children were extremely quick to accept the idea of “Mommy and Me” time. Christie’s daughter, McKenzie, went first. When she returned, the other children showered her with tons of questions. McKenzie was smiling broadly. Christie looked refreshed and happy. “She’s like a different child when there’s no one else around,” Christie shared with me quickly. With her mother all to herself, McKenzie didn’t have to make an effort to gain attention.

   Just as Christie had noticed changes in McKenzie, I also discovered something different in each of my children during our alone times. For example, I am always surprised when my daughter, who is seldom close to me, holds my hand frequently. My stuttering（口吃的）son, Tom, doesn’t stutter once during our activities since he doesn’t have to struggle for a chance to speak. And the other son, Sam, who’s always a follower when around other children shines as a leader during our times together.

   The “Mommy and Me” time allows us to be simply alone and away with each child ---talking, sharing, and laughing, which has been the biggest gain. Every child deserves（应得到）to be an only child at least once in a while.

What is the text mainly about?

A. The experience of the only child being with mother.

B. The advantage of spending time with one child at a time.

C. The happy life of two families.

D. The basic needs of children.

Right after McKenzie came back, the other children were _____________.

A. happy  B. curious  C. regretful  D. friendly

What is one of the changes the author finds in her children?

A. The daughter acts like a leader.     B. Sam holds her hand more often.

C. The boys become better followers.  D. Tom has less difficulty in speaking.

The author seems to believe that ___________.

A. having brothers and sisters is fun       B. it’s tiring to look after three children

C. every child needs parents’ full attention  D. parents should watch others’ children