Mr. Briggs got a job with an insurance company(保险公司) after he left school and went around visiting people in their homes to sell them life insurance. One day, after he had been working for the company for about a year, the insurance manager sent for him and said, “Mr. Briggs, I have been looking at your record as a salesman with our company, and there is one thing that surprises me about it. Why have you been selling insurance only to people over 95 years old, and why have you been giving them such generous（宽厚的）conditions? You’ll ruin our company if you go on like that.”

“Oh, no, sir,” answered Mr. Briggs at once, “Before I started work, I looked at the figures(数字) for deaths in this country during the past ten years, and I can tell you that few people die at the age of 95.”

1.Before he worked in an insurance company, what was Mr.

Briggs?            

2.The word “ruin” in the first paragraph means       .

3.As a salesman with the company, Mr. Brigs        .

4.What was it that surprised the manager?   

5.Which of the following is true according to the passage?      

small.

"Beating is a sign of affection, cursing (骂）is a sign of love."

Many may not expect to hear the words of the old Chinese saying in these modern times—with parents wealthier and better educated than they have ever been—but experts say they still ring true.

Today, it seems, Chinese parents are more likely to send their children to pre-college military academies in the United States in the hope that some tough love will pave the way tosuccess.

"Good education doesn't mean letting your child enjoy privileges, especially our boys," said Song Wenming, an entrepreneur(企业家）in Jinhua, East China's Zhejiang province." They should be raised in tough conditions to know what to fight for in the future."

In August, Song sent his 17-year-old son to Valley Forge Military Academy (VFMA) in Pennsylvania. And he is far from alone, even though it takes a lot of money - around $48,000 per year —to send a child to a strict military school.

Statistics shows that an increasing number of Chinese students have been registering with such academies.

A few years ago, there were no Chinese students at Valley Forge. Today, there are 28."All of the Chinese students at Valley Forge came from wealthy families, some of them were spoiled," said Jennifer Myers, director of marketing and communications at the school.

Song's only son, Song Siyu, had a rocky start during his first six weeks at the school. The teenager said he went to the school voluntarily but did not expect it to be as difficult.

Now, three months later, he has perfected the art of taking a bath in 35 seconds, finishing a meal without looking at his food, and making his bed with precision. He can even take criticism, no matter how unreasonable.

"The training is hard but I know it is good for self-development of individuals," said Song Siyu.'The endless training and scolding are just ways to build up our character, they are not personal."

But his enthusiasm is not universal. Ten of the 13 Chinese students who joined the academy this year have transferred to other schools.

But for those who stick with it, there is a reward for all the hard work.

1.From the second paragraph, we can know the old Chinese saying _____.

A．is out of date in modern times.

B．is disagreed by rich parents.

C．is still worth trusting.

D．is deeply believed by better educated parent.

2.The underlined sentence means that _____

A．Song sent his only son to military school, so he feels lonely.

B．Song is the only one who sends his child t to military school.

C．There are other people sending their children to military school besides Song.

D．The fee of the military school is so high that only Song can afford it.

3.Song Siyu got some achievements in the military school except _____.

A．taking a bath in a short time               B．having his meal with his eyes closed

C．taking unreasonable criticism              D．improving his character

4.How many Chinese students are there at Valley Forge before this year?

A．10               B．13               C．15               D．25

5.Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?

A. It's likely that more and more Chinese students will attend VFMA.

B. Most Chinese parents approve of educating their children by beating and cursing nowadays.

C. Song Siyu had no difficulty in adjusting to the life at VFMA.

D. Most Chinese students support the way of education at VFMA.

Compassion(同情)is a desire within us to help others．With efforts，we can translate compassion into actions．An experience last weekend showed me this is true．
I work part—time in a supermarket across from a building for the elderly These old people are our main customers，and it’s easy to lose patience over their slowness．But last Sunday，one aged gentleman appeared to teach me a valuable lesson．This untidy marl walked up to my register(收款机)with a box of biscuits．He said he was out of cash，had just moved into his room，and had nothing in his cupboards．He asked if we could let him have the food on trust．He promised to repay me the next day．
I couldn’t help staring at him．I wondered what kind of person he had been ten or twenty years before，and what he would be like if luck had gone his way．I had a hurt in my heart for this kind of human soul，all alone in the world．I told him that I was sorry，and the store rules didn’t allow me to do so．I felt stupid and unkind saying this，but I valued my job .Just then，another man，standing behind the first，spoke up．if anything，he looked more pitiable，“Charge it to me，”was all he said．
What I had been feeling was pity．Pity is soft，safe and easy．Compassion，on the other hand，is caring in action．I thanked the second man but told him that was not allowed，either．Then I reached into my pocket and paid for the biscuits myself I reached into my pocket because these two men had reached into my heart and taught me compassion．
64．The aged gentleman who wanted to buy the biscuits           ．
A．promised to obey the store rules
B．forgot to take any money with him
C．hoped to have the food first and pay later
D．couldn’t afford anything more expensive
65．How did the aged gentleman possibly feel when he was refused by the writer?
A．Warm and lucky．       B．shameful and lonely
C．Thankful and excited   D．Hurt and disappointed．
66．The writer followed the store rules because       ．
A．he wanted to keep his present job
B．he felt no pity for the old gentleman
C．he considered the old gentleman dishonest
D．he expected someone else to pay for the old gentleman
67．What does the writer 1earn from his experience?
A．Wealth is most important．
B．Helping others is easier said than done．
C．Experience is better gained through practice．
D．Compassion shows in actions

Years ago, there lived a wealthy man named Mr. Cooper who, with his dearest young son John, loved art collecting. Together they traveled around the world, collecting the finest art treasures.

One winter, war came to the nation, and John left to serve his country. After only a few short weeks, his father received a telegram reading that John had died while saving a fellow soldier. Filled with sadness, the old man cried. On the coming Christmas morning, a soldier called on him and gave him a picture of John.

The following spring, the old man became ill and passed away. According to his will, all of his works of art would be auctioned (拍卖) on Christmas Day, when he had received the greatest gift of his life. The day soon arrived and art collectors from around the world gathered to buy some of the world’s greatest paintings. The auction began with a painting of the old man’s son. “Who will open the bidding (出价) with $100?” the auctioneer (拍卖人) asked. Minutes passed, but no one spoke. Finally, a neighbor of the old man’s spoke. “Can I take the painting for ten dollars? It is all I have, and he is a good man.”

“Will anyone go higher?” called the auctioneer. After more silence, the auctioneer said, “Going once, going twice, gone.” The gavel(槌) fell. “Now we can get on to the real treasures,” someone shouted angrily. But the auctioneer said that the auction was over. Someone asked,“It’s over? We didn’t come here for a picture of some old guy’s son. There are millions of dollars worth of art here!”The auctioneer replied, “It’s very simple. According to the will of the father, whoever takes the son ... gets all.”

Why did they travel around the world?

A. They wanted to visit some well-known artists.

B. They had their own companies around the world.

C. They wanted to visit all kinds of places of interest.

D. They wanted to collect the world’s finest art.

When did the old man die?

A. The morning when the solider visited him.

B. Several months after John died.

C. A few days after John served in the army.

D. The day he received the news of John’s death.

The underlined words “the greatest gift” in Paragraph 3 refer to ________.

A. a picture of John                                     B. the painting John collected

C. the finest work of art                               D. the telegram about his son

A neighbor of the old man’s bought the painting of John ________.

A. because he knew the will of the old man

B. to pick up the world’s greatest paintings

C. in honor of John, who was worth respecting

D. because no one else was willing to buy it

It can be inferred from the passage that ________.

A. the old man and the auctioneer were good friends

B. no art collectors wanted to buy Mr. Cooper’s collection of art

C. John was a successful art collector and an excellent artist

D. the old man, Mr. Cooper, loved his son very much

第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每题2分，满分40分）

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳答案，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

Today most Chinese teenagers are happy to be favored by two parents and four grandparents

in their families. But have you ever thought about how to take care of four to twelve old people

when you grow up and get married? This could be a problem for most Chinese youths as China is

entering a new stage of an aging society.

An aging society refers to one where 10 percent or more of its population is over 60. By the end of 2007, Chinese over 60 years old have made up 11.7 percent of the nation’s total population.

“China is getting old before becoming rich,” said Cai Chuang, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The population increase that has powered Chinese growth for three decades will give way over the next ten years to a rapid aging of the society. This will lead to weaker economic growth, because of a lack of labor resources.

As a result of the family planning policy, it is expected that the country’s total working population will decrease after 2015.

China is not the only country getting old. More that 60 countries have become aging societies and one in three people in the European Union is a senior citizen.

However, experts said that China doesn’t have a highly developed social security network to support the old. Social security is an insurance program protecting those in need, including the old, the disabled and others.

56．An aging society is a society that        .

A．less that 10% of its population is over 60

B．10% or more of its population is over 60

C．there are four old people in a family

D．most of its population is over 60

57．If China enters an aging society,      .

A．there will not be enough labor resources

B．the family planning policy will be ended

C．everyone needs to take care of four to twelve old people

D．China will have a highly developed social security network

58．What does Cai Chuang mean by saying “China is getting old before becoming rich.”?

A．China will be an aging society, then be a developed country.

B．China will be a rich country before being an aging society.

C．An aging society will affect Chinese economy development.

D．China will stop developing because of its aging problem.

59．The passage mainly talks about         .

A．an aging society             B．Chinese social problem

C．family panning policy     D．aging problem in China