Look out!  Don’t get too close to the house ________ roof is under repair.

A. whose　　　B. which　　　C. of which　　　D. that

Stepping into a pool of water is common enough, but who could ever imagine stepping into a pool of fish? In February of 1974, Bill Tapp, an Australian farmer, saw a rain of fish that covered his farm. How surprised he must have been when he heard many fish hitting against his roof!

　　 What caused this strange occurrence? This is a question that had long puzzled people who study fish. The answer turned out to be a combination of wind and storm.

　　When it is spring in the northern part of the world, it is fall in Australia. Throughout the autumn season, terrible storms arise and rains flood the land. The strong winds sweep over Australia like huge vacuum cleaners, collecting seaweed, pieces of wood, and even schools of fish. Strong winds may carry these bits of nature for many miles before dropping them on fields, houses, and astonished people.

　　Although they seem unusual, fish-falls occur quite frequently in Australia. When Bill Tapp was asked to describe the scene of fish, he remarked, “They look like millions of dead birds falling down.” His statement is not surprising. The wonders of the natural world are as common as rain. Nature, with its infinite wonders, can create waterfalls that flow upward and fish that fall out of the sky.

　　56. What is this passage about?

　　A. A sad story. 　　　　　　　　　　　　B. A rain of fish.

　　C. Australia’s northern part.　　　　　D. The damage done by floods.

　　57. Fish-falls occur in Australia_________ .

　　A. quite often 　　　　　　B. on large farms

　　C. only in winter　　　　　D. when the air is calm

　　58. It is a known fact that ________.

　　A. one should watch where one steps

　　B. Bill Tapp is a scientist who studies farming

　　C. the natural world can never create waterfalls that fall upward

　　D. the seasons in the southern part are different from those in the northern part

 　59. The word “infinite” is closest in meaning to _________.

　　A. easy 　　　B. difficult 　　　C. countless 　　　D. dangerous

The Great Fire of London started in the very early hours of 2 September, 1666. In four days it destroyed more than three-quarters of the old city, where most of the houses were wooden and close together. Over one hundred people became homeless, but only a few lost their lives.

The fire started on Sunday morning in the house of the King’s baker (面包师) in Pudding Lane. The baker, with his wife and family, was able to get out through a window into the roof. A strong wind blew the fire from the bakery (面包房) into a small hotel next door. Then it spread quickly into Thames Street. That was the beginning.

By eight o’clock three hundred houses were on fire. On Monday nearly a kilometer of the city was burning along the River Thames. Tuesday was the worst day. The fire destroyed many well-known buildings, old St Paul’s and the Guildhall among them.

Samuel Pepys, the famous writer, wrote about the fire, “People threw their things into the river. Many poor people stayed in their houses until the last moment. Birds fell out of the air because of the heat .”

The fire stopped only when the King finally ordered people to destroy hundreds of buildings in the path of the fire. With nothing left to burn, the fire became weak and finally died out.

After the fire, Christopher Wren, the architect (建筑师), wanted a city with wider streets and fine new houses of stone. In fact, the streets are still narrow, but he did build more than fifty churches, among them the mew St Paul’s

The fire caused great pain and loss, but after it London was a better place: a city for the future and not just of the past.

From the passage, we can learn that the fire began in ________.

A. a hotel　　　           B. the palace　　        C. Pudding Lane　　 D. Thames Street

The underlined word “family” in the second paragraph means ________.

A. wife and husband　　      B. wife and children　   C. home                  D. children

It seems that the writer of the text was most sorry for the fact that ________.

A. many famous buildings were destroyed

B. some people lost their lives

C. the birds in the sky were killed by the fire

D. the King’s bakery was burned down

Why did the writer cite (引用) Samuel Pepys?

A. Because Pepys was among those putting out the fire.

B. Because Pepys also wrote about the fire.

C. Because he wanted to give the reader a clearer picture of the fire.

D. Because he wanted to show that poor people suffered most.

How was the fire put out according to the text?

A. The King and his soldiers came to help.

B. Houses standing in the direction of the fire were pulled down.

C. All the wooden houses in the city were destroyed.

D. People managed to get enough water from the river.

A man named Smith was sitting on his roof during a flood, and the water was up to his feet. Before long a fellow in a canoe passed and shouted, "Can I give you a lift to higher ground?"
"No, thanks," said Smith. "I have faith （信任）in God and he will save me."
Soon the water rose to Smith’s waist.（腰，腰部） At this point a motor boat pulled up and someone called out, "Can I give you a lift to higher ground?"
"No, thanks, I have faith in God and he will save me."
Later a helicopter flew by, and Smith was now standing on the roof with water up to his neck. "Grab the rope, "shouted the pilot. "I’ll pull you up."
"No, thanks," said Smith. "I have faith in God and he will save me. "But after hours of struggling with water, poor exhausted Smith drowned and went to his reward. As he arrived at the Pearly Gates, Smith met God and complained about this. "Tell me, God, "he said, "I had such faith in you to save me and you let me drown. What happened?"
To which God replied, "What do you want from me? I sent you two boats and a helicopter."
【小题1】.When the pilot asked Smith to grab the rope, ______.     

　A man named Smith was sitting on his roof during a flood, and the water was up to his feet. Before long a fellow in a canoe passed and shouted, "Can I give you a lift to higher ground?"

　　"No, thanks," said Smith. "I have faith in God and he will save me."

　　Soon the water rose to Smith's waist. At this point a motor boat pulled up and someone called out, "Can I give you a lift to higher ground?"

　　"No, thanks, I have faith in God and he will save me."

　　Later a helicopter flew by, and Smith was now standing on the roof with water up to his neck. "Grab the rope, "shouted the pilot. "I'll pull you up."

　　"No, thanks," said Smith. "I have faith in God and he will save me. "But after hours of struggling with water, poor exhausted Smith drowned and went to his reward. As he arrived at the Pearly Gates, Smith met God and complained about this. "Tell me, God, "he said, "I had such faith in you to save me and you let me drown. What happened?"

　　To which God replied, "What do you want from me? I sent you two boats and a helicopter."

　When the pilot asked Smith to grab the rope, ______.

　　　　A. Smith pulled the pilot up　　　　　 B. Smith did so

　　　　C. Smith didn't do so　　　　　　　　 D. Smith didn't hear him

At last, poor exhausted Smith drowned and ______.

　　　　A. went to his reward　　　　　　　　B. passed away

　　　　C. went to heaven　　　　　　　　　 D. all of the above

　What do we know about Smith? ______.

　　　　A. He was a lazy man

　　　　B. He was a lucky man who believed in God

　　　　C. He was a poor man

What do you think of this passage? This passage is very ______.

　　　　A. moving　　　　B. humorous　　　C. depressing　　　D. surprising

　　　　　D. He was a silly man who believed in God