The two ladies are ________ the same age, but there seems to be ten years ________ them.

　　A. at, between　　　　　　　　　　B. about, among

　　C. as, among　　　　　　　　　　 D. of, between

When the great library of Alexandria burned, the story goes, one book was saved. But it was not a valuable book; and so a poor man, who could read a little, bought it for a few coppers（铜钱）.The book wasn’t very interesting, but between its pages there was something very interesting indeed. It was a thin strip（条）of vellum（牛皮纸）on which was written the secret of the “Touchstone”!

The touchstone was a small pebble（小园石）that could turn any common metal into pure gold. The writing explained that it was lying among thousands and thousands of other pebbles that looked exactly like it. But the secret was this: The real stone would feel warm, while ordinary pebbles are cold.

So the man sold his few belongings, bought some simple supplies, camped on the seashore, and began testing pebbles. He knew that if he picked up ordinary pebbles and threw them down again because they were cold, he might pick up the same pebble hundreds of times. So, when he felt one that was cold, he threw it into the sea. He spent a whole day doing this but none of them was the touchstone. Yet he went on and on this way. Pick up a pebble. Cold-throw it into the sea. Pick up another. Throw it into the sea.

The days stretched into weeks and the weeks into months. One day, however, about mid-afternoon, he picked up a pebble and it was warm. He threw it into the sea before he realized what he had done. He had formed such a strong habit of throwing each pebble into the sea that when the one he wanted came along, he still threw it away.

So it is with opportunity. Unless we are vigilant（警惕的）, it’s easy to fail to recognize an opportunity when it is in hand and it’s just as easy to throw it away.

The book was special to the man because ______.

       A. it was made of vellum

       B. it was the only book that survived the great fire

       C. it was a story about how to tell the touchstone from ordinary stones

       D. it included the secret of the touchstone

He threw pebbles into the sea ______.

       A. to test how far he could throw

       B. to practice throwing pebbles

       C. to avoid picking up the same pebble once again

       D. to express his disappointment at failing to find the touchstone

What message does the story want to convey?

       A. Careful habits can lead to success.

       B. Habits can benefit you but also hold you back.

       C. Never judge a person or a thing by appearances.

       D. Opportunity only visits the ready and watchful mind

He is very popular among his students as he always tries to make them_______in his lectures.

A.interested                  B.interesting                 C.interest                      D.to interest

Even before World War Ⅱ ended in 1945,many world leaders dreamed of a new organization that would keep international peace and safety,and encourage international cooperation（合作）.An organization was formed.The United Nations was to work to this ideal of mankind.

When the UN was founded in 1945,it was made up of fifty members.Fifteen members sat on the Security Council（安理会）.Five members—the United States,the Soviet Union,Great Britain,France and China—were given,not changing membership on the Council.The Council was given the power to settle fights among nations by persuasion,mediation（调解） or other means.A General Assembly（联合国大会）,which included every UN member,was also set up.The Assembly could consider,discuss,and pass resolutions（决议案）.

As the UN passed its fortieth birthday in 1985,it came under increasingly sharp attack by Americans.It declared that the UN is unfit as a peace keeper and cited（援引） 130 wars since 1945 as a proof（证据）.

The UN’s supporters say that the organization is the world’s best hope for peace.The UN provides,supporters also point out,much needed economic and technical help to less developed nations.

The function（功能）of the Security Council is ________.

A.to keep international peace and security and promote（促进） international cooperation

B.to consider,discuss,and pass on blinding resolutions

C.to settle disputes（争端） among nations by persuasion,mediation or other means

D.to keep international peace and security by force

Why has the UN come under increasingly sharp attack by Americans since 1985?

A.Because the UN has been unfit as a peace keeper.

B.Because 130 wars have broken out since 1945.

C.Because the US hasn’t been able to control the UN completely since 1985.

D.Because the US was not satisfied with the UN since 1985.

What do you think of the UN’s supporters’ words?

A.They are fair.                                                B.They are unfair.

C.They are for the UN’s supporters.                   D.They sharply attack Americans.

The UN’s supporters ________.

A.probably belong to the third world

B.are developed countries

C.must be people from Africa and Europe

D.may not be members of the UN

阅读下面短文，并根据题目要求用英语回答问题（请注意问题后的字数要求）。

Sleepless in Seattle? Hardly. West Virginia is where people are really staying awake, according to the first government study to monitor state-by-state differences in sleeplessness. West Virginians’ lack of sleep was about double the national rate, perhaps a side effect of health problems such as obesity(肥胖), experts said.

Nearly 1 in 5 West Virginians said they did not get a single good night’s sleep in the previous month. The national average was about 1 in 10, according to a federal health survey. Tennessee, Kentucky and Oklahoma also were notably above average with nearly 1 in 7 people reporting in a lack of sleep. In contrast, North Dakota was below average, with only 1 in 13 reporting that degree of sleeplessness. Health officials do not know the exact reasons for the differences.

In the survey, people weren’t required to answer the question why they were not able to get enough rest or sleep. But experts noted several possible explanations: West Virginia ranks at or near the bottom of the nation in several important measurements of health, including obesity, smoking, heart disease and the proportion of adults with disabilities.

Studies have increasingly found that sleeping problems often occurred among people with certain health problems, including obesity. “You would expect to see poorer sleep within a chronically (慢性地) diseased population,” noted Dr Ronald Chervin, a sleep disorders expert in University of Michigan.

Financial stress and work shifts(倒班)can play roles in sleeplessness, too, Chervin added. He suggested those may be contributing factors in West Virginia, an economically depressed state with tens of thousands of people working in coal mining.

The report was based on results of an annual telephone survey of more than 400,000 Americans, including at least 3,900 in each state. The survey did not include people who use only cellphones.

What is the main idea of Paragraph 1? (No more than 15 words.)

What does the underlined word “notably” in Paragraph 2 mean? (No more than 3 words.)

What was the possible reason for the high rate of sleeplessness in West Virginia according to Paragraph 3?  (No more than 12 words.)

List three factors that contribute to sleeplessness based on the passage.

(No more than 8 words.)

①______________________ ②________________________ ③______________________

How was the research carried out? (No more than 10 words.)