As a palace, the Tower of London．was a great place to live．As a prison, it, wasn't so nice ——especially since so many prisoners lost their heads．Today tourists can explore 5the Tower in the

United Kingdom．Here are some reasons why the Tower was and still is a cool place．

Ravens（渡鸦） are like superheroes．

Well, sort of．Legend says if the ravens that live on the Tower grounds ever leave, the Tower will fall apart．No one knows when the ravens first showed up, but Charles II took the legend so seriously that in the 1670s he gave an official order that six ravens be kept there all the time．Today

there are still always six．

You might have lived at a zoo．

In 1204, King John kept a collection of animals, including lions and elephants．About 50 years later, King Henry III received a polar bear．the bear was kept on a piece of rope so it could fish from the Thames River that flows by the Tower．

         If you lived at the Tower today, your mom or dad might be in charge．

The 35 Yeoman Warders（伦敦塔卫士）and their families are among the few still allowed to live at the Tower．Established in 1509 a;? bodyguards! for the king, today they give tours and  manage the day-to-day details of the Tower．They're called "beefeaters," possibly because their job once allowed them to eat beef from the king's; table．

         You need a secret password at night．

Called the "Word," the password changes every 24 hours and is a must-have to enter the Tower

after hours．It's written on a piece of paper and delivered to the Yeoman on duty for, the night．

You could find buried gold．

         In 1662, a goldsmith（金匠） named John Barfcstead supposedly hid more than $40,000 worth of stolen gold somewhere on．the Tower grounds．Many have searched for the gold, but it has never

been found．

1.Charles II decided to keep six ravens in the Tower probably because ____,．         ;

         A．he loved animals a lot          

         B．he believed ravens helped protect the Tower

         C．he wanted to train the ravens to watch the prisoners  

         D．he thought the Tower was a cool place for the ravens to live                        

2.According to the passage, the Yeoman Warders ______． 

         A．have to part from their families to work at the Tower            

         B．are  currently working as bodyguards for the king                                

         C．sometimes serve as tour guides          

         D．are fond of eating beef                            

3.Which of the following is TRUE about the Tower of London?   

         A．King Henry III kept lions and elephants in it．        

         B．It stands on the bank of the Thames River．

         C．Nobody is allowed to enter it at night．           

         D．It is also used as a prison nowadays．

　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

At about 4 am, after hours of being unable to sleep, of shivering in the cold mountain air and trying to silence my crying kids who kept waking up, of attempting to find a comfortable sleeping position, of listening to whether there might have been a bear outside our tent, I finally couldn’t stand it any more. I complained, “Everything has gone wrong.”
My wife and I were in one tent with our two young kids. A hundred yards east away was Summit Lake, where the glorious early morning mist was shimmering（闪烁）off the water. A couple miles to the southwest was the base of the Lassen Peak Trail. The base was 8,000 feet above sea level, and huge snow dotted the scenery even in mid August. Further west still was Bumpass Hell, with steam rising up.
As the sun crept up over the edge of the Lassen peak, we fired up the camp stove and had breakfast. Half an hour later, my six-year-old daughter and I were in the parking lot of the Lassen peak trail, getting ready to go up the mountainside. We wouldn’t make it all the way, but it didn’t matter. We would see nature at its extremes: the volcanic ash that layered on the earth turning the melting snow a mysterious pink as the sun struck it; the blues of the sky shading into the blues of distant lakes, which in turn shaded into the whites and grays of the snow.
My daughter grabbed my camera. She wanted to take a photo of “the composite（混合物）”of colors. Looking out over that scenery, and seeing my daughter fascinated by nature, I felt stupid about my morning complaints.
Yes, camping is uncomfortable. And yes, there’s a lot to be said for getting out a credit card,reserving a room in a nice hotel, and going out for a fancy meal. But there’s also something wonderful about being so close to raw nature. And , as important, there’s something vital about getting young children out of their increasingly modern comfort zones and forcing them to meet the world around them.
【小题1】.According to the passage, what contributed to the author’s sleeplessness ?
①the cold weather       ②his crying children          ③fear of bears            
④sounds of bears      ⑤the aches of his lower back      ⑥his own complaints

．After hours of repair, the driver tried to start the machine but it ________work.

         A．won’t          B．shouldn’t   C．couldn’t     D．couldn’t

At about 4 am, after hours of being unable to sleep, of shivering in the cold mountain air and trying to silence my crying kids who kept waking up, of attempting to find a comfortable sleeping position, of listening to whether there might have been a bear outside our tent, I finally couldn’t stand it any more. I complained, “Everything has gone wrong.”

My wife and I were in one tent with our two young kids. A hundred yards east away was Summit Lake, where the glorious early morning mist was shimmering（闪烁）off the water. A couple miles to the southwest was the base of the Lassen Peak Trail. The base was 8,000 feet above sea level, and huge snow dotted the scenery even in mid August. Further west still was Bumpass Hell, with steam rising up.

As the sun crept up over the edge of the Lassen peak, we fired up the camp stove and had breakfast. Half an hour later, my six-year-old daughter and I were in the parking lot of the Lassen peak trail, getting ready to go up the mountainside. We wouldn’t make it all the way, but it didn’t matter. We would see nature at its extremes: the volcanic ash that layered on the earth turning the melting snow a mysterious pink as the sun struck it; the blues of the sky shading into the blues of distant lakes, which in turn shaded into the whites and grays of the snow.

My daughter grabbed my camera. She wanted to take a photo of “the composite（混合物）”of colors. Looking out over that scenery, and seeing my daughter fascinated by nature, I felt stupid about my morning complaints.

Yes, camping is uncomfortable. And yes, there’s a lot to be said for getting out a credit card,reserving a room in a nice hotel, and going out for a fancy meal. But there’s also something wonderful about being so close to raw nature. And , as important, there’s something vital about getting young children out of their increasingly modern comfort zones and forcing them to meet the world around them.

1..According to the passage, what contributed to the author’s sleeplessness ?

  ①the cold weather        ②his crying children           ③fear of bears            

④sounds of bears     ⑤the aches of his lower back       ⑥his own complaints

A. ①④⑥         B. ①②③           C. ②④⑤       D. ②③⑤

2..Which of the following maps correctly shows the places ?

3..The underlined word “colors” in Paragraph 4 refers to ______ .

  A.blue, white, gray and pink          B.white, yellow, gray and pink

C.white, green ,gray and pink         D.blue, green,white and gray

4..How did the author’s feeling change from the beginning to the end ?

  A.Calm→Satisfied.        B.Excited→Frustrated.

C.Sad→Calm.          D.Regretful→Satisfied.

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

  A.Nature is the glass reflecting truth.

B.Nature is the best scenery designer.

C.The journey of a thousand miles starts with one step.

D.A bad beginning makes a bad ending.