A concert violinist was performing a difficult piece in front of a large audience. Suddenly there is a loud snap( 断裂声 ) and the__31___could be heard throughout the auditorium( 礼堂 ).The audience ___32___knew that a string( 弦)had broken. They all __33____the concert to stop for a short time ___34___another instrument was brought to the musician.

But instead, the __35___composed( 使镇定 ) herself and then signaled the conductor to start again.The orchestra( 管弦乐团 ) continued where they had __36___and the musician played the music on three strings. In her __37____she worked out new fingering to make up for the missing string. A work that few people could play __38___on four strings, the violinist played on three.

When she __39____and bowed to the audience,there was a silence in the hall. And then the crowd rose to their feet and cheered wildly. The violinist ___40___and wiped sweat from her forehead. When __41____returned to the hall, she ___42___why she had continued to play although there was a __43___string. "You know," she said, "sometimes it is the artist's __44___to find out how much music you can still ___45___with what has been left."

Maybe we've lived most of our lives and we have only a little time left. Maybe disease has ___46___us of our capacity( 能力 ) to work. Or perhaps a financial(财政的) loss has left us very__47___. Can we still make "music"?

There will come a time when we all __48___loss. Can we find the __49___to discover how much "music" we can still make with what has been left, just like the violinist? And if it takes extra courage to make the "music", others will __50___ your effort. Some people have lost more than others, but they are brave enough to face it. They inspire the rest of us to reach greater heights.

31. A. voice           B. sound         C.music        D. screamw

32. A.immediately      B. gradually       C. hardly       D.eventually

33. A. hoped          B. advised         C.urged        D.expected

34. A.when           B.until            C.after         D. since

35. A.audience        B.conductor        C.violinist      D.pianist

36. A.left             B. stopped         C.remained     D.arrived

37. A.hands           B. eyes            C.opinion      D.mind

38. A.fast             B.badly           C.well         D.gently

39. A.started          B.performed        C.finished      D.paused

40. A.worried         B.smiled          C.apologized    D.escapedw

41. A.thought         B.happiness        C.excitement    D.silence

42. A.asked          B. wondered        C.explained     D.introduced

43. A.broken         B.lost              C.bad          D.difficult

44. A.dream         B. plan              C. suggestion    D. task

45. A.take           B.get               C.make         D.carry

46. A.warned        B.reminded          C. required      D.robbed

47. A.poor          B.brave              C.guilty        D.rich

48. A.appreciate      B.avoid             C.experience     D.improve

49. A. assistance     B. hope              C. support       D.courage

50. A. comment      B.applaud            C. accept        D.blame

A great many people are disappointed because of unrealistic expectations.

Walking up to a department store’s  1   counter, an attractive young woman said, “I want to buy this material for a new dress. How much does it cost?”

“Only one  2   per yard,” replied the smirking (自鸣得意的) male clerk.

Not to be taken back by the funny words, the woman said, “That’s fine! I’ll take ten yards.”

With  3  written all over his face, the clerk hurriedly  4  out and wrapped the cloth, and then held it out teasingly, leaning forward to receive his “   5   ”.

The woman got the package quickly from the clerk and pointed to a little old  6  standing beside her. “Grandpa will pay the bill instead of me,” she  7 .

He was no doubt disappointed. But in the course of living, many people are  8 when others do not  9  their expectations. In order to be happy, some expectations must be dropped. These three particular  10  and unhealthy expectations are some of the main causes:

       1. Expect too much  11 .When others say, “Thank you,” or in any way to show their gratitude, be happy. It is a gift!

       2. Expect others to make you happy. They simply cannot do that. Make yourself happy and  12   your joy with others.

       3. Expect not to be  13 . At times, people will simply not come through for you in the way you need.  14   them and move on.

Get rid of these three unrealistic expectations and you can begin to expect more  15   right away!

A few years ago, I was with a close woman friend in a grocery store in California．As we walked along the aisle (过道), we saw a mother with a small boy moving in the opposite direction and met us head-on (正面的) in each aisle．The woman barely noticed us because she was so angry with her little boy, who wanted to pull items off the lower shelves．As the mother became more and more annoyed, she started to yell at the child and several aisles later had progressed to shaking him by the arm．k+s-5#u 

At this point my friend spoke up．A wonderful mother of three and founder of a progressive school, she had probably never once in her life treated any child so harshly(严厉地)．I expected my friend would give this woman a solid mother-to-mother talk about controlling herself and about the effect this behavior has on a child．Instead, my friend said, “What a beautiful little boy．How old is he?” The woman answered cautiously, “He’s three．” My friend went on to comment on how curious he seemed and how her own three children were just like him in the grocery store, pulling things off shelves, so interested in all the wonderful colors and packages．“He seems so bright and intelligent,” my friend said．

The woman had the boy in her arms by now and a shy smile came upon her face．Gently brushing his hair out of his eyes, she said, “Yes, he’s very smart and curious, but sometimes he wears me out．” My friend responded sympathetically(表示同情地), “Yes, they can do that; they are so full of energy．”

As we walked away, I heard the mother speaking kindly to the boy about getting home and cooking his dinner．“We’ll have your favorite — macaroni(通心面) and cheese,” she told him．

The mother was angry with her baby because 　  　　．

A．the mother was very tired k+s-5#u 

B．the baby asked for more things

C．the baby ran madly in the store

D．the baby was pulling the goods off the shelves

We can learn from the passage that the author’s friend 　　   　．

A．treated her children well only     

B．was probably good to any child

C．liked the boy very much         

D．always wanted to help others

The author’s friend talked with the mother in that way to 　  　　．

A．show her sympathy for the woman

B．know something about the boy first

C．show her anger with the woman k+s-5#u 

D．make the woman realize children’s natural quality

With the story, the author most probably intends to tell us that 　　　  ．

A．we should respect a child’s nature

B．we should never blame a child

C．mothers usually share the same interest

D．mothers should try to be gentle and polite k+s-5#u 

A gadget which makes water out of air could become the greatest household invention since the microwave. http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

Using the same technology as a dehumidifier（除湿器），the Water Mill is able to create a ready supply of drinking water because it can always get it from an unlimited source—the air．http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

The company behind the machine says not only does it offer an alternative to bottled water inhttp://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

developed countries, but it is a solution for the millions who face a daily water shortage．http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

The machine works by drawing in wet air through a filter（过滤器）and over a cooling instrument which changes it into water droplets．It can produce up to 12 liters a day．The Water Mill will also produce more water when storms pass over, as the amount of water which is contained in the air increases. In keeping with its eco-development, the machine uses the same amount of electricity as three lights.     Inventor Jonathan Ritchey said, “The demand for water is off the chart. So people are looking for freedom from water distribution systems that are shaky and unreliable.”

The machine, which is about 3 feet wide, is likely to cost ￡800 when it goes on sale here in the spring. Its maker, Canadian Firm Element Four, roughly calculates that a liter of water costs around 20 pence to produce.

Environmentalists state that half the world’s population will face water shortage because of climate change by 2080. One in five is said to lack access to safe drinking.

The Water Mill is not effective in areas where the amount of water contained in the air is below about 30 percent, but in Britain that won’t be much of a problem.

What does the underlined word “it” refer to?

A．Drinking water.  B．Invention.    C．Microwave.      D．Water Mill.

What do we learn about the machine?

A．It works in the same way as microwaves.

B．It is very expensive for families to afford.

C．It absorbs wet air and turns it into water.

D．It helps to make the water clean to drink. http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

What does the passage lead us to believe? http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

A．The cost of water will go up.  B．Bottled water will disappear soon.

C．The machine is energy saving. D．The machine will be popular worldwide.

What’s the best title for the passage? http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

A．A New Way to Solve Water Problem.  B．A Machine to Make Water out of Air.

C．A Dehumidifier to Produce Water.  D．An Absolutely New Invention

A Charlotte, NC, lawyer bought a box of very rare and expensive cigars, and then insured them against fire among other things．Having smoked his entire great cigars within a month, the lawyer filed claim （索赔） against the insurance company．

In his claim, the lawyer stated the cigars were lost "in a series of small fires"．Of course the insurance company refused to pay, giving the obvious reason that the man had consumed the cigars in the normal way．

The lawyer brought the case to the court and out of everybody's expectation, he actually won! At the end of the trial the judge agreed with the insurance company that the claim was crazy．But the judge said that the lawyer held a policy （保险单） from the company in which it had promised that the cigars were insured and that it would insure them against fire．Because the company didn't say what is considered to be unacceptable fire, it had to pay the claim．

Rather than put up with long and costly appeal process, the insurance company accepted the punishment and paid $ 15 ,000 to the lawyer for his loss of the rare cigars lost in the "fires．"

After the lawyer cashed the check, the insurance company had him arrested and accused him of arson （纵火罪）．With his own insurance claim from the previous case being used against him, the lawyer was charged with burning his insured possessions on purpose and was sentenced to 24 months in prison and a $ 24,000 fine．

The lawyer had smoked all the cigars ___．

       A．by design      B．by mistake      C．by accident          D．by contract

The proper order of the lawyer's activities is ___．

       a．having the company paying his claim

       b．having himself put in prison and fined

       c．having smoked all the cigars

       d．bringing the company to the court

       e．insuring the box of cigars

       A．ecabd          B．acebd           C．ecdab           D．cedba

The underlined word "it" in the third paragraph refers to ___．

       A．the box of cigars                B．the insurance company

       C．the policy                    D．the claim

Which of the following sayings is the best suitable for the lawyer?

       A．Whoever sits against heaven, it falls in his face．

       B．A bad beginning makes a bad ending．

       C．Accidents will happen．

       D．Even the wise make mistakes sometimes．