Short and shy, Ben Saunders was the last kid in his class picked for any sports team. "Football, tennis Cricket — anything with a round ball, I was useless." he says now with a laugh. But back then he was the object of jokes in school gym classes in England's rural Devonshire.
It was a mountain bike he received for his 15th birthday that changed him. At first the teen went biking alone in a nearby forest. Then he began to cycle along with a runner friend. Gradually, Saunders set his mind building up his body, increasing his speed, strength and endurance. At age 18, he ran his first marathon.
The following year, he met John Ridgway, who became famous in the 1960s for rowing an open boat across the Atlantic Ocean. Saunders was hired as an instructor at Ridgway's school of Adventure in Scotland, where he learned about the older man's cold-water exploits (成就). Intrigued, Saunders read all he could about Arctic explorers and North Pole expeditions, then decided that this would be his future. Journeys to the Pole aren't the usual holidays for British country boys, and many people dismissed his dream as fantasy. "John Ridgway was one of the few who didn't say, 'You are completely crazy,'" Saunders says.
In 2001, after becoming a skilled skier, Saunders started his first long-distance expedition toward the North Pole. He suffered frostbite, had a closer encounter (遭遇) with a polar bear and pushed his body to the limit.
Saunders has since become the youngest person to ski alone to the North Pole, and he's skied more of the Arctic by himself than any other Briton. His old playmates would not believe the transformation.
This October, Saunders, 27, heads south to explore from the coast of Antarctica to the South Pole and back, an 1800-mile journey that has never been completed on skis.
【小题1】The turning point in Saunders' life came when ________.
A.he started to play ball games
B.he got a mountain bike at age 15
C.he ran his first marathon at age 18
D.he started to receive Ridgway's training
【小题2】We can learn from the text that Ridgway ________.
A.dismissed Saunders' dream as fantasy
B.built up his body together with Saunders
C.hired Saunders for his cold-water experience
D.won his fame for his voyage across the Atlantic
【小题3】What do we know about Saunders?
A.He once worked at a school in Scotland.
B.He followed Ridgway to explore the North Pole.
C.He was chosen for the school sports team as a kid.
D.He was the first Briton to ski alone to the North Pole.
【小题4】The underlined word "Intrigued" in the third paragraph probably means ________.
A.ExcitedB.ConvincedC.DelightedD.Fascinated
【小题5】It can be inferred that Saunders' journey to the North Pole ________.
A.was accompanied by his old playmates
B.set a record in the North Pole expedition
C.was supported by other Arctic explorers
D.made him well-known in the 1960s

 

If you have to choose a “Person of the Year” for 2005 , who will you pick ?For many of us ,the choice might not be a person at all . It would be Mother Nature(大自然母亲).

While the world was still getting over the Indian tsunami(海啸)of December 2004 . Mother Nature went on showing her power throughout 2005 .

From July to October, about seven typhoons(台风)hit China’s coastal(沿海的)area.In August , the whole New Orleans city in the US was hit with its worst 一ever natural disaster , Hurricane Katrina . In early October , an earthquake in Pakistan killed more than 70,000 people .

Mother Nature was trying to give us a message:humans need to take responsibility(duty ) for the earth . She was just fighting back .

It is we humans who burn coal and oi1 to make electricity and power cars . This makes huge amount of greenhouse gases , which cause global warming .

It is we humans who cut forests and fill lakes to make space for buildings.This leaves fewer trees and lakes to keep floods(洪水)from rushing to towns and cities .

We need to work hard to ease(缓解)Mother Nature’s anger , or we’11 see more years of disasters.For example , we can start to use less electricity . Turn off lights , TVs and computers when we’re not using them . We can plant trees . One new tree a year from each of us can make a forest. Forests not only hold floods , they also take in greenhouse gases.

1 . The second paragraph mainly shows that_____________.

A . the Indian tsuami brought the people serious disasters

B . people in the world haven’t forgotten the Indian tsuami yet

C . people in  Indian areas are still overcoming difficulties and rebuilding

D . “Person of the Year” for 2005 is Mother Nature

2 . Why may Hurricane Katrina be the worst 一ever natural disaster in American recent history ?

A . Because the whole New Orleans City in America was destroyed badly .

B . Because a few meters high water waves crashed the walls .

C . Because it has never happened in the United States .

D . Because the people in New orleans were both out of water and food.

3 . What can cause such a serious disaster according to the passage ?

A . People burn coal and oi1 .              B . People cut down a lot of trees .

C . People change the lakes into fields .  D . All the answers above .

4 . The underlined phrase“take in” means “_____________” in Chinese .

A .放出                 B .挥发              C .吸收              D .制造

5 . The passage mainly tells us _____________.

A . to use less electricity and plant more trees

B . why the globe is getting warmer and warmer

C . that people should protect and love the earth

D . how to improve the environment around us

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