Like all big cities, Paris has a traffic problem: lots of cars, lots of traffic jams(阻塞) and lots of pollution from exhaust fumes(废气). So the city began a scheme(计划) to improve the situation.

Under the Velib scheme(‘Velib’ comes from velo liberte, or ‘bicycle freedom’) , people can take a bicycle, use it for as long as they want, and then leave it at the same or another bicycle station. The first half-hour on the bike is free, but if you don’t return it after 30 minutes, you have to pay. But it’s only ∈1 a day or ∈29 a year! The bicycles are heavy (25 kg), and they are all grey and have baskets. There are about 20,000 of them in the city, and around 1,450 bicycle stations. So there are a lot more Velib stations than the 298 subway stations!

Paris is not the first city to have a scheme like this. But not everybody thinks it’s a great idea. One Parisian said, “These bicycles are only for short journeys. If people want to travel across the city, they won’t use a bicycle — they’ll still use their cars.”

A city spokesman said, “The bicycle scheme won’t solve all our traffic problems, of course. But it might help reduce air pollution. Traffic, together with factory fumes, is a big problem. There aren’t any simple answers to traffic problems and pollution in cities. But unless we do something now, there will be more traffic jams and temperatures will continue to rise, so the problems in our environment will get worse. The bikes might help people to lead a healthier life, too.”

1.What can we learn about the Velib scheme?

A. Its bikes have no baskets.

B. Its bikes are light and colorful.

C. People must return the bike to the same place after using it.

D. It owns more stations than the subway.

2.If you use a Velib for 1 hour, you should pay _____.

A. ∈1 B. ∈30 C. ∈29 D. no money

3.Why do some people disagree with the Velib scheme?

A. The cost is rather high.

B. It’s hard to find a Velib station.

C. It’s not suitable for a long journey.

D. The distance between two Velib stations is long.

4.What’s the city spokesman’s attitude towards the bicycle scheme?

A. Doubtful B. Positive.

C. Uncaring. D. Worried.

Even before my father left us, my mother had to go back to work to support our family. Once I came out of the kitchen, complaining, “Mom, I can’t peel potatoes. I have only one hand.” Mom never looked up from sewing. “You get yourself into that kitchen and peel those potatoes,” she told me. “And don’t ever use that as an excuse for anything again!”

In the second grade, our teacher lined up my class on the playground and had each of us race across the monkey bars, swinging(荡秋千) from one high steel rod to the next. When it was my turn, I shook my head. Some kids behind me laughed, and I went home crying.

That night I told Mom about it. She hugged me, and I saw her “we’ll see about that” look. The next afternoon, she took me back to school. At the deserted playground, Mom looked carefully at the bars.

“Now, pull up with your right arm,” she advised. She stood by as I struggled to lift myself with my right hand until I could hold the bar with my other elbow(肘). Day after day we practiced, and she praised me for every rung(横档) I reached. I’ll never forget the next time, crossing the rungs, I looked down at the kids who were standing with their mouths open.

One night, after a dance at my new junior high, I lay in bed sobbing. I could hear Mom come into my room. “Mom,” I said, weeping, “none of the boys would dance with me.”

For a long time, I didn’t hear anything. Then she said, “Oh, honey, someday you’ll be beating those boys off with a bat.” Her voice was faint. I peeked out from my covers to see tears running down her cheeks. Then I knew how much she suffered on my behalf. She just never let me see her tears.

1.Which can be used to describe Mom’s attitude when she made the child peel potatoes?

A. Cruel. B. Favorable.

C. Strict. D. Sympathetic.

2.From the passage, we know monkey bars can help a child train ______.

A. the strength and skill to hang and sway

B. the speed of one’s hand movement

C. the skill to throw and catch things

D. the bodily skill to rotate round a bar

3.What does the underlined sentence “I saw her ‘we’ll see about that’ look” imply?

A. Mom believed every aim could be achieved if you stuck to it.

B. The race across monkey bars was not difficult enough for a child to give up.

C. Mom was determined to prove she herself was better than the teacher.

D. What the child had said brought Mom great attraction and curiosity.

4.When the author looked down at the kids, they were standing with their mouths open because _______.

A. they felt sorry for what they had done before

B. they were afraid the author might fall off and get hurt

C. they felt amused to see what the author would do on the bars

D. they were astonished to find the author’s progress

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