The CEO of Apple, Steve Jobs' story about death
     When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live each day as if it were your last,
someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33
years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself, "If today were the last day of my life,
would I want to do what I am about to do today?"
      Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make
the big choice in life.
     I was diagnosed with cancer.The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that was
incurable, and that I would live no longer than three to six months.My doctor advised me to go home and
get my affairs in order, which is my doctors' code for preparing yourself to die.
     I lived with that diagnosis all day.I was completely in despair.Later that evening, I had another biopsy (活组织检查) and my wife told me that tumor turned to be curable with surgery.I had the surgery and
I'm fine now.
     This was the closest I've been to facing death.To tell the truth, no one wants to die.And yet death is
the destination we all share.No one has ever escaped it.It clears out the old to make room for the new.
Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be
cleared away.
     Your time is so limited that you shouldn't waste it repeating someone else's life.Don't be trapped by
dogma (教条)-which is living with the results of other people's thinking.Don't let the noise of others'
opinions drown out your own inner voice.And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart.
It somehow already knows what you truly want to become.Everything else is secondary.

1. The doctor advised the author to go home and get his affairs in order because________.

A. he had to rest at home
B. his disease was not serious at all
C. his disease couldn't be cured
D. he had to wait for the result of the test

2. How did the author feel after the diagnosis?

A. Angry.      
B. Excited.
C. Optimistic.  
D. Hopeless.

3. What helps the author to make a big choice in life?

A. The cancer.
B. Knowing the coming death.
C. The doctors.
D. The desire for longer life.

4. What does the author think of death?

A. He thinks it is nothing to be scared of.
B. He thinks it is not the end of life.
C. He thinks it is impossible to avoid.
D. He thinks it is the beginning of a new life.

5. In Steve Jobs' opinion, we should ________.

A. follow others' advice
B. take no notice of diseases
C. take exercise and keep healthy
D. have the courage to follow our heart

     I first went to Harrow in the summer term.The school had the biggest swimming pool I had ever seen.
It was a good joke to come up behind a naked boy, and push him into the pool.I made quite a habit of
this with boys of my own size or less.
      One day I saw a boy wrapped in a towel on the side of the pool.He was no bigger than I was, so I
thought him a fair game.Coming secretly behind, I pushed him in, holding on to his towel so that it would
not get wet, I was surprised to see an angry face come out from the water, and a being of great strength
making its way by fierce strokes (猛力地划) to the shore.I fled, but in vain.He overtook me, seized me
violently, and threw me into the deepest part of the pool.I soon climbed out on the other side, and found
myself surrounded by a crowd of younger boys."Do you know what you have done?" they said, "It's
Amery; he is in Grade Six.He is champion at gym; he has got his football honor."
     I was frightened and felt ashamed.How could I tell his position when he was wrapped in a bath towel
and so small.He didn't seem pleased at all, so I added in a most brilliant word, "My father,  who is a great man, is also small." At this he laughed, and after some general words about my rude behavior and how I
had better be careful in the future, signified the incident was closed.

1. The writer thought Amery "a fair game" because the boy ________.

A. looked like an animal      
B. was fond of games
C. was of similar size          
D. was good at sports

2. The writer felt "ashamed" because ________.

A. he was laughed at by other boys
B. Amery turned out to be in the same grade
C. he pushed Amery hard and hurt him
D. he played a joke on an outstanding athlete

3. By saying "My father, who is a great man, is also small", the writer  ________.

A. tried to please Amery      
B. challenged Amery
C. threatened Amery        
D. admired his father

4. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. The writer could run faster than Amery.
B. The writer liked playing jokes on boys of all sizes.
C. Amery was a student in Grade Four.
D. Amery forgave the writer for his rude behavior.

5. What does the underlined word "overtook" mean?

A. Catch hold of.  
B. Catch up with.
C. Take a look at.  
D. Shout at.

      In Shanghai's Grand Theater, a fashionable, mainly young audience applauds enthusiastically as Guo
Yong takes center stage.He holds a large bushy tree branch with leaves.Blowing on one of the leaves, he
produces a sound like the singing of birds as he plays a traditional Buyi folk song.Some other musicians
are also playing the traditional instruments from various ethnic groups in China.
     It's the first time such music has ever been performed in the Grand Theater.But all this is the efforts of
Zhu Zheqin, a Cantoneseborn singer, who has made it her mission to help preserve China's traditional
ethnic music.
     Several years ago, after being appointed a United Nations Development Program ambassador, Zhu
traveled through some of China's remotest regions in an attempt to document the traditional music of
various minority groups.In the course other fourmonth trip, she recorded more than a thousand songs.But
she noticed that many of the best musicians were old, and some of the music was at risk of dying out.
     "I was shocked by the beauty of what I heard-it was so good," she says."But it needed support.I hope
to let people see the beauty of these things in the contemporary times."
     So Zhu decided to introduce some of the musicians to a wider audience.By doing this, she hopes to
rekindle (再次点燃) the interest of the younger generation."Young people don't like this music much;
they prefer pop music and love songs.They think these songs are something their grandma sings.This kind
of repackaging gives young people a new door into their heritage."
     Zhu believes China needs to look again at its own roots."China today is basically all Western art; in
our conservatories (音乐学院) Western classical music is the top," she says."For China to really
contribute to the world, we need to go on our own path.So what can represent China today?" The answer, she suggests, is to move from "made in China" to "created in China".

1. From the first paragraph, we learn that ________.

A. the audience are all young people
B. Guo Yong is playing the Buyi folk music
C. Guo Yong is the only minority performer on the stage
D. tree branches make good musical instruments

2. Which of the following is TRUE of Zhu Zheqin?

A.She teaches music in a conservatories.
B.She is helping preserve Chinese ethnic music.
C.She works as an official in the United Nations.
D.She's created all the music for the Grand Theater.

3. Zhu Zheqin traveled to some of China's remotest regions to ________.

A.record the traditional ethnic music
B.help the local musicians play the music
C.show the UN Chinese musical traditions
D.enjoy the music of various ethnic groups

4. What is Zhu Zheqin's idea about Chinese traditional music?

A. It is completely out of date.
B. Only old musicians play it well.
C. It needs changes to attract young people.
D. It is quickly dying out.

5. What does Zhu Zheqin mean in the last paragraph?

A.The traditional music should be repackaged.
B.Chinese conservatories shouldn't teach Western music.
C.China has contributed a lot to the Western art.
D.Only the things created in China can be symbols of China.

     One day Walt Disney had a vision. It was a vision of a place where children and parents could have
fun together. The more Walt dreamed of a "magical park," the more imaginative and elaborate it became.
     The original plans for the park were on 8 acres next to the Burbank studios where his employees and
families could go to relax. Although, World War II put those plans on hold. During the war, Disney had
time to come up with new ideas, and creations for his magical park. It was soon clear that 8 acres
wouldn't be enough.
     Finally in 1953, he had the Stanford Research Institute conduct a survey for a 100-acre site, outside
of Los Angeles. He needed space to build rivers, waterfalls, and mountains; he would have flying
elephants and giant teacups; a fairy-tale castle, moon rockets, and a scenic railway; all inside a magic
kingdom he called "Disneyland."
     The search for the best venue for the park ended in the rural Anaheim, California with a purchase of a
160-acre orange grove near the junction of the Santa Ana Freeway (I-5) and Harbor Boulevard.
     Construction for Disneyland began on July 21, 1954, 12 months before the park was scheduled to
open.
     Some 160-acres of citrus trees had been cleared and 15 houses moved to make room for the park.
However, when the real designing came around, Disney met with inevitable questions. How do you make believable wild animals, that aren't real? How do you make a Mississippi paddle ship? How do you go
about building a huge castle in the middle of Anaheim, California? Disney asked his movie studio staff for
answers. The design of Disneyland was something never done before.   There would be four uniquely
different theme parts: Adventure land , Frontier land , Fantasyland Tomorrow land. Bit by bit, Disneyland
got ready for   Opening Day. The staff worked around the clock to get ready.
     But opening day was a terrible disaster. Beside the terrible opening day conditions, the park did
eventually pick up. By 1965, ten years after opening day, 50 Million visitors had come through the gates.

1. When did Disneyland open?

A. 1953    
B. 1954         
D. 1965      
C. 1955

2. The following statements is true except__________.

A.About 50 million visitors have visited Disneyland so far.
B.Disney must have met many difficulties in building Disneyland.
C.World War II had some influence on the building plan of the Disneyland.
D.Disney was a great man with great imagination and creativity.

3. What can't you see in Disney?

A. rivers, waterfalls, and mountains    
B. flying elephants and giant teacups
D. wild animals                   
C. a huge castle                 
  
4. The underlined phrase in the last paragraph probably means _________.

A. gather      
B. improve   
C. discover      
D. good

5. What's the main idea of the passage?

A.What visitors can enjoy in Disneyland.
B.The difficulties Disney met in building Disneyland
C.How Disneyland came into being
D.A brief introduction to Disneyland

     Every object tells a story. Even the most ordinary objects can present to us powerful images.
Sometimes it is the ordinary nature of these objects that actually makes them so extraordinary.
Such is the case with an old leather shoe in a museum in Alaska. At first glance it does not look like
much. It is a woman's shoe of a style popular in the 1890s. But what is unique(独特的) about this
shoe is where it was found. It was discovered on the Checkout Pass, the famous trail used by the
people seeking gold in Alaska. Who it belonged to or why it was left there is not known. Was it
perhaps dropped by accident as the woman climbed up the 1500 stairs carved outface? Or did she
throw away goods that she didn't need in order to travel lighter?
     Over 100, 000 people with "gold fever" made this trip hoping to become millionaires. Few of
them understood that on their way they would have to cross a harsh wildness. Unprepared for such
a dangerous journey, many died of starvation and exposure to the cold weather.
     The Canadian government finally started requiring the gold seekers to bring one ton of supplies
with them. This was thought to be enough for a person to survive for one year. They would carry
their supplies in backpacks(背包) each weighing up to fifty pounds; it usually took at least 40 trips
to get everything to the top and over the pass. Whoever dropped the shoe must have been a brave
and determined woman. Perhaps she was successful and made it to Alaska. Perhaps she had to turn
back in defeat. No one will ever know for sure, but what we do know is that she took part in one of
the greatest adventures in the 19th century.

1. Which of the following is right?

A. it was found on a famous trail          
B. it was an important clue to life in the past
C. it at one time belonged to a VIP
D. it was a fashionable shoe at that time

2. According to this passage, many people who went to Alaska _______.  

A. eventually became millionaires
B. were not properly equipped
C. were very poor                 
D. brought with them many shoes

3. The Canadian government made gold seekers bring one year's supplies with them so that ___.

A. they would not die of hunger and cold
B. the army would have enough food for fighting a war
C. they would change these goods with the Eskimos
D. the supplies would make Alaska rich

4. No matter what happened to the woman who owned the shoe, _______. 
 
A. she must have been a brave woman.    
B. she certainly dropped the shoe on purpose
C. her adventurous spirit is definitely admired  
D. her other shoes were equally fashionable
 
5. what's the best title of the passage?

A. special shoe whose ower is a woman.      
B. the sad story about the shoe.
C. the old shoe that has a special. story.        
D. gold seekers