During his life Dr James Naismith worked as a doctor, taught P.E and wrote several books. While he never
thought it very important, Dr Naismith is today best known for one thing. He was the inventor of basketball.
     Dr James Naismith was born in Canada in 1861 and his first job was at a special sports school in the USA.
One day the school principal told James he was having a problem with the students. Because of heavy snow,
the students could not go outside. He told James that they needed a sport the boys could play indoors and gave
the teacher two weeks to think of something.
     It was on the very last day that James came up with his idea. The "birth of basketball" is said to be on
December 21, 1891, when two teams from the school played the first game. It was quite different from the
basketball games of today. It had 9 players on each team and footballs were used instead of basketballs. Soon
after, the game changed to 5 players on each side, using special "basketballs" through nets. Although Dr
Naismith did not live to see basketball become the worldwide game it is today, in 1936, just three years before
his death, basketball became an Olympic sport at the games in Berlin.

1. Which of the following things did Dr James Naismith NOT do?

A. Teach P.E in school.
B. Write some books.
C. Work at hospital.
D. Take part in the Olympic Games.

2. In which season did Dr Naismith invent basketball?

A. Summer.
B. Winter.
C. Spring.
D. Autumn.

3. Why is December 21 thought to be the birthday of basketball?

A. It was on this day that Dr Naismith came up with his idea for basketball.
B. It was the day on which Dr Naismith was born.
C. It was the day on which Dr Naismith was asked by his boss to invent a new game.
D. It was on this day that the first game of basketball was played.

4. At the time of Dr Naismith's death, which of the following was true?

A. Basketball was already a worldwide game.
B. Basketball was played with 9 players on each side.
C. Basketball was an Olympic sport.
D. Basketball was still played using footballs.

5. What would be the best title for this story?

A. History of Basketball
B. How Basketball Has Changed
C. Father of Basketball
D. Happy Birthday, Basketball

     Early one morning the subinspector at a station at the other end of the town rang me. An
elephant was damaging the town. Would I please come and do something about it?
     I did not know what I could do, but I got onto a horse and started out.  I took my gun,
maybe too small to kill an elephant, but I thought the noise might scare him. Various local
people stopped me on the way and told me about the elephant's doings.
     It was not, of course, a wild elephant, but a tame one. It had been chained up but last
night it had broken its chain and escaped. Its owner had set out to run after it, but had taken
the wrong direction. He was now twelve hours' journey away, and in the morning the elephant
had suddenly appeared in the town. It had already destroyed somebody's bamboo hut (棚屋),
killed a cow and turned over fruitstalls.
     I came round the hut and saw a man's dead body sprawling in the mud.  He was an Indian,
and he could not have been dead many minutes. The people said that the elephant caught him
with its trunk, put its foot on his back and grounded him into the earth. This was the rainy season
and he was lying on his stomach in the soft mud, the peacebreaker standing beside, looking
innocent.
     As I lifted my gun, I hesitated a few seconds. Then I fired. That was a shot that did for him.
     You could see the pain of it knock the last strength from his legs. But in falling he seemed for
a moment to rise, his trunk reaching skyward like a tree. He trumpeted, for the first and only time. 
And then down he came, with a crash that shook the ground.

1. Which of the following statements about the author is TRUE?

A. He was an Indian.
B. He knew elephants well.
C. He was not a local villager.
D. He was the owner of the elephant

2. The elephant made so much trouble because ________.

A. its owner treated him cruelly
B. it got out of control
C. it hated the village people
D. it was a wild elephant

3. The underlined words "the peacebreaker" in Paragraph 4 refer to ________.

A. the elephant              
B. the dead man
C. the author                
D. the subinspector

4. It can be inferred that the author felt ________ when he shot the elephant.

A. excited    
B. sad        
C. frightened   
D. happy

     I told my friend Graham that I often cycle two miles from my house to the town centre but
unfortunately there is a big hill on the route. He replied, "You mean fortunately." He explained
that I should be glad of the extra exercise that the hill provided.
     My attitude to the hill has now changed. I used to grumble as I approached it but now I tell
myself the following. This hill will exercise my heart and lungs. It will help me to lose weight and
get fit. It will mean that I live longer. This hill is my friend. Finally I comfort myself with the thought
of all those silly people who pay money to go to a gym and sit on stationery exercise bicycles
when I can get the same value for free. I have a smile of satisfaction as I reach the top of the hill.
     Problems are there to be faced and overcome. We cannot achieve anything with an easy life.
Helen Keller was the first deaf and blind person to gain a university degree. Her activism and
writing proved inspirational. She wrote, "Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet.  Only
through experiences of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition
inspired and success achieved."
     One of the main determinants of success in life is our attitude towards adversity (逆境). From
time to time we all face hardships, problems, accidents,  afflictions and difficulties. Some are of our
making but many confront us through no fault of our own.  While we cannot choose the adversity
we can choose our attitude towards it.
     Douglas Bader was 21 when in 1931 he had both legs cut off following a flying accident. He
was determined to fly again and went on to become one of the leading flying aces in the Battle of
Britain with 22 aerial victories over the Germans. He was an inspiration to others during the war.
He said, "Don't listen to anyone who tells you that you can't do this or that. That's nonsense. Make
up your mind, you'll never use crutches (拐杖) or a stick, then have a go at everything. Go to school
, join in all the games you can. Go anywhere you want to. But never, never let them persuade you
that things are too difficult or impossible."
     The biographies(传记)of great people are full of examples of how they took steps to overcome
the difficulties they faced. The common thread is that they did not become depressed. They chose
their attitude. They chose to be positive. They took on the challenge. They won.
Nevertheless, there is still the problem of how you change your attitude towards adversity.

1. Which of the following is TRUE according to the author of the  passage?

A. Climbing hills on bicycles is the best way to take exercise.
B. People are silly to pay to go to the gym.
C. Those who want to achieve success can't expect to live an easy life.
D. People's attitude towards adversity is the only factor that determines whether they will succeed.

2. By quoting what Douglas Bader said, the author intends to tell us "________"．

A. Failure is the mother of success.
B. A fall into the pit, a gain in your wit.
C. If you venture nothing, you will have nothing.
D. Nothing is difficult to the man who will try.

3. Following this passage, the author will further talk about ________.

A. how his friend helped him to change his attitude towards  the adversity he faced
B. what steps to take to change your attitude towards the  adversity you face
C. what great people have in common
D. why it is important to keep optimistic in face of adversity

4. Which of the following can best function as the title of the passage?

A. Face Adversity with a Smile
B. Different Attitudes towards Adversity
C. Nothing is Impossible
D. Life Is Full of Adversity