Yorkshire, England was the setting for two great novels(小说) of the 19th century. These were Charlotte Bronte’s - Jane Eyre and Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights. The youngest sister, Anne, was also a gifted novelist, and her books have the same extraordinary, quality as her sisters. Their father was Patrick Bronte born in Ireland.  He moved with his wife, Maria Bronte, and their   six small children to Haworth in Yorkshire in 1820. Soon after, Mrs. Bronte and the two eldest children died, leaving the father to care for the remaining three girls and a boy.

Charlotte was born in 1816. Emily was born in 1818 and Anne in 1820. Their brother Branwell was born in 1817.Left to themselves, the children wrote and told stories and walked over the hills. They grew up largely self-educated. Branwell showed a great interest in drawing. The girls were determined to earn money for his art education. They took positions as teachers or taught children in their homes.

As children they had all written many stories. Charlotte, as a young girl, alone wrote 22 books, each with 60 to 100 pages of small handwriting. Therefore, they turned to writing for income. By 1847, Charlotte had written The Professor; Emily, Wuthering Heights; and Anne, Agnes Grey. After much difficulty Anne and Emily found a publisher (出版商), but there was no interest shown in Charlotte’s book. (It was not published until 1859.) However, one publisher expressed an interest in seeing more of her work. Jane Eyre was already started, and she hurriedly finished it.

It was accepted at once; thus each of the sisters had a book published in 1847. Jane Eyre was immediately successful; the other two, however, did not do so well people did not like Wuthering Heights. They said it was too wild, too animal-like.  But gradually it came to be considered one of the finest novels in the English language. Emily lived only a short while after the publication of her book, and Anne died in 1849.

Charlotte published Shirley in 1849, and Villette in1853. In 1854 she married Arthur Bell Nicholls. But only a year later, she died of tuberculosis (肺结核) as her sisters had.

1. What did the Bronte sisters want to do for Branwell Bronte?

A. Help him write stories.

B. Help him get trained in art.

C. Teach him how to draw well.

D. Teach him how to educate himself.

2. We know from the text that

A. Jane Eyre was published in 1847

B. Charlotte Brontë wrote 22 books in all

C. the Brontë sisters received good education

D. Patrick Brontë helped his daughters with their writing

3. Which of the following was published after the death of its writer?

A. Shirley.

B. Villette.

C. Agnes Grey.

D. The Professor.

4. The underlined words “the other two” in the 5th paragraph refer to

A. Shirley and Villette

B. The Professor and Agnes Grey

C. Agnes Grey and Wuthering Heights

D. The Professor and Wuthering Heights

5. What do we know about the Brontë sisters from the text?

A. Their novels interested few publishers.

B. None of them had more than two books published.

C. None of them lived longer than 40 years old.

D. Emily was the least successful of the three.

Last month, NASA announced it was sending one robot to Mars, but after two weeks, it decided there was enough money for two. The robots will be sent up within two weeks of each other in May and June of 2003 from Kennedy space Center. If all goes well, the two spacecraft(宇宙飞船)will touch down on Mars, after a seven-and-a-half-month space flight, on January 2 and 20, 2004.

The robots, each weighing 150 kilograms can cover 100 meters per day. They are designed to be able to examine the mineral content of the soil, and their special camera will take pictures of the lands and hills. Although they will be under control from Earth, the robots are able to move more freely compared to those sent up before them.

The actual landing points have not been determined yet, but the scientists say it will be in areas where they hope to find water.

1. According to the news report, scientists plan to send robots up to Mars to _______.

A. find out whether there is water on Mars

B. see if robots can find minerals there

C. test how fast robots can drive there

D. prove that robots can work on Mars

2. How long in between will the two robots be sent to Mars?

A. 1 year.

B. 7.5 months.

C. 2 months.

D. 2 weeks.

3. One of the important jobs for the robots on Mars is to ________.

A. study the Soil

B. Walk everywhere

C. test the new camera

D. find a suitable landing point

4. We can infer from the last sentence that scientists

A. have changed the landing points many times

B. hope to land the robots on the surface of water

C. are still working on the plan

D. know where they can find water

People used to sit a whole lot. You would walk down the street or drive down the road, and there they would be, out on the doorsteps, sitting. You could go down to the store and sit on the bench out front in the summer or around the fire in the winter. There were sitting benches out in the town square. At the garage, there were straight-backed chairs. There among the oilcans and tires and spare parts, you could kick back and sit.

Houses used to have sitting rooms, where the grown-ups would go after Sunday dinner. Mom and Dad, Grandpa and Aunt Ruby would sit and digest (消化) the fried chicken and talk about Aunt Ethel. s illness, and how well the minister did today. Outside, the children would play, and the afternoon would pass by in a comfortable haze (悠闲的氛围).

That sort of thing looks like doing nothing. A recharging battery (正充电的电池) doesn’t look as if it’s doing anything either. Sitting restores your soul. If you want to enjoy a truly full life, don’t just do something—sit there.

1. What message does the author try to get through to us?

A. People should make better use of their sitting room.

B. People should spend less time watching TV.

C. People should pass down their good habits.

D. People should take things easy for their own good.

2. We can learn from the second paragraph that

A. people lived a more restful life in the past

B. towns were built to make living convenient

C. small town garages had a lot to offer

D. people enjoyed going out for a drive

3. The sitting room mentioned in the text used to be a place for

A. eating food

B. watching TV

C. gathering together

D. playing with children

4. From the text we know the Writer believes

A. sitting has a good spiritual effect

B. sitting helps people remember the past

C. a sitting room may have different purposes

D. a sitting room is important for the old

So, with the money Lublin founded “Dress for Success” and began collecting women’s clothes which were still in good condition but which their owners no longer needed. “So many women have clothes lying around that they will never wear again,” one of Lublin’s assistants says. “Nancy’s idea is so simple and yet so important to women.”

Many women come to Lublin’s office before going to a job interview. Here, they receive a suit, shoes and any other things they need. Since it was set up, more than 1000 women have turned to “Dress for Success” for help. Many of them have won jobs. Some have found jobs after being out of work for many years. Jenny, a 32-year-old woman who was recently hired as a law-firm office manager says, “I made a good impression(印象)because of. Dress for Success.”

1. What can we learn from the text?

A. Nancy’s grandfather lent her the money to set up the office.

B. Nancy’s office gathers used clothes from women.

C. Low-income women can get jobs at “Dress for Success”.

D. Nancy set up “Dress for Success” to make money.

2. “Dress for Success” attracts many women because they ________.

A. like to wear different clothes

B. like the design of the dresses

C. prefer buying clothes at a low price

D. need to look smart when looking for a job

3. From what Jenny says, we know that _______ .

A. she got a lot of good ideas from Nancy

B. she is working happily at her present job

C. clothes from Nancy’s office helped to get her a job

D. “Dress for Success” has a good business relation with her firm

4. What would be a good title for the text?

A. Keep Your Old Clothes

B. A Helping Hand for Women

C. Nancy: A Successful Law Student

D. A Successful Clothing Business

This seemed hopeful, so he made a note of the address and set off in search of the agency. He found it in a narrow street just off the main road. The woman at the desk gave him a bright smile as he entered and, after Peter had explained what sort of room he was looking for, he paid two pounds for a list of about half a dozen landladies who had rooms to let.

1. What does the text mainly describe?

A. Peter’s room-hunting experience.

B. Peter’s determination to find a room.

C. The difficulties in finding rooms.

D. The housing market.

2. Peter’s most important consideration in choosing a room was that it should be

A. neat and tidy

B. away from noise

C. of the right size

D. warm in winter

3. The underlined word “this” in the second paragraph refers to ________.

A. a list of rooms to let

B. the newspaper Peter bought

C. the notice in the restaurant

D. Johnson’s Housing Agency

    ◆The American actor Tommy Lee Jones, 54, has married his longtime girlfriend, Dawn Maria Laurel, 36, in a private wedding in San Antonio. “It wasn’t a big to-do,” said Fred Biery, a U. S. District Judge who performed the service. He refused to discuss things further. “These are very private people,” he said.

    ◆Loretta Lynn is being treated for a very bad cold in Tennessee and will miss several appearances. The country singer, 65, was admitted to a hospital near her home in Hurricane Mills. “She is in good condition, but the doctors are watching her closely, ”a spokeswoman said.

The French-Algerian singer Enrico Macias was named a United Nations peace messenger. Enrico joins eight other people who act as goodwill envoys(使者)for the United Nations, among them are the writer Elie Wiesel and the basketball player Magic Johnson.

1. We can learn from the text that Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec is ________.

A. a figure in a film

B. a dancer in a show

C. a country singer

D. a prize winner

2. We know from the text that ________.

A. Moulin Rouge won the top prize in a film festival

B. Loretta Lynn is under the doctors’ care

C. eight people serve as the UN goodwill envoys

D. Fred Biery was Tommy Lee Jones assistant

3. This text most probably appears in ________. 

A. a book on film stars

B. a film review in a magazine

C. a newspaper

D. a notice

Joshua Bechtold, 14, and the other students at the Riverside School in Lyndonville, Vermont, worked many months to get Helios ready for the 1999 American Tour de Sol ( "Sol" is the Latin word for "sun"). They named their car after Helios, the sun god in Greek mythology (神话).

 The 4-year-old Tour de Sol encourages the use of "green", or environmentally friendly, cars to help reduce pollution and save energy. It's not a race. Cars are judged on fuel efficiency (耗油量) rather than speed. In the week-long event, 44 cars took the 350-mile tour from Waterbury, Connecticut, to Lake George, New York. Of the 23 student cars, Helios was the only one built by middle school students. A teacher drove Helios, but the children talked with people wherever they stopped along the road. "That was my favorite part," says Anna Browne, 15. "We explained how the car runs." Due in part to old, inefficient batteries (电池), Helios finished fourth—out of four—in its kind, the sun-powered class. "We were there for the fun of it," Anna says. "We're proud of Helios," says Ariel Gleicher, 14. "It's a car that's good for the environment."

1. What is special about the car Helios in the text?

A. It was built by middle school students.

B. It has an attractive design.

C. It was made in 1971.

D. It won the fourth prize.

2. How many sun-powered cars took part in the race?

A. 1.

B. 4.

C. 23.

D. 44.

3. What would be the best title for the text?

A. The Making of Helios

B. 1999 American Tour de Sol

C. Sun-powered Cars on the Road

D. Use of Green Cars in Connecticut

4. The students felt proud of Helios because

A. it could run as far as 350 miles

B. it was favored by many children

C. it had high-quality batteries

D. it was driven by clean energy

This week my patients had questioned everything. My patient with high b1ood pressure had stopped coming to her treatment on the advice of an Internet chat room. A woman who had a mental problem was substituting(用……替代) St. John’s word for her medication. Now Mrs. Jones was imagining problems. I rolled my eyes.

My second reaction was worry. As I looked through her record, I tried to figure out why she would have blurred vision, but nothing in her record explained the new problem. She’s probably just anxious, I thought. Still, she wouldn’t have called if she had been all right. I picked up the phone.

 What I next felt can only be described as delight. Before I made the call, the nurse ran in：Mrs. Jones called. Her vision is fine. Turns out she picked up the wrong glasses when she left the office. The X-ray technician has been having the same problem. I let out a laugh. Mrs. Jones had been right. Her vision had been blurred. Now we know why.

Finally I felt shame. I came to realize what Mrs. Jones had taught me. I had first known she was wrong, that her anxiety had clouded her judgment instead, my medical training had clouded mine. Now I feel thankful that Mrs. Jones figured it out before I made a mistake about our relationship. Patients come to me for my help. They pay me to listen, diagnose(诊断), treat and talk. That suggests trust：I must remember that, and trust them too.

1. The writer smiled while reading the patient message because he knew ________.

A. Mrs. Jones would ask for more tests

B. the patient was being unreasonable

C. the nurse was joking with him

D. Mrs. Jones Would call him

2. What has caused Mrs. Jones’ eye problem?

A. Wrong glasses.

B. Medical checkup.

C. Her own imagination.

D. Chatting on the Internet.

3. The underlined words “clouded her judgment” in the last paragraph probably mean ________.

A. made her less trustful toward the doctor

B. put her in control of her own feelings

C. made her less able to think clearly

D. put her in a dangerous situation

    There are many social science majors in large companies who fill important positions.  For example, a number of research studies found that social science majors had achieved greater managerial success than those who had technical training or pre-professional courses. Studies show that social science majors are most suited for change, which is the leading feature (特点) of the kind of high-speed, high-pressure, high-tech world we now live in.

    Social science majors are not only experiencing success in their long-term company jobs, but they are also finding jobs more easily. A study showed that many companies had filled a large percentage of their entry-level positions with social science graduates. The study also showed that the most sought-after quality in a person who was looking for a job was communication skills, noted as “very important” by 92 percent of the companies. Social science majors have these skills, often without knowing how important they are. It is probably due to these skills that they have been offered a wide variety of positions.

    Finally, although some social science majors may still find it more difficult than their technically trained classmates to land the first job, recent graduates report that they don't regret their choice of study.

1. By saying that “you may have had the last laugh” in the first paragraph, the author means that you may have

A. shared the jokes with computer majors.

B. earned as much as computer majors

C. found jobs more easily than computer majors

D. stopped joking about computer majors

2. Compared with graduates of other subjects, social science graduates

A. are ready to change when situations change

B. are better able to deal with difficulties

C. are equally good at computer skills

D. are likely to give others pressure

3. The underlined word “land” in the last paragraph probably means

A. keep for some time

B. successfully get

C. immediately start

D. lose regretfully

4. According to the text，what has made it easy for socialお science graduates to find jobs?

A. Willingness to take low—paid jobs．

B. Readiness to gain high—tech knowledge．

C. Skills in expressing themselves．

D. Part—time work experience．

The most dangerous test happens when the new plane is going through test flights in the air. The test pilot must find out exactly what happens when the engines (发动机) are all shut off at once. The plane begins to fall like a stone. It is the pilot's job to find out how he can get control of the plane again. These two tests are examples of how planes are made safe before they ever carry passengers.

1. By doing the “tank test”, the engineers can find out

A. the amount of air in the plane

B. the strength of the plane structure

C. the pressure inside and outside the plane

D. the power of the airplane engines

2. What will happen to the plane under the “tank test”?

A. It will be broken.

B. It will he made stronger.

C. It will be filled with water.

D. It will be tested by pilots.

3. According to the text, why are test flights most dangerous?

A. The plane may explode in the air.

B. The pilot may lose control of the plane.

C. The engines may be damaged.

D. Too much air may get into the plane.

4. What might be the most suitable title for the text?

A. Two Important Tests on Airplanes.

B. The Importance of Flying Safely.

C. The Danger of Testing Airplanes.

D. How Airplanes Are Made and Tested.