In my dual (双重的) profession　 __36__　 an educator and health care provider，I have worked with many children infected with HIV. They have taught me so many things, but I have especially learned that great　 __37__　 can be found in the smallest individuals. Let me tell you about Tyler.

Tyler was　 __38__　 infected with HIV；his mother was also infected. From the very beginning of his life，he was dependent on medications to　 __39__　 him to survive. When he was five, he had a tube inserted in a vein(静脉) in his chest. At times, he also needed extra oxygen to support his　 __40__.

Tyler wasn't　 __41__　 to give up one single moment of his childhood to this deadly disease. It was not　 __42__ to find him playing and racing around his backyard, wearing his medicine?loaded backpack and　 __43__　 his tank of oxygen behind him in his little wagon (小手推车). All of us who knew Tyler were impressed by his pure　 __44__　 in being alive and the energy it gave him. Tyler's mom often　 __45__　 him by telling him that he moved so　 __46__　 she needed to dress him in red. That way，when she peered through the window to check on him playing in the yard，she could quickly　 __47__　 him.

This deadly disease eventually　 __48__　 down Tyler. He grew quite ill and, unfortunately,　 __49__　 did his HIV?infected mother. When it became　 __50__　 that he wasn't going to survive, Tyler's mom talked to him about　 __51__. She comforted him by telling Tyler that she was dying too，and that she would be with him soon in heaven.

A few days before his death，Tyler　 __52__　 to me to come to his hospital bed and　 __53__，“I might die soon. I'm not　 __54__. When I die，please dress me in　 __55__ . Mom promised she's coming to heaven, too.I'll be playing when she gets there, and I want to make sure she can find me.”

36．A.in B．for C．as　 　　　 D．on

37．A.pleasure 　 B．pain 　C．sorrow D．courage

38．A.seriously B．born 　C．unlucky　 　　 D．disappointingly

39．A.cause 　　 B．enable C．make 　 D．lead

40．A.breathing B．living 　C．running D．walking

41．A.happy　 B．willing C．daring 　 D．discouraged

42．A.common B．unusual 　C．surprised 　　 D．ordinary

43．A.dragging B．carrying 　C．pushing D．taking

44．A.character B．joy C．moment　 　　 D．excitement

45．A.comforted 　　　 B．scolded C．teased 　 D．praised

46．A.slowly 　　 B．happily C．quickly D．fast

47．A.know　 　 B．spot 　C．stop 　　 D．observe

48．A.tore　 　　 B．broke C．wore　 　 D．kicked

49．A.neither 　　 B．so C．such　 　 D．nor

50．A.apparent　 　　 B．hopeless C．sure 　　 D．terrible

51．A.life B．dream C．future 　 D．death

52．A.waved B．said 　C．signed 　　 D．explained

53．A.whispered 　　　 B．shouted 　C．cried 　　 D．spoke

54．A.excited　 　 B．surprised C．scared 　 D．happy

55．A.red　 　　 B．white C．bright　 D．beauty

　　Fear can be fun. Many young people queue up to ride very fast and scary roller coasters, screaming but enjoying themselves. Other people like to read “goose bumps (鸡皮疙瘩)” books or watch horror movies at night, scared to death but feeling excited. Why do people like being scared?

　　Fear is an ancient way of surviving. Being scared makes animals, including humans escape from danger and save themselves. It is because of fear that we have lived through millions of years of evolution. Those who lacked a strong fear response were more likely to be killed, leaving the more fearful and careful to pass their genes onto the next generation.

　　How do scientists explain why shaking over such scary things is fun? “Some kids will go to a scary movie and love it and laugh over it, others will feel anxious and hide their faces and some won’t even set foot in the cinema,” said Ned Kalin, a US scientist. “Which kind of person you are depends partly on experiences you’ve had and partly on your genes.”

　　What happens in the brain when something frightens you? Nerves that begin at the eyes and ears lead to a part of the brain called the amygdale. When you suddenly see a snake, for example, the amygdale makes you freeze, sweat, have a quickened heartbeat, or run very fast. However, seeing the snake also uses another part of the brain, the cortex. It analyzes the situation, and if it finds that the snake is only made of rubber it tells your heart and the rest of your body to calm down. Think of the amygdale as the engine and the cortex as the brake.

　　Back to the first question: Why do some people like to make themselves scared? “One reason is that we can play games with fear, find ways to reduce the scariness by looking away or thinking of something else,” Kalin said. “To believe we have control over a situation gives us a feeling of power.” “Scary movies or novels are good practice to prepare young people for the real thing. Thrills such as roller coaster rides also go to the brain’s pleasure centre.”

　　And there might be some evolutionary advantage to being able to adjust this system that is there to protect people.

　　72. How many questions are answered in the passage?

　　A. 2. 　　　B. 3. 　　　C. 4.　　　 D. 5.

　　73. Some people like to be scared because______.

　　A. they are afraid that the fear genes will be passed onto their children

　　B. it’s a good practice to get prepared for the real frightening situation

　　C. it can help them show their own personalities

　　D. they will feel powerful after getting rid of fear

　　74. Which of the following is true about the people who are not easily scared?

　　A. Their cortex is better at analyzing the situations.

　　B. They are more likely to suffer from potential danger.

　　C. They are born unaffected by anything horrible.

　　D. They lack a strong response towards threat.

　　75. What is the best title of the passage?

　　A. Ready to scream? 　　　　B. How to be scared?

　　C. Willing to shake?　　　　D. Why to be scared?

下面是21世纪报中学生英语双语版 (Student Times )刊登的一封读者来信，请你以编辑Henry的身份给这位中学生写封回信。

Dear editor,

I am a new student in Xin Hua Middle School. I hardly talk to my classmates. Sometimes I do want to talk, but I don’t know what to talk about and how to begin a conversation. I feel so lonely. And I spend most of my time studying but I find it’s more difficult and tiring than before, especially spoken English.

Could you give me some advice?

Yours,

Tom

注意：回信的内容包括以下要点，可适当增减细节

1保持微笑，这在与人相处中很重要；

2与同学们友好相处，多交流相同爱好或相互讨论学习问题；

3英语越来越重要；学好语言需要有信心，多开口说；

4可以通过多种方式，如……，让校园生活丰富多彩。

词数120左右。信的开头已写好，不计入总词数。

参考词汇：自信的 confident adj.

丰富多彩的 colorful　 adj.

Dear Tom,

Your problem is a common one among middle school students. Maybe the following advice can help you………

　　　　　　　　　　　　 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 .

yours

Henry

We were a motley (混杂的) crowd of people who took the bus every day that summer 33 years ago. During the early morning 　26 , we sat sleepily with our collars up to our ears.

One of the 　27 was a small grey man who took the bus to the center for senior citizens every morning. He walked with a stoop (驼背) and a sad look on his face when he, with some 　28 , boarded the bus and sat down 　29 behind the driver. No one ever paid much attention to him.　　　　　

Then one morning he said good morning to the driver and 　30 down through the bus before he sat down. The driver nodded guardedly (谨慎地). The rest of us were 　31 and continued the ride with our collars up to our ears.　　　

The next day, the old man boarded the bus 　32 , smiled and said in a loud voice, “A very good morning to you all!” Some of us looked up, 　33 , and murmured (咕哝) “Good morning” in reply.

The following weeks we were more 　34 . He was dressed in a nice old suit and a wide tie and his thin hair had been 　35 combed. He said good morning to us every day and we 　36 began to nod and talk to him.　

One morning he had a bunch of wild flowers in his hand. The driver 　37 smilingly and asked, “Have a(n) 　38 , Charlie?” He nodded shyly and said yes. We whistled and clapped him. Charlie bowed and 　39 the flowers before he sat down. Every morning after that Charlie always brought a flower. The men started to 　40 with him, talk to each other, and 　41 the newspaper.　　　

The summer went by, and the autumn was closing in 　42 one morning Charlie wasn’t 　43 at his usual stop. He wasn’t there the next day and the day after that. The bus, once filled with 　44 and flowers, 　45 to silence.

Many years have passed by, but I will never forget the old man, who left such an impression on me that summer.

26. A. act　　　　　 B. ride　　　　　　　 C. class　　　　　　 D. show

27. A. performers　　 B. workers　　　　 C. passengers D. drivers

28. A. hesitation　　　 B. trick　　　　　　 C. problem　　 D. difficulty

29. A. almost 　　　　 B. alone　　　　　　 C. especially　 　　 D. curiously

30. A. smiled　　　　　 B. sighed　　　　　 C. shouted　　　 D. screamed

31. A. delighted　　　 B. silent　　　　　　 C. anxious　　　 D. ashamed

32. A. helplessly　　　 B. cautiously　　　 C. peacefully　 D. energetically

33. A. scared　　　　　 B. satisfied　　　　 C. amazed　　　 D. annoyed

34. A. encouraged　　 B. moved　　　　　 C. excited D. surprised

35. A. casually　　　　 B. carefully　　　　 C. strongly　　 D. basically

36. A. suddenly B. gradually 　　 C. never 　　　　　 D. ever

37. A. turned in B. turned up 　 C. turned around 　　　 D. turned away　

38. A. girlfriend 　　 B. success　　　　 C. job　　　 D. advantage

39. A. sent　　　　　　　 B. threw　　　　　　 C. waved D. gave

40. A. play　　　　　 B. joke 　　　　　　 C. fight 　　　　　 D. exchange　

41. A. report　　　　　 B. print　　　　　　 C. sell　　 D. share

42. A. for 　　　　 B. since 　　　　 C. when 　　　　 D. so

43. A. waiting　　　　　 B. working 　　　 C. expecting　 D. wondering

44. A comments　　　 B. sights　　　　　　 C. laughter　　　 D. people

45. A. set back　　　　 B. held back　　　 C. looked back D. came back