The train was so full that we had little chance ________ notes.

1. A.
   comparing
2. B.
   compared
3. C.
   to compare
4. D.
   compare

12-year-old John Thomas Robertson is a born train fan. "I’ve liked trains probably from the day I was born," he told Good Morning America. "When I was very little," he said, "my grandpa got me a train model. I would just watch it go round for hours and hours."

When Robertson finally had the opportunity to ride on a train, he felt great. His journey was so mind-blowing that he couldn’t keep it to himself: he decided to take all his classmates to go on a ride with him. When he found that some of his classmates couldn’t pay the fare, he collected cans (罐子) and bottles and raised more than $1,000 for them.

That trip was such a happy one that he made it a yearly action. "It never gets boring for some reason; it’s just fun," he said. "It really lets people get away from their busy life and have fun.

Every October, Robertson takes a new group of children to ride on the train —but now, he has a problem. Several disabled children were refused because the train was not accessible (可用的) to disabled people. "He was angry to think that children of his own age couldn’t ride a train," his mother said.

But he wouldn’t say no: he recently sent a letter to the train office for help. To his surprise, the leader, Ty Pennington, accepted the letter in person. He said that he and his workers would work on making a train accessible to disabled people.

1.The first time John Thomas Robertson took a train, ________.

A．he was frightened by it

B．he acted as a driver

C．he watched it for hours

D．he fell in love with it

2.The author says John Thomas Robertson is a born train fan, because he ________.

A．was greatly attracted to trains since early childhood

B．said so in Good Morning America

C．took a group of disabled children to travel by train

D．was taken to a train the day he was born

3.The underlined words "mind-blowing" can be replaced by ________.

A．important         B．terrible           C．amazing           D．disappointing

4.The disabled children were refused to get on the train because _________.

A．the trains then weren’t accessible to the disabled

B．Robertson had not saved enough money for the tickets

C．they couldn’t afford the train tickets

D．the driver would not allow them to do so

5.According to the last paragraph, we can see that Robertson is a ________ child.

A．helpful and crazy                       B．kind and clever

C．kind but boring                         D．lazy but kind

There were smiling children all the way. Clearly they knew at what time the train passed their homes and they made it their business to stand along the railway, wave to complete strangers and cheer them up as they rushed towards Penang. Often whole families stood outside their homes and waved and smiled as if those on the trains were their favorite relatives. This is the simple village people of Malaysia. I was moved.
I had always traveled to Malaysia by plane or car, so this was the first time I was on a train. I did not particularly relish the long train journey and had brought along a dozen magazines to read and reread. I looked about the train. There was not one familiar face. I sighed and sat down to read my Economics.
It was not long before the train was across the Causeway and in Malaysia. Johore Baru was just another city like Singapore, so I was tired of looking at the crowds of people as they hurried past. As we went beyond the city, I watched the straight rows of rubber trees and miles and miles of green. Then the first village came into sight. Immediately I came alive; I decided to wave back.
From then on my journey became interesting. I threw my magazines into the waste basket and decided to join in Malaysian life. Then everything came alive. The mountains seemed to speak to me. Even the trees were smiling. I stared at everything as if I was looking at it for the first time.
The day passed fast and I even forgot to have my lunch until I felt hungry. I looked at my watch and was surprised that it was 3:00 pm. Soon the train pulled up at Butterworth. I looked at the people all around me. They all looked beautiful. When my uncle arrived with a smile, I threw my arms around him to give him a warm hug (拥抱). I had never done this before. He seemed surprised and then his weather-beaten face warmed up with a huge smile. We walked arm in arm to his car.
I looked forward to the return journey.
【小题1】 The author expected the train trip to be________ .

Reading to dogs is an unusual way to help children improve their literacy skills（读写能力）. With their shining brown eyes, wagging tails, and unconditional love, dogs can provide the nonjudgmental listeners needed for a beginning reader to gain confidence, according to Intermountain Therapy Animals (ITA) in Salt Lake City. The group says it is the first program in the country to use dogs to help develop literacy in children, with the introduction of Reading Education Assistance Dogs (READ).

The Salt Lake City Public Library is sold on the idea. “Literacy specialists admit that children who read below the level of their fellow pupils are often afraid of reading aloud in a group, often have lower self-respect, and regard reading as a headache.” said Lisa Myton, manager of the children’s department.

Last November the two groups started “Dog Day Afternoon” in the children’s department of the main library. About 25 children attended each of the four Saturday-afternoon classes, reading for half an hour. Those who attended three of the four classes received a “pawgraphed” book at the last class.

The program was so successful that the library plans to repeat it in April. According to Dana Thumpowsky, public relations manager.

1.．What is mainly discussed in the text?

A．A special reading program.               B．Advantages of raising dogs.

C．Service in a public library.             D．Children’s reading difficulties.

2.Specialists use dogs to listen to children reading because they think ________.

    A．dogs are young children’s best friends 

    B．dogs can provide encouragement for shy children

    C．children can play with dogs while reading

    D．children and dogs understand each other

3.By saying “The Salt Lake City Public Library is sold on the idea,” the writer means the library ____________.

    A．accepts the idea put forward by ITA      B．uses dogs to attract children

    C．has opened a children’s department      D．has decided to train some dogs

4.A “pawgraphed” book is most probably _________.

    A．a book used in Saturday classes          B．a prize for the children    

C．a book written by the children           D．a gift from parents

London Underground

The world’s first subway was built in London in 1863. At the time, the government was looking for a way to reduce traffic problems in the city of London. The poor areas of the city were so crowded with people that it was almost impossible for horse carriages to get through. The city officials were interested in trying to make it possible for workers to live outside of London and travel easily to work each day. If people had a cheap and convenient way that they could depend on to go to and from work, they would relocate their homes outside of the city. This would help ease(减轻) the pressure of too many people living in the poor parts of London. From these problems, the idea of the London Underground, the first subway system was born.

The plans for building the Underground met with several problems and delays, but the fast track was finally opened in January 1863. A steam train pulled the cars along the fast underground track which was 6 kilometers (3. 7 miles) long. About 30,000 people got on the subway the first day.  Riders were treated to comfortable seats (standing up while the train was moving was not allowed), and pleasant decorations inside each of the cars. However, the smoke from the engine soon filled the air in the tunnels with ash and soot(煤灰), as well as chemical gases. Fans had to be put in the tunnels later to keep the air clean enough for people to breathe. Even with its problems, riding in the Underground did catch on. It carried 9 million riders in its first year.

40. What led the British government to build the London Underground？

A.  Traffic jams and pollution.

B.  Population and pollution.

C.  Overcrowding and traffic jams.

D.  The poverty and subway problems. 

41. How did the London Underground solve the smoke problem？

A.  It made the tunnels larger.

B.  It put fans in the tunnels.

C.  It cleaned the chemical gases in the tunnels. 

D.  It reduced the number of passengers riding in the train.

42. The underlined phrase “catch on” most probably means “______”.

A.  be troublesome         

B.  become popular and fashionable

C.  keep up with           

D.  seize

43. Which of the following is TRUE？

A.  To relocate the workers’ homes outside London，the government built the subway.

B.  There were so many problems and delays that in 18th century the first subway opened.

C.  The subway greatly eased the pressure of traffic.

D.  There were not enough seats for the passengers the first day the subway opened.