Except for the Indians, the earliest backpackers in America were frontiersmen (边疆居民), who walked in
the wilderness looking either for necessities such as food and water or for sources of wealth such as fur and
gold. For them backpacking was a way of survival or a means of achieving what one day would be called the
"American dream". Today, however, many people enjoy backpacking as a recreational activity. Shouldering a
pack and leaving behind the world of telephone, television and traffic promise an exciting experience. Testing
one's stamina (耐力) and skills and challenging a sense of one's place in the natural world can be rewarding.
Moreover, backpacking is an activity that can last any length for time and can be enjoyed alone or with friends.
Then too, a backpacking trip may be organized within a day or two. The backpacker and his friends have only
to decide on their destination and then organize the all-important kit (工具包), whose contents they must depend
on throughout their trip. A map, a compass, a flashlight, along with first-aid equipment, food, and extra clothing
can be rounded up without much difficulty. Once the backpackers have left word about where they go in a note
on the refrigerator door or in a message on an answering machine, they can look forward to an adventure that
will lift the spirit and encourage the soul. Their outing will enable them to return in a short time to the age of
technology with the courage and independence of Natty Bumppo, who did indeed belong to the age of the
frontier.

1. The passage mainly discusses _____. 　

A. the early backpackers 　　
B. how backpacking started 　　
C. important tips on backpacking 　　
D. why people of today are interested in backpacking

A. had no recreation in life 　　
B. did backpacking for a living 　　
C. enjoyed backpacking very much 　　
D. had better skills than backpackers today  

3. It seems that the writer of the passage thinks that backpacking today is _____. 　　

A. a waste of time 　　
B. a great adventure 　　
C. a rewarding experience 　　
D. a means to achieve American Dreams

4. One of the advantages of backpacking is that _____. 　　

A. it is not so challenging as other activities 　　
B. it can help people to establish a link with nature 　　
C. it does not require people to decide on a destination 　　
D. it is a group activity and can cure a person's loneliness

     Reading is not the only way to gain knowledge of the work in the past.There is another large reservoir
(知识库) which may be called experience, and the college students will find that every craftsman (工匠)
has something he can teach and will generally teach gladly to any college student who does not look down
upon them.The information from them differs from that in textbooks and papers chiefly in that its theoretical
(理论的) part-the explanations of why things happen-is frequently quite fantastic (神奇的). But the
demonstration (示范) and report of what happens,and how it happens are correct even if the reports are in
completely unscientific terms.Presently the college students will learn, in this case also, what to accept and
what to reject. One important thing for a college student to remember is that if Aristotle could talk to the
fisherman, so can he. 　　
     Another source of knowledge is the vast store of traditional practices handed down from father to son,
or mother to daughter, of old country customs,of folklore (风俗). All this is very difficult for a college
student to examine, for much knowledge and personal experience is needed here to separate good plants
from wild grass.The college students should learn to realize and remember how much of real value science
has found in this wide, confused wilderness and how often scientific discoveries of what had existed in this
area long age.

1. In the last paragraph the phrase "this wide, confused wilderness" refers to _____.

A. personal experience　
B. wild weeds among good plants
C. the information from the parents　
D. the vast store of traditional practices

2. Which of the following statements is supported by the passage?

A. The college students have trouble separating good plants from wild grass
B. Craftsman's experience is usually unscientific
C. The contemptuous (傲慢的) college students will receive nothing from craftsmen
D. Traditional practices are as important as experience for the college students

3. The author advises the college students to ______.

A. be contemptuous to the craftsman
B. be patient in helping the craftsman with scientific terms
C. learn the craftsman's experience by judging it carefully
D. gain the craftsman's experience without rejection

4. The main idea of this passage is about ______.

A. what to learn from the parents
B. how to gain knowledge
C. why to learn from craftsman
D. how to deal with experience

　Our boat floated on, between walls of forest which were too thick to allow us a view of the land we were
passing through, although we knew from the map that our river must from time to time be passing through
chains of hills which crossed the jungle plains. Nowhere did we find a place where we could have landed:
where the jungle did not actually spread down into the river, banks of soft mud prevented us going ashore.
In any case, what would we have gained by landing? The country was full of snakes and other dangerous
creatures and the jungle was so thick that one would be able to advance only slowly, cutting one's way with
knives the whole way. So we stayed in the boat, hoping that when we reached the sea, a friendly fisherman
would pick us up and take us to civilization. 　　
     We lived on fish, any fruit and nuts we could pick up out of the water. As we had no fire, we had to eat
everything, including the fish, raw. I had never tasted raw fish before, and I must say I did not much enjoy
the experience: perhaps sea-fish which don't live in the mud are less tasteless. After eating my fish, I lay back
and dreamed of such things as fried chicken and rice, and ice cream. In the never-ending heat of the jungle, ice
cream was a particularly frequent dream.　　
     As for water, there was a choice. We could drink the muddy river water, or die of thirst. We drank the
water. Men who have just escaped what had appeared to certain death lose all worries about such small things
as diseases caused by dirty water. In fact, none of us suffered from any illness as a result. One day we passed
another village, but fortunately nobody saw us. We did not wish to risk being taken prisoners a second time:
we might not be so lucky as to escape in a stolen boat again.

1. The only thing that they could see in the boat was _______. 　　

A. chains of hills 　　　　
B. high walls
C. vast land 　　　　　　　
D. tall trees 　

2. They were prevented from landing because they could not _______. 　　

A. find the place marked on the map 　　 　　
B. go through the thick forest 　　
C. go across the soft mud 　　　　　　　　 　
D. see the plains 　

3. This passage is mainly about ______. 　　

A. the problem of landing 　　　 　
B. a terrible experience 　　
C. walls of forest　　　　　　　　
D. the fishermen's worries 　

4. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage? 　　

A. The author and his partners were trapped during scientific exploration. 　　
B. They were floating on a small boat in the jungle without help. 　　
C. The dirty water they drank didn't threaten their lives. 　　
D. They had no food or drinking water prepared.