Last year when Tom graduated from school, he came to Taibei. He didn't like to work on his father's farm and hoped to find a job in a big city. He went from one company to another but no one wanted him. With little money left, he got to the station, sad and tired. All he wanted to do was go back to his small town. It was very late at night and the station was full of people. They were waiting to buy tickets of the last train. He bought the last ticket, and he was very happy.
At that time, a woman with a crying baby walked to him and asked him to sell her the ticket. He gave her the ticket because he thought they needed it more than he did. After the train left, he sat on the bench and didn't know where to go. Suddenly, an old man came and said, "Young man, I have seen what you did to the woman. I am the owner of a big company. I need a good young man like you. Would you like to work for me?"
小題1:Tom came to the station to _______.

A．find a job	B．take the train home
C．sell the ticket	D．take the train to Taibei

小題2:The woman walked to Tom because _______.

A．she was Tom's old friend

B．her child wanted to talk to Tom

C．she needed to take the train

D．she had no money to buy a ticket

小題3:Tom didn't take the train because _______.

A．he didn't take a train ticket

B．he missed the train

C．he wanted to talk to the old man

D．he gave his ticket to the woman

小題4:What can we learn from this story?

A．Many people find job in a train station.

B．Don't buy the last ticket of the train.

C．If we try our best to help others, others will help us.

D．We should not give our ticket to others in a train station.

It was when I was attending high school that I first read Asimov’s stories. At the time, a few science fiction magazines began to introduce this author, and to translate a few pieces from his “Robot Series”. Of Asimov’s works, the one that left the deepest impression on me was Pebble in the Sky. This novel directly influenced my early science fiction writing. Asimov was one of the leading writers of western science fiction’s Golden Age, so although his writing may not have a direct influence on writers of today, his underlying (潛在的) influence on many levels is undeniable — the famous Three Laws of Robotics, and many classic writing techniques, for example. Asimov’s novels are marked by a fully integrated (完整的) logical system, and his stories are a pleasure to read. This is the reason his novels still attract readers today. Naturally, western science fiction has few people these days who follow Asimov’s creative methods. But still the majority of Chinese science fiction readers would rather read the classic works of Asimov. Compared with the “Robot Series”, Asimov’s “Foundation Series” is a little less well-known in China. In fact, the “Foundation Series” creates an entire world, even grander than that of the “Robot Series”; this science fiction had a direct influence on later western science fiction, the most famous example being Star Wars.
小題1:We learn from the passage that the writer is probably a _________.

A．science fiction writer	B．science fiction publisher
C．high school student	D．science fiction fan

小題2:The purpose of the passage is to _________.

A．compare Asimov with other science fiction writers

B．a(chǎn)dvise people to read Asimov’s stories

C．give some comments on Asimov’s influence

D．explain why Asimov is popular in China

小題3:According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．Asimov is criticized by today’s science fiction writers.

B．Asimov still has many readers in China.

C．Asimov wrote Star Wars in his later life.

D．Asimov’s writing techniques are still widely used.

小題4:In the writer’s opinion, Asimov’s “Foundation Series” _________.

A．was not as successful as his “Robot Series”

B．is better known to readers than his “Robot Series”

C．was more logically organized than his “Robot Series”

D．was written better than his “Robot Series” in some ways

Mr. Brown was going away for a week. Before he left, he said to his son, "if anyone asks for me, you can tell him that your father has been out for doing something, and will be back in a week, then be sure to ask him to sit down for a cup of tea."
"OK, Dad," said his son. But he was afraid his son couldn't remember this, he wrote these words down on a piece of paper and gave it to him. His son put it into his small pocket, took it out and looked at it every now and then.
Four days passed, but no one came to see his father. The boy thought that there was no man to come and that the piece of paper was of no more use for him, so he burnt it that evening.
The next afternoon, someone knocked at the door. The boy opened it. A man was standing at the door and said, "Where is your father?" The boy put his hand into his pocket at once and looked for the piece of paper. He could not find it. He suddenly remembered he had burnt it, so he shouted, "No more." The man was very surprised. He asked, "No more? I met your father last week. When did it happen?"
"Burnt yesterday evening."
小題1:Mr. Brown told his son that _____.

A．he would be away from home for four days

B．he would be back in seven days

C．he would be back in a month

D．he liked a cup of tea

小題2:Mr. Brown wrote the words down on ________.

A．the wall

B．the door

C．a(chǎn) piece of paper

D．his son's pocket

小題3:A man came to visit the boy's father on ________.

A．the second day

B．the third day

C．the fourth day

D．the fifth day

小題4:The man was very surprised because _________.

A．he thought the child's father was dead

B．the child didn't ask him to sit down

C．the child gave him a cup of tea

D．he couldn't find that piece of paper

小題5:What was burnt?

A．The piece of paper

B．Mr. Smith

C．The visitor

D．The boy

The hardworking blacksmith(鐵匠) Jones used to work all day in his shop and so hard working was he that at times he would make the sparks fly from his hammer.
The son of Mr. Smith, a rich neighbor, used to come to see the blacksmith everyday and for hours and hours he would enjoy himself watching how the blacksmith worked. "Young man, why don't you try to learn to make shoe tacks（鞋釘）, even if it is only to pass the time?" said the blacksmith. "Who knows, one day, it may be of use to you." The lazy boy began to see what he could do. But after a little practice he found that he was becoming very skilled and soon he was making some of the finest tacks.
Old Mr. Smith died and the son because of the war lost all his goods. He had to leave home and settled down in another country. It so happened that in this village there were many shoemakers who were spending a lot of money to buy tacks for their shoes and even at times when they paid high prices they were not always able to get what they wanted, because in that part of the country there was a high demand for soldiers' shoes.
Our young Mr. Smith, who was finding it difficult to earn his daily bread, remembered that he had learned how to make tacks and had the sudden idea of making a bargain with the shoemakers. He told them that he would make the tacks if they would help to get him settled in his workshop. The shoemakers were only too glad of the offer. And after a while, Mr. Smith found that he was soon making the finest tacks in the village.
"How funny it seems," he used to say, "even making tacks can bring a fortune（財(cái)富）.”
小題1:From the passage, we can learn the young Mr. Smith became rich ______.
A by selling shoes  B by making shoe tacks  C with his father’s help D by making bread
小題2:Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
A The young Mr. Smith’s father was very wealthy.
B The young Mr. Smith was lazy before learning to make shoe tacks.
C The shoemakers offered him a working place to make shoe tacks.
D The shoemakers were unwilling to buy the young Mr. Smith’s tack.
小題3:What can we learn from the young Mr. Smith’s success?

A．It is no use crying over the spilt milk.

B．A friend in need is a friend indeed.

C．All roads lead to Rome.

D．Seeing is believing.

小題4:What is the right order of the events related to the young Mr. Smith?
a. He was born in a rich family.
b. He became rich by selling tacks.
c. His father died and he became poor.
d. He was asked to learn to make shoe tacks.
e. He settled in another country.

A．a(chǎn)-d-c-e-b

B．a(chǎn)-d-b-c-e

C．b-d-c-e-a

D．b-d-a-e-c

Kong Zi , also called Confucius (551-479 B.C) , and Socrates（蘇格拉底） (469-399 B. C) lived only a hundred years apart , and during their lifetimes there was no contact （聯(lián)系）between China and Greece, but it is interesting to look at how the world that each of these great philosophers（哲學(xué)家） came from shaped their ideas , and how these ideas in turn ,shaped their societies.
Confucius suggested the Golden Rule as a principle for the conduct of life:” Do not do to others what you would not want others to do to you.” He assumed that all men were equal at birth, though some bad more potential than others, and that it was knowledge that set men apart. Socrates focused on the individual, and thought that the greatest purpose of man was to seek wisdom. He believed that the superior class should rule the inferior(下層的)classes.
For Socrates, the family was of no importance, and the community of little concern. For Confucius, however, the family was the centre of the society, with family relations considered much more important than political relations.
Both men are respected much more today than they were in their lifetimes.
小題1:Which of the following is TURE according to the first paragraph?

A．Socrates and Confucius had much in common,

B．Confucius had much influence on Socrates’ ideas.

C．The societies were influenced by the philosophers’ ideas.

D．There were cultural exchanges between China and Greece.

小題2:Socrates shared with Confucius the idea that           .

A．a(chǎn)ll men were equal when they were born

B．the lower classes should be ruled by the upper class

C．the purpose of man was to seek freedom and wisdom

D．people should not ask others to do what they did not want to

小題3:What made some people different from others according to Confucius?

A． Family.

B．Potential（潛力）.

C．Knowledge.

D．Community.

In 1933 an unknown American called Clarence Nash went to see the filmmaker Walt Disney. He had an unusual voice and he wanted to work in Disney’s cartoon film for children. When Walt Disney heard Nash’s voice, he said “Stop! That’s our duck!”
The duck was the now-famous Donald Duck, who first appeared in 1934 in the film The Wise Little Hen. Donald lived in an old houseboat(水上住家) and wore his sailor jacket and hat. Later that year he became a star after an eight-minute Mickey Mouse film. The cinema audience liked him because he was lazy and greedy, and because he lost his temper very quickly. And they loved his voice when he became angry with Mickey’s eight nephews. Soon Donald was more popular than Mickey Mouse himself, probably because he wasn’t a goody-goody like Mickey.
In the 1930s, 40s and 50s Donald and his friends Mickey, Goofy and Pluto made hundreds of Disney cartoons. He also made educational films about the place of the USA in the world, and safety in the home. Then in 1966 Donald Duck and his voice disappeared---there were no more new cartoons.
Clarence Nash died in February, 1985. But today’s children can still see the old cartoons on television and hear that famous voice.
小題1:Who made Donald Duck film?

A．Mickey Mouse

B．Clarence Nash

C．Walt Disney

D．Pluto

小題2:When did Donald Duck become popular?

A．In 1933

B．In 1934

C．In 1966

D．In 1930

小題3:Where do today’s children see Donald Duck?

A．In new film

B．At the cinema

C．On television

D．At concerts

小題4:The underlined word “goody-goody” in the second paragraph means a person who __________ .

A．likes to appear to be faultless in behavior

B．likes to appear to be faulty in behavior

C．dislikes to appear to be faultless in behavior

D．dislikes to be faulty in behavior

小題5:What’s the main idea of the second paragraph?

A． Donald’s lovely voice.

B．A brief introduction of Donald.

C． Donald’s temper.

D．Donald Duck and Clarence Nash.

Lee Ann Laraway has polio (小兒麻痹癥) and is not able to move very much. Most things are out of reach for her. Jeannie, a Labrador retriever, acts as her arms and legs. Jeannie understands 72 or more different commands. On a shopping trip, she can get money for Lee Ann at the bank or candies at the store. She can pay the cashier (收銀員) and get change back. Jeannie brings things to Lee Ann and puts them in her lap.
Jeannie was trained at a place called Canine Companions for Independence, located on twelve acres of land in Santa Rosa (California). The land was donated (捐贈) by the cartoonist Charles Shultz. “We train four different types of dogs here,” said Ken Kirsh, a dog trainer there. “Hearing dogs, service dogs, skilled companion dogs, and facility dogs.”
Trainers work with Labrador retrievers and golden retrievers for hours a day, but not every dog is good enough to be a working dog.
The work is a serious business. Hearing dogs warn their owners of sounds like ringing telephones and doorbells. Other dogs work with disabled patients like eight-year-old Noah Habib who communicates with a special computer. He likes it when people come to ask him about his dog. His father says, “People are really interested in the dog and will come over and ask to pet her and play with her, and ask about what she does, and these are people that normally might not approach us and want to talk to Noah.”
When Lee Ann Laraway comes home with Jeannie and her goods, Jeannie helps her open the door. “You can train a dog to do a lot of things.” said Lee Ann.
小題1:According to this passage, we can know that Jeannie is Lee Ann’s        .

A．servant

B．daughter

C．dog

D．mother

小題2:Jeannie can help Lee Ann do all the following things EXCEPT___________.

A．go to the bank to get money

B．pay for what Lee Ann buys in the shop

C．bring things home

D．do some cooking at home

小題3:People want to talk to Noah mainly because         .

A．he is good at training dogs

B．he is not only honest but also lovely

C．they want to play with his dog

D．they want to ask him for help

小題4:Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A．Dogs are helpful to people	B．Four kinds of dogs
C．Jeannie, a very clever dog	D．How to train working dogs

小題5:What kind of dogs are not trained in the center?

A．Dogs that warn their owners of sounds like doorbells.

B．Dogs that help their blind owners cross over a road.

C．Dogs that open the door for their owners.

D．Dogs that work with children who have polio.

When Boris left school, he could not find a job. He tried hard and pestered (糾纏) his relatives, but they had problems of their own. He answered advertisements until he could not afford to buy any more stamps. Boris grew annoyed, then depressed, then a little hardened. Still he went on trying and still he failed. He began to think that he had no future at all.
“Why don't you start your own business?” one of his uncles told him. “The world is a money-locker. You'd better find a way of opening it.”
“But what can I do?”
“Get out and have a look round.” advised his uncle in a vague sort of way. “See what people want; then give it to them, and they will pay for it.”
Boris began to cycle around the town and found a suitable piece of a waste ground in the end. Then he set up his business as a cycle repairer. He worked hard, made friends with his customers and gradually managed to build up his goodwill and profit. A few months later, he found that he had more work than he could deal with by himself. He found a number of empty shops but they were all no good: in the wrong position, too expensive or with some other snag(障礙). But at long last, he managed to find an empty shop on a new estate where there were plenty of customers but no competition.
Boris and his assistant taught themselves how to repair scooters and motor-cycles. Slowly but surely the profits increased and the business developed. At last, Boris had managed to open the money-locker and found bank notes and gold coins inside.
小題1:Which of the following best describes Boris' job hunting experience?

A．Surprising.

B．Encouraging.

C．Boring.

D．Disappointing.

小題2:Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A．Goodwill is the key to success

B．The world is a money-locker

C．No education, no future

D．Difficulty of starting a small business

小題3:Boris started his career by       .

A．repairing cycles	B．developing a waste ground
C．cycling around the town	D．buying empty shops

小題4:Boris finally chose an empty shop on a new estate because       .

A．it was not so expensive

B．he had a lot of old customers there

C．there were good opportunities there

D．he could make good use of his skills there

小題5:We can infer from the last paragraph that Boris     .

A．still couldn't make good profits

B．found a lot of gold coins by accident

C．set off in a successful career

D．had great difficulty running his business

A cancer-stricken British teenage girl said Thursday she had been moved by messages of support from around the world after writing an online “Bucket List” of things she wanted to do before dying.
Alice Pyne, l5, created an Internet blog in which she described her fight against a cancer of the white blood cells. “ I've been fighting cancer for almost four years and now l know that the cancer is gaining on me and it doesn't look like I'm going to win this one,” she wrote.
For her list, the teenager took inspiration from the 2007 film “The Bucket List”, in which two terminally ill (患絕癥的) men, played by Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson, draw up a list of things they wish to do before they die.
On her list, at the site www. alicepyne. blogspot. com, she has included making everyone sign up to be a bone marrow donor (骨髓捐贈者), swimming with sharks, meeting boy band Take That and getting a purple iPad computer.
Messages of support and offers of help quickly flooded her webpage and it became one of the most talked about subjects on Twitter.
“Oh dear and I thought that I was just doing a little blog for a few friends!” she wrote after her site attracted huge attention. “Thank you so much for all your lovely messages to me.”
Pyne, who lives with her family in the northwest English town of Ulverston, revealed (透露) the management of Take That had arranged for her to see the band after reading her blog. A group of local lawmakers have also joined forces with the Anthony Nolan blood cancer charity to encourage people to join its stem cell register.
小題1: What happened after Alice Pyne wrote her“Bucket List”?

A．The media called on people to help her.

B．People sent gifts to her from all over the world.

C．A lot of people offered to donate bone marrow to her.

D．People around the world sent messages to support her.

小題2:Alice Pyne wrote her “Bucket List” to     .

A．express her last few wishes

B．say goodbye to a few friends

C．give comfort to two terminally ill men

D．catch people's attention

小題3:It can be inferred from the second paragraph that Alice Pyne       .

A．is unaware of her own conditions

B．is calm to know that death is approaching

C．is very sad to know that she will die

D．is still quite confident in fighting against cancer

小題4:Which of the following is NOT on Alice Pyne's “Bucket List”?

A．To meet a boy.

B．To get a cool computer.

C．To swim with sharks.

D．To ask people to donate bone marrow.

小題5:Take That will arrange to       .

A．invite Pyne to join the band

B．help Pyne in any possible way

C．donate money to Pyne

D．meet Pyne in person

The Board Meeting had come to an end. Bob started to stand up and knocked into the table, spilling his coffee over his notes. “How embarrassing! I am getting so clumsy(笨拙的) in my old age.”
Everyone had a good laugh, and soon we were all telling stories of our most embarrassing moments. It came around to Frank, who sat quietly listening to the others. Someone said, “Come on, Frank. Tell us your most embarrassing moment.”
Frank laughed and began to tell us of his childhood. “I grew up in San Pedro. My Dad was a fisherman, and he loved the sea. He had his own boat, but it was hard making a living on the sea. He worked hard and would stay out until he caught enough to feed the family. Not just enough for our family, but also for his Mom and Dad and the other kids that were still at home.”
He looked at us and said, “I wish you could have met my Dad. He was a big man, and he was strong from pulling the nets and fighting the seas for his catch. When you got close to him, he smelled like the ocean. He would wear his old canvas, foul-weather coat and his bibbed overalls. His rain hat would be pulled down over his brow. No matter how much my mother washed them, they would still smell of the sea and of fish.”
Frank’s voice dropped a bit. “When the weather was bad he would drive me to school. He had this old truck that he used in his fishing business. That truck was older than he was. It would wheeze and rattle down the road. You could hear it coming for blocks. As he would drive toward the school, I would shrink (畏縮) down into the seat hoping to disappear. Half the time, he would slam to a stop and the old truck would belch (噴出) a cloud of smoke. He would pull right up in front, and it seemed like everybody would be standing around and watching. Then he would lean over and give me a big kiss on the cheek and tell me to be a good boy. It was so embarrassing for me. Here, I was twelve years old, and my Dad would lean over and kiss me goodbye!”
He paused and then went on, “I remember the day I decided I was too old for a goodbye kiss. When we got to the school and came to a stop, he had his usual big smile. He started to lean toward me, but I put my hand up and said, “No, Dad.” It was the first time I had ever talked to him that way, and he had this surprised look on his face. I said, “Dad, I’m too old for a goodbye kiss. I’m too old for any kind of kiss.” My Dad looked at me for the longest time, and his eyes started to tear up. Then he turned and looked out of the windshield(擋風(fēng)玻璃). “You’re right,” he said. “ You are a big boy....a man. I won’t kiss you anymore.”
Frank got a funny look on his face, and the tears began to well up in his eyes, as he spoke. “It wasn’t long after that when my Dad went to sea and never came back. It was a day when most of the fleet (船隊(duì)) stayed in, but not Dad. He had a big family to feed. They found his boat adrift with its nets half in and half out. He must have gotten into a strong wind and was trying to save the nets and the floats.”
I looked at Frank and saw that tears were running down his cheeks. Frank spoke again. “Guys, you don’t know what I would give to have my Dad give me just one more kiss on the cheek…to feel his rough old face… to smell the ocean on him… to feel his arm around my neck. I wish I had been a man then. If I had been a man, I would never have told my Dad I was too old for a goodbye kiss.”
小題1:When his father drove him to the school, Frank would shrink down into the seat hoping to disappear because ________.

A．he was ashamed of his father’s old truck

B．he didn’t want his schoolmates to see his father

C．he thought he was old enough to go to school alone

D．he hated the way his schoolmates stared at his father

小題2:According to the story we can conclude that Frank’s father ________.

A．was quite confident in his skills in fishing

B．loved his children but hardly expressed it

C．seldom gave up faced with challenges

D．was full of devotion to his family

小題3:By saying the sentence “I wish I had been a man then…”, Frank meant ________.

A．he was tired of his father kissing him goodbye

B．he deeply regretted what he had done to his father

C．he was then too young to refuse a goodbye kiss

D．he hoped that his father would forgive him

小題4:Which of the following may be the best title for this passage?

A．The Smell of the Ocean	B．We All Need Love
C．A Goodbye Kiss	D．Father’s Embarrassment