________ this road and you’ll get to the cinema quickly.

A．To follow          B．Following            C．Follow          D．Followed

You have to be patient with women. It will be a long time before they ________ dressing themselves up.

A．finish                  B．finished                   C．will finish                D．had finished

All ________ we want to know is ________ we can persuade more people to join us.

A．that; how       B．what; that          C．that; which       D．what; why

— Can I use your computer now?

—________. It doesn’t work.

A．That’s all right       B．You’re welcome         C．I’m afraid not

D．It doesn’t matter

Mr. Whitson taught sixth-grade science. On the first day of class, he gave us a lecture about an animal called the Cattywampus, which died out during the Ice Age. He ___1___ us a skull （頭骨） as he talked. We all took ___2___ and later had a quiz.

When he returned my paper, I was __3__. There was a big red “Ｘ” through ___4___ of my answers. I had failed. There had to be some ___5__! I had written down ___6___ what Mr. Whitson said.

Then I realized that everyone in the class had ___7___. What had happened? Very simple, Mr. Whitson explained. He had __8___ that story about the Cattywampus. There had ___9__ been any such animal. The information in our notes was, __10__, incorrect. Did we __11___ credit （學(xué)分） for incorrect answers?

Needless to say, we were angry. What kind of test was this? And what kind of _12__?

We should have worked it out, Mr. Whitson told us. ___13___, at the very moment he was passing around the Cattywampus skull （in truth, a cat’s）, hadn’t he been telling us that no trace （蹤跡） of the animal _14__? He had given the animal a _15____ name, and we still hadn’t doubted about that. The zeroes on our papers would be ___16___ in his grade book, he said. And they were.

Mr. Whitson said he hoped we would learn something ___17___ this experience. Teachers and textbooks are not always __18__. In fact, no one is. He told us not to let our __19___ go to sleep, and to speak up if we ever thought he or the textbook was wrong.

Every class was a（n） ___20___ with Mr. Whitson. I can still remember some science periods almost from beginning to end.

1．A．drew                    B．described             C．showed                   D．brought

2．A．notice                   B．notes                   C．a(chǎn) breath                   D．interest

3．A．shocked                B．happy                  C．a(chǎn)ngry                      D．strange

4．A．some                    B．each                    C．many                      D．none

5．A．regrets                 B．surprise               C．difficulty                 D．mistakes

6．A．exactly                  B．immediately         C．completely              D．generally

7．A．passed                  B．failed                   C．understood              D．worried

8．A．prepared for          B．heard about          C．dealt with                D．made up

10．A．therefore             B．finally                  C．however                 D．yet

11．A．give                    B．pay                     C．hope                       D．expect

12．A．subject                B．school                 C．teacher                   D．a(chǎn)nimal

13．A．After all               B．Once again          C．Above all                D．In all

14．A．left                     B．kept                    C．remained                 D．followed

15．A．ridiculous            B．common              C．great                      D．wrong

16．A．removed              B．forgotten             C．ranked                    D．recorded

17．A．from                   B．in                        C．a(chǎn)bout                      D．by

18．A．equal                   B．practical              C．right                       D．up-to-date

19．A．imagination          B．hearts                  C．eyes                       D．minds

20．A．a(chǎn)dventure            B．dream                 C．game                      D．story

While I was waiting outside my wife’s office building for her to get out of work, I saw a beggar coming my way from across the parking lot.

“I hope he doesn’t ask me for any money,” I thought.

He didn’t.

He came and sat in front of the bus stop, but he didn’t look like he could have enough money to ride the bus. After a few minutes he spoke. “That’s a pretty car,” he said, pointing to my car. He was ragged （衣衫襤褸）, but he had an air of dignity about himself.

I gave him a smile and continued cleaning my car.

He sat there quietly as I worked. The expected asking for money never came. As the silence between us widened, it seemed that a voice inside me said, “Ask him if he needs any help.” I was sure that he would say “yes”, but I listened to the inner voice.

“Do you need any help?” I asked.

He answered in three simple but meaningful words that I shall never forget. We often look for wisdom in great men and women, and we expect it from those of higher learning and achievements.   I expected nothing but a dirty hand from him, but he said three words that shook me.

“Don’t we all?” he said.

I was feeling high, successful and important above a beggar in the street, until those three words hit me like a shot.

Don’t we all?

I needed help. Maybe not for a bus fare or for a place to sleep, but I needed help. I reached in my wallet and gave him not only for a bus fare, but enough to get a warm meal and shelter for the day. Those three little words still ring true. No matter how much you have, no matter how much you have achieved, you need help, too. No matter how little you have, no matter how loaded you are with problems, even without money or a place to sleep, you can give help.

1．The story happened _________.

   A．outside an office building                        B．in front of a store

       C．near a post office                                 D．on a bus

2．Which of the following is NOT TRUE?

       A．The writer was waiting for his wife to get out of work.

   B．He thought the beggar would ask him for money.

   C．The beggar kept silent and didn’t ask him for money.

   D．The writer was shocked by the three simple words.

3．We can learn from the passage that _________ .

   A．we should expect nothing from a beggar

       B．the writer felt depressed after he heard the beggar’s answer

       C．it was the writer that started the small talk

       D．the beggar, though ragged, said something meaningful

4．The best title of the passage is _________.

       A．The Story of a Beggar                          B．Three Words That Upset Me

C．Everyone Needs Help                           D．Giving Help

The Washington Post—Yesterday, she was the meanest mom on the planet; today, the coolest.

Jane Hambleton, 48, has gained respectful attention from the public, especially parents when news of a classified ad she’s placed in a local newspaper was picked up by the Associated Press.

The text of the ad: “OLD 1999 Ford. Totally uncool parents who obviously don’t love teenage son, selling his car. Only driven for three weeks before found alcohol under front seat. $3,700．Call meanest mom on the planet.”

Sold! Hambleton, a radio DJ in Iowa, received some 70 calls from buyers, other parents,  emergency room workers, school teachers, and scores of others wanting to congratulate her for being so cool a mother.

For the record, Steven, a student at Briar Cliff University in Sioux, told his mother that the alcohol in the car did not belong to him, but to a friend. Hambleton believed him. However, it broke one of the two rules she set when she bought him the car at Thanksgiving: No alcohol, and keep it locked.

Steven was originally “very, very unhappy”, but he and Mom seem to have made things up. By the end of the week, they were appearing on “Good Morning America”, which got the television booking war started, including calls from folks from “Oprah”. All of this proves one thing: America needs this. Oh boy, don’t we need this kind of tough love, the kind that says: “I am not your friend. I am your mother. Eat your peas. Now.” ?

As for the car, it was purchased by another couple in Iowa who planned to give it to their 19-year-old son. Hambleton said: “Do not have any alcohol in that car. And if you do, don’t hide it under the front seat.”

1．Why did Jane decide to sell her son’s car?

   A．Because she is a mean mother to her teenage son.

   B．Because she wants to attract the media’s attention.

   C．Because she wants to teach her son a lesson.

   D．Because she wants to show others how to love their children.

2．Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

   A．About 70 people showed interest in buying the car.

   B．Jane feels sorry for selling her son’s car.

   C．Jane Hambleton thought her son was lying about the alcohol.

   D．Steven is no longer unhappy with his mother.

3．What does the writer mean by “eat your peas”?

   A．Mothers should encourage their children to eat more healthy food.

   B．Children should do whatever their mothers tell them to do.

   C．Parents should make their children do the right things even if they don’t want to.

   D．Children shouldn’t expect to make friends with their mothers.

4．The news attracted so much attention because _________.

   A．Hambleton put a short ad in the newspaper to sell her son’s car

   B．It’s a public concern that many American parents are too easy with their children

   C．Hambleton and her son appeared in a famous TV program

       D．Hambleton has become the coolest mother in the world

Giving children foods to which people added calcium to help build up their bones may be a waste of time, say experts. The mineral is added to many breakfast cereals, snack bars and drinks as producers can attract the parental market. But scientists have found that such products do not produce significantly stronger bones, nor do they reduce the chance of a child suffering fractures （骨折）. 　

It is thought that calcium unnaturally added to food passes through the body too quickly to be properly absorbed and therefore fails to perform the same functions as foods which are naturally rich in calcium, such as milk, cheese and leafy green vegetables.

It is now built into such things as Kellogg’s Coco Pops, breakfast bars such as the Frosties Cereal and Milk bar, some Tropicana orange juices and even the calcium-enriched water called Danone Activ.

The theory is that if children build strong bones, it will protect them better against problems such as osteoporosis in later life. But the research casts doubt on the usefulness of such products.

Experts analyzed 19 studies where children aged between 3 and 19 were given extra calcium in their diet in this way. They then measured the effect by measuring their bone mineral density and mineral content. The team found few significant increases in bone mass and none in the two bones which can most likely lead to fracture — the lower spine （脊骨） and upper part of the thigh （大腿）.

A small effect was noted in bone density in the arm, but it cut the risk of fracture by just 0.2 percent, according to the report published in the Cochrane Library. The influential publication is produced by the International Health Research Organization, the Cochrane Collaboration. The chief researcher Professor Frank R Greer of the University of Wisconsin said the findings for children prove the same as those seen in adult studies. “You can get some short-term improvements but as soon as you stop the supplements it goes right back to where it was,” he said.

1．According to the text, food with added calcium can _________.

       A．increase the bone mass significantly

       B．put a mass of calcium in the lower spine and upper part of the thigh

       C．satisfy the parents’ desire to make their children healthy

       D．make the children’s bones significantly stronger to let them suffer no fractures

2．Which of the following is TRUE about the food to which calcium is added? 

       A．Calcium in it has more effect on children than on adults.                   

       B．Your bones will be too strong to break as a consequence of it.           

       C．It can increase the mass of the lower spine and the thigh effectively.  

       D．If you stop eating it, the effect on your bones will disappear.

3．Experts hold a _________ attitude towards the food to which people added calcium. 

       A．positive               B．negative               C．neutral                           D．not clear

4．Which kind of food is naturally rich in calcium? 

       A．Kellogg’s Coco Pops                            B．Frosties Cereal and Milk bar

       C．leafy green vegetables                          D．Danone Activ

What’s on TV?

6:00                                Channel 3                Let’s Talk! Guest: Animal expert Jim Porter

                                   Channel 5                Cartoons

                                   Channel 8                News

                                   Channel 9                News

7:00                               Channel 3                Cooking with Cathy Tonight: Chicken with mushrooms

                                 Channel 5                 Movie A laugh a Minute （1955） James Rayburn

                                  Channel 8                Spin （旋轉(zhuǎn)） for Dollars!

                                  Channel 9                Farm Report

7:30                               Channel 3                Double Trouble （comedy） The twins disrupt the high school dance

                                  Channel 9                Wall Street Today. Stock Market Report

8:00                               Channel 3                NBA Basketball. Teams to be announced

Channel 8                       Movie At Day’s End （1981） Michael Collier, Julie Romer. Drama set in World

War II

                                  Channel 9                 News Special “Saving Our Waterways: Pollution in the Mississippi”

1．The following programs are for entertainment except _________.

     A．Cartoons                                         B．Double Trouble      

       C．Spin for Dollars!                             D．News Special

2．Which of the following programs is most likely intended for housewives?

     A．Let’s Talk!                              B．Wall Street Today

     C．Cooking with Cathy Tonight              D．Farm Report

3．If you’d like to watch a sports game, you could turn on the TV to _________.

     A．Channel 5 at 6:00                         B．Channel 8 at 7:00

     C．Channel 3 at 7:30                          D．Channel 3 at 8:00

4．Which is most probably the News Channel?

     A．Channel 3．       B．Channel 5．        C．Channel 8．        D．Channel 9.

We believe that there is more to education than preparation for a job. Children must be prepared for all aspects of their adult life; work, leisure, personal relationships, creative activities, dealing with money matters, independence, etc.

    However, it would be unrealistic to provide an education which didn’t consider the needs of employers.

    What type of training does the business world regard as important?

    Many young people applying for jobs were, in the employers’ opinions, very weak in the basic skills of handwriting, grammar and spelling. Though additional education at university level improved the student’s general ability, a report states, “In basic skills the standards remained stubbornly （頑固） low.”

    It is doubtful whether standards have decreased in recent years. What is certain is that employers do not believe the standard is now high enough. Do technological changes make greater demands upon the students’ abilities?

    We should also remember that the job expectations of young people have increased. The girls who would have once become shop assistants or hairdressers now want to be secretaries. Boys who sought an apprenticeship （學(xué)徒） 20 years ago now desire an engineering degree. But it is still the same girls and boys with the same degree of ability. No wonder there are problems in reaching the “necessary standards” of the business world.

    Many employers believe that it is important for teachers to have experience outside the world of college and school. They should work for a while at some other kind of job “to see how the world of business and commerce differs from their own.” The teaching professor and society in general need a greater understanding of manpower needs and therefore of “desired” direction of the education system.

1．The article mainly talks about _________.

   A．no education among young people

   B．meeting the educational requirements of employment

   C．the problem of unemployment

   D．the weaker standards of education

2．In the writer’s opinion, education should _________.

   A．pay more attention to students’ academic （學(xué)術(shù)的） ability

   B．only meet the needs of employment

   C．be suitable to all aspects of being an adult, including employment

   D．focus on grammar

3．“The same girls and boys” in Para. 6 refer to _________.

   A．those who are likely to be unemployed

   B．those who have just left middle school

   C．those who are looking for jobs far beyond their abilities

   D．those who might have done work with basic skills in the past

4．This passage most probably appears in _________.

   A．a(chǎn) story book                                         B．a(chǎn)n advertisement of jobs

C．a(chǎn) news report                                     D．a(chǎn)n educational magazine