Picasso,the famous Spanish painter,was born in 1881.His father was an art teacher.Picasso began to paint very early.He was admitted to the Royal Academy of Art at the age of 15.After 1900,he spent much time in Paris,living there to 1947,then he moved to the south of France.
Throughout his career,Picasso moved from style to style with ease.He practised sculpture illustrated books and also showed great interest in pottery design and other fields of art.
Picasso produced a great number of drawngs in his life.No later artist of the school of Paris has replaced him in international influence.
Picasso is generally considered to be the foremost figure in the 20th century French art.His paintings are now exhibited in leading European and American galleries.
小題1:The main idea of the passage is_________.

A．Picasso is considered to be the foremost figure in the 20th century French art

B．Picasso is a famous Spanish painter

C．Picasso spent much time in Paris,living there from 1940 to 1947

D．Picasso’s life and art

小題2:How long did he stay in Spain and France?

A．15 years in Spain and 43 years in Paris.

B．15 years in Spain and the rest of life in Paris.

C．Over 19 years in Spain and the rest of life in Paris.

D．He didn’t stay so long in Paris.

小題3:Picasso moved from style to style with ease.It seems _________.

A．he did not like only one style

B．he changed his style without difficulty

C．he not only liked sculpture,but also liked pottery design

D．he showed great interest in other fields of art

小題4:His paintings are now exhibited in leading European and American galleries,because _________.

A．he was a Spanish artist

B．he was a French artist

C．he was famous in French art

D．he produced a great many wonderful drawings in different styles

Early one morning,more than a hundred years ago,an American inventor called Elias Howe finally fell asleep.He had been working all night on the design of a sewing machine but he had run into a very difficult problem: It seemed impossible to get the thread to run smoothly around the needle.
Though he was tired,Howe slept badly.He turned and turned.Then he had a dream.He dreamt that he had been caught by terrible savages whose king wanted to kill him and eat him unless he could build a perfect sewing machine.When he tried to do so,Howe ran into the same problem as before.The thread kept getting caught around the needle.The king flew into the cage and ordered his soldiers to kill Howe.They came up towards him with their spears raised.But suddenly the inventor noticed something.There was a hole in the tip of each spear.The inventor awoke from the dream,realizing that he had just found the answer to the problem.Instead of trying to get the thread to run around the needle,he should make it run through a small hole in the center of the needle.This was the simple idea that finally made Howe design and build the first really practical sewing machine.
Elias Howe was not the only one in finding the answer to his problem in this way.Thomas Edison,the inventor of the electric light,said his best ideas came into him in dreams.So did the great physicist Albert Einstein.Charlotte Bronte also drew in her dreams in writing ?Jane Eyre.?
To know the value of dreams,you have to understand what happens when you are asleep.Even then,a part of your mind is still working.This unconscious(無意識的),but still active part understands your experiences and goes to work on the problems you have had during the day.It stores all sorts of information that you may have forgotten or never have really noticed.It is only when you fall asleep that this part of the brain can send messages to the part you use when you are awake.However,the unconscious part acts in a special way.It uses strange images which the conscious part may not understand at first.This is why dreams are sometimes called “secret messages to ourselves ”.
小題1:According to the passage,Elias Howe was_________.

A．the first person we know of who solved problems in his sleep

B．much more hard-working than other inventors

C．the first person to design a sewing machine that really worked

D．the only person at the time who knew the value of dreams

小題2:The problem Howe was trying to solve was_________.

A．what kind of thread to use

B．how to design a needle which would not break

C．where to put the needle

D．how to prevent the thread from getting caught around the needle

小題3:Thomas Edison is spoken of because_________.

A．he also tried to invent a sewing machine

B．he got some of his ideas from dreams

C．he was one of Howe's best friends

D．he also had difficulty in falling asleep

小題4:Dreams are sometimes called “secret messages to ourselves” because _________.

A．strange images are used to communicate ideas

B．images which have no meaning are used

C．we can never understand the real meaning

D．only specially trained people can understand them

It was four o'clock when we left Micatlan,and we traveled quickly until it became almost completely dark.It was our intention to return to our general quarters in Atlacomulco that night.We had a long journey ahead of us,especially because it had been decided there was no way we would try to cross the ravines again at night,since they were considered far too dangerous.Futhermore,an eclipse of the moon was expected,and,in fact,while we were crossing an open field,the moon appeared on the horizon,half in shadow,a rare and beautiful sight.
After a few hours of riding,we suddenly realized that we had lost our way,and worse still,had no way of finding it again.Night had fallen and there was not a single hut in sight,only great plains and mountains and the lowing of distant bulls all around us.We continued on ahead,trusting in luck,though it was difficult to say where she had brought us.By good fortune,our advance riders ran into two Indians,a man and a boy,who agreed to guide us their village and no further.
After an interminable and exhausting road,which we traveled at a brisk trot,the barking of several dogs announced an Indian village.In the dying light,we could just make out cane huts,firmly situated between the banana trees,with fenced gardens in front of each one.Our convoy stopped in front of one particular hut,a kind of inn or shop for alcohol,where a naked goblin-like figure,the ideal husband for a witch,was serving cheap brandy to the Indians,most of whom were already drunk.
We dismounted and threw ourselves to the ground,too tired to even think.Someone found us,God knows how,a cup of dreadful hot chocolate.We began to realize that we were completely lost,and so it was agreed to give up our attempt to reach Atlacomulco that night.Instead,we should head for the village of “E1 Puente”,where our guides know a Spanish family,made up of several unmarried brothers,who,without any doubt,would be delighted to offer us a safe refuge for the rest of the night.We remounted and began our journey,a little restored after the pause in our journey and the dreadful hot chocolate.
小題1:Where did we travel to?

A．El Puente.

B．The cane huts.

C．Atlacomulco.

D．An Indian Village.

小題2:When we traveled at night_________.

A．there was a good guide leading us

B．there was a full moon in the sky

C．we could hardly see anything

D．we could see everything around clearly

小題3:When we lost our way we believed that_________.

A．we should stay where we were for rescue

B．we should go on to seek after our fortune

C．we should go back where we started

D．we should ask the Indians for help

小題4:When we reached the inn-like hut_________.

A．someone served alcohol and hot chocolate at once

B．we had a good sleep

C．we had a good drink

D．we were too exhausted to ask for anything

Bill Clinton was born on Aug.19,1946.Three months before his birth,his father had died when driving home to his pregnant wife,Virginia,he went off a high way,was thrown from the car and drowned in a river.
When Bill was 4,his mother remarried Roger Clinton.And there were always troubles:a sometimes voilent,alcoholic stepfather and a half-brother.Only one year after the marriage,the drunken stepfather fired a shotgun at the ceiling to keep his bride and stepson from leaving the house.Virginia was very much frightened.So Roger Clinton beat Virginia from time to time.But teenager Clinton played a role of protector of his mother bravely.The stepfater never laid another band on Virginia.
In high school,he was very good at Latin and maths.He also played saxophone in the hand.At age 16,as a member of a youth group,Clinton met President John F.Kennedy at the White House,it led him to the life of public service.Once he set his mind to do something,he did not give up.He was elected governor of Arkansas at the age of 32.
Clinton has said he ran for president to make the country a better place for people like Chelsea,his daughter.He did win.At the age of 46,he became the third youngest president in the nation's history.
小題1:When this passage was published,Clinton was_________.
A.governor of Arkansas                                    B.a famous professor
C.President of U.S.A.                                       D.President of a university
小題2:Clinton's own father died_________.

A．before Clinton was born

B．a(chǎn)fter Clinton was born

C．from drinking too much brandy

D．when Clinton's mother was giving birth

小題3:Clinton protected his mother by_________.

A．fighting against his stepfather

B．beating his stepfather

C．having long talks with his stepfather

D．the means we don't know

小題4:The word “it” in “It led him to the life of public service”refers to_________.

A．Clinton's high school education

B．becoming a member of a youth group

C．Clinton's visiting President Kennedy

D．doing public service

My grandmother was an iron-willed woman, the feared head of the family. When I was five years old, she invited some friends to her apartment for a party. 26the guests was a neighborhood big shot(大亨). They had a little girl about my age who was27 and very much used to getting her own way.
Grandmother spent a lot of time with the big shot and his family. She 28 them the most important members of her social circle and tried hard to please them. At one point during the party, I 29my way to the bathroom and closed the door behind me. A minute or two later, the little girl 30the bathroom door and simply walked in. I was still sitting down. “Don’t you know that little girls aren't31to come into the bathroom when a little boy is using it!?” I shouted. The32I had piled upon her shocked the little girl. Then she started to cry. She tearfully33to her parents and my grandmother. Grandmother was waiting for me when I left the bathroom. I received the longest, sharpest34. After her scolding was over and I had been dismissed, the party 35.
Twenty minutes later, all that changed. Grandmother walked by the bathroom and noticed a flood of water36out from under the door. She37the bathroom door and saw that the sink and tub were plugged(塞)up and that the taps 38at full blast (擰到最大). Everyone knew who did it. The guests quickly formed a39wall around me, but Grandmother was40 angry that she almost got to me anyway.
My grandfather took me41to the window. He was a kind and gentle man, full of wisdom and patience.42did he raise his voice to anyone, and never did he43 his wife. He looked at me with much curiosity, 44 angry or upset.
“Tell me,” he asked, “why did you do it?”
“Well, she shouted at me 45,” I said earnestly. “Now she's got something to shout about.”
Grandfather didn’t speak right away. He just sat there, looking at me and smiling. “Eric,” he said at last, “you are my revenge(復仇).”
26. A. Between             B. Among             C. Around             D. Beside
27. A. spoiled               B. harmed             C. liked                D. concerned
28. A. imagined            B. told                  C. evaluated           D. considered
29. A. made                 B. found             C. pushed            D. wound
30. A. closed                B. opened             C. beat                 D. tapped
31. A. expected            B. asked                      C. supposed          D. told
32. A. happiness           B. depression               C. embarrassment D. anger
33. A. complained               B. apologized     C. replied             D. referred
34. A. cry                    B. blame               C. comment        D. demand
35. A. picked up            B. broke down              C. carried on          D. took off
36. A. moving              B. stirring           C. floating            D. streaming
37. A. pushed open       B. pulled down    C. shut up             D. knocked at
38. A. had gone             B. were going        C. went               D. had been going
39. A. productive          B. hard                 C. protective         D. rough
40. A. so                      B. too                   C. as                    D. very
41. A. by his hand               B. by the hand       C. by surprise        D. with anxiety
42. A. Often                 B. Sometimes        C. Always             D. Rarely
43 A. argue with           B. talk with           C. put up with       D. come to terms with
44. A. other than           B. instead of          C. rather than         D. more than
45. A. for something   B. for nothing       C. without doubt   D. with sympathy

I was born and raised in the shadow of the Capitol(美國國會大廈), in Washington, D.C., as were my parents and my mother’s parents.
Our row house was on a tree-lined street just blocks from the building that was the heart of the federal legislative branch. When I was a child, in the 1940s, friends and I would pack a lunch or ride a streetcar to the Capitol. If we roller-skated, we hid the skates in the bushes in the park across the street before entering the building.
I knew every corner of the Capitol. We’d play hide-and-seek and pretend we saw ghosts in the halls and stairways. I don’t know how we got away with it. I remember the beautiful ladies’ rooms, with their marble floors and sinks. I pretended that I was a fine lady in them.
In those days, you could walk around the Capitol dome(圓頂屋), which was a little scary for me. I loved the wonderful paintings and statues and the subway rides to the Senate Office Building. It was like an amusement ride. I even used to sit in the gallery of the U.S. House of Representatives—until I became bored with all the talk and went on another adventure.
Whenever I ran up the steps to the huge bronze doors of the Rotunda, I would look back to the world below like a hero. As soon as the doors were opened, the sense of history surrounded me, and I knew it was someplace special.
Those were lucky days, when an American citizen could wander in the Capitol and be a part of history.
Once war was declared, some things changed in the nation’s capital. Because of concerns that Washington might be attacked, as London had been, everyone prepared. Kids at my elementary school wore dog tags, and each of us was fingerprinted.
My father, a pipe worker, became a civil defense warden(民防隊員). During an air-raid(空襲), his job was to turn off any leaking gas. Since he always had a cigarette in his mouth, maybe that was not a good choice, but he had a gas mask and flashlight hanging in the rafters of our basement. The mask looked like a monster in the ceiling. My 15-year-old brother was a junior civil defense warden. During air-raid drills, he knocked on doors and asked people to put out their lights. I remember huge searchlights that crisscrossed the skies during the drills, looking for enemy planes.
小題1:What can we infer from the passage?
A. The writer attended the meeting in House of Representative.
B. The writer’s family lived in Washington D.C. for generations.
C. American citizen, except children, could never enter the Capitol.
D. The writer’s father had a gas mask to prevent him from smoking.
小題2:When the writer said “I was born and raised in the shadow of the Capitol” (1st paragraph),    she most probably meant that ________.

A．she spent her childhood in an area near the Capitol

B．she grew up under the pressure of the Capitol

C．the Capitol had some bad influence on my childhood

D．she was born and brought up secretly in the Capitol

小題3:By telling the childhood experience, the passage suggests that ________.

A．London was attacked during the war, as well as Washington

B．the writer is a daughter of a member of Representatives

C．the writer’s father and brother joined the army during the war

D．the Capitol used to be open to the public in history

小題4: What is the writer’s attitude towards the things that changed in the nation’s capital?

A．neutral

B．positive

C．negative

D．ironic

The old idea that child prodigies (神童) “burn themselves” or “overtax their brains” in the early years, therefore, suffer from failure and (at worst) mental illness is just a myth. As a matter of fact, the outstanding thing that happens to bright children is that they are very likely to grow into bright adults.
To find this out, 1,500 gifted persons were followed up to their thirty-fifth years with these results:
On adult intelligence tests, they scored as high as they did as children. They were, as a group, in good health, physically and mentally. Eighty-four percent of their group were married and seemed content with their life.
About 70 percent had graduated from colleges, though only 30 percent had graduated with honors. A few had even flunked out (退學), but nearly half of these had returned to graduate.
Of the men, 80 percent were in one of the professions or in business, managerial or semiprofessional jobs. The women who had remained single had offices, business, or professional occupations.
The group had published 90 books and 1,500 articles in scientific, scholarly, and literary magazines and had collected more than 100 patents.
In a material way they didn’t do badly either. Average income was considerably higher among the gifted people, especially the men, than for the country as a whole, despite their comparative youth when last surveyed.
In fact, far from being strange, maladjusted (難以適應(yīng)) people locked in an ivory tower, most of the gifted were turning their early promises into practical reality.
小題1:The main idea of the passage is __________.

A．that gifted adults can be as intelligent as when they were young

B．that bright children are unlikely to be physically and mentally healthy

C．that gifted children are most likely to become bright grown-ups

D．that when the bright children grow up, they become ordinary

小題2:From the passage, we can conclude that ____________.

A．most of the gifted children became white-collar workers

B．half of the gifted followed up graduated from colleges

C．each of the talented published at least one article

D．successful men got higher income than successful women

小題3: Which of the following is mentioned in the passage?

A．The gifted could not be fit for their social positions.

B．Most of the bright and successful women remained single.

C．The gifted men got full marks on intelligence tests.

D．Most of the gifted appeared satisfied with their life.

小題4:The explanation of the underlined part “turning their early promises into practical reality” is _____________.

A．earning their living and keeping promises

B．doing practical jobs and facing reality

C．doing what they have promised

D．realizing what they were expected

Cara Lang is 13. She lives in Boston, Massachusetts, in the US. Last Thursday, she didn’t go to school. She went to work with her father instead. Every year, on the fourth Thursday in April, millions of young girls go to work. This is Take Our Daughters to Work Day. The girls are between the ages of 9 to 15. They spend the day at work with an adult, usually a mother, aunt, or uncle. They go to offices, police stations, laboratories, and other places where their parents or other family members work. Next year, the day will include sons, too.
The Ms. Foundation, an organization for women, started the program about ten years ago. In the US, many women work outside the home. The Ms. Foundation wanted girls to find out about many different kinds of jobs. Then, when the girls grow up, they can choose a job they like.
Cara’s father is a film director. Cara says, “It was very exciting for me to go to the studio with my dad. I saw a lot of people doing different jobs.” Many businesses have special activities for girls on this day. Last year, Cara went to work with her aunt at the University of Massachusetts. In the engineering department, the girls learned to build a bridge with toothpicks and candy. In the chemistry department, they learned to use scales. They learned about many other kinds of jobs, too.
Right now, Cara does not know what jobs she will have when she grows up. But because of Take Our Daughters to Work Day, she knows she has many choices.
小題1:What is Cara’s father?

A．An engineer.	B．An official.
C．A moviemaker.	D．A professor.

小題2:According to the passage, Take Our Daughters to Work Day is __________.

A．on every Thursday in April

B．a(chǎn) holiday for girls of all ages

C．a(chǎn) day for girls to know about jobs

D．a(chǎn) day for girls to get a job easily

小題3:On this special day, Cara has done all the following EXCEPT that __________.

A．she learned to use scales

B．she worked as an actress

C．she went to work with her aunt

D．she used toothpicks and candy to build a bridge

小題4:What is probably the best title for the passage?

A．Cara Lang, a Fortunate Girl

B．Take Our Daughters to Work Day

C．Children’s Day and Work Day

D．Ms. Foundation, an Organization for Women

When Dave was eighteen,he bought a second-hand car for ￡200 so that he could travel to and from work more 　1　 than by bus.It worked quite well for a few years,but then it got so old,and it was costing him 　2　 much in repairs that he decided that he had better 　3　 it.
He asked among his friends to see if anyone was particularly 　4  to buy a cheap car,but they all knew that it was falling to pieces,so  5  of them had any desire to buy it.
Dave's friend Sam saw that he was  6  when they met one evening,and said,“What's  7 ,Dave?” Dave told him and Sam answered,“Well,what about advertising it in the paper? You may   8  more for it that way than the cost of the advertisement!” Thinking that Sam's   9  was sensible,he put an advertisement in an evening paper,which read:“For sale:small car,  10  very little petrol,only two owners.Bargain at ￡50.”
For two days after the advertisement first appeared,there was no   11 .But then on Saturday evening a man rang up and said he would like to  12  him about the car.“All right,” Dave said,feeling happy.He asked the man whether ten o'clock the next morning would be   13  or not.“Fine,” the man said.“And I'll  14  my wife.We intend to go for a ride in it to   15  it.”
The next morning,at ten quarter,Dave parked the car in the square outside his front door,  16  to wait there for the person who had   17  his advertisement.Even Dave had to   18  that the car really looked like a wreck.Then soon after he had got the car as   19  as it could be,a police car stopped just behind him and a policeman got out.He looked at Dave's car and then said,“Have you reported this   20  to us yet,sir?”
1.A.directly          B.safely      C.properly      D.easily
2.A.so                  B.such            C.very        D.too
3.A.keep              B.repair      C.sell             D.throw
4.A.anxious          B.lucky          C.ashamed   D.generous
5.A.some              B.neither        C.none           D.no one
6.A.calm                  B.upset           C.delighted   D.astonished
7.A.no                         B.up                     C.it                D.that
8.A.learn                      B.miss            C.get              D.find
9.A.message                 B.advice         C.request    D.description
10.A.uses                            B.loses           C.has             D.spends
11.A.doubt                   B.help            C.trouble        D.answer
12.A.tell                       B.see              C.agree          D.call
13.A.exact                    B.suitable       C.early           D.late
14.A.follow                  B.meet           C.bring     D.introduce   
15.A.test                      B.obtain         C.admire       D.recognize
16.A.failing                  B.meaning      C.turning    D.happening
17.A.read                            B.placed    C.answered  D.understood
18.A.forget                   B.show           C.disagree      D.admit
19.A.clean                    B.crowded      C.fast             D.light
20.A.bargain                 B.sale             C.accident      D.result

完形填空（共20小題；每小題1 分，滿分20分）
A few years ago I was at an international conference with nearly 700 participants. One afternoon I_1 a very crowded talk by a famous author. The hall filled quickly and soon there were no  2  left , so many dozens of people were standing around the edges.
I saw a very elderly man, stooped(駝背的) slightly with age,  3  against the wall. I immediately got up, told those sitting beside me to  4  the place for him and made my way to him. When I offered my seat to him , he looked  5   and started to refuse , but I would have   6  of that. He asked me my name and thanked me deeply, and then made his  7  back into my row and sat comfortably. Many people who  8  our exchange turned to say what a kind thing I had done. I kept saying , “it’s nothing  9  . I m from Canada, it’s normal for us to help other people!” 
A few minutes later, the man sitting next to the elderly man  10  to leave the hall for another talk and the elderly man   11  to me to return and sit beside him.   12  I resisted, thinking someone else might need it more, but people sitting around him started to repeat my  13 , asking me to come and sit! So I returned and sat beside the gentleman for the  14  .
when the talk was over ,the man thanked me again and  15  asked if I knew who he was . I had no idea. He then looked quite delighted and  16  me a household name that I recognized immediately!
I was astonished to have been sitting next to him,  17  he was excited to think I had given up my seat for him  18  knowing who he was! Again I had to tell him where I come from , and it’s the  19  thing to do! I have felt more blessed to be a Canadian since that day, for seeing how easy it is to  20  someone and how rare it seemed to so many people.
1. A. missed            B. gave           C. expected         D. attended
2. A. seats             B. rooms         C. topics           D. rows
3. A. turning            B. walking        C. leaning          D. lying
4. A. move             B. spare          C. take             D. hold
5. A. glad              B. satisfied        C. disappointed       D. surprised
6. A. nothing           B. none          C. something        D. anything
7. A. living           B. fortune          C. direction          D. way
8. A. witnessed        B. confirmed         C. remembered        D. experienced
9. A. easy            B. popular           C. special           D. funny
10. A. agreed          B. refused            C. chose            D. forgot
11. A. sent             B. signaled            C. rolled             D. said
12. A. At last           B. At least            C. At most           D. At first
13. A. action            B. name             C. dream            D. address
14. A. game            B. discussion          C. course           D. talk  
15. A. quietly           B. loudly.              C. proudly           D. angrily  
16. A. shared            B. told                C. asked             D. answered  
17. A. as if              B. even if             C. so                D .but  
18. A. by               B. without              C. through           D. after
19. A. strange           B. secret               C. normal            D. hard  
20. A. help              B. accept              C. praise            D. trust