On May 29, 1973, Thomas Bradley, a black man, was elected mayor of Los Angeles. Los Angeles is the third largest city in the United States, with a population of three million. About sixteen percent of the city’s population are black.
News of this election appeared on the front pages of newspapers everywhere in the United States. Here is how one major newspaper reported the event:
LOS ANGELES ELECTS BRADLEY MAYOR UNSEATING YORTYBLACK WINS 56% OF VOTES
Bradley called his victory over Yorty “the fulfillment (實(shí)現(xiàn)) of a dream”. During his childhood and youth, people had kept telling him, “You can’t do this, you can’t go there, because you are a Negro.” Nevertheless he had won a decisive victory over a man who had been won 43.7 percent.
Los Angeles voters have had many opportunities to judge. Thomas Bradley had to form an opinion of him. The son of a poor farmer Texas, he joined the Los Angeles police force in 1940. During his twenty-one years on the police force he earned a law degree by attending school at night. He was elected to the city council (市政廳) ten years ago.
At the time of the Los Angeles election, three other American cities already had black mayors, but none of those cities had as large a population as Los Angeles. Besides, the percentage of blacks in those other cities was much larger. Cleveland, Ohio, had thirty-six percent black when Carl Stokes was elected mayor of Cleveland in 1967. In the same year Richard Hatcher was elected mayor of Cary. In Newark, New Jersey, sixty percent of the population were black when Kenneth Gibson was elected in 1970. Thus election of a black mayor in those cities was not very surprising.
In Los Angeles thousands of white citizens voted for Thomas Bradley because they believed he would be a better mayor than the white candidate(候選人). Bradley had spent forty-eight of his fifty-five years in Los Angeles. Four years ago Bradley lost mayoral election to Yorty. This time Bradley won.
小題1:In the author’s opinion, it was surprising that _______.

A．the whites would vote for a black mayor

B．a(chǎn) black mayor would be elected in such a large city

C．a(chǎn) black from a poor farmer’s family could be elected mayor of Los Angeles

D．there would be so many black mayors

小題2:From the passage we can infer that people ________.

A．voted for Bradley because of his black color

B．didn’t care much about his color when they voted

C．voted for him to give a chance to fulfill his dream

D．voted for Bradley because they trust him

小題3: Bradley hit the front page headline for _______.

A．he was the first black mayor in history

B．he was the first black mayor in the south of USA

C．he was the first black mayor of one of the largest cities in USA

D．a(chǎn) poor farmer’s son could also win an important election

小題4: From Bradley’s victory in the election we can see that ________.

A．blacks had equal rights as whites in the USA

B．black people’s situation began to be improving much more than before

C．one can be successful through hard work in the USA no matter what color he is

D．it is certain that someday the USA will have a black president

In October 1961 at Crowley Field in Cincinnati Ohio an old deaf gentleman named William E. Hoy stood up to throw the first ball of the World Series. Most people at Crowley Field on that day probably did not remember Hoy because he had retired(退休) from professional baseball 58 years earlier in 1903. However he had been an outstanding player and the deaf people still talk about him and his years in baseball.
William E. Hoy was born in Houckstown Ohio on May 23, 1862. He became deaf when he was two years old. He attended the Columbus Ohio School for the deaf. After graduation he started playing baseball while working as a shoemaker.
Hoy began playing professional baseball in 1886 for Oshkosh(Wisconsin) of the Northwestern League. In 1888 he started as an outfielder(外場(chǎng)手) with the old Washington Senators. His small figure and speed made him an outstanding base runner. He was very good at stealing bases during his career. In the 1888 major league season he stole 82 bases. He was also the Senators’ leading hitter in 1888. Hoy was clever and he threw right-handed and batted left-handed. On June 19,1889 he threw out three batters(擊球手) at the plate from his outfield position.
The arm signals used by judges today to show balls and strikes began because of Hoy. The judge lifted his right arm to show that the pitch was a strike and his left arm to signal that it was a ball.
For many years people talked about Hoy’s last ball game in 1903. He was playing for Los Angeles of the Pacific Coast Winter League. It was a memorable game because Hoy hit a wonderful ball which won the game. It was a very foggy day and therefore very hard to see the ball. In the ninth inning(棒球的一局) with two men out, Hoy managed to catch a fly ball to make the third out in spite of the fog. Los Angeles defeated their opposition and won the game.
After he retired Hoy stayed busy. He ran a dairy farm near Cincinnati for 20 years. He also became a public speaker and traveled giving speeches. Until a few years before his death he took 4-10 mile walks several mornings a week. On December 15, 1961 William Hoy died at the age of 99.
小題1:In which order did the following things happen in Hoy’s life?
a. Hoy worked as a shoemaker.
b. Hoy began to run a diary farm.
c. Hoy played a memorable game in the heavy fog.
d. Hoy threw the first ball of the World Series.
e. Hoy became deaf.

A．d e a c b

B．e a c b d

C．d a e c b

D．e a b c d

小題2:We can infer from the last paragraph that Hoy _______ in his late years.

A．became famous	B．led a relaxed life
C．traveled around the world	D．was in good physical condition

小題3:This passage is mainly about _______.

A．a(chǎn) deaf player devoted to the game of baseball

B．baseball game rules and important players

C．the rise in the social position of the deaf people

D．where the baseball judge hand signals came from

小題4:What can be inferred from this passage?

A．Hoy was the greatest baseball player in his time.

B．Speaking and listening are not necessary in baseball games.

C．The judge had to study the hand signals very seriously.

D．Hoy’s family encouraged him to become a baseball player.

At the time, I would go out in the evening with my parents. But this time I had borrowed a bicycle from a friend of mine. I didn’t know why, but once I was on my own bicycle, a kind of free feeling flooded through me. The faster I rode, the faster I wanted to go! Far ahead, I rode as if my life depended on it, head down, hands grasping the handbars. I meant to get to Jinghai Bar as fast as I could...
Oh! My hands! Don’t come any closer... Don’t touch me! That poor doctor just couldn’t get my gloves off. Each time he took a step towards me, I broke into painful shouting. Much later, I　discovered that I had crashed(碰撞) heavily with another bicycle, and I hadn’t spoken one word of sense for at least three hours! After some time, my mother arrived at the hospital, her face as white as a sheet, and gave me a hug(擁抱), only then did the doctor begin to stitch(縫合) my head wound, not only did he merrily cut off a long lock of my hair, but used no anaesthetic(麻藥) either! Later. I seemed to hear faraway voices saying that my right hand was broken. I almost burst into tears. How would I ever play the piano again?
小題1:On her way to Jinghai, the writer felt _______.

A．nervous

B．comfortable

C．light-hearted

D．upset

小題2:Why did the writer ride a bicycle to Jinghai Bar that evening?

A．Because she wanted to attend a party on time.

B．Because she wanted to meet her friend who was waiting for her there.

C．Because she just wanted, to join some of her friends and drink some wine.

D．We are not quite sure about what she was really going there for.

小題3:What did the writer think of the doctor?

A．Friendly.

B．Cruel.

C．Hardworking.

D．Kind.

小題4:One thing is sure, that is, before she was wounded she _______.

A．often went to Jinghai Bar with her friends

B．liked playing the piano

C．didn’t like any doctors at all

D．would burst into tears when she was in trouble

A
Adrian’s “Amazing Race” started early when his parents realized that he, as a baby, couldn’t hear a thing, not even loud noises. In a special school for the hearing-impaired (聽(tīng)覺(jué)受損的)，he learned sign language and got to mix with other disabled children. However, the sight of all the disabled children communicating with one another upset his mother. She wanted him to lead a normal life. So after speaking to an advisor, she sent him to private classes where he learned to read lips and pronounce words.
Later on, Adrian’s parents decided to send him to a regular school. But the headmaster tried to prevent them from doing so, saying regular school couldn’t take care of a special needs students. His parents were determined to take the risk and push him hard to go through his work everyday because they wanted to prove that, given the opportunity, he could do anything. Adrian made the grade and got accepted. It was a big challenge. The pace （節(jié)奏）was faster so he had to sit at the front of the class and really pay attention to the teacher, which wasn’t always easy. But he stuck to it and did a lot of extra work after school.
The efforts made by Adrian and his parents paid off. Adrian graduated with good grades and got into a top high school. He also achieved a lot in life outside school. He developed a love for the outdoors and went to Nepal to climb mountains. He even entered the World Yacht Race 05/06--- being the first hearing-impaired Asian to do so.
But none of these achievements would have been possible without one of the most important lessons from his mother.” “If you believe in yourself and work hard, you can achieve great results.” She often said.
小題1:How did Adrian communicate with other children in the special school?

A．By speaking.	B．By using sign language
C．By reading lips	D．By making loud noises

小題2:Adrian’s parents decided to send him to a regular school because          .

A．they wanted him to live a normal life

B．they wanted to prove the headmaster wrong

C．he wouldn’t mix with other disabled children

D．he wasn’t taken good care of in the special school

小題3:How did Adrian finally succeed in his study?

A．He did a lot of outdoor activities.

B．He was pushed hard to study every day.

C．He attended private classes after school.

D．He worked very hard both in and after class

小題4:Why is Adrian’s life described as an “Amazing Race”?

A．He did very well in his study

B．He succeeded in entering a regular school

C．He reached his goals in spite of his disability

D．He took part in the World Yacht Race 05/06

The most frightening words in the English language are, “Our computer is down.” You hear it more and more when you are on business. The other day I was at the airport waiting for a ticket to Washington and the girl in the ticket office said, “I’m sorry, I can’t sell you a ticket. Our computer is down.”
“If your computer is down, just write me out a ticket.”
“I can’t write you out a ticket. The computer is the only one allowed to do so.”
I looked down on the computer and every passenger was just standing there drinking coffee and staring at the black screen. Then I asked her, “What do all you people do?”
“We give the computer the information about your trip, and then it tells us whether you can fly with us or not.”
“So when it goes down, you go down with it.”
“That’s good, sir.”
“How long will the computer be down?” I wanted to know.
“I have no idea. Sometimes it’s down for 10 minutes, sometimes for two hours. There’s no way we can find out without asking the computer, and since it’s down it won’t answer us.”
After the girl told me they had no backup(備用) computer, I said. “Let’s forget the computer. What about your planes? They’re still flying, aren’t they?”
“I couldn’t tell without asking the computer.”
“Maybe I could just go to the gate and ask the pilot if he’s flying to Washington, ” I suggested.
“I wouldn’t know what gate to send you to. Even if the pilot was going to Washington, he couldn’t take you if you didn’t have a ticket.”
“Is there any other airline flying to Washington within the next few hours?”
“I wouldn’t know, ” she said, pointing at the dark screen. “Only ‘IT’ knows. ‘It’ can’t tell me.”
By this time there were quite a few people standing in lines. The word soon spread to other travelers that the computer was down. Some people went white, some people started to cry and still others kicked their luggage.
小題1:The best title for the article is _______.

A．When the Computer Is Down	B．The Most Frightening Words
C．The Computer of the Airport	D．Asking the Computer

小題2:What could the girl in the ticket office do for the passengers without asking the computer?

A．She could sell a ticket.

B．She could write out a ticket.

C．She could answer the passengers’ questions.

D．She could do nothing.

小題3:Why do you think they had not a backup computer?

A．Because it was easy down

B．Because it was very expensive.

C．Because it was not advanced enough.

D．Because it was not as big as the main computer.

小題4:The last paragraph suggests that _______.

A．a(chǎn) modern computer won’t be down.

B．computers can take the place of humans

C．sometimes a computer may bring suffering to people

D．there will be great changes in computers

Jack used to curse(咒罵) the front yard as if it were a living thing. He was the man who lived with my grandmother for thirty years. He was not my grandfather, but an Italian who came down the road one day, selling fruit in Florida.
Jack stopped at my grandmother’s house to sell her some oranges just a stone’s throw from downtown Miami, and he was delivering her whiskey a week later. He stayed for thirty years. Jack hated the front yard because he thought it was against him. There had been a beautiful lawn(草坪) there when Jack came along, but he let it wander off into nothing. He refused to water it or take care of it in any way.
Now the ground was so hard that it gave his car flat tires(輪胎) in the summer. The yard was always finding a nail to put in one of his tires or the car as always sinking out of sight in the winter when the rains came on. The lawn had belonged to my grandfather, who lived out the end of his life in an insane hospital. It had been his pride and joy and was said to be the place where his powers came.
小題1:It can be inferred that the real reason Jack had problems with the yard was that _______.

A．he didn’t like the lawn.

B．the author’s grandfather was against Jack working on the lawn

C．the lawn was full of living things

D．he himself did not take care of the lawn

小題2:We can learn from the passage that when the lawn belonged to the author’s grandfather, it had been _______.

A．beautiful

B．worn out

C．wasted

D．full of nails

小題3:What do we know about Jack and the author’s grandfather?

A．They both hated the front lawn.

B．Jack was jealous of the author’s grandfather.

C．They sold fruit in Florida.

D．They came from Italy and lived together.

I was 15 when I walked into McCarley’s Bookstore in Ashland. As I was looking at ___1___ on the shelves, the man behind the counter, ___2___, asked if I’d like ___3___. I needed to start ___4___ for college, so I said yes. I ___5___ after school and during summers for the lowest wages and the job helped pay for my freshman year of college. I would work many other jobs; I made coffee in the Students Union during college, I was a hotel maid and even made maps for the U. S. Forest Service. But selling books was one of the most ___6___. One day a woman asked me for books on cancer. She seemed fearful. I showed her almost ___7___ we had at that time ___8___ and found other books we could order. She left the store less ___9___. I’ve always remembered the ___10___ I felt in having helped her.
Years later, as a ___11___ in Los Angeles, I heard about an immigrant child who was born with his fingers connected, webline. His family could not ___12___ a corrective operation, and the boy lived in ___13___, hiding his hand in his pocket.
I ___14___ my boss to let me do the story. After my story was broadcast, a doctor and a nurse called, offering to perform the ___15___ for free.
I visited the boy in the recovery room soon after the operation. The first thing he did was to hold up his ___16___ hand and say, “Thank you.” I felt a sense of ___17___.
In the past, while I was ___18___, I always sense I was working for the customers, not the store. Today it’s the same. NBC News pays my salary, ___19___ I feel as if I work for the ___20___, helping them make sense of the world.
1. A. maps      B. titles   C. articles     D. reports
2. A. the reader      B. the college student   C. the shop owner  D. the customer
3. A. a book    B. a job   C. some tea     D. any help
4. A. planning B. saving C. preparing   D. studying
5. A. read       B. studied       C. cooked       D. worked
6. A. boring    B. surprising   C. satisfying   D. disappointing
7. A. anything B. something  C. nothing      D. everything
8. A. in need   B. in all   C. in order      D. in store
9. A. worried  B. satisfied     C. excited       D. puzzled
10. A. pride    B. failure C. regret  D. surprise
11. A. doctor   B. store owner       C. bookseller  D. TV reporter
12. A. pay      B. cost    C. afford D. spend
13. A. shame   B. honour       C. horror D. danger
14. A. advised B. forced      C. persuaded   D. permitted
15. A. action   B. program     C. treatment    D. operation
16. A. repaired       B. connected   C. injured       D. improved
17 A. pleasure B. sadness     C. interest       D. disappointment
18. A. at the TV station  B. in the Students Union
C. at the U. S. Forest Service       D. at McCarley’s Bookstore
19. A. so B. and     C. but    D. because
20. A. readers B. viewers      C. customers   D. passengers

My father was a foreman of a sugar-cane plantation in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico. My first job was to drive the oxen that ploughed the cane fields. I would walk behind an ox, guiding him with a broomstick. For $ 1 a day, I worked eight hours straight, with no food breaks.
It was very tedious work, but it prepared me for life and taught me many lasting lessons. Because the plantation owners were always watching us, I had to be on time every day and work as hard as I could. I’ve never been late for any job since. I also learned about being respectful and faithful to the people you work for. More important, I earned my pay; it never entered my mind to say I was sick just because I didn’t want to work.
I was only six years old, but I was doing a man’s job. Our family needed every dollar we could make because my father never earned more than $ 18 a week. Our home was a three-room wood shack with a dirty floor and no toilet. Nothing made me prouder than bringing home money to help my mother, father, two brothers and three sisters. This gave me self-esteem(自尊心), one of the most important things a person can have.
When I was seven, I got work at a golf course near our house. My job was to stand down the fairway and spot the balls as they landed, so the golfers could find them. Losing a ball meant you were fired, so I never missed one. Some nights I would lie in bed and dreamt of making thousands of dollars by playing golf and being able to buy a bicycle.
The more I dreamed, the more I thought. Why not? I made my first golf club out of guava limb(番石榴樹(shù)枝) and a piece of pipe. Then I hammered an empty tin can into the shape of a ball. And finally I dug two small holes in the ground and hit the ball back and forth. I practiced with the same devotion and intensity. I learned working in the field — except now I was driving golf balls with club, not oxen with a broomstick.
小題1:The writer’s first job was _______.

A．to stand down the fairway at a golf course

B．to watch over the sugar-cane plantation

C．to drive the oxen that ploughed the cane fields

D．to spot the balls as they landed so the golfers could find them

小題2:The word “tedious” in Paragraph 2 most probably means _______.

A．difficult

B．boring

C．interesting

D．unusual

小題3:The writer learned that_______ from his first job.

A．he should work for those who he liked most

B．he should work longer than what he was expected

C．he should never fail to say hello to his owner

D．he should be respectful and faithful to the people he worked for

小題4:_______ gave the writer serf-esteem.

A．Having a family of eight people

B．Owning his own golf course

C．Bringing money back home to help the family

D．Helping his father with the work on the plantation

小題5:Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

A．He wanted to be a successful golfer.

B．He wanted to run a golf course near his house.

C．He was satisfied with the job he got on a plantation.

D．He wanted to make money by guiding oxen with a broomstick.

We spent a day in the country, picking wild flowers. With the car full of flowers we were going home. On our way back my wife noticed a cupboard (柜廚) outside a furniture shop. It was tall and narrow. “Buy it, ” my wife said at once. “We’ll carry it home on the roof rack. I’ve always wanted one like that.”
What could I do? Ten minutes later I was ￡20 poorer; and the cupboard was tied on the roof rack. It was six feet long and eighteen inches square, quite heavy too.
In the gathering darkness I drove slowly. Other drivers seemed unusually polite that evening. The police even stopped traffic to let us through. Carrying furniture was a good idea.
After a time my wife said, “There’s a long line of cars behind. Why don’t they overtake, I wonder?” In fact a police car did overtake. The two officers inside looked at us seriously as they passed. But then, with great kindness, they led us through the rush-hour traffic. The police car stopped at our village church. One of the officers came to me.
“Right, sir, ” he said. “Do you need any more help?”
I was a bit puzzled. “Thanks, officer, ” I said. “You have been very kind. I live just on the road.”
He was staring at our car, first at the flowers, then at the cupboard. “Well, well, ” he said, laughing. “It’s a cupboard you’ve got there! We thought it was something else.”
My wife began to laugh. The truth hit me like a stone between the eyes. I smiled at the officer. “Yes, it’s a cupboard, but thanks again.” I drove home as fast as I could.
1. In fact the husband _______ the cupboard.
A. would like very much to buy           B. badly wanted 
C. was glad to have bought                  D. would rather not buy
2. Other drivers thought they were _______.
A. carrying a cupboard to the church
B. sending flowers to the church
C. carrying nothing but a piece of furniture
D. going to attend a funeral(葬禮) at the church
3. The police will be more polite to those who are _______.
A. driving in gathering darkness                 B. in great sorrow (悲痛)
C. driving with wild glowers in the car        D. carrying furniture
4. What did the husband think of this matter?
A. It was very strange.                               B. He felt ashamed of it.
C. He took great pride in it.                        D. He was puzzled at it.

When Johnson called again, the manager received him very politely. “That is a most remarkable oil you brought us, Mr Johnson,” he said. Johnson nodded his smooth, dark head. That was something he knew very well. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” the manager admitted. Johnson nodded again. “No?” he said politely. Then he added, “But I think you will, sir. A very great deal of it.” He appeared to think for a moment. “I think you will find it will be on sale seven, perhaps, eight years from now.” He smiled.
The manager thought that was uncertain. He said, “It is better than our fish oils. I admit that.” “So I am told, sir,” agreed Johnson.
“Have you any plans to produce it yourself, Mr Johnson?”
Johnson smiled again. “Would I be showing it to you if I had?”
“We might add some chemicals to one of our own fish oils,” said the manager.
“It would be expensive to do that, even if you could.” Johnson said gently. “Besides,” he added, “I am told that this oil will be much cheaper than your best fish oils. Cheaper than any vegetable oil, in fact.”
“Perhaps,” said the manager. “Well, I suppose you want to make an arrangement, Mr Johnson, Shall we discuss it?”
“Of course,” said Johnson. “There are two ways of dealing with a situation of this sort. The usual one is to prevent it altogether or at least to delay it as long as possible. That is, of course, the best way,” The manager nodded. He knew plenty about all that.
“But I am so sorry for you, because, you see, that is not possible this time.” The manager had his doubts, but all he said was an inquiring(asking), “Oh?”
“The other way,” continued Johnson, “is to produce yourself before the trouble starts.”
小題1:The manager thought of adding chemicals to the fish oil to make it ________.

A．cheaper than the new oil	B．more quickly
C．more expensive	D．a(chǎn)s good as the new oil

小題2:Johnson’s new oil would be ________.

A．more expensive than fish oil, but better

B．less expensive, and better

C．less expensive, but not good

D．more expensive, and not so good

小題3:Johnson expressed his regret that the manager ________.

A．could not stop the new oil being made

B．would never know how to make it

C．had spent a lot of money on it

D．didn’t know enough about it

小題4:Johnson showed his new oil to the manager because he wanted ________.

A．to produce it himself	B．to prevent it being produced
C．to be paid not to produce it	D．the manager to produce it