Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to the other side.
     Most people know this joke. But recently, some people have been much more worried about how
the grizzly bear and mountain lion can cross the road.
     "Millions of animals die each year on U.S. roads," the Federal Highway Administration reports.  In
fact, o nly about 80 ocelots, an endangered wild cat, exist in the U.S. today. The main reason? Roadkill.
     "Eco-passages" may help animals cross the road without being hit by cars. They are paths both over
and under roads. "These eco-passages can be extremely useful, so that wildlife can avoid road
accidents," said Jodi Hilty of the Wildlife Protection Society.
     But do animals actually use the eco-passages? The answer is yes. Paul Beier of Northern Arizona
University found foot marks left by mountain lions on an eco-passage that went under a highway.  This
showed that the lions used the passage.
     Builders of eco-passages try to make them look like a natural part of an area by planting trees on and
around them. Animals seem to be catching on. Animals like salamanders(火蜥蜴) and grizzly bears are
using the bridges and underpasses.
     The next time you visit a park or drive through an area with a lot of wildlife, look around. You might
see an animal overpass!

1. The writer uses the example of "ocelots" to show that _______. 

A. wild animals have become more dangerous
B. the driving condition has improved greatly
C. the measure for protecting wildlife fails to work
D. an increasing number of animals are killed in road accidents

2. From the story, we know an eco-passage is ________.  

A. an underground path for cars
B. a fence built for the safety of the area
C. a bridge for animals to get over a river
D. a path for animals to cross the road

3. When the writer says that "animals seem to be catching on"(Para. 6), he means __. 

A. animals begin to realize the dangers on the road 
B. animals begin to learn to use eco-passages
C. animals are crossing the road in groups       
D. animals are increasing in number

4. The writer asks visitors and drivers to look around when traveling because _____.

A. wild animals may attack cars
B. wild animals may jam the road
C. they may see wild animals in the park
D. they may see wild animals on eco-passages

5. The best title for the passage is ________. 

A. Special bridges help animals cross the road
B. Endangered animals increase because of roadkill
C. Animals fail to cross the road
D. Take steps to protect animals in danger

     The old man walked with a cane (拐杖) slowly into the restaurant. His poor jacket, patched (打補(bǔ)丁的) trousers, and worn-out shoes made him stand out from the usual Saturday morning breakfast crowd. Unforgettable were his pale blue eyes that sparkled like diamonds, large rosy cheeks, and thin lips that
held a steady smile.
     He walked toward a table by the window. A young waitress watched him and ran over to him, saying,  "Here, Sir. Let me give you a hand with that chair."
     Without a word, he smiled and nodded a thank you. She pulled the chair away from the table.
Supporting him with one arm, she helped him move in front of the chair, and get comfortably seated. Then she pushed the table up close to him, and leaned his cane against the table where he could reach it.
     In a soft, clear voice he said, "Thank you, Miss."
     "You're welcome, Sir." She replied. "My name is Mary. I'll be back in a moment. If you need anything, just wave at me."
     After he had finished a hearty meal of pancakes, bacon, and hot lemon tea, Mary brought him the change, helping him up from his chair and out from behind the table. She handed him his cane, and walked with him to the front door. Holding the door open for him, she said, "Come back and see us, Sir!"
     He nodded a thank you and said softly with a smile, "You are very kind!"
     When Mary went to clean his table, she was shocked. Under his plate she found a business card and a note written on the napkin, under which was a $ 100 bill.
     The note on the napkin read, "Dear Mary, I respect you very much, and you respect yourself, too. It
shows by the way you treat others. You have found the secret of happiness. Your kind gestures will shine
through those who meet you."
     The man she had served was the owner of the restaurant. This was the first time that she, or any of his
employees, had seen him in person.

1. Mary ran over to the old man because _____. 

A. the old man was the boss of the restaurant 
B. she was worried that the old man might cause trouble to the restaurant 
C. she saw the old man had some difficulty moving and taking a seat
D. the old man had asked her to wait on him

2. The man came to the restaurant ______. 

A. to have breakfast  
B. to see his employees  
C. to find out how his restaurant was working 
D. to see how Mary served customers

3. The words the man left on the napkin suggested that _____.

A. respecting others means respecting oneself  
B. serving others is a respectable job 
C. Mary would get a rise as a result of her kindness 
D. Mary's kind service would bring in more money for her

4. Which of the following titles goes best with the story? 

A. A kind- hearted Girl 
B. Shining Kindness 
C. Kindness Means Opportunities 
D. A Special Customer

     Angus MacLeod was fifty and he had spent his entire life as a shepherd in the remote mountainous
region of northwest Scotland. He had never owned a radio or television nor had he travelled further
than forty kilometres from his birthplace. His knowledge of the world was gained only from his brief
trips to the village to sell his sheep and buy food. However, he had lately come to rely on the growing
number of hillwalkers in the region as sources of international news.
     In the spring of 1992, a Spanish student came across Angus high in the mountains. Eager to practise
his English he engaged Angus in conversation. The student told Angus of the forthcoming Olympic
Games in Barcelona. Excited by the student's colourful description of Spain and the Games, Angus
decided to attend the event in person and two months later arrived in Barcelona.
     The ticketless Angus stood outside the stadium with his canny brain working overtime, watching a
growing number of individuals entering the stadium through a small entrance at the side. He noticed
that they all seemed to be carrying objects. Perhaps they were workmen, he thought. He moved closer
and watched.
     Within minutes a thin young man came along carrying an extremely long pole. He approached the
official at the door and said "Pole Vault". The official moved to the side and the man entered. Next
came a heavyset man with a spear. Angus wondered how a man could carry such a dangerous
weapon in a modern city. The man shouted "Javelin" and was presently admitted. Angus was puzzled.
Perhaps they were all connected with security. His puzzlement grew when a huge man appeared with
a steel ball in his hand. He shouted"Shot Putt" and walked past the official.
     It suddenly dawned on Angus that these people were competitors. He opened his programme and
sure enough under the heading "events" he saw the three words the men had said. Angus laughed to
himself as a plan began to take shape in his mind. First he needed to buy one or two things.
     An hour later he reappeared dressed in a tracksuit with "Scotland" written across the chest. Over
his shoulder he carried a roll of barbed wire (鐵絲網(wǎng)). Smiling to himself he walked up to the official
and as casually as he could, shouted, "Fencing!"

1. Which was Angus' new way to know the outside world?

A. Travelling from his birthplace.            
B. Talking to hillwalkers in the region.
C. Going to the nearby village to sell sheep.      
D. Buying food in other places.

2. What are "Pole Vault", "Javelin", "Shot Putt" and "Fencing" in the passage?

A. Olympic events.                    
B. Names of competitors.
C. The thing they carried with.            
D. The countries they came from.

3. From the passage we can learn that ______.

A. the Spanish student went to Scotland to practice his English
B. Angus became a member of the Scottish Olympic team
C. Angus believed that weapons were necessary to the security of the Games
D. the Spanish student's description of his country and the Games excited Angus

4. In the passage, Angus seemed to be ______.

A. poorlyinformed    
B. intelligent    
C. strongminded    
D. athletic

5. What do you expect the official would do in the end?

A. Check the security of the wire.            
B. Lead him to the court.
C. Refuse to let him in.                 
D. Examine him closely.

     My mind went blank when I saw the gun pointing against the car window as we pulled out of
the garage. This can't be happening to me. Then I felt the gun, cold, against my head, and I heard
my friend Jeremy saying, "What do you want? Take my wallet," but at the time I thought of nothing.
     I remember being a little annoyed when the gunman pulled me from the car by the hair. I remember
the walk to the house-Jeremy, me, the two men with two guns. I remember the fear and anger in the
gunmen's voices because Jeremy was being slow, and I remember wondering why he was being slow.
I did not realize that Jeremy had thrown the keys into the bush. But I remember that sound of the gun
hitting Jeremy's head and the feeling as the man who had hold of my hair released me. And I remember
the split second when I realized he was looking at Jeremy, and I remember wondering how far I
could run before he pulled the trigger. But I was already running, and upon reaching the car across t
he street, I didn't crouch(蹲伏) behind it but screamed instead.
     I remember thinking there was something ridiculous and illogical about screaming "Help, help!" at
eight o'clock on a Tuesday evening in December and changing my plea(懇求) to the more specific
"Help, let me in, please let me in!" But the houses were cold, closed, unfriendly, and I ran on until I
heard Jeremy's screams behind me announcing that our attackers had fled.
     The neighbors who had not opened their doors to us came out with baseball bats and helped
Jeremy find his glasses and keys. In a group they were very brave. We waited for the police to come
until someone said to someone else that the noodles were getting cold, and I said politely, "Please go
and eat. We're O.K."
     I was happy to see them go. They had been talking of stricter sentences for criminals, of bringing
back the death penalty(處罰) and how the President is going to clean up the country. I was thinking,
they could be saying all of this over my dead body, and I still feel that stiffer sentences wouldn't
change a thing. In a rush all the anger I should have felt for my attackers was directed against these
contented people standing in front of their warm, comfortable homes talking about all the guns they
were going to buy. What good would guns have been to Jeremy and me?
     People all over the neighborhood had called to report our screams, and the police turned out in
force twenty minutes later. They were ill-tempered about what was, to them, much trouble about
nothing. After all, Jeremy was hardly hurt, and we were hopeless when it came to describing the
gunmen. "Typical," said one policeman when we couldn't even agree on how tall the men were.
Both of us were able to describe the guns in horrifying detail, but the two policemen who stayed
to make the report didn't think that would be much help.
The policemen were matter-of-fact about the whole thing. The thin one said, "That was a stupid thing to do, throwing away the keys. When a man has a gun against your head you do what you're told." Jeremy looked properly embarrassed.
Then the fat policeman came up and the thin one went to look around the outside of the house. "That was the best thing you could have done, throwing away the keys," he said. "If you had gone into the house with them…" His voice became weaker. "They would have hurt her" --- he twisted his head toward me - "and killed you both." Jeremy looked happier. "Look," said the fat policeman kindly, "there's no right or wrong in the situation. There's just luck."
All that sleepless night I replayed the moment those black gloves came up to the car window. How long did the whole thing last? Three minutes, five, eight? No matter how many hours of my life I may spend reliving it, I know there is no way to prepare for the next time --- no intelligent response to a gun. The fat cop was right. There's only luck. The next time I might end up dead.
And I'm sure there will be a next time. It can happen anywhere, anytime, to anyone. Security is an illusion(幻覺); there is no safety in locks or in guns. Guns make some people feel safe and some people feel strong, but they're fooling themselves.

1. When the writer saw the gun pointing against the car window, ______.

A. she felt very annoyed              
B. she lost consciousness
C. she felt very much nervous          
D. she lost the power of thinking

2. What most possibly drove the two gunmen away?

A. Jeremy's fighting                
B. The author's screaming    
C. Their neighbour's brave action      
D. The police's arrival

3. The police were rather angry because ______.

A. the author was not hurt and gave a false alarm 
B. they thought it was a case of little importance
C. the author and Jeremy could not tell the police anything
D. the gunmen had already fled when they arrived on the scene

4. What the author wants to tell us is that______.

A. neighbors are not helpful in moments of difficulty
B. the police are not reliable when one is in trouble
C. security is impossible as long as people can have guns
D. preventing robbers entering your house is the best choice

     I had the meanest mother in the world. While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have
cereal, eggs and toast. Others had cokes and candy for lunch, while we had to eat a sandwich. As
you can guess, my supper was different than the other kids'. But at least I was not alone in my
suffering. My sister and two brothers had the same mean mother as I did.
     My mother insisted on knowing where we were at all times. She had to know who our friends
were and what we were doing. We had to wear clean clothes every day. Other kids always wore
their clothes for days. We reached the height of disgrace because she made our clothes herself, just
to save money.
     The worst is yet to come. We had to be in bed by 9:00 each night and up at 7:45 the next
morning. So while my friends slept, my mother actually had the courage to break Child Labor Law.
She made us work.  I believed she lay awake all night thinking up mean things to do to us. Through
the years, our friends' report cards had beautiful colors on them, black for passing, red for failing.
My mother, however, would merely be content with black marks. None of us was allowed the
pleasure of being a dropout.
     She forced us to grow up into educated and honest adults. Using this as a background, I'm now
trying to bring up my three children. I'm filled with pride when my children think I am mean because
now I thank God every day for giving me the meanest mother in the world.

1. From the passage we can learn that the writer's mother was __________.

A. not generous at all    
B. very strict with her children
C. very mean with money matters  
D. very cruel to her children

2. Which of the following things did the writer hate to do most? w

A. Eating differently from other kids.  
B. Wearing clean clothes made by mother
C. Going to bed early and getting up early
D. Letting mother know where they were

3. It can be inferred from the passage that____________.

A. the writer worked hard and usually got good grades in studies
B. mother was punished for breaking the Labor Law
C. all the other kids studied better than the writer
D. the writer's family lived a miserable life

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

A. Mother practised economy in running her home
B. The writer is very thankful for her mother
C. The writer is severe with her children when bringing them up
D. The wrier has a deep hatred for her mother

5. The passage was written in a way of _________ tone.

A. humorous          
B. hateful          
C. ridiculous        
D. critical

     A 33-year-old financial analyst in California recently quit his job to devote himself to an unpaid
job teaching math on the Internet, and his lessons are reaching almost 100,000 people a month.
Salman Khan’s voice is heard every day on the net-by tens of thousands of students around the
world who are hungry for help learning math. He has posted 1,200 lessons on YouTube-lessons
that appear on an electronic blackboard, which range from basic addition to advanced mathematics
for science and finance. And they are free.
     Khan lives in Silicon Valley, with his wife, a doctor, and their new baby. He got the idea for his
“Khan Academy” four years ago, when he taught a young cousin how to convert kilograms to grams.
With Khan’s help, the cousin got good at math, and Khan began a new career.
     Now, Khan records his lessons himself, but he never goes on camera. “It feels like my voice in
their head. You’re looking at it and it feels like someone’s over your shoulder talking in your ear, as
opposed to someone at the blackboard, which is distant from you,” he said.
     When Springfield High School in Palo Alto, California invited Khan to speak in person-he
immediately connected to the students there.
     The idea of short lessons that can be played over and over again attracted high school senior
Bridget Meaney. She says she had trouble with math in the seventh grade. “I think the teachers are
good, but they can’t teach at a speed that’s perfect for everyone,” she said. “I like the idea of learning
something in class but then going back and pressing pause or rewind and actually getting a deeper
understanding of it.”
     Originally, Khan kept his lessons short because of YouTube restrictions. Now, he thinks short
is better. “Education researchers now tell me that 10 minutes is how long someone can have a high
level of concentration. And anything beyond that and your brain switches off,” he said.
     For Khan, teaching math, science, and finance is just the beginning. He says he’s ready to expand
his YouTube site to include other subjects as well.

1. What gave Khan the idea of teaching math online?

A. His success in helping his cousin learn math.
B. His discovery that many students found learning math difficult.
C. A suggestion made to him at a local high school.
D. His interest in Internet teaching.

2. Why does Khan never go on camera?

A. He’s too shy to show his face on camera.
B. It’s restricted by YouTube for education videos.
C. He wants to keep distance from the viewers.
D. He wants to create a more relaxed learning atmosphere.

3. From the passage, we know that ________.

A. Khan travels to many schools to promote his lessons
B. Khan plans to include more subjects in the future
C. Khan gives live math lessons every day for free
D. Khan set up the Khan Academy with his wife

4. Why does Bridget Meaney like Khan’s lessons?

A. Khan teaches seventh grade math better than her teacher.
B. The lessons can be watched repeatedly until fully understood.
C. She can perfectly follow the pace of Khan’s teaching.
D. She cannot concentrate when learning in class.

5. What does Khan mean by “short is better” in the 6th paragraph?

A. Keeping the lessons short can ensure better concentration.
B. YouTube recommends short lessons for its site.
C. Short lessons encourage students to return to the website.
D. Students enjoy short mathematics lessons more.

     The drug store was closing for the night and Alfred Higgins was about to go home when his new
boss approached him.
     "Empty your pockets please, Alfred,” Sam Carr demanded in a firm voice.
Alfred pretended to be shocked but he knew he’d been caught. From his coat he withdrew a make-up
kit, a lipstick and two tubes of toothpaste.
     "I’m disappointed in you, Alfred!” said the little gray-haired man.
     "Sorry, sir. Please forgive me. It’s the first time I’ve ever done such a thing,” Alfred lied, hoping
to gain the old man’s sympathy.
     Mr Carr’s brow furrowed as he reached for the phone, “Do you take me for a fool? Let’s see
what the police have to say. But first I’ll call your mother and let her know her son is heading to jail.”
    "Do whatever you want,” Alfred shot back, trying to sound big. But deep down he felt like a child.
He imagined his mother rushing in, eyes burning with anger, maybe in tears. Yet he wanted her to
come quickly before Mr. Carr called the police.
     Mr. Carr was surprised when Mrs Higgins finally arrived. She was very calm, quiet and friendly.
“Is Alfred in trouble?” she asked.
     "He’s been stealing from the store,” the old man coolly replied.
     Mrs. Higgins put out her hand and touched Mr. Carr’s arm with great gentleness as if she knew
just how he felt. She spoke as if she did not want to cause him any more trouble. “What do you want
to do, Mr. Carr?”
     The woman’s calm and gentle manner disarmed the once-angry store-owner. “I was going to get
a cop. But I don’t want to be cruel. Tell your son not to come back here again, and I’ll let it go.” Then
he warmly shook Mrs. Higgins’s hand.
     Mrs. Higgins thanked the old man for his kindness, then mother and son left. They walked along the
street in silence. When they arrived home his mother simply said, “Go to bed, you fool.”
In his bedroom, Alfred heard his mother in the kitchen. He felt no shame, only pride in his mother’s
actions. “She was smooth!” he thought. He went to the kitchen to tell her how great she was, but was
shocked by what he saw.
    His mother’s face looked frightened, broken. Not the cool, bright face he saw earlier. Her lips
moved nervously. She looked very old. There were tears in her eyes.
     This picture of his mother made him want to cry. He felt his youth ending. He saw all the troubles
he brought her and the deep lines of worry in her grey face. It seemed to him that this was the first
time he had ever really seen his mother.

1. Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A. It was the first time Alfred had stolen anything.
B. Alfred tried to sound big to hide his fear.
C. Mr. Carr set a trap to catch Alfred stealing.
D. Mr. Carr had planned to forgive Alfred from the beginning.

2. What does the underlined word “disarmed” probably mean?

A. annoyed  
B. made less angry
C. convinced  
D. got over

3. What was the mother’s attitude toward Alfred?

A. She felt disappointed with him.          
B. She was very strict with him.
C. She was supportive of him.              
D. She was afraid of him.

4. What impressed Alfred most about his mother at the drugstore was ________

A.how angry she was                  
B. that she didn’t cry
C.that she was able to save him          
D. how effectively she handled Mr. Carr

5. From the last paragraph, we know that Alfred ________.

A.was no longer a youth                
B. felt proud of his mother
C.wanted his mother to be happy        
D. felt guilty and regretful for his deed