Like most July days, it was hot. I stepped into a tiny ice-cream shop to cool off with a chocolate ice-cream.
It was an old-time store with little round tables and chairs.
    As I entered, I found a very old woman bent over a table near the door. Her back was so badly twisted by
some sadness that her face nearly touched the table top. I sat down facing her a couple of tables away.
     "Poor woman," I thought, "what does she get out of life? Why God let people live so long past their prime
(盛年)?"
     As I thought, another aged lady entered the shop and sat down with her. Soon the two of them were talking
about childhood days. They talked of how little the shop had changed in 70 years ……In minutes, the two of
them were trembling with laughter. I looked again at the first woman, then in the mirror on a nearby wall,
catching a picture of myself.
     I was wearing a dirty shirt.
     She was well dressed in white, her hands sparking with gold rings.
     I was gloomy (愁悶的) 
     She was laughing, smiling.
     I sat alone. 
     She was sharing the day with a good friend.
     I was secretly worried about getting old
     She was old, but it wasn't hurting her.
     As I left the shop, I thought of my foolish question about God letting people live past their prime. Why,
that woman was more alive, more sensitive (敏感的) to life than I was. Age has not bent her spirit.

1. Which of the following is the main idea of the passage?

A. To tell us the life of old people.
B. To show the difference between the old and the young.
C. To show that old age does not mean doing short of spirit.
D. To make the reader have a pity on the old people.

2. The writer implies all of the following except that _____.

A. the old lady was very lonely and sad
B. he had more problems than the old lady
C. the old lady had lived a full and satisfying life
D. the old lady had learned to enjoy the simple things in life

3. Which of the following is the conclusion the writer made about the old lady?

A. She was to be pitied for her old age.
B. She considered the young man pitiable.
C. She was more alive and sensitive to life than the writer.
D. People should not be allowed to live when they are too old.

     Last week my youngest son and I visited my father at his new home in Tucson, Arizona. He moved there
a few years ago, and I was eager to see his new place and meet his friends.
     My earliest memories of my father are a tall, handsome, successful man devoted to his work and his
family, but uncomfortable with his children. As a child I loved him. He seemed unhappy with me if I didn't
got straight A's and unhappy with my boyfriends if their fathers were not as "successful" as he was. Whenever
I went out with him on weekends, I used to try hard to think out things to say, feeling on guard.
     On the first day of my visit, we went out with one of my father's friends for lunch at an outdoor cafe. We
walked along that afternoon, did some shopping, ate on the street table, and laughed over my son's funny facial
expressions. Gone was my father's critical (挑剔的) air and strict rules. Who was this person I knew as my
father, who seemed so friendly and interesting to be around? What had held him back before?
     The next day dad pulled out his childhood pictures and told me quite a few stories about his own childhood.
Although our times together became easier over the years, I never felt closer to him at that moment. After so
many years, I'm at last seeing another side of my father. And in so doing, I'm delighted with my new friend.
My dad, in his new home in Arizona, is back to me from where he was.

1. Why did the author feel bitter (痛苦) about her father as a young adult?

A. He was silent most of the time.
B. He was too proud of himself.
C. He didn't love his children.
D. He expected too much of her.

2. When the author went out with her father on weekends, she would feel _____.

A. nervous
B. sorry
C. tired
D. safe

3. What does the author think of her father after her visit to Tucson?

A. More critical
B. More humorous
C. Easy-going and friendly
D. Strict and hard-working

4. The underlined words in the last paragraph refer to _____.

A. the author's son
B. the author's father
C. the friend of the author's father
D. the cafe owner

5. We can infer from the passage that _____.

A. The writer's father used to be strict with her when he was a child.
B. The writer's father worked hard but cared less for his family.
C. It was possibly the first time that the writer had visited her father's new home.
D. As a child, the writer loved her father.

    Jack Brown, an office worker, lives in Washington. He inherited (繼承) a million dollars when he was
23, but he wasn't happy at all. When his college friends were looking for their jobs, he didn't have to. Jack
decided to live a simple life like everyone else. He gave some of his money to a charity (慈善機構(gòu)) to help
poor children live a better life. Today he is 36. He still wears cheap shoes and clothes and drives a small car
only, but he is very happy.
    Up to now Jack has helped some children from poor countries all over the world, by sending them each
$ 200 a mouth. The money was used for the children's study, food, medicine and clothing. Jack receives a
report each year on the children's progress (進步). They can write to each other, but usually the children
do not speak English. 
    When Jack first heard about these children, he wanted to help them. "It was nothing special," he said.
"Until I went to these countries and met the children I was helping, I didn't know anything about their life."
Once Jack went to meet a little girl in Africa. He said that the meeting was very exciting. "When I met her.
I felt very, very happy." He said. "And I saw that the money was used for a good cause. It brought me
happiness. I want to do everything I can to go on helping those children."

1. Jack has sent them each $200 a month to help some poor children ______.

A. around the world　
B. Only in England
C. Only in Africa　
D. Only in Washington

2. Jack learned about the children's progress by ______.

A. visiting them each year　　　　　　
B. getting a report every year
C. staying with them　　　　　　　　
D. talking to them in English

3. The underlined (劃線的) words "for a good cause" means "______" in Chinese.

A. 施舍　　
B. 憐憫　 　
C. 行善　 　
D. 賞賜

4. All the details in this passage support the main idea that ______.

A. it's the most important to help the children in Africa
B. it's necessary to write letters to poor children
C. live a simple life, and you can give others help
D. help others, and you will feel happy

    John Smith, an office worker, lives in Washington.He inherited (繼承) a million dollars when he was 23,
but he wasn't happy at all. When his college friends were looking for their jobs, he didn't have to. Jack decided
to living a simple life like everyone else. He gave $l0,000 of his money to a charity (慈善機構(gòu)) to help poor
children live a better life. Today he is 36. He still wears cheap shoes and clothes and drives a small car only,
but he is very happy.
    Up to now John has helped some children from poor countries all over the world, by sending them each
$200 a month. The money was used for the children's study, food, medicine and clothing. John receives a
report each year on the children's progress. They can write to each other, but usually the children do not
speak English.
     When John first heard about these children, he wanted to help them. "It was nothing special," he said.
"Until I went to these countries and met the children I was helping, I didn't know anything about their life."
Once John went to meet a little girl in Africa. He said that the meeting was very exciting. "When I met her.
I felt very, very happy." he said. "And I saw that the money was used for a good cause. It brought me
happiness. I want to do everything I can to go on helping those children."

1. John didn't need to look for a job _____.

A. before he went to college
B. after he went to Africa
C. because he got a lot of money
D. before he received a report

2. John has sent them each $200 a month to help some poor children _____.

A. near Washington
B. in European countries
C. only in Africa
D. throughout the world

3. John learned about the children's progress by _____.

A. visiting them each year
B. getting a report every year
C. staying with them
D. talking to them in English

4. The underlined words "for a good cause" means "_____" in Chinese.

A. 施舍
B. 行善
C. 優(yōu)惠
D. 賞賜

5. What's the main idea of the story?

A. Help others, and you will feel happy.
B. It's necessary to write letters to poor children.
C. Live a simple life,and you can give others help.
D. It's the most important to help the children in Africa.

    Miss Gogers taught physics in a New York school. Last month she explained to one of her classes about
sound, and she decided to test them to see how successful she had been in her explanation. She said to them,
"Now I have a brother in Los Angeles. If I was calling him on the phone and at the same time you were 75
feet away, listening to me from across the street, which of you would hear what I said earlier, my brother or
you and for what reason?"
    Tom at once answered, "Your brother. Because electricity travels faster than sound waves." "That's every
good," Miss Gogers answered; but then one of the girls raised her hand, and Miss Gogers said. "Yes, Kate."
    "I disagree," Kate said. "Your brother would hear you earlier because when it's 11 o'clock here it's only
8 o'clock in Los Angeles."

1. Miss Gogers was teaching her class _____.

A. how to telephone
B. about electricity
C. about time zone (時區(qū))
D. about sound

2. Miss Gogers raised this question because she wanted to know whether _____.

A. it was easy to phone to Los Angeles 　　
B. her student could hear her from 75 feet away
C. her students had grasped her lesson 　　
D. sound waves were slower than electricity

3. Tom thought that electricity was _____.

A. slower than sound waves　　
B. faster than sound waves
C. not so fast as sound waves 　　
D. as fast as sound waves

4. Whose answer do you think is correct according to the law of physics?

A. Tom's 　
B. Kate's 　　
C. Bath A and B 　　
D. Neither A nor B

    While I was in 9th grade, I built a circuit for the traffic system of our city. After getting the first prize, I
got this valuable advice from my father, "Do whatever interests you, and don't let the work challenge you,
make sure you are challenging that work."
    I have always preferred the projects which are challenging and related to real life problems. I clearly
remember building a shipping program several years ago. I divided the whole project into several small
sections. When I understood it clearly, used my brainstorming skill on it, and gave some basic ideas. Then
I asked my professor for help before jumping into coding. At first, I did not know how to ask questions
correctly and always asked the question "How do I do it?" As I kept working and discussed with my professor,
I became more comfortable and those"How" questions soon turned into "What if I do this and that" types o
f questions.
    It took me four days to write the code. The desire to solve the problem kept me sleepless all nights
brainstorming in even greater details. Every time I saw my program running smoothly, I exploded with joy.
I still remember the last day of my work. I was getting some problem and didn't know what to do. At that
moment, a man came in to clean. He has headphones, and he was dancing while cleaning the room. Seeing
this, I burst out laughing. That moment calmed me. I regained energy and interest and started to work again,
and soon I fixed the problem.
    My success in the project proved that breaking up a large problem into small parts could help find a
possible solution. Discussing the problem with others was also very beneficial. Now I have gained the
confidence to attempt any kind of project.

1. According to the passage, the writer was interested in _____.

A. developing traffic systems
B. doing challenging projects
C. winning great prizes
D. writing different codes

2. The writer asked the question "How do I do it" at first because _____.

A. he had no clear idea about his program
B. he was too shy to express himself
C. he wanted to he understood easily
D. he preferred this kind of question

3. We learn from the passage that the writer's shipping program _____.

A. would benefit people a lot
B. was done together with others
C. was difficult and needed patience
D. cost much money and energy

4. What would be the best title of the passage?

A. Do It Yourself
B. No Pains, No Gains
C. Learning with interest
D. Practice Makes Perfect