For a small town, Mantattan, Kansas has some big surprises. And one of them is the Holiday Inn Hotel, with rooms built around a swimming pool and a friendly atmosphere.
The Holiday Inn is where Manhattan people often go for a special party, or a night out. A lot of them choose to eat in the bright?lit restaurant near the pool, And many of them will be served by Ellen Logan, who has worked as a waitress here for more than two years.
Ellen, like most of the waitresses, is also a student. She comes from Nebraska, but she’s planning one day to be a veterinary surgeon, and to care for small animals. But in order to support herself at college, she works twenty hours a week at the Holiday Inn.
Ellen soon learned what every waitress finds out. Your best friend has a good pair of shoes. She paid forty?five dollars for hers, much more than she would usually spend. She’s discovered something else too. You don’t have to know much about food to be a good waitress, but you do have to know a lot about people.
“A lot of business people always stay here when they come to Manhattan”, she explains. “They like you to recognize them and remember their favorite dishes. But some couples come for a night out together. They just want to be left alone. Then there are people who can’t make up their minds. They look down the menu and say,‘What do you suggest?’So I ask them how hungry they are. If they say,‘Not very.’I suggest the salad bar, with soup, salad, bread, and a fruit plate. But if they say they’re very hungry, I suggest a Kansas Strip Steak, with potatoes or rice. You get salad and bread as well. It’s very nice. Real good value”.
Ellen may get tired sometimes, but at least she’s learning too much about people. She’s learning too much about people. She’ll probably make a good animal doctor, but if she finds she doesn’t like it after all, she can become a psychiatrist(心理醫(yī)生)instead.
【小題1】What does the underlined phrase “a veterinary surgeon” mean?

A．An animal doctor

B．A hotel manager

C．A food expert

D．A restaurant waitress

【小題2】According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?

A．Businessmen like to be suggested what to eat.

B．Many couples often want you to recognize them.

C．Why people like to eat in the hotel is that it is full of a friendly atmosphere.

D．If you know a lot about people,you’ll be a good veterinary surgeon.

【小題3】From the passage we can infer that       .

A．waitresses in the Holiday Inn are all students.

B．waitresses are required to buy a good pair of shoes before they go to work.

C．waitresses should be familiar with the food there.

D．it is more important for the waitresses to know much about people than food.

【小題4】Choose the best title for the passage.

A．How to Deal with People	B．A Special Holiday Inn Hotel in Manhattan
C．American Holiday Inn	D．Ellen Logan at the Holiday Inn

According to Andrew, it never would have happened if he had not had a flat tire on Highway 10 last night at about 7:30. He was on his way to attend a three-day sales meeting when he had the flat. tyre. Unfortunately, he did not have a spare, so he pushed the car off the road, locked it up, and managed to thumb a ride back to Pine Grove. It was after eleven o'clock when he finally got home, and it was then that his real problems started.
When Andrew left home at about 5:30, he had told his wife not to expect him back until Thursday or Friday. Knowing that his wife was nervous about staying in the house alone at night, Andrew took the precaution of checking all the windows in the house to be sure they were locked, so that he could report to his wife that the house was secure. He convinced his wife that the house was burglar-proof, and that she would be perfectly safe, providing she bolted （閂上）the front door as soon as he drove away.
Andrew's only thought as he made his way in the dark to his front door was how surprised his wife was going to be to see him, since he was not supposed to be back until Thursday or Friday. He had forgotten about the bolt on the front door. When he turned his key in the lock and the door wouldn't budge, he remembered the bolt. And he remembered that he had carefully locked all of the windows.
Although Andrew didn't know it at the time, a next-door neighbor had seen him approaching the house and had watched him go up the steps to the front door. In the dark, it was impossible for the neighbor to recognize Andrew, and, besides, the neighbor knew that Andrew had gone out-of-town for a three-day meeting. As a matter of fact, Andrew had asked the neighbor to keep an eye on the house while he was gone.
Finding that he couldn't get in, Andrew began pounding（砰砰地敲） on the front door to get his wife to open the door. According to Andrew, however, his wife is a very sound sleeper, and he knew it was going to be hard to wake her up. In the meantime, because of all the noise he had been making, the neighbor was convinced that somebody was trying to break into the house; so she called the police.
When we talked to Andrew at the country jail this morning, he said that he still didn't understand how the police managed to circle the house without his seeing them. He stated that he had decided the only way to get in was to break one of the dining room windows, and that he was about, to hurl his briefcase into the window to break it when two of the officers grabbed him from behind.
Andrew could not make the officers believe that he lived there; so they took him off to jail. Apparently, he did succeed in convincing them that they ought to wake up the woman in the house to check his story. But there was no answer when they knocked at the door. He tried to explain to them that his wife was a very sound sleeper, but they concluded there was nobody in the house.
【小題1】As Andrew had a flat tyre on the way, he          .

A．had to take another car to attend the meeting

B．rode on a bike to attend the meating

C．a(chǎn)sked for a lift to go back home

D．borrowed a car to go back home

【小題2】When Andrew was approaching the house        .

A．he was sure he would pleasently surprise his wife

B．he was deep in thought

C．he was sure that his neighbor would help him

D．he was worried about how to wake his wife up

【小題3】The  underlined word “budge” in Paragraph 3 probably means           .

A．move slightly

B．lock tightly

C．knock lightly

D．close tightly

【小題4】Why did the police officers take Andrew off to jail?

A．It was too late for them to contact Andrew’s wife.

B．Andrew did not explain clearly why he broke into the house.

C．They thought it unnecessary to check Andrew’s story.

D．they concluded that Andrew’s story was a complete invention.

Dad came in the midnight. We heard every sound, but we pretended to be asleep.
Next morning he looked weak and thin, sitting in a chair by the kitchen fire. The light of the fire shone through his long empty sleeve. Everything went as usual. Grandma found something to do in the bedroom. Grandpa went out for some water. Mother, with her back to us, was getting the cakes ready for breakfast.
But nothing was right. When grandma came out of the bedroom, she walked on tiptoe. When grandpa came back, he said nothing about the weather. At breakfast Mother passed us the fruit and said something, but her voice was too high.
At last my sister, Lou, pushed back her chair. “It’s your turn to wash the dishes.” But I had washed the dishes the night before. I said nothing because it was not right to quarrel in front of Dad just home with the empty sleeve.
“It is your turn,” Lou said again. I looked at her in surprise.
“It is not,” I said because I suddenly remembered Mother had told us to go on as usual.
“Children, children,” Mother said in a quiet, glad kind of voice.
And Dad was smiling because he felt at home at last.
【小題1】What do you know happened to Dad in the story?

A．He was badly ill.	B．He had a long journey.
C．He drank too much.	D．He lost one of his arms.

【小題2】The family       when they saw Dad’s empty sleeve.

A．was too surprised to do anything	B．felt sad and cried a lot
C．tried not to show their feelings	D．showed no worry at all

【小題3】From the story, we know         .

A．the two sisters often quarreled about who should wash the dishes

B．the family liked seeing the two sisters quarrelling after breakfast

C．Dad loved the two sisters very much though they often quarreled

D．Mother told the two sisters to quarrel with each other the night before

【小題4】Which of the following can be the best title of the story?

A．The Quarrelling Sisters	B．Dad Was Back
C．After the Accident	D．An Empty Sleeve

When middle-aged Alex quit his job and made up his mind to become a self-employed writer, no one could tell for sure whether he would succeed or not．He found a cold storage room in a building, set up a used typewriter and settled down to work．
After a year or so, however, Alex began to doubt himself．He found it was difficult to earn his living by selling what he wrote．But Alex determined to put his dream to the test—even though it meant living with uncertainty and fear of failure．This is the shadowland （虛幻世界） of hope, and anyone with a dream must learn to live there．
One day Alex got a call, "We need an assistant, and we're paying $ 6,000 a year．" $ 6,000 was real money in 1960．It would enable Alex to get a nice apartment, a used car and more．Besides, he could write in his spare time．As the dollars were dancing in Alex's head, something cleared his senses．He had dreamed of being a writer ?full time．"Thanks, but no," Alex said firmly and swiftly, "I'm going to stick it out and write．"
After Alex got off the phone, he pulled out everything he had: two cans of vegetables and 18 cents．Alex put the cans and cents into a paper bag, saying to himself," There's everything you've made of yourself so far．I'm not sure I ever felt so low．"
Finally his work was published in 1970．Instantly he had the kind of fame and success that few writers ever experience．The shadows had turned into focus of attention．
Then one day, Alex found a box filled with things he had owned years before．Inside was a paper bag with two cans and 18 cents．Suddenly he pictured himself working in that cold storage room．It reminds Alex, and anyone with a dream, of the courage and persistence （堅(jiān)毅） it takes to stay the course （持續(xù)到底） in the shadowland．
【小題1】Why did Alex give up his job?

A．Because he didn't like the working conditions．

B．Because he couldn't earn enough to make a living．

C．Because he wanted to be a full-time writer．

D．Because he felt he had no potential in his job．

【小題2】What did Alex express when he answered the call?

A．He refused the job offer．

B．He was willing to give them a hand．

C．He expected them to pay him more money．

D．He would write in his spare time．

【小題3】What kind of person is Alex?

A．Determined．	B．Modest．
C．Shy．	D．Brave．

【小題4】Which of the following can summarize the passage best?

A．Look before you leap．

B．Two heads are better, than one．

C．Hold on to your dream, and it will come true．

D．A bird in hand is worth two in the bush．

I recall my mother’s voice which called me to order, and often ended with some strong proverb to express the gravity of the wrong done. It was common practice for my mother to send me off soul-searching with a proverb.
Of the many interactions I had with my mother those many years ago, one stands out with clarity. I remember the occasion when Mother sent me to the main road, about twenty yards away from the farmhouse, to invite a passing group of seasonal work-seekers home for a meal. She instructed me to take a container along and collect dry cow dung (牛糞) for making a fire. I was then to prepare the meal for the group of work-seekers.       
The thought of making an open fire outside at midday, cooking in a large three-legged pot in that high heat, was enough to upset even an angel. I did not manage to hide my feelings from my mother, and after serving the group, she called me to the balcony, where she usually sat to attend to her sewing (縫紉).
Looking straight into my eyes, she said, “Tsholofelo, why were you so unhappy when I requested you to prepare a meal for those poor people?” Despite my attempt to deny her allegation (斷言), and using the heat of the fire and the sun as an excuse for my alleged behavior, Mother, giving me a firm look, said, “A foot has no nose.” It means, “You can’t detect what trouble may lie ahead of you.” Had I denied the group of people a meal, it may have happened that, in my travels some time in the future, I found myself at the mercy of those very individuals. As if that was not enough to shame me, Mother continued, “A person is a person because of another person.”   
【小題1】We learn from the passage that Tsholofelo’s mother often _____.   

A．quoted proverbs when she was talking with others

B．a(chǎn)sked Tsholofelo to read more proverbs

C．collected proverbs in her spare time

D．used proverbs to teach Tsholofelo

【小題2】What was Tsholofelo’s attitude towards the meal?

A．Unwilling.

B．Interested.

C．Critical.

D．Unconcerned.

【小題3】The atmosphere on the balcony was probably _____.

A．very strange

B．a(chǎn) bit tense

C．quite lively

D．pretty relaxed

【小題4】According to the passage, Tsholofelo’s mother seemed to hope Tsholofelo could be _____.    

A．flexible and creative	B．sincere and honest
C．a(chǎn)ctive and confident	D．sympathetic and helpful

Mrs Keller had a big family. Her husband had a factory in the town. One of her sons was a lawyers and the other two were drivers. And her two daughters worked in the post office. The old woman stayed at home and could do all housework and wouldn’t employ anybody.
One evening, the telephone rang while the old woman was preparing supper. She went to answer it. She was told that one of her sons died in a traffic accident. She heard this and fell in a faint. When she came back to life, she was in hospital. And she needed to be helped after that.
Several months later she was told on the telephone her daughter died while she was being operated on. The old woman was so sad that she had to be in hospital again. From then on she was afraid to answer any telephones and sometimes she was afraid hear the bell. Of course it brought them some trouble and some important business was held up. So her husband advised her to see a psychiatrist. The man examined her carefully and then asked her some questions.
“You will soon be all right if you follow my advice, Mrs Keller.” said the psychiatrist.
The old woman took the medicine the doctor gave on time and tried to forget her dead son and daughter. And two months later she went to see the psychiatrist again.
“You have saved me, Doctor,” the old woman said, as soon as she saw him.
“Are you afraid to answer the telephone now?”
“No,” answered Keller.
“I dare answer it whether it rings or not.”
【小題1】Mrs Keller could do all housework because ______.

A．she had no money to employ a helper.

B．she was strong enough to do all at home

C．she didn’t believe anybody

D．only she was free at home

【小題2】The old woman fell in a faint because _____

A．she went to answer the telephone.

B．she was very ill that evening

C．she walked in the room carelessly

D．she heard the news about her son’s death.

【小題3】After she came out of hospital, Mrs Keller wasn’t _________as before.

A．strong

B．a(chǎn)ble

C．clever

D．sad

【小題4】______made the old woman not answer the telephone.

A．The doctor’s advice	B．Her husband’s suggestion
C．Her poor health	D．The two pieces of bad news

There is no other five-year –old like him. He has a potato-shaped head , thick eyebrows and a voice that is not easily forgotten. He is not evil, but trouble follows him wherever he goes.
Crayon Shinchan（蠟筆小新）enjoys great popularity in China. He has many fans in Hong Kong , Taiwan and on the mainland. And he is one of the hottest cartoon characters in his home country, Japan.
But, the trouble-maker’s show was ranked the No. 1 most unwanted cartoon program by Japan’s Parents’ Association on April 18.
More than half the parents who took part in the study thought Shinchan was a negative role model for children. They believed his actions and speech were adult in nature and not suitable for kids.
Many parents and education experts in China agree with them. Shinchan, they say, is really offensive. He looks out for pretty ladies on the street; at the bookstore he reads magazines full of sexy women; he pretends to be kidnapped by his teacher when he sees a police car; and he raises his mum’s skirt and shouts out the color of her underpants if she doesn’t buy him what he wants.
“Crayon Shimchan is full of dirty humor. The boy shows some terrible adult mentality(心態(tài)),which doesn’t match his age,” said Pang Lijuan, professor of the Education Department at Beijing Normal University. Pang further pointed out that Shinchan destroys the traditional image of a polite, hard-working boy. She fears that some teens may copy his behavior and harm their psychological development. Pang and many others in China think that Shinchan is a cartoon for adults-----not for children.
But some kids disagree. Jiangxin, a senior 2 student in Luhe Middle School in Beijing, became a fan of Shinchan after he first saw the cartoon two years ago. He said it is Shinchan’s humor , courage, and cleverness that makes him and his friends love the little cartoon character . “Shinchan looks at the adults’ world with kid’s eyes. He uncovers the hypocrisy(虛偽) and selfishness in a childish way,” explained Jiang. “We watch it just for fun.” But Jiang also admitted that Shinchan is not good for all ages. “It may not be suitable for primary school kids. They may try to blindly copy him.”
Shinchan’s “father ”, Japan’s popular cartoonist, Yoshito Ushi, never thought Shinchan would cause such a heated discussion. He argued that Shinchan is a childish copy of Japan’s middle-aged men. The boy does everything adults would like, but don’t dare to do. “People can easily forgive him because he’s only five years old,” said Yoshito.
【小題1】 Teachers and parents dislikes Crayon Shinchan because         .

A．he looks very ugly

B．he caused a heated discussion

C．the character was created by an adult cartoonist

D．he was regarded as a negative role model for children to follow

【小題2】Many children are crazy about Shinchan mainly because       .

A．he looks very funny

B．the cartoon character is suitable for all ages

C．they think he is humorous, clever and brave

D．he is a childish copy of Japan’s middle-aged men

【小題3】The underlined word “offensive” in Paragraph 5 probably means       .

A．humorous

B．ugly-looking

C．funny

D．unpleasant

【小題4】What is Yoshito Ushi’s explanation of Shinchan’s behaviour?

A．Shinchan is such a naughty boy that he can’t behave himself.

B．Shinchan is trying to draw people’s attention by doing some offensive things.

C．Shinchan wants to set a role model in a different way.

D．Shinchan’ s behaviour is just a childish copy of Japan’s middle-aged men.

As a boy, Charles Robert Darwin collected anything that caught his interest: insects, coins and interesting stones. He was not very clever, but Darwin was good at doing the things that interested him.
His father was a doctor, so Darwin was sent to Edinburgh to study medicine, and was planned to follow a medical career. But Charles found the lectures boring. Then his father sent him to Cambridge University to study to be a priest. While at Cambridge, Darwin’s interest in zoology and geography grew. Later he got a letter from Robert Fitzroy who was planning to make a voyage around the world on a ship, the Beagle. He wanted a naturalist to join the ship, and Darwin was recommended(推薦). That voyage was the start of Darwin’s great life.
As the Beagle sailed around the world, Darwin began to wonder how life had developed on earth. He began to observe everything. After he was home, he set to work, getting his collection in order. His first great work The Zoology of the Beagle was well received, but he was slow to make public his ideas on the origin of life.
Later Darwin and Wallace, another naturalist who had the same opinions as Darwin, produced a paper together. Darwin’s great book, On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection (《物種起源》) appeared. It attracted a storm. People thought that Darwin was saying they were descended from monkeys. What a shameful idea! Although most scientists agreed that Darwin was right, the Church was still so strong that Darwin never received any honors for his work.
Afterwards, he published another great work, The Descent of Man. His health grew worse, but he still worked. “When I have to give up observation, I shall die,” he said. He was still working on 17, April, 1882. He was dead two days later.
【小題1】Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A．Charles Darwin’s ideas

B．Charles Darwin’s works

C．Father of modern biology: Charles Darwin

D．The greatest scientist: Charles Darwin

【小題2】Darwin’s father sent him to Edinburgh to _____.

A．make him like natural history

B．make him become a doctor

C．let him change his hobbies

D．have him give up his collection

【小題3】According to the passage, Charles Darwin’s whole life was changed by _____.

A．his study at Cambridge University

B．his collection of coins

C．the naturalists at Cambridge

D．the voyage of the Beagle

【小題4】The underlined part “they were descended from monkeys” probably means “_____”.

A．they gave monkeys life

B．they were different from monkeys

C．they were developed from monkeys

D．they had to live with monkeys

Kerry and Alice were both artists in Britain. They taught drawing and painting at Cambridge University. Although they were friends, each thought oneself to be the better painter.
One day, Kerry promised marriage to Alice. Surprised and pleased by the offer, the girl was not sure whether she would spend her future as a wife or a painter. After a moment she replied as follows, "Each of us must paint a picture. If yours is superior to mine, you can make me your wife. If not, please drop the question." Then it was decided to give it the following day.
The next morning. Alice hung her picture on the gate. It showed a bunch of flowers and won high praise from everyone who passed by. In fact, a crowd collected in front of her masterpiece and fixed eyes on it.
Several hours passed. Then Kerry was seen coming along to the gate with what appeared to be a beautiful leather suitcase in his hand. When he finally stopped before Alice, the girl artist brushed like a rose and agreed to marry him without any hesitation. Why?
【小題1】What did Alice think Kerry's offer?

A．She liked Kerry, but she didn't expect him to promise marriage to her.

B．She didn't want to marry anybody.

C．She didn't like it at all.

D．She thought the offer wasn't polite.

【小題2】In the sentence "If yours is superior to mine, you can make me your wife"。 "superior to" here means ____.

A．not so better than	B．better than
C．so good as	D．a(chǎn)s good as

【小題3】Which of the following is true?

A．Kerry didn't accept Alice's suggestion.

B．Kerry wasn't sure of his painting so he dropped his offer.

C．Kerry did go the next day, but he failed to take a picture

D．Kerry agreed to Alice's suggestion.

【小題4】Alice's picture won high praise because ____.

A．it was true to nature	B．the flowers were red
C．it showed so large a bunch of flowers	D．people felt it strange to hang it on the gate

【小題5】The "leather suitcase" was in fact ____.

A．a(chǎn) real one	B．a(chǎn) painting drawn by Kerry
C．a(chǎn) box with a picture in it	D．made up of leather

When he took office, George W. Bush, son of former president George Herbert Walker Bush, became the first son to follow his father into the White House since John Quiney Adams followed John Adams in the early 19th century.
Bush was born on July 6, 1946, in New Haven, Connecticut, the first child of George Herbert Walker Bush and Barbara Pierce Bush. Although George Herbert Walker Bush began his career in the oil industry, he finally served as a congressman(國(guó)會(huì)議員), and vice(副) president and president of the United States.
At the age of two,Bush moved with his parents from Connecticut to Odessa, Texas, where his father took up the oil business. After a year in Texas, the family moved to California for business reasons. A year later, the family returned to Texas and settled in Midland, where Bush lived from 1950 to 1959.
In 1959, again for business reasons, the family moved to Houston, Texas. In 1961 Bush left Texas and went to Andover, Massachusetts, to attend Phillips Academy, aboarding school(寄宿學(xué)校) that his father had also attended.
At Phillips, Bush played basketball, baseball, and football. He was best known for being head cheerleader. In 1964 he enrolled at Yale University in Connecticut.His father and grandfather had also attended Yale. At Yale, Bush was considered an average student, but he was popular with his classmates.
Bush graduated from Yale with a bachelor’s degree in history in 1968. Then he joined the Air National Guard and remained in the Guard until 1973. After earning his MBA from Harvard in 1975, Bush returned to Midland. Like his father, he first entered the oil industry as a “l(fā)andsman(新手)”. However, Bush’s oil companies never enjoyed great success. He took more interest in politics. He helped his father to become president and in 1994 he himself was elected governor of Texas.
In the summer of 1999, Bush began to run for the president of the USA and on January 20, 2001, George W. Bush, hand raised, took the oath(宣誓) of office to become the 43rd president of the US.
【小題1】What does the writer intend to tell us in the first paragraph?

A．George W. Bush is the first son in American history to follow his father into the White House.

B．George W. Bush is the first son of former president George Herbert Walker Bush.

C．John Quincy Adams and his father were both former American presidents.

D．George W. Bush is the second one in American history to follow his father into the White House.

【小題2】We may learn from the text that young Bush ______.

A．got on very well at the universities

B．was very good at basketball, baseball and football

C．did everything as his father had done

D．was a very successful politician like his father

【小題3】Which of the following is NOT true about George W. Bush?

A．Young Bush lived with his family in Texas from 1948 to 1961.

B．He once studied at a university that his father and grandfather had also attended.

C．He once ruled over an American state before he entered the White House.

D．He once served at the Air National Guard for about five years.