Everybody may have seen the film “Death on the Nile ( 尼羅河)”, but nobody can imagine that the writer of the story, Agatha Christie, saved a baby in a most unusual way.
In June 1977, a baby girl became seriously ill in Deleville. Doctors there were unable to find out the cause of her illness, so she was sent to a famous hospital in London, where there were many excellent doctors. The baby was so seriously ill that a team of doctors hurried to examine her without delay. The doctors, too, were puzzled by the baby’s illness and they also became discouraged. Just then a nurse asked to speak to them.
“I think the baby is suffering from thallium (鉈) poisoning. ” said the nurse. “A few days ago, I read a story ‘A Pale Horse’ written by Agatha Christie. Someone uses thallium poison, and all the symptoms (癥狀) are written in the book. They are exactly the same as the baby’s.”
“You’re very good at observing things,” said a doctor, “and you may be right. We’ll carry out some tests and find out whether the cause is thallium poisoning or not.”
The tests proved that the baby had indeed been poisoned by thallium. Once they knew the cause, the doctors were able to give her correct treatment. The baby soon got well and was sent back to Deleville. A week later it was reported that the poison might have come from an insecticide (殺蟲劑) used in Deleville.
【小題1】 The baby was sent to a hospital in London because ______.

Joseph Goldberger was a doctor for the Unite States Public Health Service. In 1912, he began to study a disease that was killing thousands of people in the South. The disease was pellagra(煙酸缺乏病).
Doctor Goldberger traveled to the state of Mississippi where many people had pellagra. He studied the patients and their families. Most of the people were poor. The doctor came to believe that the disease was not passed from one person to another, but instead had something to do with food.
He received agreement from state officials to test this idea at a prison(監(jiān)獄). Prisoners were offered pardons if they took part. One group of prisoners received their usual food, mostly corn. A second group ate meat, fresh vegetables and milk. Members of the first group developed pellagra. The second group did not.
But some experts refused to accept that poor food caused pellagra. They thought there were other causes.
So Doctor Goldberger put blood(血液) from a person with pellagra into his own body. He even took pills that had blood from pellagra patients. An assistant also took part in the experiments. So did Doctor Goldberger’s wife. None of them got sick. Later, the doctor discovered that a bit of dried brewer’s yeast(釀酒的酵母) each day could prevent pellagra.
Joseph Goldberger died of cancer in 1929. He was 55 years old. Several years later, researchers discovered the true cause of pellagra: having little of the vitamin B.
【小題1】 How old was Doctor Goldberger when he began to study pellagra?

A．the guessing that pellagra had something to do with food

B．a(chǎn) kind of yeast that prevented pellagra

C．pellagra that was easily passed from one person to another

D．a(chǎn) poor food that caused pellagra

A．Doctor Goldberger’s life

B．something about pellagra

C．Doctor Goldberger’s work experience

D．Doctor Goldberger’s study on pellagra

I had been rather proud of myself when my friends and family got the ticket, whether it was for speeding, parking or stop sign violations(違反). It was something that happened to others. But last Friday I joined the club.
I was asked to do a new project last week. On Friday morning on my way to work, I suddenly remembered that I had spent the past six weeks without considering that I had a week’s vacation planned during that time. I was very disappointed with myself for not remembering it.
The truth is that I was not paying enough attention to my driving and I did not come to a complete stop at the stop sign in front of a school. I was so distracted(思想不集中的) that I didn’t even notice I had a policeman on my tail with his lights flashing. Finally I looked in my mirror and caught on.
The policeman was rude and took my papers. Luckily, I had everything up to date and since I had never had a ticket before, there was nothing for him to do but write me a ticket. While I was sitting there in the seat of “shame”, I felt bad. If I had been that distracted and a child had run onto the road, perhaps I would have not reacted as well as I could have. It was a wake-up call.
People at work asked me if I tried to talk my way out of it. Frankly, it never occurred to me. I felt guilty（有罪的）. Now I no longer have a clean driving record. Please be careful out there, as a moment’s distraction can lead to tragedy（悲�。�.
【小題1】What is this passage mainly about?

Few of us haven’t read Cinderella, the story of a young woman living in poverty who meets the prince of her dreams. Some might not want to admit it, but there is a hidden Cinderella in everyone’s heart—we all wish we could achieve recognition or success after a period of obscurity(默默無聞).
Mary Santiago has that secret dream, too. Her story is featured in Another Cinderella Story, a film set in a US high school.
Mary is shy but loves to dance. Compared with other girls, she is invisible. However, her world changes completely when a famous teenager pop singer, Joey Parker, appears.
Joey is everything the rest of the boys in her class are not—kind, handsome and desirable. Mary and Joey’s paths cross at a ball. They meet and fall in love with each other. But when Mary has to rush back home, she leaves behind her MP3 player, which becomes the only clue Joey has to find the girl of his dreams. Of course, there is a wicked(邪惡的) stepmother, who turns out to be Dominique Blatt and she takes in Mary after her dancer mother dies. Dominique treats Mary like a maid and does everything she can to make sure Mary doesn’t get into the top dance school. Her two daughters are equally determined to stop Joey falling for Mary, even if that means embarrassing her.
The story, though it mostly follows Cinderella, does add a few modern day twists to the classic fairy tale. Refreshingly, the film, unlike many high school films, does not focus on looks, although the actors are all beautiful. There is also a lot less materialism in Another Cinderella Story than in many similar movies.
“The movie takes the Cinderella fairytale as its jumping off point,” writes movie critic Amber Wilkinson. “The focus is firmly on following your dream.”
【小題1】The first paragraph is mainly to ____________.

When my father was dying, I traveled a thousand miles from home to be with him in his last days. It was far more heartbreaking than I’d expected, one of the most difficult and painful times in my life. After he passed away I stayed alone in his apartment. There were so many things to deal with. It all seemed endless. I was lonely. I hated the silence of the apartment.
But one evening the silence was broken: I heard crying outside. I opened the door to find a little cat on the steps. He was thin and poor. He looked the way I felt. I brought him inside and gave him a can of fish. He ate it and then almost immediately fell sound asleep.
The next morning I checked with neighbors and learned that the cat had been abandoned by his owner who’s moved out. So the little cat was there all alone, just like I was. As I walked back to the apartment, I tried to figure out what to do with him. Having something else to take care of seemed like the very last thing I needed. But as soon as I opened the apartment door he came running and jumped into my arms. It was clear from that moment that he had no intention of going anywhere. I started calling him Willis, in honor of my father’s best friend.
From then on, things grew easier. With Willis in my lap time seemed to pass much more quickly. When the time finally came for me to return home I had to decide what to do about Willis. There was absolutely no way I would leave without him.
It’s now been five years since my father died. Over the years, several people have commented on how nice it was of me to rescue the cat. But I know that we rescued each other. I may have given him a home but he gave me something greater.
【小題1】 When the author first saw the cat, she_____________.

A thief entered the bedroom of the 30^th President of the United States, who met him and helped him escape punishment.
The event happened in the early morning hours in one of the first days when Calvin Coolidge came into power, late in August, 1923. He and his family were living in the same third-floor suite(套房) at the Willard Hotel in Washington that had occupied several years before. The former President’s wife was still living in the White House.
Coolidge awoke to see a stranger go through his clothes, remove a wallet and a watch chain.
Coolidge spoke, “ I wish you wouldn’t take that.”
The thief, gaining his voice, said, “ Why?”
“ I don’t mean the watch and chain, only the charm(表墜). Take it near the window and read what is impressed on its back,” the president said.
The thief read, “ Presented to Calvin Coolidge.”
“ Are you President Coolidge?” he asked.
The president answered, “ Yes, and the House of Representatives（眾議院）gave me the watch charm. I’m fond of it. It would do you no good. You want money. Let’s talk this over.”
Holding up the wallet, the young man said in a low voice, “ I’ll take this and leave everything else.”
Coolidge, knowing there was 80 dollars in it, persuaded the young man to sit down and talk. He told the President he and his college roommate had overspent during their holiday and did not have enough money to pay their hotel bill.
Coolidge added up the roommate and two rail tickets back to the college. Then he counted out 32 dollars and said it was a loan(借款).
He then told the young man, “ There is a guard in the corridor.” The young man nodded and left through the same window as he had entered.

Six people were traveling in a compartment (包廂) on a train. Five of them were quiet and well behaved(舉止文明), but the sixth was a rude young man who was causing a lot of trouble to the other passengers.
At last this young man got out of the station with his two heavy bags. None of the other passengers helped him, but one of them waited until the rude young man was very far away, and then opened the window to him, “ You left something behind in the compartment!” Then he closed the window again.
The young man turned around and hurried back with his two bags. He was very tired when he arrived, but he shouted through the window, “ What did I leave behind?”
As the train began to move again, the passenger who had called him back opened the window and said, “ A very bad impression!”
【小題1】 Of the six passengers in the compartment ___.

Charlie Boswell has always been a great hero. He has inspired thousands of people to rise above circumstances and live out true meaning of life.
He was blinded during World War II while rescuing his friend from a tank that was under fire. He was a great athlete before the accident. In order to prove his talent and determination, he decided to try a brand new sport, a sport he never imagined playing, even with his eyesight – golf! Through determination and a deep love for the game he became the National Blind Golf Champion! He won that honor 13 times.
One of his heroes was the great golfer Ben Hogan, so it truly was an honor for Charlie to win the Ben Hogan Award in 1958.
Upon meeting Ben Hogan, Charlie was respectful and stated that he had one wish and it was to have one round of golf with the great Ben Hogan. Mr. Hogan agreed that playing a round together would be an honor for him as well, as he had heard about all of Charlie’s accomplishments and truly admired his skills.
“Would you like to play for money, Mr. Hogan?” asked out Charlie.
“I can’t play you for money, it wouldn’t be fair!” said Mr. Hogan.
“Aw, come on Mr. Hogan…$ 1,000 per hole!”
“I can’t, what would people think of me, taking advantage of you and your circumstance?” replied the sighted golfer.
“Chicken, Mr. Hogan?”
“Okay,” replied the embarrassed Hogan, “but I am going to play my best!”
“I wouldn’t expect anything else,” said the confident Boswell.
“Now that you’re on. Mr. Boswell, you name the time and the place!”
The very self – assured Boswell responded, “10 o’clock … tonight!”
【小題1】Why didn’t Mr. Hogan want to play Charlie for money?

Paula Radcliffe, chasing a third London marathon title, says she has became a stronger person after her terrible experience at the 2004 Athens Games.
Radcliffe, who failed to complete the Olympic marathon and the 10,000m last August, said: "Athens made me a stronger person and it made me care less about criticism"
"In the past I wanted to please everyone, but now I am going to listen even more to the people around me."
She didn't care about criticism made at the weekend by Liz McColgan, who felt Radcliffe should have rested and let her body recover after her failure in Athens.
"Liz is someone I look up to but she hasn't spoken to me since last year and if she really cared for me, I'm sure she would have contacted me."
Instead Radcliffe won the New York City marathon just 11 weeks after Athens.
"In New York I wasn't in my best state but I did know I was good enough to win the race."
Radcliffe insisted her only goal in Sunday's race would be winning a third title and not chasing world records.
However, Radcliffe has not ruled out in the future chasing her "final" world record time and questioned sayings that marathon runners have the ability in their career to produce only four or five world-class times.
"I don't think that ——although I can't put a number on it," said. Radcliffe. "That changes from person to person."
Radcliffe is sure she can better her winning London 2003 performance at some point in the future. Following a successful three-month training period in the United States, the 31-year-old will chase a third title on Sunday after her first victory in 2002 and again 12 months later.
Radcliffe clocked a time of 2:18:56 in her first 42.2-kilometre race three years ago.
Afterwards she set a "mixed course" mark of 2:17:18 five months later in Chicago before lowering that to a time of 2:15:25 in the 2003 London event.
【小題1】Radcliffe’s failure in Athens made her___________.

He’s out there somewhere, an instant icon in the records of American conflict, the final big-game hunter. But a puzzle, too, his identity would be kept a secret for now, and maybe forever.
He is the unknown shooter. The nameless, faceless triggerman who put a bullet in the head of the world’s most notorious（臭名昭著的）terrorist, Bin Laden.
He’s likely between the ages of 26 and 33, says Marcinko, founder of the “SEALs Team 6” that many believe led the attack on Bin Laden in Abbottabad, Pakistan. He’ll be old enough to have had time to hurdle the extra training tests required to join the counter-terrorism unit, yet young enough to stand the body-punishing harshness of the job. The shooter’s a man, it’s safe to say, because there are no women in the SEALs. And there’s a good chance he’s white, though the SEALs have stepped up efforts to increase the number of minorities in their ranks, Marcinko and Smith say.
He was probably a high school or college athlete, Smith says, a physical specimen who combines strength, speed and wisdom. “They call themselves ‘tactical athletes,’” says Smith, who works with many future SEALs in his Heroes of Tomorrow training program in Severna Park. “It’s getting very scientific.”
Marcinko puts it in more conventional terms: “He’ll be ripped,” says the author of the best-selling autobiography “Rogue Warrior.” “He’s got a lot of upper-body strength. Long arms. Thin waist. Flat stomach.”
On this point, Greitens departs a bit. “You can’t make a lot of physical assumptions,” says the author of “The Heart and the Fist: The Education of a Humanitarian, the Making of a Navy SEAL.” There are SEALs who are 5 feet 4 and SEALs who are 6 feet 5, Greitens says. In his training group, he adds, there were college football boys who couldn’t hack it; those who survived were most often men in good shape, but they also had a willingness to show their concerns in favor of the mission.
The shooter’s probably not the crew-cut（平頭）, neatly shaven ideal we’ve come to expect from American fighting forces. “He’s bearded, rough-looking, like a street naughty boy,” Marcinko supposes. “You don’t want to stick out.” Marcinko calls it “modified grooming standards.”
His hands will be calloused（長老繭）, Smith says, or just rough enough,” as Marcinko puts it. And “he’s got frag in him somewhere,” Marcinko says, using the battlefield shorthand for “fragments” of bullets or explosive devices. This will not have been the shooter’s first adventure. Marcinko estimates that he might have made a dozen or more deployments（部署）, tours when he was likely to have dealt with quite a number of dangerous situations, getting ready any time for explosive devices or bullets.
【小題1】Which of the following is most likely to be the title of the passage?