As a young girl, Margaret “Mattie” Knight never played with dolls, preferring to make toys for her brothers instead. In 1849, Knight went to work in a cotton factory where she witnessed a “shuttle,” a device that carries thread back and forth across a textile loom（纺布机）, fly off the machine when the thread broke, striking and killing a young boy about her own age.
The 12-year-old Knight developed a safety mechanism that made it impossible for a shuttle to leave the loom. The design was so effective, soon virtually every new power loom carried her invention, saving countless workers from injury or death. Being so young, she didn’t bother to patent the device, so she never received payment.
Knight wouldn’t make the same mistake later in life when she invented a machine that could produce flat-bottomed paper bags. Knight had built a small wooden model in her home, but she needed a metal version to show it could hold up to the stress of mass production. So she hired Charles Annan to make the full-sized machine for her, only to have him try to claim the patent for himself. When Knight sued（起诉）, Annan’s argument was that the design had to be his, because no woman could possibly understand the complex mechanics. Knight proved him wrong when she brought back her wooden prototype and explained how every part worked. She won the case in 1871, making her the second woman to hold an American patent. Over a hundred years later, her design is still used as the basis for many modern flat-bottom bag machines.
But that wasn’t the last the world heard of Mattie Knight. During her lifetime, she made about 90 inventions and received 26 patents, becoming one of the most productive female inventors of the 19th century.
小题1:We can learn from Paragraph 1 that ________.

A．Knight behaved like boys	B．Knight had an unhappy childhood
C．Knight did a poor job of making toys	D．Knight liked inventing things as a child

小题2:What do we know about Knight’s first invention?

A．It is still used today.	B．It brought her great profit.
C．It was made when he was 20.	D．It reduced injuries at textile plants.

小题3:Knight sued Charles Annan because he _______.

A．stole the wooden model for the machine she invented.

B．failed to make the full-sized machine for her

C．tried to patent her invention for himself

D．kept the metal version for himself

小题4:What would be the best title for the text?

A．Mattie Knight’s fight for her patent	B．A great woman in the 19th century
C．“The female Edison”, Mattie Knight	D．Great inventions, great woman

I lost my sight when I was four years old by falling off a car and landing on my head. Now I am thirty-two. I can vaguely remember the brightness of __36____ and what color red is. It would be ___37____ to see again, but a(n) __38____ can do strange things to people. I don’t mean I would __39___ to go without my eyes. I simply mean that the loss of them made me appreciate more what I had _40_____.
My parents and my teachers saw something in me ----- a __41____ to live ---- which I didn’t see, and they made me want to fight in out with _42____.
The __43___ lesson I had to learn was to believe in myself. I am not talking about simply the kind of __44____ that helps me down so unfamiliar staircase alone. I __45___ something bigger than that: a confidence that I am, despite being __46____, a real, positive person; that there is a special place where I can make myself fit.
It took me years to discover and strengthen this confidence. It had to start with the easy and simple things. __47____ a man gave me an indoor baseball. I thought he was laughing at me and I was __48____. “I can’t use this,” I said. “Take with you,” he urged me, “and roll it around.” The words __49___ in my head. “Roll it around!” By rolling the ball I could _50_____ where it went. This gave me an idea how to achieve a goal I had thought _51____ before playing baseball. At Philadelphia’s Overbrook School for the Blind I _52___ a successful variation of baseball. We called it ground ball.
I have set ahead of me a series of goals and then tried to reach them, one at a time. I had to be clear about my _53____. It was no good crying for something that I knew at the start was __54___ out of reach because that only invited bitterness of failure. I would fail something anyway, __55___ on the average I made progress.

小题1:	A．sky B．cloud C．sunshine D．mist

小题2:	A．helpful B．wonderful C．hopeful D．successful

小题3:	A．disaster B．environment C．incident D．wonder

小题4:	A．manage B．try C．want D．prefer

小题5:	A．lost B．left C．used D．cared

小题6:	A．purpose B．potential C．pressure D．preparation

小题7:	A．energy B．happiness C．luck D．blindness

小题8:	A．hardest B．dullest C．simplest D．easiest

小题9:	A．self-respect B．self-control C．self-confidence D．self-defence

小题10:

A．think B．consider C．guess D．mean

小题11:

A．imperfect B．perfect C．unfair D．fair

小题12:

A．Later B．Soon C．Once D．Then

小题13:

A．worried B．encouraged C．shocked D．hurt

小题14:

A．stuck B．impressed C．occupied D．held

小题15:

A．see B．hear C．notice D．observe

小题16:

A．important B．unimportant C．possible D．impossible

小题17:

A．invented B．discovered C．instructed D．directed

小题18:

A．experience B．advantages C．knowledge D．limitation

小题19:

A．hardly B．wildly C．highly D．deeply

小题20:

A．so B．for C．but D．and

Oscar the cat seems to have an unnatural ability for predicting when nursing home patients are going to die, by curling up (蜷伏) next to them during their final hours. His accuracy, observed in 25 cases, has led the staff to call family members once he has chosen someone. It usually means the patient has less than four hours to live. "Many family members take some comfort from it. They appreciate the companionship that the cat provides for their dying loved one," said Dosa, a doctor and assistant professor of medicine at Brown University.
The 2-year-old cat was adopted as a kitten and grew up in a third-floor dementia (痴呆) unit at the Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, where the facility treats people with Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease and other illnesses. After about six months, the staff noticed Oscar would make his own rounds, just like the doctors and nurses. He'd smell and observe patients, then sit beside people who would end up dying in a few hours. Dosa said Oscar seems to take his work seriously. "This is not a cat that's friendly to people," he said.
"Oscar is better at predicting death than the people who work here," said Dr. Joan Teno of Brown University, who treats patients at the nursing home and is an expert on care for the terminally ill. She was convinced of Oscar's talent when he made his 13th correct call. While observing one patient, Teno said she noticed the woman wasn't eating, was breathing with difficulty and that her legs had a bluish color, signs that often mean death is near. Oscar wouldn't stay inside the room, though, so Teno thought bis streak was broken. Instead, it turned out the doctor's prediction was roughly 10 hours too early. Sure enough, during the patient's final two hours, nurses told Teno that Oscar joined the woman at her bedside.
Doctors say most of the people who get a visit from the sweet-faced, gray-and-white cat are so ill that they probably don't know he's there, so patients aren't aware he's a predictor of death. Most families are grateful for the advance warning, although one wanted Oscar out of the room while a family member died. When Oscar is put outside, he paces and meows his displeasure.
No one's certain if Oscar's behavior is scientifically significant or points to a cause. Teno wonders if the cat senses mysterious scents or reads something into the behavior of the nurses who raised him. Nursing home staff aren't concerned with explaining Oscar, so long as he gives families a better chance at saying goodbye to the dying. The staff recently gave Oscar a wall sign publicly praising his "sympathetic care."
小题1:What makes Oscar the cat so special?

A．He observes the cases of dying patients.

B．He curls up next to the patients.

C．He calls family members to the hospital.

D．He senses when patients are to die.

小题2:The passage tells us Oscar_____.

A．would go round and observe patients

B．may sometimes fail to predict death

C．is friendly and liked by every nurse

D．was born and grew up in the hospital

小题3:The underlined words "his streak was broken" probably mean ____.

A．his bones were severely injured

B．his magic power stopped working

C．his devotion to work got changed

D．his friendship with patients ended

小题4:From the passage, we learn that_____.

A．Oscar's behavior is scientifically significant

B．Oscar can read something of the nurses' behavior

C．Oscar might like to stay with the dying patients

D．Oscar is sympathetic to the dying patients

小题5:The best title for this passage is "____".

A．Cats Can Be Used for Looking After Patients

B．Oscar, the Sweet-Faced, Gray-and-White Cat

C．As Death Comes Calling, So Does Oscar the Cat

D．Oscar the Cat, the Best Helper of Our Hospital

In the early 1950s, researchers found that people scored lower on intelligence tests if they spoke more than one language. Research in the sixties found the opposite. Bilingual people scored higher than monolinguals, people who speak only one language. So which is it?
Researchers presented their newest studies last month at a meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The latest evidence shows that being bilingual does not necessarily make people smarter. But researcher Ellen Bialystok says it probably does make you better at certain skills.
Ellen Bialystok said, “Imagine driving down the highway. There’re many things that could capture your attention and you really need to be able to monitor all of them. Why would bilingualism make you any better at that?”
And the answer, she says, is that bilingual people are often better at controlling their attention — a function called the executive control system.
Ms. Bialystok is a psychology professor at York University in Toronto, Canada. She says the best method to measure the executive control system is called the Stroop Test. A person is shown words in different colors. The person has to ignore the word but say the color. The problem is that the words are all names of colors.
Ellen Bialystok said, “So you would have the word blue written in red, but you have to say red. But blue is so salient(显著的), it’s just lighting up all these circuits(电路) in your brain, and you really want to say blue. So you need a mechanism(机制) to override that so that you can say red. That’s the executive control system.”
Her work shows that bilingual people continually practice this function. They have to, because both languages are active in their brain at the same time. They need to suppress(抑制) one to be able to speak in the other.
This mental exercise might help in other ways, too. Researchers say bilingual children are better able to separate a word from its meaning, and more likely to have friends from different cultures. Bilingual adults are often four to five years later than others in developing dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
小题1:What’s the best title of the text?

A．Bilingual People, Smarter

B．Monolingual People, Smarter

C．Bilingual People, Longer Lives

D．Bilingual People, Better at Some Skills

小题2:The underlined word “override” in Paragraph 6 probably means ____.

A．pay attention to	B．take no notice of
C．take an interest in	D．take care of

小题3:In the Stroop Test, supposing you have the word yellow written in white, you will have to say ____.

A．white

B．yellow

C．blue

D．red

小题4:Which group of people can most likely pass the Stroop Test?

A．People who can speak only Chinese.

B．People who can speak only Japanese.

C．People who can speak more than one language.

D．People who can speak only English.

小题5:Which of the following statements is FALSE according to the text?

A．A bilingual child is better at separating a word from its meaning.

B．A bilingual child can more easily make friends with a foreign child.

C．Bilingual people are more able to monitor several things at the same time.

D．It’s not possible for bilingual people to develop Alzheimer’s disease.

There once lived a young man who was always unhappy and complained about his poverty. One day, he went to see a fortune teller to inquire how to become      16    . The fortune teller said, "Young man, you are already wealthy now."
"Where is my wealth?" the young man asked     17   .
"It is with you. Your     18    is (are) your wealth. You use them to see this world. You use them to see all the     19   things in this world. You can read, study and learn. Your hands are your wealth. You can use them to work. You can use them to hug your beloved ones. Your     20    are your wealth. You can go to any places..." the fortune teller said.
"You call these wealth? Everyone has them," the young man said.
"These are wealth. What you have now are not what others can luckily have. Are you     21    to give your eyes to me? I am willing to give you a lot of money to     22     for them," the fortune teller said.
"No, are you crazy? I am not going to exchange my eyes for money! They are     23    to me!" the young man     24    .
"Precisely, these are wealth to you. You will not exchange them for money. Furthermore, although a lot of people have their wealthy things, they do not     25    them or treasure them. They are not     26    to Heaven for giving them their wealth. They even complain that Heaven is unfair to them. Do you want to    27    one of them before you will treasure them?" the fortune teller said.
Everyone is wealthy. But we should not     28   it for granted. We need to treasure our wealth, take care of it and use it     29    . We should not overuse it because once it is     30    , it is gone forever. Remember it is our wealth that we do not want to lose.

小题1:	A．happy B．young C．wealthy D．poor

小题2:	A．anxiously B．sadly C．quietly D．patiently

小题3:	A．knowledge B．skills C．brain D．eyes

小题4:	A．ugly B．beautiful C．strange D．useful

小题5:	A．legs B．cars C．jewels D．banknotes

小题6:	A．lovely B．optimistic C．angry D．willing

小题7:	A．charge B．buy C．exchange D．change

小题8:	A．precious B．useless C．extra D．special

小题9:	A．wept B．demonstrated C．smiled D．yelled

小题10:

A．see B．realize C．keep D．hold

小题11:

A．grateful B．careful C．meaningful D．faithful

小题12:

A．get B．grasp C．have D．lose

小题13:

A．take B．make C．set D．sell

小题14:

A．wrongly B．wisely C．naturally D．really

小题15:

A．old B．used C．gone D．dead

When I was six years old, my mom told me that I could find anyone's number in the phone book. I used to look through the phone book for hours trying to find Michael Jordan's phone number. When I couldn't find it, I just dialed seven numbers. When someone answered, I'd ask, "Is that Michael Jordan?" Obviously, I always had the wrong number.
A year later I started playing basketball at my local recreation center. It was very big. I never thought in my wildest dreams that a basketball court could be inside a building. The recreation center had a special smell in it, sort of like hot rubber. I guessed it was from the shoes hitting the floor so fast and hard. The atmosphere on the court was carefree. Our biggest excitement of the day was when we actually made a shot. We celebrated wins over ice cream at a fast food restaurant.
I got good at it, and my confidence grew. I played it all the time until the sixth grade. As soon as junior high school came, I stopped playing basketball and focused on school. When senior high school started, I tried out for the school team and made it. We worked hard. Every week we did 300 push-ups and 300 sit-ups on our own. Our coach encouraged the sit-ups to keep stomach power, because it gave us so much control when we were playing basketball. If we didn't want to do the sit-ups and push-ups, we could practice dribbling (运球) and shooting more. It's just us, the ball, the court and the net. But don't take my word for it. See for yourself. After all, I'm just one kid playing the game.
小题1:From Paragraph 1 we know that ____.

A．the author's mother gave him some wrong phone numbers

B．the phone book contained everyone's phone number except Michael Jordan's

C．the author wanted to contact Michael Jordan very much

D．the author didn't know how to use a phone at that time

小题2:What is Paragraph 2 mainly about?

A．The days of the author playing basketball at a recreation center.

B．The author's excitement of making shots when playing basketball.

C．The days before the author went to senior high school.

D．The author's happy childhood with his teammates.

小题3:What surprised the author most at the recreation center?

A．That it was very near to his home.

B．That there was a basketball court inside the building.

C．That there was a special smell in it.

D．That there was a fast food restaurant in it.

小题4:The author's coach encouraged them to do sit-ups because ____.

A．it is the basic preparation to play basketball

B．it is more useful than dribbling and shooting

C．it is the only way to make people stronger

D．it helps keep stomach power

小题5:What's the author's purpose in writing this passage?

A．To introduce some skills in playing basketball.

B．To tell us about his dream of becoming a basketball star.

C．To introduce his own experience of playing basketball.

D．To tell us how to balance playing basketball and studying.

One evening I heard a loud crash in our quiet neighborhood．  26 that evening, my wife had asked me to go to the store to get some soft drinks．It was a good time to let my teenage daughter Holly practice her  27  , so I sent her to the store in my truck．At dinner my son talked about how much he liked my 28 ．I enjoyed having it, but I said: "Guy, my heart is not set on that truck．I like it but it is 29  metal and won' t last forever．" After hearing the loud noise, the whole  30  ran outside．My son shouted: "Dad, Dad, Holly crashed your truck．"
My heart sank and my mind was  31 with conflicting thoughts. Was anyone hurt? Who else was involved? As I ran to the door, I heard a voice in my   32 saying: "Here is a chance to show Holly what you really  33 ．She' 11 never forget it．"
The accident had occurred in my own driveway．Holly had crashed my truck into our other car. Holly was not  34 physically but when I reached her, she was crying and saying: " Oh, Dad, I’m sorry．I know how much you love this truck．" I held her in my arms as she cried．
Later that week a friend  35 by and asked what had happened to my truck．I told her the whole  36 ．Her eyes moistened(润湿) and she said: "That happened to me when I was a girl．I  37 my dad' s car and ran into a log that had fallen  38 the road．I ruined the car．When I got home my Dad knocked me to the ground and began to kick me．
Over 40 years later, she still felt the  39 of the night．It was a deep wound on her  40  .
I remember how  41  Holly was on the night she crashed our truck, and how I  42 her．One day, when Holly thinks  43 in the future, I want her to know that I love her a thousand times more than anything else．
I repaired the car, but the dent(凹陷)in my truck is   44 there today．Every day it reminds me of what really  45 in my life．

小题1:	A．After B．Before C．Later D．Earlier

小题2:	A．studying B．cooking C．driving D．operating

小题3:	A．truck B．family C．neighbor D．house

小题4:	A．still B．just C．also D．always

小题5:	A．brothers B．friends C．neighbors D．family

小题6:	A．filled B．satisfied C．surrounded D．confused

小题7:	A．heart B．house C．neighborhood D．truck

小题8:	A．hate B．love C．refuse D．worry

小题9:	A．beaten B．wounded C．hurt D．worried

小题10:

A．stood B．ran C．stopped D．drove

小题11:

A．accident B．story C．adventure D．experience

小题12:

A．gave B．bought C．rode D．borrowed

小题13:

A．across B．through C．against D．over

小题14:

A．accident B．pain C．car D．sorry

小题15:

A．body B．head C．face D．soul

小题16:

A．angry B．surprised C．disappointed D．sad

小题17:

A．blamed B．scolded C．comforted D．beat

小题18:

A．back B．forward C．up D．of

小题19:

A．already B．still C．never D．no longer

小题20:

A．works B．needs C．matters D．values

Recently, I have begun to do rides with a group of guys who ride professionally (老练地). The first day, I finished the ride with great   36 , though I tried hard to keep up with one guy for most the ways. To my   37 , I did a little better the second time.
I decided to work harder to   38 . Yesterday, I   39  so much on my ride that I missed the short route (路线) I usually take;   40 , I stayed on the long route. I had never used this route, so I wasn’t really sure about which   41  I should take. Thankfully, a group of four riders   42 , and I just followed them.
A few minutes later, one of the guys got a flat tire (爆了的轮胎), and, with the help of the others, he had it   43  in about a minute. We all waited there   44  he changed his tire. After we started riding again, I noticed something   45 . The guy at the front would ride   46  for a couple of minutes, then he would move over to the side,   47  his way to the end of the line, and the guy behind him would move into the lead position. The process (过程) would   48  every few minutes. This was a lot easier than riding alone, trying to   49  the first rider. This time I had a great time – and I think it is the   50  I’ve ever gone.
This made me realize how important teamwork is, and the   51  of having a great team. The point is that you don’t have to be at your best   52 . You give it your all for a while, and then you let the guy   53  you do the same. The entire team improves because you don’t have to be the   54  all the time. You get your time to shine, and so does everyone else. You cannot get anywhere – or even make any worthwhile improvement – without a   55 . Who else will stop and help you to change your flat tire?

小题1:	A．comfort B．carefulness C．difficulty D．bravery

小题2:	A．delight B．disappointment C．surprise D．amazement

小题3:	A．adjust B．improve C．approve D．increase

小题4:	A．turned B．checked C．carried D．focused

小题5:	A．therefore B．otherwise C．instead D．still

小题6:	A．end B．direction C．route D．place

小题7:	A．developed B．formed C．left D．appeared

小题8:	A．used B．worked C．changed D．stopped

小题9:	A．if B．since C．while D．before

小题10:

A．natural B．unusual C．simple D．regretful

小题11:

A．suddenly B．quickly C．immediately D．finally

小题12:

A．making B．leading C．getting D．keeping

小题13:

A．show B．pass C．continue D．repeat

小题14:

A．catch up with B．end up with C．put up with D．come up with

小题15:

A．longest B．highest C．biggest D．fastest

小题16:

A．plan B．aim C．value D．effort

小题17:

A．at a time B．at the time C．for some time D．all the time

小题18:

A．before B．between C．behind D．above

小题19:

A．hero B．speaker C．junior D．organizer

小题20:

A．friend B．team C．practice D．rid

Perhaps every older generation since ancient times has complained about young people, and today is no different. Isn’t it obvious that kids these days are self-absorbed social network addicts?
However, this summer, my impression of today’s kids has been restored by the story of Rachel Beckwith. She could teach my generation a great deal about maturity (成熟) and unselfishness — even though she’s just 9 years old, or was when she died on July 23.
At age 5, Rachel had her long hair cut off and sent to Locks of Love, which uses hair donations to make artificial hair for children who have lost their own hair because of cancer or other diseases. After that, Rachel announced that she would grow her hair long again and donate it again. And that’s what she did.
Then when she was 8 years old, her church began raising money to build wells in Africa through an organization called “charity: water”. Rachel was astonished when she learned that other children had no clean water, so she skipped her ninth birthday party. Rachel set up a birthday page on the charity: water website with a target of $300. Instead of presents, she asked her friends to donate $9 each to charity: water. Finally Rachel raised only $220 — which had left her just a bit disappointed.
Then, on July 20, a serious traffic accident left Rachel critically injured. Church members and friends, seeking some way of showing support, began donating on Rachel’s birthday page — charitywater.org/Rachel — and donations reached her $300 goal, and kept rising.
When it was clear that Rachel would never regain consciousness, the family decided to remove the life-support machine. Her parents donated her hair for the final time to Locks of Love, and her organs to other children.
Word spread about Rachel’s last fund-raiser (募捐行动). Contributions poured in, often they donated $9. The total donations soon topped $100,000, then $300,000.
This is a story not just of one girl, but of a young generation of outstanding problem-solvers working creatively.
小题1:Which of the following is TRUE of Rachel?

A．She died at the age of 8.	B．She was a cancer patient.
C．She was a warm-hearted girl.	D．She founded Locks of Love.

小题2:The underlined word “skipped” in Paragraph 4 probably means “      ”.

A．put off

B．gave up

C．expected

D．planned

小题3:According to the text, Rachel set up the birthday page to       .

A．make more new friends

B．call on people to donate hair

C．ask her friends to send her gifts

D．raise money to help African children

小题4:How does the author feel about the young generation now?

A．Worried

B．Critical.

C．Appreciative.

D．Doubtful

小题5:What would be the best title for the text?

A．Rachel’s last fund-raiser

B．Rachel and her birthday page

C．Kids are addicted to social networks.

D．What’s wrong with the young generation?

The other day, I received a most unexpected message in response to one of my essays: I am so proud of you and all you have accomplished. I shared your opinion …
It was signed Margaret Leibfried, who was my English teacher — a teacher who appeared at a vital (关键) point in my life and helped me believe that I could become a writer.
Thirty years ago, I entered high school as an introvert (性格内向的人) made all the more shy because I was the school’s only nonwhite student. I always felt in danger of being swept away by a sea of tall white athletes. I spent a lot of time alone, reading and writing stories, hoping to escape being teased.
Ms. Leibfried taught American literature and composition grammar, which involved the usual memorizing vocabulary, but also, thrillingly, reading novels.
Thrilling to me, that is. Many of my classmates expressed dislike for novels because they were “not real.” For once, I didn’t care what they thought. Ms. Leibfried seemed to notice my interest in both reading and writing, and she took the time to make me feel less shy; she even offered me reading suggestions, like one of her favorite novels, “The Bell Jar.”
That year’s big project was a book report, to be read aloud to the class. However, Ms. Leibfried suggested I do something “a little different.” Instead of a report, I chose a passage from “The Bell Jar” that I considered as the best to recite.
The morning of the presentations, I remember my hands sweating so badly as I walked to the front of the class that I kept my hands crossed, so I wouldn’t wipe them on my blouse.
When I finished, to my surprise, the class applauded. “Marie has picked out a particularly sensitive piece of writing and delivered it beautifully,” Ms. Leibfried said, smiling. I felt, maybe for the first time, confident.
小题1:What was the author’s high school life like before she met Ms. Leibfried?

A．Lonely.

B．Exciting.

C．Wild.

D．Busy

小题2:In Paragraph 5, the author mainly tells us         .

A．how she cared what her classmates thought

B．when she became interested in “The Bell Jar”

C．why many of her classmates disliked novels

D．how Ms. Leibfried helped and encouraged her

小题3:Why did Ms. Leibfried ask the author to recite a passage in front of the class?

A．To test whether she had a good memory.

B．To make her earn the respect of her classmates.

C．To help deepen her understanding of “The Bell Jar.”

D．To guide her to build a good relationship with others.

小题4:How did the author feel when she made the presentation?

A．Comfortable.

B．sad.

C．Nervous.

D．Confident.

小题5:What was the author’s purpose in writing the text?

A．To express her thanks to her teacher.

B．To discuss the issue of racial prejudice (偏见).

C．To introduce one of her favorite books.

D．To suggest the ways to gain confidence.