President Barack Obama had a big pat on the back for his young daughters on Tuesday, saying they have got used to life in the White House.
After more than a year at the US presidential mansion, Malia Obama, 11, and Sasha Obama, 8, have made their dad proud with their ability to balance their private life with life in the public eye, he told NBC television.
"The happiest thing about the past year and a half has been the girls' adjustment (适应). They have just been great. They're doing well in school," Obama said.
"They're not as constrained. They can wander around. Their Secret Service protection is a lot more low key (低调)," he explained. "So they've got soccer, they've got basketball, they go sleep over at their friend's houses.
"Sometimes I've got 12 little girls screaming on the third floor of the White House. And they made a great adjustment."
The president also admitted he was concerned about how his daughters would deal with his public life as they get a bit older.
"Now I get a little worried about them when they're teenagers because I think that's the time when you're already feeling uncomfortable about your parents, and then imagine if your dad's in the newspaper every day and people are calling him a fool. I feel a little worried about that."
"But on the other hand, Malia and Sasha have just turned out to be unbelievably well adjusted kids," Obama said.
"The thing that's most important to me is that they are so respectful of everybody and haven't gotten on any airs (摆架子). It’s all because of Michelle as she wouldn't put up with (容忍) any of that stuff."
61. Why is President Obama so happy according to the passage?
A. His daughters have been great in the public eye.
B. His daughters can balance their life with their study.
C. His daughters have got used to life in the White House.
D. His daughters have been in the White House for over a year.
62. The underlined word “constrained” in Paragraph 4 most probably means__________.
A. devoted                   B. forced                 C. puzzled                   D. concerned
63. President Obama is a little worried about ___________.
A. what his daughters’ life will be like in the future
B. how his daughters will get on with him when they’re a little older
C. how his daughters will make friends with people around in the future
D. how his daughters will deal with his public life when they’re teenagers
64. What can we infer from the last paragraph?
A. Michelle is proud of being Obama’s wife.
B. Michelle allows her daughters to get on airs.
C. President Obama appreciates what Michelle has done.
D. Obama’s daughters are respected by everyone in the USA.

The most popular food in America was invented because a cook got angry. George Crum was a cook at a restaurant in Saratoga Springs, New York. One day in 1853, a customer who had ordered fried potatoes sent them back to the kitchen. He wanted the cook to slice (切片) them thinner and fry them longer. George Crum had a bad temper (脾气), and he thought the potatoes were fine the way he made them. To teach the customer a lesson, he sliced potatoes very thin and fried them until they were crispy (脆的). But instead of being angry, the customer loved the new fried potatoes. He asked for more. Other people who tried them liked them too and customers kept asking for them. For many years, people called them Saratoga chips after the town where they were first made.

Even now, after more than 150 years, potato chips are very popular. At least one of every ten potatoes grown in the United States is made into potato chips. So if you like potato chips, be thankful that George Crum had a bad temper!

The customer sent the fried potatoes back to the kitchen because ______.

A. he wanted to make George Crum angry

B. he liked thinner potatoes fried a longer time

C. he knew the cook would invent potato chips

D. he didn’t want to pay for the food

George Crum cooked the potatoes in a special way in order to ______.

A. teach the customer a lesson

B. invent the potato chips

C. make the potato chips crispy

D. please that customer

What’s the best title for this story?

A. A cook with a very bad temper.

B. A clever customer.

C. Potato chips — the most popular food in America.

D. The invention of potato chips.

A famous American John Muir said in 1898: “The Grand Canyon… as unearthly (神秘的) in the color and grandeur (壮观) of its architecture as if you had found it after death on some other star.” Like Muir, those of us who stand along the rim are prompted to wonder about the unearthliness and the forces that created and are still changing this place.

After more than 100 years of studies, many things are still mysterious. Today visitors come by the thousands -- the great and simple of the earth -- all in a spirit of wonder. Travelers come from every state of the Union, from every country in Europe and Asia.

From the depths of the canyon comes welling silence. Seldom can you hear the roar of the river, for all sounds are swallowed in this gulf of space. “It makes one want to murmur.” A woman once whispered to her companion. This silence is not the silence of death; rather, it is a presence. It is like a great piece of music. But music made of man works up to a climax (高潮) and stops.

Now, visitors to the South Rim alone may number 18,000 in a single day. Some of that number will travel by mule train down Bright Angel Trail to the canyon's floor, cross the raging river by a suspension bridge (吊桥) and walk to the North Rim. Though the two rims face each other across only 12 miles, it is a journey of 214 miles by car from one to the other. Nor can you visit the North Rim except in summer; some 1,200 feet higher than the South Rim, it is snow covered much of the year except in July and August.

   But there is no day that you may not visit the South Rim and find the sun warm on your face and the air perfumed with the incense (香气) of smoke from an Indian hearth (香炉). No wonder an American writer and journalist said, “I came here an atheist (无神论者), and departed a devout （虔诚的）believer.”

What is it that attracts so many travelers to the Canyon?

A. The unearthliness and the grandeur of its architecture.

B. The presence of American super stars.

C. The saying made by American writers and journalists.

D. The roaring of the river in the Canyon.www..ocm

What does the underlined word “simple” refer to?

A. peaceful stream  B. land surface       C. common people        D. tamed animals

If you want to visit the North Rim from the South Rim, which of the following won’t be the way of traveling for you?

A. By train.                B. By animal.      C. By car.                         D. On foot.

The last sentence “I came here an atheist, and departed a devout believer.” implies that ______.

A. natural wonders such as the Canyon have some effect on human activities

B. all visitors to the Grand Canyon are God believers

C. atheist can’t see the magnificence of the Grand Canyon

D. the Grand Canyon is an unearthly sight that only God could create

Interview with a president
While many teenagers may dream of meeting with pop star Jay Chou or NBA hero Yao Ming, Li Jing had a far more powerful person on her mind. The Senior 2 from Beijing No.35 High School dreamt of meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin.
After more than a year of hard work and with a little good luck,Li fulfilled her dream.On October 11,2004,the 16-year-old girl joined a team of Chinese journalists who went to Kremlin,in Moscow,to interview Putin.
Li felt nervous before talking to Putin. “But his greeting and warm smile put me at ease,” she said.
Li admired Putin very much,because of his strong will and style of leadership. “He looks very cool,” Li said.During her interview,Li asked Putin whether he plans     to educate his two daughters to be officials in the future.Putin smiled and answered       he hopes they can do whatever job suits their interests and personalities.
Although li would only have several minutes,she started working on her interview questions last August after applying for the opportunity. “Journalists” work is by no means easy.You need to do lots of homework on your “interviewee,”she said.She read many books about Putin and Russia in her spare time.
Li’s parents encouraged her to be a student journalist. “We fully supported her,as long as it does not affects her studies,” said her father.Previously in her job for a student magazine, Chinese Young Journalists, she wrote a letter to President Hu Jintao during the SARS epidemic.
Li has learnt a lot from her experience.She said learning to manage her time and develop the confidence to speak with important people were not things she could learn in class.
【小题1】The underlined word “interviewee”in the fifth paragragh probably means_____.

完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）

Two days before Thanksgiving, I was trying to open my mouth wide enough for a mirror and a roll of steel wire. Metal braces (牙齿矫正器)had been on my   31   for weeks, but this was the day for the wire to be adjusted. Only those who have had braces will understand the terrible   32   of being “wired”. For the next 24 hours, it felt like every tooth was being   33   slowly by a giant clawhammer (拔钉锤).  34   drinking water caused pain.

By Thanksgiving Day, I had got used to it.   35   I didn’t use my teeth, the pain was bearable. But this was a day when teeth had to   36   longer than usual. We were   37   at my grandparents’ house with relatives. The house was filled with so many pleasant   38   that we could hardly resist the food. When grandma said, “Dinner is ready!” all the kids   39   to be first in line. I was so excited that I    40   the braces in my mouth and   41   my way up to the head of the line.

I piled my plate high with my favorite corn-on-the-cob(玉米棒子)and   42   my mouth to enjoy it. The pain was   43  . I felt I would never be able to eat again. I put my plate away and ran outside in   44  .

Grandma then took my plate to the   45  . She cut all the corn off that cob and rescued me from my   46  . She handed me my plate piled high with corn. “Thanks,” I said   47  . Then I looked up and   48   a strange light in her eye, a light that is still   49   to me after more than fifty years. That was the Thanksgiving when I discovered something more   50   than good food.

A.tongue                    B.hands                        C.teeth                         D.head

A.subject                   B.situation                    C.chance                      D.production

A.pushed                   B.planted                      C.opened                      D.pulled

A.Still                       B.So                                   C.Even                         D.Yet

As long as                  B.Even though                     C.In case                      D.As though

A.play                       B.work                         C.hurt                          D.shake

A.mixed                    B.called                        C.gathered                    D.surrounded

A.experiences             B.words                       C.colours                      D.smells

A.rushed                    B.started                       C.stepped                            D.walked

A thought of             B.got out of                 C.complained about       D.forgot about

A.forced                   B.created                      C.led                           D.gave

A.narrowed                     B.opened                      C.cleaned                            D.shut

A.normal                 B.violent                      C.regretful                    D.common

A.time                            B.anger                        C.surprise                    D.tears

A.kitchen                 B.bedroom                   C.clinic                        D.restaurant

A.fear                      B.loneliness                  C.pain                          D.interest

A.sadly                    B.kindly                       C.shyly                        D.gratefully

A.checked                B.passed                       C.caught                       D.filled

A.attractive                     B.mysterious                 C.natural                      D.untrue

A.important              B.popular                            C.useful                       D.expensive