Barack Obama
In the past hundred years, the U.S. presidency has turned more and more to the left – not in policy, but in handedness. Barrack Obama is the latest to join a long list of left – handed presidents from the 20th century: James Garfield, Herbert Hoover, Henry Truman, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton were all southpaws.
What makes lefties so electable? Some experts think left-handed people have a greater aptitude for language skills, which may help them craft the rhetoric necessary for political office. And as for the bout of recent left-handed presidents, some think it’s because teachers only recently stopped working to convert lefties to rightist at an early age.
Bill Gates
Claiming the nation’s richest man among their number is a source of considerable pride for America’s society of southpaws. In fact, the Microsoft titan and philanthropist(巨头兼慈善家) is one of a surprising number of U.S. business moguls to be left-handed, including Henry Ford, John D. Rockefeller and former IBM head Lou Gerstner. But the club seems to be a guys-only fraternity — research suggests that while left-handed men tend to earn more than their right-handed colleagues, there is no similar advantage for women. A study by the National Bureau of Economic Research floated the idea that left-handed men favor "divergent" thinking, a form of creativity in which the brain moves "from conventional knowledge into unexplored association." Maybe that’s what it takes to develop a net worth estimated at $ 57 billion.
Oprah Winfrey
The talk-show queen doesn’t need much more to set her apart from the rest — what with her estimated $ 2.7 billion fortune and a magic ability to sell books just by glancing at them — but she also has the distinction of being a member of the left-handed club. Since men are more likely to be left-handed than women, that makes Oprah doubly impressive. She’s in good company: Other show-business ladies of the left – handed  persuasion include Whoopi Goldberg, Julia Roberts and Angelina Jolie
Marie Curie
Not only was atomic scientist Marie Curie left-handed, but she was the matriarch of a whole family of accomplished, southpaw scientists. Curie, who discovered the principles of radioactivity and won two Nobel Prizes, was married to fellow lefty Pierre Curie, who was instrumental in helping Marie’s atomic research and shared one of her Nobel awards. Historians believe their daughter, Irene, was also left-handed. Irene went on to win a Nobel Prize of her own with her husband — who, you guessed it, was also left-handed.
59．The underlined word “southpaws” in the last sentence of Paragraph 1 means_______.
A．people coming from the south B．powerful presidents
C．people who use their left hand D．forceful speakers
60．What makes it so easy for lefties to be elected as presidents according to the passage?
A．Their great gift for foreign language.
B．Their great language skills to make speeches.
C．The need of left – hinders in the political office.
D．Teachers stopping to force them to use their right hand.
61．It can be implied that Bill Gates, Henry Ford, John D. Rockefeller and Lou Gerstne_______.
A．have creative thinking              B．have formed a special club.
C．earn more money than their wives   D．are wealthy philanthropists
62．The underlined sentence in Paragraph 4 “She is in good company” means “_______”.
A．she works in a very good company   B．she has many good friends
C．she has got on well with others        D．she is among many female lefties

   In some countries in which there is very little rain at any time, the farmers have to irrigate their fields. Irrigation is easy enough if there is a great river near the crops, and if there is plenty of water in it. Canals carry the river water to the fields when necessary. In some seasons there may be too much water in the river, and the water may flood all the land near it. At other times the river water may not be enough for all the farmers, and then it will be difficult to irrigate the fields.

   To prevent these difficulties, a dam may be built across the river. This will store water for dry seasons, and in wet seasons it will prevent the flooding of the land. A great lake will, no doubt, be formed behind the dam, and this may mean that houses and fields will be covered with water. Most people will accept that and will be ready to move to other places. Then the country can have the right amount of water at all times; more crops will be grown, there will be more food for everyone, and there will be no more floods.

   Dams have been built for centuries in different parts of the world. Modern dame are usually built of concrete（混凝土）but earth dams were used in India and Sri Lanka about 2500 years ago. There was another across the River Tigris very long ago, and large numbers of irrigation canals were made in Iraq to irrigate the land. The Romans were great dam-builders and there was also a famous dam at Ma’ rubin Arabia.

   We cannot use sea water for irrigation; the salt will not allow the crops to grow. Fresh water is always needed, and it is very difficult and costly to make fresh water from sea water. This is done in a few countries, but the fresh water is for drinking. There is not enough at present for irrigation. Perhaps a scientist will one day invent a cheaper way of producing fresh water from the sea.

1．The first paragraph mainly talks about          .

      A．the problems caused by river water      

       B．the necessity to irrigate the field

      C．the water shortage in some countries    

       D．the canals carrying water to fields

2．A dam is usually built          .

      A．to cover the houses and fields              

B．for people to have the right amount of water at all times

      C．to grow crops better

      D．to form a large lake

3．The underlined word“that”means         .

      A．a dam will be built across the river        

       B．a dam will store water for dry seasons

      C．in wet seasons a dam will prevent the flooding of the land

      D．houses and fields will be covered will water

4．The third paragraph suggests that         .

      A．modern dams are made of concrete      

       B．Romans once built many great dams

      C．there was too much water in 1rap in the past

D．modern dams are better than early dams

In some countries in which there is very little rain at any time, the farmers have to irrigate their fields. Irrigation is easy enough if there is a great river near the crops, and if there is plenty of water in it. Canals carry the river water to the fields when necessary. In some seasons there may be too much water in the river, and the water may flood all the land near it. At other times the river water may not be enough for all the farmers, and then it will be difficult to irrigate the fields.?

To prevent these difficulties, a dam may be built across the river. This will store water for dry seasons, and in wet seasons it will prevent the flooding of the land. A great lake will, no doubt, be formed behind the dam, and this may mean that houses and fields will be covered with water. Most people will accept that and will be ready to move to other places. Then the country can have the right amount of water at all times; more crops will be grown, there will be more food for everyone, and there will be no more floods.?

We cannot use sea water for irrigation; the salt will not allow the crops to grow. Fresh water is always needed, and it is very difficult and costly to make fresh water from sea water. This is done in a few countries, but the fresh water is for drinking. There is not enough at present for irrigation. Perhaps a scientist will one day invent a cheaper way of producing fresh water from the sea. If fresh water could be made cheaply, we could grow more food.?

1.It is easy for farmers to irrigate their fields when _____.?

a. there is a great river near the crops.? b. there is a lot of water that year?

c. there are many canals in the fields.? d. there is plenty of sea water in the country?

A. ab 　 　 B.abc?　 　 　 C. bcd 　 　 D. abcd?

2. In order to keep the country having the right amount of water at all times, _____ should be built.

A. canals 　 　 B. dams? 　 　 C. factories 　 　 D. plants?

3. The main idea of the passage is that _____.

A. irrigation is the best way to produce more food for humans

B. many ways have been tried to save water?

C. irrigation is necessary for farmers to have a good harvest ?

D. scientists should try their best to make sea water fresh to meet the needs of society?

4. Which of the following is right?

A. Sea water can be used to irrigate the fields.?

B. Scientists have found ways to take fresh water out of sea water.?

C. It seems that water plays little role in producing crops.?

D. Farmers use canals to irrigate their crops.?

Every country had its heroes. The heroes are the people that nation and especially the young peo­ple 21_____ . If you get a list of the 22   _____of a nation, it will tell you the potential (潜力）of the nation.

If today in America ’ you ask the high school students to list their heroes their 23____ would prob­ably divide into three groups. rHie first group of heroes would be the rock stars—the people 24 _____with rock music. There is no doubt that such people do have talent (天才）but one 25_____ if one should hold up rock stars as model. The rock stars too often are mixed with drugs and their personal life isnot all that — 26 ____  . The rock stars are rich and wear the latest fashion styles (时装）.However oneshould 27 _____more in a hero than such things as 28______ and fine clothes.

A second type of heroes for the American youth are sports stars. Again you have a person who has a great talent in one area_ 29 _____. However, too often the personal life of the sports star is a bit 30_____. Too frequently drugs and drinking are a part of 31_____ of the sports stars.

A third group of heroes are TV or movie stars. These people may have lots of 32___ ，tal­ent and are quite handsome. However ’ the personal life of too many actors is quite sad and should not be held up as a 33____  for young people.

Today，the rock stars，the sportsmen  and the actors 34____ have become the models of the youth in America. Really,do you hear a young person say that his 35____ is a doctor, a teacher or a scientist? These people are not 36____ and do not wear fashionable clothes. However, they are 37____ people who work hard to make the world a better place for everyone.

What is really sad is that the young try to 38____ their heroes. They like to wear the same clothes as theirs, if the heroes of today for the American youth are 39 ____only to rock stars, sportsmen and actors, the future does not look too 40_____ .