About a year ago, if you had asked who Dinara Safina was the answer would have been:　 "She is Marat. Safin's younger sister." Back then she was overshadowed by her wonder brother. But now she has made a name for herself: the world No. 1 player in women’s tennis.

The 22-year-old Russian. will overtake Serena Williams of the US for top ranking on April 20. "Before, every place I go, I am Marat's sister. Nothing else," she told New York Times. "I always wanted to be myself, and now finally the results are coming, and people can know me as Dinara Satina.”

Safina has made it to two great event finals, in the 2008 French and in this year's Australian Open, and won a silver medal in the Beijing Olympic Games.

Clearly; family isn't the only connection Safina's and her brother share. Both of their DNA burns with competitive fire. Satin has held the distinction for years of being a hot tempered player on Court. When he lost his temper, he would break a racket（球拍）. Safina is as emotionally explosive as her brother. A headline in the newspaper The Australian once described her as　 "mad as a snake". The Sydney Morning Herald, during the Australian Open, summed up Safina's volatile（不稳定的）emotional state with the headline: "Satina goes from basket case to top of the world."

It's not rare for a family to have two top tennis players. Safina's father owns a tennis academy and her mother worked as a coach.　 "I had no choice but to become a tennis player, but I don't mind being a tennis player," Safina said.

From this talented family she is also given one of her best weapons on court, her size. She is 1.82 meters tall and Weighs 70 kg. But it is hard work that led her to her recent Success.

"I hope to prove to everyone over the coming months that I deserve the honor of being world No. 1," she said.

1. What is the passage mainly about?

A. How Safina came first in world women's tennis.

B. How the parents taught Safina to play tennis.

C. How her brother helped Safina play tennis.

D. How Safina beat her brother in playing tennis.

2. Which of the following doesn't contribute to Satina's success?

A. Her hard work and strong competitiveness.

B. Her emotional explosion and volatile emotional state.

C. The fact that she is 1.82 meters tall and weighs 70 kg.

D. The fact that her parents are two good tennis players.

3. Which of the following statements is true?

A. Serena Williams will be topped by Safina on ranking list on April 20.

B. Dinara Safina was always very confident and eager to succeed.

C. Safina was eager to become a tennis player when she was a child.

D. Marat Safin won the two finals, in 2008 French and in Austrahan Open.

4. What can we infer from the headline "Safina goes from basket case to top of the world.”?

A. Safina wanted to top the world in tennis when she was a baby in a basket.

B. After she won this year's Australian Open, Dinara Safina cried.

C. Too nervous at first, but Safina finally gained confidence and won.

D. Safina learnt from the basket case and finally became top of the world.

5. What can we learn from this passage?

A. Family plays an absolute role in shaping world-rank players.

B. As long as you have the same size as Safina, you are surely to succeed.

C. Safina hasn't been getting along with her brother for being ill-tempered.

D. Fine qualities help to make a top player, counting hard work.

 

The bedroom door opened and a light went on, signaling an end to nap time．The toddle（初学走路的婴儿）, sleepy-eyed, clambered to a swinging stand in his crib．He smiled, reached out to his father, and uttered what is fast becoming the cry of his generation: "iPhone!"

         Just as adults have a hard time putting down their iPhones, so the device is now the Toy of Choice for many 1-, 2- and 3-year-olds．The phenomenon is attracting the attention and concern of some childhood development specialists．

Natasha Sykes, a mother of two in Atlanta, remembers the first time her daughter, Kelsey, now 3 but then barely 2 years old, held her husband's iPhone．"She pressed the button and it lit up．I just remember her eyes．It was like 'Whoa!' "The parents were charmed by their daughter's fascination．But then, said Ms．Sykes （herself a Black Berry user）, "She got serious about the phone．" Kelsey would ask for it．Then she'd cry for it．"It was like she'd always want the phone," Ms．Sykes said．

Apple, the iPhone's designer and manufacturer, has built its success on machines so user-friendly that even technologically blinded adults can figure out how to work them, so it makes sense that sophisticated children would follow．Tap a picture on the screen and something happens．What could be more fun?

The sleepy-eyed toddler who called for the iPhone is one of hundreds of iPhone-loving toddlers whose parents are often proud of their offspring's ability to slide fat fingers across the gadget's screen and pull up photographs of their choice．

Many iPhone apps on the market are aimed directly at preschoolers, many of them labeled "educational," such as Toddler Teasers: Shapes, which asks the child to tap a circle or square or triangle; and Pocket Zoo, which streams live video of animals at zoos around the world．

Along with fears about dropping and damage, however, many parents sharing iPhones with their young ones feel guilty．They wonder whether it is indeed an educational tool, or a passive amusement like television．The American Academy of Pediatrics is continually reassessing its guidelines to address new forms of "screen time．" Dr．Gwenn Schurgin O'Keeffe, a member of the academy's council, said, "We always try to throw in the latest technology, but the cellphone industry is becoming so complex that we always come back to the table and wonder- Should we have a specific guideline for them?"

Tovah P. Klein, the director of a research center for Toddler Development worries that fixation on the iPhone screen every time a child is out with parents will limit the child's ability to experience the wider world.

As with TV in earlier generations, the world is increasingly divided into those parents who do allow iPhone use and those who don't. A recent post on UrbanBaby.com, asked if anyone had found that their child was more interested in playing with their iPhone than with real toys. The Don't mothers said on the Website: "We don't let our toddler touch our iPhones ... it takes away from creative play." "Please ... just say no. It is not too hard to distract a toddler with, say ... a book."

Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, a psychology professor who specializes in early language development, sides with the Don'ts. Research shows that children learn best through activities that help them adapt to the particular situation at hand and interacting with a screen doesn't qualify, she said.

Still, Dr. Hirsh-Pasek, struck on a recent visit to New York City by how many parents were handing over their iPhones to their little children in the subway, said she understands the impulse (冲动). "This is a magical phone," she said. "I must admit I'm addicted to this phone."

1.The first paragraph in the passage intends to ______.

A．get us to know a cute sleepy-eyed child in a family

B．show us how harmful the iPhone is

C．lead us to the topic of the toddlers' iPhone-addict

D．explain how iPhone appeals to toddlers

2.According to the author, iPhones are popular with both adults and young kids because they are______.

A．easy to use                                 B．beautiful in appearance

C．cheap in price                                        D． powerful in battery volume

3.The underlined word "them" in the seventh paragraph refers to ______.

A．televisions  B．cellphones           C．iPhones          D．screens

4.The tone of the author towards parents sharing iPhones with their children is ______.

A．negative            B．subjective            C．objective          D．supportive

5.The passage mainly tells us ______.

A．children's iPhone addict is becoming a concern

B．iPhone is winning the hearts of the toddlers

C．Apple is developing more user-friendly products

D．ways to avoid children's being addicted to iPhone games

 

Philo Farnsworth was a man who made it possible for one of the most important communication devices — television to be created. Philo was born on August 19th, 1906, near Indian Creek in the western state of Utah. He attended a very small school near his family’s farm. He did very well in school. He asked his teacher for special help in science. The teacher began helping Philo learn a great deal more than most young students could understand.

One night, Philo read a magazine story about the idea of sending pictures and sound through the air. Anyone with a device that could receive this electronic information could watch the pictures and hear the sound. The magazine story said some of the world’s best scientists were using special machines to try to make a kind of device to send pictures.

14-year-old Philo decided these famous scientists were wrong and that mechanical devices would never work. He decided that such a device would have to be electronic. Philo knew electrons could be made to move extremely fast. All he would have to do was to find a way to make electrons do the work.

Very quickly Philo had an idea for such a receiver. It would trap light in a container and send the light on a line of electrons. Philo called it “light in a bottle”.

Several days later, Philo told his teacher about a device that could capture pictures. He drew a plan for it, which he gave his teacher. Philo’s drawing seemed very simple, but it clearly showed the information needed to build a television. In fact, all television equipment today still uses Philo’s early idea.

Philo Farnsworth was only 14 years old then. He knew no one would listen to a child. In fact, experts say that probably only ten scientists in the world at that time could have understood his idea.

On September 7th, 1927, Philo turned on a device that was the first working television receiver. In another room was the first television camera. Philo had invented the special camera tube earlier that year.

The image produced on the receiver was not very clear, but the device worked. In1930, the United States government gave Philo patent documents. These would protect his invention from being copied by others.

56. Before he was 14 years old, _______________.

A. Philo had formed the idea of sending pictures and sound through the air

B. Philo had learned a great deal in science from his father

C. Philo had helped his parents on their family’s farm

D. Philo had had a very strong interest in science

57. How did Philo get the idea of inventing a television?

A. By learning from his science teacher.

B. By reading a story about the idea in a magazine.

C. By thinking hard himself.

D. By using his knowledge about electrons.

58. Philo referred to “ _________ ” when he called something “light in a bottle”.

A. a container sending pictures and sound through the air

B. a light box with a line of electrons in a bottle

C. a receiver that held light and sent it on a line of electrons

D. a way to make electrons send pictures

59. We can infer from the passage that _________________.

A. without his teacher’s help, he would never have become interested in science

B. he made the first working television receiver and the first television camera himself

C. Philo’s early ideas about the television could not be understood by most people of that time

D. his invention was recognized and protected immediately he made it

60. In the passage, the author mainly tells us _______________.

A. that Philo Farnsworth was a great inventor

B. when and where the television was invented

C. who made it possible to create television

D. how Philo Farnsworth invented the television

　　A football coach in a high school had an idea and made a contract with his wife that he would take care of their children and do all the housework during the summertime．Would he be able to complete the task ?

　　It was all his own idea, says Pat, the wife of California high school football coach Bob Peters．Bob had 　1　 made a motherhood contract (合同) declaring that for 70 days this summer he would 　2　 the care of their four children and all the housework．　3　 he didn't even know how to make coffee when he sighed, he was very confident．

　　After 40 of the 70 days, he was ready to 　4　．I was beaten down, admits Bob．Not only is motherhood a 　5　 task, it is an impossible job for any normal human being．

　　Bob and Pat were married in 1991．After the marriage, Pat 　6　 a secretary to help put him through university．　7　 Bob has been the football coach while Pat raised the kids．　8　 two years ago Pat went back to work．I had been 　9　 children so much, she 　10　 , I couldn't talk to a grown-up．She continued to run the household, 　11　 until Bob sighed the contract．

　　Bob tried hard to learn cooking, but the meals he prepared were 　12　 ．For the last three weeks, the family 　13　 a lot ?sometimes having MacDonald's hamburgers for lunch and dinner．

　　　14　 housekeeping, a home economics teacher had told Bob that a room always looks clean 15 the bed is made．I found 16 I shut the doors, he says．Soon the kids were wearing their shirts inside out．When we went to 　17　 Pat at work, I made them wear their shirts 　18　 side out so they would look clean．

　　Now that Bob has publicly 　19　 he was wrong, he is 　20　 the child-raising and household tasks with Pat．

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Gloria is a famous hostess of a TV station. When she was 15, she happened to walk into a bookstore in her hometown and began looking at the books on the shelves. The man behind the counter, John Smith, asked if she'd like a job. She needed to start saving for college, so she said yes.

Gloria worked after school and during summer vacations, and the job helped pay for her first year of college. During college she would do many other jobs: she served coffee in the student union, was a hotel cleaner and even made maps for the Forest Service. But selling books was one of the most satisfying jobs.

One day a woman came into the bookstore and asked Gloria for books on cancer. The woman seemed anxious. Gloria showed her practically everything they had and found other books they could order. The woman left the store less worried, and Gloria has always remembered the pride she felt in having helped her customer.

Years later, as a television hostess, Gloria heard about a child who was born with problems with his fingers and hand. His family could not afford an operation, and the boy lived in shame, hiding his hand in his pocket all the time.

Gloria persuaded her boss to agree to let her do the story. After the story was broadcast, some doctors called, offering to perform the operation for free.

Gloria visited the boy in the hospital after the operation. The first thing he did was to hold up his repaired hand and say, "Thank you. " What a sweet sense of satisfaction Gloria felt!

At Smith's bookstore, Gloria always realized she was working for the customers, not the store. Today it's the same. The TV station pays her, but she feels that she should work for the people who watch the programmes, helping them understand the world better.

56. When did Gloria get her first job?

A. A few years before college.            B. Several years after college.

C When she was studying at college.       D. When she was working in the TV station.

57. In which part-time job did Gloria feel the happiest?

A. Cleaning in the hotel.                 B. Selling books in the bookstore.

C. Serving coffee in the student union.       D. Making maps for the Forest Service.

58. How did Gloria help the child get the operation he needed?

A. Her boss agreed to raise money.          B. She paid for the operation herself.

C She allowed the boy to show on TV.       D. Her news report affected some doctors.

59. What particularly gives her the feeling of pride?

A. Helping people through her work.        B. Reporting interesting stories.

C Being able to do different jobs well.       D. Paying for her college education herself.