Robert Owen was born in Wales in 1771. At the age of ten he went to work. His employer had a large private library so Owen was able to educate himself. He read a lot in his spare time and at nineteen he was given the job of superintendent (监工) at a Manchester cotton mill. He was so successful there that he persuaded his employer to buy the New Lanark mill in Scotland.

When he arrived at New Lanark it was a dirty little town with a population of 2,000 people. Nobody paid any attention to the workers’ houses or their children’s education. The conditions in the factories were very bad. There was a lot of crime and the men spent most of their wages on alcoholic drinks.

Owen improved the houses. He encouraged people to be clean and save money. He opened a shop and sold the workers cheap, well-made goods to help them. He limited the sale of alcoholic drinks. Above all, he fixed his mind on the children’s education. In 1816 he opened the first free primary school in Britain.

People came from all over the country to visit Owen’s factory. They saw that the workers were healthier and more efficient than in other towns. Their children were better fed and better educated. Owen tried the same experiment in the United States. He bought some land there in 1825, but the community was too far away. He could not keep it under control and lost most of his money.

Owen never stopped fighting for his idea. Above all he believed that people are not born good or bad. He was a practical man and his ideas were practical. “If you give people good working conditions,” he thought, “they will work well and, the most important thing of all, if you give them the chance to learn, they will be better people.”

For Owen, his greatest achievement in New Lanark was ______.

A. improving worker’s houses                           B. helping people to save money

C. preventing men from getting drunk         D. providing children with good education

Owen’s experiment in the United States failed because ______.

   A. he lost all his money as he expected          B. he did not buy enough land for his future plan

   C. people who visited it were not impressed   D. it was too far away for him to organize it properly

Owen did the following things EXPECT _______.

  A. educate himself in his spare time                B. buy the New Lanark mill in Scotland

C. encourage people to save money                 D. improve people’s working condition      

E
Larry Walters is among the relatively few who have actually turned their dreams into reality. His story is true, even though you may find it hard to believe.
Larry was a truck driver, but his lifelong dream was to fly. After graduating from high school, he joined the Air Force in hopes of becoming a pilot. Unfortunately, poor eyesight disqualified him. So, as he sat there in his lawn chair, he dreamed about the magic of flying.
Then one day, Larry Walters got an idea. He went to the local Army-Navy store and bought a tank of helium (氦) and forty-five weather balloons. Back in his yard, Larry used straps to attach the balloons to his lawn chair, the kind you might have in your own back yard.
He fixed the chair to the ground and filled the balloons with helium. Then he packed some sandwiches and drinks and loaded a BB gun, figuring he could pop (打爆) a few of those balloons when it was time to return to earth.
Being ready, Larry sat in his chair and cut the fixing rope. His plan was to lazily float upwards and then lazily back down to land. But, things didn’t quite work out that way.
Instead, he shot up as if fired from a cannon! He climbed until he finally reached eleven THOUSAND feet! At that height, he could hardly risk shooting at any of the balloons, for fear of losing the balance! So, he stayed up there, sailing around for fourteen hours, totally at a loss as to how to get down. Eventually, an airliner pilot radioed the airport about passing a guy in a lawn chair at eleven thousand feet ... with a gun in his lap (腿面).
At nightfall, the winds on the coast made Larry drift out to sea. At that point, the Navy sent a helicopter to rescue him. Eventually they were able to fly over him and drop a rescue line with which they gradually get him back to earth.
On hitting the ground, he was arrested. When led away in handcuffs, a television reporter called out to ask, “Mr. Walters, why did you do it?” Larry stopped, eyed the man for a moment and replied, “A man can’t just sit around. What happens tomorrow depends on what you do today.”
Are you doing something to improve your life ... or just sitting around?
57. It is the fact that Larry _______.
A. was a qualified pilot                    B. was an amazing bus driver         
C. failed to become a pilot                 D. popped a few balloons
58. While pulled by the helium balloon, Larry took off to fly by _______.
A. shooting at the balloons to get the up-pushing power
B. using straps to attach the balloons to his lawn chair
C. fixing the chair to the balloons filled with helium
D. cutting the rope fixing his chair to the ground
59. Larry’s being arrested suggests that _______.
A. he is a wanted criminal by the police        B. it is against law to fly without a license 
C. an air liner pilot found a gun in his lap     D. he intended to steal military information
60. What might the writer think of Larry?
A. He is stupid enough to get arrested.           B. He is wise enough to be a success.
C. He is brave enough to reach his goal.    D. He is violent enough to go against law.

The Wife-carrying World Championship has been celebrated in a small town in central Finland since 1992. in 1992, the people of the town decided that it was time to restart some long-forgotten traditions. Back in the late 1800s, there was a robber called Rosvo-Ronkainen in that area. He was said to only accept men as members of his gang who proved their worth in challenges. At that time, it was also a common practice to steal women from neighboring villages.

The Wife-carrying World Championship is becoming increasingly popular. A large number of competitors, people, and journalists from Finland to Canada attend the Wife-carrying World championship every year.

The event is well-known for its warm and humorous atmosphere. The Wife-carrying World Championship is held on a 253.5 meters long official track. The track has two dry obstacles and a water obstacle, about a meter deep.

There are a few basic rules and the winning team is the couple who complete the course in the shortest time. The wife to be carried may be your own, or your neighbor’s. the minimum weight of the wife to be carried is 49kg. if she is less than 49kg, the wife will be given a heavy bag to carry. Each time a competitor drops his wife, that couple will be fined 15 seconds.

Along with the Wife-carrying World Championship, there is also a team competition. The distance is the same but three men in the team carry the wife in turns. At the exchange point the carrier has to drink the official “wife-carrying drink” before continuing the race. A special prize is awarded to the team with the best costumes.

Alongside with the Wife-carrying World Championship, there are bands playing music, a wife-carrying dance and other forms of entertainment.

According to the passage, the Wife-carrying World championship ___________.

A. was first celebrated in 1992.

B. was first held by Rosvo-Ronkainen

C. is celebrated in Finland or Canada every year

D. will award “wife-carrying drinks” to the winners

The Wife-carrying World championship is famous because ___________.

A. it is held on a 253.5 meters long track

B. many competitors take part in it

C. it has a pleasant atmosphere

D. the winner will be awarded a lot of money

If a husband drops his wife three time in the competition, he will be fined ________.

A. 15 seconds    B. 35 seconds    C. 45 seconds    D. 60 seconds

compared with the Wife-carrying World championship, the team competition _______.

A. is more exciting                    B. has a special prize

C. has a different track                 D. has three teams altogether

The passage is written mainly to ____________.

A. warn people that the competition is dangerous

B. attract more visitors to the Wife-carrying World championship

C. introduce how the Wife-carrying World championship has become popular

D. tell us something about the Wife-carrying World championship

"Get out of the plane!" Justin shouted．Teddy and he dropped to the ground,．．．
When Kathy and Victor reached the edge of the meadow （牧场）flames of the fire were shooting more than five meters into the air．
Kathy couldn't believe what she was seeing．One glance told her they needed medical attention immediately．She questioned Victor, "Are you able to find someone nearby for help?"
"There are no farmers, nor villagers nearby," he replied．
"I'm a distance runner, and I'll go for help．" Looking at the seriously injured men, Kathy said to Victor, "It may take me several hours to get out．" She started out．
When she was 23, Kathy set a women's record in a Marathon of 42 kilometers．But now she was running the race of life．She had nearly 30 kilometers of hard wilderness to cover to get help．
Kathy had been running for two hours．This was far back into the wilderness．The country path was growing vague （模糊）．She stopped to take a quick compass （指南针） reading．Yes, she had run almost for more than 20 kilometers．Her heart fell, her muscle aching．And finally she saw her car in the distance．
She jumped into the car and sped away．She reached a holiday house and called the police．
During the wait, she walked around, relaxing her legs and drinking water．It took almost two hours for a police helicopter to reach her at the trail （小路） end．They needed her for one more task．
【小题1】Who actually had the airplane accident?

When 7-year-old Warren Buffett said,“I will be the richest man one day,” his friends made fun of his “daydreaming”. But ever since then the little boy has set about learning how to make money by selling drinks, delivering newspaper and buying stocks. The American had already earned $9,000 (equal to $90,000 today) by the time he graduated from high school.

 And this month the 78-year-old man, who earned his fortune by making a lot of sound investment in the stock market, took the place of Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, as the world’s richest man. Gates’ worth declined $1.5 billion to $55.5 billion in 33 days after the recent financial storm, according to Forbes Magazine.

 Buffett, the only son of a stockbroker, was ready to think outside the box to develop his business from a very early age. At 8, he went to golf courses collecting and selling the used balls. At 11 when he sold soda pop door-to-door with a friend, the pair collected lids on streets to judge which flavor was the most popular.

 As a paper boy during high school, Buffett delivered two competitor papers, so that even when customers canceled one of the subscriptions, he could still make a profit from the other. With his paper delivery savings, Buffett bought 162,000 square meters of farmland and collected rent. Young Buffett stepped into the stock market at 11 but earned only $5. The experience taught him one of the virtues in investing, patience.

After graduating from university, Buffett started his venture with stocks with his childhood earnings and money from friends. He researched the stocks and just bought those of solid companies that were undervalued and inexpensive at the time. By sticking to companies such as American Express and Coca-Cola, Buffett has become rich.

“Learning is important to Buffett’s success. He is a learning machine who can spend his entire day reading. He keeps learning from books, street smarts and investigation, from both success and failure. In this way, he over-achieved his aptitude (能力).” said Charlie Munger, his longtime business partner.

The passage is mainly about ___________.

A. why Buffett took the place of Bill Gates as the world’s richest man

B. what effect Buffett’s childhood experiences had on his success

C. how Buffett earned his fortune and achieved his aptitude

D. what Buffett dreamt about when he was a child

Which of the following is true about Buffett?

A. His worth is more than $ 55.5 billion now.

B. He is next to Bill Gates in wealth at the present time.

C. He achieved great success on stepping into the stock market.

D. He bought 162,000 square meters of farmland by selling soda pop.

How did Buffett behave at the stock market?

A. He often prefers some inexpensive stocks.

B. He will buy the stock whose price is lower than its value.

C. He always borrows money from his friends to buy stocks.

D. He will sell the stock if its price doesn’t go up.

Which is the main factor that determines Buffett’s success?

A.  His education.                      B. His family background.

C.  His desire to learn.                D. His cooperation with his partner.

What can we infer from the passage?

A. Buffett is an immediate success in the stock market.

B．Buffett and Gates are business partners.

C．His father helped him a lot in his business.

D．Buffett has a good sense of business.