"Mark Twain" was the name used by Samuel Langhorne Clemens (1835-1910) when he wrote books. His father was a lawyer, but a poor one, who lived at Florida, Missouri. The family was so poor that Samuel did not receive much teaching. He had to learn all that he could from the people whom he met. His father died when he was very young, and then there was even less money than before.

　　Many of the men in this part of America worked in the ships on the great River Mississippi, and he did this himself at one time (1857).

　　Where did he find the name "Mark Twain"? It came from the great river itself. It was part of one of the cries used by men who worked in the ships. When a man called "By the mark twain!"  he meant that the river was "two marks deep" there, that is to say, six feet deep ( "Twain" is an old form of the work "Two".) Samuel Clemens often heard these words when he was young, and he used them as a penname all his life.

　　During his work on the Mississippi he met travelers of all kinds, and this helped him a great deal when he started to write. But the number of travelers became smaller when war started in America in 1861. Many of the great ships on the river stopped work. Samuel left then and went to Nevada with his brother, who was at that time Governor of Nevada. There, near the town of Carson, Samuel became a gold miner, but he never made much money at the time. He soon saw that life in the gold mines was not for him. He also tried writing for the newspapers in Nevada, and this seemed more hopeful. He found that he could write.

　　He went to Europe in 1867 and visited France and Italy. In 1870 he married Olivia Langdon, and two years later he was spending nearly all his time writing. Among his books is his own story (1908).

　　He is now always known as Mark Twain, and many people do not even know that his family name was Clemens. He traveled in America and in England, and went to Oxford in 1907. He was one of  the great American writers of the time, and could make his readers laugh – a thing which few writers can do. He died in 1910.

1."Mark Twain" was _________.

      A. a famous American writer  B. name of a book

      C. a great river in America  D. a large ship

2.As a child, Samuel did not get much education because _________.

A.his father died too early

B.the family was very poor

  C. he disliked school very much

D. he could learn what he liked from the people he met

3. What gave him a great deal when he started writing? _______

A. His poor childhood     B. The Mississippi river 

C. All kinds of travelers he met  D. His brother

4. We can infer from the passage that ________.

A. Samuel loved writing from his early age

B. Samuel did not love writing at the beginning

C. his writings to the newspaper were successful

D. his brother encouraged him to write more

5.According to the writer of the passage, a good writer could _________.

A. write a lot for his readers

B. make a lot of money for his family

C. cause his readers to laugh

D. travel everywhere he wanted

 

The Internet has led to a huge increase in credit – card fraud. Your card information could even be for sale in an illegal Web site. Web sites offering cheap goods and services should be regarded with care. On-line shoppers who enter their credit-card information may never receive the goods they bought. The thieves then go shopping with your card number — or sell the information over the Internet.?

Computers hackers have broken down security systems, raising questions about the safety of cardholder information. Several months ago,25 000 customers of CD Universe, an on-line music retailer(批发商),were not lucky. Their names, addresses and credit-card numbers were posted on a Web site after the retailer refused to pay US $157 828 to get back the information.?

Credit-card firms are now fighting against on-line fraud. MasterCard is working on plans for Web-only credit card, with a lower credit limit. The card could be used only for shopping on-line.

However, there are a few simple steps you can take to keep from being cheated.?

Ask about your credit-card firm's on-line rules: Under British law, cardholders are responsible for the first US $78 of any fraudulent spending.?

And shop only at secure sites: Send your credit-card information only if the Web site offers-advanced secure system.?

　　If the security is in place, a letter will appear in the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. The Web site address may also start with https:// — the extra “s” stands for secure. If in doubt, give your credit-card information over the telephone.?

Keep your password safe: Most online sites require a user name and password before placing an order. Treat your passwords with care.?

What do most people worry about the Internet according to this passage??

       A．A lot of stolen credit-cards were sold on the Internet.?

       B．Fraud on the Internet.?

       C．Many Web sites are destroyed.?

       D．Many illegal Web sites are on the Internet.

What is the meaning of “fraud”??

       A．cheating     B．sale             C．payment         D．safety

How many pieces of advice does the passage give to you??

       A．Four. B．Three.      C．Five. D．Six.

You are shopping on the site: http://www.shopping.com,and you want to buy a TV set, what does this article suggest doing?

       A．Order the TV set at once.?

       B．Do not buy the TV set on this site.?

       C．E-mail the site your credit-card information.?

       D．Tell the site your password and buy the TV set for you.

 

第二节  书面表达(满分25分)

某天，你班贴出了一张通知。请根据通知内容要点和要求写一篇英语发言稿。

　　 内容要点：

　　 ● 你对“周五读报活动”的看法； ● 陈述你的理由…… (可举例说明)；

　　 ● 你的具体建议 ……

　　要求：

1. 短文字数不少于120，开头已经给出，不计入总词数；

2. 内容充实，结构完整，语意连贯,可根据内容要点适当发挥，但不要逐条翻译；

3. 书写须清楚、工整。

Notice

　　 Our monitor suggests that we have “Friday News Hour”. But some classmates do not agree. We will have a class meeting in English tomorrow afternoon to discuss this suggestion. Please prepare your talk and take an active part.

　　May 6th, 2008

　Dear fellow students ，

Our monitor suggests that we have “Friday news hour”。　

 

完形填空（共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分）

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从36-55各题所给的四个选项（A，B，C和D）中，选出最佳选项。

Trudy, an American girl, tried swimming across the English Channel. That was August 6, 1962. Her father had　 36　 her two things. One was not to pull her out of the water　 37　 she asked. The other was to give her a red sports　 38　 if she made it.

In gay spirits Trudy　 39　 out , swimming strongly. All the swimmers started at 7：09 in the morning. His father and the trainer were going along in a boat beside her.

At ten o’clock, rain began falling.　 40　 , Trudy trod （踩）water while drinking and eating a chicken leg. Then she started swimming　 41　 The wind was　 42　 and the sea became rougher.

Late　 43　 the wind became even worse. The trainer　 44　 it was useless trying to finish. He called to Trudy to　 45　 .

“No human being could do it in this weather, ” he said, “It’s　 46　 to go on.

However, her father shouted, “Don’t grab her. Let her　 47　 ”

At seven o’clock the tides（潮水）turned　 48　 her. It was more difficult to move ahead. But Trudy still swam on. She　 49　 victory was possible now, for the English coast was in　 50　 .

It was getting dark. A sound could be heard　 51　 the wind; hundreds of car horns （喇叭）were cheering her on. With　 52　 strength, she finished the last 200 yards.

At 9：35 p.m. Trudy got out of water. She had swum some 35 miles in　 53　 the 21 - mile - wide - Channel　 54　 a strong storm. But she had made it in 14 hours and 30 minutes.

“Well, Pop, ”she said to her father. “I　 55　 I get my car this time, don’t I”

36．A. given                  B. refused              C. allowed             D. promised

37．A. as                    B. unless               C. even if              D. when

38．A. suit                    B. shoe                C. hat                 D. car

39．A. rushed                 B. left                 C. started               D. worked

40．A. At midday              B. In the morning          C. In the evening    D. In the late afternoon

41．A. faster                  B. better               C. again               D. across

42．A. stopping　              B. rising               C. changing            D. increasing

43．A. morning               B  afternoon           C. evening             D. night

44．A. thought                B. considered           C. decided             D. felt

45．A. keep up                B. slow down          C. give up              D. take a rest

46．A. difficult                        B. stupid               C. impossible           D. unnecessary

47．A. go                    B. decide              C. come out            D. go on

48．A. towards                B. with                C. at                  D. against

49．A. realized                 B. noticed              C. found out            D. thought

50．A. the distance                     B. reach               C. sight                D. hand

51．A. over                  B. in                  C. with                D. from

52．A. fresh                  B. greater              C. weakening           D. remaining

53．A. flying                  B. swimming          C. crossing             D. passing

54．A. in spite of                B. because of            C. against              D. during

55．A. demand               B. am afraid            C. hope               D. guess