A Tchaikovsky concerto（协奏曲）is what made Romel Joseph fall in love with the violin.

He learned how to play in Haiti, where he was born, but a Fulbright scholarship brought him to the United States, and he finally earned a master’s degree, reports CBS News reporter Katie Couric. Music had changed his life. He wanted to do the same for the children of Haiti.

Joseph built a school in Port-au-Prince nearly 20 years ago. He was on the third floor when suddenly “It was like boom boom boom and everything just opened,” Joseph said. “And the next thing I knew I was on the ground.”

Blind since birth, Joseph tried to feel his way out, but was pinned（夹）beneath heavy concrete（混凝土）. He remained trapped for 18 hours. He prays that his new wife, seven months pregnant（怀孕的）, will be found.

He is now being treated at Miami’s Jackson Memorial Hospital for two injured legs and an arm.

Joseph wonders if he’ll ever play the violin again. He can feel sensation（知觉）in his fingertips. He said, “If you were to give me a violin and if I didn’t have to fold the fingers, I would be able to play.”

Joseph’s daughter Victoria spent three terrifying days unsure of her father’s fate. For her, having him home is the sweetest music.

“Can you imagine your dad not being able to play the violin?” Couric asked.

“No, I can’t,” Victoria Joseph said. “But I will love him all the same if he can’t.”

Romel doesn’t know how many of his 300 students died in the quake. As he waits for news about his wife, Romel Joseph is already planning a return to Haiti to rebuild the school and continue teaching there.

“We can save two children, 20, 200, 300, 500 through education and music, and these children will make a difference,” Romel Joseph said.

54．Romel began to like music ________.

A. because he was blind since birth

B. after he had listened to a famous piece of music

C. when he got a scholarship to study in America

D. since he was born in Haiti

55．From what Romel said in Paragraph 6, we can infer that he was ________.

A. upset        B. fearful          C. excited          D. optimistic

56．To Victoria, the best thing is ________.

A. to see her father recover from the injury quickly

B. to listen to her father playing the sweetest music

C. to play the violin as well as her father

D. to be sure that her father could play the violin

57．Why does Romel want to go back to Haiti?

A. To save his students from the earthquake.

B. To change the life of children by teaching music.

C. To find out how seriously his school was damaged.

D. To look for his wife who is pregnant.

58．Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

A. Music education: keep your creativity alive

B. A great blind musician and his students

C. Haiti earthquake: a story of a music teacher

D. How did some Haiti earthquake victims survive

Runners in a relay race pass a stick in one direction．However，merchants(商人) passed silk，gold, fruit，and g1ass along the Silk Road in more than one direction．They earned their living by traveling the famous Silk Road.

The Silk Road was not a simple trading network. It passed through thousands of cities and towns. It started from eastern China, across Central Asia and the Middle East, and ended in the Mediterranean Sea. It was used from about 200 B.C. to about A.D.1300, when sea travel offered new routes (路线). It was sometimes called the world’s longest highway. However, the Silk Road was made up of many routes, not one smooth path. They passed through what are now 18 countries. The routes crossed mountains and deserts and had many dangers of hot sun, deep snow and even battles. Only experienced traders could return safe.

The Silk Road got its name from its most prized product. Silk could be used like money to pay taxes or buy goods. But the traders carried more than just silk. Gold, silver, and glass from Europe were much found in the Middle East and Asia. Horses immediate effect on the West. Apples traveled from centre Asia to Rome. The Chinese had learned to graft(嫁接) different trees together to make new kinds of fruit. They passed this science on to others, including the Romans. The Romans used grafting to grow the apple. Trading along the Silk Road led to world-wide business 2,000 years before the World Wide Web.

The People along the Silk Road did not share just goods. They also shared　 their beliefs．The silk Road provided pathways for learning，diplomacy(外交)，and religion.·

72. It’s probable that traders along the Silk Road needed__________.

A. to remember the entire trade route　 　 B. to deal with a lot of difficulties

C. to receive certain special training　 　　 D. to know the making of products

73. The Silk Road became less important because___________.

A. sea travel provided easier routes　　　 B. silk trading became less popular

C. it was made up of different routes 　　　 D. people needed fewer foreign goods

74.New technologies could travel along the Silk Road because people_________·

A. traded goods along the route　　 B. shared each other’s beliefs

C. 1earned from one another D. earned their living by traveling

75. What is the best title for the passage?

A. The Silk Road: Pathways for Learning

B. The Silk Road：Past and Present

C. The Silk Road: Routes Full of Dangers

D. The Silk Road：East Meets West

Joanne was stuck in a traffic jam in central Birmingham at 5：30 and at 6：30 she was expected to be chairing a meeting of the tennis club. At last, the traffic was moving. She swung quickly racing to her house. As she opened the door, she nearly tripped over (被绊倒)Sheba.

“Hey, Sheba,” she said, “I've got no time for you now, but I'll take you out as soon as I get back from tennis club.” Then she noticed Sheba seemed to be coughing or choking. Obviously, she could hardly breathe. Immediately, Joanne realized she would have to take her to the vet (兽医).

When she got there, the vet was just about to close for the day. Seeing the state of Sheba, Dr. Sterne brought her quickly into his office.

    “Listen, doctor, I'm really in a rush to get to a meeting, can I leave her with you, and go and get changed? I'll be back in ten minutes to pick her up, and then I'll take her on to the meeting with me. Is that OK?”

    “Sure.” said the doctor.

     Joanne made the quick trip back to her house in a couple of minutes. As she was once more entering the hallway, the phone by the door began to ring.

     “This is Dr. Sterne,” said an anxious voice. “I want you to get out of that house immediately, ”said the doctor's voice. “I'm coming round right away, and the police will be there any time now. Wait outside!”

     At that moment, a police car screeched (发出尖锐的声音)to a stop outside the house. Two policemen got out and ran into the house. Joanne was by now completely confused and very frightened. Then the doctor arrived.

“Where’s Sheba? Is she OK?” shouted Joanne.

“She’s fine, Joanne. I took out the thing which was choking her, and she’s OK now. ”

Just then, the two policemen reappeared from the house, half-carrying a white—faced man, who could hardly walk. There was blood all over him.

    “My God, ” said Joanne,  “how did he get in there? And how did you know he was there?”

    “I think he must be a burglar.” said the doctor. “I knew he was there because when I finally removed what was stuck in Sheba’s throat：it turned out to be three human fingers.”

1.. What was Joanne supposed to do at 6：30？

 A. To walk her dog.                    B. To see her doctor.

 C. To attend a club meeting.           D. To play tennis with her friends.

2.. Joanne wanted to get back to her home again            .

 A. to dress up for the meeting         B. to phone the police station

 C. to catch the badly hurt burglar     D. to wait for her dog to be cured 

3.. From the passage, we can infer that          .

 A. Sheba fought against the burglar   

B. the police found the burglar had broken in

 C. Joanne had planned to take her dog to the meeting    

D. the doctor performed a difficult operation on the dog

4.. In this passage, the writer intends to tell us that the dog is            .

A. clever          B. friendly       C. frightening       D. devoted

5.．The underlined word a burglar in the last paragraph probably means ________. A. a cleaner       B. a physician     C. a thief          D. a murderer

 

 

    Joanne was stuck in a traffic jam in central Birmingham at 5: 30．and at 6: 30 she was expected to be chairing a meeting of the tennis club. At last, the traffic was moving. She swung quickly racing to her house. As she opened the door, she nearly fell over Sheba.

    “Hey, Sheba,” she said, “I've got no time for you now, but I'll take you out as soon as I get back from tennis club.” Then she noticed Sheba seemed to be coughing or choking obviously, she could hardly breathe. Immediately, Joanne realized she would have to take her to the vet (兽医). When she got there, the vet was just about to close for the day. Seeing the state of Sheba, Dr. Sterne brought her quickly into his office.

    “Listen, doctor, I'm really in a rush to get to a meeting, can I leave her with you, and go to get changed? I'll be back in ten minutes to pick her up, and then I'll take her on to the meeting with me. Is that OK?”

    “Sure.” said the doctor.

    Joanne made the quick trip back to her house in a couple of minutes. As she was once more entering the hallway, the phone by the door began to ring.

    “This is Dr. Sterne,” said an anxious voice. “I want you to get out of that house immediately,” said the doctor’s voice. “I'm coming round right away, and the police will be there any time now. Wait outside!”

    At that moment, a police car screeched to a stop outside the house. Two policemen got out and ran into the house. Joanne was by now completely confused and very frightened. Then the doctor arrived.

    “Where’s Sheba? Is she OK?” shouted Joanne.

    “She’s fine, Joanne. I took out the thing which was choking her, and she’s OK now.”

    Just then, the two policemen reappeared from the house, half-carrying a white-faced man, who could hardly walk. There was blood all over him.

    “My God, ”said Joanne, “how did he get in there? And how did you know he was there?”

    “I think he must be a burglar.” said the doctor. “I knew he was there because when I finally removed what was stuck in Sheba’s throat, it turned out to be three human fingers.”

1.What was Joanne supposed to do at 6: 30？

   A. To walk her dog.

   B. To see her doctor.

   C. To attend a club meeting.

   D. To play tennis with her friends.

2.Joanne wanted to get back to her home again______.

   A. to dress up for the meeting

   B. to phone the police station

   C. to catch the badly hurt burglar

   D. to wait for her dog to be cured 

3.From the passage, we can infer that______.

   A. Sheba fought against the burglar

   B. the police found the burglar had broken in

   C. Joanne had planned to take her dog to the meeting

   D. the doctor performed a difficult operation on the dog

4.In this passage, the writer intends to tell us that the dog is______.

   A. clever         B. friendly         C. frightening       D. devoted

 

When middle-aged Alex quit his job and made up his mind to become a self-employed writer, no one could tell for sure whether he would succeed or not.He found a cold storage room in a building, set up a used typewriter and settled down to work.

　　 After a year or so, however, Alex began to doubt himself.He found it was difficult to earn his living by selling what he wrote.But Alex determined to put his dream to the test—even though it meant living with uncertainty and fear of failure.This is the shadowland(虚幻世界)of hope, and anyone with a dream must learn to live there.

　 　One day Alex got a call, “We need an assistant, and we're paying $ 6,000 a year.” $ 6,000 was real money in 1960.It would enable Alex to get a nice apartment, a used car and more.Besides, he could write in his spare time.As the dollars were dancing in Alex's head, something cleared his senses.He had dreamed of being a writer? Full time.“Thanks, but no,” Alex said firmly and swiftly,“I'm going to stick it out and write.”

　 　After Alex got off the phone, he pulled out everything he had: two cans of vegetables and 18 cents.Alex put the cans and cents into a paper bag, saying to himself,“There's everything you've made of yourself so far. I'm not sure I ever felt so low.”

　　 Finally his work was published in 1970.Instantly he had the kind of fame and success that few writers ever experienced. The shadows had turned into focus of attention.

　 　Then one day, Alex found a box filled with things he had owned years before.Inside was a paper bag with two cans and 18 cents. Suddenly he pictured himself working in that cold storage room. It reminds Alex, and anyone with a dream, of the courage and persistence it takes to stay the course in the shadowland.

56．Why did Alex give up his job?

A. Because he didn't like the working conditions.

B. Because he couldn't earn enough to make a living.

C. Because he wanted to be a full-time writer.

D. Because he felt he had no potential in his job.

57．What did Alex express when he answered the call?

A. He refused the job offer.

B. He was willing to give them a hand.

C. He expected them to pay him more money.

D. He would write in his spare time.

58. What kind of person is Alex?

A. Determined.　　 B. Modest.　　 C. Shy.　　 D. Brave.

59. Which of the following can summarize the passage best?

A. Look before you leap.

B. Two heads are better, than one.

C. Hold on to your dream, and it will come true.

D. A bird in hand is worth two in the bush.

60. Which sentence is true according to the passage?

A. Ales found it was easy to earn his living by selling what he wrote.

B. Ales never double himself.

C. Ales got a job paying more than $6000 for him.

D. Ales want to be a self-employed writer.