The Italian island of Sardinia recently lost its oldest citizen. Family members say Antonio Todde died in his sleep early this month. Mr. Todde was 112 years old. It was less than three weeks away from his 113^th birthday. Record-keeping experts say he was the world’s oldest man.

       His long life and that of other very old Sardinians are the subjects of a scientific project called Akea. Luca Deiana of Sassari University is directing the study. He says the name Akea comes from a traditional greeting on Sardinia. It means “health and life for 100 years”. Professor Deiana and his team started to collect information for the study in 1997. They identified（确定）more than 220 Sardinians who were centenarians—100years old or older. His team required three documents to confirm a person’s age. They were a government birth record, a church record and a statement by a close family member.

       The Akea study has produced two major findings. The first is Sardinia’s extremely high number of centenarians. The island had about 135 centenarians for every one million people. In other Western countries, the average is about seventy five centenarians for every one million people. The second major finding is an unusual rate of female to male centenarians. Sardinia has two women centenarians for every male centenarian. In central Sardinia there are equal numbers of female and male centenarians.

       Studies in other parts of the world have shown a much higher percentage of female centenarians. The Akea study collected information about the health and diet of about 140 of the centenarians. About ninety percent of those in the study agreed to provide blood for scientific testing. The study team hope to identify genetic material in the blood that can be linked to successful aging. Study leaders say there is no single reason why people on Sardinia live so long. They believe the answer is a combination of genetic and environmental conditions.

1．Centenarians refer to people who are        years old.

       A．100                     B．200                     C．300                     D．400

2．The general idea of the third paragraph is        .

       A．Sardinia has a large number of centenarians

       B．an unusual rate of female to male centenarians

       C．two major findings of the Akea study

       D．Sardinia has equal numbers of female and male centenarians

3．Why do Sardinians live so long according to the study?

      A．Because the environment on Sardinia is very good

       B．Because they have special genetic material in their blood.

       C．Because they have a glass of wine every day.

       D．Because they enjoy special genetic and environmental conditions.

4．Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

       A．Other parts of the world have a higher rate of female centenarians than Sardinia.

       B．There are equal numbers of female and male centenarians on Sardinia.

       C．Sardinia has an unusual rate of male to female centenarians.

       D．There are about seventy-five centenarians for every one million people on Sardinia.

5．What is the passage mainly about?

       A．Why people on Sardinia live so long.      B．The world’s oldest woman.

       C．The world’s oldest man.  D．A scientific study on centenarians.

　　  As you grew older you began to read, write and do maths, which helped make the left brain strong. You may also have spent time with such things as music lessons, art lessons and sports. These all helped to strengthen your right brain. The left and right sides of the brain become stronger after doing these particular tasks. The fact is true for at least ninety- five percent of the population.

　　  All people, unless they have had brain damaged, have ability to use the right and left hemispheres of their brain. We do, however, have a tendency to be either more right or more left- brained.

1．The first paragraph mainly suggests that________

A．as both sides develop, the left side of one’s brain becomes stronger

B．as both sides develop, the head bones become weaker

C．as one grows old, both sides of his brain become more alike

D．as one grows old, both sides of his brain become different

2．According to this passage ________.

A．the two sides of one’s brain do particular jobs their own at his birth

B．one gets information from both hemispheres when he was born

C．one’s actions of seeing, hearing and learning still come from both sides of his brain at the age of three

D．almost all the people are left- brained

3．It is true for most people ________.

A．to get knowledge by using their right hemi sphere

B．to develop skills by using their left hemisphere

C．that if he plays musical instruments well the right side of his brain is stronger than ordinary people’s

D．that it makes no difference to use either the right or left side of his brain

4．Which of the following is thought to be discussed after the third paragraph?

A．Are you right or left- brained?

B．What particular jobs does the right side of your brain do?

C．Which are you more interested in, maths or music?

D．Do you belong to the group of 95% or the one of 5%?

    When you were born, the bridge between the right and left brain was not fully developed．Because of this all your actions of seeing, hearing and learning came from both sides of your brain. Your two hemi- spheres(半球) were both alike. By the time you were two or three years old, the two sides had developed their own particular tasks. One side of your brain may also have become better than the other at doing certain jobs.

　　  As you grew older you began to read, write and do maths, which helped make the left brain strong. You may also have spent time with such things as music lessons, art lessons and sports. These all helped to strengthen your right brain. The left and right sides of the brain become stronger after doing these particular tasks. The fact is true for at least ninety- five percent of the population.

　　  All people, unless they have had brain damaged, have ability to use the right and left hemispheres of their brain. We do, however, have a tendency to be either more right or more left- brained.

1．The first paragraph mainly suggests that________

A．as both sides develop, the left side of one’s brain becomes stronger

B．as both sides develop, the head bones become weaker

C．as one grows old, both sides of his brain become more alike

D．as one grows old, both sides of his brain become different

2．According to this passage ________.

A．the two sides of one’s brain do particular jobs their own at his birth

B．one gets information from both hemispheres when he was born

C．one’s actions of seeing, hearing and learning still come from both sides of his brain at the age of three

D．almost all the people are left- brained

3．It is true for most people ________.

A．to get knowledge by using their right hemi sphere

B．to develop skills by using their left hemisphere

C．that if he plays musical instruments well the right side of his brain is stronger than ordinary people’s

D．that it makes no difference to use either the right or left side of his brain

4．Which of the following is thought to be discussed after the third paragraph?

A．Are you right or left- brained?

B．What particular jobs does the right side of your brain do?

C．Which are you more interested in, maths or music?

D．Do you belong to the group of 95% or the one of 5%?

A

Marian Anderson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in the early 1990s. She began singing in church. Soon, her rich deep voice became widely known in the area. Marian Anderson received many honors and awards during her life. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in nineteen sixty—three. Marian Anderson died at the age of ninety—six. Experts say she is remembered not only for the quality of her voice, but also because of the way she carried out her right to be heard.

B

Movie director Robert Altman died in November 2006, in Los Angeles, California. He was eighty—one years old. During his fifty-year career, he made some of the most influential movies of modern times.

C

Ann Richards died in September 2006 at the age of seventy-three. At her funeral service, leaders from around the country gathered to celebrate her life. Former President Bill Clinton spoke at the service. He said Ann Richards helped create a world where young girls could be scientists, engineers and police officers. He said she was a great woman with a big heart and big dreams.

D

Journalist R.W. Apple died in October 2006 at the age of seventy—one. Earlier this month his friends and family gathered in Washington, D.C. for a large memorial service. Famous writers, politicians, and cooks told about his warm personality, sharp intelligence, and extraordinary energy. After the service, guests enjoyed fine foods provided by some of the best cooks in the area.

E

William Styron died in November 2006 at the age of eighty—one. His stories are filled with rich language and complex moral questions. Many of his books try to understand the evil actions of people. Later in life William Styron suffered from severe depression. After recovering, he wrote honestly and bravely about his experience in “Darkness Visible: A Memoir of Madness.” He received great praise for educating people about the difficulties of mental illness.

F

Ruth Brown was born in Portsmouth, Virginia in 1928 and died in October 2004. Brown recorded many rhythm and blues hits in the 1950s. She also fought for musicians rights. In 1988, Atlantic Records agreed to pay her and thirty-five other musicians the money they owed them for using their songs for twenty years.

请阅读下列有关的信息, 然后匹配上面的美国名人。

As a young woman, she worked as a teacher and raised four children. She and her husband were very involved in local politics. Then one day, she decided to run for officer herself—and she won. She served first as country commissioner, then as Texas state treasurer. In nineteen ninety she was elected governor. She fought for equal rights, environmental protection and laws to restrict guns. She created a government in which women, Hispanics, and African-Americans played important roles.

“MASH”, was released in nineteen seventy. It tells about a group of American medical workers in a temporary military hospital in Korea during the Korean War in the 1950s. It questions the rules of the military establishment in a way that was sharply funny and intelligent; “Nashville” came out in nineteen seventy—five. It provides a complex look at changes in the country music industry. Many of his thirty—three films were nominated for Academy Awards, including “The Player” and “Gosford Park”

She learned traditional music at her Christian religious center. But she liked the popular jazz and rock music of the time even more. She left home at a young age to build a career in music. Soon, she became known as “the girl with the tear in her voice” because of her emotional way of singing. Her popular songs helped build the Atlantic Records company and she continued performing for the rest of her life until she died recently at the age of seventy six.

He is known as Johnny, wrote about many subjects, from politics and war to food and drink. During his forty—three years writing for the New York Times newspaper, he enjoyed a rich and eventful career. He was the paper’s chief reporter in cities like London, Moscow, Lagos and Nairobi. He covered events such as the Vietnam War, the Iranian revolution and the Gulf War. He reported on ten presidential elections. And, his opinions on fine foods, travel and the world’s best restaurants were very influential.

He wrote “Lie Down in Darkness” published in nineteen fifty—one when he was only twenty-five. It is about a troubled young woman who kills herself. It established him as a great new voice in American literature; he also wrote “The Confessions of Nat Turner” in nineteen sixty-eight which told about a nineteenth century slave revolt in the southern state of Virginia; and “Sophie’s Choice ” won the American Book Award in nineteen eighty. It is a tragic story about a woman and her children who were sent to a Nazi death camp in Poland during World War Two.