Passage 1

(湖北省宜昌市一中2009届高三5月仿真模拟考试A篇)

Here’s an unusual story：a diamond ring was recently found in an egg．The magician，Liu Qian，discovered it，in front of an audience of millions at CCTV’s Spring Festival Gala．Liu’s magic tricks have made the centuries-old art of magic fashionable once again，and made him the hottest magician in China．

As a seasoned young magician from Taiwan，Liu is popular worldwide for his magic shows．Countries he has performed in include the United States，Japan，South Korea and the UK．

Witnessing something impossible happen right before your eyes is the root of people’s love for magic．

Liu is known for his interaction with his audiences．He has a unique understanding of showmanship (演出技巧) ．

“It’s actually thinking rather than one’s controlling skills”，that is more important to achieving a successful magic show．We think carefully about how to design the shows creatively，to make them appear more interesting, Liu said.

Liu Qian’s success dated back to his childhood．Born in 1976 in Taiwan，he found himself attracted to a magic toy in a shop when he was seven years old．At the age of 12，he won Taiwan’s Youth Magic Contest，which was judged by the great American magician，David Copperfield．

Yet，Liu never planned on becoming a professional magician．He studied Japanese literature at university and only hoped to be an amateur magician in his spare time．However，his failure to find a proper job after graduation pushed him towards magic as a career．

To refine his performing skills，he has performed on streets，roads and fields，for passers-by，policemen and farmers．

“Street shows are the biggest challenge for us magicians．We have to deal with unexpected situations and tough crowds,” Liu said．

51．The story is about______.

A．how Liu Qian became China’s hottest magician

B．why people love magic

C．what magic tricks are

D．how fashionable magic is

67. What can we learn from Radcliffe's story?

　　 A. Practice makes perfect.　　　 　　 B. Well begun is half done.

　　 C. A friend in need is a fried indeed. D. Where there is a will there is a way.

答案　 63.D　 64.B　 65.C　 66.C　 67.D

66. According to the text, Redcliffc bas won ____ London marathon title(s).

　　　 A. four　　　　 B. three　　　　 C. two　　　　 D. one　　　　　 　

65. By saythg "I can't put a number on it," Radcliffe means she's not sure _____ .

　　 A. if she has the ability to set a new world record

　　 B. if she can win another race though she has won many tunes

　　 C. how many times a maradion runner can set the world record

　　 D. if she has the ability to produce four or five world-class times　　　　 　　

64. Which of the following is ture according to the passage?

　　 A. Radcliffe broke the world record in the New York City marathon.

　　 B. Radcliffe didn't fully recover before the New York City marathon.

　　 C. Radcliffe won her first narathon title in the New York City marathon.

　　 D. Radcliffe had a 3-month trainihg before the New York City marathon. 　　

63. Radcliffe's failure in Athens made her ________

　　 A. develop respect for Liz　　 B. love people around her more

　　 C. rest for five months　　　 D. face criticism calmly　　　　　　　 　　　

59．Choose the correct statements from the following according to the passage.

　　　 a.The Pigman and Me was one of the Best Books for teenagers.

　　　 b.Zindel was one of the earliest writers who wrote for adults only.

　　　 c.The Doom Stone and Rats are not popular with young adults.

　　　 d.Zindel was given four prizes for literature before he died.

　　　 e.At least eight of Zindel’s books were very popular in his times.

　　　 A．c, d, e　　　 B．a, b, c　　　 C．a, b, d　　　 D．a, d, e

答案　 56.A　 57.C　 58.A　 59.D　

　　　 Passage 28　　　

(05·湖南C篇)

Paula Radcliffe, chasing (角逐) a third London marathon title(冠军), says she has became a stronger person after her terrible experience at the 2004 Athens Gaines.

　 Radcliffe, who failed to complete the Olympic marathon and the 10,000m last August, said: "Athens made me a stronger person and it made me care less about criticism (批评)"

　 "In the past I wanted to please everyone, but now I ara fioinfi to listen even more to the people around me."

　 She didn't care about criticism made at the weekend by Liz McCulgan, who felt Radcliffe should have rested and let her body recover after her failure in Athens.

　 "Liz is someone I look up to but she hasn't spoken to me since last year and if she really eared for me, I'm sure she would have contacted (联系) me."

　 Instead Radcliffe won the New York City marathon just 11 weeks after Athens.

　 "In New York I wasn't in my best state but I did know I was good enough to win the　　　 Radcliffe insisted her only goal in Sunday's race would be winning a third title and not chasing world records.

　 However, RadcIiffe has not ruled out(排除) m the future chasing her "final" world record time and questioned sayings that marathon runners have the ability in their career to produce only four or five world-class times.

　 "I don't think that -- although I can't put a number on it," said. RadcLiffe. "That changes from person to person."

　 Radcliffe is sure she can better her winning London 2003 performance at some point in the future. Following a successful three-month training period in the United States, the 31-year-old will chase a third title on Sunday after her first victory in 2O02 and again 12 months later.

Radcliffe clocked a time of 2:18:56 in her first 42.2-kdnmetre race three years ago.

　 Afterwards she set a "mixed course" mark of 2:17:18 five months later In Chicago before lowering that to a time of 2:15:25 m the 2003 London event.

58．When did Paul Zindel win the ALAN Prize?

　　　 A．In 2002.　　　　　 B．In 2003.

　　　 C．Between 1967 and 1992. D．Between 2002 and 2003.

57．Why was Paul Zindel honored with the Margaret A. Edwards Prize?

　　　 A．His books were widely read by children.

　　　 B．His books were interesting and helpful to adults.

　　　 C．He made great contributions to contemporary literature.

　　　 D．He wrote a number of horror books for young adults.

56．Which of Paul Zindel’s books was the most popular with young adults in the 20th century?

　　　 A．The Pigman.

　　　 B．The Doom Stone.

　　　 C．The Pigman and Me.

　　　 D．The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds.