The year 2009 is the Year of Ox. The ox is a representative of the fanning culture of China. In the farming economy （经济）, oxen are the major animals pulling plows （犁）.
Of course, the good of oxen is not limited to plowing.  In fact, they are seen as "boats on land" for their ability to carry loads. Besides, the whole body of an ox is full of treasures. Their meat and milk are food full of nutrition, and their skin can be used to make clothes and shoes. With all these qualities, oxen are regarded as generous creatures.
In the past, oxen played an important role in the spiritual life of the Chinese. Even today, oxen still play a special part in some folk activities. For example, some people who1ire in southwest China will cook cattle bone soup and share it among family members when holding the ceremony for children who reach 13. They believe that the cattle bone soup represents the blood relationship among family members. In order to express their love for oxen, people in some other areas will run to shake off diseases on the 16th day of the first month by the lunar calendar （农历）, and during their run they will take their oxen along, which indicates they regard the creature as human.
Because of the contribution of oxen in their lives, the Chinese people are very grateful to the animal. In addition, the use of oxen in ceremonies and the thanks people owe to oxen help to develop various traditional customs, which becomes an important part of the folk culture of the Chinese nation.
【小题1】The words "boats an land" underlined in Paragraph 2 refer to __

Writing being largely a self-taught occupation, texts on how to get about it -though great in number- seldom are of much use. .www.7caiedu.cn

You try, and fail. Then try again. Until at last, if you have some gift for it, the failures become less frequent, or at any rate less apparantly.

It is this ability to cover up one’s defects that is finally regarded as accomplishment or achievement.

Along the way there are the discouragements of unkind criticism, outright rejection, troublesome insecurity and irregular inability to meet debts.

It is uncommon, therefore, to come across a book containing advice of much practical value for anyone toying（漫不经心地考虑） with the dangerous idea of staring on a writing life.

A friend recently lent me such a book, however - one I wish I’d had the luck to read years ago, and which I would recommend to any young person devoted to making a career of words. It is the autobiography （自传） of the English novelist Anthony Trollope, first published in 1883, the year after his death.

Needing some means to support himself, Trollope at age 19 worked as a junior clerk in the British postal service. He was at his desk at 5:30 each morning to write for three hours. And he remained in the mail service 33 years, long after reputation and prosperity had come to him.

Now, what of his advice in his works?

1. For safety’s sake, arm yourself with some other skills, some other line of work to fall back on（求助）。 That way, failure at writing, though the disappointment may appear, will not mean ruin.

2. Do not depend too much on inspiration. Writing is a craft, which Trollope compared to the craft of shoemaking. The shoemaker who has just turned out one pair of his work sets to work immediately on the next pair.

3. Have a story to tell, but, more important than that, people with characters who will speak and move as living creatures in the reader’s mind. Without memorable characters, story alone is nothing.

4. Meet your deadlines. Life is endlessly “painful and troublesome” for writers who can’t finish their work on time.

5. Do not be carried away by praise. And, above all, do not be injured by criticism.

6. Understand the risks of writing for a living. “The career, when successful, is pleasant enough certainly; but when unsuccessful, it is of all careers the most painful.”

1.This passage mainly discusses__________.

2. From the context we can figure out that the underlined word “defect” in Paragraph 3 means__.

3.According to the author, writing _______.

4.From the passage we may infer that the author is most probably        

Should we try to contact and make friends with other beings in the universe? Certainly not，says British physicist Stephen Hawking．
“If aliens（creatures from other planets）ever visit us, I think the outcome would be much as when Christopher Columbus first landed in America, which didn’t turn out very well for the Native Americans,’’ said the 68-year-old disabled scientist in a new Discovery documentary (纪实性电视节目) on April 25．
The program pictures an imagined universe where other life forms in huge spaceships hunt for resources after using up all those on their home planets．
“Such advanced aliens would perhaps become nomads(游牧民)，looking to conquer and colonize whatever planets they can reach，”warned Hawking．
On the probability of other life forms existing, he says, “To my mathematical brain, the numbers alone make thinking about aliens perfectly reasonable.”
Hawking’s concerns have frightened some people and been met with disagreement from other researchers．Paul Davies, author of the book Renewing Our Search for Alien Intelligence，thinks Hawking’s reasoning is wrong.
He argues that since Earth is about 4.5 billion years old，if intel1igent life is likely , communities of other beings may have been there for a very long time．
“If resources are the factor, then at least one group of aliens would surely have visited Earth as a destination mil1ions of years ago．
Even if other life forms do come to Earth in the near future, Davies believes comparisons with are wide of the mark(离谱的).
68. What is the article mainly about? 
A. Other life forms coming to our planet．
B. Scientific evidence of other life forms．
C. Earth as the only place where human beings can survive．
D. Hawking’s belief that other life forms may exist in the universe．
69. Which of the following ideas is opposed to Hawking’s view?
A. Other life forms exist in the universe．
B. 0ther life forms may be more intelligent than human beings．
C. We should try to contact other 1ife forms from other planets．
D. Other life forms may exist in more than one part of the universe．
70. Paul Davies didn’t agree with Stephen Hawking ,believing that ________．
A. the universe is running out of resources
B. humans are the best creatures in the universe.
C. it is a good idea to avoid meeting with other life forms   
D. Davies doesn’t think it proper to compare aliens with Columbus
71. Hawking referred to Christopher Columbus as an example to ____．
A. inspire interest in the universe      
B. draw attention to other planets in the universe
C. warn people to watch out for other life forms
D. urge further exploration of the universe~

     The year 2009 is the Year of Ox. The ox is a representative of the fanning culture of China. In the farming economy (经济), oxen are the major animals pulling plows (犁).

     Of course, the good of oxen is not limited to plowing.  In fact, they are seen as "boats on land" for their ability to carry loads. Besides, the whole body of an ox is full of treasures. Their meat and milk are food full of nutrition, and their skin can be used to make clothes and shoes. With all these qualities, oxen are regarded as generous creatures.

     In the past, oxen played an important role in the spiritual life of the Chinese. Even today, oxen still play a special part in some folk activities. For example, some people who1ire in southwest China will cook cattle bone soup and share it among family members when holding the ceremony for children who reach 13. They believe that the cattle bone soup represents the blood relationship among family members. In order to express their love for oxen, people in some other areas will run to shake off diseases on the 16th day of the first month by the lunar calendar (农历), and during their run they will take their oxen along, which indicates they regard the creature as human.

     Because of the contribution of oxen in their lives, the Chinese people are very grateful to the animal. In addition, the use of oxen in ceremonies and the thanks people owe to oxen help to develop various traditional customs, which becomes an important part of the folk culture of the Chinese nation.

60. The words "boats an land" underlined in Paragraph 2 refer to __

     A. animals for taking goods                 B. creatures for pulling plows

     C. treasures of the folk culture              D. tools in the farming economy

6l. From the third paragraph, we know that __

     A. oxen are no more important today than in the past

     B. ceremonies are held when people cook cattle bone soup

C. oxen are treated as human in some areas of China

     D. people run with oxen to shake off diseases every month

62. Which of the following helps to develop traditional customs?

        A. The special role of oxen in frowning.

B. People's respect and love for oxen.

C. The practical value of an ox's body.

D. The contribution of oxen to the economy.

63. Why does the author write the text?

        A. To stress the importance of oxen in farming.

B. To introduce the Chinese folk culture.

        C. To describe how to celebrate the Year of Ox.

        D. To explain how to develop agriculture with oxen.

The year 2009 is the Year of Ox. The ox is a representative of the farming culture of China. In the farming economy （经济）, oxen are the major animals pulling plows （犁）.
Of course, the good of oxen is not limited to plowing.  In fact, they are seen as "boats on land" for their ability to carry loads. Besides, the whole body of an ox is full of treasures. Their meat and milk are food full of nutrition, and their skin can be used to make clothes and shoes. With all these qualities, oxen are regarded as generous creatures.
In the past, oxen played an important role in the spiritual life of the Chinese. Even today, oxen still play a special part in some folk activities. For example, some people who1ive in southwest China will cook cattle bone soup and share it among family members when holding the ceremony for children who reach 13. They believe that the cattle bone soup represents the blood relationship among family members. In order to express their love for oxen, people in some other areas will run to shake off diseases on the 16th day of the first month by the lunar calendar （农历）, and during their run they will take their oxen along, which indicates they regard the creature as human.
Because of the contribution of oxen in their lives, the Chinese people are very grateful to the animal. In addition, the use of oxen in ceremonies and the thanks people owe to oxen help to develop various traditional customs, which becomes an important part of the folk culture of the Chinese nation.
【小题1】The words "boats an land" underlined in Paragraph 2 refer to _     .

A．oxen are no more important today than in the past

B．ceremonies are held when people cook cattle bone soup

C．oxen are treated as human in some areas of China

D．people run with oxen to shake off diseases every month

A．The special role of oxen in farming.

B．People's respect and love for oxen.

C．The practical value of an ox's body.

D．The contribution of oxen to the economy.

A．To stress the importance of oxen in farming.

B．To introduce the Chinese folk culture.

C．To describe how to celebrate the Year of Ox.

D．To explain how to develop agriculture with oxen.