In the course of working my way through school, I took many jobs I would rather forget. But none of these jobs was as dreadful as my job in an apple plant. The work was hard; the pay was poor and, most of all, the working conditions were terrible.

      First of all, the job made huge demands on my strength. For ten hours a night, I took boxes that rolled down a metal track and piled them onto a truck. Each box contained twelve heavy bottles of apple juice. I once figured out that I was lifting an average of twelve tons of apple juice every night.

      I would not have minded the difficulty of the work so much if the pay had not been so poor. I was paid the lowest wage of that time— two dollars an hour. Because of the low pay, I felt eager to get as much as possible. I usually worked twelve hours a night but did not take home much more than $100 a week.

      But even more than the low pay, what made me unhappy was the working conditions. During work I was limited to two ten-minute breaks and an unpaid half hour for lunch. Most of my time was spent outside loading trucks with those heavy boxes in near-zero-degree temperatures. The steel floors of the trucks were like ice, which made my feet feel like stone. And after the production line shut down at night and most people left, I spend two hours alone cleaning the floor.

     I stayed on the job for five months, all the while hating the difficulty of the work, the poor money, and the conditions under which I worked. By the time I left, I was determined never to go back there again.

49. Why did the writer have to take many jobs at that time?

A. To pay for his schooling.                                     B. To save for his future.

C. To support his family.                                         D. To gain some experience.

50. The following facts describe the terrible working conditions of the plant EXCEPT_______.

A. loading boxes in the freezing cold                        B. having limited time for breaks

C. working and studying at the same time                 D. getting no pay for lunch time

51. What is the subject discussed in the text?

A. The writer’s unhappy school life.                   B. The writer’s eagerness to earn money.

C. The writer’s experience as a full-time worker. D. The writer’s hard work in an apple plant.

52. How is the text organized?

A. Topic-Argument-Explanation                        B. Opinion-Discussion-Description

C. Main idea-Comparison-Supporting examples   D. Introduction-Supporting examples-Conclusion

       During his life Dr James Naismith worked as a doctor, taught P．E and wrote several books．While he never thought it very important, Dr Naismith is today best known for one thing．He was the inventor of basketball．

       Dr James Naismith was born in Canada in 1861 and his first job was at a special sports school in the USA．One day the school principal told James he was having a problem with the students．Because of heavy snow, the students could not go outside．He told James that they needed a sport the boys could play indoors and gave the teacher two weeks to think of something．

       It was on the very last day that James came up with his idea．The “birth of basketball” is said to be on December 21, 1891, when two teams from the school played the first game．It was quite different from the basketball games of today．It had 9 players on each team and footballs were used instead of basketballs．Soon after, the game changed to 5 players on each side, using special “basketballs” through nets．

       Although Dr Naismith did not live to see basketball become the worldwide game it is today, in 1936, just three years before his death, basketball became an Olympic sport at the games in Berlin．

Which of the following things did Dr James Naismith NOT do?

       A．Teach P．E in school．        B．Write some books．

       C．Work at hospital．             D．Take part in the Olympic Games．

In which season did Dr Naismith invent basketball?

       A．Summer．      B．Winter．         C．Spring．         D．Autumn．

Why is December 21 thought to be the birthday of basketball?

       A．It was on this day that Dr Naismith came up with his idea for basketball．

       B．It was the day on which Dr Naismith was born．

       C．It was the day on which Dr Naismith was asked by his boss to invent a new game．

       D．It was on this day that the first game of basketball was played．

At the time of Dr Naismith’s death, which of the following was true?

       A．Basketball was already a worldwide game．

       B．Basketball was played with 9 players on each side．

       C．Basketball was an Olympic sport．

       D．Basketball was still played using footballs．

What would be the best title for this story?

       A．History of Basketball            B．How Basketball Has Changed

       C．Father of Basketball              D．Happy Birthday, Basketball

A thief entered the bedroom of the 30th President of the United States, who met him and helped him escape punishment．

The event happened in the early morning hours in one of the first days when Calvin Coolidge came into power, late in August, 1923．He and his family were living in the same third-floor suite (套房) at the Willard Hotel in Washington that they had occupied several years before．The former President’s wife was still living in the White House．

Coolidge awoke to see a stranger go through his clothes, remove a wallet and a watch chain．

Coolidge spoke, “I wish you wouldn’t take that．”

The thief, gaining his voice,  said, “Why?”

“I don’t mean the watch and chain, only the charm (表坠)．Take it near the window and read what is impressed on its back, “ the President said．

The thief read, “Presented to Calvin Coolidge．”

“Are you President Coolidge ? “ he asked．

The President answered, “Yes, and the House of Representatives (众议院) gave me that watch charm．I’m fond of it．It would do you no good．You want money．Let’s talk this over．”

Holding up the wallet, the young man said in a low voice, “I’ll take this and leave everything else．”

Coolidge, knowing there was ＄80 in it, persuaded the young man to sit down and talk．He told the President he and his college roommate had overspent during their holiday and did not have enough money to pay their hotel bill．

Coolidge added up the roommate and two rail tickets back to the college．Then he counted out ＄32 said it was a loan (借款)．

He then told the young man, “There is a guard in the corridor．” The young man nodded and left through the same window as he had entered．

What caused the thief to meet the President?

A．He knew the President had lots of money．

B．He knew the President lived in the suite．

C．He wanted to be a rich businessman．

D．He wanted to steal some money．

Why did Calvin Coolidge live at the Willard Hotel in those days?

A．Because the former President was still living in the White House．

B．Because the former First Lady hadn’t left the White House．

C．Because the First Lady liked to live there．

D．Because he liked there．

Coolidge counted out ＄32 ______．

A．in order not to be killed by the thief

B．in order to be out of danger

C．so as to help the young student overcome his difficulty

D．because he had no more money

The young man’s roommate went back to the college ______．

A．by air B．by water C．by bus D．by train

Which of the following might happen afterwards?

A．The young student repaid the＄32．

B．The thief was put into prison．

C．The President told many reporters the thief’s name．

D．The President ordered the young man to repay the money．

A TAXI driver taught me a million dollar lesson in customer satisfaction and expectation. Inspiring speakers charge thousands of dollars to give his kind of training to corporate directors and staff.  It cost me only a ＄12 taxi ride.

I had flown into Dallas just for the purpose of calling on a client. Time was important and my plan included a quick turn – around trip from and back to the airport. A clean taxi pulled up.

The driver rushed to open the passenger door for me and made sure I was comfortably seated before he closed the door. As be got in the driver’s seat, he mentioned that the neatly folded Wall Street Journal next to me for my use. He then showed me several tapes and asked me what type of music I would enjoy.

Well! I looked around for a “Candid Camera!” Wouldn’t you? I could not believe the service I was receiving! I took the opportunity to say, “Obviously you take great pride in you work. You must have a story to tell.”

“You bet,” he replied, “I used to be in Corporate America. But I got tired of thinking my best would never be good enough. I decided to find my right position in life, somewhere I could feel proud of being the best I could be.

I knew I would never be a rocket scientist, but I love driving cars, being of service and feeling like I have done a full day’s work and done it well. I evaluated my personal property and, I became a taxi driver!

One thing I know for sure, to be good in my business I jus have to meet the expectations of my passengers. But, to be GREAT in my business, I have to EXEED the customer’s expectations! I like the sound of being ‘great’ better than just being ‘average’. ”

Did I tip him big time? You bet!

 The taxi driver taught me a great life lesson: Go an extra mile when providing any service to others. And there is no good or bad job you can make any job good.

What lesson did the author learn from the taxi driver?

    A．How to make the best use of time.

    B．How to do better in the service business.

    C．How to turn an interest into your career.

    D．How to become a motivational speaker.

Why did the author look around for a “Candid Camera”?

    A．Because he was afraid he would be photographed in the cab.

    B．Because he was worried what the driver could be up to.

    C．Because he was amazed by the way the driver was treating him.

    D．Because he wasn’t interested in the tapes offered by the driver

It can be inferred from the story that          .

    A．the taxi driver couldn’t accept just being average

    B．the author was anxious to get back to meet a client

    C．when the author waited for a taxi at the airport, he was not in a rush

    D．the taxi driver loved to play his favorite music during rides

According to the story, the taxi driver        .

    A．was dissatisfied wit his present job

    B．was once often rewarded for being a model worker

    C．enjoyed offering his customers more than they expected

    D．was forced to become a taxi driver to support his family

A severely handicapped teenager who cannot walk,talk or hold a paintbrush has won a place at Oxford to study fine art.

Hero Joy Nightingale,16,who communicates through hand movements,is to be given assistants to paint and sculpt on her behalf.Her mother Pauline Reid “translated for” her daughter during interviews for the place at Magdalen College.

The teenager is the most severely handicapped student ever to be granted a place at Oxford.She suffers from “locked-in syndrome”,a profound apraxia caused by brain damage that renders her body useless and her voice mute.

She is unlikely ever to be able to walk,feed or care for herself but,thanks to the efforts of her mother,she can communicate.When Hero was four,Pauline devised a complicated system of hand gestures that equate to the alphabet.

A spokesperson for Oxford said,“The university welcomes applications from students with disabilities.In cases where students are profoundly disabled,there may be many issues that need to be carefully addressed before an individual can take up a place,such as establishing how the student can best be taught and examined.”

Hero,who suffers almost daily epileptic fits and has a hole in her heart,has not attended school since she was six.She has been taught at home by her mother and father,the pro-vice chancellor of Kent University.

Peter Giles,her art tutor until last year,said she has a genuine talent for art.“She is ferociously gifted.We would sit together and her mother would grab her daughter’s hand and then we would begin work,”he said.

Together,they built several modern sculptures from plaster and metal.“The instructions would take a while to decipher.But eventually,they would come,and eventually make sense.”

Hero’s classes will be held at the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art.

Hero communicates with others _________.

A.through common hand movements

B.by typing words on computer

C.through a complicated system of hand gestures devised by her mother

D.by drawing pictures on a board

According to the passage,how does Hero paint or sculpt?

A.She instructs her assistants to paint or sculpt through hand movements.

B.She gives instructions,and her mother paints or sculpts following her instructions.

C.She paints or sculpts with her own hands.

D.She gives instructions,her mother “translates” them,and her assistants paint or sculpt according to the “translations”.

From the story we can infer _________.

A.Oxford welcomes any handicapped student who is good at fine art

B.Hero has not attended school since she was six

C.Hero is gifted in fine art

D.Hero is a strong-minded girl who loves life very much

Which of the following is NOT true?

A.Hero is the most seriously handicapped student ever to be admitted to Oxford.

B.Oxford will admit a disabled student without any requirements.

C.Hero has been taught by her parents at home for10 years.

D.Hero is not able to walk,talk or hold a paintbrush.