Most young people enjoy some form of physical activity. It may be walking, cycling or swimming, or in winter, skating or skiing. It may be a game of some form---football, basketball, hockey, golf or tennis. It may be mountaineering.

Those who have a passion for climbing high and difficult mountains are often looked upon with astonishment. Why are men and women willing to suffer cold and hardship, and to take risks in high mountains? This astonishment is caused, probably, by the difference between mountaineering and other forms of activity to which men give their leisure.

Mountaineering is a sport and not a game. There are no man-made rules, as others, as there are for such games as golf and football. There are, of course, rules of different kind which it would be dangerous to ignore, but it is this freedom from man-made rules that makes mountaineering attractive to many people. Those who climb mountains are free to use their own methods.

If we compare mountaineering and other more familiar sports, we might think that one big difference is that mountaineering is not a “team game”. We should be mistaken in this. There are, it is true, no “matches” between “teams” of climbers, but when climbers are on a rock face linked by a rope on which their lives may depend, there is obviously teamwork.

The mountain climber knows that he may have to fight forces that are stronger and more powerful than man. He has to fight the forces of nature. His sport requires high mental and physical qualities.

A mountain climber continues to improve in skill year after year. A skier is probably past his best by the age of thirty. But it is not unusual for men of fifty or sixty to climb the highest mountains in the Alps. They may take more time than younger men, but they perhaps climb with more skill and less waste of effort, and they certainly experience equal enjoyment.

1.Mountaineering is a sport, not a game because ________.

  A. it has man-made rules

  B. it is too dangerous for climbers

  C. it can’t bring people joy and leisure              

  D. it is free for climbers to use their own methods

2.A mountain climber must be strong both mentally and physically because _______.

  A. there are no regular man-made rules for him to follow

  B. there is no teamwork and he has to depend on himself

  C. his component is not one or several people but nature

  D. mountaineering requires the skills practiced year after year

3. We know from the passage that _______.

  A. mountaineering has no appeal to people

  B. physical quality is more important than mental one for climbers

  C. it is possible for an old man in his fifties to climb the Alps

  D. a mountain climber would pass his best by the age of thirty

The London Marathon is an annual event and of the thousands of runners who take part, many of them have a story to tell as to why they are running the 26.2 mile (42.2 km) course around London.

The men's race was won by Kenyan, Martin Lel, who finished the race in just two hours and five minutes, a personal best time for him. Irina Mikitenko was the winner of the women's race and this was astonishingly only her second race at marathon distance!

There was also a group of 24 runners who have competed in every single one of the 28 London marathons. Jeff Aston is one of them and at 60 years old, he finished in just over three and a half hours.

A lot of the non-competitive runners take part in the marathon to raise money for charity. Jeff estimates he has raised about ￡25,000 (350,000 RMB) over the 28 years he has been running.

Jane Tomlinson is a well-known name in the UK. She raised millions for charity doing long cycle rides, marathons and triathlons while struggling against terminal cancer, a battle she sadly lost last year. In honor of Jane, her husband and daughter took part in the marathon. They managed to raise ￡20,000 (280,000 RMB) for a charity set up in Jane's name.

 Another astonishing one was blind runner Dave Heeley completing the marathon. As if that wasn't enough, this was his seventh marathon in seven days, as he took part in a special challenge which took him to seven countries.

1.Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?

A. A Variety of Athletic Runners                B. London Marathon

C. Inspirational Event                         D. Astonishing Marathon Stories

2.What do we know from the passage?

A. The London Marathon is held every year to raise money for charity.

B. Jane Tomlinson together with her husband took part in the marathon.

C. Dave Heeley is an inspiring marathon runner.

D. Kenyan, Martin Lel won the men's race just over three and a half hours.

3.The underlined word “triathlons” in the fifth paragraph probably refers to    .

A. a formal meeting                           B. a special challenge

C. a kind of disease                            D. an athletic competition

Do you know of anyone who uses the truth to deceive (欺骗)? When someone tells you something that is true, but leaves out important information that should be included, he can give you a false picture.
For example, someone might say, I just won a hundred dollars on the lottery. It was great. I took that dollar ticket back to the store and turned it in for one hundred dollars!
This guy's a winner, right? Maybe, maybe not. We then discover that he bought $ 200 worth of tickets, and only one was a winner. He’s really a big loser!
He didn’t say anything that was false, but he left out important information on purpose. That’s called a half-truth. Half truths are not technically lies, but they are just as dishonest.
Some politicians often use this trick. Let’s say that during Governor Smith’s last term, her state lost one million jobs and gained three million jobs. Then she seeks another term. One of her opponents (对手) says, “During Governor Smith’s term, the state lost one million jobs!” That’s true. However, an honest statement would have been, “During Governor Smith’s term, the state had a net gain of two million jobs.”
Advertisers  will sometimes use half-truths. It’s against the law to make false statements so they try to mislead you with the truth. An advertisement might say, “Nine out of ten doctors advised their patients to take Yucky Pills to cure toothache.” It fails to mention that they only asked ten doctors and nine of them work for the Yucky Company.
This kind of deception happens too often. It’s a sad fact of life: Lies are lies, and sometimes the truth can lie as well.
【小题1】How much did the lottery winner lose?

EDGEWOOD - Every morning at Dixie Heights High School, customers pour into a special experiment: the district’s first coffee shop run mostly by students with special learning needs.
Well before classes start, students and teachers order Lattes, Cappuccinos and Hot Chocolates. Then, during the first period, teachers call in orders on their room phones, and students make deliveries.
By closing time at 9.20 a.m., the shop usually sells 90 drinks.
"Whoever made the chi tea, Ms. Schatzman says it was good," Christy McKinley, a second year student, announced recently, after hanging up with the teacher.
The shop is called the Dixie PIT, which stands for Power in Transition. Although some of the students are not disabled, many are, and the PIT helps them prepare for life after high school.
They learn not only how to run a coffee shop but also how to deal with their affairs. They keep a timecard and receive paychecks, which they keep in check registers.
Special-education teachers Kim Chevalier and Sue Casey introduced the Dixie PIT from a similar program at Kennesaw Mountain High School in Georgia.
Not that it was easy. Chevalier's first problem to overcome was product-related. Should schools be selling coffee? What about sugar content?
Kenton County Food Service Director Ginger Gray helped. She made sure all the drinks, which use non-fat milk, fell within nutrition (营养) guidelines.
The whole school has joined in to help.
Teachers agreed to give up their lounge (休息室) in the mornings. Art students painted the name of the shop on the wall. Business students designed the paychecks. The basketball team helped pay for cups.
1．What is the text mainly about?
A．A best-selling coffee.
B．A special educational program.
C．Government support for schools.
D．A new type of teacher-student relationship.
2．The Dixie PIT program was introduced in order to__________．
A．raise money for school affairs
B．do some research on nutrition
C．develop students' practical skills
D．supply teachers with drinks
3．We know from the text that Ginger Gray__________．
A．manages the Dixie P1T program in Kenton County
B．sees that the drinks meet health standards
C．teaches at Dixie Heights High School
D．owns the school’s coffee shop

May: Happenings from the Past

May 5, 1884

Isaac Murphy, son of a slave and perhaps the greatest horse rider in American history, rides Buchanan to win his first Kentucky Derby. He becomes the first rider ever to win the race three times.

May 9, 1754

Benjamin Franklin’s Pennsylvania Gazette produces perhaps the first American political cartoon (漫画), showing a snake cut in pieces with the words “Join or Die” printed under the picture.

May 11, 1934

The first great dust storm of the Great Plains Dust Bowl, the result of years of drought (干旱), blows topsoil all the way to New York City and Washington, D.C.

May 19, 1994

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy Onassis, former first lady and one of the most famous people of the 1960s died of cancer in New York City at the age of 64.

May 24, 1844

Samuel F.B Morse taps out the first message, “What hath God wrought,” over the experimental long-distance telegraph line which runs from Washington, D.C., to Baltimore, Md.

1.We know from the text that Buchanan is ______.

A．Isaac’s father

B．a winning horse

C．a slave taking care of horses

D．the first racing horse in Kentucky

2.What is the title of the first American political cartoon?

A．Join or Die                            B．Pennsylvania Gazette

C．What Hath God Wrought                  D．Kentucky Derby

3.In which year did the former first lady Jacqueline die?

A．1934             B．1960             C．1964             D．1994

4.Which of the following places has to do with the first telegram in history?

A. Washing to, D.C.  B. New York City C. Kentucky         D. Pennsylvania