There have been many great inventions, things that changed the way we live. The first great invention was one that is still very important today- the wheel. This made it easier to carry heavy things and to travel long distances.
For hundreds of years after that there were few inventions that had as much effect(影响) as the wheel. Then in the early 1800’s the world started to change. There was little unknown land left in the world. People didn’t have to explore(探测) much anymore. They began to work instead to make life better.
In the second half of the 19th century many great inventions were made. Among them were the camera, the light and the radio. These all became a big part of our life today.
The first part of the 20th century saw more great inventions. The helicopter in 1909. Movies with sound in 1926. The computer in 1928. And jet planes in 1930. This was also a time when a new material was first made. Nylon came in 1935. It changed the kind of clothes people wear.
By this time most people had a very good life, Man has a desire to explore again, the world was known to man but the stars were not. Man began looking for ways to go into space. Russia made the first step. Then the United States took a step. Since then other countries, including China and Japan, have made their steps into space.
In 1969 man took his biggest step from the earth. Americans first walked on the moon. This is certainly just a beginning thought. New inventions will someday allow us to do things we have never yet dreamed of.
【小题1】This passage talks mainly about________.
A. why cars were very important        
Ｂ. when light was invented
C. which country made the first step into space 
D. how inventions effect people’s life
【小题2】Nylon came out nearly at the same time as _______.

You must know the song Happy Birthday. But do you know who wrote this song and for whom the writer wrote it?

About one hundred years ago, there was a girl in the U.S. She loved children very much and wrote many songs for children. One of them was the song Good Morning To You. The song was very popular with children at that time, but not all grown-ups (成年人) knew it.

The girl was very poor (贫穷的). Once her friends invited her to a little boy’s birthday party. She felt happy but sad because she had no money to buy something for him. So she decided to sing the song Happy Birthday in the melody (曲调) of Good Morning To You for the little boy.  When her friends heard the song at the party, they were very happy. And they all learned to sing it. Later, the song became very popular around the world.     

     根据短文内容，选择正确答案。

(   ) 51. When did the song Happy Birthday become popular?

       A. About one thousand years ago.      B. Hundreds of years ago.

       C. About one hundred years ago.        D. About ten years ago.

(   )52. At first, the song Happy Birthday was for a(n) 　　　.

       A. old lady          B. little boy   C. little girl    D. old man

(   )53. When her friends invited her to a party, the girl was 　　　.

       A. happy and excited              B. angry and stressed out

       C. excited but angry               D. happy but sad

(   )54. Which of the following is TRUE? 

       A. The girl didn’t love children at all.  B. The girl was very rich.

       C. The girl didn’t go to the party      D. The girl decided to sing a song at the party.

(   )55. Which is the best title for the passage?

       A. The story of Happy Birthday      B. A clever poor girl

       C. Let’s sing Happy Birthday        D. A story of a poor girl

Hundreds of years ago, life was much harder than it is today. People didn’t have modern machines. There was no modern medicine, either.

Life today has brought new problems. One of the biggest is pollution. Water pollution has made our rivers and lakes dirty. It killed our fish and polluted our drinking water. Noise pollution makes us talk louder and become angry more easily. Air pollution is the most serious kind of pollution. It’s bad for all living things in the world.

Cars, planes and factories all polluted air so thick that it is like a quilt over a city. This kind of quilt is called smog（烟雾）.

Many countries are making rules to fight pollution. Now factories must clean their water before it is thrown away, they mustn’t discharge（排放）dirty smoke into the air.

We need to do many other things. For example, we can put waste things in the dustbin and not throw it on the ground. We can go to work by bus or with our friends in the same car. If there are fewer people driving, there will be less pollution.

Rules are not enough. Every person must help to fight pollution.

1．Hundreds of years ago, life was much harder than it is today because _______.

A．there were not any modern machines

B．there was no modern medicine

C． both A and B

D．they can not use modern machines

2．What is one of the biggest problems in today’s life?

A．Air pollution        B．Noise.                C．Pollution.             D．Car

3．The most serious kind of pollution is ________.

A．noise pollution           　              B．air pollution

C．water pollution                           D．car pollution

4．Factories must clean their water ________.

A．when it is thrown away                       B．before it is thrown away

C．after it is thrown away                        D．It isn’t mentioned.

5．From the passage we know that ________.

A．we can drink from the polluted rivers and lakes.

B．today people don’t have to talk to each other in a loud voice

C．people are making rules in order to fight pollution.

D．pollution is not important.

My uncle likes hunting very much. He often goes 　1　during the weekend and usually　2　 home with a bag of birds. Last Sunday evening he came home 　3　 than usual. He didn’t say 　4　 when he came 　5　. He threw his 　6 on to the table and sat by the fire. He looked tired and 　7　.
　　“Didn’t you have a good day, dear?”his wife asked.
　　“　8　 do you think?”he answered angrily and pointed 　9　 the bag on the table .“ Look at the bag! There’s only one bird in it and 　10　 me a lot of money!”“Weren’t there any birds?”she asked kindly.
　　“Hundreds of them!”my uncle said,“　11　 I spent the day 　12　 with a 　13　.”
　　“What happened, dear?”she asked.
　　“I shot my first bird at five o’clock 　14　 afternoon. Soon afterwards, I aimed at 　15　 one and 　16　, but I don’t know what happened. I think I slipped because I didn’t shoot the bird. I 　17　 a cow and killed it. The farmer 　18　owned it got very angry with me. I argued with him for hours and 19 theend I had to 　20　 him 50 pounds!”
　　1．A. shoot       B. to shoot　　  C. and shoots      D. shooting
　　2．A. goes        B. comes　　　   C. leaves          D. gets
　　3．A. early       B. earlier　　　 C. earliest        D. the earliest
　　4．A. anything    B. nothing　　　 C. something       D. everything
　　5．A. in          B. out　　　 C. down          D. up
　　6．A. hat         B. bag　　　 C. gun           D. glasses
　　7．A. terrible    B. pleased　 C. wonderful     D. angry
　　8．A. What        B. How　　　 C. Why           D. When
　　9．A. of          B. to　　　  C. up            D. at
　　10．A. paid       B. spent　　 C. took          D. cost
　　11．A. So         B. Or　　    C. But           D. And
　　12．A. talking    B. arguing　 C. hunting       D. playing
　　13．A. policeman  B. hunter　　C. farmer        D. cow
　　14．A. that       B. this　　  C. one           D. some
　　15．A. the other  B. the　　   C. another       D. some
　　16．A. fired      B. lit　　   C. began         D. opened
　　17．A. frightened B. shot at　 C. hit           D. missed
　　18．A. who        B. which　　 C. whose         D. whom
　　19．A. at         B. in　　    C. for           D. by
　　20．A. borrow     B. lend　 　 C. pay           D. earn