Erik Weihenmayer was born with an eye disorder. As a child his eyesight became worse and then, at the age of 13, he lost his sight completely. However, he did not lose his determination to lead a full and active life.

       Erik became an adventurer. He took up parachuting, wrestling and scuba diving. He competed in long-distance biking, marathons and skiing. His favorite sport, thought, is mountaineering.

       As a young man, Erik started to climb mountains. He reached the summit of Mount McKinley in 1995 and then climbed the dangerous 1000-metre rock wall of EI Capitan. Two years later, while climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in Kenya with his girlfriend, they stopped for a time at 13,000 feet above sea level－in order to get married. In 1999, he climbed Aconcagua, the tallest mountain in South America. And then , on May 25, 2001, at the age of 33, Erik successfully completed the greatest mountaineering challenge of all. He climbed Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world.

       Erik invented his own method for climbing mountains. He carries two long poles: one to lean on and the other to test the way ahead of him. The climber in front of him wears a bell to guide him. Erik is a good team member. He does his share of the job, such as setting up tents and building snow walls.

       Although he could not enjoy the view, Erik felt the excitement of being on the summit of Everest. He hopes that his success will change how people think about the blind. “When people think about a blind person or blindness, now they will think about a person standing on top of the world.”　

When was Erik born?

       A. In 1968.                   B. In 1995.                   C. In 1967.                   D. In 1969.

What was unusual about his wedding?

       A. He got married on the summit of Mount McKinley.

B. He got married when climbing Mount Everest.

       C. .His wedding was held after he prepared a lot.

D. His wedding was held at 13,000 feet above sea level.

What is Erik’s special method for climbing a mountain?

A. He takes his girlfriend with him.　　　　　　　B. He does his share of the jobs.

C. He uses two long poles to help himself.　　　  D. He keeps a good team around him.

Which of the following shows the right order of what happened?

a. He topped Mount McKinley.

b. He became blind.

c. He challenged Mount Everest.

d. He reached the peak of Kilimanjaro.

e. He climbed the rock wall of EI Capitan.

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

The United States is one of the few countries in the world that has an official day on which fathers are honored by their children. On the third Sunday in June, fathers all across the United States are given presents, treated to dinner or otherwise made to feel special.
　However, the idea for creating a day for children to honor their fathers began in Spokane, Washington.  A woman by the name of Sonora Smart Dodd thought of the idea for Father's Day while listening to a Mother's Day sermon(说教) in 1909. Having been raised by her father, Henry Jackson Smart, after her mother died, Sonora wanted her father to know how special he was to her.
　It was her father that made all the parental sacrifices(牺牲) and was, in the eyes of his daughter, a selfless and loving man. Sonora's father was born in June, so she chose to hold the first Father's Day celebration in Spokane, Washington on the 19th of June, 1910.
　In 1924 President Calvin Coolidge declared the third Sunday in June as Father's Day.  Roses are the Father's Day flowers: red to be worn for a living father and white if the father has died.
　When children can't visit their fathers or take them out to dinner, they send a greeting card. Traditionally, fathers prefer greeting cards that are not too sentimental(伤感的, 忧伤的). Most greeting cards are too special so fathers laugh when they open them. Some give heartfelt thanks for being there whenever the child needed Dad.
【小题1】The United States is special in Father's Day because ______.

Who owns the large American companies that produce cars, washing machines, and television sets? They are owned by a large group of people called stockholders.

　　A company must have money to build factories and to buy machinery. To get this money, it sells shares of stock（股份）. Each share of stock is a share in the ownership of the company. The person who buys a share of stock becomes a part owner of the company. He is called a stockholder. A company can have thousands of stockholders. Sometimes a very large company is owned by millions of stockholders.

　　Few persons can afford to buy a whole company, but the average individual can become part owner of a business. He can save his dollars and buy a share of stock in a large company. A person does not have to be wealthy to be a stockholder.

　　When a company makes money, each stockholder may receive a dividend(股息) check, which is his share of the profits（利润）. Parts of a company’s profits are not paid out to the stockholders. This money is used by the company so it can grow larger. If the company does well, its shares of stock become more valuable.

　　More than 20 million people own shares of stock in America’s companies. By owning stock, they are helping America’s businesses grow. They are also putting their money to work to earn more money.

1.The story makes you think that _____.

A．a farmer is not allowed to buy the shares of stock

B．if a company does well, its shares of stock have no value

C．a person may own a part of the company that makes TV sets

D．the only people who can buy stocks are those who are wealthy

2.A dividend is the stockholder’s share of the _____.

A．company’s profits

B．company’s savings

C．company’s income

D．products made by the company

3.Why do companies keep part of their profits?

A．They want to buy the shares of stock, too.

B．They cannot find all the names of their stockholders.

C．They use the money to help the company grow larger.

D．They think they have sent their stockholders enough money.

　　When I was about 12,I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings.

　　Week by week her list grew: I was very thin, I wasn’t a good student, I talked too much, I was too proud, and so on. I tried to hear all this as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.

　　He listened to me quietly, then he asked.” Are the things she says true or not? Janet, didn’t you ever wonder what you’re really like? Well, you now have that girl’s opinion. Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said.”

　　I did as he told me. To my great surprise, I discovered that about half the things were true. Some of them I couldn’t change (like being very thin),but a good number I could--and suddenly I wanted to change. For the first time I go to a fairly clear picture of myself.

　　I brought the list back to Daddy. He refused to take it.” That’s just for you,” he said.” You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. But you have to learn to listen, not just close your ears in anger and feeling hurt. When something said about you is true, you’ll find it will be of help to you. Our world is full of people who think they know your duty. Don’t shut your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you know is the right thing to do.”

　　Daddy’s advice has returned to me at many important moments. In my life, I’ve never had a better piece of advice.

68.Which do you think would be the best title for this passage?

A. Not an Enemy, but the Best Friend

B. The Best Advice I’ve Ever Had

C. My Father

D. My Childhood

69.What does “Week by week her list grew” mean?

A. Week by week she discovered more shortcomings of mine and pointed them out to me.

B. She had made a list of my shortcomings and she kept on adding new ones to it so that it was growing longer and longer.

C.I was having more and more shortcomings as time went on.

D. Week by week, my shortcomings grew more serious.

70.Why did her father listen to her quietly?

A. Because he believed that what her daughter’s “enemy” said was mostly true.

B. Because he had been so angry with his daughter’s shortcomings that he wanted to show this by keeping silent for a while.

C. Because he knew that his daughter would not listen to him at that moment.

D. Because he wasn’t quite sure which girl was telling the truth.

71.What did the father do after he had heard his daughter’s complaint?

A. He told her not to pay any attention to what her “enemy” had said.

B. He criticized(批评) her and told her to overcome her shortcomings.

C. He told her to write down all that her “enemy” had said about her and pay attention only to the things that were true.

D. He refused to take the list and have a look at it.