needed fresh water and food after three months at sea. They saw an island and went on shore. On
the island there were unfriendly Indians who refused to give food to them. Columbus" men were
afraid of the Indians, but he had a clever plan. He used sign language to tell the Indians about his
mysterious (神秘的) power to turn off the light in the sky. He knew about a lunar eclipse (月蚀)
the next night because the information was in his almanac (天文历书). Columbus told the Indians,
" Tomorrow night I"ll turn off the light in the sky." But they didn"t believe him . When the eclipse
began the next night ,the Indians became very frightened . They begged Columbus to turn on the
light again , and they quickly gave him all the food and water he wanted. Immediately Columbus
and his men hurried back to the ship and sailed away in the moonless night.
B. they hoped to get supplies of food and water
C. they had never been on the island before
D. they had planned to visit it
B. were kind to
C. welcomed
D. were not kind to
B. spoke in the language of the Indians
C. drew a lot of signs
D. wrote in the language of the Indians
B. the moon
C. the stars
D. the daylight
B. were interested in Columbus" trip
C. wanted to help Columbus
D. were clever
When he died in 1931, Americans wondered how they could best show their respect for him.
One suggestion was that the nation observe a minute or two of total blackout. All electric power
would be shut off in homes, streets, and factories. Perhaps his suggested plan made Americans
realize fully what Edison and his inventions mean to them. Electric power was too important to
the country. Shutting it off for even a short time would have led to complete confusion. A blackout
was out of the question.
On the day of Edison"s funeral, many people silently dimmed their lights. In this way they honoured
the man who had done more than anyone else to put the great force of electricity at his countrymen"s
fingertips.
B.received the first American patent
C.received more patents than any other American
D.was the first American inventor
B.electric power was 100 years
C.the country realized electricity"s importance
D.he died in 1931
B.observe a few minutes of total silence
C.dim all electric lights
D.shut off all electricity for a short time
B.heard of the plan to honor him
C.first used electric power
D.tried to carry out the plan
B.it was too difficult
C.electric power was too important to the country
D.it honored only one of Edison"s inventions
grow from a young nation to the strongest industrial power in the world. Whitman was influenced
by events around him. But his poetry speaks of the inner self. He celebrated great people like
President Abraham Lincoln. He also celebrated common people.
As a young man, Whitman worked as a school teacher, a printer and a newspaper reporter.
He was thirty- six years old when his first book of poetry was published. He called it Leaves of
Grass. It has only twelve poems. The poems are written in free verse. The lines do not follow any
set form. Some lines are short and some are long. The word at the end of each line do not have a
similar sound. They do not rhyme.
One of America"s greatest thinkers and writers immediately recognized the importance of Leaves
of Grass. Ralph Waldo Emerson praised Whitman"s work. But most other poets and writers said
nothing or denounced it.
The American Civil War began in 1861. During the war, Whitman worked without pay at army
hospitals. He helped care for the wounded and dying soldiers. He sat beside these men for hours.
He brought them food and wrote letters for them. After the Civil War, Whitman worked for
government agencies. He watched the United States try to heal itself and increase democracy.
To Walt Whitman, democracy was more than a political system or idea. It was the natural form
of government for free people. Whitman believed democracy was meant to honor the rights of every
person and the equality of all people.
In 1873, Walt Whitman suffered a stroke . he spent the last few years of his life in Camden, New
Jersey and wrote more poems. Whitman was poor and weak during the last few years of his life.
He died in 1892.
B. celebrating great people
C. writing poems
D. praising common people
B.1819
C.1861
D.1873
(in Paragraph3) is most likely to tell us that ___.
B. a lot of people agreed with Emerson.
C. many poets and writers thought ill of Whitman"s poems
D. few poets and writers didn"t like talking to Whitman
B. a man of devotion
C. an honest official
D. a great politician
Sydney Porter. He was born in North Carolina in 1862. As a young boy he lived an exciting life. He did
not go to school for very long, but he managed to teach himself everything he needed to know. When he
was about 20 years old, O. Henry went to Texas, where he tried different jobs. He first worked on a newspaper, and then had a job in a bank. When some money went missing from the bank, O. Henry was
believed to have stolen it. Because of that, he was sent to prison. During the three years in prison, he
learned to write short stories. After he got out of prison, he went to New York and continued writing. He wrote mostly about New York and the life of the poor there. People liked his stories, because simple as
the tales were, they would finish with a sudden change at the end, to the reader"s surprise.
a. Lived in New York b. Worked in a bank
c. Traveled to Texas d. Was put in prison
e. Had a newspaper job f. Learned to write stories
B. c, e, b, d, f, a
C. e, b, d, c, a, f
D. c, b, e, d, a, f
B. they were easy to understand.
C. they showed his love for the poor.
D. they were about New York City
B. he broke the law by not using his own name.
C. he wanted to write stories about prisoners.
D. people thought he had taken the money that was not his.
B.He was not serious about his work.
C.He was devoted to the poor.
D.He was very good at learning.
B.The newspaper articles he wrote.
C.The city and people of New York.
D.His exciting early life as a boy.
There are more than one billion people around the world who smoke. Bill Gates, cofounder and
former CEO of Microsoft, wants them all to quit. So does New York City"s mayor Michael Bloomberg.
This week, the Gates Foundation, a charity organization set up by Bill Gates and his wife, Melinda,
teamed up with Bloomberg to donate $500 million over the next five years to antitobacco programs.
Bloomberg is no stranger to antitobacco plans. He has been fighting tobaccouse in New York City
for years. In 2002, Bloomberg pushed for a ban on smoking in all New York City restaurants.
Bloomberg"s Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use was created in 2005. It aims to discourage smoking
trends around the world by working to change tobacco"s image, protect nonsmokers from secondhand
smoke, and help people quit. Bloomberg gave $ 125 million to start the program. Now, he is adding
another $ 250 million. The Gates Foundation will invest $ 125 million over five years to fight the tobacco
epidemic, including a $ 24 million gift directly to the Bloomberg Initiative.
The money donated by the Gates Foundation will support antismoking efforts in developing countries
where tobacco use is the highest. "Tobaccocaused diseases have become one of the greatest health
challenges facing developing countries," Gates says. In addition to donating to the Bloomberg Initiative,
the Gates Foundation will also help prevent the tobacco epidemic from taking root in Africa. "The
epidemic in Africa is not well advanced," Gates explains. "That means that we can catch it at an early
stage."
Tobaccouse kills more than five million people every year. If the trend doesn"t change, more than one
billion people could die of tobaccorelated illnesses this century. Gates and Bloomberg have high hopes to
change these statistics. "Together we can make a clear, measurable difference, not just for ourselves and
our generation, but for the generations that come after us," says Bloomberg.
B. Bill Gates" contribution to the world
C. a ban on smoking in New York City
D. a plan to stop smoking
B. $ 250 million.
C. $ 375 million.
D. $ 500 million.
B. tobaccouse has become a big threat to developing countries
C. Bloomberg"s Initiative to Reduce Tobacco Use was created in 2002
D. tobaccouse kills more than fifty million people every year
B. Skeptical.
C. Opposable.
D. Surprised.
of London, urged yesterday. He said that encouraging visitors to set a value on museums and art
galleries, which have been free since 2001, would work extremely well. Mr. Johnson held up New
York"s Metropolitan Museum of Art as a model. Although New York"s museums are officially free,
visitors are strongly encouraged to pay a recommended entry fee of $20. At the Met, entry is
impossible without first going to the ticket desk.
Mr. Johnson"s spokesman later admitted that free admission was a "huge draw" for London, but
he said, "Having visited the Met last week, the mayor is impressed by how they maximize voluntary
contributions and believes there are lessons to be learnt." Mark Jones, director of the Victoria and
Albert Museum, told The Times that the museum already requested a ?3 donation but was not as
forceful as New York"s institutions. He said, "I"m not in favor of anything that makes people feel they
won"t want to go because they feel like they will have to pay."
When entrance fees to national museums were decided not to be charged here in 2001, there was
a 70 percent increase in visitor numbers in the first year. Political parties have since been unwilling to
suggest change, despite concerns about cost. Hugo Swire, the former Shadow Culture Secretary, was
dismissed(解雇) in 2007 for suggesting that "museums and galleries should have the right to charge if
they wish".
Some in the art community argue, however, that free entrance has done little to increase the breadth
(广泛) of visitors and has caused shortfalls in the budget(预算) for the museums. In response to it,
Colin Tweedy, chief executive of Arts & Business, said that Britain was "leading the world" in allowing
its treasures to be freely available. He said, "To return to museum charging would be a return to the
dark ages."
Ben Bradshaw, the Culture Secretary, said, "The mayor showed his true intention when he suggested
those who could afford it should be encouraged to contribute to the arts. I believe it is a disaster for the
culture, arts and sport." He thinks that free museums and galleries have once been one of this
Government"s great successes.
B. most museums in London have admission fees
C. Metropolitan Museum of Art is not officially free
D. free entry is impossible to New York"s museums
B. admission fees should be forceful
C. he is in favor of New York"s action
D. he has a consideration for the visitors
B. has been opposed by political parties
C. has no influence on the number of visitors
D. has caused financial problems to the museums
B. Decrease in the number of visitors.
C. Ensuring visitors" benefits.
D. Free access to museums.
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