Did you watch the magic shows played by Liu Qian from Taiwan in the 2009 CCTV Spring Festival
Gala? They (1)a           great attention and (2)w           interests of the audience. During the gala, Liu
succeeded (3)d           a coin into a glass which was placed upside down and transferred (转移) a finger
ring(4) i            an egg. The two magic shows were so successful that everyone is now (5)m            
about him and all want to know how to play magic tricks."I saw the s(6)            on everyone's face. It
was cool." Liu said. 　　
     However, you may not believe that Liu (7)d            go to any magic school. He just learned by
(8)h           . When Liu was seven years old, he saw a coin trick in a big store. At that moment Liu
(9)d             to learn magic. He worked quite hard at it. He practiced hard to improve his (10)s            .
Then one day he was able to put on a show for his class. 　　
     After years of hard work, now Liu is a great magician. But he isn't (11)s             with what he has
got and keeps on trying every day. He (12)m            spend three years working out a new show.

     Zhao Zhangguang was born in 1943 to a peasant's family in Niyang village in Yueqing county, Zhejiang
Province. His family's income made it necessary for him to give up his study and take up farming when only
in the second year of junjor middle school.
     In 1969 Zhao suffered from a skin disease and during the following two years he visited doctors in
Hangzhou, the capital of the province. While in Hangzhou he learnt enough knowledge of medicine to become
a "village doctor". Later he opened a health centre in his village and treated patients with common skin diseases.
     Many people in his village and surrounding areas suffered from baldness. A young woman teacher in his
village was one such case. Always jeered (嘲笑) at by her pupils, her-self esteem (自尊) was seriously injured
and she quit (退职) her job, she locked herself away at home for seven years even refusing to visit her own
parents. Many cases and others kept nagging (唠叨) at Zhao and he determined to find a treatment for baldness
and bring back happiness to his patients. 
     After four years of hard work. Zhao sucessfully produced the"101" hair tonic. Its effective results have been widely recognized.

1. Zhao gave up his studies in a junior middle school because of _____.

Ａ: skin disease
Ｂ: learning to be a doctor
Ｃ: farming at home
Ｄ: poor family

2. The young teacher was afraid to see anybody because ____.

3. Zhao made his mark from a poor young man to a village doctor, further to an inventor of drug _____.

Ａ: by his father
Ｂ: through years of hard work.
Ｃ: with the aid of a young woman teacher
Ｄ: for his high schooling

4. The "101" hair tonic is _____.

Ａ: a barber's tool
Ｂ: sort of surgeon's instrument
Ｃ: a book about hair
Ｄ: a kind of drugs for baldness

Ａ: Zhao Zhangguang And The "101" Hair Tonic
Ｂ: Medicine For A Disease
Ｃ: A Peasant Boy And His Invention
Ｄ: From A Patient to A Doctor

                                                              David Beckham 
      As a Manchester United player, David Beckham is used to winning. He is one of the most famous
Englishmen in the World today.
      Of course, it is impossible to have an unbiased opinion of this young man or the team that he plays
for. If you are a Man Utd fan, you love him. If you aren't a fan of this team, then your opinion of Mr.
Beckham may be quite different. In fact, in recent times, his treatment by fans of other teams has been
extremely unsavoury, especially when he has been playing for England. Some of the worst words have
not even been aimed at Beckham but at his wife and young child, which is a bad thing. It has been hard
for the football leaders to control such unruly behaviour. How can you discipline people for their comments
when so many people are guilty? But under the pressure of being shouted at by so many people, he has
always remained calm. 
      Of course, a lot of the bad things about Beckham are due to his own actions. He is a very fashionable
young man, but some of the clothes he has worn have been simply amazing. Why a person in his position
would choose to wear a skirt in public is truly unbelievable! Furthermore, to wear such things in
unseasonable times as mid-winter seems even crazier!
      His behavior on the football pitch has also been unpredictable at times. Sometimes he is brilliant;
sometimes he does crazy things. Some of the most famous footballing incidents involving Beckham are not
his spectacular goals but his ungainly tackles. The most famous occasion was in France '98, when a clumsy
tackle led to him being sent off.
      However, he is not guilty of such things, and if he can stop such behavior he could even become
England'next captain.

1. David Beckham is ______ in the world.

A. unknown
B. not popular
C. famous
D. unfashionable

2. Once, Beckham wore ______ in public in mid-winter.

3. Which one is Right?

A. Everyone loves David Beckham.
B. Some people say bad things about the Beckham's.
C. Beckham never makes mistakes on the football pitch.
D. Beckham must be England 'next captain'.

4. Beckham was sent off in France'98, because of ______.

A. his fame
B. his tackle
C. his words
D. his braveness

      George Stephenson was born in 1781 in a poor family. He had to start work when he was only eight.
When George was fourteen, he became his father's helper. He spent a lot of time learning about engines
(发动机). And on holidays he often made one engine to pieces and studied each piece carefully. Soon he
became a very good worker though he could not read or write. He began to learn English letters when he
was seventeen years old. Every day after he did twelve hours of hard work,he walked a long way to have
lessons from a young school teacher. On his eighteenth birthday, he wrote his own name for the first time
in his life. George invented (发明) many things in his life. The train was the greatest one among them.
Today when we take trains from one place to another, we'll think of this great man-George Stephenson.

1. In which year did George Stephenson start to help his father? ______.

A. In 1781
B. In 1789
C. In 1795
D. In 1798

2. He learned about the engine ______.

3. He spent a lot of time learning about engines and soon he became ______.

A. a great man
B. a good maker
C. a good worker
D. a good student

4. George Stephenson invented the ______.

A. the train
B. the telephone
C. the car
D. the computer

A. workers
B. writers
C. learners
D. inventors

     Ronald Reagan was the only actor to become president of the United States, but other movie stars have
also been successful in public office. One of them was Shirley Temple, who is remembered throughout the
world as a little girl. She danced and sang in many movies.
     Shirley began to make movies at the age of five, and she was only nine years old when she played the
role of Heidi. In almost every part of the world where movies are seen on television, children and their
parents still enjoy Heidi and the other movies of Shirley Temple. Although she has not appeared in a film for
over thirty years, her name is still familiar to old and young alike.
     When Shirley Temple was twenty-one years old, she was already retired from her career as an actress.
Twenty years later, many people still thought her as a little girl that Americans had always loved in the
movies, but others knew her as an intelligent woman with knowledge of world problems. One of the people
who recognized these important abilities was President Richard M. Nixon. In 1969, he appointed (委派) her
as a representative (代表) to the United Nations, and this marked the beginning of a new career for the
former child star of the movies. 
     One of Shirley's most popular dancing and singing partners was George Murphy, who was twenty-six
years older than Shirley. He stopped making movies at about the same time as his young partner. In 1969,
he was elected United States senator (参议员) from California, and he served in this office for six years.

1. Some of the American actors or actresses like Ronald Reagan, Shirley Temple and George 
    Murphy           .

A. were later elected senators
B. later became more successful in the movie circle (电影界)
C. were later active in politics
D. later became presidents of the United States

2. Shirley Temple spent ______ years on her career as an actress.

A. 21
B. 9
C. 11
D. 16

3. Quite a lot of people throughout the world as well as Americans remember Shirley Temple all the
    time            .

A. as a little girl
B. as a pretty actress
C. as an attractive woman
D. as a young politician

4. Why did Richard M. Nixon appoint Shirley Temple as representative to the United Nations?

5. George Murphy retired from making movies ______.

A. in 1969
B. at the age of 47
C. when he was 26
D. in 1975

     Mark Twain was a famous American writer. His real name was Samuel Langhorne Clemens. He grew
up in a small town beside the Mississippi River around the middle of the nineteenth century. He liked to
watch the steamboats (轮船) traveling along the river. When he was seventeen, he went east to New York,
but he never forgot the boats on the river in his hometown. At the age of twenty-one he returned home and
became a steamboat pilot (领航员). He was very happy on the river.
     Later, when he began to write stories, he used the name Mark Twain. Mark Twain was a term used by
riverboat men. Most people have forgotten that his name was really Samuel Langhorne Clemens.
     Mark Twain wrote many famous books, but he is remembered most for his stories about young boys.
One of his best stories tells about Tom Sawyer.

根据短文内容，判断正（T）误（F）。
(     )1. Mark Twain was born in the USA.
(     )2. Mark Twain loved the Mississippi River and his hometown.
(     )3. When Mark Twain was seventeen, he left for New York.
(     )4. Mark Twain's real name was Tom Sawyer.
(     )5. Mark Twain began to write when he was 20.

     Who will follow Yao Ming and become the next Chinese person to play in the NBA? Time Magazine
says Yi Jianlian, a 2.1-metre tall teenager from Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, might be the one. 
      Fifteen-year-old Yi is a good player and has the right size. He moves quickly. He plays for Guangdong
Tigers Club team. He played in the Chinese Basketball Association-the CBA (中国篮球协会) last season
and was the group's new player of the year. Yi could be a key player at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
     "It's my dream to play in the Olympics," Yi said. "It would be a great honor to play in the Olympics for
my country, and I hope I will get a chance."
     Yi was 12 when he first picked up a basketball. At first his parents were against (反对) his playing
basketball in a sports school, but they were changed by the fact that Yi has everything for a good player
such as speed and size. Yi's basketball life almost ended before it began. When he first went to training, he
almost gave up halfway. 
     "I wanted to give up," Yi said. "I had never lived away from home before." But later he decided to make
the best of the difficult situation (处境).
      His goal is to join Yao in the NBA. "We all look up to him, and I hope I can one day play in the NBA, too,"
said Yi. "I need to learn and practice, and I should stay cool before fame (名声)."

1. Why does Time Magazine say Yi Jianlian will become the next Chinese person to play in the NBA?

A. Because he is taller than any other player in China.
B. Because he is younger than any other player in China.
C. Because he is a good player with right size and quick movement.
D. Because he is a CBA's key player at present.

2. Yi Jlanlian has played in the CBA in _______ up to now (直到现在).

3. Why did Yi Jianlian almost give up halfway when he first went to training?

A. Because his parents were against his playing basketball.
B. Because he found it too difficult to play basketball.
C. Because he didn't have anything for a good player.
D. Because he couldn't live with his family as before.

4. The underlined word "cool" means "_______" in the last sentence.

A. happy
B. not excited
C. interesting
D. neither warm nor cold

A. Yi Jianlian is a player of the Chinese Basketball Team
B. Yi Jlanlian will join Yao Ming in the NBA next season
C. Yi Jianlian is a basketball player with a bright future
D. Yao Mint is the first Chinese person playing in the NBA