Rome had the Forum. London has Speaker' s Comer. Now always-on-the-go New Yorkers have Liz and Bill.    

 Liz and Bill, two college graduates in their early 2Os, have spent a whole year trying to have thousands d people talk to them in subway stations and on busy street comers. Just talk.     

Using a 2-foot-tall sign that says, "Talk to Me," they attract conversationalists, who one evening included a mental patient, and men in business suits.     

    They don't collect money. They don't push religion (宗教). So what's the point?

    "To see what happens," said Liz. "We simply enjoy life with open communication(交流)."

    Shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks, they decided to walk from New York City to Washington, a 270-mile trip. They found they loved talking to people along the way and wanted to continue talking with strangers after their return.

     "It started as a crazy idea," Liz said. "We were so curious about all the strangers walking by with their life stories. People will talk to us about anything: their jobs, their clothes, their childhood experiences, anything."

     Denise wanted to talk about an exam she was about to take. She had stopped by for the second time in two days, to let the two listeners know how it went.

     Marcia had lest her husband to a serious disease. "That was very heavy on my mind,” Marcia said. "To be able to talk about it to total strangers was very good," she explained.

     To celebrate a year of talking, the two held a get-together in a city park for all the people they had met over the past year. A few hundred people showed up, as well as some television cameramen and reporters.

They may plan more parties or try to attract mare people to join their informal talks. Some publishers have expressed interest in a book, something they say they'll consider.

56. What did Liz and Bill start doing after September 2001?      

A. Chatting with people.

B. Setting up street signs.

C. Telling stories to strangers.

D. Organizing a speaker's comer.

57. What they have been doing can be described as______. 

   A. pointless                 B. normal                C. crazy                   D. successful

58. Why are Denise and Marcia mentioned in the text?        

A. They knew Liz and Bill very well.

   B. They happened to meet the writer of the text.

   C. They organized the get-together in the city park.

   D. They are examples of those who talked to Liz and Bill.

 59. What will Liz and Bill do in the future?     

   A. Go in for publishing.                            B. Do more television programs.

C. Continue what they am doing.                  D. Spend more time reading books.

60. How do they like the idea of writing a book?      

A. They have decided to wait a year or two.   

B. They will think about it carefully.

C. They agreed immediately.           

D. They find it hard to do that.

Tracy Wong is a well-known Chinese-American writer. But her writing ___36___ was something she picked up by herself. After her first____37____, teaching disabled children, she became a part-time writer for IBM. ___38___, writing stories was simply a ___39___. interest. Tracy sent three of her stories to a publisher(出版商).___40____, they immediately suggested that she put them together to make a single one long___41___and paid Tracy a $ 50,000 advance. "A pretty money," said the publisher, "for___42____writer.”

      ___43___Traey's characters(人物) are interesting, her stories sometimes___44___readem uneasy: those about the supernatural. "My mother believed I could___45___the afterlife world," she told a close friend. "She used to have me speak with my grandmother, who died many years ago."

      "Can I? I don't think I can," Tracy said with a laugh. "But l do have___46___ when things come to me___47___. " Once, she was wondering how to complete a ___48___set in ancient (古代的) China. ___49___the doorbell rang. It was a FedEx delivery man, with a copy of a book on Chinese ___50___. It came without her having ___51___it.

     Though she has published 10 books, Tracy has remained ___52___by her fame. She lives in the same ___53___she lived 27 years ago - although in a mom comfortable home. There' s more room for___54___in her life - and it wasn’t just ___ 55___.

That' s an unpleasant thing to say about your father after______ he' s done for you.

      A. something              B. anything              C. all                         D. that

According to the art dealer, the painting ______  to go for at least a million dollars.

      A. is expected             B. expects               C. expected                D. is expecting

I must be getting fat - I can ______ do my trousers up.

   A. fairly                     B. hardly                 C. nearly                    D. seldom

― Do you like ______ here?

―Oh, yes. The air, the weather, the way of life. Everything is so nice.

      A. this                        B. these              C. that                        D. it

If you buy more than ten, they knock 20 pence off ______.

      A. a price                   B. price               C. the price                 D. prices

I ______ you not to move my dictionary -- now I can' t find it.

      A. asked                    B. ask                  C. was asking            D. had asked

You ______ be tired - you've only been working for an hour.

      A. must not                B. won' t             C. can' t                    D. may not

"We can' t go out in this weather," said Bob,  ______ out of the window.

      A. looking                  B. to look             C. looked                   D. having looked