Imagine yourself on a boat looking out at the horizon and all you can see is the water meeting the sky with no land in sight and you are sailing straight ahead to meet the world. Jesse Martin does not have to imagine: he is living in it.

On Dec. 7, 1998, at 17 years old, Jesse set sail from Melbourne, Australia on his boat, attempting to become the youngest person to sail alone and nonstop around the world. He sailed south of New Zealand, through the South Pacific, around South America, north on the Atlantic, back south past Africa, through the Indian Ocean and back to Melbourne.

Even as a young child, Jesse had been an adventurer who traveled all over Europe and Asia with his parents. Born in Munich, Germany in 1981, he moved to Australia with his family when he was only two years old. They moved close to a rainforest in Cow Bay, about 3500kms north of Melbourne, where they built a small house with no electricity or running water. Jesse grew up at the beach enjoying the outdoors to its fullest.

At 14, he sailed for the first time with his father and brother, Beau. It was after this trip that he began to dream about sailing around the world.

Jesse’s family played an important role. “I was made to believe I could do anything.” he says. Although, he says, there were others that were not so encouraging or supportive, “People that I looked up to, respected and trusted told me I couldn’t. Thankfully, I trusted myself. There were people that said that the boat couldn’t be ready by the time I had to leave.” However, through perseverance and belief in himself he was able to do what many told him was impossible.

On Oct.31, 1999, more than 10 months after he set sail, Jesse Martin went down in history as the youngest person to sail around the world alone, nonstop and unassisted.

What’s the author’s purpose in encouraging the reader to imagine a sailing experience?

    A. To show how difficult it is to be a sailor.

    B. To show how wonderful Jesse’s sailing is.

    C. To describe what Jesse’s sailing is like.

    D. To describe what a sailor’s life is like.

Jesse Martin was at the end of his voyage when he _______.

A. sailed on the South Pacific.

B. sailed on the Indian Ocean.

C. sailed past Africa

D. sailed past South America.

Which of the following made Jesse decide to sail alone around the world?

   A. His childhood adventure experiences.

   B. His journeys to Europe.

   C. His first sailing trip with his family.

   D. His love for outdoor activities.

What can we learn from Jesse Martin’s story?

   A. Interest leads to success.

   B. A strong belief will make a person stronger.

   C. Life is an unusual adventure we should enjoy.

   D. Failure is the mother of success.

Ben Southall, from Britain, got the world’s best job, as an island caretaker on Hamilton Island, Queensland, Australia. Towards the end of his six-month contract, he had an incident. Please read his blog issued on Dec. 29, 2009 to find out more about the incident.
Now I’ve spent nearly six months here in Queensland and so far I thought I’d done particularly well at avoiding any contact with any of the dangerous critters that consider this part of the world their home. I’ve avoided being boxed by a kangaroo, nibbled by a shark and bitten by a spider or a snake—but then in my final few days on Hamilton Island I seemed to be punished by a little creature known as an Irukandji.
Irukandji jellyfish are tiny and extremely poisonous jellyfish that are in the tropical waters of the Queensland coast between early October and May, and which cause symptoms collectively known as Irukandji syndrome(综合症). Its size is roughly no larger than a fingernail of an adult’s little finger.
I was enjoying a post Christmas jetski session with some friends at a quiet beach on Hamilton Island. As I climbed off the back of the ski and onto the beach I felt a small bee-like sting on my forearm. I didn’t think too much of it at the time at it disappeared very quickly and left the beach to head to a sports massage appointment I had. As I arrived I noticed that my feet and hands were tingling(刺痛) slightly. The member of staff immediately suggested that I get the symptoms checked out and within minutes had the security there to escort(陪同) me to the doctor’s room, only a few hundred metres away.
I was feeling pretty hot and sweaty, had a headache and felt pretty sick too, together with pain in my lower back and a tightness in the chest and really high blood pressure all classic symptoms of Irukandji syndrome! This was not what I’d wanted at all and had caught me a little off guard to say the least--I’m supposed to be relaxing in my last few days on Hamilton Island.
The doctor knew instantly what it was and straight away started the course of treatment to get me on the mend. I had a couple of injections which immediately took away the uncomfortable pain I was feeling and I slipped into a comfortable sleep after an hour or so, waking to say hello to a couple of friends who came to see if I was OK! Bre was there the entire time tending to me like a little Florence Nightingale!
Once I’d recovered sufficiently I was discharged that evening and allowed to go home to sleep the effects off and only really knew what had happened when Bre told the full story the next morning--I had been very lucky.
I’d had a minor brush with what can be a very serious jellyfish and has led to people being hospitalized for a number of days, my slight knock was enough to tell me that it’s not something to be messed around with and I really should have been wearing a full stinger suit, as it recommended at all beaches here at this time of year.., even if you’re in the water for just a couple of seconds as I was!
66. We now know that people who suffer from Irukandji syndrome usually ___________.
A. have headache, backache, chest pain, sweat heavily and feel sick
B. have headache, backache, chest pain, breathe quickly and cough a lot
C. is not very painful in the beginning, but can be very painful the next day
D. play with these beautiful jellyfish while swimming in the sea
67. What have we learnt from Ben’s blog EXCEPT that _______________?
A. Ben Southall knows how to take care of himself
B. Ben Southall doesn’t look after himself well enough
C. Ben Southall has been in hospital for some days
D. Ben Southall’s friend, Bre tends to him well
68. What lesson can we learn from Ben’s incident?
A. All rules must be strictly obeyed all the time.
B. All recommendations should be seriously taken into consideration.
C. Always have yourselves covered when you are in the sea.
D. Never play with creatures in the sea.
69. Which of the following is the correct order of the events?
a. Keep an appointment  b. See a doctor              c. Go jetskiing                     d. Get home
A. a,c,d,b              B. c,a,b,d             C. c,b,a,d             D. d,b,a,c
70. How do islanders deal with Ben Southall’s incident?
A. Politely, certainly and successfully.     B. Nicely, slowly and carefully.
C. Hopefully, carefully and skillfully.      D. Kindly, quickly and efficiently.

  Imagine yourself on a boat looking out at the horizon and all you can see is the water meeting the sky with no land in sight and you are sailing straight ahead to meet the world. Jesse Martin does not have to imagine: he is living in it.

On Dec. 7, 1998, at 17 years old, Jesse set sail from Melbourne, Australia on his boat, attempting to become the youngest person to sail alone and nonstop around the world. He sailed south of New Zealand, through the South Pacific, around South America, north on the Atlantic, back south past Africa, through the Indian Ocean and back to Melbourne.

Even as a young child, Jesse had been an adventurer who traveled all over Europe and Asia with his parents. Born in Munich, Germany in 1981, he moved to Australia with his family when he was only two years old. They moved close to a rainforest in Cow Bay, about 3500kms north of Melbourne, where they built a small house with no electricity or running water. Jesse grew up at the beach enjoying the outdoors to its fullest.

At 14, he sailed for the first time with his father and brother, Beau. It was after this trip that he began to dream about sailing around the world.

Jesse’s family played an important role. “I was made to believe I could do anything.” he says. Although, he says, there were others that were not so encouraging or supportive, “People that I looked up to, respected and trusted told me I couldn’t. Thankfully, I trusted myself. There were people that said that the boat couldn’t be ready by the time I had to leave.” However, through perseverance and belief in himself he was able to do what many told him was impossible.

On Oct.31, 1999, more than 10 months after he set sail, Jesse Martin went down in history as the youngest person to sail around the world alone, nonstop and unassisted.

1. What’s the author’s purpose in encouraging the reader to imagine a sailing experience?

2. Jesse Martin was at the end of his voyage when he _______.

3. Which of the following made Jesse decide to sail alone around the world?

4. What can we learn from Jesse Martin’s story?

第三部分：阅读理解（共15小题,每小题2分,满分30分）
第一节：阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C、D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题纸上将该选项标号涂黑。
A
Basic Training: Second Saturday Chef’s Series
For the second year , The University of Arkansas System’s Winthrop Rockefeller Institute is offering hands-on cooking workshops to the public. It begins on Saturday ,October 11 and continues the second Saturday of each month through May 2009 .
This year , the series will be held in the Rockefeller Institute’s new culinary (烹饪的) arts classroom – a large room with seats as well as a large cooking area where Executive Chef Steve Jenkins can demonstrate his techniques to the class. Each class begins at 9 am and ends around 4 pm.
Chef Jenkins will present the following courses:
SOUP’S ON – Oct. 11. 2008
DIP INTO CHOCOLATE – Nov. 8, 2008
THE SAUCY SIDE OF COOKING—Dec. 13,2008
SOMETHING’S FISHY—Jan. 10, 2009
IT’S ALLIN THE DOUGH (面团)—Feb .14,2009
IF YOU LOVE SUSHI (寿司) LIKE I LOVE SUSHI  Mar.14,2009
COOL AS A CUCUMBER—Apr. 11,2009
SPICE IT UP . HERB—May 9,2009
Space is limited , and reservations are required. To reserve your place at our table , visit www. Wawri.org or call (501) 727-5435. Overnight Lodging (住宿) is available. Cost: $59— $60 per person .
46. If one wants to learn to make Sushi , he / she can attend the course held on___ .
A. Oct. 11,2008   B. Mar. 14, 2009   C. Dec. 13, 2008   D. May 9,2009
47. What can we learn from this passage ?
The cooking work shops last a year
The cooking work shops are held in the evening .
One needs to book in advance to attend the cooking workshops .
The cooking workshops are held on the second Sunday of every month .
48. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage ?
A. Who will give the presentations .   
B. Where the cooking workshops are held .
C. How many seats there are in the classroom .
D. How much one should pay to attend the cooking workshops .

London, Dec.17 (Xinhua) “Drivers on London Underground trains have started reading out sayings from great thinkers like Mahatma Gandhi , Frindrich Engels, and Albert Einstein in a bid to cheer up passengers ,” officials said. As well as the usual announcements urging passengers to “mind the steps” and warning of delays, the sayings such as “ an ounce ( 盎司) of action is worth a ton of theory” have taken the place of commercial ad in the underground carriages .

New York, Oct.8 (Xinhua) Once as a famous actor, now the governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to abandon textbooks in favor of digital ones. He plans to launch this program in August next year when California’s high-school pupils will have access to online math and science text. But some teachers wonder whether his idea of getting rid of textbooks might end up costing more not less, with digital textbook going for $300.

Amsterdam, Nov.30 (Xinhua) A few cups of coffee a day may not only help to put off the disease—dementia(痴呆) but also can treat it, according to Dr. Arendash, who led the research. After giving mice with memory damage water containing caffeine, he found the mice developed better memories and quick thinking. The reason is that caffeine is a safe drug for most people. It easily enters the brain and directly affects the disease process. He suggested people should drink five eight–ounce cups of ordinary coffee, two cups of strong ‘coffee shop’ coffee, 14 cups of tea, or 20 cola drinks to get the same amount of 500 milligrams of caffeine.

1.What’s the purpose of putting up sayings on the underground carriages in London?

A．to help passengers to kill time.

B．to encourage passengers to learn.

C．to lift the spirits of passengers.

D．to make money as a commercial ad.

2.What can we conclude from the second news?

A．digital textbooks will replace traditional textbooks.

B．online math is already available to high-school pupils .

C．digital textbooks are convenient to carry anywhere.

D．Not all the teachers support their governor’s idea.

3.Which of the following statements is true from the third news?

A．The more coffee you drink, the less chance there will be for dementia.

B．Caffeine can make mice become more and more intelligent and energetic.

C．Caffeine can affect the process of the disease—dementia and treat it.

D．Caffeine is a safe drug for all the people for everyday use so enjoy it.