Unlike many surfers who sought the perfect wave, my interests always lay beneath the sea' s surface in a world I could only imagine and dream of．When I was twelve, I made my first adventures in the deep．Later I would learn how to dive, expanding my world of exploration many times over．

Perhaps the greatest turning point in my life came when I was in high school and I wrote a letter to the famous Scripps Oceanographic Institution, asking how I might learn more about the sea．A kind scientist answered my letter and told me how to apply to Scripps for a summer scholarship, which I received．During one of their courses that summer, I met Dr．Robert Norris, a marine geologist．He loved the sea almost as much as I did．Soon he suggested I consider his school, the University of California, for my study．One year later I became a member of the freshman class．

Now my love affair with the sea became a serious endeavor（艰苦的努力）．If I wanted to be an undersea explorer, I needed to learn as much as I could about the laws of the physical world that controlled the environment I wanted to enter．The undersea world is not our natural world．It is unforgiving to those who make mistakes．At its greatest depths the water temperature is near freezing, the pressure is eight tons per square inch, and it is totally dark．It is easy to get lost in such a world．I needed to learn a lot about geography, navigation, geology, biology, and many other things．

I decided another important thing for me to do was to join the U．S．Navy．If I was going to be an undersea explorer, I would have to lead men and women on dangerous adventures where they might get hurt, and I didn't want that to happen．

In the Navy I learned discipline, organization, and how to motivate and lead people on adventures so that we could explore the wonders of the deep．

Finally, the time came to put all that I had learned to use, to go forth with a team of men and women and explore an adventure I am still on and hope to be on for many years to come．

1.What happened to the author at the age of twelve?

A．He dreamed about undersea exploration．

B．He began to swim under the deep water．

C．He surfed on big waves for the first time．

D．He learned to dive off the cliffs．

2.In college, the author took many different types of courses because he

A．was told it was easy to get lost in exploration

B．was advised to take them by Dr．Robert Norris

C．thought they were needed to fully understand the ocean

D．believed it would help him succeed in the Navy

3.The author joined the Navy to ______．

A．develop his leadership skills

B．get along with people under stress

C．learn about the dangers of the ocean

D．gather specific information about ocean life

4.Which word can best describe the author?

A．Imaginative．      B．Optimistic．       C．Independent．     D．Ambitious．

 

Even as Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda wrapped up a tired appearance before Congress，the head of the world’s largest automaker wasn’t leaving his problems behind．

 Toyota faces a criminal investigation by federal lawyers in New York．The company is now being investigated．Its US dealerships in difficulty now are facing repairs to potentially millions of customer cars that have been recalled．The company is offering customers money back for rental cars and other expenses．

 Its lawyers are busy preparing to cope with lawsuits．A new hearing will be conducted. And the cost to Toyota’s reputation is only now starting．

Despite back-to-back hearings this  week，left to be said were a better explanation for slow actions to deal with the faults and believable promises that the problems that led to sudden，unintended accelerations will be fixed．

Toyoda said those changes were being made nearly around the clock，but during three hours of often tense questions and answers he repeated that there was no link to the vehicle’s electronic systems．

Many drivers making complaints against Toyota and the government say their acceleration problems had nothing to do with floor mat interference(油门踏板故障)or sticky gas pedals(刹车)．Outside experts have suggested electronic problems.

    House lawmakers expressed serious cri ticism on Toyoda，the grandson of the company’s founder．

    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration(NHTSA)is seeking records on Toyota’s recalls and is conducting its own review on whether electronics were behind the car faults．NHTSA also continues to look into steering complaints from drivers of the popular Corolla model．

    Toyota has recalled 8．5 million cars，more than 6 million of them in the United States．

   It may be a while before car buyers believe that Toyota really makes safe cars．

   Toyota’s January sales already fell 16 percent even as most other automakers jumped back from last year’s bad results．Analyst Koji Endo of Advanced Research Japan in Tokyo said he expects February sales，due out next week，to be down 30 percent to 40．Toyota’s sales problem could continue beyond that． 

   It will take some time to feel the full effect of this，he said．

The best title for this passage is            ．

   A．Toyota is in trouble       B．Toyota is under hearing

   C．Toyota is finished     D．Toyota is still running

What is the purpose of the hearing?

   A．America hopes that Toyota apologizes to the US customers．

   B．America wants to get Toyota out of the US market．

   C．America wants to help Toyota out of difficulty．

   D．America hopes that Toyota admits their cars have electronic system problem．

What can we infer from the passage?

    A．Toyota provides very good post sale service．   

    B．Toyota’s biggest market is in the United States．

    C．Toyota will be closed soon．

    D．Toyota’s dealership in the US will all be closed．

The last sentence of this passage indicates            .

   A．Analyst Koji Endo is fully confident about Toyota

   B．Toyota could meet a worse situation

   C．Toyota would get out of trouble sooner or later

   D．Toyota would build up a better reputation among its customers

A little boy invited his mother to attend his school’s first teacher-parent meeting. To the little boy’s __1__, she said she would go. This __2__ be the first time that his classmates and teacher __3__ his mother and he felt __4__ of her appearance. Although she was a beautiful woman, there was a severe scar (疤痕) that __5__ nearly the entire right side of her face. The boy never wanted to __6__ why or how she got the scar.

At the meeting, the people were __7__ by the kindness and natural beauty of his mother __ 8__ the scar, but the little boy was still embarrassed (尴尬) and __9 __ himself from everyone. He did, however, get within __10__of a conversation between his mother and his teacher.

The teacher asked __11__, “How did you get the scar on your face?”

The mother replied, “__12__ my son was a baby, he was in a room that caught fire. Everyone was __13__ afraid to go in because the fire was __14__，so I went in. As I was running toward his bed, I saw a long piece of wood coming down and I placed myself over him trying to protect him. I was knocked __15__ but fortunately, a fireman came in and saved both of us.” She __16__ the burned side of her face. “This scar will be __17__, but to this day, I have never __18__ what I did.”

At this point, the little boy came out running toward his mother with tears in his eyes. He held her in his arms and felt a great __19__ of the sacrifice (牺牲) that his mother had made for him. He held her hand __20__ for the rest of the day.

1. A. enjoyment   B. disappointment  C. surprise    D. excitement

2. A. would     B. could             C. should      D. must

3. A. noticed   B. greeted            C. accepted  D. met

4. A. sick      B. ashamed           C. afraid    D. tired

5. A. included    B. passed          C. covered       D. shaded

6. A. talk about   B. think about C. care about    D. hear about

7. A. impressed  B. surprised    C. excited    D. comforted

8. A. in sight of   B. by means of    C. by way of D. in spite of

9. A. hid   B. protected  C. separated   D. escaped

10. A. understanding    B. reminding   C. hearing   D. learning

11. A. carefully  B. seriously    C. nervously   D. anxiously

12. A. As    B. When     C. Since     D. While

13. A. so     B. much C. quite   D. too

14. A. out of control B. under control C. in control  D. over control

15. A. helpless   B. hopeless    C. senseless  D. useless

16. A. pointed    B. showed    C. wiped   D. touched

17. A. ugly       B. lasting     C. serious     D. frightening

18. A. forgot  B. recognized  C. considered    D. regretted

19. A. honor    B. sense     C. happiness   D. pride

20. A. quietly   B. slightly     C. tightly    D. suddenly

    November not only marks the publication of Toni Morrison’s eagerly anticipated(期待) eighth novel, Love, but it is also the tenth anniversary of her Nobel Prize for Literature. Morrison is the first black woman to receive a Nobel, and so honored before her in literature are only two black men: Wole Soyinka, the Nigerian playwright, poet and novelist, in 1986; and Derek Walcott, the Caribbean-born poet, in 1992. But Morrison is also the first and only American-born Nobel prizewinner for literature since 1962, the year novelist John Steinbeck received the award.

    Like Song of Solomon, Love is a multigenerational story, revealing the personal and communal legacy(遗产) of an outstanding black family. As Morrison scholars will tell you, Love is the third volume of a literary master’s trilogy(三部曲)investigating the many complexities of love. This trilogy began with Beloved(1988), which deals with a black mother’s love under slavery and in freedom. Jazz (1993), the second volume, tells a story of romantic love in 1920s Harlem. This latest novel looks back from the 1970s to the 1940s and ’50s.

     The emotional center of Love is Bill Cosey, the former owner and host of the shabby Cosey’s Hotel and Resort in Silk, North Carolina, described in the novel as “the best and best-known vacation spot for colored folk on the East Coast.” We get to know  Cosey through the memories of five women who survive and love him: his granddaughter, his widow, two former employees, and a homeless young girl.

      The latest novel, Love, had been described in the promotional material from her publisher as “Morrison’s most accessible work since Song of Solomon.” This comparison to her third novel, published in 1977, was an effective selling point.

61. What would be the best title for the text?

A.Toni Morrison’s latest novels                          B.Toni Morrison and her trilogy

C.Toni Morrison and her novel Love                  D.Toni Morrison, the Nobel prizewinner

62. What can we learn about John Steinbeck?

A.He was a black writer.                                          B.He was born in America.

C.He received the Nobel Prize after Morrison

D.He was the first American novelist to win a Nobel

63. The similarity between Love and Song of Solomon is that they both _____.

A.belong to the same trilogy together with Beloved

B.concern families of more than one generation

C.deal with life of blacks under slavery              D.investigate life in 1920s Harlem

64. The novel Love mainly describes ______.

A. the best-known vacation spot for blacks

B. the life of an outstanding black family under slavery

C. the miserable experience of the five women in Harlem

D. the memories of five women about Bill Cosey

It is widely believed among bioengineers _____ it will be possible to create life under laboratory conditions．

A．which            B．what         C．that             D．when