A friend of mine met with an accident driving in darkness. His legs were so hurt that he couldn’t move. What was the   1  was that he found himself unable to ask for help—his mobile phone went out of   2   as a result of exhausted battery (无电) . Nothing could be done but to   3   in cold wilderness (荒野). It was eight hours later that day broke, and then   4   of the rescue (援救).
It is almost   5   that he could stand （忍受）the horror in the darkness for so long. Even more surprising was his   6  : “First of all, I checked up my   7     conditions and found myself not in mortal (致命的) danger. As there was no   8   to call for help, I leaned back in my seat trying my best to keep the wound from   9  . In this way I dozed (瞌睡) off.”
His story put an end to my regret (遗憾) for the   10   of an exploration adventure (探险) that happened last year. A group of young men   11   to explore a mountain cave and got lost.   12   to find a way out in the dark cave they were frightened and ran anxiously without a sense of   13  . Finally they felt dead in fear and exhaustion. According to the   14   people that found them, the place where they got lost was only about 10 meters away from the   15   of the cave. If they stayed on the spot when they lost their way and tried to   16   themselves, they would probably sense a faint light glimmering (闪烁) not far away.
Don’t you think you can compare it with   17   itself? When you meet with difficulty in life and work, you are lost in darkness.   18   you it’s unclear yet and you needn’t put up struggle   19 . It seems to be a negative （消极）attitude,   20   a person who can afford to do so must have foresight (远见) as well as a great courage in the first place.

Exploring space is a dream shared by many people, but few have ever experienced the thrill of space adventure. A few years ago, that field was open only to those who worked for NASA or the space programs of other nations. But now private companies are getting into the space race.

       Google and the X PRIZE Foundation have joined forces to challenge ordinary people to explore the moon. The first team that successfully soft-lands a robotic rover(天体登陆车) on the moon will receive a $20 million prize. The second team to touch down on the moon will win $5 million. Teams can also win an additional $5 million in bonus prizes for completing tasks such as discovering water ice.

       To win, contestants(竞赛者) must land their craft on the surface of the moon and let it roam for more than 500 meters, or 1.640 feet. The craft must also send video and Internet clips(片断) back to Earth in real time.

       Google and the X PRIZE Foundation announced the competition on September 13,2007. "The Google Lunar X Prize calls on entrepreneurs(企业家), and engineers from around the world to return us to the lunar surface and explore this environment for the benefit of all humanity," said Peter H. Diamandis, the head of the foundation, when the contest was announced. "We hope to bring this historic private space race into every home and classroom," he added.

       Teams are already gathering at the first commercial spaceport in the Mojave Dessert in California to work on their spaceship designs. Contestants have until December 31, 2012 to qualify(取得资格) for the contest, which expires in 2014. The last time humans went to the moon， the voyage inspired a generation of scientists and explorers. Google and the X PRIZE Foundation are hoping that their contest will get even more people to reach for the moon, the stars and beyond.

1．If the first team land their craft on the surface of the moon and discover water ice, how much prize money will they receive?

       A．$ 5 million.          B．$ 10 million.         C．$ 20 million.        D．$ 25 million.

2．Why are Google and the X PRIZE Foundation calling on people to go to the moon?

       A．Further exploration of the moon will benefit mankind.

       B．They want everyone to join in the space race.

       C．They require video and Internet clips of the moon’s surface.

       D．They hope that new exploration will find life on the moon.

3．To win the contest, contestants must do the following EXCEPT       .

       A．land the craft on the moon                    B．let craft roam for over 500m

       C．discover water ice on the moon             D．send video and Internet clips back to Earth

4．It can be learned from the passage that          .

       A．no private company has ever set foot on the moon so far.

       B．contestants can win the prize so long as they touch down on the moon

       C．contestants don’t have to design their own spaceships

       D．the contest will end in 2012

5．What’s the main idea of the passage?

       A．More scientists are working on spaceship designs.

       B．Google and the X PRIZE Foundation joined forces to land on the moon.

       C．More teams are encouraged to join in the race to explore the moon.

       D．The first commercial spaceport has just been completed in California.

On August 5 at 10:31 p.m. PST, a rover（探测器）named Curiosity touched down safely on the surface of Mars, and I was lucky enough to have a front-row seat.
My name is Clara, and when I was in Grade 6, I won the essay contest NASA held to name its next Mars rover. The essay I wrote was not even 250 words long, but somehow it was enough to change my life.
I still remember that cold December day, sitting in a science class. I’d finished a worksheet early and decided to get a Time for Kids magazine off Mrs. Estevez’s bookshelf. It was the 2008 Invention Issue, but that wasn’t the only thing that caught my eye. In the magazine, there was an article about a girl who named the Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity. The article also talked about the essay contest NASA was holding to name its next Mars rover. Before I even knew anything else about it, a single word flooded my 11-year-old mind: Curiosity.
I couldn’t wait for the bell to ring so I could get started on my essay. That afternoon, I raced home from the bus stop, sat down at the computer and typed until my fingers ached. It turned out that I was just in time. A few days later, and the contest would have closed.
Five months later, shortly after I had turned 12, I was watching a National Geographic special on mammoths when the phone rang. My mom answered, and immediately, a wide smile spread across her face. When she told me that I had won, I was happier than I could ever remember being, I screamed and ran up and down the stairs and all around the house. I completely forgot about the mammoths and did not even remember to turn off the TV until it was really late.
Curiosity is such an important part of who I am. I have always been fascinated by the stars, the planets, the sky and the universe. I remember as a little girl, my grandfather and I would sit together in the backyard for hours. He’d tell me stories and point out the stars.
My grandfather lived in China, thousands of miles away from my home in Kansas. I loved the stars because they kept us together even when we were apart. They were always there, yet there was so much I didn’t know about them. That’s what I love so much about space. No matter how much we learn, it will always possess some mystery.
In the past, space exploration may have been a competition to see who got somewhere first or the fastest. But now, it is one of the few things that bring people together. Science is a language that needs no translation. It doesn’t matter where you’re from or what you look like – you just have to have a thirst for knowledge and a passion for learning in order to succeed.
People often ask me why we go to faraway places like Mars. Why do we explore? My answer to that is simple: because we can; because we’re curious; because we as human beings do not just stay holed up in one place. We are constantly wondering and trying to find out what’s over the hill and beyond the horizon.
The curiosity rover is more than just a robot. It is more than just a titanium body and aluminum wheels. Curiosity represents the hard work, passion, love and commitment of thousands of people from all over the world who were brought together by science. Science is so awesome. It is breathtaking and mind-blowing; and sometimes, it’s just a little bit crazy. The discoveries we make about our world are incredibly humbling. They move us forward and have the potential to benefit all of mankind.
This December it will be four years of my life that have been tied to Curiosity in some way. I’ve met so many amazing people through this experience, from scientists to engineers to administrators to volunteers. Their devotion and enthusiasm inspire me greatly. My journey with Curiosity and the MSL mission team has shaped the person that I am today, as well as the person I would one day like to become.
I am deeply grateful to everyone who made it possible for me to have this amazing adventure.
And to you, I hope your curiosity takes you far.
【小题1】 The method the writer uses to begin the passage is _____.