III. Reading Comprehension 40%
Section A 30%
Directions：Read the following four passages. Each passage is followed by several questions. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage you have just read.
Riding was the favourite activity of Thomas Jefferson, who was the third President of the United States. He usually rode good horses.
One day, he was riding outside Washington, when a jockey (赛马师) came near. He did not know the President, but his professional eye was attracted by Mr. Jefferson’s horse. He stopped and said that he wanted to buy the horse, but Mr. Jefferson politely refused his offer.
The jockey offered more money for the horse, because the closer he looked at the horse, the more he liked it. All of his offers were refused, which made him angry. He then became rude, but his rudeness left as little an impression as his money, for Jefferson had a very good temper. At last, he hit Mr. Jefferson’s horse with his whip, getting it to run suddenly. This would have thrown a less skillful rider to the ground, but Jefferson stayed on his seat, and controlled his horse well.
The jockey then gave up. He rode with Mr. Jefferson side by side and began to talk with him about politics. Jefferson joined in the conversation. When they got into the city and came close to the gate of the presidential mansion (总统府), Mr. Jefferson stopped, and politely invited the man to enter.
The jockey was surprised and asked, “Why? Do you live here?”
“Yes” was the simple reply.
“Why, stranger, what’s your name?”
“My name is Thomas Jefferson.”
Embarrassed, the man quickly left, while the President looked at him with a smile and then rode through the gate.
1. Which is the best title for the passage?
A. Jefferson and the Jockey   B. Jefferson’s Interest
C. Be Polite to Everyone     D. No Pain, No Gain
2. Which word can best describe the jockey?
A. Professional.     B. Skillful.      C. Impatient.       D. Impolite.
3. The underlined word “embarrassed” can be replaced by “__________”.
A. worried           B. pleased       C. hurried         D. ashamed
4. We can infer from the passage that __________.
A. the jockey had once bought a horse from another stranger
B. Mr. Jefferson was very good at riding a horse
C. Mr. Jefferson would invite the jockey to his own house later
D. the jockey would not talk about this experience to others
5. According to the passage, which of the following statement is true?
A. The President of the US is fond of riding.
B. The jockey managed to buy the horse from Mr. Jefferson.
C. Mr. Jefferson, the third President of the United States, was a man of good manners.
D. All the presidents of the US have expensive horses.

I have a friend named Monty Roberts who owns a horse ranch in San Ysidro. He has let me use his house to put on fund-raising events to raise money for youth at risk programs．
The last time I was there he introduced me by saying, "I want to tell you why I let Jack use my house.” It all goes back to a story about a young man who was the son of a horse trainer who would go from stable to stable, race track to race track, farm to farm and ranch to ranch, training horses. As a result, the boy's high school career was continually interrupted. When he was a senior, he was asked to write a paper about what he wanted to be and do when he grew up.”
That night he wrote a seven-page paper describing his goal of someday owning a horse ranch．He wrote about his dream in great detail and he even drew a diagram of a 200-acre ranch, showing the location of all the buildings, the stables and the track. Then he drew a detailed floor plan for a 4,000-square-foot house that would sit on a 200-acre dream ranch．”
He put a great deal of his heart into the project and the next day he handed it in to his teacher. Two days later he received his paper back. On the front page was a large red F with a note that read, "See me after class.”
【小题1】Why can the writer use Roberts's house to raise money for youth at risk programs?

Chinese tennis player Li Na didn’t win the Australian Open Championship on Saturday, but she still made the history books.
Li, who lost to Kim Clijsters of Belgium in three sets (3-6, 6-3, 6-3), is the first player from China to make it to a Grand Slam final.
The boss defeated a bit of the feel-good story for China and for Li, who on Thursday defeated No. 1 player Caroline Wozniacki in the semifinals in Melbourne. Li is ranked fifth.
In an interview Li said she was proud of her effort. “I think I play great tennis,” she said. “ I mean, she plays better than me. After the match, I make a joke: tennis should only play one set.”
Bai Yan, a member of China’s men’s national team member and Li Na’s friend, said the loss was disappointing, but still a bright starting point.
“To tell you the truth I feel a little bit down, all of us. But you know she is still the best, and she’s still our hero in everybody’s eyes,” said Bai. “This is just the start.”.
Win or lose, Li’s appearance in the Australian Open finals was seen as a major victory for tennis in China, where badminton and table tennis rules.
Fans across China gathered to watch the match. Li’s mother joined fans at a restaurant in her hometown of Wuhan. In Bejing, fans crowded together to watch China’s national tennis match.
“ Tennis is still relatively a new sport in China,” said Michael Chang, the Chinese-American who was the first Asian grand slam champion, in an interview with CNN. “ To be able to see Li Na have as much success as she has… this could be the start of something very special for tennis in China.”
“Li will definitely change the sport of tennis in China and that is a great thing,” Chang said.
【小题1】 What’s the main idea of the passage?

A．Chinese tennis star Li Na’s tennis career.

B．A fierce tennis match at Australian Open.

C．Chinese tennis star made history at Australian Open.

D．Chinese tennis remained to be tested and challenged.

A．Li Na’s failure let the Chinese down.

B．Li Na ranked fifth at Australian Open.

C．LI Na’s mother attended the match with her.

D．Li Na made a new starting point of China

Liu Xiang, athlete, born in 1983

Liu Xiang made his name by winning the 110-meter hurdles gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. This was the first time an athlete of non-African descent (血统) had gone under 13 seconds for the event. In the same year, Liu set a new 110-meter hurdling world record at the Super Grand Prix in Lausanne, with a time of 12.88 seconds.
Lang Lang, pianist, born in 1982

Lang Lang began piano lessons at age three. His father quit his job to accompany his boy to Beijing. At 11, Lang Lang was awarded first prize for his outstanding performance at the Fourth International Young Pianists Competition in Germany. In 1995, at 13, he won first place at the Tchaikovsky International Young Musicians’ Competition in Japan. At 17, Lang Lang made his breakthrough in the West and has performed with many of the world’s major orchestras since then.
Li Yuchun, singer, born in 1984

Born into a middle-class family, Li was not encouraged by her parents to pursue a career in entertainment. The turning point came when she entered the Super Girl contest in 2005. This competition drew the largest audiences in Chinese television history. She rose above 120,000 applicants with her tomboy style and Latin-flavored performance. Her win came as a surprise to many people because she didn’t fit the stereotype of female singers. She has millions of fans of all ages all over the country. Her haircut and manners have been copied by tens of thousands of girls. Her first album sold more than 430,000 copies in the first month.
Ding Junhui, snooker player, born in 1987

Ding quit school at 13, after his father insisted he concentrate on snooker. His parents then sold their house to help Ding kick-start his career. In March 2005, he celebrated his 18th birthday by reaching the final of the China Open in Beijing, along the way beating world top-16 ranked players Peter Ebdon, Marco Fu and Ken Doherty. In the final, he defeated the then world No 3, Stephen Hendry, ranking first in the tournament. After shooting to fame, questions were raised over the father’s decision for Ding to quit school.
【小题1】Who is the passage intended for?

Recently, a study was carried out to determine who was the greatest American president．Sixty-five presidential historians took part in it, and they judged the past forty-two American leaders based on ten leadership qualities, including public persuasiveness (信服), crisis leadership, management of the economy, moral leadership, and conduct of international relations．The historians also looked at administrative (管理) ability, relations with Congress, ability to set goals, and the pursuit of equal justice for all．Finally, the experts took into consideration the historical period in which the president lived．

The historians chose Abraham Lincoln as American’s greatest president．He had also been named best president in a similar study in 2000．Abraham Lincoln was the president who led the nation through the Civil War in the 1860s, and was able to unite it in the end．He also took the first steps to abolish slavery in America．

Edna Medford, a professor of history at Howard University in Washington, D.C., was an adviser on this study and the earlier one．She says Abraham Lincoln is seen to represent the values the nation most honors, such as truthfulness, moderation, and respect for human rights．

The historians put American’s first president, George Washington, second on the list, while Franklin D．Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt, and Harry Truman follow in that order．John   F．Kennedy, the country’s first Roman Catholic president, is sixth on the list．Like Lincoln, Kennedy was murdered while in office．

Among recent presidents, Ronald Reagan was named the tenth best and Bill Clinton rated fifteenth, while the historians put former president George W．Bush at number thirty-six．His father, George H.W．Bush, did much better, being placed at number eighteen．

We learn from the text that ___________．

      A．this is the second time that Abraham Lincoln has been chosen as America’s greatest president

      B．Edna Medford didn’t take part in the study conducted in 2000．

      C．George H.W．Bush was thought to have done worse in office than George W．Bush

      D．Harry Truman was rated the fourth-best president by the study

Which of the following belong to the ten leadership qualities considered?

      a．Being able to persuade the public

      b．Taking effective measures during a financial crisis．

      c．Balancing home life and career．

      d．Pursuing equal justice for all．

   A．a,b,c             B．b,c,d        C．a,b,d        D．a,c,d

Who is rated worst among the following four presidents?

     A．John F．Kennedy                B．George Washington

     C．Bill Clinton                     D．George W．Bush

The text is mainly about ________．

     A．the ten qualities a great president needs

     B．a study of American presidents

     C．the values the American nation honors most

     D．how Abraham Lincoln improved the country