Are you fond of tomatoes? Bunol, a town in Spain, held its yearly tomato festival on the last Wednesday of August. Thousands and thousands of people made their way from all corners of the world to fight in it, the world’s biggest food fight. Tons of fully-grown tomatoes were thrown in the streets.

No one knows exactly how this event started. Maybe it came from a local food fight between friends, or a joke that was played on a bad musician.

On Wednesday, at 11am, the fight began. A cannon(大炮) shot was fired to start the fight. At first, people fought one another, but slowly they began to fight in groups. After exactly one hour, the fight ended when the cannon shot was fired once more. At this point, no more tomatoes could be thrown.

Those who attend this event are encouraged to wear protective glasses. And they must press the tomatoes before throwing so that they won’t hurt others. Another rule is that no one is allowed to take anything — such as a glass bottle — into the fight. Although it is forbidden to tear(扯破) another person’s clothing, the crowd seems to tear the shirt of any clothed person, whether they are men or women.

Fire trucks are used to clean the streets after the fight with water provided from a Roman channel (海峡). The government seems more concerned with cleaning up the town than the visitors, and people go to the Bunol River for a wash.

1.What do we know about the tomato fight?

2.When the cannon shot is fired the second time, ____.

3.Which is NOT one of the rules of the tomato fight?

4.After the tomato fight, the town government ____.

The cars were honking （鸣叫） on the road one morning as I was walking to the park．I walked on and soon found the cause — a little taxi that had got stuck in the middle of the road．There was sweat on the driver's face as he tried to start the engine again and again — nothing happened．"No petrol,"

       I said to myself and then found myself getting angry．"Why doesn't the fool move his taxi to the side?" I thought, so did all the others who honked and shouted．

       He got up tiredly, and the passenger in the taxi got out．He was a young man in a white shirt, who watched the driver try to push it to the side．"Stupid guy!" I said．"Can't he lend a helping hand? "

       I watched as the poor driver pushed it to the side．Cars, buses and trucks went past cursing （咒骂 ） the poor man．The young man took another taxi and went off．

      The taxi driver began mending his taxi．"Stupid passenger!" I said to him．"He didn't help you!" The taxi driver slowly got up．"Sir!" he asked, "Did you?" I looked at him guiltily, then looked away, and walked away fast, asking myself, "Did I help the poor man push his taxi?"

       What had I been doing as the traffic jam took place? How had I helped deal with the problem? Did I help the poor man push his taxi? I’d done my bit, with my mouth．But never had I moved to solve the problem．I was shocked with guilt as I heard him asking, "Sir! Did you?"

Why did a traffic jam happen on the road when the author was walking to the park?

       A．There was too much traffic in the street．

       B．Truck drivers attempted to go ahead of others．

       C．A taxi driver couldn't start his engine．

       D．A young man wasn't good at driving．

The author's attitude toward the passenger is that of __________．

       A．anger       B．respect              C．sympathy  D．guilt

Why did the author feel guilty?

       A．Because he blamed the driver wrongly．

       B．Because he didn't help the driver, either．

       C．Because he tried to help but failed in the end．

       D．Because he didn't persuade the passenger to help．

From the incident, the author learnt a lesson that we should     _________．

       A．criticize those who don't help

       B．hurt the self-respect of others no more

       C．think more of those who are in need

       D．stop talking and start to help

Are you fond of tomatoes? Bunol, a town in Spain, held its yearly tomato festival on the last Wednesday of August. Thousands and thousands of people made their way from all corners of the world to fight in it, the world’s biggest food fight. Tons of fully-grown tomatoes were thrown in the streets.

No one knows exactly how this event started. Maybe it came from a local food fight between friends, or a joke that was played on a bad musician.

On Wednesday, at 11am, the fight began. A cannon(大炮) shot was fired to start the fight. At first, people fought one another, but slowly they began to fight in groups. After exactly one hour, the fight ended when the cannon shot was fired once more. At this point, no more tomatoes could be thrown.

Those who attend this event are encouraged to wear protective glasses. And they must press the tomatoes before throwing so that they won’t hurt others. Another rule is that no one is allowed to take anything — such as a glass bottle — into the fight. Although it is forbidden to tear(扯破) another person’s clothing, the crowd seems to tear the shirt of any clothed person, whether they are men or women.

Fire trucks are used to clean the streets after the fight with water provided from a Roman channel (海峡). The government seems more concerned with cleaning up the town than the visitors, and people go to the Bunol River for a wash.

What do we know about the tomato fight?

A. Nobody knows how it really started.

B. Only people from Spain can take part in it.

C. It is held on the first Wednesday of August.

D. Green tomatoes can be used in the fight.

When the cannon shot is fired the second time, ____.

A. people start to throw tomatoes

B. people start to fight in groups

C. the whole tomato fight is over

D. the fight has lasted for two hours

Which is NOT one of the rules of the tomato fight?

A. People can’t use glass bottles.

B. People must wear protective glasses.

C. It isn’t allowed to tear other people’s clothes.

D. Tomatoes should be pressed before they are thrown.

After the tomato fight, the town government ____.

A. provides water to the people

B. cleans up the streets with fire trucks

C. takes people to the Bunol River

D. holds other activities about tomatoes

You may picture firefighters holding a hose （水管） outside of a burning building，but the Golden Eagles Hotshots don't fight fires quite that way．When they go into action，you may not even see a fire truck．

The Hotshots are firefighters who battle fires in wilderness areas．But don't think you'll only find them in California．Wherever there is a national wildfire emergency，the Golden Eagles Hotshots could be there．

But these firefighters don't work the same way as those in big cities．They work where there are large numbers of trees，bushes，and grass．They climb up and down steep hills to clear brush and burnable debris （残骸）．They sometimes use water，but often fight fire with fire！

They do that by lighting what are called “backfires” ---- small，controlled fires that burn up fuel in the path of larger wildfires．That way, when the wildfire gets there, it has nothing to burn and nowhere to go，because all the burnable fuel has already gone up in smoke．

The Hotshots also clear away fuel using old-fashioned hard work．For example，they use a saw to cut away trees and heavy brush that could catch fire．

Of course there are times when the Golden Eagles Hotshots do have trucks to supply water to the fires．But the water is limited，and these guys have to rely on hard work more than anything．Physical fitness is very important．They have to be strong to handle steep hills while carrying a 60­pound pack．

Thanks to their efforts，many lives have been saved，many houses not burned，and countless trees still standing．

1.According to the passage，why do the firefighters light “backfires”？

    A．To signal for help．             B．To remove obstacles．

    C．To protect trees and bushes．    D．To prevent the fire from spreading．

2.What can we learn about the Golden Eagles Hotshots？

    A．They are firefighters working in big cities．

    B．Their work requires physical strength．

    C．They are working for free．

    D．They usually hold a hose to put out the fires．

3.All of the following can reflect that the Golden Eagles Hotshots are special  EXCEPT their working 　　　　．

    A. areas          B. ways           C. achievements   D. tools

4.What is the author's attitude towards the Golden Eagles Hotshots？

    A．Appreciative．　B．Doubtful．    C．Worried．    D．Critical．

    In the course of working my way through school, I took many jobs I would rather forget. But none of these jobs was as dreadful as my job in an apple plant. The work was hard; the pay was poor; and, most of all, the working conditions were terrible.

    First of all, the job made huge demands on my strength. For then hours a night, I took boxes that rolled down a metal track and piled them onto a truck. Each box contained twelve heavy bottles of apple juice. I once figured out that I was lifting an average of twelve tons of apple juice every night.

    I would not have minded the difficulty of the work so much if the pay had not been so poor. I was paid the lowest wage of that time—two dollars an hour. Because of the low pay, I felt eager to get as much as possible. I usually worked twelve hours a night but did not take home much more than $ 100 a week.

    But even more than the low pay, what made me unhappy was the working conditions. During work I was limited to two ten-minute breaks and an unpaid half hour for lunch. Most of my time was spent outside loading trucks with those heavy boxes in near-zero-degree temperatures. The steel floors of the trucks were like ice, which made my feet feel like stone. And after the production line shut down at night and most people left, I had to spend two hours alone cleaning the floor.

    I stayed on the job for five months, all the while hating the difficulty of the work, the poor money, and the conditions under which I worked. By the time I left, I was determined never to go back there again.

49. Why did the writer have to take many jobs at that time?

  A. To pay for his schooling.

B. To save for his future.

  C. To support his family

D. To gain some experience

50. The following facts describe the terrible working conditions of the plant EXCEPT ______.

  A. loading boxes in the freezing cold                     B. having limited time for breaks

  C. working and studying at the same time        D. getting no pay for lunch time

51. What is the subject discussed in the text?

  A. The writer’s unhappy school life.               B. The writer’s eagerness to earn money.

  C. The writer’s experience to earn money.      D. The writer’s hard work in an apple plant.

52. How is the text organized?

  A. Topic—Argument—Explanation

B. Opinion—Discussion—Description

  C. Main idea—Comparison—Supporting examples

D. Introduction—Supporting examples—Conclusion