Do you sometimes argue about what seems to you to be simple fact? Do you argue whether it’s cold outdoors or whether the car in front of you is going faster than the speed limit?
If you get into such arguments, try to think about the story about the six blind men and the elephant. The first blind man who felt the elephant’s trunk said it was like a snake. The second who felt the elephant’s side said it was like a wall, while the third said it was like a spear as he touched the animal’s tusk. The fourth, who got hold of the elephant’s tail insisted that it was like a rope. The fifth man said it looked like a tree as he put his arms around one of the elephant’s legs. The sixth, who was tall and got hold of the elephant’s ears, said it was like a huge fan.
Each man’s idea of the animal came from his own experience. So if someone disagrees with you about a “simple fact”, it’s often because his experience in the matter is different from yours.
To see how hard it is for even one person to make up his mind about a “simple fact”, try this simple experiment. Get three large bowls. Put ice water in one. Put hot water in the second. Put lukewarm water in the third. Now put your left hand in the ice water. Put your right hand in the hot water. After thirty seconds, put both hands in the lukewarm water. Your right hand will tell you the water is cold. Your left hand will tell you it’s hot!
【小题1】 What makes people think about simple facts differently?

China in the 21st century is making great progress in space technology. In 2003, the country sent up the manned spacecraft Shenzhou-V. Four years later, Chang’e-I went into orbit (轨道) around the moon. In 2008 a Chinese man did the country’s first spacewalk.
These achievements would have been unthinkable without the contribution of Qian Xuesen, a key scientist on space programs and rocketry (火箭技术) of the People’s Republic of China. This pioneering scientist passed away in Beijing on October 31 in 2009 at the age of 98.
Once called “the father of our space industry”, Qian began working on China’s missile and space technology in 1956, when China had little technology. When asked by General Chen Geng whether the Chinese could develop their own missiles, Qian said Chinese could do anything that foreigners could.
His research helped lead to the explosion of China’s first atomic bomb (原子弹) in1964, as well as to its first man-made satellite in 1970 and its first manned spacecraft in 2003.
Qian was born in Shanghai. He graduated from Shanghai Jiaotong University in 1934.Then he studied in the US at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and later at the California Institute of Technology. During World WarⅡ, Qian’s research contributed to the development of rocket technology that the US military (军队) began using in the 1940s. He was once prevented from leaving the country because it was decided that he knew too much about certain military matters. It was not until in 1955 that Qian returned to China with the help of the late premier Zhou Enlai.
“I plan to do my best to help the Chinese build a nation where they can live with dignity (尊严) and happiness, ” Qian told reporters before sailing for China in 1955. The great scientist devoted all his life to keeping the promise.
【小题1】 What is the article mainly about?

On September 22, 1986, Jay Brunkella, a police officer in the Rogers Park district in Chicago, was shot during a drug arrest and died. Shortly afterwards, fellow officer Ken Knapcik, a 20-year veteran（老警官）of the force, returned home after work to find a note from his 15 year old daughter on the dining table.
Dad—This poem came directly from my heart. I love you so much! It scares and amazes me that you go out every day and risk everything to provide us with all that we have. I wrote this to express how much I love you and how much lost I’d be without you ---Laura. PS: Hey, let’s be careful out there.
Titled The Ultimate Cop, Laura’s poem was dedicated “To all the cops in the world who have daughters who love them with all their hearts. And especially to my dad”. It was about a police officer’s daughter who sees on the night time news that her father has been shot. Part of poem: “Daddy, my Daddy, can you hear me cry? Oh, God, I need my Daddy, please don’t let him die.”
Ken Knapcik stood alone as he read the poem. “It took me several minutes,” he said. “I’d get through part of it and have to stop before I could go on. I was weeping. She had never told me she was scared.” He took the poem to work the next day and showed it to his fellow officers. I’ve never seen so many grown men cry. Some couldn’t finish it.”
Knapcik keeps Laura’s poem in the pocket of his police jacket. He takes it with him every time he leaves the house for a new shift. “I don’t want to be out there without it,” he said. “I’ll probably carry it with me forever.”
51. Laura wrote the poem ____________.
A. in memory of her father who was shot in the drug arrest
B. to show her great sorrow in losing her father
C. to show her respect to all the cops who lost their lives
D. to tell Officer Ken Knapcik how much she loved him
52. All the officers cried because ____________.
A. Jay Brunkella was shot and died
B. they were greatly touched by the poem
C. the poem was so sad that they couldn’t hold back their tears
D. they thought of their dangerous life
53. Knapcik keeps Laura’s poem in his pocket ______________.
A. to treasure her daughter’s love and to value his own life
B. to keep it from getting lost
C. because he can’t go out without it
D. to mourn over the death of Officer Jay Brunkella
54. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
A. Poem for a cop                         B. An officer’s death
C. A cop’s daughter                       D. Love my job, love my daughter

Dior was born in Normandy in 1905, and his family’s original plans for him included a career in the diplomatic service, but by the time he was twenty-three, with his parents’ money, he opened a small art gallery in Paris. By 1931, the money had been used up. Dior’s friends in the art gallery asked him to draw and he took his first step at designing and drawing. His first job was with Lucien Lelong from whom Dior learned his craft（手艺）.
In February, 1947, Dior started the New Look in his first major Paris collection. He was backed by a famous textile producer, Boussac, who looked after the dollars, while Dior looked after the fashions. Dior knew nothing about cutting and sewing, but he was good at fashion design.
The New Look started an entirely different look to costume, with a tiny waist, a rounded shoulder and a shapely bust（胸围）, usually with a low-cut neckline and a long full skirt. To women who had lived through the war years, the femaleness of the New Look was a great success, for people were tired of the extremely plain, wartime restrictive fashions.
It is said that dresses by Dior were “constructed like buildings”, but young people were attracted to his design, and all over the western world, manufacturers plunged into（投入）the production of his new style. Dior’s revolutionary designs lighted up a whole cycle of fashion - rounded, gentle, feminine - a delight in elegance. A New kook House of Dior opened in 1948, followed by one in London. Considered as King of Couture （Women’s clothing） for years, the Dior Empire grew until it covered every country in the western world, and included furs, jewelry, perfumes, men’s wear and so on. Over 1,000 people worked at the Paris headquarters then.
His sudden death in 1957 when he was 52 years old did not stop the growth of the House of Dior. Even now, so many years after his death, his name is closely connected with fashion throughout the world, and indeed is one of the most recognized names in the world. His first great New Look, with its long skirts, was an expression of freedom in the late 1940s.
【小题1】Which of the following designs is close to Dior’s?

【小题2】According to the passage, in Dior’s life, he did not _________.

I was in a terrible mood. Two of my friends had gone to the movies the night before and hadn’t invited me. I was in my room thinking of ways to make them sorry when my father came in. “Want to go for a ride, today, Beck? It’s a beautiful day.”
“No! Leave me alone!” Those were the last words I said to him that morning.
My friends called and invited me to go to the mall with them a few hours later. I forgot to be mad at them and when I came home to find a note on the table. My mother put it where I would be sure to see it. “Dad has had an accident. Please meet us at Highland Park Hospital”.
When I reached the hospital, my mother came out and told me my father’s injuries were extensive. “Your father told the driver to leave him alone and just call 911, thank God! If he had moved Daddy, there’s no telling what might have happened. A broken rib（肋骨）might have pierced（穿透）a lung...”
My mother may have said more, but I didn’t hear. I didn’t hear anything except those terrible words: Leave me alone. My dad said them to save himself from being hurt more. How much had I hurt him when I hurled those words at him earlier in the day?
It was several days later that he was finally able to have a conversation. I held his hand gently, afraid of hurting him.
“Daddy… I am so sorry…”
“It’s okay, sweetheart. I’ll be okay. ”
“No,” I said, “I mean about what I said to you that day. You know, that morning?”
My father could no more tell a lie than he could fly. He looked at me and said. “Sweetheart, I don’t remember anything about that day, not before, during or after the accident. I remember kissing you goodnight the night before, though. ”He managed a weak smile.
My English teacher once told me that words have immeasurable power. They can hurt or they can heal. And we all have the power to choose our words. I intend to do that very carefully from now on.
【小题1】The author was in a bad mood that morning because _______.

A．Because he didn’t go along with his father.

B．Because he failed to come earlier after the accident.

C．Because he was rude to his father that morning.

D．Because he couldn’t look after his father in the hospital.