阅读下面短文，从每小题所给的四个选项中，选出一个最佳答案。

　　After giving a talk at a high school, I was asked to pay a visit to a special student． An illness had kept the boy home, but he had expressed an interest in meeting me, and it would mean a great deal to him． I agreed．

　　During the nine-mile drive to his home, I found out something about Matthew． He had mus-cular dystrophy (肌肉萎缩症) , When he was born, the doctor told his parents that he would not live to see five, then they were told he would not make it to ten． Now he was thirteen． He wanted to meet me because I was a gold-medal power lifter, and I knew about overcoming obstacles and going for my dream．

　　I spent over an hour talking to Matthew． Never once did he complain or ask, “Why me?” He spoke about winning and succeeding and going for his dreams． Obviously, he knew what he was talking about． He didn’t mention that his classmates had made fun of him because he was differ-ent． He just talked about his hopes for the future, and how one day he wanted to lift weight with me．

　　When we finished talking, I went to my briefcase and pulled out the first gold medal I won and put it around his neck． I told him he was more of a winner and knew more about success and over-coming obstacles than I ever would． He looked at it for a moment, then took it off and handed it back to me． He said, “You are a champion． You earned that medal． Someday when I get to the Olympics and win my own medal, I will show it to you． ”

　　Last summer I received a letter from Matthew’s parents telling me that Matthew had passed away． They wanted me to have a letter he had written to me a few days before

　　Dear Rick ,

　　My mom said I should send you a thank-you letter for the picture you sent me． 1 also want to let you know that the doctors tell me that 1 don ‘t have long to live anymore． But I still smile as much as 1 can．

　　I told you someday 1 was going to the Olympics and win a gold medal． But I know now I will never get to do that． But I know 1 ‘m a champion , and God knows that too． When I get to Heaven , God will give me my medal and when you get there , I will show it to you． Thank you for loving me．

Your friend ,

Matthew

1．The boy wanted to meet the author because________．

[　　]

A．he was interested in weight lifting

B．he wanted to get a gold medal．

C．he admired the author very much

D．he wanted the author to know him．

2．The underlined part “Why me?” in the third paragraph probably means “________”

[　　]

A．Why do you come to see me?

B．Why do I have to stay at home?

C．Why does the disease fall on me?

D．Why not give a gold medal to me?

3．We can infer from the passage that ________．

[　　]

A．Matthew is a determined boy

B．Rich used to have the same disease

C．Matthew became a champion finally

D．Rick regarded Matthew as normal

4．The boy refused the author’s medal because ________．

[　　]

A．he wanted the picture instead

B．he did not like to be pitied by others

C．he did not know he would die soon

D．he himself could earn one in the future

You can't imagine that a top student          ______ have failed in the college entrance examination.

A. might             B. need              C. should         D. would

________ that a good student like him should have made such a big mistake.

1. A.
   It's strangely
2. B.
   It's surprised
3. C.
   It's understood
4. D.
   It's surprising

Dear Editor,

I’m a Senior I student in a middle school. This term, my favorite teacher, Miss Mao, no longer teaches us. I want to see her, but I’m afraid that she no longer likes me and I don’t want to trouble her. I really miss her. What should I do?

                                                                Tian Yan

Dear Tian Yan,

It’s bad luck that you have lost your favorite teacher, But if she is still in your school , nothing can stop you going to see her. When she isn’t busy, ask her if she minds having a quick chat. You can then tell her she was your favorite teacher------ everyone is happy to know that they are liked!

If she has left the school, it will be more difficult to meet her. It will be hard, but remember people always come and go in their lives. We can’t rely on them to be with us all the time.

You may be sad to say goodbye to her, but we can remember and learn from her. Think of her best qualities.

You could also try looking for similar qualities in your other teachers. Study hard and give your new teacher a chance.In time, you might start to see that he or she has different qualities to learn from.

Finally, you can not completely rely on other people to get you through your studies , or even your life.

                                                          Editor

The letters are from________.

   A book      B newspaper   C poster     D advertisement

Which of the following does the editor advise Tuan Yan NOT to do?

  A Find a time to see Miss Mao    B Have a short chat with Miss Mao

  C Tell Miss Mao she likes her     D Keep quiet about the thing

According to the passage, students can make progress in their studies _______.

  A completely by their favorite teachers  B completely by their favorite classmates

  C mainly by their parents             D mainly by themselves

Last year, a report by a committee of education experts said that a lot of American students cannot write well. The report noted the concerns of business leaders and teachers. The experts said that more students should have to pass a writing test before they can finish high school. They pointed out that major college entrance tests are changing now to include a writing part.

　　Educators know that teaching students to write well is not easy. One problem is the amount of time needed to read through large amounts of work. So some companies have developed computer programs. These can grade student writing much more quickly than a person can. Writing tests can also cost less to carry out by computer than paper-and-pencil. These computer systems are known as e-readers. They use artificial (人工的) intelligence to think in a way like teachers. In the state of Indiana, computer grading of a statewide writing test began with a test of the system itself. For two years, both a computer and humans graded the student writing. Officials say there was almost no difference between the computer grades and those given by the human readers.

　　The entrance test commonly used by business schools, the GMAT, already uses e-readers. The GRE and TOEFL tests might start; officials are deciding. The GRE is the Graduate Record Examination. TOEFL is the Test of English as a Foreign Language.

　　Systems are also being used to grade writing in college classes. The computers read a few hundred examples of student writing already graded by humans. Then the systems compare new writings against those already examined.

　　How do teachers feel all about this? Many say machines can never do the job as well as people can. A computer can find spelling and grammar mistakes. But these teachers say it can never really understand what a writer is trying to say. Critics say a program cannot follow a thought or judge humor or understand a beautifully expressed idea.

　　But inventors of the programs say computer grading guarantees that each piece of writing is graded in the same way. They also say the systems are meant to judge knowledge more than creativity.

What do the teachers think of the computer system?

       A. They think highly of the computer systems.

       B. They think that computers cannot grade writing as well as people.

       C. They believe that computers can understand a writer’s idea well

       D. They are glad computers will spare their effort to correct students’ school work.

From the first paragraph we can conclude that _________.

       A. American students’ writing ability is being improved

       B. American students’ writing ability is not satisfactory

       C. business leaders and teachers are not worried about students’ writing

       D. all college entrance tests will include a writing part

Which of the following is NOT the advantage of e-readers?

       A. Saving much of teachers’ time.　    B. Saving a lot of money.

　    C. Being fair and objective.   D. Appreciating humor and beauty

The best title of this passage might be _________.

       A. Computer-graded Writing B. Human-graded Writing

       C. How to Improve Students’ Writing   D. Advantages of E-readers