I told my friend Graham that I often cycle the two miles from my house to the town centre but unfortunately there is a big hill on the route. He replied, "You mean fortunately." He explained that I should be glad of the extra exercise that the hill provided.

My attitude to the hill has now changed. I used to grumble as I approached it but now I tell myself the following. This hill will exercise my heart and lungs. It will help me to lose weight and get fit. It will mean that I live longer. This hill is my friend. Finally as I wend my way up the incline I console myself with the thought of all those silly people who pay money to go to a gym and sit on stationery exercise bicycles when I can get the same value for free. I have a smug smile of satisfaction as I reach the top of the hill.

Problems are there to be faced and overcome. Helen Keller was the first deaf and blind person to gain a University degree. Her activism and writing proved inspirational. She wrote, "Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experiences of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared, ambition inspired and success achieved."

One of the main determinants of success in life is our attitude towards adversity. From time to time we all face hardships, problems, accidents, afflictions and difficulties. Some are of our making but many confront us through no fault of our own. Whilst we cannot choose the adversity we can choose our attitude towards it.

The biographies of great people are littered with examples of how they took these kinds of steps to overcome the difficulties they faced. The common thread is that they did not become defeatist or depressed. They chose their attitude. They chose to be positive. They took on the challenge. They won.

54. Which of the following would be the best title of the passage?

　　 A. Attitude makes difference

　　　 B. Well begun is half done.

　　　 C. The early bird gets the worm.

　　　 D. Easier said than done.

55. From Helen Keller’s example we can infer that__________.

　　　 A. Great people are born to be great and successful

　　　 B. Life is hard and difficult so we have to give up

　　　 C. We cannot achieve anything with an easy life

　　　 D. Practice makes people successful and powerful

56. What do you think the author is most likely to suggest if he/she continues to write?

　　　 A. Some examples of our daily life.

　　　 B. His stories of overcoming difficulties.

　　　 C. Stories of some unlucky great people.

　　　 D. Some examples of his friend Graham.

57. The underlined word “adversity ” in the fourth paragraph probably NOT refers to ______.

　　　 A. problems B. difficulties C. hardships D. advertisements

    The twentieth century saw greater changes than any century before: changes for the better, changes for the worse; changes that brought a lot of benefits to human beings, changes that put man in danger. Many things caused the changes, but, in my opinion, the most important was the progress in science.

    Scientific research in physics and biology has vastly broadened our views. It has given us a deeper knowledge of the structure of matter and of the universe; it has brought us a better understanding of the nature of life and of its continuous development. Technology “the application of science” has made big advances that have benefited us in nearly every part of life.

    The continuation of such activities in the twenty-first century will result in even greater advantages to human beings: in pure science -- a wider and deeper knowledge in all fields of learning; in applied science -- a more reasonable sharing of material benefits, and better protection of the environment.

    Sadly, however, there is another side to the picture. The creativity of science has been employed in doing damage to mankind. The application of science and technology to the development and production of weapons of mass destruction has created a real danger to the continued existence of the human race on this planet. We have seen this happen in the case of nuclear weapons. Although their actual use has so far occurred only in the Second World War, the number of nuclear weapons that were produced and made ready for use was so large that if the weapons had actually been used, the result could have been the ruin of the human race, as well as of many kinds of animals.

   William Shakespeare said, "The web of our life is of a mingled yarn (纱线), good and ill together. The above brief review of the application of only one part of human activities – science seems to prove what Shakespeare said. But does it have to be so? Must the ill always go together with the good? Are we biologically programmed for war?

1.Which of the following best shows the structure of the passage?

A.               B.                   C.                  D.

2.From the fourth paragraph, we can infer that________.

A. a great many nuclear weapons were actually used for war

B. a large number of nuclear weapons should have been used for war

C. the author is doubtful about the ruin of human beings by nuclear weapons

D. the author is anxious about the huge number of nuclear weapons on the earth

3.The underlined word "mingled" in the last paragraph most probably means________.

A. simple           B. mixed           C. sad               D. happy

4.What do you think the author is most likely to suggest if he continues to write?

A. Further application of science to war.

B. More reading of William Shakespeare.

C. Proper use of science in the new century.

D. Effective ways to separate the good from the ill.

       The twentieth century saw greater changes than any century before changes for the better, changes for the worse, changes that brought a lot of benefits to human beings ,changes that put man in danger .Many things caused the changes ,but ,in my opinion ,the most important was the progress in science.

       Scientific research in physics and biology has vastly broadened our views. It has given us a deeper knowledge of the structure of matter and of the universe ,it has brought us a better understanding of the nature of life and of its continuous development .Technology in the application of science has made big advances that have benefited us in nearly every part of life.

       The continuation of such activities in the twenty-first century will result in even greater advantages to human beings : in pure science―a wider and deeper knowledge in all fields of learning ;in applied science―a more reasonable sharing of material benefits ,and better protection of the environment.

       Sadly ,however ,there is another side to the picture .The creativity of science has been employed in doing damage to mankind .The application of science and technology to the development and production of weapons of mass destruction has created a real danger to the continued existence of the human race on this planet .We have seen this happen in the case of nuclear weapons ,Although their actual use has so far occurred only in the Second World War ,the number of nuclear weapons that were produced and made ready for use was so large that if the weapons had actually been used ,the result could have been the ruin of the human race ,as well as of many kinds of animals.

       William Shakespeare said. “The web of our life is of a mingled yarn（纱线）,good and ill together. “The above brief review of the application of only one part of human activities―science seems to prove what Shakespeare said. But does it have to be so ?Must the ill always go together with the good ?Are we biologically programmed for war?

72．Which of the following best shows the structure of the passage?

       （①=Paragraph 1,②=Paragraph 2, ③=Paragraph 3, ④=Paragraph 4,⑤=Paragraph 5）

73．From the fourth paragraph ,we can infer that       .

       A．a great many nuclear weapons were actually used for war

       B．a large number of nuclear weapons should have been used for war

       C．the author is doubtful about the ruin of human beings by nuclear weapons

       D．the author is anxious about the huge number of nuclear weapons on the earth

74．The underlined word “mingled” in the last paragraph most probably means     .

       A．simple                 B．mixed                  C．sad                     D．happy

75．What do you think the author is most likely to suggest if he continues to write?

       A．Further application of science to war.

       B．More reading of William Shakespeare.

       C．Proper use of science in the new century.

       D．Effective ways to separate the good from the ill.