Music has often been used in movies to create mood and add dimension to the images which the audience sees on the screen. One man who is famous for his ability to write powerful and highly effective music for movies is John Williams. Mr. Williams has been writing music for movies since 1960, but he is perhaps best known for his award-winning scores for movies such as Jaws, Star Wars, and Schindler's List. Before he began writing music for the movies, Mr. Williams dreamed of being a concert pianist. He studied at both the University of California, Los Angeles and Juilliard School. During the 1950s, Mr. Williams was into jazz and he worked in New York City with many jazz artists. Later, he moved back to Los Angeles where he continued to play the piano for jazz musicians. He also got a job writing music for television shows. It was this television job that led him into movies.
Throughout the 1960s, Mr. Williams wrote the music that can be heard in more than 20 movies. Most of these movies were light comedies. Then, in 1975, the director of the movie Jaws, Steven Spielberg, hired Mr. Williams. The director thought that Mr. William's music added so much to the scary （引起恐慌的）scenes of the movie that he insisted on working with Mr. Williams in all of his future movies. Other directors and Hollywood film studios also demanded to work with Mr. Williams, and his career as a composer of movie soundtracks took off. Many of these movies have soundtracks that are still available in music stores today. They include The Deer Hunter, Raiders of the Lost Ark, ET, and Jurassic Park.
In 1980, Mr. Williams had another chance to expand his musical experience. He was chosen to be the new conductor for the Boston Pops Orchestra when Arthur Fiedler retired. Mr. Williams gladly accepted the position because it only required that he conduct the orchestra during the summer. This left him free to continue writing music for the movies during the rest of the year. Mr. Williams conducted the Boston Pops for more than 12 years before he decided to retire and write music full-time. Along with the many movie music scores he has written, Mr. Williams has also written two symphonies, a flute concerto, and a violin concerto. Up to now, Mr. Williams has written music for more than 60 movies. It is no wonder that he is today's most famous Hollywood composer.
69. What is John Williams most famous for?
A. Conducting.                 B. Making movies.
C. Playing jazz.                 D. Writing music for movies.
70. What happened to Mr. Williams in 1975?
A. He began writing music for movies.      B. He moved to Hollywood.
C. He worked with Steven Spielberg.        D. He worked for the Boston Pops.
71. Which of the following things has Mr. Williams not done?
A. Conducted an orchestra.              B. Directed a movie.
C. Played jazz piano.                   D. Writing classical music.

Little Robby, our neighbour’s nephew, carefully drew some water into a bowl and started for the door. How I hated this water rationing (定量供应). We were forced to bathe in the deep little pond we shared with Jessie, our cow. Wells were dry, and crops transformed to dust.

I watched Robby sitting down onto the steps to my house. Bees buzzed circling his hair, and he buzzed with them. I remembered his aunt’s words: I don’t know what I was thinking when I took him in. The crash killed my sister, and he wasn’t hurt, but he can’t talk. He’s in a world of all his own.

Why couldn’t she see the wonderful gifts this boy possessed? He was blessed with a loving nature and a deep admiration for all living things, and I knew he could talk to animals. My heart ached for Robby, who was to stay with us for the summer, and had already been the dearest part of our world, eagerly tending the garden with me and my husband, Tom.

On a string around Robby’s neck hung a whistle, in case he was ever lost or in danger. After all, he could not call out for help. But he knew perfectly well that the whistle was not a toy. Blowing on it would bring us both running. I had told him the story of the boy who cried wolf, and I knew he understood me.

I sighed as I cleared up the last supper dish. Every ounce of recycled water was saved for a tiny vegetable garden Robby had planted. Tom turned to me. “You know, honey, I’ve been thinking about...”

Before he could continue, a scream from the yard made us jump. My God! It’s Robby’s whistle! When we reached him, he was pointing excitedly to the sky. Looking up, we saw the most magnificent sight: Rain Clouds! “Robby! Quick! We need all the pots and pans!”

Robby raced with me to the house. A drop of water fell on my pot and then another. Soon the yard was enveloped in soaking, glorious rain. We all stood with faces held upward to feel the comfort of it. Tom picked up Robby and danced about the pots, shouting and whooping, “Rain for Robby!” Tom swung about to show me Robby’s face: he was laughing right out loud, “W-W-Wobby’s!” “Wobby’s … wain … Mom,” giggling（咯咯地笑）, and stretching out one tiny hand in the shape of a cup to catch the rain.

I hugged them both, tears of joy mixing with the rain.

1.The underlined phrase “the wonderful gifts” in the 3rd paragraph refers to Robby’s ______.

A．love for nature and all living things

B．kindness to help others around

C．independence since his childhood

D．readiness to accept what happened to him

2.It was because ______ that the author and her husband would run on hearing the whistle.

A．it was going to rain

B．Robby often surprised us with his whistle

C．something bad might happen to Robby.

D．Robby might find something special

3.What can we learn from the passage?

A．Robby was old enough, but still couldn’t speak.

B．Robby’s aunt regretted bringing Robby home.

C．Robby didn’t accept the author and Tom as his parents.

D．Robby happened to find the rain cloud and was terrified.

4.It can be concluded from the passage that ______.

A．we should show mercy for the disabled children

B．every child has his own talent however young he is

C．children from poor families take responsibilities earlier

D．children’s sensitive hearts are worthy to be taken care of

Mark and his brother Jason both were looking at the shining new computer enviously. Jason was determined not to go against their father’s wishes but Mark was more adventurous than his brother. He loved experimenting and his aim was to become a scientist like his father.
“Dad will be really mad if he finds out you’ve been playing with his new computer.” Jason said, “He told us not to touch it.”
“He won’t find out.” Mark said, “I’ll just have a quick look and shut it down.”
Mark had been scolded before for touching his father’s equipment. But his curiosity was difficult to control and this new computer really puzzled him.
It was a strange-looking machine –one his dad had brought home from the laboratory where he worked. “It’s an experimental model,” his father had explained, “so don’t touch it under any circumstances.” But his father's warning only served to make Mark more curious. Without any further thought, Mark turned on the power switch. The computer burst into life and seconds later, the screen turned into colors, shifting and changing and then two big white words appeared in the center of the screen: “SPACE TRANSPORTER.”
“Yes!” Mark cried excitedly, “It’s a computer game. I knew it! Dad’s only been pretending to work. He’s really been playing games instead.” A new message appeared on the screen:
“ENTER NAMES
VOYAGER 1: …
VOYAGER 2: …”
Mark’s fingers flew across the keyboard as he typed in both of their names.
“INPUT ACCEPTED. START TRANSPORT PROGRAM. AUTO-RETRIEVE INITIATED（自动回收程序已启动）.”
The screen turned even brighter and a noise suddenly rose in volume.
“I think we’d better shut it off, Mark,” Jason yelled, reaching for the power switch. He was really frightened.
But his hand never reached the switch. A single beam of dazzling white light burst out of the computer screen, wrapping the boys in its glow (光芒), until they themselves seemed to be glowing. Then it died down just as suddenly as it had burst into life. And the boys were no longer there. On the screen, the letters changed.
“TRANSPORT SUCCESSFUL. DESTINATION（目的地）: MARS. RETRIEVE DATE: 2025.”
【小题1】Why did Mark touch the computer against his father’s warning?

On the day of a big event, many people came to Big Bend Mountain to watch. John Henry and the salesman stood side by side. Even early in the day, the sun was burning hot.

The competition began. John Henry kissed his hammer and started working. At first, the steam-powered drill worked two times faster than he did. Then, he started working with a hammer in each hand. He worked faster and faster. In the mountain, the heat and dust were so thick that most men would have had trouble breathing. The crowd shouted as clouds of dust came from inside the mountain.

The salesman was afraid when he heard what sounded like the mountain breaking. However, it was only the sound of John Henry at work. Polly Ann and her son cheered when the machine was pulled from the tunnel of the mountain. It had broken down. Polly Ann urged John Henry to come out. But he kept working, faster and faster. He dug deep into the darkness, hitting the steel so hard that his body began to fail him. He became weak, and his heart burst.

John Henry fell to the ground. There was a terrible silence. Polly Ann did not move because she knew what had happened. John Henry’s blood spilled over the ground. But he still held one of the hammers. “I beat them,” he said. His wife cried out, “Don’t go, John Henry.”“Bring me a cool drink of water,”he said. Then he took his last breath.

His friends carried his body from the mountain. They buried him near the house where he was born. Crowds went there after they heard about John Henry’s death.

Soon, the steam drill and other machines replaced the steel-drivers. Many laborers left their families to look for work. They took the only jobs they could find. As they worked, some sang about John Henry.

What does the big event mentioned in Paragraph 1 refer to?

A.John Henry’s work on a machine.

B.A competition between John Henry and a salesman.

C.John Henry’s work with his hammer and the steel.

D.A competition between John Henry and a drill.

The underlined word “tunnel ”in Paragraph 3 probably means “           ”.

A.flat ground                B.big rock             C.underground passage         D.hard metal

What happened to John Henry when he fell to the ground?

A.He was tired and had to have a rest.

B.He had heart trouble and was dying.

C.He was thirsty and wanted to drink some water.

D.He was injured slightly and was bleeding.

What do we know about John Henry?

A.He won the competition finally.        B.He was buried under the mountain.

C.He loved his work very much.          D.He said nothing before his death.

What can we infer from the passage?

A.Humans can never beat machines.            B.John Henry was regarded as a hero.

C.Laborers hated machines very much.        D.It was easy for laborers to find work.

--What happened to you on your way back to the hotel last night?

   --I lost my way in complete darkness and, _________ things worse,it was pouring with rain.      

A. making        B. to make          C. having made       D. made