In 1988, Mary Anderson was at the Miami airport checking in for a flight to Norway to be with her husband when she was told she wouldn’t be able to check her luggage without paying a $100 surcharge (超载) .

Mary had no money as her new husband had left for Norway and she had no one else to call .

 “ I was completely desperate and tried to think which of my things I could manage without ,” says Mary .

As tears ran down her face , a voice behind her said , “That’s okay, I’ll pay for her .”

Rather surprised , Mary turned around to see a tall man whom she had never seen before . He had a gentle and kind voice that was firm and decisive .

Although this happened twenty years ago , Mary still remembers the authority that radiated (发出)from the man .

Mary was pleased to bring her luggage to Norway and told the stranger she would give his money back . The man wrote his name and address on a piece of paper and gave it to Mary . She thanked him repeatedly . When she finally walked off towards the boarding gate, he waved goodbye to her .

That man turned out to be Barack Obama .

Mary paid the money back to Obama the day she joined her husband . At that time he had just finished his job as a poorly paid community worker in Chicago , and had started his law studies at Harward University .

In the spring of 2006 , Mary’s parents heard Obama was considering a run for President . They wrote a letter saying that they would support him. At the same time , they thanked Obama for helping their daughter 18 years earlier .

And Obama replied , “ I want to thank you for the lovely things you wrote about me and for reminding me of what happened at Miami airport . I’m happy I could help her then , and I’m delighted to hear that your daughter is happy in Norway . Please send her my best wishes . Sincerely , Barack Obama,

United States Senator .”

Why did Mary feel completely desperate ?

 A. She had missed the only flight to Norway .

 B. Her new husband abandoned her suddenly .

 C. She didn’t have the money to buy a ticket .

 D. She had no money to pay for the surcharge .

How did Mary feel when someone offered to help her ?

 A. Amazed       B. Puzzled     C. Delighted      D. Annoyed

Mary asked the stranger to leave his name and address _________ .

  A. in order to contact him later              B. so that she could repay him

  C. because he impressed her deeply          D. because she fell in love with him

What’s the passage mainly about ?

  A. A letter from Barack Obama           B. Mary’s parents support Obama

  C. Obama helped a stranger 20 years ago    D. Mary was lucky to get help at the airport

In prison you spend the majority of your time in an 8*10 cell. At work you spend most of your time in a 6*8 cubicle (小房间). In prison you get three meals a day. At work you only get a break for one meal and you have to pay for it. In prison you get time off for good behavior. At work you get rewarded for good behavior with more work.

In prison a guard locks and unlocks all the doors for you. At work you carry around a security card and unlock and open all doors yourself. In prison you can watch TV and play games. At work you get fired for watching TV and playing games (or being on the Internet). In prison you get your own toilet. At work you have to share. In prison they allow your family and friends to visit. At work you cannot even speak to your family and friends.

In prison all expenses are paid by taxpayers with no work required. At work you get to pay all the expenses to go to work and then they deduct taxes from your salary to pay for prisoners. In prison you spend most of your life looking through bars (铁条), waiting to get out. At work you spend most of your time waiting to get out and inside bars. In prison there are wardens who are often sadistic(虐待成性的). At work they are called managers.

56. The author makes a contrast between a prisoner’s and an office worker’s lives in order to show that ____________.

   A. the former is more comfortable than the latter

   B. compared with prisoners, office workers have been badly treated

   C. it is unfair that a worker lives more miserably than a prisoner

   D. working in an office can be more restricting than being in prison

57. According to the passage, if an employee has performed well in the company, he will probably ____________.

   A. get a promotion                                             B. be given a pay rise

   C. receive a reward                                            D. have a heavier load

58. By saying “At work you spend most of your time wanting to get out and inside bars”, the author means that __________.

   A. an office worker always wants to leave his job and be put in prison

   B. an office worker always wants to leave his cubicle and be put in prison

   C. an office worker always wishes to have a drink at work

   D. an office worker always wishes to end a day’s work and go for a drink

59. Which of the following words can best describe a manager’s image in the author’s mind?

     A. Cruel.                      B. Strict.                      C. Kind.                D. Serious.

D

       The regular use of text messages and e-mails can lower the IQ more than twice as much as smoking marijuana(大麻). That is the claim of psychologists who have found that tapping away on a mobile phone or computer keypad or checking them for electronic messages temporarily knocks up to ten points off the user’s IQ.

       This rate of decline in intelligence compares unfavorably with the four-point drop in IQ associated with smoking marijuana, according to British researchers, who have labeled(贴标签于，指……为，分类) the fleeting phenomenon of enhanced stupidity as “infomania”.

       The noticeable drop in IQ is believed to be the result of the constant distraction of “always on” technology when employees should be concentrating on what they are paid to do. Infomania means that they lose concentration as their minds remain fixed in an almost permanent state of readiness to react to technology instead of focusing on the tasks in hand.

       The brain also finds it hard to deal with keeping lots of tasks in motion at once, reducing its overall effectiveness. While modern technology can have huge benefits, excessive(过度的) use can be damaging not only to a person’s mind, but to his or her social life.

       Eighty volunteers took part in clinical (临床的)trials on IQ damage and 1,100 adults were interviewed.

       More than six in ten people polled admitted that they were addicted to checking their e-mails and text messages so that they examined work-related ones even when at home or on holiday. Half said that they always responded immediately to an e-mail and one in five would interrupt a meeting to do so.

       Furthermore, Informania is having a negative effect on work colleagues, increasing stress and disagreeing feelings. Nine out of ten polled thought that colleagues who answered e-mails or messages during a face-to-face meeting were extremely rude. Yet one in three Britons believed that it was not only acceptable, but actually diligent and efficient to do so.

67. What does the underlined part mean?

A. A person’s IQ drops ten points if he or she always checks electronic messages.

B. The person who has a higher IQ enjoys checking electronic messages.

C. The person who has a lower IQ enjoys checking electronic messages.

D. A person’s IQ is ten points higher if he or she always checks electronic messages.

68. What happens to people with infomania?

A. People with infomania can only concentrate on their tasks in hand.

B. People with infomania are addicted to smoking marijuana.

C. People with infomania can’t respond to technology immediately.

D. People with infomania can’t concentrate on their tasks in hand.

69. From the passage, we can learn that     .

A. about 550 interviewees responded to an e-mail immediately

B. about 670 interviewees responded to an e-mail immediately

C. about 40 taking part in clinical trials on IQ were addicted to checking e-mail

D. about 16 taking part in clinical trials on IQ refused to answer e-mails immediately

70. What is the main idea of this passage?

A. The regular use of text messages and e-mails can be compared to smoking marijuana.

B. Modern technology can damage a person’s mind.

C. The regular use of text messages and e-mails can harm your IQ.

D. Electronic messages can have effects on the user’s life.

    In 1988 , Mary Andersen was at the Miami airport checking in for a flight to Norway to be with her husband when she was told she wouldn't be able to check her luggage without paying a $ 100 surcharge （超载）．                

    Mary had no money as her new husband had left for Norway and she had no one else to call．

    "I was completely desperate and tried to think which of my things I could manage without．" says Mary．          

    As tears ran down her face, a voice behind her said, "That's okay, I'll pay for her．"

    Rather surprised, Mary turned around to see a tall man whom she had never seen before．He had a gentle and kind voice mat was firm and decisive．                     

    Although this happened twenty years ago, Mary still remembers the authority that radiated （发出）from the man, Mary was pleased to bring her luggage to Norway and told the stranger she would give his money back．The man wrote his name and address on a piece of paper he gave to Mary．She thanked him repeatedly When she finally walked off towards the boarding gate, he waved goodbye to her．

    That man turned out to be Barack Obama．      

    Mary paid the money back to Obama the day she joined her husband．At that time he had just finished his job as a poorly paid community worker in Chicago, and had started his law studies at Harvard University.   

In the spring of 2006 Mary’s parents heard Obama was considering a run for president. They wrote a letter saying that they would support him. At the same time, they thanked Obama for helping their daughter 18 years earlier.

    And Obama replied, “ I want to thank you for the lovely things you wrote about me and for reminding me of what happened at Miami airport. I’m happy I could help her then, and I’m delighted to hear that your daughter is happy in Norway. Please send her my best wishes. Sincerely, Barack Obama , United States Senator.”

1.Why did Mary feel completely desperate?                                 

    A．She had missed the only flight to Norway．

    B．Her new husband abandoned her suddenly．

    C．She didn't have the money to buy a ticket．

    D．She had no money to pay for the surcharge．

2.How did Mary feel when someone offered to help her"?

    A ．Amazed．      B．Puzzled．      C．Delighted．                  D．Annoyed．

3.Mary asked the stranger to leave his name and address____,

    A．in order to contact him later                      B．so that she could repay him

    C．because impressed her deeply                       D．because she fell in love with him

4.What’s the passage mainly about?                         

    A．A letter from Barack Obama．                         

    B．Mary's parents support Obama．                       

    C．Obama helped a stranger about 20 years ago．

    D．Mary was lucky to get help at the airport．

C

Taiwan police cannot decide whether to treat it as an extremely clever act of stealing or an even cleverer cheat（诈骗）.Either way, it could be a perfect crime（犯罪）, because the criminals are birds----homing pigeons.

The crime begins with a telephone message to the owner of a stolen car: if you want the car back, pay some money. Then, the car owner is directed to a park, told where to find a bird cage and how to attach money to the neck of the pigeon inside. Carrying the money in a tiny bag, the pigeon flies off.

There have been at least four such pigeon pick-ups in Changwa. What at first seemed like the work of a clever stay-at-home car thief, however, may in fact be the work of an even lazier and more inventive criminal mind---- one that avoids（避免） not only collecting money but going out to steal the car in the first place. Police officer Chen says that the criminal probably has pulled a double trick: he gets money for things he cannot possibly return. Instead of stealing cars, he lets someone else do it and then waits for the car owner to place an ad in the newspaper asking for help.

The theory is supportd by the fact that, so far,none of the stolen cars have been returned. Also, the amount of money demanded----under 3,000 Taiwanese dollars-----seems too little for a car worth many times more.

Demands for pigeon-delivered money stopped as soon as the press reported the story. And even if they start again, Chen holds little hope of catching the criminal. “We have more important things to do,”he said.

66.After the car owner received a phone call, he ___________.

A. went to a certain pigeon and put some money in the bag it carried

B. gave the money to the thief and had his car back in a park

C. sent some money to the thief by mail

D.told the press about it

67. The “lazier and more inventive”criminal refers to ________.

A.the car thief who stays at home              B.one of those who put the ads in the paper

C.one of the policemen in Changwa        D. the owner of the pigeons

68.The writer mentions the fact that “none of the stolen cars have been returned” to show ____________.

A.how easily people get fooled by criminals     B.what Chen thinks might be correct.

C. the thief is extremely clever.               D.the money paid is too little.

69. The underlined word “they” in the last paragraph refers to ________.

   A.criminals       B. pigeons       C. the stolen cars            D.demands for money

70. We may infer from the text that the criminal knows how to reach the car owners because ____________.

A.he reads the ads in the newspaper

B.he lives in the same neighborhood

C.he has seen the car owners in the park

D.he has trained the pigeons to follow them