The skier’s red clothes stood out clearly ______ the snow.

One day newly wedded Nancy lost her ring while helping to plant potatoes. Friends were called and the field was searched long but in vain(徒劳). Later, when the potatoes were harvested, Everyone looked out for the ring but it remained lost. Another year came round and all the farmers working in the field kept their eyes open. The following year was the same. And year after year, whoever had business in the field always had Nancy’s ring in his mind.

Then the farm changed hands but it went no farther than to cousins. So the memory of the lost ring remained alive until thirty-eight years had passed. Then came a spring day when a man was ploughing the field behind a pair of horses. Even after thirty-eight years he still looked out for the ring, and knew just which part of the field Nancy had lost it in. At this time, when he came there, he found it .He picked it up, put it carefully into his pocket, left his horse, and ran all the way down to the village and placed it into Nancy’s hand.

1. How did Nancy come to lose her ring?

A. She lost it while helping to harvest tomatoes in the field

B. She lost it while watering the plants in the field.

C. She lost it while working in the field.

D. She lost it while helping to plant potatoes in the field.

2. Why did people keep looking for the ring even after the farm changed hands?

A. It was a very expensive ring     B. They all wanted to solve the mystery.

C. They all loved Nancy.          D. Everybody wanted to have this ring.

3. What did the ploughman do after finding the ring?

A. He picked it up and put it in his pocket. 

 B. He ran back to tell everybody in the village.

C. He placed it in a secret spot.           

 D. He returned it to the owner.

4.. What can you infer from the story?

A. The ring was invaluable.          

 B. People on the farm were honest and helpful.

C. The ring’s disappearance was the work of supernatural power.

D. Nancy no longer expected that her ring would be found again.

Even as Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda wrapped up a tired appearance before Congress，the head of the world’s largest automaker wasn’t leaving his problems behind．
Toyota faces a criminal investigation by federal lawyers in New York．The company is now being investigated．Its US dealerships in difficulty now are facing repairs to potentially millions of customer cars that have been recalled．The company is offering customers money back for rental cars and other expenses．
Its lawyers are busy preparing to cope with lawsuits．A new hearing will be conducted. And the cost to Toyota’s reputation is only now starting．
Despite back-to-back hearings this week，left to be said were a better explanation for slow actions to deal with the faults and believable promises that the problems that led to sudden，unintended accelerations will be fixed．
Toyoda said those changes were being made nearly around the clock，but during three hours of often tense questions and answers he repeated that there was no link to the vehicle’s electronic systems．
Many drivers making complaints against Toyota and the government say their acceleration problems had nothing to do with floor mat interference(油门踏板故障)or sticky gas pedals(刹车)．Outside experts have suggested electronic problems.
House lawmakers expressed serious criticism on Toyoda，the grandson of the company’s founder．
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration(NHTSA)is seeking records on Toyota’s recalls and is conducting its own review on whether electronics were behind the car faults．NHTSA also continues to look into steering complaints from drivers of the popular Corolla model．
Toyota has recalled 8．5 million cars，more than 6 million of them in the United States．
It may be a while before car buyers believe that Toyota really makes safe cars．
Toyota’s January sales already fell 16 percent even as most other automakers jumped back from last year’s bad results．Analyst Koji Endo of Advanced Research Japan in Tokyo said he expects February sales，due out next week，to be down 30 percent to 40．Toyota’s sales problem could continue beyond that． 
It will take some time to feel the full effect of this，he said．
58．The best title for this passage is___________．
A．Toyota is in trouble                   B．Toyota is under hearing
C．Toyota is finished                         D．Toyota is still running
59．What is the purpose of the hearing?
A．America hopes that Toyota apologizes to the US customers．
B．America wants to get Toyota out of the US market．
C．America wants to help Toyota out of difficulty．
D．America hopes that Toyota admits their cars have electronic system problem．
60．Why does Toyota recall cars and offer customers money back for rental cars and other expenses?
A．It tries to avoid the maximum damages to the company．
B．It is big company and has means to fix every problem．
C．It’s part of post service．
D．It’s a way to compete in auto market．
61．The last sentence of this passage indicates______________.
A．Analyst Koji Endo is fully confident about Toyota
B．Toyota could meet a worse situation
C．Toyota would get out of trouble sooner or later
D．Toyota would build up a better reputation among its customers

Each of us fails from time to time. If we are wise, we accept these failures as a  36  part of the learning process. But all too often as parents and teachers we disallow this  37  right to our children.

When I see a child  38  to this kind of pressure, I think of Donnie.

    Donnie was my youngest third grader. His  39  of failure kept him from classroom games that other children enjoyed. He 40  answered questions — he might be wrong.

I tried my best to build his  41. But nothing changed until midterm, when Mary Anne, a student teacher, was assigned （安排）to our classroom.

   She was young and pretty, and she loved children. My pupils, Donnie included, 42  her.

   One morning, we were working math problems at the chalkboard. Donnie had 43  the problems with painstaking neatness. Pleased with his progress, I 44  the children with Mary Anne and went for art materials. When I returned, Donnie was in 45 . He’d missed the third problem.

   My student teacher looked at me in despair. Suddenly her face  46. From the desk we shared, she got a container filled with pencils.

   "Look, Donnie," she said, kneeling beside him and gently 47 the tear?stained face from his arms. "I’ve got something to48 you." She removed the pencils, one at a time, and placed them on his desk.

   "See these 49 , Donnie," she continued. "They belong to Mrs. Lindstrom and me. See how the erasers are 50 ? That’s because we make mistakes too.But we erase the mistakes and try again. That’s what you 51  learn to do, too."

    She kissed him and stood up. "Here," she said, "I’ll leave one of these pencils on 52  desk so you’ll remember that everybody makes mistakes, 53  teachers." Donnie looked up with love in his eyes and a smile.

    The pencil became Donnie’s  54  possession. That, together with Mary Anne’s frequent encouragement, gradually 55  him that it’s all right to make mistakes — as long as you erase them and try again.

36. A. small              B. basic             C. necessary                    D. large

37. A. correct            B. same             C. important                   D. natural

38. A. suffering           B. object              C. fall                      D. subject

39. A. fear                B. lesson              C. chance                           D. sense

40. A. always            B. often             C. never                      D. seldom

41. A. self－protection   B. self－improvement    C. self－confidence     D. self－learning

42. A. respected          B. disliked            C. avoided                   D. mined

43. A. worked out       B. copied              C. gone over                   D. leaned

44. A. left                     B. offered             C. missed                           D. parted

45. A. surprise                 B. astonishment        C. anger                      D. tears

46. A. darkened           B. brightened        C. pulled                     D. loosened

47. A. lifting             B. picking            C. holding                   D. pushing

48. A. help               B. show             C. reward                           D. promise

49. A. pencils            B. mistakes           C. marks                     D. containers

50. A. used               B. built             C. worn                       D. damaged

51. A. may               B. must             C. will                     D. can

52. A. my                     B. someone’s        C. the teacher’s               D. your

53. A. still                B. also              C. even                       D. not

54. A. prized             B. own              C. kept                     D. expected

55. A. warned           B. informed          C. persuaded                   D. reminded

For computer users, there is no bigger excitement than tossing out your old PC and upgrading to a newer, faster and cleaner machine. With hardware designers like Intel, pushing newer, faster products every year, and new software requiring even more powerful machines, companies and consumers have little choice but to go along.

But this rapid turnover is having a serious effect on the planet. Producing a personal computer consumes large quantities of natural resources. A recent study by the United Nations estimates the energy required to produce a single new computer is equivalent to nearly two barrels of oil. And that doesn't include the 22 kg of chemicals or the 1,500 kg of water used in the manufacturing process.

  In fact, pound for pound（均等地）, the process for making a car is about 500% more efficient than that for making a computer. That doesn't matter so much 20 years ago when personal computers were few and far between, but times have changed. These days, computers are found nearly everywhere and sales continue to grow. The number of PCs in use topped one billion in 2002.

Waste in production is only half the problem. Old computers, especially the monitors, are full of dangerous substances, which need to be carefully recycled. The problem is sure to expand over the coming years as users replace their boxy CRT monitors with LCD flat displays.

  Europe now requires that 70% of parts from old computers be recycled, but the study’s authors say that’s also part of the problem. The solution, they insist, is for governments and companies to encourage people to use their computers longer, and upgrade rather than replace. But considering that much of the world’s recent economic growth has come from spending on computers and information technology, that advice may sound like wishful thinking. 

1.What do computer users have to do every few years according to the passage?

   A. Push newer, faster products.

   B. Produce more powerful machines.

   C. Consume large quantities of natural resources.

   D. Upgrade to a newer, faster computer.

2.What does the underlined word “that” in paragraph 3 refer to?

A. The pound.                                   B. The process.

    C. The car.                                     D. The computer.

3.We can infer from the last paragraph that ____.

A. governments and companies will surely encourage people to use their computers longer

B. governments and companies will probably encourage people to replace their personal computers

C. the world's economic has been growing without people's spending on computers and information technology

D. all parts from old computers are now recycled in Europe

4.The purpose of writing this passage is ____

A. to encourage companies to push newer, faster personal computers

B. to encourage people to design more new software

C. to encourage people to save their personal computers

D. to encourage people to spend more money on computers and information technology