Two weeks ago, Ruichang City in Jiangxi Province was hit by an earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter scale(里氏震级). It killed 18 people and left hundreds homeless.

　  Earthquakes are one of the most deadly natural disasters(灾难) in the world. They happen more often than you would expect.

　  In the 24 hours after you read this, 400 to 500 earthquakes will shake the earth. You won't notice most of them because you live in a relatively(相对地) safe area or the quake is too far away or because the quake will be too small to notice.

　  Earthquakes are caused by sudden breaks in rock masses(群) deep in the earth. Rock masses are always under very high pressure. If the pressure in a certain area become too much and the rock masses break, an earthquake happens. But exactly when the rock masses reach the breaking point is a mystery(谜).

　  China is on the Eurasia(欧亚) plate, where earthquakes happen very often due to the earth's plates knocking against each other. Up to 17,139 earthquakes have taken place in China in the past 44 years, according to scientific research.

1What happened to the City of Ruichang?

A.18 people were killed in an earthquake.

B. Hundreds homeless people left the city.     

C. An earthquake ruined thousands of houses there.

D. An earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Richter scale happened.       

2How many earthquakes can happen in a day in the world?

A. 24.                  B. 44.                  C. 400 to 500.                   D. 17139.

3Why does the earth quake? Because ______.

A. we live in a relatively safe area                                             

B. the pressure in the earth is too big

C. the rock masses is reaching the breaking point

D. the rock masses break suddenly deep in the earth

C

Once upon a time a woman found she was not easy to wake up in the morning as early as she wished. So she bought a beautiful alarm clock. These clocks are so made as to strike with loud whirring noise at any hour the owner pleases to set them.

The lady placed her clock at the head of the bed, and at the right time she found herself roused by the long, rattling sound.

She got up at once, and felt better all day for her early rising. This lasted for some weeks. The alarm clock faithfully did its duty, and was plainly heard so long as it was obeyed.

But, after a time, the lady grew tired of early rising. When she was waked by the noise, she merely turned over in bed, and slept again.

In a few days, the clock ceased to wake her from her sleep. It spoke just as loudly as ever; but she did not hear it, because she had been in the habit of not obeying it.

Finding that she might as well be without it, she made up her mind that when she heard the sound she would jump up.

Just so it is with conscience(自觉意识，诚意). If we will obey its voice, even in the least important things, we can always hear it, clear and strong.

But if we allow ourselves to do what we have some fears may not be quite right, we shall grow more and more sleepy, until the voice of conscience has no longer power to wake us.

4Why did the clock failed to stop to get the woman up later?

A. Because she was tired of getting up early in the morning.

B. Because she could not hear the clock any more.

C. Because she was too tired to wake up at it.

D. Because the clock stopped to do its duty.

5 Both the underlined words “whirring” and “rattling” are kinds of ______.

A. colours                        B. sounds         C. actions                   D. feelings

6 The writer mainly wants to tell us that ______.

A. we should always obey our clocks

B. the clock sometimes can’t wake us up as we wish 

C. It is conscience that ensures early rising not the clock

D. The voice of conscience has no longer power to wake us.

Amy was a dear little girl, but she was too ready to waste time in getting ready to do her tasks, instead of doing them at once as she ought to.

In the village in which she lived, Mr. Thornton kept a store where he sold fruit of all kinds, including berries in their season. One day he said to Amy, whose parents were quite poor, “Would you like to earn some money?”

“Oh, yes, ” replied she, “for I want some new shoes, and papa has no money to buy them with.”

“Well, Amy,” said Mr. Thornton, “I noticed some fine, ripe blackberries in Mr. Green’s field today, and he said that anybody was welcome to them. I will pay you thirteen cents a quart(度量单位) for all you will pick for me.”

Amy was delighted at the thought of earning some money; so she ran home to get a basket, intending to go immediately to pick the berries.

Then she thought she would like to know how much money she would get if she picked five quarts. With the help of her slate(书写板) and pencil, she found out that she would get sixty-five cents.

“But supposing I should pick a dozen quarts,” thought she, “how much should I earn then?” “Dear me!” she said, after figuring(测算) a while, “I should earn a dollar and fifty-six cents.”

Amy then found out what Mr. Thornton would pay her for fifty, a hundred, and two hundred quarts. It took her some time to do this, and then it was so near dinner time that she had to stay at home until afternoon.

As soon as dinner was over, she took her basket and hurried to the field. Some boys had been there before dinner, and all the ripe berries were picked. She could not find enough to fill a quarter of a quart.

As Amy went home, she thought of what her teacher had often told her---“Do your task at once; then think about it,” for “One doer is worth a hundred dreamers.”

7How many times did Amy figure with her slate?

   A. 3.                               B. 4.                         C. 5.                     D. 6. 

8The underlined sentence may mean “______”.

A. she got ready to waste some time to do her tasks

B. she thought it was a waste of time to do her tasks

C. she liked to waste time when should do her tasks immediately

D. she was not ready to get her tasks ready, and it’s a waste of time

9What can we infer from the story?

A. Amy’s family was very poor.

B. Amy was good at counting with a slate.  

C. Mr. Thornton was the richest person in the village.

D. Amy would learn a better lesson from this affair than from school.        

10 The best title of the passage may be “_____”.

A. The Money Amy Did Not Earn               

B. The Girl Did Not Like To Waste Time    

C. Amy, A Good Student To her Teachers

D. A Poor Girl Wanted To Earn Some Money

My mum only had one eye. She cooked for students and teachers to   41   the family when I was young.
One day my mum came to 　42  hello to me in primary school. I was so embarrassed（尴尬的） that I threw her a hateful  43 and ran out.
The next day at school, one of my classmates said, “Your mum only has one eye!” and  44  at me.
I hated my mum and decided to leave her, so I studied very hard. Later I got a chance to go abroad to study and I left my mother.　45　graduation I worked, bought a house and got   46  there. Then I had kids of my own. I was happy with my wife and my kids. But one day someone knocked at my door. It was my 47  !When she stood by the door, my children laughed at her, and I  48  at her, “How dare you come to my house and scare my children! GET OUT OF HERE NOW!” And to this, my mum 　49  answered, “Oh, I’m so sorry. I may have got the wrong  50  ,”and she disappeared.
One day, a letter regarding a school reunion（聚会） came to my house. So I told a 　51  to my wife that I was going on a business trip. After the reunion, I went to the old house.
My neighbours said that she   52   . I did not have a single tear. They handed me a letter that she had wanted me to have.
My dearest son,
I am thinking  53 you all the time. I’m sorry that I came to your house and scared your 　54　 .
I was so glad when I heard you were coming for the reunion. But I may not be able to even get out of bed to see you. I’m sorry that I was still an embarrassment to you when you were growing up.
You see…when you were very little, you got into an accident, and lost your eye. As a mother, I couldn’t stand watching you grow up with one eye. So I gave you   55  .
  …  With all my love to you!
Your mother

My mum only had one eye. She cooked for students and teachers to   41   the family when I was young.

One day my mum came to 　42  hello to me in primary school. I was so embarrassed（尴尬的） that I threw her a hateful  43 and ran out.

The next day at school, one of my classmates said, “Your mum only has one eye!” and  44  at me.

I hated my mum and decided to leave her, so I studied very hard. Later I got a chance to go abroad to study and I left my mother.　45　graduation I worked, bought a house and got   46  there. Then I had kids of my own. I was happy with my wife and my kids. But one day someone knocked at my door. It was my 47  !When she stood by the door, my children laughed at her, and I  48  at her, “How dare you come to my house and scare my children! GET OUT OF HERE NOW!” And to this, my mum 　49  answered, “Oh, I’m so sorry. I may have got the wrong  50  ,”and she disappeared.

One day, a letter regarding a school reunion（聚会） came to my house. So I told a 　51  to my wife that I was going on a business trip. After the reunion, I went to the old house.

My neighbours said that she   52   . I did not have a single tear. They handed me a letter that she had wanted me to have.

My dearest son,

I am thinking  53 you all the time. I’m sorry that I came to your house and scared your 　54　 .

I was so glad when I heard you were coming for the reunion. But I may not be able to even get out of bed to see you. I’m sorry that I was still an embarrassment to you when you were growing up.

You see…when you were very little, you got into an accident, and lost your eye. As a mother, I couldn’t stand watching you grow up with one eye. So I gave you   55  .

  …  With all my love to you!

Your mother

A）根据下面短文内容，在文章后小题的空格里填入适当的词语，
注意：每空一词。
Different cultures make different families. For example, there are differences in the way Chinese and Americans raise children.
First, Chinese and American families have different attitudes towards independence (独立). Each Chinese child has been considered to be the apple of parents’ eyes. It is not surprising to see Chinese parents always helping their children with getting dressed, having meals, bathing, and other things. American parents, on the other hand, teach their children how to do things alone from childhood.
Second, most Chinese parents often make their children have extra classes, such as piano, drawing, or singing lessons. Parents want their children to develop in an all-round way and be better students than other children. The problem is that their children may not be interested in these classes. American parents try to respect (尊重) their children’s interests and usually don’t make them do what they don’t like.
Third, there is a difference in the way parents in China and American treat mistakes that children make. Many Chinese people believe in the saying, “Spare the rod, spoil the child (不打不成器).” When Chinese parents see their children make mistakes, they often get very angry, some even hit them instead of making them realize their mistakes. This affects the children’s growth and the forming of their character, and also makes the generations gap (代沟) wide. American parents think it is common for people to make mistakes because mistakes are a part of life. They often say, “It’s OK to make mistakes. Making mistakes helps you learn.” They help their children deal with mistakes by giving them ideas about how to turn mistakes into learning opportunities (机会).
Families in China and America are quite different, and one way may seem better than the other, but it is better to think about whether the parents fit the family or not instead of talking about which one is wrong or right.

E—schoolbags
Is your schoolbag too heavy to carry? The e-schoolbag will help you. It is said that e-schoolbags are going to be brought into use in Chinese middle schools soon.
Heavy schoolbags have been a serious problem for a long time. But the e-schoolbag will work it out. An e-schoolbag is much lighter than a usual schoolbag. Perhaps, the e-schoolbag should be called an e-textbook. It is as small as a usual book, but it can still have all the things for study, such as a textbook, an exercise book and so on. They can be made into chips(芯片) like stamps. The students can read the text page by page on the screen, take notes, or even send e-mails to their teachers. They only need to put the right chip into the e-schoolbag and then the students can use it.
Some people say that e-textbooks can be easily broken, while others say it is not good to student’s eyes. But only time will tell.
【小题1】What is the e-schoolbag used for ? It can’t help students _________.