It was early morning. Peter Corbett helped Mark Wellman out of his wheelchair and onto the ground. They stood before El Capitan, a huge mass of rock almost three-quarters of a mile high in California's beautiful Yosemite Valley. It had been Mark's dream to climb El Capitan for as long as he could remember. But how could a person without the use of his legs hope to try to climb it?
Mark knew he couldn't finish the climb alone, but his friend Peter, an expert rock climber, would be there to lend a helping hand. He and Mark thought that it would take seven days to reach the top.
Peter climbed about 100 feet up and hammered a piton (岩钉) into the rock. Fastening one end of a 165-foot rope to the piton, he let one end of the rope fall down. Mark caught the rope and fastened it to his belt with a special instrument. This instrument would allow Mark to move upward, but would prevent him from falling even as much as a single inch. He next reached above his head and fastened a T-shaped bar to the rope, using the same kind of instrument.
Mark took a deep breath, pushed the T-bar up almost as far as his arms could reach, and began the first of the 7,000 pull-ups needed to reach the top. High above, Peter let out a cheer. “You're on your way.”
Seven years before, at the age of twenty-one, he had fallen while mountain climbing, injuring his backbone. The fall cost him the use of his legs, but he never lost his love of adventure or his joyful spirit.
For the first four days the two men progressed steadily upward without incident. But on the fifth day an unbearably hot wind began to blow, and as time went by, it became stronger and stronger, causing Mark to sway (摇摆) violently on his rope. But Mark kept on determinedly pushing up the T-bar and pulling himself up. In spite of that, he had to admit that he felt a lot better when the wind finally died down and his body touched solid rock again.
It took them one day more than they had expected, but on July 26 at 1:45 in the afternoon, the crowd of people waiting on the top went wild with joy as the two heads appeared. Mark Wellman had shown that if you set your heart and mind on a goal, no wall is too high, no dream impossible.
【小题1】What had Mark Wellman long desired to do?

A．To finish one of the most difficult rock climbs in the world.

B．To be the first to climb El Capitan.

C．To climb the highest mountain in California.

D．To help his friend Peter climb El Capitan.

【小题2】How did Mark climb the mountain?

A．He fastened the rope to his wheelchair.

B．He hammered in pitons so that he had something to hold on to.

C．He held on to the T-bar and Peter pulled him up.

D．He pulled himself up using a T-bar and special equipment.

【小题3】What was the worst problem Mark had during the climb?

A．He struck against the rock and hurt his arms.

B．A strong wind blew him away from the rock.

C．He kept falling several inches.

D．While swaying in space, he became terrified.

【小题4】How did Mark react to difficulties during the climb?

A．He admitted that he was frightened.

B．He often worried about his friend's condition.

C．He was able to remain clam and determined.

D．He was joking to cheer himself up.

It was early morning. Peter Corbett helped Mark Wellman out of his wheelchair and onto the ground. They stood before El Capitan, a huge mass of rock almost three-quarters of a mile high in California’s beautiful Yosemite Valley. It had been Mark’s dream to climb El Capitan for as long as he could remember. But how could a person without the use of his legs hope to try to climb it?
Mark knew he couldn’t finish the climb alone, but his friend Peter, an expert rock climber, would be there to lend a helping hand. He and Mark thought that it would take seven days to reach the top.
Peter climbed about 100 feet up and hammered a piton(岩钉) into the rock. Fastening one end of a 165-foot rope to the piton, he let one end of the rope fall down. Mark caught the rope and fastened it to his belt with a special instrument. This instrument would allow Mark to move upward, but would prevent him from falling even as much as a single inch. He next reached above his head and fastened a T-shaped bar to the rope, using the same kind of instrument.
Mark took a deep breath, pushed the T-bar up almost as far as his arms could reach, and began the first of the 7, 000 pull-ups needed to reach the top. High above, Peter let out a cheer. “You’re on your way.”
Seven years before, at the age of twenty-one, Mark had fallen while mountain climbing, injuring his backbone. The fall cost him the use of his legs, but he never lost his love of adventure or his joyful spirit.
For the first four days the two men progressed steadily upward without incident. But on the fifth day an unbearably hot wind began to blow, and as time went by, it became stronger and stronger, causing Mark to sway(摇摆) violently on his rope. But Mark kept on determinedly pushing up the T-bar and pulling himself up. In spite of that, he had to admit that he felt a lot better when the wind finally died down and his body touched solid rock again.
It took them one day more than they had expected, but on July 26 at 1:45 in the afternoon, the crowd of people waiting on the top went wild with joy as the two heads appeared. Mark Wellman had shown that if you set your heart and mind on a goal, no wall is too high, no dream impossible.
【小题1】What had Mark Wellman long desired to do?

A．To finish one of the most difficult rock climbs in the world.

B．To be the first to climb El Capitan.

C．To climb the highest mountain in California.

D．To help his friend Peter climb El Capitan.

【小题2】How did Mark climb the mountain?

A．He fastened the rope to his wheelchair.

B．He hammered in pitons so that he had something to hold on to.

C．He held on to the T-bar and Peter pulled him up.

D．He pulled himself up using a T-bar and special equipment.

【小题3】 How did Mark lose the use of his legs?

A．He lost his footing and fell from the side of a mountain.

B．He fell during his first attempt on El Capitan.

C．His legs were broken by falling rocks.

D．While working out in the gym, he injured his backbone.

【小题4】What was the worst problem Mark had during the climb?

A．He struck against the rock and hurt his arms.

B．A strong wind blew him away from the rock.

C．He kept falling several inches.

D．While swaying in space, he became terrified.

【小题5】How did Mark react to difficulties during the climb?

A．He admitted that he was frightened.

B．He often worried about his friend’s condition.

C．He was able to remain clam and determined.

D．He was joking to cheer himself up.

It was early morning. Peter Corbett helped Mark Wellman out of his wheelchair and onto the ground. They stood before El Capitan, a huge mass of rock almost three-quarters of a mile high in California's beautiful Yosemite Valley. It had been Mark's dream to climb El Capitan for as long as he could remember. But how could a person without the use of his legs hope to try to climb it?

Mark knew he couldn't finish the climb alone, but his friend Peter, an expert rock climber, would be there to lend a helping hand. He and Mark thought that it would take seven days to reach the top.

Peter climbed about 100 feet up and hammered a piton (岩钉) into the rock. Fastening one end of a 165-foot rope to the piton, he let one end of the rope fall down. Mark caught the rope and fastened it to his belt with a special instrument. This instrument would allow Mark to move upward, but would prevent him from falling even as much as a single inch. He next reached above his head and fastened a T-shaped bar to the rope, using the same kind of instrument.

Mark took a deep breath, pushed the T-bar up almost as far as his arms could reach, and began the first of the 7,000 pull-ups needed to reach the top. High above, Peter let out a cheer. “You're on your way.”

Seven years before, at the age of twenty-one, he had fallen while mountain climbing, injuring his backbone. The fall cost him the use of his legs, but he never lost his love of adventure or his joyful spirit.

For the first four days the two men progressed steadily upward without incident. But on the fifth day an unbearably hot wind began to blow, and as time went by, it became stronger and stronger, causing Mark to sway (摇摆) violently on his rope. But Mark kept on determinedly pushing up the T-bar and pulling himself up. In spite of that, he had to admit that he felt a lot better when the wind finally died down and his body touched solid rock again.

It took them one day more than they had expected, but on July 26 at 1:45 in the afternoon, the crowd of people waiting on the top went wild with joy as the two heads appeared. Mark Wellman had shown that if you set your heart and mind on a goal, no wall is too high, no dream impossible.

1.What had Mark Wellman long desired to do?

A．To finish one of the most difficult rock climbs in the world.

B．To be the first to climb El Capitan.

C．To climb the highest mountain in California.

D．To help his friend Peter climb El Capitan.

2.How did Mark climb the mountain?

A．He fastened the rope to his wheelchair.

B．He hammered in pitons so that he had something to hold on to.

C．He held on to the T-bar and Peter pulled him up.

D．He pulled himself up using a T-bar and special equipment.

3.What was the worst problem Mark had during the climb?

A．He struck against the rock and hurt his arms.

B．A strong wind blew him away from the rock.

C．He kept falling several inches.

D．While swaying in space, he became terrified.

4.How did Mark react to difficulties during the climb?

A．He admitted that he was frightened.

B．He often worried about his friend's condition.

C．He was able to remain clam and determined.

D．He was joking to cheer himself up.

 

1．Many times in America, bands are f         by high school students who practice their music in someone’s home.

2．The problem is so difficult that it was impossible to s        .

3．If you want to sell your computer, you should a________ it in the local newspaper.

4．The two brothers used to quarrel with each other, while now they are living in p      .

5．No one is a         to the cinema without a ticket.

6．Whether the clothes will be ready the day after tomorrow will r        on the tailor (裁缝).

7．Neither of us know how to d______ with the matter because we had no experience.

8．I’d a________ it if you would like to teach me how to use the searching engine (引擎).

9．All the villagers set out in s_______ of the lost boy.

10．Dark glasses are sometimes worn to p_______ the eyes from strong sunlight.

Many years ago in a small German town, a Jewish businessman had the misfortune of owing a large sum of money to the moneylender. The moneylender, who was old and ugly, fancied the businessman’s beautiful daughter. So he proposed a bargain.

The moneylender told them that he would put a black pebble and a white pebble into an empty bag. The girl would then have to pick one pebble from the bag. If she picked the black pebble, she would become the moneylender’s wife and he would forgo her father’s debt. If she picked the white pebble, she need not marry him and her father’s debt would still be forgiven. But if she refused to pick a pebble, her father would be thrown into jail.

They were standing on a pebble-strewn path. As they talked, the moneylender bent over to pick up two pebbles. The sharp-eyed girl noticed that he had picked up two black pebbles and put them into the bag. He then asked the girl to pick a pebble from the bag. No doubt she was caught in a dilemma.

What would you have done if you were the girl? Careful analysis would produce three possibilities:

1.The girl should refuse to take a pebble.

2.The girl should know that there were two black pebbles in the bag and expose the money-lender as a cheat.

3.The girl should pick a black pebble and sacrifice herself in order to save her father from his debt and imprisonment.

The above story is used with the hope that it will make us appreciate the difference between lateral (横向的)and logical thinking.

Read on…

The girl put her hand into the moneybag and drew out a pebble. Without looking at it, she fumbled and let it fall onto the pebble-strewn path where it immediately became lost among all the other pebbles. “Oh, how clumsy of me!” she said. “But never mind, if you look into the bag for the one that is left, you will be able to tell which pebble I picked.” Since the remaining pebble is black, it must be assumed that she had picked the white one. And since the moneylender dared not admit his dishonesty, the girl changed what seemed an impossible situation into an extremely advantageous one.

1.The underlined word “forgo” in paragraph 2 may mean ________.

A. pay off                              B. run out                             C. take over                                 D. give up

2.Which of the following indicates lateral thinking?

A. The girl refused to take a pebble and fled at once.

B. The girl exposed the cheat and found another way.

C. The girl picked one pebbles and made it disappear.

D. The girl picked a black pebble and accepted the result.

3.It can be inferred from the passage that ________.

A. The girl dropped the pebble onto the path on purpose

B. The girl dropped the pebble onto the path by accident

C. The girl didn’t know there were two black pebbles in the bag                 

D. The girl replaced a black pebble in the bag

4.What lesson can we learn from the story?

A. Keeping calm when facing a difficult situation.

B. Thinking about a complicated problem in another way.

C. Thinking twice before making a final choice.

D. Coming up with a clever answer is easy.