There are two men who are almost always outside the grocery store（杂货店）. One is sometimes in a wheelchair. He holds a sign that says he is a vet（退伍军人）and “anything will help”. The other man is younger, nearly toothless, and if he were not in such a public place, he would maybe frighten me a little. I have walked past them countless times, on my way to buy my family’s weekly groceries.

　 I don’t usually like to give money to beggars. But I see these guys so often that I decided to make eye contact, say “Hi” to them on purpose and smile at them, instead of ducking my head away and ignoring them. In both cases, I got a surprised “hello there ” back.

　 Last week, while waiting to buy what I wanted, I noticed the pre-made, plastic-wrapped sub-style sandwiches. I grabbed two of them, two extra apples, and two single-serving juice bottles. On my way out, I walked up to the vet and said, “Are you hungry? I got you a sandwich.” He took the sandwich, apple, and juice, and said, “God bless you.” I said, “You, too!” When I asked the other man, “Are you hungry?” He looked so surprised that I wondered when the last time was that anyone had actually spoken directly to him.

　 It was so easy to add those few items to my grocery bag and I felt like I had maybe helped just a little. I’ve decided that I will buy a simple “meal” like that each time I go to the store, for whoever is waiting outside.

1. From the first paragraph we can know that the two men _______.

　 A. are disabled both in body and mind

　 B. are ugly-looking

　 C. are begging for food in a public place

　 D. once served in the army （当兵）for their country

2. When meeting beggars, the writer used to _______.

　 A. say hello to them

　 B. give them a smile

　 C. give money to them

　 D. take no notice of them

3. One of the beggars looked surprised when the writer said to him probably because _______.

　 A. he was not used to being looked after

　 B. no one once spoke to him

　 C. what the writer did encouraged him greatly

　 D. he had been overlooked（轻视） for so long

4. It can be inferred （推断）from the last paragraph that _______.

　 A. the writer was born in a very rich family.

　 B. more beggars will get help from the writer[来

　 C. the two beggars needn’t beg any more

　 D. whoever waits outside the store will be helped

 

A man was selling medicine at a fair（集市）．At first he sold bottles of a cure（药剂）for colds（感冒）for just a dollar a bottle．

Many people wanted to buy it and the man's young assistant moved quickly through the crowd collecting money and handing out bottles of the cure．

Then，when he had a big crowd， the man held up a very small bottle．

“And now，ladies and gentlemen，he shouted，“Here is the medicine you have been waiting for．The cure for old age．Drink just one bottle of this and you will live forever．?

“And，ladies and gentlemen，the man continued，“I'm not going to charge（向……要价……）you a hundred dollars a bottle for this wonderful medicine．I'm not going to charge you fifty dollars a bottle．I'm not going to charge you twenty-five dollars a bottle．Now，ladies and gentlemen，I'm going to charge you just ten dollars a bottle． Think，my friends，for ten dollars you can live forever．?

Most of the people in the crowd did not believe this．

One person shouted，“If it can make you live forever，why don't you drink it？?

Then an other person cried，“Yes， you look as if you're at least sixty years old．?

“Thank you，sir，thank you，the man answered，“I'm so glad you said that． My real age is three hundred and twenty-nine．?

The crowd laughed at this but there were still some people who wanted to believe the man ．One of them spoke to the man's assistant as she passed by ，“Is that true？?he asked．“Is he three hundred and twenty-nine？?

“Don't ask me，?the assistant said，“I've only worked for him for a hundred and fifty years．?

What did the man sell at first at the fair？

   A．a cure for colds  

   B．bottles   

C．a cure for old age

D．a medicine that made people live forever 

How much did the man charge for the cure for old age？

   A．one dollar a bottle        B．twenty-five dollars a bottle

   C．ten dollars a bottle        D．fifty dollars a bottle

What does the word “assistant” mean in this passage？

       A．仆人  B．朋友  C．同伴  D．助手

What does this passage really mean？

       A．The cure for old age is very useful and not so expensive．

       B．The man is not honest，and so is his assistant．

       C．The cheaper the medicine is，the more people will buy．

       D．The two men are very honest，and they would like to help people live forever．

A man was selling medicine at a fair（集市）．At first he sold bottles of a cure（药剂）for colds（感冒）for just a dollar a bottle．
Many people wanted to buy it and the man's young assistant moved quickly through the crowd collecting money and handing out bottles of the cure．
Then，when he had a big crowd， the man held up a very small bottle．
“And now，ladies and gentlemen,” he shouted，“Here is the medicine you have been waiting for．The cure for old age．Drink just one bottle of this and you will live forever.”?
“And，ladies and gentlemen,” the man continued，“I'm not going to charge you a hundred dollars a bottle for this wonderful medicine．I'm not going to charge you fifty dollars a bottle．I'm not going to charge you twenty-five dollars a bottle. Now，ladies and gentlemen，I'm going to charge you just ten dollars a bottle. Think，my friends，for ten dollars you can live forever.”?
Most of the people in the crowd did not believe this．
One person shouted，“If it can make you live forever，why don't you drink it?”
Then another person cried，“Yes，you look as if you're at least sixty years old．?
“Thank you，sir，thank you,” the man answered，“I'm so glad you said that． My real age is three hundred and twenty-nine.”?
The crowd laughed at this but there were still some people who wanted to believe the man. One of them spoke to the man's assistant as she passed by, “Is that true？”?he asked．“Is he three hundred and twenty-nine？”?
“Don't ask me,” the assistant said，“I've only worked for him for a hundred and fifty years.”?
【小题1】What did the man sell at first at the fair？

A．a cure for colds

B．bottles

C．a cure for old age

D．a medicine that made people live forever

【小题2】How much did the man charge for the cure for old age？

A．one dollar a bottle

B．twenty-five dollars a bottle

C．ten dollars a bottle

D．fifty dollars a bottle

【小题3】What does the word “assistant” mean in this passage？

A．仆人

B．朋友

C．同伴

D．助手

【小题4】What does this passage really mean？

A．The cure for old age is very useful and not so expensive．

B．The man is not honest，and neither is his assistant．

C．The cheaper the medicine is，the more people will buy．

D．The two men are very honest，and they would like to help people live forever．

阅读理解 （共20小题; 每小题2分,满分40分）

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。

I felt encouraged by his words and began to swim more calmly.But my clothes stuck to me like a heavy weight.I could hardly stay above the surface.

Counsel saw this.“Shall I cut them?”he asked.

With a knife he cut my clothes from top to bottom and took them of quickly while I swam for both of us.

Then I did the same for Counsel,and we continued to swim near each other.

 But we were in serious trouble.The crew（船员）might not have noticed our disappearance.

And if they had,they could not return because the rudder（舵）had broken.Counsel thought of all this,and calmly made his plans.We decided to wait for the ship as long as possible,because we had no other hope of safety.I suggested that we save our strength so that both of us would not be tired out at the same time.This was how we did it:While one of us lay on his back,quite still,with arms crossed and legs stretched out（伸直）,the other would swim and push him along.We changed every ten minutes or so.In this way we could swim for hours,perhaps till daylight.The crash（破裂声）of the ship and the whale（鲸）had appeared at about eleven o’clock.We had about eight hours to swim before daylight.This seemed possible,if the sea remained calm.

What happened to the man who told the story?

A.He and his companion got into the water to test their strength.

B.He jumped into the water to save the broken rudder.

C.He was knocked into the water by his enemy.

D.He was thrown into the sea when the ship struck a whale.

Why did the two men cut their clothes?

A.Because no people helped them to take off their clothes.

B.Because they couldn’t take off their clothes on the sea.

C.Because they wanted to get rid of their clothes quickly.

D.Because they wanted to lifebuoys（救生圈）with their clothes.

What does the word “still” in the last paragraph mean?

A.not moving                    B.even                        C.yet                          D.however

n order to save their strength,______.

A.one of them pushed the other while swimming and then they changed

B.they both swam calmly

C.they crossed their arms and stretched their legs on the water

D.they lay on their backs instead of swimming

Which one of the following is true?

A.Neither of the two men was good swimmers.

B.The sea was calm before eleven o’clock that night.

C.The story took place at night.

D.The two men had to swim eight hours to catch up with the ship.

 In Africa, listening is a guiding principle .It’s a principle that’ been lost in the constant chat of the Western world .From my own past experience , I noticed how much faster I had to answer a question during a TV interview .It is as if we have completely lost the ability to listen .We talk and talk , and we end up frightened by silence .

Everywhere, people on the African continent write and tell stories. Even the nomads(流浪者)who still live in the Kalahari Desert are said to tell one another stories on their daylong wanderings, during which they search for roots and animals to hunt.

A number of years ago I sat down on a stone bench outside the Teatro Avenida in Maputo, Mozambique, where I worked as an artistic consultant. It was a hot day, and we were taking a break, hoping that a cool gentle wind would move past. Two old African men were sitting on that bench, but there was room for me, too. In Africa people share more than just water. Even when it comes to shade, people are generous.

I heard the two men talking about a third old man who had recently died. One of them said, “I was visiting him at his home. He started to tell me an amazing story about something that had happened to him when he was young. But it was a long story. Night came, and I decided that I should come back the next day to hear the rest. But when I arrived, he was dead.”

The man fell silent. I decided not to leave that bench until I heard how the other man would respond to what he’d heard. Finally he, too, spoke. “That’s not a good way to die—before you’ve told the end of your story.”

What separates us from animals is the fact that we are storytelling creatures and we can listen to other people’s dreams, fears, joys, sorrows, desires and defeats—and they in turn can listen to ours.

Many people make the mistake of confusing information with knowledge. They are not the same thing. Knowledge involves the interpretation of information. Knowledge involves listening.

Many words will be written on the wind and the sand, or end up in store. But the storytelling will go on until the last human being stops listening. Then we can send the great record of human out into the endless universe.

Who knows? Maybe someone is out there, willing to listen…

1.From the very beginning of the passage, we can know Europeans ________.

A. actually lose the ability to listen

B. seldom chat constantly with each other

C. feel frightened when they are alone and silent

D. tend to talk more and listen less

2. It can be inferred from the passage that if you are in Africa, you will _______.

A. suffer hot weather and lack of water      

B. be certainly helped when in trouble

C. often hear the stories told by strangers    

D. have no choice but to listen during a talk

3.According to the last three paragraphs, we can know _________.

A. no one knows exactly why Africans are willing to listen

B. information is hard to understand without interpretation

C. listening makes the difference between information and knowledge

D. the existence of humans’ recordings totally depends on the way of storytelling

4.The passage mainly talks about __________.

A. the experience of the author         

B. the art of listening in Africa

C. the importance of storytelling        

D. the life styles of Africans