56­year­old becomes 1st woman to swim Atlantic

(AP)－Jennifer Figge pressed her toes into the Caribbean sand, excited and exhausted as she touched land this week for the first time in almost a month. Reaching a beach in Trinidad, she became the first woman on record to swim across the Atlantic Ocean—a dream she'd had since the early 1960s,when a stormy trans­Atlantic (飞越大西洋) flight got her thinking she could wear a life vest and swim the rest of the way if needed.

The 56­year­old left the Cape Verde Islands off Africa's western coast on Jan.12,2009, swimming 19 out of 25 days battling waves of up to 30 feet.The distance from Cape Verde to Trinidad is about 700 miles.Crewmembers are still computing exactly how many miles she swam.

The original plan was for her to swim to the Bahamas—a distance of about 2,100 miles—but inclement (恶劣的) weather forced her to change her plans and she arrived at Trinidad on Feb.5.She now plans to swim from Trinidad to the British Virgin Islands,ending her voyage at the Bitter End Yacht Club in late February.

Her journey came a decade after French swimmer Benoit Lecomte made the first known solo trans­Atlantic swim,covering nearly 4,000 miles from Massachusetts to France in 73 days.No woman on record had made the crossing.

Figge wore a red cap and wet suit,with her only good­luck charm (护身符) underneath:an old,red shirt to guard against chafing (磨痛),signed by friends,relatives and her father,who recently died.The other cherished (珍惜) possession she kept onboard was a picture of Gertrude Ederle,an American who became the first woman to swim across the English Channel.“We have a few things in common,”Figge said,“She wore a red hat and she was of German descent (血统).We both talked to the sea,and neither one of us wanted to get out.”

1.When did Jennifer Figge want to swim across the Atlantic Ocean？

A．After she reached a beach in Trinidad.

B．After she pressed her toes into the Caribbean sand.

C．After her stormy trans­Atlantic flight in the early 1960s.

D．After her graduation from a university.

2.Jennifer Figge had to change her plans 　　　　.

A．because she wanted to shorten her voyage

B．because of bad weather conditions

C．because she wanted to end her voyage in late February

D．because she wanted to set a new world record

3.When did Benoit Lecomte probably make the first known solo trans­Atlantic swim？

A．In 1999.          B．In 1988.           C．In 1978 .          D．In 1968.

4.For what purpose did Jennifer Figge keep a photo of Gertrude Ederle？

A．Figge would like to follow her example.

B．She had the same red cap as Figge always wore.

C．Figge also wanted to swim across the English Channel.

D．They were both born in Germany.

 

HOUSTON (Reuters) — Houston tops a U.S. magazine’s annual fattest cities list for the fourth time in five years, with four other Texas cities in the top 25.
　　Fast food restaurants — Houston has twice the national average number — are partly to blame for the dishonor, Men’s Fitness editor-in-chief Neal Boulton said.
　　“Americans work long hours, don’t take vacations, and when they’re faced with the worst food choices, they indulge (沉溺于) in those,” he said.
　　High humidity, poor air quality and some of the nation’s longest commute (每天去上班的路程) times also helped Texas’ most populous city unseat Detroit, the 2003 heavy weight champion, the magazine said.
　　Houston Mayor Bill White, who has worked with a major food company to develop healthy food products and the city’s public schools to improve lunch menus, called the report “mostly ungrounded and nonsense.”
　　“On the other hand, it calls attention to real issues the mayor is trying to deal with,” his spokesman, Frank Michel, said.
　　The magazine said it looked at factors such as the number and types of restaurants, park space, air quality, weather and the number of health clubs.
　　Philadelphia, Detroit, Memphis, Tennessee, and Chicago followed Houston on the seventh edition of the fat list. Texas cities Dallas, San Antonio, Fort Worth and El Paso were in the top 14, which Boulton said was no surprise.
　　“It’s pure big indulgence, just living big, and that’s part of the culture,” said Boulton.
　　Seattle ranked as the fittest city. Austin and Arlington, a Dallas-Fort Worth suburb, were the only Texas cities on the fit list. Austin was 19th and Arlington 22nd out of 25.
【小题1】What decides the magazine’s annual fattest list?

A．The size of fat population.	B．The number of fast food restaurants.
C．The economic growth rate of the state.	D．Things related to unhealthy ways of life.

【小题2】Which city topped 2003 fattest cities list?
　 

A．Houston.

B．Dallas.

C．Detroit.

D．Philadelphia.

【小题3】By saying “living big” (in Paragraph 9), Boulton means people _________.

A．are growing fatter

B．are living wastefully

C．eat too many fatty foods

D．are spending too much time working

【小题4】Which of the following is best supported by the text?

A．Texas has the most fat cities in the U.S.

B．Bill White is happy with the newspaper report.

C．People in Texas are the most hardworking in the U.S.

D．Most school children in Houston have weight problems.

CONCORD， N.H.—Torrential rain forced hundreds of people from their homes in parts of New England on Sunday， as water flowed over dams and washed out roads.

The governors of New Hampshire and Massachusetts declared states of emergency. Maine’s governor also declared a state of emergency for one county. “It’s a very serious situation，” said New Hampshire Governor John Lynch， adding that forecasters were predicting 12 to 15 inches of rain by the end of the storm in parts of southern New Hampshire. “It continues to change and the situation continues to worsen.”

In some towns， police and fire crews used boats to get people out of their homes and stranded cars after hundreds of roads were damaged. Others got around in kayaks(皮船). Some towns shut down， not letting anyone pass except emergency vehicles. “The town is cut right in half，” said Glenn Laramie， police chief in Andover， N.H.

A dam in Milton， N.H.， was in danger of failing， which could send a 10-foot wall of water downstream， the National Weather Service said in a bulletin. People downstream were being evacuated from the town.

In Massachusetts， cars were pulled from flooded streets in downtown Peabody， about 20 miles north of Boston， and about 300 people were evacuated from an apartment complex for seniors. Businesses stacked sandbags at their doors， trying to prevent damage from water that at one point rose to waist-deep.

Some parts of New Hampshire had seen 7 inches of rain by midday Sunday and forecasters said up to 5 more inches might come during the day. About 100 residents were evacuated from their homes in Wakefield， N.H.， because of concerns about two dams in the area.

Flooding in New Hampshire in October killed seven people， carried off homes and washed away miles of roads down to bedrock.

In Maine， flooding was reported on 60 roads in the southern part of the state， said governor’s spokeswoman Crystal Canney. More than 50 homes in Sanford and several in Kennebunk also were evacuated， state officials said.

1.Which is NOT true according to the article？

A. The situation in N. H. is very serious.

B. New England is a region of the U.S.

C.A state of emergency was declared in three whole states.

D. Seven people lost their lives in New Hampshire in October.

2.What is the main idea of the passage？

A. Two dams failed in New Hampshire.

B. Flood in New Hampshire.

C. State of emergency in New England.

D. Severe floods in three U.S. states.

3.In paragraph 4， the underlined word “evacuate” most probably means“　　　　”.

A. rescue   B. trapped  C. send away   D. wash away

4.Which is NOT a part of New Hampshire？

A. Peabody   B. Concord   C .Milton   D. Andover

5.What was mentioned to cope with the situation？

A. Some towns shut down.    B. Some dams were open.

C. People all left their homes.  D. Some temporary houses were built.

 

______ terrible weather we’ve been having these days!

　 A. How a 　 B. What a  C. How 　 D. what

With the weather getting colder, visitors from Australia spent their _____ days in

　　　　Beijing.

　　A. a few last　　　 B. last few 　　　C. few last 　　　D. last a few