Paula Radcliffe, chasing a third London marathon title, says she has became a stronger person after her terrible experience at the 2004 Athens Games.

Radcliffe, who failed to complete the Olympic marathon and the 10,000m last August, said: "Athens made me a stronger person and it made me care less about criticism"

"In the past I wanted to please everyone, but now I am going to listen even more to the people around me."

She didn't care about criticism made at the weekend by Liz McColgan, who felt Radcliffe should have rested and let her body recover after her failure in Athens.

"Liz is someone I look up to but she hasn't spoken to me since last year and if she really cared for me, I'm sure she would have contacted me."

Instead Radcliffe won the New York City marathon just 11 weeks after Athens.

"In New York I wasn't in my best state but I did know I was good enough to win the race."

Radcliffe insisted her only goal in Sunday's race would be winning a third title and not chasing world records.

However, Radcliffe has not ruled out in the future chasing her "final" world record time and questioned sayings that marathon runners have the ability in their career to produce only four or five world-class times.

"I don't think that ——although I can't put a number on it," said. Radcliffe. "That changes from person to person."

Radcliffe is sure she can better her winning London 2003 performance at some point in the future. Following a successful three-month training period in the United States, the 31-year-old will chase a third title on Sunday after her first victory in 2002 and again 12 months later.

Radcliffe clocked a time of 2:18:56 in her first 42.2-kilometre race three years ago.

Afterwards she set a "mixed course" mark of 2:17:18 five months later in Chicago before lowering that to a time of 2:15:25 in the 2003 London event.

1.Radcliffe’s failure in Athens made her___________.?

A. develop respect for Liz?   B. love people around her more?

C. rest for five months?      D. face criticism calmly?

2.Which of the following is true according to the passage??

A. Radcliffe broke the world record in the New York City marathon.?

B. Radcliffe didn’t fully recover before the New York City marathon.?

C. Radcliffe won her first marathon title in the New York City marathon.?

D. Radcliffe had a 3-month training before the New York City marathon.?

3.By saying “I can’t put a number on it,” Radcliffe means she’s not sure ___________.?

A. if she has the ability to set a new world record?

B. if she can win another race though she has won many times?

C. how many times a marathon runner can set the world record?

D. if she has the ability to produce four or five world-class times?

4.According to the text, Radcliffe has won ___________ London marathon title(s).?

A. one　　　　　B. two?             C. three          D. four

5.What can we learn from Radcliffe’s story??

A. Practice makes perfect.?            B. Well begun is half done.?

C. Where there is a will, there is a way.?  D. A friend in need is a fried indeed.

In the future your automobile will run on water instead of gas! You will be able to buy a supercomputer that fits in your pocket! You might even drive a flying car!

   For each prediction that has come true today, several others have missed by a mile. Many of these predictions didn’t consider how people would want to use the technology, or if people really needed it in their lives or not. Let’s look at some predictions from the not-too-distant past.

    Robot Helpers

   Where’s the robot in my kitchen? Nowhere, of course. And he’s probably not coming anytime soon. Robots do exist today, but mostly in factories and other manufacturing environments.

   Back in the 1950s, however, people said that by now personal robots would be in most people’s homes.

   So why hasn’t it happened?  Probably because robots are still too expensive and clumsy. And maybe the idea of robots cooking our dinners and washing our clothes is just too weird. At home we seem to be doing fine without them.

    Telephones of Tomorrow

   In 1964 an American company introduced the video telephone. They said by the year 2000 most people would have a video phone in their homes. But of course the idea hasn’t caught on yet.

   Why? The technology worked fine, but it over—looked something obvious: people’s desire for privacy. Would you want to have a video phone conversation with someone after you just step out of the shower?  Probably not---it could be embarrassing! Just because a technology available doesn’t always mean people will want to use it.

   And finally, how about that crazy prediction of the flying car? It’s not so crazy anymore! But a flying car remains one of the most fascinating technology ideas to capture our imagination. Keep watching the news, or perhaps the sky outside your window, to see what the future will bring.

The whole passage is mainly about ________________.

   A. predictions that have come true.      B. predictions that haven’t come true.

   C. why predictions don’t come true easily. D. what technology will bring about.

The author of this passage won’t believe that _________________.

   A. predictions needn’t consider people’s practical use of technology.

   B. the future isn’t always easy to guess.  

   C. not all past predictions have come true.

   D. many of the high—tech things our parents thought we’d be using by now

   simply never appeared.

The underlined word “weird” probably means __________.

   A. wonderful   B. stupid    C. practical    D. strange

What does the author think of the flying car?

   A. It is too difficult to imagine.   B. It is too crazy an idea.

   C. It is likely to be made.        D. It is often reported in the news.

1. It’s o__________ that he hasn’t read the book because he can say nothing about it.

2. The little girl hopes to meet a handsome prince, just like a princess in a fairy  t__________. 

3. He was__________(好奇的) to know what was happening in the office.

4. The little girl is a __________(有天赋的) dancer.                  

5. The photo will r__________ me of the days when we were together.

6. Their father bought some new f__________ last week, such as a sofa and a table.

7. I can’t remember__________(精确地) what she said.                  

8. J__________ from her letter, Mother seems to be feeling a lot better.    

9. We should keep a balanced diet and exercise__________ (规律地)to keep fit.

10. He __________（预言）that war would break out in the next few years.

---I wonder why Mr Green hasn’t showed up at the meeting yet.

 ---I’m not sure, but he _______ in a traffic jam driving here.

 A. could be stuck           B. might stuck

 C. might have been stuck D. must have stuck