JAMES Brown, the legendary US singer known as the “Godfather of Soul”, died Christmas morning, 2006. he was 73.

Brown was one of the major musical influences of the last

50 years. He provided the basis for much of black music and

most of pop music with his early hits like. “Please, Please,

Please”. He essentially created funk（“疯客”音乐）with

mid-1960s songs such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag".

It won him a Grammy Award as best rhythm-and-blues song,

and it was only the beginning of Mr. Brown's rhythmic

breakthroughs. His rapid-footed dancing inspired Michael Jackson and Prince. Rap stars of recent years, such as Fat Boys and Public Enemy, have all borrowed his lyrics and rhythms.

Brown's songs in the late 1960s and early 1970s, such as "Hot Pants" and "Make It Funky", mixed the sophistication(复杂) of jazz-style arrangements with raw funk. With these songs, Brown established himself as the godfather not just of soul, but of all subsequent styles of dance music: funk, disco, hip hop.

"He made soul music a world music," said Al Sharpton, who toured with Brown in the 1970s and imitates his hairstyle to this day. "What Brown was to music in terms of soul and hip hop, rap, all of that, is what Bach(巴赫, 德国作曲家) was to classical music. He put everybody on a different beat, a different style of music."

Amid the civil rights movement of the 1960s Mr. Brown used his fame and music for social messages. He released "Don't Be a Dropout" in 1966 and met with Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey to promote a stay-in-school initiative. Two years later "Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud" insisted, "We won't quit movin' until we get what we deserve."

The passage is mainly about _______.

         A．black music in the US

B．James Brown's unique music styles

C．James Brown's contribution to American music

D．great musicians in the US in the last 50 years

The author intends to tell us by the last paragraph that ______.

A．James Brown was proud of being a black

B．James Brown was also active in political movements

C．the then Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey was one of Brown's fans

D．no children dropped out of school because of James Brown's social influence

Which of the following indicates that Brown's career began to take off?

A．His rapid-footed dancing.

B．His three years in prison.

C．His tour around the country with Al Sharpton.

D．His mid-1960s songs such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag".

James Brown has influenced all American music types EXCEPT ______.

         A．classical music                    B．rhythm-and-blues    

         C．Rap            D．hip hop

JAMES Brown, the legendary US singer known as the “Godfather of Soul”, died Christmas morning, 2006. he was 73.
Brown was one of the major musical influences of the last
50 years. He provided the basis for much of black music and
most of pop music with his early hits like. “Please, Please,
Please”. He essentially created funk（“疯客”音乐）with
mid-1960s songs such as "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag".
It won him a Grammy Award as best rhythm-and-blues song,
and it was only the beginning of Mr. Brown's rhythmic
breakthroughs. His rapid-footed dancing inspired Michael Jackson and Prince. Rap stars of recent years, such as Fat Boys and Public Enemy, have all borrowed his lyrics and rhythms.
Brown's songs in the late 1960s and early 1970s, such as "Hot Pants" and "Make It Funky", mixed the sophistication(复杂) of jazz-style arrangements with raw funk. With these songs, Brown established himself as the godfather not just of soul, but of all subsequent styles of dance music: funk, disco, hip hop.
"He made soul music a world music," said Al Sharpton, who toured with Brown in the 1970s and imitates his hairstyle to this day. "What Brown was to music in terms of soul and hip hop, rap, all of that, is what Bach(巴赫, 德国作曲家) was to classical music. He put everybody on a different beat, a different style of music."
Amid the civil rights movement of the 1960s Mr. Brown used his fame and music for social messages. He released "Don't Be a Dropout" in 1966 and met with Vice President Hubert H. Humphrey to promote a stay-in-school initiative. Two years later "Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud" insisted, "We won't quit movin' until we get what we deserve."
【小题1】The passage is mainly about _______.

阅读理解

　　Tom Dyson tried to find out what his new machine could do. One day he fixed the small box to a flowering plant that was growing in a pot. He didn't say anything at all, but he began to think some cruel thoughts.

　　“I'm going to cut off these flowers. They're getting old and ugly. So I'll cut them off…”

　　The needle on the machine climbed quickly from  zero to 8, then 10, 12, 15. It stopped at 17. The plant was in trouble! Something was worrying it. Was it fear or sadness? The thought of being cut? The flowers bent their heads. They suddenly looked old and tired, and Tom felt sorry for them.

　　“No, no!” he cried.“I won't cut you. You're my friends. I just want you to grow and be lovely. I'll take you outside, into the sunshine. You'll like that, won't you?”

　　The flowers lifted their heads slowly and seemed to smile at him. The needle returned to zero. Tom put away the machine, picked up the plant and walked outside. It was very nice in the garden that morning.

　　All plants enjoy their owner's love and care and kindness. They know the sound of their voice. They also seem to understand people's thoughts. So if you have flowers of your own, think about them with love. They will return your kindness in the only way they can: they will grow strong and beautiful.

1．Choose the right order of the events given in the passage.

[　　]

a．The needle pointed to 17.

b．Tom felt sorry for the flowers.

c．Tom thought of cutting off the flowers.

d．The flowers looked old and tired.

e．Tom fixed the machine to a plant.

f．Tom took the plant outside.

g．The needle returned to zero.

h．Tom cried, “I won't cut you.”

[　　]

A．e; a; g; h; d; b; c; f

B．c; e; d; a; b; h; g; f

C．e; c; a; d; h; b; f; g

D．e; c; a; d; b; h; g; f

2．The only way in which plants can show their love is ________.

[　　]

A．enjoying their owner's love

B．bringing up nicely

C．holding up their heads

D．smiling at their owners

3．According to the passage, which of the following is true?

[　　]

A．Tom wanted to cut off the flowers.

B．Tom said nothing, but the flowers could understand him.

C．The machine didn't work properly.

D．The flowers were getting bad - looking

On receiving my learner driver license a couple of months ago, I started driving lessons straight away. In New Zealand, the __33__ driving age is 15.

   However it wasn't __34__ two days ago that Dad finally allowed me to drive on the motorway. Our __35__ was Orewa, a seaside town about 60 kilometers away from my home in Auckland. That morning I __36__ sure I had enough to drink and went to the toilet (厕所) about three times __37__ we left. I thought I was totally __38__ for the journey, but nothing could have prepared me for my family's __39__. "Relax! Don't hold the steering wheel (方向盘) so __40__. The car is going zigzag (弯弯曲曲的)," called a nervous voice from the __41__. "Speed up. 70km/h isn't fast enough. You are holding up the traffic," another voice ordered from the seat next to mine.

  How __42__ ! My parents were really starting to get on my nerves. To satisfy them I sped up and within a second, an angry voice began to yell again. "Stop! __43__! Are you crazy? ” Everything did not go fine until I pulled off the motorway and drove into the city, __44__ the speed limit was only 50km/h.

  My family seemed relieved (放心的) and __45__ telling me what to do. They all looked out of the windows and enjoyed the scenery .  __46__, that silence didn't last very long. My mum suddenly cried out, "Look at those birds above us. __47__ they lovely?"

  How did she expect me to look up in the __49__? As the driver I had to __48__ . Who knows what would have happened if I had taken my eyes off the __50__? Four hours later we drove home. This time the journey was much __51__ than before as everyone else __52__ fast asleep. So, I just took my time and enjoyed the drive.

1.A. oldest                           B. youngest                  C. best                  D. worst

2.A. until                                B. unless                      C. after                 D. when

3.A. destination                    B. home                       C. city                   D. aim

4.A. thought                        B. decided                    C. kept                  D. made

5.A. when                           B. since                        C. before               D. as

6.A. disappointed                 B. prepared                   C. excited              D. upset

7.A. praises                         B. encouragements        C. complaints         D. cries

8.A. tightly                          B. lightly                      C. loosely             D. happily

9.A. front sear                         B. back seat                  C. top seat          D. empty seat

10.A. interesting                  B. moving                    C. puzzling         D. annoying

11.A. Get out                       B. Move on                  C. Slow down     D. Speed up

12.A. where                         B. while                       C. which               D. why

13.A. began                        B. stopped                    C. continued          D. forgot

14.A. Luckily                      B. Probably                  C. Warmly             D. Sadly

15.A. Can’t                         B. Don’t                       C. Aren’t               D. Won’t

16.A. air                             B. water                       C. ground              D. woods

17.A. see                             B. concentrate               C. check                D. care

18.A. bird                               B. dog                          C. road                  D. car

19.A. easier                         B. flatter                      C. harder               D. lower

20.A. felt                                   B. began                       C. fell                   D. kept

I used to live in a separate room. I loved living   36  . But one day it all changed when my brother Mike asked to  37  my room. At first, my parents said “no” to him, but at last my mother  38  . I cried and begged my parents not to do this, 39  it didn’t work.
As soon as Mike entered my room, my room began to become  40  . To my anger, he often left his unwashed clothes everywhere!
One evening, I was doing my homework on my computer while Mike was listening to music. Later, I left my  41  to get some water. A shock was  42  me when I returned. He had used my computer to play games. I had  43    to save the homework. Sadly, he closed the program  44  saving it--- all my effort had disappeared! I shouted at him at the top of my  45  . He cried a lot as my mother   46  him. My mother also asked him to leave my room  47  .
Then I did my homework once again. At 11:00PM, I  48  it. I was about to turn off my computer when I saw the  49  of my brother that he had put on my table. I looked at his lovely face and remembered how he was crying when my mom punished him. I really felt  50  for him.
I went to him. He was  51  in my parents’ bed. I kissed his forehead. He woke up, 52  and said, “I’m sorry, I won’t bring you  53  again.”
I was so  54   and I hugged him, saying, “From now on, my room is not only  55  . It is ours!”