Computer programmer David Jones earns $35.000 a year designing new computer games. yet he cannot find a bank ready to let him have a credit card（信用卡）Instead he has been told to wait another two years until he is 18. The 16-year-old works for a small firm in Liverpool where the problem of most young people of his age is finding a job David’s firm releases（推出）two new games for the fast growing computer market each month

But David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money. Even though he earns a lot he cannot drive a car take out a mortgage（抵押贷款）,or get credit cards David got his job with the Liverpool-based company four months ago ,a year after leaving school with six O-levels and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs” he said David spends some of his money on records and clothes and gives his mother 50 pounds a week But most of his spare time is spent working.

“Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school “ he said “But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time I knew what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway” David added :”I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement（退休）is a possibility You never know when the market might disappear.”

In what way is David different from people of his age?

A．He often goes out with friends

B．He lives with his mother

C．He has a handsome income

D．He graduated with six O-levels

What is one of the problems that David is facing now?

A．He is too young to get a credit card

B．He has no time to learn driving

C．He has very little spare time

D．He will soon lose his job

Why was David able to get the job in the company?

A．He had done well in all his exams

B．He had written some computer programs

C．He was good at playing computer games

D．He had learnt to use computers at school

Why did David decide to leave school and start working?

A．He received lots of job offers

B．He was eager to help his mother

C．He lost interest in school studies

D．He wanted to earn his own living

根据单词首字母或汉语提示，用所学单词的正确形式填空。
【小题1】 Plant the seeds at a ______ (深度) of ten centimetres.
【小题2】Julia felt _____ (陷入困境) in a dead end job.
【小题3】The police are questioning the driver who has _______ (目击) the accident.
【小题4】The government  is _______ (呼吁) to the public for information about the crime.
【小题5】No ______ (随意地) dressed man is allowed to enter the room.
【小题6】When you meet with a new word while reading, you may c________ the dictionary.
【小题7】Jenny’s parents used to disagree with her marriage, but now they have a_________ of it.
【小题8】David knows a lot about African history, that is, he is a s___________ in it.
【小题9】 I don’t think $500 will cover the e___________ of travelling across China.
【小题10】When asked what led to his success, the actor o_______ his achievement to his wife’s support.

Computer programmer David Jones earned ￡35,000 a year designing new computer games, yet he cannot find a bank prepared to let him have a check card, he has been told to wait another two years until he is 18.

   He works for a small firm in Liverpool, where most young people of his age are finding jobs. David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money. Though he has high payment, he cannot drive a car, or get credit card(信用卡).

   David got his job four months ago, a year after leaving school with six O-levels（普通成绩）and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs,” he said.

   “I suppose ￡35,000 sounds a lot but I hope it will come to more than that this year.” He spends some of his money on records and clothes, and gives his mother ￡20 a week as he lives with his parents. But most of his spare time is spent working.

   “Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school, ” he said. “But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time. I knew what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school. Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway. I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement(退休) is a possibility. You never know when the market might disappear.”

1.Why is David so different from other young people of his age?

A. He earns an extremely high payment

B. He has got a job.

C. He lives at home with his parents.

D. He does not go out much.

2.David’s greatest problem is that______.

A. he can’t be treated as an adult by the bank.

B. he doesn’t make as many games as he wishes.

C. he doesn’t know what to buy with the money.

D. he is too young to drive a car.

3.He was employed by the company because ____.

A. he had worked in a computer shop.

B. he had written some computer programs.

C. he is clever and works hard at his lessons.

D. he had learnt to use computers at school.

4.He left school after taking six O-levels because____.

A. he was afraid of getting too old to start computing.

B. he did not enjoy school.

C. he wanted to work with computers.

D. he wanted to earn a lot of money.

5.Why does David think he might retire early?

A. He thinks computer games might not always sell so well.

B. He wants to stop working when he is a millionaire.

C. One has to be young to write computer programs.

D. He thinks his firm might close down.

Here is the Nine O’clock News：

    1. President Absul Krim of Syria says that the danger of war in the Middle East is greater now than for the past two years. His country does not want war，he says，but the Syrian people have waited too long for an end to the troubles with their neighbors. If war comes，says Mr. Krim， Syria will be ready.

    2. Ben Kitson，a writer of stories and plays for children，has died at his home in California. Mr. Kitson was 82. His most famous book of stories，“The Gentleman‘s House” sells all over the world，in more than twenty-five languages.

    3. Policemen in New York have gone on strike. Their leader Mr. Paul Angeli says that they will return to work only when they receive more money for working long hours and doing what Mr. Angeli calls “the most dangerous job in the city”。

    4. It has been a good year on the farm. The warm， wet spring and the fine summer have been very good for all kinds of food plants. This means that fruits and vegetables will cost less in the shops this year.

5. MORE than 1，100 people committed suicide（自杀）in Beijing last year， and experts have been encouraging the capital to set up a mental health care system as soon as possible，local media reported last week. About 20 per cent of the people of Beijing live in unhealthy conditions，with 3 per cent of these suffering from affective disorder and 5 per cent reporting symptoms（症状）of depression，according to the Beijing Mental Health Service Centre.

1.The Syrian people _______.

A. are ready and waiting for war

B. are ready to wait another two years for war

C. do not want war，but will be ready if it comes

D. are a great danger of peace in the Middle East

2. Mr. Kitson wrote _______.

A. plays and stories for children

B. 82 stories about his home in California

C. in more than twenty-five languages

D. books，and then sold them all over the world

3. It can be inferred from the third piece of news that _________.

A. policemen in New York hate their dangerous jobs

B. policemen in New York love their important jobs

C. the government will refuse to raise the policemen‘s salary and the policemen will never return to work

D. the government will be forced to raise the policemen‘s salary and the policemen will return to work

4.As food plants have grown well， _______.

A. fruit and vegetables will be cheaper this year

B. there will be a warm，wet spring and a fine summer

C. food will be cheaper than it was in the spring

D. plants will be cheaper in the shops this year

5. What is the best title for the last pieces of news？

A. MORE than 1,100 people committed suicide（自杀）in Beijing last year.

B. About 20 per cent of the people of Beijing live in unhealthy conditions.

C. Beijing needs mental health care

D. People living in Beijing suffer a lot.

O. Henry was a pen name used by an American writer of short stories. His real name was William Sydney Porter. He was born in North Carolina in 1862. As a young boy he lived an exciting life. He did not go to school for very long, but he managed to teach himself everything he needed to know. When he was about 20 years old, O. Henry went to Texas, where he tried different jobs. He first worked on a newspaper, and then had a job in a bank. When some money went missing from the bank, O. Henry was believed to have stolen it. Because of that, he was sent to prison. During the three years in prison, he learned to write short stories. After he got out of prison, he went to New York and continued writing. He wrote mostly about New York and the life of the poor there. People liked his stories, because simple as the tales were, they would finish with a sudden change at the end, to the readers’ surprise.

1.   In which order did O. Henry do the following things?

a. Lived in New York.

b. Worked in a bank.

c. Traveled to Texas.

d. Was put in prison.

e. Had a newspaper job.

f. Learned to write stories.

2.People enjoyed reading O. Henry’s stories because _____.

3.What do we know about O. Henry before he began writing?

4.   Where did O. Henry get most material for his short stories?