The Touchstone
When the great library of Alexandria burned, the story goes, one book was saved. But it was not a valuable book; and so a poor man, who could read little, bought it for very little money.
The book wasn't very interesting, but between its pages there was something very interesting indeed. It was a thin strip of vellum on which was written the secret of the "Touchstone"! The touchstone was a small pebble that could turn any common metal into pure gold.
The writing explained that it was lying among thousands and thousands of other pebbles that looked exactly like it. But the secret was this: The real stone would feel warm, while ordinary pebbles are cold.
So the man sold his few belongings, bought some simple supplies, camped on the seashore, and began testing pebbles. He knew that if he picked up ordinary pebbles and threw them down again because they were cold, he might pick up the same pebble hundreds of times. So, when he felt one that was cold, he threw it into the sea. He spent a whole day doing this but none of them was the touchstone. Yet he went on and on this way. Pick up a pebble. Cold - throw it into the sea. Pick up another. Throw it into the sea. Pick up another. Throw it into the sea. The days continued over a long period if time.
One day, however, about mid-afternoon, he picked up a pebble and it was warm. He threw it into the sea before he realized what he had done. He had formed such a strong habit of throwing each pebble into the sea that when the one he wanted came along he still threw it away.
So it is with opportunity. Unless we are cautious, it’s easy to fail to recognize an opportunity when it is in hand and it’s just as easy to throw it away.
1．The man bought the book because______.
A．he wanted to read it B．it was very interesting
C．there was a secret in the book D．he wanted to find the touchstone
2．We can learn from the passage that the touchstone is______.
A．pure B．cold C．magic D．big
3．Why did the man throw the pebbles into the sea?
A．Because he didn’t want to get the same pebbles.
B．Because he didn’t want others to pick them up.
C．Because he didn’t like their ordinary looks.
D．Because he didn’t like the cold feelings.
4．What does the author want to tell us in the passage?
A．We about orate opportunities in our life.
B．We should seek for opportunities in the world.
C．We may seize opportunities when we are watchful
D．We may discover opportunities when forming habits.
三、阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
第一节阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C、D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
A gentle breeze blew through Jennifer's hair. The golden red sun was setting. She was on the beach, looking up at the fiery (火红的) ball. She was amazed by its color, deep red in the middle, softly fading into yellow. She could hear nothing but the waves and the seagulls flying up above in the sky.
The atmosphere relaxed her. After all she had been through, this was what she needed. "It's getting late," she thought, "I must go home. My parents will be wondering where I am."
She wondered how her parents would react, when she got home after the three days she was missing. She kept on walking, directing herself where she spent every summer holiday. The road was deserted. She walked slowly and silently. Just in a few hundred meters she would have been safe in her house.
It was really getting dark now. The sun had set a few minutes before and it was getting cold too. She wished she had her favorite sweater on: it kept her really warm. She imagined having it with her. This thought disappeared when she finally saw her front door. It seemed different. Nobody had taken care of the outside garden for a few days. She was shocked: her father was usually so strict about keeping everything clean and tidy, and now... It all seemed deserted. She couldn't understand what was going on.
She entered the house. First, she went into the kitchen where she saw a note written by her father. It said: "Dear Ellen, there is some coffee ready. I went looking." Ellen was her mother but－where was she? On the right side of the hallway was her parents' room. She went in. Then she saw her. Her mother, lying on the bed, was sleeping. Her face looked so tired, as if she hadn't slept for days. She was really pale. Jennifer would have wanted to wake her up but she looked too tired. So Jennifer just fell asleep beside her. When Jennifer woke up, something was different－she wasn't in her mother's room and she wasn't wearing the old clothes she ran away in. She was in her cozy bed in her pajamas.
It felt so good being back home. Suddenly she heard a voice, "Are you feeling better now, dear? You know you got us very, very scared."
41. Three days later Jennifer came back home .
A. at sunrise B. at sunset C. at night D. at midday
42. What does the underlined phrase "This thought" most probably mean?
A. The idea of going back home.
B. Her anxiety about her parents.
C. The feeling of being warm in her favorite sweater.
D. The feeling of getting back home safely.
43. Her father didn't take care of the garden because .
A. he was busy looking for her
B. he had to look after his wife
C. he was not strict with his job
D. he no longer enjoyed working in the garden
44. What can we infer from this passage?
A. In fact Jennifer's mother had been sick for days.
B. As Jennifer walked towards home, she became increasingly scared.
C. When she found the garden deserted, she realized she was wrong.
D. Having experienced a lot outside, Jennifer felt home was safest for her.
A Narrow Escape
Shortly after the war, my brother and I were invited to spend a few days’ holiday with an uncle who had just returned from abroad. He had rented （租） a cottage in the country, although he hardly spent much time there. We understood the reason for this after our arrival: the cottage had no comfortable furniture in it. Many of the windows were broken and the roof leaked （漏水）, making the whole house wet.
On our first evening, we sat around the fire after supper listening to the stories our uncle told of his many adventures in distant countries. I was so tired after the long train journey that I would have preferred to go to bed; but I could not bear to miss any of my uncle’s exciting stories, He was just in the middle of describing a rather terrifying experience he had once had when there was a loud crash（倒塌声） from the bedroom above, the one where my brother and I were going to sleep.
When we got to the top of the stairs and opened the bedroom door, a strange sight met our eyes. A large part of the ceiling had fallen right on to the pillow（枕头）of my bed.
53. The uncle disliked the rented cottage for the reason that _____.
A. there were no beds in it
B. the windows were broken and the roof leaked
C. it was too old for him to live in
D. it was very rainy in the area
54. On the first evening, the writer was very sleepy, _____.
A. but he did his best not to miss any stories
B. so he had to go to bed early
C. because he was tired of his uncle’s stories
D. and he was gradually falling asleep while listening
55. A narrow escape means ___.
A. A person runs away from a danger through a narrow door.
B. A person escapes a danger by luck.
C. A person escapes a danger easily.
D. A person runs away from a danger easily.
Many teenagers（青少年） feel that the most important people in their lives are their friends. They believe that their family members don’t know them as well as their friends do. In large families, it is quite often for brothers and sisters to fight with each other and then they can only go to their friends for some ideas.
It is very important for teenagers to have one good friend or a group of friends. Even when they are not with their friends, they usually spend a lot of time talking among themselves on the phone. This communication is very important in children’s growing up, because friends can discuss something. These things are difficult to tell their family members.
However, parents often try to choose their children’s friends for them. Some parents may even stop their children from meeting their good friends. Have you ever thought of the following questions?
Who chooses your friends?
Do you choose your friends or your friends choose you?
Have you got a good friend your parents don’t like?
Your answers are welcome.
49. Many teenagers think that ____ can understand them better.
A. friends B. brothers C. sisters D. parents
50. When teenagers have something difficult to tell their parents, they usually____.
A. stay alone at home B. fight with their parents
C. discuss it with their friends D. go to their brothers and sisters for help
51. The sentence （句子） “Your answers are welcome. ” means _______.
A. You are welcome to discuss the questions with us
B. We’ve got no idea, so your answers are welcome
C. Your answers are always right
D. You can give us all the right answers
52. Which of the following is the writer’s attitude（态度）?
A. Parents should choose friends for their children.
B. Children should choose everything they like.
C. Parents should understand their children better.
D. Teenagers should only go to their friends for help.
Summer Holiday Fun 2010 !
The summer holidays are upon us again. Here is our guide to summer holiday fun in Peterborough!
Peterborough Museum
The Age of the Dinosaurs’ is the museum’s main attraction this summer．Get up close to prehistoric creatures via some great hands—on exhibits! Watch out for monsters lurking (潜伏) around every ember! The museum is open from 10：00am to 5：00pm Monday to Saturday，and from 12:00pm to 4:00 pm on Sundays in August．
Call 01733 864663 for details
Saxon Youth Club
School holiday fun：Young people aged 13－19 will be able to produce their own music, compete in spots activities, or try their hand at cooking at Saxon Youth Club, Saxon Community Centre, Norman Road, Peterborough every Monday and Wednesday from 3:00pm. PLUS an aero ball tournament will take place on Thursday 12th August between 3:30pm and 6:30pm.
Call 01353 720274 for details
Houghton Mill
Alice through the Looking Class—a new production of the family favorite on Monday 30th. August. Bring rugs or chairs to sit on and a picnic if you wish to eat during the play. Gates open 5 : 30 pro performance 6:30pm—8:30pm. Tea room will be open until end of the interval. Adult ￡10. Child￡7. Family ￡20.
Booking advisable on 0845 4505157.
Farmland Museum and Denny Abbey
Farmland Gaines：From Wellie Wanging to Pretend Ploughing matches，come and join the Farmland Team．Collect your sporting stickers and create a colorful rosette (玫瑰形饰物) that is fit for a winner！No need to book, just turn up between 12: 00pm and 4:00pm on Thursday 19th August Suitable for children aged four and above，each child should be accompanied by an adult and all activities are included in the normal admission price Tickets Cost￡7 per child.
For further information, call 01223 810080.
45. If you are interested in cooking, you can go to .
A. Peterborough Museum B. Houghton Mill
C. Saxon Youth Club D. Farmland Museum
46. You want to watch the new play with your parents，so it will cost you．
A. ￡21 B. ￡17 C. ￡27 D. ￡20
47. Which of the following activities needs parents’ company?
A. Playing farmland games. B. Watching a new play.
C. Competing in spots activities. D. Visiting the dinosaur exhibition.
48. If Tom comes to Peterborough for amusement on August 19, he will have activities
to choose from for himself.
A. one activity B. two activities
C. three activities D. four activities
Like fine food, good writing is something we approach with pleasure and enjoy from the first taste to the last. And good writers, like good cooks, do not suddenly appear full-blown. Quite the opposite, just as the cook has to undergo a particular training, mastering the skills of his trade, the writer must sit at his desk and devote long hours to achieving a style in his writing, whatever its purpose is—schoolwork, matters of business, or purely social communication.
You may be sure that the more painstaking the effort, the more effective the writing, and the more rewarding.
There are still some faraway places in the world where you might find a public scribe to do your business or social writing for you, for money. There are a few managers who are lucky enough to have the service of that rare kind of secretary who can take care of all sorts of letter writing with no more than a quick note to work from. But for most of us, if there is any writing to be done, we have to do it ourselves.
We have to write school papers, business papers or home papers. We are constantly called on to put words to papers. It would be difficult to count the number of such words, messages, letters, and reports put into mails or delivered by hand, but the daily figures must be extremely large. What is more, everyone who writes expects, or at least hopes whatever he writes will be read, from first word to last, not just thrown into some “letters-to-be-read” files or into a wastepaper basket. This is the reason we bend our efforts toward learning and practicing the skills of interesting, effective writing.
57. In this passage, good writing is compared to fine food because _______.
A. both are enjoyable B. both are hard to learn
C. both are necessary to life D. both take a long time to prepare
58. according to the passage, which of the following statements is true?
A. Writing skills are less important than experience.
B. A good writer should have his own way of writing.
C. A good writer should learn to write all kinds of articles.
D. The more efforts one makes, the more money one can earn.
59. The author thinks that the most important reason for us to practice writing skills is _______.
A. to earn our living B. to attract others to read
C. to do daily reports easily D. to become good secretaries
60. The purpose of the author in writing this passage is to _______.
A. comment and blame B. introduce and describe
C. explain and persuade D. interest and inform