E
When New York City was not very big, there was a market on the East River. On market day all the farmers came there to sell their vegetable, butter and eggs, and fruit. They laughed and talked together, so no one could hear the river that ran beside them.
But Hans ,the butterman , sat without a smile. He sold pounds of butter from a table beside him. Many people said that his butter wasn’t the right weight. They said that his rolls of butter didn’t weigh as much as a pound.
Once the weighmaster came walking down the road. He was looking for people who did not sell the full weight. Someone told him, ”Watch Hans, the butterman.”
Hans had good eyes. He saw the weighmaster and quickly put the piece of gold into the first roll of butter, between the butter and its cover.
A captain was standing beside Hans’s table, and he had seen Hans put the piece of gold into the roll. He stood at Hans’s side when the weighmaster came up to him.
“Good morning,” said the weighmaster.
“Good morning,” said Hans. “I think that you are looking for farmers who trick the people of our town.
“I’m,” said the weighmaster. “Someone told me that your rolls of butter don’t weigh a full pound.”
“Oh yes, they do. Here, Weighmaster. Here is a roll of butter. Weigh it yourself,” said Hans.
Hans took the first roll of butter and gave it to the weighmaster.
The weighmaster took his scales and put the butter onto it. The roll weighed more than a pound.
“I’ve made a mistake,” said the weighmaster. “You are an honest man. There is enough butter in this roll.”
Then the captain stood in front of Hans’s table. “You are an honest man, so I want to buy some of your butter,” he said. Before Hans could speak, the captain picked up the roll of butter with the piece of gold in it. “I’ll take this one.”
Hans’s heart began beating more quickly. “No, not that one. I’ve sold that one to a friend of mine. Take another one.”
“No, I want this one,” said the captain.
“I won’t sell it to you. I told you that I’ve sold it to a friend,” said Hans.
“Don’t make me angry. The weighmaster weighed this roll. Give your friend another one.”
“But I want to give him this one,” said Hans, who was now very uncomfortable.
“I ask you, good Weighmaster,” said the captain angrily, “don’t I have the right to choose the piece of butter that I want? I will pay good money for it.”
“Of course you have the right, Captain,” said the weighmaster. “What are you afraid of, Hans? Aren’t all the rolls of butter alike? Perhaps I have to weigh all of them.”
What could Hans say? What could he do? He had to smile and sell the butter to the captain. The captain gave Hans three cents for the butter.
The captain and the weighmaster walked away together.
“You punished the thief,” said the weighmaster.
“No, he punished himself,” said the captain, smile.
1. When Hans saw the weighmaster, he .
A. stood up at once B. said hello to the weighmaster
C. put a piece of gold into a roll of butter quickly
D. gave the weighmaster a piece
2. After the weighmaster weighed the roll of butter that Hans gave, he .
A. thought Hans was an honest man
B. wanted to weigh all the other rolls of butter
C. wanted to buy a roll of butter from Hans
D. thought Hans was foolish
3. The captain wanted to buy butter from Hans .
A. because he knew Hans was an honest man
B. because he wanted to punish Hans
C. to get the piece of gold in the butter
D. because the butter weighed more than a pound
4. Hans didn't want to sell that roll of butter to the captain because .
A. he had sold it to someone else
B. he didn't like the captain
C. he didn't want to lose the piece of gold in it
D. it weighed more than a pound
Advice to English learners
Learners of English, especially self-taught learners may have trouble in understanding speeches by native speakers. The following ways might help improve their ability.
First of all, do things step by step. It is not good to listen to something beyond your level. Better choose a suitable course and start with the first book. Go on to the second book only after you are sure you understand the first one.
Secondly, stick to one course of study. Don’t change books often. Never let your attention be attracted by another course just because it seems to be more “ fashionable”(时髦).
Thirdly, listen to the English news programme over the radio from time to time. Better go through the news stories in the Chinese-language newspaper first. That will make it easy for you to understand the English news on the radio.
Fourthly, if you have time, listen to some interesting stories in “special English” from the VOA or other listening materials of the same level as that of your textbook.This is a piece of advice to learners of English in how to_____.
| A．improve their listening ability | B．read fast |
| C．write better English and read fast | D．speak correctly |
If you want to understand the English news programme on the radio, you should_________.
read the Chinese-language newspaper carefully
read again and again the Chinese-language newspaper
go through the Chinese-language newspaper
be able to recite the Chinese-language newspaper“Beyond your level” means something_______.
| A．easy for you | B．too difficult for you |
| C．not too easy and not too difficult for you | D．just all right for you |
The author advised that once you have taken up a course, you should_______.
stick to itB. begin with the last book
C. take up other courses if you are more fashionable D. not do anything elseIn this passage, VOA stands for______.
| A．a book | B．a magazine | C．a textbook | D．a radio station |
One night last February, a seventeen-year-old Duffy drove home along a winding road, he saw a strange light thrown against the tree. “I knew it wasn’t the moon”, he said. “I drive this road all the time and I notice little things out of place.”
Duffy stopped his car and got out to examine. Below him far down in the deep valley lay a broken car with its headlights on. Thirty minutes earlier, a man had driven off the edge of the road, which has no guardrail. His car fell and rolled end over end, landing on its top more than two hundred feet below.
Duffy rushed to call for help, then returned and got down to reach the injured driver. Snow covered the valley and the temperature was below freezing. After struggling back up the cliff, Duffy took off his jacket and shirt and wrapped the injured man in time, along with the blankets from his car.
Life-saving deeds are starting to become usual action for Duffy, the oldest of seven children. When he was 12, he saved his ten-year-old brother from drowning. Two years ago, his three-year-old sister ate rat poison, and Duffy cleaned out her mouth, make her drink milk to protect her stomach and called doctors.
“We have tried to teach the children good values, and it looks like we have got some reward for it.” His father says.
46. The strange light came from ________.
A. The bright moon. B. Duffy’s car.
C. The broken car in the valley D. an unknown place
47. The phrase” landing on its top” means the car lay_________.
A. on the top of the cliff B. with its wheels upward
C. with its head upward D. on the road as usual
48. Duffy wrapped the man because_________.
A. he was badly injured B. he had lost too much blood
C. he had nothing on D. it was too cold that day
49. From the above article, we can see Duffy has saved ________ at least.
A. two B. three C. four D. five
50. “We have tried to teach the children good values” may probably mean Duffy’s parents often tell their children_________.
A. to help people in danger B. how to save people’s lives
C. to remember the value of the car D. how to do business
阅读（共两节，15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）
第一节：阅读理解。阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项中，选出最佳选项。
This is a true story from Guyana. One day, a boy took a piece of paper from a box. He made a paper ball and pushed it into his nose. He couldn’t get it out. He ran crying to his mother. His mother couldn’t get the paper out, either. A week later, the paper was still in the boy’s nose. His nose began to have a bad smell.
So his mother took the boy to a hospital. The doctor looked up at the child’s nose, but she couldn’t get the paper out. She said she had to cut the boy’s nose to get the paper out.
The boy’s mother came home looking sad. She didn’t want her child to have his nose cut. The next day she took the boy to her friend Sidney who lived in a house with an old lady called May. May wanted to see the child, so the child let her look up his nose.
“Yes, I can see it,” May said. “It will be out soon.”
As she spoke, she shook some black pepper on the child’s nose. The child gave a mighty sneeze and the paper flew out. His mother was surprised. May told his mother to take the boy to the seaside for a swim, for the salt water would go up his nose and stop the bad smell.
So the lucky boy didn’t have to go to the hospital to have his nose cut.
41. After the boy pushed a paper ball into his nose, ____.
A. he took it out B. his mother took it out
C. he did nothing but cryD. he tried to take it out but failed
42. The paper ball stayed in the boy’s nose for ____.
A. at most seven days B. less than seven days
C. more than seven days D. exactly seven days
43. According to the story, _____ was most worried about the boy’s accident.
A. the boy’s mother B. Sidney C. May D. the doctor
44. Which of the following is TRUE?
A. The doctor helped to take the paper ball out of the boy’s nose.
B. May succeeded in taking the paper out.
C. The boy’s mother found some black pepper to solve the problem.
D. The boy had to have his nose cut at last.
45. The boy should be taken to the seaside for a swim because ____.
A. he needed to learn to swim
B. the sea water would stop the bad smell of his nose.
C. the sea water would wash out the paper ball.
D. he needed a rest
In today's world, we rely on computers as never before. They are used for everything from ordering a pizza to running hospitals and military defense systems. Banking and credit card information is stored and accessed by computers. So what happens when a computer gets infected with a virus? One effect is that people's access to their e-mail accounts is cut off. A more serious possible consequence is that billions of dollars could be lost.
A virus is a computer program that copies itself onto other programs and infects them. Similar to an easily spread disease, a computer virus goes from computer to computer, either adding to or changing the tasks a program is designed to do.
The first computer viruses were created in the mid '80s and had varying effects. Some caused files to be deleted, or made the letters on the screen appear to fall off. Others displayed a specific message once the computer was turned on.
Viruses today are much more widespread and dangerous than ever before. Perhaps the most damaging to date has been the "I Love You" virus. "I Love You" appeared in May 2000 and has possibly been the most destructive virus in terms of monetary loss.
The virus is released when an attachment to a fake e-mail message is opened. By changing the names of files on computers, "I Love You" makes them difficult to access. It also searches for important personal information, including passwords, which it sends to a web site for others to see.
It is estimated that more than 45 million people in 20 countries have had their computers infected by the "I Love You" virus. Some say the cost of repair and lost business has been more than US$10 billion.
If you own a computer, it is important to keep it in good health by installing an anti-virus program. If updated frequently, it will protect your e-mail access--not to mention your wallet.
51.What does "virus" mean in the article?
A. An easily spread disease.
B. A contagious (传染的) computer program.
C. An extremely small organism (生物) which causes disease.
D. A parasite (寄生虫) in computer.
52. How does "I Love You" virus spread?
A. It is spread when an e-mail account is opened.
B. It is spread through on-line chatting.
C. It is spread through e-mail.
D. It spreads from web site to web site.
53. Which of the following is one of the damages brought by "I Love You" virus?
A. It deletes files. B. It automatically turns on computers.
C. It automatically turns off computers. D. It makes it difficult to access files.
54. Which of the following is the best way to guard against virus?
A. To load an up-to-date anti-virus program into our computer
B. Not to use an e-mail account.
C. To upgrade our computer. D. Not to use the Internet.
55. What is the purpose of the article?
A. To warn us against virus.
B. To remind us the importance of being healthy.
C. To stress the importance of computer.
D. To alert us to economic loss.
Several different stories are told about the origin of Saint Valentine’s Day. One legend(story) dates as far back as the days of Roman Empire. According to the story. Claudius, the Emperor of Rome, wanted to increase the size of the army. He knew that it would be easier to get young men who were not married to join the army; therefore, he made a rule that no young men could marry until he had served in the army for a number of years.
A priest(man working in church) named Valentine broke the rule and secretly married a great number of young people. Finally, Claudius found out about Valentine and put the priest in prison, where he remained until his death on February 14.
After his death, Valentine was made a saint(perfect man in public opinion) and the day of his death was named Saint Valentine’s Day----which is a time for people to send one another their greeting of many kinds.
February 14, Valentine’s Day, is sweetheart’s day, on which people in love with each other express their tender emotions(soft feelings).
People sometimes put their
love message in a heart shaped box of chocolate or a bunch of flowers tied with red ribbons(silk). Words of letters may be written on the flower covered card, or something else. Whatever the form may be, the message is almost the same “Will you be my Valentine?”
46. According to the rule_______.
A. no young men could get married unless they were old enough.
B. Young men could get married if they had served the army for a number of years.
no one could get married without the emperor’s permission
young men could get married only in the army.
47.The passage mainly tells us about_______.
A. How Valentine died B. The emperor of Rome
C. How Valentine’s Day is celebrated D. The origin of Valentine’s Day
48. February 14 is chosen as Valentine’s Day because_______.
A. people want to remember Valentine
lovers express their tender emotions on this day
people send one another greeting of many kinds on this day
people want to fix a date for lovers to express their emotion
49. Valentine was put in prison for ________.
A. he helped the couples who were not supposed to get married B. he got married C. he fell in love with more than one woman.
D. he broke the emperor’s rule on purpose
50. When a boy asks a neighbor girl to be his Valentine, he is probably asking her to _________.
A. spend the festival with him B. be his date
C. forgive himD. not to break his heart