“I Went Skydiving at 84!”
As a young girl growing up in the 1930s, I always wanted to fly a plane, but back then it was almost unheard of for a woman to do that. I got a taste of that dream in 2001,when my husband arranged for me to ride in a hot air balloon for my birthday. But the experience turned out to be very dull. Around that time, I told my husband that I wanted to skydive. So when our retirement community（社区）announced that they were having an essay competition and the topic was an experience of a lifetime that you wanted to have, I decided to write about my dream.
In the essay, I wrote about my desire to skydive, stating George Brush Sr. did it at age 80. Why not me? I was just 84 and in pretty good health. A year went by and I heard nothing. But then at a community party in late April 2009, they announced that I was one of the winners. I just couldn’t believe it. Inspired by this， I decided to realize my dream, even though some of my family members and my doctor were against it.
On June 11, 2009, nearly 40 of my family and friends gathered in the area close to where I would land while I headed up in the airplane. My instructor, Jay, guided me through the experience. The plane was the noisiest one I had ever been in, but I wasn’t frightened—I was really just looking forward to the experience. When we reached 13,000 feet, Jay instructed me to throw myself out of the plane. When we first hit the air, the wind was so strong that I could hardly breathe. For a second I thought, “What have I gotten myself into?” But then everything got calmer. We were in a free fall for about a minute before Jay opened the parachute（降落伞）, then we just floated downward for about five minutes. Being up in the clouds and looking at the view below was unlike anything I have ever felt—much better than the hot air balloon. I was just enjoying it.
Skydiving was really one of the greatest experiences of my life. I hope other people will look at me and realize that you don’t stop living just because you are 84 years old. If there’s something you want to experience, look into it. If it’s something that is possible, make it happen.What happened to the author in 2001?
| A．She flew an airplane | B．She entered a competition |
| C．She went on a hot air balloon ride | D．She moved into a retirement community |
The author mentioned George Bush Sr. in her essay to .
| A．build up her own reputation | B．show her admiration for him |
| C．compare their health condition | D．make her argument persuasive |
How did the author feel immediately after she jumped out of the plane?
| A．Excited | B．Scared | C．Nervous | D．Regretful |
What did the author enjoy most when she was skydiving?
| A．The beautiful clouds | B．The wonderful view |
| C．The company of Jay | D．The one-minute free fall |
Which word could be used to replace the word “instructor,” in Paragraph 3?
| A．doctor | B．conductor | C．pilot | D．trainer |
第三部分阅读理解（共20小题，每题2分，满分40分）
The writing of Shakespeare are today little read by young people in Britain．His young readership is limited to those who choose to study literature at university．
Shakespeare’s work, together with most other classics, is seen as remote, and written in a 400-year- old version of English that is about as inviting as toothache．
Still, in British schools, it is necessary to study the poet, and when something is made compulsory, usually the result is boredom, resentment（憎恨） or both．
This was my experience of the classics at school．But when I reached my late teenage years, I had a change of heart．Like every other young person since the dawn of time, the world confused me．I wanted answers, so I turned to books to find them．
I went on to take a PhD in literature and have taught it in Britain and China．I have never regretted it．There is something in literature that people want, even if they don’t read books．You see this in the popularity of TV and movie adaptations of great works, the recent film version of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice being a case in point．These popular adaptations may help increase people’s interest in the classics．
Reading a simplified Romeo and Juliet may perhaps lead to a reading of Shakespeare’s actual plays．If that is the case, then I welcome the trend．But do not make the mistake of thinking that it is the same thing．Shakespeare is a poet．His greatness is in his language．Reading someone else’s rewriting of his works is like peeling a banana, throwing away the fruit, and eating the skin．Take on the original．It really is worth the effort．
1．Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A．The language used in classics is no longer in use today．
B．British students usually find compulsory reading dull．
C．Only those studying literature read Shakespeare’s works．
D．For British people, Shakespeare’s works are no longer classics．
2．According to the passage, the writer _____ ．
A．has liked literary classics since an early age
B．was forced to read the classics for a PhD
C．turned to literature to seek answers in his teens
D．thinks only people who read books like literature
3．The underlined phrase “a case in point” in Paragraph 5 is closest in meaning to “_____”．
A．a great hitB．a good example
C．a movie adaptation D．a popular phenomenon
4．What does the writer intend to tell us in the last paragraph?
A．The fruit of a banana is more useful than its skin．
B．The rewriting trend does more harm than good．
C．Readers should try to read the original versions．
D．Readers need to learn the language in the classics．
Molly Wilson had been a dancer and a mother for many years when she decided to sail round the world to raise money for charity.
As a child she had trained as a ballet dancer, but at 15 she had grown too tall for classical ballet, so she became a member of a pop dance team.
She got married, and after she had children she retired from show business to bring them up. They grew up, and when they were 18 they left home.
She says, “When I decided to do the round-the-world race, my husband thought I was bored because the children had left home. He was also worried because I had never sailed before. I was not bored, but I had met some people who told me about the race.
They had taken part in it, but they had only done one section, say, from New Zealand to Australia. I wanted to do the whole ten-month journey.”
Before Molly left she did a lot of training, but it hadn’t prepared her for the worst weather which they experienced. She tells one story. “One night the sea was very rough and it was very cold. I had gone downstairs when a hug
e wave smashed into the boat and injured two men on the deck. One of the men couldn’t move because he had broken his leg. They were taken to hospital by helicopter. That was the worst time.”
By the end of October last year, she had raised more than £50,000 for charity.
She says, “Sometimes I ask myself, what did I do? How did I do it? But then I think, it’s the same as being a dancer. Before I left on the trip, I had trained hard. I had got very fit and had prepared myself completely. Then on the trip I was simply a good team member.”
1. When I decided to do the round-the-world race, my husband thought I felt_________.
A. dissatisfied because I had nothing better to do at home
B. annoyed because I had to wait long for my children to come back home
C. sad because all the children left me when they grew up
D. happy because I could do something I was interested in instead of taking care of children
2. The word “section” in paragraph 5 most probably refers to _________.
A. group of people B. part of the training
C. part of the job D. part of the route of sail
3. Which of the following is closest in meaning to “rough” in Para. 5?
A. not exact B. not smooth because of huge waves
C. difficult D. pleasant
4. The last paragraph suggests that _________.
A. she should be kind to other team members during the trip
B. many years of dancing had already prepared her for the sail completely, so she needn’t do anything before the journey
C. the qualities she needed for the trip were the same as those for a dancer
D. 
she should not forget dancing during the trip
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每小题2分，满分40分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中选出最佳选项
MONTREAL (Reuters) – Crossing the US-Canada border to go to church on a Sunday cost an American ＄10,000 for breaking Washington’s strict new security（安全）rules.
The expensive trip to church was a surprise for Richard Albert, who lives on the Canadian border. Albert often crosses the border like the other half-dozen people of Township 15. The nearby Quebec village of St. Pamphile is where they shop, eat and go to church. There are many such situations in these areas along the largely unguarded 5,530-mile border between Canada and the US, which in some cases actually
runs down the middle of streets or through bu
ildings.
As a result, Albert says he did not expect any problems three weeks ago when he returned home to the US after attending church in Canada as usual. The US customs（海关）station in this area is closed on Sundays, so he just drove around the locked gate, as he had done every weekend since the gate appeared last May, following a tightening of border security. Two days later, Albert was told to go to the customs office, where an officer told him he had been caught on camera crossing the border illegally（非法）.
Ottawa has given out special passes to some 300 Americans in that area so they can enter the country when Canadian customs stations are closed, but the US stopped a similar program last May. That forces the people to a 200-mile detour along hilly roads to get home through another border checkpoint.
Albert has requested that the customs office change their decisions on the fine, but he has not attended a Sunday church since. “I feel like I’m living in a prison,” he said.
1．We learn from the text that Richard Albert is____________.
A．an American working in a Canadian church
B．a Canadian living in a Quebec village
C．a Canadian working in a customs station
D．an American living in Township 15
2．Albert was fined because he____________.
A. broke the American security rules
B．failed to obey traffic rules
C．worked in St. Pamphile without a pass
D．damaged the gate of the customs o
ffice
3．According to paragraph 4, how can Americans in that area get home ?
A．They have to drive through the town.
B．They have to race across the fields.
C．They have to drive to the mountain area.
D．They have to drive in a roundabout(绕道的) way.
4．What would be the best title for the text?
A．A Cross-country Trip B．An Expensive Church Visit
C．An Unguarded BorderD．A Special Border Pass
The desire to make explorations is born with man. Wherever his imagination goes, man also has a strong wish to go. A large part of human history is connected with the exploration of the world in which we live. Again and again people have set out with surprising courage and patience to look into unknown regions and lands to see what had not yet been seen, to make known the unknown. With kites, balloons and aircraft they left the ground to pass through the lower atmosphere. Now the outer space receives their attention.
Why should man take the trouble of exploring space? It is hard to list the specific practical benefits that will result in. But one knows, from past experience in other areas, that man will surely see and discover new things in space that will increase our scientific knowledge, and this new knowledge will find its
way into valuable practical uses. What we learn about man himself, from his experience in space, and from the effects of space and the space flight environment on him, will be extremely valuable. The new techniques developed to carry out the exploration of space, and to keep man alive in space, will certainly find practical uses in everyday life in some way. The areas that will benefit are manifold. They include communication, generation of power, transportation and travel, food production, materials, fuels and many others. But to say exactly what the practical results will be is almost impossible.
1. The main idea of the first paragraph is that __________.
A. man often goes wherever his dreams go
B. man desires to explore what is unknown
C. man is no longer interested in the study of the land and sea now
D. man's history is his exploration of the world
2. The word "manifold" in the second paragraph probably means ________ .
A. of value B. of use C. in a way D. in many ways
3. The author seems to be in favor of ____.
A. the exploration of space
B. doubting the necessity of the space exploration
C. exploring more in space than in sea
D. his experience in space
4. In the last sentence of paragraph 2 ,the phrase "practical results" refers to the results ______.
A. that can be made use of
B. that can be learned as knowledge
C. that are obtained from experience
D. helping us make further exploration
Welcome to the World Expo 2010 Shanghai China. In order to protect the interests and rights of visitors and ensure a safe and orderly visit, the organizer of Expo 2010 has made these Terms and Conditions.
Article 1 Scope of Application
These Terms and Conditions are applicable to (适用于) all visitors to Expo 2010, including those who enter the Expo Site with valid tickets and children at or below 1.2m at the time of entry, who are suitable for free admission.
Article 2 Operation Time
The operation time of the Expo Site shall be 9:00 ~ 24:00. The opening hours of the exhibitions shall be 9:30 ~ 22:30. Visitors shall enter the Expo Site before 21:00 and leave before 24:00 on the day of admission. Those with evening admission tickets may enter the Expo Site between 1
7:00 and 21:00.
Article 3 Orderly Entry
Visitors shall go through ticket pre-check, security check and ticket confirmation in an orderly fashion before entering the Expo Site. Those who refuse to cooperate may be denied entry by the Organizer.
Children suitable for free admission and other visitors with mobility difficulties may only enter the Expo Site when accompanied by adults. Those under the influence of alcohol and the persons suffering from mental disorders are not allowed to enter.
Article 4 Exhibitions and Performances
Visitors may visit exhibitions and watch performances in the Expo Site at no additional charge.
1. Which of the following statement is true according to the text?
A. At the time of entry ，children below 1.2m needn’t buy tickets to enter the Expo Site.
B. Visitors must pay additional fee to watch performances in the Ex
po Site
C. Children below 1.2m can enter the Expo Site by themselves.
D. Before entering the Expo Site, visitors shall go through ticket pre-check and security check.
2. Mr.Wang has got an evening admission ticket , how long can he stay in the Expo Site at most?
A. 15 hours. B. 13 hours. C. 7 hours. D. 4 hours.
3. What does “Those under the influence of alcohol " mean?
A. Visitors with mobility difficulties.
B. The persons who are drunk.
C. Visitors who refuse to cooperate.
D. The persons who sell alcohol.