ATHISWEEK’STOURSofCATTYSHACKTh-优题课

One day while shopping in a small town in southern California, it was my misfortune to be approached by a clerk．He seemed most unfriendly and not at all concerned about my intended purchase．I bought nothing, and marched angrily out of the store．
On the outside was a dark-skinned young man in his early twenties．His expressive brown eyes met and held mine, and in the next instant a beautiful, bright smile covered his face．I gave in immediately．The power of that broad smile dissolved all bitterness within me, and I felt the muscles in my own face happily responding．
"Beautiful day, isn't it?" I remarked, passing．Then I turned back．"I really owe you a debt of thanks," I said softly．
His smile deepened, but he made no attempt to answer．A Mexican woman and two men were standing nearby．The woman stepped forward and volunteered, "Sir, but he doesn't speak English．Do you want me to tell him something?" In that moment I felt transformed．The young man's smile had made a big person of me．My friendliness and good will toward all mankind stand ten feet tall．
“Yes,” my reply was enthusiastic and sincere, “tell him I said, ‘Thank you!’”
“Thank you?” The woman seemed slightly puzzled．
I gave her arm a friendly pat as I turned to leave．"Just tell him that," I insisted．"He'll understand．I am sure!"
Oh, what a smile can do! Although I have never seen that young man again, I shall never forget the lesson he taught me that morning．From that day on, I became smile-conscious, and I practice the art diligently anywhere and everywhere, with everybody．n
Why did the author leave the store angrily?

A．He couldn't buy what he wanted．

B．The clerk treated him unkindly．

C．The clerk didn't speak English．

D．The store's goods were too dear．

By saying "I felt the muscles in my own face happily responding"(in Para. 2), the author means __.

A．he smiled back at the young man	B．he did not want to smile
C．he would thank the young man	D．he was still in a bad mood

．The author asked the woman to say "Thank you!" to the young man because the young man.

A．had helped the author before	B．taught the author how to smile
C．taught the author a valuable lesson	D．was a kind employee of the store

．In the passage, the author seems to suggest that we should _____.

A．be generous to strangers	B．practice smiling every day
C．help people in trouble	D．smile at other people

Violent winds swept the ocean, and waves thundered to shore, shaking the lookout tower at Pea Island Rescue Station. Surfman Theodore Meekins was on watch that evening of 11 October 1896. A hurricane had struck the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and the tide was so strong that beach patrols(巡逻)had been canceled. Still, Meekins paid close attention to the horizon. This was the type of weather that could blow ships hundreds of miles off course.
Offshore, the ship E.S. Newman was caught in the storm. The captain, whose wife and child were on the ship, feared the Newman would soon break up. He made the decision to beach his ship, then fired a signal, praying that someone onshore would see it.
Meekins, whose eyes were trained to cut through rain and surf mists, thought he saw the signal, but so much spray (水雾) covered the lookout windows that he could hardly make sure. Still, he took no chances. After summoning (召集) the station keeper, Captain Richard Etheridge, Meekins set off a coston signal, a signal made by using lamps of different colors. Together, the two men searched the darkness for a reply. A few moments later, they saw a flash of light to the south and knew a shop was in distress (遇险). Even before the return signal burned out, Etheridge had summoned his men and begun rescue operations.
For the lifesavers, the rescue of the Newman was nothing unusual. Over the years, so many ships had foundered off the Outer Banks that sailors called the region the Graveyard of the Atlantic. Noting the dangerous surf and wind conditions, Captain Etheridge quickly decided the surf boats would be impossible to control. Instead, he decided to use another way to help the survivors.
The crew set off on the long journey down the beach to the scene of the wreck (海滩). Captain Etheridge hoped to fire a line from a gun to the ship’s mast (船桅). After the ship’s crew dragged the line onboard, the surfmen would fire a second line and carry survivors safely to shore.
The surfmen crossed three miles of sand to reach the ship Newman. The water was freezing, and the men often sank up to their knees in sand. Captain Etheridge noted in his diary that “the voice of gladdened hearts greeted the arrival of the station crew,” but that “it seemed impossible for them to do anything under such circumstances. The work was often stopped by the sweeping current.”
Even when the rescue equipment proved useless, Etheridge refused to give up. Choosing two of his strongest surfmen, he tied rope lines around their waists and sent them into the water. The two men, holding a line from shore, walked with huge effort as far as they could before diving through the waves. Nearly worn out while swimming against the tide, they finally made it to the shore.
The first to be rescued were the captain’s wife and child. With the two passengers tied to their backs, the surfmen fought their way back to shore. Taking turns, Etheridge and his crew made ten trips to the Newman, saving every person onboard. It was 1:00 a.m. when the crew and survivors finally made it back to the station.
That night, as the exhausted survivors lay sleeping and his lifesaving crew rested, Captain Etheridge picked up his pen, and in the light of an oil lantern, wrote with satisfaction that all the people onboard had been saved and were “sheltered in this station”—words he would remember for many years to come.
The beach patrols were canceled because ________.

A．Meekins paid enough attention to the horizon

B．there was too much spray on the windows

C．the winds and tide were too strong

D．there was no ship near the station

The underlined word “foundered” in Paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to “___________”.

A．stopped

B．sank

C．sailed

D．arrived

What was the author’s main purpose in writing the passage?

A．To warn sailors of the dangers of hurricanes.

B．To create a story describing a rescue at sea.

C．To inform people about Richard Etheridge.

D．To record the details about the Newman.

What is the main idea of the passage?

A．The newman was very dangerous before Richard Etheridge and his team members saw the signal.

B．A terrible hurricane took place off the coast of North Carolina and threatened the lives of many sailors.

C．At no other time in American history have so many shipwrecked passengers survived such a violent storm.

D．All the passengers of a shipwreck were rescued because of heroic the efforts of a special leader and his crew.

Grace Kane hangs onto an Olympic dream of clinging to a granite (花岗岩) wall by her fingertips 70 feet from the ground. The fearless girl is only 10, but already has scaled great heights in the sport of rock climbing.
Last week, Kane won a bronze in the 11andyounger sport class at the USA Climbing Youth National Championships in Atlanta. She was the only competitor of the 31 there with no climbing coach or topflight facilities in which to train. Climbing will become an exhibition at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics in Brazil. The hope of enthusiasts is that the sport will gain full status in 2020.“I’m already training for that,” said Kane. “Climbing is my passion, my love, and I want to make something of it.”
Her dad took her to climb rocks on her fourth birthday for the first time and today he can’t keep up with her, “It’s the freedom to let loose,” she said. “When I’m up there, I’m so focused and don’t hear anything. I always feel comforted knowing people are supporting me.”
The bronze in Atlanta qualified Kane for the USA team and November’s International Championships in Ecuador. That’s a trip she might have to miss because it’s too expensive.
Kane held a backyard music concert---she played the guitar and the piano and wrote inspirational songs---and raised $600 for her $1,500 trip to Atlanta. She’s also been sponsored by a shoe company, but must rely heavily on donations from family and friends for travel expenses.
Her mom Heather Kane said the family has chosen “to do whatever we need to help her achieve her goals”. One of Grace’s biggest challenges is finding balance in her life. There’s school, her music and church to fit around climbing.
“Climbing is going to mean sacrificing things other kids might pursue,” Grace said. “But it doesn’t bother me. It’s like playing the piano; you can’t take a break or you’ll lose your touch.”
What would be the best title of the passage?

A．Rock climbing gains popularity

B．Grace Kane likes challenges

C．A young climber follows her dream

D．An amazing victory for a young rock climber

We can learn from the second paragraph that rock climbing ________.

A．is not an exhibition at the Olympics now

B．is an official event at the Olympics now

C．is not open to children

D．will gain full status in 2020

Which of the following is TRUE about Grace Kane?

A．She is only interested in rock climbing.

B．She is a girl with many talents.

C．Rock climbing has affected her study.

D．She has won gold medals in several matches.

One of Grace’s biggest challenges is to ________.

A．find a capable coach for her

B．get qualified for the USA team

C．raise enough money for International competitions

D．keep balance between rock climbing and other activities

I paid a visit to Cambridge last January. Though the trip took me 5 hours and it rained the whole day with strong winds there, the town deserved a visit.
The bus started at 6:10 a. m. It stopped at 4 airports before we finally arrived，which wasted more time than we expected. Tired with long sitting，one passenger stood up to relax his numbed legs. The driver asked him to sit down but in vain. So he pulled up and said seriously, “Either you get off or sit down.” To him, safety is the first policy.
Cambridge consists of over thirty colleges. The oldest part of the university was built in the 13th century while the newest was founded in the mid 1960s.The number of the students is so great that many students live in lodgings（出租房）and move into college for their final year.
Cambridge is called a university town because there is no clear separation between the university buildings and the rest of the city. The university is not just one part of the town；it is all over the town. The heart of Cambridge has shops，pubs，and supermarkets，but most of it is university-colleges，departments，libraries，clubs and other places for university staff and students. Students fill the shops，cafes，banks and churches，making these as well part of the university.
With over 10,000 undergraduates and postgraduates, the town is a busy place indeed. Students here are not allowed to keep cars. If you happen to be walking in the street during a break，better stop a moment to avoid the boiling sea of bicycles hurrying in all directions，carrying students from one college or lecture room to another.
The writer believed that the trip took more time because of________

A．bad weather	B．unexpected stops of the bus
C．one passenger	D．an accident on the way

Why is Cambridge called a university town？

A．It has 10，000 undergraduates and postgraduates.

B．There are over thirty colleges in the town.

C．All the students and staff live in the town.

D．The university and town are fully combined.

It can be inferred that most Cambridge students take _______as their first means of transport.

A．boats

B．cars

C．bicycles

D．buses

D
The year is 2094. It has been announced that a comet (彗星) is heading towards the Earth . Most of it will miss our planet , but two pieces will probably hit the southern half of the Earth .
On 17 July , a piece four kilometers wide enters the Earth’s atmosphere (大气层) with a massive explosion . About half of the piece is destroyed , but the remaining part hits the South Atlantic at 200 times the speed of sound . The sea boils and a huge hole is made in the sea bed . Huge waves are created and spread outwards from the hole . The wall of water , a kilometer high , rushes towards southern Africa at 800 kilometers an hour . Cities on the African coast are totally destroyed and millions of people re drowned .
Before the waves reach South America , the second piece of the comet lands in Argentina . Earthquakes and volcanoes are set off in the Andes Mountains . The shock waves move north into California and all around the Pacific Ocean . The cities of Los Angeles , San Francisco and Tokyo are completely destroyed by earthquakes . Millions of people in the southern half of the earth are already dead, but the north won’t escape for long . Because of the explosions , the sun is hidden by clouds of dust , temperatures around the world fall to almost zero .Crops are ruined . The sun won’t be seen again for many years . Wars break out as countries fight for food . A year later , no more than 10 million people remain alive .
Could it really happen ? In fact , it has already happened more than once in the history of the Earth . The dinosaurs were on the Earth for over 160 million years . Then 65 million years ago they suddenly disappeared . Many scientists believe that the Earth was hit by a piece of object in space . The dinosaurs couldn’t live through the cold climate that followed and they died out . Will we meet the same end ?
What is mainly described in the passage ?

A．A historic discovery .	B．An event of imagination
C．A research on space .	D．A scientific adventure .

When the first piece hits the South Atlantic , it causes .

A．an earthquake	B．damages to cities
C．an Earth explosion	D．huge waves

Why can’t the northern half of the earth escape for long ?

A．Because the land is covered with water

B．Because the light and heat from the sun can not reach the earth .

C．Because people there can not live at the temperature of zero .

D．Because wars break out among countries .

A．admission cost	B．event description
C．special comments	D．visiting hours

A．On the website.	B．In the textbook.
C．In the magazine.	D．On the poster board.