Ten-year-old Barack Obama was one of only three black 1             at his school in Hawaii, USA. He felt
very 2              from most other students. White girls wanted to touch his hair. A white boy 3              
him if his father ate people."I lied to them that my father was a Kenyan (肯尼亚) prince (王子).
But I kept asking 4             who I am," said Obama. However, 37 years later, the boy made history.
Obama became the 5              black president (总统) in US history. Obama was 6            in 1961,
to an African father and a white American woman a small town in the USA. He grew 7             in
Indonesia and Hawaii. This unusual background made him wonder who he was. He once turned to
alcohol (酒精) to help forget this question. 8              the help of his friends, Obama finally turned his
life around at college. His hard work made him STAR Harvard (哈佛大学). Later, he became only the
third black senator (参议院) in US history. During his race to the highest post in the US, Obama talked
about this background. He called for a Untied States of America, rather than a white America or a
black America. Obama's success has made Martin Luther King's dream come 9             . That is:
A man should not be judged (判断) by the color of his skin, 10              by the content of his
character (性格). 
                                                                                                                          —From BBC news.

     Helen Keller was born in the USA and she was a very clever beautiful baby. But the fever cut her off
from the outside world. After that she could not see or hear and soon she couldn't even talk. She was
blind, deaf, and dumb.
     Just before Helen Keller's seventh birthday, Anne Sullivan , a teacher, came to help her. Anne
Sullivan did a lot of work. With the help of Miss Sullivan , Helen learned how to swim and ride a horse.
      Later Helen went to a school for blind children. She worked and studied very hard. She wrote many
books and became a famous writer. Her first and famous book was The Story of My Life. People
around the world enjoy reading her books. Helen died at the age of 88 in 1968.
1. When was Helen born?
A. In 1886.  
B. In 1880.  
C. In 1968.
2. What was Helen like when she was a baby?
A. She was clever.
B. She was blind.
C. She was deaf.
3. Who helped Helen out?
A. Helen's parents.
B. Helen's friends.
C. Anne Sullivan.
4. How did Helen learn to read and write?
A. On the radio.
B. Through her hands.
C. On TV.
5. Which of the following is TRUE?
A. Helen didn't go to school at all.
B. Helen learned how to skate and ride a horse.
C. Helen's first and famous book was The Story of My Life .

     Guess who is the most successful young writer in China? It is 24-year-old Guo Jingming, who
earned $ 1.4 million last year, according to the Ne.7u York Times.
     Guo started his writing career in high school when he won first prize in a national writing contest
in 2001. His first book, City of Fantasy, came out soon after the contest and went on to sell more than
1. 5 million copies.
    Almost all Guo's novels include a shy hero who gets good grades. He mostly writes about the sad
feelings of his young characters. These teenagers deal with loneliness by sitting alone for long hours
under trees and on rooftops. "Xiaosi(Guo's nickname), I will always be with you!" A reader wrote in
Guo's blog. "My main goal (目标) is to tell the story well and have everyone like it," Guo said.
     In fact, Guo is seen more as an idol than as a writer. His handsome outlooking, cross-dressing and
strange actions make newspapers pay more attention to himself than his books. Many fans are eager to
get his autograph.
    But today he faces what may be more dangerous threat (威胁): even younger writers. The past few
years have seen the rise of a group of teenage writers, sometimes called the "Post-90s" generation.
However Guo seems to have plans to meet them. Next year, he will hold a national competition for
these rivals (对手).

l. Why is Guo Jingming the most successful young writer in China?    

A. Because he is the youngest writer.
B. Because he lives in New York.
C. Because he got the greatest achievement.
D. Because he likes writing novels.

2. When did he win his first prize?  

A. In primary school.    
B. In high school.
C. In college.          
D. After leaving school.

3. The word "idol" probably means "_____" in Chinese.

A. 年轻人    
B. 模特
C. 榜样      
D. 偶像

4. Who will compete (竞争) with G u o in the following years? 

A. Famous writers.
B. Some teenage writers called "Post-90s".
C. Some readers.
D. A shy hero.

5. Which is wrong according to the passage?  

A. There's a shy hero who gets good grades in most of his novels.
B. His first book sells well.
C. Guo wants to make every reader like his story.
D. He wants to earn money through the competition.

     The famous scientist and thinker, Charles Darwin, was born on February 12, 1809. As a boy,
Charles liked to go for walks in the fields and forests, watching nature, and comparing what he saw
with everything he had read in science books. He also liked collecting very much. He collected many
things: birds, stones, and leaves.
     At sixteen Darwin was sent to Edinburgh University to become a doctor. But he was interested
in the history of nature.
     Then he was sent to study at Cambridge University. There he studied until 1831.
     Some time later he heard that the ship Beagle was going on a trip to South America and wanted a
scientist. His professor advised him to go. So when the Beagle left England in December 1831, Darwin
was on it.
     The expedition lasted almost five' years. Darwin saw many new plants and animals. He collected
all kinds of plants.
     In 1842 Darwin went to live in Kent, and there he continued his studies of change in nature. Darwin
understood that plants and animals are not always the same, and that they really change. By 1859
Darwin had finished his famous book The, Origin of Species. It made a great noise in the world of
science. In 1871 Darwin wrote another important book.
     Darwin continued his studies in science until he died in 1882.

1. Charles Darwin was a great _____ scientist.

A. German        
B. French
C. English          
D. American

2. As a boy, Darwin liked reading _____ books.

A. science          
B. chemistry
C. history          
D. medical

3. Darwin studied at Cambridge University _____ 1831. 

A. after          
B. since
C. before          
D. in

4. On the ship Beagle Darwin worked as a _____. 

A. teacher        
B. doctor
C. professor        
D. scientist

5. In 1871 Darwin wrote another important book _____. 

A. The Origin of Species
B. The Theory of Relativiy
C. The Theory of Evolution(《迸化论》)
D. On Practice

     George Stephenson (乔治·史蒂芬孙) was born in 1781 in a poor family. He had to start work
when he was only eight. When George was fourteen, he became his father's' helper. He spent a lot
of time learning about engines (发动机). And on holidays he often took one to pieces and studied each
piece carefully. Soon he became a very good worker though he could not read or write. He began to
learn the English letters when he was seventeen years old. Every day after he did twelve hours of hard
work, he walked a long way to have lessons from a young school teacher. On his eighteenth birthday,
he wrote his own name for the first time in his life. George in vented many things in his life. The train
was the greatest one among them. Today when we watch or take trains from one place to another,
we'll think of this great man-George Stephenson.

l. In which year did George Stephenson start to help his father?

A. In 1781.    
B. In 1789.
C. In 1795.    
D. In 1798.

2. He learned about the engine _____. 

A. through reading and writing
B. by taking it to pieces and studying each piece carefully
C. at lessons from a young teacher
D. by asking a lot of questions

3. He spent a lot of time learning about engines and soon he became _____.

A. a great man    
B. a good maker  
C. a good worker  
D. a good student

4. _____ was invented by George Stephenson.

A. The train    
B. The telephone    
C. The car    
D. The computer

5. From the passage we know George Stephenson was one of the greatest _____ in the world.

A. workers      
B. writers      
C. learners      
D. inventors

     Albert Einstein was born in Germany in 1879. In his early childhood he was slow to learn to talk
and didn't seem to be very bright. But by the time he was fourteen years old, he had taught himself
advanced math from textbooks. By then he knew what he wanted to be when he grew up. He wanted
to be a physicist in the future.
     The Einstein didn't have so much money to pay for the advanced education that young Albert needed. But the family tried their best to send him to a technical school and later to the university in Switzerland.
After graduation, he went to work, first a teacher, then in a  government (敢府) office. With the pay that
he received he was able to go on with his schooling at the University of Zurich, where he received a
doctor's degree in 1905. This was the first time when he first began the research and studies which led
to his famous Theory of Relativity.
     As time went on, Einstein's theory proved to be correct and by 1914 he had become one of the
most famous men in the world. His work was stopped by the First World War. The war made him quite
sad. He lost interest in much of his research. Only when the war was over in 1918 was he able to get
happily back to work. He won the Nobel Prize for physics in 1921.
    In 1940, Einstein became an American citizen. He lived the rest of his life in the United States. Besides(陈……之外 ) his work in physics, he spent much  time working for human rights (人权) and
progress. He died in the United States in 1955.

1. Einstein wanted to be a physicist ______.   

A. when he got to America
B. when he was fourteen
C. in 1889
D. in 1879

2. Einstein went to work ______. 

A. after he left the University of Zurich
B. after he went to a technical school
C. after he graduated from the university in Switzerland
D. when he was twenty years old

3. Einstein received a doctor's degree______.  

A. after he researched the Theory of Relativity
B. at the University of Zurich
C. when he was l4 years old
D. after he won the Nobel Prize

4. How old was Einstein when he died?   

A. Forty-two.    
B. Fifty-five.
C. Seventy-nine.    
D. Seventy-six.

5. Einstein's family was ______when he was a child.   

A. quite rich    
B. rich
C.not rich    
D. very poor