A MAN planted a rose and watered it   41   . One day as he examined it, he saw a bud that would soon blossom, but he also    42     thorns (刺) on the stem . He thought, "How can a beautiful flower come from a plant with so many sharp thorns?" Saddened by this thought, he     43     to water the rose, and just before it was ready to bloom, it died.

So it is with many people. Within every soul there is a rose. The good    44  planted in us at birth grow amid the thorns of our faults. Many of us look at ourselves and see only the thorns, the defects. We become    45    , thinking that nothing good can possibly come from us. We neglect to water the good within us, and    46   it dies. We never realize our   47    .

Some people do not see the rose within themselves; someone else must show it to them. One of the greatest gifts a person can     48     is to be able to reach past the thorns and find the rose within others.

This is the characteristic of love ― to look at a person, know his faults, recognize the goodness in his soul, and help him realize that he can    49     his faults. If we show him the "rose" within himself, he will conquer the thorns. Only then will they blossom many times over.

A round of applause, please, for the Indian man who recently sang for 80 hours straight, setting a new Guinness world record. It’s an impressive feat, to be sure, but let’s just hope he still has a voice．According to Indian newspapers, Rajesh Burbure has been told to keep silent for several days so his vocal cords can heal.

It was reported that Burbure and his family are in a celebratory mood. “It’s a proud moment for all of us,” his wife told DNAIndia.com.

I, on the other hand, am unable to share their enthusiasm. Don’t get me wrong: I hope the 35-year-old Burbure lives forever, sells a million records and becomes an international celebrity. But his record—singing for 80 hours straight—is about as meaningful as most of the other curious but crazy feats listed in the Guinness Book of World Records.

Granted, I’m not qualified to speak on the subject. I’ve got no world records to my name, and I never expect to have any. Then again, maybe I am qualified to speak for those of us who have better things to do than train for years to sing an 80-hour medley of pop songs.

But let’s not just blame poor Burbure. He’s not the only person chasing meaningless reputation．The Guinness Book of World Records is full of the names of people who at one time grew the longest hair, or built the biggest bicycle, or baked the largest cheesecake.

To all of these enterprising souls I ask, simply, “What was it all for?”

Congratulations! For all of your painstaking effort, you became a footnote in a thick book that no one reads, except for you and the person who will eventually surpass you, with one more hour of singing, a few more centimeters of steel or a few more pounds of cheese.

After all, records are made to be broken.

60. From the text, we can conclude that the author _________.

       A. thinks singing for 80 hours straight is completely meaningless

       B. feels it a pity he was not invited to share the happiness with the Burbures

       C. is quite worried about Burbure’s vocal cords

       D. has no Guinness records, so he admires Burbures’ feat

61. The author’s attitude to some Guinness world records is ________.

       A. positive                   B. impressed                       C. negative                          D. touched

62. We can infer from the article that ________.

       A. after the 80 hours of singing, Burbure could no longer speak

       B. Burbure’s wife didn’t support his attempt to make a Guinness record

       C. many have criticized Burbure for his stupid behavior

       D. challenging a Guinness record may be harmful to the health

63. What can possibly be the best title for the passage?

       A. What Was the Point                                             B. The Boring Guinness Book

       C. A New Guinness Record                                      D. Records Are Made to be Broken

A popular saying goes, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” However, that’s not really true. Words have the power to build us up or tear us down. It doesn’t matter if the words come from someone else or ourselves --- the positive and negative effects are just as lasting.

We all talk to ourselves sometimes. We’re usually too embarrassed to admit it, though. In fact, we really shouldn’t be because more and more experts believe talking to ourselves out loud is a healthy habit.

This “self-talk” helps us motivate ourselves, remember things, solve problems, and calm ourselves down. Be aware, though, that as much as 77% of self-talk tends to be negative. So in order to stay positive, we should only speak words of encouragement to ourselves. We should also be quick to give ourselves a pat on the back. The next time you finish a project, do well in a test, or finally clean your room, join me in saying “Good job!”

Often, words come out of our mouths without us thinking about the effect they will have. But we should be aware that our words cause certain responses in others. For example, when returning an item to a store, we might use warm, friendly language during the exchange. And the clear will probably respond in a similar manner. Or harsh（刻薄的）and critical language will most likely cause the clerk to be defensive.

Words possess power because of their lasting effect. Many of us regret something we once said. And we remember unkind words said to us! Before speaking, we should always ask ourselves: Is it loving? Is it needed? If what we want to say doesn’t pass this test, then it’s better left unsaid.

Words possess power: both positive and negative. Those around us receive encouragement when we speak positively. We can offer hope, build self-esteem（自尊）and motivate others to do their best. Negative words destroy all those things. Will we use our words to hurt or to heal? The choice is ours.

60．The main idea of the first paragraph is that______.

A. words have a lasting effect on us　 B. inspiring words give us confidence

C. negative words may let us down　 D. not sticks and stones but words will hurt us

61．There is no sense for us to feel embarrassed when we talk to ourselves because _____.

　　　 A. almost everybody has the habit of talking to themselves

　　　 B. talking to ourselves always gives us courage

　　　 C. we can benefit from talking to ourselves

　　　 D. it does no harm to have “self-talk” when we are alone

62．The underlined part in the third paragraph means that we should also timely ______.

　　 A. remind ourselves　 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. praise ourselves

　　　 C. make ourselves relaxed　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. give ourselves amusement

63．The author would probably hold the view that ______.

　　　 A. encouraging words are sure to lead to kind offers

　　　 B. negative words may stimulate us to make more progress

　　　 C. people tend to remember friendly words

　　　 D. it is better to think twice before talking to others

A Tour City ------- Pompeii

Every year thousands of tourists visit Pompeii (庞贝，意大利那不勒斯附近一座古城) , Italy. They see the sights that Pompeii is famous for ------ its stadium (运动场) and theatre, its shops and restaurants. The tourists do not, however, see Pompeii’s people. They do not see them because Pompeii has no people. No one has lived in Pompeii for almost 2000 years.

Once, Pompeii was a busy city of 22,000 people. It lay at the foot of Mount Vesuvius (维苏威火山) , a grass-covered volcano (火山). Mount Vesuvius had not erupted (爆发) for centuries, so the people of Pompeii felt safe. But they were not.

In August of AD 79, Mount Vesuvius erupted. The entire top of the mountain exploded, and a huge black cloud rose into the air. Soon stones and hot ash began to fall on Pompeii. When the eruption ended two days later, Pompeii was buried (埋藏) under 20 feet of stones and ashes. Almost all of its people were dead.

For centuries, Pompeii lay buried under stone and ash. Then, in the year 1861, an Italian scientist named Ginseppe began to uncover (发现) Pompeii. Slowly, carefully, Ginseppe and his men dug. The city looked almost the same as it had looked in AD 79. There were streets and fountains, houses and shops. There was a stadium with 20, 000 seats. Perhaps the most important of all, there were everyday objects, which tell us a great deal about the people who lived in Pompeii. Many glasses and jars had some dark blue colour in the bottom, so we know that the people of Pompeii liked wine. They liked bread, too; metal bread pans were in even bakery (面包房). In one bakery there were 81 round, flat loaves of bread ------- a type of bread that is still sold in Italy today. Tiny boxes filled with a dark, shiny powder tell us that women liked to wear eye-makeup (眼部化装品) .

Ginseppe has died, but his work continues. One-fourth has not been uncovered yet. Scientists are still digging, still making discoveries that draw the tourists to Pompeii.

49．Why do large numbers of people come to Pompeii each year?

A.　　 To visit the volcano.　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. To shop and eat there.

C.To watch sports and plays.　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. To see how Pompeiians lived

50. Why did the city uncovered look almost the same as it had looked in AD 79?

A Because Ginseppe and his men dug it slowly and carefully.

B Because the city was buried alive and remained untouched.

C Because scientists successfully rebuilt the city with everyday objects.

D Because nobody had lived in the city ever since the volcano erupted.

51. What’s the meaning of the underlined word “ exploded” in the third paragraph?

A.　爆炸 　　　　　　　 B.震动　　　　　　　　　　　　 C.倒塌　　　　　　　　　　　　 D.开裂

52. What do we know about the Pompeiians who lived 2000 years ago?

A They lived more or less the same as Italians now do.

B They liked women wearing all kings of makeup.

C They enjoyed a lazy life with drinking and eating.

D They went back to Pompeii after the eruption in AD 79.

As a boy growing up in India, I had longed to travel abroad. I used to listen to the stories my father would tell me about his stay in Canada and tours to Europe in the 1970s, with great interest.

My big moment finally came in the summer of 1998 when I was able to accompany my parents to Europe, where my father was to attend a meeting. We planned to travel to Belgium, Netherlands and West Germany.

I have clear memories even today of going to Mumbai airport at night all excited about finally going abroad. I had heard several great things about Lufthansa till then but now I finally got to experience them first hand, during the flight to Frankfurt. We flew business class and even today I can remember the excellent service by the Lufthansa crew （工作人员）. The flight was really smooth and thoroughly enjoyable, even for someone like me, who is especially afraid of flying.

After spending almost two weeks in Europe, we took the Lufthansa airport express from Dusseldorf to Frankfurt airport, for our return flight. What a journey that was! All along the Rhine (莱茵河), it was simply an unforgettable experience. I had a sombre feeling on the flight back to Mumbai as it marked the end of a wonderful vacation, but the Lufthansa crew members were able to change it into a most enjoyable experience yet again, with the quality of their service.

Being the first airline to take me abroad, Lufthansa will always hold a special place in my heart. Even today，I continue to enjoy flights on Lufthansa and simply cannot dream of choosing any other airline. Flying, in general，for me，has always been a terrible and painful experience．Flying on Lufthansa，however, is something I always have and always will look forward to.

1.Which country does the author live in now?

A. India.                     B. Canada.                            C. Belgium.                         D. Germany.

2.What made the author so interested in traveling abroad?

A. Growing up in India.

B. Once staying in Canada.

C. Once traveling to Canada with his father.

D. His father's stories about his traveling experiences.

3.Which of the following is true about the author's trip to Europe in 1998?

A. The author traveled with one of his parents.

B. Both their going and return were by air.

C. They traveled in spring that year.

D. They stayed in Europe for nearly two months.

4.It can be inferred from the passage that Lufthansa is ________.

A. a city in India                                             B. a city in Europe

C. an airline company                                  D. a travel agency

5.The underlined word “somber” in the 4th paragraph probably means “________”.

A. happy                    B. sad                           C. angry                     D. enjoyable