After Mom died, Dad and I took a trip together every summer. Just the two of us, father and daughter. This was especially meaningful because Dad was old and we lived two thousand miles apart — so a week with Dad, undisturbed from other family members or from work was a treat.

    Our first destination was a tour up the Mississippi river. We boarded the steamboat（汽艇）in St. Louis and noticed that we were some of the youngest people among the travelers! Even Dad, at 73 looked young! We sat in rocking chairs on the deck, the warm breeze blowing on our faces, admiring the lush green trees linking the mighty river. A jazz band played in the background.

    On the deck we met John, who met the love of his life at a singles’ dance for old people and asked the lady to marry him two weeks later. Then there was Jane, a teacher from Little Rock, Arkansas(阿肯色州) who danced with Bill Clinton decades ago at a school fundraiser. Sometimes on the deck Dad and I sat quietly, reading.

    At lunchtime we stood in line for the food. People asked if Dad was my brother! Amazing for our thirty-eight-year age difference! Dad filled his plate with bread, meats, and cheeses to make a sandwich. Dad loved mayonnaise! Anything else between two pieces of bread was extra fillings.

    After lunch we landed at Alton（奥尔顿）, Missouri. This small town was home to a lot of antique shops. Dad, with little interest in shopping or antiques (although he was almost an antique himself) walked in and out of shop after shop. We walked up the hill, down the hill, and through the old town. We walked all day. It was the longest time I ever spent shopping with Dad.

    Each day combined together like the last, until seven days passed. On the seventh day we reached Minnesota（明尼苏达州）at the top of the Mississippi. My home was there. Dad saw my house for the first time and met my two cats, Coconut and Coffee Bean. Coconut sat on his lap and purred(打呼噜). The two became quick friends.

    This was the first of many trips we planned together, but unfortunately, it would be our last. Dad died a few months later from being hit by a drunk driver while crossing a street in his hometown. What made this trip special was our time together, just the two of us. I had grown from the teenager embarrassed to be with Dad to the adult cherishing our time together. I’ll always treasure these memories of my father, and be proud of who I have become.

51．What did the writer think of the journey together with her father?

    A. Appropriate            B. Significant           C. Enjoyable        D. Worthless

52. According to the passage, most of the travelers aboard were _______. 

    A. parents and children                    B. teachers and students

    C. the aged people                        D. couples and friends

53. Why was the author proud of herself?

    A. She had grown up.                    B. She took a trip with her father.

    C. She felt embarrassed with her father.      D. She came to value the time with her father.

54. What’s the main purpose of the text?

    A. To memorize her father.                 B. To advocate diverse ways of life.

    C. To share an interesting story.             D. To solve a problem.

Betty and I are best friends. Our birthdays are on the same day, so every year we have a birthday party together. But this year, we had a costume party （化装舞会 ）instead.

While we were writing the invitations, my mum came in and asked, “Why not invite John?” John had been in our class for only a few months, but he was already getting better grades in science than anyone else in class. I wrinkled(皱起) my nose, “Mum, he wears the same pants to school every day. How could he even afford a costume?” Mum said nothing. The next day, mum gave me an envelope with a shopping certificate(凭证) in it. “I thought it would be nice for you to give this to John.” Mum said. But how? We didn’t want to make John embarrassed. We discussed it for a long time. Finally, Betty and I had a good idea.

On the day of our party, kids arrived, dressed differently. John arrived, in an old sheet(床单), but still in the same brown pants as usual. We danced, ate snacks and played games in groups. Before eating the birthday cake, Betty said in a loud voice, “Now it’s time for the great prize game. It’s the following riddle…” It was a science game. None of us was surprised when John came up with the right answer first and walked off with the envelope.

Everything went on well as we planned. John wore a new pair of pants and a new shirt the next week. He felt happy. So did we.

When we help others, we need to find a proper way, or we may hurt them in another way.

56. The two girls and John were in the same _________.

A. group                   B. class                      C. team                        D. family 

57. John’s family may be very _________ according to the passage.

A. poor                   B.  near                C. rich                         D. small

58. How did John get the prize during the party?

A. By helping others.                                   B. By asking for help.

C. By getting good grades in study.               D. By winning the science game.

59. John _________ with the shopping certificate after the party.

A. watched a basketball match                      B. saw a movie

C. bought something to wear                        D. made a phone call

60. Which of the following sentences is TRUE according to the passage?

A. John wasn’t good at science.

B. The two girls felt angry when John won the great prize.

C. The two girls helped John in a proper way.

D. John wore a new pair of pants and a new shirt to the party.

It was about six years ago．We were at senior high schoo1．Those days in school were  1  to most Chinese students because of the college enhance examination  2  ．Not our parents and teachers didn’t love us， 3  they loved US too much．The only happiness for us was a high 4  in the exam．One afternoon after the final exam，we four girls came to a small  5  and we felt it only belonging to us that afternoon．We talked and laughed．We played all the games that we could  6 ．We felt we were on the top of the world for the first time in our  7 ．We totally forgot the unhappiness in our life and we 8    the homework and the endless exams far away out of the wood．

In the middle of the wood ran a small and peaceful  9  ．Now and then，we could see some wild ducks on the water seeking food．The water weeds   10  happily while the water passed beside them．

    The air was so fresh that we breathed it freely．

    The sun had set 11    we knew it．We had to leave the place which brought US much happiness．We agreed to come back again every time we felt  12 ．

     13  later, we went there several times．But，every time we went there with the purpose of    finding that great feeling，we  14 ．Strangely，the feeling was different from  15  of several years ago．

    I know that wonderful experience was just for once．We earl 16   find that kind of happiness again which only belonged to the special  17  in our life．That was a release of our uneasy heart．We can never go  18  to that young age or that simple life．It was our  19   ages．No matter how boring and hard the life was，it gave us something worth recalling in the rest of our life．We’ll  20  it forever．

 1．A．gray             B．pink              C．white             D．green

2．A．performance     B．graduation    C．attention          D．pressure

3．A．and                B．so                C．but              D．yet

4．A．praise             B．grade            C．school            D．spirit

5．A．wood，          B．road             C．1ake               D．party

6．A．take up           B．try out          C．think of           D．find out

7．A．school       B．class              C．youth              D．1ife

8．A．stopped          B．threw                  C．kept         D．distracted

9．A．1ake               B．stream          C．path         D．bird

10．A．1ooked         B．swam           C．danced            D．sang

11．A．before          B．when            C．after                   D．because

12．A．happy           B．excited          C．sleepy             D．dull

13．A．Years           B．Hours           C．Moments               D．Minutes

14．A．got               B．failed            C．1ost                D．won

15．A．that              B．those            C．one                 D．ones

16．A．easily    B．finally           C．never              D．nearly

17．A．age               B．afternoon      C．place              D．meaning

18．A．again            B．alone            C．back               D．freely

19．A．gray             B．golden          C．dark                      D．busy

20．A．visit              B．pay               C．regret             D．treasure

　　To listen to the two professors, Smith the zoologist and Jones the philosopher（哲学家）, you would never guess they were friends. They argued everything. Smith was a scientist, who believed in“facts”, while Jones was a thinker, who believed in“ideas”.

　　One day, two scientists found themselves at Coney Island. Professor Smith had a young niece, who, for her birthday, had begged her uncle to take her there. Smith asked his friend Jones to come along. That is how the three of them came to a notice about a remarkable dog.

　　“Let's go inside, uncle. Please!”

　　What they saw did amaze them. The dog danced on its hind legs, keeping time to the music. When asked to add two and three, it barked five times. When the man played a tune on the piano, the dog sang in time to the music. It could even talk, after a fashion（模仿）. When asked how many states there were in the Union, it made a noise which sounded extremely like fifty.

　　The old scientist was amazed by the dog's performance, so after an hour of bargaining, the dog was his.

　　“It is for me, uncle?”

　　“Not exactly, my dear.”Professor Smith answered.“I need it for an important scientific experiment.”

　　“Come on, Smith,”said the philosopher.

　　“You always say'seeing is believing'. The dog is genius（天才）. What more do you need to know?”

　　Professor Smith said,“We may be close to the greatest scientific discovery of all time. If I can find out why this animal is so intelligent…”

　　A few days later, Jones visited his friend.

　　“You what?”he cried, unbelieving.

　　“I did what any scientist would do,” said Smith.“I put the dog to sleep and cut out its brain to find out what was special about it.”

　　“And?”Jones asked.

　　“Do you know, I couldn't find anything which would explain its extraordinary abilities”Professor Smith replied.

　　At that moment, the professor's niece came into the room.

　　“Can I play with my doggie, uncle? Please! He's so clever.”

　　Neither science nor philosophy had an answer for the little girl.

(1) Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

[　　]

A．The clever dog was sure to be saved by the two scientists.

B．Professor Smith insisted on seeing the remarkable dog.

C．Professor Smith was disappointed at the result.

D．When asked the number of states in the USA, the dog harked fifty times.

(2) What struck the scientist most in the dog's performance?

[　　]

A．The dog's great intelligence.

B．The dog's dancing to the music.

C．The dog's understanding of its master.

D．The dog's ability to talk after a fashion.

(3) Who do you think would feel most pitiful at the end of the story?

[　　]

(4) The underlined sentence“You what?”probably means“________”.

[　　]

A．What are you doing?

B．What's the matter with you?

C．What do you want me to do?

D．What does your niece think of the dog?

(5) What happened to the clever dog?

[　　]

A．It was killed by the professor.

B．It was protected by the little girl.

C．It managed to escape from being killed.

D．It helped the professor do his experiment.

　　To listen to the two professors, Smith the zoologist and Jones the philosopher（哲学家）, you would never guess they were friends. They argued everything. Smith was a scientist, who believed in“facts”, while Jones was a thinker, who believed in“ideas”.

　　One day, two scientists found themselves at Coney Island. Professor Smith had a young niece, who, for her birthday, had begged her uncle to take her there. Smith asked his friend Jones to come along. That is how the three of them came to a notice about a remarkable dog.

　　“Let's go inside, uncle. Please!”

　　What they saw did amaze them. The dog danced on its hind legs, keeping time to the music. When asked to add two and three, it barked five times. When the man played a tune on the piano, the dog sang in time to the music. It could even talk, after a fashion（模仿）. When asked how many states there were in the Union, it made a noise which sounded extremely like fifty.

　　The old scientist was amazed by the dog's performance, so after an hour of bargaining, the dog was his.

　　“It is for me, uncle?”

　　“Not exactly, my dear.”Professor Smith answered.“I need it for an important scientific experiment.”

　　“Come on, Smith,”said the philosopher.

　　“You always say'seeing is believing'. The dog is genius（天才）. What more do you need to know?”

　　Professor Smith said,“We may be close to the greatest scientific discovery of all time. If I can find out why this animal is so intelligent…”

　　A few days later, Jones visited his friend.

　　“You what?”he cried, unbelieving.

　　“I did what any scientist would do,” said Smith.“I put the dog to sleep and cut out its brain to find out what was special about it.”

　　“And?”Jones asked.

　　“Do you know, I couldn't find anything which would explain its extraordinary abilities”Professor Smith replied.

　　At that moment, the professor's niece came into the room.

　　“Can I play with my doggie, uncle? Please! He's so clever.”

　　Neither science nor philosophy had an answer for the little girl.

(1) Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

[　　]

A．The clever dog was sure to be saved by the two scientists.

B．Professor Smith insisted on seeing the remarkable dog.

C．Professor Smith was disappointed at the result.

D．When asked the number of states in the USA, the dog harked fifty times.

(2) What struck the scientist most in the dog's performance?

[　　]

A．The dog's great intelligence.

B．The dog's dancing to the music.

C．The dog's understanding of its master.

D．The dog's ability to talk after a fashion.

(3) Who do you think would feel most pitiful at the end of the story?

[　　]

(4) The underlined sentence“You what?”probably means“________”.

[　　]

A．What are you doing?

B．What's the matter with you?

C．What do you want me to do?

D．What does your niece think of the dog?

(5) What happened to the clever dog?

[　　]

A．It was killed by the professor.

B．It was protected by the little girl.

C．It managed to escape from being killed.

D．It helped the professor do his experiment.