Everyone will laugh at you if you don't know about Pele(貝利), the most famous football player in Brazil(巴西). Because of his great devotion(貢獻(xiàn))to the__1__of football, he is always__2__as the "King" by football fans (足球迷) worldwide.

Pele__3__his genius(天賦)for football in his__4__. When he was fifteen, __5__perfect skills he__6__Santos(桑托斯), a very important football __7__in Brazil.

In 1958, Pele was__8__to play for Brazil in the Sixth World Cup Competition. __9__he was sixteen, he was the best player__10__the field. __11__to Pele, Brazil__12__the world championship for the first__13__.

Pele played for Brazil in the World Cup Competitions from 1958 to 1970.

In one famous match, the fans were __14__the exciting__15__when Pele would score his thousandth goal when the referee(裁判) gave Santons a penalty__16__. Pele walked up to__17__it. The opposing goalkeeper(對方守門員) had no __18__with the hard and accurate(準(zhǔn)確的) __19__. Pele had scored his thousandth goal! The crowds cheered: "Pele, Pele..." That is a record which is as valuable in sports as a thousand goals.

Pele was always__20__to the spirit of the sport as a professional(職業(yè))player. He always played a fair game and behaved modestly (謙虛) with a cheerful smile.

He is held in high respect, and now he is the Minister of Physical Education in Brazil.

1. A. reason B. cause C. event D. affair

2. A. honored B. thought C. looked D. said

3. A. gave B. expressed C. showed D. asked

4. A. home B. school C. family D. childhood

5. A. in B. for C. to D. with

6. A. became B. joined C. turned D. changed

7. A. factory B. club C. cinema D. ground

8. A. wanting B. eager C. anxious D. chosen

9. A. But B. Therefore C. So D. Although

10. A. in B. on C. by D. for

11. A. Thanks B. Reported C. Helping D. Getting

12. A. defeated B. beat C. struck D. won

13. A. day B. time C. present D. place

14. A. asking B. awaiting C. paying D. looking

15. A. man B. player C. moment D. gift

16. A. throw B. pull C. draw D. kick

17. A. take B. pick C. throw D. prevent

18. A. chance B. time C. promise D. idea

19. A. shot B. aim C. plan D. thought

20. A. likely B. faithful C. great D. respective

When she appeared on stage, singing a Japanese song, hundreds of excited teenagers crowded around shouting, "Curarpikt (酷拉皮卡)！It's Curarpikt!"

At the Beijing Comic and Animation Expo last week, that's exactly who Shi Jia was. The Senior 1 girl was cosplaying "Curarpikt", a character from the popular Japanese comic book Hunter X Hunter (《獵人》) by Yoshihiro Togashi (富堅義博).

"I cosplay Curarpikt because I like him, "said the pretty 15-year-old girl. "I'm moved by his sad story and I'm attracted by his courage and personality."

In the adventure comic story, Curarpikt, a handsome and kind-hearted boy, struggles to become a hunter so he can capture (俘獲) the people who killed his tribe (部落).

Shi has read all the comic books and is a big fan of the animated series (動畫片) Hunter X Hunter. Then last year she saw a real "Curarpikt" in a cosplay show.

"I had watched cosplay shows before but only for fun, " She explained. "It's really exciting to see young people wearing the make-up and costumes of characters that you've read about and are familiar with. "

"But that time I just fell in love with cosplaying, probably because I like Curarpikt so much. I thought I could play the character better, so I decided to have a go."

Shi bought some cloth and asked a tailor to make a Curarpikt costume for her. She was delighted to find out there was a cosplay show in Beijing in October.

"It's a great way to spend the national holiday. Posing on the stage for all the comic book fans, I knew I was doing something I had always wanted to do, " she said.

But she never talks about this hobby with her parents.

"They think it will distract me from my studies. I don't want to upset them so it's my secret hobby, " she said. "It's also why I don't dye my hair for cosplaying like all the others. "

11. What's cosplay according to the passage?

A. When cosplaying, comic fans wear costumes and pretend to be their favourite comic characters.

B. Cosplay is a kind of performance in which you play a Curarpikt.

C. Cosplay is a character from the popular Japanese comic book Hunter X Hunter by Yoshihiro Togashi.

D. When cosplaying, some funny teenagers play some character in the animated series.

12. Shi Jia cosplayed Curarpikt _______ .

A. in order to attract her fans

B. because she liked animated series

C. because she was greatly attracted by that role

D. because it's her secret hobby

13. The underlined word "distract" means ________ .

A. get rid of

B. keep out of

C. give courage to

D. draw away attention of

14. Which of the following is WRONG?

A. Curarpikt was created by a Japanese cartoonist.

B. Shi Jia's parents were in favor of her performance.

C. Shi Jia cosplayed Curarpikt successfully.

D. Cosplay is popular with some teenagers.

One parent wrote to me explaining that her 15-year-old son "lost himself in the hole of the computer. He got an A in Website design, but his other grades were sinking," she said.

This boy is making a mistake. High school and college offer you the best chance to learn broadly-math, history, various sciences-and to do projects with other kids that teach you first-hand about group dynamics (群體力量). It's fine to take a deep interest in computers, dance, language or any other discipline, but not if it affects the breadth (廣度) of study.

I think kids sometimes trap themselves within a narrow identity. I wonder if they've just decided, "OK, I'm the person who's good at accounting."

A friend asks, "Hey, what have you been reading?"

"Well, I'm reading about accounting. "

It's just their sort of self-definition, and it's probably comfortable for them. But it's unfortunate if it comes at the sacrifice of learning about the broader world. I'm as impressed as the next person is when an 11-year-old boy can do calculus and is

learning to think logically(邏輯). But a kid who is reading about Robinson Crusoe, however, is thinking logically, too. It's not completely different.

Choosing a specialty isn't something high school students should worry about. They should worry about getting a strong academic(學(xué)術(shù)的) start. There's not a perfect correlation(相互關(guān)聯(lián))between attitudes in high school and success in later life, of course.

But it's a real mistake not to take the opportunity to learn a huge range of subjects, to learn to work with people in high school, and to get the grades that will help you get into a good college.

6. What was NOT true about the boy?

A. The boy fell into a hole and sank down.

B. The boy spent too much time on computers.

C. The boy did very well with his Website design.

D. The boy was not getting on well with his study.

7. What mistake was the boy making?

A. The boy didn't listen to his mother's advice.

B. The boy took a deep interest in computers.

C. The boy didn't realize the importance of developing himself in an all-round way.

D. The boy dropped out of school.

8. The writer thinks that ________ .

A. a person who is good at accounting is not worth praising

B. a person who is good at accounting is very clever

C. a person should not decide his specialty at an early age

D. a person should set a clear goal for his future

9. We learned from the text that the writer ________ .

A. encouraged kids to learn as much as possible

B. encouraged kids not to spend too much time on computers

C. encouraged kids not to learn accounting

D. encouraged kids to decide themselves what they would do in future

10. Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the text? The writer thinks that it is ________ .

A. impressive for an 11-year-old boy to be able to do calculus

B. important to have a definite goal at school

C. impressive for a boy to think logically

D. a mistake not to make full use of time at school

The White Tower was started in 1076 and completed in 1079. It was the oldest of the 20 towers which used to stand here. The Tower of London was first built by William, the conqueror(勝利者)to protect and control the city. Today it is the most popular tourist sight and attracts over three million visitors a year.

It was sometimes used as a palace for the Kings and Queens of England until the time of James I, but is best known as a prison and execution(執(zhí)行死刑)place. Within the walls of the Tower, princes have been murdered, spies shot and Queens killed. One of the most famous executions was that of Ann Boleyn in 1536. She was killed because she couldn't give Henry VIII a son.

The Tower was also the scene (場所)of one of London's most famous mysteries, known as the mystery of the princes in the Tower. Edward IV died in 1483. His two sons were left. His brother, Richard brought Edward IV's two sons, were to the Tower. Their uncle announced he himself was the new king and asked the people to call him Richard III. After that the two boys disappeared. It was said that the two sons were murdered at the order of their uncle.

1. The Tower of London ________ .

A. was started in the tenth century and finished in the eleventh century

B. was built to protect and control London

C. was first put up by James

D. is the oldest tower in the world

2. Today the Tower of London ________ .

A. is best known as palace

B. attracts less than three million tourists a year

C. is visited by more than 3, 000, 000 visitors a year

D. is visited by fewer than 3, 000, 000 visitors a year

3. The Tower was used as a palace _______ .

A. till the time of James I

B. until the time of William the Conqueror

C. after James I came to power

D. when James I came to power

4. The Tower is best known as _______ .

A. a palace

B. a tourist sight

C. a war field

D. a prison and execution place

5. Ann Boleyn was put to death because she ________ .

A. didn't get on well with Henry VIII

B. couldn't give birth

C. couldn't give Henry VIII a son

D. turned against her husband

I was shown into the waiting-room, which as I had expected, was full. There were dirty　　1　　on the wall, and the tattered (撕碎) magazines on the table 　 2　 a great pile of waste paper. I took my seat and decided to 　 3　 the time by watching people around me.

A young man beside me was turning over the 　 4　 of a magazine quickly and nervously. It was 　 5　 to understand what he was looking at for every three minutes or so he would 　 6　 the magazine on to the table, seize 　 7　 , and sink back into his 　 8　 . Opposite me there was a young mother who was trying to keep her son from　　9　 . The boy had clearly grown tired of 　 10　 . He had placed an ash-tray on the floor and was making plane sounds as he waved a pencil in his hand. Near him an old man was fast　　11　 ,and the boy's mother was afraid 　 12　 sooner or later her son would 　 13　 the gentleman. At the same time the 　 14　 man next to me kept sighing loudly. At last he got up, walked towards the door and began 　 15　 the pictures on the wall. Soon growing　　16　 , he snatched one more magazine out of the bottom of the pile and dropped tiredly into a chair. Even the boy had become quiet and was sleeping in her mother's arms.

There was a complete　　17　 in the room as the door opened and a nurse　　18　 . The people looked up with a ray of　　19　 in the eyes, then settled down again as the next　　20　 patient was let out of the room.

1. A. notice B. pictures C. maps D. holes

2. A. were made of B. changed into C. looked like D. were same as

3. A. cost B. take C. pass D. use

4. A. stories B. articles C. books D. pages

5. A. easy B. possible C. useless D. hard

6. A. throw B. take C. drag D. push

7. A. the others B. other C. another D. the other

8. A. chair B. pocket C. sleep D. picture

9. A. hurting himself B. tearing the magazine C. falling asleep D. making a noise

10. A. sleeping B. waiting C. reading D. playing

11. A. in sleep B. asleep C. sleepy D. sleeping

12. A. what B. that C. then D. before

13. A. do harm to B. knock into C. turn against D. wake up

14. A. old B. kind C. young D. handsome

15. A. drawing B. taking down C. examining D. putting up

16. A. glad B. unhappy C. angry D. uninterested

17. A. loneliness B. hopelessness C. tiredness D. silence

18. A. entered B. turned out C. entered in D. came out

19. A. success B. satisfaction C. joy D. hope

20. A. unlucky B. tired C. lucky D. happy

In the spring of 1999, I spoke about China to a group of over eighty American second grade students in the US. The children were curious about so many things: the Great Wall, pandas, martial arts. More than any other subject, however, these young people were interested in the relationship between Chinese children and their parents.

As I described how Chinese parents raise their children, drawing on the experiences of my friends and their kids, it occurred to me that parents in the US and China differ greatly in their approach to parenting. In the US, parents tend to encourage their children to develop their potential(潛能) to the fullest degree-in a word, to dream. Fathers and mothers frequently put in their children both ambition(理想;抱負(fù)) and, as importantly, the confidence necessary to work toward their goals. American parents tend to be very positive: they concentrate on what their kids can do, not what they can't. As a result, millions of American boys and girls grow up hoping to become actors and athletes, statesmen and doctors; many even want to become president.

American parents often encourage their children to become involved (參與) in extracurricular(課外的) activities of all types at school, such as student government, sports and music. They believe that only through involvement in these activities can their children become healthy young adults.

Schoolwork is important, to be sure. But parents realize that the social skills their children learn from natural interaction with their peers in non-scholastic settings are more useful to develop the skills they will need in the "real world". What's more important in the office place: a sound knowledge of physics or the ability to communicate effectively?

As a rule, Chinese parents do not help their children to develop the same kind of ambition and confidence Americans put in their children, nor do they encourage the same level of involvement in extracurricular activities. Children are typically told to study hard and pass exams. Too often, time away from schoolbooks is seen as time wasted.

This approach has created so much pressure for Chinese children that leaders in Chinese educational circles have issued calls for less homework at the lower grade levels. Only healthy kids can become healthy adults. More and more Chinese parents recognize this. I am very confident about China's future.

17. The writer's purpose in writing this text is ________ .

A. to show his confidence about China's future

B. to tell the different way of parenting in the USA and China

C. to give a speech about China to a group of American second grade students

D. to describe how American parents raise their children

18. In America, fathers and mothers often put the ideas of ________ in their children's minds.

A. involvement and natural interaction B. involvement and effective communication

C. involvement and ambition D. ambition and confidence

19. The underlined word "peers" in the text probably means ________ .

A. persons of the same age, class, position, etc. as themselves

B. classmates C. friends D. persons elder than themselves

20. What can we infer about the author from the text?

A. He is a Chinese who once visited America in 1999.

B. He is a Chinese who knows a lot about America.

C. He is an American who knows a lot about China.

D. He is an American who taught in an American school in 1999.

Some of the world's most famous persons have suffered from a similar disability, such as Albert Einstein, the physicist; Thomas Edison, the inventor; Auguste Rodin, the artist. What disabled these three highly-intelligent men? Strange as it may seem, they all suffered from learning disabilities, the name given to a number of related disorders.

Persons with learning disabilities are of normal or higher intelligence. Yet they have great difficulty learning to read, write or use numbers.

Almost always, there is a problem with one of the mental processes needed to understand or use written signs or spoken language. A learning disabled child sees and hears perfectly well. Yet he or she is unable to recognize differences in sizes, shapes or sounds that are easy for others to recognize.

Learning disabilities are very common. They affect perhaps 10 percent of all children. Four times as many boys as girls have learning disabilities.

Since about 1970, new research has helped brain scientists understand these problems better. Scientists now know there are many different kinds of learning disabilities and that they are caused by many different things. There is no longer any question that all learning disabilities result from differences in the way the brain is organized.

You cannot look at a child and tell if he or she has a learning disability. There is no outward sign of the disorder. So some researchers began looking at the brain itself to learn what might be wrong.

In one study, researchers examined the brain of a learning disabled person who had died in an accident. They found two unusual things. One involved cells in the left side of the brain, which control language. These cells normally are white. In the learning-disabled person, however, these cells were gray. The researchers also found that many of the nerve cells were not in a line the way they should have been. The nerve cells were mixed together.

13. How can we learn if a person has suffered from learning disabilities or not?

A. By judging whether she or he sees or hears perfectly well.

B. By checking if he or she is of normal or higher intelligence.

C. By judging if he or she is the world's most famous person or not.

D. By judging whether he or she has any difficulty in recognizing the differences in sizes, shapes or sounds.

14. Which of the following statements is true?

A. Among the children suffering from learning disabilities, girls are fewer than boys.

B. It is reported that many more girls have learning disabilities than boys.

C. All the world's most famous persons have the chance to get the similar disorders.

D. The majority of the world's most famous persons have suffered from the disabilities.

15. Why did the researchers examine the brain of a learning disabled person who died in an accident?

A. To try to find out the cause of the learning disability.

B. To see if the person had any outward sign of the disorder.

C. To check if the person is of normal or higher intelligence.

D. To find out if the person suffered from a learning disability.

16. If somebody has learning disability ________ .

A. his or her nerve cells are in a line the way they shouldn't be

B. he or she is able to recognize differences in sizes, shapes or sounds

C. he or she has no difficulty in learning to read, write or use numbers

D. the cells in the left side of the brain are gray and the nerve cells were not in a line

I live in Japan, where electronic items are a way of life, so it is no surprise that many students carry these little electronic dictionaries. Think of it. That huge, heavy paper dictionary that you used to see in your library looked like a building block in size and weight, yet someone has found a way to change all of that into a plastic box smaller than a video cassette tape.

E-dictionaries may be lighter and compacter(簡潔的) than any paper dictionary. They may even contain more words and expressions. It depends on which one you buy. To me, these are pretty much the limits to their advantages.

I think e-dictionaries should be limited in their use in classrooms. Let's take a look at some reasons.

E-dictionaries are much more expensive. In Japan, they cost as little as 10,000 yen (US$100) or as much as 40,000 yen, depending on how many functions you want (or think you want) and depending on how fashionable you are. My trusty Random House paper dictionary is copyrighted in 1995, cost me a mere US$12.95 plus tax.

E-dictionaries are more fragile. Drop your paper dictionary. Go ahead. Hold it above your head and drop it. Now, try this with any lightweight plastic e-dictionary, and you'll be picking up the pieces.

E-dictionaries need batteries. Batteries are temperature sensitive. Batteries cost money, no, make that extra money.

E-dictionaries have keypads. Typing in the spelling of a word is harder and more time-consuming(耗時)than looking through pages and using the index at the top of each page.

Let me add a statement about one that really troubles me. Sound. Little devices beep(嘟嘟聲)when you press the buttons, but it is very disturbing to some people in a classroom situation or library.

Finally, let's consider making corrections or additions. No dictionary is perfect, paper version or electronic. However, when you find something you'd like to change in the e-dictionary, you can't do anything about it. You can pencil in some notes with the paper type. Similarly, if you learn a word that isn't in the dictionary, a few notes of a pencil make it easy to increase its memory capacity. Not possible with a keypad model. And, for those students whose habit is to mark certain words with a highlight pen for case of future reference, again, the paper dictionary wins out.

9. What's the main idea of the text?

A. The advantages and disadvantages of e-dictionaries from the author's point of view.

B. Electronic items are a way of life in Japan.

C. It's fashionable to carry little e-dictionaries.

D. The bad effect of using e-dictionaries on students and teachers.

10. How many disadvantages does the author address in the text?

A. 4. B. 6. C. 8. D. 10.

11. What does the author hate most of all the disadvantages?

A. Not possible to make additions.

B. Wasting more time looking up words.

C. Too expensive to buy e-dictionaries and batteries.

D. Making sound when pressing the buttons.

12. What is the greatest advantage of the paper dictionary compared with the e-dictionary?

A. Containing more words and expressions.

B. More light and compact to carry.

C. Making corrections or additions for future reference.

D. Costing less money.

Feed the world

With the global population expected to rise to 9 billion within 50 years, feeding the world has never seemed such a daunting task. But GM(轉(zhuǎn)基因)technology is giving hope to developing countries, where many people think biotechnology can offer improved nutrition, health and prosperity(繁榮).

High hopes

Many scientists in Africa regard GM crops as the only way to avoid mass starvation (饑餓) on the continent. Kenyan researchers recently created a GM sweet potato that they predict could increase yields by up to 80 percent.

Meanwhile, South African scientists have used genetic modification to insert the vaccine (疫苗) for the disease cholera (霍亂) into bananas. Cholera is a particularly serious problem in South Africa. But there are still several barriers that stop developing countries from growing GM crops on a large scale.

Obstacle course

Private enterprise is unwilling to invest in GM products that would benefit developing countries. Regulatory clearance (許可證) to grow a single GM crop can cost companies between $5 (￡3.4 million) and $30 million (￡20.5 million), so they tend to focus on areas that give them large returns on their investment.

Use only once

In traditional farming, some seeds from a harvest are saved to be planted the following year. But biotech companies force farmers growing GM crops to buy new supplies of seed every harvest. Farmers in Canada have even been sued(控告)for re-planting GM seed.

But biotech companies think it will be harder to enforce this rule in developing countries, so they have been coming up with cunning(狡猾的)methods to make farmers come back for seed each year.

This approach could make farmers too dependent on such companies for their livelihoods, leading them to neglect the basic farming skills they would need to rely on if their situation changed and possibly bankrupted (破產(chǎn)) them.

Going it alone

Developing countries are making real progress in genetic engineering, and have already produced their own GM crops. But many environmentalists are worried that developing nations would not apply strict testing to GM crops and food safety regulations (規(guī)章).

5. From the first paragraph we know that ________.

A. food supply for the whole world is out of question because of GM technology

B. food supply for the whole world is still a serious problem because of the increasing of population

C. food supply for the whole world is never a problem because of biote chnology

D. people in developing countries will never have food shortage because of GM technology

6. The purpose of growing GM crops is ________.

A. to provide safer food for the world

B. to find a new cure to the disease cholera

C. to get a lot of money by selling the seeds

D. to prevent the world from mass starvation

7. Some enterprises are unwilling to spend money on GM products because ________.

A. the products will benefit developing countries

B. they have to pay a large amount of money to get the permit

C. they don't have much knowledge about the GM technology

D. they can't get enough seeds from the biotech companies

8. It can be inferred that________.

A. growing GM crops would possibly make farmers bankrupt

B. companies could grow GM crops freely once they had the GM technology

C. developing countries are growing GM crops on a large scale

D. scientists are not sure about whether GM crops are safe to eat

Thursday, June 10,2004-A little black spot crawled across the bottom of the sun Tuesday, to the delight of stargazers(天文學(xué)家)around the world.

The spot was Venus, the second-closest planet to the sun and Earth's nearest neighbor. Venus hadn't passed between Earth and the sun in more than a hundred years.

From Egypt to Australia space fans wore special sunglasses to protect their eyes and prevent blindness while watching the six-hour event. In Preston, England, schoolchildren went wild when Venus appeared.

"They were literally jumping off the floor with excitement," said Gordon Bromage, an astrophysicist, or a scientist who studies objects in space, at Britain's University of Central Lancashire. "They were yelling, 'I've seen it. I've seen it!'"

In Cairo, Egypt, a group of students visited the ancient pyramids to view the planetary(行星的) passage.

"The pyramids are the perfect place to watch something so rare," said 15-year-old Wissam Adel Kamal.

The spectacular sight was only partially(部分地)visible in North and South America. Unlucky astronomy fans in Japan and Thailand couldn't see it at all, because of the lousy (糟糕的) weather.

"We could barely see the sun on and off through breaks in the clouds," said Maki Yanagisawa, who tried to watch in Hokkaido, Japan.

Venus passes so rarely before the sun because Venus and Earth orbit the sun at slightly different angles. For Venus to be visible on the face of the sun, it must pass exactly between Earth and the sun.

Still, if you missed the show, you may have another chance. Venus will travel back across the sun again in 2012. After that, it won't make the trip for another more than a hundred years.

1. It can be inferred that ________ .

A. Venus was a little black spot

B. Venus show takes place every a hundred years

C. The distance is longer from Venus to the sun than that from Earth to the sun

D. The distance is shorter from Venus to the sun than that from Earth to the sun

2. What must take place so that Venus can be seen in the face of the sun?

A. Venus must pass exactly between Earth and the sun.

B. The sky must be very clear.

C. Special sunglasses must be used.

D. Earth must travel in front of Venus.

3. If you miss the Venus show this time, you'll have to wait ________ to watch the next show.

A. 8 years B. more than 100 years

C. 15 years D. 2012 years

4. It was reported that ________ .

A. this Venus show could be seen at any time on Tuesday, June 8

B. this Venus show could be seen at any place on the earth

C. only school children showed interest in this Venus show

D. some people were not lucky enough to see the sight