C

They are the sort of friends who are so close they trust each other with their lives. If one fails the other is there to catch him.

They are Wellman, whose legs were permanently injured nine years ago in a rock-climbing accident, and Corbett, an experienced rock climber. Together, they climbed up Half Dome, the famous 2, 000-foot rock in the Yosemite National Park, through one of the most difficult routes (路線).

During the climb, Corbett took the lead, hit in the metal spikes（尖狀物）that guided the ropes and climbed up. Then, after Wellman pulled himself up the rope, Corbett went down to remove the spikes and climbed up again. This process was repeated time and again, inch by inch, for 13 days.

Wellman’s job was not easy either. He got himself up the rope through upper body strength alone. In all, Wellman figured that he had done 5, 000 pull-ups up the rope on the climb.

However, when the two men first met, they never talked about climbing. “He knew that was how I got injured.” Wellman said. Until one day Wellman decided that he wanted to climb again and they started training.

Their climb of Half Dome was not all smooth. At one point, pieces of rock gave way, and Corbett dropped down quickly. Wellman locked their rope in place, stopping the fail at 20 feet. His quick action probably saved his friend’s life.

“Your partner can save your life --- you can save your partner’s life,” Wellman said as the pair received congratulations from friends. ”there are real close ties.”

64. Which of the following was a challenge for Corbett in climbing Half Dome?

A. To climb up to remove the spikes.? B. To climb it twice.

C. To do 5, 000 pull-ups up the rope.? D. To lock the rope in place.

65. Why did the two men never talk about climbing when they first met?

A. Corbett was poorly trained.

B. Wellman had lost interest in climbing.

C. Corbett didn’t want to hurt Wellman.

D. Wellman hadn’t decided whether to climb again.

66. What do we know about Wellman?

A. He climbed Half Dome by himself.

B. He was disabled in a traffic accident.

C. He stopped rock-climbing for some time.

D. He was saved by Corbett during the climb.

67. The main idea of the text is that ____.

A. two heads are better than one

B. friendship is precious in life

C. the disabled should never give up

D. a man can be destroyed but cannot be defeated

D

Irelandhas had a very difficult history. The problems started in the 16th century when English rulers fried to conquer (征服) Ireland. For hundreds of years, the Irish people fought against the English. Finally, in 1921, the British government was forced to give independence to the south of Ireland. The result is that today there are two “Irelands”. Northern Ireland, in the north, is part of the United Kingdom. The republic of Ireland, in the south, is an independent country.

In the 1840s the main crop, potatoes was affected by disease and about 750, 000 people died of hunger. This, and a shortage (短缺) of work, forced many people to leave Ireland and live in the USA, the UK, Australia and Canada. As a result of these problems, the population fell from 8.2 million in 1841 to 6.6 million in 1851.

For many years, the majority of Irish people earned their living as farmers. Today, many people still work on the land but more and more people are moving to the cities to work in factories and offices. Life in the cities is very different from life in the countryside, where things move at a quieter and slower pace.

The Irish are famous for being warm-hearted and friendly, Oscar Wilde, a famous Irish writer, once said that the Irish were “the greatest talkers since the Greeks”. Since independence, Ireland has revived (復興) its own culture of music, language, literature and singing. Different areas have different styles of old Irish songs which are sung without instruments. Other kinds of Irish music use many different instruments such as the violin, whistles, etc.

68. What does the author tell us in Paragraph 1?

A. How the Irish fought against the English.

B. How Ireland gained independence.

C. How English rulers tried to conquer Ireland.

D. How two “Irelands” came into being.

69. We learn from the text that in Ireland _____.

A. food shortages in the 1840s led to a decline in population

B. people are moving to the cities for lack of work in the countryside

C. it is harder to make a living as a farmer than as a factory worker

D. different kinds of old Irish songs are all sung with instruments

70. The last paragraph is mainly about____.

A. the Irish character

B. Irish culture

C. Irish musical instruments

D. a famous Irish writer

71. What can be the best title for the text?

A. Life in Ireland

B. A Very Difficult History

C. Ireland, Past and Present

D. The Independence of Ireland

E

George Prochnik would like the world like the world to put a sock in it. He makes his case in a new book, Listening for Meaning in a World of Noise. Here he explains himself (using his indoor voice):

“We’ve become so accustomed to noise, there’s about almost a deep prejudice against the idea that silence might be beneficial. If you tell someone to be quiet, you sound like an old man. But it’s never been more important to find continuing quiet. Silence focuses us, improves our health, and is a key to lasting peace and satisfaction.

“We need to excite people about the sounds you start to hear if you merely quiet things down a little. During a Japanese tea ceremony, the smallest sounds becomes a kind of art—the spoons making a light ringing sound on a bowl, the edges of a kimono（和服）brushing against the floor.

“Deaf people are very attentive (專注的) in almost every aspect of life. If two deaf people are walking together, using sign language, they constantly watch out for each other and protect each other by paying steady attention to the other. They are connected yet also fully aware of their surroundings. Even deaf teenagers! We in the hearing world can learn from them. If we remove the powerful blasts（一陣陣）of noise, we become aware of an extraordinarily rich world around us—of little soft sounds and the sound of footsteps, of bird songs and ice cracking（開裂聲）. It’s astonishing how beautiful things sound when you can really listen. ”

72. What does the phrase “to put a sock in it” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?

A. to be quiet????? ?B. to be colorful

C. to be full of love? D. to be attentive to someone

73. What does Prochnik say about us?

A. We are used to quietness

B. We have to put up with noise

C. We do not think silence to be beneficial

D. We do not believe lasting peace to be available

74. Which of the following is true according to Prochnik?

A. We need more sounds in our lives.

B. There is nothing to be learned from the deaf.

C. We are not aware how rich the world around us is.

D. There is too much noise at a Japanese tea ceremony

75. It can be inferred from the text that____.

A. we can benefit a lot from old people

B. it is a good idea to use sign language

C. there is no escape from the world of sound

D. it is possible to find how beautiful things sound

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