It seems that every week someone becomes “the first” or “the youngest” or even “the first married couple” to do something that doesn’t seem to be very useful to the rest of us.
Why do they do it? Don’t they have better things to do with their time and money? And why should I be interested anyway? Human beings have already climbed the highest mountains, sailed across the oceans and flown around the world. Many of these things were done a long, long time ago. There just isn’t anything left to explore nowadays. I suppose there’s still a lot of the universe left, and the bottom of the ocean is still a bit of a mystery, but you need a lot of technology to explore areas like that. So, those people who feel the need for adventure can only do things that have been done before.
In May of this year a British man became the first person to walk alone from Canada to the North Pole. Personally, if I wanted to visit the Arctic, I’d rather go as a tourist on a cruise ship, with a helicopter trip to the North Pole included in the price. But OK, this man decided that he wanted to walk. The problem was that he went in the spring when the ice begins to melt and break up. So he got stuck on a longely piece of ice and a plane had to be sent in to rescue him.
These sorts of rescues are making many Australians angry with these record breakers. People trying to break sailing or rowing records get into trouble in the seas. So the Australian navy has to send ships to save them and this costs the government millions of dollars. I suppose we can’t just leave them to drown but we should give the bill to the people who are rescued.
【小題1】According to the author, the so-called record breakers          .

A woman was in a hurry to go to the airport. She told the cab driver to drive quickly. She was so absorbed in her own thoughts that she was not aware they were going by a different route.

Suddenly, a man got inside the cab. He took her handbag where she had placed her visa, passport, and all her money for the trip.

The driver, who was in cahoots with the robber, left her in the middle of that dark street. She cursed the world for being so mean to her, and thought how unlucky she was in that situation.

That very same night, she heard some shocking news．Tears flowed down her face．Flight 230,which was the plane that she was supposed to have boarded, had crashed．If she had not lost her precious belongings, she could have lost something far more important—her life．

Sometimes bad things really happen．We lose money, fail our exams, or are rejected by others．There are times when nothing seems to go our way．

So what should we do about it? Should we be disappointed? The answer is a resounding “No!" We must get rid of all these frustrations and start all over again in the consistent faith that we will get what we deserve．

Don't waste your time and energy on things that can't be changed．Continuous worrying will only affect your health and you'll be doing much more damage than what was previously done．

What if it was the other way round? What if we never ran out of good luck?

There was a man who won the lottery．He thought he was the luckiest person in the world．He became greedy and wasted all his money on everything he could get his hands on．

One day, he made it to the front page of the newspaper again．But this time, it was a different story．He had been killed because of his riches．

If you attain good luck, you can never be too secure about it．Hope for protection and guidance．Life is so unpredictable．You never know what will happen next．

Live one day at a time．we sometimes subject ourselves to unnecessary emotional trouble．We ask ourselves: "What if I don't get this done in time?" or "What if my family leaves me and I've got no one else to turn to?"

Live for the moment．Do what must be done for the present and the future will turn out just fine． Believe me．And believe in yourself．As Captain Planet always says: "The power is yours!"

1.The underlined phrase "in cahoots with" in Paragraph 3 probably means "____"．

2.From the passage, we learn that___．

3.According to the author, which of the following is the right attitude to adopt towards life?

4.The stories are intended to tell us___．

It seems that every week someone becomes “the first” or “the youngest” or even “the first married couple” to do something that doesn’t seem to be very useful to the rest of us.

Why do they do it? Don’t they have better things to do with their time and money? And why should I be interested anyway? Human beings have already climbed the highest mountains, sailed across the oceans and flown around the world. Many of these things were done a long, long time ago. There just isn’t anything left to explore nowadays. I suppose there’s still a lot of the universe left, and the bottom of the ocean is still a bit of a mystery, but you need a lot of technology to explore areas like that. So, those people who feel the need for adventure can only do things that have been done before.

In May of this year a British man became the first person to walk alone from Canada to the North Pole. Personally, if I wanted to visit the Arctic, I’d rather go as a tourist on a cruise ship, with a helicopter trip to the North Pole included in the price. But OK, this man decided that he wanted to walk. The problem was that he went in the spring when the ice begins to melt and break up. So he got stuck on a longely piece of ice and a plane had to be sent in to rescue him.

These sorts of rescues are making many Australians angry with these record breakers. People trying to break sailing or rowing records get into trouble in the seas. So the Australian navy has to send ships to save them and this costs the government millions of dollars. I suppose we can’t just leave them to drown but we should give the bill to the people who are rescued.

1.According to the author, the so-called record breakers           .

    A．do not benefit other people at all

    B．inspire people to continue exploring

    C．are boring and should be stopped

    D．are usually not wealthy enough

2.We can infer from the second paragraph that           .

    A．there are no high mountains for people to climb

    B．nothing is left for people to explore in the universe

    C．it’s beyond ordinary people to explore the unknown

    D．human beings could fly around the world long ago

3.Many Australians are angry because the record breakers         .

    A．often get into trouble

    B．never use a cruise ship or a helicopter

    C．never pay their own costs

    D．satisfy their needs at the cost of others’ interest

4.What is the writer’s attitude towards the record breakers?

    A．Positive.                        B．Negative.

    C．Uninterested.                    D．Neutral（中立的）.

In a moment of personal crisis, how much help can you expect from a New York taxi driver? I began studying this question and found the answers interesting.

   One morning I got into three different taxis and announced, “Well, it’s my first day back in New York in seven years. I’ve been in prison.” Not a single driver replied, so I tried again. “Yeah, I shot a man in Reno.” I explained, hoping the driver would ask me why, but nobody asked. The only response came from a Ghanaian driver, “Reno? That is in Nevada?”

   Taxi drivers were uniformly sympathetic when I said I’d just been fired. “This is America,” a Haitian driver said. “One door is closed. Another is open.” He argued against my plan to burn down my boss’s house. A Pakistani driver even turned down a chance to profit from my loss of hope; he refused to take me to the middle of George Washington Bridge—a $20 trip. “Why you want to go there? Go home and relax. Don’t worry. Take a new job.”

   One very hot weekday in July, while wearing a red ski mask and holding a stuffed pillowcase with the word “BANK” on it, I tried calling a taxi five times outside different banks. The driver picked me up every time. My ride with a Haitian driver was typical of the superb assistance I received.

   “Let’s go across the park.” I said. “I just robbed the bank there. I got $25,000.”

   “$25,000?” He asked.

   “Yeah, you think it was wrong to take it?”

   “No, man. I work 8 hours and I don’t make almost $70. If I can do that, I do it too.”

   As we approached 86th and Lexington, I pointed to the Chemical Bank.

   “Hey, there’s another bank,” I said, “Could you wait here a minute while I go inside?”

   “No, I can’t wait. Pay me now.” His reluctance may have something to do with money—taxi drivers think the rate for waiting time is too low—but I think he wanted me to learn that even a bank robber can’t expect unconditional support.

1.. From the Ghanaian driver’s response, we can infer that ____.

   A. he was indifferent to the killing      B. he was afraid of the author

   C. he looked down upon the author     D. he thought the author was crazy

2.. Why did the Pakistani driver refuse to take the author to the middle of the George Washington Bridge?

   A. Because he was able to help the author to find a new job.

   B. Because he wanted to go home and relax.

   C. Because it was far away from his home.

   D. Because he thought that the author would commit suicide.

3..What is the author’s interpretation of the driver’s reluctance “to wait outside the Chemical bank”?

   A. The driver thought that the rate for waiting time was too low.

   B. The driver thought it wrong to support a taxi rider unconditionally.

   C. The driver was frightened and wanted to leave him as soon as possible.

   D. The driver did not want to help a suspect to escape from a bank robbery.

4.. Which of the following statements is true about New York taxi drivers?

   A. They are ready to help you do whatever you want to.

   B. they often refuse to pick up those who would kill themselves.

   C. They are sympathetic with those who are out of work.

   D. They work only for money.

5.. The passage mainly discusses ____.

   A. how to please taxi drivers.

   B. how to deal with taxi drivers

   C. the attitudes of taxi drivers towards riders in personal trouble

   D. the attitudes of taxi drivers towards troublesome taxi riders

It’s never easy to admit you are in the wrong. Being human, we all need to know the art of1. Look back with honesty and think how often you’ve judged2, said unkind things, pushed yourself ahead at the3of a friend. Then count the occasions4you indicated clearly and truly that you were5. A bit frightening, isn’t it? Frightening because some deep 6in us knows that when even a small wrong has been 7, some mysterious moral feeling is disturbed; and it stays out of balance until fault is acknowledged and8is expressed.
I remember a doctor friend, the late Clarence Lieb, telling me about a man who came to him with a variety of9: headaches, insomnia and stomach trouble. No10cause could be found. Finally my friend said to the man, “11you tell me what’s worrying you, I can’t help you.” After some12, the man confessed that, as executor of his father’s will, he had been13his brother, who lived abroad, of his inheritance (繼承權). Then and there the wise old doctor made the man write to his brother14forgiveness and enclosing a cheque as the first step in restoring their good15. He then went with him to mail box in the corridor. As the letter disappeared, the man16crying. “Thank you,” He said, “I think I’m17.” And he was. A heartfelt apology can not only heal a damaged relationship but also make it18. If you can think of someone who19an apology from you, someone you have wronged, or just neglected, do something about it20.

1. 1.
   1. A.
      communicating
   2. B.
      expressing
   3. C.
      apologizing
   4. D.
      explaining
2. 2.
   1. A.
      roughly
   2. B.
      toughly
   3. C.
      gently
   4. D.
      honestly
3. 3.
   1. A.
      risk
   2. B.
      expense
   3. C.
      loss
   4. D.
      mercy
4. 4.
   1. A.
      that
   2. B.
      how
   3. C.
      which
   4. D.
      when
5. 5.
   1. A.
      sorry
   2. B.
      regretful
   3. C.
      tolerant
   4. D.
      amazed
6. 6.
   1. A.
      wisdom
   2. B.
      pain
   3. C.
      fright
   4. D.
      tension
7. 7.
   1. A.
      ignored
   2. B.
      committed
   3. C.
      adjusted
   4. D.
      promoted
8. 8.
   1. A.
      regret
   2. B.
      curiosity
   3. C.
      devotion
   4. D.
      envy
9. 9.
   1. A.
      questions
   2. B.
      complaints
   3. C.
      signs
   4. D.
      conflicts
10. 10.
    1. A.
       spiritual
    2. B.
       immoral
    3. C.
       physical
    4. D.
       outward
11. 11.
    1. A.
       If
    2. B.
       Until
    3. C.
       When
    4. D.
       Unless
12. 12.
    1. A.
       recalling
    2. B.
       unconsciousness
    3. C.
       mediation
    4. D.
       hesitation
13. 13.
    1. A.
       accusing
    2. B.
       informing
    3. C.
       cheating
    4. D.
       warning
14. 14.
    1. A.
       calling for
    2. B.
       begging for
    3. C.
       reckoningon
    4. D.
       focusing on
15. 15.
    1. A.
       relationship
    2. B.
       situation
    3. C.
       condition
    4. D.
       attention
16. 16.
    1. A.
       burst out
    2. B.
       brought out
    3. C.
       gave out
    4. D.
       let out
17. 17.
    1. A.
       rescued
    2. B.
       cured
    3. C.
       sealed
    4. D.
       persuaded
18. 18.
    1. A.
       weaker
    2. B.
       maturer
    3. C.
       stronger
    4. D.
       fruitier
19. 19.
    1. A.
       borrows
    2. B.
       receives
    3. C.
       demands
    4. D.
       deserves
20. 20.
    1. A.
       for a moment
    2. B.
       at last
    3. C.
       right away
    4. D.
       in a while