that. If anything goes wrong, the computers ring a warning bell and the engineers call us on the radio. On the space shuttle, sleep-time doesn?t mean nighttime. During each ninety-minute flight around the earth, the sun “rises” and shines through our windows for about fifty minutes; then it “sets” as our flight takes us around the dark side of the Earth. To keep the sun out of our eyes, we wear black sleep masks(眼罩).
It is surprisingly easy to get comfortable and fall asleep in space, and we sleep differently. Some sleep upside down, some sideways, some right side up. When it?s time to sleep, I take my bag, my sleep mask, and my tape player with earphones and float up to the flight platform. Then I get into the bag, and float in a sitting position just above a seat, right next to a window. Before I pull the mask down over my eyes, I relax(放松) for a while, listening to music and watching the Earth go by under me.
When I?m in space I don?t need as much sleep as I do on Earth. Maybe that?s because when I am weightless, I don?t feel as tired. Or maybe it?s because I?m excited to be in space and don?t want to waste time sleeping.
( ) 1. What do the shuttle people do with their sleeping bags while working?
A. Keep them where they work B. Leave them where they sleep. C. Place them on the beds D. Fix them to the wall
( ) 2. During sleeping time, the job of watching over the shuttle is done by ? A. the shuttle?s radio B. the shuttle?s warning bell. C. People working in the shuttle. D. Engineers at the Control Office. ( ) 3. How often does the sun rise to people in the space shuttle?
A. Every 140 minutes. B. Every 90 minutes. C. Every 50 minutes. D. Every 40 minutes
( ) 4. What do we know about people sleeping in the space shuttle?
A. They sleep while listening to music. B. They have difficulty falling asleep. C. They sleep in different positions. D. They go to sleep when it is dark.
（3）
You have probably seen ads(广告) in newspapers or on TV for mail-order shopping. Perhaps you have been sent a catalogue(商品目录) and have bought something by mail. Why do people buy things they have not seen with their own eyes? One of the reasons might be that some people believe that things can be bought more cheaply by mail. Another advantage of mail-order shopping is that it is more comfortable to sit at home and look through a catalogue than to rush around the stores. With the catalogue from a large company, you have your own shop window for almost everything you might want to buy.
The mail-order business is very wide-spread. Some companies hire people to show products listed in the catalogue to possible customers. Perhaps you have had one of these people call you or come by your home.
Buying from a catalogue is so easy. It saves the shopper time and trouble. Sometimes, it saves the shopper money. But people often buy more than they can really afford, since they buy now and pay later on. Some companies allow a customer to pay for a product over a long period of time. People can also pay a certain percent of the total price. This is called a down payment. Then the customer pays a certain amount of money every month until the product is completely paid for. People can buy almost everything by mail-order shopping---furniture, tools and even heavy machines.
( ) 1. People prefer to buy things by mail-order because?
A. they think the price is lower. B. C.
they enjoy the shopping service. they can get catalogues they want.
D. they can buy things from big companies.
( ) 2. What do we know about mail-order business from the text?
A. Mail-order shopping is very common nowadays. B.
Mail-order companies respect their customers.
C. Shopping by mail causes trouble to old people.
D. Companies spend a lot of money sending catalogues. ( ) 3. What might be a big problem for mail-order customers?
A. It?s possible to get what they don?t like. B. It?s easy to buy more than they can pay for. C. They may fail to get what they have paid for. D. They will wait for a long time to get the product. ( ) 4. What does “down payment” in the last paragraph mean?.
A. B. C. D.
The money a customer saves each month. The money a customer pays for a product. Part of the total cost a customer pays first. Part of the total coat a customer saves.
（4）
Probably no other musical instrument(乐器) is as popular around the world as the guitar(吉他). Almost every kind of music needs a guitar. Country and western music would not be the same without a guitar. The Spanish music called flamenco could not exist without a guitar. The sound of American blues music would not be the same without the sad cry of the guitar. And rock and roll music would almost be impossible without this instrument.
People do not agree about where the guitar was first played, but most agree it is very old. Some say an instrument very much like a guitar was played in Egypt more than one thousand years ago. Some others say that an old form of the modern guitar was brought to Spain from Persia sometime in the 12th century. The guitar continued to develop in Spain. In the 1700s it became similar to the instrument we know today.
Many famous musicians played the instrument. The famous musician Niccolo Paganini played and wrote music for the guitar in the early 1800s. Franz Schubert used the guitar to write some of his famous works, in modern times Andres Segovia helped make the instrument
extremely popular.
One kind of music for the guitar developed in the southern area of Spain called Adalusia. It will always be strongly connected with the Spanish guitar. ( ) 1. What is discussed about the guitar in paragraph 1?
A. Its history in America. B. Its value in the music world. C. Its importance for music lovers. D. Its use in musical performance ( )2. Where could the oldest form of the guitar probably exist according to the text?
a) In Spain B. In Persia C. In Egypt D. In America ( ) 3. Who did most to make the guitar very popular?
A. Adalusia B. Andres Segovia C. Franz Schubert D. Niccolo Paganini ( ) 4. What would be the best title for the text?
A. Music and Musicians B. The History of the Guitar
C. Music and Musical Instruments D. The Most Popular Musical Instrument
（5）
Some people do not like anything to be out of place. They are never late for work; they return their books to the library on time; they remember people?s birthdays and they pay their bills as soon as they arrive. Mr. Brown is such a person. Mr. Brown works in a bank, and lives on his own. His sister lives in the next town with her husband, and her son, Mark. Mr. Brown doesn?t see his sister or her family from one year to the next, but he sends them Christmas cards, and he hasn?t forgotten one of Mark?s seventeen birthday. Last week Mr. Brown had quite a surprise. He drove home from the bank at the usual time; driving neither too slowly nor too fast, he parked his car where he always parked it, out of the way of other cars, and he went inside to make his evening meal. Just then there was a knock at the door. Mr. Brown opened the door to find a policeman standing on the doorstep.
“What have I done wrong?” Mr. Brown asked himself. “Have I driven on the wrong side of the road? Has there been some trouble at the bank? Have I forgotten to pay an important bill?”
“Hello, uncle,” said the policeman, “My name?s Mark.” ( ) 1. Mr. Brown .
A. works on his own in a bank B. lives in a bank and works on his own C. lives by himself and works in a bank D. has a serious injury to the lag ( ) 2. Mr. Brown sees his sister .
A. very seldom. B. only at the end of the year. C. only at Christmas. D. on Mark?s birthday every year.
( )3. “…he hasn?t forgotten one of Mark?s seventeen birthdays” means .
A. he has forgotten more than one B. C.
he sent Mark something on his 17th birthday he always sends a Christmas card on Mark?s birthday
D. he always sends Mark something on his birthday ( ) 4. The policeman was there . A. B. C. D.
to meet Mr. Brown, his uncle
to ask Mr. Brown to go and see his uncle to ask Mr. Brown to mark his name on his door to see Mr. Brown about some trouble at the bank
（6）
“Seasame Street” has been called “the longest street in the world”.
This is because the television program by that name can now be seen in so many parts of the world.
The program, which went on the air in New York in 1969, uses songs, jokes, and pictures to give children a basic understanding of numbers, letters and human relationships. More than 6 million children in the United States watch it regularly. The viewers（观众）include more than