An old farmer lived on a farm in the mountains with his young grandson. Each morning Grandpa was up early to read his Bhagavat Geeta. His grandson wanted to be just like him and tried to imitate him in every way he could. 
    One day the grandson asked, “Grandpa! I try to read the Bhagavat Geeta just like you but I don’t understand it, and what I do understand I forget as soon as I close the book. What good does reading the Bhagavat Geeta do?”
    The Grandfather quietly turned from putting coal in the stove and replied, “Take this coal basket down to the river and bring me back a basket of water.”
    The boy did as he was told, but all the water leaked out (漏出) before he got back to the house. The grandfather laughed and said, “You’ll have to move a little faster next time,” and sent him back to the river with the basket to try again. This time the boy ran faster, but again the same took place.
    The old man said, “I don’t want a bucket of water; I want a basket of water. You’re just not trying hard enough,” and he went out to watch the boy try again. The boy again dipped the basket into the river and ran hard, but when he reached his grandfather the basket was again empty. He said, “See Grandpa, it’s useless!” “So you think it is useless?” The old man said, “Look at the basket.”
    The boy looked at the basket and for the first time realized that the basket was different. It had been transformed from a dirty old coal basket and now clean, inside and outside.
    “You might not understand or remember everything, but when you read it, you will be changed, inside and out.”

21. We can learn from Paragraph 1 that the grandson_________.

A. was fond of reading                    

B. admired his grandpa very much

C. got up early to carry water every day     

D. helped his grandpa on the farm

22. According to the grandson,_________.

A. he enjoyed reading the Bhagavat Geeta

B. learning the Bhagavat Geeta was easy

C. he was not good at remembering anything

D. reading the Bhagavat Geeta was meaningless

23. The grandfather gave his grandson a lesson by_________.

A. telling an interesting story         B. having a heated discussion

C. carrying water with a basket       D. performing an experiment

24. What would the grandson like to do in the future?

A. Wash the basket.                                  B. Hold water with a bucket.

C. Read the Bhagavat Geeta.                   D. Remember everything.

Humans may not have landed on Mars (火星) just yet, but that isn’t stopping a European company from devising a plan to send four people to the Red Planet within the next few years. This project, called Mars One, aims to send a small group of people to Mars in 2022 and eventually establish a permanent colony (殖民地)on the planet.

    “Everything we need to go to Mars exists,”said Mars One co-founder Bas Lansdorp in March 2014. “We have the rockets to send people to Mars, the equipment to land on Mars, the robots to prepare the settlement for humans. For a one-way mission(任务), all the technology exists.” Yet the four astronauts chosen for the trip will be stuck on Mars—forever. And despite Mars One’s thorough planning, there are a number of challenges that may prevent the mission from ever taking place. The biggest road block could be the mission’s huge cost ($6 billion). However, Lansdorp is confident that Mars One will be able to fund the project by selling the broadcast rights for the mission and subsequent experiences living on the planet.

    Those broadcast rights will also play a part in helping to select the people who will be sent to Mars. Lansdorp said the company will hold a selection process similar to a reality show. Lansdorp is expecting at least 1 million applications from people around the world. In addition to the cost, several other potential problems could inhibit (阻止) the mission to Mars.

“It’s even more challenging to send people there with life support, with food, with air, with all the other things like books, entertainment, means of communication and of providing for their own resources for a long stay on Mars,”said Adam Baker, senior lecturer in space engineering at Kingston University in London. “The size of the rockets you’d need to do this would be absolutely colossal.”

29. According to Bas Lansdorp, which of the following is NOT TRUE?

 A. Robots are prepared for the settlement for humans.

 B. He could not come up with the fund for Mars One.

 C. We humans have the rockets to send people to Mars.

 D. The equipment is ready for humans to land on Mars.

30. The word “colossal” in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to ___________.

 A. very large             B. very small         C. medium           D. average

31.Which of the following is the best title for this passage?

 A. Ready for a Round Trip to Mars               B. Ready for a Short Visit to Mars

 C. Ready for a One-way Trip to Mars            D. Ready for a Walk on Mars

 There are around 6,000 living languages in the world—and at least half of these are in danger. In every part of the world, languages are disappearing. In fact, one scientist has said that languages are in more danger of extinction than birds or animals. Professor Steve Sutherland of the University of East Anglia says that in the past 500 years 4.5 percent of languages have died out—compared with 1.3 percent of birds, and 1.9 percent of mammals.

  Languages come and go, and thousands have done exactly that without leaving any trace(痕迹). Only a very few—Basque, Greek and Latin among them—have lasted more than 2000 years. But it seems that the pace of their disappearance is becoming quicker.

  The Ethnologue, a database of all the languages spoken in the world, states that 417 languages are spoken by so few people that they are in the final stages of becoming extinct. If very few people speak a language, it will probably die out.

  Languages may be lost through migration(迁徙), as people move from small towns to city centers, or when environments are destroyed by the search for oil or wood. Natural disasters can also devastate populations, and along with them, their language. Governments also play a role in the extinction of languages. The need to establish “official languages”, for a country to educate its children and carry out its business, had a disastrous effect on many small languages.

  What is lost if a language is lost? Some people argue that languages die as the human race develops. Obviously there could be great benefits if everyone in the world spoke the same language—some industries already reflect(反映) this, with English essential for pilots and air traffic controllers. But there are more important things than convenience. As languages are lost, whole ways of life and knowledge may be lost along with them.

  To put it simply, language expresses something about identity, about our place in the world. Ani Rauhihi, a Maori teacher in New Zealand’s North Island, sums it up: “If you grow up speaking our language, you won’t know who you are.”

32. The figures mentioned in the first paragraph suggest that______.

A. most languages have died out completely

B. languages are in great danger of extinction

C. animals are disappearing faster than languages

D. languages are disappearing slower than before

33. The underlined word “devastate” can best be replaced by “       ”.

A. increase     B. control     C. destroy     D. improve

34. If a language is lost, ________.

A. there will be great trouble

B. there is no need to worry about it

C. its culture and knowledge will also be lost

D. people will be able to communicate with others conveniently

35. What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A. Languages reflect our identity.

B. People will speak the same language one day.

C. Fewer people will remember their own languages.

D. Ani Rauhihi cares less about languages dying out.

   Health is the most important thing in the world. Nothing is more important than health. If one takes away our money, houses, cars, or even our clothes, we can still survive.  36  That is why we always try to eat in a healthy way and exercise regularly.

How can we keep healthy? In order to eat healthily, I usually avoid eating food high in fat, like French fries or cookies, which are junk foods.  37  Besides, I only eat little meat.  38  Taking exercise every day helps us build a strong body. Regular exercise is an important part of keeping me healthy.

What's more, I think friends are an important part of one's health.  39   I always feel better when I am with friends than when I am alone. When I am with my friends, I always laugh. Laughing is also an important part of health. It is good to stay with my friends. By eating properly and exercising regularly, I can keep my body at a proper weight and keep healthy.

By spending time with my friends, I can keep my mind as well as my body happy. These things sound easy to do, but not many people can manage them.  40   
A. Many studies show that people with a narrow range of social contacts often get sick.
B. There are some people who like staying alone, but they keep healthy.
C. On the other hand, doing exercise is very important.
D. But if our health was taken away, it is certain that we would surely die.
E. I think a strong will is necessary if we want to keep healthy.
F. I eat a lot of vegetables and fresh fruit which are full of vitamins.
G. Some people appear fat because they often eat too much.

 The story happened in Japan   61   a house was redecorated and the wall inside a room was removed. The inside of the wall was hollow. When the owner of the house removed the wall, he saw a gecko (壁虎) inside the wall. Its tail was pinned by a nail   62  (come) through the wall from outside.

The owner was very curious why the gecko was still alive. Then the nail caught his eye. Goodness! It is the nail that was driven here ten years ago when the house was built! How amazing it is  63   the gecko to have lived in the wall in complete  64    (dark) for ten years!

But on second thought, the curious house owner wondered how his gecko could live through 10 years with its tail  65  (nail) down and being unable to go anywhere? So he tried to find out how this small creature could be fed. After a little while, there appeared another gecko with food in 66    mouth! What a shocking scene! For ten years, this little gecko had never failed to feed the trapped 67   .

The story touched me so 68   (deep) that it is useless to find out what  relationships they had between them. Parent  69   child ? Friends? Lovers?  Brothers or sisters? 70   last thing we should do is to abandon your beloved in hardship.