Someone said that encouragement is simply reminding a person of the “shoulders” he’s standing on, the heritage he’s been given. That’s what happened   36   a young man, the son of a(n)   37   baseball player, was chosen by one of the minor league teams. Hard as he tried, his first season was   38   , and by midseason he expected to be removed   39   day. The coaches were    40   by his failure because he possessed all the characteristics of a superb athlete, but he seemed to have become   41   from his potential.
His   42   seemed darkest one day when he had already struck out his first time at bat. Then he stepped up to the batter’s box again and quickly ran up two strikes. The catcher called a   43   and ran for a conference to discuss strategies. While they were busy, the   44  , standing behind him, spoke casually to the boy.
Then play   45  , the next pitch was thrown and the young man knocked it out of the park. That was the turning   46  . From then on, he played the game with a new confidence and power that quickly   47   the attention of the parent team, and he was called   48   to the majors.
On the day he was leaving for the city, one of his coaches asked him what had caused such a turnaround. The young man replied it was the   49   remark the judge had   50   that day when his baseball career had seemed   51  .
“He told me I reminded him of all the times he had stood   52   my dad in the batter’s box,” the boy explained. “He said I was holding the bat just the way Dad had held it.   53   he told me, ‘I can see his genes in you; you have your father’s   54   .’ After that, whenever I swung the bat, I just   55   I was using Dad’s arms instead of my own.”

閱讀下面短文，掌握其大意。然后從各題所給的選項中，選出最佳選項，并在答題卡上將該項涂黑。

The three youths leaned over the metal rails along the sea-wall and watched a few fishermen pull in their nets. About thirty metres away, a boat pulled alongside the slippery steps leading  36  to the sea.

“Hey, look!” exclaimed Rahim. “Those two men are  37  heavy rocks. I thought we no longer do muscle labour in this technological  38  . ”

“They are  41  laborers who know how to spread the weight of the rocks they  42  . See how the man positions the rock just at the slope of his  43  . Some of the rock’s weight is set  44  his head, some on the right hand and some on the left hand. His body isn’t bent. His legs are well  45   . ”

“You’re right, Josh. He may have a small build.   46    he certainly well knows his job. Dear me! And to think we have been studying   47   ! ” Rahim thought about all that was happening. Suddenly, he said, “Technology won’t   48   the human being completely, it appears.”

“I don’t think it will. ”  49  Joshua. “You can harvest a crop of potatoes or wheat with one of those large, multi-purpose tractors, but you  50   use that equipment to harvest lea leaves and tomatoes, will you?”

“You can get a computer to   51   multiple-choice assessments, but you cannot get the computer to produce of assess essays, can you?” asked Michael.

“Well, the washing machine leaves my shirt collar quite as  52   as ever --- that’s domestic technology for you! ” said Rahim.

“One day, perhaps, there won’t be anybody   53   who can carry a large rock the way those men do. It’s not going to be a very  54   world, I’m afraid.” Sighed Michael.

“You’re too much of a pessimist (悲觀主義者)，Mike.” Said Joshua. “  55  will always be other things that will make the world exciting. ”

36. A. through   B. across      C. down        D. up

37. A. loading   B. unloading   C. covering     D. uncovering

38. A. way       B. revolution   C. process     D. era

39. A. ask       B. expect       C. attempt     D. hope

40. A. happen    B. fail         C. have        D. seem

41. A. ambitious  B. experienced  C. potential    D. energetic

42. A. take       B. fetch       C. carry       D. bring

43. A. shoulder   B. back        C. chest       D. arms

44. A. on        B. against     C. toward      D. under

45. A. supported  B. grasped     C. placed      D. strengthened

46. A. but        B. however     C. so          D. therefore

47. A. chemistry  B. physics     C. biology     D. psychology

48. A. control    B. affect       C. remove      D. replace

49. A. agreed     B. proposed    C. refused     D. denied

50. A. can’t     B. mustn’t     C. won’t      D. needn’t

51. A. point out  B. take out    C. hand out     D. print out

52. A. dirty      B. clean       C. old         D. new

53. A. caught    B. arranged    C. left         D. convinced

54. A. exciting   B. mysterious   C. technological  D. modern

55. A. That      B. This         C. They          D. There

Why does most of the world travel on the right side today? Theories differ, but there’s no doubt Napoleon was a major influence. The French have used the right since at least the late 18^th century. Some say that before the French Revolution, noblemen drove their carriages on the left, forcing the peasants to the right. Regardless of the origin, Napoleon brought right-hand traffic to the nations he conquered, including Russia, Switzerland and Germany. Hitler, in turn, ordered right-hand traffic in Czechoslovakia and Austria in the 1930s. Nations that escaped right-hand control, like Great Britain, followed their left-hand tradition.

The U.S. has not always been a nation of right-hand drivers; earlier in its history, carriage and horse traffic travelled on the left, as it did in England. But by the late 1700s, people driving large wagons pulled by several pairs of horses began promoting a shift（改變）to the right. A driver would sit on the rear（后面的）left horse in order to wave his whip（鞭子）with his right hand; to see opposite traffic clearly, they travelled on the right.

One of the final moves to firmly standardize traffic directions in the U.S. occurred in the 20^th century, when Henry Ford decided to mass-produce his cars with controls on the left (one reason, stated in 1908: the convenience for passengers exiting directly onto the edge, especially… if there is a lady to be considered). Once these rules were set, many countries eventually adjusted to the right-hand standard, including Canada in the 1920s, Sweden in 1967 and Burma in 1970. The U.K. and former colonies such as Australia and India are among the Western world’s few remaining holdouts(堅持不變者). Several Asian nations, including Japan, use the left as well--- though many places use both right-hand-drive and left-hand-drive cars.

1.Why did people in Switzerland travel on the right?

A.They had used the right-hand traffic since the 18^th century.

B.Rich people enjoyed driving their carriages on the right.

C.Napoleon introduced the right-hand traffic to this country.

D.Hitler ordered them to go against their left-hand tradition.

2.Of all the countries below, the one that travels on the right is_________.

A.Austria

B.England

C.Japan

D.Australia

3.Henry Ford produced cars with controls on the left __________.

A.in order to change traffic directions in the U.S.

B.so that passengers could get off conveniently

C.because rules at that time weren’t perfect

D.though many countries were strongly against that

4.According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?

A.Before the French Revolution, all the French people used the right.

B.People in Britain and the U.S. travel on the same side nowadays.

C.The Burmese began to travel on the right in 1970.

D.All the Asian nations use the left at present.

5.What would be the best title for this passage?

A.Who made the great contribution to the shift of traffic directions?

B.How cars have become a popular means of transportation?

C.How Henry Ford produced his cars with controls on the left?

D.Why don’t people all drive on the same side of road?

Once ________ at a table, left-handers need to move the water glasses put on the right side to their more convenient left side.

A．seating           B．having seated      C．seated            D．seat

The young couple had another quarrel. They were sitting silently when the landlady came in and asked, “You don’t   31  the house any more?” He kept silent and she   32  shook her head.
The landlady began   33  the house. After looking around, the landlady screamed, “See how you have   34  my house? The walls are full of nails! How could I rent it to others?”
She began looking around her   35 room. Four years ago on the wedding night, he felt deeply   36  to her, saying, “I feel so sorry to you for   37  you live in this small room. In the future I will buy our own big house.”
This tiny room has two nails on the wall next to the door, one for her bag and the other   38  . At that time, she threw all her stuff such as her bag and umbrella on the   39  once she entered the room, staring at the whole   40  and feeling terribly upset. Then he began   41  more nails into the wall. There were three nails on the left, on which   42  his clothes yesterday and four on the right used to   43  their wedding photo frame.
The landlady started to pull the nails out with a tool. After the nails were   44 , the walls were left with countless holes. Suddenly, she felt heartbroken as if she were   45  nonstop through these holes.
　　She   46  to her feet and exclaimed, “Stop removing the nails! We will rent the house   47  we buy our own!” He gazed at her surprised, and then turned round, tears over his cheek.
She   48 realized that marriage was like a wall and that all   49  and “cold wars” were like the nails on the wall.  50 , when they were removed, only a wall with holes would remain. But if all the nails were still in their own places, the wall was still complete and reliable.