Frankenstein is one of the world’s most famous horror stories. It’s about a doctor who creates a new man from the body parts of dead people and brings it to life. But the experiment goes wrong and the monster(怪獸) kills the doctor and many others. The story has been read by millions since it was first published and in the last hundred years it has been made into dozens of movies. Many people are surprised to learn its writer was a 19-year-old woman, called Mary Shelley.
Mary was born into a rich London family in August 1797. She was educated by her parents and when she was 13 decided to become a writer. In 1812, she met the famous writer Percy Shelley and they soon got married. Sadly for Mary, their first child died soon after birth in Italy. In her diary, Mary wrote about a dream: “I dreamt that my little baby came to life again—that it had only been cold and that we rubbed it before the fire and it lived.”
In 1816, Percy Shelley and 19-year-odl May visited the poet Lord Byron at his home in Switzerland. Because of the bad weather they stayed indoors reading horror stories. One night, Byron asked everyone to write their own story. Mary thought of her dream and wrote the story Frankenstein.
Frankenstein was published when Mary was 21, and became a huge success. Many people didn’t think a 19-year-old woman could write so well and believed her husband was the real writer.
Although famous, Shelley’s life was full of sadness. Only one of her four children lived and in 1822 her husband died in a swimming accident. Mary was broken-hearted and decided not to marry again. She devoted herself to her child and continued to write until her death in 1851.
【小題1】 What do we know about he story Frankenstein?

A．It was really written by Mary Shelley’s husband.

B．It was been read by millions of people.

C．It was written to remember Shelley’s husband.

D．It is the most famous story in the world.

【小題2】Where was Mary Shelley when she wrote the story Frankenstein?

A．In England.

B．In Italy.

C．In Switzerland.

D．In France.

【小題3】 In which order to the following take place?
a. Bad weather made everyone stay indoors reading horror stories.
b. The story Frankenstein was first published.
c. Mary wrote about a dream in her diary.
d. Mary met the famous writer Percy Shelley.
e. Movies based on the story of Frankenstein were made.

A．a(chǎn), c, b, e, d

B．d, c, a, b, e

C．c, a, b, d, e

D．b, a, d, c, e

【小題4】 How old was Mary Shelley when she died?

A．43

B．48

C．51

D．54

【小題5】What can we learn about Mary Shelley from this passage?

A．She experienced a lot of sadness in her life.

B．She wasn’t considered a good writer during her life.

C．She was educated at her local school.

D．She became very rich because of the story Frankenstein.

Short and shy, Ben Saunders was the last kid in his class picked for any sports team. "Football, tennis Cricket — anything with a round ball, I was useless." he says now with a laugh. But back then he was the object of jokes in school gym classes in England’s rural Devonshire.
It was a mountain bike he received for his 15^th birthday that changed him. At first the teen went biking alone in a nearby forest. Then he began to cycle along with a runner friend. Gradually, Saunders set his mind building up his body, increasing his speed, strength and endurance. At age 18, he ran his first marathon.
The following year, he met John Ridgway, who became famous in the 1960s for rowing an open boat across the Atlantic Ocean. Saunders was hired as an instructor at Ridgway’s school of Adventure in Scotland, where he learned about the older man’s cold-water exploits (成就). Intrigued, Saunders read all he could about Arctic explorers and North Pole expeditions, then decided that this would be his future. Journeys to the Pole aren’t the usual holidays for British country boys, and many people dismissed his dream as fantasy. "John Ridgway was one of the few who didn’t say, ’You are completely crazy,’" Saunders says.
In 2001, after becoming a skilled skier, Saunders started his first long-distance expedition toward the North Pole. He suffered frostbite, had a closer encounter (遭遇) with a polar bear and pushed his body to the limit.
Saunders has since become the youngest person to ski alone to the North Pole, and he’s skied more of the Arctic by himself than any other Briton. His old playmates would not believe the transformation.
This October, Saunders, 27, heads south to explore from the coast of Antarctica to the South Pole and back, an 1800-mile journey that has never been completed on skis.
【小題1】The turning point in Saunders’ life came when ________.

A．he started to play ball games

B．he got a mountain bike at age 15

C．he ran his first marathon at age 18

D．he started to receive Ridgway’s training

【小題2】We can learn from the text that Ridgway ________.

A．dismissed Saunders’ dream as fantasy

B．built up his body together with Saunders

C．hired Saunders for his cold-water experience

D．won his fame for his voyage across the Atlantic

【小題3】What do we know about Saunders?

A．He once worked at a school in Scotland.

B．He followed Ridgway to explore the North Pole.

C．He was chosen for the school sports team as a kid.

D．He was the first Briton to ski alone to the North Pole.

【小題4】The underlined word "Intrigued" in the third paragraph probably means ________.

A．Excited

B．Convinced

C．Delighted

D．Fascinated

【小題5】It can be inferred that Saunders’ journey to the North Pole ________.

A．was accompanied by his old playmates

B．set a record in the North Pole expedition

C．was supported by other Arctic explorers

D．made him well-known in the 1960s

"Tom? Are you in bed yet?" called Mrs White. There was no answer. Mrs White put down her book and went to her 14-year-old son's room. Tom was sitting in front of a bright computer screen on which a colourful dragon jumped and shouted.

     "Oh, Tom! You're still playing on that computer. You must stop now. It's half past eleven. If you don't go to bed soon, you'll be very tired tomorrow," said Mrs White.

     "But I've nearly beaten the dragon," said Tom. Mrs White could see the excitement on her son's face. She sat down beside him.

     "You are always playing on that computer. You spend more time with this machine than with your family," she said with a smile. "What's special about it? Show me what it can do!"

     "I think this is a great computer, Mum!" he said happily. "The hardware (硬件) is good. There's so much memory and it has some wonderful software programs. This game, 'Dragon Player', is my favourite, but I sometimes borrow games from Daniel and other friends. I don't have to worry about any infected（感染） disks because I have a virus（病毒） detector (探測(cè)器) which can go over any disk and check it for viruses. Let me show you!" Tom began tapping. The screen changed in answer to his orders.

    "Oh, Tom," laughed Mrs White. "I'm sure it's a wonderful computer, but I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about."

1.When Mrs White was calling Tom, he was ______.

    A. playing computer games in' his bedroom      B. playing with a dragon in his bedroom

    C. playing "Dragon Player" in the study         D. lying in bed reading a book

2. Tom was excited because ______.

    A. the computer has a good memory            B. the hardware is good

    C. he had nearly won the game                 D. his mother came to see him

3. What do we know about Mrs White?

    A. She loves her son too much.

    B. She loves computer games too.

    C. She is very hard on his son.

    D. She is as wonderful as the computer game.

 

When we look at the moon through a telescope(望遠(yuǎn)鏡), we can see lines and circles(圓形物). People used to(過(guò)去常常) think that this was the moon’s face and that there was a man in the moon! This is not true. There is no man in the moon.
　　What do we know about the moon? First of all, the moon is much smaller than the earth. Days and nights on the moon are very long. One day on the moon is as long as two weeks on the earth. One night is also as long as two weeks on the earth. In the daytime the moon is very hot and at night is very cold.
【小題1】On the moon ____________.

A．there is a man	B．there is a woman
C．there are a lot of people	D．there is no man

【小題2】Now we know _____________________.
　　   

A．some facts about the moon

B．nothing about the moon

C．little about the moon

D．few facts about the moon

【小題3】Which of the following is true?

A．The moon is bigger than the earth.

B．The earth is much bigger than the moon.

C．The moon is as big as the earth.

D．The earth isn’t as big as the moon.

【小題4】 One day on the moon is as long as ______________.
　　   

A．seven days on the earth

B．fourteen days on the earth.

C．240 hours on the earth

D．two years on the earth

【小題5】The moon is very hot _____________.

A．a(chǎn)ll the time	B．during the night
C．in the daytime	D．a(chǎn)t night and in the daytime

Dear Mom,
I'm sorry that I can't go back home for Mother's Day next week. On that day, I'll have to go to an important meeting for my boss, who helps me a lot with my work and life here. But I'll find time to see you at home soon.
Mom, thank you for everything you've done for Tim and me. After Dad died ten years ago, you had to work in a supermarket in the daytime and in a restaurant at night. But you always gave us two your love and care. You don't have to work now, but I still remember your coming home and feeling tired many evenings.
Tim is going to finish his studies next month. He said he would move back from school and look for a job near home. I'm glad you won't live by yourself any more. Let's plan to take a trip in the near future. It's been years since the three of us took a trip together.
Happy Mother's Day. I love you!
Best wishes
John
【小題1】What can we learn about John's mother?

A．She lives by herself now.

B．She still works day and night.

C．She will make a plan to save money.

D．She used to be too busy to care for her children.

【小題2】What do we know from the letter?

A．John has two brothers.

B．John is unhappy with his boss.

C．John has to work on Mother's Day.

D．Tim will leave home for his job soon.

【小題3】Which is said in the letter?

A．John's father died at work.

B．Tim will look for a teaching job.

C．John bought a gift for his mother.

D．John hopes to take a trip with his family.