出自:中北大学-大学英语（二）
Passage Two
Martin Luther King was a black minister, who became a great leader of the civil rights movement in the 1950s and 1960s.
King was born on January 15, 1929 in Atlanta, Georgia. When he was young, he was strongly influenced by Thoreau and Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi.s idea of non-violent resistance. Having received a Ph. D (Doctor of Philosophy) from Boston University, he became a political and religious leader of the non-violent civil relights movement in 1955. On August 28, 1963, he led over 250,000 Americans on a march in Washington D.C. to fight for the Civil Rights Law to guarantee equality for all people, and delivered his best known speech "I Have a Dream" before the Lincoln Memorial. The "dream" is a dream of brotherly love and equality for the Black and White. Thus, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for peace in 1964, but he was murdered four years later.
Though he died, he was greatly respected and loved by the Americans, both the white and the black. By vote of Congress in 1968, the third Monday of every January is now a federal holiday in Luther King.s honor. He lives in people.s hearts forever.
11．Martin Luther King was murdered when he was 39 years old.
A：T
B：F
12．Martin Luther King was a black minister only.
A：T
B：F
13．Martin Luther King.s Day has been a federal holiday for more than 40 years.
A：T
B：F
14．The underlined word "delivered" in the second paragraph could be replaced by "gave".
A：T
B：F
15．The best title for this passage is "Civil Rights Law".
A：T
B：F
Passage One
It has been reported that in colleges across the United States, the daytime serial drama known as the soap opera has suddenly become "in". Between the hours of 11 a.m. and 4:30 pm, college television lounges are filled with soap opera fans who can.t wait to see the next episode in the lives of their favorite characters.
Actually, soaps are more than a college favorite; they.re a youth favorite. When school is out, high-school students are in front of their TV sets. One young working woman admitted that she turned down a higher paying job rather than give up watching her favorite serials. During the 1960.s, it was uncommon for young people to watch soap operas. The mood of the sixties was very different from now. It was a time of seriousness, and talk was about social issues of great importance.
Now, seriousness has been replaced by fun. Young people want to be happy. It may seem strange that they should turn to soap opera, which is known for showing trouble in people.s lives. But soap opera is enjoyment. Young people can identify with the soap opera character, who, like the college-age viewer, is looking for happy love, and probably not finding it. And soap opera gives young people a chance to feel close to people without having to bear any responsibility for their problems.
6．What is soap opera?
A：Plays based on science fiction stories.
B：Plays based on non-fiction stories.
C：The daytime serial dramas on TV.
D：Popular documentary films on TV.
7．What can be the best title of the passage?
A：College student viewers.
B：Favorite TV serials.
C：Soap opera fans.
D：College-age viewers.
8．Which is NOT the reason why the soap opera has suddenly become "in" among American young people ?
A：Because the viewers want to be happy and to enjoy themselves.
B：Because the soap opera makes young people feel close to their people.
C：Because the viewers can find themselves in the soap opera characters.
D：Because the young people have to bear the responsibilities for their troubles.
9．What can we learn from the passage? _________
A：College students like soap operas more than any other social groups.
B：Young people of sixties liked soap operas more than people today.
C：young viewers have turned themselves from the seriousness of sixties to enjoyment now.
D：The young as a whole are trying to look for happy love but in vain.
10．What message does the author want to convey to us? _________
A：The people.s favorites to drama works have been changed for a long time.
B：The people.s favorites to drama works change along with the times.
C：The people.s favorites to drama works is changed by the soap opera.
D：The people.s favorites have changed the drama works.
Passage 1
The United States covers a large part of the North American continent. Its neighbors are Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. Although the United States is a big country, it is not the largest in the world. In 2000, its population was over 222 million.
When this land first became a nation, after winning its independence from England, it had thirteen states. Each of the states was represented on the American flag by a star. All these states were in the eastern part of the continent. As the nation grew toward the west, new states were added and new stars appeared on the flag. For a long time, there were 48 stars. In 1959, however, two more stars were added to the flag, representing the new states of Alaska and Hawaii.
Indians were the first people of the land which is now the United States. There are still many thousands of Indians now living in all parts of the country. Sometimes it is said that the Indians are “the only real Americans”. Most Americans come from all over the world. Those who came first in greatest numbers to make their homes on the eastern coast of North America were mostly from England. It is for that reason that the language of the United States is English and that its culture and customs are more like those of England than those of any other country in the world.
6. Which of the following is TRUE?
A. America is the largest country in the world.
B. The United States lies next to Canada and Mexico.
C. America covers most part of the North American continent.
D. Mexico is to the north of Canada.
7. After winning its independence, the United States _________.
A. had nothing to do with England
B. made India part of its land
C. mainly developed westward
D. took over parts of Canada and Mexico
8. The United States didn’t have ______ states until ________.
A. thirteen; 1959
B. fifty; 1959
C. fifty; this land first became a nation
D. fifty;1964
9. Why is English the language of America?
A. Because English is the native language of the Indians.
B. Because most Americans come from all over the world.
C. Because Canada is America’s nearest neighbor.
D. Because most of the people who first settled in America were from England.
10. The best title for the passage is “ _________”.
A. the States of America
B. The language of America
C. The United States of America
D. The Culture and Customs of America
Passage 2
There was once an ant that was very thirsty.
It ran here and there looking for some water but could not find any.
Then suddenly, when the ant was almost ready to die of thirst, a large drop of water fell on it.
The ant drank the water, which saved its life.
The water was actually a tear from a young girl who was crying. Because of her sadness, the tear had magical qualities and suddenly the ant could speak the language of human beings.
The ant looked up and saw the young girl sitting in front of a huge pile of seeds.
"Why are you sad?" asked the ant.
"I.m the prisoner of a giant." the girl told the ant. "He won.t let me go until I.ve made three separate heaps of grain, barley（大麦）and rye（黑麦）out of this huge pile of seeds in which they are all mixed together."
"That will take you a month!" the ant said, looking at the huge pile of seeds.
"I know," the girl cried, "and if I can’t finish by tomorrow, the giant will eat me for his supper!"
"Don.t cry," the ant said, "my friends and I will help you."
Soon thousands of ants were at work, separating the three kinds of seeds.
The next morning, when the giant saw that the work had been done, he let the girl go.
Thus it was one of her tears that saved her life.
11. The ant was playing game running here and there.
A：T
B：F
12. A drop of water fell on the ant when it was nearly dying.
A：T
B：F
13. The young girl was crying because she wanted to have supper.
A：T
B：F
14. The giant would eat the girl if she failed to do the work.
A：T
B：F
15. The ant.s friends saved the girl.s life.
A：T
B：F