You are watching a film in which two men are having a fight．They hit one another hard．At the start they only fight with their fists．But soon they begin hitting one another over the heads with chairs．And so it goes on until one of the men crashes through a window and falls thirty feet to the ground below．He is dead! Of course he isn't really dead．With any luck he isn't even hurt．Why? Because the men who fall out of high windows or jump from fast moving trains, who crash cars of even catching fire, are professionals．They do this for a living．These men are called stuntmen．That is to say, they perform tricks．There are two sides to their work．They actually do most of the things you see on the screen．For example, they fall from a high building．However, they do not fall on to hard ground but on to empty cardboard boxes covered with a mattress．Again, when they hit one another with chairs, the chairs are made of soft wood and when they crash through windows, the glass is made of sugar! But although their work depends on trick of this sort, it also requires a high degree of skill and training．Often a stuntman’s success depends on careful timing．For example, when he is “blown up” in a battle scene, he has to jump out of the way of the explosion just at the right moment.
Naturally stuntmen are well paid for their work, but they lead dangerous lives．They often get seriously injured, and sometimes killed．A Norwegian stuntman, for example, skied over the edge of a cliff a thousand feet high．His parachute failed to open, and he was killed．In spite of all the risks, this is no longer a profession for men only．Men no longer dress up as women when actresses have to perform some dangerous action．For nowadays there are stuntwomen too.
1.Stuntmen are those who ________.
A．often dress up as actors
B．prefer to lead dangerous lives
C．often perform seemingly dangerous actions
D．often fight each other for their lives
2.Stuntmen earn their living by ________.
A．playing their dirty tricks B．selling their special skills
C．jumping out of high windows D．jumping from fast moving trains
3.When a stuntman falls from a high building, ________.
A．he needs little protection B．he will be covered with a mattress
C．his life is endangered D．his safety is generally all right
4.Which of the following is the main factor（因素）of a successful performance?
A．Strength B．Exactness C．Speed D．Carefulness
A thief entered the bedroom of the 30th President of the United States, who met him and helped him escape punishment.
The event happened in the early morning hours in one of the first days when Calvin Coolidge came into power, late in August, 1923. He and his family were living in the same third-floor suite(套房) at the Willard Hotel in Washington that had occupied several years before. The former President’s wife was still living in the White House.
Coolidge awoke to see a stranger go through his clothes, remove a wallet and a watch chain.
Coolidge spoke, “ I wish you wouldn’t take that.”
The thief, gaining his voice, said, “ Why?”
“ I don’t mean the watch and chain, only the charm(表坠). Take it near the window and read what is impressed on its back,” the president said.
The thief read, “ Presented to Calvin Coolidge.”
“ Are you President Coolidge?” he asked.
The president answered, “ Yes, and the House of Representatives（众议院）gave me the watch charm. I’m fond of it. It would do you no good. You want money. Let’s talk this over.”
Holding up the wallet, the young man said in a low voice, “ I’ll take this and leave everything else.”
Coolidge, knowing there was 80 dollars in it, persuaded the young man to sit down and talk. He told the President he and his college roommate had overspent during their holiday and did not have enough money to pay their hotel bill.
Coolidge added up the roommate and two rail tickets back to the college. Then he counted out 32 dollars and said it was a loan(借款).
He then told the young man, “ There is a guard in the corridor.” The young man nodded and left through the same window as he had entered.
1.What caused the thief to meet the President
A. He knew the president had lots of money. B. He knew the president lived in the suite.
C. He wanted to be a rich businessman. D. He wanted to steal some money.
2.Why did Calvin Coolidge live at the Willard Hotel in those days?
A. Because the former president was still in the White House.
B. Because the former First Lady hadn’t left the White House.
C. Because the First lady liked to live there.
D. Because he liked there.
3. Coolidge counted out 32 dollars______.
A. in order not to be killed by the thief
B. in order to be out of danger
C. so as to help the young student overcome his difficulty.
D. because he had no more money.
4.The young man’s roommate went back to college _____.
A. by air B. by water C. by bus D. by train
5.Which of the following might happen afterwards?
A. The young man repaid the 32 dollars.
B. The thief was put into prison.
C. The President told many reporters the thief’s name.
D. The President ordered the young man to repay the money.
Six people were traveling in a compartment (包厢) on a train. Five of them were quiet and well behaved(举止文明), but the sixth was a rude young man who was causing a lot of trouble to the other passengers.
At last this young man got out of the station with his two heavy bags. None of the other passengers helped him, but one of them waited until the rude young man was very far away, and then opened the window to him, “ You left something behind in the compartment!” Then he closed the window again.
The young man turned around and hurried back with his two bags. He was very tired when he arrived, but he shouted through the window, “ What did I leave behind?”
As the train began to move again, the passenger who had called him back opened the window and said, “ A very bad impression!”
1. Of the six passengers in the compartment ___.
A. five of them were rude and badly behaved B. one of them was rude and badly behaved
C. five were always causing trouble on the train D. only one was quiet and well behaved
2.When the rude young man got off the train ___.
A. he left his two bags behind
B. he was thrown out through the window
C. the other five passengers didn’t help him
D. one of the other passengers opened the window for him
3.The passenger who had called him back wanted
A. to punish him for his bad behavior
B. to have a word with him about his behavior
C. to help him with his behavior
D. to return him the things he had left on the train
Are you a man or a mouse? When people ask this question they want to know __36_ you think you are a _37_ person or a coward(懦夫). But you will never really know the answer to this question __38__ you are tested in real life. Some people __39__ they are brave but when they come face to face with real __40_ , they act like cowards. Others think of themselves as cowards, but when they meet danger, they act like __41_.
Lenny had always thought of himself as a __42__ person. He got worried before examinations. He worried about his job and his health. All he wanted in life was to be safe and healthy. __43__ , on January 15th, 2002, a plane crashed into the Potomac River in Washington. Lenny went to the river to see what was happening. He saw a woman in the __44__ water. Lenny did not feel afraid. He kept very __45__ and did a very courageous thing. He jumped into Potomac, __46__ to the woman, and kept her head __47__ the water. Seventy-eight people died that day. Thanks to Lenny, it was not __48__ .
When you are in a very __49__ situation and feel afraid, the body automatically（自动地）produces a chemical in the blood. This chemical is called adrenalin(肾上激素). __50__ adrenalin in the blood system, you actually feel stronger and stronger and are __51__ to fight or run away. However, when you are absolutely terrified, the body can produce too much adrenalin. When this __52__ , the muscles become very hard and you find you __53__ move at all. You are paralyzed(使无能为力) with fear. This is __54__ when we are very frightened, we sometimes say we are ‘petrified’, this word comes from a Greek word ‘petros’, which means ‘stone’. We are __55__ frightened that we become stonelike.
1. A. how B. neither C. whether D. either
2.A. brave B. real C. hard D. certain
3.A. when B. until C. after D. once
4. A. realize B. find C. think D. agree
5.A. life B. question C. mouse D. danger
6. A. soldiers B. mice C. heroes(英雄) D. cowards
7.A. useful B. brave C. nervous D. terrible
8.A. So B. Therefore C. Then D. Actually
9.A. fresh B. poisonous C. warm D. ice-cold
10.A. nervous B. calm C. frightened D. excited
11.A. went B. helped C. spoke D. swam
12.A. in B. under C. above D. from
13.A. an accident B. a mistake C. seventy-eight D. seventy-nine
14.A. dangerous B. comfortable C. different D. favorable
15.A. With B. Without C. For D. Like
16. A. afraid B. unable C. ready D. anxious
17.A. gets B. disappears C. happens D. goes
18.A. needn’t B. can’t C. mustn’t D. shouldn’t
19. A. where B. how C. because D. why
20. A. really B. very C. such D. so
I don’t allow you ________ so high a mountain.
A. to risk going B. risking to go C. going to risk D. risk going
The old man was telling a funny story, surrounded by many kids, _________ with fascination.
A. all of whom listened B. all of whom listening
C. all of them listened D. all of them were listening
