Earlier this month, two rock climbers achieved what many thought impossible: They climbed up the 3,000-foot-high Dawn Wall in Yosemite National Park without specialized equipment. Climbing without this equipment is called"free-climbing."Until now, no one had free-climbed to the top of the rock face, which is a part of the mountain EI Capitan. El Capitan, which means"the captain"or"the chief"in Spanish, has always presented a challenge to climbers. But the Dawn Wall, on the mountain's southeast face, is a particularly difficult route to the summit . It is a rock formation that is both steep and relatively smooth. This makes free-climbing the rock face seem almost impossible. About seven years ago, professional climber Tommy Caldwell spotted a possible route up the wall. It took years of planning and preparation, but this month, Caldwell, 36, and his friend Kevin Jorgeson, 30, finally make the climb. Free climbers do use ropes and other basic safety equipment to catch them if they fall -- and Caldwell and Jorgeson fell often. Before starting their climb, they broke down their route into 32 sections. Each section was based on a rope length called a"pitch."The rope was secured into the rock face to catch the climbers if they fell. Caldwell and Jorgeson's goal was to climb the Dawn Wall without returning to the ground. If they fell, they had to start that pitch all over again. The two men started climbing on December 27. They slept in hanging tents, and a team of friends brought them food each day. The men had spent years rehearsing the movements it would take to get through each pitch. They made it through the fist half of the climb relatively easily. But halfway up, Jorgeson ran into trouble. In one difficult spot, he fell each time he attempted to climb. After 10 days of trying, Jorgeson finally made it to the next pitch. Getting through that troublesome pitch gave both climbers renewed energy. They finished the rest of the climb five days later, on January 14. Which of the following words can best describe Jorgeson? A) Proud but patient. B) Cautious and friendly. C) Brave and determined. D) Imaginative but half-hearted.
C
(Question)
In 1901, H. G. Wells, an English writer, wrote a book describing a trip to the moon. When the explorers landed on the moon, they discovered that the moon was full of underground cities. They showed their surprise to the "moon people" they met. In turn, the "moon people" showed their surprise. "Why," they asked, "are you traveling to outer space when you don't even use your inner space?" H. G. Wells could only imagine travel to the moon. In 1969, human beings did land on the moon. People today know that there are no underground cities on the moon. However, the question that the "moon people" asked is still an interesting one. A growing number of scientists are seriously thinking about _ . Underground systems are already in place. Many cities have underground car parks. In some cities, such as Tokyo, Seoul and Montreal, there are large underground shopping areas. The "Channel", a tunnel connecting England and France, is now completed. But what about underground cities? Japan's Taisei Corporation is designing a network of underground systems, called "Alice Cities". The designers imagine using surface space for public parks and using underground space for flats, offices, shopping, and so on. A solar dome would cover the whole city. Supporters of underground development say that building down rather than building up is a good way to use the earth's space. The space, they say, can be used for farms, parks, gardens and wilderness. H. G. Well's "moon people" would agree. Would you? What kind of underground system are already here with us? A) Offices, shopping areas, power stations. B) Tunnels, car parks, shopping areas. C) Gardens, car parks, power stations. D) Tunnels, gardens, offices.
(Answer)
B
Ques: While watching a swimming competition one night, I came across an unbelievable sight. It was not a gold medal, or a world record broken, but a show of courage. The event started with only three men on the blocks. For one reason or another, two of them false started, so they were disqualified. That left only one to complete. In fact, it is difficult enough, not having anyone to race against. I watched the man dive off the block and knew right away that something was wrong. I'm not an expert swimmer, but I can tell a good dive from a poor one, and this was not exactly medal quality. When he resurfaced, it was obvious that the man was not out for gold -- his arms were waving in an attempt at freestyle. The crowd started to laugh. Clearly this man was not a medal competitor. I listened to the crowd beginning to laugh at this poor man who was clearly having a hard time. Finally he made his turn to start back. It was pitiful. He made a few desperate strokes and you could tell he was exhausted. But in those few awful strokes, the crowd had changed. No longer were they laughing, but beginning to cheer. Some even began to stand and shout "Come on, you can do it!" and he did. This young man finally finished his race. The crowd went wild. Even though he recorded one of the slowest times in swimming history, this man gave more heart than any of the other competitors. Just a short year ago, he had never even swum, let alone race. His country had been invited to the competition. In a competition, we usually watch the brilliant athletes competing for medals, but _ . What would be the best title for the passage? A) Go for it! B) Try again! C) Compete for gold! D) Break a record!
Ans: A
If you are afraid of the dark,it's not a big deal.It's perfectly normal to feel afraid After all,animals do too. "Fear matters,"says Karen Warkentin,an ecologist."It's a good thing," she adds, "because fear makes you do things that keep you alive." Like kids,many animals experience fear and they respond to the feeling in variety of ways.A frightened turtle pulls its head and legs inside its shell.A small fish will swim away when a big,hungry fish approaches. Some animals respond to fear in ways you might not expect.The first example is that the fear of being eaten can scare some frogs right out of their eggs. Warkentin made the surprising discovery while studying red--eyed tree frogs in Costa Rica. In this species,female frogs attach jellylike clumps of their eggs to the undersides of leaves.The leaves hang on branches that dangle over ponds.After they hatch from the eggs,the tadpoles then fall into the water,where they eventually grow into adult frogs. Tree frog eggs usually grow for 6 days before hatching.If they sense that a hungry snake is about to attack,however,they can hatch up to 2 days ahead of schedule. As the snakes are unable to swim,by falling into the water early,the tadpoles can escape. If hatching early helps protect red--eyed tree frogs from snakes,you might wonder why their eggs don't always hatch sooner.It turns out that hatching early brings its own danger.Once tadpoles land in the water,hungry fish and other animals like to eat them too.Staying in their eggs for a full 6 days,then,allows frog embryos to grow big and strong.This extra growth improves their chances of surviving in the water. We are told in the passage that tree frogs _ . A) face danger both inside their eggs and in the water B) will grow fast if they fall into the water later C) are surprisingly clever when inside their eggs D) stay in their eggs longer if they are frightened
A