Passage 42

　　Bill Clinton took office (就职)on January 20,1993 and became the 42nd U.S. President (总统). He is the first U.S. president who was born after World War II. He is also one of the youngest of all U.S. presidents.

　　Clinton was born in a poor family. Three months before he was born, his father, William Blats, died. When he was small, his mother remarried (再婚) Norger Clinton, so the boy‘s family name was changed.

　　In the summer of 1963, Clinton was asked to visit the city of Washington. During his visit, he met President Kennedy in the White House. At that time, he wanted to become a president, and now he is!

　　1. Clinton became the 42nd U.S. president when he was______.

　　A. thirty B. about forty C. forty-seven D.37years old

　　2. Clinton’s father died______.

　　A. after 1946 B. before Clinton was born C. before World War II D. when Clinton was young

　　3. Why was the boy‘s name changed?

　　A.Because he became a president 　　B.Because his family was very poor

　　C. Because his father was dead 　　D. Because his mother remarried Norger Clinton

　　4. In 1963 Clinton came to the city of Washington___.

　　A. to take part in an exam B. for his holidays C. for a visit D. to have a meeting with Kennedy

　　5. Which one of the following is Not right?

　　A.Everybody can visit the president in the White House

　　B. All the U.S. presidents work in the White Horse

　　C.Clinton wanted to become a president after he saw President Kennedy

　　D. The White House is in the city of Washington

　　Passage 43

　　EVERYTHING has two sides. One side of SARS is already clear. It is a deadly disease, which causes fear. There were 2,601 cases (病例) recorded on the Chinese mainland on April 24, according to government report. 115 people have died and numbers keep rising.

　　But, there is another side.

　　SARS is a reminder (提醒) of how fragile life can be. Suddenly, it’s not just the old people who are thinking about death. Everyone now realizes there might not always be a tomorrow.

　　Wang Xinying, a student in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province came into contact (接触) with a suspected (疑似) SARS patient in mid-April. He was told to stay at home for at least two weeks. “Watching TV about more and more SARS patients dying, I never knew that death could be so close. Life is valuable (珍贵的) and I’m going to treasure (珍惜) every single day,” he said.

　　SARS teaches people to be grateful, both for their own lives and for others. Doctors and nurses, for example, have to spend all their time with infected (被感染的) patients. As a result, more than one fifth of SARS cases in China are medical workers.

　　Xu Bing, a student of Beijing No. 5 Middle School wants to be a doctor in the future. “Although they certainly know the dangers, doctors and nurses kept working hard on saving people’s lives. I’m deeply moved by what they have done. I think they are real heroes.” he said.

　　SARS also teaches sympathy (同情). The past few weeks have been terrible for Chinese people. But there are far worse things than SARS in this world, such as war, earthquakes and robberies. Think of the Iraqis, who have been living terrible lives for 20 years. Think of how the Americans felt on 9.11.

　　And finally, SARS offers the chances to grow. All different kinds of people and the governments are joining together to work in this difficult time. When this passes, China and its people will have learned great lessons.

　　1.What does “Everyone now realizes there might not always be a tomorrow” mean?

　　It means life is easy to _____ and we must ______ our life.

　　2.How long was Wang Xinying told to stay at home?

　　He was told to stay at home for about _______ a _______.

　　3.Why can medical workers be easily infected?

　　Because they have to be with infected patients _______ and _______.

　　4.What do we learn in the difficult time?

　　We learn nothing is difficult if we ___________.