1 . A disastrous fire surrounded Notre Dame（巴黎圣母院）completely and destroyed large parts of the Gothic(哥特式的) architecture on Monday.

“Notre Dame is our history, our literature; part of our spirit, the place of all our great events, our wars, our liberations, the center of our lives" French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters in front of the still burning Paris landmark and promised to rebuild Notre Dame Cathedral.

“Notre Dame is burning, and know the sadness and this tremble felt by so many fellow French people. But tonight, I’d like to speak of hope too, "he said, announcing the launch of a fundraising campaign.

“Let’s be proud, because we built this cathedral more than 800 years ago, we’ve built it and, throughout the centuries, let it grow and improve it. So I gravely say tonight: we will rebuild it together, ”he added.

The disastrous fire engulfed(吞没) the upper reaches of Paris’ towering Notre Dame Cathedral as it was undergoing renovations(翻新)。

Tourists and Parisians looked on horrified from the streets below. France’s Interior Ministry said firefighters might not be able to save the structure.

The fire collapsed the cathedrals’ spire(尖顶) and spread to one of its landmark towers "Everything is burning; nothing will remain from the frame, "Notre Dame spokesman Andre Finot told French media. The 12th-century cathedral is home to incalculable works of art and is one of the world’s most famous tourist attractions, immortalized by Victor Hugo’s 1831 novel The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

The cause of the fire was not known, but French media quoted the Paris fire brigade(消防队) as saying the fire is “potentially linked" to a 6 million—euro($6. 88 million)renovation project on the church’s spire and its 250 tons of lead. Officials opened an investigation as Paris police said there were no reported deaths. Some 400 firefighters were battling the fire well into the night.

1. What Emmanuel Macron said mainly shows that____________

A．Notre Dame was the symbol of Paris in history.

B．The French government are going to rebuild Notre Dame.

C．It took more than 800 years to build Notre Dame.

D．He was desperate when he made the announcement.

2. Which of the following is true according to the text?

A．Notre Dame Cathedral was burnt down entirely.

B．The structure was well saved by the firefighters.

C．People who were killed in the fire are some firefighters.

D．The fire was likely caused by a renovation project on the church’s spire.

3. What does the underlined part probably mean?

A．The novel made the cathedral famous.

B．The cathedral is repeatedly mentioned in the novel.

C．The novel became a bestseller thanks to the cathedral.

D．The novel became more mysterious due to the cathedral.

4. What is the tone of the author in writing the article?

A．Disappointed.	B．Humorous.
C．Matter-of-fact.	D．Critical.

2 . Family of a Sydney father sticking to life following a New year’s Eve fireworks explosion (燃放鞭炮) say the incident was an “unexpected accident”. Adrian Alafaci, 28, from Sans Souci, was in a dangerous condition on Thursday afternoon after a firework exploded in his face when he tried to light it just after midnight.

Adrian was ringing in the new year with a small group of friends on a beach near river-side Drive at Sans Souci. The explosion left him with serious face and head injuries and he was taken to St George Hospital without any delay. His daughter was not with him at the time. No one else was injured during the incident, police said.

People around San Souci and Brighton Le Sands said fireworks were going off in the streets for hours with some even thrown from passing cars.

Whitney Pitman posted online that someone threw a cracker at her car from a unit block as she was driving. Luckily, it was only knocked off her car. “Imagine if my window was down,” she said. “Seriously, how stupid are people these days.”

Another woman said one was let off under her son’s window in Ramsgate. “We were up all night, too,” she said.

Colleen Euston, who lives in Sans Souci, posted online that fireworks were going off in her street from 9 p.m to 2 a.m and some were thrown from a passing car.

In New South Wales it is never legal to use fireworks without a license. Only “toy fire works” such as sparklers, party poppers and toy pistol caps, can be used without a license.

1. From the first paragraph we can learn that_________.

A．a fireworks explosion means a disaster

B．a Sydney father got injured by a firework

C．a Sydney family were injured in an accident

D．accidents cannot be avoided at New Year’s Eve

2. When the incident happened, Adrian________.

A．was on a street	B．was with his family
C．was celebrating Christmas	D．lit a firework himself

3. What was Whitney Pittman worried about?

A．Throwing fireworks at passing cars.	B．Throwing fireworks from passing cars.
C．Letting off fireworks under the window.	D．Fireworks going off from 9 p.m to 2 a.m.

4. In New South Wales, lighting fireworks is__________.

A．always against the law	B．limited to toy fireworks
C．not permitted without a license	D．the main cause of human injuries

3 . Sam, an unemployed piano tuner, said it was only the second thing he had ever won in his life. The first thing was an Afghan blanket at a church raffle（抽奖）when he was 25 years old. But this was much bigger: it was $120,000! He had won the Big Cube, a state lottery(彩票) game．To win, a contestant must first guess which number a spinning cube will stop on. The cube has six numbers on it: 1X, 10X, 50X, 100X, 500X, and 1000X.If he is correct, the contestant must then guess which of two selected variables（变量）is going to be greater. So, just guessing which number appears on the cube does not guarantee that you will win any money.
Sam correctly guessed 1000X, but he still had to choose between two variables. One variable was the number of cars that would run the stop sign at Hill Street and Lake Avenue in six hours. The other variable was the number of times that a teenage boy would change TV channels in a three-hour period. This was a tough decision.
Finally, Sam flipped a coin. It came up heads, so Sam picked the teenager. He picked right. The stop sign was run only 76 times, but the teen clicked 120 times. Sixty-year-old Sam jumped for joy, for he had just won 1000 times 120, or $120,000.Sam dreamily left the lottery studio. Talking excitedly on his cell phone while crossing the street, he got hit by a little sports car.
Sam is slowly getting better. He was in the hospital for a month. His hospital bill was $110,000.And the insurance company for the little sports car’s owner sued（起诉）Sam for $9,000 worth of repairs．Also, Sam still has to pay federal taxes on his winnings．Sam doesn’t play the state lottery any more. He says it’s better to be unlucky.
1. What can be inferred about Sam from the passage?

A．He always has bad luck.	B．He seldom goes to a raffle.
C．He is a very careful person in life.	D．He used to be crazy about lottery tickets.

2. Which of the following played a vital role in Sam’s winning the big prize?

A．The cube.	B．The coin.
C．The blanket.	D．The stop sign.

3. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The lottery game was a complete lie.

B．Sam was quite familiar with the boy.

C．The owner of the car is now in hospital.

D．Sam will have none of the prize money left.

4. What could be the best title for the passage?

A．Curiosity killed the cat	B．Joy puts heart into a man
C．Extreme joy ends in sorrow	D．A bird in hand is worth two in the bush