Basketball is one sport —perhaps the only sport—whose exact origin（确切的起源）can safely be told. During
the winter of 1891 —1892, Dr James Naismith, a
college instructor（大学讲师）in Springfield, Massachusetts, invented the game of basketball in
order to provide（提供）exercise
for the students between the closing of the football season and the opening of
the baseball season. He attached（系）fruit baskets overhead on the walls at opposite ends of the
gymnasium（体育馆）, and,
using a soccer ball, organized（组织）nine—man teams to
play his new game. In this new game the purpose（目的）was to toss (投)the ball into one basket and try to keep the opposting
team from tossing the ball into the other basket. Although there have been many
changes in the rules(such as the reduction of the number of players on a team
from nine to five), the game is basically（基本地）the same today. The United States soldiers took it to the
Philippines in 1900 and to Europe during World War I, and, being adopted（被采用）by foreign countries it soon
became a world—wide sport.
It is interesting that although basketball was made as an indoor game, in other
countries it is now played almost entirely（完全地）outdoors.
1. Basketball was started _________.
A. in EuropeB. in the United States
C. in the PhilippinesD. in a place not mentioned（被提到）
2. Original(起初的) basketball was played by ________.
A. five peopleB. six peopleC. eight
peopleD. nine people
3. Basketball is mainly played indoors
_______ according to（按照）the passage.
A. in the United StatesB. in Europe
C. in the PhilippinesD.
in most countries
4. What does writer say is particularly
unusual（尤其不平常）about
basketball as compared with（与……比较）other sports?
A. It was invented for college students but became popular only after it
was adopted by soldiers.
B. It began as an indoor game but later became equally（平等地）common as on outdoor game.
C. We know exactly when, where, and by whom it was invented.
D. We know exactly when it was first played outside of the country of
its origin.
5. What connection（联系）does the writer mention between
the game of basketball and the game of soccer?
A. Basketball was made to provide exercise for students before the
beginning of the soccer season.
B. Basketball was invented by a well-known soccer player.
C. Basketball has replaced (代替)soccer as the most popular sport in some countries.
D. Basketball was first played with a soccer.
B
Even if you are
a good high-jumper, you can jump only about seven feet of the ground. You can
not jump any higher because the earth pulls you hard. The pull of the earth is
called gravity.
You can easily find out the
pull of the earth. If you weigh yourself, you will know much gravity is pulling
you.
Since there is gravity,
water runs down hill. When you throw a ball into the air, it falls back down.
Because of gravity, you do not fall off the earth as it whirls (旋转) around.
Then, can we get away from the earth and go far out into space? Now
you can do it because spaceships have been invented. The spaceship will go so
fast that it can escape (逃出) the earth's gravity and carry you into space.
6. In this passage, the word gravity means________.
A. the pull of everything
B. the force (力量) of attraction (吸引) among objects
C. the force which attracts things towards the centre
of the earth
D. the force which attracts the
earth towards the sun
7. When you slip (滑), you always fall to the ground
because ________.
A. the earth always turns round
B. the earth has gravity
C. the earth's gravity is greater than your weight（重量）
D. you are careless
8. Gravity is so strong that ________
A. it
can throw a ball into the air
B. it makes you jump only seven feet
C. it can let you fly away from the
earth
D. it can keep everything on earth
9. Because of gravity________.
A. water
flows everywhereB. we can go everywhere by ship
C.
water always flows downwardsD. fish can live in water
10. We can get away from the earth by spaceship because
________.
A. the spaceship
goes very fast
B. the earth can't pull the spaceship
C. the spaceship
has a strong force
D. the spaceship
can jump higher than other things
