Toyota is the world's largest automaker, but its road to success has been long and filled with speed bumps（颠簸）.
1958：The company's first foray into the American market was the Toyopet in 1958. It was a flop.
1964：Toyota introduced their Corona line of automobiles and sales hit 6,400 in 1965, marking an increase in popularity.
1969：Toyota began importing the Corolla and in 1985 it would become the first Toyota built in the U.S.
1975：Toyota surpassed the popular German brand Volkswagen to become the top import sold in the U.S.
1986：The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration ordered its first recall of Toyota cars due to "speed control" problems.
1988：The First North American Toyota plant opened in Georgetown, Ky.
1989：Toyota introduced the Lexus LS 400, the company's first U.S. luxury car. It was a major hit.
1997：Toyota debuted their Prius gas-electric hybrid car.
2002：The first consumer complaints emerged of the Camry's engine surging under braking.
2004：The NHTSA opened a defect investigation into 2002-2003 Camry, Camry Solara and Lexus ES models.
2006：Toyota "Americanizes" and opened a new plant in Texas to build full-size pickups
2007：Toyota surpassed General Motors to become the world's largest automaker.
2007：The NHTSA investigated pedal entrapment in some Toyota vehicles, which led recalls of floor mats on Camry and Lexus models.
2007：The NHTSA investigated pedal entrapment in some Toyota vehicles, which led recalls of floor mats on Camry and Lexus models.
Aug. 2009：An off-duty California Highway Patrol officer and three family members were killed when their rental 2009 Lexus ES speeds out of control.
Nov. 2009：Toyota recalled 3.8 million Lexus and Toyota models to remove floor mats that can trap pedals.
Jan. 2010：Toyota recalled approximately 2.3 million more vehicles with potential sticking pedal problems. On Jan. 26, Toyota stopped selling eight models involved in the recall.
Feb. 2010：Prius and Lexus hybrids are now being recalled for brake problems in 2010 models.
1.Which of the following brands belong to Toyota family？
A. Toyopet, Volkswagen, Lexus, Prius
B. Camry, Prius, Lexus, Georgetown
C. Corona, Prius, Lexus, Corolla
D. General Motors, Lexus, Camry, Corolla
2.The underlined word in Para.6 probably means:
A. withdrawal B. sorrow C. appreciation D. resolve
3.We can infer from the passage that____________
A. Lexus LS 400 is a cheaper car
B. Prius may be a kind of environmentally friendly car
C. Corona became popular as soon as introduced to the US
D. Toyota’s plant opened in Georgetown symbolized its “Americanize” tactics
4.The purpose of this passage is to_________.
A. advertise for Toyota
B. display Toyota’s glory
C. uncover Toyota’s braking problems
D. introduce Toyota’ s struggle in the US
5.What is the best title of the passage?
A. The world’s largest automaker B. The rise of Toyota
C. Toyota meeting problems in the US D. Toyota’s failure in the US
When you practice reading with passages shorter than book length, do not try to take in each word separately, one after the other. It is much more difficult to grasp the broad theme of the passage this way, and you will also get the stuck on individual words which may not be absolutely essential to a general understanding of the passage. It is a good idea to skim through the passage very quickly first to get the general idea of each paragraph. Titles, paragraph headings and emphasized words can be a great help in getting this skeleton outline of the passage. It is surprising how many people do not read titles, introductions or paragraph headings. Can you, without looking back, remember the title of this passage and the heading of this paragraph?
Most paragraphs of a passage or chapter have a 'topic sentence' which expresses the central idea. The remaining sentences expand or support that idea. It has been estimated that between 50% and 90% of all expositive（说明的）paragraphs in English have the topic sentence first. Always pay special attention to the first sentence of a paragraph, it is most likely to give you the main idea.
Sometimes, though, the first sentence in the paragraph does not have the feel of 'main idea' sentence. It does not seem to give us enough new information to justify a paragraph. The next most likely place to look for the topic sentence is the last sentence of the paragraph.
Remember that the opening and closing paragraphs of a passage or chapter are particularly important. The opening paragraph suggests the general direction and content of the piece, while the closing paragraph often summarizes the very essence（精髓）.
1.It is a good idea to skim through a passage quickly first ____________.
A. at about 315 w.p.m.（words per minute）
B. to get the general idea of each paragraph
C. so that you can take in each work separately
D. to make sure you get to the end at least once
2.The topic sentence of an expository paragraph in English _____________.
A. usually comes in the middle
B. is most likely to be found at the end
C. is most often at the beginning
D. is usually left out in expository writing
3.Most expository paragraphs in English have a clearly defined topic sentence. In such paragraphs the topic sentence comes first ________.
A. in about 5% of cases B in about 80% of cases
C. in about 20% cases D. very rarely
4.Sometimes we know the first sentence is not the topic sentence because ____________.
A. it does not seem to give us enough new information
B. it is not long enough
C. it does not come at the beginning
D. it does not make a complete sentence
5.The closing paragraph of a piece of writing ____________.
A. is not really very important
B. is often unnecessary repetition
C. often comes at the end
D. often summarizes the essence of the passage
Some years ago when I was in my first year in college, I heard Salome Bey sing for the first time. The moment was exciting. Salome’s filled the room and brought the theater to life. I was so that I decided to write an article about her.
I Salome Bey, telling her I was from Essence magazine, and that I wanted to meet her to talk about her career. She and told me to come to her Studio next Tuesday. When I hung up, I was scared out of mind. I I was lying. I was not a writer at all and hadn’t even written a grocery list.
I interviewed Salome Bey the next Tuesday. I sat there , taking notes and asking questions that all began with, “Can you tell me…?” I soon realized that Salome Bey was one thing, but writing a story for a national magazine was just impossible. The was almost unbearable. I struggled for days draft（草稿）after draft. Finally I put my manuscript（手稿）into a large envelope and dropped it into a mailbox.
It didn’t take long. My manuscript . How stupid of me! I thought. How could I in a world of professional writers? Knowing I couldn’t the rejection letter, I threw the unopened envelope into a drawer.
Five years later, I was moving to California. While my apartment, I came across the unopened envelope. This time I opened it and read the editor’s letter in :
Ms Profit,
Your story on Salome Bey is fantastic. Yet we need some materials. Please add those and return the article immediately. We would like to your story soon.
Shocked, it took me a long time to . Fear of rejection cost me greatly. I lost at least five hundred dollars and the chance of having my article appear in a major magazine. More importantly, I lost years of writing. Today, I have become a full-time writer. Looking back on this , I learned a very important lesson: You can’t to doubt yourself.
1.A. joyB. voice C. speech D. smile
2.A. proudB. activeC. satisfiedD. moved
3.A. visited B. emailedC. phonedD. interviewed
4.A. agreedB. refusedC. hesitatedD. paused
5.A. repliedB. discoveredC. explainedD. knew
6.A. seriouslyB. patientlyC. nervouslyD. quietly
7.A. blamingB. foolingC. invitingD. urging
8.A. hardshipB. failureC. commentD. pressure
9.A. withB. byC. onD. in
10.A. disappearedB. returnedC. spreadD. improved
11.A. compareB. struggleC. surviveD. compete
12.A. ignore B. deliverC. faceD. receive
13.A. decoratingB. repairingC. cleaningD. leaving
14.A. surpriseB. anxietyC. horrorD. trouble
15.A. subjectiveB. detailedC. privateD. complex
16.A. broadcastB. createC. publishD. assess
17.A. recoverB. prepareC. escapeD. concentrate
18.A. energeticB. endlessC. typicalD. enjoyable
19.A. experienceB. successC. benefitD. accident
20.A. attemptB. affordC. expectD. pretend
In the reading room, we found her _______at the desk, with her attention ______on a book.
A. seated; fixing B. to sit; fixed C. seated; fixed D. seating; fixing
With more forests being destroyed, huge quantities of good earth _______each year.
A. is washing away B. is being washed away
C. are washing away D. are being washed away
The prisoner was released early because of good ____________.
A. conduct B. praise C. comment D. condition
