C

Samuel Osmond is a 19-year-old law student from Cornwall, England. He never studied the piano. However, he can play very difficult musical pieces by musicians such as Chopin and Beethoven just a few minutes after he hears them. He learns a piece of music by listening to it in parts. Then he thinks about the notes in his head. Two years ago, he played his first piece Moonlight Sonata(奏鸣曲)by Beethoven. He surprised everyone around him.

Amazed that he remembered this long and difficult piece of music and played it perfectly, his teachers say Samuel is unbelievable. They say his ability is very rare, but Samuel doesn't even realize that what he can do is special. Samuel wanted to become a lawyer as it was the wish of his parents, but music teachers told him he should study music instead. Now, he studies law and music.

Samuel can't understand why everyone is so surprised. “I grew up with music. My mother played the piano and my father played the guitar. About two years ago, I suddenly decided to start playing the piano, without being able to read music and without having any lessons. It comes easily to me—I hear the notes and can bear them in mind—each and every note,” says Samuel.

Recently, Samuel performed a piece during a special event at his college. The piece had more than a thousand notes. The audience was impressed by his amazing performance. He is now learning a piece that is so difficult that many professional pianists can't play it. Samuel says confidently，“It's all about super memory—I guess I have that gift.”

However, Samuel's ability to remember things doesn't stop with music. His family says that even when he was a young boy, Samuel heard someone read a story, and then he could retell the story word for word.

Samuel is still only a teenager. He doesn't know what he wants to do in the future. For now, he is just happy to play beautiful music and continue his studies.

28.What is special about Samuel Osmond?

A.He has a gift for writing music.

B.He can write down the note he hears.

C.He is a top student at the law school.

D.He can play the musical piece he hears

.What can we learn from Paragraph 2?

A.Samuel chose law against the wish of his parents.

B.Samuel planned to be a lawyer rather than a musician.

C.Samuel thinks of himself as a man of great musical ability.

D.Samuel studies law and music on the advice of his teachers.

30.Everyone around Samuel was surprised because he ________.

A.received a good early education in music

B.played the guitar and the piano perfectly

C.could play the piano without reading music

D.could play the guitar better than his father

.What can we infer about Samuel in Paragraph 4?

A.He became famous during a special event at his college.

B.He is proud of his ability to remember things accurately.

C.He plays the piano better than many professional pianists.

D.He impressed the audience by playing all the musical pieces.

D

You've flown halfway around the world; you've found out this place that nobody in Falongland or Thailand seems to have ever heard of; so what on earth is there to do here? You consider this question as you sink into an old wooden beach chair that holds you above the sand.

It was a long journey from Bangkok to Huaplee. By the time you found the bus station and got yourself sorted out, it took almost as long as the flight from Falongland.

Huaplee is located just south of Hua Hin, about two hundred kilometres from Bangkok, down the west side of the Gulf of Thailand. Not many tourists find this place, and the ones that do wonder if finding it has been their purpose all along.

There's an apparent laziness that surrounds you here. It's what this place offers, and it's free of charge. The small waves that tap the shoreline seem to slow everything down. You settle into your beach chair in preparation for a long rest. You sit there and watch the sea.

It's early afternoon, so the cook comes out and asks what you'd like to eat this evening. Before long he's rushed off to the market to buy the ingredients for whatever it was that you ordered—every meal fresh and to order. No menu here.

There is no poolside noise here but just that wonderfully warm, clear blue sea.

There's no street noise. The only sounds are the murmurs of nature.

For now you just count your blessings(福祉), listing them in the sand with your toes. You don't have to worry about being late for work. You don't have to do anything.

The beach to your right stretches off to the horizon(地平线), slowly narrowing to nothingness only to reemerge again on your left, now steadily widening until it covers the chair beneath you. Sand to your left and sand to your right; it's unbroken, endless. No start, no end, just sand, sun, and peace. Step off it, and you reenter the world of traffic, stress, work, and hurry.

Normally you're the type who can't sit still for more than ten minutes, but you're on Huaplee Lazy Beach now and, in the right frame of mind, it stretches all the way around the world.

“How could it take me so long to find it?” you wonder.

32.When the author first went to Huaplee Beach, ________.

A.he found it unworthwhile

B.he failed to sort himself out

C.he became sensitive to smell

D.he had difficulty in finding it

.What is special about the food service at Huaplee Beach?

A.No menu. B.Free food.

C.Self service. D.Quick delivery.

.In the author's opinion, a tourist can enjoy Huaplee Beach most when he ________.

A.sits in a beach chair

B.forgets his daily routine

C.plans a detailed schedule

D.draws pictures in the sand

.What does the author imply by his question at the end of the passage?

A.He shouldn't have counted his blessings.

B.He should have understood the wonder of nature.

C.He shouldn't have spent so much time on the trip.

D.He should have come to the place earlier.