Barack Obama has collected record amounts of donations -- on

President Barack Obama has apologized for a gaffe (失言) in which he described his bowling skills as akin to participants in the Special Olympics, a sports program for people with intellectual disabilities.
Obama made the mistake during an interview on Thursday night on “The Tonight Show” with host Jay Leno, the first time a sitting U.S. president had been on the show.
Talking about living in the White House, Obama said he had been practicing his bowling in the home’s bowling alley and had scored a 129 out of a possible 300.
It was an improvement on the embarrassing 37 he had rolled during a stop on the presidential campaign trail a year ago. “It’s like—it was like Special Olympics or something,” Obama said.
The Special Olympics is a global nonprofit organization serving some 200 million people with intellectual disabilities, with a presence in nearly 200 countries worldwide.
Soon after the Jay Leno interview, Obama telephoned Special Olympics chairman Tim Shriver to apologize.
Shriver told ABC’s “Good Morning America” television show that Obama had apologized “in a way that I think was very moving” and that he said “he did not intend to humiliate (羞辱) the population, didn’t want to embarrass or give anybody any more reason for pain or kind of suffering.”
Shriver said people should gain a lesson from the incident.
“I think it’s important to see that words hurt. Words do matter. And these words in some respect, can be seen as humiliating or a put-down to people with special needs, do cause pain. And they do result in stereotypes,” Shriver said.
White House spokesman Bill Burton said Obama “made an offhand remark making fun of his own bowling that was in no way intended to look down upon the Special Olympics.”
“He thinks that the Special Olympics are a wonderful program that gives an opportunity to shine to people with disabilities from around the world,” Burton said.
56. What does the underlined word “akin” in Paragraph 1 mean?
A. skillful B. similar C. appealing D. superior
57. Which of the following statements is true?
A. Obama loves sports and is especially gifted at bowling.
B. Obama apologized for his remarks via ABC’s TV show.
C. The Special Olympics are for various disabled people.
D. The Special Olympics don’t intend to make any money.
58. What does Shriver mean by saying people should gain a lesson from the incident?
A. Disabled people cannot be humiliated. B. One should be careful with his words.
C. An apology for wrong words is wanted. D. Words matter even more than actions.
59. The passage is mainly about ________.
A. Obama receiving a TV interview B. Obama looking down on the disabled
C. Obama apologizing for his gaffe D. Obama being attacked for his words

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Barack Obama became US President in January, 2009. Since then, the world has been watching him closely to see whether he keeps his promises about the economy(经济), foreign policy and health care.
But at home, he has also been under pressure from his two daughters to keep his promise: to give them a new dog as a gift for helping him with his election campaign(竞选活动).
On Tuesday the nation’s first dog, named Bo, came out. It is a six-month-old water dog which is black with a white chest and white paws(爪).
“Bo’s got star quality,” said President Obama as he and his family took a walk with the dog on the White House lawn(草坪) in front of reporters.
He then joked, “ I finally got a friend. It took some time,” mentioning a famous saying, “If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog.”
小题1:Barack Obama is ______ President now.

A．French

B．British

C．Russian

D．American

小题2:Which of the following is NOT true?

A．The dog is called Bo.	B．The dog is six month old.
C．The dog is black and white.	D．The dog is all white.

小题3:The dog is Obama’s gift to ______.

A．the reporters

B．his wife

C．his daughters

D．his sons

小题4:What might the underlined sentence in the last paragraph mean?

A．It’s not easy to find a dog in Washington.

B．It’s not easy to find a friend in Washington.

C．Dogs aren’t friendly to man.

D．Man isn’t friendly to dogs.

barack obama is the 44th president (总统) of the united states. his date of birth is august 4th, 1961. he was elected (被***为) president on november 4th, 2008.obama has a very healthy lifestyle. as a president, he is always very busy and works about 10 hours a day. but he still spends some time doing exercise. at about 7:30 every morning he goes to a gym. he does exercise there for about 90 minutes every day. he says that doing exercise makes him young and healthy. doing exercise can make him relaxed. his eating habits are also very healthy. he usually stays away from junk food. he eats a lot of vegetables and fruit every day. he doesn’t like coffee or ice cream. his favorite food is the pizza (比萨饼) from a restaurant in chicago. the restaurant’s name is italian fiesta pizzeria.
do exercise every day from now on. you’ll be as healthy as obama!
小题1:obama does exercise ______.

a．every day

b．once a week

c．twice a week

d．three times a week

小题2:obama was _________ years old when he was elected president.

a．27

b．37

c．47

d．57

小题3:obama likes ______ best according to the passage.

a．coffee

b．ice cream

c．pizzas

d．hamburgers

小题4:we can learn that ______ from the passage.

a．obama doesn’t eat breakfast with his family

b．obama goes to bed before 10 o’clock every night

c．obama does exercise in a park every morning

d．obama thinks doing exercise is good for him

小题5:the passage is mainly about _________.

a．obama’s work

b．obama’s hobbies

c．obama’s family

d．obama’s lifestyle

US president Barack Obama is probably 小题1:______ most powerful person in the world. But what was his high school life 小题2:_______? You can find answers to the question in his “Back to School” speech 小题3:______ (give) on September 13, 2010.
“I know some of you may be nervous about starting a new school year and worried about 小题4:_______ that’ll be like. Here is what I tell you: nobody 小题5:_____ (get) to write your destiny (命运) but you. Your future is in your hands. Your life is what you make of it. And nothing is beyond your reach. So long as you’re willing to dream big. So long as you’re willing to work hard. So long as you’re willing to stay 小题6:_____ (focus) on your education. An education has never been more important. I’m sure there will be times 小题7:_____ you’re staying up late for a test, or dragging (费力地拉起) yourselves out of bed on a rainy morning, and wondering 小题8:_____ it’s all worth it. Let me tell you: Nothing is as 小题9:_____ in life as your education. In other 小题10:______ (word), the farther you go in school, the farther you’ll go in life.
An unforgettable experience I recently had made me 小题11:______ (see) how important friendships are and the need to have a better understanding of friends. A friend is a person 小题12:______ is always there to encourage and support you whenever you’re in trouble. A friend is a person who’ll try to do what he or she can小题13:______ you. A friend is a person who’s overjoyed seeing you win and who will share your sorrow when you’re 小题14:________ (disappoint).
For my part, friendship is like a 小题15:______(price) gift: It can’t be bought for any amount. It’s also a shining light of hope. If you have friendship, you’ll never feel小题16:_______(alone).
Exactly 10 years ago, 189 heads of state 小题17:______ (gather) in New York. They set a number of goals. These goals included helping poor people, educating children and protecting the environment. The leaders agreed to do their best to meet the goals 小题18:_______ 2015.
With only five years 小题19:_______ (go), about 140 world leaders got together in New York on September 20. Their小题20:________ (三天的)meeting was to talk about their work on the goals.

US President Barack Obama is expecting the economy to show some _________ of recovery．

A．attempts

B．signs

C．contents

D．waves

you might say that barack obama was elected president of the us because he knows how to give a speech. in 2004, the little-known obama gave a speech at the democratic national convention (***党***会议). it was a great speech — poetic, and inspiring. the people who heard it would remember it for a long time.
since 2004, obama has written and delivered thousands of speeches. there are usually praised for two reasons: he treats the audiences like intelligent adults, and he is able to express complicated ideas in a straightforward, natural way.
before becoming president, obama was a lawyer, a college professor, and a successful writer – his two memoirs (回忆录) have become best sellers. the skills he needed to succeed in his previous jobs have also contributed to his success as a speechmaker.
as a lawyer, obama learned how to make strong, convincing arguments. as a professor, he learned how to explain complex subjects in ways that helped students understand without boring them. as a writer, he learned how to use languages to have a powerful influence on his audience. a famous american musician even turned one of obama’s early speeches into a song during the election campaign.
secret weapons of obama
writing team: obama has a team of people who write his speeches. the writers chat with obama for hours about what he wants to say. then listen to recordings of past presidential addresses and seek advice from advisers. obama usually edits and rewrites the drafts several times.
make fun of the guests: obama starts his speech by gently making fun of his guests. his opening lines attract the audience’s attention while giving them an opportunity to relax and laugh at themselves and each other.
make fun of himself: obama laughs at his past mistakes and is never afraid of showing them to the public.
obama delivers speeches to audiences large and small. he can make his audiences laugh or cry. his speeches are always thoughtful, well written and just right for each occasion.
小题1:the third and fourth paragraph mainly talk about _______.

a．why obama’s speeches are praised

b．how obama acquired his speaking ability

c．what subjects obama’s speeches are about

d．obama’s success as a writer and a lawyer

小题2:what do we know about obama’s writing team according to the passage?

a．they always seek advice from the ordinary people.

b．they analyze the speeches given by former us presidents.

c．they usually have to finish writing a speech in a short time.

d．they try not to mention obama’s past mistakes in the speeches.

小题3:when delivering a speech, obama __________.

a．usually starts with some famous saying

b．sometimes turns his speech into a song

c．sometimes shares a joke with the audience

d．is very strict most of the time

小题4:what’s the author’s attitude towards obama’s speeches?

a．negative

b．indifferent(漠不关心的)

c．positive

d．doubtful

barack obama was born on august 4, 1961 in honolulu, hawaii. his father came to america from kenya, which is a country in africa. his parents, ann and barack, met when they were students at the university of hawaii. since barack had the same name as his father, young barack went by the nickname “barry”.
in 1979, after he finished high school, barry went to occidental college in los angeles, california. there, he started to learn about his african roots and decided to use his african name, barack. after two years in l.a., he went to columbia university in new york city to study politics.
after college, he moved to chicago, illinois, where he worked to help poor people in his city. he traveled to africa to meet his grandmother and cousins for the first time. he went back many times over the years to visit with his family and learn about where he came from. at work, he met a lawyer named michelle robinson. they worked together in a big law firm. then he left chicago to go to harvard law school in cambridge, massachusetts. he did very well in law school.
after he was done with school, barack moved back to chicago and in 1992 he married michelle. he worked as a lawyer, devoted to helping poor people for free who had been treated unfairly. he worked hard to get the people he helped to vote(***).
he made many people believe that their votes were important, and helped them feel like they could make a difference.
小题1:barack obama’s father was probably born in _________.

a．hawaii

b．california

c．illinois

d．kenya

小题2:which of the following is the right order according to the text?
①getting married to michelle.
②travelling to africa to meet his grandmother
③going to harvard law school
④going to columbia university
⑤working in a big law firm.

a．④②⑤③①

b．④③②⑤①

c．③④①⑤②

d．②①⑤④③

小题3:how did obama get people to vote?

a．by cheating them to do so.

b．by making a difference to people.

c．by showing them the importance of their votes.

d．by helping poor people who treat others unfairly.

小题4:according to the text, which of the following words can best describe barack obama?

a．humorous

b．polite

c．brave

d．kind-hearted

You might say that one reason why Barack Obama is president of the US is that he knows how to give a good speech.
Since 2004, Obama has written and delivered thousands of speeches. These are usually praised for two reasons: he treats the audiences like intelligent（有智慧的） adults, and he is able to express complicated ideas in an easy, natural way.
Before becoming president, Obama was a lawyer, a college professor, and a successful writer---his two memories have become best-sellers.
What’s more, he has some secret weapons.
Teleprompter: Obama doesn’t go anywhere without his Teleprompter. The textbook-sized panes of glass holding the president’s prepared remarks follow him wherever he goes to speak.
Writing team: Obama has a team of people who write his speeches. The writers chat with Obama for hours about what he wants to say. They listen to recordings of past presidential speeches and seek advice from advisers. Obama usually edits(编辑)and rewrites the drafts(草稿)several times.
Tricks for lighthearted speeches:
Make fun of the guests: Obama starts his speech by gently teasing his guests. His opening lines draw the audience’s attention while giving them an opportunity to relax and laugh at themselves and each other.
Make fun of yourself: A good rule for speechmakers: If you’re going to make a joke about someone else, be sure to make one about yourself, too. Obama mocks(嘲弄) his own poor choices for filling the position of Commerce Secretary, saying, “No president in history has ever named three Commerce Secretaries this quickly.” In fact, his first two nominees（被提名人）for the position withdrew(撤出) their names for different reasons. In a process that had otherwise gone smoothly, the Obama Administration found it hard to deal with the problem of filling the Commerce seat.
小题1:Obama made the poetic and inspiring speech in 2004 as________.

A．president	B．a nominee for the presidency
C．a senator	D．a secretary

小题2:What’s the meaning of the underlined word in paragraph 2?

A．Difficult to understand.	B．Easy to understand.
C．Different from others.	D．Interesting to say.

小题3:From the passage, we know that Obama’s secret weapons are all these EXCEPT ____.

A．a writing team

B．a teleprompter

C．humor

D．motivation

小题4:What’s the best title of the passage？

A．Secrets of Obama’s successful speeches.

B．Obama’s successful speeches.

C．Obama’s way of making speeches.

D．Problems of Obama’s speeches.