The Americans and Russians were ready to fight a war. They each had the power to destroy the other. This power was carried in the missiles (导弹) that each country had aimed at the other. This struggle was called “The Cold War”. Some of the missiles were buried in the ground, ready to fire at a moment's notice. Others were carried by air-planes, ready to take off in a few minutes. Some were carried on submarines(潜水艇), ready to launch their missiles when they got the order to shoot.
One Russian submarine was in the Atlantic Ocean, patrolling (巡逻) near the American East Coast. It carried sixteen nuclear missiles. The submarine was old. The crew of 116 men worked to keep the submarine working safely. The missiles were dangerous on a submarine because they could catch fire if they touched the seawater. Years before, right after the submarine first sailed, missile 16 had caught fire when water leaked into the launch tube. The submarine almost sank, but the captain was able to save it. Now, it was an October day at the end of the submarines' long life. The old submarine's missile tubes were leaking. They had to be pumped out every day. One tube, number 6, had to be pumped out two times a day. Now, even that was not enough. The leak was getting worse. The captain had to worry about it all the time. What would happen to the old submarine?
(246 words)
Choose the best answer:
1. The first paragraph indicates that ___________.
A. both America and Russia had power to destroy the other
B. America is more powerful than Russia
C. Russia is much stronger than America
D. the Americans invented a new missile
2. “The Cold War” means ___________.
A. the two countries were ready to fight a war
B. the war would break out in the cold weather
C. the two countries both had the new weapons called “Cold Weapons”
D. The two countries had a war in the cold sea
3. The missiles on a Russian submarine were dangerous because ___________.
A. this submarine was patrolling near the American East Coast
B. this submarine carried too many new missiles
C. the submarine was too old and the missiles might touch the seawater
D. they often let out terrible noises
4. After the first sailing, this submarine almost sank because ___________.
A. water leaked into the launch tube and missile 16 caught fire
B. the captain was not on the submarine
C. the crew were busy pumping out the seawater
D. the submarine was hit by a missile
5. From the passage we know that ___________.
A. the old submarine would sink
B. the old submarine would catch fire
C. It was dangerous at sea
D. it was dangerous to take a submarine with missiles
参考答案：1.A 2.A 3.C 4.A 5.D
