阅读理解。
On May 12, 2008, an earthquake of 8 magnitude struck Sichuan. Everyone in China was shocked, and
quickly became heartbroken as reported deaths climbed from 10,000 to 32,000 to more than 62,000 people.
The death toll is still rising, and the number of injured and missing is many times more.
The Chinese people faced this disaster with compassion (同情) and courage. I was touched by the teacher
who died forming a bridge with his body between two desks, protecting four surviving students under him,
by the trapped child who told the rescue workers to save others first, and by the dying mother who texted her
baby, "My Treasure: If you survive, always remember I love you." She died using her own body to protect
her 3-month-old from harm. But don't worry about this baby growing up without a family. Thousands of
families in China have already volunteered to adopt earthquake orphans. And the Chinese people faced this
disaster with resourcefulness (智慧) and tenacity (坚韧). A brave CEO took his weekend SUV, drove
hundreds of miles, started digging, and saved several lives. A child used his hands to dig out two fellow
students. His hands were severely injured, but his friends survived. Cab drivers turned their cars into
ambulances and delivery trucks. More than 100,000 brave soldiers risked (and some gave) their lives to find
every survivor.
These are the heroes among us, whether they use an SUV, a shovel or a phone. Their heroic deeds and
selflessness inspired me so deeply that I can recall only one other such occasion. It was 9/11-I vividly
remember the police officers, the firefighters, and of course the passengers and crew on United Flight 93.
As a Chinese American, I hope that the Chinese and the Americans will see that they have so much in
common-their compassion, courage, and generosity. I hope that people will see that these heroic commonalities
are much stronger than any differences. And I hope that these heroes from 9/11 and 5/12 will inspire all of us
to turn our anxiety into courage, our misery into tenacity, and our sorrow into love.
1. The second and the third paragraphs mainly tell us about ______.
A. how severe the earthquake was
B. how much victims were in need of help
C. some heroic deeds of the Chinese in the earthquake
D. lucky survivors in the earthquake
2. The author compares the 5/12 earthquake to 9/11 attacks because ______.
A. they were both natural disasters
B. both Americans and Chinese were brave and full of compassion in emergencies
C. he is a Chinese American D. both killed a large number of people
3. The main purpose of the essay is to _______.
A. encourage a better understanding of the two peoples
B. suggest how important courage is in time of crisis
C. provide some useful advice for rescue work
D. present the important similarities as well as the differences between the two people
