阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。

     The idea of inventing an international language is not a new one. Over the past 180 years, linguists (语言学家) have created over ten different languages that are based on German, Spanish, and English. One of these was Basic English.

     By 1923 the First World War had been over for five years, but Europe was still recovering from its effects. Charles Kay Ogden, a linguist and writer, was running several bookshops in Cambridge. He published The Meaning of Meaning (1923), a book describing how we use language. The book received high praise, which drove Ogden to design an international language — something that was much simpler than English. In 1930 Ogden's book Basic English: A General Introduction with Rules and Grammar was published.

     Perhaps it takes about seven years for one to become a good English speaker. Ogden believed that Basic English could be learned in seven weeks. There were only 850 words and the grammar was very simple.

     The language attracted the attention of educators all over the world, but its development was stopped by the Second World War. After the war, both the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and the President of the United States Franklin D. Roosevelt looked for ideas that might bring world peace. They both gave speeches that encouraged the use of Ogden's international language. In the past 60 years, the language has had some success. In some parts of East Asia, teachers are still using Ogden's word lists.

     However, in the main, the language has disappeared. Because there are many more non-native than native speakers of English, recently some linguists have asked whether we should give careful consideration to Ogden's ideas again. And the Wikipedia website (www.wikipedia.org) has started a version (版本) written in Basic English for non-native learners of the language. Search for it on the Internet now!  

    Training for a marathon requires careful preparation and steady, gradual increases in the length of the runs.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}, buy the best-fitting, best-built running shoes you can find. No one can say which brand will work best for you or feel best on your feet, so you have to rely on your experience and on the feel of each pair as you shop. When you have found shoes that seem right, walk in them for a few days to double-check the fit.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}.As always, you should stretch(仲展) at least ten minutes before each run to prevent injuries.

    During the first week, do not think about distance, but run five minutes longer each day.{#blank#}3{#/blank#} it is wise to take a day off to rest. But during the next week, set a goal of at least a mile and a half per run.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}.After two weeks, start timing yourself. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}.Depending on the kind of race you plan to enter, you can set up a timetable for the remaining weeks before the race.

A. After six days

B. For a good marathon runner

C. Before you begin your training

D. With each day, increase the distance by a half mile

E. If they still feel good, you can begin running in them

F. Time spent for preparation raises the quality of training

G. Now you are ready to figure out a goal of improving distance and time

    When I was 12, all I wanted was a signet(图章)ring. They were the “in” thing and it seemed every girl except me had one. On my 13th birthday, my Mum gave me a signet ring with my initials(姓名首字母) carved into it. I was in heaven.

    What made it even more special was that it was about the only thing that wasn't being “replaced”. We'd been burnt out in fires that swept through our area earlier that year and had lost everything—so most of the “new” stuff(东 西)we got was rally just to replace what we'd lost. But not my ring. My ring was new.

    Then, only one month later, I lost it. I took if off before bed and it was missing in the morning. I was sad and searched everywhere for it. But it seemed to have disappeared. Eventually, I gave up and stopped looking for it. And two years later, we sold the house and moved away.

    Years passed, and a couple of moves later, I was visiting my parents' when Mum told me that she had something for me. It wasn't my birthday, nor was it Easter or Christmas or any other gift-giving occasion. Mum noticed my questioning look. “ You'll recognize this one.,” she said smiling.

    Then she handed me a small ring box. I took it from her and opened it to find my beautiful signet ring inside. The family who had bought our house 13 years earlier had recently decided to do some redecorations, which included replacing the carpets. When they pulled the carpet up in my old bedroom, they found the ring. As it had my initials carved into it. They realized who owned the ring. They'd had it professionally cleaned up by a jeweler before sending it to my mother. And it still fits me.

    A new family moved in next door and I got to meet the mother of the family, Lydia. Lydia is Korean, and her family moved to our city so her husband could go to graduate school. We started talking, and she was apologetic about how bad her English was, but I didn't care. I knew how hard it was to learn a second language. I enjoyed chatting with Lydia as we watched our kids play.

    It was what came next that challenged me: Lydia asked if I'd be willing to help her with her English. Now, I am not a teacher. I admire teachers, and I'm grateful for teachers, and it's because I admire what they do so much that I was very very sure that I couldn't do it myself.

    But Lydia was sure that she wanted my help. I was doubtful. I wasn't sure my "help" was even worth being called by that name. But because she asked me, I said "yes." And that was the beginning of a friendship. Lydia and I spent afternoons sitting together and reading the newspaper, and as we did, she asked me questions when she had them questions about language, yes, but also questions about the new culture she found herself in. In turn, I asked my own questions, growing curious about her home country and culture. We bonded over our shared faith and our struggles as mothers of kids with special needs, When I complimented（恭维） her cooking, she began to teach me about Korean food, eventually leading to a shared trip to explore the Korean grocery stores in our city. Because of Lydia, 1 learned more about my own hometown than I ever could have learned by myself. I'm still not sure that I'm any good as a teacher. But I'm grateful I said "yes" when my neighbor asked me to help her with her English. That meant spending extra time with my neighbor, and that extra time meant she didn't remain just my neighbor. She became my friend.

    A farmer had a cow, and he took very good care of the cow. One day when the cow was ill, he was very worried. He telephoned the vet.

    "What's the problem?" the vet asked the farmer when he arrived.

    "My cow's ill," the farmer said. "I don't know what's the matter with her. She's just lying down and doesn't eat anything. She's making a strange noise."

    The vet examined the cow and said, "She's certainly ill, and she needs to take some very strong medicine."

    He took a bottle out of his box, put two pills into the farmer's hand and said, "The pills should make her feel better."

    "How can she take these pills?" the farmer asked.

    The vet gave him a tube(管子) and said, "Put this tube in her mouth, and then put the pills in the tube and blow(吹气) into the cow's mouth. That will make it."

    The next day the vet came to the farm again. The farmer was sitting outside his house and looked more worried.

    "How is your cow?" the vet asked.

    "Not better," the farmer said, "and I'm feeling very strange myself."

    "Oh?" the vet asked. "Why?"

    "I did what you said," the farmer answered. "I put the tube in the cow's mouth and then put the two pills in the tube."

    "And?" the vet asked.

    "The cow blew first," the farmer said.