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My grandfather spent most of his life in a turbulent India. After settling in New York, he took up his true passion: gardening. Grandfather's garden was where I took refuge from a world of adults and schoolwork. My grandfather cultivated squash and tomatoes -- it was not rare to find me somewhere in the garden, either secretly eating a tomato, or just sitting and admiring my grandfather's hard work. However, as time went by, I did not have the chance to visit his house as often as I used to. On my eleventh birthday, I received a gift bag wrapped in pretty paper from my grandfather. Excited to see what he had given to me for my birthday, I tore apart the paper only to find a yellow squash. I was very angry. What a stupid present! But gradually, I realized that in my developing a relationship with his garden, I had unknowingly grown very close to my grandfather himself, something he wished to remind me of through his gift. His commitment towards doing things definitely influenced me. It could bring him a sense of accomplishment. Because of him, I try to model the idea of approaching everything with both drive and passion. My grandfather passed away five years ago, but his influence on me could not be bigger than it is today. As I prepare to enter college and move on from my relatively sheltered high school life toward achieving complete independence, allowing my passions to find their way into whatever I may be doing will be very necessary. I still look up to my grandfather very much to this day, and I hope that one day I will be able to sow in my own garden, and give someone else a squash on his or her birthday -- it was the most meaningful gift I have ever received.[:ZXXK] When the author was young, she often visited the garden mainly to _ . A have a taste of her favorite vegetables B help her grandfather cultivate the garden C escape from the adults and schoolwork D admire her grandfather's hard work Answer: C Our guide was excellent! He walked us through all the local villages and took extra time at the end to enjoy a local dinner. He stayed with us longer than he was obliged to and made this a fantastic experience. Tour _ Travel is all about the street food these days, and why not? It's fresh, fast, cheap and a great way to crack into the local scene. Join this Hanoi tour to source the best street eats from markets, food carts, street cafes and other hard-to-find-but-totally-worth-the-effort secret spots. Highlights Sample delicious Vietnamese cuisine just like the locals do -- on the street Stroll through hidden alleyways and bustling markets of Hanoi's charming old quarter Learn more about Hanoi's unique food culture Try local specialties with influences from French and Chinese cuisine Take in a spectacular night view of Hoan Kiem lake from a secret cafe Schedule details Duration: 2.5 hours Meeting point: Sacombank ATM Machine - No. 1 Dong Xuan street (front entrance of Dong Xuan Market, Corner of Dong Xuan St with Cau Dong St) Starting time: 5. 00 PM Ending point: Cafe Pho Co - 11 Hang Gai St, Hoan Kiem During the tour, we can enjoy _ . A various local food B charming mountain landscapes C many rare animals D French and Chinese cuisine Answer: A For years I fought with the bird's nest that sat on top of my head-my Medusa hair.No matter what I did and how hard I tried, in no way could I make my unruly hair to my satisfaction. Growing up in a Russian-Jewish home with parents who thought North American styling products were something illegal such as drugs, I was never allowed to put them in my hair. "Why buy hair gel? Your hair is so beautiful naturally." my mother would say.The teens at school did not agree.From boys' not wanting to kiss me when we played spin the bottle in Grade 7 to being called the mop, I suffered from my hair. When I got to university, I believed my hair was a wall that stood between me and everything---finding a part-time job, getting a boyfriend, etc. If only I could find a way to manage the curls and put it behind bars, I told myself, I would feel secure and sexy.I tried everything: rollers, hairspray, gels and, at one point, an iron.Then, in my second year, a miracle happened.I was asked to be a hair model for Japanese hair straightening, a process by which the molecules of my curls would be broken and reset in a bone-straight position.I was the perfect candidate, the hairdresser told me.Although they said how hair relaxing could damage the scalp , for the next five years I didn't find them to be true. All of the hairdresser's promises were fulfilled: With my hair straight and smooth, I was no longer the " mop". However, there was extreme damage done to my wallet. To keep up the straightening cost $ 700 every six months, and that was considered cheap. While some people thought I was crazy, I was willing to do anything to never again feel like that anxious, curly-headed girl in Grade 7.But when I moved out of my parents' house at age 26 and rented an apartment, the upkeep of my new image became too costly. I couldn't hide from my inner Medusa any longer.It was time to hug her and let her fly.Seeking a choice, I turned to the Internet, Google.After hours of searching, I hit upon a "curly haired" salon, a place designed for girls like me. I doubted these so-called "Curl Ambassadors" could do anything without using machine of some sort, and though I bought the service called the "Curly-Doo", I suspected I'd have the same unruly mop at the end of the appointment. I dragged my feet so hard getting there that I arrived 45 minutes late.I secretly hoped they would turn me away.Instead, my stylist simply said: "You are very late.Let me see your hair". At that moment, my world and beliefs about myself were turned upside down along with my hair. As my head was in a basin full of freezing-cold water, then covered with a jelly-like jam, I wondered what I had got myself into. "Do you really think this will work?" I asked the stylist, Jones." My curls are a disaster." "No curly hair is hopeless," she replied."They just haven't found a way to work with it, that's all." After the hour was over, Jones had completed her work.She had styled my hair using only her hands, water and a mixture of organic jam.I couldn't believe what I was seeing in the mirror: a naturally curly, Medusa-free me.You could argue that hair is just hair. Yet, it is just such physical features that have such a large influence on how we view ourselves. According to Jones,75 percent of the population have a wave or curl in their hair and don't know what to do with it.Men cut theirs short.Women flat-iron theirs to death.When I read through a beauty magazine or take the subway to work, it makes me sad to see so many people repressing their natural beauty. Since then, my world has changed.I have always been outgoing, but these days I seem to be more outspoken and confident than ever.On top of that, friends and co-workers tell me I am looking better than ever, but they don't know the source of the change. I don't need to tell them. My Medusa hair speaks for herself. The best title of the passage can be_. A A Successful Stylist B Road to Beauty C My Medusa Hair D Accept the Way We Are Answer: C What shapes a man's ability and skill was always a question to psychologists until a few decades ago when findings show that they for the most part come from practice ---- repetitive and endless practice. The psychologist K. Anders Ericsson of the University of Florida and his team, based on a survey of a violin class in a college of music, have found that the students whose levels are rated as "A" have spent on average over 10,000 hours on violin-practice, those with level B a bit less than 8,000 hours, and those with average or lower levels no more than 5,000 hours. The result of the survey is widely preferred because it suggests that practice makes perfect, that is, the distinction between "excellent" and "good" lies more in hard work than in natural intelligence. Malcolm Gladwell points out in his latest book Outliers: The Story of Success: "Practice isn't the thing you do once you're good. It's the thing you do that makes you good." Besides, he thinks IQ plays little part in the formation and development of ability. "When one has an IQ of 120," writes he, "what is beyond it does not make an evidential difference in real life." However, scientists' experimental results are quite different from the psychologists'. Their findings show success in many areas depends on intelligence --- and not a little. David Lubinski and Camilla Benbow of Vanderbilt University, with their research group, carried out a milestone research. They selected from Youth Talented Search 2000 teenagers of or under 13 whose SAT results ranked top1%. After tracking the achievements the 2,000 "wonder children" made in academy and career, Lubinski and Benbow's group found that those ranking top 1% have more possibility (averagely by two to four times) to get a doctor's degree, a certificate, and publish academic theses and works than those ranking top 9%. As a conclusion, it's a great advantage in the real world to have a high IQ. What is the writer's attitude to psychologists' and scientists' conclusions about man's ability and skill? A He is more in favor of psychologists'. B He prefers scientists' to psychologists'. C He takes an objective attitude to both. D He supports both conclusions equally. Ks5u Answer: C Are you a person who has high EQ? If you want to be a successful man, you should have high EQ. Some people even say that EQ is more important than IQ. I think so. So we can know the importance of having high EQ. If you don't have high EQ, try to make yourself become a person with a good temper . In this way, your EQ may become higher and higher. Here are some ways for you to control your temper when you are angry . Don't say anything when you are in a bad mood because it's possible for you to hurt others. In fact, maybe you don't mean to hurt them. Take a deep breath when you can't stop your anger. In this way, you will feel relaxed and you won't be that _ . When you are angry, ask yourself some questions: "Why am I so angry?" "Do I have to be so irritated?" "What will happen if I don't get angry?" So, try the ways above. Everything could be simple since you try to think it in other ways. What is the passage mainly about? A How to become a person who has a good temper. B How to become a person who has high EQ. C How to become a person who is popular among friends. D How to become a person who has high IQ. Answer: B
Spending as little as $5 a day on someone else could significantly boost happiness, the team at the University of British Columbia and Harvard Business School found on Thursday. Their experiments on more than 630 Americans showed they were measurably happier when they spent money on others--even if they thought spending the money on themselves would make them happier. "We wanted to test our theory that how people spend their money is at least as important as how much money they earn," said Elizabeth Dunn, a psychologist at the University of British Columbia. They asked their 600 volunteers first to rate their general happiness, report their annual (yearly) income and detail their monthly spending including bills, gifts for themselves, girls for others and donations to charity. "Regardless of how much income each person made, those who spent money on others reported greater happiness, while those who spent more on themselves did not," Dunn said in a statement. Dunn's team also surveyed 16 employees at a company in Boston before and after they received an annual profit-sharing bonus of between $3,000 and $8,000. "Employees who devoted more of their bonus to pro-social spending experienced greater happiness after receiving the bonus and the manner in which they spent that bonus was a more important predictor of their happiness than the size of the bonus itself" they wrote in their report, published in the journal Science. They gave their volunteers $5 or $20 and half got clear instructions on how to spend it. Those who spent the money on someone or something else reported feeling happier about it. "These findings suggest that very minor alterations (changes) in spending allocations (shares)--as little as $5--may be enough to produce real gains in happiness on a given day,"Dunn said. Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage? Those who spend more money on others can get much more bonus. Every year there are hundreds of earthquakes in different parts of the world. In September, 1923, Tokyo and Yokohama were both destroyed by an earthquake and the fires that followed it. They had to be completely rebuilt. One of the most serious earthquakes was in China's Shanxi province in 1556. It killed almost one million people. We measure an earthquake's strength on the Richter Scale. The Richter Scale was introduced in 1935 in Southern California in the USA. It measures earthquakes on a scale of one to ten. Any earthquake measuring five or more is usually serious. The Earth's crust is made up of rock called plates. As these plates move, they sometimes crash against each other, causing the crust to quake. In cities such as Tokyo, where small quakes happen quite often, many modern buildings are designed to be flexible so when the Earth moves, they move with it. Earthquakes can also break up gas and oil pipes. This can cause fires to break out, which can do as much damage as the earthquake itself. Another effect of earthquakes is _ These are huge waves created by earthquakes beneath the sea. They can be many meters high and cause great damage to coastal towns and cities, China, Japan, Russia and the USA have the highest occurrence of earthquakes in the world. According to the passage we know that tsunamis _ are caused by earthquakes Telepathy: Mind-to-mind Contact Telepathy is the ability to communicate without the use of the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste). It's an instinct which can be woken up in times of emergency or need. When we feel that something is happening or about to happen by instinct, we're using resources within the unconscious mind. When the resources of two persons' unconscious minds link together into the same frequency, we call it Telepathy. We can either send or receive Telepathy. If you know who is calling before you answer the ringing phone, you are probably a good receiver. If you think of a person and he/she calls you, you are most likely to be better at sending. You can easily put your abilities to the test. Think of somebody and will him or her to contact you. Be patient. The other person may not be a good receiver, but they should contact you much earlier than would normally be expected. Or whenever the phones rings, but try "feeling" who is contacting you. Don't guess, but try to feel it with your mind. However, if neither of these work for you, that doesn't mean that you have no ability of telepathy. As mentioned earlier, telepathy is most likely to turn up in case of emergency. Telepathy dreams often contain telepathic messages. Two people may both dream of the other and find that their dreams had a clear connection. These people are probably linking to each other's unconscious mind. Telepathy & Relationships. The more people spend time together, the more likely they are to be able to link up to the other's mind, especially when separated. There are two reasons for this. One is that they understand the other's mind through time spent together; the other is that there is usually a strong desire to communicate. A mother will often sense that her child is in danger. This is due to the child's eagerly wanting his or her mother, knowing that this person who would always want to be there for them, and the mother's deep desire to protect her child from harm. Telepathy turns up when we _ . sense a close friend in danger In the past, man did not have to think about protection of the environment. There were very few people on the earth, and natural resources seemed to be unlimited. Today things are different. The world has become too crowded. We are using up our natural resources too quickly, and at the same time we are polluting our environment with dangerous chemicals. If we continue to do this, human life on the earth will not survive. Everyone realizes today that if too many fish are taken from the sea, there will soon be none left. Yet, with modern fishing methods, more and more fish are caught. We know that if too many trees are cut down, forests will disappear and nothing will grow on land. Yet, we continue to use more powerful machines to cut down more and more trees. We realize that if rivers are polluted with waste products from factories, we will die. However, in most countries waste is still put into rivers, but there are few laws to stop this. We also know that if the population of the countries in the world is to rise at the present rate in a few years, there will not be enough food. What can we do to solve these problems? If we eat more vegetables and less meat, there will be more food available for everyone. Land that is used to grow crops can feed five times more people than land where animals are kept. Our natural resources will last longer if we learn to recycle them. The world population will not rise so quickly if people use modern methods of birth control. Finally, if all of us think about the problem, we will have a better and cleaner planet in the future. Which of the following is NOT true? If we eat more vegetables, more food can be saved. "You are welcome to have dinner with me on Sunday," said John. "But I don't know where your house is," said Henry. "It's easy. You get off the bus. Then cross the road, and take the first turning on the left. Walk for five minutes. Then you will see a big tree. Take the second on the right after the tree. Walk about a hundred metres down this road. There is a big red house. Go past the big house about five hundred metres, and you will see a small yellow house beside a little tree. Open the door with your foot. " "With my foot?" said Henry, "Why?" "Well, you won't come to my house empty-handed will you? " said John. Why does John ask Henry to open the door with his foot? Because he thinks Henry _ . will carry a lot of things in both hands
Will it matter if you don't take your breakfast? A short time ago, a test was given in the United States. People of different ages, from 12 to 83, were asked to have a test. During the test, these people were given all kinds of breakfasts, and sometimes they got no breakfast at all. Scientists wanted to see how well their bodies worked when they had eaten different kinds of breakfasts. The results show that if a person eats a right breakfast, he or she will work better than if he or she has no breakfast. If a student has fruit, egg, bread and milk before going to school, he will learn more quickly and listen more carefully. The result is opposite to what some people think. Having no breakfast will not help you lose weight. This is because people become so hungry at noon that they eat too much for lunch. They will gain weight instead of losing it. You will lose more weight if you your other meals. According to the passage, some people think that if you don't have breakfast you will _ . A be healthier B work better C lose weight D lose your way Answer: C. lose weight "Oh please God, no, no!" Stephen Eldredge cried out when he saw his wife, Shelli, badly wounded on the side of the road. She had broken actually every long bone in her body, along with her pelvis, jaw, and cheekbones. He was terrified his bride would bleed to death. Stephen and Shelli had married just six months before near their home in South Jordan, Utah. They were in Hawaii on a family vacation with two of their sons. The family had rented electric motors and headed towards a nature preserve near Waikiki. But Shelli had fallen behind and the family turned back to make sure she was okay. Shelli lost so much blood that her heart couldn't function properly and she went into shock at the hospital. Physicians were able to make her come to herself. On the first and second days there, she lived through half a dozen operations. On day three, the worst of Stephen's fears came true. Shelli didn't wake. She had shown heart failure and lung failure. "I thought every heartbeat would be her last," Stephen says. As days passed with no change, one doctor gently asked if it was time to let Shelli go. An MRI showed her brain didn't have much chance of supporting life. Stephen couldn't bear the thought of trapping his wife's beautiful spirit in a body that would never work. If he kept her alive, what kind of life would she have ? He called family, religious leaders, and physician friends in Utah for guidance. And he decided there still was a chance. The family moved Shelli to a Utah hospital closer to home. In the next few weeks she started opening her eyes, but it wasn't entirely clear how conscious she was. Nearly seven weeks after the accident, Stephen was joking with his sister in the hospital room when he saw Shelli smile, a big toothy grin. "Did you understand that?" he asked. She smiled again. Stephen fell to his knees in thanks. Shelli's recovery has been slow but steady. Initially, she couldn't remember much of the previous months, including her own wedding. Shelli has endured 17 operations so far and may require more surgery. She will definitely need more months of recovery. But she is able to walk. "She's got her life back. She's able to love and be loved, and be the person she was." Elovie says. When Shelli hears about each step in her recovery, she calls it "miracle after miracle". As for his experience, Stephen says, "This is a story of fear that was slowly replaced by faith." By saying "miracle after miracle", Shelli means that _ . A she suffered what a terrible accident B she appreciated the care of her husband so much C the love for her family got her life back D it really surprised her that she survived so many operations Answer: D. it really surprised her that she survived so many operations Shanghai Disney Resort has revealed its ticket prices for Disneyland claiming the lowest of all 12 Disney parks and six resorts in the world. Shanghai Disneyland ticket prices are set at 499 yuan (75 dollars) for the grand opening period (June 16-30, 2016) and regular price at 370 yuan. Its regular price for a one-day ticket is lower than its peers in Hong Kong, which is priced at 539 yuan and the Disneyland in Tokyo in Japan at 374 yuan. The regular price for a one-day ticket at the two parks in Los Angeles is $139. Tickets for Shanghai's Disneyland will be on sale on March 28, 2016. Shanghai's Disneyland will have its opening day on June 16, 2016. All tickets will be date-specific and valid for admission only on the date purchased. Peak pricing for high-demand dates, including summer holidays and weekends, is set at 499 yuan. Special pricing will be provided to categorized guests: children (1.4m and below), seniors (65 years old and above) and guests with disabilities will receive discounts of 25 percent, infants (1m and below) receive free admission. A two-day ticket will be available at a five percent discount. On March 28, 2016, guests can obtain information on tickets through several official channels. The project has been under construction for more than six years now. Jun 16-that is, 6-16-2016-has been apparently chosen as the date of opening because the three 6s are believed to be _ , foretelling success. "Investors believe that even a 10 square meter space for a noodle stand will be really profitable if it is close enough to Disneyland," said Lu Jianxin, a real estate agent with Shanghai Huayu Property Ltd. What does this passage most probably come from? A A school textbook. B A news report. C An advertisement. D An introduction of a scenic spot. Answer: B. A news report. Do you like traveling? Have you traveled to Los Angeles? Have you traveled to the moon? A rich man plans to live on Mars. Is it the beginning of a science fiction novel? In fact, it happens in the real world. Elon Musk is the founder and CEO of a private spaceflight company. He has said his plan is to live on the planet. He says he plans to live on Mars with a group of fewer than ten people. He will take them on a rocket powered by liquid oxygen and methane . Each one should pay $ 500,000 to fly there. However, these passengers are not going there to travel, but they are going to work. They need to carry tools to build houses and grow crops there. Musk believes one person out of every 100,000 people may be interested in making the journey. Then Mars will have sixty-three thousand people in the future. What's the title of this passage? A A Science Fiction Novel B Los Angeles C Houses and Crops D Let's Fly to Mars Answer: D. Let's Fly to Mars "I didn't hear them call my name," explained Shelley Hennig to Active Teens (AT) as she talked about that exciting moment on national television when she won the honor of Miss Teen USA 2004. "Are you ready?"is what she heard. Then she said,"I shook my head no,and then they said 'yes' and it was announced again." It was four days after that life changing moment for the seventeen year old high school student from Destrehan, Louisiana. She was still _ "I was so shocked! I never believed that it could actually really happen. "Present in the audience that day were: her mother and father, older brother, her friends, and her dance teacher. Understanding why members of her family and her friends would be there,AT asked why her dance teacher had traveled so far to see her compete . "She's always been my role model. I've danced with her since I was six. She's been through so many difficulties and came through them all. I've learned to get over bad life's experiences and learned how to move on because of her." One of those bad life's experiences for Shelley happened three years ago when her brother Brad was killed in a drunk driving accident. He was 18. She found writing helped her get through the tough days. She said, "I write a lot about my brother. I write a lot, a lot,a lot..." As Miss Louisiana Teen, she traveled around the state speaking to teens about the dangers of drinking and driving. In her role as Miss Teen USA, Shelley will continue to speak to youth about safe driving,in addition to many other things to help the youth. When AT asked Miss Teen USA if she had any advice for our readers, she said, "Don't let anyone change you. Hang out with people that make you feel good about yourself. That way,it is easy to be yourself." .How many children did the Hennigs have according to the text? A 1. B 2. C 3. D 4. Answer: C. 3.
1During the First World War, some Americans indirectly benefited because of the war. With two million white men fighting in Europe and no new immigrants entering the country, many jobs in the United States became available to blacks and women for the first time. 2Both groups proved their ability to do any kind of job. Women became railway conductors, brick layers, and factory workers. Their presence in traditionally male workplace produced many problems. Men were annoyed by women's higher productivity and willingness to work for lower pay. Working mothers were often criticized for leaving their families. But many women welcomed the responsibilities. "It was not until our men were called overseas," said one woman bank executive, "that we make any real onslaught on the realm of finance, and became tellers, managers of departments, and junior and senior officers." 3Women who did not take jobs helped in the war effort in other ways. They made uniforms, rolled bandages, and campaigned for the sale of Liberty Bonds to help finance the war. 4American manufacturers offered jobs to large numbers of black Americans for the first time as a result of the war. Most factories were located in the North. To take advantage of these new job opportunities, many black families moved from their homes in the South to the Northern cities such as Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Buffalo, Chicago, and Detroit. 5White Americans were of two minds about the role of black Americans in the war effort. On the one hand, black workers' ability to learn new jobs quickly and do them well strengthened the home front, and the black men's fighting ability helped the Allies win the war. However, many whites did not want to acknowledge that blacks were capable, effective workers. White soldiers returning from the war had no desire to compete for jobs with blacks on equal terms. At the same time, many blacks were not willing to a lesser role once the war had ended. Which of the following is the main idea of the whole passage? A women and blacks contributed much in World War I. B World War I had strong effect on America. C Some Americans benefited from World War I indirectly. D U.S. Answer: C. Some Americans benefited from World War I indirectly. Li Shizhen was born in 1518. When he grew up, he liked his father's job and he was interested in medicine. He read many books about medicine and found something wrong in them. So he decided to write a new one. He tried his best to study medicine. He set out many times on long trips to collect herbs and talked with old farmers. In this way, he learned a lot from the working people. After many years of hard work and study, Li Shizhen at last finished his great work, the Ben Cao Gang Mu in 1578. The book was one of the most important books in the medical science of the world. his great work means his _ Ben Cao Gang Mu. A work B book C study D trip Answer: B. book Historians say Harriet Tubman was born in the year 1820.Nobody really knows.But we do know that Harriet Tubman was one of the bravest women ever born in the United States. From a very early age, Harriet knew how slaves suffered.At six years old, she was sent to the fields.Working outside not only made her body strong but also made her learn about the Underground Railroad, through which she helped hundreds of people escape from slavery later.She also learned many things from other slaves, which one day would help her lead her people to freedom.She became more of a rebel . In 1844, at about age 24, she married a free black man named John Tubman.By now, Harriet was sure she wanted to try to escape.Suddenly, the time came.Her owner died.Though opposed by her husband, she decided to escape.With the help of the Underground Railroad, and through a variety of suffering she finally crossed the border into Pennsylvania, where slavery was banned .Later, she told a friend, "I felt like I was in heaven." Now that Harriet was free, she did not forget the hundreds of other slaves back in Maryland.Harriet traveled back and forth eighteen times, helping about 300 slaves escape into free territory.She became an expert at hiding from slave hunter.The people she helped called her Moses.At one time anyone finding Harriet was promised $40,000 for catching her --dead or alive. During the Civil War, Harriet Tubman went into enemy territory to spy for the North.She also served as a nurse.After four years of bloody fighting, the North won the war. After the fighting ended, Harriet Tubman returned to Auburn, New York.She kept working.She traveled and gave speeches to raise money for better education for black children.She also worked for women's rights and housing.Harriet Tubman died in 1913.She was about 93 years old.By that time, she was recognized as an American hero.The United States government gave a funeral with military honors for the woman known a Moses. What can we say the Underground Railroad is? A A kind of train. B A special railroad. C A group of slaves. D A secret organization. Answer: D. A secret organization. My dad and I both love music. He taught me how to play some pop songs on the piano and he is teaching me to play the drums and sing. He even creates custom tracks for me to help me perform my best! -- Samantha, age 11, California, USA My dad encourages me to do my best in school so I can achieve my dream of being an animal doctor someday. He also encourages me to try new things and do sports. We often go camping, rock climb, hike, and ride bikes. I love that my dad likes to go on adventures with me! -- Isabella, age 10, Nevada, USA My dad is funny, and he has given me a good sense of humor , too. He teaches me to make the best of a situation, even if it's difficult or scary. He also tells me that laughter is the best thing to make me feel better. [: _ Z _ X _ X _ K] -- Lila, age 12, California, USA My dad has taught me never to give up, no matter how hard things get. He helps me realize that even if I don't get a perfect mark on a test or something, it is not the end of the world. He has taught me that I can learn from my mistakes and work harder the next time. -- Jane, age 11, British Columbia, Canada . We can learn from the material that Samantha's father _ . A is a musician B can play the piano C wants her to be a singer D is good at writing pop songs Answer: D. is good at writing pop songs Today, there's hardly an aspect of our life that isn't being upended by the tons of information available on the hundreds of millions of sites crowding the Internet, not to mention its ability to keep us in constant touch with each other via electronic mail. "If the automobile and aerospace technology had exploded at the same pace as computer and information technology," says Microsoft, "a new car would cost about $ 2 and go 600 miles on a small quantity of gas. And you could buy a Boeing 747 for the cost of a pizza." Probably the biggest payoff, however, is the billions of dollars the Internet is saving companies in producing goods and serving for the needs of their customers. Nothing like it has been seen since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, when power-driven machines began producing more in a day than men could turn out in nearly a year. "We view the growth of the Internet and e-commerce as a global trend," says Merrill Lynch, "along the lines of printing press, the telephone, the computer, and electricity." You would be hard pressed to name something that isn't available on the Internet. Consider: books, health care, movie tickets, construction materials, baby clothes, stocks, cattle feed, music, electronics, antiques, tools, real estate, toys, autographs of famous people, wine and airline tickets. And even after you've moved on to your final resting place, there's no reason those you love can't keep in touch. A company called FinalThoughts.com offers a place for you to store "afterlife e-mails" you can send to Heaven with the help of a "guardian angel". Kids today are so computer literate that it in fact ensures the United States will remain the unchallenged leader in cyberspace for the foreseeable future. Nearly all children in families with incomes of more than $75,000 a year have home computers, according to a study by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Youngsters from ages 2 to 17 at all income levels have computers, with 52% of those connected to the Internet. Most kids use computers to play games (some for 30 hours or more a week), and many teenage girls think nothing of rushing home from school to have e-mail chats with friends they have just left. What's clear is that, whether we like it or not, the Internet is an ever growing part of our lives and there is no turning back. "The Internet is just 20% invented," says cyber pioneer Jake Winebaum. "The last 80% is happening now." The author gives the example of FinalThoughts.com to make the point that _ . A there are some genius ideas on the Internet B people can find good bargains on the Internet C almost anything is available on the Internet D people are free to do anything on the Internet Answer: C. almost anything is available on the Internet
Question: Sometimes people give us nicknames in order to be mean or make fun of us, which can really hurt. Four eyes. Metal Mouth. Dumbo, Slow Poke, Crater Face. We've all heard kids calling unpleasant nicknames like these. Maybe you've even used similar nicknames on other kids, or been stuck with one yourself. A playground _ or cut usually disappears after a couple of days, but the pain and anger coming from being called a cruel nickname can last a lot longer than that. If you've ever picked on another kid by making up or using a tease nickname, or of you've ever been on the receiving end of one, you know that names like Fatso, Smelly, and Short Stuff can be very hurtful. Plus, they have a habit of sticking to us like glue! People use negative nicknames as a way of keeping someone out of a group of gaining power over someone, or of making themselves feel more important. You may know a kid in your class who always comes up with nicknames for the other kids. This student likes to feel cool by acting like the official "nicknamer." This can give a student a feeling of power, but that power comes at the cost of making other kids feel bad. Kids who give others hurtful nicknames are often trying to cover up the fact that they really feel bad about themselves. Like other kinds of insults , a cruel nickname can be used to make a kid feel being left out or angry. Sometimes they're even nastier than most ways of being mean, because they can be so hard to shake off. The author's attitude towards nicknames in this passage is best described as_. A. positive B. negative C. neutral D. indifferent Answer: B. negative Question: It started off as part of French military training and has since evolved as a sport, founded by Sebastian Foucan and David Belle, to encompass a wide variety of techniques, philosophies and exercises. Park-our now enjoys the devotion of many die-hard fans across the world and has been the source for much inspiration. But what is park-our? It is the art of using only your body to navigate from Point A to B in the least time possible, which involves besides leaping, climbing and sprinting, various unusual and complex movements to overcome barriers. Just like the James Bond in the movie Casino Royale? Bond jumps down from a roof to a windowsill and then runs several blocks over _ on the way. It is just because of Bond's wonderful performances that the sport has become popular worldwide. Yes, that's pork-our, an extreme street sport aimed at moving from one point to another as quickly as possible, getting over all the obstacles in the path using only the abilities of the human body. Park-our is considered an extreme sport. As its participants dash around a city, they may jump over fences, run up walls and even move from rooftop to rooftop. Park-our can be just as exciting and charming as it sounds, but its participants see much more in park-our than that. To overcome all the obstacles on the course and in life is part of the philosophy behind park-our. This is the same as life. You must determine your destination, go straight, jump over all the barriers as if in park-our and never fall back from them in your life to reach the destination successfully. A park-our lover said, "I love park-our, because its philosophy has become my life, my way to do everything." Another philosophy we've learned from park-our is freedom. It can be done by anyone, at any time, anywhere in the world. It is a kind of expression of trust in yourself so that you earn energy and confidence. Park-our has become popular throughout the world because of _ . A. its founder, David Belle B. the film, Casino Royale C. its risks and tricks D. the varieties of participants Answer: B. the film, Casino Royale Question: Cindy, Jerry and Mary are giving their opinions about a good friend. Cindy: I think a good friend should be honest . That's more important than any other thing and is where a good friendship starts. _ Jerry: I think a good friend has to be generous. Here "generous" doesn't mean he has to give his friends his lunch money or his clothes. It means he should share his ideas and feelings with his friends. In fact, his friends can know him better in this way. Mary: In my opinion a good friend should understand his friends. When there's something wrong between him and his friends, he must put himself in his friends' place and think more for his friends. What's the best title of the passage? A. My friend. B. Trust is the most important. C. Opinions about a good friends. D. Being generous is the important. Answer: C. Opinions about a good friends. Question: Rocks in warm and humid environments can be weathered faster than rocks in other environments. Which is most likely the next step in the rock cycle for weathered rocks? A. They are cemented. B. They are compacted. C. They become eroded. D. They become molted. Answer: C. They become eroded. Question: Florence Nightingale was born in a rich family. When she was young she took lessons in music and drawing, and read great books. She also traveled a great deal with her mother and father. As a child she felt that visiting sick people was both a duty and a pleasure. She enjoyed helping them. At last mind was made up. "I'm going to be a nurse," she decided. "Nursing isn't the right work for a lady," her father told her. "Then I will make it so," she smiled. And she went to learn nursing in Germany and France. When she returned to England, Florence started a nursing home for home. During the Crimean War in 1854 she went with a group of thirty eight nurses to the front hospitals. What they saw there was terrible. Dirt and death were everywhere to be seen -- and smelled. The officer there did not want any woman to tell him how to run a hospital, either. But the brave nurse went to work. Florence used her own money and some from friends to buy clothes, beds, medicine and food for the men. Her only pay was in smiles from the lips of dying soldiers. But they were more than enough for this kind woman. After she returned to England, she was honored for her services by Queen Victoria. But Florence said that her work had just begun. She raised money to build the Nightingale Home for Nurses in London. She also wrote a book on public health, which was printed in several countries. Florence Nightingale died at the age of ninety, still trying to serve others through her work as a nurse. Indeed, it is because of her that we honor nurses today. What made Florence make up her mind to become a nurse? A. Her father's support. B. Her desire to help the sick. C. Her education in Germany and France. D. Her knowledge from reading great books. Answer: B. Her desire to help the sick.
Question: If I raised the question, "What would be the last thing you would expect to happen while watching your son's flag football game?" you probably still couldn't come up with what happened to me and my family. As we were sitting on the sidelines enjoying the game, a low-flying bird came swooping in attempting to land on my daughter's head! It honestly came out of nowhere. We were seated by ourselves on the tree lined side of the field. I was able to calm my daughter's shock and fear once I showed her that the bird was not some wild animal, it was in fact, somebody's pet! Now, we're sitting at the outdoor fields of the Pontiac Silverdome, far from any populated area, wondering where this very social cockatiel, an Australian parrot could have come from. I walked up to the bird and put out my hand. Immediately, it hopped on and chirped in a friendly way. We looked around us and knew that we could not just leave and suppose that the bird would return to where it came from. This was a very bird that needed help or it would not survive. The flag football game had ended so we walked the bird over to other groups of adults and asked if they knew of anyone who had lost a bird. All the kids were excited about the bird and fed it with some post game snacks. The bird's nails were getting long and he was looking pretty dirty, so we knew it had been out here for a long time and was hungry. Since its wings were clipped, it could fly a little but probably not more than 100 yards or so at a try. We all just scratched our heads as a group wondering what to do with the lost bird. We explained to the kids that this bird needed our help since it was someone's pet and would not know how to get its own food, and it could not fly well since its wings were clipped. The kids understood, and all of them wanted to take the bird home! The parents however, knew this was not a good choice as one had a large dog, another two cats, etc. We explained to the kids that one of us could take the bird home for the night and then bring it to the Humane Society in the morning in hopes to connect it to its owners. We couldn't keep the bird. It wasn't ours. This was tough for the kids to understand at first. We couldn't just leave the bird either. There was no way it could attend itself. The group of us sat around the Silverdome practice fields for quite a while trying to determine the best course of choice for the lost bird. It was getting dark out but no one was willing to leave that parking lot until we had a game plan for how to help the bird. The owner of the football league, Chris Novak, offered to take the bird. It was extremely nice of him and he really stepped in to help while all the rest of us who had kids tugging on our shirts and begging to take it home. We took a box and put a bunch of holes in it and he brought it home for the night. Another mom went online and found a family that had lost a bird that looked just like the one we'd found. She emailed the info to Chris who got in touch with the family and the next day, reunited the bird with the family that lost it almost 3 weeks earlier! When Chris emailed us to let us know, we could not believe that this bird had traveled from The Rochester Tienken area all the way to the Silverdome! We were so happy to be able to save this bird and get it back to its family. I showed my kids the email about how the other family got their pet back. The family has 3 kids who were so happy to see their bird. My kids realized what a nice ending this story had. Not only had we been able to save this bird's life, but we were able to bring it back to the family that loves and misses him. The life lesson in the missing bird story seemed to miss its mark with my kids at first. They were a little bummed out that they couldn't keep the lost bird. I explained to them that when an animal or someone needs help, you just can't turn a blind eye and hope everything works out OK. The "lost bird incident" was also a reminder to them that teamwork and the kindness of strangers can make a world of difference and that a group of well-meaning strangers can work together to help someone. It wasn't a heroic act, but one that I knew had sunk in with my kids when they realized that trying to help was the best and only real course of action. What can be learned from the "lost bird incident"? A. Strangers can also work well together. B. Humane Society helps children in teamwork. C. Children can keep lost injured pet birds home. D. Helping others is always regarded as a heroic act. Answer: A Question: Some school officials want to change class time from 8:00am to 9:00am.What do you think? Jill----"I think it's a good idea! I usually get up at 6:10 and it's difficult for me. At night I have to do lots of homework and I like to watch TV . I go to bed at about 11:00 pm. I usually can't catch the bus at 7:30 in the morning. I am often late for school." Sally---"I don't think it's a good idea. I always get up at 5:30 in the morning. It's the best time of the day. First I do some morning exercises. Then I read and have breakfast. So I will be happy if class begins at 8:00 ." Billy---"I never get up before 6:30.I always go to school without breakfast. A morning class is not good for me. I hope I can go to school after 8:30." _ does some reading in the morning. A. Jill B. Sally C. Billy D. both Jill and Billy Answer: B Question: One suicide and three attempted ones that left two seriously injured, all by middle school students in Shanghai last week, cast a gloom over an otherwise happy beginning of a new term there. The terrible things took place even as the Ministry of Education and China Central Television organized the first lesson on TV about personal safety for students last Monday, the first day of the new semester. Such things suggest that this first lesson is more than necessary. Not only should kids be taught how to protect themselves in times of emergency, they should also be made aware of the value of tile2 One student was prevented from killing himself from his school building. He said he just could not accept the fact of not being able to go tip to a higher grade with his classmates, and thus considered life meaningless. Another 12-year-old boy who jumped off a building to his death was said to have been a good student, and no one could say why he chose to end his life. Obviously, their inner worlds were seriously affected. But when they chose to take their own lives, their irresponsible choice was clearly the result of a lack of adequate understanding of the value of life. The ancient sage Confucius stressed that one must protect even one's hair and skin from being hurt. He meant that the sense of responsibility for one's parents was important as far as the value of life was concerned. When we talk about the enthusiasm of making contributions to our motherland, we are referring to values that constitute the nobler part of the meaning of life. The value of life should be far beyond the concern for personal interest. Undoubtedly, those kids who chose to take their own lives were faced only with their own sadness that they could not overcome. If they had a little concern for their parents, for their parents' expectations of them or for their own potential contributions to this world in the future, they would not have gone that far. Difficulties or sufferings are supposed to help kids develop their sense of responsibility and thus help them better understand the value of life. Too much attention and care from their parents and grandparents have made most of the only children self-centered. Many think it is natural that they deserve to be taken care of by others in whatever way they want. They expect to have their problems solved by their parents or someone else. With such a false sense, they fail to grasp the tough reality of life. They suffer from the illusion that their life should be nothing but plain sailing, Whenever the illusion is broken, they can hardly gather enough courage to face life as it is. So a hotline is indeed necessary to help those kids who find it hard to accept the tough reality of life. But parents and teachers also need to take lessons from the things. They need to know that life should not always be sugar-coated for kids; they should be made to taste the bitter side too as early as possible. What mainly causes those kids to take their own lives is that _ . A. they are worried that they may fall behind others in studies B. they lack the respect for their parents C. they may be physically healthy, but mentally unhealthy D. their parents expect too much from them Answer: C Question: What is the most likely outcome of the Moon moving away from Earth? A. A lunar day is shorter. B. A lunar eclipse lasts longer. C. Earth moves closer to the Sun. D. Earth's tides decrease in size. Answer: D Question: Teens' lives hit by economy Some teenagers are crossing their dream colleges off their lists. Others are thinking of skipping their senior trips or reducing prom costs. Many are finding their work hours cut while their expenses rise. So, who exactly is punishing them?Is it their parents, teachers or employers?No, it's the economy . If you are like most teenagers, you probably don't understand what "recession", "negative economic growth" and "subprime mortgage crisis "actually mean. And you probably don't spend your days watching the ups and downs of the stock market. It's safe to say that most teens don't know much about the economy except for one thing:it's bad. But just how exactly is the economy affecting teens? "The single largest thing I have noticed is the recession's ability to affect my college choice, "said Heather Richars from Downey High School in California, US. "With the economic situation the way it is, I have thought less about going to a private or out-of-state university, and more about public schools in California, mainly because of the price of tuition, "said Richars. "I had been a fan of attending a private school up until this year." The economy cuts into other areas of teenagers' lives, too. Joey Camarda, a student at Modesto High School in California, who works at an ice cream store, said," Probably due to the economy, I have been getting less hours at my job, and because of that, I am not getting enough money to help pay for college." Tara Mooney, a senior at Beyer High School, has also begun to notice that money is tight. "Things are getting expensive," she said. "When it comes to applying for colleges and wanting to go on senior trips, I have to pick and choose instead of doing it all." How has Joey Camarda found the recession affects him? A. He has to find more part-time jobs. B. He has to help his mother do more chores. C. He has found that he had more time to study. D. His plan to pay for college will be hard to realize. Answer: D
A businessman, who was very fond of music, was asked by a poor widow to give her some help. Her husband, who was a musician, had died, and left her very poor indeed. The businessman saw that the widow and her daughter, who was with her, were in great distress. He looked with pity into their pale faces, and was sure that their sad story was true. "How much do you want, my good woman?" said the businessman. "Five dollars will save us," said the poor widow, with some hesitation, after she thought for a few seconds. The businessman sat down at his desk, took a piece of paper, wrote a few lines on it, and gave it to the widow with the words, "Take it to the bank you see on the other side of the street." The widow thanked the man, and then quickly walked to the bank with her daughter, without stopping to read the note. The banker at once counted out fifty dollars instead of five, and passed them to the window. She was amazed when she saw so much money. "Sir, there is a mistake here." she said. "You have given me fifty dollars, and I asked for only five." The banker then looked at the note once more, and said, "The check calls for fifty dollars." The banker then asked her to wait a few minutes, while he went to see the businessman who gave her the note. "Yes," said the businessman, when he had heard the banker's story, "I did make a mistake. I wrote fifty instead of five hundred. Give the poor widow five hundred dollars, for such honesty is poorly rewarded with even that sum." The businessman's last sentence at the end of the story means _ . Answer: A busy public square in the Chinese city of Nanjing is home to an unusual experiment. For almost two months, the country's first "honesty bookshop" has occupied a sidewalk on HanZhong Road in the city's Gulou District. With no cashier or other staff, the store relies on trust for payment. Making money isn't the company's main goal and they don't punish those who take books without paying. "If they can really finish the books, it doesn't matter if they took the books for free," Zhu Yu, the marketing director of the company says. "In fact, we are really happy to witness so many people taking books from the honesty bookshop." After browsing the four wooden bookshelves, customers must drop their money in a locked box. Prices are set at 30% of the usual cover price. Zhu hopes that his sidewalk store, which sells, on average, 60 books a day, will make more people interested in reading. Like elsewhere, e-books are affecting sales of traditional books, and traditional books and many independent booksellers are struggling. Zhu got permission from the city government to use the sidewalk and says he's determined to make it a long-term project. He says the store is open every day, except when it rains, and it's locked up each night. In September last year, the company laid out 1,000 books and reading lamps on the ground and encouraged people "to go on a date" with a book. "Independent bookshops represent the well-being of the city." Zhu told CNN in 2013, "when a city is losing its bookshops, it's actually losing something in its soul." If the success of the Honesty Bookstore is any guide, Nanjing's soul is in pretty good shape. How is the bookstore different from other bookstores? Answer: If you are planning to study in the United States, you need to consider several factors. Everyone has different opinions about where is the best place to live in. Also, the best places to live in are not always home to the best schools. Finally, many schools specialize in different areas of study. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, for example, is a great school for computer science and technology-related fields of study. However, if you want to study oceanography , your interests may be better served by attending school in a place that is on a coastline or near the ocean. Now I am sure that you know which schools are considered the best in the country. So I will tell you about which states I believe are the best to live in. California is a nice state. Northern California specifically has very good weather. Los Angeles in southern California is another story, though. Life in LA is full of excitement and fast, and sometimes dangerous. As for me, I enjoyed the time I spent in Massachusetts, Virginia and Maryland and these states have a lot of history and culture. The weather is not as perfect as Northern California, but it is still quite nice. My favorite area of America is the Mid-west. Middle America, I think, is home to the true American sense of values. In addition, there are many good universities there. Also, you need to think about your likes and dislikes and then research the various states. You like sunshine and hate snow? Then you probably won't like the Midwest or even the Northeast. Open space, nature and peace? Then you probably should stay away from America's large cities. Are you interested in government? Then Washington D. C. is the only place for you. Whatever you decide, put some thought into it. The place you live in could be the difference between a great study-abroad experience and a state of great suffering on earth. What, according to the author, should be considered first if you want to study in the USA? Answer: Mr. John and Mr. Brown work in the same office. One day Mr. John says to Mr. Brown, "I will have a small party in our house on Monday evening. Would you and your wife like to come?" Mr. Brown says, "Thank you very much. I'd love to, but let me ask my wife first." So Mr. Brown goes to the other room and telephones his wife. Then he comes back and looks very worried. "What's the matter?" asks Mr. John. "Is your wife there at home?" "No," answers Mr. Brown. "She isn't there. My small son answers the telephone. I say to him, 'Is your mother there, David?' and he answers 'No, she isn't in the house. ''Where is she?' I ask, 'She is somewhere outside.' 'What's she doing?' 'She is looking for me.'" ,. _ will have a small party at home on Monday evening. Answer: Time flies. Your time in junior high school will come to an end in a few months. Let's look back over the last three years. What were the highs and lows? For Zhang Xiaomeng, a senior high school girl from Jiangsu, meeting her best friend Hua Xuan was the best part of her time at junior high school. They went to class together, had lunch together, and even went to the washroom together. Having one or two best friends is important, said Xu Zheng, a teacher from Jiangsu. "Students have secrets. They don't want to tell their parents,"Xu added. However, being too rebellious in junior high is the biggest _ for Liu Anqing, a senior high school student from Fujian. "I didn't listen to my parents. I quarreled with my mother every week," said Liu. "I wish I could go back to that time and get on well with them." Time also needs to be taken care of. Zhang Zihua, 15, from Shanxi, thought he had plenty of time to prepare for the big exam at the end of Junior 3. Then one day, he was told: "The exam is in 100 days." "We need a strong knowledge base to pass the exam. But I didn't care about it," said Zhang. Gu Xiaoli, a teacher from Jiangsu, said that it's never too late to catch up. "No matter your regrets about wasted time, you can always pick things up from now," said Gu. How many students shared their ideas in the passage? Answer:
Question: Until a few months ago, he was a butler in one of the more expensive residential buildings in Manhattan. But now, Nepal-born Indra Tamang is the owner of two multi-million dollar apartments in the same building. The former owner - his former employer, Ruth Ford - died last year and left the apartments to Mr Tamang in her will. Mr Tamang is happy but quickly points out that his good fortune did not come easily. "I am happy and have been touched by the generosity of the Ford family," he says. "I never expected that I will be given the ownership of these apartments. But I have been working for the family for the last 36 years, devotedly, with honesty and dedication . So my hard work has been rewarded." Mr Tamang was 21 when he was brought from Nepal by Charles Ford, a writer and a photographer. Mr Ford died in 2002; his sister, actress Ruth Ford, then took charge and told Mr Tamang that he was like a brother to her after Charles's death. Mrs Ford died aged 98. During the last five years of her life, she lost her eyesight and also developed speech problems. Mr Tamang looked after her most of the time and took care of her medicines and food. He also worked with Charles Ford on various photography projects, which he now wants to keep as the photographer's legacy . He hopes to organize exhibitions of Mr Ford's photographs and edit a book of his works. Mr Tamang plans to sell the bigger, three-bedroom apartment to pay the taxes he owes to the government on his legacy. He says: "The rules of the building might be a problem, as they require a minimum monthly income to qualify to live as owner of apartments. I have my small house here but I am happy with it," Mr Tamang has learnt his lesson from the life of his employers and plans to use his money with great caution. "I think one should save money for old age. That's when you need it the most to get care," he says. What lesson does Mr Tamang learn from the Ford family? A. To find a good butler. B. To spend money thoughtfully. C. To save money for children. D. To get good care when people get old. Answer: B. To spend money thoughtfully. Question: Congress passes an act requiring that all owners of bicycles in the United States register them with a federal bicycle registry. The purpose of the law is to provide reliable evidence of ownership to reduce bicycle theft. No fee is charged for the registration. Although most stolen bicycles are kept or resold by the thieves in the same cities in which the bicycles were stolen, an increasing number of bicycles are being taken to cities in other states for resale. Is this act of Congress constitutional? A. Yes, because Congress has the power to regulate property for the general welfare. B. Yes, because Congress could determine that in inseverable aggregates bicycle thefts affect interstate commerce. C. No, because most stolen bicycles remain within the state in which they were stolen. D. No, because the registration of vehicles is a matter reserved to the states by the Tenth Amendment Answer: B. Yes, because Congress could determine that in inseverable aggregates bicycle thefts affect interstate commerce. Question: Having an exercise plan is important, but you should always ask your doctor for advice before starting it. Keep in mind that you can have too much of a good thing: overexercising and exercising in a wrong way can hurt your body. The following suggestions can help you avoid this. Warm up before exercise. This helps to prepare your body for activities. It's especially important in the morning. Cool down after exercise. Rather than stop immediately, do a few light activities to avoid aches and pains later. Exercise with your limits . Build up slowly. Never try to exercise when you feel painful. If you don't listen to your body, you will hurt yourself. Avoid being thirsty. Water is important to keep your normal temperature during exercise and prevent tiredness. Wear sports shoes. These shoes can keep your feet safe and prevent you from being hurt. The writer gives us _ suggestions in the passage. A. three B. four C. five D. six Answer: C. five Question: In the past few decades, Japanese cuisine has acquired global appeal. Japanese restaurants have sprung up almost all over the world. In Kyoto, the Heihachi Tea House boasts a 430-year-old tradition that the owners have kept all in the family. The tea house has been operated by twenty generations of the Sonobe family. The Heihachi Tea House, in the northern part of Kyoto, is one of the city's oldest business establishments. It is said to have opened in 1576. The present owner, Sonobe Heihachi, who is also the chef, represents the 20th generation of the Sonobe family to oversee the tea house. Sonobe Heihachi, restaurant owner, said, "During the middle of the Edo era, from 1603 to 1868, it became customary for commoners to dine in mat rooms. The Heihachi Tea House specialized in a dish comprised of rice with barley . It then became an inn and a little later, a restaurant." Like every other chef, Sonobe Heihachi's day often begins at the market where he personally selects ingredients that will be served to his customers. The restaurant specializes in a style of cuisine known as Kaiseki Ryori--possibly the ultimate in Japanese cooking. It offers both fresh and ocean fishes on its menu, including bream and eels. The owner's son Sonobe Shingo is also an accomplished chef. His skills include the elaborate cutting of a "daikon" radish into strips. Later they will be shredded into thin strands to form part of the garnish for sashimi. Sonobe Shingo admits that when it comes to the small details of running the business, father and son have different ways of thinking. Sometimes they clash. But they share a passion for what they do and continue to preserve an innovative and deeply rooted culinary tradition. We can infer from this passage that Shingo differs with his father _ . A. on the small details of running the Heihachi Tea House B. on the main menu of the Heihachi Tea House C. on the ingredients served to the customers D. on the passion of running the business Answer: A. on the small details of running the Heihachi Tea House Question: China is the first developing country to host the Olympic Games in modern Olympic history. It hopes to learn from other countries that have held Olympic Games. As well as new buildings, the government wants more people to work in all the services in Beijing. There are a lot more people in the city, because of all the visitors to the Olympics. The city also need more places to eat and drink, because visitors eat out a lot. The government says the Beijing Olympics are "green", "hi-tech" , and "the People's Olympics". They want everyone to feel part of the Olympics. So the Chinese people have prepared for the Olympics too. Many people learn English to work as guides in 2008. The Beijing organizers make sure everything that is built for the Olympics can be used after the Games are over. So the Chinese people work for the Olympics and they can benefit from the Olympics too. When the Olympics are over, the people of Beijing can use the swimming pools and other Olympics sports centers. The new buildings for the Olympic can _ . A. be used by the people after the Olympic Games B. be closed after the Olympic Games C. be only reopened when the next Olympic Games come D. be destroyed Answer: A. be used by the people after the Olympic Games
Even if we have an extremely healthy diet and lifestyle, the human body is programmed to wear out at a maximum of about 120 years, and usually less. We all have a biological clock inside us which determines the moment when our organs cease to function properly. This is because our cells have stopped renewing themselves and our body can no longer repair itself. This is also the moment when we are more likely to begin to suffer from the diseases of old age such as arthritis and Alzheimer's. However, rapid advances in DNA research are beginning to throw light on the secrets of the ageing process. By the end of this century we could literally have the power of life over death. Although it has long been accepted that humans have a fixed lifespan, it is also a fact that certain other organisms, such as reptiles and amphibians, appear to _ . The only reason we do not see 500-year-old alligators is because in the wild their lives are always in danger, from man, from pollution and from other animals. When they are kept in zoos they do not seem to age at all after they are fully grown. The same is true of some species of fish, which grow indefinitely and show no signs of ageing. The existence of animals with no fixed lifespan seems to indicate that an age gene really does exist. It is this gene which scientists are searching for, which may delay or repair damage to the body caused by ageing. Another new area of research involves the oxidation theory, which says that ageing is caused by the same process that makes iron rust. In controlled experiments, the lifespans of certain animals were shown to be lengthened with anti-oxidants; for example, the lifespan of mice can be increased by 30%. Antioxidants are already being used in face creams and other cosmetics, and they are likely to play an important part in keeping people physically young. Perhaps the most immediate advance we are likely to see in the battle to halt the ageing process will be organ replacement. By the year 2020 it is likely that we will be replacing injured bones or even organs like livers and kidneys with ones "grown" in laboratories. By 2050 perhaps every organ in the body, except the brain, will have become commercially available. Recent experiments also show that it may one day be possible to "grow" new organs inside our body to replace worn-out ones, something which lizards and alligators already do. Suddenly immortality(,) seems within reach. We can begin to imagine a future where we are born, we grow to maturity, but we never grow old and die. But do we really want to live forever? By saying "But do we really want to live forever", the author may probably mean _ . Answer: Good relationships are definitely good sources of happiness in life. We all want happy relationships but if we do not keep that relationship alive, it can also be one of the most distraught things in life. There may be no hard and fast rules in making good relationships, as each of us has different preferences and points of view as to what is a great relationship. The following are some major key points in making relationships work. It is often said that building good relationships is all about communication. Good communication indeed governs a good relationship -- knowing the right thing to say, when to say it, how to say it, and accepting that some things are better left unsaid. I personally think communication must be broadened because relationships involve more decisions to make. From study to work, from money to entertainment and even in things about yourself or about your friend that you do not know, communication is essential in these aspects of the relationships. Of course, being with someone is not saying that you totally agree with him all the time. You and your friend come from different family backgrounds, raised in different environments so there may be disagreements here and there. However, it is important in making relationships work to express disagreements without pushing the relationship to end. Again, good communication and learning to compromise at times are necessary. As the relationship lasts longer, you may also discover things about you and your friend that you may not have known before. Therefore, supporting each other on both your "hidden selves" can also make a good relationship. Love is an important aspect of building relationships and for me, I always believe that love needs open communication, respect, support and understanding each other in making relationships work. To communicate well with people, you should know that _ . Answer: Directions:Read the following three passages.Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements.For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D.Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage you have just read. Death is a serious theme worthy of great poets.For example, John Keats's 'When I Have Fears That I May Cease to Be' and John Donne's 'Death, Be Not Proud' both discuss death in reflective ways.However, the imagery in these poems shows that while Keats believes that death can only destroy, Donne believes that death can be overcome. Keats is afraid of death, because to him death means the loss of those things that make his life worth living: 'On the shore/ of the wide world I stand alone, and think/ Till Love and Fame to nothingness do sink.' Earlier in the poem, Keats says that he hopes this 'Love' will be a 'high romance' with a 'fair creature.' He also says that he hopes the 'Fame' he seeks will be the result of the 'high piled books' produced by his 'crowded brain.' In other words, Keats's fear is that death is a 'nothingness' that will arrive before he can finish his life's work or find his true love. Donne has a different attitude toward death, and so the imagery in his poem is different, too.To Donne, death should 'be not proud,' because it is not 'mighty and dreadful.' Unlike Keats, Donne sees death as weak and merely a 'slave to Fate, chance, kings, and desperate men.' He also says that death is like 'rest and sleep'.Donne believes that we will all wake from the sleep of death to everlasting life, just as we wake from our normal sleep to our everyday lives.In fact, Donne believes that it is death itself that will die: 'One short sleep past, we wake forever,/ And Death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.' Keats and Donne both know that death is a prat of life, and both poets use powerful imagery to talk about that difficult theme.The differences in this imagery show two very different attitudes toward the subject, one of which is much more positive than the other.Which poet to believe is up to the reader to decide. Not surprisingly, the readers' own experiences may play a part in the way they respond to these poets' approaches.Like the two poets and their beliefs, contemporary readers also may be divided on the subject.This may explain why Keats's and Donne's poetry remains fascinating years after their won deaths. In Donne's poems he believes that death is _ . Answer: Once there was an old man in a town. He always forgot a lot of things. So his wifealways had to say to him, " Don't forget this !" One day he went on a long trip alone. Before he left home, his wife said, " Now you have all these things. They are what you need for your trip. Take care of your things during the trip." He went to the station, bought a ticket and got on the train with it.. About half an hour later, the conductor began to see the tickets. He came to the old man and said, " Will you please show me your ticket ? " The old man looked for his ticket in all his pockets, but he could not find it. He was very worried. " I can not find my ticket. I really bought a ticket before I got on the train, " said the old man. " I believe you bought a ticket. All right, you do not have to buy another one." Said the conductor kindly. " But how can I know where I'm going ? I can not remember my station!" the old man said sadly. Where is the ticket ? Answer: "BANG !" the door caused a reverberation . It was just standing there, with father standing on one side, and I on the other side. We were both in great anger. "Never set foot in this house again!" stormed father. With tears welling up in my eyes, I rushed out of the flat and ran along the street. The street lights were shining, causing rather sad feelings. I walked aimlessly. A young father who held a child in his arms walked past me. I felt as if I saw my childhood from another space: happy and carefree. But now ... I don't know whether it is because I have grown up or because dad is getting old. We differ in our ways of thinking. He always puts his opinions of behavior on me. Whenever I do something wrong, he never turns a blind eye to it. We are just like two people coming from two different worlds. It feels like there is an iron door between us that can never be opened. I walked aimlessly on the streets, without an exact place in mind. My heart was frozen on this hot summer night. As I walked on there were fewer and fewer people on the streets, until I had only the street lights to be with me. When I finally reached the high-rise apartment block in which I lived. I saw that all the lights were off except the father's. I thought to myself: "Is father waiting for me, or is he still angry with me?" "Am I wrong?" I whispered, maybe... With the key in hand, I was as nervous as I had ever been. At last, I decided to open the door. As soon as I opened the door tears ran down my cheeks. I suddenly realized that there was no iron door between us at all. Love - it's second to none. What conclusion can you come to after reading the passage? Answer:
Cooking a burger on a grill does what to the burger? Some people do not like anything to be out of place; they are never late for work; they return their books to the library on time; they remember people's birthdays; and they pay their bills as soon as they arrive. Mr. Dodds is such a person . Mr. Dodds works in a bank, and lives on his own. The only family he has is in the next town :his sister lives there with her husband, and her son, Mark, Mr. Dodds does not see his sister, or her family, from one year to the next, but he sends them Christmas cards, and he has not forgotten one of Mark's seventeen birthdays. Last week Mr. Dodds had quite a surprise. He drove home from the bank at the usual time, driving neither too slowly nor too fast. He parked his car where he always parked it, out of the way of other cars, and he went inside to make his evening meal. Straight away, there was a knock at the door. Mr Dodds opened the door to find a policeman standing on the door-step . "What have I done wrong ?" Mr. Dodds asked himself . "Have I driven on the wrong side of the road? Has there been some trouble at the bank? Have I forgotten to pay an important bill?" "Hello, Uncle ," said the policeman," My name is Mark." He has not forgotten one of Mark's seventeen birthdays means _ . There are two basic ways to see growth: one as a product, the other as a process. People have generally viewed personal growth as a result or product that can easily be identified and measured. The worker who gets a rise, the student whose grades improve, the foreigner who learns a new language--all these are examples of people who have measurable results to show for their efforts. By contrast, the process of personal growth is much more difficult to determine, since it is a journey and not the specific signposts or landmarks along the way. The process is not the road itself, but rather the attitudes and feelings people have, their caution or courage, as they meet with new experiences and unexpected obstacles . In this process, the journey never really ends; there are always new ways to experience the world, new ideas to try, new challenges to accept. In order to grow, to travel new roads, people need to have a willingness to take risks, to face the unknown, and to accept the possibility that they may "fail" at first. How we see ourselves as we try a new way of being is extremely important to our ability to grow. Do we notice ourselves as quick and curious? If so, then we tend to take more chances and to be more open to unfamiliar experiences. Do we think we're shy and indecisive? Then our sense of fear can cause us to hesitate, to move slowly, and we think we're slow to adapt to change or that we're not smart enough to deal with a new challenge. Then we are likely to take a more passive role or not try at all. These feelings of insecurity and self-doubt are both unavoidable and necessary if we are to change and grow. If we protect ourselves too much, then we stop growing. We become trapped inside a shell of our own making. How do you understand the last sentence of this passage? Some people don't like the number 13. They don't think 13 is a _ or good number. For example , they don't like to live on the 13th floor . My friend Mary is one of them. She asks some friends to her home. All of her friends get to her home. They sit at the table. Then Mary counts, "One, two, three ...oh, my God! There are thirteen people here!" Everybody's face turns white, but Mr. Brown doesn't. He says, "Don't worry , dear friends! We have fourteen people here. My wife will have a baby next week. _ is in the family way now. " All of them become happy again. "Congratulations !" they say to Mr. and Mrs. Brown. They enjoy the nice food and have a good time this evening. Who will have a baby next week? Making lists is relaxing. It dictates the shape of the immediate future; it calms you down (it's OK, it's on a list somewhere) and it makes you feel good when you cross something off List-making is standard practice in therapy for depression). It might even help you to get things done too. The more you have to do, the more you need a list and few people with high-powered jobs get by without them. Women always think they're better at lists than men. Men tend to have tasks which they assemble 'into Action Plans whereas women just have lists of Things To Do. James Oliver, psychologist, has created his own "time management matrix ". He writes a list of things to do and then organizes them into _ : things that have to be done straight away, other things that it would be good to do today, things that are important but haven't got to be done immediately and things that are less urgent but that he doesn't want to forget. "Using categories to order the world is the way the human mind works," he says. "After that, you should divide things into levels of importance." But he also warns, "If people get too absorbed in making lists, it doesn't work. They have too many categories and lose their ability to decide which is the most important." It's all a question of what works best for you, whether it's a tidy notebook, a packet of Post-it notes or the back of your hand. Having tried all these, student Kate Rollins relies on a computerized list, which is printed out each morning. "My electronic organizer has changed my life," she says. "Up to now, I've always relied on my good memory, but now that I'm working and studying, I find I've got too much to keep in my head." So what are you waiting for? No, you're not too busy to make today the first day of your upgraded time-managed life. In fact, there's no better time than the present to begin to take increased control of your work and life. So, get out your pencil and pen and make a list. The main purpose of making lists is to _ .
Different kinds of soil conservation methods are used by farmers to protect their land from damage by farming and the forces of nature. One important form of soil conservation is the use of windbreaks. Windbreaks are barriers formed by trees and other plants with many leaves. Farmers plant them in lines around their fields. Windbreaks stop the wind from blowing soil away. They also keep the wind from destroying or damaging crops. They are very important for growing grains, such as wheat. There have been studies done on windbreaks in parts of West Africa, for example. They found that grain harvests can be twenty percent higher in fields protected by windbreaks compared to fields without such protection. However, windbreaks seem to work best when they allow a little wind to pass through. If the wall of trees and plants stops wind completely, then violent air motions will take place close to the ground. These motions will lift soil into the air where it will be blown away. For this reason, a windbreak is best if it has only sixty to eighty percent of the trees and plants needed to make a solid line. There should be at least two lines in each windbreak. One line should be large trees. The second line, right next to it, can be shorter trees and other plants with leaves. Locally grown trees and plants are best for windbreaks. When can windbreaks be most effective? Answer: Windbreaks allow a little wind to blow through. "It is obvious that China will climb up university rankings in the years to come."This statement from Phil Baty, editor of the Times Higher Education World University Rankings, lines up with China's optimism that it will produce world-class universities. But there are still difficulties to overcome, experts say. Universities from China's mainland slipped in the 2011-2012 Times' global rankings. Peking University dropped 12 places from last year to 49th, and Tsinghua University fell to 71st place. Among Asian universities, Peking is ranked No. 4 and Tsinghua No. 8. A combination of factors determines rankings -- research output, study environment, reputation and international outlook. Due to China's economic development, investment in education and research has increased, but the quality of education and research in Chinese academia seems not to have kept pace. The gauge is the number of papers published in highly respected English-language journals, so while many papers are being produced in China, it appears not all are good enough to attract international attention. Still, higher education in China is developing quickly, thanks in part to huge government investment. China spent an amount equal to 3.69 percent of GDP on education last year, according to Ministry of Finance data. China has the largest and one of the fastest growing higher education systems in the world -- 2,723 schools for 31 million students. Enrollment has increased more than four times from 2001 to 2011. All the following are factors that determine a university's ranking EXCEPT _ . Answer: the number of its graduates Long long ago, the colours of the world started to quarrel. Green said, "Clearly I am the most important. I am the sign of life and hope. Without me, all animals would die." Blue said, "You only think about the earth instead of the sky and the sea. Without my peace, you would all be nothing. " Yellow laughed, "You are all so serious. I bring fun and warmth into the world. " Orange shouted, "1 am the colour of health and strength. I am the most important for I serve the needs of people' s life. " Red shouted out, "I am the most important of all. I am the colour of danger, bravery and love. I am brave to fight for truth. " Then Purple and Indigo came... The colours went on quarrelling, each saying he or she was the most important. Their quarrelling became louder and louder. Suddenly it thundered and rained hard. The colours felt so frightened that they stopped quarrelling and got together for comfort . At this time, rain began to speak, "You foolish colours, quarrelling among yourselves, each tried to be the most important. You don' t know that you each were made for a special purpose? Join hands with each other and come to me. " Doing as they were told, the colours united and joined hands. They formed a colourful rainbow. From then on, when a good rain washes the world, a rainbow appears in the sky. They begin to appreciate each other. What does this story want to tell us? Answer: United, we can create wonders. It started as a game.Wendy and Peter were in River Park.They watched the boats in the river and visited the zoo.They played on the slides and swings.They watched the merry-go-round,but they did not have money for a ride.They ate their sandwiches at a picnic table.Suddenly Wendy jumped up. "I know what to do,"she said."Look at all that junk under the tables.Let's pick it up." So they picked up paper and empty boxes and cans.They put them in the green cans marked"Litter".Peter's dog Stoopy picked up some paper and ran away with it.Peter called him back and took it from him.Then they taught Stoopy to carry trash for them.They put it in the cans.They worked until there was no trash left on the picnic grounds. The next day their friends Mario and Andy came to the park with them.They helped to tidy the picnic grounds again.Then they ran all over the park looking for litter.They tried to see who could find the most.After that,it was a game they played every time they came to the park. One day,a man came with a camera.He watched what they were doing.He asked to take a picture for them.Then he took them all for a free ride on the merry-go-round,even Stoopy.The next day their picture was in the newspaper.It said."Five Litter Lifters at River Park".After that all their friends wanted to be litter lifters.It was the beginning of a club that was a model for others to follow. Why did Wendy and Peter go to the park at first? Answer: To have fun. Making a good job choice is almost as good as choosing a good life. So, choosing a job is one of the most important decisions to make in life. For my job, there are three important things that I will consider: The first one - that I must work in an area I like - is most important to me. Someone once said if you find a job that you enjoy, then you won't have to work another day. I would like to work in an area where I can be more creative. I would like to be the most valuable member there. All this is possible only if I like what I do. The second one is that the area of my work must lead me to solve some new and hard problems. I would like to stay in the same area for a long time. In order for this to happen, the work must provide enough problems. More than just working to live, I enjoy making a difference and trying my best for the whole progress. I would also like to be well _ for my hard work, so I can lead a comfortable life with this hard-won money. Then I can provide the best for my family. The third important thing is that I would like to work in an area that would help other people. The work in my mind is in fields such as the army, training or management. In such areas, I can help to develop the abilities of others and bring out their best. It would be a most satisfying job to help young people to become the best that they can be. When I become old, I would like to look back with a great sense of satisfaction that thousands of people have become better persons through my work. I accept the idea that no one should make a choice of a job suddenly or quickly. He should decide what he wants to be in the long run. Then, he should decide how he works towards it. He should study the proper courses, read the books and speak to knowledgeable persons in that field before making a job choice. A good choice will most probably lead to a better life. The writer considers an enjoyable job most important because _ Answer: it can make him more creative
Bean and other seed shoots are also known as sprouts . The dry bean seeds contain a store of nutrients just waiting to be released when they sprout. Under the right conditions they will germinate . As they grow, the food value of the seeds is multiplied into vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. This happens almost overnight! It is easy to grow your own sprouts, but you need to buy your seeds from supermarkets or health food stores. Seeds for planting in the garden are often powdered with chemicals, so when becoming sprouts they are not safe to eat. Try growing sprouts from a variety of beans and seeds. You will find different sprouts at different stages. Bean sprouts are best when they are about three centimeters long. Wheat and sunflower sprouts taste best when the sprouts and the seeds are of the same length. If the sunflower sprout is too long it leaves a funny stinging feeling in the throat after eating. Alfalfa sprouts are best when their small leaves are well developed. Pea and soybean sprouts are good long or short. If you leave your sprouts in filtered sunlight for a few hours, the leaves will turn green as chlorophyll is added. Eating sprouts with green leaves benefits your blood, cells, and the digestive system. From the passage we know that _ . A Long sunflower sprouts taste better than short ones B Eating too long sunflower sprouts will make you feel uncomfortable in the throat C Eating sprouts with green leaves will be harmful to your health D It takes a long time for the food value of the seeds to multiply Answer: B. Eating too long sunflower sprouts will make you feel uncomfortable in the throat Every country has its own way of cooking.Ameri can people have their own way of cooking,don't they?Most people in the United states like fast food,but if you think that American people don't 1 ike cooking,you are wrong.It's true that most Americans eat fast food for their breakfast and lunch,but they also think cooking is interesting.Parents see the importance of teaching their children how to cook,and most Americans say that home--cooked meals are the best. Americans have their own way of cooking.For example,baking is the most popular way of cooking in America.Most American families have ovens .American cooks pay attention to the balance of food.When planning a big meal,they try to cook meat,a few vegetab]es,some bread and sweet food.They also like to make the meal look beautiful.There are so many kinds of colorful foods,so the meal is healthy and look beautiful,too. _ is the most popular way of cooking jn the USA. A Baking B Cutting C Frying D Boiling Answer: A. Baking While drunken driving may be on the decline, traffic safety experts remain puzzled over how to deal with another alcohol related danger: drunken pedestrains. Pedestrians struck and killed by cars often are extremely drunk. In fact, they are intoxicated more frequently and with higher blood alcohol levels than drunken drivers who are killed in accidents, various studies have shown. Forty percent of adult pedestrians involved in fatal crashes have a blood alcohol level of at least 0.10 which by law in most states signifies intoxication compared to only 25 percent of drivers in deadly accidents, according to recent federal data. Some types of pedestrain accidents have been declining nationally, especially those involving children, but the number of adult pedestrians who are drunk when killed in traffic has remained ly steady at 2500 a year. The total number of pedestrians killed annually in U.S. traffic accidents is at least 7000, or one of every seven highway accidents resulting in death. "We're dealing here, we think, with a very severe drinking problem that leads to a severe highway safety problem," said Richard Blomberg, president of Dunlap and Associates Inc, in Norwalk, Coon. w.w.^w.k.&s.5*u.c.#om.... Blomberg, whose consulting company found a very high rate of alcohol involvement in a controlled study of pedestrian accidents in New Orleans, was among several researchers who spoke on the topic at the annual meeting of the Research council's Transportation Research Board(TRB) in Washington in January. Pedestrian accidents have not received enough attention in the past, according to Kay Colpitts, who chairs the board's committee on pedestrians. Few methods exist to monitor walking habits, she said, and researchers have been mystified about how to prevent disasters. According to the passage, what is Blomberg? A A researcher. B A specialist in traffic safety. C A clerk of a consulting company. D A government official Answer: A. A researcher. On the day after Thanskgiving in the US, or Black Friday, lots of stores offer special discounts to mark the beginning of holiday shopping season. In China, a similar day falls on Nov. 11 when millions of Chinese shoppers go to Tmall.com and Taobao.com, two e-commerce websites operated by Alibaba. The 11.11 Shopping Festival, as the event is now called, is also known in China as Singles Day. The shopping festival first started in 2009 and Alibaba said it chose the date because it was easy to remember. Last year, Tmall and Taobao together produced 19.1 billion in sales on that day, according to Alibaba. This year's shopping festival kicked off with an even stronger start--sales hit 100 million yuan 55 seconds after midnight and reached 35 billion at the end of the day. The shopping spree drew the attention of China's leaders, as Premier Li Keqiang recently praised Alibaba's founder, Jack Ma, for creating a day for consumption. China is trying to lead the country's economy to a slower, more sustainable growth model based on domestic consumption instead of investment and exports. Online shopping is no doubt a growth point that will release spending potential. China had 564 million regular Internet users by the end of last year. It has surpassed the US to become the world's largest e-commerce market, with its online sales over 1 trillion US dollars (6 trillion yuan) by 2020. "The real-time nature of online consumption attracts millions of people to spend money and enjoy life. E-commerce opens a new channel for China to encourage domestic demand," Liu Yin, vice-president of the China International Electronic Commerce Center said. More importantly, it promotes employment and the logistics industry with its sales model of "online purchasing plus express delivery", he added. Convenience, choice and low prices have increased online shopping, but there are still some problems with the one-day shopping spree. Some online shops, driven by the huge profits, took this opportunity to play price tricks. They raised prices to twice those of the originals in the early October and then offered discounts on Nov 11. Many consumers, driven by the advantage they could take, just went along for the ride. "They spend lots of time online to check what to buy and are happy to get what they don't really need at a lower price," wrote Jia Ge, an Internet analyst, on his Sina weibo. What Liu Yin said is mainly about _ . A the advantages of e-commerce B the advantages of express delivery C the development of online shopping D the development of logistic industry Answer: A. the advantages of e-commerce CARDIFF, Wales Poets, singers and musicians from across the globe gathered in prefix = st1 /Walesto celebrate the tradition of storytelling. "It might seem strange that people still want to listen in the age of watching television, but this is an unusual art form whose time has come again," said David Ambrose, director of Beyond the Border, an international storytelling festival in Wales. "Some of the tales, like those Inuit from Canada, are thousands of years old. So our storytellers have come from distant lands to connect us with the distance of time," he said early this month. Two Inuit women, both in their mid 60s, are among the few remaining who can do Kntadjait, or throat singing, which has few words and much sound. Their art is governed by the cold of their surroundings, forcing them to say little but listen attentively. Ambrose started the festival in 1993, after several years of working with those reviving (coming back into use or existence) storytelling in Wales. "It came out of a group of people who wanted to reconnect with traditions, and as all the Welsh are storytellers, it was _ here." Ambrose said. Ambrose believes that the art of storytelling _ . A will be popular again B will be more popular than TV C started inWales D are in the hands of some old people Answer: A. will be popular again
This July, Wang Chen, a student from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, won the International University WEICHI Tournament 2013 in Shanghai, which saw competitors from 54 universities around the world, including Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Compared with the busy sports ground, it seems a bit dull, but Wang and his peers enjoy an intense brain workout . Wang is an amateur seventh-degree master player -- the highest degree amateur players can attain. "I had hoped to win first place, but when it came true, I couldn't believe it," says Wang. Wang began studying weichi when he was 7 years old. "I was a quiet boy and my parents thought weichi would help develop my logical thinking ability," he says. He began to attend the Chinese Rank Promotion from the age of 10. "I failed for nine years, and them I gave up. I entered university and became an amateur player," says Wang. What this hobby brings Wang is not only a sense of achievement, but also independence. He has won 10 national and international championships, which have brought the young student a handsome sum of money. When he won the national amateur competition in 2011, he received 100,000 yuan in prize money. With awards from contests, Wang covers his expenses and tuition fees all by himself. Wang is busier than most of his peers. A look at his calendar shows that he will attend competitions in Guizhou and Taiwan at the end of August, after attending an international competition only this July. But Wang admits he has little in common with his classmates. "I feel a bit lonely sometimes," he says. On campus Wang spends more time on exploring his skills. Wang now regards playing weichi as a hobby. He is the captain of the weichi team on campus, which has five members. He organizes them to research the latest formations once a week. Wang says his next project is to promote weichi among his peers on campus. "Many young people in China don't understand this kind of sports and I want to promote it," says Wang. What can we learn from this passage? A Family plays an important role in shaping world-rank players. B As long as you have the same loneliness as Wang Chen, you are sure to succeed. C Wang Chen doesn't get on well with his classmates. D Perseverance helps to make a top player. Answer: D. Perseverance helps to make a top player. Once upon a time, there were two doors in a house. One was a beautiful living room door, and the other was just a normal bathroom door. There were some naughty children in the house, and they always kicked the door. The living room door was always very angry about it and hated the children. The bathroom door didn't care too much when the children kicked him. Instead, he tried to comfort the living room door. He said, "Don't worry. It's normal. They're children, and they'll grow up soon. Before long, things will be better." One day, the living door finally lost his temper . A child kicked him, and he broke at once. The owner of the house got very angry and told the children to be careful next time. This made the living door happy. However, the owner didn't repair him; he threw him into a landfill instead. At the same time, the bathroom door took the place of the living room door. And the children treated him with greater care. The living room door realized his mistake. He shouldn't treat young children like that. He should learn to forgive others. The happiness from revenge will never last for long. _ didn't care when they children gave him a kick. A The living room door B The bathroom door C The bedroom door D The owner of the house Answer: B. The bathroom door It was New Year's Night. An aged man was standing at a window. He raised his mournful eyes towards the deep blue sky, where the stars were floating like white lilies on the surface of a clear calm lake. Then he cast them on the earth, where few more hopeless people than himself now moved towards their certain goal --- the tomb. He had already passed sixty of the stages leading to it, and he had brought from his journey nothing but errors and remorse. Now his health was poor, his mind vacant, his heart sorrowful, and his old age short of comforts. The days of his youth appeared like dreams before him, and he recalled the serious moment when his father placed him at the entrance of the two roads --- one leading to a peaceful, sunny place, covered with flowers, fruits and filled with soft, sweet songs; the other leading to a deep, dark cave, which was endless, where poison flowed instead of water and where devils and poisonous snakes hissed and crawled. He looked towards the sky and cried painfully, "O youth, return! O my father, place me once more at the entrance to life, and I'll choose the better way!" But both his father and the days of his youth had passed away. He saw the lights flowing away in the darkness. These were the days of his wasted life; he saw a star fall down from the sky and disappeared, and this was the symbol of himself. His regret, which was like a sharp arrow, struck deeply into his heart. Then he remembered his friends in his childhood, who entered on life together with him. But they had made their way to success and were now honored and happy on this New Year's Night. The clock in the high church tower struck and the sound made him remember his parents' early love for him. They had taught him and prayed to God for his good. But he chose the wrong way. With shame and grief he dared no longer look towards that heaven where his father lived. His darkened eyes were full of tears, and with a despairing effort, he burst out a cry: "Come back, my early days! Come back!" And his youth did return, for all this was only a dream which he had on New Year's Night. He was still young though his faults were real; he had not yet entered the deep, dark cave, and he was still free to walk on the road which leads to the peaceful and sunny land. Those who still wander on the entrance of life, hesitating to choose the bright road, remember that when years are passed and your feet stumble on the dark mountains, you will cry bitterly, but in vain: "O youth, return! Oh give me back my early days!" The author writes the passage mainly to _ . A encourage young people to take the right road B help the old man to pick up his confidence C describe the old man's unsuccessful experience D show his compassion for the aged man Answer: A. encourage young people to take the right road Exploit your parking space An unused parking space or garage can make money. If you live near a city center or an airport, you could make anything up to PS200 or PS300 a week. Put an advertisement for free on Letpark or Atmyhousepark. Rent a room Spare room? Not only will a lodger earn you an income, but also, thanks to the government-backed "rent a room" program, you won't have to pay any tax on the first PS4500 you make per year. Try advertising your room on Roomspare or Roommateeasy. Make money during special events Don't want a full-time lodger? Then rent on a short-term basis. If you live in the capital, renting a room out during the Olympics or other big events could bring in money. Grashpadder can advertise your space. Live on set Renting your home out as a "film set" could earn you hundreds of pounds a day, depending on the film production company and how long your home is needed. A quick search on the Internet will bring up dozens of online companies that allow you to register your home for free--but you will be charged if your home gets picked. Use your roof You need the right kind of roof, but some energy companies pay the cost of fixing solar equipment(aroundPS14,000) and let you use the energy produced for nothing. In return, they get paid for unused energy fed back into the National Grid. However, you have to sign a 25-year agreement with the supplier, which could prevent you from changing the roof. If you want to use energy free, you have to _ . A sign an agreement with the government B pay around PS14,000 for the equipment C sell the roof to some energy companies D keep the roof unchanged within 25 years Answer: D. keep the roof unchanged within 25 years Almost every machine with moving parts has wheels, yet no one knows exactly when the first wheel was invented or what it was used for. We do know, however, that they existed over 5,500 years ago in ancient Asia. The oldest known transport wheel was discovered in 2002 in Slovenia. It is over 5,100 years old. Evidence suggests that wheels for transport didn't become popular for a while, though. This could be because animals did a perfectly good job of carrying farming tools and humans around. But it could also be because of a difficult situation. While wheels need to roll on smooth surfaces, roads with smooth surfaces weren't going to be constructed until there was plenty of demand for them. Eventually, road surfaces did become smoother, but this difficult situation appeared again a few centuries later. There had been no important changes in wheel and vehicle design before the arrival of modem road design. In the mid-1700s, a Frenchman came up with a new design of road--a base layer of large stones covered with a thin layer of smaller stones. A Scotsman improved on this design in the 1820s and a strong, lasting road surface became a reality. At around the same lime, metal hubs (the central part of a wheel) came into being, followed by the pneumatic tyre in 1846. Alloy wheels were invented in 1967, sixty years after the appearance of tarmacked roads . As wheel design took off, vehicles got faster and faster. What is the passage mainly about? A The beginning of road design. B The development of transport wheels. C The history of public transport. D The invention of fast-moving vehicles. Answer: B. The development of transport wheels.
Some colors people see late at night could cause signs of clinical depression . That was the finding of a study that builds on earlier study findings. They show that individuals who live or work in low levels of light overnight can develop clinical depression. Doctors use the word "clinical depression" to describe severe form of depression. Signs may include loss of interest or pleasure in most activities, low energy levels and thoughts of death or suicide. In the new study, American investigators designed an experiment that exposed hamsters to different colors. The researchers chose hamsters because they are nocturnal, which means they sleep during the day and are active at night. The animals were separated into four groups. One group of hamsters was kept in the dark during their night-time period. Another group was placed in front of a blue light, a third group slept in front of a white light, while a fourth was put in front of a red light. After four weeks, the researchers noted how much sugary water the hamsters drank. They found that the most depressed animals drank the least amount of water. Randy Nelson heads the Department of Neuroscience at Ohio State University. He says animals that slept in blue and white light appeared to be the most depressed. "What we saw is that these animals didn't show any sleep uneasiness at all but they did mess up biological clock genes and they did show depressive sign while if they were in the dim red light, they did not." Randy Nelson notes that photosensitive cells in the eyes have little to do with eyesight. He says these cells send signals to the area of the brain that controls what has been called the natural sleep-wake cycle. He says there's a lot of blue in white light. This explains why the blue light and white light hamsters appear to be more depressed than the hamsters seeing red light or darkness. Researchers use hamsters in the experiment because _ . A. they are similar to humans in dealing with colors B. they are easy to observe and study C. they are sensitive to colors like human beings D. they are active at night and sleep during the day Answer: D Smart home applications can share all kinds of helpful information with homeowners. There appears a new housing platform which can detect the stress on electricity -- and the stress on the heart. "There is a growing population of elderly people, and there are statistics to show that more and more of them are going to live alone in the home," said Johann Siau, a senior lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire in the U.K., who was leading the InterHome project. The system was originally designed to provide remote access to a house so owners could be more energy-efficient. In a small type of the system, set-in controller devices connect securely to the Internet. The owner can then monitor them with a cell phone or computer. User feedback helps the system adapt to routines, saving on electricity. While thinking about responding to user behavior and an increasingly elderly population, the researchers decided to add wristband technology that senses important organs of the body such as body temperature and pulse, Siau said. "If someone were to fall, it would detect the fall and it would immediately start the monitor of the pulse to see if the person has gone into shock ," he said. The wristband communicates with the home system wirelessly. Data from the band can be securely transmitted to the home network and accessed by authorized users. "We're working on trying to reduce it to a level where it could potentially be a wrist-sized product," Siau said. But he warned that the technology presented new challenges. "When you start using that on a larger scale, you have issues of privacy or security," he said. Siau said the InterHome home system isn't intended to invade privacy. "We're thinking about the elderly people who are living alone with no one looking after them," he said. "Hopefully this will be able to decrease some concerns and possibly save a few lives." The system was first designed for a house owner to _ . A. keep watch on his house B. keep his house safe C. monitor the elderly people inside D. save electricity Answer: D The statistics I've cited and the living examples are all too familiar to you. But what may not be so familiar will be the increasing number of women who are looking actively for advancement of for a new job in your offices. This woman may be equipped with professional skills and perhaps valuable experience. She will not be content to be Executive Assistant to Mr. Seldom Seen of the Assistant Vice President's Girl Friday, who is the only one who comes in on Saturday. She is the symbol of what I call the Second Wave of Feminism. She is the modern woman who is determined to be. Her forerunner was the radical feminist who interpreted her trapped position as a female as oppression by the master class of men. Men, she believed, had created a domestic, servile role for women in order that men could have the career and the opportunity to participate in making the great decisions of society. Thus the radical feminist held that women through history had been oppressed and dehumanized, mainly because man chose to exploit his wife and the mother of his children. Sometimes it was deliberate exploitation and sometimes it was the innocence of never looking beneath the pretensions of life. The radical feminists found strength in banding together. Coming to recognize each other for the first time, they could explore their own identities, realize their own power, and view the male and his system as the common enemy. The first phases of feminism in the last five years often took on this militant, class-warfare tone. Betty Friedan, Gloria Steinem, Germaine Greer, and many others hammered home their ideas with a persistence that aroused and intrigued many of the brightest and most able women in the country. Consciousness-raising groups allowed women to explore both their identities and their dreams--and the two were often found in direct conflict. What is the stereotyped role of American women? Marriage. A son. Two daughters. Breakfast. Ironing. Lunch. Bowling, maybe a garden club of for the very daring, non-credit courses in ceramics. Perhaps an occasional cocktail party. Dinner. Football or baseball on TV. Each day the same. Never any growth in expectations--unless it is growth because the husband has succeeded. The inevitable question: "Is that all there is to life?" The rapid growth of many feminist organizations attests to the fact that these radical feminists had touched some vital nerves. The magazine "Ms." was born in the year of the death of the magazine "Life." But too often the consciousness-raising sessions became ends in themselves. Too often sexism reversed itself and man-hating was encouraged. Many had been with the male chauvinist. It is not difficult, therefore, to detect a trend toward moderation. Consciousness-raising increasingly is regarded as a means to independence and fulfillment, rather than a ceremony of fulfillment itself. Genuine independence can be realized through competence, through finding a career, through the use of education. Remember that for many decades the education of women was not supposed to be useful. What was the main idea of this passage? A. The Second Wave of Feminist. B. Women's Independent Spirits. C. The Unity of Women. D. The Action of Union. Answer: A The popular Disneyland has some deep, dark, and sometimes amusing secrets that you probably don't know. Read on to learn them. General Main Street By using a special method of construction , Disneyland created an effect that you don't notice until your tired family leaves the park. The next time you enter Disneyland, make note of the distance that it appears you have to travel to get to the "Partners" statue. Then look at the exit of the park from the statue. That's correct. The distance appears to be shorter entering the park than going out. The purpose was to keep guests from wanting to take the long walk out. Birthday fun If you visit Disneyland on your birthday, be sure to tell the person at the gate that it's your big day. You'll be sent to City Hall where you'll be presented with a special sticker by cast members, letting everyone know it's your birthday. You may also be able to score special items from other cast members throughout the park, so it's certainly worth a try! The music never stops. Visitors like the music and sounds in the park.. Did you know the music never stops at the park? Even when the park was closed, the music and sounds are kept on going. Some believe it cost too much for Disney to keep turning off the music and then restarting it each day. But the truth is that it helps some workers clean up after 2 a.m! Club 33 "Club 33" is the only place in Disneyland that provides guests with alcoholic beverages . Club 33 members and their guests get free entrance to Disneyland so long as they have a meal at Club 33 on the day of their visit. _ makes the distance going out of the park seem to be longer. A. The "partner'' statue B. The gate of the park C. The construction along the street D. the music in the park Answer: C The morning was cold and clear. A yellow bus came around the corner and stopped near a wood . A coach asked the students to get off the bus. Girls began to gather by the starting line. One of them is a young, little girl. She had prepared for this running race for the whole summer. She looked around at the other girls, noticing how she was different. There was a break in the silence, and everyone started to run. After about twenty-five minutes, every runner finished the race except the girl. She was still running for the next forty minutes. As she came near the finishing line, she saw her parents, classmates and the coach. They shouted her name and told her not to stop until the end. The sweat was flowing down her face. She kept on running until she crossed the line. I was that girl, and that was the first time I had finished a cross-country race . Finishing this race made me realize that I could do anything with my own strength. After that, I took more hard work to practice running. I was not a natural-born runner, but I want to become one. I continued to struggle with every run. Now I run much faster than before and become more and more confident. I am so thankful for running because it has helped make me who I am today. What can we learn from the passage? A. All good runners are natural-born. B. The writer didn't use to be so confident. C. A good coach is the most important for a runner. D. The writer is a very good runner now. Answer: B
No one goes on an adventure tour with the thought that he won't make it back alive. It is unclear what Markus Groh thought when he signed up for a late February dive that could put him face-to-face with killer Sharks--without a cage to separate him from the man-eaters. He surely didn't expect to end up dead. But the 49-year-old man from Australia died on February 24 after being bitten on the leg while swimming with the sharks in the Bahamas. Every year, thousands of people die while living life to the fullest-- battling white-water rapids (every year a great number of people go white-water rafting in states like California and Colorado), climbing the world's tallest mountain peak, or descending to the depths of the ocean. The extreme sports are dangerous and you take your chances. Diving with dangerous sharks without a cage appeals to the thrill seekers. The tour , provided by Scuba Adventurers of River Beach, Florida, promoted its dives as great shark expeditions . "To ensure the best results, we will put fish and fish parts in the water," The Scuba Adventures website stated. "Consequently, there will be food in the water at the same time. Please be aware that these are not 'caged' dives; they are open water experiences. We will have crew members in the water at all times to ensure divers' safety." Rodney Barreto, chairman of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, maintains there's no way the crew could ensure the safety of the divers. "That's not a controlled environment, " Barreto says. In 2001, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission banned the practice of fish feeding off the coast of Florida. Because the tour operator couldn't legally attract sharks with chum in Florida, Groh went to the Bahamas. Barreto says, " We are not discouraging people from going diving. We are telling them to be responsible and obey the law. One of the reasons why they went to the Bahamas was that they were doing something outside the law." What does Scuba Adventures do to make sure the divers are safe? A. They keep the sharks caged. B. They keep the divers caged. C. They feed the sharks before a dive. D. They have crew members in the water. Answer: D Have you ever wanted to stop eating something sweet but you just couldn't ? Is the first thing you do when you get home from school to look in the biscuit tin ? Can you eat a huge bar of chocolate all by yourself ? Can you say "no" to sweets at parties ? If you can't , then there is a reason...perhaps you're sugar addict ! Does that sound funny ? Well, doctors say that people who eat sweets regularly can easily become addicted to sugar .What's more, most sugar addicts don't even realize that they're addicted! Sugar addiction is serious because it can really _ your health .Doctors say that we should eat food which is healthy such as fresh fruits and vegetables, and that we shouldn't eat a lot of sugar ,fat or fast food .But sugar addicts can't follow this advice.They know they must stop eating sweet food, but they can't .So what can you do if you think you're addicted to the taste of sugar ?Well, here is some advice: Eat some fresh fruits when you really want something sweet to eat . Cut down on sweet food slowly. Don't try to stop eating it all at once. You have to tell your parents, If they know, they will help you. What can we infer from the passage? A. Fresh fruits are the best food for us. B. We shouldn't eat sugar to keep healthy. C. Parents may help you give up bad eating habits. D. It's very necessary to stop eating sweet food at once. Answer: C When Cathleen Gardiner's twins were born 17 years ago, doctors told her that they were a pair in a million. One had Down syndrome , while the other did not. Here, Cathleen tells their touching story. Since Sean was born 17 years ago, I have always thought that he is just as wonderful as his brother and sister. Though he had a disability , we have never viewed him as a burden. He has always been a blessing. The doctors explained that though they were twins, they came from two different eggs. Lisa could walk at 11 months old, while Sean didn't take his first steps till he was three. By two, Lisa was talking a lot, but Sean wasn't able to speak until he was nearly four. For the first five years of his life, Sean needed a great deal of care. Looking after him was my full-time job, though I also worked as a technical adviser in a computing company. We never treated them differently. We gave them the same toys and spoke to them in the same way. We encouraged Sean to keep up with Lisa, even though he never could, and we would help him develop his abilities. We sent them to the same primary school even after doctors advised us that Sean should go to a school for the disabled. We had to explain to Lisa that he wouldn't learn as quickly as she would. She told us that she'd help him with his school work. Having a non-disabled twin has really helped Sean develop. The love they share has given him a great deal of support. Now Sean and Lisa are both about to finish high school. I don't think he would have done nearly as well today without Lisa's help. This passage tells us that _ . A. love can do wonders B. nobody is foolish or clever C. being stupid doesn't matter D. all men are born equal Answer: A People enjoy talking about "firsts". They like to remember their first love or their first car. But not all firsts are happy ones. One of history's bad but important firsts was the first car accident. Cars were still young when it happened. The accident took place in New York City in May 1896. A man from Massachusetts was visiting the city in his new car. At that time, bicycle riders were still trying to get used to the new set of wheels on the road. No one was sure who was to blame for it. Anyway, the bike and the car hit each other hard. The man on the bike was injured. The driver of the car had to stay in jail and wait for the hospital report on the bicycle rider. Luckily, the rider was not killed. Three years later, another car accident took place. It was again in New York City. A man named Henry Bliss stepped off a streetcar . He was hit by a passing car. Once again, no one was sure just how it happened or whose fault it was. The driver of the car was put in prison. Poor Mr. Bliss became the first person to die in a car accident. The main idea of the passage is _ . A. not all firsts are happy ones B. two of the first car accidents C. two unhappy "firsts" D. bicycle riders get used to cars Answer: A Health experts have discovered that adding low-calorie vegetable soup to the start of a meal can actually help to lose weight. Because you feel full sooner, you eat less of your main course. The soup regime was tested by researchers at Pennsylvania State University, led by Dr Barbara Rolls. They found that when people ate a first course of soup before lunch they reduced their total calorie intake by 20 per cent, compared with those who did not begin the meal with soup. But those who _ creamy soups should be careful.Researchers stressed the soup must be low-calorie and based on stock , not cream. All of the soups tested in the study were made from identical ingredients - chicken stock , broccoli , potato, cauliflower and carrots. They were mixed together to create four different textures and thickness from separate stock and vegetables through to pureed soup. Scientists thought that thick soups with chunks of vegetables which required chewing might be more filling, but to their surprise they found all forms had the same effect. The findings were presented to the Experimental Biology conference in Washington, DC, and the research was part-funded by the National Institutes of Health. Which of the following can not be in the low-calorie soup? A. chicken stock B. cauliflower C. cream D. carrots Answer: C
Plants are very important living things. Life could not go if there were no plants. This is because plants can make food from air, water and sunlight. Animals and man cannot make food from air, water and sunlight. Animals get their food by eating plants and other animals. So animals and man need plants in order to live. This is why we find that there are so many plants around us. If you look carefully at the plants around you, you will find that there are two kinds of plants: flowering plants and _ plants. Flowering plants can make seeds. The seeds are protected by the fruits. Some fruits have one seed, some have two, three or four, and some have many seeds. But a few fruits have no seeds at all. An example of a fruit without seeds is the banana fruit. Most non-flowering plants don't grow from seeds. They grow from spores. Spores are so small and light that they can float in the air. We may say that spores are quite the same as the seeds. When these spores fall on wet and _ , they usually grow into new plants. In "shady" place there is _ . Answer: little sunshine Knowing the best way to study will help you to be a better student. By using your tin7eproperly, you can do your homework snore quickly. Learning to study is not difficult. The first thing to remember is that you must be willing to learn It doesn't mean that yep must always like the subject. It does mean, however, that you must be willing to do whatever is necessary to learn Try to understand why it is important and how it will help you now arid later to do and learn other things. Knowing mathematics facts will be useful in your whole life. Knowing how to spell makes any kind of writing easier. Sometimes the subject that you think is going to be uninteresting will be exciting when you begin to work at it and understand it more clearly. Learning things can be fun if you are willing to work with them Here's some advice for you; have a certain time each day and a quiet place with good lighting for study, so that you can concentrate on your study without interruptions; have eve- rything ready before you sit down to study, a dictionary, paper, a pen and books; be sure you understand what you should learn before you start;read carefully and pay special attention to the most important things;when memorizing, first find out the main parts and then recite the whole thing,check your homework after you finish it; never forget the importance of review and preview. Don't try to spend a lot of time researching learning methods. There are many students who know many good learning methods but don't study well. They forget that the most useful learning method is to study hard The first thing to remember in studying is that you must _ . Answer: enjoy learning Sulfur (S), oxygen (O2), water (H2O), and sodium chloride (NaCl) are all examples of pure substances. Which of the following describes all pure substances? Answer: A pure substance has a definite chemical composition. I think all of us should know it's necessary to have breakfast. It's one of the most important meals of the day. If you want to keep fit, you should have a good breakfast. Choosing the right food is also important. For it, you may have bread, eggs and milk. But in fact, many students go to school without breakfast. This does harm to their health. Maybe they say they have no time because it's too late or their parents are too busy to prepare breakfast for them. What will happen to the students on an empty stomach ? Because of no energy, they can't keep active. They may not grow fast. When they feel hungry, they are not able to study well and they have no energy to play well, either. What's worse , they will spend more time getting better once they fall ill. Therefore , we shouldn't go to school without breakfast, no matter what reason it is. What is one of the most important meals of the day? Answer: Breakfast. It is a matter of common observation that although incomes keep going up over the years,people never seem to become much better off! Prices are rising continuously.The condition is termed one kind 0f inflation, the money supply is becoming inflated so that each unit of it becomes less valuable.People have got used in recent years to higher and higher rates of inflation. What could be bought ten years ago for one dollar now costs well over two dollars. It seems that this rate of inflation is tending to rise rather than to fall.If in the real world our money incomes go up at the same rate as prices,one might think that inflation does not matter.But it does when money is losing value,it lacks one of the qualities of a good money---stability of value.It is no longer acceptable as a store of value;and it becomes an unsuitable standard of deferred payments.Nobody wants to hold a wasting possession,so people try to get rid of money as quickly as possible. Inflation therefore stimulates people spending,and prevents people from saving. From the passage.we can know inflation _ . Answer: is very common at present
At present we will explain a very old saying that has had a great effect on rock-and-roll music. That saying is "A rolling stone gathers no moss ".It has several meanings. One meaning is that a person who never settles down in one place will not be successful. Another is that someone who is always moving, with no roots in one place, avoids responsibilities. This proverb was said to be first used in the 1500s. But in the 1960s, the expression "rolling stone" became famous in the world of rock-and-roll music. It became the name of a song, a rock group and a magazine. Experts say it all started with a song by the American singer and guitarist Muddy Waters. He was one of the country's top blues musicians until his death in 1983. His music influenced singers like Elvis Presley and Bob Dylan. In 1950, Muddy Waters recorded a song called "Rolling Stone". A British rock group is said to have taken its name from Muddy Waters' song. The Rolling Stones performed for the first time in 1962.The group's members called themselves "the world's greatest rock-and-roll band". In 1965, Bob Dylan released his song "Like a Rolling Stone".It is one of his best known and most influential works. It is an angry song about a woman who was once rich and successful. But now she is on her own, "with no direction home, like a complete unknown, like a rolling stone". In 1967, a young man named Jann Wenner started a magazine and he named it "Rolling Stone". The magazine reported on rock music and the popular culture that the music created. By 1971, "Rolling Stone" had become the leading rock music and counterculture publication. It is still popular today. All of them are musicians except _ . Jann Wenner Our site specializes in European cycling tours, Bike & Boat Tours, Road Bike Tours and now River Cruises throughout Europe, Asia, and the Americas. We take great pride in offering you the best services and in providing you with a vacation that will be fondly remembered. Whether it is a European bike tour, river cruise, or one of many other cycling vacations, our staff will do everything to plan your dream holiday. Our bike tour prices are the lowest on the market and we've managed to keep them that way without sacrificing quality. We hope you'll let us take you on one of our many European cycling tours and now river cruise adventures! Bike & Boat Trips We have perhaps the largest online catalogue of well-established European bike and boat tours and sailing holidays. Luxury Boat Tours Take a Bike & Boat cycle tour on a luxury ship! A cycling tour in Europe with a beautiful boat by your side is not to be missed. Bike Europe and Beyond Bicycle touring in Europe and beyond -- cycle your next vacation almost anywhere in Europe from our carefully chosen catalogue of bike tours. Recently we have also added a few American bike tours as well as bike tours in Vietnam. Whether you cycle Europe with a standard bicycle or an e-bike (electrically assisted bicycle), one of our cycling tours is bound to be right for you. Road Bike Tours Cycle Europe and experience one of our great new European road bike tours! These cycle tours in Europe (and now one is in the New Zealand) are intended for the more experienced cyclist that is not afraid of the long distances through extremely beautiful countryside. River Cruises We now offer river cruises throughout the world's most famous waterways. Whether it is a European river or a river cruise in China, one of our cruises is certain to attract you. Which of the following require(s) certain cycling experience? Road Bike Tours. As we all know, Stephen Hawking writes the book A Brief History of Time that explains the origin of the universe. The book spent 147 weeks on the New York Times Best Seller List and has sold 10 million copies. He is, most agree, very smart. In his recently published autobiography My Brief History,Hawking offers four life lessons on how to become a genius. 1) Don' t miss opportunities by being too cool "We showed an air of complete boredom and the feeling that nothing was worth making an effort for. One result of my illness has been to change all that. When you are faced with the possibility of an early death, it makes you realize that life is worth living and that there are lots of things you want to do." Seize the moment, as Oxford would say. 2) Keep it simple When writing A Brief History of Time,he tried to make science understandable for the rest of Us. "I was sure that nearly everyone is interested in how the universe operates, but most people cannot follow mathematical equations . "He has trouble with them, too."This is partly because it is difficult for me to write them down, but mainly because I don't have an inborn feeling for equations. My aim in the book was to describe these mental images in words. It is such an easy book that everybody can understand it." The moral: You don't have to be a genius to know everything. 3)Have fun Hawking has a long history of being a joker,and he has placed lots of bets with other scientists on the nature of black holes. One was with Cal-Tech scientist John Preskill. After paying off his bet by giving Preskill a baseball encyclopedia, Hawking wrote,"but maybe I should have just given him the ashes." So lighten up! Geniuses like bad jokes too. 4) Always look for a silver lining (even if you are seriously ill) Hawking's disease has slowly robbed him of the ability to walk,move his arms,even speak. But, Hawking says,"in some ways I guess my disability has been an assist:I haven't had to lecture or teach students, and I haven't had to sit in meetings. So I have been able to devote myself completely to research."In other words, Hawking was given lemons, and he made Champagne. According to the passage,which of the following statements is guiding you to be a genius? Find something good even in bad situations. August was one of the nastiest months I can remember: torrential rain; a hailstorm or two; cold, bitter winds; and mists. But we are accustomed to such weather in England. Lord Byron used to say that an English summer begins on July 31 and ends on Aug. 1. He called 1816 "the year without a summer." He spent it gazing across Lake Geneva, watching the storms, with 18-year-old Mary Shelley. The lightening flickering across the lake inspired her Frankenstein, the tale of the man-made monster galvanized into life by electricity. This summer's atrocious weather tempted me to tease a Green whom I know. "Well, what about your weather theory now?" (One of the characteristics of Greens is that they know no history.) He replied: "Yes, this weather is unprecedented. England has never had such an August before. It's global warming, of course." That's the Greens' stock response to anything weather-related. Too much sun? "Global warming." Too little sun? "Global warming." Drought? "Global warming." Floods? "Global warming." Freezing cold? "Global warming." I wish the great philosopher Sir Karl Popper were alive to _ the unscientific nature of global warming. He was a student when Albert Einstein's General Theory of Relativity was first published and then successfully tested. Einstein said that for his theory to be valid it would have to pass three tests. "If," Einstein wrote to British scientist Sir Arthur Eddington, "it were proved that this effect does not exist in nature, then the whole theory would have to be abandoned." The idea that human beings have changed and are changing the basic climate system of the Earth through their industrial activities and burning of fossil fuels--the essence of the Greens' theory of global warming--has not much basis in science. Global warming, like Marxism, is a political theory of actions, demanding compliance with its rules. Those who buy in to global warming wish to drastically curb human economic and industrial activities, regardless of the consequences for people, especially the poor. If the theory's conclusions are accepted and agreed upon, the destructive results will be felt most severely in those states that adhere to the rule of law and will observe restrictions most faithfully. The global warming activists' target is the U.S. If America is driven to accept crippling restraints on its economy it will rapidly become unable to shoulder its burdens as the world's sole superpower and ultimate defender of human freedoms. We shall all suffer, however, as progress falters and then ceases and living standards decline. Which person(s), in the writer's eyes, is the one he agrees with? Sir Karl Popper Do you know of anyone who uses the truth to deceive ? When someone tells you something that is true, but leaves out important information that should be included, he can give you a false picture. For example, some might say, "I just won a hundred dollars on the lottery . It was great. I took that dollar ticket back to the store and turned it in for one hundred dollars!" This guy's a winner, right? Maybe, maybe not. We then discover that he bought $200 worth of tickets, and only one was a winner. He's really a big loser! www. .com He didn't say anything that was false, but he left out important information on purpose. That's called a half-truth. Half-truths are not technically lies, but they are just as dishonest. Some politicians often use this trick. Let's say that during Governor Smith's last term, her state lost one million jobs and gained three million jobs. Then she seeked another term. One of her opponents said, "During Governor Smith's term, the state lost one million jobs!" That's true. However, an honest statement would have been, "During Governor Smith's term, the state had a net gain of two million jobs." Advertisers will sometimes use half-truths. It's against the law to make false statements so they try to mislead you with the truth. An advertisement might say, "Nine out of ten doctors advised their patients to take Yucky Pills to cure toothache." It fails to mention that they only asked ten doctors and nine of them work for the Yucky Company. This kind of deception happens too often. Lies are lies, and sometimes the truth can lie as well, which is a sad fact of life. What can we know from the example of the Yucky Pill advertisement? Half-truths are often used to mislead people.
You can find language pollution whenever you open a newspaper or turn on your TV set, listen to a popular song at various advertisements. Language pollution exists almost everywhere and can be seen in the following places; 1. Chinese character are written in the complex form. Although simplified Chinese characters were accepted for use many years ago, it seems that more and more people like Chinese characters written in the complex form. 2. Many goods are produced in China but carry foreign names, which sound strange and have no meaning at all. 3. Words and expressions being used have a bad meaning. "Ba" , which means bully in Chinese, is one example. Now there are a lot of goods, restaurants, even factories or firms, with "Ba" in their names. 4. There are too many incorrect grammatical expressions. Some films have strange names and incorrect grammatical structures . "Ai ni mei shang liang", which means "I love you without consulting", is grammatically incorrect and this kind of expression is now becoming popular. Some language experts point out that language pollution must be _ which is an idea shared by many others and myself. .The writer of the passage suggests that _ . something be done to make our language pure We have seen that humor and laughter positively influence our body in many ways, but little research has been done on whether a better sense of humor actually helps keep you from getting sick. However, since people with a better sense of humor have higher IgA levels, and since research has shown that those with higher levels of salivary IgA are less likely to get colds or be infected with Streptococcus, humor should reduce the frequency of colds. The only study to directly examine this question found that the impact of one's sense of humor upon colds depends on the kind of sense of humor you have. It was only individuals whose sense of humor took the form of seeking out and appreciating humor who had fewer and less severe colds/flu than their low humor counterparts. Surprisingly, those whose sense of humor took the form of initiating humor more often did not have fewer or less severe colds/flu. The researchers argued that being a person who likes to tell jokes or otherwise initiate humor takes them into more frequent contact with other people, which serves to expose them to infectious agents more often, robbing them of the advantage that a more active sense of humor otherwise offers. Obviously, more research is required to clear up this confusing picture. The importance of active use of one's sense of humor in producing humor's health benefits was confirmed in another study in an unusual way. It found that among a group of mothers with newborn infants, those who actively used humor to cope with the stress in their lives had fewer upper respiratory infections and their infants also had fewer infections. This seemed to be because these mothers had higher levels of immunoglobulin A (A) in their breast milk. Among adults, if we look at bodily symptoms alone, independent of any diagnosed illness, there is some evidence that individuals who have more negative reactions to humor report more bodily symptoms and complaints. Students complaining of cardiovascular symptoms and gastroenterological symptoms also have been shown to have this more negative reaction to humor. According to the passage, IgA is _ . enzyme On the second day of the World Internet Conference themed with cybersecurity and international cooperation held in Wuzhen, an official with China's network emergency watchdog said that 6,118 domestic websites have been controlled by the United States, according to Shanghai Securities News. Among the hacked websites in the first half of this year, 48.8 percent were under the thumb of overseas IP addresses, said Huang Chengqing, director-general of the National Computer Network Emergency Response Technical Team and Coordination Center (CNERT/CC). He added that the US contributed the most, followed by Hong Kong, which controlled 3,097, and South Korea with 2,307. Among the overseas IP addresses inserting backdoor programs in domestic websites, the US accounted for 29.3 percent, South Korea for 6 percent and Hong Kong for 5 percent, he said. In addition, 4.9 percent of government websites have been attacked, and 3.2 percent inserted with backdoor programs. Huang also said that the number of Chinese computers affected by Trojan Horse viruses reached 190,000 in the six-month period. To safeguard cybersecurity, the CNERT/CC has cooperated with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and built relationships with 59 countries and 127 organizations. Over the past two years, the center dealt with more than 15,000 cross-border online security cases. What should we do to safeguard cybersecurity? Strengthen the cooperation with other countries and organizations. On 23rd December, 2013, Michael Schumacher -- the famous Formula-One race car driver -- received serious brain injuries after hitting his head on a rock while downhill skiing with his son. The accident happened during a family holiday in the French Alps. Although he was wearing a helmet, which broke apart on impact, the F1 celebrity was moving at speeds of up to 62 mph and skiing outside the off-piste safety demarcations . Doctors reported that he would have died on impact if he hadn't been wearing a helmet. He has been in a coma since arriving at a nearby hospital where he was airlifted to from the site of the accident. Michael Schumacher grew up in frugal conditions and started what would become his remarkable professional career when his working class father -- a bricklayer -- built him a _ from where he started participating in competitions. He started his adult career racing for Formula Ford in 1988 and later raced for Formula One Ford, Ferrari, and Mercedes AMG. He holds numerous F1 world records including most race victories, fastest laps, and most races won in a single season. According to the Formula One website, he is "statistically the greatest driver the sport has ever seen". Also notable are his contributions to charity, during the peak of his career he has given away more than 50 million Euros to a variety of charity organizations, most to help children around the world. Millions of Europeans and other fans around the world are holding their breath and waiting for information about his hopeful recovery. We wish him and his family the best. From the passage we can learn that Michael Schumacher _ . came from humble origins to become the greatest F1 driver ever This Thursday, across the USA, kids are skipping school and going to work with their parents. They'll be making copies, sending faxes and sweeping floors. This is because April 28 is Take Our Sons and Daughters to Work Day all over the USA. This holiday shows kids what it means to be a grown-up in the working world. I still remember when this day started, I was very happy. Not only did I have the chance to miss school, but I also got to sit in my dad's taxi all day long and we would go to a restaurant for lunch. But after only 20 minutes of driving around the city, I was very bored. couldn't read my book in the car as I would get carsick and my dad didn't like to turn on the radio. I got hot and uncomfortable. People wouldn't get into his taxi because they thought he already had a passenger-me, so nothing happened. It seemed years before we went out for lunch. I actually started to miss school. While the point of the day is to give kids a chance to experience real-life jobs and give them an idea of the possibilities for their futures, I got something completely different from the day. I learned to appreciate school. Where else do you get to play with your friends, do science experiments, read great books and write stories all in one day? Just as you'll have to learn to love your job later in life, learn to love school now. If you don't already, try spending the day at work with your dad. When is 'Take Our Sons and Daughters to Work Day' all over the USA? On April 28.
Even facts "forgotten" by people during a busy day may be retrieved if this is followed by a good night's sleep. Researchers from the University of Chicago asked volunteers to remember simple words.Many found their memories letting them down towards the end of the day, but the following morning, those who had slept well could recall much more. Researchers, writing in the journal Nature, said the brain could "rescue" lost memories during the night. When the brain is first asked to remember something that memory is laid down in an "unstable" state, meaning that it is possible that it could be lost.At some point, the brain consolidates those it deems important into a "stable", more permanent state.However, the Chicago researchers suggested that it was possible for a "stable" memory to be made "unstable" again.This would mean that memories could be modified then filed away again in the face of new experiences. The 12 volunteers tested in the experiment were played words created through a speech synthesizer which were purposely difficult to understand.Initially, the written version of the word from the audio version only.Tests revealed that the ability to recall the right word tended to tail off as the day ended. However, when the volunteers were retested after a good night's sleep, they were able to recall some words that they had " forgotten" the previous evening. Dr Daniel, one of the study authors, said: "Sleep consolidates memories, protecting them against subsequent interference or decay.Sleep also appears to "recover" or restore memories." He said: "If performance is reduced by decay, sleep might actively recover what has been lost." Dr Karim Nader, from the Department of Psychology in McGill University in Montreal, said: "Memory research is undergoing a transformation---no longer is memory thought to be a hard-writing of the brain, instead it seems to be a process of storage and restorage." Sleep helps some memories "mature" and also prunes out unimportant memories. Which of the following is NOT true? Answer: Reflectors are used to reflect light on Answer: 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. According to the text, which of the following words can best describe Barack Obama? Answer: Students perform an investigation designed to measure the daily growth of a bean plant. Which should the students do every day of this investigation? Answer: We often use the words "growth" and "development" as if they meant basically the same thing. But this may not always be the case. One can easily imagine instances in which a country has achieved higher levels of income (growth) with little or no benefit coming to most of its citizens (development). In the past, most development policies were aimed at increasing the growth rate of income per capita . Many are still based on the theory that benefit of economic growth will come to all members of society. If this theory is correct, growth should encourage development. By the early 1970s, however, the relationship between growth and development was being questioned. A major study by the World Bank in 1974 concluded that it is now clear that more than decades of rapid growth in developing countries has been of little benefit to a third of their population. The World Bank study showed that increase in GNP per capita did not promise important improvements in such development indicators as nutrition, health, and education. Although GNP per capita did indeed rise, its benefit came down to only a small part of the population. This realization gives rise to a call for new development policies. These new policies favor agriculture over industry, call for national redistribution of income and wealth, and encourage programs to satisfy such basic needs as food and shelter. In the late 1970s and early 1980s the international macroeconomic crises of high oil prices, worldwide recession and the third world debt, forced attention away from programs designed to get rid of poverty. However, the lesson remains: economic growth does not promise economic development. Efforts may be required to change growing output capacity into economic benefit that reaches most of a nation's people. Before the 1970s, most development policies were based on theory that economic growth would benefit _ . Answer:
Xiao Shenyang will present a comedy in mid-May. You'll enjoy Errenzhuan ,a local folk dance from Northeast China. Time: 8 p. m. May 10 Tickets: 280-800 Yuan Venue:Shenzhen Sports Center Booking: 11185 Rubina Ali,the young actress who played Lakita in "Slumdog Millionaire" ,is performing in a musical named "Sleeping Beauty". Time: 7:30 p. m. June 1 Tickets: 280 Yuan Venue:Shenzhen Poly Theater Booking: 86371698 LiuQian, a well-known magician from Taiwan, is performing wonderful magic, tricks. Time:3 p. m. June 20 Tickets:500 Yuan (5% off if you buy on-line) Venue:Shenzhen Children's Palace Booking:89812344 Britain's singing sensation Susan Boyle is coming! You may enjoy her angelic voice in her concert. Time:8 p. m. July 25 Tickets:380-700 Yuan Venue:Shenzhen Grand Theater Booking:82337625 How much can you save if you buy two tickets to Liu Qian's magic show online? " Answer: Either out of confusion or discomfort we sometimes express our feelings in an unclear way. One key to making your feelings clear is to realize that you most often can shorten them in a few words: hurt, glad, confused, excited, angry, and so on. In the same way, with a little thought you can probably describe very briefly any reasons you have for feeling a certain way. In addition to avoiding too long expressions, a second way to prevent confusion is to avoid _ your feelings by saying "I'm a little unhappy" or "I'm pretty excited". Of course, not all feelings are strong ones. We do feel degrees of sadness and joy, for example, but some communicators have a tendency to downplay almost every feeling. Do you? A third danger to avoid is expressing feelings in an indirect or coded manner. This happened most often when the sender is uncomfortable about showing his or her feeling in question. Some codes are verbal ones, as when the sender hints more or less subtly at the message. For example, an indirect way to say "I'm feeling lonely" might be "I guess there isn't much happening this weekend, so if you're not busy, why don't you drop by?" Such a message is so indirect that chances are small that your real feeling will be recognized. For this reason, people who send coded messages stand less of a chance of having their feeling understood and their need met. Finally, you can express yourself clearly by making sure that both you and your partner understand that your feeling is centered in a specific set of environments rather than being indicative of the whole relationship. Instead of saying "I hate you", say "I hate you when you don't keep your promises"'. Rather than "I'm bored with you", say "I'm bored when you talk about your money." From the beginning of the passage we sometimes express our feelings in an unclear way because _ . Answer: My name is Tom. I'm nine. This is my mother.Her name's Linda Johnson. Her telephone number is 13052864515.And this is my father.His name is Mike Johnson. His phone number is 13120884699.And this is my sister.What's her name?Her name is Mary. Look!The boy is my brother Nick. Mary is eight and Nick is six. Mary is _ . Answer: Owning a smartphone may not be as smart as you think. They may let you surf the Internet, listen to music and take photos wherever you are, but they also turn you into a workaholic . A study suggests that, by giving you access to emails at all times, the smartphone adds as much as two hours to your working day. Researchers found that Britons work an additional 460 hours a year on average as they are able to respond to emails on their mobiles. The study shows the average UK working day is between 9 and 10 hours, but a further 2 hours is spent responding to or sending work emails, or making work calls. Almost one in ten admits spending up to three hours outside their normal working day checking work emails. Some workers say they are on call almost 24 hours a day. Nearly two-thirds say they often check work emails just before they go to bed and as soon as they wake up, while over a third have replied to one in the middle of the night. The average time for first checking emails is between 6 am and 7 am, with more than a third checking their first email in this period, and a quarter checking them between 11pm and midnight. Ghadi Hobeika, marketing director of Pixmania, said: "The ability to access millions of applications has made smartphones invaluable for many people. However, there are disadvantages. Many companies expect their employees to be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and smartphones mean that people cannot get away from work. The more constantly in touch we become, the more is expected of us in work . " It could be inferred from the text that the British people _ . Answer: I was waiting for a phone call from my agent. He had left at message the night before, telling me that my show was to be cancelled. I called him several times, but each time his secretary told me that he was in a meeting and that he would call me later. So I waited and waited, but there was still no call. Three hours passing by, I became more and more and impatient. I was certain that my agent didn't care about my work, and he didn't care about me. I was overcome with that thought. I started to shout at the phone, "Let me wait, will you? Who do you think you are?" At that time I didn't realize my wife was looking on. Without showing her surprise, she rushed in, seized the phone, tore off the wires, and shouted at the phone, "Yeah! Who do you think you are? Bad telephone! Bad telephone!" And she swept it into the wastebasket. I stood watching her, speechless. What on earth...? She stepped to the doorway and shouted at the test of the house, "Now hear this! All objects in this room----if you do anything to upset my husband, out you go!" Then she turned to me. Kissed me and said calmly, "Honey, you just have to learn how to take control." With that, she left the room. After watching a crazy woman rushing in and out, shouting at everything in sight , I noticed that something in my mood had changed. I was laughing. How could I have trouble with that phone? Her aunties helped me realize I had been driven crazy by small things. Twenty minutes later my agent did call. I was able to listen to him and talk to him and talk to him calmly. What made the author laugh? Answer:
Question: Martha Kostyra was born in Jersey City ,New Jersey on August3, 1941(she became Martha Stewart when she married Andy Stewart in 1961). Martha's dad was a pharmaceutical salesman and her wife was a housewife and a teacher. Her were fairly strict and required their children to do plenty of housework and help around the house . Martha learned how to cook and sew from her mother .She also learned about gardening by helping her father out in the yard. When Martha was in high school , she made extra money by babysitting and organizing children' parties . She was a bright student and attended Barnard College in New York city. She helped pay for her schooling through modeling jobs. In 1962, she graduated from Barnard with degrees in History and Architectural History. Before graduating from college, Martha married Andy Stewart. After college she and Andy traveled and Martha continued to model. Martha had her only child, a daughter named Alexis, in 1965. Two years later, Martha wanted to go to work. She got a job as a stockbroker in New York City and worked for six years. In 1971,Martha and Andy purchased a farmhouse they called Turkey Hill in Westport, connecticut. After quitting her job, Martha spent her time completely restoring the old farmhouse. She also studied how to cook and became an excellent gourmet chef. One day Martha decided to put her cooking skills to the test by opening up her own catering business. She cooked food and hosted large dinner parties and quickly became a success. Through her books and television appearances, Martha soon became famous . In the 1990s, she began to expand her business . She started a magazine called Martha Stewart Living, a popular newspaper column, and her own television show. The name Martha Stewart became a brand that was worth millions of dollars . In 1997, she formed a company called Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. She was president and CEO. She took the company public in 1999, selling shares in the company. At one point her estimated wealth was nearly $1 billion. She also had her own band of products at stores like Home Depot, K-Mart, Macy's and Sears. She also worked with home builders to design Martha Stewart inspired homes. What is the purpose of this passage? A. To introduce Martha and Andy. B. To introduce Martha and her life stories. C. To show parents' role in one's success D. To stress the importance of doing various jobs. Answer: B Question: Tearing an object changes that object's A. nutrition B. biology C. chemical composition D. formation Answer: D Question: Do you like singing or playing musical instruments ? If you say "yes", you can join us! We have piano lessons every Friday evening in our club. We also have guitar lessons on Monday evening. You don't have to pay -- The lessons are all free. Just come and have a try!We also have classes to teach students singing skills on Tuesday evening. If you like singing, you will find them useful. In our club you can meet many students from different classes and you can make friends with them. Come on! Join us! From the poster , we can know that _ . A. students must pay to join this club B. students must play musical instruments very well to join this club C. students must sing very well to join this club D. students can make some new friends in the club Answer: D Question: A nobleman and a merchant once met in an inn. For their lunch they both ordered soup. When it was brought, the nobleman took a spoonful, but the soup was so hot that he burned his mouth and tears came to his eyes. The merchant asked him why he was weeping. The nobleman was ashamed to admit that he had burned his mouth and answered, "Sir, I once had a brother who committed a great crime, for which he was hanged. I was thinking of his death, and that made me weep." The merchant believed this story and began to eat his soup. He too burned his mouth, so that he had tears in his eyes. The nobleman noticed it and asked the merchant, "Sir, why do you weep?" The merchant, who now saw that the nobleman had deceived him, answered, "My lord(="master)," I am weeping because you were not hanged together with your brother." The merchant's answer showed that he _ . A. had kind heart B. was angry with the nobleman C. believed the nobleman D. was very happy Answer: B Question: If you have been pulled over by the police, then you would have got a traffic ticket because of breaking some law. In some states, you can reduce the mistakes on your driving record by choosing to attend a traffic school. Here is what to expect if you make up your mind to start taking the traffic school classes. People who break certain rules when driving such as speeding, running red lights, or causing an accident will receive a ticket. The ticket comes with many consequences to force you to _ the law. The consequences include a certain increase to the money you pay to the insurance company. For example, a traffic ticket will increase your charge by about 15%. Many states have a regulation that attending a traffic school can eliminate a bad record from your driving records. Different states have different methods. Many have a wide variety of ways that allow you to attend the classes in the most convenient way. You do not have to attend classes physically, as you can take courses online or watch a DVD. Many schools will give the basic level, middle level and advanced level courses for a driver. Others are about alcohol and traffic awareness. The courses lasts 4- 12 hours. The subjects being covered will determine the length of the course. The main aim of the traffic classes is not about punishing you for the mistakes you have made in driving. The person undergoing the classes learns to care about road safety. It is more than just his own safety to consider. What do we know about the classes in a traffic school? A. Classes in each state are the same. B. You can only attend classes in the evening. C. You must go to each class in person. D. Different types are offered for drivers to choose from. Answer: D
A weather map is an important tool for geographers. A succession of three or four maps presents a continuous picture of weather changes. Weather forecasters are able to determine the speed of air masses and fronts to determine whether an individual pressure area is deepening or becoming shallow and whether a front is increasing or decreasing in intensity. They are also able to determine whether an air mass is retaining its original characteristics or taking on those of the surface over which it is moving. Thus, a most significant function of the map is to reveal a synoptic picture of conditions in the atmosphere at a given time. All students of geography should be able to interpret a weather map accurately. Weather maps contain an enormous amount of information about weather conditions existing at the time of observation over a large geographical area. They reveal in a few minutes what otherwise would take hours to describe. The United States Weather Bureau issues information about approaching storms, floods, frosts, droughts, and all climatic conditions in general. Twice a month it issues a 30-day "outlook" which is a rough guide to weather conditions likely to occur over broad areas of the United States. These 30-day outlooks are based upon an analysis of the upper air levels which often set the stage for the development of air masses, fronts, and storms. Considerable effort is being exerted today to achieve more accurate weather predictions. With the use of electronic instruments and earth satellites, enormous gains have taken place recently in identifying and tracking storms over regions which have but few meteorological stations . Extensive experiments are also in progress for weather modification studies. But the limitations of modification have prevented meteorological results except in the seeding of super-cooled, upslope mountainous winds which have produced additional orographic precipitation on the windward side of mountain ranges. Nevertheless, they have provided a clearer understanding of the fundamentals of weather elements. At the present time, experiments are being conducted in _ . A. controlling and influencing weather B. determining density of pressure groups C. 30-day "outlooks" D. predicting storms Answer: A Teenagers at one German school are learning how to achieve happiness alongside other traditional subjects such as math and languages. The class sit in a circle with their eyes shut and they count from one to ten: someone starts, the next voice comes from the far right, a third from the other side. The aim of the game is to listen for an opportunity to shout out the number without clashing with another voice or leaving a pause. On the first try, most of the young Germans try to be first, while a few are too shy to join in, but by the fifth time round, they develop a rhythm .The message: give other people space but also confidently claim your own. This is a requirement for social well-being. The Willy Hellpach School in Heidelberg is the first in the nation to develop a happiness course. It is intended for students preparing for university entrance exams. "The course isn't there to make you happy," Ernst Fritz-Schubert, the school principal, warned pupils, "but rather to help you discover the ways to become happy." Cooking a meal together is one of the class exercises. Improving body language under the guidance of two professional actresses is another. The course is taught for three periods a week. Although it's the happy subject, the pupils themselves insist it is no laughing matter. "In the first period, we had to each say something positive about another member of the class and about ourselves. No laughing at people," said Fanny, 17. Research by the school shows it is not the first to start happiness classes: they also exist at some US universities, mainly based on positive thinking, using findings from studies of depression. It can be inferred from the passage that _ . A. the students' self-respect can also improve happiness B. the students just took the course as a laughing matter C. the students can certainly become happy after the course D. the students waste time learning something without value Answer: A When my grandfather died, my 83-year-old grandmother, once so full of life, slowly began to fade. No longer able to manage a home of her own, she moved in with my mother, where she was visited often by other members of her large, loving family. Although she still had her good days, it was often hard to arouse her interest. But one chilly December afternoon three years ago, my daughter Meagan, then eight, and I were visiting her, when she noticed that Meagan was carrying her favorite doll."I, too, had a special doll when I was a little girl," she told a wide-eyed Meagan. "I got it one Christmas when I was about your age. I lived in an old farmhouse in Maine, with Mom, Dad and my four sisters, and the very first gift I opened that Christmas was the most beautiful doll you'd ever want to see." "She had an exquisite(,), hand-painted face, and her long brown hair was pulled back with a big pink bow. Her eyes were blue, and they opened and closed. I remember she had a body of kidskin, and her arms and legs bent at the joints." GG's voice dropped low, taking on an almost respectful tone. "My doll was dressed in a pretty pink gown, decorated with fine lace. ... _ -- my parents must have had to sacrifice so much to afford it But how happy I was that morning!" GG's eyes filled and her voice shook with emotion as she recalled that Christmas of long ago. "I played with my doll all morning long. And then it happened. My mother called us to the dining room for Christmas dinner and I laid my new doll down gently on the hall table. But as I went to join the family at the table, I heard a loud crash." "I hardly had to turn around -- I knew it was my precious doll. And it was. Her lace skirt had hung down from the table just enough for my baby sister to reach up and pull on it. When I ran in, there lay my beautiful doll on the floor, her face smashed into a dozen pieces. She was gone forever." A few years later, GG's baby sister was also gone, she told Meagan, a victim of pneumonia . Now the tears in her eyes spilled over -- tears, I knew, not only for a lost doll and a lost sister, but for a lost time. Subdued for the rest of the visit, Meagan was no sooner in the car going home than she exclaimed, "Mom, I have a great idea! Let's get GG a new doll for Christmas. Then she won't cry when she thinks about it." My heart filled with pride as I listened to my sympathetic little daughter. But where would we find a doll to match GG's fond memories? Where there's a will, as they say, there's a way. When I told my best friends, Liz and Chris, about my problem, Liz put me in touch with a local doll-make. From a doll supply house I ordered a long brown hair and a kidskin body to copy the outfit GG had so lovingly described. Liz volunteered to put the doll together, and Chris helped me make the doll's outfit. Meagan wrote the story of the lost doll by giving examples. Finally our creation was finished. To our eyes it was perfect. But there was no way it could be exactly like the doll GG had loved so much and lost. Would she think it looked anything like it? On Christmas Eve, Meagan and I carried our happily packed gift to GG, where she sat surrounded by children, parents, aunts, uncles and cousins. "It's for you," Meagan said, "but first you have to read the story that goes with it." GG no sooner got through the first page than her voice cracked and she was unable to go on, but Meagan took over where she left off. Then it was time to open her present. I'll never forget the look on GG's face as she lifted the doll and held it to her chest. Once again her tears fell, but this time they were tears of joy. Holding the doll in her frail arms, she repeated over and over again, "She's exactly like my old doll, exactly like her." And perhaps she wasn't saying that just to be kind. Perhaps however impossible it seemed, we had managed to produce a close copy of the doll she remembered. But as I watched my eight-year-old daughter and her great-grandmother examining the doll together, I thought of a likelier explanation. What GG really recognized, perhaps, was the love that inspired the gift. And love, wherever it comes from, always looks the same. Why did Meagan's mum feel proud of her daughter? A. Because she was clever. B. Because she was loving. C. Because she was amiable. D. Because she was imaginative. Answer: B If you go into the forest with your friends, stay with them. If you don't, you may get lost. What should you do if you really get lost? You should sit down and stay where you are. You mustn't try to find your friends. Let them find you. If you want your friends to find you, you need to stay in one place. You can also shout three times. Then stop. Then shout three times again. Keep up shouting. Always three times together. When people hear you, they will know you need help and where you are. If you don't think that you can get help before night comes, you should make a little house with some small trees or branches or something else. And make yourself a bed with leaves or grass. When you need some water and you have to leave your little house to look for it, don't just walk away. Leave small branches or something else on the way and then you can find your way back easily. What should you do if nobody helps you before night? A. Shout loudly B. Look for friends everywhere. C. Go to bed. D. Make a house with something. Answer: D Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise. This is an old English saying. Have you heard of it before? It means that we must go to bed early and get up early in the morning. Then we shall be healthy. We shall also be rich (wealthy) and clever (wise). This is true. The body must have enough sleep to be healthy. Children of young age should have ten hours' sleep every night. Children who do not have enough sleep cannot do their work very well. They will not be wise and they may not become wealthy! The body also needs exercise. Walking, running, jumping, swimming and playing games are all exercise. Exercise keeps the body strong. Exercise also helps the blood to move around inside the body. This is very important. Our blood takes food to all parts of our body. The head also needs blood .Exercise helps us to think better! Which of the following if Not TRUE? A. Exercise does good to a person's head B. A student should have 10 hours' sleep C. It's good for you to get up early and go to bed early. D. If you have enough blood, you'll be wise. Answer: D
There is a story about the moon cake.During the Yuan dynasty, China was ruled by the Mongolian people. Leaders from the preceding Song dynasty were unhappy about being ruled by foreigners, so they began to organize a secret rebellion. The leaders of the rebellion, knowing that the Moon Festival was drawing near, ordered the making of special cakes. Baked into each cake was a message containing the outline of the attack. On the night of the Moon Festival, the rebels successfully attacked and overthrew the government. Today, these cakes are eaten to commemorate this legend and are called Moon Cakes. For generations, moon cakes have been made with sweet fillings of nuts, mashed red beans, lotus-seed paste or Chinese dates, wrapped in pastry. Sometimes a cooked egg yolk can be found in the middle of this rich tasting dessert. Some people have compared moon cakes to the plum puddings and fruit cakes which are served in the English holiday seasons. Nowadays, there are hundreds of varieties of moon cakes on sale a month before the arrival of the Moon Festival. Which of the following statements is WRONG? _ . A. China was once ruled by the Mongolian people during the Yuan dynasty. B. Moon cakes were originally made to carry a message. C. All moon cakes have a cooked egg yolk in them. D. A variety of moon cakes can be bought a month before the Moon Festival now. Answer: C. All moon cakes have a cooked egg yolk in them. Discounts at various bicycle shops. Why Cycle with a Group? Getting to work by bicycle has never been more popular. Governments and nations are transforming their cities and highways to meet the needs of this new generation of cycling enthusiasts,and in a world where green choices are the new must-have, average citizens are eagerly seizing their chance to help make their bodies cleaner than ever before. Become an EBTC Member. Year round, organized by members like you! The Edmonton Bicycle and Touring Club(EBTC)is a recreational not-for-profit volunteer-run group devoted to promoting its members to cooperatively run bicycling trips during the spring, summer and fall, cross-country skiing trips in the winter, and social events all the year round. We welcome both road bike and mountain bike riders! Benefits of Joining EBTC: Opportunity to create the kinds of events you like:enjoy dozens of events. Participation in the local cycling community. Use of club bicycle tools on tour and library materials. It's more FUN! It encourages you to come out often and get healthy exercise without going to a gym. Develop skills and gain through the experience of others. Meet new and interesting people with a common interest in cycling. Meet a fun-loving,energetic and different group of individuals who enjoy a healthy lifestyle. Enjoy the outdoor experience with the companionship and security of a group. For more information on the EBTC: Phone the Club Hotline at 780-424-2453 E-mail:jprineau@edmontonbicycle.com Mail us at: Edmonton Bicycle & Touring Club P.O.Box 52017 Garneau Postal Stn. Edmonton,AB T6G 2T5 Canada What's the advantage of cycling with a group? A. Meeting more new people. B. Participating in whatever events. C. Having bicycles free of charge. D. Enjoying discounts in a gym. Answer: A. Meeting more new people. MOSCOW, Sept. 4 (Xinhuanet) --- At least 335 people including 155 children, were killed in the three-day hostage crisis in a southern Russian school, Russia's Deputy Prosecutor General Sergei Fridinsky said on Saturday. "We are still identifying the bodies. We have recovered 322 bodies, and 155 of them are children," Fridinsky was quoted by the Itar-Tass news agency as saying. The prosecutor said the death toll would probably grow as the clean-up operation is continuing at the site, but it will not rise considerably. Emergency workers pulled the bodies out of the school on Saturday, after Russian special forces rescued more than 400 children and adults hostages in a special operation that has suppressed the hostage -taking standoff by Friday night. Valery Andreyev, regional chief of the Federal Security Service (FSS), said Friday that over 30 armed militants took part in the hostage-taking crisis and Russian troops captured three of them alive on Friday, according to the Interfax news agency. He said people of Russian origin and foreign nationals were among the killed hostage-takers. Earlier official information showed that ten Arab militants were killed in Friday's raid . Andreyev said a large amount of explosives and mines planted by hostage-takers in the school have been found. Rusian Presidnet Vladimir Putin made a surprise visit early Saturday to the southern Russian town of Beslan where commandos stormed the school to end the hostage crisis. He accused the attackers of trying to _ an racial conflict that would engulf Russia's troubled Caucasus Mountains region. The passage suggests that the terrorists _ . A. hadn't got any preparation before the attack B. had informed the government to attack the school C. had made a sudden attack to the school without any preparation D. had prepared for the attack in advance Answer: D. had prepared for the attack in advance I'd had the piggy bank for a long time. So long, in fact, that I don't really remember getting it. My aunt once told me a whole story about it, in which it was passed down through the family for many, many years, only to come to me. I was pretty little at the time, so I believed her with no question. It made me think that the bank was important. It became some sort of sign of family and togetherness. I would imagine my mom and my grandmother and even my great grandmother before that, putting coins in the little white pig and waiting for them to fill it up, to be spent on some sort of treasure. And then, when I was fifteen, I broke it. I didn't mean to. I was cleaning my room in a hurry, so I could finish quickly and go to a friend's house. I swung the vacuum hose around too quickly, knocking the pig's shelf, and down it went. About a thousand pieces, and way fewer coins than I would have believed, flew everywhere. I started to cry. My mother came in at the sound of the crash. "I'm so, so sorry!" I cried. "I broke the bank! I broke the family bank!" "What, Sarah?" my mother asked, kneeling next to me on the floor. "The what?" "The bank! Aunt Tracy said it was in the family for years!" "What, this? We got it for you at a garage sale when you were two. It was fifty cents." Who told Sarah a story about the bank? A. grandmother B. her mother C. Aunt Tracy D. her great grandmother Answer: C. Aunt Tracy Which of these groups animals are ALL mammals? A. duck, eagle, parrot B. mouse, monkey, bat C. butterfly, ant, mosquito D. crocodile, snake, turtle Answer: B. mouse, monkey, bat
Last week John went to his sister's house, and it's also the house he was born in. Sue, his sister felt excited and surprised. She said to John, "You haven't changed a lot, John .Let me see, now...When did we meet last time?" "Ten years ago." John answered. "You haven't changed a lot, either." John said. It was polite for John to say so, but it wasn't true. Sue seemed like an old lady. The next day John walked through the small town alone. The place have already changed a lot. There was a new bus stop, a new post office, a new car park and lots of traffic signs. He remembered suddenly that the bus used to stop anywhere. You just put up your hand and it stopped. Everything has changed. To John's surprise, he didn't recognize anybody at all. Maybe everybody seemed old. He went into a shop and bought some things. Then he asked the boss, "Where are all the children and young people?" "Children?" he said, "They're in school, of course. There are three or four young families here." At lunch, Sue said, "Do you think it is still a beautiful place, John?" "It's all different, Sue. It used to be an exciting place, but now it's full of old people. I don't understand." John said. ,A, B, C, D. The title of passage is _ . Our spiritual intelligence quotient ,or SQ, helps us understand ourselves, and live fuller, happier lives. Though we're all born with SQ, most of us don't even realize that we have it. Fortunately, you don't have to sign up for classes to learn how to improve your SQ. Here are some simple steps that can lead you to this new level of understanding. Sit Quietly. The process of developing spiritual intelligence begins with solitude and silence. _ , you have to turn down the volume in your busy, noisy, complicated life and force yourself to do nothing at all. Start small by creating islands for silence in your day. In the car, instead of listening to the music, use the time to think. At work, shut the door to your office between meetings, take a few breaths and let them out very, very slowly. Enjoy the stillness in your home after the kids are finally in bed. Step Outside. For many people, nature sets their spirit free. Go outside to watch a beautiful sunset. If you are walking with the dog, take the time to admire flowers in bloom; follow the flight of a bird and watch clouds float overhead. Ask Questions of Yourself. Ask open-ended questions, such as "What am I feeling? What are my choices? Where am I heading?" But don't expect an answer to arrive through some supernatural forms of e-mail. "Rarely do I get an immediate answer to my question," says Reverend Joan Carter, a Presbyterian minister in Sausalito, California. "But later that day I suddenly find myself thinking about a problem in a perspective I never considered before." Trust Your Spirit. While most of us rely on gut feeling to realize danger, spiritual intelligence pushes us, not away from, but towards some action that will lead to a greater good.. The passage is mainly about _ . The King received news one day that a group outlaws were committing some wrong and cruel acts on a distant border of the kingdom. The news angered the King. He quickly gathered his army and started off for the distant border, leaving his kingdom unguarded and without a ruler. On their long march, the King and his army made camp for the night wherever they could. One rainy day they stopped in a forest, seeking shelter under the trees. They unsaddled their horses and steamed some peas, which they fed to their steeds in long narrow containers. A monkey in a tree nearby saw the horses being fed, and he came racing down, filled both paws with peas, then climbed quickly up to a branch and settled down to eat. But as he opened one paw, a single pea fell to the ground. Without hesitation, the monkey jumped from his branch to hunt for the lost pea, and in doing so,he dropped all the other peas in his paws. The King observed this foolish monkey and was greatly amused. He timed to his minister and asked: "Friend, what do you think of this monkey who would give up so much to _ so little?" "That is the way of the foolish," replied the minister, "they will give up much that is certain for a little that is uncertain." Then he added, "And we, Great King, are we not like the monkey in the trees. To gain so little we neglect so much exactly like the monkey with its pea." The King understood the blame and realized how very foolish he had been himself to leave his kingdom unguarded. He gave out orders to his men, and he and his army returned at once to their country. Which of the following can be the best title for the text? Camilla Chomp was a strange little girl. She liked to spend her time alone eating chocolate. Her parents were worried, so they took all the chocolate away. Camilla left her house to look for some chocolate. She found a small house full of bottles. Among the bottles, a blue bottle caught Camilla's eyes. It was full of chocolate. In the bottle there was also a card with the words "Change tears into chocolate." Camilla was very excited. She ran out of the house with the bottle to look for someone crying. First, she met a little boy crying hard and collected his tears. The tears were quickly changed into chocolate. While Camilla was collecting the tears, she comforted the boy. Finally, the boy stopped crying and they had a good time together. Later, Camilla met a woman and an old man crying. The woman had broken some bowls. And the old man's dog had just died. Camilla collected their tears and made them happy again. Soon, Camilla knew that making people happy was much more important than finding chocolate. So she stopped collecting tears and began to help sad people. As a result, she had many friends and had a happy life. Camilla's parents took away all the chocolate because they were _ . The World Health Organization has for the first time expressed "cautious optimism" that the growth in new Ebola cases in West Africa may be slowing down. Bruce Aylward, who is in charge of the WHO response to Ebola, said in Geneva that he was particularly encouraged by evidence of a downward trend in Liberia, one of the three worst-affected countries. The WHO's official total number of Ebola cases has reached 13,703 - a big jump from the10,141 cases it reported four days ago. But Dr Aylward said that was mainly the result of the data being updated with old cases, rather than new cases arising. "Do we feel confident that the response is now getting an upper hand on the virus? Yes, we are seeing a slowing rate of new cases, very definitely," Dr Aylward said. However, Dr Aylward also urged people not to celebrate pre-maturely over any apparent downturn in the epidemic . "I'm terrified that the information will be misunderstood and people will think Ebola is under control," he said. Any reduction in the battle against the virus might lead to "an oscillating pattern where the disease moves up and down". The improvement in Liberia seems to be due to a combination of more treatment facilities, better contact tracing and safer burial practices, together leading to fewer new infections from Ebola patients. In Sierra Leone the number of cases continues to increase in some areas. "We're still seeing this thing _ in parts of Sierra Leone," Dr Aylward said Tracing the progress of individual patients, the WHO estimates an overall death rate of 70 percent, though people who receive treatment in a well-equipped clinic are slightly less likely to die. The WHO plans to set up 56 Ebola clinics with 4,700 beds in West Africa. Of these 15 clinics with 1,050 beds are already operational and another 22 clinics are expected to open during November. Meanwhile, two former NATO secretaries-general and dozens of leading European politicians have urged the alliance to send troops, aircraft and ships to west Africa to help contain the Ebola crisis. Why did Dr Aylward urge people not to celebrate prematurely?
People live all over world. They live on land that is low. They live on land that is high. Some live near the oceans. Others live far from the oceans. Earth has many different kinds of lands. In some places, the land is flat . Flat lands are called plains . Some parts of Earth have hills. Hills are higher than the land around them. But hills are lower than mountains. Did you ever try to ride your bicycle up a hill? Some parts of Earth touch oceans. These parts are called _ . Some lands have water all around them. These lands are called islands. Earth has many different bodies of water, too. You know about the oceans. There are very large bodies of water. The water in the oceans is salty. There are also smaller bodies of water called lakes. Lakes have land all around them. Rivers carry water from the land. They are long bodies of running water. The water in rivers is not salty. Most lakes do not have salty water, either. People live on _ lands. Answer: low and high The Rockford police chief and some city officials want to install video cameras in all 100 police cars. They think this will reduce the number of lawsuits . In the last five years, Rockford has paid out more than five million dollars to settle about 40 lawsuits. The chief said, "If cameras had been in those cars, we wouldn't have had to pay one cent. We're always pulling over drunks or drug users who try to fight the police or shoot them. Then they always claim that the police start beating them first or start shooting at them first." The cost of installing cameras will be about $500 each. The city council will vote on the proposal next Monday. Ten of the 13 council members said that they like the idea. One member said that it makes good sense. The police officers enthusiastically support camera use. One officer said that too many people think the police often lie; cameras would show citizens that police tell the truth. "The money that we've been spending on lawsuits will be better spent on more cameras," said one officer. Citizen opinions to the idea of police car cameras are mixed. One person said that the police should have started doing this years ago when video cameras were invented. But an elderly man strongly objected. "These police are trying to stick their nose into everything," he said. He was going to attend the council meeting to condemn the proposal. He hoped that other citizens would join him. What's the purpose of installing video cameras in police cars? Answer: To cut the number of lawsuits. Today is Sarah's birthday. She is seventy-five. We asked a few old friends to dinner. Like most elderly people, I suppose, we spent most of the evening talking about old times. Thirty years ago, the village used to be a quiet place. Now it has changed. Every Sunday hundreds of cars pass through the village at what I think a dangerous speed. They make the village almost as noisy as the streets of a large town. As a boy I enjoyed riding on the backs of the farm horses. Things are different now. Today there are very few horses working on the farms. The farm workers today drive tractors, not horses. A man is not of much use on a farm unless he knows all about machines. Now almost every house in the village has a TV set. Is it a good thing for children to spend the evening sitting in front of a TV set? When I was young I did not waste my time indoors. I would spend the long summer evenings outdoors. I would play with my friends, go fishing or walk by the river. When my grandchildren asked me the reason why I haven't bought a TV set, I tell them there are many books I still want to read. I can't find time for both reading and watching TV. The old like to talk about _ . Answer: the past How are the functions of a carbohydrate and a lipid similar? Answer: Both are a source of energy. England has a longstanding problem with youngsters dropping out of training. Almost half of 17-year-olds in some parts of England have dropped out of fulltime education or training. The statistics show 49% in Thurrock and 44% in Salford have dropped out of school or job training. Across England,31%of 17-year-olds are not in education or training. The figures also reveal deep regional divides,with wealthier areas such as Richmon and Harrow recording18% of 17-year-olds out of official education. The statistics confirm England's poor international standing for staying-on rates in education. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development considers England's drop-out rates as among the worst among the industrialised countries. Regionally,the statistics show Yorkshire and the Humber have the highest rate of 17-year-olds not in full-time education or work-based training at 35%. Outer London has the highest staying-on rate,with l3%of 17-year-olds having dropped out of official learning. In the east of England this figure stands at 31%and at 29%in the South West. Edward Davey,Liberal Democrat Shadow Education Secretary,said the government "should be ashamed"that so many youngsters were dropping out of school. A spokesman for the Department for Education and Skills said the government had carried out a series of reforms,with aPS2.5 billion rise in funding for further education. The statistics mentioned in the text show that _ . Answer: England has a higher rate of youngsters not in education among the industrialised countries
Several days ago, I was walking home from school and saw some writing on the fence of a house I was passing by. It said, "Happiness is a direction, not a destination ." I had been having a bad day and just reading this brightened my day a little. I also took out a pen and wrote one of my favorite quotes down. ww.szzx100.com When I came back to the fence, I saw another quote under mine in the handwriting as the first one. I added another, and we kept at this pattern for quite a while. One day, I was writing another quote on the fence and the old man, one of my neighbors, who owned the fence, saw me. He came out and I was afraid he would be mad at me for writing on his fence; he was not known to be very friendly. He gave me a sharp glance and then read the quotes on the fence. Without saying a word, he said something to himself and then went back inside. I was a bit terrified for a while, afraid to go back to the fence, but when I did, I noticed not more quotes but two words in entirely different handwriting had been added, "Thank you." Later, I saw the old man in his front yard. He beckoned me over and told me how my quotes had been inspiring him, how he thanked me and how he was glad to see young people still have "values". We are now good friend and I talk to him a lot. This experience has changed my life. I still don't know who wrote that very first quote, but if he is out there, I'd like to say "thanks" to that unknown friend. Who must have added "Thank you." to the fence? Answer: The old man. www.szzx100.com While you are online there are plenty of perfectly legal sites where you can listen to music for free. This gives you the chance to listen to music before buying it, discover new music, and create great online playlists that you can share with others. The Sixty One The Sixty One is devoted to showcasing obscure or unknown artists of all genres. There's a range of musical styles from classical to rock and roll, folk to jazz, and everything in between. Don't expect to find big name musicians on here; you're more likely to find the musicians playing at local coffee shops than bands you hear on the radio.. Pow Wow Pow Wows are the Native American people's way of meeting together, to join in dancing, singing, visiting, renewing old friendships, and making new ones. This is a time method to renew Native American culture and preserve the rich heritage of American Indians. PowWows.com has 2 online radio stations that play Native American Music 24/7 free! Here you can listen to your favorite artists and drum groups on your computer or mobile device and add your music to our station. Playlist Playlist has an enormous library, so you can create playlists with almost any musician you can think of. They have both some lesser known artists and big names, so you have a really good selection. The worst part: Due to licensing laws, many of the songs on Playlist are now restricted to certain countries. So unless you live inside the US, it is likely that you might not be able to find all of your favorite songs. Pandora Pandora is an intelligent Internet radio site. Basically, as you listen, you can give each song a thumbs up or thumbs down. You can create your own radio station that only plays music you like. The best part: It listens to your opinion, so that after a while it's only playing music you like, but the list is always changing and expanding. My Space Combine a major social networking site with thousands of artists around the world. Each musician has their own page, which normally has a playlist of several of their songs. But it has a huge range of musicians ranging from huge stars to the up-and-coming, and you can listen to the music and interact with the rest of the page. If you enjoy listening to some new music, you can pay a visit to _ . Answer: The Sixty One Showrooming One of the biggest challenges facing brick-and-mortar retailers in recent years has been the "showrooming".Driven by the desire to get the best prices, many shoppers are now visiting brick-and-mortar stores to personally check on products that interest them, only to leave and then buy the items online.The new trend is forcing retailers to find out new ways to keep consumers from leaving their store for cheaper prices online. Recent research found that 40 percent of U.S.shoppers have showroomed previously, with big-box retailers suffering the most.Specifically, the study shows that Best Buy, Walmart and Target are the most likely brick-and-mortar stores to have shoppers test out a product in-store and then purchase it online later, while Amazon is benefiting most from the practice, with nearly 60 percent of shoppers using the online retail giant most often to make their showrooming purchases. Smartphones have pushed showrooming into the front.Shoppers no longer have to wait until they get home to see if they can find a cheaper price for the products they're considering buying.With smartphones, consumers can now compare virtual prices, at both other brick-and-mortar stores and online ones while still inside a retail store.If they can find what they're seeking for less online, the majority will be seeking the first exit.A recent study showed that 45 percent of customers shopping at brick-and-mortar stores walk out and buy their purchase online for a discount of as little as 2.5 percent. This puts pressure on retailers to provide both an in-store experience worth staying for and an online presence that can attract shoppers who are showrooming in other businesses. To cut down on showrooming, many retailers are adopting new methods to keep shoppers in their stores.Among the steps they're taking are price-matching guarantees that allow shoppers to pay a discounted price if they find it cheaper online.This ensures that even a showrooming shopper can make the purchase in the store--regardless of whether they find the cheaper price online. Another popular method to fight against showrooming is to give shoppers the ability to buy something online and pick it up at the store.This reduces shipping costs and gets customers in the store, where they may be encouraged to make an additional purchase. It is also important for businesses to take into consideration what makes shoppers purchase something in-store rather than online, and meet those needs.Research has found that more than 8 in 10 Americans consider being able to take the goods home immediately and the ability to touch and feel them--the most important aspects when deciding to purchase in a store rather than online. According to the passage, a showrooming shopper tends to _ . Answer: purchase online for a lower price Which is the most reliable way to get unbiased results when conducting a controlled experiment? Answer: Repeat the procedure exactly the same each time. The Friends of the Amazon is a nonprofit association helping to preserve the forest, its wildlife and its native cultures in the Peruvian Amazon. We are located 3 degrees south of the equator in the Region of Loreto, which is roughly the size of Montana and is one of the richest areas in the world in terms of flora and fauna . Our team consists of lawyers, ecologists, sociologists, medical professionals and native Amazonians working together to protect the forest and its people from destruction. We use litigation , filing lawsuits against those who seek to destroy the forest and its native cultures. In addition to legal processes, we promote health, education, and the conservation of native plants and animals. The Amazon Rainforest is commonly referred to as the "lungs of the planet" whose trees are essential for absorbing carbon dioxide (CO2, a greenhouse gas that causes global warming) and it into oxygen, thereby mitigating the rise of global temperatures and climate change. An estimated 120 billion tons of carbon dioxide is absorbed in the Amazon Rainforest and global emissions of carbon dioxide increase with every tree of the rainforest that is cut down. That is why the survival of the Amazon Rainforest is vital for the survival of our planet, without which rising global temperatures could melt the polar icecaps and cause flooding of our coastal cities. Currently, the Amazon is under siege , with an estimated 1000 hectares being destroyed everyday. After harvesting old growth forests, corporations are often replacing the native forest with palm oil plantations instead of reforesting with native tree species. Palm oil trees are native to Africa, not the Amazon, and due to high profits, their promotion by international aid agencies and recent legislation in Peru, palm oil plantations represent perhaps the single greatest threat to the native Amazon Rainforest. In addition to conventional logging and deforesting to make room for crops such as palm oil and soybeans, the Amazon forest faces a new threat in the form of REDD projects and "Carbon Cowboys". REDD refers to Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation by using carbon offsets ("carbon credits"). Under the guise of REDD projects, scammers are tricking native communities into signing unjust contracts in English without legal representation which essentially give these so called Carbon Cowboys the forest for free. These cheaters are making false promises of "billions of dollars in profits" from REDD and voluntary carbon offset projects by lying that they are representatives of the United Nations and World Bank in order to trick vulnerable indigenous Amazonians into ceding their land by signing unjust contracts with hidden clauses that give the Carbon Cowboys a power of attorney to do whatever they want with the forest for a period of 100 years. Friends of the Amazon is actively filing lawsuits against these Carbon Cowboys and those who support them. For further information on our programs and to find out how you can help preserve the Amazon Rainforest, please contact: Friends of the Amazon 153 Tupac Amaru Street Iquitos, Peru Phone: (+51) 985665374 For more specific information on supporting the goals of our nonprofit organization, please contact us using the email address listed below. If you would like to learn how you can help preserve the Amazon Rainforest and its indigenous people, please contact us for more information at: The Friends of the Amazon is the name of _ . Answer: a non-profit organization
"Memorize these words." "Learn this spelling rule." "Don't forget about the exam tomorrow." You remember things every day, but how do you do it? When you want to call a store or an office that you don't call often, you look in the telephone book for the number. You _ the number, and then you forget it! You use your short-term memory to remember the number. Your short-term memory lasts about half a minute. However, you don't need to look in the telephone book for your best friend's number because you already know it. This information is in your long-term memory. Your long-term memory has everything that you remember through the years. The major reason for forgetting something is because you do not learn it well at the beginning. For example, you meet some new people, and right away you forget their names. You hear the names but you do not learn them, so you forget them. According to the passage, people forget things mainly because _ . A they are too lazy to remember them B they don't have a long-term memory C they only have a short-term memory D they don't learn them well at the beginning Answer: D. they don't learn them well at the beginning The communication union Head of Research Salary:PS55.271 We are looking for a Head of Research to manage the CWU Research Department and Information Centre. You would be required to exercise control of all research work of the department and manage a team of three researchers and four support staff. The person appointed would be expected to carry out research work of a strategic nature across the range of businesses in which the CWU has or seeks membership and to contribute to the strategic thinking and direction of the union as a whole. You will need: proven line management skills, especially in managing and motivating a team; good research skills, holding a good degree in a related subject or other similar experience; a high level of mathematical and calculating skills; the ability to produce high quality work under pressure; a commitment to and knowledge of the trade union movement and social democratic politics; and knowledge and/ or experience of the postal and/ or telecommunications industry. To apply, please request an application pack by emailing _ .org or by telephoning HR( Human Resources ) on 020 8971 7482. When applying please state your source. Closing Date for Applications: 4thAugust 2010 Anticipated interview date: 17thAugust 2010 No agencies please One of the duties of the person to be appointed is _ . A taking charge of research work. B seeking membership for the trade union. C managing a team of three or four members. D running a telecommunications company. Answer: A. taking charge of research work. Mike has a sports collection . He has four basketballs, five volleyballs and four soccer balls. He has seven tennis rackets and eight tennis balls. He has eight ping-pong bats and nine ping-pong balls, too. Mike has some bags in his room: four yellow bags and two green bags. He puts the basketballs in a yellow bag, the volleyballs in a yellow bag, and the soccer balls in a yellow bag. He puts the tennis rackets in a yellow bag, the ping-pong bats in a green bag, and the tennis balls and the ping-pong balls in the last bag. Mike has seven _ . A soccer balls B ping-pong bats C tennis rackets D volleyballs Answer: C. tennis rackets Day 1 I first heard of "Show Racism the Red Card" when my friend Jill asked me to support their work. Basically, it's an organization which uses professional footballers to help fight racism in sport and society. A few weeks later, he asked me if I wanted to do a bit more for them. I thought he probably meant for me to give money or do some voluntary work. But then he told me that a group of about 20 people were getting sponsored to play the highest ever game of rugby at 5,140 meters on Mount Everest. Day 4 We're making our way up to the base camp -- that's where most climbers start their final climb to the top -- and then, we'll play our game. Today we started out at 8 am. We had to cross three suspension bridges . One of them was so high that you couldn't see the bottom. Then we walked through some beautiful forest areas before we started a two-hour uphill hike to Namche Bazaar. Day 10 Base camp is basically just a lot of stones and tents. The walk up was really exhausting. Maybe if I was fitter, I wouldn't find this so hard, but then it was not just me -- all of us got very short of breath. Day 11 Today we played our game. It was supposed to be a "friendly" game, and last night, we had agreed we'd just walk and not run. However, it was a really heated game and two players were even sent off. We only played for 14 minutes. I think someone would have got hurt if we'd played any longer! My team won and I scored the last try! Of course, none of this matters. What's really important is that we did it and we've raised a load of money. The first time the author was asked to do something for Jill's work, he _ . A got a big shock B accepted his request C looked down upon Jill D spread the news to 20 people Answer: B. accepted his request You love Jay Chou's songs and you can sing some quite well. So you make a video of your performance and post it online for your friends to see. But what if this led to something beyond your wildest imagination--a career in music? Canadian teenager Justin Bieber, 16, has just had the magical experience: He posted homemade videos of his versions of songs by American singer Chris Brown online for his relatives. He received a phone call from Brown, telling him how much he liked his performance. His singing eventually earned him a fan base and a record contract. After releasing a popular record in November 2009, his album My world 2.0 came out last Tuesday. Bieber sings ballads and songs about puppy love. But is he just another gooey teen idol? David Malitz, a columnist with the Washington Post, doesn't think so. "If we truly want the best forAmerican children, let us pause and give thanks for Justin Bieber," he writes. "After years of humdrum bubblegum from Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers, the 16yearold has thrown a candycoated wrench into Disney's heartthrob assembly line by giving young fans something worth screaming their lungs out for lovable pop songs." From a boy who grew up below the poverty line with his divorced mom to a star who caused nearriots in shopping malls, even Bieber himself can't believe his overnight fame, although his kind of success is becoming more and more common in the Internet era. Interested in hockey, the national sport of Canada, the boy once put up pictures of players on the walls of his bedroom. He dreamed of being a hockey star and used to practice signing his autograph. He doesn't need practice now. He signs autographs, if the girls can get close enough, as a music star. What did Chris Brown think of Justin Bieber's singing? A He didn't like it. B He liked it very much. C He didn't say anything. D He supported Justin Bieber. Answer: B. He liked it very much.
Laboratory work is your chance to learn science firsthand. It can be fun but you must be careful to prevent injury. Listen closely when your teacher reads and explains the rules before your first lab lesson. LABORATORYRULES Throughout the lesson Do not enter the science lab without the teacher's permission.No food or drinks are to be alowed in the science lab. Before the Experiment Read al instructions carefuly before every experiment. Prepare al apparatus and arrange them so that you wil not knock them over while doing the experiment. During the Experiment If you are unsure of how to use any apparatus or how to operate, ask your teacher for help.Never smel or taste chemicals unless your teacher gives permission. After the Experiment Wash al apparatus after use and return them to the places where they were. Throw waste materials in proper waste baskets. First Aid Report al accidents to your teacher immediately. If you spil( )any chemicals onto your body or clothing, wash with plenty of water and report to your teacher. Before every experiment, you should _ . Answer: read al instructions carefuly While considering the importance of education in the life of children, according to a recent survey on the net, most of the parents want to send their children to the best of the schools. There is no doubt that many schools must be located near to your neighborhood area that provides good education to your children. However, you need to do a little research about the lessons of various schools so that you can be sure that your children are also following path as you have been since your childhood. Besides public and private schools, there are Christian schools that teach knowledge about Christianity along with the school lessons. A parent can compare between all the schools and their decision will depend entirely on their beliefs, thinking and neighborhood area. The main focus of Christian schools is religion and you can send your children to such schools if you want to focus on religion in your child's life. Every person has his own priority and no one can force anyone with their own personal beliefs. If you feel that your child is not able to gain the right principles in other schools, then you can consider Christian schools for the right education of your children. There are Christian elementary schools that focus on reading, writing and arithmetic so as to strengthen the primary skills in children. These schools take students from pre-school to high school to make them prepare for handling all types of situations in the future. So, use Internet to search a good school that help your child to have a better and brighter future. Christian schools differ from public and private schools in that _ . Answer: their main focus is religion Why play games? Because they are fun, and a lot more besides. Following the rules...planning your next move...acting as a team member...these are all "game" ideas that you will come across throughout your life. Think about some of the games you played as a young child, such as rope-jumping and hide-and-seek. Such games are entertaining and fun. But perhaps more importantly, they translate _ that teach children some of the basic rules they will be expected to follow the rest of their lives, such as taking turns and cooperating . Many children's games have a practical side. Children around the world play games that prepare them for work they will do as grown-ups. For instance, some Saudi Arabian children play a game called bones. Which sharpens the hand-eye coordination needed in hunting. Many sports encourage national or local pride. The most famous games of all, the Olympic Games, bring athletes from around the world together to take part in friendly competition. People who watch the event wave flags, knowing that a gold medal is a win for an entire country, not just the athlete who earned it. For countries experiencing natural disasters or war, an Olympic win can mean so much. Sports are also an event that unites people. Soccer is the most popular sport in the world. People on all continents play it--some for fun and some for a living. Nicolette Iribarne, a Californian soccer player, has discovered a way to give people hope through soccer. He created a foundation to provide poor children with not only soccer balls but also a promising future. Next time you play your favorite game or sport, think about why you enjoy it, what skills are needed, and whether these skills will help you in other aspects of your life. Iribarne's goal of forming the foundation is to _ . Answer: give poor kids a chance for a better life Is it true ? 1.Wearing the wrong type of glasses will do harm to your eyes . This is not true for adults , although incorrect glasses may not be good for children under 10 . Ready-made glasses , and not wearing when you should , won' t do harm to your eyes , but you may see better with glasses that are specially made for you . 2.Watching too much television is bad for you eyes . This is not true. People with easily affected eyes may find they get red and aching from staring at a fixed distance for long periods , but there won' t be any lasting effects . 3. Carrots will help you see in the dark. Carrots are rich in beta-carotene, which the body can change into vitamin A, too little of which can cause night blindness. However , people in most countries don' t need to worry about vitamin A deficiency , night blindness is more likely to be connected with another vision problem . Watching too much television can cause _ . Answer: eye trouble for a limited time When I was in primary school, sometimes I would meet a girl of the same age as me. Lisa was never active, but she was always very sweet and nice. In the 5th grade she came to my class. She was absent a lot , and one day I had the courage to ask why. She told me she was sick, and she explained she wore a wig because her medicine made her lose her hair. We left it at that. Anytime Lisa came to class--seldom--I would hang around with her on the playground. I received much ridicule from my friends for this because they thought I was ignoring them for Lisa. My family education taught me to be nice, and I felt Lisa's needs were much more important than others I knew. It had been months since Lisa was in our class, and one day our teacher was crying. She explained Lisa died the day before and would no longer be our classmate. She told us Lisa had fought a battle with cancer for years. I was shocked. Lisa never spoke of her illness as if it could kill her. Well, all these years I have kept Lisa in my mind and heart. When I go through the important events in my life, I think of Lisa. I've had a strong wish recently to find her mother and father. I'd like to tell them that though they never met me, their daughter had a sweet effect on my life. I have no idea what her parents' first names are. I write to your column and hope you can point me in the right direction. Lisa was such a lovely girl. Maybe her parents would be comforted by the fact that after all these years they are not the only ones who remember her. The author wrote this passage mainly to _ . Answer: ask for help to find a friend's parents
Question: Some ancient Greeks tried to discover the laws of the universe through thought and logic. Which part of the scientific process were these scientists missing? A. analysis B. experiment C. conclusion D. observation Answer: B Question: The "Bystander Apathy Effect" was first studied by researchers in New York after neighbors ignored--and in some cases turned up the volume on their TVs--the cries of a woman as she was murdered (over a half-hour period). With regard to helping those in difficulty generally, they found that: (1) women are helped more than men; (2) men help more than women; (3) attractive women are helped more than unattractive women. Other factors relate to the number of people in the area, whether the person is thought to be in trouble through their own fault, and whether a person sees himself as being able to help. According to Adrian Furnham, Professor of University College, London, there are three reasons why we tend to stand by doing nothing: (1) "Shifting of responsibility"-the more people there are, the less likely help is to be given. Each person excuses himself by thinking someone else will help, so that the more "other people' there are, the greater the total shifting of responsibility. (2) "'Fear of making a mistake''-situations are often not clear. People think that those involved in an accident may know each other or it may be a joke, so a fear of embarrassment makes them keep themselves to themselves. (3) "Fear of the consequences if attention is turned on you, and the person is violent." Laurie Taylor, Professor of Sociology at London University, says: "In the experiments I've seen on intervention , much depends on the neighborhood or setting. There is a silence on public transport which is hard to break. We are embarrassed to draw attention to something that is happening, while in a football match, people get involved, and a fight would easily follow. " Psychotherapist Alan Dupuy identifies the importance of the individual: "The British as a whole have some difficulty intervening, but there are exceptional individuals in every group who are prepared to intervene, regardless of their own safety: These would be people with a strong moral code or religious ideals." Which factor is NOT related with intervention according to the passage? A. Sex. B. Nationality. C. Profession. D. Setting. Answer: C Question: Harry is eighteen now. He studies in a middle school. His parents like him very much and hope he can become a famous man. So they often tell him to study hard and they do all for him. They call him at six in the morning, after breakfast his father takes him to school in a car and in the afternoon, as soon as the young man comes back, the supper is ready. Of course, he never washes his clothes or goes to buy something in the shops. Once, Harry's father was sent to London on business. He would stay there for half a year. Leaving, he told his wife to take good care of their son. The woman had to get up earlier and did all what her husband did before. And two months later she was so tired that she was ill in bed. Now the young man got into trouble. He couldn't do any housework. He had to do as his mother told him. Even he didn't know where to get on the bus! Yesterday Harry's mother found his shoes were worn out and told him to buy a new pair in the shop. But he didn't know how to choose. The woman had a sigh and gave him a shoe pattern and told him to buy a pair of shoes himself. It's Saturday today and Harry doesn't go to school. With a policeman's help, he found a shop. The shopkeeper was friendly to him. The man brought a lot of shoes and asked him to choose. When he was trying on a pair, suddenly he remembered something and took them off. The man was surprised and asked, "What's the matter, young man?" "I'm sorry, I've left the shoe pattern at home!" _ always does some housework in the morning. A. Harry's father B. Harry's mother C. Harry D. Nobody Answer: A Question: Before the opening of the Cape Cod Canal in 1914,the only way ships could leave Boston was on a route around Race Point--the northern tip of Cape Cod.However,navigation during the 18th century was a nightmare,because the floating cross current around Race Point caused countless accidents.So building a lighthouse to lighten the place was very necessary. As early as 1808,the people of Provincetown requested a lighthouse on Race Point,but it took Congress eight years to react when they finally paid $ 8,000 on April 27,1816 to build a lighthouse --Race Point Light,which was located in the town of Provincetown,Massachusetts.It was first built of stone 25 feet high with no foundation and its light was 30 feet above the sea.It was equipped with one of the nation's earliest revolving lights. Actually,there were two other lighthouses on Cape Cod,but they were hit by a storm in October 1841.In the following year,Race Point Light was examined by I.W.P.Lewis,who realized the light's importance.He said,"The light should be useful to all ships leaving Boston.However,its _ power is so weak that people would hardly be able to differentiate it from the lights set on the ships which stay in the bay,or close by.It hasn't played its role as a lighthouse well." The result was that old lighthouse was destroyed and a new iron lighthouse with a proper foundation was put up to take its place.The new lighthouse was 45 feet high.Although the original keeper's house was in good repair,it was destroyed too and a new one was built.Today the lighthouse has been automated and Race Point Light is still an active aid to navigation. You can park at Race Point Beach and walk about 45 minutes to the lighthouse.Sunset at Race Point Light is one of the Cape Cod's most popular scenes.And at times whales can be seen in the lighthouse.For reservations to stay one night in the keeper's house at Race Point call(508)487-9930. Why was the original Race Point Light replaced by a new one? A. It was too old to repair properly. B. It hadn't done a good job in helping the passing ships. C. It was destroyed in a storm in October 1841. D. It wasn't high enough and had no foundation. Answer: B Question: When I was 15, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my short-comings . Week by week her list grew. I was skinny , I talked too loud, I was too proud, and so on. I put up with her as long as I could. At last, I ran to my father in tears and anger. He listened to my outburst quietly. They he asked, "Are the things she says the true or not?"True? I wanted to know how to strike back. What did truth have to do with it? "Mary, didn't you ever wonder what you are really like? Well, you now have that girl's opinion. "Go and make a list of every thing she said and mark the points that are true. You needn't pay attention to the other things she said. I did as he told me and discovered to my surprise that about half the things are true. Some of them I couldn't change(like being skinny), but a good number I could and suddenly wanted to change. For the time in my life I began to get a quiet clear picture of myself. I brought the list back to Daddy, but he wouldn't take it."That's just for you,"he said."You know better than any else the truth about yourself, once you hear it. But you've got to learn to listen, not close your ears in anger or hurt. When someone says something about you, you'll know if it's true or not. If it is ,you'll find it will echo inside you." "I still don't think it very nice of her to talk about me in front of everybody." "Mary, there is one way you could stop others talking about you ever again, and criticizing you--just say nothing and do nothing. But then, if you do that, you'd find you were nothing. You wouldn't like that now, would you?""No, I admitted " The writer found that _ . A. about half the things her"enemy"said were true. B. most of the things her"enemy"said were true. C. few of the things her"enemy"said were true. D. none of the things her"enemy"said were true. Answer: A
Question: When an earthquake hit a small town,many houses fell down.After the earthquake,all the newspapers reported many stories about some of the families in trouble. One Sunday, when I was reading a newspaper, a special picture touched me.It gave the clothing sizes of each family member.I thought that this would be a good chance to teach my children to help those who were less lucky than themselves.I said to my seven-year-old twins,Brad and Brett,and three-year-old Meghan."We have so much,and these poor people now have nothing.We'll share what we have with them." I filled a box with food and clothes.While I was doing this,I encouraged the boys to choose their toys and donate some of their less favourite things.Meghan watched quietly as the boys took out their old toys and games and put them together.Then she walked away.A few minutes later she came back with Lucy, her much-loved doll.She put the doll on top of the other toys."Oh,dear" I said."You don't have to give Lucy.You love her so much."Meghan said,"Lucy makes me happy,Mommy.Maybe she'll make another little girl happy, too."I looked at Meghan for a long moment.She taught me a lesson.It's easy to give something that we don't want any more,but harder to give what we cherish ,isn't? Which of the following is true? A. An earthquake happened in the writer's hometown. B. The writer didn't let Meghan give her much-loved doll. C. The writer decided to buy some clothes for those people in trouble. D. The writer thinks it is more difficult to give what we 1ove a lot. Answer: D Question: Many cities in the world are benefiting from the night activities of a group of people who call themselves guerrilla gardeners. Armed with trowels, spades and a van full of flowers and plants, guerrilla gardeners turn abandoned urban land into a blaze of color. In city centre locations where there was mud, weeds and empty plastic bottles, residents often wake up to find that the wasted area has been transformed overnight with brightly-colored bedding plants. In most British cities, local governments and police turn a blind eye to the effort of the gardeners, whose activities are always carried out under cover of nightfall. And so far, there has been nothing but praise from the astonished and delighted local residents when they find their neighborhood transformed in such a striking fashion. Not only do the guerrilla gardeners beautify neglected places, they also return regularly to water the plants and weed the flower beds. They also make sure that at least some of the plants they bring are evergreens, which means that the area doesn't look depressing in the winter months. The first guerrilla gardener in London was Richard Reynolds, whose day job is at an advertising agency. Mr. Reynolds, a graduate of Oxford University, began his efforts two years ago when he moved to a flat in a tower block in South London. From his balcony, he could see several empty concrete pots, placed by the local governments to contain plants but never used. He went out after midnight and filled the pots with plants, and then planted more flowers in the path leading to the entrance to the block. He then set up a website to explain his plan and called upon more gardeners to join him. Cash donations flooded in and, more importantly, volunteers rushed to be part of the campaign. Within six months, there were five hundred people in London prepared to come out at very short notice to restore neglected parts of the urban landscape. There are now unofficial but carefully-organized groups in many cities in Britain and North America and there is also a website where would-be urban gardeners can find out the location of the next expedition. The guerrilla gardeners often return to their night working places with the purpose of _ . A. looking after these plants B. enjoying these beautiful flowers C. helping plants live through winter months D. changing the varieties of the plants Answer: A Question: Once upon a time two brothers who lived on neighboring farms fell into conflict . It was the first serious one in 40 years of farming side by side, sharing machinery, and trading labor and goods as needed. Then the long cooperation fell apart. It began with a small misunderstanding and it grew into a major difference, and finally it exploded into an exchange of bitter words followed by weeks of silence. One morning there was a knock on John' door. He opened it to find a man with a carpenter's toolbox. "I'm looking for a few days' work," he said. "Could I help you?" "Yes," said the older brother. "I do have a job for you. Look across the creek at that farm. That's my neighbor, in fact, it's my younger brother. Last week there was a meadow between us and he took his bulldozer to the levee and now there is a creek between us. Well, he may have done this to spite me, but I'll go him one better. I want you to build me a fence--an 8-foot fence --so I won't need to see his place anymore. Cool him down, anyhow." The carpenter said, "I think I understand the situation. I'll be able to do a job that pleases you." The older brother had to go to town for supplies, so he helped the carpenter get the materials ready and then he was off for the day. The carpenter worked hard all that day measuring, sawing, nailing. About sunset when the farmer returned, the carpenter had just finished his job. The farmer's eyes opened wide, his jaw dropped. There was no fence there at all. It was a bridge-- a bridge stretching from one side of the creek to the other! A fine piece of work-- and his younger brother was coming across, his hand outstretched. "You are quite a fellow to build this bridge after all I've said and done." The brothers stood at each end of the bridge, and then they met in the middle, taking each other's hand. They turned to see the carpenter lift his toolbox on his shoulder. "No, wait! Stay a few days. I've a lot of other projects for you," said the older brother. "I'd love to stay on," the carpenter said, "but, I have so many more bridges to build." What was life like for the two brothers before the conflict? A. They lived a poor, miserable life. B. They were friendly neighbors, helping each other. C. They never spoke to each other. D. They lived together as one family. Answer: B Question: Headington Oxford Summer School welcomes all students throughout the world and provides a fantastic summer school experience. It is close enough to visit London, which is a beautiful city in its own right and also has a number of attractions nearby. London: A trip to the UK would not be complete without a visit to the capital city of London. During the 'London Day' all students will have a chance to see famous tourist attractions such as Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament and Trafalgar Square. The students will also enjoy a boat trip on River Thames and a ride to the top of the Shard, an 87-storey building in London for a breathtaking view of the city. There will also be dinner in a London restaurant before heading back to the school. Thorpe Park: With over thirty extreme rides and attractions, and one of the world's most terrifying roller coasters, enjoy an exciting day out at one of the nation's most popular theme park Bath: Spend the day exploring this beautiful historic city with impressive architecture, including a visit to the famous Roman baths. Students also have the opportunity of a fantastic shopping experience in this famous market towns! Thinktank Science Museum & Birmingham: Spend the morning in the interactive state of the art science centre followed by an afternoon exploring Birmingham with time for shopping in the Bullring Shopping Centre. Warwick & Stratford: Visit one of medieval England's most beautiful castles full of history, tales and adventure. Afterwards, enjoy exploring the picturesque streets of Stratford Upon Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare. Brighton: This beautiful seaside town provides a fun-filled day out for all students. The day includes a visit to the Royal Pavilion and its museum as well as Brighton Pier and beach. There is also time for shopping in the famous Brighton Lanes before heading back to school. Where can you overlook the whole city when touring London? A. On top of the Shard B. On River Thames C. In a London restaurant D. At the Houses of Parliament Answer: A Question: My name is Panrit. I live in Samutprakarn. It is about thirty kilometers south of Bangkok,the capital of Thailand. My house is near a museum and opposite a school. My house has two floors,two bedrooms and two toilets. We don't have a dining room,so we eat our meals in the living room. There are four people in my family, my mum,my dad,my brother and I. My house doesn't have a garden but we have some plants in pots . We also have some small fish. My mum likes the plants very much. She usually waters and looks after them when she's at home. I don't usually stay at home. I usually stay at my grandma's home because it is more comfortable. In her home. there is no homework. and all I have to do is to play. Panrit's family have meals in the _ A. dinning room B. living room C. bedroom D. garden Answer: B
China's New Voice Three months ago,Liang Bo was just a student who was studying music in the college. Now he becomes " The Voice of China". The lucky young man is the winner of The Voice of China, the most popular TV show this summer. People think Liang's voice is natural, clear and touching. The 21-year-old boy was born in Changchun, Jilin. Like many other young Chinese, he fell in love with music by playing the guitar. Liang got his first guitar as a birthday gift when he was in middle school. He spent days and nights practicing. " I can't live without my guitar."He said. Many people think Liang Bo is just like famous Chinese rock singers such as Xu Wei, Wang Feng and Zheng Jun. But the young man doesn't want to stand in others' shadow ." I like them, but I'm not going to copy them. I will be who I am." he said. People think his voice is _ . Answer: A,B and C Discover the beautiful, silent, white world or Antarctica on the holidays of a life-time.Head South to Buenos Aires and then transfer to the world's most southern city, Ushuaia.From there, it's about 1,000 kilometers on a special icebreaker ship to the freezing temperature of Antarctica. Getting off the ship and taking your first step onto the ice, you will imagine what it is like to be an explorer.Meet penguins sitting on their eggs, or see an Antarctic seal that lives all the year round on the ice.But do not get closer than five meters to any animal, in case you frighten it or make it angry. The friendly crew of the ship will look after you as you explore the ice continent. We promise you fantastic meals and a comfortable bed -- you sleep in a four-person cabin -- as well as many special treats.If you don't think it is cold enough, try the ''polar plunge" -- jump into a special hole dug in the ice and dip your head under the water.You can then jump into a hot bath and if you succeed we will give you a certificate. After you wake up for the first time in the Antarctica you will understand why everybody who goes there falls in love with the place.The scenery is different every day because the sea ice is always moving. Our ships travel to Antarctica from November to March -- phone today and book your dream holiday! The author writes this text mainly to _ . Answer: attract more tourists to Antarctica Attitude is an internal state that influences the choices of personal action made by the individual. Some researchers consider that attitudes come from differences between beliefs and ideas; others believe that attitudes come from emotional states. Here, we focus on the effects of attitudes upon behavior, that is, upon the choices of action made by the individual. The kinds of actions taken by human beings are obviously influenced greatly by attitudes. Whether one listens to classical music or rock, whether one obeys the speed limit while driving, whether one encourages one's husband or wife to express his or her own ideas--all are influenced by attitudes. These internal states are acquired throughout life from situations one is faced with in the home, in the streets, and in the school. Of course, the course of action chosen by an individual in any situation will be largely determined by the particulars of that situation. An individual who has a strong attitude of obeying laws may drive too fast when he is in a hurry and no police cars in sight. A child who has a strong attitude of honesty may steal a penny when she thinks no one will notice. But the internal state which remains unchanged over a period of time, and which makes the individual behave regularly in a variety of situations, is what is meant by an attitude. Attitudes are learned in a variety of ways. They can result from single incidents, as when an attitude toward snakes is acquired by an experience in childhood at the sudden movement of a snake. They can result from the individual's experiences of success and pleasure, as when someone acquires a positive attitude toward doing crossword puzzles by being able to complete some of them. And frequently, they are learned by copying other people's behavior, as when a child learns how to behave toward foreigners by observing the actions of his parents. Regardless of these differences, there is something in common in the learning and modification of attitudes. Which of the following is TRUE about the learning of attitudes? Answer: Attitudes can be learned from one's parents. Handball is a hugely popular sport in Europe and Asia, and it is one of the fastest and most exciting sports in the world.It combines basketball and soccer with the attracting saves of water polo. Handball is played on an indoor court(the size of two basketball courts)and there are goals at each end.There are twelve players on each team,two goal keepers and ten field players,but there is a maximum of one goalkeeper and six field players from each team allowed on the court at any one time.The idea is simple:score more goals than the other team. The ball is made of leather or synthetic material and it must be round.The surface must not be shiny or slippery.The size and weight of the ball varies for male and female teams,and adult and junior teams. Handball has the same free-ranging play as basketball,with all players except the goalkeeper constantly moving from attack to defence.The goalkeeper uses hands, feet,head and body to keep out the other team's shots.The origins of handball are unclear.Many people believe that it developed as a training game for soccer,to be played in the off season,or when it snowing.Now,in countries where handball is popular,players can earn large sums of money,and indoor stadiums seating over ten thousand people sell out regularly.Handball has been played at the Olympics since 1972. The passage states that handball was most probably developed _ . Answer: as a training game The Mona Lisa, one of the world's most famous paintings, has been recreated with 3,604 cups of coffee--and 564 pints of milk. The different colors were created by adding no, little or lots of milk to each cup of black coffee. The recreated Mona Lisa measured 20 feet long and 13 feet wide. It took a team of eight people three hours to complete the work. It was created for The Rocks Aroma Festival in Sydney, Australia, and seen by 130,000 people who attended the one-day coffee-lovers event. Elaine Kelly, one of the organizers from the Sydney Harbor Foreshore Authority, was delighted with the result. She said, "Each coffee cup was filled with varying amounts of milk to create the different shades of the painting. We wanted to create an element of surprise and a sense of fun in the way we communicated with the public." "Once we had the idea of creating an image out of coffee cups we searched for something iconic to reproduce .And after some time we chose the most iconic painting in history. The Mona Lisa has been reproduced so many times in so many different mediums but, as far as we know, never out of coffee," Kelly continued. "Besides, the idea is practical." "It was fantastic. It really looked like the famous painting--the Mona Lisa. It was wonderful," said one visitor. After much planning it was great to see it coming together so well and the 130,000 people who attended the event certainly enjoyed it and were deeply attracted by it," said Kelly. How were the different colors of the recreated Moma Lisa created? Answer: By adding different amounts of milk to each cup of black coffee.
Question: On the day Apple debuted the often-delayed white-colored iPhone 4, the company's marketing department gave a nod to the product's troubled history. "Finally." read the big headline Thursday above a picture of the white phone on the homepage of Apple. com. The white model was supposed to ship alongside the black one at the iPhone 4's launch last June. But design and manufacturing complications delayed the process by 10 months, catching Apple off guard, executives say. As CNN reported last month, earlier test models of the white iPhone 4 produced unclear photos, especially when the flash was used. Its whiteness confused the proximity sensor , which detects when the phone is held next to someone's head and turns off the touch screen to save battery life. These problems weren't present in older iPhones that came in white because they didn't have flash photography; the proximity sensor was unaffected because the front side of previous models was black. "We thought we were there a year ago, or less than that, when we launched the iPhone 4, and we weren't," Philip Schiller, Apple's chief marketing executive, said in an interview. "It's not as simple as making something white. There's a lot more that goes into both the material science of it --how it holds up over time...but also in how it all works with the sensors. " Ticonderoga Securities analyst Brian White predicts that the white model could help drive sales of Apple's phones. He says Apple could sell 1 million to 1. 5 million every three months until the next iPhone model is , which is expected to be this fall. Forty-five people were lined up at Apple's flagship New York store Thursday morning to buy white iPhones, according to a CNN Money report. What would be the best title for this passage? A. Why the White iPhone 4 Took So Long B. The History of iPhone 4 C. The Attraction of White iPhone 4 D. The Design and Manufacture of iPhone 4 Answer: A. Why the White iPhone 4 Took So Long Question: Busan , the largest port and fisheries city located on the southeast coast of the Korean Peninsula , attracts more tourists to go sightseeing every year. With a population of four million,Korea's second largest metropolis grew into a modern port city between 1906 and 1944. It first opened its ports as the first international port in Korea in 1876. As a frequently visited coastal city for Korean and foreign vacationers alike,Busan offers precious natural resources including mountains,rivers and the sea,all to be enjoyed in a year round comfortable climate. Busan,with its four distinct seasons, is reinventing itself into an international tourist sea resort . Aquariums let visitors go on undersea journeys and sea resorts are equipped with amusement parks bringing tourists the best service and hot springs that could be offered in a special tourist zone. All the year round, _ . At the Busan Sea Festival,the summer's heat and the clean white sands, along with the fresh sea winds mix with youthful vitality . Furthermore,the biggest seafood market at the Busan Jagalchi Festival offers fresh seafood and the Busan International Film Festival has world famous top-quality films. In January, the winter North Polar Bear Swimming Contest and the Greeting Sunrise Festival are held as a bless of good health, activity and happiness after one year's tireness.. Busan is also a city of _ . It has successfully hosted international sporting events such as the 1986 Asian Games and the 1988 Olympic Games,football and yacht competitions and the 1997 East Asian Games. Because of its hosting experience and world class facilities,Busan hosted the 2002 FIFA World Cup and the 14th Asian Games. All in all, Busan is a fantasy world. If you want to get as much as information about Busan, you can log on the following site: _ Which of the following about Busan is NOT mentioned in the passage? A. sports B. festivals C. natural resources D. welfare service Answer: D. welfare service Question: The iPhone, the iPad, each of Apple's products sounds cool and has become a fad . Apple has cleverly taken advantage of the power of the letter "i" - and many other brands are following suit. The BBC's iPlayer - which allows Web users to watch TV programs on the Internet -adopted the title in 2008. A lovely bear - popular in the US and UK - that plays music and video is called "iTeddy". A slimmed-down version of London's Independent newspaper was launched last week under the name "i". In general, single-letter prefixes have been popular since the 1990s, when terms such as e-mail and e-commerce first came into use. Most "i" products are targeted at young people and considering the major readers of Independent's "i", it's no surprise that they've selected this fashionable name. But it's hard to see what's so special about the letter "i". Why not use "a", "b", or "c" instead? According to Tony Thorne, head of the Language Center at King's College, London, "i" works because its meaning has become _ When Apple uses "i", no one knows whether it means Internet, information, individual or interactive, Thorne told BBC Magazines. "Even when Apple created the iPod, it seems it didn't have one clear definition," he says. "However, thanks to Apple, the term is now associated with portability ."adds Thorne. Clearly the letter "i" also agrees with the idea that the Western World is centered on the individual. Each person believes they have their own needs, and we love personalized products for this reason. Along with "Google" and "blog", readers of BBC Magazines voted "i" as one of the top 20 words that have come to define the last decade. But as history shows, people grow tired of fads. From the 1900s to 1990s, products with "2000" in their names became fashionable as the year was associated with all things advanced and modern. However, as we entered the new century, the trend inevitably disappeared. Nowadays, the "i" term often reminds people of the products which are _ . A. portable B. environmentally friendly C. advanced D. recyclable Answer: A. portable Question: Sea turtles come in many different sizes, shapes and colors. The shell of each sea turtle species is different in length, color, shape and the arrangement of the scales . Sea turtles do not have teeth but use their jaws to eat. Their sense of smell is excellent. Their eyesight underwater is good, but they have _ out of water. Their special bodies make them adapt to life at sea. However, sea turtles maintain close ties to land. Female sea turtles have to go to the seaside to lay their eggs in the sand; therefore, all baby sea turtles begin their lives on land. Most research on sea turtles has been focused on female turtles nesting and the baby sea turtles in the nest, largely because they can be found most easily. After decades of studying sea turtles, much has been learned about. However, many mysteries still remain. Researchers do not yet know how long baby turtles spend in the open sea, or exactly where they go. People believe they spend their earliest years floating in the sea, where they do little more than eat and grow. Once turtles reach dinner-plate size, they appear at feeding grounds in waters near the shore. They grow slowly and take between 15 and 50 years to grow old enough to bear baby sea turtles, depending on the species. There is no way to know the age of a sea turtle from its physical appearance. It is believed that some species can live for over 100 years. Which of the following questions is answered in the text? A. Why do female turtles lay eggs on land? B. Why can't people tell how old a sea turtle is from its appearance? C. Where do the baby turtles usually go? D. Do sea turtles grow very fast? Answer: D. Do sea turtles grow very fast? Question: There are many things we need to know, but we do not learn them at school. For example, if we want to use our money wisely, we need to shop carefully. We need to know how to compare the prices of things in different shops. We need to be able to compare the quality of different brands . We need to know how to make _ choices when we shop. Knowing how to make such choices is a "life skill", and we need the skill if we want to lead a useful and happy life. Some of these choices are small. For example, will I have an apple for lunch or a pear? Will I take a bus to school today or will I walk? Will I wear the red T- shirt or the blue one to go to the movie? Other choices are more important. For example, will I eat healthy food for lunch or will I eat junk food? Will I work hard on all my classes or will I work hard only in the classes I enjoy? We make choices like these every day. Making wrong choices can cause unhappiness. We have to realize that the choices we make can affect the rest of our life. And our choices can also affect other people. If you decide to waste time in class, play a joke on someone or talk loudly at the movie, consider this: who else does your choice affect? ,A, B, C, D,(10). Which of the following choices is more important than others according to the passage? A. Will I have an apple for breakfast? B. Will I walk to school today? C. Will I study harder at English? D. Will I wear my blue jeans to go to the party? Answer: C. Will I study harder at English?
A rabbit is running into its hole. You may ask, "What happened?" Well, when a rabbit sees something dangerous, it runs away. Its tail moves up and down as it runs. When other rabbits see this tail moving up and down, they run too. They know that there is danger. The rabbit has told them something without making a sound. It has given them a signal. Many other animals use this kind of language. When a bee found some food, it goes back to his home. It cannot tell the other bees where the food is by speaking to them, but it does a little dance in the air. This tells the bees where the food is. Some animals say things by making sounds. A dog barks, for example, when a stranger comes near. A cat purrs when pleased. Some birds make several different sounds, each with its own meaning. But human beings have something that no animals have --- a large number of words about things, actions, feelings or ideas. We are able to give each other information, to tell or inform other people what is in our mind or how we feel. By writing words down we can remind ourselves of the things what have happened, or send messages to people far away. No animals can do this. No animals has the wonderful power of language. No one knows how man learned to make words. Somehow he learned to make them. As centuries went by, he made more and more new words. This is what we mean by language. People living in different countries made different kinds of words. Today there are about fifteen hundred different languages in the world. A very large English dictionary, for example, contains four or five hundred thousand words. But we do not know all these. The words we know are called vocabulary. We should try to make our vocabulary larger. Read as many books as possible. When we meet a new word, look it up in the dictionary. A dictionary is the Most useful book. Generally speaking, what we mean by "vocabulary" is _ . Answer: more and more words we use Researchers in the United States have developed the first wirelessly controlled device that can supply a drug directly into the body. A small chip is implanted under the skin. It contains the medicine, which it releases at preset times. The developers say the device could improve the lives of millions of people who take medicine for long-term illnesses. A company calledMicrochips began developing the device about fifteen years ago. Last month, the company _ the results of its first successful tests in humans. The tests took place in Denmark with seven women with osteoporosis . Osteoporosis causes bones to become weak and break easily. The disorder is common among older people especially women. Many patients have to give themselves daily injection of medicine. One type of treatment requires injections for two years. The patients stop taking the medicine because of the pain and stress of the injections. As a result, only twenty-five percent of the patients will go through the entire twenty-four months of treatment. The microchip is a few centimeters long. It has small sections and each section holds a single dose of medicine. The device has to be programmed with the times to release the drug. Doctors will be able to reprogram the device from a computer or even a cell phone. For osteoporosis, the physician will program the device, and the device has the ability to release a dose at a given time, every single day. For other diseases, where the physician may want to change the dosing schedule, they will have the ability to wirelessly reprogram that dosing schedule. The seven women in the study were ages of sixty-five to seventy. The researchers say the implants were just as effective as daily injections. And they say the medicine amounts were more exact than patients often give themselves. In which column of a newspaper could we find this passage? Answer: Medicine. Along with the Great Pyramid of Giza. The Sphinx is one of the most studied ancient monument of mankind's history. The whole complex of Giza, composed of the Sphinx, the Great Pyramid, other pyramids, and distinct structures, definitely holds the key to understanding advanced past civilizations. In the examination of the mystery of the great Sphinx we run into a similar situation. The Egyptians wrote very little about the construction of the Sphinx. However, the Egyptians, Romans, and Arabs did write accounts concerning its numerous restorations, which will be discussed later in this article. In addition, it should be said that other cultures had their form of a Sphinx. For example, the Greek Sphinx was a female with a human head, breast, and the body of a feminine lion. Now there are basically two schools of thought on the origin, the age and the builder of the Sphinx in Egypt. The traditional view of Egyptologists is that Pharaoh Khafre of the Fourth Dynasty built the Sphinx along with the Great Pyramid around 2,500 BC. The evidence is that the face of the Sphinx is thought to look like Pharaoh Khafre. This theory makes the Sphinx about 5,000 years old according to Dr Zahi Hawass, director of Giza Saqqara of the Egyptian Antiquities Organization. The other school of thought doesn't believe that the Egyptians built the Sphinx, but thinks that it was built by an advanced civilization before the Egyptians. The Egyptians came later and built their tombs and temples along the sides of these great structures. This school of thought has been around for hundreds of years, but new buildings give it more _ . Recently, Graham Hancock , the author of the famous book Finger-prints of the Gods and some American scholars have presented certain evidence that challenges the traditional thought on the Sphinx. They present proofs that may cause a rethinking of the so-called fact used to determine who built the Sphinx and the Great Pyramid of Giza and for what purpose. Their proofs consist of basically two pieces of evidence astronomical calculations of the stars and geological evidence that the erosion of the Sphinx and other monuments of Giza was due to water rather than sand, wind or sunshine according to Robert Bauval's book _ . It is this evidence that has turned the Egyptologists' world upside down. Which of the following is the main purpose of the passage? Answer: To tell us two views on the origin of the Sphinx. The time children spend outdoors could be linked to a reduced risk of being short-sighted, research suggests. An analysis of eight previous studies by University of Cambridge researchers found that for each additional hour spent outside per week, the risk of short-sightedness was reduced by 2%.They said exposure to natural light and time spent looking at distant objects could be key factors . The studies involved more than 10,000 children and adolescents. Dr Justin Sherwin and his research team concluded that short-sighted children spent an average of 3.7 fewer hours per week outdoors than those who either had normal vision or were far-sighted. But they said the reasons were not yet clear.They expected to find that children who spent more time outdoors also spent less time doing activities like reading, studying or playing computer games, but no such link was found in two of the eight studies which looked at this relationship. However, Dr Sherwin said they would now need more precise data to try to understand which factors, such as increased use of distance vision, reduced use of near vision, natural ultraviolet light exposure and physical activity,are most important. "Any increase in time spent outdoors must be weighed against exposure to ultraviolet radiation and the increased risk of skin cancer, cataracts and other cancers."he said."On the other hand, increasing outdoor physical activity could protect against diabetes and obesity, for example." Short-sightedness is a common eye condition that causes distant objects to appear blurred , while close objects can be seen clearly. It is much more common today in the UK and the United States than it was just 30 to 40 years ago. Approximately 1-2% of five-year-olds to seven-year-olds in the UK have short-sightedness.About.five million British people are short-sighted and some 200,000 of them will be seriously short-sighted. In some parts of Asia, more than 80% of the population suffers from short-sightedness. According to the passage, short-sightedness may have something to do with the following except _ . Answer: obesity Allow me to introduce you to Terry, a window salesman from England. If I could take you back about 20 years, you'd know Terry as a complete green hand, who was wet behind the ears in just about everything he attempted. _ You know, the kind who could sell snow to Eskimos. Terry's boss decided to send him out on a practical field trip on his first day. So off he went, but he was extremely nervous. With his hands and his knees shaking, he approached the front door and knocked at is. And old woman appeared. After dozens of cups of tea and pieces of biscuits, the woman signed a contract and purchased over $7,000 worth of windows. The woman had already talked with 6 excellent salesmen that week, all of whom offered her cheaper ones! That's right---Terry's price was the most expensive and he was also the most inexperienced salesman there ever was. So, what happened then? Here comes the secret. The woman said she liked the young lad more than the others. That's all there was to it. She didn't care about the extra expense. Even the other salesmen couldn't persuade her to pay less than this young lad was asking for. The truth is that the young lad left on the woman the first impression that shone brighter than any of the salesman's talk. First impressions count, not the sales techniques, not the low prices. The actual "personality" the kid honestly gave was all that was required. If you market your own products and services, consider what impression you are giving to others. If you appeal to them, then you've already done half of the work. If this means redesigning your presentation, then so be it. If this means going out of your way to be polite, helpful and giving the best possible shopping experience to your customers, the so be it. When Terry was offered the job of salesman, he _ . Answer: knew little about sales skills
Today's children are the "result" of the modern society. Our parents have jobs that keep them busy almost all day long. They only have a free day in a week. This doesn't allow them to keep an eye on their children. On the other hand, the modern society gives more freedom to the children than they could "handle". As a child, you don't know how to grow up by yourself until you reach a certain age. That is why you need school and parents to be by your side all the time. If you don't have either of them you may make a lot of mistakes. The social system of the modern society is very _ especially with the children. Most of the children today are rebels . They are rude. They are given too much freedom by their families. This is their parent's mistake. They ought to know that the freedom they give to their children is misunderstood. For example it is a bad thing for a 17 - year - old child to go out in the evening on weekends. Parents are also guilty of the way their children show up in the street or at school. The same guilt belongs to the teaching system as well. Pupils shouldn't be allowed to dress like they were on a fashion presentation at school. Another important fact we can think of regarding the freedom of children is their free will of spending money. Parents shouldn't allow their children to spend money on whatever they want. I think children are given too much freedom not only by their parents, but also by the society. The latter is more to be blamed! According to the writer, which of the following takes the primary responsibility for children's problems? A The social environment. B The educational system. C Each family. D The school. Answer: A It was a rainy day and James wanted to play. If he went outside to play, he would get wet. James' mother told him not to get wet because he might catch a cold. James went out to play, anyway. Outside, the cool rain kept falling. There were no other children for James to play with. The other children were all playing inside, where it was warm and dry. James found a puddle that had appeared in the mud. He found a piece of wood and pretended it was a turtle. He put the wooden turtle in the puddle and watched it float in a circle. This was not very fun. After one hour, James went back inside. When James went inside, he found his mother waiting. She had her hands on her hips and a serious look on her face. James was soaking wet! His mother made him change into dry clothes, and he was not to leave the house for the rest of the day. The next morning, the sun shone warm and bright, and the birds sang their morning songs. It was a beautiful day. When James woke up, he coughed. Then he sneezed. His body ached all over. James had a cold! James looked out the window and saw the neighbor children playing in their yards. They were having a lot of fun. James wanted to join them, but he was too sick. His mother was right. Why did the mother look so serious? A Because the puddle was not very fun. B Because James went outside when it was raining. C Because James caught a cold. D Because her hands were on her hips. Answer: B All students need to have good habits :When you have good study habits, you learn things quickly. You also remember them easily. Do you like to study in the living room? This is not a good place because it is usually too noisy. The telephone bell rings there; the TV is there, and sometimes it is a good place for your pet dog or cats to play and rest. You need to study in a quiet place, like your bedroom. A quiet place will help you only think about one thing, and you will learn better. Before you begin to study, do not forget to clean your desk. A good desk light is important, too. You'll feel tired easily if there is not enough light . So you should have a clean and bright lamp. To tell you the truth, the most important is that you should put your heart into your study. The best title for this passage is _ . A Study in the bedroom B Good study habits C How to study D Desk light is important Answer: B High tide is a stage in the A food chain of the monarch butterfly B moon tugging on saltwater C timeline of all humanity D life cycle of land mammals Answer: B It was terribly cold and nearly dark on the last evening of the old year, and the snow was falling fast. In the cold and the darkness, a poor little girl, with bare head and naked feet, wandered through the streets. It is true she had on a pair of slippers when she left home, but they were not of much use. They were very large, so large, indeed, that they had belonged to her mother, and the poor girl had lost them in running across the street to avoid two carriages that were rolling along at a terrible rate. One of the slippers she could not find, and a boy seized upon the other and ran away with it. So the little girl went on with her little naked feet, which were quite red and blue with the cold. In an old apron she carried a number of matches, and had a bunch of them in her hands. No one had bought anything of her the whole day, nor had any one given her even a penny. Lights were shining from every window, and there was a delicious smell of roast goose, for it was New-year's eve--yes, she remembered that. In a corner, between two houses, one of which projected beyond the other, she sank down and huddled herself together. She had drawn her little feet under her, but she could not keep off the cold; and she dared not go home, for she had sold no matches, and could not take home even a penny of money. Her father would certainly beat her; besides, it was almost as cold at home as here. The story happened _ . A on New-year Day B on Christmas C on a rainy evening D on a snowy night Answer: D
Several years ago, I had a huge falling out with one of my best friends. So huge, in fact, that now I can't even remember what happened. In the past nine years, I've seen her twice, and each time we've been polite but distant. And that troubles me because we were once inseparable. I'd like nothing more than to go back nine years, and continue our friendship. But how? How do you reconnect with friends you've lost throughout the years? Linking to your past The desire to reconnect with lost friends isn't unusual. Why? Because friends link us to the past. " _ ," says Sandy Sheehy. Although you can share information about your past with friends you've met recently, you don't have a shared history with them. So you wind up only telling them about your past, rather than sharing it with them. But many people never try to reconnect. Women especially have trouble taking the first step. Shyness or fear that the other person doesn't want to reconnect often stops many women. And that shouldn't be. Your friends probably want to be in touch with you as much as you want to be in touch with them. Searching for friends Fortunately, finding lost friends isn't as difficult as it once was, thanks to tools like the Internet. Our experts offer these suggestions for locating contact information: Search Internet sites designed to locate people like classmates.com and switchboard.com. Contact your high school or college alumni office to request current address information. Surf online yellow pages. Check current phone records from your friend's hometown. Network with other friends who might have known your friend. Get in touch with any of her relatives, if you know where they live. If you know where she works, find the company's website and search the directory of personnel. What makes us unwilling to reconnect old friends? A. Lack of money. B. Busy time. C. Regret and shame. D. Fear and shyness. Answer: A Nearly a quarter-century after a German boy threw a message in a bottle off a ship in the Baltic Sea, he's received an answer. A 13-year-old Russian, Daniil Korotkikh, was walking with his parents on a beach when he saw something lying in the sand. "I saw that bottle and it looked interesting," Korotkikh told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "it looked like a German beer bottle and there was a message inside. " It said, "My name is Frank, and I'm five years old. My dad and I are traveling on a ship to Denmark. If you find this letter, please write back to me, and I will write back to you." The letter, dated 1987, included an address in the town of Coesfeld. The boy in the letter, Frank Uesbeck, is now 29. His parents still live at the letter's address. The Russian boy and the German man met each other earlier this month through an internet video link. The Russian boy said he did not believe that the bottle actually spent 24 years in the sea. He believed it had been hidden under the sand where he found it for a long time. Uesbeck was especially happy that he was able to have a positive effect on a life of a young person far away from Germany. "It's really a wonderful story," he said. "And who knows? Perhaps one day we will actually be able to arrange a meeting in person. " When the German boy threw the bottle into the sea, _ . A. he was going back home. B. he was traveling to Denmark by ship with his dad. C. he was walking with his parents on a beach. D. he was already 29 years old. Answer: B There are some vegetables in the garden and a big tree near the vegetables. They don't like each other, because vegetables drink much water, and the tree can't have enough water to live. He is very angry about that. So he wants to teach vegetables a lesson . On a very hot day, the big tree doesn't share its shadow with vegetables. It makes vegetables very hot. But there is not enough water to drink. So they soon become very dry. At that time, the gardener comes to see these vegetables. He is very sad, because all the vegetables are dry. Then he starts to build a new one. The vegetables and the big tree can't drink water any more. The big tree feels very sad, because he uses a wrong way to teach the lesson. Which of the following is TRUE? A. The big tree doesn't want to drink any water. B. The big tree always shares its shadow with vegetables. C. The big tree and vegetables start to share water with each other. D. The big tree thinks he is wrong at last. Answer: D Ask anyone what is the most difficult part of changing their lifestyle habits and they are most likely to say, "Staying motivated." But a 36-year-old professor from Carnegie Mellon University claims it may have the answer in the form of robot weight loss coach that dishes out daily health advice and encouragement. Autom is the work of Intuitive Automata, a company based in Sha Tin which claims to be a pioneer in commercial socially-interactive robots. The robot, which stands around 38 centimeters tall, has a head that swivels , blue eyes, and a touch screen which allows the user to input information daily about exercise and diet Its creators say Autom will have a daily conversation with its user lasting up to five minutes, giving feedback and encouragement.Over time, it will interact more with the user as it gathers more information about them. Cory Krdd, a research team manager with the Federal Emergency Management Agency claims research has shown that people find robots a more reliable source of information than on-screen-based character. In a controlled study in Pittsburgh City Council, 15 dieters were given Autom for six weeks. Another 15 received a touch-screen computer with identical software and 15 were given a paper log.The study found, people using the robot are more likely to stick with their diets longer, in fact twice as long as those using just a paper log. "While not one person among the computer or paper groups continued past six weeks, most who had Autom did not want to give her back at the conclusion of the study," he said. The bottom line is that a robot creates a more powerful and long-lasting relationship with the user than a character on the screen. Autom is expected to go on sale later this year in the United States for around $500.A robot which speaks and understands Cantonese and Mandarin in addition to English according to the demands is also being developed. Which is true about Autom according to the passage? A. The price of this robot is very high. B. It can communicate with people freely. C. Autom can act as a coach to help lose weight. D. These robots called Autom have been used widely. Answer: C Before it rains water must collect in A. clouds. B. snow. C. sleet. D. fog. Answer: A
Can you imagine traveling to work in a one - man submarine? Some scientists believe that some day one - man submarines will be as many as automobiles are today.A famous French driver says, "One day soon, men will walk on the ocean floor as they do on the street!" Perhaps during your lifetime people will travel, and live in the sea. If human beings want to live in the ocean, many human problems will need to be studied first. Some of these problems, similar to those of living in outer space, are pressure, lack of oxygen and weightlessness. Many questions are still unanswered.For example, can our blood make itself fit for underwater surroundings? What will happen to our muscle if we live in the water very long? Scientists are looking for answers. Perhaps in the future man will live in the sea, away from the crowded and noisy cities on land.Then sea has plenty of space, not only for floating living buildings and parks, but also for storing supplies and for underwater travel. Some scientists believe that ocean living will benefit man in more than physical ways. In the freedom and beauty of the deep sea, man may find new sources of joy. Which of the following is the similar problem as that of living in outer space? ( ) Answer: We are short of oxygen. On Saturday, Amy and Joe baked a whole chicken for their family's dinner. They rinsed it in cold water, rubbed it with spices, and put it into a pan. After they had heated up the oven, they put the chicken and the pan on the center oven rack and set the timer. Then, as they peeled potatoes and carrots to go with the chicken, Amy, Joe and Cindy talked about dinner. Amy said, "Joe, this is too much food for you, me and little Cindy to eat in one night. We'll have leftovers. What can we do with the leftover chicken?" Joe said, "We could make chicken sandwiches or chicken and rice." Amy said, "How about chicken soup?" Cindy said, "I like chicken with Thai noodles with red peppers. We haven't made those in a long time." "That sounds good," said Amy. "We'll make that for dinner tomorrow." "Yum!" said Joe. "That's a great idea. I love Thai noodles." Later, Joe, Amy and Cindy had finished eating dinner, and Cindy asked Amy for help with her homework. "I don't understand how to do these math problems!" Joe said, "You two go ahead. I'll do the dishes and put away the leftovers." Soon, Cindy went into the kitchen to get a glass of water. Joe was eating the chicken. It was almost gone! "Dad!" said Cindy, "You have eaten almost all of the leftover chicken. We can't have Thai noodles with chicken tomorrow." Joe looked very sad. He said "I'm sorry. I have been a bad dad. I have to buy more chicken so that we can still have noodles. Would you like a piece of chicken?" What kind of homework does Amy need help with? Answer: Math It's nine o'clock in the evening. The family are all at home. Jim's father is sitting in a chair. He's watching TV. Jim's mother is standing near the window. She's giving some food to a bird. Polly says,"Thanks ! Thanks!" Where's Jim ? Oh, he's behind the door. Kate, Jim's sister, is looking for him. They are playing games. They have no homework on Sunday evening. Jim and Kate are _ Answer: brother and sister. Delilah put a container of water in the freezer and left it there overnight. The next morning she saw that the water in the container had changed to ice. Which of the following statements best explains why the water changed to ice? Answer: Heat was taken away from the water. In a world as fast-changing and full of information as our own, all of us need to know how to learn well. Yet evidence suggests that most of us don't use the learning techniques that science has proved the most effective. The scientific literature evaluating these techniques goes back to decades and across thousands of articles. It's far too _ and complex for the average parent, teacher or employer to look through. Fortunately, a team of five leading psychologists have done the job for us. Professor John Dunlosky and other psychologists closely examined 10 learning strategies and rated each from high to low utility on the basis of the evidence they've gathered. Here's part of their conclusions: In contrast to familiar practices, the effective learning strategies with the most evidence to support them aren't well known outside the lab. Take distributed practice, for example. This strategy involves spreading out your study time, rather than engaging in one marathon. Cramming information at the last minute may allow you to get through that test or meeting, but the material will quickly disappear from your memory. It's much more effective to look through the material at intervals over time. And the longer you want to remember the information, whether it's two weeks or two years, the longer the intervals should be. The second learning strategy that is highly recommended by Dunlosky is practice testing. Yes, more tests---but there not for a grade. Research shows that the mere act of calling information to mind strengthens that knowledge and aids in future retrieval . While practice testing is not a common strategy---despite the strong evidence supporting it ---there is one familiar approach that captures its benefits: using flash cards. And now flash cards can be presented in digital form. Both distributed practice and practice testing were rated as having "high utility" by Dunlosky. About distributed practice and practice testing, it's true that _ . Answer: only a small number of experts know about them
Question: Students from Florida International University in Miami walked on water Thursday for a class assignment.To do it,they wore aquatic shoes they designed and created. Alex Quinones was the first to make it to the other side of a 175-foot lake on campus in record time--just over a minute.Quinones,who wore oversized boat-like shoes,also won last year and will receive $ 500.Students had to wear the aquatic shoes and make it across the lake in order to earn an "A" on the assignment for Architecture Professor Jaime Canaves,Materials and Methods Construction Class."It's traditional in a school of architecture to do boats out of cardboard for a boat race.I thought our students were a little bit more special than that," Canaves said." We decided to do the walk on water event to take it to the next level." A total of 79 students competed in the race this year in 41 teams.Only 10 teams failed to cross the lake.Others who fell got back up and made it to the end.The race is open to all students and anyone in the community.The youngest person to ever participate was a 9-year-old girl who competed in place of her mother,while the oldest was a 67-year-old female. A large crowd on campus joined Canaves as he cheered on the racers.He shouted encouraging words,but also laughed as some unsteadily made their way to the end. "A part of this is for them to have more understanding of designing and make it work better," he said.It is also a lesson in life for the students. "Anything,including walking on water,is possible,if you do the research,test it and go through the design process seriously." For what purpose did the students take part in the race? A. To go across the lake to school. B. To test their balance on the water. C. To pass Professor Canaves' class. D. To win the prize money of $ 500. Answer: C Question: Eleanor Roosevelt was born in New York City on October 11, 1884. When her mother died in 1892, the children went to live with Grandmother Hall; her father died only two years later. Attending a good school in England gave her, at 15, her first chance to develop self-confidence among other girls. In her circle of friends was a distant cousin, handsome young Franklin Delano Roosevelt. They became engaged in 1903 and were married in 1905. Within 11 years Eleanor bore six children; one son died early. In Albany, where Franklin served in the state Senate from 1910 to 1913, Eleanor started her long career as political helpmate. When he was stricken with polio in 1921, she took care of him devotedly. From his successful campaign for governor in 1928 to the day of his death, she dedicated her life to his purposes. When Mrs. Roosevelt came to the White House, she understood social conditions well and she transformed the role of First Lady accordingly. She broke the tradition to hold conferences, and expressed her opinions. This made her a target for political enemies but her sincerity of purpose made her personally popular to many. As she had written: "...if truth and loyalty are stamped upon her face, all will be attracted to her..." After the President Roosevelt's death in 1945, she returned to a cottage at his Hyde Park estate; she told reporters, "The story is over." Within a year, however, she began her service as American spokeswoman in the United Nations. She continued a positive career until her strength began to wane in 1962. She died in New York City that November, and was buried at Hyde Park beside her husband. According to the passage, we can infer that Eleanor did well in the field of _ . A. history B. science C. economics D. politics Answer: D Question: Last spring, members of Alaska's Troop 34, based in Fairbanks, trudged out into the snowy wilderness to take part in their state's Take a Kid Trapping program. In many parts of the state, beavers are pests and need to be controlled. The 10-to-12-year-old girls found out where beavers lived, set traps, and skinned the two animals they caught. The girls hope to catch ten more beavers so that the entire troop can make mittens and hats with the fur. They also want to cook beaver meat. Troop leaders and members say the Scouts are doing a good deed by helping control the state's beaver population. But animal-rights activists say trapping is cruel. They want the Girl Scouts to stop in their tracks. Beavers aren't only causing a problem in Alaska. Residents in Sampson County, N.C., have turned to a local committee to help them battle the growing beaver population there. County landowners are frustrated after the county spent more than $ 50,000 in eight years trying to reduce the beaver population through a government program. The joint state and federal program included paying money to trappers for every beaver carcass they trapped. Many local residents say that the program didn't work because there were too few trappers. That's why the county set up its own committee to investigate other ways to control the area's beaver population. The county will rely on its own beaver-trapping program. It has hired a trapper to set traps in various areas. The county will pay $10 for every beaver carcass. Why do many people say that beavers are a nuisance? For beavers to survive, they need lots of water. Water provides the large rodent with a place to hide from meat - eating animals. Beavers also store food underwater for the winter. When there's not enough water in a particular area, beavers get busy building dams. Beaver dams can cause major flooding and damage to the surrounding countryside as the animals cut down trees to use in their construction projects. Beavers build canals to transport heavy objects. Which of the following statements is TRUE? A. Sampson County has to find a new way to control the beaver population there. B. The government program in Sampson County has proved to be a success. C. The local government has controlled the number of beavers in the County. D. More and more trappers now start to set traps in Sampson County. Answer: A Question: Changes to the earth can be done as a result of A. high temps B. mild weather C. large storms D. snowing clouds Answer: A Question: I grew up in New Hampshire, a small town in South Canada, where in my father's words for the seasons were "Spring, Summer, Fairtime and Winter!" At that time, a week-long fair was held in the town every autumn. Thousands of people from other towns came to sell and buy things. It was the busiest time of the year. When "Fairtime" came, my grandma became the most "useful" and busiest person of the family. Grandma was a kind, well-educated old lady. She was good at cooking. All her relatives liked the food she cooked. During "Fairtime", they would come to live in her house and have meals there. Grandma was always happy to look after them. Year after year, many people moved to big cities. There was no longer "Fairtime". Grandma became very old and was gradually going blind. My parents and I moved to live with Grandma in her house. We did our best to make her day-to-day life as comfortable as possible. I was at high school then. What I often did at home was to help Grandma with the daily newspaper's crossword puzzle. However, she didn't look happy. She often sat in her room for hours, without saying a word. To attract people to move back, the Town Hall decided to reopen the fair. One day, when I came back from school, I saw Grandma wearing her glasses, washing the dishes in the kitchen. With a big smile on her face, she looked a lot much younger. She told me that her two nieces would come. "They said the food I cooked was very delicious and they want to stay in my house again," Grandma said happily. "They will stay here for one week and we can have a big party. That must be the busiest week I've had in years!" I suddenly realized that Grandma didn't want to be looked after. She wanted to be "useful", _ and helpful. What's the best title for the passage? A. Fairtime B. My "Old" Grandma C. A Small Town D. Grandma's Family Answer: B
It was Saturday afternoon and Andrew was bored. He had been watching TV all day. He told his dad, "There's nothing to do!" Andrew's dad said, "I think the newspaper is here. Maybe we can find an idea in the newspaper." Andrew looked outside the window and saw the newspaper by the door. On the front was a picture of an elephant. He picked up the newspaper and brought it to his dad. Andrew and his dad read the story. The circus was in town! Andrew had never been to the circus. He asked his dad, "Can we go?" "Yes, we can,' Andrew's dad said, 'but first you need to feed your goldfish." Andrew fed his goldfish some goldfish food. He promised to bring it some peanuts from the circus for later. Andrew and his dad went to the circus. The people and animals at the circus did lots of tricks. The elephant even went down a slide! Andrew and his dad ate lots of peanuts. There weren't any peanuts left to bring home to the goldfish. Andrew and his dad had a lot of fun at the circus. Why did Andrew read the newspaper with his dad? A Andrew was bored and looking for ideas for the afternoon B Andrew's dad likes reading C Andrew liked the picture of the elephant D Andrew likes reading Answer: A My name is Takashi. I am ten years old. I live in Tokyo, the capital of Japan. Now I'd like to tell you something about my school day. In the morning I get up at seven, and I eat breakfast at half past seven at a table called a kotatsu. We usually sit on mats with our legs under the table. After breakfast, I start going to school at ten to eight. I usually wear a yellow hat and a T-shirt. The clothes can tell other people my address and my school. I go to school from Monday to Friday and every other Saturday. When it's lunch time, we eat in our classroom. Our teacher eats with us, too. Sometimes we have sushi, a kind of popular Japanese food. Many people in Japan like it very much. We make it with rice, fish and eggs. My school day is not easy, but most of us enjoy it because we want to have a good future. How old is Takashi? A He is 6 years old. B He is 7 years old. C He is 9 years old. D He is 10 years old. Answer: D I left home for New Zealand to start my new life on my 15th birthday. My father and mother took me to Hong Kong, where we had to say goodbye. When we were saying goodbye, I suddenly felt afraid that I had never had before. This was the first time I had traveled so far by myself. And going to a far-away place I have never been before made me feel terrible. I held back my tears until I could no longer see my parents. As I was wiping away my tears, I realized that, from that moment on, I would have to do everything by myself. After my arrival in _ , my teacher, Ms. Lang, showed me around my new school. A few days later, I started having classes. There were only 20 students in each class. Only math, science, social studies and English were _ , and students could choose other subjects for themselves, I chose music, Japanese and health. In New Zealand, students are very active in class. And teachers are not as serious. They often let us play games in class. We can sit with anyone we like, and the teacher can sit at her own desk or at a student's desk. The school had an easy manner, with few rules. Because there was no homework, we could join clubs or do anything we liked. I always went to the library after school, where I found a lot of books to help with my studies. Studying in New Zealand is very different from studying in China. In New Zealand, students depend on the library to gain knowledge instead of waiting for what teachers ask them to do. Time went fast. The two months flew by after I arrived. Then a week of exams began. I did not have to take these exams, because I had only been at the school for a short time. However, my math teacher encouraged me to take the math exam, as she thought I could do well. Though there wasn't much pressure on me, I worked very hard to get ready for the exam because I know that no pain means no gain. When the day of the exam came, I found that I finished the paper faster than the other students. One week later, my teacher told the whole class who had got the top mark: It was me! I got 94 percent. All my classmates were very happy and said congratulations to me. It was one of the happiest days of my life. When she was wiping away her tears, the writer realized that _ . A she had already arrived in New Zealand B she could no longer see her parents in Hong Kong C she had to say goodbye to her parents D she would start a new life in New Zealand all by herself Answer: D One person can make a difference -- purchase your copy of For America and discover simple ways to improve your life, your country, even the world. But a simple and attractive way to cut energy costs, improve air quality, and ensure public health is to grow a garden in the sky. Each time a city building is set up, the grass in that spot and trees that once reached up to the sky are replaced by a layer of asphalt or a tar roof . The lost green space can have a very real effect on a city's air temperature, air quality, and energy costs. On a summer day in most American cities, a tar roof can feel like the inside of an oven . But what if we could replace the hot roof of each skyscraper or building in a city with grass or a garden? Whether it holds vegetable gardens, wildflowers, or grasses, a green roof can lower the temperature above a building by 60 degrees, which can reduce the building's energy costs and, if used more widely, could decrease a city's total energy costs, and improve air quality and public health. But that's not all -- green roofs are a great way to handle water management in urban areas by taking in much rainfall, provide shelters for urban wildlife, and actually extend the life of the roof itself. And green roofs also do something else: they beautify the city -- whether you're on the 3rd floor or the 30th. Now that's a brilliant achievement. The non-profit group Earth Pledge is promoting a Green Roofs Program. To learn more about a green roof, just click here: EarthPledge.com. What can you learn from the article? A Green roofs will take the place of all asphalt or tar ones. B The Earth Pledge may be an environmental organization. C It's better to live on the top floor because of the green roofs. D Green roofs can take in all rainfall. Answer: B As a school teacher, Inderjit Khurana used to take the train to work. And one day, at the station, she saw dozens of children who spent their days begging from train passengers rather than going to school. She learned that it was not a rare problem and that millions of children in India lived on the streets. Realizing that these children would never be able to escape poor life and homelessness without education, and that it would be impossible to send these children to school, Inderjit decided to create a model program---taking the school to the most out- of-school children. Khurana's train platform schools aim to provide a creative school form and give children the basic levels of education. Her last goals reach far beyond the 20 platform schools she and her colleagues have created in India's Bhubaneswar region. She is determined that her program will become a model for changing the lives of the poorest children throughout India and the world. Khurana founded the Ruchika Social Service Organization(RSSO) in 1985. The teachers gather the children together between the stops of the train for reading, writing, maths and history taught through songs and other teaching tools. Khurana recently comes to realize that the education of these children is impossible when the most basic needs of their families are not being met. So she also provides food and medicine for their families. Khurana insists that every child have the right to an education and that if a child cannot come to the school, then the school must come to him or her. Khurana's final aim is to _ . A make the poorest children's lives better B put an end to the problem of children's dropout C attract more students to her platform schools D set up 20 platform schools throughout India Answer: A
Question: Myfriend'sgrandfathercametoAmericafromafarminThailand.Afterarriving in New York, he went into a cafeteria inManhattan to get something to eat. He sat down at an empty table and waitedfor someone to take his order. Of course nobody did. Finally, a woman with abig plate full of food came up to him. She sat down opposite him and toldhim how a cafeteriaworked. "Start out at that end," she said, "Just go along the line andchoose what you want. At the other end they'll tell you how much you have topay." "I soon learned that's how everything works in America,"the grandfather told my friend later, "Life's a cafeteria here. You can getanything you want as long as you want to pay the price. You can even get success,but you'll never get it if you wait for someone to bring it to you. You have toget up and get ityourself." What can we learn from the grandfather's words about the life in theUS? A. Get up early and you cansucceed. B. Act and get what you want on yourown. C. Nobody brings you anything unless you pay theprice. D. Waiting is very important. Answer: B Question: Testing new drugs for safety and effectiveness is a costly process in the United States. It also can take:lot of time. Some scientists are now designing silicon computer chips that act like human organs. The scientists think they have found a way to make the process faster and more economical. The silicon computer chips are smaller than a child's hand. Each one has living cells that act and react like a human organ. The chips are being created as part of a program to test the safety of drug compounds. It is called the Tissue Chip for Drug Screening Program. It is a project of the US National Center for Advancing Tmnslational Sciences, or NCATS. Danilo Tagle is the center's Associate Director. He says a three-dimensional computer chip can be designed to act like a human lung. Some computer chips contain very small models of the human digestive system. They copy the real function or duties of the human stomach and intestine , moving when breaking down food. Drugs are added to the tiny organs for testing through instruments known as micro-tubes. Experiments with the tissue chips have produced more detailed information than tests using animal or cell models. NCATS just announced$17 million in grants to develop an entire human organ system over the next three years. What's the main idea ofthe passage? A. It is necessary to test new drugs for safety. B. NCATS announced a new program of medicine. C. .Scientists design chips to act like human organs. D. Scientists develop an entire human organ system. Answer: C Question: You may know the word "astronaut".But do you know the word "taikonaut"? It means "Chinese astronaut" in English.It comes from the Chinese pinyin "taikong" and the English word "astronaut".In 1998.a Malaysian Chinese scientist used the word for the first time.Since then,because of the fast development of China's space industry,more and more people all over the world have known the word.In September,2008,taikonauts caught many people's eyes again. The Shenzhou-7 spacecraft that carried three taikonauts took off from China's Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on September 25th.It's the third time for China to send people into space.During the flight in space.some tasks were completed and the 20-minute spacewalk was the most exciting one.With the help of his two teammates Liu Boming and Jing Haipeng,Chinese taikonaut Zhai Zhigang completed China's first spacewalk.China has become the third country to finish such an outer space activity following Russia and the U.S.A.All the Chinese people are proud of our country. Who completed China's first spacewalk? A. Jing Haipeng. B. Liu Boming. C. Zhai Zhigang. D. Yang Liwei. Answer: C Question: In recent years, there has been a steady attack on salt from the doctors: salt is bad for you--regardless of your health. Politicians also got aboard. "There is a direct relationship," US Congressman Neal Smith said, "between the amount of sodium a person consumes and heart disease, circulatory disorders, stroke and even early death." Frightening, if true! But many doctors and medical researchers are now beginning to feel the salt scare has gone too far. "All these remarks and cry about salt is unnecessary," Dr. Dustan insists. "For most of us it probably does not make much difference how much salt we eat." Dustan's most recent short-term study of 150 people showed that those with normal blood pressure experienced no change at all when placed on an extremely low-salt diet, or later when salt was reintroduced. Of the hypertensive patients, however, half of those on the low-salt diet did experience a drop in blood pressure, which returned to previous level when salt was reintroduced. "An adequate to somewhat excessive salt intake has probably saved many more lives than it has cost in the general population," said Dr. John H Laragh. "So an opinion that the whole population should avoid salt makes no sense." Medical experts agree that everyone should practice reasonable "moderation" in salt consumption. For the average person, a moderate amount might run from four to ten grams a day, or roughly 1/2 to 1/3 teaspoons. One to two grams of salt would come from the natural sodium in food. The rest would be added in processing, preparation or at the table. "Na is not your enemy," says Comek's Dr. Laragh. "Salt is the No.1 natural component of all human tissue, and the idea that you do not need it is wrong. Unless your doctor has proven that you have a salt-related health problem, there is no reason to give it up." What is the experts' advice for average people on salt consumption? A. They should increase salt intake through sodium pills. B. They should avoid salt as often as possible. C. They should consume 1/2 to 1/3 teaspoons of salt a day. D. They needn't care about how much salt they consume. Answer: C Question: One day a man saw a lady on the road. Her car broke down and she needed help. The man stopped his car and said: "I'm here to help you. You can call me Bryan Anderson." After he fixed the car, the lady wanted to pay him. But Bryan said no. He said if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the help he or she needed. A few miles down the road the lady went into a small cafe. The waitress came over. The lady noticed the waitress was nearly eight months pregnant , but she never let it change her attitude when she served her. The lady finished her meal and paid with a $100 bill. The waitress went to get the change. When she came back, she found the lady had gone and left a note on a piece of paper: "You don't owe me anything. Somebody once helped me the way I'm helping you. If you really want to pay me back, here is what you do: Do not let the love end with you." Under the paper were four more $100 bills. The waitress was moved. She really needed the money, as the baby would soon arrive. Then she called her husband: "Everything will be all right. I love you, Bryan Anderson." What did the lady do in the cafe? A. She told her story to the pregnant waitress. B. She helped the pregnant waitress lay the table. C. She taught the pregnant waitress how to help others. D. She left the kind waitress a good tip. Answer: D
Do you want to live with a strong sense of peacefulness,happiness,goodness,and selfrespect?The collection of happiness actions broadly categorized (......) as "honor" help you create this life of good feelings. Here's an example to show how honorable actions create happiness. Say a store clerk fails to charge us for an item.If we keep silent,and profit from the clerk's mistake,we would drive home with a sense of sneaky excitement.Later we might tell our family or friends about our good fortune.On the other hand,if we tell the clerk about the uncharged item,the clerk would be grateful and thank us for our honesty.We would leave the store with a quiet sense of honor that we might never share with another soul. Then,what is it to do with our sense of happiness? In the first case,where we don't tell the clerk,a couple of things would happen.Deep down inside we would know ourselves as a type of thief.In the process,we would lose some peace of mind and selfrespect.We would also demonstrate that we cannot be trusted,since we advertise our dishonor by telling our family and friends.We damage our own reputations by telling others.In contrast, _ causes different things to happen.Immediately the clerk knows us to be honorable.Upon leaving the store,we feel honorable and our selfrespect is increased.Whenever we take honorable actions we gain the deep internal rewards of goodness and a sense of nobility. There is a beautiful positive cycle that is created by living a life of honorable actions.Honorable thoughts lead to honorable actions.Honorable actions lead us to a happier existence.And it's easy to think and act honorably again when we're happy.While the positive cycle can be difficult to start,once it's started,it's easy to continue.Keeping on doing good deeds brings us peace of mind,which is important for our happiness. The author thinks that keeping silent about the uncharged item is equal to _ . stealing Of all nature's disasters, forest fires are often considered the most frightening. Moving at lightning speed, huge walls of flames can burn acres of land in just a few minutes. And although technology, including the use of tire-retardant chemicals, has greatly helped the fight against forest fires, they still take great damage. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, the fire season last year was the worst on record in terms of the number of fires and acres burned. There were 96.385 fires and9,873429 acres affected by fire in a year that was 125% more destructive than the 10-year average . These fires cost the federal govemment $1.5 billion to fight, and this figure does not include the money spent by local and state govemments as part of the effort. Fires in the southern states represented half of the national total last year. with Texas. Oklahoma and Arkansas being home to an usually high amount of activity. Wildfire have also taken place in Western states such as California, Colorado. and Alaska throughout the past 10 years. It is said that two-thirds of forest fires are started accidentally by people. almost one quarter are purposely set, while lighting causes 10%. Forest fires can have advantageous effects. Charcoal enriches soil, and some plant species grow well after. The cones of the jack pine tree, for example, will not spread their seeds unless there is heat. Douglas fir trees grow best in open sunlight areas after fire. According to the passage the forest fires took place in _ . the United States On continents nearer the north pole than the south, winter months such as November see short daylight The entire house was lit with lights. It was Meera's wedding the next day. Seema walked to her daughter's bedroom. Meera was not there, so she left the envelope on Meera's bed and went away. When Meera came out of the bathroom, her eyes fell on the envelope. She picked it up and opened it. Sitting on the bed, she started to read it: My darling daughter, I am so happy for you. My darling is getting married! To such a good man! At the same time, I am a little worried, too. The reason? You are going to a new house where everything is going to be new: the people, relationships and surroundings. Yes, you are smart and Vinod will be there with you to help, but I have a few things to say: Accept Vinod's parents as your parents. Remember that your mother-in-law will have her own understanding about you. So it is up to you to give her a good impression. Earn respect from family members. If that means changing yourself a little bit and adapting to their customs, just do it. It will help you to settle into your new home. Never compare your mother's home and their home. It may not be appreciated. The kitchen is one place where small fights can appear. It is your mother-in-law's king- dom, so ask her permission if you want to cook something. If she offers help, accept it. This will help in building trust between you. Similarly, offer her your help when she is busy cooking. Thus, a new relationship will be born: one of respect and understanding. Finally, respect your husband, as he is your life partner. Remember that a marriage requires trust, love and compromise . I could have sat with you and told you, but I felt that writing all this down would make you understand better and I am sure you will give your whole heart to this relationship. Remember that both Papa and I are here for you always. Love, Ma What was Seema's attitude towards Vinod? Satisfied. Reagan was walking down the street on his way to interview for a minimum wage job.He happened to cross paths with Bouvier, who was laying rock salt on the ground outside his restaurant, Papa Roux, after an ice storm had hit the area earlier in the morning. Bouvier said the 18-year-old approached him and asked how far it was to 10th and Sherman, Bouvier said the distance was at least seven miles, so he told Reagan that he would be better off taking a bus instead of walking, especially considering the freezing temperature.Reagan said "thank you" and kept on his way to the job interview. Later, Bouvier and his wife were driving to grab coffee, and they came across Reagan again -still walking.So they offered him a ride.Reagan shared with the couple that he was on his way to a shop to interview for a job, and he did not have money for bus fare.Reagan also shared that his mother had passed away and he was left to care for his two younger sisters.After his mom died a couple of years ago, he ended up dropping out of high school without obtaining a diploma. After hearing the teen's story, Bouvier told Reagan that even if he was offered the shop job, he would hire him and double his salary.Bouvier was impressed with the teen's ambition and work ethic .Reagan accepted the job.He cannot believe how everything turned out for him, saying, "I'm just too excited, just excited to start." Bouvier wanted to share the encounter with his friends, so he wrote about it on Facebook.The story is going around, with more than 15,000 likes so far.People are applauding the teen's work ethic and Bouvier's generosity. One person wrote, "You are a blessing from above, and some good will come to you." Another added, "So kindness does exist? Warms my heart!" In addition, IndyGo, the local public transportation system, gave Reagan a free one-year pass. What happened to Reagan after this encounter? He was allowed to take the local bus one year for free.
Question: Danny. . Danny: The pencil is green. It's not mine. It's my friend Kevin's. The eraser is not Kevin's. It's Sally's. She has three erasers. The red pen is Millie's. The ruler is Millie's, too. The blue notebook is not Millie's. It's John's. What's mine? The key is. It's not in my schoolbag. It's in my jacket. Thank you, Kevin, Sally, Millie and John. The key is in Danny's _ . A. schoolbag B. pencil box C. cup D. jacket Answer: D. jacket Question: Mrs. Keller had a big family .Her husband had a factory in the town .One of her sons was a lawyer and the other two were drivers .And her two daughters worked in the post office .The old woman stayed at home and could do all housework and wouldn't employ anybody . One evening ,the telephone rang while the old woman was preparing supper .She went to answer it .She was told that one of her sons died in a traffic accident .She heard this and fell in a faint .When she came back to life ,she was in hospital .And she needed to be helped after that . Several months later she was told on the telephone her daughter died while she was being operated on .The old woman was so sad that she had to be in hospital again .From then on she was afraid to answer any telephones and sometimes she was afraid to hear the bell .Of course it brought them some trouble and some important business was held up .So her husband advised her to see a psychiatrist .The man examined her carefully and then asked her some questions. "You will soon be all right if you follow my advice ,Mrs. Keller" said the psychiatrist. The old woman took the medicine the doctor gave on time and tried to forget her dead son and daughter .And two months later she went to see the psychiatrist again . "You have saved me, Doctor ,"the old woman said ,as soon as she saw him . "Are you afraid to answer the telephone now?" "No," answered Keller . "I dare answer it whether it rings or not " The old woman fell in a faint because _ A. she went to answer the telephone. B. she was very ill that evening C. she walked in the room carelessly D. she heard the news about her son's death. Answer: D. she heard the news about her son's death. Question: High school plays a major role in shaping up your future and your whole development. extracurricular activities along with the studies can be very helpful. Make yourself take part in various activities and at the same time try to stand out in your studies. When you move out to college these efforts that you put in may count for a lot. High school is not just about books or classes. Schools always provide opportunities for students to socialize . There are various group tasks designed which allow the students to learn to work together. High school is the right time for you to discover yourself and bring out some of your hidden talents. In your lessons, you may find that you are better at English than you were earlier or have grown an interest for Math. High school also provides many other opportunities for students to take part in. These help develop leadership skills and management skills at an early age, which in turn is a way of preparing students to manage and plan their careers better. Balancing all activities is an experience in time management. If you have taken up a part-time job along with your high school you would have to arrange your time for studies, and extracurricular activities. Such management can go a long way in teaching you to manage things better when you take up a job. Moreover, they help build your character. You would be better prepared for additional stress that you may feel sometimes. When at high school you should pick up your classes wisely. Depending upon what you like and your career plan you should choose suitable classes. Doing something that you hardly like may get you very low grades as well as lose valuable time. Take up interesting and challenging classes that would allow you to put in those extra efforts. At high school we ought to choose courses that _ A. have a good future B. we know little about C. we are good at D. we take interest in Answer: D. we take interest in Question: If you were given a chance to choose your favorite life metaphor , what would it be? Do you agree with Forrest Gump's mother that life is "a box of chocolates" because "you never know what you're going to get"? Or do you prefer the phrase from the 1930's song that "life is just a bowl of cherries "? Though simply stated, each conveys a very different view. A "box" implies mystery, because we don't know what is in a closed box. Meanwhile, a "bowl" of cherries is completely in view. For many centuries, the metaphor of life that probably burst into most people's mind was the one suggested by Shakespeare: "All of life is a stage..." On that stage, we take seven roles. More recently, psychologist Erik Erikson took up the idea of life as a stage. Erikson regarded development as a "powerful unfolding" in which we are driven from one stage to the next as our bodies, minds, and social roles develop. Stage metaphors fit with many of our common-sense ideas about change, but the problem with the stage metaphor is that it isn't particularly accurate. None of the studies that try to clarify the universality of adult life stages actually studied people as they developed over time. All of them were based on performances of their samples at one point in time. People's actual lives don't fit into these stage metaphors. They don't automatically transform when people reach a certain age. Instead, people's real lives are messy, unpredictable, and full of surprises. Today, I'd like to focus on an even longer study, an 80-year study which is the subject of a recent book by Howard Friedman and Leslie Martin. Their final chapter summarizes the "many changes of healthy and unhealthy pathways" that their participants took over the course of their lives. As I too discovered in my research, the pathway provides a perfect metaphor of human development. We don't all go down the same road marked with the same signposts based on age. People travel through diverse routes as they track the years of adulthood. Friedman and Martin use health and long life as their measure; I've used sense of achievement. In both cases, we are in perfect agreement in evaluating development not according to age but "the key features of life". The paths that Friedman and Martin describe seize the changes that characterize people as they age. Some examples are "The High Road" (reliable, full of plans); "Not Easy Street" (exposed to high stress throughout life), "Catastrophe Lane" (a downwardly twisty life); "Happy Trails to You" (cheerful, sociable), "The Road to Resilience" (able to handle stress with a strong will). Though I haven't yet been able to follow my participants for 80 years, I too saw some of these pathways among my samples: "The Minding Way" , "The Downward Slope" , "The Straight and Narrow Path" , and "The Successful Trail". The pathway metaphor gives you hope for changing the direction of your life if you are unhappy with it so far. You can't stop the clock from ticking the minutes between one birthday and the next, but you can adjust the road that you're on by changing yourself, your situation, or both. The author is convinced of the life metaphor Friedman and Martin suggest because she _ . A. spent less time on her research B. has found their book a bestseller C. considers their measure more scientific D. got a similar finding to theirs Answer: D. got a similar finding to theirs Question: The name "cowboy" conjures up many different images from movies, songs and TV. These imagined cowboys range from white-hat-wearing heroes to gun-shooting hooligans .But, cowboys are actually real people from US history. When the US Civil War ended, many soldiers had no place to call home. So, they began to drift to the country's rural West. Ranchers hired these men to take care of the cattle and work around the ranch. When the ranch owner wanted to sell the cattle, the cowboys would round up the herd from the open prairie and drive the cattle miles to the market. With the invention of barbed wire ,the cowboy era(1865-1890) began to come to an end. But people in the East had always been curious about their lifestyle. Many country/western songs during this time tried to capture the true cowboy spirit. Newspapers published cowboy tales in serial form and adventure novels followed. The bigger the fiction, the better the sales. These novels often portrayed cowboys as cruel and violent men. Cowboys carried the bad reputation for many years afterwards. When movies began to be popular in the 1920s, the cowboy image changed again. Now, a cowboy became the great white knight that loved his horse more than the beautiful ladies he rescued. As the cowboy of the "Old West" spent more time with his horse than the ladies, this era's image was not entirely false. Then, in the 50s,Hollywood began producing so-called "spaghetti westerns ".They earned the nickname because Italian companies financed the films and TV shows. This started the decade's "Cowboy Craze". While this didn't last long, it made modern country / western music, fashion and dance extremely popular. In recent years, with the help of musicians, radio stations and bars, cowboy nostalgia has returned. Even though his image is still changing -- somewhere between ballad singing country boy and bar room fighter -- there's one thing for sure, _ . By saying "you can't keep the cowboy down", the writer means that _ . A. cowboys are real people in history B. cowboys still fascinate people C. you can't make cowboys unhappy D. you can't grasp the cowboy spirit Answer: B. cowboys still fascinate people
Question: Do you want to be a basketball player like Kobe Bryant , Shaquille O'Neal or Yao Ming ? Come to join us ! We have many sports clubs : basketball , ping-pong , soccer , volleyball , and more . The price is 5 dollars for each lesson . Do you want to join our sports clubs ? Please call Mr. Green . He plays basketball very well . His telephone number is 371-1236 . His e-mail address is spcb@163.com . Or you can call Miss Jones at 371-1237 . She is our tennis coach . She is good with the students . Her e-mail address is jiayi@126.com . ---How much is each lesson ? --- _ . A. 10 yuan B. 5 yuan C. 5 dollars D. 10 dollars Answer: C. 5 dollars Question: If you ask Americans whether or not they think their former president George W. Bush is smart, most of them will probably tell you they don't think so. However, Bush's IQ score is estimated to be above 120, which puts him in the top ten percent of the population. It doesn't seem to make sense. How come someone with such an IQ score is not considered smart? Researchers say: IQ does not tell the whole story. Some people have high IQ scores, but still they can be poor thinkers and decision-makers. Keith Stanovich, a Canadian professor of human development and applied psychology, has been looking into the "clever fools" phenomenon for 15 years. He says IQ tests are very good at measuring certain mental faculties , including logic, learning ability, working-memory capacity (how much information you can hold in mind), etc. Those faculties play a part in one's academic success, but rational thinking is more important for us to make good judgments in real-life situations. IQ tests fail to work when it comes to rational thinking. That's because they are unable to assess things such as a person's ability to weigh up information, or whether an individual can set aside the cognitive biases that may be misleading. "A high IQ is like height in a basketball player," says David Perkins, who studies thinking and reasoning skills at Harvard University. "It is very important, all other things being equal. But all other things aren't equal. It takes a lot more to be a good basketball player than being tall, and it takes a lot more to be a good thinker than having a high IQ." What is the text mainly about? A. Those who have high IQ do better than those who don't in everything. B. People with high IQ scores must be good decision-makers C. People with high IQ scores are always smart in every way. D. Why a high IQ doesn't mean you're smart Answer: D. Why a high IQ doesn't mean you're smart Question: If you experience great stress in your life on a frequent basis, you're not alone. Nowadays, stress is almost a given fact of life. Actually, a certain degree of stress can have positive effects on us. But if stress continues over a long period of time, the effects on the body can be harmful, resulting in health problems and stress-related illness, including heart attack and stroke. Stress is a normal reaction by the body to what it perceives as a threatening situation or environment. Short-term reactions may include an increase in heart rate as well as a rise in blood pressure. A person under short-term stress may feel nervous, anxious and even experience shortness of breath. Other reactions can include a dry mouth, quick heartbeat, sweating, stomach upset and diarrhea. When stress is long-term and becomes more chronic in nature, it can cause more serious health-related problems, including regular headaches, back pain, weight changes, sleep difficulties, changes in mood and so on. Chronic stress can also result in memory problems, including difficulty remembering new information and the inability to quickly deal with old information. No matter how your body reacts to stress, ignoring the problem can have serious health results. Not surprisingly, more women than men openly seek the help of their family doctors or other health care experts when they are experiencing stress or stress-related illness. Men are more likely to refuse to admit the problem or attempt to self-treat it, which may contribute to higher rate of drug and alcohol addiction seen in men exposed to chronic stress. There's no doubt that stress is a fact of life and is likely to remain a part of our fast-paced society. Although stress can't be completely _ , methods of dealing with stress-related issues, in my view, can be developed so that the effects of stress on the body are avoided, so people won't be so easy to suffer stress-related illness. Which of the following is not the reaction of short-term stress? A. A dry mouth. B. Stomach upset. C. Weight changes. D. A rise in blood pressure. Answer: C. Weight changes. Question: A year ago, August, Dave Fuss lost his job driving a truck for a small company in west Michigan. His wife, Gerrie, was still working in the local school cafeteria, but it was hard for Dave to find work, and the price of everything was rising. The Fusses were at risk of joining the millions of Americans who have lost their homes in recent years. Then Dave and Gerrie received a timely gift--$7,000, a legacy from their neighbors Ish and Arlene Hatch, who died in an accident. "It really made a difference when we were meeting difficulty ."says Dave. But the Fusses weren't the only folks in Alto and the neighboring town of Lowell to receive unexpected legacy from the Hatches. Dozens of other families were touched by what the Hatches had done. In some cases, it was a few thousand dollars; in others, it was more than $100,000. It surprised nearly everyone that the Hatches had so much money, more than $3 million--they were an elderly couple who lived in an old house on what was left of the family farm. Children of the Great Depression, Ish and Arlene were known for their habit of saving. They preferred comparison shopping and would go from store to store, checking prices before making a new purchase. Through the years, the Hatches paid for local children to attend summer camps when their parents couldn't afford it. "Ish and Arlene never asked if you needed anything," says their friend Sandy Van Weelden, "They could see things they could do to make you happier, and they would do them." Even more extraordinary was that the Hatches gave away their farmland. It was the Hatches' wish that their legacy--a legacy of kindness as much as one of dollars and cents--should enrich the whole community and last for generations to come. Neighbors helping neighbors--that was Ish and Arlene Hatch's story. What Sandy Van Weelden said mainly tells us that the Hatches were _ . A. understanding B. kind C. childlike D. wealthy Answer: A. understanding Question: When it comes to friends, I desire those who will share my happiness, who possess wings of their own and who will fly with me. I seek friends whose qualities illuminate me and train me up for love. It is for these people that I reserve the glowing hours, too good not to share. When I was in the eighth grade, I had a friend. We were shy and "too serious" about our studies when it was becoming fashionable with our classmates to learn acceptable social behaviors. We said little at school, but she would come to my house and we would sit down with pencils and paper, and one of us would say: "Let's start with a train whistle today." We would sit quietly together and write separate poems or stories that grew out of a train whistle. Then we would read them aloud. At the end of that school year, we, too, were changing into social creatures and the stories and poems stopped. When I lived for a time in London, I had a friend. He was in despair and I was in despair. But our friendship was based on the idea in each of us that we would be sorry later if we did not explore this great city because we had felt bad at the time. We met every Sunday for five weeks and found many excellent things. We walked until our despairs disappeared and then we parted. _ . For almost four years I have had a remarkable friend whose imagination illuminates mine. We write long letters in which we often discover our strangest selves. Each of us appears, sometimes in a funny way, in the other's dreams. She and I agree that, at certain times, we seem to be parts of the same mind. In my most interesting moments, I often think: "Yes, I must tell..." We have never met. It is such comforting companions I wish to keep. One bright hour with their kind is worth more to me than the lifetime services of a psychologist, who will only fill up the healing silence necessary to those darkest moments in which I would rather be my own best friend. In the darkest moments, the author would prefer to _ . A. seek professional help B. break the silence C. stay with her best friend D. be left alone Answer: D. be left alone
Say you are a 17th century construction worker who's worked long and hard to build a splendid tower for the dead wife of your emperor. Now say that the emperor orders your fingertips cut off so you can never build another one. Yes, that is the Taj Mahal,one of the most famous buildings in the world. And the tale behind the construction is just as impressive as the building itself. First, there's the emperor of northern India, Shah Jehan,also called the King of the World. In 1612,Shah Jehan married Mumtaz Mahal. Madly in love, they had 14 children over the next 20 years. But then sadness came. As Mumtaz was about to give birth to child'number 14, she said she had heard her unborn baby cry out. It was a sign of death. And as Mumtaz lay dying, she asked Jehan to build a lasting memorial to celebrate their love. When the heartbroken Jehan appeared eight days after his wife's death, his people were shocked to see that his coal-black hair had turned snow-white. Putting away his sadness, Jehan ordered his wife's dying wish carried out. More than 20,000 workers labored nearly 22 years to complete the construction. In 1653,Jehan placed Mumtaz's remains in the center under the building. And then, son number five, Aurangzeb, murdered his brothers and took over the power from his aging father. Hehan lived the rest of his days-eight years, to be exact-imprisoned not far from the Taj Mahal. Jehan was only allowed to climb onto the top of his prison to see the timeless treasure from a distance. But never again would he be allowed to visit it--until he was buried next to his wife. Today 25,000 people visit the Taj Mahal each day. Though the reason for building the tower was a strange, sad story, those who see its breath-taking beauty are reminded of the happiness that inspired its construction. We learn from the text that Mumtaz probably died in _ . A. 1626 B. 1632 C. 1634 D. 1653 Answer: B Li Ting, Zhang Lin and Wu Jun are students of Class 1, Grade 7 in Sunshine Middle School. Li Ting is a pretty girl. She has big eyes and a small nose. Her hair is long and black. She likes dancing and singing. We all like listening to her songs. She hopes to be a singer when she grows up. Zhang Lin is a tall and helpful girl. She is good at all her subjects. She always helps her classmates with their homework. She is very clever and almost knows about everything. Her classmates all call her encyclopedia . Wu Jun is a strong boy. He enjoys playing sports. He plays football and basketball very well. He is a member of the School Sports Club. His dream is to be a football player like Raul. Why do people call Zhang Lin encyclopedia? A. Because she likes reading encyclopedia. B. Because she looks like it. C. Because she is helpful. D. Because she almost knows about everything. Answer: D Dr. Sylvia Earle wants you to stop eating fish. It's not because fish are endangered, though wild fish stocks in many oceans are very low. It's not because they're bad for you, though fish in many areas are exposed to poisonous substances in the water. It's because they're smart. "Fish are sensitive, they have personalities," says the marine biologist. For Earle, eating a fish would be like eating a dog or a cat. "I would never eat anyone I know personally." There's a lot more to fish than meets the eye: they talk to each other, they like to be touched, and they engage in behavior that can seem very human. They can remember things and learn from experience. Earle and a growing number of animal rights activists see these as strong arguments against eating fish altogether. The activists also point out that fish feel pain and fish suffer horribly on their way from the sea to the supermarket. "While it may seem _ that fish are able to feel pain, like every other animal, some people think of fish as swimming vegetables," says Dr. Lynne Sneddon. "Really, it's kind of a moral question. Is the enjoyment you get from fishing (or eating fish) more important than the pain of the fish?" Fishermen and (fried) fish lovers are skeptical. "I've never seen a smart fish," says Marie Swaringen as she finishes off a plate of fish at a Seattle seafood restaurant. "If they were very smart, they wouldn't get caught." "For years, everyone's been telling us to eat fish because it's so good for us," says another diner. "Now I've got to feel guilty while I'm eating my fish? What are they going to think of next? Don't eat salad because cucumbers have feelings?" Dr. Lynne Sneddon describes the behavior of eating fish in a(n) _ tone. A. opposed B. optimistic C. indifferent D. supportive Answer: A Five people are at our table, including myself. I've already learnt a great deal about them in the short time we've been at sea, although we rarely meet except at mealtimes. First of all, there is Dr. Stone. He is a man of about sixty-five, with gray hair and a friendly face. He gave up his work a short while ago and is now traveling round the world before he retires to some quite country village. As a young man, he served for many years as a doctor in the army and visited many countries. He's told us a great deal about the city to which they are going. Then there is "Grandmother". I call her that because her name escapes me. In spite of being a grandmother, she looks remarkable young, no more than fifty. She is on her way to visit a daughter who went to Australia some years ago. Naturally she is very excited at the thought of seeing her again, and her three grandchildren, whom she has never seen. Then there is a man I don't care for very much, the engineer by the name of Barlow. He has been _ in England and is now returning to his work in Singapore. The other person who sits at our table is Mrs. Hunt. I've found out hardly anything about her. She's extremely quiet and rarely talks, except to consult the doctor about children's various illnesses. She is on her way to join her husband in India. What can we know about Mr. Stone? A. He is a doctor in the army now. B. He is going to give up his work. C. He has been retired for many years. D. He knows a lot about the city the author is going to visit. Answer: D Living and dealing with kids can be a difficult job these days, but living and dealing with parents can be even more complex. If I have learned anything in my 16 years, it is that communication is very important. With any relationship, you need to let other people know how you are feeling. If you are not able to communicate, you drift apart . When you are mad at your parents, or anyone else, not talking to them doesn't solve anything. Communication begins with the concerns of others. It means that you can't just come home from school, go up to your room and ignore everyone. To keep a good relationship, you must keep communication, even if it's just by writing a note. When dealing with parents, you always have to make them feel good about how they are doing as a parent. If you are trying to make them see something as you see it, tell them that you'll listen to what they have to say, but ask them politely to listen to you. Yelling or walking away only makes the situation worse. This is an example: one night, Sophie went to a street party with her friends. She knew she had to be home by midnight after the fireworks, but she didn't. She was late getting home. Her parents were mad at first, not giving Sophie a chance to explain why she was late. Later, they kept calm and listened to her. Communication is the key factor here. If Sophie's parents had not been willing to listen, Sophie would have been in a lot of trouble. What does the example in this passage prove? A. Sophie's parents are willing to listen to her. B. Sophie is very polite to her parents. C. Sophie did well in explaining her being late. D. Communication is the solution to misunderstanding. Answer: D
Welcome to India as volunteer teachers! Teaching and helping with dance, sport, music, English and art at some primary schools and planning outdoor activities. Volunteers can stay together in pairs or small groups and share the experience and activities with the school teachers' help. It will bring you lots of joy and a special time. You can spend your weekends on the Indian beach when you are not busy. Because the Indian beach is not for away. The beaches on the southern coast of India are good for relaxing. Near the beach are the cities of Chennai and Pondichery with large population of about half a million. There are a lot of usual restaurants, banks and supermarkets. They are waiting for you to hang out. It's not only a volunteering project, but also a cultural exchange. The visitors can learn much about Indian ways of life while they are teaching children. What's more, you can know about India and its people. Please call us at 18886666 now and book a space. Which is the best title for the passage? A. A Good Place for Travel. B. Visiting India as Volunteer Teachers. C. Beautiful Beaches of India. D. Being a Volunteer in India. Answer: B A little under one-third of U.S. families have no Internet access and do not plan to get it, with most of the holdouts seeing little use for it in their lives, according to a survey released on Friday. Park Associates, a Dallas-based technology market research firm, said 29 percent of U.S. families, or 31 million homes, do not have Internet access and do not intend to subscribe to an Internet service over the next 12 months. The second annual National Technology Scan conducted by Park found that the main reason why potential customers say they do not subscribe to the Internet is because of the low value to their daily lives rather than concerns over cost. Forty-four percent of these families say they are not interested in anything on the Internet, versus just 22 percent who say they cannot afford a computer or the cost of Internet service, the survey showed. The answer "I'm not sure how to use the Internet" came from 17 percent of participants who do not subscribe. The response "I do all my e-commerce shopping and YouTube-watching at work" was cited by 14 percent of Internet-access refuseniks. Three percent said the Internet doesn't reach their homes. The study found U.S. broadband adoption grew to 52 percent over 2006, up from 42 percent in 2005. Roughly half of new subscribers converted from slower-speed, dial-up Internet access while the other half of families had no prior access. "The industry continues to chip away at the core of non-subscribers, but has a long way to go," said John Barrett, director of research at Parks Associates. "Entertainment applications will be the key. If anything will pull in the holdouts, it's going to be applications that make the Internet more similar to pay-TV," he predicted. Many potential customers refuse to subscribe to the Internet mainly because _ . A. they show too much concern about the cost B. they can find little value of it C. they do most YouTube-watching at work D. the Internet doesn't reach their homes Answer: B The landmark success of Tu Youyou, the first Chinese woman to win a Nobel prize in science, has aroused great national pride and hopes on the future of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Tu, born in 1930, shared the 2015 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine with Irish-born William Campbell and Japan's Satoshi Omura for her discoveries against malaria . She discovered Artemisinin , a drug that has greatly reduced the death number for patients suffering from malaria. "Artemisinin is a gift for the world people from the traditional Chinese medicine. It is of great importance for curing malaria and other diseases and for protecting the health of the world people," Tu said in Beijing. " The discovery of Artemisinin is a successful example of collective research on traditional Chinese medicine. The prize winning is an honor for China's science cause and traditional Chinese medicine." "Tu's winning the Nobel Prize shows China's great progress in science and technology. It also shows China's growing strength and rising international standing," Premier Li Keqiang said in a letter Monday evening. Where may you read this passage? A. From an advertisement. B. In a story- book. C. In a magazine. D. In a newspaper. Answer: D People are different. So are friends. Some friends are patient and helpful while some friends are cheerful and caring. The following are some kinds of friends. You can read it and find out what kinds of friends you have. This will help you to improve your relationships with them and help you to find new friends. Animal Friends Many people keep animals as pets at home. It is right to say that animals are wonderful creatures . They can be with you whenever you need them. Some people say they will feel lonely without their pets. Dogs are considered as people's best friends. Internet Friends The Internet has become a very important part of our lives. It is not only helpful for people to work, but also a good way to make friends. Internet friendship has become more and more popular recently. More and more people begin to make online friends. Online friends are those who know each other through the Internet. They can talk about everything with each other online. Making Internet friends is similar to making pen pals. Pen Friends Pen friends, also known as pen pals, are quite popular with people who like writing. Pen friendship is mainly developed by writing to each other. It was a popular way of making friends in different parts of the world before the Internet came into being. Mostly, pen friends aim to share different cultures with each other. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage? A. Animal friends can be with you whenever you need them. B. Internet friends can talk about everything online. C. Nowadays nearly no one likes to make pen friends. D. Pen friends can talk about different cultures with each other. Answer: C Which scientific model could be used to predict the properties of an element? A. closed loop system B. Punnett square C. Periodic Table D. water cycle chart Answer: C
Question: Sam was a-fifteen-year-old boy living with his little sister, Julie. Their parents had passed away long ago. Sam had taken care of Julie by himself. One day, Sam woke up at three in the morning as usual. When Julie was sleeping alone, Sam left their little house to send newspapers. When he found an old man sitting in front of their house, Sam was so surprised that he stopped to look at him closely. It was an icy morning and he looked very cold. The poor old man didn't have anything to cover himself with. Sam went into his house to get the old man a blanket. However, there were no extra blankets, so Sam thought hard and took his father's coat. It was the only thing of his father's that he had left. Sam wrote a short note. "Sir, I found you sleeping in front of my house. This is my father's coat. I hope it fits you well." He put the note in a pocket of the coat, and covered the old man with the coat. Then he went to work. When he came back three hours later, both the man and the coat were gone. Sam thought that it was the best thing he could have done with his father's coat. That afternoon, Sam hurried home after school because Julie was at home alone. However, Julie and the old man were standing in front of the house, and Julie shouted to Sam, "Brother! He's our grandfather!" The grandfather smiled and said, "Sam. Thank you for giving me the coat and letting me know how good my grandson is. This coat was the one that I gave my son a long time ago!" How was the weather when Sam saw an old man in front of his house? A. Hot and sunny B. Rainy C. Icy and cold D. Windy Answer: C. Icy and cold Question: The UK's "hidden" debt mountain stands at an estimated PS5bn, according to a new research today which reveals that as many as one in three consumers are keeping the full scale of their financial problems from their family.The research, for the Post Office, shows that while the average personal debt in the UK is PS9,731.51, people only admit to owing half this when talking to a partner or member of their family. The new report exposes the serious emotional and physical consequences of covering up that debt, ranging from problems at work, sleepless nights and anxiety, to alcohol abuse.A recent report from the Commons public accounts committee said that in the UK, one person in 10 is struggling to manage their debts, while the total of all personal debt is some PS1,500bn.It warned that a government strategy to help consumers struggling with record levels of debt was "seriously deficient" because of poor management and a lack of leadership.The research was commissioned by the Post Office and carried out online by One Poll, which surveyed 2,258 UK consumers. Doug Strachan, director of financial services at the Post Office, said, " The recession has put a massive strain on many families and people may be, for the first time, experiencing levels of debt that they cannot control.The most important thing to remember is that if you do need to borrow money, make sure you are responsible about it and set out a clear repayment plan.Managing the debt effectively can mean there is no need to experience the terrible emotional and physical symptoms hiding debt can result in." Donna Dawson, psychologist specializing in personality, behavior and relationships, said the knock-on effects were enormous, " hiding the extent of debt from a partner or family member may give us a false sense of control or independence, but the reality is that our mental and physical health suffers--and once uncovered, the health of our loved ones suffers as well. The irony is that the very things we are trying to protect--our trustworthiness and our good self-image--are lost anyway, when all becomes revealed. According to Doug Strachan's words, we can see that _ . A. people should not borrow money at any time B. the recession is the root for getting trouble in debts C. people should make effective plans to pay the debts D. hiding debts from their families is harmful to themselves Answer: C. people should make effective plans to pay the debts Question: I was an extremely verbal child, and growing up with my dad was an experiment in linguistics . My father was a man of few words. Whenever I wanted his permission for a certain activity, I planned a speech that included who would be there, where it would take place, how long it would last, and why it was an incredibly wonderful opportunity for me. He would listen and then say either "Yes" or "No." There were never any qualifiers; not "Yes, but be home by dinner" or "No, unless you can convince me otherwise." It was yes or no, plain and simple. My father's phone messages were also lessons in patience and long-suffering to a teenage girl. I was quite active in high school. Not only did I enjoy being involved in many areas, but I came into contact with many a great teenage guy. I can recall one busy day when I had met two great guys and had given each of them my phone number. The first words out of my mouth when I walked through the front door were, "Dad! Did anyone call?" His answer, of course, was simply "Yes".I required for a more accurate description of the caller. His answer: "A boy." Since I had met two guys that day, this did not help me. I ran to my room in tears. Knowing my dad's dislike of language in general and his fondness for briefness, it surprised me to hear that he was going to teach the eleven-year-old boys' Sunday school class. He did so for not one, but many years. I always wondered if he actually said anything, or if they all just sat in their chairs and stared at each other. I was sure that if people were waiting on my father to _ with brilliant conversation or a springboard comment, they'd be badly disappointed. Still, September after September, my father hung his sign outside the Sunday school room: Mr. Ernst--Eleven-Year-Old Boys. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage? A. My father would answer me with "Yes, but be home by dinner" sometimes. B. I came into contact with just a few great teenage guys because I was active in high school. C. That my father would teach the eleven-year-old boys' Weekday school class surprised me. D. I always wanted to know how my father, who talked so little, taught the boys. Answer: D. I always wanted to know how my father, who talked so little, taught the boys. Question: Hank Viscardi was 26 years old when he put on his first pair of long trousers and his first pair of shoes. For the first time he saw himself as he had always wanted to be a full five feet eight inches tall. Hank had been born without legs. Until he was seven, his world was a world of repeated operations. At last he had not legs, but stumps that could be fitted with a kind of special boots. Out of the hospital, Hank often found people staring at him with cruel interest. Children laughed at him and called him "Ape Man" because his arms dragged on the ground. He went to school like other boys. His grades were good and he needed only eight years instead of the usual twelve. After graduation, Hank worked his way through college. He swept floors, waited on table, or worked in one of the college offices. During all this busy life, Hank had been moving around on his stumps. But one day the doctor told him even the stumps were not going to last much longer. Hank would soon have to use a wheel chair. Hank felt himself go cold all over. However, the doctor said there was a chance that he could be fitted with artificial legs. Finally a leg maker was found and the day came when Hank stood up before the mirror and saw himself for the first time, five feet eight inches tall. But this was not the end yet. He had to learn to use his new legs. Again and again he marched the length of the room, and marched back again. There were times when he fell down on the floor, but he pulled himself up and went back to the endless marching. He went out on the street. He climbed the stairs and learned to dance. He built a boat and learned to sail it. When World War II came, he talked the Red Cross into giving him a job. He took the regular training. He marched and drilled along with the other soldiers. Few knew that he was legless. This was the true story of Hank Viscardi, the man without legs. The writer suggests that Hank Viscardi _ . A. had no friends at all B. was a man with a strong will C. had lost his legs in an accident D. was not satisfied with his artificial legs Answer: B. was a man with a strong will Question: Mrs. Brown is a worker. She works in a big factory. She gets up at five every morning. She often has breakfast at six fifty. After that she goes to the factory by bus at half past seven. She cleans the machines when she gets there very early. Then her workmates come. They begin to work at 8:00. They all work very hard. She goes home at five. Then she does some cooking. After supper she usually helps his son Tom with his homework. Sometimes she reads books. She usually watches TV with her family on weekends. What does she usually do after supper? A. She helps her son with homework. B. She watches TV with her son. C. She goes shopping. D. She takes a walk. Answer: A. She helps her son with homework.
"Mom, I can't do this." My teenage son Bret stood in front of me with his hands full of papers. "Can't do what?" I asked while preparing supper. "All these!" he waved his hands up and down. "There's no way I can do everything my teachers are asking me to do." I stopped what I was doing and turned to face him. I had never seen him so upset. He was my jovial son. He made good grades in school and nothing ever seemed to bother him. As I studied his face, I could see his eyes filled with tears. Walking over to the kitchen table, I sat down and asked him to join me. "Show me what you have to do ." Bret sat down in a chair and dropped the papers in front of him. "Mr. Jones, my chemistry teacher, wants me to make a project for the Science Fair." "Okay , And what else?" "I have an algebra test next week, and that will be one-third of our grade this school term!" "And I have to write an English essay. And midterms are the next week! I need to study for them and I have to get help with Spanish. There's no way I can do everything!" His hands shook as he picked up each assignment. It broke my heart to see him so stressed out. I wanted to help him, yet I couldn't do the work for him. I looked at Bret and said. "You don't have to do everything at once. You can do one at a time. Let's make a list of what you need to do." So, one by one, we listed each item. Then we put the due date next to the item. Next we separated the items into parts. For instance, the chemistry project needed supplies. So we put a deadline on getting the supplies. He had a friend who could help him with Spanish, so we had to put that time in. During the process, I saw my son visibly relax. When we finished with the list, I asked, "Do you think you can do this now?" He smiled and I saw his confidence return . "Sure! Thanks, Mom!" There is a saying that asks, "How do you eat an elephant?" The answer is, "One bite at a time." What did the writer help Bret do? Answer: There are millions of used cell phones in the world today, the most of them just lay in our houses without any purpose. Everyday dozens of new cell phone models appeared. _ But what to do with the old phones, which work well enough and not so old? Just get some money! Simply Sellular is buying almost all models of cell phones: LG, Motorola, HP, Siemens, Samsung, Sanyo, Nokia and many others cell phones. Also they accept phones produced in every country, and in every condition. Simply Sellular can offer a good prince for your old cell phone in cash. Their mission is giving you a simple way to get money for an old phone, as simple and profitable , as it's possible. Also they offer a trade-in scheme to get another model instead of your phone, providing a good service after the sale. Also Simply Sellular works with the so-called 911 cell phone program. So you can donate your cell phone to them to help some people who need it. They know what to do with your old phone! You can be interested in their recycling programs, where every used cell phone could be easily recycled for a few time. Some phones, which are good for refurbish , Simply Sellular donates to people who need it, for example women or military personnel. If the refurbish is impossible they just recycle cell phones. Just think a minute: it's a good deal to get some money for your old cell phone, good deal to help somebody with your phone and really important to recycle all techniques after use. Working with Simply Sellular you get every possibility ly free. And they will pay to you! That's a really god deal! The cell phone donated by you is probably _ . Answer: We are going to see the ruins of Machu Picchu in the mountains of the Andes.Machu Picchu was forgotten for centuries but discovered in 1911 by Hiram Bingham, a professor from Yale.It is said to be one of the most beautiful ancient sites in the world. The Incas built the ancient civilization of Machu Picchu between the 12th century and the early 16th century.They spoke a language called Quechua but had no writing system at all.They kept records on various coloured strings with knots called quipu. The Incas proved to be wonderful architects.They built most of their buildings with huge stones but without using any cement to stick them together.However, the huge stones fit together so perfectly that you cannot force a sharp knife between two blocks.They also built bridges, tunnels through mountains and channels to bring water to their cities--just as the Romans did.The Incas turned the mountains into farmlands and planted corn and potatoes, and raised animals like llama and alpaca for food. Now Machu Piccu has become a major tourist site in Peru, attracting people from all over the world. How long ago was Machu Picchu discovered? Answer: Which of the following causes a chemical change? Answer: I grew up in one of the poorest areas in Bradford. I live in a three-bedroom house with six brothers and sisters. I studied very hard . I got the best results in the history of the school. Other students would be happy with receiving such results. Their parents would give them an MP5 player as a prize or take them for a trip. What about me? In fact it made me sad. It was because my application to Imperial College London didn't pass. It is my dream to study medicine there. I know that nothing in life is easy. I won't give up. I will apply again the following year. While some students are traveling during the holiday, I am working hard. I help the doctors look after sick people in a hospital . I believe I must become a doctor one day. What does the writer want to study? . Answer:
Jack London was a famous American writer. He was born on January 12, 1876, in San Francisco, California. His family was very poor, and Jack had to leave school to make money.He worked hard in many different jobs. Later, Jack returned to school, but he didn't stay. He wrote," Life and pocketbook were both too short. " In 1897, he went to Alaska to find gold. Instead, he found ideas there for his books and stories. He returned home and started to write. His writings were successful, and he became rich and famous in his twenties. Jack London was not a happy man, however. In poor health, he took his own life in 1916. He was only 40 years old. Jack London was _ . Answer: Feeling is when a living thing senses through what? Answer: One of the most difficulties in learning a language is learning the idiomatic phrases, slang and common usage of native speakers. These four books focus on giving students a hand when learning North American idiomatic language. Ya Gotta Know It by Hania Hassan It provides an excellent mixture of materials for classroom lessons and American slang reference. Its unique feature is that students are provided with ongoing context reminding learners of idioms learned while improving their understanding by using the same characters and a developing story line. Exercises provide a chance for students to practice in proper situations. Price: $11.66 ISBN: 9780074560167 Common American Phrases by Richard A. Spears It has a wide variety of resources on American English. It contains more than 2,000 phrases and idioms. Excellent for classroom use as this reference guide focuses on standard phrases that can be found in everyday standard usage. Price: $ 7.06 ISBN: 978007405607 American Idioms and Some Phrases Just for Fun by Edward Swick The book's strength is its translation of more formal English of a number of idioms. These phrases are then repeated in a number of different contexts giving students a good idea of common usage. There are also a number of exercises designed to help students put their newfound idiomatic understanding into use. Price: $ 5.49 ISBN: 9780764108075 American Slang by Robert L. Chapman It provides a guide for advanced level English students. This references guide to slang is best used by those interested in the very latest and up-to-date slang and slang you might hear in the laterst films from Hollywood. Price: $ 1.99 ISBN: 9780062731722 In what way is Ya Gotta Know It different from other books? Answer: An Italian scientist named Alessandro Volta invented the Voltaic pile in 1800. It was able to produce a steady electrical current. Based on this description, what is the modern equivalent of the Voltaic pile? Answer: Annealing is a way of making metal softer by heating it and then letting it cool very slowly. If metal is heated and then cooled very quickly , for example by dipping it in water , it will be very hard but also very brittle ---that is , It will break easily. Metal that has been annealed is soft but does not break as easily . It is possible to make metal as hard or as soft as is wished, by annealing it. The metal is heated, and allowed to cool slowly , for a certain length of time. The longer the heated metal takes to cool slowly , the softer it becomes . Annealing can also be used on other materials, such as glass. As suggested by the text , how can glass be made less brittle ? _ Answer:
For well over a thousand years, smallpox was a disease that everyone feared. The disease killed much of the native population in South America when the Spanish arrived there in the early sixteenth century. By the end of the eighteenth century, smallpox was responsible for about one in ten deaths around the world. Those who survived the disease were left with ugly scars on their skin. It had long been well known among farmers that people who worked with cows seldom caught smallpox; instead, they often caught a similar but much milder disease called cowpox . A British doctor called Jenner was extremely interested in this, and so he studied cowpox. He believed that, by vaccinating people with the disease, he could protect them against the much worse disease smallpox. In 1796, he vaccinated a boy with cowpox and, two months later, with smallpox. The boy did not get smallpox. In the next two years, Jenner vaccinated several children in the same way, and none of them got the disease. News of the success of Jenner's work soon spread. Vaccination soon became a common method to protect people against other diseases caused by virus, such as rabies , and vaccines were sent across the world to the United States and India. It took nearly two centuries to achieve Jenner's dream of getting free of smallpox from the whole world. In 1967, the world Health Organization (WHO) started a great vaccination program, and the last known case of smallpox was recorded in Somalia in 1977. The story of vaccinations does not end there, however. There are many other diseases that kill more and more people every year. Besides, many new diseases are being discovered. The challenge for medical researchers will, therefore, probably continue for several more centuries Edward Jenner discovered that vaccination with cowpox could _ . Thunderbird Lodge in Canyon de Chelly A one-night stay at the historic lodge starts at $59 for a single room and the lodge offers half-day tours of Canyon de Chelly ( $41 for adults and $32 for children aged 12 and under). Time: May 31, 2009 ~ Nov. 1, 2009 Details: Hotel taxes are an additional 17.1 percent Contact: 800/679-2473, tbirdlodge.com CALIFORNIA Zephyr Cove Resort at Lake Tahoe A three-night stay in a lakeside cabin for two people, an Emerald Bay sightseeing for two, free breakfast and lunch. Rates are $299 per couple - saving of up to $400. Details: Hotel taxes are included Time: Through Dec. 15, 2009 Contact: 800/234-8946, zephyrcove.com NEVADA Montelago Village at Lake Las Vegas A one-night stay at the mediterranean-style Montelago Village, 17 miles from Las Vegas. Rates start at $65 per person including ice-skating fees and skate rentals. Details: Hotel taxes are an additional 12 percent Time: Nov. 17, 2009~Jan. 15, 2010 Contact: 866/399-2753, montelagovillage.com YELLOWSTONE Mammoth Hot Springs Hotel A two-night stay, breakfast daily, full day ski rental, unlimited ice-skating and skates and a book of Yellowstone photos. Rates start at $119 per person. A one-night stay at the hotel starts at $65. Details: Hotel taxes are an additional 8 percent Time: Jan .1, 2010~May 2, 2010 Contact: 866/439-2473, travelyellowstone.com If you are interested in ice-skating, you may find more information in _ . Fred is a dog. He always wants to have everything for himself. He doesn't like to share his food or toys with other dogs. One day, he was running in a field, and found a large bone in the bushes. He was so happy! He thought, "Wow! This is the biggest bone in the world! And it's all mine! I should put it somewhere. Another dog may try to steal it." "I'll run very far," he thought. "That way, no other dogs will find my bone." One hour later, he saw a small river and a bridge, "I'll cross the bridge, and put my bone on the other side," thought Fred. Then, he began to cross the bridge. He looked down, and saw a dog with a bone in the water. He thought it was another dog with another bone! "There is a dog in the water. I want his bone too!" thought Fred. Then, he opened his mouth and tried to grab the other bone. Splash! His bone fell into the water. "Oh, no! My bone is gone!" he thought. "Now I have nothing." Fred found the bone _ . Humans aren't the only ones getting a buzz from coffee.Caffeine can improve memory among honeybees and lead to better pollination .According to a recent study published in the journal Science. The study was conducted by a team of researchers at Newcastle University in the United Kingdom.They found that the nectar of some flowers,such as those from grapefruit and lemon plants,as well as certain coffee flowers,contains low doses of caffeine.To get bees to feed on these flowers,the team trained the insects to associate food with the smell of the flowers.They also trained another group of bees to feed on nectar from flowers that were sweetened with a sugar, but did not contain caffeine.After 24 hours,the bees trained on caffeinated flowers returned to these plants three times as often as those trained on the sweetened flowers returned to the uncaffeinated plants. Professor Geraldine Wright led the researchers."Remembering floral traits is difficult for bees to perform at a fast pace as they fly from flower to flower and we found that caffeine helps the bee remember where the flowers are,"Wright said in a statement. Improved memory led to the better pollination.That's because once bees sip the caffeine nectar, they continue to look for more coffee plants to pollinate.This also suggests that caffeine plays a role in improving the bees'ability to search for food. Researchers found that caffeine's effect on the bee brain is similar to its effect on mammals."The change is similar to that produced by caffeine in neurons associated with learning and memory in the rat brain,"Wright said. Bee populations have declining since 2007.The dramatic drop in the insects'numbers has serious effects for ecosystems and the farming industry.Bees are needed in the reproduction of crops and spreading wild flower species.Understanding what keeps bees buzzing could help to make sure that the insects are able to remember and pollinate their favorite flowers. After reading the passage,John,who works in the farming industry, will probably feel _ . Infections may be caused by
Question: Do you know how to prepare for and survive a major earthquake? According to Department of Conservation scientists, it is important to have the right answer to that question. How to Be Prepared Electricity, water, gas and telephones may not be working after an earthquake. The police and fire departments are likely to be tied up. You should be prepared to yourself at least three days,preferably for a week. You'll need food, water and so on. It's also a good idea to decide ahead of time how and where your family will reunite if separated during a quake. You might choose an out-of-the-area friend or relative that family members can call to check on you. _ If you're indoors, stay there. Get under a desk or table. The kitchen is a particularly dangerous spot. If you're in an office building, stay away from windows and outside walls and do not use the elevator. If you're outside, get into the open. Stay clear of buildings, power lines or anything else that could fall on you. If you're driving, move the car out of traffic and stop. Avoid parking under or on bridges or overpasses. After an Earthquake Check for fire. If you smell gas, shut off the main gas valve . If there's sign of damage to electricial wiring, shut off the power at the control box. If the phone is working, only use it in case of emergency . Avoid driving if possible to keep the streets clear for emergency vehicles. Be careful that things may fall out of cupboards when the door is opened, and also that chimneys can be weakened and fall with just a touch. Listen to the radio for important information and instructions. Remember that aftershocks, sometimes large enough to cause damage in their own right, generally follow large quakes. If you leave home, leave a message telling your friends and family your location. What should you do when an earthquake happens? A. You should stay away from the kitchen. B. You should drive on a bridge. C. You should turn off the power. D. You should listen to the radio frequently. Answer: A. You should stay away from the kitchen. Question: When most people think of the Olympics, they don't think of science. But in the USA, each year, students take part in a kind of competition called the Science Olympiad. It has a lot of different events. Students go there to show how much they know about the science of music, biology, chemistry and others. My best event is forestry . This time, I went to the Olympiad with my school's team. We had worked hard, but this was the state competition. It would be hard to win. The Olympiad was out of town, so we got to ride on a bus and stay in a hotel for a night. The Olympiad was in three big rooms. When we got there, we set up our team's "camp" off to one side. The big day had come at last! First, I went to watch the tower building competition. That's when students build small towers and put heavy things on top of it. They hope they can hold them up. One of my schoolmates was putting things on her tower. She was nervous, and in the end it was too heavy for her tower to hold it--it broke! I felt bad for her. After lunch, I helped some teammates with their events. One was geography, and the other was history. I don't know much about those things, so I just watched my teammates do most of the work. At last, it was time for my favorite event--forestry. Another student was also in the forestry event. The rules were easy. We had to look at more than 40 different kinds of leaves and find out which plants they were from. We also had to answer some questions about the uses of each leaf. I knew almost all of the leaves and could answer most of the questions. I had spent more than a month studying on the Internet to get ready. At the end, it was time for the awards , I was nervous, because the forestry awards were last. We won second place in the whole state! A nice man gave me a medal and smiled at me. I had a great time at the Science Olympiad. I can't wait for next year! Choose the best answer according to the passage. We know that _ . A. you know a lot about biology if you're good at forestry B. it's the first time for the writer to be in the competition C. the writer had to do some experiments in the competition D. the state competition lasted several days Answer: B. it's the first time for the writer to be in the competition Question: Can you imagine being savagely attacked by a dog? What if the attack was so severe that your nose, lips and chin were completely destroyed? How would you feel about yourself? Would you be able to look at yourself in the mirror? And how do you think other people would treat you? Isabelle Dinoire is someone who can answer all of these questions honestly and openly. Last November Isabelle was attacked and mauled by her own dog. The attack was so severe that her lower face was damaged; it seemed, almost beyond repair. She was rushed to hospital and became the first person ever to have a face transplant. With such severe injuries doctors offered Isabelle little hope that they would be able to repair the damage to her face using conventional surgery. Shortly after being admitted, she came to the attention of Dr Bernard Devauchelle who, unlike other surgeons, believed there was an alternative: "We found ourselves saying, yes, it's clear this woman needs a transplant," he said. Two days after the operation she saw her face in the mirror for the first time. She said "I was scared to look at myself, but when I did it was already marvelous and I couldn't believe it. I thought it would be blue and swollen but it was already beautiful." Now, less than a year after her 15 hour operation, she's trying to rebuild her life and there is no doubt how she feels about her new face: "I have been saved. Lots of people write saying that I need to go on, that it's wonderful. It's a miracle somehow." Although there were ethical questions raised about their decision to carry out the procedure, the doctors who operated on Isabelle are quick to defend their decision. One of them said "Was it possible for her to live without a face? It's easy to say we shouldn't have done the operation, but her life has changed, she goes shopping, goes on holiday, she lives again." According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true? A. It seemed that it was impossible to recover Isabelle's face using face transplant B. After operation Isabelle thought she looked beautiful and rebuilt her life again C. Some doctors had no better idea to repair the damage to Isabelle's face D. It was Dr Bernard Devauchelle who came up with the idea of face transplant Answer: A. It seemed that it was impossible to recover Isabelle's face using face transplant Question: Everyone knows that the Frenchmen are romantic, the Italians are fashionable and the Germans are serious. Are these just stereotypes or is there really such a thing as national character? And if there is, can it affect how a nation succeed or fail? At least one group of people is certain that it can. A recent survey of the top 500 entrepreneurs in the UK found that 70% felt that their efforts were not appreciated by the British public. Britain is hostile to success, they said. It has a culture of jealousy. As a result, the survey said, entrepreneurs were "unloved, unwanted and misunderstood." Jealousy is sometimes known as the "green - eyed monster" and the UK is its home. Scientists at Warwich University in the UK recently tested this idea. They gathered a group of people together and gave each an imaginary amount of money. Some were given a little, others a great deal. Those given a little were given the chance to destroy the large amount of money given to others - but at the cost of losing their own. Two thirds of the people tested agreed to do this. This seems to prove that the entrepreneurs were right to complain. But there is also conflicting evidence. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development recently reported that the UK is now the world's fourth largest economy. That is not bad for people who are supposed to hate success. People in the UK also work longer hours than anyone else in Europe. So the British people are not lazy, either. "It is not really success that the British dislike," says Carey Cooper, a professor of management at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology. "It's people using their success in a way that seems proud or unfair or which separates them from their roots." Perhaps it is the entrepreneurs who are the problem. They set out to do things in their way. They work long hours. By their own efforts they become millionaires. But instead of being happy they complain that nobody loves them. It hardly seems worth following their example. If they were more friendly, people would like them more. And more people want to be like them. The writer of the passage seems to suggest that _ . A. jealousy is Britain's national character B. British entrepreneurs are not fairly treated C. the scientists at Warwich University did a successful test D. the entrepreneurs in the UK do not behave properly Answer: D. the entrepreneurs in the UK do not behave properly Question: Are you in a bad mood? Don't worry! According to a new Australian study, a bad mood can actually be good for you. The study showed that being sad could help people to judge others more correctly and was also good for the memory. The study was carried out by Professor Joseph Forgas at the University of New South Wales."People in a bad mood paid more attention to the people and things around them than happy people .Happy people were more likely to believe anything they were told,"said Forgas For the study, Forgas and his team did a lot of experiments. During the experiments, they made the participants feel happy or sad by watching films and thinking about good or bad things of the past. In one of the experiments, happy and sad participants were asked to judge whether some wrong things were true or not. The results showed that people in a bad mood were less likely to believe that these things were true. People in a bad mood were also less likely to make mistakes when they were asked to remember the things that they saw. The study also showed that sad people were better at talking about their thoughts in written style. In fact, the study said that a slightly bad mood could help to make communication more successful. The study was completed by _ . A. sad participants B. happy participants C. Professor Joseph Forgas D. Forgas' friends Answer: C. Professor Joseph Forgas
Forty years ago, I was in Grade One. One day,I was asked to go to the principal's office . I was really nervous. When I pushed the heavy door open. I found my parents were sitting in the office,too. My father walked to me,with some of my drawings in his hand. "Why do you only use a black crayon when you draw?" he asked. I said nothing. "Show me to your desk," said my father. So we returned to my classroom. My father pulled out my crayon box. There was only one black crayon in it. "Where are the rest of your crayons?" I quietly explained that I'd given all the other crayons to my friends. I shared my things with others as my parents had taught me. Then I looked at my father, then at the principal--both their faces were red. Years later, I learned that my father's face was red because of anger and the principal was red because he was embarrassed . When the principal saw all my pictures, he thought that I had a deep emotional problem. So he had called my parents in to discuss "my problem". In fact, I was too shy to ask for my "shared" crayons back. I didn't stand up for myself! That night, my father told me about the difference between sharing and giving. He also gave me a new box of crayons. He said, "These crayons are for you. I don't want you to share or give these crayons to anyone else. " The girl learned from her father _ . A. how to be a good student B. how to draw in different colors C. the difference between sharing and giving D. the importance of drawing in different colors Answer: C. the difference between sharing and giving A car runs out of fuel while traveling on a level road and eventually comes to a stop. Which of the following best explains why the car stops? A. Some of the energy of the car was lost to friction. B. Some of the energy of the car was destroyed. C. The amount of kinetic energy increased. D. The amount of useful energy increased. Answer: A. Some of the energy of the car was lost to friction. Below is a selection about interesting hotels. Tayka Hotel de Sal Where: Tahua, Bolivia How much: About $95 a night Zxxk Why it's cool: You've stayed at hotels made of brick or wood, but salt? That's something few can claim. Tayka Hotel de Sal is made totally of salt - including the beds (though you'll sleep on regular mattresses and blankets). The hotel sits on the Salar de Uyuni, a prehistoric dried-up lake, which is the world's biggest salt flat. Builders use the salt from the 4,633-square-mile flat to make the bricks, and glue them together with a paste of wet salt that hardens when it dries. When there is big rain, the owners just mix up more salt paste to strengthen the bricks. Green Magic Nature Resort Where: Vythiri, India How much: About $240 a night Why it's cool: Taking a pulley -operated lift 86 feet to your treetop room is just the start of your adventure. As you look out of your open window - there is no glass! - you watch monkey and birds in the rain forest canopy . Later you might test your fear of heights by crossing the handmade rope bridge to the main part of the hotel, or just sit on your bamboo bed and read. You don't even have to come down for breakfast - the hotel will send it up on the pulley-drawn "elevator". Dog Bark Park Inn B&B Where: Cottonwood, Idaho How much: $92 a night Why it's cool: This doghouse isn't just for the family pet. _ is a 30-foot-tall dog with guest rooms in his belly. Climb the wooden stairs beside his hind leg to enter the door in his side. You can relax in the main bedroom, go up a few steps of the loft in Willy's head, or hang out inside his nose. Although you have a full private bathroom in your quarters, there is also a toilet in the 12-foot-tall fire hydrant outside. Gamirasu Cave Hotel Where: Ayvali, Turkey How much: Between $130 and $475 a night Why it's cool: This is caveman cool! Experience what it was like 5,000 years ago, when people lived in these mountain caves formed by volcanic ash. But your stay will be much more modern. Bathrooms and electricity provide what you expect from a modern hotel, and the white volcanic ash, called tufa, keeps the rooms cool, about 65*F in summer. (Don't worry - there is heat in winter.) What is the similarity of the four hotels? A. Being expensive. B. Being comfortable. C. Being natural. D. Being unique. Answer: D. Being unique. You can't resist that shirt on sale. And those cute red shoes also end up in your shopping bag. Or you buy a new computer that you can't live without. We've all bought things we wanted but really didn't need on impulse. US statistics show that in 2009 a surprising 60 percent of all-store purchases were made without thinking first. And the latest reported statistics for e-purchases say that forty percent are impulsive. So why do we do this? It feels good. This feeling comes from a chemical called dopamine , which is released when we do something we enjoy. How can we resist the temptation to spend? l Window-shop without your wallet. This way, when you see something you want, you can't buy it. If you really need the item, you can go back to the store to buy it. But it's likely you won't. l Pay in cash-don't use credit cards. They can trick you into thinking you're not spending money because the bill doesn't come until later. Using cash will make you think twice before spending. l Research the product first----then buy it. This will keep you from being talked into buying expensive hi-tech items like computers. l Make a shopping list----and stick to it. Buy only what is on the list. l Carry the exciting item around the store for 15 minutes. You will be surprised how that purple shirt loses its appeal after the initial "Wow, isn't that cool?" feeling wears off. It's hard to give up a bad habit. But if you replace it with a healthy habit, you will have more success. Consider going to the library instead of the bookstore. Explore new parks and learn about nature, or join a church or club. Exercise with friends or join a sports team. What does the writer advise people to do when they want to do some shopping? A. Don't put money in wallet B. Bring as much cash as possible C. Plan what they want to buy D. Buy things that are cheap Answer: C. Plan what they want to buy In the past,when people had problems,they went to their families or friends to get advice.Today it is possible to get advice from radio shows.TV programs or telephone hot lines,too.A hot line is a telephone line that offers a direct way of getting in touch with advicers.Most hot lines are completely anonymous --callers do not have to say their names or telephone numbers.Most hot lines are usually free,too.Callers do not have to pay for their advice or the phone calls--even if the calls are long distance.At some hot lines,the advicers are volunteers.Other hot lines pay their advicers for their work.Usually the advicers are full-job people with years of education and experience,but sometimes the advicers have only taken a short class before starting to work on the hot line.All the advicers listen to the people and help them solve their problems. When people call the hot line advicers,they _ . A. often give their names and telephone numbers B. generally have to pay for the long distance calls C. usually pay nothing for most of the calls and advice D. always try to get in touch with the volunteer advicers Answer: C. usually pay nothing for most of the calls and advice
If it starts raining acid rain you should Answer: Children are often far more gifted than what their parents or teachers can realize.IQ tests do not measure creative talents.By depending on them to measure intelligence,therefore,we miss out on the talents of many of our most gifted youngsters.Most children start life with valuable creative potential.Unfortunately,many of them have it knocked out of them,so to speak,by the time they reach the 4th grade.It is not that parents and teachers deliberately squelch creativity;or rather,they fail to recognize it.By simply observing the child at work or at play,you may detect creativity,if you look for the following key signs: Curiosity.The child's questioning is persistent and purposeful.He is not content with given explanations,and he would rather dig under the surface. Flexibility.If one approach doesn't work,the child quickly thinks of another. Sensitivity to Problem.He is quick to see gaps in information.He is sensitive to contradictions between prior rules and what he hears or reads. Selffeeling.He has a feeling of being somebody in particular.He is selfmotivated,selfdirected,and can work alone for long periods provided it's on his own project. Originality.He has surprising,uncommon,interesting ideas.His drawings and stories have a style that marks them as his own. Insight.He has easy access to realms of the mind that noncreative people visit only in their dreams.He toys with ideas that easily come to him. Qualities like these count very little in IQ tests,which measure memory,vocabulary,mathematical ability and general reasoning.These abilities are valuable,and the creative child does usually have them.However,the child with a socalled genius IQ of 180 is in reality no more likely to be a genius than the child with a slightly aboveaverage IQ of 120.In fact,evidence suggests that some children with high IQs may develop memory and logical reasoning powers at the expense of insight,imagination,and adventurous qualities that are essential to geniuses. According to the passage,children with high IQs _ . Answer: Wilma was born on June 23, 1940 in St Bethlehem, Tennesse. By the time she was 6, Wilma Rudolph was given metal braces to aid her in walking. She started receiving treatment with help from her family. A few years later, she walked without any assistance into the church. When she was in junior high, she joined the basketball team. She finally made an appeal to compete in games again and when her wish was finally permitted, she amazed everyone by leading the team to an undefeated season and the state championships. Though they lost the championship title in the end, Wilma Rudolph earned the attention of the women's track coach,Ed Template at Tennessee State University and was invited to join the "Tigerbelles".Her efforts paid off as she turned out to be so good that the Tigerbelles invited her to join them in the national Olympic team trails. Not only did she make it into the team, but she won a bronze medal in the 4x100 m relay at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. Four years later, Rudolph set a world 200 m record (22.9 seconds) at the 1960 US Championships. At the Rome Olympics in 1960, she competed in the 100 m, 200 m and 4x100 m relay, and equaled the world record of 11.3 seconds in the semifinals of the 100 m. She won the final by three metres in 11.0 seconds, but it was not accepted as a world record. Wilma Rudolph's extraordinary achievements in Rome made her a darling of the European press who gave her the nickname "The Black Gazelle " and "The Black Pearl". She also became the first woman in American history to win 3 gold medals in the Olympics and was crowned "the Fastest Woman in the World", Wilma Rudolph's spirit inspired people such as Jackie Joyner Kersee and Florence Griffith Joyner who became the next woman to win 3 gold medals. We learn that Wilma broke the world record in _ . Answer: J.K. Rowling is the writer of Harry Potter, which is now one of the bestsellers in the world. J.K. Rowling was born in Bristol on July 31st, 1965. She has one sister who is two years younger than her. Both girls loved listening to their father reading bedtime stories to them. They especially loved stories about magical worlds. Rowling wrote her first story, called Rabbit, at the age of six. After she graduated from the university, Rowling worked as a translator in London. During this time, on a long train trip in the summer of 1990, the idea came to her of a boy who has magic but doesn't know it. In 1992 Rowling began to teach English. She lived with her baby daughter, Jessica, and spent much time finishing the first Harry Potter book for young readers. It appeared in June 1997. To her surprise, the book was greatly successful. The film came out in November 2001. Now Harry Potter series is popular with people of all ages and about 60 million books were sold in 200 countries. Why has the series been so successful? There are a few things. Many other magical stories take place in faraway lands or in past or future times. But Harry lives in modern England. He's also a very normal boy: polite, friendly, brave and clever. So when other children read about Harry, they can imagine being like him. J.K. Rowling is very happy with the success, and she is now busy finishing the whole series of seven books. She's writing full time and she's really enjoying life. She says she will go on living a normal life with her daughter and writing children's books. J.K. Rowling has been successful, and she _ . Answer: The City Mouse and the Country Mouse Once there were two mice. They were friends. One mouse lived in the country; the other mouse lived in the city. After many years the Country mouse saw the City mouse; he said, "Do come and see me at my house in the country." So the City mouse went. The City mouse said, "This food is not good, and your house is not good. Why do you live in a hole in the field? You should come and live in the city. You would live in a nice house made of stone. You would have nice food to eat. You must come and see me at my house in the city." The Country mouse went to the house of the City mouse. It was a very good house. Nice food was set ready for them to eat. But just as they began to eat they heard a great noise. The City mouse cried, "Run! Run! The cat is coming!" They ran away quickly and hid. After some time they came out. When they came out, the Country mouse said, "I do not like living in the city. I like living in my hole in the field. For it is nicer to be poor and happy, than to be rich and afraid." The City mouse lives in _ . Answer:
Every day, Daisy wakes up next to a man, who has to convince her they are married. When she expresses doubt, he takes out a photo album and shows her pictures of their wedding 13 years ago. Only then does _ Daisy accept that she has been married, and that everything he has told her is true. The lady's condition was caused by brain injuries suffered in two road accidents, a motorbike crash in 1985 and a car accident in 1990. Daisy can recall everything up to 1994, but since then everything that happens on one day is forgotten the next day. She has no day-today memory after the car crash. And it is not just loved ones Daisy struggles with. She uses hundreds of notes and reminders on her mobile phone's calendar to keep her informed of appointments and everyday duties. Anything she has done or anyone she has met must be logged for future reference. And on the rare occasions when she takes the risk of going out of her home alone, she has to be armed with navigation programmed with her address. There are some benefits, however. There is no such thing as a repeat on TV and every joke is funny, because it seemed she has heard it the first time."It's like I am living the same day, day after day, said Daisy, who does voluntary work at a charity for people with disabilities three days a week. Dr Peter Nestor said Daisy was suffering from anterograde( , ) amnesia. He added, "It is reasonably rare, but it does exist. You are able to carry out daytoday things, and don't forget how to do certain things like speaking. But if someone was to ask you what you did yesterday, you wouldn't have a clue." How did Daisy's family help remind her? Answer: By showing her old photos and pictures. Cactus house a great amount of Answer: chlorophyll At the heart of the debate over illegal immigration lies one key question: are immigrants good or bad for the economy? The American public overwhelmingly thinks they're bad. Yet the agreement among most economists is that immigration, both legal and illegal, provides a small net boost to the economy. Immigrants provide cheap labor, lower the prices of everything from farm produce to new homes, and leave consumers with a little more money in their pockets. So why is there such a discrepancy between the perception of immigrants' impact on the economy and the reality? There are a number of familiar theories. Some argue that people are anxious and feel threatened by an inflow of new workers. Others highlight the stress that undocumented immigrants place on public services, like schools, hospitals, and jails. Still others emphasize the role of race, arguing that foreigners add to the nation's fears and insecurities. There's some truth to all these explanations, but they aren't quite sufficient. To get a better understanding of what's going on, consider the way immigration's impact is felt. Though its overall effect may be positive, its costs and benefits are distributed unevenly. David Card, an economist at UC Berkeley, notes that the ones who profit most directly from immigrants' low-cost labor are businesses and employers --meatpacking plants in Nebraska, for instance, these producers' savings probably translate into lower prices at the grocery store, but how many consumers make that mental connection at the checkout counter? As for the drawbacks of illegal immigration, these, too, are concentrated. Native low-skilled workers suffer most from the competition of foreign labor. According to a study by George Borjas, a Harvard economist, immigration has reduced the wages of American high-school dropouts by 9%. Among high-skilled, better-educated employees, however, opposition was strongest in states with both high numbers of immigrants and relatively generous social services. What worried them most, in other words, was the financial burden of immigration. That conclusion was reinforced by another finding: that their opposition appeared to soften when that financial burden decreased, as occurred with welfare reform in the 1990s, which curbed immigrants' access to certain benefits. The irony is that for all the overexcited debate, the net effect of immigration is minimal. Even for those most acutely affected -- say, low-skilled workers, or California residents -- the impact isn't all that dramatic. "The unpleasant voices have tended to dominate our perceptions," says Daniel Tichenor, a professor at the University of Oregon. "But when all those factors are put together and the economists calculate the numbers, it ends up being a net positive, but a small one." Too bad most people don't realize it. Which of the following might be the best title of the passage? Answer: A debate about the impact of illegal immigrants. The next great land area that man hopes to control is the moon. In size it is nearly equal to the area of North and South America. However, it presents a hostile environment. Temperatures range +120 to -150 degrees Centigrade. There is no air, and no water. Today there is considerable scientific speculation about living on the moon. When man will begin life on the moon surface is still not determined. But experts believe that settlement will take place in three steps. First, there will be increasing periods of exploration with temporary shelters. These periods will be followed by longer stays with housing under the surface of the moon and daily necessities brought by the settlers themselves from the earth. Finally, settlements that are self-supporting will be founded. The main job of the early settlers will be to stay alive. They will have to plant crops under huge domes to produce food and oxygen and find water sources. After this is done, the settlers will have time to explore the possibilities of commercial development and to make discoveries important to science. The characteristics of the moon that make it bad for human staying alive may make it ideal for certain kinds of manufacturing . Operations requiring a vacuum or extreme cold are examples. Therefore, industrial diamonds might be produced on the moon. To stay alive on the moon, first of all the early settlers must be able to _ . Answer: get enough food, oxygen and water As summer comes near, many children are really happy to forget about school for a few months. However, they might be taking that goal too seriously. Studies have found that children often forget between one and three months' worth of school learning during the summer months. Spelling and math abilities drop off the most, while reading is not really influenced by the time off. The main reason for this is because most children sometimes read outside of the classroom, whether newspapers, magazines, books, or video game guides. However, their math and spelling skills only get exercised in the school setting. The first purpose of summer holidays was to let farm children have time off to help work in the fields during the growing season, but this reason is no longer a good one since fewer kids actually work on farms today. Some cities in the United States, such as Los Angeles, have moved to a year-round school timetable, which may help reduce the loss of school skills that happens during the long summer holiday. To improve skills and to keep a good level of preparation, headmasters suggest trips to museums, summer camps, holidays with educational value, and visits to libraries to keep kids interested throughout the summer. There are other educational systems that provide holidays while still keeping students' skills up to date. For example, in Japan, students attend class for seven weeks in a row, followed by two weeks of holiday. This continues the whole year. In Italy, students attend class six days per week, but finish at 1: 30 pm each day, so that school does not run their life the way that it does in America, where students attend high school from 7: 45 am until 3: 00 pm each weekday. In areas where there are not enough classrooms--in Afghanistan or Somalia, for example--older students attend classes in the morning while the younger kids go to school in the afternoon. Headmasters fear that the three-month summer holiday stops the flow of learning. Just as students become used to new math problems or new ideas in reading, writing, or thinking skills, they " _ " during the summer holiday. When they go back to school after the long summer holiday, they take up to two months to return to their previous level of skill. So the debate continues: whether to continue holidays or to make changes based on the Los Angeles or the Japanese models. Which skills suffer the most over the summer holidays? Answer: Math and spelling.
From: jovangagic56@memail. com To: kmallory@LN.org Subject: Hi! Dear Mr. Mallory, I am writing to tell you my deep disappointment for my experience at Lingua Nova English summer school in the first two weeks of July. I had been thoroughly looking forward to learning English and learning about culture in the UK, but I am afraid that my time at your summer school failed to live up to my expectations. Your brochure states that the student accommodation is situated "in the heart of Edinburgh". This is misleading as my accommodation was, in fact, situated a good fifty minutes bus ride from the city center in what I can only describe as a less than picturesque part of the suburbs. In addition, the activity programme did not reflect the fact that we were located in one of Europe's most interesting and historical cities: one evening activity consisted of a walk to a nearby park, another was a trip to a narrow street which was not usually used by cars. Finally, on our one trip into the city center our "guide" readily admitted that she was not from Edinburgh, and had in fact never visited the city before. I had been eagerly expecting a guided tour of Scotland's treasures. In fact, I was left in the city center with no map and told to "check things out" while your employee went shopping in Princes Street. This was a long awaited trip and cost me over two years' hard work and saving. Although I do have positive memories of my trip (my English teachers were knowledgeable and inspiring), the accommodation and activity programme were wholly unsatisfactory. I would like to get my money back for the accommodation and would really appreciate a reply within the next two weeks. Yours sincerely, Jovan Gagic Jovan wrote the email to _ . A. provide information B. share experiences C. express dissatisfaction D. raise expectations Answer: C Last year, CCTV journalists approached pedestrians with their cameras, held a microphone to their mouth and asked a simple question, "Are you happy?" The question has caught many interviewees off guard. Even Mo Yan, who just won a Nobel Prize, responded by saying, "I don't know". While the question has become a buzz phrase and the Internet plays host to heated discussions, we ask: What exactly is happiness? And how do you measure it? In the 1776 US Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson set in writing the people's unalienable right to "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness". 235 years on, Wen Jiabao told the nation, "Everything we do is aimed at letting people live more happily." At National People's Congress, officials agreed that increasing happiness would be a top target for the 12th five-year plan. US psychologist Ed Diener, author of Happiness: Unlocking the Mysteries of Psychological Wealth, describes happiness as " a combination of life satisfaction and having more positive than negative emotions", according to US broadcasting network PBS. This may sound straightforward enough, but it still doesn't explain what determines people's happiness. Many argue that happiness is _ and that there is no single source. It also means different things to different people. For some, happiness can be as simple as having enough cash. Researchers believe happiness can be separated into two types: daily experiences of hedonic well-being; and evaluative well-being, the way people think about their lives as a whole. The former refers to the quality of living, whereas the latter is about overall happiness, including life goals and achievements. Happiness can cross both dimensions. Li Jun, a psychologist and mental therapy practitioner at a Beijing clinic, says, "Happiness can mean both the most basic human satisfaction or the highest level of spiritual pursuit. It's a simple yet profound topic." Chen Shangyuan, 21, a junior English major at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, said his idea of happiness always evolves. "At present it relates to how productive I am in a day," he said. "It might be linked to job security or leisure time after I graduate." Then there is the question of measuring happiness. Does it depend on how many friends we have, or whether we own the latest smart phone? Is it even quantifiable? Economists are trying to measure happiness in people's lives. Since 1972, Bhutan's GDP measurement has been replaced by a Gross National Happiness index. It is calculated according to the peoples' sense of being well-governed, their relationship with the environment, their satisfaction with economic development, and their sense of national belonging. In 2009, US economist Joseph Stiglitz proposed "to shift emphasis from measuring economic production to measuring people's well-being". But is well-being more easily measured? According to the passage, the writer may most likely agree that _ . A. CCTV journalists are concerned about people's happiness out of sympathy B. the question has led to heated discussions about who are the happiest people in China C. Bhutan's new index shows that people there are the happiest in the world D. it is not easy for us to decide what determines people's happiness Answer: D A popular shopping bag has been seen on the arm of some of the world's most beautiful women. It sells at an official price of PS5, but as much as PS400 online. The bag called "I'm Not a Plastic Bag" is made of cotton. It is so "hot" that now everyone wants to get one. It's fashionable, and it's green! Supporters see the bag as a way to move away from throwaway plastic bags that are given away in large numbers by supermarkets every year. When the bags were first sold, about 500 people waited in line to buy one. So far, 20,000 of the popular bags have been sold at the second largest supermarket in Great Britain. It is one of the ways to encourage shoppers to use the reusable bags, rather than the plastic ones. The bag has also become a must-have for many famous people who want to be fashionable, and at the same time care about the environment. The designer of the bag has been asked to develop the bag by _ group. The group believes that each person in Great Britain uses about 167 plastic bags every year. It says that small lifestyle changes can have a strong effect on reducing waste and the environmental pollution. It also says that everyone should try his best to protect the earth from being polluted. The purpose of designing the popular bags is _ . A. to make money B. to help famous people C. to make women fashionable D. to reduce the environmental pollution Answer: D Choose the best answer (,) I put my carry-on in the luggage compartment , and sat down in my seat.Just before take-off,a line of soldiers came down the aisle and filled all the empty seats. After flying for about an hour,an announcement was made that sack lunch were available for $5.As I reached for my wallet to buy one,I overheard the soldier ask his buddy if he planned to buy lunch."No ,that seems like a lot of money for just a sack lunch.I'll wait till we get to Chicago."His friend agreed. I looked around at the other soldiers.None were buying lunch.I walked to the back of the plane,and handed the flight attendant a $50 bill." Take a lunch to all those soldiers." After we finished eating. I went again to the back of the plane,heading for the restroom.A man stopped me."I saw what you did.I want to be part of it.Here,take this."He handed me $25. Soon after I returned to my seat,I saw the Flight Captain coming down the aisle. When he got to my row,he stopped and said,"I want to shake your hand.I was a soldier and I was a military pilot.Once,someone bought me a lunch. It was an act of kindness I never forgot."I was embarrassed when applause was heard from all of the passengers. Later I walked to the front of the plane so I could stretch my legs.A man who was seated about six rows in front of me reached out his hand,wanting to shake mine.He left another $25 in my hand. We landed in Chicago,I picked up my belongings.Waiting just inside the airplane door was a man who stopped me and put something in my shirt pocket.Another $25. Upon entering the terminal ,I saw the soldiers gathering for their trip to their base.I walked over to them and handed them $75."It will take you some time to reach the base.It will be about time for a sandwich.God Bless You."I said. These soldiers were giving their all for our country.I could only give them a couple of meals.It seemed so little. When the writer bought lunch for the soldiers,. A. he wanted the soldiers to thank him B. he expected others to pay for them with him C. he wanted to impress the Flight Captain D. he didn't know others would notice what he did Answer: D It was at least tow months before Christmas, when nine-year-old Almie Rose told her father and me that she wanted a new bike. Her Barbi bike was just too old, and it needed repairing as well. As Christmas came nearer, her dream for a bike seemed to disappear, so we thought, for she didn't mention it again. We were busy buying some beautiful storybooks, a doll house, a holiday dress and toys. Then much to our surprise, on December 24, she said she really wanted a bike more than anything else. Now we didn't know what to do. It was just toot late. We were busy with Christmas dinner and packing children's presents, parents' presents, a brother's present and friends' presents till midnight.So there was no time to take to buy the "right bike" for our little girl. Thinking that we were parents who would make their children unhappy, we felt guilty and sad. Suddenly my husband came up with an idea. "What if I make a little bike out of clay and write a note that she could trade in the model bike for a real one?" So he spent the next five hours carefully working with the clay to make a small bike. On Christmas morning, we were so excited for Almie Rose to open the little box with the beautiful red and white clay bike and the note. She opened and read the note loudly. She looked at me and Ron and said, "So does this mean I can trade in this bike for a real one?" Smiling, I said, "Yes." Almie Rose had tears in her eyes when she replied, "I would never trade in this beautiful bike that Daddy made me. I prefer to keep it rather than get a real bike." At that moment, we would have moved the God to buy her every bike on the Earth. Rose's wish was to _ on Christmas Day. A. get a new bike B. make a clay bike C. receive a doll house D. repair her old Barbi bike Answer: A
Which is a physical property of an apple? A what color it is B how pretty it is C how much it costs D when it was picked Answer: A China Mobile, the country's largest mobile communications operator, has accounted for nearly 40 percent of revenues in the domestic telecoms market. That puts it at the top of the six major telecoms operators in the nation, according to the latest official statistics . The other five are: China Telecom, 31.1 percent; China Netcom, 16.6 percent; and China Unicom, 13.4 percent; China Satellite Communications Corp and China Rilcom, 1.5 percent. Mobile communications and the IP phone business have gradually replaced traditional long-distance calls. Mobile communications account for 28.5 percent of the total long-distance communications business. IP phones have 41.4 percent, while traditional long-distance calls are down to 30.1 percent. In another ranking , Nokia, Motorola, Bird, TCL and Siemens came in as the top five mobile phone sellers in China in the first half of this year, according to South Daily. They report also says that during this period, prefix = st1 /Chinaproduced 82 million handsets (including GSM, GPRS and CDMA phones) and sold 80 million. Of the phones sold, 37 million were exported to other countries. Analysts point out that China's lack of key technologies and its heavy dependence on overseas technologies have proved to be an obstacle for development of home-made phone makers. Mobile communications have gradually taken the place of_. A IP phone service B traditional long-distance calls C traditional telephones D telecom operators Answer: B When I was about 14, I decided to make money, so I got a part-time job at a local restaurant. With my first paycheck, I realized that I would have to work awfully hard to make very little money. My boss had been making just above minimum wage for 20 years, and I knew I didn't want to spend the rest of my life working to death. Around the same time, my godparents took me to an investment workshop. Immediately, my eyes were opened to the power of compound growth in investing. I knew that this was a way to financial freedom. I left the workshop, determined to make my money work for me instead of just me working for money. Honoring what my mother had taught me, to share whatever I had, I donated part of my paychecks to raise money for breast cancer, and saved everything else to build up a large enough nest egg to open a brokerage account . Too excited to wait, I began reading everything I could about investing. With most of my life savings (which wasn't very much money), I invested in DuPont, AT&T, Caterpillar, and International Paper. The pride in being a shareholder in a company, along with watching my stocks increase in value, fueled my desire to learn more. I went to three more investment workshops with my godparents and browsed books at the library. I began with $4,000 in my account and have added about $2,000 since then. My portfolio is now worth roughly $12,000, five years later, having grown about 18% per year, on average. My favorite holdings are biotechnology companies that I know a fair amount about because they're based near me. In the years since then, I have experienced many moments of gratitude for discovering investing so early in my life. I'm in college now, and plan to go on to medical school and become a family practice physician. And I know that, thanks to investing, my road will be much easier. Not only have I taken an active step towards improving my long-term financial future, but I am confident that I will also be able to generously support the causes I believe in with more ease than I otherwise would have imagined. Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE according to the passage? A Investing made his wealth grow effectively. B Investing enabled him to achieve his life goals. C Investing allowed him to pay off all his debts. D Investing helped him to reach financial independence. Answer: C Some years ago,writing in my diary used to be a usual activity.I would return from school and spend the expected half hour recording the day's events,feelings,and impressions in my little blue diary.I did not really need to express my emotions by way of words,but I gained a certain satisfaction from seeing my experiences forever recorded on paper.After all,isn't accumulating memories a way of preserving the past? When I was thirteen years old,I went on a long journey on foot in a great valley,wellequipped with pens,a diary,and a camera.During the trip,I was busy recording every incident,name and place I came across.I felt proud to be spending my time productively,dutifully preserving for future generations a detailed description of my travels.On my last night there,I wandered out of my tent,diary in hand.The sky was clear and lit by the glare of the moon,and the walls of the valley looked threatening behind their screen of shadows.I automatically took out my pen... At that point,I understood that nothing I wrote could ever match or replace the few seconds I allowed myself to experience the dramatic beauty of the valley.All I remembered of the previous few days were the dull characterizations I had set down in my diary. Now,I only write in my diary when I need to write down a special thought or feeling.I still love to record ideas and quotations that strike me in books,or observations that are particularly meaningful.I take pictures,but not very often-only of objects I find really beautiful.I'm no longer blindly satisfied with having something to remember when I grow old.I realize that life will simply pass me by if I stay behind the camera,busy preserving the present so as to live it in the future. I don't want to wake up one day and have nothing but a pile of pictures and notes.Maybe I won't have as many exact representations of people and places;maybe I'll forget certain facts,but at least the experiences will always remain inside me.I don't live to make memories-I just live,and the memories form themselves. What does the author put in her diary now? A Notes and beautiful pictures. B Special thoughts and feelings. C Detailed accounts of daily activities. D Descriptions of unforgettable events. Answer: B Normally and naturally, a daughter is more attached to her mother in comparison to her father or other siblings . The attachment is also due to the fact that the daughter finds it easier to believe in the mother on personal and biological matters at different stages while growing up. The bonding between mother and daughter will increase with their being together and going out on excursions. An excursion is a journey to some far-off place undertaken by people. It is not necessary that such a trip be taken on a lavish scale involving lots of money. It can be as short as an overnight trip to some place to improve bonding. To surprise her daughter with an unexpected excursion, mother can plan a trip to some local spa without the knowledge of her daughter. She can be ready with baggage packed and wait for the moment the daughter comes back from school. Once in the hotel they can enjoy the night together getting refreshing treatments like massage or mud packs. After relaxing spa they can laze in bed, enjoying favourite food or drink and if possible enjoying nature through the window. After a long period of relaxation, going out for a walk together will improve bonding. Going out overnight to enjoy walk at the beach, and relaxing at intervals without the interference of any other person can be a great idea of bonding. Being of the same sex, and often having the same set of likes and dislikes, they can spend time on makeup or applying nail polish. The daughter should never forget to thank the mother for the wonderful time they spent together, and the mother should never hesitate to say a few words of praise to the daughter. Going out for shopping together is a good bonding idea too. It is not essential that lots of money should be spent on shopping. The mother can take the daughter to some shops where she can buy her uniform or some other things. They can jointly enjoy window shopping, expressing love and gratitude for the other. A mother is advised to plan a trip without telling her daughter probably to . A give the daughter a surprise B prevent other siblings knowing the trip C choose the place the mother likes more D avoid making the daughter have trouble planning Answer: A
Preparing food at the proper temperatures Answer: When I was in college,I was always very passionate about music and I was proud to be a member of our band.However,I almost gave up because of my fear of playing solos . One day two years ago my director informed me that he wanted me to be the featured soloist in a piece of music.Of course I was terrified,but he encouraged me that everything would be OK,and that he believed me and knew that I could do it.Up until four days before the concert,I could not make it through the solo.I would always seem to get discouraged before I played it. I decided to ask my director for help thinking that he would tell me that I didn't have to do it and that he was still proud of me.All he said was"You just have to believe yourself."I didn't think trying his advice would hurt,so I started the next morning differently.Instead of wondering how I could mess up,I imagined myself playing through my solo with confidence and I kept on telling myself that I could do it. The strange thing was...it worked!After that day I played the solo without any mistake.When the big concert came,although I was a little nervous,I knew that I could do this.I didn't know what was going to happen,but I realized that the only person that was holding me back from being my best,was myself.I believed myself.I thought things would go a little more differently than they had in the past.Of course,I played the solo wonderfully and I gained acclamation from all the audience. Always do the thing that you fear the most,don't get discouraged if you fail,and just keep on trying harder. What was the author's reaction when he was told to play a solo in the concert? Answer: When Steven was a young boy, he moved quite often with his family and so he never had many friends. He spent a lot of time on his own and liked to play with electronic things. Steven had a neighbour, Steve Wozniak. Steve was a little bit younger than Steven but also liked to play with electronic things. Steven made a microphone and Steve asked him many questions about it until he understood how it worked. Steven liked the fact that such a young boy was also interest ed in electronic things and so he taught him everything he knew. When they were a little older and knew more about electronic things, they made a "blue box". People could make free phone calls by breaking into the phone company's system with this box. They sold this to many people even though it was illegal , but this is not why they are famous today. Steven and Steve were the inventors of the first PC--personal computer. They called their first computer the Apple I. They invented it only for fun and to make themselves known among their friends. They did not think it would become so popular. They just liked playing computer games on it. Their computer made it cheaper and easier for people to own and use a computer. Their PCs were so popular that they made a new PC called the Apple II. Soon many schools, families and factories were using their computers. Without the two clever men, the personal computers might never have appeared. Why did Steven like Steve? Answer: Nice to meet you. I'm David Beckham. I'm from England and I'm English. I'm twenty-nine years old. I like playing football and I can play football very well. My name is Zhou Jielun. I'm from Taiwan, China. I'm thirty years old. I like singing. My name is Liu Qian. I'm from Taiwan,China. I'm thirty-three years old. I like playing magic cards Hello! I'm Li Yuchun. I live in Chengdu now. I'm twenty-five years old. I like singing. . Who is Chinese? Answer: Park sued Davis Co. for injuries suffered in the crash of Park's dune buggy, allegedly caused by a defective auto part manufactured by Davis Co. Davis Co. claims that the part was a fraudulent imitation, not produced by Davis Co. Which of the following is NOT admissible on the issue of whether the part was manufactured by Davis Co.? Answer:
Never try to work when you are very hungry. If you decide to do your homework right after school, you may get something to eat before going to work. Always do your homework before you get too tired. Don't wait until very late in the evening, or your work will seem much harder than it really is. If you have more than an hour's work, give yourself a break after an hour. On the other hand don't break it up so much that you can't get anything down. You should be able to work at least a half at a time without stopping. Don't put it off until the last minute. If you put off doing your homework, you will have it on your mind, and you won't enjoy your free time so much. If you put it off until the end of the week or until before a test, you will have too much catching up to do. A little bit each night, enough to keep up with what is happening each day in school, will take the fear out of tests and keep you on top of it all. Do your homework at the same time every evening. This will help you make it a _ . It will make it easier to do, and it will make your free time more enjoyable as well. If we wait very late in the evening, our work will _ . A. become a bit hard B. seem much harder C. look very easy D. go to so much trouble Answer: B The air bag is a piece of safety equipment in cars. It was first designed by John W. Hetrick in 1952. Like many inventions, he came up with the idea as a result of an event that had occurred in his life. He says: "In the spring of 1952, my wife, my seven-year-old daughter, Joan, and I were out for a Sunday drive in our 1948 Chrysler Windsor. About three miles outside Newport we were watching for deer jumping across the road. Suddenly, there was a large rock in our path. I hit the brakes and we went into a ditch . "As I applied the brakes, both my wife and I threw our hands up to keep our daughter from hitting the car. There was soft mud in the ditch, so the car wasn't damaged, and no one was hurt." "During the ride home I couldn't stop thinking about the accident. I asked myself,'Why couldn't some object come out to stop you from striking the inside of the car?'As soon as I got home that night I drew some sketches . Each evening for the following two weeks, I'd add or reduce something from the sketches." Hetrick applied an event he had observed while in the Navy to the design of the air bag. He was repairing a torpedo which had a cloth covering. When the compressed air that was in the torpedo was let out, the covering was suddenly filled with air and was shot to the ceiling. With this knowledge, he developed his design until he was able to obtain a patent on the invention on August 5, 1952. The idea was similar to the air bag designs of today. Compressed air is stored in a container and when a traffic accident occurs and the car slows down at a rapid enough rate, the air will be released into the air bag. The idea was _ , but Hetrick's air bag never would have functioned properly. It was really a breakthrough, but it would require years and years of designing and testing by some top car designers before it could be used. The text is mainly about _ . A. the great inventor Hetrick B. The invention of air bags C. a terrible car accident D. road safety in the 1950s Answer: B There is little doubt that house cat first developed naturally from ancient wild cats. The cleverest relative is the America wild cat which still lives in Africa today. This is understandable because the first house cats came from Africa. Cats first started to live around people in Egypt about 6,000~7,000 years ago. From Egypt, cats started to move around the world. This is about the same time that Egyptians began storing grain in buildings. Scientists used to believe that people _ cats to catch mice and protect the grain. However, cats don't like to be told what to do! Now, scientists believed that cats followed the mice and learned to accept people. Finally, some of the cats began to grow comfortable around people, these were smaller cats that needed protection. As these cats and people got used to each other, then they moved in together. Around 5,000 years ago, cats started to live with people. Soon cats were in Greece, then the Middle East and China. They moved along Egyptian business roads keeping away mice and keeping people around them. After the Romans came to Egypt, they also accepted the cats and brought them to Europe. These cat likely bred with other cats to form the many kinds of house cats we have today. Cats are relatively recent house animals. House cats still have a lot in common with their wild relatives. Cats sleep a lot to save energy just like wild cats. They will often get food at night as well. House cats are generally peaceful and friendly, but be careful! If a cat feels it is in danger, it will fight back--just like a wild cat. . What does the text mainly talk about? A. The development of house cats. B. Different cats in different countries. C. The relationship between cats and people. D. The differences between house cats and wild cats. Answer: A In the intermediary before rain falls, observers may note A. beach weather B. bright days C. menacing skies D. large moons Answer: C A nightcrawler will most likely reside and consume nearest A. a rain cloud B. an un-raked yard C. a river rapids D. a mountain avalanche Answer: B
" Yeah! Auntie is here! " screamed my husband's niece and nephew together. " Let me get the door!" " No, let me !" Each one's goal was to get there first and open the door for their Auntie, Me! I couldn't get enough of them, of their youthful love of life, and their excitement every time I visited! To be honest, it was partially because of the Surprise Travel Bag that I carried in. It was a tradition that I started when they were young. Each time I went to see them, I would take a large bag filled with toys, coloring books, candy, magic markers and "games". The contents were different but the rules were not. They included: one may get a turn to choose what activity we would do; another may take a turn to go first when we played a game; ..... We shared the treats after the games and cleaned up after we played . Then, sadly, they watched the Surprise Travel Bag go away with their Auntie. Now my niece and nephew have grown into young adults. They spend most of their visits listening to their iPods, messaging on their phones.... I completely forgot that I had put my two Surprise Travel Bags in the basement until my husband found them this weekend. I held the bags tightly in my arms, remembering our laughter and fun-filled get-togethers. My big decision now is to whom I will pass the Surprise Travel Bags so that the fun that the bags help to create can continue. We learn from the passage that the author would _ . Answer: If a ruler is going to measure something, it will most likely be used to measure a Answer: Just outside the northern Italian town of Bra, there rises a church tower with a clock that is a half hour slow. Though not far from the industrial city of Turin, Bra smells of roses, and leisure is the law. It is both the home of an international movement that promotes slow food and one of Italian cities that have joined the slow cities. In Bra, population 27,866, the town fathers have declared that all small food shops be closed every Thursday and Sunday. They forbid cars in the town square. All fruits and vegetables served in local schools must be organic . And as the movement goes well, the slow concept gradually spreads across Europe. The argument for a Slow Europe is not only that it is good, but also that it can work. The Slow City Movement, which started in 1999, has improved local economies by promoting local goods and tourism. Young Italians are moving from larger cities to Bra, where unemployment is only 5 percent, about half the nationwide rate. Slow food and wine festivals draw thousands of tourists every year. Shops are doing well, many with sales rising at a rate of 15% per year. "This is our answer to the world." says Paolo Samrnini, the founder of Slow Cities. France is in favor of slow economics. Most outsiders have long been doubtful of the French model: short hours and long vacations. Yet the French are more productive than those in the United States and Britain, and have been for years. The mystery of French productivity has risen an Europewide debate about the advantages of working more slowly. The increased French productivity tends to _ . Answer: Students conducted an investigation with green bananas. They hypothesized that an onion placed near a banana could increase the rate at which the banana ripened. They placed one onion and one banana in each of three containers. In a fourth container they placed a banana, but no onion. Which statement best explains why the onion was left out of the fourth container? Answer: You speak,write a letter,and make a telephone call. Your words carry a message. People communicate with words. Do you think you can communicate without words? A smile on your face shows you are happy or friendly. Tears in your eyes tell others that you are sad. When you raise your hand in class,the teacher knows you want to say something or ask questions. You shake your head,and people know you are saying "No". You nod and people know you are saying "Yes". Other things can also carry messages. For example,a sign at the bus stop helps you to know which bus to take. A sign on the wall of your school helps you to find the library. Signs on doors tell you where to go in or out. Have you ever noticed that there are a lot of signs around you and that you receive messages from them all the time? People can communicate in many other ways. An artist can use his drawings to tell about beautiful mountains,about the blue sea and many other things. Books are written to tell you about all the wonderful things in the world and also about people and their ideas. Books,magazines,TVs, radios and films all help us to communicate with each other. They all help us to know what is going on in the world and what other people are thinking about. (Notes: communicate ;sign ,) When we see somebody smile,then,he must be feeling _ . Answer:
Posted: 06/19/2014 12:00 a.m. Lucy Li, an 11-year-old girl, is the youngest person to qualify for a US Women's Open golf tournament . She was qualified for the US Women's Open in May. When she set a new record by seven strokes .And today she is playing against some of the best female golfers in the world. Earlier this week Li said that she wasn't nervous about becoming the centre of attention at today's game. "I just want to have fun and play the best I can and I really don't care about the result. I can learn a lot from these great players." Li doesn't spend all her time golfing. She is home-schooled in an online Stanford University programme. Her favourite subjects are Maths, History, and Science and she loves to read. She also loves medicine, diving, badminton, dancing, and table tennis. But golf is her favourite sport. "I like golf because it's different from other sports. Anybody can play it." she said. Some female golfers are worried that Li isn't quite ready for the Open. "When I found out she was qualified, I said, where does she go from here? You qualify for an Open at 11, what do you do next? If she was my kid, I wouldn't let her play in the US Open at all, but that's just me," said world champion Stacy Lewis. Dottie Pepper, an ESPN analyst , thinks that the most important thing is that Li doesn't think of winning. "If the success for her is not based on score, then I don't think she's too young. The important thing for her is to treat the whole experience as a kid on the golf score. Forget expectations." Dottie said. Lucy Li thinks golf _ . Answer: is fit for anyone Camaraderie over Competence The importance of liking people is the subject of an article in the Harvard Business Review,which has carried out an experiment to find out who we'd rather work with.Hardly surprisingly,the people we want most as our workmates are both:brilliant at their jobs and delightful human beings.And the people we want least are both unpleasant and useless.More interestingly,the authors found that,given the choice between working with lovable fools and competent jerks ,we irresistibly choose the former.Anyway,who likes those stupid men who annoy or hurt other people?We might insist that competence matters more,but our behavior shows we stay close to the people we like and sharing information with them. What companies should therefore do is get people to like each other more.The trick here is apparently to make sure staffs come across each other as often as possible during the day.They also should be sent on bonding courses and so on to encourage friendliness and break down displeasure.However,more outdoor-activity weekends and shared coffee machines inspire no confidence at all. The reality is that people either like each other or they don't.You can't force it.Possibly you can make offices friendlier by tolerating a lot of chat,but there is a productivity cost to that.In my experience,the question of lovable fool against competent jerk may not be the right one.The two are interrelated:we tend not to like our workmates when they are completely hopeless.I was once quite friendly with a woman whom I later worked with.I found her to be so outstandingly bad at her job that I lost respect for her and ended up not really liking her at all.Then is there anything that companies should be doing about it? By far the most effective strategy would be to hire people who are all pretty much the same,given that similarity is one of the main determinants of whether we like each other.I think this is a pretty good idea,but no one dares recommend this anymore without offending the diversity lobby group.There is only one acceptable view on this subject:teams of similar people are bad because they stop creativity.This may be true,though I have never seen any conclusive proof of it. Not only do we like similar people,we like people who like us.So if companies want to promote more liking,they should encourage a culture where we are all nice to each other.The trouble is that this needs to be done with some skill. To encourage workmates to like each other,companies could . Answer: employ staff who have a lot in common. Today I took Frank to have a training class . We got there earlier than most of the other dogs and _ . Mr. Brown helped us teach our dogs some skills . When the dog did it, he said, "Good dog!" He was a serious man but he laughed a lot with dogs. He said Frank was smarter than other dogs. Next to Frank was also a smart dog. His name was Sam. His short legs made him look funny, but he could run faster than many of the bigger dogs. His owner was a quiet girl and looked a little shy. So I said hello to her first. I hoped she could be my friend. At the end of the class, Mr. Brown told me that Frank did the best this class and he would give him a ball. Which of the following is NOT true? Answer: Frank arrived later than most of the other dogs. Michael Rossi is the Internet favorite Dad right now. Mr. Rossi, a father from Philadelphia, recently took his kids, Jack and Victoria, to Boston for three days during the school term. But Rydal Elementary School, one of the oldest schools in Boston, doesn't accept family holidays as an excuse for their absence and give them a warming notice. So Mr. Rossi wrote a letter to the school, which has been shared by thousands of parents online. Dear Mrs. Marbyry, While I am thankful for your concern for our children and the best education our kids receive from you, I can promise you they've learned as much in the three days we were in Boston as they would in a whole year in school. Although they missed an important test, they learned about something more important for them, especially for their future. They experienced first -hand the love and support form thousands of other people with a common goal. At the marathon , which is known as the most difficult one in the world, they watched runners with disabilities work together to collect money for children in poor areas. In addition, our children walked the Freedom Trail, visited the site of the Boston Tea Party and the graves of several great pioneers of America. These are thing they WILL learn in school a year or more from now. We truly love our school and teachers. But I wouldn't hesitate to pull them out of school again for an experience like the one they had this time. Thank you for your time. Sincerely, Michael Rossi Michael wrote back to _ ? Answer: express his different understanding of education. Chimps will cooperate in certain ways, like gathering in war parties to protect their territory. But beyond the minimum requirements as social beings, they have little instinct to help one another. Chimps in the wild seek food for themselves. Even chimp mothers regularly decline to share food with their children. Who are able from a young age to gather their own food. In the laboratory, chimps don't naturally share food either. If a chimp is put in a cage where he can pull in one plate of food for himself or, with no great effort, a plate that also provides food for a neighbor to the next cage, he will pull at random ---he just doesn't care whether his neighbor gets fed or not. Chimps are truly selfish. Human children, on the other hand are extremely corporative. From the earliest ages, they decide to help others, to share information and to participate a achieving common goals. The psychologist Michael Tomasello has studied this cooperativeness in a series of expensive with very young children. He finds that if babies aged 18 months see an worried adult with hands full trying to open a door, almost all will immediately try to help. There are several reasons to believe that the urges to help, inform and share are not taught .but naturally possessed in young children. One is that these instincts appear at a very young age before most parents have started to train children to behave socially. Another is that the helping behaviors are not improved if the children are rewarded. A third reason is that social intelligence. Develops in children before their general cognitive skills,at least when compared with chimps..In tests conducted by Tomtasell, the children did no better than the chimps on the physical world tests, but were considerably better at understanding the social world The cure of what children's minds have and chimps' don't in what Tomasello calls what. Part of this ability is that they can infer what others know or are thinking. But that, even very young children want to be part of a shared purpose. They actively seek to be part of a "we", a group that intends to work toward a shared goal. The passage is mainly about _ . Answer: cooperation as a distinctive human nature
Black Friday is the Friday following Thanksgiving Day in the United States. It has been regarded as the beginning of the holiday shopping season. Although it's not an official holiday, millions of employers give their employees the day off, and many people use that day to get a jump-start on their holiday shopping. A similar day in Canada and Great Britain is called "Boxing Day". Black Friday has become somewhat of a marketing sensation in recent years. Since 2005, it has been the busiest shopping day of the year. To _ shoppers, retailers routinely open their doors as early as 4 a.m. and offer special sales and promotions to the shoppers that arrive early. Some of the special deals offered by stores are only available in limited quantities. That is why some shoppers intent on getting the best deals often camp out in front of stores overnight so that they'll be the first in line when the doors open. But why Black Friday? Historians believe the name started in Philadelphia in the mid-1960s. Bus drivers and police used "Black Friday" to describe the heavy traffic that would block city streets the day after Thanksgiving as shoppers headed to the stores. Businesses, however, didn't like the negative tone associated with the "Black Friday" name. In the early 1980s, a more positive explanation of the name began to circulate. According to this alternative explanation, Black Friday is the day when retailers finally begin to turn a profit for the year. In accounting terms , operating at a loss is called being "in the red" because accountants traditionally used red ink to show negative amounts. Positive amounts were usually shown in black ink. Thus, being "in the black" is a good thing because it means stores are operating at a profit. Recently, for those who are too busy to shop on Black Friday or who just don't want to fight the crowds, the Monday following Black Friday has become known as Cyber Monday for the many online deals. How do the retailers understand Black Friday? Answer: The weather forecast says a heavy snowstorm is coming later today. Which weather observation is likely just before the snow? Answer: I had made up my mind a long time ago that I would not give a homeless person money, because I could never be sure what that money would be used for. Instead, I decided, I would buy them a sandwich, a cold drink on a hot day, a cup of coffee, whatever I could manage. I was out recently and saw a homeless man outside of a _ . I decided I would buy this man lunch. I bought a sandwich and soda. Just as I was leaving the store, two policemen were approaching the man. Obviously the shop owners had complained of his wandering and the police were there to draw him away from the storefronts. Just as they were about to wake him, I asked one of the officers if it was all right if I just gave the man something before he went. I was not sure why I asked the permission but the policeman said sure and I just left the bag in the man's cart, got in my car and drove off. As I was driving off I remember thinking "I hope people saw that". Then I had to seriously ask myself why I hoped people had seen me give the man a sandwich from Starbucks. Was it because I wanted people to think, "She's such a nice person!"? Why did I hope others had seen me do it? I continued to wonder this all evening. The next morning, it came to me that I wanted people to have witnessed that small act of kindness not so that I would receive credit and praise but so that they might be inspired to do the same and in so doing that others still would witness their acts of kindness. Thus the whole spirit of pity and giving would be lasting. What's the purpose of the passage? Answer: Measuring is a way to collect data; what is an example of this? Answer: A few years ago,my friend Al won the lottery. It changed his life. He did not have a rich family. He was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Instead,my friend was always hard up for cash. He did not have much money. And the money he did earn was chicken feed -- very little. Sometimes Al even had to accept handouts,gifts from his family and friends. But do not get me wrong. My friend was not a deadbeat. He was not the kind of person who never paid the money he owed. He simply _ pennies. He was always very careful with the money he spent. In fact,he was often a cheapskate. He did not like to spend money. The worst times were when he was flat broke and had no money at all. One day,Al scraped together a few dollars for a lottery ticket. He thought he would never strike it rich or gain lots of money unexpectedly. But his combination of numbers was chosen and he won the lottery. He hit the jackpot. He won a great deal of money. Al was so excited. The first thing he did was buy a costly new ear. He splurged on the one thing that he normally would not buy. Then he started spending money on unnecessary things. He started to waste it. It was like he had money to burn. He had more money than he needed and it was burning a hole in his pocket so he spent it quickly. When we got together for a meal at a restaurant,Al paid every time. He would always foot the bill,and pick up the tab. He told me the money made him feel like a million dollars. He was very happy. But,Al spent too much money. Soon my friend was down and out again. He had no money left. He was back to being strapped for cash. He had spent his bottom dollar, his very last amount. He did not even build up a nest egg. He had not saved any of the money. I admit I do feel sorry for my friend. He had enough money to live like a king. Instead,he is back to living on a shoestring--a very low budget. Some might say he is penny wise and pound foolish. He is wise about small things,but not about important things. What can we learn from the story of Al? Answer:
Mr Brown is one of my friends. He can run very fast and likes to show people how fast he can run. One day, a thief got into his house, took some of his things and ran out of the house fast. Mr Brown found it and ran after him, and shouted, "Hey! Don't you know you can't get away from me."But the thief ran much faster, Mr Brown got angry and ran faster, too. He was soon a few kilometers away from his house, he was running hard when he met me. "Why are you running so fast?" I asked. "I want to catch a thief," said Mr Brown. "But where is the thief?" I asked. "Kilometers and kilometers behind," said Mr Brown _ , "He thought he could run faster than me, but you see he is wrong." Who ran faster, Mr Brown or the thief? An elderly woman died and several other passengers were critically injured when a crowded Virgin express train crashed in Cumbria last night. A huge rescue operation involving RAF helicopters and dozens of ambulances arrive. After passengers were trapped in the train for more than four hours because fallen power line poles made access for emergency workers difficult. Authorities reported up to 80 injuries. Thirteen people were taken to hospital in a" _ or serious condition." Between 180 and 200 passengers were on the 5:15pm Virgin service from London Euston to Glasgow Central when all nine carriages left the rails between Oxenholme and Tebay. Witnesses said that the train shook violently before toppling over into an embankment with at least four carriages overturning. Early this morning, authorities confirmed an elderly woman had died and some other passengers had suffered injuries including back strains, head wounds and broken bones. Ruth Colton, a passenger on the train, said she was reading a book when the journey became uncomfortable. It seemed that the train was being beaten by heavy winds,"as if we were on a plane". The accident brought concerns that Britain's busiest rail route would be crippled for some time. The line between Preston and Carlisle was postponed as Virgin Trains promised a rapid investigation into the "serious incident"--the company's first big crash. It is understood that the investigation will examine whether there was an obstacle on the track and the possibility of speeding or mechanical breakdown. The driver, who was injured, will be interviewed and a black-box recorder installed in the train will be examined. We can learn from the passage that Virgin Trains Son's Help Mr. Lang worked in a factory. As a driver, he was busy but he was paid much. His wife was an able woman and did all the housework. When he came back, she took good care of him and he never did anything at home. So he had enough time when he had a holiday. A few friends of his liked gambling and he learned it soon. So he was interested in it and hardly forgot anything except gambling. He lost all his money and later he began to sell the television, watches and so on. His wife told him not to do it but he didn't listen to her. She had to tell the police. He and his friends were punished for it. And he was hardly sent away. After he came out of lockup , he hated her very much and the woman had to leave him. It was New Year's Day. Mr. Lang didn't go to work. He felt lonely and wanted to gamble again. He called his friends and they came soon. But they were afraid the police would come. He told his five-year-old son to go to find out if there were the policemen outside. They waited for a long time and didn't think the police would come and began to gamble. Suddenly opened the door and in came a few policemen. "I saw there weren't any policemen outside, daddy," said the boy, "so I went to the crossing and asked some to come." Which of the following is right? Writing has become a fashion among today's teenagers. Look at how popular young writers like Han Han and Guo Jingming are. Gao Can is a writer. Actually, the 18-year-old is the youngest member of the Association of Writers of Shanxi. So far, the second grader in the Senior High School Affiliated to Xi'an Jiaotong University has published several books. She writes fairy tales, short essays, and most of all, poems. Gao said she began poem writing when she was in primary school. Once her teacher asked the class to write composition called "If I were". Gao had an idea--"Why not make it a poem?" Since then, she has written hundreds of poems and published three books of them. "I don't have too much life experience," said Gao. "I write about nature, about things I feel inside and my spiritual world." However, teenagers these days rarely write poems, or read them. Exams want "any style but poetry". But like Gao, there are those who still read and write poems. Hu Jingzhi is one of them. The 19-year-old boy said that poems inspire them. "But it's annoying that I can't find many poem collections in nearby bookstores," he said. Gao agreed with Hu. She said that today's bookstores were filled with books on "how to make money quickly" or "how to give a successful speech". "Poems won't teach you how to make money," said Gao, " but the beautiful words clear your mind and stimulate your imagination." "Writing poems is not at all difficult. Just express yourself. And read poems-for their beautiful style....and for the pure things in life." The passage is mainly about _ . Which of the following causes a ship’s iron anchor to sink to the ocean floor when it is released overboard?
You might think that whether you choose a blue shirt or a yellow one to wear to work or college makes no difference to your day and those around you. However, an increasing number of experts argue that the colors we choose affect our mood , our career and even our health. Color affects us to a greater degree than most of us realize. Color is used increasingly by doctors for influencing mood and state of mind, and for various types of medical treatment. Green is a good color if you are not feeling well, and possibly this is why we sometimes give flowers and plants to friends and relatives in hospital. It is also thought that turquoise , a "user-friendly" color, can treat stress and headaches. Companies use color to encourage us to buy their products. For example, purple, which mixes well with red, is used to show that a company has new ideas and the power to make them happen. Orange and blue are also recommended colors for companies to use, because orange is the color of communication and blue suggests safety. So this could be a particularly good combination. Companies have found that certain colors "speak" to specific age groups. They often use red to attract younger people to their products, for example, as it is lively and more youthful than colors like gold and navy , which older customers seem to prefer. Wearing different colors can affect how you feel and how others react to you, so it is important to consider this when deciding what to wear in the morning. If you want people to take you seriously, then wearing navy or black is good. Blue would also be helpful for an interview or oral examination because it relaxes you and makes you feel calm. Red gets you noticed by everyone and makes you feel energetic, but be careful, as it can raise your pulse rate and not everyone wants this effect. So think carefully before you leave the house or visit a friend with a gift. The colors you choose in both cases are a powerful tool. Are you making the right impression-- on yourself and on others? Turquoise is a color that _ . We all make excuses. But the successful ones are those who can kill the excuses like the miserable maggots they are. I'm too tired. I don't have the time. I don't feel motivated. I'd rather do nothing. I don't have the money, equipment, space. I can't because ... We've all made the excuses. Here's how to kill them. See the positive. Excuses are usually made because we don't feel like doing something -- we're accentuating the negative. Instead, see the fun in something, the joy in it. And maintain a positive attitude, or you'll never beat the excuses. Take responsibility. Excuses are ways to get out of owning up to something. If we don't have the time, money, equipment, etc., then it's not our fault, right? Wrong. Take responsibility, and own the solution. Find a solution. Just about every problem has a solution. Don't have time? Start with just 5-10 minutes. Make the time. Wake earlier. Do it during lunch. Don't have the energy? Do it when you have higher levels of energy. You're smart. Figure out the solution. See your goal. This is your motivation -- your reason for doing it. Sure, you could just lay on the couch, but if you think about why you really want to pursue a goal, you'll be motivated. that goal and just get started. Be accountable. Have a workout partner, a project partner, a team, someone to report to. If you have to meet a coach or partner, you're more likely to do something. Watch this. Then go an do it. Why do you need a partner according to the passage? In 2004 ,when my daughter Becky was ten , she and my husband ,Joe, were united in their desire for a dog . As for me , I shared none of their canine lust. But why , they pleaded. "Because I don't have time to take care of a dog." But we'll do it. " Really? You're going to walk the dog? Feed the dog? Bathe the dog?" Yes, yes , and yes ."I don't believe you ." We will . We promise. They didn't . From day two (everyone wanted to walk the cute puppy that first day ) , neither thought to walk the dog . While I was slow to accept that I would be the one to keep track of her shots , to schedule her vet appointments , to feed and clean her , Misty knew this on day one . As she looked up at the three new humans in her life (small, medium, and large) , she calculated , _ Quickly, she and I developed something very similar to a Vulcan mind meld . She'd look at me with those sad brown eyes of hers , beam her need , and then wait , trusting I would understand -- which , strangely , I almost always did . In no time , she became my feet as I read , and splaying across my stomach as I watched television . Even so , part of me continued to resent walking duty . Joe and Becky had promised. Not fair , I'd balk silently as she and I walked . "Not fair , " I' d loudly remind anyone within earshot upon our return home . Then one day -- January 1, 2007 , to be exact -- my husband ' s doctor uttered an unthinkable word : leukemia ( ) .With that , I spent eight to ten hours a day with Joe in the hospital , doing anything and everything I could to ease his discomfort. During those six months of hospitalizations, Becky, 12 at the time, adjusted to other adults being in the house when she returned from school. My work colleagues adjusted to my taking off at a moment's notice for medical emergencies. Every part of my life changed; no part of my old routine remained. Save one: Misty still needed walking. At the beginning, when friends offered to take her through her paces, I declined because I knew they had their own households to deal with. As the months went by,I began to realize that I actually wanted to walk Misty. The walk in the morning before I headed to the hospital was a quiet, peaceful time to gather my thoughts or to just be before the day's medical drama unfolded. The evening walk was a time to shake off the day's upsets and let the worry tracks in my head go to white noise. When serious illness visits your household, it's , not just your daily routine and your assumptions about the future that are no longer familiar. Pretty much everyone you acts differently. Not Misty. Take her for a walk, and she had no interest in Joe's blood counts or 'one marrow test results. On the street or in the park, she had only one thing on her mind: squirrels! She Was so joyous that even on the worst days, she could make me smile. On a daily basis she reminded me that life goes on. After Joe died in 2009,Misty slept on his pillow. I'm gratefulto a point. The truth is, after years of balking, I've come to enjoy m' walks with Misty. As I watch her chase after a squirrel, throwing her whole being into the here-and-now of an exercise that has never once ended in victory, she reminds me, too, that no matter how harsh the present or unpredictable the future , there's almost always some measure of joy to be extracted from the moment. why didn't the writer agree to raise a dog at the beginning of the story? Nature's Bug Zappers Bats Just the word makes some people cringe. However, bats are probably the most misunderstood animals. Despite what movies, television and literature would have you believe, bats don't terrorize the night. Bats are incredibly important not only to our natural world but to our economy. As primary predators of night-flying insects, bats help to control many of our most annoying pests. A single little brown bat can catch 1,200 mosquito-sized insects in an hour. Big brown bats consume costly crop pests including cucumber beetles, June beetles, leafhoppers, cutworm moths and corn ear worm moths. Bats are not blind. Those that do hunt in the dark have developed a system to help detect objects. These bats produce sounds at high frequencies. By listening to the echoes of these sounds, bats are able to discern objects. This is known as echolocation. Using the reflected sounds, they form pictures in their brains just like we do by interpreting reflected light with our eyes. What's Happening to Bats? Disturbance by people is a major cause of decline in many bat populations. They are also threatened by loss of feeding or roosting habitat, usually wooded areas near water sources. Disturbing a maternity colony can cause mothers to drop their young or move them to a less suitable site. Disturbance during hibernation wakes bats, causing them to burn the precious fat reserves they have stored for the winter. Even responsible cave explorers can inadvertently disturb bats at critical times of the year. As traditional roosts in trees and caves have been destroyed, many bats seek shelter in man-made structures. Scientists have studied the roosting requirements of bats in order to provide artificial homes. Some bats use these bat houses quite successfully. Bats produce high-frequency sounds and then listen for echoes of these sounds bouncing off objects. The high-frequency sound waves that bats produce most likely have During his life Dr James Naismith worked as a doctor, taught P.E and wrote several books. While he never thought it very important, Dr Naismith is today best known for one thing. He was the inventor of basketball. Dr James Naismith was born in Canada in 1861 and his first job was at a special sports school in the USA. One day the school principal told James he was having a problem with the students. Because of heavy snow, the students could not go outside. He told James that they needed a sport the boys could play indoors and gave the teacher two weeks to think of something. It was on the very last day that James came up with his idea. The "birth of basketball" is said to be on December 21, 1891, when two teams from the school played the first game. It was quite different from the basketball games of today. It had 9 players on each team and footballs were used instead of basketballs. Soon after, the game changed to 5 players on each side, using special "basketballs" through nets. Although Dr Naismith did not live to see basketball become the worldwide game it is today, in 1936, just three years before his death, basketball became an Olympic sport at the games in Berlin. Which of the following things did Dr James Naismith NOT do?
Bill was a boy of 15. His parents went to gambling day and night. Nobody cared about hi. He always failed in his exams. So his teachers didn't like him, nor did his classmates play with him. Bill often slept in class because his heart was not in school. He almost gave himself up. One day, Miss Jones, a new teacher, came to Bill's class. She was a smiling, beautiful woman. Bill was in love! For the first time in his young life, he couldn't take his eyes off his teachers; yet, still he failed. It was Miss Jones' class. She was asking a question. "I'd like the smartest boy to answer my question." Then she said loudly, "Bill, please!" Bill was surprised. And he stood up without a word. "Just try it! I believe you can!" After school, Miss Jones had a long talk with Bill. She told him that she cared about him and believed in him. Bill thought a lot that evening. From then on he arrived at school on time every day. Miss Jones helped him with his homework in the afternoon. She even cooked delicious food for him. She told Bill, "Nothing is impossible if you put your heart in it." Later, Miss Jones gave another exam. Bill did it with all his heart. He was very excited to find that he had passed the exam. Now Bill discovered that not only could he learn, but he could do it well. A changed took place in Bill's heart. You see, one teacher saved one boy, it's simple , really. Which may be the best title for the passage? A. Parents' Day B. A Lazy Boy C. A Boy's Change D. A Strict Teacher Answer: C. A Boy's Change If you are ever lucky to be invited to a formal dinner party in Paris,remember that the French have their own way of doing things, and that even your finest manners may not be "correct" by French custom.For example,if you think showing up promptly at the time given on the invitation,armed with gifts of wine and roses,complimenting your hostess on her cooking,laughing heartily at the host's jokes and then leaping up to help the hostess will make you the perfect guest,think again. Here Madame Nora Chabal,the marketing director of the Ritz Hotel in Paris,explained how it works. The first duty of the guest is to respond to the invitation within 48 hours.And,the guest may not ask to bring a guest because the hostess has chosen her own. Flowers sent ahead of schedule are the preferred gift.They may also be sent afterwards with a thank-you note.It is considered a very bad form to arrive with a gift of flowers vase when she is too busy to do with that. See,that's the logic!The type of flowers sent has a code of its own,too.One must never send chrysanthemums because they are considered too humble for occasion.Carnations are considered bad luck,and calla are too reminiscent of funerals .A bouquet of red roses is a declaration of romantic intent.Don't send those unless you mean it,and never to a married hostess.And though the French love wine,you must never bring a bottle to a dinner party.Why?It's as if you feared your hosts would not have enough wine on hand,and that's an insult .You may,however,offer a box of chocolates which the hostess will pass after dinner with coffee. If an invitation is for eight o'clock,the considerate guest arrives at a quarter past eight.Guests who arrive exactly on time or early are mere thoughtless ones who are not giving the hostess those last few minutes she needs to deal with details and crises. What is the passage mainly about? A. Different flowers have different meanings B. How to send flowers C. Good manners at a French dinner party D. Different countries have different manners Answer: C. Good manners at a French dinner party Blocking a river creates homes for A. satellites B. fish C. rocks D. mermaids Answer: B. fish While waiting to pick up a friend at an airport in Portland, Oregon, I had one of those lifechanging experiences that you hear other people talk about--the kind that happens to you unexpectedly. To me, this happened and was only two feet away from me. Locating my friend among the passengers, I noticed a man coming toward me carrying two light bags. He stopped right next to me to greet his family. First he walked to his youngest son (maybe 6 years old) as he laid down his bags. They gave each other a long, loving hug. As they separated enough to look in each other's face, I heard the father say,"It's so good to see you, son. I missed you so much!" His son smiled somewhat shyly, and replied softly,"Me, too, Dad!" Then the man stood up, gazed into the eyes of his oldest son (maybe 9 or 10) and while cupping his son's face in his hands said, "You're already quite a young man. I love you very much, Zach!" They too hugged a most loving, tender hug. While this was happening, a baby girl (perhaps one or oneandahalfyear old) was squirming excitedly in her mother's arms, never once taking her little eyes off the wonderful sight of her returning father. The man said,"Hi, baby girl!" as he gently took the child from her mother. He quickly kissed her face all over and then held her close to his chest while rocking her from side to side. The little girl instantly relaxed and simply laid her head on his shoulder, motionless in pure contentment. After several moments, he handed his daughter to his oldest son and declared,"I've saved the best for last!" and went to give his wife the longest, most passionate kiss I ever remember seeing. He gazed into her eyes for several seconds and then silently mouthed, "I love you so much!" They stared into each other's eyes, beaming big smiles at one another, while holding both hands. For an instant they reminded me of newlyweds, but I knew by the age of their kids that they couldn't possibly be. I puzzled about it for a moment then realized how totally attentive I was in the wonderful display of unconditional love not more than an arm's length away from me. I suddenly felt uncomfortable, as if I was invading something sacred, but was amazed to hear my own voice nervously ask,"Wow! How long have you two been married?" "Been together fourteen years total, married twelve of those." he replied, without breaking his gaze from his lovely wife's face. "Well then, how long have you been away?" I asked. The man finally turned and looked at me, still beaming his joyous smile. "Two whole days!" Two days? I was stunned. I had assumed he'd been gone for at least several weeks--if not months. I know my expression betrayed me. "I hope my marriage is still that passionate after twelve years!" The man suddenly stopped smiling. He looked me straight in the eye, and with forcefulness that burned right into my soul, he told me something that left me a different person, "Don't hope, friend... decide!" Then he flashed me his wonderful smile again, shook my hand and said,"God bless!" With that, he and his family turned and walked away together. I was still watching that exceptional man and his special family walk just out of sight when my friend came up to me and asked, "What are you looking at?" Without hesitating, and with a curious sense of certainty, I replied,"My future!" The writer suddenly felt uncomfortable because _ . A. he felt it impolite to stare at the family B. he felt he withdrew from society C. the family found him curious about them D. he didn't love his wife as much Answer: A. he felt it impolite to stare at the family Frank Woolworth was born in Rodman, New York, in 1852. His family were very poor farmers, and there was never enough to eat. Frank decided he did not want to be a farmer. He took a short business course, and went to work as a salesman in a large city. Woolworth realized he had a natural skill for showing goods to attract people's interest, but he soon learned something more important. One day his boss told him to sell some odds and ends ( ) for as much as he could get. Frank put all these things on one table with a sign which said FIVE CENTS EACH. People fought and pushed to buy the things and the table was soon cleared. Soon afterwards, Woolworth opened his own store, selling goods at five and ten cents. But he had another lesson to learn before he became successful. That is, if you want to make money by selling low-price goods, you have to buy them in large quantities directly from the factories. Once, for example, Woolworth went to Germany and placed an order for knives. The order was so large that the factory had to keep running 24 hours a day for a whole year. In this way, the price of the knives was cut down by half. By 1919, Woolworth had over 1000 stores in the US and Canada, and opened his first store in London. He made many millions and his name became famous throughout the world. He always runs his business according to strict rules, of which the most important was: "THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT."www.ks5u.com _ makes Woolworth a world-famous man. A. His business skills and his wealth. B. The low price of the goods he sold everywhere. C. His trip to Germany and his huge order of knives. D. His health and life. Answer: A. His business skills and his wealth.
Question: To get an extra 14 years of life, don't smoke, eat lots of fruits and vegetables, exercise regularly and drink alcohol in a proper amount.That is according to a study published this Monday in the Public Library of Science Medicine Journal. After tracking more than 20,000 people aged 45 to 79 years in the United Kingdom from about 1993 to 2007, Kay-Tee Khaw of the University of Cambridge and his colleagues found that people who adopted these four healthy habits lived all average of 14 years longer than those who didn't. "We've known for a long time that these behaviors are good things to do, but we've not seen this benefit before, "said Susan Jebb, head of Nutrition and Health at Britain's Medical Research Council."The benefit was also seen regardless of whether or not people were fat and what social class they came from." Study participants scored a point each for not smoking, regular physical activity, eating five servings of fruits and vegetables a day and moderate alcohol intake. Public health experts said they hoped the study would inspire governments to introduce policies helping people to adopt these changes.But because the study only observed people rather than testing specific changes, it would be impossible to conclude that people who suddenly adopted these healthy behaviors would surely gain 14 years. "We can't say that any person could gain 14 years by doing these things, "said Dr.Tim Armstrong, a physical activity expert at the World Health Organization."The 14 years is an average across the population of what's theoretically possible." "Most people know that things like a good diet matter and that smoking isn't good for them, "Susan Jebb said."We need to work on providing people with much more practical support to help them change." We can learn from the passage that _ . A. Susan Jebb did not take part in the study. B. the study observed people as well as tested specific changes. C. there's no need for people under 45 to adopt these good habits. D. only those from first class can benefit from these healthy behaviors. Answer: A Question: A statute of the state of Wasminia prohibits the use of state-owned or state-operated facilities for the performance of abortions that are not "necessary to save the life of the mother." That statute also prohibits state employees from performing any such abortions during the hours they are employed by the state. Citizen was in her second month of pregnancy. She sought an abortion at the Wasminia State Hospital, a state-owned and state-operated facility. Citizen did not claim that the requested abortion was necessary to save her life. The officials in charge of the hospital refused to perform the requested abortion solely on the basis of the state statute. Citizen immediately filed suit against those officials in an appropriate federal district court. She challenged the constitutionality of the Wasminia statute and requested the court to order the hospital to perform the abortion she sought. In this case, the court will probably hold that the Wasminia statute is A. unconstitutional, because a limit on the availability of abortions performed by state employees or in state-owned or state-operated facilities to situations in which it is necessary to save the life of the mother impermissibly interferes with the fundamental right of Citizen to decide whether to have a child. B. unconstitutional, because it impermissibly discriminates against poor persons who cannot afford to pay for persons who cannot afford to pay for abortions in privately owned and operated facilities and against persons who live far away from privately owned and operated abortion clinics. C. constitutional, because it does not prohibit a woman from having an abortion or penalize her for doing so, it is rationally related to the legitimate governmental goal of encouraging childbirth, and it does not interfere with the voluntary performance of abortions by private physicians in private facilities. D. constitutional, because the use of stateowned or state-operated facilities and access to the services of state employees are privileges and not rights and, therefore, a state may condition them on any basis it chooses. Answer: C Question: It's a goal for millions and millions of families every year----keep the Christmas spending within a certain amount, but can still afford the gifts that your loved ones will enjoy. Never has this concern been greater in recent years than right now. Even so, there are several things that you can do to help. Hit the sales. No one wants to get up at four o'clock in the morning and fight to get the best deal on Black Friday, and it's surely very tough to pick up the courage and get out there in the cold for a good deal, but sometimes----it can be well worth. Many retailers offer _ all through the day----and some even offer online Black Friday specials, so you may still be able to get a great deal on Black Friday. Pay close attention to advertisements. Once the Christmas shopping season is coming, retailers hungry for business will do just about whatever to get you in the store. Pay very close attention to weekly advertisements of sales among the major retailers and you may be lucky enough to find different prices for the same thing in different shops. Shop online. Some of us don't like running from store to store in order to get the best price on the perfect gift, and some of us don't like to go out in the cold at all----thankfully for us, we can do online shopping. The world of online shopping lets people visit all the major retailers as well as some specialty stores that could only be found on the Internet. Customers can find exactly what they are looking for, at the best possible price without ever having to leave the house. With traditional Christmas shopping consumers are sometimes limited to what's left in stock if they wait too long to get to a particular store. In the writer's opinion, it is rewarding on Black Friday _ . A. if the weather is not very cold B. if we don't have to fight for the best deals C. if we don't have to get up early D. If we get what we want at a good price Answer: D Question: Young people looking for a job with good pay, flexible hours and job security should consider working in health care, according to a list of the top 15 best jobs in the US for young people. Health care is the fastest growing sector of the US economy and nearly half of what are considered the top jobs for young people are in the sector, Forbes.com said. With a medium annual salary of $33,470, dental assistants topped the ranking, while medical assistants, who earn about $28,860, came in No. 3, followed by physical therapist assistants who make a medium salary of nearly $50,000 and health aides who earn $20,560. Teachers of self-enrichment courses such as pottery and art, were the only non-health job in the top five. "Almost every one of these requires physical contact," Laurence Shatkin, the author of the book "150 Best Jobs for Your Skills," told Forbes. com. "You have to show up to do them, so you're not being shipped overseas, and they can't be done by a robot." Shatkin studied which jobs have the highest concentration of 16 to 24 year olds, pay well and have opportunities for entry level positions. He based the ranking on annual salary and openings and projected growth. Many of the jobs do not require a college degree. Fitness trainers and aerobics instructors, pharmacy technicians and surgical technologists were also among the top 10 jobs for young people. Because many of the jobs can be done on a part-time basis, they offer the flexibility for people to continue their education while doing them. Some of the jobs offer career prospects and advancements. "Young people may not have figured out what their priorities are yet," Shatkin told Forbes.com. "They may use these jobs to discover what they like and where they fit in." What can be the best title for the passage? A. Health Care among Top Jobs for Young People B. Factors for People to Consider while Seeking Jobs C. Results from Forbes.com on Best Jobs D. The Higher the Pay Is, the Better the Job Is Answer: A Question: As a child, I was really afraid of the dark and of getting lost. These fears were very real and caused me some uncomfortable moments. Maybe it was the strange way things looked and sounded in my own room at night that scared me so much. There was never complete darkness, but always a streetlight or passing car lights, which made clothes on the back of a chair take on the shape of a wild animal. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the curtains seem to move when there was no wind. A very low sound in the floor would seem a hundred times louder than in the day. My imagination would run wild, and my heart would beat fast. I would lie very still so that the "enemy" would not discover me. Another of my childhood fears was that I would get lost, especially on the way home from school. Every morning I got on the school bus right near my home. That was no problem. After school, though, when all the buses were lined up along the street, I was afraid that I would get in the wrong one and be taken to some other strange places. On school or family trips to a park or a museum, I wouldn't let the leaders out of my sight. Perhaps one of the worst fears of all I had as a child was that of not being liked or accepted by others. Being popular was so important to me then, and the fear of not being liked was a serious one. One of the processes growing up is being able to realize and overcome our fears. Understanding the things that scared us as children helps us achieve greater success later in life. Which of the following would be possibly true when she was a child A. She was always the leader of the others. B. She always got poor grades. C. She thought being popular among people was important. D. She was not liked by others at all. Answer: C
which of these usually occur over the shortest period? a super size earthquake From age eight to eleven, I studied at a small school in Bath, England. It was a small school of four classes, with about twenty-five children in each class according to age. For the most part, one teacher had to teach all subjects. However, sometimes the headteacher , Mr. Ronald Broaches would come in and spend an hour or so. He was a large man with a very happy nature. He had a sense of humor and would be glad in telling the children small stories which make us laugh. I found that he took great interest in me and he quickly found that I enjoyed puzzles. He would stop me as I was going to class and take a piece of paper out of his pocket, often with a puzzle on it. As time went on, they slowly gave me an interest in math and problem -solving that stays with me to this day. To this day, I can remember Mr. Broaches' cheerful cry of "Well done!" whenever I got a problem right. I shall always be thankful that our paths crossed. Mr. Bruoaches died just two weeks after I won the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine. Unfortunately, I had no chance to speak to him before he died. I learnt late that he had heard of my success and I will always hope that he knew the deep influence he had made on my life. From the story, we can guess the writer _ . was good at math One night about nine o'clock, Dr. Eyck, a surgeon, had a phone call from Dr. Haydon at the hospital in Clens Falls. The surgeon was asked to go there at once to operate on a very sick boy who shot himself while playing with a gun. The doctor was soon on his way to Clens Falls. It was 60 miles away. And it was snowing heavily in the city. The surgeon thought he could get there before 12 o'clock. A few minutes later, the doctor was stopped by a man in an old black coat. Gun in hand, the man ordered the doctor to get out. Then the man drove the car down the road, leaving the doctor in the falling snow. It was after 2 o'clock in the morning when the doctor arrived at the hospital in Clens Falls. Dr. Haydon told him that the boy had died an hour before. The two doctors walked by the door of the hospital waiting room. There sat the man in the old black coat with his head in his hands. "Mr. Cuninghan," said Dr. Haydon to the man, "This is Dr. Eyck. He is the surgeon who walked all the way from Albany to save your boy." ,(A, B, CD),. The boy could have been saved if _ . Dr. Eyck had arrived there two hours earlier A few minutes ago , walking back from lunch , I started to cross the street when I heard the sound of a coin dropping . It wasn't much but , as I turned , my eyes caught the heads of several other people turning too . A woman had dropped what appeared to be a dime . The tinkling sound of a coin dropping on sidewalk is an attention-getter . It can be nothing more than a penny . Whatever the coin is , no one ignores the sound of it . It got me thinking about sounds again . We are surrounded by so many sounds that attract the most attention . People in prefix = st1 /New York Cityseldom turn to look when a fire engine, a police car or an ambulance comes screaming along the street . When I'm in New York, I'm a New Yorker . I don't turn either . Like the natives . I hardly hear a siren there . At home in my little town in Connecticut, it's different . The distant loud noise of a police car , an emergency vehicle or a fire siren brings me to my feet if I'm seated and brings me to the window if I'm in bed . It's the quietest sounds that have most effect on us , not the loudest . In the middle of the night , I can hear a dripping tap a hundred yards away through three closed doors . I've been hearing little creaking noises and sounds which my imagination turns into footsteps in the middle of the night for twenty-five years in our house . How come I never hear those sounds in the daytime ? I'm quite clear in my mind what the good sounds are and what the bad sounds are . I've turned against whistling , for instance . I used to think of it as the mark of a happy worker but lately I've been connecting the whistler with a nervous person making noises . The tapping , tapping ,tapping of my typewriter as the keys hit the paper is a lovely sound to me . I often like the sound of what I write better than the looks of it . He dislikes whistling because_. it reminds him of tense people Like lots of other girls and boys,when Lisa Cao was a kid,she used to watch the Olympics. "I always wanted to be good at sport and I found athletic potential in my body", the New York City citizen tells her friends. But there was no sport available so she took up piano lessons. Then,at the age of 15,she decided to drop the lessons and put her athletic potential to the test with running. At age 18,Lisa Cao ran her first-ever marathon in New York City. And now,the 27-year-old has 54 marathons (26. miles) and ultramarathons (100miles) under her belt. What does it take to be an ultramarathoner? A lot of devotion,even when difficulties occur sometimes. "Making time for running is really hard when life is so busy," she says. "There's a big work-life balance that I have to keep. I have to wake up earlier on the weekends. And oh,the potential for excuses! With NYC's wild winters as of late,it's easy to blame the weather,roll over in bed and put off a solid run. I have a fix for this,though," she says. "Cute clothes. With the horrible weather, I bought cute clothes as motivation to run and actually wear them. " While she's training during low season in the winter,Lisa Cao tries to run a "base" of 20 to 30 miles per week to stay prepared. During high season in the spring and summer,she'll run around 30 to 40 miles,but she also gets a lot of quality miles from her races. Where is the text probably taken from? A sport website
Most of us are used to seasons. Each year, spring follows winter, which follows autumn, which follows summer, which follows spring. And winter is colder than summer. But the earth goes through temperature cycles over much longer periods than those that we experience. Between 65,000 and 35,000 years ago, the planet was much colder than it is now. During that time the temperature also changed a lot, with periods of warming and cooling. Ice melted during the warm periods, which made sea levels rise. Water froze again during the cold periods. A new study from Switzerland, sheds light on where ice sheets melted during the ice age. It now seems that the ice melted at both ends of the earth, rather than just in either northern or southern regions. This surprised the researchers from the University of Bern. Scientists have long assumed that most of the ice that melted was in the Northern hemisphere during the 30,000-year long ice age. That belief was held because the North Pole is surrounded by land, while the South Pole is surrounded by the Antarctic Ocean. It is easier for ice sheets to grow on land. If surrounded by sea the ice can easily just slip into the ocean instead of building up. The researchers used a computer model to look at ways the ice could melt and how it might affect sea levels. They compared these results to evidence of how temperatures and currents actually changed during that time. The model showed that if it was only in the Northern hemisphere that ice melted, there would have been a bigger impact on ocean currents and sea temperatures than what actually happened. Studies suggest that melting just in the Southern hemisphere would have been impossible, too. The only reasonable conclusion, the scientists could make, was that ice melted equally in the North and the South. It is still a mystery as to what caused the temperature changes that caused the ice to melt. We can infer from the passage _ . Answer: A sleepover at Legoland Discovery Centre, at the Trafford Centre in Manchester, may sound like the perfect place to host your child's next birthday party -- but it will set parents back more than PS1,000. All rides -- Kingdom Quest Laser Ride, Merlin's Apprentice and Lego City Forest Pursuit -- are open during the evening and supervision on these rides is provided at all times. The Lego Studios 4D Cinema is also open and guests have _ use of the Lego construction play area until 10:00 pm, which means you will have a good time and don't need to share any facilities with other groups. But at PS35 a head, with a minimum guest list of 30, it's unlikely to be something the average parent could afford, reports Manchester Evening News. A Legoland spokesman said: "The sleepover package is aimed at groups such as boys between eight and ten, girls between six and eight and youth groups, however it is open to everyone within the terms of the offer. " There is a birthday room to use, and in regard to food, snack boxes can be purchased for the additional cost of PS4.50. Guests are also welcome to bring along their own food and drinks, and there are storage facilities where they can be kept. "Also we do have daytime party packages available, which are PS15 per child midweek and PS18 per child at the weekend. But these packages have a policy of a minimum of nine and a maximum of 21 people, due to room capacity. " The spokesman continued, "Included in the price for these parties is the birthday cake, and children's meal of sandwiches, crisps, fruit juice, fruit and Haribo sweets. All attending adults also get a free hot drink and the birthday child gets a free group photograph." Legoland says that the pricing for the sleepover package is based on overall operating costs of opening the centre exclusively for the group. What is the passage mainly about? Answer: What is necessary to use on a telescope in order to photograph solar flares and solar prominences? Answer: I'm perfectly aware that many people you know probably think you re crazy for wanting to travel instead of settling into a typical 9-5 lifestyle. It's difficult for others to understand your goals. Well, 1 certainly don't think you're crazy. In fact, every traveler I know would agree that you're only crazy if you decide not to go after your goals in life. I started traveling back in 1999, shortly after graduating from university. My plan was to backpack around Southeast Asia for three months and then return to the US to become a sports agent. However, just one week into that trip, I realized that tbree months of travel simply wasn't enough. The only problem was that I had less than $1,500 to my name. Fast forward lo today... Over the past 15 years, 1 have discovered, and taken advantage of, endless opportunities that have allowed me to continuously live, travel, study and earn money in over 85 countries. The point is, if I can make it happen with $1,500 and no idea what I was doing, you can make it happen as well. And with the knowledge and experience I'm about to pass on to you in this guide , you're going to have a much easier path ahead than I ever did! If you are constantly wondering how you can possibly achieve all of your travel goals during this lifetime, I just want to repeat everything you, re dreaming about really can be achieved. It'll take some haixl work and determination for sure, but when you find yourself living or traveling or working overseas, enjoying rewarding experiences, you'11 be thankful that you decided to choose a life of travel. And I honestly can't wait to meet up with you in some foreign land where we can swap travel stories over a beer or coffee or tea! What can we leam about the author? Answer: While you are online there are plenty of perfectly legal sites where you can listen to music for free. This gives you the chance to listen to music before buying it, discover new music, and create great online playlists that you can share with others. The Sixty One The Sixty One is devoted to showcasing obscure or unknown artists of all genres. There's a range of musical styles from classical to rock and roll, folk to jazz, and everything in between. Don't expect to find big name musicians on here; you're more likely to find the musicians playing at local coffee shops than bands you hear on the radio.. Pow Wow Pow Wows are the Native American people's way of meeting together, to join in dancing, singing, visiting, renewing old friendships, and making new ones. This is a time method to renew Native American culture and preserve the rich heritage of American Indians. PowWows.com has 2 online radio stations that play Native American Music 24/7 free! Here you can listen to your favorite artists and drum groups on your computer or mobile device and add your music to our station. Playlist Playlist has an enormous library, so you can create playlists with almost any musician you can think of. They have both some lesser known artists and big names, so you have a really good selection. The worst part: Due to licensing laws, many of the songs on Playlist are now restricted to certain countries. So unless you live inside the US, it is likely that you might not be able to find all of your favorite songs. Pandora Pandora is an intelligent Internet radio site. Basically, as you listen, you can give each song a thumbs up or thumbs down. You can create your own radio station that only plays music you like. The best part: It listens to your opinion, so that after a while it's only playing music you like, but the list is always changing and expanding. My Space Combine a major social networking site with thousands of artists around the world. Each musician has their own page, which normally has a playlist of several of their songs. But it has a huge range of musicians ranging from huge stars to the up-and-coming, and you can listen to the music and interact with the rest of the page. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage? Answer:
If you need glasses to read this, you are among most of Chinese students. About four-fifths of high school students in China have poor eyesight . And now more and more children in primary school need glasses, too. Two main reasons can cause poor eyesight: too much time spent indoors studying and too little time spent outdoors playing. Reading and writing for hours and hours, sometimes in poorly lighted rooms, causes eyesight to weaken. But students have to do this because there is so much pressure on them to succeed in school. They have less time to enjoy the sun. The sun, it turns out, is important in developing good eyesight. According to a study by Australian National University, Australian children and Chinese children have the same level of eyesight before they start school, but once they enter primary school, Chinese children only spend about an hour a day outside, while Australian children spend three to four hours each day in the sunshine. The result is that while about forty percent of Chinese primary school students need glasses, only three percent of Australian children do. And poor eyesight at a young age can have serious long term influence. As you get older, your eyesight can worsen. With all that in mind, don't you think it's time to give your eyes a break? How many high school students have poor eyesight in China according to the reading? Four-fifths of them. In a certain store where they sell puddings, a number of these delicious things are laid out in a row during the Christmas season. Here you may select the one which is most to your taste, and you are even allowed to sample them before coming to a decision. I have often wondered whether some people, who had no intention of making a purchase, would take advantage of this privilege. One day I asked this question of the shop girl, and I learned it was indeed the case. "Now there's one old gentleman, for instance," she told me, "he comes here almost every week and samples each one of the puddings, though he never buys anything, and I suspect he never will. I remember him from last year and the year before that, too. Well, let him come if he wants it, and welcome to it. And what's more, I hope there are a lot more stores where he can go and get his share. He looks as if he needed it all right, and I suppose they can afford it." She was still speaking when an elderly gentleman limped up to the counter and began looking closely at the row of puddings with great interest. "Why, that's the very gentleman I've been telling you about," whispered the shop girl. "Just watch him now." And then turning to him: "Would you like to sample them, sir? Here's a spoon for you to use. "The elderly gentleman, who was poorly but neatly dressed, accepted the spoon and began eagerly to sample one after another of the puddings, only breaking off occasionally to wipe his red eyes with a large torn handkerchief. "This is quite good". "This is not bad either, but a little too heavy". All the time it was quite evident that he sincerely believed that he might eventually buy one of these puddings, and I am positive that he did not for a moment feel that he was in any way cheating the store. Poor old chap! Probably he had come down in the world and this sampling was all that was left him from the time when he could afford to come and select his favorite pudding. Amidst the crowd of happy, prosperous looking Christmas shoppers, the little black figure of the old man seemed pitiful and out of place, and in a burst of benevolence, I went up to him and said: "Pardon me, sir, will you do me a favor? Let me purchase you one of these puddings. It would give me such pleasure." He jumped back as if he had been stung, and the blood rushed into his wrinkled face. "Excuse me," he said, with more dignity than I would have thought possible considering his appearance, "I do not believe I have the pleasure of knowing you. Undoubtedly you have mistaken me for someone else." And with a quick decision he turned to the shop girl and said in a loud voice, "Kindly pack me up this one here. I will take it with me." He pointed at one of the largest and most expensive of the puddings. The girl took down the pudding from its stand and started to make a parcel of it, While he pulled out a worn little black pocketbook and began counting out shillings and pennies on to the counter. To save his "honor", he had been forced into a purchase which he could not possibly afford. How I longed for the power to unsay my tactless words! It was too late though, and I felt that the kindest thing I could do now would be walk away. "You pay at the desk," the shop girl was telling him, but he did not seem to understand and kept trying to put the coins into her hand. And that was the last I saw or heard of the old man. Now he can never go there to sample puddings and more. From the girl's words, we know that she _ felt pity for the old man Once upon a time, there was a cowgirl named Clementine. Orange was her favorite color. Her favorite food was the strawberry. She really liked her Blackberry phone, which allowed her to call her friends and family when out on the range. One day Clementine thought she needed a new pair of boots, so she went to the mall. Before Clementine went inside the mall, she smoked a cigarette. Then she got a new pair of boots. She couldn't choose between brown and red. Finally she chose red, which the seller really liked. Once she got home, she found that her red boots didn't match her blue cowgirl clothes, so she knew she needed to return them. She traded them for a brown pair. While she was there, she also bought a pretzel from Auntie Anne's. What did Clementine buy at the mall? boots and a pretzel Jack is a twenty-year-old young man. Two years ago, when he finished middle school, he found work in a shop. Usually he works until ten o'clock in the evening. He is very tired when he gets home. After a quick supper he goes to bed and soon falls asleep. His grandma who lives downstairs is satisfied with him. One day, on his way home, he met Mary. They were both happy. He asked the girl to his house, she agreed happily. He bought some fruit and drinks for her. And they talked about their school, teachers, classmates and their future . They talked for a long time. "Have a look at your watch, please," said the girl. "What time is it now?" "Sorry, something is wrong with my watch," said Jack. "Where's yours?" "I left it at home." Jack thought for a moment and found a way. He began to stamp his foot on the floor, "Bang! Bang! Bang!" The sound woke his grandma up. The old woman shouted downstairs, "It's twelve o'clock in the night, Jack. Why are you still jumping upstairs?" ,. From the story, we can know that Mary is Jack's _ . classmate In the late 1500s, a large powerful gun was placed on top of the Signal Hill, in prefix = st1 /Newfoundland, to prevent attacks from the outside. Flags were also flown there to warn sailors of bad weather. It's fitting, then, the Italian Gulielmo Marconi should have chosen this site to receive the world's first radio signal -- in Morse code -- from England on December 12, 1901. Marconi, combining earlier ideas with his own, led us to a new communications age. For the next 50 years, until the appearance of television, radio ruled the air waves. Today, it's the TV that rules. No single person can say to have invented television. In 1884, the German Paul Nipkow invented a device that sent pictures mechanically , and in 1906, Boris Rosing, a Russian, used a ray and a disc to create the world's first TV system. Then in the early 1920s, another Russian, Vladimir Zworykin,invented a picture display tube. He took out a patent for color1 TV, even though it wouldn't be developed for another 25 years. In 1924, a Scot entered the scene -- John Logie Baird. He first succeeded in sending a moving picture and a year later got the first actual TV picture. In 1926, Baird showed TV in aLondonlaboratory. Two years later inNew York, Felix the Cat became the first TV star. TV excited everyone's imagination, but hardly anyone had a set, with just two thousand in use worldwide in the mid-1930s. Since the late 1940s, TV technology has developed very quickly. Computers may finally be combined with all televisions to give people a total all-in-one communications network. Today, it's possible to sit and watch TV in the middle of a forest or in the Arctic. It's surprising when one considers that Marconi was on Signal Hill in the same century. The writer believes that the day will come when _ . the future computers will be able to do the work TV is now doing
2010 was the year the Earth struck back. Earthquakes, heat waves, floods, volcanoes, super typhoons, blizzards , landslides and droughts killed at least a quarter million people in 2010 - the deadliest year in more than a generation. More people were killed worldwide by natural disasters this year than have been killed in terrorism attacks in the past 40 years combined. "It just seemed like it was back-to-back and it came in waves," said Craig Fugate, who heads the US Federal Emergency Management Agency. It handled a record number of disasters in 2010. "The term "100-year event' really lost its meaning this year." And we have ourselves to blame most of the time, scientists and disaster experts say. Even though many disasters have the ring of random chance, the hand of man made this a particularly deadly, costly, extreme and strange year for everything from wild weather to earthquakes. Poor construction and development practices make earthquakes more deadly than they need be. More people live in poverty in vulnerable buildings in crowded cities. That means that when the ground shakes, the river floods, or the tropical cyclone hits, more people die. Disasters from the Earth, such as earthquakes and volcanoes "are pretty much constant," said Andreas Schraft, vice president of catastrophic perils for the Geneva-based insurance giant Swiss Re. "All the change that's made is man-made." The January earthquake that killed well more than 220,000 people in Haiti is a perfect example. Port-au-Prince has nearly three times as many people - many of them living in poverty- and more poorly built shanties ,than it did 25 years ago. So had the same quake hit in 1985 instead of 2010; total deaths would have probably been in the 80,000 range, said Richard Olson, director of disaster risk reduction at Florida International University. Climate scientists say Earth's climate also is changing thanks to man-made global warming, bringing extreme weather, such as heat waves and flooding. The excessive amount of extreme weather that dominated 2010 is a classic sign of man-made global warming that climate scientists have long warned about. They calculate that the killer Russian heat wave - setting a national record of 111 degrees - would happen once every 100,000 years without global warming. Data show that 18 countries broke their records for the hottest day ever. "The Earth strikes back in response to bad human decision-making," said Debarati Guha Sapir." "It's almost as if the policies, the government policies and development policies, are helping the Earth strike back instead of protecting from it. We've created conditions where the slightest thing the Earth does is really going to have a surprising impact." White House science adviser John Holdren said we should get used to climate disasters or do something about global warming. "The science is clear that we can expect more and more of these kinds of damaging events unless and until society has sharply reduced the amount of heat-trapping gases and particles ." Which of the following would Debarati Guha Sapir most probably agree with? A. Environment protection should be taken into account in policy-making. B. Natural disasters are causing increase. C. The earth wouldn't strike back but for the destruction by man. D. Conditions should be created to rid the influence of disasters. Answer: A. Environment protection should be taken into account in policy-making. When Dr Jane Goodall was a kid growing up in England, she dreamed of one day living among wild animals. That opportunity came when Goodall was 26 years old. Goodall moved to the African country and spent 25 years there. What she learned about chimpanzees fascinated people all over the world. After studying animals for the first part of her career, Jane Goodall began working to protect not only chimpanzees, but all creatures. Her new book,"Hope for Animals and their World," is a collection of conservation success stories. Time For Kids talked to Goodall about her new book and her advice for young people. TFK: What inspired you to write a book about conservation success stories? Dr Goodall: Because of all my travels , I meet these extraordinary people and hear about these amazing project, and they really do give hope. They show that we can turn thing around. TFK: Why are these stories important? Goodall:There are a lot of young people who are going out and wanting to save species, and they are so often told,"Give up. It's hopeless." And if we have that attitude, then soon there will be noting left. TFK: How should kids who want to help get started? Goodall: Join Roots and Shoots. It gives them an opportunity to interact with other young people. The website at www.rootsandshoots.org is a way for them to learn more. ,A.B.C.D . (3;1.5,4.5) In the interview, Dr Goodall was asked question about _ A. her career as a biologist B. the development of her research C. her new book and her advice to kids D. her recent trip to Africa Answer: B. the development of her research Pets provide an unconditional love that requires very little on the part of the human. Animals are so special to those of us who love them. We miss them when they are no longer with us. We grieve for them in ways which are just the same as grieving for a human loved one. Whether the end comes through old age, illness, or sudden death, the death of a pet can cause enormous feelings of sorrow, guilt, and loneliness for children and adults alike, as the animal was considered a family member, a child's favoured playmate, or an older person's loyal and faithful companion. Some people don't want a pet because they do die! It's understandable to be unwilling to expose yourself to death but, at the same time, _ . When we live with animals we're more in step with the rhythms of the planet from day to night and from season to season because our companions make us more aware of the changes around us. Our companion animals teach us about the simple gifts of a beautiful day, a good meal and a gentle touch. The death of a pet can make us struggle with our belief structure-a natural part of the grieving period. Whether grieving an animal or human, we question our beliefs and many people find their belief structure becomes stronger when they ask themselves hard questions. Others find a new way of acceptance. And we learn from our animals. Animals aren't afraid to die; they show us that the end of life can be faced without fear. They can teach us to accept death as an opening for love and wonder. Allow yourself to grieve in whatever way is appropriate for you. The loss of a pet is real grief and causes us to travel through the stages of grief-denial, anger, depression, guilt, and acceptance. These stages must be lived through for the mourning to allow full healing. According to the passage, we can infer that _ . A. pets can give us some gifts when they have a good meal B. pets are so selfless and brave that all the people love them C. people can never accept the death of pets or the one they love D. people may go through several stages before they can accept the death of a pet Answer: D. people may go through several stages before they can accept the death of a pet It takes two to duet , and one question for scientists is how these coordinated performances arise -- in birds. Are they the result of cooperation, a way in which one pair signals to others that they've got it together? Or are they the result of conflict, evolving to avoid one partner's song interfering with the other's? A study of duetting in Peruvian warbling antbirds suggests that it might be a little of both, and that context is everything. Joseph A. Tobias and Nathalie Seddon of the University of Oxford show in Current Biology that sexual conflict can cause the female of a pair that normally cooperates to "jam" the male's song by singing over it. The researchers exposed antbird pairs to recorded songs of other antbirds and monitored the songs the pairs produced. In one experiment, they played the songs of an intruding pair. In this case, the resident pair "both are likely to lose their territory, so both should cooperate," Dr. Tobias said. And they do. They produce a coordinated duet that in effect tells the intruders to keep away. But when the researchers played the song of a single female, the pair behaved differently. "You'd expect the resident female to be highly motivated to defend her position in the partnership," Dr. Tobias said. And that's what occurs. The male sings its heart out, flirting with the single female, and the female of the pair does its best to interfere with the song by singing over it, apparently to make her mate less attractive to the other female. "It's clear that the male doesn't like what she's doing," Dr. Tobias said. The behavior "breaks up what is otherwise a very cooperative situation into a more complicated signal," he added. It's the first evidence of this kind of signal jamming among pairs, Dr. Tobias said. And in that it leads the male to alter its song to avoid the female's interfering notes, it shows that this kind of conflict could, over a long period, drive the evolution of coordinated song. How did the researchers conduct the experiment? A. They put the antbird pairs back to nature and observe them. B. They played different recorded songs of other antbirds. C. They put an antbird to the other's territory and observed. D. They played the songs of an intruding pair. Answer: B. They played different recorded songs of other antbirds. John Coltrane was born in North Carolina in 1926 and raised in the small farm town of High Point. As a young boy, he spent a great deal of time listening to the music of the black Southern church. Coltrane's father sewed clothes and could also play several musical instruments for his own enjoyment. The young Coltrane grew up in such a musical environment. And he discovered jazz by listening to the recordings of such jazz greats as Count Basie and Lester Young. When John was thirteen, he asked his mother to buy him a saxophone. People realized almost immediately that the young man could play the instrument very well. John learned by listening to the recordings of the great jazz saxophone players, Johnny Hodges and Charlie Parker. In 1943 John and his family moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He studied music for a short time at the Granoff Studios and at the Ornstein School of Music. He served for a year in a Navy band in Hawaii. When he returned, he began playing the saxophone in several small bands. In 1948, Coltrane joined trumpet player Dizzy Gillespie's band. Seven years later, Coltrane joined the jazz group of another trumpet player, Miles Davis.Then he began experimenting with new ways to write and perform jazz music, and explored many new ways of playing the saxophone.Some people did not like this new sound, while others said it was an expression of modern soul and represented an important change. By 1965, Coltrane became one of the most famous jazz musicians in the world. He was famous in Europe and Japan, as well as in the United States. He was always trying to produce a sound that no one had produced before. Some of the sounds he made were beautiful. Others were like loud screams. Miles Davis said Coltrane was the loudest, fastest saxophone player that ever rived. Many people could not understand his music. But they listened anyway. Coltrane never made his music simpler to become more popular. He continued to perform and record even as he suffered from liver cancer. He died in 1967 at the age of forty in Long Island, New York. We can learn from the passage EXCEPT that _ . A. John performed several musical instruments for fun when he was young B. his mother bought him a saxophone in 1939 C. in his early twenties John joined Gillespie's band D. John went on to perform in spite of his illness Answer: A. John performed several musical instruments for fun when he was young
For the rest of the week, Joe practiced kicking football hard, concentrating on his each kicking. Sometimes Joe hit the ball straight. Sometimes it went wide again. But it seemed that the more he believed he could do it, the easier it was. "I'm not a joke now," thought Joe. "Not a joke at all!" But a practice wasn't like a real match and his boots were still not giving him enough power. He should have told his mum and dad about it straight away but, of course, he didn't. He was always shy to ask for things. Finally, late on the night before the match, he could hold himself back no longer. "Dad, I haven't got any proper football boots ..." he said. "Ah," said Dad, "I might be able to help you there." At the words, Joe was excited. New boots! He thought. "He's got me some new boots! He must have got me them for Christmas," thought Joe, "But now that I'm in an important match, he's giving them to me early. Wonderful!" Dad went upstairs. Joe excitedly tried to watch the football preview on TV. He wasn't playing for Manchester United or Liverpool, of course, but he was part of it all now; part of the thrill. His legs twitched with every kick on the screen. His head shook with every centre. And all the time, his mind was racing ahead to his own great game the next morning, in his super new boots. It was ages before his dad came downstairs again. He put a large pair of shiny black boots in front of Joe. As he stared at them, the boy felt as if someone had poured ice into his brain. The boots were awful! "Good, eh?" said his dad. Joe found it hard to speak. He had never seen anything like them before. They weren't low-cut, soft or.... They had big, hard square toes, great big long studs and they were high at the ankle. They were his dad's old rugby boots, polished up. Joe was filled with disappointment. They had been good boots, quality boots. And they were his size. Joe's feet were enormous for his age. But he could imagine what everyone at school would say. " ...," he finally gasped, " should be exactly my size." "At least I won't slip," he thought, "the studs are like sharks' teeth!" Then he couldn't help thinking about those in Ashton's windows, which he had been longing to get. That night, he went to bed early but he didn't sleep much because he was so terrified of being late. He woke at 1.17, 2.49, 3.37, 3.43, 4.55. The numbers jumped off the big face of his digital clock. Then 10.40! Ahhh!!! He jumped out of bed. He seized the clock. 6.03! 10.40 had been only a dream. At eight, breakfast time, it was raining like mad. "Might get called off, Joe," suggested his mum. "Never, Mother. ...will not be like cricket," said his dad. "Will take a lot to stop football." Joe checked everything for the tenth time. He put his boots at the very bottom of his large bag, well out of sight. He had decided to put them on when nearly everyone had left the changing room. Then his classmates wouldn't make fun of him. Soon, it was time to set out. "Good luck!" said his mum, giving him a kiss. His dad had his coat on, ready for his morning deliveries. "Want a lift to school?" he said. "I hope to get down to watch you when I've done the trip to Eccles." "Okay," said Joe. As Dad's van carried him down the hill to school, Joe was thinking about the boots. If only ... but no, he had to stop that kind of thinking. It doesn't matter about the boots, he told himself. rom the story, we can infer that Joe's father is likely to be a(n) _ . Answer: An indian hawthorn that has received more water will usually be Answer: Why I Don't Spare "Spare Change" "Poor but honest." "The deserving poor." These words always come to my mind when I think of "the poor." But I also think of people who, perhaps through alcohol or drugs, have ruined not only their own lives but also the lives of others in order to give way to their own pleasure. Perhaps alcoholism and drug addiction really are "diseases," as many people say, but my own feeling ---- based, of course, not on any serious study ---- is that most alcoholics and drug addicts belong to the "undeserving poor." And that is largely why I don't give spare change to beggars. But surely among the street people there are also some who can rightly be called "deserving." Deserving what? My spare change? Or simply the government's assistance? It happens that I have been brought up to believe that it is proper to make contributions to charity, but if I give some change to a beggar, am I making a contribution to charity and thereby helping someone, or, am I perhaps simply encouraging someone not to get help? Or, maybe even worse, am I supporting a cheat? If one believes in the value of private charity, one can either give to needy people or to charitable organizations. In giving to a beggar one may indeed be helping a person who badly needs help, but one cannot be certain that one is giving to a needy person. In giving to an organization, on the other hand, one can feel that one's money is likely to be used wisely. True, facing a beggar one may feel that this particular unfortunate person needs help at this moment ----a cup of coffee or a sandwich ----and the need will not be met unless I put my hand in my pocket right now. But I have come to think that the beggars whom I meet can get along without my spare change, and indeed perhaps they are actually better off for not having money to buy alcohol or drugs. I know nothing about these beggars, but it's my impression that they simply prefer begging to working. I am not generalizing about street people. I am talking about the people whom I actually meet. That's why I do not give "spare change," and I don't think I will in the future. What does the author think of beggars who take drugs? Answer: The best family vacation that I ever had was going on a road trip to Myrtle Beach. The trip was for 2 weeks during the March break from school. This trip was probably about 20 years ago so it was before the time of things like portable video games and being able to watch movies in the back seat.2 So to pass the many hours of travel my brother and I had to entertain ourselves and each other. My mum would set the back seat up so that it was our own little playroom. She would pack everything up so that we had a big level area to play in. We would play cards and board games.C When it got to the point where we were at each other's throats we would be sent back to our own side of the seat and would be forced to either nap or read by ourselves until we could be friendly to each other again. I can remember us playing for quite some time when we turned the back seat into a spaceship and traveled around the earth.f Another time we turned it into a kitchen and had a bake-off . But the thing that I remember the most and that gave us many hours of enjoyment was using each other's faces as silly Plasticine and making funny faces. We would see how far we could stretch each other's mouths open, see how thin we could make the other's eye by pulling on it. We would keep going until one of us begged for mercy because we had to give our faces a rest.7 So while I can remember us having a great time on the beach, laughing a lot trying to put the tent up in the rain, what I remember the most of that trip and what always makes me smile the most is remembering the pain that our faces would be in after the trip.g Which of the following titles would best suit the passage? Answer: If you want to get a new cell phone number, don't forget to bring your ID with you . As of September 1, people have to register with their ID to buy a new cell phone number. You can show your ID card orhukou, but student ID's won't work. If you already have a cell phone number, it is better to register it before 2013. The new rules are meant to prevent junk messages and fraud through cell phones. A cell phone user in China on average received 43.3 messages a week in the first half of this year. According to reports, about 12 of those were junk messages. In a survey, about 74.5 percent of users said they have received fraudulent messages. If all people register their cell phone number with ID information, it will be easier for police to find the people behind those messages. Situations in other countries Because cell phone are getting more and more popular, many countries have made stricter cell phone rules. Countries like India, Japan, Australia, and Singapore all ask users to register their ID information. Ulrich Mller is a German living in Beijing. "In Germany, you have to show your ID when you buy a cell phone card," he said. "The rules have been there for a long time. Most people know about it." Linda van der Horst is a student at Peking University. She said that in the Netherlands ,people have to show ID information and bank account information to buy a cell phone card. What is the passage mainly about? Answer:
Jennifer's Hurricane Experience I have evacuated lots of times in my life. To make sure everything is safe, my family have to move a lot of things. I usually help my mom and my brothers help my dad. Mom and I take all of the special keepsakes to low safe places. Another thing we have to do is to take our sailboat out into deep water and anchor it really well. When it's time to anchor the sailboat, Scott, my father's brother, comes over. I just need to wait in the car with my mom and brothers before we evacuate. John's Hurricane Experience My family evacuated for hurricane Opal in 1995. We left two days early because we were going to my dad's 35thHigh School Reunion . There was a lot of traffic getting out of town. But we didn't get into trouble as we had arrived at the school. During hurricane Georges, I slept. But there was a lot of lightning, thunder and rain at that night. The next morning, there were a lot of branches, twigs and leaves everywhere. Catherine's Hurricane Experience This year, we experienced two hurricanes, Earl and Georges. We did the same thing in both hurricanes. We would always be watching the news. There was a lot of rain ... a whole lot of rain. The hurricane never really got close enough to do very much damage. I have never evacuated, and I don't think that I ever will. Ryan's Hurricane Experience I am a police officer on an island in the Texas Gulf Coast. I was directly affected by the violent weather throughout the hurricane season. Our department was ordered to stay on the island while all the other citizens were evacuating. I didn't feel at all prepared for the situation. So I went to the grocery store and purchased some food. I thought a survival kit would have helped ease some of the tension in my mind. Who didn't evacuate before the hurricanes? The days are getting shorter and shorter, and temperatures are dropping. Winter is coming and it is easy for people to catch flu. Many people have started taking vitamin C pills as a precautionary way. But a research has shown that vitamin C pills do not provide as much protection as they think. They are even not as good as other ways, like often washing your hands. Some German scientists have given people information and a test on the subject helping to stop incorrect ways. Whether it is caused by cold or flu , a runny nose and sore throat are signs of catching a cold. Many people overestimate the advantages of vitamin C and other pills. For years it was believed that taking vitamin C pills not only provided protection against colds but also against cancers, helping people to live longer. But the result of the research showed disagreement on these beliefs . The result has now come out on the website wwww.informedhealthonline.org. "Some pills may not help people live longer. Some pills may even lead to earlier death," says Professor Peter Sawicki. Scientists also say that the best way to get vitamins is through food instead of having vitamin pills. That is to say, we disagree with the way of taking vitamin C pills. There are many simple but useful ways to lower the risk of catching a cold. These include often washing your hands with normal soap and water and not touching your face with your hands. People who have already had a cold can stop it from spreading by throwing away tissues at once after using them and not shaking hands with other people. About taking vitamin C pills, _ is shown by the research. You are going to high school , aren't you ? Maybe you don't know what to do . Here is a list of the top six things to do when you are in high school . These things will give you ideas of what your high school life could be like . Here you go ! 1Find your passion and what kind of person you are : Whether it's dance ,basketball ,or drawing ,the important thing is that you have found something you are interested in . 2 Talk to people you wouldn't usually talk to : Meet new people ,find new friends and even talk to the people you don't like. It will show what a great person you are . You never know what will happen after high school. 3Take part in at least one contest: This will give you tears of laughter, happiness and memories . 4Get a job : This will help you see what it's like to have responsibility( ) . It can also help you make a little money to spend on yourself . 5Take a trip with your friends :It doesn't matter where you go or what you do , the memories will happen on the way and go on till the final place . 6Do your best at school : Don't ever get lazy . Working hard now will help you in the future. Which of the following you'd better not do according to the passage? Stephen Hawking knew what he wanted to do by the time he was eight years old. His parents lived in London where his father was researching medicine. He did not want to follow his father as his parents hoped. Mathematics was not available at University College, so he did physics instead. Stephen was interested in studying the universe. When he was 21, however, he was told that he had ALS --an incurable nerve disease, which affects walking, speaking, breathing, swallowing, and many other things. The doctors predicted that he had only a few years to live, but he didn't die. Instead, as his physical condition became worse, Hawking became more well-known in scientific circles. Hawking himself said that his disease was a big reason why he focused his attention on what turned out to be his real strength: theoretical research. "What the doctors said made me determine to get the most from life, and life was no longer boring for me," Hawking says today, speaking from his wheelchair through a computer. In 1988, Stephen Hawking published a book called A Brief History of Time. The book tries to explain many of Hawking's physical and mathematical ideas and calculations without using maths. The book became a best-seller. His later books are Black Holes and Baby Universes and Other Essays and most recently in 2001, The Universe in a Nutshell. Of the three, the first one was made into a film in 1991. Hawking says, "Nowadays, muscle power is out of date. What we need is mind power --and disabled people are as good at that as anyone else." According to Hawking, his disease _ . The first ting we do is to put an APB and this goes to all the police stations in the country. Next we telephone the hospitals. Often the person we are looking for has been in an accident. Then we might try parents, friends or relatives they might be with. We try to follow their movements and to find the last person they saw in local or national papers--especially papers they might read. There are other things we can do: put posters in places where they might be, go on television. Here in America there is a magazine in which there are photographs of missing children. This is often the last hope. Of course, with nearly two million missing children every year, we can't do all these things for everyone. We haven't got the time, or the money , or the people who work for it. Who do they look for?
Mr Smith is an English teacher. He comes from America. He has a daughter. Her name is Amy, and she is a good engineer in New York. Mr Smith likes traveling very much, and he can speak Spanish very well. Now he is in China, so he wants to learn some Chinese. He works very hard at his Chinese, and goes to Chinese classes every evening. He has a lot of friends in China and they often help him. He likes to talk with them. He tells his daughter that he can speak good Chinese, and he doesn't have anytrouble with his Chinese, but the Chinese have a lot . Mr Smithis good at _ . Spanish Mr. Jones had a nice brown coat . He loved it very much, but his wife didn't like it. Because it was old. She often said. " Give it to a poor man . " But Mr. Jones always answered, " No, I like this coat. " Then a cigarette fell on it and made a hole in it. So Mrs Jones said, "Please don't wear it again. " Mr. Jones took it to a small tailor " Please make another coat like this one ." The tailor made the coat very carefully. Then he lit a cigarette, and made a hole in it in the same place. Who do you think was foolish ? The tailor I was in the park with my elder sister, Cathy, on Friday. My sister left her jacket on a chair while we talked to some friends. When we went back to the chair, a girl in a red T-shirt was sitting there. She had some money in her hand. When she saw us, she stood up and walked away. I asked my sister, "Did you have any money in your jacket?" She said, "Yes, Anna, I did." I said, "Look in your jacket quickly." Cathy looked in her jacket, but her money was not there. "That girl stole it!" I said, and we both ran after her. We caught her quickly. My sister was very angry and she said, "Give me the money." The girl gave the money to Cathy and ran away. We both ran after her, but we lost her. Then we went home. But before we could tell our parents, my mother said to Cathy, "You left your money at home. It's on the table in the sitting room. You must be more careful with money." So the girl in the red T-shirt was not a thief! She probably thought we were thieves! We felt terrible. Please telephone us if you know this girl! We are very sorry for our mistake. We would like to say sorry to her and give the money back to her. Our number is 512667. My name is Anna. According to the reading, Cathy's money was really _ . at home Liz isn't happy. Her husband, Stephen, frequently changes jobs, and is unsure of what he wants to do. The new house they bought just a year ago seems like a prison to Liz, and Stephen says he wants to go back to college, she decides that it's the end of her patience with him. Now, since this happens quickly in the film, it's kind of like she just gives up on her husband without much of a fight. She's done, he still loves her, but she quickly moves on to a much younger actor who's starring in a play she wrote. She sees him on stage, and thinks he's saying the words only to her. They are in a relationship. But soon after, she decides that he's not for her. She's unhappy and feels dead inside, and the only way to fix herself is to take a year off and travel. Liz has three specific destinations in mind for her journey of self-discovery. First, it's Italy, where she can enjoy a lot of pasta and sees all the historical sites. Next, she'll head to India to spend time with her young boyfriend's favorite guru . And then she will finish her year off with a visit to Bali where she will reunite with a wise man who told her on a previous trip that she would have two marriages, lose her money, and then gain it back again. With no worries about money or work or responsibilities, she goes off, passing through the lives of various interesting people while telling anyone willing to listen that she's trying to find herself and get over the end of her marriage, which she gave up and immediately turned to another man to get over, who she then gave up on fairly quickly for no apparent reason. So says the film. By the end of the movie, she believes that she has healed herself and discovered what she needed to find out. Which of the following is true according to the passage? Travelling was one of the ways to heal people. One Sunday, I took my daughter to the seaside. On arriving at the beach, I saw JoJo, a wealthy man in hotel business. We sat down to chat in an open air cafe while I watched my daughter enjoy herself on the swings in front of us. Suddenly, our conversation was interrupted by a stranger, who politely asked permission to speak to me privately. People often want to tell me something about my TV show. We stood a bit away from my table. He said, "I'm James, the father of a 7-year-old girl who's very sick. The doctors said that if she was treated in the UK, she would probably survive. But I'm poor, so can you help me, please?" I stared into the man's eyes full of tears and asked how I could help. After I went back, JoJo asked me, "What's wrong?" I told him about it and he was very sorry for that family. All day I thought about James's family. I even thought about making a special TV show to raise money for the sick child. On Monday morning, JoJo walked into my office. Actually, JoJo was very busy, and I never imagined he would have the time to come and see me. "Please, call the man and tell him I'll pay all the expenses for the girl's treatment," JoJo said with a cheque in his hand. "I've been married for 35 years; I wasn't lucky enough to have a child. Sometimes I feel lonely. I want to help this child." I picked up the phone to call James. Now James's daughter is well and JoJo sometimes goes to visit her. I'm so happy that there are so good people on this earth. James turned to the writer for help probably because he _ . thought the writer could help him through TV
Question: How men first learnt to invent words is unknown; in other words, the origin of language is a mystery. All we really know is that men, unlike animals, somehow invented certain sounds to express thoughts and feelings, actions and things, so that they could communicate with each other; and that later they agreed upon certain signs, called letters. These letters could be combined to represent those sounds, and which could be written down. Those sounds, whether spoken, or written in letters, we call words. The power of words, then, lies in their associations---the things they bring up before our minds. Words become filled with meaning for us by experience, and the longer we live, the more certain words recall to us the glad and sad events of our past; and the more we read and learn, the more the number of words that mean something to us increases. Great writers are those who not only have great thoughts but also express these thoughts in words which appeal powerfully to our minds and emotions. This charming and telling use of words is what we call literary style. Above all, the real poet is a master of words. He can convey his meaning in words which sing like music and which by their position and association can move men to tears. We should therefore learn to choose our words carefully and use them accurately, or they will make our speech silly and vulgar . The following statements are true EXCEPT that_. A. the more we read and learn, the larger our vocabulary will be B. the longer we live, the number of words that mean something to us increases C. words can be used to represent various meanings D. literary style is usually very charming Answer: B Question: Several times each year the Queen gives afternoon tea parties at which guests are served tiny cakes filled with cream from her own cows. Cakes and sandwiches are brought in by footmen, yet you never see the Queen touch a thing. She simply sits beside a big silver plate, pouring cups of tea for everyone and carefully avoiding the cakes. At cocktail parties the Queen moves from group to group, chatting informally, and manages to make one glass of diet drink to last an entire evening. Tours abroad are difficult because hosts seem to believe the warmth of their welcome must be shown with wonderful state banquets . But the Queen has perfected the art of appearing to enjoy her meal without actually eating much. During one visit to the Pacific islands ofprefix = st1 /Tonga, a specially-prepared dinner was arranged in a hut made of wood and bamboo leaves. Deep holes were dug in the ground, filled with hot stones and baby pigs, and the pigs were slowly baked over several days. The Queen looked uneasily at her plate when she discovered a whole roast pig was her serving. Then she became uneasy when a turkey, some meat, bananas and an apple were also carried in for each guest. So she depended on her old favorite trick of talking with her host., King Tupou IV, carrying on a warm conversation. At the same time she pushed her food around her plate and only ate a piece of turkey and some fruit. Reporters traveling with her have noted that the Queen will sometimes seem so carried away by a foreign leader's political chat that she simply never has time to finish a meal before it is time to get up and make her speech. She will lift her fork to swallow a mouthful, then put it down again to make another point, leaving almost all of her meal untouched. The Queen talked with her host and carried on conversation with him. The purpose of doing this is _ . A. to show her politeness B. not to eat much C. to show her great interest in food D. to hide her dislike to the food Answer: B Question: There's no pizza on Mars, but scientists have found a solution to this problem for hungry astronauts: a pizza printer! NASA, the American space agency, has developed a machine that "prints" food. They showed a model of the printer in Austin, Texas last month. How does it work? Cartridges filled with powdered dough , cheese, sauce, water and oil put the ingredients layer by layer onto a printer bed. The printer bed, which gets hot from below, cooks the food as it's being printed. Since most of the ingredients are powdered, they can be sent into space and stored for many years without going bad. Water makes food go sour, so the food powders are mixed with water and oil only when they are being printed. "Long-distance space travel requires more than 15 years of shelf life for food." says Anjan Contractor, whose company developing the printer. " We take water out, and in that form, food will last maybe 30 years." In outer space, there are far fewer choices for astronauts for dinner. Most of their foods--even things like beef or shrimp--are eaten from bags as powders . Scientists hope the new food printer can be used to make more delicious food in outer space, keeping astronauts healthier and happier. But the printer is not limited to use in outer space. Scientists think it could be useful on Earth, too. It could allow personal meals to be made at the dinner table, according to each person's different needs. "Let's say someone is an athlete in the family, and he needs more protein ," says Anjan Contractor, founder of Systems and Materials Research Corp, the company developing the printer. "We can design recipes for him and print out more protein-nutritious food for him." Which of the following is TRUE? _ A. Astronauts eat beef powder in outer space. B. A model of the food printer was shown in New York last month. C. Only astronauts and athletes can eat the food from the printer. D. The printer can only be used in outer space. Answer: A Question: It's not so surprising that US First Lady Michelle Obama has called Modern Family her favorite TV series. September saw the fun, heartwarming sitcom take home the Best Comedy Series award at the 2013 Emmys. This is the fourth year in a row that the series has won that title. The show features three families who move in and out of each other's lives. The first one is a typical American family: the working dad Phil, stay-at-home mom Claire and their three children. The second family is made up of Jay, his young Hispanic wife and her son Manny. Jay, 65, is the father of Claire. He is 30 years older than his wife and everyone mistakes the two for being father and daughter. The third family is made up of a gay couple, Mitchell and Cameron, and their adopted daughter Lily. Mitchell is Jay's son. On Sept 25, the show started its fifth season, in which Claire makes a big change - she returns to work. The other big storylines include Jay's stepson Manny starting high school and Mitchell and Cameron looking for a primary school for Lily. Will things go right for the three families? Modern Family has no spies, aliens or vampires ; it's just about ordinary people. So what has made it such a hit? According to the Los Angeles Times, its "presentation of contemporary US society" contributes to its success. The show presents what a typical "nuclear family" is like in the US: two parents, a big house and two or three children. When there's a fight between their kids, Phil wants to be the "cool dad" while traditional mom Claire lives by the saying "an eye for an eye". She always forces Phil to punish the troublemaker. The show also touches upon developments in interracial relations in the US by focusing on Hispanic communities. This makes sense, as "by 2040, America will no longer be a majority-white country, with the fastest growth rate among Hispanics..." BBC pointed out. In addition, according to BBC, 40 percent of Americans say they have a gay friend or relative. By including Mitchell and Cameron, Modern Family reflects the changing status of gay people in the US. "The US is a melting pot ... so the family has come to reflect that diversity." commented The Hartman Group, a US research firm. Which of the following is TRUE about the characters in Modern Family? A. There are always fights between Phil and Claire because of their different ways of raising kids. B. Jay, Claire and Mitchell make up a typical American family. C. Mitchell and Cameron are a gay couple and they adopted a boy. D. Jay and his wife are often not thought of as a couple because their ages are so far apart. Answer: D Question: Three armed robbers stole two Pablo Picasso prints from an art museum in downtown Sao Paulo on Thursday, which was the city's second high-profile art theft in less than a year. The bandits also took two oil paintings by well-know Brazilian artists Emiliano Di Cavalcanti and Lasar Segall, said Carla Regina, a spokeswoman for the Pinacoteca do Estado museum. The Picasso prints stolen were "The Painter and the Model" from 1963 and "Minotaur, Drinker and Women" from 1933, according to a statement from the Sao Paulo Secretary of State for Culture, which oversees the museum. The prints and paintings have a combined value of $612,000, the statement and a museum official said. About noon, three armed men paid the $2.45 entrance fee and immediately went to the second-floor gallery where the works were being exhibited, bypassing more valuable pieces, authorities said. "This indicates to us that they probably received an order" to take those specific works, Youssef Abou Chain, head of Sao Paulo's organized crime unit, told reporters at a news conference. The assailants overpowered three unarmed museum guards and grabbed the works, officials said. The robbery took about 10 minutes and the museum was nearly empty at the time. The assailants took the pieces -- frames and all -- out of the museum in two bags. The institution has no metal detectors. In December, Picasso's "Portrait of Suzanne Bloch" and "O Lavrador de Cafe" by Candido Portinari, an influential Brazilian artist, were stolen from the Sao Paulo Museum of Art by three men who used a crowbar and car jack to force open one of the museum's steel doors. The framed paintings were found Jan. 8, covered in plastic and leaning against a wall in a house on the outskirts of Sao Paulo, South America's largest city. One of the suspects in that robbery -- a former TV chef -- turned himself over to police in January, who already had two suspects in custody . How many people were in the museum during the robbery? A. A lot. The museum was crowded. B. Not too many. It was almost empty. C. There were a lot of people outside the museum. D. Only three of them. Answer: B
Living in the desert is really hard! With less than 10 inches of rainfall a year, deserts are dry all year round. Lots of heat from the sun and a shortage of water are just a few of the challenges facing desert animals. Deserts are homes to many animals and plants. Few large animals have got used to life in the desert because their size makes it difficult to find shelter from the heat and they can't store water. In order to survive, desert animals have developed a number of ways to live in their special habitat. The most common way is staying under plants or rocks or digging underground in the heat of the day. And many desert animals stay in shelter during the day and hunt at night when it is cool. Some animals get the water they need from the insects, plants and seeds they eat, and do not need to drink. They do not have sweat glands and pass only small amount of waste water. Some animals develop their own ways of surviving in deserts. The Thorny Devil is a kind of lizard that lives in Australian desert areas. It has a body that channels raindrops directly into its mouth when it rains. Water-holding frogs spend most of the year underground in Australian desert areas, and develop a sort of cocoon that enables them to store water to keep them going through the dry times. When it rains, they come out to lay their eggs in ponds. The eggs hatch within days and develop quickly, before the water dries out. We can learn from the text that when it's rainy in Australian deserts, _ . the water-holding frogs lay their eggs in ponds During his life Dr James Naismith worked as a doctor, taught P.E and wrote several books. While he never thought it very important, Dr Naismith is today best known for one thing. He was the inventor of basketball. Dr James Naismith was born in Canada in 1861 and his first job was at a special sports school in the USA. One day the school principal told James he was having a problem with the students. Because of heavy snow, the students could not go outside. He told James that they needed a sport the boys could play indoors and gave the teacher two weeks to think of something. It was on the very last day that James came up with his idea. The "birth of basketball" is said to be on December 21, 1891, when two teams from the school played the first game. It was quite different from the basketball games of today. It had 9 players on each team and footballs were used instead of basketballs. Soon after, the game changed to 5 players on each side, using special "basketballs" through nets. Although Dr Naismith did not live to see basketball become the worldwide game it is today, in 1936, just three years before his death, basketball became an Olympic sport at the games in Berlin. In which season did Dr Naismith invent basketball? Winter. Poetry is an interesting form of writing. It is very free, has few _ and can be a great way to express feelings. Writing a poem is all about observing the world within you or around you. To write a poem, first you should begin with an idea or inspiration. Inspiration may come at any time unexpectedly. It may be a specific person, place or thing that causes some sort of strong emotion. It may be more of an abstract idea or release of emotion. After getting the idea, you can write down everything that comes to mind. Don't think much and let all feelings pour out. Remember everything can be thrown out later. Then, you can think about its form and begin to organize thoughts. Poetry comes in many forms, from epic poetry that has a story to dramatic poetry intended to be performed. Try them all out. One will come naturally. Maybe different poems fit different forms. When you write a poem, think about bothmeter and rhythm carefully, which are equally important in poetry. Meter is the fixed pattern of the poem, while rhythm refers to the sound when it is spoken. It is also important to use a lot of descriptive words. Createimagery with words, trying to make them attractive to all the senses. Forauditory interest, try repeating of similar sounds in a sentence or phrase. All of this adds life and interest to a poem. After you finish your work, don't be afraid to share your work with others. When others point out your weakness, accept and grow from it. We can infer from the text that _ . writing poems needs imagination and the ability to use language well A San Diego boy Kristoffer Von Hassel has the gaming world' s attention after he exposed a security weakness that let him log into his dad's Xbox Live account, without permission. Kristoffer's father, Robert, noticed soon after Christmas that his son was logging into his account and playing games that weren't appropriate for his age. When he asked how, Kristoffer showed him a hack that seems simple but is fairly impressive considering a 5-year- old found it. Kristoffer would go to his dad's account and type in an incorrect password. That would take him to a password verifications screen, where he would simply tap the space bar repeatedly and then press "enter. " "How awesome is that?" asked Davies, who works in online security himself. "just being 5 years old and being able to find a vulnerability I ty and getting attached to that I thought that was pretty cool." He told KGTV that Kristoffer has figured out three or four other "hacks", including getting past the lock on a smartphone by holding down the "home" key for long enough. Davies reported the vulnerability to Microsoft. And Microsoft acted, issuing a fix for it. "We' re always listening to our customers and thank them for bringing issues to our attention," the company said in a written statement. "We take security seriously at Xbox and fixed the issue as soon as we learned about it. " The company has even included Kristoffer's name on a list of security researchers who have helped make online Microsoft products safer. For his discovery, or more accurately, for reporting it with his father's help, Kristoffer will receive four games. $50 and a year's subseription to Xbox Live from Microsoft. What is the best title of the text? Hacking Xbox, even a 5-year-old could do it Among the four skills in learning English ,which of these is the "Odd-Man-Out"?The answer is speaking. The other three you can do alone on your own. But you can't really speak alone! Speaking to yourself can be "dangerous" because men in white coats may come and take you away! Where can you find people to speak English? And how can you practise speaking when you are alone?At school if you pay to go to a language school ,you should use the chance to speak .If your teacher asks you to speak in pairs or groups with other students ,try to say as much as possible. Don't worry about your mistakes. Just speak! Conversation Clubs Many cities around the world have conversation clubs where people can exchange one language for another .Look in your local newspaper to find a conversation club near you .They are usually free although some may charge a small entrance fee. Shopping Even if you don't want to buy anything ,you can ask questions about products that interest you in a shop."How much does this cost?" "Can I pay by cheque?" Often you can start a real conversation--and it costs you nothing! Cafe and Bars There are often American, Britain, Irish and Australian bars in many large cities .If you can find one, you'll probably meet many people speaking English as a first or second language. Language is all around you Everywhere you go, you find language .Shop names, street names ,advertisements ,notices ,and car numbers....When you walk down the street ,practise reading the words and numbers that you see .Say them to yourself .It's not exactly a conversation ,but it will help you to "think" in English .But don't speak too loud! Songs and Video Repeat the words of an English-language song singing with the music until it becomes automatic. It's good practice for your memory and for the mouth muscles that you need for English. Above all ,speak as much as possible! Make as many mistakes as possible! When you know that you have made a mistake, you know that you have made progress! What does "Odd-Man-Out" probably mean according to the passage? Someone or something appearing different from others.
Jenny is a nice girl. She likes to playing soccer. And she watches soccer games on TV every day. But she doesn't like playing baseball. She has some friends in her class. They are Tom, Mary, Susan and Linda. Tom likes playing ping - pong. He has some nice ping - pong bats, He usually plays ping - pong with his friends after school. Mary likes playing volleyball. She is in a volleyball club .But she doesn't like playing basketball. Susan likes singing. She has many CDs. They are in her desk. Linda is ten years old. She doesn't like doing any sports, but she likes making model planes. What does Tom usually do after school? Answer: Play ping - pong with friends. Nearly everyone agrees that money doesn't buy as much as it used to, no matter when you want to spend it. This is certainly true of the paper money that passes so quickly through one's hands. But what about coins that seem to do very little except stay in purses and pockets? Unlike notes, metal money becomes more valuable the longer it is held, especially if it is put away where it won't get scratched or worn. Why is this? One reason is that coins, being more durable, fall more readily into a category for collectors. Naturally, the rarer gold pieces must become more valuable as the price of this metal goes up. But, curiously, one of the rarest coins in the world is not made of gold, but of the relatively cheaper silver. In 1840, the United States mint struck 19570 silver dollars. That is what its records show. Today only six of this original number remain and these are unlikely ever to reach the auction market. So what happened to some 19564 large silver coins, not the easiest sort of things to lose? One of the more romantic theories is that they were part of the payment to Napoleon for the American land then known as Louisiana. But they never reached France. Somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico, the ship transporting them was sunk, either by a storm or by pirates. The probable answer to the mystery is that they were melted down -- since the silver value was greater than the actual value of the coin. What really happened to the rest will probably always remain a mystery. What is known is that whoever can come up with one will find himself instantly rich. What really happened to some 19564 large silver coins? Answer: It is still a mystery. I look in the mirror, and I'm not happy with what I see. I don't have a "perfect" face. I look in the magazines and all I see are girls with fair hair, blue eyes, and, of course, a pretty little nose. They're on the outside of the buses that I take home, the television programs I watch, and the billboards I walk under. Almost every advertisement I see shows this human physical "perfection". These billboards not only tell me what to drink, but also how to look. Our society place more importance on a person's physical beauty, rather than their ability, honesty and character. We have influenced women to go through painful surgeries and starve themselves to become this society built physical model. To be a beautiful woman in the 21st century doesn't mean that you are a brilliant doctor or caring mother. It means you have the perfect jaw, eyes and lips. It means that you can be six feet tall and weigh one hundred and ten pounds. But what about the women who are starting to leave their youth? Instead of looking at aging as a sign of wisdom, we try to prevent the aging process . It's a kind of funny thing to want to look eighteen when fifty. Fifty is a relaxed age, when you can step back and look at all you've achieved (successfully complete something). It is when your hard work pays off. Unfortunately, our society just sees you as "old". To stop the aging process, women buy wrinkle creams, do eye lifts and face lifts. They spend thousands of dollars to win the hopeless battle against age. I remember when I was about thirteen years old and going through teens, I had oily hair, and a half developed body. I hated the way I looked. I used to cry to my mother all the time, but she would just laugh and tell me that "you don't want anyone to like your appearance. It's your heart that is important, because beauty fades. " I knew that she was right. If you work on your heart enough, people will start to see the beauty in you, which lasts and remains on even after you die. What's the author's attitude towards being "old"? Answer: It's a fruitful and wise time. Scientific experiments can sometimes go wrong and when they do the results may range from the disastrous to the troubling. One such experiment took place in South America about fifty years ago. Whether its final consequences will cause serious damage or nothing more than a small trouble still remains to be seen. The story began in 1956 when an American scientist working in Brazil decided to solve the problem of increasing the productivity of that country's bees. He imported a very active type of African bee from Tanzania and mated it with the more easy-going native variety to produce a new kind of bees. The new bees worked harder and produced twice as much honey. It seemed that Professor Kerr, for that was the scientist's name, had a total success on his hands.www.zxxk.com Then things began to go wrong. For some reason as yet unseen, but perhaps as a result of something in their environment, the new bees began to develop extremely attacking personalities. They became bad-tempered and easy to be angry, attacked the native bees and drove them from their living places. But worse was to follow. Having taken over the countryside, the new bees, with their dangerous stings , began to attack its neighbors -- cats, dogs, horses, chickens and finally man himself. A long period of terror began that has so far killed a great number of animals and about 150 human beings. This would have been bad enough if the bees had stayed in Brazil. But now they are on the move, heading northwards in countless millions towards Central and North America, and moving at the alarming speed of 200 miles a year. The countries that lie in their path are naturally worried because it looks as if nothing can be done to stop them. The experiment mentioned in this passage was designed to _ . Answer: increase the amount of honey in Brazil Jackrabbits excel at staying cool because of Answer: their adaptations
Question: Inside the pleasingly fragrant cafe, So All May Eat(SAME) in downtown Denver ,the spirit of generosity is instantly noticeable :A donation box stands in place of a cash register. Customers here pay only what they can afford, no questions asked. A risky business plan, perhaps, but SAME Cafe has done one unchangeable thing in the Mile High City for six years: Open only at midday, the restaurant provides poor local can instead volunteer as waiters and waitresses, and dishwashers, or took after the buildings and equipment for the cafe. "It's based on trust, and it's working all right" , says co-owner Brad Birky , who started the cafe in 2006. With his wife Libby. Previously volunteering at soup kitchens, the Birkys were dissatisfied with the often unhealthy meals they served there. "We wanted to offer quality food in a restaurant where everyone felt comfortable ,regardless of their circumstances," Birky says. SAME's special lunch menu changes daily and most food materials are natural and grown by local farmers. The cafe now averages 65 to 70 customers (and eight volunteers) a day. And the spirit of generosity behind the project appears to be spreading. In early 2007,one volunteer who had cleared snow for his meals during the long winter said goodbye to the Birkys," He said he was going to New Orleans to help with the hurricane clear up," says Birky. 68.What can we learn about the soup kitchens the Birkys previously worked for? According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE? A. . The customers who cannot pay can word as volunteers in stead. B. More volunteers will go to new Orleans for the hurricane cleanup. C. Many new cafes will be opened to offer free lunches in the town. D. The lunch menu has remained the same since the cafe was started. Answer: A. . The customers who cannot pay can word as volunteers in stead. Question: Every evening, 15-year-old Rashida returns home from school, changes out of her uniform, and rushes to a neighboring farm to help her mother harvest vegetables. Her father is disabled, so the modest profit the two of them earn must cover food, clothing and other necessities for all seven children and their parents. Despite having precious little time to study, Rashida is one of the top students at her junior secondary school. But with so much responsibility on her small shoulders, she admits that it is sometimes hard for her to imagine a more promising future. Last year, Rashida was invited to join 155 other girls at Camfed Ghana's first Girls' Career Camp, a program designed to inspire girls growing up in the country's Northern Region to dream big, and to support them to pursue those dreams. "We organized this camp because we wanted to let girls know that even if they are struggling with poverty, their lives will not be defined by limitations," says Dolores Dickson, Camfed Ghana's Executive Director. Over the course of five days, the camp led the junior and secondary school students through a range of experiences and career opportunities that were entirely new to them. Dr. Agnes Apusiga, a lecturer from the University of Development Studies, ran the workshop on goal-setting and career choices, describing the universities and training colleges in Ghana that could help them achieve their dreams. Participants then visited the University for Development Studies, where they toured the medical school and science labs. Another highlight was a workshop at the computer lab at Tamale Secondary School. Many of the girls had studied information technology from a book but had never before seen a computer. "When the girls arrived at camp, they were not ambitious, because they didn't have any idea what the world held for them," says Eugenia Ayagiba, Project Officer with Camfed Ghana. "Many had scarcely traveled beyond their own villages." "I think the most important thing that happened at the camp is that we opened a window of hope for a group of girls coming from backgrounds of poverty," says Eugenia. For Rashida, who has been laughed at in the past by her schoolmates because of her father's disability, the experience was important. "She told one of the camp mentors that when she is at school, she often feels like a misfit, and she prefers to keep to herself," says Eugenia. "But at the camp, it was different. She made friends with girls who have similar struggles. She took part in every single activity, every single game. On the last day, she said to her mentor, "The camp has challenged me to study hard. Now I see that there is light at the end of the tunnel." The best title of the passage is _ . A. Poor Girls in Ghana B. Girls' Career Camp C. Camfed Ghana D. Students in Ghana Dream Big Answer: B. Girls' Career Camp Question: JINTAN, JIANGSU: The 20 students -- 18 boys and 2 girls --had a thousand reasons to be proud of themselves. They had just climbed their way to the top rung out of 4 million students taking part in the Fifth National Hua Luogeng Gold Cup Mathematics Contest on Tuesday evening. The 20 gold medal winners are all primary and middle school students under the age of 14. 'Many of the problems are of college level and these pupils can _ them _ . It is just unbelievable!'said a teacher from Guangdong province. Named after China's most famous mathematician, Hua Luogeng, the contest started in 1986,one year after his death. In less than 10 years, it has been recognized by the State Education Commission as the country's biggest and best contest of its kind. It can be inferred from the text that the teacher from Guangdong province _ . A. felt proud of the gold medal winners B. wondered if the students were honest C. thought that the problems were too difficult for the students D. believed that the twenty winners could go to study at university Answer: A. felt proud of the gold medal winners Question: One day, I saw Harry sitting under a tree. He looked very sad. So I asked him what was wrong. "Nothing," He said, "I'm too short to join the school basketball team." "And our P.E .teacher thinks I've little hope to be in the team in half a year," he added. "Why not join another team?" I asked. "But my dream is to be an excellent basketball player in the future," he said. He told me his father wanted him to change his idea to join the school ping-pong team. "Good idea." I agreed. "You're sure to be popular, because you have a smart head." The next day, he joined the school ping-pong team. He worked harder than any other boy. Soon he was very popular in the team and looked happy every day. At the end of last month, his team took part in the city's high school ping-pong match. He and his team beat the others and won the championship. Sometimes your dream may not come true. Then make a small change, and it will bring you another success. ,,. The passage tells us that _ . A. Harry is too short to play basketball. B. Harry wants to be a basketball player. C. Making a change may be good for you. D. a big dream can bring you success. Answer: C. Making a change may be good for you. Question: Vienna-In spite of Iraq's decision to stop oil deliveries, the 11- nation Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries(OPEC)will not increase production to make up the shortfall, ministers decided Tuesday in Vienna. The 11 oil ministers decided to meet again on July 3 to discuss the effects of the Iraq temporary stop. The organization's president, Charkid Kheria of Algeria, said after the meeting that stocks were high and prices were stable, so quota increases were not necessary. The E.U. Commission has expressed concern about Iraq's output stop. A speaker said OPEC had to take all possible measures to keep or lower the oil price. Saudi Arabia's Oil Minister Ali Al-Nuaimi had earlier said there would not be any shortfall of oil in the market. The organization had already taken steps to fill the gap, he said. OPEC Secretary General Ali Rodriguez added that the period of Iraq's output stop was not known, so other exporters were not going to lift quotas yet. If the market was destabilized (......), a suitable response could be made. Iraq on Monday stopped shipments of crude oil to protest against the U.N. Security Council's decision to extend the oil-for-food programme by only a month, instead of the normal six-month renewal. Just before the Vienna meeting, oil prices had gone up, with a barrel of OPEC crude oil selling for 27.05 dollars, up from 26.81 dollars last Friday. North Sea oil was at 29.26 dollars Monday evening. OPEC wants the oil price to stay within a margin of 22 to 28 dollars and achieved that with cuts in January and March that reduced 2.5 million barrels per day off quotas . The attitude the E.U. Commission took towards Iraq's output stop is _ . A. active B. concerned C. cold D. surprised Answer: B. concerned
Some kids can't sit still for long. They have a hard time paying attention to just one thing. They're easily distracted .They can get very impatient. They hate standing in line or waiting for their turn in a game or activity. They get bored pretty fast. They may also be impulsive--saying the first thing that comes to mind or interrupting someone else who's talking. For certain kids, this problem is so severe that doctors have a name for it: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. Perhaps as many as 1 out of every 20 kids under the age of 18 have characteristics of ADHD. Often, these kids have trouble getting through school and face other difficulties later in life. Rizzo started developing the Virtual Classroom in 1999.He wanted to see if he could use it as a tool for testing and treating kids who have attention disorders. To diagnose ADHD, doctors typically test patients by giving them tasks that require attention. As part of one classic test, you watch letters flashed on a computer screen. Every time you see the letter "A" followed by the letter "X",you have to press the space bar. If you're paying close attention, you'll register all the times this combination occurs. If not, you'll miss some. The Virtual Classroom makes these tests more efficient, Rizzo says. In one experiment, he gave a group of kids the classic "A-X" test. Instead of looking at a computer screen in a doctor's office, though, the kids wore headsets that made it look like they were taking the test in a classroom. "Basically what we found,"Rizzo says,"is that, in 20 minutes of testing with virtual reality,we replicated a finding that usually requires a couple hours of standard testing with computer screens in the psychologist's office." In the experiment, patients need to press the space bar, when _ . A see letters A following X B first see A then see B C see letter X and A D see letters A followed by X Answer: D. see letters A followed by X China supports international efforts to secure cyberspace but believes each nation's "Internet sovereignty " must be respected, a top Chinese official said at a cyber security conference on Tuesday. "China, like many other countries, is very concerned about cyber security," said Liu Zhengrong, deputy director general of the Internet Affairs Bureau of the State Council Information Office. "China faces severe cyber security threats," Liu told participants here at the Worldwide Cyber Security Summit, a gathering of government and business leaders from 40 countries hosted by the EastWest Institute think tank. "International cooperation is much needed to safeguard international cyberspace," Liu said. But "Internet sovereignty of each country needs to be respected," the Chinese official added. "Different national and cultural conditions" should be taken into account. Liu declined to answer repeated questions about cyber attacks last year on Google which the Internet giant said originated in China and led to the California company's decision to reroute its searches through Hong Kong. "The Chinese government firmly opposes cyber attacks in any form and Chinese law clearly states that any hackers will be held responsible for their actions," he said. Liu said China itself is a "a major victim of cyber attacks and network viruses" and has laws in place to deal with hackers. "Internet-related crimes (in China) are showing a steady upward trend," Liu said. "We suffer big economic losses from hacking networks and viruses - around $1 billion dollars (6.8 billion yuan) a year." In 2009, Chinese law enforcement authorities investigated about 48,000 cases, a 37 percent increase over 2008, he said. While China has a dynamic Internet population of more than 400 million users and millions of bloggers, there is no "absolute freedom" on the Web, Liu said. "I don't think there is absolute freedom in this world," he said. "When you are speaking via the Internet you must obey laws and respect others' lawful rights." Last Thursday, Wang Chen, minister of the State Council Information Office, said China has been actively promoting a real-name registration system for Internet and cell phone users to better manage Internet information and services. China needs laws that will step up monitoring for "harmful information" and block "overseas hostile forces from infiltrating through the Internet," Wang said. Last week, China tightened its State Secrets law, holding Internet and mobile phone operators responsible for customers who try to leak State secrets. Some 400 government officials, business leaders and cyber security experts are attending the summit, which features three days of discussions on ways to protect the world's digital infrastructure from electronic threats.(427) What was the top issue of Worldwide Cyber Security Summit? A To fight against Internet-related crimes. B To protect digital infrastructure in the world. C To respect Internet sovereignty of each country. D To make more laws to deal with hackers. Answer: B. To protect digital infrastructure in the world. There are seven days in a week. They are Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Most children go to school from Monday to Friday. Most people don't work on Saturday afternoon or Sunday, and most shops are closed in England on Saturday afternoon and Sunday. (But in China shops are open every day). Sunday is a holiday. Some people go to church on this day. The time from Friday evening to Monday morning is the weekend. It is the time for rest . We can't work all the time. We have to rest from time to time. On weekend we can have _ . A to work B a good rest C to write D to go to school Answer: B. a good rest Paula Radcliffe, chasing a third London marathon title , says she has become a stronger person after her terrible experience at the 2004 Athens Games. Radcliffe, who failed to complete the Olympic marathon and the 10,000m last August, said: "Athens made me a stronger person and it made me care less about criticism." "In the past I wanted to please everyone, but now I am going to listen even more to the people around me." She didn't care about criticism made at the weekend by Liz McColgan, who felt Radcliffe should have rested and let her body recover after her failure in Athens. "Liz is someone I look up to but she hasn't spoken to me since last year and if she really cared for me, I'm sure she would have contacted me." Instead Radcliffe won the New York City marathon just 11 weeks after Athens. "In New York I wasn't in my best state but I did know I was good enough to win the race." Radcliffe insisted her only goal in Sunday's race would be winning a third title and not chasing world records. However, Radcliffe has not ruled out in the future chasing her "final" world record time and questioned sayings that marathon runners have the ability in their career to produce only four or five world-class times. "I don't think that--although _ ," said Radcliffe. "That changes from person to person." Radcliffe is sure she can better her winning London 2003 performance at some point in the future. Following a successful three-month training period in the United States, the 31-year-old will chase a third title on Sunday after her first victory in 2002 and again 12 months later. Radcliffe clocked a time of 2:18:56 in her first 42.2-kilometer race three years ago. Afterwards she set a "mixed course" mark of 2:17:18 five months later in Chicago before lowering that to a time of 2:15:25 in the 2003 London event. What can we learn from Radcliffe's story? A Practice makes perfect. B Well begun is half done. C A friend in need is a friend indeed. D Where there is a will there is a way. Answer: D. Where there is a will there is a way. Our house was directly across the street from the clinic entrance of John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. We lived downstairs and rented the upstairs rooms to the patients at the clinic. One evening as I was fixing supper, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to see a truly awful-looking man. He's hardly taller than my eight-year-old son. "Good evening. I've come to see if you've a room. I came for a treatment this morning from the eastern shore, and there's no bus till morning." He told me he'd been hunting for a room since noon but with no success. "I guess it's my face...I know it looks terrible, but my doctor says with a few more treatments..." For a moment I hesitated, but his next words convinced me: "I could sleep in this chair on the porch. My bus leaves early in the morning." I told him we would find him a bed. When I had finished the dishes, I talked with him. He told me he fished for a living to support his five children, and his wife, who was hopelessly crippled from a back injury. He didn't tell it by way of complaint. Next morning, just before he left, as if asking a great favor, he said, "Could I come back and stay the next time?" He added, "Your children made me feel at home." On his next trip he arrived a little after seven in the morning. As a gift, he brought a big fish and the largest oysters I had ever seen. I knew his bus left at 4:00 a.m. and I wondered what time he had to get up in order to do this for us. In the years he came to stay overnight with us and there was never a time that he did not bring us vegetables from his garden. I know our family always will be grateful to have known him; from him we learned how to accept the bad without complaint when facing the misfortune. Why did the author agree to let the man spend the night in his house at last? A Because the man said others refused to accommodate him. B Because the man said he would not cause much inconvenience. C Because the man said he had come from the eastern shore. D Because the man said he had been hunting for a room since noon. Answer: B. Because the man said he would not cause much inconvenience.
While watching the Olympics the other night, I came across an unbelievable sight. It was not a gold medal, or a world record broken, but a show of courage. The event was swimming and started with only three men on the blocks. For one reason or another, two of them false started, so they were disqualified. That left only one to compete. It would have been difficult enough, not having anyone to race against, even though the time on the clock is important. I watched the man dive off the block and knew right away that something was wrong. I'm not an expert swimmer, but I can tell a good dive from a poor one, and this was not exactly medal quality. When he resurfaced, it was evident that the man was not out for gold - his arms were waving in an attempt at freestyle. The crowd started to laugh. Clearly this man was not a medal competitor. I listened to the crowd begin to laugh at this poor man who was clearly having a hard time. Finally he made his turn to start back. It was pitiful. He made a few desperate strokes and you could tell he was worn out. But in those few awful strokes, the crowd had changed. No longer were they laughing, but beginning to cheer. Some even began to stand and shout "Come on, you can do it!" and he did. A clear minute past the average swimmer, this young man finally finished his race. The crowd went wild. You would have thought that he had won the gold, and he should have. Even though he recorded one of the slowest times in Olympic history, this man gave more heart than any of the other competitors. Just a short year ago, he had never even swum, let alone race. His country had been invited to Sydney. In a competition where athletes remove their silver medals feeling they have somehow been cheated out of gold, or when they act so proudly in front of their competitirs, _ . The crowd changed their attitudes because _ . A they felt sorry for the young man B they were moved by the young man's courage C they wanted to show their sympathy D they meant to please the young man Answer: B "I feel fat." "I hate my hair." "I wish I were taller." Julia Bluhm, 14, was sick of hearing comments like these. Many girls she knew seemed to worry too much about their appearance -- their weight, skin, hair, even the shape of their faces. So Julia decided to do something about it. Her target? Seventeen, a popular girls' magazine. "I look at the pictures, and they just don't look like girls I see walking down the street," the eighth-grader from Maine told The New York Times. Of course they don't. Magazines use programs like Photoshop to remove zits , add shine to hair, and slim waistlines. Often, girls are made to look like Barbie dolls. Julia fears that these impossible standards of beauty make teens feel terrible about their own appearances. After all, even the models aren't as perfect as they look in print! So Julia launched an online petition asking Seventeen to put at least one unaltered photo in each issue. "I want to see regular girls that look like me in a magazine that's supposed to be for me," she wrote. Days later, her petition had thousands of signatures. Julia and her mom traveled to New York City and joined a demonstration in front of Seventeen' s offices. Then they were invited to meet with Seventeen's editor-in-chief, Ann Shoket. A few months later, Shoket announced that the staff of Seventeen had signed a "Body Peace Treaty." They promised to "never change girls' body or face shapes" and only use photos of "real girls and models who are healthy." In addition, they promised to be more open about the ways in which images are changed before publication. Julia's fight against teen self-hate is far from over, but for now it seems she's winning -- and she's thrilled. "This is a huge victory," she wrote in a message on her petition page. "I'm so unbelievably happy." When Julia heard many girls say something like "I hate my hair", she felt _ . A natural B strange C worried D pitiful Answer: C Forbes asked a panel of architects and campus designers to nominate their picks for the best-looking campuses in the world. These are their top choices. Kenyon College Gambier, Ohio, US Mike Evans, a principal at Norfolk, Va., design firm Hanbury Evans Wright Vlattas + Company, says to be beautiful a campus must have a "signature campus space as a carrier of the campus brand." At Kenyon College, that space is "Middle Path," a 10-foot-wide footpath that serves as the Gothic hilltop campus' central artery. More than just a trail, it's a village green for the tight-knit campus community. Sergei Lobanov-Rostovsky, who teaches 17th-century poetry at Kenyon, says the college, both isolated and pastoral, is "a small place to think big thoughts." Oxford University Oxford, England Teaching within Oxford's stone walls dates as far back as the 11th century, and the school is considered a paradigm for all college campuses. With its labyrinth of quads, cloisters, and archways, it evokes elegance and tradition at every turn. "Its monastic roots and the spectacular quality of its buildings make it an architectural wonderland," says David Mayernik, associate professor at Notre Dame's School of Architecture. Princeton University Princeton, N.J., US Princeton's style is pure Collegiate Gothic ; most of it executed in gray stone covered in, yes, ivy. As imposing as these old stone structures are, the campus keeps life on a "human scale" by preserving green spaces and walkability.Sinuous footpaths, archways, plazas - all are designed to inspire spontaneous discussion and learning. Scripps College Claremont, Calif., US The total plan of this women's college, founded in the 1920's, has always called for artistic connection between buildings and landscape. Together, architect Gordon Kaufmann, in collaboration with landscape architect Edward Huntsman-Trout, created a distinctively Southern Californian blend of Mission Revival-inspired architecture and landscape, which is lovely, evocative and intact. An expert in deciduous trees, Trout planted rows of liquid amber trees to give the students "a sense of autumn" come fall. He also peppered the campus with tulip trees, sycamores, almond and orange trees, as well as rare shrubs. Stanford University Palo Alto, Calif., US New additions like the Science and Engineering Quad manage to gracefully blend modern and technological elements with the timeless, elegant aesthetics of the campus' early California Mission Revival architecture. The campus also scores big points for its dramatic entrance via Palm Drive, its romantic Spanish red-tile roofs and myriad patches of green. Tsinghua University Beijing, China Forbe's panel of architects says natural setting plays a big part in assessing a campus' beauty. In that regard, this campus is blessed: Founded in 1925, Tsinghua sits on the former site of the Qing Dynasty's royal gardens. Many of Beijing's most notable historical sites, like the Summer Palace, are close by. The campus is peppered with artificial ponds where stone benches and floating lotus blossoms inspire reflection. which school is considered a paradigm for all college campuses.? A Oxford University. B Stanford University. C Scripps College. D Princeton University. Answer: A Our voice gives away a lot of information about ourselves. It can tell us our gender and age. And now, scientists say that it can also tell us our height. Scientists at Washington University, Indiana University and University of California found that listeners could accurately tell the height of speakers, just by their voices. And the key to this mystery is a sound known as the subglottal resonance . It _ with height and helps us build a mental picture of a person. "The best way to think about subglottal resonances is to imagine blowing into a glass bottle with water. The less water in the bottle, the lower sound," said John Morton, a scientist at Washington University. And it's the same for humans. The frequency of the subglottal resonance depends on the height. The taller we are, the deeper the resonance frequency is. In order to find out whether people could identify the resonance, scientists did experiments. A number of same-sex pairs of different heights were told to read the same sentence aloud. It was played back to listeners who had to choose which one of the pairs was taller. Then, other listeners had to rank the speakers from the shortest to the tallest. The listeners were able to identify the tall people 62.17% of time, much higher than a lucky guess. Why not try the experiment yourself? Find out if your tall friends have deeper voices. Which of the following is TRUE? A Our voice is made up of the subglottal resonance. B The people tested in the experiments were of different-sex pairs. C A person's voice is greatly different even when reading the same sentence. D Listeners' ability to identify taller speaker is much higher than a lucky guess. Answer: D The National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., is one of the world's greatest art museums. Millions of people have entered its doors to see paintings by the world's fine artists. But if these priceless masterpieces are to be preserved, the Gallery must protect them carefully. The Gallery's 135-man guard force has successfully prevented them from being stolen, but protecting the paintings from nature is a greater problem. In past times, the owners of paintings did not protect them from damaging changes in humidity and temperature. As a result, the life of these paintings were shortened. In the National Gallery, however, humidity and temperature are carefully controlled. The building is air-conditioned in summer and heated in winter. The air-conditioning and heating system are so important to the life of the painting that the Gallery has two of each system. If one should fail, the extra one can take over. Light is another enemy of paintings. Ultraviolet rays in light cause paintings to fade . Long ago, paintings often hung in dark churches and palaces. A coat of varnish was a protection from the weak light. But when museums took over the care of many paintings, they were often hung in brighter light than before. Soon they were in danger of fading. The damaging effects of light were increased when the museums removed the varnish coating, yellowed with age. To protect its paintings, the National Gallery put a special kind of glass in its skylights. This glass allows visible lights to enter the building but it keeps out harmful ultraviolet rays. The Gallery has also developed new and better varnishes which help to keep paintings from fading. Thanks to these new _ , many of the world's greatest paintings are being well protected for future generations to enjoy. The text mainly tells us about _ . A the guard force in the National Gallery B protecting great paintings from nature C priceless paintings of past times D the air-conditioning and heating systems in the National Gallery Answer: B
Last year, around Labor Day, I read a "Happy Ad" in our local newspaper. There was a lady in a local nursing home, who was celebrating her 90th birthday and her family wanted everyone to know about it. It said that if you wanted to drop her a line, here was her address. So I did. I found a birthday card and dropped her a short note, wishing her a happy birthday. A week or so later, someone knocked at my front door. I opened the door and found a middle-aged man standing on my doorstep. He introduced himself as the son of this woman to whom I had sent the card. He explained that he just wanted to drop by in person and thank me for sending such a nice card to his mom. Apparently, like many older folks, she did not receive much mail and was quite excited to receive mine. I just didn't know what to say. I told him it was my pleasure and that I hoped his mom had enjoyed her birthday. That year, I did not send out any Christmas cards, except to this lovely old lady in the nursing home. I just told her that I was thinking about her and hoped that she had a nice holiday. I sent her a Valentine and also a couple of notes in between. I just thought she might like to have someone write to her, to get some mail. She passed away a couple of months ago. I never met this lady, but I did keep her and her family in my thoughts. I dropped them a line of sympathy. I hope that my few little notes were enough to brighten a couple of her days here on earth. The old lady's address was given because _ . Frank is my good friend. We are in the same class. He is fourteen, one year older than me. His parents are both teachers in No 7 Middle School. Frank studies hard. His English and math are very good. He often helps other students with their English and math. Our teachers like him very much. We go to school together by bike in the morning. We have lunch at school. After school in the afternoon, we often play sports. We play soccer and baseball. In the evening, he does his homework at home. Sometimes he watches soccer games on TV. On Sundays, he goes out with his parents in his father's car. They play in the park and do sports there. Sometimes my father takes me there, too. We play sports together. We have a good time. Frank is good at _ . The crowd stopped their talks as the runners came to the starting line. At this moment, all eyes were on two people, Mark, the favorite for the gold medal, and Jim, a new face to all. Mark had won a lot of competitions in 3000 meters and was thought to be the finest runner in the country. Until a few months before, Jim was almost unknown outside his hometown. But he had won one competition after another, which was a big surprise. Many people thought Jim would also do very well this time. It was going to be an exciting race. Bang! The race started. For the first half, Jim ran with Mark in the leading group. At 1700 meters, Jim was about one meter behind Mark. Suddenly, the crowd stopped cheering. Mark fell and lay on the grass. He tried to get up, but he had been injured and was out of the race. The crowd believed that Jim had tripped( ) Mark and they began to shout at him. Jim looked back and slowed down. Then _ . But the race was over for Jim, too. He was far behind others now. Jim was very unhappy because of what had happened. Later, after the judges had studied the video of the race, they decided that Jim had done nothing wrong . Jim went to see Mark and said, "I'm sorry for ..." "It's not your fault. I got injured myself in the leg. Such a thing never happens to me. I've got to see the doctor," The two went on to become good friends and were often seen training together. The crowd stopped cheering suddenly because _ . The history of the Winter Games, however, has been even more troubled than that of the Summer Games. Until 1924 all the winter sports competitions, held every four years from 1901 to 1917 and again in 1922, had been in the Scandinavian countries - Sweden, Norway and Finland. The sportsmen of these countries believed that the Winter Games could only be held in the Scandinavian way. Coubertin, himself, was against a separate Winter Olympics as he felt that they would cause trouble within the Olympic movement. However, as winter holidays in the Alps became more and more popular, so did the idea of a truly international Winter Games. The first Winter Olympics were held in Chamonix in 1924, though they were only recognized by the International Olympic Committee as "Olympic" two years later in 1926. Although there were many arguments before them, the first Games were a success, but the problems did not end there. In 1935, it was decided by the IOC that ski teachers could not compete in the Olympics because they were professionals. This caused a big argument between the IOC and the International Ski Federation, who agreed with the ski teachers. However, war came and with it an end to the discussions. When the war was finally over, the Winter Games were started up again, as before, in St Moritz in 1948 and the crisis had passed. Before 1924, all the winter sports competitions were held in_. Millions of people pass through the gates of Disney's entertainment parks in California, Florida and prefix = st1 /Japaneach year. What makes these place an almost universal attraction? What makes foreign kings and queens and other important people want to visit these Disney parks? Well, one reason is the way they're treated once they get there. The people at Disney go out of their way to serve their "guests", as they prefer to call them, and to see that they enjoy themselves. All new employees, from vice presidents to part-time workers, begin their employment by attending Disney University and taking "Traditions I". Here, they learn about the company's history, how it is managed, and why it is successful. They are shown how each department relates to the whole. All employees are shown how their part is important in making the park a success. After passing "Traditions I", the employees go on to do more specialized training for their specific jobs. No detail is missed. A simple job like taking tickets requires four eight-hour days of training. When one ticket taker was asked why it took so much training for such a simple, ordinary job, he replied, "What happens if someone wants to know where the restrooms are, when the parade starts or what bus to take back to the campgrounds?...We need to know the answers or where to get them quickly. Our constant aim is to help our guests enjoy the party." Even Disney's managers get involved in the daily management of the park. Every year, the mangers leave their desks and business suits and put on special service clothes. For a full week, the bosses sell hot dogs or ice cream, take tickets or drive the monorail , and take up any of the 100 jobs that make the entertainment park come alive. The managers agree that this week help them to see the company's goals more clearly. All these efforts to serve the public well have made Walt Disney Productions famous. Disney is considered by many as the best mass service provider in Americaor the world. As one longtime business observer once said, "How Disney treats people, communicates with them, rewards them , is in my view the very reason for his fifty years of success... I have watched, very carefully and with great respect and admiration, the theory and practice of selling satisfaction and serving millions of people on a daily basis, successfully. It is what Disney does best." Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
Discarded electronic devices, such as outdated computers and cell phones, contain materials that can be toxic to the environment. Which statement best explains why humans continue to use these technologies? A. Electronics have become less expensive over time. B. Some areas have recycling programs for electronics. C. Industries that produce electronics help the economy. D. Humans value the benefits of these devices over their cost. Answer: D. Humans value the benefits of these devices over their cost. Men and women are still treated unequally in the workplace. Women continue to earn less, on average, for the same performance. Research has shown that both conscious and subconscious biases contribute to this problem. But we've discovered another source of inequality: Women often don't get what they want and deserve because they don't ask for it. In three separate studies, we found that men are more likely than women to negotiate for what they want. The first study found that the starting salaries of male MBAs who had recently graduated from Carnegie Mellon were 7.6%, or almost $4,000, higher on average than those of female MBAs from the same program. That's because most of the women had simply accepted the employer's salary offer; in fact, only 7% had attempted to negotiate. But 57% of their male counterparts--or eight times as many men as women--had asked for more. Another study tested this gender difference in the lab. Subjects were told that they would be observed playing a word game and that they would be paid between $3 and $10 for playing. After each subject completed the task, an experimenter thanked the participant and said, "Here's $3. Is $3 OK?" For the men, it was not OK, and they said so. Their requests for more money are nine times as many as the women's. The largest of the three studies surveyed several hundred people over the Internet, asking them about the most recent negotiations they'd attempted or started and when they expected to negotiate next. The study showed that men place themselves in negotiation situations much more often than women do. There are several reasons accounting for the phenomenon. First, women often are taught from an early age not to promote their own interests and to focus instead on the needs of others. The messages girls receive--from parents, teachers, other children, the media, and society in general--can be so powerful that when they grow up they may not realize that they've made this behavior part of them, or they may realize it but not understand how it affects their willingness to negotiate. Women tend to think that they will be recognized and rewarded for working hard and doing a good job. Unlike men, they haven't been taught that they can ask for more. According to this passage, what causes the inequality in the workplace? A. social bias B. women's poorer working ability C. women's worse academic background D. women's less negotiating Answer: D. women's less negotiating It was a rainy day and James wanted to play. If he went outside to play, he would get wet. James' mother told him not to get wet because he might catch a cold. James went out to play, anyway. Outside, the cool rain kept falling. There were no other children for James to play with. The other children were all playing inside, where it was warm and dry. James found a puddle that had appeared in the mud. He found a piece of wood and pretended it was a turtle. He put the wooden turtle in the puddle and watched it float in a circle. This was not very fun. After one hour, James went back inside. When James went inside, he found his mother waiting. She had her hands on her hips and a serious look on her face. James was soaking wet! His mother made him change into dry clothes, and he was not to leave the house for the rest of the day. The next morning, the sun shone warm and bright, and the birds sang their morning songs. It was a beautiful day. When James woke up, he coughed. Then he sneezed. His body ached all over. James had a cold! James looked out the window and saw the neighbor children playing in their yards. They were having a lot of fun. James wanted to join them, but he was too sick. His mother was right. What did James play with outside? A. A turtle B. The other children C. A circle D. A piece of wood Answer: D. A piece of wood If a thing has both seeds and reproductive dust, it is A. a producer B. a meat source C. a consumer D. a marine mammal Answer: A. a producer The Human Genome Project, a great $3 billion, 15-year task aimed at drawing the genetic map of humans, is now more than 90 percent completed. The scientific and medical communities are very excited about the chances genetic research provides for getting rid of diseases and prolonging human life. But those communities and policy makers are also careful about the scientific door they are opening as the project uncovers the mysteries of life. For the last few years, the genetic advances in the fast developing field of biotechnology have provided material for all kinds of work, but the developments of modern science in unlocking the secrets of human genetic code have opened a world of possibilities for human health, as well as for the population imagination. While European and Japanese researchers are making rapid progress in decoding human DNA, the leading organization for genetic research in the Untied States, which began in 1990, is "unlocking the code" of the human body to learn how to defeat fatal diseases. Already, the Human Genome Project has become widely known and praised for finding the genes connected with as yet terrible diseases, and making progress toward separating the genes that show a sign of breast cancer or AIDS. Once these genes are found and studied, researchers can develop new ways to attack infections, and genetic diseases. Medical companies are very interested in mapping the human genome, as they expect to develop a lot of new drugs for these illnesses. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true? A. If the genes can be found, scientists can study many new ways to cure illnesses. B. The United States began genetic research early in the 19th century. C. Many medical companies show great interest in drawing the human genome map. D. The scientists have made great progress in connecting some genes with the cancers. Answer: B. The United States began genetic research early in the 19th century.
Question: The crowd at the airport flowed forward. The passengers had been waiting for a couple of hours for an airline employee to open the door leading to the plane outside. No one was in a good mood. An old man got trapped in the middle of the rush. He fell down without being able to break his fall. His head hit the concrete floor. Blood poured from his forehead. He appeared to be unconscious. Everyone rushed past him, except Dana. She called for help. A minute later, a young airline employee showed up. Hardly looking at the old man, she told Dana to get aboard her plane. She said the old man would be okay, and walked away. Dana screamed for help. An airport supervisor appeared. He told Dana to get on the plane. Dana said that she was not moving until an ambulance arrived. The supervisor said her plane would leave without her. Dana said that she didn't care. An ambulance and two attendants finally arrived. The attendants said that the man would be okay, but he would need stitches . They put him into the ambulance and drove off. On her way out to the plane, which was still refueling, Dana saw the employee who had ignored the old man at first. The employee said, "You're lucky. The plane didn't leave without you." "The plane?" Dana asked. "Who cares about the plane? How could you be so cold? That was an old man; he could have been your grandfather! How would you like it if everyone just stepped over your grandfather and went on their way?" What does the story mainly tell us about Dana? A. She works as a young airline employee. B. She was waiting for a plane with her grandfather. C. She was the only person who helped the old man. D. She knows how to do first aid to an old man. Answer: C Question: The holidays are a time to give. These charities---and many more--are looking for volunteers and donations. World Wildlife Fund The World Wildlife Fund is helping to protect endangered species through the Symbolic Species Adoption program. Those who "adopt" an animal will receive an adoption certificate and a photo of their species. Anyone can support endangered species year round by buying WWF apparel . worldwildlife. Org/giving DoSomething. org This month, Dosomething. org launched their holiday campaign, "Grandparents Gone Wired". The goal of the campaign is to make it easier for senior citizens to keep in touch with their loved ones using the Internet. Teens can volunteer to help seniors in their community. Volunteers are able to win prizes and scholarships. dosomething. org/grandparents Coins for Change Disney's Club Penguin, a virtual gaming site for kids, launched its annual Coins for Change campaign this month. From Dec. 15 to Dec. 27, Club Penguin players can donate virtual coins to real-world causes. If players reach the donation goal, Club Penguin will donate $2 million to charity projects. clubpenguin.com. Toys for Tots Each year, the U.S. Marine Corps Toys Program collects new, unwrapped toys for the holidays. Communities across the nation host Toys for Tots drives around the holiday season. The toys collected are given as gifts to needy children so they can experience the joy of Christmas. toyfortots.org American Red Cross All you need is a pen and a piece of paper. The American Red Cross Holiday Mail Heroes Program is collecting handwritten card to send to members of the U.S. Armed Forces during the holidays. The charity has also set up a Holiday Giving Catalog where you can buy personal gifts, such as babysitting lessons. redcross.org The Warm Coats & Warm Hearts Drive The Warm Coats & Warm Hearts Drive is a non-profit organization sponsored by ABC's Good Morning America and Burlington Coat Factory. During the holiday season Burlington stores collect gently worn coats. The donated coats are given to people in need to keep warm during the winter. onewarmcoat.org David, 8, is fond of playing virtual games. Which charity should he attend? A. Coins for Change. B. Toys for Tots. C. DoSomething,org. D. American Red Cross. Answer: A Question: A gentle breeze blew through Jennifer's hair. The golden red sun was setting. She was on the beach, looking up at the fiery ball. She was amazed by its color1, deep red in the middle, softly fading into yellow. She could hear nothing but the waves and the seagulls flying up above in the sky. The atmosphere relaxed her. After all she had been through, this was what she needed. "It's getting late," she thought, "I must go home. My parents will be wondering where I am." She wondered how her parents would react, when she got home after the three days she was missing. She kept on walking, directing herself where she spent every summer holiday. The road was deserted. She walked slowly and silently. Just in a few hundred meters she would have been safe in her house. It was really getting dark now. The sun had set a few minutes before and it was getting cold, too. She wished she had her favorite sweater on-- it kept her really warm. She imagined having it with her. This thoughtdisappeared when she finally saw her front door. It seemed different. Nobody had taken care of the outside garden for a few days. She was shocked: her father was usually so strict about keeping everything clean and tidy, and now... It all seemed deserted. She couldn't understand what was going on. She entered the house. First, she went into the kitchen where she saw a note written by her father. It said, " Ellen, there is some coffee ready. I went looking." Ellen was her mother but -- where was she? On the right side of the hallway was her parents' room. She went in. Then she saw her. Her mother, lying on the bed, was sleeping. Her face looked so tired, as if she hadn't slept for days. She was really pale. Jennifer would have wanted to wake her up but she looked too tired. So Jennifer just fell asleep beside her. When Jennifer woke up, something was different... she wasn't in her mother's room and she wasn't wearing the old clothes she ran away in. She was in her _ bed in her pajamas . It felt so good being back home. Suddenly she heard a voice, "Are you feeling better now, ? You know you got us very, very scared." What can we conclude from this passage? A. In fact Jennifer's mother had been sick for days. B. As Jennifer walked towards home, she became increasingly scared. C. When she found the garden deserted, she realized she got cross. D. Having experienced a lot outside, Jennifer felt home was really warm and safe for her. Answer: D Question: Born in the State of New York on May 14th, 1984, Mark Zuckerberg was an instant success. In his high school years, he was considered one of top students in the classics, before moving into the arts, sciences, and literature, again picking up high marks and receiving academic praise. It earned him admission to Harvard University. As a rebellious yet relatively quiet student, he created a website called Facemash in the university- an instantly controversial website that encouraged students to rate each other based on appearance. The site was controversial for several reasons. The first was its illegal use of photographs, which the university and students took issue with. The second was its controversial nature - not every student like being ranked based on their appearance. The third was its huge resource use - while it was hosted on Harvard servers, it was the most popular page in the university's entire network. Zuckerberg was soon forced to shut the site down, but its popularity and controversy had made him consider its future potential. He soon turned the simple site into a personal one for Harvard students, encouraging them to network with their peers at the college. It was then, together with his two friends, that they launched "The Facebook", which immediately spread to other colleges and grew into a public service that anyone could access in the United States, whether to network with friends and family, or to play games. The company has been criticized frequently, nevertheless, Zuckerberg has remained true to his initial vision - to create a website that the entire world can use to communicate openly and easily with one another and to keep the user experience clean and pure. The end result is one of the world's biggest online businesses. Although its true value is debatable, it's safe to say that Facebook, and its creator Mark Zuckerberg, are two of the twenty-first century's most influential, controversial, and potentially powerful figures. Which words can best describe Zuckerberg? A. easy-going and smart. B. quiet and shy. C. talented and outgoing. D. rebellious and creative. Answer: D Question: Don't you hate it when someone snubs you by looking at their phone instead of paying attention? The word "Phubbing", which comes from "phone" and "snub", describes such behavior . With popularization of smart phones, we see a new "Phubbing" group everywhere in public places: in subway, restaurants, roads, people are checking the mobile phone, ignoring the people around completely. What is worrying us is that not only young people, but also the elderly and kids are getting addicted to Phubbing. On Dec 29th, a 28-year-old woman--a mother of two in Wenzhou, drowned after she fell into a river while looking at her mobile phone. A Pakistani man was killed on Dec 15th, 2015, after being hit by a fast moving train while trying to take a selfie with it on the track. Last month, Justin, a college student was shot in subway in San Francisco, the U.S. The surveillance video showed that before Justin was killed, the killer pulled out the gun several times, and even wiped his nose with it. However, nobody noticed that. The surrounding passengers all focused on their cell phones. Phone is the tool for communication, but now it distances people and makes them separated from each other. Therefore, someone jokes "the furthest distance in the world is not the distance between life and death, but that you don't know I stand in front of you while you focus on the mobile." Phubbing appears harmless; however, it does affect our life. 23-year-old Alex from Melbourne wrote in his blog: "I can no longer focus on what I am eating since I started twittering. My skill of food photography has improved very fast, while my interest in food drops a lot as a result." What may the passage talk about next? A. Ways to stay away from phubbing B. People who are addicted to phubbing C. Possible reasons for phubbing D. Advice on how to use a cell phone Answer: A
A staycation is a vacation when you do not travel at all. Some people use a staycation to just stay at home, and others prefer to experience the attractions around them without traveling very far. There are many choices for staycations. Any town or city has plenty of choices for things to do if you know where to look. If the weather is nice, you can visit the local gardens or forests for a hike. You can look online for several historic places and create your own history tours. Of course, you can also visit other attractions in the areas like museums, restaurants, bars, parks, beaches, and so on. Often, if you drive just a few hours, you can find a city that you can walk around and see. Then by driving home you can save the cost of a hotel and a plane ride. Others take the term "staycation" word for word and do not leave their houses at all. Some choices for this can include taking time off to cook a great meal and enjoy it together or spending all day at a pool. Just as a coin has two sides, staycation has its advantages as well as disadvantages. Since you are not traveling or staying in a hotel, a staycation can be unbelievably costeffective . You don't have to pay for a hotel, so that cost has been completely _ . You are also saving by not driving very far and by not taking an airplane anywhere. Travel costs have become really high, and the farther you go, the higher they are. By staying close to home, you cut that cost by quite a bit. You are also pushing money back into your local economy by spending your money at local businesses rather than in cities that are far away from home. Finally, any stress that you feel with travel, whether that is from driving long distances or looking for an airport, will completely disappear. For what purpose is the text written? Answer: To introduce the general information of staycatons. Read our guide because ---trust us--- you don't want to be the one everyone's rolling their eyes at. GO RIGHT AHEAD: GOLDEN RULE: Home is pretty much the only place where you can safely blab about anything without having to consider the needs of the people around you. HANDLE WITH CARE in these places: Waiting rooms: People here tend to be feeling anxious about their news --- not yours. Shopping: Chatting while you're in line will slow down checkout and make other shoppers angry. GO RIGHT AHEAD: Make calls quickly and quietly, and be respectful of those forced to listen. DON'T DO IT in these places: Museums/libraries/churches: There are places we go for peace and quiet --- it's not proper to disturb others. Movies and plays: People pay to hear someone other than you perform. Elevators/ bathrooms/ beauty salons/ public transportation: No one around you can escape. Why force them to listen to your chitchat? Restaurants: People come here partly to get away from ringing phones and enjoy their conversations , so don't subject them to yours. GO RIGHT AHEAD: Put your phone on vibrate if you must get a call but always wait until you are outside before you start talking. While driving a car: It's rude to put other drivers in danger. So instead of going by the Golden Rules above, use a voice-activated phone --- and use it as little as possible. You are four times as likely to get into a car accident if you're on the phone while you're driving. Hang up already: How to politely ask that loud cell-take to speak softly: If you're in a place that has a manager, ask him or her to do _ . Otherwise, put on your sweetest smile, tap the offender on the shoulder, and try one of these carefully worded lines: "Would you please end your call? I can't hear what they're saying?" (Try this when you're watching movies and plays.) "Excuse me, but you're making it really hard for me to concentrate ." (Good for museums, libraries, and places of worship.) "Is it possible for you to speak a little more softly? I have a bad headache." (This will usually work just about anywhere.) You are not supposed to chat on your cell phone _ . Answer: in a lift If you ask most Americans, they would say their favorite season of the year is summer. The weather is warm. They do not have to wear heavy clothes to keep warm. Young people do not have to go to school. They can do many activities outside, like playing sports and swimming at the beach or the pool. They like the sunshine during the day and the warm summer nights. People have written and recorded hundreds of songs about summer. These are some of our favorites. One of the most famous songs about summer is from George Gershwin's opera "Porgy and Bess". He wrote the music in nineteen thirty-five. The opera takes place in the southern United States. It opens with these words: "Summertime and the living' is easy. Fish are jumping' and the cotton is high." Leontyne Price sings the song. The nineteen fifties and sixties produced many songs about teenagers enjoying their summer vacation from school. The songs are about having fun, swimming in the ocean, driving in cars. However, for some teenagers, summer vacation was not all fun and games. Some of them had to work to earn money. Please choose an appropriate title for the passage. Answer: Summer. The stinker was that no one let the elf in. He had waited at the door for four whole hours, but was afraid to knock in case the noise would wake the humans. This elf was the tooth fairy's helper, but one day hoped to work in the North Pole. That would never happen if he couldn't even help the tooth fairy with teeth on his first day working for her. It was almost morning now. Soon the children would wake up and run out the front door with their books for school. Inside, the tooth fairy would be wondering what was keeping him. "It's too dangerous to stay at this door," the elf thought, "The children might see me." Just then he heard the alarm clocks go off inside. He dove into a nearby bush and hid, hoping that his green uniform would help him match the color of the bush's leaves. Why was the elf in front of the door? Answer: He was working for the Tooth Fairy and no one had let him in In many countries the standard of living enjoyed by their people has increased rapidly in recent years. Sadly, not everyone in these countries is so fortunate and many people in rich countries are homeless. The reasons for homelessness are various, but poverty is undoubtedly one of the main causes. The homeless people may have become jobless and then been unable to pay their rent and so no longer have _ . Often, the fact that unemployed people get help from the government prevents this from happening, but not always. Some homeless people are mentally ill and have no one to look after them. Some are young people who, for one reason or another, have left home and have nowhere to live. Many of them have had a serious disagreement with their parents and have left home, choosing to go to a city and live on the streets. Sometimes they have taken such action because they have been unable to get on with a step-parent. Many homeless people get into the habit of begging to get enough money to stay alive, but many of the general public refuse to give anything to beggars. Often they are moved on by the police, being accused ,whether rightly or wrongly, of forceful begging . There are many who disrespect homeless people. Some cynics declare that homeless people choose to live the life which they lead. But who would willingly choose to live in a shop doorway, under a bridge or in a cardboard box? The author thinks that the homeless people are _ . Answer: Pitiful
People fell in love with Elizabeth Taylor in 1944, when she starred inNational Velvet-the story of Velvet Brown, a young girl who wins first place in a famous horse race, At first, the producers of the movie told Taylor that she was too small to play the part of Velvet. However, they waited for her for a few months as she exercised and trained--and added three inches to her height in four months! Her acting inNational Velvetis still considered the best by a child actress. Elizabeth Taylor was born in London in 1932. Her parents, both Americans, had moved there for business reasons. When World War II started, the Taylor moved to Beverly Hills, California, and there Elizabeth started acting in movies. After her success as a child star, Taylor had no trouble moving into adult roles and won twice for Best Actress:Butterfield8 (1960) andWho's Afraid of Virginia Woolf ? (1966) Taylor's fame and popularity gave her a lot of power with the movie industry, so she was able to demand very high pay for her movies. In 1963, she received $1 million for her part inCleopatra--the highest pay received by any star up to that time. Elizabeth Taylor is a legend of our time. Like Velvet Brown inNational Velvet, she has been lucky, she has beauty, fame and wealth. But she is also a hard worker. Taylor seldom acts in movies any more. Instead, she puts her time and efforts into her businesses, and into helping others--several years ago, she founded an organization that has raised more than $40 million for research and education. Taylor became Best Actress at the age of _ . The sun had gone behind a cloud. I was very tired and wanted nothing in the world so much as to be at home. At last I got to the gate of Hide Park. But this was worse than ever; there were buses there--high and terribly red cars, taxis and still more buses in an endless line. Everywhere there were people hurrying past or waiting to get into the buses, while I stood lost in the middle of them. I was ready to cry. In despair, I crossed the street on to an "island", where I found a policeman. I took my last bit of courage in both hands and said, "Please, sir, where is Addison Road?" He began to explain, but when he saw that I couldn't understand he became helpless, too. "Are you French at school?" A few minutes later, he smiled and raised his hand. How wonderful! The traffic stopped. Even the red buses stood still and waited until I had crossed the road. That _ is the most probable reason why she was tired out. Welcome to the world of multitasking -- a place where the measure of a person is how many jobs they can perform at the same time. In fact, if experts are to be believed, multitasking is a disastrous idea. One of the opponents of multitasking is Dr. Clifford Nass, a professor at Stanford University. "People who multitask frequently are less able to pay attention; they're worse at managing their memory." he said. In his opinion, the loss that we get with multitasking is harmless in some situations, for example, part of doing business in the digital world: but you can't do serious work like writing, thinking or solving an important problem this way. You do worse even as you think you're doing better. All the time the research points to a simple fact: the brain cannot cope. When you stop midway through composing a report to check an email, you force your brain to stop and regroup. It is like pressing the pause button during a movie, meaning the film takes longer to watch. And as for Dr. Nass, the problems extend beyond the brain. Young people who frequently multitask are not as socially and emotionally healthy as those who don't. They just feel more emotionally satisfied and the feeling is so good and they are bound to desire it again. Todd Oppenheimer, a writer said "We've become a very short-term society and don't reward people for taking a lot of time on something." He fears we may end up losing the next generation of great thinkers. "It's really unfortunate because the long-term challenges of our world -- environmental issues, financial issues -- require people to think wisely about the long-term consequences of what they do. And it's no coincidence that the kind of people who do think long-term don't multitask." According to Dr. Nass, multitasking _ . Holmes said, "Somebody sent a letter with five pips in it from India, and arrived seven weeks later to kill John's uncle. Then they sent five pips from Scotland and arrived three days later to kill John's father. Now they have sent five pips to John from London!" "The letters are all from sea ports . The writer was on a ship when he wrote the letters," I replied. "Very good, Watson! And John's enemy is in London already!" "Well, I hope they won't kill young John," I said. But they did. The next morning, we read in the newspaper that a policeman found him die near Waterloo station. Holmes was very angry about it. "He came to me for help and those men murdered him! I'm going to find them, if it's the last thing I do!" he said to me, and he hurried out of the house. At night, when he came back, he was tired, but pleased, he said, "I know the names of John's enemies! And now I'm going to send them a surprise! This will frighten them!" He took five pips from an orange and put them in an envelope . On it he wrote "S. H. for _ " "I'm sending the pips to captain James Calhoun. His ship is called the Star. He and his men are sailing back to Georgia, USA." "How did you find him, Holmes?" I asked. "Ship's papers," he said, "I've looked at hundreds of them today. Only one ship, the Star, was in the three ports at the right times, this morning the Star left London to sail back to Georgia. I found out that the captain and two of his men, all Americans, weren't on the ship last night, so I'm sure they killed John. When they arrive in America, they'll get the pips and then the police will catch them!" The Star left London for _ . _ Pass for a native. Pimsleur courses help people who need to speak another language quickly. Our courses took 40 years to develop and are now used by the FBI, CIA, and business professionals everywhere. They are so effective that you have nothing to lose! You will get everything in 10 days: * Language instruction that is proven effective * No boring charts or meaningless rules 8 fluency-oriented lessons on 4 audio CDs (or cassettes) Audio teaching with a 25-year history of success. Full 30-day money-back guarantee Special offers on our more advanced courses There are so many reasons to learn a new language with the Pimsleur approach : * Speak without an accent so you sound like a native. Form new sentences that sound right and make sense. Practice what is natural to you in English. Feel safe and confident. You will know how to deal with any situation. Protect your busy life. 30-minute lessons are perfect for your lunch break or workout. Remember without trying. Material is scientifically arranged so you remember without pain. *Join 25 million people who have graduated with success since 1980. The purpose of the course ; The entire Pimsleur approach is what language learning should be : quick, fun and easy J Many foreign language students have difficulty in learning. Their textbooks teach boring drills, grammar rules and lists of words. But textbooks alone can never bring it all together. Your only real goal in taking any language course is to speak naturally with others. You will keep building on what you have learned. Best of all,Pimsleur courses do not waste your time by cramming grammar down your throat. You learn to recognize what sounds right through practice. 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The best and worst part about being a twenty-something is that every decision you make can change the rest of your life. Once you're in your 30's or 40's, it gets harder and harder to reinvent yourself. So I made an interview with Dr. Meg Jay, the clinical psychologist. He explains why the twenties matter, and how to make the most of them. In Dr. Meg Jay's opinion, our 20s are the _ decade of adulthood. 80% of life's most important moments take place by about age 35. And 2/3 of lifetime wage growth happens during the first ten years of a career. More than half of Americans are married or are dating or living with their future partner by age 30. Personality can change more during our 20s than at any other decade in life. Female fertility peaks at 28. The brain caps off its last major growth. When it comes to adult development, 30 is not the new 20. Even if you do nothing, not making choices is a choice all the same. Don't be defined by what you didn't know or didn't do. On the other hand, I also ask him how the 20s track their progress toward their future goals and whether milestones like 21 and 30 are really important. Dr. Meg Jay think it ly important. Milestones--21, 25, 30, New Year's, birthdays, reunions--are important because they cause self-reflection. What he mentioned are as follows: Am I where I wanted to be by this age? Did I do what I said I would do this year? If not, why not. And if not now, when? A 20-year-old girl who interviewed me recently told me about a question she was advised to ask herself as she moved through adulthood: "If you keep living your life exactly as it is, where will you be in 3 years?" If you don't like the answer, now is the time to change course. Surely the 20s are for experimenting, but not just with philosophies and vacations and substances . The 20s are your best chance to experiment with jobs and relationships. Then each move can be more intentional and more informed than the last. What is the most changeable during the 20s according to the passage? An atlas is a book of maps. Atlases are made with different kinds of information about different parts and areas of a country or the world. They are prepared for desk use or travel use. Desk atlases are made for different groups of people with different needs. For example, students may use desk atlases to help learn geography, and other people may use desk atlases to study a place. A popular type of the latest atlas shows the recent fact of the world. New atlases are often carefully produced to help people learn about the changes, such as the name changes, boundary changes and other important new information. A desk atlas can also have some different maps of the same place. For example, an atlas may include maps showing population and important products of a place. Travel atlases usually show the information about both natural and man-made features . So it is not surprising to find universities, airports, forests, rivers, roads as well as cities, towns and villages in them. A travel atlas is often the first thing people need when they want to start a trip in a strange place. It often has a map of a whole country, and a map with more special information of each important place in the country. Take the atlas of the United States as an example, it often has a map of the whole country and then a map of each of the fifty states. A travel atlas may also point out the beautiful natural places. In the US, the atlas may include national parks such as the Yellow Stone Park and some others to show the beauty of nature and interesting places to tourists. An atlas is _ according to the passage. EVERY few hundred years, a sleeping giant in southern Italy awakens with a bang, spewing volcanic ash across the countryside. The volcano, called Mount Vesuvius, formed 25,000 years ago. During its most explosive eruptions, the volcano could blanket nearby cities with hot ash, sometimes also burying them with deadly flows of mud and rocks. One famous eruption occurred nearly 2,000 years ago, in the year AD 79. It lasted 18 hours and destroyed the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum, killing thousands of people as they tried to escape. Scientists and city officials had supposed that Naples, one of Italy's most populous cities, was far enough away that it would be safe from the volcano's _ . New evidence suggests that this might not be the case. Researchers recently discovered 4000-year-old layers of ash and mud under present-day Naples. Just outside the city, they also uncovered abandoned villages, as well as human and animal skeletons. Most surprising of all, the researchers say, was the discovery of thousands of footprints from the same time period, pressed into layers of wet ash that had rained from the sky. The footprints show that thousands of people were fleeing to the northwest, away from the volcano, as it erupted. Mount Vesuvius hasn't had a major eruption since 1631, but it's still very active. The discovery of the ancient ash layers, skeletons, and footprints is a warning that modern Naples, a city of 3 million people, isn't safe from the volcano, scientists say. So, when the volcano begins to rumble again, Naples should have an emergency evacuation plan ready - just in case. The researchers found the new evidence EXCEPT _ . If you don't often wash your hands, you can touch lots of viruses from many places and make yourself ill. You may have a cold when you touch your eyes, nose or mouth. One of the most common ways people have colds is by touching their noses or their eyes when there are cold viruses on their hands. If you don't often wash your hands, especially when you're sick, you may make other people ill. So you should follow the advice and wash your hands: * After using the bathroom. * After touching your nose or coughing. * Before eating, serving or preparing food. * After touching pets or other animals. * After visiting the sick people. * When your hands are dirty. There's a right way to wash your hands. Follow these advice and you can keep your hands clean. * Use warm water (not cold or hot). * Wash for 15 seconds . * Wash well under warm running water. The right way to wash hands is " _ ". A developer edition of Sony's augmented reality smart glasses will go on sale in ten countries next month, the tech giant has announced. Pre-orders for the SmartEyeglass, costing $840 (PS620), are now being taken in the UK and Germany, with Japan and the US to follow shortly. The black-framed glasses are compatible with recent Android operating systems. Last month Google announced that it was withdrawing its smart glasses for redevelopment. Sony's initial model will come with a software development kit to encourage people to design apps for it, the company said. The glasses, which weigh 77g, contain an accelerometer, gyroscope, compass, image and brightness sensors, 3-megapixel camera and a microphone. They also come with a controller, designed to be attached to clothing, which contains a speaker, touch sensor and the device's battery. Text is displayed in front of the wearer in monochrome green. Apple chief executive Tim Cook has been open about his dislike of glasses as a wearable device. "We always thought that glasses were not a smart move, from a point of view that people would not really want to wear them," he told the New Yorker. "They were intrusive , instead of pushing technology to the background, as we've always believed." Stuart Miles, founder of tech site Pocket-lint, said: "I think [Sony is] wasting their time, energy and effort." "Google Glass obviously needed a complete rethink... I can't see how something thick-rimmed and more invasive-looking than Google Glass is going to catch on. "People are keen on wearables like fitness bands and watches, but they care about their faces. Wearing something on your head is a lot stronger than wearing something on your arm," he added. "The industry keeps pushing it but consumers just don't want it." What can be inferred from what Stuart Miles said?
Question: Recently I spoke to some of my students about what they wanted to do after they graduated, and what kind of job prospects they thought they had. Given that I teach students who are training to be doctors, I was surprised to find that most thought that they would not be able to get the jobs they wanted without "outside help". "What kind of help is that?" I asked, expecting them to tell me that they would need a relative or family friend to help them out. "Surgery ", one replied. I was pretty alarmed by that response. It seems that the graduates of today are increasingly willing to go under the knife to get ahead of others when it comes to getting a job. One girl told me that she was considering surgery to increase her height. "They break your legs, put in special extending screws, and slowly expand the gap between the two ends of the bone as it regrows, you can get at least 5cm taller!" At that point, I was shocked. I am short, I can't deny that, but I don't think I would put myself through months of agony just to be a few centimeters taller. I don't even bother to wear shoes with thick soles, as I'm not trying to hide the fact that I am just not tall! It seems to me that there is a trend toward wanting "perfection", and that is an ideal that just does not exist in reality. No one is born perfect, yet magazines, TV shows and movies present images of thin, tall, beautiful people as being the norm. Advertisements for slimming aids, beauty treatments and cosmetic surgery clinics fill the pages of newspapers, further creating an idea that "perfection" is a requirement, and that it must be purchased, no matter what the cost. In my opinion, skills, rather than appearance, should determine how successful a person is in his chosen career. According to the passage, the author believes that _ . A. everyone should purchase perfection, whatever the cost B. it's right for graduates to ask for others to help them out in hunting for jobs C. media are to blame for misleading young people in their seeking for surgery D. it is one's appearance instead of skills that really matters in one's career Answer: C. media are to blame for misleading young people in their seeking for surgery Question: A couple from Miami, Bill and Simone Butler, spent sixty-six days in a life-raft in the seas of Central America after their boat sank. Twenty-one days after they left Panama in their boat, Simony, they met some whales. "They started to hit the side of the boat," said Bill, "and then suddenly we heard water." Two minutes later, the boat was sinking. They jumped into the life-raft and watched the boat go under the water. For twenty days they had tins of food, biscuits, and bottles of water. They also had a fishing-line and a machine to make salt water into drinking water -- two things which saved their lives. They caught eight to ten fish a day and ate them raw . Then the line broke. "So we had no more fish until something very strange happened. Some sharks came to feed, and the fish under the raft were afraid and came to the surface. I caught them with my hands." About twenty ships passed them, but no one saw them. After fifty days at sea their life-raft was beginning to break up. Then suddenly it was all over. A fishing boat saw them and picked them up. They couldn't stand up. So the captain carried them onto his boat and took them to Costa Rica. Their two months at sea was over. During their days at sea, _ saved their lives. A. tins of food and bottles of water B. a fishing-line and a machine C. whales and sharks D. Twenty passing ships Answer: B. a fishing-line and a machine Question: What will man be like in the future----in 5000 or even 50,000 years from now? We can only make guesses, of course, but we can be sure that he will be different from what he is today, for man is slowly changing all the time. Let us take an obvious example. Man, even five hundred years ago, was shorter than he is today. Now, on average, men are about three inches taller. Five hundred years is relatively short period of time, so we may assume that man will continue to grow taller. Again, in the modern world we use our brains a great deal. Even so, we still make use of only about 20% of the brain's capacity. As time goes on, however, we shall have to use our brains more and more, and eventually we shall need larger ones! This is likely to bring about a physical change to the head, in particular the forehead, will grow larger. Nowadays our eyes are in constant use. In fact, we use them so much that very often they become weaker and we have to wear glasses. But over very long period of time it is likely that man's eyes will grow stronger. On the other hand, we tend to make less use of our arms and legs. These, as a result, are likely to grow weaker. At the same time, however, our fingers will grow more sensitive because they are used a great deal in modern life. But what about hair? This will probably disappear from the body altogether in course of time because it does not serve a useful purpose any longer. In the future, then, both sexes are likely to be bald. Perhaps all this gives the impression that future man will not be a very attractive creature to look at! This may well be true. All the same, in spite of all these changes, future man will still have a lot in common with us. He will still be a human being, with thoughts and emotions similar to our own. The passage mainly tells us that _ . A. man's life will be different in the future B. future man will look quite different from us C. man is growing taller and uglier as time passes D. the functions of man's organs will function as well as today Answer: B. future man will look quite different from us Question: I got tired of living the life that everybody told me I "should" be living , so one day I decided to start living life on my own terms. Frustrated with my job, I came home, put on my shoes, and just started running. It felt so good to be free. That first day I ended up running 30 miles without stopping. Yes, I had rediscovered my old passion ( ) -- and it felt so good I set a goal to support myself and my family from my running alone. I trained hard every day. Since I wanted to be the best I could be, I knew I would have to set some clear goals for myself. A couple of my goals were: run a 135-mile ultra-marathon across Death Valley, win the Badwater Ultra-Marathon, and run a marathon to the South Pole. I had no idea how I was going to achieve these goals, but they certainly encouraged me to work hard. Today, I am really grateful to say that I have achieved all of them. Shortly after completing these goals, I set another goal: to run fifty marathons, in fifty states, in fifty days. Nobody had done anything like this before. To be honest, I was not quite sure if I could. But there was only one way to find out...so I just started training and preparing to give it my best try. I completed _ one year ago, and it felt great! But for me, life is not all about achieving goals. Sure, it feels good to succeed, but the greatest reward for me was learning more about myself and what I was able to do. Only by stepping out into the unknown and stretching ourselves can we really discover what our true potential is. Why did the author decide to become a runner? A. He was out of work. B. He wanted to treat his illness. C. He wanted to live his dreams. D. He suddenly found running interesting. Answer: C. He wanted to live his dreams. Question: Maybe you know floods, earthquakes, sandstorms and so on. But have you heard of typhoons? Typhoons are some of the worst storms, usually around the Pacific Ocean and the South China Sea. Most happen in July, August and September. How does a typhoon happen? When lots of sea water gets hot in the summer sun, it evaporates into the air. This makes the air hotter. When the air gets warm enough, it starts to move higher up into sky. Then cooler air around it rushes in. It fills the space that is left. After the air gets warmer, it starts to move quickly, making wind. The wind goes in circles and it keeps moving higher in the sky. The warmer the air gets, the quicker the wind moves. And when the wind moves faster than 30 metres a second, a typhoon begins. A typhoon has two parts, one is called the "eye". In the eye, the wind does not move so fast. The other part is the wall of clouds around the eye. Here are the strongest winds and hardest rains. Typhoons are very dangerous. In November this year, Typhoon Haiyan killed 5500 people in Philippines. More people are missing. What to do when a typhoon hits? Stay inside. Close all the windows and stay away from them. Try to bring all of your things inside. Strong winds could even blow away your bikes! Listen to the radio or TV for important information. If you're told to go to a safer place, do it right now. When a typhoon comes, we CANNOT _ . A. close all the windows B. listen to typhoon news C. stay inside the strong house D. go outside to find a safer place Answer: D. go outside to find a safer place
Many Americans have been leaving their cars at home and riding to work on bicycles. Andy Clark is the leader of the League of American Bicyclists. His group supports bicycling for fun, fitness and transportation. Clark says this is good news for the environment. He says riding a bicycle to work does not burn fossil fuel or creates dangerous pollutions. Experts say the effects are the most important on short trips. The Department of Transportation says fifty percent of Americans drive eight kilometers or fewer to work. Shorter car trips set out more pollution into the air for each kilometer drive. This is because the car engine will set out the harmful air when it warms up before it can work well. James, a members of Congress , is a strong supporter of bicycle use. He says cities, counties, state governments and state highway transportation agencies are planning the roadways of the future. They are creating roads and paths for bicycles in cities and between communities. Last year, Portland, the Pacific Northwest city in the state of Oregon, had the highest percentage of bicycle users in the United States. Portland has been doing progressive city planning for many years to create special paths for bike riders. What happened in America now according to the news? A. Many Americans lost jobs now. B. Many Americans prefer short trips. C. There are more and more bicyclists now in America. D. The pollution is getting worse and worse in America. Answer: C One fine afternoon, while walking, I remembered that I needed a pair of socks. I turned into a sock shop that caught my eye, and a boy clerk who was about 17 came forward. "What can I do for you, sir?" There was a note of passion in his voice. "Did you know that you have come into the finest place in the world to buy socks? Come with me," said the boy. I followed him to the back of the shop, and he began to take down from the shelves box after box of socks. "I am going to buy only one pair!" "I know that," said he, "but I want you to see how beautiful these are. Aren't they wonderful?" I became far more interested in him than in the socks. I looked at him in surprise. "My friend," said I, "if you can keep this up, if this is not just the enthusiasm that comes from having a new job, if you can keep up this excitement day after day, in ten years you will be a good businessman." My surprise at his pride and joy in his salesmanship will be easily understood by all who read this article. In many shops the customer has to wait for someone to serve him. And when finally some shop assistant notices you, you are made to feel as if you were interrupting him. He displays no interest either in you or in the goods he is paid to sell. It's possible that every shop assistant who is now so bored began his career with hope and enthusiasm. I have observed this happen in the lives of so many men. I have come to the conclusion that the surest road to failure is to do things mechanically . The author became more interested in the boy than in the socks because _ . A. he was attracted by the boy's enthusiasm for his work B. the shop was the finest shop in the world to buy socks C. the boy would lose his job D. the boy would become the owner of this shop Answer: A One sixth of undergraduates in Beijing this year have registered at a driving school . The students , mostly from majors such as business management or international trade , will finish there driving courses within 20 days or so .Training costs have dropped to ,2,600yuan for students , according to the Haidian Driving School in Beijing . The price is not really low , but students will accept it , seeing it as an investment in their future . Familiarity with the operation of computers and fluent English are the basic skills graduating students need to find a job . But a driver's permit has become another factor. "In the job market , owning a driver's permit sometimes strengthens a graduating student's competitiveness for a good position ," says Zhou Yang , an undergraduate at the China University of Political Science and Law . Cars will become a necessary part of many people's lives in the coming years , and it's difficult to get a permit out of campus because of the pressures on working people's time . "Having a full-time job after graduation offers limited time to learn to drive . We senior students have plenty of spare time , plenty of opportunities to learn." Xu Jian , an official at the driving school, said undergraduates were very able and serious , and could grasp in an hour what it took ordinary people four hours to learn . In this driving school, middle-aged people , young women and college students are the main customers . To get a driver's permit , a beginner is now required to have at least 86 hours' practice before the final road test . The undergraduates are learning to drive because_. A. they like to drive cars B. they need this skill to find a good job . C. most of them will be able to buy cars in the future D. they want to become full-time drivers after graduation Answer: B herbivores do what with plants A. burn them B. garden them C. trade them D. snack on them Answer: D Wake Up,Sleep Gene Some people can stay up all night and still get work done the next day.I'm not one of them.After a night without enough sleep,I feel bad-tempered.I have trouble remembering things.And all I want to do is crawl back into bed and sleep. How do you feel after you've stayed up late to finish schoolwork? Or the day after an overnight party? Scientists now say that your answers to these questions may depend on your genes. New research suggests that a gene called period 3 affects how well you function without sleep.The period 3 gene comes in two forms: short and long.Everyone has two copies of the gene.So,you may have two longs,two shorts,or one of each.Your particular combination depends on what your parents passed on to you. Scientists from the University of Surrey in England studied 24 people who had either two short or two long copies of period 3.Study participants had to stay awake for 40 hours straight.Then,they took tests that measured how quickly they pushed a button when number flashed on a screen and how well they could remember lists of numbers. Results showed that the people with the short form of period 3 performed much better on these tests than the people with the long form did.In both groups,people performed worst in the early morning.That's the time when truck drivers and other night-shift workers say they have the most trouble concentrating. After the first round of experiments,participants were finally allowed to sleep.People in the group that performed well on the tests took about 18 minutes to nod off. People with the long period 3 genes,by contrast,fell asleep in just 8 minutes.They also spent more time in dip sleep.That suggests that people with the long form of the gene need more and deeper sleep to keep their brains working at top form. I think I must have the long form of period 3.What about you? The purpose of this passage might be _ . A. to tell us the importance of plenty of sleep B. to tell the result of a research on sleepy gene C. to inform the harm of lacking sleep D. to announce the sleeping rules of humans Answer: B
I live in a big Scandinavian city that unluckily has a lot of homeless people. But there are many ways of helping them even though you may not have a lot of money. One way is to buy their monthly magazines. By doing this one day, I got to know a young homeless man who was often standing at the train station, selling the magazine. He was from another country and I can only imagine what kind of psychological scars he must have had from living in a war-torn country. After a while, I found that his birthday was close to mine which meant that we were born under the same sign of the Zodiac . I met him last year shortly after his birthday, and without thinking, after congratulating him, I asked if he had had a good day. He said he hadn't really celebrated. I just couldn't bear the thought of this nice, young man being alone on his 25th birthday with no presents, no cakes and no songs! So I went home and looked in my yarn basket and as luck would have it, I had two yarn cores of pure wool left. I set to work and knitted a scarf for the young man. I ran into him on my own birthday the next year as I was going shopping. I had hoped to meet him so I had carried the scarf around with me and a piece of my own birthday cake. He was very happy with these gifts and so was I. The light in his eyes and the heartfelt hug he gave me was the best present he could have given me! From the text, we can know the writer spent her _ birthday with the homeless man. A 25th B 26th C 27th D 28th Answer: B. 26th An area of dirt may have rivets in it depending on A if soil is piled up B if there is more soil C if soil has been altered D if soil has been added Answer: C. if soil has been altered Little Tommy was doing very badly in math. His parents had tried everything -- tutors, cards, special learning centers -- in short, everything they could think of. Finally they took Tommy to a catholic school. After the first day, little Tommy came home with a very serious look on his face. He didn't kiss his mother hello. Instead, he went straight to his room and started studying. Books and paper were spread out all over the room and little Tommy was hard at work. His mother was surprised. She called him down to dinner and as soon as he finished eating, he went back hitting the books as hard as before. This went on for some time, day after day while the mother tried to understand what was happening. Finally, little Tommy brought home his report card. He quietly put it on the table and went up to his room and hit the books. His mother looked at it and to her surprise, little Tommy got an A in math. She could no longer hold her curiosity . She went to his room and asked, "son, what was it? Was it the nuns ?" Little Tommy looked at her and shook his head , "No." "Well then," she asked again. "What was it?" Little Tommy looked at her and said, "Well, on the first day of school, when I saw that man nailed to the plus sign , I knew they weren't joking." Tommy's mother felt surprised that his son _ . A was still the same B ate so much at dinner C kissed her hello after school D worked so hard but said too little Answer: D. worked so hard but said too little When your parents advise you to "get an education" in order to raise your income, they tell you only half the truth. What they really mean is to get just enough education to provide manpower for your society, but not so much that you prove an embarrassment to your society. Get a high school diploma, at least. Without that, you will be occupationally dead unless your name happens to be George Bernard Shaw or Thomas Alva Edison, and you can successfully dropout in grade school. Get a college degree, if possible. With a B. A., you are on the launching pad. But now you have to start to put on the brakes. If you go for a master's degree, make sure it is an M.B.A., and the famous law of diminishing returns begins to take effect. Do you know, for instance, that long-haul truck drivers earn more per year than full professors? Yes, the average salary for those truckers was $24000 while the full professors managed to earn just $23030. A doctorate is the highest degree you can get. Except for a few specialized fields such as physics or chemistry where the degree can quickly be turned to industrial or commercial purposes, if you pursue such a degree in any other field, you will face a future which is not bright. There are more doctors unemployed or underemployed in this country than any other part of the world. If you become a doctor in English or history or anthropology or political science or languages or--worst of all--in philosophy, you run the risk of becoming overeducated for our national demands. Not for our needs, mind you, but for our demands. Thousands of doctors are selling shoes, driving cars, waiting on table, and endlessly filling out applications month after month. They may also take a job in some high school or backwater college that pays much less than the doorkeeper earns. You can equate the level of income with the level of education only so far. Far enough, that is, to make you useful to the gross national product, but not so far that nobody can turn much of a profit on you. The nation is only interested in people _ . A with diplomas B who specialize in physics and chemistry C who are valuable to the gross national product D who receive little education Answer: C. who are valuable to the gross national product One morning, Bill said he was ill. His mother called a taxi and took him to the doctor. The doctor asked Bill, "What's the matter, young man?" Bill answered, "I'm feeling sick. I'm coughing and having a headache . I won't be able to go to school today, I'm afraid." The doctor looked him over carefully, and then asked his mother, "What did he have for breakfast?" His mother said, "He had four pieces of dread, two eggs, a bottle of milk and an orange." The doctor smiled, "Don't worry. It's nothing serious. The boy will be all right after the football match." The mother said, "I don't understand, Doctor." The doctor smiled again," This afternoon, the biggest football game of the year will be on TV. Your boy doesn't want to miss it. I think he will be fine after the game. You wait and see." There was _ on TV. A a volleyball game B an English play C a funny match D a football match Answer: D. a football match
As one of the world's oldest holidays, Halloween is still celebrated today in several countries around the globe, but it is in North America and Canada that it maintains its highest level of popularity. Every year, 65% of Americans decorate their homes and offices for Halloween. Halloween is the holiday when the most candy is sold and is second only to Christians in terms of total sales. Austria In Austria, some people will leave bread, water and a lighted lamp on the table before retiring on Halloween night. The reason for this is that it was once believed such items would welcome the dead souls back to earth on a night which for the Austrians was considered to be brimming with strong cosmic energies. Belgium The Belgians believe that it is unlucky for a black cat to cross one's path and also unlucky if it should enter a home or travel on a ship. The custom in Belgium on Halloween night is to light candles in memory of dead relatives. Canada Modern Halloween celebrations in Canada began with the arrival of Scottish and Irish immigrants in the 1800s. Jack- O- Lantern is carved and the festivities include parties, trick-or-treating and the decorating of homes with pumpkins and corn stalks. France Unlike most nation of the world, Halloween is not celebrated by the French in order to honor the dead and departed ancestors. It is regarded as an "American" holiday in France and was unknown in the country until around 1996. In which countries does Halloween have its highest level of popularity? The interview is an important event in the job-hunting process, because the 20 or 30 minutes you spend with the interviewer may decide whether or not you get the particular job you want. Therefore, it is important to remember that your purpose during the interview may differ from that of the potential employer. You want to make yourself stand out as a whole person who has personal strengths and should be considered the right person for the job. It is encouraging to know that the interviewer's task is not to embarrass you, but to hire the right person for the job. Remember, job-hunting is very competitive. Anything you can do to improve your interview techniques will be to your advantage. The following suggestions may help you land the most important job. Your goal in this interview is to make sure your good points get across. The interviewer won't know them unless you point them out, so try to do this in a factual and sincere manner. Don't say anything bad about your former employers. If you have been fired from a job and the interview asks about it, be honest. Show the interviewer that you are interested in the company by asking questions. Ask about responsibilities, working conditions, promotion opportunities and benefits of the job you are interviewing for. If at some point you decide the interview is not going well, do not let your discouragement show. You have nothing to lose by continuing a show of confidence, and you many have much to gain. It may be real, or it may be a test to see how you react to _ conditions. Some interviewers may bring up salary early in the interview. At this time, you may indicate that you are more interested in a job where you can prove yourself than a specific salary. This politely passes the question back to the interviewer. If possible, you should negotiate for salary after you have been offered a job and have completed the paperwork. If you did not get along with your former employer, you _ . If a person enjoys star gazing the best place to live is Did you know that there are actually people who have paid for a flight to the moon? In the future, there will be a lot more opportunities to travel to faraway places than now... perhaps even as far as the moon. As people adventure further and further away and as planes, trains, cars, and rocket ships become faster, is it safer to have these vehicles controlled by humans or by computers? While many flights by plane are controlled automatically by machines, most people today wouldn't let their car drive itself. That's because currently the autopilot function on your car can only keep it on the same course you are travelling on. It won't turn the car right or left. It won't stop if an animal jumps in the way. However, cars today can sense when something is too close and warn the driver with flashing lights and alarms. Many cars also have GPS(global positioning systems) that tell drivers which road to take and when to turn. These systems, unlike human drivers, never get lost. In the future, it is easy to believe that your car will be better able to drive itself with the aid of computers that can determine the position of your car and the speed it should travel at. In addition to computers being 'smarter' than people regarding the best way to go or knowing how close another vehicle is, computers don't get sick, tired, or angry. This means they won't make the same mistakes that people make when they are not having a good day. While responding with emotion is a good thing when choosing the best way to deal with a friend's personal problem, it may not be such a good thing when deciding what to do at the wheel of a fast-moving vehicle. So what are the disadvantages of autopilot systems? Maybe one disadvantage is that a small computer problem could cause a serious accident. It could also be argued that in unexpected situations, computers might not be able to respond appropriately; some decisions require human emotions. Another problem might be that if everything were controlled by computers or robots, people wouldn't have any jobs. Which of the following is the disadvantage of an autopilot system? Which boy hasn't dreamed of being a cool secret agent ? The wonderful fighting abilities and the world-saving adventures are much more colourful than most people's everyday lives. Well, Cody Banks is just like any other boy,except that he is not just dreaming. He has a big secret his friends never know about. He was trained to be a spy by a special CIA programme,which was made to look like a summer camp. He learned high-speed driving,hand-to-hand fighting and the use of high-tech tools. After proving he could become a young hero by saving a baby from a runaway car,Banks gets his first real task. He must make friends with a popular girl at school,Natalie Connors. Then,he must spy on her father,a scientist who has developed a dangerous technology .Banks must stop a group of bad people from forcing Natalie's father into using the technology to endanger the world. The CIA may have taught him first-class self-defence moves,but they didn't show him how to talk to girls. Banks has zero ability when it comes to dealing with girls. How can he get around his problem and get an invitation to the girl's upcoming birthday party? Will he finally become Natalie's boyfriend and find out whatever he can about her father's work? Agent Cody Banks has everything that young people are interested in: big explosions, breath-taking performances and funny girl-dating experiences. It was listed No.2 in the American box office last week. "This story is interesting and fun for the whole family to enjoy,and especially cool for young boys," said Paul Perkins, a film reviewer in theUS. What is Banks' first real task?
Fiona Famous was a very popular girl at school. She was clever and fun, and got on well with everyone. It was no accident that Fiona was so popular. From an early age she had tried hard to be kind and friendly to everyone. She invited the whole class to her birthday party, and from time to time she would give presents to everybody. She was such a busy girl, with so many friends. However, she felt very lucky, no other girl had so many friends at school and in the neighborhood. But everything changed on National Friendship Day. On that day, at school, everyone was having a great time, drawing, painting, giving gifts. They had to make three presents to give to their three best friends. However, when all the presents had been made and shared out among classmates, Fiona was the only one who had not received a present! She felt terrible, and spent hours crying. How could it be possible? So much she had done to make so many friends, and in the end no one saw her as their best friend? Everyone came and tried to comfort her for a while. But each one only stayed for a short time before leaving. When she got home that night and asked her mother where she could find true friends. "Fiona, my dear," answered her mother, "you cannot buy friends with a smile or a few good words. If you really want true friends, you will have to give them real time and affection . For a true friend you must always be there for them, in good times and bad". "But I want to be everybody's friend! I need to share my time among everyone!" Fiona argued. "My dear, you're a lovely girl," said her mother, "but you can't be a close friend to everybody. There just isn't enough time for everyone, so it's only possible to have a few true friends. The others won't be close friends". Hearing this, Fiona decided to change her ways so that she could finally have some true friends. That night, in bed, she thought about what she could do to get them. _ Her mother was always ready to help her. She could stand all of Fiona's dislikes and problems. She always encouraged her. She loved her a great deal... That was what makes friends! And Fiona smiled happily, realizing that she already had the best friend anyone could ever want. According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE? A Fiona tried hard to find some true friends all the time. B Fiona always spent more time with some of her friends. C Fiona found that giving gifts to every friend was important. D Fiona finally realized how she could find true friends. Answer: D. Fiona finally realized how she could find true friends. Beethoven, a famous musician in the world, was born in Germany in 1770. In his childhood Beethoven didn't have a happy life.His father was a singer. When he was only four, his father began to make him practise hour after hour on different musical instruments . If he did not put his heart into it, his father would beat him or make it hard on him. Beethoven loved music and he learned so fast that he was able to go around to give concerts, when he was only a boy of eleven. At the age of seventeen, he won high praise from Mozart, the great musician at that time. Beethoven was often poor and ill during his life. After one illness, he suddenly found himself deaf. At that time he was only thirty-one. It was a blow to him indeed. But he still went on working and writing music pieces. To people's surprise, some of his best pieces were written after he lost his hearing. In 1827, leaving more than 300 pieces, the great musician died. But his name is still remembered to this day. When were some of his best pieces written? _ . A At the age of 11 B At the age of 17 C Before he was deaf D After he became deaf Answer: D. After he became deaf American Watersports Tuesday-Saturday Located on the beach of the Sea Gardens Beach Resort, there are fun things to rent for the whole family. They offer rentals for kayaks, jet skis, and even parasail! Enjoy the water up-close or from a bird's eye view! No matter what activity you're enjoying, be sure to protect yourself and your family from the sun's powerful rays and apply plenty of sun block! 15 Street Boat Company Monday-Saturday 15 Street Boat Company offers rental boats of all kinds. They're sure to have what you are looking for, whether it's a small boat for a quick and simple outing or an extravagant boat with comfortable seats with a stereo and high tech navigation. You can rent a boat for half a day or a couple of days, or even weeks at a time. If you want it, they've got it. It's fun for everyone! Coconut's Watersports 9am-5pm Monday-Sunday Coconut's Watersports is open 7 days a week and offers tons of water fun for the whole family. Jet Ski activities last 30 minutes or 1 hour and can make stops along the way. You must be at least 14 years of age to ride alone and can be as young as 3 to ride along with an adult. Everybody is required to wear a life jacket and a license is required to operate the Jet Ski. Bathing suits and shorts are recommended. Jet Ski Tours of Miami 10am-7pm Thursday-Sunday Jet Ski Tours of Miami includes onsite parking, indoor restrooms, lockers, and life jackets for participants. You may choose a one or two tour and each Jet Ski can hold up to 3 people. You must be at least 18 years old in order to ride. As long as you are accompanied by an adult, there is no age limitation for any passenger. There is a restaurant nearby to eat at. The tour visits 6 different islands and passes by Bayside and Hard Rock. You may even catch sight of dolphins, turtles or a crab resting in these splendid Florida waters. What will you do to satisfy your son's curiosity about sea animals? A You would like to rent a boat to ride with him. B You need a boat with comfortable seats with a stereo. C You'd like to choose American Watersports. D You prefer the tour to Bayside and Hard Rock. Answer: D. You prefer the tour to Bayside and Hard Rock. When was the last time you saw three men running down a forest trail in the rain wearing flip-flops ?That's what my friend Brandon, Josh and I were doing last autumn. We were looking for a waterfall .We didn't have much time to get to the waterfall and back, so we were running. We were wearing flip-flops to prevent our shoes getting dirty. It was raining, but lightly. It kept us cool as we climbed over giant stones and through a shallow stream. We followed red arrows and crossed that stream several times, walking on toward the promised waterfall. Time was not on our side, however, and we were forced to turn around. As we started back, we looked at the shallow stream we had just crossed. Where did this rushing river come from? That was when we realized a flash flood was around! In the few minutes the water rose at a fast speed. Now there were no big stones to be seen-only what looked like lumps covered with rushing water. We had no choice but to move our way back carefully in the rushing water -in flip-flops. We had crossed the stream not once or twice, but six times in search of a waterfall that we never even reached! With most of the crossings, we needed each other's help if we didn't want to be washed away by water. Wet all over, we felt relaxed after we made the last crossing. "My dad always told me to keep off a river when travelling in the rain." Josh said as we hurried back down the path. "Why didn't you tell us that earlier?" I laughed. "Would it have made a difference?" came the reply. He had a point. We can infer from the passage that the writer and his friends _ . A were crazy about outdoor activities B made full preparations before the trip C crossed rushing water easily in the end D had much experience in travelling in the rain Answer: D. had much experience in travelling in the rain "Eat your breakfast. It's the most important meal of the day!" Why are parents always saying that? Well, a person is like a car. After a long night of sleeping, there is no fuel in your fuel tank . Breakfast is like the fuel. It makes you work or walk on the road. What should you eat? Any breakfast is better than no breakfast, but try not to have hamburgers or dessert all the time. They don't have the necessary nutrients . And if you have a hamburger for breakfast, you won't feel full for long. Try to eat all kinds of foods like grains, fruit, vegetables and drink some milk. Oh, try to eat more apples because an apple a day can help to keep the doctor away. The writer asks us to try to eat more _ A sugar B meat C dessert D apples Answer: D. apples
Easy Steam Mop PS29.99 WASPS79.99 SavePS50 Buy 2 or more and get an extra 5% off Product Description Use the power of steam to clean and disinfect your home in minutes without using expensive and harmful detergents . Perfect for use throughout the home, this steam mop heats up almost instantly and takes just eight seconds to kill bacteria from any area it targets. It works by changing water into steam using a microfiber cloth to enhance the ability to absorb liquid, and features a clever triangular mop head and swivel joint to allow it to reach into comers and other spaces that many similar cleaning tools cannot. The 1,300W motor helps the mop reach temperatures of between 90-100degC, making it suitable for all heat-resistant floors including hardwood, tiles and stone. Comes apart for easy storage. 2 x microfiber cloths included. Additional pack if three spare mop heads are also available Easy Steam Mop White/Green: D6430 Easy Steam Mop White/Blue: D7149 Spare Pads~3 packs: D6431 Standard Delivery--Only PS 3. 95 Please note standard delivery on all items is only PS 3.95;delivery charge applies per order regardless of number of items purchased. Delivery to Northern Ireland, Isle of Man, Scottish Highlands and Islands is PS 6.95. Delivery to the Channel Islands and Scilly Isles is PS 14.95. Delivery to Eire is PS 9.95 and deliveries to BFWO postal addresses are PS 6.95. Satisfaction Guaranteed For your complete piece of mind, our Home and Garden products may be returned to us within 30 days of purchase for a refund of the purchase price. Items must be returned unused. Where can you probably find this passage? Answer: On an e-shopping website. Bobby got a big surprise when he came home from school one day. He found an angel in his room. His grandma had always told him angels were real. Bobby had not believed her when she told him stories. She had also told him stories about mermaids, Bigfoot, leprechauns, and other things. Now, he knew at least one thing she had told him was true. He thought angel wings had to be white. This angel's feathers were many colors. They were red, blue, and green. No white ones that he could see. They looked at each other without speaking. Then, the angel began to talk. He told Bobby he had to listen to his grandma, and believe her stories. Bobby said he would. Bobby asked the angel what it was like to fly. The angel told Bobby it could show him. Bobby would have to beat it at a game. Bobby hoped it would be checkers or chess. His dad had taught him those. He was also good at card games. Instead, the angel wanted to play rock-paper-scissors. Bobby beat the angel two out of three times, so he won. Bobby and the angel then went for a long ride. After they flew, the angel dropped Bobby back at home. It told Bobby he had to promise not to tell anyone. Bobby asked if that included his grandma, mother, brother, and father. The angel said it did. Bobby said he would. The angel left. They met a few more times and became good friends. What does Bobby find in his room? Answer: An angel. Scout Bassett is often asked if she hopes to have normal legs. Bassett answers, "No. When you lost a leg, it teaches you to appreciate little things - like being able to walk and run." Born in England, Bassett was left at an orphanage due to terrible burns. Her right leg was cut off above the knee. She felt hungry all the time. When she was old enough to get around, she was forced to clean floors, feed babies and wash dishes. And she had to do all that with an artificial leg that didn't work well. When she was 7, a family in Michigan adopted her, giving her an improved artificial leg. It was OK for everyday activities, but she couldn't play soccer or basketball. When she was 14, she got a high-tech leg made for sports. "I remember being terrified because that was my first time," she said. Scout Bassett was waiting nervously for the race to start when the athlete Sarah Reinertsen came up and said, "I've been doing this for a while. Let me help you." Reinertsen, who lost her leg when she was 7, works with an organization called the Challenged Athletes Foundation to help people like Scout Bassett. She lost that first race, but gained confidence from Reinertsen. Training hard, she improved her strength and skill. She even took up golf and tennis. Now, living in Califomia, Bassett runs competitively and finds time to share her story with school groups. She said, "Some people think they having nothing in common with me. I want to say everyone has challenges - maybe with homework or friends. No matter what it is, everything you need is inside your heart. Take small steps and you will reach your dream." What can we know about Bassett when she stayed in the orphanage? Answer: She was treated very badly. TEENSGIVING in SPRING 2010 Frequently Asked Questions What is TEENSGIVING? TEENSGIVING is an exciting yearly event where hundreds of New York City teens gather together annually for a remarkable day of community service. This year, TEENSGIVING in SRING 2010 participants will once again better New York City and impact thousands of lives! When is TEENSGIVING in SPRING2010? SUNDAY, APRIL 25, 2010 Where is TEENSGIVING? All over New York City. Everyone will meet at the 92nd Street Y (92nd and Lexington) at 9:00 AM for the event kick-off. Then, all TEENSGIVING volunteers will disperse across the city to work with our partnering agencies where they will make a HUGE difference and have fun! Who participates in TEENSGIVING? Hundreds of teenagers from around the city. Teens come from the 92nd Street Y, various city schools, youth groups, and organizations in the area. In addition, many adult volunteers (aged 21 and older) will donate their time to TEENSGIVING in SPRING 2010. What projects do participants do at the agencies? Sample projects include painting park benches, planting gardens, visiting and playing with underprivileged children, assembling craft kits for children in hospitals, assisting at animal shelters, working at soup kitchens, delivering meals and celebrating with families at homeless shelters. Do I get anything for participating in TEENSGIVING? Yes! Everybody benefits! Teen volunteers will receive 6 hours of community service credit, good towards honor society, high school graduation and college application requirements. Adult volunteers will be "thanked" with a light breakfast, a gift certificate for their troubles, and the satisfaction of helping our city's youth contribute to their community. In addition, all teen and adult volunteers will receive a cool TEENSGIVING in SPRING 2010 T-shirt. This sounds awesome! How do I register for TEENSGIVING in SPRING2010? Interested teens and/or adults should e-mail the TEENSGIVING Coordinator Josh Hyman at jhyman@92Y.org(subjet:TEENSGIVING) to receive more information and to register for this fantastic event! Teens can also contact their school's Community Service Advisor TEENSGIVING is sponsored by the 92nd Street Y. TEENSGIVING is an event which is held _ . Answer: onceeveryyear You can improve your child's hearing memory considerably . Once his hearing memory has been greatly improved, he'll be able to use and remember what he listens to in class. The success of these suggestions depends upon your ability to use your child's natural desire to get involved in games he finds simple and fun. A good way to begin is to read aloud a sentence from a book suitable for your child's reading age. Then ask your youngster to repeat the sentence back to you correctly. Next, reread the sentence, leaving out a particular word. See if your child can identify the word you left out. At the beginning use only simple sentences. Gradually, increase the length of the sentences. Make sure you don't rush things along too quickly, or your child may become discouraged and tired of the game. Take your child shopping with you often. He's to remember a list of items you want to buy in the supermarket. First , ask him to remember only a few things. Then, as he shows increased ability to remember, make the list longer and longer. Praise him often and warmly when he shows increased ability to remember things. He'll become proud of his 'good' memory and will happily play the game. Encourage your child to learn easy and short poems. As his ability to do this becomes stronger, encourage him to remember longer poems. Do the same with songs. Who are the supposed readers of this passage? Answer: Parents.
Everyone hopes to have a healthy lifestyle. But do you know what a healthy lifestyle is like? Here are some ways to have a healthy life. Get active This is the most important way of a healthy lifestyle. Walking, running, playing basketball and other sports will help you keep healthy. Keep clean Keep the places around you clean. Unclean and untidy places can not only make you angry but also (...) make you ill. Eat healthily Our health depends on our food, so everyone should remember to eat healthy food. The healthier food you eat, the healthier you will be. Live green This is the easiest way to live a healthy lifestyle. Plant trees around your house. Try your best to use less water. Stop using things if they are bad for environment . From the passage, which of the following is the way to live green? A. Getting lots of exercise. B. Keeping clean and tidy. C. Planting trees. D. Eating more fruit and vegetables. Answer: C If you're someone who is eager to do something beyond the ordinary, you must have figured out by now that there will always be those who are jealous or resentful of your success. It doesn't matter that you've worked long and hard to get where you are, nor that you've made great sacrifices in achieving your goals. The "haters" will always find a reason to speak ill of you and even condemn you. They're spiteful people who envy you the pride you have in yourself and the recognition you're receiving from others. They can't stand it that you're happy, fulfilled and achieving your goals. These hateful individuals are unwilling to do the work that you've done. They hate your success but are too lazy to invest real time or energy in achieving their own goals. The thing you need to know about these haters is that the only reason they behave this way is that you have something they want, but they aren't willing to work for it. The haters are convinced that you've been lucky or that you've had some unfair advantage, but the truth is that your success is born of your untiring efforts, and it's these efforts that have brought about your "luck." The best way to deal with haters is what I call the "one-two punch." First, don't let them hurt you. Be happy about your success and proud of your accomplishments. Company with those who approve you, recognize you and support you, and never doubt that you deserve all the success. The haters are angry, jealous people. What they think or say is meaningless. Next, the more the haters annoy you, the more you should be motivated to succeed. They want to ruin you, but your response should be to work that much harder in order to increase your level of success. When your reaction to their bad behavior has inspired you to achieve further success, you've transformed the haters' negativity into fuel for your creative fires. Not only can they not hurt you but they've inspired you onto even greater heights by chance. According to the passage, one of the best ways to deal with haters is _ . A. to get rid of them B. to work even harder C. to share the happiness D. to motivate them Answer: B Wolves kill many elk every year and often attack old, sick, and injured members of a herd. Which of the following best describes the role of the wolves in the wolf-elk relationship? A. competitor B. host C. parasite D. predator Answer: D It is cold outside in winter, but winter is also an interesting season. You can do some outdoor winter activities for fun. It is important to choose the right outdoor activity in winter. Playing outside won't make you sick. Before you go out to have fun, wear gloves, coats and warm socks and warm shoes. And you should drink enough water. Bring some water with you when you go outside in winter. There are many outdoor activities you can do in winter. You can roll snowballs and make a snowman with your friends or your family. Making a snowman is a good _ for little children. For elder ones, they can choose skating. _ can go to a skating class before going skating. Skiing and snowboarding are also fun activities in winter. All your family can enjoy the activities. At last, hiking in winter can also be fun. But you should go with many people. Don't go alone. When you go outside in winter, you should _ according to the article. A. bring some water B. bring a mobile phone C. wear a watch D. wear fewer clothes Answer: A In face of global warming, much effort has been focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions through a variety of strategies. But while much of the research and innovation has concentrated on finding less-polluting energy alternatives, it may be decades before clean technologies like wind and solar meet a significant portion of our energy needs. In the meantime, the amount of CO2 in the air is rapidly approaching the limits proposed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). "As long as we're consuming fossil fuels, we're putting out CO2," says Klaus Lackner, a geophysicist at Columbia University, "We cannot let the CO2 in the atmosphere rise indefinitely." That sense of urgency has increased interest in capturing and storing CO2, which the IPCC says could provide the more than 50% reduction in emissions needed to reduce global warming. "We see the potential for capture and storage to play an integral role in reducing emissions," says Kim Corley, Shell's senior advisor of CO2 and environmental affairs. That forward thinking strategy is gaining support. The U.S. Department of Energy recently proposed putting $1 billion into a new $2.4 billion coal-burning energy plant. The plant's carbon-capture technologies would serve as a pilot project for other new coal-burning plants. But what do you do with the gas once you've captured it? One option is to put it to new uses. Dakota Gasification of North Dakota captures CO2 at a plant that converts coal into synthetic natural gas. It then ships the gas 200 miles by pipeline to Canada, where it is pumped underground in oil recovery operations. In the Netherlands, Shell delivers CO2 to farmers who pipe it into their greenhouses, increasing their production of fruits and vegetables. However, scientists say that the scale of CO2 emissions will require vast amounts of long-term storage. Some propose storing the CO2 in coal mines or liquid storage in the ocean, Shell favors storing CO2 in deep geological structures such as saline formations and exhausted oil and gas fields that exist throughout the world. What does the author intend to tell readers? A. How to find more oil and natural gases. B. How to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. C. How to deal with the greenhouse gas creatively. D. How to make good use of solar and wind energy. Answer: C
A four-wheeled robot,known as Rover,has been tested by a team at Sydney University.It was used to move a herd of cows from a field to a dairy . Researchers were amazed at how easily cows accepted the presence of the robot.They were not disturbed by it and the gathering process was calm and effective.Because the robot moved in a steady manner it allowed cows to move at their own speed,which was important in reducing injuries among cattle,said Dr Kendra Kerrisk,dairy researcher and associate professor. The robot was adapted from one that was already being used to monitor fruit and trees on farms.A team at Sydney University's Centre for Field Robotics improved the robot so that it could be put in a field with cows in order for the researchers to gather data on robot--cow interaction. The robot needs to be operated by a human but it's hoped that in the future a version can be developed that will be fully automated.As well as gathering cows a new version could also collect information useful for farmers. Using robots to get cows to the dairy will be better for their well-being."The research is in its very early stages but robotic technologies certainly have the potential to transform dairy farming,"said Dr.Kerrisk."When we have discussed this concept with farmers they have been extremely excited and we have had a series of calls and emails asking how they can get hold of one,"she added. The robot could also cut down the number of accidents involving humans on farms.Most dairy farmers in Australia use bikes to round up their cattle and they are one of the leading causes of injury.The team hopes that by using the robot to do the job instead,accident rates could fall. At present,the robot Rover _ . A can go around the farm automatically B can help researchers to gather data C has to be operated by a human D has been available in the market Answer: C. has to be operated by a human It's not just women who wear skirts. Men can wear them, too. In Scotland, men wear a kind of skirt called a kilt. The kilt is their national dress and an important part of their tradition . A kilt is a colored skirt reaching down to the knees . It has checks on it with different colors, like red or blue. Each family in Scotland has its own colors. How did the Scots start to wear kilts? There are many stories about it. One story is that the kilt was invented in the 1720s by an English factory owner, Thomas Rawlinson. Rawlinson had a lot of Scottish workers in his factory and he thought their clothing _ their work. So he cut their long clothes into a shorter skirt. Today, most Scotsmen see kilts as formal dresses. They usually only wear them at weddings or big dinners. There are only a few men who still wear a kilt every day. Scots also wear kilts in parades when they play their traditional musical instrument : bagpipes . The army still has kilts as the dress uniform , but they no longer wear them to fight . The story mainly tells us _ . A things about Scotsmen's traditional kilts B how to wear kilts C when to wear kilts D Scotsmen's important tradition Answer: A. things about Scotsmen's traditional kilts A man called his son in New York the day before Christmas and said, "I have to tell you your Mom and I are going to divorce ! Thirty years is quite a long time." "Dad, what are you talking about?" the son cried. The father said:"We are sick of each other. I don't want to talk about it anymore. You call your sister in Chicago and tell her about the news." When the daughter got the news, she is very surprised at it. "What? They are getting divorced." She shouted, "I'll stop them." She called her father immediately, and cried to her father," Don't do anything until I get home. I'm calling my brother back, and we'll both be there tomorrow. Wait for us, please." The old man hung up his phone and turned to his wife. "OK" he said, "they're coming for Christmas and paying their own way." The old couple have been married for _ years. A twenty B thirty C fifty D fifty-five Answer: B. thirty What might make a more musical sound A a bug B electrocution C a chopstick D space Answer: C. a chopstick A guide to Beijing museums during Spring Festival The Capital Museum The Beijing Capital Museum is presenting a special monkey-themed exhibition that decodes the cultural roots of the monkey in traditional Chinese culture. The exhibit shows more than 40 antique collections, including paintings, calligraphy, stamps, and 12 classic Monkey King pictures based on the great Chinese novel,Journey to the West. The museum also prepared a series of cultural activities for children, such as making paper-cuts for window decoration and painting monkeys. The National Museum of China Pasting Spring Festival couplets to doors is a traditional custom in Chinese culture. An exhibition Calligraphy Art of Couplets for the Year of the Money is ongoing, with more than 30 calligraphers' couplet pieces on display. A major exhibition, Treasures of Romania, showcasing Romania's history from the pre-historical period to the end of the 18thcentury, is still underway. National Art Museum of China The 2016 New Year show, National Art Exhibition of the Great Unity of China is a visual feast that will last until March 7. The works reflect the reality that people of all nationalities in China unite as one and jointly construct a moderately prosperous society. The works also highlight their positive mental attitude and present their picturesque and colorful national customs. Zhoukoudian Relies Museum A Spring Festival folk custom culture exhibition will introduce traditional Spring Festival customs in detail. Visitors can enjoy nearly 100 precious exhibits from the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and Minguo Era(1912-1949), including New Year paintings and musical instruments. Children can also take part in the treasure hunt games organized by the museum, watch 4D movies and experience the primitive way of hunting fishing and chipping stone tools in the science experience pavilion. Which one is the best choice among the four museums for visitors who'd like to enjoy history of both China and foreign countries? A The National Museum of China B Zhoukoudian Relics Museum C The Capital Museum D National Art Museum of China Answer: A. The National Museum of China
Question: Each morning Grandpa was up early sitting at the kitchen table, reading his book. His grandson wanted to be just like him and tried to copy him in every way he could. One day the grandson asked, "Grandpa, I try to read the book just like you, but I don't understand it, and I forget what I understand as soon as I close the book. What good does reading the book do?" The grandpa quietly turned from putting coal in the stove and replied, "Take this coal basket down to the river and bring me back a basket of water." The boy did as he was told, but all the water leaked out before he got back to the house. The grandpa laughed and said, "You'll have to move a little faster next time," and sent him back to the river with the basket to try again. This time the boy ran faster, but again the basket was empty before he returned. Out of breath, he told his grandpa that it was impossible to carry water in a basket, so he went to get a bucket instead. The grandpa said, "I don't want a bucket of water; I want a basket of water. You're just not trying hard enough." The boy again dipped the basket into the river and ran hard, but when he reached his grandpa the basket was empty again. Out of breath, he said, "Grandpa, it's useless!" "So, you think it is useless?" the grandpa said, "Look at the basket." The boy looked at the basket and for the first time he realized that the basket was different. It had been transformed from a dirty old coal basket and was now clean. "Grandson, that's what happens when you read the book. You might not understand or remember everything, but when you read it, you'll be changed, inside and out." Why did Grandpa ask his grandson to fetch a basket of water? A. To train him to run faster. B. To clean the dirty basket in the river. C. To punish him for not reading carefully. D. To get him to realize the use of reading books. Answer: D Question: On Jan. 3, a netizen nicknamed "Programmer Humor"published a short story on his micro-blog. It said that there was an old lady who swept nearly every inch of his Internet company. When she passed by a programmer, she took a look at the codes on the programmer's computer and kindly reminded him, "Be careful, the stack is overfilled!" Certainly, it is a casual and fictitious story made up by the micro-blogger. However, no one would have guessed that the short blog would eventually cause the first great Internet meme of 2011 in China. Suddenly, the mysterious "Sweeping Old Lady" is showing up nearly everywhere and reminding professionals of their mistakes. From 8 a. m. on Jan. 5, some netizens collected stories of the "Sweeping Old Lady" and found she had appeared to give advice in 150 kinds of careers. A netizen even said he had met with a similar situation in real life. Actually, the "Sweeping Old Lady" is not new figure, but is based on the "sweeping monk "in Louis Cha's famous Kung fu novel of "Tian Long Ba Bu". The "sweeping monk" is an old monk and does the lowest class of work in Shaolin Temple, but he is actually the No. 1 master in the noel both in Kung fu and in the study of Buddhism. The "Sweeping Old Lady" is also a great modest master. Lots of netizens wish that they could have such a lady beside them to give them precious suggestions at a key time. Although there may be 1,000 "Sweeping Old Ladies" in 1,000 people's minds, it cannot prevent the "Sweeping Old Lady" from becoming the most popular figure on the Internet. "Programmer Humor" said he is just a programmer in the real world and once he saw the story about the "Sweeping Old Lady," he wrote it down in his micro-blog because it was funny. He never knew who the original writer of the story was and never thought the story could be so popular. What quality does the "Sweeping Old Lady" have? A. Honest and knowledgeable. B. Modest and patient. C. Modest and knowledgeable. D. Honest and patient. Answer: C Question: Mr Black goes into his usual teashop one morning, and sits in one of the seats at the counter . Many other people also come in, but none of them stays long. About fifteen minutes later, a young man and a young woman come in. There are only two empty seats at the counter, one on Mr Black's left, and the other on his right. The woman sits on one seat, and the young man sits on the other, but Mr Black immediately asks to change seats with the young man so that he and the young woman can be together. "Oh, that isn't necessary," the young man says, but Mr Black insists . When the young man and the young woman are side by side, he says to her, "Well, this old man is very kind. He wants us to sit together. May I introduce myself? My name is John. What's your name?" At last the young man _ . A. changes seats with Mr Black B. doesn't change seats with Mr Black C. goes away D. goes away with the young woman Answer: A Question: I am not sure when I started listening to the radio. In the evening, I like listening to some talk programmes. The host's beautiful voice makes me relax. The host often has the same feelings as the audience about love, friendship, life and so on. I am often moved to tears. I usually go to bed at 9:30 pm and then I begin to listen to the play on the radio in bed. I can only listen to the sound, but I am always interested in guessing who they are and what they look like. I often fall asleep while listening. During lunch and supper time, I listen to the radio, too. I like listening to music because it can make me quiet. I also like thinking about something while listening to music, for example, what I shall do tomorrow, that I have to call my family tonight and that I should send short messages to my friends on Christmas Day. You see, radio is important in my life, like a friend. In the evening, the writer likes listening to some _ programmes. A. talk B. sports C. news D. music Answer: A Question: You probably know you should say "please" and "thank you" at restaurants. You probably know the rules of a library. You know you should respect and be nice to your classmates. But do you have music manners? Keep It Down! You have to notice the _ of your music. You should not play your music so loud that everyone around you can hear it. Some people might even get angry. Usually, when you play the music loud on an MP3 player, other people can't hear the words of the song. They just hear a loud sound. No one wants to listen to this. Very loud music can also be bad for your ears. So even if you are alone when listening to our MP3 players, you shouldn't turn it up too high. Take Them Off! You need to know when to turn your MP3 off and put it away. Libraries, and schools don't allow MP3 players. There are other places, like museums, that don't have rules, but it would be rude to have your MP3 player on. Sometimes, it doesn't make sense to listen on your MP3 player at event. Why would you listen to music at a play, a movie or a sporting event? You would miss what is going on and others would wonder why you even came. Take One Out! Once in a while it's okay just to take out one earphone and not the other. Imagine you are listening on your MP3 player when someone asks you the way. It would not be rude to take out one earphone, tell him the way, and put back the earphone and continue listening. You can also do this when you order food at a fast-food restaurant or when you answer the telephone and it's not for you. It's all right to use our MP3 player in _ . A. school B. libraries C. restaurants D. museums Answer: C
One day Robin went with his family to eat in a restaurant. They were sitting at a table and waiting for their meal. Suddenly, everyone around them started to cover their noses. Some of them even left their tables and went away. When Robin's family turned around to see what had caused this, they saw two homeless boys. The boys looked dirty and smelled bad. But both boys were smiling and had beautiful blue eyes. They were looking for someone kind. One of the boys went to the counter and he counted the coins he had. The other boy looked sick and he stood quietly. The young lady at the counter asked the boy what they wanted. He said, "We only want a cup of coffee. " That was all they could afford. They wanted to sit in the restaurant and warm up. It was really cold outside. But to sit inside the restaurant, they had to buy something. When Robin's mother saw this, she wanted to help the boys. She ordered some more food. Then she went to the two boy's table. She put the food on the table. The boys looked up at her and said, "Thank you. " When Robin saw what his mother did, he understood what the unconditional( ) love was. His mother treated those boys kindly. She did not expect anything in return. Now Robin saves his own pocket money and helps homeless people whenever he can. Why did two boys come to the restaurant? A Because they were hungry. B Because they wanted to warm up. C Because they knew Robin's family. D Because they wanted to have some coffee. Answer: B. Because they wanted to warm up. Earth Day is celebrated every year on April 22nd.Take some time to find out about how one man,who was determined to change the way we treated our planet,didn't stop until he had made a difference. In 1963,Senator Gaylord Nelson wasn't happy with the earth's condition.He wanted to clean up the planet,solve pollution and environmental problems.A senator is someone US citizens choose to help make laws,so Gaylord had a lot of power.He went to John F.Kennedy,the President at the time,with his ideas.The President agreed that the planet's environment was a serious issue,so President Kennedy went around the country on a five-day tour to promote the idea of cleaning up the planet.People began making small changes but it wasn't enough. A few years later,Senator Nelson decided to put one day aside every year for the cause of saving the planet.On April 22,1970,the first Earth Day was celebrated.More than 20 million people took part in Earth Day activities in 1970.Since then,Earth Day has become an international holiday.People all over the world are doing something to make the earth a cleaner,better place. A rock band named Dramarama wrote a song about Earth Day in 1993 called What Are We Gonna Do.Encouraging your family to recycle on a regular basis is a good way to help the earth. Which of the following is better for us to do to help the earth? A To work hard to be a senator. B To take a five-day tour around the world. C To take part in Earth Day activities every year. D To recycle on a regular basis. Answer: D. To recycle on a regular basis. The audience nodded in agreement when the speaker, a teacher from a community college, said, "High school English teachers are not doing their jobs." He described the shortcomings of his students, all high school graduates who can use language only at Grade 9 level. I was unable to determine from his answers to my questions ho. w this grade 9 level had been raised. My topic is neither standards nor its decline . What the speaker was really saying is that he is no longer young; he has been teaching for sixteen years, and is able to think and speak like an adult. My point is that the frequent complaint of one generation about the next is unavoidable. It is also human nature to look for the reason for our dissatisfaction. Before English became a school subject in the late nineteenth century, it was difficult to find the target of the blame for language limitation. But since then, English teachers have been under constant attack. The complainers think they have hit upon an original idea. As their own command of the language improves, they notice that young people do not have this same ability. Unaware that their own ability has developed through the years, they take as true the new generation of young people must be hopeless in this respect. To the eyes and ears of adults the language of the young never seems enough. Since this concern about the fall of the English language is not taken as a generation phenomenon but rather as something new to today's young people, it naturally follows that today's English teachers cannot be doing their jobs. Otherwise, young people would not make mistakes of the language. The speaker the author mentioned in the passage believed that A the language of the younger generation is usually better than that of the older generation B students had a poor command of English because they didn't work hard C he was an excellent teacher because he had been teaching English for 60 years D English teachers should be responsible for the students' poor command of English Answer: D. English teachers should be responsible for the students' poor command of English Swee Lin has an interesting hobby . She collects stamps. She spends a lot of time on her stamp collection after school hours. She has collected hundreds of stamps from all over the world. They are all in color. Swee Lin likes stamps with pictures of animals and birds on them. In this way, she learns the names of many animals and birds. She also borrows books on animals and birds from her school library. She learns many things about them. Sometimes Swee Lin has many stamps of the same kind. She gives them to her friends. They give her other stamps in return. Swee Lin writes to her friends in many countries. She sends them stamps of her country. In return, they send her stamps of their countries. Swee Lin's father also gives her stamps. He brings them home from his office for her. Many of Swee Lin's friends collect other things. Some collect coins and others collect matchboxes . But, all of them say that Swee Lin's collection is the most interesting of all. She spends a lot of time on her hobby _ . A before school hours B during school hours C after school hours D during her holidays Answer: C. after school hours There are four seasons in a year in China. February, March, and April make the spring season. .May, June and July make the summer season. August, September and October make the autumn season.. November, December and January make the winter season.. Near the North Pole there are only two seasons. They are winter and summer. The nights in winter are very long. For more than two months you can't see the sun, even at noon. In summer the days are long. For more than two months the sun never sets, and there is no night. In the tropics there are also two seasons: a rainy season and a dry season. Near the North Pole _ in summer. A the days aren't long B the days are long C there is no night D the days are less than two months Answer: B. the days are long
Which stage of a frog's life cycle can be compared to a plant seed growing into a new plant? Answer: What motion causes day and night? Answer: Bill Gates was born on October 28th, 1955. He grew up in Seattle, Washington. Bill Gates was named William Henry after his father and grandfather. He was a very clever boy. His favourite subject at school were science and maths. When he was 13 years old, Bill started to play with computers. At that time, computers were very large machines. Once he was interested in a very old computer. He and some of his friends spent lots of time doing unusual things with it. In the end, they worked out a software programme with the old machine. Bill sold it for 4, 200 dollars when he was only 17. In 1973, Bill went to Harvard University. At Harvard, he developed the BASIC language for the first microcomputer . In his third year, he left Harvard to work for a company called Microsoft. Bill began this company in 1975 with his friend Paul Allen. They thought that the computer would be a very important tool in every office and in every home, so they began developing software for personal computers. They improved the software to make it easier for people to use computer. He developed the BASIC language for the first microcomputer _ . Answer: People who traveled in the past had to put up with many discomforts which we do not have nowadays, and of course they traveled far more slowly. Roads were bad indeed and you often found you could not get along at all because of the mud. In dry weather many places were thick in dust and when it was stormy, trees might fall across the road and it was nobody's business to clear _ away. Ordinary people traveled on foot or on horseback, but everyone who could afford it kept a private coach. There were public coaches too. called "stage coaches" because long journeys took several days and were done in stages, with stops over night at inns. Some stage, coaches ran only in the summer months. Others all the year around. They were very slow and crowded and passengers often became in on the way because of the swaying . Break downs were frequent, since many roads were not smooth. So a coach might very easily turn right over. Early in the century coach and wagon builders were encouraged to put very wide wheels on their vehicles. So that these might level the roads a little. But many people complained of this since it slowed travel down a good deal. Most travelers during the 18th century wrote bitterly about the state of the roads. One visitor to Sussex took six hours to travel nine miles in his coach; another wrote to a friend that on time of his journeys "almost every mile was marked by the overturn of a carriage". Public coaches were called "stage-coaches" because _ . Answer: Dick is not old, but he does not have much hair. His wife Emma has thick, beautiful and black hair. They have a son. His name is Peter, and he is five years old. Today Dick is reading a book in his study. Peter looks at his father for a long time and then asks his mother, "Why does Papa have so little hair, Mama?" Emma laughs and says, "He has little hair becauseThe food looks good but _ bad. he thinks a lot. He's a very clever man." Peter looks at his mother's thick hair for a few seconds and then laughs, "Then I know why you have so much hair." Dick has _ hair. Answer:
Question: John Wesley Powell(1834--1902)Was a famous explorer of the American West.When he Was young,his mother put him under the guidance of George Crookham,a self-taught scientist,from whom he received a wide,but informal,education.Young John learned many things about the natural sciences.But his father preferred him to study religion.The argument continued for three years.Then John decided to leave home to seek further education.He soon discovered that he knew more about science than any teacher he met.He realized that the only good scientific education in the country came from colleges in the east,like Harvard and Yale.But he Was too poor to go to them,SO he got work as a school teacher in Illinois.Whenever possible,he went on scientific trips of his own. In 1861,civil war broke out in the United States.John joined the Union forces of the North.At the battle of Shiloh Powell lost his right arm.Despite his disability, he began his famous exploration of the Colorado River on May 24 1869. It Was one of the greatest trips of discovery in the history of America.Never before had any white men traveled to that area.The trip Was far more dangerous than expected.The rivers were filled with rocky areas and waterfalls.Sometimes,the boats overturned or broke into pieces against big rocks.All along the way, Powell measured distances,temperatures,heights,depths and currents.He examined soils,rocks and plant life.Powell'S explorations led to the creation of US Geological Survey, which became responsible for all mapping and scientific programs of American lands. Powell's scientific studies of western lands shaped his ideas of how those lands should be used.He suggested programs to control both crop farming and cattle raising.He Was especially concerned about water supplies.Many of his ideas were rejected at first and were not signed into law until years after his death because they were far ahead of his time. The author wrote about John's experience of the civil war in order to show his following characters except _ . A. his courage B. his determination C. his bad fortune D. his braveness Answer: C Question: EBay will launch an online group gift-buying service today designed to make it easier for several people to chip in, buy and pay for gifts using their social-network and e-mail contacts. EBay North America Vice President Christopher Payne says it is going to be a major step forward in social commerce, which is the still-small practice of selling products through social networks.Online retail experts aren't as certain, but eBay says the new tool makes it easier for friends and relatives to chip in for gifts because it eliminates the headache of collecting contributions.It can also be used for family members to pitch in to buy, say, an expensive child seat for a mother. Anything on eBay that's available immediately, rather than up for bid, can be purchased this way starting today atgroupgifts.eBay.com.If members of an extended family wanted to buy a gift for one member, one person would choose a gift -- or have one recommended by eBay -- and invite family members to chip in using Facebook or e-mail.Those who wanted to join in would choose an amount to contribute (or agree to pay a requested amount) and pay using either PayPal or a credit card.They could also add a personal note. If enough people don't chip in, the organizer can ask people to contribute more or choose a less expensive gift. "I see myself using this most in cases when I typically might not buy someone what they want because of price," says Nitzan Shaer of Boston, who was part of an online test of the site. EBay, with its 200 million products, millions of sellers and mobile commerce proficiency, is a logical place to pull together the products, groups of buyers and payment tools, Payne says. At least 12 sites, such as FrumUs.com and eDivvy.com, facilitate (,) group purchases but don't sell products.Although a handful of retailers, including Victoria's Secret and 1-800-Flowers, sell products through Facebook, Payne says he expects social commerce will take off as rapidly as shopping using mobile devices.EBay did more than $600 million in sales on mobile devices last year and expects mobile sales to increase to $1.5 billion this year. Although one in five consumers surveyed said they'd used Facebook for shopping in the past year, 88% said they would not be buying holiday gifts through a social network, mobile phone or smartphone.Of these, 26% were reluctant because of security or privacy concerns, and 20% were unclear about the benefits of using phones or Facebook to shop. It can be inferred from the text that _ . A. through eBay's new tool, 200 million products on eBay are available to online shoppers B. social commerce can eliminate the headache of collecting contributions C. eBay's new tool will gain mass adoption by online shoppers D. with the help of eBay's new tool, FrumUs.com and eDivvy.com will also sell products Answer: C Question: When I asked my daughter which item she would keep: the phone, the car, the cooker, the computer, the TV, or her boyfriend, she said "the phone". Personally, I could do without the phone entirely, which makes me unusual because the telephone is changing our lives more than any other piece of technology. Point 1: The telephone creates the need to Communicate, in the same way that more roads create more traffic. My daughter comes home from school at 4: 00 p. m. and then spends an hour on the phone talking to the very people she has been at school with all day. If the phone did not exist, would she have anything to talk about? Point 2: The mobile phone means that we are never alone. "The mobile saved my life," says Crystal Johnstone. She had an accident in her Volvo on the A45 between Otley and Skipton. Trapped inside, she managed to make the call that brought the ambulance to her rescue. Point 3: The mobile phone removes our secret. It allows marketing manager of Haba Deutsch, Carl Nicolaisen, to ring his sales staff all round the world at any time of day to ask where they are, where they are going, and how their last meeting went. Point 4: The telephone separates us. Antonella Bramante in Rome says, "We worked in separate offices but l could see him through the window. It was easy to get his number. We were so near--but we didn't meet for the first two weeks!" Point 5: The telephone allows us to reach out beyond our own lives. Today we can talk to several complete strangers simultaneously on chat lines (at least my daughter does. I wouldn't know; what to talk about). We can talk across the world. We can even talk to astronauts (if you know any) while they're space-walking. And, with the phone line hooked up to the computer, we can access(, ) the Internet, the biggest library on Earth. Which of the following best shows the author's attitude towards mobile phones? A. Mobile phones help people deal with the emergency. B. Mobile phones bring convenience as well little secret to people. C. Mobile phones are so important and should be encouraged. D. Mobile phones are part of people's life. Answer: B Question: It' s 9:00 in the evening. The family are at home. Jim's father sits in a chair. He's watching TV . His mother stands near the window. She feeds the birds--Polly. Polly says, "Thanks! Thanks!" Where is Jim? Oh, he's behind the door. Kate is looking for him. They play games in Kate's room. Jim and Kate are _ . A. good friends B. two girls C. two boys D. brother and sister Answer: D Question: Scientists have discovered a special biological behavior in dolphins that could lead to a treatment for late-onset diabetes in humans. Studies on dolphins found that healthy dolphins switch into a diabetic-like state overnight when they are not feeding, but return to normal when they eat the following morning. The extraordinary finding has led scientists to suggest that dolphins have "genetic switch" that allows them to imitate diabetes while they are not feeding for a night, without suffering any ill effect. If researchers can identify a similar genetic pathway in human, they may be able to develop drugs to effectively switch off diabetes. Some 2.2 million people in Britain have type 2 (or late-onset) diabetes, a figure that is expected to reach 4 million by 2025 as a consequence of rising levels of obesity . The tissues of people with type 2 diabetes have become resistant to insulin so they lose the ability to control sugar levels in their blood. The condition can damage the heart, eyes, kidneys and nerves and contribute to 5% of all deaths, according to the World Healthy Organization. Dolphins appear to imitate diabetes to keep high levels of blood sugar when food is rare. Like humans, dolphins need some sugar in their blood for their brains to function normally. Venn-Watson's team analyzed 1,000 blood samples from 52 dolphins while they didn't eat anything overnight and fed in the morning. At night time, the dolphins' metabolism changed greatly and showed similar characteristics to that seen in people with type 2 diabetes. "It is our hope that this discovery can lead to new ways to prevent, treat and maybe even cure diabetes in humans," said Stephanie Venn-Watson, director of clinical research at the National Marine Foundation in San Diego. What will happen to dolphins if not fed for a night according to Venn-Watson? A. Their metabolism breaks down. B. They become resistant to insulin. C. Their heart and kidneys are damaged. D. They keep high levels of blood sugar. Answer: D
A young man was getting ready for graduation. He always wanted a beautiful sports car, and he told his father this. On the morning of his graduation, his father called him into his study. His father told him how proud he was to have such a fine son, and told him how much he loved him. He handed his son a beautiful box. The young man was disappointed when he opened the box and found a book. He shouted angrily,"With all your money you give me a book?"and rushed out of the house. Many years passed and the young man was very successful in business. He had a beautiful home and a wonderful family, but he realized his father was very old and thought he should go to see him. Before he made a visit, he got a call telling him his father had passed away .He was also told his father had given all his _ to him. When he arrived at his father's house, sadness filled his heart. He began to see his father's important papers and saw the still new book. With tears, he opened the book and began to turn the pages. As he read the words, a car key dropped from an envelope in the book. It was the key to a sports car. On the morning of his graduation,his father give him a _ . Answer: box What is your recovery rate? How long does it take you to recover from actions and behaviors that up- set you? Minutes? Hours? Days? Weeks? The longer it takes you to recover, the more influence that inci- dent has on your actions, and the less able you are to perform to your personal best. You are well aware that the faster you let go of an issue that upsets you, the faster you return to an _ the healthier you willbe. The best example of this behavior is found with professional sports- people. They know that the faster they can forget an incident or missed opportunity and get on with the game, the better their performance. Imagine yourself to be an actor in a play on the stage. Your aim is toplay your part to the best of your ability. You have been given a script and at the end of each sen- tence is a full stop. Each time you get to the end of the sentence you start a new one and although the next sentence is related to the last, it is not affected by it. Your job is to deliver each sentence to the best of your ability. Don't live your life in the past! Learn to live in the present, to overcome the past. Stop the past from influencing your daily life. Don't allow thoughts of the past to reduce your personal best. Stop the past from troubling your life. Learn to recover quickly. Remember: Rome wasn't built in a day. Reflect on your recovery rate each day. Every day before you go to bed, look at your progress. This is a success. You are taking control of your life. Remember this is a step-by-step process. You are undertaking real change here. Your aim: reduce the time spent in recovery. In which part of a newspaper can we most probably read the passage? Answer: Life-fun Spender owed Midas $1,000, plus interest at 8% until paid, on a long-overdue promissory note, collection of which would become barred by the statute of limitations on June 30. On the preceding April 1, Spender and Midas both signed a writing in which Spender promised to pay the note in full on the following December 31, plus interest at 8% until that date, and Midas promised not to sue on the note in the meantime. Midas, having received some advice from his nonlawyer brother-in-law, became concerned about the legal effect of the April 1 agreement. On May 1, acting pro se as permitted by the rules of the local small claims court, he filed suit to collect the note. Assuming that there is no controlling statute, is the April 1 agreement an effective defense for Spender? Answer: Yes, because Spender's promise to pay interest until December 31 was consideration for Midas's promise not to sue. Our school is No 1 Middle School. It is not big, and it has a short history, but I'm lucky that I am a student of this school. Ten years ago, there were not any teaching buildings and not a library in our school. The playground was so small that we could only play basketball there. Now great changes have taken place in our school in the past ten years. There are three modern teaching buildings and there four modern computer classrooms. We have computer studies every week. On the left side of the school stands a modern lab building. On the right side of the school there is also a modern building--the library. In the library there are 20 thousand books and magazines. We can go to the library to borrow books and magazines at any time. We have built a new playground. It is much bigger than before. We can play not only basketball but also football and many other sports there. There are a lot of flowers, grasses and trees in and around our school. We usually take a walk or chat with our classmates after lunch and supper between the flowers and trees. We always feel very happy. In a word, our school is more and more beautiful and modern. We love our school. The students can borrow the library books _ . Answer: A and C A young woman was driving through the lonely countryside. It was dark and rainy. Suddenly she saw an old woman by the side of the road, holding up her hand as if she wanted a lift . "I can't leave her out in this weather," the young woman said to herself. She stopped the car and opened the door. "Do you want a lift?" she asked. The old woman nodded and climbed into the car. After a while, she said to the old woman, "Have you been waiting a long time?" The old woman shook her head. "Strange!" thought the woman. She tried again. "Bad weather for the time of year," she said. The old woman nodded. Then the young woman noticed the old woman's hands, which were large and hairy . Suddenly she realized that "she" was a man! She was frightened at first. Then she stopped the car. "I can't see out of the rear screen ,"she said. "Would you mind cleaning it for me?" "The old woman" nodded and opened the door. As soon as "she" was out of the car, the frightened young woman drove off as fast as she could. When she got to the next village, she stopped. She noticed "the old woman" had left "her" handbag behind. She picked it up and opened it. Inside was a gun What do you think "the old woman" was _ . Answer: A robber
The koala is one of Australia's most treasured creatures, which is a lovely little creature. But now, it is in big trouble. Affected by habitat loss and climate change, like many other uniquely Australian animals, koalas are being squeezed into smaller regions. But at present, it is a deadly disease, a somewhat silent killer that causes a further decline in the koala population, that is worrying many scientists about the fate of the koala. The killer is Chlamydia, which has caused symptoms in up to 50 percent of the wild koalas, with probably even more infected but not showing symptoms. It has been particularly severe in Queensland, where nearly all koalas are infected. The disease causes many symptoms including eye infections, which can lead to blindness, making it difficult for them to find their primary food. Treating Chlamydia in wild koalas is a challenge. There is no treatment available for _ . Only a small percentage of the animals can be treated successfully and returned to the wild. Besides, there is no national plan in Australia to save the koala;it is up to each region to make management plans for its koala population. The good news is that researchers are working to test a vaccine that would help prevent further spread. If all goes well, plans can be carried out to distribute the vaccil1e more widely. But it's impossible to vaccinate all wild koalas. Another possibility would be to make vaccine distribution a routi11e part of treatment for the thousands of koalas brought into care centers every year after they are injured by cars or dogs. While it is a combination of problems that are affecting the wild koala population, many experts believe this vaccine would be an important step in helping koalas survive longer. It may buy enough time to give researchers a chance to solve some of the other problems facing Australia's koalas. Which isn't considered the main cause of koala's population decline? A. Habitat loss. B. Injuries from cars and dogs. C. Climate change. D. A deadly disease. Answer: B I was working with a client who was completely burned out on her career and life and then ready for a career change. As we were talking, she said, "I just wish I had meaningful work. I don't feel like I am making a difference. I am just wasting my life." This is the theme I hear most often from clients who have been in the workforce awhile.All of us want to feel like we are making a difference. We want to believe our work means something. The problem comes in defining "meaningful work". What is it? That answer is different for everyone. For some meaningful work might be helping others organize their office. For others it may mean making a million dollars. What really matters is how you see it. What is meaningful work to you? Take out a piece of paper and answer these questions. How do you define meaningful work? When do you feel like you are really making a difference? What work have you done so far that feels the most meaningful? Write down whatever comes to mind. What you want to do is meaningful. It is very easy to start judging yourself as being selfish. Stop! Allow yourself to be honest. The fact is when Picasso painted; he was doing it because he liked to paint. He was not thinking, "Oh, I hope this brings joy to others' lives." He painted because he wanted to. When Beethoven composed, he did it because he loved music. Even scientists searching for a cure for cancer are immersed in their work because it fascinates them. Don't look down on your work. It is easy to _ the importance of work that feels meaningful. I remember Tony Robbins told a story of talking with the owner of a major company. The man said to Tony, "I wish I could do what you do because it makes such adifference in people's lives". Tony said, "You have got to be kidding! Look at what adifference you make. You provide work, health insurance and security for thousands ofpeople!" Don't underestimate the value you provide. Take a look at what you have written about meaningful work. Do you see any themes? How do you wish to contribute to this world? Whatever you choose, remember that the greatest gift you can give is to find work that makes you feel fulfilled and delighted. Respect your preference because giving your gifts to the world, whatever they look like, is the most meaningful action you can ever take. . What does the writer mean by mentioning the famous people? A. Famous people are selfish to start work for themselves. B. Doing meaningful work requires our interest in it. C. Interest is the best teacher in learning. D. Honesty makes for the greatest people. Answer: C Jack London was a famous American writer. He was born on January 12, 1876, in San Francisco, California. His family was very poor, and Jack had to leave school to make money.He worked hard in many different jobs. Later, Jack returned to school, but he didn't stay. He wrote," Life and pocketbook were both too short. " In 1897, he went to Alaska to find gold. Instead, he found ideas there for his books and stories. He returned home and started to write. His writings were successful, and he became rich and famous in his twenties. Jack London was not a happy man, however. In poor health, he took his own life in 1916. He was only 40 years old. He went to Alaska _ . A. for holidays B. because his wife lived there C. to find gold D. to meet his parents Answer: C Barry and Kim are twin brother and sister. But they like different sports. Barry likes soccer. He is in the school soccer club, and he plays soccer every day. He has 9 soccer balls in his bookcase. He also likes volleyball. He has 2 white volleyballs and 2 blue volleyballs. But Kim doesn't like soccer or volleyball. She likes tennis. Tennis is interesting. She is in the school tennis club and she plays tennis every day. She has 7 tennis balls and 2 tennis rackets in her room. She also likes baseballs. She has 5 baseballs: 2 green baseballs and 3 yellow baseballs. ,. What does Kim like? A. Soccer and volleyball. B. Soccer and baseball. C. Tennis and volleyball. D. Tennis and baseball. Answer: D Mr. Green and his family decided to live in Beijing for two weeks. One morning they left for the Great Wall by bus at 9:00. It took them about one hour and a half to get there. Then they visited the Great Wall and took lots of photos. Four hours later it began to rain. They had to go back to the hotel. After getting to the hotel, they found their camera was lost. Mr Green's kids felt sorry and they didn't want to eat anything for dinner. Mr Green told a joke to make them happy. "An old man lived in a tall building. It had sixty _ . One day he fell down from it, but he didn't hurt himself," Mr Green said. "Do you know why?" The kids were surprised and they didn't know the answer. "Because he lived on the first floor." The kids all laughed after hearing the answer. Just then a policeman came in with a bag. She said a Chinese boy found the bag on the Great Wall and then found them. Mr Green opened the bag and found the camera. They all became very happy. Why did Mr. Green's kids want nothing to have for dinner? A. Because they were full. B. Because they were very tired. C. Because they were sad that their camera was lost. D. Because they were busy looking at the photos. Answer: C
The Los Angeles Zoo has many public programs that aim to teach the public about animals and natural protection. Safari shuttle While you're here, take the Safari shuttle for a quick trip from one end of the Zoo to the other. All day long, seven days a week (from 10 am to 5 pm), the Safari Shuttle picks up passengers, circles the Zoo, and returns to the main flamingo exhibit near the front entrance. You can get on and off the shuttle as often as you like. Food Safari Cafe (at the Zoo entrance) offers Starbucks coffee, fresh-baked cookies, and ice cream. Gorilla Grill is the spot for toasted food, kids' meals, snacks, and ice cream. La Casita serves a variety of Mexican food and refreshments . Silverback's Cafe offers sandwiches, salads, bread bowls, cold beer, and refreshments. Hour The Zoo is open from 10 am to 5 pm every day of the year except Christmas Day. Special summer long hours are until 6 pm. from July 1 to September 7. Please remember, the Zoo starts putting animals in for the night at 4 pm during regular hours, and at 5 pm. during summer hours. Admission Prices Adults (aged 13 and above): $ 9 Seniors (aged 62 and above): $ 6 Children (aged 2 to 12): $ 4 Children (under 2): free Items Not Allowed on Zoo Grounds Alcohol, Glass bottles, Pets, Bicycles, Skateboards, and In-line skate. If you are planning a picnic while visiting the Zoo, please do not bring any glass items or other things that are easy to break. Also for the safety of the animals, no plastic bags are allowed within the Zoo. Which of the following provides kids' meals? A Safari Cafe. B Gorilla Grill. C La Casita. D Silverback's Cafe. Answer: B Celebrity has become one of the most important representatives of popular culture. Fans used to be crazy about a specific film, but now the public tends to base its consumption on the interest of celebrity attached to any given product. Besides, fashion magazines have almost abandoned the practice of putting models on the cover because they don't sell nearly as well as famous faces. As a result, celebrities have realized their unbelievably powerful market potential, moving from advertising for others' products to developing their own. Celebrity clothing lines aren't a completely new phenomenon, but in the past they were typically aimed at the ordinary consumers, and limited to a few TV actresses. Today they're started by first-class stars whose products enjoy equal fame with some world top brands. The most successful start-ups have been those by celebrities with specific personal style. As celebrities become more and more experienced at the market, they expand their production scale rapidly, covering almost all the products of daily life. However, for every success story, there's a related warning tale of a celebrity who overvalued his consumer appeal. No matter how famous the product's origins is, if it fails to impress consumers with its own qualities it begins to resemble an exercise in self-promotional marketing. And once the initial attention dies down, consumer interest might fade, loyalty returning to tried-and-true labels. Today, celebrities face ever more severe embarrassment. The pop-cultural circle might be bigger than ever, but its rate of turnover has speeded up as well. _ and the same newspaper or magazine that once brought him fame has no problem picking him to pieces when the opportunity appears. Still, the ego's potential for expansion is limitless. Having already achieved great wealth and public recognition, many celebrities see fashion as the next frontier to be conquered. As the saying goes, success and failure always go hand in hand. Their success as designers might last only a short time, but fashion -- like celebrity -- has always been temporary. The passage is mainly about _ . A celebrity and personal style B celebrity and market potential C celebrity and fashion design D celebrity and clothing industry Answer: B If you are hungry, what will you do? Grab a piece of your favorite meal and stay quiet after that? Just like stomach, even your mind will be hungry. But it never lets you know, because you keep it busy thinking about your dream lover, favorite star and many such absurd things. So it silently begins to hide your needs and never lets itself grow. When mind loses its freedom to grow, creativity gets its full stop. This might be the reason why we all sometimes think "What happens next?", "Why can't I think?", "Why am I always given the difficult problems?" Well, this is the after-effect of using our brain for thinking of not-so-worthy things. Hunger of the mind can be actually satisfied through extensive reading. But why is it reading but not watching TV? Because reading has been the most educational tool used by us right from the childhood. Just like that to develop other aspects of our life, we have to turn to reading for help. You have a number of books in the world which will answer all your "how-to" questions. Once you read a book, you just don't run your eyes through the lines, but your mind decodes it and explains it to you. The interesting part of the book is stored in your mind as a seed. Now this seed is unknowingly used by you in your future to develop new ideas. The same seed, if used many times, can help you link and relate a lot of things, which you would never thought of in your wildest dreams! This is nothing but creativity. The more books you read, the wider your mind will become. Also this improves your oratorical (speech-making) skills to a large extent and also makes a significant contribution to your vocabulary. When you start speaking English or any other language fluently with your friends or other people, you never seem to run out of the right words at the right time. Actually, I had a problem in speaking English fluently, but as I read, I could improve significantly. So guys, do join me and give food for your thoughts by reading, reading and more reading. Now what are you waiting for? Go, grab a book and let me know! You don't know your mind is in hunger because _ . A you are not hungry B you keep it thinking of silly things C your creativity gets a full stop D you always meet with difficult problems Answer: B It is amazing to note that the Internet is still such a new device,and yet it is one of the fastest and most powerful media tools. But think about it for a moment. On the Internet,a big online company can be run by only two guys in their garage. So it is only reasonable then,that people shopping online would be a little _ of the security levels. Internet giants such as Microsoft knew consumer confidence was the key to getting virtual shopping off the ground,and they work hard to make people feel safe to shop online. Credit card companies,too,quickly saw the potential for online shopping,and have installed things like online shopping insurance for people. If you ever have a problem with your online credit purchases,many credit card companies will happily refund your money and then set their claws on the company that wronged you. Now that's buying power! There are other bonuses for online shoppers,of course. No lineups,for one. No annoying mall shopping carts with broken wheels and kids crying because their parents won't get them what they want. When shopping online,consumers can sit down,have a coffee,and wear their slippers,not having to worry about their hair or parking,and just clicking through sale after sale. Comparison shopping couldn't be any easier. And thanks to courier companies getting in on the act,you never need to wait longer than a day or two to get those all important purchases delivered right to your door. No wonder so many companies are shaking their heads at traditional advertising and instead looking to the"virtual" world to attract online shoppers. The following have made contributions to the popularity of online shopping EXCEPT _ . A Internet giants B traditional advertisers C courier companies D credit card companies Answer: B Girls really prefer pink and boys prefer blue, recent research shows. The reasons could have its origins in the hunt for food on the African savannah thousands of years ago. Evolution may have developed women's preference for pink, perhaps because it helped to find ripe fruit and healthy men with reddish faces, while both men and women have a natural desire for blue, according to scientists at prefix = st1 /NewcastleUniversity. " Everyone in today's western culture, from parents to toy manufactures, seems to assume that little girls like pink." Said Prof. Anya Hulbert, who wanted to find out whether the reason was cultural or to do with biology. A love of salmon, _ and coral does seem to be rooted into females, rather than picked up from their mothers. The participants in the study were Chinese and British. The Chinese students showed a marked preference for red, " Culture may contribute to this natural female preference," said Pro. Hulbert. In her experience, 208 young adult men and women were asked to select, as rapidly as possible, their preferred color1. Hulbert and her colleague Dr. Yazhu Ling marked the results and found that while men preferred blue, women tended to choose pink. Hulbert said she could only prefer about the preference for blue: " Here again, I would favor evolutionary arguments. Going back to our savannah days, we would have a natural preference for a clear blue sky, because it signaled good weather. Clear blue also signals a good water source." The passage mentions " the African savannah" to show that _ . A the ancient Africa was a a beautiful place B human beings lived in Africa at first C women and men have different color1 preference D color1 preference has its historical origins Answer: D
People say time is .But to what.I do know that sometimes time"seems"to be moving slower.Remember Christmas Eve when you were a child? It was the longest night of the year.It lasted forever! And now it seems like I just paid my bill yesterday...and it's due again! People tell me all too frequently...I need more time! Oh ,really?...Mother Teresa, Michelangelo,and Helen Keller all had 24 hours a day.Look what they did with their time! Is it that we need to manage our time better...or our priorities ?You've heard the expression"first things first."The first step in understanding the power of time is to understand that it is limited.Why is it then that some people get a lot more done? We know the answer.They use their time smartly. One day an expert on time management was speaking to a group of students and announced a quiz.He pulls out a wide-mouthed jar.Next,he places about a dozen fist-sized rocks,one at a time , into the jat, until no more will fit."Is it full?"he asks."Yes,"responds the class."Oh really?"he asks.So he takes out a bucket of gravel . which he manages to work down into the spaces between the larger rocks."Is it full now?"he asks. Wising up,one answered,''Probably not."Sure enough. he takes out a bucket of sand,which he pours into the empty spaces."Is it full now?"he asks."N0 1"reply the students confidently.So he takes a glass of water and fills it in.Then he asks,"What is my point?'' One said,''No matter how full your schedule is,if you try really hard,you can always fit some more things into it!" "No,"the speaker replied,"It tells us if you don't put the big rocks in first, you'll never get them in at all.'' What are the big rocks? The things you should put in to your jar first. The rich don't get 25 hours and the poor don't get 23...we all get the same.Let's use them wisely! Invest your time wisely! What does the point of the quiz lie in? A How to put more things into ajar. B How well the students learn the lesson. C How.to get more done in limited time D The skill and order is very important. Answer: C. How.to get more done in limited time A night out in Tokyo is much the same as a night out in Milan these days, according to a survey about socialising, conducted amongst 16 to 34-year-olds around the world. Wherever you live, a typical night out is spent eating burgers, seeing American films or listening to English-language music in clubs and bars. Individual differences do survive but American culture is everywhere. Differences in the social behavior of the two sexes are also disappearing. Most people surveyed felt that it was 'perfectly normal' for groups of young women to go out alone, that it was 'equally acceptable' for young women to smoke and drink, and that a couple should split the bill when they go out together. For most young people these were the biggest differences between their own generation and their parents'. Interestingly, however, most young people interviewed said that parents are still stricter with daughters than sons about where they go and who they go with. Overall, only 10 per cent thought that parents treat their sons and daughters equally, and almost no one thought parents were stricter with their sons! Important national differences appear, however, when it comes to time-keeping. In the Far East and Eastern Europe a night out starts --- and finishes --- much earlier: there seven o'clock was the average time for meeting up with friends. For many Southern European and South Americans, on the other hand, an evening out doesn't even start until ten or eleven o'clock, by which time many of their South Korean or Japanese counterparts are safely home in bed! Parents' rules reflect this. Most Japanese parents expect their teenagers home by ten o'clock or even earlier, whereas in Europe it is more likely to be eleven or twelve o'clock. The most surprising findings came from Argentina, however, where it is apparently quite normal for 15 and 16-year-olds to stay out all night. But then perhaps this is because their parents have less to worry about --- 80 percent of Argentine youngsters claimed that they rarely or never drink alcohol! One of the biggest differences between young people and their parents lies in _ . A the music style and stars they loved B their attitude towards paying money for dinner C the decreasing number of young women smoking D the time they meet up with people and have evening out Answer: B. their attitude towards paying money for dinner "Blogging is helping students to think and write more critically ,"says an Australian researcher, "and can help draw out people who would otherwise not engage in debate." These are the preliminary findings of PHD research by Anne Bartlett-Bragg, a lecturer at the University of Technology, Sydney, who has been using weblogs or blogs in her own teaching since 2001. "The students are thinking more critically." she says, "They are learning to be responsible and they're communicating outside the boundaries of the classroom and the institution, and they like that. "Bartlett-Bragg says in conventional teaching, students often rely on the lecturer as the main source of ideas and critique for their work. "I'm a bit over listening to my students giving me back in an essay what I've told them in class." she says. "I want them to think for themselves and get different perspectives." "What makes blogs useful is their interactive nature." she says. These web-based forums for discussing ideas, experiences or opinions allow students to discuss publicly what they are studying with other students and experts outside their own university. "I really encourage them to put their personal opinion in there, provided they are informed and backed up with evidence." Bartlett-Bragg says because a lot of academics in her field of electronic or e-learning now have their own blogs, students can engage directly with them. She says one of the most powerful facilities in weblogs is pinging, which involves a person positing a comment about someone else's work on their own blog. They use the "Trackback" tool to notify the author when they have published the comment, basically inviting them to discuss it. "They get such a buzz when they make a comment on another person outside the boundaries of the institution and that person responds, or even gives them some further reading." she says. "They are getting new perspectives that I can't give them in a normal lecture." The "Trackback" tool is used to _ . A exchange views with the author B inform the author of a newly published comment C invite the author to reply D send a comment to the author Answer: B. inform the author of a newly published comment Europe is home to a variety of cultural treasures. Lonely Planet, the world's largest travel guide publisher, has offered pairs of cities for culturehungry but timepoor travelers. London and Paris It takes you about two hours to travel from London to Paris by Eurostar, a high-speed railway service. The two capital cities have been competing in fashion, art and nightlife for decades-but each secretly looks up to the other. No one can doubt the grand and impressive beauty of Paris' Louvre Museum, but if you want to save money, you cannot skip the British Museum free to visit. Compared with London, Paris has more outdoor attractions such as the beautiful green walkway La Promenade Plantee. In Paris, you'll see diners linger over red wine. While in London, you can try some afternoon tea, eat fish and chips or salted cake. Vienna and Bratislava Austrian capital Vienna and Slovakia city Bratislava are an hour apart by train. But since they are linked by the Danube River, the best way to travel is by ship. A tour of the two cities is the perfect way to experience everything from 17th century's Habsburg dynasty splendor to scifi restaurants. Vienna is famous for Mozart and imperial palaces. You can appreciate the perfect blending of architecture and nature in the grand Schonbrunn Palace, and reward yourself with a cup of Vienna coffee, which has made its way to the world's cultural heritage list. Bratislava is best known for its fine dining-the remarkable UFO restaurant. You can enjoy a meatladen dinner here in an amazing setting. What's the relationship between London and Paris according to the text? A They help each other. B They attack each other. C They admire each other. D They don't like each other. Answer: C. They admire each other. EVERYONE is talking about bird flu . Yes it is a very dangerous disease that could make people very sick. It will be a few months before we have good medicine for bird flu.But that doesn't mean you can't do anything to prevent it now. So far, all the people who have caught bird flu have been those who touched sick chickens or their droppings . So it is a good idea for people to stay away from live chickens. "People used to go to the markets to buy live chickens to eat, but now they have to change that habit," said Peter, an expert from World Health Organization. But if you do touch a sick bird, remember to wash your hands carefully with soap right away. Experts also say having good habits and a healthy body will help keep you safe from bird flu. For example, don't buy or eat birds that have not been checked. Don't eat anything that has touched raw meat. Also don't forget to open your windows often and exercise regularly. Getting enough sleep is also very important for fighting illness .If you feel sick, see a doctor right away.At present, no one in Shanghai has bird flu. But WHO says children under 12 years old could easily get sick with bird flu. Try to stay away from people who have the flu, and always cover your mouth and nose when you cough or sneeze. How do people catch bird flu? A By eating boiled eggs. B By eating checked birds. C By touching sick chickens or their droppings. D By forgetting to open windows. Answer: B. By eating checked birds.
A water wave that occurs in an ocean is an example of which type of wave? A. electromagnetic B. gravitational C. transverse D. seismic Answer: C. transverse February 4, 2012 saw the take-off of a new rising NBA star-Jeremy Lin. Among professional basketball players, Jeremy Lin's background is not typical. He graduated from Harvard University, which sends few players to the NBA, and he is the only Chinese-American NBA player. But when you watch him on the court, there is no doubt that he belongs there. He moves with speed and grace that demonstrate years of faithful practice, which is fueled by a love for basketball. Lin's enjoyment of basketball actually began in Taiwan. When Lin's father moved to U.S., his interest in the sport only grew and he passed on this love of basketball to his son, introducing him to the game at the age of five. The young Lin spent much of his youth playing basketball for fun. In high school, Lin dreamed of playing in the NBA. When he applied for college, he was not offered a single sports scholarship. However, after his admission to Harvard, he was offered a place on its college basketball team. During Lin's time at Harvard, his basketball career began to speed up. He scored 1,482 points, making him one of the highest scorers in Ivy League history. When he graduated, no professional teams offered Lin a contract, but he was invited to play in the NBA Summer League. He played well and ended up eagerly signing a contract with the Golden State Warriors. At first,playing in professional games filled Lin with excitement. He treasured opportunities to meet players he had been watching on TV for years. But slowly, the excitement _ and was replaced by anxiety. In a few very difficult months, he was cut by two teams before the New York Knicks picked him up. But he had the courage and determination to stick to his dream, so he put himself into hard training to get ready for his opportunity to come. Then his moment arrived on February 4, 2012,on which his excellent performance made him famous overnight. After that, he led the Knicks to their fifth straight victory. The Associated Press called Lin "the most surprising story in the NBA". Knicks fans developed the nickname for him "Linsanity" . Time magazine released its 2012 list of the 100 "Most Influential People in the World", Jeremy Lin included. No doubt, Lin fever is continuing to spread if you haven't already caught "Linsanity", get ready. Which of the following elements is of little help in Lin's success? A. his father's influence B. his devotion to basketball C. his years of hard work D. his graduation from Harvard University Answer: D. his graduation from Harvard University You are busy with your job but want to make new friends? You miss your old friends and try to find them? Then try a new website --- Facebook. Mark Zuckerberg,a Harvard student,created Facebook only about eight years ago. At first,it was only for Harvard students. Soon it became popular on the Internet. Now over 25 million people around the world use it to keep in touch with their friends. People like Facebook because it makes them feel comfortable. On Facebook,they share joys or sorrows by posting pictures and videos. What's more,they leave messages and give online presents to their friends. Now Facebook,like eBay,is a place to sell things. The best part about Facebook is to help find old friends. For people,the only thing to do is to sign their real names. Then it takes a short time to sign their old friends. So have fun with Facebook if you love to be with friends,old or new. Which of the following is TRUE? A. It takes you a long time to find old friends on Facebook. B. Now Facebook is a website only for students. C. The best part about Facebook is to make new friends. D. You have to sign your real name if you want to find your old friends on Facebook. Answer: D. You have to sign your real name if you want to find your old friends on Facebook. Historians say Harriet Tubman was born in the year 1820.Nobody really knows.But we do know that Harriet Tubman was one of the bravest women ever born in the United States. From a very early age, Harriet knew how slaves suffered.At six years old, she was sent to the fields.Working outside not only made her body strong but also made her learn about the Underground Railroad, through which she helped hundreds of people escape from slavery later.She also learned many things from other slaves, which one day would help her lead her people to freedom.She became more of a rebel . In 1844, at about age 24, she married a free black man named John Tubman.By now, Harriet was sure she wanted to try to escape.Suddenly, the time came.Her owner died.Though opposed by her husband, she decided to escape.With the help of the Underground Railroad, and through a variety of suffering she finally crossed the border into Pennsylvania, where slavery was banned .Later, she told a friend, "I felt like I was in heaven." Now that Harriet was free, she did not forget the hundreds of other slaves back in Maryland.Harriet traveled back and forth eighteen times, helping about 300 slaves escape into free territory.She became an expert at hiding from slave hunter.The people she helped called her Moses.At one time anyone finding Harriet was promised $40,000 for catching her --dead or alive. During the Civil War, Harriet Tubman went into enemy territory to spy for the North.She also served as a nurse.After four years of bloody fighting, the North won the war. After the fighting ended, Harriet Tubman returned to Auburn, New York.She kept working.She traveled and gave speeches to raise money for better education for black children.She also worked for women's rights and housing.Harriet Tubman died in 1913.She was about 93 years old.By that time, she was recognized as an American hero.The United States government gave a funeral with military honors for the woman known a Moses. Which of the following should be the best title for the text? A. Cruel American Civil War B. A history of American black slaves C. A brief introduction to Harriet Tubman D. Information on the Underground Railroad Answer: C. A brief introduction to Harriet Tubman How to be Prepared Electricity, water, gas and telephone may not be working after an earthquake. The police and fire department are likely to be tied up. You should be prepared to take care of yourself for at least three days, preferably for a week. This list can also be applied to other disasters, such as floods or wildfires. 1. food and water (a gallon a day per person) 2. a first aid kit 3. a fire extinguisher suitable for all types of fires 4. flashlights, a portable radio extra batteries 5. blankets, clothes, shoes and money (ATMs may not work) 6. baby and pet food It's also a good idea to decide beforehand how and where your family will reunite if separated during a quake and to conduct in-home practice drills. During an Earthquake If you are indoors, stay there. Get under and hold onto a desk or table, or stand against an interior wall. Stay away from exterior walls, glass, heavy furniture, and stay away from windows and outside walls and do not use the elevator. If you are outside, get into the open, stay into the open, stay away from buildings, power lines or anything else that could fall on you. If you are driving, move the car out of traffic and stop, avoid parking under or on bridges or overpasses, Try to get clear of trees, light posts, signs and power lines. If you are in a crowded public place, avoid panicking and do not rush for the exit. Stay low and cover your head and neck with your hands and arms. After an Earthquake If the phone is working, only use it in case of emergency. Likewise, avoid driving if possible to keep the streets clear for emergency vehicles. Be aware that items may fall out of cupboards or closets when the door is opened, and also that chimneys can be weakened and fall with touch. Check for cracks and damage to the roof and foundation of your home. Listen to the radio for important information and instructions. Remember that _ , sometimes large enough to cause damage in their own right, generally follow large quakes. If you leave home, leave a message telling friends and family your location. When an earthquake is over,you should _ . A. driveacartotakeyourfamilytothesafeplace B. checkthesecurityofyourhome C. callyourrelativestotellthemyouaresafe D. clearupthemessassoonaspossible. Answer: B. checkthesecurityofyourhome
Some years ago, Wang Baoqiang was a nobody to most Chinese people. However, he is now a household film star in China. Wang is the youngest child of a poor family in Hebei Province. Dreaming of becoming an actor, he left home at the age of 8 to study kung fu at Shaolin Temple, since kung-fu actors seemed to appear most often on the big screen. At 14, he moved to Beijing for his acting career for the first time, with little money in his pocket. He worked at a construction site for 20 to 25 yuan per day, and spent his free time standing in front of the Beijing Film Studio, eager to be chosen as temporary actors. This was the hardest time for the boy. His opportunity finally came one day after he went for a role in the movie "Blind Shaft" . He was chosen to play a young coal miner. The movie won him three prizes in Thailand, France and Taiwan. But his success didn`t make any difference to his life. That year, he went home for the Spring Festival. He gave his family his earnings from the movie, around $ 250 and then returned to Beijing with 500 yuan, the same amount he had when he first came to the city. His life was as simple as before. Thanks to his natural performance in "Blind Shaft", he was invited by the famous director Feng Xiaogang to act in the film "A World Without Thieves" in 2004, which made him famous immediately. People called him "Shagen", the name of his character in the movie. Wang's work, "Soldiers Sortie" has made him the most popular actor on the Chinese mainland. For the actor, it's a dream coming true. "Dreams come true. I think my life is exactly a course of pursuing dreams. No matter how tough one thing is,I can make it as long as I put great effort into it. "he said. How much money did he take with him the first time he came to Beijing? A Y=500 B $250 C Y=50 D Y=1750 Answer: A Dawson was charged with felony murder because of his involvement in a bank robbery. The evidence at trial disclosed that Smith invited Dawson to go for a ride in his new car, and after a while asked Dawson to drive. As Smith and Dawson drove around town, Smith explained to Dawson that he planned to rob the bank and that he needed Dawson to drive the getaway car. Dawson agreed to drive to the bank and to wait outside while Smith went in to rob it. As they approached the bank, Dawson began to regret his agreement to help with the robbery. Once there, Smith got out of with the robbery. Once there, Smith got out of the car. As Smith went out of sight inside the bank, Dawson drove away and went home. Inside the bank, Smith killed a bank guard who tried to prevent him from leaving with the money. Smith ran outside and, finding that his car and Dawson were gone, ran down an alley. He was apprehended a few blocks away. Dawson later turned himself in after hearing on the radio that Smith had killed the guard. The jurisdiction has a death penalty that applies to felony murder. Consistent with the law and the Constitution, the jury may convict Dawson of A felony murder and impose the death penalty. B felony murder but not impose the death penalty. C bank robbery only. D no crime. Answer: B Christmas came in extravagant fashion to the Muslim desert emirate of Abu Dhabi as a shining hotel uncovered a bejeweled Christmas tree valued at more than 11 million dollars on Wednesday. It is "the most expensive Christmas tree ever" with "a value of over 11 million dollars", said Hans Olbertz, general of Emirates Palace Hotel, at its inauguratuion . The 13-metre (40-foot) evergreen, located in the gold hall of the hotel, is decorated with silver and gold bows, ball-shaped decorations and small white lights. But the necklaces, earrings and other jewellery hung around the tree's branches are what give it a record value. "It holds a total of 181 diamonds, pearls, sapphires and other precious stones," said Khalifa Khouri, owner of Style Gallery, which provided the jewellery. "The tree itself is about 10,000 dollars," Olbertz said. "The jewellery has a value of over 11 million dollars--I think $1,141,150." "This will probably be an entry into the Guinness book of world records," Olbertz said, adding that Emirates Palace planned to contact the organization about the tree which is to stay until the end of the year. Asked whether the tree might be against religious sensibilities in the United Arab Emirates, where the vast majority of the local population are Muslim, Olbertz said he did not think it would. "It is a liberal country," he said. The hotel has had a Christmas tree up in previous years, but this year "we have to do something different", and the hotel's marketing team _ the plan, said Olbertz. Which of the following is TRUEaccording to the passage? A The tree is located in the gold leaf-bedecked hall of the king's palace. B The tree is decorated with jewellery whose value is over 11 million dollars. C The tree has been an entry into the Guinness book of world records. D The tree is sure to be against religious sensibilities in the United Arab Emirates. Answer: B She was returning from teaching out in a small community . It was a moonless night, and a heavy snow was falling. She remembered back to when she had first started teaching out in small communities. In those days she had always picked up hitchhikers , until the day her sister told her of a friend who had been shot in the head by a hitchhiker, all because she had stopped out of kindness to help him during a storm. Her family didn't become concerned about her safety over the hitchhikers until the family heard the promise: "No more hitchhikers!" The snow that night was making her think back to this. Then she saw a man waving. She slowed down for him, but now as he ran toward the car in the dark she shook with fear. Yet she thought that if he was truly in need she couldn't leave him here in this storm. The stranger explained that his car was dead, and she told him to get in. They drove for an hour into the next city and she took him to a telephone booth . She waited until he had made a call. When he reported back to her that a family member would soon come for him, she wished him well and left. _ "I hope they'll understand why I had to break my promise," she thought. What can we learn about the woman? A She was a taxi driver. B She used to be a hitchhiker. C She taught in small communities. D She seldom picked up strangers. Answer: C A serious problem for today's society is who should be responsible for our elderly and how to improve their lives. It is not only a financial problem but also a question of the system we want for our society. I would like to suggest several possible solutions to this problem. First, employers should take the responsibility for their retired employees. To make this possible, a percentage of profits should be set aside for this purpose. But when a company must take life-long responsibility for its employees, it may suffer from a commercial disadvantage due to higher employee costs. Another way of solving the problem is to return the responsibility to the individual. This means each person must save during his working years to pay for his years of retirement. This does not seem a very fair model since some people have enough trouble paying for their daily life without trying to earn extra to cover their retirement years. This means the government might have to step in to care for the poor. In addition, the government could take responsibility for the care of the elderly. This could be financed through government taxes to increase the level of pensions. Furthermore, some institutions should be created for senior citizens, which can help provide a comfortable life for them. Unfortunately, as the present situation in our country shows, this is not a truly _ answer. The government can seldom afford to care for the elderly, particularly when it is busy trying to care for the young. One further solution is that the government or social organizations establish some working places especially for the elderly where they are independent. To sum up, all these options have advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that some combination of these options may be needed to provide the care we hope to give to our elderly generations. What is the writer's main purpose in writing this article? A To point out the need for government support for old people. B To make general readers aware of the problems of retired people. C To discuss some possible solutions to an important social problem. D To instruct retired people on how they can have a happier life. Answer: C

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