A baby born in India has been declared the world's seven billionth person by child rights group Plan International．Baby Nargis was born at 07：25 local time(01：55GMT)in Mall village in India's Uttar Pradesh state．Plan International says Nargis has been chosen symbolically as it is not possible to know where exactly the seven billionth baby is born．In addition to baby Nargis in India，Bangladesh，the Philippines and Cambodia have all identified seven billionth babies．The United Nations estimated that on Monday 31 October．the world's population would reach seven billion．
Populations are growing faster than economies in many poor countries in Africa and some in Asia．At the same time，low birth rates in Japan and many European nations have raised concerns about labor shortages．
Population experts at the United Nations estimated that the world reached six billion in October 1999．They predict nine billion by 2050 and ten billion by the end of the century． China's population of one and a third billion is currently the world's largest．India is second at 1．2 billion．But India is expected to pass China and reach one and a half billion people around 2025．
India will also have one of the world's youngest populations．Economists say this is a chance for a so-called．demographic dividend．India could gain from the skills of young people in a growing economy at a time when other countries have aging populations．But economists say current rates of growth，although high，may not create enough jobs．Also，the public education system is failing to meet demand and schooling is often of poor quality．Another concern is health care．Nearly half of India's children under the age of five are malnourished(营养不良).
Michal Rutkowski，the director of human development in South Asia at the World Bank, says reaching seven billion people in the world is a good time for a call to action．He says，“I think the bottom line of the story is that the public policy needs to become really，really serious about sex equality and about access to services—to fight against malnutrition，and to provide for access to health services，water and schooling．”What is true about the world's seven billionth person?
| A．Baby Nargis is not the only child chosen as the seven billionth baby. |
| B．Baby Nargis has been chosen carefully so it is exactly the seven billionth baby． |
| C．Three countries have all declared Baby Nargis as the seven billi011th baby. |
| D．The United Nations declared Baby Nargis as the world's seven billionth person． |
Which of the following problems do many European countries worry about?
| A．Labor shortage． | B．Poor health care． |
| C．Not enough jobs． | D．Schooling of poor quality． |
According to population experts，how long will it take for population to grow from six billion to nine billion?
| A．About 12 years． | B．About 40 years． | C．About 50 years． | D．About 110 years． |
What does the underlined phrase“demographic dividend”in the fourth paragraph refer to?
| A．Possibility of lower birth rate． |
| B．Benefit gained by working young people． |
| C．Chances for more employment． |
| D．Disadvantages caused by aging population． |
Which of the following public policies does Michal Rutkowski call on?
| A．To encourage late marriage． | B．To reduce world's population． |
| C．To gain economic equality． | D．To improve health and education． |
Every year in America, high-school students who want to go to college take a national examination called the Scholastic Aptitude Test, or SAT in a shortened way. Their score is an important factor in determining which colleges will admit them or whether any will be admitted at all. The Scholastic Aptitude Test measures one’s mathematical ability and use of the English language. Traditionally, the English portion（部分）involved grammatical questions and paragraphs that test reading comprehension.
But the SAT folks have added a single question, to be answered in an essay, hand-written on the spot. That’s an interesting way to test writing ability, put content aside, have you ever seen young people’s handwriting lately? Or anyone’s for that matter, in this age of computer keyboards? Students write numbers and sign their names on bank checks. They scribble class notes in what can generously be described as the written word. And they hand-write, or more often print, a word or two of identification on luggage and lunch bags. Otherwise penmanship (书法) — once taught so morally and easefully by second-grade teachers, has gone the way of the dodo bird which has died out.
Yet today’s kids are asked to write, thoughtfully and legibly (字迹清楚地), for several minutes on this SAT Test. Good luck to the text scorers who must work out difficultly the scrawl of young people who’ve been typing on computers since the age of three! Teachers insist that good handwriting can not only help one’s score on the SAT, but also, later on in life, impress potential employers and earn bigger tax refunds (退税) because the tax inspectors can actually read the computations (计算结果). And don’t forget, we all have to turn to handwriting from time to time, as computers go down when power goes out. The subjects to be tested in the SAT include ______.
| A．math, English, reading and handwriting |
| B．math, grammar, reading and writing |
| C．math, foreign language and writing |
| D．math, English and handwriting |
The author writes this passage to introduce the fact that ______.
| A．writing seems to be very important in the SAT |
| B．those who will go to colleges have to take the SAT |
| C．students should practice handwriting more often |
| D．in the computer age kids know how to write legibly |
What does the underlined word “scribble” probably mean?
| A．Write quickly and roughly. | B．Take notes difficultly. |
| C．Print penmanship carefully. | D．Describe written word generously. |
According to the passage good handwriting can ______.
| A．help students get high scores in tests | B．make a student more popular |
| C．measure students’ ability | D．assist one to get a job |
We know the famous ones — the Thomas Edisons and the Alexander Graham Bells— but what about the less famous inventors? What about the people who invented the traffic light and the windshield wiper(雨刮器)？Shouldn’ t we know who they are?
Joan McLean thinks so. In fact, McLean, a professor of physics at Mountain University in Range, feels so strongly about this matter that she’ s developed a course on the topic. In addition to learning “who” invented “what”， however, McLean also likes her students to learn the answers to the “why”and“how”questions. According to McLean，“When students learn the answers to these questions, they are better prepared to recognize opportunities for inventing and more motivated to give inventing a try.”
Her students agree. One young man with a patent for an unbreakable umbrella is walking proof of McLean’ s statement.“If I had not heard the story of the windshield wiper’ s invention，”said Tommy Lee, a senior physics major，“I never would have dreamed of turning my bad experience during a rainstorm into something so constructive.” Lee is currently negotiating to sell his patent to an umbrella producer.
So, just what is the story behind the windshield wiper? Well, Mary Anderson came up with the idea in 1902 after a visit to New York City. The day was cold and stormy，but Anderson still wanted to see the sights, so she jumped aboard a streetcar. Noticing that the driver was struggling to see through the snow covering the windshield, she found herself wondering why there couldn’ t be a built-in device for cleaning the window. Still wondering about this when she returned home to Birmingham，Alabama. Anderson started drafting out solutions. One of her ideas, a lever(操作杆) on the inside of a vehicle that would control an arm on the outside, became the first windshield wiper.
Today we benefit from countless inventions and innovations. It’ s hard to imagine driving without Garrett A. Morgan’ s traffic light. It’ s equally impossible to picture a world without Katherine J. Blodgett’ s innovation that makes glass invisible. Can you picture life without clear windows and eyeglasses?By mentioning “traffic light”and “windshield wiper”， the author indicates that countless inventions are________.
| A．beneficial, because their inventors are famous |
| B．beneficial, though their inventors are less famous |
| C．not useful, because their inventors are less famous |
| D．not useful, though their inventors are famous |
Professor Joan McLean’ s course aims to________.
| A．add colour and variety to students’ campus life |
| B．inform students of the windshield wiper’ s invention |
| C．carry out the requirements by Mountain University |
| D．prepare students to try their own inventions |
Tommy Lee’ s invention of the unbreakable umbrella was________.
| A．not eventually accepted by the umbrella producer |
| B．inspired by the story behind the windshield wiper |
| C．due to his dream of being caught in a rainstorm |
| D．not related to Professor Joan McLean’ s lectures |
Which of the following can best serve as the title of this passage?
| A．How to Help Students to Sell Their Inventions to Producers? |
| B．How to Design a Built-in Device for Cleaning the Window? |
| C．Shouldn’ t We Know Who Invented the Windshield Wiper? |
| D．Shouldn’ t We Develop Invention Courses in Universities? |
Sometimes, the simplest ideas are the best. For example, to absorb heat from the sun to heat water, you need large, flat, back surfaces. One way to do that is to build those surfaces specially, on the roofs of buildings. But why go to all that trouble when cities are full of black surfaces already, in the form of asphalt(柏油) roads ?
Ten years ago, this thought came into the mind of Arian de Bondt, a Dutch engineer. He finally persuaded his boss to follow it up. The result is that their building is now heated in winter and cooled in summer by a system that relies on the surface of the road outside.
The heat-collector is a system of connected water pipes. Most of them run from one side of the street to the other, just under the asphalt road. Some, however, dive deep into the ground.
When the street surface gets hot in summer, water pumped through the pipes picks up this heat and takes it underground through one of the diving pipes. At a depth of 100 metres lies a natural aquifer(蓄水层) into which several heat exchangers（交换器）have been built. The hot water from the street runs through these exchangers, warming the groundwater, before returning to the surface through another pipe. The aquifer is thus used as a heat store.
In winter, the working system is changed slightly. Water is pumped through the heat exchangers to pick up the heat stored during summer. This water goes into the building and is used to warm the place up. After performing that task, it is pumped under the asphalt and its remaining heat keeps the road free of snow and ice.Which of the following is true according to the first two paragraphs ?
Arian de Bondt got his idea from his boss.
Large, flat, black surfaces need to be built in cities.
The Dutch engineer’s system has been widely used.
Heat can also be collected from asphalt roads.For what purpose are the diving pipes used ?
| A．To absorb heat from the sun. | B．To store heat for future use. |
| C．To turn solar energy into heat energy. | D．To carry heat down below the surface. |
From the last paragraph we can learn that __________.
| A．some pipes have to be re-arranged in winter |
| B．the system can do more than warming up the building |
| C．the exchangers will pick up heat |
| D．less heat may be collected in winter than in summer |
What is most likely to be discussed in the paragraph that follows ?
| A．What we shall do if the system goes wrong. |
| B．What we shall do if there are no asphalt roads. |
| C．How the system cools the building in summer. |
| D．How the system collects heat in spring and autumn. |
下面文章中有5处（第81~85题）需要添加小标题，请从以下选项中选出符合各段意思的小标题，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑,选项中一项为多余选项.
| A．Learn Everyday |
| B．Agree to Disagree |
| C．Respect Each Other |
| D．Arrange Some Time to Go Out |
E. Develop Healthy Relationships
F. Learn to Listen and Speak
Healthy Relationship Tips
Healthy relationships are effortless, if both the people involved take equal effort to maintain it. Here are a few healthy relationship tips to help you build the dream of your life.
81. ________________
Communication is an art of putting your thoughts into words, so that they are exactly understood by the opposite person. Communication does not mean going on talking unnecessarily. This is the first mistake that couples make. One person in the relationship assumes the role of talker and the other becomes the listener. Their roles remain so forever. The talker forgets to listen and the listener becomes used to listening and not reacting. If your partner takes time to open up, help them out by asking questions. So hear them out and give proper reactions. You will obtain the benefits of a healthy relationship through increased confidence in both of you to open up and hear things out.
82. ________________
Regular conversations take the form of heated arguments amongst many couples. Understand that not every statement needs a reaction. Maybe a certain reaction may lead to an argument with your partner. Just agree with whatever it is and there will be no harm done. Try and reach a mutual (相互的) agreement. If that’s not possible leave the topic for later. If you give it time, maybe both of you will be able to think about it rationally.
83. ________________
Every single day is a blessing. Each moment with your partner is a moment to learn something new and discover the finer nuances (细微差别) of your relationships. Each one of us keep changing everyday, the circumstances around us change everyday and with that our attitude also needs to change. The same applies when you are living with a person. Learning everyday and taking everyday as a challenge will help you perfect healthy relationship tips.
84. ________________
This tip is especially meant for couples with children to maintain healthy relationships. After a certain period, couples complain about romance being lost. To keep your relationship healthy, take some time out from your day-to-day routines to spend some quality time with your partner. This can be done as dinners, indulging in outdoor activities or just hanging out at a coffee shop like old times.
85. ________________
Respect has to be earned. It can only be earned only if you learn to respect. Often, one of the partners plays the role of a dictator to give orders, while the other simply follows. Both sides involved are equally responsible for this mistake. Learn to respect each other and understand that both of you are equally responsible for the relationship.
Creating a healthy relationship takes equal effort from both sides. Sharing, caring, being apologetic, forgiving and having realistic expectations are some of the important ingredients to the recipe of a healthy relationship.
Nodira, 18, lives in the Tashkent region of Uzbekistan. She was born with a rare disease and is now paralyzed(瘫痪) from the waist down. Her life is confined to a wheelchair but her dreams know no such boundaries. Her hopes for the future include attending university, riding in her father’s car and being able to walk like other children.
Nodira, which means ‘unique’ in Uzbek, is one of five children in a poor family. Every morning, after reciting her prayers, Nodira feeds the hens and goats from her wheelchair. The rest of her day is spent knitting for other people and helping her mother with the household chores.
Nodira has never been to school because it is too far from her home and inaccessible for her wheelchair. A local teacher used to come and tutor her at home and, as a result, she was able to finish third grade. After that, her parents moved to another town and the tutor could not visit as much.
Despite the many difficulties in Nodira’s life she is lucky to be living with her family. The stigma(羞辱) attached to the children living with disabilities, combined with the lack of wheelchair access in schools and the economic difficulties faced by many Uzbek families, have led many parents to place children with disabilities in special institutions.
These days, Nodira does homework exercises at home and reads as much as she can. Still, it is unlikely that she will be able to finish her primary education, much less attend university. While missing out on an education is a great disappointment to Nodira, her greatest wish, for a true friend, can still come true. “What I want more than anything is a friend who also has a disability,” she says. “Somebody will not feel sorry for me or make fun of me, and will understand what my life is like.”The underlined sentence in the first paragraph probably means “_____”.
| A．her dreams will help her desert her wheel chair |
| B．her dreams are never limited by her disability |
| C．she often dreams of moving freely without a wheel chair |
| D．she never dreams of recovering from her disability |
Nodira does all the following every day EXCEPT _____.
| A．give food to some animals |
| B．to make clothes from woolen or cotton thread |
| C．drive cars designed for the disabled |
| D．help with the housework |
The underlined word “tutor” in the 3rd paragraph can be replaced by “_____”.
| A．educate | B．visit | C．treat | D．comfort |
What Nodira wants most is ______.
| A．to go to university | B．to walk on her own feet |
| C．to finish her primary education | D．to find a true friend |
The law is a great mass of rules, showing when and how far a man is possible to be punished, or to be made to hand over money or property to his neighbors, and so on. These rules are contained in books. A lawyer learns them mainly by reading books.
He begins by doing nothing but read, and after he has prepared himself by three years study practice, still, all his life long and almost every day, he will be looking into books to read a little more than he already knows about some new questions which he has to answer.
The power to use books, then is a special skill which the would - be lawyer ought to possess. He ought to have enough flexibility（灵活性）to make it easy for him to collect ideas from printed words. He ought to have no difficulty in finding what a book contains, and something of an instinct（直觉）for where to look for what he wants.
But although this is the power of which he will first feel the need, it is not the most important. A lawyer does not study law to recite it; he studies it to use it and act upon the rules which he has learned in real life. His business is to try cases in court and to advise men what to do in order to keep out or get out of trouble. After three years of reading________.
| A．he can study law |
| B．he can stop reading |
| C．he still has to continue reading |
| D．he is able to give clever answers |
The major business of a lawyer is________.
| A．to discuss the material he has read |
| B．to advise people who have law problems |
| C．to learn about real life |
| D．to study the law |
According to the passage, a good lawyer should know how to________.
| A．understand and use what he reads |
| B．be convenient in everything |
| C．collect ideas from different source |
| D．use power in the court |
While it is impossible to live completely free of stress, it is possible to prevent stress as well as reduce its effect when it can’t be avoided. The US Department of Health and Human Services offers the following suggestions for ways to deal with stress.
Try physical activity
When you are nervous, angry or upset, try releasing the pressure through exercise or physical activity. Running, walking, playing tennis, or working in your garden are just some of the activities you might try. Physical exercise will relieve your anxiety and worry and help you to relax. Your body and your mind will work together to ease the stress in your life.
Share your stress
It helps to talk to someone about your anxieties and worries. Perhaps a friend, family member, teacher or even your leader can help you a better view of what’s troubling you. If you feel your problem is serious, you might seek professional help from a psychologist or a doctor. Knowing when to ask for help is an important step in avoiding serious problems later.
Take care of yourself
You should make every effort to eat well and get enough rest. If you easily get angry and cannot sleep well enough, or if you’re not eating properly, it will be more likely that you will fall into stressful situations. If stress repeatedly keeps you from sleeping, you should consult a doctor. Make time for yourself.
Make a list of the things you need to do
Stress can result from disorganization and a feeling that "there’s so much to do, and not enough time". Trying to take care of everything at once can be too much for you and as a result, you may not achieve anything. Instead, make a list of everything you have to do, then do one thing at a time, checking off each task as it is completed. Set out to do the most important tasks first.
Go ahead and cry
A good cry can be a healthy way to bring relief to your anxiety. It might even help you avoid a headache or other physical effect of anxiety and stress. What is most probably the writer’s purpose in writing the article?
| A．To release his or her working tiredness. |
| B．To help solve the universal problem of stress. |
| C．To strengthen his or her anxiety. |
| D．To have more people cry out. |
Physical activity can help people release stress because________.
| A．only your body movement can help you relax |
| B．your mind can work better to free you of anxiety |
| C．your body and mind can cooperate in releasing stress |
| D．physical activity doesn’t play an important part in reducing nervousness |
What is similarity between "Share your stress" and "Go ahead and cry"?
| A．They both help you let out your feelings. |
| B．They both need physical movement. |
| C．They both require mental relaxation. |
| D．They can cause a headache. |
The underlined sentence is close to the meaning of "________".
| A．Strike while the iron is hot |
| B．More haste, less speed |
| C．Practice makes perfect |
| D．Quietness wins time |
根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。
Taking good notes is a time-saving skill that will help you to become a batter student in several ways. 71 Second, your notes are excellent materials to refer to when you are studying for a test. Third, note-taking offers variety to your study time and helps you to hold your interest.
You will want to take notes during classroom discussions and while reading a textbook or doing research for a report. 72 Whenever or however you take notes, keep in mind that note-taking is a selective process.73
The following methods may work best for you.
● Read the text quickly to find the main facts and ideas in it.
● Carefully read the text and watch for words that can show main points and supporting facts.
● Write your notes in your own words.
● 74
● Note any questions or ideas you may have about what was said or written.
As you take notes, you may want to use your own shorthand(速记). When you do, be sure that you understand your symbols and that you use them all the time.75
| A. Use words, not complete sentences. B. There are three practical note-taking methods. C. You must write your notes on separate paper. D. Otherwise, you may not be able to read your notes later. E. You will also want to develop your own method for taking notes. F. That means you must first decide what is important enough to include in your notes. G. First, the simple act of writing something down makes it easier for you to understand and remember it. |
Banks are not ordinarily prepared to pay out all accounts(账，账户); they rely on depositors (储户) not to deman
d payment all at the same time. If depositors should come to fear that a bank is not safe, that it cannot pay off all its depositors, then that fear might cause all the depositors to appear on the same day. If they did, the bank could not pay all accounts. However, if they did not all appear at once, then there would always be enough money to pay those who wanted their money when they wanted it. M
rs. Elsie Vaught has told us of a terrifying bank run that she experienced. One day in December of 1925 several banks failed to
open i
n a city where Mrs. Vaught lived. The other banks expected a run the next day, and so the officers of the bank in which Mrs Vaught worked as a teller had enough money on hand to pay off their depositors. The officers simply told the tellers to pay on demand. The next morning a crowd gathered in the bank and on the sidewalk outside. The length of the line made many think that the bank could not possibly pay off everyone. People began to push and then to fight for places near the tellers’ windows. The power of the panic atm
osphere was such that two tellers, though they knew that the bank was quite all right and could pay all depositors, drew their own money from the bank. Mrs Vaught says that she had difficulty keeping herself from doing the same.A bank run happens when _______.
| A．too many depositors try to draw out their money at one time | |
| B．a bank is closed for one or more days |
C．there is enough money to pay all its depositors at one time |
| D．tellers of a bank take their own money from the bank |
The tellers in Mrs. Vaught’s bank were told to ________.
| A．explain why they could not pay out all accounts |
| B．pay out accounts as requested |
| C．make the depositors believe that the bank was stand |
| D．pay out money as slowly as possible |
According to the passage, the actions of the depositors of Mrs. Vaught’s bank were affected mainly by the _______.
| A．ease with which they could get their money |
B．confidence  that Mrs. Vaught showed |
| C．confidence shown by other depositors of the bank |
| D．failure of several other banks to open |
When 19－year－old Sophia Giorgi said she was thinking of volunteering to help the Make－A－Wish Foundation (基金会)，nobody understood what she was talking about.But Sophia knew just how important Make－A－Wish could be because this special organization had helped to make a dream come true for one of her best friends .We were interested in finding out more，so we went along to meet Sophia and listen to what she had to say.
Sophia told us that Make－A －Wish is a worldwide organization that started in the United States in 1980.“It's a charity(慈善机构)that helps children who have got very serious illnesses.Make－A－Wish helps children feel happy even though they are sick, by making their wishes and dreams come true ，” Sophia explained .
We asked Sophia how Make－A－Wish had first started.She said it had all begun with a very sick young boy called Chris ，who had been dreaming for a long time of becoming a policeman .Sophia said lots of people had wanted to find a way to make Chris's dream come true—so, with everybody's help, Chris, only seven years old at the time，had been a “policeman” for a day.” When people saw how delighted Chris was when his dream came true, they decided to try and help other sick children too，and that was the beginning of Make－A－Wish，” explained Sophia.
Sophia also told us the Foundation tries to give children and their families a special, happy time.A Make－A－Wish volunteer visits the families and asks the children what they would wish for if they could have anything in the world.Sophia said the volunteers were important because they were the ones who helped to make the wishes come true. They do this either by providing things that are necessary，or by raising money or helping out in whatever way they can.Sophia found out about Make－A－Wish because her best friend had________.
| A．benefited from it | B．volunteered to help it |
| C．dreamed about it | D．told the author about it |
According to Sophia，Make－A－Wish________.
| A．is an international charity |
| B．was understood by nobody at first |
| C．raises money for very poor families |
| D．started by drawing the interest of the public |
What is said about Chris in Paragraph 3?
| A．He has been a policeman since he was seven. |
| B．He gave people the idea of starting Make－A－Wish |
| C．He wanted people to help make his dream come true. |
| D．He was the first child Make－A－Wish helped after it had been set up. |
Which of the following is true about Make－A－Wish volunteers?
| A．They are important for making wishes come true. |
| B．They try to help children get over their illnesses. |
| C．They visit sick children to make them feel special. |
| D．They provide what is necessary to make Make－A－Wish popular. |
Maybe ten-year-old Elizabeth put it best when she said to her father,“But,Dad,you can’t be healthy if you’re dead?”
Dad,in a hurry to get home before dark so he could go for a run,had forgotten to wear his safety belt——a mistake 75% of the US population make every day.The big question is why.
There have been many myths about safety belts ever since their first appearance in cars some forty years ago.The following are three of the most common.
Myth Number One:It’s best to be“thrown clear”of a serious accident.
Truth:Sorry,but any accident serious enough to “throw you clear”is also going to be serious enough to give you a very bad landing.And chances are you’ll have traveled through a windshield(挡风玻璃)or door to do it.Studies show that chances of dying after a car accident are twenty-five times greater in cases where people are“thrown clear.”
Myth Number Two:Safety belts“trap”people in cars that are burning or sinking in water.
Truth:Sorry again,but studies show that people knocked unconscious(昏迷)due to not wearing safety belts have a greater chance of dying in these accidents,People wearing safety belts are usually protected to the point of having a clear head to free themselves from such dangerous situations,not to be trapped in them.
Myth Number Three:Safety belts aren’t needed at speeds of less than 30 miles per hour(mph).
Truth:When two cars traveling at 30 mph hit each other,an unbelted driver would meet the windshield with a force equal to diving headfirst into the ground from a height of 10 meters.Why did Elizabeth say to her father,“But Dad,you can’t be healthy if you’re dead”?
| A．He didn’t have his safety belt on. |
| B．He was running across the street. |
| C．He was driving at great speed |
| D．He didn’t take his medicine on time. |
The reason Father was in a hurry to get home was that he____.
| A．wasn’t feeling very well |
| B．wanted to take some exereise |
| C．hated to drive in the dark |
| D．didn’t want to be caught by the police |
According to the text,to be “thrown clear”of a serious accident is very dangerous
because you_____.
| A．may be knocked down by other cars |
| B．may get caught in the car door |
| C．may find it impossible to get away from the seat |
| D．may get seriously hurt being thrown out of the car |
Some people prefer to drive without wearing a safety belt because they believe__.
| A．they will be unable to think clearly in an accident |
| B．the belt prevents them from escaping in an accident |
| C．they will be caught when help comes |
| D．cars catch fire easily |
What is the advice given in the text?
| A．Never drive faster than 30 miles an hour. |
| B．Never forget to wear the safety belt while driving. |
| C．Try your best to save yourself in a car accident. |
| D．Drive slowly while you’re not wearing a safety belt. |
In this age of Internet chat, videogames and reality television, there is no shortage of mindless activities to keep a child occupied. Yet despite the competition, my 8-year-old daughter Rebecca wants to spend her leisure time writing short stories. She wants to enter one of her stories into a writing contest, a competition which she won last year.
As a writer, I know about winning contests – and about losing them. I know what it is like to work hard on a story only to receive a rejection letter from the publisher. I also know the pressure of trying to live up to a reputation created by previous victories. What if she doesn’t win the contest again? That’s the strange thing about being a parent. So many of our own past scars and destroyed hopes can resurface in our children.
A revelation (启示) came last week when I asked her, “Don’t you want to win again?” “No,” she replied, “I just want to tell the story of an angel going to first grade.”
I had just spent weeks correcting her stories as she spontaneously (自发地) told them. Telling myself that I was merely an experienced writer guiding the young writer across the hall, I offered suggestions for characters, conflicts and endings for her tales. The story about a fearful angel starting first grade was quickly “guided” by me into the tale of a little girl with a wild imagination taking her first music lesson. I had turned her contest into my contest without even realizing it.
Staying back and giving kids space to grow is not as easy as it looks. Because I know very little about farm animals who use tools or angels who go to first grade, I had to accept the fact that I was co-opting my daughter’s experience.
While stepping back was difficult for me, it was certainly a good first step that I will quickly follow with more steps, putting myself far enough away to give her room but close enough to help if asked. All the while I will be reminding myself that children need room to experiment, grow and find their own voices.What do we learn from the first paragraph?
| A．A lot of amusements compete for children’s time nowadays. |
| B．Children have lots of fun doing mindless activities. |
| C．Rebecca is much too busy to enjoy her leisure time. |
| D．Rebecca draws on a lot of online materials for her writing. |
What did the author say about her own writing experience?
| A．She was constantly under pressure to write more. |
| B．Most of her stories had been rejected by publishers. |
| C．She did not quite live up to her reputation as a writer. |
| D．Her road to success was full of pain and frustrations. |
Why did Rebecca want to enter this year’s writing contest?
| A．She believed she possessed real talent for writing. |
| B．She was sure of winning with her mother’s help. |
| C．She wanted to share her stories with readers. |
| D．She had won a prize in the previous contest. |
The author took great pains to improve her daughter’s stories because _______.
| A．she wanted to help Rebecca realize her dreams of becoming a writer |
| B．she was afraid Rebecca’s imagination might run wild while writing |
| C．she did not want to disappoint Rebecca who needed her help so much |
| D．she believed she had the knowledge and experience to offer guidance |
The underlined sentence probably means that the author was _______.
| A．trying not to let her daughter enjoy her own life |
| B．trying to get her daughter to do the thing as the author wished |
| C．making sure that her daughter would win the contest |
| D．helping her daughter develop real skills for writing |
What’s the author’s advice for parents?
| A．Children should be given every chance to voice their opinions. |
| B．Parents should keep an eye on the activities their kids engage in. |
| C．Children should be allowed freedom to grow through experience. |
| D．A writing career, though attractive, is not for every child to pursue. |
The gray-haired lady can’t wait to leave the building to search for her dad. Unless watched, she will walk in the streets in an effort to find her father, who died 30 years ago.
Not all cases of Alzheimer’s disease(老年痴呆症) look like this, but Alzheimer’s is a serious disease that is said to be the fourth or fifth leading cause of death for people over age 75. It is said that about three percent of the U.S. population over age 65 have Alzheimer’s. In the early stages, people may exhibit short-term memory loss. Some may experience changes in personality, easy to be angry. As the disease progresses, patients might lose the ability to move and may be unable to speak or move at all. This progressive disease generally lasts 8 to 10 years before death occurs.
While no one is certain what causes these changes in the brain’s nerve fibers （神经纤维）, their effect is certain. Alzheimer’s destroys not only the patients, but also spouses（配偶）, friends and families.
What should you do if you notice progressive memory loss in yourself or a loved one? Have the person examined by a doctor who is a specialist in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease? Though many reasons other than Alzheimer’s disease may cause memory loss, its early diagnosis（诊断）and treatment may delay some of the most serious effects.
What feeling will you likely experience if a loved one suffers from Alzheimer’s disease? A person will often go through the various stages of sadness, shock, anger, and so on. If the spouse develops the disease, you may experience hurt and disappointment when he or she doesn’t remember you are married.
Life for the Alzheimer’s patients and their loved ones will never be the same as the disease progresses, bringing a deep sorrow, loss and even anger towards God. No matter what feelings are present, facing them honestly will serve one better than burying them.What can be inferred from the passage about the gray-haired day?
| A．She has been living with her father. |
| B．She was sad about the death of her father. |
| C．She can’t search for her father without being watched. |
| D．She suffers from Alzheimer’s disease. |
When people suffer from Alzheimer’s disease, ________.
| A．their families and friends will suffer from the same disease |
| B．their families and friends will experience mental sufferings |
| C．they will certainly die in 8 to 10 years |
| D．they will forget everybody but their spouses |
Memory loss occurs ________.
| A．from Alzheimer’s disease and nothing else |
| B．from sadness, shock, anger, and so on |
| C．for a number of reasons |
| D．with changes in personality |
From the passage we know that .
| A．early treatment may stop Alzheimer’s disease occurring |
| B．it is still unknown what causes the changes in the brain’s nerve fibers |
| C．nerve fibers in the brain will cause Alzheimer’s disease |
| D．when one suffers from Alzheimer’s disease, he will be buried |
Watercolour is the oldest paints known. It dates back to the early cave men who discovered they could add lifelike qualities to drawings of animals and other figures on the walls of caves by mixing the natural colours found in the earth with water.
Fresco, one of the greatest of all art forms, is done with watercolour. It is created by mixing paints and water and applying these to wet plaster. Of the thousands of people who stand under Michelangelo’s heroic ceiling in the Sistine Chapel, very few know that they are looking at perhaps the greatest watercolour painting in the world.
The invention of oil painting by the Flem
ish masters in the fifteenth century made fresco painting go down-hill, and for the next several centuries watercolour was used mainly for doing sketches or as a tool for study. It was not until the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that English painters put back watercolour as a serious art form. The English have a widely-known love for outdoors and also smal
l private pictures. The softness of watercolour had a remarkably strong attraction for them.
The popularity of watercolour continued to grow until the twentieth century. The United States passed England as the center for watercolour, producing such well-known watercolour artists as Thomas Eakins and Andrew Wyeth. The purpose of the passage is to introduce _____.
| A．the gradual weakness of fresco painting |
| B．oils’ power or influence over watercolour |
| C．the discovery of watercolour in England |
| D．the start and development of watercolour |
In the 16th and 17th centuries the artists thought _____.
| A．watercolour was softer, and thus better |
| B．oil painting lasted longer, and was better |
| C．watercolour wasn’t fit for finished works |
| D．watercolour was too hard to use in any works |
According to the passage, watercolour painting was put back in England because ____
| A．it was easy to use outdoors | B．it was a strong medium |
| C．it was extremely bright in colour | D．it was suited to popular tastes |
What would the next paragraph most probably deal with?
| A．The works of famous US watercolour artists |
| B．Modern American oil painters |
| C．The weakness of oils as popular paints |
| D．Techniques of producing watercolour |
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