Once when I was six years old I saw an amazing picture in a book called True Stories from Nature about the primeval（原始的）forest. It was a picture of a boa constrictor(大蟒蛇) in the act of swallowing an animal. In the book it said：“Boa constrictors swallow their prey whole without chewing（嚼）it. After that they are not able to move and they sleep through the six months that they need for digestion（消化）.”
I thought deeply then over the adventures of the jungle. And after some work with a colored pencil I succeeded in making my first drawing. My Drawing Number One. I showed my work to the grown-ups and asked them whether the drawing frightened them. But they answered：“Frighten? Why should anyone be frightened by a hat？”
My drawing was not a picture of a hat. It was a picture of a boa constrictor digesting an elephant. But since the grown-ups were not able to understand it, I made another drawing. I drew the inside of the boa constrictor so that the grown-ups could see it clearly. They always need to have things explained. That's my Drawing Number Two.
The grown-ups' response this time was to advise me to lay aside my drawings of ba constrictors whether from the inside or the outside and devote myself instead to geography, history, arithmetic and grammar. That is why at the age of six I gave up what might have been a great painter. I had been disheartened by the failure of my Drawing Number One and my Drawing Number Two. Grown-ups never understand anything by themselves and it is tiresome for children to be always and forever explaining things to them.
So then I chose another profession（职业） and learned to pilot airplanes. I have flown a little over all parts of the world; and it is true that geography has been very useful to me. At a glance I can distinguish China from Arizona. If one gets lost in the night, such knowledge is valuable.
In the course of this life I have had lots of chances to meet with a great many people. And that hasn't much improved my opinion of them. Whenever I met one of them who seemed to me at all clear-sighted, I tried showing him my Drawing Number One which I have always kept. I would try to find out if this was a person of true understanding. But whoever it was, he or she would always say: That is a hat. Then I would never talk to that person about boa constrictors or primeval forests or stars. I would bring myself down to his level. I would talk to him about bridge and golf and politics and neckties. And the grown-up would be greatly pleased to have met such an intelligent man.The writer drew his first picture in order to ________.
| A．show the grown-ups what the book was about |
| B．frighten the grown-ups trying to enter the forest |
| C．remind himself of the adventures of the jungle |
| D．illustrate（说明）a boa constrictor's act of digesting an animal |
How did the writer understand the grown-ups' response to his second drawing?
| A．He was actually only good at academic study. |
| B．It was a waste of time for him to keep on drawing. |
| C．He had difficulty in communicating with the adults. |
| D．He was good at anything but geography. |
The underlined word disheartened in Paragraph 4 could most probably be replaced by ________.
| A．discouraged | B．dissatisfied | C．discovered | D．disturbed |
Which of the following statements is true?
| A．The writer could have become a pilot if encouraged when young. |
| B．The writer finally changed his opinion of grown-ups. |
| C．The writer has been showing his two pictures to others ever since. |
| D．The writer felt nobody could have really understood him. |
For the past two years, 8－year－old Harli Jordean from Stoke Newington, London, has been selling marbles(弹珠)．His successful marble company, Marble King, sells all things marble-related—from affordable tubs of the glass playthings to significantly expensive items like Duke of York solitaire（独粒宝石）tables—sourced, purchased and processed by the mini－CEO himself.
“I like having my own company. I like being the boss,” Harli told The Mirror.
With profits now in the thousands, “the world's youngest CEO” has had to get his mother and older brothers to help him meet the growing demand.
Harli launched Marble King after swapping（交换）marbles at school led to schoolchildren depleting(削减) his marble collection. Yes, he literally（确切地）“lost his marbles.” Harli and his mother, Tina, turned to the Internet to find replacements.
Harli saw an empty space online: the marbles he wanted were hard to find. Within months, Harli had his own marble－selling website and orders started pouring in.
Tina says her son's obsession(迷恋) with marbles started when he was just 6.
“His obsession became so big we started calling him the Marble King, so when he wanted to set up a website it was the natural name for it，” she told The Sun.
“I never thought it would become so popular—we are struggling to cope with the number of orders at times.”
The 8－year－old boy has his sights set on expanding his business and launching his own brand of marbles.
“Sometimes his ideas are so grand we have to scale them back a bit. But his dream is still to own Britain's biggest marble shop and open stores around the world.” Tina told The Daily Mail.
“At the minute he is annoying me by asking about creating his won Marble King marbles, so that could well be the next step for him.”Why did Harli's marble company become popular as soon as he launched it?
| A．Because it was run by “the world's youngest CEO”． |
| B．Because it filled the gaps of marble business. |
| C．Because Harli was fascinated with marble collection. |
| D．Because his mother and brothers helped him a lot. |
How many mass media are mentioned in the passage?
| A．One. | B．Two. | C．Three. | D．Four. |
Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined expression “scale back”？
| A．make smaller | B．carry out | C．turn down | D．frighten away |
What message do the last two paragraphs carry?
| A．Conflicts often occur between Harli Jordean and his family. |
| B．Harli's mother and brothers are worried about Marble King's future. |
| C．Marble King marbles will be more popular with marble fans around the world. |
| D．The “Marble King” has great ambitions for his Marble King Company. |
Everyone agrees that all the creatures want happiness and are afraid of pain and grief. The question, however, is “What is real happiness?” The desire for happiness has no meaning without understanding the real nature of happiness.
Generally, ordinary beings consider sensual（感觉的） pleasures as happiness, and their actions are directed toward gaining these. According to them, searching for happiness means searching for pleasures of the senses. The question, “What is happiness?”, does not arise（出现） in their hearts, because in their hearts they think of a life full of sensual joys as a happy life.
Some thinkers say, “Happiness does not lie in the objects of enjoyment; happiness or unhappiness lies in the imagination.” To prove their belief they give examples like the following one. A man has a two-storey house. When he thinks of those who have a house with three storeys or more, he feels unhappy. When he thinks of those who have just a cottage, he feels happy. Such happiness does not lie in possessions（占有物）, but in the imagination. They advise people to take inspiration from those who have few possessions but are quite happy. If you only consider people wealthier than yourself, you will always be unhappy.
If you want to be happy, they say, look at the poor. But it is unreasonable to hold that happiness lies in the imagination. And it is inappropriate to think that someone is happy if he only imagines himself better than the poor and the unhappy. This attitude also satisfies the sense of pride of possession. This can never be called happiness. Unless we find out where happiness lies, we cannot really become happy.
Some ask people to do this or that, and say, “This way your desires will be satisfied. That way you will get what you want and become happy.” People holding these views regard happiness as satisfaction of desires and unhappiness as denial(否定) of such satisfaction.What kind of life can make common people feel happy?
| A．Life without pain and grief. |
| B．Life full of sensual pleasures. |
| C．Life with desire for possessions. |
| D．Life full of imagination. |
The underlined word “cottage” in Paragraph 3 probably refers to ________.
| A．a house in one’s imagination | B．a modern building |
| C．a desired object | D．a small house |
The author may agree that ________.
| A．by comparing themselves with the poor, people will feel happy |
| B．people won’t feel happy without a desire for happiness |
| C．possessing wealth may lead to a sense of pride |
| D．people have to experience pain and grief before finding happiness |
The best title for this passage would be “________”.
| A．What Is Happiness? | B．How to Get Happiness |
| C．Happiness and Desire | D．Happiness and Imagination |
Spring is coming, and it is time for those about to graduate to look for jobs. Competition is tough, so job seekers must carefully consider their personal choices. Whatever we are wearing, our family and friends may accept us, but the workplace may not.
A high school newspaper editor said it is unfair for companies to discourage visible tattoos nose rings, or certain dress styles. It is true you can’t judge a book by its cover, yet people do “cover” themselves in order to convey certain messages. What we wear, including tattoos and nose rings, is an expression of who we are. Just as people convey messages about themselves with their appearances, so do companies. Dress standards exist in the business world for a number of reasons, but the main concern is often about what customers accept.
Others may say how to dress is a matter of personal freedom, but for businesses it is more about whether to make or lose money. Most employers do care about the personal appearances of their employees, because those people represent the companies to their customers.
As a hiring manager I am paid to choose the people who would make the best impression on our customers. There are plenty of well-qualified candidates, so it is not wrong to reject someone who might disappoint my customers. Even though I am open-minded, I can’t expect all our customers are.
There is nobody to blame but yourself if your set of choices does not match that of your preferred employer. No company should have to change to satisfy a candidate simply because he or she is unwilling to respect its standards, as long as its standards are legal.What can be inferred from the text?
| A．Hiring managers make the best impression on their candidate. |
| B．Candidates have to wear what companies prefer for an interview. |
| C．What to wear is a matter of customers’ acceptance to a great extent. |
| D．Companies sometimes have to change to respect their candidates. |
Which of the following is the newspaper editor’s opinion according to Paragraph2?
| A．Customers’ choices influence dress standards in companies. |
| B．Candidates with tattoos or nose rings should be fairly treated. |
| C．Strange dress styles should not be encouraged in the workplace. |
| D．People’s appearances carry messages about themselves. |
Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
| A．Appearances Do Matter |
| B．Hiring Managers Matter |
| C．Personal Choices Matter |
| D．Employees Matter |
“Mama, when I grow up, I’m going to be one of those!” I said this after seeing the Capital Dancing Company perform when I was three. It was the first time that my dream took on a vivid form and acted as something important to start my training. As I grew older and was exposed to more, my interests in the world of dance certainly varied but that little girl’s dream of someday becoming a dancer in the company never left me. In the summer of 2005 when I was 18, I received the phone call which made that dream a reality: I became a member of the company dating back to 1925.
As I look back on that day now, it surely lacks any sense of reality. I believe I stayed in a state of pleasant disbelief until I was halfway through rehearsals (排练) on my first day. I never actually expect to get the job. After being offered the position, I was completely astonished. I remember shaking with excitement.
Though I was absolutely thrilled with the chance, it did not come without its fair share of challenge. Through the strict rehearsal period of dancing six days a week, I found it vital to pick up the material fast with every last bit of concentration. It is that extreme attention to detail (细节) and stress on practice that set us apart. To then follow those high-energy rehearsals with a busy show schedule of up to five performances a day, I discovered a new meaning of the words “hard work.” What I thought were my physical boundaries were pushed much further than I thought possible. I learned to make each performance better than the last.
Today, when I look at the unbelievable company that I have the great honor of being a part of, not only as a member, but as a dance captain, I see a tradition that has inspired not only generations of little girls but a splendid company that continues to develop and grow-and inspires people every day to follow their dreams.How many years has the Capital Dancing Company existed when the author received the phone call from it?
| A．180 | B．1925 | C．2005 | D．80 |
How did the author feel when she look back on that day now?
| A．strange | B．unrealistic | C．indifferent | D．lucky |
Which of the following statement can best interpret the underlined sentence in paragraph 3?
| A．Though I was excited, I should share the chance with others. |
| B．Though I was excited, it’s fair to share the chance when there is challenge. |
| C．Though I was excited, it’s a challenge for me to share the chance with others. |
| D．Though I was excited, I know clearly where there is chance there is challenge. |
What conclusion could be drawn from the passage?
| A．The company values practice most. |
| B．The company extremely focus on intelligence. |
| C．The company has an inherited tradition of inspiring its members break their limits. |
| D．The company sets the members apart in order to extremely stress detail and practice. |
On the night of May 9, 2011, musician Gao Xiaosong ran his car into three other cars in Beijing.
But it wasn’t just a car accident—he was drunk(喝醉的).
Now, Gao has to go to prison (监狱) for six months and pay a 4,000 yuan fine.
Gao is the first star to be punished under China’s new drunk driving law.
From May 1 on, drunk drivers will pay a fine, and be banned from driving for five years or even forever.
Drunk driving has become a serious social problem in China.According to the Ministry of Public Security (公安部), police caught more than half a million drunk drivers last year, a 68 % increase from 2009.
The new law sees drunk driving as a crime.
In the West, drunk driving is also a crime. In the US, for example, if the police catch a drunk driver, the driver will pay a fine, lose his or her license (驾照) and even go to prison. If the driver wants to drive again, he or she must do public service, and take part in educational programs.
You may think: drunk driving is a crime? Isn’t this law too unkind? But experts say, “Not at all.”
“It is to protect people’s rights to life and health,” Li Gang, lawyer in Chengdu, told China Daily. “Drunk driving is very dangerous. No matter what the results are, it should not be allowed.”Mr. Gao ran his car into three other cars because _________.
| A．there was something wrong with his car |
| B．he went home too late |
| C．he drank too much wine |
| D．the road was too crowded |
What does the underlined word “fine” in the third paragraph refer to(指)?
| A．Health. | B．Traffic. | C．Weather. | D．Money. |
When did the new law come into use?
| A．On May 1, 2010. | B．On May 1, 2011. | C． On May 1, 2009 | D．On May 9, 2011. |
What do experts think of the new law?
| A．Drunk driving is a crime. |
| B．The law is not kind to drunk drivers. |
| C．Driving has become a serious problem. |
| D．The law is too strict. |
Which of the following sentence is TRUE?
| A．Li Gang from Chengdu doesn’t like the law. |
| B．In the US, drunk drivers will only lose their licenses. |
| C．There were more drunk drivers in 2010 than in 2009. |
| D．The law is to protect drivers’ rights to life and health only. |
One of the best-known American writers of children's books is Alfred Strong, or Doctor Strong, as he is better known to readers everywhere. Now, an art show called "Doctor Strong From Then to Now" is travelling around the United States. The pictures and drawings show the history of Doctor Strong.
Doctor Strong first became famous almost fifty years ago when his first children's book was published. Since then, he has written forty-five books that have sold more than one hundred million copies around the world.
Doctor Strong's books are known for their easy use of words and colorful, hand-drawn pictures. These drawings bring life to his imaginary creatures. The Cat in the Hat, Horton the Elephant, The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, and hundreds of others.
The San Diego Museum, in California, organized the art show. It included about three hundred Doctor Strong's original(最早的) drawings and some of his writings.
Most of Doctor Strong's books, although written in a funny way, have serious messages. For example, in Mc Elligot's Pool, he describes the danger of pollution. He discusses the arms race in The Butter Battle Book, written in nineteen eighty-four.
Doctor Strong is almost eighty-four years old now. He says he never planned to write stories just for children. He says he writes stories that interest people of all ages. He says he uses easy words so that everyone, even a child, can understand.Alfred Strong is a famous _______ in the United States.
| A．doctor | B．artist | C．writer | D．reader |
Doctor Strong first became famous in _______.
| A．his eighties when an art show was travelling around the United States |
| B．his fifties when his drawings and writings were published |
| C．nineteen eighty-four when his book MeEligot's Pool was published |
| D．his thirties when his first book was published |
Doctor Strong's books are very popular in America because _______.
| A．they are stories about animals such as cats, elephants and so on |
| B．they are written in easy words with colourful pictures |
| C．he organized the art show in California |
| D．they are written in a funny way |
As a music teacher for twenty-seven years, I have always known that music touches the soul. It can break through all kinds of barriers(障碍) to reach students in a very special way. It can be the means for each child to find their light.
A few years ago, I was blessed with the opportunity to teach pre-school students one afternoon a week. One of my most memorable students was Vanessa. She was five years old, had difficulty walking, and could not speak. We mostly sat on the floor for our music lessons and Vanessa liked to sit on my lap. One of her favorite songs was John the Rabbit. It was a call and response song where I sang the call and the students clapped two times while singing the repeating phrase, “Oh, yes!” Vanessa liked to put her hands together with mine and clap with me. We performed that song during every class, Vanessa and I clapping together. She never said or sang a word.
One day late in the school year, when the song was finished, Vanessa turned around, looked me in the eye, clapped her tiny hands two times and said the words “Oh, yes!” I opened my mouth and could not speak. Through music, we had made a connection.
Several years later, I came across Vanessa on the street in town. I stopped my car and waved to say hello. She waved back with a big smile on her face and then clapped her hands two times, mimicking(模仿) the song we had performed in our music class. This precious little girl, through her connection with music, left an impression on me that will last forever.
Every child has the ability to learn and grow. It is up to us educators to discover the way to reach each and every one of our students. We all must find each child’s light.The author thinks music________.
| A．can make children calm down |
| B．Can connect heart to heart |
| C．Is difficult for pre-school students |
| D．Is a good means to find a job |
According to the second paragraph, Vanessa________.
| A．Got used to singing songs |
| B．Was too shy to speak |
| C．Was the youngest in the class |
| D．Enjoyed the author’s classes |
When Vanessa spoke the words “Oh, yes!”, the author felt________.
| A．Surprised | B．Happy | C．Frightened | D．Satisfied |
What can we infer from the last two paragraphs?
| A．The author has been in touch with Vanessa for several years. |
| B．Vanessa became as healthy as other children. |
| C．The song made a deep impression on Vanessa. |
| D．Being a good educator became Vanessa’s dream. |
Three Boys and a Dad
Brad closed the door slowly as Sue left home to visit her mother. Expecting a whole day to relax, he was thinking whether to read the newspaper or watch his favourite TV talk show on his first day off in months. “This will be like a walk in the park,” he’d told his wife. “I’ll look after the kids, and you can go visit your mom.”
Things started well, but just after eight o’clock, his three little “good kids”—Mike, Randy, and Alex—came down the stairs in their night clothes and shouted “breakfast, daddy.” When food had not appeared within thirty seconds, Randy began using his spoon on Alex’s head as if it were a drum. Alex started to shout loudly in time to the beat（节拍）. Mike chanted “Where’s my toast, where’s my toast” in the background. Brad realized his newspaper would have to wait for a few seconds.
Life became worse after breakfast. Mike wore Randy’s underwear on his head. Randy locked himself in the bathroom, while Alex shouted again because he was going to wet his pants. Nobody could find clean socks, although they were before their very eyes. Someone named “Not Me” had spilled a whole glass of orange juice into the basket of clean clothes. Brad knew the talk show had already started.
By ten o’clock, things were out of control. Alex was wondering why the fish in the jar refused his bread and butter. Mike was trying to show off his talent by decorating the kitchen wall with his colour pencils. Randy, thankfully, appeared to be reading quietly in the family room，but closer examination showed that he was eating apple jam straight from the bottle with his hands. Brad Realized that the talk show was over and reading would be impossible.
At exactly 11:17, Brad called the daycare centre (日托所）.“I suddenly have to go into work and my wife’s away. Can I bring the boys over in a few minutes?” The answer was obviously “yes” because Brad was smiling.When his wife left home, Brad expected to ______ .
| A．go out for a walk in the park. |
| B．watch TV talk show with his children. |
| C．enjoy his first day off work. |
| D．read the newspaper to his children. |
Which of the following did Randy do?
| A．Drawing on the wall. | B．Eating apple jam. |
| C．Feeding the fish. | D．Reading in a room. |
Why did Brad ask the daycare centre for help?
| A．Because he wanted to clean up his house. |
| B．Because he suddenly had to go to his office. |
| C．Because he found it hard to manage his boys home. |
| D．Because he had to take his wife back. |
This text is developed______
| A．by space. | B．by comparison. | C．by process. | D．by time. |
Teens are more likely to behave badly if their parents expect them to，a new US study has found.
“Parents who believe they are simply being realistic might actually be having a bad effect on their children，” Christy Buchanan，a teacher at Wake Forest University and one of the authors of the study，said. “Bad expectations on the part of both parents and children predict more rebellious (叛逆的) behaviors later on.”
The finding came from a study of more than 250 sixth and seventhgraders and their mothers. They were examined at the start of the study and again one year later. If kids’ mothers expected them to take more risks and be more rebellious，higher chances of risky behavior were seen.This_was_also_true when kids had bad expectations of themselves.
“Sometimes parents expect more negative behavior from their children than they should based on the children’s history of behavior，” Buchanan said.Parents shouldn’t be naive (无知的) about the possibility of bad behavior，she said，but it’s also a mistake to think that children who are wellbehaved will naturally become rebellious at the age of 13.
“By thinking risktaking or rebelliousness is normal for teenagers and showing that to their children，parents might add to other messages from society that make teenagers feel that they are strange if they are not willing to take risks or break laws，” she said.“This can mean，for example，that when parents expect teens to drink before they turn 21 or to do other risky behaviors，kids are less likely to refuse to do so later in their lives.”
On the other hand，parents’ expectations that teens can exhibit good behaviors and refuse to behave badly or to take risks could help reduce the possibility of bad behavior，Buchanan said.“As a parent，you should put expectations on your children carefully.”The passage is centered around the topic of________.
| A．parental rights |
| B．children’s habits |
| C．parental education |
| D．parentchildren relationship |
What do we know about the study?
| A．Only mothers were examined. |
| B．Participants were examined twice. |
| C．250 people were examined in the study. |
| D．Christy Buchanan was the only author of the study. |
What does the underlined part “This was also true” in Paragraph 3 refer to?
| A．The kids were more likely to take dangerous behavior. |
| B．The kids would have bad expectations of their parents. |
| C．The kids were likely to go against their mothers. |
| D．Mothers expected their kids to behave badly. |
Children may be more rebellious if________.
| A．they know parents think risktaking is normal |
| B．parents put little expectation on them |
| C．they behave well before they turn 13 |
| D．they are asked not to take risks |
What might be the most suitable title for the passage?
| A．Risktaking is normal for teens. |
| B．Why are my teens behaving badly? |
| C．Don’t expect too much from your teens. |
| D．Bad expectations lead to badbehaving teens. |
After a very busy afternoon，as I walked into my house，I heard the phone ringing. It was my friend Lydia，upset over an argument with her husband. My usual approach is to offer advice，but this time，exhausted from chores，I simply sat down in a chair and listened to my friend’s frustration and sadness. Without the disturbance of judgment or the desire to comfort her，I stayed totally quiet while she talked. Eventually Lydia’s depression eased and we said our goodbyes. The next day she phoned to thank me. “I’m so grateful for the way you helped me through this，”she said.
At first I was surprised. After all，I had done nothing except be there for her. But after I had my own venting (发泄的) experience with another friend later that evening，I realized that my focused silence had some value. In fact，most relationship experts agree that talk is cheap；it’s listening that’s rare and valuable It allows you not only to hear what the other person is saying，but also to have a clear understanding of her thoughts and feelings. And for the speaker，that level of understanding translates into concern and respect.
Unfortunately，listening isn’t as easy as it sounds. Thanks to schedules filled with family and work，multitasking has become a barrier (障碍) to listening. My tiredness may have been the only thing stopping me from folding laundry or checking my email while Lydia talked that afternoon.
Another barrier to listening is our listening system：Most of us take in only about half of what’s being said during a conversation，according to the International Listening Association. Research shows that we speak at 125 to 150 words per minute，yet think at 500 words a minute. Therefore，because we think much more quickly than we speak，it is easy for us to lose our concentration when listening to speakers.
While it can be hard to focus at times，it’s a skill worth developing. With a little practice (employing some techniques)，you can become a better listener.Why didn’t the author give any advice to Lydia that afternoon?
| A．Because she thought her keeping silence was better for Lydia. |
| B．Because she didn’t know how to comfort Lydia. |
| C．Because she was too tired to talk to Lydia. |
| D．Because she couldn’t cut in while Lydia was talking. |
In Paragraph 2，the author mainly talks about________.
| A．the importance of listening |
| B．the importance of venting anger |
| C．her own listening experience |
| D．her own venting experience |
The author uses the result of the research in Paragraph 4 to mainly show that________.
| A．we think much more quickly than we speak |
| B．we can only understand about half of what we hear |
| C．there is not much thinking time available while we are listening |
| D．we lose our concentration easily while we are listening |
What will be discussed following the passage?
| A．Why listening is valuable. |
| B．What we should do while listening. |
| C．How to become a good listener. |
| D．How to stop drifting off while listening. |
The first paragraph serves as a(n)________．
| A．explanation | B．introduction |
| C．comment | D．background |
A man once said how useless it was to put advertisements in the newspaper.
“Last week, ” he said, “my umbrella was stolen from a London church. As
it was a present, I spent twice its worth in advertising, but didn’t get it back. ”
“How did you write your advertisement? ” asked one of the listeners, a merchant.
“Here it is, ” said the man, taking out of his pocket a slip cut from a newspaper. The other man took it and read, “Lost from the City Church last Sunday evening, a black silk umbrella. The gentleman who finds it will receive ten shillings on leaving it at No. 10 Broad Street. ”
“Now, ” said the merchant, “I often advertise, and find that it pays me well. But the way in which an advertisement is expressed is of extreme importance. Let us try for your umbrella again, and if it fails, I’ll buy you a new one. ”
The merchant then took a slip of paper out of his pocket and wrote: “If the man who was seen to take an umbrella from the City Church last Sunday evening doesn’t wish to get into trouble, he will return the umbrella to No. 10 Broad Street. He is well known. ”
This appeared in the newspaper, and on the following morning, the man was astonished when he opened the front door. In the doorway lay at least twelve umbrellas of all sizes and colors, and his own was among them. Many of them had notes fastened to them saying that they had been taken by mistake, and begging the loser not to say anything about the matter. The result of the first advertisement was that＿＿＿＿ .
| A．the man got his umbrella back |
| B．the man wasted some money advertising |
| C．nobody found the missing umbrella |
| D．the umbrella was found somewhere near the church |
The merchant suggested that the man should＿＿＿ .
| A．buy a new umbrella |
| B．go on looking for his umbrella |
| C．write another and better advertisement |
| D．report the police |
“. . . if it fails, I’ll buy you a new one” suggested that the merchant＿＿＿＿ .
| A．was quite sure of success |
| B．wanted to buy him a new umbrella |
| C．didn’t know what to do |
| D．was rich enough to buy one |
The story is mainly about ＿＿＿＿＿.
| A．a useless advertisement |
| B．how to make an effective advertisement |
| C．how the man lost and found his umbrella |
| D．what the merchant did for the umbrella owner |
Recently, a study was carried out to determine who was the greatest American president．Sixty-five presidential historians took part in it, and they judged the past forty-two American leaders based on ten leadership qualities, including public persuasiveness(信服), crisis leadership, management of the economy, moral leadership, and conduct of international relations．The historians also looked at administrative ability (管理能力), relations with Congress, ability to set goals, and the pursuit of equal justice for all．Finally, the experts took into consideration the historical period in which the president lived．
The historians chose Abraham Lincoln as American’s greatest president．He had also been named best president in a similar study in 2000．Abraham Lincoln was the president who led the nation through the Civil War in the 1860s, and was able to unite it in the end．He also took the first steps to abolish slavery in America．
Edna Medford, a professor of history at Howard University in Washington, D.C., was an adviser on this study and the earlier one．She says Abraham Lincoln is seen to represent the values the nation most honors, such as truthfulness, moderation, and respect for human rights．
The historians put American’s first president, George Washington, second on the list, while Franklin D．Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt, and Harry Truman follow in that order．John F．Kennedy, the country’s first Roman Catholic president, is sixth on the list．Like Lincoln, Kennedy was murdered while in office．
Among recent presidents, Ronald Reagan was named the tenth best and Bill Clinton rated fifteenth, while the historians put former president George W．Bush at number thirty-six．His father, George H.W．Bush, did much better, being placed at number eighteen．We learn from the text that ___________．
| A．this is the second time that Abraham Lincoln has been chosen as America’s greatest president |
| B．Edna Medford didn’t take part in the study conducted in 2000． |
| C．George H.W．Bush was thought to have done worse in office than George W．Bush |
| D．Harry Truman was rated the fourth-best president by the study |
Which of the following belong to the ten leadership qualities considered?
a．Being able to persuade the public
b．Taking effective measures during a financial crisis．
c．Balancing home life and career．
d．Pursuing equal justice for all．
| A．a,b,c | B．b,c,d | C．a,b,d | D．a,c,d |
Who is rated worst among the following four presidents?
| A．John F．Kennedy | B．George Washington |
| C．Bill Clinton | D．George W．Bush |
The text is mainly about ________．
| A．the ten qualities a great president needs |
| B．a study of American presidents |
| C．the values the American nation honors most |
| D．how Abraham Lincoln improved the country |
About this time every year, I get very nostalgic(怀旧的). Walking through my neighborhood on a fall afternoon reminds me of a time not too long ago when sounds of children filled the air, children playing games on a hill, and throwing leaves around in the street below. I was one of those children, carefree and happy. I live on a street that is only one block long. I have lived on the same street for sixteen years. I love my street. One side has six houses on it, and the other has only two houses, with a small hill in the middle and a huge cottonwood tree on one end. When I think of home, I think of my street. Only I see it as it was before. Unfortunately things change. One day, not long ago, I looked around and saw how different everything has become. Life on my street will never be the same because neighbors are quickly grown old, friends are growing up and leaving, and the city is planning to destroy my precious hill and sell the property to contractors.
It is hard for me to accept that many of my wonderful neighbors are growing old and won’t be around much longer. I have fond memories of the couple across the street, who sat together on their porch swing almost every evening, the widow next door who yelled at my brother and me for being too loud, and the crazy old man in a black suit who drove an old car. In contrast to those people, the people I see today are very old neighbors who have seen better days. The man in the black suit says he wants to die, and another neighbor just sold his house and moved into a nursing home. The lady who used to yell at us is too tired to bother any more, and the couple across the street rarely go out to their front porch these days. It is difficult to watch these precious people as they near the end of their lives because at once I thought they would live forever.
The “comings and goings” of the younger generation of my street are now mostly “goings” as friends and peers move on. Once upon a time, my life and the lives of my peers revolved around home. The boundary of our world was the gutter at the end of the street. We got pleasure from playing night games or from a breathtaking ride on a tricycle. Things are different now, as my friends become adults and move on. Children who rode tricycles now drive cars. The kids who once played with me now have new interests and values as they go their separate ways. Some have gone away to college like me, a few got married, two went into the army, and one went to prison. Watching all these people grow up and go away makes me long for the good old days.
Perhaps the biggest change on my street is the fact that the city is going to turn my precious hill into several lots for now homes. For sixteen years, the view out of my kitchen window has been a view of that hill. The hill was a fundamental part of my childhood life; it was the hub of social activity for the children of my street. We spent hours there building forts, sledding, and playing tag. The view out of my kitchen window now is very different; it is one of tractors and dump trucks tearing up the hill. When the hill goes, the neighborhood will not be the same. It is a piece of my childhood. It is a visual reminder of being a kid. Without the hill, my street will be just another pea in the pod.
There was a time when my street was my world, and I thought my world would never change. But something happened. People grow up, and people grow old. Places changes, and with the change comes the heartache of knowing I can never go back to the times I loved. In a year or so, I will be gone just like many of my neighbors. I will always look back to my years as a child, but the place I remember will not be the silent street whose peace is interrupted by the sounds of construction. It will be the happy, noisy, somewhat strange, but wonderful street I knew as a child.The writer calls up the memory of the street _____________.
| A．every year when autumn comes |
| B．in the afternoon every day |
| C．every time he walks along his street |
| D．now that he is an old man |
The writer finds it hard to accept the fact that _____________.
| A．many of his good neighbors are growing old |
| B．the lady next door who used to yell at him and his brother is now a widow |
| C．the life of his neighbors has become very boring |
| D．the man in his black suit even wanted to end his own life |
The writer thinks of the past all the more when he sees those who had grown up with him _____________.
| A．continue to consider home to be the center of their lives |
| B．leave the neighborhood they grew up in |
| C．still enjoy playing card games in the evenings |
| D．develop new interests and have new dreams |
The biggest change on the writer's street is _____________.
| A．removing the hill to make way for residential development |
| B．the building of new homes behind his kitchen window |
| C．the fact that there are much fewer people around than in the past |
| D．the change in his childhood friends' attitude towards their neighborhood |
What does the writer mean by saying “my street will be another pea in the pod”?
| A．his street will be very noisy and dirty |
| B．his street will soon be crowded with people |
| C．his street will have some new attractions |
| D．his street will be no different from any other street |
Which could be a good title for the passage?
| A．The Past of My Street will Live Forever |
| B．Unforgettable People and Things of My Street |
| C．Memory Street Isn't What It Used to Be |
| D．The Big Changes of My Street |
I lost my sight when I was four years old by falling off a box car in a freight yard in Atlantic City and landing on my head. Now I am thirty two. I can slightly remember the brightness of sunshine and what color red is. It would be wonderful to see again, but a calamity(灾难) can do strange things to people. It occurred to me the other day that I might not have come to love life as I do if I hadn't been blind. I believe in life now. I am not so sure that I would have believed in it so deeply, otherwise. I don't mean that I would prefer to go without my eyes. I simply mean that the loss of them made me appreciate the more what I had left.
Life, I believe, asks a continuous series of adjustments to reality. The more readily a person is able to make these adjustments, the more meaningful his own private world becomes. The adjustment is never easy. I was totally confused and afraid. But I was lucky. My parents and my teachers saw something in me--a potential to live, you might call it--which I didn't see, and they made me want to fight it out with blindness.
The hardest lesson I had to learn was to believe in myself. That was basic. If I hadn't been able to do that, I would have collapsed (崩溃) and become a chair rocker on the front porch for the rest of my life. When I say belief in myself I am not talking about simply the kind of self confidence that helps me down an unfamiliar staircase alone. That is part of it. But I mean something bigger than that: an assurance（确信） that I am, despite imperfections, a real, positive person; that somewhere in the sweeping, intricate（错综复杂的） pattern of people there is a special place where I can make myself fit.
It took me years to discover and strengthen this assurance. It had to start with the simplest things. Once a man gave me an indoor baseball. I thought he was making fun of me and I was hurt. "I can't use this." I said. "Take it with you," he urged me, "and roll it around." The words stuck in my head. "Roll it around! "By rolling the ball I could hear where it went. This gave me an idea how to achieve a goal I had thought impossible: playing baseball. At Philadelphia's Overbrook School for the Blind I invented a successful variation of baseball. We called it ground ball.
All my life I have set ahead of me a series of goals and then tried to reach them, one at a time. I had to learn my limitations. It was no good to try for something I knew at the start was wildly out of reach because that only invited the bitterness of failure. I would fail sometimes anyway but on the average I made progress.We can learn from the beginning of the passage that _______
| A．the author lost his sight because of a car crash. |
| B．the author wouldn't love life if the disaster didn't happen. |
| C．the disaster made the author appreciate what he had. |
| D．the disaster strengthened the author's desire to see. |
What's the most difficult thing for the author?
| A．How to adjust himself to reality. |
| B．Building up assurance that he can find his place in life. |
| C．Learning to manage his life alone. |
| D．How to invent a successful variation of baseball. |
According to the context, "a chair rocker on the front porch" in paragraph 3 means that the author __________
| A．would sit in a rocking chair and enjoy his life. |
| B．would be unable to move and stay in a rocking chair. |
| C．would lose his will to struggle against difficulties. |
| D．would sit in a chair and stay at home. |
According to the passage, the baseball and encouragement offered by the man _____
| A．hurt the author's feeling. |
| B．gave the author a deep impression. |
| C．directly led to the invention of ground ball. |
| D．inspired the author. |
What is the best title for the passage?
| A．A Miserable Life | B．Struggle Against Difficulties |
| C．A Disaster Makes a Strong Person | D．An Unforgetable Experience |
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