Homestay provides English language students with the opportunity to speak English outside the classroom and the experience of being part of a British home.
What to Expect
The host will provide accommodation and meals. Rooms will be cleaned and bedcovers changed at least once a week. You will be given the house key and the host is there to offer help and advice as well as to take an interest in your physical and mental health.
Accommodation Zones
Homestays are located in London mainly in Zones2, 3 and 4 of the transport system. Most hosts do not live in the town centre as much of central London is commercial and not residential(居住的). Zones 3 and 4 often offer larger accommodation in a less crowded area. It is very convenient to travel in London by Underground.
Meal Plans Available
♢Continental Breakfast
♢Breakfast and Dinner
♢Breakfast, Packed Lunch and Dinner
It’s important to note that few English families still provide a traditional cooked breakfast. Your accommodation includes Continental Breakfast which normally consists of fruit juice, cereal(谷物类食品),bread and tea or coffee. Cheese, fruit and cold meat are not normally part of a Continental Breakfast in England. Dinners usually consist of meat or fish with vegetables followed by dessert, fruit and coffee.
Friends
If you wish to invite a friend over to visit, you must first ask your host’s permission. You have no right to entertain friends in a family home as some families feel it is an invasion of their privacy.
Self-Catering Accommodation in Private Homes
Accommodation on a room-only basis includes shared kitchen and bathroom facilities and often a main living room. This kind of accommodation offers an independent lifestyle and is more suitable for the long-stay student. However, it does not provide the same family atmosphere as an ordinary homestay and may not benefit those who need to practise English at home quite as much.
The passage is probably written for________.
A.hosts willing to receive foreign students |
B.English learners applying to live in English homes |
C.travellers planning to visit families in London |
D.foreigners hoping to build British culture |
Which of the following will the host provide?
A.Physical training. | B.Medical care. |
C.Free transport. | D.Rooming cleaning |
What can be inferred from Paragraph3?
A.The business centre of London is in Zone 1 |
B.Zone 4 is more crowded than Zone 2. |
C.Hosts dislike travelling to the city centre. |
D.Accommodation in the city centre is not provided. |
Why do some people choose self-catering accommodation?
A.To experience a warmer family atmosphere. |
B.To enrich their knowledge of English. |
C.To enjoy much more freedom.. |
D.To entertain friends as they like |
Four Insurance Policies You Can' t Do Without
A single gap in insurance coverage could wipe out the money that yon' ve earned for many years through your hard work.That' s why it' s important to give yourself a yearly insurance checkup, whether you buy your policies through an agent or from one of the growing number of insurance companies.
Health.Before selecting a policy from your employer or deciding among Medicare options, review your current health,predictable medical needs, and family status.This review should help you avoid a plan that fails to cover a necessary treatment or paying for services that you know you'll never use.
Disability. Your chances of becoming disabled before you retire are far greater than your chances of dying. So every working person needs some kind of disability coverage. If you are working for an employer who offers less than that, you can buy an individual policy to promote your coverage.
Homeowners or renters. Make sure you have replacement-cost coverage that would pay the current costs of rebuilding your home and replacing your personal possessions. A policy that would only pay for the decrease in value of these items isn' t good enough, because you could end up recovering just a small part of their costs. Don' t forget flood and/or earthquake insurance if you live in a locate that has a possible tendency to these types of disasters.
Life. Empty nesters and retirees may. no longer need life insurance at all. But if you have dependents who would suffer financially if you died, it' s still a must.
65. To have your insurance checkup every year is mainly because _______.
A. the gap in insurance coverage could cost you a large sum
B. the gap in insurance coverage could bring you benefits
C. some insurance agencies cover few of your policies
D. too many insurance companies prefer to sell coverage
66. _______ can be ignored while deciding among Medicare choices.
A. Your necessary treatment. B. Your personal health at present.
C. Your social status. D. Your predictable medical needs.
67. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Workers needn' t buy personal disability coverage if their bosses offer that
B. Insurance companies can secure the full value of private possessions
C. Earthquake insurance can cover replacement-cost caused by the disaster
D. Divorced or retired people may need life insurance for their dependents
68. We can infer that demand for insurance_______.
A. varies due to individual needs of coverage
B. stays the same whether you are working or not
C. increases when we move to a new place
D. decreases if we have a large family to support
My legs don’t do much because I have a serious disease. They just sit there and look pretty. When people look at me, they only see the chair — my wheelchair. I’ve been in one since I was 3 years old. And it doesn’t matter if I graduate at the top of my class and go to law school. To some, I’ll always be the girl in the chair.
But I don’t think of myself as the kid who can’t walk. Most of my friends don’t even notice the chair anymore. I’m just the girl they’ve been friends with. My friends are good at lifting me in and out of my small car when we go to the movies. We even took the car to the dance. One of the boys helped me out of the car and all the girls helped me to fix my dress. Even in the crowded school elevator, there’s always someone around to carry me.
There are a lot of things I can’t do for myself, such as lifting my arms, dressing myself, and feeding myself. Even so, I do very well at school and I always tell myself that I’m just like any other kid in my school.
The truth is that my parents raised me to be proud of my disability(残疾). There are plenty of things I wish I could do differently. I wanted to be a doctor. But that’s not going to work out. So I’ll be a lawyer(律师) instead. I also wanted to dance and play soccer. My parents taught me that I’m like this for a reason — to educate people and show them that this disease affects(侵袭) my bones — not my brain. My friends Erica once said to me, “Kennedy, you’re not disabled. You just can’t walk.”
What does the underlined word “They” in the first paragraph refer to?
A.The author’s legs | B.The author’s chairs |
C.The author’s friends | D.The author’s diseases |
We can learn from the second paragraph that the author .
A.is the dancing queen of her school |
B.is afraid of taking the school elevator |
C.often gets lots of help from her friends |
D.can’t be understood by her schoolmates |
Kennedy’s story mainly tells us that we should .
A.work hard | B.smile at life |
C.have dreams | D.thank our parents |
The secret of happiness is to spend around £2.50 every day on somebody else.
To give a couple of pounds each day rather than to spend it on treats and fashion for yourself is the key to happiness, according to a new study.
Dr Elizabeth Dunn and her colleagues who did a national survey of 630 people in the United States found that people report greater happiness if they spend money more socially. That means spending on gifts for others or on charitable(慈善的) donations rather than spending on themselves.
"We wanted to test our theory that how people spend their money is at least as important as how much money they earn," says Dunn, who reports the work in Science.
The results from all three lines of research are quite the same.
"Regardless of how much income each person made," says Dunn, "those who spent money on others reported greater happiness, while those who spent more on themselves did not."
"Making a modest donation is enough to increase people's happiness" the researchers conclude.
"These findings suggest that a very small change in spending, as little as £2.50, may be enough to produce real gains in happiness on a given day," says Dr Dunn.
The researchers call on governments to encourage people to spend more on others to help translate increased national wealth into increased national happiness.
Surveys have also shown that happiness levels have remained almost flat within developed countries even as incomes have increased in recent decades.
65.According to the survey, what kind of people have greater happiness?
A.People who can make enough money.
B.People who can buy whatever they want.
C.People who spend money on treats and fashion for themselves.
D.People who spend a modest amount of money every day on others.
66.The underlined word "flat" probably means______.
A.smooth B.dull C.same D.interesting
67.Which of the following statements is true?
A.Researchers pay no attention to spending on others.
B.The government did much in helping others.
C."Science" in Paragraph 4 is probably a magazine.
D.The survey is very successful.
68.The purpose of the writer is to tell us______.
A.the secret of happiness. B.money spent on friends.
C.link between money and happiness. D.difference between national wealth and happiness.
Girls really do prefer pink and boys prefer blue, recent research shows.
The reasons could have its origins in the hunt for food on the African savannah(稀树草原) thousands of years ago. Evolution may have developed women’s preference for pink, perhaps because it helped them 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 Newcastle University.
“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, fuchsia 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 experiments, 208 young adult men and women were asked to select, as rapidly as possible, their preferred color. 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 infer about the preference for blue: “Here again, I would favor evolutionary arguments. Going back to our savannah’s 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.”
60.The passage mentions “the African savannah” to show that____.
A.the ancient Africa was a beautiful place.
B.human beings lived in African at first.
C.women and men have different color preferences.
D.Color preference has its historical origins.
61.It can be inferred that the underlined word “fuchsia”_____.
A.is probably a kind of toy
B.is probably pink in color
C.can be only found in Africa
D.hardly causes men’s interest
62.By saying “The Chinese students… for red.” in paragraph 5, the writer means______.
A.red is the Chinese student’s favorite color
B.the Chinese prefer red more than the British
C.culture influences people’s color preferences
D.the study was carried out by two nations
63.What can we know from the last paragraph?
A.Hulbert thinks evolution explains why people prefer blue
B.Hulbert has a strong desire for “savannah” days
C.Blue is a natural signal of many good things
D.While boys like blue, girls like pink.
Romantic comedies have long been regarded as the perfect movie for a first date. But according to a study, romantic comedies such as Bridget Jones's Diary and Notting Hill could be bad for your love life.
Rather than being harmless entertainment, 'rom-coms' give people unrealistic and potentially unhealthy expectations about real-life relationships, scientists say.
Researchers found that those who watched romantic comedies were more likely to believe in predestined love (缘份) than those who preferred other kinds of movie.
They were also more likely to believe that perfect relationships happen instantly, and were less likely to believe that couples need to work at relationships.
Watching just one romantic comedy is enough to sway people's attitudes to romantic love, they found.
Dr Bjarne Holmes, who led the research, said: "We are not killing joys -- we are not saying that people shouldn't watch these movies. But we are saying that it would be helpful if people were more aware and more critical of the messages in these films. The problem is that while most of us know that the idea of a perfect relationship is unrealistic, some of us are still more influenced than we realize."
For the first part of the study, Dr Holmes and colleagues at the Family and Personal Relationships Laboratory at Heriot Watt University, Edinburgh, studied 40 box office hits from 1995 to 2005.
Most of those comedies described couples falling instantly in love and promoted the idea of fate --the belief that there is just one perfect companion out there, they found.
"There's a belief of destiny and couples in romantic comedies immediately understand each other," said Dr Holmes. "If you think that's how things are, you are setting yourself up to be disappointed."
In a second study, Dr Holmes asked around 100 student volunteers to watch Serendipity -- the 2001 romantic comedy starring Kate Beckinsale and John Cusack, while 100 watched a David Lynch drama.
In a questionnaire after the film ended, students watching the rom-com were far more likely to believe in fate and destiny than those who had watched the 'straight' film.
72. According to the passage if you are fond of watching romantic comedies, you ____.
A. are more likely to believe in future love
B. must be influenced by films
C. may expect a perfect relationship in your love life
D. may fall instantly in love with one of your classmates
73. The underlined word "destiny" most probably means __ .
A. fate B. love C. beauty D. romance
74. The purpose of Dr Bjame Hohnes' research is __ .
A. to promote the idea of fate
B. to ask us to keep away from romantic comedies
C. to show how romantic comedies have influence on our life
D. to remind us of the negative effect of watching romantic comedies
75. It is implied in the passage that .
A. watching comedies is harmful to a stable marriage
B. it is necessary for couples to work at their relationship
C. couples falling instantly in love end up with an unhappy marriage
D. we should watch more 'straight' films instead of romantic comedies
Every pet owner loves his pet. There is no argument here.
But when we asked our readers whether they would clone(克隆) their beloved animals, the answers were split almost down the middle. Of the 228 readers who answered it, 108 would clone, 111 would not and nine weighed each side without offering an opinion.
Clearly, from readers’ response, this is an issue that reaches deeply into both the joy and final sadness of owning a pet. It speaks, as well, to people’s widely differing expectations over the developing scientific procedure.
Most of the respondents (被调查的人) who liked the idea strongly believed it would produce at least a close copy of the original; many felt the process would actually return an exact copy. Those on the other side, however, held little hope a clone could never truly recreate a pet, many simply didn’t wish to go against the natural law of life and death.
Both sides expressed equal love for their animals. More than a few respondents owned “the best dog/cat in the world”. They thought of their pets as their “best friend”, “a member of the family,” “the light of my life.” They told moving stories of pets’ heroism(英勇精神), cleverness and selfless devotion.
“People become very close to their animals, and the loss can be just as hard to bear as when a friend or family member dies,” says Gary Kowalski, author of Goodbye, Friend: Healing Wisdom for Anyone Who Has Ever Lost a Pet. “For me, cloning feels like an attempt to turn death away…It’s understandable. Death is always painful. It’s difficult to deal with. It’s hard to accept.”
But would cloning reduce the blow? This question seemed to be at the heart of this problem.
71. So far as the cloning of pets is concerned, a recent survey shows that, of all pet owners, __________.
A. a lot more of them are for it
B. a lot more of them are against it
C. very few of them are willing to tell their opinions
D. about half of them are for it and the other half against it
72. While talking about the respondents from the readers, the underlined expression “final sadness of owning a pet” refers to ___________.
A. the death of one’s pet
B. the high cost of owning a pet
C. the troubles one has to deal with in keeping a pet
D. the dangers involved in the cloning of a pet
73. In spite of(尽管) their differences on the problem of cloning, it seems that ________.
A. all pet owners try to go against the natural law of life and death
B. all pet owners love their pets very much
C. people who support cloning love their pets more
D. people who dislike cloning love their pets more
74. From what Gary Kowalski says, we can know that he _________.
A. has never thought about the problem of cloning
B. is going to write another book on pets
C. support the idea of cloning pets
D. is all against the cloning of pets
75. What is the key question at the heart of the problem of cloning pets?
A. Can cloning make one suffers less pain when a pet dies?
B. Can pet owners afford the cost of cloning?
C. Does cloning go against the law of nature?
D. Can cloning really produce an exact copy of one’s pet?
Come prepared: When you arrive at a race, your bike should be in race-ready condition.
Chain Management: Chain damage is still the number one problem with mountain bikes. Keeping your chain clean and well-oiled will help, as will frequent chain replacement. Periodic inspection of your chain for wear, stretch and damage may save you a long walk home.
Packing Tape: This can be used for rims trips, boots for fractured tires and a dozen more makeshift repairs. If you've flown to the race, it also saves you from having to borrow tape to close up your bike box for the flight home. Other musts: safety pins and plastic zip ties.
Pre-race: Visual inspections before any serious off-road ride, carefully examine the area where the tire hooks onto the rim and remove any foreign objects which could cause premature(比预期早的)tire wear.
Tire Pressure: Check tire pressure before race start. The recommended pressure is noted on the tire sidewall, usually 40 lbs., many racers run 50 lbs., or more for less rolling resistance.
Be Self-Contained: Make sure you are self-contained. Bring your own drinking water, food and first aid kit. Also have tools, spare parts, tubes, quick fills and a chain tool. Never suppose you can just borrow these items from a friend.
Post-race Visual Inspections: Inspect your bike after completing each event, especially before competing in a downhill event. Re-inspect before packing your bike for the trip home.
Have Fun!
73. This passage is written for those who _______.
A. go in for outdoor activities B. love cycling in other places
C. will join in mountain bike races D. are preparing for a marathon
74. The writer seems to advise the racers ________.
A. not to replace chain frequently B. not to take an extra chain
C. to bring less while racing D. to have higher tire pressure
75 The passage is organized in order of _______.
A. importance B. time C. readers' interest D. place
76. From the passage we can safely say that _______.
A. a foreign tire is a guarantee for the cyclist to win the race
B. the biggest trouble for the race is that nobody will help you
C. a downhill event causes more damage to the bike than an uphill one
D. regular inspection is a must before, during, and even after the race
NEW YORK PLUMBING(管道) & HEATING
Since 1968
Plumbing and Heating Fixing
LARGE OR SMALL
24 Hours 7 Days Service
Tel: 56568833
268 Pine Street 5th Avenue
Which shows New York P & H (Plumber & Heating) has been in business for a long time?
A.“Since 1968” | B.“24 Hours 7 Days Service” |
C.“56568822” | D.“268 Pine Street 5th Avenue” |
For which of the following problems would one call New York P & H?
A.Rainwater drops from the roof. |
B.A refrigerator stops working. |
C.The floor of the bathroom is covered with water. |
D.There’s something wrong with the furniture. |
Which of the following is NOT clear in the reading?
A.Where P & H is. | B.How big P & H is. |
C.What P & H does. | D.When P & H was set up |
Today almost everyone knows computers and the Internet. If I ask you “What is the most important in your life ?” maybe you will say “Computers and the Internet.”
The first computer was made in 1946. It was very big but it worked slowly . Today computers are getting smaller and smaller. But they work faster and faster. What can computers do?
A writer has said, “people can’t live without computers today.”
The Internet came a little later than computers. It is about twenty-five years later than computers. But now it can be found almost everywhere. We can use it to read books, write letters, do shopping, play games or make friends.
Many students like the Internet very much. They often go into the Internet as soon as they are free. They make friends on the Internet and maybe they have never seen these friends. They don’t know their real names, ages, and even sex (性别). They are so interested in making the “unreal friends” that they can’t put their hearts into study. Many of them can’t catch up with others on many subjects because of that.
We can use computers and the Internet to learn more about the world. But at the same time, we should remember that not all the things can be done by computers and the Internet.
The Internet can not be used for ______.
A.studying | B.shopping | C.thinking | D.playing |
When the computer was invented, it was ______.
A.large and worked quickly1 |
B.small and worked |
C.large but worked slowly. |
D.small but worked quickly . |
The Internet was born in about _____.
A.1960 | B.1970 | C.1980 | D.1985 |
Which of the following is true?
A.Few students like going into the Internet. |
B.students use the Internet to make “unreal friends.” |
C.These “unreal friends” often meet each other. |
D.Students know the friends on the Internet very well. |
What does the writer think of the Internet?
A.It is wonderful. |
B.It can make students study harder. |
C.It is not good for students. |
D.It is helpful, but we can’t do everything on it. |
One day a few years ago a very funny thing happened to a neighbor of mine. He is a teacher at one of London’s big medical schools, He had finished his teaching for the summer term and was at the airport on his way to Russia to give a lecture.
He had put a few clothes and his lecture notes in his shoulder bag, but he had put Rupert, the skeleton (人体骨骼) to be used in his lecture, in a large brown suitcase (箱子). At the airport desk, he suddenly thought that he had forgotten to buy a newspaper. He left his suitcase near the desk and went over to the shop.
When he got back he discovered that someone had taken his suitcase by mistake. He often wonders what they said when they got home and found Rupert.
Who wrote the story?
A.Rupert’s teacher. | B.The neighbour’s teacher. |
C.A medical school teacher. | D.The teacher’s neighbour. |
Why did the teacher put a skeleton in his suitcase?
A.He needed it for the summer term in London. |
B.He needed it for the lecture he was going to give. |
C.He wanted to take it to Russia for medical research. |
D.He wanted to take it home as he had finished his teaching. |
What happened at the airport?
A.The skeleton went missing . | B.The skeleton was stolen . |
C.The teacher forgot his suitcase. | D.The teacher took the wrong suitcase . |
Which of the following best tells the teacher’s feeling about the incident?
A.He is very angry . | B.He thinks it rather funny . |
C.He feels helpless without Rupert. | D.He feels good without Rupert . |
A mouse looked through a hole in the wall to see the farmer and his wife opening a package; what food might it contain? He was astonished to discover that it was a mouse trap!
Running to the farmyard,the mouse shouted,warning everyone,“There is a mouse trap in the house,there is a mouse trap in the house.”The chicken,with her head high,glared at the mouse and said,“Shut up.Little Ugly.This is a great concern to you,but it has nothing to do with me:I can’t be troubled by it.”
The mouse turned to the pig and told him.“There is a mouse trap in the house.”“I am so sorry,Mr Mouse,”said the pig sympathetically,“but there is nothing I can do about it but pray;you are always in my prayers.”
The mouse turned to the cow,who said,“A mouse trap,am I in great danger,huh?”
Now the mouse had to face the farmer’s mouse trap alone.
That very night a sound was heard through the house,like that of a mouse trap catching its prey.The farmer’wife rushed to see what was caught.In the darkness,she did not see it was a big poisonous snake whose tail the trap had caught.The snake bit the farmer’s wife.The farmer rushed her to the hospital.She returned home with a fever.It is said that drinking fresh chicken soup will help treat fever,so the farmer took his sharp knife to the farmyard for the soup’s main ingredient.His wife’s sickness continued,so friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock.To feed them,the farmer killed the pig.The farmer’s wife did not get well,in fact,she died,and so many people came for her funeral.The farmer had the cow killed to provide for all of them to eat.
So next time when someone is facing a problem,don’t say that it has nothing to do with you.
We could see from the passage that the mouse was .
A.good at cheating others | B.dishonest |
C.kind and warm-hearted | D.foolish |
Which of the following is NOT TRUE according to the passage?
A.The others help the farmer kill the cow. |
B.The mouse trap was very practical. |
C.The pig is more friendly than the other animals. |
D.The farmer’s family had no friends at all. |
What can we learn from the story?
A.Traps can always cause chain reactions. |
B.It is better to be safe than to be sorry. |
C.Sometimes when the least of us is threatened,we all might be at risk. |
D.To keep the balance of nature is the duty of us all. |
The best way of learning a language is using it. The best way of learning English is talking in English as much as possible. Sometimes you’ll get your words mixed up (混合) and people will not understand you. Sometimes people will say things too quickly and you can’t understand them. But if you keep your sense of humor (幽默感) you can always have a good laugh at the mistakes you make. Don’t be unhappy if people seem to be laughing at your mistakes. It’s better for people to laugh at your mistakes than to be angry with you, because they don’t understand what you are saying. The most important thing for learning English is: “Don’t be afraid of making mistakes because everyone makes mistakes.”
The writer thinks that the best way for you to learn a language is ____.
A.writing | B.using it | C.listening | D.learning grammar |
What should you do in learning English?
A.Be careful not to make any mistake. | B.Write as quickly as you can. |
C.Speak English as much as you can. | D.Laugh more often. |
When people laugh at your mistakes, you should _____.
A.not care | B.be happy | C.feel worried | D.be unhappy |
The story tells us_______.
A.only foolish people make mistakes |
B.few people make mistakes |
C.people never make mistakes |
D.there is no one who does not make mistakes |
The writer of the text has a _______ attitude towards people’s mistakes while using the language.
A.agreeable | B.negative(否定的) | C.neutral (中立的) | D.humorous |
Q My daughter is a junior in high school and has been on an individualized education program since fourth grade. She plans to go to college and intends to finish with a master’s degree. Her performance is fairly good, but test scores are very low. She has held many leadership and volunteer positions. We have been advised to have her write an essay about how her learning disability is a barrier that she has overcome. Will that help or hurt her chances for admission?
—Deborah
A First let me answer the question on low standardized test scores (ACT/ SAT). There are hundreds of colleges that are “test optional” which means students can choose not to release their test scores in the application process. Admission decisions at these colleges for students who do not submit their test scores are made based on other factors. A list of test optional colleges can be found at fairtest.org. It is important, however, to make sure that the college is the right fit academically regardless of the test optional policy.
You also asked if your daughter should write about her disability and if this would hurt her chances of being admitted. Please know that colleges do not deny admission based on disability. “Disclosing” a learning disability in a personal statement within the college application can certainly help. By writing a personal statement, students can potentially demonstrate, for example, their understanding of the challenge they face. They might also demonstrate an improved grade trend in that subject area, and show interest in more complex courses in spite of this disability. More importantly, a student disclosure can show self-confidence, motivation and an understanding of the disability.
—Ms. Kravis
What do we know about Deborah’s daughter?
A.She is applying for a master’s degree. |
B.She is very active in her high school. |
C.Her disability prevents her studying well. |
D.She has difficulty overcoming her learning disability. |
According to Ms. Kravis, what can Deborah do about her daughter’s low test scores?
A.Keep them secret | B.Explain the reasons |
C.Stress other aspects | D.Work hard to improve |
What is Ms. Kravis’ attitude toward one’s declaring his/ her learning disability?
A.Supportive | B.Opposed | C.Doubtful | D.Unconcerned |
According to the text, Ms. Kravis is probably .
A.an editor | B.a school leader |
C.a psychological | D.an educational expert |
When my brother and I were young, my mom would take us on Transportation Days.
It goes like this: You can't take any means of transportation more than once. We would start from home, walking two blocks to the rail station. We'd take the train into the city center, then a bus, switching to the tram, then maybe a taxi. We always considered taking a horse carriage in the historic district, but we didn't like the way the horses were treated, so we never did. At the end of the day, we took the subway to our closest station, where Mom's friend was waiting to give us a ride home-our first car ride of the day.
The good thing about Transportation Days is not only that Mom taught us how to get around. She was born to be multimodal (多方式的). She understood that depending on cars only was a failure of imagination and, above all, a failure of confidence-the product of a childhood not spent exploring subway tunnels.
Once you learn the route map and step with certainty over the gap between the train and the platform, nothing is frightening anymore. New cities are just light-rail lines to be explored. And your personal car, if you have one, becomes just one more tool in the toolbox-and often an inadequate one, limiting both your mobility and your wallet.
On Transportation Days, we might stop for lunch on Chestnut Street or buy a new book or toy, but the transportation was the point. First, it was exciting enough to watch the world speed by from the train window. As I got older, my mom helped me unlock the mysteries that would otherwise have paralyzed my first attempts to do it myself: How do I know where to get off? How do I know how much it costs? How do I know when I need tickets, and where to get them? What track, what line, which direction, where's the stop, and will I get wet when we go under the river?
I'm writing this right now on an airplane, a means we didn't try on our Transportation Days and, we now know, the dirtiest and most polluting of them all. My flight routed me through Philadelphia. My multimodal mom met me for dinner in the airport. She took a train to meet me.
1. |
Which was forbidden by Mom on Transportation Days?
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2. |
According to the writer, what was the greatest benefit of her Transportation Days?
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3. |
The underlined word "paralyzed" (in Para. 5) is closest in meaning to "".
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4. |
Which means of transportation does the writer probably disapprove of?
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试题篮
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