After my husband died suddenly from a heart attack，my world crashed around me. My six children were all under 10，and I was burdened with the responsibilities of earning a living，and caring for the children. I was fortunate to find a wonderful housekeeper to care for the children during the week，but from Friday nights to Monday mornings，the children and I were alone.
One Friday evening I came home from work to find a big pretty German Shepherd（牧羊犬）on our doorstep. This dog seemed to intend to enter the house. The children liked “German” immediately and begged me to let him in. I agreed to let him sleep in the basement. That night I slept peacefully for the first time in many weeks.
The following morning we made phone calls and checked lost-and-found ads for German’s owner，but with no results.
On Sunday I had planned to take the children on a picnic. Since I thought it best to leave German behind in case his owner came by，we drove off without him. When we stopped to get gas，we were amazed to see German racing to the gas station after us. No way was he going to be left behind.
Monday morning I let him out for a run. He didn’t come back and we were all disappointed. We were convinced that we would never see him again. We were wrong. The next Friday evening，German was back on our doorstep. Again he stayed until Monday morning，when our housekeeper arrived.
This pattern repeated itself every weekend for almost 10 months. We grew more and more fond of German. We took comfort in his strong，warm presence，and we felt safe with him near us. As German became part of the family，he considered it his duty to check every bedroom to be sure each child was cozy in bed.
Each week，between German’s visits，I grew a little stronger，a little braver and more able to handle; every weekend we were no longer alone and enjoyed his company. Then one Monday morning we patted him on the head and let him out for what turned out to be the last time. We never saw German again.
56．The dog first came to the family when _______________.
A．it was needed most
B．the writer became strong enough
C．the writer was away on a business trip
D．the writer was busy on the weekday
57．The family planned to go on a picnic without the German Shepherd because ____.
A．it was too wild to control
B．it was too young to walk so far
C．the owner might come by to pick it up
D．it might spoil the trip
58．The writer was ____________ the German Shepherd.
A．afraid of B．grateful to
C．cruel to D．annoyed with
59．Which of the following can’t be used to describe the dog？
A．Loyal B．Helpful
C．Lovely D．Wild
“Good morning!” said a woman as she walked up to an old man sitting on the ground. The man slowly looked up. He was Jack, who had been begging around here for a couple of years.
“See that cafeteria（自助餐厅）over there?” she asked. “I’m going to get you something to eat and get you out of the cold for a while.”
She sat down at the table across from her amazed dinner guest. She stared at him intently. “Jack, do you remember me?” Old Jack thought hard and said, “I think so--I mean you do look familiar.”
“I was thin and hungry,” she said. “Maybe I’ve filled out now more than when you worked here. That was when I was just out of college. I had come to the city looking for a job, but I couldn’t find anything. Finally I was down to my last few cents and had been kicked out of my apartment. I walked in the streets for days, cold and hungry. I saw this place and walked in hoping that I could satisfy my hunger.”
Jack lit up with a smile. “Now I remember,” he said. “I was behind the serving counter. You came up and asked me if you could work for something to eat. I said it was against company’s policy.”
The woman continued, “Then you made me the biggest roast beef sandwich, gave me a cup of coffee, and told me to go over to a corner table and enjoy it. I was afraid that you would get into trouble. Then, I saw you put the price of my food in the cash register.”
“So you started your own business?” old Jack said. “I got a job that very afternoon. I worked my way up. Eventually I started my own business that, with the help of God, prospered.” She opened her purse and pulled out a business card. “When you are finished here, I want you to pay a visit to a Mr. Lyons, the personnel director of my company. He’ll find something for you to do around the office.” She smiled, “If you ever need anything, my door is always open to you.”
There were tears in the old man’s eyes, “How can I ever thank you?” he said. “Don’t thank me;” the woman answered, “thank yourself. It was your kindness that let me know you.”Why did the woman invite the beggar to dinner?
| A．The beggar was once her friend. |
| B．She felt very pity for the beggar. |
| C．The beggar once offered her a free meal. |
| D．She once worked with the beggar. |
What does the underlined phrase “fill out” in Paragraph 4 probably mean?
| A．wear a beautiful dress. | B．change one’s features. |
| C．have a very high position. | D．become larger or fatter. |
Years ago the woman walked into the place she caught sight of to __________.
| A．find a job there | B．get herself out of cold |
| C．get something to eat | D．meet with the man |
What conclusion can you draw from this passage?
| A．Kindness is an investment that never fails. |
| B．Nothing is difficult for the man who will try. |
| C．Don’t judge a person from his/her appearance. |
| D．God helps those who help themselves. |
The rapid growth of cities worldwide over the next two decades will cause significant risks to people and the global environment, according to analysis.
Researches from Yale and Stanford predict that by 2030 urban areas will expand by 590,000 square miles—nearly the size of Mongolia—to meet the needs of 1.47 billion more people living in urban areas.
“It is likely that these cities are going to be developed in places that are the most biologically diverse,” said Karen Seto, a famous scientist at Yale University. “They are going to be growing and expanding into forests, biological hotspots, savannas(热带稀缺大草原), coastlines—sensitive and vulnerable places.”
Urban areas, they found, have been expanding more rapidly along coasts. “Of all the places for cities to grow, coasts are the most sensitive. People and buildings along the coast are at risk of flooding and other environmental disasters,” said Seto.
The study provides the first estimate of how fast urban areas globally are growing and how fast they may grow in the future. “We know a lot about global patterns of urban population growth, but we know significantly less about how urban areas are changing,” she said. “Changes in land cover associated with urbanization lead to many environmental changes, from habitats loss and agricultural land conversion(转化) to changes in local and regional climate.”
The researchers examined studies that used satellite data to map urban growth and found that from 1970 to 2000 the world’s urban footprint had grown by at least 22,400 square miles—half the size of Ohio.
“This number is numerous, but, in actuality, urban land expansion has been far greater than what our analysis shows because we only looked at the published studies that used satellite data,” said Seto. “We found that 48 of the most populated urban areas have been studied using satellite data, with findings in journals. This means that we’re not tracking the physical expansion of more than half of the world’s largest cities.”
Half of urban land expansion in China is driven by a rising middle class, whereas the size of cities in India and Africa is driven primarily by population growth. “Rising incomes translate into rising demand for bigger homes and more land for urban development, which has a great effect on biodiversity conservations, loss of carbon sinks and energy use.”According to the passage, the most dangerous place for city expansion is the _____.
| A．forest | B．desert | C．savannas | D．coastline |
The underlined word “vulnerable” (in Para. 3) probably means “____”.
| A．diverse in plants | B．beautiful in scenery |
| C．easily damaged | D．very productive |
From Para. 5, we can infer that ____.
| A．urbanization is a good way to improve people’s standards of living |
| B．cities develop very fast and more and more people come to live in cities |
| C．more and more agricultural farmlands are used to make room for local animals |
| D．in the past, researchers focused their attention on the expanding urban areas |
Cities in Africa become bigger and bigger mainly because of their ____.
| A．growing population | B．rising middle class |
| C．unique living patterns | D．economic development |
More than half of the parents in the United States are helping, or have helped, support their adult children who have been hit by high unemployment and poor wages(工资), according to a new survey. It showed that present economic conditions are discouraging young adults from leaving home and forcing those who have already gone, so-called boomerang kids, to return.
“Parents are continuing their financial involvement longer than we expected,” said Ted Beck, president of National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE).
About 60 percent of parents questioned in the survey said they’re helping their adult children who are no longer in school financially. Half are providing housing and nearly half are helping with living expenses.
For an increasing number of adult children, the situation is bad. Two-thirds of adult children, aged 18 to 39, who are not in school said they faced tougher financial pressures than previous generations, according to the survey. And nearly one-third of parents agreed that it was easier for them to find their financial feet than for their children.
Parents are helping their children out of genuine concern because they do not want to see them struggle. But Beck said that parents who make sacrifices(牺牲) to help their adult children should be careful about their own finances.
“If you are taking on extra debt or delaying(推迟) retirement to help your adult child, you could be making a mistake and putting your own financial future in danger,” Beck warned.
Boomerang children can also cause other problems for their parents. Thirty percent of parents said they had given up privacy since their adult children moved back home, while more than a quarter have taken on added debt, and seven percent have delayed retirement. But the survey also showed 42 percent of adult children living at home are helping with the cooking and cleaning.According to the text, boomerang kids refer to ____.
| A．married adult children |
| B．grown-ups living with parents |
| C．adult children independent and successful in life |
| D．young adults depending on parents for financial support |
According to the survey, we can infer that _____.
| A．about 30% of parents offer their adult children housing |
| B．one-third of adult children earn money more easily than their parents |
| C．two-thirds of adult children are faced with financial problems in school |
| D．about 50% of parents give money to their adult children to cover the daily cost |
What is Ted Beck’s suggestion to the parents?
| A．Asking their children to help with the housework. |
| B．Being careful when helping their children financially. |
| C．Leaving their children to struggle to live. |
| D．Putting off their time of retirement. |
What would be the best title for the text?
| A．Adult children are less independent | B．Parents help support adult children |
| C．Bad conditions affect children a lot | D．Adult children like living with parents |
During my review for the medical boards, I gained 101 pounds in four months and promised to exercise when all of this was over. I successfully passed the medical boards and now I have to face the music.
One morning, I woke up and decided to go to a park to start working out. I got out of bed, washed my face, brushed my teeth and put on my sports shoes. Then I headed for the park. While going there, I decided to set a goal for myself, that, I had to finish 10 rounds before I went home.
Upon reaching the park, I joined the people in walking around the park. I was enjoying every step, breathing in fresh air, appreciating the green grass and looking at the dried leaves falling from the trees while listening to my iPod.
On my 5th round, I felt tired, hungry and thirsty. I thought of giving it up, going home and sleeping again. As the idea battled in my mind, I was reminded about the goal I had set just a while ago. I kept on walking and as I looked around, I saw myself in the midst of men and women much older than me who continued to move on. Some even suffered from a stroke(中风) that had difficulty walking, some took on small steps with a cane on hand and some took on pauses before they continued their walk but still they kept on walking.
Suddenly I realized that each of us has set our own goals in our lives, such as reaching a dream, building up a career, correcting a past mistake or starting a business. The process won’t be easy. We may encounter(遇到) a lot of difficulties and obstacles that may push us to just give up.
Amazed by the men and women whom I walked with that morning, I finished my goal in the end.
Let us be inspired with the people around us who experience the same or even a greater amount of difficulty but still don’t give up and continue until they reach their goals and now are savoring(享受) their success.What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 1 mean?
| A．Now I don’t feel like listening to my iPod. |
| B．Now I have to care more about my health. |
| C．Now I have to take physical exercise. |
| D．Now it is time for me to listen to music. |
What did the author do on his way to the park?
| A．He worked out a plan for his future. |
| B．He reflected on the causes of his overweight. |
| C．He decided to finish 10 rounds that morning. |
| D．He planned to take exercises every day. |
When the author was walking the 5th round _____.
| A．he didn’t want to continue walking |
| B．he found it easy to keep his promise |
| C．he was enjoying walking in the park |
| D．he was too tired to keep up with others |
What inspired the author to finish 10 rounds that morning?
| A．The goal he kept in mind. | B．His strong will to keep fit. |
| C．The good figure he wanted. | D．The people exercising in the park. |
Flowers only bloom(开花) when they are planted in the right soil. That is also true for me.
I first moved to Foxboro, Massachusetts, as a single mother with my baby daughter, Darcy. I was drawn to its New England beauty, friendly people and rich history. It happened that there were a lot of forsythia(连翘) bushes around the house in which I lived just like my childhood home. I joined St. Mark’s Episcopal Church where I taught the Sunday school. At church, I met my second husband, Dean. For more than 25 years, I bloomed in Foxboro, and I had another two children.
Then, when Darcy was a few years out of college, she moved to Alameda, California, to be near friends. I missed her badly. A year later my beloved husband Dean had deadly cancer. He only made it eight months. My heart was broken. Later I moved to Alameda with my children. It was a beautiful Victorian island, and I was grateful to spend more time with Darcy. I even attended a church and made a few friends there. Still, I couldn’t help but miss Foxboro. It had everything and everyone I loved.
One spring day, when I was walking by a school, something yellow caught my eyes. Forsythia bushes! They made me homesick and I kept back my tears. “I miss you, Foxboro,” I whispered. Then I went into a shop and looked at some ceramic(陶瓷的) pots lined up on a shelf. A large white one seemed to catch my attention. “That’ll be perfect in my living room,” I thought.
I turned it over to look at the price. Instead I found these words: “New England Pottery, Foxboro, Massachusetts.” A piece of artwork, from my second hometown, was right here. It was able to spread across the country and so were forsythia bushes. I took it as a sign that I can bloom, right where I am.From the text we learn that the author ____.
| A．gave birth to three children in Foxboro |
| B．planted forsythia bushes around her house |
| C．got to know her second husband at church |
| D．worked as a middle school teacher in Foxboro |
The author moved to Alameda so that she could ____.
| A．have more time together with Darcy |
| B．forget the sorrow at her husband’s death |
| C．visit her children at Alameda College frequently |
| D．enjoy the beautiful scenery on the Victorian island |
When the author saw forsythia bushes at a school she _____.
| A．wanted to buy a ceramic pot to put them in |
| B．thought of her life in Foxboro |
| C．felt they would look great in her living room |
| D．believed they were real art work |
Why does the author compare herself to flowers?
| A．Because she wanted to show she likes flowers. |
| B．Because she can live in any place that is right like flowers. |
| C．Because she moved across the country just like flowers. |
| D．Because girls are like flowers that are blooming. |
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