People turn to magic chiefly as a form of insurance—that is, they use it along with actions that actually bring results. For example, hunters may use a hunting charm (咒语). But they also use their hunting skills and knowledge of animals. The charm may give hunters the extra confidence they need to hunt even more successfully than they would without it. If they shoot a lot of game (猎物), they credit the charm for their success. Many events happen naturally without magic. Crops grow without it, and sick people get well without it．But if people use magic to bring a good harvest or to cure a patient, they may believe the magic was responsible.
People also tend to forget magic’s failures and to be impressed by its surface successes. They may consider magic successful if it appears to work only 10 percent of the time. Even when magic fails, people often explain the failure without doubting the power of the magic. They may say that the magician made a mistake in reciting the spell or that another magician cast a more powerful spell against the magician.
Many anthropologists (人类学家) believe that people have faith in magic because they feel a need to believe in it. People may turn to magic to reduce their fear and uncertainty if they feel they have no control over the outcome of a situation. For example, farmers use knowledge and skill when they plant their fields. But they know that weather, insects, or diseases might ruin the crops. So farmers in some societies may also plant a charm or perform a magic rite (仪式) to ensure a good harvest．
1. From the passage, we can learn that the writer of the passage may be _______.
A. a hunter B. a farmer
C. a magician D. an anthropologist
2. Which of the following can best serve as the title of the passage?
A. Magic And Hunting.
B. Magic And Farming.
C. Why Magic Works?
D. Why People Believe in Magic?
3. The underlined word “spell” (Paragraph 2) most likely means ______.
A. magic words B. magic events
C. words or expressions D. magicians
4. People believe in magic because________.
A. magic powers are greater than natural powers
B. magic can turn dreams into reality
C. they are not sure of themselves
D. magic can bring good results
5. Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
A. Even though magic fails, believers in magic will explain the reason.
B. Believers in magic usually overstate the power of magic.
C. People use magic to reduce their uncertainty and give them extra confidence.
D. Magic can solve problems people can’t deal with in a natural way.
We all love our children and we all know how competitive the world is these days. What’s it going to be like when our children leave school? Will they have the skills they need to stay ahead of the competition?
All children need two basic skills to succeed. They must be able to read and they must be able to write. And with so much information available to them these days, they must be able to read quickly and accurately. That’s why your children need to be able to speed-read.
It’s ironic (讽刺的) that at this time of space-age technology, we’ve gone back to one of the earliest forms of mass communication—the written word. The Internet has introduced a revival (重新流行) of writing, and if you can’t keep up, you’ll be left behind. You certainly don’t want your children to be left behind.
You can help to make sure that your children are excellent writers—you can help them to learn how to use their language. Better still, you can learn with them!
You and your children can spend time together in a worthwhile pursuit (事业)—learning how to write. Forget the theme parks, the computer games, the expensive movies and interesting sports. If you want your children to have treasured memories of time spent with you, learn together.
For less than you would pay for tickets to a theme park, you can invest in your children’s future—help them learn to write well with my six-part writing course.
Don’t stand by while your child is left further and further behind. From the last two paragraphs, we can know the main purpose of the passage is_______
| A．To encourage students to be better prepared for the future. |
| B．To list the qualities children must have for their future success. |
| C．To persuade parents to choose a writing course for their kids. |
| D．To explain the difficult situation children have to face at present. |
In the author’s opinion, ______.
| A．speed-reading is the first step in a child’s formal education |
| B．children today waste too much time on games, movies and sports |
| C．children’s success depends much on good skills in reading and writing |
| D．writing helps people communicate more effectively in modern society |
What does the author think of writing as a form of communication now?
| A．Important. | B．Funny. | C．Informal. | D．Old-fashioned. |
What’s the advantage of children’s learning together with their parents?
| A．They will learn more quickly and accurately. |
| B．They will not be affected by games and sports. |
| C．It will encourage them to work for a higher pursuit. |
| D．They will have good memories of time spent with parents. |
Three years ago when I was still in the university, I also worked at a restaurant.
An old man named Mr. Candido Filio was one of our regular customers at the restaurant. He was one of the most intelligent people I’ve ever known.
Every Sunday the Philippine Star Newspaper had a special page for word puzzles and among his peers (同龄人), Mr. Filio held the record for solving all the puzzles in less than five minutes. He encouraged me to solve them too and for months and months, I did my best to beat him but failed.
Then one Sunday, I did it! I was able to complete them before anyone else. Everyone cheered for me. He came up to me with a smile and said, “No one has ever beaten me before. You’re the first. I’ll have a prize for you tomorrow.”
The next day, he gave me a special Scrabble (拼字游戏) set. I would have never been able to afford one like that by myself. Then he said to me, “Kate, what do you think is man’s final goal in life? Happiness, isn’t it? You are happy and that should be considered as a success. Many people spend a lifetime searching for that. Be thankful that you have found it.” I looked at him and knew that my life had changed, probably forever. He must have known that I always felt sad about not having much money.
He encouraged me to learn the game and love words. And true to his words, I was never able to beat him again. We can learn from the text that Mr. Filio ______.
| A．was generous to young people |
| B．was good at word puzzles |
| C．lived quite near the restaurant |
| D．won a prize from the Philippine Star Newspaper |
The author got a gift because ______.
| A．Mr. Filio was thankful for her help |
| B．Mr. Filio was satisfied with her service |
| C．she was the first person to beat Mr. Filio |
| D．she was the new record keeper in the restaurant |
After she heard what Mr. Filio said, the author probably felt ______.
| A．amazed | B．excited | C．touched | D．inspired |
What would be the best title of the text?
| A．Happiness is also a success |
| B．Interest is the best teacher |
| C．Scrabble makes a difference |
| D．His words change my life |
The concept of solar power satellites, or SPS, first put forward in the 1960s, is still not widely known by the general public. For example, at many public exhibitions about energy, SPS is not even mentioned. This is mainly because very little money has been spent on SPS research
There are people who claim that SPS is unrealistic － because launch costs are much too high today; or because it is too far away. So why do we believe that it is important to continue to do researches on SPS? The reason is very simple.
Humans are going to need huge amounts of electric power in coming decades. Within 50 years the world population is expected to double, while economic growth will continue around the world, especially in the poorer countries. But existing energy sources already face serious problems. They are limited; they are polluted; they are dangerous. So 50 or 100 years from now, where is our power going to come from? Nobody knows. And so we believe that new large-scale possibilities should be studied further.
We must remember that humans have some choices concerning our future. To some extent we can choose the direction in which our civilization develops. And choices that are made in the coming decades － such as the energy sources that we will or will not use, will have major, long-term meaning for human life on earth. We believe that if research continues to show that SPS is environmentally and economically attractive, SPS will open the door to a much more attractive future for human civilization than any ground-based energy source, and one that the public will support and that young people will find challenging and exciting. Furthermore energy from SPS can be readily used in developing countries, as the SPS 2000 project will show, thus aiding economic development worldwide. In addition, by creating large commercial fund for space engineering, SPS will open the frontier of space to economic development, thus creating a limitless new field for the growth of the world economy.Which of the following may be the best title for the passage?
| A．The Future Energy－ SPS | B．The Concept of SPS |
| C．Humans and SPS | D．Advantages of SPS |
Which of the following statements about SPS is TRUE?
| A．The research on SPS started in the 1960s is still not appreciated by the public. |
| B．The research is showing SPS can benefit environment and economy at present. |
| C．The energy from SPS is now being used in some developing countries. |
| D．The public don’t know about SPS because little time is devoted to the research. |
Paragraph 3 mainly talks about ______.
| A．the present serious energy problems |
| B．where to get energy sources in the future |
| C．the importance of controlling world population |
| D．the need to explore new energy sources |
The writer’s attitude towards the research can best be summarized by the saying “______”.
| A．In time of peace prepare for war |
| B．Put the cart before the horse |
| C．One man’s meat is another man’s poison |
| D．Easier said than done |
There are plenty of creams etc on the market that help you look younger, but today, Dr Oz is going to show how some people are actually living longer.
“We are going to talk about extreme life extension,” he says. “I am talking in details about allowing us to go into our second century of life with the energy that you have when you are a young person.”
Owing to advances in technology and research on how diet affect the aging process, Dr Oz says it might be possible for some people to live to see their 120th birthdays.
There’s one man in Oprah’s audience who Dr Oz says may become the first man in history to live to be 150 years old. Joe Cordell is one of thousands around the world who believe they’ve found the key to an extreme long life --- calorie restriction leads to a longer, healthier life.
At 59 Joe weighs 130 pounds. He may not look like a person who needs to count calories, but as part of his life extension program, he inspects every mouth of food that passes through his system.
Every day for the past seven years, Joe has limited himself to about 1,950 calories.
He believes that by eating less and restricting his caloric intake, he will trigger a genetic switch that slows the aging process.
Joe doesn’t take away himself of food. Instead, the then 52-year-old father filled up on natural fruits, vegetables and lean proteins(瘦蛋白) that were packed with necessary vitamins and nutrients. “Whenever you are thinking about calorie restriction, you should continually think about getting the most nutritional amount per calorie,” Joe says.
In keeping with this principle, Joe starts every morning with three apples…but he only eats the peels. “Most of the fiber is in the peel, and more importantly, most of the nutrients are in the peel,” he says.
“It is important to eat some nuts with breakfast so that you do take in some fat, some healthy fats,” he says. “I think it helps the absorption of the nutrients, and it is very filling.”
For lunch, Joe usually eats a large salad, loaded with vegetables. At dinnertime, he and his family enjoy lean meat or fish and more vegetables.
When Joe started practicing calorie restriction, he weighed 175 pounds. Since then, he has lost 45 pounds, and he says he hasn’t had a cold in seven years. Though he is in his “golden years”, researchers studying Joe say he has the body of a 20-year-old athlete. According to Joe, the appropriate fat intake may help ______?
| A．people lose weight |
| B．feel always full |
| C．the absorption of the nutrients |
| D．people to live longer |
What can we learn about Joe since he started the calorie restriction program?
| A．Joe counts the amount of every meal |
| B．Joe has never had a cold |
| C．Joe eats three apples every morning |
| D．Joe has a large salad with vegetables for dinner |
The underlined word “trigger” in paragraph 7 can probably be replaced by ______.
| A．turn on | B．break down | C．take up | D．cut off |
According to the passage, the extreme life extension refers to _______.
| A．living very long even sick |
| B．how to make people lead a happy life |
| C．living long and having a healthy body |
| D．how to arrange our foods every day |
Many cities in the world are benefiting from the night activities of a group of people who call themselves guerrilla (游击队) gardeners. Armed with trowels, spades and a van full of flowers and plants, guerrilla gardeners turn abandoned urban land into a blaze of color. In city centre locations where there was mud, weeds and empty plastic bottles, residents often wake up to find that the wasted area has been transformed overnight with brightly-colored bedding plants.
In most British cities, local governments and police turn a blind eye to the effort of the gardeners, whose activities are always carried out under cover of nightfall. And so far, there has been nothing but praise from the astonished and delighted local residents when they find their neighborhood transformed in such a striking fashion.
Not only do the guerrilla gardeners beautify neglected places, they also return regularly to water the plants and weed the flower beds. They also make sure that at least some of the plants they bring are evergreens, which means that the area doesn’t look depressing in the winter months.
The first guerrilla gardener in London was Richard Reynolds, whose day job is at an advertising agency. Mr. Reynolds, a graduate of Oxford University, began his efforts two years ago when he moved to a flat in a tower block in South London. From his balcony, he could see several empty concrete pots, placed by the local governments to contain plants but never used. He went out after midnight and filled the pots with plants, and then planted more flowers in the path leading to the entrance to the block.
He then set up a website to explain his plan and called upon more gardeners to join him. Cash donations flooded in and, more importantly, volunteers rushed to be part of the campaign. Within six months, there were five hundred people in London prepared to come out at very short notice to restore neglected parts of the urban landscape. There are now unofficial but carefully-organized groups in many cities in Britain and North America and there is also a website where would-be urban gardeners can find out the location of the next expedition.These guerrilla gardeners do their work ______.
| A．at the request of the government |
| B．nearby their house |
| C．often in return for others’ help |
| D．out of their own free will |
Richard Reynolds decided to fill the pots with plants in order to ______.
| A．plant more flowers in the path |
| B．beautify the neighborhood |
| C．attract attention for his ad agency |
| D．make the plants a feast for his eyes |
The guerrilla gardeners often return to their night working places with the purpose of ______.
| A．looking after these plants |
| B．enjoying these beautiful flowers |
| C．helping plants live through winter months |
| D．changing the varieties of the plants |
It can be inferred from the text that these guerrilla gardeners ______.
| A．are mainly from the United Kingdom |
| B．will later get well paid |
| C．are still not accepted by the local government |
| D．become more and more organized |
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