Diamonds may be forever. But what’s a girl to do when she gets dumped (失恋) or divorced (离婚) and those rings, necklace and love gifts lose their emotional (情感) sense?
Help is just a click away on new Web sites that provide an outlet for selling jewelry(珠宝) from past relationships, sharing break-up stories and helping broken hearts heal (愈合).
“You go through a divorce. What do you do with that ring? Maybe you have a child you can pass it on to. Maybe you don’t. It just sits there, ” said Megahn Perry, who with her stepmother (继母) Marie Perry runs www.exboyfriendjewelry.com.
Three months after its start with the slogan(口号) “You Don’t Want It. He Can’t Have It Back,” the web site has 3,000 registered users and more than 600 postings of rings, bracelets and earrings for sale—all with a personal tale attached.
As one woman posting a diamond ring for $3,500 wrote:
“Beautiful ring came with a wrong man. Decided to sell to regain the money that I spent finishing payments on the ring that my ex didn’t.”
The idea was born when Megahn Perry, a Los Angeles actress and writer, was looking for a safe place to sell a wedding set after a divorce and realized others might have former boyfriends’ jewelry with memories(记忆) that make them too painful to wear.
The local pawn shop(当铺) proved an unattractive choice. So she teamed up with her stepmother Marie, researched the market and found a gap in it. The passage is mainly about _____.
| A．how a web site is set up | B．how sad the love stories are |
| C．How much a website can make | D．How many people like the web site |
How long is it since the start of this website?
| A．Less than three months. | B．At least three months. |
| C．Less than one month. | D．Not known. |
How many people have registered on this website within three months?
| A．About 600. | B．About 3,000. | C．About 3,500. | D．Not know. |
Who set up this website?
| A．Megahn herself alone. | B．Megahn and her best friend. |
| C．Megahn and her stepmother. | D．Megahn and her exboyfriend. |
What’s the meaning of the underlined word “gap” in the last sentence?
| A．Gulf between two people. | B．Misunderstandings among each other. |
| C．Differences from a pawn shop. | D．A market worth developing. |
The campaign is over. The celebrations have ended. And the work for US president-elect Barack Obama has begun.
The 47-year-old politician rose to the highest post because of his stand against the war in Iraq and his plans to fix a weak economy. But what will the first 47-year-old African-American president do for race relations?
Obama’s victory appears to have given blacks and other minorities a true national role model. For years, many looked to athletes and musicians for inspiration. As Darius Turner, an African-American high school student in Los Angeles, told the Los Angeles Times, “Kobe doesn’t have to be everybody’s role model anymore.”
Recent polls（民意测验）also suggest that Obama’s victory has given Americans new optimism about race relations. For example, a USA Today poll found that two-thirds of Americans believe relations between blacks and whites “will finally be worked out”. This is the most hopeful response since the question was first asked during the civil rights revolution in 1963.
However, it’s still too early to tell whether Obama’s presidency will begin to solve many of the social problems facing low-income black communities.
Although blacks make up only 13 percent of the US population, 55 percent of all prisoners are African-American. Such numbers can be blamed on any number of factors on America’s racist past, a failure of government policy and the collapse(瓦解)of the family unit in black communities.
It is unlikely that Obama will be able to reverse (扭转) such trends overnight. However, Bill Bank, an expert of African-American Studies, says that eventually young blacks need to find role models in their own communities. “That’s not Martin Luther King, and not Barack Obama,” he told the Los Angeles Times. “It’s actually the people closest to them. Barack only has so much influence.”
In the opinion of black British politician Trevor Phillips, Obama’s rise will contribute more to multiculturalism than to race relations in the US.
“When the G8 meets, the four most important people in the room will be the president of China, the prime minister of India, the prime minister of Japan and Barak Obama,” he told London’s The Times newspaper. “It will be the first time we’ve seen that on our television screens. That will be a huge psychological shift (心理转变) for both the white people and the colored ones in the world.”For years, before Obama was elected president of the US, __________.
| A．Kobe was the only role model for all the blacks |
| B．blacks could only find role models on the basketball court |
| C．minorities in America couldn’t find role models in their real life |
| D．American blacks had no role model who was successful in political area |
According to Bill Bank, ____________.
| A．it’s better for young blacks to find role models in those who are close to them |
| B．young blacks should not be so much influenced by Obama |
| C．blacks should find other role models because Obama is far from their reality |
| D．Obama is not the proper role model for African-Americans |
What would be the best title for this passage?
| A．The First African-American President | B．America’s New Role Model |
| C．Obama-- A Successful Black . | D．Choosing a Right Role Model |
What will be the huge psychological shift Trevor mentioned at the end of the passage?
| A．The other three leaders all support Obama. |
| B．Obama is an African-American president. |
| C．None of the four leaders is white. |
| D．The other three leaders except Obama are from Asian countries. |
In our life, we have rarely expressed our gratitude to the one who’d lived those years with us.In fact, we don’t have to wait for anniversaries to thank the ones close to us—the ones so easily overlooked. If I have learned anything about giving thanks, it is this: give it now！While your feeling of appreciation is alive and sincere, act on it. Saying thanks is such an easy way to add to the world’s happiness.
Saying thanks not only brightens someone else’s world, but it also brightens yours. If you’re feeling left out, unloved or unappreciated, try reaching out to others. It may be just the medicine you need.
Of course, there are times when you can’t express gratitude immediately. In that case don’t let embarrassment sink you into silence—speak up the first time you have the chance.
Once a young minister, Mark Brian, was sent to a remote parish of Kwakiutl Indians in British Columbia. He had been told that the Indians did not have a word for thank you. But Brian soon found that these people had exceptional generosity. Instead of saying thanks, it is their custom to return every favor with a favor of their own, and every kindness with an equal or superior kindness. They do their thanks.
I wonder if we had no words in our vocabulary for thank you, would we do a better job of communicating our gratitude? Would we be more responsive, more sensitive and more caring?
Thankfulness sets in motion a chain of reaction that transforms people all around us—including ourselves, for no one ever misunderstands the melody of a grateful heart. When we say something for what others do for us, it ______.
| A．is good for both us and people who help us |
| B．benefits the people who do something for us |
| C．wastes our and our friends' time at the same time |
| D．does harm to both us and people who help us |
According to the writer, could be the best way to prevent ourselves from being left out.
| A．seeing a doctor to find the right medicine we need |
| B．expressing our gratitude in an easy way |
| C．speaking up the moment we have the chance |
| D．showing others actively we are willing to help them |
Mark Brain’s story is mentioned in the passage in order to show the fact that .
| A．the Indians didn’t have any words for appreciation |
| B．the Indians were particularly generous to others |
| C．some people may express their gratitude through different approaches |
| D．Mark Brain set the Indians an example to show saying thanks is very important |
Competition between international universities is heating up, as China grows as one of the largest exporters of students aiming to study abroad. “Lots of universities are becoming more and more aggressive to attract Chinese students. Every day I receive contacts from universities in the US expressing the desire to come to China to recruit students,” said Frank Joseph, a commercial officer from embassy of the United States.
One key reason why more Chinese students are able to study abroad is the economy: With China’s boom within the past decade, more families have the financial wherewithal (资金) to send their children to international universities. There will be a total of 200,000 family-funded Chinese students studying overseas in 2011, up 20 percent from last year, said Wu Zaofeng, deputy secretary general of China Education Association for International Exchange.
International institutions, Joseph said, are also facing increasingly tough financial situation with a shortage of domestic students and a drop in government subsidies (补贴). Students, especially in the US are paying high tuition fees and living expenses. Chinese students with money to spend, according to experts, can fill up the gap. Students on average spend 150,000 yuan to 200,000 yuan every year studying in US, according to statistics from the US Institute of International Education. During 2009-2010, there were approximately 81,000 Chinese students studying in the US, up 19.8 percent from 2008.
Representatives from approximately 60 universities from the United States are planning to arrive in Beijing this weekend to attract more Chinese students at this year’s fair. Besides the US, many other countries are also vying (竞争) to enroll Chinese students.
Post-study work visa put out by British government allows all international students completing a UK degree qualification to apply for a visa to stay on and look for work in UK for up to 2 years. Being the third most popular destination for international students next to the US and the UK, France has set up two types of scholarships and has handed out an increase of 26 percent in scholarship funds to Chinese students in recent years.The reason for heating up competition between international universities is __________.
| A．that China has become one of the largest exporters of the students aiming to study abroad |
| B．China’s boom, the students’ desire and foreign universities’ commercial motive |
| C．that the students in China are becoming richer and richer |
| D．that the students in foreign countries do not want to go to universities |
Why are more Chinese students able to study abroad?
| A．Because their families have enough money to send them to international universities. |
| B．Because they can’t go to the best universities at home. |
| C．Because they want to win the scholarship of foreign universities |
| D．Because the Chinese students enjoy following others and they want to be independent. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．In 2011 there will be 200,000 Chinese students studying in the US. |
| B．Chinese students are able to study abroad for their relatives overseas. |
| C．In 2011 there will be 200,000 state-funded Chinese students studying overseas. |
| D．There are fewer family-funded Chinese students studying abroad in 2010 than in 2011. |
From the passage we can learn that __________.
| A．the number of foreign students is becoming smaller and smaller |
| B．the international universities are short of money |
| C．there were approximately 81,000 foreign students studying in the US during 2009-2010 |
| D．the Chinese students spend more money than the American students |
I was waiting for a phone call from my agent. He had left a message the night before, telling me that my show was to be canceled. I called him several times, but each time his secretary told me that he was in a meeting and that he would call me later. So I waited and waited, but there was still no call. Three hours passing by, I became more and more impatient. I was certain that my agent didn’t care about my work, and he didn’t care about me. I was overcome with that thought. I started to shout at the phone,“ Let me wait, will you? Who do you think you are?”
At that time I didn’t realize my wife was looking on. Without showing her surprise, she rushed in, seized the phone, tore off the wires, and shouted at the phone, “Yeah! Who do you think you are? Bad telephone! Bad telephone!” And she swept it into the wastebasket.
I stood watching her, speechless. What on earth?
She stepped to the doorway and shouted at the rest of the house, “Now hear this! All objects in this room — if you do anything to upset my husband, out you go!”
Then she turned to me, kissed me, and said calmly, “Honey, you just have to learn how to take control. ” With that, she left the room.
After watching a crazy woman rushing in and out, shouting at everything in sight, I noticed that something in my mood had changed. I was laughing. How could I have trouble with that phone? Her antics helped me realize I had been driven crazy by small things. Twenty minutes later my agent did call. I was able to listen to him and talk to him calmly.Why did the author shout at the telephone?
| A．He was mad at the telephone. | B．He was angry with his agent. |
| C．He was anxious about his wife. | D．He was impatient with the secretary. |
What did the author’s wife do after she heard his shouting?
| A．She threw the phone away. | B．She shouted at him. |
| C．She called the agent. | D．She said nothing. |
What made the author laugh?
| A．His changeable feelings. | B．His wife’s suggestion. |
| C．His own behavior. | D．His wife’s sweet kiss. |
What does the underlined word “antics” refer to?
| A．Smart words. | B．Anxious feelings. |
| C．Surprising looks. | D．Unusual actions. |
WASHINGTON --- It’s a great achievement that inspires concepts of robots with consciousness and independent minds.
When people or animals get hurt, they can usually compensate for minor injuries and keep limping along, but for robots, even slight damage can make them stumble and fall. However, a recently made robot has demonstrated a new ability: it can heal its own damage.
The new robot, which looks like a splay-legged (弓形腿的), four-footed starfish, can sense injury to itself and adapt. That ability sets the new robot apart from earlier machines. Because the robot can recover from unfamiliar places.
“There is a need for planetary robotic rovers (行星机器探测车) to be able to fix things on their own,” says Josh Bongard, a professor in the Univer
sity of Vermont, who is one of the device’s creator. “Robots on other planets must be able to continue their mission without human help if they are damaged and cannot communicate their problem back to Earth.”
A typical robot functions according to a computer program, but the new robot works differently. First, sensors in its four legs observe the robot’s movements and signals to its built-in computer. From the information it collects, the robot creates its own programs that allow it to adapt to different situations. For example, when the researchers shortened one of the robot’s legs, the smart machine simply adjusted its way of walking—it used three legs instead of four.
The researchers are looking for other places to put the resilient robot to work. One spot is the ocean floor. That dark and dangerous undersea area might be a good choice for a robot that the scientists call the Starfish. “We never officially named the robot, but we usually refer to it as the Starfish, even though a real starfish has five rather than four legs,” says Bongard. “Also, a real starfish is much better than our robot at recovering from injury, because it can actually grow its legs again.” Scientists have created robots that help humans in many ways: by exploring space, fighting fires, and even performing s
urgery.The newly designed robot distinguishes itself from the former ones because it________.
| A．can communicate with people on the earth about their problems |
| B．works according to a certain computer program |
| C．can find its problems and solve them automatically |
| D．can explore unfamiliar places |
An example is given in the fourth paragraph in order to explain that the robot ________.
| A．is used to create new programs |
| B．has typical robot functions |
| C．has sensors to observe its movements |
| D．can gather information and adapt to new conditions |
Which of the following is TRUE about the robot “Starfish”?
| A．It was spoken highly of by people for its special ability. |
| B．It will stumble and fall if damaged. |
| C．It can grow its legs again once they are broken. |
| D．It has started to work on the ocean floor. |
What might be the best title of the passage?
| A．How the Starfish Robot Works |
| B．Do-It-Yourself Robot Repair |
| C．Robots Designed to Work on Other Planets |
| D．New Robot Helping Us in Many Ways |
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