All of my childhood and early, adult life, my mom weighed over 220 pounds (one pound =" 0.454" kilograms). I could feel the pain that my mom experienced with her fatness.
I was never uncomfortable about my mother, but I think she was uncomfortable about herself, and that feeling was painful for all of us. And she began to lose weight.
After more than twenty years of battling obesity（肥胖）, my mother completed a forceful eighteen-month diet that left her ninety pounds lighter than before. A new woman was born! At age twenty-eight, I got a new mom! For the first time, I met the woman my mother truly was, the beautiful little lady under the fatness. It wasn’t so much her new body that was the surprise, but rather her new spirit.
To celebrate her new size and to devote herself to dancing again, my mother joined a “Mrs. Forty-Plus” competition, where she would have to model, give a speech and provide a dance performance. She told our family that she did not care if she won — she simply had always wanted to perform on stage.
She told each one of us, “I’m not doing it to win; I’m doing it to dance!”
The competition was exciting! I prayed that my mom would win, but while watching her on stage I was simply overjoyed just by her effort. To me, she had already won. She posed to perfection, her speech brought tears to everyone’s eyes, and her performance was wonderful.
That night, at age fifty-three, my mother was crowned (为......加冕) “Mrs. Forty-Plus”. She was the first person in our family to ever win such a title.
64. The first two paragraphs mainly show that the author’s mom was __________.
A. experienced B. painful C. comfortable D. fat
65. After the author’s mom completed a forceful eighteen-month diet, she was about __________.
A. 85 kilograms B. 41 kilograms C. 130 pounds D. 90 pounds
66. In order to join in the “Mrs. Forty-Plus” Competition, the author’s mom has to do the following EXCEPT __________.
A. providing a dance performance B. telling a funny story about herself
C. giving a speech to a large number of people D. wearing special clothes to show to people
67. The underlined part in Paragraph 6 means that __________.
A. the author’s mom succeeded in modeling and speaking
B. the author’s mom’s performance was very wonderful
C. the author’s mom was not successful in modeling
D. the author’s mom succeeded in making a speech
Enjoy free re-admission for a year if you buy your ticket directly from us. Tickets purchased directly from the Royal Collection can be transformed into a 1-Year Pass, giving 12 months’ free admission to Windsor Castle. This pass is valid for a year from the date of your first visit.
How do I transform my ticket into a 1-Year Pass?
1. Before you leave the site, please sign and print your name in the spaces provided on the back of your ticket.
2. Hand the ticket to a member of staff, who will stamp and validate(使…生效) it.
3. Keep your ticket for future visits.
Your ticket will only be accepted for re-admission if it has been stamped on the day of your first visit.
Subsequent(随后的) visits
To gain admission on subsequent visits, your signed and stamped original ticket (now your 1-Year Pass) must be produced on arrival at the ticket counter. You will also be required to provide proof(证据) of signature, such as a passport, driving licence, or credit card. You will then be given a gift ticket for admission on that day. Children under the age of 18 are not required to show proof of signature.
Alternatively, to guarantee admission you may pre-book your subsequent visits by telephoning the Ticket Sales and Information Office, +44 (0)20 7766 7334. A booking fee applies. Pre-booked tickets will not be posted to you, but can be collected from the ticket counter on the day of your visit on production of your signed and stamped 1-Year Pass and proof of signature.
The benefits of the 1-Year Pass are not transferable, and your ticket may not under any circumstances be given to another person or re-sold. Any attempted use of the ticket by another party to gain admission automatically cause the ticket invalid.
Free re-admission is always subject to ticket availability and may be unavailable on up to 5 days each year when the site is open to the public. It is not possible to use your 1-Year Pass when the site is closed. Before planning a visit please see the Visit Pages on www.royalcollection.org.uk to check if any dates are excluded and to confirm admission details.
Dates when 1-Year Pass free re-admission is unavailable in 2012:
Saturday 7 April 2012
Sunday 8 April 2012
Monday 9 April 2012
Monday 7 May 2012
Monday 4 June 2012
Please note that gift tickets and tickets booked through a tour operator or ticket agent cannot be transformed into a 1-Year Pass.
Ticket Sales and Information Office
Official Residences of The Queen
London SW1A 1AA
www.royalcollection.org.uk
Telephone +44 (0)20 7766 7334Which of the following tickets can be transformed into a 1-Year Pass?
| A．gift tickets |
| B．tickets bought from Royal Collection |
| C．tickets booked from a tour operator |
| D．tickets bought from an agent |
If you want to have a 1-Year Pass to Windsor Castle, you DON’T have to ______.
| A．get your ticket stamped | B．sign your name |
| C．buy a ticket | D．show your proof of signature |
If you transformed your ticket to a 1-Year Pass on 15 March, 2012, you could use it on ______.
| A．9 April 2012 | B．4 June 2012 |
| C．10 March 2013 | D．15 April 2013 |
To book a further admission with a 1-Year Pass, ______.
| A．you need to pay some money |
| B．you can ask your friend to lend you his 1-Year Pass |
| C．you can have your gift ticket delivered to you |
| D．you need to show your passport and credit card on your arrival |
When people first walked across the Bering Land Bridge thousands of years ago, dogs were by their sides, according to a study published in the journal Science.
Robert Wayne of the University of California, Los Angeles, and Jennifer Leonard of the Smithsonian Institute, used DNA material—some of it unearthed by miners in Alaska—to conclude that today’s domestic dog originated in Asia and accompanied the first humans to the New World about 10,000 to 15,000 years ago. Wayne suggests that man’s best friend may have enabled the tough journey from Asia into North America. “Dogs may have been the reason people made it across the land bridge,” said Wayne. “They can pull things, carry things, defend you from fierce animals, and they’re useful to eat.”
Researchers have agreed that today’s dog is the result of the domestication(驯化) of wolves thousands of years ago. Before this recent study, a common thought about the precise origin of North America’s domestic dog was that Natives domesticated local wolves, the descendents(后代) of which now live with people in Alaska, Canada, and the Lower 48.
Dog remains from a Fairbanks-area gold mine helped the scientists reach their conclusion. Leonard, an evolutionary biologist, collected DNA from 11 bones of ancient dogs that were locked in permafrost(永冻层) until Fairbanks miners uncovered them in the 1920s. The miners donated the preserved bones to the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, where they remained untouched for more than 70 years. After borrowing the bones from the museum, Leonard and her colleagues used radiocarbon techniques to find the age of the Alaska dogs. They found the dogs all lived between the years of 1450 and 1675 A.D., before Vitus Bering and Aleksey Chirikov who were the first known Europeans to view Alaska in 1741. The bones of dogs that wandered the Fairbanks area centuries ago should therefore be the remains of “pure native American dogs,” Leonard said. The DNA of the Fairbanks dogs would also expose whether they were the descendents of wolves from North America.
Along with the Fairbanks samples, the researchers collected DNA from bones of 37 dog specimens(标本) from Mexico, Peru, and Bolivia that existed before the arrival of Columbus. In the case of both the Alaska dogs and the dogs from Latin America, the researchers found that they shared the most genetic material with gray wolves of Europe and Asia. This supports the idea of domestic dogs entering the New World with the first human explorers who wandered east over the land bridge.
Leonard and Wayne’s study suggests that dogs joined the first humans that made the adventure across the Bering Land Bridge to slowly populate the Americas. Wayne thinks the dogs that made the trip must have provided some excellent service to their human companions or they would not have been brought along. “Dogs must have been useful because they were expensive to keep,” Wayne said. “They didn’t feed on mice; they fed on meat, which was a very guarded resource.” The underlined word “remains” is closed in meaning to ______.
| A．leftover food | B．animal waste |
| C．dead bodies | D．living environment |
According to the study described in Paragraph 4, we can learn that ______.
| A．ancient dogs entered North America between 1450 and 1675 AD |
| B．the 11 bones of ancient dogs are not from native American dogs |
| C．the bones discovered by the gold miners were from North American wolves |
| D．the bones studied were not from dogs brought into North America by Europeans |
What can we know from the passage?
| A．Native Americans domesticated local wolves into dogs. |
| B．Scientists discovered some ancient dog remains in 1920s. |
| C．Latin America’s dogs are different from North America’s in genes. |
| D．Ancient dogs entered North America across the Bering Land Bridge. |
The first humans into the New World brought dogs along with them because ______.
| A．dogs fed on mice | B．dogs were easy to keep |
| C．dogs helped protect their resources | D．dogs could provide excellent service |
What does the passage mainly talk about ______.
| A．the origin of the North American dogs |
| B．the DNA study of ancient dogs in America |
| C．the reasons why early people entered America |
| D．the difference between Asian and American dogs |
I heard many parents complaining that their teenage children are rebelling（叛逆）．I wish it were so．At your age you ought to be growing away from your parents．You should be learning to stand on your own feet．But take a good look at the present rebellion．It seems that teenagers are taking the same way of showing that they disagree with their parents．Instead of striking out boldly on their own, most of them are clutching(紧握）at one another's hands for reassurance．
They claim they want to dress as they please．But they all wear the same clothes. Then set off in new directions in music．But somehow they all end up with listening to the same record together．Their reason for thinking or acting in thus-and-such a way is that many people are doing it．They have come out of their cocoon（茧） into a larger cocoon．
It has become harder and harder for a teenager to stand up against the popularity wave and go his or her own way．Industry has firmly carved out a teenage market．These days every teenager can learn from the advertisements what a teenager should have and be．
And many of today's parents have come to award high marks for the popularity of their children．All this adds to a great barrier(障碍） for the teenager who wants to find his or her own path．
But the barrier is worth climbing over．The path is worth following, You may want to listen to classical music instead of going to a party．You may want to collect rocks when everyone else is collecting records．You may have some thoughts 'that you don't care to share with your classmates at once, well, go to it．Find yourself．Popularity will come-with the people who respect you for who you are．That is the only kind of popularity that really counts．In this passage, the author wants to tell .
| A．teenagers how to learn to decide things for themselves |
| B．readers how to be popular with people around |
| C．parents how to control and guide their children |
| D．people how to understand and respect each other |
According to the author, many teenagers think they are brave enough to act on their own, but in fact, most of them ．
| A．have much difficulty understanding each other |
| B．lack confidence |
| C．dare not cope with （处理） problems single-handed |
| D．are much afraid of getting lost |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．There is no popularity that really counts． |
| B．What many parents are doing is helping their children find their own paths． |
| C．It is bad for a teenager to disagree with his or her classmates． |
| D．Most teenagers claim that they want to do what they like to, but they are actually doing the same． |
What does the author think of advertisements?
| A．Convincing． | B．Influential. |
| C．Instructive． | D．Authoritative（权威的）． |
During the teenage years, one should learn to .
| A．differ from others in as many ways as possible |
| B．get into the right reason and become popular |
| C．find one's real self |
| D．rebel against parents and the popularity wave |
A serious problem for today's society is who should be responsible for our elderly and how to improve their Lives．It is not only a financial problem but also a question of the system we want for our society．I would like to suggest several possible solutions to this problem．
First, employers should take the responsibility for their retired employees．To make this possible, a percentage of profits should be set aside for this purpose． But when a company must take life-long responsibility for its employees, it may softer from a commercial disadvantage due to higher employee costs．
Another way of solving the problem is to return the responsibility to the individual．This means each person must save during his working years to pay for his years of retirement．This does not seem a very fair model since some people have enough trouble paying for their daily life without trying to earn extra to cover their retirement years．This means the government might have to step in to care for the poor．
In addition, the government could take responsibility for the care of the elderly．This could be financed through government taxes to increase the level of pensions．Furthermore, some institution should be created for senior daises, which can help provide a comfortable life for them．Unfortunately, as the present situation in our country shows, this is not a truly viable answer．The government can seldom afford to care for the elderly, particularly when it is busy trying to care for the young．
One further solution is that the government or social organizations establish some working places especially for the elderly where they are independent.
To sum up, all these options have advantages and disadvantages．Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that some combination of these options may be needed to provide the care we hope to give to our elderly generations．What is the passage mainly about?
| A．The problems faced by the old in society． |
| B．Why we should take responsibility for the old． |
| C．How we can improve the lives of the old． |
| D．Where the old can go to get their pensions． |
According to the passage, how can the government help to improve the lives of retired people?
| A．Set aside some profits to help people with problems after they retire． |
| B．Increase savings levels of people during their working years． |
| C．Increase the discounts for food and transport for the old． |
| D．Make available pensions for those who have retired． |
The underlined word "viable" most probably means"_ "．
| A．impossible | B．practical | C．useful | D．successful |
What can be concluded from the passage?
| A．Taking care of the old is mainly an issue of money． |
| B．Employers should allow their workers to retire at a later age． |
| C．Becoming independent should be the goal of most old people． |
| D．There is no single solution to the problems of the old． |
What is the writer's main purpose in writing this article?
| A．To point out the need for government support for old people． |
| B．To make general readers aware of the problems of retired people． |
| C．To discuss some possible solutions to an important social problem． |
| D．To instruct retired people on how they can have a happier life． |
At the age of sixteen, I joined a volunteer group with my dad．I went on my first volunteer project in West Virginia．On the night we arrived, we discovered that "our family" was living in a trailer（活动房车） that was in poor conditions．A crew had been wolfing on it for two weeks, but every time they finished one problem, another surfaced．
We decided the only reasonable solution was to bridle a new house – something unusual but necessary under these circumstances．The family was overjoyed with their new house that was twenty by thirty feet with three bedrooms, a bath and a kitchen．
On Tuesday of that week, while we ate lunch together, I asked the family's three boys, Josh, Eric and Ryan, "What do you want for your new room?" Expecting toys and other gadgets that children suavity ask for, we were astonished when Josh responded, "I just want a bed．"
The boys had never slept in a bed! They were accustomed to plastic mats．That night we had a meeting and decided that beds would be the perfect gift．On Thursday night, a few adults in our group drove to the nearest city and bought beds and new bedding．
When we saw the delivery truck coming, we told the family about the surprise．We could hardly contain ourselves. It was like watching excited children on Christmas morning．
That afternoon, as we fitted the frames of the beds together, Eric ran into the house to watch us．Too dirty to enter his room, he observed with wide-eyed enthusiasm from the doorway．
As my father slipped a pillowcase onto one of the pillows, Eric asked, "What is that?"
"A pillow," he replied．
"What do you do with it?" Eric continued to ask
"When you go to sleep, you put your head on it," I answered softly．Tears came to my eyes as my father handed Eric the pillow．
"Oh．．．that's soft," he said, hugging it tightly．
Now, when my sister or I start to ask for something that seems urgent, my dad gently asks, "Do you have a pillow?"
We know exactly what he means．The author's first volunteer project was .
| A．working on a poor trailer |
| B．helping a poor family |
| C．donating beds and bedding |
| D．dealing with a housing problem |
On hearing Josh's answer, the author was shocked because .
| A．the family lived in a trailer |
| B．Josh didn't know what a bed was |
| C．Josh expected to get some toys |
| D．The boys had no bed to sleep in |
By "We could hardly contain ourselves．", the author means that they all
| A．felt confused | B．felt excited with joy |
| C．couldn't help laughing | D．failed to keep the secret |
From the passage, we can learn that what Eric had never seen before is .
| A．a trailer | B．a bed |
| C．a pillow | D．a truck |
From the last two paragraphs, the author's father means that
| A．what the author wants to get may be unnecessary |
| B．the author should not waste money on small things |
| C．the author should do more volunteer work for the poor |
| D．what he will buy is not what the author wants but a pillow |
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