There is a scene that is repeated up and down the land during the month of June. Outside a church in some Scottish town or village a small crowd has interrupted its daily affairs to gather on the pavement. Near the west door a dozen or so overdressed people are glancing impatiently at their watches. The men seem a little self-conscious in their hired kilts; the women hold their wind-blown dresses and loudly admire each other’s hats. They are all lively and talkative, yet at the same time strangely reserved. The crowd ignores them, barely noticing when they disappear into the church. Even the arrival of the groom rouses little excitement. These participants are not the main attraction. We are waiting for the bride.
Whatever her age or appearance, everyone will smile and express approval. By convention, all brides are beautiful. Nobody says so, but the spectators feel cheated unless she steps out of a car, dressed in white from head to toe. The nearer she matches their image, the greater their satisfaction. This event is not merely a wedding; it is a tradition, and such occasions are potentially dangerous. Participants must pay strict attention to detail. An untraditional bride destroys the magic.
When the crowd has left, some bystanders will remain to watch the bride walk out of church on the arm of her groom. The guests troop out behind the happy couple and all gather on the pavement with an obvious air of relief. A piper strikes up Mairi’s Wedding and the guests start shouting and jumping everywhere, putting the photographer off his work. Before bride and groom lead their party to the reception, someone is sure to disobey the priest and scatter forbidden confetti (五彩碎纸).
The particulars of this scene are modern; yet three elements are present that have existed since marriage in Scotland began—ancient Roman law redefined in a Christian context, Celtic tradition, and pre-Christian tradition.
51. Why is the scene mentioned in this article often seen all over Scotland in June?
A. It’s hot in June so men can wear kilts and women can put on beautiful dresses.
B. A lot of Scottish people like getting married at that time of the year.
C. In June people can get away from their daily affairs and go to church.
D. June is considered the luckiest month of the year.
52. The underlined word “them” (in Paragraph 1) refers to ________.
A. the overdressed people B. the bride and groom
C. the people on the street D. the people’s hats
53. Please put the following in correct order.
a. The bride arrives.
b. The couple walks out of the church.
c. A piper plays some music.
d. The groom arrives.
e. The bride and groom lead people to the reception.
f. People wait outside the church.
A. f, d, a, c, b, e B. f, d, a, b, c, e
C. d, f, a, b, e, c D. d, a, f, b, e, c
54. The underlined part “putting the photographer off his work” (in Paragraph 3) most probably means _____.
A. making the photographer feel relieved
B. giving the photographer a chance to rest
C. disturbing the photographer when he is taking pictures
D. having the photographer taken away from his duty
55. What can we infer from the passage?
A. Women going to a wedding ceremony pay most attention to each other.
B. Spectators of a wedding ceremony are particularly interested in the groom.
C. Confetti is forbidden at the wedding ceremony because it is not all white.
D. If the bride is dressed all in white traditionally, she is considered beautiful.
Boy’s schools are the perfect place to teach young men to express their emotions and involve them in activities such as art dance and music. Far from the traditional image of a culture of aggressive masculinity(阳刚) , the absence of girls gives boys the chance to develop without pressure to agree with a stereotype, a US study says.
Boys at single-sex schools were said to be more likely to get involved in cultural and artistic activities that helped develop their emotional expressiveness, rather than feeling they had to agree with the “boy code”of hiding their emotions to be a “real man”.
The report, presented at a conference of the International Boys’Schools Coalition in London attended by the heads of private and state schools, goes against received wisdom that boys do better when taught alongside girls. Tony little, headmaster of Eton, warned that boys were being failed by the British education system because it had become too focused on girls. He criticized teachers for failing to recognize that boys are actually more emotional than girls.
The research argued that boys often perform badly in mixed schools because they become discouraged when their females peers do better earlier in speaking and reading skills. But in single-sex schools teachers can tailor lessons to boy’s learning style, letting them move around the classroom and getting them to compete in teams to prevent boredom, wrote the study’s author, Abigail James, of the University of Virginia. Teachers could encourage boys to enjoy reading and writing with “boy-focused”approaches such as themes and characters that interest them. Because boys generally have more acute(sharp)vision, learn best through touch, and are physically more active, they need to be given “hands-on”lessons where they are allowed to walk around. “Boys in mixed schools view classical music as feminine(女性的)and prefer the modern type in which violence and sexism are major themes” James wrote.
Single-sex education also made it less likely that boys would feel they had to agree with a stereotype that men should be “masterful and in charge” in relationships, “In mixed schools boys feel forced to act like men before they understand themselves well enough to know what that means.” The study reported.In the eyes of the author, a single-sex school would__________.
| A．force boys to hide their emotions to be “real man” |
| B．help to develop masculine aggressiveness in boys |
| C．encourage boys to express their emotions more freely |
| D．naturally stress in boys the traditional image of a man |
The phrase “received wisdom” (paragraph 3) is most likely to mean____________.
| A．better education | B．common belief |
| C．good behavior | D．strong responsibility |
What does Tony Little think of the British education system?
| A．It fails more boys than girls thoroughly |
| B．It makes boys more emotional than girls |
| C．It fails to give boys the attention they need |
| D．It focuses more on mixed school education |
Which is one of the advantages of single-sex schools according to Abigail James?
| A．Teaching can be tailored to suit the characteristics of boys |
| B．Boys can focus on their lessons without being disturbed |
| C．Boys can choose to learn whatever they are interested in |
| D．Teaching can be designed to promote boy’s team spirit |
According to Abigail James’s report, which of the following is characteristic of boys?
| A．They enjoy being in charge and master |
| B．They love to be greatly encouraged |
| C．They are violent and sexist |
| D．They have sharper vision |
Tales From Animal Hospital
David Grant
David Grant has become a familiar face to millions of fans of Animal Hospital. Here Dr Grant tells us the very best of his personal stories about the animals he has treated ,including familiar patients such as the dogs Snowy and Duchess , the delightful cat Marigold Serendipity Diamond . He also takes the reader behind the scenes at Harmsworth Memorial Animal Hospital as he describes his day , from ordinary medical check-ups to surgery （外科手术）. Tales From Animal Hospital will delight all fans of the program and anyone who has a lively interest in their pet, whether it be cat , dog or snake ! $ 14.99 Hardback 272 pp Simon Schuster
ISBN 0751304417
Isaac Newton: The Last Sorcerer
Michael White
From the author of Stephen Hawking: A Life in Science, comes this colorful description of the life of the world’s first modern scientist. Interesting yet based on fact, Michael White’s learned yet readable new book offers a true picture of Newton completely different from what people commonly know about him . Newton is shown as a gifted scientist with very human weaknesses who stood at the point in history where magic ended and science began.
£8.99 Hardback 320 pp Fourth Estate
ISBN 1857024168
Fermat’s Last Theorem
Simon Singh
In 1963 a schoolboy called Andrew Wiles reading in his school library came across the world’s greatest mathematical problem : Fermat’s Last Theorem (定理). First put forward by the French mathematician Pierre de Fermat in the seventeenth century, the theorem had baffled and beaten the finest mathematical minds , including a French woman scientist who made a major advance in working out the problem , and who had to dress like a man in order to be able to study at the Ecole Polytechnique . Through unbelievable determination Andrew Wiles finally worked out the problem in 1995 . An unusual story of human effort over three centuries , Fermat’s Last Theorem will delight specialists and general readers alike .
£12.99 Hardback 384 pp Fourth Estate
ISBN 1857025210
What is Animal Hospital ?
| A．A news story. |
| B．A popular book. |
| C．A research report. |
| D．A TV program. |
In Michael White’s book , Newton is described as .
| A．a person who did not look the same as in many pictures |
| B．a person who lived a colorful and meaningful life |
| C．a great but not perfect man |
| D．an old-time magician |
Which of the following best explains the meaning of the word “baffle” as it is used in the text ?
| A．To encourage people to raise questions. |
| B．To cause difficulty in understanding. |
| C．To provide a person with an explanation. |
| D．To limit people’s imagination. |
What is the purpose of writing these three texts ?
| A．To make the books easier to read |
| B．To show the importance of science |
| C．To introduce new authors |
| D．To sell the books. |
Katharine Meyer Graham was once described as “the most powerful woman in America. She was not a government official or elected representative. She owned and published The Washington Post. Under her leadership, it became one of the most important newspapers in the country.
Katharine Meyer was born in New York City in 1917. Her father was a successful investment banker and became an important financial official. Her family was very rich. Katharine grew up in large houses in New York and Washington. Her parents were often away from home, traveling and working, Katharine was often lonely. Katherine Meyer graduated from the University of Chicago in Illinois in 1938. In 1933, her father bought a failing newspaper, The Washington Post. It was the least successful one of five newspapers in Washington.
Katharine Graham returned to Washington and got a job editing letters to the editor of her father's newspaper. She married Philip Graham. He was a clerk for Supreme Court Justice Felix Frankfurter but soon accepted a job at his wife's father's newspaper. Mr. Graham improved The Washington Post. He bought Newsweek and several television stations. He also established close ties with important political leaders. However, Mr. Graham treated his wife badly. He had an affair with a young reporter. For many years, Mr. Graham suffered from mental illness. He killed himself in 1963.
Katharine Graham had four children to raise and a newspaper to operate. At first, she was only concerned about finding a way to keep control of The Washington Post until her sons were old enough. She did not think she had the ability to do an important job. She had no training in business or experience in operating a large company. In those days, it was unusual for a woman to be the head of a business. Women were expected to look after their homes and children.
Katharine Graham met with officials of the Washington Post. She was elected president of the Washington Post Company. She had no idea about how to operate a newspaper. So she decided to learn. She began by hiring Benjamin C.Bradlee. He later became chief editor. Mr. Bradlee improved the newspaper. He hired excellent reporters and editors. They began doing important investigative reporting. In 1969, Mrs. Graham became publisher as well as president of the Washington Post Company. In the 1970s, the Washington Post became famous around the world because of two major successes.Katharine Graham is considered powerful because____________.
| A．she was born of a very rich family |
| B．she had the most important newspaper. |
| C．she was in charge of the The Washington Post |
| D．she gained much money from newspapers |
We can infer from the second paragraph that Katharine Graham_____________.
| A．was one of the top students at university |
| B．helped her father in purchasing the paper. |
| C．didn’t take interest in managing a bank. |
| D．lived a rich life when she was young. |
After Katharine Graham got married___________.
| A．her husband gave up his previous job. |
| B．she got a job editing letters for the editor |
| C．she made The Washington Post improved. |
| D．her husband wanted to be a political leader |
Faced with the death of Mr. Graham________________.
| A．the four children felt lonely and hopeless |
| B．Katharine Graham made up her mind to raise the kids. |
| C．Katharine Graham thought more about gaining experience. |
| D．Katharine Graham seemed to be trapped in the dark world. |
What do you think of Benjamin C. Bradlee?
A. He was an expert when it comes to earning money
B. He brought The Washington Post back to life
C. He intended to buy The Washington Post.
D. He should have given more help to Katharine Graham.
Dear Guys,
I’d like to talk to you about the shame you subjected me to last night. Let me first refresh your memory You, a group of fit, young men, were playing soccer on the field across from my apartment building. I, a better-than-average looking young woman, was walking along the sidewalk with my groceries. That’s when your ball came flying over the fence and landed in front of me.
One of you approached and asked politely if I would throw the ball back to you. Fighting the urge to drop my bags and run screaming down the street, I reluctantly (勉强地) agreed.
Before I continue, let me explain something that I didn’t have a chance to mention last night I hate sports. More specifically, I hate sports involving balls. This results from my lack of natural ability when it comes to throwing, catching and hitting. I’m bad at aiming too. So you can understand why I’d be nervous at what I’m sure seemed to you like a laughably simple request.
However, wanting to appear agreeable, I put my bags down, picked up the ball and, eyes half-shut, and threw it as hard as I could.
It hit the middle of the fence and bounced back to me.
Trying to act casually, I said something about being out of practice, and then picked up the ball again. If you’ll remember, at your command, I agreed to try throwing underhand. While outwardly I was smiling, in my head, I was praying, oh God, oh please oh please oh please. I threw the ball upward with all my strength, terrified by what happened next.
The ball hit slightly higher up on the fence and bounced back to me.
This is the point where I start to take issue with you. Wouldn’t it have been a better use of your time, and mine, if you had just walked around the fence and took the ball then? I was clearly struggling; my smiles were more and more forced. And yet, you all just stood there, motionless.
Seeing that you weren’t going to let me out of the trouble, I became desperate. Memories of middle school softball came flooding back. I tried hard to throw the ball but it only went about eight feet, then I decided to pick it up and dash with ball in hand towards the baseline, while annoyed thirteen-year-old boys screamed at me that I was ruining their lives. Children are cruel.
Being a big girl now, I pushed those memories aside and picked up the soccer ball for the third time. I forced a good-natured laugh while crying inside as you patiently shouted words of support over the fence at me.
“Throw it granny-style!” one of you said.
“Just back up a little and give it all you’ve got!” another offered.
And, most embarrassing of all, “You can do it!”
I know you thought you were being encouraging, but it only served to deepen the shame.
Anyway, I accepted your ball-throwing advice, backed up, rocked back and forth a little, took a deep breath and let it fly.
It hit the edge of the fence and bounced back to me.
I surprised myself—and I’m sure you as well—by letting out a cry, “DAMN IT!!!” I then willed myself to have a heart attack and pass out in front of you just so I’d be put out of my misery.
Alas, the heart attack didn’t happen, and you continued to look at me expectantly, like you were content to do this all night. I had become a sort of exhibition for you. I could feel your collective thoughts drifting through the chain-link “Can she really not do it? But I mean, really?”
Unfortunately for you, I wasn’t really game to continue your experiment. Three failed attempts at a simple task in front of a group of people in a two-minute period were just enough blows for me for one night. I picked up the ball one last time, approached the fence and grumbled, “Please just come get the damn ball.”
And you did. And thanks to you, I decided at that very moment to never throw anything ever again, except disrespectful glances at people who play sports.
Sincerely, Jen CorderyThe writer agreed to throw the ball because ______.
| A．she needed to have a relax carrying the heavy groceries |
| B．she wanted to refresh her childhood memories |
| C．she could not refuse the polite request from the young man |
| D．she had fallen in love with the young man at first sight |
Which of the following is closet in meaning to the underlined word “game”?
| A．anxious | B．brave | C．afraid | D．curious |
Why did the writer mention her middle school memory?
| A．To explain why she failed the attempts to throw the ball back. |
| B．To complain that she had not mastered the ball throwing skills. |
| C．To show how cruel those 13-year-old boys were. |
| D．To express her dislike towards softball. |
What the boys said before the writer’s third attempt actually made the writer ________.
| A．encouraged | B．moved | C．awkward | D．depressed |
What happened to the ball at last?
| A．The writer managed to throw the ball back. |
| B．The boy got the ball back by himself. |
| C．The writer threw the ball away out of anger. |
| D．The boys got angry and left without the ball. |
What’s the writer’s purpose in writing this open letter?
| A．To express her regret over what she did the day before. |
| B．To announce that she would never play all games again. |
| C．To reflect upon an embarrassing incident in her life. |
| D．To criticize the young men for their cruelty to her dignity. |
A student walks into his first class and realizes he forgot all about the midterm exam. He knows he needs to bring his grades up, and getting a zero will make it nearly impossible. He quickly jots down some notes and shoves them under his lap hoping it will help him pass. Cheating is a major concern in all academic environments. Students are creating new and more outrageous(令人吃惊的) ways of cheating every day; some claim that certain accounts of cheating can be justified, but overall it can always be prevented.
Cheating has been around forever, and millions of ways to cheat have been fashioned. Copying homework and cheat sheets are some of the most basic ways students in all education levels have cheated. Some students think nothing about writing a few answers on their hand, in a gum wrapper, or boldly using a study guide to cheat. Desperate students have even gone as far as to steal the test or scan in bottle wrappers and put answers into the nutrition label. The Internet has now become available in almost every location. Computers can be accessed at school, at home, and now even on cell phones. This opens a doorway for even more methods of cheating to be born.
There are countless opinions on whether or not cheating can be justified. The truth is this behavior will always be a matter of opinion with each scenario of cheating. Students often rationalize their cheating by claiming they forgot to look over the material or did not understand what the teacher or professor was saying. Some may counter these arguments by saying that the students could have set reminders or asked the teacher to explain the material before the day of the test. Some other reasons why students believe cheating is justified are their heavy workloads and trying to find time for school, sports, friends, and family. This may be true in certain instances, however, all students have these problems, and it is unfair to the students who refrain(忍耐，节制) from cheating when the student who is dishonest receives a better grade. The majority of students who think cheating is acceptable may believe the reason for this is that sometimes students are unaware they are cheating, there is not enough time given for assignments, or that the information is too much for the course.
It may be difficult to accomplish, but cheating can be prevented. Teachers and professors have tried many options to stop cheating. These options can range anywhere from simply spreading testtakers out in a room, to expelling(驱逐) a student, which will most likely hinder their plans of getting into another college. One simple way to fix the problem is to scold the student when caught. They may be so scared or embarrassed that they never do it again. This is a risky way to prevent cheating in some cases, however, because it can possibly damage selfesteem. Another simple way to avoid cheating is to create many different kinds of the same test. This prohibits(阻止) students from getting the answers off of a neighbor's test, but students still have the option of using other cheating tactics.
There may be a million ways to cheat and get away with it, but there are few times, if any, that it is justified. Cheating never has to be a necessity and it is never worth compromising morals and losing years worth of working towards a degree. This problem is spreading throughout America; with everyone's help, it can be stopped.Which is the best title of this passage?
| A．To cheat or not to cheat |
| B．Show your opinion on cheating |
| C．Debates on cheating |
| D．Different ways of cheating |
The second paragraph mainly tells us that ________.
| A．cheating through the Internet is the most basic way |
| B．students who cheat in exams are cleverer |
| C．millions of ways to cheat have been fashioned |
| D．students cheat in exams to score better grades |
The reason that is given by most students who think cheating is understandable is that ________.
| A．they don't understand their teachers' words |
| B．they bury themselves in a lot of homework |
| C．they don't have enough time to complete the study tasks |
| D．they forget to look over the material |
What does the underlined word “hinder” in Paragraph 4 mean?
| A．Prevent. | B．Benefit. | C．Confuse. | D．Protect. |
What is the author's attitude toward cheating?
| A．It is reasonable. | B．It is necessary. |
| C．It can be praised. | D．It must be prevented. |
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