A couple of years ago, I received a $ 600 insurance dividend (保险股息).Sitting at the kitchen table, my wife and I discussed what we might do with the money.
I realized now that the refrigerator overheard our talk. The very next day it went wrong. The repairman told us we needed a new unit. Cost:$600. Not long after that, we got a refund（赔偿金）from the shop, enough to pay for a trip to Mexico. “I’ve something to tell you,” I said to my wife in a low voice. “How about the living-room?” she suggested. I remembered the color TV set was there. “No, not there. Let’s go out.” I showed her the check as we stood on the driveway. We held each other excitedly and hardly noticed the rain. My car was parked within5 meters. I didn’t think anything about it at the time. As I started for the airport the next day, the car began making strange sounds. Changing the engine cost about $ 1, 000.
Then I looked through our financial records. I discovered that during the last ten years we spent all our “found money” repairing a hot water heater, a television and a stove.
I never mention money in front of our mechanical equipment. But if this article is published and I am paid for, the word processor（文字信息处理机）is going to go for sure. It’ll know. What went wrong first as the writer’s?
| A．The refrigerator | B．The stove |
| C．The TV set | D．The engine of the car |
What has been repaired and still remains all right?
| A．The car | B．The color TV set |
| C．The stove | D．The hot water heater |
Which statement is wrong according to the passage?
- There are many pieces of modern equipment in the writer’s home
- The writer often discusses with his wife on how to spend their money.
- The writer has gone into a lot of trouble to repair hi
s things - The writer’s refrigerator can overhear him
In the mid-1950s, I was a somewhat bored early-adolescent male student who believed that doing any more than necessary was wasted effort．One day, this approach threw me into embarrassment
In Mrs. Totten’s eighth-grade math class at Central Avenue School in Anderson, Indiana, we were learning to add and subtract decimals （小数）．
Our teacher typically assigned daily homework, which would be recited in class the following day．On most days, our grades were based on our oral answer to homework questions．
Mrs. Totten usually walked up and down the rows of desks requesting answers from student after student in the order the questions had appeared on our homework sheets．She would start either at the front or the back of the classroom and work toward the other end．
Since I was seated near the middle of about 35 students, it was easy to figure out which questions I might have to answer．This particular time, I had completed my usual two or three problems according to my calculations．
What I failed to expect was that several students were absent, which threw off my estimate．As Mrs. Totten made her way from the beginning of the class，I desperately tried to determine which math problem I would get．I tried to work it out before she got to me, but I had brain freeze and couldn’t function．
When Mrs. Totten reached my desk，she asked what answer I’d got for problem No．14．“I…I didn’t get anything,” I answered，and my face felt warm．
“Correct,” she said．
It turned out that the correct answer was zero．
What did I learn that day? First, always do all your homework．Second, in real life it isn’t always what you say but how you say it that matters．Third，I would never make it as a mathematician．
If I could choose one school day that taught me the most, it would be that one．What does the underlined part in Paragraph 1 indicate?
| A．It is wise to value one’s time． |
| B．It is important to make an effort |
| C．It is right to stick to one’s belief． |
| D．It is enough to do the necessary． |
Usually, Mrs. Totten asked her students to _______．
| A．recite their homework together |
| B．grade their homework themselves |
| C．answer their homework questions orally |
| D．check the answers to their homework questions |
The author could work out which questions to answer since the teacher always _______．
| A．asked questions in a regular way |
| B．walked up and down when asking questions |
| C．chose two or three questions for the students |
| D．requested her students to finish their usual questions |
The author failed to get the questions he had expected because _______．
| A．the class didn’t begin as usual |
| B．several students didn’t come to school |
| C．he didn’t try hard to make his estimate |
| D．Mrs. Totten didn’t start from the back of the class |
Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
| A．An Unforgettable Teacher | B．A Future Mathematician |
| C．An Effective Approach | D．A Valuable Lesson |
People aren’t walking any more---if they can figure out a way to avoid it．
I felt superior about this matter until the other day I took my car to mail a small parcel．The journey is a matter of 281 steps．But I used the car．And I wasn’t in any hurry, either, I had merely become one more victim of a national sickness: motorosis．
It is an illness to which I had thought myself immune（免疫的）, for I was bred in the tradition of going to places on my own two legs．At that time, we regarded 25 miles as good day’s walk and the ability to cover such a distance in ten hours as sign of strength and skill．It did not occur to us that walking was a hardship．And the effect was lasting．When I was 45 years old I raced –and beat—a teenage football player the 168 steps up the Stature of Liberty．
Such enterprises today are regarded by many middle-aged persons as bad for the heart．But a well-known British physician, Sir Adolphe Abrhams, pointed out recently that hearts and bodies need proper exercises．A person who avoids exercise is more likely to have illnesses than one who exercises regularly．And walking is an ideal form of exercise--- the most familiar and natural of all．
It was Henry Thoreau who showed mankind the richness of going on foot．The man walking can learn the trees, flower, insects, birds and animals, the significance of seasons, the very feel of himself as a living creature in a living world, He cannot learn in a car．
The car is a convenient means of transport, but we have made it our way of life．Many people don’t dare to approach nature any more; to them the world they were born to enjoy is all threat．To them security is a steel river thundering on a concrete road．And much of their thinking takes place while waiting for the traffic light to turn green．
I say that the green of forests is the mind’s best light．And none but the man on foot can evaluate what is basic and everlasting．What is the national sickness?
| A．Walking too much | B．Traveling too much |
| C．Driving cars too much | D．Climbing stairs too much． |
What was life like when the author was young?
| A．People usually went around on foot． |
| B．people often walked 25 miles a day |
| C．People used to climb the Statue of Liberty． |
| D．people considered a ten-hour walk as a hardship． |
The author mentions Henry Thoreau to prove that
| A．middle-aged people like getting back to nature |
| B．walking in nature helps enrich one’s mind |
| C．people need regular exercise to keep fit |
| D．going on foot prevents heart disease |
What is compared to “a steel river” in Paragraph6?
| A．A queue of cars | B．A ray of traffic light |
| C．A flash of lightning | D．A stream of people |
What is the author’s intention of writing this passage?
| A．To tell people to reflect more on life． |
| B．To recommend people to give up driving |
| C．To advise people to do outdoor activities |
| D．To encourage people to return to walking |
Scientists today are making greater effort to study ocean currents （洋流） ．Most do it using satellites and other high-tech equipment．However, ocean expert Curtis Ebbesmeyer does it in a special way --- by studying movements of random floating garbage．A scientist with many years’ experience, he started this type of research in the early 1990s when he heard about hundreds of athletic shoes washing up on the shores of the northwest coast of the United States．There were so many shoes that people were setting up swap meets to try and match left and right shoes to sell or wear．
Ebbesmeyer found out in his researches that the shoes — about 60,000 in total — fell into the ocean in a shipping accident．He phoned the shoe company and asked if they wanted the shoes back．As expected, the company told him that they didn't．Ebbesmeyer realized this could be a great experiment．If he learned when and where the shoes went into the water and tracked where they landed, he could learn a lot about the patterns of ocean currents．
The Pacific Northwest is one of the world's best areas for beachcombing（海滩搜寻） because winds and currents join here, and as a result, there is a group of serious beachcombers in the area．Ebbesmeyer got to know a lot of them and asked for their help in collecting information about where the shoes landed．In a year he collected reliable information on 1, 600 shoes．With this data, he and a colleague were able to test and improve a computer program designed to model ocean currents, and publish the findings of their study．
As the result of his work, Ebbesmeyer has become known as the scientist to call with questions about any unusual objects found floating in the ocean．He has even started an association of beachcombers and ocean experts, with 500 subscribers from West Africa to New Zealand．They have recorded all lost objects ranging from potatoes to golf gloves．The underlined phrase swap meets in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ___________．
| A．fitting rooms | B．trading fairs |
| C．business talks | D．group meetings |
Ebbesmeyer phoned the shoe company to find out ___________．
| A．what caused the shipping accident |
| B．when and where the shoes went missing |
| C．whether it was all right to use their shoes |
| D．how much they lost in the shipping accident |
How did Ebbesmeyer prove his assumption?
| A．By collecting information from beachcombers． |
| B．By studying the shoes found by beachcomber． |
| C．By searching the web for ocean currents models． |
| D．By researching ocean currents data in the library． |
Ebbesmeyer is most famous for _________________．
| A．traveling widely the coastal cities of the world |
| B．making records for any lost objects on the sea |
| C．running a global currents research association |
| D．phoning about any doubtful objects on the sea |
What is the purpose of the author in writing this passage?
| A．To call people's attention to ocean pollution． |
| B．To warn people of shipping safety in the ocean． |
| C．To explain a unique way of studying ocean currents． |
| D．To give tips on how to search for lost objects on the beach． |
Like many new graduates, I left university full of hope for the future but with no real idea of what I wanted to do．My degree, with honors, in English literature had not really prepared me for anything practical．I knew I wanted to make a difference in the world somehow, but I had no idea how to do that．That’s when I learned about the Light house Project．
I started my journey as a Lighthouse Project volunteer by reading as much as I could about the experiences of previous volunteers．I knew it would be a lot of hard work, and that I would be away from my family and friends for a very long time．In short, I did not take my decision to apply for the Lighthouse Project lightly．Neither did my family．
Eventually, however, I won the support of my family, and I sent in all the paperwork needed for the application．After countless interviews and presentations, I managed to stand out among the candidates and survive the test alone．Several months later, I finally received a call asking me to report for the duty．I would be going to a small village near Abuja, Nigeria．Where? What? Nigeria? I had no idea．But I was about to find out．
After completing my training, I was sent to the village that was small and desperately in need of proper accommodation．Though the local villagers were poor, they offered their homes, hearts, and food as if I were their own family．I was asked to lead a small team of local people in building a new schoolhouse．For the next year or so, I taught in that same schoolhouse．But I sometimes think I learned more from my students than they did from me．
Sometime during that period, I realized that all those things that had seemed so strange or unusual to me no longer did, though I did not get anywhere with the local language, and returned to the United States a different man．The Lighthouse Project had changed my life forever．What do we know about the author?
| A．His university education focused on the theoretical knowledge． |
| B．His dream at university was to become a volunteer． |
| C．He took pride in having contributed to the world． |
| D．He felt honored to study English literature． |
According to the Paragraph 2, it is most likely that the author
| A．discussed his decision with his family． |
| B．asked previous volunteers about voluntary work |
| C．attended special training to perform difficult tasks |
| D．felt sad about having to leave his family and friends |
In his application for the volunteer job, the author
| A．participated in many discussions |
| B．went through challenging survival tests |
| C．wrote quite a few papers on voluntary work |
| D．faced strong competition from other candidates |
On arrival at the village, the author was
| A．asked to lead a farming team |
| B．sent to teach in a schoolhouse |
| C．received warmly by local villagers |
| D．arranged to live in a separate house． |
What can we infer from the author’s experiences in Nigeria?
| A．He found some difficulty adapting to the local culture |
| B．He had learned to communicate in the local language． |
| C．He had overcome all his weaknesses before he left for home． |
| D．He was chosen as the most respectable teacher by his students． |
Close your eyes for a minute and imagine what life would be like if you had a hundred dollars less．Also imagine what it would be like spending the rest of your life with you eyes closed．Imagine having to read this page, not with your eyes but with your finger-tips．
With existing medical knowledge and skills, two-thirds of the world’s 42 million blind should not have to suffer．Unfortunately, rich countries posses most of this knowledge, while developing countries do not．
ORBIS is an international non-profit organization which operates the world’s only flying teaching eye hospital．ORBIS intends to help fight blindness worldwide．Inside a DC-8 aircraft, there is a fully-equipped teaching hospital with television studio and classroom．Doctors are taught the latest techniques of bringing sight back to people there．Project ORBIS also aims at promoting peaceful cooperation（合作） among countries．
ORBIS tries to help developing countries by providing training during three-week medical programs．ORBIS has taught sight-saving techniques to over 35,000 doctors and nurses, who continue to cure tens of thousands of blind people every year．ORBIS has conducted 17 plane programs is China so far．For the seven to ten million blind in China ORBIS is planning to do more for them．At the moment an ORBIS is working on a long-term plan to develop a training center and to provide eye care service to Shanxi Province．ORBIS needs your help to continue their work and free people from blindness．
For just US$38,you can help one person see; for $380 you can bring sight to 10 people; $1,300 helps teach a doctor new skills; and for $13,000 you can provide a training program for a group of doctors who can make thousands of blind people see again．Your money can open their eyes to the world．Please help ORBIS improve the quality of life for so many people less fortunate than ourselves．The first paragraph is intended to ______．
| A．introduce a new way of reading |
| B．advise the public to lead a simple life |
| C．direct the public’s attention to the blind |
| D．encourage the public to use imagination |
What do we learn about existing medical knowledge and skills in the world?
| A．They are adequate |
| B．They have not been updated． |
| C．They are not equally distributed |
| D．They have benefited most of the blind |
ORBIS aims to help the blind by ______．
| A．teaching medical students |
| B．training doctors and nurses |
| C．running flying hospitals globally |
| D．setting up non-profit organization |
What does the author try to do in the last paragraph?
| A．Appeal for donations | B．Make an advertisement |
| C．Promote training programs | D．Show sympathy for the blind |
What can be the best title for the passage?
| A．ORBIS in China | B．Fighting Blindness |
| C．ORBIS Flying Hospital | D．Sight-saving Techniques |
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