Have you heard of the story of the four-minute miles? Many years ago, people believed that it was impossible for a human being to run a mile in less than four minutes until Roger Banister proves it wrong in 1954.
What happens if you put an animal in a pond? Any animal, big or small, will swim its way through. What happens when people, who do not know how to swim, fall in deep waters? They drown. If an animal who has not learned swimming could escape by swimming, why not you? Because you believe you will drown while the animal does not.
Have you ever wondered why the letters are organized in a particular order on your keyboard? You might have thought it is to increase the typing speed. But the fact is that this system was developed to reduce the typing speed at a time when typewriter parts would jam (堵塞) if the operator typed too fast.
These three cases show the power of our beliefs. There is no other more powerful directing force in human behavior than belief. Your beliefs have the power to create and to destroy. A belief delivers command to your nervous system.
I used a snake in my workshops of children to learn how unrealistic some of their beliefs are. Students of a school in India, said snakes were slippery, slimy(黏糊糊的) and poisonous. After doing an exercise for changing beliefs, they handled my snake and found it to be dry and clean. They also remembered that only three types of poisonous snakes exist in India.
Did this story end the way you thought? Review your beliefs now and find out which ones you need to change.From the first paragraph, we know that _________.
| A．several people have run a mile in four minutes. |
| B．Roger Banister set a record |
| C．nobody has run a mile in three minutes. |
| D．Roger Banister tied a world record |
By comparing a drowning animal and a person, the writer tried to show _________.
| A．the power of confidence |
| B．the responses of humans and animals to dangers |
| C．the difference between humans and animals |
| D．the power of belief |
Which of the following statements would the writer agree with?
| A．Our beliefs are impossible to change |
| B．How we act mainly depends on our beliefs. |
| C．Our beliefs create or destroy our nervous system |
| D．Our beliefs always go against the truth |
The children visiting the writer’s workshops might_________.
| A．learn how to keep off snakes |
| B．become brave and realistic |
| C．become clever and strong |
| D．learn to review their beliefs |
About six years ago I was eating lunch in a restaurant in New York City when a woman and a young boy sat down at the next table, I couldn’t help overhearing parts of their conversation. At one point the woman asked, “So, how have you been?” And the boy — who could not have been more than seven or eight years old — replied, “Frankly, I’ve been feeling a little depressed lately.”
This incident stuck in my mind because it confirmed my growing belief that children are changing. As far as I can remember, my friends and I didn’t find out we were “depressed”, that is, in low spirits, until we were in high school.
Undoubtedly a change in children has increased steadily in recent years. Children don’t seem childlike anymore. Children speak more like adults, dress more like adults and behave more like adults than they used to.
Whether this is good or bad is difficult to say, but it certainly is different. Childhood as it once was no longer exists. Why?
Human development is depended not only on born biological states, but also on patterns of gaining social knowledge. Movement from one social role to another usually involves learning the secrets of the new social positions. Children have always been taught adult secrets, but slowly and in stages; traditionally, we tell sixth graders things we keep hidden from fifth graders.
In the last 30 years, however, a secret-revelation (揭示) machine has been equipped in 98 percent of American homes. It is called television. Television passes information to all viewers alike, whether they are children or adults. Unable to resist the temptation, many children turn their attention from printed texts to the less challenging, more attractive moving pictures.
Communication through print, as a matter of fact, allows for a great deal of control over the social information which children will gain. Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials.
67. According to the author, feeling depressed is ______.
A. a sure sign of a mental problem in a child
B. a mental state present in all humans, including children
C.something that cannot be avoided in children’s mental development
D. something hardly to be expected in a young child
68. Traditionally, a child is supposed to learn about the adult world ______.
A.through connection with society B. gradually and under guidance
C. naturally without being taught D. through watching television
69. According to the author, that today’s children seem adultlike results from ______.
A. the widespread influence of television
B. the poor arrangement of teaching content
C. the fast pace of human scientific development
D. the rising standard of living
70. What does the author think of communication through print for children?
A. It enables children to gain more social information.
B. It develops children’s interest in reading and writing.
C. It helps children to read and write well.
D. It can control what children are to learn.
71. What does the author think of the change in today’s children?
A. He feels their adultlike behavior is so funny.
B. He thinks the change worthy of note.
C. He considers it a rapid development.
D. He seems to be upset about it.
China has become an increasingly appealing market for Hollywood films, so it was inevitable that Academy Award-winning director James Cameron would touch down in Beijing Wednesday to promote his latest big-budget movie, Avatar.
During his 20-hour stay in the city, he shared with local media and some lucky fans details of his new film and shared his insights on China's growing film industry.
Having toured numerous countries for the promotion of Avatar since the film globally premiered on December 10, Cameron said he anticipated the visit to China for some time and apologized for his hoarse and tired voice.
"It is so sad for a director not being able to shout," he joked at the beginning of the press conference Wednesday afternoon, announcing that the 3D science fiction film will open in China on January 4.
Cameron collected 360 million yuan (US$52.7 million) at the box office in China with his blockbuster Titanic in 1998, a record that held for ten years until it was broken by Transformers in 2008.
Considering that another computer-generated, live action flick, 2012, has sold more movie tickets in China than in the US, the director said he is positive about Avatar's performance in China.
"Our partner here, the China Film Group, has given us great confidence," he explained, saying that the number of 3D screens has grown from 500 to 600 in the past month, a never-seen-before growth in Chinese mainland.
China is second only to the US as the country with the most 3D screens. Cameron said the screening of Avatar in China has specific importance as a test of future 3D film development.
"I'm very interested in the 3D film market in China. I cannot predict the box office results here, but I look forward to the test results."
63. Cameron is hopeful about Avatar’s performance in China because ____.
A. Avatar is a newly-released 3D movie
B. Transformer held the record of box office in China
C. Avatar is directed by him alone
D. 2012 had a higher box office in China than in the US
64. Which of the following has the closest meaning to “anticipated” in Paragraph 3?
A. participated B. paid C. expected D. delayed
65. Why did Cameron come to China?
A. To promote his latest film Avatar.
B. To test the future development of 3D film in China.
C. To show his interest in the 3D film market in China.
D. To make a 20-hour trip in Beijing.
66. The passage is most probably taken from ____.
A. a science book B. a newspaper C. a story book D. a magazine
Below is adapted from an English dictionary
| figure/fīg ə / noun, verb ●noun 1. [C, often pl.] a number representing particular amount, especially one given in official information: the trade /sales figures 2. [C] a symbol rather than a word representing one of the numbers between 0 and 9: a six-figure salary 3. [pl] (informal) the area of mathematics that deals with adding, multiplying, etc 4. a person of the type mentioned: Gandhi was both a political and a religious figure in Indian history. 5. the shape of a person seen from a distance or not clearly 6. a person or an animal as shown in art or a story: a wall with five carved figures in it 7. [C] the human shape, considered from the point of view of being attractively thin: doing exercise to improve one’s figure 8. [C] a pattern or series of movements performed on ice: figure-skating [IDM] be/become a figure of fun: be/become sb. that others laugh at cut a…figure: (of a person) to have a particular appearance He cut a striking figure in his dinner jacket. put a figure on sth.: to say the exact price or number of sth. |
a fine figure of man/woman: a tall, strong-looking and well-shaped person figure of speech: a word or phrase used in a different way from its usual meanings in order to create a particular mental image or effect figurehead: someone who is the head or chief in name only (with no real power or authority) ●verb 1. to think or decide that sth. will happen or is true: I figured that if I took the night train, I could be in Scotland by morning. 2. to be part of a process, situation, etc. especially an important part: My opinion of the matter didn’t seem to figure at all. 3. to calculate an amount or the cost of sth.: We figured that attendance at 150,000. [PHRV] 1. figure in: to include (in a sum): Have you figured in the cost of hotel? 2. figure on: to plan on; to expect sth. to happen: I haven’t figured on his getting home too late. 3. figure out: to work out; understand by thinking: Have you figured out how much the trip will cost? [IDM] It/That figures! (informal): That seems reasonable, logical and what I expect. |
60. I didn’t really mean my partner is a snake; it was just a ______.
A. figure of eight B. figure head C. figure of speech D. a fine figure
61. ---She was coming late again.
---______! That’s typical of her.
A. It figures her out B. It figures C. It cuts a poor figure D. She is a figure of fun
62. What does “watch my figure” in the sentence “Don’t tempt me with chocolate; I am watching my figure.” mean?
A. add the numbers B. have sports C. try not to get fat D. watch games
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
What Is a Boy?
Between the innocence of babyhood and the seriousness of manhood we find a delightful creature called a “boy”. Boys come in different sizes, weights, and colors, but all boys have the same belief: to enjoy every second of every minute of every hour of every day and to fill the air with noise until the adult males pack them off to bed at night.
Boys are found everywhere — on top of, under, inside of, climbing on, swinging from, running around, or jumping to. Mothers spoil them, little girls hate them, older sisters and brothers love them, and God protects them. A boy is TRUTH with dirt on its face, BEAUTY with a cut on its finger, WISDOM with chocolate in its hair, and the HOPE of the future with a snake in its pocket.
When you are busy, a boy is a trouble-maker and a noise. When you want him to make a good impression, his brain turns to jelly or else he becomes a wild creature bent on destroying the world and himself with it.
A boy is a mixture — he has the stomach of a horse, the digestion of stones and sand, the energy of an atomic bomb, the curiosity of a cat, the imagination of a superman, the shyness of a sweet girl, the brave nature of a bull, the violence of a firecracker, but when you ask him to make something, he has five thumbs on each hand.
He likes ice cream, knives, saws, Christmas, comic books, woods, water (in its natural habitat), large animals, Dad, trains, Saturday mornings, and fire engines. He is not much for Sunday schools, company, schools, books without pictures, music lessons, neckties, barbers, girls, overcoats, adults, or bedtime.
Nobody else is so early to rise, or so late to supper. Nobody else gets so much fun out of trees, dogs, and breezes. Nobody else can put into one pocket a rusty knife, a half eaten apple, a three-feet rope, six cents and some unknown things.
A boy is a magical creature — he is your headache but when you come home at night with only destroyed pieces of your hopes and dreams, he can mend them like new with two magic words, “Hi, Dad!”
56. The whole passage is in a tone of ______.
A. humor and affection B. respect and harmony
C. ambition and expectation D. confidence and imagination
57. By saying “he has five thumbs on each hand.”, the author means .
A. he has altogether five fingers B. he is slow, foolish and clumsy
C. he becomes clever and smart D. he cuts his hand with a knife
58. According to the writer, boys appreciate everything in the following except ______.
A. ice cream B. comic books
C. Saturday mornings D. Sunday schools
59. What does the writer feel about boys?
A. He feels curious about their noise. B. He is fed up with these creatures.
C. He is amazed by their naughtiness. D. He feels unsafe staying with them.
Is a mouse that can speak acceptable? How about a dog with human hands or feet? Scientists, the people with the know-how to make such things happen, are now thinking about whether such experiments are morally right or not.
On Nov. 10, Britain’s Academy of Medical Sciences launched a study on the use of animals with human materials in scientific research. The work is expected to take at least a year, but its leaders hope it will lead to guidelines for scientists in Britain and around the world on how far they can go mixing human genes into animals in search of ways to fight human diseases.
“Do these constructs (构想) challenge our idea of what it is to be human?” asked Martin Bobrow, a professor of medical genetics at Cambridge University and chair of a 14-member group looking into the issue. “It is important that we consider these questions now so that appropriate boundaries are recognized.”
Using human material in animals is not new. Scientists have already created monkeys that have a human form of the Huntingdon’s gene so they can study how the disease develops; and mice with livers (肝) made from human cells are being used to study the effects of new drugs.
However, scientists say the technology to put ever greater amounts of human genetic material into animals is spreading quickly around the world --- raising the possibility that some scientists in some places may want to go further than is morally acceptable.
Last year in Britain there was a lively debate over new laws allowing the creation of human-animal embryos (胚胎) for experiments. On one side of the debate were religious groups, who claimed that such science interferes with nature. Opposing them were scientists who pointed out that such experiments were vital to research cures for diseases.
The experts will publish reports after the end of the study, in which they will give definitions for animal embryos with human genes or cells, look at safety and animal welfare issues, and consider the right legal framework to work within.
72. What does the underlined word “they” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
A. Scientists in Britain and around the world.
B. Leaders of the research.
C. Guidelines for scientists.
D. Scientific experiments.
73. Scientists do research of mixing human genes into animals in order to ____.
A. test new drugs on animals
B. to find ways to fight human diseases
C. prove the research is morally acceptable
D. create monkeys and mice with livers made from human cells
74. We can infer from the passage that ____.
A. the experts will release reports after the study
B. scientists have never doubted the use of animals with human materials
C. the creation of human-animal embryos for experiments is legal in Britain
D. religious groups hold that cures for diseases have to be done through experiments
75. What would be the best title of the passage?
A. Morally right or not? B. A debate about new laws
C. Cures for diseases D. Animal embryos with human genes
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