For a while, my neighborhood was taken over by an army of joggers．(慢跑者). They were there all the time—early morning, noon, and evening. There were little old ladies in gray sweats, young couples in Adidas shoes, middle-aged men with red faces. “Come on!” My friend Alex encouraged me to join him as he jogged by my house every evening. “You'll feel great.”
Well, I had nothing against feeling great and if Alex could jog every day, anyone could. So I took up jogging seriously and gave it a good two months of my life, and not a day
more. Based on my experience, jogging is the most overvalued form of exe
rcise around, and judging from the number of the people who left our neighborhood jogging army. I'm not alone in my opinion.
First of all, jogging is very hard on the body. Your legs and feet a real pounding (沉重的脚步) running down a road for two or three miles. I developed foot, leg, and back problems. Then I read about a nationally famous jogger who died of a heart attack while jogging, and I had something else to worry about. Jogging doesn't kill hundreds of people, but if you have any physical weaknesses, jogging will surely bring them out, as they did with me.
Secondly, I got no enjoyment out of jogging. Putting one foot in front of the other for forty-five minutes isn't my idea of fun. Jogging is also a lonely pastime. Some joggers say, “I love being out there with just my thoughts.” Well, my thoughts began to bore me, and most of them were on how much my legs hurt.
And how could I enjoy something that brought me pain? And that wasn't just
the first week: it was practically every day for two months. I never got past the pain level, and pain isn't fun. What a cruel way to do it! So many other exercises, including walking, lead to almost the same results painlessly, so why jog?
I don't jog any more, and I don't think I ever will. I'm walking two miles three times a week at a fast pace, and that feels good. I bicycle to work when the weather is good. I'm getting exercise, and I'm enjoying it at the same time. I could never say the same for jogging, and I've found a lot of better ways to stay in shape.From the first paragraph, we learn that in the writer's neighborhood ________.
| A．jogging became very popular |
| B．many people were encouraged to jog |
| C．Alex organized an army of joggers |
| D．jogging provided a chance to get together |
The underlined word “them”(Paragraph 3) most probably refers to ________.
| A．heart attacks | B．Back problems |
| C．hundreds of people | D．physical weaknesses |
From the author's experience, we can conclude that ________.
| A．jogging can help people keep fit |
| B．many physical problems result from jogging |
| C．not everyone enjoys jogging |
| D．jogging makes people feel great |
As we know, many teen celebrities(名人) feel and think that having a slimmer figure can do great good to them. But, does size really matter? Are teenage fans trying hard to become like their celebrity idols(偶像)? Do celebrities really have the power to influence people, especially teenagers?
For the longest time, many parents blame teen idols for influencing the way their kids act. Have you noticed how teens idolize the celebrities these days? Even, their personal affairs are being followed by kids these days. Take for example the case of Lindsay Lohan of Mary Kate Ashley. They are definitely famous teen stars. But, since they are trying to project an image to satisfy a lot of people in show business, their health and body suffer. Many kids are aware of this problem. But they are easily influenced by these celebrities to exercise and eat less.
It is a fact that the media, and especially famous teen celebrities, can influence people powerfully. But teenagers are easily influenced because teenage years are the period when our personality and identity developments take place. Teens watching TV shows and reading magazines are easily pulled into the dieting and harmful eating habits because the media have some ways to pull these acts. They use thin models and celebrities to endorse(做广告宣传) products or to star in an up-and –coming shows or movies. With fierce competition, celebrities are forced to eat less and do extreme exercise routines to get the roles or offers that come their way.
Living in today’s time and generation is a bit disturbing to a lot of parents. Media, especially as well as the celebrities, have a very powerful influence to drive teenagers to good or bad. It’s good that we can control ourselves to avoid bad things from happening. If not, parents should really be aware and guide their teens to determine what’s in ad what’s out.From the passage we can find Lindsay Lohan .
| A．lives an unhealthy lifestyle |
| B．lives a rich and happy life |
| C．doesn’t get any exercise |
| D．sets a good example for teenagers |
According to the writer, why are teenagers easily influenced by some TV shows?
| A．They are tired of school. |
| B．Their celebrity idols appear in many TV shows. |
| C．They’re in their development period. |
| D．They have nothing to do in their spare time |
What’s the title of the passage?
| A．Parents’ responsibilities. |
| B．Advice on self-control. |
| C．Bad influences of celebrities. |
| D．Media’s bad influences. |
When Major Mary Jennings Hegar was serving as a captain in Afghanistan, her aircraft was shot down by enemy fire while she and her crew were taking back injured soldiers. Though injured, she completed the rescue mission (任务) while under fire on the ground and received the Purple Heart and the Distinguished Flying Cross for “outstanding heroism and selfless devotion to duty.”
However, Hegar did not get prizes for serving in combat (战斗), for it is illegal for women to be in official combat(作战) positions and to get the benefits that come with them. Hegar and three other service women filed a lawsuit(诉讼) in federal court in San Fransico on Nov. 27 in a long-overdue challenge to the Pentagon's (五角大楼) ban.
Many military women who constitute 14% of the 1.4 million active members of the military object to the policy because it stops them from applying for some 238,000 jobs and excludes (排除) them from certain promotions. It is particularly unfair because it doesn't protect women in service. Fully 85% of women, who have served since Sept.11, report having served in a combat zone or an area where they were faced with combat or immediate danger according to the lawsuit, and half reported being involved in combat operations. At least 860 female troops have been wounded and 144 killed in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
The ban does another bad thing: drive talented women out of service. Hegar says she is asked to leave the Air National Guard for a Reserve Liaison position because she is excluded(不包括，排除) from jobs she would like to apply for. Another woman who is suing, Captain Alexandra Zoe Bedell who was sent twice to Afghanistan, left active duty last year, because of the combat exclusion policy.
It is hard to see how the Pentagon could meet this burden. Clearly, women are capable of taking challenging, dangerous combat assignment, because as the careers of Hegar and others like her have shown they are doing it now. The Pentagon's policy is based on “outdated idea of women”, just the sort of thing the Constitution forbids.
But the Pentagon should not wait for the courts to order it to treat female service members equally. There can be little doubt that a court will eventually do just that and little doubt that, in the very near future, the no-combat rule, like the racial segregation (隔离) of troops and “Don't ask, don’t tell,” will seem like an ancient relic (遗物) of unenlightened (愚昧无知的) times.What can we know about Major Mary Jennings Hegar from the first paragraph?
| A．She failed in the rescue mission. |
| B．Her deeds were awarded by authorities |
| C．While taking back the injured soldiers some crew died. |
| D．When she was serving as a captain her aircraft crashed. |
The underlined word “constitute” in the fourth paragraph means_______ .
| A．take up | B．make up | C．set up | D．build up |
Many military women objected to the policy mainly because _______ .
| A．it had an effect on women’s rights |
| B．it was unfair to protect women in service |
| C．it prevented them from some jobs and promotions |
| D．it was opposed to women’s volunteering for combat |
What does the writer want to tell us in the last two paragraphs?
| A．Pentagon should stop the ban immediately. |
| B．Pentagon will not obey the court's decision. |
| C．Pentagon should have more women soldiers. |
| D．The public should be patient with the Pentagon. |
With a large part of the world's population living close to the oceans, rising sea levels bring the potential for destructive (破坏性的)results. But scientists are still unable to make predictions exact enough for people to plan to handle the loss of land and the threat to coastal communities expected over this century.
“We know sea level is going to rise, but how much, and how fast, and where, we really still don’t know," said Josh Willis, a climate scientist.
The ocean isn't like water in a bathtub. It doesn’t rise all the same as more water pours in. As global warming raises sea levels, some places are expected to see higher-than-average increases, and a few places, may even see decreases.
It’s reported that over the course of this century, sea levels will rise between 8 inches and 6.6 feet around the planet. Scientists know this increase will be driven by the expansion of water as it warms—warmer water takes up more space—and the melting of ice. But the effects of warming water and melting ice on sea-level rise are expected to vary from area to area. And the melting of ice of the Antarctic and Greenland presents the largest uncertainty for the future, but air, land and water also play roles in changes to sea level. For example, sea level near the ice getting melt actually decreases, because the ground under the melting ice rises as the heavy ice disappears.
Climate change is expected to change ocean currents and the winds that help drive ocean currents. These changes will affect the distribution of heat within the oceans, and, as a result, affect changes in sea level.
Nowadays, scientists use two types of models to make predictions about the future of sea levels, but the two don’t agree. If scientists can't accurately predict sea-level increase for the coming years, the least we can do is measure what happening today with the help of the satellite, Jason-2, but it’s reaching the end of its operational life. The first paragraph implies that_______ .
| A．the rising sea levels mainly happens near the coast |
| B．people living in coastal communities have to move |
| C．scientists have ways to handle the rising sea levels |
| D．coastal cities are easily affected by the rising sea levels |
What does the writer mean by saying "The ocean isn’t like water in a bathtub" in the third paragraph?
A. The rising sea level is hard to tell.
B. The ocean can be easily controlled.
C The ocean isn’t equal to a bathtub in size.
D. There is too much water for us to control.According to the text, which of the following shows the right cause and effect?
①climate change;
②ocean currents;
③the winds;
④changes in sea level;
⑤the distribution of heat
| A．①→⑤→③→④→② | B．①→③→②→⑤→④ |
| C．③→④→⑤→②→① | D．①→⑤→③→②→④ |
What problems will scientists meet with in predicting future climate changes?
| A．It's too difficult to measure what's happening. |
| B．Types of models for prediction are difficult to set up. |
| C．There will probably be no satellites to help the scientists. |
| D．There aren’t enough scientists studying the changes of sea levels. |
Maybe you don’t think animals have certain mental powers which human beings do not have. But the truth is that some of them have instincts, and besides this, I am sure they can feel certain things we humans cannot. A personal experience showed me this.
Some years ago, I had a dog named Howard. From the time when he was a puppy, he was timid, so we named him Howard, sounding like “coward”! He was especially afraid of thunderstorms. At the first flash of lightning or crash of thunder, he would run whining into his house and hide under a table.
I often went for a walk with Howard. Once, as we were walking along a road, it began to rain. I quickly ran to a bus stop for shelter. The bus stop had a roof supported by metal poles. Soon after I had got there, Howard caught my trousers in his teeth and tried to pull me away. At first I was puzzled and a little angry at his behavior. But I decided to humor him and walked away from the shelter into the rain and started to go home.
When I was about two hundred metres from the shelter, there came a flash of lightning and soon after, there was thunder which nearly deafened me. Howard stopped walking and began whining. Thinking he was afraid, I bent to pick him up. As I straightened up, I glanced at the bus shelter we had just left. I was shocked to see that two of the poles were bent and the roof was lying on the ground, broken. The shelter had been struck by the bolt of lightning!The author named his dog Howard mainly because of_______.
| A．his timid characteristic |
| B．one of the author’s friends Howard |
| C．his loud sound |
| D．his strange behaviors |
The reason why the author was puzzled and angry with the dog was that .
| A．Howard had a strange behavior |
| B．Howard should be afraid of the metal poles |
| C．Howard should know the approaching of the terrible lightning |
| D．Howard bit his trousers in his teeth |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．Dogs are cleverer and better than men. |
| B．Dogs are usually afraid of thunderstorms. |
| C．Some animals can feel certain things humans cannot. |
| D．Dogs are naturally born heroes. |
What can be inferred about the bus shelter from the passage?
| A．It was about 200 meters from the author’s home. |
| B．It was destroyed in a rainy day. |
| C．Its roof was supported by wood poles. |
| D．It could produce blinding flash of lightning. |
Sometimes you’ll hear people say that you can’t love others until you love yourself. Sometimes you’ll hear people say that you can’t expect someone else to love you until you love yourself. Either way, you’ve got to love yourself first and this can be tricky. Sure we all know that we’re the apple of our parents’ eyes, and that our Grandmas think we’re great talents and our Uncle Roberts think that we will go to the Olympics. But sometimes it’s a lot harder to think such nice thoughts about ourselves. If you find that believing in yourself is a challenge. It is time you build a positive self-image and learn to love yourself.
Self-image is your own mind’s picture of yourself. This image includes the way you look, the way you act, the way you talk and the way you think. Interestingly, our self-images are often quite different from the images others hold about us. Unfortunately, most of these images are more negative than they should be. Thus changing the way you think about yourself is the key to changing your self-image and your whole world.
The best way to defeat a passive self-image is to step back and decide to stress your successes. That is, make a list if you need to, and write down all of the great things you do every day. Don’t allow doubts to occur in it.
It very well might be that you are experiencing a negative self-image because you can’t move past one flaw or weakness that you see about yourself. Well, roll up your sleeves and make a change of it as your primary task. If you think you’re silly because you aren’t good at math, find a tutor. If you think you’re weak because you can’t run a mile, get to the track and practice. If you think you’re dull because you don’t wear the latest trends, buy a few new clothes. But remember, just because you think it doesn’t mean it’s true.
The best way to get rid of a negative self-image is to realize that your image is far from objective, and to actively convince yourself of your positive qualities. Changing the way you think and working on those you need to improve will go a long way towards promoting a positive self-image. When you can pat（拍）yourself on the back, you’ll know you’re well on your way. Good luck!You need to build a positive self-image when you _________.
| A．have a high opinion of yourself | B．feel it hard to change yourself |
| C．dare to challenge yourself | D．are unconfident about yourself |
According to the passage, our self-image__________.
| A．are often changeable | B．are probably untrue |
| C．have positive effects | D．have different functions |
How should you change your self-image according to the passage?
| A．To change the way you think. |
| B．To make your life successful. |
| C．To understand your own world. |
| D．To keep a different image of others |
Who are the intended readers of the passage?
| A．People in general. | B．Parents. |
| C．Educators. | D．Adolescents |
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