Once there was an old farmer, with a horse which was almost as old as himself. He set out one morning with his son to sell the horse before it died. Father and son walked, because the farmer did not want the horse to be too tired. They met two men on the road who said, "Why are you walking, farmer? You have a horse, It’s a long way to market(市场). " The farmer know that this was true, so he rode on the horse, while his son walked. Then they met two old women, "What are you doing up there, farmer? Can’t you see how tired the boy is?" So the farmer got down, and his son rode instead.
Next, three old men stopped them, one said, "Why are you walking, farmer? Get up, It’s too hot for an old man like you to walk today," So the farmer got up behind his son, and they rode on. Some time later, a young woman passed them, "Why aren’t you walking?" she asked, "It isn’t far to the market. Give your poor horse a rest." So the farmer, and his son, got down once again. It is a fact that you cannot please all the people all the time.
1. The farmer wanted to sell the horse ____.
A. before it was dead
B. before it become too tired
C. before it market was over
D. before it was as old as he was
2. The two men on the road ____.
A. asked how far it was to the market
B. said they thought the horse looked very tired
C. asked why the farmer was not riding on his horse
D. told the farmer’s son to get off the horse and walk
3. The two old women said it was wrong for ____.
A. the farmer to ride such a tired horse
B. the farmer to ride while his young son walked
C. the boy to ride instead of his father
D. only one person to ride such a long way
4. The farmer got up behind his son because ____.
A. the old man said it was too hot for him to walk
B. the three old men stopped them on the road
C. he did not know why he was walking
D. his son could not ride the horse by himself
5. The young woman was most sorry ____.
A. for the old man
B. for the farmer’s young son
C. that it was not far to the market
D. for the horse
Will it matter if you don't take your breakfast? A short time ago, a test was given in the United States.People of different ages, from 12 to 83, were asked to have a test.During the test, these people were given all kinds of breakfasts, and sometimes they got no breakfast at all.Scientists wanted to see how well their bodies worked when they had eaten different kinds of breakfasts.
The results show that if a person eats a right breakfast, he or she will work better than if he or she has no breakfast.If a student has fruit, eggs, bread and milk before going to school, he will learn more quickly and listen more carefully in class.
The result is opposite to what some people think.Having no breakfast will not help you lose weight.
This is because they are so hungry at noon they eat too much for lunch.They will gain weight instead of losing it.You will lose more weight if you reduce your other meals.During the test, the people were given_____________.
| A．no breakfast at all |
| B．different foods or sometimes none |
| C．very rich breakfasts |
| D．a little food for breakfast |
The results show that __________________
| A．breakfast has great effect on work and studies. |
| B．breakfast has little to do with a person's work. |
| C．a person will work better if he only has fruit and milk. |
| D．Fat people should have little for breakfast |
According to the passage, some people think that if you don't have breakfast, you will___________.
| A．be healthier | B．work better |
| C．lose weight | D．do nothing worse |
The best title for this passage is__________.
| A．How to Lose Weight |
| B．Breakfast Helps You Get Weight |
| C．Breakfast Is Good for Health |
| D．Don’t Have Breakfast |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．It is bad for your health to have no breakfast |
| B．Having breakfast will not make you put on weight. |
| C．If you don't eat much for lunch and supper, you may lose weight. |
| D．The more breakfast you have, the more quickly you'll learn in class. |
“The world has never been a better place to live in” says science writer Matt Ridley, “and it will keep on getting better.” Read on to see how Ridley makes his case. Right or wrong? You decide.
Compared with 50 years ago, when I was just four years old, people now make nearly three times as much money, eat one third more food and expect to live one third longer. In fact, it’s hard to find any areas of the world that’s worse off now than it was then, even though the world population has more than doubled over that period.
One reason we are richer, healthier, taller, cleverer, longer-lived and freer than ever before is that the four most basic human needs—food, clothing, fuel and shelter—have grown much cheaper. Take one example: In 1800, a candle providing one hour’s light cost six hours’ work. In the 1880s, the same light from a lamp took 15 minutes’ work to pay for. In 1950, it was eight seconds. Today, it’s half a second. In these terms, we are 43,200 times better off than in1800.
In the United States, rivers, lakes, seas and air are getting cleaner all the time. A car today produces less pollution traveling at full speed than a parked car did from leaks (泄漏) in 1970.
Although the world population is growing, the rate (率) of increase has been falling for 50 years. Across the world, national birth rates are lower now than in 1960, and in the less developed world, the birth rate has almost halved. According to a research report from the United Nations, population will start falling once it reaches 9.2 billion in 2075. After all, there are already seven billion people on earth, and they are eating better and better.
In 1970s, there were 550 billion barrels (桶) of oil reserves (储存) in the world, and in the 20 years that followed the world used up 600 billion. So by 1990, reserves should have been overused by 50 billion barrels. Instead, it is reported there are 900 billion today. They will last for many years and people will find something in place of oil long before they run out.
The more we develop, the more we can develop. The more we invent, the more inventions become possible. For 200 years, pessimists (people who believe that terrible things will happen in future) have had all the headlines—even though optimists have far more often been right. There are some reasons for pessimists. No charity (慈善机构) ever raised money by saying things are getting better. No journalist ever got the front page writing a story about how terrible things won’t happen. Don’t be a pessimist—dare to be an optimist!Today, providing one hour’s light costs ______.
| A．6 hours’ work | B．15 minutes’ work |
| C．8 seconds’ work | D．0.5 second’s work |
Which of the following is true, according to the passage?
| A．Things we used to need were much cheaper than they are today. |
| B．The pollution today is much more serious than it was long ago. |
| C．Population problem has nearly made the world stop developing. |
| D．It’s not necessary to be worried about oil reserves in the world. |
What does the word “optimists” in the last paragraph mean?
| A．People who are brave enough to face anything terrible. |
| B．People who can always tell good things from bad ones. |
| C．People who have hopeful and happy feelings about life. |
| D．People who don’t easily believe what they’re told about. |
Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
| A．Never Give Up | B．Cheer Up |
| C．Don’t Be Sad | D．Think Out |
Where did that number come from?
Eleven and Twelve
The reason behind the change in number naming is that eleven comes from the German term ainlif, which translates to “one left”. Twelve follows the same rule. It comes from twalif—“two left”. Why teen is used instead of lif for 13 through 19? There is something sadly lost in history.
911 for US Emergency (急救) Calls
Early phones didn’t use phone numbers—the operator had to connect your call by hand—and this led to the need for an emergency code (信号). But later phone numbers became popular, that changed. In 1967, 911 was chosen as the nationwide emergency call because it was easy to remember and could be quickly dialed (拨) on the phone.
26.2 Miles in a Marathon (马拉松)
The story began with an ancient Greek soldier carrying message from a battlefield (战场) in Marathon to Athens. The modern marathon was born as a flagship event in the first Olympic Games, in 1896, with a distance (距离) of about 25 miles (40 km), as long as the distance from Marathon to Athens. But race organizers for the 1908 Olympic Games in London wanted to add something special. The race began at Windsor Castle and ended at White City Stadium, with runners finishing only after passing the royal (皇室的) box. The distance was 26.2 miles (42.1 km). And since 1924 this distance has been kept in marathon.
28 Days in February
Before using the Gregorian calendar that we use today, one of the first Roman calendars had only 304 days and ten months (March through December), with six months of 30 days and four of 31 days. The second king of Rome improved the old calendar. He added 50 days for January and February. To make the new months longer, he took one day from each of the 30-day months, making 56 days to divide between January and February (or 28 days each). Later January was given one more day to add up to 355 days a year, but February still had 28 days. That’s how it became the shortest month and it stayed that way ever since.Which language do eleven and twelve come from?
| A．English. | B．German. | C．French. | D．Russian. |
When was the number 911 chosen for US emergency calls?
| A．In 1896. | B．In 1908. | C．In 1924. | D．In 1967. |
The marathon distance was made longer at London Olympic Games because ______.
| A．the British was a little weak in maths |
| B．the British didn’t like the Greek story |
| C．the British loved the royal family very much |
| D．the British wanted to make the race different |
How many days were there in each month after the king improved the old calendar?
| A．28, 29 or 31. | B．28, 30 or 31. |
| C．28, 29 or 30. | D．29, 30 or 31. |
Spam (垃圾邮件) mail is a fact of Internet life. Some of it carries bad things, but the main problem with spam is that it is unpleasant because it fills your mail box with pointless messages.
Most email programs have built-in filters (过滤器) that will discover unwanted messages and put them into a junk folder (垃圾文件夹). You can make the filter learn what you consider to be spam or block certain senders.
Avoid letting your email address appear on websites—spammers search the Internet for email addresses. Be careful who you give your email address to, and if you need to send out several copies of an email, use blind copy instead to cover the other people’s addresses.
Delete (删除) spam emails without opening them. Signs of possible spam are bad spelling in email headers, strange sender addresses, or emails sent at unusual hours. If you do open a spam mail, never reply to it or click on any pictures it may have.
If you receive an unexpected email pretending (伪装) to come from your bank, credit card company or other suppliers, be very careful. If the email asks you to reply, don’t do it! Instead, call up these places or visit their websites.
Consider setting up a second email address and keep one address for your personal use and another for your online communication.What is the main problem with spam?
| A．It’s everywhere. | B．It carries bad things. |
| C．It’s unpleasant. | D．It fills one’s mail box. |
How many suggestions are there in the passage?
| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Five. | D．Six. |
What should you do if you receive a spam email?
| A．Reply to it quickly. | B．Delete it at once. |
| C．Click its pictures. | D．Visit its website. |
Which of the following is the writer’s idea about spam emails?
| A．Be careful with them. | B．Don’t be afraid of them. |
| C．Find interest in them. | D．Try to fight against them. |
A
What does the first advertisement ask us to do?
| A．To send in some jokes. | B．To share our pets. |
| C．To talk about kindness. | D．To tell a true story. |
Which of the four advertisements offers the most money?
| A．Jokes. | B．Smart Animals. |
| C．Kindness of Strangers. | D．My Story. |
How can we send our writing in?
| A．By phone. | B．By post. |
| C．By email. | D．By going there. |
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