When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: “If you live each day as if it were your last, someday you’ ll most certainly be right.” It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself, “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?”
Remembering that I’ ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choice in life.
About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that was incurable, and that I would live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is my doctors’ code for preparing yourself to die.
I lived with that diagnosis all day. I was completely in despair. Later that evening, I had another examination and my wife told me that tumor turned to be curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I’ m fine now.
This was the closest I’ve been to facing death. To tell the truth, no one wants to die. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. It clears out the old to make room for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away.
Your time is so limited that you shouldn’t waste it repeating someone else’s life. Don’ t be trapped by dogma（教条）—which is living with the results of other people’ s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart. It somehow already knows what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.The doctor advised the author to go home and get his affairs in order because_________.
| A．he had to rest at home | B．his disease couldn’t be cured |
| C．his disease was not serious at all | D．he had to wait for the result of the test |
How did the author feel after the diagnosis?
A．Hopeless |
B．Excited | C．Optimistic | D．Angry |
What does the author think of death?
| A．He thinks it is impossible to avoid. |
| B．He thinks it is not the end of life. |
| C．He thinks it is nothing to be scared of. |
| D．He thinks it is the beginning of a new life |
In the author’ s opinion, we should ____________.
| A．follow others’ advice | B．take no notice of diseases |
| C．take exercise and keep healthy | D．have the courage to follow our heart |
Several different stories are told about the origin of Saint Valentine's Day. One legend dates as far back as the days of the Roman Empire. According to the story, Claudius, the Emperor of Rome, wanted to increase the size of his army. He knew that it would be easier to get young men who were not married to join. Therefore he made a rule that no young man could marry until he had served a certain number of years in the army.
A priest(牧师)named Valentine broke the rule and secretly married a great many young people. Finally, Claudius found out Valentine and put the priest in prison, where he remained until his death on February 14.
After his death, Valentine was made a saint (圣人），and the day of his death was named Saint Valentine's Day. It became the custom for lovers to send each other message on this day. Now Saint Valentine's Day is a time for people to send one another greetings of many kinds.
February 14，Valentine's Day, is sweethearts, day, on which people in love with each other express their tender(温柔的）emotions.
People sometimes put their love message in a heart shaped box of chocolates, or a bunch of flowers tied with red ribbons(带子）. Words of letters may be written on the flower-covered card, or some-thing else. Whatever the form may be, the message is almost the same ： " Will you be my Valentine?" Valentine was put in prison because __________.
| A．he secretly got married |
| B．he didn't serve in the army |
| C．he married many young people secretly |
| D．he broke the rule |
This passage mainly tells us about __________.
| A．how Valentine died |
| B．the Emperor of Rome |
| C．how Valentine's Day is celebrated |
| D．the origin of Valentine's Day |
February 14 is chosen as Valentine's Day because __________.
| A．lovers express their tender emotions on this day |
| B．people want to remember Valentine |
| C．people send one another greetings of many kinds on this day |
| D．people want to fix a date for lovers to express their emotions |
According to the rule，__________.
| A．no young men could get married unless they were old enough |
| B．young men could marry if they served in the army for several years |
| C．no one could get married without the emperor's permission |
| D．young men could many only in the army |
If you thought the Lantern Festival of China is just a day for family reunions and eating some yuanxiao, then, you are wrong. It is actually the Chinese carnival.
The Chinese traditional Lantern Festival, Yuanxiao Festival in Chinese, which is on the 15th day of the Chinese Lunar Calendar and falls on Feb. 17 this year, is actually not just about getting together with family but also means a date that all people should cheer up and celebrate. It is an ancient Chinese carnival.
Cao Baoming, the vice president of Chinese Folk Literature and Art Society, said that the Yuanxiao Festival, also known as "Shangyuan Festival" and " Lantern Festival，" had become a popular folk custom during the Han dynasty more than 2，000years ago.
The festival is usually considered as the last peak of Spring Festival because people will start their life in the new year officially after the day. People of the whole country will cheer up to celebrate it and also they will pray that Heaven will offer them seasonable weather for a healthy harvest in the new year. Therefore, the custom of joining for celebrations at Yuanxiao Festival is widely spread among ordinary people.
Every year, when the day comes, people will go out of their own houses to the streets to look at various lanterns, guess lantern riddles and watch performances of Dragon Dances, Lion Dances, stilt-walking, fireworks show and so on. Some of those traditional custom and activities are national intangible cultural heritages now.
Actually, the Lantern Festival is not a single festival, and it only could be understood in the context of the Spring Festival.
The Spring Festival eve is usually a night that people stay at home to wait for the coming of the new year. From then until the end of Lantern Festival, it is actually a whole process of people expanding their spaces of activities as well as interpersonal relation-ships. The Lantern Festival of China means __________.
| A．family reunions and eating some yuanxiao |
| B．a new starting of a year |
| C．reunions and celebration |
| D．saying good-bye between family members |
The Lantern Festival of China is considered as a new start of the year because __________.
| A．people will start their life in the new year officially after the day |
| B．people will separate each other to live after the day |
| C．there is no opportunity to reunite together again |
| D．there is no other festival to celebrate after the day |
On the Lantern Festival people all go out to __________.
| A．visit their friends and relatives |
| B．prepare for some lanterns |
| C．clean the streets and other places |
| D．guess Lantern riddles and watch various activities |
The activities on the Lantern Festival people do are the following except __________.
| A．dancing | B．fireworks show |
| C．stilt-walking | D．playing poker |
If there is one thing I'm sure about, it is that in a hundred years from now we will still be reading newspapers. It is not that newspapers are a necessity. Even now some people get most of their news from television or radio. Many buy a newspaper only on Saturday or Sunday. But for most people reading a newspaper has become a habit passed down from generation to generation.
The nature of what is news may change. What basically makes news is what affects our lives—the big political stories, the coverage of the wars, earthquakes and other disasters, will continue much the same. I think there will be more coverage of scientific research, though. It's already happening in areas that may directly affect our lives, like genetic (基因）engineering. In the future, I think there will be more coverage of scientific explanations of why we feel as we do—as we develop a better understanding of how the brain operates and what our feelings really are.
It's quite possible that in the next century newspapers will be transmitted (传送)electronically from Fleet Street and printed out in our own home. In fact, I'm pretty sure that how it will happen in the future. You will probably be able to choose from a menu, making up your own newspaper by picking out the things you want to read—sports and international news, etc.
I think people have got it wrong when they talk about competition between the different media (媒体）. They actually feed off each other. Some people once foresaw that television would kill off newspapers, but that hasn't happened. What is read on the printed page lasts longer than pictures on a screen or sound lost in the air. And as for the Internet, it's never really pleasant to read something just on a screen. What is the best title for the passage?
| A．The Best Way to Get News |
| B．The Changes of Media |
| C．Make Your Own Newspaper |
| D．The Future of Newspapers |
In the writer's opinion, in the future，__________.
| A．more big political affairs, wars and disasters will make news |
| B．newspapers will not be printed in publishing houses any longer |
| C．newspapers will cover more scientific research |
| D．more and more people will watch TV |
What will probably be on in the newspaper made by yourself?
| A．Sports and international news. |
| B．A menu of important news. |
| C．The most important news， |
| D．What you are interested in. |
From the passage, we can infer __________.
| A．newspapers will win the competition among the different media |
| B．newspapers will stay with us together with other media |
| C．television will take the place of newspaper |
| D．the writer believe some media will die out |
Today most Chinese teenagers are happy to be favored by two parents and four grandparents in their families. But have you ever thought about how to take care of four to twelve old people when you grow up and get married? This could be a problem for most Chinese youths as China is entering a new stage of an aging society.
An aging society refers to one where 10 percent or more of its population is over 60. By the end of 2007，Chinese over 60 years old have made up 11. 7 percent of the nation's total population.
“ China is getting old before becoming rich，” said Cai Chuang, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The population increase that has powered Chinese growth for three decades will give way over the next ten years to a rapid aging of the society. This will lead to weaker economic growth, because of a lack of labor resources.
As a result of the family planning policy, it is expected that the country's total working population will decrease after 2015.
China is not the only country getting old. More than 60 countries have become aging societies and one in three people in the European Union is a senior citizen.
However, experts said that China doesn't have a highly developed social security network to support the old. Social security is an insurance program protecting those in need, including the old, the disabled and others. An aging society is a society that __________.
| A．less than 10% of its population is over 60 |
| B．10% or more of its population is over 60 |
| C．there are four old people in a family |
| D．most of its population is over 60 |
If China enters an aging society，__________.
| A．there will not be enough labor resources |
| B．the family planning policy will be ended |
| C．everyone needs to take care of four to twelve old people |
| D．China will have a highly developed social security network |
What does Cai Chuang mean by saying “ China is getting old before becoming rich. ” ？
| A．China will be an aging society, then be a developed country. |
| B．China will be a rich country before being an aging society. |
| C．An aging society will affect Chinese economy development. |
| D．China will stop developing because of its aging problem. |
The passage mainly talks about __________.
| A．an aging society |
| B．Chinese social problem |
| C．family planning policy |
| D．aging problem in China |
I am one of the many city people who are always saying that given the choice we would prefer to live in the country away from the dirt and noise of a large city. If it weren't for my job I would immediately move out for the open spaces and go back to nature.
Cities can be frightening places. The majority of the population lives in many tower blocks, noisy, dirty and impersonal. The sense of belonging to a community tends to disappear when you live fifteen floors up. All you can see from your window is sky, or other blocks of flats. Children become aggressive and nervous as they are shut up at home all day, with nowhere to play ； their mothers feel isolated (孤立的）from the rest of the world. Strangely enough, in the past the residents(居民）of one street all knew each other, but nowadays people on the same floor in tower blocks don't even say hello to each other.
Country life, on the other hand, differs from this kind of isolated existence in that a sense of community generally binds the residents of small villages together. People have the advantage of knowing that there is always someone to turn to when they need help. But country life has disadvantages too. While it is true that you may be among friends in a village, it is also true that you are cut off from the exciting and important events that take place in cities. There's little possibility of going to a new show or the latest movie. Shopping becomes a major problem, and for anything slightly out of the ordinary you have to go a long way to the nearest large town. The city people who leave for the country often can't bear the stillness and quiet there.
What, then, is the answer? The country has the advantage of peace and quiet, but suffers from the disadvantage of being cut off；the city gives people a feeling of isolation, and constant noise can nearly drive you mad. But one of its main advantages is that you are at the center of things, and that life doesn't come to an end at half-past nine at night. Some people have found a compromise (折中）between the two ： leave cities and move to villages within commuting(乘车往返)distance of large cities. It sounds great ！ It seems that the writer prefers to live in the country mainly because __________
| A．the city is somehow polluted |
| B．the country folks are more friendly |
| C．one can get better sleep in the country |
| D．it's hard for people to find jobs in the city |
The biggest disadvantage of living in the country is that __________
| A．life there is inconvenient |
| B．shopping is almost impossible |
| C．you can not see a movie or a show |
| D．life comes to an end at half past nine |
As to which is better, city life or country life, the writer __________
| A．did some explanation |
| B．made some comparison |
| C．described both of them vividly |
| D．talked a lot about his preference |
The underlined word “ binds" in the third paragraph is similar in meaning to __________.
| A．attracts | B．drives |
| C．prevents | D．unites |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号