Education from My Father
My memories of my father are slim because he was so sick in the last years of his life. But there are 32 that I am often reminded of and which may have had some bearing on my love of 33 .
When I was small I was somewhat 34 of lightning and thunder. My father explained it. The explanation was in 35 that a child could understand but was basically correct. I gained a better 36 later, but I didn’t have to unlearn anything.
What he said was that there was electricity in the clouds 37 it traveled to the ground like a spark. When it traveled 38 the air it made the air so hot that it 39 . Then there was nothing where the air had been and the air all around rushed in to 40 the space. He clapped his hands together very loud, 41 to be the air rushing in, and said that makes the thunder. When I hear thunder, I can still hear that 42 .
He explained why if it was cloudy in the winter the night was warmer than if it was 43 . It was one of those nights when the sky was full of stars: no moon, no town lights. But there were more stars than you could 44 and they had color too. He said that if there were no clouds, we had no blankets and were 45 to the universe. Our warmth was going to 46 the whole universe. When there were clouds, they were like blankets and we were not exposed to the universe. I 47 feel on the edge of space on a very clear night.
I am sure there were many other lessons that I 48 but no longer remember. What I did 49 , in general, was that there were explanations and that the more I understood them, the more comfortable the world was to live in. I was not taught that there were 50 but that there was understanding if you looked for it. This may be why I have always been 51 in science.
A．others B．few C．some D．all
A．science B．nature C．weather D．universe
A．sure B．fond C．tired D．afraid
A．depth B．words C．gestures D．data
A．understanding B．knowledge C．command D．confidence
A．but B．and C．for D．or
A．above B．to C．along D．through
A．shone B．burned C．expanded D．broke
A．fill B．make C．avoid D．break
A．trying B．proving C．hoping D．pretending
A．clap B．remark C．voice D．crash
A．cold B．bright C．clear D．foggy
A．explore B．foresee C．imagine D．identify
A．committed B．exposed C．related D．led
A．heat B．protect C．extend D．light
A．ever B．also C．even D．still
A．selected B．arranged C．absorbed D．delivered
A．consider B．promise C．explain D．learn
A．memories B．blankets C．mysteries D．thunders
A．engaged B．interested C．successful D．skillful
In a city of south India lived a young man who was always dreaming of becoming rich. He often heard about some traders in his city who gathered a great deal of 1 in the course of their travels across the world. He believed he could also make a great achievement although he didn’t have any 2 in business at all. So, one fine day, the young man set out on a long 3
in search of trade opportunities.
4 though, he did not become as rich as he had thought he would. Worse, he spent more money on his travels than he 5 in the course of his trade. All this made him feel confused and 6 , but he refused to return home without 7 .
One day, while he was wandering on the shore in a seaside town, his eyes 8 on an object which he thought should be a large ship at a distance.
“When I become rich, I shall buy a ship just like that one and 9 around the world,” he said ambitiously. Then he waited to see the ship enter the harbor. As the ship got closer, it lost its 10 dimensions(规模) and looked more like a small boat. When the boat reached the 11 , the young man let out a big heavy sigh because he discovered that it was only a bunch of logs tied together. He was terribly 12 to see such a raft(木筏).
Finally he understood. Just as he 13 a lot of time on fruitless speculation(猜想) about the “ship”, his expectations of getting 14 was also without any real basis. Therefore, he decided to return home and 15 up a more practical job.
1. A. energy B. knowledge C. resource D. fortune
2. A. expectation B. experience C. interest D. ambition
3. A. journey B. partnership C. vacation D. period
4. A. Unreasonably B. Unbelievably C. Unconsciously D. Unfortunately
5. A. begged B. borrowed C. earned D. adopted
6. A. uncertain B. excited C. patient D. indifferent
7. A. hesitation B. success C. problem D. income
8. A. depended B. focused C. insisted D. lived
9. A. show B. turn C. sail D. fly
10. A. correct B. formal C. real D. grand
11. A. bank B. shore C. ocean D. bottom
12. A. disappointed B. pleased C. puzzled D. astonished
13. A. saved B. valued C. wasted D. created
14. A. rich B. learned C. smart D. strong
15. A. set B. gave C. made D. took
阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
During my second year of college I had to look for another place to live in. One Sunday after church the pastor(牧师) 36 me to stay in his daughter’s room because she was studying abroad for one year.
To be honest, I really didn’t want to stay with the pastor’s family. 37 then he old me how much rent would be—a very 38__ figure that included one home-cooked meal a day. I thought about it and 39 to move in.
At the end of the term I had planned to make 40 living arrangements, since the daughter was to 41 home. But they suggested I 42 a room with their son. By this time I seemed to have been adopted（收养）into their 43 -- her people became my people. I 44 accepted the offer.
As I emptied the daughter’s bedroom, I thought it might be 45 to have a little sister. But when I later met her, I 46 that this idea of looking after her might be more interesting than I first 47 .
We finally fell in love, married, and have been 48 one another for many years. There have been times that life turned out to be 49 than either of us could have known. But we have always been able to go 50 _ largely because we knew that somebody deeply cared.
It isn’t about marriage—it’s about 51 _ . It’s about mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers and special friends who are as 52 _ as family. It’s about anybody who can say, “I’ll be 53 -- you can count on me. I’ll try to look after you and 54 I will need you to look after me.”
Is there somebody you can 55 ? And is someone counting on you? We travel the path of life best when there is someone to look after, and when someone is looking after us.
A．required B．told C．warned D．reminded
A．But B．And C．So D．Or
A．high B．low C．familiar D．fair
A．helped B．refused C．admitted D．decided
A．other B．extra C．different D．similar
A．reach B．sell C．return D．leave
A．spare B．share C．separate D．divide
A．house B．family C．life D．group
A．happily B．sadly C．curiously D．nervously
A．strange B．uneasy C．nice D．boring
A．predicted B．doubted C．proved D．realized
A．knew B．imagined C．planned D．promised
A．watching over B．taking over C．looking after D．looking for
A．smoother B．more challenging C．flatter D．more interesting
A．forward B．backward C．up D．down
A．friendship B．relation C．love D．couple
A．perfect B．lucky C．distant D．close
A．away B．out C．in D．around
A．always B．sometimes C．never D．ever
A．believe in B．depend on C．take care of D．watch out for
I arrived in the United States on February 6, 1997, but I remember my first day there very clearly. My friend was waiting for me when my plane____26____at Kennedy Airport at three o’clock in the afternoon. The weather was very cold and it was snowing, but I was_____27____
excited to mind. From the airport, my friend and I ______28_____a taxi to my hotel. On the way, I saw the skyline of Manhattan for the first time and I stared_____29_____astonishment at the famous skyscrapers and their_____30_____beauty. My friend helped me unpack at the hotel and then_____31____me because he_____32_____go back to work. He_____33_____to return the next day.
______34____ my friend had left, I went to a restaurant near the hotel to get something to eat. Because I_____35____speak a word of English, I couldn’t ____36____the waiter what I wanted. I was very upset and ____37_____to make some gestures, _____38_____the waiter didn’t understand me. Finally, I______39_____the same thing the man_____40_____the next table was eating. After dinner, I started to walk along Broadway______41_____I came to Time Square with its movie theatres, and huge_____42_____people. I didn’t feel tired so I continued to walk_______43_____the city.
When I returned to the hotel, I couldn’t sleep because I ______44______hearing the fire and police sirens(汽笛) during the night. I______45_____awake and thought about New York. I decided that I had to learn to speak English.
A．took off B．landed C．got out D．took down
A．too B．so C．very D．much
A．got B．took up C．got on D．took
A．in B．at C．for D．to
A．old-make B．man-made C．newly-make D．natural
A．had left B．would leave C．left D．was leaving
A．must B．had to C．should D．ought
A．agreed B．said C．told D．promised
A．Shortly after B．Long before C．Shortly D．Soon
A．couldn’t B．could C．didn’t D．did
A．ask B．say C．tell D．order
A．begun B．started C．must D．started to
A．and B．so C．then D．but
A．ordered B．booked C．asked D．got
A．on B．for C．at D．to
A．when B．until C．after D．before
A．crowds of B．groups of C．crowd of D．group of
A．around B．in C．by D．near
A．was B．went C．kept D．started
A．was B．lay C．laid D．were
James was a curious young man. Everywhere he went, he liked to observe things and to __21__ people—what they did, what they said and what they wore. Subconsciously, he was making quick __22__ all the time. He couldn’t really __23__ it; it just happened.
For example, he once saw a man whose body was __24__ with tattoos(文身). That man was strong and walked proudly. James imagined his __25__ people up, sometimes with sticks and sometimes with his hands, speaking __26__ words each time he opened his mouth. A troublemaker, perhaps, James __27__ to himself.
Sometimes James felt __28__ for judging others this way, but that feeling was __29__ and never really lasted.
Then, one day, he saw a woman seated alone in a café. The woman was __30__, quite fat, and although she was not __31__, James could tell she was a short lady. __32__, James glanced across at her, looking at her from top to bottom. As his eyes reached her __33__, he got a shock.
There she was, on her left foot, wearing a platform shoe that was at least 3 inches high. __34__ could such a little middle-aged lady who was average-looking at best be so vain as to wear high platforms? Look beautiful? In that short moment of time, __35__ thoughts flowed through James’ mind.
A second later, James’ eyes naturally moved across to the lady’s right foot. And there, he got an even bigger __36__. ----It was a flat shoe. She was not vain; she had a birth defect(缺陷) ----uneven length of her legs. If anything, she deserved __37__ and understanding, certainly not blame, not even mental ones.
James was __38__ with guilt. It was a(n) __39__ lesson he learned about not __40__ conclusions, about not judging people, especially so quickly.
A．greet B．watch C．meet D．cheat
A．mistakes B．progress C．judgments D．promises
A．help B．get C．accept D．keep
A．faced B．covered C．filled D．charged
A．cheering B．dressing C．beating D．holding
A．humorous B．modest C．bad D．cautious
A．thought B．proved C．explained D．told
A．curious B．guilty C．excited D．happy
A．temporary B．strange C．permanent D．deep
A．young B．middle-aged C．old D．pretty
A．speaking B．standing C．sitting D．walking
A．Therefore B．However C．As well D．As usual
A．feet B．hands C．eyes D．legs
A．When B．Why C．How D．What
A．inspiring B．blaming C．persuading D．defending
A．pleasure B．honor C．comfort D．shock
A．love B．award C．sympathy D．respect
A．hit B．started C．equipped D．struck
A．new B．valuable C．interesting D．difficult
A．denying B．reaching C．leading to D．jumping to
A beggar, carrying a shabby(破旧的) old wallet, was begging alone from house to house. As he complained about his 36 , he kept wondering that people who lived in 37 houses should always be unsatisfied, 38 rich they might be, and they should go so far as to 39 all they have.
“Here, for example,” he said, the former master of this house succeeded in trading, and made himself very rich. By then, instead of stopping, and handing over his 40 to another, and spending the rest of his years 41 peace, he took to(从事) equipping ships. He expected to get mountains of gold; but the ships were 42 , and his treasures were lost. Now they all lie at the bottom of the sea, and he has found his 43 disappeared like those in dreams. In short, examples of this are 44.
At this moment Fortune suddenly appeared to the beggar and said, “Listen! I have long wished to 45 you. Here are a lot of gold coins I have found. Hold out your wallet, and I will fill it with them; but only on this condition: All shall be gold that falls into the wallet, but if 46 of them falls out of the wallet to the ground, it 47 become dust. Consider this well. I have warned you I shall 48 keep my word. Your wallet is old, don’t fill it 49 its power.” The beggar was almost too overjoyed to breathe. He 50 felt the ground below his feet. A stream of coins were poured 51 it. The wallet soon became rather heavy.
“Is that 52 ?” “Not yet,” “Isn’t it 53 ?” “Never fear.” “Consider, you are a millionaire.” “Just a little more, just 54 a handful,” But at that moment the wallet broke, the gold coins 55 dust and Fortune disappeared. The beggar had nothing but his empty wallet and remained as poor as before.
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