Americans love to talk and generally it is OK to talk even to strangers about nearly any subject at any time as long as you are polite．However there are some subjects，like racism，American foreign policy，gun ownership，and religion that are best discussed among friends．
In America，it is OK to approach a stranger and start up a conversation with him as long as the subject is not too abstract．In America，it is not considered inappropriate to talk to people you don’t know．Talking to a stranger about the weather or the quality of nearby restaurants，or the prices in a grocery store is all perfectly fine．Even complimenting someone on the car they drive or asking them where they bought their clothes are all appropriate topics of conversation with complete strangers．
Generally，Americans prefer that people say what they think and they respect frankness．Usually when it comes to personal matters，it’s best to accentuate(强调)the positive：don’t tell someone that their children are ugly or that their cooking is terrible．However；it’s OK to tell someone that they are wrong as long as you do so politely and with respect．Americans generally believe that you show someone respect by telling them the truth．Don’t be afraid to be honest with Americans，but be appropriate．
Most Americans will start a conversation with a person they just met by asking them what they do for a living．This question is not only considered appropriate by Americans，but it’s also considered an important way to learn about someone．The passage mainly tells us ．
| A．how to make friends with Americans |
| B．how to make proper conversations with Americans |
| C．what Americans like to talk about in their dailv life |
| D．what to avoid in talking with Americans |
When you talk to an American for the first time，you can ask him the following questions EXCEPT “ ”.
| A．How does America treat other countries |
| B．Where did you buy your wonderful car |
| C．What do you do |
| D．How is the dessert the nearby restaurant offers |
When you find that an American has made a mistake, you’d better ．
| A．point it out directly and politely |
| B．pretend not to see it |
| C．tell his friends about this |
| D．cover it up for him |
“Old wives’ tales” are beliefs passed from one generation to another. For example, most of us remember our parents’ telling us to eat more of certain foods or not to do certain things. Is there any truth in these teachings? Some of them agree with present medical thinking, but others have not passed the test of time.
Did your mother ever tell you to eat your carrots because they are good for your eyes? Scientists now report that eating carrots can help prevent a serious eye disease called macular degeneration. Eating just one carrot a day can reduce the possibility of getting this disease by 40%. Garlic(蒜) is good for you, too. It can kill the type of virus that causes colds.
Unfortunately, not all of Mom’s advice passed the test of medical studies. For example, generations of children have been told not to go swimming within an hour after eating. But research suggests that there is no danger in doing so. Do sweets cause tooth problems? Well, yes and no. Sticky sweets made with grains tend to cause more problems than sweets made with simple sugars.
Even though science can tell us that some of our traditional beliefs don’t hold water, there is still a lot of truth in the old wives’ tales. After all, much of this knowledge has been accumulated(积累) from thousands of years of experience in family health care. We should respect this body of knowledge even as we search for clear scientific support to prove it true or false.The author develops the third paragraph mainly .
| A．by cause and effect | B．by order in space |
| C．by examples | D．by order in time |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
| A．Eating garlic is good for our eyes. |
| B．Carrots prevent people from catching colds. |
| C．Swimming after a meal is dangerous. |
| D．Sticky sweets are damaging to our teeth. |
What is the author’s attitude toward “old wives’ tales” in the text?
| A．Objective. | B．Subjective. | C．Dissatisfied. | D．Curious. |
The phrase “hold water” in the last paragraph most probably means “ .”
| A．to be valuable | B．to be believable |
| C．to be admirable | D．to be suitable |
Fish have different personalities which change as they experience life’s highs and lows．according to British biologists．
Researchers identified different“personalities” in their fish by observing the boldness or shyness of individuals，according to The Nature．Like people，some fish are very confident in the face of novelty(新奇事物)or conflict；while others are silent and fear．
The scientists selected particularly bold and shy rainbow trout，and tested whether they changed their outlook depending on what life threw at them．They arranged some fish to fight and others to watch to see how both the participants and observers responded to victories and defeats．Winning or losing a fight，or even watching fellow fish overcome the difficulties influenced the future behavior of the creatures studied in the lab．
The researchers made fish compete with much larger or smaller opponents．to ensure that they would win or lose their fights．These bold fish that won their fights tended to be even bolder when later presented with a novel food item；losing their fight caused them to be much more cautious．
Fish also learn by watching others．Bold fish watching a shy fish exploring a mystery object were much more nervous when later given a novelty item for themselves．
Predictably，shy fish that won a fight also gained more confidence，but surprisingly，shy fish that lost their fights also grew bolder when exploring strange new food，Sneddon said，adding that this could be due to what she calls a“desperado effect”(亡命徒效应)．
The new research suggests that animals can gradually adapt their personalities．The results echo the effects that life experience can have on human．What does．the underlined word“creatures’’probably refer to?
| A．Fish． | B．Participants． | C．Observers． | D．Researchers． |
The third paragraph of the text is mainly about—————．
| A．a conclusion of the research |
| B．an explanation of fish characters |
| C．a statement of the experiment |
| D．a description of fish fights |
What can we know from the research?
| A．Bold losing fish become—e bolder when presented With a novel food item． |
| B．Losing their fights causes the bold fish to be much more courageous． |
| C．Bold fish watching a shy fish exploring a mystery get less nervous． |
| D．Shy fish losing fights grow more confident in exploring new food． |
What’s the main idea of the text?’
| A．Fish have stress in the fierce fights． |
| B．Fish care about winning or losing a fight． |
| C．Fish have adaptable personalities． |
| D．Fish can learn a lot by watching others． |
The London 20120lympics are being praised as a sporting and logistical(后勤)success，but the influence on economy is far less certain．Some London tourist attractions，businesses and hotels reported that their business actually fell during the Games．But as Olly Barratt reports from London，the overall UK economy is looking for long-term results．
Showing an Olympic-sized party like this cost the UK almost l 5 billion dollars．But while spectators went to east London’S Olympic Park，central London has been much quieter than。normal． Arthur lRason，a central London stallholder，said，“Am I taking less? Yeah，I’m taking less．There’S no question about it．”
Restaurants were among businesses that reported lower takings than normal at this time of year．And one tourism trade association says a survey of its members found the Games had had a negative influence all over the UK．But during the recent recession(不景气)，British officials still insist the Games were worth it．Boris Johnson，Mayor of London said，“I think it’S been an amazing display of what you can do if you plan and you work for years and years on a project．
And I think it’s a great advertisement for British engineering and British industry．" The government hopes the Games will be a great help to the British brand worldwide，and they are also an opportunity to sweet-talk potential investors from all over the world．And a fall in takings for some attractions should not have come as a surprise．Where is the London’S Olympic Park located?
| A．Central London． | B．East London． |
| C．West London． | D．Outside London． |
Mayor of London thinks the Games’effect on British economy is——．
| A．positive | B．disappointing |
| C．negative | D．uncertain |
What can we learn from the text?
| A．The British government did badly in organizing the Games． |
| B．Businesses in central London were improved during the Games． |
| C．Most British businessmen thought poorly of the London Games． |
| D．Most British officials were worried about the future of British economy． |
Three—quarters of a million tourists flock to the white beaches every year，but this booming industry has come at a price．Poisonous smoke rising from open fires，rubbish made up of plastic bottles，packets…it’S a far cry from the white sands，clear waters and palm trees that we associate with the Maldives(马尔代夫)，the paradise island holiday destination set in the Indian Ocean．
of its 200 inhabited islands，which are spread across an area of"35，000 square miles，99 are good resorts(旅游胜地)．So many tourists come every year，more than double the local population．Of these，over l 00，000 travel from the U K．The capital，Mal6，is four times more densely populated than London．Given these facts，it’S hardly surprising that the Maldives has a waste disposal problem．
Y ears a90，when the tourists left，the government had to deal with a stream of rubbish．Their solution was to turn one of the islands into a dumping ground．Four miles west of Mal6 is the country’s dumping ground，Thilafushi．What you are seeing here is a view of the Maldives on which no honeymooners will ever clap eyes．Each visitor produces 3．5 kg of waste per day．The country dumps more than 330 tons of rubbish on the island every day．
Now，since many waste boats，fed up with waiting seven hours or more，directly offload their goods into the sea，the government of the Maldives has banned the dumping of waste on the island．S0，the waste boats ship the rubbish to India instead．What is the main cause of the waste disposal problem?
| A．The big local population． | B．Too many waste boats． |
| C．The large number of tourists． | D．Open fires on the islands． |
The underlined part can probably be replaced by“——”．
| A．it’s quite similar to | B．it’S a long distance from |
| C．it’s a loud shout from | D．it’S totally different from |
What can we learn from the text?
| A．It iS much more crowded in Mal6 than in London． |
| B．Another island will be used as a dumping ground． |
| C．No honeymooners are willing to visit the Maldives． |
| D．Waste on islands will be offloaded directly into the sea． |
What’S the author’S purpose in writing the text?
| A．To attract more tourists to the Maldives． |
| B．To state the waste disposal problem in the Maldives． |
| C．To call on us to protect the environment． |
| D．To explain the causes of pollution in the Maldives． |
Captain Henry，a 98"year—old American retired fisherman，has become a first—time author．having written and published his autobiography In a Fisherman’s Language after learning to read at the age of 91．
Mr.Henry spent most of his life without even his closest family members knowing he wasilliterate(不识字的)．Forced to quit school in the third grade to take odd jobs，he kept the secret close to his chest，only telling his late wife．Henry’s granddaughter，Marlisa，told reporters how he used tricks，like waiting for others to order at restaurants first，to avoid the issue．
A family dispute(纠纷)in his 90s，she said，aroused his desire for education．“He signed a document he could not read about where he was going to live， Marlisa said．Starting with his name，he eventually moved on to the ABC’s and children’s books．He put them down since his wife fell ill．After the tragic loss of his wife，、he went back to reading and began to log his life．He wrote about his family’s voyage from Portugal to the US，how he went on to captain a boat，and his many journeys at sea．
His life stories have become so popular that nearly 800 copies were sold in the first two weeks after the book’s release．One thousand more have since been printed as requests for the book flood in from as far as Germany．And now even Hollywood producers have approached Mr．Henry about buying the rights to his life story for a big screen adaptation．
The family also now has a book agent and a deal in the works to publish a second edition．Meanwhile，the family says they are reconnecting and closer than ever as a result of Henry’s．1ate—life efforts．.“Everyone has a story，”Marlisa said．“It teaches that when you’re down and out． never give up.”When did Henry begin writing his life story?
| A．When he was 91 years old． | B．After his wife passed away． |
| C．When he was 98 years old． | D．After he retired from work． |
Which of the following is true?
| A．Hollywood wishes to make a movie out of his book． |
| B．Henry never told anyone that he couldn’t read or write． |
| C．Henry began his reading with some famous novels． |
| D．Henry’s book was well-received only by Americans． |
How did Henry’s family benefit from his writing?
A．The family got more money from the 2nd edition．
B．The family ties were rebuilt and strengthened．
C．His family moved from Portugal to the USA．
D．His family story has been made into a movie．What message can Henry’s story give us?
| A．Great minds think alike． | B．Every coin has two sides． |
| C．Practice makes perfect． | D．One is never too old to learn． |
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