There is a Web site called the “World Database of Happiness.” It combines and analyzes the results of hundreds of surveys from around the world that have been conducted on life satisfaction. Most of the findings are predictable, but a few are surprising.
The database makes it clear that there is not a strong connection between material wealth and general contentment. It is a cliché to say that money can’t buy happiness, but the old saying seems to be supported by research. Many people still cling to the belief that gaining riches will be the answer to all their problems, yet they are probably mistaken.
Studies have been carried out on people who acquired sudden wealth, such as lottery winners. In most cases, after the initial joy had worn off, people were not left with a sense of lasting happiness. In fact, they tended to revert to the way they felt before they became rich. Previously contented people continue to be contented, while those who were miserable before sink back into misery.
If material wealth does not bring happiness, then what does? Perhaps happiness has something to do with where you live. The authorities at the World Database on Happiness have surveyed levels of happiness in different countries. Apparently, people in America, Canada, and Singapore are very happy; people living in India and Russia, not surprisingly, are not happy.
Other surveys consistently point to the importance of relationships. Family relationships in particular seem to be the key to long-term contentment. The Web site suggests that falling in love and having children are two of the situations that bring the greatest happiness.
Nowadays people look to technology as an alternative source of satisfaction. People increasingly spend more time alone watching TV or surfing the Internet rather than spending time with family. Can technology truly make people happy? It is too difficult to tell, but one thing is sure: If the Web site’s research is accurate, time spent with your family is a better investment than time spent making money. Which description is right according to the passage?
| A．The material wealth and general contentment are strongly connected with each other. |
| B．The more one’s wealth is, the happier he will be. |
| C．Many people have wrong concept towards the relation between love and money. |
| D．Money can solve all the problems. |
Which factor can bring lasting happiness definitely according to the study?
| A．Sudden wealth. | B．Surfing the Internet. |
| C．Family relationship. | D．Winning lottery. |
If you get extra money, ______.
| A．you will be happy permanently |
| B．you will be happy temporarily |
| C．your life will be the same regardless of the extra money. |
| D．you will change your life style for a long run. |
What’s the author’s attitude towards technology according to the passage?
| A．Technology is the key to happiness. |
| B．Technology has nothing to do with happiness. |
| C．Technology can guarantee the long-term contentment. |
| D．The author is not sure about the relationship between technology and happiness. |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．Love or money? |
| B．Love and technology |
| C．Material wealth can guarantee happiness |
| D．Studies on sudden wealth |
The Antarctica is actually a desert. It is the only continent on the earth without a river or a lake.
The Antarctica is all ice all year round. The warmest temperature ever recorded there is zero, at the South Pole. Explorers used to think that a place so cold would have a heavy snowfall. But less than ten inches of snow falls each year. That is less than half an inch of water. Ten times that much moisture (水份) falls in parts of the Sahara.
The little snow that falls in Antarctica never melts. It continues to pile up deeper and deeper year after year and century after century. When the snow gets to be about eighty feet deep it is turned to ice by the weight of snow above it .
Antarctica is called a desert because it_______.
| A．is sandy. |
| B．has the same temperature as a desert. |
| C．has little moisture and no lakes or rivers. |
| D．there are no people there. |
Antarctica has_______.
| A．ten times as much moisture as the Sahara. |
| B．the same amount of moisture as the Sahara. |
| C．about one—tenth of the moisture of the Sahara. |
| D．none of the above. |
The snow in Antarctica is very deep because it_______.
A. never stops falling. B. piles up year after year.
C. never melts. D. both B and C.
The snow turns to ice when______.
| A．it gets wet. |
| B．the next snowfall comes. |
| C．the temperature gets colder. |
| D．the snow above it is heavy enough. |
With the development of society, the choice of food and drinks for children is more diversified(多样化) than ever before. However, every coin has two sides. Many facts suggest that children are overweight and the situation is getting worse, according to the statistics(数据统计). I feel there are a number of reasons for this.
Some people blame（责怪）the fact that we are surrounded by shops selling unhealthy, fatty foods, such as fried chicken and ice cream, at low prices. This has turned out a whole generation of grown-ups who seldom cook a meal for themselves. If there were fewer of these restaurants then probably children would buy less take-away food.
There is another argument that blames parents for allowing their children to become overweight. I agree to this, because good eating habits begin early in life, long before children start to visit fast food shops. If children are given fried chicken and chocolate rather than healthy food, or are always allowed to choose what they eat, they will go for sweet and salty foods every time, and this will carry on throughout their lives.
There is a third reason for this situation. Children these days take very little exercise. They do not walk to school. When they get home, they sit in front of the television or their computers. Not only is this an unhealthy pastime（消遣）, it also gives them time to eat more unhealthy food. What they need is to go outside and play active games or sports.
The above are the main reasons for this problem, and therefore we have to encourage young people to be more active, as well as guiding them away from fast food shops and bad eating habits.What is suggested by the author to deal with “overweight”?
| A．Blaming the shops selling unhealthy and fatty foods. |
| B．Asking young children to walk to school every day. |
| C．Living an active life and giving up bad eating habits. |
| D．Not watching TV or playing computer games after school. |
Which of the following shows the structure of the whole text?
The author writes the passage to __________
| A．show people a social problem |
| B．provide facts for government |
| C．advise solutions to a problem |
| D．compare opinions with people |
Finished school for the summer? It’s great to kick back and relax after the school year-and you deserve it! －but it might also be the time to start building that resume(履历) to help you impress the college of your choice. Having a great resume doesn’t just mean getting a summer job; lots of activities can help you stay active and gain valuable experience over the summer months.
| ·Work Getting a job is one of the most practical ways to build your resume and impress colleges, even if working during the school year is not an option（选择）, look out for specific holiday jobs, like residential（寄宿的）summer camps that look for help during the summer months. Any job is good, but working in a leadership position or in an academic area looks particularly good on your resume. The more a job challenges you, the more it builds the skills that colleges and future employers are interested in seeing in applicants(申请者). |
| ·Volunteer Give back to gain resume points. Community service is another great way to gain valuable work and leadership experience. Nonprofit（非利益性） organizations such as soup kitchens and animal shelters are always looking for volunteers, and it shouldn’t be difficult to find a volunteer organization near your home that could use an extra pair of hands for a few hours a week during the summer. |
| ·Travel This may not be a viable（可行的）option for everyone, but if you can afford it, summer travel can be an exciting way to enrich your mind and improve your resume. Visiting and exploring（探索） foreign places will broaden your horizons（视野）, allowing you to expand your awareness of other people and cultures. It’s also a great chance to develop your language skills. |
| ·Take Classes “School” might be the last thing you want after a hard year of studying, but summer school isn’t always a bad thing. Colleges may look kindly upon applicants who take the initiative（主动）to further their education over the summer. There are a variety of options available for high school students wishing to take summer courses, both at their own schools and at local colleges. If your high school offers summer classes, they could be a great way to advance your math or language skills, two areas that are often lacking on students’ college applications. Local community colleges also offer summer courses for high school juniors and seniors that cover a variety of introductory-level topics. They not only look great on your transcript（成绩单）, but also provide a chance to improve your preparations for college and allow you to explore possible career options. |
What is the main benefit of summer activities according to the text?
| A．To enjoy yourself to the full. |
| B．To enrich your resume. |
| C．To develop certain skills. |
| D．To improve your academic performance. |
What is the most practical activity to do during summer vacation?
| A．Getting a job. | B．Traveling overseas. |
| C．Doing volunteer work. | D．Attending classes. |
According to the text, “soup kitchens and animal shelters” .
| A．are places that you can travel to |
| B．might be included in summer courses |
| C．are recommended（推荐）as part-time jobs for the summer |
| D．can be good volunteer jobs |
.Why is “taking classes” recommended in the article?
| A．It only takes a few hours a week. |
| B．It can enrich your career experience. |
| C．It can prepare you for further study. |
| D．It can raise your cultural awareness. |
As children enter their teens, they usually begin to pay more attention to their peers (同龄人) or friends. Peer pressure (压力) can be direct or indirect, but it is almost always present. Learning to deal with peer pressure makes a teen mature (成熟的), and able to get along well with others.
Bad peer pressure is when teens feel pressured to do something that they know is wrong, such as smoking, drinking, or drugs (毒品), and it can remain (保持) with them into adulthood. This is the main reason teens have to learn how to deal with it.
Some of the things you can do to deal with peer pressure include:
● Choose friends who share your values. Good friends use positive (正面的) peer pressure to help you be your best self.
● Keep away from situations where people are doing things you don’t want to do.
● Think about your reasons for doing things. Are they good reasons? Are you being true to yourself and your values?
● Practice ways of saying no, giving excuses if necessary.
● Talk to your parents, or other trusted adults, about the kinds of peer pressure you face, and listen to their advice.
● Let the adults know when you need help to get out of a bad situation, and don’t know what to do about it.
Remember that if just one teen stands up to (对抗) peer pressure, usually others will join him or her. Learning to deal with peer pressure will make you confident and mature.According to the passage, which of the following is true?
| A．Peer pressure includes direct and indirect pressure. |
| B．Peer pressure comes from smoking, drinking and using drugs. |
| C．Teens facing pressure can’t tell right from wrong. |
| D．Teens who face pressure are more mature than those who don’t |
Teens should learn to deal with peer pressure mainly because ______.
| A．it can keep them from making serious mistakes |
| B．it can influence them even when they have grown up |
| C．learning to deal with it can help them get along well with others |
| D．learning to deal with it can make them mature and confident |
According to the passage, teens should ______.
| A．stay away from people who don’t share their values |
| B．have good reasons for anything they do |
| C．say no more often than yes |
| D．ask adults they trust for help |
Which column(专栏) of a magazine may the passage be from?
| A．Social problem. | B．School news. |
| C．For teens. | D．Science. |
After an absence of thirty years, I decided to visit my old school again. I had expected to find changes, but not a completely different building. As I walked up the school drive, I wondered for a moment if I had come to the right address. The dirty red brick houses had been swept away. In its place stood a bright, modern block. A huge expanse of glass extended (延展) across the face of the building, and in front, there was a well-kept lawn (草坪) where previously there had been “an untidy gravel (沙石) yard”.
I was pleased to find that it was bread time and that the children were all in the playground. This would enable me to meet some members of staff(职员). On entering the building, I was surprised to hear loud laughter coming from what appeared to be the masters’ common room. I could not help remembering the teachers in my time, all dressed in black gowns (长袍) and high collars (领子). And above all, I recalled Mr Garston whom we had nicknamed “Mr Ghastly”, the headmaster who had iron discipline(纪律) on staff and pupils alike. I knocked at the common room door and was welcomed by a smiling young man who introduced himself to me as the headmaster. He was dressed casually in a sports jacket, and his cheerful manner, quickly dispelled (驱散) the image of Mr Ghastly. After I had explained who I was, the headmaster presented me to the teachers all of whom were a little younger than himself, and said he would take me round the school.
Here the biggest surprise of all was in store for (在等待)me. Gone were the heavy desks of old with their deeply carved names; gone too, were the dark classrooms with their ink stained, dark brown walls, and their raised platforms for the teachers. The rooms now were painted in bright colors, and the children, far from sitting straight in their places, seemed almost free to do as they liked. I looked with envy(嫉妒) as I remembered how, as a child, I had looked at the blackboard hardly daring to whisper to my neighbor. “Mr Ghastly” must be ______.
| A．the writer’s teacher | B．a serious old man |
| C．the strict headmaster | D．a naughty boy |
Which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．He had expected that the school had completely changed. |
| B．In the writer’s time, all the teachers were dressed in black gowns and high collars. |
| C．There was a well-kept lawn in their school when he visited it. |
| D．An untidy gravel yard had disappeared. |
From what is said in the passage, it seems clear that the writer ______.
| A．disapproved of all the changes that had taken place |
| B．felt sorry for the children in the school |
| C．was glad that the school was still the same |
| D．felt that conditions at the school had improved a lot |
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