Two travelling angels stopped to spend the night in the home of a wealthy family. The family was impolite and refused to let the angels stay in the guest room. Instead the angels were given a space in the cold underground room. As they made their bed on the hard floor, the older angel saw a hole in the wall and repaired it. When the younger angel asked why, the older angel replied, "Things aren't always what they seem."
The next night the pair came to rest at the house of a very poor, but very kind farmer and his wife. After sharing what little food they had, the couple let the angels sleep in their bed where they could have a good night's rest. When the sun came up the next morning, the angels found the farmer and his wife in tears. Their only cow, whose milk had been their only income, lay dead in the field.
The younger angel was very angry and asked the older angel, "How could this happen? Why did you not watch out for the cow? The first man had everything, yet you watched over his house," she accused. "The second family had little but was willing to share everything, and you did not help."
"Things aren't always what they seem," the older angel replied. "When we stayed in the underground room , I noticed there was gold stored in that hole in the wall. Since the owner was so greedy and unwilling to share his good fortune, I asked God if I could seal the wall so he couldn't find it. Then last night as we slept in the farmer's bed, the angel of death came for his wife. I asked God if the angel could take the cow instead. You see, things aren't always what they seem. "Why did the older angel repair the hole for the rich family?
| A．Because she didn't like the greedy owner. |
| B．Because she wanted to save the gold for the poor. |
| C．Because the underground room was too cold to stay in. |
| D．Because she believed that one should always be ready to offer help. |
The younger angel was very angry because ________.
| A．the older angel killed the farmer's cow |
| B．the older angel treated the two families differently |
| C．the wealthy man gave them a bad place to live in |
| D．the angel of death took the cow away |
Why did the older angel let the farmer's cow die?
| A．Because God wanted the older angel to take the cow. |
| B．Because she wanted to teach the younger angel a lesson. |
| C．Because she wanted to save the farmer's wife. |
| D．Because she was sympathetic to the rich. |
The story tries to tell readers that ________.
| A．angels are always ready to help the poor |
| B．sometimes things are not what they seem |
| C．angels are always ready to help the rich |
| D．the young should always learn from the old |
Since we are social beings, the quality of our lives depends in large measure on our interpersonal relationships. One strength of the human conditions is our possibility to give and receive support from one another under stressful(有压力的) conditions. Social support makes up of the exchange of resources among people based on their interpersonal ties. Those of us with strong support systems appear better able to deal with major life changes and daily problems. People with strong social ties live longer and have better health than those without such ties. Studies over types of illnesses, from depression to heart disease, show that the presence of social support helps people defend themselves against illness, and the absence of such support makes poor health more likely.
Social support cushions stress in a number of ways. First, friends, relatives and co-workers may let us know that they value us. Our self-respect is strengthened when we feel accepted by others in spite of our faults and difficulties. Second, other people often provide us with informational support. They help us to define and understand our problems and find solutions to them. Third, we typically find social companionship supportive. Taking part in free-time activities with others helps us to meet our social needs while at the same time distracting(转移注意力) us from our worries and troubles. Finally, other people may give us instrumental support — money aid, material resources, and needed services — that reduces stress by helping us resolve and deal with our problems. Interpersonal relationships are important because they can _______.
| A．make people live more easily | B．smooth away daily problems |
| C．deal with life changes | D．cure types of illnesses |
The researches show that people's physical and mental health _______.
| A．lies in the social medical care systems which support them |
| B．has much to do with the amount of support they get from others |
| C．depends on their ability to deal with daily worries and troubles |
| D．is related to their courage for dealing with major life changes |
Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined word “cushions” ?
| A．takes place of | B．makes up of | C．lessens the effect of | D．gets rid of |
Helping a sick neighbor with some repair work in spare time is an example of _______.
| A．instrumental support | B．informational support |
| C．social companionship | D．the strengthening of self-respect |
What is the subject discussed in the text?
| A．Interpersonal relationships. | B．Kinds of social support. |
| C．Ways to deal with stress. | D．Effects of stressful conditions. |
Perhaps the most famous theory, the study of body movement, was suggested by Professor Ray Birdwhistell. He believes that physical appearance is often culturally programmed. In other words, we learn our looks—we are not born with them. A baby has generally informed face features. A baby, according to Birdwhistell, learns where to set the eyebrows by looking at those around-family and friends. This helps explain why the people of some areas of the United States look so much alike, new Englanders or Southerners have certain common face features that cannot be explained by genetics(遗传学). The exact shape of the mouth is not set at birth, it is learned after. In fact, the final mouth shape is not formed until well after new teeth are set. For many, this can be well into grown-ups. A husband and wife together for a long time often come to look alike. We learn our looks from those around us. This is perhaps why in a single country area where people smile more than those in other areas. In the United States, for example, the South is the part of the country where the people smile most frequently. In New England they smile less, and in the western part of New York State still less. Many southerners find cities such as New York cold and unfriendly, partly because people on Madison Avenue smile less than people on Peachtree Street in Atlanta. Georgia. People in Atlanta, Georgia. People in largely populated areas also smile and greet each other in public less than people in small towns do. Ray Birdwhistell believes that physical appearance _______.
| A．has little to do with culture | B．has much to do with culture |
| C．is ever changing | D．is different from place to place |
According to the passage, the final mouth shape is formed _______.
| A．before birth | B．as soon as one’s teeth are newly set |
| C．sometime after new teeth are set | D．around 15 years old |
Ray Birdwhistell can tell what area of the United States a person is from by _______.
| A．how much he or she laughs | B．how he or she raises his or her eyebrows |
| C．what he or she likes best | D．the way he or she talks |
This passage might have been taken out of a book dealing with ________.
| A．physics | B．chemistry | C．biology | D．none of the above |
Some spiders hunt on the ground, others build webs to trap their food, but the grass water spider catches its prey by running along the surface of the water.
This special water spider lives on the grassy banks of streams where mosquitoes, damsel flies and other insects come to feed and breed.
Although it is one of the largest spiders in New Zealand, it has an unusual ability. It doesn’t disturb the water as it waits for its meal, and there is barely a ripple(波纹) when it skims(掠过) across the surface at lightning speed to catch its prey.
Grass water spiders deal swiftly with larger insects like damsel flies by pulling their heads under the water and holding them there until they drown.
After a meal, the grass water spider spends up to half an hour grooming(修饰) itself. It wipes its eight eyes, brushes its antennae(触角), and takes special care to clean the hairs on its body.
It is the hairs that trap tiny bubbles(泡沫) of air so that the spider can run down a blade(叶片) of grass and stay underwater for up to an hour when it is frightened. The hairs also keep the spider dry, even underwater.
It is only when the female spider is caring for the young that she does not hunt on the water. After mating, she produces a large egg sac(囊), which she carries around for five weeks. Once the eggs start to hatch, she attaches the sac to some blades of grass or a thistle. She then tears the sac open and releases the tiny spiders into the nursery web. How does the grass water spider kill its prey?
| A．in a web | B．by drowning | C．by poisoning | D．with its antennae |
the writer describes the special spider as “special” because _______.
| A．it walks on water | B．it has eight eyes |
| C．of its hairy appearance | D．of the way it produces its young |
The passage tells us that the spider ______.
| A．feeds grass and thistles to its young. | B．lives on blades of grass under the water |
| C．lives in the grass on the banks of streams | D．eats a meal once every five weeks |
The purpose of the passage is to _______.
| A．convince readers that spiders are dangerous |
| B．indicate that the grass water spider is endangered |
| C．list all of the spiders that can be found in New Zealand |
| D．describe the characteristics of the grass water spider |
Space travel is definitely bad for astronauts’ bones, reducing their bone density(密度) after only a month of weightlessness, according to French research published on Friday.
Laurence Vico and his fellow workers at St Etienne University called for more research into the effects of microgravity, after their study of 15 astronauts from the Russian MIR station showed bone loss continued throughout space flights.
“Bone loss was especially striking in four astronauts, ” the scientists reported in the Lancet Medical Journal.
They measured the bone mineral density (BMD) of bones in the forearm(前臂) and lower leg of the astronauts who had spent one to six months in space.
The BMD loss was significant in the tibia(胫骨) of the lower leg, a weight-bearing bone, but barely changed in the radius(桡骨) of the forearm. “Our results indicate the need to investigate not only different bones, but also different areas of the same bone since not all sites of the skeleton (骨架) are similarly affected by space conditions, ” they added.
Without gravity the body isn’t bearing any weight so there is no need for calcium (钙) which makes bones strong, and it becomes empty into the bloodstream.
The research team suggested in future scientists should try to determine if the loss of bone density was only on weight-bearing bones on longer flights, also the possible recovery after returning to Earth. French scientists did their research on Russian astronauts, because _______.
| A．they only cared for the Russian astronauts |
| B．they were not interested in their own astronauts |
| C．the Russian government invited them to do their research |
| D．the Russian astronauts worked in space for a long time |
Scientists have found that _______.
| A．the BMD loss may cause serious illness to astronauts |
| B．the BMD loss may cause some change in astronauts’ bodies |
| C．astronauts shouldn’t care about the BMD loss |
| D．astronauts should take some calcium before space travel |
What cause the BMD loss to astronauts, according to this passage?
| A．The food they eat in space. | B．The drinks they take in space. |
| C．The temperature in space. | D．The gravity in space. |
In the third paragraph, the word “striking” means ______.
| A．unusual | B．simple | C．weak | D．slow |
Technology is the application(应用) of knowledge to production. Thanks to modern technology, we have been able to increase greatly the efficiency of our work force. New machines and new methods have helped cut down time and expense while increasing overall output. This has meant more production and a higher standard of living. For most of us in America, modern technology is thought of as the reason why we can have cars and television sets. However, technology has also increased the amount of food available to us, by means of modern farming machinery and animal breeding techniques, and has extended our life span via(通过) medical technology.
Will mankind continue to live longer and have a higher quality of life? In large measure the answer depends on technology and our ability to use it widely. If we keep making progress as we have over the past fifty years, the answer is definitely yes. The advancement of technology depends upon research and development, and the latest statistics(统计) show that the United States is continuing to pump billions of dollars annually(每年) into such efforts. So while we are running out of some scarce resources(少的资源) we may well find technological substitutes(代用品)for many of them through our research programs.
Therefore, in the final analysis the three major factors of production(land, labor and capital) are all influenced by technology. When we need new skills, on techniques in medicine, people will start developing new technology to meet those needs. As equipment proves to be slow or inefficient, new machines will be invented. Technology responds to our needs in helping us maintain our standard of living. What is the best title for the passage?
| A．The definition of technology | B．Modern technology |
| C．The application of technology | D．The development of technology |
Which is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Modern technology is the key to the improvement of standard of living. |
| B．The three major factors of production (land, labor and capital) are all influenced by technology. |
| C．Technology is the response to our needs. |
| D．The United States is making great efforts to advance its technology. |
According to the passage, people can live a long life with the help of _______.
| A．higher quality of life | B．medical technology |
| C．modern farming machinery | D．technological substitute |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号