In the 1950s, a family that owned a farm near Beulah, Michigan kept a bull chained to an elm (榆树). The bull paced around the tree, dragging the heavy iron chain, which led to a groove (槽) in the bark . The groove deepened over the years. Though for whatever reason, it did not kill the tree.
After some years, the family took their bull away. They cut the chain, leaving the loop around the tree and one link hanging down.
Then one year, agricultural disaster struck Michigan in the form of Dutch Elm Disease. All of the elms lining the road leading to the farm became infected and died. Everyone thought that the old elm would be the next.
The farm owners considered doing the safe thing: pulling it out and cutting it up into firewood before it died. But they simply could not bring themselves to do it. It was as if the old tree had become a family friend. So they decided to let nature take its course.
Amazingly, the tree did not die. Nobody could understand why it was the only elm still standing in the county!
Plant experts from Michigan State University came out to observe the tree. They observed the scar left by the iron chain, now almost completely covered by bark. The experts decided that it was the chain that saved the elm’s life. They reasoned that the tree must have absorbed so much iron from the chain that it became immune to the virus.
It’s said that what doesn’t kill you will make you stronger. Or, as Earnest Hemingway put it, "Life breaks us all, but afterwards, many of us are strongest at the broken places."What did the family do with the elm when the agricultural disaster hit Michigan one year?
| A．They invited plant experts to observe it. |
| B．They pulled it out and chopped it up into firewood. |
| C．They prevented it from being infected by the disease. |
| D．They did nothing and just let it be. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．A groove formed because of natural forces. |
| B．The family decided to keep the tree because they had become attached to it. |
| C．All of the elms in Beulah, Michigan died of the disease. |
| D．The plant experts advised the family to chop it down. |
What actually saved the elm?
| A．The bull. | B．The groove. | C．The iron chain. | D．The experts. |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Let nature take its course |
| B．Strengthened by our wounds |
| C．Constant dripping wears away a stone |
| D．Bend, but don’t break |
American cities are similar to other cities around the world — American
cities are changing, just as American society is changing. After World War Two, the population of most large American cities decreased; however, the population in many Sun Belt cities increase. Los Angeles and Houston are cities where population shifts (转移) to and from the city reflect the changing values of American society. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, city residents became wealthier. They moved out of their apartments in the city to buy their own homes. They bought houses in the suburbs.
Now things are changing. The children of the people who left the cities in the 1950s are now adults. Many, unlike their parents, want to live in the cities. They continue to move to Sun Belt cities and older ones of the Northeast and Midwest. Many young professionals are moving back into the city. They prefer the city to the suburbs because their jobs are there, or they just enjoy the excitement and possibilities that the city offers.
This population shifting is bringing problems as well as benefits. Countless poor people must leave their apartments in the city because the owners want to sell the buildings or make apartments for sale instead of for rent. In the 1950s, many poor people did not have enough money to move to the suburbs; now many of these same people do not have enough money to stay in the cities.
Only a few years ago, people thought that the older American cities were dying. Some city residents now see a bright, new future. Others see only problems and conflicts. One thing is sure: many dying cities are alive again.What does the author think of cities all over the world?
| A．They are alive. | B．They are hopeless. | C．They are similar. | D．They are different. |
Why did American city residents want to live in the suburbs after World War Two? Because ______.
| A．older American cities were disappearing | B．they got richer and needed more space. |
| C．cities only provided them with apartments | D．they could hardly afford to live in the city. |
According to the 3rd paragraph, a great many poor people in American cities .
| A．are faced with housing problems | B．are forced to move to the suburbs |
| C．want to sell their buildings | D．need more money for daily expenses |
We can conclude from the text that .
| A．American cities are changing for the worse |
| B．people have different views on American cities |
| C．many people are now moving from American cities |
| D．the population is decreasing in older American cities |
For many parents, raising a teenager is like fighting a long war, but years go by without any clear winner. Like a border conflict between neighboring countries, the parent-teen war is about boundaries — where is the line between what I control and what you do?
Both sides want peace, but neither feels it has any power to stop the conflict. Partly, this is because neither is willing to admit any responsibility for starting it. From the parents’ point of view, the only cause of their fight is their adolescents’ complete unreasonableness. And of course, the teens see it in exactly the same way, except oppositely. Both feel trapped.
In this article, I’ll describe three no-win situations that commonly arise between teens and parents
and then suggest some ways out of the trap. The first no-win situation is quarrels over unimportant things. Examples include the color of the teen’s hair, the cleanliness of the bedroom, the preferred style of clothing, the child’s failure to eat a good breakfast before school, or his tendency to sleep until noon on the weekends. The second, blaming. The goal of a blaming battle is to make the other admit that his bad attitude is the reason why everything goes wrong. The third, needing to be right. It doesn’t matter what the topic is — politics, the taws of physics, or the proper way to break an egg — the point of these arguments is to prove that you are right and the other person is wrong for both wish to be considered an authority, and therefore to command respect. Unfortunately, as long as parents and teens continue to suppose that they know more than the other, they’ll continue to fight these battles forever and never make any real progress. Why does the author compare the parent-teen war to a border conflict?
| A．Both can continue for generations. | B．Both are about where to draw the line. |
| C．Neither has any clear winner. | D．Neither can be put to an end. |
What does the underlined part in Para. Two mean?
| A．The teens blame their parents for starting the conflict. |
| B．The teens agree with their parents on the cause of the conflict. |
| C．The teens accuse their parents of misleading them. |
| D．The teens tend to have a full understanding of their parents. |
Parents and teens want to be right because they want to ______.
| A．give orders to the other | B．know more than the other |
| C．gain respect from the other | D．get the other to behave properly |
What will the author most probably discuss in the paragraph that follows?
| A．Causes for the parent-teen conflicts. | B．Examples of the parent-teen war. |
| C．Solutions for the parent-teen problems. | D．Future of the parent-teen relationship. |
DGEWOOD — Every morning at Dixie Heights High school, customers pour into a special experiment: the district’s first coffee shop run mostly by students with special learning needs.
Well before classes start, students and teachers order Lattes, Cappuccinos and Hot Chocolates. Then, during the first period, teachers call in orders on their room phones, and students make deliveries.
By closing time at 9:20 a.m., the shop usually sells 90 drinks.
“Whoever made the chi tea, Ms. Schatzman says it was good,” Christy McKinley, a second year student, announced recently, after chatting with the teacher on the line.
The shop is called the Dixie PIT, which stands for Power in Transition. Although some of the students are not disabled, many are, and the PIT helps them prepare for life after high school. They learn not only how to run a coffee shop but also how to deal with their affairs. They keep a timecard and receive paychecks, which they keep in check registers.
Special-education teachers Kim Chevalier and Sue Casey introduced the Dixie PIT from a similar program at Kennesaw Mountain High School in Georgia.
Not that it was easy. Chevalier’s first problem to overcome was product-related. Should schools be selling coffee? What about sugar content?
Kenton County Food Service Director Ginger Gray helped. She made sure all the drinks, which use non-fat milk, fell within nutrition (营养) guidelines.
The whole school has joined in to help.
Teachers agreed to give up their lounge (休息室) in the morning. Art students painted the name of the shop on the wall. Business students designed the paychecks. The basketball team helped pay for cups. What is the text mainly about？
| A．A best-selling coffee. | B．A special educational program. |
| C．Government support for schools | D．A new type of teacher-student relationship. |
The Dixie PIT program was introduced in order to .
| A．raise money for school affairs | B．do some research on nutrition |
| C．develop students’ practical skills | D．supply teachers with drinks |
How did Christy McKinley know Ms. Schatzman’s opinion of the chi tea？
| A．She once met her in the shop. | B．She heard her saying it with others. |
| C．She talked to her on the phone. | D．She went to her office to deliver the tea. |
We know from the text that Ginger Gray .
| A．starts the guidelines for coffee shops | B．sees that the drinks meet health standards |
| C．teaches at Dixie Heights High School | D．manages the Dixie PIT program in Kenton County |
The engineer Camillo Olivetti was 40 years old when he started the company in 1908. At his factory in Ivrea, he designed and produced the first Italian typewriter. Today the company’s head office is still in Ivrea, near Turin, but the company is much larger than it was in those days and there are offices all
around the world,
By 1930, there was a staff of 700 and the company turned out 13,000 machines a year. Some went
to customers in Italy, but Olivetti exported more typewriters to other countries.
Camillo’s son, Adriano, started working for the company in 1924 and later he became the boss. He introduced a standard speed for the production line and he employed technology and design specialists. The company developed new and better typewriters and then calculators. In 1959 it produced the ELEA computer system. This was the first mainframe (主机) computer designed and made in Italy.
After Adriano died in 1960, the company had a period of financial problem. Other companies, especially the Japanese, made faster progress in electronic technology than the Italian company.
In 1978, Carlo de Benedetti became the new boss. Olivetti increased its marketing and service networks and made agreements with other companies to design and produce more advanced office equipment. Soon it became one of the world’s leading companies in information technology and communication. There are now five independent companies in the Olivetti group — one for personal computers, one for other office equipment, one for systems and service, and two for telecommunications.From the text we learn that .
| A．by 1930 Olivetti produced 13,000 typewriters a year |
| B．Olivetti earned more in the 1960s than in the 1950s |
| C．some of Olivetti’s 700 staff regularly visited customers in Italy |
| D．Olivetti set up offices in other countries from the very beginning |
What was probably the direct result of Olivetti’s falling behind in electronic technology?
| A．Adriano’s death. | B．A period of financial problems. |
| C．Its faster progress. | D．Its agreements with other companies. |
What do we know about Olivetti?
| A．It produced the best typewriter in the world. |
| B．It designed the world’s first mainframe computer. |
| C．It exported more typewriters than other companies. |
| D．It has five independent companies with its head office in Ivrea. |
The best title for the text would be .
| A．The Origin of Olivetti. | B．The Success of Olivetti. |
| C．The History of Olivetti | D．The Production of Olivetti. |
Open Letter to an Editor
I had an interesting conversation with a reporter recently — one who works for you. In fact, he’s one of your best reporters. He wants to leave.
Your reporter gave me a copy of his resume (简历) and photocopies of six stories that he wrote for you. The headlines showed you played them proudly. With great enthusiasm, he talked about how he finds issues, approaches them, and writes about them, which tells me he is one of your best. I’m sure you would hate to lose him. Surprisingly, your reporter is not unhappy. In fact, he told me he really likes his job. He has a great assignment (分工), and said you run a great paper. It would be easy for you to keep him, he said. He knows that the paper values him. He appreciates the responsibility you’ve given
him, takes ownership of his profession, and enjoys his freedom.
So why is he looking for a way out?
He talked to me because he wants his editors to demand so much more of him. He wants to be
pushed, challenged, coached to new heights.
The reporter believes that good stories spring from good questions, but his editors usually ask how
long the story will be, when it will be in, where it can play, and what the budget is.
He longs for conversations with an editor who will help him turn his good ideas into great ones. He wants someone to get excited about what he’s doing and to help him turn his story idea upside down and inside out, exploring the best ways to report it. He wants to be more valuable for your paper. That’s what you want for him, too, isn’t it?
So your reporter has set me thinking.
Our best hope in keeping our best reporters, copy editors, photographers, artists — everyone — is to work harder to make sure they get the help they are demanding to reach their potential. If we can’t do it,
they’ll find someone who can.What does the writer think of the reporter?
| A．Optimistic. | B．Imaginative. | C．Ambitious. | D．Proud. |
What does the reporter want most from his editors in their talks?
| A．Finding the news value of his stories. | B．Giving him financial support. |
| C．Helping him to find issues. | D．Improving his good ideas. |
Which of the following is nearest to the meaning of “turn his story idea upside down and inside
out” in the passage?
| A．Study his story idea in details. | B．Get some general idea of his story. |
| C．Turn his writing over and over. | D．Find some reasons to kill his story. |
The letter aims to remind editors that they should ______.
| A．keep their best reporters at all costs | B．be aware of their reporters’ professional development |
| C．give more freedom to their reporters | D．appreciate their reporters’ working styles and attitudes |
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