April Fools’ Day, not officially considered a holiday, is most definitely a notable day that is celebrated in many countries on April 1. The thing that is so special about April 1 is that it is the day for playing tricks and practical jokes on others. The aim of these jokes is to bring embarrassment to others.
Superstitions(迷信)have it that the practical jokes are meant to be played before noon, and that those that are performed afterwards will bring bad luck. This limitation is widely losing its value due to the fact that many major hoaxes throughout history appear after noon. Another superstition is that anyone who fails to respond properly to the jokes played on them is also said to be easy to suffer from bad luck.
Some people think that being fooled by a pretty girl will be accompanied by marriage, or at least a friendship with her. That sounds like a good deal if she is truly pretty. Some people believe that being married on April Fools’ Day is not a good idea for a man, and that forever in the future he will be ruled by his wife.
The origin of April Fools’ day is not clearly known, but it is generally accepted to have come about as a result of the changes in the calendar system. The New Year celebrations used to begin on 25 March and last for a week, ending on 1 April. In 1582, Charles IX, King of France brought in the new Gregorian calendar, in which the new year began on 1 January. Unfortunately, some people did not hear about the change, and many others simply refused to break the tradition.April Fools’ Day is different from other festivals probably because .
| A．it is not official holiday |
| B．jokes can be played on this day |
| C．people are relaxed on this day |
| D．it is an important day |
If jokes are played on you by a beautiful girl you’ll probably .
| A．dislike her | B．make much money |
| C．make many friends | D．get married to her soon |
A man would rather not get married on April probably because .
| A．he loves his wife very much |
| B．he is eager for a bright future |
| C．he doesn’t want to obey his wife |
| D．he doesn’t like playing jokes |
Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?
| A．April Fools’ Day | B．The New Year |
| C．The Superstitions | D．The New Gregorian Calendar |
Perhaps you do not know your school principal (校长) well. But you might be wise to take him or her seriously. Beijing University will e
nroll (招收) students recommended by high school principals this year. If the students recommended pass a round of interviews by Peking University, they will have an extra 30 extra points added to their national college entrance exam scores if they apply to the university.
Beijing University said the reason behind the move was a desire to give students with comprehensive (综合的) or special abilities a chance to stand out.
However, a survey, showed 10,046 out of 14,227 people are against the measure. Some experts agree with the criticism. Liu Daoyu, former president of Wuhan University is one strong opponent(反对者). “There are so many high schools across the country. But only 39 schools are qualified to recommend students. Is it fair to the rest of the schools? Besides, most of the 39 schools are located in big cities, which is unfair to other regions,”
The reform is also unfair to other students, some say. According to Liu, in the competitive exam, one extra point can put a student ahead of a large numbers of others – never mind 30.
“Principals do not know students well. How can they guarantee the recommendation will be fair?” asked Wang Xuming, former spokesman of the Ministry of Education.
The Ministry of Education said the move is a good experiment in college admission reforms and the public should support it even if it is not yet mature (成熟的). It said Beijing University promised a series of supervision (监督) measures to avoid cheating. For example, the information of schools and principals that recommend students, and the recommended students will be put online for a week for public supervision.The best title of the passage could be .
| A．Beijing University Will Enroll More Students |
| B．Beijing University’s Reform Causes a Debate |
C．People Are Against Beij ing University’s Reform |
| D．The Government Supports Peking University’s Reform |
The following are the reasons why Liu Daoyu is against Beijing University’s reform except that .
| A．there will be a lot of cheating |
| B．it is unfair to the other regions |
| C．it is unfair to other schools |
| D．30 points cause a huge gap among students |
We can learn from the passage that .
| A．the Ministry of Education supports the reform |
| B．the reform has started to work in college admissions |
| C．all the recommended students will be accepted |
| D．no more than 70% of the people are against the reform |
If a student passes the interview by Beijing University, he or she .
| A．can also apply to other universities |
| B．will be admitted into Beijing University |
| C．will have comprehensive and special abilities |
| D．needn’t accept the public supervision |
Once in a television interview, I was chatting with the host about stay – at – home athers. I made the point that one reason why we’re seeing more stay – at – homw dads may be hat it’s no longer definite that a man makes more money than his wife. Many families now ake earning power into account when deciding which parent will stay home.
At that point, one of the male crew membe
rs pointed out, almost to himself but loud nough for my benefit, “It should be the better parent who stays home.” A lot of guys say hings like that. Usually it’s a code for “My wife, or any woman is the better parent.”
I was a stay – at – home father for 8 years, so his words made me excited. It implied that our family’s choice could only have been correct if I was a “better” parent than my wife.
I suppose an argument could have been made that when I began staying home my wife was the “better” parent if she spent more time with Jack. She would be able to read him wetter and calm him more quickly. But as the more employable one, my wife went out to work a
nd I looked after our son.
Because of the increased time I spen
t with Jack. I soon knew him well, understood that he needed and could look after him more or less as well as my wife could. Actually, he experience helped me unlock one of the world’s great secrets; Women are good at booking after children because they do it. It is not because of any innate (先天的) female talent. It is because they put in the time and attention required to become good at the job.
Woman obviously get a biological head starting from giving birth and nursing, but ever the long term experience is more important. When I got the experience myself. I was people are able to look after them as well besides their moms.The first paragraph implies .
| A．more and more men like staying at home |
| B．the author works at a TV station as a host |
| C．more women are earning money than before |
| D．dad is the better parent in a family |
The author stayed at home to look after their son for 8 years because .
| A．he thought he was the better parent |
| B．he was afraid of working outside now |
| C．their son liked him better than his Mom |
| D．he was less likely to find a job than his wife |
Women are good at taking care of children because .
| A．they devote their time and attention to children |
| B．they would rather stay at home than work outside |
| C．they are born with the ability to look after children |
| D．they’ve learn to take care of children from their parents |
What does the author conclude?
| A．A man can take better care of children than his wife. |
| B．A man with experience can take good care of children. |
| C．A child prefers to stay with his or her mother. |
D．A child prefers  to stay with his or her father. |
Calvin Coolidge (1872 – 1933
) was the thirtieth president of the United
States. He looked down on a person as being unworthy of respect who was too fond of talking about the details of others people’s actions and private lives because he had no time for small talks. The following two incidents clearly show how Collidge treasured silence.
When he was vice president, Coolidge had plenty of opportunities to participate (参加) in Washington’s social life, especially the many dinner parties. As be ignored the art of conversation, he couldn’t exactly make himself dear to his hostesses. One lady felt she could solve this problem. She placed him next to Alice Roosevelt Longworth, daughter of the former President Roosevelt. Mrs. Longworth, a very brilliant conversationalist (谈话者), began to talk in her usual charming manner, but all attempts to a wake the interest on the part of the vice president were unproductive. Finally, being shamed into anger, she said, “I’m sure that going to as many dinners as you do, you must get terribly bored.”
Without lifting his eyes from his plate, Coolidge said not very clearly, “Well, a man has to eat somewhere.”
Later, when he was president and once again at a dinner party, Collidge was seated next to an outstanding society woman, one of those busybodies, who seemed to take delight in trying to change the lives of everyone they met. “Oh, Mr. President,” she spoke with too much enthusiasm, “you are always so quiet. I made a bet (打赌) toda
y that I could get more than two words out of you.”President Collidge considered those people as being unworthy of respect .
| A．who liked to talk about the affairs of others |
| B．who never talked about anything serious |
| C．who often spoke insincerely |
| D．who talked much but did little |
The hostesses thought Collidge was unfriendly because in her eyes.
| A．he treated women coldly and rudely |
| B．he paid no attention to conversational skills |
| C．he was too serious to please any women |
| D．he was pretty easy and quick to get angry |
Mrs. Longworth got shamed and angry because .
| A．the vice president took part in too many dinner parties |
B．the vice president  didn’t lift his eyes from his plate |
| C．the vice president didn’t speak exactly and clearly |
| D．the vice president didn’t react to all her efforts |
The underlined sentence “Well, a man has to eat somewhere” probably means .
| A．Mr. Coolidge didn’t want to talk with Mrs. Longworth at all |
| B．Mr. Coolidge had really got tired of so many social dinners |
| C．Mr. Coolidge was unhappy with the dinner he was eating that day |
| D．Mr. Coolidge was really hungry and had to find something to eat |
Washington D. C. is a great city to live in and visit – partly because D. C.’s public transportation can get you almost a
nywhere in the city, D. C.’s subway, the Metro, is great for getting you to the main tourist sites, but the bus is also a great resource and is cheaper. Learn how to conquer the D.C. bus system in a few quick steps will help you to have fun in this city.
* Things You’ll Need: cash or a D. C. Smart Trip card, a transfer (转乘卡) and a map of Washington, D. C.
* To choose a bus line to take from home or your hotel, look at the buses that arrive at the closest Metro stations.
Many bus routes start at a Metro subway terminal and make their way across the greater D.C. area.
*Learn to identify bus stops. They are usually located at the intersections(交叉) of streets. Look for a tall sign with a tall sign with the words of “Metro Bus” that is dark blue at the top, white in the middle and red at the bottom. Once you’ve found one of these signs, check the red section at the bottom of the sign. In it, you should see several number or letter combinations written
in white. Those are the bus lines that service that stop.
*Be careful of the direction buses are heading for. All buses have an electronic screen on the front, side and back of the bus that let you know which way they are headed and what line the bus is. The signs will list the last stop on the bus route. Know where your bus terminates on each end so you can get on the bus heading in the direction you want to go.
*To board the bus, you'll obviously need some sort of payment. The bus will only accept cash or a SmarTrip card. Smar－Trip card are purchasable at several Metro stations or at Metro headquarters(总部) and cost $5. You can also buy the card online at www.wmata.com.
*If you do order it online, purchase it in advance as it will take time for it to ship. Riding the bus costs $1.35 if you pay in cash and $1.25 if you pay with your SmarTrip card.
*If you pay in cash, ask for a transfer slip. This will allow you to board the bus within a two-hour time period without having to pay again. These machines are located by the escalators that take you to the waiting platforms. To enjoy a wonderful tour in Washington D. C., you won’t need .
A．a
D. C, Smart －Trip card B．a transfer
C．a map of Washington D. C D．a tall signAccording to the passage, you can identify bus stops by .
| A．looking at the buses that arrive at the closest Metro station from your hotel |
| B．checking the red section at the bottom of the sign with a “metro bus” logo |
| C．checking electronic screens on the front, side and back of the bus |
| D．checking the machines located by the escalators taking you to the platforms |
The underlined word “term
inates” probably means .
| A．stops | B．decides | C．starts | D．passes |
Where can you get a Smart－Trip card?
| A．At a platform. | B．At a post office. |
| C．At www. wmata. com | D．At a bus station. |
Have you ever got stuck with unwanted courses or a class schedule that cannot be changed? If so, that’s because you don’t know how to select the perfect schedule．But by following a few simple steps, you can begin any term with the right courses at the most convenient times．
First, you must find the right courses．These are the ones that have the least amount of work, the fewest tests and the kindest professors．Ask your friends about courses in which they received A’s after attending only 70 percent of the classes．Ask around, too, to see which instructors have given the same tests for the last fifteen years．Photocopies of these tests are usually cheap and ca
n be easily found in school．Then, pick up a copy of the master schedule and study it carefully．Find the course titles that mean an easy pass for a painless subject．Look for titles like “Arts and Crafts for Beginners,” and “Rock Music of the 1950s．”
Next, when you have got lists of easy instructors and subjects you can begin to select your time periods．If you stay up late in order to watch old movies, you may want a daily schedule that begins no sooner than noon．You should schedule only afternoon courses, too, if you’re one of those people who hate to leave a warm bed in the morning．On the other hand, if you are a person who gets out of bed at dawn, you may want to get your classes as early as possible．That way you have the rest of the day free．Morning classes are also necessary if you are a soap opera（肥皂剧）fan．
Finally, you want your schedule to pass through registration successfully．The main way to do this i
s to register（注册）early．If a course does happen to be closed because you simply couldn’t register at 7:00 a．m．, you may still be able to get in．Talk to the professor and tell him or her that a serious and hardworking student like yourself would be a shining example to other students．Be sure to carry a list of backup courses to registration, though, just in case one of your chosen classes changes professors or time periods．By following these suggestions, any student can pick the perfect class schedule．College can thus become an almost pleasant activity．Which of the following statements is true?
| A．You can get copies of tests if you are willing to pay the price． |
| B．“Rock Music of the 1950s” may be an easy course． |
| C．It is difficult to pick the perfect class schedule． |
| D．Attendance is required in all classes． |
You should ．
| A．register for classes in the morning if you get up early |
| B．have classes late in the morning if you stay up late |
| C．sign up for afternoon classes if you want to see soap operas |
D．choose classes in  the evening if you want to watch old films |
If a course happens to be closed, you should ．
| A．register at 7:00 a．m． | B．sit in on the class anyway |
| C．register for a backup course | D．get help from the professor |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Course Registration Made Easy | B．How to Find the Right Courses |
| C．Classes and After-class Activities | D．How to Pick the Perfect Schedule |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号