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 (问题), 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. |
Who probably wrote the letter?
| A．An editor. |
| B．An artist. |
| C．A reporter. |
| D．A reader. |
The letter aims to remind editors that they should __
| A．keep their best reporters at all costs |
| B．give more freedom to their reporters |
| C．be aware of their reporters' professional development |
| D．appreciate their reporters' working styles and attitudes |
Having returned from her round trip, the angry woman stood outside the ticket office of the station. “The railway owes me ￡12,” she said to Harry Jenks, the young man working at the office . “You sold me a ticket for May 22nd, but there was no ship from Jersey that night. So my daughter and I had to stay in a hotel. It cost me ￡12.”
Harry was worried. He remembered selling the woman a return ticket. “Come into the office, Madam,” he said politely. “I’ll just check the Jersey timetable for May 22nd.”
The woman and her little girl followed him inside. She was quite right, as Harry soon discovered. There was no sailing on May 22nd. How could he have made such a careless mistake? He shouldn’t have sold her a ticket for that day. Wondering what to do, he smiled at the child. “You look sun burnt,” he said to her. “Did you have a nice holiday in Jersey?”
“Yes,” she answered, shyly. “The beach was lovely. And I can swim too!”
“That’s fine,” said Harry. “My little girl can’t swim a bit yet .Of course, she’s only three…”
“I’m four,” the child said proudly. “I’ll be four and a half.”
Harry turned to the mother. “I remember your ticket, Madam,” he said. “But you didn’t get one for your daughter, did you?”
“Er, well—” the woman looked at the child. “I mean… she hasn’t started school yet. She’s only four.”
“A four-year-old child must have a ticket, Madam. A child’s return ticket to Jersey costs …let me see…￡13.50. So if the railway pays your hotel, you will owe ￡1.50. The law is the law, but since the fault was mine…”
The woman stood up, took the child’s hand and left the office. Harry was worried because ___ .
| A．the woman was angry with him | B．he had not done his work properly |
| C．the Jersey timetable was wrong | D．the little girl didn’t have a return ticket |
Harry started talking to the little girl .
| A．because he was in difficulty and did not know what to do |
| B．because he had a little girl about the same age as this girl |
| C．because he wanted to be friendly to the little girl who looked so nice |
| D．when he suddenly realized that he could find a way out from the little girl |
When Harry said, “The law is the law, but since the fault was mine…” he meant that .
| A．they must follow it without other choice ,even though the fault was his |
| B．he had to be strict with the woman because of the law ,although he didn’t want to |
| C．the woman had to pay him ￡1.50 and the railway would pay her for the hotel |
| D．she should pay ￡1.50, but he had made a mistake, she could go without paying |
How did the woman feel when she left the office?
| A．angry | B．peaceful | C．embarrassed | D．nervous |
Everyday, 340 million people speak it. One billion people are learning it and it is said that by 2050, half of the world’s population will be using it. What are we talking about? That global language—English.
The English language started in Britain in the 5th century. It is a mixed language. It was built up when German. Scandinavian and French invaders settled in England and created a common language for communication.
Today it is the official language of the UK, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and Ireland as well as many islands in the Caribbean . Many other countries and regions use it for politics and business, for example, India. Pakistan, Nigeria and the Philippines. English is also one of the official languages of Hong Kong.
But global advertising and pop music mean that in most countries, you will see or hear some English. Thanks to McDonalds, we all know about "burgers". "fries" and "milkshakes". Songs by Madonna, Britney Spears and Celine Dion are in English. We can sing along, even if we do not understand what we are singing!
English is a messy (杂乱的) language. Every year, dictionaries include new words that talk about popular culture, for example, computer-related words such as "blogging", "download" and "chatroom". Also included are words that teenagers use. Who does not know "cool", "OK" and “hello” ?
Other languages also influence English. Many English words come from French. Words like "cafe" and expressions like "c'est la vie" (that is life) are all part of the English language. On the other hand, the French language includes English words like "le weekend" and "le camping". German words are also part of English. Words like "kindergarten" come from the German language.
Recently, British people have become interested in "yoga". But the word comes from an ancient Hindu language in India.The English language has a history of ______.
| A．over 2000 years | B．over 500 years | C．over 1500 years | D．over 1000 years |
The underlined expression “thanks to ” can be replaced by ______.
| A．because of | B．thankful to | C．not until | D．as if. |
Which of the following statements is true about the language of English ?
| A．It has been changing all the time. |
| B．It has borrowed words from all the other languages. |
| C．French words are used by the English because dictionaries have French words. |
| D．Singers and film stars have the greatest influence on language. |
Many countries and regions use it for politics and business except______.
| A．the USA | B．Nigeria | C．the Philippines | D．Norway |
Last week my youngest son and I visited my father at his new home in Tucson, Arizona. He moved there a few years ago, and I was eager to see his new place and meet his friends.
My earliest memories of my father are of a tall, handsome, successful man devoted to his work and family, but uncomfortable with his children. As a child I loved him; as a school girl and young adult (成年人)I feared him and felt bitter about him. He seemed unhappy with me unless I got straight A’s and unhappy with my boyfriends if their fathers were not as “successful” as he was. Whenever I went out with him on weekends, I used to struggle to think up things to say, feeling on guard.
On the first day of my visit, we went out with one of my father’s friends for lunch at an outdoor café. We walked along that afternoon, did some shopping, ate on the street table, and laughed over my son’s funny facial expressions.（面部表情） Gone was my father’s critical（挑剔的）air and strict rules. Who was this person I knew as my father, who seemed so friendly and interesting to be around? What had held him back before?
The next day my dad pulled out his childhood pictures and told me quite a few stories about his own childhood. Although our times together became easier over the years, I never felt closer to him at that moment. After so many years, I’m at last seeing another side of my father. And in so doing, I’m delighted with my new friend.
My dad, in his new home in Arizona, is back to me from where he was. Why did the author feel bitter about her father when she was a young adult?
| A．He was silent most of the time. |
| B．He was too proud of himself. |
| C．He did not love his children. |
| D．He expected too much of her. |
When the author went out with her father on weekends, she would feel_______.
| A．nervous | B．sorry | C．tired | D．safe |
What does the author think of her father after her visit to Tucson?
| A．More critical | B．More talkative （健谈的） |
| C．Gentle and friendly | D．Strict and hard-working |
Soaring divorce rates around the globe are taking a toll on the environment, American researchers suggested in a study released on a Monday.
Michigan State University researcher Jianguo “Jack” Liu and his assistant Eunice Yu said the increasing number of divorces leads to more households with fewer people and greater consumption of water and energy. They said housing units require space, construction materials and fuel to heat and cool, regardless of the number of inhabitants.
For example, in the United States in 2005, divorced households consumed an extra 73 billion kilowatt hours of electricity and 627 billion gallons of water. An additional 38 million extra rooms required heating and lighting that same year due to divorced households.
That costs $6.9 billion in extra utility costs per year, Liu said, plus an added $ 3.6 billion for water, in addition to other costs such as land use.
“A married household actually uses resources more efficiently than a divorced household,” Liu said. He said that in cohabitating(同居) household, people will watch the same television, share the air conditioning and heat and use the same refrigerator. All things use energy at a regularly stable rate, regardless of the number of users.
Liu said he was not condemning divorce, “Some people really need to get divorced.” He said cohabitation—whether by a family or friends—was simply a more environmentally friendly option. Additonally, the researchers noted that trends other than divorce are also changing family living structures, such as the end of multiple generations of a family sharing a home and people remaining single longer.
“People’s first reaction to this research is surprise, and then it seems simple.” Liu said in a press release. “But a lot of things become simple after research is done. Our challenges were to connect the dots and quantify(量化) their relationships. People have been talking about how to protect the environment and fight against climate change, but divorce is a factor that people don’t notice and it needs to be considered”.
He said the increasing energy demands caused by divorce should be considered by governments when they are creating environmental policies.
The research was published in this week’s online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.This passage is mainly meant to _______ .
| A．inform the readers of the increasing rates of divorce in America |
| B．emphasize the importance of protecting the environment |
| C．appeal to married people to maintain their marriage longer |
| D．tell people the impact divorce has on the environment |
According to the passage, what’s the attitude of Mr. Liu towards divorce?
| A．Critical . | B．Indifferent. | C．Objective. | D．Negative. |
We are told that ______ .
| A．divorced households will use fewer resources than married households |
| B．married households are more willing to protect the environment |
| C．divorced households contribute more to rapid economic development |
| D．divorce is rarely considered when people think about protecting the environment. |
The underlined phrase “taking a toll on” in Paragraph 1 probably means _____ .
| A．taking efforts to improve | B．having a bad effect on |
| C．preventing the pollution of | D．benefiting from |
How is the passage organized?
| A．Main idea →Comparison → Supporting details |
| B．Comparison→Argument→Explanation |
| C．Main idea→Supporting details→Conclusion |
| D．Example → Explanation → Conclusion |
A farmer had some puppies he needed to sell. He painted a sign advertising the pups and set about nailing it to a post on the edge of his yard. As he was driving the last nail into the post, he felt a tug on his overalls. He looked down into the sad eyes of a little boy.
“Mister," he said, "I want to buy one of your puppies."
"Well," said the farmer, as he rubbed the sweat of the back of his neck, “these puppies come from fine parents and cost a good deal of money."
The boy dropped his head for a moment. Then reaching deep into his pocket, he pulled out a handful of change and held it up to the farmer. "I've got thirty- nine cents. Is that enough to take a look?” 
"Sure," said the farmer.
And with that he let out a whistle. "Here, Dolly!" he called.
Out from the doghouse and down the ramp ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur. The little boy pressed his face against the chain link fence. His eyes danced with delight.
As the dogs made their way to the fence, the little boy noticed something else stirring inside the doghouse. Slowly another little ball appeared; this one noticeably smaller.
Down the ramp it slid. Then in a somewhat awkward manner, the little pup began hobbling toward the others, doing its best to catch up....
"I want that one," the little boy said, pointing to the runt.
The farmer knelt down at the boy's side and said, "Son, you don't want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would."
With that the little boy stepped back from the fence, reached down, and began rolling up one leg of his trousers. In doing so he revealed a steel brace running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to a specially made shoe. Looking back up at the farmer, he said, "You see sir, I don't run too well myself, and he will need someone who understands."
With tears in his eyes, the farmer reached down and picked up the little pup. Holding it carefully he handed it to the little boy.
"How much?" asked the little boy.
"No charge," answered the farmer, "There's no charge for love."
The world is full of people who need someone who understands. It's National Friendship Week. How many baby pups did the farmer have for sale?
| A．3 | B．4 | C．5 | D．6 |
Why did the farmer agree to sell the boy one of the puppies?
| A．The boy had the money to buy one. |
| B．There were few people wanting to buy a dog. |
| C．The farmer felt sorry for the boy. |
| D．The farmer wanted to get rid of the dogs quickly. |
Which of the following words is closest in meaning to the underlined word “ hobbling”?
| A．strolling. | B．crawling. | C．limping. | D．running. |
Why did the boy finally choose the “ hobbling” pup?
| A．He feared the farmer would kill it. |
| B．He thought no one else would buy that pup. |
| C．He believed it was the cutest of the pups. |
| D．He could identify with this pup. |
What would be the most suitable title for this passage?
| A．Man’s Best Friend | B．Puppy For Sale. |
| C．Perfect Match. | D．Love at First Sight. |
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