When introducing American universities, some of the first institutions to mention are the Ivy League schools. Originally, the Ivy League was an athletic conference made up of 8 private institutes of higher learning in northeastern United States. However, as time went on, these schools also became known for their excellence in academics besides athletics. Included in the Ivy League schools are Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Princeton University, University of Pennsylvania, Yale University, and Harvard University. These 8 schools have been recognized as some of the best colleges and universities in the United States.
Harvard University is a private institution located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The university includes a number of graduate and professional schools, as well as a college for undergraduates. In 2012, Harvard ranked number one in US News’ ranking of national universities again. Founded in 1636, Harvard is the oldest institute of higher education in the United States. It can be said that first there was Harvard, then the United States of America. Also, Harvard’s library contains the oldest collection of books in the United States as well as the largest private collection in the world. Harvard has also been described by Forbes Magazine as one of the “billionaire universities” as of their recent list of 469 billionaires, 50 received a degree from Harvard.
Harvard College (the institute for undergraduate students) is one of the most famous schools in the United States. It offers over 40 undergraduate fields of study, including astrophysics, mathematics, neurobiology(神经生物学), etc. And the financial aid program there is amazing. Even though the tuition is about 37,576, and there are other expenses throughout the year, about 70% of undergraduate students received financial aid. Out of those students, over 90% of them had their full need met. And the policies for international students are the same for U.S. citizens.
Harvard College is very selective, as it only admits about 6% of their applicants. For admission into Harvard College, it is required that students take the SAT or the ACT, as well as 2 SAT Subject Tests. Harvard will also look at other factors during admission such as your application essay, high school transcript, work experience, GPA (Grade Point Average), your interview, recommendations, and most importantly, your character and personal qualities.
What are the Ivy League schools famous for?
| A．Athletics and location. |
| B．Academics and history. |
| C．Financial aid and training. |
| D．Athletics and academics. |
Harvard University includes .
| A．a number of colleges for undergraduates |
| B．a kindergarten, a middle school and a college |
| C．many graduate and professional schools and a college for undergraduates |
| D．only one college |
Why is Harvard called one of the “billionaire universities”?
| A．Because nearly one ninth of the billionaires once studied in Harvard. |
| B．Because there are 50 billionaires in Harvard. |
| C．Because people can get a lot of money from Harvard. |
| D．Because 469 billionaires sponsor Harvard. |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．90% students in Harvard have their full need met. |
| B．About 70% of undergraduate students received financial aid. |
| C．Harvard College is the institute for graduate students. |
| D．The policies for international students are different for U.S. citizens. |
To be admitted by Harvard, you need _________.
①high school transcript
②a good application essay
③living permit
④to take the SAT or the ACT
⑤health certificate
⑥good personal qualities
| A．①②③ | B．④⑤⑥ | C．①③⑤ | D．②④⑥ |
About six years ago I was eating lunch in a restaurant in New York City when a woman and a young boy sat down at the next table, I couldn’t help overhearing parts of their conversation. At one point the woman asked, “So, how have you been?” And the boy — who could not have been more than seven or eight years old — replied. “Frankly, I’ve been feeling a little depressed lately.”
This incident stuck in my mind because it confirmed (确认) my growing belief that children are changing. As far as I can remember, my friends and I didn’t find out we were “depressed”, that is, in low spirits, until we were in high school.
Undoubtedly a change in children has increased steadily in recent years. Children don’t seem childlike anymore. Children speak more like adults, dress more like adults and behave more like adults than they used to.
Whether this is good or bad is difficult to say, but it certainly is different. Childhood as it once was no longer exists. Why?
Human development is depended not only on born biological states, but also on patterns of gaining social knowledge. Movement from one social role to another usually involves learning the secrets of the new social positions. Children have always been taught adult secrets, but slowly and in stages; traditionally, we tell sixth graders things we keep hidden from fifth graders.
In the last 30 years, however, a secret-revelation (揭示) machine has been equipped in 98 percent of American homes. It is called television. Television passes information to all viewers alike, whether they are children or adults. Unable to resist the temptation (诱惑) , many children turn their attention from printed texts to the less challenging, more attractive moving pictures.
Communication through print, as a matter of fact, allows for a great deal of control over the social information which children will gain. Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials.According to the author, feeling depressed is ________.
| A．a sure sign of a mental problem in a child |
| B．a mental state present in all humans, including children |
| C．something that cannot be avoided in children’s mental development |
| D．something hardly to be expected in a young child |
Traditionally, a child is supposed to learn about the adult world _________.
| A．through connection with society |
| B．gradually and under guidance |
| C．naturally without being taught |
| D．through watching television |
According to the author, that today’s children seem adultlike results from ______.
| A．the widespread influence of television |
| B．the poor arrangement of teaching content |
| C．the fast pace of human scientific development |
| D．the rising standard of living |
What does the author think of communication through print for children?
| A．It enables children to gain more social information. |
| B．It develops children’s interest in reading and writing. |
| C．It helps children to read and write well. |
| D．It can control what children are to learn. |
What does the author think of the change in today’s children?
| A．He feels their adultlike behavior is so funny. |
| B．He thinks the change worthy of note. |
| C．He considers it a rapid development. |
| D．He seems to be upset about it. |
On Nov. 18, 1995, Itzhak Perlman, the violinist, came on stage to give a concert at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center in New York City.
If you have ever been to a Perlman concert, you know that getting on stage is no small achievement for him. He was stricken with polio(小儿麻痹症) as a child, and so he has braces(支架) on both legs and walks with the aid of two crutches(双拐).
He walks painfully, yet majestically (庄严地), until he reaches his chair. Then he sits down, slowly, puts his crutches on the floor, undoes the clasps on his legs, tucks one foot back and extends the other foot forward. Then he bends down and picks up the violin, puts it under his chin, nods to the conductor and proceeds to play.
But this time, something went wrong. Just as he finished the first few bars(小节), one of the strings on his violin broke. You could hear it snap(嘣断)——it went off like gunfire across the room. There was no mistaking what that meant. There was no mistaking what he had to do.
We figured that he would have to get up, put on the clasps again, pick up the crutches and limp his way off stage——to either find another violin or else find another string for this one. But he didn’t. Instead, he waited a moment, closed his eyes and then signaled the conductor to begin again.
The orchestra began, and he played from where he had left off. And he played with such passion and such power and such purity as they had never heard before.
When he finished, there was an awesome silence in the room. And then people rose and cheered. He smiled, wiped the sweat from this brow, raised his bow to quiet us, and then he said in a quiet tone, “You know, sometimes it is the artist’s task to find out how much music you can still make with what you have left.”By saying “getting on stage is no small achievement for him”, the author really means ___.
| A．it’s very difficult for Itzhak Perlman to play the violin with three strings |
| B．it’s not easy for Itzhak Perlman to get on the stage because he is disabled |
| C．it’s not easy for Itzhak Perlman to face such a large audience |
| D．it’s really great achievements for Itzhak Perlman to play the violin with three strings |
When one of the strings broke, people thought Itzhak Perlman would __________.
| A．go on playing with the remaining three strings |
| B．give up playing |
| C．change or repair his violin |
| D．get off the stage with shame |
Itzhak Perlman ___________ when one of the strings of the violin broke.
| A．gave up playing |
| B．didn’t know what to do |
| C．went on playing the same piece of music |
| D．went on playing a different piece of music |
What did the audience feel when Itzhak Perlman finished playing?
| A．Moved | B．Surprised |
| C．Disappointed | D．Satisfied |
Itzhak Perlman can be best described as a man who is ____________.
| A．clever | B．strong willed |
| C．humourous | D．quite skilled |
Nowadays we all know that it’s best to eat healthily, limiting our intake(摄入) of fat, sugar and salt. We at Fineways Supermarket have reduced the levels of these in 1000 of our products and are doing so for a further 950 this year. In addition, we have introduced a new labeling system to help you make wise choices as you purchase food, in order to have a healthy diet and way of life.
When you buy food, you the consumer need to know exactly what you will be eating. Some products are already labelled “Healthy” or “Low in fat”, but don’t rely on that; we would rather the customer decides after reading the nutritional information on the packet. So our new food labels have become clearer and more helpful.
Our easy-to-read labels explain simply what is in your food. They show you:
how much sugar, fat and salt there is in each serving(食物的一分)
how many calories one serving contains
the percentages of your guideline daily amounts (GDAs) for each of these
What are Guideline Daily Amounts?
GDAs are a guide to the total amount of calories, sugar, fat, salt and other elements(成分) we should eat in a day. According to experts, GDAs for a typical adult are:
Calories 2000 kcal
Sugar 90g
Fat 70g
Salt 6g
Please note that children and active adults have different nutritional requirements.
Numbers count
Here is an example of our new labeling:
| Chicken salad sandwich pack Calories 256 13%GDA Sugar 3.1g 4%GDA Fat 4.8g 7%GDA Salt 1.1g 19%GDA |
Knowing this kind of information about each product you buy can help you keep within the recommended daily amounts, so be wise about your shopping with Fineways’ easy new healthy-conscious labels!The author of the text is probably .
| A．a dutiful housewife |
| B．a well-known nutritionist |
| C．a staff member of a supermarket |
| D．a manager of a fast-food company |
How are Fineways’ new food labels more helpful than they used to be?
| A．They provided detailed information of each product. |
| B．They show whether the food is green or not. |
| C．They show whether the food is high in fat. |
| D．They are printed in clearer ink. |
We know from the text that Fineways Supermarket .
| A．reduced the levels of fat, sugar and salt in all their products. |
| B．asked experts to revise GDAs many times |
| C．tried to change the sizes of the packets. |
| D．used a new labeling system. |
What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．What are GDAs? |
| B．What’s on your food label? |
| C．Are you healthy? |
| D．Do you visit supermarkets often? |
Perhaps you have seen them on the playground, at preschool drop-off or piano lessons, or even in TV shows like Up All Night. They are the stay-at-home dads, and lately, it seems they’re everywhere.
The latest research shows that 32 percent of dads regularly care for their children, and among those with preschool-age kids, one in five dads is the primary caregiver. In families where mom works, that figure rises to nearly one in three. Stay-at-home dads have become so common that even toy makers like Mattel are catering to(迎合) them.
A recent study finds that today’s full-time fathers aren’t trying to be “Mr. Moms”. Instead, they’re carving out their own unique roles as parents. I spoke with some experienced stay-at-home dads, who agreed that their parenting styles are different. “I do let the kids take more risks on the playground, while my wife tends to get nervous that they’ll fall and hurt themselves,” says Kyle, 38, an artist.
Besides, as there are more and more stay-at-home dads, they are turning to each other for support. They have created Meet Up groups and held Dads Nights Out. Kyle admits he had noticed a change recently. “Several years ago, I was checking out at a store with the kids, and the cashier was very curious why I was buying food instead of my wife. I told her that I was a full-time dad, and she commented, ‘Wow, I have never met one of you before.’ Now, my next-door neighbor is a dad who works from home and we often trades off watching the kids after school. ”
As for my own husband, although he admits that being a full-time dad is encouraging, he’s also proud of the strong bond with our daughter, which will offer her benefits that last for years. Children wit caring dads tend to have higher intelligence and more confidence, and do better in school. They also are less likely to experience depression or get into trouble, and have better social skills.Why toy makers catering to stay-at-home dads?
| A．Kids like playing with them. |
| B．They influence the choices their children make. |
| C．They are the money-makers in their families. |
| D．Kids like toys bought by them. |
According to Paragraph 3, stay-at-home dads _______.
| A．can never replace moms’ love. |
| B．can be as good as moms at parenting. |
| C．try to learn from moms about parenting. |
| D．have different parenting styles from moms. |
What change has Kyle noticed recently?
| A．The founding of Meet Up groups. |
| B．The change of people’s attitude towards them. |
| C．The increase in the number of stay-at-home dads. |
| D．The development of new communication methods. |
Children with full-time dads are more likely to be ______.
| A．smart and positive. | B．energetic and brave |
| C．sociable and patient. | D．confident and careful. |
Phillida Eves and her husband Tedd Hamilton weren’t unhappy living in the Galway countryside with their sons, Cian and Oisín, and their daughter, Soracha. “We had a lovely home, a car, lots of friends, and weekends sailing our boat,” says Phillida. “But there’s a line from a poem that goes: ‘Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?’ That says it all for me. We felt there was more to life.”
So they quit their jobs, , took their sons, then aged six and nine, out of school and went to southern Spain where they bought a 15-metre yacht(游艇) and headed up the coast to Barcelona. Soracha was not even three. And they brought along Poppy, the family dog. Now, two and a half years and 10,000km later, they don’t intend to stop. Tedd is a yacht engineer and can find work in ports. But, says Phillida, a supply(代数) teacher, “any family could do this.”
The children are home-schooled using a correspondence(函授) course. “My son had a recent project on the weather. The weather is vital to us. My son knows more than most adults about weather systems, compasses, maps and directions. The weather, for him, means life or death.”
Other subjects have become equally vivid.“They’re living geography and history all the time. We’ve sailed round Italy, Sardinia, Sicily, and seen tiny islands we didn’t know. The kids learned about ancient Romans by visiting Rome.”
But what about social development? Again, Phillida is sanguine. “The children have become much more socially confident since we set out. They play with tones of families of all nationalities on other boats we meet.”
Living for the moment, they believe, is a huge life lesson. “Our children never say they’re bored.” The other day they stopped mid-ocean and the kids swam, 110km from land. “That’s the kind of freedom we want for them,” says Phillida. “That’s the kind of freedom they’ve got.”The couple quit their jobs and took their children travelling because .
| A．their children wanted to make friends of all nationalities. |
| B．they wanted to experience more in their life. |
| C．their children wanted complete freedom. |
| D．they are unhappy with their lives. |
The family made a living during their tour from .
| A．writing their own stories |
| B．doing temporary jobs |
| C．selling their possessions |
| D．teaching English |
The underlined word “sanguine” in paragraph 5 is closet in meaning to “ ”.
| A．patient | B．curious |
| C．excited | D．optimistic |
What we can learn about the family from the text?
| A．They plan to stop for a rest. |
| B．They have toured for more than three years. |
| C．They believe any family can do the same thing as they do. |
| D．They have made several geographical and historical discoveries. |
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