Betty is not traditional American beauty. She is unfashionable, has thick red glasses, untidy hair and large metal braces (牙套) on her teeth. But this hasn’t stopped her from becoming one of American’s favorite TV characters. So how did she manage to do it?
The answer is that charm can be more attractive than beauty. Betty is the main character in a TV show Ugly Betty. The show is about her life as a n office worker at a fashion magazine in New York.
The TV show has just started. Betty has many exciting experiences and romantic stories. Betty is often looked down on and laughed at by the people around. But she manages to do better than others with her hard work, charm and wisdom. The show tells us about how a girl goes from an ugly young duck into a beautiful swan.
Though you may know the ending of the show from the beginning and the story is familiar to many of us, it has still been a big success in the USA. It has attracted a large number of viewers and won two Golden Globes awards, one of the highest honors for a television program in the USA.“ I think you can see a bit of Betty in all of us, and I mean men as well, because it’s about the underdog (弱者)”，says Ashley Jensen, who plays one of the characters on the show.
The program is so popular because of the performance of the 23-year-old actress America Ferrera who plays the role of Betty. She brings the character alive on the screen. Betty is popular because of ____.
| A．her clothes | B．her charm |
| C．her personality | D．her appearance |
Which is the reason for the success of the show?
| A．A large number of viewers. |
| B．Her life as an office worker. |
| C．The wonderful performance. |
| D．Two Golden Globes awards. |
Which of the following is NOT true according of the show?
| A．Betty is a girl of wisdom. |
| B．Betty acts as a beautiful swan on the show. |
| C．Betty is an American favorite TV character. |
| D．Betty is often looked down on by the people around. |
What can be the best title for the passage?
| A．Beauty from within. | B．A romantic story. |
| C．An ugly girl. | D．An exciting experience. |
“Clean your plate!” and “Be a member of the clean-plate club!” Just about every kid in the US heard this from a parent or grandparent. Often, it’s accompanied by an appeal(呼吁): “Just think about those starving orphans in Africa.” Sure, we should be grateful for every bite of food. Unfortunately, many people in the US take too many bites. Instead of “cleaning the plate’, perhaps we should save some food for tomorrow.
According to news reports, US restaurants are partly to blame for the growing bellies(胃口,食欲). A waiter puts a plate of food in front of each customer, with two to four times the amount recommended by the government, according to a USA Today story. Americans traditionally associate quantity with value and most restaurants try to give them that. They prefer to have customers complain about too much food rather than too little.
Barbara Rolls, a nutrition professor at Pennsylvania State University, told USA Today that restaurant portion(一分,份额) sizes began (or grew) in the 1970s, the same time that the American waistline(腰围) began to expand.
Health experts have tried to get many restaurants to serve smaller portions. Now, apparently, some customers are calling for this too. The restaurant industry trade magazine QSR reported last month that 57 percent of more than 4,000 people surveyed believe restaurants serve portions that are too large; 23 percent had no opinion; 20 percent disagreed. But a closer look at the survey indicates that many Americans who can’t afford fine dining still prefer large portions. Seventy percent of those earning at least $150,000 per year prefer smaller portions; but only 45 percent of those earning less than $25,000 want smaller.
It’s not that working-class Americans don’t want to eat healthily. It’s just that, “after long hours at low-paying jobs, getting less on their plate hardly seems like a good deal. They live from paycheck, happy to save a little money for next year’s Christmas presents.”Parents in the United States tend to ask their children _______.
| A．not to save food |
| B．to wash the dishes |
| C．not to eat too much |
| D．not to waste food |
Why do American restaurants serve large portions?
| A．Because Americans associate quantity with value. |
| B．Because Americans have big bellies. |
| C．Because Americans are good eaters. |
| D．Because Americans are greedy. |
Which of the following is NOT true of working-class Americans?
| A．They work long hours. |
| B．They live from paycheck to paycheck. |
| C．They don’t want to be healthy eaters. |
| D．They want to save money for their children. |
What happened in the 1970s?
| A．The US government recommended the amount of food a restaurant gave to a customer. |
| B．Health experts persuaded restaurants to serve smaller portions. |
| C．The United Stated produced more grain than needed. |
| D．The American waistline started to expand. |
The China Daily newspaper group is looking for English-language senior business editors, senior copy editors, copy editors and graphic designers to strengthen its international team. We offer a competitive salary package, accommodation(住宿) with utilities(水电费) paid for 90 percent, medical reimbursement(报销), a seven-day paid leave, eleven-day public holidays and a return ticket to the country of residence(居住国).
Senior Business Editor
You must：
assist the business editor in setting goals and working on achieving them；
be an excellent team person who can generate ideas and think creatively and be able to rewrite totally if needed and mentor junior staff；
ideally have been working or have worked in a position of responsibility and understand what leadership entails；
have had at least five years’ editing experience working on editing the Business Desk and be familiar with industry software.
Senior Copy Editor
You must：
work on shifts in the Business Desk and usually have the last word before the page is sent to print；
edit or rewrite copy and give snappy headlines and captions；
have had at least two years’ editing experience working on editing desks and be familiar with industry software.
Copy Editor
You must：
be good at editing or rewriting copy and writing snappy headlines and captions；
be able to work on shifts for different pages, and usually have the last word before the page is sent to print；
have two years of editing experience working on copy desks, and be familiar with industry software.
Graphic Designer
You must：
have excellent skills in information graphics；
be good at illustrations and freehand drawings；
be experienced in newspaper or magazine layouts；
have a good sense of typography；
have good news judgment；
be well versed with Macintosh software, including In Design, Illustrator and Photoshop；
be fluent in English.
For enquiries or to apply, write to job @ chinadaily.com.cn.What is not required about Graphic Designer?
| A．Be well-versed with Photoshop. |
| B．Have excellent skills in information graphics. |
| C．Having a good sense of typography. |
| D．Writing snappy headlines and captions. |
How many positions need editing experience?
| A．2. | B．1. | C．3. | D．4. |
Which can be the title of the advertisement?
| A．China Daily：New Employees Wanted |
| B．China Daily：Newspaper |
| C．China Daily：An International Team |
| D．China Daily：The Best Working Condition |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．free accommodations are available to the workers. |
| B．The workers there can enjoy a seven-day leave without pay. |
| C．The employees have the right to enjoy eleven-day public holidays. |
| D．The senior business editor’s only job is to help the business editor to set goals. |
I had a very special teacher in high school many years ago whose husband unexpectedly died of a heart attack. About a week after his death, she shared some of her views with a classroom of students.
As the sunlight came in through the classroom windows and the class was nearly over, she moved a few things aside on the edge of her desk and sat down there. She paused and said, “Before class is over, I would like to share with all of you a thought that is unrelated to class, but which I feel is important. Each of us comes to this world to learn, share, love, appreciate and give. None of us knows when this fantastic experience will end. It can be taken away at any moment.”
Her eyes beginning to water, she went on:
“So I would like you all to make me a promise. From now on, on your way to school, or on your way home, find something beautiful to notice. It doesn’t have to be something you see. It could be a scent of freshly baked bread from someone’s house, or it could be the sound of the wind slightly rustling the leaves in the trees…”
The class was completely quiet. We all picked up our books and left the room silently. That afternoon, I noticed more things on my way home from school.
Take notice of something special you see on your way home today. Go barefoot on the beach at sunset. For as we get older, it is not the things we did that we often regret, but the things we didn’t do.What is the purpose of the author’s writing the passage?
| A．To show his respect to his teacher |
| B．To ask us to appreciate every moment of our life |
| C．To ask us never to give in when facing difficulty |
| D．To show the influence that a teacher has on her students |
Why did the teacher talk about something unrelated to class?
| A．Because she had finished her class task |
| B．Because she could hardly control her feeling |
| C．Because she thought the class were not thoughtful enough |
| D．Because she wanted to share some of her views with the class |
What does the underlined word “scent” mean in Paragraph 4?
| A．smell | B．piece |
| C．color | D．taste |
What do we learn from the last sentence?
| A．We will be happy when we are old. |
| B．We will regret the mistakes that we made when we were young. |
| C．We will regret what we didn’t do though we might do it. |
| D．We will do what we couldn’t do in the past |
Golden sunlight danced in the treetops, and children’s laughter filled the park. The smell of popcorn played on the breeze, and life seemed good. It was one of the happiest Saturday mornings I had spent with my little daughter, Gigi.
That is, until two strangers threw her into their car and sped away. It seemed like a bad dream. I could barely whisper when the police questioned me. For hours we waited，but there was no word on the whereabouts of the car. Tears would start to come. Then nothing. I was numb with fear.
“Go home, Ma’am,” the police officer said. “I’ll have someone drive you. We’ll also want to monitor your telephone. The kidnappers might call, and we’ll want to keep track. Trust me, these guys can’t get far. ” After what had just happened, it was hard for me to trust anything.
My friend Gloria came over that afternoon. “I heard about Gigi on the radio,” she said. “Everyone is looking for the car. The interstates are all blocked.” She took my hand.
“Look here,” Gloria said. “ I want you to have this picture, and I want you to pray with me.”
It was a picture of a little girl sound asleep in her bed. Standing by the bed was a tall, blond angel. His hand was touching the girl’s shoulder as he smiled down at her.
My nerves were frazzled. “You know I don’t believe in that kind of thing!” I snapped. “I’m too exhausted for any hocus-pocus right now, Gloria！I want my daughter home!” I started to shake, and then I began sobbing.
Gloria placed the photo on our mantle and knelt down beside me. “Just pray with me,” she said, holding my hand.
I had no strength left, so we prayed and waited what seemed an eternity. Together, we waited by the phone until sunset. The phone never rang.
Suddenly, the front door swung open. I looked up and screamed.
There stood Gigi. “Gigi! Thank God!” I cried, throwing my arms around her, “Where did those men take you? How did you get home? Did the police find you?”
“No Mommy!” said Gigi. “I was really scared because those men said they were taking me far away. We were going really fast on an old rock road never seen before. But then a tall man walked out in front of the car, and they ran off the road and hit a tree.”
Then the tall man ran up and opened the car door and pulled me out. He was really nice, and said I would be okay now, and that those men couldn't hurt me. I must have gone to sleep, because then I woke up here in front of our house. He must have brought me home,”
“But who... how did he know... where to bring you?” My voice broke and trailed to a whisper.
“I don’t know, Mommy,” Gigi said. “But he was really friendly, and I wasn’t scared of him at all.”
Just then Gigi noticed Gloria’s picture on the mantle. “That's him!” She gave a loud cry, pointing at the picture. “Mommy, the tail blond man dressed like an angel. That’s the man that pulled me out of the car!”
I felt chill-bumps across my neck and arms. Gloria turned pale. “Are you sure that's the man?” Gloria asked.
“Yeah, that's him. Except he didn’t have wings, and he was wearing blue jeans and a tee shirt. But that's him exactly. I’d remember him anywhere!”
Later that night, the police found the injured kidnappers in their damaged car fifty miles from our home. When questioned-the driver remembered making a sharp turn to avoid hitting a tall blond man and the backseat door that Gigi sat by had been completely torn off its hinges.
Twenty years have gone by. We have never heard from anyone claiming to have rescued Gigi and there have been no logical explanations for Gigi’s miraculous escape and return home from a wreck so far away.
There have always been things that people can't explain. But, from that day forward, I believe that all experiences, positive and negative, are given to us for our strengthening and learning.
Gigi now takes her little girl to the park on Saturdays. They enjoy the sunlight as it dances in the treetops, the smell of popcorn, and the laughter of children. She keeps Gloria's picture on her mantle, and she remembers her angelic friend. And, like my daughter, I have a faith that has carried me through many trials since that day many years ago.The writer describes a happy scene at the beginning of the passage to___________.
| A．introduce a topic |
| B．attract readers’attention |
| C．make a sharp contrast |
| D．show the beauty of nature |
What is the writer’s attitude towards the pray together with Gloria?
| A．Doubtful | B．Curious |
| C．Grateful | D．Causal |
The main reason why the kidnappers could be arrested was that__________.
| A．the police followed and caught them |
| B．Gloria’s best friend helped the police to find them |
| C．an angel spotted them and took them to the police station |
| D．they had an accident when a tall man tried to stop their car |
What is conveyed in this passage?
| A．the police are not reliable sometimes. |
| B．any bad man will be punished one day. |
| C．we should believe in God and pray every day. |
| D．we should always stay positive whatever happens. |
We can learn from the passage that__________.
| A．the story was told from Gigi’s point of view |
| B．the man who rescued Gigi had known her before |
| C．Gigi was sure that the angel in the picture rescued her |
| D．the writer believed what Gigi said at the very beginning |
What can be best title for the passage?
| A．picture of an angle | B．power of God |
| C．Gigi’s escape | D．Mommy’s anxiety. |
Many phrases like “ no pains, no gains” give the impression that we ought to be suffering while we study. It’s almost as though the only way to know if we’re putting in enough work is the sense of hardship we bear.
When we haven’t taken the time to come up with another idea, all we know how to do is shut ourselves in a room with a book. It’s no surprise that we find revision boring and difficult. Just as children learn from playing, we can learn from doing, or at least from study techniques that interest us, rather than make us switch off.
Shutting yourself away can make you learn to hate studying. This leads to a situation where instead of being able to concentrate on your work, you are troubled by how unfair it is that you must study.
When you hate your work it’s very difficult to make yourself star, or approach it with any kind of structure or enthusiasm. This can be part of a vicious cycle(恶性循环) that traps you into ineffective revision, your poor progress fuelling further annoyance.
Just being around other people really helps fight against feelings of loneliness and, thankfully, it’s perfectly possible to work in the company of other people. We just need to learn how to deal with distractions(使人分心的事物).
It’s not necessary to avoid all company, just idle(懒散的) company. Studying in the same room as someone who is ironing or working out is perfectly possible. People who are bored and looking to be distracted, however, are terrible to work around. They constantly try to keep others in conversation.
It’s also a good idea to avoid the company of people involved in activities that you would rather be doing than studying. What would it be like working while sitting next to someone playing video games?
If being around others means working in a noisy environment, a pair of headphones and some background music can block out even noisy children. They also act as a psychological barrier, so that people think twice before interrupting you.
When you’re studying for a big exam, it seems like your whole life is taken up with study. Friends and family can lessen feelings of isolation(孤立). And connecting with other people makes us happy, so it’s important not to give that up and to make sure that we take the time to socialize.The author might believe that the phrase “no pains, no gains” _______.
| A．best describes how to study well |
| B．makes people treat study as a habit |
| C．encourages people to learn step by step |
| D．is not a good inspirational phrase for study |
Which saying about study might the author prefer?
| A．There is no smooth road to learning. |
| B．It’s better to work behind the closed door. |
| C．A positive motivation leads to good study results. |
| D．He who is ashamed of asking is ashamed of learning. |
Which might lead to an effective study based on this text?
| A．A correct goal. | B．A good teacher. |
| C．A favorable interest. | D．A hard task. |
The underlined sentence in Paragraph 7 implies that _______.
| A．playing video games is helpful for an effective study |
| B．one shouldn’t let a video player be his / her company |
| C．one should study from something that interests him/her |
| D．the more time one spends in playing games, the higher marks he / she will get |
If you are studying in a noisy environment, you’d better _______.
| A．show your not wanting to be interrupted |
| B．give up others’ company at once |
| C．think twice before taking any action |
| D．force yourself to be used to the environment |
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