In the fall of 1985, I was a bright-eyed girl heading off to Howard University, aiming at a legal career and dreaming of sitting on a Supreme Court bench somewhere. Twenty-one years later I am still a bright-eyed dreamer and one with quite a different tale to tell.
My grandma, an amazing woman, graduated from college at the age of 65. She was the first in our family to reach that goal. But one year after I started college, she developed cancer. I made the choice to withdraw from college to care for her. It meant that school and my personal dream would have to wait.
Then I got married with another dream: building my family with a combination of adopted and biological children. In 1999, we adopted our first son. To lay eyes on him was fantastic and very emotional. A year later came our second adopted boy. Then followed son No. 3. In 2003, I gave birth to another boy.
You can imagine how fully occupied I became, raising four boys under the age of 8. Our home was a complete zoo---a joyous zoo. Not surprising, I never did make it back to college full-time. But I never gave up on the dream either. I had only one choice: to find a way. That meant taking as few as one class each semester.
The hardest part was feeling guilty about the time I spent away from the boys. They often wanted me to stay home with them. There certainly were times I wanted to quit, but I knew I should set an example for them to follow through the rest of their lives.
In 2007, I graduated from the University of North Carolina. It took me over 21 years to get my college degree！
I am not special, just single-minded. It always struck me that when you’re looking at a big challenge from the outside it looks huge, but when you’re in the middle of it, it just seems normal. Everything you want won’t arrive in your life on one day. It’s a process. Remember: little steps add up to big dreams. When the author went to Howard University, her dream was to be __________.
| A．a writer | B．a teacher |
| C．a judge | D．a doctor |
Why did the author quit school in her second year of college?
| A．She wanted to study by herself. |
| B．She fell in love and got married. |
| C．She suffered from a serious illness. |
| D．She decided to look after her grandma. |
What can we learn about the author from Paragraphs 4 and 5?
| A．She was busy yet happy with her family life. |
| B．She ignored her guilty feeling for her sons. |
| C．She wanted to remain a full-time housewife. |
| D．She was too confused to make a correct choice. |
What does the author mostly want to tell us in the last paragraph?
| A．Failure is the mother of success. |
| B．Little by little, one goes far. |
| C．Every coin has two sides. |
| D．Well begun, half done. |
Which of the following can best describe the author?
| A．Caring and determined. |
| B．Honest and responsible. |
| C．Ambitious and sensitive. |
| D．Innocent and single-minded. |
Once a young man was in deep love with a girl. This man folded 1,000 pieces of paper cranes (纸鹤) as a gift to his girl. Although he was a small branch manager in a company, and his __1__ didn’t seem too bright, they were very __2__ together until one day, his girl told him she was going to Paris and would never come back. She also told him that she couldn’t see any future for both of them, “so let’s go our own __3__ from now on…” The young man was __4__, but he agreed.
When he regained his __5__, he worked hard day and night, just to make something out of himself. Finally with all the _6__ work, this man set up his own __7__.
One rainy day, while this man was __8__, he saw an elderly couple sharing an umbrella in the rain, walking to somewhere. He __9__ that they were his ex-girlfriend’s (前女友)parents, so he drove slowly beside the couple, wanting them to find him in his expensive car and to know that he had his own company, car, etc.
To the man’s surprise, the couple were walking towards a cemetery (墓地). He got out of his car and followed them. And there he saw his ex-girlfriend —a photograph of her __10__ as sweetly as ever at him from her tombstone, and those precious paper cranes in a glass bottle! He walked over and asked the couple why this had happened. They explained that __11__ she did not leave for France at all. She fell ill with cancer. In her heart, she had believed that he would __12_ some day. She didn’t want her __13__ to be his barrier(障碍). Therefore, she chose to leave him. She asked her __14__ to put his paper cranes beside her, because if the day comes when fate brings him to her again he can take some of those back with him.
The man just cried __15__. He was heartbroken once again.
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Ron Meyer is the president and COO（首席运营官） of Universal Studios．As one of the most successful business leaders in Hollywood, he heads up Universal Pictures and Universal Parks & Resorts．He's the guy who oversees the production of Multimillion-dollar extravaganzas（作品） like King Kong and Cinderella Man．
Meyer’s story sounds like the plot of one of his motion pictures．He grew up in a modest home where there was little income．It was a big deal to go to a restaurant．At 15, he quit high school and spent his time hanging out with the neighborhood toughs（流氓）．He was then a kid quick with his fists who seemed to get into fights somewhat regularly．At one point, he was separated from others with an infectious disease, having no TV and nothing to do．His mother sent him two books．One was The Amboy Dukes, a novel about kids in street gangs．The other was The Flesh Peddlers, about a guy in the talent agency（星探公司）who lived a successful life．“I realized,” he says, “that I was no longer that silly kid I had been, and I wanted to change my life．”
Meyer took any job he could get．He worked as a busboy and short-order cook．He cleaned offices and sold shoes．That attitude made an impression on people．One day he received a call from Paul Kohner, a successful agent who represented stars like John Huston, Charles Bronson and Lana Turner．Their messenger and driver had quit, and they knew Ron was willing to take whatever job they offered. He started the job the next day．
Meyer was lucky to work with a good boss―and he had the brains to make the most of that experience．In nearly six years of driving for Kohner, Meyer became his right-hand man and learned a lot．By the 1970s, Meyer had built many relationships in the business．In 1975, the fate presented an opportunity and he started his own operation Creative Artists Agency, which became a huge success, representing Hollywood legends like Barbra Streisand, Tom Hanks and Tom Cruise．
Twenty years later, Meyer was appointed to run Universal Studios, a position far beyond his youthful dream．But once he saw success was possible, he was driven to achieve it．Today, colleagues regularly owe his success―and theirs―to his humility and perseverance．It’s a level of success that takes determination, personality and intelligence, whether it comes from a college education or from the street．What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．How a bitter childhood contributes to one’s success． |
| B．It’s important to choose a right career to achieve one’s life goal． |
| C．A talent agency helps a person to become famous． |
| D．It’s people’s determination, intelligence and personality that decide their success． |
What does the author mean by saying “he had the brains to make the most of that experience”?
| A．He benefited a good deal from the experience． |
| B．He smartly took the opportunity to learn from the experience． |
| C．That experience made him ever smarter than ever before． |
| D．He used his brains to impress his boss． |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．A talent agency is to oversee the production of movies． |
| B．Ron Meyer did far more successfully than Raul Kohner． |
| C．Relationship is the most important thing in the film industry． |
| D．Meyer had never thought of being as successful as today． |
Suppose that we lined up our roughly 14 million United States businesses in order of size, starting with the smallest, along an imaginary road from San Francisco to New York. There will be 4,500 businesses to the mile, or a little less than one per foot. Suppose further that we planted a flag each business. The height of the flag pole represents the yearly volume of sales (销量) , each $ 10, 000 in sales in shown by one foot of pole.
The line of flagpoles is a very interesting sight. From San Francisco to about Reno, it is almost unnoticeable, a row of poles about a foot high. From Reno eastward the poles increase in height until, near Columbus, Ohio - about four - fifths of the way across the nation - flags fly about 10 feet in the air.
But as we approach the eastern terminus (终点) , the poles suddenly begin to mount (升高) . There are about 300, 000 firms in the country with sales over $ 500, 000. These firms take up the last 75 miles of the 3,000 - mile road. There are 200, 000 firms with sales over $ 1 million. They take up the last 50 miles. Then there are 1, 000 firms with sales of $ 50, 000, 000 or more. They take up the last quarter of a mile before the city limits, flags flying at cloud height, 5 , 000 feet up .
At the very gate of New York, on the last 100 feet of the last mile , we find the 100 largest industrial firms . They have sales of at least $ 1.5 billion, so that their flags are already miles high. Along the last 10 feet of road , there are 10 largest companies . Their sales are roughly $ 10 billion and up : their flags fly 190 miles in the air , almost in the stratosphere (平流层) .What is the author’s main purpose in this passage?
| A．To tell the reason why the largest firms are in New York. |
| B．To show the geographical distribution (分布) of the United States businesses. |
| C．To provide a general idea of the size of businesses in the United States. |
| D．To tell us how the United States businesses are arranged. |
What’s the correct order of the following places from east to west?
| A．San Francisco, Reno, New York, Columbus. |
| B．San Francisco, Reno, Columbus, New York. |
| C．New York, Columbus, Reno, San Francisco |
| D．New York, Reno, Columbus, San Francisco |
Among the four parts of the imaginary road , which part , considering all the firms in it , has the largest total volume of sales ?
| A．The last 75 miles. | B．The last 50 miles. |
| C．The last 100 feet of the last mile. | D．The last quarter of a mile |
Which of the following diagrams (图表) shows the right order of size of the US businesses , according to the text ?
S =" San" Francisco R =" Reno" C =" Columbus" N =" New" York H =" height" F = feet
Although credit cards are becoming a more acceptable part of the financial scene, they are still regarded with doubts by many as being a major part of the “live now pay later” syndrome（综合症）．Along with hire-purchase, rental and leasing schemes（租赁项目）, they provide encouragement to spend more money．Of course, it is only the hotheaded who give way to the temptation to live, temporarily at least, beyond their means, and such people would no doubt manage to do so even without credit cards．
Advertising campaigns have, however, promoted a growing realization of the advantages of these small pieces of plastic. They prevent need to carry large amounts of cash and are always useful in emergencies．
All the credit card organizations charge interest on a monthly basis which may work out as high as 25 per cent a year, yet sensible purchasing using a card can mean that you obtain up to seven weeks, interest-free credit．Using the card abroad, where items frequently take a long time to be included on your account, can extend this period even further．
It is worthwhile shopping around before deciding on a particular credit card. It is necessary to consider the amount of credit granted; interest rates, which may vary slightly; the number and range of outlets（经销店）, though most cards cover major garages, hotels, restaurants and department stores; and of course, what happens if your card is lost or stolen．A credit card thief may be sitting on a potential goldmine particularly if there is a delay in reporting the loss of the card．
However, if used wisely, a credit card can cost nothing, or at least help to tide you over a period of financial difficulty．The hotheaded are people who ________．
| A．spend more money than they have |
| B．spend less money than other people |
| C．save money |
| D．make money |
The disadvantage of credit cards is ________．
| A．to enable you to buy things without carrying large amount of cash |
| B．to encourage people to spend more money |
| C．to be always useful in emergencies |
| D．to help people tide over a period of financial difficulty |
Deciding on a particular credit, you do not have to consider ________．
| A．the amount of credit granted |
| B．the number and range of outlets |
| C．the possibility of loss of money |
| D．the department stores where you are going to use your credit cards |
The underlined words in the last paragraph probably means ________．
| A．floating with the tide of |
| B．going through a difficult period of |
| C．rising and falling with the tide of |
| D．attempting to go against the tide of |
A round of applause, please, for the Indian man who recently sang for 80 hours straight, setting a new Guinness world record. It’s an impressive feat, to be sure, but let’s just hope he still has a voice．According to Indian newspapers, Rajesh Burbure has been told to keep silent for several days so his vocal cords（声带）can heal．
It was reported that Burbure and his family are in a celebratory mood. "It's a proud moment for all of us," his wife told DNAIndia.com．
I, on the other hand, am unable to share their enthusiasm．Don't get me wrong: I hope the 35-year-old Burbure lives forever, sells a million records and becomes an international celebrity．But his record—singing for 80 hours straight—is about as meaningful as most of the other curious but crazy feats listed in the Guinness Book of World Records．
Granted, I'm not qualified to speak on the subject．I've got no world records to my name, and I never expect to have any．Then again, maybe I am qualified to speak for those of us who have better things to do than train for years to sing an 80-hour medley（集成曲）of pop songs．
But let’s not just pick on poor Burbure．He’s not the only person chasing meaningless accolades（荣誉）．The Guinness Book of World Records is full of the names of people who at one time grew the longest hair, or built the biggest bicycle, or baked the largest cheesecake．
To all of these enterprising souls I ask, simply, "What was it all for?"
Congratulations! For all of your painstaking effort, you became a footnote in a thick book that no one reads, except for you and the person who will eventually surpass you, with one more hour of singing, a few more centimeters of steel or a few more pounds of cheese．
After all, records are made to be broken．From the text, we can conclude that the author _________．
| A．thinks singing for 80 hours straight is completely meaningless |
| B．feels it a pity he was not invited to share the happiness with the Burbures |
| C．is quite worried about Burbure’s vocal cords |
| D．has no Guinness records, so he admires Burbures’ feat |
Before someone wins a Guinness record, he or she has to ________．
| A．become an international celebrity |
| B．know all about Guinness records |
| C．practice a great deal |
| D．bear great stress for fear of injury |
We can infer from the article that ________．
| A．after the 80 hours of singing, Burbure could no longer speak |
| B．Burbure’s wife didn’t support his attempt to make a Guinness record |
| C．many have criticized Burbure for his stupid behavior |
| D．challenging a Guinness record may be harmful to the health |
The author’s attitude to some Guinness world records is ________．
| A．positive | B．impressed | C．negative | D．touched |
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