Americans plan parties for many reasons. As in other cultures, many Americans attend parties for weddings and religious or national holidays. But some parties are especially American. For example, a group of neighbors may gather on their street to eat food, play music and visit with one another. This is called a block party. A woman might invite a group of women to a party called a baby shower for a friend who is about to give birth. Guests bring presents for the new baby.
Americans also attend tailgate parties. A tailgate is the back end of a truck or other vehicle that opens down. The tailgate parties are a big part of sports culture in the United States. Friends bring food and drink to a sports event. They eat together in the parking area of the sports stadium.
Birthday parties are also very popular. Many parents organize a party for their child around a theme. Birthday parties usually include gifts and a birthday cake with candles. In many parts of the United States, cupcakes have become a popular replacement for cakes.
Birthday parties can be low cost or very costly. Some parents take their children’s birthday parties very seriously, even when the child is too young to fully understand the celebration.
One group of parents started a website called Birthdays Without Pressure. They decided that some parents were under too much social pressure to plan costly parties for their children. The group sees this movement as an example of America’s culture of “too much stuff”. The group’s website gives suggestions on how to keep birthday celebrations simple, meaningful and fun without spending a lot of money. Their advice may be very helpful during this period of economic recession (萧条)．What can be the best title for the passage?
| A．Reasons for parties |
| B．Birthdays without pressure |
| C．Different parties in the world |
| D．American parties |
How many kinds of parties does the passage mention?
| A．5. | B．7. | C．6. | D．8. |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Birthday parties are the most popular in America. |
| B．Some parties in America are the same as in other countries. |
| C．There’s a party for the mother before her new baby is born. |
| D．Block party is especially American |
The purpose of Birthdays Without Pressure is to advise people to _________.
| A．relieve people’s pressure |
| B．make birthday parties meaningful and costly |
| C．have meaningful birthday parties with low cost |
| D．spread America’s culture |
The National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC has thousands of objects on display, including the 1903 Wright Flyer, Charles Lindbergh’s Spirit of St. Louis, the Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia, and a lunar rock you can touch. In addition to our exhibition gallery, you may want to visit the Albert Einstein Planetarium, Lockheed Martin IMAX Theater, and the Public Observatory on the east end. There are many things to do at the Museum in DC. We offer daily tours and educational activities for both children and adults. We also have scheduled lectures and events throughout the year.
Hours and Admission: Open every day except December 25. Admission is free.
Regular Hours: 10:00 am to 5:30pm
Extended Hours: 10:00 am to 7:30pm
December 26---30, 2014 March 30---April 20, 2015
Friday and Saturdays, April 24---May 16, 2015 May 17---September 7, 2015
Visiting Tips: Limit the number of bags: All visitors are screened through metal detector upon entry. The fewer items you bring inside the Museum, the faster your entry. Before you visit, please review the list of prohibited items, which include pocket knives and tripods(三脚架). Visitors carrying prohibited items will not be allowed inside the Museum, so please leave them at home or in your car.
No Food or Drink: Only bottled water is permitted in the Museum. You may only consume food and other drinks in the Food and Drink Court, not in the Museum. Groups who bring food are encouraged to picnic on the National Hall.
Please Take Photos: You are welcome to take photos for personal use. However, tripods and monopods(单脚架) are not permitted without approval.
First Aid: The Museum has a First Aid office and a nurse on duty. Please contact the nearest security officer or the Welcome Center for assistance.
Visit the Welcome Center: At our Welcome Center in the South Lobby, staff and volunteers can answer any questions you have during your visit.
Open: 10:00am to 5:30 Phone: 202-666-2212
E-mail: NASM-visitorservice@si.edu
According to the passage, the National Air and Space Museum is a place _______.
| A．where only adults can take part in some educational activities |
| B．where one can touch anything he likes |
| C．everyone can pay a visit to without buying tickets |
| D．everyone can visit without time limit all the year round. |
If the Greens plan to visit the Musuem at 6:00pm, it is accessible on _______.
| A．December 24, 2014(Wednesday) |
| B．March 1, 2015(Sunday) |
| C．September 15, 2015(Tuesday) |
| D．July 6, 2015(Monday) |
A visitor to the Museum can _______.
| A．get some medical treatment if he suddenly falls ill |
| B．take photos with tripods for personal use |
| C．bring fewer bags to go through metal detectors |
| D．eat and drink in the Museum or in the Food Court |
The purpose of this passage is to _______.
| A．attract people to explore the universe |
| B．make an advertisement for the Museum |
| C．encourage adults to bring their children here |
| D．show what is on display in the Museum |
If Confucius(孔子) were alive today and could celebrate his September 28 birthday with a big cake, there would be a lot of candles. He’d need a fan or a strong wind to help him put them out.
While many people in China remember Confucius on his special day, few people in the United States will give him a passing thought. It’s nothing personal. Most Americans don’t even remember the birthdays of their own national heroes.
But that doesn’t mean that Americans don’t care about Confucius. In many ways he has become a bridge that foreigners must cross if they want to reach a deeper understanding of China.
In the past two decades, the Chinese studies programs have gained huge popularity in Western universities. More recently, the Chinese government has set up Confucius Institutes in more than 80 countries. These schools teach both Chinese language and culture. The main courses of Chinese culture usually include Chinese art, history and philosophy(哲学). Some social scientists suggest that Westerners should take advantage of the ancient Chinese wisdom to make up the drawbacks of Western philosophy. Students in the United States, at the same time, are racing to learn Chinese. So they will be ready for life in a world where China is an equal power with the United States. Businessmen who hope to make money in China are reading books about Confucius to understand their Chinese customers.
So the old thinker’s ideas are still alive and well.
Today China attracts the West more than ever, and it will need more to introduce Confucius and Chinese culture to the West.
As for the old thinker, he will not be forgotten by people in the West, even if his birthday is.The opening paragraph is mainly intended to _______.
| A．attract the readers’ interest in the subject |
| B．provide some key facts about Confucius |
| C．show great respect for the ancient thinker |
| D．prove the popularity of modern birthday celebrations |
We can learn from Paragraph 4 that American students _______.
| A．take an active part in Chinese competitions |
| B．try to get high scores in Chinese exams |
| C．fight for a chance to learn Chinese |
| D．have a great passion in studying Chinese |
What is the best title for this passage?
| A．Forgotten Wisdom in America. |
| B．Huge Fans of the Chinese Language. |
| C．Old Thinker with a Big Future. |
| D．Chinese Culture for Westerners. |
The passage is likely to appear in ______.
| A．a biography | B．a history paper |
| C．a newspaper | D．a philosophy textbook |
Weekends are normally a time for shopping and last Saturday was no exception. My son Henry and I were shopping in a neighborhood market. Henry was busy weighing each new bag of vegetables I selected. I gave him a bag of potatoes and he walked over to the scale and waited in line. Suddenly, a man rushed over from behind, and stepped before him, hitting him out of the way. Henry looked shocked and scared. Seeing this I left my shopping cart and walked over to Henry, saying loudly, “Are you OK, honey? I saw what that man did to you. That was very, very wrong.”
When the man finished weighing his bag, his sudden turning around made all his onions fall to the ground. The three of us stood there, frozen for a moment. And then I bent down on my hands and knees and started collecting onions. After I handed the onions to the man, he accepted them and put them into his bag. After Henry and I picked up all the onions, the man walked away without saying anything. We didn’t discuss the event until we got back in the car.
On the way back home, Henry said through tears, “Mommy, I’ve a frustrating day. That man cut right in front of me. And we had to help him pick up his onions! Why did we do that? That didn’t make any sense!”
I took a deep breath and said, “Henry, that man seemed to have a very bad mood today. We should forgive him. I was also angry with the man for treating you rudely. I really wanted to kick him. But doing that doesn’t make any sense. If we hadn’t helped him, we might have felt good for a moment, but then I bet we would have felt really sorry for a long time. You and I have a lot of love to share. Maybe that man doesn’t have much. People who behave badly still need love.”
A cheerful smile appeared on Henry’s face. It was a smile of promise kept. It was the best smile I had ever seen. It was a good moment. It may have been my best mommy moment ever.What did the man do?
| A．He cut in the line. |
| B．He hit Henry on the head. |
| C．He hurried away without paying. |
| D．He ran into Henry suddenly. |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．The author was not angry at all with what the man had done. |
| B．The man was very sorry for what he had done to Henry. |
| C．At last, Henry learned a very valuable life lesson from the event. |
| D．Henry didn’t help the author pick up the onions for the man. |
Which of the following word can best describe the author?
| A．Narrow-minded. | B．Broad-minded. |
| C．Strong-willed. | D．Bad-tempered. |
The word tolerance is widely used in liberal democracies. It indicates a positive meaning. Politicians urge us to be tolerant towards minorities. Educators teach us to be tolerant towards the other. The press is full of references to the need to display tolerance when faced with individuals or groups espousing a different view or holding a different religious belief. A tolerant society is an objective sought after by anyone who believes in the values of democracy. A tolerant individual is attributed with virtuous qualities.
The question we must ask is whether we have been using the word tolerance fully aware of its meaning and whether we have applied it correctly to reflect what we really wish to convey?
The word tolerance means to bear, or to bear with. If I tolerate something or someone, I basically say that I am ready to bear it or him. I can tolerate a bad smell or a noisy neighbour. The act of toleration forces me to desist from conveying my objection to the existence of a phenomenon, which I find difficult to bear. A bad smell or a noisy neighbour is considered by me to be an objectionable phenomenon. By tolerating either of them, I am not transforming the bad smell or the noisy neighbour into positive phenomena. Let's be honest: I don't have a different taste when it comes to bad smells. I simply dislike it and wish that it disappears. I don't respect the noisy neighbour. I would rather have him stop at once the noise he is making so I can live in peace.
To try to remove the bad smell or take reasonable action in order for the noisy neighbour to stop bothering me would most probably not be considered an intolerant act by most people.
Now, let's try to apply the word tolerance in reference to a person who is law-abiding and holds a legally acceptable different view from my own. I may have a strong view, which is opposed to his. Quite frankly, I may decide to tolerate his view. By so doing, I would be attributing to it a negative characteristic. I would apply the same attitude to his view as to the bad smell or noisy neighbour. Thus, to try to take action in order to make his view disappear would be considered an intolerant act. To tolerate his view the way I would a bad smell or a noisy neighbour, could hardly be considered virtuous.
The subject tolerating is by nature not equal to the object being tolerated. If I tolerate you, I essentially say that I am above you and am prepared, although unwillingly, to bear with your presence or with your practices or opinions. That may be true in the case of an individual who is ready to tolerate the other. However, this attitude by such an individual, though empirically true, is hardly a virtue. Certainly, the fact that an individual, in reality, may merely tolerate the other or his opinion does not justify a government or any official authority promoting tolerance as a virtue. One cannot tolerate an equal being. True equality involves respect, not toleration. To respect the other as a distinctive person is hardly to tolerate him. This is the true meaning of equality: diversity existing in a mutually-respectful socio-legal setting.
The danger with tolerance is that it can lead to the acceptance of individuals or groups bent on destroying the foundations of democratic systems. We have seen such cases with regard to political parties or destructive religious groups that have been treated in a liberal manner under the guise of tolerance.
A tolerant attitude involves the grant of a favour, not a right. The question we should ask ourselves is whether we would ever wish a parliament to make laws according to us, as individuals and as part of a collective entity or a permission to pursue certain actions interpreted as a favour rather than a right? Indeed, would we ever wish anyone to listen to our views and accept us the way we are simply because he is kind enough to tolerate us? The first two paragraphs are mainly intended to show that __________.
| A．tolerance is a symbol of liberal democracies |
| B．democratic society always advocates tolerance |
| C．people’s understanding of tolerance is one-sided |
| D．tolerance can be applied to many situations |
The example of a bad smell and a noisy neighbour is raised to indicate that _________.
| A．the writer are fed up with them |
| B．most people find them hard to tolerate |
| C．the writer isn’t prejudiced against them |
| D．tolerating them isn’t a virtuous act |
Which of the following will the writer probably agree with?
| A．Too much tolerance will endanger the foundations of democratic systems. |
| B．By tolerating people can transform something negative into the opposite. |
| C．People tolerating others are likely to consider them as their equals. |
| D．Being tolerant should be regarded as a right instead of a favour |
The best title for this passage should be “___________”.
| A．Tolerance and respect | B．What is to be tolerated? |
| C．Is Tolerance a Virtue? | D．Should people be tolerant? |
Analysis of the composition of quicksand shows that there are four key ingredients—sand, obviously water, clay and salt. Together these materials form a structure resembling a house of cards, with large water-filled gaps between the sand particles, which are loosely glued in place by the clay. As long as it’s left alone, the structure remains stable. But as soon as it’s disturbed, by stepping on it, the clay changes from a jelly-like consistency to a runny liquid. The effect is the same as stirring a pot of yoghurt. Liquefying(溶解)the clay makes the quicksand about one million times runnier, and the whole house of cards comes tumbling down, with you inside it.
Very quickly, the sand sinks to the bottom and the water floats to the top. This is where the salt comes in. When there’s enough salt present, as soon as the clay particles liquefy, electrical charges make them begin to stick together to form bigger particles and these also settle with the sand. Quicksand is a mixture which looks like solid, but behaves more like a liquid.
Despite its murderous reputation, quicksand does not such people under and swallow them, although it can hold a person in firm grip. The human body is more buoyant(有浮力) in quicksand than in water, and sooner or later anyone trapped in it will float.
Unlike most liquids, quicksand’s viscosity, or “runniness” can suddenly change if it comes under pressure, for example under a human foot. The surface gives way and the victim quickly sinks in up to the knees, surrounded by an area of dirty things that turns semi-solid around its victim. Escaping from the quicksand’s grip(紧握) requires a large amount of force. Without something solid to pull at, people often find they are stuck fast. Pulling at one leg simply makes the other one sink further.
So how do you escape from quicksand’s control? Stay still and call for help. Staying still stops you sinking any further, until--with luck--help arrives on the scene. If no one appears and you need to draw yourself out, gently lie down on your back until your body is floating on the sand. Next, roll over onto your stomach and pull yourself forwards with your hands, so that you gradually “swim” towards firmer ground. It is a slow and dirty business, but it works.
This technique has one barrier: it goes against a very powerful human nature. Faced with danger in the open, nine out of ten stay on their feet so that they can run away, in which case it can worsen the situation.Which ingredient of the quicksand make someone trapped in it stuck and stuck fast?
| A．Sand | B．Clay | C．Water | D．Salt |
From the passage we can learn that ________
| A．as long as you are strong enough, you can pull yourself up from quicksand on your own |
| B．clay glues sand particles loosely, which makes quicksand stable, unless it is disturbed |
| C．because anyone trapped in quicksand will float, there is little possibility of him dying |
| D．looking like solid ground, quicksand is actually liquid |
If someone is trapped in quicksand, what should he do?
| A．Remain calm and wave for help |
| B．Stand in quicksand and get ready to run away as quickly as possible |
| C．“Swimming” is one of the best choices he can use to escape |
| D．Once in quicksand, lie down on his stomach immediately and swim slowly to safety |
What might be the best title of the passage?
| A．A human killer--quicksand |
| B．How to escape from danger |
| C．An awful experience in quicksand |
| D．What to do if trapped in quicksand |
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