Empathy(同情心) lets us feel another person’s pain and drives us to help. Do any other animals feel empathy? Scientists recently found that rats(老鼠) do, too.
Most people don’t like rats. In many people’s eyes, rats are only bad. But Jean Decety and his partners at the University of Chicago did an experiment. It showed that rats are kind, warm-hearted animals. They can feel each other’s pain.
Scientists placed pairs of rats in plastic cages(笼子) for two weeks. During this time they got to know each other. Then they put one of the rats from each pair into a small container(容器) in the cages. The small container had a door. It was so designed as to fall to the side when the free rat touched it. Many of the trapped(困住的) rats squeaked(吱吱叫) to show their discomfort. The other rats of the pairs could see their suffering friends clearly.
In most pairs, the free rats would become very worried about their friends. They kept trying to save their friends again and again throughout the month. Scientists put the rats’ favorite chocolate in the cages, but the rats didn’t eat it until they had saved their friends successfully. Scientists also found that female rats seemed to act more empathetic than male rats.
“The results are the first to show that rats take action in response to another’s trouble,” Decety said. “Monkeys and chimpanzees have similar behavior. But unlike those animals, rats can be ready used in laboratory studies. They will help us to learn which parts of the brain lead to empathy and helping behavior and whether empathy is natural.”A person with empathy is often _____.
| A．kind-hearted | B．clever | C．active | D．strong |
What does the underline word mean in Chinese?
| A．休息的 | B．睡着的 | C．死亡的 | D．受苦的 |
Why didn’t the free rats eat the chocolate at first?
| A．Because they were full at that time. |
| B．Because chocolate was not their favorite food. |
| C．Because they wanted to save the trapped rats first. |
| D．Because they were afraid that the chocolate was bad. |
Which of the following animals were NOT mentioned in the passage?
| A．Monkeys. | B．Cats. | C．Rats. | D．Chimpanzees. |
What does the passage mainly tell us?
| A．Rats can feel other animals’ pain. |
| B．Chocolate is rats’ favorite food. |
| C．Female rats are more empathetic than male rats. |
| D．Rats are empathetic and can feel each other’s pain. |
A primary school bus driver stopped the bus in a gas station in Ohio because he had to use the bathroom. Instead of turning off the engine (引擎) and taking the key with him, the driver left the bus running. And he forgot to set the brake (制动器) because he was in a hurry. “It was cold outside, and I didn’t want the kids to get cold while I was using the bathroom,” he told a police officer.
The bus slowly started moving away from the gas station. As the bus picked up speed, the kids began shouting and crying. Ten-year-old Jake ran forward to the driver’s seat and held the steering wheel (方向盘). He pressed hard on the brake pedal (踏板) and managed to stop the bus as it came nearer to a river bed. Jake turned off the engine at last. After the police arrived at the scene, they praised Jake for his great effort.
“That is one cool kid,” said the police officer. “I told him he would make a great police officer when he grew up.”
Jake wasn’t impressed with what he had done. “Stopping the bus,” he said, “was easy compared to playing Grand Theft Auto III,” his favorite action video game. The bus driver was taken to the police station. He was at first charged (指控) with “leaving a child alone while motor is running.” The lawyer said he hoped to upgrade the charge because of the number of children (twenty) on the bus.
“Whatever he is charged with,” the police officer said, “I will see that he never drives a bus again.”. Why didn’t the driver turn off the engine when he went to the bathroom? Because _________.
| A．he was in a hurry |
| B．he forgot to do it |
| C．he didn’t want the kids to get cold |
| D．he thought he would be back in a minute |
. What is the correct order? _________
a. The bus started moving.
b. Jake turned off the engine.
c. Jake held the steering wheel.
d. The kids began shouting and crying.
e. Jake ran forward to the driver’s seat.
f. Jake pressed hard on the brake pedal.
| A．a-b-c-d-e-f | B．a-d-e-c-f-b |
| C．d-a-c-e-f-b | D．d-e-a-b-c-f |
What do we know about Jake? ________
| A．He could drive. |
| B．He was eleven years old. |
| C．He wanted to be a police officer. |
| D．He liked playing Grand Theft Auto III. |
. What does the underlined word “upgrade” mean in the fourth paragraph? __________
| A．改变 | B．取消 | C．加重 | D．减轻 |
What will most probably happen to the bus driver? He will_______.
| A．not be charged |
| B．face the most serious charge |
| C．not be allowed to drive a bus again |
| D．only be charged with “leaving a child alone while motor is running” |
Dear Karen,
As you probably know, it’s my sister Suzie’s 16th birthday in a week. We’re planning a surprise party for her. Julie’s going to pick her up from school as usual on Friday but she’s not taking her home. She’s bringing her to the Palace Hotel, the big modern one near the station. We’re having a meal there and we’ve also hired (租用) the ballroom (舞厅) for a party in the evening. I hope you can come!
All her friends from school are coming and quite a few of the people from our village, too. Of course, Mum and Dad are coming up from England and I’ve managed to persuade (说服) our other sister, Marie, to come over from Australia. She’s bringing her kids with her, too.
After the party we’re going to have another one on Saturday! Well, not really a party. We’re inviting the family and close friends (that includes you) for a meal at the house. If the weather is nice, we’d like to have a barbecue in the garden. Julie’s going to make a special cake for Suzie.
Anyway, we hope to make it a really special weekend for Suzie. On Sunday we’re all going for a walk in the country. You know how she loves walking and we’re all going to need a bit of exercise after all that lovely food. We’re hoping to go up to the lake. Marie said she wanted her kids to feed the ducks just like Suzie and she did when they were very young. I’m sure Suzie will love that too.
It would be great if you could come over for the weekend. We would all love to see you.
Let me know as soon as you can.
Best，
David. Who is Karen? ______
| A．David’s cousin. | B．David’s friend. |
| C．David’s sister. | D．David’s classmate. |
. David and Julie are planning to have Suzie’s birthday party ______ on Friday evening.
| A．at the Palace Hotel | B．at the house |
| C．in the garden | D．beside the lake |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned? ______
| A．To make a special cake. | B．To have a barbecue. |
| C．To go swimming. | D．To feed the ducks. |
_____ won’t come for the meal at the house on Saturday because David doesn’t invite them /her.
| A．Karen |
| B．People from their village |
| C．Suzie’s Mum and Dad |
| D．Marie and her kids |
Why is David planning a walk in the country on Sunday?
Because he thinks ______.
| A．Suzie loves walking very much |
| B．Suzie used to take a walk there after dinner |
| C．it is special for Marie’s kids to go for a walk in the country |
| D．Suzie can feed the ducks in the river when going for a walk |
When I was young，I liked to play jokes on people I knew, especially on my parents and friends. One day my mother was cooking and I was playing with my younger brother Tony. Suddenly I ran to my mother and said: “Tony fell from the open window!” She was very worried and ran out of the kitchen. Then I said: “Don’t worry, I’m just joking.” My mother shouted at me, “If you do it again, I’ll hit you.”
Another day I went swimming with my friends in the sea. I wanted to play a joke on them. In the beginning I swam fast and I called out “Help!”. All my friends came to help me. However, they found that I was joking. But half an hour later I wasn’t joking. I was so fast, soon I got tired and couldn’t swim on in water. I tried my best to call my friends for help, but this time nobody came to help me.
In the end they found I was telling the truth. They came and saved my life. They took me to the hospital. This is the best lesson in my life. From then on I haven’t joked on anyone.When he was young, the writer liked to _______.
| A．play with his brother |
| B．help his mother cook |
| C．play jokes on people |
| D．go swimming with his friends |
What happened when the writer was playing with his brother? ______
| A．He got tired. |
| B．He played a joke on his mother. |
| C．Tony fell from the open window. |
| D．His mother hit him. |
In the beginning, all his friends came to help him because he ______.
| A．swam fast |
| B．called for help |
| C．would sink in water |
| D．couldn’t swim on in the water |
When the writer called his friends for help for the second time, they ______.
| A．took him to the hospital at once |
| B．came and saved him immediately |
| C．thought at first he was joking again |
| D．did nothing because the writer had lied to them |
The story tells us that ________.
| A．swimming is dangerous |
| B．the writer is a naughty boy |
| C．one can play jokes only on people he knows |
| D．if someone always tells lies, others won’t trust (信任) him |
How can you help young children become interested in reading? The following are some important tips.
The first way is to read out loud to them. Even if it’s just 15 minutes a day, as long as the children listen every day, they can become interested in reading later.
Cooking with young children can be also helpful. By reading the menu and cooking ingredients(原料) with them, you can help them learn more words and expressions.
When young children are reading, tell them to mark(做记号) the words that they don’t know and then to look them up in a dictionary. Also, tell them to ask questions about what they ‘re reading. For older children, try to make them pay more attention to the theme（主题）of the passage or ask them to write a summary（概要）Finally, make sure there are enough reading materials for young children. If you don’t have enough, go to the local library. Help young children find out which writers they like and what kind of books they like. Help them to choose the right books to read. But be sure to allow them to choose what they like by themselves.How many pieces of advice are given in the passage?
______________________________________________________________________How can you help young children learn to read by cooking with them?
______________________________________________________________________What should you do if your sister doesn’t know some words while reading?
______________________________________________________________________Should we choose all books for young children?
______________________________________________________________________What is the main idea of the passage?
______________________________________________________________________
6 June, Saturday
I read an article about people living in e-age yesterday. It talks about different ways of communicating like chatting on line, sending e-mails, sending different kinds of messages and keeping an online diary.
The article says that people nowadays send e-mails at least once a day. I don’t agree with this because I send e-mail only twice a week. However, I do check my e-mail once a day. I like receiving e-mails.
About chatting online, the article says that chatting on line is becoming more and more popular among teenagers. I think this is true. Whenever I arrive at home, I turn on my computer and log on(登录) to chat online with my friends. I prefer chatting online to calling a friend, because I can chat with many friends at the same time.
But I like using mobile phones. When I do not have my computer with me I can send short massages to my friends. I also like keeping in touch with them in this way.
I keep an online diary four times a week. I like telling others what has happened to me.
I think I am one of the people living in the e-age. I can live without computers or mobile phones.
What about you? Can you live without computers or mobile phones?
Posted 6:15 pmThe writer read that article ________.
| A．on 4 June, Tuesday. | B．on 5 June, Friday. |
| C．on 6 June, Saturday. | D．on 7 June, Sunday. |
How often does the writer send e-mails?
| A．Sometimes. | B．Every day |
| C．Always. | D．Never |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．The writer enjoys living in the e-age. |
| B．The writer always checks his e-mail. |
| C．Chatting online has become more and more popular. |
| D．The writer always calls his friends when he gets home. |
What does the writer disagree with the article?
| A．About chatting online. |
| B．Sending e-mails so often |
| C．Keeping an online diary. |
| D．Sending short messages. |
The passage is about ________.
| A．using computers | B．sending messages |
| C．living in the e-age | D．online diaries |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号