Tragedy struck for brothers Rob and Paul Forkan when they lost their parents in the 2004 Asian tsunami. Now, over ten years later, they're using their flip flop business to help other orphans.
The boys had an unusual childhood. They were just 11 and 13 when their parents, Kevin and Sandra, took them out of the UK education system and moved the family to Goa in India. Their parents were of the philosophy that they would receive a healthier and fuller education by traveling the world and helping others. There they did lots of voluntary work and mixed with the local community. It was when the family were on holiday in Sri Lanka that the tsunami hit. Although the children managed to escape, their parents tragically couldn't. But Paul says their upbringing meant they were able to cope with this tough blow. "Our parents gave us this confidence that we could do anything, that nothing was hard to achieve," says Paul.
What the boys did was to start a business selling ethically-sourced sandals. They're called 'Gandys' after the father of India's independence movement, Mahatma Gandhi. "He was in all our schoolbooks as kids; he's on all the money over in India; he's famous for wearing his flip flops," says Paul. The entire project was inspired by their parents’ philosophy, their globetrotting childhoods and what happened to them in Sri Lanka. Their parents had previously worked in the fashion industry before quitting their jobs and focusing on humanitarian projects. Thus, Gandys is a very fitting tribute to their lives. Gandys sells flip-flops and donates 10 percent of the profits from every pair sold to orphans around the globe. In conjunction with Gandys, the Forkans also founded Orphans for Orphans, a charitable organization dedicated to helping orphans. They say they can make a profit and do good at the same time: they give 10% of their profit to charity, and have set up their own foundation through which they've been able to open a children's home in Sri Lanka.
This year alone, Gandys has sold 250,000 pairs of flip flops, which is only expected to increase. In 2013, the business made around 1.2 million pounds ($1.8 million). With more profits, more orphans will receive assistance. Hence, it’s safe to say that the Forkan brothers are making their parents very proud.The two brothers left the UK for India because _________.
| A．the UK education system is not so good as that of India |
| B．their parents had humanitarian projects in India |
| C．the voluntary work in Goa attracted them |
| D．their parents expected them to grow through travelling |
We can infer from the passage that _______.
| A．the parents had great influence on the two brothers |
| B．the two brothers were left hopeless after the tsunami |
| C．their parents died soon after they settled in India |
| D．the two brothers had a troubled childhood |
Why did the brothers name their sandals after Gandhi?
| A．Because Gandhi wears and sells flip flops. |
| B．Because Gandhi always helps orphans. |
| C．Because Gandhi is influential in India. |
| D．Because Gandhi fits into their lives in India. |
What can best describe the brothers?
| A．Unlucky. | B．Modest. | C．Generous. | D．Ambitious. |
What’s the best title of the passage?
| A．Orphans for Orphans |
| B．Making Parents Proud |
| C．Gandys: Making Money and Doing Good |
| D．Rise Up from Tragedy to Success |
B
What Theresa Loe is doing proves that a large farm isn’t prerequisite for a modern grow-your-own lifestyle. On a mere 1/10 of an acre in Los Angeles, Loe and her family grow, can（装罐）and preserve much of the food they consume.
Loe is a master food preserver, gardener and canning expert. She also operates a website, where she shares her tips and recipes, with the goal of demonstrating that every has the ability to control what’s on their plate.
Loe initially went to school to become an engineer, but she quickly learned that her enthusiasm was mainly about growing and preparing her own food. “I got into cooking my own food and started growing my own herbs (香草) and foods for that fresh flavor,”she said. Engineer by day, Loe learned cooking at night school. She ultimately purchased a small piece of land with her husband and began growing their own foods.
“I teach people how to live farm-fresh without a farm,” Loe said. Through her website Loe emphasizes that “anybody can do this anywhere.” Got an apartment with a balcony （阳台）? Plant some herbs. A window? Perfect spot for growing. Start with herbs, she recommends, because “they’re very forgiving.” Just a little of the herbs “can take your regular cooking to a whole new level,” she added. “I think it’s a great place to start.” “Then? Try growing something from a seed, she said, like a tomato or some tea.”
Canning is a natural extension of the planting she does. With every planted food. Loe noted, there’s a moment when it’s bursting with its absolute peak flavor. “I try and keep it in a time capsule in a canning jar,” Loe said. “Canning for me is about knowing what’s in your food, knowing where it comes from.”
In addition to being more in touch with the food she’s eating, another joy comes from passing this knowledge and this desire for good food to her children: “Influencing them and telling them your opinion on not only being careful what we eat but understanding the bigger picture,” she said, “that if we don’t take care of the earth, no will.”The underlined word “prerequisite” (Pare. 1) is closest in meaning to “______”.
| A．recipe | B．substitute |
| C．requirement | D．challenge |
Why does Loe suggest starting with herbs?
| A．They are used daily. |
| B．They are easy to grow. |
| C．They can grow very tall |
| D．They can be eaten uncooked |
According to Loe, what is the benefit of canning her planted foods?
| A．It can preserve their best flavor |
| B．It can promote her online sales |
| C．It can better her cooking skills |
| D．It can improve their nutrition |
What is the“the bigger picture” (Para. 6) that Loe wishes her children to understand?
| A．The knowledge about good food |
| B．The way to live a grow-our-own life |
| C．The joy of getting in touch with foods |
| D．The responsibility to protect our earth |
阅读下列短文，从每篇短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
“I see you’ve got a bit of water on your coat,” said the man at the petrol station. “Is it raining out there?”“No, it’s pretty nice,” I replied, checking my sleeve. “Oh, right. A pony(马驹) bit me earlier.”
As it happened, the bite was virtually painless: more the kind of small bite you might get from a naughty child. The pony responsible was queuing up for some ice cream in the car park near Haytor, and perhaps thought I’d jumped in ahead of him.
The reason why the ponies here are naughty is that Haytor is a tourist-heavy area and tourists are constantly feeding the ponies foods, despite sighs asking them not to. By feeding the ponies, tourists increase the risk of them getting hit by a car, and make them harder to gather during the area’s annual pony drift(迁移).
The purpose of a pony drift is to gather them up so their health can be checked, the baby ones can be stooped from feeding on their mother’s milk, and those who’ve gone beyond their limited area can be returned to their correct area. Some of them are also later sold, in order to limit the number of ponies according to the rules set by Natural England.
Three weeks ago, I witnessed a small near-disaster a few mils west of here. While walking, I noticed a pony roll over on his back. “Hello!” I said to him, assuming he was just rolling for fun, but he was very still and, as I got closer, I saw him kicking his legs in the air and breathing heavily. I began to properly worry about him. Fortunately, I managed to get in touch with a Dartmoor’s Livestock Protection officer and send her a photo. The officer immediately sent a local farmer out to check on the pony. The pony had actually been trapped between two rocks. The farmer freed him, and he began to run happily around again.
Dartmoor has 1,000 or so ponies, who play a critical role in creating the diversity of species in this area. Many people are working hard to preserve these ponies, and trying to come up with plans to find a sustainable(可持续的) future for one of Dartmoor’s most financially-troubled elements.Why are tourists asked not to feed the ponies?
| A．To protect the tourists from being bitten |
| B．To keep the ponies off the petrol station |
| C．To avoid putting the ponies in danger |
| D．To prevent the ponies from fighting |
One of the purposes of the annual pony drift is ______________.
| A．to feed baby ponies on milk |
| B．to control the number of ponies |
| C．to expand the habitat for ponies |
| D．to sell the ponies at a good price |
What as the author’s first reaction when he saw a pony roll on its back?
| A．He freed it from the trap |
| B．He called a protection officer |
| C．He worried about it very much |
| D．He thought of it as being naughty |
What does the author imply about the preservation of Dartmoor’s ponies?
| A．It lacks people’s involvement. |
| B．It costs a large amount of money |
| C．It will affect tourism in Dartmoor. |
| D．It has caused an imbalance of species |
It was once common to regard Britain as a society with class distinction. Each class had unique characteristics.
In recent years, many writers have begun to speak the 'decline of class' and 'classless society' in Britain. And in modern day consumer society everyone is considered to be middle class.
But pronouncing the death of class is too early. A recent wide-ranging society of public opinion found 90 percent of people still placing themselves in particular class; 73 percent agreed that class was still a vital part of British society; and 52 percent thought there were still sharp class differences. Thus, class may not be culturally and politically obvious, yet it remains an important part of British society. Britain seems to have a love of stratification.
One unchanging aspect of a British person's class position is accent. The words a person speaks tell her or his class. A study of British accents during 1970s found that a voice sounding like a BBC newsreader was viewed as the most attractive voice, Most people said this accent sounded 'educated' and 'soft'. The accents placed at the bottom in this study, on the other hand, were regional（地区的）city accents. These accents were seen as 'common' and 'ugly'. However, a similar study of British accents in the US turned these results upside down and placed some regional accents as the most attractive and BBC English as the least. This suggests that British attitudes towards accent have deep roots and are based on class prejudice.
In recent years, however, young upper middle-class people in London, have begun to adopt some regional accents, in order to hide their class origins. This is an indication of class becoming unnoticed. However, the 1995 pop song 'Common People' puts forward the view that though a middle-class person may 'want to live like common people' they can never appreciate the reality of a working-class life.A recent study of public opinion shows that in modern Britain ________.
| A．it is time to end class distinction |
| B．most people belong to middle class |
| C．it is easy to recognize a person’s class |
| D．people regard themselves socially different |
The word stratification in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to ________.
| A．variety |
| B．most people belong to middle class |
| C．authority |
| D．qualification |
The study in the US showed that BBC English was regarded as _________.
| A．regional |
| B．educated |
| C．prejudiced |
| D．unattractive |
British attitudes towards accent _________.
| A．have a long tradition |
| B．are based on regional status |
| C．are shared by the Americans |
| D．have changed in recent years |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．The middle class is expanding |
| B．A person’s accent reflects his class |
| C．Class is a key part of British society |
| D．Each class has unique characteristics. |
Daniel Anderson, a famous psychologist, believes it’s important to distinguish television’s influences on children from those of the family. We tend to blame TV, he says, for problems it doesn’t really cause, overlooking our own roles in shaping children’s minds.
One traditional belief about television is that it reduces a child’s ability to think and to understand the world. While watching TV, children do not merely absorb words and images (影像). Instead, they learn both explicit and hidden meanings from what they see. Actually, children learn early the psychology of characters in TV shows. Furthermore, as many teachers agree, children understand far more when parents watch TV with them, explaining new words and ideas. Yet, most parents use an educational program as a chance to park their kids in front of the set and do something in another room.
Another argument against television is that it replaces reading as a form of entertainment. But according to Anderson, the amount of time spent watching television is not related to reading ability. TV doesn’t take the place of reading for most children; it takes the place of similar sorts of recreation, such as listening to the radio and playing sports. Things like parents’ educational background have a stronger influence on a child’s reading. “A child’s reading ability is best predicted by how much a parent reads.” Anderson says.
Traditional wisdom also has it that heavy television-watching lowers IQ (智商) scores and affects school performance. But here, too, Anderson notes that no studies have proved it. In fact, research suggests that it’s the other way around. “If you’re smart young, you’ll watch less TV when you’re older,” Anderson says. Yet, people of lower IQ tend to be lifelong television viewers.
For years researchers have attempted to show that television is dangerous to children. However, by showing that television promotes none of the dangerous effects as conventionally believed, Anderson suggests that television cannot be condemned without considering other influences.By watching TV, children learn _________.
| A．images through words |
| B．more than explicit meanings |
| C．more about images than words |
| D．little about people’s psychology |
An educational program is best watched by a child _________.
| A．on his own |
| B．with other kids |
| C．with his parents |
| D．with his teachers |
Which of the following is most related to children’s reading ability?
| A．Radio-listening |
| B．Television-watching |
| C．Parents’ reading list |
| D．Parents’ educational background |
Anderson believed that _________.
| A．the more a child watches TV, the smarter he is |
| B．the younger a child is, the more he watches TV |
| C．the smarter a child is, the less likely he gets addicted to TV |
| D．the less a child watches TV, the better he performs at school |
What is the main purpose of the passage?
| A．To advise on the educational use of TV. |
| B．To describe TV’s harmful effects on children. |
| C．To explain traditional views on TV influences. |
| D．To present Anderson’s unconventional ideas. |
When I was nine years old, I loved to go fishing with my dad. But the only thing that wasn’t very fun about it was that he could catch many fish while I couldn’t catch anything. I usually got pretty upset and kept asking him why. He always answered, “Son, if you want to catch a fish, you have to think like a fish”, I remember being even more upset then because, “I’m not a fish!” I didn’t know how to think like a fish. Besides, I reasoned, how could what I think influence what a fish does?
As I got a little older I began to understand what my dad really meant. So, I read some books on fish. And I even joined the local fishing club and started attending the monthly meetings. I learned that a fish is a cold-blooded animal and therefore is very sensitive to water temperature. That is why fish prefer shallow water to deep water because the former is warmer. Besides, water is usually warmer in direct sunlight than in the shade. Yet, fish don’t have any eyelids(眼皮) and the sun huts their eyes… The more I understood fish, the more I became effective at finding and catching them..
When I grew up and entered the business world, I remember hearing my first boss say, “We all need to think like sales people.” But it didn’t completely make sense. My dad never once said, “If you want to catch a fish you need to think like a fisherman.” What he said was, “You need to think like a fish.” Years later, with great efforts to promote long-term services to people much older and richer than me, I gradually learned what we all need is to think more like customers. It is not an easy job. I will show you how in the following chapters. Why was the author upset in fishing trips when he was nine?
| A．He could not catch a fish. |
| B．His father was not patient with him. |
| C．His father did not teach him fishing. |
| D．He could not influence a fish as his father did. |
What did the author’s father really mean?
| A．To read about fish. |
| B．To learn fishing by oneself. |
| C．To understand what fish think. |
| D．To study fishing in many ways. |
According to the author, fish are most likely to be found _________.
| A．in deep water on sunny days |
| B．in deep water on cloudy days |
| C．in shallow water under sunlight |
| D．in shallow water under waterside trees. |
After entering the business world, the author found _________.
| A．it easy to think like a customer |
| B．his father’s fishing advice inspiring |
| C．his first boss’s sales ideas reasonable |
| D．it difficult to sell services to poor people |
This passage most likely comes from _________.
| A．a fishing guide |
| B．a popular sales book |
| C．a novel on childhood |
| D．a millionaire’s biography |
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