My family moved from Taiwan to a small town in central Georgia, where my dad got a visa for his family and a job. I had just learned English, and from what little I could gather from my classmates, Santa Claus would come down one’s chimney and put toys in one’s stocking on Christmas Eve! What a great country, I thought. After I looked up “stocking” in my Chinese-English dictionary, I knew what I had to do.
On that fateful night, after everyone went to bed, I took my longest, cleanest knee sock and attached it to a nail already on the mantel(壁炉). Obviously, the previous owners of this house were no strangers to this Santa character.
I woke up before everyone else on Christmas Day and ran to the fireplace. To make a sob story short, I was hit with the reality of an empty sock and the biggest lie ever told. I burst into tears, quickly took down the sock, and stuffed it in the back of a drawer. Santa was dead.
Every December since then, the topic of Christmas memories would unavoidably come up, and I would amuse my friends with my poor-little-me story. I had to make it as funny as possible, or else I would cry.
How could I know that Santa was just late? Nine years ago, on Christmas Eve, an older man with a white beard and a red cap knocked on my front door. He said, “I’ve been looking for you for twenty-five years.” He handed me a bulging red stocking, winked, and left. On top of the stocking was a card. It read: “For Becky—I may have missed you in the second grade, but you’ve always lived in my heart. Santa.”
Through tear-blurred eyes, I recognized the handwriting of Jill, a friend I had met just two months before. I later discovered that the older man was her father. Jill had seen the hurt little girl underneath the thirty-something woman and decided to do something about it.
So now I believe that Santa is real. I don’t mean the twinkle-eyed character of children’s mythology or the creation of American holiday marketers. Those Santas annoy and sadden me. I believe in the Santa Claus that live inside good and thoughtful people. This Santa does not return to the North Pole after a crazy delivery but lives each day purposefully, really listens to friends, and then plans deliberate acts of kindness.What does the underlined part “what I had to do” in Paragraph 1 refer to?
| A．Waiting for Santa Claus. |
| B．Putting a stocking on the mantel. |
| C．Asking for gifts from her parents. |
| D．Looking up “stocking” in the dictionary |
It can be inferred from the passage that the author’s parents ________.
| A．didn’t love their child at all |
| B．didn’t know the previous owners of the house |
| C．didn’t know much about Christmas tradition |
| D．didn’t have enough money to buy the author Christmas presents |
When the author told her friends about the story, she felt ________ in her heart.
| A．proud | B．amusing | C．hate | D．regret |
The author of the passage is probably ________.
| A．a teenager | B．a primary school student |
| C．a middle-aged woman | D．a native American |
India is traditionally a tea-drinking country. But, it is now gaining a new taste for coffee. This has led international coffee companies to consider opening businesses in the huge market. Local business people are also hoping to profit from the country’s tea-drinking habits. They want to open new stores that offer tea.
It is ten thirty in the morning in India. Two cafes are within meters of each other, near a college in New Delhi. And they are selling a lot of tea. Their main customers are undergraduate students.
“We have a lot of break between classes, so whenever we get time, we just go and we enjoy ourselves. It’s a lot of fun, especially when you are with people you enjoy spending time with.”
In the past ten years, cafes have become increasingly popular in India. The country’s huge young population have quickly taken to the coffee culture.
Coffee stores have spread from major cities like New Delhi and Mumbai to smaller towns. Coffee use has doubled in the last ten years. It is the success of this market that has gained the attention of companies like the American-based coffee chain Starbucks. The company will open its first store in India later this year. Other companies like Lavazza and Costa Coffee are already there.
Yet, the growth of coffee will not reduce the popularity of tea. Indians drink eight times more tea than coffee. They have been drinking tea for more than one hundred and fifty years. India is one of the world’s biggest producers of tea, which is known locally as “chai”. Outside homes and offices, it is mostly sold by small businesses on the street.Why do international coffee companies consider opening businesses in India?
| A．India consumes very little coffee. | B．India has a large population. |
| C．People in India now prefer coffee to tea. | D．Indians come to like the taste of coffee. |
Which one is correct about undergraduate students?
| A．They only have tea in the cafes. |
| B．They are the main customers in the cafes. |
| C．They like enjoying coffee with friends in cafes. |
| D．They like to go to the cafes to escape lessons. |
What can we learn about coffee in India?
| A．Coffee is consumed more than tea in India now. |
| B．Coffee is much more welcomed by young Indians than tea. |
| C．Coffee consumed today doubles that of ten years ago. |
| D．The growth of coffee will reduce the consumption. |
Which statement is wrong according to the passage?
| A．Coffee stores have spread to small towns in India. |
| B．Some foreign coffee companies are trying to open Indian coffee market. |
| C．Local people worry about losing profit on tea. |
| D．Indians drink eight times more tea than coffee. |
What is the text mainly about?
| A．Undergraduate students are main coffee consumers in India. |
| B．Indians mainly consume both tea and coffee. |
| C．India is traditionally a tea-drinking country. |
| D．India is becoming a big new coffee consuming country. |
How often do you sit still and do absolutely nothing? The usual answer these days is“never” or “hardly ever”. As the pace of life continues to increase, we are fast losing the art of relaxation. Once you are in the habit of rushing through life, being on the go from morning till night, it is hard to slow down. But relaxation is essential for a healthy mind and body.
Stress is a natural part of everyday life. There is no way to avoid it, since it takes many and varied forms-driving in traffic, problems with personal relationships are all different forms of stress. Stress, in fact, is not the “baddy” it is often reputed to be. A certain amount of stress is vital to provide motivation and give purpose to life. It is only when the stress gets out of control that it can lead to poor performance and ill health.
The amount of stress a person can withstand depends very much on the individual. Some people are not afraid of stress, and such characters are obviously prime material for managerial responsibilities. Others lose heart at the first sight of unusual difficulties. When exposed to stress, in whatever form, we react both chemically and physically. In fact we make a choice between “fight” or “fright” and in more primitive days the choice made the difference between life and death. The crisis we meet today are unlikely to be so extreme, but however little the stress, it involves the same response. All the energy is shifted to cope with the stress. It is when such a reaction lasts long, through continued exposure to stress, that health becomes endangered. Such serious conditions as high blood pressure and heart disease have established links with stress.
Stress in some people produces stomach disorders, while others experience tension headaches. Since we cannot remove stress from our 1ives, We need to find ways to cope with it.People are finding less and less time for relaxing themselves because .
| A．they are working harder than they used to |
| B．they are often too busy to find the time |
| C．they are not clear of how to relax by themselves |
| D．they are suffering from the effects of stress |
What is implied but not stated in the passage?
| A．The art of relaxation can greatly help people bear stress. |
| B．People in primitive days know certain ways to deal with stress. |
| C．If one gets into the habit of relaxing every day he can overcome stress easily. |
| D．Stress can lead to serious health problem if one is exposed to it for too long. |
The underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 suggests that .
| A．stress is not always a bad thing for people |
| B．stress has a bad reputation of causing ill health |
| C．stress is not so terrible as people often believe it to be |
| D．stress is always harmful to people all the time |
According to this passage, which of the following statements is true?
| A．Relaxation in life only benefits us mentally. |
| B．Different people can stand different amounts of stress. |
| C．All the stress can lead to poor performance. |
| D．Large amounts of stress is important to people's lire. |
What is the writer's attitude to stress according to the passage?
| A．Stress as well as relaxation is essential for a healthy mind and body. |
| B．Stress should not be rid completely from the life. |
| C．Stress produces both positive and negative effects on people. |
| D．People usually work better under stress if they are healthy. |
A baby born in India has been declared the world's seven billionth person by child rights group Plan International. Baby Nargis was born at 07:25 local time (01:55GMT) in Mall village in India's Uttar Pradesh state. Plan International says Nargis has been chosen symbolically as it is not possible to know where exactly the seven billionth baby is born. In addition to baby Nargis in India, Bangladesh, the Philippines and Cambodia have all identified seven billionth babies. The United Nations estimated that on Monday 31 October, the world's population would reach seven billion.
Populations are growing faster than economies in many poor countries in Africa and some in Asia. At the same time, low birth rates in Japan and many European nations have raised concerns about labor shortages.
Population experts at the United Nations estimated that the world reached six billion in October 1999. They predict nine billion by 2050 and ten billion by the end of the century. China's population of one and a third billion is currently the world's largest. India is second at 1.2 billion. But India is expected to pass China and reach one and a half billion people around 2025.
India will also have one of the world's youngest populations. Economists say this is a chance for a so-called demographic dividend. India could gain from the skills of young people in a growing economy at a time when other countries have aging populations. But economists say current rates of growth, although high, may not create enough jobs. Also, the public education system is failing to meet demand and schooling is often of poor quality. Another concern is health care. Nearly half of India's children under the age of five are malnourished(营养不良).
Michal Rutkowski, the director of human development in South Asia at the World Bank, says reaching seven billion people in the world is a good time for a call to action. He says, “I think the bottom line of the story is that the public policy needs to become really, really serious about sex equality and about access to services—to fight against malnutrition, and to provide for access to health services, water and schooling.”What is true about the world's seven billionth person?
| A．Baby Nargis is not the only child chosen as the seven billionth baby. |
| B．Baby Nargis has been chosen carefully so it is exactly the seven billionth baby. |
| C．Three countries have all declared Baby Nargis as the seven billi011th baby. |
| D．The United Nations declared Baby Nargis as the world's seven billionth person. |
Which of the following problems do many European countries worry about?
| A．Labor shortage. | B．Poor health care. |
| C．Not enough jobs. | D．Schooling of poor quality. |
According to population experts, how long will it take for population to grow from six billion to nine billion?
| A．About 12 years. | B．About 40 years. | C．About 50 years. | D．About 110 years. |
What does the underlined phrase “demographic dividend” in the fourth paragraph refer to?
| A．Possibility of lower birth rate. |
| B．Benefit gained by working young people. |
| C．Chances for more employment. |
| D．Disadvantages caused by aging population. |
Which of the following public policies does Michal Rutkowski call on?
| A．To encourage late marriage. | B．To reduce world's population. |
| C．To gain economic equality. | D．To improve health and education. |
"Oh, you must have been a spoiled(宠坏的) kid. You must be really bossy. I wonder what you're going to be like to deal with?" That's often the response Angela Hult gets when people find out she's an only child, she told ABC News, Despite such negative(消极的) remarks, Hult has decided to have only one child herself. And she's not alone.
According to the US' Office for National Statistics, women approaching the end of their childbearing years had an average of l.9 children in 2004, compared with 3.1 for their counterparts in 1976. The percentage of one-child families in Britain had risen from 18 percent in 1972 to 26 percent in 2007.
But even though only children are becoming increasingly common, the traditional view that they're selfish, spoilt and lack social skills holds strong. Even parents of only children, like Hult, are made to feel guilty about having only one child. Worried that they're being selfish and endangering their child's future, they flock to online discussion forums seeking advice. Soon, however, they ask themselves: is this social prejudice really reasonable?
"There have been hundreds and hundreds of research studies that show that only children are no different from their peers(同龄人) ," Susan Newman, a social psychologist at Rutgers University in the US, told ABC News.
This raises another question: why are only children still viewed with such suspicion?
"There is a belief that's been around probably since humans first existed that to have just one child is somehow dangerous, both for you and for the continuation of your race," Toni Falbo, a professor of educational psychology, told the Guardian." In the past a lot of children died, You'd have had to be crazy to only have one. "
Times, of course, have changed and infant mortality(婴儿死亡率) has largely reduced. So what do only children themselves say?
Kayley Kravitz, a blogger for The Huffington Post, grew up as an only child and highly recommends the experience. "Being an only child taught me the most valuable skill of all: the ability to be alone," she said.Which of the following could be the best title for the text?
| A．Are only children lonely? |
| B．Are only children common? |
| C．Are only children dangerous? |
| D．Are only children different? |
What does Susan Newman mean?
| A．Only children are as good as their peers. |
| B．Only children are more selfish and spoiled. |
| C．Parents feel guilty about having only one child. |
| D．Parents will endanger their only child's future. |
What is the common belief since human existed?
| A．The infant death rate always stays high. |
| B．People are crazy to have only one child. |
| C．It's easy for only children to earn their living. |
| D．It's hard to continue the family line with only one child. |
An only child like Kayley _______.
| A．must be difficult to persuade |
| B．can possibly learn to be alone |
| C．should value special skills |
| D．need ignore bad experience |
What's the author's attitude towards having only one child?
| A．Neutral. | B．Negative. | C．Positive. | D．Doubtful. |
In America, Virginia Beach has all the elements of a classic seaside resort: brilliant beaches, a lively boardwalk, plenty of restaurants and nightspots, and amusement rides are sure to appeal to kids. Many believe Virginia Beach is at its best in the off-season, when the town is less crowded but the weather is still mild.
Meanwhile, some safety tips should be followed, enjoying the happiness and excitement the beach offers.
The number l safety tip concerns ocean safety: pay attention to Flag conditions posted on the lifeguard stands. Lifeguards post a red flag to warn when the ocean water is dangerous. Take them seriously! Tourists from land-locked regions are particularly easily attracted by the magic of the waves. However, a calm ocean can become risky without warning. Make sure you swim near a lifeguard. Swimming without lifeguard protection is almost five times as great as drowning at a beach with lifeguards.
Never swim alone. Many drownings involve single swimmers. When you swim with someone else, if one of you has a problem, the other may be able to get help, including signaling for assistance from others.
Don't fight the current. The facts show that some 80% of rescues by lifeguards at ocean beaches are caused by currents. These currents are formed by surf and gravity, because once surf pushes water up the slope of a beach, gravity pulls it back. This can create concentrated rivers of water moving offshore. If you are caught in a rip current, don't fight it by trying to swim directly to shore. Instead, swim parallel to shore until you feel the current relax, then swim to shore. Most rip currents are narrow and a short swim parallel to shore will help bring you to safety.When coming to Virginia Beach, children can enjoy the happiness of .
| A．walking on the road made of wood | B．joining the nightspots |
| C．having interesting rides | D．skiing in the sea |
Many people believe the best time to visit Virginia Beach may be .
| A．after autumn school term beginning | B．in the slimmer vacation |
| C．during the Christmas holiday | D．in the cold winter |
Swimming in the sea you'd better not swim .
| A．with a friend | B．within the sight of the lifeguard |
| C．with the current | D．as far as you like |
From the passage, we can know .
| A．one in five persons swimming in the sea is drowned |
| B．if one with lifeguard were drowning, five persons without lifeguard would be |
| C．some 80% people drowning by the currents are rescued by lifeguards |
| D．some 20% drowning by the currents are rescued by life guards |
The passage mainly tells us .
| A．some safety tips when swimming in the sea |
| B．the happiness and excitement the beach offers |
| C．Virginia Beach has all the elements of a classic seaside resort |
| D．the dangers for tourists from land-locked regions to swim in the sea |
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