My favorite English teacher could draw humor out of the driest material．It wasn’t forced on us either．He took Samuel Johnson’s dictionary, Addison’s essays, and many other literary wonders from the eighteenth century and made them hilarious, even at eight o’clock in the morning．The thing that amazed me most was that the first time I read these works on my own some of them seemed dead, but the second time, after his explanation, I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t seen the humor．The stories and poems and plays were suddenly filled with allusions（典故）and irony andhilarious moments．I learned more from him than from any other teacher．
My least favorite English teacher also made people laugh．Some students found him to be wonderfully funny．Many others did not．He assigned journals over a six week period, to be written in every day．At the end of the six weeks I had a notebook full of bits and pieces about my ideas, short stories, reactions to what we had read, and so on．Our teacher announced that we would be grading each other’s journals．Mine was passed to Joe, that class clown, who always behaved in a funny or silly way．He saw it fit to make joke of and said, “This writing isn’t fit to line the bottom of a birdcage．” Our teacher laughed at that funny remark．It hurt me so much that the anger from it has driven my writing and teaching ever since．
So what makes the difference？Humor is one of the most powerful tools teachers or writers have．It can build up students and classes and make them excited about literature and writing, or it can tear them apart．It is true that humor is either productive or counter-productive and self-defeating．
The passage mainly discusses _____．
| A．teaching | B．literature |
| C．humor | D．knowledge |
The underlined word “hilarious” in Paragraph 1 probably means _____．
A． funny B． tiring
C． inspiring D ．brilliant
With his favorite English teacher, the writer found it most amazing that _____．
| A．his teacher was very learned |
| B．his teacher was very humorous |
| C．the works by Johnson and Addison were very humorous |
| D．few were able to find humor in works by Johnson and others |
The English teacher the writer disliked most _____．
| A．was not able to make students laugh |
| B．hurt his students’ feelings |
| C．didn’t let his students do the grading |
| D．had no sense of humor |
___1____ Maybe you thought that they were just happy. After all, you probably sing or whistle when you are happy.
However, they sing most of the time for a very different reason. ____2___ Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy.
Do you know what a “territory” is? A territory is an area that an animal, usually the male, claims(声称)as its own. ____3___ No other families of the same species are welcome. Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome. If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten you, you might shout. Probably this would be enough to frighten him away. If so, you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him. A bird does the same thing. But he expects an outsider almost any time, especially at nesting(筑巢)season. So he is screaming all the time, whether he can see an outsider or not.__4__.
Birds sing loudest in the spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs. You can see that birds have a language all their own. ___5__
| A．Only he and his family are welcome there. |
| B．Most of it has to do with attracting mates and setting up territories. |
| C．Have you ever wondered why birds sing? |
| D．Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory. |
E. Have you ever wondered why birds sing?
F. Most of the language is widely used.
G. This screaming is what we call a bird’s song, and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away.
“Write All About It”
Centerville High School Essay（论文）Contest
Rules
1. Students are asked to submit essays of 500 to 700 words of their own work. Any essay containing material plagiarized(剽窃) from another source will be disqualified.
2. Manuscripts should be typed double-spaced, with the student’s name, address, and grade level on a separate sheet of paper.
3. Essays must be turned in by 4:00 p.m. on November 30. They can be brought to Mrs. Elton in Room 104 or to Mr. Markham in the school library.
Essay-Writing Tips
1. Catch your readers’ interest－Your opening should immediately pull your readers into your essay. Asking a question or starting with an anecdote, quotation, or surprising statement are some good ways to do this.
2. Create a picture－Use active words that show your readers what is happening. Instead of telling your readers vaguely that “the room was disordered,” paint a picture using active verbs and lively adjectives.
3. Have a purpose－Well-written essays do more than just describe an incident or express a viewpoint, they also communicate a message.
4.Check for mistakes－Read your paper over to check for mistakes. Ask another student to read your paper and make suggestions. Another pair of eyes will often spot a mistake you’ve overlooked.
5. Format your essay－Neatly type your essay on white paper. Choose an attractive cover for submission. The computer lab will be open after school from 3:15 to 4:45 p.m. each day this month so that students can use the computers.
Prizes
Winning essays will be published in the Centerville Times. Everyone who takes part in it will also receive a free pass to enter one school activity this year.
First Prize: $ 50 savings bond
Second Prize: Dictionary and reference book
Third Prize: Pen set and journalWhich of the following rules is set for the essay contest?
| A．Students can write something exactly as it is written in other books. |
| B．Students’ personal information should be listed on another piece of paper. |
| C．Essays must be brought to Mr. Markham in the computer lab on November 30. |
| D．The students winning second prize will be awarded a dictionary and a book. |
Which of the following writing tips is given in the passage?
| A．Drawing a picture to go with the essay. |
| B．Trying to communicate an important idea to readers. |
| C．Asking a teacher to find the mistakes you haven’t found. |
| D．Making the essay short enough to hold the readers’ interest. |
The article is written to ____.
| A．convince the students of the prizes available |
| B．explain how to write a good essay |
| C．inform the students of the essay contest |
| D．show how to organize an essay contest |
Researchers at San Diego Zoo have been studying what has been described as the “secret language” of elephants. They have been monitoring（监测） communications between animals that cannot be heard by human ears.
The elephant’s call will be familiar to most people, but the animals also give out growls (低吼). Their growls, however, are only partly audible (听得见的); two-thirds of the call is at frequencies that are too low to be picked up by our hearing. To learn more about the inaudible part of the growl, the team attached (附在……上面) a microphone sensitive to these low frequencies and a GPS tracking system to eight of the zoo’s female elephants. The researchers could then relate the noises the animals were making to what they were doing. Matt Anderson, who led the project, told BBC News, “We’re excited to learn how they interact and contact with one another.”
The team has already learned that pregnant females use this low frequency communication to announce to the rest of their long gestation (妊娠期) of over two years, in the last 12 days we see the low part of the growl, which we can’t hear. This we believe is to announce to the rest of the herd that the baby is upcoming,” said Dr Anderson.
The researchers believe that this also warns the elephants to look out for coming danger. “You may think that a baby calf of about 300 pounds would not be as open to predation (捕食) as other species,” he says. “But packs of hyenas (袋狼) are a big threat in the wild.”
Female elephants are only in season for around four days every four years and these calls can be heard by males more than two miles away.Why some elephants’ call is called “secret language”?
| A．Because it can’t be heard by human ears. |
| B．Because it can only be heard by female elephants. |
| C．Because people don’t know its meanings. |
| D．Because people haven’t studied it completely. |
By using a sensitive microphone and a GPS tracking system, the researchers wanted to find out .
| A．where the elephants usually go |
| B．what the elephants’ growls really mean |
| C．how mother elephants raise baby calves |
| D．how elephants protect their babies. |
A pregnant elephant uses inaudible growls to .
| A．show the location where she is staying |
| B．ask for help when she losses her way |
| C．scare away the enemy |
| D．let others know she will have a baby |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．The elephants can speak like people. |
| B．The wild elephants’ ways to fight against enemies. |
| C．The “secret language” between elephants. |
| D．The special life of female elephants. |
Kataria is the founder of the worldwide laughter movement. The celebration of world Laughter Day is a positive activity for world peace and is intended to build up a global sense of brotherhood and friendship through laughter. The first “World Laughter Day” gathering took place in Mumbai, India, on 11th January 1998. 12,000 members from India and international Laughter Clubs attended it. Now there are over 5,000 Laughter Clubs worldwide on all 5 continents.
“HAPPY-DEMIC” was the first World Laughter Day gathering outside India. It took place on 9th January 2000. In Copenhagen, Denmark , more than 10,000 people gathered at Town Hall Square. The event went into Guinness Book of World records. “World Laughter Day” is now organized on the first Sunday of May every year. Hundreds of people gather worldwide on that day to laugh together.
Today, many people fear widespread international terrorism（恐怖主义）. The world has never faced so much unrest before. People are at war within themselves. Laughter is a universal language, which has the ability to unite humanity without religion（宗教）. Laughter can build a common connection between various religions and create a new world order. The idea may sound over-ambitious (野心太大的), and maybe it is. But maybe it is not. It is our deep belief that laughter and only laughter can unite the world, building up a global sense of brotherhood and friendship.
Studies also say that laughter helps your body do the following: lower blood pressure; lighten depression; reduce stress; work out the heart, especially for those who are unable to perform physical exercise. So in life, when you can laugh, you should laugh loudly and with your entire body—because it’s good for you.The purpose of celebrating World Laughter Day is ____.
| A．to build up a global sense of brotherhood and friendship through laughter |
| B．to build a common connection between various religions |
| C．to reduce stress and lighten depression |
| D．to lower blood pressure |
The first World Laughter Day gathering outside India took place ____.
| A．on 11th. January, 1998 |
| B．on the first Sunday of May |
| C．on 9th. January, 1996 |
| D．on 9th. January, 2000 |
The author’s attitude towards laughter movement is ____.
| A．positive | B．negative | C．uninterested | D．objective |
The passage is mainly about _______.
| A．World Laughter Day and its significance |
| B．the worldwide laughter movement |
| C．a universal language |
| D．laughter |
Given Australia’s size and the fact that early settlements were far apart, Australian society is remarkably homogeneous (同种的). Its citizens are fundamentally prosperous and the way of life in the major cities and towns is much the same however many miles divide them. It takes a sharp ear to identify regional accents. However, there is some difference in lifestyle between city dwellers and the country people. Almost 90 per cent of the population lives in the fast-paced cities along the coast and has little more than a passing familiarity with the desert. The major cities preserve pockets of colonial heritage, but the overall impression is modern, with new buildings reflecting the country’s youth. In contrast, the rural communities tend to be slow-moving and conservative. For many years, Australia was said to have “ridden on the sheep’s back”, a reference to wool being the country’s main money earner. However, the wool industry is no longer dominant. Much of Australia’s relatively sound economy is now achieved from natural coal and wheat, and by being the largest diamond producer in the world. Newer industries such as tourism and wine making are also increasingly important. Australians are generally friendly and relaxed, with a self-deprecating sense of humor. On the whole, Australia is a society without hierarchies (等级制度), an attitude generally held to stem from its prisoner beginnings.
Yet, contrary to widespread belief, very few Australians have true prisoner origins. Within only one generation of the arrival of the First Fleet in 1788, Australia had become a nation of immigrants. Originally coming almost entirely from the British Isles, today one in three Australians comes from elsewhere. Australia’s liberal postwar immigration policies led to an influx of survivors from war-torn Europe, most notably Greeks, Italians, Poles and Germans.
The emphasis has shifted in recent years and today the majority of new immigrants are from Southeast Asia. Today Australia is a ‘blend of nations’ and although some racism exists, it has generally been a successful experiment and the country is justifiably proud to have one of the most harmonious multicultural communities in the world.What does the writer mean by saying “It takes a sharp ear to identify regional accents.” in the first paragraph?
| A．Australians speak Standard English with no local accents whatsoever. |
| B．You have to practice a lot to learn to understand the different accents. |
| C．The Australian regional accents are very difficult to understand indeed. |
| D．There is not much difference between the accents in different areas of Australia. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Most Australians have ancestors who were prisoners. |
| B．The Australian economy is dependent on sheep exports. |
| C．The majority of people living in Australia come from Europe. |
| D．The pace of life is different in the city and in the country. |
The underlined pronoun ‘it’ in the final paragraph refers to “_______”.
| A．Community | B．racism | C．blend of Nations | D．Southeast Asia |
We can infer from the passage that _____.
| A．there are no signs of Australia’s colonial past in its modern cities |
| B．Australia’s recent immigration policy encourages immigrants from Southeast Asia |
| C．immigrants from Southeast Asia have brought racial problems |
| D．“riding on sheep’s back” resulted in slow development in rural communities |
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