J.K. Rowling is the writer of Harry Potter, which is now one of the bestsellers in the world.
J.K. Rowling was born in Bristol on July 31st, 1965. She has one sister who is two years younger than her. Both girls loved listening to their father reading bedtime stories to them. They especially loved stories about magical worlds. Rowling wrote her first story, called Rabbit, at the age of six.
After she graduated from the university, Rowling worked as a translator in London. During this time, on a long train trip in the summer of 1990, the idea came to her of a boy who has magic but doesn't know it. In 1992 Rowling began to teach English. She lived with her baby daughter, Jessica, and spent much time finishing the first Harry Potter book for young readers. It appeared in June 1997. To her surprise, the book was greatly successful. The film came out in November 2001. Now Harry Potter series(系列) is popular with people of all ages and about 60 million books were sold in 200 countries.
Why has the series been so successful? There are a few things. Many other magical stories take place in faraway lands or in past or future times. But Harry lives in modern England. He's also a very normal boy: polite, friendly, brave and clever. So when other children read about Harry, they can imagine being like him.
J.K. Rowling is very happy with the success, and she is now busy finishing the whole series of seven books. She's writing full time and she's really enjoying life. She says she will go on living a normal life with her daughter and writing children's books.
1.From the passage, we know ___________.
A.J.K. Rowling met a boy named Harry on a long train trip
B.J.K. Rowling loved listening to stories when she was very young
C.J.K. Rowling is two years younger than her sister
D.Harry Potter is J.K. Rowling's first story
2.The first Harry Potter book came out in __________.
A.July 1965 B.the summer of 1990
C.June 1997 D.November 2001
3.J.K. Rowling has been successful, and she ___________.
A.likes to travel all over the world with her daughter
B.is too busy to enjoy her life
C.is excited about her success every day
D.is still writing stories for children
4.How is Harry Potter series different from other magical stories?
A.There are magical things. B.The stories happened in the modern world.
C.It has seven books. D.It took much time to finish.
Your house may have an effect on your figure. Experts say the way you design your home could play a role in whether you pack on the pounds or keep them off. You can make your environment work for you instead of against you. Here are some ways to turn your home into part of your diet plan.
Open the curtains and turn up the lights. Dark environments are more likely to encourage overeating, for people are often less selfconscious (难为情) when they’re in poorly lit places—and so more likely to eat lots of food. If your home doesn’t have enough window light, get more lamps and flood the place with brightness.
Mind the colors. Research suggests warm colors fuel our appetites. In one study, people who ate meals in a blue room consumed 33 percent less than those in a yellow or red room. Warm colors like yellow make food appear more appetizing, while cold colors make us feel less hungry. So when it’s time to repaint, go blue.
Don’t forget the clock—or the radio. People who eat slowly tend to consume about 70 fewer calories (卡路里) per meal than those who rush through their meals. Begin keeping track of the time, and try to make dinner last at least 30 minutes. And while you’re at it, actually sit down to eat. If you need some help slowing down, turn on relaxing music. It makes you less likely to rush through a meal.
Downsize the dishes. Big serving bowls and plates can easily make us fat. We eat about 22 percent more when using a 12inch plate instead of a 10inch plate. When we choose a large spoon over a smaller one, total intake (摄入) jumps by 14 percent. And we’ll pour about 30 percent more liquid into a short, wide glass than a tall, skinny glass.
1.The text is especially helpful for those who care about ____________.
A.their home comforts B.their body shape
C.house buying D.healthy diets
2.A home environment in blue can help people ______________.
A.digest food better B.reduce food intake
C.burn more calories D.regain their appetites
3.What are people advised to do at mealtimes?
A.Eat quickly. B.Play fast music.
C.Use smaller spoons. D.Turn down the lights.
4.What can be a suitable title for the text?
A.Is Your House Making You Fat? B.Ways of Serving Dinner
C.Effects of SelfConsciousness D.Is Your Home Environment Relaxing?
Most of us know about the Nobel Prize, especially the Nobel Peace Prize, but few of us know anything about the man who set them up. His name was Alfred Nobel. He was a great scientist and inventor himself. Besides, he had a big business. His business may surprise you. He made and sold explosives（炸药）. His companies even made and sold weapons（武器）. Isn’t this something that surprises you? The man who made money from weapons should set up the Peace Prize?
Though Alfred Nobel had a lot of money from weapons, he hated war. He hoped that there would be no war in the world. He was one of the richest in Europe. When he died in 1896, he left behind him a lot of money and his famous will. According to his will, most of his money was placed in a fund. He wanted the interest（利息） from the fund to be used as prizes every year. We know them as the Nobel Prizes. The Nobel Prizes are international. Alfred Nobel wanted the winners to be chosen for their work, not the country they came from.
Alfred Nobel had given his whole life to his studies and work and to the benefits of mankind. He made money all by his own efforts, but he let the world share his wealth. His inventions and wealth stay with the world for ever.
1.Alfred’s business was _____.
A.making explosives and selling weapons
B.not making and selling weapons
C.making and selling explosives and weapons
D.making weapons and selling explosives
2.Nobel wanted to set up the Nobel Peace Prize because _____.
A.he made enough money
B.he liked to live in a rich life
C.he wanted to get more interest from the fund
D.he disliked war
3.Nobel Prizes come from _____.
A.all the interest from the fund
B.all Nobel’s money in his company
C.all Nobel’s money in the fund
D.some of the interest in the fund
4.Nobel was a (an) _____ person in the world.
A.interesting B.kind-hearted
C.unselfish D.richest
King Midas used to love gold. One day he met a fairy who allowed him to make a wish for something. The king replied at once, ‘‘I love gold. I want everything I touch to change into gold”. ‘‘Very well, tomorrow morning, everything you touch will turn into gold.” Saying this, the fairy disappeared.
The king waited excitedly till the next morning. To his joy, everything he touched changed immediately into gold. ‘‘I’m the richest man in the world now,” he shouted.
Soon Midas became hungry. He sat down at his table. All the foods and drinks turned into gold in his hand. ‘‘I’m dying of hunger,” he cried.
Just then his daughter came running in. ‘‘Why are you so sad, dad?” she asked, putting her arms around him. There and then she became a golden statue. The king loved his daughter very much. Seeing this, he began to cry. He looked up and suddenly saw the fairy before him. ‘‘Don’t you like the golden touch?” asked the fairy. ‘‘Please take it away,” begged the king, ‘‘and give me back my daughter.” ‘‘Well, you have learned your lesson. Go and wash in the river. Then the golden touch will be gone.” The king ran quickly to the nearby river.
1.The fairy allowed the king to make a wish because ____________.
A.She wanted to teach the king a lesson
B.she hoped to make the king the richest in the world
C.She loved gold too
D.She wanted to turn the king’s daughter into gold
2.When the foods and drinks turned into gold the king was ____________.
A.excited B.worried
C.hungry D.happy
3.The king’s daughter became a golden statue when ____________.
A.she saw her father
B.the king went to meet her
C.the king loved her very much
D.she put her arms around her father
I was once in an unusual sociology (社会学) class at Brandeis. Each week we studied the _______ we interacted with one another, and how we _______ to anger, envy, attention. We were human lab rats. More often, someone _______ crying. I referred to it as the “touchy－feely” course. Mr. Brown said I should be more _______.
One day, Mr. Brown said he had an _______ for us to try. We were to stand，facing away from our classmates and _______ backward, relying on another student to _______ us. Most of us were _______ with this, and we couldn’t let go for more than a few inches _______ stopping ourselves. We laughed in ________.
Finally, a thin, quiet girl, whom I noticed almost always wear the same clothes, crossed her arms over her chest, ________ her eyes and leaned back, just like one of those Lipton tea ads ________ the model dived into the pool.
For a moment, I was ________ she was going to fall on the floor. At the ________ moment, her partner held her head and ________ and pulled her up.
“Whoa！” several students yelled. Some ________.
Mr. Brown finally smiled.
“You see，” he said to the girl，“you closed your eyes. That was the ________. Sometimes you cannot believe what you see，you have to believe what you ________. And if you’re ever going to have other people ________ you, you must feel that you can trust them, ________， even where you’re in the dark, even when you’re falling. ”
1.A.behaviour B.ways C.courses D.relationship
2.A.responded B.objected C.stuck D.referred
3.A.went on B.gave up C.put off D.ended up
4.A.skillful B.honest C.open－minded D.energetic
5.A.arrangement B.order C.introduction D.exercise
6.A.jumped B.moved C.fell D.ran
7.A.catch B.pull C.control D.support
8.A.dissatisfied B.uncomfortable C.pleased D.familiar
9.A.before B.after C.while D.until
10.A.surprise B.excitement C.delight D.embarrassment
11.A.fixed B.opened C.closed D.touched
12.A.every time B.as though C.when D.where
13.A.sorry B.shocked C.sure D.puzzled
14.A.unusual B.crazy C.exciting D.last
15.A.shoulders B.attention C.legs D.chance
16.A.wept B.clapped C.laughed D.sighed
17.A.success B.difference C.result D.requirement
18.A.feel B.notice C.hold D.meet
19.A.stand by B.rely on C.believe in D.call for
20.A.however B.too C.though D.therefore
Do you suppose Darwin, one of the greatest scientists of all time, really did foolish experiments? Or did he do experiments that were so simple and basic that other people just thought they were foolish?
Sometimes, people think they already know the answer to a question or the solution to a problem. Sometimes, they really do know an answer or a solution, but without thinking they are important.
Charles Darwin didn’t settle for(满足于)just thinking he knew something. And, he believed all things could be important however simple they seemed to be.
Suppose you drop sheets of paper that are of exactly the same size and shape. If you drop them at the same time in the same place, they will fall in the same way. Now make one of the sheets of paper into a tight little ball and let it drop along with the other sheets. What happens? You have done an experiment that is so simple that you might think it couldn’t be worth anything.
But this simple experiment is important. It explains part of our present-day understandings of physics, ideas that were worked out long ago by Galileo and Newton. And these understandings set aside some of ancient Greek physics.
Scientists sometimes stop to look at very simple things and to think very hard about them. Even the simplest idea, which we might think is foolish, can shake the foundations of science.
1.The passage tells us that Charles Darwin .
A.was a great English scientist
B.always liked doing the experiments that others thought difficult
C.thought even the simplest thing was important
D.didn’t get well with others
2.The underlined phrase “set aside” most probably means .
A.throw away B.store up
C.put to use D.realize
3.The author of the passage tries to .
A.convince us that Charles Darwin, Galileo and Newton are the greatest scientists in the world
B.draw the conclusion that basic sciences are simple things
C.prove that two sheets of paper, with the same size and shape, will fall at the same speed
D.draw our attention to everyday happenings around us
4.Which of the following is TRUE?
A.Darwin really did foolish experiments.
B.According to some people Darwin did foolish experiments.
C.It is believed by all the people that things could be important though they seemed to be simple.
D.Galileo and Newton worked out ancient Greek physics.
