“Life is speeding up. Everyone is getting unwell.”
This may sound like something someone would say today. But in fact, an unknown person who lived in Rome in AD(公元)53 wrote it
We all love new inventions. They are exciting, amazing and can even change our lives.
But have all these developments really improved the quality of our lives?
Picture this, You’re rushing to finish your homework on the computer. Your mobile phone rings, a QQ message from your friend appears on the screen, the noise from the television is getting louder and louder. Suddenly the computer goes blank and you lose all your work. Now you have to stay up all night to get it done. How happy do you feel?
Inventions have speeded up our lives so much that they often leave up feeling stressed and tired. Why do you think people who live far away from noisy cities, who have no telephones, no car, not even any electricity often seem to be happier? Perhaps because they live simpler lives.
One family in the UK went “back in time” to see what life was like without all the inventions we have today. The grandparents, with their daughter, and grandsons Benjamin, 10 and Thomas, 7, spent nine weeks in a 1940s house. They had no washing machine, microwave, computer or mobile phones.
The grandmother, Lyn, said, “The more things you have, the more difficult life becomes.” The boys said they fought less. Probably, they said, because there was less to fight over, such as their computer. Benjamin also noticed that his grandmother had changed from being a “trendy, beer-drinking granny, to one who cooked things”
1.In the passage the writer describes a picture to show that new inventions _ .
A. have speeded up our lives
B. have improve the quality of our lives
C. may make people feel very happy
D. may bring people some trouble
2.The family chose to spend some time in a 1940s house because_____
A. they loved to live simple lives
B. they wanted to know how people lived without modern inventions
C. they were troubled by modern inventions
D. living in a different time would be a lot of fun for them
3.According to the passage, which id NOT right?
A. People who live far away from noisy cities often seem to be happier.
B. An unknown Roman was sure that the quality of life would get better.
C. The family had some changes when they lived in a 1940s house.
D. With the improvement of our lives, we often feel stressed and tired.
4.The passage is mainly about __________
A. problems with technology
B. improvements of our lives with technology
C. changes happening to technology
D. the importance of technology
This happened in London. It was November and the weather was very wet and cold. A Frenchman had caught a very bad cold. He coughed day and night, so he decided to go and get some medicine for his cough. As he did not know much English, he took out his dictionary and looked up the word “cough”. But the dictionary did not tell him how to pronounce(发音) the word. He thought it over and remembered that he had learned the word “plough”. He remembered that it was pronounced[plau]. So he thought that c-o-u-g-h must be pronounced [kau].
Then he put on his coat and hat and went to a chemist's shop(药店).When the man in the shop asked him what he wanted, the Frenchman said, “I want something for my‘cow’ , please.” The man in the shop looked at him. Had he heard him correctly?
“I beg your pardon, sir?” he asked.
The Frenchman repeated, “I want some medicine for my‘cow’.”
“For your cow?” asked the man, “are you a farmer?”
“A farmer?” said the Frenchman in surprise, “What makes you think I'm a farmer? I come from Paris. I'm not a farmer.”
“But where is your cow?”
“It's here!” answered the Frenchman. He put his hand on his chest(胸口) and began to cough. “Here it is,” he said, “I've a very bad ‘cow’ here.”
Then the man in the shop understood what the Frenchman meant. He wanted some medicine for his cough.
1.The Frenchman said, “I want something for my‘cow’, please.” Here by the word ‘cow’ he meant _______.
A. cow B. cough C. medicine D. cold
2.What made the man in the shop think the Frenchman was a farmer?
A. The Frenchman looked like a farmer.
B. The word ‘cough’ was pronounced [kau] by him.
C. The Frenchman said he came from a farm in Paris.
D. We can't learn about it from the story.
3.Which of the following is TRUE?
A. The man in the shop had heard the Frenchman correctly.
B. The man in the shop didn't understand the Frenchman clearly at first.
C. The Frenchman told the man in the shop he had a very bad cow.
D. The Frenchman asked for some medicine for his cow.
You can see Pizza Hut(必胜客) every some blocks, so it must be a very big business. Indeed it is. But believe it or not, the business was started in 1958 by two college students with a loan of 600 dollars.
The Carney brothers were trying to make some money .so that they could pay their way through college. They borrowed the money from their mother and sold pizza in a small house in their neighborhood. That's how they got the name of the business. On the first day of business, they gave away pizza to draw(吸引) customers(顾客).
Year after year, their business grows and now they often give free meals and work chances to those in need.
1.Pizza Hut has been set up for about _______ years.
A. 21 B. 31 C. 58 D. 100
2.The word “loan” here in the story means _______.
A. money the brothers borrowed from others
B. money the brothers lent to others
C. something bought for nothing
D. something given away
3.What do you think of the two students from the last paragraph?
A. They are clever. B. They are hard-working.
C. They are generous. D. They are smart.
完型填空
从短文后所给各题的四个选项中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。
Years ago, while I lived in England, part of my college task was to help the children with special needs. I was chosen to ______ in a school with disabled children. The teacher asked me to ______ Nancy, a ten-year-old girl. One of ______ hands could not move. At her school the teachers would think it was an achievement ______ she was able to put on her own coat. But I saw more in her. She had always wanted to put a string ______ the hole of a key.
For the 5 years Nancy was in the school, the teachers always ______ to help her, but always ended up doing all the work for her. I knew Nancy could do ______ , so I encouraged her to do something herself. At first Nancy often failed and got very______ . Sometimes I wanted to give up too. ______ , after a week Nancy was able to do ______ she had wanted to alone for so many years. Her teachers cried ______ when they saw the thing she was able to do with just some encouragement.
Disabled people should ______ be told they can't do this or that. With just some encouragement they can do it. The look ______ that girl's face when she was able to do it herself meant ______ to me. I hope everyone will encourage people to do all they want by themselves ______ telling them they can't do it.
1.A. read B. study C. work D. visit
2.A. look after B. look for C. look at D. look over
3.A. his B. her C. my D. your
4.A. before B. through C. if D. until
5.A. through B. across C. over D. into
6.A. failed B. refused C. agreed D. tried
7.A. less B. more C. nothing D. anything
8.A. excited B. pleased C. unsafe D. unhappy
9.A. And B. However C. But D. So
10.A. which B. that C. what D. how
11.A. in danger B. in fear C. with care D. with joy
12.A. never B. always C. often D. sometimes
13.A. of B. in C. on D. at
14.A. the earth B. the sun C. the moon D. the world
15.A. instead of B. because C. together with D. more than
______the boys are playing！
A. How happy B. How happily
C. What happily D. What happy
Reading English newspapers ______ good for your study.
A. are B. is C. have D. has
