Memory, they say, is a matter of practice and exercise. If you have the wish and really made a conscious（自觉的）effort, then you can quite easily improve your ability to remember things. But even if you are successful, there are times when your memory seems to play tricks on you.
Sometimes you remember things that really did not happen. One morning last week, for example, I got up and found that I had left the front door unlocked all night, yet I clearly remember locking it carefully the night before.
Memory “trick” work the other way as well. Once in a while you remember not doing something, and then find out that you did. One day last month, for example, I was sitting in a barber（理发师）shop waiting for my turn to get a haircut, and suddenly I realized that I had got a haircut two days before at the barber shop across the street from my office.
We always seem to find something funny and amusing（有趣的）in incidents caused by people’s forgetfulness or absent-mindedness. Stories about absent-minded professors have been told for years, and we never got tired of hearing new ones. Unfortunately, however, absent-mindedness is not always funny. There are times when “trick” of our memory can cause us great trouble.
1.If you want to have a good memory, .
A. you should force yourself to remember things
B. you should make a conscious effort of practice and exercise
C. you should never stop learning D. you should try hard to remember tings
2.From the sentence “We never get tired of hearing new ones”, we can infer that .
A. we enjoy hearing new stories about absent-mindedness of professors
B. we don’t want to know anything more about absent-mindedness of professors
C. we will never get tired of listening to new stories about absent-mindedness
D. absent-mindedness happens not only to professors but to many other people
3.In the passage, the writer seems to tell you .
A. forgetting things is serious and dangerous
B. always forgetting things is understandable
C. forgetting things at times is natural
D. the way to protect yourself from memory “tricks”
4.The best title for this passage is .
A. How to Get a Good Memory
B. “Tricks” Of Memory
C. Forgetfulness and Absent-mindedness is Dangerous
D. Get Rid of Absent-mindedness
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 (必要的)for a healthy mind and body.
Stress is a natural part of everyday life and there is no way to avoid it. In fact, it is not the bad thing it is often supposed to be. A certain amount of stress is vital (有必要的) 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 stand depends very much on the person himself. Some people are not afraid of stress, and such characters are obviously important for managerial responsibilities. Others lose heart at the first signs of unusual difficulties. When exposed to stress, in whatever form, we react both chemically and physically. In fact we make choice between "flight or fight" and in more early days the choices made the difference between life or death. The crises (危机) we meet today are unlikely to be so extreme, but how little the stress is, it involves the same response. 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 diseases have established links with stress. Since we cannot remove stress from our lives (it would be unwise to do so even if we could), we
need to find ways to deal with it.
1.People are finding less and less time for relaxing themselves because
A. they do not know how to enjoy themselves
B. they do not believe that relaxation is important for health
C. they are traveling fast all the time
D. they are becoming busier with their work
2.According to the writer, the most important character for a good manager is his__________.
A. not fearing stress
B. knowing the art of relaxation
C. high sense of responsibility
D. having control over performance
3.Which of the following statements is true?
A. We can find some ways to avoid stress. B. Stress is always harmful to people.
C. It is easy to change the habit of keeping oneself busy with work.
D. Different people can withstand different amount of stress.
4.In the last sentence of the passage “do so” refers to__________.
A. "expose ourselves to stress"
B. "find ways to deal with stress"
C. "remove stress from our lives"
D. "establish links between diseases and stress”
The journey two divers made some time ago to the deepest point on the earth makes us realize how much of the world still remains to be studied. The two men went down seven miles to the bottom of the Pacific Ocean inside a small steel ball to find out if there are any ocean currents(水流) or signs of life.
It was necessary to set out early, so that the ball would come to the surface in daylight, and be easily found by the mother ship which would be waiting for it. The divers began preparations early in the morning and soon afterwards, when all was ready, the steel ball disappeared under the surface of the water.
The divers felt as if they were going down steps as they passed through warm and cold layers (层) of water. In time the temperature dropped to the freezing point. They kept in touch with the mother ship by telephone telling how they felt. Then, at a depth of 3,000 feet, the telephone stopped working and they were quite cut off from the outside world. All went well until some four hours later at 30,000 feet, the men were frightened by a loud, cracking noise. Even the smallest hole in the ball would have meant instant death. Luckily, though, it was only one of the outer windows that had broken. Soon afterwards, the ball touched the soft ocean floor raising a big cloud of "dust" made up of small dead sea creatures. Here, powerful lights lit up the dark water and the men were surprised to see fish swimming just above them quite untroubled by the great water pressure. But they did not dare to leave the lights on for long, as the heat from them made the water boil. Quite unexpectedly, the telephone began working again and the faint but clear voices of the divers were heard on the mother ship seven miles away. After a stay of thirty minutes the men began their journey up, arriving three hours later, cold and wet through, but none was worse for their experience.
1.The purpose of the divers' journey to the deepest point on the earth was to find
A. if there are water currents, and life in the great depths
B. if people can stand the severe cold in the great depths
C. if there are steps in the great depths
D. if the telephone works well in the great depths
2.The divers set out early in the morning so that .
A. they could return to the surface during the day
B. they could see at the bottom of the ocean
C. they could avoid the cold at night D. they could stay long at the bottom
3.As the divers went down to the ocean floor, the telephone .
A. kept working all the time
B. stopped working at a depth of 3,000 feet and began working again after they reached the bottom
C. stopped working at a depth of 3,000 feet and began working again at 30,000 feet
D. stopped working at a depth of 3,000 feet and began working again when they returned to the same depth
4.On the ocean floor, the divers found that .
A. there was no life but some small dead sea creatures
B. fish were swimming as freely as they do near the surface
C. fish were not swimming freely in the dark water
D. fish were not swimming freely under the high water pressure
LONDON (Reuters) ---Organic fruit, carried right to the doorstep. That is what Gabriel Gold prefers , and he is willing to pay for it. If this is not possible, the 26-year-old computer technician will spend the extra money at the supermarket to buy organic food.
“Organic produce is always better,” Mr. Gold said. “The food is free of pesticides(杀虫剂), and you are generally supporting family farms instead of large farms. And more often than not it is locally grown and seasonal, so it is more tasty.” Mr. Gold is one of a growing number of shoppers buying into the organic trend, and supermarkets across Britain are depending on more like him as they grow their organic food business. But how many shoppers really know what they are getting, and why are they willing to pay a higher price for organic produce? Market research shows that Mr. Gold and others who buy organic food can generally give clear reasons for their preferences---but their knowledge of organic food is far from complete. For example, small amounts of pesticides can be used on organic produce. And about three quarters of organic food in Britain is not local but imported to meet the growing need. “The demand for organic food is increasing by about one third every year, so it is a very fast-growing market.” Said Sue Flock, a specialist in this line of business.
1.More and more people in Britain are buying organic food because .
A. they are getting richer B. they can get the food anywhere
C. they consider the food free of pollution D. they like home-grown fruit
2.Which statement is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Those who buy organic food have a complete knowledge of organic food.
B. Some of the organic food is produced outside Britain.
C. Organic produce is not seasonal and tastes more tasty.
D. Organic products are those which are free of pesticides.
3.The underlined words “organic trend” means .
A. higher prices of organic food B. better quality of organic food
C. rising market for organic food D. growing interest in organic food
4.The news story is mainly about .
A. that more and more people prefer organic food in Britain
B. the production of organic food in Britain
C. the complete knowledge of organic food in Britain
D. good qualities of organic food in Britain
The food we eat seems to have a great effect on our health. Although science has made big steps in making food more fit to eat, it has, at the same time, made many foods unfit to eat. Some research has shown that perhaps eighty percent of human illness is related to food and forty percent of cancer is related to food as well. That food is related to illness is not a new discovery. In 1945, some researchers realized that things commonly used to keep colour in meats and other food additives（添加剂）caused cancer.
Yet, these additives remain in our food, and it is difficult to know which things on the wrappings（包装）of foods are helpful or harmful. The additives which we eat are not all so direct. Farmers often give penicillin to their animals, and because of this, penicillin has been found in the milk of cows. Sometimes similar things are supplied to animals not for their health, but just to make a profit.
The farmers are simply trying to fatten the animals in order to get a higher price on the market. Although some countries have tried to control such things, the practice continues.
1.According to this passage, we can know .
A. perhaps most of human illness is caused by what we eat
B. perhaps most kinds of cancer are related to what people eat
C. cancer was discovered in 1945 D. science has made food unfit to eat
2.Things that are used to keep colours in meats are .
A. harmful B. useless C. helpless D. dangerous
3.All the additives .
A. are bright and colourless
B. are not bright and colourful
C. have indirect effects on our health
D. have direct effects on our health
4.Which of the following is not true?
A. Some wrappings of food are harmful.
B. Farmers try to make more money on the market by fattening their animals.
C. “The practice continues” means “things are still going on like that”.
D. We needn’t take care of what we eat.
The first newspapers were handwritten sheets which were posted in pubic places．The earliest recorded newspaper was started in Rome in 59 BC．In the 700’s the world’s first printed newspaper was developed in China．The paper was printed from carved（雕刻的） wooden blocks and sent out among the citizens．Europe didn’t have a regularly（定期的） published newspaper until 1609, when one was started in Germany.
The fist regularly published newspaper in the English language was printed in 1620．In 1621, an English newspaper was started in London and was published weekly．The first daily English newspaper was the Daily Courant, which didn’t appear until March 1702.
In 1690, Benjamin Harris printed the first American newspaper in Boston．But the local（当地的） government soon stopped its publication．In 1704, John Campbell started The Boston News-letter, the first newspaper to be published daily in America．By 1760, the whole America had more than thirty daily newspapers．There are now about 1800 daily papers in the United States.
Today, as a group, English language newspapers have the largest circulation（发行量） in the world．The largest circulation for a newspaper, however, is that of the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun, which sells over eleven million copies every day.
1.In Europe, the newspaper was first regularly published_____.
A .in England B．in Germany
C．in France D．in London
2.The first English newspaper printed and sold every day appeared _________.
A．in 1620 B．in 1609
C．at the end of the 17th century D．at the beginning of the 18th century.
3.How many years earlier was the newspaper printed in China than in America?
A．9 or 10 centuries． B．More than 1000 years.
C．700 years or so D．Less than 800 years.
4.Which of the following newspapers have the largest number of readers in the world?
A．Italian language newspapers. B．German language newspapers.
C．English language newspapers. D．Japanese language newspapers.
5.Which title best gives the main idea of the passage?
A．The World’s First Newspaper.
B .History of Newspaper.
C．The First Daily Newspaper in American.
D．A Remarkable Man-Benjamin Harris.
