Have you ever heard the story of the four-minute mile? Many years ago, people believed that it was impossible for a human being to run a mile in less than four minutes until Roger Banister proved it wrong in1954.
What happens if you put an animal in a pond? Any animal, big or small, will swim its way through. What happens when someone, who does not know how to swim, falls in deep waters? They drown. If an animal who has not learned swimming could escape by swimming, why not you? Because you believe you will drown while the animal does not.
Have you ever wondered why the letters are organized in a particular order on hour keyboard? You might have thought it is to increase the typing speed. Most people never question it. But the fact is that this system was developed to reduce the typing speed at a time when typewriter parts would jam if the operator typed too fast.
These three cases show the power of our beliefs. There is no other more powerful directing force in human behavior than belief. Your beliefs have the power to create and to destroy. A belief delivers a direct command to your nervous system.
I used a snake in my workshops for children to show them how unrealistic some of their beliefs are. Students of a school in India, said snakes were slippery, slimy (黏糊糊的) and poisonous. After doing an exercise for changing beliefs, they handled my snake and found it to be dry and clean. They also remembered that only three types of poisonous snakes exist in India.
Did this story end the way you thought? Review your beliefs now and find out which ones you need to change.
1.In the author’s opinion, if a person in deep water doesn’t know how to swim he will drown because _________.
A. he is afraid of water B. he doesn’t want to live in the world
C. he hasn’t learned to swim before D. he believes he will drown
2.The author thinks that the letters are organized in a particular order on your keyboard in order to _________.
A. reduce one’s typing speed B. satisfy the operator
C. save more space D. increase one’s typing speed
3.The author’s experiment shows that __________.
A. snakes in India aren’t poisonous B. snakes can be caught easily
C. snakes are slimy and poisonous D. snakes are dry and clean
4.According to the passage, we know that ________.
A. students from India have unrealistic beliefs on how to live a better life
B. an animal who has not learned to swim will drown if you put it in a pond.
C. Roger Banister was the first person who ran a mile in less than four minutes.
D. most people don’t like the order the letters are arranged on your keyboard
5.The main idea of this passage should be that _______.
A. beliefs make us seem stupid B. beliefs are very powerful
C. changing your beliefs now if necessary D. people should always believe in themselves
The number of speakers of English in Shakespeare’s time is estimated(估计) to have been about five million. Today it is estimated that some 260 million people speak it as a native language, mainly in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. In addition to the standard varieties of English found in these areas, there are a great many regional and social varieties of the language as well as various levels of usage that are employed both in its spoken and written forms.
In fact, it is impossible to estimate the number of people in the world who have acquired an adequate(足够的) working knowledge of English in addition to their own languages. The purpose for English learning and the situations in which such learning takes place are so varied that it is difficult to explain and still more difficult to judge what forms an adequate working knowledge for each situation.
The main reason for the widespread demand for English is its present-day importance as a world language. Besides serving the indefinite needs of its native speakers, English is a language in which some of important works in science, technology, and other fields are being produced, and not always by native speakers. It is widely used for such purposes as meteorological and airport communications, international conferences, and the spread of information over the radio and television networks of many nations. It is a language of wider communication for a number of developing countries, especially former British colonies. Many of these countries have multilingual populations and need a language for internal communication in such matters as government, commerce, industry, law and education as well as for international communication and for entrance to the scientific and technological developments in the West.
1.What would be the best title for this passage?
A. The Difficulties of Learning English B. International Communications
C. The Standard Varieties of English D. English as a World Language
2.Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A. Some 260 million people in the world have an adequate working knowledge of English.
B. There are some 260 million native speakers of English in the world.
C. It is almost impossible to estimate the number of people with an adequate working knowledge of English.
D. People learn English for a variety of reasons.
3.According to the passage, what is the main reason for the widespread use of English?
A. It was popular during Shakespeare’s time. B. It is used in former British colonies.
C. It serves the needs of its native speakers.
D. It is a world language that is used for international communication.
4.What forms an adequate working knowledge of English?
A. The ability to read a newspaper.
B. It is difficult to judge because it differs for each situation.
C. Being a multilingual.
D. Being a native speaker.
5.What type of developing countries would be most likely to use English?
A. Those geographically close to the United States.
B. Those interested in the culture of the United States.
C. Former colonies of Great Britain.
D. Countries where international conferences are held.
A teenage girl is fighting for her life today after being struck by lightning as severe thunderstorms swept across Britain. The girl was one of four teenage girls from London who were hit by lightning in the Parade Ground area of Hyde Park during a storm. Earlier, Joseph Wharton, 14, died as he was struck by lightning while camping in his friend’s backyard in the West Midlands.
A spokesman for Scotland Yard said the girl remained in serious condition at St. Mary’s Hospital in Paddington. She had stopped breathing by the time the first paramedic (护理人员) arrived on the scene just two minutes after the strike at 5:40 p.m. yesterday.
The other three girls hit by the bolt all had injuries, and were taken to University College Hospital. Their conditions were not serious, the spokesman added.
The strike lifted the girls into the air and then dropped them to the ground, a witness reported.
A spokesman for the London Ambulance Service said paramedics risked their lives to treat the girls. “The storm was still overhead and lightning was still coming down while they were treating the patients,” he said. “All staff involved acted very professionally in providing fast treatment to these patients in very difficult circumstances.” Scotland Yard said the incident was being looked into by officers from the Royal Parks’ Operational Command Unit.
Joseph Wharton of Byland Way, Bloxwich, was hit during the extended thunderstorm which struck the region yesterday morning. He was pronounced dead at Walsall Manor Hospital.
He had been sleeping in a tent while staying with school friend Michael Lees at a house on nearby Cresswell Crescent.
West Midlands Ambulance Service said paramedics were called at 7:50 a.m. and unsuccessful attempts were made to revive（使苏醒）the sports-mad teenager. A spokesman for the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents said four or five people die each year as a result of lightning strikes in the UK.
1.All four girls________.
A. were killed by the lightning B. were seriously injured
C. were being treated at the same hospital D. were lifted up and dropped to the ground
2.The underlined word “bolt” probably means “________”.
A. thunder B. rain C. storm D. lightning
3.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. The boy was killed after the four girls had been hit.
B. The paramedics began to treat the girls after taking them to the hospital.
C. First-aid was given to the girls during the storm.
D. The boy was hit by lightning in the Parade Ground area of Hyde Park.
4.It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
A. many British people die from lightning strikes every year
B. the writer blames the government for the accident
C. the paramedics could also have been hit by lightning while aiding the girls
D. Joseph had been playing in the open air before the strike
5.This passage is probably taken from a ________.
A. magazine B. newspaper C. science fiction D. weather report
阅读下面短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空，并将答案填写在答题卡标号为16-25的相应位置上。
On December 19th , 2006, an airbus took off on time from the capital airport of Saudi Arabia. After about an hour’s1.. (fly), something strange happened in the plane.
The passengers2.. (enjoy) themselves when a small rat stole out from the bag of a young man ,which make the young woman nearby3.. (alarm)with loud screaming. Then more and more rats came out of the bag. All the passengers became out of order, especially the women and the children. The steward（机长）managed to get in touch with4.. control center on the ground. With the order from the ground, the plane5.. (succeed)landed at the nearest airport.
As soon as the plane on the ground, all the passengers got off. Then seven specialists got on 6._____(catch)these small creatures. Many means had been tired but7.. of them were good enough to catch the rats.
At last they tried to fill in the plane8.. carbon-dioxide,9.. poisoned all the eighty rats by the poisonous gas.
It 10._ (report)that the young man wanted to carry these rats to another city and sell them as pets but no one had expected that theses small creatures succeeded in escaping from the bag.
阅读下面短文，掌握其大意．然后从1—15各题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Teaching my first child, Danae, to share her toys was the biggest challenge. To 1this, we started inviting other children to play, which could help Danae discover that it’s fun to share with others — a lesson I needed to 2myself as well, as it 3.
One evening Danae had 4a friend, Natalie, to play with her. Their favorite was a children’s card game called Go Fish. That evening, after Natalie left, Danae came to me and said, “Mommy, I’d like to give these to Natalie tomorrow. They’re her favorites.”
She held up three cards from the Go Fish game. I tried to 5that I didn’t want her to give them away because then our 6wouldn’t be complete. “But I really want her to have them!” Danae 7. I thought perhaps she didn’t understand that when she gave something away, it was gone 8. So I tried again, saying, “Once you give the cards to her, you can’t 9them back tomorrow.”
A look of 10came over Danae’s face. For a moment I was happy that she seemed to 11. But then she smiled and said. “Well, that’s okay; I want her to have them anyway.”
What could I say to that? I sat 12for a moment and then I realized I had been trying for so long to ask her to share. Did it 13that our Go Fish set would be 14? What mattered was that my daughter was learning the 15of giving, that she was thinking about others instead of herself, and that she was trying to make her friends happy. Isn’t that what life is all about?
1.A．achieve B．apply C．receive D．get
2.A．design B．know C．create D．review
3.A．turned up B．turned away C．turned to D．turned out
4.A．begged B．encouraged C．invited D．found
5.A．explain B．suggest C．respond D．teach
6.A．thing B．card C．set D．toy
7.A．insisted B．recommended C．announced D．cried
8.A．surely B．suddenly C．forever D．indeed
9.A．ask for B．call for C．look for D．care of
10.A．surprise B．concern C．delight D．satisfaction
11.A．understand B．accept C．refuse D．doubt
12.A．sadly B．angrily C．quietly D．slowly
13.A．work B．mean C．remind D．matter
14.A．incomplete B．lost C．limited D．gone
15.A．content B．usefulness C．way D．joy
假设你是李华， 你在英国的笔友Tommy最近为自己发胖感到苦恼。请你根据所给提示，给他发一封电子邮件。
邮件内容包括：1.可能造成发胖的原因 (如饮食、锻炼……) 至少写出两条
2.简述你自己相关的健康生活方式。
注意：邮件开头和落款已经为你写好，只把正文写在答题卡上。
Dear Tommy,
I am really feeling bad that you are being troubled by overweight these days.
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Yours,
Li Hua
