In ancient Egypt, the pharaoh(法老)treated the poor message runner like a prince when he arrived at the palace, if he brought good news. However, if the exhausted runner had the misfortune to bring the pharaoh unhappy news, his head was cut off.
Shades of that spirit spread over today’s conversations. Once a friend and I packed up some peanut butter and sandwiches for an outing. As we walked light-heartedly out the door, picnic basket in hand, a smiling neighbor looked up at the sky and said, ”Oh boy, bad day for a picnic. The weatherman says it’s going to rain.”I wanted to strike him on the face with the peanut butter and sandwiches. Not for his stupid weather report, for his while
Several months ago I was racing to catch a him As I breathlessly put my handful of cash across the Grey hound counter, the sales agent said with a broad smile ,”Oh that bus left five minutes ago.”Dreams of head-cutting!
It’s not the news that makes someone angry. It’s the unsympathetic attitude with which it’s the unsympathetic attitude with which it’s delivered. Everyone must give bad news from time to time, and winning professionals do it with the proper attitude. A doctor advising a patient that she needs an operation does it in a caring way. A boss informing an employee he didn’t get the job takes on a sympathetic tone. Big winners know, when delivering any bad news, they should share the feeling of the receiver.
Unfortunately, many people are not aware of this. When you’re tired from a long flight, has a hotel clerk cheerfully said that your room isn’t ready yet? When you had your heart set on the toast beef, has your waiter mainly told you that he just served the last piece? It makes you as traveler or diner want to land your fist right on their unsympathetic faces.
Had my neighbor told me of the upcoming rainstorm with sympathy, I would have appreciated his warming .Had the Greyhound salesclerk sympathetically informed me that my bus had already left, I probably would have said, ” Oh, that’s all right I’ll catch the next one.” Big winners, when they bear bad news ,deliver bombs with the emotion the bombarded(被轰炸的)person is sure to have.
1.In Paragraph 1,the writer tells the story of the pharaoh to ____.
A. make a comparison B. introduce a topic
C. describe a scene D. offer an argument
2.In the writer’s opinion, his neighbor was ___.
A. friendly B. warm-hearted C. not considerate D. not helpful
3.From “Dreams of head-cutting!”(Paragraph3),we learn that the writer___.
A. was mad at the sales agent
B. was reminded of the cruel pharaoh
C. wished that the sales agent would have had dreams
D. dreamed of cutting the sales agent’s head that night.
4.What is the main idea of the text?
A. Delivering bad news properly is important in communication.
B. Helping others sincerely is the key to business success.
C. Receiving bad news requires great courage.
D. Learning ancient traditions can be useful.
Plants can’t communicate by moving or making sounds, as most animals do. Instead, plants Produce volatile compounds, chemicals that easily change from a liquid to a gas. A flower’s sweet smell, for example, comes from volatile compounds that the plant produces to attract insects such as Bugs and bees.
Plants can also detect volatile compounds produced by other plants. A tree under attack by Hungry insets, for instance, may give off volatile compounds that let other trees know about the Attack. In response, the other trees may send off chemicals to keep the bugs away ——or even Chemicals that attract the bugs’ natural enemies.
Now scientists have created a quick way to understand what plants are saying: a chemical Sensor（传感器）called an electronic nose. The “e-nose” can tell compounds that crop plants make When they’re attacked Scientists say the e-nose could help quickly detect whether plants are being Eaten by insects. But today the only way to detect such insects is to visually inspect individual Plants. This is a challenging task for managers of greenhouses, enclosed gardens than can house Thousands of plants.
The research team worked with an e-nose than recognizes volatile compounds. Inside the device, 13 sensors chemically react with volatile compounds Based on these interactions, the e-nose gives off electronic signals that the scientists analyze using computer software.
To test the nose, the team presented it with healthy leaves from cucumber, pepper and tomato plants, all common greenhouse crops. Then scientists collected samples of air around damaged leaves from each type of crop, These plants had been damaged by insects, or by scientists who made holes in the leaves with a hole punch（打孔器）. The e-nose, it turns out, could identify healthy cucumber, pepper and tomato plants based on The volatile compounds they produce, It could also identify tomato leaves that had been damaged. But even more impressive, the device could tell which type of damage ---- by insects or with a hole Punch ---- had been done to the tomato leaves.
With some fine-tuning, a device like the e-nose could one day be used in greenhouses to quickly spot harmful bugs, the researchers say. A device like this could also be used to identify fruits that are perfectly ripe and ready to pick and eat, says Natalia Dudareva, a biochemist at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind. who studies smells of flowers and plants. Hopefully, scientists believe, the device could bring large benefits to greenhouse managers in the near future.
1.We learn from the text that plants communicate with each other by____.
A. making some sounds B. waving their leaves
C. producing some chemicals D. sending out electronic signals
2.What did the scientists do to find out if the e-nose worked?
A. They presented it with all common crops.
B. They fixed 13 sensors inside the device.
C. They collected different damaged leaves.
D. They made tests on damaged and healthy leaves.
3.According to the writer, the most amazing thing about the e-nose is that it can___.
A. pick out ripe fruits
B. spot the insects quickly
C. distinguish different damages to the leaves
D. recognize unhealthy tomato leaves
4.We can infer from the last paragraph that the e-nose_____.
A. is unable to tell the smell of flowers
B. is not yet used in greenhouses
C. is designed by scientists at Purdue
D. is helpful in killing harmful insects
Below are same classified ads from an English newspaper.
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Classified ads FOR DORECT CLASSIFIED SERVICE CALL 800-0557 10 A.M.-4P.M. MONDAY-FRIDAY |
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FOR SALE ——————————— COME to our moving sale- Plants, pottery, books, clothes, etc.Sat,Dec.14th ---9a.m.-5p.m. 1612 Femdale,Apt.1,800-4696 USED FUR COATS and JACKETS ,Good condition $30-$50.Call 800-0436 after 12 noon. MOVING; Must sell.TV21”, $50; AM/FM radio A/C or battery, $15; cassette tape recorder, $10.Call Jon or Pat, 800-0739 after 5p.m. or Weekends. SHEEPSKIN COAT: man’s size 42, 1year old. $85 after 6 p.m., 800-5224. LOST AND FOUND ——————————— FOUND; Cat, 6 months old, black and white markings. Found near Linden and South U. Steve.800-4661. LOST; Gold wire rim glasses In brown case. Campus area. Reward. Call Gregg 800-9662, FOUND: Nov.8th-----A black and white puppy in Packard-Jewett area 800-5770. |
PERSONAL ———————————— OVERSEAS JOBS—Australia, Europe, S. America, Africa. Students all professions and occupation, $700 to $3000 monthly. Expenses paid, overtime sightseeing. Free information at STUDENTS’ UNION. THE INTERNATIONAL ———————————— CENTER plans to publish a booklet of student travel adventures . If you’d like to write about your foreign experiences, unusual or just plain interesting, call us (800-9310) and ask for Mike or Janet.
UNSURE WHAT TO DO? Life-Planning Workshop. Dec. 13th-15th. Bob and Margaret Atwood, 800-0046. ROOMMATES ———————————— FEMALE ROOMMATE WANTED: Own room near- campus. Available December 1# . Rent $300 per month until March 1#. $450 thereafter. Call Jill for details, 800-7839. NEED PERSON to assume lease for own bedroom in apt. near campus, $380/mo.starting Jan. 1# Call 800-6157 after 5 p.m. |
DOMESTIC SERVICE ———————————— EARLY HOUR WAKE-UP SERVICE: For prompt, courteous wake-up service, call 800-0760. HELP WANTED ———————————— BABYSITTER—MY HOME If you are available a few hours during the day, and some evening to care for 2 school-age children, please call Gayle Moore, days 800-1111, evening and weekends 800-4964. PERSONS WANTED for Delivery work Own Transportation Good pay Apply 2311 E. Stadium. Office 101, after 9a.m. TELEPHONE RECEPTION- IST WANTED. NO experience Necessary Good pay. Apply 2311 E. Stadium. office 101, after 9a.m. WAITRESS WANTED: 10a.m.-2p.m.or 10:30 a.m.- 5p.m. Apply inperson,2075 Main. Curtis Restaurant. HELP WANTED for house Cleaning 1/2 day on weekends When—to be discussed for mutual convenience. Good wages. Sylvan Street. Call 800-2817.
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1.Where will you post a notice if you need someone to look after your children?
A. PERSONAL. B. HELP WANTED.
C. DOMMESTIC SERVICE. D. ROOMMATES.
2.A second-hand jacket will probably cost you________.
A. $60 B. $40 C. $20 D. $10
3.To have your travel notes published, you may contact_________.
A. Students’ Union B. Gayle Moore
C. The International Center D. Life-Planning Workshop
4.If you want to have someone wake you up in the morning, you may call_________.
A. 800-5224 B. 800-5770
C. 800-7839 D. 800-0760
I was in a rush as always, but this time it was for an important date I just couldn’t be late for! I found myself at a checkout counter behind an elderly woman seemingly in no hurry as she paid for her groceries. A PhD student with not a lot of money, I had hurried into the store to pick up some flowers. I was in a huge rush, thinking of my upcoming evening. I did not want to be late for this date.
We were in Boston, a place not always known for small conversation between strangers. The woman stopped unloading her basket and looked up at me. She smiled. It was a nice smile –warm and reassuring—and I returned her gift by smiling back.
“Must be a special lady, whoever it is that will be getting those beautiful flowers,” she said.
“Yes, she’s special,” I said, and then to my embarrassment, the words kept coming out.
“It’s only our second date, but somehow I am just having the feeling she’s ‘the one’. Jokingly, I added, “The only problem is that I can’t figure out why she’d want to date a guy like me.”
“Well, I think she’s very lucky to have a boyfriend who brings her such lovely flowers and who is obviously in love with her,” the woman said.” “My husband used to bring me flowers every week –even when times were tough and we didn’t have much money. Those were incredible days; he was very romantic and – of course – I miss him since he’s passed away.”
I paid for my flowers as she was gathering up her groceries. There was no doubt in my mind as I walked up to her. I touched her on the shoulder and said, “You were right, you know. These flowers are indeed for a very special lady.” I handed her the flowers and thanked her for such a nice conversation.
It took her a moment to realize that I was giving her the flowers I had just purchased. “You have a wonderful evening,” I said. I left her with a big smile and my heart warmed as I saw her smelling the beautiful flowers.
I remember being slightly late for my date that night and telling my girlfriend the above story. A couple of years later, when I finally worked up the courage to ask her to marry me, she told me that this story had helped to seal it for her –that was the night that I won her heart.
1.Why was the writer in a hurry that day?
A．He was to meet his girlfriend. B．He had to go back to school soon.
C．He was delayed by an elderly lady. D．He had to pick up some groceries.
2.What does the underlined phrase “her gift”(Paragraph 2) refer to?
A．Her words. B．Her smile. C．Her flowers. D．her politeness.
3.Why did the writer give his flowers to the elderly lady?
A．She told him a nice story. B．She allowed him to pay first.
C．She gave him encouragement. D．She liked flowers very much.
4.What is the message conveyed in the story?
A．Flowers are important for a date. B．Small talk is helpful.
C．Love and kindness are rewarding. D．Elderly people deserve respecting.
The trip to that city was eye-opening for everyone, and near its end , all the young people in our group began to reflect on what it had meant. We __21__ the first night we had arrived. We had all gone into the markets of the city __22__ the young people could experience its energy. But what we actually saw simply 23 us all –the rundown houses, the children in rags, the people begging for money… Walking home, 24 under a low bridge, we came across 25 families of homeless people seeking a bit of dry ground to sleep on 26 he night. We had to step over bodies as we found our way through the darkness.
The poverty(贫困) was 27 than anything my young companions had ever imagined. Back in the hotel, an air of sadness settled over the group. Many 28 and cried. Spending time in this 29 moves a person to care about humanity.
That evening, our group spent hours talking about what we had 30 . Gently, I encouraged everyone to talk about the difficult 31 that day’s discoveries had inspired. Sitting together 32 a circle as everyone had a chance to speak, we all began to realize that 33 of us was alone in our struggle to cope with our reactions.
Based on my 34 in poverty-stricken areas, I suggested that 35 the emotions we had were painful, they could also be important in helping us to move forward. We all 36 that we had seen things that should never be allowed to happen. 37 , what could we do about it? Together, we began to brainstorm ways we could help to ease the 38 we had seen. As I encouraged group members to focus on 39 they could do, a sense of determination 40 the previous sadness. Instead of despair, these young people began to feel a call to action.
21．A．put up with B．got back to C．looked back on D．made up for
22．A．now that B．so that C．as if D．even if
23．A．puzzled B．annoyed C．embarrassed D．shocked
24．A．marching B．running C．passing D．moving
25．A．entire B．normal C．average D．general
26．A．beyond B．with C．till D．for
27．A．stronger B．deeper C．worse D．less
28．A．gave up B．broke down C．set off D．held on
29．A．environment B．hotel C．house D．background
30．A．inspected B．attempted C．witnessed D．challenged
31．A．feelings B．decisions C．thoughts D．impressions
32．A．along B．around C．by D．in
33．A．neither B．either C．none D．each
34．A．experiences B．schedules C．data D．position
35．A．once B．while C．since D．unless
36．A．supposed B．advised C．confirmed D．agreed
37．A．Surely B．Rather C．Now D．Indeed
38．A．burden B．suffering C．anxiety D．difficulty
39．A．how B．where C．what D．when
40．A．replaced B．changed C．covered D．improved
－ What do you think of the movie?
－ It’s fantastic. The only pity is that I __________ the beginning of it.
A. Missed B. had missed C. miss D. would miss
