John and Bobby joined a wholesale company together just after graduation from college the same year. Both worked very hard. After several years, however, the boss promoted Bobby to the position of manager but John remained an ordinary employee. John could not take it any more, tendered his resignation to the boss and complained the boss did not know how to delegate and did not value hard-working staff, but only promoted those who flattered him.
The boss knew that John worked very hard for the years. He thought a moment and said, “Thank you for your criticism, but I have a request. I hope you will do one more thing for our company before you leave. Perhaps you will change your decision and take back your resignation.”
John agreed. The boss asked him to go and find out anyone selling watermelon in the market. John went and returned soon. He said he had found out a man selling watermelon. The boss asked how much per kg. John shook his head and went back to the market to ask and returned to inform the boss $1.2 per kg.
Boss told John to wait a second, and he called Bobby to come to his office. He asked Bobby to go and find anyone selling watermelon in the market. Bobby went, returned and said, “Boss, only one person selling watermelon. $1.2 per kg, $10 for 10kg, he has inventory (清单) of 340 melons. On the table 58 melons, bought from the South two days ago, they are fresh and red, good quality.”
John was very impressed and realized the difference between himself and Bobby. He decided not to resign but to learn from Bobby.
Chances exist in the daily details. For the same matter, a more successful person sees more and farther so that he can find out an opportunity and catch it to realize his aim. If a person sees one year ahead, while another sees only tomorrow. Then the difference between a year and a day is 365 times!
1.Why did John decide to hand in his resignation to the boss?
A. Because he couldn’t stand being an ordinary employee.
B. Because Bobby would take John’s former position.
C. Because the boss was not flattered by his hard work.
D. Because Bobby instead of him was promoted.
2. What did the boss ask John to do?
A. To go to market and find out whether there is someone selling watermelons.
B. To make a complete marketing research on the various prices of watermelons.
C. To search for much information about the effective ways to sell watermelons.
D. To make a comparison on the prices of different types of watermelons.
3. What sort of following information about watermelons was NOT brought by Bobby?
A. The price. B. The quality.
C. The quantity. D. The weight.
4. From the difference of John and Bobby, we may infer that a more successful person is more _____.
A. alert, sensitive and passionate
B. observant, thoughtful and exploratory
C. considerate, modest and satisfied
confident, noble and tolerant
Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.
As we all know, Chinese handwriting has infinite power to express differences of character and cultivation. But we have to admit that traditional handwriting has become a __50__ art, now that kids start using keyboards as soon as they begin school. However, writing things out by hand may be a __51__ way we train our brains, several studies suggest. Many psychologists think that handwriting can make you __52__!
Writing by hand is different from __53__ because it requires using strokes to create a letter, __54__ just selecting the whole letter by touching a key, says Virginia Berninger, a professor of psychology at the University of Washington. These __55__ movements activate large regions of the brain __56__ in thinking, memory, and language. Handwriting helps children learn letters and shapes, improves their composition of ideas, and may also __57__ fine-motor skills development.
A study by Berninger found that in grades two, four, and six, children wrote more words, faster, and expressed more __58__ when writing essays by hand than when typing on a keyboard.
A separate study by researchers at Indiana University found that children who practiced printing by hand had more active__59__than kids who __60__ looked at letters.
It’s not just children who __61__ from writing things out by hand, says a study in the Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience. Adults learning a new language remember its __62__ better if they write them out by hand than if they produce them with a keyboard.
As more people __63__ their days on the computer, says neuroscientist P. Murali Doraiswamy of Duke University, “__64__ people in handwriting skills could be a useful cognitive exercise.”
1.A. charming B. dying C. mixing D. challenging
2.A. common B. critical C. classic D. standard
3.A. smarter B. calmer C. deeper D. quicker
4.A. clicking B. talking C. typing D. moving
5.A. in addition to B. rather than C. except for D. other than
6.A. body B. eye C. letter D. finger
7.A. ended B. led C. included D. involved
8.A. boost B. weaken C. decline D. prospect
9.A. meanings B. ideas C. information D. emotions
10.A. mood B. behavior C. fingers D. brains
11.A. simply B. rarely C. hardly D. specially
12.A. benefit B. keep C. result D. learn
13.A. rules B. sounds C. characters D. sentences
14.A. get B. waste C. spend D. rely
15.A. retreating B. returning C. repeating D. retraining
Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.
|
A. priority |
B. getting |
C. needs |
D. put off |
AB. depends on |
|
AC. satisfy |
AD. hungry |
BC. likely |
BD. slightly |
CD. motivation |
A person’s motivation is a combination of desire and energy directed at achieving a goal. Influencing someone’s motivation means __1__ him or her to want to do what you know must be done. A person’s motivation __2__ two things:
One is the strength of certain needs. For example, you are __3__, but you must have a task completed by a nearing deadline. If you are starving, you will eat. If you are __4__ hungry, you will finish the task at hand.
The other is the perception (感觉) that taking a certain action will help __5__ those needs. For example, you have two burning __6__— the desire to complete the task and the desire to go to lunch. Your perception of how you view those two needs will determine which one takes __7__. If you believe that you could be fired for not completing the task, you will probably __8__ lunch and complete the task. If you believe that you will not get into trouble or perhaps finish the task in time, then you will be more __9__ to go to lunch.
“Simpler” books are the foundation ______ students build a lifelong habit of reading and further the actual skill of reading for longer and stronger periods of time.
A. which B. upon which C. for which D. in which
After a long and tiring flight, Mr. Ritz was frustrated at the news ______ his luggage had been sent to Hong Kong by mistake.
A. that B. which C. what D. because
In the past twelve months the research members ______ the effectiveness of many materials in a home building.
A. had studied B. would study C. studied D. have studied
