HOW would you like to step into the world of other people’s dreams? That’s just what Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) does. His work is to steal secrets from people when they are asleep and dreaming. He has an even rarer ability: He can plant an idea in someone’s sleeping mind, and watch it grow and take root in reality. This ability is called inception.
The movie Inception (《盗梦空间》) was on show in Chinese cinemas not long ago. It is imaginative, of course. The movie leads one to wonder just how much we know about dreams. For years, scientists and researchers have been trying to solve sleep’s greatest mystery.
Is it possible to enter someone’s dreaming mind? In the movie, DiCaprio uses a drug and a dream machine to put a scenario (某一特定情节) into someone’s sleeping mind. He then goes to sleep himself, connected to the machine, and enters the other person’s dream.
In real life, there is a machine that can read someone’s mind. A brain scanner takes pictures of brain activity, and then the software recreates images of what the person was looking at.
Researchers say it may be possible one day to record someone’s dream – without the danger (or the fun) of actually sharing that dream.
What’s a dream, anyway? A dream is a group of images and sounds our brain creates when we’re sleeping. In the 1950s, researchers discovered a sleeping condition that happened around every 90 to 120 minutes during sleep: rapid eye movement, or REM. During this period you’re fast asleep, yet your eyes move around quickly under your eyelids (眼皮) and your brain is nearly as active as during the day. That’s when most dreams happen.
What do dreams mean? Dreams are not always filled with meaning. Sometimes dreams are just your mind playing with thoughts and images from your life, or things you may have read or seen on TV. But at other times, dreams show things that you want to achieve in real life, or things that cause you trouble or stress.
1.The movie Inception is mentioned at the beginning of the article to ______.
A. encourage readers to watch the movie
B. tell readers about people with special dreaming abilities
C. inform readers about the science of dreams
D. warn reader about the threat of dream stealers
2.According to the article, how does a brain scanner work?
A. It records dreams.
B. It uses a special drug that causes no pain.
C. It finds out what dreams mean.
D. It takes pictures of brain activity and recreates images.
3. According to the article, which of the following statements about REM sleep is TRUE?
A. Most dreams occur in REM sleep.
B. Over the last ten years scientists have solved the mystery of REM sleep.
C. People always remember what they have dreamed in a REM sleep.
D. People can have REM sleep all night.
4. The article claims that ______.
A. dreams tell us a lot about a person’s character
B. dreams are connected to real life
C. dreams are useful and help keep our brains active
D. dreams are usually about meaningful things
High-quality customer service is preached(宣扬) by many ,but actually keeping customers happy is easier said than done.
Shoppers seldom complain to the manager or owner of a retail store, but instead will alert their friends, relatives, co-workers, strangers-and anyone who will listen.
Store managers are often the last to hear complaints, and often find out only when their regular customers decide t frequent their competitors, according to a study jointly conducted by Verde group and Wharton school.
“Storytelling hurts retailers and entertains consumers,” said Paula Courtney, President of the Verde group.” the store loses the customer, but the shopper must also find a replacement.”
On average, every unhappy customer will complain to at least four other, and will no longer visit the specific store for every dissatisfied customer, a store will lose up to three more due to negative reviews. The resulting “snowball effect” can be disastrous to retailers.
According to the research, shoppers who purchased clothing encountered the most problems. ranked second and third were grocery and electronics customers.
The most common complaints include filled parking lots, cluttered (塞满了的) shelves, overloaded racks, out-of-stock items, long check-out lines, and rude salespeople.
During peak shopping hours, some retailers solved the parking problems by getting moonlighting（业余兼职的）local police to work as parking attendants. Some hired flag wavers to direct customers to empty parking spaces. This guidance eliminated the need for customers to circle the parking lot endlessly, and avoided confrontation between those eyeing the same parking space.
Retailers can relieve the headaches by redesigning store layouts, pre-stocking sales items, hiring speedy and experienced cashiers, and having sales representatives on hand to answer questions.
Most importantly, salespeople should be diplomatic and polite with angry customers.
“Retailers who’re responsive and friendly are more likely to smooth over issues than those who aren’t so friendly.” said Professor Stephen Hoch. “Maybe something as simple as a greeter at the store entrance would help.”
Customers can also improve future shopping experiences by filing complaints to the retailer, instead of complaining to the rest of the world. Retailers are hard-pressed to improve when they have no idea what is wrong.
1.Why are store managers often the last to hear complaints?
A. Most customers won’t bother to complain even if they have had unhappy experiences.
B. Customers would rather relate their unhappy experiences to people around them.
C. Few customers believe the service will be improved.
D. Customers have no easy access to store managers.
2.What does Paula Courtney imply by saying “ … the shopper must also find a replacement” (Line 2, Para. 4)?
A. New customers are bound to replace old ones.
B. It is not likely the shopper can find the same products in other stores.
C. Most stores provide the same.
D. Not complaining to the manager causes the shopper some trouble too.
3.What contributes most to smoothing over issues with customers?
A. Manners of the salespeople.
B. Hiring of efficient employees.
C. Huge supply of goods for sale.
D. Design of the store layout.
4.To achieve better shopping experiences, customers are advised to _________.
A. exert pressure on stores to improve their service
B. settle their disputes with stores in a diplomatic way
C. voice their dissatisfaction to store managers directly
D. shop around and make comparisons between stores
SCIENTISTS have discovered that living to the age of 100 may have nothing to do with the lifestyle you lead and everything to do with the type of genes (基因) you have.
For the lucky carriers of “Methuselah” genes, worries over smoking, eating unhealthily and not getting enough exercise may not be as necessary as to those of us without the special gene pattern .
The “Methuselah” genes could give extra protection against the diseases of old age such as cancer and heart disease. They could also protect people against the effects of the unhealthy lifestyles that we believe will lead us to an early death, scientists say. However, the genes are very rare.
The genes include ADIPOQ, which is found in about 10 percent of young people but in nearly 30 percent of people living past 100. They also include the CETP and the ApoC3 genes, which are found in 10 percent of young people, but in about 20 percent of people over 100 years old.
Some of those genes were discovered by a research group at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, led by Professor Nir Barzilai. The team studied the genes of over 500 people over 100 years old, and their children.
The studies show that tiny mutations (变异) in the make-up of some genes can greatly increase a person’s lifespan. Barzilai told a Royal Society conference that the discovery of such genes gave scientists clear targets for developing drugs that could prevent age-related diseases, allow people to live longer and stay healthy.
David Gems, a researcher at University College London, believes that drugs to slow ageing will become widespread.
“If we know which genes control longevity (长寿) then we can … target them with drugs. That makes it possible to slow down ageing,” he told The Times.
“Much of the pain and suffering in the world are caused by ageing. If we can find a way to reduce that, then we are obliged to take it.”
1. According to the article, which of the following is the most important if a person is to live to the age of 100?
A. Eating healthy food every day.
B. Having the right types of genes.
C. Having a healthy lifestyle.
D. Taking drugs that prevent ageing.
2.According to the article, the ApoC3 gene is found in ______ of people over 100 years old.
A. 10% B. 20% C. 30% D. 50%
3.Which of the following statements is TRUE of the research led by Professor Nir Barzilai?
A. The team studied the genes of over 100 people over 100 years of age.
B. The researchers found that mutations in certain genes lead to longer life.
C. The researchers found ways to develop drugs that could cure age-related diseases.
D. The study suggested that most people have genes that could lengthen their lives.
4. According to David Gems, ______.
A. drugs to slow ageing will be very expensive
B. modern science will be able to find more longevity genes
C. it is the duty of medical scientists to fight the problems of ageing
D. scientists can make new genes that will allow longer life
The words “timetable” and “schedule” make most final year students want to eat their own vomit(呕吐物). Unfortunately, the harsh reality is that final year students must develop a timetable. If you don’t have a schedule or plan for studying, you will have no way of allocating your valuable time when the unexpected arises. A well-thought-out timetable can be a lifesaver. It is up to you to learn how to develop a schedule that meets your needs .Change it if necessary, but most important, follow it. All timetables should be made with the idea that they can be changed. A good one will keep you from wandering off course.
A good timetable should make every hour count—every class, social event and other activity you engage in .You must focus on the other “free time” available and how you will use it. Make a weekly schedule and divided each day into one-hour increments. Indicate times for classes, socializing, and work time. Also block off a period for sleeping every day. In the precious hours left over, plan time for study. This gives you a rough road map of the time available. Of course, you can change your schedule as circumstances need.
The timetable you develop should guide you in how to distribute the available time in the most productive manner. Sticking to your schedule can be tough, but don’t dribble away valuable time. Avoiding study is the easiest thing in the world. It is up to you to follow the schedule you’ve prepared. A good deal of your success in high school and with any future study depends on this simple truth.
Remember, there is a learning curve. You learn the most in the first 30 minutes of study; after that, it progressively deteriorates（减弱）. After four or five hours of studying the same material in the same way, you are learning virtually nothing. The solution is to keep switching subjects and study styles.
1.What is the best title of the passage?
A．Advantages of starting a timetable B．Keep to it, and you will succeed
C．Make a schedule, and follow it D．Learn to love your timetable
2.What does Paragraph 2 talk about?
A．Tips for making a schedule. B．Significance of a scientific timetable.
C．Requirements for making a timetable. D．Importance of following one’s schedule.
3.The following are characteristics of a good timetable EXCEPT that .
A．it can be changed B．it is flexible
C．it is of many periods D．it can save our time
4.From this passage, we can learn if we wish to achieve high learning efficiency, we’d better .
A．shift subjects and use different methods regularly
B．devote to the same material continuously
C．turn to teachers for help if necessary
D．have a break every thirty minutes
Misery and setbacks are not always as terrible as one imagines. Hard times can offer new ways of looking at life that would otherwise never be known. And, if you are a writer, this can be the source of much of your success.
Popular British author, Charles Dickens' （1812-1870）family could hardly make ends meet. They could only afford to send one of their six children to school. Dickens was not that child. His parents chose to send a daughter, who had a talent for music, to an academy. Then at the age of 12, Dickens' life took another turn for the worse.
His father, a clerk, was placed in prison for unpaid debts. And, being the oldest male left at home, Dickens took up work at a factory. His horrible experience there became the fuel for his future writing. His father was freed three months later and inherited a small amount of money. Dickens was then sent to school.
From 1836 to 1837, he wrote a monthly series of stories. Thus the Pickwick Papers, came into being, which brought fame to the 23-year-old man.
Throughout his career, Dickens covers various situations in his novels. He wrote about the miserable lives of the poor in Oliver Twist, the French Revolution in Tale of Two Cities, and social reform in Hard Times. He also wrote David Copperfield, a book thought to be modeled on his own life.
“I do not write bitterly or angrily: for I know all these things have worked together to make me what I am,” he once said. His difficult childhood did indeed shape the person he became, as well as his writing career. There are shades of young Dickens in many of his most beloved characters, including David Copperfield and Oliver Twist.
Like the author, all these characters come from poor beginnings and are able to rise above their setbacks and achieve success. “Minds, like bodies, will often fall into an ill-conditioned state from too much comfort,” he once wrote. On June 9th, 1870, aged 58, Dickens died, leaving one unfinished work．The words on his tombstone read: “He was a sympathizer to the poor, the suffering and the oppressed, and by his death, one of England's greatest writers is lost to the world.”
1.The book that first called public attention to Dickens was ______.
A．the Pickwick Papers B．Oliver Twist
C．Tale of Two Cities D．David Copperfield
2.The phrase “shades of” in bold means “_____”.
A．various shapes of B．situations of
C．different experiences of D．reminders of
3.How did Dickens see his childhood?
A．He felt grateful for it．
B．He felt it a pity that things weren’t in his favor．
C．He loved writing about it．
D．He chose to forget the bitterness about it．
4.From the story, we can see Dickens’ attitude towards an easy life is ______．
A．to enjoy it B．to hate it
C．not to abandon yourself to it D．to work hard for it
Blind from birth, I have never had the opportunity to see myself and have been completely dependent on the image I create in the eyes of others.
There are those who believe that 36 I can’t see, I obviously also cannot hear. Very often people will talk with me at the top of their 37 . Conversely(相反地) to this, people will also often 38 , thinking that since my eyes don’t work, my ears don’t either. For example, when I go to the airport and ask the ticket agent for 39 to the plane, he or she will always pick up the phone and call a ground hostess in a very low voice. "Hi, Jane, wave got a 76 here." I have concluded that the word " 40 " is not used because they are unwilling to inform me of my condition of which I may not have been previously 41 .
On the other hand, others know that of course I can hear, but believe that I can’t talk. Once I became ill and was hospitalized. Immediately after I was 42 , I was wheeled down to the X-ray room. Just at the door sat an elderly woman(judging from her voice) asked the orderly(护工) who had been wheeling me:" What is your name?" “What’s your name?” the orderly 43 to me. "Harold Krents", I replied. "Harold Krents", he repeated. "When was he born?" "When were you born?" This continued for about five minutes before I finally interrupted, "Look, this is absolutely 44 . OK, I can’t see, but it’s going to become pretty 45 to both of you that I don’t need an interpreter." “He says he doesn’t need an interpreter," the orderly reported to the woman.
The 46 misconception of all is the view that because I can’t see, I can’t 47 . I was turned down by over forty law firms, 48 my qualifications included a cum laude(优等成绩) degree from Harvard Law School. The 49 to find jobs, the continuous 50 of being told that it was impossible for a blind person to 51 law, the rejection letter, not based on my lack of 52 but rather on my disability, will always remain one of the most upsetting experiences of my life.
53 , the Department of Labor issued laws that demand equal 54 opportunities for the disabled. The business community’s response has been 55 . The attitude towards the disabled is beginning to change.
1.A．since B．although C．whether D．in that
2.A．lungs B．ears C．head D．eyes
3.A．shout B．laugh C．whisper D．cry
4.A．welcome B．permission C．advice D．assistance
5.A．passenger B．blind C．trouble D．situation
6.A．afraid B．aware C．curious D．desperate
7.A．invited B．released C．included D．admitted
8.A．asked B．responded C．repeated D．exchanged
9.A．cheerful B．ridiculous C．charming D．disgusting
10.A．clear B．easy C．confusing D．doubtful
11.A．earliest B．slightest C．latest D．toughest
12.A．think B．study C．work D．understand
13.A．as if B．even though C．now that D．in case
14.A．attempt B．opportunity C．mistake D．success
15.A．disappointmentB．relief C．envy D．effort
16.A．disobey B．challenge C．practice D．make
17.A．confidence B．luck C．ability D．ambition
18.A．Regretfully B．Purposely C．Exactly D．Fortunately
19.A．caring B．employment C．learning D．traveling
20.A． enthusiastic B．passive C．negative D．uncertain
