Why do 33% of the households in the USA have cats? And how do you explain why there are 16 million more pet cats than dogs? Yes, kittens are adorable （讨人喜欢的）．Yes, they can grow up to be good mousers and are very entertaining to watch．And yes, cats are independent and don't require as much care as dogs．But research shows cats can also be caretakers for us and our families, improve our health and teach us and our children to be kinder, gentler souls．
Theodora Wesselman is 94 and has lived the past two years with her elderly cat, Cleo, at TigerPlace, a retirement community in Columbia, Mo．Their enduring friendship is a classic example of how humans and animals can become family and look out for each other．
Wesselman visits other residents, and her children stop by, but Cleo is her best friend, she says．They've been together nearly 21 years．
"She sleeps on her own pillow right beside mine," Wesselman says．"In the morning, she pecks on my cheek to wake me up．It's really sweet．I pet her, tell her I love her and take her to the kitchen to prepare her food．"
Research shows that being able to care for a pet improves our morale （士气;精神状态）, helps validate us and encourages us to take care of ourselves, says Rebecca Johnson, director of the University of Missouri's Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction．The body of research is leading more retirement communities and universities to roll out the welcome mat for pets．
1.According to the context, where do you think the sentence “They start and end the day together” should appear in the passage?
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A．Between para．1 and para．2 |
B．Between para．2 and para．3 |
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C．Between para．3 and para．4 |
D．Between para．4 and para．5 |
2.Which of the following words best describe the author’s attitude towards keeping pet cats?
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A．Favorable |
B．Critical |
C．Reserved |
D．Doubtful |
3.Why does the author take 94-year-old Theodora Wesselman as an example in the passage?
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A．To show that the elderly like Theodora Wesselman in the USA have pet cats． |
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B．To suggest to what degree humans and pet cats can be caretakers for each other． |
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C．Because Theodora Wesselman has been living with a pet cat for the past two years． |
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D．Because Theodora Wesselman pets her cat Cleo and tells her she loves her． |
4.What does “to roll out the welcome mat for pets” in the last paragraph imply?
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A．To give a special welcome to pets． |
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B．To make the welcome mat flat on the ground for pets． |
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C．To open out the welcome mat for pets to sleep． |
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D．To wrap the welcome mat to make room for pets． |
WASHINGTON — President Obama and his wife, Michelle, handed out Halloween treats to area children and military families at the White House Sunday evening．
Local students between 6 and 14 years old, along with children from military families, were invited to celebrate Halloween on the North Lawn．
The president and first lady, along with Mrs．Obama's mother, Marian Robinson, spent about 30 minutes passing out goodie bags．Obama wished each child a happy Halloween as he distributed the treats, pausing occasionally for hugs or to comment on costumes．
Later, the military families continued the celebration inside the White House．
The first couple joked to assembled reporters about children walking the long driveway in order to work off （消化掉） the snacks．"This is the Let's Move method of trick-or-treating （不给糖就捣蛋）," Obama said, referring to Mrs．Obama's campaign to combat childhood obesity （肥胖）．
The goodie bags contained a box of White House M&Ms, a cookie made by pastry chef （点心师） Bill Yosses, and dried fruit．
As they made their way across the lawn, the children meet a vast range of costumed characters ranging from a spooky Frankenstein （科学怪人,小说《弗兰肯斯坦》的主角） to the Scarecrow from "The Wizard of Oz．" Music from a jazz band dressed in pirate gear rang out across the White House grounds．
Multicolored pumpkins and gourds lined the driveway — individually, in gravity-defying stacks and as part of a large mound over 5 feet tall．Pumpkin-headed scarecrows （稻草人） made of cornstalks loomed over the path with menacingly raised arms．Under the White House portico, a mobile resembling bats flying through clouds fluttered around a lantern．
Some of the local trick-or-treaters were students at Bancroft Elementary, which helps tend the first lady's White House garden, and Tubman Elementary, which has a relationship with the White House chefs．
After trick-or-treating ended, the Obamas stood near the front door, welcoming the military families inside, helping children climb the short flight of steps and thanking parents for their service．
1.What is the news report mainly about?
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A．President Obama and first lady celebrated Halloween with children． |
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B．President Obama and his wife Michelle handed out Halloween treats to children． |
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C．Children from military families were invited to celebrate Halloween at the White House． |
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D．Trick-or-treaters met a vast range of costumed characters from Frankenstein to the Scarecrow． |
2.From the passage, we know that ______ do not necessarily appear when people celebrate Halloween．
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A．Goodie bags |
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B．Pumpkins and Gourds |
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C．White House M&Ms |
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D．Costumed characters |
3.When celebrating Halloween at the White House, the Obamas did the following EXCEPT______．
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A．Wishing each child a happy Halloween |
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B．Thanking reporters for their covering the event |
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C．Helping children climb the short flight of steps |
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D．Hugging children and commenting on their costumes |
4.The passage is mainly developed by ______．
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A．analyzing causes |
B．making comparisons |
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C．examining differences |
D．following the time order |
Jeffery Deaver looks more like a brainy villain （反派人物） in a James Bond movie than a "00" agent in Her Majesty's secret service．Best known for his thrillers starring criminalist （刑事专家） Lincoln Rhyme, Jeffery Deaver has a new mission: Bring Bond into the 21st century in a new 007 novel．
The yet-to-be-named book is cryptically （隐秘地） referred to as "Project X" by Ian Fleming Publications Ltd．, which owns the rights to Fleming's work．Most of the details surrounding Project X, to be published in May, are being kept under wraps, but under gentle coaxing （用好话劝诱） Deaver begins to spill his guts．"The novel," he says, "is set in the present day, in 2011．Bond is a young agent for the British secret service．He's 29 or 30 years old, and he's an Afghan war vet．" That in itself is big news．After all, if Bond were aging in real time — he first appeared on the screen in 1953 — the now doddering （老态龙钟的） 007 would be nearly 90．
But first up: a new stand-alone Deaver novel, Edge （Simon & Schuster, $26．99）, to be published Tuesday．It's about a federal agent who risks his life to protect a Washington police detective from a man hired to extract information from him using any means at his disposal （任由个人支配的）．
Sipping coffee while seated on a leather chair in a sitting room decorated with portraits of his dogs and show ribbons, the mild-mannered author who writes about murderers and serial killers talks about his career and the solid fan base that has allowed him to pursue writing full time since 1990．"I may not sell as many books as John Grisham（although he has sold a cool 20 million）, but I have a very loyal fan base," says Deaver, 60, who wrote some of his novels while working as a Wall Street lawyer．Deaver's initiation into the Bond family — more than 100 million 007 novels have sold worldwide — could significantly raise his profile （知名度）．
Other novelists have written Bond novels since Ian Fleming's death in 1964 — including Kingsley Amis, John Gardner and, most recently, Sebastian Faulks — but they all took place in the original era．Deaver is taking a new approach．"There's no more Cold War to fight," says Deaver, so his new Bond, of the Fleming estate, will fight "post-9/11 evil．" "I want to stay true to the original James Bond, who many people don't know much about," he says, referring to the secret agent Fleming portrayed in 14 novels, and not the movie Bond．"People know Daniel Craig, they know Pierce Brosnan, they know Roger Moore and Sean Connery, all of whom brought a great deal to the stories of 007．But the original Bond was a very dark, edgy （另类的） character．"
1.Which of the following is NOT true about Jeffery Deaver?
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A．Jeffery Deaver is a "00" agent in Her Majesty's secret service in a James Bond movie． |
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B．Jeffery Deaver was working as a lawyer while he wrote some novels about murderers and serial killers． |
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C．It is the loyal fan base that has allowed Jeffery Deaver to keep on writing since 1990． |
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D．Jeffery Deaver is best known for his thrillers rather than for 007 novels． |
2.Which statement best explains the meaning of “spill his guts” in Paragraph 2?
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A．Tell others what he knows about the yet-to-be-named 007 novel． |
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B．Tell others everything he knows about Ian Fleming Publications Ltd．． |
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C．Have the courage to talk about the 007 agent James Bond． |
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D．Have the determination to talk about "Project X"． |
3.Who was the author of 007 novels?
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A．Jeffery Deaver |
B．Ian Fleming |
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C．John Grisham |
D．Kingsley Amis |
4.What do you know about the new 007 novel from the passage?
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A．The book to be published in May is named "Project X" by Ian Fleming Publications Ltd．． |
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B．The book is about a federal agent risking his life to protect a Washington police detective． |
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C．The book features a young James Bond, an Afghan war vet working for the British secret service． |
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D．The book features a young James Bond who fights Cold War． |
What I Want for You and Every Child in America
Dear Malia and Sasha,
I know that you've both had a lot of ___（31） these last two years on the campaign trail, going to picnics and parades and state fairs, eating all sorts of junk food your mother and I probably shouldn't have let you have．But I also know that it hasn't always been easy for you and Mom, and that as excited as you both are about that new puppy, it doesn't ____（32）for all the time we've been apart．I know ____（33）I've missed these past two years, and today I want to tell you a little more about why I decided to take our family on this journey．
When I was a young man, I thought life was all about me-about how I'd___（34） my way in the world, become successful, and get the things I want．But then the two of you came into my____（35） with all your curiosity and mischief （捣乱） and those smiles that never____（36） to fill my heart and light up my day．
I want all our children to go to schools_____（37） of their potential-schools that challenge them, inspire them, and instill （灌输） in them a sense of_____（38） about the world around them．I want them to have the chance to go to college____（39）their parents aren't rich．And I want them to get good jobs: jobs that pay well and give them benefits like health care, jobs that let them spend time with their own_____（40）and retire with dignity．
I want us to____（41） the boundaries of discovery so that you'll live to see new technologies and inventions that improve our lives and make our planet cleaner and safer．And I want us to push our own human boundaries to reach _____（42）the divides of race and region, gender and religion that_____（43） us from seeing the best in each other．
That was the_____（44） your grandmother tried to teach me when I was your age, reading me the opening lines of the Declaration of Independence and telling me about the men and women who marched for_____（45） because they believed those words put to paper two centuries ago should mean_____（46）．
She helped me understand that America is great not because it is perfect but because it can always be made better and that the_____（47）work of perfecting our union falls to each of us．It's a charge we pass on to our children, coming closer with each new generation to_____（48）we know America should be．
These are the things I want for you, to_____（49）in a world with no limits on your dreams and no achievements beyond your reach．And I want every child to have the same chances to learn and dream and grow and thrive that you girls have．That's why I've taken our family on this great adventure．
I am so proud of both of you．I love you______（50）you can ever know．And I am grateful every day for your patience, poise （自信）, grace, and humor as we prepare to start our new life together in the White House．
Love, Dad
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He doesn’t have interest in cooking．__________, he’s getting tired of it．
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A．On the contrary |
B．On the one hand |
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C．On the other hand |
D．On the whole |
I’m sorry I got caught in the traffic；_________, I could have been here sooner．
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A．besides |
B．although |
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C．anyway |
D．otherwise |
