What makes a house a home?
Not size, of course．I've been in some of the grandest houses in America, and it's readily apparent no one lives there．Earlier this year, I had dinner in a mud hut in Ethiopia, where we sat on chairs next to the hostess' bed -- a home that had more warmth than any house I've been in since．
Now John Edwards is exploring what makes a house a home in his just-released Home: The Blueprints of Our Lives．There Edwards writes, " This is a book about homes, the values they rest on, the dreams they are filled with, and the people they have shaped．The houses and circumstances are different, but much of what you find inside will be familiar．"
Whether you're sitting in an airport right now, waiting to fly to your childhood home for Thanksgiving, or in your own home waiting for the relatives to arrive, you know what he's talking about．
We've lived in our townhouse for 21 years．The loose windows that make noise in the wind．The fireplace so shallow it holds only one log．The kitchen window that offers a view of the world passing by．It's where friends sit on the kitchen counter drinking wine while dinner is being fixed．I lived there for only 18, but it will always be my true home．Even the lamp in the west living room window, which I could see far down the road when driving home late at night, still shines．
While all this talk about childhood memories can be warm and comforting, home is whom you're with, not where you are．As Edwards writes, "Home is family．Home is safety．Home is faith．"
Happy homecoming．
1.What would be the best title for the text?
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A．Home Means Everything |
B．What's Inside Makes Us Feel at Home |
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C．Home: The Blueprints of Our Lives |
D．The Importance of the Home |
2.The purpose of the second paragraph is to __
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A．mean the author likes living in grandest houses |
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B．prove the author got along well with the hostess |
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C．mean the feeling of home isn't related to the size |
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D．show the author's different feelings about houses |
3.About the book Home: The Blueprints of Our Lives, we know that __
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A．it was the description of Edwards' houses |
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B．it is mainly about houses |
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C．it helps us understand the concept of home |
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D．it was written by the author of the text |
4.What did the author mainly mean when he mentioned the loose windows and the shallow fireplace ?
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A．His house was too old to live in． |
B．He missed the feelings of home． |
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C．He hated living there． |
D．He missed his old friends too much． |
5.It can be inferred according to the text that __
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A．the author's family were very rich |
B．every happy home is the same |
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C．the author has been living a hard life |
D．the author and Edwards hold similar ideas |
WHAT happens to a teenage kid when the world he thought he knew suddenly changes? Find out in Little Brother by American author Cory Doctorow．It is a fascinating book for a new generation of sci-fi readers．
Marcus Yallow, 17, from San Francisco is much more comfortable in front of a computer than obeying the rules of society．Smart, fast and wise to the ways of the networked world, he has no trouble outwitting （骗过） his high school's monitoring system．This way he and his friends get to head off to play a popular online game in real life．
While they are playing, a bomb explodes on the Bay Bridge．Marcus stops a military vehicle to get help for his injured friend, but this simple act throws him into a Department of Homeland Security （DHS） secret prison．There he is treated as a possible terrorist．He is eventually let go after four days, but his injured friend disappears．
When he returns, Marcus discovers that there are many "security measures" in place and that now all citizens are treated like potential terrorists．While some consider this government action necessary for public safety, Marcus sees this as a complete destruction of the rights he is supposed to have as a citizen．
He knows that no one will believe his story, which leaves him with only one thing to do: to take down the DHS himself．He helps organize a large network called Xnet to spread the truth, anonymously （匿名地）．
The book presents a young man who is irresponsible, but learns about himself, and grows, in the course of the story．As part of this learning and growing he becomes aware of very serious issues about his society．
1.What kind of article does this passage belong to?
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A．A fascinating story |
B．A book review |
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C．A News report |
D．A TV programme |
2.The underlined word “destruction” in the passage means ．
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A．damage |
B．reward |
C．ruin |
D．protection |
3.Marcus Yallow was sent to prison because ．
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A．he killed his friend |
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B．he bombed a military vehicle |
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C．he did something that a possible terrorist could do |
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D．his injured friend disappeared |
4.From the second paragraph we can infer that ．
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A．Marcus Yallow is much more comfortable obeying the rules of society |
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B．Marcus Yallow is smart, fast and wise in real life |
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C．Marcus Yallow always plays online games in real life |
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D．Marcus Yallow is expert at the network world |
5.At the end of the book, Marcus Yallow ．
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A．is supposed to be more irresponsible |
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B．becomes aware of very serious issues about his society |
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C．presents a young man who is irresponsible |
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D．plays a popular online game in real life |
The Making of a Surgeon
How does a doctor recognize the point in time when he is finally a “surgeon”? As my year as chief resident （进修医生） drew to a close, I asked myself this question 36 more than one occasion．
The answer, I concluded, was 37 ．When you can say to yourself, “There is no surgical patient I cannot treat competently, treat just 38 or better than any other surgeon”-- then, and not until then, you are 39 a surgeon．I was 40 that point．
41 , for example, the emergency situations that we met almost every night．The first few months of the year I had 42 the ringing of the telephone．I knew it meant another critical decision to be 43 ．Often, after I had told Walt or Larry what to do in a particular 44 , I'd have trouble getting back to sleep．I'd 45 all the facts of the case and, often, wonder 46 I had made a poor decision．More than once at two or three in the 47 , after lying awake for an hour, I’d get out of 48 , dress and drive to the hospital to see the patient myself．It was the only 49 I could find the 50 of mind I needed to relax．
Now, in the last month of my residency, 51 was no longer a problem．Sometimes I still couldn’t be sure of my decision, but I had learned to 52 this as a constant problem for a surgeon．I knew that with my knowledge and experience, any decision I'd made was bound to be a 53 one．It was a nice feeling．
This all sounds conceited （自负的） and I guess it is -- 54 a surgeon needs conceit．He needs it to encourage him in trying moments when he's bothered by the 55 and uncertainties that are part of the practice of medicine．He has to feel that he's as good as and probably better than any other surgeon in the world．Call it conceit -- call it self-confidence; whatever it was, I had it．
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—I got upset yesterday just because you didn’t hand in your homework on time．
—Terribly sorry．Ten more minutes, I ______ it to you．
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A．would have taken |
B．would take |
C．had taken |
D．must have taken |
Lin Yi isn’t what it used to be．The last decade ______ great changes in the city images．
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A．witnessed |
B．was witnessed |
C．has witnessed |
D．had witnessed |
—Tom, you are caught late for the third time．
—Oh, __________．
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A．not at all |
B．just my luck |
C．never mind |
D．that’s all right |
