When Steve Maxwell graduated from college, he had an engineering degree and a high tech job — but he couldn’t balance his checkbook. “I took one finance class in college but dropped it to go on a ski trip,” says the 45-year-old father of three, who lives in Windsor, Colorado. “I actually had to go to my bank and ask them to teach me how to read my statement.”
One of the biggest obstacles to making money is not understanding it: Thousands of us avoid investing because we just don’t get it. But to make money, you must be financially literate. “It bothered me that I didn’t understand this stuff,” says Steve, “so I read books and magazines about money management and investing, and I asked every financial whiz (能手) I knew to explain things to me.”
He and his wife started applying the lessons: They made a point to live below their means. They never bought on impulse, always negotiated better deals (on their cars，cable bills, furniture) and stayed in their home long after they went for an expensive vacation. They also put 20 percent of their annual salary into investments.
Within ten years, they were millionaires, and people were coming to Steve for advice. “Someone would say, ‘I need to refinance my house — what should I do? ‘A lot of times, I wouldn’t know the answer, but I’d go to find it and learn something in the process,” he says.
In 2003, Steve quit his job to become part owner of a company that holds personal finance seminars for employees of corporations like Wal Mart. He also started going to real estate investment seminars, and it’s paid off: He now owns $ 30 million worth of investment properties, including apartment complexes, a shopping mall and a quarry.
“I was an engineer who never thought this life was possible, but all it truly takes is a little self education,” says Steve. “You can do anything once you understand the basics.”
1.The underlined part “live below their means” (in Paragraph 3) probably means “______”.
A．take effective measures B．live a miserable life
C．spend more money than they had D．spend less money than they had
2.Since Steve Maxwell became a millionaire, he ______.
A．has been unwilling to help others
B．hasn’t stopped learning from practice
C．has been willing to follow others’ advice
D．has stopped to invest in houses
3.What would be the best title for the passage?
A．A self made engineer
B．How to balance your checkbook
C．Don’t avoid investing
D．Educate yourself to become a millionaire
4.It can be inferred from the passage that ______.
A．self education is very important to one’s life
B．everyone should learn how to invest in their life
C．Steve Maxwell was quite interested in finance classes in college
D．Steve became rich because he saved every penny he had earned
Save the Children is the world’s leading independent organization for children that works to inspire breakthroughs in the way the world treats children to achieve immediate and lasting change in their lives. Our founder Eglantyne Jebb drafted the “Declaration of the Rights of the Child” in 1922 which was adopted by the League of Nations in 1924.
Save the Children works to bring about a world in which every child attains the right to survival, protection, development and participation.
Our Approach:
Save the Children actively works with the communities, the State governments and the national government to bring lasting changes for children by:
Providing them with immunisation (免疫) and nutrition.
Ensuring that they have a chance to join formal school.
Exposing and preventing exploitative child labour practices and running prevention programs.
During emergencies, we provide emergency supplies as well to ensure that children are protected in safe places as well to continue schooling.
We cannot do this without your support. Please contribute by choosing an amount below.
Rs. 20,000 can provide Child Friendly Space for 50 children ensuring that they receive Psycho-Social and Educational support.
Rs. 10,000 can provide hygiene kits and house-hold cooking utensils (厨房用具) for 4 families affected by emergencies.
Rs. 5,000 can provide education kits and uniforms for 5 under-privileged (贫困的) children who have lost belongings in an emergency.
Rs. 2,500 can provide a hygiene kits and house-hold cooking utensils for a family during an emergency.
You will receive your Tax Exemption Certificate (免税证明) within 12 days of making a donation.
1.What is the main purpose of writing the passage?
A．To introduce the organization to readers.
B．To raise awareness of children’s living conditions.
C．To draw public attention to educating children.
D．To persuade more people to donate to the organization.
2.Save the Children is an organization ______.
A．founded in 1922 by Eglantyne Jebb
B．joining the League of Nations in 1924
C．only cooperating with the local government
D．concerning children’s physical and mental health
3.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A．Save the Children will provide cooking utensils for 4 families with a 2500 RS donation.
B．Providing help during emergencies is a most important part of the work of Save the Children.
C．Save the Children will reply to donors within 12 days of making their donation.
D．Child Friendly Space is a formal school for children to receive social and psychological education.
Researchers have found more evidence that suggests a relationship between races and rates of lung cancer among smokers. A new study shows that black people and Native Hawaiians are more likely to develop lung cancer from smoking. It compared their risk to whites, Japanese-Americans and Latinos.
Researchers at the University of Southern California and the University of Hawaii did the new study. The New England Journal of Medicine published the findings. The eight-year research studied more than 180,000 people. They included present and former smokers and people who never smoked. Almost 2,000 people in the study developed lung cancer.
Researchers say genetics might help explain the racial and ethnic differences. There could be differences in how people's bodies react to smoke. But environmental influences, including the way people smoke, could also make a difference.
African-Americans and Latinos in the study are reported smoking the fewest cigarettes per day. Whites are the heaviest smokers. But the scientists point out that blacks have been reported to breathe cigarette smoke more deeply than white smokers. This could fill their lungs with more of the chemicals in tobacco that cause cancer.
Scientists know that some diseases effect different groups differently. And some drug companies have begun to develop racially targeted medicines. Last June, the United States Food and Drug Administration approved a drug designed to treat heart failure in black patients. The name is BiDil. The agency called it "a step toward the promise of personalized medicine."
1.Which of the following orders is from higher to lower risk of having lung cancer?
A．Whites—Native Hawaiians
B．Africans—Americans—Latinos
C．Asians—Native Hawaiians
D．Africans—Americans—Native Hawaiians
2.Researchers agree that it is _____ that may probably determine black people’s risk of lung cancer.
A．the larger amount of smoking than white people
B．the living style or habit of the blacks
C．the depth of cigarette smoke into their lungs
D．the physical strength to react to cigarette smoke
3.People in the new study are made up of _____.
A．heavy smokers in America B．the black and white people
C．the Asians and Hawaiians D．smokers and non-smokers
4.The production of BiDil referred to in the last paragraph is to _____.
A．explain different races react to some diseases differently
B．tell the readers that racial differences exist in smokers
C．show a big step people have taken in the medicine area
D．support the idea that it is easy for blacks to have cancers
Community theatre is a theatre that is run by a local district with the efforts of volunteers. They offer many different kinds of productions, such as musical theatre, dance theatre and children’s theatre. Usually, performers are amateurs who receive no pay, but at other times professionals get involved, and they are paid. Community theatres of today are a little different from the old “little theatres”, as most simply run by colleges and their theatre Community theatres are a great way to get involved with local actors. Now, most theatres that put on shows that will entertain or benefit the community.
In the 1880s, “little theatre’’ was started in Europe so that poor people could see theatrical productions without having to travel far or pay a lot. In 1910, this idea traveled to the United States. In the early years, community theatres were even funded by the government, but when shows became too political, government funding was stopped.
Community theatres of today are a little different from the old “little theatres”, as mist simply want to infuse(注入)little culture into the lives of the local citizens. In many cases, these theatres are run by colleges and their theatre departments. These productions are often free of charge, or charge very little money to pay for costumes and other incidental expenses. Many also encourage the participation of children and other young people to let them develop theatrical skills, as well as to keep them busy so that they do not do choose to get into trouble. Additionally, for those who desire strongly to become professional actors and to one day get a chance to act in a national theatre production, it is an exciting place to learn and develop theatrical skills.
1.Why was “little theatre” started in Europe?
A．To put on shows for children.
B．To collect money for poor people.
C．To entertain poor people.
D．To get people interested in theatrical productions.
2.From the passage we know that community theatres can _____.
A．help young people ,make more money
B．prevent young people getting into trouble
C．help young people enter the colleges
D．encourage young people to become more responsible
3.Which of the following is TRUE about community theatre?
A．It is usually funded by the government.
B．It is intended to train professional actors.
C．It benefits the community in many ways.
D．It is quite different from the old “little theatres”.
4.We can infer from the last paragraph that _____.
A．some professional actors may come from the community theatres
B．community theatres only charge for incidental expenses
C．community theatres have lost their attraction today
D．people can live by acting in the community theatres
Last year, I lost my best friend in high school. It seemed that everyone else’s life could just continue on in its 36 way, but mine couldn't. I wasn't sure how I was going to be able to face 37 and their gossip at school. I was forced to 38 my routine on Monday morning as usual. In the evening I returned home from school 39 completely defeated. All I wanted to do was 40 into bed and wallow(沉迷于)in my own self-pity. I pulled back the covers on my bed and 41 a pile of cards left by my dad. Each card included a(n) 42 that it was to be opened on a 43 night that week.
I made it through that week 44 my father. Each card 45 to say just what I needed to hear. Tuesday’s card said, “The past is painful to think about and the 46 is impossible to imagine. Don't try. Just take it one minute at a time.” On Wednesday my mood 47 when I read, “What you are feeling now is 48 and normal. It still feels very bad, but it is part of the healing 49 .” Friday’s card contained a poem he wrote. The last lines made me smile through my tears. “Whatever special 50 you face along life’s way, may you 51 that you will find the best in every day.” I was instructed to open the last card 52 the party I went to on Saturday night. In it he wisely reminded me to 53 . “The world isn't so bad after a good laugh. The more you laugh, the more you heal.” Each card was signed, “Love, Dad.”
My world once collapsed (fell down) but I 54 the difficult breakup eventually. It owed to my dad, who made his 55 known when he couldn't be present.
1. A．pleasant B．strange C．funny D．normal
2. A．everyone B．anyone C．someone D．nobody
3. A．work out B．meet with C．deal with D．come across
4. A．making B．feeling C．regarding D．considering
5. A．crawl B．push C．jump D．draw
6. A．invented B．discovered C．created D．wrote
7. A．instruction B．explanation C．presentation D．information
8. A．regular B．flexible C．particular D．legal
9. A．in favor of B．regardless of C．in search of D．because of
10. A．seemed B．happened C．occurred D．intended
11. A．life B．future C．dream D．result
12. A．fell B．passed C．flied D．lifted
13. A．false B．honest C．natural D．innocent
14. A．content B．process C．cure D．progress
15. A．destruction B．competition C．challenges D．destination
16. A．trust B．guess C．predict D．succeed
17. A．before B．since C．after D．till
18. A．cry B．scream C．sing D．laugh
19. A．got through B．looked through C．broke through D．put through
20. A．schedule B．concept C．soul D．confidence
After she won the dance competition, she found herself _____ of a celebrity in her community.
A．nothing B．everything C．something D．anything
