"Hey, don't read in the hallway. Your eyesight will be damaged." You must have heard such warnings many times. Don’t read in dim (暗的)light! This is one of the “pearls of wisdom” that are supposed to help us live a healthy life. Such common beliefs, however, lack scientific basis, according to a paper published recently in the British Medical Journal.
Do you believe in the following everyday wisdom?
Reading in dim light ruins your eyesight.
In dim light, you might blink (眨眼) more, feel discomfort from drying and have trouble focusing. But the majority of eye experts believe it is unlikely to do any permanent damage.
We must drink at least eight glasses of water a day
In 1945, the Nutrition Council in US suggested that people need to consume 2.5 litres of water a day. But the water contained in food, particularly fruit and vegetables, as well as in milk, juice and soft drinks, also counts towards the total.
We only use 10 percent of our brains.
This myth arose as early as 1907. People have long argued about our power of self-improvement and our brains’ potential abilities. But detailed imaging shows that no area of the brain is silent or inactive.
Shaving your legs causes hair to grow black faster and thicker.
This theory is also illusion. Shaving has no effect on the thickness or rate of hair growth,
studies say. Just over time, the edge of hair gets worn away and thus the edge of long hair becomes finer (更细). So hair that is newly grown gives the impression of darkness.
1.What does the paper say about some common beliefs?
A．They are pearls of wisdom B．They help us live in healthy ways
C．They are well-known theories. D．They do not have scientific basis.
2.Which of the following is true according to the passage ?
A．Reading in dim light does harm to one’s eyes.
B．People need a total of 2.5 litres of water a day
C．People use 90 percent of their brains.
D．Shaving your legs will give you thicker hair.
3.This passage is most likely to be found in __________ ?
A．a newspaper B．a science fiction
C．a biology textbook D．a medical book
We can make mistakes at any age. Some mistakes we make are about money. But most mistakes are about people. "Did Jerry really care when I broke up with Helen?" "When I got that great job, did Jim really feel good about it as a friend? Or did he envy my luck?" "And why didn’t Paul pick up that he was friendly just because I had a car?" When we look back, doubts like these can make us feel bad. But when we look back, it’s too late.
Why do we go wrong about our friends – or our enemies? Sometimes what people say hides their real meaning. And if we don’t really listen we miss the feelings behind the words. Suppose someone tells you，"You’re a lucky dog." that’s being friendly. But "lucky dog"? There’s a bit of envy in those words. Maybe he doesn’t see it himself. But bringing in the "dog" bit puts you down a little. What he may be saying is that he doesn’t think you deserve your luck.
"Just think of all the things you have to be thankful for" is another noise that says one thing and means another. It could mean that the speaker is trying to get you to see your problem as part of your life as a whole. But is he? Wrapped up in this phrase is the thought that your problem isn’t important. It’s telling you to think of all the starving people in the world when you haven’t got a date for Saturday night.
How can you tell the real meaning behind someone’s words? One way is to take a good look at the person while talking. Do his words fit the way he looks? Does what he says agree with the tone of voice? His posture? The look in his eyes? Stop and think. The minute you spend thinking about the real meaning of what people say to you may save another mistake.
1.In the first paragraph, the writer recalls some things that happened between some friends and they __________.
A．think it was a mistake to have broken up with their girl friends
B．feel happy, thinking of how nice their friends were to them in the past
C．feel very sorry that their friends didn't help them and let them down
D．feel they may not have "read" their friends' true feelings correctly
2.In this passage, the writer tries to tell us how to __________.
A．avoid mistakes about money and our friends
B．avoid mistakes in understanding what people really want to tell us
C．"size up" people in a more scientific and meaningful way
D．keep people friendly without trusting them any more
3.While we are listening to a person, the important thing for us is __________.
A．to check his words against his manner, tone of voice and posture
B．to notice his tone of voice, his posture, and the look in his eyes
C．to listen to how he pronounces his words in front of you
D．not to believe what he says in any situation or any time
4.According to this passage, the underlined phrase "puts you down" can be replaced by another phrase "__________".
A．reduces you to silence B．presses you down
C．makes you humble D．makes you sad
Siberia is a huge territory in Russia. It is more than half of Russia and is 4,000 miles wide. Most of this area is a forest with animals and birds. In autumn, the forests in Siberia are full of mushrooms and berries(浆果). Many people like picking mushrooms, but that is not as simple as you might think. Old people who live in the villages know places where you can pick lots of mushrooms. Some mushrooms grow in colonies. If you find one, you only need to look around because nearby you'll find more of them.
However, when picking mushrooms, it is important not to choose the wrong kind. You have to be careful because some mushrooms are poisonous even though they look good. The smell can help you choose them, because good mushrooms smell very good.
Siberian people are very friendly and hospitable. If someone invites you home for dinner, you'll soon be full. You should try everything the host is having.
The climate there depends on the territory. Some places have very comfortable climates with hot summers and cold winters. In my opinion, the best season is spring, when nature wakes up after a long winter. It is the time for blossoms and love. Birds come back from other warm countries. Trees become dressed in green. The sun becomes warm and the days are longer. The mood is wonderful and people smile a lot. It is an amazing time.
In winter, you have opportunity for sports. The most popular sport in winter in Russia is cross-country skiing. During weekends, many people go into the country and ski. Noses freeze and cheeks hurt, but people continue to enjoy these times.
1.What is the best title for the passage?
A．Siberia, an interesting and beautiful place.
B．The climate in Siberia.
C．The four seasons in Siberia.
D．Collecting mushrooms in Siberia.
2.Which of the following can help to choose the right mushrooms for dinner?
A．The places. B．The colonies. C．The smell. D．The outlook.
3.Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of Siberia in spring?
A．The night is longer. B．Tress turn green.
C．It is warmer. D．There are many birds.
4.What can we conclude about the climate in Siberia?
A．It's cold all the year round.
B．It's hot in summer.
C．The climate is very comfortable.
D．It depends on where your are in Siberia.
About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas（胰腺). I didn’t even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that was incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which was doctor’s code for preparing to die. It meant to try to tell your kids everything you thought you’d have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It meant to make sure everything was buttoned up so that it would be as easy as possible for your family. It meant to say your goodbyes.
I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy(活组织检查). I was calm, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I’m fine now.
This is the closest I’ve been to facing death. No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don’t want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life’s change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.
Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by the principle — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.
1.The author's main purpose in writing the passage is to let the readers __________.
A．be brave when facing a cancer
B．treasure their lifetime to fulfill their own business
C．know a sorrowful experience of his won
D．know how he treasured his family.
2.Why can the author's illness be cured so soon?
A．He prepared everything in order. B．He had a biopsy.
C．His pancreatic cancer can be curable with surgery. D．His wife helped him.
3.The impression the author gave readers is that __________.
A．he was so optimistic that the incurable illness wouldn't bring him down.
B．he could leave death alone and had enough courage to become what he wanted to.
C．he was so determined that he wasn't scared at death.
D．he was such a responsible man that he prepared well before he died.
4.What does the underlined word "they" in the last paragraph refer to?
A．Gods. B．The doctors
C．Heart and intuition D．Other persons
Sarah came running in. She shouted happily, "Look what I ____36_____." She put a snake skin on the newspaper I was reading and it came so suddenly that it caused me to ____37_____. "Mom, look! Isn't it ____38_____?" said my seven-year-old daughter. I ____39_____ the snake skin and thought that it really wasn't pretty. Everything children see ____40_____is full of beauty in their eyes; they see only ____41_____ and excellence in the world until educated.
"____42_____ did the snake do this?" Sarah asked. I tried to seize the ____43_____ to teach my children that there was almost always something beyond the obvious. I wanted to tell them that there was something else going on ____44_____ what they saw in front of them. "Snakes shed (蜕) their skin because they need to renew themselves," I ____45_____.
"Why do they have to renew themselves?" Sarah asked.
My son Robert laughed and said, "Because they don't ____46_____ what they are and they want to be someone else." I politely ignored him and said that by shedding skins, we could ____47_____ the hidden reality.
"We often need to shed our skin, those coatings that we ____48_____ ourselves with," I said to my children, who listened very ____49_____, with their eyes wide open. "This snake ____50_____ needs this skin. It is probably too hard for him, or he probably doesn't think he looks as ____51_____in it as he once did. It's like buying a new ____52_____."
I'm sure this explanation will not ____53_____ the naturalists. But Sarah was getting to understand that renewal is part of ____54_____. She should learn from it what we need to keep and what we need to ____55_____.
1. A．made B．seized C．caught D．found
2. A．think B．jump C．run D．struggle
3. A．interesting B．smooth C．beautiful D．colorful
4. A．stared at B．took off C．referred to D．brought back
5. A．by accident B．over and over again
C．in the future D．for the first time
6. A．honesty B．difference C．value D．fear
7. A．Where B．Why C．How D．When
8. A．information B．possibility C．opportunity D．question
9. A．besides B．for C．without D．around
10. A．talked B．explained C．whispered D．shouted
11. A．keep B．want C．need D．like
12. A．see B．guess C．ignore D．remember
13. A．keep B．store C．cover D．improve
14. A．properly B．attentively C．sadly D．angrily
15. A．once more B．at times C．right now D．no longer
16. A．nice B．healthy C．strong D．big
17. A．hat B．watch C．suit D．home
18. A．move B．satisfy C．correct D．defeat
19. A．experience B．achievement C．progress D．competition
20. A．throw out B．hope for C．find out D．throw away
---__________?
--- Yeah, it seemed a little confusing to me at first, but now I get it.
A．Can you give me a moment B．See what I mean
C．Are you stuck D．Can you go on
