We live in a very competitive world. Everybody seems to be competing with someone at some level. Each week we spend hours playing or watching others compete in sporting activities all over the world. We cannot help being impressed by the level of excellence that these people achieve.
In sport and business, competition encourages excellence in performance. Where there is no competition, improvement in performance is less likely. Some level of competition is a have-to in all aspects of life.
The following story makes this point.
As two friends are hiking in the forest they come across a huge, ferocious and obviously hungry bear. Its next meal has just come into sight, and they are it! The first friend calculates that the bear will catch them in 27.3 seconds. At that point, she panics, realizing there is no escape. She faces her friend, with the fear of death in her eyes. To her amazement, she observes that her friend is not scared at all. On the contrary, her friend is quickly but calmly taking off her hiking boots and putting on running shoes. “What do you think you’re doing?” the first hiker says to her companion. “You’ll never be able to run faster than that bear”. “That’s true,” says the companion, “but all I have to do is escape, faster than you.”
We all compete when the motivation is strong enough. However, competition is not the real purpose of life. Fulfilling the measure of our creation can only be achieved individually.
Most of time, we are not in competition with any other person, so we do not have to compare ourselves with others. There is only one person that can fulfill our role and that is us. This means that others cannot beat us to the finish line because there is no race. This is not to say that others do not have a similar role to us, but it is never the same. This is important to understand if we are going to enjoy life. Every human being is unique and cannot be cloned. In this, I am not referring to the body, only to the spirit, soul, or the essence of a person.
1.The first four paragraphs tell us that competition .
A．is necessary though harmful B．only exists in sports and business
C．is a fight against oneself D．is unavoidable and beneficial
2.Why is the story of two friends told in the passage?
A．To advise friends to be loyal even in competition.
B．To expose the weak side of friendship when tested.
C．To support the author’s own argument on competition.
D．To persuade people to beat others, even friends.
3.From the last two paragraphs we learn that .
A．there is more to life than just competition
B．we don’t have to compete since we are all different
C．we have to beat others in order to survive
D．competition plays an important role in social development
4.As a whole the passage advises the readers to .
A．realize we are living in a world of competition
B．face competition in a balanced state of mind
C．have a strong sense of being a possible winner
D．value friendship however fierce competition may be
One of the speaking rules you need to know might sound strange to most ESL (English as a second language) students, but it is one of the most important rules. If you want to pass examinations, then study grammar. However, if you want to become fluent in English, then you should try to learn English without studying the grammar.
Studying grammar will only slow you down and confuse you. You will think about the rules when creating sentences instead of naturally saying a sentence like a native. Remember that only a small part of English speakers know more than 20% of all the grammar rules. Many ESL students know more grammar than native speakers. I can confidently say this with experience. I am a native English speaker, majored in English Literature, and have been teaching English for more than 10 years. However, many of my students know more details about English grammar than I do. When they sometimes ask me about grammar, I can easily look up the definition(定义) and apply it, but I can’t tell them the answer off the top of my head.
I often ask my native English friends some grammar questions, and only a few of them know the correct answer. However, they are fluent in English and can read, speak, listen, and communicate effectively.
Do you want to be able to recite the definition of a causative verb, or do you want to be able to speak English fluently?
1.According to the author, what opinion do most ESL students hold?
A．Grammar matters a lot only in speaking.
B．Grammar doesn’t matter much in speaking.
C．Grammar is very important in English learning.
D．Grammar is not important in English learning.
2.What is the author?
A．An ESL student. B．A teacher teaching English natives.
C．A native English student. D．A native English teacher.
3.The underlined part “off the top of my head” means .
A．on purpose B．without consideration
C．after thinking D．with difficulty
4.Which of the following titles best suits the text?
A．Fluency or Grammar? B．Grammar Counts!
C．Exams or No Exams? D．No More Grammar!
A small piece of fish each day may keep the heart doctor away. That’s the finding of a study of Dutchmen in which deaths from heart disease were more than 50 percent lower among those who consumed at least an ounce of salt water fish per day compared to those who never ate fish.
The Dutch research is one of three human studies that give strong scientific support to the long-held belief that eating fish can provide health benefits, particularly to the heart. Heart disease is the number-one killer in the United States, with more than 550,000 deaths occurring from heart attacks each year. But previous research has shown that the level of heart disease is lower in cultures that consume more fish than Americans do. There are fewer heart disease deaths, for example, among the Eskimos of Greenland, who consume about 14 ounces of fish a day, and among the Japanese, whose daily fish consumption average more than 3 ounces.
For 20 years, the Dutch study followed 852 middle-aged men, 20 percent of whom ate no fish. At the start of the study, average fish consumption was about two-thirds of an ounce each day, with more men eating lean fish than fatty fish.
During the next two decades, 78 of the men died from heart disease. The fewest deaths were among the group who regularly ate fish, even at levels far lower than those of the Japanese or Eskimos. This relationship was true regardless of other factors such as age, high blood pressure, or blood cholesterol levels.
1.The passage is mainly about ________.
A．the high incidence of heart disease in some countries
B．the changes in people’s diet
C．the daily fish consumption of people in different culture
D．the effect of fish eating on people’s health
2.We can infer from the passage that there are fewer heart disease deaths ________.
A．in the countries of the yellow-skin race
B．in the countries with high consumption of fish
C．in the countries with good production of fish
D．in highly-developed countries
3.The underlined part “This relationship” may refer to the connection between ________ and the level of heart disease.
A．regular fish-eating B．the kind of fish eaten
C．the amount of fish eaten D．people of different areas
4.In which section of a newspaper can we read this passage?
A．Ads. B．Movies. C．Health and Diet. D．Briefs.
As we get older, most of us worry about grey hair, wrinkles and maintaining a youthful body. But people often don’t realize the voice needs looking after. Here, Mr. Rubin, a voice expert, reveals how to keep your voice youthful.
Drink more fluid and avoid spicy food
You need water for the vocal cords(声带) to vibrate(振动) well. The body must be kept hydrated enough to make the vocal cords operate well. Drinking 1.5 liters of water a day at intervals of 15 minutes is very important. Mr. Rubin advises avoiding foods with an annoying effect on the stomach, such as onions, chili, fizzy drinks and chocolate.
Rest the throat and talk regularly
The vocal cords can be scared if you use your voice during a bad cough. If you have a case of laryngitis(喉炎) with a cold, you should rest your voice for a day or two, and seek medical advice.
Simply staying sociable and using your voice is very important. “As older people get less mobile, they can become socially isolated and speak less.” says Mr. Rubin. “The elderly need to communicate with people more. By using the vocal cords, they enable the ageing process to slow down. ”
Improve your posture
Good posture is essential to keeping the voice young, so we’d better stand properly. Exercise helps you take deeper breaths as it means there is better airflow through the voice box, producing a stronger tone.
Sing in the shower
This is one of the best ways to preserve your voice, as it keeps the larynx muscles strong while the steam lubricates(使润滑) the voice box. “Singing is gymnastics for the voice,” says Mr. Rubin. Joining a choir is one of the best ways to preserve a youthful tone.
1.Mr. Rubin gives us advice on ________.
A．ways to keep us from aging
B．ways to talk with other people
C．ways to keep our voice youthful
D．prevention of diseases caused by talking too much
2.Which of the following statements is TRUE in the opinion of Mr. Rubin?
A．We should stand properly to keep our voice youthful.
B．Professional singers’ voices tend to age quickly.
C．The steam can do great harm to the voice.
D．Taking more onions can keep us healthy.
3.To protect the voice, the old people should .
A．get less mobile B．communicate with others more
C．avoid using the voice D．lie in bed more
4.What can we learn from the text?
A．Most people have realized the importance of protecting voice.
B．It’s hard to keep the vocal cords strong through exercise.
C．Singing in the shower is among the best ways to keep our voice youthful.
D．Shouting now and then benefits our vocal cords.
I love it at night. It’s peaceful. And when it cools down I sometimes do some ironing. I don’t really care for it. I work full-time and am too busy for most housework. I remember the old woman who taught me to iron(熨烫). I was about 15 and somehow got a live-in job taking care of a woman who had been an able-bodied, healthy woman until the accident that caused her to be paralyzed.
The woman had an electric wheelchair. She could move her head and arms but not her hands or fingers. She had this clamp（夹子）attached to her arm and I’d have to open it and put a cup or a pencil in it and then she could move it. She would tell me how to do things. She would instruct me in great detail on the correct way to do things. Her home was perfect and beautiful. She would follow me around in her electric wheelchair to make sure I did everything exactly right. I’m sure she had been a perfect homemaker. She would have me fold everything, including socks and pillow cases. I would complain silently and wish terrible things on her. She taught me the right way to make the bed and tuck the corners. I know sometimes she’d get frustrated and impatient with me. I knew she wanted to grab it and do it herself. But she never yelled or scolded. Only she insisted I do it right. I didn’t like it much, but I did it.
Today I can iron pretty well. I know where to start on a shirt, the right way to do the collar and sleeves. Now that I think about it, I don’t think she is an old lady. I think she might have been about my age now. Anyway, when I iron, I think of her and silently thank her for all the things I learned.
1.From the passage we can infer that the writer of the passage now is ________.
A．a housewife B．a full-time worker
C．a clothes maker D．a college student
2.The writer used to take care of the lady because ______.
A．she wanted to earn some money while sleeping and eating there
B．she wanted to learn how to do housework
C．she was a relative of the disabled woman
D．she had to do something in return to the lady for her kindness
3.When the lady taught the writer how to do housework, the little girl was ______.
A．careful to learn B．eager to learn
C．forced to learn D．unwilling to learn
4.What’s the writer’s attitude towards the lady now?
A．Sympathetic. B．Fearful. C．Thankful. D．Hateful.
In this modern world, we rush around all day. There is no 48 for stillness.
And when we are 49 to be still because we’re in line for something, or waiting at a doctor’s appointment, or on a bus or train, we often find something to do. Being still isn’t something we’re 50 .
This comes at a 51 : we lose that time for 52 , for observing and listening. We lose peace. And 53 yet: sometimes too much action is worse than no action at all. You can run around , but get nothing done.
Take a moment to think about how you spend your days. Are you always 54 through your schedule? Is this how you want to spend your life? If not, take a moment to be 55 . Don’t think about what you have to do, or what you’ve done already. Just be in the moment.
1. A．place B．chance C．freedom D．time
2. A．forced B．ordered C．invited D．told
3. A．familiar with B．curious about C．used to D．interested in
4. A．cost B．risk C．moment D．danger
5. A．play B．food C．sleep D．consideration
6. A．further B．worse C．farther D．deeper
7. A．walking B．rushing C．stepping D．going
8. A．silent B．patient C．still D．quiet
