“To be or not to be.” Outside the Bible, these six words are the most famous in all the literature of the world. They were spoken by Hamlet when he was thinking aloud, and they are the most famous words in Shakespeare because Hamlet was speaking not only for himself but also for every thinking man and woman. To be or not to be, to live or not to live, to live richly and abundantly, or to live dully and meanly. A philosopher once wanted to know whether he was alive or not, which is a good question for everyone to put to himself occasionally. He answered it by saying: “I think, therefore I am.”
But the best definition of existence I ever saw was one written by another philosopher who said: “To be is to be in relations.” If this is true, then the more relations a living thing has, the more it is alive. To live abundantly means simply to increase the range and intensity(强烈) of our relations. Unfortunately we are so constituted that we get to love our routine. But other than our regular occupation, how much are we alive? If you are interested only in your regular occupation, you are alive only to that extent. So far as other things are concerned --- poetry and prose(散文), music, pictures, sports, unselfish friendships, politics, international affairs ---you are dead.
On the contrary, it is true that every time you acquire a new interest --- even more, a new accomplishment(成就) --- you increase your power of life. No one who is deeply interested in different kinds of subjects can remain unhappy. The real pessimist is the person who has lost interest.
Bacon said that a man dies as often as he loses a friend. But we gain new life by contacts with new friends, and new ideas and thoughts, too. Where your thoughts are, there will be your life too. If your thoughts are limited only to your business, only to your physical welfare, only to your narrow circle of the town in which you live, then you live a narrow restricted(有限的, 受约束的) life. But if you are interested in what is going on in China, then you are living in China. If you’re interested in the characters of a good novel, then you are living with those highly interesting people. If you listen intently to fine music, you are away from your immediate surroundings and living in a world of passion and imagination.
To be or not to be --- to live intensely and richly, or merely to exist, which depends on ourselves. Let us widen and intensify our relations. While we live, let us live!
1.What does the author mainly want to do by this passage?
A．Argue against an idea.
B．Explain some famous sayings.
C．Introduce some famous sayings.
D．Put forward an idea.
2.What does the underlined word most probably mean?
A．Somebody who always lives in a world of passion and imagination.
B．Somebody who is always interested in making new friends.
C．Somebody who always expects the worst to happen.
D．Somebody who likes to live a rich and abundant life.
3.Which of the following behavior is probably NOT encouraged by the author?
A．Thinking more than your own business.
B．Caring only about your physical welfare.
C．Reading good novels.
D．Listening to fine music.
4.What is the main idea of the passage?
A．To be is to be in relations.
B．I think, therefore I am.
C．To be or not to be, that is a question.
D．A man dies as often as he loses a friend.
As they migrate, butterflies and moths choose the winds they want to fly with, and they change their body positions if they start floating in the wrong direction. This new finding suggests that insects may use some of the same methods that birds use for traveling long distances. Scientists have long thought that insects were simply at the mercy of the wind.
Fascinating as their skills of flight are, migrating behavior has been difficult to study in insects because many long distant trips happen thousands of feet above ground. Only recently have scientists developed technologies that can detect such little creatures at such great heights.
To their surprise, though, the insects weren't passive travelers on the winds. In autumn, for example, most light winds blew from the east, but the insects somehow sought out ones that carried them south and they positioned themselves to navigate directly to their wintering homes.
Even in the spring, when most winds flowed northward, the insects didn't always go with the flow. If breezes weren't blowing in the exact direction they wanted to go, the insects changed their body positions to compensate(补偿, 弥补). Many migrating birds do the same thing.
The study also found that butterflies and moths actively flew within the air streams that pushed them along. By adding flight speeds to wind speeds, the scientists calculated that butterflies and moths can travel as fast as 100 kilometers an hour. The findings may have real-world applications. With climate warming, migrating insects are growing in number. Knowing how and when these pests move could help farmers decide when to spray their crops.
1.What's the main idea of the text?
A．Insects migrate with the seasons.
B．The wind helps insects greatly in migrating.
C．Windsurfing insects have real direction.
D．Scientists have trouble in observing insects.
2.Scientists originally thought that _____.
A．insects always waited for their favorable winds
B．insects chose the winds they wanted to ride
C．insects were just blown about by the wind
D．insects positioned themselves in the winds
3.It is not easy to study the migrating behavior of the insects because ______.
A．the little creatures can fly very fast
B．their flight is long and high above ground
C．the wind's direction is hard to forecast
D．they have no regular migrating courses
4.According to the passage, the findings can ____
A．increase insects in number
B．instruct farmers when to spray their crops
C．prevent climate warming
D．help protect insects
What’s on Stage
An acrobatic（杂技） show: To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the China Acrobatic Troupe（剧团） will present “The Soul of China”, where the seemingly impossible is made real. Chills（寒意） will run down your spine（脊柱） as you watch breathlessly as performers take their art and their bodies to the edge.
Time: 7:30 p.m. , September 13~19
Place: Capital Theatre, 22 Wangfujing Dajie, Dongcheng District
Exhibitions
Joint Show: A group ink paiting exhibition is running at the Huangshicheng Art Gallery in Beijing. About 50 works by 25 young artists including Ge Yun and Yu Yang are on display.
Time: 9:00a.m. ~5:00 p.m. until September 10
Place: Huangshicheng Art Gallery, 136 Nanchizi Dajie, Dongcheng District
Oil paintings: The Wangfu Art Gallery will host a joint show of oil painting by 10 young and middle-aged artists. On display are more than 30 of their latest works, which capture（充分体现） the wonderful variety of life in unique styles.
Time: 9:00 a.m. ~4:00 p.m. until September 15
Place: 136 Nanchizi Street, Dongcheng District
Literature museum: The National Museum of Modern Chinese Literature offers an indepth study of the evolution of Chinese contemporary literature from 1919 to 1949.
Time: 9:00 a.m. ~4:00 p.m. , daily
Place: 45 Anyuan Donglu, Chaoyang District (Shaoyaoju area）
Concerts
Beijing rocks: “The Fashion Night of Chinese Rock” is set to bring back fans out by the thousands next month. Nine Chinese rock bands will perform at the concert, including older generation bands, middle generation and some recent arrivals. The audience will be given a chance to decide what songs they want to hear, which is sure to bring a storm.
Time: September 16
Place: The Olympic Center
Belgium Orchestra: La Petite Bande, the Baroque Orchestra of Belgium, will perform in Beijing at the Grand Theatre of the Cultural Palace of Nationalities as part of activities across the world in memory of the 250th anniversary of Bach’s death.
Time: 7:30 p.m. , September 11~14
Place: Grand Theatre of the Cultural Palace of Nationalities
1.The main purpose of the passage is to ______.
A．prove there’re more cultural activities in September
B．compare several interesting activities
C．ask use to decide which activity is the best
D．attract the audience to attend different activities
2.Which of the following is NOT on stage in the same district?
A．Oil paintings B．An acrobatic show C．Literature museum D．Joint Show
3.If it is September 15th today, how many activities can you choose to attend?
A．3. B．4. C．5. D．6.
4.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A．When you are watching the acrobatic show, you’ll certainly feel cold.
B．The audience cannot select any music in Beijing rocks concert.
C．If you are interested in foreign literature, you can go to the Literature museum.
D．We can enjoy a lot of cultural activities in Beijing in September.
The Swedish Academy in Stockholm on Thursday named Mo Yan winner of the Twenty-Twelve Nobel Prize in Literature.
The academy praised the Chinese writer for what it called his “hallucinatoty realism (魔幻现实主义)”. It noted his ability to combine folk stories, history and modern events in his works.
An academy official said Mister Mo was “overjoyed and sacred” when he learnt he had won the award. He will receive his Nobel diploma, a medal and more than one million dollars at the ceremony in Stockholm in December.
Mo Yan is a leading author of modern Chinese novels. He often writes from memories of his youth. He also sets many of his stories in the area where he was born—Shandong Province in northeastern China.
Mister Mo’s 1987 book Red Sorghum is an example. It is about the extreme violence in rural eastern China during the Communist Revolution in the 1920’s and 1930’s. The story describes the criminal culture of the time, Japan’s occupation and the terrible conditions faced by farm workers. Red Sorghum was later made into a movie.
Mo Yan’s other major works include Big Breasts and Wide Hips, Republic of Wine and Life and Death Are Wearing Me Out.
The Royal Swedish Academy compared him to two 20th century writers: American William Faulkner and Colombia Gabriel Marquez.
Mo Yan’s real name is Guan Moye. Mo Yan means “Don’t speak.” The writer said he chose the name to remember to stop his tongue from getting him in trouble.
China is celebrating the victory of his native son. Minutes after the award was announced, millions of Chinese expressed pleasure and pride for Mo Yan on social media websites.
1.How many books of Mo Yan are mentioned in this passage?
A．Three. B．Four. C．Five. D．Six.
2.It can be inferred from the passage that _____.
A．many people in China showed their respect for Mo Yan by letters.
B．Mo Yan is just a pen name.
C．he was very glad to win the Nobel Prize.
D．Red Sorghum was once made into a film.
3.Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?
A．Mo Yan, the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature.
B．The origin of Mo Yan’s work.
C．The true meaning of Mo Yan.
D．Bookstore created by Mo Yan.
Jerry stood up and looked at the crowd of people making their way through the station. He looked for the girl whose heart he knew, but whose face he 36 , the girl with the 37 . The story had begun twelve months before in a 38 . Taking a book off the shelf he found himself 39 by the notes penciled in the margin. The soft handwriting 40 a thoughtful soul and an insightful mind. In the front of the book, he discovered the 41 owner’s name, Rosanna.
During the next year the two grew to know each other through the 42 . Each letter was a seed falling on a fertile heart. The day finally came for their first 43 - 7:00 PM at the station.
A beautiful young woman was coming toward me, her 44 tall and slim. I started to walk toward her with delight, entirely forgetting to 45 that she was not wearing a rose. I 46 made one step closer to her, and then I saw Rosanna, a short and fat woman well past 40, was standing almost directly 47 the girl. The girl in the green suit was walking quickly away.
I felt 48 I was split in two, and there she stood. My fingers gripped the worn leather copy of the 49 that was to identify me to her. I knew this would not be 50 , something perhaps even better than love. I felt choked by the bitterness of my 51 . “I’m Jerry, and you must be Rosanna. I am so glad you could meet me; may I take you to 52 ?”
The woman’s face broadened into a big smile. “I don't know what this is about, son,” she answered,” but the young lady in the green suit who just 53 begged me to wear this rose on my coat. And she said 54 you were to ask me out to dinner, I should go and tell you that she is waiting for you in the big 55 across the street. She said it was some kind of test!”
1. A．hadn’t B．wouldn’t C．couldn’t D．didn't
2. A．rose B．flower C．book D．notes
3. A．restaurant B．meeting room C．library D．station
4. A．absorbed B．surrounded C．interested D．burdened
5. A．reacted B．reflected C．responded D．repeated
6. A．previous B．nice C．thoughtful D．beautiful
7. A．phone B．telegram C．book D．e-mail
8. A．dining B．meeting C．walking D．talking
9. A．legs B．face C．figure D．hair
10. A．observe B．conclude C．notice D．say
11. A．carefully B．eagerly C．luckily D．easily
12. A．behind B．past C．over D．before
13. A．as long as B．even though C．no matter how D．as though
14. A．newspaper B．book C．magazine D．note
15. A．a meeting B．happiness C．love D．a dinner
16. A．relief B．sorrow C．disappointment D．unwillingness
17. A．a walk B．your home C．a party D．dinner
18. A．went by B．called me C．came here D．dropped in
19. A．when B．supposing C．unless D．since
20. A．market B．restaurant C．building D．library
--I hear Iron Man III is on recently. Let’s set off for the cinema to appreciate it now.
---________ It’s about 10 p.m. I’m so tired that I must go to bed.
A．Let’s find some of the action. B．How do you find it?
C．It’s entirely up to you. D．You can’t be serious!
