The family had just moved to Rhode Island, and the young woman was feeling a little depressed on that Sunday in May. After all, it was Mother's Day—and 800 miles her from her parents in Ohio.
She had called them that morning, to wish her a happy Mother's Day and her mother had how colorful their backyard was spring had arrived. Later, she told her husband how she those lilacs in her parents' yard. “I know where we can find some,” he said. “Get the and come on.” So off they went.
Some time later, they stopped at a hill and there were lilacs all round. The young woman rushed up to the nearest _ and buried her face in the flowers. Carefully, she some．
Finally, they returned to their car for the home. The woman sat smiling, surrounded by her .
When they were near home, she shouted “stop,” got off quickly and to a nearby nursing home. She went to the end of the porch (门廊), where a(n) patient was sitting in her wheelchair, and put the flowers into her lap. The two , bursting into laughter now and then. Later the young woman turned and ran back to her . As the car pulled away, the woman in the wheelchair with a smile, and held the lilacs .
“Mom,” the kids asked, “ did you give her our flowers?” “It is Mother's Day, and she seems so while I have all of you. And anyone would be by flowers.”
This satisfied the kids, but not the husband. The next day he some young lilacs around their yard.
I was the husband. Now, every May, our yard is full of lilacs. Every Mother's Day our kids purple lilacs. And every year I remember that smile of the lonely old woman.
1.A. movedB. keptC. separatedD. made
2.A. learnedB. mentionedC. imaginedD. realized
3.A. as ifB. so thatC. now thatD. even if
4.A. grewB. missedC. wateredD. showed
5.A. carsB. kidsC. clothesD. lilacs
6.A. yardB. hillC. bushD. door
7.A. boughtB. pickedC. setD. raised
8.A. breakB. holidayC. tripD. dinner
9.A. friendsB. memoryC. honorD. flowers
10.A. respondedB. pointedC. droveD. hurried
11.A. elderlyB. lovingC. seriousD. sensitive
12.A. hesitatedB. waitedC. chattedD. sat
13.A. familyB. motherC. pathD. home
14.A. noddedB. leftC. wavedD. continued
15.A. sadlyB. politelyC. quicklyD. tightly
16.A. whyB. whenC. howD. where
17.A. lonelyB. confusedC. aloneD. patient
18.A. calmedB. persuadedC. disappointedD. cheered
19.A. arrangedB. plantedC. driedD. hid
20.A. findB. gatherC. receiveD. sell
Coconut oil has become popular as healthier oil in cooking, cleaning and even as part of a natural beauty product. At room temperature except in warmer climates, it hardens, but naturally becomes liquid as the temperature rises. 1.
Healthy fat is an important part of the diet, and coconut oil is one source of the healthy fat. Coconut oil is also nature’s richest source of medium-chain fatty acids (脂肪酸). This oil’s health benefits include, but are not limited to, improving heart health, helping chemical reactions on our body, keeping a healthy weight, helping weight loss and supporting the immune system. 2.
Coconut oil is all-natural and does not contain the chemicals you will find in most shampoos and body washes. It is a wonderful body wash that can be applied directly to your skin to keep your skin wet. 3. Using it in your mouth for twenty minutes is a much better method of cleaning the entire mouth and removing bacteria.
Strong chemical cleaners are not safe or healthy for you, your family or the environment. ______4. It can be used to clean and shine furniture or leather. You can even use coconut oil as a spot remover.
5. Do you use it for cooking, cleaning or as a natural beauty product?
A. It can also take the place of mouth-wash.
B. Instead, clean with greener methods, like coconut oil.
C. There are a number of health benefits of using this oil in your daily life.
D. How do you use coconut oil in everyday life?
E. Coconut oil removes more bacteria.
F. So you can replace most of your cooking oils with coconut oil for better health.
G. It can change our immune system.
There are 67 counties in the state of Alabama. Each county is rich with history and its own unique stories. Colbert County, located in the northwest corner of the state, has its share of exciting stories and claims to statewide fame. The county was created on February 6, 1867, and Tuscumbia became the county seat (the town in which the offices of the county government are located).
One of the most famous residents of Tuscumbia was Helen Keller. Helen Keller was born on June 27, 1880. Her home was a white frame cottage built by her grandparents. Since ivy (常春藤) grew everywhere, the house was called Ivy Green. It was here, at the water pump in the backyard, that Keller learned the word “w-a-t-e-r” with the help of her teacher, Anne Sullivan. Visitors to Ivy Green can walk under boxwood trees that are 150 years old. The home has furniture that the Keller family used. It also has Keller’s Braille (盲文) books and her original Braille typewriter.
Spring Park is Tuscumbia’s most popular park and favorite tourist attraction. This park has the world’s largest manufactured waterfall called Coldwater Falls. The Spring Park Light and Water Show is an amazing sight to see. It takes place every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at sundown. The water appears to dance to music and colored lights. The music played during the show is recorded by singers and musicians from Alabama.
Fame Recording Studios is in the city of Muscle Shoals in Colbert County. The studio is the first successful recording studio in Alabama. It is best known for creating “Southern rock,” “Southern soul,” and “county soul.” Well-known performers like Aretha Franklin and musical groups such as Alabama and Lynyrd have made recordings at this studio.
Visitors can continue to explore music in Alabama by visiting the Alabama Music Hall of Fame in Tuscumbia. Built in 1990, this site recognizes the musical talents of more than 500 Alabama residents in a wide variety of musical styles, including country and rhythm and blues.
Truly, Colbert County has a lot of wonderful locations to visit. Guests will not be disappointed in a visit to this delightful place.
1.Which of the following is TRUE about Alabama and music?
A. Alabama musicians have established exhibits for visitors.
B. There are a great many talented musicians in Alabama.
C. Music is the most important industry in Alabama.
D. Alabama residents enjoy listening to music.
2.How many locations related to music in Colbert County are mentioned in the text?
A. 1. B. 2. C. 3. D. 4.
3.The author writes the text mainly to persuade the reader __________.
A. to learn from Helen Keller
B. to visit businesses in Alabama
C. to stop for a visit in Colbert County
D. to listen to Southern styles of music
4.The text is most probably taken from __________.
A. a story book B. a book review
C. a personal diary D. a travel magazine
| NEMS | NEWRI Environmental Master of Science | |
NEWRI: Nanyang Environment & Water Research Institute | |||
Be a leader in environmental science and engineering through the NEMS programme | |||
NEWRI Environmental Master of Science (NEMS) is a primary graduate education and research programme conducted by Nanyang Technological University’s (NTU’s) NEWRI, with summer attachment at Stanford University. It aims to train engineers and scientists to meet the increasing environmental challenges for Asia and the wider region. | NEWRI-Nanyang Environment & Water Research Institute NEWRI is enabling Singapore to be a global center of environmental science and technology in providing technological solutions to the world. It is committed to environmental and water technologies through its ecosystem of education, research and developmental activities. NEWRI is trying its best to pull together NTU’s water and environment-related centers and institutes, gathering one another’s strengths for the benefit of industry and society. | ||
Master of Science Applications ● Applications open now and close on 30 May 2013 for Singapore applicants. ● Graduates having relevant engineering or science background, including final-year students, are invited to apply. ● Applicants are required to have a certificate of GRE. Further information and application materials are available at the Website: http:// www. Cee.ntu.edu.sg/Graduate/NEMS | |||
Highlights of Programme: ★ Students spend a full summer term at Stanford taking regular courses and continue with the rest of their academic programme at NTU. ★ It is a 12-month full-time course in environmental science & engineering. ★Students under NEMS will have opportunities to do research projects under NEWRI as well as to continue for the Doctor’s degree. ★ Graduating students receive the NTU degree and a certificate from Stanford for their summer attachment. | |||
Scholarship for tuition grants and living expenses at both Stanford and NTU are available | |||
Enquiry contact: Ms Christian Soh Tel：(65) 6861 0507 Fax:(65) 68614606 Email: nems@ntu.edu.sg Information on other graduate programmes available at： www.ntu.edu.sg/cee/program/postgrad.asp | |||
1.If one wants to apply for the NEMS programme, it is essential for him to __________.
A. make contact with Ms Soh
B. have passed the GRE test
C. possess a university diploma
D. major in engineering or science
2.Students admitted to the NEMS Programme __________.
A. are required to obtain a Doctor’s degree
B. will first have regular courses at Stanford
C. needn’t be released from their regular jobs
D. can receive degrees of both NTU and Stanford
3.What’s the main purpose of the NEMS programme?
A. To offer scholarship for tuition grants and living expenses.
B. To strengthen the cooperation between NTU and Stanford.
C. To introduce Nanyang Environment & Water Research Institute.
D. To train experts on environmental science and engineering.
4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. 30 May 2012 is the deadline for NEMS application.
B. Applicants for NEMS should have relevant work experience.
C. Other centers and institutes for environmental and water technologies also exist in NTU
D. Singapore is the global center of environmental science and technology.
A study of more than five million books, both fiction and non-fiction, has found a marked decline in the use of emotional words over time. The researchers form the University of Bristol used Google Ngram Viewer, a facility for finding the frequency of terms in scanned books, to search for more than 600 particular words identified as representing anger, dislike, fear, joy, sadness and surprise.
They found that almost all of the categories showed a drop in these “mood words” over time. Only in the category of fear was there an increase in usage.
“It is a steady and continuous decrease,” said Dr Alberto Acerbi. He assumed that the result might be explained by a change in the position occupied by literature, in a crowded media landscape. “One thing could be that in parallel to books the 20th century saw the start of other media. Maybe these media — movies, radio, drama, had more emotional content than books.”
Although both joy and sadness followed the general downwards trend, the research, published in the journal PLOS One, found that they also exhibited another interesting behaviour：the ratio (比率) between the two varied greatly, apparently mirroring historical events.
During the Roaring Twenties the joy-to-sadness ratio reached a peak that would not occur again until before the recent financial crash. But the ratio plunged at the height of the Second World War. Nevertheless, the researchers held a reserved opinion about their claim that their result reflected wider social trends. In the paper, they even argue that the reverse could be true.
“It has been suggested, for example, that it was the suppression (压抑) of desire in ordinary Elizabethan English life that increased demand for writing ‘filled with romance and sex’… perhaps,” they conclude, “songs and books may not reflect the real population any more than catwalk models reflect the average body.”
1.The word "decline" (paragraph 1) is closest in meaning to_________.
A. increase B. rise C. decrease D. change
2.A study of more than five million books indicated a decrease in “mood words” over time except_______.
A. in the use of the words of historical events
B. in the category of fear
C. in the category of literature
D. in the category of joy
3.What’s the main idea of this passage?
A. A study of emotional words.
B. A study about vocabulary in literature.
C. Reasons for the use of emotional words decreases in literature.
D. A study on increase in the category of fear.
“Don't worry if you have problems!” It is easy to say until you are in the midst of a really big one. The only people who don't have troubles are gathered in little neighborhoods. Most communities have at least one. We call them cemeteries. If you're breathing, you have difficulties. It's the way of life. And believe it or not, most of your problems may actually be good for you! Let me explain.
Maybe you have heard the Great Barrier Reef, stretching some 1,800 miles from New Guinea to Australia. Tour guides regularly take visitors to view the reef.
On one tour, a traveler asked the guide an interesting question. "I notice that the lagoon (泻湖) side of the reef looks pale and lifeless, while the ocean side is vibrant and colorful," the traveler observed. Why is this?
The guide gave an interesting answer, "The coral around the lagoon side is in still water, with no challenge for its survival. It dies early. The coral on the ocean side is constantly being tested by wind, waves and storms. It has to fight for its survival every day. As it is challenged and tested, it changes and adapts. It grows healthy. It grows strong. And it reproduces."
Then he added, “That's the way it is with every living organism.”
That's how it is with people. Challenged and tested, we come alive! Like coral pounded by the sea, we grow. Physical demands can cause us to grow stronger. Mental and emotional stress can produce tough-mindedness and resiliency. Spiritual testing can produce strength of character and faithfulness. So, you have problems? No problem! Just tell yourself, "There I grow again!"
Remember: A smooth sea never made a skilled mariner.
1.Who has no problems according to the passage?
A. The persons who are very famous.
B. The persons who have much money.
C. The persons who have been born.
D. The persons who are living in the cemeteries.
2.In the writer's opinion, ________.
A. problems bring us much trouble
B. problems have two sides, good or bad
C. we should try to stay away from any trouble
D. the fewer things we do, the less trouble we'll meet
3.The reason why lagoon side of the reef has no life is _______.
A. it hasn't got any sunlight
B. it has less energy than others
C. it never faces any challenge and tests
D. it has no work to do every day
4.After reading this passage, we should ________.
A. regard any problem as challenge
B. learn from the lagoon side
C. worry your problem
D. enter into cemeteries
