“My work is done.” Those words were some of the last penned by George Eastman. He included them in his suicide note. They mark an ignoble end to a noble life, the leave taking of a truly great man. The same words could now be said for the company he left behind. Actually, the Eastman Kodak Company is through. It has been mismanaged financially, technologically and competitively. For 20 years, its leaders have foolishly spent down the patrimony of a century’s prosperity. One of America’s bedrock brands is about to disappear, the Kodak moment has passed.
But George Eastman is not how he died, and the Eastman Kodak Company is not how it is being killed. Though the ends be needless and premature, they must not be allowed to overshadow the greatness that came before. Few companies have done so much good for so many people, or defined and lifted so profoundly the spirit of a nation and perhaps the world. It is impossible to understand the 20th Century without recognizing the role of the Eastman Kodak Company.
Kodak served mankind through entertainment, science, national defense and the stockpiling of family memories. Kodak took us to the top of Mount Suribachi and to the Sea of Tranquility. It introduced us to the merry old Land of Oz and to stars from Charlie Chaplin to John Wayne, and Elizabeth Taylor to Tom Hanks. It showed us the shot that killed President Kennedy, and his brother bleeding out on a kitchen floor, and a fallen Martin Luther King Jr. on the hard balcony of a Memphis motel. When that sailor kissed the nurse, and when the spy planes saw missiles in Cuba, Kodak was the eyes of a nation. From the deck of the Missouri to the grandeur of Monument Valley, Kodak took us there. Virtually every significant image of the 20th Century is a gift to posterity（繁荣） from the Eastman Kodak Company.
In an era of easy digital photography, when we can take a picture of anything at any time, we cannot imagine what life was like before George Eastman brought photography to people. Yes, there were photographers, and for ly large sums of money they would take stilted（不自然的） pictures in studios and formal settings. But most people couldn’t afford photographs, and so all they had to remember distant loved ones, or earlier times of their lives, was memory. Children could not know what their parents had looked like as young people, grandparents far away might never learn what their grandchildren looked like. Eastman Kodak allowed memory to move from the uncertainty of recollection, to the permanence of a photograph. But it wasn’t just people whose features were savable; it was events, the sacred and precious times that families cherish. The Kodak moment, was humanity’s moment.
And it wasn’t just people whose features were savable; it was events, the precious times that families cherish. Kodak let the fleeting moments of birthdays and weddings, picnics and parties, be preserved and saved. It allowed for the creation of the most egalitarian art form. Lovers could take one another’s pictures, children were photographed walking out the door on the first day of school, the person releasing the shutter decided what was worth recording, and hundreds of millions of such decisions were made. And for centuries to come, those long dead will smile and dance and communicate to their unborn progeny（子孙）. Family history will be not only names on paper, but smiles on faces.
The cash flow not just provided thousands of people with job, but also allowed the company’s founder to engage in some of the most generous charity in America’s history. Not just in Kodak’s home city of Rochester, New York, but in Tuskegee and London, and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He bankrolled（资助） two historically black colleges, fixed the teeth of Europe’s poor, and quietly did good wherever he could. While doing good, Kodak did very well. Over all the years, all the Kodakers over all the years are essential parts of that monumental legacy. They prospered a great company, but they – with that company – blessed the world.
That is what we should remember about the Eastman Kodak Company. Like its founder, we should remember how it lived, not how it died. History will forget the small men who have scuttled this company. But history will never forget Kodak.
1.According to the passage, which of the following is to blame for the fall of Kodak?
A. The invention of easy digital photography
B. The poor management of the company
C. The early death of George Eastman
D. The quick rise of its business competitors
2.It can be learnt from the passage that George Eastman .
A. died a natural death of old age.
B. happened to be on the spot when President Kennedy was shot dead.
C. set up his company in the capital of the US before setting up its branches all over the world.
D. was not only interested in commercial profits, but also in the improvement of other people’s lives.
3.Before George Eastman brought photography to people,.
A. no photos has ever been taken of people or events
B. photos were very expensive and mostly taken indoors
C. painting was the only way for people to keep a record of their ancestors.
D. grandparents never knew what their grandchildren looked like.
4.The person releasing the shutter (Paragraph 5) was the one .
A. who took the photograph
B. who wanted to have a photo taken
C. whose decisions shaped the Eastman Kodak Company
D. whose smiles could long be seen by their children
An article published recently in the scientific journal Nature is shedding new light on an important, but so far little has been appreciated, aspect of human evolution. In this article, Professors Dennis Bramble, and Daniel Lieberman suggest that the ability to run was a decisive factor in the development of our species. According to the two scientists, humans possess a number of anatomical（人体结构的）features that make them surprisingly good runners. “We are very confident that strong selection for running，which came at the expense of the historical ability to live in trees-was helpful in the origin of the modern human body form,” says Bramble, a biology professor at the University of Utah.
Traditional thinking up to now has been that the upright body form of modern humans has come about as a result of the ability to walk, and that running is simply a by-product of walking. Furthermore, humans have usually been regarded as poor runners compared to such animals as dogs, horses or antelopes. However, this is only true if we consider fast running over short distances. Even Olympic athlete can hardly run as fast as a horse can gallop, and can only keep up a top speed for fifteen seconds or so. Horses and antelopes, on the other hand, can run at top speed for several minutes, clearly outperforming us in this respect. But when it comes to long-distance running, humans do astonishingly well. They can maintain a steady pace for miles, and their overall speed compares favorably with that of horses or dogs.
Bramble and Lieberman examined twenty-six anatomical features found in humans. One of the most interesting of these is the nuchal ligament（颈背的韧带）. When we run, it is this ligament that prevents our head from pitching back and forth or from side to side. Therefore, we are able to run with steady heads held high. The nuchal ligament is not found in any other surviving primates（灵长类动物）, although the fossil（化石）record shows that Homo erectus, an early human species that walked upright, much as we do, also had one. Then there are our Achilles tendons（跟腱）at the backs of our legs, which have nothing to do with walking. When we run, these tendons behave like springs, helping to push us forward. Furthermore, we have low, wide shoulders, virtually disconnected from our skulls (the bony part of the head), another anatomical adaptation which allows us to run more efficiently.
But what evolutionary advantage is gained from being good long-distance runners? One assumption is that this ability may have permitted early humans to obtain food more effectively. “What these features and fossil facts appear to be telling us is that running evolved in order for our direct ancestors to compete with other carnivores (animals that eat meat) for access to the protein needed to grow the big brains that we enjoy today.” says Lieberman.
1.We can learn from the passage that the human ability to run _______.
A. was only recently described in a scientific journal
B. played an important part in human evolution
C. was considered more natural than the ability to live in trees
D. contributed to the form of human language
2.According to the second paragraph, humans _______
A. are better runners than most other animals
B. are not good at running short distances
C. compare unfavorably with horses and dogs
D. are poor long-distance runners
3.It appears that the nuchal ligament _______.
A. enables us to run with steady heads
B. is found in modern primates only
C. prevents the head from being held high
D. is a unique feature of carnivores
4.The passage does NOT tell us that _______
A. early humans had an advantage in obtaining food thanks to the running ability
B. fossils help us better understand human evolution.
C. our Achilles tendons are an adaptation for running efficiently
D. big brains may have been evolved for running long-distance
书面表达
假定你是沈阳二中学生会主席李华，学校拟在新年晚会中安排一个英文话剧表演节目。请按以下要点写一份招募演员的通知：
1.招募目的、报名时间及地点
2.简述话剧的内容；
3.报名者需具备的素质。
注意：1.词数100左右
2.可适当增加情节，以使行文连贯。
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短文改错
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出改正后的词。
注意：1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
Even today, a man with good manner will politely open the door for a lady, help her put on her coat when necessary and see her safely to the door of her home before a date. When a man take a woman out for a dinner, it is considered impolite to help her with her chair when she gets up or sits down. On a crowding train or bus, it is proper for a man offer a woman his seat, particular if she is old or carries a baby. Even when it comes to shake hands, ladies come first. It is impolite for a man to extend his hand for a handshake upon first greeting. Unless a woman does not extend her hand to the man first, the man shouldn’t offer theirs.
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入合适的内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
My most embarrassing moment occurred last month. I was invited to attend an interview for a job as a hotel receptionist. I arrived on time and was shown into the manager’s office by an 1. (assist). I was 2. nervous that I didn’t catch the manager’s name. 3. interview began. “Do you have any previous experience in hotels?” asked the manager. “No, sir,” I said. The manager frowned. “Are you good at using computers?” “Yes, sir. I am familiar 4. most popular kinds of software.” The manager frowned again. 5. didn’t look like a friendly person. The interview continued. Every answer I gave 6. (receive) by a frown from the manager, even though I told him about my communication skills, my knowledge of French and so on. 7. (obvious), I was doing very badly. At last, the interview came to a 【小题8 . “One final question, ”said the manager, “how good is your eyesight?” “Excellent, sir,” I replied. “Very well,” said the manager, “thank you for coming.” I stood up 8. (shake) hands. When the manager stood up as well, I realized 9. I had been doing wrong. The gentleman I had been calling “sir” during the whole interview was wearing a skirt! The manger was a woman! I didn’t get the job.
阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（Ａ，Ｂ，Ｃ和Ｄ）中选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
It had been a long drive to the Veteran’s hospital. My brother and I had gone to _________ my Dad who had been _________ days earlier, weak, sick and confused. The _________ had diagnosed him with pneumonia(肺炎) and found cancer cells in his brain. My Dad looked so _________ lying there in bed. It wasn’t just the _________ that was getting to him. It was also being so _________ his family and friends.
As I sat by his _________ , a little woman with a big smile _________ into his room. She was at least 80 years old but seemed to have the _________ of someone 60 years younger. She was a volunteer _________ handmade get-well cards from the local elementary school. Gently, she took my Dad’s hand and thanked him for his service to our country. It was the first time since he had gotten _________ that I saw my Dad smile. I _________ her into the hallway as she left and _________ her for lifting my Dad’s _________ . “I am just sharing a little_________ , sweetie,” she said with a smile as she walked into the next _________ room to share a little more.
That 80-year-old angel reminded me again of what is _________ in this life: sharing our love. When we share our love, we create _________ not only in the hearts of those _________ us, but in our own hearts as well. When we share our love, we find ourselves doing what we were always _________ to do. When we share our love, we make our souls lighter, our lives brighter and the world better.
1.A. inviteB. amuse C. visit D. watch
2.A. refused B. admitted C. hurt D. wounded
3.A. family B. patient C. nurse D. doctor
4.A. sad B. small C. bored D. calm
5.A. work B. illness C. failure D. loneliness
6.A. related to B. strange toC. far away fromD. different from
7.A. bed B. chair C. table D. window
8.A. broke B. walked C. turned D. looked
9.A. looks B. strength C. wealth D. energy
10.A. deliveringB. showing C. selling D. collecting
11.A. hurt B. guilty C. sick D. bored
12.A. forced B. watched C. pushed D. followed
13.A. thanked B. questionedC. forgave D. blamed
14.A. hand B. head C. spirits D. dreams
15.A. love B. present C. time D. information
16.A. nurse’sB. doctor’s C. patient’s D. women’s
17.A. hard B. easy C. initial D. essential
18.A. surpriseB. joy C. security D. wonder
19.A. within B. beyond C. around D. before
20.A. meant B. ordered C. asked D. Attracted
