阅读理解。
Census Bureau (人口普查局) data released Thursday show that 48 of the 50 most populous (人口稠密的) U.S. cities have grown since 2010, compared with only 40 of the top 50 in the first two years after the 2000 Census. Of the top 100, 93 have grown since 2010, compared with just 72 a decade ago.
Many of the biggest, such as New York, Houston, Phoenix, San Antonio, San Diego and Dallas, are outpacing the nation’s 1.7% growth rate since 2010.
“Urban America is recovering faster than more remote places,” said Robert Lang, a professor of urban affairs.
Only two big cities - Detroit and Cleveland - lost population between 2010 and 2012.
The urban recovery is led by mid-sized cities including Austin and Fort Worth and Charlotte. Austin grew 6.6% in two years, becoming the USA’s 11th-largest city. In 2000, it was No. 17.
Other trends:
• New York City grew 2%, adding about 161,500 people since 2010. By far it is the USA’s most populous city.
• The population of New Orleans continues to grow. In 2005 a terrible natural disaster happened to the city, causing the population to decrease. Now it has a population of three hundred and sixty-nine thousand. The number has grown by 7.4% since 2010.
• Government budget crunches (紧缩) have put state capitals in difficulty. Half are behind the growth rate of their regions.
Perhaps the biggest exception to the capital crunch is Austin. It has grown more than 26% since 2000. Population expert William Frey says Austin enjoys a number of qualities that make it attractive. It’s a high-tech city with a state university. And it’s in Texas, an attractive place for newcomers. “In some ways it’s a model of what other cities would like to become,” he says.
Frey notes that Charlotte, which grew 5.4% since 2010 has grown into a high-tech and financial center whose industries do business not just with those in other U.S. cities but with the rest of the world.
1. The statistics in Paragraph 1 suggest that _____.
A. there were fewer cities in the USA a decade ago
B. remote areas in the USA have more people now
C. the population in the USA has grown since 2010
D. many big cities in the USA face population problems
2. William Frey thinks Austin’s growth _____.
A. is due to its education
B. is the steadiest in the USA
C. attracts well-educated people
D. deserves the attention of other cities
3. According to the text, Charlotte _____.
A. is a political center
B. has grown slowly since 2010
C. is the USA’s 11th-largest city
D. does business at home and abroad
阅读理解。
Sam Allred suffers from a rare and incurable kidney (肾脏) disease. One day, when his sister was playing a song repeatedly, Sam sang along. His sister thought it was funny so she recorded it and posted the video online. The video — and Sam — became a hit. Only 8 years old at the time, he couldn’t have expected the response.
“(The television show) The Doctors called and wanted me on their show so they paid for me to go to California,” says Sam, now 13, “and we got to stay in a hotel where all the movie stars stayed.”
During that visit to California, Angie Allred, Sam’s mother, had an idea about Sam writing a children’s book. Together, she and Sam wrote Opening Hearts, which tells Sam’s experience of living with a chronic (慢性的) illness.
“I wrote the book to teach people to be kinder to people,” Sam says.
Moreover, Sam wanted to send pillows to sick children staying in hospitals around the country to make their stay more comfortable, an idea that came from a time when he was in the hospital.
“A few kind boys came in with pillows and they gave me one and it meant a lot to me that someone cared about kids in the hospital,” says Sam.
Angie thought of starting a nonprofit organization to provide a way for people to contribute money to realize Sam’s ideas. She named the nonprofit Kindness for Kids.
Since then, Sam has taken pillows to children staying at Providence Hospital in Anchorage.
Sam’s father, Scott Allred, owns a small business that contracts (承包) shipping services with FedEx Ground. He asked the company for help.
“FedEx Ground learned about Sam’s pillow project,” says Erin Truxal, manager of public relations for FedEx Ground. “We thought, ‘What a perfect way for us to get involved.’”
The company provided shipping services for Sam to ship about 5,000 pillows to hospitals.
Sam wants to send more pillows to all of the children’s hospitals in every state. His goal is simple: “Kids in the hospital as happy as they were before they got sick,” he says.
1. We can learn from the text that Sam Allred _____.
A. was a healthy boy
B. was popular at an early age
C. sang the song with his sister
D. worked in his father’s company
2. Opening Hearts is a book that _____.
A. is a best seller
B. is about Sam’s sister
C. was published when Sam was 13
D. was written by Sam and his mother
3. What is FedEx Ground’s attitude towards Sam’s career?
A. Doubtful. B. Surprised.
C. Approving. D. Uninterested.
4. Which of the following can best describe Sam Allred?
A. Optimistic and warm-hearted.
B. Honest and responsible.
C. Unusual and confident.
D. Friendly and brave.
语法填空。
My mother had some words for me. “Don't be always particular about your 1. (presence) work and income.” My mother said to me softly, “As a matter of fact, you have done well and made great achievement 2. the entertainment field.” My face turned red on hearing 3. my mother said.She is right. Many other actors are worse off 4. me at present, 5._ they are likely to be content with their life and be happy most of the time. I feel upset with my situation just because I seldom 6. (communication) with others and it seems as if I am cut off 7._ outside world. I should have known when to hold fast and when to let go, 8. can help me avoid 9. (feel) great pressure and upset. I must know how to care for others and try not to misunderstand 10.．In this way, I will get close to leading a happy life.
—I’m afraid you missed a fantastic lecture yesterday. How come you were absent from it?
—If you _______ know, I asked for a day off and visited a relative of mine in hospital.
A. might B. may
C. shall D. must
—Tom, your foreign teacher speaks Chinese fluently!
—Oh, she has lived in China for six years, otherwise she _______ such good Chinese.
A. didn’t speak B. would not have spoken
C. would not speak D. hadn’t spoken
We _______ the difficulty together, but why didn’t you tell me?
A. should face B. might face
C. could have faced D. may have faced
