I think I will never forget the special day in November. It was hotter than normal. This was the ______ my father and I had waited so long for, because we had been working towards this race for three years. Dozens of familiar faces from church and school flashed across my view. They had come ______ me. I saw worry and ______ on my father’s face. Then the race began!
For the first two and a half miles, I felt ______. I had never before been so ready for something. The weeks leading up to the race were filled with controlled ______ and a strict diet. My friends hadn’t seen me in weeks, but they understood the ______required to make my dream a reality. As in all of my races，I didn’t ______ out in the front. I loved the pleasure of passing people as my strength overtook their premature speed.
Then without warning，my strength began to decrease. Neck and neck with one of my greatest competitors, I ______ see the finish line. I had begun the final dash into ______ when my knees became weak and my legs gave way. Nothing I could do would make them ______ weight.
I watched as runners rushed by me. ______ I knew my dreams of victory were destroyed, I had to finish the race. However, my legs hurt badly. With all of the ______ left in me, I got on my hands and knees and crawled (爬), inch by inch, across the finish line. Voices, both ______ and familiar, cheered me on. They gave me the courage to keep ______ until the very end.
The doctors were there in seconds, but my eyes searched the crowd for him. There was only one person I wanted to ______ to. I whispered, “I’ m so sorry, Dad, I'm so sorry I ______ you.” He looked at me, saying, “You could never disappoint me. Sometimes these things just ______. All that matters is that you did your best.”
“But we worked so ______. What about our dream?” He reached over for my hand and said, “Don’ t you know that you are my dream and it has come true?”
It wasn’t long before my running shoes were back on, marking a ______ path for my journey. I learned that all of the miles, the tears, the sweat, and the pain my dad and I experienced together were not for a ______. What I realized, though, was that to him, I was the greatest prize he had ever won.
1.A. dream B. day C. result D. weather
2.A. across B. to C. for D. over
3.A. excitement B. astonishment C. coldness D. amusement
4.A. proud B. afraid C. nervous D. great
5.A. programs B. practices C. instructions D. studies
6.A. patience B. potential C. sacrifice D. attention
7.A. start B. move C. look D. come
8.A. should B. need C. must D. could
9.A. relief B. glory C. pleasure D. spirit
10.A. give B. feel C. hold D. add
11.A. Although B. Because C. If D. Where
12.A. trust B. emotion C. confidence D. strength
13.A. loud B. soft C. foreign D. firm
14.A. running B. going C. fighting D. training
15.A. talk B. refer C. listen D. agree
16.A. frightened B. disturbed C. bored D. disappointed
17.A. develop B. change C. happen D. follow
18.A. late B. quickly C. closely D. hard
19.A. near B. new C. rough D. narrow
20.A. race B. duty C. rank D. wish
Parents Model Healthy Eating
It should come as no surprise that the more stressed parents are at work, the greater the burden on their family is. 1. After all, the more time parents spend working, the less time and energy they have to plan and prepare healthful meals.
For years, most studies have focused on the role of working mothers while fathers were ignored. They didn’t look at the family as a whole. 2., adds a new wrinkle（褶皱）to the relationship between work stress and family nutrition.
Mom’s work related stress is still a central factor in low well families eat because they typically do most of the food shopping and cooking. 3. The study found that when mom or dad experience high levels of work related stress, their families are eating one-and-a-half fewer family meals per week, and the parents themselves report eating fewer fruits and vegetables, more fast food, and are less likely to eat breakfast regularly.
It’s worth nothing that the study looked mainly at low income families who belonged to ethnic（民族的）or minority groups. 4. But the implications are wide ranging.
5. Teaching kids, especially teenagers, to help with grocery shopping and to cook actual meals, instead of just putting a frozen pizza in the microwave, could be an important piece of the puzzle in helping families improves their eating habits.
A. And the role of fathers in particular
B. But dad’s work related stress has a large impact, too.
C. Yet, the kids’ stress may influence the families’ nutrition, too.
D. So the findings don’t necessarily apply directly to other types of families.
E. When it comes to family nutrition, the entire family plays a role even kids.
F. It’s also probably not a surprise that this can negatively affect a family’s nutrition.
G. It is parents who give their kids a good model to develop a good eating habit.
When emergency workers arrive at an old firehouse in New York City, the way they greet each other is not what you might expect. These first responders say," Ni Hao! " "Ni Hao" means "hello" in Mandarin Chinese.
First responders are the first emergency workers to arrive at a fire, traffic accident or other emergency. Some first responders are fire fighters, while others can be Emergency Medical Technicians.
In Brooklyn, New York, over 20 first responders are studying Mandarin Chinese for about two hours a week. The class is the first of its kind. It is offered by the New York City Fire Department Foundation.
The U. S. Census Bureau recently reported that some New York neighborhoods are made up mostly of immigrants. Some people have predicted that the Chinese community is likely to become New York's largest immigrant group. They think the city will have the largest Chinese community outside of Asia.
The Census Bureau also found that almost 200 languages are spoken in the city. So, knowing different languages is important, especially if you are a first responder.
Lieutenant(中尉,少尉) Steve Lee is president of the Fire Department's Phoenix Society. He says that first responders must be able to communicate quickly and effectively when an emergency happens. He explains that first responders enter neighborhoods and communities to assist regardless of where they are from. Many times first responders do not speak the same language as the people they are called to help. He adds that it is vital, or very important, that first responders are able to communicate with the people calling for help.
Without help from homeowners and others, Lee adds, discovering exactly where a fire is burning can be a real problem. First responders need to ask questions such as "What building? What address? What apartment?" And the most important question," Is there anybody left in the building and where?"
1.Who are first responders according to Paragraph 2?
A. People first learning the disaster. B. Persons leading the emergency rescue.
C. Rescuers first reaching the disaster D. People first find the disaster.
2.Why are the first responders in New York studying the Chinese language?
A. To show respect to the Chinese immigrants.
B. To learn about Chinese cultures much better.
C. To meet the rapid growth of Chinese population.
D. To find a better job in Chinese community.
3.What do first responders concern most?
A. The place where the fire occurs. B. The people trapped in the fire.
C. The language to communicate. D. The distance covered to the fire.
4.What can be a suitable title for the text?
A. Mandarin Being a Must for Emergency Workers
B. New York's Emergency Crews Learning Mandarin
C. Language Problem Disturbing First Responders' Work
D. Importance of Languages Used in Emergency Rescue
Feeling blue about the world? “Cheer up.” says science writer Matt Ridley. “The world has never been a better place to live in, and it will keep on getting better both for humans and for nature.”
Ridley calls himself a rational optimist—rational, because he's carefully weighed the evidence; optimistic, because that evidence shows human progress to be both unavoidable and good. And this is what he's set out to prove from a unique point of view in his most recent book, The Rational Optimist. He views mankind as a grand enterprise that, on the whole, has done little but progress for 100,000 years. He backs his findings with hard facts gathered through years of research.
Here's how he explains his views.
1 ) Shopping fuels invention
It is reported that there are more than ten billion different products for sale in London alone. Even allowing for the many people who still live in poverty, our own generation has access to more nutritious food, more convenient transport, bigger houses, better cars, and, of course, more pounds and dollars than any who lived before us. This will continue as long as we use these things to make other things. The more we specialize and exchange, the better off we'll be.
2) Brilliant advances
One reason we are richer, healthier, taller, cleverer, longerlived and freer than ever before is that the four most basic human needs—food, clothing, fuel and shelter—have grown a lot cheaper. Take one example. In 1800 a candle providing one hour's light cost six hours' work. In the 1880s the same light from an oil lamp took 15 minutes' work to pay for. In 1950 it was eight seconds. Today it's half second.
3 ) Let's not kill ourselves for climate change
Mitigating (减轻) climate change could prove just as damaging to human welfare as climate change itself. A child that dies from indoor smoke in a village, where the use of fossilfuel (化石燃料) electricity is forbidden by wellmeaning members of green political movements trying to save the world, is just as great a tragedy as a child that dies in a flood caused by climate change. If climate change proves to be mild, but cutting carbon causes real pain, we may well find that we have stopped a nosebleed by putting a tourniquet (止血带) around our necks.
1.What is the theme of Ridley's most recent book?
A. Optimism about human progress. B. Concern about climate change.
C. Importance of practical thinking. D. Weakness of human nature.
2.How does Ridley look at shopping?
A. It demands more fossil fuels. B. It results in shortage of goods.
C. It encourages the creation of things. D. It causes a poverty problem.
3.The candle and lamp example is used to show that ________.
A. oil lamps give off more light than candles
B. increased production rate leads to lower cost of goods
C. advanced technology helps to produce better candles
D. shortening working time brings about a happier life
4.What does the last sentence of the passage imply?
A. Cutting carbon is necessary in spite of the huge cost.
B. People's health is closely related to climate change.
C. Overreaction to climate change may be dangerous.
D. Careless medical treatment may cause great pain.
When Veronika Scott was a student at the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, Michigan, she received a task to “design to fill a need.” She dreamed up an idea for overcoats that would double as sleeping bags, made 25 of them, and handed them out to people living in shelters on an abandoned city playground. While her efforts were greeted mostly with enthusiasm from those braving Detroit’s cold winters, one woman voiced dissatisfaction. “We don’t need coats; we need jobs,” she told Veronika. Then she had her second inspiration.
After graduating from college in 2012, Veronika founded the Empowerment Plan, a nonprofit organization. She hired two homeless women to sew the coats and paid them with donations she received through her blog. Now, the Empowerment Plan employs about 20 people and has produced more than 10,000 coats and distributed them in 30 states, Canada, and elsewhere abroad.
“We don’t require previous employment,” Veronika says. “We’re looking for people who are motivated.” The Empowerment Plan provides free classes and lends money to those who qualify. Nearly all the employees eventually move into permanent housing, and some go on to jobs in the auto industry and construction.
Veronika has bettered the coat’s design by making its outer layer of a lightweight material that resists air, wind, and water and its inner layer of a material that stores body heat. Still, Veronika is less focused on the coats than on the workers who make them. “At the end of the day,” she says, “the coat is a vehicle for us to employ people.”
1.What was Veronika’s second inspiration?
A. Improving her coat’s design.
B. Founding a nonprofit organization.
C. Profiting from the work of those low-paid people.
D. Producing more coats and distributing them abroad.
2.What is the purpose of the Empowerment Plan?
A. To raise more donations.
B. To design better clothes.
C. To provide help for the homeless.
D. To offer free classes to the motivated.
3.Which of the following best describes Veronika?
A. Traditional but helpful B. Greedy and unsatisfied.
C. Generous but childish. D. Creative and caring.
4.Which is the best title of the passage?
A. Design to Fill a Need. B. The Empowerment Plan.
C. Look for Motivated People. D. How to design a coat.
Upcoming Events of New York Chinese Cultural Center
Ancient Chinese Arts Today: Fan Dance
Sunday, October17, 2:00pm—3:00 pm, $15 per child
New-York Historical Society Museum & Library
Learn Chinese fan dancing with an instructor from NYCCC! This program is a part of Chinese American: Exclusion/Inclusion, an exhibition which examines the history of trade and immigration between China and the United States.
Dragon Boat Festival
Monday, October 18, 2:00pm —2:30pm
Fresh Meadows Park
Come and celebrate with us in the thousand-year-old tradition of Dragon Boat racing! Be part of the audience and the excitement of this celebration. FREE ADMISSION! Click here for more information. Dragon Boat Festival will be held in Fresh Meadows Park.
Dance to China
Sunday, October 24, 2 pm
Spruce Street School Auditorium, 12 Spruce St, New York, NY 10038
Join us in celebrating 43 years of preserving and continuing Chinese traditional dance. Students from NYCCC School of the Arts will be performing traditional Chinese dance, martial arts, and Beijing opera acrobatics. Cost is $15 for adults, $12 for teenagers and senior citizens, $10 for children under 12.
NYCCC School of the Arts Open House
Saturday, October 30, from 1:00pm —3:00 pm, $12 per child
PS 124, Yung Wing School, 40 Division Street, New York, NY 10002
Join us and see Chinese dance, kung fu, and acrobatic performances performed by our current students. Come and see our students’ beautiful artwork on display and make some artwork yourselves during our hour of arts and crafts and face painting from 1-2 pm. The show will be from 2-3pm.
1.Where can you learn about China-US trade and immigration history?
A. In Fresh Meadows Park.
B. In PS 124, Yung Wing School.
C. In Spruce Street School Auditorium.
D. In New-York Historical Society Museum & Library.
2.How much should a family of 4 (aged 75, 38, 36, 5) pay to participate in Dance to China?
A. $48. B. $ 52.
C. $55 D. $ 57.
3.What does NYCCC aim at?
A. Training dancing instructors.
B. Producing beautiful artwork.
C. Promoting Chinese folk arts.
D. Examining trade and immigration.
