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One day, Nick invited his friends to supper. He was cooking some delicious food in the kitchen. Suddenly, he 1. (find) that he had run out of salt. So Nick called to his son, “Go to the village and buy some salt, but pay a fair price for it: neither too much 2.too little.
His son looked surprised. “I can understand why I shouldn’t pay too much, Father, but if I can pay less,3.not save a bit of money?
“That would be a very4. (reason) thing to do in a big city, but it could destroy a small village like 5. (us), Nick said.
Nick’s guests, 6.had heard their conversation, asked why they should not buy salt more cheaply if they could. Nick replied, “The only reason a man would sell salt 7.a lower price would be because he was desperate for money. And anyone who took advantage of that situation would be showing a lack of respect for the sweat and struggle of the man who worked very hard to produce it.”
“But such a small thing couldn’t 8. (possible) destroy a village.”
“In the beginning, there was only 9.very small amount of unfairness in the world, but everyone added a little, always 10. (think) that it was only small and not very important, and look where we have ended up today.”
Recently I understood the true meaning of love. The ________ was Kane, my neighbor Joline’s two-year-old son.
Kane was born with a physical problem on his ________. And I witnessed the ________ that Kane’s physical shortcomings had on his family. I also witnessed much more than that. I saw a ________ family that embraced (拥抱) this special child. A family that wouldn’t allow Kane to know he was ________. Joline had constructed a small cart just a few inches off the floor for his son to_______. Kane used his hands to move about, and the cart ________ him to “go to” any place just as everyone else was able to do. Kane was not just a member of the family, but the ________ of the family.
With a wide smile, it was easy to see that even at the age of two, Kane liked to ________ with people very much. With wisdom of an individual, this boy even ________ the most complex of human emotions. Later I came to ________that this child was sent to help some of us who weren’t just getting what love was all about.
Kane demanded attention, ________not because of his mobility (移动能力) challenges or other apparent shortcomings. In his mind, he had no________ or shortcomings. The ________ was that he received attention because he was alive and real and had so much to offer.
Kane ________ me in a deep way. His ability to refuse to be different has ________ me. Kane was and is ________ lots of warm and powerful energy to me. From him and his family I learnt the ________: love surpasses (超越) all things. I can only imagine that as the parent of a child like Kane one might be filled with ________ . But I believe that having a child like Kane is actually a(n)________ . The parents of such special babies are angels too, just as the babies are.
1.A. problem B. reason C. matter D. pressure
2.A. hands B. eyes C. legs D. arms
3.A. effect B. comment C. demand D. look
4.A. similar B. wonderful C. practical D. fair
5.A. irregular B. difficult C. different D. terrible
6.A. go ahead B. speed up C. turn out D. get around
7.A. invited B. allowed C. advised D. caused
8.A. symbol B. signal C. center D. mark
9.A. communicate B. compare C. agree D. compete
10.A. reminded B. understood C. discovered D. trusted
11.A. recognize B. experience C. imagine D. realize
12.A. and B. or C. but D. as
13.A. challenges B. expectations C. promises D. chances
14.A. goal B. result C. possibility D. truth
15.A. touched B. stopped C. caught D. kept
16.A. puzzled B. shocked C. amused D. inspired
17.A. even B. yet C. still D. almost
18.A. lesson B. subject C. notice D. skill
19.A. excitement B. determination C. anger D. anxiety
20.A. ability B. advantage C. problem D. exception
Why Do We Forget Things?
When it comes to having perfect memories, it is apparent that we humans must have had some faults in our blueprints(蓝图)! Why don’t we remember everything that we want to remember? It makes us feel upset and get discouraged. 1. However, it’s true that we are all forgetful.
2.These are stored in what we call our “long-term memory”. What about before age three? Sigmund Freud, a doctor of Vienna, discovered the fact that we forget most of our early childhood. 3.They have different opinions. A very good theory, born from the results of experimentation with babies, is that absence of language ability at the time of an event stopped us from describing it to others.
4. Experts say that you can keep about seven things in your memory at once for up to three days. During that time, you may forget something in order to put something else in its place, or you put it into long-term memory. What goes into short-term memory are things you’ve learned about recently, in the past day or two. 5.For example, you may have met your favorite star last week, and this week you can tell all the details to a friend. A simple example to explain your short-term memory is to look at a list of twenty words for a minute or two. You will discover that you cannot remember more than about seven of them and that they are the ones in the beginning and at the end of the list because your mind has judged them to be more important than those in the middle.
A.Scientists now know that it may take longer to remember things for the old.
B.However, it is widely recognized that short-term memory can be improved.
C.Sometimes, it even causes us to lose self-respect or others to think less of us.
D.Psychologists have been studying what causes this forgetfulness since Freud’s time.
E.Most of us have vivid memories of our lives from about age three to our present ages.
F.Only if something really unusual happens does it stay in your short-term memory for longer.
G.The other type of memory, the “short-term memory”, is what we are usually referring to when we say, “I forgot.”
It’s holiday season and time for shopping. There are a bunch of items on your shopping lists ranging from small gifts, toys and festive decorations to Christmas and New Year cards. What’s your first reaction to products labeled “Made in China”? If you still tend to relate “Made in China” to poor quality, you need to update your ideas. China’s ability to produce high-quality products has been recognized by a growing number of foreigners. It’s a misunderstanding to associate low quality with “Made in China”.
Cameron Purdy, a Web user, says that China manufactures poor-quality products does not mean it cannot manufacture high-quality products. He explains that the poor-quality products one purchases in the US for example, are made in the quality that the American companies ask for. “The price that you pay for the product has no relationship to the cost of its manufacturing,” suggested Purdy. For example, for an item priced at $20 in the US, the cost of manufacturing it paid by the American company is usually less than $1. To guarantee the room for profit, the Chinese co-manufacturer spends less than $1 to produce the item.
Amanda Wu, who lives in Shanghai, noted that many top brands have manufacturing factories located in China, and the most convincing example of China’s manufacturing quality is Apple products. On the back of the iPhone, one can find the product is Made in China—“Designed by Apple in California. Assembled (装备) in China. ”Chinese and foreign Web users commented that some Chinese products with good reputations around the world are Haier, Lenovo, GREE, Huawei and China Railway High-speed.
On the other hand, foreign misunderstandings can sometimes affect Chinese people’s minds. For instance, when Chinese people travel abroad, some would still avoid buying products Made in China. It’s time for the world to stop relating Made in China with low-quality products. Just remember, you get what you pay for.
1.How does Purdy make his point more convincing?
A. By using quotes. B. By making experiments.
C. By making comparisons. D. By giving examples.
2.How many Chinese products are well received worldwide in the text?
A. Seven B. Six.
C. Five. D. Four.
3.When abroad, Chinese people don’t buy Chinese products because of ________.
A. high price B. low quality
C. old fashions D. foreign misunderstanding
4.What is the main idea of the text?
A. Chinese products are the best in the world.
B. How to tell apart the quality of Chinese products.
C. How to improve the quality of Chinese products.
D. Chinese products don’t have to mean poor quality.
Owls and Larks
Larks are most likely to be healthy, wealthy and wise, according to the old saying.
But those who are early to bed and early to rise do not always have the upper hand, researchers say. They have found that night owls are generally brighter and wealthier than those able to get up early in the morning.
Experts from the University of Madrid carried out tests on around 1,000 teenagers and found that those who preferred to stay up late proved the kind of intelligence associated with honored jobs and higher incomes. “Larks” or “morning people”, however, often acquired better exam results, possibly because lessons are held at the wrong time of day for night owls. The researchers examined the habits and body clocks of the youngsters to determine whether they liked to stay up late and sleep later in the morning, or preferred to go to bed early and were at their peak in the morning. School performance and inductive(归纳的)intelligence, or problem solving, were measured and academic grades in the major subjects were also taken into account. The results showed that evening types scored higher than morning types on inductive reasoning, which has been shown to be a good estimate of general intelligence and a strong indicator of academic（学术的） performance. They also had a greater capacity（能力） to think conceptually（概念地） as well as analytically. Such abilities have been linked to innovative(创新的) thinking, more admired occupations and better incomes.
Famous night owls include President Trump, Obama, Charles Darwin, Winston Churchill, Keith Richards and Elvis Presley. George W. Bush, who is regularly in bed by 10 p.m., Thomas Edison, Napoleon, Condoleezza Rice, who wakes at 4:30 a.m., and Ernest Hemingway are among those known as larks. Jim Horne, professor of psychophysiology at Loughborough University, said, “Evening types tend to be the more active and creative types, the poets, artists and inventors, while the morning types are the deducers(推导者), as are often seen with civil servants and accountants.” A previous study of US Air Force recruits found that evening types were much better at thinking to solve problems than larks.
1.What does the word “owl” mean in the text?
A. A bird of prey that flies at night.
B. A bird of prey that is a symbol of wisdom.
C. A kind of person who stays up late.
D. A kind of person who gets up early.
2.The following features belong to night owls EXCEPT that ________.
A. Night owls are much healthier, wealthier and wiser
B. Night owls stay up late and sleep later in the morning
C. Night owls have a strong ability of inductive reasoning
D. Night owls are expert in analyzing and innovative thinking
3.What’s the author’s attitude towards night owls?
A. Doubtful. B. Objective.
C. Subjective. D. Negative.
4.According to the passage, which of the following is true?
A. President Trump and George W. Bush are models of night owls.
B. The early bird will catch the worm.
C. Morning types have a tendency to do some creative jobs.
D. Night owls usually do poorer in the examinations than larks.
If you think American cooking means opening a package and throwing the contents into the microwave oven (微波炉), think again. On the one hand, it’s true that many Americans have cold cereal for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch and instant (方便的) dinners. From busy homemakers to working people, many Americans enjoy the convenience of fast food that can be ready to serve in 10 minutes or less. On the other hand, many Americans realize the importance of cooking skills. Parents—especially mothers’—see the importance of training their children—especially daughter’s. Most Americans think that there’s nothing better than a good home-cooked meal. But with cooking, as with any other skill, good results don’t happen by accident.
Probably every cook has his or her own way of cooking. But there are some basic skills that most people follow. For example, baking is a main method of preparing food in America. For that reason, Americans would find it next to impossible to live without an oven. American cooks pay special attention to the balance of foods, too. In planning a big meal, they try to include meat, a few vegetables, some bread and often a dessert. They also like to make sure the meal is colorful. Having several different colors of food on the plate usually makes for a healthy meal.
For those who need guidance in their cooking, or for those who have just run out of ideas, recipes are a great help. Recipes list all the ingredients for a dish (generally in the order used), the amount of each to use, and a description of how to put them together.
1.This passage mainly tells us that ________.
A. Americans usually have fast food, but they pay special attention to cooking as well
B. without an oven, Americans find it impossible to live conveniently
C. Americans pay special attention to recipes and nutritious meals
D. Americans like to have several different colors of food on the plate
2.Many Americans have cold cereal for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch and instant dinner because ________.
A. they like instant food very much
B. they don’t like cooking at all
C. most American working people are busy and don’t have time to cook
D. fast food is delicious and it usually contains a 1ot of vitamins
3.By saying “But with cooking, as with any other skill, good results don’t happen by accident”, the author means ________.
A. good cooking doesn’t come easily: it needs a lot of practice
B. just like any other skill, cooking may bring good results
C. cooking comes from one’s gift, not through practice
D. cooking can lead to accidents
4.From the passage, we know that ________.
A. Americans don’t care about food
B. Americans are not good at cooking because they like to use recipes
C. an oven plays an important role in cooking for Americans
D. while cooking, Americans usually run out of ideas
