A Box of Biscuits
My mom received a large box of cookies from her property management company for Christmas. It was a lovely ______, but neither she nor I eat cookies so we decided to pass along the gift to someone who would really ______ it. It ended up being a fun ______ of figuring out who would be given the cookies.
Airports are ______ a busy place during the holidays; I ______, why not give them to a/an ______ airport worker? I put them in with my stuff and brought them to the airport. I ______ in line at the check-in counter for my flight home.
I had plenty of time to ______ the line of agents, and I started wondering who would ______ me and who would become my gift ______. When it became my ______, I approached the agent with my bag. He was pleasant but I could tell he was a bit ______ from the holiday queues. He took my ______ and gave me my boarding pass.
“Do you ______ cookies?” I asked.
“Of course! Who doesn’t?” he said.
“Here, Merry Christmas!” I said as I ______ the already-wrapped cookie box on the counter.
He smiled and said “Thank you! Merry Christmas indeed!” and began to ______ the next passenger. I smiled and went on my way to the security line.
What could have been a/an ______, uneventful wait in a check-in line turned into an exciting wait by giving something ______ to someone who could use it as a ______. By doing this, I was ______ knowing that he had a box of cookies to look forward to after a long day at work.
1.A.inspiration B.success C.kindness D.payment
2.A.enjoy B.order C.benefit D.store
3.A.adventure B.project C.movement D.thing
4.A.slightly B.surely C.hopefully D.approximately
5.A.begged B.hesitated C.thought D.doubted
6.A.busy B.acedemic C.intelligent D.honest
7.A.complained B.looked C.wandered D.waited
8.A.assist B.judge C.drag D.resist
9.A.arrest B.follow C.serve D.interview
10.A.seeker B.maker C.receiver D.sender
11.A.turn B.chance C.action D.performance
12.A.fortunate B.confused C.amazing D.tired
13.A.duty B.bag C.advice D.photo
14.A.make B.like C.have D.buy
15.A.placed B.stole C.bought D.sold
16.A.see off B.refer to C.watch over D.deal with
17.A.worrying B.boring C.embarrassing D.interesting
18.A.small B.rare C.basic D.absurd
19.A.tool B.barrier C.treat D.means
20.A.nervous B.anxious C.sad D.content
The Ayaidah, a Bedouin tribe in north-eastern Egypt, is the last to practice the Bisha’h to determine whether a suspect (嫌疑犯) in a crime is innocent or guilty. They have to lick (舔) a red-hot spoon in the presence of officials. They are guilty, 1..
Believed to date back to ancient Mesopotamia, Bisha’h was used by most Bedouin tribes (部落) throughout the centuries, but all except the Ayaidah eventually abandoned it. 2.. Considered by many of the world’s oldest rude system, Bisha’h was mostly used in situations where a crime was committed, but there were no witnesses. Suspects had to lick a heated spoon to prove their innocence.
The principle behind Bisha’h is that a lying person is nervous and has a dry mouth. 3.. If they are innocent, they are relaxed, so the saliva (唾液) on the tongue will protect it against the red-hot metal.
4.. This way not only causes physical harm to suspects, but also often leads to their mental damage.
Today, the Bisha’h is used as a last way, 5.. It’s also used as a way of scaring suspects into admitting their crimes. For example, if the suspects admit what they had done, there is no need to move on with the Bisha’h. That is considered another weakness of this lie detection system, as some people will accept the blame if it means not having to lick hot metal to prove they are innocent.
A. if their tongue is hurt seriously
B. when they have used these methods
C. So their tongues will be burned by the hot metal
D. when there is no other proof or witnesses available
E. All the countries like the way of punishment
F. This way of punishment is banned in countries like Jordan and Saudi Arabia
G. However, those who are against the punishment think that it is not always the case
For a girl who’s interested in fashion, what would be the dream job? Being a model? Probably no — that’s for a pencil thin who doesn’t eat. One answer is, fashion stylist.
Girls can find it hard to ignore this attractiveness and the field is opening up to normal girls, not only style or fashion design majors. “It looked too high before, but now I find it more approachable,” said Xue Rui, 22, a Fudan University Chinese literature graduate who works as an assistant stylist at Hermes in Shanghai. “There is no certain principle in dressing up models, and you can try every way with your own distinct taste to make them pretty and attractive.” Some professionals said that Xue’s not mistaken.
The attractiveness of this work is not only in the wonderful clothes. Now it’s a career with a bright future and pay packet. The income can allow you to buy expensive clothes and, with your name and photo appearing on pages, readers will remember your fashion tips.
A stylist at a fashion magazine can have some unique rights. You have a chance to contact famous persons and dress them up in a style you like. You need to cooperate with top photographers and select places around the world to take photos in. You might also be invited to fashion shows of top brands and can select some of the favorite clothes.
“You have to be all-round, from hair and make-up to clothes, shoes, and accessories (配饰) to the event,” said He Qing, 21, a junior in fashion design at the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology. “You have to know everything, and handle several things at the same time. It’s challenging. That’s why I love it.”
So, remember, girls, you’ve been warned.
1.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A.There are certain principles in dressing up models.
B.The only attractiveness of a fashion stylist is in the wonderful clothes.
C.Only style or fashion design majors can work as a fashion stylist.
D.A stylist knows how to make a person beautiful, from head to toe.
2.The underlined phrase “pay pocket” means _____.
A.a large bag B.a large amount of money
C.a great chance D.a good choice
3.What is the unique right a stylist at a fashion magazine can have?
A.He/She has a chance to contact celebrities and dresses them up in a style he/she likes.
B.He/She needs to cooperate with top photographers and select places around the world to take photos in.
C.He/She might be invited to fashion shows of top brands and can select some of the favorite clothes.
D.All of the above.
4.Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
A.Top brands. B.Fashion majors.
C.Fashion stylists. D.Promising Girls.
There is a popular saying in the English language: “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Well, that is not true. Unlike words, name-calling or even the so-called “the silent treatment” can hurt children as much as being physically hit, sometimes even more so.
A recent study of middle school children showed that verbal (言语的) abuse by other children can harm development in the brain. The study was a project of researchers at Harvard Medical School in Massachusetts. Researcher Martin Teicher and his team studied young adults, aged 18 to 25. These young men and women had not ever been treated in a cruel or violent way by their parents. The researchers asked the young people to rate their childhood exposure to verbal abuse from both parents and other children. Then the researchers performed imaging tests on the brains of the subjects (实验对象).
The images showed that the people who reported suffering verbal abuse from peers (同龄人) in middle school had underdeveloped connections between the left and right side of the brain. The two sides of the brain are connected by connecting fibers (纤维) called the corpus callosum (胼胝体). This was the area that was underdeveloped.
The middle school years are a time when these brain connections are developing. So, unkind, hurtful comments from children or adults during this period have the greatest effect. The researchers tested the mental and emotional condition of all the young people in the study. The tests showed that this same group of people had higher levels of fear, depression, anger and drug abuse than others in the study.
The researchers published their findings online on the American Journal of Psychiatry’s website.
Parents cannot control what other people say to their children, but they can prepare their children.
1.What did the subjects have in common?
A.They were hurt by unkind words.
B.They performed poorly in imaging tests.
C.They had their brain slightly damaged.
D.They experienced no physical abuse at home.
2.Why does the author use the popular saying at the beginning?
A.To show the power of words. B.To introduce an opposite view.
C.To prove the author’s argument. D.To show ancient people’s wisdom.
3.What is the main idea of the passage?
A.The way we speak matters.
B.Verbal violence should be stopped.
C.Unkind words hurt the brain.
D.Words are worse than sticks and stones.
4.What will be discussed in the next paragraph?
A.Comments on the findings. B.Approaches to further studies.
C.Suggestions to parents. D.Different opinions on the matter.
阅读理解
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。
Traveling without a map in different countries, I find out about different ways of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”
Foreign tourists are often puzzled in Japan because most streets there don’t have name signs. In Japan, people use landmarks (地标) in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.”
People in Los Angeles, the US, have no idea of distance on the map: they measure distance by time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here.” You don’t understand completely, “Yes, but how many miles away is it, please?” To this question you won’t get an answer, because most probably they don’t know it themselves.
People in Greece sometimes do not even try to give directions because tourists seldom understand the Greek language. Instead, a Greek will often say, “Follow me.” Then he’ll lead you through the streets of the city to the post office.
Sometimes a person doesn’t know the answer to your question. What happens in the situation? A New Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea.” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don’t know.” People there believe that “I don’t” is impolite. They usually give an answer, but often a wrong one. So a tourist can get lost very easily in Yucatan! However, one thing will help you everywhere in the world. It’s body language.
1.Which of the following is probably an example of Japanese directions?
A.“The post office is at Street Kamira.”
B.“Turn right at the hospital and go past a school.”
C.“The post office is about five minutes from here.”
D.“Go south two miles. Turn west and then go another mile.”
2.Why don’t people in Los Angeles give directions in miles?
A.They prefer to lead you the way.
B.They prefer to use body language.
C.They often have no idea of distance measured by miles.
D.They use landmarks in their directions instead of distance.
3.How do Greeks give directions?
A.Using street names.
B.Using landmarks.
C.Leading people the way.
D.Giving people a wrong direction.
4.According to the last paragraph, we can learn that_____________________.
A.people in Yucatan always give wrong directions
B.people in Mexico know streets’ name well
C.body language makes you get lost in Yucatan
D.people in Mexico prefer to use body language
Volunteer Opportunities Abroad
Working place: Brasov, Romania
Living place: Host families
Age requirements: 16~19 years old
Local official language: Romanian
For those looking to break into the competitive world of journalism, this is for you! You will be working at “The Village”, an English and Romanian language magazine. As a writer you will work on special tasks, reporting local events with guidance from the editor. You will be interviewing local people, writing reports, and taking photographs. You will also have the chance to live with a local host family to experience their culture.
Working place: Koh Sdach, Cambodia
Living place: Host families
Age requirements: 15~19 years old
Local official languages: English & Khmer
Volunteers joining our project in Cambodia will travel to the island of Koh Sdach. You will become part of this tiny island, learn to dive (潜水), and take part in valuable social projects.
During your stay you will complete a course to learn to dive. After that you will take part in dives to clean up rubbish under the sea and collect information on rare fish. During the two weeks you may also have the chance to join in a village fun day where volunteers play games with the village children.
Working place: Accn, Ghna
Living place: Host families
Age requirements: 16~19 years old
Local official languages: English &Twi
On this project you will spend two weeks living with a host family and coaching soccer in friendly West Africa! You will spend your two weeks in Accra helping local children develop their soccer skills. You will develop their skills and confidence while having fun playing soccer at the same time.
1.What will the volunteers in Cambodia do?
A.Help with fishing. B.Give a diving course.
C.Do some cleaning work. D.Teach the village children.
2.The underlined word “coaching” probably means ________.
A.nursing B.watching
C.playing D.teaching
3.All the volunteers of the three projects will ________.
A.work for two weeks B.be at least 16 years old
C.stay with local families D.learn the local language
