A desert is a beautiful land of silence and space. The sun shines, the wind blows, and time and space seem endless. Nothing is soft. The sand and rocks are hard, and many of the plants even have hard needles instead of leaves.
The size and location(分布) of the world’s deserts are always changing. Over millions of years, as climates change and mountains rise, new dry and wet areas develop. But within the last 100 yeas, deserts have been growing at a frightening speed. This is partly because of natural changes, but the greatest makers are humans.
Humans can make deserts, but humans can also prevent their growth. Algeria Mauritania is planting a similar wall around Nouakchott, the capital. Iran puts a thin covering of petroleum(石油) on sandy areas and plants trees. The oil keeps the water and small trees in the land, and men on motorcycles(摩托车) keep the sheep and goats away. The USSR and India are building long canals to bring water to desert areas. In this passage, “needles” refers to _______.
| A．small, thin pieces of steel. |
| B．long, thin pieces of branches. |
| C．small pointed growth on the stem(茎) of a plant. |
| D．small, thin pieces of sticks. |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．The greatest desert makers are humans. |
| B．There aren’t any living things in the deserts. |
| C．Deserts have been growing quickly. |
| D．The size of the deserts is always changing. |
People in some countries are fighting a battle against _______.
| A．the growth of deserts | B．the disappearance of desert plants |
| C．natural changes | D．congenital climate |
We can guess that Mauritania and Algeria belong to _______.
| A．Asian countries | B．American countries |
| C．European counties | D．African countries |
Choose the sentence which best gives the main idea of the passage.
| A．The deserts of the world are always changing. |
| B．Man is to take measures to control the growth of the world’s deserts. |
| C．Deserts are lands of silence and space. |
| D．Deserts have grown at a fast pace in the past 10 years. |
Cleverness is a gift while kindness is a choice. Gifts are easy---they’re given after all. Choice can be hard.
I got the idea to start Amazon 16 years ago. I came across the fact that the Internet usage was growing at 2300 percent per year. I’d never seen or heard of anything that grew that fast, and the idea of building an online bookstore with millions of titles was very exciting to me, I had just turned 30 years old , and I’d been married for a year, I told my wife MacKenzie that I wanted to quit my job and go to do this crazy thing that probably wouldn’t work since most start-ups don’t , and I wasn’t sure what to expect, MacKenzie told me I should go for it. As a young boy, I’d been a garage inventor, I’d always wanted to be an inventor, and she wanted me to follow my passion.
I was working at a financial firm in New York City with a bunch of very smart people, and I had a brilliant boss that I much admired. I went to my boss and told him I wanted to start a company selling books on the Internet. He took me on a long walk in Central Park, listened carefully to me, and finally said, “That sounds like a really good idea, but it would be an even better idea for someone who didn’t already have a good job.” That logic made some sense to me, and he convinced me to think about it for 48 hours before making a final decision. Seen in that light, it really was a difficult choice, but ultimately, I decided I had to give it a shot. I didn’t think I’d regret trying and failing. And I suspected I would always be haunted by a decision to not try at all.
After much consideration, I took the less safe path to follow my passion, and I’m proud of that choice, For all of us, in the end, we are our choice. What inspired the author with the idea of building an online bookstore?
| A．His dream if being an inventor. |
| B．The support of his wife. |
| C．The greatly increasing usage of the Internet. |
| D．Millions of exciting titles. |
Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined sentence?
| A．The idea of not trying would keep coming to his mind and disturb him. |
| B．He would be very excited if he tried it out. |
| C．He would be always having a doubt if he didn’t try. |
| D．The decision to not try the online bookstore would terrify him. |
We can know from the passage that ______.
| A．the boss thought the idea was suitable for the author |
| B．the author wanted someone else to try the idea |
| C．the author might not regret if he failed the idea |
| D．the author might go back to his boss if he failed |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Cleverness and Kindness |
| B．The Starting of Amazon |
| C．Following My Passion |
| D．We Are What We Choose |
Stay-at home careers are the preferred way to earn a living for those who like to set their own hours and be their own boss, mothers of young children, and those who like to avoid office politics．There are plenty of opportunities to earn from home．Even if you earn little first, the quality of life should make up for the loss of income．Take a look at the following choices for home-birds:
Online tutoring—You can earn anything from Rs 8,000 to 30,000 a month if you are a qualified teacher with computer and communication skills．The subjects in demand these days are math, English, physics, chemistry and biology．You can either teach part-time （4 hours） or full-time （9 hours）．
Freelance writers—You have a good writing skills but don’t have time to work a nine-to-five job? You can still use your skills and earn a good amount of money．Many companies these days require good writers．One can earn up to Rs 8,000 to 50,000．
Online-traders—Earn a lot of money by share trading．Just clear the NCFM （Capital Market） exam and you 
can start trading．You can bring in Rs 10,000 to 1000,000 per month．
Designers—If you have the creative skills and a creative gift, try becoming a designer．Designers are required in different fields．One can earn nearly Rs 8,000 to 20,000 per month．According to the passage, those who likes stay-at-home careers ________．
| A．perhaps can’t earn as much as those working in an office |
| B．needn’t do anything at home and earns a lot |
| C．can’t be mothers who have children to look after |
| D．are often worried about office politics |
If you want to be an online-trader, you will have to ________．
| A．be more than 18 years old |
| B．pass a kind of exam |
| C．have good writing skills |
| D．have creative skills and a creative gift |
The passage is written mainly to ________．
| A．sell products to readers |
| B．join the author’s company |
| C．give some advice to readers |
| D．get help from readers |
Science Daily—Kids may roll their eyes when their mothers asks them about their school day, but answering her may actually help them learn．New research from Vanderbilt University reveals that children learn the solution to a problem best when they explain it to their mom．
“We knew that children learn well with their moms or with a peer, but we did not know if that was because they were getting feedback and help,” Bethany Rittle-Johnson, the study’s lead author and assistant professor of psychology at Vanderbilt’s Peabody College of education and human development, said．
“In this study, we just had the children’s mothers listen, without providing any assistance．We’ve found that by simply listening, a mother helps her child learn．”
Rittle-Johnson believes the new finding can help parents better assist their children with their schoolwork, even when they are not sure of the answer themselves．Although the researchers used children and their mothers in the study, they believe the same results will hold true whether the person is the child’s father, grandparent, or other familiar persons．
“The basic idea is that it is really effective to try to get kids to explain things themselves instead of just telling them the answer,” she said．“Explaining their reasoning, to a parent or perhaps to other people they know, will help them understand the problem and apply what they have learned to other situations．We saw that this simple act of listening by mom made a difference in the quality of the child’s explanations and how well they could solve more difficult problems later on．According to the passage, a mom had better ________．
| A．give a kid some help when he is explaining his problem |
| B．just listen while a kid is explaining his problem |
| C．work together with a kid toward the solution to a problem |
D．leave a kid alone when he meets a problem a t school |
If she wants to help a child with his schoolwork, a mom ________．
| A．should know the answer to a problem first |
| B．should pay attention to the child’s feedback． |
| C．may not know the answer herself |
| D．should not interrupt the child |
Who will be the least help to a kid when he is explaining, according to Rittle-Johnson?
| A．The kid’s mom． | B．The kid’s grandmother． |
| C．A peer． | D．A relative the kid doesn’t know． |
Which of the following best gives the main idea of the passage?
| A．Children learn better when their mom is hearing their explaining． |
| B．Children learn better if they find the solution to a problem themselves． |
| C．Parents should not provide any assistance to their children’s schoolwork． |
| D．A mom should listen more to their children when they have problems at school． |
The Wife-carrying World Championship has been celebrated in a small town in central Finland since 1992．In 1992, the people of the town decided to restart some long-forgotten traditions．Back in the late 1800s, there was a robber called Rosvo-Ronkainen in that area．He was said to only accept men as members of his gang who proved their worth in challenges．At that time, it was also a common practice to steal women from neighboring villages．
This event is becoming increasingly popular．A large number of competitors, people, and journalists from Finland to Canada attend the Wife-carrying World Championship every year．
The event is famous for its warm and humorous atmosphere．The Wife-carrying World Championship is held on a 253．3 meters long official track．The track has two dry obstacles （障碍物）and a water obstacle, about a meter deep．
There are a few basic rules and the winner is the couple who complete the course in the shortest time．The wife to be carried may be your own, or your neighbor’s．The minimum weight of the wife to be carried is 49 kg．If she is less than 49kg, the wife will be given a heavy bag to carry．Each time a competitor drops his wife, that couple will be fined 15 seconds．
Alongside with the Wife-carrying World Championship, there is also a team competition．The distance is the same but three men in the team carry the wife in turns．At the exchange point the carrier has to drink official “wife-carrying drink”．Then he may continue the race．A special prize is awarded to the team with the best costumes．
While the Wife-carrying World Championship is being held, there are bands playing music, a wife-carrying dance and other forms of entertainment．The Wife-carrying World Championship is famous because ________．
| A．it is held on a 253．3 meters long official track |
| B．many competitors take part in it |
| C．it has a pleasant atmosphere |
| D．the winner will be awarded a lot of money |
If a husband drops his wife 3 times in the competition, he will be fined ________．
| A．15 seconds | B．30 seconds |
| C．45 seconds | D．60 seconds |
Compared with the Wife-carrying World Championship, the team competition ________．
| A．is more exciting | B．has a special prize |
| C．has a different track | D．has three teams altogether |
The passage is written mainly to ________．
| A．warn people that the competition is dangerous． |
| B．attract more visitors to the Wife-carrying World Championship． |
| C．introduce how the Wife-carrying World Championship has become popular． |
| D．tell us something about the Wife-carrying World Championship． |
Yesterday was my stepmother’s birthday．I haven’t been home for a long time, so I wanted to stop by the house to see her on this special day．
I have been struggling on a low inc
ome so I was afraid that I couldn’t afford the long trip．Gas is so expensive nowadays! Anyway, I filled my tank with gas and set off．
I stopped at a shopping mall and found a present．It was the perfect gift and I knew she would love it．But when I got to the cashier, my card wasdeclined! I didn’t have enough money in my account to pay for the gift!
So I pondered the issue for a few minutes．I could put it back and get something cheaper, but I knew there was nothing else in the store she would have liked as much．So, I got to my smart-phone and transferred some money from my saving account and was able to buy the gift．It took a big part of my savings but I wanted her to have something special．
It turned out that she loved the gift and I felt that even though I had spent almost all my money, my stepmother deserved the best．I was glad I gave her the best I could．
Before I left my parents’ house, my dad took me to one side and, with our secret handshake, he gave me some money．I hadn’t said anything to him about my financial condition, but I guessed my dad just knew it．When I got to the car, I saw the amount he gave me was three times what I had spent on the gas and the gift!
It goes to show that doing the right thing always comes with great rewards．Why was the writer unwilling to have a long trip?
| A．Because gas was hardly available． |
| B．Because the writer didn’t like driving． |
| C．Because the writer was short of money． |
| D．Because the road was difficult to drive on． |
The underlined word “pondered” in Paragraph 4 probably means ________．
| A．thought about | B．tried on |
| C．depended on | D．got through |
From the passage, we can infer that ________．
| A．the writer loves his stepmother very much |
| B．the gift the writer bought was loved by his father very much |
| C．the writer spend all his savings buying the gift for his stepmother |
| D．the gift the writer bought was the most expensive one in the shop |
Why did the writer’s father shake hands with the writer in secret?
| A．Because he wanted to ask the writer for something special． |
| B．Because he wanted to give the writer some money． |
| C．Because he knew the writer had been struggling financially． |
| D．Because he didn’t want others to copy their handshake． |