How I Turned to Be Optimistic
I began to grow up that winter night when my parents and I were returning from my aunt's house, and my mother said that we might soon be leaving for America. We were on the bus then. I was crying, and some people on the bus were turning around to look at me. I remember that I could not bear the thought of never hearing again the radio program for school children to which I listened every morning.
I do not remember myself crying for this reason again. In fact, I think I cried very little when I was saying goodbye to my friends and relatives. When we were leaving I thought about all the places I was going to see-—the strange and magical places I had known only from books and pictures. The country I was leaving never to come back was hardly in my head then.
The four years that followed taught me the importance of optimism, but the idea did not come to me at once. For the first two years in New York I was really lost—having to study in three schools as a result of family moves. I did not quite know what I was or what I should be. Mother remarried, and things became even more complex for me. Some time passed before my stepfather and I got used to each other. I was often sad, and saw no end to "the hard times."
My responsibilities in the family increased a lot since I knew English better than everyone else at home. I wrote letters, filled out forms, translated at interviews with Immigration officers, took my grandparents to the doctor and translated there, and even discussed telephone bills with company representatives.
From my experiences I have learned one important rule: almost all common troubles eventually go away! Something good is certain to happen in the end when you do not give up, and just wait a little! I believe that my life will turn out all right, even though it will not be that easy.How did the author get to know America?
| A． From her relatives. | B． From her mother. |
| C． From books and pictures. | D． From radio programs. |
Upon leaving for America the author felt_______.
| A．confused | B．excited |
| C．worried | D． amazed |
For the first two years in New York, the author _________.
| A．often lost her way | B．did not think about her future |
| C．studied in three different schools | D．got on well with her stepfather |
What can we learn about the author from Paragraph 4?
| A．She worked as a translator. |
| B．She attended a lot of job interviews. |
| C．She paid telephone bills for her family. |
| D．She helped her family with her English. |
The author believes that______.
| A．her future will be free from troubles |
| B．it is difficult to learn to become patient |
| C．there are more good things than bad things |
| D．good things will happen if one keeps trying |
Sixteen-year-old Karlos Dearmans’s future is looking much brighter than be might have imagined. “I’ve always been into bikes, but never thought I’d end up working with them,” he says. “This scheme has changed my life.”
Karlos is learning to refurbish(翻新) old bicycles in the workshop of ReCycle Bikes, a local community(社区) charity in Sheffied, which has a contract with the city council to provide training opportunities for young people aged 14 to 16, particularly those dropping out of school.
“It’s about engaging youngsters with education and you thtraining by teaching them work and life skills,” explains Des Pearce, workshop training manager. “These young people have so much potential, but often don’t realize it.”
Established in 2001, ReCycle Bikes repairs bicycles donated by the public, which, once restored, are sold for ￡20. Abandoned bikes supplied by the council ensure a steady flow of bikes, but a recently formed partnership with Sheffield University should improve further the prospects of the young mechanics.
“The student population presents a large and ready market,” says Pearce. “So we approached the university last year and offered to host bike sales on the campus. They thought it was a great idea, and agreed to supplement our council funding. This means we can train youngsters to repair extra 500 bikes over three years.”
Having set up ReCycle Bikes on his own, Pearce now has the staff and resources to track the career development of those who have passed through his workshop. “However, in the past we depended on the evidence of personal accounts from the schools because of lack of human and material resources,” he says.
That most of the teenagers enjoy the work is, according to Pearce, easily explained. “Most kids have ridden a bike and know how to oil a chain or mend a puncture. As low-cost transport, cycling gives the young and old a sense of freedom and independence, and the impact on their well-being is immense. Add to that a growing concern for the environment, and it’s no surprise that bike sales are on the increase.”
72．What do we know about ReCycle Bikes?
A．It is a popular brand of bikes which are sold in Sheffield．
B．It is a local community charity that provides training opportunities for reenagers．
C．It is a contract signed between a local community charity and the city council．
D．It is a training program offered by the city council to those excluded from school．
73．How did ReCycle Bikes run at the beginning?
A．By repairing bicycles donated by the public and selling them．
B．By donations from the public and Sheffield University．
C．By selling bicycles supplied by the city council．
D．By tuition fees from kids aged between 14 and 16．
74．ReCycle Bikes has formed a partnership with Sheffield University because ____________．
A．students at Sheffield University assure a large and ready market
B．Sheffield University offers many mechanical teachers to ReCycle Bikes
C．Sheffield University donates a lot of money to ReCycle Bikes
D．teenagers at ReCycle Bikes can study at Sheffield University
75．ReCycle Bikes depended on information from the schools in the past because .
A．the schools could give accurate information to improve its service
B．students disliked telling the truth when asked about their personal ideas
C．ReCycle Bikes didn’t have the ability to track students’ career development．
D．most of the training organizations did it this way at that moment
The cost of rice is expected to go up in the coming months, as an improving global economy raises demand, and drought (旱灾) cuts production in countries such as India. Some economists say prices for rice, the Precision Castingstaple food for much of the world's population, could be returning to levels that sparked inflation(通货膨胀) fears in much of Asia last year.
Charuk Singhapreecha is dean of the faculty (系)of economics at Thailand’s Kasetsart University. He says prices – especially for Thai rice – are being pushed higher by new customers coming into the market after the economic slowdown of the past year. “They expect that the world demand will increase andCast steel we expect that the price of rice will increase next year," Charuk said. "There are many new markets for the Thai rice and also we still have for our old customer - China, some Arab countries - they will increase the demand."
Prices on the global market could again near the record above $1,000 a ton set in the middle of 2008. This month, export prices for Southeast Asian rice have jumped from about $550 a ton or less to more than $650.
Vichai Sriprasert, president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association, says further weakness in the US dollar and concerns over drought add to pressure on prices. Market experts say next year India is likely to try to import three million tons of rice – entering the world market for the first time in 21 years – because of a drought.
Vichai also warns that increasing demand for bio-fuels(生物燃料) from grain could reduce food crops, forcing the price of food grains higher. "This is very serious. That's why the price of rice will not go back to the level that we used to see," Vichai said. "It will have to be elevated at a higher level, but I don't know where."
The Philippines this week said it is cutting rice imports because of high prices, even though the country lost more than a million tons of grain to typhoons this year. Officials from Vietnam, a leading export competitor with Thailand, predict prices will reach about $800 a ton by the middle of 2010. This week the Philippines' National Food Authority offered almost $665 a ton for 600,000 tons of Vietnamese rice.
Economists say higher food prices will only increase the problems faced by the region's poor, who are highly dependent on rice as a staple food.
68．Which of the following is NOT true according to paragraph 1?
A．Drought reduces production of rice in India.
B．Prices for rice were lower all the time in 2008.
C．Rice is a major food for the world’s population.
D．The improving global economy increases the need for rice.
69．How many reasons did Vichai mention about rice price’s going up?
A．1. B．2. C．3. D．4.
70．Why does the Philippines plan to cut rice imports?
A．Because of high prices. B．Because of typhoons.
C．Because of civil war. D．Because of drought.
71．What’s the best title of the passage?
A．Higher food prices will increase problems
B．There are many new markets for the Thai rice
C．The global economy is improving
D．Prices for rice are expected to rise
Jean – Gilles was a millionaire. But Tuesday night, he was sleeping in his car.
Jean – Gilles was the owner of the Peace of Mind Hotel in Jacmel, Haiti, a three – story, 30 – room building in a quiet tropical valley on Haiti’s southern coast, 25 miles from the noises of the capital, Port – au – Prince. Jean – Gilles and his wife, Marie, lived in an apartment on the property, close enough to watch carefully over the guest rooms, conference rooms and restaurant, close enough that they know the first name of every guest.
After the 7.0 – earthquake hit at 4:57 pm on Jan. 12,2010, they slept in their aging Isuzu, parked in the hotel driveway.
Jean – Gilles figured a second was the difference between life and death when the earthquake struck. He was working in a ground – floor conference room and first heard, then felt the quake. He asked his electrician, Roberne St. Louis, who was working nearby, what was happening.
“Get out. Now . Get out. Now,” St. Louis said.
Jean – Gilles cleared the falling structure by a mere second, he estimated. His wife, who was working in the couple’s apartment on the second floor, wasn’t able to get clear. People nearby heard her screams after the shaking stopped and removed the building blocks around her by hand. She was shaken and scratched, but walked away from the ruins.
“I am alive. God is good,” she repeated over and over on Saturday.
The Peace of Mind Hotel was a dream which had come true for Jean – Gilles, 57, and Marie, 59. Born in Port – au – Prince, they moved to the United States shortly after meeting 34 years ago. Together, they owned a beauty supply store in jersey City, New Jersey, and invested in real estate. In 2003, they cashed out their US investments, returned to Haiti and began building the Peace of Mind Hotel, looking to make a future for themselves and the people of their homeland.
64．Which of the following statements about Jean – Gilles is TURE?
A．He lived far from the Peace of Mind Hotel.
B．He helped St. Louis to manage a hotel.
C．He was born in Haiti in 1976.
D．He once owned a store in the US.
65．According to the passage, the Peace of Mind Hotel .
A．offered guests different services
B．was located in the capital city of Haiti
C．was a building with 30 guest rooms
D．was owned by Marie and St. Louis
66．When the earthquake hit, Marie was .
A．sleeping in the car B．working in the conference room
C．working on the second floor D．cooking in the restaurant
67．It can be inferred from the passage that .
A．Haiti is the 51 st state of the US
B．the earthquake happened quickly and unexpectedly
C．nobody in the hotel died in the earthquake
D．Marie was not sad about losing her property in the earthquake
A boy was born to couple after eleven years of marriage. They were a loving couple and the boy was the apple of their eyes. When the boy saw around two years old, the husband saw a medicine bottle open. He was late for work so he asked the wife to cap the bottle and put it in the cupboard. The mother, preoccupied in the kitchen, totally forgot the matter.
The boy saw the bottle and playfully went to it and, fascinated with its color, drank it all. It happened to be a poisonous medicine meant for adults in small dosages(剂量). When the child fell down, the mother hurried him to the hospital, where he died. The mother was unconscious. She was terrified how to face her husband.
When the distraught (心烦意乱的)father came to the hospital and saw the dead child, he looked at his wife and uttered just four words.
What do you think those four words were? The husband just said, "I love you, darling".
The husband's totally unexpected reaction is proactive(积极主动的) behavior. The child is dead. He can never be brought back to life. There is no point in finding fault with the mother. Besides, if only he have taken time to put the bottle away, this would not have happened. No point in attaching blame. She had also lost her only child. What she needed at that moment was consolation and sympathy from the husband. That is what he gave her.
Sometimes we spend time asking who is responsible or who's to blame, whether in a relationship, in a job or with the people we know and miss out on the warmth in human relationships we could receive by giving each other support. After all, shouldn't forgiving someone we love be the easiest thing in the world to do? Treasure what you have. Don't multiply pain, anguish and suffering by holding onto forgiveness.
If everyone could look at life with this kind of perspective, there would be fewer problems in the world.
Take off all your envies, jealousies, unwillingness to forgive, selfishness, and fears and you will find things are actually not as difficult as you think.
60．The meaning of the underlined phrase is .
A．an adult B．a healthy boy
C．the love of the parents D．a naughty boy
61．Why was the mother terrified to face the husband?
A．Because she was afraid of her husband.
B．Because she thought that was her fault.
C．Because she poisoned her son herself.
D．Because she wanted to kill herself.
62．What does this passage mainly talk about?
A．Be careful to do everything.
B．Forgive what you shouldn’t forgive.
C．Treasure what you have now.
D．Envy can mislead the way you go.
63．Which column of a paper can we find this article?
A．Financial aid to students. B．Grand view of science.
C．Enjoying the countryside view. D．Life and society.
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题，每题2分，满分40分）
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。
Sam, an unemployed piano tuner, said it was only the second thing he had ever won in his life．The first thing was an Afghan blanket at a church raffle（抽奖） when he was 25 years old．But this was much bigger: it was $120,000! He had won the Big Cube, a state lottery(彩票) game．To win, a contestant must first guess which number a spinning cube will stop on．The cube has six numbers on it: 1X, 10X, 50X, 100X, 500X, and 1000X．If he is correct, the contestant must then guess which of two selected variables（变量） is going to be greater．So, just guessing which number appears on the cube does not guarantee that you will win any money．
Sam correctly guessed 1000X, but he still had to choose between two variables．One variable was the number of cars that would run the stop sign at Hill Street and Lake Avenue in six hours．The other variable was the number of times that a teenage boy would change TV channels in a three-hour period．This was a tough decision．
Finally, Sam flipped a coin．It came up heads, so Sam picked the teenager．He picked right．The stop sign was run only 76 times, but the teen clicked 120 times．Sixty-year-old Sam jumped for joy, for he had just won 1000 times 120, or $120,000．Sam dreamily left the lottery studio．Talking excitedly on his cell phone while crossing the street, he got hit by a little sports car．
Sam is slowly getting better．He was in the hospital for a month．His hospital bill was $110,000．And the insurance company for the little sports car’s owner sued（起诉）Sam for $9,000 worth of repairs．Also, Sam still has to pay federal taxes on his winnings．Sam doesn’t play the state lottery any more．He says it’s better to be unlucky．
56．What can be inferred about Sam from the passage?
A．He always has bad luck. B．He seldom goes to a raffle.
C．He is a very careful person in life. D．He used to be crazy about lottery tickets.
57．Which of the following played a vital role in Sam’s winning the big prize?
A．The cube. B．The coin. C．The blanket. D．The stop sign.
58．Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A．The lottery game was a complete lie.
B．Sam was quite familiar with the boy.
C．The owner of the car is now in hospital.
D．Sam will have none of the prize money left.
59．What could be the best title for the passage?
A．Curiosity killed the cat B．Joy puts heart into a man
C．Extreme joy ends in sorrow D．A bird in hand is worth two in the bush