Our listener question this week comes from Abdullahi Farah, who wants to know about the life and work of Doctor Benjamin Carson.
Doctor Carson is an internationally recognized doctor at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. He has been the director of Pediatric Neurosurgery at the hospital for twenty-five years. At the age of thirty-three, he became one of the youngest doctors in the United States to hold that position. And he was the first African-American to have that position at Johns Hopkins Hospital.
Ben Carson is known for his work as a brain surgeon for children. For example, in nineteen eighty-seven, he led a team of seventy doctors and nurses in an operation to separate two babies joined at the head. Earlier attempts by other surgeons on other babies had failed. Doctor Carson successfully performed the operation. Both babies were able to survive independently.
Doctor Carson has written four books. His first book, "Gifted Hands," tells the story of his life. Benjamin Carson was born in nineteen fifty-one in Detroit, Michigan.
As a boy, Ben was not a good student. In fact, he was the worst in his class. When his mother learned of his failing grades she asked her sons to read two library books every week. She limited the amount of time they watched television. And she told them to respect every person.
Ben Carson soon became the top student in his class. He went on to study at Yale University, one of the best universities in the country, and later to medical school at the University of Michigan.
Doctor Carson has received many awards and honors. Last year he received the nation's highest civilian honor. Former President George W. Bush presented Benjamin Carson with the Presidential Medal of Freedom at a ceremony at the White House.The passage is probably taken from _____.
| A．a radio | B．a magazine | C．TV | D．a paper |
What does the word “surgeons” in paragraph 3 mean?
| A．nurses | B．doctors | C．hospitals | D．points |
Benjamin Carson’s change in study was largely because of ______
| A．his hard work | B．his teacher |
| C．his mother | D．his father |
What’s the aim to write the passage?
| A．To call on us to learn from Benjamin Carson. |
| B．To praise Benjamin Carson for his achievements. |
| C．To show us how Benjamin Carson succeeded |
| D．To introduce Benjamin Carson’s life and work |
D
Each nation has many good people who help to take care of others. For example, some high school and college students in the United States often spend many hours as volunteers in hospitals, orphanages or homes for the aged. They read books to the people in these places, or they just visit them or listen to their problems. Other young volunteers go and work in the homes of people who are sick or disabled. They paint, clean up, or repair houses, do their shopping and mow their lawns(修整草坪).
For boys who no longer have fathers, there is an organization called Big Brothers. College students and other men take these boys to basketball games or on fishing trips and help them to get to know things that boys usually learn from their fathers.
Such city has a number of clubs where boys and girls can go to play games or learn crafts. Some of these clubs show movies or organize short trips to the mountains, the beaches, museums or other places. Most of these clubs use a lot of high school and college students as volunteers. They are young enough to remember the problems of younger boys and girls.
Volunteers believe that some of the happiest people in the world are those who help to bring happiness to others.
67. What can you find volunteers doing in the United States according to the passage?
A. Helping passengers get on a bus. B. Guiding visitors in the park.
C. Helping old people in their daily life. D. Cleaning streets on weekends.
68. How do volunteers usually help patients or the disabled?
A. They do their shopping and other housework.
B. They cook, sew or wash their clothes.
C. They tell stories and sing and dance for them.
D. They clean, wash and repair their cars.
69. Why do most of the clubs use many high school or college students as volunteers? Because they ________.
A. have more free time than others
B. can understand them more easily
C. know how to work with younger people
D. are young and energetic to manage it
70. What might be the best title of this passage?
A. Please be happy with others.
B. How to be a happiest man in the world.
C. To help others to help yourself.
D. Give others a hand, and you’ll be happy.
C
At one time it was the dream of many little girls to become a nurse. Today, however, America is facing its worst nurse shortage since World War I. Recently about 2,000,000 nurses are needed and 60 percent of all hospitals in the US have shortages large enough to threaten(="say" that you will hurt somebody if they don’t do what you want) the quality of care provided. The demand for nurses spreads widely throughout the nursing field.
What has become of these women in white? The answer lies in not one but several causes. One possibility is the fact that women have greater career options(职业选择). In the past, women who chose to work outside the home had two basic choices: nursing or teaching. Today, more women than ever are in the work force, but their choices have greatly increased. There are women doctors, lawyers, firefighters and police officers. In fact, women today are found in nearly every field of work. Nursing has been left behind, as women move on to jobs with higher pay and greater status(地位). A woman or man in the nursing field is often looked down upon as “just a nurse”. Teachers may be also at fault. Many high school students are actually being steered(劝导) away from nursing, told by teachers that they are “too bright to be a nurse”.
Americans are living longer than ever and requiring more medical attention. In fact, the number of elderly patients has almost doubled in the past twenty years. Obviously a larger population requires more nurses. AIDS and other diseases have caused more and more people to need nursing care. Usually fatal diseases mean long hospital stay, that is to say, more nurses are needed to care for these patients. It is estimated that the demand for nurses will be doubled the supply in the coming ten years.
63. Why is America facing its worst nurse shortage?
A. Because American health conditions are becoming worse and worse.
B. Because more and more women prefer to be teachers and doctors.
C. Because women have been provided with many different jobs.
D. Because women no longer choose to be nurses.
64. The passage tells us that high school teachers are at fault for ___________.
A. not mentioning the worst nurse shortage in the US
B. introducing jobs with higher pay and greater status to their students
C. not asking the government to raise the nurses’ payment
D. persuading the students not to be nurses
65. The author wrote this passage in order to __________.
A. describe the unequal treatment of women in the US
B. warn people to pay more attention to the nursing problem
C. tell us women’s free choice of jobs today
D. call on women not to be nurses
66. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. High school students think themselves too bright to be nurses.
B. Women in the US have greater career choice than those in other countries.
C. Of all the hospitals in the world 60 percent more nurses are badly needed.
D. Nursing used to be a popular job among women.
B
You’re shopping for a high-priced product, but have limited money. How to make the best use of your money? Here are some steps you can take to become a smart shopper.
Step 1. Before buying a high-cost product, think about:
·why you are buying the product
·how often and when you will use the product
·what the main use of the product is
·why you need this product now, not later
Step 2. To choose the best product, you need to research and find out:
·what companies make the product
·the differences in each company’s product
·what others say about the product
It can be very helpful to know what other people say about a product you want to buy. Product reviews often describe problems. Reviews also tell how people use the product. List product information so that you can refer to it before you decide to buy
Step 3. To find the best price for the product you want to buy, you need to compare:
·prices of the product
·brand(商标) names and store names
·places to buy your product (in stores, online, etc.)
·product labels(标签) and information
Step 4. As you get ready to buy, search your local newspaper and the Internet for special offers. Many sales are offered around holidays or at the end of a season. Wait to see if there will be a holiday or end-of-season sale before you buy. Check to see if you can get a lower price for the product you want to buy.
These steps will help you become a smart shopper. If you follow them, you should get the best deal. Remember, the more you know, the less someone can take advantage of you.
60. This is a piece of advice for those who want to buy________.
A. advertised goods B. goods on sale
B. online products D. expensive products
61. Why should you go through related product reviews before shopping?
A. To decide where to buy the product.
B. To find out why you need the product.
C. To find shops offering best price for the product.
D. To have a full knowledge of the product
62. Which of the following is the CORREST order of smart shopping?
a. Watching for sales.
b. Finding out your purpose of shopping.
c. Researching your product.
d. Making comparisons before shopping.
A. b c d a B. b d c a C. c d a b D. c a d b
第三部分阅读理解(共15小题;每小题2分,满分30分)
阅读下列短文,从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中，选出最佳选项。并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
Each time I see a balloon, my mind flies back to a memory of when I was a six-year-old girl. It was a rainy Sunday and my father died. I asked my mom if Dad had gone to heaven. “Yes, honey. Of course,” she said.
“Can we write him a letter?”
She paused, the longest pause of my short life, and answered, “Yes.”
My heart jumped. “How? Does the mailman go there?” I asked.
“No, but I have an idea.” Mom drove to a party store and returned with a red balloon. I asked her what it was for.
“Just wait, honey. You’ll see” Mom told me to write my letter. Eagerly, I got my favorite pen, and poured out my six-year-old heart in the form of blue ink. I wrote about my day, what I learned at school, what Mom was doing, and even about what happened in a story I had read. For a few minutes it was as if Dad were still alive, I gave the letter to Mom. She read it over, and a smile crossed her face.
She made a hole in the corner of the letter where she looped(缠绕) the balloon string. We went outside and she gave me the balloon. It was still raining.
“Okay, on the count of three, darted(猛冲) upward against the rain. We watched until it was swallowed by the clouds.
Later I realized, like the balloon, that Dad had never let his sickness get him down. He was strong. No matter what he suffered, he’d persevere, dart up, and finally transcend(超越) this cold world and his sick body. He rose into sky and became something beautiful. I watched until the balloon disappeared into the gray and white sky and I prayed that his strength was hereditary(遗传的). I prayed to be a balloon.
56. When the girl asked her mother if they could write to her father, her mother ________.
A. felt it hard to answer B. thought her a creative girl
C. believed it easy to do so D. found it easy to lie
57. When the girl was told that she could send a letter to her father, she _________.
A. jumped with joy B. became excited
C. started writing immediately D. was worried that it couldn’t be delivered
58. In the eyes of the author, what was the rain like?
A. A terrible disease. B. An unforgettable memory.
C. The hard time her father had D. Her father’s smile.
59. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. The strong red balloon B. An unforgettable experience.
C. Fly to heaven D. A great father.
E
It doesn’t matter when and how much a person sleeps, but everyone needs some rest to stay alive. That’s what all doctors thought, until they heard about Al Herpin. Al Herpin, it was said, never slept. Could this be true? The doctors decided to see this strange man themselves.
Al Herpin was 90 years old when the doctors came to his home in New Jersey. They thought for sure that he got some sleep of some kind. So they stayed with him and watched every movement he made. But they were surprised. Though they watched him hour after hour and day after day, they never saw him sleeping. In fact, he did not even own a bed. He never needed one.
The only rest that Herpin sometimes got was sitting in a comfortable chair and reading newspapers. The doctors were puzzled by this strange continuous sleeplessness. They asked him many questions, hoping to find an answer. They found only one answer that might explain his condition. Herpin remembered some talk about his mother having been injured several days before he was born. But that was all. Was this the real reason? No one could be sure.
Herpin died at the age of 94.
47. The main idea of this passage is that_____
A. large numbers of people do not need sleep
B. a person was found who actually didn’t need any sleep
C. everyone needs some sleep to stay alive
D. people can live longer by trying not to sleep
48. After watching him closely, the doctors came to believe that Al Herpin_____
A. needed some kind of sleep B. was too old to need any sleep
C. needed no sleep at all D. often sleep in a chair
49. One reason that might explain Herpin’s sleeplessness was _____
A. his mother’s injury before he was born
B. that he had gradually got rid of the sleeping habit
C. his magnificent physical condition
D. that he hadn’t got a bed
50. Al Herpin’s condition could be regarded as ______
A. a common oneB. one that could be cured
C. very healthy D. a rare one