I am a writer.I spend a great deal of my time thinking about the power of language—the way it can evoke (唤起) an emotion,a visual image,a complex idea,or a simple truth.Language is the tool of my trade.And I use them all—all the Englishes I grew up with.
Born into a Chinese family that had recently arrived in California,I've been giving more thought to the kind of English my mother speaks.Like others.I have described it to people as "broken" English.But feel embarrassed to say that.It has always bothered me that I can think of no way to describe it other than "broken",as if it were damaged and needed to be fixed,as if it lacked a certain wholeness.I've heard other terms used,"limited English,"for example.But they seem just as bad,as if everything is limited,including people's perceptions(认识)of the limited
English speaker.
I know this for a fact,because when l was growing up,my mother's "limited" English limited my perception of her.I was ashamed of her English.I believed that her English reflected the quality of what she had to say.That is,because she expressed them imperfectly her thoughts were imperfect.And I had plenty of evidence to support her:the fact that people in department stores,at banks,and at restaurants did not take her seriously,did not give her good service,pretended not to understand her,or even acted as if they did not hear her.
I started writing fiction in l985.And for reasons l won't get into today,I began to write stories using all the Englishes I grew up with:the English she used with me,which for lack of a better term might be described as "broken".and what I imagine to be her translation of her Chinese,her internal(内在的)language and for that I sought to preserve the essence,but neither an English nor a Chinese structure:I wanted to catch what language ability tests can never show;her intention,her feelings,the rhythms of her speech and the nature of her thoughts.
68. By saying "Language is the tool of my trade",the author means that ________.
A.she uses English in foreign trade B.she is fascinated by languages
C.she works as a translator D.she is a writer by profession
69. Which of the following is TRUE according to Paragraph 3 ?
A.Americans do not understand broken English.
B.The author's mother was not respected sometimes.
C.The author's mother had positive influence on her.
D.Broken English always reflects imperfect thoughts.
70. The author gradually realizes her mother's English is________.
A.well structured B.in the old style
C.easy to translate D.rich in meaning
71. What is the passage mainly about?
A.The changes of the author's attitude to her mother's English.
B.The limitation of the author's perception of her mother.
C.The author's misunderstanding of“limited”English.
D.The author's experiences of using broken English.
Federal regulators (管理者) Wednesday approved a plan to create a nationwide emergence alert (警报) system using text messages delivered to cell phones.
Text messages have exploded in popularity in recent years, particularly among young people. The wireless industry's trade association, CTIA, estimates(估计) more than 48 billion text messages are sent each month.
The plan comes from the Warning Alert and Response Network Act, a 2009 federal law that requires improvements to the nation's emergency alert system. The act tasked(派给…工作) the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) with coming up with new ways to alert the public about emergencies.
"The ability to deliver accurate and timely warnings and alerts through cell phones and other mobile services is an important next step in our efforts to help ensure that the American public has the information they need to take action to protect themselves and their families before, and during, disasters and other emergencies," FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said following approval of the plan.
Participation in the alert system by carriers –telecommunications companies is voluntary, but it has received solid support from the wireless industry.
The program would be optional for cell phone users. They also may not be charged for receiving alerts.
There would be three different types of messages, according to the rules.
The first would be a national alert from the president, likely involving a terrorist attack or natural disaster. The second would involve "approaching threats," which could include natural disasters like hurricanes or storms or even university shootings. The third would be reserved for child abduction (绑架) emergencies, or so-called Amber Alerts.
The service could be in place by 2012.What is the purpose of the approved plan?
A.To warn people of emergencies through messages. |
B.To popularize the use of cell phones. |
C.To estimate the monthly number of messages. |
D.To promote the wireless industry. |
The improvement to the present system is in the charge of ____.
A.CTIA | B.the Warning Alert and Response Network | C.FCC | D.federal regulators |
The carriers’ participation in the system is determined by _____.
A.the US federal government | B.mobile phone users |
C.the carriers themselves | D.the law of the United States |
Which of the following is true of cell phone users?
A.They must accept the alert service. | B.They may enjoy the alert service for free. |
C.They must send the alerts to others | D.They may choose the types of messages |
An alert message will NOT be sent if _____
A.a child loses his way. | B.a university shooting happens |
C.a natural disaster happens | D.a terrorist attack occurs |
For a 400-year-old art form, opera had a bad fame: overweight actresses singing the words which were hard to understand in one of those romantic languages you were supposed to learn in high school. And with tickets costing as much as $145 a performance, operagoers also had a certain appearance in people’s mind: rich, well-dressed and old.
But now opera companies around the country are loosening their ties and kicking off their shoes in an attempt to keep opera alive and take it to a younger and not so wealthy audience.
Opera producers have found that to attract this crowd, they need to associate opera with the common people. That means no formal suits, old-styled theatre or bank-breaking ticket prices. And because young people don’t or won’t come to the opera, companies are bringing the opera to them, giving performances in such usual places as parks, libraries and public schools.
The Houston Grand Opera’s choice is the public library, where it performs “mobile operas”, shortened versions of child-friendly operas. This summer’s production is Hansel & Gretel. By performing smaller versions of large prod
uctions, producers are able to make people interested while keeping costs at a reasonable level. The San Francisco Opera, which will be celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, is staging Cinderella free of charge, keeping costs down by employing students from its Young
Artists’ Training Program.
Which is the main idea of this passage?
A.Opera is famous for its long history. |
B.Opera is only performed for rich people. |
C.Opera companies are trying to keep opera alive. |
D.Young people are not interested in opera. |
The underlined phrase in the second paragraph means _________.
A.breaking up the old rules | B.changing the dresses |
C.making the audience at ease | D.advertising themselves |
Opera companies prefer to perform short versions because _________.
A.they can be performed in public libraries |
B.short versions are easy to perform |
C.it is hard to find long versions |
D.they can make people interested |
The San Francisco Opera employs students in order to _________.
A.celebra![]() |
B.reduce the cost |
C.attract young people |
D.make Cinderella popular |
From the passage we can infer that _________.
A.the tickets for opera are very expensive |
B.opera is performed in a di![]() |
C.opera is not so popular an art form today |
D.students enjoy performing opera very much |
It was the summer of 1965. DeLuca, then 17, visited Peter Buck, a family friend. Buck asked DeLuca about his plans for the future. “I’m going to college, but I need a way to pay for it,” DeLuca recalls saying. “Buck said, ‘You should open a sandwich shop.’”
That afternoon, they agreed to be partners. And they set a goal: to open 32 stores in ten years. After doing some research, Buck wrote a check for $1000. DeLuca rented a storefront (店面) in Connecticut, and when they couldn’t cover their start-up costs, Buck kicked in another $1000.
But business didn’t go smoothly as they expected. DeLuca says, “After six months, we were doing poorly, but we didn’t know how badly, because we didn’t have any financial controls.” All he and Buck knew was that their sales were lower than their costs.
DeLuca was managing the store and going to the University of Bridgeport at the same time. Buck was working at his day job as a nuclear physicist in New York. They’d meet Monday evenings and brainstorm ideas for keeping the business running. “We convinced ourselves to open a second store. We figured we could tell the public, ‘We are so successful, we are opening a second store.’” And they did—in the spring of 1966. Still, it was a lot of learning by trial and error.
But the partners’ learn-as-you-go approach turned out to be their greatest strength. Every Friday, DeLuca would drive a
round and hand-deliver the checks to pay their suppliers. “It probably took me two and a half hours and it wasn’
t necessary, but as a result, the suppliers got to know me very well, and the personal relationships established really helped out,” DeLuca says.
And having a goal was also important. “There are so many problems that can get you down. You just have to keep working toward your goal,” DeLuca adds.
DeLuca ended up founding Subway Sandwich, the multimillion-dollar restaurant chain.DeLuca opened the first sandwich shop in order to ____.
A.support his family | B.pay for his college education |
C.help his partner expand business | D.do some research |
Which of the following is true of Buck?
A.He put money into the sandwich business. |
B.He was a professor of business administration. |
C.He was studying at the University of Bridgeport. |
D.He rented a storefront for DeLuca. |
What can we learn about their first shop?
A.It stood at an unfavorable place. |
B.It lowered the prices to promote sales. |
C.It made no profits due to poor management |
D.It lacked control over the quality of sandwiches |
They decided to open a second store because they ___.
A.had enough money to do it. |
B.had succeeded in their business |
C.wished to meet the increasing demand of customers |
D.wanted to make people believe that they were successful |
What contribute most to their success according to the author?
A.Learning by trial and error. | B.Making friends with suppliers. |
C.Finding a good partner. | D.Opening chain stores. |
I’m glad to find this comment which has some sort of support in this quest(寻求)I have to eat raw(未煮熟的)foods. I’m an unhealthy 49 years old and have come to the conclusion that it’s now or never, so I a
m taking a dive into the raw eating lifestyle.
I have to cook for my family and prepare what they want to eat. I’m trying to plan out this better so I have some of these unusual foods ready for myself.
I’ve read several books written by Ann Wigmore and like her approach to the living foods.
Last week I attempted fasting(禁食)and failed. I lasted five days by having carrots, spinach, apples and other vegetarian diets I could get my hands on. I was doing fine until I drank some coffee. I kind of proved it in my mind to have the coffee but it only made me excited and then I couldn’t sleep well and felt hungry and weak. So I stopped and went back to the old way of eating with the family.
This week I started to make a drink called rejuvelac made of sprouted wheat(芽麦). This is fairly new to do for me and the drink smelled sort of musty(发霉的)and tasted kind of like a musty lemon. The kids tasted it and almost threw up but surprisingly it tasted good to me. It is supposed to help in digestion(消化).
I’ve made some attempts to grow wheat grass. I think I have figured that out as long as I keep it away from birds and our horses. I have two habits to get rid of, drinking coffee and smoking. I quit smoking last month but something happened, so I started up again. I’m very frustrated(受挫的) with the smoking and really have a desire to quit for good. Anyhow I will keep this updated on my progress.
The author must have ________ before she wrote this article.
A.hesitated at whether she should eat raw foods |
B.never eaten raw foods |
C.made up her mind to eat raw foods instead of cooked ones |
D.been discouraged by her ![]() |
The books written by Ann Wigmore which the author has read are probably about ________.
A.fasting |
B.losing weight |
C.how to be on a diet |
D.approaches to eating raw foods |
To the author, the drink made of sprouted wheat ________.
A.might help in digestion |
B.might make people who drank it throw up |
C.tasted good to anybody |
D.was welcomed by the whole family |
We can learn from the passage that ________ smoking.
A.the author has given up |
B.the author will never give up |
C.it’s hard for the author to quit |
D.it’s easy for the author to q![]() |
The author’s biggest worry at present is most probably ________.
A.that she can’t eat with her family |
B.that she can’t get rid of drinking coffee and smoking |
C.how to get used to raw foods |
D.that she doesn’t know whether she should eat raw foods |
Many children first learn the value of money by receiving an allowance. Parents often give their children an amount of money that they may spend as they wish. The purpose is to let the children learn from experience at an early age when financial mistakes are not very costly.
A child may receive an allowance each week or each month. The amount is not so important. But parents should make clear what the child is expected to pay for with the money.
At first, young children may spend all of their allowance soon after they receive it. If they do this, they will learn the hard way that spending must be done within a budget. Parents should not offer more money until the next allowance is to be given.
Older children may be responsible enough to budget larger costs like those for clothing. The object is to show young people that a budget demands choices between spending and saving.
Many people who have written on the subject say it is not a good idea to pay your child for work around the home. These jobs are a normal part of family life. Paying children to do extra work around the home, however, can be useful. It can even provide an understanding of how a business works.
Allowances give children a chance to experience three things they can do with money. They can share it in the form of gifts or giving it to organizations. They can spend it by buying things they want. Or they can save it.
Saving helps children understand that costly goals require sacrifice: you have to cut costs and plan for the future. Requiring children to save part of their allowance can also open the door to future saving and investing. Many banks offer free savings accounts for young people with small amounts of money.
The functions of allowances given to children are the following EXCEPT ______.
A.they can save more money for their future business |
B.they can give them to charities |
C.they may spend them on what they like |
D.they can learn to deal with money |
The underlined word "sacrifice" in the last paragraph means "_____".
A.牺牲 | B.计划 | C.选择 | D.放弃 |
What's the main idea of the passage?
A.Children should save part of their allowance. |
B.Don’t pay your chi![]() |
C.Allowance helps teach children early about money. |
D.![]() |
How many advantages of saving has the passage mentioned?
A.2 | B.3 | C.4 | D.5 |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Children are advised ![]() |
B.Parents should offer children more money if they spend all of their allowance soon after they get it. |
C.It can be useful to pay children to do extra work around the home. |
D.It is unnecessary for the children ![]() |