DWhenastormiscoming,mostpeople-优题课

“Keep your eyes on the ball.” That is good advice when you are on the playing field, and good advice for everyday life. “Keep your mind on what’s important,” is the way I’d put it. But people are funny. They think too much about the details.
I had a secretary once. She was very hardworking. I ran a school and people used to call up to enroll for courses. Berry used to get angry at the phone. “If they keep on ringing, I’ll never get my typing done!” she’d shout.
People just don’t see the big picture. One evening, after leaving work, I was sitting next to a man on the train. I was feeling tired. My eyes fell on the paper he had spread out in front of him. You know how you feel to read over someone’s shoulder?
I read the page and leaned back. I guessed I was waiting for him to turn it. After a while, I realized—he wasn’t turning the page. He just kept on reading.
Now if you knew the page he was reading, you’d know that there weren’t many words on the page to read anyway. The layout was mostly pictures. So I turned to the man and said,” You know, you really read very slowly.”
“What do you mean?” he asked. “Well,” I told him, “I read the page in about a minute, and you have taken about ten. And you are still reading. You know,” I went on “If you learned to read faster, you could get more reading done.” He remained silent for a minute or two. “If I read too fast, my paper wouldn’t last me to my station.”
The writer wasn’t satisfied with his secretary because ___.

A．she didn’t put first thing first

B．she was too busy

C．she was easy to get angry

D．she couldn’t finish her work on time

The train rider read newspaper ___.

A．to take in information	B．to enjoy pictures
C．to save time	D．to kill time

The writer thinks that people seem to need a sense of ___.

A．what to read first	B．how to read fast
C．what is important	D．what is funny

The passage is mainly about the writer’s opinion on people’s ___.

A．judgment

B．work

C．life

D．habits

Long ago in a small town, there was a place known as the House of 1,000 Mirrors. A small, happy little dog learned of this place and decided to visit.
When he arrived, he bounced(跳) happily up the stairs to the doorway of the house. He looked through the doorway with his ears lifted high and his tail wagging as fast as it could. To his great surprise, he found himself staring at 1,000 other happy little dogs with their tails wagging just as his. He smiled a great smile, and was answered with 1,000 great smiles just as warm and friendly. As he left the house, he thought to himself, “ This is a wonderful place. I will come back and visit often.”
In this same village, another little dog, who was not quite as happy as the first one, decided to visit the house. He slowly climbed the stairs and hung his head low as he looked into the door. When he saw the 1,000 unfriendly looking dogs staring back at him, he growled at them and was horrified to see 1,000 little dogs growling back at him. As he left, he thought to himself, “This is a horrible place, and I will never go back there again.”
All the faces in the world are mirrors. What kind of reflections do you see on the faces of the people you meet?
Why did the first dog like the house?

A．Because there were 1,000 mirrors in the house.

B．Because he thought he could keep himself warm in the house.

C．Because he liked everything presented to him.

D．Because he felt he was welcome here.

The underlined word “ growl” probably means ______.

A．make an unfriendly noise	B．smile
C．say hello	D．stare

The passage tells us ________.

A．we must look at ourselves in a mirror as often as possible

B．we must look at ourselves in a mirror like the first little dog

C．We can see ourselves in the faces of the people we meet

D．we are treated in the same way as other people

Which of the following is the most suitable title for the passage?

A．A Small happy Little Dog

B．The House of 1,000 Mirrors

C．The Wonderful Place and the Horrible Place.

D．Two Little Dogs

For the most part, you are probably only exposed to the music that is played on your favorite radio stations and TV shows, music Web sites, or the music that your friends and family members enjoy. While you probably know a lot about your favorite type of music, it can be a rewarding experience to enlarge your horizons (眼界), discovering artists and types of music that you’re not familiar with. Who knows, you might discover you like certain types of music you never even considered.
Have you ever wondered about the history and influences of your favorite types of music? For example, did you know that rock ’n’ roll originated (起源) from the blues, and that the blues began as a form of musical expression for African Americans during slavery(奴隶制度)? Did you know that most hip-hop is heavily influenced by early rhythm blues and jazz?
There are many fun ways to learn about different musical styles and their historical roots. For example, if you like hip-hop, listen to some of your favorite CDs and take note of the samples the performers used to create the songs. There is a possibility that the artist used parts of older songs to create the music. You can go to the library or online to learn more about the artists and listen to more of their music by checking out CDs from the library or downloading songs online for a small fee.
You can learn so much about culture and history just by paying attention to different types of music and what is being expressed in the songs. There are so many different styles of music to learn about, and you owe (欠) it to yourself to make an effort to listen to and learn about them.
The main topic of this passage is _______.

A．creating music

B．performing music

C．enjoying your favorite music

D．learning about music

What music did African Americans use to express their feelings of being slaves?

A．Rock ’n’ roll.	B．The blues.
C．Hip-hop.	D．Jazz.

How can you learn about culture and history through music?

A．By writing down the names of the music

B．By creating music from older songs yourself.

C．By caring about what is being expressed in music.

D．By keeping a record of fees after downloading songs online.

By saying the underlined sentence in the last paragraph, the author probably means that _______.

A．you should try harder to learn about music

B．you should return something to music

C．you should borrow music CDs from others

D．you should buy music CDs yourself

When women sit together to watch a movie on TV, they usually talk simultaneously（同时的）about a variety of subjects, including children, men, careers and what' s happening in their lives. When groups of men and women watch a movie together, the men usually end up telling the women to shut up. Men can either talk or watch the screen -- they can' t do both -- and they don' t understand that women can. Besides, women consider that the point of all getting together is to have a good time and develop relationships -- not just to sit there like couch potatoes staring at the screen.
During the ad breaks, a man often asks a woman to explain the plot and tell him where the relationship between the characters is going. He is unable, unlike women, to read the subtle body language signals that reveal how the characters are feeling emotionally. Since women originally spent their days with the other women and children in the group, they developed the ability to communicate successfully in order to maintain relationships. For a woman, speech continues to have such a clear purpose: to build relationships and make friends. For men, to talk is to relate the facts.
Men see the telephone as a communication tool for sending facts and information to other people, but a woman sees it as a means of bonding. A woman can spend two weeks on vacation with her girlfriend and, when she returns home, telephone the same girlfriend and talk for another two hours.
There is no convincing evidence that social conditioning, the fact that girls' mothers talked them more, is the reason why girls talk more than boys. Psychiatrist Dr Michael Lewis, author of Social Behaviour and Language Acquisition, conducted experiments that found mothers talked to and looked at, baby girls more often than baby boys. Scientific evidence shows parents respond to the brain bias of their children. Since a girl’s brain is better organized to send and receive speech，we therefore talk to them more. Consequently, mothers who try to talk to their sons are usually pointed to receive only short grunts in reply.
While watching TV with others, women Usually talk a lot because they

A．are afraid of awkward silence with their families and friends

B．can both talk and watch the screen at the Same time

C．think they can have a good time and develop relationships

D．have to explain the plot and body language to their husbands

After a vacation with her girlfriend, a woman would talk to her again on the phone for hours in order to .

A．experience the happy time again

B．keep a close tie with her

C．recommend her a new scenic spot

D．remind her of something forgotten

What does the author want to tell us most?

A．Women' s brains are better organized for language and communication

B．Women love to talk because they are more sociable than men.

C．Men do not like talking because they rely more on facts.

D．Social conditioning is not the reason why women love talking.

Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A．Women Are Socially Trained to Talk

B．Talking Maintains Relationships

C．Women Love to Talk

D．Men Talk Differently from Women

When you grow up, could you imagine your parents choosing your husband or wife for you? Besides, can you imagine not setting eyes on him or her until your wedding day? This situation is common in India, the Middle East and many parts of Africa. Marriage customs around the world often differ from our own. We don’t realize that people in other places often get married in very different ways—and with different motives.
In many countries, marriage is a practical matter. A marriage provides a safe and stable home for the husband and wife. It also joins two families, which benefits the couple’s parents and makes them happy. Marriage also brings children, making sure the couple will be taken care of in old age. Because marriage is important for the whole family, some cultures don’t let young people choose whom to marry.
Just as there are many different reasons for marriage, there are also many different wedding rituals. Every culture has its own ways of bringing good luck to the happy couple. In a typical Western wedding, the bride seeks good luck by wearing “something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue.” Something old represents the past. Something new represents success in the future. Something borrowed reminds the bride she can get help from her friends and family. And something blue reminds her to be true to her husband.
In Poland, one wedding tradition is not only lucky, but also very practical. The wedding guests pin money to the bride’s dress while she is dancing. The money is meant to bring luck and to help the young couple build their new life. In Bermuda, the young couple plant a tree in the yard of their new home. Once they move in, they take good care of the tree and make it grow. The planting of the tree is a good metaphor（比喻） for marriage. A truly good marriage is something that grows with care.
Which of the following statements does NOT support the idea “marriage is a practical matter”?

A．The husband or wife may have a safe and stable home.

B．A marriage brings children to take care of the couple when they are old.

C．A marriage benefits both the couple’s families.

D．Parents have no duty to help their children get married.

The underlined word “ritual” means .

A．methods	B．ceremonies
C．behaviors	D．performances

What can be the subject of this passage?

A．People across the world get married in different ways and for different reasons.

B．Every culture had its own ways of bringing good luck to the young couple.

C．A truly good marriage is something that grows with care.

D．In many countries, marriage is a practical matter.

Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．Parents choose a husband or wife for their child in India.

B．In many countries, some cultures don’t let young people choose whom to marry.

C．In Bermuda, the wedding guests pin money to the bride’s dress while she is dancing.

D．Something blue reminds the bride to be true to her husband in western wedding.