Who’s in control of your life? Who is pulling your string? For the majority of us, it’s other people – society, colleagues, friends, family or our religious community. We learned this way of operating when we were very young, of course．We were brainwashed．We discovered that feeling important and feeling accepted was a nice experience and so we learned to do everything we could to make other people like us．As Oscar Wilde puts it，“Most people are other people．Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions，their lives a mimicry(模仿)，their passions a quotation．”
So when people tell us how wonderful we are，it makes us feel good．We long for this good feeling like a drug—we are addicted to it and seek it out wherever we can．Therefore，we are so eager for the approval of others that we live unhappy and limited lives，failing to do the things we really want to．Just as drug addicts and alcoholics live worsened lives to keep getting theirfix(一剂毒品)，we worsen our own existence to get our own constant fix of approval．
But just as with any drug，there is a price to pay．The price of the approval drug is freedom--the freedom to be ourselves. The truth is that we cannot control what other people think．People have their own agenda，and they come with their own baggage and，in the end，they’re more interested in themselves than in you．Furthermore，if we try to live by the opinions of others，we will build our life on sinking sand．Everyone has a different way of thinking，and people change their opinions all the time．The person who tries to please everyone will only end up getting exhausted and probably pleasing no one in the process．
So how can we take back control? I think there’s only one way--make a conscious decision to stop caring what other people think．We should guide ourselves by means of a set of values—not values imposed from the outside by others，but innate values which come from within．If we are driven by these values and not by the changing opinions and value systems of others，we will live a more authentic，effective，purposeful and happy life．
67．What Oscar Wilde says implies that________．
A．we have thoughts similar to those of others
B．most people have a variety of thoughts
C．other people’s thoughts are more important
D．most people’s thoughts are controlled by others
68．What does the author try to argue in the third paragraph?
A．Changing opinions may cost us our freedom．
B．We may lose ourselves to please others．
C．We need to pay for what we want to get．
D．The price of taking the drug is freedom．
69．It can be concluded from the passage that________．
A. it’s better to do what we like
B．we shouldn’t care what others think
C．we shouldn’t change our own opinions
D．it's important to accept others’ opinions
70．The author tries to persuade the readers to accept his arguments mainly by________.
A．analyzing causes and effects
B．providing examples and facts
C．discussing questions
D．making suggestions
Joan is an American girl．She lives in China now．She is in my class．Her parents work in China, too, but her brother works in the U.S.A．He often writes letters to them．Joan likes Chinese class very much, and likes speaking Chinese with us after class．Her father teaches us English well．We all like his class．On Sundays, Joan goes to the People's Park with her father and mother．Sometimes she goes shopping with her mother．They like the Chinese food very much．It's a happy family．Joan is from ________．
| A．China |
| B．Japan |
| C．the U.S.A |
| D．Canada |
Joan likes speaking ________with us after class．
| A．Chinese |
| B．English |
| C．French |
| D．Japanese |
Joan's ________ is an English teacher．
| A．father |
| B．mother |
| C．brother |
| D．father and mother |
How often does Joan go to the shop?
| A．Often |
| B．Never |
| C．Every Sunday |
| D．Sometimes |
Americans like to visit the national parks．In 1996, over 250,000,000 people visited areas which are managed by the National Park Service．Experts say that by 2012, 500,000,000 people per year will visit the parks．As a result, people are trying to think of ways to protect the parks from the crowds．
The crowding of the parks has caused several problems．One is that there is not enough space for all of the people who want to use the parks．To deal with this problem, you may have to book your tickets a few months ahead of time．The Park Service may also raise entrance fees (费) ．
Another problem caused by increased park use is pollution．Some garbage and waste can be cleaned up, and the cleanup can be paid for by increased entrance fees．To cut down on noise
pollution and air pollution, the number of cars allowed in parks may be limited．If this happens, people may use buses to travel around the parks．Officials may also limit the use of jet-skis, snow-mobiles, motor-boats, and sightseeing helicopters and planes．
The parks may also be in danger because of development that is going on around them．For example, around Yellow Stone Park, many hotels, golf courses, resorts, and other tourist attractions have been built．Some of these developments have effect on areas that are used by animals．People will have to learn to agree about ways to protect the parks．If they do not, there will soon be no reason to visit these national treasures．According to experts, by 2012 the number of visitors ______．
| A．may be doubled |
| B．may rise to 50% |
| C．will reach 250 million |
| D．will go up by a second |
Which of the following is true according to the text?
| A．Visitors will pay less than before． |
| B．The parks are not big enough to hold all visitors． |
| C．Visitors may not necessarily buy tickets ahead of time． |
| D．Only buses are allowed to enter the parks． |
What is the most possible meaning of the underlined word “limited” in Paragraph 3?
| A．Enlarged． |
| B．Admitted． |
| C．Controlled． |
| D．Concerned． |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．High fees may probably keep some people out of parks． |
| B．Helicopters and planes will not be used in parks any longer． |
| C．The bus will become the only tool in parks in order to cut down pollution． |
| D．National Park Service will always welcome as many visitors as possible． |
"Bad luck always comes in three" and last Saturday seemed to prove it．After trouble with the car, the television, we spent the evening waiting for the next trouble．Shortly after dinner we both smelled smoke．My wife, who was often careless when cooking, ran to the kitchen but returned looking puzzled．I rushed up the stairs to see smoke coming from under our bedroom door．I went to the bathroom and tied a wet cloth over my face．Then I returned to the bedroom, opened the door and crawled(爬) in—there would be less smoke at floor level．With one hand reaching out in front of me I advanced carefully feeling for the switch to turn off the electric blanket．At that moment I heard the bell of a coming fire engine．Thank goodness my wife had not been wasting her time．The wife rushed into the kitchen because ______．
| A．the smoke came out of the kitchen |
| B．she left something in the kitchen |
| C．she was afraid the smoke was caused by her carelessness |
| D．things in the kitchen were easy to cause fire |
The cause of the fire might be______．
| A．the fire |
| B．the kitchen |
| C．electricity |
| D．bad luck |
When the husband was upstairs trying to stop the smoke______．
| A．the wife telephoned the firemen |
| B．the firemen saw the smoke and came |
| C．thewife was downstairs doing nothing |
| D．they were in great danger |
The passage wants to express that______．
| A．an unlucky person will have trouble one after another |
| B．an unlucky person will only have trouble three times |
| C．"THREE" is an unlucky number |
| D．"THREE" always comes with a bad luck． |
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。O．Henry was a pen name used by an American writer of short stories．His real name was William Sydney Porter．He was born in North Carolina in 1862．As a young boy he lived an exciting life．He did not go to school for very long, but he managed to teach himself everything he needed to know．When he was about 20 years old, O．Henry went to Texas, where he tried different jobs．He first worked on a newspaper, and then had a job in a bank, when some money went missing from the bank O．Henry was believed to have stolen it．Because of that, he was sent to prison．During the three years in prison, he learned to write short stories．After he got out of prison, he went to New York and continued writing．He wrote mostly about New York and the life of the poor there．People liked his stories, because simple as the tales were, they would finish with a sudden change at the end, to the reader’s surprise． In which order did O．Henry do the following things?
a．Lived in New York．
b．Worked in a bank．
c．Travelled to Texas．
d．Was put in prison．
e．Had a newspaper Job．
f．Learned to write stories．
| A．e．c．f．b．d．a |
| B．c．e．b．d．f．a |
| C．e．b．d．c．a．f． |
| D．c．b．e．d．a f． |
People enjoyed reading O．Henry’s stories because
| A．they had surprise endings |
| B．they were easy to understand |
| C．they showed his love for the poor |
| D．they were about New York City |
O．Henry went to prison because ．
| A．people thought he had stolen money from the newspaper |
| B．he broke the law by not using his own name |
| C．he wanted to write stories about prisoners |
| D．people thought he had taken money that was not his |
What do we know about O．Henry before he began writing?
| A．He was well-educated． |
| B．He was not serious about his work． |
| C．He was devoted to the poor． |
| D．He was very good at learning． |
OUR KIDS ARE AMAZING－especially compared with everybody else’s (who seem to cry all the time)．How do you show your love for your kids this holiday season? With toys that are smooth and colorful, interactive and exciting．And with ones that have educational value－because you are the boss．
1.FLAX ART HOSPITAL PUZZLE AND PLAY SET
Here is a toy that doesn’t need power－and the kids have to put it together themselves．This 50-piece puzzle set is made of soft-edged hardwood and makes a complete hospital, with an X-ray room．It also includes eight patients, a car and a driver．$135; flaxart.com.
2.TINY LOVE ACTIVITY BALL
Sure, it’s cool, but this colorful baby toy also develops problem solving and motor skills．It has a head and legs, a magnetic(磁性的) hand and a tail．Suitable for little ones from 6 to 36 months．$19.95; tinylove.com.
3.ROBOSAPIEN
This small, remote-control robot is really powerful．It performs 67 preprogrammed functions, including throwing, kicking, picking up and dancing．You can even program your own function-which, sadly, does not include doing windows．$99; robosapienonline.com.
4.MINI PEDAL CAR
Want a Mini Cooper but can’t fit the family inside? Get one for the kids．They can jump into this Mini car, which comes in hot orange with a single adjustable seat, and ride away．But it could spoil them for that used car they’ll be driving when they turn 16.For ages 3 to 5.$189; mininss．com (click on “gear up,” then “Mini motoring gear”).Which toy is said to have the special design for children’s safety?
| A．ROBOSAPIEN |
| B．MINI PEDAL CAR |
| C．FLAX ART HOSPITAL PUZZLE AND PLAY SET |
| D．TINY LOVE ACTIVITY BALL |
Which toy are fit for three-year-old kids?
| A．1 and 3 |
| B．2 and 4 |
| C．1 and 2 |
| D．3 and 4 |
This passage is written for _______．
| A．parents |
| B．children |
| C．the writer |
| D．the boss |