An eight-year-old child heard her parents talking about her little brother. All she knew was that he was very sick and they had no money. Only a very expensive operation could save him now and there was no one to lend them the money.
When she heard her daddy say to her tearful mother, “Only a miracle can save him now,” the little girl went to her bedroom and pulled her money from its hiding place and counted it carefully.
She hurried to a drugstore with the money in her hand.
“And what do you want?” asked the salesman. “It’s for my little brother,” the girl answered. “He’s really, really sick and I want to buy a miracle.” “Pardon?” said the salesman.
“My brother Andrew has something bad growing inside his head and my daddy says only a miracle can save him. So how much does a miracle cost?” “We don’t sell a miracle here, child. I’m sorry,” the salesman said with a smile.
“Listen, if it isn’t enough, I can try and get some more. Just tell me how much it costs.”
A well-dressed man heard it and asked, “What kind of a miracle does your brother need?”
“I don’t know,” she answered with her eyes full of tears. “He’s really sick and mum says he needs an operation. But my daddy can’t pay for it, so I have brought all my money.”
“How much do you have?” asked the man. “$ 1.11, but I can try and get some more,” she answered.
“Well, what luck,” smiled the man. “$ 1.11, the price of a miracle for little brothers.”
He took up the girl’s hand and said, “Take me to where you live. I want to see your brother and meet your parents. Let’s see if I have the kind of miracle you need.”
That well-dressed man was Dr Carlton Armstrong, a famous doctor. The operation was successful and it wasn’t long before Andrew was home again.
How much did the miracle cost?
51.What was the trouble in the little girl’s family?
A.Her brother was seriously ill. B.They had no money.
C.Nothing could save her brother. D.Both A and B.
52.In the eye of the little girl, a miracle might be .
A.something interesting B.something beautiful
C.some wonderful medicine D.some good food
53.The little girl said again and again “...I can try and get some more.” That shows_________.
A.she had still kept some money
B.she hoped not to be refused
C.There was no need to worry about money
D.she thought money was easy to get
54.What made the miracle happen?
A.The girl’s love for her brother. B.The girl’s money.
C.The medicine from the drugstore. D.Nobody can tell.
55.From the passage we can infer(推断) that__________.
A.the doctor didn’t ask for any pay
B.a miracle is sure to happen if you keep on
C.the little girl is lovely but not so clever
D.the doctor had great sympathy for the girl’s little brother
(共5小题,每小题2分,满分10分)
根据短文内容,从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。
注意:请将答案转写到答题卡上,写在本试卷上无效。
If you’re finding it tough to land a job, try expanding your job-hunting plan to include the following tactics:
Set your target. While you should always keep your options open to compromise, you should also be sure to target exactly what you want in a job. ____71____
Schedule plentiful interviews. Use every possible method to get interviews—answering advertisements,using search firms, contacting companies directly, surfing the Web, and networking. ____72____
Follow up.____73____ Then, some weeks later, send another brief letter to explain that you still have not found the perfect position and that you will be available to interview again if the original position you applied for—or any other position—is open. Do this with every position you interview for, and you may just catch a break.
Make it your full-time job. You can’t find a job by looking sporadically(偶发地). ____74____ If you’re unemployed and looking, devote as much time as you would to a full-time job. If you have a job while you’re looking, figure out an organized schedule to maximize your searching time.
Network vertically. In the research stage of your job hunt, talk to people who are on a level above you in your desired industry. They’ll have some insights that people at your own level won’t have, and they will be in a good position to hire you or recommend you to be hired.
____75____ Looking for a job is one of the toughest things you will ever have to do. Maintain your confidence, stay persistent, and think positively, and eventually you will get a job that suits you.
A.You have to make time for it. |
B.Confidenceinyourselfisthefirststepontheroadtosuccess. |
C.Even if a job is not perfect for you, every interview can be approached as a positive experience. |
D.Even if someone does not hire you, write them a thank-you note for the interview. |
E. Agoodbeginningishalfdone.
F. Keep your spirits up.
G. A specific job hunt will be more efficient than an aimless one.
Agence Rrance-Presse--- French doctors this week carried out the world’s first operation on a human in zero gravity, using a specially adapted aircraft to create conditions in space.
During a three-hour flight from Bordeaux in southwest France, the team of surgeons and anesthetists (麻醉师) successfully removed a benign tumor (良性瘤) from the forearm of a 46-year-old volunteer. The experiment was part of a program backed by the European Space Agency to develop techniques for performing robotic surgery aboard the International Space Station or at a future Moon base.
“Now we know that a human being can be operated on in space without too many difficulties,” says the team leader Dr. Dominique Martin.
Under normal ground conditions, the operation would be performed under a local anesthetic. Without gravity, the surgeon’s work is harder and the patient’s body reacts differently. Blood doesn’t pump in the same way.
The custom-designed Airbus 300 aircraft performed a series of parabolic swoops (抛物线飞行), each creating between 20 seconds of weightlessness. The process was repeated 32 times.
Fixed inside a custom-made operating block, three surgeons and two anesthetists worked during these periods, with their instruments held in place with magnets around the patient’s bed. The next part of the program is to carry out a remote-controlled operation using a robot controlled from the ground by satellite. This experiment should take place within a year, Martin says.
Anesthetist Dr. Laurent de Coninek says that zero-gravity surgery offers huge promise for space exploration, although it would at first be limited to treating simple injuries. Today more than 400 people have already traveled into space. The chances of injuries occurring during missions will become even greater and to bring a wounded person back to the earth for treatment is both risky for them and expensive.
67. What would be the best title for the test?
A. A Special Operation for Doctors B. First Operation on the Moon
C. World’s First Operation in Zero Gravity D. An Important Experiment for Doctors
68. What’s the purpose of the operation?
A. To have an experiment on space operation. B. To cure the patient.
C. To do it at the request of the patient. D. To reduce the danger of operation on earth.
69. It is difficult for doctors to do operations in space because________________.
A. the patient’s illness will be more serious B. the patient has no feeling about pain
C. the patient’s body reacts differently D. the patient’s flood will stop flowing
70. The last paragraph mainly wants to tell readers________________.
A. there are many people injured in space B. it is necessary to do the experiment
C. it is risky to travel in space D. there is no need to bring patients in space to the earth
MEN VS. WOMEN
COMPARING NICKNAMES
If Laura, Suzanne, Debra and Rose go out for lunch, they will call each other Laura, Suzanne, Debra and Rose.
If Mike, Charlie, Bob and John go out, they will affectionately refer to each other as Fat Boy, Godzilla (怪兽), Peanut-Head and Scrappy.
EATING OUT
When the bill arrives, Mike, Charlie, Bob and John will each throw in $20, even though it’s only for $32.50. None of them will have anything smaller, and none will actually admit they want change back.
When the girls get their bill, out come the pocket calculators.
MONEY
A man will pay $2 for a $1 item he wants.
A woman will pay $1 for a $2 item that she doesn’t want.
BATHROOMS
A man has six items in his bathroom: a toothbrush, comb, shaving cream, razor, a bar of soap, and a towel from the Holiday Inn.
The average number of items in the typical woman’s bathroom is 337... A man would not be able to identify most of these items.
ARGUMENTS
A woman has the last word in any argument.
Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.
CATS
Women love cats.
Men say they love cats, but when women aren’t looking, men kick cats.
FUTURE
A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.
A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife.
SUCCESS
A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend.
A successful woman is one who can find such a man.
MARRIAGE
A woman marries a man expecting he will change, but he doesn’t.
A man marries a woman expecting that she won’t change and she does.
DRESSING UP
A woman will dress up to go shopping, water the plants, empty the garbage, answer the phone, read a book, and get the mail.
A man will only dress up for weddings and funerals.
NATURAL
Men wake up as good-looking as they went to bed.
Women somehow deteriorate (恶化) during the night.
OFFSPRING
Ah, children. A woman knows all about her children. She knows about dentist appointments and romances, best friends, favorite foods, secret fears and hopes and dreams.
A man is vaguely (含糊地) aware of some short people living in the house.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Any married man should forget his mistakes. There’s no sense in two people remembering the same thing.
63. This passage is_________________.
A. a story B. an advertisement C. a report D. a humor
64. The purpose of this passage is________________.
A. to inform the readers of some secrets between men and women
B. to remind the readers of the big differences between men and women
C. to amuse the readers using some interesting examples
D. to show that men perform better than women in our daily life
65. When the girls get their bill, they take out the pocket calculators_________________.
A. to make sure they won’t be cheated by the servant B. so that they can share the bill equally among them
C. because they want to know what time it is now D. if they forget to bring their mobile phones
66. What does the underlined sentence mean?
A. A man doesn’t know what to do before he gets married.
B. A man is worried about his future job after he gets married.
C. Anything unexpected will probably happen to a man after he gets married.
D. It’s not easy for a man to find a good job as a woman thinks.
Where have all the boys gone? You may be able to find them in the gym, at work or hanging out, but there is one important place where boys are under-represented, and the problem seems to be getting worse. These days, at high school graduation ceremonies, there are a lot more girls than boys.
In fact, every year, 10 percent more girls graduate from high school than boys. “I think that there’s a tendency to focus on boys as problems at this point, rather than recognizing that boys have problems,” says Joanne Max, PhD. Experts say the problems start in grade school, where there’s often an emphasis on sports instead of reading, for example. “I think that with boys there’s some idea that it’s not masculine(男子汉的)to read,” says Rob Jenkins, an English professor.
There’s also a shortage of male teachers as role models. “I think boys need role models, so if you’re a boy and you don’t have a dad in your home and then you have one male teacher and he’s your athletic coach, then I don’t think you have a message that education is very important,” says Carol Carter, another expert. In addition, classrooms often have too little activity and too much passive listening, which is not conducive (有益的) to boys’ learning.
Experts say parents can fight back in many ways. Read to your sons early and often; show by your action that you value their education. Ask them about their schoolwork, offer help, drop by their classroom and, finally, appeal to their competitive spirit, challenge them to do better and help them understand that their future depends on it.
60. According to the passage, boys have the problem that they think _____________.
A. reading is more important than sports B. it is shameful for boys to read
C. boys should not work as a teacher D. boys lack the gift for reading
61. Carol Carter’s words in the third paragraph implies that ______________.
A. parents play an important role in education
B. athletic coaches contribute a lot to education
C. lack of role model affects boys’ attitudes to school work
D. classrooms lack enough activities that are suitable for boys
62. The passage is written mainly for _____________.
A. parents B. boys C. teachers D. experts
When Charles Stratton was five, he stopped growing. His mother took him to see the famous showman, P. T. Barnum. Mr. Barnum thought a small person would be the perfect addition to his show. He hired Charles’ parents along with him, and they traveled the world together.
He gave the two-foot-tall Charles a name, General Tom Thumb. He taught Tom how to sing, dance, act and tell jokes. When he felt Tom was ready to perform on stage, he made up ads. To stir up great interest, he said that Tom was eleven years old and had come from England.
During the show, Tom fought battles pretendedly with tall people. He also danced upon a wooden plate held by a person who was eight feet tall. Tom’s act was very popular and brought in a lot of money. By the time Tom was an adult, he had grown very rich. He had become a billionaire at the age of twenty five.
Fortunately for Tom, Mr. Barnum added more little people to his show, and Tom became lucky in love as well. One of the little people was Lavinia Warren, a schoolteacher. Tom was able to win her love, and they married.
The ceremony and reception were the talk of the town. They were attended by many rich and famous people and by about 2000 guests. Crowds filled the streets of New York to have a look at their tiny wedding marriage. The couple even met with President on their honeymoon just before going to live in Tom’s house in Connecticut.
Their wedding, which took place during the Civil War, provided a welcome escape from the sad problems of war. Not willing to let this bit of sunshine fade, communities throughout the country sponsored (发起) “Tom Thumb” weddings. In these weddings, small boys and girls, all dressed up, went through marriage ceremony for fun.
56. Which of the statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Charles’ parents supported him and performed together with him.
B. Charles was found and hired by the famous showman.
C. Charles put lots of advertisements to arouse interest.
D. Charles’ success was largely due to Mr. Barnum’s help.
57. Tom would dance on a wooden plate held by an eight-foot-tall person probably because ______________.
A. the wooden plate would make it sound as if Tom was dancing
B. it made Tom look taller
C. the eight–foot–tall man was the only tall person Tom trusted
D. the difference between them would make Tom look even smaller
58. The underlined words “talk of the town” in the second paragraph from the bottom means ______________.
A. it was in the newspaper B. people spread bad rumors about it
C. it was the most popular topic D. it was discussed in a city meeting
59. What does the author think about Tom’s wedding?
A. It helped people cheer up in a dark time. B. People gave it too much of their attention.
C. It was funny and ridiculous. D. Tom and Lavinia were stupid.