Chinaishavingsuchahugeinfluenc-优题课

I first went to Harrow in the summer term. The school had the biggest swimming pool I had ever seen. It was a good joke to come up behind a naked boy, and push him into the pool. I made quite a habit of this with boys of my own size or less
One day I saw a boy wrapped in a towel on the side of the pool. He was no bigger than I was, so I thought him a fair game. Coming secretly behind, I pushed him in, holding on to his towel so that it would not get wet, I was surprised to see an angry face come out from the water, and a being of great strength making its way by fierce strokes(猛力地划) to the shore. I fled, but in vain. He overtook me, seized me violently, and threw me into the deepest part of the pool. I soon climbed out on the other side, and found myself surrounded by a crowd of younger boys. “Do you know what you have done?” they said, “It’s Amery; he is in Grade Six. He is champion at gym, he has got his football honor.”
I was frightened and felt ashamed. How could I tell his position when be was wrapped in a bath towel and so small. He didn’t seem pleased at all, so I added in a most brilliant word, “My father, who is a great man, is also small.” At this be laughed, and after some general words about my rude behavior and how I had better be careful in the future, signified the incident was closed.
1. The writer thought Amery “a fair game” because the boy .
A. looked like an animal B. was fond of games w*w*
C. was of similar size D. was good at sports
2. The writer felt “ashamed” because .
A. he was laughed at by other boys
B. Amery turned out to be in the same grade
C. he pushed Amery hard and hurt him
D. he played a joke on an outstanding athlete
3. By saying “My father, who is a great man, is also small”, the writer .
A. tried to please Amery B. challenged Amery
C. threatened Amery D. admired his father
4. Which of the following is TRUE?
A. The writer could run faster than Amery.
B. The writer liked playing on boys of all sizes.
C. Amery was a student in Grade Four.
D. Amery forgave the writer for his rude behavior
5. What does the underlined word “overtook” mean?
A. catch hold of B. catch up with
C. take a look at D. shout at

If you were to walk up to Arthur Bonner and say, “ Hey, Butterfly Man,” his face would break into a smile. The title suits him. And he loves it.
Arthur Bonner works with the Palos Verdes blue butterfly, once thought to have died out. Today the butterfly is coming back — thanks to him. But years ago if you’d told him this was what he’d be doing someday, he would have laughed, “ You’re crazy.” As a boy, he used to be “ a little tough guy on the streets”. At age thirteen, he was caught by police stealing. At eighteen, he landed in prison for shooting a man.
“ I knew it had hurt my mom,” Bonner said after he got out of prison. “So I told myself I would not put my mom through that pain again.”
One day he met Professor Mattoni, who was working to rebuild the habitat for an endangered butterfly called El Segundo blue.
“I saw the sign ‘Butterfly Habitat’ and asked, ‘How can you have a habitat when the butterflies can just fly away?’” Bonner recalls. “Dr. Mattoni laughed and handed me a magnifying glass(放大镜) , ‘Look at the leaves.’ I could see all these caterpillars(蝴蝶的幼虫) on the plant. Dr Mattoni explained, ‘Without the plant, there are no butterflies.’”
Weeks later, Bonner received a call from Dr. Mattoni, who told him there was a butterfly needed help. That was how he met the Palos Verdes blue. Since then he’s been working for four years to help bring the butterfly back. He grows astragalus, the only plant the butterfly eats. He collects butterflies and brings them into a lab to lay eggs. Then he puts new butterflies into the habitat.
The butterfly’s population, once almost zero, is now up to 900. For their work, Bonner and Dr. Mattoni received lots of awards. But for Bonner, he earned something more: he turned his life around
For six years now Bonner has kept his promise to stay out of prison. While he’s bringing back the Palos Verdes blue, the butterfly has helped bring him back, too.
11. When he was young, Arthur Bonner _______.
A. broke the law and ended up in prison
B. was fond of shooting and hurt his mom
C. often laughed at people on the streets
D. often caught butterflies and took them home
12. Bonner came to know the Palos Verdes blue after he _______.
A. found the butterfly had died out
B. won many prizes from his professor
C. met Dr. Mattoni, a professor of biology
D. collected butterflies and put them into a lab
13. From the last sentence of the text, we learn that raising butterflies has ________.
A. made Bonner famous B. changed Bonner’s life
C. brought Bonner wealth D. enriched Bonner’s knowledge
14. What does the underlined phrase “put through” mean in the 3rd paragraph?
A. hurt B. recall C. remember D. experience
15. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A. A Promise to Mom B. A Man Saved by Butterflies
C. A Story of Butterflies D. A Job Offered by Dr. Mattoni

What will people die of 100 years from now? If you think that is a simple question, you have not been paying attention to the revolution that is taking place in bio-technology(生物技术). With the help of new medicine, the human body will last a very long time. Death will come mainly from accidents, murder and war. Today’s leading killers, such as heart disease, cancer, and aging itself, will become distant memories.
In discussion of technological changes, the Internet gets most of the attention these days. But the change in medicine can be the real technological event of our times. How long can humans live? Human brains were known to decide the final death. Cells are the basic units of all living things, and until recently, scientists were sure that the life of cells could not go much beyond l20 years because the basic materials of cells, such as those of brain cells, would not last forever. But the upper limits will be broken by new medicine. Sometime between 2050 and 2100, medicine will have advanced to the point at which every 10 years or so, people will be able to take medicine to repair their organs. The medicine, made up of the basic building materials of life, will build new brain cells, heart cells, and so on—in much the same way our bodies make new skin cells to take the place of old ones.
It is exciting to imaging that the advance in technology may be changing the most basic condition of human existence, but many technical problems still must be cleared up on the way to this wonderful future.
6. According to the passage, human death is now mainly caused by .
A. diseases and aging B. accidents and war
C. accidents and aging D. heart disease and war
7. In the author’s opinion, today’s most important advance in technology lies in .
A. medicine B. the Internet C. brain cells D. human organ
8. Humans may live longer in the future because .
A. heart disease will be far away from us
B. human brains can decide the final death
C. the basic materials of cells will last forever
D. human organs can be repaired by new medicine
9. How long can humans live in the future according to the passage?
A. Over 100 years. B. More than 120 years.
C. About 150 years. D. The passage doesn’t tell us.
10. We can learn from the passage that .
A. human life will not last more than 120 years in the future
B. humans have to take medicine to build new skin cells now
C. much needs to be done before humans can have a longer life
D. we have already solved the technical problems in building new cells

Jim suffered heart problems. In conversation he expressed little joy and it seemed that his life was drawing to a close.
When his heart problems led to operation, Jim went through it successfully, and a full recovery was expected. Within days, however, his heart was not beating properly. Jim was rushed back to operation, but nothing was found to explain the cause of his illness. He died on the operating table on the day before his 48th birthday
Dr. Bruce Smoller, a psychologist, had had many conversations with him, and the more he learned, the stranger he realized Jim's case was. When Jim was a child, his father, a teacher, suffered a heart attack and stayed home to recover. One morning Jim asked his father to look over his homework, promising to come home from school at noon to pick it up. His father agreed, but when Jim returned his father had died. Jim's father was 48.
“I think all his life Jim believed he killed his father,” Dr. Smoller says. “He felt that if he had not asked him to look at his homework, his father would have lived. Jim had been troubled by the idea. The operation was the trial he had expected for forty years. “ Smoller believes that Jim willed himself not to live to the age of 48.
Jim's case shows the powerful role that attitude plays in physical health, and that childhood experiences produce far-reaching effect on the health of grown-ups. Although most cases are less direct than Jim's, studies show that childhood events, besides genes, may well cause such midlife diseases as cancer, heart disease and mental illness.
1. Jim was sent back to operation because ________.
A. his heart didn't work well B. he expected a full recovery
C. his life was drawing to a close D. the first one wasn't well performed
2. What made Dr. Smoller feel strange about Jim's case?
A. Jim died at a young age
B. Jim died on the operating table.
C. Both Jim and his father died of the same disease.
D. Jim's death is closely connected with his father's.
3. From Smoller's words, we can infer that ________.
A. Jim's father cared little about his study
B. Smoller agreed that Jim did kill his father
C. Jim thought he would be punished some day
D. Smoller believed Jim wouldn't live to the age of 48
4. Which of the following could have strong effect on one's physical health according to the text?
a. One’s genes. b. One’s life in childhood. c. One’s physical education.
d. The date of one’s birthday. e. The opinions one has about something.
A. a, b, d B. a, b, e C. a, c, e D. b, c, d
5. Which of the following is true?
A. Both Jim and his father died at the age of 48.
B. Jim often asked his father to do his homework.
C. Jim was believed to kill his father.
D. Most childhood events can cause cancer, heart disease and mental illness

The traditional tent cities at festivals such as Glastonbury may never be the same again. In a victory of green business that is certain to appeal to environmentally-aware music-lovers, a design student is to receive financial support to produce eco-friendly tents made of cardboard that can be recycled after the bands and the crowds have gone home.
Major festivals such as Glastonbury throw away some 10,000 abandoned tents at the end of events each year. For his final year project at the University of the West of England, James Dunlop came up with a material that can be recycled. And to cope with the British summer, the cardboard has been made waterproof.
Taking inspiration from a Japanese architect, who has used cardboard to make big buildings including churches, Mr. Dunlop used cardboard material for his tents, which he called Myhabs.
The design won an award at the annual New Designers Exhibition after Mr. Dunlop graduated from his product design degree and he decided to try to turn it into a business
To raise money for the idea, he toured the city’s private companies which fund new business and found a supporter in the finance group Mint. He introduced his idea to four of Mint’s directors and won their support. Mint has committed around £500,000 to MyHabs and taken a share of 30 per cent in Mr. Dunlop’s business. The first Myhabs should be tested at festivals this summer, before being marketed fully next year.
Mr. Dunlop said that the design, which accommodates two people, could have other uses, such as for disaster relief and housing for the London Olympics.
For music events, the cardboard houses will be ordered online and put up at the sites by the Myhabs team before the festival-goers arrive and removed by the company afterwards. They can be personalized and the company will offer reductions on the expense if people agree to sell exterior (外部的) advertising space.
The biggest festivals attract tens of thousands of participants, with Glastonbury having some 150,000 each year. Altogether there are around 100 annual music festivals where people camp in the UK. The events are becoming increasingly environmentally conscious.
11. “Eco-friendly tents” in paragraph 1 refer to tents _______.
A. economically desirable B. favorable to the environment
C. for holding music performances1 D. designed for disaster relief
12. Mr. Dunlop established his business .
A. independently with an interest-free loan from Mint
B. with the approval of the City’s administration
C. in partnership with a finance group
D. with the help of a Japanese architect
13. It is implied in the passage that _______.
A. the weather in the UK is changeable in summer
B. most performances at British festivals are given in the open air
C. the cardboard tents produced by Mr. Dunlop can be user-tailored
D. cardboard tents can be easily put up and removed by users.
14. The passage is mainly concerned with .
A. an attempt at developing recyclable tents
B. some efforts at making full use of cardboards
C. an unusual success of a graduation project
D. the effects of using cardboard tents on music festivals
15. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A. Don’t Use Tents Again
B. The Advantages of Tents
C. How to Produce Tents
D. The Development of Recyclable Tents