Jeanne Calment, a French woman, became a record breaker on 17 October of 1995, when at the age of 120 years and 238 days, she became the longest-lived human being on record. A Japanese man died in 1986 at the age of 120 years and 237 days.
Jeanne Calment lives in a small old people’s home in the south of France; her husband, her only child and her grandson have all died. She is nearly blind and deaf and is always in a wheelchair, but her doctor describes her as being more like a 90-year-old in good health than someone of 120．She still has a lively sense of humor. When asked on her 120th birthday what she expected of the future, she replied: A very short one. She also remarked that she thought the good Lord had forgotten all about her.
So what is the key to a long life? According to some doctors, diet, exercise and no smoking are the three important factors. Jeanne Calment has followed two of the tips(窍门). She has always eaten a healthy diet, and she used to do exercises every day until she broke her leg at the age of 115．However, until recently she drank two glassed of strong red wine a day, and she does smoke (now only a little). Besides, Jeanne Calment might have got very good genes(基因) from her parents. Her father lived to the age of 94 and her mother to 86．
A local lawyer bought her house when she was 80 under an agreement that he would pay her some money every year until her death. It must have seemed a good move at the time, but so far the lawyer has paid her at least three times the value of the house. Every year on her birthday Jeanne Calment sends him a card saying:
Sorry, I’m still alive!
69．How does Jeanne Calment feel about her old age?
A. She is miserable and unhappy.
B. She is cheerful and humorous.
C. She would like to live much longer.
D. She feels she is going to die very soon.
70．Jeanne Calment owes her good health and long life to _______.
A. smoking only a little every day
B. her giving up smoking and drinking
C. drinking two glasses of strong red wine every day
D. the good genes from her parents, a healthy diet and some exercises
71．Which of the following could best replace the word “move” in the fourth paragraph?
A. deal B．trick C．march D．sport
72．Why does Jeanne Calment say “Sorry, I’m still alive” to the local lawyer every year on her birthday?
A. Because she had an agreement at 80 with the lawyer which was to her advantage.
B. Because she has asked the lawyer to pay her more rent than they first agreed.
C. Because the lawyer has paid her much more money than the value of the house.
D. Because the house she sold to the lawyer isn’t worth the money he has already paid.
Picky eaters may have good reasons for their behaviour. No matter why your child has become picky, how you handle the situation can affect his or her future. Therefore, you should know the following reasons for picky children first of all.
Neophobia is common in children; it often happens at the dinner table. Some children just refuse to try new food because they don’t know what it will taste like, while others dislike new food before even smelling it. Some children take it to the extreme(极端) and will only eat a few foods that they like. Psychologist Dr. Elizabeth Capaldi says that, by the time children reach the age of two, they have formed their own eating habits that they don’t want to be disturbed by new offerings at the table.
A newly published study led by Dr. Lucy Cooke of University College London showed that picky eating in children results from genetic(遗传的) and environmental causes. The research, which followed the eating habits of 5,390 pairs of twins between the ages of 8 and 11, found that about 75% of the neophobia in the children was from their parents, while 25% was due to the influence of environment.
Children grow at a high speed during their first year, but that fast-paced growth tends to slow down by their second year. When children are not experiencing one of those fast growth periods, their body needs less energy; and that results in a smaller appetite(胃口). When children are not hungry, they tend to enjoy only food they like. They refuse new food and food that is not their favourite. Some children will limit the amount of food to only one kind, like hamburgers or pancakes, leaving all the other foods untouched.
In some cases, many real reasons why a child behaves as a picky eater exist. About 5% of children who are 10 years of age or younger have some type of neurological dysfunction(神经机能障碍) that influences their eating habits. These children may be easily hurt by some special smells, or their brain may not be able to process such sensory information properly.The underlined word “Neophobia”in Paragraph 2 probably means_________.
| A．the fear of something new or unknown |
| B．the worry about the amount of new food |
| C．the feeling of eating at the dinner table |
| D．the fear of eating tasty food |
What can we learn about the study led by Dr. Cooke?
| A．It paid more attention to the environmental effects on children’s eating habits. |
| B．It followed the eating habits of 5,390 children aged between 8 and 11. |
| C．It showed that genetics greatly affect children’s eating habits. |
| D．It suggested that parents should have good eating habits. |
The fourth paragraph mainly tells us that_______.
| A．children’s growth speed stays the same in the first two years |
| B．children develop their own diet when they grow up |
| C．children tends to eat less when they grow up |
| D．children’s growth has an effect on their diet |
The reason mentioned in the last paragraph has something to do with a child’s_______.
| A．exercise | B．sense | C．habit | D．Interest |
One might expect that the ever-growing demands of the tourist trade would bring nothing but good for the countries that receive the holiday-makers. Indeed, a rosy picture is painted for the long-term future of the holiday industry. Every month sees the building of a new hotel somewhere. And every month another rock-bound Pacific island is advertised as the “last paradise (天堂) on earth”.
However, the scale and speed of this growth seem set to destroy the very things tourists want to enjoy. In those countries where there was a rush to make quick money out of seaside holidays, over-crowded beaches and the concrete jungles of endless hotels have begun to lose their appeal.
Those countries with little experience of tourism can suffer most. In recent years, Nepal set out to attract foreign visitors to fund developments in health and education. Its forests, full of wildlife and rare flowers, were offered to tourists as one more untouched paradise. In fact, the nature all too soon felt the effects of thousands of holiday-makers traveling through the forest land. Ancient tracks became major routes for the walkers, with the consequent exploitation (开发) of precious trees and plants.
Not only can the environment of a country suffer from the sudden growth of tourism. The people as well rapidly feel its effects. Farmland makes way for hotels, roads and airports; the old way of life goes. The one-time farmer is now the servant of some multi-national organization; he is no longer his own master. Once it was his back that bore the pain; now it is his smile that is exploited. No doubt he wonders whether he wasn’t happier in his village working his own land.Thankfully, the tourist industry is waking up to the responsibilities it has towards those countries that receive its customers. The protection of wildlife and the creation of national parks go hand in hand with tourist development and in fact obtain financial support from tourist companies. At the same time, tourists are being encouraged to respect not only the countryside they visit but also its people.
The way tourism is handled (处理) in the next ten years will decide its fate and that of the countries we all want to visit. Their needs and problems are more important than those of the tourist companies. Increased understanding in planning worldwide tourism can preserve (保护) the market for these companies. If not, in a few years’ time the very things that attract tourists now may well have been destroyed.What does the author actually mean in the last sentence of Paragraph 1?
| A．The Pacific island is a paradise. |
| B．The Pacific island is worth visiting. |
| C．The advertisement is not persuasive |
| D．The advertisement is not impressive. |
The example of Nepal is used to suggest ______.
| A．its natural resources are untouched |
| B．its forests are exploited for farmland |
| C．it develops well in health and education |
| D．it suffers from the heavy flow of tourists |
Which of the following determines the future of tourism?
| A．The number of tourists. |
| B．The improvement of services. |
| C．The promotion of new products. |
| D．The management of tourism. |
The author’s attitude towards the development of the tourist industry is ______.
| A．optimistic | B．objective |
| C．doubtful | D．Negative |
Like every language, American English is full of special expressions, phrases that come from the day-to-day life of the people and develop in their own way. Our expression today is “to face the music.”
When someone says, “Well, I guess I’ll have to face the music,” it does not mean he’s planning to go to the concert. It is something far less pleasant, like being called in by your boss to explain why you did this and did that, and why you didn’t do this or that. Sour music indeed, but it has to be faced. At sometime or another, every one of us has had to face the music, especially as children. We can all remember father’s angry voice, “I want to talk to you!” and only because we did not obey him. What an unpleasant business it was!
The phrase “to face the music” is familiar to every American, young and old. It is at least 100 years old. And where did this expression come from? The first explanation comes from the American novelist, James Fenimore Looper. He said, in 1851, that the expression was first used by actors while waiting in the wings to go on the stage. When they got their cue (提示) to go on, they often said, “Well, it’s time to face the music.” And that is exactly what they did---facing the orchestra which was just below them. And an actor might be frightened or nervous as he moved on to the stage in front of an audience that might be friendly or perhaps hostile, especially if he forgot his lines (台词). But he had to go out. If he did not, there would be no play. So the expression “to face the music” came to mean “having to go through something, no matter how unpleasant the experience might be, because you knew you had no choice.”
Other explanations about the expression go back to the army. When the men faced inspection by their leader, the soldiers would be worried about how well they looked. Was their equipment clean, shinny enough to pass inspection? Still the men had to go out and face the music of the band as well as the inspection. What else could they do?
Another army explanation is more closely related to the idea of facing the results and accepting the responsibility for something that should not have been done. As for example, when a man is forced out of the army because he did something terrible, he is dishonored. The band does not play. Only the drums tap a sad, slow beat. The soldier is forced to leave, facing such music as it is and facing the back of his horse.How many explanations are mentioned about the phrase “to face the music” in the passage?
| A．1. | B．2. | C．3. | D．4. |
What does the phrase “to face the music” really mean?
| A．To face the stage. |
| B．To face the back of the horse. |
| C．To face one’s leader or father. |
| D．To face something far less pleasant. |
Which of the following occasions is the one we may have to face the music?
| A．When we are playing basketball in the playground. |
| B．When we are making a speech before a lot of people. |
| C．When we are having a party at ease with our teachers. |
| D．When we are talking with somebody in secret. |
The underlined word “hostile” in the third paragraph means ______.
| A．unfriendly | B．dislike |
| C．unkind | D．Unnecessary |
Could cities that float (漂浮) on the sea solve the problems caused by floods and provide food for the world?
Some scientists think so. The idea is already being tested and they believe that floating citied will provide more homes for a growing population, without having to use land needed to grow food. And they believe floating areas will allow more food to be grown, so that no one in the world is hungry.
In some places, cities that float on the sea are already being planned, A company in the Netherlands called DeltaSync thinks that sea cities will save the world, with more than one in ten people living in them.
They say sea cities solve many of the problems the world faces in the 21st century, like not having enough land , more and more people needing homes, fossil fuels (矿物燃料) running low and the increasingly serious problems caused by floods.
DeltaSync says building in the desert (沙漠) is not possible because there is no enough water and that developing ways for people to live in space is still too expensive. So they believe the answer is our oceans, which cover over two thirds of the Earth’s surface. Their plans for floating areas include using algae (海藻) to produce fuel and food.
More than a quarter of the land in the Netherlands already lies underwater and scientists there have spent years trying to find ways to deal with it. In the city of Rotterdam they already have floating homes.
Bart Roeffen from DeltaSync says: “We have plans for neighbourhoods including roads and, in the end, I believe we can build floating cities on the sea.”DeltaSync is a company that wants to build cities _______．
| A．on land | B．in space |
| C．on the sea | D．in the desert |
Which of the following is the advantage of the cities that DeltaSync wants to build?
| A．Providing more jobs for people. |
| B．Making travel in space possible. |
| C．Supplying enough water to people. |
| D．Satisfying more people’s housing needs. |
What does Bart Roeffen think of his company’s future plans?
| A．He doubts them. |
| B．He is hopeful of them. |
| C．He is uncertain about them. |
| D．He has no idea about them. |
What is the best title for the text?
| A．Will there be enough water? |
| B．Will sea cities save the world? |
| C．Is it possible to live in the desert? |
| D．Is it expensive to build floating cities? |
John was waiting for the girl whose heart he knew，but whose face he didn’t，the girl with the rose．Thirteen months ago，in a Florida library he took a book off the shell and found himself interested in the notes in the margin(页边)．The soft handwriting showed a thoughtful soul and insightful(有洞察力的)mind．
In front of the book，he discovered the name，Miss Hollis Maynell. With time and effort he got her address．He wrote her a letter introducing himself and inviting her to keep in touch．
During the next year and one month the two grew to know each other through the mail．A romance started．John requested a photograph，but she refused．She felt that if he really cared, it wouldn’t matter what she looked like．Later they agreed on their first meeting—7:00 pm at Grand Central Station in New York．
“You’ll recognize me,” she wrote，“by the red rose I’ll be wearing my coat.” So at 7：00 he was in the station looking for the girl with the red rose．
A girl in a green suit was coming toward him，her figure long and slim and her eyes were blue as flowers．Almost uncontrollably he came to her，and just at this moment he saw Hollis Maynell—a woman well past 40．The girl was walking quickly away．
He did not hesitate(犹豫)，saying，“I’m John，and you must be Miss Maynell．I am so glad you could meet me. May I take you to dinner?”
The woman smiled, “I don’t know what this is about，son，” she answered，“but the young lady in the green suit begged me to wear this rose on my coat．And she said if you were to ask me out to dinner，I should tell you that she is waiting for you in the restaurant across the street．She said it was some kind of test!”
It’s not difficult to admire Miss Maynell’s wisdom. The true nature of a heart is seen in its response to the unattractive.John was attracted by Miss Hollis Maynell because ________.
| A．John believed her one of her old friends |
| B．she took good notes with a soft handwriting |
| C．John thought her a considerate and thinking lady |
| D．she was beautiful with a slim figure and blue eyes |
Why did John uncontrollably go up to the young girl in the green suit?
| A．Because he knew it was Miss Hollis Maynell. |
| B．Because she was the very lady he was waiting for. |
| C．Because he was drawn to her beautiful appearance. |
| D．Because John didn’t want to meet Miss Hollis Maynell |
We can find John was a person who ________.
| A．was easy to change his mind |
| B．was casual and independent |
| C．judged a person by his looks |
| D．valued a person’s inner spirit |
What’s the theme of the story?
| A．The wisdom is shown in one’s action. |
| B．Love can be met by chance if you like. |
| C．You should never judge a book by its cover. |
| D．A noble heart is seen in its response to the unattractive. |