YOUR mom might cook a 
bowl of noodle for you on birthday. But in the US, a mom makes a cupcake for her children on their birthday.
Cupcakes are small, round cakes topped with frosting. It has been an American tradition that moms bring cupcakes to celebrate their child’s birthday.
But recently some doctors have called for this to be banned. They believe cupcakes contribute to child obesity.
Despite their good intentions, however, some people believe that experts are interfering with American culture. The cupcakes is seen as American as apple pie only prettier.
According to Marion Nestle, a professor of nutrition at New York university, the cupcakes is the most democratic of desserts. As they are small enough for one person, you don’t have go share your cupcake with anyone –it’s all yours. They are also all the same size, so there can’t be any cries of “she got the bigger piece!”
Each bite can taste different depending on how much icing you have. It is a lesson in self determination. Some people eat only a little of the frosting every time, other have it all in just one bite.
In recent years, eating a cupcake has become as trendy as having a cup of Starbucks coffee.
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton jokingly promised on a talk show that if she was elected president, a he would give everyone a cupcake on her birthday.
Ruth Reichl, editor---in----chief of gourmet magazine, explains that the rise of the cupcake is very much about going buck to American national identity in food, which is all about comfort. “People want to about when they and their country were innocent,” she said.
1. According to the passage, it has been an American tradition that_______.
A. a party for children is held on their birthday
B. A mom cooks a bowl of noodles for her children on their birthday
C. A mom makes a cupcake for her children on their birthday and brings it to the classroom
D. parents go traveling with their children on their birthday
2. Why do doctors ask people to ban cupcake on children’s birthday?
A. Because they themselves don’t like cupcake
B. Because they think cupcakes are not so delicious
C. Because they believe cupcakes will cause cries of “she got the bigger piece”.
D. Because they believe cupcakes are one of the causes to make children become fat.
3. The following are true according to Marion Nestle expect that ______
A. the cupcake is more democratic than any other deserts in the US
B. the cupcake is too small to share with others
C. the sizes of cupcakes are the same so it is equal to everyone
D. cupcakes will lead to child obesity so they should be banned
4. Why did the writer mention Hillary Clinton and Ruth Reichl?
A. To arouse the readers’ attention
B. To show that cupcakes are becoming a popular to show kindness and comfort.
C. To make a comparison between them
D. To give readers a general idea of cupcakes
My name is Ralph and I am 42 years old. I work in a factory that I enjoy very much. On May 27, 1999, I was working on an automatic machine. While working my hand was pulled into the machine and my middle finger on my right hand was ripped off. I had surgery to replace what was left of the finger and now I have a finger that is almost as long as my index finger.
Over the years I have been very blessed for a full and healthy life. Most of all, blessed for having my wife. We have grown together and grown in our faith. Life is going to go on with or without my finger. I was not going to let this take over my life and I pushed to go back to work and got light duty.
This was where my lesson began. When I returned to work, I started getting comments and some teasing from people asking me if it was worth losing my finger over a pack of cigarettes. Someone started a rumor that I had dropped a pack of cigarettes and reached down to pick them up and that is how I lost my finger. This is not true. This rumor hurt more than losing my finger in that machine. Everyone was called in to a meeting to resolve this matter and get the story straight. I had to share my lesson.
We can ruin a person’s life by just a few bad words. There is an old saying that I will never forget: “Words and water are easily poured, but impossible to recover.” So please remember to watch what you say. According to the author, his index finger on his right hand is almost as long as ________.
| A．his middle finger on his right hand |
| B．his middle finger on his left hand |
| C．his thumb on his right hand |
| D．his thumb on his left hand |
From the second paragraph, we know that the author ________.
| A．was not happy with a short finger |
| B．had a good relationship with his wife |
| C．didn’t want to work any more in the factory |
| D．wanted to find an important job |
The rumour about the author is that he lost his finger ________.
| A．when he was picking up a pack of cigarettes that had fallen into the machine |
| B．because he was not careful and smoked when running the machine |
| C．because he was too sleepy to operate the machine properly |
| D．when he was reaching down to fix something wrong in the machine |
Which of the following can match the underlined sentence in the last paragraph?
| A．Nothing is really beautiful but truth. |
| B．Bad words are meaningless. |
| C．Lies having short legs can do harm. |
| D．Words cut deeper than swords. |
A few years ago a group of salesmen went to a meeting in Chicago. They had assured their wives that they would be home in plenty of time for Friday night’s dinner. In their rush, with tickets, one of these salesmen happened to kick over a table which held a display of baskets of apples. Apples flew everywhere. Without stopping or looking back, they all managed to reach the plane in time for their boarding.
All but one stopped, took a deep breath and experienced a twinge（刺痛）of sorrow for the girl whose apple stand had been overturned. He told his friends to go on without him, waved goodbye, and told one of them to call his wife when they arrived and explain his taking a later flight. Then he returned to where the apple stand had been overturned. He was glad he did.
The 16-year-old girl was totally blind! She was softly crying, tears running down her face. The salesman knelt on the floor with her, gathered up the apples, put them into the baskets, and helped set the display up once more. As he did this, he noticed that many of them had become damaged; then he set them aside in another basket. When he had finished, he pulled out his wallet and said to the girl, “Here, please take the $20 for the damage we did.” He continued, “I’m sorry for what we did and hope we didn’t spoil your day too badly.”
She nodded with her tears. As the salesman started to walk away, the blind girl called out to him, “Mr. ...”. He stopped, and turned back. She continued, “Thank you very much”.These salesmen were hurrying because they ________.
| A．had to attend an important meeting |
| B．wanted to have plenty of time at home |
| C．almost missed reaching the airplane |
| D．hoped to have Friday night’s party |
Which of the following is the correct order of what the salesman did?
a. He made an apology to the blind girl.
b. He told his friends to go on without him.
c. He experienced a twinge of sorrow.
d. He returned to the fallen apple stand.
e. He paid the girl $20 for the damage.
| A．c-e-b-d-a | B．c-b-d-e-a |
| C．d-b-c-a-e | D．d-c-b-e-a |
Which of the following can describe the salesman?
| A．Popular and friendly. | B．Good and humorous. |
| C．Honest and generous. | D．Kind and considerate. |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
| A．A Man’s Kind Action |
| B．Picking up the Fallen Apples |
| C．A Blind Girl’s Bad Luck |
| D．A Blind Girl Who Sold Apples |
Supermarkets are trying out new computers that make shopping carts more intelligent(具备智能的). They will help shoppers find paper cups or toilet soap, and keep a record of the bill.
The touch-screen devices(触摸屏装置) are on show at the Food Marketing Institute’s exhibition here this week, “These devices are able to create value and get you around the store quicker,” said Michael Alexander, manager of Springboard Retail Networks Inc., which makes a smart cart computer called the Concierge.
Canadian stores will test the Concierge in July. A similar device, IBM’s “Shopping Buddy”, has recently been test-marketed at Stop & Shop stores in Massachusetts.
Neither device tells you how many fat grams or calories are in your cart, but they will flash you with items on sale. The idea is to make it easier for people to buy, not to have second thoughts that maybe you should put something back on the shelf.
“The whole model is driven by advertisers’ need to get in front of shoppers,” said Alexander. “They’re not watching 30-second TV ads anymore.”
People can use a home computer to make their shopping lists. Once at the store, a shopper can use a preferred customer card to start a system(系统) that will organize the trip around the store. If you’re looking for toothpicks, you type in the word or pick it from a list, and a map will appear on the screen showing where you are and where you can find them.
The device also keeps a record of what you buy. When you’re finished, the device figures out your bill. Then you go to the checker or place your card into a self-checkout stand and pay.
The new computerized shopping assistants don’t come cheap. The Buddy devices will cost the average store about $160,000, and the Concierge will cost stores about $500 for each device. The underlined word “they” (paragraph 1) refers to ______.
| A．supermarkets | B．shop assistants |
| C．shopping carts | D．shop managers |
Which of the following is the correct order of shopping with computerized shopping carts?
a. Start the system.b. Make a shopping list.
c. Find the things you want.d. Go to a self-checkout stand.
| A．abdc | B．bacd | C．acbd | D．bcad |
We can learn from the last paragraph that ______.
| A．intelligent shopping carts cost a large sum of money |
| B．the Concierge is cheaper than the Buddy devices |
| C．shop assistants with computer knowledge are well paid |
| D．average stores prefer the Concierge to the Buddy devices |
What might be the most suitable title for the text?
| A．New age for supermarkets |
| B．Concierge and Shopping Buddy |
| C．New computers make shopping carts smarter |
| D．Touch-screen devices make shopping enjoyable |
When Lew Alcindor was 13, and obviously still growing, a group of schools began offering him scholarships (奖学金)。 The Alcindors decided to send their only child to Power Memorial Academy, a small school on Manhattan’s West Side.
At Power, Alcindor came under the control of Coach Jack Donohue, a strict young an who already gained his fame as one of the best coaches in the city. Donohue brought Alcindor along slowly. As a first-year student, the boy was not able to do much but wave his long skinny arms and shoot a basket now and then. But by the second year, when he was 15 years old and nearly 7 feet tall, Alcindor was quick and skillful enough to make the high school All-American team and to lead Power to an undefeated season.
From then on he simply got better. Some rival coaches(对方教练) used to take their teams quickly away from the floor before Power warmed up so that their players would not see him any sooner than they had to. Wearing size 16 D shoes and sucking a lollipop(棒棒糖), Alcindor would loosen up by starting his leaping lay-ups(擦板球). Then he would casually shoot the ball with either hand, to the delight of the fans.
When reporters and photographers began to follow Alcindor closely, Donohue protected his boy firmly. He simply ordered Lew to talk to no member of the press, and this suited Lew fine. He was not comfortable talking to grown-ups, perhaps because he towered over them. Discouraged photographers began following him in secret as though he were an easily-frightened giraffe. Once after ducking into a subway to escape, Alcindor told a friend that it was all becoming like policemen and robbers. “People want you not for yourself,” Donohue warned him, “but because you’re a basketball player. Don’t forget that.” Many schools offer Alcindor scholarships because ______.
| A．he was young | B．he was hardworking |
| C．he was tall for his age | D．he was skillful at playing basketball |
Which of the following best describes Donohue as a young coach?
| A．serious, popular and slow | B．tall, skillful and successful |
| C．kind, powerful and undefeated | D．well-known, strict and experienced |
Why their team fail at last?
| A．Their teams refused to play Power. | B．Their teams feared to see Alcindor. |
| C．Their teams would lose courage. | D．Their teams would lose interest. |
What does the last paragraph mainly discuss?
| A．How Donohue protected Alcindor from the press. |
| B．How Alcindor disliked meeting reporters. |
| C．Why the press followed Alcindor closed. |
| D．Why the public wanted Alcindor badly. |
Millions of people visit Yosemite National Park every year to see the tall waterfalls and mountains. These mountains are a splendid sight when viewed from the valley floor. Lots of stores, hotels, and restaurants are needed to handle the crowds. Also, water, roads, and other service systems are part of the infrastructure（ 基础设施）that must be maintained.
Unfortunately, these systems are starting to break down. It is not just in Yosemite but in national parks around the nation.
Yosemite is thirty years old according to Dennis Galvin, a National Park Service worker. The park is not only old but worn out. Two or three times as many visitors come every year. That is too many visitors for the park to deal with.
Four years ago a storm washed out a water pipeline in the Grand Canyon. The National Park Service had to send water trucks to provide water for the visitors. Last month pipe almost broke again and roads had to be closed for a while.
Why hasn’t the National Park Service kept up the park repairs? There is lack of money. The United States has 378 mountains, parks, and wilderness areas. Between three and four billion dollars are needed for repairs.
Yosemite is one national park that does have money fro repairs. It has two hundred million dollars but cannot spend it any way it chooses. When the park workers started widening the road, they were forced to stop by the Sierra Club. The club claimed that the road work was damaging the Merced River that runs through the park.
A Sierra Club lawyer, Julia Olson, feels that the infrastructure needs to be moved out of Yosemite. That way less pressure will be put on the already crowed park. According to the text, the mountains in Yosemite look most splendid when
they are appreciated from _______ .
| A．the bottom of the valleys | B．the top of the mountains |
| C．the side of the mountains | D．the edge of the valleys |
National parks like Yosemite in the U.S. find it increasingly difficult to
meet the need of visitors because _______ .
| A．their transport management needs improving |
| B．they spend too much on their service systems |
| C．their service systems frequently go out of order |
| D．they need help from environmental organizations |
The main problem of Yosemite Park is its ________ .
| A．modern water pipes | B．overcrowdedness | C．lack of water | D．narrow roads |
According to the text, the Sierra Club is most likely to be _______ .
| A．an environmental group | B．an information center |
| C．a travel service | D．a law firm |