I told my friend Graham that I often cycle two miles from my house to the town centre but unfortunately there is a big hill on the route．He replied,“You mean fortunately．”He explained that I should be glad of the extra exercise that the hill provided．
My attitude to the hill has now changed．I used to grumble as I approached it but now I tell myself the following．This hill will exercise my heart and lungs．It will help me to lose weight and get fit．It will mean that I live longer．This hill is my friend．Finally I comfort myself with the thought of all those silly people who pay money to go to a gym and sit on stationery exercise bicycles when I call get the same value for free．I have a smile of satisfaction as I reach the top of the hill．
Problems are there to be faced and overcome．We cannot achieve anything with an easy life．Helen Keller was the first deaf and blind person to gain a university degree．Her activism and writing proved inspirational．She wrote，“Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet．Only through experiences of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened，vision cleared，ambition inspired and success achieved.” 
One of the main determinants of success in life is our attitude towards adversity(逆境)．From time to time we all face hardships，problems．accidents、afflictions and difficulties．Some are of our making but many confront us through no fault of our own．While we cannot choose the adversity we can choose our attitude towards it．
Douglas Bader was 21 when in 193l he had both legs cut off following a flying accident．He was deter-mined to fly again and went on to become one of the leading flying aces in the Battle of Britain with 22 aerial victories over the Germans．He was an inspiration to others during the war．He said,“Don't listen to any-one who tells you that you can’t do this or that．That's nonsense．Make up your mind，you'll never use crutches(拐杖)or a stick，then have a go at everything．Go to school，join in all the games you can．Go anywhere you want to．But never，never let them persuade you that things are too difficult or impossible.”
The biographies（传记）of great people are full of examples of how they took steps to overcome the difficulties they faced．The common thread is that they did not become depressed．They chose their attitude．They chose to be positive．They took on the challenge．They won．
Nevertheless．there is still the problem of how you change your attitude towards adversity．
1. Which of the following is true according to the author of the passage?
A．Climbing hills on bicycles is the best way to take exercise．
B．People are silly to pay to go to the gym．
C．Those who want to achieve success can't expect to live all easy lire．
D．People's attitude towards adversity is the only factor that determines whether they will succeed．
2．By quoting what Douglas Bader said，the author intends to tell us“___________．”
A．Failure is the mother of Success．
B．A fall into the pit，a gain in your wit．
C．If you venture nothing，you will have nothing．
D．Nothing is difficult to the man who will try．
3．Following this passage，the author will further talk about___________．
A．how his friend helped him to change his attitude towards the adversity he faced
B．what steps to take to change your attitude towards the adversity you face
C．what great people have in common
D．why it is important to keep optimistic in face of adversity
4．Which of the following can best function as the title of the passage?
A．Face adversity with a smile B．Different attitudes towards adversity
C．Nothing is impossible D．Life is full of adversity
If you are living in the city, have you ever thought of going to live in the country for a change? Many people want to move from the country to the city because they think life in the city is more exciting and better than that in rural (农村的) areas, especially young people who like new and modern things.
Often people feel that they can find the latest styles only in the city. Other people are interested in technological (科技的) things and high-tech jobs and think they can find them only in a big city. If they want to find a job, especially a good position in a company, they feel they have to live in a city. To get these jobs, they are willing to put up with many of the disadvantages (不利因素) of city life such as heavy traffic and pollution.
However, it is now possible to enjoy a higher quality of life in the countryside and still enjoy some of the advantages (好处) of living in the city.
Nowadays, travel is fast and information is available (可获得的) on the Internet, so many people are able to do their work in home offices.
Because they have e-mail and personal computers, they don't have to be in big cities to do their business. It is not important where they actually work because the results of their work can be sent everywhere with technology. Now they can enjoy life in the countryside and still be able to do good business and successful careers.The underlined phrase “put up with” (in Para. 3) probably means “_____”.
| A．change | B．stand |
| C．be angry with | D．be pleased with |
Now people can enjoy life in the countryside and still be able to do good business and successful careers _____.
| A．because of the Internet and fast travel |
| B．because of e-mail and personal computers |
| C．because travel is fast |
| D．because the rural areas are developing faster than cities |
What is the author's opinion?
| A．She / he prefers to live in the countryside rather than live in the city. |
| B．She / he prefers to live in the city rather than live in the countryside. |
| C．She / he likes both city life and countryside life. |
| D．It is not clear which life she / he prefers. |
What would be the best title for this passage?
| A．Life in the city | B．Life in the country |
| C．Go and live in the city | D．Go and live in the country |
Midas was a powerful king, both rich and greedy. Once he did a great favor for Bacchus, the god of wine. Bacchus offered Midas his choice of a reward. Midas answered at once. He asked that whatever he touched be turned into gold. Bacchus agreed, though he was sorry that Midas had not made a wiser choice.
Midas was eager to put his newly gained power to the test. He pulled a branch from a tree. The branch became gold in his hand. He picked up a stone; it turned to gold. He touched the grass, it, too, turned to gold.
Midas was overjoyed. Returning home, he ordered his servants to prepare a magnificent meal. But when he picked up some bread, it turned to gold. He lifted a glass of wine to his lips. But before he could taste it, it turned to gold.
Midas wished to free himself of his power. He hated the gift he had so recently hoped for. He raised his arms and begged and prayed for Bacchus to take away his deadly gift.
Bacchus showed pity. “Go,” he said. “to the River Pactolus. There dip yourself in. Wash away your greed and its punishment. ”Midas did so. Hardly had he touched the waters, before the gold-making powers passed into them. The river sands changed into gold. And they remain golden to this day.What is the moral of this story?
| A．There is more to life than riches. | B．Gold is more important than food. |
| C．You can’t trust your friends. | D．You must make a wiser choice. |
When everything he touched turned to gold, Midas felt ______
| A．happy and joyful | B．sad and disappointed |
| C．excited and angry | D．powerful and satisfied |
What was Midas’ wish after he could have nothing to eat?
| A．To have a big meal. | B．To gain power to turn things to gold. |
| C．To have his power taken away. | D．To wash himself in the water. |
Today when we say that a person has the “Midas Touch”, we mean that ______
| A．the person is very poor |
| B．gold is the most important thing to that person |
| C．everything that the person does makes money |
| D．the person has the power to do everything |
Sam, a dog, was left behind in Colorado while his owners, Mr. And Mrs. Green moved to Southern California. They did not give the dog up. They found him a very nice home before they moved. They would have let Sam accompany them, but they were afraid the dog’s presence would make it difficult for them to rent a house when they reached their destination.
The Green family lived in Colorado for less than a year. Before that, they had lived in the same neighborhood in California to which they returned. So Sam had been there before, but only for a short time when he was young.
Several months after the Greens left Colorado, after they were comfortably settled back in California, they heard a scratch at the door. They couldn’t imagine who might be there. It never occurred to them that it might be Sam, because they were sure he was happily set up with his new family back in Colorado. When they opened the door, the Greens saw a dirty, tired dog with very hurting feet. The animal looked a little bit like Sam, but no one could believe that Sam could have walked 840 miles on his own. The tired dog spent the night under the family car. The next day, when he was more rested, he performed some of his old tricks. The Greens knew they had their own dog back. The story suggests that _______ .
| A．dog owners have trouble renting |
| B．many people treat their pets badly |
| C．keeping a dog is easy |
| D．dogs are too much trouble |
Which is the right order of the following events according to the passage?
a. Sam walked to California.
b. The Greens moved to Colorado.
c. The Greens left Sam.
d. The Greens returned to California.
e. Sam spent the night under the family car.
| A．b, d, c, e, a | B．b, c, d, a, e |
| C．a, c, b, e, d | D．c, e, d, a, b |
The underlined word “destination” in the first paragraph means _________.
| A．the cost of living | B．the country of one’s birth |
| C．the damage to oneself | D．the place to which one is going |
The Greens knew the dog was Sam ________.
| A．because of his hurting feet | B．from the color and the markings |
| C．by the way he walked | D．after he did some tricks |
Minimalism (简约主义) is a term that describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is reduced to its most basic features.
As for me, minimalism functions well not in art or design, but in my daily life.
When I was packing for university, I found it extremely difficult to let go of some of the things I owned. I knew I couldn’t take everything with me, but I kept asking myself “how could I possibly throw this away?”, “what if I need it one day?”, and “what about all of the memories?” Now that I’ve moved, and left that stuff behind, I don’t even miss it. Whether or not I got rid of it, it barely makes a bit of difference to me now.
I’ve learned that over time people forget, or their need for a particular object eventually disappears. Either they store it away or they get rid of it.
You might think nostalgically（怀旧的） about the toys you cared about when you were a child, but what is making you smile now is not the thing itself but the memory of it. I’ve heard it a hundred times, “you don’t need things to make you happy.” It takes something life-changing like moving across the country to realize how true this is.
Speaking of which, for a lot of people, minimalism is about able to move. It’s about being able to go almost anywhere at any time because you don’t have many possessions to carry. When you keep things you don’t need they become a burden that ties you to a place. Moving to university was a good time to let go of a lot of stuff. And when I visit for the holidays, I’ll probably get rid of even more, to lighten the burden.
Of course there are exceptions. There are some things that are irreplaceable, very rare or expensive or we simply love and cherish for some reason or another, since we are humans. But after we keep those, how much is left that we don’t really need?
Hence, minimalism. And why does minimalism bring happiness? That was a bit of a roundabout way of saying that, it’s because what really makes me happy is freedom. And the key to freedom is minimalism because minimalism reduces our attachment to things.
Attachment to too many objects creates a great mess and can severely hold back our freedom to do whatever we want, while minimalism helps us start new projects, move, travel, learn new things, work, expand, be debt-free, be healthy – really living life to our full potential.
I left the nest to fly onwards and upwards, I can’t do it with old things weighing me down. And that is why I have adopted minimalism with open arms. In paragraph l, the writer gives the definition of minimalism to
| A．introduce a topic | B．present his own background |
| C．describe a scene | D．offer an argument |
Many people don’t want to let go of some of their belongings because
| A．they haven’t had any life-changing experiences |
| B．they fear their memories will be gone with the thrown-away stuff |
| C．they hope to live life to their full potential by storing things away |
| D．they may have to change their lifestyle because of the loss of them |
Which of the following is NOT the reason why the writer favors “minimalism” in life?
| A．It takes the burden off her while she is moving. |
| B．It reduces her attachment to her personal things. |
| C．It enables her to gain the freedom that she desires. |
| D．It helps her to realize how true life is. |
What’s the main idea of the passage?
| A．Minimalism brings happiness. |
| B．Minimalism is applied in many fields. |
| C．Minimalism makes people think nostalgically. |
| D．Minimalism is about able to move. |
We all know how important human life is—it’s priceless. It doesn’t matter where you are from or what the color of your skins is—all people are human beings. Firstly, we can tell you that the lives of your relatives could depend on your ability to give first aid. If you think highly of human’s life, this website is for you! Here you can find information about first aid.
The very first thing that you should do when you see an accident is to evaluate the situation and prevent further dangerous incidents. First of all, you have to recognize what has happened and what the dangers to rescuers and victims are. Think about how to take care of the victims.
Helping usually takes place in very difficult conditions and injuries can be very bad. Therefore, you cannot be too afraid of making mistakes to help. Sometimes you have to face the fact that regardless of your actions and your efforts the victim’s condition might not improve—he or she could even die. In some cases even professional medical aid may not succeed. If you have done everything you think you should do, you shouldn’t feel guilty.
Do not expose yourself to danger. Giving first aid can be dangerous. While trying to help a victim, do not forget about your own safety. If something happens to you, you won’t be able to help anyone.
Call for help after you find out the condition of a victim. But remember if a victim faints due to breathing failure caused by drowning, choking or poisoning, you should first take actions that help to bring back the heart beat and breathing. While calling, talk shortly but clearly. Always provide the following information: the location of the accident, the kind of accident, the number of the injured and your full name and phone number and so on.The underlined word “evaluate” in Paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to ________.
| A．leave | B．protect | C．avoid | D．judge |
What’s the main idea of Paragraph 3?
| A．You should learn some professional knowledge about first aid. |
| B．You shouldn’t feel guilty if you don’t know about first aid. |
| C．Try your best to give first aid and don’t be afraid of making mistakes |
| D．Don’t make mistakes when you are giving first aid. |
The author thinks that helping a victim can be ____________.
| A．risky | B．shocking | C．exciting | D．boring |
It can be inferred from the passage that __________.
| A．everyone must learn how to give first aid |
| B．you should forget about your own safety while giving first aid. |
| C．when you see an accident you should do nothing but call the police. |
| D．when calling for help you should give all relevant details. |