John Grisham was born on February 2,1955, in Jonesboro, Arkansas, in the USA. His father was a construction worker and moved his family all around the southern states of America, stopping wherever he could find work. Eventually they settled in Mississippi. Graduating from law school in 1981, Grisham practiced law for nearly a decade in Southaven, specializing in criminal defense and personal injury litigation(诉讼). In 1983, he was elected to the state House of Representatives and served until 1990.
One day at the Dessoto County courthouse, Grisham heard the horrifying testimony(证词) of a 12-year-old rape victim. He decided to write a novel exploring what would have happened if the girl’s father had murdered her attackers. He got up every morning at 5 am, to work on the novel, called A Time to Kill, which was published in 1988. Grisham’s next novel, The Firm, was one of the biggest hits of 1991, spending 47 weeks on The New York Times bestseller list. Grisham was then able to give up law and concentrate on writing. Grisham lives with his wife and two children, dividing their time between their Victorian home on a 67 acre farm in Mississippi and a 204 acre plantation near Charlottesville, Virginia.
When he’s not writing, Grisham devote time to charitable(慈善) causes, including mission trip with his church group. As a child he dreamt of becoming a professional baseball player, and now serves as the local Little League leader. He has built six ball fields on his property and hosts children from Little League teams.
1．What inspired Grisham to write his first novel?
A．A case of murder. B．A case of rape.
C．His father’s experience. D．His life on the farm.
2．The story of the novel A time to Kill would probably focus on __________.
A．how the girl was attacked B．what the circumstances of the rape were
C．how the girl’s father would act D．how the case of rape was settled
3．Which of the following is not true of the novel The Firm?
A．It was popular at the time of publication. B．It earned Grisham great fame.
C．It brought Grisham wealth. D．It was carried by the New York Times as a series.
4．It can be inferred from the passage that Grisham has built ball fields on his property _______.
A．to achieve his life’s goal as a professional baseball player
B．to coach children in baseball
C．to see his childhood dream being realized in the children
D．to provide facilities of baseball training
5．John Grisham is a _______ at present.
A．writer B．lawyer C．Congressman D．professional baseball player
We all have fond memories of taking a few lazy months off after the stress of A-levels. So now that summer has arrived, let’s take full advantage. It goes without saying that summer vacations are the perfect time to go traveling.
Tickets go up greatly when you turn 26, so make the most of cheaper rates while you’re eligible.
Overseas volunteering won’t amaze future employers, but it can be very useful. Finding a reliable (可靠的) company that won’t cheat you is important, as is discovering a program that interests you. There are plenty of websites where you can see other people’s suggestions.
Of course for most of us, money is tight. To avoid overspending you can combine employment and vacation. Hannah Warn, a psychology (心理学) student at the University of Winchester, is spending her summer at Camp America where students enjoy a good time on a summer camp. “Being thrown into something where I don’t really know what to expect is exciting,” she says. “It gives me a chance to experience being away from home in a different way.”
Those with a talent for languages might also consider working abroad as an au pair (互惠工人). The work may be a chance to involve yourself in a new culture while your employer pays most of the bill.
If you have an idea of the sort of career you’d like, getting work experience is wise. In many careers, graduating with only your degree to show for your three or four years just won’t make it. Send applications (申请) off early and to as many places as possible. Make sure you take a well-earned break this summer.【改编】From the passage,we can infer that .
| A．students will be offered part-time jobs during the vacation |
| B．students may employ lower-price tickets when they are traveling |
| C．students should have a longer summer vacation than ever |
| D．students will be offered part-time jobs during the vacation |
The underlined part “you’re eligible” in Para. 2 can best be replaced by “”.
| A．you have more free time | B．you’re tired of school life |
| C．you enjoy traveling a lot | D．you’re of the right age |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the example of Hannah Warn?
| A．Camp America offers jobs to students. |
| B．Psychology students are good at saving money. |
| C．Students had better choose a camp related to their future job. |
| D．A camp is a good place to combine employment and vacation. |
【改编】From the passage, we may conclude that the one who is more likely to seek a job after graduation is _____
| A．John, who got extraordinary academic records during his university years. |
| B．Lily, who worked abroad as an au pair during summer vacations. |
| C．Tom, who got working experience relevant to his future job in college. |
| D．Mary, who got a degree after studying four years in a famous university. |
Alibaba started taking the lead in China, simply enough, by connecting big Chinese manufacturers(制造商)with big buyers across the world. Its business-to-business site, Alibaba.com allowed business to buy almost everything. Alibaba’s advantage wasn’t hard to identify: size. Alibaba is just big, even by Chinese standards. Its marketplaces attract 231 million active buyers, 8 million sellers, 11.3 billion orders a year—and Alibaba is just the middleman. It encourages people to use its markets—not charging small sellers a percentage of the sale.
If you want a quick look into the influence of Alibaba on daily Chinese life, take my experience. I moved to Beijing almost a year ago and quickly got tired of visiting small stores across the crowded, polluted city of 20 million people in search of new electronics, bathroom furnishings, and anything else my wife wanted. “You’re looking for what exactly? Why not try it? ” my Chinese teacher asked me one day. With that, my wonderful new relationship with Alibaba began.
Alibaba’s original business-to-business model now is secondary to consumer buying. Chinese retail（零售）buying makes up 80% of Alibaba’s profit, and leading that group is Taobao, with 800 million items for sale and the most unbelievable selection of things you’ll ever find. TMall.com is Alibaba’s other big site, where you can find brand name goods from Nike and Unilever near the lowest prices.
What I have a hard time explaining to friends and family back in the U.S. is how China has gone beyond traditional shopping—big-box retailers especially —in favor of online purchases on Taobao and a few other sites. In smaller towns than Beijing, where big retailers have not yet traveled, shopping online is shopping, and shopping is Taobao.
I have a list of some of my recent purchases on Taobao for a sense of how extensive the marketplace is. Almost everything arrived a day or two after ordering with free shipping. I’m not even a big buyer, because I need friends to help me search the Chinese-language site. When I was searching my purchase history on my Chinese teacher’s iPad, which helps me buy goods, I looked through with great difficulty about 10 of her purchases for every one of mine.Alibaba’s advantage mainly lies in ___________.
| A．its big size |
| B．its business-to-business service |
| C．its not charging small sellers |
| D．its low price |
What can we learn from the underlined sentence in the passage?
| A．Alibaba is of middle size among all the online sites |
| B．Alibaba will continue to develop. |
| C．Alibaba stands out as the best online site. |
| D．Alibaba acts as a bridge between the buyers and sellers. |
【改编】We can infer from the passage____
| A．The author’s Chinese teacher is also an online purchase lover. |
| B．Taobao has no apparent advantage compared with other similar online sites. |
| C．Alibaba’s business-to-business service earns much more money than retail now. |
| D．TMall.com provides more profit than Taobao. |
【改编】The passage mainly talks about_____
| A．Alibaba has a great influence on people’s daily purchase in China. |
| B．The influence of shopping online goes beyond traditional shopping. |
| C．Shopping online is TaoBao.. |
| D．How the author purchases online in China. |
The man behind the Apple empire died at 56 last year. He was one of the people who made Silicon Valley（硅谷） the capital of technological invention. Author and business consultant Jim Collins once called Jobs the “Beethoven of business”. When asked what Steve Jobs will be best remembered for, many of us would name a particular product：the iPod, the iPhone or the iPad, for example. But in the eyes of Eric Jackson, a reporter with Forbes magazine, Jobs brought the world much more than these popular devices（装置）. Here are some of the lessons he taught us：
1. The most lasting inventions mix art and science. Jobs pointed out that the team members working with Apple were trained in anthropology（人类学）, art, history, and poetry. He believed this was important in making Apple’s products stand out.
2. Never fear failure. Jobs was fired by the successor he himself chose. It was one of the most public embarrassments（尴尬） of the last 30 years in business. However, Jobs didn’t hide away or try to get a new job. He picked himself up and got back to work.
3. You can’t look forward to connecting the dots—you can only look backward. This means that, however much we try to plan things ahead of time, life is always full of unexpected things. What seems like bitter pain and defeat could turn out to sow the seeds of unimaginable success in years to come. You can’t connect the dots looking forward. But you have to trust that all the dots will be connected in the future.
4. Listen to that voice in tile back of your head that tells you if you’re on the right track or not. Most of us simply decide that we’re going to work in finance or become a doctor because it's what our parents tell us to do. Whatever your voice is telling you, it is smart to listen to it—like Jobs did.
Just as Caroline and Amy from his empire put it, “Steve was one of the most inspiring yet toughest boss ever—but who else could have built Apple? What Steve left is sure to inspire generations of creative thinkers to think differently. His influence will be felt throughout the world.”【改编】What can we learn from the passage ?__________.
| A．Steve Jobs is the first one who founded the Silicon Valley |
| B．Steve Jobs is only memorized for the popular device iPhone |
| C．Combining art with science is really vital in making Apple’s products noticeable |
| D．all the team members in Silicon Valley are trained in anthropology, art, history and poetry |
What does the phrase “picked himself up”（Paragraph 3） most probably mean?
| A．Became excited. | B．Refused to talk. |
| C．Got others’ help. | D．Cheered himself up. |
What’s the writer's main purpose of writing the passage?
| A．To introduce readers the life story of Steve Jobs. |
| B．To tell readers Steve Jobs is the “Beethoven of business”. |
| C．To encourage readers to learn from Steve Jobs’ life experience. |
| D．To persuade readers that they shouldn’t always follow what parents tell them to do. |
【原创】1 was having a great morning until I sat down in front of my office computer.’’Your password has expired，’’a server message flashed on my screen, with instructions for changing it.Coming up with a new code doesn't seem like a big deal, unless you work at my company, where we have to change it monthly, using at least one upper-case letter(太写字母)，one symbol and one number, and the whole thing can't be fewer than eight characters. And I can't use any of the same passwords I've used in the past three months.
Suddenly a strong emotion grew in me. What didn't make it any better was that l was deeply depressed after my recent divorce. Disbelief over what she had done to me was all I thought about every day.
That didn't work and I had to type a password that I'd have to reenter many times for the next 30 days. I remembered a tip I’d heard from my former boss. He'd said, "I'm going to use a password to change my life.“
I couldn't focus on getting things done in my current mood. There were clear indicators of what I needed to do to regain control of my life. My password reminded me that I shouldn't let myself be a victim of my recent breakup and that I was strong enough to do something about it.
I made my password Forgive@ h3r.
I had to type this statement several times a day. The simple action changed the way I looked at her. That constant reminder led me to accept the way things had happened at the end of my marriage and embrace a new way of dealing with my depression. As the month wore on,I felt a slow healing begin to take place. By the time my server prompted me to reset my password the following month, felt free.
One month later, my dear Exchange server asked me yet again to reset my password.I thought about the next thing that i had to get done.
My password became Quit@ smoking4ever
This password was a painful one to type during that month,but doing it helped me to yell at myself in my mind as i typed that statement.it motivated me to follow my monthly goal.
Seeing how these reminders helped to materialize my goals kept me motivated and excited.While it is sometimes difficult to come up with your next goal, keeping at it brings great results.Which of the following is closest to the underlined word “expired" in Para.1 ?
| A．Been updated. | B．Been out of date. |
| C．Remained very cool. | D．Been replaced. |
What changes happened one month after the author set the password Forgive@ h3r?
| A．He became calm and accepted the fact. |
| B．He felt he was the victim of the failed marriage. |
| C．He loved his former wife more than before. |
| D．He felt relieved that he had divorced. |
What is the lesson the author has learned through the experience?
| A．Computers are the best friend of us humans. |
| B．Many a hand makes light work. |
| C．Don't be discouraged by difficulties. |
| D．Keeping oneself reminded of his goal will work. |
Which of the following might be one of the passwords the author set?
| A．eattwice@day. | B．save4triptoChina. |
| C．Date@her | D．Save4@ring. |
Hightech glasses developed at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis may help surgeons visualize cancer cells, which glow blue when viewed through the eyewear. Cancer cells are notoriously difficult to see, even under highpowered magnification. The glasses are designed to make it easier for surgeons to distinguish cancer cells from healthy cells, helping to ensure that no tumor cells are left behind during surgery.
“We’re in the early stages of this technology, and more development and testing will be done, but we’re certainly encouraged by the potential benefits to patients，” said breast surgeon Julie Margenthaler, MD, an associate professor of surgery at Washington University. “Imagine what it would mean if these glasses got rid of the need for followup surgery and the associated pain, inconvenience and anxiety.”
Current standard of care requires surgeons to remove the tumor and some neighboring tissue that may or may not include cancer cells. The samples are sent to a pathology(病理) lab and viewed under a microscope. If cancer cells are found in neighboring tissue, a second surgery is often recommended to remove additional tissue that is also checked for the presence of cancer.
The glasses could reduce the need for additional surgical procedures and following stress on patients, as well as time and expense.
Margenthaler said about 20 to 25 percent of breast cancer patients who have lumps removed require a second surgery because current technology doesn’t adequately show the extent of the disease during the first operation.“Our hope is that this new technology will reduce or ideally eliminate the need for a second surgery，” she said.
In a study published in the Journal of Biomedical Optics, researchers noted that tumors as small as 1 mm in diameter (the thickness of about 10 sheets of paper) could be detected.
Ryan Fields, MD, a Washington University assistant professor of surgery and surgeon of Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center, plans to wear the glasses later this month when he operates to remove a melanoma from a patient. He said he welcomes the new technology, which theoretically could be used to visualize any type or cancer.
“A limitation of surgery is that it’s not always clear to the naked eye the distinction between normal tissue and cancerous tissue，” Fields said.“With the glasses developed by Samuel Achilefu, PhD, professor of Washington University, we can better identify the tissue that must be removed.”【改编】what is the ultimate goal of developing the new technology ?________.
| A．to distinguish cancer cells from healthy ones |
| B．to encourage hope for life in cancer patients |
| C．to make sure no cancer cell is left behind |
| D．to cut down the risk of cancer surgery |
The underlined word “eliminate” in Paragraph 5 is closest in meaning to ________.
| A．meet | B．remove |
| C．feel | D．resist |
【改编】From the whole passage,what can be inferred ?_____
| A．The glasses are invented by Ryan Fields and Samuel Achilefu. |
| B．The glasses glow blue when finding tissues including cancer cells. |
| C．Tumors as small as 1 cm in diameter could be detected by the glasses. |
| D．Much remains to be done before the technology can be widely employed. |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Special glasses help surgeons“see” cancer |
| B．A new technology has been used in surgery |
| C．Patients will benefit from a new technology |
| D．Cancer is no longer a threat to people |