BJunglecountryisnotfriendlytom-优题课

Humans have sewn by hand for thousands of years. It was said that the first thread was made from animal muscle and sinew (腱). And the earliest needles were made from bones. Since those early days, many people have been involved in the process of developing a machine that could do the same thing more quickly and with greater efficiency.
Charles Wiesenthal, who was born in Germany, designed and received a patent on a double-pointed needle that eliminated the need to turn the needle around with each stitch (缝合) in England in 1755. Other inventors of that time tried to develop a functional sewing machine, but each design had at least one serious imperfection. Frenchman Barthelemy Thimonnier finally engineered a machine that really worked. However, he was nearly killed by a group of angry tailors when they burned down his garment factory. They feared that they would lose their jobs to the machine.
American inventor Elias Howe, born on July 9, 1819, was awarded a patent for a method of sewing that used thread from two different sources. Howe’s machine had a needle with an eye at the point, and it used the two threads to make a special stitch called a lockstitch. However, Howe faced difficulty in finding buyers for his machines in America. In frustration, he traveled to England to try to sell his invention there. When he finally returned home, he found that dozens of manufacturers were adapting his discovery for use in their own sewing machines.
Isaac Singer, another American inventor, was also a manufacturer who made improvements to the design of sewing machines. He invented an up-and-down-motion mechanism that replaced the side-to-side machines. He also developed a foot treadle(脚踏板) to power his machine. This improvement left the sewer’s hands free. Undoubtedly, it was a huge improvement of the hand-cranked machine of the past. Soon the Singer sewing machine achieved more fame than the others for it was more practical, it could be adapted to home use and it could be bought on hire-purchase. The Singer sewing machine became the first home appliance, and the Singer company became one of the first American multinationals.
However, Singer used the same method to create a lockstitch that Howe had already patented. As a result, Howe accused him of patent infringement（侵犯）. Of course, Elias Howe won the court case, and Singer was ordered to pay Howe royalties（版税）. In the end, Howe became a millionaire, not by manufacturing the sewing machine, but by receiving royalty payments for his invention.
Barthelemy Thimonnier’s garment factory was burned down because _____________.

A．people did not know how to put out the fire

B．Elias Howe thought Thimonnier had stolen his invention

C．the sewing machines was couldn’t work finally

D．workers who feared the loss of their jobs to a machine set fire

Which of the following is NOT TRUE according to the passage?

A．Singer is an American inventor and manufacturer.

B．The Singer sewing company became more practical.

C．The foot treadle helped to make the sewer’s hands free.

D．Singer made improvements to the design of sewing machines.

Why did the court force Isaac Singer to pay Elisa Howe a lifetime of royalties?

A．Because the judge was against Singer for his surly attitude.

B．Because Howe had already patented the lockstitch used by Singer.

C．Because Singer had borrowed money from Howe and never repaid it.

D．Because Singer and Howe had both invented the same machine.

Which of the following would be the best title for this passage?

A．A Stitch in Time Saves Nine

B．The Case between Howe and Singer

C．Patent Laws on the Sewing Machine

D．The Early History of the Sewing Machine

Can people change their skin color without suffering like pop king Michael Jackson? Perhaps yes. Scientists have found the gene that determines skin color.
The gene comes in two versions, one of which is found in 99 percent of Europeans. The other is found in 93 to 100 percent of Africans, researchers at Pennsylvania State University report in the latest issue of Science.
Scientists have changed the color of a dark-striped zebra-fish（斑马鱼） to uniform gold by inserting a version of the pigment (色素) gene into a young fish. As with humans, zebra-fish skin color is determined by pigment cells, which contain melanin (黑色素). The number, size and darkness of melanin per pigment cell determine skin color.
It appears that, like the golden zebra-fish, light-skinned Europeans also have a mutation (变异) in the gene for melanin production. This results in less pigmented skin.
However, Keith Cheng, leader of the research team, points out that the mutation is different in human and zebra-fish genes.
Humans acquired dark skin in Africa about 1.5 million years ago to protect bodies from ultra-violet rays of the sun (太阳光紫外线), which can cause skin cancer.
But when modern humans leave Africa to live in northern latitudes, they need more sunlight on their skin to produce vitamin D. So the related gene changes, according to Cheng.
Asians have the same version of the gene as Africans, so they probably acquired their light skin through the action of some other gene that affects skin color, said Cheng.
The new discovery could lead to medical treatments for skin cancer. It also could lead to research into ways to change skin color without damaging it like chemical treatment did on Michael Jackson.
The passage mainly tells us that ________.

A．people can not change their skin color without any pain

B．the new discovery could lead to research into ways to change skin color safely

C．pop king Michael Jackson often changed his skin color as he liked

D．scientists have found out that people’s skin color is determined by the gene

It can be inferred from the passage that _____________.

A．nowadays people who want to change their skin color have to suffer a lot from the damage caused by the chemical treatment

B．Europeans and Africans have the same gene

C．the new discovery could help to find medical treatments for skin cancer

D．there are two kinds of genes

Scientists have done an experiment on a dark-striped zebra-fish in order to _____________.

A．find the different genes of humans’

B．prove the humans’ skin color is determined by the pigment gene

C．find out the reason why the Africans’ skin color is dark

D．find out the ways of changing people’s skin color

The reason why Europeans are light-skinned is probably that _____________.

A．they are born light-skinned people

B．light-skinned Europeans have mutation in the gene for melanin production

C．they have fewer activities outside

D．they pay much attention to protecting their skin

The writer’s attitude towards the discovery is ______________.

A．neutral

B．negative

C．positive

D．unconcerned

Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and a long-handled brush. He stopped by the fence in front of the house where he lived with his aunt Polly. He looked at it, and all joy left him. The fence was long and high. He put the brush into the whitewash and moved it along the top of the fence. He repeated the operation. He felt he could not continue and sat down.
He knew that his friends would arrive soon with all kinds of interesting plans for the day. They would walk past him and laugh. They would make jokes about his having to work on a beautiful summer Saturday. The thought burned him like fire.
He put his hand into his pockets and took out all that he owned. Perhaps he could find some way to pay someone to do the whitewashing for him. But there was nothing of value in his pockets —nothing that could buy even half an hour of freedom. So he put the bits of toys back into his pockets and gave up the idea. At this dark and hopeless moment, a wonderful idea came to him. It filled his mind with a great, bright light. Calmly he picked up the brush and started again to whitewash.
While Tom was working, Ben Rogers appeared. Ben was eating an apple as he walked along the street. As he walked along, he was making noises like the sound of a riverboat. First he shouted loudly, like a boat captain. Then he said “Ding-Dong-Dong”, “Ding-Dong-Dong” again and again, like the bell of a riverboat. And he made other strange noises. When he came close to Tom, he stopped.
Tom went on whitewashing. He did not look at Ben. Ben stared a moment and then said: “Hello! I’m going swimming, but you can’t go, can you?”
No answer. Tom moved his brush carefully along the fence and looked at the result with the eye of an artist. Ben came nearer. Tom’s mouth watered for the apple, but he kept on working.
Ben said, “Hello, old fellow, you’ve got to work, hey?”
Tom turned suddenly and said, “Why, it’s you, Ben! I wasn’t noticing.”
“Say —I’m going swimming. Don’t you wish you could? But of course you’d rather work — wouldn’t you? Of course you would.”
Tom looked at the boy a bit, and said “What do you call work?”
“Why, isn’t that work?” Tom went back to his whitewashing, and answered carelessly.
“Well, maybe it is, and maybe it isn’t. All I know is, it suits Tom Sawyer.”
“Oh come, now, you don’t mean to say that you like it?” The brush continued to move.
“Like it? Well, I don’t see why I shouldn’t like it. Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day?”
Ben stopped eating his apple. Tom moved his brush back and forth, stepped back to look at the result, added a touch here and there, and stepped back again. Ben watched every move and got more and more interested. Soon he said,
“Say, Tom, let me whitewash a little.”
Tom thought for a moment, was about to agree; but he changed his mind.
“No —no —it won’t do, Ben. You see, Aunt Polly wants this fence to be perfect. It has got to be done very carefully. I don’t think there is one boy in a thousand, maybe two thousand, that can do it well enough.”
“No —is that so? Oh come, now —let me just try. Only just a little.” “Ben, I’d like to, but if it isn’t done right, I’m afraid Aunt Polly … ”
“Oh, I’ll be careful. Now let me try. Say —I’ll give you the core of my apple.”
“Well, here —No, Ben, now don’t. I’m afraid …”
“I’ll give you all of it.”
Tom gave up the brush with unwillingness on his face, but joy in his heart. And while Ben worked at the fence in the hot sun, Tom sat under a tree, eating the apple, and planning how to get more help. There were enough boys. Each one came to laugh, but remained to whitewash. By the time Ben was tired, Tom sold the next chance to Billy for a kite; and when Billy was tired, Johnny bought in for a dead rat —and so on, hour after hour. And when the middle of the afternoon came, Tom had won many treasures.
And he had not worked. He had had a nice idle time all the time, with plenty of company －and the fence had been whitewashed three times. If he hadn’t run out of whitewash, Tom would have owned everything belonging to his friends.
He had discovered a great law of human action, namely, that in order to make a man or a boy want a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to get.
Why did Tom take all his bits of toys out of his pockets?

A．Because he is tired and wanted to play with his toys.

B．Because he wanted to throw his toys away.

C．Because he wanted to give his toys to his friends.

D．Because he wanted to know if he could buy help with his toys.

Tom was about to agree to let Ben whitewash when he changed his mind because ____________.

A．Tom wanted to do the whitewashing by himself

B．Tom planned to make Ben give up his apple first

C．Tom was unwilling to let Ben do the whitewashing

D．Tom was afraid Ben would do the whitewashing better.

What made Ben Rogers eagerly gave up his apple and offer to brush the fence for Tom?

A．His warm heart and kindness to friends.

B．His curiosity about Tom’s brushing job.

C．Tom’s threat.

D．Aunt Polly’s idea.

Which of the following is the most suitable title for this passage?

A．The Happy Whitewasher

B．Tom And His Fellows

C．Whitewashing A Fence

D．How To Make The Things Difficult To Get

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。

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We are not who we think we are.
The American self-image is spread with the golden glow of opportunity. We think of the United States as a land of unlimited possibility, not so much a classless society but as a place where class is mutable—a place where brains, energy and ambition are what counts, not the circumstances of one's birth.
The Economic Mobility Project, an ambitious research led by Pew Charitable Trusts, looked at the economic fortunes of a large group of families over time, comparing the income of parents in the late 1960s with the income of their children in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Here is the finding: "The 'rags to riches' story is much more common in Hollywood than on Main Street. Only 6 percent of children born to parents with family income at the very bottom move to the top.
That is right, just 6 percent of children born to parents who ranked in the bottom of the study sample, in terms of income, were able to bootstrap their way into the top . Meanwhile, an incredible 42 percent of children born into that lowest are still stuck at the bottom, having been unable to climb a single rung of the income ladder.
It is noted that even in Britain---a nation we think of as burdened with a hidebound class system-children who are born poor have a better chance of moving up. When the studies were released, most reporters focused on the finding that African-Americans born to middle-class or upper middle-class families are earning slightly less, in inflation-adjusted dollars, than did their parents.
One of the studies indicates, in fact, that most of the financial gains white families have made in the past three decades can be attributed to the entry of white women into the labor force. This is much less true for African-Americans.
The picture that emerges from all the quintiles, correlations and percentages is of a nation in which, overall, "the current generation of adults is better off than the previous one", as one of the studies notes.
The median income of the families in the sample group was $55,600 in the late 1960s; their children's median family income was measured at $71,900. However, this rising tide has not lifted all boats equally. The rich have seen far greater income gains than have the poor.
Even more troubling is that our nation of America as the land of opportunity gets little support from the data. Americans move fairly easily up and down the middle rungs of the ladder, but there is "stickiness at the ends" —four out of ten children who are born poor will remain poor, and four out often who are born rich will stay rich.
What did the Economic Mobility Project find in its research?

A．Children from low-income families are unable to bootstrap their way to the top.

B．Hollywood actors and actresses are upwardly mobile from rags to riches.

C．The rags to riches story is more fiction than reality.

D．The rags to riches story is only true for a small minority of whites.

It can be inferred from the undertone of the writer that America, as a classless society, should ________.

A．perfect its self-image as a land of opportunity

B．have a higher level of upward mobility than Britain

C．enable African-Americans to have exclusive access to well-paid employment

D．encourage the current generation to work as hard as the previous generation

Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The US is a land where brains, energy and ambition are what counts.

B．Inequality persists between whites and blacks in financial gains.

C．Middle-class families earn slightly less with inflation considered.

D．Children in lowest-income families manage to climb a single rung of the ladder.

What might be the best title for this passage?

A．Social Upward Mobility.

B．Incredible Income Gains.

C．Inequality in Wealth.

D．America Not Land of Opportunity.