When Mary Moore began her high school in 1951, her mother told her, “Be sure and take a typing course so when this show business thing doesn't work out, you'll have something to rely on.” Mary responded in typical teenage fashion. “From that moment on, the very last thing I ever thought about doing was taking a typing course,” she recalls.
The show business thing worked out, of course. In her career, Mary won many awards. Only recently, when she began to write Growing Up Again, did she regret ignoring her mum,” I don't know how to use a computer,” she admits.
Unlike her 1995 autobiography, After All, her second book is less about life as an award-winning actress and more about living with diabetes (糖尿病). All the money from the book is intended for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), an organization she serves as international chairman. “I felt there was a need for a book like this,” she says.” I didn't want to lecture, but I wanted other diabetics to know that things get better when we're self-controlled and do our part in managing the disease.”
But she hasn't always practiced what she teaches. In her book, she describes that awful day, almost 40 years ago, when she received two pieces of life-changing news. First, she had lost the baby she was carrying, and second, tests showed that she had diabetes. In a childlike act, she left the hospital and treated herself to a box of doughnuts (甜甜圈). Years would pass before she realized she had to grow up again and take control of her diabetes, not let it control her. Only then did she kick her three-pack-a-day cigarette habit, overcome her addiction to alcohol, and begin to follow a balanced diet.
Although her disease has affected her eyesight and forced her to the sidelines of the dance floor, she refuses to fall into self-pity. “Everybody on earth can ask, 'why me?' about something or other,” she insists. “It doesn't do any good. No one is immune (免疫的) to heartache, pain, and disappointments. Sometimes we can make things better by helping others. I’ve come to realize the importance of that as I’ve grown up this second time. I want to speak out and be as helpful as I can be.”Why did Mary feel regretful?
| A．She didn’t achieve her ambition. | B．She didn’t take care of her mother. |
| C．She didn’t complete her high school. | D．She didn’t follow her mother’s advice. |
We can know that before 1995 Mary .
| A．had two books published | B．received many career awards |
| C．knew how to use a computer | D．supported the JDRF by writing |
Mary’s second book Growing Up Again is mainly about her _______.
| A．living with diabetes | B．successful show business |
| C．service for an organization | D．remembrance of her mother |
When Mary received the life-changing news, she _______.
| A．lost control of herself | B．began a balanced diet |
| C．had to get a treatment | D．behaved in an adult way |
What can we know from the last paragraph?
| A．Mary feels pity for herself. | B．Mary has recovered from her disease. |
| C．Mary wants to help others as much as possible. | D．Mary determines to go back to the dance floor. |
"Itis a dreadful thing to be poor a fortnight before Christmas," said Clorinda, with the mournful sigh of seventeen years.
AuntEmmy smiled. Aunt Emmy was sixty, and spent the hours she didn't spend in a bed, on a sofa or in a wheel chair; but Aunt Emmy was never heard to sigh.
"Thegifts which money can purchase are not the only ones we can give," said Aunt Emmy gently, "nor the best, either."
"Oh,I know it's nicer to give something of your own work," agreed Clorinda, "but materials for fancy work cost too. That kind of gift is just as much out of the question for me as any other."
"Thatwas not what I meant," said Aunt Emmy.
"Whatdid you mean, then?" asked Clorinda, looking puzzled.
AuntEmmy smiled.
"Supposeyou think out my meaning for yourself," she said. "That would be better than if I explained it. Besides, I don't think Icouldexplain it. Take the beautiful line of a beautiful poem to help you in your thinking out: 'The gift without the giver is bare.'"
"I'dput it the other way and say, 'The giver without the gift is bare,'" said Clorinda, with a grimace. "That is my predicament exactly. Well, I hope by next Christmas I'll not be quite bankrupt. I'm going into Mr. Callender's store down at Murraybridge in February. He has offered me the place, you know."
"Won'tyour aunt miss you terribly?" said Aunt Emmy gravely.
Clorindaflushed. There was a note in Aunt Emmy's voice that disturbed her.
"Ithink she would rather have your companionship than a part of your salary, Clorinda," said Aunt Emmy. "But of course you must decide for yourself, dear. " ““
"Well,I must say bye-bye and run home. " Clorindalived just across the road from Aunt Emmy in a tiny white house behind some huge willows. But Aunt Mary lived there too--the only relative Clorinda had, for Aunt Emmy wasn't really her aunt at all. Clorinda had always lived with Aunt Mary ever since she could remember.
Clorindapuzzled over Aunt Emmy's meaning for four days and part of three nights. Then all at once it came to her. Or if it wasn't Aunt Emmy's meaning it was a very good meaning in itself, and it grew clearer and expanded in meaning during the days that followed, although at first Clorinda shrank a little from some of the conclusions to which it led her."
OnChristmas Day, Clorinda went over to Aunt Emmy's. It was a faded brown Christmas after all, for the snow had not come. But Clorinda did not mind; there was such joy in her heart that she thought it the most delightful Christmas Day that ever dawned.
Sheput the queer cornery armful she carried down on the kitchen floor before she went into the sitting room. Aunt Emmy was lying on the sofa before the fire, and Clorinda sat down beside her.
"I'vecome to tell you all about it," she said.
AuntEmmy patted the hand that was in her own.
"Fromyour face, dear girl, it will be pleasant hearing and telling," she said.
Clorindanodded.
"AuntEmmy, I thought for days over your meaning ... thought until I was dizzy. And then one evening it just came to me, without any thinking at all, and I knew that I could give some gifts after all. I thought of something new every day for a week. At first I didn't think Icouldgive some of them, and then I thought how selfish I was. I would have been willing to pay any amount of money for gifts if I had had it, but I wasn't willing to pay what I had. I got over that, though, Aunt Emmy. Now I'm going to tell you what I did give.
"First,there was old Aunt Kitty. You know she was my nurse when I was a baby, and she's very fond of me. But, well, you know, Aunt Emmy, I'm ashamed to confess it, but really I've never found Aunt Kitty very entertaining, to put it mildly. She is always glad when I go to see her, but I've never gone except when I couldn't help it. She is very deaf, and rather dull and stupid, you know. Well, I gave her a whole day. I took my knitting yesterday, and sat with her the whole time and just talked and talked. I told her all the Greenvale news and gossip and everything else I thought she'd like to hear. She was so pleased and proud; she told me when I came away that she hadn't had such a nice time for years. "
"Thenthere was ... Florence. You know, Aunt Emmy, we were always intimate friends until last year. Then Florence once told Rose Watson something I had told her in confidence. I found it out and I was so hurt. I couldn't forgive Florence, and I told her plainly I could never be a real friend to her again. Florence felt badly, because she really did love me, and she asked me to forgive her, but it seemed as if I couldn't. Well, Aunt Emmy, that was my Christmas gift to her ... my forgiveness. I went down last night and just put my arms around her and told her that I loved her as much as ever and wanted to be real close friends again.
"Igave Aunt Mary her gift this morning. I told her I wasn't going to Murraybridge, that I just meant to stay home with her. She was so glad--and I'm glad, too, now that I've decided so."
"Yourgifts have been real gifts, Clorinda," said Aunt Emmy. "Something of you--the best of you--went into each of them."
Clorindawent out and brought her cornery armful in.
"Ididn't forget you, Aunt Emmy," she said, as she unpinned the paper.
Therewas a rosebush--Clorinda's own pet rosebush--all snowed over with fragrant blossoms.
AuntEmmy loved flowers. She put her finger under one of the roses and kissed it.
"It'sas sweet as yourself, dear child," she said tenderly. "And it will be a joy to me all through the lonely winter days. You've found out the best meaning of Christmas giving, haven't you, dear?"
"Yes,thanks to you, Aunt Emmy," said Clorinda softly. Clorinda felt anxious before Christmas because_____________________.
| A．She had to leave Aunt Mary |
| B．She didn’t know what kind of Christmas gifts she should buy |
| C．She had not enough money to buy Christmas gifts |
| D．She had no time to make a proper decision |
Which of the following sentences can best explain the line “The gift without the giver is bare.”？
| A．A gift is valued by the mind of the giver. |
| B．Forgiveness is a gift for the giver and the receiver. |
| C．You cannot buy love or respect with expensive gifts. |
| D．Think twice before you give gifts to somebody |
What is the gift that Clorinda gave to old Aunt Kitty?
| A．Passion | B．Sympathy |
| C．Kindness | D．Company |
What does the underlined phrase “in confidence” mean?
| A．respectfully | B．confidently |
| C．secretly | D．willingly |
Which two words can best describe Aunt Emmy?
| A．cute and joyful | B．kind-hearted and emotional |
| C．optimistic and wise | D．gentle and timid |
Which of the following is the best title?
A. A Special Christmas B. Clorinda’s Gifts
C. Aunt Emmy C. Clorinda’s choice
The most common use of intelligence test scores is to predict degree of academic success. Such scores are used in some communities as bases for admitting able children to schools at ages younger than normal, and they are very generally used to determine admissions to schools beyond public secondary school. Another use common in elementary schools involves comparing such scores with performances in various subjects to identify children who are working below capacity.
The greatest problem in using intelligence tests for the purpose of prediction is that no dependable criterion of their accuracy exists. The ideal criteria would be objective and reliable achievement tests following instruction in each subject, but there are few such tests, especially at the college level. Studies have shown that correlations(相关性) between intelligence tests and achievement tests in various subjects through secondary school range roughly from 0.5 to 0.8. Such correlations are fairly high, but they do not suggest anywhere near complete agreement.
At the college level there are two major tests used as criteria of admission. By far the more important is the College Entrance Examination, constructed by the Educational Testing Service authorized by the College Entrance Examination Board. These tests are returned to the Educational Testing Service for scoring, and the results are then made available to the various colleges authorized by the students to receive them. The second test of this type is the American College Test, which operates in essentially the same fashion.
Both tests constitute measures of certain skills, abilities, and knowledge that have been found to be related to success in college. Their correlations with academic success are limited for three outstanding reasons. First, measures of achievement in college are themselves perhaps no more reliable than those in elementary and secondary schools. Second, intellectual factors do not alone determine academic success, especially at the college level. Many students drop out of schools because they are inadequately motivated or because they dislike the instructional programme. Third, correlations are lowered because the use of such tests for denying admission to some students means that the range of scores for those admitted is restricted, and such restriction tend to reduce correlation.The intelligence scores can be used in the following way EXCEPT_____.
| A．telling in advance the degree of academic success |
| B．admitting intelligent children to school at the age younger than ordinary |
| C．finding out children with lower ability in primary schools |
| D．selecting pupils by public secondary schools |
The ideal criteria in using intelligence tests for prediction should be _____.
| A．accurate college tests |
| B．objective and reliable achievement tests |
| C．objective and reliable intelligence tests |
| D．a series of objective multiple choices |
What can be inferred from the second paragraph?
| A．Ideal criteria for objective and reliable achievement tests in college courses are hard to find. |
| B．Intelligence test scores can accurately predict the degree of academic success. |
| C．The correlations between intelligence tests and achievement tests are lowest in college courses. |
| D．The high correlations between intelligence tests and achievement tests in secondary school gain universal recognition. |
The results of the College Entrance Examination will be _____.
| A．sent to the college that the students chose |
| B．more important to the students than the American College Test |
| C．decided by the College Entrance Examination Board |
| D．used as criteria of the American College Test |
The correlations between two college admission tests and academic success in college are limited for the reason that _____.
| A．many students drop out of schools |
| B．students are not adequately motivated |
| C．intellectual factors are more important for students than when they were in primary and middle schools |
| D．measures of college achievement are unreliable like those in primary and middle schools. |
Derek Wayne has obtained a 30-year, fixed-rate home loan of $ 100,000 with an annual interest rate of 7.5 percent. Because the loan extends for such a lengthy period, the mortgage(抵押) company calculates a monthly payment that ensures it will get most of its interest back first. Thus in the beginning months, Wayne’s principal payment—the amount he pays toward his actual loan—increases extremely slowly.
| Payment Number |
Total Monthly Payment |
Principal Portion of Payment |
Interest Portion of Payment |
Current Balance |
| 1 |
$699.21 |
$ 74.21 |
$ 625.00 |
$99,925.79 |
| 2 |
$699.21 |
$74.68 |
$624.54 |
$99,854.11 |
| 359 |
$699.21 |
$690.56 |
$8.66 |
$694.87 |
| 360 |
$699.21 |
$694.87 |
$4.34 |
$0.00 |
Let’s analyze Wayne’s early payments. Imagine that on December 15 the Mauritanian Mortgage Corporation gives Wayne $100,000, and on January 15 his initial payment is due. Throughout this first month, interest accumulates on the entire $ 100,000. On a yearly interest rate of 7.5%, Wayne’s monthly rate is 0.625% or 7.5%divided by 12. Multiplying $100,000 by 0.625% yields $625, the portion of Wayne’s first monthly payment that is interest. So Wayne now owes $ 99,925.79 ( $100,625－$699.21). His February interest payment will be 0.625% of $ 99,925.79.
By the time Wayne makes his last few payments, his monthly interest payment has decreased considerably. His balance following his 359th payment is $ 694.87, and 0.625% of that is about $ 4.34, his final interest payment. What was the total amount of interest Wayne paid? Multiplying 360 months by $699.21 equals $ 251,715.60, and subtracting $100,000(the loan amount) leaves $151,715.60—over 1.5 times what he actually borrowed!This passage is mainly concerned with_________________.
| A．Derek Wayne |
| B．the Mauritanian Mortgage Corporation |
| C．how interest payments on a loan change |
| D．calculating the number of payments Wayne made |
The monthly interest rate on Wayne’s loan was____________.
| A．7.5% | B．6.5% |
| C．0.625% | D．$625 |
We can conclude that Wayne’s total monthly payment was always___________.
| A．$699.21 | B．$100,000 |
| C．$360 | D．$151,715.60 |
The table in the passage helps the readers see_____________.
| A．Wayne’s down payment before he took out the loan |
| B．Wayne’s first and last payments |
| C．how much his interest payments increased |
| D．at what point the interest and principal payments were just about equal. |
Some people believe that international sport creates goodwill between the nations and that if countries play games together they will learn to live together. Others say that the opposite is true: that international contests encourage false national pride and lead to misunderstanding and hatred. There is probably some truth in both arguments, but in recent years the Olympic Games have done little to support the view that sport encourages international brotherhood. Not only was the Olympics the scene of a tragic incident involving the murder of athletes, but the Games were also ruined by lesser incidents caused principally by minor national contests.
One country received its second-place medals with visible indignation after the hockey final. There had been noisy scenes at the end of the hockey match, the losers objecting to the final decisions. They were convinced that one of their goals should not have been disallowed and that their opponents’ victory was unfair. Their manager was in a rage when he said: “This wasn’t hockey. Hockey and the International Hockey Federation are finished.” The president of the Federation said later that such behavior could result in the suspension(禁赛) of the team for at least three years.
The American basketball team announced that they would not yield first place to Russia, after a disputable end to their contest. The game had ended in disturbance. It was thought at first that the United States had won by a single point, but it was announced that there were three seconds still to play. A Russian player then threw the ball from one end of the court to the other, and another player popped it into the basket. It was the first time the U.S.A. had ever lost an Olympic basketball match. An appeal jury debated the matter for four and a half hours before announcing that the result would stand. The American players then voted not to receive the silver medals.
Incidents of this kind will continue as long as sport is played competitively rather than for the love of the game. The suggestion that athletes should compete as individuals, or in non-national teams, might be too much to hope for. But in the present organization of the Olympics there is far too much that encourages aggressive patriotism.According to the author, recent Olympic Games have ________.
| A．created goodwill between the nations |
| B．bred only false national pride |
| C．barely showed any international friendship |
| D．led to more and more misunderstanding and hatred |
What did the manager mean by saying “Hockey and the International Hockey Federation are finished”?
| A．His team would no longer take part in international games. |
| B．Hockey and the Federation are both ruined by the unfair decisions. |
| C．There should be no more hockey matches organized by the Federation. |
| D．The International Hockey Federation should be ended. |
The basketball example implied that ________.
| A．too much patriotism was shown in the incident |
| B．the announcement to let the match continue was wrong |
| C．the appeal jury took too long in making the decision |
| D．the American team was right in rejecting the silver medals |
The author gives the two examples in Paragraphs 2 and 3 to show ________.
| A．how national pride led to undesirable incidents in international games |
| B．that sportsmen are more obedient than they used to be |
| C．that competitiveness in the games discourages international friendship |
| D．that unfair decisions are common in the Olympic Games |
What conclusion can be drawn from the passage?
| A．The organization of the Olympic Games must be improved. |
| B．Athletes should compete as individuals in the Olympic Games. |
| C．Sport should be played competitively rather than for the love of the game. |
| D．International contests can lead to misunderstanding between nations. |
Years ago, I drove into a service station to get some gas. It was a beautiful day, and I was feeling great. As I walked into the station to __ the gas, the owner said to me, “How do you feel?” That seemed like a __ question, but I felt fine and told him __ .
“You don’t look well,” he replied. This __ me completely by surprise. A little less __ , I told him that I had never felt better. Without __ , he continued to tell me how bad I looked and that my skin appeared __ .
By the time I left the service station, I was feeling a little __ . About a block away, I __ to the side of the road to look at my face in the mirror. How did I feel? Was I sick? Was everything all right? By the time I got home, I was beginning to feel a little ill. Did I have hepatitis (肝炎)? Had I __ some rare disease?
The next time I went into that gas station, feeling fine again, I __ what had happened. The place had recently been painted a bright yellow, and the light __ off the walls made everyone inside look as though they had hepatitis! I wondered how many other folks had __ the way I did. I had let one short conversation with a total stranger change my __ for an entire day. He told me I looked sick, and before long, I was __ feeling sick. That single _ _observation had a strong effect on the way I felt and __ .
A little while later I saw how __ the incident was, although on that day when the man had told me how ill I looked, I was __ frightened. I wonder how many other people that man had told they were ill __ he realized that the service station had had a paint job!
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