The thing is, my luck’s always been ruined. Just look at my name: Jean. Not Jean Marie, or Jeanine, or Jeanette, or even Jeanne. Just Jean. Did you know in France, they name boys Jean? It’s French for John. And okay, I don’t live in France. But still, I’m basically a girl named John. If I lived in France, anyway.
This is the kind of luck I’ve had since before Mom even filled out my birth certificate. So it wasn’t any big surprise to me when the cab driver didn’t help me with my suitcase. I’d already had to tolerate arriving at the airport to find no one there to greet me, and then got no answer to my many phone calls, asking where my aunt and uncle were. Did they not want me after all? Had they changed their minds? Had they heard about my bad luck—all the way from Iowa—and decided they didn’t want any of it to rub off on them?
So when the cab driver, instead of getting out and helping me with my bags, just pushed a little button so that the trunk (汽车后备箱) popped open a few inches, it wasn’t the worst thing that had ever happened to me. It wasn’t even the worst thing that had happened to me that day.
According to my mom, most brownstones in New York City were originally single-family homes when they were built way back in the 1800s. But now they’ve been divided up into apartments, so that there’s one—or sometimes even two or more families—per floor.
Not Mom’s sister Evelyn’s brownstone, though. Aunt Evelyn and Uncle Ted Gardiner own all four floors of their brownstone. That’s practically one floor per person, since Aunt Evelyn and Uncle Ted only have three kids, my cousins Tory, Teddy, and Alice.
Back home, we just have two floors, but there are seven people living on them. And only one bathroom. Not that I’m complaining. Still, ever since my sister Courtney discovered blow-outs, it’s been pretty frightful at home.
But as tall as my aunt and uncle’s house was, it was really narrow—just three windows across. Still, it was a very pretty townhouse, painted gray. The door was a bright, cheerful yellow. There were yellow flower boxes along the base of each window, flower boxes from which bright red—and obviously newly planted, since it was only the middle of April, and not quite warm enough for them.
It was nice to know that, even in a sophisticated (世故的) city like New York, people still realized how homey and welcoming a box of flowers could be. The sight of those flowers cheered me up a little.
Like maybe Aunt Evelyn and Uncle Ted just forgot I was arriving today, and hadn’t deliberately failed to meet me at the airport because they’d changed their minds about letting me come to stay.
Like everything was going to be all right, after all.
Yeah. With my luck, probably not.
I started up the steps to the front door of 326 East Sixty-Ninth Street, then realized I couldn’t make it with both bags and my violin. Leaving one bag on the sidewalk, I dragged the other up the steps with me. Maybe I took the steps a little too fast, since I nearly tripped and fell flat on my face on the sidewalk. I managed to catch myself at the last moment by grabbing some of the fence the gardeners had put up…
67. Why did the author go to New York?
A. She intended to go sightseeing there.
B. She meant to stay with her aunt’s family.
C. She was homeless and adopted by her aunt.
D. She wanted to try her luck and find a job there.
68. According to the author, some facts account for her bad luck EXCEPT that ________.
A. she was given a boy’s name in French
B. the cab driver didn’t help her with her bags
C. her sister Courtney discovered blow-outs
D. nobody had come to meet her at the airport
69. The underlined phrase “rub off on” in Paragraph 3 probably means _________.
A. have an effect on B. play tricks on C. put pressure on D. throw doubt on
70. From the passage, we can know that _________.
A. the author left home without informing her mother
B. the author arrived in New York in a very warm season
C. her aunt’s family lived a much better life than her own
D. her aunt and uncle were likely to forget about her arrival
Grandpa was a carpenter (木匠). One day he was making some boxes for the clothes his church was sending to an orphanage (孤儿院) in Egypt. On his way home, he reached into his shirt pocket to find his glasses, but they were gone. He drove back to the church, but his search turned out to be fruitless.
Suddenly, he realized what happened. The glasses had slipped out of his pocket and fallen into one of the boxes, which he had nailed shut. His new glasses were heading for Africa!
Grandpa had six children and he had paid twenty dollars for the glasses that morning. “It's not fair,” he told God as he drove home. “I've been very faithful (忠诚的) in giving my time and money to YOUR work.”
Several months later, the director of the orphanage was on holiday in the United States. He wanted to visit all the churches that helped him in Egypt, so he came to speak on Sunday night at my grandfather's small church in Chicago.
“But most of all,” he said, “I must thank you for the glasses you sent last year. You see, I had just broken my glasses. Then your boxes arrived. To my surprise, I found a pair of glasses in it and it fit me very well!”
The people listened, happy for the amazing glasses, but thought that the man must have confused their church with another. There were no glasses on their list of items to be sent overseas. Sitting quietly in the back, with tears in his eyes, Grandpa realized that God had played a big trick on him.Where were Grandpa’s glasses lost?
| A．In a church in Egypt. | B．In the box he made. |
| C．On his way home. | D．At the orphanage. |
How did Grandpa feel when he found his glasses were lost?
| A．Calm. | B．Worried. |
| C．Surprised. | D．Disappointed. |
Who got the glasses in the end?
| A．Grandpa. |
| B．The orphanage. |
| C．Grandpa’s workmate. |
| D．The director of the orphanage. |
The people except the author’s grandpa in the church _________.
| A．sent the pair of glasses to Africa on purpose |
| B．knew the glasses that belonged to Grandpa |
| C．thought the director had made a mistake |
| D．were not interested in the director’s speech |
There are many older people in the world and there will be many more. A limeknown fact is that over 60 percent of the older people live in developing countries. According to the World Health Organization，by 2020 there will be 1 billion，with over 700 million living in developing countries.
It is a surprising fact that the population ageing is particularly rapid in developing countries. For example，it took France 115 years for the proportion of older people to double from 7 percent to 14 percent. It is estimated（估计） to take China a mere 27 years to achieve this same increase.
What are the implications（暗指） of these increased numbers of older folk？One of the biggest worries for governments is that the longer people live，the more likelihood there is for diseases and for disability. Attention is being paid to the need to keep people as healthy as possible，including during old age，to lessen the financial burden on the state.
Another significant problem is the need for the younger generations to understand and value the older people in their society. In some African countries，certainly in Asia，older people are respected and regarded as the ones with special knowledge. Yet traditions are fading away daily，which does not ensure the continued high regard of older people. As society changes, attitudes will change.
Much needs to be done to get rid of age discrimination (歧视) in employment. Lifelong learning programs need to be provided to enable older people to be active members in a country’s development.
Social security policies need to be established to provide adequate income protection for older people. Both public and private schemes are vital in order to build a suitable safety net.
To achieve equality in such matters will take considerable time and effort. One thing is sure：there is no time to be lost.The proportion（比例）of older people________.
| A．is bigger in developed countries than in developing countries |
| B．is one seventh of the population in developing countries |
| C．will increase much faster in China than in France |
| D．will be sixty percent in developing countries by 2020 |
According to the passage，which of the following are governments most worried about?
| A．The diseases and disability of older people. |
| B．The longer life and good health of people. |
| C．The loss of taxes on older people. |
| D．The increasing respect for older people. |
Which of the following measures is NOT mentioned to solve the population ageing problem?
| A．Getting rid of age discrimination in employment. |
| B．Ensuring adequate income protection for older people. |
| C．Providing free health care for sick older people. |
| D．Supplying lifelong learning programs to older people. |
The author concludes in the last paragraph that________.
| A．governments have spent lots of time in solving the ageing problem |
| B．population ageing is a hard problem，but it needs to be solved urgently |
| C．people are too busy to solve the population ageing problem |
| D．much time and effort will be lost in solving the ageing problem |
Don’t be surprised if you see a group of people dancing or shouting on the square. They are a flash mob (快闪族). Confused by their name? Actually, a flash mob, organized with the help of the Internet or other digital communications networks, is a group of people who gather suddenly in a public place, do something unusual for a period of time, such as exchanging books, coming together to look at the sky, waving their hands and shouting something at the top of their lungs for 30 seconds, and then quickly disappear before the police can arrive.
Bill Wasik, senior editor of Harper’s Magazine, organized the first flash mob in Manhattan in May 2003 and the first successful flash mob gathered on June 3, 2003 at Macy’s department store involving 100 people gathering on Macy’s Department Store. Following this, about 200 people flooded the lobby of the Hyatt hotel, applauding in one voice for fifteen seconds, and next participants pretending to be tourists on a trip invaded a shoe shop in Soho. A later mob saw hundreds of people in Central Park making bird noises.
Wasik claimed that he created flash mobs as a social experiment designed to tease hipsters (追逐时尚的人), and highlight the cultural atmosphere of agreement and of being part of “the next big thing”. Many web logs, chat rooms and Web groups are devoted to the craze. Though flash mobs were originally regarded as useless, the concept has already developed for the benefit of political and social events. Flash mobbing takes advantage of the efficiency of communicating information on Websites and by email, and protesters can similarly use the “on and off” concept to be involved in political events. Such flash mob gatherings can sometimes shock or frighten people who are not aware of what is taking place. They also have enormous economic potential, such as using flash mobs to advertise a product.
The flash mob is now becoming more and more popular. People use it to do many things. For example, in 2009, hundreds of Michael Jackson’s fans took part in a flash mob to remember him, gathering outside the railway station in Liverpool, singing and dancing Michael’s famous song, beat it together. In another example, some people took part in a flash mob to warn people against negative words. Flash mobs give people from all walks of life an opportunity to come together to create a memory. A flash mob is most likely to .
| A．give out leaflets of a brand bicycle to the passers-by |
| B．gather in public places performing and leave quickly |
| C．plan to go mountaineering on the first day of Horse Year |
| D．sit for days in front of the city hall for higher wages |
According to the passage, what contribute(s) most to the popularity of the flash mob?
| A．Harper’s Magazine | B．the government |
| C．political events | D．digital networks |
The purpose of the writing is .
| A．to amuse and interest | B．to argue and advise |
| C．to describe and introduce | D．to question and comment |
Today, roller skating is easy and fun. But a long time ago, it wasn’t easy at all. Before 1750, the idea of skating didn’t exist. That changed because of a man named Joseph Merlin. Merlin’s work was making musical instruments. In his spare time he liked to play the violin. Joseph Merlin was a man of ideas and dreams. People called him a dreamer.
One day Merlin received an invitation to attend a fancy dress ball. He was very pleased and a little excited. As the day of the party came near, Merlin began to think how to make a grand entrance at the party. He had an idea. He thought he would get a lot of attention if he could skate into the room.
Merlin tried different ways to make himself roll. Finally, he decided to put two wheels under each shoe. These were the first roller skates. Merlin was very proud of his invention and dreamed of arriving at the party on wheels while playing the violin.
On the night of the party Merlin rolled into the room playing his violin. Everyone was greatly surprised to see him. There was just one problem. Merlin had no way to stop his roller skates. He rolled on and on. Suddenly, he ran into a huge mirror that was hanging on the wall. Down fell the mirror, breaking to pieces. Nobody forgot Merlin’s grand entrance for a long time!The text is mainly about __________.
| A．a strange man |
| B．an unusual party |
| C．how roller skating began |
| D．how people enjoyed themselves in the 18th century |
People thought Merlin was a dreamer because he __________.
| A．was full of imagination |
| B．was a gifted musician |
| C．invented the roller skates |
| D．often gave others surprises |
Merlin put wheels under his shoes in order to __________.
| A．show his skill in walking on wheels |
| B．arrive at the party sooner |
| C．test his invention |
| D．impress the party guests |
Five years after they disappeared, lost jewels belonging to the wife of a US ambassador to the Netherlands were found.
Dawn Arnall had already received an insurance payout for her loss. However, the misplaced gems had been found and held for safe keeping by a hotel she stayed in. staff were unaware that the jewels were worth $ 9m.
The world is full of forgetful people. A man in the English town of Reading even left a sausage casserole in a bus. The dish ended up in the Lost Property Office until it was recovered by his mother, eager for her dinner.
A walker in the Lake District had his food in his mouth but … what about his teeth? After climbing a hill in 2007, David Packer stopped for a chocolate bar. He took his false teeth out, wrapped them up in a tissue and just forgot about them. It took more than a year for the walker to be reunited with them.
Over the past 78 years passengers on London’s transport network have left behind items including human skulls and gas masks from World War II. Since 1934, staff have handled an average of 200 000 items a year. Recently they have used computers to try to track down their owners.
But if you find something and can’t locate the rightful owner, is it finders keepers? It depends on what’s found and how, says John Spencer, professor of law at the University of Cambridge.
“If you pick up a coin, you can keep it unless you saw someone drop it, as you wouldn’t be able to find the owner by taking reasonable steps.”
If it’s a larger sum, you should report it to the police but if the item has been abandoned, the property is yours. One man’s loss is another man’s gain!Dawn Arnall is mentioned in the first two paragraphs to .
| A．attract readers’ attention to the jewellery |
| B．introduce the topic |
| C．make a summary |
| D．get people think |
Judging from the examples given in the third, fourth and fifth paragraphs, people can be .
| A．generous | B．experienced |
| C．forgettable | D．honest |
What does the underlined part in the sixth paragraph mean?
| A．It depends on the law whether to keep something you find. |
| B．One man’s loss is another man’s loss too. |
| C．It’s immoral to keep something that doesn’t belong to you. |
| D．Whoever finds something can keep it. |