Discouraged by reading bad news daily and with his marriage failing, Canadian Neil Pasricha decided to try to focus on the positive and come up with 1,000 simple, free, awesome things, posting one each day on a blog.
Pasricha said his blog aimed to highlight life's simple pleasures, which were often take
n for granted, such as finding forgotten money in a pocket, or fixing a TV set with a heavy blow.
Little did he realize his blog would strike a nerve and attract 40,000 people a day to join his discussions on how to enjoy the last triangle of a potato crisp, or the pleasure of laughing so hard that you cry.
Pasricha, aged 30, was amazed to win two Webby awards, known as "the Oscars of the Internet," something positive at a time when his marriage broke up and one of his closest friends committed suicide.
"I turned the worst year of my life into my best year by focusing on the positive. " Pasricha told Reuters in a telephone interview. "Every day I try to find something that is happy, free and universal to share, like the smell of a bakery or when a cashier opens up a new line at a store. "
Pasricha said when he began his blog in June 2008 he thought he might have trouble coming up with 1,000 simple, happy moments in life but now he is more than halfway through and ideas keep flooding in, from himself and from followers of his blog.
"These moments can start a huge conversation. Most of our life is really about hitting green lights on the way home from, or waking up before your alarm goes off and realizing you have more time in bed. But it is those small moments we forget about."
Despite the success of his blog, Pasricha does not want to change his daily life. “I travel regularly for an hour a day to work in the suburb. I like work because I like the people in my office. I’m not a writer and I don’t know how to use punctuations correctly. I just like observing the world and putting it down,” he said.Neil Pasricha determined to post positive feelings or things on his blog because .
| A．daily bad news and broken marriage saddened him |
| B．1,000 simple, free, happy things excited him |
| C．he wanted to forget his marriage life |
| D．he wanted to make his blog successful |
Which of the following will Pasricha probably NOT post onto his blog?
| A．Coming across an old schoolmate. |
| B．Finding his lost dog come back home. |
| C．Falling off his bike and getting injured. |
| D．Buying his favourite book at a special price. |
According to the passage, Pasricha .
| A．gets ideas for 1,000 simple, free, happy things with trouble |
| B．gets ideas for 1,000 simple, free, happy things on his own |
C．is on his way to collecting 1,000 simple , free, happy things |
D．has finished coll ecting 1,000 simple, free, happy things |
Which of the following might be the best title for the poassage?
| A．Hard life for a Canadian blogger | B．Busy life for a Canadian blogger |
| C．Great awards for a Canadian blogger | D．Great success for a Canadian blogger |
What makes a gift special? Is it the price you see on the gift receipt? Or is it the look on the recipient's face when they receive it that determines the true value? What gift is worth the most?
This Christmas I was debating what to give my father. My dad is a hard person to buy for because he never wants anything. I pulled out my phone to read a text message from my mom saying that we were leaving for Christmas shopping for him when I came across a message on my phone that I had locked. The message was from my father. My eyes fell on a photo of a flower taken in Wyoming. and underneath a poem by William Blake. The flower, a lone dandelion standing against the bright blue sky, inspired me. My dad had been reciting those words to me since I was a kid. That may even be the reason why I love writing. I decided that those words would be my gift to my father.
I called back. I told my mom to go without me and that I already created my gift. I sent the photo of the cream-colored flower to my computer and typed the poem on top of it. As I was arranging the details another poem came to mind. The poem was written by Edgar Allan Poe; my dad recited it as much as he did the other. I typed that out as well and searched online for a background to the words of it. The poem was focused around dreaming, and after searching I found the perfect picture. The image was painted with blues and greens and purples, twisting together to create the theme and wonder of a dream. As I watched both poems passing through the printer, the white paper coloring with words that shaped my childhood. I felt that this was a gift that my father would truly appreciate.
Christmas soon arrived. The minute I saw the look on my dad's face as he unwrapped those swirling black letters carefully placed in a cheap frame, I knew I had given the perfect gift.The idea for a special gift began to form when the author was______.
| A．doing shopping | B．having a debate |
| C．reading a message | D．leaving for Wyoming |
The author's inspiration for the gift came from_____.
| A．a photo of a flower | B．a story about a kid |
| C．a call from the mother | D．a text about Christmas |
The underlined word "it" in Paragraph 3 refers to a poem by_____.
| A．the father | B．the author |
| C．William Blake | D．Edgar Allan Poe |
What is the main purpose of the passage?
| A．To show how to design images for gifts. |
| B．To suggest making gifts from one's heart. |
| C．To explain how computers help create gifts. |
| D．To describe the gifts the author has receive |
Women love shoes! They will sometimes go to look for the perfect pair of shoes to wear only once with the perfect outfit or the fashion of the day. Once worn, these fashionable designer shoes may spend weeks, months, or years in the closet without being worn again until another special occasion comes up. With that said, are expensive designer shoes really worth their cost?
Historically, shoes were invented to free feet from sharp rocks, hot sands, and blisters. Shoes were made to be simple and functional, with tough leather soles and straps. As society became more sophisticated (复杂的), the role of shoes changed; shoes were made to add status to the wearer.
Shoe designers began to work on the production of fashion shoes for the wealthy; shoes meant more for show than for practical use or simplicity. Good shoemakers became well known and printed symbols on their shoes, so people could recognize the maker of that particular design. Designer shoes were thus born.
Many women develop serious problems with their feet after wearing these designer shoes during the workday and the medical costs for dealing with these problems can get very high. Some popular makers of designer shoes have been working towards combining comfort and practical use into their shoes, but it has been noted that women still go for style, beauty and uniqueness above everything else.
So to answer the question as to whether or not designer shoes are worth the cost, the answer is certainly yes, but be smart and invest in a pair of comfortable, not so stylish shoes for the days when you stay outdoors for hours! They can also be very expensive, but I can surely say that they are worth the cost.When shoes were first made, their main use was to _________.
| A．increase the wearer’s image |
| B．protect the wearer from discomfort |
| C．make the wearer more noticeable |
| D．show the simplicity of life |
From the passage, we can learn that __________.
| A．women like to wear designer shoes only during the workday |
| B．designer shoes are more practical and beautiful than common shoes |
| C．shoemakers won fame for their shoes’ prices |
| D．shoemakers printed symbols on their shoes for being recognized |
Designer shoes will remain on the market because they ________.
| A．make a lot of money for shoemakers |
| B．meet women’s demand for being special |
| C．will become increasingly comfortable |
| D．offer the wearer a chance to show off their wealth |
In this passage, the author wants to.
| A．explain why expensive designer shoes are worth the money |
| B．talk about the necessity of owning comfortable shoes |
| C．warn women of the danger of wearing designer shoes |
| D．talk about the history and development of shoes |
There was a gardener who looked after his garden with great care. To water his flowers, he used two buckers. One was a shiny and new bucket. The other was a very old and dilapidated one, which had seen many years of service, but was now past its best.
Every morning, the gardener would fill up the two buckets. Then he would carry them along the path, one on each side, to the flowerbeds. The new bucket was very proud of itself. It could carry a full bucket of water without a single drop spilled . The old bucket felt very ashamed because of its holes: before it reached the flowerbeds, much water had leaked along the path.
Sometimes the new bucket would say, “See how capable I am! How good it is that the gardener has me to water the flowers every day! I don't know why he still bothers with you. What a waste of space you are!”
And all that the old bucket could say was, “I know I’m not very useful, but I can only do my best. I’m happy that the gardener still finds a little bit of use in me, at least.”
One day, the gardener heard that kind or conversation. After watering the flowers as usual, he said, “You both have done your work very well. Now I am going to carry you back. I want you to look carefully along the path.”
Then the two buckets did so. All along the path, they noticed, on the side where the new bucket was carried, there was just bare earth; on the other side where the old bucket was carried, there was a joyous row of wild flowers, leading all the way to the garden.What does the underlined word “dilapidated” probably mean?
| A．Dirty | B．Dark | C．Worn-out | D．Plain-looking. |
What was the old bucket ashamed of?
| A．His past. | B．His aging. | C．His manner. | D．His leaking. |
The new bucket made conversations with the old one mainly to
| A．laugh at the old one |
| B．take pity on the old one |
| C．show off its beautiful looks |
| D．praise the gardener’s kindness |
Why was the old bucket still kept by the gardener?
| A．Because it was used to keep a balance |
| B．Because it stayed in its best condition |
| C．Because it was taken as a treasure |
| D．Because it had its own function |
Removing the sleeve(封套), you will find a book that is entirely white, except for the names of its author and subject in elegant black type on the cover. It is the perfect design for the biography of a man who insisted that even the insides of his products be perfectly constructed, and that his factory wails flash in the whitest white.
The cover was the only part of the book Steve Jobs wanted to control, writes Isaacson in his introduction. Though Mr. Jobs pushed the biographer of Albert Einstein and Benjamin Franklin to write in his own way, generously allowing the writer more than 40 interviews, this book offers quite a different view of Mr. Jobs, who won much praise from his fans after his death on October 5th at the age of 56.
As a biographer of Albert Einstein and Benjamin Franklin, Mr. Isaacson knows how to celebrate long-dead genius, but he claimed that "Steve Jobs" would not be entirely praiseful words. The picture he paints, particularly in the first half of this book, is not nice. Mr. Jobs emerges as a controlling and often cold-blooded character. A child of the 1960s counter-culture (反主流文化), he hated, materialism and lived in simply furnished houses ( in part because he was too particular about furniture). But when Apple went public in 1980, he refused to give any share to Daniel Kottke, a Iongtime supporter and soul mate from college. "He has to abandon the people he is close to," observes Andy Hertzfeld, an early Apple engineer.
Mr. Jobs was undoubtedly possessing an extraordinary ability to attract others and inspire a kind of faith that could not be questioned. But also he could be cold and cruel. If he disapproved of an employee's work, he often shamed him. "This is who I am," he once said after being challenged,"and you can't expect me to be someone I'm not. " This disgusting personality wasn't always helpful,but it served a purpose, writes Mr. Isaacson, many would "end their chain of horror stories by saying that he got them to do things they never dreamed possible. "
Mr. Isaacson treats "Steve Jobs" as the biography of record, which means that it is a strange book to read so soon after its subject's death.The biography for Jobs is believed to have the perfect design because __
| A．it follows Jobs' style |
| B．its cover is entirely white |
| C．black and white are his favorite . |
| D．it is designed by a famous biographer |
The picture of Jobs that Isaacson paints in his book is __
①cruel②humorous③particular④generous
| A．①③ | B．②③ | C．①④ | D．③④ |
It can be safely concluded that
| A．Jobs is highly spoken of in the book |
| B．Isaacson doesn't think Jobs a good man |
| C．Jobs didn't care about the design of the book |
| D．all descriptions of Jobs are not nice in the book |
This passage can be classified as
| A．a personal diary | B．a book review | C．a news report | D．a TV interview |
Forget hard work and perseverance. Getting ahead is as simple as tidying your desk.
According to a leading expert, having a cluttered environment reflects a cluttered mind, but the act of tidying up can help you be more successful. The advice comes from Jayne Morris, the resident"life coach" for NHS Online, who said it is no good just moving the mess around. In order to clear the mind, unwanted items must be thrown away to free your "inner world", she said.
Ms Morris, who claims to have coached celebrities to major business figures, said:“Clearing clutter from your desk has the power to transform your business. " How? Because clutter in your outer environment is the physical sign of all the clutter going on inside of you. " Clearing clutter has a chain effect across your entire life, including your work. Having an untidy desk covered in clutter could be stopping you achieving the business success you want. " She is sure cleaning up will be helpful even though some of history's biggest achievers lived and worked in messy conditions.
Churchill was considered untidy from a boy throughout his life, from his office to his artist's studio,and the lab where Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin was famously untidy.
Among the recommendations is that simply tidying a desk at work and an overflowing filing cabinet(陈列柜) will instantly have a positive impact on "your inner world. " Anything that is no longer used should not be put into storage but thrown away completely.
Keeping something in the loft, garage or other part of the house, does not help because it is still connected to the person "by tiny energetic li.nes", Ms Morris. claims.
She said, "The things in your life that are useful to you, that add value to your life, that serve a current purpose are charged with positive energy that refreshes you and enriches your life. But the things that you don't ever use and don't need anymore have the opposite effect on your energy.
Things that no longer fit or serve you, use up your energy. "The underlined word "cluttered" (in Para.2) is closest, in meaning to __
| A．messy | B．brief | C．complex | D．aggressive |
Which of the following statements does Ms Morris agree to?
| A．Changing the position of staff frequently will help to build up a clear mind. |
| B．A tidy office will lead to a success in your business affairs in no time. |
| C．To have a free mind, we need to throw away unneeded items at times. |
| D．You can pack up your things in garage or loft to cheer you up. |
According to Ms Morris, an untidy desk probably means that
| A．you are quite a failure |
| B．you are in a messy mind |
| C．you are toe tired to deal with it |
| D．you have achieved the business success |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Less untidy, more successful. |
| B．How to improve your inner world. |
| C．Cleaning up makes you less intelligent. |
| D．Being bigger achiever needs more effort. |