游客
题文

It s just a small, white envelope stuck among the branches of our Christmas tree.It has been there for the past 10 years or so.It all began because my husband Mike hated Christmas—the commercial aspects of Christmas-overspending.Knowing he felt this way, I decided one year to avoid the usual presents.The idea came in an unusual way.
Our son Kevin, who was 12 that year, was wrestling at the junior level at the school he attended; and shortly before Christmas, there was a match against a team sponsored by a church.These youngsters, dressed in ragged clothes, presenting a sharp contrast to our boys in their beautiful dresses and shoes.As the match began, I was alarmed to see that the other team was wrestling without headgear, a kind of light helmet designed to protect a wrestler's ears.It was a luxury that the poor team obviously could not afford.Well, we ended up defeating them.Mike, seated beside me, shook his head sadly, "I wish just one of them could have won," he said."They have a lot of potential, but losing like this could take the heart right out of them." That's when the idea for his present came.That afternoon, I went to a local sporting goods store and bought wrestling headgear and shoes for the youngsters and sent them anonymously (匿名地) to the church.On Christmas Eve? I placed the envelope on the tree, the note inside telling Mike what I had done and that this was his gift from me.His smile was the brightest thing about Christmas that year and in the following years.
For each Christmas, I followed the tradition.The envelope became the highlight of our Christmas.It was always the last thing opened on Christmas morning and our children, ignoring their new toys, would stand with wide-eyed expectation as their dad lifted the envelope from the tree to show its contents.As the children grew, they joined.
May we all remember the reason for Christmas, and the true Christmas spirit this year and always.God bless梡ass this along to your friends and loved ones.
The author avoids usual Christmas presents because her husband _____.

A.likes cheap Christmas presents
B.likes expensive Christmas presents
C.dislikes spending much on large Christmas presents
D.dislikes spending much on unmeaningful Christmas gifts

The underlined word "luxury" in Paragraph 2 means "_____".

A.something of poor quality B.something abundant
C.something strange D.something expensive

From the passage we can infer that in character the husband is _____.

A.modest and mature B.kind and practical
C.strong-willed and vain D.optimistic and outgoing

What is the most exciting thing for the family at Christmas?

A.Preparing gifts. B.Exchanging gifts.
C.Opening the envelope. D.Writing Christmas cards.
科目 英语   题型 阅读理解   难度 中等
知识点: 故事类阅读
登录免费查看答案和解析
相关试题

B
Autism spectrum disorder is a developmental disability. People with autism have trouble communicating and with social skills. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the person also might repeat some behaviors and not want change in their daily activities. Some people with the condition need a lot of help. Others need less.
CDC officials say autism affects one in every 68 children in the United States. More boys than girls are believed to have the condition. But the number of cases appears to be growing. It is unclear whether the growing number shows a real increase or comes from more knowledge about this disorder.
Symptoms of autism
Common signs of autism include trouble making eye contact and a delay in learning how to speak. Some people with severe autism never learn how to talk. Many people with autism also have difficulty understanding facial expressions and the feelings of others. They also have trouble making friends of the same age.
Doctors have learned how to recognize autism, but much is still unknown about its causes.
Researchers at Harvard University have come closer to finding answers. They found that women exposed to the highest levels of fine particulate air pollution late in their pregnancies are two times more likely to give birth to a child with autism. The findings appeared in Environmental Health Perspectives -- a publication of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
The study found that the women who were around high levels of fine particulate matter air pollution were at highest risk of having an autistic child. The increased risk of these women was two times that of women who lived in areas with low levels of fine particulate pollution.
The researchers found that the timing of exposure to pollution was important. They found no increased risk of autism in children whose mothers were around high levels of pollution before becoming pregnant. And the study found air pollution does not seem to increase the risk of children developing autism after they are born.
What can pregnant women do?
Mr. Weisskopf says pregnant women should avoid air pollution as much as possible. But he warns that other things may increase the risk of autism spectrum disorder.
"You can avoid being in extremely polluted cities during pregnancy if possible. You can also choose to go running in a park rather than next to a street. But that said, I think also it's very important to recognize that autism spectrum disorders is a very multi-factorial disorder. And there are lots of reasons why risk could be increased."
Autism is believed to result from a combination of environmental and genetic factors.
For now, Marc Weisskopf says researchers are trying to identify the exact substances in air pollution that increase the risk of autism.
What can we learn from Paragraph 1________?

A.people with autism don’t need help
B.people with autism have no trouble communicating
C.autism is a developmental disability
D.people with autism want change in their daily activities

Which is NOT the Common signs of autism_______?

A.low level of intelligence
B.a delay in learning how to speak
C.understanding facial expressions
D.making eye contact

Which is TRUE according to the passage________?

A.the growing number of cases shows a real increase
B.women exposed to high levels of fine particulate air pollution during their pregnancies are more likely to have a child with autism
C.high levels of fine particulate air pollution have no effect on autism
D.doctors have learned the causes of autism

What can pregnant women do_______?

A.they should go running in a street
B.they should stop smoking
C.they should be in extremely polluted cities during pregnancy
D.they should avoid air pollution as much as possible

What’s the main idea of the passage__________?

A.what is autism spectrum disorder
B.the reasons of autism
C.autism and air pollution
D.how to treat autism

A
Most children have heard their parents at one time or another yell "sit up straight!" or "don't slouch!"
In the past, this was usually heard at the dinner table as children ate dinner. But these days, it is also heard around another activity-video games.
Ten-year old Owaish Batliwala, from Mumbai, India, admits he spends three to four hours each day playing games on his tablet computer. His mother Mehzabin became concerned when her son started saying that his neck hurt.
She said, "My son started having neck problems around June or July. The pain slowly spread to his hand and his back. He plays for hours on the iPad and mobile phone. This is what has caused the problem."
Sadia Vanjara is a physical therapist. She says the number of young children with chronic pain in their necks, arms and shoulders is on the rise. Dr. Vanjara says the pain is not from aging, accidents or disease. It is from poor posture, or body position, while playing video games.
"They are not aging, they haven't had an accident, their age is like, under 10, they are not complaining, the blood reports are fine, their x-rays are fine, their MRI's are fine, then where is the culprit(罪魁祸首)? And that is the very common thing that is happening amongst all children and that is smart phones and the gadgets(小电器)."
This is a problem in many parts of the world. But there are more smartphone users in India than anywhere else in the world, except China. Networking equipment company Cisco estimates that the number of smartphone users in India will increase from 140 million today to 651 million by 2020.
19-year old student Nida Jameel says she feels pain in the finger which holds the weight of her smartphone most of the day.
She says she uses her smartphone 24/7. This means 24 hours a day, seven days a week, or all the time.
"As I use phone 24/7 (all day) like, so probably yeah, it was because of the phone, continuous usage and Snapchat, Whatsapp, more and more you know social media coming, so like phone is the center of everything."
Dr. Vanjara says the best treatments for the pain are daily exercises.
"And start stretching it in all the possible directions that you can."
Correct posture can help prevent pain. Dr. Vanjara teaches children how to hold their gadgets correctly. She tells a patient to hold the gadget in front of the face. She says that bending the head down to look at the device, strains the neck and creates an unhealthy bend to the back.
Sadia Vanjara predicts we will see not only physical but psychological and emotional problems resulting from overuse of gadgets.
Experts advise taking breaks from using a computer or other device often. Stand up. Stretch your legs, back, shoulders and arms. And when your work or school work is done, unplug and exercise.
AccordingtoParagraph2,when will one hear yells like “sit up straight!”_________?

A.Whenplayingvideogames B.Whensleeping
C.Whenwalking D.Whendriving

Whatcaused Owaish Batliwala’s neck to hurt___________?

A.Studyingtoohard
B.Thebadbodyposition
C.Playingthe iPad and mobile phone for hours
D.Hismother’sconcern

Accordingto Sadia Vanjara, the pain is from__________?

A.poor posture
B.aging
C.accidents
D.disease

What can we learn from the passage_________?

A.the number of young children with chronic pain in their necks, arms and shoulders is decreasing
B.the culprit is smart phones and the gadgets
C.there are more smartphone users in India than anywhere else in the world
D.the number of smartphone users in India is 651 million

This passage most probably comes from__________.

A.an amusement magazine
B.a news report
C.a travelling booklet
D.a health magazine

Celebrity TV presenter Ju Ping has been a host on China Central Television for 30 years, but her recent experience fronting a charity event was one of the most special moments in her career.
On April 2, World Autism Day, Ju partnered with Xia Junqi, a 17-year-old autistic teenager, to host a charity gala at the Beijing National Aquatics Center, otherwise known as the Water Cube.
The event was organized by One Foundation, which aims to increase public awareness of autistic people and their needs.
Autism is a neural disorder that impairs sufferers’ communication skills and social interactions. Sufferers have restricted, repetitive patterns of behavior. It affects about 1.6 million people in China, with medical studies suggesting autism may affect one in every 166 children.
Autism has no cure. For many years it went largely undiagnosed in China but early intervention and continuous education may help to teach the autistic self-help skills and lessen their disruptive behavior.
The gala featured autistic children singing, dancing and performing, and was greeted with enthusiastic applause from the audience.
Cai Chunzhu, a celebrity playwright, recalled feeling heartbroken when his son was diagnosed with autism at the age of 2. He says his family struggled to accept the reality but finally made peace with the diagnoses in the past four years. He says the boy lives in his own world and is trained in an intervention facility. Sun Zhongkai, executive director of the Beijing Stars and Rain Institute for Autism, one of the earliest intervention facilities for autistic children in China, shared with audience his deep sorrow for parents who often collapsed with desperation when he told them there was no cure for their autistic children.
Over the years, Chinese society has become more supportive of autistic people and their families, but there are still challenges in terms of getting autistic people employed and looking after them when their parents pass away.
Actor Zhou Xun also called on society to show greater understanding and support toward autistic children and their families.
Where did the gala take place?

A.In a theater in Shanghai. B.In the Water Cube.
C.In a Children’s Palace. D.In Nanjing.

What does the underlined word “impairs” mean in the fourth paragraph?

A.damages sth or makes sth worse.
B.improve sth or become sth better.
C.feel what they do the saddest.
D.increase the interest of knowing sth

What can we know from the seventh paragraph?

A.Some parents were in deep sorrow when they heard their children can be cured.
B.Cai Chunzhu is executive director of the Beijing Stars and Rain Institute for Autism.
C.Sun Zhongkai recalled feeling heartbroken when his son was diagnosed with autism at the age of 2.
D.Autism is a kind of disease that can not be cured.

What is the attitude of our society and enthusiastic people?

A.Some actors like Zhou Xun called on people to do nothing for autistic children.
B.Chinese society and people have become more supportive of autistic people and their families.
C.Some people want to give up helping autistic people because of many challenges they face.
D.Autistic children won’t be looked after when their parents pass away.

Scientists are learning new things about Antarctica, the coldest place on Earth. For example, the Antarctic ice sheet is shrinking. A new study found that summer ice loss in parts of Antarctica was at its highest level in 1,000 years. The study showed that Antarctic ice was melting mostly from below ice shelves, where the water is warmer than the ice.
Eric Rignot is an earth system expert at the University of California, Irvine. He also works for the American space agency, NASA. There he serves as senior research scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, also in California. He says ice melting from below is responsible for 55 percent of the shelf loss from 2003 to 2008. That is a much higher rate than scientists thought earlier.
Professor Rignot and his team used satellite observations, radar and computer models to measure features above the ice to learn what was going on below.
The measurements show differences from one area to the next around the continent. The major ice shelves are called Ross, Filchner and Ronne. They make up two-thirds of Antarctica’s ice shelves. But they are responsible for only 15 percent of the melting ice.
The professor says even small changes, like changes in ocean flow driven by wind, can make a huge difference in the melting of the ice shelf.
Sixty percent of the Earth’s fresh water is held in the huge Antarctic ice sheet. Professor Rignot says the study will help experts predict how the continent reacts to warmer ocean waters and helps to cause rising sea levels around the world. The study was published in the journal Science.
What’s the main idea of the passage?

A.the Antarctic ice sheet is shrinking
B.the coldest place on earth
C.the major Antarctica’s ice shelves
D.the Atlantic Ocean are changing

How did Eric Rignot and his team do the research?

A.He serves as senior research scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
B.They used satellite observations, radar and computer models to know the things happening below the ice.
C.Small changes, like changes in ocean flow driven by wind, can make a huge difference in the melting of the ice shelf.
D.They melted 55% of the Antarctica’s ice to prove their theory is right.

Which is true of the following statements?

A.Ice melting from below is responsible for 35 percent of the shelf loss from 2003 to 2008.
B.The major ice shelves are called Ross, Filchner and Ronne, which make up one-third of Antarctica’s ice shelves.
C.Sixty percent of the Earth’s fresh water is contained in the huge Antarctic ice sheet.
D.Summer ice loss in Antarctica was at its highest level in 1,000 years.

When will a plant be considered a weed? Experts have a simple answer: when the undesirable qualities outweigh (胜过,强过) the good qualities. Crops generally produce several hundred seeds from each plant. By comparison, each weed plant can produce tens or even hundreds of thousands of seeds. And some buried seeds can survive up to forty years or even longer. Eradicating weeds means that you have to remove all the seeds and roots so the weeds will die completely. But birds or the wind can reintroduce them to the land.
A common way to deal with weeds is to control them enough so that the land can be used for planting. Experts suggest using more methods to deal with weeds. Chemical weed killers or natural treatments like corn gluten (玉米麸) can suppress weed growth. Bill Curran is a professor of weed science. He says the most efficient method for suppressing weeds is dense planting. Dense planting of a crop can also act as a natural control. A dense and competitive crop that quickly shades the soil will help suppress many weeds. The weed seeds need light to grow, so cutting off sunlight will reduce weed growth.
Other controls include turning over the soil, pulling the weeds or covering them with mulch (地膜) made of wood, garden waste or other materials. But even mulch has its limits. Natural resource specialists point out that weeds can be transported in mulch. This is also true of soil, grain, hay and animals. Yet animals like sheep or goats eat weeds, so they can provide a biological control. Insects and other organisms can also act as biological controls.
Preventing the spread of weeds is an important part of weed management. Farm vehicles should be kept out of areas with weeds. If that is not possible, then clean off the equipment and your shoes when leaving. Some people bum weeds or bury them deep. Experts say the economical way is to make organically rich compost (有机堆肥). On the one hand, the process produces heat which can kill many weed seeds. On the other hand, the compost can be added to the soil to help plants grow.
Why do people kill all the seeds and roots of weeds?

A.Because the seeds and roots are bad in quality.
B.Because weeds have strong ability to live.
C.Because weeds take up too much space.
D.Because the seeds and roots will be eaten by birds.

Which of the following methods of eradicating weeds can work best?

A.Chemical weed killers.
B.Putting the com gluten in the field.
C.Dense planting.
D.Making use of mulch.

How does dense planting affect weeds?

A.The crops grow stronger than weeds.
B.The crops grow deeper in the soil.
C.The crops block sunlight the weed seeds need.
D.The crops compete with weeds for shade.

What can we infer from the passage?

A.The weeds will surely die under mulch.
B.The buried weed seeds can’t come out.
C.Farm vehicles should be used to kill weeds.
D.People can make good use of weeds properly.

Copyright ©2020-2025 优题课 youtike.com 版权所有

粤ICP备20024846号