It was the summer of 1965. Deluca, then 17, visited Peter Buck, a family friend. Buck asked Deluca about his plans for the future. “I’m going to college, but I need a way to pay for it,” DeLuca recalls saying. “Buck said, ‘You should open a sandwich shop.’”
That afternoon, they agreed to be partners. And they set a goal: to open 32 stores in ten years. After doing some research, buck wrote a check for $1000. DeLuca rented a storefront (店面) in Connecticut, and when they couldn’t cover their start-up costs, Buck kicked in another $1000.
But business didn’t go smoothly as they expected. DeLuca says, “After six months, we were doing poorly, but we didn’t know how badly, because we didn’t have any financial controls.” All he and Buck knew was that their sales were lower than their costs.
DeLuca was managing the store and going to the University of Bridgeport at the same time. Buck was working at his day job as a nuclear physicist in New York. They’d meet Monday evenings and brainstorm ideas for keeping the business running. “We convinced ourselves to open a second store. We figured we could tell the public, ‘We are so successful, we are opening a second store.’” And they did—in the spring of 1966. Still, it was a lot of learning by trial and error.
But the partners’ learn-as-you-go approach turned out to be their greatest strength. Every Friday, DeLuca would drive around and hand-deliver the checks to pay their suppliers. “It probably took me two and a half hours and it wasn’t necessary, but as a result, the suppliers got to know me very well, and the personal relationships established really helped out,” DeLuca says.
And having a goal was also important. “There are so many problems that can get you down. You just have to keep working toward your goal,” DeLuca adds.
DeLuca ended up founding Subway Sandwich, the multimillion-dollar restaurant chain.DeLuca opened the first sandwich shop in order to ____.
A.support his family |
B.pay for his college education |
C.help his partner expand business |
D.do some research |
Which of the following is true of Buck?
A.He put money into the sandwich business. |
B.He was a professor of business administration. |
C.He was studying at the University of Bridgeport. |
D.He rented a storefront for DeLuca. |
What can we learn about their first shop?
A.It stood at an unfavorable palce. |
B.It lowered the prices to promote sales. |
C.It made no profits due to poor management |
D.It lacked control over the quality of sandwiches |
They decided to open a second store because they ___ .
A.had enough money to do it. |
B.had succeeded in their business |
C.wished to meet the increasing demand of customers |
D.wanted to make believe that they were successful |
What contribute most to their success according to the author?
A.Learning by trial and error. | B.Making friends with suppliers. |
C.Finding a good partner. | D.Opening chain stores. |
If you don’t have a college degree, you’re at greater risk of developing memory problems or even Alzheimer’s (老年痴呆). Education plays a key role in lifelong memory performance and risk for mental disorder, and it's well documented that those with a college degree possess a cognitive(认知的) advantage over those less educated in middle and old age.
Now, a large national study from Brandeis University published in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry shows that those with less schooling can significantly make up for poorer education by frequently engaging in mental exercises such as word games, puzzles, reading, and lectures.
“The lifelong benefits of higher education for memory in later life are quite impressive, but we do not clearly understand how and why these effects last so long,” said lead author Margie Lachman, a psychologist. She suggested that higher education may encourage lifelong interest in cognitive efforts, while those with less education may not engage as frequently in mental exercises that help keep the memory agile (敏捷地).
But education early in adulthood does not appear to be the only route to maintain your memory. The study found that intellectual activities undertaken regularly made a difference. “Among individuals with low education, those who are engaged in reading, writing, attending lectures, doing word games or puzzles once a week or more had memory scores similar to people with more education,” said Lachman.
The study, called Midlife in the United States, assessed 3,343 men and women between the ages of 32 and 84 with an average age of 56 years. Almost 40 percent of the participants had at least a 4-year college degree. The researchers evaluated how the participants performed in two cognitive areas, verbal (言语的)memory and executive function --- brain processes involved in planning, abstract thinking and cognitive flexibility. Participants were given a series of tests, including tests of verbal fluency, word recall, and backward counting.
As expected, those with higher education said they engaged in cognitive activities more often and also did better on the memory tests, but some with lower education also did well, explained Lachman.
“The findings are promising because they suggest there may be ways to level the playing field for those with lower educational achievement, and protect those at greatest risk for memory declines,” said Lachman. “Although we can not rule out the possibility that those who have better memories are the ones who take on more activities, the evidence is consistent with cognitive plasticity (可塑性), and suggests some degree of personal control over cognitive functioning in adulthood by adopting an intellectually active lifestyle.” What is the text mainly about?
A.Higher education has a better cognitive advantage. |
B.Better memories result from college degree. |
C.Cognitive activity does good to one’s mind. |
D.Poor education has more risk of memory declines. |
According to the result of Margie Lachman’s study, we can conclude that ________.
A.education is responsible for the lifelong memory performance and risk for mental disorder |
B.education early in adulthood can be the only route to maintain your memory |
C.those with higher education did better on the memory tests than those with lower education |
D.an intellectually active lifestyle does help to maintain your memory |
What do we know about the study called Midlife?
A.Participants each were given a battery to test their memory. |
B.The average age of the participants are 56 years old. |
C.Participants had to perform in one of the two cognitive areas. |
D.One in four of the participants had a 4-year college degree. |
Why are the findings of the Lac
hman’s study promising?
A.The lower educated may have the same opportunities to keep up memory. |
B.We may have ways to cure the people who have memory declines. |
C.Adopting a different lifestyle can control cognitive functioning. |
D.We can find out the possibility to have better memories. |
I was walking along the main street of a small seaside town in the north of England looking for somewhere to make a phone call. My car had broken down outside the town and I wanted to contact the AA Company. Low grey clouds were gathering across the sky and there was a cold damp wind blowing off the sea which nearly threw me off my feet every time I crossed one of the side streets. It had rained in the night and water was dripping from the bare trees that lined the street. I was glad that I was wearing a thick coat.
There was no sign of a call box, nor was there anyone at that early hour whom I could ask. I had thought I might find a shop open selling the Sunday papers or a milkman doing his rounds, but the town was completely dead. The only living thing I saw was a thin frightened cat outside a small restaurant.
Then suddenly I found what I was looking for. There was a small post office, and almost hidden from sight in a dark narrow street. Next to it was the town’s only public call box, which badly needed a coat of paint. I hurried forward, but stopped in astonishment when I saw through the dirty glass that there was a man inside. He was fat, and was wearing a cheap blue plastic raincoat. I could not see his face and he didn’t raise his head at the sound of my footsteps.
Carefully, I remained standing a few feet away and lit a cigarette to wait for my turn. It was when I threw the dead match on the ground that I noticed something bright red trickling from under the box call door At what time was the story set?
A.An early winter morning | B.A cold winter afternoon |
C.An early summer morning | D.A windy summer afternoon |
Which of the following words best describe the writer’s impression of the town?
A.cold and frightening | B.dirty and crowded |
C.empty and dead![]() |
D.unusual and unpleasant |
The underlined word “ trickling” in the last paragraph means_______________
A.rushing out suddenly | B.shining brightly |
C.flowing slowly in drops | D.appearing slowly |
Why didn’t the man raise his head when the writer came near?
A.He was annoyed at being seen by the writer. |
B.He was angry at being disturbed by the writer. |
C.He was probably fast asleep. |
D.He was probably murdered. |
For many parents, raising a teenager is like fighting a long war, but years go by without any clear winner. Like a border conflict between neighboring countries, the parent-teen war is about boundaries: Where is the line between what I control and what you do?
Both sides want peace, but neither feels it has any power to stop the conflict. In part, this is because neither is willing to admit .any responsibility for starting it . From the parents’ point of view, the only cause of their fight is their adolescents’ complete unreasonableness. And of course, the teens see it in exactly the same way , except oppositely . Both feel trapped.
In this article. I’ll describe three no-win situations that commonly arise between teens and parents and then suggest some ways out of the trap. The first no-win situation is quarrels over unimportant things. Examples include the color of the teen’s hair, the cleanliness of the bedroom, the preferred style of clothing, the child’s failure to eat a good breakfast before school, or his tendency to sleep until noon on the weekends .Second, blaming, the goal of a blaming battle is to make the other admit that his bad attitude is the reason why everything goes wrong. Third, needing to be right, It doesn’t matter what the topic is –politics, the laws of physics, or the proper way to break an egg –the point of these arguments is to prove that you are right and the other person is wrong, for both wish to be considered an authority(权威) --- someone who actually knows something --- and therefore to win respect. Unfortunately, as long as parents and teens continue to think that they know more than the other, they’ll continue to fight these battles forever and never make any real progress. Why does the author compare the parent—teen war to a border conflict?
A.both can continue for generations. | B.Both are about where to draw the line |
C.Neither has any clear winner | D.Neither can be put to an end |
What does the underlined part in Paragraph 2 mean?
A.The teens blame their parents for starting the conflict. |
B.The teens agree with their parents on the cause of the conflict |
C.The teens accuse their parents of misleading them |
D.The teens tend to have a fu![]() |
Parents and teens want to be right because they want to ________.
A.give orders to the other | B.know more than the other |
C.gain respect from the other | D.get the other to behave properly |
BEIJING changed the office hours of many institutions starting April 12 in the hope of reducing traffic jams during rush hour.
The new policy asked 800,000 employees to replace their former working schedule of 8:30 am to 5:30 pm with the new working hours of 9 am to 6 pm.
This is just one part of the Beijing municipal government’s plan to fight traffic jams. Starting April 1, daytime parking fees in 13 downtown areas were raised to encourage less driving. On April 2, the government announced limitations launched after the Beijing Olympics would be extended until April 2012. These ban Beijing’s 5.8 million drivers from driving one workday each week. The ban is based on the last number of the car license plate.
A multi-billion yuan fund has also been set up to build more underground ring roads in heavily populated areas. Major roads above ground will also be expanded.
According to Beijing’s traffic authorities, key projects include repairing major ring roads and expanding the subway network. The city will also create more taxi stops and bike rental stations, probably under the hundreds of overpasses (天桥) citywide.
Beijing’s fight against traffic jams is a smaller example of what is happening all around China. The central government is now supporting new ideas that will change the future of Chinese roads.
Bus rapid transit (BRT,快速公交系统) is one such idea. Special bus lanes carry almost as many passengers as a subway system. They cost less and are becoming popular in many big cities. Now Beijing has five BRT lines
Shanghai is dealing with traffic problems by charging higher fees for license plates(牌照). The city is also controlling the total number of plates sold. Now, it is considering a plan to charge cars for entering the central business district, as London does.
Meanwhile, there are signs that Chinese are more aware of the serious problem of traffic. For example, there has been a sharp increase in the number of posts looking for carpooling (拼车) partners on major websites.
By the end of March, 2010, China had 192 million cars, according to the Ministry of Public Security. The article is mainly about___________.
A.the fight against traffic jams all around the world |
B.the increase of daytime parking fees in 13 downtown areas in Beijing |
C.the Beijing municipal government’s measures to reduce traffic jams |
D.news ideas that are likely to change the future of Chinese roads |
According to the new policy, workday office hours in Beijing will be___________.
A.from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm | B.from 9 am to 6 pm |
C.from 8:30 am to 5:30 pm | D.from 7:30 am to 4: 30 pm |
The plans made by the Beijing municipal government to fight traffic jam
s include all the following except ____________
A.adjustments to office hours | B.increases in daytime parking fees |
C.the extension of the limitations launched after the Beijing Olympics | |
D.charging higher fees for license plates |
The article tells us that____________.
A.the BRT system will become common China’s rural areas |
B.the Chinese government is aiming at changing the future of Chinese roads |
C.the Shanghai government has charged cars for entering the central business district |
D.here are enough ways to deal with traffic jams in Beijing |
It was a Sunday and the heavy storm had lasted all night.The morning after the storm,though, was beautiful:blue skies, warm air and a calm, inviting sea touching the shore gently. My father realised it was a good day for fishing and invited my sister and me to go with him.I was only 14 and fishing had never been my thing, but I decided to go all the same. I’m so glad I did.
On the road to the harbour we could see the terrible destruction on the coast,but the harbour itself was in fairly good shape.After all,it was protected by the arms of a bay that had only one tiny channel to the sea.As we got on board,we noticed two big humps (脊背) in the distance.
On approaching them, we saw it was a mother whale with her baby. We couldn’t believe it ——there aren’t any whales along the coast here.The storm must have driven them across the ocean into the bay, in which the still water was so badlly polluted that nothing could survive.
The little baby whale——actually as big as our boat——was obviously stuck and could not move.The mother dived under the water and came up suddenly, making big whirlpools(漩涡) and waves. “She’s trying to help her baby, but on the wrong side,”my father said. At this point, my father moved our boat in a semicircle to the other side and, heading the boat towards the baby whale, pushed it gently. With our several gentle pushes the big hump turned over and disappared under water.Then it swam up right beside its mum.They struggled in their desperate attempts to escape but missed the exit and started heading in the wrong direction.We hurried up to the whales and tried to lead them towards the bay channel. Showly, they let us lead them, some-times rising from the water right beside us to breathe——and to give us a trusting look with those huge eyes. Once they hit their first part of clean water flowing straight from the sea, the mum gave us a wave with her tail and off they swam into the distance.
In the excitement, it had felt like only a few minutes, but we had been with those wonderful animals for almost an hour and a half. That was the simple and lasting beauty of the day. Nearly four decades later, I still look back fondly to that golden day at sea. The author says “I’m so glad I did ” because __________.
A.he witnessed the whole process of fishing |
B.he enjoyed the beauty of the calm sea |
C.he experienced the rescue of the whales |
D.he spent the weekend with his family |
The harbour survived the storm because of ____________.
A.the shape of the harbour | B.the arms of the bay |
C.the still water in the channel | D.the long coast line |
The mother whale failed to help her baby because__________.
A.she had stayed in the polluted water for too long |
B.the whirlpools she had made were not big enough |
C.she had no other whales around to turn to for help |
D.the waves pushed her baby in the wrong direction |
What is the theme of the story?
A.Saving lives brings people a sense of happiness. |
B.Fishing provides excitement for children. |
C.It’s necessary to live in harmony with animals. |
D.It’s vital to protect the environment. |