“Sending thank-you notes is becoming a lost art,” mourns May Mitchell, a syndicated columnist known as “Ms Demeanor” and author of six etiquette(礼节) books. In her view, each generation, compared with the one before, is losing a sense of consideration for other people. “Without respect,” she says, “you have conflict.”
Ms. Demeanor would be proud of me: I have figured out a way to ensure that my children always send thank-you notes. And such a gesture is important, says Ms. Demeanor, because “a grateful attitude is a tremendous life skill, an efficient and inexpensive way to set ourselves apart in the work force and in our adult lives. Teach your children that the habit of manners comes from inside---it’s an attitude based on respecting other people.”
A few years ago, as my children descended like piranhas (一种南美淡水鱼，喜吞食或攻击) on their presents under the Christmas tree, the only attitude I could see was greed. Where was the appreciation of time and effort?
A thank-you note should contain three things: an acknowledgement of the gift (Love the tie with the picture of a hose on it); a recognition of the time and effort spent to select it (You must have shopped all over the state find such a unique item!); a prediction of how you will use your gift or the way it has enhanced your life (I’ll be sure to wear it to the next Mr. Ed convention!).
So, five years ago, in one of my rare flashes of parental insight, I decided that the most appropriate time to teach this basic courtesy is while the tinsel (装饰用光亮金属) is hot. To the horror of my children, I announced that henceforth every gift received will be an occasion for a thank-you note written immediately, on the spot.
I have reluctantly given my kids the green light to send e-mail thank-you notes; though hand-lettered ones (at least to me) still seem friendlier. But pretty much any thank-you makes the gift giver feel special—just as, we hope, the recipient feels. It’s a gesture that perfectly captures the spirit of the holidays.
41. in Ms. Demeanor’s point of view, children born in the ______ is probably the least respectful generation.
| A．1960s | B．1970s | C．1980s | D．1990s |
42. The phrase “set oneself apart” (Para. 2) means _______.
| A．to reserve to a particular use | B．to put to one side |
| C．to make noticeable or outstanding | D．to determine to purse |
43. According to the passage, a thank-you note may contain the following information EXCEPT “_______”.
| A．I love the pearl necklace you bought me for my birthday | |
| B．it must have taken you a long time to find just the right thing for me | |
| C．is it very expensive | D．I promise I will wear it on my wedding day |
44. How did the author feel when she saw her children searching under the Christmas tree for their presents?
| A．Greedy. | B．Cheerful. | C．Laughable. | D．Disheartened. |
45. Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE about the author?
| A．She feels hand-written letters are friendlier than word-processed ones. |
| B．She does not allow her children to sent email thank-you note. |
| C．She thinks the best time to teach her children the basic etiquette of appreciation is to strike while the iron is still not. |
| D．She thinks a thank-you note can make the gift giver feel special just as the |
recipient does.
Two graduates from Cambridge University in the United Kingdom found themselves about to graduate, yet with loans to pay off. The pair decided to begin a strange, year-long project to battle their debt.
The men, Ross Harper and Ed Moyse, set up the site BuyMyFace.co.uk. last October as a way to get rid of the $80,000 they shared as student loans.The idea behind the project was to earn money by selling their faces as advertising space every day for a year. Each day, they advertise a different business on their site by painting the brand's logo or name on their faces and including a link to the company’s site. After they paint their faces and publish them on the site, Harper and Moyse go out to highly populated areas such as music festivals and theme parks to maximize their faces’ exposure.
At this time, Harper and Moyse have advertised their faces for over four months without skipping a day and they're more than halfway to their goal. Though they first started charging a minimum of about USD $1.60per company, the prices have risen as their popularity increased. For advertisingspace during the remainder of April, they range between USD $250 and $750.
Terri L. Rittenburg, associate professor of marketing at the University of Wyoming, said she had heard of people tattooing (纹身) logos on themselves before, but this idea is much better. According to her, at first the idea would be new and novel and attract attention, but she is unsure how long it would last.
At least for now, companies that have bought Harper and Moyse’s faces have written positive comments on the pair’s website. “We had a three percent increase in website traffic on the very day and for two days more afterwards,” said an alcoholic beverage company.Which of the following was most possibly taken from the website BuyMyFace.co.uk.?
| A． | B． | C． | D． |
Harper and Moyse go to highly populated areas to _____.
| A．have fun | B．make friends | C．show their faces | D．find new customers |
We can infer from the article that the two men _____.
| A．must have earned more than $40,000 |
| B．aren’t getting on well with their project |
| C．may close their site next month |
| D．always work hard except on holidays |
There was one thought that air pollution affected only the area immediately around large cities with factories and heavy traffic．At present, we realize that although these are the areas with the worst air pollution, the problem is really worldwide．On several occasions over the past decade，a heavy cloud of air pollution has covered the east of the United States and brought health warnings in distant areas away from any industrial cities．In fact，the very climate of the entire earth may be infected by air pollution．Some scientists consider that the increasing concentration of carbon dioxide in the air resulting from the burning of fossil fuels(coal and oil)is creating a “greenhouse effect”—— keeping heat reflected from the earth and raising the world’s average temperature．If this view is correct and the world's temperature is raised only a few degrees, much of the polar ice cap will melt and cities such as New York，Boston，Miami，and New Orleans will be in water．
Another view, less widely held, is that increasing particular matter in the atmosphere is blocking sunlight and lowering the earth’s temperature—a result that would be equally disastrous．A drop of just a few degrees could create something close to a new ice age，and would make agriculture difficult or impossible in many of our top farming areas．Today we do not know for sure that either of these conditions will happen．Perhaps，if we are lucky enough，the two tendencies will offset each other and the world's temperature will stay about the same as it is now．Driven by economic profits, people ignore the damage on our environment caused by the “advanced civilization”．Maybe the air pollution is the price the human beings have to pay for their development．But is it really worth-while?People used to think that air pollution_________ .
| A．caused widespread damage in the countryside |
| B．affected the entire eastern half of the United States |
| C．had a very bad effect on health |
| D．existed merely in urban and industrial areas |
As to the greenhouse effect, the author_________.
| A．shares the same view with the scientists． |
| B．is uncertain of its occurrence |
| C．rejects it as being ungrounded |
| D．thinks that it will destroy the world soon |
The underlined word “offset” in the second paragraph could be replaced by_______.
| A．counter-act | B．break from | C．get along | D．communicate |
This passage is primarily about________ .
| A．the greenhouse effect |
| B．the burning of fossil fuels |
| C．the potential effect of air pollution |
| D．the possibility of a new ice age |
Rowena and Billy Wrangler are model high school students. They study hard and do extremely well on achievement tests. And next year，Rowena will be attending Harvard University．Billy，her younger brother，hopes to go to Cornell．What makes Rowena and Billy different from most students is that they don't go to school．In fact，they've never been to school．Since kindergarten，they've studied at home．Like many of more than one million people who receive home schooling in the United States, they feel as if they've gotten a good education．
The home-schooling trend began in the U.S．in the 1980s with parents keeping their children out of public schools so they could provide religious education at home. Today，as the home-schooling trend continues to grow，parents are more likely to consider home schooling as an option because they believe schools don't do a very good job of teaching and are occasionally dangerous places．But can parents really do a better job?
The answer in many cases is yes．In many studies，students taught at home ranked average or above average when compared to students who went to public schools．More importantly，these students were often more self-directed and have a greater depth of knowledge．They were well prepared for academic challenges．
One such student，Robert Conrad, now a sophomore at university, claims he really learned how to study and schedule his time during his eight years of home schooling．Still, not every student is as successful as Robert．
“For every home-schooling success story，there are an equal number of failures．”states Henry Lipscomb，an educational researcher．“There are just so many disadvantages that students taught at home have to overcome.” For example，they have fewer chances to get in touch with others of their own age．Consequently，they sometimes lack the usual social skills．“No matter what，though，”states Lipscomb，“home-schooling is a growing trend．I think we'll be seeing more and more of this．”Compared with other students, Rowena and Billy are most different in the fact that ___________.
| A．they preferred to teach themselves |
| B．they do extremely well on achievement tests |
| C．they don't go to school as other teenagers |
| D．they feel they have gotten a good education |
According to the article, what is NOT the advantage of being educated at home?
| A．Home is a safer place for children． |
| B．Students taught at home are more self-directed． |
| C．Students taught at home have a greater depth of knowledge． |
| D．Students taught at home can go to good universities． |
The writer thinks __________ .
| A．parents can do a better job than schools |
| B．home-schooling will be more and more useful |
| C．home-schooling is good in some aspects |
| D．students taught at home make greater achievements |
The best title of this text might be ________ .
| A．Home-schooling：A Growing Trend |
| B．Home-schooling：A Better Choice |
| C．Home-schooling：A Way to Success |
| D．Home-schooling：A New Method of Education |
James Arruda Henry, a 98-year-old retired lobsterman, has written and published his first book, "In a Fisherman's Language", after learning to read at the incredible age of 91．
Mr. Henry spent most of his life without even his closest family members knowing he was illiterate (文盲）．Forced to quit school in the third grade to take some jobs, he kept the secret close to his chest - only telling to his late wife．
A family problem in his 90s sparked his encourage to restart his education．"He signed a document he could not read," Mr Henry's granddaughter said. And then, after hearing about George Dawson, a son of slaves who learned to read at the age of 98 and went on to write a book of his own, entitled "Life Is So Good" at the age of 101, Mr. Henry took up reading．
"If he can do it．I'm going to try," Mr. Henry said．Starting with his name, he eventually moved on to ABC’s and children's books. He put them down for four years after the tragic loss of his wife. But eventually he went back to reading and with the help of his tutor began to record his life．
He wrote about his family’s voyage from Portugal to the U.S. his many journeys at sea and how he was unable to save another fisherman who had fallen overboard. He became a carpenter and even a professional boxer - and eventually built his own home in Stonington Borough．
His life stories have become so popular, in fact, nearly 800 copies were sold in the first two weeks of the book's release last month．One thousand more have since been printed as requests for the book flood in from as far as Germany．And now even Hollywood producers have approached Mr. Henry about optioning the rights to his life story for a big screen adaptation．Which of the following is true of Mr. Henry?
| A．He couldn't read when he was retired． |
| B．He was not a good student at school． |
| C．Only his family members knew he was illiterate． |
| D．He published his book at the age of 91． |
Mr. Henry made up his mind to study because he．
| A．had some trouble with his granddaughter |
| B．couldn't sign the document he was given |
| C．wanted to share his own experience with others |
| D．was inspired by George Dawson's story |
In his book, Mr. Henry didn't mention ____．
| A．his family story | B．his school education |
| C．his journeys at sea | D．his work experiences |
What's the main idea of the last paragraph?
| A．Nearly 800 copies of the book were sold． |
| B．The book was sold well in Germany． |
| C．His book was popular both at home and abroad． |
| D．Hollywood has planned to adapt his book for a movie． |
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The best-selling Reader’s Digest travel book has 40% new content including over 200 new sites, over 200 new full-color photographs, and all-new, up-to-date maps. It spotlights over l, 000 of the United States’ most overlooked must-see destinations.
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Dozens of conditions are covered, from headaches, sunburn, bad breath, and blisters to allergies, and hiccups.You can most probably read the passage in a ___________.
| A．newspaper | B．travel guide | C．reference book | D．textbook |
How much money could you save if you want to buy a travel book?
| A．$6.46 | B．$l0. 20 | C．$l3.96 | D．$l9.8 |
Which of the following could help you to deal with common diseases without a doctor?
| A．Off the Beaten Path. | B．Container Gardens by Number. |
| C．l80l Home Remedies. | D．Best Weekend Projects. |
What’s the purpose of the passage?
| A．To share his opinion about the books with readers. |
| B．To advise readers to read more in spare time. |
| C．To share the pleasure of reading with readers. |
| D．To advise readers to buy their books. |