Little Tommy was doing very badly in math. His parents had tried everything -- tutors, cards, special learning centers -- in short, everything they could think of. Finally they took Tommy to a catholic(天主教的) school.
After the first day, little Tommy came home with a very serious look on his face. He didn't kiss his mother hello. Instead, he went straight to his room and started studying. Books and paper were spread(铺开)out all over the room and little Tommy was hard at work. His mother was surprised. She called him down to dinner and as soon as he finished eating, he went back hitting the books as hard as before. This went on for some time, day after day while the mother tried to understand what was happening.
Finally, little Tommy brought home his report card. He quietly put it on the table and went up to his room and hit the books. His mother looked at it and to her surprise, little Tommy got an A in math. She could no longer hold her curiosity(好奇心). She went to his room and asked, "son, what was it? Was it the nuns(修女)?"
Little Tommy looked at her and shook his head(摇动), "No."
"Well then," she asked again. "What was it?"
Little Tommy looked at her and said, "Well, on the first day of school, when I saw that man nailed(钉) to the plus sign(加号), I knew they weren't joking." Why did Tommy's parents send him to a catholic school?
| A．Because he could eat well there. |
| B．Because he could learn more about nuns. |
| C．Because his parents wanted him to do better in his math. |
| D．Because his parents didn't want him to learn math any more. |
Tommy's mother felt surprised that his son _____.
| A．was still the same |
| B．ate so much at dinner |
| C．kissed her hello after school |
| D．worked so hard but said too little |
The phrase "hit the books" means “_____” in Chinese.
| A．用功 | B．捶书 | C．发泄 | D．振作 |
The last sentence in the passage shows that ______.
| A．Tommy felt sorry for the man |
| B．Tommy didn't like the plus sign |
| C．Tommy was afraid of being nailed |
| D．Tommy liked playing jokes on others |
It was reported last week that developers could take photos from Apple mobile and Google Android devices without the phone owners knowing that the images were being taken. In Apple’s case, developers can also obtain the location information for each photo.
Senator(参议员) Charles Schumer said in a telephone interview that his office had spoken with officials at both Apple and Google on Monday.
“We asked them if they could find a way on their own to prevent Apple from having access to private information,” Mr. Schumer said. “They were friendly and open to the idea that this ought to be changed.”
On Sunday, Mr. Schumersaidthat he planned to send a letter to the Federal Trade Commission asking the agency to investigate Apple and Google after the privacy concerns came to light.Claudia Bourne Farrell, an F.T.C. spokeswoman, said the agency had received the letter but she could not comment further.
“It worries people to think that one’s personal photos, address book, and who knows what else can be obtained and even posted online without permission,” Mr. Schumer wrote in his letter to the F.T.C. “If the technology exists to open the door to this kind of privacy invasion, then surely technology exists to close it, and that’s exactly what must happen.”
Mr. Schumer said if Apple and Google could not come to an agreement to fix the problem, then he would be forced to take the issue further.
He said other companies had been willing to work with his office to fix issues. “I’m optimistic that we can get this changed without any regulation,” he said. “If it’s not changed, then we’ll turn to the F.T.C., and if that doesn’t work then we’ll consider legislative approach.”
The F.T.C. has warned companies to try to be morevigilant(警醒的)in their efforts to protect consumers when it comes to privacy.The senators spoke with officials at both Apple and Google___________.
| A．to urge them not to invade consumers’ privacy. |
| B．to discuss whether it is illegal to have access to private information. |
| C．to stop them from developing the technology of taking photos. |
| D．to keep them from obtaining the location information for each photo. |
Which of the following statements is True?
| A．Privacy invasion from Apple has existed for a long time. |
| B．Mr. Schumer takes the privacy concerns caused by Apple and Google seriously. |
| C．Privacy invasion from Google has existed for a long time. |
| D．Apple and Google have decided to make a change. |
Mr. Schumer’s letter to the F.T.C. mainly shows that the technology to open the door to privacy invasion___________.
A. causes privacy invasion to happen frequently.
B. can be used if permitted.
C. causes people to worry about the safety of their personal information .
D. causes personal information to be posted online without permission.If the privacy concerns can’t be solved with the help of the F.T.C., ___________.
A. The senators will force the companies not to invade privacy.
B. The companies will be closed.
C. The companies will be fined.
D. The senators will turn to legislation. Where can we read about the passage?
| A．In a newspaper. | B．In a magazine. |
| C．In a science report. | D．In a textbook. |
Do you want to live with a strong sense of peacefulness, happiness, goodness, and self- respect? The collection of happiness actions broadly categorized as “honor” help you create this life of good feelings.
Here’s an example to show how honorable actions create happiness.
Say a store clerk fails to charge us for an item. If we keep silent, and profit from the clerk’s mistake, we would drive home with a sense of sneaky excitement. Later we might tell our family or friends about our good fortune. On the other hand, if we tell the clerk about the uncharged item, the clerk would be grateful and thank us for our honesty. We would leave the store with a quiet sense of honor that we might never share with another soul.
Then, what is it to do with our sense of happiness?
In the first case, where we don’t tell the clerk, a couple of things would happen. Deep down inside we would know ourselves as a type of thief. In the process, we would lose some peace of mind and self-respect. We would also demonstrate that we cannot lie trusted, since we advertise our dishonor by telling our family and friends. We damage our own reputations by telling others. In contrast, bringing the error to the clerk's attention causes different things to happen. Immediately the clerk knows us to be honorable. Upon leaving the store, we feel honorable and our self-respect is increased. Whenever we take honorable action we gain the deep internal rewards of goodness and a sense of nobility.
There is a beautiful positive cycle that is created by living a life of honorable actions. Honorable thoughts lead to honorable actions. Honorable actions lead us to a happier existence. And it’s easy to think and act honorably again when we're happy. While the positive cycle can be difficult to start, once it's started, it’s easy to continue. Keeping on doing good deeds brings us peace of mind, which is important for our happiness.According to the passage, the positive action in the example contributes to our___.
| A．self-respect | B．financial rewards | C．advertising ability | D．friendly relationship |
The author thinks that keeping silent about the uncharged item is equal to___.
| A．lying | B．stealing | C．cheating | D．advertising |
The phrase “bringing the error to the clerk’s attention”(in Para. 5) means___.
| A．telling the truth to the clerk | B．offering advice to the clerk |
| C．asking the clerk to be more attentive | D．reminding the clerk of the charged item |
How will we feel if we let the clerk know her mistake?
| A．We’ll be very excited. | B．We’ll feel unfortunate. |
| C．We’ll have a sense of honor. | D．We’ll feel sorry for the clerk. |
Which of the following can be the best title of this passage?
| A．How to Live Truthfully | B．Importance of Peacefulness |
| C．Ways of Gaining Self-respect | D．Happiness through Honorable Actions |
American researchers found females are the more talkative sex because of a special “language protein(蛋白质)” in the brain.
The study, conducted by neuroscientists （神经学家）and psychologist from the University of Maryland, concluded that women talked more because they had more of the Foxp2 protein. The research, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, found that higher levels were found among humans that were women but in rats that were males. Their findings came after it was previously claimed that ladies speak about 20,000 words a day – over 13,000 more than men. “This study is one of the first to report a sex difference in the expression of a language-associated protein in humans or animals,” said Prof Margaret McCarthy, who led the study. In their study, the researchers attempted to determine what might make male rats more vocal than their female friends.
They separated four-day-old rats from their mothers and then counted the number of times they cried out in the “ultrasonic range”, the frequencies higher than humans can hear, over five minutes. While both sexes called out hundreds of cries, the males called out twice as often, they found. But when the pups were returned to their mother’s cage, shefussed overher sons first. Tests conducted on the parts of the brain known to be associated with vocalcalls showed the male pups have up to twice as much Foxp2 protein as the females. The researchers then increased the production in the brains of female pups and reduced it in males. This led to the female rats crying out more often and their mothers showing more interest to them. In contrast, males became less “talkative”.
The researchers then tested samples from ten children, aged between three and five, which showed that females had up to 30 per cent more of the Foxp2 protein than males, in a brain area key to language in humans.
“Based on our observations, we assume higher levels of Foxp2 in girls and higher levels of Foxp2 in male rats is an indication that Foxp2 protein levels are associated with the more communicative sex,” said Prof McCarthy.
“Our results imply Foxp2 as a component of the neurobiological basis of sex differences in vocal communication in mammals. ”From the second paragraph, we can learn that ________.
| A．women always speak more words than men |
| B．men and male rats have low levels of language protein |
| C．women and male rats have similar levels of Foxp2 |
| D．McCarthy isn’t the first to find females more talkative |
The underlined phrase “fussed over” in the third paragraph probably means______.
| A．paid attention to | B．related to | C．put pressure on | D．counted on |
The researchers carried out the experiments on rats in order to _______.
| A．test which part of the brain is key to language in rats and humans |
| B．prove the levels of Foxp2 protein in humans and rats are different |
| C．determine the reason why female rats are more talkative than male rats |
| D．discover the association between Foxp2protein and vocal communication |
Which of the following can be the best title for the passage ?
| A．Tests on humans and rats |
| B．Why women are the talkative sex |
| C．Sex differences in Foxp2 protein |
| D．Foxp2 protein determines oral ability |
Snow falls in the Earth’s extreme North and South throughout the year. However， the heaviest snowfalls have been reported in the mountains of other areas during winter. Snow is even known to fall near the Equator (赤道)，but only on the highest mountains.
Snow contains much less water than rain, but much of the water the world uses comes from snow. Melting snow provides water for rivers, electric power stations and agricultural crops. In the western United States, mountain snow provides up to seventy-five percent of all surface water supplies.
Snowfall helps to protect plants and some wild animals from winter weather. Fresh snow is made largely of air trapped among the snow crystals (晶体). Because the air has trouble moving, the movement of heat is limited. Snow also influences the movement of sound waves. The surface of the snow takes in, or absorbs, sound waves. As snow grows older or if there have been strong winds, it can become hard and flat. Then, the snow’s surface will help to send back sound waves.
Snow may be beautiful, but it can be deadly. It is responsible for the deaths of hundreds of people. Many people die in traffic accidents on roads covered with snow and ice or from being seriously stuck in the winter storm. Others die from heart attacks caused by too much physical activity out in the cold.
People may not be able to avoid living in areas where it snows often. However, they can avoid becoming victims of snowstorms. People should stop driving and stay at home until the storm has passed. People living in these areas should carry emergency supplies in their vehicle. These include food，emergency medical supplies，and extra clothing to stay warm and dry.Mountain snowfall _____.
| A．provides up to seventy—five percent of water supplies worldwide |
| B．has never occurred near the Equator of the earth |
| C．brings less of the water the world uses than rain does |
| D．is heavier than that in the South and the North Poles |
Snow protects plants and wild animals from cold weather by _____.
| A．supplying much more air | B．limiting heat movement |
| C．absorbing strong winds | D．sending back sound waves |
Snow can be deadly mainly because it can _____.
| A．cause road accidents |
| B．make people stuck in winter storms |
| C．make people victims of snowstorms |
| D．lead to heart attacks |
What will the text probably tell us following the last paragraph? ____.
| A．How to prevent heart attacks out in cold |
| B．Where we can get emergency supplies |
| C．How to drive during snowstorms |
| D．Why we should stay warm and dry in winter |
April 11, 2003 12:44 a. m. PST, Associated Press
The respiratory(呼吸系统) virus known as SARS has appeared to spread in the United States only to family members of health workers with close contact to a sick person.
On Thursday, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there might be a case of severe acute respiratory syndrome（综合症） spreading through the workplace.
Dr. Julie Gerberding said a suspected SARS virus patient who became ill after traveling to Asia might have infected a co-worker in Florida, which made her “very worried”.
So far, a dozen people—nine family members and three health workers—were infected after coming into close contact with the person with SARS. The rest of the 166 suspected American cases have something to do with people who were infected while traveling in Asia.
In the Gainesville, Fla. area, a 47-year-old woman was believed to have been infected at work by a 60-year-old woman who was the nation’s first suspected SARS case, said Tom Belcuore, director of the Alachua County health department.
Since the World Health Organization announced a worldwide warning last month about SARS, the United States has started infection control in hospitals and among families of suspected cases.
Florida officials said a school in Okaloosa County went through a cleaning after a 6-year-old boy suspected of having SARS appeared at school with slight symptoms. “Health officials are watching the boys’ contacts at school to make sure no one else is infected,” said Rob Hayes, health department spokesman, “The boy may have been infected from a family member,” Hayes said, “We immediately became aware of it and had the child sent home. He’s staying at home with his family until 10 days after symptoms disappear.”
The researchers guessed that the virus might have come from animals. However, the scientists have not ruled out the possibility that some other microbe might also help make SARS more serious or easier to catch.The best title for this text is _______.
| A．A Worldwide Warning |
| B．Suspected SARS Cases |
| C．What Is SARS |
| D．Possible Spread of SARS in the USA |
The writer wrote this text mainly to _______.
| A．discuss the danger of SARS |
| B．report research result about SARS |
| C．inform people of the spread of SARS |
| D．explain to the readers what SARS is |
How many cases of suspected SARS are there in the U.S.A. according to the text?
A. 166. B.178. C. 12. D. 181.