When I was an education official in Palo Alto, California, Polly Tyner, the president of our school board, wrote a letter that was printed in the Palo Alto Times. Polly’s son, Jim had great difficulty in school. He was classified as educationally disabled and required a great deal of patience on the part of his parents and teachers. But Jim was a happy kid with a great smile that lit up the room. His parents acknowledged his academic difficulties, but always tried to help him see his strengths so that he could walk with pride. Shortly after Jim finished high school, he was killed in a motorcycle accident. After his death, his mother submitted this letter to the newspaper.
Today we buried our 20-year-old son. He was killed instantly in a motorcycle accident on Friday night. How I wish I had known when I talked to him last that it would be the last time. If I had only known I would have said, “Jim, I love you and I’m very proud of you.”
I would have taken the time to count the many blessings he brought to the lives of the many who loved him. I would have taken the time to appreciate his beautiful smile, the sound of his laughter, his genuine love of people.
When you put all the good qualities on the scale and try to balance all the irritating phenomena such as the radio which was always too loud, the haircut that wasn’t to our liking, the dirty socks under the bed, etc., your angry feelings won’t amount to much.
I won’t get another chance to tell my son all that I would have wanted him to hear, but, other parents, you do have a chance. Tell your young people what you would want them to hear as if you knew it would be your last conversation. The last time I talked to Jim was the day he died. He called me to say, “Hi, Mom! I just called to say I love you. Got to go to work. Bye.” He gave me something to treasure forever.
If there is any purpose at all for Jim’s death, maybe it is to make others appreciate more of life and to have people, especially family members, take the time to let each other know just how much we care. According to the passage, we know that ________.
| A．Jim kept to himself |
| B．Jim did very well in his studies |
| C．Jim’s parents were patient with him |
| D．Jim failed to finish his high school. |
The underlined word “irritating” in Paragraph 4 means _________.
| A．annoying | B．aggressive | C．impatient | D．thrilling |
By writing the letter printed in the Palo Alto Times, the mother intends to ______________.
| A．mourn her son’s sudden death in a traffic accident |
| B．remind people to be cautious of motorcycles |
| C．advise people to take the chance to express their love in time |
| D．appreciate more of life than ever before |
What can be the best title of the passage?
| A．Love your Family | B．Do it Today |
| C．Walk with Pride | D．Appreciate Smiles |
It has always been thought that alcohol causes people to put on weight because it contains a lot of sugar, but new research suggests glass a day could form part a diet. Looking at past studies they found that, while heavy drinkers do put on weight; those who drink in moderation can actually lose weight.
A spokesman for the research team at Navarro University in Spain says, “Light to moderate alcohol intake, especially of wine, may be more likely to protect against, rather than promote, weight gain.” The International Scientific Forum on Alcohol research reviewed the findings and agreed with most of the conclusions, particularly that data do not clearly indicate if moderate drinking increases weight.
Boston University’s Dr. Harvey Finkel found that the biologic mechanisms(生物学机制)relating alcohol to changes in body weight are not properly understood. His team pointed out the strong protective effects of moderate drinking on the risk of getting conditions like diabetes(糖尿病), which relate to increasing obesity. Some studies suggest that even very obese people may be at lower risk of diabetes if they are moderate drinkers．
The group says alcohol provides calories that are quickly absorbed into the body and a enot stored in fat, and that this process could explain the differences in its effects from those of other foods. They agree that future research should be directed towards assessing the roles of different types of alcoholic drinks, taking into consideration drinking patterns and including the past tendency of participants to gain weight.
For now there is little evidence that consuming small to moderate amounts of alcohol on a regular basis increases one’s risk of becoming obese. What’s more, a study three years ago suggested that resveratrol, a compound present in grapes and red wine destroys fat cells.The passage is mainly for those__________．
| A．who produce wine |
| B．who have a drinking habit |
| C．who go on a diet |
| D．who are eager to lose weight |
The underlined phrase“ in moderation” in the first paragraph means_________．
| A．excitedly | B．carefully |
| C． frequently | D．properly |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Current data clearly show that moderate drinking increases weight. |
| B．Resveratrol is proved to increase the risk of becoming fat. |
| C．The research found moderate drinking has a strong protective effect. |
| D．The specific roles of different types of alcoholic drinks are very clear. |
What is most likely to be discussed in the paragraph that follows?
| A．How to do some easy experiments. |
| B．How to reduce the calories contained in wine. |
| C．How to prove the finding mentioned above. |
| D．How to make wine in a healthy way. |
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
If you’re making the film with other people, organize your cast and crew effectively. Make sure everybody knows their roles and what day and times they’re needed.
Give people specific jobs so they can become experts in their field. For example, a soundrecordist listens to the sound through headphones as it’s being recorded, and holds an extra microphone if needed.
A camera operator frames the picture(取景), sets focus, checks the light and records the action. The editor “cuts” the picture together after it’s shot.
A producer is the contact point for the film. He or she makes sure crew and cast are there on time, talks to the press and organizes the budget.
A director has to make sure their vision is communicated. To do this everyone needs to be clear about what the director expects from each scene and each shot.
You may also need a make-up-artist, a choreographer, a driver, etc. However, you can quite easily make your first film on your own. Make a schedule that says which shots are to be taken where and when (this is called a shooting schedule) and when you’ve completed a take, cross it off the list. Remember that you may want to shoot “out of sequence”, e.g. shoot the last scene first, and the first last. Similarly if the film begins and ends by a tree in the park, it may make sense to film both scenes while you’re there.
If you’re making animation (动画片), have a space that you can control. You may need extra lights and you may need to leave work in progress. Make sure people living with you are aware what’s happening. Animation needs a lot of undisturbed concentration and patience. Keep at it and it’ll pay off. Aardman and Disney both started off at home experimenting with clay , pens and a camera.From the first two paragraphs we can learn that___________.
| A．every crew member is an expert in his field. |
| B．careful preparations and arrangements are quite necessary. |
| C．both the cast and crew must arrive at the same time every day. |
| D．every person should have his equipment while working together. |
A director knows the purpose of each step of the work, but___________ .
| A．he needn’t tell others about that |
| B．other members just follow his orders |
| C．he must have it known and well understood by others |
| D．others may have their own ideas and special ways of working |
To shoot a film, a shooting schedule must be fixed first ______________.
| A．but it may be crossed off if unnecessary |
| B．but you needn’t work exactly on it |
| C．and each step must be carried out according to it. |
| D．and no one can change it once it is settled |
Can eating a chocolate bar every day really prevent age-related memory loss? No. But a new research shows that large amounts of flavones(黄酮), substances found in cocoa,teaand some kinds of vegetables,may improve age-related memory failure.
Dr. Scott Small is a professor of neurology (神经学) at Columbia University in New York City. He is the leadwriter of a research paper describing the effects of cocoa flavones on brain activity. His study involved 37 volunteers aged between 50 and 69. Researchers gave them a high-level flavones drink madefrom cocoa beans or a low-level flavones drink. For a period of three months, somesubjects got 900 milligrams of flavones a day. The others got 10 milligrams of flavones each day. Brain imaging and memory tests were given to each study subject before and after the study. Dr. Small says that the subjects who had the high-level flavones drink showed much improvement on memory tests.
The researchers warn that more work is needed to be done because this study was performed only on a small group. Dr. Joann Manson is the leadresearcher of a four-year study involving 18,000 adults. This study will use flavones capsules. The studysubjects will be divided into two groups and will take two pills per day. The capsules used will all look the same. But one group's capsules will contain flavones, while the other group will take capsules made of an inactive substance, or placebo（安慰剂）.
Dr. Manson says it's not necessary for people to start eating more chocolate, because 3 persons would have to eat a huge amount of chocolate to get the same level of flavones given to the rest subjects. He adds many manufacturers have planned to remove the flavonesfromtheir chocolate products. Similarly, Dr. Manson says a cocoa-based flavones extract（提取）maybe developed in the future But he says that more studies are needed to see how much flavones is good for our health.What was done to thesubjects after Dr. Small's study?
| A．They were asked to take a high-level flavones drink. |
| B．They were given brain imaging and memory tests. |
| C．They were given capsules containing flavones. |
| D．They were asked to take two pills of flavones capsules per day. |
What's the similarity of the two experiments?
| A．Both use high-level flavones capsules. |
| B．The number of the subjects is the same. |
| C．Drinks and placebos are used in both experiments. |
| D．Thesubjects are divided into two groups in both experiments. |
Why will Dr. Manson carry out the four-year study?
| A．To carry out the experiment further. |
| B．To prove the first experiment is wrong. |
| C．To test how much flavones can improve our memory. |
| D．To show eating chocolate is better to improve memory. |
What can we learnfromthe last paragraph?
| A．It's not necessary for us to eat chocolate. |
| B．In the future we can get flavones without eating chocolate. |
| C．The more we eat flavones, the better our healthwill be. |
| D．It's easy for people to get the same level of flavones given to the test subjects. |
“Well, I finally did it. I finally decided to enter the digital age and get a cell phone. My kids have been annoying me and the last straw was when my car broke down, and I was stuck by the highway for an hour before someone stopped to help. But when I went to the cell phone store, I almost changed my mind. The phones all have cameras, computers and a “globalpositioning” something or other that's supposed to spot me from space. Goodness, all I want to do is to be able to talk to my grandkids! The people at the store weren't much help. They couldn't understand why someone wouldn't want a phone the size of a postage stamp. And the rate plans! They were confusing, and expensive…and the contract (合同) lasted for two years! I'd almost given up until a friend told me about her new Jitterbug phone. Now, I have the convenience and safety of being about to stay in touch with a phone I can actually use.”
Affordable plans that I can understand—and no contract to sign! Unlike other cell phones, Jitterbug has plans that make sense. Why should I pay for minutes I'm never going to use? And if I do talk more than I plan, I won't find myself with no minutes like my friend who has a prepaid phone. Best of all, there is no contract to sign—so I'm not locked in for years at a time. The USbased customer service is second to none. And the phone gets service anywhere in the country.
Call now and receive a FREE gift when you order. Try Jitterbug for 30 days and if you don't love it, just return it! Why wait, the Jitterbug comes ready to use right out of the box. If you aren't as happy with it as I am, you can return it and get your money back. Call now, the Jitterbug product experts are ready to answer your questions.
Call 18888098794 or visit www.jitterbugdirect.com.
| Monthly Minutes |
50 |
100 |
| Monthly Rate |
$14.99 |
$19.99 |
| 911 Access |
FREE |
FREE |
| Long Distance Calls |
No additional charge |
No additional charge |
| Friendly Return Policy |
30 days |
30 days |
What made “I” finally think of getting a cell phone?
| A．Being stuck by the highway. |
| B．Being urged by his grandkids. |
| C．Being persuaded by cell phone salespersons. |
| D．Being attracted by the friendlyreturn policy. |
On the monthly basis of 100 minutes, the Jitterbug weekly rate is about ________.
| A．$19.99 | B．$14.99 | C．$4.99 | D．$3.75 |
An advantage of Jitterbugmentioned in the passage is ________.
| A．its discount price with a free gift |
| B．its “globalpositioning” system with 911 access |
| C．its reasonable rate plans without a contract |
| D．its good customer service all over the world |
The main purpose of the passage is to ________.
| A．tell a customer's story of Jitterbug |
| B．provide two ways to order Jitterbug |
| C．give a brief introduction of Jitterbug |
| D．attract potential customers to Jitterbug |
A paperclip，made of steel wire bent into a looped (环形的)shape，is an instrument used to hold sheets of paper together．This common device is a wonder of simplicity and function．But where did this simple，cheap，and practical invention come from?
In the late 19th century，the most common way to hold papers together was by using a pin．Although the pin was an inexpensive tool and was easily removable，it would 1eave holes in the paper. Later，as steel wire became more common，inventors began to notice its elastic(有弹性的)feature. With this feature，it could be stretched and twisted into various clip—like objects．In the years just before 1900，quite a few paperclip designs appeared．The name most frequently associated with the paperclip invention is Johan Vaaler，a Norwegian inventor. However, Vaaler’s clips were not the same as the paperclips currently in use．Specifically，they did not have the inside loop we see today．The familiar looped design was invented by Gem Manufacturing Ltd．in England．This clip is therefore sometimes known as the Gem clip．
Because of Vaaler，the paperclip played an important historical role in Norway．During World War II，Norway was occupied by the Nazis．Norwegians were prohibited from wearing any symbol of their national unity(团结)，such as buttons with the initials of their king．Thus，in protest，they started wearing paperclips to show their unity．The reason for doing this was simple：Paperclips were a Norwegian invention whose original function was to bind together．After the war，a giant paperclip statue was put up in Oslo to honour Vaaler—even though his design was never actually produced．According to the first paragraph，the paperclip is________．
| A．made of paper |
| B．shaped like a pin |
| C．inexpensive and useful |
| D．for holding clothes together |
One way the paperclip is better than the pin is that_________
| A．it is cheaper |
| B．it is simpler |
| C．it can be removed more easily |
| D．it doesn’t damage the paper |
Which of the following best shows what the Gem clip looks like?
The last paragraph is mainly about_________．
| A．how Vaaler’s clip became a national symbol |
| B．how widely used Vaaler’s clip is |
| C．how the Nazis ruled the Norwegian people |
| D．why Norwegians had the initials of their king on their buttons |