In the age of reality television, success isn’t the only way to the public eye. Failure can also create fame, just like William Hung, 21, a native of Hong Kong.
Hung recently has made an agreement with US-based entertainment firms Koch Records and Fuse Music Network. They will publish a full-length record, titled “The True Idol” on April 6.
The idol is a civil engineering student at the University of California at Berkeley. He did a version（改写本）of Ricky Martin’s “She Bangs” on the television show “American Idol 3”, on January 27. The Fox TV singing contest searches for pop stars among ordinary people. In the case of Hung, however, his act was so bad that the judges cut him off in mid-act.
Hung’s response? “I already gave my best, so I have no regrets at all.” That’s good, because any common person would have found plenty to regret: the off-key singing; the blue Hawaiian shirt worn with pants pulled up too high; the terrible dancing; the hips jerking（摇摆）to a beat that did not belong to the song, maybe not even to this planet. It was, by all accounts, bad. But, it was this very bad act that sold well.
Marc Juris, president of Fuse, explained it this way: “Every one of us is happily guilty of singing our favorite song at the top of our lungs with complete freedom, completely off-key and completely unworried. That’s what William did and immediately won the hearts of America. ”
Whatever it is, for the moment it’s big. Three websites devoted to Hung have gone up on the Internet in the past few weeks. Versions of his performance have been remixed with hip hop and techno music and have made it to the top 10 request list at a Chicago radio station.
So, what does Hung think of this?
“There were all these people saying things about me. A lot were saying I was very courageous and that I was great on the show, but some didn’t have much respect for me and some were kind of mean ”
Now, he says he’s not so sure whether to distance himself from the glamour（魅力）or to accept it. Returning to normal hasn’t been easy. What is the main idea of this passage?
| A．Sometimes an idol behaves quite foolishly. |
| B．Hung’s performance attracted the public eye. |
| C．How an unsuccessful person became famous. |
| D．Success sometimes does not require hard work. |
Hung was popular in America for all the following reasons EXCEPT ________.
| A．his shirt and pants | B．his off-key singing |
| C．his hips jerking | D．his excellent version |
What does the underlined word “it” in paragraph 6 refer to?
| A．William Hung. | B．Hung’s bad act. |
| C．Hung’s website. | D．The public’s opinion. |
Which of the following shows the correct order of what happened to Hung?
a．The entertainment firms made an agreement with Hung.
b．The judges cut Hung off in mid-act in the singing contest.
c．Hung became popular among Americans.
d．Hung gave a terrible performance though he tried his best.
e．Three websites put Hung’s funny performance on the Internet.
| A．d, b, e, c, a | B．a, c, d, b, e | C．a, d, b, c, e | D．d, b, a, e, c |
Why was Hung able to win the hearts of America?
| A．His success was based on his own hard work. |
| B．He attracted people’s attention in the contest. |
| C．He was good-looking though he didn’t sing well. |
| D．His character was completely different from other idols” |
There are some topics that readers never grow bored with, and the search for a suitable partner（伴侣） is one of them. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, first published in 1813, tells the story of five young women, all of whom are looking for a husband. In order to fully understand the novel, the readers must know that at the time when Jane Austen was writing, if a family was not rich, the daughters needed to marry well in order to live a comfortable, independent life. That is the reason why Mrs. Bennet, the mother of the five girls, is so eager to have her daughters married.
The heroine of the story is Elizabeth Bennet, and as in all good romantic novels, she and Darcy, the man she finally marries, remain separate until the very end of the story. The wealthy Darcy is a proud, unsociable man, and when Elizabeth hears that he has insulted both her and her family, she dislikes him very much. Poor Darcy then falls head over heels in love with Elizabeth, and has to work terribly hard to persuade her to change her mind about him. He succeeds of course, and they live happily ever after.
Set at the turn of the 19th century, the novel is still attractive to modern readers. It has become one of the most popular novels and receives great attention from literary scholars（学者）.Modern interest in the book has resulted in a number of dramatic（戏剧的）and a lot of novels and stories modeling after Austen’s memorable characters or themes. To date, the book has sold some 20 million copies worldwide.
Jane Austen is rightly famous for her style. Her sentences have a wonderful rhythm（韵律）, and she makes such clever, true comments about people. It is not surprising that Pride and Prejudice has lasted. In the 19th century, a poor girl in Britain was often encouraged to .
| A．master the skills of writing | B．marry the one she loved |
| C．obey her parents | D．change her life by marrying rich |
The underlined word “insulted” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to .
| A．treated warmly | B．paid no attention to |
| C．had mercy on | D．said something rude about |
What do we know about Elizabeth and Darcy?
| A．They’ve experienced ups and downs but get married in the end. |
| B．They both come from poor families and wish to marry rich. |
| C．They get separated from each other shortly after being married. |
| D．Darcy falls over and gets hurt but Elizabeth still loves him. |
According to the passage, Pride and Prejudice _________.
| A．was first published in 1813 and sold 20 million copies soon |
| B．tells a sad love story which moves generations of readers |
| C．inspired many other novels and many plays have been produced based on it. |
| D．is set at the turn of the 19th century and not well received worldwide |
Birds that are half-asleep — with one brain hemisphere (半球) alert(警觉) and the other sleeping — control which side of the brain remains awake, according to a new study of sleeping ducks.
Earlier studies have recorded half-brain sleep in a wide range of birds. The brain hemispheres take turns sinking into the sleep stage characterized by slow brain waves. The eye controlled by the sleeping hemisphere keeps shut, while the wakeful hemisphere’s eye stays open and alert. Birds also can sleep with both hemispheres resting at once.
Decades of studies of bird groups led researchers to predict extra alertness in the end-of-the-row sleepers which tend to be attacked more easily. Sure enough, the end birds tended to watch carefully on the side away from their companions. Ducks in the inner spots showed no preference for gaze(注视) direction.
Also, birds napping (打盹) at the end of the line depend on single-hemisphere sleep, rather than total relaxation, more often than inner ducks did. Turning 16 birds through the positions in a four-duck row, the researchers found that compared with 12 percent for birds in inner spots, outer birds half-asleep during some 32 percent of napping time.
“We believe this is the first evidence for an animal behaviorally controlling sleep and wakefulness at the same time in different regions of the brain,” the researchers say.
The results provide the best evidence for a long-standing assumption that single-hemisphere sleep developed over time as creatures scanned for enemies. The preference for opening an eye on the lookout side could be widespread, he predicts. He’s seen it in a pair of birds napping side-by-side in the zoo and in a single pet bird sleeping by a mirror. The mirror-side eye closed as if the reflection were a companion and the other eye stayed open.
Useful as half-sleeping might be, it’s only been found in birds and such water animals as dolphins, whales, and seals. Perhaps keeping one side of the brain awake allows a sleeping animal to surface occasionally to avoid drowning.
Studies of birds may offer unique insights into sleep. Jerome M. Siegel of the UCLA says he wonders if birds’ half-brain sleep “is just the tip of the iceberg.” He supposes that more examples may turn up when we take a closer look at other species.According to the passage, birds often half sleep because ______.
| A．they have to watch out for possible attacks |
| B．their brain hemispheres take turns to rest |
| C．the two halves of their brain are differently organized |
| D．they have to constantly keep an eye on their companions |
What is implied about the example of a bird’s sleeping in front of a mirror?
| A．An imagined companion gives the bird a sense of security. |
| B．Birds prefer to sleep in pairs for the sake of their security. |
| C．The phenomenon of birds napping in pairs is widespread. |
| D．A single pet bird enjoys seeing its own reflection in the mirror. |
It can be inferred that _______.
| A．Birds never sleep with both hemispheres resting at once. |
| B．Inner ducks depend on single-hemisphere sleep, rather than total relaxation, as often as birds napping at the end of the line do |
| C．It is not the first time for scientists to research on birds’ half-brain sleep |
| D．Birds hardly sleep without a companion |
By saying “just the tip of the iceberg”, Siegel suggests that _______.
| A．half-brain sleep has something to do with icy weather |
| B．the mystery of half-brain sleep is close to being solved |
| C．most birds living in cold regions tend to be half sleepers |
| D．half-brain sleep may exist among other species |
In the face of tragedy(悲剧), you must of course let yourself feel: Cry without holding back, tremble with fear, yell out in anger, accept and follow your feelings. This is part of the wise approach to tragedy: The Upward Path – the feeling of emotions(情感), the acceptance of them, and the coupling of the emotional mind with wisdom. Along this path, you’ll take the experience – no matter how sad or upsetting – as a learning event, just as all other points on your journey will prove to be. While tragic, you must recognize this is still a chance for all involved to grow. You should let both sadness and joy, fear and courage, dark and light fill your world, and learn to find your steady, calm center in the midst of the opposing forces. This is the Upward Path. Use the event as a chance to gain balance and discover wisdom – the wisdom of love and of letting go, of non-attachment and non-resistance, and using this experience to eventually help others in need of guidance.
Being able to relate to others who have also experienced tragedy and inspire in them hope – of recovery, and of moving forward – is perhaps the greatest gift you can receive from tragedy. Turn the negative into positive, the pain into connection. After you’ve taken appropriate time to be sad, to feel your own pain, you should make it your work, your goal, your purpose to connect with others who need help. Show them how you’ve experienced feelings, achieved balance, and gained wisdom that you would never have otherwise had the chance to learn.
Feel, but do not Feed on tragedy. Rather, let it inspire you to go beyond the person who you were before. With demise comes renewal, so let this loss be also your rebirth. No matter how hopeless it seems, no matter how difficult this becomes, you have the power to transform yourself into someone greater than you ever knew you could be.When following the Upward Path, the person facing tragedy should _______.
| A．free his emotions |
| B．hold back all his feelings |
| C．fill his world with positive ideas |
| D．give in to tragedy and all opposing forces |
According to the author, the greatest gift one gets from tragedy is being able to _______.
| A．seek solutions from others | B．understand and help others |
| C．stay calm and resist change | D．forgive others and move on |
The underlined word “demise” in the last paragraph probably means _______.
| A．sorrow | B．problem | C．difficulty | D．death |
The purpose of the passage is to _______.
| A．analyze the causes of tragedy |
| B．tell people how to prevent tragedy |
| C．suggest a way of dealing with tragedy |
| D．encourage people to build friendship after tragedy |
A winter wonderland on the outskirts of Quebec City has become one of Canada's hottest attractions and most sought out accommodations. Guests stay close for warmth in sleeping bags on beds of ice, hats pulled over their ears to prevent frostbite, while sipping cocktails (鸡尾酒) in glasses also made of ice.
A cool place to host a memorable wedding or for a romantic getaway, the Quebec Ice Hotel has attracted 600,000 curious tourists, including 30,000 who stayed overnight, since opening seasonally 11 years ago. Like Victoria and Jeremy Martin, dozens of couples will exchange vows (誓约) this winter in a temporary church next to the hotel, made entirely from blocks of ice with seats covered in furs.
Average temperatures fall below minus 20 degrees C (minus four F) in winter, but inside the hotel's 36 rooms it is relatively comfortable. Thick walls of packed snow and ice act as an insulator, trapping body heat inside. Each room is uniquely decorated, using designs created by Quebec architecture students. Two hotel bars also sell special cocktails in ice glasses.
First-time guests of the hotel, however, are recommended to stay only one night as sleeping in sub-zero temperatures is not very refreshing. This year for the first time the ice hotel has teamed up with a brick and concrete Quebec City hotel to offer packages(全套服务) for one-night accommodations at each. Prices for one night only at the ice hotel start at 200 US dollars per person.
The 3,000-square-metre (32,300-square-feet) buildings take six weeks starting in December to build, using 15,000 tons of snow and 500 tons of ice, at a cost of some 750,000 US dollars. Eleven weeks after its seasonal grand opening, the hotel will close on March 27 and then melt away with the arrival of spring.What is true with the ice hotel?
| A．630,000 people have visited it. |
| B．Its rooms all look alike. |
| C．It stays open for two months each year. |
| D．Wedding ceremonies are often held there. |
The underlined word “insulator” in Paragraph 3 possibly refers to something that ______.
| A．stops heat passing through it |
| B．collects and reflects light and heat |
| C．makes things become very cold |
| D．works like an air-conditioner |
First-time guests are advised to stay there only one night because _______.
| A．they may not be able to stand the cold |
| B．their other night is with an ordinary hotel |
| C．new guests have no advantages over old ones |
| D．they may find the beds made of ice too hard to sleep on. |
Grandfather was an elder Cherokee Native American who had a wrinkled, nut brown face and kind dark eyes．His grandson often came in the evening to sit on his knee and asked the many questions that children asked．
One day the grandson came to his grandfather with a look of anger on his face and the following story．"Father and I went to the store today and because I helped him, he bought me a present, a jack-knife．I went outside to wait for father and to admire my new knife in the sunlight．Some town boys came by and saw me．They surrounded me and started saying bad things．They called me dirty and stupid and said that I should not have such a fine knife．The largest of these boys pushed me back and I fell over one of the other boys．I dropped my knife and one of them picked it up and they all ran away laughing．I hate them．I hate them all．”
The elder Cherokee, with eyes that had seen too much, lifted his grandson's face so his eyes looked into the boy's face．Grandfather said, " Let me tell you a story．I, too, at times, have felt a great hate for those who have taken so much with no sorrow for what they do．But hate wears you down and does not hurt your enemy．It is like drinking poison and wishing your enemy would die．I have struggled with these feelings many times．It is as if two wolves are inside me．．．It is a terrible fight．
One wolf is good and does no harm．He lives in harmony with all around him and does not take offense (冒犯) when no offense is intended．It will only fight when it is right to do so and in the right way．This wolf stands for joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, modesty, kindness, friendship, sympathy, generosity, truth and faith．
The other wolf is full of anger．The smallest thing will set off his fiercest temper．He fights everyone, all the time, for no reason．He cannot think because his anger and hate are so much．
It is helpless anger, for his anger will change nothing．This wolf represents fear, envy, greed, self-pity, guilt, lies, false pride and superiority．
Sometimes, it is hard to live with these two wolves inside me for both of them try to control my mind．This same fight is going on inside you and inside every other person too．"
The boy looked into his grandfather's eyes and asked, "Which wolf will win?" The old Cherokee simply replied ．．．
"The one you feed．"The boy was angry because ______.
| A．he was not satisfied with his present |
| B．his back was badly injured in a fight |
| C．he had waited for his father for too long |
| D．his jack-knife had been taken away by some boys |
The angry wolf would probably be described as ______.
| A．aggressive(好斗) | B．sympathetic | C．modest | D．unsuccessful |
We can learn from the third paragraph that ______.
| A．"hate" is healthy | B．"hate" hurts oneself |
| C．"hate" is complicated | D．"hate" harms one's enemies |
What did Grandfather mean by saying "The one you feed" in the last paragraph?
| A．We should feed the two wolves equally． |
| B．Living in harmony with others is important． |
| C．Our feelings should be expressed at the right time． |
| D．The choices we make determine who we will become． |