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” |
Uncle Tom gave little Vicki Black a birthday gift one week before her birthday. He told her not to open it until her birthday. She knew her mother wouldn’t tolerate any disrespect to the kind man who helped them out after Vicki’s father passed away; besides, Vicki didn’t want Uncle Tom to get angry. But little Vicky didn’t want to just hold it and guess what was in it. After all, she looked forward to his coming to show her interesting things, like how to turn an old sock into a doll.
All the day, Vicki couldn’t stop thinking about the gift while her teacher was giving a lecture. Vicki sat still in her seat, drawing paper dolls inside the box. When school was done, she raced home. Walking into the room, again, she shook the present, but she heard nothing. Holding her breath, she opened the box and looked inside. Seconds later, she cried. When Mrs. Black saw the box, she said angrily, “Didn’t I tell you to leave it alone?” Vicki sobbed and said, “Mommy, you don’t understand.”
“Don’t cry to me. You have missed everything now, just because you couldn’t wait,” Mrs. Black accused. “What will Uncle Tom think now?”
“Uncle Tom gave me nothing,” Vicki cried and handed the empty box to her mother. “He played a trick on me.”
Mrs. Black said doubtfully, “Uncle Tom is not like that. You must have dropped it.”
Vicki kept crying. Only a rapid knock on the door made the house quiet. It was Uncle Tom. He looked at the empty box. “You have already done it? I told you to wait for your birthday.”
“You didn’t give me a gift.” Fresh tears filled her eyes.
“I try to give you something. I know your birthday is a special day. I tell myself to give you something valuable to last your whole life. I think hard and get the idea to give you an important lesson. If you open it on birthday, I see you learn. Then I will make a big party to celebrate. Maybe next year you listen and then you will understand the gift better.
Vicki’s cheeks flushed（脸红）. We can learn from the text that Vicki___________.
| A．often received gifts from her father | B．expected Uncle Tom to give her a doll |
| C．was sad because of her father’s death | D．liked and respected Uncle Tom |
Vicki’s mother became angry because ___________.
| A．Uncle Tom helped them out after Vicki’s father died |
| B．Vicki opened the box before her birthday |
| C．there was nothing in the gift box |
| D．Vicki dropped the gift because of her carelessness |
What kind of person is Uncle Tom?
| A．Thoughtful | B．Humorous | C．Mysterious | D．Funny |
What did Uncle Tom want to teach Vicki?
| A．How to respect others | B．The meaning of gifts |
| C．How to deal with gifts | D．The value of a promise |
Why must we pay taxes? The answer is that the government needs money for many things, for example to pay its soldiers, sailors and airmen, to build roads, bridges, offices, schools, etc and to buy goods from abroad; and only the people of the country can supply the money．One of the most important taxes is income-tax which a person pays according to the amount of his income-tax．Whether he is a businessman, a doctor, a lawyer, a shopkeeper, a miner, or anything else．This is called a “direct” tax, because it is paid in money direct to the government．
Another tax is paid on goods such as watches, jewellery, new clothes, tobacco, wine, etc, when they are brought into a country, such a tax is paid as part of the price of these goods if they are later sold in shops．We call it “indirect” tax, because it is paid indirectly through the shopkeeper．
People usually complain about having to pay taxes, but they forget that the money is spent on the things that they and their families need．We need policemen to catch thieves, to see that men obey the laws, to direct traffic, etc, and they must be paid what they earn; children need education and there must be schools and teachers; we want our streets to be kept clean, and the wages of men who do this kind of work have to be paid．Above all, the country must always be ready to defend itself against attacking enemies, and we cannot have an army without paying for it．
Taxes, therefore, cannot be avoided．We buy our own food and clothes and pay for our own amusements, but there are several things that the State finds the money for, and that are necessary for us if our society is to continue．So we have no real cause to complain when we are asked to supply money to be spent for the good of ourselves and for our fellow-citizens．Indirect tax means _______．
| A．tax that one pays direct to the government |
| B．tax that is not paid directly to the government |
| C．tax that is paid as an extra amount added to the price of certain goods |
| D．Both B and C |
Which of the following is right?
| A．Taxes are paid to the sellers． |
| B．Income-tax is an indirect tax． |
| C．The tax on new clothes is paid in money direct to the government． |
| D．Tax is amount of money that you have to pay to the government so that it can pay for public services． |
People have no real reason to complain about having to pay taxes because _______．
| A．some shopkeepers are very rich |
| B．they need money to buy goods from abroad |
| C．their children need education |
| D．the money is spent on the things that they and their families need |
Parents often believe that they have a good relationship with their teenagers. But last summer, Joanna and Henry noticed a change in their older son: suddenly he seemed to be talking far more to his friends than to his parents. “The door to his room is always shut,” Joanna noted.
Tina and Mark noticed similar changes in their 14-year-old daughter. “She used to cuddle up（蜷伏）with me on the sofa and talk,” said Mark. “Now we joke that she does this only when she wants something. Sometimes she wants to be treated like a little girl and sometimes like a young lady. The problem is figuring out which time is which.”
Before age 11, children like to tell their parents what’s on their minds. “In fact, parents are first on the list,” said Michael Riera, author of Uncommon Sense for Parents with Teenagers. “This completely changes during the teen years,” Riera explained. “They talk to their friends first, then maybe their teachers, and their parents last.”
Parents who know what’s going on in their teenagers’ lives are in the best position to help them. To break down the wall of silence, parents should create chances to understand what their children want to say, and try to find ways to talk and write to them. And they must give their children a mental break, for children also need freedom, though young. Another thing parents should remember is that to be a friend, not a manager, with their children is a better way to know them. “The door to his room is always shut” in the first paragraph suggests that the son______.
| A．is always busy with his studies |
| B．doesn’t want to be disturbed |
| C．keeps himself away from his parents |
| D．begins to dislike his parents |
What troubles Tina and Mark most is that______.
| A．their daughter isn’t as lovely as before |
| B．they can’t read their daughter’s mind exactly |
| C．they don’t know what to say to their daughter |
| D．their daughter talks with them only when she needs help |
Which of the following best explains “the wall of silence” in the last paragraph?
| A．Teenagers talk a lot with their friends. |
| B．Teenagers do not want to understand their parents. |
| C．Teenagers do not talk much with their parents. |
| D．Teenagers talk little about their own lives. |
What can be learned from the passage?
| A．Parents are unhappy with their growing children. |
| B．Parents have suitable ways to talk with their teenagers. |
| C．Parents should be patient with their silent teenagers. |
| D．Parents should try to understand their teenagers. |
Beldon and Canfield are two seashore towns, not far apart．Both towns have many hotels, and in summer the hotels are full of holiday-makers and other tourists．
Last August there was a fire at the Seabreeze Hotel in Beldon．The next day, this news appeared on page two of the town’s newspaper．The Beldon Post:
FIRE AT SEABREEZE
Late last night firemen hurried to the Seabreeze Hotel and quickly put out a small fire in a bedroom．The hotel manager said that a cigarette started the fire．We say again to all our visitors： “Please don’t smoke cigarettes in bed．” This was Beldon’s first hotel fire for five years．
The Canfield Times gave the news in these words on page one：
ANOTHER BELDON HOTEL CATCHES FIRE
Last night Beldon firemen arrived just too late to save clothing, bedclothes and some furniture at the Seabreeze Hotel．An angry holiday-maker said, “An electric lamp probably started the fire．The bedroom lamps are very old at some of these hotels．When I put my bedside light on, I heard a funny noise from the lamp．” We are glad to tell our readers that this sort of adventure does not happen in Canfield．
What are the facts, then? It is never easy to find out the exact truth about an accident．There was a fire at the Seabreeze Hotel last August: that is one fact．Do we know anything else? Yes, we know that firemen went to the hotel．
Now what do you think of the rest of the “news” ?Which of the following best gives the main idea of this text?
| A．Beldon and Canfield are both good places for tourists in summer． |
| B．A fire broke out at night in Seabreeze Hotel last summer． |
| C．It was not easy to find out exact truth from newspapers． |
| D．Two newspapers gave reports on the same matter． |
Which of the following are probably facts?
a．The fire broke out in a bedroom at the hotel．
b．A cigarette started the fire．
c．An old lamp started the fire．
d．The fire broke out at night．
e．There has never been a fire in Canfield．
| A．b and c | B．a and d | C．c and e | D．a and c |
The Canfield Times used the headline like this in order to make its readers think _______．
| A．hotels in Beldon often catch fire |
| B．hotels in Beldon don’t often catch fire |
| C．this was the second fire at the Seabreeze Hotel |
| D．Beldon was a good place except that hotels there are not quite safe |
The Canfield newspaper gave a report just the opposite to the Beldon Post by saying that _______．
| A．the bedroom lamps were very old at the Seabreeze Hotel |
| B．the bedroom lights made funny noise when the fire took place |
| C．the firemen failed to save clothing, bedclothes and other things |
| D．such accidents never happened in Canfield for the past 5 years |
Last year．I took a sightseeing trip to Washington, DC．I heard a voice say, “Can you help me?” When I turned around, I saw an elderly blind woman with her hand extended．Immediately, I pulled out all of my change and placed it on her hand without even looking at her．But the blind woman smiled and said, “I don’t want your money．I just need help finding the post office．”
In an instant, I realized what I had done．I acted with prejudice―I judged another person simply for what I assumed she had to be．I hated what I saw in myself．
The thing I had forgotten about myself is that I am an immigrant．I left Honduras and arrived in the US at the age of 15．I started my new life with two suitcases, my brother and sister．Through the years, I have been a doorkeeper, cashier and pizza delivery driver among many other humble(卑微的)jobs, and eventually I became a network engineer．
In my own life, I have experienced prejudice．I remember a time―at the age of 17―when I was a busboy, I heard a father tell his little boy that if he did not do well in school, he would end up like me．
But now, living in my American middle-class lifestyle, it is too easy to forget my past, to forget who I am, where I have been ,and to lose sight of where I want to be going．That blind woman on the streets cured me of my blindness．She reminded me of my belief in humility(谦虚)．By the way, I helped that lady to the post office．I hope to thank her for the priceless lesson．How did the writer give the blind woman money?
| A．In a modest way | B．In a polite way |
| C．In an impatient way． | D．In a painful way |
According to the text, the writer__________．
A．still lives a poor life
B．was busy with his work
C．was born in Honduras
D．was a native of Washington D．C．According to the text, the author most probably agrees that one should__________．
| A．be nice to the elderly and the disabled |
| B．try to experience different kinds of culture |
| C．treat others equally with love and respect |
| D．think about one’s past as often as possible |
What would be the best title of the text?
| A．A priceless lesson | B．An act of prejudice |
| C．A sightseeing trip | D．A humble moment |