A morning rarely began so perfect. I took in the fresh air and felt my heart run into an enthusiastic rhythm. Though cool, the sun warmed my back as it rose over the horse from not far from my house. The slightest wind danced on my skin. Just enough to keep a runner form overheating. My ever-faithful jogging partner, a black dog named Nika pulled my leg with her mouth, mirroring my eagerness to start our run.
We raced forward with determination, ready to leap tall buildings and race against speeding trains. We pushed harder and ran faster, demonstration our skill and impressing passing motorists and neighbors.
We kept on running until we hit the Beast, a name for a very difficult, nearly two-mile long steep climb.
Only a few paces into the Beast, I gasped for air. Far short of superhero status, my enthusiasm and active steps were lost somewhere at the base of the hill. A vision of the newspaper and a cup of coffee waiting in my kitchen appeared, attracting me to turn back toward home.
With a glance I noticed Nika wasn’t doing any better. She continued to faithfully follow me, putting one paw in front of the other, but without her former eagerness. Her tiredness touched me. And in that moment, I felt a sudden spark of renewed determination to press on. I couldn’t allow this mountain to get the better of us. To improve both our spirits, I managed to shout, “Good girl, Nika! Keep going…you can do it!”
“I’m encouraging a dog, for heaven’s sake!’’ I needed to pull myself together. With a few simple words, I changed our course. One moment we were on the edge of quitting. The next, our feet picked up the pace and we continued. Though tired and discouraged myself, with a few kind words I impacted a dog’s ability to go further. I’m sure I could have completed the opposite with ill-chosen comments and an unpleasant tone. Instead, the Beast was defeated and we flew like heroes the rest of the way home.
Life is full of beasts to conquer. For some, it is the seemingly impossible climb of cancer. For others, their beast takes the shape of parenting a child or a teenager. Uphill climbs come in all shapes and sizes, common only in their ability to defeat, discourage and tempt tired travelers to quit. Sometimes all that’s needed is a few spoken, well-timed words of encouragement from a fellow runner – someone who sees the struggle, dares to jogs alongside, and cares enough to say, “Keep going! You can do it! You’re not alone. I believe in you!” The writer starts the text by describing________.
A.the beautiful scene of the morning |
B.his or her preparations for a jogging |
C.a lively dog named Nika |
D.the growth of crops at the farm |
The writer mentioned the newspaper and coffee to suggest that he or she _______.
A.liked reading newspapers while drinking coffee |
B.had an intention to give up running |
C.would treat himself or herself to coffee after running |
D.might appear on the newspaper for the long running |
The writer decided to continue running _______.
A.after he or she found the dog was still energetic |
B.because they came near the top of the hill |
C.when he or she noticed the tired dog |
D.before they arrived at the bottom of the hill |
What does the writer expect to show by telling the story?
A.Words are powerful than deeds. |
B.Beasts in life aren’t easily to conquer. |
C.Dogs are the best friend of humans. |
D.Try it one more time before giving up. |
Many facts suggest that children are overweight and the situation is getting worse, according to the doctors. I feel there are a number of reasons for this.
Some people blame the fact that we are surrounded (包围) by shops selling unhealthy, fatty foods, such as fried chicken and ice-cream, at low prices. This has turned out a whole generation of grown-ups who seldom cook a meal for themselves. If there were fewer of these restaurants, then probably children will buy less take away food.
There is another argument that blames parents for allowing their children to become overweight. I agree with this because good eating habits begin early in life, long before children start to visit fast food shops. If children are given fried chicken and chocolate rather than healthy food or are always allowed to choose what they eat, they will go for sweet and salty foods every time, this will carry on throughout their lives.
There is a third reason for this situation. Children these days take very little exercise. They do not walk to school. When they get home, they sit in front of the television or their computers and play computer games. Not only is this an pastime(消遣), it also give them time to eat more unhealthy food. What they need is to go outside and play active games or sports.
The above are the main reasons for this problem, and therefore we have to encourage young people to be more active, as well as steering them away from fast food shops and bad eating habits.According to the passage, what kind of children may eat more unhealthy food?
A.Those who often took exercise. |
B.Those who often watch TV. |
C.Those who often have meals at home. |
D.Those who often walk to school. |
The author thinks that children are becoming overweight because _____.
A.their parents often cook meals for them |
B.they are too busy to go out and play |
C.they can’t choose what to eat |
D.there are so many fast food shops around |
The word “steering”underlined in the last sentence most probably means _____.
A.forcing | B.guiding | C.driving | D.moving |
The main purpose of the passage is to _____.
A.tell a story | B.provide facts | C.give advice | D.compare opinions |
According to this advertisement ,at the Forum people _________.
A.come together in order to form an organization |
B.eat together to celebrate their success or victory |
C.work together for the purpose of business or trade |
D.express different opinions and discuss public matters |
If you register both the VIEW qualification course and the Forum at the same time ,you will save .
A.$100 B.$350 D.$400 D.$300“Space is limited ,so early registration is welcome” means.
A.you’ll lose the good chance if you don’t register soon |
B.space is limited ,so you can’t register now |
C.space is too limited for you to register |
D.you’ll be given a special offer if you register now |
The main purpose of this advertisement is to .
A.promise everyone can pay less money to attend the Forum |
B.encourage more people to attend the Forum in time |
C.call on the people in the north of the USA to go south for holidays |
D.introduce some new activities and topics of the Forum |
Since many of you are planning to study at a college or university in this country, you may be curious to know what you usually do in a typical week, how you can get along with your fellow students, and so on. These are the questions I want to discuss with you today.
First, let’s talk about what your weekly schedule will look like. No matter what your major may be, you can expect to spend between four and six hours a week for each class attending lectures. Lectures are usually in very large rooms because some courses such as introduction to sociology or economics often have as many as two or three hundred students, especially at large universities. In lectures, it’s very important for you to take notes on what the professor says because the information a lecture is often different from the information in your textbooks. Also, you can expect to have exam questions based on the lectures. So it isn’t enough to just read your textbooks; you have to attend lectures as well. In a typical week you will also have a couple of hours of discussion for every class you take. The discussion section is a small group meeting usually with fewer than thirty students where you can ask questions about the lectures, the reading, and the homework. In large universities, graduate students, called teaching assistants, usually direct discussion sections.
If your major is chemistry, or physics, or another science, you’ll also have to spend several hours a week in the lab, or laboratory, doing experiments. This means that science majors spend more time in the classroom than non science majors do. On the other hand, people who major in subjects like literature or history usually have to read and write more than science majors do.The main purpose of this text is.
A.to persuade the students to attend lectures |
B.to encourage the students to take part in discussions |
C.to advise the students to choose proper majors |
D.to help the students to learn about university life. |
We can learn from the passage that university professors.
A.spend about 5 hours on lectures each week |
B.must join the students in the discussion sections |
C.require the students to read beyond the textbooks |
D.prefer to use textbooks in their lectures |
A discussion section does NOT include.
A.talking over what the students have read about the courses |
B.working under the guidance of university professors |
C.discussing the problems related to the students’ homework |
D.raising questions about what a professor has said in a lecture |
According to the author, science majors.
A.read and write less than non science majors |
B.have to work harder than non science majors |
C.spend less time on their studies than non science majors |
D.consider experiments more important than discussions |
I fell in love with England because it was quaint (古雅)—all those little houses, looking terribly old-fashioned but nice, like dolls’ houses. I loved the countryside and the pubs, and I loved London. I’ve slightly changed my mind after seventeen years because I think it’s an ugly town now.
Things have changed. For everybody, England meant gentlemen, fair play, and good manners. The fair play is going, unfortunately, and so are the gentlemanly attitudes and good manners—people shut doors heavily in your face and politeness is disappearing.
I regret that there are so few comfortable meeting places. You’re forced to live indoors. In Paris I go out much more, to restaurants and nightclubs. To meet friends here it usually has to be in a pub, and it can be difficult to go there alone as a woman. The cafes are not terribly nice.
As a woman, I feel unsafe here. I spend a bomb on taxis because I will not take public transport after 10 p. m. I used to use it, but now I’m afraid.
The idea of family seems to be more or less non-existent in England. My family is well united and that’s typically French. In Middlesex I had a neighbour who is 82 now. His family only lived two miles away, but I took him to France for Christmas once because he was always alone.The writer doesn’t like London because she ______.
A.has lived there for seventeen years |
B.prefers to live in an old-fashioned house |
C.is not used to the life there now |
D.has to be polite to everyone she meets there |
Where do people usually meet their friends in England?
A.In a pub. | B.In a cafe. | C.In a restaurant. | D.In a nightclub. |
The writer took her neighbour to France for Christmas because he ______.
A.had never been to France | B.was from a typical French family |
C.didn't like the British idea of family | D.felt lonely in England |
It was a warm April day when a big fat envelope came in the mail from the only college I had ever imagined attending. I tore open the packet. My eyes were fixed on the word “congratulations. ”I don’t remember ever smiling so wide.
Then I looked at my financial(财政的)package.
The cost of Dream School’s tuition(学费), room and board was around $ 40,000- an impossible sum! How could I afford to attend? What good reasons did I have to go there when three other fine colleges were offering me free tuition? My other choices were good, solid schools even if they weren’t as famous as my first choice.
In my mind, attending my dream university would be the only way to realize my dream of becoming a world-class writer. My parents understood how I felt. They told me that even though it would be a financial problem, I could go wherever I would be happiest. But as I was always careful with money, I wasn’t sure what to do.
One of the schools that offered me a full ride had an informational dinner one night in the spring. Considering my parents’ financial difficulties, I decided to drive the 45 minutes and attend. At first, all I had planned to do was smile politely, eat free food, listen quietly. But I surprised myself.
At dinner the president of the university talked about the wonderful activities on campus (校园)including guest lectures and social gatherings. He also made it perfectly clear that free food would be offered at all future events. He continued with explanations of professors, class sizes, activities, and sporting events on campus. As he spoke, I began to realize that this school, though not as good as my first choice, might be the best one for me. It seemed small yet with many great programs. It seemed challenging yet caring.
As the president ended his speech, we clapped politely and pushed back our chairs. As I walked out that door, a feeling of comfort washed over me. Looking at the campus that night, I realized that I would be spending the next four years right there.
In all honesty, my university is not as well-known as my “dream”university. However, it turned out to be the right choice of schools for me. How did the author feel when he started to read the letter?
A.He was lost in his dream. |
B.He was full of joy. |
C.He was worried about the money. |
D.He was uncertain which school to go to. |
We can learn from the passage that the parents were _________.
A.honest | B.supportive | C.strict | D.decisive |
In Paragraph 5, “offered me a full ride”can be replaced by “_______”.
A.would charge me nothing for tuition |
B.would pay for transport to the school |
C.would show me around the campus |
D.would offer free meals at all events |
What does the author mainly want to say?
A.You should consider comfort in your choice of schools. |
B.You should try your best to attend your dream school. |
C.Your second-choice college may actually by your best fit. |
D.Your choice of schools should be based on their fame. |