Not many years ago， a wealthy and rather strange old man named Johnson lived alone in a village in the south of England. He had made a lot of money in trading with foreign countries. When he was seventy-five， he gave ￡ 12，000 to the village school to buy land and equipment for a children’s playground.
As a result of his kindness， many people came to visit him. Among them was a newspaperman. During their talk， Johnson remarked that he was seventy-five and expected to live to be a hundred. The newspaperman asked him
how he managed to be healthy at seventy—five. 
Johnson had a sense of humor. He liked whisky and drank some each day. “I have an injection （注射） in my neck each evening.” he told the newspaperman， thinking of his evening glass of whisky.
The newspaperman did not understand what Johnson meant. In his newspaper he reported that Johnson was seventy-five and had a daily injection in his neck. Within a week Johnson received thousands of letters from all over Britain， asking him for the secret of his daily injection.Johnson became a rich man through _________.
| A．doing business. |
| B．making whisky. |
| C．cheating. |
| D．buying and selling land. |
The gift of money to the school suggests that Johnson __________.
| A．had no children. |
| B．was a strange man. |
| C．was very fond of children. |
| D．wanted people to know how rich he was. |
Many people wrote to Johnson to find out __________.
| A．what kind of whisky he had. |
| B．how to live longer. |
| C．how to become wealthy. |
| D．in which part of the neck to have an injection. |
The newspaperman ____________.
| A．should have reported what Johnson had told him. |
| B．shouldn’t have asked Johnson what injection he had. |
| C．was eager to live a long life. |
| D．should have found out what Johnson really meant. |
When Johnson said he had an injection in his neck each evening， he really meant that ______.
| A．he liked drinking a glass of whisky in the evening. |
| B．he needed an injection in the neck. |
| C．a daily injection in the evening would make him sleep well. |
| D．there was something wrong with his neck. |
For decades，the San Francisco Bay area has been the heart of the computer technology industry．Many of the biggest technology companies have their headquarters in the area called Silicon Valley．But the area has not always been associated with charity(慈善)．
Now，a new generation of entrepreneurs(企业家)appears to be changing Silicon Valley．One example is Marc Benioff，a donor(捐赠者)，who has called on wealthy donors to give more to their communities．He also is the founder of Salesforce．com，a computer services company in San Francisco who has helped build a children’s hospital and given millions of dollars to non-profit organizations in the city．
Money from the technology industry has also started to change the face of charity．Benjamin Soskis writes about the history and ideas behind charity in America．His articles have appeared in The Atlantic magazine and a number of major publications．He says，traditionally，donors have given after they spent much of their lives building up wealth．Usually donors are in their 70s．But an increasing number of people appearing on the list of top donors are younger than 40 years of age．Benjamin Soskis says that is something new．“There’s a whole new model that’s appearing in which people give and accumulate at the same time．”
Some of the young donors on this year's top 50 list have started to change in the way people see charity．That is especially the case in the San Francisco area，where giving money and making money appear to be coming together．“I think it's fair to say that charity is now a part of the Silicon Valley identity．”What is true of Marc Benioff?
| A．He joined a non-profit organization． |
| B．He advised donors to build hospitals． |
| C．He made San Francisco a city of charity． |
| D．He set up the company of Salesforce．com． |
What is special about the donors of Silicon Valley?
| A．They prefer to give rather than make money． |
| B．They give after accumulating a lot of wealth． |
| C．They are much younger than the usual donors． |
| D．They donate more money to their communities． |
Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
| A．The age of charity |
| B．The changing faces of charity |
| C．In search of new faces |
| D．From computer base to charity centre |
Shake Shack is a new kind of restaurant becoming more popular in the U S．The restaurants are not“fast food．”They are known as“fast casual．”
Observers say Americans want more choices and fresh food when choosing where and what to eat．This trend is one reason why the fast food restaurant McDonald’s has struggled financially．In the last quarter of 2014，McDonald’s net income dropped by about$300 million．The January earnings report brought more bad news．Worldwide sales dropped for the eighth month in a row and even more than expected．While McDonald’s is struggling to get their customers back，Shake Shack，is doing well in making money．The New York-based burger chain had a very successful IPO，or initial public offering，of shares at the end of January．On its first day of trading，Shake Shack went from$21 a share to just under$46 a share．Being part of the“fast casual”trend has helped Shake Shack．Other fast casual restaurants in the U．S．include Chipotle and Panera．
Bonnie Riggs，a restaurant expert with NPD has studied Americans’restaurant habits for almost 30 years．She says one reason why Americans like fast casual food is that it’s new．It is creative，it is something different and people like to try new things．Her study shows Americans made 61 billion visits to restaurants last year．Three out of four visits were to fast food restaurants，like McDonald’s．Fast casual is still a small percentage of restaurant visits，but it has developed fast．Just as Ms．Riggs says，“It’s growing by leaps and bounds，because they meet consumers’needs．They know it's being prepared while they wait，it’s fresh，quality food，good tasting food at what they say are reasonable and affordable prices．”
Many Americans still like their fast food．They just are not going as often．They are finding other ways to have a meal．What is the trouble with McDonald’s?
| A．Its share goes down to$21． |
| B．Shake Shack has taken its place． |
| C．It’s not popular with Americans． |
| D．Its sales and income have dropped． |
We can learn from Bonnie Riggs that Americans____________．
| A．1ike to try something new |
| B．care only about the quality |
| C．don’t like fast food any more |
| D．pay more restaurant visits to fast casual |
What does the underlined phrase“by leaps and bounds”in Paragraph 3 mean?
| A．Steadily． | B．Rapidly． |
| C．Slowly． | D．Normally． |
Which of the following best describes fast casual?
| A．Fresh-made and tasty． |
| B．High-quality and expensive． |
| C．Farm-to-table and traditional． |
| D．Time-consuming and special． |
Certainly, a well-rounded education is the foundation from which all of us spring forth. I am grateful to the many incredible teachers who have inspired me to do greater things, and have fired my enthusiasm for everlasting learning!
I have also been honored to have the most amazing teachers in all of my children’ s lives. These are extraordinary people who not only teach our children, but love them, challenge them, and provide an environment where a child learns how to learn.
But, sometimes I wonder if the outline of our educational plan is lacking something. I watched the movie Easy A with my older daughter. The main character’ s parents were loving, supportive, and built great confidence in their daughter and developed her ability to handle her own problems.
There was a scene where the mother was speaking to the younger child and he announced that he received an “ A” on his spelling test. She replied, “ That’s great, honey, but everything has spell check these days. ”It was funny — but TRUE!I don’t mean that we shouldn’t teach our children how to spell, but maybe some of our time should be spent educating them about the dangers of posting things on Facebook.
Maybe we might want to spend time showing them how real life works— the credit card isn’t free money— you will have to pay it back at sometime. Oh, and get this—they charge you for borrowing that money. Perhaps, we should spend some time on interpersonal relationships. I worry that our kids do not know how to relate to one another.
Choosing a career is a daunting task. My daughter is in her second year in college and has changed her major twice. It’s not that she didn’t know what she wanted to do. What she “ wanted to do”and the degree she chose did not match.
I have learned many college students do not know what they want to do because they haven’t seen what it looks like in the real world. Being a journalist in the real world looks very different from writing stories. Maybe if we spent some time exposing them to real life experience— maybe two or three courses in areas of interest in high school that give them a “ feel’ for what that particular field would look like, they might be better prepared. I do not know the solution, but it seems that it should at least be a topic of discussion.Why does the author mention the movie Easy A?
| A．To prove the importance of book learning. |
| B．To show the parents’ ignorance of spelling. |
| C．To lead to the topic he is going to talk about. |
| D．To share with the readers his feeling about the movie. |
The author believes that .
| A．students need to focus on the skills in learning |
| B．parents and school should be consistent in education |
| C．his daughter is smart enough to make her own choice |
| D．courses in areas of interest in high schools will benefit students |
The underlined word “ daunting” in Paragraph 6 probably means
| A．specific | B．discouraging |
| C．rewarding | D．regular |
What is mainly discussed in the passage?
| A．Schools should prepare students for the real life. |
| B．What students learn in school should be practiced in life. |
| C．Life experience is of greater importance than school education. |
| D．Students should spend more time discussing practical problems. |
Cotton farmers in some Indian villages are busily buying Coca-Cola and Pepsi, believing that the sugar in the fizzy(有 泡 沫 的 ) drinks kills pests.
Farmers say scientists advised them to mix pesticides with a sugary juice to control pests, and they found the mixture cheaper and more effective than pure chemicals— although soft drink makers and scientists dismissed the remarks. N. Hamunayya, who has become a famous person in his village in the southeastern state of Andhra Pradesh, said his crop survived an attack of pests which had resisted other pesticides. “We found that all the colas had uniform effect on pests. The pests became dead and fell to the ground, ”he said. He said the drinks had all the elements they needed : they were cheaper, sticky, fizzy, and attracted ants, which ate the young of the pests. But Thinupathi Reddy, assistant director of the Regional Agri-Research Station, Guntur, says tests had proved such results wrong. “We conducted some field trials on cotton crop at our research station. There was no obvious productivity or destruction of pests, ”he says.
Statements from Pepsi and Coca-Cola said there was “ no scientific basis” for this practice. But their dealers are enjoying increasing sales. Mantan Wall, who sells soft drinks in 17 villages in the region, said sales rose up, thanks to the farmers. “ For the 10 days between August and September I had successful business. Instead of just 30 cases( each containing a dozen one-litre bottles) of cola, I started selling almost 200 cases, ”he said. “ We expected the sales to drop after the news over pesticide residues(残 留 ) in the cola drinks. Now I have to keep extra supply for the cotton farmers, ”he said.
In February, an Indian environment group made a report saying drinks made by Coca-Cola and Pepsi contained pesticides and called for tougher safety standards. The U. S firms strongly rejected the findings of the New Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment and said their products were safe.The writer’ s purpose of writing this passage is to.
| A．tell an interesting incident |
| B．warn people that some drinks might be dangerous to health |
| C．suggest using Coca-Cola to kill pests. |
| D．announce a new discovery of Coca-Cola |
The drink makers would not accept the fact that their drinks could kill pests because .
| A．they thought it went against science |
| B．they believed that the farmers didn’t tell the truth |
| C．they might fear that it could bring harm to their business |
| D．they insisted that no poison was left in their products |
The underlined part in Para. 3 “ this practice” probably refers to .
| A．testing the mixture |
| B．selling more drinks in India |
| C．mixing the drinks with the pesticide |
| D．attracting ants to eat the young pests |
The drinks can kill pests because .
| A．there is some pesticide left in them |
| B．they are sticky and fizzy |
| C．they have elements that kill pests |
| D．they made the pesticide more effective |
The Tropical Paradise Holiday
Welcome to St Anna, our tropical paradise just off the coast of Latin America. You can spend two weeks in our luxury four-star hotel. The cost of your flight is included in the holiday, and you can be picked up from your home by our special airport bus. On your arriving, our coach will be waiting to take you to the hotel. All flights leave from Heathrow on a Monday morning.
The Cowrie Hotel is built right on the beachfront, and many rooms have wonderful ocean views. If swimming and surfing are not enough for you, the hotel also offers horse rides on the island, and a discount membership of the golf club.
The Rain Forest Adventure Holiday
Every year Broughton holidays offer twelve days of unforgettable adventure in a tropical rain forest. You may have a choice of Borneo, Malaysia, Indonesia, or even to the greatest rain forest of them all, the mighty Amazonian forest.
You will fly to our special base camps at the edge of the forest, where you will be given five days of survival training, and talks on the local wildlife.
Then you take a bus into the forest. You will have to walk the final five miles to the camp sites to avoid disturbing the local ecology. All of the camp sites have been carefully built to cause the minimal amount of disturbance to the local wildlife.
Remember that these adventure holidays take you deep into the wilderness, and they are not suitable for families with young children. Also remember that no more than two dozen guests can stay at any camp at one time, so if you want to go on one of these very special holidays, you will need to book early!What can we learn about the rain forest holiday?
| A．Travelers will learn to talk with wild animals. |
| B．Different means of transportation will be used. |
| C．The holiday will end with a survival training. |
| D．Booking early, travelers will get a discount. |
What kind of people will probably choose the rain forest holiday?
| A．People loving water sports. |
| B．People travelling with children. |
| C．People preferring comfortable hotels. |
| D．People concerned with environment and wildlife. |
Which of the following is mentioned in both holidays?
| A．Transportation. | B．Price. |
| C．Reservation. | D．Departure time. |