ABeautifulMindAmathematicianwh-优题课

It was the first snow of winter – an exciting day for every child but not for most teachers. Up until now, I had been old enough to dress myself, but today I would need some help. Miss Finlayson, my kindergarten teacher, had been through first snow days many times, but I think she may still remember this one.
I managed to get into my wool snow trousers. But I struggled with my jacket because it didn’t fit well. It was a hand-me-down from my brother, and it made me wonder why I had to wear his ugly clothes. At least my hat and scarf were mine, and they were quite pretty. Finally it was time to have Miss Finlayson help me with my boots (靴子).
In her calm, motherly voice she said, “By the end of winter, you will all be able to put on your own boots.” I didn’t realize at the time that this was more a statement of hope than of confidence (信心).
I handed her my boots and stuck out my foot. Like most children, I expected grown-ups to do all the work. After much pushing, she managed to get the first one into place and then, with a sigh, worked the second one on too.
I announced, “They’re on the wrong feet.”
She struggled to get the boots off and went through the joyless task of putting them on again.
“They’re my brother’s boots, you know,” I said. “I hate them!”
Somehow, from long years of practice, she managed to act as though I wasn’t an annoying (烦人的) little girl, She pushed and pushed, less gently this time. With a greater sigh, seeing the end of her struggle with me, she asked, “Now, where are your mittens (连指手套)?”
I looked into her eyes and said, “I didn’t want to lose them, so I hid them in the toes of my boots.”
The little girl was more satisfied with her_________.

A．trousers

B．jacket

C．boots

D．hat

Miss Finlayson had difficulty with the girl’s boots mainly because________.

A．the girl got them from her brother	B．the girl put something in them
C．they were on the wrong feet	D．they did not fit the girl well

Why does the author say Miss Finlayson would remember that first snow day?

A．Because the little girl was in her brother’s clothes.

B．Because it was the most exciting day of the winter.

C．Because the little girl played a trick on her.

D．Because the little girl wore a pretty scarf.

We can learn from the text that Miss Finlayson_________.

A．was losing confidence in the little girl

B．gradually lost patience with the little girl

C．became disappointed with the little girl

D．was getting bored with the little girl

Did you know that women’s brains are smaller than men’s? The average women’s brain weighs 10% less than men’s．Since research has shown that the bigger the brain, the cleverer the animal, men must be more intelligent（聪明的） than women．Right? Wrong．Men and women always score similarly on intelligence tests, despite the difference in brain size．Why? After years of study, researchers have concluded that it’s what’s inside that matters, not just the size of the brain．The brain consists of “grey matter” and “white matter”．While men have more of the latter, the amount of “thinking” brain is almost exactly the same in both sexes．
It has been suggested that smaller brain appears to work faster, perhaps because the two sides of the brain are better connected in women．This means that little girls tend to learn to speak earlier, and that women can understand sorts of information from different sources at the same time．When it comes to talking to the boss on the phone, cooking dinner and keeping an eye on the baby all at the same time, it’s women who come out on top every time．
There are other important differences between two sexes．As white matter is the key to spatial（空间的） tasks, men know better where things are in relation to other things．“A great footballer always knows where he is in relation to the other players, and he knows where to go,” says one researcher．That may explain one of life’s great mysteries: why men refuse to ask for directions…and women often need to!
The differences begin when fetuses（胎儿） are about nine weeks old, which can be seen in the action of children as young as one．A boy would try to climb a barrier （障碍物） before him or push it down while a girl would attract help from others．These brain differences also explain the fact that more men take up jobs that require good spatial skills, while more women speech skills．It may all go back to our ancestors（祖先）, among whom women needed speech skills to take care of their babies and men needed spatial skills to hunt, according to one research．
If all this disappoints you, it shouldn’t．“The brain changes throughout our lives according to what we do with it．” says a biologist．
The passage mainly tells us ________．

A．the difference between men’s and

women’s brains

B．the changes in brain throughout our lives

C．that men are better at spatial tasks

D．that brain differences are related to our ancestors

Which of the following is true according to the first paragraph?

A．Women’s brain is 10% less than men’s

B．Grey matter plays the same role as white matter．

C．Grey matter controls thinking in the brain．

D．Both sexes have the same amount of white matter．

What can we infer from the second and third paragraphs?

A．Women prefer doing many things at a time．

B．Men do better dealing with one job at a time．

C．Women do not need to tell directions．

D．Men have weaker spatial abilities．

Which of the following do you agree with according to the fourth paragraph?

A．Young boys may be stronger than young girls．

B．More women take up jobs requiring speech skills

C．Women may have stronger feelings than men．

D．Our ancestors needed more spatial skills．

What is the writer’s attitude in writing this passage?

A．Defensive．

B．Persuasive．

C．Supportive．

D．Objective．

Years ago, when I started looking for my first job, wise advisers urged, “Barbara, be enthusiastic! Enthusiasm will take you further than any amount of experience.” How right they were! Enthusiastic people can turn a boring drive into an adventure, extra work into opportunity and strangers into friends.
“Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm,” wrote Ralph Waldo Emerson. It is the paste that helps you hang in there when the going gets tough. It is the inner voice that whispers, “I can do it!” when others shout, “No, you can’t!” It took years and years for the early work of Barbara McClintock, a geneticist (遗传学家) who won the 1983 Nobel Prize in medicine, to be generally accepted. Yet she didn’t let up on her experiments. Work was such a deep pleasure for her that she never thought of stopping.
We are all born with wide – eyed, enthusiastic wonder and it is this childlike wonder that gives enthusiastic people such a youthful air, whatever their age. At 90,cellist Pablo Casals would start his day by playing Bach (巴赫). As the music flowed through his fingers, his bent shoulders would straighten and joy would reappear in his eyes. As author and poet Samuel once wrote, “Years wrinkle(使生皱纹) the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.”
Enthusiastic people also love what they do, regardless of money, title or power. Patricia Mcllrath, retired director of the Missouri Repertory Theater in Kansas City, was once asked where she got her enthusiasm. She replied, “My father, a lawyer, long ago told me, I never made a penny until I stopped working for money.”
If we cannot do what we love as a full-time career, we can do it as a hobby. Elizabeth Layton of Wellsville, Kan, was 68 before she began to draw. This activity ended her depression that had troubled her for at least 30 years, and the quality of her work led one critic to say, “I am persuaded to call Layton a genius.”
We can’t afford to waste tears on “might-have-beens”. We need to turn the tears into sweat as we go after “what-can-be.” We need to live each moment whole-heartedly, with all our senses-finding pleasure in the sweet smell of a backyard garden, the simple picture of a six-year-old, and the beauty of a rainbow.
The author mentions cellist Pablo Casals in the third paragraph to show that .

A．music can arouse people’s enthusiasm

B．enthusiasm can give people inspiration needed to succeed

C．enthusiasm can make people feel young

D．enthusiasm can keep people healthy

How many examples are given in the passage to show the importance of enthusiasm?

A．Two.

B．Three.

C．Four.

D．Five.

The author holds the view that .

A．enthusiastic people will never get old

B．enthusiasm can make you succeed and enjoy life

C．enthusiasm is more important than experience

D．enthusiasm can give people more success and fame

For years, business people in Western Europe were worried. They knew they could not compete against business from the U.S. The United States is much larger and had many more resources than any Western European countries
Some European people realized that the European nations need to join together to help each other. If they could forget their language differences and the differences in customs, they might become strong competition against other countries.
In 1958, six of the European countries --- Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Germany and Italy got together and decided to cooperate. They called their group the European Economic Community, or the Common Market. These countries agreed to join their resources together.
Within a few years, the European Economic Community had worked so well that its members were more prosperous than many other European nations. Soon, other nations began to realize the advantage of the Common Market. Today the Common Market includes most of the important countries in Western Europe. It is helping Western Europe to again take its place as a leader among the industrial nations of the world.
From the passage we know the U.S. is much richer than ________ in resources.

A．any other Western European countries	B．any other country in Western Europe
C．any country in Western Europe	D．every country in Europe

The members of the European Economic Community have developed fast because they ___.

A．share their resources and become more prosperous

B．can again take the place as a leader in the world

C．forget the differences in their languages and customs

D．have become strong competition against the U.S.

Which statement is true?

A．The Common Market is only a political association.

B．The Common Market is an economic and political association

C．The Common Market is only an economic association

D．The Common Market is neither an economic association nor a political one.

In order to ______ the Western European countries decided to cooperate.

A．join together to found a united country

B．help each other to smooth away the differences in customs

C．work and act together for common purpose

D．work together and fight against the U.S.

My husband and children think they are very lucky that they are living and that it’s Christmas again. They can’t see that we live on a dirty street in a dirty house among people who aren’t much good. But Johnny and children can’t see this. What a pity it is that our neighbours have to make happiness out of all this dirt. I decided that my children must get out of this. The money that we’ve saved isn’t nearly enough.
The McGaritys have money but they are so proud. They look down upon the poor. The McGarity girl just yesterday stood out there in the street eating from a bag of candy while a ring of hungry children watched her. I saw those children looking at her and crying in their hearts; and when she couldn’t eat any more she threw the rest down the sewer(下水道). Why , is it only because they have money? There is more to happiness than money in the world, isn’t there?
Miss Jackson who teaches at the Settlement House isn’t rich, but she knows things. She understand people. Her eyes look straight into yours when she talks with you. She can read your mind. I’d like to see the children will be like Miss Jackson when they grow up.
This passage mainly suggests that the writer _______.