Thousands of years ago, birthdays were considered special days. On birthdays, the bad spirits were able to harm you and change your life. It was believed that the only way to solve the problem was to have your friends and family around you, so that good wishes and presents would keep the bad spirits away. Also, noisemakers were thought to be used at parties as a way of scaring away the evil spirits.
The custom of lighting candles was created by people believing that the gods lived in the sky. By lighting candles and torches, they were sending a signal or prayer to the gods, so they could be answered. Blowing out the candles and making a wish were thought to be another way of sending a signal or a message.
This is how the way we celebrate our birthdays came about. But different cultures celebrate in different ways.
The birthday story in the Bible（圣经） that we know best is about the birth of the Christ in Bethlehem（地名：伯利恒）. For nearly 2000 years since that day, the Christian world has been honoring this birth. The day many Englishmen celebrate is, of course, Christmas. There are other references to birthday parties. King Pharaoh celebrated his birthday by making a feast for his court followers. That was over 4000 years ago. The story of King Herod tells that on his birthday he made a supper for his lords, high captains and other special friends in Galilee (地名：加利利). According to the passage, good wishes and presents given by one’s friends and family on his birthday can _____________________.
| A．cheer him up | B．prove that he’s a popular person |
| C．bring him a big fortune | D．push bad spirits away |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．The custom of lighting candles originated with the gods. |
| B．The gods celebrate their birthdays by lighting candles. |
| C．People send messages to the gods by lighting or blowing out the candles. |
| D．The gods will help people realize their dreams on their birthdays. |
The two ancient kings’ ways of celebrating their birthdays show__________________.
| A．how great the two kings were |
| B．how different cultures celebrate in different ways |
| C．the two kings’ excellent cooking skills |
| D．that their court followers were awarded the special honors |
The passage is mainly about __________________.
| A．the functions of the noises made on birthdays. |
| B．how to scare away the bad spirits on birthdays |
| C．the origin of a famous day Christmas |
| D．how birthdays came about |
Have you ever wondered why birds sing? Maybe you thought that they were just happy．After all, you probably sing or whistle when you are happy．
Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy．However, they sing most of the time for a very different reason．Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory．
Do you know what a "territory" is? A territory is an area that an animal, usually the male, claims as its own ．Only he and his family are welcome there ．No other families of the same species are welcome．Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome．If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten you, you might shout．Probably this would be enough to frighten him away．
If so, you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him．A bird does the same thing．But he expects an outsider almost any time, especially at nesting （筑巢） season．So he's screaming （高声尖叫） all the time, whether he can see an outsider or not．This screaming is what we call a bird's song, and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away．
Birds sing loudest in the spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs．You can see that birds have a language of their own．Most of it has something to do with attracting mates and setting up territories．Some scientists believe that most of the time birds' singing is actually
| A．an expression of happiness |
| B．a way of warning |
| C．an expression of anger |
| D．a language of their own |
What is a bird's "territory"?
| A．A place where a bird may shout at the top of its voice． |
| B．A place where other bird families are not accepted． |
| C．An area for which birds fight against each other． |
| D．An area which a bird considers to be its own |
Why do birds keep on singing at nesting season?
| A．Because their singing helps frighten outsiders away． |
| B．Because their singing helps get rid of their fears． |
| C．Because they want to find outsiders around． |
| D．Because they want to invite more bird friends． |
How does the writer explain birds' singing?
| A．By comparing birds with human beings． | B．By reporting experimental results． |
| C．By describing birds'daily life． | D．By telling a bird's story． |
How many coins do you have in your pocket right now? Three? Two? Or one? With a phone card, you can make up to 200 calls without any charges at all．
★What do you do with it?
Go to a telephone box marked "Phone-card"．Put in your card to start, make your phone call and when you have finished, the screen will tell you how much is left on your card．It costs no extra for the cards, and the calls cost 10 p（便士） per unit, the same as any other pay-phone call．You can buy it in units of 10, 20, 40, 50, or 100．
★Appear in a shop nearby．
Near each card-phone place, you will find a shop where you can buy one．They are at bus, train or metro stations．At universities, hospitals, clubs, restaurants and shopping centers, you can also buy it．
★No more broken pay-phones．
It is possible that many pay-phones don't work because they have been damaged． There are no coins in a card-phone to excite the thieves' interest in it．So you are not probably to find a broken one．
Get a phone-card yourself and try it out．Or get a bigger wallet．The passage is most probably ____．
| A．a warning | B．a notice |
| C．an advertisement | D．an announcement |
The underlined word "one" means ____．
| A．a shop | B．a coin | C．a pay-phone | D．a phone-card |
It is suggested in the passage that you buy a phone-card because ____．
| A．you have got a bigger wallet than others |
| B．it's convenient to make calls with a phone card |
| C．the phone box might have been damaged |
| D．there are many different kinds of phone-cards |
"Get out of the plane!" Justin shouted．Teddy and he dropped to the ground,．．．
When Kathy and Victor reached the edge of the meadow （牧场）flames of the fire were shooting more than five meters into the air．
Kathy couldn't believe what she was seeing．One glance told her they needed medical attention immediately．She questioned Victor, "Are you able to find someone nearby for help?"
"There are no farmers, nor villagers nearby," he replied．
"I'm a distance runner, and I'll go for help．" Looking at the seriously injured men, Kathy said to Victor, "It may take me several hours to get out．" She started out．
When she was 23, Kathy set a women's record in a Marathon of 42 kilometers．But now she was running the race of life．She had nearly 30 kilometers of hard wilderness to cover to get help．
Kathy had been running for two hours．This was far back into the wilderness．The country path was growing vague （模糊）．She stopped to take a quick compass （指南针） reading．Yes, she had run almost for more than 20 kilometers．Her heart fell, her muscle aching．And finally she saw her car in the distance．
She jumped into the car and sped away．She reached a holiday house and called the police．
During the wait, she walked around, relaxing her legs and drinking water．It took almost two hours for a police helicopter to reach her at the trail （小路） end．They needed her for one more task．Who actually had the airplane accident?
| A．Justin himself | B．Kathy and Victor |
| C．Justin and Teddy | D．Kathy herself |
The underlined part "Now, she was running the race of life" means that ____．
| A．Kathy would set up a new record |
| B．Kathy was running for the lives of others |
| C．Kathy would run a race alone |
| D．Kathy couldn't rely on Victor this time |
Kathy stopped to have a look at her compass because ____．
| A．the country path was getting vague | B．she had completely lost her way |
| C．she wasn't sure of her own memory | D．there was only the wilderness |
What do you think Kathy's final task would be?
| A．Giving the injured food and drinks． | B．Taking the injured to the hospital． |
| C．Going back to put out the big fire． | D．Showing the police the crash site． |
Do you want to live a happier, less stressful (有压力的) life?
Try laughing for no reason at all. That’s how thousands of people start their day at Laughter Clubs around the world – and many doctors now think that having a good laugh might be one of the best ways to stay healthy.
The first Laughter Club was started in Mumbai, India, in 1995 by Dr Madan Kataria. “Young children laugh about 300 times a day. Adults laugh between 7 and 15 times a day,” says Dr Kataria. “Everyone’s naturally good at laughing – it’s the universal language. We want people to feel happy with their lives.” There are now more than 500 Laughter Clubs in India and over 1,300 worldwide.
Many doctors are also interested in the effects (效果) of laughter on our health. According to a 5 – year study in the body. Laughter improves our health against illness by about 40%.
So, what happens at a Laughter Club? I went along to my nearest club in South London to find out. I was quite nervous at the beginning of the class, to be honest – I wasn’t interested in laughing with a group of strangers, and I was worried about looking stupid. Our laughter teacher told us to clap our hands and say “ho ho ho, ha ha ha,” while looking at each other. However, our bodies can’t tell the difference between fake laughter and real laughter, so they still produce the same healthy effects.
Surprisingly, it works! After ten minutes everybody in the room was laughing for real – and some people just couldn’t stop! At the end of the class I was surprised by how relaxed and comfortable I felt. So if you’re under stress, then start laughing. You might be very pleased with the results!In which country was the first Laughter Club started?
| A．Britain. | B．America. | C．Australia. | D．India. |
How did the writer feel at the beginning of the class?
| A．Surprised. | B．Pleased. | C．Nervous. | D．Stressful. |
When did the people in the club begin to laugh for real?
| A．After a few minutes. | B．After a few hours. |
| C．After a few seconds. | D．After a few days. |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．Fake laughter and real laughter are both good for health. |
| B．40% of the people in Laughter Clubs are good friends. |
| C．Adults laugh more often than children in a day. |
| D．Laughing is the best way to prevent illness. |
We had known for along time that flowers of different plants open and close at different time of day. Yet no one really understands why flowers open and close like this at special time. The question is not as simple as we might think, as recent experiments have shown. In one experiment, flowers were kept in constant (持续的）darkness. We might expect that the flowers ,without any information about the time of the day, did not open as they usually do. In fact, they continue to open at their usual time. This shows that they have some special ways of knowing the time. Their sense(感觉) time does not depend on information from the outside world. It is inside them: a kind of "inner (内部的）clock". This discovery may not seem to be very important. However, it is later found that not just plants but animals have this "inner clock" which control（控制）the working of their bodies and influences their activities. Human beings, then, are also influenced by it. Whether we wish or not, itaffectssuch things in our life as our need for sleep or need for food.Before the experiment arrived at a conclusion, people had thought that the flowers would____.
| A．never open in constant darkness |
| B．change their usual time to open |
| C．open ahead of the time as they usually did |
| D．continue to open at usual time |
The sense of time that flowers have is connected with_____________.
| A．its age and size |
| B．light and temperature |
| C．a kind of strange power(力量）inside them |
| D．some unknown information from the outside world |
What will happen if we make good use of the "inner clock"
| A．We'll need less sleep or food. |
| B．We'll be able to sleep as long as we wish to. |
| C．We'll be able to change our work time when necessary. |
| D．We'll have more energy to do our work better. |
What's the Chinese meaning of the underlined word" affects"
| A．产生 | B．影响 | C．给予 | D．依赖 |