King’sCollegeSummerSchoolKing’-优题课

We can achieve knowledge either actively or passively（被动地）．We achieve it actively by direct experience, by testing and proving an idea, or by reasoning．
We achieve knowledge passively by being told by someone else．Most of the learning that takes place in the classroom and the kind that happens when we watch TV or read newspapers or magazines is passive．Conditioned as we are to passive learning, it’s not surprising that we depend on it in our everyday communication with friends and co-workers．
Unfortunately, passive learning has a serious problem．It makes us tend to accept what we are told even when it is little more than hearsay and rumor（谣言）．
Did you ever play the game Rumor? It begins when one person writes down a message but doesn’t show it to anyone．Then the person whispers it, word for word, to another person．That person, in turn, whispers it to still another, and so on, through all the people playing the game．The last person writes down the message word for word as he or she hears it．Then the two written statements are compared．Typically, the original message has changed．
That’s what happens in daily life．The simple fact that people repeat a story in their own words changes the story．Then, too, most people listen imperfectly．And many enjoy adding their own creative touch to a story, trying to improve on it, stamping（打上标记）it with their own personal style．Yet those who hear it think they know．
This process is also found among scholars and authors: A statement of opinion by one writer may be restated as a fact by another, who may in turn be quoted by yet another; and this process may continue, unless it occurs to someone to question the facts on which the original writer based his opinion or to challenge the interpretation he placed upon those facts．
According to the passage, passive learning may occur in _______．

A．doing a medical experiment	B．solving a math problem
C．visiting an exhibition	D．doing scientific reasoning

The underlined word “it” in Paragraph 2 refers to _____．

A．active learning	B．knowledge
C．communication	D．passive learning

The author mentions the game Rumor to show that _____．

A．a message may be changed when being passed on

B．a message should be delivered in different ways

C．people may have problems with their sense of hearing

D．people tend not to believe in what they know as rumor

What can we infer from the passage?

A．Active learning is less important．

B．Passive learning may not be reliable．

C．Active learning occurs more frequently．

D．Passive learning is not found among scholars．

Meeting people from another culture can be difficult．From the beginning, people may send the wrong signal （信号）．Or they may pay no attention to signals from another person who is trying to develop a relationship．
Different cultures emphasize （强调） the importance of relationship building to a greater or lesser degree．For example, business in some countries is not possible until there is a relationship of trust．Even with people at work, it is necessary to spend a lot of time in "small talk", usually over a glass of tea, before they do any job．In many European countries -- like the UK or France -- people find it easier to build up a lasting working relationship at restaurants or caf6s rather than at the office．
Talk and silence may also be different in some cultures．I once made a speech in Thailand．I had expected my speech to be a success and start a lively discussion; instead there was an uncomfortable silence．The people present just stared at me and smiled．After getting to know their ways better, I realized that they thought I was talking too much．In my own culture, we express meaning mainly through words, but people there sometimes feel too many words are unnecessary．
Even within Northern Europe, cultural differences can cause serious problems．Certainly, English and German cultures share similar values; however, Germans prefer to get down to business more quickly．We think that they are rude．In fact, this is just because one culture starts discussions and makes decisions more quickly．
People from different parts of the world have different values, and sometimes these values are quite against each other．However, if we can understand them better, a multicultural environment （多元文化环境） will offer a wonderful chance for us to learn from each other．
In some countries, eating together at restaurants may make it easier for people to _______．

A．develop closer relations	B．share the same culture
C．get to know each other	D．keep each other company

The author mentions his experience in Thailand to show that _________．

A．the English prefer to make long speeches

B．too many words are of no use

C．people from Thailand are quiet and shy by nature

D．even talk and silence can be culturally different

According to the text, how can people from different cultures understand each other better?

A．By sharing different ways of life．

B．By accepting different habits．

C．By recognizing different values．

D．By speaking each other' s languages．

What would be the best title for the text?

A．Multicultural Environment．

B．Cross-Cultural Differences．

C．How to Understand Each Other．

D．How to Build Up a Relationship．

Growing up in the USA, I was ashamed of my mother’s Chinese English. Because of her English, she was often treated unfairly. People in department stores, at banks, and at restaurants did not take her seriously, did not give her good service, pretended not to understand her, or even acted as if they did not hear her.
My mother has realized the limitations of her English as well. When I was fifteen, she used to have me call people on phone to pretend I was her. I was forced to ask for information or even to yell at people who had been rude to her. One time I had to call her stockbroker (股票经纪人). I said in a young voice that was not very convincing, “This is Mrs. Tan.”
And my mother was standing beside me, whispering loudly, “Why he don’t send me cheek already two week lone.”
And then, in perfect English I said: “I’m getting rather concerned .You agreed to send the check two weeks ago, but it hasn’t arrived.”
Then she talked more loudly. “What he want? I come to New York tell him front of his boss.” And so I turned to the stockbroker again, “I can’t tolerate any more excuse. If I don’t receive the check immediately, I am going to speak to your manager when I am in New York next week.”
The next week we ended up in New York. While I was sitting there red-faced, my mother, the real Mrs. Tan, was shouting to his boss in her broken English.
When I was a teenager, my mother’s broken English embarrassed me. But now, I see it differently. To me, my mother’s English is perfectly clear, perfectly natural. It is my mother tongue. Her language, as I hear it, is vivid, direct, and full of observation and wisdom. It was the language that helped shape the way I saw things, expressed ideas, and made sense of the world.
Why was the author’s mother poorly served?

A．She was too shy to speak clearly

B．She couldn’t make herself understood.

C．She was unable to speak good English.

D．She was not a native America.

From Paragraph 2, we know that the author was .

A．good at pretending

B．rude to other people

C．ready to help her mother

D．unwilling to phone for her mother

After the author made the phone call, .

A．they forgave the stockbroker

B．they failed to get the check

C．they went to New York immediately

D．telephone the stockbroker’s manager

What does the author think of her mother’s English now?

A．It confuses her.

B．It embarrasses her.

C．It helps her understand the world.

D．It helps her tolerate rude people.

We can infer from the passage that Chinese English .

A．is clear and natural to non-native speakers

B．is vivid and direct to non-native speakers

C．has a very bad reputation in America

D．may bring inconvenience in America

Be careful what you say around your dog. It might understand more than you think.
A border collie named Rico recognizes the names of about 200 objects, say researchers in Germany. The dog also appears to be able to learn new words as easily as a 3-year-old child. Its word-learning skills are as good as those of a parrot or chimpanzee(黑猩猩).
In one experiment, the researchers took all 200 items that Rico is supposed to know and divided them into 20 groups of 10 objects. Then the owner told the dog to go and fetch one of the items and bring it back. In four tests, Rico got 37 out of 40 commands right. As the dog couldn't see anyone to get clues, the scientists believe Rico must understand the meanings of certain words.
In another experiment, the scientists took one toy that Rico had never seen before and put it in a room with seven toys whose names the dog already knew. The owner then told Rico to fetch the object, using a word the dog had never heard before.
The correct object was chosen in seven out of l0 tests, suggesting that the dog had worked
out the answer by process of elimination(排除法). A month later, Rico remembered half of the new names, which is even more impressive.
Rico is thought to be smarter than the average dog. For one thing, Rico is a border collie, a breed (品种)known for its mental abilities. In addition, the 9-year-old dog has been trained to fetch toys by their names since the age of nine months.
It's hard to know if all dogs understand at least some of the words we say. Even if they do, they can't talk back. Still, it wouldn't hurt to sweet-talk your dog every now and then. You might just get a big, wet kiss in return!
From paragraph 2 we know that __.

A．animals are as clever as human beings

B．dogs are smarter than parrots and chimpanzees

C．chimpanzees have very good word-learning skills

D．dogs have similar 'learning abilities as 3-year-old children

Both experiments show that.

A．Rico is smart enough to get all commands right

B．Rico can recognize different things including toys

C．Rico has developed the ability of learning mathematics

D．Rico won't forget the names of objects once recognizing them

Which of the following statements is true?

A．The purpose of the experiments is to show the border collie's mental abilities.

B．Rico has a better memory partly because of its proper early training.

C．The border collie is world-famous for recognizing objects.

D．Rico is born to understand its owner's commands.

Which may be the best title of the passage?

A．Do dogs understand us?

B．Does your dog understand you?

C．Be careful with dogs.

D．Be friendly to your dog.

Shakespeare's life can be divided into three periods: the first 20 years in Stratford, which includes his schooling，early marriage, and fatherhood；the next 25 years as an actor and playwright (剧作家) in London; and the last five in retirement back in Stratford where he enjoyed the wealth gained from his theatrical (戏剧的) successes. The years linking the first two periods are marked by a lack of information about Shakespeare, and are often referred to as the “dark years”.
Shakespeare probably left school at 15, and took some sorts of jobs, especially since this was the period of his father’s financial difficulty. A great number of references in his plays suggest that William may have in fact worked for his father, thus gaining specialized knowledge.
At some point during the “dark years”, Shakespeare began his career with a London theatrical company — perhaps in 1589 — for he was already an actor and playwright in 1592. Shakespeare apparently wrote and acted for Pembroke’s Men, as well as a lot of others, in particular Strange’s Men, which later became the Chamberlain’s Men.
When, in 1592, the theaters were closed for about two years, due to a terrible disease. Shakespeare turned to writing book-length poetry. Most notable were Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece, both of which have been translated into many languages and even been included in students’ textbooks. During this same period, Shakespeare was writing his sonnets (十四行诗), which are more likely signs of the time’s fashion rather than actual love poems detailing any particular relationship. He returned to play writing when theater reopened in 1594, and published no more poetry. His sonnets were published without his permission in 1609, shortly before his retirement. His final play was Henry VIII, two years before his death in 1616.
Why did Shakespeare take some sorts of jobs at the age of 15 and didn’t go on studying?

A．Because his family was badly off at that time.

B．Because he liked his job more than studying.

C．Because he wanted to be an actor in London.

D．Because he wanted to open his own company.

Which of the following words can take the place of the underlined word “notable” in the last paragraph?

A．long

B．fashionable

C．famous

D．educational

According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?

A．Shakespeare didn’t write any plays between 1592 and 1594.

B．Shakespeare’s sonnets were written between 1592 and 1594.

C．After writing Henry VIII, Shakespeare wrote nothing.

D．Shakespeare published his sonnets in 1609.

Application (申请) date Students in New York should send their applications before July 18, 2007. Students of other cities should send their applications before July 16, 2007. *Foreign students should send their applications before July 10, 2007.	Courses English Language Spoken English: 22 hours * Reading and Writing: 10 hours American History: 16 hours American Culture: 16 hours
Steps A letter of self-introduction A letter of recommendation(推荐) *The letters should be written in English with all the necessary information.	Cost Daily lessons: $200 Sports and activities: $100 Travels: $200 Hotel service: $400 *You may choose to live with your friends or relatives in the same city.
Please write to: Thompson, Sanders 1026 King’s Street New York, NY 10016, USA E-mail: KC-Summer-School@ yahoo.com