One of the qualities that most people admire in others is the willingness to admit one's mistakes. It is extremely hard sometimes to say a simple thing like "I was wrong about that," and it is even harder to say, "I was wrong, and you were right about that."
I had an experience recently with someone admitting to me that he had made a mistake fifteen years ago. He told me he had been the manager of a certain grocery store in the neighbourhood where I grew up, and he asked me if I remembered the egg boxes. Then he related an incident and I began to remember vaguely the incident he was describing.
I was about eight years old at the time, and I had gone into the store with my mother to do the weekly grocery shopping. On that particular day, I must have found my way to the dairy food department where the incident took place.
There must have been a special sale on eggs that day because there was an impressive display of eggs in dozen and half-dozen boxes. The boxes were stacked three or four feet high. I must have stopped in front of a display to admire the stacks. Just then a woman came by pushing her grocery cart and knocked off the stacks of boxes. For some reason, I decided it was up to me to put the display back together, so I went to work.
The manager heard the noise and came rushing over to see what had happened. When he appeared, I was on my knees inspecting some of the boxes to see if any of the eggs were broken, but to him it looked as if I was the culprit (做错事的人). He severely scolded me and wanted me to pay for any broken eggs. I tried to explain it wasn’t me who had broken them, but it did no good. Even though I quickly forgot all about the incident, obviously the manager did not..
. How old was the author when he wrote this article?
| A．About 8. | B．About 18. | C．About 23. | D．About 15. |
.
Who was to blame for knocking off the stacks of boxes?
| A．The author. | B．The man ager. |
C．A woman. | D．The author's mother. |
.
. Which of the following statements is not true?
| A．The woman who knocked off the stacks of boxes was seriously criticized by the manager. |
| B．The author was severely criticized by the manager. |
| C．A woman carelessly knocked off the stacks of boxes. |
| D．It was the author who put the display back together. |
.
. The tone of the article expresses the author's .
A．regret for the mistake he made in th e store |
| B．admiration for the manager's willingness to admit mistakes |
| C．anger against the woman who knocked off the stacks of boxes |
| D．anger to the manager for his wrong accusation |
Michael was a farmer in Texas. His parents moved to the USA from Ireland in the 1940’s, and they became very rich. Michael decided to go back to Ireland to meet his old grandfather, who was still living on the same farm．
Michael booked his ticket，flew to Shannon airport，hired a car and drove to the small village where his parents had been born. He asked for directions to the Ohagan farm, and in the end he drove up a bumpy path. He was shocked by what he saw: a small field, and in the middle of it was an old house, which looked as if it was falling down. Animals were wandering in and out of the front door, and on the porch an old man was smoking a pipe.
“Are you Mr Ohagan?” asked Michael.
“Yes，”replied the old man．
“I'm your grandson，Michael,” said Michael．
“A—ha,” replied the old man．
“Is this your farm?” asked Michael．“Yes，all the way to the wall over there,” said the old man．
Michael was astonished. “Grandfather,” he said，“I have a farm in Texas．I can get into my car and drive all day and I still haven’t reached the end of the farm.”
“Yes,” said his grandfather. “I used to have a car like that.”Michael’s parents _______．
| A．still lived in Ireland alone |
| B．owned a small farm in Texas |
| C．returned to their birthplace |
| D．were Irish immigrants（移民）in America |
Which of the following shocked Michael?
| A．The farm was small |
| B．The old house looked like his own． |
| C．Living conditions were poor in the fields． |
| D．Animals were free in the fields． |
The old man _______．
| A．owned a small farm，which extended only to the wall not far away |
| B．had so large a farm that he couldn’t cover it in a day |
| C．hadn’t his modern car any longer |
| D．used to have as good a car as his grandson’s |
Which of the following is TRUE?
| A．Michael owned a large farm in Ireland. |
| B．Michael’s car was in such poor condition that it couldn’t reach the end of the farm within a day． |
| C．Michael’s farm was too large for a car to reach its end in a day． |
| D．Michael didn’t know what to say to his grandfather |
From “I used to have a car like that”, we can see that________．
| A．the old man really had a car like that |
| B．the old mall knew his son’s farm in the US was quite large |
| C．the old mall misunderstood what Michael said |
| D．the old man wanted to buy a car like that |
Have you ever picked a job based on the fact that you were good at it but later found it made you feel very uncomfortable over time? When you select your career, there’s a whole lot more to it than assessing your skills and matching them with a particular position. If you ignore your personality, it will hurt you long-term regardless of your skills or the job’s pay. There are several areas of your personality that you need to consider to help you find a good job. Here are a few of those main areas:
Do you prefer working alone or with other people? There are isolating(使孤立)jobs that will drive an outgoing person crazy and also interactive jobs that will make a shy person uneasy. Most people are not extremes in either direction but do have a tendency that they prefer. There are also positions that are sometimes a combination of the two, which may be best for someone in the middle who adapts easily to either situation.
How do you handle change? Most jobs these days have some elements of change to them, but some are more than others. If you need stability in your life, you may need a job where the changes don’t happen so often. Other people would be bored of the same daily routine.
Do you enjoy working with computers? I do see this as a kind of personality characteristic. There are people who are happy to spend more than 40 hours a week on a computer, while there are others who need a lot of human interaction throughout the day. Again, these are extremes and you’ll likely find a lot of positions somewhere in the middle as well.
________________________________? This can range from being in a large building with a lot of people you won’t know immediately to a smaller setting where you’ll get to know almost all the people there fairly quickly.
How do you like to get paid? Some people are motivated by the pay they get, while others feel too stressed to be like that. The variety of payment designs in the sales industry is a typical example for this.
Anyway, these are a great starting point for you. I’ve seen it over and over again with people that they make more money over time when they do something they love. It may take you a little longer, but making a move to do what you have a passion for can change the course of your life for the better.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Isolating jobs usually drive people mad |
| B．Interactive jobs make people shy easily. |
| C．Extreme people tend to work with other. |
| D．Almost everyone has a tendency in jobs. |
What does the underlined sentence in paragraph one mean?
| A．Before you select your job, you should assess your skills and match them with your position. |
| B．There are more important things than assessing skills and match them with the position when you select a job. |
| C．Nothing is important than assessing skills and match them with the position when you select a job. |
| D．You should ignore your skills when you select a job. |
Which of the following sentences is suitable for the blank?
| A．What type of work environment do you enjoy? |
| B．What kind of people do you like to work with? |
| C．How can you fit in with your workmates? |
| D．Do you want to be a big fish in a small pond? |
What is the best title for this passage?
| A．Lifestyles and Job Pay | B．Jobs and Environment |
| C．Job Skills and Abilities | D．Personalities and Jobs |
What is the missing word about a job search in the following chart?
| A．Design. | B．Changes. | C．Cooperation. | D．Hobbies. |
When you visit America, you will see the word Motel on signs and notice boards. It is made up of “motor” and “hotel” and it is really a hotel for people who arrive by car (however, you don’t need a car to stay at one). You have to pay when you arrive for your room, which usually has a bath. Meals are not provided, but there will certainly be a cafeteria (自助餐馆). Americans eat a lot of salads and sandwiches. Along the main roads there are a lot of motels. Each tries to offer more than next. Some provide television in every bedroom; others have swimming pools; and so on. Motels are especially useful when you are in the country, far from a town or city. You will also find them in the big National Parks.
In these great National Parks, you may meet guests you don’t expect to see. An American friend told me a little story. In the middle of a moonless night she heard strange noises outside her motel window in the Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. Thinking it might be a thief, she jumped out of bed, opened the door and crept towards a dark shadow. As she got close, she saw the thief. She was dreadfully frightened: it wasn’t a human thief — it was a big black bear. The bear was turning over some empty tins with its paw, looking for tasty bits of food. My friend decided to leave that particular thief alone!
There are also, of course, places called “rooming houses”, where they receive lodgers (房客). You will see such signs as Tourists or Rooms Rent, and you could try one of these. A word of warning — looking for a room in New York during the tourist season is like looking for gold on the moon! Which of the following is TRUE about motels?
| A．The word “motel” is formed by two words. |
| B．They are free for people who arrive by car. |
| C．If you want to stay at a motel, you must have a car. |
| D．You can only find motels in the big National Parks. |
Which of the following is NOT provided by motels?
| A．Meals. | B．Swimming pools. | C．TV. | D．Baths. |
The underlined word “crept” in the second paragraph probably means “______”.
| A．ran fast | B．rushed out | C．threw away | D．moved slowly |
The second paragraph mainly tells us ______.
| A．an interesting story |
| B．we may meet animals in the National Parks |
| C．the experience of the author’s friend |
| D．bears usually look for food at night |
From the last paragraph, we can learn that in New York during the tourist season ______.
| A．tourists can find gold there |
| B．it is difficult to find a room there |
| C．tourists can have a sweet dream there |
| D．there is a warning for tourists to New York |
Mr. Brown worked in a factory of a small town. He had been there for twenty years before one day he was sent to the capital for important business. He was quite excited because he had never been there before. Before he set off, he asked his wife and three daughters if they wanted him to buy something for them in London. Mrs. Brown began to think it over and then she said she wished her husband would be able to buy a nice umbrella for her, and so did their three daughters. As he was afraid he would forget it, he drew an umbrella on his hand. To his regret, he lost it at the station.
On the train Mr. Brown sat opposite to an old woman. The woman’s umbrella was so nice that he carefully looked at it and said to himself not to forget to buy a few umbrellas like it. When the train arrived at the station in London, he said good-bye to the old woman, took his bag and her umbrella and was going to get off.
“Wait a minute, sir,” shouted the old woman. “That’s my umbrella!”
Now Mr. Brown noticed that he had taken her umbrella. His face turned red at once and said in a hurry,“Oh, I’m very sorry, Madam! I didn’t mean it!”
Seven days later Mr. Brown left the capital. To his surprise, he met the old woman and sat opposite to her again. Looking at the four umbrellas, the old woman was satisfied with herself. “It seems that I had a better result than the other four women.” She thought.We can learn from the passage that Mr. Brown was ______.
| A．a conductor | B．a thief | C． a worker | D．an umbrella maker |
The underlined word “it” in the first paragraph refers to ______.
| A．his ticket | B．his drawing | C．his bag | D．his umbrella |
Why did Mr. Brown take the woman’s umbrella?
| A．Because the woman misplaced it beside Mr. Brown. |
| B．Because it was much like his own umbrella. |
| C．Because he thought the woman would not notice it. |
| D．Because he was lost in thought. |
When looking at Mr. Brown with four umbrellas, the woman felt ______.
| A．surprised | B．fortunate | C．angry | D．sad |
How did Mr. Brown get the four umbrellas?
| A．He picked them on the train. |
| B．He bought them in London. |
| C．He brought them from his small town. |
| D．He stole them from four women. |
Christian Eijkman, a Dutch doctor, left the Netherlands for the island of Java. Many people on the island had a disease（疾病） called beri-beri. He was going there to try and find a cure.
At first, Eijkman thought some kind of germ (细菌) caused beri-beri. He raised some chickens. He didn’t eat them, but made experiments on them. The local people were quite surprised at that. One day he noticed that his chickens became sick when they were fed the food most Javanese ate — refined white rice (精炼米). When he fed them with unrefined rice, also known as brown rice, they recovered. Eijkman realized that he had made an important discovery — that some things in food could prevent disease. These things were named vitamins (维生素). The Javanese were not getting enough vitamins because they had actually removed the part that contains vitamins. Later, other diseases were also found to be caused by the lack of vitamins in a person’s food.
Today many people know the importance of vitamins and they make sure they have enough vitamins from the food they eat. If they don’t, they can also take vitamin pills.The underlined word “cure” in Paragraph 1 probably means ______.
| A．a kind of rice | B．a kind of vitamin |
| C．a kind of germ | D．a medical treatment |
Christian Eijkman went to the island of Java to ______.
| A．help the Javanese with their illness |
| B．find ways to grow better crops |
| C．do some research about the island |
| D．spend his holiday |
Why did Christian Eijkman raise some chickens?
| A．To eat them. |
| B．To give the Javanese a surprise. |
| C．To carry out his experiments. |
| D．To make money by selling them. |
If a person doesn’t get enough vitamins in his diet, he’d better ______.
| A．eat vitamin pills | B．eat more meat |
| C．eat some chicken | D．eat more rice |
We can learn from the passage that ______.
| A．beri-beri was caused by chickens |
| B．Christian Eijkman’s experiment was successful |
| C．the Javanese didn’t like vitamins |
| D．the Javanese’s disease was caused by a kind of germ |