When people hear that I’m the youngest person to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean, they all have the same question: How did a 22-year old woman row a 19-foot boat for 70 days through high winds and crashing waves? Well, the biggest difficulty for me wasn’t physical. By the time I decided to do the ocean row, I had already biked 3,300 miles cross-country, run across the Mojave Desert, and swum the 325-mile length of the Allegheny River. No, the tough part would be mental: How would I handle the loneliness, the boredom of the vast sea?
I set off on January 3, 2010. I set my sights on getting past the quarter-way mark, which would take about 20 days.
Day 20, January 22, was gray and cloudy. I could have done something to celebrate, such as treating myself to a chocolate bar. But I didn’t.
I was suffering from terrible loneliness. I hadn’t seen landing over two weeks. Every day was beginning to feel the same. Eating, rowing, sleeping, watch the sky, watch the ocean.
Then, around sunset, I saw something move on the horizon. They were dolphins! They circled my boat. Suddenly I felt so grateful. They had come to help me celebrate, just when I needed them. I rowed at full strength for the next 20 minutes with the dolphins around. By the time we went our separate ways, I was no longer lonely. Better yet, I knew I would be okay.
I did make it, all 2,817 miles. I hit the coast of Guyana, South America, on March 14, after 70 days and five hours at sea. My ocean row raised $70,000 for the Blue Planet Run Foundation, which funds drinking water programs around the world. I know some athletes spend the entire journey imagining the end, and that helps them get through. But for me, the secret is to focus on the moment, where you experience the personal growth—those moments of awareness of being connected to the sun, the weather, and the waves. And, on the best day of my life, those dolphins, which freed myself from terrible loneliness.
Which is the step taken as part of preparation for the tough row?
A.swimming the 325-mile length of the river |
B.answering the same question raised by people |
C.running 3,300 miles cross-country |
D.biking across the Mojave Desert |
What does the underlined part mean?
A.I didn’t have any chocolate bar for energy. |
B.I wasn’t in the mood to celebrate my first goal. |
C.It’s a pity not to celebrate my passing the quarter of the way |
D.It’s a pity not to treat myself to a chocolate bar on Day 20. |
What can be implied from the last two paragraphs?
A.Imagination was an effective way to help me get through. |
B.The Blue Planet Run Foundation helped me a lot. |
C.The dolphins accompanied me to reach my destination |
D.The unexpected dolphins swept away my loneliness |
Which can be the best title of the passage?
A.The day I stopped being lonely |
B.The only challenge for a 22-year old |
C.How to overcome loneliness at sea. |
D.How to row alone across the Atlantic |
Coyotes(丛林狼) used to live only in wide-open spaces of western prairies and deserts. They avoided forests, where wolves, their enemies, lived. But as forests were cleared to make room for farms and communities, coyotes started spreading east and west into they newly open territories.
Most coyotes are afraid of people, so those living in cities have learned how to avoid being seen. Street-smart coyotes hunt for food between dusk and dawn, when few people are around. During the day, the animals rest in out-of-the-way spots. ”They ‘are trying to avoid people as best as they can ,” says a scientist studying coyotes around Chicago, Illinois
City life suits coyotes in several ways. There are no enemies such as mountain lions ,wolves ,or hunters. City coyotes eat well, too. Parks yards and green spaces in cities provide habitat for a feast of favorite coyote foods ,including mice ,rats and rabbits . Coyotes also eat lots of fruits , With plenty of natural food and no-predators (捕食性动物), coyotes in urban areas are healthier, live longer and raise larger families than their country cousins.
Unfortunately, some city coyotes lose their fear of humans. They find tasty garbage of pet food outside homes. They notice that people ignore them instead of chasing them away. Some humans even feed coyotes on purpose, thinking it’s an act of kindness. Actually, it’s a serious mistake.
Coyotes that become comfortable around people and learn to associate buildings and yards with food are the ones that get into trouble. Some coyotes attack pets in yards. Sometimes a coyote may even chase or bite in a human. An animal that behaves in these ways must be removed by wildlife officials.
It’s people that change coyotes’ behavior. But we’re also the ones who can help them be good neighbors. We can teach them by not providing food for them, and by making sure they know there are certain area they’re not allowed. Can coyotes and people live more safely together in cities?
68. The first paragraph is to show______________
A. where coyotes used to live
B. what coyotes’ enemies are
C. why coyotes began to live in cities
D that forests are making room for humans
69. Why does city life suit coyotes?
A. People are nice to them
B. There are more green spaces
C. There is enough good and no enemies
D They can hunt for food at dusk
70. Some city coyotes are not afraid of humans maybe because______________
A. they are being protected by wildlife officials
B. people chase them away when seeing them
C. some people provide them with food sometimes
D they are allowed to stay indoors.
71. What is the purpose of this passage?
A. To introduce a kind of wolf-coyotes to readers.
B. To persuade people to move away from where Coyotes live
C. To enjoy the harmony between coyotes and humans,
D To call on people to live more safely with coyotes.
The Middle East countries and other world powers have been facing major political tensions which have made the stability of the crude oil prices very unpredictable. Each day the prospect(前景)of oil prices has become more and more unclear.
Water fuel has been developed as an alternative source of fuel which has fast become popular around the world . This exciting technology has various advantages . More than 70 percent of the Earth is covered with water and this fuel source does not produce any harmful pollutants or dangerous emissions(散发物)either . They in fact also double the mileage(里程)of the cars that are powered by them .
Water fuel technology has been known to be the best additional form of fuel source for petrol or other fuel sources . However , any claim that this technology can be only an additional sour
ce and not a replacement is totally incorrect and misleading .such ideas have been implie
d by those who look down on this technology , On the contrary , this technology has numerous benefits such as it does not produce any harmful emissions which can affect the climate changes . It further helps to reduce the level of noise produced by the engines.
Various researches reflect that running costs on fuels for automobiles can be easily saved up to 40 percent with the help of water cell technology .This technology can easily work on various cars powered by gas . It can also be used for trucks , vans and other vehicles . The tap water can also be easily used directly and you do not need any special water that is specially treated to be used for this purpose . You can easily find a lot of details so that you can adapt your car to use the technology .
64. We can learn from the first paragraph that the price of oil______________,
A . has been rising for a long time B is going down at present
C is unstable for political reasons D is decided by powerful countries
65. Water fuel technology has many advantages EXCEPT that______________
A water fuel will not pollute the environment
B it is very simple to get such kind of fuel
C cars powered by the fuel can be used longer
D it has already been popular around the world
66. People holding the opposite idea think that______________.
A the world climate won’t be influenced by fuel
B petrol can’t be completely replaced by water fuel
C the engines will give out less noise than before
D water fuel can’t act as an additional source for gas
67.What is the best title for the text?
A. Water Fuel-Becoming a Reality Now B. Water Fuel-Lower Cost
C. Water Fuel-a Long Way to GoD. Water Fuel-a Safer Choice
Jack Benny was one of the most famous names in show business. As a child, Benny learned to play the violin. After finishing his school, he joined the Navy. He continued using his violin to perform for sailors. In one show he was chosen more for his funny jokes than for his skill with the violin. That experience made him believe that his future job was a comedian.
Benny developed a show personality that had all the qualities people dislike. He was known for being so stingy-he refused to spend any money unless forced to do so. On his shows Benny often spoke of his appearance, especially his baby blue eyes. As he grew older, he always claimed to be 39 years old. Benny rarely make jokes that hurt other people. Instead, he would let the other actors on the show tell jokes about him.
In real life, he was very giving and he was a person people liked having as their employer. Benny entered the new media of television in 1950. Five years later, he dropped his radio program to spend more time developing his television show. At first his appearances on television were rare. By 1960 the Benny Show was a weekly television program. It continued until 1965. Benny appeared in about twenty films during his life. a few became popular. But most were not. In 1963 Benny returned to Broadway for the first time since 1931.
Benny received many awards during his lifetime. Perhaps the one honor that pleased him most was that his hometown of Waukeegan named a school for him. This was a special honor for a man who had never finished high school.
Benny continued to perform. He died of cancer in 1974. At his funeral his friend Bob Hope said, “ Jack Benny was stingy to the end. He gave us only eighty years.”
60. Benny was determined to be a comedian______________.
A. after he played the violin for the sailors
B. after he left he Navy for Broadway
C. after he performed in a show for the sailors
D after he joined the Navy with his violin
61. The underlined word “stingy” can be replaced by “______________”
A. clever B. mean C. out-going D hard-working
62. Which of the following statements is TRUE about Benny?
A. His first appearance on TV was very successful
B. Most of his films became well-known to Americans
C. Benny treated all his awards as nothing
D His greatest achievement was developing show business
63. We can learn from Bob Hope’s words that______________
A. he felt very sad about Benny’s death
B. Benny devoted himself to developing TV business
C. eighty years was enough for common people, but not for Benny
D Benny performed only eighty years.
第三部分阅读理解(共20小题;每小题2分,满分40分)
Bad moods can actually be good for you-an Australian study finds that being sad makes people less possible to be taken in, improves their ability to judge others and also improves memory.
The study, carried out by psychology professor Joseph Forgas at the University of New South Wales, showed that people in a negative mood were more critical of, and paid more attention to their surroundings than happier people, who were more likely to believe anything they were told. "Although positive mood seems to promote creativity, flexibility, cooperation, negative moods lead to more attentive, careful thinking and encourage people to pay greater attention to the outside world," Forgas wrote. "Our research suggests that sadness promotes information processing strategies best suited to dealing with more demanding situations."
For the study, Forgas and his team conducted several experiments that started with inducing (引起,导致)happy or sad moods in participants through watching films and recalling positive or negative events. In one of the experiments, happy and sad participants were asked to judge the truth of urban myths and rumors and found that people in a negative mood were less likely to believe these statements. People in a bad mood were also less likely to make quick decisions based on racial or religious prejudices(偏见), and they were less likely to make mistakes when asked to recall an event that they witnessed.
The study also found that sad people were better at stating their case through written arguments. Forgas said this showed that a negative mood may actually promote a clearer and more successful communication style."
"Positive mood is not universally desirable: people in negative mood are less prone to judgmental errors, and are better at producing high-quality, effective persuasive arguments" Forgas wrote.
56.According to the text, people in a bad mood are more likely to______________.
A. judge other people more exactly
B. believe anything they are told
C. make quick decisions based on prejudices
D make mistakes when asked to describe an event
57. We can learn from the text that Joseph Forgas______________
A. carried out the experiments alone
B. is a psychology professor in Britain
C. likes to deal with demanding situations in life
D believes bad moods might benefit people’s health
58. In what way did Joseph Forgas conclude the study?
A. By comparison B. By explanation C. By analysis D By inference
59. The text is mainly about ______________
A. how to change bad moods into good moods
B. the differences between good and bad moods.
C. benefits of bad moods
D how to beat bad moods.
It is often said that politeness costs nothing.In fact,it seems that a little more courtesy could save businesses£5 billion every year.
Frequently hearing the phrase “thank you” or “well done” means the same to staff as a modest pay rise,researchers say.
Praise and encouragement also makes employees more likely to work hard and stay in their jobs,saving on the cost of finding replacements.
A third of 1,000 workers surveyed by consulting firm White Water Strategies said they did not get thanked at all when they did well—and a further third said they were not thanked enough.
In both cases,staff said they felt undervalued,meaning they were less likely to exert themselves and were more likely to look for employment elsewhere.
The net result is around £5.2 billion in lost productivity from employees who would raise their game if they felt more appreciated,White Water claimed According to the company,praising staff has the same motivational kick as a 1 per cent pay rise—and works out much cheaper for bosses.
Three out of four employees said that regular acknowledgement by their boss was important to them,but only a quarter said they were actually given as much praise as they felt they needed.
The survey found that those in blue-collar and manual jobs were less likely to be given any recognition for doing well.
In regional terms,Scottish staff felt most undervalued.Four out of ten workers said they were never thanked and eight out of ten said they would like more praise.However,workers in the North-East are less impressed by being buttered up by the boss,as only 69 per cent said they felt the need to be told “well done” regularly.
Older employees and women need the most reassurance,according to psychologist Averil Leimon,a director of White Water Strategies.She said that words of praise did more than create a pleasant place to work—they could even boost profits.
51.The second paragraph means that_____________.
A.employees ask for high pay instead of hearing “thank you” or “well done”
B.bosses always think highly of their employees’ work
C.bosses’ praise and encouragement are important to workers
D.bosses should praise their workers from time to time
52.Why praise and encouragement are needed according to the passage?
A.Most bosses feel it necessary
B.Most workers didn’t work hard enough.
C.Most bosses can make money from praise and encouragement
D.Most workers will work harder and stay in their jobs from praise and encouragement.
53.According to tiffs passage,the majority of staff felt______________.
A.there were thanked enough B.they were undervalued
C.they got satisfactory payD.they didn’t need encouragement
54.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Blue-collar and manual workers need more regular acknowledgement by their bosses.
B.A third of the workers surveyed by White Water Strategies never got thanked at all when
they did well.
C.Old employees and women do not need to be appreciated as much as the young.
D.Fewer than 20% of Scotiish felt that they never got thanked.
55.The main idea of the passage is that___________
A.praise and encouragement may help employees work better
B.workers are always demanding more praise and encouragement
C.bosses in Scotland usually praise and encourage their staff enough
D.if undervalued employees will certainly look for employment elsewhere