I think it was my mother who taught me the meaning of honesty. Not because she actually was honest, but because she lied all the time. She felt that the easiest way out of any given situation was generally the best way out. And, for her, that generally meant telling a “little white lie”. As a young child I thought it was kind of cool. And, naturally, when I would come to her with a concern or question wondering what I should do, she generally advised me to lie.
“Mom, I told Theresa that I would go over to her house, but now I would rather go to Sue's house to play.”
“Tell Theresa you're sick，” she would advise. And generally I did. But I didn't seem blessed with her lack of conscience. On many painful occasions Theresa would find out that I really went to Sue's house without her. These occasions taught me that it is more painful to be caught in a lie than it is to tell the truth in the first place. I wondered how it was possible that my mother had never learned that lesson.
I started thinking of all the lies that I'd heard her tell. I remembered the time she told someone that her favorite restaurant had closed, because she didn't want to see them there anymore. Or the time she told Dad that she loved the lawnmower he gave her for her birthday. Or when she claimed that our phone lines had been down when she was trying to explain why she hadn't been in touch with a friend of hers for weeks. And what bothered me even more were all the times she had involved me into her lies. Like the time she told my guidance counselor that I had to miss school for exploratory surgery
, when she really needed me to babysit. And it even started to bother me when someone would call for her and she would ask me to tell them that she wasn't there.
So, I started my own personai fight against her dishonesty. When I answered the phone and it was someone my mother didn't want to talk to, I said, “Louise, mom is here, but she doesn't want to talk to you.” The first time I did it, she punished me, but I refused to apologize. I told her that I had decided that it was wrong to lie. And the next time it happened I did the same thing. Finally, she approached me and said, “I agree that lying is not the best thing to do, but we need to find a way to be honest without being rude.” She admitted that her methods weren't right, and I admitted that mine were a bit too extreme.
Over the past few years, the two of us have worked together to be honest—and yet kind. Honesty should mean more than not lying. It should mean speaking the truth in kindness. Though I started by trying to teach my mom the importance of honesty, I ended up gaining a deeper understanding of the meaning of the term.
The author's mother ________.
| A．thought white lies were not lies |
| B．helped the author get out of trouble with white lies |
| C．told the author to lie when in trouble |
| D．taught the author the importance of being honest |
The author ________.
| A．was thankful to her mother's advice |
| B．felt more awkward when being caught lying |
| C．found that telling the truth hurt more than telling a lie |
| D．felt guilty when hurting people with her honesty |
It can be inferred that the author's mother ________.
| A．met her friends in the same restaurant regularly |
| B．didn't get along with the author's teachers |
| C．was not popular among her friends |
| D．wanted to have something else for her birthday |
Finally the author and her mother agreed that ________.
| A．kindheartedness is more important than honesty |
| B．appropriate methods are the key to telling a good lie |
| C．honesty is defined as kindness as well as truthfulness |
| D．absolute honesty is basic to good interpersonal relationships |
The most exciting kind of education is also the most personal. Nothing can exceed (超越) the joy of discovering for yourself something that is important to you! It may be an idea or a bit of information you come across accidentally—or a sudden insight, fitting together pieces of information or working through a problem. Such personal encounters are the “payoff” in education. A teacher may direct you to learning and even encourage you in it—but no teacher can make the excitement or the joy happen. That's up to you.
A research paper, assigned in a course and perhaps checked at various stages by an instructor, leads you beyond classrooms, beyond the texts for classes and into a process where the joy of discovery and learning can come to you many times. Preparing the research paper is an active and individual process, and ideal learning process. It provides a structure within which you can make exciting discoveries, of knowledge and of self, that are basic to education. But the research paper also gives you a chance to individualize a school assignment, to suit a piece of work to your own interests and abilities, to show others what you can do. Writing a research paper is more than just a classroom exercise. It is an experience in searching out, understanding and synthesizing（综合）, which forms the basis of many skills applicable（可利用的） to both academic and nonacademic tasks. It is, in the fullest sense, a discovering of an education. So, to produce a good research paper is both a useful and a thoroughly satisfying experience!
To some, the thought of having to write an assigned number of pages, often more than ever produced before, is upsetting. To others, the very idea of having to work independently is threatening. But there is no need to approach paper assignment with anxiety, and nobody should view the research paper as an obstacle to overcome. Instead, consider it a goal to accomplish, a goal within reach if you use the help this book can give you.
1．According to the writer, personal discoveries___________.
A．will give one encouragement and direction
B．are helpful in finding the right information
C．are the most valuable part of one's personal education
D．will help one to successfully complete school assignments
2．It can be inferred from the passage that writing a research paper gives one chances________.
A．to fully develop one's personal abilities
B．to use the skills learnt in the classroom
C．to prove that one is a productive writer
D．to demonstrate how well one can accomplish school assignment
3．The writer argues in the passage that___________ .
A．one should explore new areas in research
B．one should trust one's own ability to meet course requirements
C．one should consider research paper writing a pleasure, not a burden
D．one should use all one's knowledge and skills when doing research
4．What will probably follow this passage?
A．How to write a research paper.
B．The importance of research in education.
C．How to make new discoveries for oneself.
D．The skill of putting pieces of information together.
Scientists are closely concerned with the structure of buildings and with the quality of building materials. The World health Organization (WHO) observes that the introduction of air conditioning and energy conservation (保护) measures have been accompanied by growing problems of indoor air quality. Some pollutants arise from insulation (隔音) products, some from moving cars, and others from modern housing materials. As many Europeans spend up to 90% of their lives in buildings, the health effects of the indoor climate are very important.
Some construction materials, including fiberboard, insulation foams and certain glues for man-made wood floor boards, for example, give out organic products such as formaldehyde (甲醛). Heat and humidity increase the release of formaldehyde and the gas seriously harms the eyes. Paint, lacquer, etc. can also release dangerous gas into indoor air.
Construction materials can cause serious damage, especially when they contain asbestos（石棉）. Asbestos is naturally present in rock formations worldwide. It belongs to a family of mineral substances made up of solid, non-combustible（非易燃品） fiber. These properties make asbestos a highly sought-after construction material. As early as 1931, however, public health officers in the United Kingdom revealed the connection between breathing in asbestos dust and such diseases as lung cancer.
The land on which a building is sited may also contribute to pollution. Some kinds of granite or similar rocks contain traces of radium. As it breaks down, this naturally radioactive element produces some kind of radioactive gas that goes through tiny cracks in walls, floors and building materials, and makes its way into the building and the rooms. The better the homes are insulated, the more is the dangerous gas in indoor air. The main effect of this dangerous gas on health is to increase the risk of lung cancer.
1．What is the main idea of the passage?
A．Some building materials pollute indoor air.
B．Some factors cause indoor air pollution.
C．Asbestos can cause lung cancer.
D．The land on which houses are built contributes to indoor pollution.
2．Why are Europeans particularly concerned with building materials?
A．Lots of building materials there are radioactive.
B．They stay home up to 90% of their lives.
C．They have a high rate of lung cancer.
D．They spend most of their time indoors.
3．Why is asbestos a sought-after building material?
A．It is a kind of insulation foam.
B．Asbestos will not give out dangerous gas.
C．This material is not easy to catch fire.
D．It is rarely present in rock formations.
4．Why should we be careful about the land on which a building is to be sited?
A．To determine whether the land is firm enough for a building to be sited on.
B．To make sure that the land contains no radioactive material.
C．To make certain that the land releases no formaldehyde or other gases.
D．To check whether it contains any combustible materials.
How many people have I met who have told me about the book that they have been planning to write but have never yet found the time? Far too many.
This is Life, all right, but we do treat it like a rehearsal (排演) and, unhappily, we do miss so many of its best moments.
We take jobs to stay alive and provide homes for our families, always making ourselves believe that this style of life is merely a temporary state of affairs along the road to what we really want to do. Then, at 60 or 65, we are suddenly presented with a clock and several grandchildren and we look back and realize that all those years waiting for Real Life to come along were in fact real life.
In America they have a saying much laughed at by the English：“Have a nice day!” They speak slowly and seriously in their shops, hotels and sandwich bars. I think it is a wonderful phrase, reminding us, in effect, to enjoy the moment: to value this very day.
How often do we say to ourselves, "I'll take up horse-riding (or golf, or sailing) as soon as I get a higher position," only to do none of those things when I do get the higher position.
When I first became a reporter, I knew a man who gave up a very well paid respectable job at the Daily Telegraph to go and edit a small weekly newspaper. At the time I was astonished by what appeared to me to be his completely abnormal (反常的) mental state. How could anyone turn his back on Fleet Street in central London for a small local area？I wanted to know.
Now I am a little older and possibly wiser, I see the sense in it. In Fleet Street the man was under continual pressure. He lived in an unattractive London suburb and he spent much of his life sitting on Southern Region trains.
1．The first paragraph of the passage tells us that ___________.
A．we always try to find some time to write a book
B．we always make plans but seldom fulfill them
C．we always enjoy many of life's best moments
D．we always do what we really want to do
2．The underlined phrase "turn his back on" (paragraph 6) most probably means___________.
A．leave for B．return to C．give up D．rely on
3．The man ( paragraph 6) left his first job partly because he was___________.
A．in an abnormal stateB．under too much pressure
C．not well paid D．not respected
4．What is probably the best title for the passage?
A．Provide Homes For Our Family B．Take Up Horse-riding
C．Value This Very Day D．Stay Alive
第二部分：阅读理解（共25小题，第一节，每题2分，第二节每题1分，满分45分）
第一节：阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。
How men first learnt to invent words is unknown; in other words, the origin of language is a mystery. All we really know is that men, unlike animals, somehow invented certain sounds to express thoughts and feelings, actions and things, so that they could communicate with each other; and that later they agreed upon certain signs, called letters. These letters could be combined to represent those sounds, and which could be written down. Those sounds, whether spoken, or written in letters, we call words.
The power of words, then, lies in their associations---the things they bring up before our
minds. Words become filled with meaning for us by experience, and the longer we live, the more certain words recall to us the glad and sad events of our past; and the more we read and learn, the more the number of words that mean something to us increases. Great writers are those who not only have great thoughts but also express these thoughts in words which appeal powerfully to our minds and emotions. This charming and telling use of words is what we call literary style. Above all, the real poet is a master of words. He can convey his meaning in words which sing like music and which by their position and association can move men to tears. We should therefore learn to choose our words carefully and use them accurately, or they will make our speech silly and vulgar(粗俗的).
1．Which is TRUE about the origin of language?
A．Men, as well as animals, in vented certain sounds to express thoughts.
B．The origin of language is a complicated question.
C．Words did not haven written form, at first.
D．Words were invented to represent meanings.
2．The power of words lies in .
A．the fact that it can associate the things in the world with the ideas in our minds.
B．the fact that once word is connected with another
C．the fact that it can associate one person with another
D．the fact that it can recall to us the events of our past
3．The following statements are true EXCEPT that_____________.
A．the more we read and learn, the larger our vocabulary will be
B．the longer we live, the number of words that mean something to us increases
C．words can be used to represent various meanings
D．literary style is usually very charming
4．What does this passage primarily concern?
A．The Meaning of Words.
B．The Characteristics of Words.
C．The Origin of Words.
D．The Power of Words.
Editor’s notes: AWL is well known for its dictionaries and English language teaching materials. Some readers have written in to ask us for the latest information on high quality books on English, so here we introduce two texts that aim to improve spoken English fluency.
Let’s speak (Beginner)
By Bev Dusuya, Naoko Ozeki and Kevin Bergman
ISBN: 962001359X
Speak Up(Pre-Intermediate)
By Bev Kusuya, Nako Zeki
ISBN: 0583338050
“Teach the students about your culture and help them talk about their own.” How often are these worthy goals kept from being achieved by the limitations of your beginner level learners? Students at all levels want to talk about culture.
Topics include food, shopping, sports, fashion, the roles of men and women, health, music, and many more.
These are all chosen from surveys of over 15,000 students about their own interests in cross-cultural communication.
“Let’s Speak” and “Speak Up” share a special but excellent way that allows all students to take part in.
The series has questions which start thinking and then help collect opinions about personal topics. Conversation practice is provided by ready to use (现成的)models of basic exchanges on the topic. Also, the cultural information presented in the series comes in the form of interesting, relevant（相关的）facts and ideas from other countries through listening tasks and Culture Quiz exercises.
Team activities in books provide lively problem solving games to enable sharing and comparison of cultural values.
“Let’s Speak” is fit for entry level students of all ages. “Speak Up” provides for the needs of higher level beginners, offering the same careful listening and speaking help, but with slightly more open ended discussion.
For any information about AWL’s books, please get in touch with the following addresses:
Beijing Addison Wesley Longman Information Center
Room 2306, FLTRP Beijing
19 Xi San Huan Beilu, Beijing 100081
Tel: (010)68917488 (010) 68917788
Fax: (010) 68917499
E-mail: zrh@public.bat.net.cn
1．In the sentence “Teach the students about your culture and help them talk about their own”, “your culture” here means the culture of___________.
A．the English native speakers B．the English learners
C．the readers of the two books D．the readers of the newspaper
2．Which of the following are mentioned about the two books in the passage above?
a．publisher b．titles c．content d．writers
e．prices f．pages g．book number
A．a,b,d,f B．a,c,d,g C．b,c,d,e D．b,c,e,f
3．The two books have in common everything EXCEPT___________
A．the same interesting topics
B．the same level of learners
C．proper ways to excite the learners to talk
D．right kinds of activities for cultural communication
4．The passage above is probably taken from the___________section in a newspaper.
A．EDUCATION B．NEWS
C．ENTERTAINMENT D．BOOKSHELF