How many people have I met who have told me about the book 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.
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 |
The underlined phrase "turn his back on" (paragraph 6) most probably means .
| A．leave for | B．return to | C．give up | D．rely on |
The man ( paragraph 6) left his first job partly because he was .
| A．in an abnormal mental state | B．under too much pressure |
| C．not well paid | D．not respected |
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 |
Anger is good for you, as lon g as you control it, according to new psychology research. A new study from Carnegie Mellon University shows anger may help people reduce the negative impacts of stress and help you become healthier.
"Here getting emotional is not bad for you if you look at the case of anger," said Jennifer Lerner of Carnegie Mellon. "The more people display anger, the lower their stress responses."
Lerner studied 92 UCLA students by asking them to count back from 6,200. They must say out loud every thirteenth number. Researchers disturbed them by asking them to count faster or ask them other questions. If they made any mistakes, they had to restart from the very beginning. Many students felt depressed about making so many mistakes or got angry because the researchers were interrupting them.
Lerner used a hidden video camera and recorded all their facial expressions during the test. The researchers describe their reactions as fear, anger and disgust.
Other researchers recorded the students' blood pressure, pulse and production of a high-stress hormone (荷尔蒙) called cortisol. People whose faces showed more fear during th e experiment had higher blood pressure and higher levels of the hormone. Both can have lasting effects such as diabetes (糖尿病), heart disease, depression and extra weight gain.
When people feel fear, negative impacts increase, but when they get angry, those negatives go down, according to the study.
"Having that sense of anger leads people to actually feel some power in what otherwise is maddening (令人发狂的) situation,"
Lerner said. Lerner previously studied Americans' emotional response to the 911 terrorist attacks two months after the incident. She found people who reacted with anger were more optimistic. These people are healthier compared with those who were frightened during the event. So in maddening situations, anger is not a bad thing to have. It's a healthier response than fear.Which statement will Jennifer Lerner agree with?
| A．It's better to be angry than to be frightened. |
| B．Different reactions reflect different outlooks on life. |
| C．Don't control your anger and it makes you powerful. |
| D．Pessimistic people are generally healthier than opt imistic people. |
What does the underlined word "both" refer to according to the passage?
| A．Fear and anger. |
| B．Higher blood pressure and higher levels of the hormone. |
| C．Blood pressure and pulse. |
| D．Blood pressure and cortisone. |
The researchers made the experimented students angry by ______.
| A．recording their performance secretly |
| B．asking them to count to 6,200 again and again |
| C．disturbing them and making them start all over again |
| D．criticizing them when they made mistakes |
In what way can anger be beneficial to people?
| A．By showing their optimistic side. |
| B．By reducing their stress. |
| C．By reducing high blood pressure. |
| D．By taking the place of fear. |
What is the story mainly about?
| A．The findings of new psychology research. |
| B．What you can do with anger in certain cases. |
| C．Different effects produced by anger and fear. |
| D．Healthier responses in maddening situations. |
EDGEWOOD-Every morning at Dixie Heights High School, customers pour into a special experiment: the district's first coffee shop run mostly by students with special learning needs.
Well before classes start, students and teachers order Lattes, Cappuccinos and Hot Chocolates. Then, during the first period, teachers call in orders on their room phones, and students make deliveries. By closing time at 9.20 a.m., the shop usually sells 90 drinks.
"Whoever made the chi tea, Ms. Schatzman says it was good," Christy McKinley, a second year student, announced recently, after hanging up with the teacher.
The shop is called the Dixie PIT, which stands for Power in Transition. Although some of the students are not disabled, many are, and the PIT helps them prepare for life after high school.
They learn not only how to run a coffee shop but also how to deal with their affairs. They keep a timecard and receive paychecks, which they keep in check registers.
Special-education teachers Kim Chevalier and Sue Casey introduced the Dixie PIT from a similar program at Kennesaw Mountain High School in Georgia.
Not that it was easy. Chevalier's first problem to overcome was product-related. Should schools be selling coffee? What about sugar content?
Kenton County Food Service Director Ginger Gray helped. She made sure all the drinks, which use non-fat milk, fell within nutrition (营养) guidelines.
The whole school has joined in to help.
Teachers agreed to give up their l ounge (休息室) in the mornings. Art students painted the name of the shop on the wall. Business students designed the paychecks. The basketball team helped pay for cups.What is the text mainly about?
| A．A best-selling coffee. |
| B．A special educational program. |
| C．Government support for schools. |
| D．A new type of teacher-student relationship. |
The Dixie PIT program was introduced in order to _____.
| A．raise money for school affairs |
| B．do some research on nutrition |
| C．develop students' practical skills |
| D．supply teachers with drinks |
How did Christy McKinley know Ms. Schatzman's opinion of the chi tea?
| A．She met her in the shop. |
| B．She heard her telling others. |
| C．She talked to her on the phone. |
| D．She went to her office to deliver the tea. |
We know from the text that Ginger Gray _____.
| A．manages the Dixie P1T program in Kenton County |
| B．sees that the drinks meet health standards |
| C．teaches at Dixie Heights High School |
| D．owns the school's coffee shop |
Where can we usually read this passage？
| A．In a novel. | B．In a newspaper. |
| C．In an instant message. | D．In a school report. |
Why do men die earlier than women? The latest research makes it known that the reason could be that men’s hearts go into rapid decline when they reach middle age.
The largest study of the effects of ageing on the heart has found that women’s longevity may be linked to the fact that their hearts do not lose their pumping power with age.
“We have found that the power of the male heart falls by 20-25 percent between 18 and 70 years of age,” said the head of the study, David Goldspink of Liverpool John Moores University in the UK. “Within the heart there are millions of cells that enable it to beat. Between the age of 20 and 70, one-third of those cells die and are not replaced in men,” said Goldspink. “This is part of the ageing process.”
What surprises scientists is that the female heart sees very little loss of these cells. A healthy 70-year-old woman’s heart could perform almost as well as a 20-year-old one’s.
“This gender difference might just explain why women live longer than men,” said Goldspink. They studied more than 250 healthy men and women between the ages of 18 and 80, focusing on healthy persons to remove the confusing influence of disease.
“The team has yet to find why ageing takes a greater loss on the male heart,” said Goldspink. The good news is that men can improve the health of their heart with regular exercise. Goldspink stressed that women also need regular exercise to prevent their leg muscles becoming smaller and weaker as they age.The underlined word “longevity” in the second paragraph probably refers to “________”.
| A．health | B．long life | C．ageing | D．effect |
The text mainly talks about ________.
| A．men’s heart cells | B．women’s ageing process |
| C．the gender difference | D．hearts and long life |
According to the text, the UK scientists have known that ________.
| A．women have more cells than men when they are born |
| B．women can replace the cells that enable the heart to beat |
| C．the female heart loses few of the cells with age |
| D．women never lose their pumping power with age |
If you want to live longer, you should ________.
| A．enable your heart to beat much faster |
| B．find out the reason for ageing |
| C．exercise regularly to keep your heart healthy |
| D．prevent your cells from being lost |
We can know from the passage that ________.
| A．the rea son why ageing takes a greater loss on the male heart has been found out |
| B．scientists are on the way to finding out why the male heart loses more o f the cells |
| C．the team has done something to prevent the male from suffering the greater loss |
| D．women over 70 could lose more heart cells than those at the age of 20 |
I decided to go back to school in the fall of 2008 after not being happy with my current job and financial status. I obtained my Associate’s Degree in May 2002 in Commercial Arts. After graduation, I had trouble obtaining a job in that field. For years, I was going from one job to another feeling unfilled, and I was not satisfied with the instability. I decided to go back to school for either International Business or Psychology. I weighed the pros and cons of both professions and Psychology won. I like helping my friends and family, when they go through hard situations in their life by giving them sound advice and being honest with them. Also, I was interested in “the mind”. I was searching for online schools because my work schedule at my current job would not allow me t o attend a regular class. I was nervous about starting online classes because I heard mixed stories from other friends who were taking online classes. I decided to do it anyway to experience something different. I wanted to find an online school that was affordable and reputable. Through my search, I discovered Walden University, which is specially for working adults who want to obtain a bachelor’s degree or higher. The process of getting accepted was easy, which included writing an essay on why I wanted to attend their school, transferring my previous credits, etc. I am currently enrolled in the Bachelors program for psychology, and I am paying for college via financial-aid loans and grants. This experience has been interesting yet trying as sometimes it was difficult to balance work, school and home life. I learned a lot about psychology and myself. For example, I like writing about current events, relationships and traveling. I thought my English composition was ordinary, but after taking a few classes at Walden University, I improved my English composition and it made me feel confident enough to start writing professionally so I became a freelance (自由撰稿) writer. Currently, I am only three classes away from obtaining my Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology! It was one of the best decisions I made in my life.What did the author study originally when he was in college?
| A．Psychology | B．Commercial Arts |
| C．International Business | D．English Composition |
What do we know about the author from Paragraph 2?
| A．He decided to study International Business at first. |
| B．He wanted to study two majors. |
| C．He liked Psychology better. |
| D．He chose his major with the help of his friends. |
Why was the author nervous about starting online classes?
| A．Because he heard some negative remarks about it. |
| B．Because h e was worried that he didn’t have enough time to study. |
| C．Because he feared he would fail the entrance exam. |
| D．Because he was afraid that he didn’t have enough money. |
Which of the following best describes the author’s learning experience?
| A．Dull and challenging. | B．Interesting and easy. |
| C．Interesting and challenging. | D．Dull and easy |
According to the passage, the author _________.
| A．was not able to find a full-time job |
| B．is most interested in writing |
| C．pays for hi s schooling with the help of his family |
| D．is satisfied with his achievements. |
The City of Christchurch, New Zealand was struck by a 7.1magnitude earthquake on the early morning of Saturday, September 4, 2010.
No tsunami alert was reported. The country's army troops were on standby to assist victims and disaster recovery operation. New Zealand's Prime Minister John Key, flew to the affected area to inspect and assess the situation of the damaged city. The Prime Minister said that the full assessment of the damages would possibly take months to know the severity of damages. Based from his assessment on what he saw in the area, it could cost at least 2 billion New Zealand dollars or US$1.4 billion for reconstruction.
“An absolute miracle that no one died，” Prime Minister John Key said. Two were seriously injured from this quake and thousands of local residents were awakened after being shaken at 4：35 a.m. of that Saturday.
There were people trapped inside the damaged buildings but fortunately none were reported dead from the rubble of the damaged buildings.
“We're all feeling scared—we've just had some significant aftershocks，” a survivor told TV One News. “Tonight we're just people in the face of a massive natural disaster, trying to help each other and we're grateful we haven't lost a life.”
GNS Science reported 29 aftershocks within the 14 hours after the quake, with strength from magnitude 3.7 to 5.4.
New_Zealand_is_no_stranger_to_earthquakes. The country experiences more than 14，000 earthquakes a year—but only about 150 are felt by people.
“Many buildings here were built with earthquake protection measure. However, in most cities in developing countries, people build how they want to and there're no building controls to force them to build to a higher standard that's safe，” Andrew Charleson, an architecture professor at Victoria University of Wellington told CNN.How many people were killed in the New Zealand earthquake on September 4, 2010?
| A．250，000. | B．29. | C．2. | D．0. |
After the earthquake, all of the following occurred EXCEPT that________．
| A．a number of aftershocks broke out |
| B．army troops were there to help |
| C．no people were injured or killed |
| D．the full assessment of the damages can't take in a short time |
What does the writer want to say by quoting Professor Andrew Charleson's words in the last paragraph?
| A．Earthquakes are much more terrible and bigger in developing countries. |
| B．Lacking of money, developing countries can't build safe buildings. |
| C．Building controls are the guarantee of safe buildings. |
| D．In developing countries, people have more freedom to design their buildings the way they like. |
What does the underlined sentence mean?
| A．Earthquakes break out frequently in New Zealand. |
| B．The earthquakes breaking out in New Zealand are very strange. |
| C．The earthquakes breaking out in New Zealand are unusual. |
| D．Earthquakes rarely hit New Zealand. |
What's the main idea of the passage?
| A．A massive earthquake struck the city of Christchurch of New Zealand. |
| B．No one was ever killed in earthquakes in New Zealand. |
| C．New Zealand has strict laws to guarantee the buildings' safety. |
| D．A miracle happened in the terrible earthquake. |