Parents often believe that they have a good relationship with their teenagers (青少年). But last summer, Joanna and Henry noticed a change in their older son. Suddenly he seemed to be talking far more to his friends than to his parents. "The door to his room is always shut," Joanna noted.
Tina and Mark noticed similar changes in their 14-year-old daughter. "She used to cuddle up (蜷伏)with me on the sofa and talk," said Mark. "Now we joke that she does this only when she wants something. Sometimes she wants to be treated like a little girl and sometimes like a young lady. The problem is figuring out which time is which."
Before age 11, children like to tell their parents what's on their minds. "In fact, parents are first on the list," said Michael Riera, author of Uncommon Sense for Parents with Teenagers. "This completely changes during the teen years," Riera explained. "They talk to their friends first, then maybe their teachers, and their parents last."
Parents who know what's going on in their teenagers' lives are in the best position to help them. To break down the wall of silence, parents should create chances to understand what their children want to say, and try to find ways to talk and write to them. And they must give their children a mental break, for children also need freedom, though young. Another thing parents should remember is that to be a friend, not a manager, with their children is a better way to know them.. "The door to his room is always shut" suggests that the son ____.
| A．is always busy with his studies | B．doesn't want to be disturbed |
| C．keeps himself away from his parents | D．begins to dislike his parents |
What troubles Tina and Mark most is that .
| A．their daughter isn't as lovely as before |
| B．they can't read their daughter's mind exactly |
| C．they don't know what to say to their daughter |
| D．their daughter talks with them only when she needs help |
Which of the following best explains "the wall of silence" in the last paragraph?
| A．Teenagers talk a lot with their friends. |
| B．Teenagers do not want to understand their parents. |
| C．Teenagers do not talk much with their parents. |
| D．Teenagers talk little about their own lives. |
What can be learned from the passage?
| A．Parents are unhappy with their growing children. |
| B．Parents have suitable ways to talk with their teenagers. |
| C．Parents should be patient with their silent teenagers. |
| D．Parents should try to understand their teenagers. |
The opening of the Sherlock Holmes Museum to the public on March 27, 1990, was an event that should have happened several decades ago. Baker Street is, after all, one of the world’s most famous streets because of its long association with the great detective.
Thousands of people all over the world write to Sherlock Holmes, they form clubs and societies in his honor, and they celebrate his anniversaries. Now it is also possible to see where and how he lived in Victorian times!
Here visitors will recognize familiar objects mentioned in the stories. You can take as many photographs as you want (the maid will be pleased to assist) and when you are ready to leave, a ride home in a horse-drawn carriage will complete your 19th century experience!
Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson lived at 221b Baker Street from about 1881 to 1904. Apartment 221b was on the first floor of a lodging house, which they rented from a Mrs Hudson. The famous study that Holmes and his friend Dr Watson shared for almost 25 years is on the first floor overlooking Baker Street.
We know from Doctor Watson’s descriptions that their sitting room overlooking Baker Street was “illuminated(照明、照亮) by two broad windows” and that it was quite small.
Doctor Watson’s bedroom was on the second floor next to Mrs Hudson’s room and it overlooked an open yard at the back of the house. These rooms are used today for exhibits, where center stage is taken by a magnificant bronze bust(半身像)of Mr Holmes. Visitors can browse through literature, paintings, photographs and newspapers of the period. Memorabilia（纪念品） from the adventures and a selection of letters written to and from Mr Holmes are also on display.
The museum’s large and attractive souvenir shop is located on the ground floor. Here you will find a unique collection of gifts, objects of art, figures, busts, prints, books, playing cards, T-shirts, －novelties of every description available exclusively to museum visitors.According to the article, we can conclude that Sherlock Holmes’ admirers .
| A．expect replies from him |
| B．made the opening of the museum possible |
| C．treat him as if he were a real person |
| D．often adapt his books into films or plays |
Which of the following is TRUE?
| A．The sitting room is small but has two big windows. |
| B．Mrs Hudson’s rooms are not used as exhibit rooms. |
| C．Mr Holmes’ and Dr Watson’s bedrooms are on the same floor. |
| D．Mr Holmes and Mrs Hudson shared ownership of Apartment 221b Baker Street. |
When in the museum, which of the following can visitors not do?
| A．Take photos of the rooms or objects on show |
| B．Buy unusual and interesting souvenirs |
| C．Learn some news of Mr Holmes’s times |
| D．Ask the maid to serve you tea in the Victorian times |
Scholarship Application Tips in 2013 for college students
·Before you apply
1. Work hard to get good grades. Don’t sweat about one bad grade, but always strive(力求)to do your best.
2. Get involved, and stay involved, in extracurricular(课外的)activities. Sports, clubs, drama, bands and orchestras－these often count toward a student’s overall scholarship application evaluation. The same goes for paid (or unpaid) work experience.
3. Begin your scholarship research early－by your sophomore(大学二年级)or junior year of high school, if possible. Make special note of application deadlines, as they can vary from late summer to late spring.
4. Apply for as many scholarships as you are eligible(符合条件的)for－several smaller scholarships can add up to a lot of money.
·During the application process
1. Read the supplementary materials that come with scholarship application forms to better understand the program’s focus (community service, subject interest). Try to answer the questions with the focus area in mind.
2. Answer questions as they are asked. Don’t got off topic.
3. If there is a financial component to the application, make sure you get accurate and complete information from all appropriate sources to ensure your eligibility.
4. Take your time. Write down everything you can think of for each question, then set the application aside for a day so you can look everything over again before you send it off.
5. Don’t wait until the last minute to complete your application, especially if you are applying online. Computer systems can get clogged(阻塞的)with the large volume of applicants hoping to submit their qualifications during the last few days and hours before a deadline.
6. If a third party has to complete part of your application, such as providing a letter of recommendation, make sure you ask them early on and remind them as often as necessary to ensure they provide you with the necessary materials.
7. Last but not least, review your application with your parents to make sure you haven’t left out any important details.
Good luck to the students applying for the 2013 scholarship programs!Before you apply for a scholarship, it’s best to .
| A．pay more attention to grades than to extracurricular activities |
| B．focus on only one scholarship application |
| C．get as much work experience as possible |
| D．begin your preparation as early as possible |
When answering questions on the application form, you should .
| A．focus on the subject you are interested in |
| B．answer to the point |
| C．list your advantages |
| D．prove your abilities |
The author suggests that applicants should .
| A．submit the application in the few days |
| B．double-check their application with their parents |
| C．complete and submit the application in one day |
| D．avoid submitting the application online |
At 10 years old, Flynn Mc Garry became sick of the meals his mother cooked for him. So the Los Angeles native took matters into his own hands and started making his own dinners. One of his specialties? Trout with braised leeks(韭葱炖鲑鱼).
Now 13, the young chef is being praised as a “food prodigy(神童)”. He will spend his summer apprenticing with some of the best chefs at LA’s famous restaurants, MSNBC Nightly New reports.
Mc Garry began making a name for himself in the culinary(烹饪) world when John Sedlar, owner of the trendy Playa Restaurant, let Mc Garry take over the kitchen for a special nine-course meal. The meal sold out almost instantly.
“Flynn is a very unusual young man, and he’s very, very passionate,” owner John Sedlar told MSNBC.
By usual teenage boy standards, it’s true. So strong is his passion for cooking that the young man has turned his bedroom into an experimental kitchen laboratory.
Instead of video game consoles, baseball trophies and movie posters, Mc Garry’s room is lined with mixers, pots and pans, cutting boards and a stainless steel worktable. It’s where Mc Garry cooks his monthly pop-up dinners, which are served from his family’s dining room, a monthly supper club he calls Eureka.
Mc Garry is deft(灵巧的) and confident in the kitchen, with skills he’s been practicing since he was a child. What started out as a means of self-preservation from his mom’s unsatisfactory cooking has turned into a passion that the teen hopes to develop into a career.
“My goal? Michelin three stars, a restaurant in the top 50 list,” he told MSNBC. “Hopefully the top five.” Meanwhile, Mc Garry’s 13-year-old resume is already richer and more impressive than most cooks many times his age.
Mc Garry isn’t the only talented young prodigy to surprise experts in his field in recent years. At just 17 years old, physicist Taylor Wilson is already teaching graduate-level courses in physics and has built a functioning nuclear reactor.Mc Garry first started cooking ___________.
| A．for himself | B．as an experiment |
| C．in his own bedroom | D．with a teacher’s guidance |
Compared with many adult chefs, Mc Garry ________.
| A．has the best cooking equipment in his kitchen |
| B．is inventive and has many new specialties to his name |
| C．has much and impressive cooking experience for his young age |
| D．wants to open his own Michelin three-star restaurant |
The author mentions Taylor Wilson in the last paragraph to ______.
| A．prove that Flynn’s success is not a rare case |
| B．compare his talent to that of Flynn Mc Garry |
| C．introduce a young talent in a different field |
| D．suggest experts should be trained at a young age |
Where does this text probably come from?
| A．A recipe book | B．A restaurant introduction |
| C．A career guide | D．A news report |
Charlotte Hollins faces a battle. The 23-year-old British farmer and her 21-year-old brother Ben are fighting to save farm that their father worked on since he was 14. Although confident they will succeed, she is aware of farming’s many challenges.
“You don’t often get a day off. Supermarkets put a lot of pressure on farmers to keep prices low. With fewer people working on farms it can be isolating,” she said. “There is a high rate of suicide and farming will never make you rich!”
Like others around the world, Charlotte’s generation tend to leave the farm for cities.
Oliver Robinson, 25, grew up in Yorkshire. But he never considered staying on his father and grandfather’s land. “I’m sure Dad hoped I’d stay,” he said. “I guess it’s a nice, straightforward life, but it doesn’t appeal to me. For young, ambitious people, farm life is hard.”
For Robinson, farming doesn’t offer much “in terms of money or lifestyle”. Hollins agrees that economic factors stop people from enjoying the rewards of farming. He describes it as a career that provides “for a vital human need”, allowing people to work “outdoors with nature.”
Farming is a big political issue in the UK. The “Buy British” campaigns urge consumers not to purchase cheaper imported foods. The 2001 foot and mouth crisis closed thousands of farms, stopped meat exports, and raised public consciousness about the troubles on UK farms.
Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver’s 2005 campaign to get children eating healthily also highlighted the issue.
This national concern gives hope to farmers competing with powerful supermarkets. While most people buy food from the big supermarkets, hundreds of independent Farmers’ Markets are becoming popular.
“I started going to Farmers’ Markets in direct defiance(违抗) of the big supermarkets. I seriously objected to the super-sizing of everything－what exactly do they put on our apples to make them so big and red? It’s terrible,” said Londoner Michaela Samson, 31.What are the challenges that British farmers face according to Charlotte Hollins?
a. loneliness b. thin profits
c. a lack of good equipment d. long working hours but slow results
| A．abc | B．abd | C．acd | D．bcd |
Why did Oliver Robinson refuse to stay on the farm?
| A．He hoped for a simpler life |
| B．He was fed up with a hard farm life. |
| C．Farm life was too demanding though he liked it. |
| D．He hoped for something challenging and rewarding. |
What happened in 2001 to the British beef farmers?
| A．British people ate more British beef. |
| B．To be a beef farmer became profitable. |
| C．Diseaes dramatically reduced the amount of beef available. |
| D．Foreign farmers stopped selling beef to Britain. |
Which of the following is an advantage of Farmers’ Markets?
| A．Lower prices. | B．Flexible sizes. |
| C．Convenient location. | D．Healthier food. |
What can we conclude from the last two paragraphs?
| A．Things are improving for independent farms in the UK. |
| B．Farming in the UK can now match the powerful supermarkets. |
| C．Most British people are doubtful of food in supermarkets. |
| D．Most British people have realized the problems facing farms and begun to help save them. |
People often view the “last” moments of an event positively simply because they signal the end of an experience, say experts.
University of Michigan researchers found that even if an experience is painful or negative, but ends on a good note, people will consider it to be positive.
“Endings are powerful,” said Ed O’Brien, a graduate student in the Department of Psychology at the University of Michigan.
O’Brien and colleague Phoebe Ellsworth, the Frank Murphy Distinguished Professor of Law and Psychology, conducted a chocolate tasting experiment with 52 college students to test the theory.
Volunteers could taste five different Hershey’s Kisses chocolates—milk, dark, cream, caramel and almond – but did not know in advance how many pieces they would eat or the type. Participants rated how much they enjoyed the chocolate and described each flavor so that the researchers could record the order in which the randomly (随机的) selected treats were eaten.
Volunteers were assigned to the “next” or the “last ” condition by chance.
In the “next” condition, the experimenter said “Here is your next chocolate” before offering each chocolate, including the fifth.
For the “last” condition, the experimenter said “Here is your last chocolate” before offering the fifth chocolate.
These participants rated the fifth chocolate more enjoyable than volunteers in the “next” condition.
As predicted, participants who knew they were eating the final chocolate of a taste test enjoyed it more.
In fact, when asked to pick their favorite chocolate, the majority of “last” participants chose the fifth – even though the flavor of the fifth was randomly chosen.
They also rated the overall experience as more enjoyable than volunteers who thought they were just eating one more chocolate in a series.
O’Brien says these findings may have far-reaching implications. For example, the last book or film in a series or the last speaker in a symposium (研讨会) may receive unwarranted praise.
The last job applicant, meanwhile, may look more qualified.Which of the following is TRUE about the experiment?
| A．The majority of “last” participants chose the almond flavor as their favorite. |
| B．Some participants enjoyed the experiment more because the last flavor tasted better. |
| C．The result would be different if researchers had used another brand of chocolate. |
| D．Some participants didn’t know it was their last chocolate when offered the fifth one. |
What does the underlined word “unwarranted” in the second-to-last paragraph mean?
| A．Fake. | B．Unwanted. | C．Unreasonable. | D．Insincere. |
Which of the following is the best title for the article?
| A．“Last” is the best. |
| B．Why “last” matters most. |
| C．It is the last step that is the hardest. |
| D．He who laughs last laughs best. |