ThebookingnotesoftheplaytheAge-优题课

We are all interested in equality, but while some people try to protect the school and examination system in the name of equality, others, still in the name of equality, want only to destroy it．
Any society which is interested in equality of opportunity and standards of achievement must regularly test its pupils．The standards may be changed because no examination is perfect, but to have no tests or examinations would mean the end of equality and of standards．There are groups of people who oppose this view and who do not believe either in examinations or in any controls in schools or on teachers．This would mean that everything would depend on luck since every pupil would depend on efficiency, the values and the purpose of each teacher．Without examinations, employers will look for employees from the highly respected school? And from families known to them, a form of favouritism will replace equality．At the moment, the bright child from an ill-respected school can show certificates(毕业证） to prove he is suitable for a job, while the lack of certificate indicates the unsuitability（不合适）of a dull child attending a well-respected school．This defense of excellence and opportunity would disappear if examinations were taken away, and the bright child from a poor family would be a prisoner of his school's reputation, unable to compete for employment with the child form the favoured school．
The opponents（反对者）of the examination system suggest that examinations are an evil force because they show differences between pupils．According to these people, there must be no special, different, academic class．They have even suggested that there should be no form of difference in sport or any other area: all jobs or posts should be filled by unsystematic selection．The selection would be made by people who themselves are probably selected by some computer．
The underlined word "favouritism" in paragraph 3 is used to describe the phenomenon that ___．

A．bright children also need certificates to get satisfying jobs．

B．children from well-respected schools tend to have good jobs

C．poor children with certificates are favoured in job markets

D．children attending ordinary schools achieve great success

What would happen if examinations were taken away according to the author?

A．Schools for bright children would lose their reputation．

B．There would be more opportunities and excellence．

C．Children from poor families would be able to change their schools．

D．Children's job opportunity would be affected by their school reputation．

The opponents of the examination system will agree that____．

A．jobs should not be assigned by systematic selection

B．computers should be selected to take over many jobs

C．special classes are necessary to keep the school standards

D．schools with academic subjects should be done away with

The passage mainly focuses on ____．

A．schools and certificates	B．examinations and equality
C．opportunity and employment	D．standards and reputation

Natural disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis, and floods can often come at the least expected time．Others, such as hurricanes are increasing in severity and destruction．Typically, those poor countries are the worst hit for they have the least resources to deal with the destruction and rebuild their home．This part of the globalissues．org website looks at some of these issues．
Japan Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear Crisis
The earthquake off the coast of Japan on March 11, 2011 was one of the biggest recorded, measuring 9 on the Richter scale（里氏震级）．
It was the resulting tsunami, however, that caused the most destruction．It devastated the northeast of Japan, leaving many thousands dead or missing, and -hundreds of thousands homeless or leaving the area．In addition, various power generators（发电机组） failed．Some older nuclear power stations risked meltdown and suffered explosions and radioactive leaks．Workers battled for weeks to try and bring the situation under control．Radioactive material was detected in various places．
It is thought that the cost of the earthquake and tsunami could be over $ 300 billion-the world's most expensive natural disaster on record．
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina was a destroyed category 4（四级） hurricane, the highest category, that hit the Gulf of Mexico and various Southern regions of the United States at the end of August, 2005, causing the worst damage in that country's history, estimated at $ 100 billion．The famous New Orleans city and surrounding areas were worst hit as much of it sits some 6 feet below sea level．City defenses, such as banks, only designed for categary 3 type hurricanes, gave way, leading to enormous flooding and associated damage, death and displacement of around 100, 000 people who either chose to say the course, or could not afford to flee．
Where would this passage most probably appear?

A．In a textbook．

B．In a magazine．

C．In a paper．

D．In a website．

Why are those poor countries the worst hit by natural disasters?

A．Because they are lazy and poor．

B．Because they desire help from rich countries．

C．Because they lack resources to deal with the destruction and rebuild their home．

D．Because they never think of protecting their home．

What is the meaning do the underlined word "devastated" in the paragraph 3?

A．Built．

B．Completed．

C．Discovered．

D．Destroyed．

In the disaster happening in 2011 in Japan, what caused the most destruction?

A．Radioactive material．	B．Tsunami．
C．Earthquake．	D．Power generators' explosion．

What can we infer from the last paragraph?
A．Hurricane Katrina also hit the northern part of the USA．
B．Hurricane Katrina caused the second the worst damage in the history of the USA．
C．All parts of New Orleans city were below sea level．
D．City defenses in New Orleans couldn't deal with Hurricane Katrina．

The month of May is not only a graduation month in the US, but also a month when some families hold reunions．Have you ever considered why it is important that families get together in one place for a particular time? I believe the reason is honor．
Family reunions are a time we can take out of our busy schedules and spend quality time with our extended families（大家庭）．It is a time when we can make our sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, grandparents, and others we love a priority （首要事情）in our life．
Some reunions take place over a picnic lunch and some last a whole weekend．They can be costly and are sometimes crazy．But the truth is, when people you love grow up and move away, getting together for a family reunion and holding that family bond together is so important．
Family reunions build a renewed closeness as we mix with our relatives．We sit and talk about old times and listen to the stories that our older and wiser relatives love to share．As the children run and play and get to know each other, we sit and revisit our childhood memories and enjoy the short time we have together．
The best part of a family reunion is the time spent simply being around the people you care about A reunion shows how important it is to take time for each other．When you receive a family reunion invitation, make it a priority in your life．It's a great chance to see your relatives once again, give them a big hug and enjoy the time you have with them．Life is too short not to!
What would be the best title for the passage?

A．How to attend a family reunion?	B．What is a family reunion?
C．Tips for a family reunion．	D．Make time to attend a family reunion．

"Family reunions" in the passage means that you____．

A．talk with your wife or husband	B．get together with your relatives
C．communicate with your children	D．have a dinner with your parents

Family reunions can help you____．

A．solve your problems	B．kill time when you are bored
C．improve the relation with your relatives	D．find more relatives who live far away

What does the underlined sentence "Life is too short not to" in the last paragraph mean?

A．Family reunions are very important．

B．Family reunions are common．

C．Our life is very short．

D．Attending family reunions is uneasy．

Teenagers who do not get enough of the nutrients commonly found in fruits and fish are easier to have bad lungs, coughing and wheezing （喘息）．Teens who eat the least of fruit and especially vitamin C have weaker lungs compared to the others．
Teens who take in less vitamin E, found in vegetable oil and nuts, are more likely to have asthma（哮喘）, Jane Bums at the Harvard School of Public Health found.
Based on these findings．Bums said that current recommended dose（一剂）of vitamin C, 85 mg a day, may not be enough for teens to have healthy lungs．Teens who eat less fruit and don't take in enough fatty acids （脂肪酸） are more likely to have asthma and the signs of breathing difficulty．
Proper amounts of fatty acids are protective, Bums said, though fish, the best source of fatty acids, is particularly unpopular with teenagers．Fatty acids are also found in some nuts as well as some green vegetables'．Smokers who avoid vitamin C will increase their chances of coughing, wheezing and developing phlegm（痰）．
More than 80 percent of teens are getting their recommended doses of vitamin C - mainly from fruit drinks．"I wouldn't approve of drinking them, but at least they're getting their vitamin C from somewhere," Burns said．
Burns added that there are several different ways to get the necessary nutrients．"I think vitamin supplements are fine．I think adding vitamin D to orange juice is fine．But I do think there are added benefits that we don't fully understand of eating whole foods like fruits and vegetables and fish," she said．The researchers did not account for poverty and other factors that often distinguish less-healthy eaters and may explain their findings．
According to the passage, what is the problem with teens who don't get enough nutrients?

A．They are becoming smokers．	B．They don't take enough exercise．
C．They eat too much fruit and fish．	D．They are likely to have weaker lungs．

According to Burns, how should teens get the necessary nutrients?

A．By drinking juice as much as possible．

B．By eating more whole foods．

C．By taking vitamin pills．

D．By giving up smoking．

Which of the following is NOT mentioned by the researchers in the passage?

A．The amount of nutrients teens should take in a day．

B．How teens can take in enough nutrients．

C．Whether poor teens can prove their findings．

D．The fact that teens don't like fish．

What is the best title for the passage?

A．Poor nutrition hurts teens' health．	B．Teens lack proper nutrition．
C．Teens are easy to suffer from diseases．	D．More fruit help keep teens healthy．

"Hey, Dad," one of my kids asked the other day, "what was your favourite fast food when you were growing up?"
"We didn't have fast food when I was growing up," I informed him．"All the food was slow．" "Where did you eat?" "It was a place called 'at home'．" I explained．"Grandma cooked every day and when Grandpa got home from work, we sat down together at the dining table, and if I didn't like what she put on my plate I was allowed to sit there until I liked it．"
Some parents never owned their own houses, set foot on a golf course, travelled out of the country or had a credit card．
My parents have never driven me to soccer practice．This was mostly because we never had heard of soccer．I had a bicycle that weighed probably 50 pounds, and only had one speed．We didn't have a television in our house until I was 11．I was 13 when I tasted my first pizza; it was called "pizza pie"．When I bit into it, I burned the roof of my mouth and the cheese slid off, swung down, plastered（粘贴）itself against my chin and burned that, too．It's still the best pizza I ever had．
I delivered newspapers, six days a week ．The paper cost 7 cents, of which I got to keep 2 cents．I had to get up at 4:00 a．m．every morning．On Saturday, I had to collect the 42 cents from my customers．My favourite customers were the ones who gave me 50 cents and told me to keep the change．
If you grew up in a generation before there was fast food, you may want to share some of these memories with your children or grandchildren．
Growing up isn't what it used to be, is it?
By saying "All the food was slow", the writer implies that ____．

A．when he was growing up, he never ate fast food

B．he didn't like fast food when he was growing up

C．his grandma made food slowly

D．he had to wait for a long time for the fast food

When the writer didn't like the food his grandma cooked when he was growing up, _______．

A．his grandma would make something he liked

B．his grandma would buy him fast food

C．he would sit there waiting for his favourite pizza pie

D．he had to eat it or go without

The writer's purpose of writing this passage is to _____.

A．tell his children there was no fast food in the past

B．tell us that life has been changing

C．tell us how hard it is to deliver newspapers

D．made us understand the meaning of life