As any homemaker who has tried to keep order at the dinner table knows, there is far more to a family meal than food. Sociologist Michael Lewis has been studying 50 families to find out just how much more.
Lewis and his co-workers carried out their study by videotaping the families while they ate ordinary meals in their own homes. They found that parents with small families talk actively with each other and their children. But as the number of children gets larger, conversation gives way to the parents’ efforts to control the loud noise they make. That can have an important effect on the children." In general the more question-asking the parents do, the higher the children’s IQ scores," Lewis says. "And the more children there are, the less question-asking there is."
The study also provides an explanation for why middle children often seem to have a harder time in life than their siblings(兄弟，姐妹). Lewis found that in families with three or four children, dinner conversation is likely to center on the oldest child, who has the most to talk about, and the youngest, who needs the most attention. “Middle children are invisible,” says Lewis. “When you see someone get up from the table and walk around during dinner, chances are that it’s the middle child.” There is, however, one thing that stops all conversation and prevents anyone from having attention: “When the TV is on,” Lewis says, “dinner is a non-event(扫兴的事).”The writer’s purpose in writing the text is to _________.
| A．show the relationship between parents and children |
| B．teach parents ways to keep order at the dinner table |
| C．report on the findings of a study |
| D．give information about family problems |
Parents with large families ask fewer questions at dinner because____.
| A．they are busy serving food to their children |
| B．they are busy keeping order at the dinner table |
| C．they have to pay more attention to younger children |
| D．they are tired out having prepared food for the whole family |
By saying “Middle children are invisible” in paragraph 3, Lewis means that middle children__________.
| A．have to help their parents to serve dinner |
| B．get the least attention from the family |
| C．are often kept away from the dinner table |
| D．find it hard to keep up with other children |
Lewis’ research provides an answer to the question_________.
| A．why TV is important in family life |
| B．why parents should keep good order |
| C．why children in small families seem to be quieter |
| D．why middle children seem to have more difficulties in life |
Which of the following statements would the writer agree to?
| A．It is important to have the right food for children. |
| B．It is a good idea to have the TV on during dinner. |
| C．Parents should talk to each of their children frequently. |
| D．Elder children should help the younger ones at dinner. |
The website “FarmersOnly.com” calls itself an online dating and friendship finder. The idea started in the mind of a man, Jerry Miller in Ohio. He wondered how farmers could meet new people who understand the life of a farmer. Jerry Miller is not a farmer but he represents a lot of farmers.
As he tells it, the idea for the site was planted when a farmer told him one day that she was recently divorced and would like to date. But someone would invite her to meet for coffee at nine o’clock at night, when she had to start her day at five the next morning.
So, in 2005, Jerry Miller launched his website. “You don’t have to be a farmer to be on FarmersOnly.com, but you do have to have the good old-fashioned traditional values of America’s Heartland.”
You also have to live in the United States or Canada to be a member of the site. Some services are free, but a full membership costs fifty dollars for a year. As of last week the site listed more than 58,000 members. Many of them are farmers in the United States. Others are students or workers involved in some way with agriculture. Jerry Miller tells us about thirty marriages in the last year have resulted from his website.
Some farmers have also found love through a group, Singles in Agriculture, which was formed as a nonprofit organization in 1986. It organizes gatherings that usually end with a dance, but is not a dating service. The purpose is to support educational and social activities that offer people a chance for friendsh
ip. Its website, singlesinag.org, says there are more than 1,000 members across the nation and as far away as France. Jerry Miller started singlesinag.org in order to .
| A．help farmers | B．represent farmers |
| C．support traditions | D．understand farmers |
Which of the following is true of singlesinag.org?
| A．It provides dating services. |
| B．Only farmers can become its members. |
| C．Its services are free. |
| D．Farmers in France can’t benefit from it. |
The author of the text intends to .
| A．advertise for the two websites |
| B．urge readers to help farmers |
| C．intro duce two websites |
| D．encourage social activities |
It can be inferred from the text that .
| A．farmers are easy to meet new people |
| B．the Internet helps improve farmers’ social life |
| C．all farmers desire marriage |
| D．more farmers get divorced in the USA |
Parents are often amazed at how fast their child grows and develops. New research has determined that the ability to quantify may develop much sooner than most parents realize.
Kristy vanMarle, professor of the University of Missouri, has determined that contrary to what previous studies have shown, infants（婴儿）are able to quantify substances（物质）—like sand or water—as early as 10 months. As long as the difference between the two substances is large enough, infants will choose the larger amount, especially when it comes to food.
With the assistance of her team researchers, vanMarle tested the quantifying skills of babies by presenting them with two cups: one containing a small amount of food, and one containing a larger amount. Consistently, the babies chose the larger amount.
“Several studies throughout the last 15 years have shown that infants are very good at telling how many objects they see; however, infants don’t seem to count things like water or sand,” vanMarle said. “What we’re saying is that they can quantify substances; it’s just much harder. The infants can see how much food goes into each cup and compare that in their memories. They decide which amount is larger, and they almost always select the larger one.”
“This information further refutes（驳斥）the long-held idea that babies “know nothing of the world,” vanMarle said.
“Since psychologists have begun studying infants with sensitive measures, we’ve discovered a lot of early abilities. I think for parents, it should be exciting to know that there’s somebody in there that has some fundamental and basic knowledge of the world, and that knowledge is guiding their development,” vanMarle said.
In the future, vanMarle says this kind of study could be linked to a child’s progress in math-related skills, although programs marketed to increase those abilities, such as “Baby Einstein,” still have mixed reviews when it comes to academic study. The quantifying ability refers to the ability to .
| A．get much knowledge of the world |
| B．identify the quantity of something |
| C．choose between different substances |
| D．obtain math-related skills |
Babies choose the larger amount of food .
| A．on personal preference | B．by saying numbers |
| C．with the help of parents | D．through their natural abilities |
We can learn from the text that .
| A．people used to think the world is known to babies |
| B．scholars disagree on baby-training programs |
| C．little research has been done on infants |
| D．some parents don’t care about their kids |
When did you last visit a shopping mall? In many places, the answer would be “last weekend”. Some people go even more often. Why? For one thing, malls offer goods and services that people need all in one place : food, clothing, things for their houses, entertainment，and even medical services. So, are mallsone of the highlights of modern civilization? Environmental activists wo
uld say “No!” They would go even further and say that consumer behavior is causing a huge environmental disaster. They cause consumers of ignorance of the side effect of their shopping—urban sprawl (城市杂乱无序拓展的地区）.
Social scientists agree that patterns of development have changed the landscape a great deal in the last half century. Prior to 1950，most people lived in towns or cities and either walked to work or took public transportation. Only very wealthy people had automobiles. Farmers lived in rural areas or isolated villages and came into town only when they needed things they couldn’t produce themselves. If you gazed at the landscape you would see towns surrounded by countryside. Then a massive change occurred.
Automobiles became affordable and people were quick to adopt them. Now ambitious workers could live in the suburbs, the areas just outside cities, which started to grow rapidly. As long as there was lots of cheap land in the suburbs, no one paid much attention to the usage of that land. Malls, fast food restaurants, cinemas, and car dealerships spread out in large, flat buildings. These one - storey buildings and their parking lot took up a great deal of space. Well - meaning farmers thought they were better off selling their land than growing crops. In ignorance, no one realized that once the land was built up in urban sprawl, the good farming land would be ruined forever. There was no way to preserve it.
Only in recent years have people come to mourn the old way of life as they have developed insight into the problems of unconditional growth. Now people realize that urban sprawl has come with serious environmental problems. The negative aspects of sprawl include air and water pollution, loss of agricultural land, traffic jams, and the death of businesses in the old town centers. Many scholars think the time has come to analyze the problems better so we can develop appropriate policies to control further sprawl. Some think the best way to do is to educate citizens about their priceless environment.What is mainly discussed in the passage?
| A．Urban sprawl | B．Weekend fun |
| C．New automobiles | D．Isolated villages |
Who do activists blame for environmental problems?
| A．Endangered animals. | B．Unthinking shoppers. |
| C．Shopping mall owners. | D．Ambitious farmers. |
What does the underlined word “They” refer to in the first paragraph?.
| A．Activists | B．Malls. | C．Farmers. | D．Scientists. |
What is the scholars’ attitude toward urban sprawl?
| A．Respectful. | B．Pessimistic. | C．Disapproving. | D．Doubtful. |
Below is some advice on how to sleep better.
1. Maintain a regular bed and wake time schedule
Go to bed at the same time every night. Choose a time when you normally feel tired, so that you don’t toss or turn. Try not to break this routine on weekends when it may be tempting to stay up late. If you want lo changeyour bedtime, help your body adjust by making the changein small daily increments, such as 15 minutes earlier or later each day. As with your bedtime, try to maintain yourregular wake-time even on weekends.
2.Fight after-dinner drowsiness（睡意）
If you find yourself getting sleepy before your bed-time, get off the couch and do something mildly stimulating to avoid falling asleep, such as washing the dishes, calling a friend, or getting clothes ready for the next day. If you give in to the drowsiness, you may wake up later in the night and have trouble getting back to sleep.
3. Keep your room dark and cool
When it’s time to sleep, make sure that your environment is dark. Even dim light —especially those from TV or computer screens —can confuse the body clock. Heavy curtains or shades can help block light from windows, or you can try an eye mask to cover your eyes. The temperature of you
r bedroom also affects sleep. A bedroom that is too hot or too cold can interfere with quality sleep.
4. Turn off your television
Many people use the television to fall asleep or relaxat the end of the day. You may even have a television inyour bedroom. However, television actually stimulates themind, rather than relaxing it. Part of this is due to content. Late night news and prime time shows frequently have disturbing, violent mat
erial. Even non-violent programming can have commercials that are jarring and loud.
5. Exercise early
Exercise helps promote restful sleep if it is done several hours before you go to bed. Exercise can help you fall asleep faster and sleep more soundly— as long asit ’s done at the right time. Try to finish exercising at least three hours before bed or work out earlier in the day.
6. Consult your doctor
Use a sleep diary and talk to your doctor. Note what type of sleep problem is affecting your sleep or if you aresleepy when you wish to be awake and alert. Try these tips and record your sleep and sleep-related activities in a sleep diary. If problems continue, discuss the sleep diary with your doctor. There may be an underlying cause and you will want to be properly diagnosed. Your doctor will help treat the problem or may refer you to a sleep specialist.To prevent yourself from sleeping too much on weekends, you should________.
| A．go lo bed 15 minutes earlier than usual |
| B．go to bed at usual time |
| C．go to bed at any time |
| D．make an adjustment to your bedtime |
Which of the following makes it easier for you to have a sound sleep?
| A．Watching violent programmesbefore going to bed. |
| B．Changing your bedtime only a little every day. |
C．U sing heavy curtains or an eye mask to block light. |
| D．Completing your workout just before bedtime. |
The following ways can help fight after-dinner drowsinessEXCEPT_______.
| A．making a telephone call |
| B．doing some washing |
| C．getting clothes ready for the next day |
| D．having a rest on the sofa |
If your sleep problems continue, you’d better_____________
| A．move into a new house |
| B．discuss it with your family |
| C．change your present job |
| D．turn to the doctor for help |
One of the most famous nursery rhymes(摇篮曲) in the English language is Mary Had a Little Lamb(羔羊). It has touched many children who have read it. It is about the deep love between a young girl and her pet lamb. The poem is from a true story that happened in the early part of the 19th century in the town
of Sterling, Massachusetts, in the USA.
Mary Sawyer (1806－1889) lived on a farm with her family. One day, when she was about nine years old, she saw a little lamb that had just been born and left behind by its mother. It was very weak and looked as if it would die at very moment. Mary took pity on the lamb and spent the whole night looking after it. Eventually, it grew strong and became a very close friend with Mary, following her everywhere she went.
One day, the lamb even followed Mary to school. At first she wanted to turn it back but her brother suggested that it would be fun to take the lamb to school. During the class, she hid the lamb under her desk. But when she was called to go to the front of the class, to her surprise, the lamb followed her. Though the students and the teacher thought it was funny to see a lamb at school, the teacher had to ask Mary to keep the lamb outside of the school.
That very day, a young man called John Roulstone was visiting Mary’s school. He was so moved by the love between the child and her little pet lamb that he wrote a poem which he handed to Mary the next day. His poem contained twelve lines.
Later, Sara Josepha Hale added another twelve lines to the poem and published it in 1930 under the title “Mary Had a Little Lamb”. The poem has become a classic, loved by children all over the world. The appeal (吸引力) of the poem lies not only in the funny idea of a sheep going to school but also in the true love between the little girl and her pet. The town of Sterling has honoured Mary’s lamb by building a statue (雕像) of the lamb with Mr Roulstone’s poem below the statue. What is the best title for the passage?
| A．Mary Had a Little Lamb | B．The Life of Mary Sawyer |
| C．The Origin of a Poem | D．An Animal Friend |
The
underlined word “eventually” in the second paragraph most probably means .
| A．fortunately | B．gradually | C．finally | D．kindly |
Why did the poem become a classic?
| A．It had another twelve lines added. |
| B．It was written by a young man. |
| C．It describes the true love between a little girl and her pet lamb. |
| D．A statue of lamb was built in the town of Sterling. |
Which could be the right order of the following events according to the passage?
a. The poem “Mary Had a Little Lamb”became popular.
b. Mary’s brother suggested that she take the lamb to school.
c. People built a statue to honor the lamb.
d. Mary found a little lamb.
e. A young man was moved by the story and wrote a poem.
| A． d. b. e. c. a | B． d. b. e. a. c |
| C． d. e. b. c. a | D． d. e. b. a. c |
Which of the following statements can be inferred from the passage?
| A．Mary’s mother was also fond of the little lamb. |
| B．Mary and the little lamb developed a very close friendship. |
| C．Mary wrote to John Roulstone and asked him to write the poem. |
| D．All children were allowed to take their pets to school in America. |