In the summer of 1978 an English farmer was driving his tractor through a field of wheat when he discovered that some of his wheat was lying flat on the ground. The fattened (压平的) wheat formed a circle about six meters across. Around this circle were four smaller circles of flattened wheat. The five circles were in a formation like five dots. During the following years, farmers in England found the strange circles in their fields more and more often.
The circles are called “crop circles” because they appear in the fields of grain - usually wheat or corn. The grain in the circles lies flat on the ground but never broken; it continues to grow, and farmers can later harvest it. Farmers always discover the crop circles in the morning, so the circles probably form at night. They appear only in the months from May to September.
At first, people thought that the circles were a hoax. Probably young people were making them as a joke, or farmers were making them to attract tourists. To prove that the circles were a hoax, people tried to make circles exactly like the ones that farmer had found. They couldn’t do it. They couldn’t enter a field of grain without leaving tracks(痕迹), and they couldn’t flatten the grain without breaking it.
Many people believe that beings from outer space are making the circle to communicate with us from far away and that the crop circles are messages from them.
Scientists who have studied the crop circles suggested several possibilities. Some scientists say that a downward rush of wind leads to the formation of the circles - the same downward rush of air that sometimes causes an airplane to crash. Other scientists say that forces within the earth cause the circles to appear. There is one problem with all these scientific explanations: crop circles often appear in formations, like the five-dot formation. It is hard to believe that any natural force could form those.In the summer of 1978, an English farmer discovered in his field that __________.
| A．some of his wheat had been damaged |
| B．his grain was growing up in circles. |
| C．his grain was moved into several circles |
| D．some of his wheat had fallen onto the ground. |
According to the text, the underlined part “hoax” (in the 3rd paragraph) probably means __________.
| A．an attempt made to fool people |
| B．a special way to plant crops |
| C．a research on the force of winds |
| D．an experiment for the protection of crops. |
Which of the following may prove that the crop circles are not made by man?
| A．The farmer couldn’t step out of the field. |
| B．The farmers couldn’t make the circles round. |
| C．The farmers couldn’t leave without footprints. |
| D．The farmers couldn’t keep the wheat straight up. |
A proper title for this passage is ___________.
| A．An Unsolved Mystery |
| B．Strange Flying Objects |
| C．The Power of Natural Forces |
| D．The discovery of Strange Circles |
There is a wide and deep choice of a career. Whether he's a hand in construction or sitting behind the desk working on a computer, everyone has some ideas of what is an attractive career. However, making a career choice is not simply a matter of following a dream; for most people it means a lot of research and soul searching. Choosing the right career becomes one of the most important decisions of an individual's life.
It used to be that one followed in the footsteps of their father or grandfather or took over the family business when it came to making a career choice. These days, a career path can start anywhere and then veer off into something totally different.
Career choices must be realistic and well thought out. It is not uncommon for persons to start a career path and realize they have made a terrible mistake, feeling as if it may be too late to turn around. Not only does a career choice concern your strongest skills and interest, it is also something that you will be doing continuously to bring in income. This is why a career choice can be such a personal decision. Formerly it used to be unusual for someone to change occupations or careers more than once or twice in a lifetime; it is now even more unusual to keep the same career during someone's working life.
There are a great many measures in helping one choose the right profession. A number of websites offering tools such as career tests and information, educational resources, resume services and the kind can be found. It is important for one to research one's career in this changing economy situation, and choose the best from several related career choices.According to the author choosing the right career ______.
| A．is not difficult at all | B．needs a lot of dreams |
| C．is an interesting thing | D．needs a lot of thoughts |
The underlined phrase "veer off" in the second paragraph probably means "______".
| A．set out to do the same job | B．change the former course |
| C．compare two different things | D．dream of getting an easy job |
Nowadays it is common for one to _____.
| A．change his job often | B．do the same job all his life |
| C．find a few good jobs at a time | D．live without a job for many years |
All of the following are the tools on profession offered by websites EXCEPT _____.
| A．tests and information | B．training courses |
| C．employers' phone numbers | D．instructions on resume |
For many people – especially those juggling (兼顾) family and work at the same time --- it can be difficult to stick with a college degree. Kathy Bitzthum thought many times about dropping out of her accounting program at Iowa State University: She had two children and a job at Electronic Technology Corp. She’d only enrolled in the first place because her boss would offer her a promotion if she took a few accounting courses.
Because she only had enough time to take one class at a time, it took her seven years to complete the courses her boss asked her to take on. She received the promotion as her boss promised and wasn’t planning to continue a degree. But a request from her father, who was dying of cancer, made her think twice. He said to her, “Kathy, why don’t you just keep going and get your degree?”
Before he passed away, he made her promise that she would finish it. And he made her a promise in turn. Vitzthum’s parents had agreed to give each of their children a valuable gift when they graduated from college, and Vitzthum was obsessed with an antique she’d come across and knew that she couldn’t afford. After she promised to graduate from college, her parents bought her the antique. Her father told her, “I’m not going to be around when you graduate, so I’ll give this to you now. But it doesn’t _________ until you graduate from college.”
Since then, Vitzthum has looked at that antique every day and remembered the promise she had made to her father. Despite a hectic life as a wife, mother and full-time employee, she’s taken one course every semester for the last 19 years. And finally, at the age of 48, she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in accounting --- and she was excited to accept full ownership (所有权) of the antique that she’d borrowed for more than a decade.What had contributed to Kathy’s studying the accounting program at Iowa State University?
___________________________________________________________________Why did it take Kathy seven years to finish the accounting program?(no more than 10 words)
___________________________________________________________________What did Kathy’s father make her promise to do before he died?(no more than 10 words)
___________________________________________________________________Fill in the blank in Paragraph 3 with proper words.(no more than 3 words)
___________________________________________________________________What does the passage mainly talk about?(no more than 12 words)
___________________________________________________________________
Many adults in the United States can remember crying the nursery rhyme in the street "Hot cross buns!" But only a few people realize this was an early form of advertising.
Written advertisements probably began with hieroglyphics more than three thousand years ago, but only a few people could read these symbols. So merchants made signs with pictures or hung their tools over their doors to identify their businesses.
In the time of the Roman Empire, wall paintings were a popular form of advertisement. An ad for a play, or some other performance was painted on part of a building or on a wall around a city. People often advertised a house for rent or a freshwater bath in this way, too.
Today, large wall signs are still used for outdoor advertising. But outdoor advertising is only a small fraction of the total advertising. About forty per -cent of all ads are printed in daily newspapers. Radio commercials also provide this kind of information. Some people think they are the best form of advertising because radio broadcasts reach almost everyone in a nation.
Advertisements in magazines and on television reach many people, too. However, usually only large companies can advertise on a national network, because TV commercials shown across the country can cost many thousands of dollars.
Then there are ads that are almost part of daily living. If you use public transportation, you will see large printed ads, called ear cards, on buses and taxis and in trains. Ads are painted on the trucks that deliver products people are buying or selling.Which is the passage mainly discussing?
| A．Modern advertising | B．Significance of advertising |
| C．Development of advertising | D．Origin of advertising |
Which of the following is the original form of advertising?
| A．Signs with pictures | B．Wall signs |
| C．Street crying | D．Wall painting |
Which of the following can best replace the underlined word “hieroglyphics” in Paragraph 2?
| A．A signal | B．A signature | C．A symbol | D．A form |
Why did the merchants make signs with pictures or hang their tools over their doors ?
| A．To have their houses decorated. |
| B．To make their business known by public. |
| C．To enable people to learn how to read |
| D．To advertise their houses to rent |
Radio commercials are the best form of advertising because ____________.
| A．they can be heard everywhere in a country |
| B．they are cheap and fast |
| C．they are most recently developed |
| D．they can be understood by those who can neither read nor write |
Surgeons in Spain have successfully carried out the world’s first organ transplant using new stem cell technology. Some people are calling it the greatest medical breakthrough so far this century.
But what are stem cells? As we know, most cells in our bodies are designed to serve specific purposes – for example, a liver cell develops to work in the liver and cannot become a heart cell. But stem cells are different. They are very young, and in the laboratory scientists can grow them into different types of cell.
Claudia Castillo needed a new windpipe after getting a serious disease. Scientists from the University of Bristol in the UK took a donor windpipe, or trachea, from someone who had recently died. They used strong chemicals to remove the donor’s cells, leaving a tissue scaffold(组织支架). This was refilled with cells from Ms Castillo’s windpipe, and stem cells from her bone. After four days the cells had grown sufficiently for the windpipe to be transplanted into Ms Castillo.
Currently, transplant patients have to take drugs for the rest of their lives to prevent their bodies rejecting the new organs. These drugs can have bad side-effects, and do not always prevent rejection. But by using Ms Castillo’s own cells, doctors were able to trick her body into thinking the new windpipe was her own organ. Five months on, Claudia Castillo is in perfect health.
This ground-breaking procedure could be used in other transplant operations in the future. Scientists also believe stem cells might be used to treat Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, stroke, arthritis, diabetes, burns and so on.
However, stem cell research is extremely controversial. The most effective stem cells do not come from adults but from embryos created in laboratories and which are just a few days old. Many people have religious or ethical objections to growing embryos, even if they can be used to cure diseases.This transplant is considered the greatest medical breakthrough because _________.
| A．this is the first organ transplant in the whole world |
| B．the patient is in perfect health after the operation |
| C．it is the first success with new stem cell technology |
| D．the stem cells are from an embryo developed in a lab |
Stem cells are different from the other ceils in the way that __________.
| A．they are grown in the lab only |
| B．they can grow into different types of cell |
| C．they are designed for a specific purpose |
| D．they can work in the liver not in the heart |
What is the main idea of the third paragraph?
| A．How Claudia survived in the operation |
| B．How to remove the cells from the donor’s organ |
| C．Why stem cells are needed in the transplant |
| D．How the windpipe is transplanted |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Human bodies always reject transplanted organs even with their own cells |
| B．The donor’s cells had to be removed because they were unhealthy |
| C．The transplanted organ was refilled with the stem cells only |
| D．Claudia will not have to take drugs to prevent rejection. |
Which word can best describe the scientists’ attitude towards the stem cell technology?
| A．controversial | B．confident |
| C．conservative (保守的) | D．critical |
Hoffman，40，a former senior vice president of a financial company，had what she describes as “one of those extreme jobs.” “I loved working,” she says. But her career path reached a crossroad when her second child was born，and she left her job in February 2007. Hoffman is one of many people who have left the work force to take a break，but she has a position as a consultant．She has described this type of career detour(绕路) ----- which is more common for women than for men—as “off- ramping．” Typically it occurs when the balancing act of parenting and work becomes too tough．
A study by the center found that more than 90 percent of women who off-ramp want to on-ramp back into the work force eventually．But making the transition back to work is rarely easy，and it is even harder in this economic climate of layoffs and hiring freezes.
Considering some of the obstacles faced by on- rampers , a three-day program called “Greater Returns：Restarting Your Career” was held at Columbia University. The goal of the three days was to have them walk away with a big shot of confidence.
According to one school of thought, women looking to make a comeback might even have an advantage in the current economy，especially if they are looking for part-time or consultant positions that do not offer benefits. And a majority of on-rampers are women with extensive working experiences that could give them a slight advantage over less-experienced competition．
“You absolutely cannot be defensive about why you off-ramped,” Ms Hoffman says, “ defensive” would have put her into a hard situation if the Greater Returns program had had not taught her how to describe the years she spent at home．“I now feel confident talking to an employer and saying，‘ Yes，I have been out of the work force，but here is where I can make significant contributions.’”What is the best title for the passage?
| A．Off ramp：it is common |
| B．On ramp：it is easy |
| C．Off ramp or on ramp：it depends on confidence |
| D．Off ramp to on ramp：it can be a hard Journey |
According to the passage，Greater Returns___________．
| A．is intended to relieve the pressure of the jobless women |
| B．has all the jobless women restart their career |
| C．will build up the confidence of those in search of jobs |
| D．is to last a11 the year around for the jobless women |
The main reason for the women’s off-ramping is that_________．
| A．they have to suffer the sexual discrimination |
| B．they have to parent their children |
| C．they reach a crossroad of career |
| D．they have great work pressure |
From what Ms．Hoffman says in the last paragraph，we can conclude________ .
| A．she didn’t get advice from the Greater Returns program |
| B．she was defensive about her off-ramping |
| C．she didn’t get the job because she lied about her experience |
| D．she is off ramp partly due to her straightforward manner |
Which job is easier to get for a woman off-ramper?
| A．Regular workers. | B．Casual workers. |
| C．Company managers. | D．Bank clerks. |