My father is a smart man. He spent many years of his life listening to people’s arguments, first as assistant district lawyer and then as a judge. My dad knows rubbish rhetoric when he hears it.
One of his favorite phrases is: “If you don’t have anything smart to say, then don’t say it at all.” Yet, for all of his legal training and life experience, he can’t help but keep talking about the Mega Millions jackpot.
We all know the odds(几率)of winning the jackpot this evening with one ticket are extraordinarily low ... 1 in 175, 711, 536, to be exact. Still, people go out and buy hundreds of tickets with the hopes of becoming wealthier beyond their dreams. Why? There are two possible explanations for this “irrationality”(不理智).
One idea is that the way we calculate odds in our heads has nothing to do with mathematical odds in the traditional sense. We don’t go to the mathematical odds table and say, “Well, this would be a terrible investment. I think I’m better off putting my money in the bank!” Rather, it has everything with the ability to picture an event happening.
My father, for instance, watches the news every night and sees people winning the lottery(彩票). Therefore, he thinks the chance of him winning the lottery is much higher than they actually are.
The second thought is that the expected effect of playing cannot be represented merely by the odds. My father and, I’m sure, others get a thrill from the mere idea of winning. He loves imagining what it would be like to actually win and losing doesn’t really affect him. Sure, he’s disappointed, but it’s “better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” When you combine the utility of thinking you can win with the utility of actually winning (no matter how small the chance of that occurring), it’s worth it for many people to spend the one dollar on a ticket.
My analysis is that both factors are at play in taking a chance on the lottery. My father and others really do underestimate the odds of winning, but the thrill of participation is not denied by a realistic assessment of the odds. Still, I would probably put my finger on the scale for the first explanation.
All told, a review of the odds of other events happening confirms that there just aren’t many events that occur with less frequency than your winning the Mega Millions jackpot. Look at the graph below, you may understand some:
In many ways, it’s like the lottery, something that features often on television and about which people fantasize, but that rarely happens.
So, when you watch, along with my Pa, to see if your lucky number is drawn this evening, keep in mind three things: that your number almost certainly won’t come up; that you are still going to have fun; and that, finally, a lot of other things are more likely to happen—but getting eaten by a shark isn’t one of them. It can be learned from the article that ________.
| A．the Mega Millions jackpot is the last lottery to win in the world |
| B．a judge in that country can’t talk about lottery because it is illegal |
| C．the writer doesn’t buy lottery, for he never hopes to become rich |
| D．In spite of little possibility, a lot of people spend money on lottery |
The function of the graph is to ________.
| A．show chances that those things take place are fewer |
| B．support the writer’s arguments on the lottery tickets |
| C．indicate no one can win the Mega Millions jackpot |
| D．say shark attack death will seldom happen this year |
Which of the following do you think the writer would probably agree with?
| A．If one has mathematical odds, he can win the prize more easily. |
| B．Only those who have irrationality buy hundreds of lottery tickets. |
| C．The Mega Millions jackpot is very popular in the writer’s country. |
| D．Winning lottery is a shortcut to achieve the dream of being rich. |
The underlined phrase “at play” in the 7th paragraph most probably means ________.
| A．effective | B．ridiculous | C．contradictory | D．astonishing |
What do you think is the best title?
| A．The Popular Mega Millions Jackpot | B．Lottery is Merely a Trick |
| C．Mega Million is Like a Shark Attack | D．Be rich, Buy Lottery Soon |
From the moment that an animal is born it has to make decisions. It has to decide which of the things around it are for eating, and which are to be avoided; when to attack and when to run away. The animal is , in fact , playing a very dangerous game with its environment , a game in which it must make decision—a matter of life or death .
Animals’ ability to act reasonably is believed to come partly from what we may call “genetic (遗传性的)learning” , which is different from the individual (个体的) learning that an animal does in the course of its own lifetime . Genetic learning is learning by a
species —animals of the same kind—as a whole , and it is achieved by selection of those members of each generation that happen to act in the right way . However, the role of genetic learning depends upon how similar the future environment is to the past. The more important individual experience is likely to be, the less important is genetic learning as a means of getting over the problems of the survival game. Because most animals live in ever changing environments from one generation to the next, it is not surprising to find that very few species indeed depend wholly upon genetic learning.
In the great majority of animals , their particular ways of acting in a new environment are a compound (复合体) of individual experience added to the action patterns animals are born with .That is why animals can survive.
72．The animal’s life will come to an end .
A．if the animal makes a wrong decision B．if the animal plays a dangerous game
C．when the animal attacks its enemy D．when the animal runs too slowly
73．Very few species depend entirely on genetic learning because .
A．each generation has its own way of learning
B．their environments change all the time
C．they can act reasonably on their own
D．it takes their whole life to learn
74．When the environment doesn’t change much, .
A．animals cannot act in a right way
B．genetic learning is less important for animals
C．individual learning plays a less important role
D．animals cannot get over problems on their on their own
75．Animals’ living on generation after generation depends on .
A．their natural action pattern with their own experience
B．the lessons they have learnt during their lifetime
C．their experience in particular environments
D．the knowledge passed on by their parents
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64．How can you get 6 movies for 1 ￠ each?
A．Buy six more movies at the Club prices in the next 3 years.
B．Buy two more movies at the low price of $6.95 later.
C．Buy six more movies at the price of $19.95 all the time.
D．Buy many more movies at lower prices anytime.
65．You may receive a free Video Magazine _________ a year.
A．13 timesB．12 times C．4 timesD．17 times
66．You can have _______ besides a free Video Magazine every four weeks.
A．Special Selection and Director’s Selection
B．lower-priced cassettes and movies
C．lower-priced cassettes and Special Selection
D．Director’s Selection and a number of lower-priced cassettes
67．We can learn from the passage that the members of the Club ________.
A．cannot cancel their membership anytime
B．can return everything 10 days later, if not satisfied
C．can always buy what they want at the lowest price.
D．can enjoy more savings from the very beginning
Language as a System of Symbols
Of all systems of symbols(符号), language is the most highly developed. It has been pointed out that human beings, by agreement, can make anything stand for anything. Human beings have agreed, in the course of centuries of mutual(相互的)dependency, to let the various noises that they can produce with their lungs, throats, tongues, teeth, and lips systematically stand for certain happenings in their nervous systems. We call that system of agreements language.
There is no necessary connection between the symbol and that which it stands for. Just as social positions can be symbolized by feathers worn on the head, by gold on the watch chain, or by a thousand other things according to the culture we live in, so the fact of being hungry can be symbolized by a thousand different noises according to the culture we live in.
However obvious these facts may appear at first glance, they are actually not so obvious as they seem except when we take special pains to think about the subject. Symbols and the things they stand for are independent of each other, yet we all have a way of feeling as if, and sometimes acting as if, there were necessary connections. For example, there are people who feel that foreign languages are unreasonable by nature; foreigners have such funny names for things, and why can’t they call things by their right names? This feeling exhibits itself most strongly in those English and American tourists who seem to believe that they can make the natives of any country understand English if they shout loud enough. Like the little boy who is reported to have said: “Pigs are called pigs because they are such dirty animals,” they feel that the symbol is inherently(内在地) connected in some way with the things symbolized.
69. Language is a highly developed system of symbols because human beings ______.
A. have made use of language for centuries B. use our nervous systems to support language
C. have made various noises stand for any events
D. can make anything stand for anything by agreement
70. What can we conclude from Paragraph 2?
A. Different noises may mean different things.
B. Our culture determines what a symbol stands for.
C. The language we use symbolizes our social positions.
D. Our social positions determine the way we are dressed.
71. In Paragraph 3, “take special pains” probably means “_____”.
A. try very hard B. take our time C. are very unhappy D. feel especially painful
72. The example of the little boy is used to show that _____.
A. adults often learn from their young
B. “pig” is a dirty word because pigs are dirty
C. words are not connected with the things they stand for
D. people sometimes have wrong ideas about how language works
Have you ever received a gift that was so clearly not your taste that you wondered if perhaps it had been handed to you by mistake? Worse, have you ever given a present and watched your friend look as though she had opened the wrong box? Maybe she responded with a polite "Why, thank you," but you knew you had missed the mark. Why do presents sometimes go wrong? And what do your choices (good and bad) reflect about your personal qualities?
Choosing the right gift is an art, I believe. It calls for empathy — the ability to put yourself into someone else's head and heart .We're all able to do this; in fact, we're born with a kind of natural empathy. After the earliest period of childhood, however, it needs to be reinforced (加强)—by our parents, teachers, friends. When it isn't, we're not able to understand other people's feelings as sharply. This can show in the gifts we select, and so can many other emotional (情感的) qualities.
Think back to the presents you’ve given over the past year, the time and effort you put into your selection, how much you spent, your thoughts while you were shopping, and your feelings when the receiver opened the package. Keep in mind that what you choose displays your inner world. Of course, you may express yourself differently with different friends, relatives, and other people you know.
We live in a society where exchanging presents is an important part of communication. Ignoring the tradition won't make it go away. If you really dislike such a tradition, tell your friends ahead of time.
60. The underlined expression "you had missed the mark" means "you had failed to _____'.
A. make her feel better B. keep your friendship
C. receive a present in return D. get the expected effect
61. Which of the following is the main idea of the second paragraph?
A. Natural empathy needs to be reinforced.
B. Emotional changes influence one's choice of gifts.
C. Selecting the right gift is an ability people are born with.
D. Choosing gifts requires one to understand the receivers.
62. In the third paragraph, the author tells us that________..
A. attention should be paid to the receivers' responses
B. one learns from what he did in the past
C. the choice of gifts reflects one's emotional qualities
D. one should spend more time choosing gifts
63. The best possible title for this passage is “_______”.
A. Ways of Choosing Gifts B. An Important Tradition
C. Exchanging Presents D. Message in a Gift
The report came to the British on May 21, 1941. The German battleship Bismarck, the most powerful warship in the world, was moving out into the Atlantic Ocean. Her task: to destroy the ships carrying supplies from the United States to war-torn England.
The British had feared such a task. No warship they had could match the Bismarck in speed in firepower. The Bismarck had eight 15-inch guns and 81 smaller guns. She could move at 31 nautical miles (海里) an hour. She was believed to be unsinkable.However, the British had to sink her. They sent out a task force headed by their best battleship Hood to hunt down the Bismarck. On May 24, the Hood found the Bismarck.
It was a meeting that the German commander Luetjens did not want to see. His orders were to destroy the British ships that were carrying supplies, but to stay away from a fight with British warships.
The battle didn't last long. The Bismarck's first torpedo (鱼雷) hit the Hood, which went down taking all but three of her 1 419 men with her.
But in the fight, the Bismarck was slightly damaged (损坏). Her commander decided to run for repair to France, which had at that time been taken by the Germans. The British force followed her. However, because of the Bismarck's speed and the heavy fog, they lost sight of her.
For two days, every British ship in the Atlantic tried to find the Bismarck, but with no success. Finally, she was sighted by a plane from Ireland. Trying to slow the Bismarck down so that their ships could catch up with her, the British fired at her from the air. The Bismarck was hit.
On the morning of May 27, the last battle was fought. Four British ships fired on the Bismarck, and she was finally sunk.
61. The Bismarck sailed into the Atlantic Ocean _______.
A. to sink the Hood B. to gain control of France
C. to cut off American supplies to British D. to stop British warship reaching German
62. Many people believed that Bismarck could not be defeated because she _______.
A. was fast and powerful B. had more men on board
C. was under Luetjens' command D. had biggest guns than other ships
63. We learn from the text that on 24 May _______.
A. the British won the battle against the Bismarck
B. the Bismarck won the battle against the British
C. the British gunfire damaged the Bismarck seriously
D. the Bismarck succeeded in keeping away from the British
64. Luetjens tried to sail to France in order to _______.
A. have the ship repaired B. join the other Germans
C. get help from the French D. get away from the British
65. Which of the following is the immediate cause of the sinking of the Bismarck?
A. The British air strikes. B. The damage done by the Hood.
C. Gunfire from four British ships. D. Luetjens' decision to run for France.