0ur village carpenter(木匠),John Hill, came one day and made a dining table for my wife. He made it just the right size to fill the space between the two window. When I got home that evening, John was drinking a cup of tea and writing out his bill( 账单) for his job.
My wife said to me quietly, “That’s his ninth cup of tea today. ”But she said in a loud voice, “It’s a beautiful table, dear, isn’t it?” “I’ll decide about that when I see the bill,” I said. John laughed and gave me his bill for the work. I read:
One dining table 10th November, 2011
Cost of wood $ 17:00
Paint $1. 50
Work, 8 hours($1 an hour) $8. 00
Total $36. 50
When I was looking at the bill, John said,” It’s been a fine day, hasn’t it? Quite sunny. ”
“Yes,” I said. “I’m glad it’s only the 10th of November. ”
“Me, too,” said John, “you wait—it will be a lot colder by the end of the month. ”
“Yes, colder—and more expensive! Dining table will be $20 more expensive on November 30th, won’t they, John?”
John looked hard at me for half a minute. Was there a little smile in his two blue eyes? I gave his bill back to him.
“If it’s not too much trouble, John,” I said,“Please add(加) it up again, You can forget the date-------”
I paid him $26. 50 and he was happy to get it. Why did John talk about the weather when the writer was looking at the bill?
A. Because he didn’t want the writer to check the bill carefully. |
B. Because he wanted to show that he was really polite. |
C.Because it’s a good way to communicate with each other. |
D.Because he wanted to confirm what the weather was like. |
How much would John ask for if he made a dining table on the last day of December according to his bill?
A.$ 26. 50 | B.$36. 50 | C.$56. 50 | D.$57. 50 |
When John got the money, he was happy because__________________________.
A. he felt lucky to get the money for his work |
B. he got paid a lot more than usual for his work |
C. he got as much money as he had expected |
D. he didn’t have to add up the costs any more |
Which word can best describe John?
A. Clever | B. Silly | C. Dishonest | D. Humorous(幽默的) |
What can we learn about John from the passage?
A. He made a mistake carelessly in the bill |
B. He tried to get more money for his work. |
C. He had written the bill before the writer got home |
D. He had talked about the bill with the writer’s wife. |
Nearly eight hundred million people in this world cannot read or write,most of them in developing countries.Two-thirds are women and girls.
John Wood who started the Room to Read campaign (运动),has opened1650 schools and 15000 libraries in some of the world's poorest communities(社区).He said that from the beginning,Room to Read's goal was to reach 10 million children around the world in the poorest countries.
In 1998,on a three-week vacation journey in Nepal,Wood met a local headmaster who invited him to visit his school in a far mountain village.The experience changed Wood's life.
"This headmaster had 450 students at the school,but he didn't have any books," Wood said."He had a library that was empty."
Wood promised to fill the library shelves and returned to the village one year later with some of his friends with 3000 books.And that was just the start.Later,Wood used some of his personal money to start Room to Read. He believes that world change begins with educated children.Today,the programme can be found in10 countries across Asia and Africa.
Wood believes the key to the program's success is local support.While Room to Read gives away money and provides books,communities offer land and parents help build the school.Agnes,a Room to Read teacher in Zambia who also runs the library,is proud to say the literacy' at her school has improved. Room to Read's biggest challenge is the huge need. Hundreds of communities have asked for literacy prograrnmes.One way of Room to Read's success is that it will achieve Wood's goal of reaching 10 million kids by 2015,five years earlier than it is planned.The purpose of the Room to Read campaign is to ____.
A.ask parents to read together with their children |
B.help poor children to learn to read and write |
C.tell more people the importance of reading |
D.help 10 million children to go to college |
When John Wood travelled in Nepal in 1998,he ____.
A.visited many local schools |
B.sent many books to local children |
C.started the Room to Read campaign |
D.met a man who changed his life |
The underlined part "the literacy" in the last paragraph refers to(指的是).____
A.the teaching conditions |
B.the teaching quality |
C.students' ability to read and write |
D.the money teachers earn every month |
John Wood is a person that is ____.
A.helpful and generous |
B.honest and brave |
C.careless but active |
D.strict but friendly |
Please sit down and enjoy your meal.Just don't talk about it.
These are the requirements at a popular dining party that is known as "silent dinners".It encourages people who take part in the dining party not to speak for one to two hours and not to use electronic devices.Instead,the idea is to just on the food.
"Silent dinner parties are fast growing," said Honi Ryan,who has hosted 32 silent dinner parties in 11 cities across eight countries,including Germany,Australia and the United States."The way we communicate is changing so fast that we need to stop and think about it."
According to a 2013 nationwide survey,restaurant noise came in second only to poor service among customer(顾客) complaints.And 19 percent of diners who took part in the survey said noise and crowds disturbed them most while eating out.
Though silent dinners may seem curious,the idea is not a new one.Yogis(瑜伽信徒) have long enjoyed silent meals as part of a deepened practice.In fact,it was a trip to a temple(寺庙) in India by a man that encouraged one Brooklyn restaurant recently to add a silent dinner to its event programming.
"We'll make a small speech at the beginning of the meal to make sure everyone understands what is happening and ask them not to speak or use their mobile phones for at least an hour," said EAT Greenpoint owner Jordan Colon.And background music will be turned off,too.
"It's funny;when I first opened EAT,I didn't play music for some time and people had very different reactions(反映) to that," said Colon."Some people who come out to eat are ready to party,but it was so quiet without music.But I wanted to create an environment that makes you relaxed."
Although personal reactions to a silent dinner may be various,in general they are more likely to get into a lot of talk afterwards,said Ryan."At the end of the night people always have a lot to say about silence.But the most reaction is that there is always a good laugh."The first paragraph is written to be a(n)____ .
A.conclusion | B.introduction |
C.argument | D.warning |
At silent dinner parties,people should not____.
A.leave before they finish eating |
B.just pay attention to the food |
C.use a mobile phone or listen to music |
D.take electronic devices to the party |
What does the writer try to tell us in Paragraph 5?
A.Silent meals help people live longer. |
B.Yogis are the first to hold silent dinners. |
C.More and more people like eating in silence. |
D.The idea of eating in silence appeared long ago. |
In Jordan Colon's opinion,silent dinners ____.
A.make people comfortable and relaxed |
B.are hard to be accepted by most people |
C.can help him to attract more customers |
D.provide a chance to get to know others |
Biking is an amazing family activity,but finding a route that is suitable for different,ages is a little difficult.Lee McNeil and his family ate crazy about biking.They have seven children,from 4 to 24 years old.When looking for a route,they look for enough protection from traffic,good surface condition and interesting views.
Here are some great routes for biking with your whole family which are suggested by McNeil.
Iron Horse Trail
This is the McNeil family's favorite ride.The route ~s 26 miles and goes through the 2.1 mile Snoqualmie Tunnel."Beautiful views,the tunnel,and places to stop and watch the rock climbers make it special," McNeil said."All our kids have taken their turn to go through the black tunnel bravely for the first time and we celebrate it at the end of the ride." If you prefer,check http://bit,ly/Mlt9y4 for more information.
Centennial Trail
The Centennial Trail runs for 23 miles from Snohomish to Bryant.The trail is wide and smooth,and is safe for kids as it is off the roads.A nice stop is Lake Cassidy east of Marysville.A dock(码头) on the lake is fun to explore.It also has picnic tables and washrooms for a convenient(方便的) lunch-time stop.For a map,go to http://bit.ly/L5qCeY.
Cascade Trail
The Cascade Trail is 23 miles.The slope(斜坡) is gentle and it makes for an easy family ride.McNeil said it is a "beautiful ride up the Skagit Valley,with lots of places to watch wildlife along the river".Go to http://bit,ly/PR4wOW to see a map showing the trail,parking areas and bus stops.
Other good choices
Snoqualmie Valley Trail: http : / / L.usa.Gov/n WGWO
Guemes Island: http://bit,ly/LJ3RxL
Burke-Gilman Trail: http : / /l.usa.gov/ s33liWhich of the following route do McNeil's family like best?
A.Cascade Trail. | B.Iron Horse Trail. |
C.Centennial Trail. | D.Burke-Gilman Trail. |
If you choose the Centennial Trail,you can ____.
A,watch the rock climbers B.see a small valley
C.go through a tunnelD.have a picnic for lunchThe main purpose of the passage is to ____.
A.ask people to learn from Lee McNeil |
B.tell people how to make a family ride |
C.introduce some routes for family rides |
D.encourage more people to ride bikes |
任务型阅读 (共5小题;每小题2分,满分10分)
阅读下面短文,根据短文内容回答问题并按要求完成第105题。
Have you ever heard of e-books? E-books are electronic books. They are no larger than an ordinary(普通的)book, with a screen on which you can read.
How does the e-book work?
First, you call up websites on your computer and choose books that you want. There are thousands of books provided by different websites on the Internet. Then download the books you like on to your e-book. You can download about 10 books at a time. Now you can just sit back and enjoy yourself reading.
Compared with ordinary books, e-books have many advantages. First of all, e-books save space. You can put as many as 10 books into a thing no bigger than a pocket radio and then carry it everywhere. You can renew(更新) reading materials in your e-book as many times as you like. With the development of e-book technology, probably an e-library will appear. Then you just take your e-books there and download what you want to read. You no longer need to worry about whether your books are over-due( 逾期 )or not.Is an e-book larger than an ordinary book?
______________________________________________How many books can you download at a time?
______________________________________________What will probably appear in the future?
______________________________________________How many times can you renew reading materials in your e-book?
______________________________________________将划线句子翻译成中文
_____________________________________________
阅读下面短文,从方框内选择恰当的句子填入文中空白处,使短文内容完整、意思连贯。
Where do our favorite foods come from? The truth may surprise you. Did you know curry isn’t Indian? Did you know Americans weren’t the first to eat hamburgers? Or did you know pizza wasn’t created in Italy?
First, let’s talk about curry. But in reality(事实), wealthy English people were cooking with curry spices (香料) hundreds of years before British ships traveled to India.
Cooks of wealthy English families created curry dishes, and later these dishes became popular in other parts of England.
The Persians were eating round, flat bread with cheese in the 500s-nearly one thousand years before pizza became popular in Naples, Italy!
Finally let’s look at the truth behind hamburgers. Many people think hamburgers are an American food.A German named Otto Kuasw made the first hamburger in 1891. Four years later, German sailors introduced hamburgers to Americans.
Where foods come from isn’t nearly as important as how they taste—delicious!
A. However according to some stories, hamburgers came from Hamburg, Germany. B. So, go and get some of your favorite and enjoy it. C. Many people think the English found out about curry from people in India in the 1660s. D. As for pizzas, this dish was probably first made in Persia(波斯). E. In fact, the word “curry” can be found in the English language as far back as 1377. |