Helen Thomas, born on August 4, 1920, is a famous news reporter, a Hearst Newspapers columnist, and member of the White House Press Corps. She served for fifty-seven years as a correspondent and White House bureau chief for United Press International (UPI). She is called “First Lady of the Press”.
Born in Kentucky, Helen Thomas was raised in Detroit, Michigan where she attended public schools and later graduated from Wayne State University. Upon leaving college, Helen served as a copy girl in an old company in Washington. In 1943, Ms. Thomas joined United Press International and the Washington Press Corps. Thomas served as president of the Women’s National Press Club from 1959 to 1960.
In November, Helen began covering then President-elect John F. Kennedy, following him to the White House in January 1961 as a UPI correspondent. She later became White House Bureau Chief for UPI, where she was employed until her resignation on May 17, 2000. Thomas then became a White House correspondent and columnist.
Thomas was the only woman journalist traveling with then President Nixon to China in January, 1972. She has traveled around the world several times with Presidents Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton, during the course of which she covered every Economic Summit. The World Almanac has cited her as one of the 25 Most Influential Women in America.
On March 21, 2006, Thomas was called upon directly by President Bush for the first time in three years. Thomas asked Bush about Iraq. Helen Thomas has written four books and she is also a popular speaker at events nationwide. What’s the correct order of the events?
a. Thomas joined the UPI and the Washington Press Corps.
b. Thomas traveled with President Nixon to China.
c. Thomas served as president of the Women’s National Press Club.
d. Thomas resigned.
e. Thomas was called upon by President Bush.
f. Thomas became a White House correspondent and a columnist.
| A．a, b, c, d, e, f | B．a, c, b, d, f, e | C．a, c, b, d, e, f | D．a, d, e, f, c, b |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．Thomas made speeches about events nationwide. |
| B．Thomas has written four books. |
| C．Thomas covered every Economic Summit when traveling with US presidents. |
| D．Thomas became a correspondent after she graduated from the university. |
From the passage, we can conclude that Thomas is a _____ woman.
| A．courageous | B．ambitious | C．successful | D．stubborn |
After reading the passage it can be inferred that ___.
| A．Thomas worked in the White House for 57 years. |
| B．Thomas is the most influential woman in America |
| C．President Bush received Thomas once in his term. |
| D．Thomas has traveled around the world with Nixon, Carter, Reagan, Bush, and Clinton. |
What’s the best title of the passage?
| A．The First Lady of the Press—Helen Thomas |
| B．A Successful News Reporter—Helen Thomas |
| C．Life Experience of Helen Thomas |
| D．Helen Thomas and Her Career |
Traveling can be a fun way to gain life experiences, especially during Spring Break — a week-long school vacation in the United States. But what if you're a student and don't have enough money for a trip? Don't worry. Here are some useful suggestions.
●Save: This probably is the most important preparation for traveling. Cut expenses to fatten your wallet so you'll have more choices about where to go and how to get there.
●Plan ahead: Don't wait until the last minute to plan your trip. Tickets may cost more when bought on short notice. Giving yourself several months to get ready can mean security and savings.
●Do your homework: No matter where you go, research the places you will visit. Decide what to see. Travel books will provide information on the cheapest hotels and restaurants.
●Plan sensibly: Write down how much you expect to spend for food and hotels. Stick to your plan or you may not have enough money to cover everything.
●Travel in groups: Find someone who is interested in visiting the same places. By traveling with others you can share costs and experiences.
●Work as you go: Need more money to support your trip? Look for work in the places you visit.
●Go off the beaten path: Tourist sites may be expensive. You may want to rethink your trip and go to a less-known area. Smaller towns can have many interesting activities and sights.
●Pack necessary things: The most important things to take are not always clothes.
Remember medicine in case you get sick, and snacks in case you cannot find a cheap restaurant.
●Use the Internet: The net can help to save money. Some useful websites include www. travelcity. corn, www. bargainslowestfare. corn and www. economictravelcity. com.
By planning sensibly, even students can enjoy the travel. Your travel experiences will be remembered for a lifetime. This passage is about ____________.
| A．how to plan your travel |
| B．how to get life experiences |
| C．how to make your travel interesting |
| D．how to travel with enough money |
Before your trip, the most important thing you should do is ____________.
| A．to make a plan of the route |
| B．to buy tickets in advance |
| C．to save money before your trip |
| D．to get information from the Internet |
The writer advises you ____________.
| A．to share costs with friends |
| B．not to go to well-known places |
| C．not to visit dangerous places |
| D．to buy anything you want to buy |
WHEN there are some strangers in front of us, which of them will we trust?
According to a new study in the online PLOS One, people make their decisions to trust others largely based on their faces. Your appearance can do a lot for you, especially if you are in the financial industry. The more trustworthy you look, the more likely people will buy what you’re selling.
Researchers from Britain’s University of Warwick Business School, University College London, and Dartmouth College, US, did a number of experiments.
The research team used computer software to make 40 faces, from the least to the most trustworthy-looking.
The study said that the difference between a trustworthy face and one that isn’t as trustworthy comes from features that look slightly angry or slightly happy, even when the face is at rest. However, a slightly happy face is more likely to be trusted.
Researchers gave participants some money and asked them which face they trusted to invest the money for them. Then researchers gave some good and bad information about the people with these faces, and asked the participants again whom they trusted.
The results showed that even if they got different information, the participants didn’t change their choices. They were still more likely to invest their money with the more trustworthy-looking faces.
Chris Olivola, one of the study’s authors, said in the University of Warwick’s press release: “It seems we are still willing to go with our own instincts (本能) about whether we think someone looks like we can trust them. The temptation (诱惑) to judge strangers by their faces is hard to resist.”Which of the following can be a proper title for this passage?
| A．What kind of face do you trust? |
| B．Who did the experiments? |
| C．Why do you trust him or her? |
| D．Why did they do the experiments? |
According to the study, which of the following faces is most likely to be trusted?
| A．A sad face. | B．A smiling face. |
| C．A crying face. | D．An angry face. |
Which of the following about the experiment is TRUE?
| A．The trustworthy faces were given good information. |
| B．Researchers took photos of the 40 people’s faces in college. |
| C．Most participants gave their money to the trustworthy-looking faces. |
| D．Participants liked to choose the faces with good information. |
What did the researchers learn from their experiment?
| A．People can’t refuse temptations. |
| B．People always do things with their instincts. |
| C．People often judge strangers by their faces. |
| D．People don’t trust strangers with sad faces. |
Something roared like thunder. The earth shook a little and we heard the rat-a-tat-tat of gunfire. ‘‘Father!” Hassan cried. We sprung to our feet and raced out of the living room.
“Father! What’s that sound?” Hassan screamed, his hands outstretched toward Ali. Ali wrapped his arms around us. A white light flashed and lit the sky in silver. It flashed again and was followed by rapid sharp sounds of gunfire.
“They’re hunting ducks, ” Ali said in a hoarse voice. “They hunt ducks at night, you know. Don't be afraid.”
A siren(汽笛）went off in the distance. Somewhere glass broke and someone shouted. I heard people on the street, woken up from sleep. Hassan was crying. Ali pulled him close and held him with tenderness.
We stayed huddled (蜷缩）that way until the early hours of the morning. The shootings and explosions had lasted less than an hour, but they had frightened us badly, because none of us had ever heard gunshots in the streets. They were foreign sounds to us then. The generations of Afghan children whose ears would know nothing but the sounds of the bombs and gunfire were not yet born. Huddled together in the dining room and waiting for the sun to rise, none of us had any idea that a way of life had ended. The end came when Russian tanks were rolling into the very same streets where Hassan and I played, bringing the death of the Afghanistan I knew and marking the start of a still ongoing era of bloodletting.
Just before the sunrise, Baba’s car pulled into the driveway. His door slammed shut and his running footsteps pounded the stairs. Then he appeared in the doorway and I saw something on his face. Something I didn’t recognize right away because I’d never seen it before: fear. “Amir! Hassan!” He cried as he ran to us, opening his arms wide. “They blocked all the roads and the telephone didn’t work. I was so worried!”
We let him wrap us in his arms and, for a brief moment, I was glad about whatever had happened that night.Who is the author of this passage?
| A．Amir. | B．Ali. | C．Baba. | D．Hassan. |
By saying “They’re hunting ducks”, Ali _______.
| A．told the children the truth | B．played a joke on the children |
| C．tried to calm the children | D．cheered the children up |
We can infer from the passage that _______.
| A．there were thunderstorms that night |
| B．Afghan children were used to the war |
| C．people on the street shouted and broke the windows |
| D．that night was the end of people's peaceful life |
From the last sentence of the passage, we know _______.
| A．Baba's arms gave the author temporary comfort and joy |
| B．there was a chance that a world in peace was to come |
| C．what happened that night seemed nothing to the author |
| D．the author was glad to see his father come home safe |
Men and women are still treated unequally in the workplace. Women continue to earn less, on average, for the same performance. Research has shown that both conscious(有意识的) and subconscious biases (偏见) contribute to this problem. But we’ve discovered another source of inequality: Women often don’t get what they want and deserve because they don’t ask for it. In three separate studies, we found that men are more likely than women to negotiate for what they want.
The first study found that the starting salaries of male MBAs who had recently graduated from Carnegie Mellon were 7.6%, or almost $4,000, higher on average than those of female MBAs from the same program. That’s because most of the women had simply accepted the employer’s salary offer; in fact, only 7% had attempted to negotiate. But 57% of their male counterparts--or eight times as many men as women—had asked for more.
Another study tested this gender difference in the lab. Subjects were told that they would be observed playing a word game and that they would be paid between $3 and $10 for playing. After each subject completed the task, an experimenter thanked the participant and said, “Here’s $3. Is $3 OK?” For the men, it was not OK, and they said so. Their requests for more money are nine times as many as the women’s.
The largest of the three studies surveyed several hundred people over the Internet, asking them about the most recent negotiations they’d attempted or started and when they expected to negotiate next. The study showed that men place themselves in negotiation situations much more often than women do.
There are several reasons accounting for the phenomenon. First, women often are taught from an early age not to promote their own interests and to focus instead on the needs of others. The messages girls receive—from parents, teachers, other children, the media, and society in general—can be so powerful that when they grow up they may not realize that they’ve made this behavior part of them, or they may realize it but not understand how it affects their willingness to negotiate. Women tend to think that they will be recognized and rewarded for working hard and doing a good job. Unlike men, they haven’t been taught that they can ask for more. According to this passage, what causes the inequality in the workplace?
| A．social bias |
| B．women’s poorer working ability |
| C．women’s worse academic background |
| D．women’s less negotiating |
Which can be the result of the following survey, according to Para 4?
When do you expect to negotiate next?Which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．Women are more likely to accept the employer’s salary offer. |
| B．Men tend to ask for more money than woman. |
| C．Women care more about other’s interest instead of themselves’. |
| D．Men believe that the better they work, the better they’re paid. |
What will be discussed in the following paragraph?
| A．The suggestions given to women. |
| B．The warnings to men. |
| C．Another reason for women’s not asking. |
| D．Another reason for men’s asking. |
Below is a web page from http://www.parents.com/.
Kid of the Year Photo Competition
Enter your kid’s photo today and win! We’re giving away 52 weekly $250 prizes from Readers’ Choice votes. PLUS our editors will select one entry to win our grand prize of $7,000.
Official Competition Rules
No purchase necessary to enter or win.
The Kid of the Year Photo Competition entry period begins at 12:00 a.m. January 23, 2011, and ends January 21, 2012 (“Entry Period”). Entries must arrive by 9:00 p.m. on January 21, 2012 (“Entry Deadline”). Entries will not be acknowledged or returned.
SPONSOR(赞助商): Meredith Corporation, 1716 Locust Street, Des Moines, Iowa.
ENTRY: There will be two methods of entry.
Share My Entry:
Visit http://www.parents.com/photos/photo-contests-1/kid-of-the-year/ and click the button to enter.
Facebook Entry:
Visit http://Facebook.com/ParentsMagazine and click the Kid of 2011 tab.
Then complete the registration form and follow the instructions to upload one album of up to six photos of your child aged three months to eight years. You may provide one description and one album title that will be applied to all photos. Photos, without any brand names or trademarks, must be taken by participants, non-professional, unpublished and may not have won any prize or award. Photos must be .jpeg or .bmp image formats (格式) and cannot be over 3 MB.
This promotion is in no way sponsored, supported or run by, or associated with Facebook. You are providing your information to Parents Magazine and not to Facebook. The information you provide will only be used to run the promotion and register for Parents.com.
LIMIT: One entry per family, per child, per week. One weekly prize per child. For entries of more than one child in a family, the entry process must be completed separately for each child. No group entries.We can learn from the passage that ___________.
| A．you should buy something first before you enter the contest |
| B．your entry will not be returned even if you don’t win the contest |
| C．you should send your entry before 9:00 p.m. on January 21, 2011 |
| D．the editors of the contest will decide who will win the 20,000 dollars in prizes |
Linda, a mother with seven-year-old twins, wants to enter the competition. She must ___________.
| A．provide a description and an album title for the kid’s photos |
| B．go to Meredith Corporation to fill out the registration forms |
| C．complete the entry process separately for each of her kids |
| D．provide the information to Facebook if she chooses Facebook Entry |
To enter the competition, photos must ___________.
| A．be taken by non-professional participants |
| B．have won some prize or award |
| C．contain brand names or trademarks |
| D．contain parents’ personal information |
The purpose of the passage is ___________.
| A．to advertise the website Facebook. com |
| B．to attract photographers’ interest in a photo contest |
| C．to introduce two methods of entering a photo contest |
| D．to encourage parents with children to enter a photo contest |