Does this sound familiar? It’s 3:00 am and you’re still awake and staring at the clock. You can’t sleep , and you’ve already tried all the familiar tricks – taken a warm bath , drunk a glass of heated milk ,tried counting sheep, and read a book –all with no success. If you are such a sufferer, remember you’re not alone. Experts said that one in every four Americans have trouble falling or staying asleep.
Lack of sleep can hurt your quality of life in so many ways. Short temper, impatience, poor decision-making, and mood swings are common among those with sleeping problems. Besides, relationships with family, friends, and co-workers may suffer as a result. Improper sleep can also put your safety at risk by reducing your awareness.
When you’re awake in the middle of the night, you can start to feel desperate for a way out . However, it makes sense to weigh the available treatments before choosing the one that’s right for you. Other sleep aids may seem like a quick fix, but it turns out that there are many disadvantages of these drugs. For one thing, they may require expensive, time-consuming trips to your physician. They may also be habit-forming or have unpleasant side effects like dizziness( 眩晕) dry mouth, and next-day sleepiness. Plus , they become less effective over time.
So what is the best sleep aid available on the market today? The answer is Somnapure , a product that represents nature and science coming together. This all-natural sleep aid which comes from Peak Life allows you to fall asleep quickly and remain asleep through the night . With Somnapure, you wake up feeling refreshed and energetic. Somnapure is currently giving away a 14-day trial here. Get your Somnapure trial for better, deeper sleep that you deserve. From paragraph 1, we can know that sleep problems are_______.
| A．easy to make a sufferer lonely |
| B．common but hard to deal with |
| C．severe throughout the world |
| D．widespread only in the USA |
The underlined words“ a quick fix”(in paragraph3)most probably means____.
| A．a waste of money | B．a quick repair | C．an easy way out | D．a cheap aid |
The purpose of the passage is to _______.
| A．ask people with sleep problems to try and use Somnapure |
| B．introduce a kind of medicine to help sleep better |
| C．draw people’s attention to the bad effects of the lack of sleep |
| D．talk about what the main causes of the sleep problems are |
We can infer that the passage is probably immediately followed by information about ______.
| A．the instructions to take Somnapure |
| B．the side effects of Somnapure |
| C．the price of Somnapure |
| D．the way to get Somnapure |
A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, 1,100 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.
Three minutes went by, and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace, and stopped for a few seconds, and then hurried up to meet his schedule.
A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till without stopping, and continued to walk.
A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.
The one who paid the most attention was a 3-year-old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried, but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally, the mother pushed hard, and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.
In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money, but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.
No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the most talented musicians in the world. He had just played one of the most beautiful pieces ever written, on a violin worth $3.5 million dollars.
Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.
This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment.
The outlines were: in a commonplace(普通的) environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we enjoy beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected situation?
One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be: If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?Few people stopped to listen to Joshua Bell playing because____________.
| A．people were in a hurry |
| B．they were not interested in music |
| C．it was too cold in the subway |
| D．the performance was not good enough |
When children stopped to look at the violinist, their parents ____________.
| A．would give him some money |
| B．would stop to enjoy the music |
| C．would applaud for the performance |
| D．would urge them to continue walking |
Which of the following is true about Joshua Bell’s performance?
| A．Nobody gave him money |
| B．Nobody recognized him. |
| C．Nobody appreciated it |
| D．Nobody organized it |
Joshua Bell played in the metro station in order to ____________.
| A．make more money |
| B．practice his skills in playing music |
| C．made an advertisement for his concert |
| D．find out people’s reaction under such a circumstance |
The purpose of the passage is to _________.
| A．set us to think about our life |
| B．show us how to play music |
| C．tell us the importance of music |
| D．report a subway performance |
Most employers say that they wish to employ the right person for the right job. A recent report by Britain’s Independent Institute of Manpower Studies, however, disagrees with this. The report states that most employers wish to avoid employing the wrong person. Rather than looking for the right person, they are looking for applicants to turn down.
The report also suggests that in Britain and in many other parts of the world the selection methods used to pick out the right person for the job certainly do not match up to those used to judge a piece of new equipment. Employers used three main selection methods: interviewing, checking resume or application forms and examining references. Most of the employers asked in this survey stated that these selection methods were used more for weeding out unsuitable applicants rather than for finding suitable ones.
Interviews were considered to be more reliable than either resume checks or references from past employers. Research, however, proves otherwise. Interviewers’ decisions are often strongly influenced by their earlier judgment of the written application. Also different employers view facts differently. One may consider applicants who have frequently changed jobs as people with broad and useful experience. Another will see such applicants as unreliable and unlikely to stay for long in the new job.
Some employers place great importance on academic qualifications whereas the link between this and success in management is not necessarily strong. Some employers use handwriting as a standard. The report states that there is little evidence to support the value of the letter for judging working ability. References, also, are sometimes unreliable as they are not very important while checks on credit and security records and applicants’ political opinions are often the opposite.
The report is more favorable towards trainability tests and those which test personality and personal and mental skills. The report concludes by suggesting that interviewing could become more reliable if the questions were arranged in a careful, organized system and focused on the needs of the employing organization.According to the passage, when most employers want to hire workers,.
| A．they will try to find suitable people |
| B．they will look for the right applicants |
| C．the wrong applicants are to be turned down |
| D．to turn down the wrong people is what they say they aim to do |
It is implied that .
| A．to evaluate a right person is more difficult than to evaluate equipment |
| B．employers are more successful in selecting the right equipment than the right persons |
| C．criteria will be set up according to the real situation of the applicants |
| D．resumes means application forms |
Most of the recruiters (招聘人员).
| A．consult the applicants |
| B．can find suitable people |
| C．prefer resumes or references |
| D．use different ways to sort out the unsuitable applicants |
Which of the following is TRUE?
| A．Employers get different conclusions from the facts. |
| B．Changing jobs frequently will reduce the chance to be recruited. |
| C．Academic qualifications will guarantee the applicant managing ability. |
| D．Handwriting is a valid way to evaluate an applicant. |
It can be inferred from the passage that successful employees will be those who.
| A．have outstanding references |
| B．are strong in emotional quotient |
| C．take interviewing seriously |
| D．have strong political leanings |
People aren’t walking any more---if they can figure out a way to avoid it.
I felt superior about this matter until the other day I took my car to mail a small parcel. The journey is a matter of 281 steps. But I used the car. And I wasn’t in any hurry, either. I had merely become one more victim of a national sickness: motorosis.
It is an illness to which I had thought myself immune, for I was bred in the tradition of going to places on my own two legs. At that time, we regarded 25 miles as good day’s walk and the ability to cover such a distance in ten hours as sign of strength and skill. It did not occur to us that walking was a hardship. And the effect was lasting. When I was 45 years old I raced –and beat—a teenage football player the 168 steps up the Stature of Liberty.
Such enterprises today are regarded by many middle-aged persons as bad for the heart. But a well-known British physician, Sir Adolphe Abrahams, pointed out recently that hearts and bodies need proper exercise. A person who avoids exercise is more likely to have illnesses than one who exercises regularly. And walking is an ideal form of exercise--- the most familiar and natural of all.
It was Henry Thoreau who showed mankind the richness of going on foot. The man walking can learn the trees, flower, insects, birds and animals, the significance of seasons, the very feel of himself as a living creature in a living world. He cannot learn in a car.
The car is a convenient means of transport, but we have made it our way of life. Many people don’t dare to approach nature any more; to them the world they were born to enjoy is all threat. To them security is a steel river thundering on a concrete road. And much of their thinking takes place while waiting for the traffic light to turn green.
I say that the green of forests is the mind’s best light. And none but the man on foot can evaluate what is basic and everlasting.What is the national sickness?
| A．Walking too much |
| B．Traveling too much |
| C．Driving cars too much |
| D．Climbing stairs too much. |
What was life like when the author was young?
| A．People usually went around on foot. |
| B．people often walked 25 miles a day. |
| C．People used to climb the Statue of Liberty. |
| D．people considered a ten-hour walk as a hardship. |
The author mentions Henry Thoreau to prove that________.
| A．middle-aged people like getting back to nature |
| B．walking in nature helps enrich one’s mind |
| C．people need regular exercise to keep fit |
| D．going on foot prevents heart disease |
What is compared to “a steel river” in Paragraph 6?
| A．A queue of cars | B．A ray of traffic light |
| C．A flash of lightning | D．A stream of people |
What is the author’s intention of writing this passage?
| A．To tell people to reflect more on life. |
| B．To recommend people to give up driving |
| C．To advise people to do outdoor activities |
| D．To encourage people to return to walking |
So the little girl now walked on, her bare feet quite red and blue with the cold. She carried a small bundle of matches in her hand, and a good many more in her tattered dress. No one had bought any of them the live long day； no one had given her a single penny. Trembling with cold and hunger crept she on, the picture of sorrow: poor little child!
The snow-flakes fell on her long, fair hair, which curled in such pretty ringlets over her shoulders; but she thought not of her own beauty, or of the cold. Lights were glimmering through every window, and the savor of roast goose reached her from several houses；it was New Year's eve, and it was of this that she thought.
In a corner formed by two houses, one of which projected beyond the other. She sat down, drawing her little feet close under her, but in vain, she could not warm them. She dared not go home, she had sold no matches, earned not a single penny, and perhaps her father would beat her，besides her home was almost as cold as the street，it was an attic; and although the larger of the many chinks in the roof were stopped up with straw and rags. The wind and snow often penetrated through. Her hands were nearly dead with cold; one little match from her bundle would warm them. Perhaps, if she dared light it, she drew one out, and struck it against the wall, bravo! It was a bright, warm flame, and she held her hands over it. It was quite an illumination for that poor little girl; no, I call it rather a magic taper, for it seemed to her as though she was sitting before a large iron-stove with brass ornaments, so beautifully blazed the fire within! The child stretched out her feet to warm them also; alas, in an instant the flame had died away, the stove disappeared, the little girl sat cold and comfortless, with the burnt match in her hand. The author emphasized that the story happened on New Year’s Eve in order to _________.
| A．highlight the cold weather |
| B．contrast with the girl’s sadness. |
| C．present the time |
| D．describe the situation |
Which below is not the reason why the little girl dared not go home?
| A．She earned not a single penny. |
| B．Her father would beat her. |
| C．Her home was almost as cold as the street. |
| D．She didn’t finished selling her matches. |
The underlined sentence in the last paragraph told us ___________.
| A．the girl was so cold that she formed an illusion that she sat beside a stove |
| B．a stove did give her some warmth on such a cold night |
| C．the thought she had could give her warmth |
| D．the light the match gave out did warm the little girl |
The little girl gave us an impression of being __________.
| A．beautiful and kind | B．poor but imaginable |
| C．poor and pitiful | D．poor but lively |
You may have heard the term “the American Dream”. In 1848, James W. Marshall found gold in California and people began having golden dreams. That 19th century “American Dream" motivated(激发) the Gold Rush and gave California its nickname of the "Golden State".
The American Dream drove not only 1800s gold-rush prospectors(采矿者) but also waves of immigrants throughout that century and the next. People from Europe, and a large number of Chinese, arrived in the US in the 19th century hoping that in America they would find gold there. But most, instead, worked as railroad laborers. They created the oldest Chinatown, in San Francisco, and gave the city a Chinese name "the old gold hill".
In the 20th century, some critics said that it was no longer possible to become prosperous through determination and hard work. Unfair education for students from poor families and racial discrimination almost made the American Dream a nightmare(噩梦).
Then, in the 1990s, California saw a new wave of dreamers in Silicon Valley. People poured their energy into the Internet. This new chapter of the American Dream attracted many business people and young talents from China and India to form start-ups and seek fortune in America.
Better pay, a nice house, and a rising standard of living will always be attractive. However, the new American Dream is no longer just about money. It encourages Americans to consume wisely to protect the environment, improve the quality of life, and promote social justice（正义）.
The Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger has become the model of the new American Dream. After
years of hard work, he grew from a poor young man from Austria into a super movie star and then a governor.
Many people hope his story can save the American Dream and give California a brighter future.It can be inferred that_________.
| A．America’s golden dream could never be realized |
| B．America’s golden dream had bought great fortune to Chinese immigrants |
| C．different times have different themes of the American dream |
| D．determination and hard work are the best way to realize the American dream |
Why did most of the early immigrants work as railroad laborers?
| A．Because they could earn more money as railroad laborers. |
| B．Because they had to make a living by working as railroad laborers． |
| C．Because they thought railroad was the first step to find gold. |
| D．Because railroad laborers were greatly honored at that time. |
The underlined sentence “his story can save the American Dream” (in the last paragraph) indicates that________．
| A．the dream of seeking fortunate in America is easy to realize |
| B．most of the immigrants to America don’t reach their previous goals |
| C．the success of Arnold Schwarzenegger is among the common examples of the immigrants |
| D．the immigrants have made great contributions to California |
What’s the best title of the passage?
| A．Wave of Immigrants to America |
| B．Make Fortunes Abroad |
| C．Hard Work Leads to Success |
| D．Changes of America’s Golden Dream |