I had an experience some years ago, which taught me something about the ways in which people make a bad situation worse by blaming themselves．One January, I had to hold two funerals on successive days for two elderly women in my community．Both had died “full of years”, as the Bible would say．Their homes happened to be near each other, so I paid condolence （吊唁） calls on the two families on the same afternoon.
At the first home, the son of the deceased （已故的） woman said to me, “If only I had sent my mother to Florida and gotten her out of this cold and snow, she would be alive today．It’s my fault that she died.” At the second home, the son of the other deceased woman said, “If only I hadn’t insisted on my mother’s going to Florida, she would be alive today．That long airplane ride, the sudden change of climate, was more than she could take．It’s my fault that she’s dead.”
You see that any time there is a death, the survivors will feel guilty．Because the course of action they took turned out badly, they believe that the opposite course — keeping Mother at home, putting off the operation — would have turned out better．After all, how could it have turned out any worse?
There seem to be two elements involved in our willingness to feel guilty．The first is our pressing need to believe that the world makes sense, that there is a cause for every effect and a reason for everything that happens．That leads us to find patterns and connections both where they really exist and where they exist only in our minds.
The second element is the view that we are the cause of what happens, especially the bad things that happen．It seems to be a short step from believing that every event has a cause to believing that every disaster is our fault．The roots of this feeling may lie in our childhood.
A baby comes to think that the world exists to meet his needs, and that he makes everything happen in it．He wakes up in the morning and summons the rest of the world to its tasks．He cries, and someone comes to attend to him．When he is hungry, people feed him, and when he is wet, people change him．Very often, we do not completely outgrow that childish view that our wishes cause things to happen.The author had to hold the two women’s funerals probably because __________________.
| A．he wanted to comfort the two families |
| B．he was an official from the community |
| C．he had great pity for the deceased |
| D．he was priest of the local church |
People feel guilty for the deaths of their loved ones because _______________________.
| A．they couldn’t find a better way to express their sorrow |
| B．they believe that they were responsible |
| C．they had neglected the natural course of events |
| D．they didn’t know things often turn out in the opposite direction |
According to the passage, the underlined part in paragraph 4 probably means that ______.
| A．everything in the world is predetermined |
| B．the world can be interpreted in different ways |
| C．there’s an explanation for everything in the world |
| D．we have to be sensible in order to understand the world |
What’s the main idea of the passage?
| A．Life and death is an unsolved mystery. |
| B．Every story should have a happy ending. |
| C．Never feel guilty all the time because not every disaster is our fault. |
| D．In general, the survivors will feel guilty about the people who passed away . |
In ancient Egypt, a shopkeeper discovered that he could attract customers to his shop simply by making changes to its environment. Modern businesses have been following his lead, with more tactics（策略）.
One tactic involves where to display the goods. For example, stores place fruits and vegetables in the first section. They know that customers who buy the healthy food first will feel happy so that they will buy more junk food（垃圾食品）later in their trip. In department stores, the women’s shoe section is generally next to the women’s cosmetics(化妆品) section：while the shop assistant is going back to find the right size shoe, bored customers are likely to wander over and find some cosmetics they might want to try later.
Besides, businesses seek to appeal to customers’ senses. Stores notice that the smell of baked goods encourages shopping, so they make their own bread each morning and then fan the bread smell into the store throughout the day. Music sells goods, too. Researchers in Britain found that when French music was played, sales of French wines went up.
When it comes to the selling of houses, businesses also use highly rewarding tactics. They find that customers make decision in the first few seconds upon walking in the door, and turn it into a business opportunity. A California builder designed the structure of its houses smartly. When entering the house, the customer would see the Pacific Ocean through the windows, and then the pool through an open stairway leading to the lower level. The instant view of water on both levels helped sell these $10 million houses.Why do stores usually display fruits and vegetables in the first section?
| A．To save customers time. |
| B．To show they are high quality foods. |
| C．To help sell junk food. |
| D．To sell them at discount prices. |
According to Paragraph 3, which of the following encourages customers to buy?
| A．Opening the store early in the morning. |
| B．Displaying British wines next to French ones. |
| C．Inviting customers to play music. |
| D．Filling the store with the smell of fresh bread. |
What is the main purpose of the passage?
| A．To explain how businesses turn people into their customers. |
| B．To introduce how businesses have grown from the past. |
| C．To report researches on customer behavior. |
| D．To show dishonest business practices. |
At thirteen, I was diagnosed（诊断） with a kind of attention disorder. It made school difficult for me. When everyone else in the class was focusing on tasks, I could not.
In my first literature class, Mrs. Smith asked us to read a story and then write on it, all within 45 minutes. I raised my hand right away and said, “Mrs. Smith, you see, the doctor said I have attention problems. I might not be able to do it.”
She glanced down at me through her glasses, “you are no different from your classmates, young man.”
I tried, but I didn’t finish the reading when the bell rang. I had to take it home.
In the quietness of my bedroom, the story suddenly all became clear to me. It was about a blind person, Louis Braille. He lived in a time when the blind couldn’t get much education. But Louis didn’t give up. Instead, he invented a reading system of raised dots（点）, which opened up a whole new world of knowledge to the blind.
Wasn’t I the “blind” in my class, being made to learn like the “sighted” students? My thoughts spilled out and my pen started to dance. I completed the task within 40 minutes. Indeed, I was no different from others; I just needed a quieter place. If Louis could find his way out of his problems, why should I ever give up?
I didn’t expect anything when I handed in my paper to Mrs. Smith, so it was quite a surprise when it came back to me the next day--- with an “A” on it. At the bottom of the paper were these words: “ See what you can do when you keep trying?”The author didn’t finish the reading in class because .
| A．He was new to the class |
| B．He was tried of literature |
| C．He had an attention disorder |
| D．He wanted to take the task home |
What do we know about Louis Braille from the passage?
| A．He had good sight | B．He made a great invention. |
| C．He gave up reading | D．He learned a lot from school |
What was Mrs. Smith ‘s attitude to the author at the end of the story?
| A．Angry | B．Impatient | C．Sympathetic | D．Encouraging |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．The disabled should be treated with respect. |
| B．A teacher can open up a new world to students. |
| C．One can find his way out of difficulties with efforts. |
| D．Everyone needs a hand when faced with challenges. |
Moving to a new neighborhood，town，state，or even country can be a pretty scary experience. All you know is that things will be different and chances are you won’t know the kids at your new school.
The experiences that go with moving make many kids feel nervous and worried. This is perfectly normal but don’t let these emotions overrun your thoughts! You will soon get used to your surroundings and find new friends at your new school.
Leaving old friends and familiar places behind can be difficult. However，as you begin the moving process，keep in mind that saying goodbye to your old house，school，and friends does not mean that you have to forget them or that your farewell is permanent！If you’re moving to a new state or even a different country and won’t see your friends for a long time，don’t despair.
Make sure to ask everyone for their address so you can write them letters. Also，thanks to the Internet，it is very easy to stay in touch through email or instant messaging technologies. With your parent’s permission，you can even create a blog or web page to chronicle（记载） all of your new experiences. Include your thoughts，tales of your new adventures，even pictures of new friends，your new house，and new town. Your old friends will love seeing what you are busy with.
Many schools have an orientation（培训） program where a student already established at the school shows a new student around for their first week. This can help you to find your way around the school and to make new friends faster.
While moving is tough on kids of any age，high school counselor Karen Turner says moves can be particularly difficult for teens .“I think moving during adolescents is an extremely stressful experience，especially if you are into your junior high or senior year. Students tend to have established a very strong peer network during that period in their lives. Often this has more influence on them even than their families in some cases，and when they are torn from that there’s often resentment(怨气)．”However，Turner adds that while moving isn’t easy，there are things that your parents and the school can do to help you deal with the change.Who are the intended readers of the passage?
| A．Education experts. | B．School teachers. |
| C．Parents. | D．Students. |
Which of the following is mainly suggested in Paragraph 3?
| A．Staying in contact with old friends. |
| B．Expressing yourself when it is possible. |
| C．Forming good habits at school. |
| D．Keeping positive about your new school. |
According to the passage，Karen Turner may agree that________．
| A．many parents seem to care little about their children |
| B．teens can easily be attached to their friends |
| C．parents should communicate with the school teachers |
| D．teens tend to behave rudely in a new school |
If this passage continues，what would the author further discuss?
| A．What a new school is like. |
| B．Why parents move with their children. |
| C．How parents and the school can help the children. |
| D．How children can express their anxiety. |
Success is often measured by the ability to overcome adversity. But, it is often the belief of others that gives us the courage to try.
J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter book series，began writing at the age of 6. In her biography, she remembers with great fondness when her good friend Sean, whom she met in secondary school, became the first person to encourage her and help build the confidence that one day she would be a very good writer.
“He was the first person with whom I really discussed my serious ambition to be a writer. He was also the only person who thought I was bound to be a success at it, which meant much more to me than I ever told him at the time.”
Despite many setbacks, Rowling persevered in her writing, particularly fantasy stories. But it wasn't until 1990 that she first conceived the idea about Harry Potter. As she recalls，it was on a long train journey from London to Manchester that the idea of Harry Potter simply fell into her head.“To my immense frustration (沮丧), I didn't have a functioning pen with me, and I was too shy to ask anybody if I could borrow one. I think, now, that this was probably a good thing, because I simply sat and thought, for four (delayed train) hours, and all the details bubbled up in my brain, and this scrawny, blackhaired, bespectacled(戴眼镜的) boy who didn’t know he was a wizard became more and more real to me.”
That same year, her mother passed away after a tenyear battle with multiple sclerosis, which deeply affected her writing. She went on to marry and had a daughter, but separated from her husband shortly afterwards.
During this time, Rowling was diagnosed with clinical depression. Unemployed, she completed her first novel in area cafes, where she could get her daughter to fall asleep. After being rejected by 12 publishing houses, the first Harry Potter novel was sold to a small British publishing house.
Now with seven books that have sold nearly 400 million copies in 64 languages, J. K. Rowling is the highest earning novelist in history. And it all began with her commitment to writing that was fostered by the confidence of a friend !Rowling first came up with the idea about Harry Potter________.
| A．at the age of 6 |
| B．on a train journey |
| C．after her mother’s death |
| D．in her secondary school |
It can be concluded from Paragraph 5 and 6 that Rowling is________.
| A．openminded | B．warmhearted |
| C．goodnatured | D．strongwilled |
The text mainly tells us________.
| A．hardship makes a good novelist |
| B．the courage to try is a special ability |
| C．you can have a wonderful idea everywhere |
| D．encouragement contributes to one’s success |
WHAT’S the most important thing of life?
People’s answers vary greatly. For British scientist Robert Edwards，the answer is having a child.“Nothing is more special than a child，”he told the BBC.
Edwards，the inventor of the In Vitro Fertilization(IVF)technology—more commonly known as“testtube(试管)baby”technology—passed away on April 10 ,2013 at the age of 87.
Edwards changed the lives of millions of ordinary people who now rejoice(充满喜悦)in the gift of their own child，”said Peter Braude，professor at King’s College London.“He leaves the world a much better place.”
Edwards started his experiments as early as the 1950s，when he had just finished his PhD in genetics. At that time，much of the public viewed test-tube babies as“scary”，according to Mark Sauer，professor at Columbia University，US.
Edwards and his colleague Patrick Steptoe faced opposition from churches，governments and media，not to mention attacks from many of their fellow scientists.“People said that we should not play God and we should not interfere with nature，”Edwards once told Times. He said that he felt “quite alone” at the time.
“But Edwards was a fighter，and he believed in what he was doing，”said Sauer. Without support from the government，the two struggled to raise funds to carry on. And in 1968 they finally developed a method to successfully fertilize human eggs outside the body.
The first test-tube baby was born on July 25，1978.Her name was Louise Brown. Despite people’s safety concerns，Brown was just as healthy as other children.
“IVF had moved from vision to reality and a new era in medicine had begun，”BBC commented.
Ever since then，public opinion has evolved considerably. Couples who were unable to have babies began thronging(蜂拥)to Edwards’ clinic. Nowadays，Reuters reports，some 4.3 million other“test-tube” children exist. Edwards received a Nobel Prize in 2010 and was knighted(封为爵士)by Queen Elizabeth Ⅱ the following year.
Before his death，Edwards was still in touch with Louise.“He is like a granddad to me，”she said in an interview with the Daily Mail.
He is a granddad to millions, in fact.What is the article mainly about?
| A．The first test-tube baby. |
| B．A new era in medicine. |
| C．The inventor of IVF technology. |
| D．The changes IVF technology has brought. |
The writer quoted Peter Braude to ________．
| A．show how difficult it was for Edwards to do his work |
| B．describe what kind of person Edwards was |
| C．explain why he is loved by all children |
| D．comment on his achievement |
The underlined word“opposition”in Paragraph 6 is closest in meaning to ________．
| A．attack | B．support |
| C．test | D．influence |
What is the CORRECT order of events in Edwards’ life?
a．He received a Nobel Prize.
b．He struggled to raise funds.
c．The first test-tube baby was born.
d．He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth Ⅱ.
e．He succeeded in fertilizing human eggs outside the body.
f．He started his experiments on IVF technology.
| A．f—e—b—c—a—d | B．f—b—e—c—d—a |
| C．f—b—e—c—a—d | D．f—e—d—a—c—b |