Rae Armantrout, who has been a poetry professor at the University of California San Diego(UCSD) for two decades, has won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize in the poetry category for her most recent book, “Versed”.
“I’m delighted and amazed at how much media recognition that the Pulitzer brings, as compared to even the National Book Critics Award, which I was also surprised and delighted to win,” said Armantrout.
“For a long time, my writing has been just below the media radar, and to have this kind of attention, suddenly, with my 10th book, is really surprising.”
Armantrout, a native Californian, received her bachelor’s degree at UC Berkeley, where she studied with noted poet Denise Levertov, and her master’s in creative writing from San Francisco State University. She is a founding member of Language Poets, a group in American poetry that analyzes the way language is used and raises questions to make the reader think .
In March, she won the National Book Critics Circle Award for “Versed.”
“This book has gotten more attention,” Armantrout said, “but I don’t feel as if it’s better.”
The first half of “Versed” focuses on the dark forces taking hold of the United States as it fought the war against Iraq. The second half looks at the dark forces casting a shadow over her own life after Armantrout was diagnosed with cancer in 2006.
Armantrout was shocked to learn she had won the Pulitzer but many of her colleagues were not. “Rae Armantrout is a unique voice in American poetry,” said Seth Lerer, head of Arts and Humanities at UCSD.
“Versed”, published by the Wesleyan University Press, did appear in a larger printing than her earlier works, which is about 2,700 copies. The new edition is scheduled to appear in May. According to Rae Armantrout, ____________.
A.her 10th book is much better |
B.her winning the Pulitzer is unexpected |
C.the media is surprised at her works |
D.she likes being recognized by her readers |
Which of the following is true of Rae Armantrout?
A.She published a poetry textbook. |
B.She used to teach Denise Levertov. |
C.She started a poets‟ group with others. |
D.She taught creative writing at UC Berkeley. |
What can we learn about “Versed”?
A.It consists of three parts. |
B.It is mainly about the American army. |
C.It is a book published two decades ago. |
D.It partly concerns the poet’s own life. |
Rae Armantrout’s colleagues think that she ____________.
A.should write more | B.has a sweet voice |
C.deserves the prize | D.is a strange professor |
What can we learn from the text?
A. About 2,700 copies of “Versed” will be printed.
B. Cancer made Armantrout stop writing.
C. Armantrout got her degrees at UCSD.
D. “Versed” has been awarded twice
Feel tired lately? Has a doctor said he can’t find anything wrong with you? Perhaps he has sent you to a hospital, but all the advanced equipment there shows that there is nothing wrong with you.
Then, consider this: you might be in a state of sub-health(亚健康). Sub-health, also called the third state or gray state, is explained as a borderline(界限)state between health and disease.
According to the survey by the National Health Organization, over 45 percent of sub-healthy people are middle-aged or elderly. The percentage is even higher among people who work in management positions as well as students around exam-week.
Symptoms include a lack of energy, depression, slow reactions, insomnia, anger, and poor memory. Other symptoms include shortness of breath, sweating and aching in the waist and legs.
The key to preventing and recovering from sub-health, according to some medical experts, is to form good living habits, alternate work and rest, exercise regularly, and take part in open air activities.
As for meals, people are advised to eat less salt and sugar. They should also eat more fresh vegetables, fruits, fish because they are rich in nutritional elements -- vitamins and other elements that are important to the body.
Nutrition experts point out that it is not good to eat too much at one meal because it may cause unhealthy changes in the digestive tract(消化道). They also say that a balanced diet is very helpful in avoiding sub-health..
According to this passage, which of the following is true?
A.When you are in a state of sub-health, you should stay at home and keep silent. |
B.When you are in a state of sub-health, you should go to see a doctor and buy some medicine. |
C.When you are in a state of sub-health, you should have yourself examined in foreign countries. |
D.When you are in a state of sub-health, you should find out the reasons and relax yourself. |
.
. It may be easy for middle-aged people to get sub-healthy because _________.
A.they have used up their energy | B.they have lost their living hopes |
C.they have more pressure in life and work | D.they begin to get older |
.
. The key to preventing you from falling into a state of sub-health is that you should ________.
A.work hard | B.sleep more |
C.form good living habits | D.take more medicine |
.
. The underlined word “alternate” in this passage is closest in meaning to _________.
A.arrange by turns | B.cause to take place | C.keep oneself busy with | D.get tired of |
Enough sleep is important to health. The amount o f sleep needed depends on the age of the person and the conditions in which sleep takes place. The young may need more sleep than the old, but usually eight hours are enough for the health of grown-ups. Some can do with less than this amount, but others may need more. Every person knows his own need. It is then a matter of good judgement to satisfy his need. Sleep should always be enough to make one bring back his strength and get ready for a day’s
work.
Fresh air is necessary to sound sleep. It is not without reason for some people to think that it is practicable to sleep in the open air. When one can keep himself warm, out-of-door sleeping probably gives the body its most complete relaxation(松弛). Ability to sleep is largely a habit . The conditions referred to only lead to sleep. Out-of-door exercises, a good habit of regular hours and the avoidance(避免) of late eating and worry, which are largely within the control of any person, are all helpful to sound sleep.
A bath at bedtime, neither hot nor cool but of body temperature, may be helpful to sleep. Sleep-producing drug(药)should never be taken except when suggested by a doctor. How many hours are usually enough for the health of a pupil?
A.Less than eight hours. | B.No more than eight hours. |
C.Eight hours or so. | D.No less than eight hours. |
Which of the following is helpful to good sleep?
A.Keeping good habits. |
B.Staying up late at night. |
C.Eating something at bedtime. |
D.Forming the habit of taking sleep-producing drug. |
The amount of sleep a person needs has something to do with________.
A.his age | B.his height |
C.his weight | D.his character |
Before going to bed, you’d better not_______.
A.take a bath | B.do any housework |
C.think a lot | D.go out for relaxation |
New York Time —A gunman killed eight people at a mall in Omaha this afternoon and then killed himself, setting off panic among holiday shoppers, the police said.
“The person who we believe to be the shooter has died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds, ” Sgt. Teresa Negron of the Omaha Police Department said at televised news. “We have been able to clear the mall, ” she said. “We don’t believe we have any other shooters. ” The police said that at least five other people had been injured in the shootings.
She did not give the shooter’s identity. “We are still doing the investigation, ” Sergeant Negron said, adding that the city’s mayor, who was out of town, was on his way back to Omaha.
She said the police received a 911 call from someone inside the Westroads Mall on the west side of Omaha, and shots could be heard in the background. The first police officers arrived at the mall six minutes after the first call, she said, but by then the shootings were over.
It is reported that the gunman left a suicide note that was found at his home by relatives. A law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity (匿名) said the note indicated that the gunman wanted to "go out in style".
The shootings broke the usually banal routine of holiday shopping. The gunman was said by some witnesses to have fired about 20 shots into a crowd. Some customers and workers ran screaming from the mall, while others dived into dressing rooms to hide from the shooter.
Shoppers and store workers were trapped inside the mall, which has roughly 135 stores. Others streamed out of mall exits with their hands raised. President Bush was in Omaha this morning to deliver a speech, but he had left the city by the time the shootings took place. Where did the shootings first come out?
A.On a newspaper. | B.In the Internet. |
C.In TV news. | D.In a police poster. |
What do the underlined words “go out in style” probably mean?
A.Go out of the mall in particular clothes. |
B.Walk in the mall with everybody focused on. |
C.Go to a socially event by fashionable means. |
D.Stop his life in an impressive way. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Nobody knows why the shooter did so and nothing was found at his home. |
B.The city’s mayor happened not to be in the city when the shootings took place. |
C.Police arrived at the mall before the shootings were over and rescued customers. |
D.The official who showed what the note meant had no request of his own identity. |
Which of the following can be the best title of the news?
A.Gunman Kills 8 People, Then Himself at a Mall in Omaha |
B.Shoppers in Great Panic before the Holiday |
C.Bush Happened to Escape a Shot |
D.Shooter Found Dead in a Mall on the west of Omaha |
There's a man in the habit of hitting me on the head with an umbrella. At first I couldn't stand it;now I'm used to it.
I don't know his name. I know he's average in appearance,wears a gray suit,and has a common face. One hot morning,when I was sitting on a treeshaded bench in Palermo Park,reading the paper,suddenly I felt something touch my head. It was the very same man who now,as I'm writing,keeps striking me with an umbrella.
On that occasion I turned around filled with anger. He just kept on hitting me. I asked him if he was crazy. He didn't even seem to hear me. Then I threatened to call a policeman. Calmly,cool as a cucumber,he stuck with his task. After a few moments of hesitation,and seeing that he was not about to change his attitude,I stood up and hit him on the nose. The man fell down. But he immediately got back on his feet,obviously with great effort,and without a word again began hitting me on the head with the umbrella. His nose was bleeding and,at that moment,I felt sorry for him. I felt regret for having hit him so hard. After all,the man wasn't exactly hitting me;he was merely tapping me lightly with
his umbrella,not causing any pain at all. Of course,those taps were extremely bothersome. As we all know,when a fly lands on your forehead,you don't feel any pain;what you feel is annoyance. Well then,that umbrella was one huge fly that kept landing on my head time after time.
Convinced that I was dealing with a madman,I tried to escape. But the man followed me,wordlessly continuing to hit me. So I began to run(I should point out many people run as fast as I do). He took off after me,trying to land a blow. The man was out of breath so that I thought,if I continued to force him to run at that speed,he would drop dead right then and there.When the man began to strike the author with an umbrella, the author________.
A.became angry | B.called the police |
C.turned around and escaped | D.turned around and fought back |
The author would most probably agree that the man was ________.
A.deaf | B.blind |
C.dead | D.mad |
The author felt sorry for the man because________.
A.the man formed a bad habit of beating others |
B.he hit the man so hard that his nose bled |
C.the man couldn't catch up with him |
D.there was a fly on the man's head |
It can be learned from the passage that the man ________.
A.shouted loudly while hitting the author |
B.wanted to tell the author something |
C.ran after the author breathlessly |
D.acted as if he were a fly |
Le Trung, 33,has spent £14,000 creating Aiko,who he describes as“in her 20s”with a 32,23,33 figure,shiny hair and delicate features.
She can speak English and Japanese and is so good at mathematics that she can do Mr.Trung's accounts.
Mr.Trung,from Brampton in Ontario,Canada,said he has never had time to find a real partner,so he designed and created his ideal woman using the latest technology.
The former software programmer has taken out credit cards and loans,sold his car and spent his life savings on perfecting his“fembot”.
Now he is desperate to find a corporate sponsor(资助者)to help him complete and perfect Aiko.
He said,“Aiko is what happens when science meets beauty.”
"I want to make her look,feel and act as human as possible so she can be the perfect companion."
"I talk to her a lot,and hope to improve her knowledge."
"So far she can understand and speak 13,000 different sentences in English and Japanese,so she's already fairly intelligent."
"Aiko recognize faces and says hello when any of my family come around to visit. She helps me pick what to have for dinner and knows what drinks I like."
"She even helps me with directions when we're going somewhere."
"When I need to do my accounts,Aiko does all the maths. She is very patient and never complains."
"She doesn't need holidays,food or rest and she will work almost 24hours a day. She is the perfect woman."
Mr.Trung has designed Aiko with a touchsensitive face and body so she reacts in a natural way if she is shown affection or hurt.
He said,"She has all senses except for smell."Why did Le Trung spend much money creating Aiko?
A.Because he prefers Aiko to a real person. |
B.Because he is too busy to find a partner. |
C.Because he thinks Aiko is very beautiful. |
D.Because he thinks Aiko is worth much money. |
According to the passage,what is Aiko?
A.Aiko is a female person. |
B.Aiko is Mr.Trung's girl friend. |
C.Aiko is a robot that looks like a beautiful woman. |
D.Aiko is a perfect woman. |
Aiko can do the following things EXCEPT ________.
A.that she can understand and speak English and Japanese |
B.that she can do maths questions very well |
C.that she can smell the strange smell |
D.that she can help to receive some familiar guests |
What is the main idea of the passage?
A.The reason for Le Trung creating Aiko. |
B.The introduction to a new scientific product-Aiko. |
C.Aiko's ability or functions. |
D.The process of making Aiko. |