B
I’ve loved my mother’s desk since I was just tall enough to sit above the top of it. Mother sat writing letters. Standing by her chair, looking at the ink bottle, pens, and white paper, I decided that the act of writing must be a most wonderful thing in the world.
Years later, during her final illness, Mother kept different things for my sister and brother. “But the desk,” she said again, “is for Elizabeth.”
I never saw her angry, never saw her cry. I knew she loved me; she showed in action. But as a young girl. I wanted to have heart-to-heart talks between mother and daughter.
They never happened. And a gulf opened between us. I was “too emotional (易动感情的)”. But she lived “on the surface (表面)”.
As years passed and I had my own family. I loved my mother and thanked her for our happy family. I wrote to her in careful words and asked her to let me know in any way she chose that she did forgive me.
My hope turned to disappointment, then little interest and, finally, peace – it seemed that nothing happened. I couldn’t be sure that the letter had even got to Mother. I only knew that I had written it, and I could stop trying to make her into someone she was not.
But the present of her desk told me, as she’d never been able to, that she was pleased that writing was my chosen work. I cleaned the desk carefully and found some papers inside – a photo of my father and a one-paper letter, folded and refolded many times. It was my letter.
“In any way you choose, Mother, you always chose the act that speaks louder than words.”The writer began to love her mother’s desk________.
A.after Mother died | B.after she wrote the letter |
C.when she was a child | D.when Mother gave it to her |
The passage shows that_________.
A.Mother was cold on the surface but kind in her heart to her daughter |
B.Mother was too serious about her daughter in words |
C.Mother wrote to her daughter in careful words |
D.Mother wrote to her daughter in careless words |
Which of the following is NOT true?
A.The author may work as a writer |
B.The author and her mother love each other, but didn’t say it out |
C.Neither the author nor her mother had a happy family. |
D.The author’s mother is a person who prefers act to words. |
What did Mother do with her daughter’s letter asking for forgiveness?
A.She had never received the letter. |
B.For years, she often talked about the letter. |
C.She didn’t forgive her daughter at all in all her life. |
D.She read the letter again and again till she died. |
What’s best title of the passage?
A.My letter to Mother | B.Mother and children |
C.My Mother’s Desk | D.Talks between Mother and me |
In the United States, it is important to be on time , or punctual , for an appointment , a class, a meeting, etc. However, this may not be true in all countries. An American professor discovered the difference while teaching a class in a Brazilian(巴西的) university. The two-hour class was scheduled to begin at 10 A.M. and end at 12. On the first day , when the professor arrived on time, no one was in the classroom. Many students came after 10:30 A.M. Two students came after 11 A.M. Although all the students greeted the professor as they arrived, few apologized(道歉)for their lateness.Were these students being rude? He decided to study the students’ behavior.
The professor talked to American and Brazilian students about lateness in both an informal and a formal situation:at a lunch with a friend and in a university class, respectively.He gave them an example and asked them how they would react, If they had a lunch appointment with a friend,the average American student defined lateness as 19 minutes after the agreed time,On the other hand.the average Brazilian student felt the friend was late after 33 minutes.
In an American university, students are expected to arrive at the appointed hour.In contrast, in Brazil,neither the teacher nor the students always arrive at the appointed hour.Classes not only begin at the scheduled time in the United States,but also end at the scheduled time.In the Brazilian class, only a few students left the class at 12:00;many remained past 12:30 to discuss the class and ask more questions.While arriving late may not be very important in Brazil , neither is staying late.
36. The word‘punctual’most probably means________.
A.1eaving soon after class B.coming early
C.arriving a few minutes late D.being on time
37. Why did the professor study the Brazilian students’behavior?
A.He felt puzzled at the students’ being late.
B.He felt angry at the students' rudeness.
C.He wanted to make the students come on time later.
D.He wanted to collect data for one of his studies.
38. It can be inferred from the professor’s study of lateness in the informal situation that____.
A.American students will become impatient if their friend is five minutes late
B.neither Brazilian nor American students like being late in social gatherings
C.being late in one culture may not be considered so in another culture
D.Brazilian students will not come thirty-three minutes after the agreed time
39. From the last paragraph we know that in Brazil____.
A. it is important to arrive at the appointed time
B.it is rude to keep the professor staying after class
C.it is normal for students to leave during lectures
D.it is acceptable for professors to be late for class.
Today about 70 countries use Daylight Saving Time (DST). Daylight Saving was first introduced during World War I in Australia. During the world wars, DST was used for the late summers beginning January 1917 and 1942, and the full summers beginning September 1942 and 1943.
In 1967, Tasmania experienced a drought(干旱). The State Government introduced one hour of daylight saving that summer as a way of saving power and water. Tasmanians liked the idea of daylight saving and the Tasmanian Government has declared daylight saving each summer since 1968. Persuaded by the Tasmanian Government, all states except two passed a law in 1971, for a test use of daylight saving. In 1972, New South Wales, South Australia and Victoria joined Tasmania for regular daylight saving, but Queenslan
d did not do so until 1989.
Tasmania, Queensland and South Australia have had irregular plans, often changing their dates due to politics or festivals(节日). For example, in 1992, Tasmania extended(延长)daylight saving by an extra month while South Australia began extending daylight saving by two weeks for the Adelaide Festival. Special daylight saving plans were made during the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.
The differences in daylight saving in Australia continue to cause serious problems in transport and many other social activities. It also reduces the number of hours in the working day that are common to all centers in the country. In particular, time differences along the east coast cause major differences, especially for the broadcasters of national radio and television.
57. Daylight Saving Time was introduced in Tasmania _______________.
A. to stop the drought in 1967 B. to support government official
C. to pass a special law in the state D. to save water and electricity
58. According to the text, which state was the last to use DST?
A. Victoria. B. Queensland. C. South Australia. D. New South Wales.
59. What can we learn about DST in some Australian states?
A. It doesn’t have fixed dates. B. It is not used in festivals.
C. Its plan was changed in 2000. D. It lasts for two weeks.
60. What do we know about the use of DST from the last paragraph?
A. There exists some undesirable effects. B. It helps little to save energy.
C. It brings about longer working days. D. Radio and TV programs become different.
Remembering names is an important social skill. Here are some ways to master it.
Recite and repeat in conversation.
When you hear a person’s name,repeat it. Immediately say it to yourself several times without moving your lips. You could also repeat the name in a way that does not sound forced or artificial.
Ask the other person to recite and repeat.
You can let other people help you remember their names. After you’ve been introduced to someone,ask that person to spell the name and pronounce it correctly for you. Most people will be pleased by the effort you’re making to learn their names.
Admit you don’t know.
Admitting that you can’t remember someone’s name can actually make people relaxed. Most of them will feel sympathy if you say. “I’m working to remember names better. Yours is right on the tip of my tongue. What is it again?”
Use associations.
Link each person yon meet with one thing you find interesting or unusual. For example,you could make a mental note: "Vicki Cheng -- tall, black hair. " To reinforce your associations, write them on a small card as soon as possible.
Limit the number of new names you learn at one time.
When meeting a group of people, concentrate on remembering just two or three names. Free yourself from remembering every one. Few of the people in mass introductions expect you to remember their names. Another way is to limit yourself to learning just first names. Last names can come later.
Go early.
Consider going early to conferences, parties and classes. Sometimes just a few people show up on time. That's fewer names for you to remember. And as more people arrive, you can hear them being introduced to others—an automatic review for you.
53. How will most people feel when you try hard to remember their names?
A. They will be moved. B. They will be annoyed.
C. They will be delighted. D. They will be discouraged.
54. If you can't remember someone's name, you may __
A. tell him the truth B. tell him a white lie
C. ask him for pity D. ask others to help you
55. When you meet a group of people, it is better to remember __
A. all their namesB. a couple of names first
C. just their last names D. as many names as possible
56. What does the text mainly tell us?
A. Tips on an important social skill. B. Importance of attending parties.
C. How to make use of associations. D. How to recite and repeat names.
Nervous suspects (嫌疑犯) locked up in Britain's newest police station may feel relieved by a pleasant yellow color on the door. If they are close to confessing(供认,坦白) a crime, the blue on the wall might tip the balance.
Gwent Police have abandoned colors such as grays and browns of the 20th-century police cell (牢房) and have used color psychology(心理学) to decorate them.
Ystrad Mynach station, which recently opened at a cost of £5 million, has four cells with glass doors for prisoners who suffer from claustrophobia(幽闭恐怖症). Designers have painted the frames yellow, which researchers say is a calming color. Other cells contain a royal blue line because psychologists believe that the color is likely to encourage truthfulness.
The station has 31 cells, including 12 with a “live scan” system for drunken or disturbed prisoners, which detects the rise and fall of their chest. An alarm alerts(报警
) officers if a prisoner's breathing stops and carries on ringing until the door is ope
ned.
Designers and psychologists have worked for years on color. Blue is said to suggest trust, efficiency, duty, logic, coolness, thinking and calm. It also suggests coldness and unfriendliness. It is thought that strong blues will stimulate clear thought and lighter, soft colors will calm the mind and aid concentration.
Yellow is linked with confidence, self-respect and friendliness. Get the color wrong and it could cause fear, depression and anxiety, but the right yellow can lift spirits and self-respect.
Ingrid Collins, a psychologist who specializes in the effects of color, said that color was an “energy force”. She said: “Blue does enhance communication but I am not sure it would enhance truthful communication.”
Yellow, she said, affected the mind. Red, on the other hand, should never be considered because it could increase aggression(攻击性). Mrs. Collins praised the designers for using colors in the cells. Gwent is not the first British force to experiment with color to calm down or persuade prisoners to co-operate. In the 1990s Strathclyde Police used pink in cells based on research carried out by the US Navy.
49. The expression “tip the balance” in paragraph 1 probably indicates that the blue might _____.
A. let suspects keep their balanceB. help suspects to confess their crimes
C. make suspects cold and unfriendly in law courtD. enable suspects to change their attitudes to colors
50. Which of the following colors should NOT be used in cells according to the passage?
A. Pink.B. YellowC.
Blue.D. Red.
51. Which of the following helps alert officers if someone stops breathing?
A. Scanning equipment.B. Royal blue lines. C. Glass doors. D. Yellow frames.
52. The passage is mainly concerned with _____.
A. the relationship between colors and psychology
B. a comparison of different functions of colors
C. the use of colors in cells to affect criminals’ psychology
D. scientific ways to help criminals reform themselves in prison
Professor Barry Wellman of the University of Toronto in Canada has invented a term to describe the way many North Americans interact (互动) these days. The term is “networked individualism”. This concept is not easy to understand because the words seem to have opposite meanings. How can we be individuals (个体) and be networked at the same time? You need other people for networks.
Here is what Professor Wellman means. Before the invention of the Internet and e-mail, our social networks included live interactions with relatives, neighbors, and friends. Some of the interaction was by phone, but it was still voice to voice, person to person, in real time.
A recent research study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project showed that for a lot of people, electronic interaction through the computer has replaced this person-to- person interaction. However, a lot of people interviewed for the Pew study say that’s a good thing. Why?
In the past, many people were worried that the Internet isolated (孤立) us and caused us to spend too much time in the imaginary world of the computer. But the Pew study discovered that the opposite is true. The Internet connects us with more real people than expected — helpful people who can give advice on careers, medical problems, raising children, and choosing a school or college. About 60 million Americans told P
ew that the Internet plays an important role in helping them make major life decisions.
Thanks to the computer, we are able to be alone and together with other people — at the same time!
45. The underlined phrase “networked individualism” probably means that by using computers people ________.
A. stick to their own ways no matter what other people say
B. have the rights and freedom to do things of their own interest
C. do things in their own ways and express opinions different from other people
D. are able to keep to themselves but at the same time reach out to other people
46. According to the Pew study, what do many people rely on to make major life decisions?
A. Networks. B. Friends. C. Phones. D. Parents.
47. It can be inferred from the Pew study that _______.
A. people have been separated from each other by using computers
B. the Internet makes people waste a lot of time and feel very lonely
C. the Internet has become a tool for a new kind of social communication
D. a lot of people regard the person-to-person communication as a good thing
48. Which would be the best title for this passage?
A. We’re Alone on the Internet.
B. We’re Communicating on the Internet.
C. We’re Alone Together on the Internet.
D. We’re in the Imaginary World of the Internet.