In a generous display of maturity and sympathy, one Jewish boy made his first deed as a man in his faith a great act of charity.
Joshua Neidorf, a 13-year-old boy from Los Angeles, donated most of his birthday money to Operation Mend, a program that reconstructs the faces of severely burned U. S. veterans（退伍老兵）.
The young man decided to donate his money after getting to know Army Sgt. Louis Dahlman, who was undergoing a series of reconstruction surgeries（手术）at UCLA （University of California at Los Angeles） thanks to Operation Mend. The Neidorfs had signed up to be Dahlman’s “buddy family”, spending time with him whenever he visited Los Angeles for a surgery.
“I just love knowing that it’s going somewhere...to help the people who save our lives and keep us safe every day,” said Neidorf. His mother added, “It makes me feel like our world is going in a good direction with this next generation.”
In all, Neidorf gave $13,000 to Operation Mend. He also encouraged his friends to donate to the cause. He is the organization’s youngest donor so far.
Operation Mend is a privately funded program that works in partnership with the UCLA Medical Center. Ron Katz, a board member at the hospital, started the program in 2006 after seeing a TV programme about Aaron Mankin, a veteran who had gone through dozens of surgeries after a fight in Iraq which completely burned off his face.
Mankin ended up being Operation Mend’s first patient, starting the first of 20 reconstructive facial surgeries at UCLA in Sept. 2007. In a 2011 interview, Katz shared how his experience of helping Mankin made him realize the need to establish a more permanent program.
“My wife and I soon realized that there were dozens of Aarons out there,” Katz said. “They deserve the best that we offer them.”Neidorf decided to help veterans because ________.
| A．he benefited from Operation Mend | B．he was afraid of burned faces |
| C．he thought they deserved help | D．he didn’t know how to spend money |
Operation Mend was founded after ________.
| A．Neidorf donated part of his birthday money |
| B．the Neidorfs signed up to be Dahlman’s “buddy family” |
| C．Ron Katz saw a TV programme about a veteran |
| D．Mankin was successfully operated on at UCLA |
What can we learn from the passage?
A. Neidorf’s mother was opposed to his decision to donate money.
B. Mankin’s face was burned in a fire in America.
C. Mankin went through more than 30 facial surgeries at UCLA.
D. Many facial surgeries are needed to reconstruct a seriously burned face.The last two paragraphs mainly tell us ________.
| A．the process of Mankin’s surgery | B．how Operation Mend was set up |
| C．how Katz became famous | D．veterans are respected by people |
It seems hard to watch someone yawn（打哈欠） and not to yawn ourselves. Even reading about yawning can make you do it. Now, a new study has found why yawning has such a powerful force.
Yawning when others yawn, the study suggests, is a sign of pity and a form of social connection. Kids don’t develop this deeply rooted behavior until around age four, the study found. Kids with autism (自闭症) are less likely to catch yawns. In the most serious cases, they never do. Yawning might help doctors to see whether the children are developing rightly. The work could also lead to a better understanding of the ways that people communicate and connect.
"Emotional infection seems to be a born thing that connects us together," said Molly Helt, a graduate student in psychology at the University of Connecticut. "Yawning may be part of that." Inspiration for her study came when she tried to get her own autistic son to clear his ears on an airplane. She repeatedly yawned at him, hoping he would yawn back. He never did.
"The fact that autistic kids don’t do it might mean they’re really missing out on that emotional connection with people around them," she said. "The biggest thing people try to figure out after birth is how we become humans and understand that humans have minds that are different from others’," she added. "Autistic people never seem to understand that."
Like infectious （有感染力的）laughter and crying, scientists have found that yawning is a shared experience that promotes social connection. Helt said it could fight stress after a period of being nervous and spread a feeling of calm through a group.What does the new study suggest, according to the first two paragraphs?
| A．Yawning is a form of communication. |
| B．It is easy to stop yawning when you see others yawn. |
| C．Children follow others in yawning just after they are born. |
| D．Yawning has some mysterious force which is related to God. |
According to Molly Helt, _________.
| A．humans differ from animals because they communicate with others |
| B．yawning is a kind of emotional connection among humans |
| C．emotions are infectious, but yawning is not |
| D．yawning helps clear ears on planes |
Which of the following is NOT true about yawning?
| A．It is natural to yawn back if people around you yawn. |
| B．Some kids are too young to yawn after others. |
| C．Yawning can be used to test children’s development. |
| D．Kids with autism yawn easily when others yawn. |
The author implies in the last paragraph that ________.
| A．yawning is different from infectious laughter and crying in theory |
| B．it is bad manners to yawn on some social occasions |
| C．the more you yawn, the happier you will be |
| D．yawning can make people feel relaxed |
The Swiss army knife is a popular device that is recognized all over the world. In Switzerland, there is a saying that every good Swiss citizen has one in his or her pocket. But the knife had poor beginnings.
In the late nineteenth century, the Swiss army issued（发给） its soldiers a gun that required a special screwdriver（螺丝刀） to take it apart and clean it. At the same time, canned food was becoming common in the army. Swiss generals decided to issue each soldier a standard knife to serve both as a screwdriver and a can opener.
It was a lifesaver for Swiss knife makers, who were struggling to compete with cheaper German imports. In 1884, Carl Elsener, head of the Swiss knife manufacturer（maker） Victorinox, seized that opportunity with both hands, and designed a soldier's knife that the army loved. It was a simple knife with one big blade(刀片), a can opener, and a screwdriver.
A few years after the soldier's knife was issued, the "Schweizer Offizier Messer," or Swiss Officer's Knife, came on the market. Interestingly, the Officer's Knife was never given to those serving in the army. The Swiss army purchasers considered the new model with a corkscrew（瓶塞钻） for opening wine not "essential for survival," so officers had to buy this new model by themselves. But its special multi-functional design later launched(发行) the knife as a global brand. After the Second World War, a great number of American soldiers were stationed in Europe. And as they could buy the Swiss army knife at shops on army bases, they bought huge quantities of them. However, it seems that "Schweizer Offizier Messer" was too difficult for them to say, so they just called it the Swiss army knife, and that is the name it is now known by all over the world.What is the main purpose of the passage?
| A．To explain the origin of the Swiss army knife. |
| B．To introduce the functions of the Swiss army knife. |
| C．To emphasize the importance of the Swiss army knife. |
| D．To tell a story about the designer of the Swiss army knife. |
What does "It" in the third paragraph refer to?
| A．The Swiss army needed a knife for every soldier. |
| B．Every good Swiss citizen had a knife in his pocket. |
| C．Swiss knives were competing with imported knives. |
| D．Canned food was becoming popular in the Swiss army. |
Why didn't the Swiss army purchase the Swiss Officer's Knife?
| A．The design of the knife was too simple. |
| B．The knife was sold out to American soldiers. |
| C．The army had no budget to make the purchase. |
| D．The new design was not considered necessary for officers to own. |
Who gave the name "the Swiss army knife" to the knife discussed in the passage?
| A．Carl Elsener. | B．Swiss generals. |
| C．American soldiers. | D．German businessmen. |
The day of my holiday arrived, but I wasn’t looking forward to it. I had little money and had only been able to afford to stay with my Aunt Rosa in Spain. So, I wasn’t really excited as I knew exactly what it was going to be like: lots of noisy cousins , and Aunt Rosa begging me to take her for a ride.
After I had checked in, I made my way slowly to the departure gate. As I was waiting to board the plane, I kept thinking about my ideal holiday destination: Jamaica, with its long, sandy beaches and crystal clear water.
As soon as the plane took off, I fell fast asleep and only woke to the sound of the announcement: “Ladies and gentlemen, please fasten you seat belts, as we will shortly be landing in Kingston.” I froze in my seat. Was I dreaming? Kingston? Jamaica? I had boarded the wrong plane!
Immediately after the plane landed, I explained the situation to the authorities. It seems there were also three other passengers heading for Spain. Apparently it had been the airline’s fault, since the flight numbers for Spain and Jamaica were exactly the same! Therefore, with no flight back to London for a week, the airline had no choice but to pay for our stay.
So there I was, lying on the beach, enjoying the music and the marvelous food of Jamaica! As for Aunt Rosa, I suppose she just had to live without me!Why did the writer choose to spend her holiday with her aunt in Spain?
| A．She missed her cousins very much. |
| B．Her aunt begged her to go there. |
| C．She could hardly afford any better trip. |
| D．Spain was her ideal destination. |
In the story, the writer ended up _________.
| A．flying to London immediately | B．heading for Spain from Jamaica |
| C．complaining to the authorities | D．enjoying a free beach holiday |
Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?
| A．A Lucky Mistake | B．A Terrible Adventure |
| C．A Nice Dream | D．A Well-Planned Trip |
Climate change could affect food supplies, water resources, human health and homes.
If greenhouse gas emissions keep increasing at the current rate, global temperature is expected to rise between 2°C and 6°C by 2100. This doesn’t sound much, but a 5°C change is the difference between the current warm period and an ice age.
Global warming leads to other changes in the climate: melting ice, more evaporation(蒸发), changes in geographical patterns of rainfall, heavier downpours separated by longer dry spells, more frequent heat waves, more intense hurricanes, and sea level rise.
These changes could affect crop growth as drought, increased evaporation and shrinking glaciers（冰川）disrupt water supply. Some crops could suffer heat stress. While there may be benefits in some regions, overall climate change is likely to have a negative impact on global food supplies. The impacts of climate change on agriculture will vary widely around the world. A global temperature rise of 1–2 °C is expected to increase food production in some regions, particularly mid-latitude areas. But in tropical regions even a small amount of warming could reduce crop yields. A temperature rise of 3 °C or more could threaten global food resources, as all regions are likely to experience negative impacts overall.
Freshwater resources could also diminish, especially in tropical regions, as rain patterns change and evaporation speeds up. Some communities could lose essential melt water as glaciers disappear, while more intense rainfall and hurricanes could cause more flooding, leading to water pollution and bacterial diseases such as cholera（霍乱）becoming more widespread.
Climate change could lead to a variety of health impacts – both positive and negative. On the negative side, scientists anticipate more cases of malnutrition, heatstroke and waterborne diseases such as cholera. Although some populations will benefit from a reduced risk of cold-related illnesses such as hypothermia, overall a warming world is likely to have negative effects on human health.
Scientists also expect damage to homes and buildings from more intense hurricanes, heavier rainfall and rising sea levels. Climate change is likely to affect infrastructure by increasing the risk of both coastal and inland flooding around the world, owing to a combination of heavier rainfall, rising sea levels and increased storm damage. Homes and buildings could also be affected by the thawing of frozen ground and greater risk of forest fires.
The consequences of climate change will have an impact on people around the world. With global temperature increased by 1–2 °C, _______.
| A．crops yields could be increased in tropical regions |
| B．food production could rise throughout the world |
| C．chances are that food resources would be threatened overall |
| D．mid-latitude areas are likely to experience positive impacts |
The underlined word “hypothermia” in Paragraph 6 possibly means a serious medical condition caused by_______.
| A．lower temperature than normal |
| B．higher temperature than normal |
| C．more cases of malnutrition |
| D．cases of waterborne diseases |
According to the passage, climate change has both positive and negative effects on ______.
| A．food supplies and buildings |
| B．freshwater resources and homes |
| C．human health and food supplies |
| D．human health and homes |
The passage is mainly meant to tell us _______.
| A．how global warming leads to changes in the climate |
| B．how climate change affects people worldwide |
| C．why climate change affects our crop growth |
| D．why climate change contributes to all bad results |
There has been much discussion recently about reducing the weight of English in China's high-stake tests such as the national college entrance examination. It is argued by some applauding the recent change to reduce the importance of English in tests so that it will lead students to focus more on learning Chinese. The TV program Writing in Chinese has exposed the problem that students and the general public cannot write in Chinese as they used to do.
Some blame the design of the curriculum for giving English an equal or greater amount of emphasis, which might have contributed to the failure in teaching Chinese. But this is probably not a fair accusation since children in English speaking countries cannot spell either.
I doubt that studying English in itself hurts the study of Chinese. In fact, high achievers in English or another foreign language are more likely to be high achievers in Chinese. It has been proved many times in recent Chinese history that those capable of using a foreign language are also masters in their mother tongue. Qian Zhongshu, Lu Xun and Lin Yutang are just a few examples.
Another trend of thought for curriculum reform is related to the perception of "worth". It is true that English is one of the subjects that students do spend too much time on, with pitiful results. This makes some doubt if it is worth giving it priority. But this is not a sound argument either as students still need to study things that matter more to their future in spite of challenges learning English presents to them.
Improvements in Chinese language education should not be achieved by sacrificing another important subject. There should be a robust(健康的) foreign language education program, as a foreign language improves a student's future job prospects. Bashing(抨击) English education as a waste of time or using it as a goat for failures in Chinese education are both harmful tendencies.
To be constructive, we ought to start a dialogue on ways to make improvements in learning outcomes so that students' time learning English is spent more effectively. There are a few things that could improve English education, such as assessment design，learner motivation and teaching style，
I am sure there are many other areas where changes can greatly improve the effectiveness and efficiency of English learning. The public discourse at present is a little oversimplified. People are arguing for or against English having less weight in major tests, when the dialogue should be taken a step further, to the improvement of learning or teaching methods that may benefit the teaching of other subjects as well, Chinese included.In paragraph 3 Qian Zhongshu, Lu Xun and Lin Yutang are mentioned to _____.
| A．show respect for their capabilities of learning languages |
| B．prove English and Chinese are not contradictory |
| C．confirm the importance of learning English in China |
| D．tell the readers English Education is to blame |
According to the passage, which of the following statements is right?
| A．The TV program Writing in Chinese is very popular at present. |
| B．Good results of learning English are not worth so much time. |
| C．Some are in favor of attaching less importance to English in exams. |
| D．Sacrificing English can improve Chinese language education. |
In the writer’s opinion, what should be done to solve the argument?
| A．Increasing time spent in learning Chinese. |
| B．Increasing time spent in learning English. |
| C．Reducing the weight of English in examinations. |
| D．Improving the learning outcomes effectively. |
Which of the following can best serve as the title of the passage?
| A．English education is still important in China. |
| B．Chinese education is more important in China. |
| C．English contributes to the failure in teaching Chinese |
| D．Ways to make improvements in learning Chinese. |