Number sense is not the ability to count. It is the ability to recognize a1in number. Human beings are born with this ability.2, experiments show that many animals are, too. For example, many birds have good number sense. If a nest has four eggs and you remove one, the bird will not3.However, if you remove two, the bird4leaves. This means that the bird knows the5between two and three.
Another interesting experiment showed a bird's6number sense. A man was trying to take a photo of a crow（乌鸦）that had a nest in a tower, but the crow always left when she saw him coming. The bird did not7until the man left the tower. The man had an8.He took another man with him to the tower. One man left and the other stayed, but they did not9the bird. The crow stayed away until the second man left, too. The experiment was10with three men and then with four men. But the crow did not return to the nest until all the men were11.It was not until five men went into the tower and only four left that they were12able to fool the crow.
How good is a human's number sense? It's not very good. For example, babies about fourteen months old almost always notice if something is taken away from a 13group. But when the number goes beyond three or four, the children are14fooled.
It seems that number sense is something we have in common with many animals in this world, and that our human15is not much better than a crow's.
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The park bench was deserted as I sat down to read beneath an old willow tree. Not 36__ with life, I was down. A young boy out of breath 37me, all tired from play. He stood right before me with his head tilted（倾斜的） down, 38 with great excitement, “Look what I found!”
In his hand was a flower, and what a 39 sight, with its petals（花瓣） all worn－not enough rain, or too little light. 40 him to take his dead flower and go off to play, I 41a small smile and then shifted away. But instead of 42 he sat next to my side and placed the flower to his nose and declared with 43, “It sure smells pretty and it’s beautiful, too. That’s why I 44 it; here, it’s for you.”
The flower before me was dying or dead. But I knew I 45 take it, or he might never leave. So I reached for the flower, and 46, “Just what I need.” But instead of placing the flower in my hand, he 47 it mid－air without reason. It was then that I 48 for the very first time the boy was 49.
I heard my voice shake, tears shone like the sun 50 I thanked him for picking the very best one. He smiled, and then ran off to play, 51of the effect he’d had on my day.
I sat there and 52 how he managed to see a self-pitying woman beneath an old willow tree. How did he know of my self-indulged(放纵的) 53 ? Perhaps from his heart, he'd been blessed with true 54 .
55 the eyes of a blind child, at last I could see, the problem was not with the world; the problem was me. And for all of those times I myself had been blind, I vowed to see beauty, and appreciate every second that's mine.
36．A．excited B．inspired C．content D．disappointed
37．A．approached B．overlooked C．understood D．recognized
38．A．telling B．saying C．informing D．talking
39．A．unique B．rough C．bothering D．pitiful
40．A．Wanting B．Demanding C．Persuading D．Inviting
41．A．presented B．adjusted C．forced D．delivered
42．A．declining B．accepting C．panicking D．quitting
43．A．surprise B．embarrassment C．sympathy D．sorrow
44．A．took B．pulled C．attained D．picked
45．A．should B．can C．may D．must
46．A．announced B．replied C．declared D．whispered
47．A．grasped B．held C．caught D．seized
48．A．observed B．confirmed C．noticed D．concluded
49．A．strange B．blind C．deaf D．unimaginable
50．A．once B．after C．as D．since
51．A．unaware B．unbelievable C．regretful D．regardless
52．A. doubted B. felt C. found D. wondered
53. A. embarrassment B. depression C. hopelessness D. effort
54. A. sense B. hearing C. sight D. ability
55．A．In B．From C．Before D．Through
One topic is rarely mentioned in all the talk of improving standards in our schools: the almost complete failure of foreign-language teaching. As a French graduate who has taught for more than twenty-five years, I believe I have some idea of why the failure is so total. 21 the faults already found out in the education system as a whole — such as child-centred learning, the “discovery” method, and the low expectations by teachers of pupils — there have been several serious 22 which have a direct effect on language teaching.
The first is the removal from the curriculum (课程) of the thorough teaching of English 23 . Pupils now do not know a verb from a noun, the subject of a sentence from its object, or the difference between the past, present, or future.
Another important error is mixed-ability teaching, or teaching in ability groups so 24 that the most able groups are 25 and are bored while the least able are lost and 26 bored. Strangely enough, few head teachers seem to be in favour of mixed-ability school football teams.
Progress depends on memory, and pupils start to forget immediately they stop having 27 lessons. This is why many people who attended French lessons at school, even those who got good grades, have 28 it a few years later. Because they never need it, they do not practice it.
Most American schools have accepted what is inevitable and 29 modern languages, even Spanish, from the curriculum. Perhaps it is time for Britain to do the same, and stop 30 resources on a subject which few pupils want or need.
21. A. Due to B. In addition to C. Instead of D. In spite of
22. A. errors B. situations C. systems D. methods
23. A. vocabulary B. culture C. grammar D. literature
24. A. wide B. similar C. separate D. unique
25. A. kept out B. turned down C. held back D. left behind
26. A. surprisingly B. individually C. equally D. hardly
27. A. extra B. traditional C. basic D. regular
28. A. needed B. forgotten C. practised D. left
29. A. restored B. absorbed C. prohibited D. withdrawn
30. A. wasting B. focusing C. exploiting D. sharing
I used to be ashamed of my grandma. I know that's a 36 thing to say, but it was true until today, so I have to 37 it.
The 38 started when my friend Katy found Grandma's false teeth floating in a glass on the bathroom sink. I was so used to seeing them that I 39 took notice of them. But Katy shouted, laughing and 40 to talk to them. I had to get down on my knees and 41 her to shut up so my grandma wouldn't 42 and get hurt.
After that happened, I 43 there were a million things about Grandma that were embarrassing（令人窘迫）.
Once she took Jill and me out to Burger King. 44 ordering our hamburgers well-done, she told the person behind the counter, "They'll have two Whoppers (巨无霸) well-to-do. " Jill burst out laughing, but I almost 45 .
After a while, I started wishing I could 46 Grandma in a closet. I even complained to my parents. Both my parents said I had to be careful not to make Grandma feel 47 in our home.
Then last Wednesday, something happened that 48 everything completely. My teacher told us to help find interesting old people and 49 them about their 50 for a big Oral History project. I was trying to think of someone when Angie pushed me gently.
"Volunteer your grandmother," she whispered. "She's 51 and rich in experience."
That was the last thing I ever thought Angie would say about my grandma.
This is how I ended up on 52 today interviewing my own grandmother before the whole school assembly (集合). All my friends and teachers were listening to her 53 she was a great heroine. I was 54 of my grandma and hoped she would 55 know that I had been ashamed of her.
36. A. funny B. common C. terrible D. clear
37. A. admit B. receive C. refuse D. show
38. A. quarrel B. accident C. trouble D. adventure
39. A. already B. always C. simply D. hardly
40. A. enjoying B. pretending C. imagining D. continuing
41. A. warn B. demand C. advise D. beg
42. A. mind B. hear C. see D. fall
43. A. expected B. declared C. realized D. doubted
44. A. Because of B. Except for C. Such as D. Instead of
45. A. died B. cheered C. disappeared D. suffered
46. A. meet B. avoid C. arrange D. hide
47. A. independent B. inconvenient C. unwelcome D. unfamiliar
48. A. changed B. finished C. stopped D. Prepared
49. A. interview B. report C. tell D. write
50. A. news B. lives C. advantages D. achievements
51. A. free B. popular C. interesting D. embarrassing
52. A. show B. stage C. duty D. time
53. A. and then B. even if C. so that D. as if
54. A. sure B. proud C. ashamed D. afraid
55. A. never B. even C. still D. once
A seeker asks, “I want to make a difference in the world, but there are so many causes crying for attention that I feel deeply confused. I don't know where to put my energy to have the greatest 21 . Where do I begin?”
Lynn Answers:
There is no one “ 22” place to begin. Each of us has a different 23place, and the place where we will be of greatest service has to do with where we most want to 24 . If we want to have an effect on the world around us, it's important to 25 what I think of as our "Area of Power." Our Area of Power is where we feel the most passion to act and have the most 26 that results are 27 .
If we pray for world peace, but have no vision of what this would look like and no faith that our 28 will help, our effect is less than if we pray for peace and harmony in our own 29with a clear picture of what this means and excitement that healing is possible. Without faith that we can 30 , our power to help is decreased.
21. A. power B. easeC. effect D. result
22. A. rightB. real C. similar D. exact
23. A. amusingB. endingC. starting D. finishing
24. A. giveB. liveC. act D. dream
25. A. work B. regardC. consider D. identify
26. A. power B. peaceC. faith D. energy
27. A. visibleB. possibleC. reasonable D. accessible
28. A. prayers B. playersC. seekers D. watchers
29. A. language B. way C. world D. family
30. A. make an effort B. make it C. make a difference D. make ends meet
Being alone in outer space can be frightening. That is one reason why astronauts on solo (单独的) space flights were given plenty of work to keep them 21 . They were also constant communication with people on the earth. 22 , being with people from whom you cannot get away might be even harder than being alone. This is what happens on long submarine (潜水艇) voyages. It will also happen on 23 space flights in the future. Will there be special problem of adjustment under such conditions?
Scientists have studied the reactions of men to one another during long submarine voyages. They have found that the longer the voyage lasts, the more serious the problem of 24 is. When men are 25 together for a long period, they begin to feel uneasy. Everyone has little habits of speaking and behaving that are ordinarily acceptable. In the limited space over a long period of time, however, these little habits may become very 26 .
Apparently, although no one wants to be 27 all the time, everyone needs some degree of privacy. When people are enclosed together, they are in what is called a stress situation. That means that they are under an unusual amount of 28 or stress.
People who are well-adjusted are able to 29 stress situations better than others. That is one reason why so much care is taken in 30 our astronauts. These men undergo a long period of testing and training. One of the things tested is their behavior under stress.
21. A. tired B. asleep C. conscious D. busy
22. A. So farB. After all C. However D. Therefore
23. A. long B. fast C. dangerous D. direct
24. A. fuel B. entertainment C. adjustment D. health
25. A. shut up B. held up C. brought up D. picked up
26. A. pleasing B. annoying C. common D. valuable
27. A. noisy B. alone C. personal D. sociable
28. A. emphasis B. conflict C. power D. pressure
29. A. handle B. create C. affect D. investigate
30. A. becoming B. choosing C. ordering D. promoting