While income worry is a rather common problem of the aged, loneliness is another problem that aged parents may face. Of all the reasons that explain their loneliness, a large geographical distance between parents and their children is the major one. This phenomenon(现象) is commonly known as "Empty Nest Syndrome”（空巢综合症）．
In order to find better chances outside their countries, many young people have gone abroad, leaving their parents behind with no clear idea of when they will return home. Their parents spend countless lonely days and nights, taking care of themselves, in the hope that someday their children will come back to stay with them. The fact that most of these young people have gone to Europeanized or Americanized societies makes it unlikely that they will hold as tightly to the value of duty as they would have if they had not left their countries. Whatever the case, it has been noted that the values they hold do not necessarily match what they actually do. This geographical and cultural distance also prevents the grown-up children from providing response in time for their aged parents living by themselves.
The situation in which grown-up children live far away from their aged parents has been described as "distant parent phenomenon", which is common both in developed countries and in developing countries. Our society has not yet been well prepared for "Empty Nest Syndrome".According to the passage, the loneliness of aged parents is mainly caused by ________.
| A．their earlier experience of living alone |
| B．the poor living conditions in their native countries |
| C．the common worry that they have not saved much money |
| D．the distance between where parents live and where their children live |
Many young people have gone abroad, leaving their aged parents behind, to ______.
| A．realize their dreams in foreign countries |
| B．seek a better place for their aged parents |
| C．live in the countries with more money |
| D．continue their studies abroad |
If young people go abroad, __________.
| A．they do not hold to the value of duty at all |
| B．they can give some help to their parents back home |
| C．they cannot do what they should for their parents |
| D．they believe what they actually do is right |
From the last paragraph, we can infer that __________.
| A．the situations in the developed and developing countries are different |
| B．"Empty Nest Syndrome" has arrived unexpectedly in our society |
| C．children will become independent as soon as they go abroad |
| D．the aged parents are not fully prepared for "Empty Nest Syndrome" |
The society discussed in the passage is most probably __________.
| A．France | B．America | C．China | D．Britain |
I am an e-mail user. When I first started to use the e-mail system I used to read all my e-mail. I didn’t have much mail. I was very excited about receiving any e-mail. I gave my friends my e-mail address. Soon I had more mail than I wanted. Some of the mail was junk mail. I was worried. I didn’t want my mail to control me.
I’ve tried some methods to help me get control of my mail. First, I check my mail at the same time every day. Also I try to allow myself only 15-20 minutes every day to process my e-mail. This doesn’t always work, but I try. Sometimes I save the messages. Sometimes I just read them, maybe answer a few, and then delete them.
Sometimes I’m not at all interested in a message, so I don’t even open it. I delete it right away. This is very much the way I go through the mail that the postal service delivers to my home.
These methods are very simple. I have some friends who are very clever with computers. From time to time, they teach me new tricks for managing my e-mail. I’ve also learned to transfer some messages to a disk so they don’t fill up my mail files. Then I can read them later and maybe use them in my work. I’m still amazed at what e-mail can do for me! I’m still worried, however, about having too much to read.Which is the best title for this passage?
| A．How I Go through my E-mail | B．How I Manage my E-mail |
| C．How I Transfer my E-mail | D．How I Use my E-mail System |
What does the writer suggest by “This is very much the way I go through the mail that the postal service delivers to my home.”
| A．That he deals with the mail delivered by the post service almost in the same way. |
| B．That he receives more postal mail than e-mail. |
C．That he likes e-mail mu ch better than the mail delivered by the post service. |
D．That he likes going through the mail delivered by the post servic e. |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．Sometimes the writer checks his mail in the morning and sometimes in the evening. |
| B．The writer teaches his friends how to manage their e-mail. |
| C．The writer always spends less than 15 minutes processing his e-mail. |
| D．After giving his friends his e-mail address the writer had more e-mail than he wanted. |
In the first paragraph, the underlined phrase “junk mail” probably means.
| A．常规邮件 | B．病毒邮件 | C．垃圾邮件 | D．商务邮件 |
In the last paragraph, the underli
ned word “transfer” probably means.
| A．转换 | B．改变 | C．传递 | D．转移 |
Linda Evans was my best friend—like the sister I never had. We did everything together: piano lessons, movies, swimming, horse back riding.
When I was 13, my family moved away. Linda and I kept in touch through letters, and we saw each other on special time—like my wedding and Linda’s. Soon we were busy with children and moving to new homes, and we wrote less often. One day a card that I sent came back, stamped “Address Unknown. ” I had no idea how to find Linda.
Over the years, I missed Linda very much. I wanted to share happiness of my children and then grandchildren. And I needed to share my sadness when my brother and then mother died. There was an empty place in my heart that only a friend like Linda could fill.
One day I was reading a newspaper when I noticed a photo of a young woman who looked very much like Linda and whose last name was Wagman — Linda’s married name. “There must be thousands of Wagmans,” I thought, but I still wrote to her.
She called as soon as she got my letter. “Mrs Tobin!” she said excitedly, “Linda Evans Wagman is my mother. ”
Minutes later I heard a voice that I knew very much, even after 40 years, laughed and cried and caught up on each other’s lives. Now the empty place in my heart is filled. And there’s one thing that Linda and I know for sure: We won’t lose each other again!The writer went to piano lessons with Linda Evans .
| A．at the age of 13 | B．before she got married |
| C．after they moved to new homes | D．before the writer’s family moved away |
They didn’t often write to each other because they .
| A．got married | B．had little time to do so |
| C．didn’t like writing letters | D．could see each other on special time |
There was an empty place in the writer’s heart because she .
| A．was in trouble |
| B．didn’t know Linda’s address |
| C．received the card that she sent |
| D．didn’t have a friend like Linda to share her happiness or sadness |
The writer was happy when she .
| A．read the newspaper |
| B．heard Linda’s voice on the phone |
| C．met a young woman who looked a lot like Linda |
| D．wrote to the woman whose last name was Wagman |
They haven’t kept in touch .
| A．for about 40 years | B．for about 27 years |
| C．since they got married | D．since the writer’s family moved away |
Can dogs and cats get along well in the same home? People who are thinking about getting a dog as a friend for their cat are worried that they will fight. A recent research has found that if the cat is taken back home before the dog, and if they are introduced when still young (less than 6 months for cats, a year for dogs), it is highly probable that the two pets will get along swimmingly. In two-thirds of the homes cats and dogs have a good relationship.
However, it wasn’t all sweetness and light. There was a reported coldness between the cat and dog in 25% of the homes, while aggression(侵略，好斗) and fighting were found in 10% of the homes. One reason for this is probably that some of their body languages are just different. For example, when a cat turns its head away it means aggression, while a dog doing the same means submission(顺从).
In homes with cats and dogs living peacefully, researchers found a surprising behavior. They are learning how to talk each other’s language. It is a surprise that cats can learn how to talk “Dog”, and dogs can learn how to talk “Cat”.
What’s interesting is that both cats and dogs have appeared to become smarter. They can learn to read each other’s body languages, suggesting that the two may have more in common than was expected. Once familiar with each other’s body language, cats and dogs can play together, and enjoy sleeping together on the sofa.
The importance of this research on cats and dogs may go beyond pets — to people who don’t get along well, including neighbors, colleagues at work, and even countries. If cats and dogs can learn to get along, surely people have a good chance. The underlined word swimmingly in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ________.
| A．early | B．mostly | C．quickly | D．smoothly |
Some cats and dogs may fight when ________.
| A．they are cold to each other |
| B．they look away from each other |
| C．they misunderstand each other’s body languages |
| D．they are introduced at an early age |
What is found surprising about cats and dogs?
| A．They eat and sleep together. |
| B．They watch each other’s behaviors. |
| C．They learn to speak each other’s language. |
| D．They know something from each other’s voices. |
It is suggested in Paragraph 4 that cats and dogs ________.
| A．have common interests | B．are less different than was thought |
| C．have a common body language | D．are not so smart as was expected |
What can we human beings learn from cats and dogs?
| A．We should learn to get along well with others |
| B．We should know more about animals. |
| C．We should live in peace with animals. |
| D．We should learn more body languages. |
About 21,000 young people in 17 American states do not go to classes in school buildings. Instead, they receive their school education by working at home on computers. The Center for Education Reform says the United States has 67 public “cyberschools,” and that is about twice as many as two years ago.
The money for students to go to a cyberschool comes from the governments of the states where they live. Some educators say cyberschools receive money that should support traditional public schools. They also say it is difficult to know if students are learning well.
Other educators praise this new form of education for letting students work at their own speed. These people say cyberschools help students who were unhappy or unsuccessful in traditional schools. They say learning at home by computer ends long bus rides for children who live far from school.
Whatever the judgment of cyberschools, they are getting more and more popular. For example, a new cybershool called Common-wealth Connections Academy will take in students this fall. It will serve children in the state of Pennsylvania from ages five through thirteen.
Children get free equipment for their online education. This includes a computer, a printer, books and technical(技术的) services. Parents and students talk with teachers by telephone or by sending emails through their computer when necessary.
Students at cyberschools usually do not know one another. But 56 such students who finished studies at Western Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School recently met for the first time. They were guests honor at their graduation. What do we know from the text about students of a cyberschool?
| A．They have to take long bus rides to school. |
| B．They study at home rather than in classrooms. |
| C．They receive money from traditional public schools. |
| D．They do well in traditional school program. |
What is a problem with cyberschools?
| A．Their equipment costs a lot of money. |
| B．They get little support from the state government. |
| C．It is hard to know students’ progress in learning. |
| D．The students find it hard to make friends. |
Cyberschools are getting popular because ________.
| A．they are less expensive for students |
| B．their students can work at their own speed |
| C．their graduates are more successful in society |
| D．they serve students in a wider age range(范围) |
We can infer that the author of the text is ________.
| A．unprejudiced(无偏见的) in his description(描述) of cyberschools |
| B．excited about the future of cyberschools |
| C．doubtful about the quality of cyberschools |
| D．disappointed at the development of cyberschools |
According to the text, which of the following statements is true?
A. About 67% of the students in the USA go to cyberschools nowadays.
B. Cyberschools will take the place of traditional schools in the future.
C. Cyberschools are the most popular form of education now in the USA.
D. Not everybody likes cyberschools.
Psychology（心理学）tells us that many people hate to take risks. But it is good for us to take risks, especially (尤其)when the risk is to achieve a desired result. In that way, we become stronger and braver.
Our human nature should be to take risks, but some people just sit and wish they didn’t have the fear（恐惧）to move on. This is because of one or two failures in their lives. Please step out and don’t let the past hold you back from living life to the fullest. Move forward and move on!
In studying the psychology of taking risks, we find that human nature provides(提供) us with the desire (渴望)to experiment and take chances.
Risk taking is a great benefit（好处）that allowed our ancestors(祖先) to become stronger and stronger day by day. By taking risks they fought off enemies and discovered new territories（领土）. This attitude has become a part of our modern culture. Riding a roller coaster is a common risk taking activity that even the average person seems to enjoy although they have the understanding that it is dangerous. This psychological and biological (生物学上的) connection （联系）creates an interesting connection between what is unsafe and what humans enjoy.
Getting in a car each day is a risk. Getting out of bed is a risk. There is such thing as perfect safety. We need to take risks so that we can finish many things. Astronauts take risks when they get inside a rocket; however, the things they achieve are great. Businessmen take a risk when they buy parts of a company. However, without doing that, they could not make more money.
We need to take risks so that we can gain something. It is impossible to move forward in life, earn money, enjoy a relationship, play a sport, or do anything else without taking a risk. It is all part of the game. It’s one of the most important parts of life.Some people don’t want to take risks, mainly （主要）because ___________.
| A．they are too lazy to move on |
| B．they feel pleased with the present life. |
| C．they have experienced some failures before |
| D．they show little interest in the strange world outside |
What does the underlined part “This attitude” in Paragraph 4 mean?
| A．Taking risks | B．Fighting off enemies |
| C．Discovering new territories | D．Becoming stronger and stronger |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．Daily life is full of risks |
| B．The safest place has the greatest risk |
| C．People should take risks when they are young |
| D．We can always achieve our goals by taking risks |
What would be the title for the passage?
| A．Taking risks is easier said than done | B．On risks taken by ancestors |
| C．Live our life to the fullest(充分地) | D．No risk, no gain. |