A MENTORING (导师制) program is giving life changing opportunities to Banbury youth.
Young Inspirations was founded two years ago to provide mentoring sessions for students and unemployed young adults aged 11 to 21.
Alex Goldberg, the program's founder, said; "We set up Young Inspirations because we wanted to give young people experiences which will potentially be life changing and broaden their outlook.
"We try to create work experience opportunities that will really make a difference to our youth. For example, we've secured internships (实习) with world-famous firms such as Honda.
"At a time of funding cutbacks where schools are finding it more and more difficult to offer this kind of mentoring, it is extremely important that these opportunities are available both to help youth with their school work and grades and to give them opportunities which may help shape their futures. " Kieran Hepburn, 14, is one of a group of Banbury youth who has benefited from the program so far. In October the Banbury School pupil was accompanied by Young Inspirations staff to Paris where he was an observer at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's (UNESCO) International Youth Forum (论坛).
The event was held for young people from around the world, to seek their views on how the future of youth and education should look. Kieran joined several hundred observers mostly in their 20s and was the only UK school pupil to attend the event. Kieran thinks the trip was a life changing experience. " Before we left I didn't quite know what to make of it but when we got there we didn't stop, it was amazing," he said, " We went to three or four hours of debates each day and then did something cultural each afternoon."
The main theme of the forum was how youth can drive change in political and public life. It dealt with issues such as drug abuse, violence and unemployment.
Kieran said: " It has really helped me to improve my confidence and social skills as well as my school grades and I was voted most improved pupil at school in August. "
The Young Inspirations mentoring sessions take place each Friday in Banbury. For details visit www.younginspirations.com.66.The Young Inspirations mentoring program aims to _____.
A.train staff for world-famous firms |
B.provide youth with unique experiences |
C.offer job opportunities to young adults |
D.equip the unemployed with different skills |
67.According to Alex Goldberg, it is difficult for schools to offer the mentoring due to ______.
A.the shortage of money | B.the cultural differences |
C.the effect of unemployment | D.the lack of support from firms |
68.According to the passage, the forum focused on how youth can ______.
A.build up their confidence at school |
B.find work experience opportunities |
C.improve their social skills for the future |
D.play an active role in the change of society |
69.We can learn from the passage that _____.
A.the visit to the United Kingdom was amazing |
B.the youth have found a way to solve their problems |
C.Kieran has made great progress in many aspects |
D.the mentoring sessions are held every day except Friday |
70.What would be the best title for the passage?
A.Alex Goldberg, Founder of Young Inspirations |
B.Kieran, Banbury School Pupil to Paris |
C.Young People Find a World of Opportunity |
D.Debates Help Youth with Their Grades |
Right in front of the Minneapolis Central Library,a row of green bikes sits parked in a special stand.Each bike is designed with the logo“Nice Ride”—the name of the city’s bike-share program.
Nice Ride bikes are a lot like the library books that people come here to borrow.To rent a bike,you simply use your membership card at a Nice Ride bike station.Members can rent one of 1,200 bikes from 138 stations throughout Minnesota's largest city.People use the Nice Ride bikes to go to work,to go out on business,or just to enjoy the city’s many bike paths.
The rise of bike-share programs like Nice Ride is encouraging more people than ever to choose biking over driving.Rising gas prices and concerns about the environment have also gotten people to dust off their bike helmets, pump air into flat tires,and hit the road.
Why ride? Not only is biking good exercise,but switching from a car to a bike also reduces the amount of pollution in the air.Carbon dioxide,a greenhouse gas linked to climate change,is one of the many polluting substances that come out of a car's tallpipe.
Bike-share systems are found around the world in cities like London,Paris,Barcelona,and Melbourne,Australia.The largest program-with 70,000 bikes-is in Wuhan,China.
To make roads friendlier to non-motorists,the U.S.Department of Transportation has invested more than a billion dollars in cycling and pedestrian projects in recent years.The money went toward building thousands of miles of on-street bike lanes and bike-and pedestrian-only passages called green ways.If one wants to use the bike,it's a must to __________.
A.give away a bicycle | B.know Nice Ride well |
C.pay the cost in advance | D.get a membership card |
Which of the following can people do with the bikes?
A.Earn a living. | B.Enjoy bikeways. |
C.Compete in a race. | D.Rent them out to others. |
Paragraph 4 is mainly about _____________.
A.benefits of biking | B.pollution caused by cars |
C.methods to use the bikes | D.ways to reduce pollution |
Which of the following is true of Nice Ride?
A.It will take the place of taxi companies. |
B.China has better public bike systems. |
C.It attracts more people to choose biking. |
D.The government lacks money to support it. |
The author's purpose in writing this text is to ______________.
A.spread bike-share programs |
B.seek advice for Nice Ride |
C.compare Nice Ride with libraries |
D.introduce the public bike system |
The day my husband fell to his death,it started to snow,just like any November day.His body,when I found it,was lightly covered with snow.It snowed almost every day for the next four months,while I sat on the couch and watched it pile up.One morning,I shuffled downstairs and was surprised to see a snow remover clearing my driveway and the bent back of a woman shoveling(铲)my walk.I dropped to my knees,crawled through the living room.And back up stairs so those good people would not see me.I was embarrassed.My first thought was,how would I ever repay them? I didn’t have the strength to brush my hair let alone shovel someone’s walk.
Before John’s death,I took pride in the fact that I rarely asked for help or favors,I defined myself by my competence and independence.So who was I if I was no longer capable and busy? How could I respect myself if all I did was sit on the couch every day and watch the snowfall?
Learning how to receive the love and support that came my way wasn't easy.Friends cooked forme and l cried because I couldn't even help them set the table.“I'm not usually this lazy,”I wept.Finally,my friend Kathy sat down with me and said,"Mary,cooking for you is not a burden. I love you and I want to do it.It makes me feel good to be able to do something for you.”
Over and over,I heard similar emotions from the people who supported me during those dark days.One very wise man told me,“You are not doing nothing.Being fully open to your sorrow may be the hardest work you will everdo.”
I am not the person I once was,but in many ways I have changed for the better.My heart is now filled with thanks for people around me.I have been surprised to learn that there is incredible freedom that comes from facing one’s worst fear and walking away whole.I believe there is strength,for sure,in accepting a dark period of our life.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A.The writer’s friend was unwilling to cook for her. |
B.The writer had been busy with her life before. |
C.The writer recovered from her sorrow quickly with his friend‘s help. |
D.The day her husband died,it was snowing heavily. |
We can describe the writer before her husband died as the following except ___________.
A.hard-working | B.independent |
C.smart | D.capable |
The underlined word“shuffled”in Paragraph 1 probably means ___________.
A.stepped steadily | B.walked slowly |
C.ran swiftly | D.fell sadly |
We can infer from the passage that ____________.
A.the writer found her husband immediately he fell off the roof |
B.the writer became strong-willed immediately after John's death |
C.the people around the writer were friendly and supported her |
D.before John’s death,the writer never asked others for help |
The writer wrote the passage to ___________.
A.share her sad story with us |
B.express her guilty conscience to the people who helped her |
C.show her thanks to the people who love and support her |
D.tell us the changes she has made because of her husband’s death |
CHICAGO(Reuters)-Smoking not only can wrinkle(皱纹)the face and turn it yellow—it can do the same to the whole body,researchers reported on Monday.
The study,published in the Archives of Dermatology,shows that smoking affects the skin all over the body-even skin protected from the sun.
“We examined non-facial skin that was protected from the sun,and found that the total number of packs,of cigarette smoked per day and the total years a person has smoked were linked with the amount of skin damage a person experienced,”Dr.Yolanda,who led the study,said in a statement.
“In participants older than 65 years,smokers had significantly more fine wrinkling than nonsmokers.Similar fmdings were seen in participants aged 45 to 65 years.” Yolanda’s team added in their report.
The researchers tested 82 people,smokers and nonsmokers,taking pictures of the inner right arms.They ranged,in age from 22 to 91 and half were smokers.In dependent judges decided how wrinkled each person’s skin was.
When skin is exposed to sunlight,especially the face,it becomes coarse(粗糙的).Wrinkled and discolored with a pale yellow tint,Yolanda's team wrote.
Several previous studies have found that cigarette smoking led to premature(过早的)skin aging asmeasured by facial wrinkles,the study said,but little has been done to measure the aging of skin not exposed to light.
The report did not discuss die mechanism involved but previous research has found that cigarette smoke,among other things,causes blood vessels(血管)beneath the skin to constrict(紧缩),reducing blood supply to the skin.
Smoking can also damage the connective tissue(组织)that supports both die skin and the internal organs.The best title for this passage would be ______________.
A.The danger of smoking | B.Smoking causes skin aging |
C.Quit smoking for health | D.A survey of smokers |
It can be inferred from the study _____________.
A.smoking won’t affect skin protected from the sun |
B.smoking will do damage to skin rather than other organs |
C.smokers over 65 usually won’t worry about their skin |
D.the age of smokers is not connected,with the result of the test |
When your skin is exposed to sunlight long,it becomes all of the following but _________.
A.flexible | B.coarse |
C.rough | D.discolored |
According to the passage,how wrinkled a person’s skin is doesn’t relate to ___________.
A.the number of cigarettes a person smokes |
B.the kind and characteristics of skin |
C.how long a person smokes |
D.how long skin is under sunlight |
From the passage smoking results in skin aging mainly because ____________.
A.it will lower blood supply to skin |
B.it can make you feel tired |
C.it can make skin come off |
D.it can make blood run faster |
The main purpose of the passage is to ____________.
A.inform people about the study of skin. |
B.advise people how to protect skin |
C.warn people not to smoke again |
D.introduce a new way of avoid skin aging |
To win an Oscar is an achievement at any age.To do so at 22,as Jennifer Lawrence has,is just amazing.Recently,the American star won Best Actress at this year’s Academy Awards for her role in the film The Silver Linings Playbook.According to Time magazine’s Richard Corliss,Lawrence is that rare young actress who“lends a mature intelligence to any ro1e”.Though Lawrence has found great success through her big screen work,Lawrence wasn't sure what she really liked doing before the ageof l4.She thought she’d go to college and may be find a career as a doctor or a travel agent.
Lawrence’s two brothers were star athletes and one of them was a straight-A student.Unlike them,she suffered through school,never quite finding where she belonged.However,during a trip to New York,Lawrence suddenly realized that she wanted to be an actress.When she was enjoying the beautiful city,a model seeker asked if he could take her picture,and the next day he called her in for an audition(试镜).
“I read the script(剧本)and it was the first time I had that feeling like I understand this,”Lawrence said.“Within 20 minutes,in the cab ride from the hotel room,I decided I didn’t want to be a model.In fact, I wanted to be an actress.”Having appreciated this young lady’s performance,the agency was so impressed with her reading that they signed her on the spot.But she insisted on finishing high school so she could give her full attention to her acting career.
Lawrence burst onto the Hollywood scene last year with The Hunger Games,which established her as the highest-grossing(票房最高的)female action hero of all time.Rolling Stone called her “the most talented young actress in America”.What can we know about Jennifer Lawrence from Paragraph 3?
A.Her parents were really strict with her. |
B.She seemed not to fit in with her school days well. |
C.Her school performance made her today's fame. |
D.Her two brothers were doing well in all school subjects. |
Lawrence made up her mind to be all actress because of
A.a model interview |
B.her brothers’examples |
C.the taxi-ride to her hotel room |
D.the beautiful scenery of New York |
From the text we can know that Lawrence is an actress of great ____________.
A.confidence | B.ambition |
C.independence | D.talent |
What is the best title of the text?
A.Choosing Early | B.Acting Wisely |
C.Winning Young | D.Following Dreams |
There is no denying that for more than a generation college education has been accepted without the slightest doubt. All high school graduates ought to go, says conventional wisdom and statistical evidence, because college will help them earn more money, become “better” people, and learn to be more responsible citizens than those who don’t go.
But college has never been able to work its magic for everyone. And now that close to half our high school graduates are attending, those who don’t fit the pattern are becoming more numerous, and more obvious. College graduates are selling shoes and driving taxis; college students interfere with each other’s experiments and write false letters of recommendation in the fierce competition so as to get admitted into graduate schools. Others find no stimulation (激励) in their studies, and consequently have to drop out, which is often encouraged by college administrators.
Some observers say the fault is with the young people themselves--they are spoiled and they are expecting too much. But that’s a condemnation(谴责)of the students as a whole, and doesn’t explain all campus unhappiness. Others blame the state of the world, and they are partly right. We have been told that young people have to go to college because our economy can’t absorb an army of untrained eighteen-year-olds. But disappointed graduates are learning that it can no longer absorb an army of trained twenty-two-year-olds, either.
Some campus watchers have openly begun to suggest that college may not be the best, the proper, the only place for every young person after the completion of high school. We may have been looking at all those surveys and statistics upside down, it seems, and through the rosy(玫瑰般的) glow of our own remembered college experiences. Perhaps college doesn’t make people intelligent,ambitious, happy,liberal, or quick to learn things—maybe it is just the other way around, and intelligent, ambitious, happy, liberal, quick-learning people are merely the ones who have been attracted to college in the first place. And perhaps all those successful college graduates would have been successful whether they had gone to college or not. This is heresy (异端邪说) to those of us who have been brought up to believe that if a little schooling is good, more has to be much better. But contrary evidence is beginning to come up.According to the first paragraph, ___________________.
A.people now no longer challenge college education. |
B.people still have a low opinion of college education. |
C.the author thinks youngsters should all go to college. |
D.people have great expectations for college education. |
More young people drop out of college because _________.
A.they are no longer motivated in their studies. |
B.they can start selling shoes and driving taxis. |
C.they compete for admission to graduate schools. |
D.college administrators encourage them to do so. |
Who does the author think is to blame for campus unhappiness?
A.young students who are all spoiled and expecting too much. |
B.our society that can’t offer enough jobs to college graduates. |
C.our society that has not enough jobs for high school graduates. |
D.young people as well as our society are to blame for all this. |
Which of the following sentences is TRUE about those surveys and statistics?
A.They proved wrong as being contradictory to our college experiences. |
B.They are so convincing that we think of our rosy college experiences. |
C.They may have been misread because of our rosy college experiences. |
D.They prove high school graduates are smarter than college gratuates. |
What is the meaning of the underlined sentence in Paragragh 4?
A.It is a different way | B.It is just the opposite. |
C.It is the wrong way. | D.There’s no other way. |
What’s the main purpose of this passage?
A.To inform young people college education is no longer important now. |
B.To prove college education doesn’t make young people more intelligent. |
C.To argue against the idea that college is the first choice for all youngsters. |
D.To tell young people that there’s something wrong with college education. |