A popular saying goes, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.”However, that’s not really true.Words have the power to build us up or tear us down. It doesn’t matter if the words come from someone else or ourselves--the positive and negative effects are just as lasting.
We all talk to ourselves sometimes. We’re usually too embarrassed to admit it, though. In fact, we really shouldn’t be, because more and more experts believe talking to ourselves out loud is a healthy habit.
This“ self-talk” helps us motivate ourselves, remember things, solve problems, and calm ourselves down.Be aware, though, that as much as 77%of self-talk tends to be negative. So in order to stay positive, we should only speak words of encouragement to ourselves.We should also be quick to give ourselves a pat on the back ,The next time you finish a project, do well in a test, or finally clean your room, join me in saying“ Good job!”
Often, words come out of our mouths without us thinking about the effects they will have. But we should be aware that our words cause certain responses to others. For example, when returning an item to a store, we might use warm, friendly language during the exchange. And the clerk will probably respond in a similar manner. Or harsh and critical language will most likely cause the clerk to be defensive.
Words possess power because of their lasting effect. Many of us regret something we once said. And we remember unkind words said to us! Before speaking, we should always ask ourselves: Is it true? Is it loving? Is it needed? If what we want to say doesn’t pass this test, then it’s better left unsaid.
Words possess power: both positive and negative. Those around us receive encouragement when we speak positively. We can offer hope, build self-esteem and motivate others to do their best. Negative words destroy all those things.Will we use our words to hurt or to heal? The choice is ours.The author argues in the first paragraph that __________.
A.words will never hurt us at all |
B.words have lasting effects on us |
C.inspiring words give us confidence. |
D.negative words may let us down |
Why should not we feel embarrassed when it comes to talking to ourselves?
A.Talking to ourselves is believed to be good for our health. |
B.Almost everybody has the habit of talking to oneself. |
C.Talking to ourselves helps us to solve all the problems. |
D.It is harmful to have “self-talk” when we are alone. |
The underlined phrase “give ourselves a pat on the back” in Paragraph three means “ _________”.
A.blame ourselves | B.punish ourselves |
C.talk to ourselves | D.praise ourselves |
Which of the following statements would the author agree to?
A.Unkind words are unlikely to be forgotten. |
B.Positive words may destroy all the good relations. |
C.It is better to think twice before talking to others. |
D.Kind words are sure to cause unfavorable response. |
Why should we talk in a friendly way when returning an item to a store?
A.Because kind words destroy true relationships. |
B.Because the clerk in a store is hard to deal with. |
C.Because critical language may hurt your feelings. |
D.Because friendly words cause positive responses. |
.
第三部分:阅读理解(共20小题,每小题2分,共40分)
My grandmother Myra is very dedicated woman. Once she sets her mind on something, then there's no stopping her. In this case, that's a good thing because to do what she did requires extreme dedication.
She was born in Montreal, Canada. Her mother died of cancer in her forties and her father wasn't very supportive of her and her younger sister. Because of this, my grandmother became extremely close with her sister Rhea.
Early in her life, my grandmother was a little fat and she was picked on for it. Because she missed her mother so much, she turned to food for false love. Throughout the years she became more overweight. Like most people, my grandmother was not happy with her weight, but she never really did anything about it either. She had a close friend who once told her that she needed to do something about her weight if she didn't want to die. Her extra weight caused her to have health problems. She had a stroke and heart problems and spent many years in a wheelchair. My grandmother decided to join Weight Watchers and follow their plan, She started to see improvement. After a little while she completely refused to eat all fatty foods and sweets.
In the end she was very satisfied. She dropped over two hundred pounds and didn't need her wheelchair anymore. Because of the experience she went through, she helps other people to slim down. Also because she knows how it feels to be overweight, she's now a nutrition counselor (营养顾问). She knows more about food's effect on health than anyone I know.
My grandmother taught me an extremely useful lesson. Because of her dedication and perseverance (毅力), I've learned that no matter how tough a situation looks or how impossible it seems, do have a try.
56. According to the passage, the author's grandmother is such a woman EXCEPT that ________.
A. she is a person with a strong will
B. she has a close relationship with her sister
C. she is dedicated
D. she was unkind to her father
57. The underlined phrase "Weight Watchers" is most probably the name of ________.
A. a group of overweight people
B. an organization which helps people lose weight
C. a doctor who operates on patients
D. a supermarket selling all fatty foods and sweets
58. The meaning of the underlined sentence in the last paragraph is closest to "_________".
A. Where there is a will, there is a way
B. Actions speak louder than words
C. The best fish swims near the bottom
D. Take a pain for a pleasure all wise men can
59. From the passage, we can infer that _________.
A. the author's grandmother was a teacher
B. the author admired her grandmother very much
C. the author's grandmother worked in Weight Watchers later
D. the author's grandmother hated her father very much
.
Have you ever been at a meeting while someone was making a speech and realized suddenly that your mind was a million miles away? You probably felt sorry and made up your mind to pay attention and always have been told that daydreaming is a waste of time.
“On the contrary,” says L. Giambra, an expert in psychology, “daydreaming is quite necessary. Without it, the mind couldn’t get done all the thinking it has to do during a normal day. You can’t possibly do all your thinking with a conscious(有意识)mind. Instead, your unconscious mind is working out problems all the time. Daydreaming then may be one way that the unconscious and conscious states of mind have silent dialogues.”
Early experts in psychology paid no attention to the importance of daydreams or even considered them harmful. At one time daydreaming was thought to be a cause of some mental illnesses. They did not have a better understanding of daydreams until the late 1980s. Eric Klinger, a professor of psychology, is the writer of the book Daydreaming. Klinger says, “We know now that daydreaming is one of the main ways that we organize our lives, learn from our experiences, and plan for our futures. Daydreams really are a window on the things we fear and the things we long for in life.”
Daydreams are usually very simple and direct, quite unlike sleep dreams, which may be hard to understand. It’s easier to gain a deep understanding of your life by paying close attention to your daydreams than by trying to examine your sleep dreams carefully. Daydreams help you recognize the difficult situations in your life and find out a possible way of dealing with them.
Daydreams cannot be predicated(预料). They move off in unexpected directions which may be creative and full of ideas. For many famous artists and scientists, daydreams were and are a main source of creative energy.
72.The writer of this passage considers daydreams__________.
A.hard to understand B.important and helpful
C.harmful and unimportant D.the same as sleep dreams
73.The writer quoted(引用)L. Giambra and Eric Klinger to__________
A.point out the wrong ideas of early experts B.list two different ideas
C.support his own idea D.report the latest research on daydreams
74.Which of the following is TRUE?
A.An unconscious mind can work all the problems out.
B.Daydreaming can give artists and scientists ideas for creation.
C.Professor Eric Klinger has a better idea than L. Giambra.
D.Early experts fully understood what daydreams were.
75.What is the main difference between daydreams and sleep dreams?
A.People have daydreams and sleep dreams at different times.
B.Daydreams are the result of unconscious mind while sleep dreams are that of conscious mind.
C.Daydreams are more harmful.
D.Daydreams are more helpful in solving problems.
.
Here are some advertisements taken from a newspaper.
(1)
Dear Drew Carter,
Your first year on this earth has been a pleasure ride for all of us. We love you!
Love,
Dad and Mom and many friends
(2)
Lawlis—Clarke
The Doctors Virgil and Marjorie Lawlis are pleased to announce the engagement(订婚)of their daughter Diana Susan to Mr. Robert Brent Clarke, son of Mr. and Mrs. James Clarke of Herford, Texas.
A spring wedding is planned in Houston.
(3)
Isbell—Foss
Mr. And Mrs. Davis K. Isbell announce the marriage of their daughter Dang to Mr. Stanley Foss, son of Mrs. John Sipe of Ada, Minnesota.
The wedding will be early April at Abiding Love Lutheran Church.
(4)
Story—Kurio
Miss Stephanie Story and Mr. Warren Kurio married on February 5, at half past seven o’clock in the evening at Highland Park Presbyterian Church in Dallas, Texas. The bride(新娘)is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs, Herbert Brule Story Jr. of Dallas. The groom(新郎)is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Gerald Stanley Kurio of Austin.
68.What would be the best title for the first advertisement?
A.We Love You B.Happy 1st Birthday C.One Year Old D.Our One-Year-Old Son
69.Lawlis and Clarke are going to get married .
A.in a church B.where Clarke’s parents live
C.against their parents’ will D.to Lawlis’s parents’ joy
70.Who got or will get married in spring?
A.Not only Lawlis and Clarke but also Isbell and Foss.
B.Neither Lawlis and Clarke nor Isbell and Foss.
C.Either Isbell and Foss or Story and Kurio.
D.Neither Lawlis and Clarke nor Story and Kurio.
71.Who are now a married couple?
A.Lawlis and Clarke. B.Dand Isbell and Foss.
C.Story and Kurio. D.The text doesn’t say.
.
Robert Owen was born in Wales in 1771. At the age of ten he went to work. His employer had a large
Private library so Owen was able to educate himself. He read a lot in his spare time and at nineteen he was given the job of superintendent(监工) at a Manchester cotton mill. He was so successful there that he persuaded his employer to buy the New Lanark mill in Scotland.
When he arrived at New Lanark it was a dirty little town with a population of 2,000 people. Nobody
paid any attention to the workers' houses or their children's education. The conditions in the factories were very bad. There was a lot of crime and the men spent most of their wages on alcoholic drinks.
Owen improved the houses. He encouraged people to be clean and save money. He opened a shop and sold the workers cheap, well-made goods to help them. He limited the sale of alcoholic drinks. Above all, he fixed his mind on the children's education. In 1816 he opened the first free primary school in Britain.
People came from all over the country to visit Owen's factory. They saw that the workers were healthier and more efficient than in other towns. Their children were better fed and better educated. Owen tried the same experiment in the United States. He bought some land there in 1825,but the community was too far away. He could not keep it under control and lost most of his money.
Owen never stopped fighting for his idea. Above all he believed that people are not born good or bad.
He was a practical man and his ideas were practical. "If you give people good working conditions," he thought, "they will work well and, the most important thing of all, if you give them the chance to learn, they will be better people."
64. For Owen, his greatest achievement in New Lanark was _____________.
A. improving worker's houses B. helping people to save money
C. preventing men from getting drunk D. providing the children with a good education
65. From the passage we may infer that Owen was born ___________.
A. into a rich familyB. into a noble family
C. into a poor family D. into a middle class family
66. Owen's experiment in the United States failed because _______.
A. he lost all his money
B. he did not buy enough land
C. people who visited it were not impressed
D. it was too far away for him to organize it properly
67. We may infer form the passage that no children in Britain could enjoy free education until ____.
A. 1771 B. 1816C. 1825 D. 1860
.
Do dogs understand us?
Be careful what you say around your dog. It might understand more than you think.
A border collie named Rico recognizes the names of about 200 objects, say researchers in Germany. The dog also appears to be able to learn new words as easily as a 3-year-old child. Its word-learning skills are as good as those of a parrot or chimpanzee(黑猩猩).
In one experiment, the researchers took all 200 items that Rico is supposed to know and divided the into 20groups of 10 objects. Then the owner told the dog to go and fetch one of the items and bring it back. In four tests,Rico got 37 out of 40 commands right. As the dog couldn't see anyone to get clues, the scientists believe Rico must understand the meanings of certain words.
In another experiment, the scientists took one toy that Rico had never seen before and put it in a room
with seven toys whose names the dog already knew. The owner then told Rico to fetch the object, using a word the dog had never heard before.
The correct object was chosen in seven out of l0 tests, suggesting that the dog had worked out the answer by process of elimination(排除法). A month later, Rico remembered half of the new names, which is even more impressive.
Rico is thought to be smarter than the average dog. For one thing, Rico is a border collie, a breed (种)known for its mental abilities. In addition, the 9-year-old dog has been trained to fetch toys by their names since the age of nine months.
It's hard to know if all dogs understand at least some of the words we say. Even if they do, they can't talk back. Still, it wouldn't hurt to sweet-talk your dog every now and then. You might just get a big, wet kiss in return!
60. From paragraph 2 we know that ______________.
A. animals are as clever as human beings
B. dogs are smarter than parrots and chimpanzees
C. chimpanzees have very good word-learning skills
D. dogs have similar 'learning abilities as 3-year-old children
61. Both experiments show that__________
A. Rico is smart enough to get all commands right
B. Rico can recognize different things including toys
C. Rico has developed the ability of learning mathematics
D. Rico won't forget the names of objects once recognizing them
62. Which of the following statements is true?
A. The purpose of the experiments is to show the border collie's mental abilities.
B. Rico has a better memory partly because of its proper early training.
C. The border collie is world-famous for recognizing objects.
D. Rico is born to understand its owner's commands.
63. What does the writer want to tell us?
A. To train your dog. B. To talk to your dog.
C. To be friendly to your dog. D. To be careful with your dog.