Dear Michelle,
My Dad hates my Mom. He tells me that she is a liar and that I should not trust her. Of course, they are divorced but they have “joint custody” (共同监护). What a joke! I am 15, my brother is nine, and we have a life of hell, frankly.
We live one week on and one week off. This was the brilliant idea of both of my parents, which was fair to them but ruining my life. I cannot get away from his voice and his putting my mom down. Sometimes I think about running away.
A Hopeless Ant
Dear Hopeless Ant,
First, thank you for trusting me with your problem. If all you said is correct, then there are several things that you can and should do to help yourself, your brother, and oddly enough, your parents.
You need a family counselor. Such a person could listen to each family member alone and then meet together to talk about the situation.
If refused, you need to talk to a counselor in your school. You need to be heard, and you need an adult who will listen. A school counselor can organize a meeting with your parents.
Perhaps you need to write to your mother. Writing things down allows people to go over it more than one time.
I cannot imagine that she will stand passively by and do nothing at all to help once she reads how you feel. Your father needs a letter as well. He may not realize the destructive effect that it has on his children.
Lastly, have a plan in mind when all else fails that is not self-destructive. Life passes very quickly, sweetheart, and you will grow up and have your own life.
Until then, you need to keep yourself safe. Never doubt that it will get better. Write back and let me know how everything is going.
MichelleThe Hopeless Ant wrote the letter to ________.
| A．express dissatisfaction with his parents |
| B．ask for advice seriously |
| C．make his father punished |
| D．just make a joke |
The Hopeless Ant hated his father because ________.
| A．his father always told a lie |
| B．his father wasn’t friendly to his mother |
| C．his father divorced his mother |
| D．the Hopeless Ant couldn’t stay with his parents |
According to the text, which of the following is the Hopeless Ant in need of at present?
| A．Keep himself/herself away from danger. |
| B．Have a talk with his/her parents. |
| C．Have his/her own family plan. |
| D．Write letters to families. |
In which part of a magazine will the text probably appear?
| A．Entertainment | B．Advertisement | C．Life | D．Education |
Eve was waiting in the corridor outside her class. She was feeling sick. She had two exams that day and physics was first. She really hated physics. It was her worst subject. Lisa looked back at her, and then looked away quickly. Eve thought she looked guilty. She didn't have a problem with physics. She didn't have a problem with anything... Miss Perfect!
“Hi, Eve! So what's wrong with you and Lisa?” asked Tina, “I thought you were friends.” “Yes, so did I,” said Eve. “But she hasn't spoken to me for two weeks now. She promised to help me review for the physics exam too, but then she’s ignored all my calls and texts.”
While in the exam, Eve found Lisa was holding her phone on her knee under the table and reading from it. Eve couldn’t believe it! Is that how Lisa always got such good grades? She thought about telling the teacher, but she hesitated. The next exam was history. That was Eve’s favorite subject but she couldn't concentrate. She didn't know what to do about Lisa. Just then, Mr. Reed, their teacher, walked past. “Mr. Reed…”
Lisa was called to the teachers’ office and there waited Mr. Reed…
The history test was over. Eve was walking towards the school gate when she heard footsteps behind her. It was Lisa. Eve could see that she had been crying. “Listen,” said Lisa. “I'm really sorry I haven’t answered your calls, but my dad had a heart attack two weeks ago and he’s in hospital. He had a big heart operation today and I was very worried about him. So I was reading texts from my mum, but Mr. Reed caught me. He thought I was cheating. He believes me now, but I have to take the exam again. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you what was happening. Will you forgive me?” The reason for Eve’s feeling sick is most probably that _______.
| A．she found Lisa was looking back at her |
| B．she had to take two exams within one day |
| C．she was worried about the physics exam |
| D．she had been waiting for too long a time |
Lisa didn't help Eve review for the physics exam because _______.
| A．she had to look after her sick father |
| B．she herself was quite bad at physics |
| C．she didn't consider Eve as a true friend |
| D．she was selfish and hated to waste time |
At the end of the story Eve probably felt _______.
| A．confident and optimistic | B．regretful and sorry |
| C．sad and angry | D．glad and inspired |
What lesson can we learn from this passage?
| A．A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
| B．A life without a friend is a life without sun. |
| C．Old friends and old wines are the best. |
| D．Friendship should be based on trust. |
The playwright George Bernard Shaw once said humorously, “England and America are two nations divided by a common language. If he were writing today, he might add ‘divided by a common technology--- e-mail’”.
Two completely different styles of e-mail have formed on either side of the Atlantic-Euromail and Amerimail. Americail is informal and chatty. It’s likely to begin with a “Hi” and end with a “Bye”. The chances of Amerimail containing a smiley face or an “xoxo” are disturbingly high. We Americans are unwilling to dive into the meat of an e-mail. We feel we have to first inform recipients (收信人) about our vacation on the island which was really excellent except the jellyfish were biting and the kids caught a cold, so we had to skip the whale watching trip, then about that investors（投资者）’ meeting in New York. Amerimail is a bundle of contradictions, casual and yet direct, respectful yet over proud. In other words, Amerimail is America.
Euromail is stiff and cold often beginning with a formal “Dear Mr. X” and ending with a simple “Sincerely”. You won’t find any mention of kids or the weather or jellyfish in Euromail. It’s all business. It’s also slow. Your correspondent might take days even weeks to answer a message. Euromail is exactly like the Europeans themselves.
Recently about 100 managers were asked on both sides of the Atlantic whether they noticed differences in e-mail styles. Most said yes. Here are a few of their observations:
“Americans tend to write (e-mail) exactly as they speak.”
“Why don’t you just call me instead of writing five e-mails back and forth?”
“Europeans are less interested in checking e-mail”.
“In general, Americans are much more responsive to e-mail—they respond faster and provide more information.”
So which is better, Euromail or Amerimail? I realized it’s not popular these days to suggest we have anything to learn from Europeans, but I’m fed up with an inbox filled with casual, barely meaningful e-mails from friends and colleagues. If the alternative is a few earnestly written, carefully worded bits of Euromail, then I say, “Bring it on.”What did George Bernard Shaw mean by saying “England and America are two nations divided by a common language”?
| A．There is sharp difference between England and America despite their common language. |
| B．Both England and America speak the common language, so they are much the same. |
| C．Either England or America is a divided nation, though they share a common language. |
| D．There is not much difference between British English and American English. |
Which of the following is most likely to be the “meat” of an Amerimail?
| A．The jellyfish were biting. |
| B．We had an excellent vacation on the island. |
| C．We were to attend the investors’ meeting in New York. |
| D．We had to skip the whale watching trip. |
On receiving an e-mail, Europeans tend to __________.
| A．respond to it immediately and earnestly |
| B．never respond to it all |
| C．respond by calling up their correspondent |
| D．take more time than Americans to respond to it |
What are characteristics of Amerimail?
| A．Stiff and cold |
| B．Casual and indirect |
| C．Informal and chatty |
| D．Formal and direct |
We can conclude from the passage that __________.
| A．the different e-mail styles do much harm to the relationship between the two sides on Atlantic |
| B．the writer doesn’t like either e-mail style as both have their own shortcomings |
| C．Euromail always impresses the writer as something more pleasant to read |
| D．Amerimail is more appreciated by the writer for being informative and casually written |
Attitude isn’t quite everything when it comes to being successful, but attitude plays a part in every stage of your life. A poor attitude gets more people fired than any other single factor, and a good attitude gets people jobs and helps them keep those jobs more than any other factor.
Your attitude affects many people, from your family to the stranger on the street corner. Your attitude is particularly important when you face seemingly hopeless situations. Losing a job or a friend because of a poor attitude is unfortunate—especially because a bad attitude can be fixed.
You can find at least two ways to look at everything. A pessimist looks for difficulty in the opportunity, while an optimist looks for opportunity in the difficulty. A poet of long ago put the difference between optimism and pessimism(悲观主义) this way: two men looked out of the prison bars—one saw mud while the other saw stars.
Unfortunately, many people look only at the problem and not at the opportunity that lies within the problem. Many employees complain about the difficulty of their jobs, for example, not realizing that if the job was simple, the employer would hire someone with less ability at a lower wage. A small coin can hide even the sun if you hold the coin close enough to your eye. So when you get too close to your problems, to think objectively(客观地) about them, try to keep in mind how your vision（视觉）can be obstructed. Take a step back, and look at the situation from a new angle.
You can’t do anything to change the fact that a problem exists, but you can do a great deal to find the opportunity within that problem. You’re guaranteed a better tomorrow by doing your best today and developing a plan of action for the tomorrows that lie ahead. Just remember to maintain a positive mental attitude.What does the author mean by saying the first sentence in Paragraph 1?
| A．If you have a good attitude, you will be successful. |
| B．Your attitude makes a great influence on your life. |
| C．Your attitude has nothing to do with your success. |
| D．Your success is very important to your life. |
In Paragraph 3, the writer shows us ________.
| A．two ways to look at everything |
| B．the ways to look for opportunity |
| C．the explanation of pessimist and optimist |
| D．the ways to look out from prison bars |
The writer mentions the example of many employees in Paragraph 4 to tell people to ______.
| A．ignore the problem |
| B．make their jobs easy to do |
| C．wait for the problem to be solved |
| D．look for opportunity in the problem |
The underlined word “obstructed” in Paragraph 4 probably means ________.
| A．dropped | B．blocked | C．improved | D．shared |
Who can be the target(目标) readers of the passage？
| A．teachers | B．students | C．bosses | D．Officers |
A team of researchers from Oxford University has demonstrated a self-driving car that is different from such cars being tested by Audi, Ford, etc. It’ s much cheaper because it’s based on off-the-shelf(现成的) technology and controlled by an ordinary iPad. Instead of using GPS to understand the location, the car learns routes when a person is driving, and then asks after it’s got it down, if the driver would like the computer to take over.
As time passes, it’s becoming very clear that people believe computers would be better drivers than humans. This has been proven by extensive research that indicates that computers are able to react more quickly to driving conditions, make smarter decisions, don’t take risks, and don’t make mistakes in concentration. They don’t drink either, of course, which means accidents due to drunk driving could be reduced dramatically if the computer could take over when someone needs to get home from the bar. And the team says drivers don’t need their cars to know everything about every road, condition or possible danger. Instead, they just need to know how to get from one point to another, and to do a good job of it when asked.
To that end, the researchers have added cameras, lasers, a central computer to process information and a regular iPad. In practice, the car would learn how to get to and from places that the driver frequents, such as their work place, the local pub or grocery store. Once it has it down, the computer asks the driver if they’ d like a rest. If so, they simply tap the iPad, and the car takes over.
It’ s very simple and doesn’t require nearly the same number of devices as those being tested by other car companies. The researchers say people might be able to get the total price of the system below a hundred dollars. And of course, the iPad can be lifted out and carried away for other purposes when not being used as a driver assistant.The car tested by Oxford University are different from others in that they ________.
| A．use available low-cost technology |
| B．depend on GPS to understand the location |
| C．can choose the places for their owners to visit |
| D．can develop a good relationship with their owners |
Computers are believed to be better drivers than humans mainly because they ________.
| A．are more likely to take risks |
| B．are more familiar with every road |
| C．become more skilful at avoiding dangers |
| D．can respond to new situations more quickly |
We can infer from the passage that the iPad __________.
| A．cannot be removed from cars when it’s not used |
| B．has replaced cameras, lasers and a central computer |
| C．needs to be specially designed for a self-driving car |
| D．acts as a tool for drivers to control their self-driving cars |
What best describes the author’s tone in this passage?
| A．Objective. | B．Worried. |
| C．Serious | D．Subjective. |
In which column of a newspaper can we find this passage?
| A．Opinion | B．Fashion | C．Technology | D．Education |
Every year, I tell my sons what I'd like for Mother's Day: a letter, something written from the heart and offered freely rather than bought from a store and wrapped neatly. I don't always get my wish, nor do I always take the time to write to my own mother.
This year, my boys will be in two different states on Mother's Day. My mom and dad will be away together, and I'll be driving home from a writer's workshop in Massachusetts. Thinking of the fact that many friends have already lost their mothers and that a few have lost children, I am deeply grateful that what separates us, for now at least, is merely distance. It won't always be so, and there is no way to prepare for that fact other than to appreciate the moment that is. My sons know that they can please me on Sunday with a phone call or an e-mail, and that is enough as I love their words. The very best gift they can possibly give me is their own happiness, the very fact of their busy, full and well-lived lives.
Still, knowing that my years of staying with my sons are over, I do feel doleful. The truth is, I miss being the center of the universe to two little boys. And this holiday can be a bit painful.
I wonder if my own mother ever felt nostalgic (怀旧的，乡愁的) for the passing of my childhood. I wonder if she realizes that she is still at the center of my universe and always has been. I don't often pause to think about it, but of course she is the one who has been right there, at my side from the moment I drew my very first breath. How to ever fully appreciate the woman whose presence and love and example have shaped me into the adult I am? How to describe even a small part of the sharing, sacrificing, and support she has given me over the years?The author mainly wants to tell us through the first paragraph that_______.
| A．she hopes to get her son's letters very much |
| B．her sons don't often write to her on Mother's Day |
| C．Mother's Day is the very date that she longs for most |
| D．Children are often careless about their parents’ s request. |
The author is deeply grateful for the present life because_______.
| A．her sons don't live far away from her home |
| B．her parents and children are still alive |
| C．her parents are coming to her house to spend Mother's Day |
| D．her sons can please her on Sunday with a phone call |
According to the author，_____________________.
| A．young people nowadays tend to ignore their parents |
| B．parents should not give their children too much freedom |
| C．children's happiness and success are the biggest comfort to parents |
| D．parents are not the center of their children's universe when children grow up |
What does the underlined word "doleful" in Paragraph 3 mean?
| A．sad | B．excited | C．guilty | D．uncomfortable |
What will the author probably tell about after the last paragraph?
| A．She'll tell the reader about her mother's present situation. |
| B．She'll talk about how her mother educated and cared for her. |
| C．She'll describe the reunion of her family on Mother's Day. |
| D．She'll tell the reader about her mother's achievements in her career. |