"When I look back on my childhood I wonder how I survived at all. It was, of course, a miserable childhood. The happy childhood is hardly worth your while. "Worse than the ordinary miserable childhood is the miserable Irish childhood. And worse yet is the miserable Irish Catholic childhood." That was Frank McCourt reading the opening lines of his book Angela's Ashes, released in 1996.
This Irish American author best known for the Pulitzer Prize-winning autobiography Angela's Ashes that recorded his poor upbringing, died of cancer on Sunday, The New York Times reported. He was 78.
Born in New York City, he was the eldest of the seven children born to Irish immigrant parents. Angela's Ashes was a memoir(回忆录)that captured an irresponsible, drunkard(酒鬼)father with a gift for story-telling. When not drunk, his father was absent, turning his back on a family so poor, McCourt wrote, that they were reduced to burning the furniture in their rented hut to keep warm. His mother struggled to raise her many children after his father left the family.
In Angela's Ashes, he wrote of hunger, a home flooded with rainwater and the unbearable humiliation(耻辱)of seeking handouts from charities in the Irish city. But he told the story in a way that is expressive, warm and light-hearted.
Frank McCourt left Ireland at the age of 19 to return to New York City where he was born. He earned a degree in English education and taught creative writing for nearly thirty years. After retiring in 1987, he decided to write about his childhood. "Angela's Ashes" became a huge success and brought McCourt a 1997 Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Critics Circle Award and other honors. Millions of copies of the book were sold worldwide and it was adapted into a 1999 movie starring Emily Watson and Robert Carlyle.In the first paragraph, by saying "The happy childhood is hardly worth your while", the writer really means that ________.
| A．a lot of readers don't deserve happy childhood |
| B．his childhood is not worth of others' sympathy |
| C．his childhood is mixed with happiness and misery |
| D．smooth childhood surely will not draw readers' attention |
From the passage, we know Frank McCourt's father is ________.
| A．humorous and trustworthy |
| B．alcohol-addicted but loves his family |
| C．poor but warm-hearted |
| D．irresponsible but gifted in telling stories |
Which of the statements about the book “Angela’s Ashes” is right?
| A．This book is intended to show respect to McCourt’s father. |
| B．The author wrote the book in a sad and serious tone(语调). |
| C．The book enjoyed great popularity after it came out. |
| D．The author got two awards because of the book. |
What's the text mainly about?
| A．A brief introduction to Frank McCourt and one of his works. |
| B．A literary review(评论) on Frank McCourt's book. |
| C．An account of Frank McCourt's miserable childhood. |
| D．A comment on Frank McCourt's life experience. |
It appears that the police now have a device that can read license plates and check if a car is unregistered, uninsured or stolen. We already know that National Security Agency can dip into your Facebook page and Google searches. And it seems that almost every store we go into these days wants your home phone number and ZIP code as part of any deal.
So when Edward Snowden — now cooling his heels in Russia — revealed the extent to which the NSA is spying on Americans, collecting data on phone calls we make, it's not as if we should have been surprised. We live in a world that George Orwell predicted in 1984. And that realization has caused sales of the 1949, dystopian (反乌托邦）novel to spike dramatically upward recently — a 9,000% increase at one point on Amazon. com.
Comparisons between Orwell’s novel about a tightly controlled totalitarian (极权主义的）future ruled by the everywhere-present Big Brother and today are, in fact, quite similar. Here are a few of the most obvious ones.
Telescreens — in the novel, nearly all public and private places have large TV screens that broadcast government propaganda (宣传), news and approved entertainment. But they are also two-way monitors that spy on citizens, private lives. Today websites like Facebook track our likes and dislikes, and governments and private individuals hack into our computers and find out what they want to know. Then there are the ever-present monitoring cameras that spy on the ordinary people as they go about their daily routine.
The endless war — In Orwell’s book, there's global war that has been going on seemingly forever, and as the book's hero, Winston Smith, realizes the enemy keeps changing. One week we’re at war with Eastasia and friends with Eurasia. The next week, it's just the opposite. There seems little to distinguish the two opponents, and they are used primarily to keep the people of Oceania, where Smith lives, in a constant state of fear, thereby making disagreement unthinkable — or punishable. Today we have the so-called war on terror, with no end in sight, a generalized societal fear, suspensionof certain civil liberties, and an ill-defined enemy who could be anywhere, and anything.
Newspeak — the fictional, stripped-down English language, used to limit free thought. OMG (Oh my God), RU (Are you) serious? That's so FUBAR (Fucked Beyond Ail Recognition). LMAO (Laugh My Ass Off).
Memory hole — this is the machine used in the book to change or disappear embarrassing documents. Paper shredders (碎纸机） had been invented, but were hardly used when Orwell wrote his book, and the concept of wiping out a hard drive was years in the future. But the memory hole foretold both technologies.
So what’s it all meant? In 1984, Winston Smith, after an intense round of “behavioral modification” — read: torture— learns to love Big Brother, and the difficult world he was born into. Jump forward to today, it seems we’ve willingly given up all sorts of freedoms, and much of our right to privacy. Fears of terrorism have a lot to do with this, but dizzying advances in technology, and the ubiquity of social media, play a big part.
There are those who say that if you don't have anything to hide, you have nothing to be afraid of. But the fact is, when a government agency can monitor everyone’s phone calls, we have all become suspects. This is one of the most frightening aspects of our modem society. And even more frightening is the fact that we have gone so far down the street, there is probably no turning back. Unless you spend your life in a wilderness cabin, totally off the grid, there is simply no way the government won’t have information about you stored away somewhere.
What this means, unfortunately, is that we are all Winston Smith. And Big Brother is the modem surveillance state.What caused 1984 to sell well on Amazon.com?
| A．The similarities between the world we live in and that of 1984. |
| B．The surprise at how Americans are spied on by the government. |
| C．The fact that authorities have access to our personal information. |
| D．The worry that our government agencies can monitor our phones. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．When Orwell wrote 1984, paper shredders didn't exist. |
| B．The war with Eastasia makes people in Oceania fearful. |
| C．Telescreens are used to broadcast and spy on citizens’ privacy. |
| D．Winston Smith loves Big Brother due to the fears of terrorism. |
What does the underlined word “this” in Paragraph 8 refer to?
| A．Addiction to social media. |
| B．The phone calls being monitored. |
| C．A round of “behavioral modification”. |
| D．Willingness to abandon freedom and privacy. |
The underlined part in the passage replies that _______.
| A．it is impossible for us to return to our initial path |
| B．it’s very difficult for us to change the current situation |
| C．we are walking along the street too far to go back home |
| D．the government can find out which street we are going down |
Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
| A．We are all Winston Smith. |
| B．Big Brother is watching you. |
| C．We’re living “1984” today. |
| D．The NSA is spying on Americans. |
What is the writer's attitude towards the phenomenon?
| A．Optimistic. | B．Concerned. | C．Angry. | D．Indifferent. |
Catch yourself daydreaming while washing the dishes again?If this happens often you probably have a pretty capable working memory and a sharper brain, new research suggests.
This mind wandering, it seems, actually gives your working memory a workout. Working memory is the mental work space that allows the brain to juggle multiple thoughts at the same time. The more working memory a person has, the more daydreaming they can do without forgetting the task at hand.
Researchers studied groups of people from the University of Wisconsin－Madison community, ranging in age from 18 to 65. The volunteers were asked to perform simple tasks, like pressing a button every time they took a breath or clicking in response to a letter popping up on a computer screen; these tasks were so easy that their minds were likely to wander, the researchers figured.
The researchers checked in periodically, asking the participants if their minds were on task or wandering. When the task was over, they measured each participant's working memory capacity by having them remember letters while doing math questions. Though all participants performed well on the task, the researchers noticed that the individuals who indicated their minds had wandered more than others also scored higher on the working memory test.
“What this study seems to suggest is that, when circumstances for the task aren't very difficult, people who have additional working memory resources allocate them to think about things other than what they're doing，” said Jonathan Smallwood, a study researcher of the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Science.
When our minds run out of working memory, these off－topic thoughts can take the main stage without us consciously meaning them to; for instance, arriving at home with no memory of the actual trip, or suddenly realizing that they've turned several pages in a book without understanding any of the words.
“It's almost like your attention was so absorbed in the mind wandering that there wasn't any left over to remember your goal to read，” study researcher Daniel Levinson, said in a statement. People with overall higher working memory were better able to stay focused when the task at hand required it. Those who had low working memory often had their thoughts drift away from the task, and did less well at it.
The findings add to past research suggesting these mind drifts can be positive moments. For instance, daydreaming has often been associated with creativity—researchers think that our most creative and inventive moments come when daydreaming. It's likely that the most intelligent among us also have high levels of working memory, Levinson noted.The word “juggle” in the second paragraph can be replaced by “________”．
| A．search | B．understand | C．handle | D．foresee |
What can be concluded from Jonathan Smallwood's words?
| A．Absorbed in the mind wandering, your attention left no space for your goal. |
| B．On the working memory test, people with wandering minds will get high score. |
| C．Dealing with some easy jobs, people with higher working memory will daydream. |
| D．People who often have daydreams probably own a pretty capable working memory. |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．Mind drifts are always positive. |
| B．Daydreaming is good for the mind. |
| C．Creative moments come with working memory. |
| D．The more daydreaming, the more effectively one works. |
阅读理解
阅读下列四篇短文，从每小题后所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该选项涂黑。
January 1 — January 31
You are charming and intelligent. You are actually quite ambitious. You like to go to parties and chat with your friends. On the other hand, you are friendly, but you are also a very private person.
February 1 — February 28
You are determined and hard working．You are born under the sign of loyalty and faimess．You like parties and enjoy a lot of friends. On the other hand, you are quite famous for your courage. You really like to explore and you are an adventurer.
March 1 — March 31
You are very loyal, independent, and open-minded. You are a born leader, and when you set a goal, you go to it. You adore challenges and competitions. You are most likely to be the one who calls out, "Let's go!" you are always in a circle of friends. You love animals. You are like a roller coaster.
April 1—April 30
You are artistic, well-mannered, intelligent, and diplomatic．You are usually sweet and kind, of course．You are sometimes famous for your artistic sense and good taste. You love throwing grand parties. Vacations and routines are very important to you. You are also fairly popular.
May l — May 31
You are talented, sincere, and most of all, enthusiastic. You are the master of ceremonies. You shine in the crowd．When you walk into a room, heads turn, and you hear whispers and gasps. You have a strong will to defeat any challenge in your way. You have a hunger for fashion.
June 1 — June 30
You are very elegant, wise, and compassionate(有同情心的)．You are very attractive and people are attracted to you. Your friends rely on you for advice. You will be someone like Jacqueline Onassis. You are also very lucky in many ways.
July l — July 31
You are mostly agreeable, energetic, and popular.You like to try new things wherever you go. You know how to dress and you always look your best. You are talented and you love sports. You are always one step ahead of anyone else. You adore freedom and independence.
August 1 — August 31
You are empathetic, easygoing, and compliant．You can get along with almost everyone. Many people admire you for your talent and creativity. On the other hand, you are sensitive and compassionate. You always like to dream. You enjoy peace and quiet at night.
September 1 — September 30
You are individualistic, sociable, and very entertaining. You are capable of anything. You have an excellent memory. You like long, friendly conversations with your closest friends．You turn boring things into the life of the party.
October 1 — October 31
You are thoughtful, intelligent, and the class comedian．You are also very popular, and nice around friends. You love to save the best for last. You are amusing and very fun to be around with. You love to spend hours each day reading and studying for final exams, when the school year has just started. You almost never turn on your friends.
November 1 — November 30
You are unselfish, knowledgeable, and friendly. You are loyal to your friends and family. You can see the difference between right and wrong. You are very honest and you speak out when you feel something has gone wrong. You are the person who likes trendy clothes.
December 1 —December 31
You are smart, optimistic, and willing to help others. You are like a rare diamond. You are intentionally the nicest while you are with friends. You are also very affectionate. You are too good to be true. Your friends trust in you easily. You are also popular in the "Being Nice" way. Who is the combination of very different characteristics?
| A．A person born during April 1---April 30. |
| B．A person born during August 1---August 31. |
| C．A person born during January 1---January 31. |
| D．A person born during February 1---February 28. |
People born in the months of_______ are usually very fashionable．
| A．May, July and November |
| B．May, July and October |
| C．July, October, and November |
| D．April, May and October |
A young boy recently received an unexpected message in the mail from his father Joseph, who died two years ago.
Rowan's dad was a hardworking man who wanted to give his son the best life he could. It was why Rowan's mother, Julie Van Stone, said Joseph joined the Navy and went to MIT to get two masters degrees.
While at school in Boston, he would often write to Rowan. Even when he left school and was driving back to Colorado, he would send postcards from each state he stopped in. Those postcards were sent in 2007. "I remember him saying he had sent 5 or 6, and I only got 3 or 4 in the mail. But I never thought anything of it," Van Stone said.
Those postcards and pictures are priceless memories for Van Stone and her son, especially after Joseph passed away from a rare brain disease. Rowan never had a chance to say goodbye. But, on Saturday, just days before the two-year anniversary of Joseph's death, a postcard arrived in the mail. It arrived March 11, 2015. The message read: "Hello from Pennsylvania. I love you, and I miss you so much. See you soon. Love, Daddy."
Neither he nor his mother knows how it happened, and they may never know. But, they have their own ideas why. "I feel like that was the final goodbye that he didn't get to say," Van Stone said. Van Stone says Joseph's last words to her before he died were: "Everything is a circle. We will see each other again. All that matters is love."What did Rowan’s dad do to give his son the best life?
| A．He bought many for Julie. |
| B．He became a soldier in Navy. |
| C．He kept writing to his son. |
| D．He got many masters degrees. |
How long did it take for the postcard to reach Rowan?
| A．2 years. | B．5 years. | C．6 years. | D．8 years. |
Where did Rowan’s dad send the postcard?
A. In Boston.B. In Colorada
B. In PennsylvaniaD. In New York
So you think you know your dog. But how well does your dog know you? She probably recognizes you when she sees you. But can a dog tell by simply looking at you whether you have a happy or an angry expression on your face? Researchers in Austria have taught pet dogs to know the difference.
Dogs are very mindful of sound. When dog owners shout or speak in a strong, unkind voice, dogs often act ashamed and quietly move away from the area.
Recently, researchers found that dogs can look at our faces, and tell the difference between a smile and a frown(皱眉). The animals were able to recognize a look of praise from one of blame.
Researchers at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna performed a series of experiments. They taught dogs to recognize facial expressions. They showed the dogs two pictures of either the upper or lower half of a person's face. On one picture, the person looked happy. The other appeared angry.
The dogs were then shown images of the eyes or mouths of people they had never seen before. They were also shown the left half of the faces used in training.
Corsin Muller led the study. “We were really speaking, do they realize that smiling eyes have the same meaning as a smiling mouth, or angry eyes have the same meaning as an angry mouth? And it turned out that they really did perform very well in these research experiments.”
Once the dogs learned to recognize which image was happy or angry, they could easily find the same expressions in pictures of any face.
Corsin Muller says future studies will try to show whether dogs can learn the meaning of facial expressions―for example, whether a frown shows that someone is angry.
In the experiments, researchers found the dogs were slower to link a reward, or prize, with recognition of the angry face. This suggested that dogs had an idea people with angry faces were best avoided.What does the passage mainly tell us?
| A．How one can know his dog well. |
| B．How a dog can probably be well trained. |
| C．How a dog can tell one something. |
| D．How a dog can know one’s expressions. |
Hearing its owner’s strong, unkind voice, a dog is likely to_________.
| A．jump happily | B．act excitedly |
| C．escape quietly | D．shout loudly |
A dog is able to recognize one’s __________.
| A．praise | B．blame |
| C．anger | D．all of the above |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Dogs are as clever as human beings. |
| B．Dogs can understand man’s feelings. |
| C．Dogs can be trained to do everything. |
| D．Dogs can learn to make any angry face. |