It all began with a stop at a red light.
Kevin Salwen was driving his 14-year-old daughter, Hannah, back from a sleepover in 2006 . While waiting at a traffic light, they saw a black Mercedes Coupe on one side and a homeless man begging for food on the other.
“Dad, if that man had a less nice car, that man there could have a meal.”Hannah protested. The light changed and they drove on, but Hannah was too young to be reasonable. She pestered (纠缠)her parents about inequity, insisting that she wanted to do something.
“What do you want to do?” her mom responded. “Sell our house?”
Warning! Never suggest a grand gesture to an idealistic teenager. Hannah seized upon the idea of selling the luxurious family home and donating half the proceeds to charity, while using the other half to buy a more modest replacement home.
Eventually, that’s what the family did. The project —crazy, impetuous (鲁莽的) and utterly inspiring — is written down in detail in a book by father and daughter scheduled to be published next month: “The Power of Half.” It’s a book that, frankly, I’d be nervous about leaving around where my own teenage kids might find it. An impressionable child reads this, and the next thing you know your whole family is out on the street.
At a time of enormous needs in Haiti and elsewhere, when so many Americans are trying to help Haitians by sending everything from text messages to shoes, the Salwens offer an example of a family that came together to make a difference — for themselves as much as the people they were trying to help. In a column a week ago, it described neurological evidence from brain scans that unselfishness lights up parts of the brain normally associated with more primary satisfaction. The Salwens’ experience confirms the selfish pleasures of selflessness.
Mr. Salwen and his wife, Joan, had always assumed that their kids would be better off in a bigger house. But after they downsized, there was much less space to retreat to, so the family members spent more time around each other. A smaller house unexpectedly turned out to be a more family-friendly house.The best title for the passage should be “______”.
A.The Less, the Better |
B.An Expected Satisfaction |
C.Something We Can Live Without |
D.Somewhat Crazy but Inspiring |
What does the underlined word “inequity” most probably mean in Paragraph 3?
A.Unfairness. | B.Satisfaction. |
C.Personal attitude. | D.Reasonable statement. |
What does the underlined sentence “Never suggest a grand gesture to an idealistic teenager.” means? ______
A.Never give a quick answer to an idealistic teenager. |
B.Unless a child is realistic, never give an answer immediately. |
C.Give an answer if the child is reasonable. |
D.Don’t respond to a child's demands firmly without consideration. |
What can we learn from the last paragraph?
A.The Salwens regretted selling their house. |
B.The relationship between the family members of the Salwens is much closer. |
C.Small houses can bring happiness. |
D.The Salwens intend to buy another big house. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A.Mercedes Coupe is only an ordinary car which is quite cheap. |
B.Unselfishness has nothing to do with people’s primary satisfaction. |
C.Hannah asked her parents to do something charitable and they sold their house. |
D.The writer’s children asked him to sell their house. |
Three Boys and a Dad
Brad closed the door slowly as Sue left home to visit her mother. Expecting a whole day to relax, he was thinking whether to read the newspaper or watch his favourite TV talk show on his first day off in months. “This will be like a walk in the park,” he’d told his wife. “I’ll look after the kids, and you can go visit your mom.”
Things started well, but just after eight o’clock, his three little “good kids”—Mike, Randy, and Alex—came down the stairs in their night clothes and shouted “breakfast, daddy.” When food had not appeared within thirty seconds, Randy began using his spoon on Alex’s head as if it were a drum. Alex started to shout loudly in time to the beat(节拍). Mike chanted “Where’s my toast, where’s my toast” in the background. Brad realized his newspaper would have to wait for a few seconds.
Life became worse after breakfast. Mike wore Randy’s underwear on his head. Randy locked himself in the bathroom, while Alex shouted again because he was going to wet his pants. Nobody could find clean socks, although they were before their very eyes. Someone named “Not Me” had spilled a whole glass of orange juice into the basket of clean clothes. Brad knew the talk show had already started.
By ten o’clock, things were out of control. Alex was wondering why the fish in the jar refused his bread and butter. Mike was trying to show off his talent by decorating the kitchen wall with his colour pencils. Randy, thankfully, appeared to be reading quietly in the family room,but closer examination showed that he was eating apple jam straight from the bottle with his hands. Brad Realized that the talk show was over and reading would be impossible.
At exactly 11:17, Brad called the daycare centre (日托所).“I suddenly have to go into work and my wife’s away. Can I bring the boys over in a few minutes?” The answer was obviously “yes” because Brad was smiling.When his wife left home, Brad expected to ______ .
A.go out for a walk in the park. |
B.watch TV talk show with his children. |
C.enjoy his first day off work. |
D.read the newspaper to his children. |
Which of the following did Randy do?
A.Drawing on the wall. | B.Eating apple jam. |
C.Feeding the fish. | D.Reading in a room. |
Why did Brad ask the daycare centre for help?
A.Because he wanted to clean up his house. |
B.Because he suddenly had to go to his office. |
C.Because he found it hard to manage his boys home. |
D.Because he had to take his wife back. |
This text is developed______
A.by space. | B.by comparison. | C.by process. | D.by time. |
Welcome to one of the largest collections of footwear in the world that will make you green with envy. Here at the Footwear Museum you can see exhibits from all over the world. You can find out about shoes worn by everyone from the Ancient Egyptians to pop stars.
Room 1 The celebrity footwear section is probably the most popular in the entire museum. Started in the 1950s there is a wide variety of shoes and boots belonging to everyone from queens and presidents to pop stars and actors! Most visitors find the celebrities' choice of footwear extremely interesting. |
Room 2 Most of our visitors are amazed—and shocked—by the collection of “special purpose” shoes on exhibition here at the Museum of Footwear. For example, there are Chinese shoes made of silk that were worn by women to tie their feet firmly to prevent them from growing too much! |
Room 3 As well as shoes and boots, the museum also exhibits shoeshaped objects. The variety is unbelievable. For example, there is a metal lamp that resembles a pair of shoes, and Greek wine bottles that look like legs! |
The Footwear Library People come from all over the world to study in our excellent footwear library. Designers and researchers come here to look up information on anything and everything related to the subject of footwear. |
Where would you find a famous singer's shoes?
A.Room 1. | B.Room 2. | C.Room 3. | D.The Footwear Library. |
All exhibits each room ________.
A.share the same theme |
B.have the same shape |
C.are made of the same material |
D.belong to the same social class |
Which of the following is true according to the text?
A.The oldest exhibits in Room 1 were made in the 1950s. |
B.Room 2 is the most visited place in the museum. |
C.Room 3 has a richer variety of exhibits than the other two. |
D.Researchers come to the Footwear Library for data. |
The purpose of the text is to get more people to ________.
A.do research | B.design shoes |
C.visit the museum | D.follow celebrities |
There are some places in the world where great cities once stood. There were trees, gardens and grass. But now these cities have gone and the places are like deserts. Scientists began to study this land to find out what happened. Many of them believed the land died when the trees were cut down.
Trees help other plants grow and help hold the soil in place. They keep the soil from blowing away. The leaves of trees on the ground keep rainwater from running off. Trees near farms protect growing plants from strong winds.
Once there were hundreds of farms in the southwestern United States. Then the farms turned into fields of dry dust. Trees might have saved these farms. But few trees grow in the dry southwest now.
Now we try to save trees. In many places, when a tree is cut down , a new tree is planted in its place . We do not want the land to die.Places where great cities once stood are now like ______ .
A.farms | B.gardens | C.deserts | D.fields |
What can trees do according to the passage ?
A.Trees can keep other plants green |
B.Trees can help other plants grow . |
C.Trees can help the land grow . |
D.Trees can keep other plants in place . |
Which is true ?
A.Trees let the rainwater run off . |
B.All the farms in the United States have turned into deserts . |
C.There aren’t any trees in the dry southwest now . |
D.Land will die if there are no trees . |
The main idea of this passage is _________ .
A.that farms are better than cities |
B.how farms turned into deserts |
C.that trees are important to the land |
D.how people save trees |
From the passage we know that _______ .
A.trees can blow soil away |
B.man should protect the land |
C.trees grow only in deserts |
D.trees die easily |
Students often complain(抱怨)their teachers give them too much homework . Now , two reports show that in America this is not true .
The Brookings report shows that most students do less than one hour of homework . The Rand report shows that only 10% of high school students spend more than two hours a night on homework .
The Brookings report also talks about a study from 1995 . American students do almost the least homework among twenty countries . Students in France , Italy and South Africa spend more than two hours on homework .
The Rand report says there was only one time when homework greatly increased in America .During the early 1960s , Americans were not happy when the former Soviet Union (前苏联)became the first country to reach space . People thought it was necessary to improve education .
Parents want their children to have time for sports , music lessons and other things after school. some experts say schools need to give useful homework .Students are not happy about _________ .
A.too much homework | B.going to school |
C.less homework | D.stay at home |
French students usually spend _______ on homework than American students .
A.more time | B.less time | C.more daytime | D.two hours |
_______ shows homework once greatly increased in America .
A.The Brookings report | B.The Rand report |
C.A university | D.A piece of news |
The former Soviet Union was the _______ to get to space .
A.first | B.second | C.third | D.forth |
Some experts think __________ .
A.students don’t work hard enough |
B.students should not do any homework |
C.homework is welcome if it is useful |
D.it isn’t necessary for students to do homework |
Below you will find a selection of helpful books to learn more about effective campaigns(运动) and one-to-one permission email marketing and more.
● Advanced Email Marketing
Email is specially brilliant: low cost, high speed, personal, moving , and interactive. But there’s a big difference between knowing that email is a powerful marketing tool and proving it. —A1 $15.00
● Sign Me Up!
Imagine it: prospects (前景) actually ask you to email your marketing information to them. At a time when people wouldn’t give out their email addresses and don’t believe most emails, it’s harder than ever for ordinary marketers to separate their emails from waste emails.—A2 $13.00
● The Quiet Revolution
A revolution is taking place which will forever change the world of marketing. The strategies (策略)and techniques that have served marketers for years will not only decline in effectiveness, but will begin to quietly decline the very brands and the customer relationships that companies have worked so hard to create. —A3 $18.00
● Permission Marketing
Seth Godin, one of the world’s foremost online promoters, offers his best advice for advertising in Permission Marketing. Godin argues that business can no longer rely only on traditional forms of “interruption advertising” in magazines and mailings, or radio and television commercials.—A5 $19.05
● TOTAL E-Mail Marketing
Total E-Mail Marketing shows how to run effective e-mail campaigns aimed at both getting and keeping customers. The book covers much more than simply guidelines on e-mail creativity. It explains how to plan and carry out e-mail campaigns which connect with other online and offline communication. —A6 $39.5
● Persuasive Online Copywriting: How to Take Your Words to the Bank
This copy of the book offers the most comprehensive (and immediately usable) information on “how to make your website usable” in the fewest amount of pages possible. —A7 $31.4It can be inferred that all the books can be relative to _______.
A.agriculture skills | B.everyday life |
C.the Internet | D.hotels |
If you want to communicate with the bank, you’d better buy ______.
A.1 | B.A3 | C.A7 | D.A5 |
The prices of all the books are between _____.
A.ten and forty dollars |
B.Fifteen and twenty dollars |
C.twenty and thirty dollars |
D.Thirty and forty dollars |