Most people buy a lot of gifts just before Christmas. But some people think we buy too much. They have started a special day called Buy Nothing Day. They don’t want anyone to go shopping that day.
Buy Nothing Day is November 29. It’s 25 days before Christmas. It’s after Thanksgiving and often the first day of Christmas shopping. At this time, we see ads in newspapers and on TV telling us to “buy, buy, buy!”
The idea for Buy Nothing Day started in Vancouver, British Columbia. Now people all over the world celebrate Buy Nothing Day. In California, parents and children get together to read stories, sing songs, and paint pictures. The children talk about why they don’t need a lot of toys. This year, in Manchester, England, people dressed up to tell people that we buy too much.
In Albuquerque, New Mexico, high school students wanted to tell other students about Buy Nothing Day. They organized a spaghetti dinner to give people information about Buy Nothing Day. They asked restaurants in the neighborhood to donate the food. They made posters and talked to other students about it. The dinner was a big success, and many students agreed not to buy anything on November 29. The students at high school liked the idea of this new tradition. Next year, they want to have another dinner to tell more people about Buy Nothing Day!Which of the following is NOT the day for people to celebrate Buy Nothing Day?
| A．The first day after Christmas. | B．25 days before Christmas. |
| C．After Thanksgiving. | D．November 29 |
When do people usually do shopping?
| A．Before Thanksgiving. | B．On Christmas. |
| C．Anytime. | D．Before Christmas. |
How do people celebrate Buy Nothing Day?
| A．In California, parents and children get together to play games. |
| B．In England, people celebrated by performing plays. |
| C．They bought nothing and made the others decide not to. |
| D．In Mexico, high school students dressed up. |
My favorite English teacher could draw humor out of the driest material．It wasn’t forced on us either．He took Samuel Johnson’s dictionary, Addison’s essays, and many other literary wonders from the eighteenth century and made them hilarious, even at eight o’clock in the morning．The thing that amazed me most was that the first time I read these works on my own some of them seemed dead, but the second time, after his explanation, I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t seen the humor．The stories and poems and plays were suddenly filled with allusions（典故）and irony andhilarious moments．I learned more from him than from any other teacher．
My least favorite English teacher also made people laugh．Some students found him to be wonderfully funny．Many others did not．He assigned journals over a six week period, to be written in every day．At the end of the six weeks I had a notebook full of bits and pieces about my ideas, short stories, reactions to what we had read, and so on．Our teacher announced that we would be grading each other’s journals．Mine was passed to Joe, that class clown, who always behaved in a funny or silly way．He saw it fit to make joke of and said, “This writing isn’t fit to line the bottom of a birdcage．” Our teacher laughed at that funny remark．It hurt me so much that the anger from it has driven my writing and teaching ever since．
So what makes the difference？Humor is one of the most powerful tools teachers or writers have．It can build up students and classes and make them excited about literature and writing, or it can tear them apart．It is true that humor is either productive or counter-productive and self-defeating．The passage mainly discusses _____．
| A．teaching | B．literature |
| C．humor | D．knowledge |
The underlined word “hilarious” in Paragraph 1 probably means _____．
A．funny B．tiring
C．inspiring D．brilliantWith his favorite English teacher, the writer found it most amazing that _____．
| A．his teacher was very learned |
| B．his teacher was very humorous |
| C．the works by Johnson and Addison were very humorous |
| D．few were able to find humor in works by Johnson and others |
The English teacher the writer disliked most _____．
| A．was not able to make students laugh |
| B．hurt his students’ feelings |
| C．didn’t let his students do the grading |
| D．had no sense of humor |
Submitting Assignment Online In order to upload an assignment (work given to students) to the system properly, you must save the assignment using one of the following applications: Microsoft Word, Corel WordPerfect, or Microsoft Excel．
After you complete an assignment, it is important to save your work．This ensures that assignment being uploaded to the system is the most updated version．Your word processing program may attempt to save the assignment to a folder on your computer．We recommend creating a new folder, named after your course, in a location that is easy to remember, such as “My Documents．”
File Name Requirements
Select a file name for the assignment that is easy to remember．The file name must NOT contain spaces．Any spaces used in the file name will prevent the file from uploading to the system．File names using the extensions．rtf．html．zip．jpg, or．exe are NOT allowed．
Assignment Upload Procedure
Make sure you save the assignment using one of the applications previously identified and ensure that it meets the file name requirements described above．When the file is ready to upload, follow these steps:
1．Sign in the system．
2．Enter your address information and click the CONTINUE button．You will be routed to the “Directions” screen．
3．Review the directions and click the CONTINUE button．You will be routed to the “Special Assignment Upload” screen．
4．Click the SEARCH button．The “Choose File” pop-up window appears．
5．Find the location on your computer where you saved your assignment, and select the file．
After you have selected the file, click the UPLOAD button to upload your assignment to the system．Assignment Submission Dates
Assignments must be submitted by midnight on the specified due date．Submit your assignment on time so that it reaches the system on or before the due date．No late assignments will be accepted or marked．Assignments delivered after the due date will not be assessed and will be failed．Please manage your time carefully as family and work demands will not be accepted as excuses for late or non-submissions．Tutors and administrators do not have the authority to grant extensions．Which of the following file names is acceptable for submitting assignment？
| A．research paper．Doc |
| B．research paper．Pdf |
| C．researchpaper．doc |
| D．researchpaper．rtf |
Students are advised to save an assignment to a specific folder in order to _____．
| A．sign in the system |
| B．remember where the document is |
| C．choose the appropriate application |
| D．remember the document name quickly |
If you summit your assignment late, you _____．
| A．can have a second chance |
| B．should ask a tutor for help |
| C．may apply for an extension |
| D．will get a fail for the work |
If English means endless new words，difficult grammar and sometimes strange pronunciation，you are wrong．Haven't you noticed that you have become smarter since you started to learn a language?
According to a new study by a British university，learning a second language can lead to an increase in your brain power．Researchers found that learning other languages changes grey matter．This is the area of the brain which processes information．It is similar to the way that exercise builds muscles．
The study also found the effect is greater，the younger people learn a second language．
A team led by Dr Andrea Mechelli，from University College London，took a group of Britons who only spoke English．They were compared with a group of "early bilinguals" who had learnt a second language before the age of five，as well as a number of later learners．
Scans showed that grey matter density (密度) in the brain was greater in bilinguals than in people without a second language．But the longer a person waited before mastering a new language，the smaller the difference．
"Our findings suggest that the structure of the brain is changed by the experience of learning a second language," said the scientists．
It means that the change itself increases the ability to learn．
Professor Dylan Vaughan Jones of the University of Wales，has researched the link between bilingualism and maths skills．"Having two languages gives you two windows on the world and makes the brain more flexible (灵活的),"he said．"You are actually going beyond language and have a better understanding of different ideas．"
The findings were matched in a study of native Italian speakers who had learned English as a second language between the ages of two and 34．Reading，writing，and comprehension were all tested．The results showed that the younger they started to learn，the better．"Studying a language means you get an entrance to another world," explained the scientists．The main subject talked about in this passage is ______．
| A．science on learning a second language |
| B．man’s ability of learning a second language |
| C．1anguage can help brain power |
| D．1anguage learning and maths study |
In the second paragraph，the writer mentions “exercise” in order to ______．
| A．say language is also a kind of physical labor |
| B．prove that one needs more practice when he (she) is learning a language |
| C．to show the importance of using the language when you learn the language |
| D．make people believe language learning helps grey matter work well |
The underlined word “bilingual'’ probably means ______．
| A．a researcher on language learning |
| B．a person who is good at learning foreign languages |
| C．a person who can speak two languages |
| D．an active language learner |
As you grow older，you’ll be faced with some challenging decisions--like whether to cut class or try cigarettes．Making decisions on your own is hard enough，but when other people get involved and try to pressure you one way or another it can be even harder．People who are your age，like your classmates，are called peers．When they try to influence how you act，to get you to do something，it’s called peer pressure．
Peers can have a positive influence on each other．Maybe another student in your science class taught you an easy way to remember the planets in the solar system．Maybe you got others excited about your new favorite book，and now everyone’s reading it．These are examples of how peers positively influence each other．
Sometimes peers influence each other in negative ways．For example，a few kids in school might try to get you to cut class with them; your soccer friend might try to convince you to be mean to another player and never pass him the ball．
It is tough to be the only one who says “no” to peer pressure，but you can do it．Paying attention to your own feelings and beliefs about what is right and wrong can help you know the right thing to do．
You’ve probably had a parent or teacher advising you to “choose your friends wisely．” Peer pressure is a big reason why they say this．If you choose friends who don’t cut class，smoke cigarettes，or lie to their parents，then you probably won’t do these things either，even if other kids do．
If you continue to face peer pressure and you’re finding it difficult to handle，talk to someone you trust．Don’t feel guilty if you’ve made a mistake or two．For whom is the passage most probably written?
| A．Students |
| B．Parents |
| C．Teachers |
| D．Doctors |
In the last three paragraphs，the author mainly_____．
| A．explains why friendship is so important |
| B．gives advice on how to deal with peer pressure |
| C．discusses how peers influence us |
| D．shows how to make more good friends |
Which of following may help handle peer pressure?
| A．Spending more time with classmates． |
| B．Taking up more relaxing hobbies． |
| C．Choosing friends with no bad habits． |
| D．Helping others who are in trouble． |
What is the topic of the passage?
| A．Friendship |
| B．Making decisions |
| C．Self-confidence |
| D．Peer pressure |
No one likes to make mistakes．But a new study says organizations learn more from their failures than from their successes，and keep that knowledge longer．
One of the researchers was Vinit Desai，an assistant professor at the University of Colorado Denver Business School．He worked with Peter Madsen from the Marriott School of Management at Brigham Young University in Utah．
They did not find much long-term "organizational learning" from success．It is possible，they say．But Professor Desai says they found that knowledge gained from failure lasts for years．He says organizations should treat failures as a learning opportunity and not try to ignore them．
The study looked at companies and organizations that launch satellites--and other space vehicles．Professor Desai compared two shuttle flights．
In two thousand two，a piece of insulating(隔热的) material broke off during launch and damaged a rocket on the Atlantis．Still，the flight was considered a success．
Then，in early two thousand three，a piece of insulation struck the Columbia during launch．This time，the shuttle broke apart on re-entry and the seven crew members died．NASA officials suspended all flights and an investigation led to suggested changes．
Professor Desai says the search for solutions after a failure can make leaders more open-minded．He points to airlines as an example of an industry that has learned from failures in the past．
He advises organizations to look for useful information in small failures and failures they avoided．He also urges leaders to encourage the open sharing of information．The study appeared in the Academy of Management Journal．
The mistakes we learn from do not have to be our own．We recently asked people on our Facebook page to tell us a time they had done something really silly．
Fabricio Cmino wrote: Not long ago I wanted to watch TV，but it wouldn't turn on，so I did everything I could to start it．Thirty minutes later my mum showed up and，passing by，said to me "Did you try plugging it'? I’m just dusting，Mum!”So she wouldn't notice how dumb I am sometimes!
Bruno Kanieski da Silva told about a time he looked everywhere for his key．It was in his pocket．He wrote: I always promise I will never do it again，but after-a few weeks,where is my wallet? For sure it will be in a very logical place．What we get from failure differs from that from success in that_______．
| A．what we learn from failure is more powerful |
| B．what we learn from success does no good to us |
| C．the knowledge gained from failure is important for a company |
| D．the knowledge gained from failure lasts longer |
From the passage，we can infer that________．
| A．The insulating material problem in 2002 didn't arouse enough attention |
| B．There were no astronauts on Columbia |
| C．In spite of the problem，Atlantis was considered a success |
| D．Columbia exploded during its launch time |
The writer gives the last two paragraphs to show that________．
| A．many people make mistakes in the world |
| B．mistakes were a very embarrassing thing when found by others |
| C．we can also draw a lesson from others' mistakes |
| D．making mistakes was a necessity |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Only organizations can learn from mistakes |
| B．We can also learn from failures that have been avoided． |
| C．Lessons from the shuttle flights are more important． |
| D．Leaders often lack an open mind and seldom share information． |