In the fall of 1985. I was a bright-eyed girl heading off to Howard University, aiming at a legal career and dreaming of sitting on a Supreme Court bench somewhere. Twenty-one years later I am later I am still a bright-eyed dreamer and one with quite a different tale to tell.
My grandma, an amazing woman, graduated from college an the age of 65. She was the first in our family to reach that goal. But one year after I started college, she developed cancer. I made the choice to withdraw from college to care for her. It meant that school and my personal dream would have to wait.
Then I got married with another dream: building my family with a combination of adopt and biological children. In 1999, we adopted our first son. To lay eyes on him was fantastic---and very emotional. A year later came our second adopted boy. Then followed son No. 3. In 2003, I gave birth to another boy.
You can imagine how fully occupied I became, raising four boys under the age of 81. Our home was a complete zoo---a joyous zoo. Not surprising, I never did make it back to college full-time. But I never gave up on the dream either. I had only one choice: to find a way. That meant talking as few as one class each semester.
The hardest part was feeling guilty about the time I spent away from the boys. They often wanted me to stay home with them. There certainly were times I wanted to quit, But I knew I should set an example for them to follow through the rest of their lives.
In 2007, I graduated from the University of North Carolina. It took me over 21 years to get my college degree！
I am not special, just single-minded. It always struck me that when you’re looking at a big challenge from the outside it looks huge, but when you’re in the midst of it, it just seems normal. Everything you want won’t arrive in your life on one day. It’s a process. Remember；little steps add up to big dreams. When the author went to Howard University, her dream was tobe
| A．a writer |
| B．a teacher |
| C．a judge |
| D．a doctor |
. Why did the author quit school in her second year of college?
| A．She wanted to study by herself. |
| B．She fell in love and got married. |
| C．She suffered from a serious illness. |
| D．She decided to look after her grandma. |
What can we learn about the author from Paragraphs 4 and 5?
She was busy yet happy with her family life.
She ignored her guilty feeling for her sons.
She wanted to remain a full-time housewife.
She was too confused to make a correct choice. What dose the author mostly want to tell us in the last paragraph?
Failure is the mother of success.
Little by little, one goes far.
Every coin has two sides.
Well begun, half done. Which of the following can best describe the author?
Caring and determine.
Honest and responsible.
Ambitious and sensitive.
Innocent and single-minded.
Parents and kids today dress alike, listen to the same music, and are friends. Is this a good thing? Sometimes, when Mr. Ballmer and his 16-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, listen to rock music together and talk about interests both enjoy, such as pop culture, he remembers his more distant relationship with his parents when he was a teenager.
“I would never have said to my mom, ‘Hey, the new Weezer album is really great. How do you like it?’” says Ballmer. “There was just a complete gap in taste.”
Music was not the only gulf. From clothing and hairstyles to activities and expectations, earlier generations of parents and children often appeared to move in separate orbits.
Today, the generation gap has not disappeared, but it is getting narrow in many families. Conversations on subjects such as sex and drugs would not have taken place a generation ago. Now they are comfortable and common. And parent—child activities, from shopping to sports, involve a feeling of trust and friendship that can continue into adulthood.
No wonder greeting cards today carry the message, “To my mother, my best friend.”
But family experts warn that the new equality can also result in less respect for parents. “There’s still a lot of strictness and authority on the part of parents out there, but there is a change happening,” says Kerrie, a psychology professor at Lebanon Valley College. “In the middle of that change, there is a lot of confusion among parents.”
Family researchers offer a variety of reasons for these evolving roles and attitudes. They see the 1960s as a turning point. Great cultural changes led to more open communication and a more democratic process that encourages everyone to have a say.
“My parents were on the ‘before’ side of that change, but today’s parents, the 40-year-olds, were on the ‘after’ side,” explains Mr. Ballmer. “It’s not something easily accomplished by parents these days, because life is more difficult to understand or deal with, but sharing interests does make it more fun to be a parent now.”
1. The underlined word gulf in Para.3 most probably means _________.
A. interest B. distance
C. difference D. separation
2. Which of the following shows that the generation gap is disappearing?
A. Parents help their children develop interests in more activities.
B. Parents put more trust in their children’s abilities.
C. Parents and children talk more about sex and drugs.
D. Parents share more interests with their children.
3. The change in today’s parent-child relationship is _________.
A. more confusion among parents
B. new equality between parents and children
C.1ess respect for parents from children
D. more strictness and authority on the part of parents
4. By saying “today’s parents, the 40-year-olds, were on the ‘after’ side.” the author means that today’s parents _________.
A. follow the trend of the change
B. can set a limit to the change
C. fail to take the change seriously
D. have little difficulty adjusting to the change
5. The purpose of the passage is to _________.
A. describe the difficulties today’s parents have met with
B. discuss the development of the parent—child relationship
C. suggest the ways to handle the parent—child relationship
D. compare today’s parent—child relationship with that in the past
Federal regulators Wednesday approved a plan to create a nationwide emergence alert (警报) system using text messages delivered to cell phones.
Text messages have exploded in popularity in recent years, particularly among young people. The wireless industry's trade association, CTIA, estimates（估计） more than 48 billion text messages are sent each month.
The plan comes from the Warning Alert and Response Network Act, a 2006 federal law that requires improvements to the nation's emergency alert system. The act tasked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) with coming up with new ways to alert the public about emergencies.
"The ability to deliver accurate and timely warnings and alerts through cell phones and other mobile services is an important next step in our efforts to help ensure that the American public has the information they need to take action to protect themselves and their families before, and during, disasters and other emergencies," FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said following approval of the plan.
Participation in the alert system by carriers –telecommunications companies is voluntary, but it has received solid support from the wireless industry.
The program would be optional for cell phone users. They also may not be charged for receiving alerts.
There would be three different types of messages, according to the rules.
The first would be a national alert from the president, likely involving a terrorist attack or natural disaster. The second would involve "approaching threats," which could include natural disasters like hurricanes or storms or even university shootings. The third would be reserved for child abduction (绑架) emergencies, or so-called Amber Alerts.
The service could be in place by 2010.
1. What is the purpose of the approved plan?
A. To warn people of emergencies via messages.
B. To popularize the use of cell phones.
C. To estimate the monthly number of messages.
D. To promote the wireless industry.
2. The improvement to the present system is in the charge of ____.
A. CTIA B. the Warning Alert and Response Network
C. FCC D. federal regulators
3. The carriers’ participation in the system is determined by _____.
A. the US federal government B. mobile phone users
C. the carriers themselves D. the law of the United States
4. Which of the following is true of cell phone users?
A. They must accept the alert service.
B. They may enjoy the alert service for free.
C. They must send the alerts to others
D. They may choose the types of messages
5. An alert message will NOT be sent if _____.
A. a child loses his way. B. a university shooting happens
C. a natural disaster happens D. a terrorist attack occurs
6. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A. Cell Phone Alerts Protecting Students
B. Cell Phone Alerts by Wireless Industry
C. Cell Phone Alerts of National Disasters
D. Cell Phone Alerts Coming Soon
Societies all over the world name places in similar ways. Quite often there is no official naming ceremony but places tend to be called names as points of reference by people. Then an organized body steps in and gives the place a name. Frequently it happens that a place has two names: One is named by the people and the other by the government. As in many areas, old habits died hard, and the place continues to be called by its unofficial name long after the meaning is lost.
Many roads and places in Singapore（新加坡） are named in order that the pioneers will be remembered by future generations. Thus we have names such as Stamford Road and Raffles Place. This is in keeping with traditions in many countries ---- in both the West and the East.
Another way of naming places is naming them after other places. Perhaps they were named to promote friendships between the two places or it could be that the people who used to live there were originally from the places that the roads were named after. The mystery is clearer when we see some of the roads named in former British bases. If you step into Selector Airbase you will see Piccadilly Circus ---- obviously named by some homesick Royal Air Force personnel.
Some places were named after the activities that used to go on at those places. Bras Basah Road is an interesting example, “Base Basah” means “wet rice” in Malay（马来语）. Now why would anyone want to name a road “Wet Rice Road”? The reason is simple. During the pioneering days, wet rice was laid out to dry along this road.
A few roads in Singapore are named by their shapes. There is “Circular Road” for one. Other roads may have part of their names to describe their shapes, like “Paya Lebar Crescent”. This road is called a crescent（月牙） because it begins on the main road, makes a crescent and comes back to join the main road again.
1. We learn from Paragraph 1 that _____.
A. the government is usually the first to name a place
B. many places tend to have more than one name
C. a ceremony will be held when a place is named
D. people prefer the place names given by the government
2. What does the underlined phrase “die hard” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?
A. Change suddenly. B. Change significantly.
C. Disappear mysteriously. D. Disappear very slowly.
3. Which of the following places is named after a person?
A. Raffles Place. B. Selector Airbase. C. Piccadilly Circus. D. Paya Lebar Crescent.
4. Bras Basah Road is named _______.
A. after a person B. after a place C. after an activity D. by its shape
5. What can be inferred from the passage?
A. Some place names in Singapore are the same as in Britain.
B. Some places in Singapore are named for military purposes.
C. The way Singaporeans name their places is unique.
D. Young Singaporeans have forgotten the pioneers.
It had been some time since Jack had seen the old man. College, career, and life itself got in the way. In fact, Jack moved clear across the country in pursuit of his dreams. There, in the rush of his busy life, Jack had little time to think about the past and often no time to spend with his wife and son. He was working on his future, and nothing could stop him.
Over the phone, his mother told him, “Mr. Belser died last night. The funeral is Wednesday.” Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.
“Jack, did you her me?”
“Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It’s been so long since I thought of him. I’m sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago,” Jack said.
“Well, he didn’t forget you. Every time I saw him he’d ask how you were doing. He’d reminisce(回忆) about the many days you spent over ‘his side of the fence’ as he put it,” Mom told him.
“I love that old house he lived in,” Jack said.
“You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man’s influence in your life,” she said.
“He’s the one who taught me carpentry. I wouldn’t be in this business if it weren’t for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important… Mom, I’ll be there for the funeral,” Jack said.
Busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to his hometown. Mr. Belser’s funeral was small and uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away.
The night before the had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time, which was exactly as he remembered. Every step held memories. Every picture, every piece of furniture… Jack stopped suddenly.
“What’s wrong, Jack?” his Mom asked.
“The box is gone,” he said.
“What box?” Mom asked.
“There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he’d ever tell me was ‘the thing I value most’,” Jack said.
It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box, He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it.
“Now, I’ll never know what was so valuable to him,” Jack said sadly.
Returning to his office the next day, he found a package on his desk. The return address caught his attention.
“Mr. Harold Belser” it read.
Jack tore open the package. There inside was the gold box and an envelope. Jack’s hands shook as he read the note inside.
“Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bennett. It’s the thing I valued most in my life.” A small key was taped to the letter. His heart racing, and tears filling his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box. There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch. Running his fingers slowly over the fine cover, he opened it.
Inside he found these words carved: “Jack, Thanks for your time! Harold Belser.”
“Oh, My God! This is the thing he valued most…”
Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his assistant and cleared his appointments for the next two days. “Why?” his assistant asked.
“I need some time to spend with my son,” he said.
1. Why did Jack think Mr. Belser died years ago?
A. College and career prevented him from remembering Mr. Bleser.
B. Jack was too busy with his business and family to think about Mr. Belser.
C. Jack was too busy realizing his dreams to think about Mr. Belser.
D. His present busy life washed away his childhood memories.
2. Jack’s mother told him on the phone about Mr. Belser EXCEPT that ______.
A. Mr. Belser often asked how Jack was doing
B. Mr. Belser’s funeral would take place on Wednesday
C. Mr. Belser had asked for Jack’s mailing address
D. Mr. Belser had pleasant memories of their time together
3. Why did Belser send Jack his gold watch?
A. Because he was grateful for Jack’s time with him.
B. Because he had no children or relatives.
C. Because he thought he had to keep his word.
D. Because Jack had always wanted it during his childhood.
4. Why did Jack say he needed some time to spend with his son?
A. He was very tired of his work and wanted to have a good rest.
B. He had promised to spare more time to stay with his son.
C. He had missed his son and his family for days.
D. He came to realize the importance of the time with his family.
5. Which of the following is the most suitable title for this passage?
A. The Good Old Times B. What He Valued Most
C. An Old Gold Watch D. The Lost Childhood Days
Five million people visit Grand Canyon in the US every year. For the purpose of helping project Grand Canyon for your fellow visitors and future generations, please follow the guidelines below.
Camping
To protect the park, camping is allowed only within permitted campgrounds. Permits are required for overnight camping at the North Rim. Advance booking can be received by mail. Please write: Information Center, P.O. Box 129, Grand Canyon, AZ 86023
Fires
Because of the extreme fire danger, campfires are not allowed except at Mather and Desert View campgrounds. Collection of firewood is not allowed either.
Hiking(远足)
Please stay on permitted paths. Otherwise you may destroy desert plants. Pack out what you pack in, so you leave no signs of your visit. It is important to keep in mind that you are in a national park where wildlife exists.
Weather
The weather at Grand Canyon can change very quickly. With so much rock, lightning(闪电) causes a particular danger during sudden summer storms. These storms also frequently bring floods inside valleys, a danger to hikers. Watch the skies and check daily weather reports.
Wildlife
Do not feed park wildlife. There have been a few cases at Grand Canyon National Park where deer(鹿) were purposely shot because they are plastic bags that left them sick and weak. Hungry deer can be danger and have kicked and bitten visitors at Grand Canyon. Some other animals will also beg and bite. For your own safety and the well-being of the animals, please do not feed wildlife, no matter how gentle they may appear.
1. What can you do first if you want to go camping?
A. Know the permitted B. Book campgrounds in advance
C. Make sure not to make a fire D. Stop at Mather and Desert View
2. What do the underlined words “pack out what you pack in” in Paragraph 4 probably mean?
A. keep every out of campgrounds B. take away everything you bring in
C. carry all the necessary food D. look after your personal belongings
3. Why were some deer killed on purpose at Grand Canyon?
A. They ate wrong things and became very ill.
B. They were a danger to other gentle animals.
C. They begged food from visitors.
D. They kicked and bit visitors.
4. What is the main purpose of the text?
A. To provide travel information B. To report some recent news.
C. To teach tourists hiking skills D. To introduce the wild life