I was puzzled! Why was this old woman making such a fuss about an old copse（矮林） which was of no use to anybody? She had written letters to the local paper, even to a national, protesting about a projected by-pass to her village, and, looking at a map, the route was nowhere near where she lived and it wasn’t as if the area was attractive. I was more than puzzled, I was curious.
The enquiry into the route of the new by-pass to the village was due to take place shortly, and I wanted to know what it was that motivated her. So it was that I found myself knocking on a cottage door, being received by Mary Smith and then being taken for a walk to the woods. “I’ve always loved this place,” she said, “it has a lot of memories for me, and for others. We all used it. They called it ‘Lovers lane’. It’s not much of a lane, and it doesn’t go anywhere important, but that’s why we all came here. To be away from people, to be by ourselves. ” she added.
It was indeed pleasant that day and the songs of many birds could be heard. Squirrels watched from the branches, quite bold in their movements, obviously few people passed this way and they had nothing to fear. I could imagine the noise of vehicles passing through these peaceful woods when the by-pass was built, so I felt that she probably had something there but as I hold strong opinions about the needs of the community over-riding the opinions of private individuals, I said nothing. The village was quite a dangerous place because of the traffic especially for old people and children, their safety was more important to me than an old woman’s strange ideas.
“Take this tree,” she said pausing after a short while. “To you it is just that, a tree. Not unlike many others here.” She gently touched the bark, “Look here, under this branch, what can you see?”
“It looks as if someone has done a bit of carving with a knife.” I said after a cursory inspection.
“Yes, that’s what it is!” she said softly.
She went on, “He had a penknife with a spike for getting stones from a horse's hoof, and I helped him to carve them. We were very much in love, but he was going away, and could not tell me what he was involved in the army. I had guessed of course. It was the last evening we ever spent together, because he went away the next day, back to his Unit.”
Mary Smith was quiet for a while, then she sobbed. “His mother showed me the telegram. ‘Sergeant R Holmes …Killed in action in the invasion of France.’…”
“I had hoped that you and Robin would one day get married.” she said, “He was my only child, and I would have loved to be a Granny, they would have been such lovely babies’- she was like that! ”
“Two years later she too was dead. ‘Pneumonia (肺炎), following a chill on the chest’ was what the doctor said, but I think it was an old fashioned broken heart. A child would have helped both of us.”
There was a further pause. Mary Smith gently caressed the wounded tree, just as she would have caressed him. “And now they want to take our tree away from me.” Another quiet sob, then she turned to me. “I was young and pretty then, I could have had anybody, I wasn’t always the old woman you see here now. I had everything I wanted in life, a lovely man, health and a future to look forward to.”
She paused again and looked around. The breeze gently moved through the leaves with a sighing sound. “There were others, of course, but no one can match my Robin!” she said strongly. “And now I have nothing - except the memories this tree holds. If only I could get my hands on that awful man who writes in the paper about the value of the road they are going to build where we are standing now, I would tell him. Has he never loved, has he never lived, does he not know anything about memories? We were not the only ones, you know, I still meet some who came here as Robin and I did. Yes, I would tell him!”
I turned away, sick at heart.The main purpose of this passage is to ________.
| A．draw attention to the damage that wars cause |
| B．persuade people to give up private interest |
| C．arouse the awareness of being environmentally friendly |
| D．introduce a touching but sad love story |
Which of the following words can best describe Mary Smith?
| A．Selfish. | B．Faithful. | C．Changeable. | D．Stubborn. |
The underlined sentence “I felt that she probably had something there” means ________.
| A．I thought there might be something hidden in the woods by Mary Smith |
| B．I guessed there might be a story related with Mary Smith |
| C．I thought there might be some reason for Mary Smith’s protest |
| D．I guessed there might be a secret purpose of Mary Smith. |
What was probably the carving on the wounded tree?
| A．The date when Robin Holmes would leave for army. |
| B．Their wish that this place and tree would last long. |
| C．Their names and a heart with a sign of arrow through it. |
| D．Their protest against the war which tore them apart. |
In Mary’s opinion, which of the following might have caused Robin’s mother’s death?
| A．Pneumonia | B．A chill on the chest | C．A heart attack | D．Severe sorrow |
The “tree” probably stands for ________.
| A．her romance . | B．her determination | C．her sadness | D．her dream |
根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处得最佳选项。选项中有两项是多余选项。请将选项写到答题纸上。
It is said that there are about 40,000 different kinds of jobs in the world. “Finding a job ”is not the same as “choosing a job”. Many young people end up in a job which they are not suitable for .
Here are a few steps to help you think about jobs which you might enjoy doing after school or university.
First , it is important to realize what kind of person you are, which special qualities make you different from everyone else and what you are interested in .If you like art and enjoy looking at pictures, this is an interest. But if you can draw a horse that looks like a horse instead of a big dog, that is a skill.
Then ask yourself this question: in the following three areas----skills with people, skills with information and skills with things-----which are your best skills?
After examining your skills, the next step is research. To find out as many different kinds of jobs as possible, go to the library and read books, magazines and newspapers.
Finally, trust your own ideas and your own thinking!
| A．It is your own life, so find something that you enjoy doing. |
| B．Choosing the right one itself is a difficult job. |
| C．We must know what our ideal jobs are. |
| D．There is a difference between an interest and a skill |
E. Ask your friends about the work they they do.
F. “Chance” may play a more important part than “decision”.
G. Your parents may also give you some useful advice.
Some researchers claim that people’s personalities can be classified by their blood types
If you have blood type O, you are a leader. When you see something you want , you strive to achieve your goal. You are passionate, loyal, and self-confident, and you are often a trendsetter(标新立异的人)。Your enthusiasm for projects and goals spreads to others who happily follow you. When you want something ,you may be ruthless(不留情面的)about getting it or blind to how your actions affect others .
Aother blood type A, is a social , “people” person . You like people and work well with them . Y ou are sensitive , patient , compassionate , and affectionate .You are a good peacekeeper because you want everyone to be happy .In a team situation , you resolve conflicts and keep things on a smooth course . Sometimes type As are stubborn and find it difficult to relax. They may also find it uncomfortable to do things alone.
People with type B blood are usually individualist who like to do things on their own . You may be creative and adaptable, and you usually say exactly what you mean . Also you can adapt to situations , you may choose to do so because of your strong independent streak. You may prefer working on your own to being part of a team .
The final blood is type AB . If you have AB blood , you are a natural entertainer. You draw people to you because of your charm and easy-going nature .ABs are usually calm and controlled , tactful(圆滑的) fair. On the downside ,though , they may take too long to make decisions. And they may procrastinate, putting off tasks until the last minute.People with type O will do the following things except__________
| A．manage businesses | B．self-control |
| C．be considerate | D．set the fasion |
Which of the following is not the feature of type A?
| A．Stubborn | B．Sensitive | C．reserved | D．Patient |
The best profession for a type AB is __________
| A．athlete | B．peacekeeper | C．actor | D．country leader |
Thousands of people began pouring into Pennsylvania from other states. They wanted to buy lottery(彩票) tickets. The tickets cost only $0.9each. But that small spending could bring them a reward of $90 million. That was the second largest lottery jackpot(积累奖金) in history。
More than 87 million tickets were bought for the Pennsylvania lottery drawing . Those who bought tickets had to choose seven numbers from 1 to 80 The chance of winning was one in 9.6 million. But that little chance certainly did not affect tickets sales. In the last few days before the drawing , tickets were selling at the unbelievable rate of 500 per second .
Experts say many people buy lottery tickets because they just want to have a piece of the action .Others say the lottery is a stock market for poor people . It allows them to dream about wealth they will probably never have .
But many people believe lotteries are no better than legalized(合法化) gambling . Some critics note that most people who play are poor and may not be able to afford the tickets .There are also many addicts who take the game seriously, They may pour their life savings into lottery tickets .Some clubs have been formed to help them kick the habit.
Politicians like lotteries because they provide money that would otherwise have to come from new taxes. The profits from lotteries are usually used to pay for education or programs for senior citizens. But critics say this arrangement just allows states to legalize vice(恶习) under the name of social progress . No matter whether you regard state lotteries right or not , you can not refuse to accept their extreme popularity with many Americans .The main idea of the passage is that________________.
| A．lotteries are of great benefit to everyone who buys them. |
| B．play a lottery is just like investing in the stock market |
| C．a lot of people buy lottry tickets ,but lotteries cause disagreement |
| D．lotteries are just legalized vice |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage ?
| A．Politicians like lotteries because they do not have to pay extra tax. |
| B．The popularity of lotteries in America actually is social progress . |
| C．Some critics do not like lotteries because many poor people waste their money on them . |
| D．People love the lottery because it is a stock market. |
In just one hour in the last few days , the Pennsylvania lottery sold tickets totaling about ______________.
| A．$1.62million | B．$90 million | C．$9.6million | D．$87million |
People who are addicted to playing lotteries should __________.
| A．join a club | B．kick the habit |
| C．win the Pennsylvania | D．save every cent |
The main cause why some children are aggressive and are “always angry with the world ”is that they have no idea how to realize that the term “problem solving” does not necessary mean solving a math problem or an assignment. When you hear experts tell you to teach your children problem_solving skill, what they mean is to teach your kids all about emotional managing and learning to cross the stormy waters of childhood ,and eventually , life .
Parents should teach their children as early as possible how to handle certain situations . Young children easily lose their temper .When things do not go their way , it makes them angry and frustrated and they can get violent . Especially since young child have limited self control , bursting into anger is a very easy thing for them to do .
Anything can set up a child’s tantrum. For example , you and your child went to the mall . He told you that he wanted to buy a new toy , but you refused because he had already had one on his birthday. He insisted because this one was the new version . But you still refused , so he began to get angry and started screaming .
There are a few things that you can do to teach your child some problem _solving skills. First, you need to find out what the problem is . Perhaps your child is having problems identifying the cause of his frustrations . As a parent, it will not be that hard for you to know what is going on in your child’life. After he calms down, ask him quietly why he got so mad and then together , help him think why he was so angry . When your child figures out what is really making him upset , help him think of ways to solve the problem and help him look at all his reactions and evaluate the potential consequences.who would probably show interest in the passage ?
A, Experts B, Teachers C, Parents D,ChildrenIn paragraph 2 , the writer stresses that it is necessary for______________.
A, parents to guide their children through troubling cases.
B, parents to solve some problems for their children
C, children to depend on their parents sometimes
D, children to manage bad situations as their parents do In paragraph 3 the underlined word “tantrum” can be best replaced by “_________”
A, anger B, habit C, stress D, aim Which would be the best title for the passage ?
A, Taking more care of your children.
B, Teaching your children problem_solving skills.
C, What are problem_solving skills.
D, Why do your children become so angry ?
1826, a Frenchman named Niepce needed pictures for his business .But he was not a good artist.So he invented a very simple camera (照相机).He put it in a window of his house and took a picture of his garden .That was the first photo.
The next important date in the history of photography was 1837. That year, Daguerre, another Frenchman, took a picture of his studio. He used a new kind of camera and a different processs. In his pictures, you could see everything very clearly, even the smallest details. This kind of photograph was called a daguerreotype.
Soon, other people began to use Daguerre's process. Travellers brought back daguerreotypes from all around the world. People photographed famous buildings, cities and mountains.
In about 1840, the process was improved. Now photographers could take pictures of people and moving things. The process was not simple. The photographers had to carry lots of film and processing equipment. But this did not stop the photographers, especially in the United States, where from the 1840s daguerreotype artists were popular in most cities.
Mathew Brady was a well-known American photographer. He took many pictures of famous people. The pictures were unusual because they were very life-like and full of personality.
Brady was also the first person to take pictures of war. His 1862 Civil War pictures showed dead soldiers and ruined cities. They made the war seem more real and more terrible.
In the 1880s, new inventions began to change photography. Photographers could buy film readymade in rolls. So they did not have to make the film immediately. They could bring it back to their studios and develop it later, meaning that they did not have to carry lots of equipment. And finally, the invention of the small handheld camera made photography less expensive.
With the small camera, anyone could be a photographer. People began to use cameras just for fun. They took pictures of their families, friends and favourite places. They called these pictures "snapshots".
Photographs became very popular in newspapers in the 1890s. Soon magazines and books also used documentary photographs. These pictures showed true events and people. They were much more real than drawings.
Photography had turned into a form of art by the beginning of the 20th century. Some photographs were not just copies of the real world. They showed ideas and feelings, like other art forms.The passage is mainly about______________.
| A．the invention of cameras |
| B．a kind of new art -- photography |
| C．the development of photography |
| D．the different uses of cameras in history |
The first pictures of a war were taken by ____________.
| A．a French photographer in the 1840s |
| B．an American photographer in the 1860s |
| C．a German reporter in the 1880s |
| D．a French artist in the 1890s |
Which of the following statements is TRUE about the photography in the 19th century?
| A．It was mainly based on the invention of the first photograph. |
| B．Photographers were popular in the United States because they carried lots of equipment. |
| C．Photographers used to make film themselves and developed it immediately after taking a photo. |
| D．Small handheld cameras made it possible for anyone to become a gifted photographer. |
In which order are the following statements mentioned in the passage?
a. Photographs became popular in newspapers.
b. Photographers carried processing equipment when taking pictures.
c. The invention of small handheld cameras made photography easier.
d. Daguerre invented a kind of photograph called daguerreotype.
e. Brady took pictures of famous people.
| A．e,a, d, b, c | B．d, b, e, c, a |
| C．b, e, c, a, d | D．d, c, e, a , b |
Photography can also be an art form because artists can ____________.
| A．take anything they like |
| B．keep a record of real life |
| C．take photos of the famous |
| D．show ideas and feelings in pictures |