Janelle was running late for work, so she just had time for a quick look at herself in the mirror as she was going out. What she saw there made her stop dead in her tracks.
Being a busy college student just one year removed from her teenage years, she wasn’t exactly obsessive-compulsive(有强迫观念和行为的) about the neatness of her clothes. But her boss at the restaurant where she works saw things a little differently. He had recently lectured the entire staff on the importance of appearance, and had specifically mentioned the need for servers to wear clean, unwrinkled blouses. As an assistant manager, Janelle felt it was important to set an example for the other employees. But if she stopped to iron the blouse normally, she would be late —and work without delay was an area of even greater concern to her boss.
So she grabbed her iron and plugged it in and set it for low heat. Carefully holding her blouse away from her body, she continued to iron it while she was wearing it. It seemed like a logical answer to an urgent problem.
And it seemed to be working until Janelle tried to iron the collar and accidentally ironed her neck by mistake. Then it suddenly seemed like a really stupid idea and a really painful one as well. It took more time to treat her burn than it would have taken to iron her shirt properly. And she spent a miserable shift dealing with the pain of the burn.
We’ve all been there, haven’t we? For me it was cutting my own hair. For a former roommate it was trying to pull his own wisdom teeth. For another college acquaintance, it was trying to change the oil in his car while the motor was still running.
“There’s a right way and a wrong way of doing things,” Dad used to tell me whenever I’d spoil the look of our yard by trying out a faster, easier and more creative way of pulling weeds or edging the lawn. “If a thing is worth doing,” he said, “it’s worth doing it right.” There’s a reason why certain things are done in certain ways. Those old, boring, predictable ways work.Jenelle found in the mirror that __________.
| A．there were stains on her blouse |
| B．her blouse was wrinkled |
| C．she wore heavy makeup |
| D．she put on a wrong blouse |
It’s learned from Paragraph 2 that______________.
| A．Jenelle had no sense of responsibility at work |
| B．Jenelle failed to set an example for employees in daily work |
| C．Jenelle didn’t care about the neatness of her clothes at all |
| D．Jenelle’s boss put doing something on time above appearance |
What can we infer from the fifth paragraph?
| A．We all have done loads of things like Janelle. |
| B．We are careful enough in daily life. |
| C．We all have done something creative. |
| D．We all have tried to iron clothes while we are wearing them. |
What does the author mainly want to tell readers in the last paragraph ?
| A．Be creative. | B．A bad beginning makes a bad ending. |
| C．Stick to old ways. | D．Do things right. |
Now satellites are helping to forecast（预报）the weather. They are in space, and they can reach any part of the world. The satellites take pictures of the atmosphere（大气）, because this is where the weather forms（形成）. They send these pictures to the weather stations. So meteorologists（气象学家）can see the weather of any part of the world. From the pictures, the scientists can often say how the weather will change.
Today, nearly five hundred weather stations in sixty countries receive satellite pictures. When they receive new pictures, the meteorologists compare（比较）them with earlier ones. Perhaps they may find that the clouds have changed during the last few hours. This may mean that the weather on the ground may soon change, too. In their next weather forecast, the meteorologists can say this.
So the weather satellites are a great help to the meteorologists. Before satellites were invented, the scientists could forecast the weather for about 24 or 48 hours. Now they can make good forecasts for three or five days. Soon, perhaps, they may be able to forecast the weather for a week or more ahead（提前）.Satellites travel _____________.
| A．in space | B．in the atmosphere |
| C．above the ground | D．above space |
Why do we use the weather satellites to take pictures of the atmosphere? Because __________.
| A．the weather satellites can do it easily |
| B．clouds form there |
| C．the weather forms there |
| D．the pictures can forecast the weather |
Meteorologists forecast the weather __________.
| A．when they have received satellite pictures |
| B．after they have compared new satellite pictures with earlier ones |
| C．before they received satellite pictures |
| D．during they study satellite pictures |
The main（主要的）idea of this passage is that satellites are now used in _________.
| A．taking pictures of the atmosphere |
| B．receiving pictures of the atmosphere |
| C．doing other work in many ways |
| D．weather forecasting |
“Cool”is a word with many meanings．Its old meaning is used to express a temperature that is a little bit cold．As the world has changed，the word has had many different meaning．
“Cool”can be used to express feelings of interest in almost anything．
When you see a famous car in the street，maybe you will say，“It’s cool．”You may think，“He’s so cool，”when you see your favorite footballer．
We all maximize（扩大） the meaning of“cool”．You can use it instead of many words such as “new” or “surprising”．Here’s an interesting story we can use to show the way the word is used．A teacher asked her students to write about the waterfall（瀑布）they had visited．On one student’s paper was Just the one sentence，“It’s so cool．Maybe he thought it was the best way to show what he saw and felt．
But the story also shows a scarcity（缺乏）of words．Without “cool”，some people have no words to show the same meaning．So it is quite important to keep some credibility（可信性）．Can you think of many other words that make your life as colourful as the word “cool”？ I can．And I think they are also very cool．We know that the word "cool" has had ________.
| A．only one meaning | B．no meanings |
| C．many different meanings | D．the same meaning |
In the passage，the word“express” means“________”.
| A．see | B．show | C．know | D．feel |
If you are _______ something，you may say，“It’s cool.”
| A．interested in | B．angry about |
| C．afraid of | D．unhappy with |
In the passage，the writer suggests（暗示）that the word “cool”________．
| A．can be used instead of many words |
| B．usually means something interesting |
| C．can make your life colorful |
| D．may not be as cool as it seems |
Mr Brown was going away for a week. Before he left, he said to his son, "if anyone asks for me, you can tell him that your father has been out for doing something, and will be back in a week, then be sure to ask him to sit down for a cup of tea."
"OK, Dad," said his son. But he was afraid his son couldn’t remember this, he wrote these words down on a piece of paper and gave it to him. His son put it into his small pocket, took it out and looked at it now and then.
Four days passed, but no one came to see his father. The boy thought that there was no man to come and that the piece of paper was of no more use for him, so he burnt it that evening.
The next afternoon, someone knocked at the door. The boy opened it. A man was standing at the door and said, "Where is your father?" The boy put his hand into his pocket at once and looked for the piece of paper. He could not find it. He suddenly remembered he had burnt it, so he shouted, "No more."
The man was very surprised. He asked, "No more? I met your father last week. When did it happen?"
"Burnt yesterday evening."Mr Brown told his son that _____.
| A．he would be away from home for four days |
| B．he would be back in seven days |
| C．he would be back in a month |
| D．he liked a cup of tea |
Mr Brown wrote the words down on ________.
| A．the wall | B．the door |
| C．a piece of paper | D．his son’s pocket |
A man came to visit the boy’s father on ________.
| A．the second day | B．the third day | C．the fourth day | D．the fifth day |
What was burnt? ___________.
The piece of paper B. Mr Smith C. The visitor D. The boy
Farmer John and Farmer Bob were neighbours. For more than 30 years, they had been getting along very well.
Then their good relationship broke. It began with a small thing, then bitter words, and then weeks of silence. One morning Farmer John woke up to find a stream between the two farms. “It must be Bob,” John thought.
Then one day there was a knock on John’s door. He opened it to find a carpenter(木匠) standing at the doorway.
“I’m looking for a few days’ work,” the carpenter said.
“I do have a job for you,” John said. “Look across the stream at that farm. That’s my neighbour Bob. He dug a stream between the two farms. I want you to build a fence—an 8-foot fence. I don’t want to see his place or his face any more. I don’t have such a neighbour!”
The carpenter said, “I think I know what to do, sir, and I’ll be able to do a job that pleases you.”
Farmer John helped the carpenter get the materials(材料) ready and then he was off for the day.
About sunset when the farmer returned, the carpenter had just finished his job. The farmer’s eyes opened wide. There was no fence there at all!
It was a bridge! And the neighbour, Bob, was coming across, with his hand outstretched(伸出). “Hi, John! You’re quite a fellow to build this bridge!”
Then they met in the middle, taking each other’s hands. “I’m terribly sorry for what I have said and done. We should be good to each other.” said Farmer Bob.
Then they turned to see the carpenter, who was ready to go. “No, wait! Stay a few days. I have a lot of other jobs for you,” said Farmer John. “I’d love to stay,” the carpenter said, “but I have more bridges to build.”Just before the carpenter came, John and Bob each other.
| A．didn’t speak to | B．were friendly to |
| C．often fought with | D．never had bitter words with |
Farmer John asked the carpenter to build a fence because .
| A．he wanted to protect his farm | B．he didn’t want to do it himself |
| C．he wouldn’t like to see Bob | D．he wanted to find him something to do |
What does the sentence “You’re quite a fellow to build this bridge!” mean?
| A．John was great to build this bridge. |
| B．John was not good at building bridges. |
| C．John was foolish to build such a bridge. |
| D．John should build the bridge earlier. |
What is the best title for the passage?
| A．What a Big Fence! | B．A Strong Bridge |
| C．Three Kind Men | D．A Fence or a Bridge? |
A man heard that a certain government wanted a clerk, so wrote and asked for the position. But while he was waiting for an answer, a friend of his introduced him to the head of the department, who gave him the job. Several months later, while the man was working in the department, he got a letter that had been sent to him from the place he used to live in. This letter said,
“Dear sir,
We are sorry to have to tell you that we cannot offer work in this department because we do not think that you would be able to do the work successfully.
Your faithfully.”
The man laughed, but when he looked at the letter more carefully, he saw that he had signed it himself.At the beginning of the story the man wanted ____.
| A．to be a clerk in a certain government | B．his friend to introduce him job |
| C．to visit the head of the department | D．to get an answer from the department |
The first paragraph mainly tells us ____.
| A．how the man knew the news that a clerk was needed |
| B．how the man got a job with the help of his friend |
| C．how the man wrote to the department to get the job |
| D．how he was waiting for the answer from the department |
He got a letter that had been sent to him, which means ____.
| A．he himself received the letter |
| B．someone else got it and then didn’t bring it to him |
| C．someone else got it and then brought it to him |
| D．the government sent it to him |
What do you think of the man?
| A．He was too careless. | B．He was very honest. |
| C．He was very clever. | D．He was rather stupid. |
Choose the right order of the events given in the passage.
a. He got a letter one day b. He got a job in the department.
c. The letter told him he was unfit for the job.
d. His friend introduced him to the head.
e. He found he signed the letter himself.
f. He wanted to get a job in the government department.
| A．a,b,c,d,e,f | B．c,b,d,a,f,e | C．f,d,b,a,c,e | D．f,b,a,e,c,f |