People often said Thomas Edison was the greatest genius(天才) of his age. There are only a few men in all of history, who have changed the lives of other men as much as the inventor of the first useful electric light. But Edison could never be pleased only because someone said he was a genius. “There is no such a thing as genius,” Edison said. He thought what people called genius was mostly hard work.
But Edison was a thinker as well as a worker. From his earliest days as a child he wondered about the secrets of nature. He tried to understand them, and then he tried to learn what he could usefully do with them.
Edison enjoyed thinking. He knew that most people would do almost anything instead of the difficult work of thinking, especially if they do not think very often. But he knew, too, that thinking could give men enjoyment and pleasure.
Edison could not understand why anyone could not be interested in life. As he loved to think, he also loved to work. On the day he became 75 years old, someone asked him what idea he had about life. “Work,” he answered, “Discovering the secrets of nature and using them to make men happier.” He said he had enough inventions in his mind to give him another 100 years of work.What is genius according to Thomas Edison?
| A．Hard thinking. | B．Hard work. | C．Useful ideas. | D．Useful inventions. |
How did Edison always deal with the secrets of nature after exploring them?
| A．To write down what he had learned. |
| B．To carry out a new experiment. |
| C．To make them useful in life. |
| D．To share them with others. |
What does the last sentence in the passage mean?
| A．Edison was born to be a great inventor. |
| B．Edison was able to live another 100 years. |
| C．Edison was ready to make his 100th invention. |
| D．Life was too short for Edison to work for human beings. |
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English writer teaches us a lot about life
Charles Dickens is a great British writer in the 19th century. Most of his books are still popular even today.
In 1812, Charles Dickens was born in Portsmouth, England. Dickens didn't like playing with other boys when he was a little child, but he loved reading books. Childhood was not easy for Dickens. He began to work at a factory at the age of 12. Every day, he spent 10 hours washing bottles and cleaning shoes.
When Dickens was 16, he became a reporter for a newspaper. During that time, Dickens wrote his first book, The Pickwick Papers. The book came out in 1836-37 and made Dickens rich and famous. His hard times were at an end.
Most of Dickens' books are about the difficulties of living in Victorian England. The characters（人物）in his books are often children. They usually live a hard life in a boarding（寄宿）school, or have to work in a factory at a young age.
However, Dickens' works are all about hope. He wrote sad and dark stories, but they are always filled with humor（幽默）. And most of his stories have happy endings, as with A Christmas Carol. It is about a selfish man. He finds love and friendship after looking back on his life one Christmas Eve.Where was Dickens from?
Was life difficult for Dickens when he was a child?
What made Dickens rich and famous?
What do the children in his books usually do?
Why does the writer say "Dickens' works are all about hope."?
GERALD Christian is in Grade 8 at Ridge Road Middle School in North Carolina, US. She is a member of her school basketball team. Late last month, the 14-year-old faced a big problem. Her mother lost her job. She thought she couldn't pay the $ 50 fee for the city's sports meet this year.
Christian was not the only one who had this problem. Some other middle school players in the city had the same problem.
That's why famous NBA player Michael Jordan gave $ 250, 000 to the city earlier this month. He wanted to help the poor students. Jordan said: "I know there are kids who get an education by playing sports. We need to keep sports alive for them."
Christian was shocked. "Really? I can't believe Michael did that for us. These days, I go to bed thinking about it and I wake up thinking about it," she said. "Now the problem is over. "
Christian wanted to say "thanks" to Jordan. "Michael, thank you for giving me the chance to show myself. I will do my best at the meet.The underlined word "shocked" means ________.
| A．moved | B．surprised | C．worried | D．afraid |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Christian was a middle school student. |
| B．The students will have a sports meet. |
| C．Few of the players could pay the fee. |
| D．Christian's mother lost her job last month. |
Christian thanked Jordan because he helped her ________.
| A．to get a chance to show herself |
| B．to become a basketball player |
| C．to go on her study at school |
| D．to win the basketball match |
Every day when Cora Castle, 14, from Indiana, US goes back home, she opens her computer and logs into a website（登录网站）called Fuel Up to Play 60.
She puts on what she has eaten and what kind of activities she has played that day. Then the site decides whether Castle has eaten healthily and done enough exercise.
All the seventh graders in Castle's school have done the same thing since the year started. It's part of their health class.
If the site finds her habits are unhealthy, it will give her advice. If she does something good, the website will give her a star.
Her health teacher set up a competition to see which student could get the most stars from the website. Castle has got 30 stars so far.
Cameron Bartlett said she liked tracking（跟踪）the food and activities. "This is the first year we've done it," she said. "It's really interesting to see all of the different choices that we have."
The seventh grade health class is coming to an end. They won't be in health class, but the students all said that they would go on to take part in the Fuel Up to Play 60.
"There's lots of bad food out there that we've all been eating," Bartlett said "This really helps all of us eat healthier food."The passage is mainly about a website for helping people ________.
| A．win in competitions | B．eat more healthy food |
| C．do enough exercises | D．have good living habits |
Castle logs into the health website because ________.
| A．it's part of her health class | B．her teacher set up a competition |
| C．she wants to know bad food | D．she can get lots of stars from it |
From the passage we learn that all students ________.
| A．are eating little bad food |
| B．have their classes at home |
| C．are interested in the website |
| D．are clear about unhealthy food |
John is 6 years old. He can read and write very well, but he can't tell time. He doesn't say "eight o'clock", "twelve o'clock" or "four o'clock in the afternoon". He says "breakfast time", "lunchtime" or "teatime"
His aunt thinks she can teach him to read a clock.
"Can you count （数数）, John?"
"Yes. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve…"
"That's fine. Now, if I put the long hand of the clock on 'twelve' and the short one on 'one'-that is one o'clock. If I put the short hand on 'two', what's that?"
"Two o'clock. "
"Good. And on three?"
"Three o'clock. "
It is four o'clock in the afternoon, and John's aunt looks at him and asks: "What time is it, now?"
"Teatime, Aunt, and I'm hungry. "John is ________ years old.
| A．three | B．four | C．five | D．six |
His aunt teaches him ________.
| A．to read books | B．to count numbers |
| C．to write stories | D．to tell time |
His aunt will probably feel ________ in the end.
| A．bored | B．excited | C．silly | D．sorry |
Visit the United Nations Headquarters in New York, US.
Hours:
Monday to Friday: 9:45 am to 4:45 pm
Prices:
Adults $16.00
The United Nations Headquarters
联合国总部
Senior Citizens （60 and older） $11.00
Students （ with valid ID） $11.00
Children （5-12 years old） $9.00The United Nations Headquarters is in ________.
| A．London | B．New York | C．Sydney | D．Paris |
The United Nations Headquarters opens from Monday to ________.
| A．Sunday | B．Saturday | C．Friday | D．Thursday |
The price for children is ________.
| A．$9 | B．$11 | C．$12 | D．$16 |