Are you looking for something fun and would you like to help others in your spare time? Then join us to be a volunteer! We’re a non-profit (赢利的) organization. We have volunteer jobs of all ages. Anyone, from twelve-year-old children to people in their seventies can become a volunteer.
You can help people in many ways. Schools need help with taking care of children while parents are working. Hospitals need volunteers to look after children while their parents are seeing a doctor. Animal lovers can help take care of those dogs and cats without homes. There is something for everyone.
“As a volunteer, I don’t want to get anything. Seeing the children’s happy faces, I’m happy, too.” Said Carlos Domingo, an old woman of 62. “I often played computer games in my spare time before. Now I help older people learn how to use computers.” said another volunteer at the age of 18.
If everyone helps out a bit, we’ll have a better world to live in. Interested? Call us 1-800-555-5756 or visit our website: www.activol.com. _____ can be a volunteer.
| A．Children | B．Old women | C．Anyone aged 12-70 | D．Young people |
Volunteers want to get _______ when they help others.
| A．money | B．computers | C．everything | D．nothing |
Carlos Domingo does volunteer work with ______.
| A．animals | B．children | C．computers | D．older people |
We can read such a passage ______.
| A．in a newspaper | B．in a storybook | C．in a picture book | D．in a textbook |
If you do not use your arm or your legs for some time, they become weak; when you start using them again, they slowly become strong again. Everybody knows that. Yet many people do not seem to know that memory works in the same way. When someone says that he has a good memory, he really means that he keeps his memory in practice by using it. When someone else says that his memory is poor, he really means that he does not give it enough chance to become strong. If a friend says that his arms and legs are weak, we know that it is his own fault(过错). But if he tells us that he has a poor memory, many of us think that his parents are to blame(受责备), and few of us know that it is just his own fault. Have you ever found that some people can’t read or write but usually they have better memories? This is because they cannot read or write and they have to remember things; they cannot write down in a little notebook. They have to remember days, names, songs and stories; so their memory is the whole time being exercised. So if you want to have a good memory, learn from the people: Practice remembering.The main reason for one’s poor memory is that _______.
| A．his memory is not often used |
| B．he does not use his name or legs for some time |
| C．his father or mother may have a poor memory |
| D．he can’t read or write |
If you do not use your arms or legs for some time _______.
| A．you can’t use them any more |
| B．they will become stronger |
| C．they will become neither stronger nor weaker |
| D．they become weak and won’t become strong until you use them again |
Some people can’t read or write, but they usually have better memories, because _______.
| A．they have saved much trouble |
| B．they have saved much time to remember things |
| C．they have to use their memories all the time |
| D．they can’t write everything in a little notebook |
Which is the best title for this passage?
| A．Don’t Stop Using Your Arms or Legs |
| B．How to Have a Good Memory |
| C．Strong Arms and Good Memories |
| D．Learn From the People |
Living in a modern society has its advantages and disadvantages. One disadvantage is that you often have to live closer to other people than you would like to. Sometimes, your neighbors make a noise that you are not comfortable with.
The best way to solve this problem is to talk with your neighbor first. You should be very polite and ask your neighbor if he knows how thin the walls of your homes are. This way doesn’t criticize (批评) his behavior（行为）; it simply points out that he may not realize how far his sound travels. Tell him that you know that sometimes you make noise as well, but that you do your best to keep it down. Often this will solve the problem right away, but sometimes the neighbor may become angry.
If your neighbor becomes angry with you, there are some more steps you can take. You might write a letter to the neighborhood committee. Make sure you write down the source of the noise and the time in the letter. They will review the situation and decide whether your neighbor is out of line. Some noise is considered to be reasonable, even if it bothers you. So you may prepare a good pair of earplugs (耳塞).
Even if your neighbor makes too much noise, you don’t have to live your life in discomfort. It’s always a good idea to be friendly with your neighbors. You may clean the rubbish in front of his door. He’s sure to appreciate behavior like this and be more open to your suggestions about noise level.What is the first step to deal with the noisy neighbor?
| A．To buy a good pair of earplugs |
| B．To offer suggestions to the neighbor |
| C．To ask the neighborhood committee for help |
| D．To tell the neighbor how bad his behavior is |
The underlined word “reasonable” in the third paragraph probably means “____”.
| A．terrible | B．loud | C．proper | D．unpleasant |
What does the last paragraph mainly talk about?
| A．You should control your noise as well |
| B．You can live comfortably even if there is noise |
| C．Your neighbor may be more friendly than you think |
| D．You should build good relationship with your neighbor |
The author wrote this passage to tell us ____ .
| A．why we should get on well with neighbors |
| B．how to relax ourselves in a modern society |
| C．how to become known among neighbors |
| D．what we should do with our noisy neighbor |
Nick Petrels is a doctor in Montreal. He works 60 hours a week. He takes care of 159 patients a week in the hospital and at his office. He’s been a doctor for ten years.
Dr. Petrels gives his patients good medical advice. But he doesn’t just tell his patients what to do. He also sings to them on television! Dr. Petrels has his own TV show. The show is in Italian, English and French. The doctor starts the show with a song and then gives medical advice. He explains a medical problem or disease in simple language. After that, he sings another song.
Dr. Petrels produces and performs in his own show every week. The program is very popular with his patients and with people who enjoy his singing. His dream is to perform in Las Vegas. His favorite songs are love songs, and he has a compact disk of love songs that he wrote. Dr. Petrels says, “I always loved to sing. All my problems are gone when I sing.” But when Dr. Petrels was young, his father didn’t want him to be a singer, so he went to medical school.
Some people tell Dr. Petrels he can help people more as a doctor. But Dr. Petrels says he helps people when he sings, too. “I like to make people smile. Sometimes it’s difficult to make a sick person smile. Medicine and pleasure both try to do the same thing. They try to make people feel good.” Dr. Petrels works 60 hours a week, because he _______.
| A．gives his patients medical advice |
| B．takes care of 159 patients a week |
| C．sings on television |
| D．has his own TV show |
Dr. Petrels _______, so he is called a singing doctor.
| A．also sings to his patients on TV |
| B．always loves to sing |
| C．is popular with his patients |
| D．has been a doctor for ten years |
In his TV show, Dr. Petrel _______.
| A．sings and gives medical advice |
| B．sings about different diseases |
| C．starts to explain diseases with a song |
| D．sings love songs he wrote |
Dr. Petrels says he likes to _______.
| A．help people sing | B．make people feel better |
| C．do the same thing | D．make difficult people smile |
When Joan gave birth to the first boy in her family in three generations, she and her husband were overjoyed. So were her parents. Joan expected her elder sister, Sally, to be just as delighted as them. Joan had always admired Sally--the beauty and the star of the family--and felt happy about her achievements.
But since the baby's arrival, the sisters have become distant. Joan feels hurt for Sally seems completely uninterested in her baby. Sally, who has no children, claims that her younger sister "acts as if no one ever had a baby before."
Neither Sally nor Joan understands that the real cause of the current coldness is that their family roles have suddenly changed to the opposite. Finally Joan seems to be better than her elder sister--and Sally doesn't like it! Their distance may be temporary, but it shows that childhood competition don't fade easily as ages grow. It can remain powerful in relationships throughout life.
In a study of the University of Cincinnati, 65 men and women between ages 25 and 93 were asked how they felt about their brothers and sisters. Nearly 75 percent admitted having hidden competitive feelings. In a few cases, these emotions were so strong as to have affected their entire lives.
Many adult brothers and sisters are close, supportive--yet still tend to compete. Two brothers I know turn into killers when on opposite sides of a tennis net. Off the court, they are the best of friends. My own younger sister can't wait to tell me when I've put on weight. However, she's a terrible cook and that pleases me; I tease her when she comes to dinner. Happily, despite these small failings, we have been an important resource for each other.
In between the very competitive and the generally supportive children lie those who say that no friendship should survive. Some brothers and sisters stay at arm's length, but never give up competition completely. Why do these puzzling, unproductive, often painful relationships continue to exist?When Joan's son was born, Sally.
| A．felt very happy | B．felt not delighted | C．moved away | D．admired her a lot |
What happens to children's desire to compete with their brothers and sisters?
| A．It sometimes will disappear when they grow up. |
| B．It will never disappear throughout life. |
| C．It will improve their relationships when they grow up. |
| D．It will never harm their relationships when they grow up. |
Why does the author's sister often tell her when she's put on weight?
| A．Because she wants the author to go on a diet. |
| B．Because she wants the author to stop calling her a bad cook. |
| C．Because she wants to make fun of the author's weight. |
| D．Because she wants to be honest with the author. |
The underlined sentence means that although some brothers and sisters.
| A．live near each other, they still have competitions |
| B．live away from each other, they stop their competitions |
| C．live together, they often think of ending their competitions |
| D．live within a big family, they often try to end their competitions |
Do you like seahorses? What do you know about them?
The seahorse is actually not a horse but a fish, and much smaller than any regular horse. In general, a seahorse is about an inch long. It is a beautiful fish that likes warm waters, swims upright (直立的), and looks a little like a chess piece.
Seahorses are an unusual kind of animal because the males (雄性) give birth to babies. Mating (交配) takes place in cooler waters on spring and summer nights with a full moon. The females (雌性) put their eggs into the bodies of the males, and the males give birth to baby seahorses.
The seahorse can use each eye separately, which allows it to search for food without moving the rest of its body. Seahorses situate themselves near deep, fast-running channels rich in plankton, a kind of life on which they feed. They can catch food from an inch and a half away. Seahorses can change from gray or black to yellow or purple within seconds to fit in with their surroundings, and in this way escape from most of their enemies.
One of the surprising facts about seahorses for most people is that they are vertebrates (脊椎动物). They can turn and curl freely, and like to swim in pairs connected by their tails. Their tails are powerful, and they can use them to grasp the surrounding seaweed (海藻) to keep themselves from being swept away. So seahorses are usually found in warm water filled with seaweed.
Now that you know all these facts about seahorses, don’t you find them more interesting?We can learn from the passage that seahorses _______.
| A．are beautiful, and live on seaweed |
| B．are as big as regular horses |
| C．live near deep channels |
| D．like to be alone |
The third paragraph tells us that _______.
| A．male seahorses lay eggs |
| B．seahorses mate in spring or autumn |
| C．male seahorses give birth to babies |
| D．seahorses mate in warmer waters at night |
Which of the following protects seahorses from being eaten by their enemies?
| A．Their fast speed of swimming. |
| B．Their ability to change colours. |
| C．Their unique eyes. |
| D．Their strong tails. |
Which of the following can replace the underlined word "grasp"?
| A．Eat. | B．Hold. | C．Make. | D．Handle. |