People are always talking about "the problem of youth". If there is one—which I take leave to doubt—then it is older people who create it, not the young themselves. Let us get down to something basic and agree that the young are after all human beings—people just like their elders. There is only one difference between an old man and a young one: the young man has a beautiful future before him and the old one has a splendid future behind him and maybe that is where the rub is.
When I was a teenager, I felt that I was just young and unknown—that I was a new boy in a huge school, and I would have been very pleased to be regarded as something so interesting as a problem. For one thing, being a problem gives you a certain identity, and that is one of the things the young are busily engaged in seeking.
I find young people exciting. They have an air of freedom, and they have not a dull promise to mean ambitions(卑鄙的野心) or love of comfort. They are not anxious social climbers, and they have no devotion to important things. All these seem to me to link them with life, and the origins of things. It is as if they were in some sense from outside space and lovely contrast with us suburban people. All that is in my mind when I meet a young person. He may be ill-mannered, self-confident, but I do not turn for protection to boring clichés(陈腔烂调) about respect for elders as if the age is a reason for respect. I accept that we are equals, and I will argue with him, as an equal, if I think he is wrong. From the text we can see the writer’s attitude towards the young is ______.
| A．kind and satisfied | B．considerate and understanding |
| C．angry and unpleased | D．hopeless and boring |
The word "rub" in the last sentence of paragraph 1 is closest to the meaning of the following ________.
| A．polishing | B．difficulty | C．future | D．age |
One of the things the young are engaged in seeking is that ________.
| A．they want people to notice them |
| B．they want to make great troubles |
| C．they want to excite people around |
| D．they want to make some interesting events |
Reading is the key to success in all school subjects. With a bit of creativity, you can help your child enjoy reading more, and encourage him to do more!
Buy or borrow a lot of “fun” books. Choose books that are slightly below his level of reading ability. Don’t forget what your child likes to do when choosing books for him. Don’t comment about the books. Simply leave the books lying on the table where your child is sure to see them. Computer games are not as harmful as most parents usually think them to be. Instead, you should take advantage of your child’s love of computer games to purchase those that require a lot of reading and avoid those that are simply computerized video games.
Buy your child a bedside reading lamp, or a tiny book light. Tell him that from now on, he must be in bed by a specific time (say 8:30) and that he can either sleep or read. Most kids will do anything else rather than go to sleep, so there’s a chance you’ll create a new bedtime reading habit.
Many children will read when they are sitting alone having a snack, or when they have a few minutes of unplanned free time. Put a box of books and magazines near the kitchen table so that reading material is available.
Often, once children learn to read independently, parents stop reading to them. This change of routine causes great sadness to a child who has come to love falling asleep as you read. Even a teenager will enjoy being read to if you pick books that interest him. Select books together, and make sure they’re ones you enjoy as well, so your enjoyment will come through as you read to them.
To make children become interested in reading, parents should _______.
| A．choose books based on their interest |
| B．tell them what they can learn from these books |
| C．choose the easiest books for them to read |
| D．always read books together with them |
Which of the following is NOT what parents are advised to do?
| A．Pick the right computer games. | B．Reduce children’s sleeping time. |
| C．Have reading material available. | D．Read to children when possible. |
What attitude do most parents hold towards children playing computer games?
| A．Supportive. | B．Doubtful. | C．Negative. | D．Neutral (中立的). |
The main idea of the passage is to ________.
| A．help children succeed in school subjects |
| B．give parents advice on how to educate children |
| C．remind parents of the importance of reading |
| D．teach parents how to encourage children to read |
When my grandmother was raising me in Stamps, Arkansas, she had a particular routine（惯例）when people who were known to be whiners entered her store. My grandmother would ask the customer, “How are you doing today, Thomas?”
The person would reply, “Not so good today, Henderson. You see, it’s this summer heat. I just hate it. It just makes me tired. It’s almost killing me.’ Then my grandmother would stand calml
y, her arms folded, and say, “Uh-huh, uh-huh.”
As soon as the complainer was out of the store, my grandmother would call me to stand in front of her. Then she would say the same thing she had said at least a thousand times, it seemed to me. “Jane, did you hear what so-and-so complained about?” And I would nod. Grandmother would continue, “Jane, there are people who went to sleep 
all over the world last night, poor and rich and black and white, but they will never wake again. Those dead people would give anything, anything at all for just five minutes of this weather that person was complaining about. So you watch yourself about complaining, Jane. What you’re supposed to do when you don’t like a thing is change it. If you can’t change it, change the way you think about it. Don’t complain.”
I have learned a lot from my gra
ndmother. Her opinions always hit the nail on the head. Whining is not only impolite, but can be dangerous.
The underlined word “whiners” in paragraph 1 refers to those people who ________.
| A．think little of themselves | B．enter a store regularly |
| C．are afraid of hot weather | D．complain often |
From what the author’s grandmother said, we can infer that ________.
A．she tried to comfort the wh iners |
B．she was impolite to the whiners |
| C．she was against whining | D．she shared the whiners’ opinions |
The author’s grandmother told her to ________.
| A．be sympathetic(同情) to the dead | B．treasure（珍惜）every moment of her life |
| C．keep away from the whiners | D．get used to things she disliked |
What is the purpose of the author in writing the passage?
| A．To show that complaining is not only rude but harmful. |
| B．To tell us a story about her grandmother. |
| C．To show how to live one’s life to the fullest. |
| D．To tell us people’s different attitudes towards complaining. |
Many grown-ups worry that spending too much time playing video games isn’t good for a kid’s health. But some doctors have noticed that kids who bring their game players to the hospital seem less worried about being there. They also seem to feel less pain when they are giving all their attention on a car race or other games.
At a children’s center in Baltimore, Maryland, young kids are finding hospital visits easier to deal with, thanks to a test program called HOPE. Patients in HOPE have a life-threatening condition where their kidneys(肾) no longer get rid of wastes from their blood. To get their blood cleaned, these kids must use the dialysis (透析) machines at the hospital three times a week, for at least three hours each time. HOPE allows kids to play Internet sports, racing, and other games with each other. They will be able to connect with kids in other hospitals who have the same problem. “We want to use the Internet to bring together kids who are ill, and let them know they are not alone,” said Arun Mathews, the doctor of the program. He loved video games himself and got the idea to connect kids all over the country.
Many researchers elsewhere are testing video programs that might help young patients. For example, nine-year-old Ben Duskin of San Francisco, California, who was struggling with cancer helped to design a video game where players got rid of cancer cells.
That’s all great news, because doctors already know that reducing pain and worry helps patients heal(痊愈) faster.
According to the passage, the sick kids may feel less pain when they _________.
| A．use the dialysis machines | B．are in a car race |
| C．are playing video games | D．stay alone with illness |
HOPE allows the sick kids to play Internet games in order to _________.
| A．encourage them to fight against the illness | B．get rid of their pain and worry |
| C．let the kids make more friends | D．bring the kids in the country together |
Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
| A．Grown-ups all think video games are bad for kids’ health. |
| B．Some doctors think video games may help the sick kids reduce pain. |
| C．The HOPE is a famous organization all over the world. |
| D．Arun Mathews is against the testing program. |
Which can be the best title for the passage?
| A．Video Games Are Bad for Health | B．Video Games May Help Reduce Pain |
| C．A Famous American Organization | D．HOPE Allows Kids to Play Online Games |
The journey to the moon had been the first step toward future exploration(探险) in space. The distance between the Moon and Earth is very short indeed when compared with the distances between Earth and the other planets. Mars, the nearest planet to Earth is millions of miles away. Traveling to the planets will be man’s next aim. Such travels will be more challenging than the trip to the moon and certainly more adventurous.
Recently, two American spaceships, Vikings 1 and 2, landed on Mars trying to discover whether that planet has any life on it. So far the signs of life on Mars has neither confirmed(确认) nor ruled out. Russians have discovered that the surface of Venus(金星) is so hot that it is almost certain that there is no life there. Also the atmosphere of Venus is extremely dense(稠) and the pressure is nearly a hundred times greater than that of the Earth’s atmosphere.
Scientists believe man may find planets which have the same conditions as those we have on Earth , but man should realize Earth will be his only home for a long time and begin to love and care for it.
According to the passage, traveling to the planets will be ________.
| A．much easier and even more interesting | B．far more exciting and dangerous |
| C．man’s final aim | D．man’s first step |
Which of the following is Not true?
| A．Mars is nearer to the earth than the moon. |
| B．The moon is much nearer to the earth than Mars. |
| C．Of all the planets, Mars is the nearest to the earth. |
| D．All the planets are much farther to the earth. |
From the passage, we can guess______________.
| A．there is life on Mars |
| B．there is no life on Mars |
| C．the atmosphere of Mars is not so dense as that of Venus |
| D．scientists will have little hope to find the answers |
Man can live on under the conditions of ______________.
| A．much too hot surface | B．the same pressure as we get on earth |
| C．normal atmosphere as we have on earth | D．both B and C |
On the first day of class, a graduate student from Xi’an Jiaotong University reminded me that, especially in China, “There are always two sides of a coin.” Experiencing China’s May 12 earthquake while living in Xi’an, Shanxi Province just north of the earthquake’s epicenter (地震的震中) in Sichuan with our two daughters, we have indeed seen both sides of what is beginning to be called China’s 5·12 disaster coin.
On television, in newspapers and through the Internet, we learned about the extent (巨大，重要性) of the destruction, and the statistics were hor
rific – over 69,000 confirmed (确认) dead, some 18,000 missing and more than 374,000 injured.
When we turn off the television and discuss what we as a family have learned from the events of the last several weeks, we find ourselves marveling (觉得惊奇) at how the Chinese are confidently but quietly dealing with this unprecedented tragedy – a disaster that continues with every aftershocks, mudslide and potential flood.
It seems like every school, organization and business is raising money for Sichuan, and young people all over the country a
re out in the streets looking for donations or giving blood at the many mobile blood vans that are out in full force.
Those who cannot give, like the 75-year-old woman from Sichuan, are volunteering or giving in other ways. An impressive example is the Sichuan policewoman with a newborn child who was nursing many infants whose mothers were killed in the quake.
The national concern over the fate of affected children has been moving. On May 22, there were 1697 orphans, but on June 24, the number dropped to 558; and rest assured, there are more people willing to adopt than there are orphans from Sichuan.
So, while no country or person ever welcomes tragedy, especially something of this magnitude (程度), the earthquake has taught us a great deal about China’s true character and its people’s resilience (韧性). It has also reminded us that the other side of even a dark coin may hold the promise of a brighter future,
(The author is an American Professor of International Relations at Xi’an Jiaotong University.)
When the 5·12 earthquake happened, the author and his family were ________.
| A．in Sichuan province | B．near the earthquake epicenter |
| C．in Xi’an Jiaotong University | D．in their own country |
How many orphans had been adopted from Sichuan by June 24, 2008?
| A．1139 | B．1697 | C．558 | D．We don’t know. |
The author quoted “ There are always two sides of a coin.” In the passage. Here “ two sides” refers to ________.
| A．a dark side and a bright one of a coin |
| B．the unprecedented tragedy and China’s true character |
| C．the dead and the victims in the earthquake |
| D．the destruction and the donations |
Which of the following statements is NOT right according to the passage?
| A．The whole world has seen all about China’s 5·12 disaster in the news media. |
| B．A policewoman fed her breast milk to many babies who lost their mothers. |
| C．Even a 75-year-old woman gave blood at the mobile blood vans. |
| D．The earthquake brought other natural disasters at the same time. |