A man once said how useless it was to put advertisements in the newspaper."Last week," he said,"my umbrella was stolen from a London church. As it was a present, I spent twice its worth in advertising, but didn't get it back."
"How did you write your advertisement?" asked one of the listeners, a merchant.
"Here it is," said the man, taking out of his pocket a slip cut from a newspaper. The other man took it and read,"Lost from the City Church last Sunday evening, a black silk umbrella.. The gentleman who finds it will receive ten shillings on leaving it at No. 10 Broad Street."
"Now," said the merchant,"I often advertise, and find that it pays me well. But the way in which an advertisement is expressed of extreme importance. Let us try for your umbrella again, and if it fails, I'll buy you a new one."
The merchant then took a slip of paper out of his pocket and wrote: "If the man who was seen to take an umbrella from the City Church last Sunday evening doesn't wish to get into trouble, he will return the umbrella to No.10 Broad Street. He is well known."
This appeared in the newspaper, and on the following morning, the man was astonished when he opened the front door. In the doorway lay at least twelve umbrellas of all sizes and colors, and his own was among them. Many of them had notes fastened to them saying that they had been taken by mistake, and begging the loser not to say anything about the matter.The result of the first advertisement was that _____.
A.The man got his umbrella back |
B.The man wasted some money advertising |
C.Nobody found the missing umbrella. |
D.The umbrella was found somewhere near the church. |
The merchant suggested that the man should ________.
A.buy a new umbrella |
B.go on looking for his umbrella |
C.write another and better advertisement |
D.report the police |
"If it fails, I'll buy you a new one," suggested that the merchant ________.
A.was quite sure of success |
B.wanted to buy him a new umbrella |
C.didn't know what to do |
D.was rich enough to buy one |
The story is mainly about _________.
A.a useless advertisement |
B.how to make an effective advertisement |
C.how the man lost and found his umbrella |
D.what the merchant did for the umbrella owner |
You know how wonderful you are, and you know that others know how wonderful you are, but what do you do when admiration crosses over the line into jealousy? For most teens there will come a day when you realize that one of your friends is jealous and that this jealousy is hurting your friendship. When this happens it can seem like there is nothing that you can do, but the good news is that there is. Don’t let jealousy spoil your relationships. Tackle it head on and you might be back to normal much sooner than you think.
It can be hard to walk up to a friend and ask them what the problem is, but if you want to save your friendship you’ll have to do just that. Don’t approach them and ask why they are jealous of you (unless of course you want to appear totally conceited), just take some time alone with them and let them know that you’ve been feeling like there’s been something coming between you. If they refuse to respond, then use the opportunity to explain how you have been feeling. Chances are that something you say will strike a nerve and your friend will open up as well.
When you figure out what is annoying your friend, ask him or her what (s)he thinks would make the situation better. If, for example, (s)he says that (s)he feels like (s)he doesn’t get to spend any time with you because of your being off with your new friends from the swim team then maybe you could invite her along the next time or block off one day a week for just the two of you. Remember, though, that whatever solution you decide on should be a compromise. Don’t limit your own talents or opportunities simply because your friend is unhappy. Try instead to include him or her in your new life and see how that works out.
Even the best of friendships can be tinged by jealousy. This destructive emotion is rarely productive and can turn best friends into worst enemies. Before taking extreme action, chat with your jealous friend to see if the two of you can work out a compromise. If you can’t, be prepared to know exactly how far you will go to keep your friend and how far you won’t.According to the author, the jealousy emotion is________.
A.normal | B.destructive |
C.productive | D.extreme |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a way to confront your friend when jealousy happens?
A.Spending some time with him/her and letting him/her know you think there’s something between you. |
B.Spending some time with him/her and letting him/her know how you feel. |
C.Walking up to him/her and asking him/her what the problem is. |
D.Walking up to him/her and asking him/her why he/she is jealous of you. |
The underlined “it” in the first paragraph refers to________.
A.friendship | B.relationship |
C.jealousy | D.admiration |
What can be inferred from the last two paragraphs?
A.Jealousy can turn best friends into worst enemies. |
B.There’s always a solution to solve the problem of jealousy. |
C.You should go a long way with your friend to work out a solution |
D.You may lose a friend to keep your own gifts, chances or self development. |
The purpose of the passage is________.
A.to explain what causes jealousy |
B.to offer some advice on making friends |
C.to introduce the way to cope with a jealous friend |
D.to explain how destructive the jealous emotion is |
I was thirteen when my father got hurt. Looking back over the years, I sometimes wonder what I could have done differently that day. Spit twice over my shoulder when I saw the single magpie (喜鹊), maybe. But that's the thing about superstitions (迷信). You don't know how much power they have until you break them.
We lived in a dark shabby house in Bucks. Wood blocks laid over dirt on the floor. That part of England was full of cherry trees. Chalky soil.
The rice had caught in the bottom of the pot that morning at breakfast and all I could smell was burned rice. Even now when I think of that day I have the taste of burned rice in my mouth.
"I'm going to cut down the old cherry tree," my father announced.
"You've been saying that for years," said my mother lightly touching the end of her nose. Her nose ran all year long. Her arms rested on the table, a cup of tea placed between her hands, steam rising into the air. "You'll never get round to it. "
My stomach, balled into a tight little knot (结) relaxed itself.
"Millie's going to cry if you cut it down," said my younger brother, Simon, his eyes bright as a fox. "Silly Millie, silly Millie."
"Hold your noise," said my father patting Simon on the head. "And put back that butter. That's a week's ration (限额) you've got on your plate. "
"The war's over," said Simon in a low voice." We haven't had rationing for ages." Simon was right. Even sugar had come off points. However, we still occasionally received food parcels from distant cousins in Canada.
My father glared at him and then went on.
"Pigs. Burt says he'll come and help me take the tree down if he can have some of the wood."
"No," I said springing to my feet." You can't do it. That's my tree. Always has been. Always will be. I won't let you."
Tom, took a piece of toast, watching my reaction. My older brother, he knew what the tree meant to me.
"Now then, Millie," said my father softening his face. "That tree's wild. It's in the way."The magpie is mentioned to show that _____.
A.Millie got much power on seeing the bird |
B.things seemed to go wrong from the beginning |
C.the bird caused Father's getting hurt that day |
D.but for the bird Millie would have done differently |
According to the passage, how many kids does the family have at least?
A.6. | B.5. | C.4. | D.3. |
By saying "balled into a tight little knot", the author means that Millie _____.
A.had a terrible stomachache that morning |
B.felt like crying on hearing her brother's words |
C.was afraid of her cherry tree being cut down |
D.hated to hear her mother saying that way |
From the passage, we can infer that _____.
A.there were already plenty of food supplies |
B.Mother showed little interest in the cherry tree |
C.the tree was a great danger to people walking by |
D.the tree was finally cut down by father that day |
When the author calls up the day, she feels _____.
A.regretful | B.joyful |
C.thankful | D.Painful |
The poaching,or illegal killing,of rhinos(犀牛) in South Africa is growing worse each year.The government recently reported that a record number of rhinos were poached in 2014,a year which had more rhino killings in South Africa than ever before.
The World Wildlife Fund,or WWF,says about 20,000 rhinos live in South Africa.That is more than 80 percent of the rhinos in the world.Edna Molewa,South Africa’s environmental issues minister,says,“During 2014,we are sad to say this,1,215 rhinos were killed.This is a rise in the number of poached rhinos from 1004 in 2013 and indeed very worrying.”
The animals are hunted for their horns(犀牛角).Many people in Asia believe the horn has curing power,which drives poachers,at all costs,mad for more horns.But there is no scientific evidence for this belief.The horn is made of keratin.That is the same thing as human hair, fingernails and toenails.
Ms.Mo1ewa said 386 suspected poachers were arrested last year,an increase from the year before.But rhino protection workers say poachers often go unpunished after arrest.South Africa’s legal system is ineffective.Ms.Molewa said more needs to be done and South Africa is taking strong measures to protect rhinos.The efforts include moving some of the animals to secret places in neighboring countries.“Now approximately 100 rhinos have been moved to neighboring states in the SADC region during 2014 and 200 more rhinos will be moved this year”Molewa said.
Jo Shaw,the rhino program manager at the WWF,said,“we’re talking about a loss of a hundred rhinos a month.Or more than three a day.We really need to see effective action not just at a national level but internationally.”She says officials should find the criminal groups responsible for the poaching and punish them.Government officials are to meet in Botswana in March at the Inter-governmental Conference on Illegal Wildlife Trade.What do we know about rhinos?
A.Half of the rhinos live in South Africa. |
B.Less than 1,000 rhinos were killed in 2013. |
C.The killing reached the highest point in 2014. |
D.There are only 20,000 rhinos left in the world. |
What is the main reason for people to hunt rhinos?
A.To get more keratin. |
B.To protect the farmland. |
C.To use them for decoration. |
D.To make money from horns. |
Jo Shaw thinks that_________.
A.many criminal groups are well organized |
B.new laws are needed to punish the killers |
C.rhino protection needs international cooperation |
D.conferences about protecting rhinos are to be held every year |
What can we infer from the text?
A.Rhino protection has a long way to go. |
B.No one would like to buy horns in the future. |
C.The illegal killing of rhinos will soon disappear. |
D.Rhinos living in South Africa will move to other countries. |
Can you imagine a world without chocolate? It's not something I'd 1ike to do.so I was relieved to read that there’s a university with a program me to safeguard the future of chocolate!
The University of Reading,in England,has just opened a new clearing house for all the world’s new cocoa varieties.They must be quarantined(隔离检疫)before they can be grown.Why? Cocoa production hit a record high of 4.4 million tons last year but about 30%of the precious crop is regularly lost to pests and diseases.Now we don’t want that,do we?
Demand for chocolate has been increasing faster than the world supply of cocoa and researchers think that new varieties are key to solving this problem.
The University of Reading has been protecting the quality of the new crops since 1985,after it took over the task from the Royal Botanical Gardens in Kew,London.And it has improved its facilities.The leader of the institution’s cocoa project,Professor Paul Hadley,says,“One of the main issues concerning cocoa improvement is the supply of reliably clean,healthy,interesting cocoa material.”
The cocoa centre has a collection of 400 plant varieties and their greenhouse uses a lot of energy to keep them in tropical conditions.After up to two years in quarantine,clean and safe seeds are sent to some 20 countries,including several in West Africa.That’s where 75%of the cocoa used for chocolate worldwide comes from.The crop is extremely important for the local economy:it employs about two million people.
Professor Hadley says he works with a small team of skilled technicians who look after the collection.And more of us seem to count on them now.
The scientist says,“there is some concern within the industry that demand is increasing constantly,particularly in countries like China,where the standard of living is increasing and people are getting a taste for different chocolates.”What is the text mainly about?
A.Safeguarding cocoa seeds. |
B.Planting cocoa worldwide. |
C.Keeping cocoa in greenhouse. |
D.Finding the new market for cocoa. |
The institution’s cocoa project is to_______.
A.have cocoa skin removed |
B.offer more jobs to people |
C.ensure the quality of cocoa |
D.supply cocoa for two million people |
What does the last paragraph tell us?
A.The taste of chocolates is changing. |
B.Demand for cocoa is increasing fast. |
C.People are concerned about cocoa varieties. |
D.Chinese have a long history of eating chocolates. |
What’s the purpose of the text?
A.To educate. | B.To advertise. |
C.To warn. | D.To inform. |
For decades,the San Francisco Bay area has been the heart of the computer technology industry.Many of the biggest technology companies have their headquarters in the area called Silicon Valley.But the area has not always been associated with charity(慈善).
Now,a new generation of entrepreneurs(企业家)appears to be changing Silicon Valley.One example is Marc Benioff,a donor(捐赠者),who has called on wealthy donors to give more to their communities.He also is the founder of Salesforce.com,a computer services company in San Francisco who has helped build a children’s hospital and given millions of dollars to non-profit organizations in the city.
Money from the technology industry has also started to change the face of charity.Benjamin Soskis writes about the history and ideas behind charity in America.His articles have appeared in The Atlantic magazine and a number of major publications.He says,traditionally,donors have given after they spent much of their lives building up wealth.Usually donors are in their 70s.But an increasing number of people appearing on the list of top donors are younger than 40 years of age.Benjamin Soskis says that is something new.“There’s a whole new model that’s appearing in which people give and accumulate at the same time.”
Some of the young donors on this year's top 50 list have started to change in the way people see charity.That is especially the case in the San Francisco area,where giving money and making money appear to be coming together.“I think it's fair to say that charity is now a part of the Silicon Valley identity.”What is true of Marc Benioff?
A.He joined a non-profit organization. |
B.He advised donors to build hospitals. |
C.He made San Francisco a city of charity. |
D.He set up the company of Salesforce.com. |
What is special about the donors of Silicon Valley?
A.They prefer to give rather than make money. |
B.They give after accumulating a lot of wealth. |
C.They are much younger than the usual donors. |
D.They donate more money to their communities. |
Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
A.The age of charity |
B.The changing faces of charity |
C.In search of new faces |
D.From computer base to charity centre |