It is often said that you cannot “teach an old dog new tricks”, but three New Zealand dogs have decided to prove otherwise 
by learning a skill—driving a car!
What’s even more impressive is that the three who have become skilled in just eight weeks are not special dogs that belong to some rich owners, but abandoned ones at New Zealand’s SPCA.
To get their training started, 10-month-old Porter, 18-month-old Monty and one-year-old Ginny were selected from a pool of seven potential candidates and moved to Animal Q, a talent agency that teaches animals tricks for movies and television shows.
The driving classes began with teaching the dogs some basic driving techniques like turning the steering wheels(方向盘)and applying the brakes. After that the dogs practiced everything they had learnt behind the wheels of a motorized(装上发动机的)car. Then finally, it was time for the big test-driving a real car!
Human cars are not really built for four-legged animals, so the car they drove was adjusted so that the dogs could sit comfortably and easily reach the steering wheel with their paws.
Though they all seemed to do very well, the real test came on Monday night when Monty, the best driver of the three, showed his great driving skill on live television.
Why would the SPCA go through so much trouble to highlight the skills of homeless dogs? The reason is to show that adopting a dog from a shelter does not mean owners are getting a pet that is worse than one purchased from a keeper. The CEO of the SPCA is hoping that this unusual event will be enough to convince the residents of New Zealand to consider them, when searching for a pet. We surely hope so, meanwhile we are almost certain that these three pioneers have at least landed their names in the Guinness World Records, creating a category that probably does not even exist today! Who do the three dogs belong to?
| A． Some rich owners. | B． Animal Q. |
| C． A shelter. | D． A zoo. |
The car the dogs drove was adjusted .
| A． because it was too big for the dogs to drive |
| B． because it had no steering wheels and brakes |
| C． to ensure the dogs could sit comfortably and drive easily |
| D． to motorize the car and turn it to be a real one |
Why does the SPCA decide to teach the three dogs to learn to drive a car?
| A． To prove old dogs can learn new tricks. |
| B． To teach them performing tricks for movies and television shows. |
| C． To provide amusing performances for homeless children. |
| D． To encourage people to adopt the abandoned dogs. |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A． A new Guinness category for driving dogs will probably be created. |
| B． Abandoned dogs are much cleverer than house-kept ones. |
| C． All the dogs at New Zealand’s SPCA will soon be adopted. |
| D． New Zealand has the most homeless dogs among all countries. |
She is widely seen as proof that good looks can last forever. But, at nearly 500 years of age, time is catching up with the Mona Lisa.
The health of the famous picture, painted by Leonardo da Vinci in 1505, is getting worse by the year, according to the Louvre museum(卢浮宫博物馆)where it is housed.
“The thin, wooden panel on which the Mona Lisa is painted in oil has changed shape since experts checked it two years ago,” the museum said. Visitors have noticed the changes but repairing the world’s most famous painting is not easy. Experts are not sure about the materials the Italian artist used and their current chemical state.
Nearly 6 million people go to see the Mona Lisa every year, many attracted by the mystery of her smile. “It is very interesting that when you’re not looking at her, she seems to be smiling, and then you look at her and she stops,” said Professor Margaret Livingstone of Harvard University. “It’s because direct vision(视觉)is excellent at picking up detail, but less suited to looking at shadows. Da Vinci painted the smile in shadows.”
However, the actual history of the Mona Lisa is just as mysterious as the smile. Da Vinci himself loved it so much that he always carried it with him, until it was eventually sold to France’s King Francis I in 1519.
In 1911, the painting was stolen from the Louvre by a former employee, who took it out of the museum hidden under his coat. He said he planned to return it to Italy. The painting was sent back to France two years later.
During World War II, French hid the painting in small towns to keep it out of the hands of German forces.
Like many old ladies, the Mona Lisa has some interesting stories to tell.The underlined sentence in the first paragraph means the Mona Lisa ________.
| A．is losing its value |
| B．is being damaged after so many years |
| C．is getting more valuable with years passing |
| D．will rot away |
Experts haven’t any repairs on the Mona Lisa because______.
| A．it is now in a poor chemical state |
| B．they don’t know how to replace the wooden panel |
| C．they don’t have the materials Da Vinci used |
| D．they are afraid it will be done further damage. |
The smile of the Mona Lisa can only be seen_______.
| A．by indirect vision |
| B．at a distance |
| C．by direct vision |
| D．in shadows |
From the last paragraph, we can infer that______.
| A．many interesting stories have been written about the Mona Lisa |
| B．people are interested in the stories about the Mona Lisa. |
| C．some mysteries still remain to be solved about the Mona Lisa. |
| D．Many more stories will be told about the Mona Lisa. |
Divorces in Japan have more than doubled, according to health ministry statistics. One in three Japanese marriages now ends in divorce.
Atsuko Okano was in one of those failed marriages. Three years ago, she found herself alone in her 30s, with children to raise and a future full of question marks and social shame. But she also saw an opening, and became an advisor helping people like herself.
“My husband was cheating on me,” she recalled. ‘I did everything to bring him back to me but it didn’t work, so I dumped him.” Such frankness is a major characteristic of Japan’s recently divorced.
Divorced people – particularly woman – have long been looked down upon in Japan, where self-sacrifice and family stability are regarded as ideals. In the past, bored housewives remained bored. The security of the family unit was the most important thing. Now, young Japanese are increasingly choosing satisfaction in life over the demands of tradition, and more woman are financially independent. As a result, Japanese divorce rates are flying. Experts attribute this to the erosion of a long-standing double standard that granted divorced men respectability, but branded(gave somebody a bad name) divorced women as damaged goods.
Over the past decade, growing numbers of highly educated and successful professional women have challenged that assumption(something taken for granted) by turning their backs on unhappy marriages and paying no attention to the taboo（禁忌）of divorce. The majority of divorce behavior now is started by women.This passage mainly talks about the fact that nowadays Japanese women _________.
| A．are granted respectability after they get divorced |
| B．are becoming brave enough to challenge the taboo of divorce |
| C．still consider the security of the family unit to be very important |
| D．are becoming more financially independent |
It can be inferred from Paragraph 2 that Atsuko Okano __________.
| A．had some children to raise |
| B．was very confident with her future |
| C．was not greatly respected by Japanese society |
| D．might have found a job to help divorced people |
The underlined word “dumped” in paragraph 3 probably means _________.
| A．looked down upon |
| B．had a quarrel with |
| C．hated |
| D．divorced |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned as the reason for rising rate of Japanese divorces?
| A．Self-sacrifice and family stability are not much appreciated in Japan as before. |
| B．More women can support themselves financially. |
| C．Divorced men and women can quickly find their new partners |
| D．Young Japanese care more about satisfaction in life than their elders did. |
Grown-ups are often surprised by how well they remember something they learned as children but have never practiced ever since. A man who has not had a chance to go swimming for years can still swim as well as ever when he gets back in the water. He can get on a bicycle after many years and still ride away. He can play catch and hit a ball as well as his son. A mother who has not thought about the words for years can teach her daughter the poem that begins "Twinkle, twinkle, little star" or remember the story of Cinderella or Goldilocks and the Three Bears.
One explanation is the law of overlearning, which can be stated as follows: Once we have learned something, additional learning trials increase the length of time we will remember it.
In childhood we usually continue to practice such skills as swimming, bicycle riding, and playing baseball long after we have learned them. We continue to listen to and remind ourselves of words such as "Twinkle, twinkle, little star" and childhood tales such as Cinderella and Goldilocks. We not only learn but overlearn.
The multiplication tables(乘法口诀表)are an exception to the general rule. that we forget rather quickly the things that we learn in school, because they are another of the things we overlearn in childhood. The law of overlearning explains why cramming (突击学习)for an examination, though it may result in a passing grade, is not a satisfactory way to learn a college course. By cramming, a student may learn the subject well enough to get by on the examination, but he is likely soon to forget almost everything he learned. A little overlearning, on the other hand, is really necessary for one's future developmentWhat’s the main idea of Paragraph 1
| A．Children have a better memory than grown-ups. |
| B．People remember well what they learned in childhood. |
| C．Poem reading is a good way to learn words.“ |
| D．Stories for children are easy to remember |
The author explains the law of overlearning by
| A．presenting research findings |
| B．setting down general rules |
| C．using examples |
| D．making a comparison |
According to the author, being able to use multiplication tables is
| A．a result of overlearning |
| B．a special case of cramming |
| C．a skill to deal with math problems |
| D．a basic step towards advanced studies |
What is the author's opinion on cramming?
| A．It leads to failure in college exams. |
| B．It increases students' learning interest. |
| C．It's possible to result in poor memory. |
| D．It's helpful only in a limited way. |
Astronauts on shorter shuttle missions（使命）often work very long days. Tasks are scheduled so tightly that break times are often used to finish the day’s work. This type of schedule is far too demanding for long missions on the International Space Station（ISS）. ISS crewmembers usually live in space for at least a quarter of a year. They work five days on and two days off to mimic the normal way they do things on Earth as much as possible. Weekends give the crew valuable time to rest and do a few hours of housework. They can communicate with family and friends by email , internet phone and through private video conferences.
While astronauts cannot go to a baseball game or a movie in orbit, there are many familiar activities that they can still enjoy . Before a mission, the family and friends of each ISS crewmember put together a collection of family photos, messages, videos and reading material for the astronauts to look at when they will be floating 370 kilometers above the Earth. During their mission, the crew also receives care packages with CDs, books, magazines, photos and letters . And as from early 2010, the internet became available on the ISS , giving astronauts the chance to do some “web surfing（冲浪）”in their personal time. Besides relaxing with these more common entertainments, astronauts can simply enjoy the experience of living in space.
Many astronauts say that one of the most relaxing things to do in space is to look out the window and stare at the universe and the Earth’s vast land mass and oceans.What does the word “mimic” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?
| A．find | B．lose | C．change | D．copy |
Which of the following best describes the families of the astronauts on the ISS ?
| A．They are caring and thoughtful. |
| B．They are worried and upset. |
| C．They are impatient and annoyed. |
| D．They are excited and curious. |
In the final paragraph, the author shows that astronauts .
| A．get more pleasure in space than on the Earth |
| B．love to see the Earth from space |
| C．regard space life as common |
| D．find living in space a bit boring and tiring |
The passage mainly discusses how astronauts .
| A．work for longer missions in space |
| B．connect with people on the Earth |
| C．spend their free time in space |
| D．observe the Earth from space |
Mini Book Excerpts（节选）
Biography
When Salinger learned that a car park was to be built on the land, the middle-aged writer was shocked and quickly bought the neighboring area to protect it. The townspeople never forgot the rescue and came to help their most famous neighbor.
J.D. Salinger A Life by Kenneth Slawenski（Random House,$27）
Mystery（疑案小说）
“You’re a smart boy. Benny’s death was no accident, and you’re the only who saw it happen. Do you think the murderer should get away with it ? ”The boy was starting stubbornly at his lap again.
A thought suddenly occurred to Annika, “Did you …You recognized the man in the car, didn’t you?”
The boy hesitated, twisting his fingers, “Maybe,” he said quietly.
Red Wolf by Liza Marklund（Atria Books, $25. 99）
Short Stories
She wants to say to him what she has learned, none of it in class. Some women are born stupid, and some women are too smart for their own good. Some women are born to give, and some women only know how to take. Some women learn who they want to be from their mothers, some who they don’t want to be. Some mothers suffer so their daughters won’t. Some mothers love so their daughters won’t.
You Are Free by Danzy Senna （Riverhead Books,$15）
Humor
Do your kids like to have fun? Come to Fun Times! Do you like to watch your kids having fun? Bring them to Fun Times! Fun Times! “amusement cycling” is the most fun you can have, legally, in the United States right now. Why spend thousands of dollars flying to Disney World when you can spend less than half to that within a day’s drive of most cities?
Happy And Other Bad Thoughts by Larry Doyle（Ecco,$14. 99）If the readers want to know about the life of Salinger , they should buy the book published by
| A．Random House | B．Atria Books |
| C．Riverhead Books | D．Ecco |
The book Happy And Other Bad Thoughts is intended for.
| A．young children | B．Disney World workers |
| C．middle school teachers | D．parents with young children |
Which book describes women with characters of their own?
A. Happy And Other Bad ThoughtsB. You Are Free
C. J. D. Salinger :A LifeD. Red Wolf After finishing the book Red Wolf, the readers would learn that .
| A．the murderer got away with the crime |
| B．Benny died of an accident |
| C．the boy helped arrest the murderer |
| D．Annika carried out the crime |