TheWhiteHouseCorrespondents’Di-优题课

Last week, we explained that the planet Mars had passed “opposition.” It passed a point opposite the Sun. This week, we tell about the planet’s surprising motion among the stars.
For thousands of years, people have recognized that planets travel among the stars. The planets generally follow the path taken by the Sun through the sky. The Sun’s path is called the ecliptic. The groups of stars along the ecliptic are called the Zodiac(黄道带).
The motion of the planets can be confusing at times. Everyone knows the Sun rises in the east and sets in the west. But this is caused by the turning motion of the Earth. Planets generally move from west to east.
However, Mars will appear to move backward for about two months this year. This happens because the Earth is overtaking Mars on its way around the Sun. Mars began its backward, or westward, motion on May 11th. It will start moving eastward again on July 19th.
Mars’ apparent motion has been a mystery to astronomers for hundreds of years. Most early theories of tilt solar system argued that the Sun and planets turned around the Earth. But the sudden westward motion of Mars presented problem. Why would Mars move west for two months when it nears “opposition”?
In 1543, a Polish church worker named Nicolas Copernicus published a different theory. His theory said the Earth and planets moved around the Sun in perfectly circular orbits. Copernicus’ theory was simpler. But his Sun-centered system still did not explain the observed motion of Mars very well.
Finally, a German mathematician named Johannes Kepler published a complete theory of the motion of the planets in 1619. He had carefully studied the motion of Mars for many years.
Johannes Kepler discovered that the planets do not move in circular orbits around the Sun. Instead, they travel in flattened orbits called ellipses(椭圆). Mars’ elliptical orbit is the cause of its unusual brightening this year and its apparent large size.
During the next several weeks, you can see for yourself why the mysterious motion of Mars has caused so many people to wonder.
64.From the passage we can learn that _________.
A. the sun and planets generally travel westward
B. Kepler studied the orbit of the planets in 1619
C. Copernicus’ theory well explained the motion of Mars
D. the Earth’s turning motion causes the sun to rise in the east
65.On July 19th Mars _______.
A. will pass the “opposition”
B. appears to change its direction again
C. will begin to move westward
D. appears to change its orbit again
66.Why does Mars appear to be bigger and brighter when it passes “opposition”?
A. It is overtaking the earth B. It follows the path of the sun
C. It moves in an elliptical orbit D. It travels in a circular orbit.
67.What is the best title for the passage?
A. The Recent Research into Mars B. The Surprising Motion of Mars
C. The Great Discovery on Mars D. The Wonderful Mystery of Mars

When someone gives you advice, listen without judgment, try to find value in what you’re hearing, and say: “Thank you”. This wise advice is easy to understand yet hard to practice. I’ll give you an example from my life when I totally blew it in term of practicing what I teach.
In my work I travel constantly. I always put off going to the airport until the last second. My wife, Lyda, was sitting next to me in the front seat. I was racing along and not paying much attention. Lyda cried out: “Look out! There is a red light up ahead.”
Being a trained behavioral science professional—who teaches others the value of encouraging advice—I naturally screamed at her: “I know there is a red light up ahead! Don’t you think I can see?” When we arrived at the airport, Lyda didn’t speak to me. I wondered why she seemed mad at me.
During the flight to New York, I did a cost-benefit analysis. I asked myself: “What was the cost of just listening when Lyda called out the warning? Zero.” I then reasoned: “What was the potential benefit? What could have been saved?” Several potential benefits came to mind, including her life, my life, and the lives of other people.
I landed in New York feeling ashamed of myself. I immediately called Lyda and told her my cost-benefit story. I convinced her: “The next time you help me with my driving, I am just going to say, ‘Thank you!’”
A few months passed, and I had long forgotten the incident. Again, I was racing off to the airport, when Lyda cried out: “Look out for the red right!” I was embarrassed, and then shouted: “Thank you!”
I’m a long way from perfect, but I’m getting better. My suggestion is that you get in the habit of asking the important people in your life how you can do things better. And be ready for an answer. Some people may tell you things like “Look out for the red light.” When this happens, remember that there is possibly some potential benefit. Then just say: “Thank you.”
60.What do we know about the author?
A. He is expert at behavioral science.
B. He is gifted in cost-benefit analysis.
C. He seldom takes his wife’s advice.
D. He often runs the red traffic light.
61.The underlined part “blew it ” in Paragraph 1 probably means “_______”.
A. became annoyed with the adviser B. forgot the practical method
C. failed to say “Thank you” D. lost personal judgment
62.It can be inferred from the passage that people _________.
A. tend to be defensive when given advice
B. intend to follow others’ suggestions
C. had better study behavioral science
D. should give their opinions patiently
63The purpose of the passage is to advise people to ________.
A. do a cost-benefit analysis in daily life
B. treasure others’ suggestions
C. learn from the author’s experiences
D. discover potential benefits

When it comes to intelligence, human beings are the top dogs of the animal kingdom. But in recent years, scientists have been documenting surprising intelligence and emotional depth in animals ranging from honeybees to elephants. Here are some amazing examples.
Artistic Monkey Business
Jannet Schmid, director of the Little River Zoo in Norman, Oklahoma, learned a lot about the intelligence of capuchin monkeys. She and her busband adopted a young male, named Bailey. The capuchin particularly liked taking car rides, insisting that he insert the key and ride in the front passenger’s seat.
Now Bailey has become a devoted painter. He uses brushes to create colorful, abstract paintings, and prefers not to be disturbed.
Prairie Dog Sound
Through a variety of birdlike sounds, prairie dogs warn each other of approaching creatures. They demonstrated a surprisingly complex communication system. In his 25 years of study, Slobodchikoff, a professor of biology, has recorded them pronouncing ten nouns including hawk, deer and coyote, a number of adjectives to identify color, size and shape, and even some verbs to indicate speed.
In an ongoing study, Slobodchikoff learns that their brain contains a very extensive vocabulary. He once used his best prairie dog sound to say coyote, and they just looked at him in anger as if he had said a bad word.
Ivy League Parrot
One African grey parrot Alex is said to have the cognitive abilities of a five-year-old child. Alex can identify 50 different objects, seven colors, five shapes, quantities up to six, and the concepts of bigger, smaller, same and different.
Also Alex is considered to make reasoned decisions. During an experiment, researchers gave Alex different-colored blocks in sets of two, three and six. When asked which color group had five blocks, Alex replied, “None.” And he answered the same in repeated tests. Obviously, he interpreted the concept of “none” as an absence of quantity all on his own. That’s a lot like a high school student answering questions on a quiz show.
56.Which of the following is true?
A. Bailey is as clever as a child of five.
B. The prairie dog loves taking car rides.
C. The capuchin monkey is fond of painting.
D. Alex develops a communication system.
57.The underlined word “coyote” in Paragraph 4 refers to ________.
A. a verb B. an animal C. a warning D. an adjective
58.The African grey parrot Alex can ________.
A. answer questions on a quiz show
B. understand the figure “7”
C. identify five colors and seven shapes
D. apply the concept of “none” correctly
59.What is the passage mainly about?
A. Animal communication B. Animal research
C. Animal intelligence D. Animal information

I went over to my grandmother’s house today and she didn’t have time for me. You see, the lady’s husband downstairs died and my Grandmother wanted to make some cookies for her. My grandmother did not analyze (分析) how the lady treated her, or if the lady needed any cookies, or even if the lady would like the cookies. She didn’t think how much the lady has done for her. She simply began baking.
My Grandmother turned 94 last week and this I believe is her secret to life. My grandmother is generous (慷慨) and hard-working in a way that is rare for our time. She lives by a simple belief: if someone needs your help, you help. Never mind all the analyzing and thinking whether the person deserves or appreciates the help. My grandmother doesn’t sit around thinking about who might be making use of her: she simply does what is needed.
At 94, she is busy in life. She is making a blanket for a new great grandchild, and worries that I don’t have enough kitchen towels for my home. She always brings soup to a sick neighbor, and teaches the new wife of her cousin (who is 88) how to cook Italian food.
My grandmother had every right to give up, but she didn’t — and amazingly life did bring her good things, like a husband with twinkling blue eyes who was much ahead of his time and believed that men should do an equal amount of cooking and cleaning in the home, three beautiful children (my father and two aunts), 22 grandchildren, and five great grandchildren. My grandmother is not afraid to give someone she barely knows a bowl of soup. She never keeps herself out of the world.
72. The reason why my grandmother made cookies for the lady downstairs is that ________.
A. she thought the lady was too busy
B. she would make them as thanks to her
C. she thought she should do something for the lady at the special time
D. they had had an agreement before
73. In the writer’s opinion, ________.
A. my grandmother has a secret way of living
B. my grandmother does everything on careful consideration
C. few people are as generous as my grandmother now
D. my grandmother will get something in return
74. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. My grandmother cares for her children even some strangers.
B. My grandfather does not treat women in an unfair way.
C. This is a family in which there are nearly 30 people now.
D. My grandmother never keeps everything for herself.
75. We may infer from the text that the writer ________.
A. thinks his grandmother is living a tired life
B. thinks his grandmother is doing what she should do
C. thinks his grandmother should not be so kind
D. is proud of his grandmother

Tea drinking was common in China for nearly one thousand years before anyone in Europe had ever heard about tea．People in Britain were much slower in finding out what tea was like, mainly because tea was very expensive. It could not be bought in shops and even those people who could afford to have it sent from Holland did so only because it was a fashionable curiosity. Some of them were not sure how to use it. They thought it was a vegetable and tried cooking the leaves. Then they served them mixed with butter and salt. They soon discovered their mistake but many people used to spread the used tea leaves on bread and give them to their children as sandwiches.
Tea remained scarce and very expensive in England until the ships of the East Indian Company began to bring it direct from China early in the seventeenth century. During the next few years so much tea came into the country that the price fell and many people could afford to buy it.
At the same time people on the Continent were becoming more and more fond of tea．Until then tea had been drunk without milk in it, but one day a famous French lady named Madame de Sevigne decided to see what tea tasted like when milk was added．She found it so pleasant that she would never again drink it without milk. Because she was such a great lady her friends thought they must copy everything she did, so they also drank their tea with milk in it. Slowly this habit spread until it reached England and today only very few British drink tea without milk.
At first, tea was usually drunk after dinner in the evening. No one ever thought of drinking tea in the afternoon until a duchess (公爵夫人) found that a cup of tea and a piece of cake at three or four o’clock stopped her getting “a sinking feeling” as she called it. She invited her friends to have this new meal with her and so, tea-time was born.
67．Which of the following is true of the introduction of tea into Britain?
A. The British got expensive tea from India.
B. Tea reached Britain from Holland.
C．The British were the first people in Europe who drank tea.
D．It was not until the 17th century that the British had tea.
68．Tea became a popular drink in Britain_____________.
A．in eighteenth century B．in sixteenth century
C．in seventeenth century D．in the late seventeenth century
69．People in Europe began to drink tea with milk because_____________.
A．it tasted like milk
B．it tasted more pleasant
C．it became a popular drink
D．Madame de Sevigne was such a lady with great social influence that people tried
to copy the way she drank tea
70．We may infer from the passage that the habit of drinking tea in Britain was mostly
due to the influence of　________.
A．a famous French lady B．the ancient Chinese
C．the upper social class D．people in Holland
71．What does the passage mainly talk about?
A．The history of tea drinking in Britain B．How tea became a popular drink in Britain
C．How the British got the habit of drinking tea D．How tea-time was born