When I walk through the streets, I pass strange rooms where people are doing strange things. Some are biking madly. Others are holding metal bars to keep them from dropping down. Still others are jumping around while someone is shouting at them. It looks like something out of Dante’s Inferno (但丁《神曲》中的《地狱篇》). But what is the most amazing is that people pay for these sufferings!
The strange rooms are gyms(健身房). It is reported that some 41 million Americans are gym members. 12% of the memberships are born in January, as they are determined to lose the holiday fat. Maybe it is good to exercise in the gym. However, should they know they can keep in good shape, spending little money, would they still agree with its necessity(必要性)?
At the age of 23, I joined a gym. I lifted weights twice a week in Muscle’s Gym. I paid as little as $200 per year. You can’t find such gyms in every city any more. Too often, the gym is fancy (花哨的) with lots of equipment. If you ask how much it costs to join it, the person at the front desk often won’t tell you straight. Instead, he’ll let you meet with a fitness consultant (健身顾问), who will provide you with a great number of reasons and suggestions, such as losing weight and getting healthier, just in order to put pressure on you to spend much money joining the gym and becoming a member there.
Working out(锻炼) with the help of equipment at home has problems, too. In the early 2000’s, I bought a spinning bike (动感单车) at a cost of $700 for home use. I tried a few times only to find that it brought me a neck problem.
Now I’m back to my old way. I do Yoga (瑜伽) every morning and evening. Total cost: $60 for an exercise mat(垫子) . I’m enjoying fitness.The strange rooms are places where people _________.
| A．do strange things |
| B．suffer from great pains |
| C．play Dante’s Inferno |
| D．take physical(身体的) exercise |
In the author’s opinion, joining a gym nowadays is __________.
| A．exciting | B．inexpensive |
| C．unnecessary | D．helpful |
The author wrote something about Muscle’s Gym to __________.
| A．tell us he was fat when he was young |
| B．suggest a new way of losing weight |
| C．provide us with an example of gyms |
| D．compare it with the gyms of today |
From the text we can infer that _________.
| A．many Americans put on weight after Christmas and New Year’s Day |
| B．the author and his family had spent a lot of money exercising in gyms |
| C．12% of the American people are members of gyms |
| D．spinning bikes are good equipment for exercise |
Basic Study Manual（Hardcover）: $37．50
Future success depends on the ability to learn．Here are the answers to the questions most often asked by students．Read this book and learn:
*What the three barriers to study are and what to do about them
* What to do if you get tired of a subject you are studying
*Twenty-six simple drills to help you learn how to study easily, rapidly and with full understanding
Buy and read the Basic Study Manual and use it to dramatically improve your ability to study．
Study Skills for Life （Hardcover）: $31．99
L．Ron Hubbard’s study technology for teenagers opens the door to their future success by giving them advice on how to study and learn．Fully illustrated（插图）for easy comprehension．
Learning How to Learn（Hardcover）:$24．99
The basics of effective study for 8 to 12-year-olds, fully illustrated．Children who read and apply the materials in this book can regain their liking for study．Get this book for a child you want to see win at his studies!
How to Use a Dictionary Picture Book for Children（Hardcover）:$34．90
In spite of billions of dollars spent on “educational research”, children are not taught the most basic skills of learning: how to use a dictionary．Written for children 8 to 12-year-old, this fully illustrated book will teach your children:
*How to find words in a dictionary
*The different ways that words are used
*How to use a dictionary to correctly pronounce words
At last, you’ll just pay 50% for these books before May 1, 2007．（260 words）The four books can mostly satisfy_________．
| A．teachers | B．children | C．adults | D．parents |
If you want to improve your ability to study, you’ll probably choose_________．
| A．Basic Study Manual | B．Study Skills for Life |
| C．Learning How to Learn | D．How to Use a Dictionary Picture Book for Children |
If you buy all the fully illustrated books before May 1, 2007, you will pay about_________
| A．$56 | B．$111 | C．$46 | D．$92 |
This passage aims to_________．
| A．introduce new books to readers |
| B．guide readers to choose books |
| C．encourage people to buy the books |
| D．enlarge students’ knowledge about books |
There are hundreds of things that your parents controlled for you when you were a child．And it’s a good thing, too — kids need this kind of protection and assistance, because they aren’t mature enough to take care of themselves and make careful decisions on their own．
But eventually, kids grow up and become teens．It’s totally normal for teens to create their own opinions, thoughts, and values about life; it’s what prepares them for adulthood．But as you change and grow into this new person who makes his or her own decisions, your parents may have a difficult time adjusting themselves to it．
In most families, it’s this adjustment that can cause a lot of fighting between teens and parents．Teens get angry because they feel parents don’t respect them and aren’t giving them space to do what they like, and parents get angry because they aren’t used to not being in control or they disagree with the teens’ decisions．
It’s easy for feelings to get very hurt when there are conflicts like these．And more complicated issues can cause even bigger arguments, because your parents will always be intent on protecting you and keeping you safe, no matter how old you are．
The good news about fighting with your parents is that in many families the arguing will lessen as parents get more comfortable with the idea that their teens have a right to certain opinions．It can take several years for parents and teens to adjust to their new roles, though．In the meantime, concentrate on communicating with your parents as best you can．
Sometimes this can feel impossible — like they just don’t see your point of view and never will．But talking and expressing your opinions can help you gain more respect from your parents, and you may be able to reach a compromise that makes everyone happy．Keep in mind, too, that your parents were teens once and that in most cases, they can relate to what you’re going through．Why do parents always want to control their children?
| A．They are afraid to lose their children． |
| B．They want to protect their children． |
| C．They don’t believe the ability of their children． |
| D．They can’t accept their children are growing． |
The author suggested that teenagers ________．
| A．fight with their parents bravely for their rights |
| B．obey their parents without any doubt |
| C．communicate with their parents actively |
| D．persuade their parents in as many ways as possible |
It can be inferred from the passage that ________．
| A．most parents will give in while fighting with their children |
| B．the conflict between parents and teenagers can be solved |
| C．the only way for teens to get freedom is to leave home |
| D．only few parents do well in facing the growth of their children |
Psychologists tell us that there are four basic stages that human beings pass through when they enter and live in a new culture．This process begins with the “honeymoon stage”．This is the period of time when we first arrive in which everything about the new culture is strange and exciting．We may be suffering from “jet lag” but we are thrilled to be in the new environment, seeing new sights, hearing new sounds and language, eating new kinds of food．This stage can last for quite a long time because we feel we are involved in some kind of great adventure．
Unfortunately, the second stage can be more difficult．After we have settled down into our new life, we can become very tired and begin to miss our homeland and our family, friends, pets．All the little problems in life seem to be much bigger and more disturbing when you face them in a foreign culture．This period of cultural adjustment can be very difficult and lead to rejecting or pulling away from the new culture．
The third stage is called the “adjustment stage”．This is when you begin to realize that things are not so bad in the host culture．Your sense of humour usually becomes stronger and you realize that you are becoming stronger by learning to take care of yourself in the new place．Things are still difficult, but you are now a survivor!
The fourth stage can be called “at ease at last”．Now you feel quite comfortable in your new surroundings．You can cope（deal） with most problems that occur．You may still have problems with the language, but you know you are strong enough to deal with them．This passage mainly talks about ________．
| A．culture and foreign language learning | B．adventures in a foreign land |
| C．getting used to a new culture | D．the interaction of different cultures |
Which of the following best describes the first stage?
| A．Lonely and depressed | B．Bored and homesick |
| C．Happy and excited | D．Angry and frustrated |
According to the passage, people are most likely to return to their own culture at the ________stage．
| A．1st | B．2nd | C．third | D．fourth |
It can be concluded from the passage that ________．
| A．people feel better in their own culture |
| B．it is not easy to adapt to a new culture |
| C．culture shock doesn’t occur at the beginning |
| D．it is human nature to long for adventures |
He's an old cobbler（修鞋匠） with a shop in the Marais, a historic area in Paris．When I took him my shoes, he at first told me: “I haven't time．Take them to the other fellow on the main street ; he'll fix them for you right away．”
But I'd had my eye on his shop for a long time．Just looking at his bench loaded with tools and pieces of leather, I knew he was a skilled craftsman． “No,” I replied, “the other fellow can't do it well．”
“The other fellow” was one of those shopkeepers who fix shoes and make keys “while-U-wait” — without knowing much about mending shoes or making keys．They work carelessly, and when they have finished sewing back a sandal strap （鞋带） you might as well just throw away the pair．
My man saw I wouldn't give in, and he smiled．He wiped his hands on his blue apron （围裙）, looked at my shoes, had me write my name on one shoe with a piece of chalk and said, “Come back in a week．”
I was about to leave when he took a pair of soft leather boots off a shelf．
“See what I can do?” he said with pride． “Only three of us in Paris can do this kind of work．”
When I got back out into the street, the world seemed brand-new to me．He was something out of an ancient legend, this old craftsman with his way of speaking familiarly, his very strange, dusty felt hat, his funny accent from who-knows-where and, above all, his pride in his craft．
These are times when nothing is important but the bottom line, when you can do things any old way as long as it “pays”, when, in short, people look on work as a path to ever-increasing consumption（消费） rather than a way to realize their own abilities．In such a period it is a rare comfort to find a cobbler who gets his greatest satisfaction from pride in a job well done．Which of the following is true about the old cobbler?
| A．He was equipped with the best repairing tools． |
| B．He was the only cobbler in the Marais． |
| C．He was proud of his skills． |
| D．He was a native Parisian． |
The sentence “He was something out of an ancient legend．” （ paragraph 7 ） implies that______
| A．nowadays you can hardly find anyone like him |
| B．it was difficult to communicate with this man |
| C．the man was very strange |
| D．the man was too old |
According to the author, many people work just to__________．
| A．realize their abilities | B．gain happiness |
| C．make money | D．gain respect |
This story wants to tell us that__________．
| A．craftsmen make a lot of money | B．whatever you do, do it well |
| C．craftsmen need self-respect | D．people are born equal |
Looking back on China's road to outer space, people can easily find it has not been very smooth．In the past years, Chinese people have made hard and determined efforts to realize the dream their ancestors had for thousands of years．
After China's first satellite into the Earth's orbit in 1970 came four flights of unmanned Shenzhou spaceflight from 1999 to 2002．The country carried out its first one-piloted spaceflight in October．2003, making China the third country in the world to have independent human spaceflight ability after the Soviet Union and the United States．Then came another breakthrough on October 12, 2005．
when Shenzhou 6, China's second human spaceflight, was launched, with a crew of two astronauts．What's more, the landmark （里程碑 ）spacewalk done by Zhai Zhigang, one of the three boarding Shenzhou 7, launched on Sept．25, 2008, leads the country further in its space exploration．
Meanwhile, China's moon exploration project, started in 2004, has also been progressing satisfactorily. Fifty years after the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, the world's first man-made satellite, China's first circumlunar（绕月的 ）satellite Chang’e 1 took off on Oct．24, 2007, which became the third landmark in China's space achievements after the above-mentioned manned flights．Change 1 was expected to fulfill four scientific goals, one of which was to explore mineral elements on the moon, especially those not existent on the Earth. It's said that the lunar regolith （月壤 ） is abundant in helium-3, a clean fuel that may support the Earth's energy demands for more than a century．Nearly 3 years later, Oct．1, 2010 witnessed the launching of Chang'e 2, China's 2nd unmanned lunar probe, marking another step forward in moon exploration．This time the aim is to test the key techniques of Chang'e 3 and Chang'e 4, as a preparation for a soft lunar landing in the future．
With great expectations, people all over the world are looking forward to China's greater space achievements．According to the text, which of the following is TRUE?
| A．China sent its first satellite into the Moon's orbit in 1970． |
| B．China is the third country in Asia to make human spaceflight． |
| C．By now, 5 astronauts have made successful spaceflight by Shenzhou spaceship． |
| D．The launching of Chang'e 1 became the third landmark in China's space achievements． |
Paragraph 2 mainly deals with the information about China's___.
A．landmark spacew alk |
B．manned Shenzhou spaceflight |
| C．first circumlunar satellite | D．unmanned Shenzhou spaceflight |
We can infer from the text that____．
| A．China's road to outer space has been very smooth for a long time |
| B．the lunar regolith is believed to be poor in a clean fuel called helium-3 |
| C．China's scientists are researching into techniques for soft lunar landing |
| D．China's lunar exploration project was started in 2004 and completed in 2007 |
What can be the best title for the text?
| A．Ancient Chinese's Dream | B．The World's Great Expectations |
| C．China's Moon Exploration | D．China s Major Space Achievements |
The author's attitude towards China's space exploration is___.
| A．negative | B．positive |
| C．discouraged | D．uninterested |