My parents have certainly had their troubles, and as their child I’ll never know how they made it to 38 years of marriage. They loved each other, but they didn’t seem to like each other very much. Dad was too fond of his beer, and he talked down to Mom a lot. When she tried to stand up to him, a fight would unavoidably follow.
It was my dad’s disease that began to change things. The year 1998 was the beginning of a remarkable transformation for my family. My father, Jim Dineen, the always healthy, weightlifting, never-missed-a-day-of-work kind of dad, discovered he had kidney (肾) disease.
The decision to go ahead with a transplant for my father was a long and tough one, mostly because he had liver damage too. One physician’s assistant told him, “According to your file, you’re supposed to be dead.” And for a while, doctors mistakenly thought that he would need not just a kidney transplant, but a liver transplant too. Dad’s future hung in midpoint.
When the donor testing process finally began in the spring of 2003, numerous people, including me, my uncle Tom, and my mom, came back as matches of varying degree. But Mom was the one who insisted on going further. She decided to donate a kidney to my father. She said she was not scared, and it was the right thing to do. We all stepped back in amazement.
At last a date was chosen – November 11, 2003. All of a sudden, the only thing that seemed to matter Dad was telling the world what a wonderful thing Mom was doing for him. A month before the surgery, he sent her birthday flowers with a note that read, “I love you and I love your kidney! Thank you!”
Financially, the disease was upsetting to them. So my sister and I were humbled and surprised when, shortly before his surgery day, Dad handed us a diamond jewelry that we were to give to Mom after the operation. He’d accumulated(积累) his spare dollars to buy it.
At the hospital on the day of the transplant, all our relatives and friends gathered in the waiting room and became involved in a mean euchre (尤克牌游戏) tournament. My family has always handled things with a lot of laughter, and even though we were all tense, everybody was taking bets on how long this “change of conduct” would last in my parents.
We would inform Dad that if he chose to act like a real pain on any particular day after the operation, he wasn’t allowed to blame it on PMS just because he’d now have a female kidney.
The surgeries went well, and not long afterward, my sister and I were allowed to go in to visit. Dad was in a great deal of pain but again, all he could talk about was Mom. Was she okay? How was she feeling? Then the nurses let us do something unconventional. As they were wheeling Mom out of recovery room, they rolled her into a separate position to visit Dad. It was strange to see both my parents hooked up to IVs and machines and trying to talk to each other through tears. The nurses allowed us to present the diamond jewelry to Mom so that Dad could watch her open it. Everyone was crying, even the nurses.
As I stood with digital camera in hand, I tried to keep the presence of mind to document the moment. My dad was having a hard time fighting back emotion, and suddenly my parents unexpectedly reached out to hold each other’s hands.
In my nearly 35 years of existence, I’d never seen my parents do that, and I was spellbound. I snapped a picture and later rushed home to make sure I’d captured that enormous, life-defining moment. After so many years of disagreement, it was apparent to me that they finally understood how much each loved the other.From the first paragraph we can learn that _________.
A.Dad was fond of drinking |
B.My parents got along well |
C.Dad often beat Mom |
D.Mom never obeyed Dad |
The underlined part “Dad’s future hung in midpoint” in Para.3 suggests that _________.
A.Dad's life journey was on half way |
B.Dad came to a critical moment in his life |
C.Dad’s future was decided by doctors |
D.Dad faced a tough decision in his life |
Before the surgery, which of the following words can best describe the feeling of the families?
A.Worried and negative. |
B.Anxious and helpless. |
C.Nervous but optimistic. |
D.Relaxed and positive. |
Which of the following is TRUE according the passage?
A.Dad bought a diamond jewelry to Mom for their wedding anniversary. |
B.Dad asked the nurse to visit Mom soon after the operation. |
C.Despite a lot of pain, Dad was eager to know Mom’s condition soon after the operation. |
D.On the day of the transplant, the families involved in a mean euchre tournament to relax themselves. |
What’s in the writer’s photo?
A.Everyone was crying, even the nurses. |
B.His parents were trying to talk to each other. |
C.Dad watched Mom opening the gift. |
D.His parents were holding each other’s hands. |
What’s the best title for the passage?
A.Dad’s disease | B.Mom’s decision |
C.The Gift of Life | D.The photo of hands |
Swimming is one of those activities that can be learned early in life.Little children can learn to swim as soon as they walk.In fact,you need the same skills in walking as in swimming. However,I believe that five is the best age to learn.By five or six,a child knows fear of water,a very important thing to know.It's wise to be afraid,to recognize true danger.Young ones understand that the water can sometimes be very dangerous.
To really benefit from swimming,every swimmer should learn,as soon as possible,these four basic strokes;butterfly,backstroke,breastroke,and crawl.I feel that one of these-the breaststroke-is different from the others,since some young swimmers use this stroke naturally,without any training.
In swimming there are certain rules every swimmer should follow:
1.Never swim alone!No matter how good you are in the water,don't risk drowning by swimming alone.If you swim by yourself,with no life guards or friends with you,you may get into trouble.
2.Don't go beyond your abilities.Most swimmers know enough not to swim too far from the bank or the beach,Showing off by doing dangerous tricks is no good. Swim safely and you will continue to swim and alive.
3.Don't smoke.Swimming depends on a healthy body;good lungs are part of it.
4.Work at any activity that builds muscles.Little children can learn to swim as soon as _____.
A.they can talk | B.they start walking | C.they have no fear of the water | D.they are five or six years old |
The author believes that fear of water is_____.
A.stupid | B.sensible(明智的) | C.dangerous | D.not smart |
According to the passage,you should not swim alone because_____.
A.the water is too cold | B.your parents would not be happy |
C.something in the water might attack | D.you might drown |
When did you last see a polar bear?On a trip to a zoo,perhaps?If you had attended a winter activity in New York a few years ago,you would have seen a whole polar bear club.These "Polar Bears" are people who meet frequently in the winter to swim in freezing cold water.That day,the air temperature was 3℃,and the water temperature was a little higher.The members of the Polar Bear Club at Coney Island,New York are usually about the age of 60.Members must satisfy two requirements.First,they must get along well with everyone else in the group;this is very important because there are so many different kinds of people in the club.Polar Bears must also agree to swim outdoors at least twice a month from November through February.
Dcotors don't agree about the medical effects of cold-winter swimming.Some are worried about the dangers of a condition in which the body's temperature drops so low that finally the heart stops.Other doctors,however,point out that there is more danger of a heart attack during summer swimming because the difference between the air temperature and water temperature is much greater in summer than in winter.
The Polar Bears themselves are satisfied with the benefits of cold-water swimming.They say that their favorite form of exercise is very good for the circulatory system(循环系统)because it forces the blood to move fast to keep the body warm.Cold-water swimmers usually turn bright red after a few minutes in the water.A person who turns blue probably has a very poor circulatory system and should not try cold-water swimming.
The main benefits of cold-water swimming are probably mental.The Polar Bears love to swim all year round;they find it fun and relaxing.As one 70-year-old woman says,"When I go into water,I pour my troubles into the ocean and let them float away."The members of the Polar Bear Club must meet the following requirements except that_____.
A.they must swim outdoors at least 8 times in the four cold months |
B.they must reach the age of 60 |
C.they should be easy to make friends with |
D.they must agree to swim outdoors from November through February |
According to the passage,some doctors believe it is true that_____.
A.Polar Bears are bears swimming in freezing water |
B.cold-water swimming can make the body temperature dangerously high |
C.you are healthy if cold-water swimming turns your skin color blue |
D.cold-water swimming causes more heart attacks in summer than in winter |
The Polar Bears like to swim year-round,for_____.
A.it is an easy way ot keep the body warm in winter | B.they can remain young |
C.they find it enjoyable and interesting | D.they might meet fewer troubles in life |
The passage is mainly about_____.
A.the requirements of the Polar Bear Club | B.a group of cold-water-swimming livers |
C.the Polar Bears' life in New York | D.doctors' ideas about cold-water swimming |
Extract(摘要)1
A computer is an "information processor".It is given information,called "data",instructed to do certain things and then show us the results.The data put into the computer is called the"input" and the results which come out are the "output".Some people say the circle of large standing stones at Stonechenge is a kind of computer.Prehistory people worked out their calendar(日历)from the position of the shadows made by the sun shining on the stones.
Extract 2
Teach yourself new subjects and skills at your own pace with a home computer.Use it to help with schoolwork,for self-improvement,even to improve your career skills.Learn touchtyping. Foreign languages or computer programming.A home computer can help children of all ages learn classroom subjects such as spelling,geography and others.In fact it makes learning fun.So if you want to teach yourself,or help your children teach themselves-get a home computer.It can also help you manage your personal finances or help you to work taxes and plan household budgets.You can make business a pleasure with a home computer.The writer introduces the words such as "input" and "output" in order to_____.
A.introduce people to computer language |
B.show computer language is the same as English |
C.help people some scientific language |
D.give people some scientific language |
Why does the writer talk about Stonechenge in Extract 1?
A.To give an example of the very first computer. |
B.To show that computers are older than mankind. |
C.To tell the difference between the past and the present. |
D.To give another way of explaining computers. |
If you think of the circle of large standing stones as a computer,_____.
A.the shadow is the input and the position is the output |
B.the sunlight is the input and the calendar is the output |
C.the position is the input and the sunlight is the output |
D.the calendar is the input and the shadow is the output |
Extract 2 is probably taken from_____.
A.a computer textbook | B.a company's advertisement |
C.a teach-yourself computer book | D.a children's guide to computers |
Moscow,Russia(Space news)-"The computer is a better chess player,"insisted Viktor Prozorov,the loser(失败者)." It seemed as if it were laughing after every good move.I know I should have beaten it for the sake of mankind(为人类着想),but I just couldn't win," he announced and shook his head sadly.
Prozorov's disappointment was shared by several grand masters who were present,some of whom were so upset that they shouted at the machine.Many chess players said that this meant the end of chess championships around the world,since the fun had been taken out of the game.
The computer walked-or rather,rolled-away with 5,000 dollars in prize money and limited its remarks to a set of noises and light.Which of the following best gives the main idea of this newspaper article?
A.5,000 dollars goes to a computer! | B.New invention a laughing computer! |
C.World's best chess player beaten! | D.Computer defeats man in chess! |
What was it that Prozorov felt most bitter(懊恼)about?
A.That he didn't win the$5,000. | B.That he hadn't tried his best. |
C.That he had lost to a machine. | D.That this was the end of the chess game. |
After winning the game,the computer_____.
A.laughed | B.walked away | C.made some remarks | D.gave out some lights and sounds |
Many chess players felt that playing with a computer would_____.
A.make the game tougher | B.make the game less interesting |
C.make man appear foolish | D.make man lose lots of |
A farmer had a cow. He took very good care of this cow and one day when it was ill, he was very worried. He telephoned the vet.
“What’s the problem?” The vet asked him when he arrived.
“My cow’s ill,” the farmer said. “I don’t know what's the matter with her. She’s lying down and won’t eat. She’s making a strange noise.”
The vet looked over the cow. "She’s certainly ill," he said, "and she needs to take some very strong medicine."
He took a bottle out of his box, put two pills into his hand and said, "Give her these. The pills should make her better."
“How should I give them to her?” the farmer asked.
The vet gave him a tube (管子)and said, "Put this tube in her mouth, then put the pills in the tube and blow. That’ll make it."
The next day the vet came to the farm again. The farmer was sitting outside his house and looked more worried.
“How’s your cow?” the vet asked.
“No change,” the farmer said, “and I’m feeling very strange myself.”
“Oh?” the vet said, "Why?"
“I did what you said,” the farmer answered. “I put the tube in the cow’s mouth and then put two pills down it.”
“And?” the vet asked.
“The cow blew first,” the farmer said.In the story, the vet must be _________.
A.the farmer's friend | B.a milk factory | C.a hospital for cows | D.a doctor for animals |
The farmer asked the vet for help when his cow _______
A.couldn't lie down | B.didn't eat the pills | C.couldn't make any noise | D.was ill |
What medicine did the vet give the farmer?
A.Bottle of pills. | B.A long tube. | C.Two pills. | D.A small box. |
The vet taught the farmer how _________.
A.to blow the tube | B.to make the cow take the pills |
C.to take the medicine | D.to put the tube in his mouth |
Which of the following is true?
A.The farmer ate the pills himself. |
B.The cow got better after taking the medicine. |
C.The vet came to help the farmer change the cow the next day. |
D.The farmer waited for the vet outside his house the next day. |