I used to live selfishly, I should admit. But one moment changed me.
I was on my lunch break and had the office to get something to eat . On the way, I
a busker(街头艺人)，with a hat in front of him. I had some
in my pocket, but I would not give them to him, thinking to myself he would
use the money to feed his addiction to drugs or alcohol. He
like that type-young and ragged.
what was I going to spend the money on? Only to feed my addiction to Coca-Cola or chocolate! I then
I had no right to place myself above
just because he was busking.
I and dropped all the coins into his
, and he smiled at me, I watched for a while. As
as it sounds, I expected something more to come from that moment—a feeling of
or satisfaction, for example. But nothing happened
, I walked off. “It proved to be a waste of
,”I thought.
On my way home at the end of the , I saw the busker again and he was
. I watched him pick up the hat and walk
a cafe counter. There he poured the
contents into a tin collecting
an earthquake fund-raising(募捐) event. He was busking for charity(慈善)！
Now I donate any I have to charity tins and enjoy the feeling of giving.
A. left B. cleaned
C. prepared D. searched
A. led B. chose
C. saw D. fooled
A. chocolates B. coins
C. tins D. drugs
A. almost B. only
C. rather D. still
A. acted B. looked
C. sounded D. smelt
A. Though B. For
C. Therefore D. But
A. declared B. realized
C. expected D. guessed
A. it B. all
C. him D. them
A. waited B. followed
C. stopped D. arrived
A. rag B. hat
C. pocket D. counter
A. selfish B. awkward
C. innocent D. special
A. happiness B. sadness
C. love D. hate
A. Disappointedly B. Unfortunately
C. Coincidentally D. Comfortably
A. words B. effort
C. space D. money
A. moment B. day
C. break D. event
A. walking around B. passing by
C. packing up D. running off
A. around B. in
C. behind D. to
A. chief B. basic
C. actual D. total
A. by B. for
C. on D. with
A. work B. time
C. energy D. change
Some say the Internet will kill off papers. Others say not so fast.
Are newspapers dying?
That’s the heated debate these days. Many say the disappearance of the daily paper is just a matter of time. The future of journalism is in news websites, not newsprint.
However, others say, newspapers have been with us for hundreds of years, and while all news may be online some day, papers can exist for some time.
So who’s right? I’ll outline the arguments on both sides, and then you can decide.
Newspapers Are Dead
Newspapers are in trouble. Circulation is dropping, display and classified ad income is drying up, and the industry has experienced a hard time. Big metro papers like the Rocky Mountain News have stopped operating, and even bigger newspaper companies like the Tribune Co. go bankrupt（破产）.
And where are newspaper readers going? To the Web. A recent study has found that Internet users read online newspapers for an average of 53 minutes per week in 2008. That’s highest level recorded in the eight years when the study has been done.
The study found that 22 percent of users said they stopped their subscription（订阅）to a printed paper or magazine because they could access the same content online.
Some people say the Internet is just a better place to get the news. “On the Web, newspapers are live, and they can supplement（增补）their coverage with audio, video, and the valuable resources of their vast contents,” says Geffrey I. Cole, director of the Center for the Digital Future.How does the author present the topic to be discussed?
| A．By presenting others’ prediction |
| B．By asking a question |
| C．By providing opposite opinions |
| D．By talking about the background |
The purpose of writing the text is to _____.
| A．try to draw a general conclusion |
| B．encourage readers to use their judgment |
| C．compare the advantages of two media |
| D．invite readers to express their opinions freely |
Some readers no longer buy printed newspapers because they _____.
| A．want to save money |
| B．hope to protect the environment |
| C．don’t care about news |
| D．can read online newspapers |
What’s the advantage of the news website compared with printed newspapers?
| A．it provides news vividly | B．the news is more reliable |
| C．it can reach more readers | D．it is much cheaper in price |
New research suggests that cutting daily sitting time to less than three hours might extend your life by two years.
“Humans were designed to move. But modern lifestyles and office jobs rarely encourage us to walk around,” says Peter Katzmarzyk, an expert at the University of Louisiana.
“Sitting is common in our lives today. We sit while we’re driving, eating and watching TV. And many of us sit for many hours at work.” Katzmarzyk said.
“We can’t throw away physical activity. It’s extremely important. We have 60 years of researchers showing us that.” Katzmarzyk said.
Katzmarzyk and other researchers are trying to discover how sitting all day affext our lifespans（寿命）.
“This is a relatively new area of study…Studies that have assessed the relationship between sitting and death or television viewing and death have been very rare in the last four or five years,” said Katzmarzyk.
Katzmarzyk and his colleagues analyzed data from these studies, which involved almost 167,000 adults. Then they turned to a government-run survey of Americans to find out exactly how much time people spend sitting and watching.
Not only did the team find that U.S. citizens could live longer by sitting less, they found that cutting TV time to less than two hours a day could add an extra 1.4 years to their lives.
People who’ve spent half their waking lives sitting down might well ask, “Is it ever too late to make a change?”
“We would say ‘No. It’s never too late.’ Physical activity is good for you at every age.” Katzmarzyk said.
Katzmarzyk says studying this problem has inspired his team to make a few changes in their own lives. They recommend a few simple changes: frequently getting up from your desk, taking walks at lunch time, and instead of e-mailing colleagues, walking over to their offices and talking face-to-face——all activities that can be enjoyable as well as life-extending.Peter Katzmarzyk seems to believe that _____.
| A．we should not sit for a long time |
| B．most people like to sit most of the time |
| C．office jobs encourage us to walk a lot |
| D．modern lifestyles are good for our health |
The underlined word “that” in paragraph 4 probably refers to _____.
| A．taking physical exercise is important |
| B．many researches should be carried out |
| C．we should exercise during working hours |
| D．people should focus on their health at work |
Why did Katzmarzyk and his colleagues turn to a government-run survey?
| A．To collect information for the government |
| B．To know how long people sit and watch TV |
| C．To find what citizens do in their spare time’ |
| D．To discover how sitting for long affects their lives |
The best title of the text would be _____.
| A．What Is the Healthiest Lifestyle？ |
| B．Sitting for a Long Time Is Bad for Us |
| C．Study Suggests Sitting Less Can Extend Life |
| D．It Is Never Too Late to Change Our Way of Life |
The Mysterious Universe
By Ellen Jackson and Nic Bishop
How did the universe begin? How big is it? What is dark matter? Cosmologist（宇宙哲学家）and expert supernova（超新星）hunter Alex Filippenko hopes that supernovas can help us answer some of these questions. But first we’ve got to find them! Join Alex and his team as they go on the hunt with huge telescopes and banks of computers.
The Time and Space of Uncle Albert
By Russell Stannard
What would you say if your uncle asked you whether you would like to go into space? You’d say, “When do I leave?”, just like the girl in this story. Gedanken is speeding across the universe trying to help her uncle answer some questions, such as “How big is space?” and “Where does gravity come from?” Along the way she also discovers how to get heavier without getting fat, how to live forever without knowing it, and the strange things that can happen when you go really fast.
George’s Secret Key to the Universe
By Lucy Hawking and Stephen Hawking
When George chases his pet pig through a hole in the fence, little does he expect that he will soon be riding a comet（彗星）around Saturn（土星）. But just as he discovers the joys of space exploration with the computer Cosmos, which can open doors anywhere in the universe, everything starts to go wrong. When George’s lest-favorite teacher steals Cosmos and traps his friend’s dad in a black hole, can George set things right in time?
A Child’s Introduction to the Night Sky
By Michael Driscoll
With a telescope or without one, this book can get you started exploring planets, stars and even strange stuff like time, space, and black holes. The universe is a big place, but this book comes with a handy star finder that you can take out with you at night to help you find your way around the stars. Look up and discover the universe!According to the text, Alex Filippenko ______.
| A．invented huge telescopes |
| B．is looking for supernovas |
| C．doesn’t need many computers |
| D．knows a lot about dark matter |
What do we know about George’s Secret Key to the Universe？
| A．It is a sad story |
| B．It is about a pet pig |
| C．It is a co-authored book |
| D．It is based on a real life story. |
Which book would you read if you want to know about gravity?
| A．The Mysterious Universe |
| B．The Time and Space of Uncle Albert |
| C．George’s Secret Key to the Universe |
| D．A Child’s Introduction to the Night Sky. |
What do the four books have in common?
| A．They have the same topics? |
| B．They are intended for adults. |
| C．They have the same number of characters |
| D．They leave many questions to the readers |
I find some of the ways in which Chinese parents show love for their children rather surprising. Obviously there are some pretty big differences between our behaviors and theirs in this respect. Most Chinese children seem to get whatever they want, from ice creams, sweets and toys to endless attention from the adults around them. Is this a sort of spoiling or love? I wonder.
Most westerners would think it is a sort of spoiling rather than love. We think love means educating your children and bringing them up to lead an independent life. That includes learning to accept the fact that he can't get everything he wants. As an adult, he will not always get the quite expensive car he hunts for; she will not always manage to acquire the beautiful dress she longs for. So we try to teach our children early to cope with the disappointment of not getting what they want.
I find too much such kind of love for the children can actually spoil them. To my surprise, it seems that the life of a Chinese child is rather hard. Without doubt, the child is the very center of a whole circle of adults, but on the other hand he or she is also expected to start studying according to adults' wishes. Many children of my son's age take piano lessons, painting classes and even English lessons. It looks as if Chinese adults think that just playing without learning anything is a waste of time. So in this respect our children appear spoiled, just because they are allowed to play. But without this sort of play how can western children develop such free and rich imaginations? In fact the connection between this imagination and the creativity is so important in the children’s future life.In which way do most Chinese children seem to be spoiled?
| A．They can be supported by their parents. |
| B．They can play whenever they want. |
| C．They need not behave themselves. |
| D．Their demands can always be satisfied. |
In the author's opinion, the life of a Chinese child is .
| A．rather hard | B．rather easy | C．independent | D．colorful |
The author thinks Western children appear spoiled because .
| A．they can manage time by themselves |
| B．they can have the freedom to play |
| C．they can take piano lessons |
| D．they may have expensive toys |
The best title of the passage could be .
| A．Chinese children's early education |
| B．How to develop kids' imagination |
| C．What is the real love for children |
| D．The imagination and creativity |
Getting married can be one of the happiest moments in a person’s life. Throughout the world, weddings are very important events. Let’s look at some interesting wedding customs from different countries.
For African Americans, it is tradition for the married couple to jump over a broom covered with flowers. This represents the beginning of family life. It is interesting to note that African slaves who were brought to the USA started this tradition. African American couples were not allowed to have a legal marriage, so instead they had a ceremony where the bride and groom jumped over a broom “into marriage”.
Making jokes about the bride and groom is a wedding tradition in both France and Germany. In France, this includes making loud noises with pots; in Germany, wedding guests break dishes. Weddings in Germany often last for three days. On Thursday, there is a simple ceremony at a government office noting the official marriage of the couple. Then the couple will have a dinner with family and close friends. On Friday, there is a party. This is when guests break dishes to represent the start of a new life. Then on Sunday, there is a ceremony in a church.
In Greece and Italy, people eat special kinds of sweets at the wedding. Both Greece and Italy also have their own special wedding dances, which all of the guests enjoy.
In Russia, couples tie a doll to their wedding car if they want to have a daughter, or a toy bear if they want to have a son.
In England, it is tradition for the little girls to throw flowers on the ground on the way to the wedding ceremony. The bride and groom walk on these flowers. This represents the hope that the couples will follow the path that leads to a happy life.
| Topic |
·Getting married can be 1. __________ than any other moment in a person’s life. ·Interesting wedding customs differ 2. _________ country to country. |
| Countries/ People |
Wedding Customs |
| African Americans |
·Married couple jump over a broom covered with flowers, which 3. _________ the beginning of family life. ·In the past, African American couples were 4. __________ to get married legally. |
| France and Germany |
·Make jokes about the bride and groom. ·In Germany, wedding guests get dishes 5. __________. ·A German wedding often 6. _________ three days. |
| The Greek and the 7. __________ |
·Either Greece 8. _________ Italy has its own special wedding dances, which all of the guests enjoy. |
| Russia |
·If couples want to have a daughter, they will have a doll 9. _________ to their wedding car. |
| The English |
·The bride and groom walk on the flowers thrown by little girls. It represents the hope of 10. __________ the path leading to a happy life. |