ETheCEOofApple,SteveJobs’story-优题课

When my family moved to America in 2010 from a small village in Guangdong, China, we brought not only our luggage, but also our village rules, customs and culture. One of the rules is that young people should always respect elders. Unluckily, this rule led to my very first embarrassment in the United States.
I had a part-time job as a waiter in a Chinese restaurant. One time, when I was serving food to a middle-aged couple, the wife asked me how the food could be served so quickly. I told her that I had made sure they got their food quickly because I always respect the elderly. As soon as I said that, her face showed great displeasure. My manager, who happened to hear what I said, took me aside and gave me a long lecture about how sensitive Americans are and how they dislike the description “old”. I then walked back to the table and apologized to the wife. After the couple heard my reason, they understood that the problem was caused by cultural differences, so they laughed and were no longer angry.
In my village in China, people are proud of being old. Not so many people live to be seventy or eighty, and people who reach such an age have the most knowledge and experience. Young people always respect older people because they know they can learn from their rich experience.
However, in the United States, people think “growing old” is a problem since “old” shows that a person is going to retire or that the body is not working well. Here many people try to keep themselves away from growing old by doing exercises or jogging, and women put on makeup, hoping to look young. When I told the couple in the restaurant that I respect the elderly, they got angry because this caused them to feel they had failed to stay young. I had told them something they didn’t want to hear.
After that, I changed the way I had been with older people. It is not that I don’t respect them any more; I still respect them, but now I don’t show my feelings through words.
By Jack
Jack brought the couple their food very fast because _______.

A．the manager asked him to do so	B．he respected the elderly
C．the couple wanted him to do so	D．he wanted more pay

When Jack called the couple “elderly”, they became _______.

A．nervous

B．satisfied

C．unhappy

D．excited

In Jack’s hometown, _______.

A．people dislike being called “old”

B．people are proud of being old

C．many people reach the age of seventy or eighty

D．the elderly are the first to get food in restaurants

After this experience, Jack _______.

A．lost his job in the restaurant

B．made friends with the couple

C．no longer respected the elderly

D．changed his way with older people

Which of the following is TRUE?

A．The more Jack explained, the angrier the couple got.

B．Jack wanted to show his feelings through words after his experience.

C．The manager went back to the table and apologized to the couple.

D．From this experience, Jack learned more about American culture.

Research suggests that a newly-identified gene known as insomniacs(失眠症患者) may play a role in keeping us asleep. By cloning and testing this gene in about 21,000 fruit flies, Rockefeller University researchers say they have discovered an entirely new mechanism (机制) by which sleep is controlled.
By studying these flies, the researchers discovered that mutations(变异) in the insomniac gene were associated with a great reduction in sleep. While a typical fruit fly slept for an average of 927 minutes a day, the mutant flies slept for just 317. They also slept for shorter periods of time, and slept and woke more frequently.
“The results showed a great loss of both the time that the flies’ sleep lasted and their ability to remain asleep after they slept,” says researcher Nicholas Stavropoulos.
The researchers also examined the link between sleep and lifespan, finding that flies with mutations to the insomniac gene lived only about two-thirds as long as unchanged flies. But when the scientists removed insomniac only in neurons（神经细胞）---allowing it to remain in the rest of the flies’ bodies---this difference disappeared; the resulting animals slept poorly but lived just as long.
“This suggests that reduced sleep can be ‘uncoupled’(分开) from reduced lifespan, supporting the idea that some interruptions of sleep do not affect overall health, at least as far as lifespan is concerned,” Stavropoulos says.
Although flies and humans would appear to have little in common when it comes to lifestyle, scientists say that the mechanisms of sleep and wakefulness are likely to be quite similar.
“Sleep is a fundamental behavior in all animals, and it is poorly understood from a scientific standpoint, says Stavropoulos. This work could prove useful in understanding and treating sleep disorders”
The text is mainly about____.

A．the progress in cloning fruit flies

B．the methods of cloning fruit flies

C．the link between gene and lifespan

D．the influence of a gene on the ability to sleep

According to paragraph2, the mutant flies________.

A．slept about 5 hours a day

B．had problems waking up

C．didn’t seem sleepy at all

D．could not fall asleep

We can conclude from the text that________.

A．sleep and health go hand in hand

B．sleep can be controlled by humans

C．research into sleep is very fruitful

D．the findings are useful in medical treatment

Ashley and Chris work in the same department designing postcards. Chris had a college degree in art and deeply felt that the degree of his designs was excellent. His last postcard showed the depth of a desert’s beauty and delights.
“It’s just a picture of the desert,” Ashley said. “Not deep at all.”
“Some people desire seeing beauty,” Chris replied. “Mine delivers that”.
Ashley laughed and said, “well, that depends on what you think beauty is.”
Days later, someone delivered a letter to Ashley. The letter said, “You are worthy of the bad things that will come your way. You will know the taste of defeat, and I will destroy you.”
Ashley suddenly felt very cold. It was as if the room temperature had dropped 30 degrees. “Who would do such a shocking deed?” she wondered. “I will not let a simple letter defeat me.”
Just then, Chris came into the room and offered Ashley a piece of his sandwich.
“Try some,” he smiled widely. “It’s delicious.”
“Are you trying to poison me?” Ashley asked. Chris’s answer was delayed from confusion. “What’s your problem?” he asked.
The next day, Ashley brought a bat to use to defend herself. When Chris saw her bat, he joked, “Defend and win one for the team.”
Ashley took no notice of him. She spent the whole day reading self-defending books and placed her work on delay. “You can’t delay your work. Our job demands us to do our work on time,” Chris said. “We must meet the demands of our job.”
“You‘re not the boss,” Ashley replied. “Don’t make demands of me.”
Because Ashley failed to do her work, she was fired.
Chris glanced at Ashley’s empty desk and smiled.
What kind of work did Chris and Ashley do?

A．Drawing.	B．Designing.
C．Painting.	D．Building.

What did Ashley think of the last postcard designed by Chris?

A．Excellent

B．Too bad

C．It didn’t show the real beauty of the desert.

D．He expressed himself in an indirect way.

We may infer from this passage that ___________.

A．Chris was not a good designer

B．Chris and Ashley were friendly to each other

C．Chris herself must have written the letter

D．It may sometimes bring about bad luck to speak out one’s mind

How do you know if your home is an easy aim for thefts? Around the holidays, many families don't consider taking proper measures to prevent their homes from suffering holiday thefts． With just a few simple steps, you can better make sure of the safety of your home during all of the holiday celebrations． Here are a few tips for making it difficult to tell you are away from home．
●Either have a trusted neighbor pick up your mail and newspapers, or tell your mailperson to hold your mail until you return． Nothing says “Hey, we are not home!” like when your postbox is filled with all kinds of mails and you have many different newspapers in your driveway．
● Set several different lights in your house on random timers（随机定时器）. Don't leave your outdoor lights on all the time．Instead, put your outside light on timers to be on during the nights. If an outdoor light remains on for days at a time, it means that nobody is home to turn it off．
● If you have pets that you are not taking with you on vacation, leave them with friend, rather than having someone come into your house every day to take care of them, When thefts see a neighbor or friend entering your house every day, they will know you are not home．
● Close all your curtains when you leave town. This is effective to deter possible thefts, as no one can see what is in your house. If they don't know what there is to take, then the risk is even greater for them to break in．
●This article just has suggested a few tips to help you keep your house safe on holiday．Nothing can truly protect your home unless you have it monitored by a professional home security system．
What is the main idea of the passage?

A．To let the outdoor lights on all the time．

B．To tell us how to prevent the thefts around the holidays．

C．To tell us many families suffering from the thefts while they are on holiday．

D．To tell us to have our neighbor go to our house to take care of our pets．

If you are on holiday in other places, the lights in your house should.

A．be turned on only once a day

B．be kept on all the night

C．be replaced by random timers

D．be lit in an irregular way

To make your home well protected, what does the writer advise you to do?

A．Equip your home with security system．

B．Stop your mail service at once．

C．Turn to your close neighbors or friends

D．Have all the curtains closed．

The underlined word “deter” probably means.

A．discover

B．surprise

C．discourage

D．attract

President Barack Obama has complained about the loss of privacy that comes with being leader of the United States, regretting the loss of simple pleasures such as a long walk or a trip to the car wash or supermarket．
"I just miss - I miss being anonymous," he said"I miss Saturday morning, rolling out of bed, not shaving, getting into my car with my girls, driving to the supermarket, squeezing the fruit, getting my car washed, taking walks. I can't take a walk． "
His dream, he said, was to "go through Central Park and watch folks passing by．．．spend the day watching people --- I miss that"．
Faced with angry criticism for playing more golf than most previous occupants of the White House, he explained that the sport was simply the best way of getting away from it all． "It's the only excuse I have to get outside for four hours." he told Hearst magazines．
Though he said he enjoyed his life in the White House, he felt disappointed with some of the ways of Washington, which he has failed in his pledge to change, such as the "kabuki dance" （日本歌舞）among political parties before serious policy discussions begin． His comments may be seen as vindication （证实） by critics who have accused him of appearing too detached（漠然）, and being slow to engage in vital issues such as Libya and the near shutdown of the US government last week．
Since arriving at the White House in January 2009, Mr.Obama has already racked up （打）60 rounds of golf in office, more than George W Bush did in his eight years．
In terms of ability, Golf Digest magazine has ranked Mr.Obama eighth out of the 18 presidents who played the game since it became established in the early 20th century．
What do the second paragraph and the third paragraph mainly tell us?

A．Obama likes living a busy life．

B．Obama used to spend most of his time with his family．

C．Obama wishes to enjoy simple pleasures．

D．He used to wash his car himself．

According to Obama, he plays golf to.

A．release his pressure	B．keep fit
C．balance his work	D．show his ability

We can infer from the passage that Obama is kabuki dance．

A．curious about	B．interested in
C．content with	D．tired of

Which of the following statements is from the critics?

A．The president lost lots of privacy, but he loves the life in the White House

B．There are always unnecessary procedures among political parties．

C．The president seems to be indifferent towards some really important issues

D．The president is really a great golf player．

What is the passage mainly about?

A．Obama's favorite pastime．

B．Obama’s complaints about lack of privacy as president．

C．The public's criticism of Obama．

D．Obama’s regrets for being the U．S．president．