Everyone knows about straight-A students. We see them frequently in TV situation comedies and in movies like Revenge(报复)of the Nerds. They get high grades, all right, but only by becoming dull laborers, their noses always stuck in a book. They are not good at social communication and look clumsy while doing sports.
How, then, do we account for Domenica Roman or Paul Melendres?
Roman is on the tennis team at Fairmont Senior High School. She also sings in the choral group, serves on the student council and is a member of the mathematics society. For two years she has maintained A’s in every subject. Melendres, a freshman at the University of New Mexico, was student-body president at Valley High School in Albuquerque. He played soccer and basketball well, exhibited at the science fair, and meanwhile worked as a reporter on a local television station. Being a speech giver at the graduation ceremony, he achieved straight A’s in his regular classes, plus bonus points for A’s in two college-level courses.
How do super-achievers like Roman and Melendres do it? Brains aren’t the only answer. “Top grades don’t always go to the brightest students,” declares Herbert Walberg, a professor of education at the University of Illinois at Chicago, who has conducted major studies on super-achieving students. “Knowing how to make the most of your innate(天生的)abilities counts for more. Much more.”
In fact, Walberg says, students with high IQ sometimes don’t do as well as classmates with lower IQ. For them, learning comes too easily and they never find out how to get down.
Hard work isn’t the whole story, either. “It’s not how long you sit there with the books open,” said one of the many-A students we interviewed. “It’s what you do while you’re sitting.” Indeed, some of these students actually put in fewer hours of homework time than their lower-scoring classmates.
The kids at the top of the class get there by mastering a few basic techniques that others can readily learn.What can we conclude from the first paragraph?
| A．Most TV programs and films are about straight-A students. |
| B．People have unfavorable impression on straight-A students. |
| C．Everyone knows about straight-A students from TV or films. |
| D．Straight-A students are well admired by people in the society. |
Some students become super-achievers mainly because_________.
| A．they are born cleverer than others |
| B．they work longer hours at study |
| C．they make full use of their abilities |
| D．they know the shortcut to success |
What will be talked about after the last paragraph?
| A．The interviews with more students. |
| B．The role IQ plays in learning well. |
| C．The techniques to be better learners. |
| D．The achievements top students make. |
Some people believe that a Robin Hood is at work，others that a wealthy person simply wants to distribute (分配) his or her fortune before dying. But the donator who started sending envelopes with cash to deserving causes，accompanied by an article from the local paper, has made a northern German city believe in fairytales (童话).
The first envelope was sent to a victim support group. It contained €10, 000 with a cutting from the Braunschiveiger Zeitung about how the group supported a woman who was robbed of her handbag; similar plain white anonymous (匿名) envelopes, each containing €10, 000, then arrived at a kindergarten and a church.
The envelopes keep coming, and; so far at least €190, 000 has been distributed. Last month, one of them was sent to the newspaper’s own office. It came after a story it published about Tom, a 14-year-old boy who was severely disabled in a swimming accident. The receptionist at the Braunschiveiger Zeitung opened an anonymous white envelope to find 20 notes of € 500 inside with a copy of the article. The name of the family was underlined.
“I was driving when I heard the news," Claudia Neumann, the boy's mother, told Der Spiegel magazine. “I had to park on the side of the road; I was speechless."
The money will be used to make the entrance to their house wheelchair-accessible and for a course of treatment that their insurance company refused to pay for.
"For someone to act so selflessly, for this to happen in such a society in which everyone thinks of himself, was astonishing," Mrs. Neumann said. Her family wonder whether the donator is a Robin Hood character, taking from banks to give to the needy.
Henning Noske，the editor of the Braunschiveiger Zeitung, said: "Maybe it is an old person who is about to die. We just do not know." However, he has told his reporters not to look for the city's hero, for fear that discovery may stop the donations.The Braunschiveiger Zeitung is the name of ______.
| A．a church | B．a bank | C．a newspaper | D．a magazine |
Which of the following is TRUE about the donation to Tom?
| A．The donation amounted to €190, 000. |
| B．The donation was sent directly to his house. |
| C．The money will be used for his education. |
| D．His mother felt astonished at the donation. |
It can be inferred from the passage that _____.
| A．the donator is a rich old man |
| B．the donation will continue to come |
| C．the donation comes from the newspaper |
| D．the donator will soon be found out |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Money Is Raised by the Newspaper. |
| B．Newspaper Distributes Money to the Needy. |
| C．Unknown Hero Spreads Love in Envelopes |
| D．Robin Hood Returns to the City |
Home to me means a sense of familiarity and nostalgia(怀旧). It's fun to come home. It looks the same. It smells the same. You'll realize what's changed is you. Home is where we can remember pain, live, and some other experiences; We parted here; My parents met here; I won three championships here.
If I close my eyes, I can still have a clear picture in mind of my first home. I walk in the door and see a brown sofa surrounding a low glass-top wooden table. To the right of the living room is my first bedroom. It's empty, but it's where my earliest memories are.
There is the dining room table where I celebrated birthdays, and where I cried on Halloween-when I didn't want to wear the skirt my mother made for me. I always liked standing on that table because it made me feel tall and strong. If I sit at this table, I can see my favorite room in the house, my parents' room. It is simple: a brown wooden dresser lines the right side of the wall next to a television and a couple of photos of my grandparents on each side. Their bed is my safe zone. I can jump on it anytime - waking up my parents if I am scared or if I have an important announcement that cannot wait until the morning.
I'm lucky because I know my first home still exists. It exists in my mind and heart, on a physical property (住宅) on West 64th street on the western edge of Los Angeles. It is proof I lived, I grew and I learned.
Sometimes when I feel lost, I lie down and shut my eyes, and I go home. I know it's where I'll find my family, my dogs, and my belongings. I purposely leave the window open at night because I know I'll be blamed by Mom. But I don't mind, because I want to hear her say my name, which reminds me I'm home.Why does the author call her parents' bed her "safe zone"(Paragraph 3)?
| A．It is her favorite place to play. |
| B．Her needs can be satisfied there. |
| C．Her grandparents' photos are lined on each side. |
| D．Her parents always play together with her there. |
What can be learned from the passage?
| A．The old furniture is still in the author's fist bedroom. |
| B．The author can still visit her first physical home in Los Angeles. |
| C．The author's favorite room in her first home is the dining room. |
| D．Many people of the author's age can still find their first physical homes. |
Sometimes when she feels lost, the author will _______.
| A．Open the window at night |
| B．lie down in bed to have a dream |
| C．try to bring back a sense of home |
| D．go to Los Angeles to visit her mom |
What is the author's purpose of writing this passage?
| A．To express how much she is attached to her home. |
| B．To declare how much she loves her first house. |
| C．To describe the state of her family. |
| D．To look back on her childhood. |
A little stream flowed down from a high mountain far, far away through many villages and forests, until it reached a desert. The stream then thought, “I’ve been through countless obstacles. I should have no problem crossing this desert!” But when she decided to start her journey, she found herself gradually disappearing into the mud and sand. After numerous tries, she found it was all in vain and was very upset. “Maybe it’s my destiny(命运) ! I’m not destined to reach the vast ocean in the legend, ” she murmured sadly to herself.
At this time, a deep voice came, saying, “If a breeze can cross the desert, so can a river.”
It was the voice of the desert. Unconvinced, the little stream replied, “That’s because a breeze can fly, but I can’t.”
“That’s because you stick to what you are. If you’re willing to give it up, and let yourself evaporate （蒸发） into the breeze, it can take you across, and you can reach your destination,” said the desert in its deep voice.
The little stream had never heard of such a thing. “Give up what I am now and disappear into the breeze? No! No!” She could not accept this idea. After all, she had never experienced anything like it before. Wouldn’t it be self-destruction to give up what she was now?
“How do I know if this is true?” asked the little stream.
“The breeze can carry the vapor across the desert and release it as rain at an appropriate site. The rain will form a river again to continue its course,” answered the desert very patiently.
“Will I still be what I am now?” asked the little stream.
“Yes, and no. Whether you’re a river or invisible vapor, your inner nature never changes. You stick to the fact that you’re a river because you don’t know your inner nature,” answered the desert.
Deep down, the stream vaguely remembered that before she became a river, it was perhaps also the breeze that carried her halfway up a high mountain, where she turned into rain and fell onto the ground and became what she was now. Finally the little stream gathered her courage and rushed into the open arms of the breeze, which carried her to the next stage of her life.
Perhaps you can try asking yourself these questions: What is my inner nature? What is it that I cling （紧抓） to? And what is it that I really want?When reaching the desert at first, the little stream was ________ to cross it.
| A．upset | B．confident | C．pessimistic | D．hesitant |
The desert suggests that the stream ________ in order to cross the desert.
| A．change its form | B．disappear into the desert |
| C．stick to what it is | D．turn to another stream for help |
Finally the stream successfully crossed the desert with the help of ________.
| A．the rain | B．the desert | C．the breeze | D．the mountain |
In the text the writer compares the stream to ________.
| A．the Truth | B．the courage | C．the course of life | D．the obstacles in life |
In South America, the rich soil of the Amazon River basin（流域）in Brazil is known as “black gold”. Scientists found that the secret of this rich soil was charcoal（木炭）. Local people made it from animal bones and tree branches. They mixed the charcoal with the soil about 1.500 years ago.
Now, scientists in the United States have done a modern demonstration. They say charcoal fertilization offers a revolutionary way to improve soil quality for hundreds or even thousands of years.
Mingxin Guo and his team at Delavare State University heated tree leaves, corn stalks（茎）, small pieces of wood and poultry waste into “biochar”（生物碳）. They reported their findings at a recent meeting of the American Chemical Society in New Orleans.
Biochar could be good news for farmers with poor soil and hungry populations to feed. Professor Guo says it could even help against global warming. Intensive（集约的） farming and overuse of chemical fertilizer give out carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Biochar does the opposite, he says. It traps carbon in the ground.
The researchers planted winter wheat in containers of soil in a greenhouse — some with biochar, some without. Professor Guo says the wheat grows much better in the pots with biochar. The soil was added two percent charcoal to. But he says even a one percent treatment will increase productivity.
The results demonstrated that biochar can increase organic matter in soil. Loss of nutrients in soil is an increasing problem worldwide as farmers try to grow more food for growing populations.
Next, the team will carry out a five-year study of biochar with spinach（菠菜）, green peppers and tomatoes.
Mingxin Guo says he learns about the “black gold” in Brazil from a magazine story. He explains that it was discovered in the jungle, in the area where waters flow to the Amazon, in the 1960’s. But it was not until recent years that scientists began to bring public attention to it.According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．The researchers will go on proving their theory. |
| B．The leading researcher learns the theory from the magazine. |
| C．Charcoal was discovered 1,500 years ago. |
| D．Common farming can produce more carbon dioxide. |
Biochar has the following advantages EXCEPT that ________.
| A．it can improve the condition of the soil |
| B．it can be used as a kind of energy |
| C．it can help against global warming |
| D．it can increase productivity of the corn |
According to the research, the biochar can help against global warming because it can ________.
| A．reduce the carbon dioxide |
| B．keep the carbon in the soil |
| C．reduce the loss of nutrients in the soil |
| D．absorb the carbon dioxide |
Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
| A．Using Charcoal to Make soil into “Black Gold” |
| B．Using Charcoal to Reduce the Carbon Dioxide |
| C．How Amazon River Basin Produces “Golden Black” |
| D．Guo’s Research on Producing Biochar |
| The best shopping in Sidney Sydney is one of the world’s biggest cities and has something for everyone when it comes to shopping. You will find excellent Australian products at the bottom of Sydney Tower, you can shop in 160 of Sydney’s favorite stores including 16 jewellery stores and many gift and fashion shops. It’s all the Westfield Counterpoint. Tel: 92319300 |
Sovereign Hill This prize-winning living museum is where Australia’s history comes alive! Visit daily or stay for the night and experience life of the Gold Rush days. A wonderful nightly sound and light show. “Blood on the Southern Cross” tells the story of the famous Eureka Uprising. Enjoy shopping along with real life character and entertainment. Four-star hotel and breakfast. Tel: 53311944 |
| Anchorage Restaurant Come and enjoy our delicious Cantonese seafood right on the water’s edge in the historic fishing port of Williamstown with views of the city center across Port Phillip Bay. Open 7 days a week. 11:00 am—2:00 pm Dinner: Monday to Saturday. 5:00 pm—10:30 pm Tel: 93976270 or 93977799 |
Cook’s Cottage Built By James and Grace Cook, Parents of Captain James Cook. Cook’s Cottage stands proud in the Filztoy Gardens as a reminder of life in the eighteenths century, and as a celebration and commemoration（纪念）of the life and travels of Captain James Cook. Open 9:00 am—5:00 pm daily, and until 5:30 pm during the summer. Tel: 94194677 |
Where can we most probably read this text?
| A．In a newspaper. | B．In a magazine. |
| C．In traveling guide. | D．In a history textbook. |
The business hours of Cook’s Cottage on Saturday in the summer are ________?
| A．11:00 am—2:00 pm | B．5:00 pm—10:30 pm |
| C．9:00 am—5:30 pm | D．9:00 am—5:00 pm. |
The Anchorage Restaurant is ________.
| A．in Williamstown | B．in the center of the city |
| C．in Anchorage | D．in Port Philip Bay |
Where can you spend the night in a tour?
| A．Cook’s Cottage. | B．Sovereign Hill. |
| C．Sydney Tower. | D．Westfield Counterpoint. |