If you were to walk up to Arthur Bonner and say, “Hey, Butterfly Man,” his face would break into a smile. The title suits him. And he loves it.
Arthur Bonner works with the Palos Verdes blue butterfly, once thought to have died out. Today the butterfly is coming back — thanks to him. But years ago if you’d told him this was what he’d be doing someday, he would have laughed, “You’re crazy.” As a boy, he used to be “a little tough guy on the streets”. At age thirteen, he was caught by police for stealing. At eighteen, he landed in prison for shooting a man.
“I knew it had hurt my mom,” Bonner said after he got out of prison. “So I told myself I would not put my mom through that pain again.”
One day he met Professor Mattoni, who was working to rebuild the habitat (栖息地) for an endangered butterfly called El Segundo blue.
“I saw the sign ‘Butterfly Habitat’ and asked, ‘How can you have a habitat when the butterflies can just fly away?’” Bonner recalls. “Dr. Mattoni laughed and handed me a magnifying glass (放大镜), ‘Look at the leaves.’ I could see all these caterpillars (蝴蝶的幼虫) on the plant. Dr Mattoni explained, ‘Without the plant, there are no butterflies.’”
Weeks later, Bonner received a call from Dr. Mattoni, who told him there was a butterfly that needed help. That was how he met the Palos Verdes blue. Since then he’s been working for four years to help bring the butterfly back. He grows astragalus, the only plant the butterfly eats. He collects butterflies and brings them into a lab to lay eggs. Then he puts new butterflies into the habitat.
The butterfly’s population, once almost zero, is now up to 900. For their work, Bonner and Dr. Mattoni received lots of awards. But for Bonner, he earned something more: he turned his life around.
For six years now Bonner has kept his promise to stay out of prison. While he’s bringing back the Palos Verdes blue, the butterfly has helped bring him back, too.When he was young, Arthur Bonner ___.
| A．broke the law and ended up in prison |
| B．was fond of shooting and hurt his mom |
| C．often laughed at people on the streets |
| D．often caught butterflies and took them home |
Bonner came to know the Palos Verdes blue after he ___.
| A．found the butterfly had died out |
| B．won many prizes from his professor |
| C．met Dr. Mattoni, a professor of biology |
| D．collected butterflies and put them into a lab |
From the last sentence of the text, we learn that raising butterflies has ___.
| A．made Bonner famous | B．changed Bonner’s life |
| C．brought Bonner wealth | D．enriched Bonner’s knowledge |
Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
| A．A Promise to Mom | B．A Man Saved by Butterflies |
| C．A Story of Butterflies | D．A Job Offered by Dr. Mattoni |
As an English saying goes, “Laughter is the best medicine.” Until recently, few people took the saying seriously. Now however, doctors have begun to look into laughter and the effects it has on the human body. They have found that laughter really can improve people’s health.
Tests were carried out to study the effects of laughter on the body. People watched funny films while doctors checked their heart, blood pressure, breathing and muscles. It was found that laughter has similar effects to physical exercise. It increases blood pressure, makes the heart beat quicker and makes people breathe deeper; it also works several groups of muscles in the face, the stomach, and even the feet. If laughter exercises the body, it must be beneficial.
Other tests have shown that laughter appears to be able to reduce the effect of pain on the body. In one experiment doctors produced pain in groups of students who listened to different radio programs. The group that tolerated (忍耐) the pain for the longest time was the group which listened to a funny program. The reason why laughter can reduce pain seems to be that it helps to produce a kind of chemical in the brain which diminishes both stress and pain.
As a result of these discoveries, some doctors in the United States now hold laughter clinics, in which they help to improve their patients’ condition by encouraging them to laugh. They have found that even if their patients do not really feel like laughing, making them smile is enough to produce beneficial effects similar to those caused by laughter.Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Laughter can make people breathe deeper |
| B．Laughter can make you become old quickly. |
| C．Laughter helps to reduce pain. |
| D．Laughter, just like physical exercise, is good for our body. |
The underlined word “diminishes” in the third paragraph means “_________”.
| A．delays | B．prevents | C．increases | D．reduces |
Why do doctors hold laughter clinics?
| A．Because they want to earn more money. |
| B．Because they think they will help the patients recover from illnesses. |
| C．Because they want to improve their patients’ health. |
| D．Because they want their patients to laugh more. |
According to the author, we should __________ in our life.
| A．laugh as much as possible | B．watch more funny films |
| C．smile all the time | D．spend time in the laughter clinics |
What would be the best title for this passage?
| A．Both laughter and physical exercise are good for health. |
| B．Laughter clinics can help patients improve their condition. |
| C．Laughter can reduce the effect of pain. |
| D．Laughter is the best medicine. |
I came across quite a few language problems while on holiday with my family last summer. The most embarrassing was when my Mom apologized to the people we were staying with because her “pants were dirty”. They looked at her in amazement, not knowing how to react. You see, Mom had fallen over and gotten mud on her jeans. But in Britain, “pants” means underpants, not trousers as it does back home.
Katie — From America
When I asked for the “restroom” in a big department store, people kept directing me to a room with seats where I could sit and “rest”. It took me years to get through to someone that I only wanted the toilet!
Tom — From America
Last summer we went on a two-week family touring holiday, so Dad hired a car over the Internet. This was an old vehicle and there turned out to be lots of things wrong with it. When he phoned the hire company and tried to explain that the lock on the boot(汽车行李箱) was broken, they thought he was talking about footwear! He had no idea their word for “boot” was “trunk”. In the end we went to a garage and just solved the problem.
Mary — From Britain
Last summer, I went to stay with a friend on the west coast. Her flat was on the first floor of a high-rise building so I got the lift up. Then I wandered round for ages looking for her flat but couldn’t find it. Fed up and tired, I finally had to go out to find a phone box. She explained that her flat was on the first floor, which for me meant the ground floor.
David — From BritainHearing Katie’s mother’s words, Katie’s friends were in amazement because ____________.
| A．they mistook “pants” in American for underpants |
| B．Katie’s mother’s underpants were dirty |
| C．Katie’s mother got mud on her jeans |
| D．they didn’t know any English |
David went out to find a phone box to ____________.
| A．phone the police for help | B．apologize for his being late |
| C．tell his friends he couldn’t go to visit her | D．phone his friend for help |
When Tom asked for the “restroom”, the people around him thought _____________.
| A．he wanted a chair | B．he wanted to have a rest |
| C．he wanted the toilet | D．He wanted to go to a department store |
The underlined word “garage” is probably _____________.
| A．a parking place | B．a car | C．a place to repair cars | D．a gas station |
Which of the following words is from British English？
| A．Pants | B． Restroom | C．Ground floor | D．Trunk |
When I was younger it seemed that the super hero was Batman or Spiderman. As I grew up, I looked to real people with some of these qualities to be my super hero including being strong, honest, friendly, brave, skilled, hardworking, and reliable. The person I think of when I hear these words is my dad.
My dad is one of the toughest people I have ever met. He has been through it all. When I was five, 60 percent of his body was burned. In 1999 he fell from a tree, breaking his arm and shattering his ankle. In 2004, he had a liver transplant (移植) after being on the list for six years after a bad blood transfusion that gave him Hepatitis C. Now, my dad is 45 years old and feels better than he has in 15 years.
My dad is one of the most reliable people I know. Anything I ask of him, he does. Whenever he tells me he is going to do something, it is always done before I get home from work. Whenever I need my dad, he is there. When I was ten and he told me my grandmother was going to die, I felt really down. He was the one there trying to cheer me up.
My dad has worked hard for everything he has. At home, he is always busy doing projects and has painted every room in our house. After our shop was built, he constructed an office you would think a professional built. When I do something stupid, he helps me fix it. Of course, he does his complaining, but I know he likes fixing things just as much as I like tearing them up.
My dad has been one of the greatest parts of my life. I have learned a lot from watching him and I don’t believe I will ever meet anyone like him. I hope when I grow up, I can possess the same qualities as my dad, and have someone look up to me as a good role model. This is why my dad is my hero.The author describes his father as reliable mainly _________.
| A．by appearance | B．by example | C．by comparison | D．by behavior |
What does the underlined word “shattering” mean in Paragraph 2?
| A．breaking | B．transplanting | C．burning | D．destroying |
The second paragraph is mainly about ___________?
| A．the reasons why 60% of Father’s body was burned. |
| B．the successful skin transplant in 2010. |
| C．the sufferings Father has gone through in the last 15years. |
| D．the operations that Father had through his 45 years of struggle |
Which of the following can best describe the father?
| A．busy, tough and reliable | B．strong, skilled and optimistic |
| C．tough, reliable and hardworking | D．rough, reliable and friendly |
Which of the following can best serve as the title of this passage?
| A．My Father—My Hero | B．My Father and I |
| C．A Man Who Survived | D．A Good Model to Respect |
How Americans Began to Eat Tomatoes
People have strange ideas about food. For example, the tomato is a kind of very
delicious vegetable. It is one of useful plants that can be prepared in many ways. It has rich nutrition and vitamin in it. But in the 18th century, Americans never ate tomatoes. They grow them in their gardens because tomato plants are so pretty. But they thought the vegetable was poisonous (有毒的). They called tomatoes “poison apples”.
President Thomas Jefferson, however, knew that tomatoes were good to eat. He was a learned man. He had been to Paris, where he learned to love the taste of tomatoes. He grew many kinds of tomatoes in his garden. The President taught his cook a way for a cream of tomato soup. This beautiful pink soup was served at the President’s party. The guests thought the soup tasted really good. They never thought their president would serve his honored guests poison apples. Jefferson never spoke to his honored (尊贵的) guests about the fact.After you read the passage, which of the following do you think is true?
| A．Americans never ate tomatoes after they began to plant them. |
| B．American didn’t eat tomatoes before the 19th century. |
| C．Even now Americans don’t eat tomatoes |
| D．In the 18th century Americans ate a lot of tomatoes. |
The passage tells us that Jefferson was a President who learned to love the taste of tomatoes.
| A．while he was in Paris . |
| B．when he was a little boy. |
| C．the President ’s cook. |
| D．the President’s wife. |
According to the text, ________cooked the beautiful pink soup at the President ’s party?
| A．the President himself. |
| B．A French cook |
| C．the President ’s cook |
| D．the President’s wife |
The underlined word “cook”in paragraph2 means_______
| A．厨房 | B．厨师 | C．厨具 | D．做饭 |
From the passage we know all the honored guests invited by Jefferson were______.
| A．people from other countries | B．from France |
| C．People of his own country | D．men only |
A holiday is any day when people lay aside their ordinary duties and cares. The word came from Old English. At first, holidays honored some holy events or persons. People in Great Britain and other countries speak of holidays as Americans speak of vacations.
Every nation has its special holidays. China observes New Year’s Day (January 1), May Day and National Day as legal (法定的)holidays , as it was on Oct.1,1949 that the People’s Republic of China was founded. The Chinese have long celebrated the Chinese lunar year. In the United States, congress has declared several days as legal holidays such as New Year’s Day (January 1), Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Birthday, Washington’s birthday, Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day and so on. Some holidays celebrated special events in the development of a country, such as Greece’s Independence Day, Italy’s Liberation Day and India’s Independence Day.
In the United States, banks and schools usually close on a legal holiday. When such a holiday falls on Sunday, the following Monday is usually observed. Schools and organizations often observe days known as traditional holidays, although schools and business do not close then. Those holidays include Valentine’s Day and Halloween.From the passage we know that China’s National Day is _______
| A．January1 | B．May 1 |
| C．October1 | D．December25 |
In the sentence “China observes New Year’s Day (January 1)’’, observe means ______
| A．praises | B．spends | C．celebrates | D．cares |
From the passage we can infer that _______
| A．Chinese will no longer observe the Spring Festival |
| B．students don’t have to go to school on any holiday |
| C．Chinese and Americans share at least one holiday |
| D．Americans can easily draw money from banks on legal days. |
Which of the following holidays has nothing to do with a country’s development?
| A．China’s National Day | B．Valentine’s Day |
| C．Italy’s liberation Day | D．Independence Day |
If a legal holiday falls on Sunday in the USA, people usually celebrate on ______.
| A．Sunday | B．the following |
| C．the following Monday | D．the following Tuesday. |