There once was a master who went to India. In those times, we didn't have the communications or airplanes or many kinds of transportation that we do now. So the master went to India on foot. He had never been to India before; perhaps he came from Persia. And when he got there, he saw a lot of fruit. In India they have plenty of fruit to sell, but much of it is expensive because they can't grow much due to the water situation. So he saw one basket, a big basket of some very red, long fruit. And it was the cheapest in the shop, not expensive at all.
So he went up and asked, "How much per kilo?" And the shopkeeper said, "Two rupees(卢比)." Two rupees in India is nothing; it's like dirt. So he bought a whole kilogram of the fruit and started eating it. But after he ate some of it: Oh, my God! His eyes watered, his mouth watered and burned, his eyes were burning, his head was burning and his face became red. As he coughed and choked and gasped for breath, he jumped up and down, saying, "Ah! Ah! Ah!"But he still continued to eat the fruit! Some people who were looking at him shook their heads and said, "You're crazy, man. Those are chilies(辣椒)! You can't eat so many; they're not good for you! People use them as a condiment(作料), but only a little bit to put into food for taste. You can't just eat them by the handful like that; they're not fruit!" So the stupid master said, "No, I can't stop! I paid money for them, and now I'll eat them. It's my money!"
And you think that master was stupid, right? Similarly, we sometimes do a lot of things like that. We invest money, time or effort in a relationship, business or job. And even though it's been a long time, bitter experience tells us it won't work, and we know there's no more hope that things will change in the future — this we definitely know by intuition(直觉) — we still continue just because we've invested money, time, effort and love into it. Just like the man who ate the chilies and suffered so much but couldn't stop because he didn't want to waste the money he'd paid.Why did the master buy a lot of chilies?
A.He loved the taste of chilies very much. |
B.He spent a lot of money on chilies. |
C.The price of chilies is very low. |
D.The quality of Indian chilies is very good. |
What can we infer about the master according to the passage?
A.He is very wise in spending his money. |
B.He came from Persia with someone else. |
C.He walked to India for the first time. |
D.He is a very rich and honest man. |
What is the purpose of the passage?
A.To share us a funny story about a silly master. |
B.To tell us when to give up in life. |
C.To offer some information about India. |
D.To remind us how to spend money wisely. |
Adults(成年人)usually do not remember most of the things that are taught by their teachers at school. But this story is one such lesson that I will never forget. Every time I drift off course, I think of this story.
It was a normal Monday morning, and my teacher was teaching us on important things in life and about devoting ourselves to what is important to us. This is how the story went:
An old man lived in a certain part of London, and he would wake up every morning and go to the subway. He would get onto the train right to Central London, and then sit at the street corner and beg(乞讨). He would do this every single day of his life. He sat at the same street corner and begged for almost 20 years.
His house was dirty, and a stench (恶臭) came out of the house and it smelled terrible. The neighbors could not stand the smell any more, so they called for the police officers to clear the place. The officers knocked down the door and cleaned the house. There were small bags of money all over the house that he had collected over the years.
The police counted the money, and they soon realized that the old man was a millionaire (百万富翁). They waited outside his house expecting to share the good news with him. When the old man arrived home that evening, one of the officers told him that there was no need for him to beg any more as he was a rich man now, a millionaire.
But the old man said nothing at all; he went into his house and locked the door. The next morning he woke up as usual, went to the subway, sat at the street corner and continued to beg.
Clearly, this old man had no great plans, dreams or anything significant (有意义的) for his life. We learn nothing from this story other than(除了)staying focused on(专心于)the things we enjoy doing. The underlined part in the first paragraph may mean ______.
A.I get tired of learning my subjects |
B.I fail to listen to lessons attentively |
C.I go in the wrong direction of life |
D.I wouldn’t like to go to school |
The neighbor called the police because ______.
A.the old man kept begging money from them every day |
B.there was something dangerous in the old man’s house |
C.the old man wouldn’t buy tickets for the train |
D.they couldn’t bear the smell from the old man’s house |
When the old man knew he was a millionaire, he ______.
A.remained calm | B.became excited |
C.felt worried | D.became nervous |
What lesson do we learn from the story?
A.Make great pla![]() |
B.Keep on doing what you like. |
C.Do something that is good to society. |
D.Depend on yourself rather than others. |
People need to relax and enjoy themse1ves.One way they can have a good time is to watch a baseball game or another sports event.Even thousands of years ago,groups of people gathered(聚集) to watch skilled athletes(运动员).
Over 2000 years ago in Greece,certain days in the year were festival days.These were holidays when people stopped work and enjoyed themselves.They liked to watch athletes take part in races and other games of skill.
The most important festival was held every four years at the town of Olympia.It was held in honor of the Greek god Zeus(Zus).For five days,athletes from all parts of the Greek world took part in the Olympic Games.At the Olympic Games,people could watc
h them box,run,jump and so on.There was a relay race between two teams of men in which a lighted torch(火矩)was passed from runner to runner.The Olympic Games were thought to be so important that cities which were at war with one another had to stop fighting.People were allowed to travel to the games safely.Thousands of people came to Olympia from cities in Greece and from her colonies(殖民地)in Africa,Asia and Italy.They met as friends to cheer their favorite athletes and to enjoy themselves.
What happened in Greece over 2000 years ago?
A.People stopped work and enjoyed themselves. |
B.The cities there were often against one another. |
C.People watched baseball games. |
D.People didn’t go to any games at all. |
What were those countries in Africa?
A.Friends. | B.Enemies. |
C.Colonies. | D.Other cities. |
What did people do at the games?
A.They fought. | B.They just talked to friends. |
C.They cheered for good athletes. | D.They tried to find friends. |
The best title for the story is“_____”.
A.Greece at War | B.Together for the Games |
C.Stop Fighting | D.Sport |
Dear Mom and Dad ,
I'm afraid I have some very bad news for you . I have been very naughty(淘气的) and the school master is very angry with me . She is going to write to you . You must come and take me away from here . She does not want me in the school any longer . The trouble started last night when I was smoking a cigarette(香烟)in bed . As I was smoking , I heard footsteps(脚步)coming towards the room .I did not want a teacher to catch me smoking , so I th
rew the cigarette away . Unfortunately(不幸地) , the cigarette fell into the waste--paper basket . It caught fire .
There was a curtain near the waste --paper basket . It caught fire too . Soon the whole room was burning . The master phoned the fire brigade(消防队). The school is a long way from the town and before the fire brigade arrived , the whole school was on fire . The master said that the fire was all my fault(过错) and I must pay for the damage(损坏). She will send you a bill for about a million dollars .
I'm very sorry for this .
Much love
SarahWhy did Sarah write to his parents ?
A.He missed them very much for they hadn’t seen each other for a long time. |
B.He told his parents what he had done in school. |
C.He was tired of studying, and wanted to leave school. |
D.He thought he was old enough to help them do something. |
Where did S
arah smoke?
A.in the classroom. | B.in the Dinning hall . |
C.in the street. | D.in the dormitory(宿舍). |
Why was the school master angry with him?
A.because he was too naughty. | B.because he was too lazy. |
C.because he caused a big fire. | D.because he stole something from the school. |
According to the passage, what should the students not do?
A.they should not smoke, because smoking is dangerous to them. |
B.they should not dance, because dancing would waste a lot of money. |
C.they should not make friends, because making friends would make them absent. |
D.they should not wear expensive clothes because they would waste a lot of money. |
2.26-meter-tall Yao Ming made his NBA debut (初次登台) on October 23, 2002 and got 6 points for the Houston Rockets in the game. The next day, he got 13 points (得分)in another game.
Most people think that Yao Ming is a born basketball player. But Yao said, “When you watch it on TV, it looks very easy. But when you are playing in the NBA, it is really not so easy.” He said that joining the Houston Rockets was a new start and a new challenge. “I hope that through very hard work I can make everyone happy and help the Rockets win more games,” he said.
Yao Ming speaks some English. Both he and his teammates can understand each other. They don't think there is a language problem. While Yao Ming faces this new challenge(挑战), the people of Houston have shown great interest in him and they hope Yao Ming will bring new energy (活力) to the Rockets. The team has started having lessons to learn more about China, and many people who work for the Rockets have learned to speak some Chinese.Yao Ming got 13 points on October _____, 2002.
A.22 | B.23 | C.24 | D.26 |
Yao Ming said that _____.
A.playing in the NBA was difficult |
B.it was hard to watch NBA games on ![]() |
C.he was an NBA star |
D.it was boring to play basketball |
From the passage we can know that Yao Ming ________.
A.will work hard for his team |
B.made the highest score in his first NBA game |
C.can't understand hi![]() |
D.teaches the Rockets workers Chinese himself |
The passage is probably ______.
A.an advertisement | B.a notice | C.a news report | D.an instruction |
Welcome to our school. You can do a lot of things here. Come and join us.
Timetable |
|
Sunday 8:30---11:30 Personal Inventions You can see many inventions by the students; you may also bring your own inventions. |
Monday 19:00---21:00 Space and Man Dr. Thomas West If you want to know more about the universe(宇宙). |
Wednesday 19:30---21:00 Modern Medicine Mrs. Lucy Green Would you like to know medical science? |
Friday 18:30---21:00 Computer Science Mr. Harry Morison from Harvard University Learn to use Windows XP. |
You may have a chance to introduce your inventions on _________.
A.Sunday | B.Monday | C.Wednesday | D.Friday |
The person who teaches Computer Science is from___________.
A.Canada | B.Australia | C.New Zealand | D.America |
You may learn something about a disease called TB from __________.
A.Dr. West | B.Mr. Morison | C.Mrs. Green | D.Mr. Thomas |
If you want to learn something about satellites(卫星), you can go to the class from______.
A.8:30 to 11:30 on Sunday | B.19:00 to 21:00 on Monday |
C.19:30 to 21:00 on Wednesday | D.18:30 to 21:00 on Friday |