I was walking along the main street of a small seaside town in the north of England looking for somewhere to make a phone call. My car had broken down outside the town and I wanted to contact the AA Company. Low grey clouds were gathering across the sky and there was a cold damp wind blowing off the sea which nearly threw me off my feet every time I crossed one of the side streets. It had rained in the night and water was dripping from the bare trees that lined the street. I was glad that I was wearing a thick coat.
There was no sign of a call box, nor was there anyone at that early hour whom I could ask. I had thought I might find a shop open selling the Sunday papers or a milkman doing his rounds, but the town was completely dead. The only living thing I saw was a thin frightened cat outside a small restaurant.
Then suddenly I found what I was looking for. There was a small post office, and almost hidden from sight in a dark narrow street. Next to it was the town’ s only public call box, which badly needed a coat of paint. I hurried forward, but stopped in astonishment when I saw through the dirty glass that there was a man inside. He was fat, and was wearing a cheap blue plastic raincoat. I could not see his face and he did not even raise his head at the sound of my footsteps.
Carefully, I remained standing a few feet away and lit a cigarette to wait for my turn. It was when I threw the dead match on the ground that I noticed something bright red trickling from under the call box door.At what time was the story set?
| A．An early winter morning. |
| B．A cold winter afternoon. |
| C．An early summer morning. |
| D．A windy summer afternoon. |
Which of the following words best describe the writer’s impression of the town?
| A．Cold and frightening. | B．Dirty and crowded. |
| C．Empty and dead. | D．Unusual and unpleasant. |
The underlined word “trickling” in the last paragraph probably means ______.
| A．rushing out suddenly | B．shining brightly |
| C．flowing slowly in drops | D．appearing slowly |
Why didn’t the man raise his head when the writer came near?
| A．He was annoyed at being seen by the writer. |
| B．He was angry at being disturbed by the writer. |
| C．He was probably fast asleep. |
| D．He was probably murdered. |
Around four years ago, I received a call from the principal of our school as to the “Parents View” talk the next morning. He asked me to speak to the group. After the call, my whole body became feverish and panicky. The time from his call to the next morning seemed like years. The whole night, I could not sleep with many ominous apprehensions in mind. One of them was to call the principal with regret and tell him that I could not come. Finally, I gathered some courage. I thought, “If I miss this opportunity, surely the school will never invite me again to any of their programs.”
I reached the school in time. Before my turn came, my whole body was trembling. When my turn came and I started speaking, my heartbeat increased and my mouth went dry. I wasn’t even able to read the written speech properly. I was not aware of where I was standing and what I was reading. That was the day when I realized my biggest weakness, Public Speaking.
After my speech, I met with the principal and explained what happened to me. He told me that this happens to everyone. Even great speaker, faced the same things when they started. He suggested that I come again next time.
Around one month later, I was invited to refer to a topic on Motivation. This time I was feeling comfortable. My speech was not only appreciated by the principal as well as the teachers, because I was able to get my idea across to them. They encouraged and praised my efforts.
After delivering is successfully, I became more confident .l said to myself, “If I can speak in front of such a learned audience, like the principal who educates others, I can now speak in front of others too.”
I started delivering lectures in my plant, on various topics like Self Motivation, Personality Development, Personal Excellence, Spoken English and Presentation Skills. This has become a passion for me. I learned that everything is possible if we have the courage to take the first step.Which of the following is the hest title for the passage?
| A．Practice Makes a Man a Better Speechmaker |
| B．Public Speaking Makes a Man Embarrassed. |
| C．Principal Provides the Best Chances. |
| D．Spoken English Develops in Malting Speeches. |
The author had bad feelings before the speech because______.
| A．he disliked the idea of giving a lecture |
| B．he had got a high fever before that |
| C．he regretted accepting the invitation |
| D．he feared he couldn't perform it properly |
What does the underlined part “ominous apprehensions” in the first paragraph mean?
| A．Unlucky opportunities. |
| B．Negative ideas. |
| C．Curious views. |
| D．Happy comments. |
What can we conclude from the passage?
| A．Nothing is to be got without pains but poverty. |
| B．Knowledge makes humble, ignorance makes proud. |
| C．A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. |
| D．Necessity is the mother of invention. |
Delta College starts Street Fair
San Joaquin Delta College will introduce its new Summer Street Fair, which runs from noon to 8 p. m every Friday stating this week through Aug. 9 in Delta’s L-l parking lot near Pacific Avenue and March Lane. The fair goes with Delta’s weekend flea market.
This week’s featured performers are guitarist Travis Matsumoto from noon to 3 p.m., and Julio and his Jazz Trio from 3 to 6 p.m.
Lode Farmers Market opens
The Angels Camp Certified Farmers Market begins its yearly run from 5 p.m. to dusk this Friday in Utica Park in downtown Angels Camp. Opening night will feature wine tasting from award-winning Four Winds Cellars, and live music by guitarist Nicholas Leffler. Visitors will find fresh, locally grown produce and specialty foods. There will also be barbecue and California-
Mexican fusion cuisine.
Join River Rafting for a good cause
Whitewater enthusiasts can participate in Mokelumne Rive, Rafting Adventures on June 16 in Mokelumne Hill. Local outfitter O.A.R.S. is donating its services to help with the event. Departures are at 8 a.m., noon, or 4 p.m. The trip should last about three hours.
The trip is appropriate for those 7 and older, and the ability to swim is not required. The cost is $ 70 per person.
Films center on paddling water
The festival is an annual contest that awards winning films that focus on paddling in rivers, lakes and oceans in a variety of locales. Tickets to the film festival are $12 in advance and $15 at the door, and are also available online at
ticketriver.com/event/7002-reel-paddling-film-festival.
The evening also includes a drawing. Prizes include whitewater trips on the South Fork of the American River.If you want to go to the Summer Street Fair, .
| A．you must be a student from Delta College |
| B．you can go there on the afternoon of Friday |
| C．you should live near the Pacific Avenue |
| D．you must give a performance in the market |
If you want to enjoy the tasty foods, you can go to____.
| A．the new Summer Street Fair of Delta College |
| B．Lode Farmers Market |
| C．Mokelumne River Rafting Adventures |
| D．the film festival centering on paddling water |
If you are interested in paddling in rivers.
| A．you can know all the American rivers |
| B．you must try hard to get many prizes |
| C．you can get tickets from a website |
| D．you must keep silent in the evening |
Mum，it’s me．Hopefully，this Mothering Sunday you will get to hear those three words．I will，of course，try to phone you．I hope we will be able to speak for the allowed 10 minutes．But I suspect many inmates will be using the phone，so if I don’t call and if we don’t speak，then this is what I would have said：
It’s not your fault that I am here．I know that deep in your heart you have questioned whether my current circumstance is somehow your fault，if the reckless stupidity of my past is somehow a failure on your part．It is not．Only one person is to blame，only one person should hurt — me．You have always taught me that when the room goes dark，you can wait for the lights to be switched back on or you can search in the dark and turn the light on yourself．You are my light．You always have been and always will be．There is nobody I admire more，nobody I have strived harder to please in my life，which is why my current failure hurts me so much．
I am so sorry that I will not be there to see you，but I want you to know that now，as always，you are here with me．In my darkest hours，and in the coldest loneliness of my past few months，my mind has so often wandered to the past，to when it was you and me — and I have been able to smile．Yours is the strength that I draw upon．
A parent’s job is to make sure that they pass on the best of themselves to their children．You have done that．It is the inner you in me that will get me through this．
I have failed you so epically，but you have never failed me．If I think back to the tears I shed when Dad left，all those years ago，I see you through their misty glaze．You holding me and you telling me we’d be OK，and we will be．We are and always will be the best team．
Childhood heroes such as footballers，actors and rock stars are clichéd．If the job’s done right，a child’s heroes should be their parents — you are mine．The strength you showed after the divorce from Dad to find your biological parents，to go to university and get your teaching qualifications，to begin your life again，is the strength that I draw on now．It is the belief in myself，it is the belief you have in me，that tells me that once I am released I can and will rebuild my life．I will make you proud again．I will make you happy to have me as your son．Yours is the will that gets me through every day．
I don’t believe you can judge a person for the mistakes they make，as we all make them，but you can judge them for what they do afterwards．And after this，when it is all over，you will still have a son with the same hopes and dreams．They have not diminished．If you can dream it，then you have to believe it can happen — right？
So this Mothering Sunday，please think back to that morning in the 80s，the first Mother’s Day without Dad，when a six year old me got up early and made breakfast for you．Do you remember it？Could you ever forget？A slice of bread a doorstep thick and a wedge of cheese equally dense．You didn’t have to eat it，but you did，chewing every dry mouthful．I know now why you forced yourself — because it had been made with love．Well，things don’t change this year — this letter is that bread and cheese (it sure has plenty of the cheese！)．
I love you so much．I am sorry I have let you down，but you have taught me that we will always pick ourselves up and become better than we were before．Thank you for everything and this year，more than ever：
Happy Mothering Sunday．
Love，your sonAccording to the passage，what made the author most upset at present？
| A．Losing his freedom temporarily． |
| B．Being unable to phone his mother． |
| C．Failing to live up to his mother’s expectations． |
| D．Having no chance to spend the weekend with mother． |
What does the underlined word “this” in Paragraph 4 refer to？
| A．Mothering Sunday |
| B．Dark time |
| C．His mistake |
| D．Near future |
What did the author do in the loneliness of his past months？
| A．He summed up the causes of the failure in his life． |
| B．He planned to help his mother find her birth parents． |
| C．He recalled the fond memories of being with his mother． |
| D．He prepared himself to go to university for further studies． |
Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined word “clichéd” in Paragraph 6？
| A．Ridiculous |
| B．Liberal |
| C．Explicit |
| D．Common |
Which of the following can best describe the author’s mother？
| A．Selfless but stubborn |
| B．Guilty but determined |
| C．Selfish but responsible |
| D．Caring but envious |
Exercise seems to be good for the human brain，with many recent studies suggesting that regular exercise improves memory and thinking skills．But an interesting new study asks whether the apparent cognitive benefits from exercise are real or just a placebo effect — that is，if we think we will be “smarter” after exercise，do our brains respond accordingly？The answer has significant implications for any of us hoping to use exercise to keep our minds sharp throughout our lives．
While many studies suggest that exercise may have cognitive benefits，recently some scientists have begun to question whether the apparently beneficial effects of exercise on thinking might be a placebo effect．So researchers at Florida State University in Tallahassee and the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign decided to focus on expectations，on what people anticipate that exercise will do for thinking．If people’s expectations jibe (吻合) closely with the actual benefits，then at least some of those improvements are probably a result of the placebo effect and not of exercise．
For the new study，which was published last month in PLOS One，the researchers recruited 171 people through an online survey system，they asked half of these volunteers to estimate by how much a stretching and toning regimens (拉伸运动) performed three times a week might improve various measures of thinking．The other volunteers were asked the same questions，but about a regular walking program．
In actual experiments，stretching and toning program generally have little if any impact on people’s cognitive skills．Walking，on the other hand，seems to substantially improve thinking ability．
But the survey respondents believed the opposite，estimating that the stretching and toning program would be more beneficial for the mind than walking．The estimates of benefits from walking were lower．
These data，while they do not involve any actual exercise，are good news for people who do exercise．“The results from our study suggest that the benefits of aerobic exercise are not a placebo effect,” said Cary Stothart，a graduate student in cognitive psychology at Florida State University，who led the study．
If expectations had been driving the improvements in cognition seen in studies after exercise，Mr．Stothart said，then people should have expected walking to be more beneficial for thinking than stretching．They didn’t，implying that the changes in the brain and thinking after exercise are physiologically genuine．
The findings are strong enough to suggest that exercise really does change the brain and may，in the process，improve thinking，Mr．Stothart said．That conclusion should encourage scientists to look even more closely into how，at a molecular level，exercise remodels the human brain，he said．It also should encourage the rest of us to move，since the benefits are，it seems，not imaginary，even if they are in our head．Which of the following about the placebo effect is TRUE according to the passage？
| A．It occurs during exercise． |
| B．It has cognitive benefits． |
| C．It is just a mental reaction． |
| D．It is a physiological response． |
Why did the researchers at the two universities conduct the research？
| A．To discover the placebo effect in the exercise． |
| B．To prove the previous studies have a big drawback． |
| C．To test whether exercise can really improve cognition． |
| D．To encourage more scientists to get involved in the research． |
What can we know about the research Cary Stothart and his team carried out？
| A．They employed 171 people to take part in the actual exercise． |
| B．The result of the research removed the recent doubt of some scientists． |
| C．The participants thought walking had a greater impact on thinking ability． |
| D．Their conclusion drives scientists to do research on the placebo effect． |
What might be the best title for the passage？
| A．Is it necessary for us to take exercise？ |
| B．How should people exercise properly？ |
| C．What makes us smarter during exercise？ |
| D．Does exercise really make us smarter？ |
According to figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS)，the U．K．has about 7．7 million families with dependent children，of which 3．7 million have just one child，compared to 3 million with two and 1．1 million with three children or more．The number of families today with just one dependent child is now 47 percent and will likely rise to more than 50 percent in a decade．As the ONS confirms，“It appears that families are getting smaller．”
One obvious reason for this could be that women are putting off having children until they have established careers when they are bound to be less fertile．But it could just as well be a matter of choice．Parents must consider the rising cost of living，combined with economic uncertainty and an increasingly difficult job market．And this trend may continue growing as having an only child becomes more normal，which seems to be the mood on the mothers’ online forum Mumsnet，where one member announced that she “just wanted to start a positive thread about how fab it is to have an only child”．
She had received 231 replies，overwhelmingly in the same upbeat spirit．Parents of only children insist there are plenty of benefits．Nicola Kelly，a writer and lecturer who grew up as an only child and is now a married mother of one，says her 15 year old son seems more grown up in many ways than his contemporaries．
Not all products of single child families are as keen to repeat the experience．In a moving recent account journalist Janice Turner wrote about her own keenness to “squeeze out two sons just 22 months apart”as a reaction to her only child upbringing．
She was placed on a pedestal by her doting parents，whom she punished with a “brattish，wilful” rejection of everything they stood for．Desperate for a close friend she was repeatedly shattered by rejection and refers to her childhood as being “misery”．
Writer and clinician Dr．Dorothy Rowe，a member of the British Psychological Society，says that we all interpret events in our own individual way and there are some children who no matter what their circumstances feel slighted，while other children see the advantages of their situation．
However，the one part of life that is unlikely to get any easier for only children is when they grow up and find themselves looking after their own parents as they become older．The passage is written with the purpose of ________．
| A．illustrating the strength and weakness of having an only child |
| B．analyzing the reasons why having an only child becomes popular |
| C．presenting us with different opinions about having an only child |
| D．guiding people to look at the same issue from different perspectives |
What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 4 mean？
| A．Nearly half of families intend to have just one child． |
| B．All people don’t stand for the idea of having an only child． |
| C．Some people fail to recognize the advantage of having an only child． |
| D．People brought up in an only child family resist downsizing the family． |
From what Dr．Dorothy Rowe said，we know that ________．
| A．journalist Janice Turner experienced a miserable childhood |
| B．she has a positive attitude towards Janice Turner’s reaction |
| C．it’s necessary for us to look at the event from our own angle |
| D．some are unable to make an objective assessment of their conditions |
What can be inferred from the passage？
| A．It’s normal to see the imperfection in character in only children． |
| B．Mumsnet is an online forum which promotes having an only child． |
| C．Economic development plays a determining role in the family size． |
| D．Only children will have difficulty in attending to their parents． |