Edward Nino Hernandez is 24 years old. In many ways，he is a traditional Colombian (哥伦比亚的)man. He loves to dance, dreams of owning a fast car and wants to see the world. However, he has just been officially certified as the world's shortest living man by Guinness World Records with a height of 27 inches( ≈0. 7m).
Although he has cataracts (白内障)in both of his eyes that require an operation that the family can't afford, he said, “ I feel happy because I'm special. ” He also said he has a girlfriend. Nino works part time as a dancer. Recently, he has won a part in a new film, playing a drug thief. Nino said there are some disadvantages of being the world's smallest man. “It bothers me that people are always touching me and picking me up,"he said.
Nino's mother, Noemi Hernandez，has 5 children and Nino is the oldest. She said, “ He hasn't grown since he was 2 years old. ” She added that doctors could not explain why Nino was so small. She said Nino weighed just 3. 3 lb( 1. 5kg) when he was born and was just 15 inches long. Doctors at first wondered why he was so small and studied him until he was three years old, but then" lost interest" . She and her husband lost a daughter who was born similarly small in 1992. Their youngest child, Miguel Augel, 11, stands 37 inches tall. The other three boys are of normal height and appearance. Nino had to repeat several years of school before dropping out (退学)when he was about 13. His mother said he loves to travel, though he hasn't been outside Colombia.
The former smallest man in the world was He Pingping of China ，who was 1. 5 inches taller than Nino and recognized by Guinness as the shortest man. He died in March. The underlined word" certified" in the first paragraph may mean
“__________”
| A．recognized |
| B．ignored |
| C．set |
| D．won |
Nino feels annoyed in his daily life because __________.
| A．he finds it difficult to talk with others |
| B．he is not high enough to carry heavy things |
| C．he is often made fun of by other people |
| D．nobody wants to pick him up |
What was the height of He Pingping?
| A．27 inches. |
| B．37 inches. |
| C．28. 5 inches. |
| D．38. 5 inches. |
From the text we can know __________.
| A．why Nino is so short |
| B．all Nino's family are very short |
| C．Nino didn't grow after the age of 2 |
| D．Nino finished school at the age of 12 |
Winner of the Noble Prize for Literature and one of the America’s leading novelists, Sinclair Lewis was born in Sauk Centre, Minnesota, in 1885. The author graduated from Yale University, and worked as reporter, editor, and free-lane writer before devoting his full time to writing. His literary reputation was made with the publication of Main Street in 1920. Later successes include Babbitt (1922), Arrow smith (1924), Elmer Gantry (1927) and Dog worth (1929). Both Babbitt and Arrow smith are available in Signet edition. Mr. Lewis died in Rome, Italy in 1951.
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To our readers: We welcome your request for our free catalog of Signet and Mentor books. If you dealer does not have the books you want, you may order them by mail, enclosing the list price plus 50 cent a copy to cover mailing in North America while in other districts $1.5 a copy. The New American Library of World Literature, Inc, P.O. Box 2310, Grand Central Station, New York 17, New York. You can check more information on our website here http//www.loa.org.Which of the following statements is true about the author of Main Street?
| A．He was awarded the Nobel Prize when he was 35. |
| B．He did several different jobs before becoming a full time writer. |
| C．His later works were more successful than his early ones. |
| D．He wrote a novel every other year in his literary life. |
What can we know about the novel Main Street from the above passage?
| A．It has been one of the most widely accepted historical novels. |
| B．It is somewhat the real life presentation of its author Sinclair Lewis. |
| C．It presents a realistic look of the life scene of America at that time. |
| D．It has a great impact in the process of the twenty-first century literature. |
How much more should a Chinese reader pay if he orders five copies of the same Signet books than a Canadian reader?
| A．$7.5. | B．$5. | C．$2.5. | D．$10. |
Animals are not always animals. Some of them will try to cheat or cow some others in the way the human beings often do. Here is a fairy tale from Aesop for you to enjoy.
An eagle（鹰）made her nest at the top of a high tree while a cat, having found a convenient hole, moved into the middle of the trunk, and at the same time a wild pig, with her young took shelter in a hollow at its foot. The cat then decided to make all serve her in her wise way.
To carry out her design, she climbed to the nest of the eagle, saying, "Destruction is preparing for you and for me too, unfortunately. The wild pig, whom you see daily digging up the earth, wishes to uproot the tree, so she may on its fall seize our families as food for her young."
Having thus frightened the eagle out of her senses, she crept down to the cave of the pig, saying, "Your children are in great danger, for as soon as you go out to find food, the eagle is prepared to jump upon one of your little pigs."
Having filled these fears into the pig, she went and pretended to hide herself in the hollow of the tree. When night came she went out silently and obtained food for herself and her children, but pretending to be afraid, she kept a lookout all through the day. Meanwhile, the eagle, full of fear of the pig, sat still on the branches, and the pig, terrified by the eagle, did not dare to go out from her cave. Thus they both, along with their families, starved from hunger, and afforded good food for the cat and her children.What was the eagle afraid of?
| A．Her home would be destroyed. |
| B．Her children would get lost. |
| C．She would be taken as the cat’s food. |
| D．Her family would be eaten by the wild pig. |
What was the pig frightened of?
| A．The eagle would kill her young child. |
| B．The eagle would cheat her away. |
| C．The cat was telling the true story. |
| D．She could not find enough food. |
How did the cat get what she wanted?
| A．By running here and there. |
| B．By cheating both the eagle and the pig. |
| C．By waiting and catching the chance. |
| D．By fighting against the eagle and the pig. |
Which of the following might be the best title of the above passage?
| A．Believe it or not. | B．Animal stories. |
| C．How one can be successful. | D．Don’t be afraid. |
“In only six days I lost seven pounds of weight.”
“Two full inches in the first three days!”
These are the kinds of statements used in magazine, newspaper radio and television ads, promising good shapes and new looks to those who buy the medicine or the device. The promoters of products say they can shape the legs, slim the face, smooth wrinkles, or in some other way add to beauty or desirability.
Often such products are nothing more than money-making things for their promoters. The results they produce are questionable, and some are dangerous to health.
To understand how these products can be legally promoted to the public, it is necessary to understand something of the laws covering their regulation. If the product is a drug, FDA (Food Drug Administration) can require proof under the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act that it is safe and effective before it is put on the market. But if the product is a device, FDA has no authority to require premarketing proof of safety or effectiveness. If a product already on the market is a danger to health, FDA can request the producer or distributor to remove it from the market voluntarily, or it can take legal action, including seizure (查封) of the product.
One notable case a few years ago involved an electrical device called the Relaxacisor, which had been sold for reducing the waistline. The Relaxacisor produced electrical shocks to the body through contact pads. FDA took legal action against the distributor to stop the sale of the device on the grounds that was dangerous to health and life.
Obviously, most of the devices on the market have never been the subject of court proceedings (法律诉讼), and new devices appear continually, Before buying, it is up to the consumer to judge the safety or effectiveness of such items.It can be inferred that ads mentioned in the text are_____.
| A．objective | B．costly |
| C．unbelievable | D．illegal |
The Relaxacisor is mentioned as______.
| A．a product which was designed to produce electricity |
| B．a successful advertisement of a beauty product |
| C．an example of a quality beauty product |
| D．a product whose distributor was involved in a legal case |
The author intends to______.
| A．make consumers aware of the promoters’ false promise |
| B．show the weakness of the law on product safety |
| C．give advice on how to keep young and beautiful |
| D．introduce the organization of FDA |
Which of the following is true according to the text?
A. The court is in charge of removing dangerous products.
B. The promoters usually just care about profits.
C. New products are more likely to be questionable.
D. The production of a device must be approved by FDA.
More college graduates in China are seeking for work experience instead of advanced degrees, a survey shows. The practical approach, coupled with a record number of students graduating from college, is expected to strengthen competition in the job market, analysts said.
More than 76 percent of university students said they wanted to work after earning their degrees this summer, up from 68.5 percent in 2012 and 73.6 percent last year, according to poll results from Zhaopin.com, a major online agency, Zhu Bo.
The annual survey also shows that about 20 percent university graduates chose to further education after graduation, while about 3 percent wanted to start their own businesses.
Zeng Hao ,a 25-year-old media major, managed to land a job in a publishing company in Zhongshan, Guangdong province, before he received his master's degree from the University of Macau in June. " Work experience really matters in the publishing industry" he said.
Wei Guihong , a program administrator at Nanjing University, said about 60 percent of the school's graduates entered the labor market every year. “More and more students majoring in a foreign language choose to go abroad to continue their studies to improve their language skills," she said continuously, "That's perhaps a bright future.”
Liu Junsheng , a researcher at the Labor and Wage Institute of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, believes that economic conditions play a vital role in shaping college graduates' choices .“There were fewer job opportunities in the market. ” he said. "Although academic degrees still matter, more and more employers value job seekers' work experience." he said.
The Zhaopin.com survey shows that each of the graduates sent resumes(履历) on average to about 28 potential employers and received five interview opportunities.We can infer from the first three paragraphs that____
| A．the number of graduates from college is likely to decline gradually |
| B．the employment situation is still relatively optimistic |
| C．the majority of university graduates are ready for further education |
| D．those who want to start their own businesses are fewest |
From the text, we know that the real expert on employment is____
| A．Zhu Bo | B．Zeng Hao |
| C．Liu Junsheng | D．Wei Guihong |
What is Wei Guihong's attitudes towards her students' going abroad for their studies? ____ .
| A．Pessimistic. | B．Supportive | C．Critical | D．Negative |
What would be the best title for the text?
| A．Graduates pick work instead of taking advanced degrees. |
| B．Graduates take advanced degrees instead of picking work |
| C．Few graduates can get their jobs they seek for |
| D．Few Graduates receive the interview opportunities |
When looking at Western Europe，we don’t usually think about poverty—but in fact，some people in modern—day Britain are so hard up that they can’t afford to buy food．
Back in 2008,the financial crisis caused a lot of unemployment．Then there were the cuts to the welfare system in 2013 which added to the problem—and many British people fell into debt．It’s estimated that 500，000 people in the UK have turned to food banks，just to get by．
Steph Hagen，who works in a Nottingham food bank，says, “People do not go to a food bank because it's an open door．It’s a case where they go to it because they need to．With our food bank—we are an independent one．and we have limited stocks—everyone who comes through our door has no income．”
There are checks to make sure nobody is abusing the system．If a doctor or a social worker thinks someone needs to use a food bank—even for a short time—they can give them vouchers(凭证)．Then the people in need take them along to the food bank and they get handouts for three days．
Churches and individual donors provide most of the food in the banks．But some businesses might help out too．
And what sort of food is offered in food banks? Hagen says, “Basically，we’ve got porridge．We do occasionally get fresh produce but it’s very rare，especially in the winter months．It’s like tinned fruit，tinned ready meals．We have to give out ‘no-cooking’ food parcels because people can’t afford the gas and electricity”．
Community spirit has a lot to do with food banks．Volunteers say they are a great meeting place for people who are lonely and depressed．And when facing a crisis，some beneficiaries might need to feed not only their belly—but also their soul．According to the text，the food bank is a place_____．
| A．which is funded by the government |
| B．where people can get food randomly |
| C．which helps poor people live through crisis |
| D．where there is enough food supplies |
What does the underlined word “them” in Paragraph 4 refer to?
| A．Systems． | B．Doctors． |
| C．Social workers． | D．Vouchers． |
Why do food banks mainly offer “no-cooking ” food?
| A．Poor people have no money for gas and electricity． |
| B．The volunteers hate to supply cooked food． |
| C．Food banks can’t afford cooked food． |
| D．This kind of food is easy to store． |
What can we learn from the last paragraph?
| A．Community spirit can cure those who are depressed． |
| B．Food banks benefit poor people mind and body． |
| C．People can have great fun in food banks． |
| D．Volunteers tend to feel lonely and depressed in food banks． |