Larrywasonanotherofhisunderwat-优题课

I needed to get some money so, after Christmas, I took a job in the clothes department at Graham's for the first fortnight of the January sale. I can't say that I enjoyed it, but it was an experience I'll never forget.
I could never understand why there were so many things in the sales; where did they all come from? Now I know the secret! Firstly, there is the special winter stock(货物) and the stock that people buy all the year round; some of these things are slightly reduced. Secondly, there are the summer clothes they couldn't sell last year; these are heavily reduced to clear them. Thirdly, there are cheap clothes bought in specially for the sales; these are put out at high prices ten days before the sale begins and then are reduced by 60% in the sale. Clever! Lastly, they buy in “seconds”(clothes not in perfect condition) for the sale and they are sold very cheaply.
When I arrived half an hour before opening on the first day of the sale, there was already a queue around three sides of the building. This made me very nervous.
When the big moment arrived to open the doors, the security guards, looking less
confident than usual, came up to them, keys in hand. The moment they had unlocked the doors, they hid behind the doors for protection as the noisy crowd charged in. I couldn't believe my eyes; this wasn't shopping, it was a battlefield! One poor lady couldn't keep her feet and was knocked over by people pushing from behind.
Clothes were flying in all directions as people searched for the sizes, colours and styles they wanted. Quarrels broke out. Mothers were using their small child
ren to crawl(爬行) through people's legs and get hold of things they couldn't get near themselves.
Within minutes I had half a dozen people pushing clothes under my nose, each wanting to be the first served. Where had the famous English queue gone? The whole
day continued like that, but I kept my temper(脾气)! I was taking money hand over fist and began to realise why, twice a year, Graham's were happy to turn their expensive store into a battlefield like this.
In the sale fever, people were spending money like water without thinking whether they needed what they were buying. As long as it was a bargain it was OK.
You won't believe this but as soon as I got home I crashed out for four hours. Then I had dinner and went back to bed, fearing the sound of the alarm which would tell me to get ready for the second day of the sale.
1.What kind of clothes is likely to be sold 5% cheaper?
Last summer's clothes.
B.Clothes not in perfect condition.
C.Clothes bought in specially for the sales.
D.Clothes for winter.
2.Which of the following statements is true?
A.The customers gave up the queuing, for which the English are famous.
B.The customers kept their temper while looking for clothes they wanted.
C.Small children enjoyed crawling through people's legs.
D.The security guards were fearless of the crowd.
3.In the author's opinion, why were Graham's happy to make their expensive store into a “battlefield”?
A.There were too many clothes and they wanted to clear them in the sales.
B.They were eager to show that they were clever at doing business.
C.They could take the chance to raise the prices of all their clothes.
D.They wanted to make more money by having sales.
4.The expression “_________crashed out” means ________.
A.chatted with her friendsB.slept soundlyC.broke downD.dined out
5. What would be the best title for the passage?
A.The Best Bargain B.Hunting for a Job
C.Sale FeverD.A Pleasant Fortnight

Professor Reason recently persuaded 35 people to keep a diary of all their absentminded actions for two weeks. When he came to analyse their embarrassing errors, he was surprised to find that nearly all of them fell into a few groups.
One of the women, for instance, on leaving her house for work one morning threw her pet dog her earrings and tried to fix a dog biscuit on her ear. “The explanation for this is that the brain is like a computer,”explains the professor.“People programme themselves to do certain activities regularly. It was the woman's custom every morning to throw her dog two biscuits and then put on her ear rings. But somehow the action got reversed(颠倒) in the programme.” About one in twenty of the incidents the volunteers reported were these “programme assembly failures”.
Twenty percent of all errors were “test failures”— primarily due to not verifying the progress of what the body was doing. A man about to get his car out
of the garage passed through the back yard where his garden jacket and boots were kept, put them on—much to his surprise. A woman victim reported:“I got into the bath with my socks on.”
The commonest problem was information “storage failures”. People forgot the
names of people whose faces they knew,went into a room and forgot why they were
there, mislaid something, or smoked a cigarette without realizing it.
The research so far suggests that while the “central processor” of the brain is liberated from secondtosecond control of a wellpractised routine, it must repeatedly switch back its attention at important decision points to check that the action goes on as intended. Otherwise the activity may be “captured” by another frequently and recently used programme, resulting in embarrassing errors.
1.The purpose of Professor Reason's research is _______.
A.to show the difference between men and women in their reasoning
B.to classify and explain some errors in human actions
C.to find the causes which lead to computer failures
D.to compare computer functions with brain workings
2.Which of the following might be grouped under “programme assembly failures”?
A.A woman went into a shop and forgot what to buy.
B.A man returning home after work left his key in the lock.
C.A lady fell as she was concentrating on each step her feet were taking.
D.An old man, with his shoes on, was trying to put on his socks.
3.The word “verifying” in paragraph 3 can be replaced by _______ .
A.improvingB.changingC.checkingD.stopping
4.According to the passage, the information “storage failures” refer to _______ .
A.the destruction of information collecting system
B.the elimination of one's total memory
C.the temporary loss of part of one's memory
D.the separation of one's action from consciousness

As you move around your home, take a good look at the things you have. It is likely that your living room will have a television set and a video, and your kitchen a washing machine and a microwave oven. Your bedroom drawers will be filled with almost three times as many clothes as you need. You almost certainly own a car and possibly a home computer, holiday abroad at least once a year and eat out at least once a week.
Now, perhaps, more than ever before, people are wondering what life is all about, and what it is for. Seeking material success is beginning to trouble large numbers of people around the world. They feel that the longhours work culture to make more money to buy more things is eating up their lives, leaving them very little time or energy for family or pastimes. Many are turning to other ways of l
iving and downshifting is one of them.
Six percent of workers in Britain took the decision to downshift last year. One couple who downshifted is Daniel and Liz. They used to work in central London. He was a newspaper reporter and she used to work for an international bank. They would go to work by train every day from their large house in the suburbs(郊区), leaving their two children with a nanny(保姆). Most evenings Daniel wouldn't get home until eight or nine o'clock, and nearly twice a month he would have to fly to New York for meetings. They both earned a large amount of money but began to feel that life was passing them by.
Nowadays, they run a farm in the mountains of Wales. “I always wanted to have a farm here,” says Daniel, “and we took almost a year to make the decision to downshift. It's taken some getting used to, but it's been worth it. We have to think twice now about spending money on car repairs and we no longer have any holidays. However, I think it's made us stronger as a family, and the children are a lot happier.”
Liz, however, is not quite sure. “I used to enjoy my job, even though it was hard work and long hours. I'm not really a country girl, but I suppose I'm gradually getting used to looking after the animals. One thing I do like, though, is being able to see more of my children. My advice for other people wanting to do the same is not to think about ittoo much or you might not do it at all.”
1.What do the first two paragraphs tell us?
A.People seldom work long hours to make money.
B.People hardly buy more things than necessary.
C.People are sure everything they own is in the right place.
D.People realise there is more to life than just making money.
2.When Daniel was a reporter he ________ .
A.lived in central London B.disliked his job
C.missed his childrenD.was well paid
3.Daniel and Liz both agree that the move to the farm ________.
A.was easy to organizeB.has improved family life
C.was extremely expensive D.has been a total success
4.What does the underlined “it” in the last paragraph refer to?
A.Childcaring. B.Liz's advice. C.Downshifting. D.Liz's job.
5.The underlined word “_________downshifting” in the second paragraph means ________ .
A.repairing your car by yourself
B.spending money carefully
C.moving out to the countryside to live a simpler and better life
D.living in a big house in the suburbs and dining out once a week

About one million years ago,the Ice Age began.The Ice Age was a long period of time in which four great glaciers(冰川) pushed southward to cover almost all the upper half of North America,and then melted away.Each glacier was a thick sheet of ice and snow that spread out from a center near what is now Hudson Bay in Canada.The winters were long,and the cool summers were too short to melt much of the ice and snow.The evergrowing sheet built up to a thickness of two miles at its center.
As all glaciers do,these great glaciers slid(滑动). They pushed down giant trees in their paths and scraped(刮削)the earth bare(光秃秃)of soil.Many animals moved farther south to escape.Others stayed and were destroyed.
When winters of little snow came,the summer suns into the edges to the ice sheets.As the glaciers melted,rocks,soil and other things that had mixed with the ice and snow were left.New hills,lakes and rivers were formed.
The last of the great glaciers began its melting about 11 000 years ago.Itsmelting formed the Great Lakes.These lakes are today little changed from their early sizes the glaciers.This is the Mississippi Missouri Ohio system.These rivers were miles wide at first.Through the years they settle into their present channels.
The main idea of this passage is ________ .
A.the Ice Age was a long period of time
B.great glaciers covered North America many years ago
C.changes in climate helped to melt the glaciers
D.how glaciers changed North America
2.The author states that all glaciers ________.
A.are two miles thick B.form frozen lakes
C.are a million years old D.move and slide
3.From the information in this passage we know that ________.
A.glaciers are destructive
B.all glaciers in the world move southward
C.the Mississippi Missouri Ohio systems is larger than it was before the Ice Age
D.the Great Lakes are now smaller than they were before the Ice Age
4.The Ice Age lasted almost ____.
A.1 000 years B.100 years C.1 000 000 years D.11 000 years
5.In the last sentence,the word “their” refers to ________ .
A.lakes B.rivers C.glaciers D.systems

The Channel Islands are a group of Britishowned islands lying in the English Channel(海峡) , 10 to 30 miles off the French coast , and 70 to 90 miles from the English coast. There are ten islands with a total land area of 75 square miles and a total population of 123,000. The three largest islands, Jersey, Guernsey, and Alderney, have long been known for the fine breeds(品种) of cattle that are raised on them and named after them.
In earliest known history the islands were considered part of Normandy, whic
h was part of France, but the ruler of Normandy became king of England in 1066, and from then on the islands were looked upon as British land. English control was unbroken until World War Ⅱ,when the Germans held the islands for five years.
Although people on the islands speak both languages and they are considered English, their customs are more French than English.
1.Which of the following maps gives the right position of the Channel Islands?

Br="Britain" Fr="France" Ch="Channel" Islands
2.Jersey,Guernsey, and Alderney breeds of cattle are ________ .
A. considered best in England
B. named after their birthplaces
C. brought to the islands by the Germans
D. raised on wellknown farms by the French
3.The Channel Islands have been continuously under British rule since ___________.
A. earliest known history B. 1066
C. 1930s D. the end of World War Ⅱ
4.Why do people on the Channel Islands follow French way of living?
A. Their islands used to be part of Frence.
B. Their islands are often visited by the French.
C. They came from France.
D. They speak French.