I guess I always knew about the little fish treat, but this past summer it was all I could see. Pipin and Nemo were balancing on one front flipper(鳍), flying through hoops, dancing with the trainer, and we were all applauding — the little kids screaming with delight. That’s when the trainer, who wore a little treat bag on her belt, slipped Pipin and Nemo a fish. Each time they successfully performed a trick, they’d get an immediate reward.
These creatures weren’t really dancing, of course. They were performing a series of movements that they knew would produce a fish. It’s such a good show because the sea lions look like they’re having such fun. These talented performers who love to be in front of an audience seem almost human.
Somewhere in our faith journey, we all have a sea lion moment. You see how you’ve spent years jumping through hoops, balancing a ball on your nose, not because it’s really who you are, but because you’ve always done it and the system rewarded you for your performance. But when you’ve done that for ten or twenty years, you start to ask yourself, “Whose approval am I working for? What do I really believe?” Suddenly you see it: you’ve spent most all your life taking direction from other people. They’ve told you what to believe in, what to work for, what to value, how to live your life. You don’t want to end your life like Sinclair Lewis’s George Babbitt, the middle-aged real-estate broker(经纪人) who has everything and reached the top. But on the last page of Babbitt, George is speaking to his son Ted, who cannot follow in his father’s steps. He wants to leave college and head off on his own way. “Dad, I can’t stand it any more,” the boy says. “Maybe it’s all right for some fellows. Maybe I’ll want to go back some day, but now, I want to get into mechanics.” Babbitt, seeming old and subdued, says, “I’ve never done a single thing I’ve wanted to in my whole life!”
The Good-Bye Gate brings us naturally to a second passage, leading from dependency to self-possession. As you start separating from the whole worn-out system, you discover that where there is supposed to be a self, there really isn’t.
Which can be the best title for this passage?
A.Challenge Yourself | B.Summer Vacation Fun |
C.No Pains, No Gains | D.Now I Become Myself |
Man has always wanted to fly. Some of the greatest men in history have thought about the problem. One of these, for example, was the great Italian artist, Leonardo da Vinci. In the sixteenth century he made designs for machines that could fly. But they were never built.,
Throughout history, other less famous men have wanted to fly. An example was a man in England 800years ago. He made a pair of wings from chicken feathers. Then he fixed them to his body and jumped into the air from a tall building. He did not fly very far. He fell to the ground and broke every bone in his body.
The first real step took place in France in 1783. Two brothers, the Mongolfiers, made a very large “hot air balloon”. They knew that hot air rises. Why not fill a balloon with it? The balloon was made of cloth and paper. In September of that year, the King and Queen of France came to see the balloon. They watched it carry the very first air passengers into the sky. The passengers were a sheep and a chicken. We do not know how they felt about the trip. But we do know that the trip lasted 8 minutes and that the animals landed safely. Two months later, two men did the same thing. They rose above Paris in a balloon of the same kind. Their trip lasted twenty-five minutes and they traveled about 8 kilometers. Leonardo da Vinci .
A.said that man would fly in the sky one day |
B.built a kind of machine which never flew |
C.drew many beautiful pictures of the birds |
D.made designs of flying machines |
Eight hundred years ago an Englishman .
A.made a kind of flying machine |
B.tried to fly with wings made of chicken feathers |
C.wanted to build a kind of balloon |
D.tried to fly on a large bird |
In fact, the Englishman who tried to fly .
A.lost his life | B.flew only 8 minutes |
C.was not wounded | D.succeeded in flying |
The very first air passengers in the balloon were.
A.the King and Queen | B.two Frenchmen |
C.two animals | D.the Mongolfiers |
Some people are pessimistic(悲观的)when they think about the future. They say that, a hundred years from now, we will have used up most of the earths resources. We will have made our seas so dirty that we will not be able to eat fish from them. There will be so many people in the world that we will have to use all the countryside for housing; there will be no farmland left.
Other people have a different idea about the future. In their view, the city of the future will be a huge pyramid-shaped(金字塔形的) building, which will be floating on the surface of the sea. About 5,000 families will live there, and there will also be schools, shops in it.
In a hundred years’ time, people will not need to use oil. They will heat their homes with power from the sun.
Think of space. Perhaps a station will be set up on the moon; people will be able to visit the moon as tourists. They may even spend their holidays in space, travelling from planet to planet.
What an interesting picture!
Many people don't think about the future. “I don't care. I’ll be dead. ”they say. But it is our duty to care because the world of a hundred years’ time will be the world of our children’s and their children after them. How many viewpoints are discussed here about the future?
A.Two | B.Three | C.Four | D.Five |
In the pessimistic view, people will in a hundred years ’time.
A.have to use power from the sea |
B.have to live on the moon |
C.be able to grow food on the sea |
D.find it difficult to live on the earth |
Where will people live in the future in the optimistic view?
A.On the moon | B.On the sea | C.In pyramids | D.On other planets |
The writer of the article seems to agree .
A.with those who look at the bright side of the future |
B.with those who take a pessimistic view about the future |
C.with those who won’t trouble their heads about the future |
D.to none of these viewpoints |
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Grades: 6-8 Ages: 11-13If a ten-year-old boy wants himself to be admired because of his speech ability, he may buy ____.
A.Word Power |
B.Word Smart Junior |
C.Grammar Smart Junior |
D.Grammar Smart: An Audio Guide to Perfect Usage |
By saying "You'll finally know your grammar backwards and forwards", the writer means "_____".
A.You will be clearly familiar with grammar |
B.You will know the history of grammar |
C.You will know the make-up of grammar |
D.You will learn about the future of grammar |
The four books are all about ____.
A.fiction and mysteries | B.parenting and teaching |
C.literature and arts | D.language study |
Your body, which has close relations with the food you eat, is the most important thing you own, so it needs proper treatment and proper nourishment(食物). The old saying “an apple a day keeps the doctor away.” is not as silly as some people think. The body needs fruit and vegetables because they contain vitamins. Many people take extra vitamins in pill form(丸剂), believing that these will make them healthy. But a good diet is made up of nutritive food and this gives all the vitamins you need. The body doesn't need or use extra vitamins, so why they waste money on them?
In the modern Western world, many people are too busy to bother about eating properly. They throw anything into their stomachs, eating hurriedly and carelessly. The list of illnesses caused or made worse by bad eating habits is frightening.The old saying referred to in the passage tells us that .
A.eating apples regularly does lots of good to our health. |
B.the apple is the best among all kinds of fruits |
C.apples can take the place of doctors |
D.an apple is a sure cure for illness |
In the second paragraph, the writer tries to let us know .
A.our bodies need food, or we can’t live |
B.often eating apples is a good habit |
C.taking extra vitamin pills is completely useless |
D.a good diet is of great importance for our health |
In the modern western countries .
A.people won't want to pay more attention to their eating |
B.people throw everything into their stomachs without chewing. |
C.list of people’s illness are caused or made worse by bad eating habits |
D.people are only too busy to cook meals for themselves |
From the passage we can draw a conclusion that if we want to keep healthy, we should .
A.only eat an apple a day |
B.take as many vitamin pills as possible |
C.eat properly |
D.throw something into our stomachs slowly and carefully. |
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Read about the lives of real detectives. This monthly magazine brings you up-to-date true stories about real life of detectives as they chase criminals across continents. Find out how some of the most dangerous criminals in the world are caught by some of world’s finest detectives. Follow their routes on the free map which comes with every issue.
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This weekly magazine can bring the world to your home. Have you ever wondered what the Chinese eat for breakfast? Did you know that the Sahara Desert is getting bigger every year? This fascinating magazine, full of color photographs, is your window on the world.
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Every week well-known writers bring you the latest teenage love stories. Each magazine carries three full-length stories as well as cartoons and color pictures of your favorite film stars.
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The weekly magazine keeps you in touch with what’s happening. Filled with facts and figures about almost everything you can think of, plus articles by our regular writers on the week’s most interesting news stories. Special back page sums up the news for the busy readers.
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These exciting short stories are written by well-known crime writers. Every magazine brings you the best in criminal thrillers, stories are so good that you won’t be able to put the magazine down. And every month we leave one crime unanswered so that you, that reader, can play detective.
请阅读以下读者的信息,然后匹配读者和适合他/她的杂志:Emi is a university student studying Italian and Politics. She doesn’t have much time to read anything very detailed but she is looking for something with plenty of news and information.
Carrie is sixteen years old and loves spending time listening to pop music and lying on her bed reading. She is always interested in finding out more about some of the stars in the world of pop and fashion.
Bill travels a lot when he was younger. Now that he has stopped his work, he enjoys reading about foreign people, places and customs even if he has already visited that part of the world.
Leroy used to be a detective. He still takes an active interest in the work of the police, but these days he enjoys reading fictions after years spent chasing real criminals.
Brigitte has a five-year-old daughter and after several talks with her husband, she is considering to educate their daughter at home. She would like a magazine to learn about this new trend.