Many families take their children on vacation. They will usually travel for a few days or weeks during school breaks. But Julie and Tim Rivenbark planned a longer vacation with their two children—the Rivenbark family is on a one-year trip around the world. They plan to visit 30 countries in all.
Right now, the four travellers are about halfway through their trip. Ms. Rivenbark says they are trying to see as much of the world as they can. She says “we have been through Europe, southern Africa, now we are kind of working our way through Asia. So we have been to a bunch of big cities, like Dubai, Johannesburg, Rome and Bangkok.”
The family has also spent time floating in kayaks(long narrow boats) in Italy, flying in hot air balloons in Myanmar, hiking to the Everest Base Camp in Nepal and going on a journey to see or hunt animals in South Africa.
Mr. Rivenbark says the family has also ridden on ostrich birds, elephants, and camels. But, he says, one of the most interesting experiences of the trip has been meeting new people.
“People have been extremely friendly, very welcoming and love our kids—interacting with them and their reaction to see our kids enjoying themselves in their country.”
Eleven-year old Tyler says he has enjoyed learning about the people they have met. “I learned in Africa that people have very different lifestyles compared to Americans.” His sister, 9-year-old Kara, discovered that she liked Thai food.
Ms. Rivenbark says that the extended trip teaches the children a lot more than short visits would have. “I think that the longer we travel, the more impact it has on how they see the world. I can see them changing more than they can see themselves.”
It took the family a year to prepare for the trip. They had to sell their house and cars. Ms. Rivenbark quit her job and her husband is using unpaid leave. They carry small bags filled with lightweight clothing and whatever else they need. Ms. Rivenbark says she enjoys being able to carry everything she needs on her back. She says she does not miss the things she has back home. “What has become more important is making these memories as a family and taking those with us instead.” Tyler and Kara each have iPads so they can communicate with teachers to stay current with their schoolwork. Tyler is also creating a 365-day video blog.
The Rivenbarks will continue to head east for the next six months. They plan to visit Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, China and Australia. To follow their adventures, visit their website: earthtrekkers.com.What makes the Rivenbarks different from other families is that _____.
| A．they have their family trips during the children’s holidays |
| B．they have carefully planned their family trips for holidays |
| C．they plan to have a tour around the world without their children |
| D．they tour around the world with their kids not going to class |
During the travel, _____ impressed the kids as well as the parents most.
| A．floating in kayaks in Italy |
| B．hiking to the Everest Base Camp in Nepal |
| C．interacting with different people |
| D．riding on elephants and camels |
The underlined word in Paragraph 7 extended is closest in meaning to _____.
| A．expanded | B．contented |
| C．shortened | D．intended |
We can infer from the passage that _____.
| A．It will take the family one year to prepare and finish their travel |
| B．The kids are finishing their current study with the help of the Internet |
| C．The family are likely to stay in Asia for the second part of their trip |
| D．To afford such a trip around the world is really something easy for the family |
The passage is meant to _____.
| A．share with the readers an extraordinary family trip |
| B．introduce some great parents and their jobs |
| C．remind us of the pleasure of getting close to nature |
| D．inform us of the benefits of travelling around the world |
What exactly is a lie? Is it anything we say which we know is untrue? Or is it something more than that? For example, suppose a friend wants to borrow some money from you. You say “I wish I could help you, but I am short of money myself.” In fact, you are not short of money but your friend is in the habit of not paying his debts and you don’t want to hurt his feelings by reminding him of this. Is this really a lie?
Professor Jerald Jellison of the University of southern California has made a scient
ific study of lyi
ng. According to him, women are be
tter lies than men, particularly when telling a “white lie”, such as
when a woman at a party tells ano
ther woman that she likes her dress when she really thinks it’s terrible. However, this is only one side of the story. Other researchers say that men are more likely to tell more serious lies, such as making a promise that they have no intention of carrying out. This is the kind of lie politicians and businessmen are supposed to be particularly skilled at: the lie from which the liar hopes to profit or gain in some way.
Research has been done into the way people’s behavior changes in a number of small, unimportant ways when they lie. It has been found that if they are sitting down at the time, they tend to move about in their chairs more than usual. To the trained observer they are saying “I wish I were somewhere else now”. They also tend to touch certain parts of the face, particularly the nose. One explanation of this may be that lying causes a slight increase in blood pressure. The tip of the nose is very sensitive to changes and the increased pressure makes it itch.
Another gesture that gives liars away is what the writer Decmond Morris in his book Man Watching calls the “mouth cover”. He says that there are several typical forms of this, such as covering part of the mouth with the fingers, touch the upper lip or putting a finger of the hand at one side off the mouth. Such a gesture can be understood as an unconscious(未察觉的) attempt on the part of the liar to stop himself from lying.
Of course, such gestures as rubbing the nose or covering the mouth, moving about in a chair can not be taken as proof that the speaker is lying. They simply tend to happen more often in this situation. It is one gesture alone that gives the liar away but a whole number of things, and in particular the context(上下文) which the lie is told.According to the passage, a white lie seems to be a lie ______.
| A．that other people believe |
| B．that other people don’t believe |
| C．told in order not to hurt someone’s feelings |
| D．told in order to take advantage of someone |
Research suggests that women _____.
A．are better at telling les s serious lies than men |
| B．generally lie for more than men do |
| C．often make promises they intend to break |
| D．lie at parties more often than men do |
Researchers find that when a person tells lies _____.
| A．his blood pressure increases measurably |
| B．he looks very serious |
| C．he is likely to make some small changes in his behavior |
| D．he uses his unconscious mind |
The writer of the passage______.
| A．hates lying | B．enjoys lying | C．often tells a lie | D．tries to study about lying |
Which of the following is not mentioned in the passage as a sign of lying ?
| A．Touching one’s ears | B．Rubbing the nose |
| C．Moving in a chair | D．Covering the mouth |
A traveler hurried down to the hall of an American hotel and went to the cash-desk. He had just 15 minutes to pay his bill and get to the station. Suddenly he remembered that he had left something in his room.
"Look here, boy," he said to the bellboy, "run up to my room and see if I have left a parcel on the table there. Be quick about it."
The boy ran upstairs. Five minutes passed. The traveler was walking up and down the hall, looking very angry. At last the boy appeared.
"Yes, sir," he reported to the traveler," you have left the parcel there, it's right on the table in your room."The traveler _______.
| A．ran down the street |
| B．came downstairs hurriedly |
| C．ran so quickly that he fell down |
| D．came into the hotel hall very quickly |
Whichh statement is true?
| A．He had to pay his bill and arrived at the station in 15 minutes . |
| B．It took him 15 minutes to go to the station from the hotel. |
| C．He could pay his bill in 15 minutes and then go to the station . |
| D．He had nothing but 15 minutes. |
According to the passage, a bellboy is _____.
A. a boy whose work is to ring the bell
B. a boy who plays with a bell
C. a boy whose work in a hotel is to he
lp guests with their bagsThe traveler asked the boy _____ .
| A．to go upstairs |
| B．to look for his parcel |
| C．to fetch the parcel he had left in his room |
| D．only to see if the parcel was on the table in his room |
Five minutes later, the boy ______ .
| A．ran up to the room |
| B．came downstairs |
| C．reported to the traveler in the room |
| D．came down to the hall but brought nothing back |
America is a mobile society. Friendships between Americans can be close and real, yet disappear soon if situations change. Neither side feels hurt by this. Both may exchange Christmas greetings for a year or two, perhaps a few letters for a while — then no more. If the same two people meet again by chance, even years later, they pick up the friendship. This can be quite difficult for us Chinese to understand, because friendships between us flower more slowly but then may become lifelong feelings, extending (延伸) sometimes deeply into both families.
Americans are ready to receive us foreigners at their homes, share their holidays, and their home life. They will enjoy welcoming us and be pleased if we accept their hospitality (好客) easily.
Another difficult point for us Chinese to understand Americans is that although they include us warmly in their personal everyday lives, they don’t show their politeness to us if it requires a great deal of time. This is usually the opposite of the practice in our country where we may be generous with our time. Sometimes, we, as hosts, will appear at airports even in the middle of the night to meet a friend. We may take days off to act as guides to our foreign friends. The Americans, however, express their welcome usually at homes, but truly can not manage the time to do a great deal with a visitor outside their daily routine. They will probably expect us to get ourselves from the airport to our own hotel by bus. And they expect that we will phone them from there. Once we arrive at their homes, the welcome will be full, warm and real. We will find ourselves treated hospitably.
For the Americans, it is often considered more friendly to invite a friend to their homes than to go to restaurants, except for purely business matters. So accept their hospitality at home!The writer of this passage must be ______.
| A．an American | B．a Chinese | C．a professor | D．a student |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Friendships between Americans usually extend deeply into their families. |
| B．Friendships between Americans usually last for all their lives. |
| C．Americans always show their warmth even if they are very busy. |
| D．Americans will continue their friendships again even after a long break. |
From the last two paragraphs we can learn that when we arrive in America to visit an American friend, we will probably be ______.
| A．warmly welcomed at the airport |
| B．offered a ride to his home |
| C．treated hospitably at his home |
D． treated to dinner in a restaurant |
The underlined words “generous with our time” in Paragraph 3 probably mean ______.
| A．strict with time | B．willing to spend time |
| C．careful with time | D．serious with time |
A suitable title for this passage would probably be “______”.
A．Friendship s between Chinese |
| B．Friendships between Americans |
| C．Americans’ hospitality |
| D．Americans’ and Chinese’s views of friendship |
There are many ways to find a job. It can be as easy as walking into a neighborhood store to look at its announcement board. Local stores often have areas where people can put small signs telling what kind of service they need or can provide. Such services include caring for children or cleaning houses.
Or, job searchers can look in the newspaper. Local new
spapers have employment announcements placed by companies seeking workers.
Another popular tool for finding jobs is the Internet. For example, people in four hundred and fifty cities around the
world can use the Craigslist Web site to buy objects, meet people or find a job. Craigslist says that it receives two million new job listings each month.
Another useful way to find a job is through a college or university. For example, students at the University of Texas in Austin can go to the Career Exploration Center to get help in finding a job. Of course, looking for a job requires knowing what kind of work you want to do. For example, there is a book called “What Color is Your Parachute ?” by Richard Bolles. This book has been helping people choose a career since it was first published in nineteen seventy.
Some experts also help people find jobs. Susan W. Miller owns a company called California Career Services in Los Angeles. She says her company helps people find jobs by first helping them understand their strengths, goals and interests. Then she provides them with methods and resources to help them find the right job.What is the passage mainly about?
| A．Finding a job. |
| B．College students’part-time jobs. |
| C．Craigslist Web site. |
| D．The relation between study and work. |
By logging on the Craigslist Web site, you can ______.
| A．sell your old things |
| B．do some shopping online |
| C．create your own announcement board |
| D．get useful information about 450 cities |
“What Color is Your Parachute?” is a book which gives tips to those who want to _____.
| A．work on the airplane | B．buy a parachute |
| C．publish a book | D．find a suitable job |
It can be learned from the passage that ______.
| A．companies often put job information in local shops |
| B．the Internet is the most popular tool for job hunters in the USA |
| C．Susan W. Miller’s company is helping people choose careers |
| D．California Career Services mainly serves university students |
How many ways of finding a job are mentioned in the passage?
| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Five. | D．Six. |
The clock struck eleven at night. The whole house was quiet. Everyone was in bed except me. Under the strong light, I looked sadly before me at a huge pile of that troublesome stuff they call “books”.
I was going to have my examination the next day. “When can I go to bed?” I asked myself. I didn’t answer. In fact I dared not.
The clock struck twelve.” Oh, !” I cried. “Ten more books to read before I can go to bed!” We pupils are the most wretched creatures in the world. Dad does not agree with
me on this. He did not have to work so hard when he was a boy.
The clock struck one. I was quite desperate(绝望的) now. I forgot all I had learned. I
was too tired to go on. I did the only thing I could. I prayed, “Oh, God, please help me pass the exam tomorrow. I do promise to work hard afterwards, Amen.” My eyes were so heavy that I could hardly open them. A few minutes later, with my head on the desk, I fell asleep.When the author was going over his lessons, all the others in the house were____.
| A．asleep | B．outside | C．working in bed | D．quietly laughing at him |
The underlined word “wretched” in Paragraph 3 probably means____.
| A．very happy | B．disappointed | C．very unhappy |
D．hopeful |
Reviewing his lessons didn’t help him
because______.
| A．it was too late at night |
| B．he was very tired |
| C．his eyes lids were so heavy that he couldn’t keep them open |
| D．he hadn’t studied hard before the examination |
What do you suppose happened to the author?
| A．He went to a church to pray again. | B．He passed the exa m by luck. |
| C．He failed in the exam. | D．He was punished by his teacher. |
The best title for the passage would be____.
| A．The Night Before the Examination | B．Working Far into the Night |
| C．A Slow Student | D．Going Over My Lessons |