It's 2035. You have a job, a family and you're about 40 years old! Welcome to your future life.
Getting ready for work, you pause in front of the mirror. “Turn red，” you say. Your shirt changes from sky blue to deep red. Tiny preprogrammed electronics(智能电子元件)are rearranged in your shirt to change its color. Looking into the mirror, you find it hard to believe you're 40. You look much younger. With amazing advances in medicine, people in your generation may live to be 150 years old. You're not even middle-aged!
As you go into the kitchen and prepare to pour your breakfast cereal into a bowl, you hear, “To lose weight, you shouldn't eat that，”from your shoes. They read the tiny electronic code(电子源码)on the cereal box to find out the nutrition details. You decide to listen to your shoes. “Kitchen, what can I have for breakfast？”A list of possible foods appears on the counter as the kitchen checks its food supplies.
“Ready for your trip to space？”you ask your son and daughter. In 2005 only specially trained astronauts went into space—and very few of them. Today anyone can go to space for day trips or longer vacations. Your best friend even works in space. Handing your children three strawberries each, you add, “The doctor said you need these for space travel.”Thanks to medical advances, vaccination shots(防疫针)are a thing of the past. Ordinary foods contain specific vaccines. With the berries in their mouths, the kids head for the front door.
It's time for you to go to work. Your car checks your fingerprints and unlocks the doors. “My office. Autopilot！” you command. Your car drives itself down the road and moves smoothly into traffic on the highway. You sit back and unroll your enewspaper. The latest news downloads and fills the viewer. Looking through the pages, you watch the news as video film rather than read it.What changes the color of your shirt?
| A．The mirror. |
| B．The shirt itself. |
| C．The counter. |
| D．The medicine. |
How do the shoes know that you shouldn't eat the breakfast cereal?
| A．By pouring the breakfast into a bowl. |
| B．By listening to the doctor's advice. |
| C．By testing the food supplies in the kitchen. |
| D．By checking the nutrition details of the food. |
The strawberries the children eat serve as________.
| A．breakfast |
| B．lunch |
| C．vaccines |
| D．nutrition |
How is the text organized?
| A．In order of time. |
| B．In order of frequency. |
| C．In order of preference. |
| D．In order of importance. |
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E-mail: Harcourt@learning.com.This advertisement aims at calling on people to ________.
| A．attend full-time universities |
| B．work part time to further their education |
| C．improve their education at home to get better jobs |
| D．earn their degrees in different ways that suit them |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned in this advertisement?
| A．The way how you will get your degree. |
| B．The exact amount of tuition you should pay. |
| C．The hot fields you will be preparing yourself for. |
| D．The length of time it will take you to get a degree. |
Which of the following majors doesn’t the Harcourt Learning Direct offer?
| A．photography | B．physiology |
| C．Accounting | D．bookkeeping |
People can get a Specialized Associate Degree by________.
| A．doing fulltime learning at school |
| B．working in some big famous companies |
| C．studying in their spare time |
| D．studying abroad for two years |
How can you get in touch with the Harcourt Learning Direct?
| A．By sending a letter not later than today. |
| B．By visiting the office on weekdays. |
| C．By making a call on weekdays only. |
| D．By sending an e-mail. |
When 15-year-old Louisa Ball takes a nap, she sleeps for days on end, and no amount of shaking can fully wake her up. The British girl has a rare condition called Sleeping Beauty Sickness. Doctors don’t know what causes it or how to cure it --only know that it strikes teenagers and goes away by itself after eight to 12 years.
Louisa’s mum, Lottie, told NBC News that the girl had flulike symptoms just over a year ago. Shortly afterward, she had her first period of long sleeping.
She was eventually diagnosed with Kleine-Levin Syndrome, whose victims worldwide may number no more than 1,000. The victims live normally for weeks or months at a time, with normal sleep patterns and normal energy levels. Then, with little warning, they’ll go to sleep for days or weeks at a time. So far, Louisa’s longest period in bed has been 13 days. Victims will wake briefly, but be disoriented and not fully awake. Louisa’s parents force her awake so she can use the bathroom and eat.
Now, Louisa’s friends can tell when a period is coming on. She stops talking and she may be annoyed easily. That’s when she knows she has to get home to her bed. Louisa has slept through family vacations, the dance recitals(表演会) she loves to perform in, and school tests. Now it becomes increasingly difficult to catch up on missed schoolwork.
But just as doctors don’t know the cause, they also don’t know why it ends as mysteriously as it began. The illness is unrelated to narcolepsy(嗜眠病), whose victims are constantly tired and drop off for brief periods of sleep at any time.
It’s so dramatic that some people have accused Louisa of making the false symptoms to get attention. Her father, Richard, thinks that’s absurd.The underlined “disoriented ” in the 3rd paragraph probably means________.
| A．embarrassed | B．disappointed |
| C．confused | D．happy |
Which is TRUE about Kleine-Levin Syndrome according to the passage?
| A．The victims usually sleep for days or weeks at a time. |
| B．There are usually many warning signs before it attacks the victims. |
| C．The victims are usually tired and in a bad mood. |
| D．There are more than 1, 000 victims in the world. |
We can learn from the passage that________.
| A．doctors have found the cure for Sleeping Beauty Sickness. |
| B．some people don’t believe in the truth of Louisa’s symptoms. |
| C．Kleine-Levin Syndrome has no effect on Louisa’s study and life. |
| D．the narcolepsy victims sleep longer than those with Kleine-Levin Syndrome. |
What can we learn about Louisa?
| A．Louisa is fond of dancing. |
| B．Louisa can still manage finish her schoolwork without difficulty. |
| C．Louisa is a British girl who likes sleeping. |
| D．Louisa’s longest sleeping period is 8 years. |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．What is Narcolepsy |
| B．How Louisa Overcame the Difficulty |
| C．Rare Illness Turns a Girl into a “Sleeping Beauty” |
| D．The Latest Research on Kleine-Levin Syndrome. |
Every day, Daisy wakes up next to a man, who has to convince her they are married. When she expresses doubt, he takes out a photo album and shows her pictures of their wedding 13 years ago.
Only then does amnesiac Daisy accept that she has been married, and that everything he has told her is true. The lady's condition was caused by brain injuries suffered in two road accidents, a motorbike crash in 1985 and a car accident in 1990. Daisy can recall everything up to 1994, but since then everything that happens on one day is forgotten the next day.
She has no day-today memory after the car crash. And it is not just loved ones Daisy struggles with. She uses hundreds of notes and reminders on her mobile phone's calendar to keep her informed of appointments and everyday duties. Anything she has done or anyone she has met must be logged for future reference. And on the rare occasions when she takes the risk of going out of her home alone, she has to be armed with navigation (导航) programmed with her address.
There are some benefits, however. There is no such thing as a repeat on TV and every joke is funny, because it seemed she has heard it the first time.“It’s like I am living the same day, day after day, said Daisy, who does voluntary work at a charity for people with disabilities three days a week.
Dr Peter Nestor said Daisy was suffering from anterograde(【医】 前进的, 顺行的) amnesia. He added, “It is reasonably rare, but it does exist. You are able to carry out daytoday things, and don't forget how to do certain things like speaking. But if someone was to ask you what you did yesterday, you wouldn't have a clue.”What caused Daisy’s condition?
| A．Her disability since birth. |
| B．Brain injuries in accidents. |
| C．Her declining health |
| D．Overloaded working. |
How did Daisy’s family help remind her?
| A．By taking her to the hospital |
| B．By telling her jokes. |
| C．By showing her old photos and pictures. |
| D．By persuading her to recall the car crash. |
The underlined word “amnesiac” in Paragraph 2 probably means“________”．
| A．strong | B．optimistic |
| C．warmhearted | D．forgetful |
What does the 3rd paragraph mainly tell us?
| A．Benefits of Daisy condition. |
| B．Great troubles Daisy has in life. |
| C．How Daisy helps herself. |
| D．The reason why Daisy forgets things. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Daisy could still enjoy a lot in spite of her illness. |
| B．The only thing Daisy kept in mind was her home. |
| C．Daisy couldn't do anything but stay at home. |
| D．Daisy didn't want to trust anyone else. |
Wealth starts with a goal saving a dollar at a time. Call it the piggy bank strategy(策略). There are lessons in that time-honored coin-saving container.
Any huge task seems easier when reduced to baby steps. I f you wished to climb a 12,000-foot mountain, and could do it a day at a time, you would only have to climb 33 feet daily to reach the top in a year. If you want to take a really nice trip in 10 years for a special occasion, to collect the $15,000 cost, you have to save $3.93 a day. If you drop that into a piggy bank and then once a year put $1,434 in a savings account at 1% interest rate after-tax, you will have your trip money.
When I was a child, my parents gave me a piggy bank to teach me that, if I wanted something, I should save money to buy it. We associate piggy banks with children, but in many countries, the little containers are also popular with adults. Europeans see a piggy bank as a sign of good fortune and wealth. Around the world, many believe a gift of a piggy bank on New Year’s Day brings good luck and financial success. Ah, but you have to put something in it.
Why is a pig used as a symbol of saving? Why not an elephant bank, which is bigger and holds more coins? In the Middle Ages, before modern banking and credit instruments, people saved money at home, a few coins at a time dropped into a jar or dish. Potters(制陶工) made these inexpensive containers from an orange-colored clay(黏土) called “pygg,” and folks saved coins in pygg jars.The Middle English word
for pig was “pigge”. While the Saxons pronounced pygg, referring to the clay, as “pug”, eventually the two words changed into the same pronunciation, sounding the “i” as in pig or piggy. As the word became less associated with the orange clay and more with the animal, a clever potter fashioned a pygg jar in the shape of a pig, delighting children and adults. The piggy bank was born.
Originally you had to break the bank to get to the money, bringing in a sense of seriousness into savings. While piggy banks teach children the wisdom of saving, adults often need to relearn childhood lessons. Think about the things in life that require large amounts of money--- college education, weddings, cars, medical care, starting a business, buying a home, and fun stuff like great trips. So when you have money, take off the top 10%, put it aside, save and invest wisely.What is the piggy bank strategy?
| A．Paying 1% income tax at a time. |
| B．Setting a goal before making a travel plan. |
| C．Aiming high even when doing small things. |
| D．Putting aside a little money regularly for future use. |
Why did the writer’s parents give him a piggy bank as a gift?
| A．To delight him with the latest fashion. |
| B．To encourage him to climb mountains. |
| C．To help him form the habit of saving. |
| D．To teach him English pronunciation. |
What does then underlined word “something”(Paragraph 3) most probably refer to?
| A．Money | B．Gifts |
| C．Financial success | D．Good luck |
The piggy ban originally was _________.
| A．a potter’s instrument | B．a cheap clay container |
| C．an animal-shaped dish | D．a pig-like toy for children |
The last paragraph talks about ________.
| A．the seriousness of educating children |
| B．the enjoyment of taking a great trip |
| C．the importance of managing money |
| D．the difficulty of starting a business |
Why can’t some people even get an inch of what they dream of becoming? Blame it on pure dreaming and lack of surrounding goals for achieving their dreams.
Setting goals is very significant part of accomplishing and positive actions. It is like scaling(攀爬) a 200 feet construction and marking in the early hours on what feet you would like to reach at this specific period.
People who set goals literally generate a map of their goal settings in life, marking where they should start, where to pause, where to study a bit, and where and when to end. Once this map comes into being, it allows the map drawer to check where he is in the scheme(安排) of things and whether or not he is making some planning that will take him closer to his goals.
By surrounding goals, people will know how they are doing and what they should be doing to get their goals or dreams in life. They will know if they can relax or if they have to double their efforts when they are falling short of what is expected of them.
Goal surroundings means a person is prepared in dealing with challenges that may affect his plans. Being proactive means one is able to outline possible difficulties that may occur as well as the solutions to these difficulties. By doing this, a person is not easily scared or defeated when challenges occur because he has already prepared for them. He knows they can happen and he has prepared a solution or strategy when that time comes.
Setting goals will enable people to track their progress in whatever hard work they set out to do. It will help people become more confident in themselves and more motivated to get their plans. The purpose of this passage is to _______________.
| A．explain the difference between the two goals. |
| B．show the importance of surrounding goals. |
| C．tell us how to set and achieve one’s goals. |
| D．tell us setting goals makes one confident. |
According to the author, one had better ___________ in making a goal in life.
| A．take an active attitude |
| B．create a scheme as a whole |
| C．consider the possible troubles |
| D．check where he is frequently |
From the passage, we can reach the conclusion that___________________.
| A．achievements come to those who are well prepared |
| B．everyone faces the situation which is scaring or threatening |
| C．the higher one sets his goal, the more achievements he will have |
| D．success never comes to people who always blame |