It was a cold night in Washington, D.C. and I was heading back to the hotel when a beggar walked up to me. He asked if I would give him some money so he could get something to eat. After a short hesitation, I shook my head and kept walking. With helplessness, he said, “I really am homeless and I really am hungry! You can come with me and watch me eat!” But still, I kept on walking.
The incident bothered me for the rest of the week. In fact, I had money in my pocket and it wouldn’t have killed me to hand over a dollar or two even if he had been lying. On a freezing cold night, I wondered what would happen to a hungry man.
Flying back to my hometown, Anchorage, I couldn’t help thinking of him. I tried to find excuses for my failure to help. After all, government agencies, churches and charities were there to feed him. Besides, you’re not supposed to give money to beggars.
But I just couldn’t forget the incident and began to think I must do something. At that time, I was writing a garden column(专栏) for the local Daily News. Suddenly, I came up with an idea. Why not try to get all my readers to plant one row in their gardens donated to Bean’s? Bean’s Cafe, the soup kitchen which has volunteered to feed hundreds of hungry people every day for many years.
The idea began to take off. I began to receive more e-mails and calls from kind people. They tried their best to show their concerns about the hungry. Food was sent by different warm-hearted people and even those who only grew flowers sent their flowers. They are food for the spirit, which comforted me a lot.
Next year, the Garden Writers Association of America held their annual conference in Anchorage and after learning of Anchorage’s program, Plant a Row for Bean’s became Plant a Row for the Hungry. You can imagine how happy I was then. According to the passage, the reason why the author refused to give some money to the beggar probably is that ________.
| A．he happened not to take money then |
| B．he wasn’t fond of beggars |
| C．he thought that the beggar was lying |
| D．he didn’t like being bothered |
Why did the author can’t help thinking of the beggar ?
| A．Because he felt he had done wrong for his failure to help him. |
| B．Because he wanted to know whether the beggar had lied to him. |
| C．Because he was worried that the beggar might die from hunger. |
| D．Because some agencies, churches and charities should help the beggar. |
What does the underlined phrase “take off” in Paragraph 5 mean?
| A．remove clothes. | B．leave suddenly. |
| C．become successful. | D．come into being. |
What’s the correct order to record the author’s launch of the program “Plant a Row for the Hungry?”
① He ran into a beggar.
② He was regretful.
③ He came up with the idea of planting a row for Bean’s.
④ The Plant a Row for Bean's became Plant a Row for the Hungry.
⑤ He went back home.
⑥ Writers gathered in Anchorage.
| A．①②③④⑤⑥. | B．①⑤②③④⑥. |
| C．①②⑤③④⑥. | D．①②⑤③⑥④. |
(NEW YORK) A French tourist highly praised for rescuing a two-year-old girl in Manhattan said he didn’t think twice before diving into the freezing East River.
Tuesday’s Daily News said 29-year-old Julien Duret from France was the man who left the spot quickly after the rescue last Saturday.
He lifted the little girl out of the water after she fell off the bank at the South Street Seaport museum. He handed the girl to her father, David Anderson, who had dived in after him.
“I didn’t think at all,” Duret told the Daily News. “It happened very fast. I reacted very fast.”
Duret, an engineer on vacation, was walking with his girlfriend along the pier(码头) when he saw something falling into the water. He thought it was a doll, but realized it was a child when he approached the river. Immediately, he took off his coat and jumped into the water.
When he reached the girl, she appeared lifeless, he said. Fortunately, when she was out of the water, she opened her eyes.
Anderson said his daughter slipped off the bank when he was adjusting his camera. An ambulance came later for her, said Duret, who was handed dry clothes from onlookers. Duret caught a taxi with his girlfriend shortly after.
The rescue happened on the day before he left for France. Duret said he didn’t realize his story of heroism had greatly moved New York until he was leaving the city the next morning.
“I don’t really think I’m a hero,” said Duret. “Anyone would do the same thing.”Why was Duret in New York?
| A．To meet his girlfriend. | B．To spend his holiday. |
| C．To work as an engineer. | D．To visit the Andersons. |
What did Duret do shortly after the ambulance came?
| A．He was interviewed by a newspaper. |
| B．He went to the hospital in the ambulance. |
| C．He disappeared from the spot quickly. |
| D．He asked his girlfriend for his dry clothes. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Duret thought twice before he jumped into the cold water. |
| B．Duret dived into the water before the girl’s father. |
| C．The rescue happened on the day Duret left for France. |
| D．Duret didn’t think he was brave enough to be a hero. |
What is probably the headline of this news report?
| A．A Careless Father | B．A Poor Girl |
| C．Warm-hearted Onlookers | D．Brave Frenchman Found |
Dear Alcohol,
You've been around forever. I can remember all the pain you've caused for me.
Do you remember the night you almost took my father's life? I do. He loves you. Sometimes I think he loves you more than he loves me. He's addicted to you, to the way you promise to rid him of his problems only to cause more of them. You just sat back and laughed as his car went spinning through the street, crashing into two other cars. He wasn't the only one hurt by you that night.
Do you remember the night of my first high school party? You were there. My friends were intrigued by you. They treated you as if they were never going to see you again, drinking all of you that they could. I spent two hours that night helping my friends who had fallen completely. "I'm so embarrassed," they said as I held their hair back so that they could vomit (呕吐). "I'm sorry," they said when I called taxies for them, walking them out and paying the driver in advance. "This won't happen again," they said as they were sent to the hospital to have their stomachs pumped. Two 15-year-old girls slept in hospital beds that night thanks to you.
Do you remember the night when you took advantage of my 17-year-old neighbor who had to drive to pick up his sister from her dance lessons? Do you know how we all felt when he hit another car and killed the two people in the other car? He died the next morning too. His sister walked home from her dance lesson, and passed police cars and a crowd of people gathering on the sidewalk just two blocks away from the dance studio. She didn't realize her brother was in the midst of it all. She never saw him again. And it's all your fault.
I wish you'd walk out of my life forever. I don't want anything to do with you. Look at all the pain you've caused. Sure, you've made people happy too from time to time. But the damage you've caused in the lives of millions is inexcusable. Stop luring (引诱) in the people I love. Stop hurting me, please.
Sincerely,
AnonymousWhat is author's purpose in writing to alcohol?
| A．To introduce Mr. Alcohol to the readers |
| B．To describe the harm alcohol did to his family. |
| C．To show how much alcohol can hurt people. |
| D．To show the great fun that alcohol can bring to people's life. |
The underlined phrase "were intrigued by" is closest in meaning to ______.
| A．were familiar with | B．were interested in |
| C．were disappointed with | D．were satisfied with |
What is the tone of the article?
| A．Humorous. | B．Doubtful. | C．Unconcerned. | D．Critical. |
What is the main writing technique of the passage?
| A．Representing something in the form of a person. |
| B．Making something more noticeable than usual. |
| C．Describing something by listing its harmfulness. |
| D．Comparing one thing with another to make his point clear. |
We often hear people say, “I have a good memory for things like that” or “I can remember names”. But do you know memory is the single most important thing and it has played a very important part?
For early men, there were dangerous all around them—bad weather, wild animals. The key to keep on living lay in man’s ability to remember these dangers and the ways he had dealt with them in the past. In order for memories to be stored, the human brain became more complex. And as man learned how to deal with them, he became civilized (文明). Surprisingly, scientists today understand little about memory and how it works. They have not yet found a way to open up the brain and observe its function without destroying it. Perhaps there are two types of memory: short-term and long-term. Short-term refers to those facts that stay with us for a few seconds to a few hours. For instance, when you stay at a hotel, you remember the room number and forget as soon as you leave. Long-term memory, on the other hand, means you remember things for a long period of time. If you spend your honeymoon in a particular hotel, it’s likely that you’ll remember your stay quite clearly.
Scientists also believe that a short-term memory can become a long-term memory through consolidation (巩固). A lot of chemical and physical changes take place in the part of the brain. Although the human brain weighs three pounds, it contains 30 billion nerve cells (神经细胞) acting like a computer. When those changes strengthen the links (联系) in certain nerve cells, a thought becomes part of the long-term memory.According to the author, without the development of man’s memory there would be .
| A．no modern world | B．no recorded history |
| C．no animals | D．no dangers |
Scientists’ knowledge about the function of brain is .
| A．interesting | B．not enough |
| C．great | D．encouraging |
Short-term memory can change into long-term memory on condition that.
| A．memory is good |
| B．it acts like a computer |
| C．people do more exercise |
| D．the links in nerve cells are strengthened by certain changes |
So far the great discovery scientists have made about the function of brain is.
| A．the weight of brain | B．two types of memory |
| C．30 billion nerve cells | D．chemical and physical changes |
A “blogger” is a person who writes on an Internet computer Web site called a “blog”. The word “blog” is a short way of saying Web log, or personal Web site. Anyone can start a blog, and they can write about anything they like.
There are millions of blogs on the Internet today. They provide news, information and ideas in many people who read them. They contain links to other Web sites. And they provide a place for people to write about their ideas and react to the ideas of others.
A research company called Perscus has studied more than 300 Web logs. It says that blogs are most popular with teenage girls. They use them to let their friends know what is happening in their lives. The study also says that more than 100,000 bloggers stopped taking part in the activity after a year.
However, some people develop serious blogs to present political and other ideas. For example, the Republican and Democratic parties in the southern state of Kentucky recently started their own blogs. And American companies are beginning to use blogs to advertise their products.
At the same time, some long-standing blogs have ended last week, blogging leader Dave Winer closed his free blog service weblogs. com. He says the site became too costly to continue. He started the blog four years ago. And thousands of people had written on it. They are now upset because they did not know that the site was closing.
One blog that is still going strong is called Rebecca’s Pocket. Rebecca Blood created the Website in 1999. She wrote about the history of blogs on the site. That article led to a book called “The Weblog Handbook”. It has been translated into four languages so far.
Ms. Blood says Rebecca’s Pocket gets about 30,000 visitors a month. She writes about anything and everything—politics, culture and movies. She recently provided medical advice. And she wrote about how to prevent people from stealing money from on-line bank accounts.The text is mainly written to .
| A．introduce an Internet computer Web site called “blog” |
| B．introduce a short way of saying Web log |
| C．tell readers about blogs |
| D．tell readers how to write blogs |
From the text we can learn that blogs cover almost everything except.
| A．different ideas | B．medical advice |
| C．advertisements | D．account passwords |
Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the text?
| A．Politicians don’t use blogs at all |
| B．A lot of bloggers no longer write or read blogs |
| C．Those who like to use blogs are mostly teenage girls. |
| D．Dave Winer closed his “weblogs.com” because of money shortage. |
The reason why Rebecca’s Pocket is still going strong is that.
| A．it was created by a woman. |
| B．it is about the history of blogs. |
| C．it provides useful information and advice |
| D．it has editions in at least four different languages |
Cancer researchers urged people on Wednesday to take more vitamin D to lower risk of cancer， saying studies showed a clear link. "Our suggestion is for people to increase their intake， through diet or a vitamin supplement，" Dr. Cedric Garland said in a telephone interview.
Garland's research team reviewed 63 studies，including several large long-term ones，on the relationship between vitamin D and certain types of cancer worldwide between 1966 and 2004. "There's nothing that has this ability to prevent cancer，" he said， urging governments and public health officials to do more to fortify foods with vitamin D. Garland is part of a University of California at San Diego Moors Cancer Center team that published its findings this week online in the American Journal of Public Health.
Vitamin D is found in milk，as well as in some fortified orange juice，yogurt and cheeses，usually at around 100 international units （IU） a serving. People might want to consider a vitamin supplement to raise their intake to 1000 IUs per day， Garland said，adding that it was well within the safety guidelines established by the National Academy of Sciences.
The authors said that taking more vitamin D could be especially important for people living in northern areas，which receive less vitamin D from sunshine.
African Americans，who don't produce as much of the vitamin because of their skin color， could also benefit significantly from a higher intake， the authors said.Which of the following can not help people get more Vitamin D？
| A．Have some sunshine | B．Have more meat |
| C．Have more fortified cheese | D．Have a vitamin supplement |
Who can Garland probably be？
| A．A health researcher | B．A doctor |
| C．A scientist | D．A public health official |
Which of the following food can lower people‘s chance of getting cancer？
| A．Milk | B．Fortified orange juice |
| C．Fortified yogurt | D．All of the above |
People from which area should take more Vitamin D according to the passage？
| A．Asian people | B．African people |
| C．American people | D．European people |