Americans love cars.They go everywhere in them.8 5%of people in the US go to and from work by car. And most adults have driving licenses.Why does this car culture exist?How it started?
America’s love of cars started after the war(战争)when soldiers returned home from World War II to rebuild their lives.They borrowed money from the government to buy houses and cars which became the symbols of status(地位).The more money they had,the bigger their cars were.
●Making of roads
During the war,President Eisenhower noticed what good roads Germany had.He decided to build new four-lane(四车道)roads in America.He said if something happened suddenly,the two-lane roads wouldn’t be able to carry all the cars that would suddenly leave the cities.Car and oil companies liked his idea and building started.
●Car lover
Not just teenagers are crazy about cars.Some Americans love their cars so much that they paint their cars beautifully .These are called Art Cars.Every April there is an activity in Houston,Texas,where they show their cars.
●Pollution
Cars have polluted the environment.American President Bush refused a worldwide law that is against pollution.Many countries were angry about it.Bush said he had to think of the American economy(经济)and all the American people that make money from cars.Factories say they want to make cars that pollute less.But others say making cars that pollute less will never be as good as having fewer cars.
When did Americans begin to love cars?
A.Before the new two-lane roads were built.
B.After World War II.
C.During World War II.
New four-1ane roads were build _______.
A.in Germany
B.by car and oil companies
C.in America
The underlined word “building” here means “the building of _______”.
A.companies B.roads C.houses
What were other countries’ feelings about Bush’s decision?
A.They agreed with him.
B.They showed anger to it.
C.They paid no attention to it.
What does the last sentence mean?
A.It’s better to have fewer cars.
B.It’s better to make cars that pollute less.
C.It’s easier to make cars that pollute less.
What's in a Name?
Many American names come from England.But where did most English names come from?
Centuries ago,most people in England had only one name﹣﹣their first name.In the 11th century,five
or six of the 50 people in a village might be named William,and it was easy to get confused.But in the Middle Ages,people found a way to describe each person exactly.If there were four Williams in one village,one might be referred to as William the son of John.A second might be called William from the hill.A third,William the blacksmith(铁匠).And a fourth,William the brown haired.In conversation,people might refer to the four Williams as William John's son,William hill,William smith,and William brown.
It was 300 or 400 years before the extra ( 附加的) names gradually developed into last names,or
surnames.They were passed on from generation to generation.By the 1300s,Robert,the son of William
smith,had the name Robert smith,even if he was not a blacksmith like his father.As the last name became widely accepted,the first letter was capitalized,as in Robert Smith.By the 15th century,most people of the upper and middle classes had surnames.
Many surnames were based on father﹣son relations.The"son of"part was added to the father's first
name,like Johnson,meaning John's son.Sometimes it was shortened to just"s",as in Jones or Evans.
Surnames like Hill described the place where a person lived.They are the most common type of surname.A third kind of surname was based on a person's job.Forester was someone who looked after the forest.
In the Middle Ages,occupation names such as Baker,Carpenter,and Miller became common.The fourth kind of surname was nickname(绰号).A man whose surname was Bear might be as fierce as a bear.
Have you ever wondered why some surnames are so common?The most common surname in the
English language is Smith.Being able to make metals(金属)into tools was an important skill in the Middle Ages,and many people were trained as blacksmiths.The most common American surnames are Smith,Johnson,William and Brown.
61.Where do many American names come from?
62.When did people find a way to describe each person exactly?
63.How long did it take for extra names to develop into last names?
64.What is the fourth paragraph mainly about?
65.Why were many people trained blacksmith in the Middle Ages?
From the Other Side
Lara and Tara are twins.(1) but they are very different in
everything else.For example,hot food is Lara's favorite,and Tara has a sweet choice.
However,this isn't the problem with the twin girls.They always argued that the opposite one was wrong. (2) ,while Tara insisted that mornings were fresh and it was difficult to stay up till midnight.
(3) .To put an end to their fights,their parents decided to create a small drama.They wanted the girls to understand that they were both correct from their own point of view.Their parents covered the girls'eyes with black ribbons,and brought them to the dining room.(4) Lara was asked to stand on one side of the board and Tara on the other.They couldn't see the other side of it.When the ribbons were taken away,they were surprised to see a huge board between them.
Now,their father asked Lara,"What's the color of the board?"She replied,"It's black!"(5) .She replied,"It's white!"The two girls began to argue again.While Lara was confident it was black,Tara was sure it was white.Then,they were asked to exchange(交换)their places.They couldn't believe their eyes.Tara,who insisted it was a white board,saw a black one.Similarly,Lara,who argued the board was black,was shocked to see a white one.They understood that each of them was right in her own view.Most of us are like Lara and Tara.We are right most times,but insist that others are wrong!
A.They look like each other
B.For years,their arguments continued
C.Their mother asked Tara the same question
D.In the room,a big board was placed in the middle
E.Lara thought it was terrible to get up early in the morning.
Say you're sitting around with some friends playing video games and someone mentions a game that happens to be one of your favorites."Oh,that game's easy.So not worth the time,"one of your friends says.The others agree.Although you enjoy the game quite a lot,not wanting to argue with them,you go along with the crowd.
You have just experienced what is commonly referred to as peer pressure(同伴压力),also called peer
influence.You will adopt a certain type of behavior,dress,or attitude in order to be accepted as part of a group of your"peers".As a teen,you are likely to have experienced the effect of peer pressure in a number of different areas.
We are all influenced by our peers at any age.For teens,as school and other activities take you away
from home,you may spend more time with your friends than with your family.As you become more
independent,your peers naturally play a greater role in your life.
According to Dr.Casey from Cornell University,teens are very quick and accurate in making decisions
on their own and in situations where they have time to think.However,when they make decisions in the
heat of the momentor in social situations,their decisions are often influenced by factors like peers.In a
recent study,teen volunteers played a video driving game,either alone or with friends watching.The
researchers discovered that the number of risks teens took more than doubled when their friends were
watching,compared with when they played alone.This shows that teens may find it more difficult to control risky behavior when their friends are around,or in situations where they are extremely angry.
Just as people can influence us to make unwise choices,they can also influence us to make good ones.A teen might join in a volunteer project because his or her friends are doing it,or get good grades because his or her friends think getting good grades is important.In fact,friends often encourage each other to study,or try out for sports.
While we are always influenced by those around us,the decision to act or not is up to us.So when it
comes to decision making,the choice is up to you.
52.According to the passage,Dr.Casey probably agrees that teens .
A.like to play driving games with their friends
B.prefer situations where they have time to think
C.may take more risks when their friends are around
D.are slow in making decisions when they are on their own
53.The words" in the heat of the moment"in Paragraph 4 probably mean" ".
A.when teens avoid possible risks
B.when teens trust their judgment
C.when teens lose control over their anger
D.when teens give consideration to situations
54.What can we learn from the passage?
A.Teens are eager to be different from their peers.
B.Peer pressure has effects on both teens and adults.
C.Peer pressure does more harm than good to teens.
D.Tees think it challenging to get good grades at school.
55.Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A.Peer Pressure:Is It Necessary to Deal with It?
B.Peer Pressure:Is It Possible to Get Away from It?
C.Peer Pressure:Its Benefits to Teens and Friend Making
D.Peer Pressure:Its Influence on Teens and Decision Making.
Buying Is Doing?
How important is shopping to you?How much time do you spend buying things?And how much time
do you spend organizing these things in your home?In the future,how much time will you spend in movie
theaters,at amusement parks,at shopping malls,or at convenience stores?When you add it all up,you will probably see you spend a lot of your life consuming(消费)things.Consuming products is not necessarily bad.However,if we spend too much time doing it,we should look at it carefully.
Imagine that you have a week off from school.You don't have to go to class.However,in this week,
you cannot spend any money﹣﹣﹣﹣﹣no shopping,no movies,no eating out.How would you spend your time?What things would bring you happiness?Perhaps you would take a walk with your best friend.Perhaps you would help a child read.Or you might spend time with your family.
When we look back,it is likely that non﹣consuming experiences like these will be our most important
memories.Why?Non﹣consuming activities are active,not passive.They don't come in a package.You make the experience yourself.For example,each person who reads to a child will have a different experience.The experience changes with the reader,the child,and the book.Similarly,when you have a conversation with a friend,you are actively creating an experience.The conversation that you have with your friend cannot be experienced or recreated by anyone else.However,if you watch a movie with a friend,you will each have a package experience.It requires no action and little interaction between the two of you.
The environment we live in encourages us to have packaged experiences.We feel that we must
consume because we believe that buying is doing.However,we can start a personal revolution ( 变革) against consumerism.How?By consuming less.We can ask ourselves what experiences bring us the greatest satisfaction.Then we can organize our lives so that we have more of those kinds of experiences.
49.If consuming products takes too much time,we should .
A.spend less money
B.think about it carefully
C.organize our things
D.go to convenience stores
50.According to the passage,the writer believes that .
A.we can say no to consumerism by consuming less
B.buying things can bring us the greatest satisfaction
C.the environment seldom influences our shopping choices
D.consuming experiences will be our most important memories
51.What is the writer's main purpose in writing this passage?
A.To introduce some ways of enjoying our spare time.
B.To encourage people to have more active experiences.
C.To explain reasons behind people's shopping behavior.
D.To share his personal experience in consuming products.
The Sixth Time I Went to the Principal's Office
When I was in the seventh grade,I had problems behaving.My heart was in the right place,but I couldn't always follow the rules.I played many tricks
on my schoolmates.Once,I even pulled a girl's hair on the school bus to get her attention.As a result,I was repeatedly sent to the office of the principal(校长).Although I hated going there,I did not hate the principal,Mr.Ratcliff.
Mr.Ratcliff was a kind,elderly man.When he spanked( 打屁股) me for putting some ants into a
classmate's pencil box,it didn't hurt at all,but it did hurt my feelings.I thought so much of him and
moments like that seemed to prove I was hopelessly bad.
When I got called to Mr.Ratcliff's office for the sixth time,I had no idea what I had done.I
felt disappointed as I walked down there.I went into his office,sat down,and looked at the floor.Then he said the last thing I expected to hear:"Kevin,I've heard you've been behaving really well lately.I
want you to know how proud I am of you,and I just called you down to my office to give you a
peppermint."
"Really?"I was surprised.
"Yes.Now you can take that peppermint and go back to class."
I carried the peppermint with me as if it was a gold coin.When I got into my classroom,I bragged ( 吹嘘) to my classmates about my turnaround,excitedly.I wasn't so bad after all.
Mr.Ratcliff was really kind.He made me realize that I was just a kid who had problems with behavior.He bought some peppermints and took the time to notice me when I got something﹣anything﹣right.Mr.Ratcliff gave me some hope by giving me some love.I will just remember him for the rest of my life.
(1)In his seventh grade,the writer .
A.hated the principal
B.had problems behaving
C.always followed the rules
D.often helped his classmates
(2)How did the writer feel when he went to the principal's office for the sixth time?
A.Lonely.
B.Excited.
C.Confident.
D.Disappointed.
(3)The sixth time the writer went to the principal's office,he got .
A.a peppermint
B.a model bus
C.a pencil box
D.a coin
(4)The writer will always remember Mr.Ratcliff,because the principal .
A.talked with him in the office
B.played games with him
C.expected him to be a teacher
D.gave him some hope and love.