It was very cold and I had been watching a homeless man make himself comfortable in a “shelter” on the river bank. His “shelter” was a tarpaulin (油布) tied to rocks to keep the wind from blowing it away. He had been living there for over a month. I never saw him with warm clothing or food. I knew what I wanted to do.
When I told my parents what I wanted to do they were alarmed. They said I could be putting myself at risk, taking a box to a homeless person at night! But I knew, in my deep heart, that I would be safe.
I got a box. My parents watched as I added warm gloves, a heavy blanket ... into the box until it was full! Then, I put a Christmas card on top. It said, “Even though we hardly know each other, I want to wish you a Merry Christmas!” I put ten one-dollar bills inside it as well.
My father insisted he went there with me as it was 10 pm on Christmas Eve. I said he could drive me but he had to stay in the car. He agreed.
I took the box and walked towards his “house”. I called, “Sir, I have a Christmas box for you!”
“Go away!” he shouted.
“Sir,” I repeated.
“Go away!” he shouted.
“Why?” I asked him.
He walked over and I expected to see an angry face. Instead I saw two of the most beautiful, gentle, blue eyes I have ever seen.
“Merry Christmas!” I said.
“Why are you doing this?” he asked.
“Because you matter to me,” I said. With that I gave him the box.
Tears came to his eyes and he thanked me. I got back to the car and watched him carry the box like it was filled with gold. I didn’t want to embarrass (使困窘) him by watching him any more so Dad and I left.The underlined word “alarmed” can best be replaced by _____.
| A．pleased | B．worried |
| C．disappointed | D．surprised |
Why did the author ask his father to stay in the car?
| A．Because he wanted to prove he was brave. |
| B．Because he believed the homeless man was bad. |
| C．Because he wanted to protect his father from being hurt. |
| D．Because he didn’t want the homeless man to feel bad. |
When the homeless man saw the author first, he was _____.
| A．quite angry | B．very excited |
| C．quite puzzled | D．very curious |
The author’s purpose in writing the text is to tell readers that _____.
| A．it is easier said than done |
| B．poverty is the mother of health |
| C．where there is a will, there is a way |
| D．a willing helper does not wait until he is asked |
“As easy as falling off a log” is often used to describe a job that does not take much effort. You might hear a student say to her friend that her spelling test was “as easy as falling off a log”.. It is easier to fall off the log than to stay on it.
. One is “easy as pie”. Nothing is easier than eating a piece of sweet, juicy pie unless it is a “piece of cake”.
“Piece of cake” is another expression that means something is extremely easy to do. A friend might tell you that his new job was a “piece of cake”.
Another expression is “as easy as shooting fish in a barrel”. It is hard to imagine why anyone would want to shoot fish in a barrel. But, clearly, fish in a barrel would be much easier to shoot than fish in a stream. .
Sometimes, things that come to us easily, also leave us just as easily. In fact, there is an expression —“easy come, easy go”—that recognizes this.. Easy come, easy go.
When life itself is easy, when you have no cares or problems, you are on “Easy Street”. Everyone wants to live on that imaginary street.. It means to treat a person kindly or gently, especially in a situation where you might be expected to be angry with him. A wife might urge her husband to “go easy on” their son, because the boy did not mean to damage the car.
| A．If you ever tried to walk on a fallen tree log, you understand what the expression means. |
| B．You may win a lot of money in a lottery, then spend it all in a few days. |
| C．Every people has its own way of saying things, its own special expressions. |
| D．Another “easy” expression is to “go easy on a person”. |
E. There are several other expressions that mean the same thing.
F. And one last expression, one that means do not worry or work too hard.
G. In fact, it would be as easy as “falling off a log”.
It seems hard to watch someone yawn（打哈欠） and not to yawn ourselves. Even reading about yawning can make you do it. Now, a new study has found why yawning has such a powerful force.
Yawning when others yawn, the study suggests, is a sign of pity and a form of social connection. Kids don’t develop this deeply rooted behavior until around age four, the study found. Kids with autism (自闭症) are less likely to catch yawns. In the most serious cases, they never do. Yawning might help doctors to see whether the children are developing rightly. The work could also lead to a better understanding of the ways that people communicate and connect.
“Emotional infection seems to be a born thing that connects us together,” said Molly Helt, a graduate student in psychology at the University of Connecticut. “Yawning may be part of that.” Inspiration for her study came when she tried to get her own autistic son to clear his ears on an airplane. She repeatedly yawned at him, hoping he would yawn back. He never did.
“The fact that autistic kids don’t do it might mean they’re really missing out on that emotional connection with people around them, ” she said. “The biggest thing people try to figure out after birth is how we become humans and understand that humans have minds that are different from others’," she added. "Autistic people never seem to understand that.”
Like infectious （有感染力的）laughter and crying, scientists have found that yawning is a shared experience that promotes social connection. Helt said it could fight stress after a period of being nervous and spread a feeling of calm through a group.According to the first two paragraphs, what does the new study suggest?
| A．Yawning is a form of communication. |
| B．It is easy to stop yawning when you see others yawn. |
| C．Children follow others in yawning just after they are born. |
| D．Yawning has some mysterious force which is related to God. |
According to Molly Helt, _______.
| A．humans differ from animals because they communicate with others |
| B．yawning is a kind of emotional connection among humans |
| C．emotions are infectious, but yawning is not |
| D．yawning helps clear ears on planes |
Which of the following is NOT true about yawning?
| A．It is natural to yawn back if people around you yawn. |
| B．Some kids are too young to yawn after others. |
| C．Yawning can be used to test children’s development. |
| D．Kids with autism yawn easily when others yawn. |
The author implies in the last paragraph that _______.
| A．yawning can make people feel relaxed |
| B．it is bad manners to yawn on some social occasions |
| C．the more you yawn, the happier you will be |
| D．yawning is different from infectious laughter and crying in theory |
Many people rush into the commitment of bringing home a four-legged family member, only to find out that they are not ready for a pet. This often results in the dog being turned over to a shelter where it may not find another home. This can be avoided if potential pet owners take the time to figure out if they are truly ready for the responsibilities of pet ownership.
Being a responsible pet owner involves a financial commitment that goes beyond buying dog food. There are also parasite (寄生虫) prevention, boarding costs while traveling and the cost to care for the pet should it become ill or injured. That is not to say that one must be rich in order to have a dog, but it is important to be prepared for the expenses that come with being a pet owner.
Another consideration is the time commitment. An owner away from home for 14 hours every day is not an ideal situation for a dog. A potential dog owner must also consider the time it takes to care for his or her pet, the time it takes to feed, walk, play with, bathe and clean up. Also, dogs require attention. Be prepared to spend time each day petting and playing with it.
Dogs are dogs, and will act like dogs. This includes barking, digging, having accidents in the house and, possibly, destroying some of the owner’s prized possessions, such as furniture, shoes and cell phones. If the above would cause an owner to want to get rid of the dog, then he or she is not yet ready to be a pet owner. Many wonderful pets end up in shelters simply because they acted like dogs!Who might be qualified to be a dog owner, according to the text?
| A．Kari, a teacher who works eight hours a day. |
| B．Jim, who has a daughter sensitive to dog’s smell. |
| C．Dick, a jobless teenager who can hardly pay his rent. |
| D．Steven, a business man who travels a lot on business. |
To be a responsible dog owner you need to do all the following EXCEPT _________.
| A．buying dog food and feeding it |
| B．taking it to hospital when necessary |
| C．spending time each day playing with it |
| D．finding a shelter for it when you are bored with it |
What does the underlined part in the first paragraph probably mean?
| A．Rush to adopt a dog formally. |
| B．Commit to buy a dog and take it home. |
| C．Run into a pet shelter and take one home so quickly. |
| D．Decide to be a pet owner without thinking about it carefully. |
What might be the best title for the text?
| A．Dogs Are Dogs | B．Ready for a Pet? |
| C．Have Time for a Dog? | D．Pets Are Family Members |
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. |
In the last couple of years, there has been a craze about time –traveling TV series in China. This year, it seems like the South Korean drama writers have fallen in a deep ,never-ending love with the time –travel trend.
Rooftop Prince
A prince from the Joseon era (18th century ) , Lee Gak is catapulted 300 years forward into the future in Seoul 2012 with his entourage（随从） when he tries to investigate the suspicious circumstances which surround the death of the woman he loves . In the present, he finds a young woman who looks exactly like his beloved crown princess.
Queen In-hyun’s Man
The drama ,set during the Josen era, features the hero Kim Boong-do as he tries to restore the exiled Queen In-hyun. It is in this time period he is given the time-traveling power that transports him to the future world where he makes friends with an actress playing the role of Queen In-hyun for a drama in her time .
Dr Jin
Jin Hyuk is a genius neurosurgeon.Through a mysterious power, Jin finds himself transported back in time 150 years. He begins treating people there, but the lack of equipment and medical knowledge of the period forces him to seek new ways to aid the sick .Through this challenging process, Jin eventually becomes a genuine doctor.
Operation proposal
Kang Baek-ho realizes that he is love with his best friend, HamYi-seul , on the day of her wedding to another man. He travels back in time to various events of their lives hoping to change the outcome of their relationship .Will Kang be able to change the course of their future?Which of the following words can replace “catapulted ” in Paragraph 2?
| A．captured | B．transported |
| C．traveled | D．deserted |
What do the three TV series have in common ?
| A．They are all about love. |
| B．They all describe what happened in ancient times. |
| C．They are all based on true stories . |
| D．They all feature time –travel. |
.If you are interested in prince –and –princess story ,which will you tune in to ?
| A．Rooftop Prince | B．Queen In-hyun’s Man |
| C．Dr Jin | D．Operation proposal |