I cheated on a unit test in math class this morning during second period with Mr Burke Afterward, I was too sick to eat lunch just thinking about it．
I came straight home from school, went to my room, and lay on the floor trying to decide whether it would be better to run away from home now or after supper．Mostly I wished I was dead It wasn't even an accident that I cheated．
Yesterday Mr．Burke announced there'd be a unit test and anyone who didn't pass would have to come to school on Saturday, most particularly me, since I didn't pass the last unit test I did plan to study just to prove to him that I'm plenty smart - which I am．mostly - except in math．
Anyway, I got my desk ready to study on．Just when I was ready to work, Nicho came into my room with our new rabbit and it jumped on my desk and knocked the flashcards all over the floor．What a mess! Nicho and I finally took the rabbit outside but then Philip came to my room and also Marty from next door and before long it was dinner．
After dinner my father said I could watch a special on television if I'd done all my homework．Of course I said I had．That was the beginning．I felt terrible telling my father a lie about the homework．
It was nine o'clock when I got up to my room and that was too late to study for the unit test so I lay in my bed with the light off and decided what I would do the next day when I was m Mr．Burke's math class not knowing the 8- and 9-times tables．
So, you see, the cheating was planned after all．
The next day, I'd go into class as usual, acting like things were going just great．I'd sit down next to Stanley Plummer - he is so smart in math it makes you sick - and from time to time, I'd glance over at his paper to copy the answers．Everything was okay except that my stomach was upside down and I wanted to die．
The fact is, I couldn't believe what I'd done ．in cold blood．I began to wonder about myself．I've never been a wonderful kid that everybody in the world loves．I have a bad temper and I like to have my own way and I argue a lot．Sometimes I can be mean．But most of the time I've thought of myself as a pretty decent kid．Mostly I work hard, I care for little kids, and I tell the truth．Now all of a sudden I've turned into this criminal．It's hard to believe I'm just a boy．And all because of one stupid math test．
Lying on the floor of my room, I begin to think that probably I've been bad all along．It just took this math test to clinch it．I'll probably never tell the truth again．
I tell my mother I'm sick when she calls me to come down for dinner．She doesn't believe me, but puts me to bed anyhow．1 lie there in the early winter darkness wondering what terrible thing I'll be doing next when my father comes in and sits down on my bed．
"What's the matter?" he asks．"I've got a stomachache," I say．Luckily, it's too dark to see his face．"Is that all?" "Yeah．" "Mommy says you've been in your room since school．" "I was sick there too," I say．"She thinks something happened today and you're upset．" That's the thing that really drives me crazy about my mother．She knows things sitting inside my head the same as if I was turned inside out．
"Well," my father says．I can tell he doesn't believe me．"My stomach is feeling sort of upset．" I hedge．"Okay," he says and he pats my leg and gets up．
Just as he shuts the door to my room I call out to him in a voice I don't even recognize as my own．"How come?" he calls back not surprised or anything．So I tell him I cheated on this math test．To tell the truth, I'm pretty much surprised at myself．I didn't plan to tell him anything．
He doesn't say anything at first and that just about kills me．I'd be fine if he'd spank me or something．And then he says I'll have to call Mr．Burke．It's not what I had in mind．"Now?" I ask surprised．"Now," he says．He turns on the light and pulls off my covers．"I'm not going to," I say．
But I do it．I call Mr．Burke, and I tell him exactly what happened, even that I decided to cheat the night before the test．He says I'll come on Saturday to take another test, which is okay with me, and I thank him a whole lot for being understanding and all．
"Today I thought I was turning into a criminal," I tell my father when he turns out my light．
Sometimes my father kisses me good night and sometimes he doesn't．I never know．But tonight he does．After the author cheated on the math test, he felt________．
| A．pleased that nobody knew it |
| B．excited that he had succeeded |
| C．frightened because he might be caught |
| D．unhappy because he had done something wrong |
By saying "It wasn't even an accident that I cheated", the author means that_______．
| A．he had planned not to study before the test |
| B．he had planned to cheat with Plummer before the test |
| C．he decided to cheat after he had wasted the whole evening |
| D．he decided to cheat when he knew there was going to be a test |
Before the cheating, the author thought that_______．
| A．he was a bad boy in everything |
| B．he always did what he was told |
| C．he was a boy that everyone loved |
| D．he was a decent child but not perfect |
The author thinks his mother often drives him crazy because________．
| A．she is very strict with him |
| B．she doesn't care for him actually |
| C．She always knows what he is thinking |
| D．she always tells him to look after himself |
After he was informed of what he had done, the father________．
| A．scolded the author severely |
| B．didn't say anything and left |
| C．called Mr．Burke immediately |
| D．let the author make a call to Mr．Burke |
The author's father kissed the author good night because________．
| A．he had done something unusual |
| B．he promised to study math harder |
| C．he was willing to take a make-up test |
| D．he realized his mistake and had the courage to admit it |
The term “multitasking” originally referred to a computer’s ability to carry out several tasks at one time. For many people, multitasking has become a way of life and even a key to success. In fact, some excellent mental aerobic exercises involve engaging the brain in two or more challenging activities at a time. Although checking e-mail while talking on a phone and reading the newspaper may be second nature for some people, many times multitasking can make us less productive, rather than more. And studies show that too much multitasking can lead to increased stress, anxiety and memory loss.
In order to multitask, the brain uses an area known as the prefrontal cortex (前额叶脑皮层). Brain scans of volunteers performing multiple tasks together show that as they shift from task to task, this front part of the brain actually takes a moment of rest between tasks. You may have experienced a prefrontal cortex “moment of rest” yourself if you’ve ever dialed a phone number and suddenly forgotten who you dialed when the line is answered. What probably occurred is that between the dialing and the answering, your mind shifted to anther thought or task, and then took that “moment” to come back. Research has also shown that for many volunteers, job efficiency declines while multitasking, as compared to when they perform only one task at a time.
Multitasking is easiest when at least one of the tasks is habitual, or requires little thought. Most people don’t find it difficult to eat and read the newspaper at the same time. However, when two or more attention-requiring tasks are attempted at one time, people sometimes make mistakes.
We often don’t remember things as well when we’re trying to manage several details at the same time. Without mental focus, we may not pay enough attention to new information coming in, so it never makes it into our memory stores. That is one of the main reasons we forget people’s names—even sometimes right after they have introduced themselves. Multitasking can also affect our relationships. If someone checks their e-mail while on the phone with a friend, they may come off as absent-minded or disinterested. It can also cause that person to miss or overlook key information being passed on to them.Why are some mental aerobic exercises designed to engage people in multitasking?
| A．To make them more productive. |
| B．To reduce their stress and anxiety. |
| C．To develop their communication skills. |
| D．To help them perform daily tasks more easily. |
According to Paragraph 2, why may a person suddenly forget who he has called?
| A．He is probably interrupted by another task. |
| B．He may need a rest between dialing and speaking. |
| C．He may leave his prefrontal cortex temporarily damaged. |
| D．He is probably not very familiar with the person he has called. |
People tend to make mistakes when _______.
| A．the tasks require little thought |
| B．their relationships with others are affected |
| C．new messages are processed one after another |
| D．they perform several challenging tasks at a time |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Multitasking has become a way of life. |
| B．Multitasking exercises need to be improved. |
| C．Multitasking often leads to efficiency decline. |
| D．Multitasking enables people to remember things better. |
Oprah Winfrey, born in 1954, is an American talk show host, best known for her multi-award-winning talk show. She is also, according to some assessments, the most influential woman in the world. It's no surprise that her endorsement(认可)can bring overnight sales fortune that defeats most, if not all, marketing campaigns. The star features about 20 products each year on her “Favorite Things” show. There’s even a term for it: the Oprah Effect.
Her television career began unexpectedly. When she was 16 year old, she had the idea of being a journalist to tell other people’s stories in a way that made a difference in their lives and the world. She was on television by the time she was 19 years old. And in 1986 she started her own television show with a continuous determination to succeed at first.
TIME magazine wrote, “People would have doubted Oprah Winfrey’s swift rise to host of the most popular talk show on TV. In a field dominated by white males, she is a black female of big size. As interviewers go, she is no match for Phil Donahue. What she lacks in journalistic toughness, she makes up for in plainspoken curiosity, rich humor and, above all understanding. Guests with sad stories to tell tend to bring out a tear in Oprah’s eye. They, in turn, often find themselves exposing things they would not imagine telling anyone, much less a national TV audience.”
“I was nervous about the competition and then I became my own competition raising the bar every year, pushing, pushing, pushing myself as hard as I knew. It doesn't matter how far you might rise. At some point you are bound to fall if you’re constantly doing what we do, raising the bar. If you're constantly pushing yourself higher, higher the law of averages, you will at some point fall. And when you do, I want you to know this, remember this: there is no such thing as failure. Failure is just life trying to move us in another direction” as Oprah addressed graduates at Harvard on May 30, 2013.The Oprah Effect refers to _______.
| A．the effect on a business |
| B．the power of Oprah’s opinions |
| C．the impact on talkshows |
| D．the assessment of Oprah’s talk show |
What can be inferred about Oprah’s television career?
| A．She once gave up on her choice |
| B．Her swift success has been expected. |
| C．It lives up to her parents’ expectation. |
| D．She must have been challenged by white males. |
The message from Oprah to graduates at Harvard is that _______.
| A．failure is nothing to fear |
| B．success comes after failure |
| C．there is no need to set goals too high |
| D．pushing physical limits makes no sense |
Which of the following best describes Oprah Winfrey?
| A．Dull and pushy. | B．Honest but tough. |
| C．Curious but weak. | D．Caring and determined. |
This afternoon, I spoke with Governor Daniel Malloy and FBI Director Mueller. I offered Governor Malloy my condolences(哀悼) on behalf of the nation, and made it clear he will have every single resource that he needs to investigate this horrible crime, care for the victims and their families.
The majority of those who died today were children—beautiful little kids between the ages of 5 and 10 years old. They had their entire lives ahead of them—birthdays, graduations, weddings, kids of their own. Among the fallen were also teachers—men and women who devoted their lives to helping our children fulfill their dreams.
So our hearts are broken today—for the parents and grandparents, sisters and brothers of these little children, and for the families of the adults who were lost. Our hearts are broken for the parents of the survivors as well, for as blessed as they are to have their children home tonight, they know that their children’s innocence has been torn away from them too early, and there are no words that will ease their pain.
As a country, we have been through this too many times. Whether it’s an elementary school in Newtown, or a shopping mall in Oregon, or a temple in Wisconsin, or a movie theater in Aurora, or a street corner in Chicago—these neighborhoods are our neighborhoods, and these children are our children. And we’re going to have to come together and take meaningful action to prevent more tragedies like this, regardless of the politics.
This evening, Michelle and I will do what I know every parent in America will do, which is hug our children a little tighter and we’ll tell them that we love them, and we’ll remind each other how deeply we love one another. But there are families in Connecticut who cannot do that tonight. And they need all of us right now. In the hard days to come, that community needs us to be at our best as Americans. And I will do everything in my power to help.
Because while nothing can fill the space of a lost child or loved one, all of us can extend a hand to those in need—to remind them that we are there for them, that we are praying for them, that the love they felt for those they lost endures not just in their memories but also in ours.Who is the speaker likely to be?
| A．A victim parent. |
| B．The US president. |
| C．A US police officer. |
| D．The Connecticut governor. |
How many gun shootings has the speaker mentioned?
| A．Two. | B．Three. | C．Four. | D．Five. |
What can we learn from this passage?
| A．The survivors may also suffer from the shooting tragedy. |
| B．Nothing has been done to prevent gun shooting in America. |
| C．The victims of this gun shooting are all kids aged from 5 to 10. |
| D．Gun shooting is more likely to happen in American school campus. |
The speaker wants the audience _______.
| A．to help those in need | B．to protect themselves |
| C．to investigate the crime | D．to trust the US government |
Columbus College , 241 Queen Elizabeth Drive ,Kowloon City
Memo
To: All Staff
From: Jakie Mok, Secretary; Sports Development Committee
Date: May 20, 2010
A week ago, “Sports for Life” programme was sent to the parents, requiring them to select a sport they wanted their child to play. Since then, our staff have received lots of calls from parents asking for more information about it. Here is a memo (备忘录) for your reference when you answer the phones.
Sports 1: Basketball.
We expect that this will be the most popular of the four sports. Therefore, students should be advised to sign up as soon as possible. Students will take a private bus to and from Kwun Tong Sports Park .To cover the cost of hiring a bus , each student will have to pay ＄10 each time. There will be four basketball courts available for our use with one teacher watching over each game.
Sports 2: Gym
We will be using St. Peter’s Memorial Park. There are two reasons for choosing this park. First, it is not very busy and crowded before 6:00 pm. Second, it has lot of trees with plenty of shade. Students must bring along two bottles of water to prevent thirst. Three activities, skipping , jogging , outdoor aerobics (有氧运动),all of which are free of charge, will be arranged. And there will be a teacher on duty for each of the activities.
Sports 3: Hiking
Hiking(远足)will take place at Kowloon Peak. The activity will start at 2:30 pm and finish 90 minutes later. Three teachers will accompany the students, and a hiking instructor will accompany each group of 15 hikers . Each instructor will cost ＄75/hr. Students are advised to bring plenty of water and sunscreen.
Sports 4: Swimming
The Kowloon City Aquatic Centre is a 10-minute walk from our school. Four teachers will go to the pool and conduct the goings-on from the poolside. We will only be able to reserve the pool for one hour (i.e. 2:45pm to 3:45pm).Only students skilful at swimming can take up this activity. The pool will have two lifeguards present. Girls must wear a swimming suit. The cost is ＄10 per visit. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Students selecting basketball had better register early. |
| B．Students participating in gym should arrive at 6:00 pm. |
| C．Hiking usually begins at 2:30 pm and lasts 2 hours. |
| D．Students having swimming suits can take up swimming. |
It can be inferred from the passage that.
| A．students taking part in basket ball will walk to the courts |
| B．every student can gain admission to one of the four sports |
| C．hiking students can have a regular rest in the shade of trees |
| D．students taking up the four sports should bring bottles of water |
The purpose of the memo is to .
| A．attract students’ interest in the programme |
| B．require the parents to select a sport for their child |
| C．help the staff explain the programme to the parents |
| D．remind teachers and lifeguards to be present on time |
A German study suggests that people who were too optimistic about their future actually faced greater risk of disability or death within 10 years than those pessimists(悲观者) who expected their future to be worse.
The paper, published this March in Psychology and Aging, examined health and welfare surveys from roughly 40,000 Germans between ages 18 and 96. The surveys were conducted every year from 1993 to 2003.
Survey respondents (受访者) were asked to estimate their present and future life satisfaction on a scale of 0 to 10, among other questions.
The researchers found that young adults (age 18 to 39) routinely overestimated their future life satisfaction, while middle-aged adults (age 40 to 64) more accurately predicted how they would feel in the future. Adults of 65 and older, however, were far more likely to underestimate their future life satisfaction. Not only did they feel more satisfied than they thought they would, the older pessimists seemed to suffer a lower ratio (比率) of disability and death for the study period.
“We observed that being too optimistic in predicting a better future than actually observed was associated with a greater risk of disability and a greater risk of death within the following decade,” wrote Frieder R. Lang, a professor at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg.
Lang and his colleagues believed that people who were pessimistic about their future may be more careful about their actions than people who expected a rosy future.
“Seeing a dark future may encourage positive evaluations of the actual self and may contribute to taking improved precautions (预防措施),” the authors wrote.
Surprisingly, compared with those in poor health or who had low incomes, respondents who enjoyed good health or income were associated with expecting a greater decline（下降）. Also, the researchers said that higher income was related to a greater risk of disability.
The authors of the study noted that there were limitations to their conclusions. Illness, medical treatment and personal loss could also have driven health outcomes.
However, the researchers said a pattern was clear. “We found that from early to late adulthood, individuals adapt their expectations of future life satisfaction from optimistic, to accurate, to pessimistic,” the authors concluded.. According to the study, who made the most accurate prediction of their future life satisfaction?
| A．Optimistic adults. | B．Middle-aged adults. |
| C．Adults in poor health. | D．Adults of lower income. |
Pessimism may be positive in some way because it causes people ______.
| A．to fully enjoy their present life |
| B．to estimate their contribution accurately |
| C．to take measures against potential risks |
| D．to value health more highly than wealth |
. How do people of higher income see their future?
| A．They will earn less money. |
| B．They will become pessimistic. |
| C．They will suffer mental illness. |
| D．They will have less time to enjoy life. |
. What is the clear conclusion of the study?
| A．Pessimism guarantees chances of survival. |
| B．Good financial condition leads to good health. |
| C．Medical treatment determines health outcomes. |
| D．Expectations of future life satisfaction decline with age. |