One day when I was 12, my mother gave me an order: I was to walk to the public library, and borrow at least one book for the summer. This was one more weapon for her to defeat my strange problem - inability to read.
In the library, I found my way into the "Children's Room." I sat down on the floor and pulled a few books off the shelf at random. The cover of a book caught my eye. It presented a picture of a beagle. I had recently had a beagle, the first and only animal companion I ever had as a child. He was my secret sharer, but one morning, he was gone, given away to someone who had the space and the money to care for him. I never forgot my beagle.
There on the book's cover was a beagle which looked identical(相同的) to my dog. I ran my fingers over the picture of the dog on the cover. My eyes ran across the title, Amos, the Beagle with a Plan. Unknowingly, I had read the title. Without opening the book, I borrowed it from the library for the summer.
Under the shade of a bush, I started to read about Amos. I read very, very slowly with difficulty. Though pages were turned slowly, I got the main idea of the story about a dog who, like mine, had been separated from his family and who finally found his way back home. That dog was my dog, and I was the little boy in the book. At the end of the story, my mind continued the final scene of reunion, on and on, until my own lost dog and I were, in my mind, running together.
My mother's call returned me to the real world. I suddenly realized something: I had read a book, and I had loved reading that book. Everyone knew I could not read. But I had read it. Books could be incredibly wonderful and I was going to read them.
I never told my mother about my "miraculous" (奇迹般地) experience that summer, but she saw a slow but remarkable improvement in my classroom performance during the next year. And years later, she was proud that her son had read thousands of books, was awarded a PhD in literature, and authored his own books, articles, poetry and fiction. The power of the words has held.
The author's mother told him to borrow a book in order to
The book caught the author's eye because
Why could the author manage to read the book through?
What can be inferred from the last paragraph?
Which one could be the best title of the passage?
Recently, one of my best friends, whom I’ve shared just about everything with since the first day of kindergarten, spent the weekend with me.Since I moved to a new town several years ago, we’ve both always looked forward to the few times a year when we can see each other.
Over the weekend, we spent hours and hours, staying up late into the night, talking about the people she was hanging around with.She started telling me stories about her new boyfriend, about how he experimented with drugs and was into other self-destructive behavior.I was blown away! She told me how she had been lying to her parents about where she was going and even stealing out to see this guy because they didn’t want her around him.No matter how hard I tried to tell her that she deserved better, she didn’t believe me.Her self-respect seemed to have disappeared.
I tried to convince her that she was ruining her future and heading for big trouble.I felt like I was getting nowhere.I just couldn’t believe that she really thought it was acceptable to hang with a bunch of losers, especially her boyfriend.
By the time she left, I was really worried about her and exhausted by the experience.It had been so frustrating, I had come close to telling her several times during the weekend that maybe we had just grown too far apart to continue our friendship,but I didn’t.I put the power of friendship to the final test.We’d been friends for far too long.I had to hope that she valued me enough to know that I was trying to save her from hurting herself.I wanted to believe that our friendship could conquer anything.
A few days later, she called to say that she had thought long and hard about our conversation, and then she told me that she had broken up with her boyfriend.I just listened on the other end of the phone with tears of joy running down my face.It was one of the truly rewarding moments in my life.Never had I been so proud of a friend.In the writer’s opinion, her friend ________.
A.was a girl with no self-respect |
B.could find a better boyfriend |
C.was brave enough to stick to her own choice |
D.didn’t value the writer’s suggestion |
What did the writer worry about?
A.She would lose the friendship with her. |
B.Her friend’s parents would be worried about their daughter. |
C.Her friend would get into great trouble with the boy. |
D.Her friend’s boyfriend would be in great trouble. |
We may leam from Paragraph 3 that the writer ________.
A.didn’t want to go anywhere else |
B.hated her friend’s hanging with her boyfriend |
C.couldn’t believe that her friend’s choice was acceptable |
D.doubted that she could in any way help her friend |
What can be concluded from the passage?
A.Friendship starting from childhood is not reliable. |
B.Friendship is a cure for any injury in life. |
C.Friendship should be everlasting once begun. |
D.Friendship can have magical power in life. |
Federal regulators (管理者) Wednesday approved a plan to create a nationwide emergence alert (警报) system using text messages delivered to cell phones.
Text messages have exploded in popularity in recent years, particularly among young people. The wireless industry's trade association, CTIA, estimates(估计) more than 48 billion text messages are sent each month.
The plan comes from the Warning Alert and Response Network Act, a 2009 federal law that requires improvements to the nation's emergency alert system. The act tasked(派给…工作) the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) with coming up with new ways to alert the public about emergencies.
"The ability to deliver accurate and timely warnings and alerts through cell phones and other mobile services is an important next step in our efforts to help ensure that the American public has the information they need to take action to protect themselves and their families before, and during, disasters and other emergencies," FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said following approval of the plan.
Participation in the alert system by carriers –telecommunications companies is voluntary, but it has received solid support from the wireless industry.
The program would be optional for cell phone users. They also may not be charged for receiving alerts.
There would be three different types of messages, according to the rules.
The first would be a national alert from the president, likely involving a terrorist attack or natural disaster. The second would involve "approaching threats," which could include natural disasters like hurricanes or storms or even university shootings. The third would be reserved for child abduction (绑架) emergencies, or so-called Amber Alerts.
The service could be in place by 2012.What is the purpose of the approved plan?
A.To warn people of emergencies through messages. |
B.To popularize the use of cell phones. |
C.To estimate the monthly number of messages. |
D.To promote the wireless industry. |
The improvement to the present system is in the charge of ____.
A.CTIA | B.the Warning Alert and Response Network | C.FCC | D.federal regulators |
The carriers’ participation in the system is determined by _____.
A.the US federal government | B.mobile phone users |
C.the carriers themselves | D.the law of the United States |
Which of the following is true of cell phone users?
A.They must accept the alert service. | B.They may enjoy the alert service for free. |
C.They must send the alerts to others | D.They may choose the types of messages |
An alert message will NOT be sent if _____
A.a child loses his way. | B.a university shooting happens |
C.a natural disaster happens | D.a terrorist attack occurs |
For a 400-year-old art form, opera had a bad fame: overweight actresses singing the words which were hard to understand in one of those romantic languages you were supposed to learn in high school. And with tickets costing as much as $145 a performance, operagoers also had a certain appearance in people’s mind: rich, well-dressed and old.
But now opera companies around the country are loosening their ties and kicking off their shoes in an attempt to keep opera alive and take it to a younger and not so wealthy audience.
Opera producers have found that to attract this crowd, they need to associate opera with the common people. That means no formal suits, old-styled theatre or bank-breaking ticket prices. And because young people don’t or won’t come to the opera, companies are bringing the opera to them, giving performances in such usual places as parks, libraries and public schools.
The Houston Grand Opera’s choice is the public library, where it performs “mobile operas”, shortened versions of child-friendly operas. This summer’s production is Hansel & Gretel. By performing smaller versions of large prod
uctions, producers are able to make people interested while keeping costs at a reasonable level. The San Francisco Opera, which will be celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, is staging Cinderella free of charge, keeping costs down by employing students from its Young
Artists’ Training Program.
Which is the main idea of this passage?
A.Opera is famous for its long history. |
B.Opera is only performed for rich people. |
C.Opera companies are trying to keep opera alive. |
D.Young people are not interested in opera. |
The underlined phrase in the second paragraph means _________.
A.breaking up the old rules | B.changing the dresses |
C.making the audience at ease | D.advertising themselves |
Opera companies prefer to perform short versions because _________.
A.they can be performed in public libraries |
B.short versions are easy to perform |
C.it is hard to find long versions |
D.they can make people interested |
The San Francisco Opera employs students in order to _________.
A.celebra![]() |
B.reduce the cost |
C.attract young people |
D.make Cinderella popular |
From the passage we can infer that _________.
A.the tickets for opera are very expensive |
B.opera is performed in a di![]() |
C.opera is not so popular an art form today |
D.students enjoy performing opera very much |
It was the summer of 1965. DeLuca, then 17, visited Peter Buck, a family friend. Buck asked DeLuca about his plans for the future. “I’m going to college, but I need a way to pay for it,” DeLuca recalls saying. “Buck said, ‘You should open a sandwich shop.’”
That afternoon, they agreed to be partners. And they set a goal: to open 32 stores in ten years. After doing some research, Buck wrote a check for $1000. DeLuca rented a storefront (店面) in Connecticut, and when they couldn’t cover their start-up costs, Buck kicked in another $1000.
But business didn’t go smoothly as they expected. DeLuca says, “After six months, we were doing poorly, but we didn’t know how badly, because we didn’t have any financial controls.” All he and Buck knew was that their sales were lower than their costs.
DeLuca was managing the store and going to the University of Bridgeport at the same time. Buck was working at his day job as a nuclear physicist in New York. They’d meet Monday evenings and brainstorm ideas for keeping the business running. “We convinced ourselves to open a second store. We figured we could tell the public, ‘We are so successful, we are opening a second store.’” And they did—in the spring of 1966. Still, it was a lot of learning by trial and error.
But the partners’ learn-as-you-go approach turned out to be their greatest strength. Every Friday, DeLuca would drive a
round and hand-deliver the checks to pay their suppliers. “It probably took me two and a half hours and it wasn’
t necessary, but as a result, the suppliers got to know me very well, and the personal relationships established really helped out,” DeLuca says.
And having a goal was also important. “There are so many problems that can get you down. You just have to keep working toward your goal,” DeLuca adds.
DeLuca ended up founding Subway Sandwich, the multimillion-dollar restaurant chain.DeLuca opened the first sandwich shop in order to ____.
A.support his family | B.pay for his college education |
C.help his partner expand business | D.do some research |
Which of the following is true of Buck?
A.He put money into the sandwich business. |
B.He was a professor of business administration. |
C.He was studying at the University of Bridgeport. |
D.He rented a storefront for DeLuca. |
What can we learn about their first shop?
A.It stood at an unfavorable place. |
B.It lowered the prices to promote sales. |
C.It made no profits due to poor management |
D.It lacked control over the quality of sandwiches |
They decided to open a second store because they ___.
A.had enough money to do it. |
B.had succeeded in their business |
C.wished to meet the increasing demand of customers |
D.wanted to make people believe that they were successful |
What contribute most to their success according to the author?
A.Learning by trial and error. | B.Making friends with suppliers. |
C.Finding a good partner. | D.Opening chain stores. |
I’m glad to find this comment which has some sort of support in this quest(寻求)I have to eat raw(未煮熟的)foods. I’m an unhealthy 49 years old and have come to the conclusion that it’s now or never, so I a
m taking a dive into the raw eating lifestyle.
I have to cook for my family and prepare what they want to eat. I’m trying to plan out this better so I have some of these unusual foods ready for myself.
I’ve read several books written by Ann Wigmore and like her approach to the living foods.
Last week I attempted fasting(禁食)and failed. I lasted five days by having carrots, spinach, apples and other vegetarian diets I could get my hands on. I was doing fine until I drank some coffee. I kind of proved it in my mind to have the coffee but it only made me excited and then I couldn’t sleep well and felt hungry and weak. So I stopped and went back to the old way of eating with the family.
This week I started to make a drink called rejuvelac made of sprouted wheat(芽麦). This is fairly new to do for me and the drink smelled sort of musty(发霉的)and tasted kind of like a musty lemon. The kids tasted it and almost threw up but surprisingly it tasted good to me. It is supposed to help in digestion(消化).
I’ve made some attempts to grow wheat grass. I think I have figured that out as long as I keep it away from birds and our horses. I have two habits to get rid of, drinking coffee and smoking. I quit smoking last month but something happened, so I started up again. I’m very frustrated(受挫的) with the smoking and really have a desire to quit for good. Anyhow I will keep this updated on my progress.
The author must have ________ before she wrote this article.
A.hesitated at whether she should eat raw foods |
B.never eaten raw foods |
C.made up her mind to eat raw foods instead of cooked ones |
D.been discouraged by her ![]() |
The books written by Ann Wigmore which the author has read are probably about ________.
A.fasting |
B.losing weight |
C.how to be on a diet |
D.approaches to eating raw foods |
To the author, the drink made of sprouted wheat ________.
A.might help in digestion |
B.might make people who drank it throw up |
C.tasted good to anybody |
D.was welcomed by the whole family |
We can learn from the passage that ________ smoking.
A.the author has given up |
B.the author will never give up |
C.it’s hard for the author to quit |
D.it’s easy for the author to q![]() |
The author’s biggest worry at present is most probably ________.
A.that she can’t eat with her family |
B.that she can’t get rid of drinking coffee and smoking |
C.how to get used to raw foods |
D.that she doesn’t know whether she should eat raw foods |