When the one-year anniversary of my mother’s passing came around, I found myself in the kitchen preparing some of her favorite dishes.
As I poured myself into cooking, some of the deep sadness I was experiencing at this one-year mark moved through me. I loved my mom's turkey soup. I remembered the time she made some especially for me. It was summer then and I had a terrible head cold. She arrived unexpectedly one afternoon at my work place with a huge jar of her turkey noodle soup. At the thought, I began to feel a little more relieved in the pain of losing her.
It was then that I realized I was reconnecting with my mother through food. I laughed a bit at myself when I reflected on all the dishes I had cooked that week. Without knowing it, I had created a beautiful ceremony to honor my mother and to comfort myself at this vulnerable(脆弱的) time. I suddenly felt my mother at hand and was filled with her presence. I was so uplifted and excited that I began talking to her, imagining she was there.
“What else should we make?” I asked of us both, wanting to keep the ceremony from ending.
“Irish Potato Pancakes,” was the reply.
I hesitated. The thought of these brought up another loss. The last time I made potato pancakes was two and a half years ago. I had taken off my engagement (订婚) ring and never found it again. Since then, I resisted using that recipe even though I really liked those pancakes as if it were partly to blame.
My mom should know better than to suggest these, I thought. She knew how upset I was about losing my ring. But despite these hesitations, I found myself caught up in the joy and celebration of the moment, and I reached for the cookbook without another thought of the ring. My mom did love Irish things. I opened the cookbook and turned to the pancake recipe. At once, something at the bottom of the page caught my eye... It was shining! Amazingly, there, pressed into the pages of this book, was my diamond ring!
That day, I made potato pancakes in the shape of hearts.At the one-year anniversary, the writer ______.
| A．cooked some dishes in memory of her mother |
| B．felt more painful at the thought of the turkey noodle soup |
| C．was so excited as to see her mother home |
| D．didn’t give a thought of the lost ring |
The writer hesitated to cook potato pancakes probably because ______.
| A．she felt too sad to make them |
| B．she didn’t like such pancakes |
| C．her mother was to blame for the loss of her ring |
| D．they reminded her of the loss of her ring |
It can be inferred from the passage that her mother ______.
| A．was connected with the writer through food |
| B．taught the writer how to cook pancakes |
| C．actually still lived with the writer |
| D．found the ring for her daughter |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Heart-shaped Pancakes | B．Lost and Found Ring |
| C．Favorite Dishes | D．Sad One-year Anniversary |
Here’s one number to keep in mind during your next cell phone conversation: 50. A new experiment shows that spending 50 minutes with an active phone pressed up to the ear increases activity in the brain. This brain activity probably doesn't make you smarter. When cell phones are on, they emit (发出) energy in the form of radiation that could be harmful, especially after years of cell phone usage. Scientists don't know yet whether cell phones are bad for the brain. Studies like this one are attempting to find it out.
The 47 participants in the experiment may have looked a little strange. Each one had two Samsung cell phones attached to his or her head — one on each ear. The phone on the left ear was off. The phone on the right ear played a message for 50 minutes, but the participants couldn't hear it because the sound was off.
With this set-up, the scientists could be sure they were studying brain activity from the phone itself, and not brain activity due to listening and talking during a conversation. After 50 minutes with two phones strapped to their heads, the participants were given PET scans.
The PET scan showed that the left side (the side with the phone turned off) of each participant's brain hadn't changed during the experiment. The right side of the brain, however, had used more glucose, which is a type of sugar that provides fuel to brain cells. These right-side brain cells were using almost as much glucose as the brain uses when a person is talking. This suggests that the brain cells there were active ― even without the person hearing anything. That activity, the scientists say, was probably caused by radiation from the phone.
Henry Lai, who works at the University of Washington in Seattle, is uncomfortable with the data related to cell phones. Holding a cell phone to your ear during a conversation is “not really safe,” Lai told Science News. Lai is a bioengineer at the University of Washington in Seattle. He wrote an article about the new study for a journal, but he did not work on the study. Bioengineers bring together ideas from engineering and biology.
For those who don't want to wait to find out for sure whether cell phones are bad for the brain, there are ways to talk more safely. You can have short and sweet conversations, use a speakerphone or keep the phone away from your head.Which of the following statement is true?
| A．Scientists are sure that cell phones are bad for the brain. |
| B．In the experiment, the left side of the brain used more glucose. |
| C．Radiation from the phone probably causes the change in the brain. |
| D．Henri Lai wrote a lot of articles about this new study. |
Why weren’t the participants allowed to have a conversation on the phone during the experiment?
| A．Because that would be too noisy and bad for the experiment. |
| B．Because they really looked strange and no one wanted to talk to others. |
| C．Because they were given PET scans and they lost the ability to talk. |
| D．Because the scientists want to be sure of the accuracy of the experiment. |
What is glucose?
| A．A type of sugar that provides vitamin to brain cells. |
| B．Something that the right side of the brain used. |
| C．A type of sugar that gives energy to brain cells. |
| D．Something that makes a human excited. |
According to the last two paragraphs, which is the safest way to use a cell phone?
| A．Holding the cell phone close to your head. |
| B．Using a cell phone more than three hours a day. |
| C．Taking the most powerful cell phone. |
| D．Keeping the cell phone at a distance. |
Where is this article probably taken from?
| A．Literature magazine. | B．Science News. |
| C．Story books. | D．Art Journal. |
Undoubtedly there are a few positive characters who are able to “rise above” their environment, who are able to impress the people with whom they come in contact in spite of their clothes.
Sometimes we read of some learned woman, who has “made good in her profession,” who says that she has not looked in a mirror for years; but such a woman is a rare exception, and one is not safe in gambling with one’s chances of success by following her. It is not the positive characters with whom we are concerned, however, for they are few and somehow manage to take care of themselves. The vast majority of the race are not so blessed, and we need to observe but little to realize that with them the reaction of clothes is an important factor.
School girls should know that clothes may make a career; happiness and leadership in all the years of high school and college life may be affected by the story a Freshman’s clothes tell. Many a girl with a keen mind, who has a natural disregard for clothes, perhaps, or who has not been trained in the appreciation of beauty in clothes, has lost her opportunities for leadership and self-expression which by right her brain power should have given her.
One of the mental capacities which we all exercise and yet exercise most unconsciously is that of passing judgment on the people we meet. In a majority of cases the judgment is superficial and inaccurate; but the estimate is made. Some people may not get their final judgment till they hear one talk and will judge one by the tone of voice and by what is said as the true index; but the vast majority will form an opinion based largely, if not entirely, on appearance. One tells the world daily of one’s ideals, ambitions or good breeding through dress; and it is told so plainly that “he who runs may read” and, perhaps, he who reads may run.According to the first two paragraphs, few people _______.
| A．care about their appearances |
| B．understand the art of dressing themselves |
| C．can catch others’ attention by dressing plainly |
| D．are able to dress properly without professional directions |
Who is the text intended for?
| A．Book writers | B．Women |
| C．Men | D．Fashion designers |
The author thinks it is _______ for most of us to judge the people we meet by what they wear.
| A．natural | B．foolish | C．surprising | D．necessary |
Which of the following can be the best title?
| A．Rise Above Your Environment |
| B．He Who Runs May Read |
| C．Dress to Impress |
| D．Art of Dressing |
Maybe it is true that we do not know what we have got until we lose it, but it is also true that we do not know what we have been missing until it arrives．
It takes an hour to like someone, and a day to love someone, but it takes a lifetime to forget someone．Giving someone all your love is never an assurance that they will love you back．Do not expect love in return; but if it does not, be content it has grown in yours．Do not rely on one’s appearance; it can trick you．Do not rely on wealth; even that fades away．Rely on someone who makes you smile, because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright．
There are moments in life when you miss someone so much that you just want to pick them from your dreams and hug them．Dream what you want to dream; go where you want to go; be what you want to be, because you have only one life and one chance to do all the things you want to do．
The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past．You cannot go on well in life until you let your past failures and heartaches go off．May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trails to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, enough hope to make you happy．The happiest of people do not necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way. Happiness waits for those who cry, those appreciate the importance of people who have touched their lives．Always put yourself in others’ shoes．If you feel that it hurts you, it probably hurts the other person, too．
When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling．Live your life so that when you die, you are the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying．In this passage, the writer wants to tell us _______.
| A．what to do in our life |
| B．where to go with other persons |
| C．how to get on well with other persons |
| D．how to treat our life |
Which of the following statements is True according to the passage?
| A．We often don’t know what we have lost until it comes someday． |
| B．If you give someone your love, you are sure to receive love in return． |
| C．It is wise not to rely on anybody because you are likely to be deceived． |
| D．If it takes you a short time to love someone, you will easily forget the person． |
If you put yourself in another person’s position, _______.
| A．you should put on other people’s shoes |
| B．you shouldn’t do what will hurt other people |
| C．you should believe in other people |
| D．you should depend on your imagination |
In the last paragraph the writer is actually telling us that a person in the world should be one who _______.
| A．can accept the suggestions made by others |
| B．can live happily and forget the past |
| C．has made a lot of money for himself before he dies |
| D．does good for other people and is respected and loved by them |
While working with troubled teens，I used to have them do the Ten Years in the Future exercise. I asked them to write a letter to a friend as if it was ten years in the future. Most of these boys and girls didn’t think about the next week，much less ten years to come. Like the Cheshire Cat says in Alice in Wonderland, “If you don’t know where you want to go，then it doesn’t really matter what road you take!” We had some great conversations as they really thought about what they wanted. For most of them, this was the first time they had ever thought this way!
But the real story is what happened to me. I did the exercise right along with them on many occasions, writing my dreams and visions in detail. In my letter to a friend, I had moved to the country, built my own home，authored a book，and started my own business. Over the next ten years, something magic happened．All my dreams and visions became a reality, almost as if arranged by an unseen hand. I did write books and start my business. We did move to the country and I did build my own home．
This letter to a friend will become a magnetic factor in your life. Your vision will guide you in your yearly goals, your monthly goals，and your daily activities. For example: “Leslie，I just wanted to make contact again and tell you about my life. I started my own gardening business in 2020 and it’s really taken off. ”
Remember to describe all the details as if they have already happened. Write to a real person who you think may still know in ten years. This will help make it more real for you．
Sit down and write your Ten Years in the Future letter today．What can we learn from what the Cheshire Cat says?
| A．You should have a goal. |
| B．You had better not copy others. |
| C．You may do what you want to do. |
| D．You may have different ideas. |
It seems that the writer’s dreams and visions became a reality because the writer_______.
| A．had put something magic in the letter |
| B．could foresee what would happen |
| C．was experienced in writing the Ten Years letter |
| D．took what was written in the letter as a guide in life |
According to the writer,“Leslie” in your letter should be the person that_______.
| A．does the same exercise as you |
| B．will become your friend in ten years |
| C．you know now and may still know in the future |
| D．you can imagine when you write your letter |
Which of the topics are included in this passage?
a. The author’s own experience with the Ten Years in the Future exercise．
b. How the author got the idea of the Ten Years in the Future exercise．
c. How to write the Ten Years in the Future 1etter．
d. The author’s experience of working with troubled teens．
e. The difficulty in dealing with troubled teens．
f. How to improve your letter writing skill．
| A．a，d，f | B．a，c，d | C．b，c，d | D．a，c，e |
Everyone has got two personalities — the one that is shown to the world and the other that is secret and real. You don’t show your secret personality when you're awake because you can control your behavior, but when you're asleep, your sleeping position shows the real you. During a normal night, of course, people frequently change their position. The important position is the one that you go to sleep in.
If you go to sleep on your back, you’re a very open person. You normally trust people and you are easily influenced by fashion or new ideas. You don’t like to upset people, so you never express your real feelings. You’re quite shy and you aren't very confident.
If you sleep on your stomach, you are a rather secretive person. You worry a lot and you're always easily upset. You’re very stubborn, but you aren't very ambitious. You usually live for today not for tomorrow. This means that you enjoy having a good time.
If you sleep curled up, you are probably a very nervous person. You have a low opinion of yourself and so you’re often defensive. You're shy and you don't normally like meeting people. You prefer to be on your own. You're easily hurt.
If you sleep on your side, you have usually got a well-balanced personality. You know your strengths and weaknesses. You’re usually careful. You have a confident personality. You sometimes feel anxious, but you don't often get depressed. You always say what you think even if it annoys people.According to the writer, you naturally show your secret and real personality _______.
| A．only during a normal night |
| B．only when you go to sleep |
| C．only when you refuse to show yourself to the world |
| D．only when you change sleeping position |
Which of the following shows the personality of a person sleeping on his / her stomach？
| A．He / she is careful not to offend others. |
| B．He / she doesn’t want to stick to his or her opinion. |
| C．He / she may not be successful in any business. |
| D．He / she likes to bring others happiness. |
Maybe you don’t want to make friends with a person who sleeps curled up, because _______.
| A．he / she would rather be alone than communicate with you |
| B．he / she is rarely ready to help you |
| C．he / she prefers staying at home to going out |
| D．he/ she wouldn’t like to get help from you |
It appears that the writer tends to think highly of the person who sleeps on one side because_______.
| A．he / she always shows sympathy for people |
| B．he / she is confident, but not stubborn |
| C．he / she has more strengths than weaknesses |
| D．he / she often considers annoying people |