For many people the subject of hiccups (嗝) is a joke, but for Harry Mendes, a fifteen-year-old schoolboy from Birmingham, it was something quite different.
His hiccups began one Sunday lunch time and continued day and night for two weeks. After the first week, Harry's parents took him to hospital, but it took another week for the doctors to cure his attack.
Harry, who is now back at school, described what happened to him.
“When I began to hiccup, I drank a glass of water but that didn't do any good. That evening I had hiccups every four seconds. We tried everything to stop them. I held my breath and drank cold drinks. My father even tried to give me a shock but that didn't work either.”
After a week of sleepless nights, he went to hospital. The doctors took an X-ray of his chest but they couldn't find anything wrong.
“They gave me some medicine and my hiccups slowed down, but it was another week before the medicine worked completely and my hiccups stopped.”
Harry was very lucky. The world record holder is the American farmer Charles Osborne, who hiccupped for sixty-eight years. He stopped in 1990 at last, but nobody knows why.Harry's hiccups lasted ____.
| A．a week | B．fourteen days |
| C．twenty-eight days | D．one month |
His hiccups started after he ____.
| A．drank a glass of water | B．went to hospital |
| C．ate an Indian meal | D．finished his homework |
His parents decided to take him to hospital when he ____.
| A．hiccupped for four seconds |
| B．held his breath |
| C．hiccupped at night |
| D．couldn't stop hiccupping |
His hiccups completely stopped one week after the doctor ____.
| A．gave him some medicine |
| B．took an X-ray of his chest |
| C．gave him a shock |
| D．let him drink cold drinks |
What does “shock” in this passage mean？
| A．震惊 | B．休克 | C．喷嚏 | D．哈欠 |
Many teenagers feel that the most important people in their lives are their friends. They believe that their family members, and in particular, their parents, don’t know them as well as their friends do. In large families, it is quite often for brothers and sisters to fight with each other and then they can only go to their friends for advice.
It is very important for teenagers to have one good friend or a circle of friends Even when they are not with their friends, they usually spend a lot of time talking among them on the phone. This communication is very important in children’s growing up, because friends can discuss something difficult to say to their family members.
However, parents often try to choose their children’s friends for them. Some parents may even stop their children from meeting their good friends. The question of “choice” is an interesting one.
Who chooses your friends?
Do you choose your friends or your friends choose you?
Have you got a good friend your parents don’t like?
Your answers are welcome.Many teenagers think their ________ know them better than their parents do.
| A．friends | B．brothers | C．sisters | D．teachers |
When teenagers stay alone, their usual way of communication is ________.
| A．to go to their friends |
| B．to talk with their parents |
| C．to have a discussion with their family by phone |
| D．to talk with their friends on the phone |
Which of the following is different in meaning from the sentences “Some parents may even stop their children from meeting their friends?
| A．Some parents may even not allow their children to meet their good friends. |
| B．Some parents may even ask their children to stay away from their good friends. |
| C．Some parents may even not let their children meet their good friends. |
| D．Some parents may want their children to meet their good friends at the stop. |
Which of the following sentences is right according to the passage?
| A．Parents should like everything their children enjoy. |
| B．In all families children can choose everything they like. |
| C．Parents should try their best to understand their children better. |
| D．Teenagers can only go to their friends for help. |
The sentence “Your answers are welcome” means“________”.
| A．You are welcome to have a discussion with us. |
| B．We’ve got no idea, so your answers are welcome. |
| C．Your answers are always correct. |
| D．You can give us all the right answers. |
Which is the best title of the passage?
| A．Only Parents Can Decide | B．Parents and Children |
| C．Teenagers Need Friends | D．A Strange Question |
Many cultures have different ideas about why people catch colds. For example in the United States, some people think that you can catch a cold if your feet get cold. So, mothers tell small children to wear warm boots in the winter. In other places, including parts of the Middle East, some people believe that strong winds cause colds. So, on trains and buses, people usually don’t like to sit next to open windows. In parts of Europe, some people think that wearing wet clothes will give you a cold. They say that after you go swimming, you should quickly put on dry clothes. Today, scientists know that colds are caused by a virus（病毒）. But the old ideas are still very strong, and many people still follow them to avoid（避免）getting ill.What is the main idea of this reading?
| A．People still believe old ideas about why they catch colds. |
| B．Colds are the biggest health problem in the world. |
| C．Some people think that strong winds cause colds. |
| D．You should take good care of your health in winter. |
Which is NOT a cause（成因）of colds in the reading?
| A．bad food | B．wet clothes | C．a virus | D．strong winds |
In "people still follow them to avoid getting ill", what does "them" mean?
| A．scientists | B．old ideas | C．colds | D．dry clothes |
According to the reading, which of the following is NOT true?
| A．There are many different ideas about how people catch colds. |
| B．Scientists don’t know how people catch colds. |
| C．Some people think that wearing wet clothes gives you a cold. |
| D．In the U.S., many small children wear boots in winter. |
Many people in different countries have ________ ideas about why people catch colds.
| A．no | B．one | C．the same | D．different |
| Blue Water World |
| A great place for the whole family We have... * a gym * a hot spring bath * swimming pools * a cinema all with activities or lessons for both you and your children Price: ￥80 a person ￥40 for children under 14 Open: 11:00 a.m.～ 11:00 p.m. except Monday The fun never stops at Blue Water World! Telephone: 555-5683/555-5686 Website: www.bluewaterworld.com.cn |
Mr. Smith wants to go to Blue Water World with his family, so they can go there ________.
| A．at 5:00 pm on Monday | B．at 10:00 am on Tuesday |
| C．at 2:00 pm on Sunday | D．at 11:00 am on Monday |
Who would most likely go to Blue Water World often?
| A．Mr. Wang; he loves taking a hot spring bath. |
| B．Miss Gao; she is looking for a place to go fishing. |
| C．Mr. Chen; he enjoys swimming in the early morning. |
| D．Mrs. Jin; she needs a quiet place to talk about business. |
Mr. Lin wants to go to Blue Water World with his eight-year-old twin sons this Saturday. How much will they have to pay?
| A．￥80 | B．￥240 | C．￥160 | D．￥40 |
If you go to Blue Water World, you can do all the following things there except _______.
| A．watching movies | B．doing exercise |
| C．taking a bath | D．eating Italian food |
Most people want to be happy, but few know how to find happiness. Money and success alone do not bring lasting happiness. Aristotle, a Greek thinker, said, “Happiness depends upon ourselves.” In other words, we make our own happiness. Here are a few suggestions to help you be happier.
The first secret of happiness is to enjoy the simple things in life. Too often, we spend so much time thinking about the future —for example, getting into college or getting a good job —that we fail to enjoy the present. You should enjoy life’s simple pleasures, such as reading a good book, listening to your favorite music, or spending time with close friends. People who have several close friends often live happier and healthier lives.
Another secret to living a happy life is to be active, and have hobbies where you forget your problems and time. Many people experience this dancing, or playing a sport, such as swimming. You can forget about your problems, and only think about the activity. Finally, many people find happiness in helping others. Studies show that people feel good when they spend their time helping others. If you want to feel happier, do good things for someone. You can help a friend with his or her studies, go shopping to buy food for an elderly person, or simply help out around the house by washing the dishes. The best title（标题）of the passage is ________.
| A．Money Makes You Happy | B．The Secrets of Happiness |
| C．Ideas for Helping Other People to Be Happy | D．Good Friends Make You Happy |
The second paragraph tells us that ________.
| A．the more friends you have, the happier you will be |
| B．we shouldn’t think about our future |
| C．happiness is to enjoy the simple things in life. |
| D．some people fail to live a happy life |
The passage gives us ________ pieces of advice on happiness.
| A．one | B．two | C．three | D．four |
The writer thinks that ________.
| A．everyone knows how to live a happier life |
| B．it’s wrong to spend time on work |
| C．hobbies take up too much time |
| D．doing good things for someone can make you happier |
Which of the following is not mentioned in the passage?
| A．Reading a good book. | B．Traveling to a foreign country. |
| C．Playing a sport. | D．Spending time with close friends. |
Who wants to carry a bulky bag to school? No children. Nobody wants one shoulder to be lower than the other, and paining（疼痛）too. In India, most of us would look at the reduction（减少）of textbooks as a way out. But in a country like America, there are always more choices. A company called goReader has created a "school bag" which is the size of a laptop computer（笔记本电脑）, weighing about 2.5 kg. The goReader has a color screen and can "hold" all the textbooks that a student may need, says a report in ’The Asian Age’ newspaper.
The company plans to work closely with the publishers（出版商） of textbooks so that these books can be supplied on the Internet. All the students will have to do is to download（下载） their textbooks. Making notes and marking important parts of a lesson can be done just as lots of students have done on their textbooks before.
At present, the plan is being tested out in a university. Richard Katzmann, the owner of the company is having his creation tested at Chicago’s DePaul University, where he studied. Does that mean it is goodbye to the new paper, and the smell of the black ink? What does the underlined word “bulky” in the first line mean?
| A．light | B．small | C．big and heavy | D．old |
What would Indians do to solve（解决）the problem?
| A．They would reduce the textbooks. | B．They would tell the parents to help students. |
| C．They would tell the teachers to help students. | D．They would take students to school by bus. |
The writer may think that Americans have a ________ way to solve the problem.
| A．more stupid | B．worse | C．better | D．quicker |
The goReader may be a machine ________.
| A．that can work as a teacher | B．that can be used as textbooks |
| C．that can cheat students | D．that can hurt students |
When the new machine is used, it is possible that ________.
| A．students might study harder |
| B．students might study at home |
| C．students might not need teachers |
| D．students might study without paper textbooks |