I moved from Chicago to Brooklyn in July of 2010, just in time to watch my mother die. Our parents were both gone now. I took with me as many things they had left behind as I could.
I was out walking one Saturday later that summer when something caught my eye - a pale green dress. Laid out on the pavement was stuff like earrings, glass candle-holders, books. Hanging on the fence behind were a few pairs of jeans and a green cotton dress.
The woman, the host of the stoop (门廊）sale, looked like she was getting rid of a past she didn’t need or want. A dress that was too big for her. A chest of drawers that took up too much space, space she needed, maybe, to heal , recover, or grow.
I wasn’t planning on buying anything really, but now I needed to show her that I appreciated her things and I would give them a safe home. Then I had my first stoop sale —I paid her 20 dollars for her green cotton dress and her blue candle-holder.
From that day on, I became interested in stoop sales. Some of my favorite things are from someone else’s life. I find no joy in shopping at regular stores any more. I love trying to sniff out a memory from a bud vase or a drawer. It is comforting to know that someone has breathed and laughed inside a sweater before me.
A few weeks ago, I carried my mother’s dresses to a friend’s stoop. These were her best items, which were once worn by the most important person in my life. For many hours, I watched from across the path people advancing the stoop, some leaving with Mom1S dress. I used to think that her stuff was as forever sacred (神圣的）as my memory of her, I know now that once I love a scarf or shirt too dearly, it needs to find a new home. Even that green dress is long gone by now.The author took her mother’s dresses after her death because ______
| A．she valued the things used by her mom |
| B．she didn’t want to throw them, away |
| C．she could sell them later |
| D．they were her mom’s best items |
From the passage, we know that ______.
| A．the things the author bought from the woman are too big |
| B．the author is fond of imagining others’ life experiences |
| C．the author will never shop at regular stores any more |
| D．the author still keeps most of her mom’s things |
In the last paragraph, the author tries to tell us that ______.
| A．her mom is the number one person in her life |
| B．she didn’t really want to sell her mom’s dresses |
| C．she still thinks of her mother quite often |
| D．love doesn’t mean holding on to something tightly |
It can be inferred that the author will ______.
| A．not sell her own things at stoop sales |
| B．keep her mom in her mind in another way |
| C．be sad about all the memory of her mom |
| D．move to another city for a new life |
In 1995, Susan Boyle went to Glasgow to audition（试镜）for My Kind of People, a televised talent show popular in the UK. She was immediately rejected. She was nervous during the audition, and felt she didn’t perform well, but her brother said that she was rejected because of her plain looks. Susan was not discouraged and continued to sing at church and at the karaoke nights in a local pub.
Susan suffered a personal loss in 1997, when her father passed away. After his death, Susan put her big dreams on hold to care for her sick mother, Bridget Boyle. The mother and daughter often talked of Susan’s possible fame. Bridget Boyle encouraged her daughter to take part in singing competitions. “She was the one who said I should enter Britain’s Got Talent. We used to watch it together,” Susan later told reporters. “She thought I would win.”
In 1999, Susan used all of her savings to pay for a professional demo（样本唱片）tape, which she sent to record companies. In 2002, Susan began taking singing lessons from voice coach Fred O’Neil.
In 2007, her mother passed away at the age of 91. A neighbor reported that when Bridget Boyle died, her daughter “wouldn’t come out for three or four days or answer the door or phone”. She lived alone with her cat, Pebbles. For over a year, she refused to sing. But in August of 2008, O’Neil urged her to try out for Britain’s Got Talent. Convinced that the performance would be an honor to her mother, Susan auditioned in Glasgow, Scotland. She sang I Dreamed A Dream, a hit song from the musical Les Miserables（《悲惨世界》）, in the first round of the show, which was aired on April 11, 2009.
The 47-year-old Scottish woman's plain looks provided a sharp contrast（对比）to her powerfully beautiful voice. The performance astonished the audience and the judges. Online videos of her performance totaled over 40 million views within a week. Although she failed to win the final of Britain’s Got Talent, Susan Boyle became globally popular. Her first album I Dreamed A Dream has sold over five million copies. Bridget Boyle’s attitude towards her daughter’s musical talent can be described as ___.
| A．critical | B．doubtful | C．indifferent | D．confident |
From Paragraph 4, we can learn that Susan _____.
| A．was slightly discouraged by her voice coac | B．entered Britain’s Got Talent to prove her ability |
| C．decided to give up her singing career | D．was deeply affected by her mother’s death |
Which of the following is TRUE about Susan Boyle?
| A．Her international fame grew rapidly in 2008. | B．Her audition for My Kind of People failed. |
| C．She has never stopped singing since 1995. | D．She was the winner of Britain’s Got Talent. |
We can infer from the passage that ______.
| A．Susan Boyle was convinced by her brother that her plain looks were disadvantageous to her success |
| B．It was at the age of forty that Susan Boyle established a student-teacher relationship with O’Neil. |
| C．Susan Boyle was so struck by her father’s death that she shut herself out from the neighborhood. |
| D．The online views of Les Miserables numbered over 40 million within a week in 2009. |
In writing this passage, the author mainly intends to ______.
| A．tell us how Susan’s dream come true | B．let us know more about Susan’s personal life |
| C．show how Susan was influenced by her family | D．explain how to enter and win a talent show |
I took the bus to work for many years. No one knew each other; the passengers all sat there sleepily in the morning. The bus was cheerless and silent.
One of the passengers was a small grey man who took the bus to the center for senior citizens every morning. No one ever paid very much attention to him. One July morning he said good morning to the driver and smiled. The driver nodded guardedly. The rest of us were silent.
The next day, the old man boarded with a big smile and said in a loud voice, “A very good morning to you all!” Some of us looked up, amazed, and murmured “ good morning” in reply.
The following weeks, our friend was dressed in a nice old suit and tie. The thin hair had been carefully combed. He said good morning to us every day and we gradually began to nod and talk to each other.
One morning he even had a bunch of wild flowers in his hand. The driver turned around smilingly and asked, “Have you got yourself a girlfriend, Charlie?” We never got to know if his name really was “Charlie”, but he nodded shyly and said yes. The other passengers whistled and clapped at him. Charlie waved the flowers before he sat down on his seat.
Every morning after that Charlie always brought flowers. Some passengers also brought flowers for him. The bus became a happy place.
Then, one morning, as autumn was closing in, Charlie wasn’t waiting at his usual stop. When he wasn’t there the next day and the day after that, we started wondering if he was sick or hopefully---on holiday somewhere. When we came nearer to the center for senior citizens, one of the passengers even asked the driver to wait.
We all held our breaths when he went to the door. The old gentleman was fine, but one of his close friends had died over the weekend. How silent we were the rest of the way to work.
The next Monday Charlie was waiting at the stop, and without a tie. Inside the bus was silent. The story is mainly developed by ______.
| A．time | B．logic | C．comparison | D．cause and result |
Greeted with “good morning” from the old man, people aboard the bus at first _____.
| A．felt tired and sleepy and didn’t want to talk | B．greeted him back loudly and politely |
| C．guarded against the conversation from strangers | D．felt surprised and became angry with him. |
When the passengers found the old man was not waiting at the bus stop as usual, they did NOT _____.
| A．buy flowers and wait for him to come | B．feel anxious and worried about him |
| C．miss him and expect to see him | D．hope he was going on holiday rather than falling ill |
It can be inferred from the text that _____.
| A．the driver didn’t like the old man at first | B．people usually wear a tie when they are happy |
| C．passengers brought flowers to express gratitude（感激） to the old man | |
| D．the old man had a great influence on the passengers’ emotion |
The purpose of the passage is to _____.
| A．introduce the old gentleman and praise his good deeds |
| B．persuade us to become friendly and considerate to people around |
| C．tell us to keep silent when somebody passes away |
| D．criticize those who remain silent when they are greeted |
Tourism probably started in Roman times. Rich Romans visited friends and family who were working in another part of the Roman Empire. But when the empire broke down, this kind of tourism stopped.
In the early 17th century, the idea of the “Grand Tour” was born. Rich young English people sailed across the English Channel（英吉利海峡）. They visited the most beautiful and important European cities of the time, including Paris in France, and Rome and Venice in Italy. Their tours lasted for two to four years, and the tourists stayed a few weeks or months in each city. The “Grand Tour” was an important part of young people’s education---but only for the rich.
In the 18th century, tourism began to change. For example, people in the UK started to visit some towns, such as Bath to “take the waters”. They believed that the water there was good for their health. So large and expensive hotels were built in these towns.
In the 19th century, travel became much more popular and faster. When the first railways were built in the 1820s, it was easier for people to travel towns, so they started to go for holidays by the sea. And some started to have holidays in the countryside as cities became larger, noisier and dirtier.
Traveling by sea also became faster and safer when the first steamships were built. People began to travel more to faraway countries.
The 20th century saw cars become more and more popular among ordinary people. Planes were made larger, so ticket prices dropped and more people used them.
Thus tourism grew. In 1949, Russian journalist Vladimir Raitz started a company called Horizon Holidays. The company organizes everything---plane tickets, hotel rooms, even food----and tourists pay for it all before they leave home. The package tour and modern tourist industry was born.
The first travel agency in China was set up as early as 1949. But tourism did not take off until 1978. In 2002, the industry was 500 billion yuan and became an important part of China’s social development. In the early times, the travelers _____.
| A．all came from Roman | B．were very young and strong |
| C．had lots of money | D．traveled by boat |
Which is NOT true about “Grand Tour”?
| A．It was a long journey. | B．The young men learned a lot from it. |
| C．Those who took the tour weren’t rich. | D．Most of its destinations were in Europe. |
_____ played the most important role in the tourism development.
| A．Education | B．Money | C．Transportation | D．People’s ideas |
Modern tourism was born _______.
| A．in 1949 | B．in Roman times | C．in the early 17th century | D．in the early 19th century |
The underlined phrase “take off” in the last paragraph means ______.
| A．a plane rising into the air | B．develop very fast |
| C．remove hats and clothes | D．bring down the prices |
US bees operation keeping groups have been attacked seriously by so called Colony Collapse Disorder (蜂群衰竭失调)．Almost 1/2 of their worker bees have vanished during the past season．This disorder has also been reported in Israel, Europe and South America．Bees fly away from the hive and never return．Sometimes they are found dead; other times they are never foun
d．Many crops and trees depend on pollination--- by bees to help them grow．
A new report says a virus may be at least partly responsible for the disorder in honey bee colonies in the United States．This virus is called Israeli acute paralysis virus．It was first found in Israel in 2004．Lan Lipkin at Columbia University in New York and a team reported the new findings in Science Magazine．Doctor Lipkin says the virus may not be the only cause．He says it may work with other causes to produce the collapse disorder．
The team found the virus in colonies with the help of a map of honey bee genes that was published last year．They examined thirty colonies affected by the disorder．They found evidence of the virus in twenty-five of them, and in one healthy colony．The next step is further testing of healthy hives．
The researchers suggested that the United States may have imported the disorder in bees from Australia．They say the bees may 
carry the virus but not be affected．
The idea is that unlike many American bees, the ability of Australian bees to fight disease has not been hurt by the varroasis mite．This insect attacks honey bees, wh
ich could make the disorder more likely to affect a hive．Australian bee producers object to these suspicions．
And some researchers suspect that bee production in the United States is down mainly because of the weather．Honey bees gather nectar from flowers and trees．The sweet liquid gives them food and material to make honey．But cold weather this spring in the Midwest reduced the flow of nectar in many flowers．Many bees may have starved．Dry weather in areas of the country could also be playing apart．
Wayne Esaias is a NASA space agency scientist who keeps bees in his free time．He lives in central Maryland, where he has found that flowers are blooming a month earlier than they did in 1970, which may be partly responsible for the disorder. Wayne Esaias is organizing a group of beekeepers to document nectar flow around the country.What is the author’s attitude toward the cause of this disorder?
| A．Doubtful | B．Neutral | C．Supportive | D．Negative |
The passage is mainly developed by.
| A．presenting the effect and analyzing its causes |
| B．making comparisons between two countries |
| C．providing data and examples |
| D．following the time order |
How many possibilities may be involved in the bee disorder according to the passage?
| A．Three | B．Four | C．Five | D．Six |
From the passage we can infer that.
| A．American bees are more likely to defend themselves against hurt from other insects than Australian ones |
B．A collection of plants production in the U.S may be influenced by  the bee disorder |
| C．Israeli acute paralysis virus should be responsible for the disorder |
| D．The solution to the disorder will be found eventually |
You must have been troubled by when to say “I love you” because it is one of the greatest puzzles in our life.
What if you say it first and your partner doesn’t love you back? Or if they do say it but you don’t feel they mean it? Being the first to declare your love can be nerve racking(紧张）and risky and can leave you feeling as vulnerable as a turtle with no shell. But is the person who says it first really in a position of weakness? Doesn’t it pay to hold back, play it cool and wait until the other half has shown their hand fast?
A really good relationship should be about “being fair and being equal,” says psychologist Sidney Crown. “But love is seldom equal.” All relationships go through power struggles but, he says, if a love imbalance continues for years, the rot will set in. “That feeling of ‘I’ve always loved you more’ may be subverted(颠覆，破坏) for a time, but it never goes away completely and it often emerges in squabbling(大声争吵).” In love, at least, the silent, withholding type is not always the most powerful. “The strongest one in a relationship is often the person who feels confident enough to talk about their feelings,” says educational psychologist Ingrid Collins. Psychosexual therapist Paula Hall agrees. “The one with the upper hand is often the person who takes the initiative. In fact, the person who says ‘I love you’ first may also be the one who says ‘I’ m bored with you’ first.” Hall believes that much depends on how “I love you” is said and the motivation of the person saying it
. “Is it said when they’re drunk? Is it said before their partner files off on holiday, and what it really means is ‘Please don’ t be unfaithful to me’ ?” By saying ‘I love you’, they are really saying ‘Do you love me?’ If so, wouldn’t it just be more honest to say that. Collins agrees tha
t intention is everything. “It’s not what is said, but how it’s said. What it comes down to is the sincerity of the speaker.” What is the main idea of this passage?
| A．The importance of “I love you” |
| B．The meaning of “I love you” |
| C．The time of saying “I love you” |
| D．The place of saying “I love you” |
In the first sentence the author means that _________.
| A．it is easy to say “I love you” |
| B．it is hard to say “I love you” |
| C．we have many troubles in our life |
| D．people usually do not know when to say “I love you” |
According to the expert, a good relationship should
be _______.
| A．fair and equal | B．fair and kind |
| C．powerful and equal | D．confident and fair |
In the third paragraph, the phrase “with the upper hand” means _________.
| A．being low in spirit | B．having only one hand |
| C．being active | D．being passive |