Not long ago, people thought babies were not able to learn things until they were five or six months old. Yet doctors in the United States say babies begin learning on their first day of life. Scientists note that babies are strongly influenced by their environment. They say a baby will smile if her mother does something the baby likes. A baby learns to get the best care possible by smiling to please her mother or other caregiver. This is how babies learn to connect and communicate with other human beings.
One study shows that babies can learn before they are born. The researchers placed a tape recorder on the stomach of a pregnant (怀孕的)woman. Then, they played a recording of a short story. On the day the baby was born, the researchers attempted to find if he knew the sounds of the story repeated while in his mother. They did this by placing a device in the mouth of the newborn baby.
The baby would hear the story if he moved his mouth one way. If the baby moved his mouth the other way, he would hear a different story. The researchers say the baby clearly liked the story he heard before he was born. They say the baby would move his mouth so he could hear the story again and again.
Another study shows how mothers can strongly influence social development and language skills in their children. Researchers studied the children from the age of one month to three years. The researchers attempted to measure the sensitivity of the mothers. The women were considered sensitive if they supported their children’s activities and did not interfere ( 干预）unnecessarily. They tested the children for thinking and language development when they were three years old. Also, the researchers observed the women for signs of depression.The children of depressed women did not do as well in tests as the children of women who did not suffer
from depression. The children of depressed women did poorly in tests of language skills and understanding what they hear.
These children also were less cooperative and had more problems dealing with other people. The researchers noted that the sensitivity of the mothers was important to the intelligence development of their children. Children did better when their mothers were caring, even when they suffered from depression.According to the passage, which of the following is NOT the factor that influences intelligence development in babies?
| A．The environment. |
| B．Mother's sensitivity. |
| C．Their peers (同龄人) |
| D．Education before birth. |
What is the purpose of the experiment in which newborn babies heard the stories?
| A．To prove that babies can learn before they are born. |
| B．To prove that babies can learn on the first day they are born. |
| C．To show mothers can strongly influence intelligence development in their babies. |
| D．To indicate early education has a deep effect on the babies' language skills. |
Which group of children did the worst in tests of language skills?
| A．The children of depressed mothers who cared little for their children. |
| B．The children of women who did not suffer from depression. |
| C．The children of depressed but caring mothers. |
| D．Children with high communication abilities. |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．Scientific findings about how babies develop before birth. |
| B．Scientific findings about how time has an effect on babies' intelligence. |
| C．A study shows babies are not able to learn things until they are rice or six months old. |
| D．Scientific findings about how intelligence develops in babies. |
My husband had just bought a new washing machine for me . I decided to use it the very day and I washed a lot of things .
Everything worked well , but I found one of my husband’s socks(短袜) missing . I looked everywhere for it , but I couldn’t find it anywhere .
The next morning , I got ready for school as usual . When the bell rang , the students came in . I greeted them and told them what we were going to do that day .
When I turned around to write on the blackboard , the class burst into a roar (大笑声)! They laughed and laughed . They laughed so much , in fact ,that I was afraid the headmaster would come in to see all this .
I asked the class to stop , but the more I talked , the more they laughed . I decided to pay no attention to them and I continued to write on the blackboard . when I did this , they roared even more .
Finally , the teacher who had the room next to mine came in to see what all the laughter was about .
“Good heavens ,” I said , “Will someone please tell me what is so funny?”
“Oh , God,” said the teacher , “You have a brown sock to the back of your skirt !”
So that’s how I found my husband’s missing sock .
“Oh , well ,” I said to the class , “Let’s just say you have had an unforgettable lesson on static electricity(静电)。”What was the writer ?
| A．A washer | B．A student |
| C．A headmaster | D．A teacher |
What happened when the writer turned around to write on the blackboard ?
| A．The class roared with anger . |
| B．The class began to laugh loudly . |
| C．Another teacher came in |
| D．There was a loud noise outside the room |
Why couldn’t she find one of her husband’s socks?
| A．Because some students had hidden it . |
| B．Because her husband had taken it away . |
| C．Because she had left it in the classroom . |
| D．Because she never expected that it would stick to her skirt . |
What did the writer do when she got to know why her students laughed?
| A．She did nothing but laugh. |
| B．She got angry with the class . |
| C．She did nothing |
| D．She explained the matter in a clever way . |
Children and teenagers who spend lots of time in front of screens---especially TVs---are easier to get more weight as they grow, according to a new study.
The findings agree with the research suggesting all that inactive sitting and always watching advertisements may lead to poor eating habits.
Researchers used results from a long-term study of children who took part in the surveys every two years. Children were between ages 9 and 16 when the study started. Out of 4,300 girls in the study, 17 percent were overweight or obese（肥胖的）. Twenty-four percent of the 3,500 boys were also above a healthy weight.
The surveys included questions about their height and weight as well as how much time they spent watching TV and DVDs and playing computer and video games.
From one survey to the next, each one-hour increase in children’s daily TV watching was in connection with an increase of about 0.1 points on a body mass index (BMI)（体质指数）, which measures weight in connection with height. There’s an increase of about half a pound in weight per extra hour of TV.
“The weight of the evidence is so strong that television watching is connected with unhealthy changes in weight among youth,” says Jennifer Falbe, who led the study while at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston.
“It's important for parents to know that all the obesity-causing（引起肥胖的）screens really should be limited in their children's lives.” Falbe says. “When children watch TV, there are many food advertisements on TV that might lead them to eat a cookie or drink a soft drink.” What's more, she says, “they can get into a hibernating(冬眠) state on the sofa, even if children are sitting down while playing a computer game.”Which of the following statements can be the best title for the text?
| A．A new study on screens. |
| B．TVs do harm to children. |
| C．The less TV time, the fatter. |
| D．Too much screen time leads to obesity. |
How many children took part in the study?
| A．4,300 | B．3,500 |
| C．7,800 | D．9,800 |
According to the study, one extra hour screen time will cause children about ______ poundfatter.
| A．0.1 | B．0.5 |
| C．0.3 | D．0.7 |
According to Falbe , what should parents do to stop children getting fat?
| A．Limiting the time of children watching TV. |
| B．Buying children food advertised on TV. |
| C．Not allowing children to watch TV. |
| D．Encouraging children to play computer games. |
Think about the different ways that people use wind. You can use it to fly a kite or to sail a boat. Wind is one of our cleanest and richest power sources, as well as one of the oldest. Evidence shows that windmills (风车) began to be used in ancient Iran back in the seventh century BC. They were first introduced to Europe during the 1100s, when armies returned from the Middle East with knowledge of using wind power.
For many centuries, people used windmills to grind (磨碎) wheat into flour or pump water from deep underground. When electricity was discovered in the late 1800s, people living in remote (偏僻的) areas began to use them to produce electricity. This allowed them to have electric lights and radio. However, by the 1940s when electricity was available to people in almost all areas of the United States, windmills were rarely used.
During the 1970s, people started becoming concerned about the pollution that is created when coal and gas are burned to produce electricity. People also realized that the supply of coal and gas would not last forever. Then, wind was rediscovered, though it means high costs. Today, there is a global movement to supply more and more of our electricity through the use of wind.From the text we know that windmills _______.
| A．were invented by Europeans armies |
| B．have a history of more than 2800 years |
| C．used to supply power to electric lights in remote areas |
| D．have rarely been used since electricity was discovered |
What was a new use for wind power in the late 19th century ?
| A．Sailing a boat. | B．Producing electricity. |
| C．Grinding wheat into flour. | D．Pumping water from underground. |
One of the reasons why wind was rediscovered in the 1970s is that ______ .
| A．wind power is cleaner |
| B．it is one of the oldest power sources |
| C．it was cheaper to create energy from wind |
| D．the supply of coal and gas failed to meet ends |
What would the writer probably discuss in the paragraph that follows ?
| A．The advantages of wind power. |
| B．The design of wind power plants. |
| C．The worldwide movement to save energy. |
| D．The global trend (趋势) towards producing power from wind. |
I began working in journalism (新闻业) when I was eight. It was my mother’s idea. She wanted me to “make something” of myself, and decided I had better start young if I was to have any chance of keeping up with the competition (竞争).
With my load of magazines I headed toward Belleville Avenue. The crowds were there. There were two gas stations on the corner of Belleville and Union. For several hours I made myself easily seen, making sure everyone could see me and the heavy black letters on the bag that said THE SATURDAY EVENING POST. When it was supper time, I walked back home.
“How many did you sell, my boy?” my mother asked.
“None.”
“Where did you go?”
“The corner of Belleville and Union Avenues.”
“What did you do?”
“Stood on the corner waiting for somebody to buy a Saturday Evening Post.”
“You just stood there?”
“Didn’t sell a single one.”
“My God, Russell!”
Uncle Allen put in, “Well, I’ve decided to take the Post.” I handed him a copy and he paid me a nickel(五分镍币). It was the first nickel I earned.
Afterwards my mother taught me how to be a salesman. I would have to ring doorbells, address adults with self-confidence, and persuade them by saying that no one, no matter how poor, could afford to be without the Saturday Evening Post in the home.
One day, I told my mother I’d changed my mind. I didn’t want to make a success in the magazine business.
“If you think you can change your mind like this,” she replied, “you’ll become a good-for-nothing.” She insisted that, as soon as school was over, I should start ringing doorbells, selling magazines. Whenever I said no, she would scold me.
My mother and I had fought this battle almost as long as I could remember. My mother, dissatisfied with my father’s plain workman’s life, determined that I would not grow up like him and his people. But never did she expect that, forty years later, such a successful reporter as me would go back to her husband’s people for true life and love.Why did the boy start his job young?
| A．He wanted to be famous in the future. |
| B．The job was quite easy for him. |
| C．His mother had high hopes for him. |
| D．The competition for the job was serious. |
From the dialogue between the boy and his mother, we learn that the mother was _______.
| A．excited | B．interested |
| C．ashamed | D．disappointed |
The phrase “this battle” in the last paragraph refers to.
| A．the war between the boy’s parents |
| B．the arguing between the boy and his mother |
| C．the arguing between the boy and his customers(顾客) |
| D．the fight between the boy and his father |
What is the text mainly about ?
| A．The early life of a reporter. |
| B．The early success of a reporter. |
| C．The happy childhood of the writer. |
| D．The important role of the writer in his family. |
Big Ben, the landmark of London, a clock famous for its accuracy and chimes(和谐的钟声), stopped working for 90 minutes, an engineer said Saturday.
People do not know why the 147-year-old clock on the banks of the River Thames stopped at 10:07 p.m. Friday. It continued keeping time, but stopped again at 10:20 p.m. and remained silent for about 90 minutes before starting up again, a spokeswoman for the House of Commons said.
There has been speculation(推测) that a recent period of hot weather may have been to blame(责备). Temperatures in London reached 90 ℉on Saturday, and forecasters called it England’s hottest day in May since 1953.
The clock has experienced occasional problems. In 1962, snow caused the clock to stop before the New Year. In 1976, the clock stopped when a piece of its machinery broke. Big Ben also stopped on April 30, 1997, and once more three weeks later.How many times has Big Ben stopped up to now?
| A．Three | B．Five | C．Six | D．Eight |
The probable reason for Big Ben stopping working this time is ________.
| A．high temperature | B．low temperature |
| C．broken machine | D．heavy snow |
The passage mainly talks about ________.
| A．Big Ben’s history |
| B．the solution to Big Ben’s problem. |
| C．the landmark of London |
| D．Big Ben’s silence |