Walking down a path through some woods in Georgia, I saw a small pool of water ahead on the path. I angled my direction to go around it on the part of the path that wasn't covered by water or mud. As I reached the pool, I was suddenly attacked!
Yet I did nothing for the attack. It was so unpredictable and from somewhere totally unexpected. I was surprised as well as unhurt though I had been struck four or five times. I backed up a foot and my attacker stopped attacking me. Had I been hurt I wouldn't have found it amusing. And I was laughing. After all, I was being attacked by a butterfly!
Having stopped laughing, I took a step forward. My attacker rushed me again. He charged towards me at full speed, attempting to hurt me but in vain. For a second time, I took a step backwards while my attacker paused. I wasn't sure what to do. After all, it’s just not everyday that one is attacked by a butterfly. I stepped back to look the situation over. My attacker moved back to land on the ground. That's when I discovered why my attacker was charging me only moments earlier. He had a mate and she was dying.
Sitting close beside her, he opened and closed his wings as if to fan her. I could only admire the love and courage of that butterfly in his concern for his mate. He had taken it up on himself to attack me for his mate’s sake, even though she was clearly dying and I was so large. He did so just to give her those extra few precious moments of life. Should I have been careless enough to step on her? His courage in attacking something thousands of times larger and heavier than himself just for his mate’s safety seemed admirable. I couldn’t do anything other than reward him by walking on the more difficult side of the pool. He had truly earned those moments to be with her, undisturbed.
Since then, I’ve used that butterfly’s courage as an inspiration and to remind myself that good things are worth fighting for.The writer changed his direction while walking down a path because he wanted_______.
| A．to get close to a butterfly |
| B．to escape a sudden attack |
| C．to look over the bad situation |
| D．to avoid getting his shoes dirty |
From the passage we can learn that the attacker _________.
| A．struck the author four or five times and made him badly hurt |
| B．paused until the author took a step backwards |
| C．thought it was the author who caused the death of his mate |
| D．attacked the author for his mate’s safety and to accompany her for the last moments of life. |
From this experience the man learned_____.
| A．butterflies are brave insects |
| B．the small can defeat the large |
| C．how to deal with challenges in his life |
| D．people should try their best to fight for everything |
Which of the following words can best describe the butterfly?
| A．amusing | B．ambitious |
| C．courageous | D．aggressive |
In Europe, many people make friends between their countries through town twinning. Town or city twinning means two towns in different countries agree and decide to become “twins” with a sister city relationship.
The people find pen friends in the twin town. They exchange newspapers and stamps. The school teachers discuss teaching methods with the teachers in the twin town. Officials visit the twin town for celebrations. Ordinary people travel to the twin town, too, but not very often if it is far away.
Sometimes, schools even exchange their classes for two or three weeks! For example, German middle school students study for a while at the school in their twin town in Britain, staying with British families. A few months later, their British friends come to study in Germany.
Many British towns are so pleased with the results of the twinning that they set out to find more than one twin town.
Tonbridge, a small town in Kent, for example, has twin town in both Germany and France. Richmond near London has relationships with Germany, France and even a town in a Balkan country!
Town twinning can help make friends. It helps students improve their language skills, and also helps people to understand the differences between nations.Twin towns develop __________.
| A．between European countries and China |
| B．in the English-speaking countries only |
| C．in the same country |
| D．between different countries |
One of the advantages of town twinning is__________.
| A．to earn more money |
| B．to set up schools |
| C．to improve students’ language skills |
| D．to develop industry and agriculture |
Which is the best title for the passage?
| A．Town Twinning |
| B．Friendly Town |
| C．Exchange Teachers and Students |
| D．Peace and Understanding |
Who do you think was the most important woman of the past 100 years?
Jane Addams(1860~1935)
Addams helped the poor and worked for peace. She created shelters, education opportunities and services for people in need. In 1931, Addams became the first American woman to win the Noble Peace Prize.
Rachel Carson(1907~1964)
Rachel Carson was born in the rural river town of Springdale, Pennsylvania in America. The popular book Silent Spring by Rachel Carson in 1962 made people realize the dangers and the harmful effects of pollution on humans and on the world’s lake and oceans.
Angela Merkel(1954~)
In 2005, German chose Angela Merkel as their first woman head of the country. She had been a scientist in the past. As Germany ’leader, she has had an effect on the whole world.
Sandra Day O’Connor(1930~)
When Sandra Day O’Connor finished her class at Stanford Law School, in 1952, she could not find work because she was a woman. However, she became the first woman to join the US Supreme Court in 1981 after years of hard work.
Margaret Thatcher(1925~)
In 1979, Margaret Thatcher became Britain’s first woman Prime Minister. She served until 1990, which made her the first Britain leader to serve three terms in a row. Because of her high standards and strong will, people called her Britain’s Iron Lady.
Marie Curie(1867~1934)
Polish-born scientist Marie Curie discovered that some types of metal give off energy called radiation. Her research led to new medical treatments and arms. She received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1903 and in Chemistry in 1911.Who once won the Nobel Prize?
| A．Jane Addams and Marie Curie. |
| B．Jane Addams and Margaret Thatcher. |
| C．Marie Curie and Angela Merkel. |
| D．Marie Curie and Rachel Carson. |
We can infer from the passage that Rachel Carson worked to ______.
| A．help the poor |
| B．spread geographic knowledge |
| C．protect the environment |
| D．protect the rights of women |
What do Angela Merkel and Margaret Thatcher have in common?
| A．Both of them were scientists before coming to power. |
| B．Both of them are the first woman head of their country. |
| C．Both of them are famous for being strict. |
| D．Both of them have worked for three terms. |
Who once failed to find a job?
| A．Jane Addams | B．Sandra Day O’Connor |
| C．Rachel Carson | D．Margaret Thatcher |
Parents are a child’s first teachers．But some parents never learned from good examples．In New York City, a nonprofit agency called Covenant House tries to help homeless young mothers become good parents．
The twelve or so teenagers who live at the shelter attend parenting classes four days a week．The class is called Mommy and Me．Teacher Delores Clemens is a mother of five and a grandmother．She teaches basic skills, like how to give a baby a bath and how to dress a baby depending on the season．
She remembers one student who learned from her mother not to pick up a crying baby．The mother said that would only make the child needy and overly demanding．Delores Clemens says, “that's not true．You have to hold your baby! He is crying for a reason．If you never pick him up, he's going to keep crying．Pick your baby up．Cuddle your baby．Hug him! And she started to do that．They just want a little cuddling and a little love．And it works!”
Delores Clemens says her students also learn how to be good mothers by letting themselves be mothered．Around three hundred fifty teenage mothers graduate from Covenant House's Mommy and Me class every year．
In class, with her baby son is Natasha．She lived on the streets．She is glad not only for the warmth and shelter of Covenant House．As she told reporter Adam Phillips, she is also glad for the help they offer in seeking a more secure life．
The World Health Organization says the United States has forty-one births for every one thousand girls age fifteen to nineteen．That is higher than other developed countries, as well as some developing ones．By comparison, northern neighbor Canada has fourteen births and southern neighbor Mexico has eighty-two．What is the text mainly about?
| A．Parents who are a child’s first teachers． |
| B．A class where teens learn mothering and are mothered． |
| C．A nonprofit agency that offers a more secure life． |
| D．A kind teacher who help homeless young mothers． |
Covenant Houses’ Mommy and Me class is intended to _____．
| A．help homeless young mothers become good parents |
| B．provide homeless young mothers with a warm shelter |
| C．help mothers in New York be good parents |
| D．teach some parents how to love their children |
What can we know about Delores Clemens from the text?
| A．She has a mother of five and a grandmother． |
| B．She thinks a crying baby should be picked up and hugged． |
| C．She teaches advanced skills on how to be good mothers． |
| D．She is very glad for the warmth and shelter of Covenant House． |
According to the World Health Organization, which country has the highest births for girls age fifteen to nineteen?
| A．Canada | B．the United States of America |
| C．Mexico | D．Britain |
People smile at times. However, the meaning of a smile in different cultures may be different. Depending on different cultures, smiling can express joy and amusement, but it can also show embarrassment(尴尬).
People in the United States smile a lot. Every one smiles at each other in order to show they are open and friendly. However, in China, smiling is not only an expression of happiness, but also a way to avoid being embarrassed. Chinese people like smiling when they are embarrassed in order to avoid embarrassment. Smiling is a kind of good will but not sneer（嘲笑）. For example: When a child falls down from a bike, the adults in China may smile, which is a kind of gentle encouragement and not a kind of impolite laugh.
When a person from the United States might blush（脸红）with embarrassment or become offensive(冒犯的), a Chinese might blush with smile. To avoid serious misunderstanding, people who engage in intercultural (跨文化的) communication should be able to understand the meaning of smiling properly.We can use smile to express all of the following feelings except _________,
| A．joy and happiness | B．amusement |
| C．embarrassment | D．fear |
People often smile at each other in the United States because _________.
| A．they are very happy |
| B．they want to show they are friendly |
| C．they want to hide their true feelings |
| D．they want to avoid embarrassment |
In China, seeing a child falls off a bike, an adult will smile in order to _______.
| A．laugh at him |
| B．avoid his own embarrassment |
| C．avoid embarrassment and encourage the boy |
| D．show his politeness |
What is mainly talked about in the passage?
| A．People smile at times. |
| B．Smiling can express different feelings depending on different cultures. |
| C．Americans are more open and friendly than Chinese people. |
| D．The Chinese people often hide their true feelings. |
In the past ten years, many scientists have studied the differences between men and women. And they all got the same answer: The sexes(性别) are different, because their brains are different. And this, the scientists say, makes men and women see the world in different ways.
Boys, for example, generally are better than girls at mathematical ideas. Boys also generally are better than girls at the kind of hand and eye movements necessary for ball sports. Girls, on the other hand generally start speaking earlier than boys. And they generally see better in the dark than boys and are better at learning foreign languages.
What makes men and women better at one thing or another? The answer is the brain. The brain has two sides connected by nerve(神经) tracks. The left side generally is used for mathematics, speech and writing. The right side is used for artistic creation(创造) and the expression for emotions(情感). In men and women, different areas in each side of the brain develop differently. In boys, for example, it’s the area used for mathematics. In girls, it is the area used for language skills. Another interesting difference is that the two sides of a man’s brain are connected by a smaller number of nerves than the two sides of a woman’s brain are.Which of the following is the best title of the article?
| A．Research on the Brain |
| B．Men and Women are Different in Brain |
| C．People’s Different Brains |
| D．Who Are Better, Boys or Girls |
__________ men and women think differently.
| A．The different brains make |
| B．Sex makes |
| C．The different experiences make |
| D．The influences(影响) of society make |
According to the article, girls are generally better than boys at __________ in your school.
| A．mathematics | B．physics |
| C．English | D．chemistry |
Which of the following is true?
| A．The left side of brain in boys generally develops better than that in girls. |
| B．The left side of brain in girls generally develops better than that in boys. |
| C．Men are better than women in all things. |
| D．The area in girls used for language skills develops better. |