I vividly remember walking back to my house after collecting the afternoon mails. I saw a credit card statement, another credit card statement and our bank statements. It was in that moment that I felt a deep tension.
I realized that even though I had married a man who I absolutely loved and adored, I really didn’t have a clear sense of how he handled money and how the two of us were going to combine our different approaches to handling money in our marriage. I was more organized and detailed, but he was more of a laid-back type. I knew that getting on the same financial page was a key factor in creating a successful marriage and financial future.
I asked my husband if he would be willing to set up a time each week to talk about our finances and develop a plan for getting rid of our credit card debt. My husband said he would be willing to do this. Admittedly, he was skeptical — but willing.
We came to refer to our weekly meetings as our Financial Dates. We didn’t really have a clue as to what we were doing. All we knew was that we needed to give our finances serious attention. Some Dates were filled with tense conversations. Other Dates were filled with laughter, joy and creativity. However, we kept showing up for our Dates and we never gave up. What started out as a means for survival became a powerful connecting thread in our relationship. Something shifted within us.
Instead of our finances becoming a source of divisive tension that pulled us apart, they became
the glue that held us together as we became a unified team.
I still recall the day that we excitedly crossed off our last credit card payment on the chart we had created. We had finally arrived. We were free. We had been given wings to fly.
Now, whenever I feel huge stress I ask myself, “How am I contributing to what is happening right now?” This gives me the ultimate power to take action. Even though my husband and I don’t have any guarantee against future challenges, I am left with something deep within that is unshakable and that can never be taken away — the memory of our past successes and the power to integrate (整合) these lessons in my day-to-day life.Why did the author feel nervous when collecting the afternoon mails? _______
| A．She was not sure about her marriage. |
| B．She didn’t know how to handle money. |
| C．She could feel the pressure of the huge debt. |
| D．She was reminded of the quarrels in the family. |
Which word can replace the underlined word “laid-back” in the second paragraph?_____
| A．relaxed. | B．skeptical. |
| C．lazy. | D．confident. |
What can we learn from the Financial Dates? ______
| A．They showed the couple clear direction at first. |
| B．They left the couple nothing but deep sadness. |
| C．They were once interrupted but quickly continued. |
| D．They strengthened the couple’s relationship at last. |
We can infer that when faced with stress the author will _______.
| A．try to change the situation |
| B．focus on what contributes to it |
| C．get power from the memory |
| D．feel free to do what she likes |
Woman Uses Daughter's Key to "Steal" Car
Charlie Vansant, a college student of Athens, Ohio, who reported that his car was stolen, got a surprise when he learned a woman had mistaken it for her daughter's car and taken it — using her key.
Kate Anderson became an accidental car thief when picking up her daughter's car near an Ohio University building last week. Anderson spotted the Toyota Camry（丰田凯美瑞）and used her daughter's key to unlock the car, start the engine and drive home — without realizing that the car wasn't her daughter's.
When Charlie Vansant left class a short time later, he found only an empty parking spot. He first assumed the car had been towed, but when the police couldn't find a record of it, they took a theft report.
The morning after Anderson took the car, her daughter discovered the Camry in the driveway wasn't hers. Anderson said she was able to find Vansant's name on paperwork in the glove compartment and look up his phone number on the website for the university.
When Anderson told Charlie the car was in her driveway, "It sounded really suspicious at first, as she wanted to hold the thing for ransom (赎金) , ” said Vansant. He eventually went to the house with a police officer, where he was reunited with his car. According to the police report, the case was closed "because of mistaken car identity", and Anderson wasn't charged.
Vansant seemed to blame the car company more than the "thief". "Her key fit not only my lock, but my ignition（点火装置）as well — so high-five for Toyota, I guess." he said.What does the underlined word "towed" mean in paragraph 3?
| A．removed. | B．damaged. |
| C．stolen. | D．sold. |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Mrs. Anderson's daughter discovered the car her mother drove was not hers. |
| B．Mrs. Anderson stole Charlie's car at the request of her daughter. |
| C．Charlie had thought he had to give Anderson money to get his car back. |
| D．Mrs. Anderson used her daughter's key to unlock Charlie's car and drive home. |
What does Charlie mean by "high-five for Toyota"?
| A．He is blaming Toyota for the poor quality of car keys. |
| B．He should thank Toyota for returning his car. |
| C．He wants to celebrate with Toyota for getting his car back. |
| D．He thinks highly of Toyota for producing large quantities of cars. |
What is likely to happen next according to the passage?
| A．Mrs. Anderson was charged with stealing a car. |
| B．Charlie blamed Mrs. Anderson for mistakenly taking his car. |
| C．Charlie would ask the Toyota Company to give him an explanation. |
| D．The Toyota Company would give Charlie a new car as compensation. |
Online Money Earning
You can earn money online without any investment or without anytime limit. There is no need to stop any other work. Here I tell you the complete method for online earning.
The Method
You can earn money through “Bux.to” by clicking on ads on “Bux. to” site. First you need to open an account at “Bux. to”. “Bux. to” is a new international and FREE English based service that allows advertisers to reach thousands of potential customers by displaying their ads on our “Surf Ads” page. An exact calculated percentage of all advertising income is paid to our members. “Bux. to” makes money through advertising.
How you make money
You view websites in 30 seconds through the “Surf Ads” page. Once the 30 seconds is up, you’ll either get a green tick sign or a red “x”. The green tick sign means you’ve earned $0.01 and the “x” means you have not earned money for the visit. You’ll get red x’s when you have more than one website from the “Surf Ads” page open. When this happens, you get no credit.
Earnings example
You click 10 ads per day = $0.10
20 referrals (转送) click 10 ads per day = $2.00
Your daily earnings = $2.10
Your weekly earnings = $14.70
How to get paid
At present, it only makes payments through “AlertPay”. AlertPay is the payment processing solution that we use to pay members. Your AlertPay address is the e-mail address you use to register with AlertPay. You can get a free AlertPay account at http:// alertpay. com.What is the author’s purpose of writing this passage?
| A．To tell an interesting story. |
| B．To introduce a surprising way to earn money. |
| C．To solve a puzzling problem. |
| D．To present an exciting research. |
You can earn money by ________.
| A．chatting online |
| B．advertising some products |
| C．clicking on advertisement |
| D．choosing green ticks or x’s |
What can we know from the passage?
| A．You’ll earn $0.10 if you click 1 ad. |
| B．You’ll get many green ticks if you have many websites open. |
| C．Your AlertPay account is not for free. |
| D．You can get your payments through AlertPay. |
【原创】Recently a series of reports appeared online in the United States and the United Kingdom lamenting(叹息) the “Lazy French”. A new labor law in France had apparently banned organizations from e-mailing their employees after 6 p.m. In fact, it turned out to be more a case of “lazy journalists” than “lazy French”: as The Economist explained, the “law” was not a law at all, but a labor agreement aimed at improving health among a group of professionals.
Brits and Americans have long suspected that the French are goofing off(吊儿郎当) while they – the good corporate soldiers—continue to toil away. They are proud about it, too. In the age of the smartphone, there’s no such things as “downtime”(停工期), and we claim that we are happier—and more productive – for it.
Are we, though? After reviewing thousands of books, articles and papers on the topic and interviewing dozens of experts in different fields, I don’t think so. When we are checking business news in bed or responding to co-workers. But, actually, we’re mostly just getting the small, easy things done. Being busy is not equal to being effective.
And let’s not forget about the surrounding play, which often distracts us from accomplishing our most important tasks. Facebook and Twitter report that their sites are most active during office hours. After all ,the employee who’s required to respond to her boss on Sunday morning will think nothing of responding to friends on Wednesday afternoon. Constant connection means that we’re “always at work”, yes, but also that we’re “never at work”—fully.
Some parts of the workforce do rely on constant connection. But others should be given proper breaks. The great technology historian, Melvin Kranzberg, said, “Technology is neither good nor bad, and nor is it neutral(中立的).” That statement should become a real principle of the information age. We must actively decide on our levels of technology engagement at different times to maximize productivity, success and happiness.The author mentions “lazy French” at the beginning of the passage in order to __________.
| A．criticize them for how they work |
| B．introduce the subject of working styles |
| C．show the way they work |
| D．explain how they differ from Americans and Brits |
Why did the author review many materials and interview many experts?
| A．It was his work to do that. |
| B．He needed to prepare plenty of materials for his work. |
| C．He wanted to prove that his working style was correct. |
| D．He wanted to find out which way of working was better. |
What can we conclude from the passage?
| A．We should make better use of technology. |
| B．Being busy makes us happier and more productive. |
| C．Small tasks can be done at home, but important ones must be done in the office. |
| D．In terms of working style, we should learn from the French. |
【原创】Writing a children’s story requires a vivid imagination, good writing, creativity and the ability to put yourself into the mind of a child. For many writers, writing children’s books successfully will require some effort to step back into the shoes of the very young and to see the world from a very fresh and curious perspective. For those who are always young-at-heart, writing children’s stories can be a very satisfying job. And if you are a child author reading this article, these characteristics will be second nature to you but you will still benefit from these steps on how to write a children’s story.
Brainstorm story ideas. The story is perhaps the most important aspect of a good book. Consult some of your favorite books(children’s or not) for an example. Choose a story that fits your interests and talents, such as action, fantasy, or mystery. Smaller children enjoy stories with a play on words or a repeated phrase.
Develop your characters. In order to have a good story, you need some interesting characters. Who is the main character in the story? Is there more than one? Are the characters humans, animals or fantasy creatures, or do they include elements of all three? Before you begin, it is best to make an outline of the characters and how they fit into the story.
Add some pictures. Everyone loves pictures. They can add to the interest level of the story and make it easier to follow. You may like to include a few funny cartoons or pictures in your story. Make sure that you use bright, happy colors or dark, sad colors, depending on the mood of a story.
A children’s story doesn’t need to be realistic! That is the difference between children’s and adult books. Of course you can write about a talking goose. Sure you can write about a human with a dog’s head and three legs. While children can enjoy this, adults cannot very often just let the story flow over them.What is the text mainly about?
| A．How to write a children’s story |
| B．How to shape characters of a children’s story |
| C．The characteristics of a children’s story |
| D．The requirements for a writer of children’s stories |
Which of the following is NOT true about the first paragraph?
| A．Imagination is required in writing a children’s story |
| B．This article is beneficial to child authors |
| C．Writers always young-at-heart can write a satisfying children’s story |
| D．A book describing the world from a fresh perspective can be welcomed by children |
When you think about the main idea of your book, _______________.
| A．you should read some children’s books |
| B．you should choose a story that you are interested in |
| C．you should read a book with repeated phrases |
| D．you should draw some pictures |
In the author’s opinion, ___________________.
| A．pictures can make story easier to understand |
| B．the color of the pictures used depends on the author himself |
| C．there is no difference between children’s and adult books |
| D．there should be more than one main character in a good story |
According to the author, ____________ is probably the most important step in writing a book.
| A．developing characters |
| B．adding pictures |
| C．thinking about story ideas |
| D．making an outline |
【原创】The first theories and experiments with cloning began in the late 1880s as scientist sought to prove their theories about how the genetic material inside cells worked. Discoveries about the nature of DNA in the 1940s made it possible for cloning experiments to progress. In 1944 it was discovered that genetic information for each cell was kept in the cell’s DNA. When Oswald Avery found this genetic information, it gave scientists new ways to try to clone animals by using that genetic blueprint（生物细胞的模型）.
The first cloned animals were northern leopard frogs that were cloned by Thomas J. King and Robert Briggs in 1952. King and Briggs believed, based on their clones, that young cells were more practical for the cloning process. Cells that were taken from adults resulted in abnormally developed tadpoles(蝌蚪). The next successful cloning experiments also resulted in cloned frogs. John Gurdon cloned South African frogs in 1962. His use of adult cells disproved the previous theory that only young cells could be used in the cloning process with success.
While animal cloning had been the focus of cloning experiments, the 1960s also saw other types of cloning. In 1964, F. C. Steward took an adult root cell from a carrot plant and successfully cloned the plant. Throughout the rest of the 1960s, scientists continued to clone frogs and to discover more about DNA. The first gene was discovered in 1969.
In 1977, the first cloned mice embryos were created. The first mammal was cloned in 1984. The cloned sheep was quickly followed in 1985 with cloned cattle embryos. A cow clone was created in 1986 and several calves in 1993. That same year, human embryos were cloned for the first time. In 1995 and 1996, sheep were cloned, including the famous Dolly.The first paragraph serves as a(n) __________________________.
| A．explanation | B．conclusion |
| C．comment | D．background |
When as the first plant successfully cloned?
| A．In 1952 | B．In 1960 |
| C．In 1964 | D．In1969 |
How is the passage organized?
| A．In order of frequency |
| B．In order of time |
| C．In order of importance |
| D．In order of preference |