Hello. I’m Jan from Mrs. Lake’s class. My class wants to work together to help the public. We think we have found a great way to do this. Last month we did a class project on the highways near our town. We learned about the Adopt-a-Highway Program. This program brings people together to pick up litter along the roads. We think it would be a great idea for all students in our school to join the program and adopt a highway.
Adopting a highway is not like adopting a pet. When a highway is adopted, only part of the highway is cared for by a group of people. The group agrees to work every week to keep its part of the highway clean. Each group gets its own sign that has the name of the group printed on it. The sign is put up at the side of the road. This sign lets drivers know who is keeping that area of the road clean.
The Adopt-a-Highway Program is a great way for people to help their environment look nicer. Also, the government does not have to send out as many road workers. This saves money. Finally, people may try harder to keep roads clean if they see people, especially teenagers like us, cleaning them up.
We will need helpers to care for our adopted highway. If you want to feel great and keep our roads clean,please come with your parents to the meeting next week. We will meet in Mrs. Lake’ room on Wednesday at 6:00 P.M. At the meeting, we will talk about which roads are the dirtiest as a result of people's unkind acts. Then we' ll
try to pick an area to adopt and clean.
I look forward to seeing you at the meeting. Remember to keep our roads clean!What is the Adopt-a-Highway Program about?
| A.Giving names to the highways. |
| B.Drawing pictures of highways. |
| C.Picking up litter along the roads. |
| D.Putting up signs near the roads. |
What should the students do first if they want to join the program?
| A.Pick a spot to care for. |
| B.Call Mrs. Lake next week. |
| C.Write a letter to their parents. |
| D.Go to a meeting on Wednesday. |
What is the purpose of this speech?
| A.To encourage students to join the program. |
| B.To introduce the traffic system. |
| C.To show drivers how to drive safely. |
| D.To tell a story about adopting a pet. |
Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
| A.Adopt-a-Pet |
| B.Adopt-a-Highway |
| C.Ways to Protect the Environment |
| D.Volunteers on Roads |
In 1939 two brothers, Mac and Dick McDonald, started a drive-in restaurant in San Bernadino, California. They carefully chose a busy corner for their location. They had run their own businesses for years, first a theater, then a barbecue(烤肉) restaurant, then another drive-in. But in their new operation, they offered a new, shortened menu: French fries, hamburgers, and sodas. To this small selection they added one new idea: quick service, no waiters or waitresses, and no tips.
Their hamburgers sold for fifteen cents. Cheese was another four cents. Their French fries and hamburgers had a remarkable uniformity(一致性), for the brothers had developed a strict routine(程序) for the preparation of their food, and they insisted on their cooks’ sticking to their routine. Their new drive-in became surprisingly popular, particularly for lunch. People drove up by the hundreds during the busy noontime. The self-service restaurant was so popular that the brothers had allowed ten copies of their restaurant to be opened. They were content with this modest success until they met Ray Kroc.
Kroc was a salesman who met the McDonald brothers in 1954, when he was selling milkshake-mixing machines. He quickly saw the special attraction of the brothers’ fast-food restaurants and bought the right to franchise(特许经营) other copies of their restaurants. The agreement included the right to duplicate(复制) the menu, the equipment, even their red and white buildings with the golden arches(拱门).
Today McDonald’s is really a household name. In 1976, McDonald’s had over $ l billion in total sales. Its first twenty-two years is one of the most surprising success stories in modern American business history. This passage mainly talks about _______.
| A.the development of fast food services |
| B.how McDonald’s became a billion-dollar business |
| C.the business careers of Mac and Dick McDonald |
| D.Ray Kroc’s business talent |
Mac and Dick managed all of the following businesses except _______.
| A.a drive-in | B.a theater |
| C.a cinema | D.a barbecue restaurant |
We may infer from this passage that _______.
| A.Mac and Dick McDonald never became wealthy for they sold their idea to Kroc. |
| B.the place the McDonalds chose was the only source of the great popularity of their drive-in |
| C.forty years ago there were lots of fast-food restaurants |
| D.Ray Kroc was a good businessman |
The passage suggests that _______.
| A.creativity is an important element of business success |
| B.Ray Kroc was the close partner of the McDonald brothers |
| C.Mac and Dick McDonald became broken after they sold their ideas to Ray Kroc |
| D.California is the best place to go into business |
A lot of us lose life’s tough battles by starting a frontal(正面的) attack—when a touch of humor might well enable us to win. Consider the case of a young friend of mine, who hit a traffic jam on his way to work shortly after receiving an ultimatum(最后通牒) about being late on the job. Although there was a good reason for Sam’s a being late—serious illness at home—he decided that this by-now-familiar excuse wouldn’t work any longer. His supervisor was probably already pacing up and down preparing a dismissal speech.
Yes, the boss was, Sam entered the office at 9:35. The place was as quiet as a locker room(更衣室); everyone was hard at work. Sam’s supervisor came up to him. Suddenly, Sam forced a grin and stretched out his hand. “How do you do!” he said. “I’m Sam Maynard. I’m applying for a job. Which, I understand, became available just 35 minutes ago. Does the early bird get the worm?”
The room exploded in laughter. The supervisor clamped off a smile and walked back to his office. Sam Maynard had saved his job—with the only tool that could win, a laugh.
Humor is a most effective, yet frequently neglected(忽略), means of handling the difficult situations in our lives. It can be used for patching up differences, apologizing, saying “no”, criticizing, getting the other fellow to do what you want without his losing face. For some jobs, it’s the only tool that can succeed. It is a way to discuss subjects so sensitive that serious dialog may start a quarrel. For example, many believe that comedians(喜剧演员) on television are doing more today for racial and religious tolerance(忍受力) than people in any other forum.Why was Sam late for his job?
| A.Because he was ill. |
| B.Because he got up late. |
| C.Because he was caught in a traffic jam. |
| D.He was busy applying for a new job. |
The main idea of this passage is ________.
| A.Sam Maynard saved his job with humor |
| B.humor is important in our lives |
| C.early bird gets the worm |
| D.humor can solve racial discriminations |
The phrase “clamped off” in Paragraph 3 means ________.
| A.tried to hold back | B.tried to set | C.charged | D.gave out |
Which of the following statements can we infer from the passage?
| A.Many lose life’s battles for they are lacking in a sense of humor. |
| B.It wasn’t the first time that Sam came late for his work. |
| C.Sam was supposed to come to his office at 8:30. |
| D.Humor is the most effective way of solving problems. |
When Johnson called again, the manager received him very politely. “That is a most remarkable oil you brought us, Mr Johnson,” he said. Johnson nodded his smooth, dark head. That was something he knew very well. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” the manager admitted. Johnson nodded again. “No?” he said politely. Then he added, “But I think you will, sir. A very great deal of it.” He appeared to think for a moment. “I think you will find it will be on sale seven, perhaps, eight years from now.” He smiled.
The manager thought that was uncertain. He said, “It is better than our fish oils. I admit that.” “So I am told, sir,” agreed Johnson.
“Have you any plans to produce it yourself, Mr Johnson?”
Johnson smiled again. “Would I be showing it to you if I had?”
“We might add some chemicals to one of our own fish oils,” said the manager.
“It would be expensive to do that, even if you could.” Johnson said gently. “Besides,” he added, “I am told that this oil will be much cheaper than your best fish oils. Cheaper than any vegetable oil, in fact.”
“Perhaps,” said the manager. “Well, I suppose you want to make an arrangement, Mr Johnson, Shall we discuss it?”
“Of course,” said Johnson. “There are two ways of dealing with a situation of this sort. The usual one is to prevent it altogether or at least to delay it as long as possible. That is, of course, the best way,” The manager nodded. He knew plenty about all that.
“But I am so sorry for you, because, you see, that is not possible this time.” The manager had his doubts, but all he said was an inquiring(asking), “Oh?”
“The other way,” continued Johnson, “is to produce yourself before the trouble starts.” The manager thought of adding chemicals to the fish oil to make it ________.
| A.cheaper than the new oil | B.more quickly |
| C.more expensive | D.as good as the new oil |
Johnson’s new oil would be ________.
| A.more expensive than fish oil, but better |
| B.less expensive, and better |
| C.less expensive, but not good |
| D.more expensive, and not so good |
Johnson expressed his regret that the manager ________.
| A.could not stop the new oil being made |
| B.would never know how to make it |
| C.had spent a lot of money on it |
| D.didn’t know enough about it |
Johnson showed his new oil to the manager because he wanted ________.
| A.to produce it himself | B.to prevent it being produced |
| C.to be paid not to produce it | D.the manager to produce it |
Jack used to curse(咒骂) the front yard as if it were a living thing. He was the man who lived with my grandmother for thirty years. He was not my grandfather, but an Italian who came down the road one day, selling fruit in Florida.
Jack stopped at my grandmother’s house to sell her some oranges just a stone’s throw from downtown Miami, and he was delivering her whiskey a week later. He stayed for thirty years. Jack hated the front yard because he thought it was against him. There had been a beautiful lawn(草坪) there when Jack came along, but he let it wander off into nothing. He refused to water it or take care of it in any way.
Now the ground was so hard that it gave his car flat tires(轮胎) in the summer. The yard was always finding a nail to put in one of his tires or the car as always sinking out of sight in the winter when the rains came on. The lawn had belonged to my grandfather, who lived out the end of his life in an insane hospital. It had been his pride and joy and was said to be the place where his powers came.It can be inferred that the real reason Jack had problems with the yard was that _______.
| A.he didn’t like the lawn. |
| B.the author’s grandfather was against Jack working on the lawn |
| C.the lawn was full of living things |
| D.he himself did not take care of the lawn |
We can learn from the passage that when the lawn belonged to the author’s grandfather, it had been _______.
| A.beautiful | B.worn out | C.wasted | D.full of nails |
What do we know about Jack and the author’s grandfather?
| A.They both hated the front lawn. |
| B.Jack was jealous of the author’s grandfather. |
| C.They sold fruit in Florida. |
| D.They came from Italy and lived together. |
Beldon and Canfield are two seashore towns, not far apart. Both towns have many hotels, and in summer the hotels are full of holiday-makers and other tourists.
Last August there was a fire at the Seabreeze Hotel in Beldon. The next day, this news appeared on page two of the town’s newspaper. The Beldon Post:
FIRE AT SEABREEZE
Late last night firemen hurried to the Seabreeze Hotel and quickly put out a small fire in a bedroom. The hotel manager said that a cigarette started the fire. We say again to all our visitors: “Please don’t smoke cigarettes in bed.” This was Beldon’s first hotel fire for five years.
The Canfield Times gave the news in these words on page one:
ANOTHER BELDON HOTEL CATCHES FIRE
Last night Beldon firemen arrived just too late to save clothing, bedclothes and some furniture at the Seabreeze Hotel. An angry holiday-maker said, “An electric lamp probably started the fire. The bedroom lamps are very old at some of these hotels. When I put my bedside light on, I heard a funny noise from the lamp.” We are glad to tell our readers that this sort of adventure does not happen in Canfield.
What are the facts, then? It is never easy to find out the exact truth about an accident. There was a fire at the Seabreeze Hotel last August: that is one fact. Do we know anything else? Yes, we know that firemen went to the hotel.
Now what do you think of the rest of the “news” ?Which of the following best gives the main idea of this text?
| A.Beldon and Canfield are both good places for tourists in summer. |
| B.A fire broke out night in Seabreeze Hotel last summer. |
| C.It was not easy to find out exact truth from newspapers. |
| D.Two newspapers gave reports on the same matter. |
Which of the following are probably facts?
a. The fire broke out in a bedroom at the hotel.
b. A cigarette started the fire.
c. An old lamp started the fire.
d. The fire broke out at night.
e. There has never been a fire in Canfield.
| A.b and c | B.a and d | C.c and e | D.a and c |
The Canfield Times used the headline like this in order to make its readers think _______.
| A.hotels in Beldon often catch fire |
| B.hotels in Beldon don’t often catch fire |
| C.this was the second fire at the Seabreeze Hotel |
| D.Beldon was a good place except that hotels there are not quite safe |
The Canfield newspaper gave a report just the opposite to the Beldon Post by saying that _______.
| A.the bedroom lamps were very old at the Seabreeze Hotel |
| B.the bedroom lights made funny noise when the fire took place |
| C.the firemen failed to save clothing, bedclothes and other things |
| D.such accidents never happened in Canfield for the past 5 years |