That cold January night, I was growing sick of my life in San Francisco. There I was, walking home at one in the morning after a tiring practice at the theatre. With opening night only a week away, I was still learning my lines(台词). I was having trouble dealing with my part-time job at the bank and my acting at night at the same time. As I walked, I thought seriously about giving up both acting and San Francisco. City life had become too much for me.
As I walked down empty streets under tall buildings, I felt very small and cold. I began running, both to keep warm and to keep away from any possible robbers (抢劫犯). Very few people were still out except a few sad-looking homeless people under blankets.
About a block from my apartment, I heard a sound behind me. I turned quickly, half expecting to see someone with a knife or a gun. The street was empty. All I saw was a shining streetlight. Still, the noise had made me nervous, so I started to run faster. Not until I reached my apartment building and unlocked the door did I realize what the noise had been. It had been my wallet falling to the sidewalk.
Suddenly I wasn’t cold or tired anymore. I ran out of the door and back to where I’d heard the noise. Although I searched the sidewalk anxiously for fifteen minutes, my wallet was nowhere to be found.
Just as I was about to give up the search, I heard the garbage truck (垃圾车) pull up to the sidewalk next to me. When a voice called from the inside, “ Alisa Camacho ?” I thought I was dreaming. How could this man know my name? The door opened, and out jumped a small red-haired man with an amused look in his eye. “Is this what you’re looking for?” he asked, holding up a small square shape.
It was nearly 3 A.M. by the time I got into bed. I wouldn’t get much sleep that night, but I had gotten my wallet back. I also had gotten back some enjoyment of city life. I realized that the city couldn’t be a bad place as long as people were willing to help each other.How did the writer feel when she was walking home after work?
| A.Cold and sick. |
| B.Fortunate and helpful. |
| C.Satisfied and cheerful. |
| D.Disappointed and helpless. |
On her way home the writer _______.
| A.lost her wallet unknowingly |
| B.was stopped by a garbage truck driver |
| C.was robbed of her wallet by an armed man |
| D.found some homeless people following her |
In the fifth paragraph, why did the writer say she was dreaming?
| A.Someone offered to take her back home. |
| B.A red-haired man came to see her. |
| C.She heard someone call her name. |
| D.Her wallet was found in a garbage truck. |
From the text, we can infer that the writer _________.
| A.would stop working at night |
| B.would stay on in San Francisco |
| C.would make friends with cleaners |
| D.would give up her job at the bank. |
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. |
It would be very exciting to be a reporter on a newspaper. As soon as a reporter’s boss gives him a story to write, the reporter is on the job. He keeps his mind on what he is going to do. He does not begin writing the story until he knows what he should find out. He must know why he should write the story.
At times a reporter must search hard to find all of the facts he needs for a story. The facts may not be right under his nose. To find the facts, he has to recognize important details. While gathering information for a story, he asks himself questions:Should I use this information? Is this an important fact?
A reporter writes the story as fast as he can, so it can go right away into the newspaper. The story also needs a headline, which tells very quickly what the news story is about and is printed bigger and blacker than the rest of the news story.
Every big newspaper has many reporters,because many stories are needed in the newspaper. Would you like to be one?A reporter writes the story as fast as possible because ________________.
| A.he wants it to go into the newspaper quickly |
| B.people prefer to buy today’s newspaper |
| C.he wants to have a rest |
| D.he is good at writing it |
Which statement is true according to the passage?
| A.Being a reporter is a tiring job. |
| B.It is easy for a reporter to find the facts. |
| C.The headline must tell the details of the news story. |
| D.A reporter begins to write when knowing what he should find out. |
Which is the writer’s opinion?
| A.A reporter’s boss is usually very hard to his men. |
| B.The job of a newspaper reporter is exciting but not easy. |
| C.Everyone can write a good news story. |
| D.No one likes to be a reporter. |
The passage is about ______________.
| A.the job of a news reporter |
| B.big newspapers in the world |
| C.how to write the headline of all articles |
| D.how to gather information for a news story |