Success is often measured by the ability to overcome adversity. But, it is often the belief of others that gives us the courage to try.
J. K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter book series,began writing at the age of 6. In her biography, she remembers with great fondness when her good friend Sean, whom she met in secondary school, became the first person to encourage her and help build the confidence that one day she would be a very good writer.
“He was the first person with whom I really discussed my serious ambition to be a writer. He was also the only person who thought I was bound to be a success at it, which meant much more to me than I ever told him at the time.”
Despite many setbacks, Rowling persevered in her writing, particularly fantasy stories. But it wasn't until 1990 that she first conceived the idea about Harry Potter. As she recalls,it was on a long train journey from London to Manchester that the idea of Harry Potter simply fell into her head.“To my immense frustration (沮丧), I didn't have a functioning pen with me, and I was too shy to ask anybody if I could borrow one. I think, now, that this was probably a good thing, because I simply sat and thought, for four (delayed train) hours, and all the details bubbled up in my brain, and this scrawny, blackhaired, bespectacled(戴眼镜的) boy who didn’t know he was a wizard became more and more real to me.”
That same year, her mother passed away after a tenyear battle with multiple sclerosis, which deeply affected her writing. She went on to marry and had a daughter, but separated from her husband shortly afterwards.
During this time, Rowling was diagnosed with clinical depression. Unemployed, she completed her first novel in area cafes, where she could get her daughter to fall asleep. After being rejected by 12 publishing houses, the first Harry Potter novel was sold to a small British publishing house.
Now with seven books that have sold nearly 400 million copies in 64 languages, J. K. Rowling is the highest earning novelist in history. And it all began with her commitment to writing that was fostered by the confidence of a friend !
Rowling first came up with the idea about Harry Potter________.
A.at the age of 6 |
B.on a train journey |
C.after her mother’s death |
D.in her secondary school |
It can be concluded from Paragraph 5 and 6 that Rowling is________.
A.openminded | B.warmhearted |
C.goodnatured | D.strongwilled |
The text mainly tells us________.
A.hardship makes a good novelist |
B.the courage to try is a special ability |
C.you can have a wonderful idea everywhere |
D.encouragement contributes to one’s success |
A San Francisco self-service laundry(自助洗衣店) may be one of the world’s most unusual places to surf the Internet but a fashionable club on Moscow’s Red Square is definitely the most fashionable, according to a Yahoo survey of the globe’s best cybercafés(网吧).
The winners of the first Yahoo Mail Internet Café Awards were published on Wednesday to mark the 10th anniversary(纪念日) of the world’s first cybercafé in London’s West End.
Among the top picks were the unusual Brain Wash in San Francisco, named as “the height of Internet café with self-service laundry” and Moscow’s Phlegmatic Dog, selected as Most Stylish with its “unique combination of comfort and hi-tech”. Taking the Best UK Internet Café award was Café Curve in Brighton, southern England—“a must for anyone who likes style, comfort, typing and keeping in touch”. And the title of the world’s Most Remote Internet Café went to an internationally funded centre in Timbuktu, Mali.
The winners were chosen by a team of judges who considered travelers’ more than 1,000 nominations(提名) of cybercafés in 111 countries. The results have been collected in a Rough Guides e-book.
In the decade since London’s Café Cyberia first opened its doors in 1994, approximately 20,000 Internet cafés have sprung up in 171 countries, according to Yahoo Mail.
“Despite the fact that home and work Internet access is now commonplace, Internet cafés fulfill the same role as they did 10 years ago,” Eva Pascoe, a co-founder of Café Cyberia, said in a statement. “They are the post offices of the wired generation.”
48. The purpose of Yahoo Mail Internet Café Awards is ______ .
A. to honor the 10th anniversary of Yahoo
B. to celebrate the rapid development of Internet cafés
C. to mark the 10th anniversary of London’s Café Cyberia
D. to promote the most fashionable club
49. Which is NOT the correct match of the following cybercafés?
A. Café Curve in Brighton—the Best UK Internet Café award
B. The internationally funded centre in Timbuktu — the world’s Most Remote Internet Café
C. Moscow’s Phlegmatic Dog—the most fashionable
D. Brain Wash in San Francisco—combination of comfort and hi-tech
50. What does the last sentence “They are the post offices of the wired generation.” imply?
A. Internet surfers communicate with each other on Internet rather than by posting letters.
B. Internet cafes start the same service as post offices.
C. Post offices and Internet cafes are of the same importance to surfers.
D. Post offices turn to be Internet cafes in e-mail times.
Municipal(市政府) regulations normally ban anything from smoking in public places to parking in certain zones. But officials in the Brazilian town of Biritiba Mirim, 70km (45 miles) east of Sao Paulo, have gone far beyond that. They plan to prohibit residents from dying early because the local cemetery(墓地) has reached full capacity.
There’s no more room to bury the dead, they can’t be cremated(火化) and laws forbid a new cemetery. So the mayor has proposed a strange solution: outlaw death. Mayor Roberto Pereira says the bill is meant as a protest against federal regulations that prohibit new or expanded cemeteries in preservation areas. “They have not taken local demands into consideration”, he claims.
A 2003 decree(法令) by Brazil’s National Environment Council forbids burial grounds in protected areas. Mr. Pereira wants to build a new cemetery, but the project has been stopped because 98% of Biritiba Mirim is considered a preservation area.
Biritiba Mirim, a town of 28,000 inhabitants(居民), not only wants to prohibit residents from passing away. The bill also calls on people to take care of their health in order to avoid death. “I haven’t got a job, nor am I healthy. And now they say I can’t die. That’s ridiculous,” Amarildo do Prado, an unemployed resident said.
The city council is expected to vote on the regulation next week. “Of course the bill is laughable, illegal, and will never be approved,” said Gilson Soares de Campos, an assistant to the mayor. “But can you think of a better resolution to persuade the government to change the environmental decree that is prohibiting us from building a new cemetery?” The bill states that “offenders will be held responsible for their acts”. However, it does not say what the punishment will be.
44. What is the bill to be proposed by the officials in Biritiba Mirim?
A. Ban on smoking in public places.
B. Ban on parking in certain zones.
C. Prohibiting residents from dying early.
D. Forbidding buried grounds in preservation.
45. What can we infer from the phrase “have gone far beyond that”?
A. Officials in Biritiba Mirim have nothing of these regulations.
B. The bill to be proposed by officials in Biritiba Mirim is much too unexpected.
C. Officials in Biritiba Mirim have been to many places around the world.
D. The officials in Biritiba Mirim have built too many cemeteries in their town.
46. What’s the attitude of the mayor of Biritiba Mirim towards the federal regulations?
A. He objects to them.
B. He gives strong backing to them.
C. He asks the residents for advice on them.
D. He remains silent about them.
47. Which of the following is TRUE according to the article?
A. The mayor of the town wants to build a new cemetery against federal regulation.
B. The residents of the town sing the praises of the bill.
C. The government is going to change the environmental decree.
D. No better resolution of the problem has been thought out.
Cloning is suggested as a means of bringing back a relative, usually a child, killed tragically. Some parents can understand that wish, but it must first be recognized that the copy would be a new baby and not the lost child. Here lies the difficulty, for the sad parents are seeking not a new baby but a return of the dead one. Since the original would be fondly remembered as having particular talents and interests, would not the parents expect the copy to be the same? It is possible, however, that the copy would develop quite differently. Is it fair to the new child to be placed in a family with such unnatural expectations?
Copying is also suggested as a means by which parents can have the child of their dreams. Couples might choose to have a copy of a film star, baseball player or scientist, depending on their interest. But because personality is only partly the result of genetic inheritance(遗传), conflicts would be sure to arise if the cloned child failed to develop the same interests as the original. What if the copy of Einstein shows no interest in science? Or the baseball player turns to acting? Success also depends upon fortune. What if the child does not live up to the hopes and dreams of the parents simply because of bad luck?
Every child should be wanted for itself, as an individual. In making a copy of oneself or some famous person, a parent is deliberately(深思熟虑地) specifying(详细说明) the way he or she wishes that child to develop. In recent years, particularly in the U.S., much importance has been placed on the right of individuals to reproduce in ways that they wish. So I suggest there is a greater need to consider the interests of the child and to reject these proposed uses of cloning.
40. What happens to parents in cloning a lost child?
A. Parents expect too much from the copy.
B. Parents may get a quite different copy.
C. Parents are sure to have an identical copy.
D. Parents lose the talents of the lost child.
41. What, in the author’s opinion, affects the success of parents’ dreams?
A. The cloned child’s interest in Einstein.
B. The cloned child’s natural talent.
C. The cloned child’s personality.
D. The efforts of the parents.
42. In the third paragraph, the author implies that ______.
A. the cloned child is viewed as independent
B. the right of growing in his own way is taken away from the cloned child
C. parents carefully protect the rights of the cloned child
D. parents are eager to wish the cloned child to be somebody.
43. In this passage, the author is mainly concerned about ______.
A. the future of a cloned child
B. the possibility of cloning people
C. the importance of cloning a lost child
D. the problems of cloning life
On April 16th,don`t be surprised if the womann next to you on the subway looks like she forgot to get dlessed for work.She won`t be alone.People in their pajamas(睡衣裤)will be spotted all across the country一traveling on the subway,in line for their morning coffee,and even walking into office buildings.That`S because people will be trading in their business suits for pajamas and celebrating National Wear Your Pajamas to Work Day.
There is nothng more comfortable than sitting at your desk in soft cotton flannel(法兰绒的)paiamas or wearing your favorite slippers while you deeply think about the day`s tasks,The PajamaGram Company,Which produces and sells pajamsa,believes that Americans need a break,especially the day aher income taxes are due.That`s why they are celebrating National wear Your Pajamas to Work Day.
Wearing pajamas to work can be relaxing and can actually help employees be more productive.David Alien,author of The Art of Stress-free Productivity,promotes(倡导)relaxation to increase Productivity."Our ability to be Productive is directly proportional(成比例的)to our ability to relax,"said Allen."Only when our minds are clear and our thoughts are organized can we achieve stressftee productivity."
At the Pajama Gram Company,it`s not unusual to find employees Wearing their pajamas at important meetings or at their desks.The Company even invented the term "life is bananas,send some pajamas," to describe how they feel about the world we live in.
The PajamaGrma Company offers over 100 styles of pajamas,robes,slippers and spa products.Each PajamaGram gift comes along with beautiful Pajamas,lavender(熏衣草)bath tea,Do-Not-Disturb sign for the door and a gift card.
61. On APril 16th,people in America often ____________.
A.forget to change pajamas for work
B.do pajama business on the way to Work
C.go to wook in their pajamas
D.celebrate their traditional festival
62. People celebrate this special day because they are expected to
A.Work in a more effective way
B.increase their ability to relax
C.spend less on their daily clothes
D.have more time to rest
63. The underlined word "bananaS" in the last paragraph can be replaced by ___________.
A.easy and free B.happy and interesting
C.crazy and busy D.full of fruits
64. According to the passage,which gifts will you receive from the PaiamaGram Company?
a.a sleepwear b.a beautiful box c.a Do-Not-Disturb sign d.lavder bath tea
e.a personalized gift card
A.c,d,e B.a,c,d C.b,c,d,e D.a,c,d,e
65. The main purpose of the passage is to _________.
A.advertise the PajamaGram Company
B.introduce a special day in America
C.describe the busy life In America
D.advise people to buy more pajamas
Child models are very much in demand all across the world. Many magazines and online stores that sell products for children like their models young.For this reason,they seek out children who can model clothing and have no problem posing(摆姿势)and smiling for the camera.Those who are seeking out child models for thelr advertising can go to online modeling sites and view plotures of children who are web models.They can take a look at their portfolio(整套照片)and decide whether they will accept them.
Parents who are seeking to get their children into the modeling business can also create a portfolio for ther children and put them online.They can look for jobs for their chldren through an online modeling site,or they can wait for job offers for their children.These online sites act as web modeling agency for models young and old alike.Anyone who has the desire to be a model can get a portfoilo together and join the site.
If you have a child who you want to be a model,you should frst stalt a portfolio for him or
her and Then join an online modeling agency.Once you join the agency,you can then start to look for jobs,Clients(客户)will post jobs that can be found in the search.You can look for jobs for young models and see if your child will fit what the client is looking for. In many cases,the client will send clothing for the child to wear and a descriptlon of poses and the job can be done close to home.
Online modeling agencies are not only for child models.Older models,teen models,men and women can model for these slies. A great deal of the modeling is for online websites.Ths is an entirely new field in the world of modeling and much easier to get into than the older modeling agencies.There is no traveling or expensive photo shoots needed.All that is needed to make children into models is a nice portfolio and a photogenic(上相的)child.
71. Child models are needed to____________.
A.Create more job offers
B.set the fashion for children
C.increase the sales of child products
D.manage online stores that sell teen magazines
72.The underlined Word "they" in Paragraph 1 refers to_______.
A.parents
B.chld models
C.online modeling sites
D.people looking for child models for advertising
73. What should parents do if they`d like their children to become models?
A.Train them to hold special poses.
B.Choose them beautiful clothes.
C.Take expensive photos of them.
D.Put their portfolio on online modeling sites.
74. Why are online modeling agencise popular?
A.Because They are easily accessible to most people.
B.Because they charge no fees for their service.
C.Because this is an entirely new field.
D.Because this can make a child more photogenic.
75.This passage is mainly about______.
A.a growing need for child models
B.an increase in modeling agencies
C.the change in the world of modeling
D.the attraction of the world of modeling