There seems to be a general assumption that brilliant people cannot stand routine ; that they need a varied , exciting life in order to do their best . It is also assumed that dull people are particularly suited for dull work . We are told that the reason the present-day young complain so loudly about the dullness of jobs is that they are better educated and brighter than the young of the past .
Actually , there is no evidence that people who achieve a lot desire , let alone live , colorful lives . The opposite is nearer the truth . Einstein worked out his theory of relativity while serving as a clerk in a Swiss patent office . Immanuel Kant’s（康德）daily life was a dull routine . The housewives of Konigsberg set their clocks when they saw him pass , on his way to the university . He took the same walk each morning , rain or shine . The greatest distance Kant ever traveled was sixty miles from Konigsberg .
It may be true that work on the assembly line（流水线）dulls the abilities and empties the mind , and the cure is only fewer hours of work at higher pay . But during fifty years as a workingman , I have found dull routine coexisting with an active mind . While doing dull , repetitive work by the water , I could talk with my partners and compose sentences in my mind , all at the same time . Chances are that had my work been too interesting I could not have done any thinking and composing at work or even on my own time after returning from work .
People who find dull jobs unbearable are often dull people who do not know what to do with themselves at leisure . Children and mature people will get used to dull routine , while the adolescent , who has lost the child’s ability for concentration and is without the inner resources of the mature , needs excitement and novelty to get rid of boredom . It can be inferred from Paragraph 2 that __________ .
| A．great minds hate to live colorful lives |
| B．Einstein worked out his theory in a university |
| C．Kant only took the same walk on rainy and sunny days |
| D．Kant might pass Konigsberg every day at the same time |
How does the author feel about his repetitive work by the water ?
| A．It made his mind empty . |
| B．It was well-paid but too demanding . |
| C．It worked well with his active mind . |
| D．It was too interesting to think of anything else . |
The reasons why youngsters dislike dull work include the following EXCEPT that they __________ .
| A．are not mature enough |
| B．think themselves smart |
| C．often complain about others |
| D．don’t know how to spend spare time |
What is the purpose of the passage ?
| A．To argue for the benefits of dull work . |
| B．To present some facts about dull work . |
| C．To share his own dull working experience . |
| D．To persuade young people to live a dull life . |
"Have you ever been out on a boat and felt it lifted up by a wave? Or have you jumped in the water and felt the rush of energy as waves came over you.?" asked Jamie Taylor of the Wave Energy Group at the University of Edinburgh. "There is certainly a lot of energy in waves," he said. Scientists are working to use that energy to make electricity. Most waves are created when winds blow across the ocean. "The wind starts out by making little ripples (涟漪), but if they keep on blowing, those ripples get bigger and bigger and turn into waves," Taylor said. "Waves are one of nature's ways of picking up energy and then sending it off on a journey." When waves come toward the shore, people can set up dams to block the water and send it through a large wheel called a turbine (涡轮机). The turbine can then power an electrical generator to produce electricity.
"The resource is huge," said Janet Swain of the World Watch Institute. "We will never run out of wave power." Besides, wave energy does not create the same pollution as other energy sources, such as oil or coal. Oceans cover three-quarters of the Earth's surface---that would make wave power seem ideal for creating energy throughout the world, though there are some weak points yet to overcome.
Swain said that wave power still costs too much money. She also said that its effects on sea animals are still unknown. What is more, wave power could affect fishing and boat traffic. Traditional sources of energy like oil and gas may someday run out. "Demand for energy to power our TVs and computers, drive our cars, and heat and cool our homes is rising rapidly throughout the world," Swain said. In the future when you turn on a light, an ocean wave could be providing the electricity!The underlined phrase "picking up" is closest in meaning to ______.
| A．starting again | B．speeding up |
| C．improving | D．gathering |
We can make better use of wave energy if we ______.
| A．shorten its journey to thousands of homes |
| B．build more small power stations on the oceans |
| C．reduce the cost of turning it into electric power |
| D．quicken the steps of producing electricity |
It can be inferred that some day we might not worry about ______.
| A．our power supply | B．our boat traffic |
| C．air pollution | D．our supply of sea fish |
Americans get some of their news and entertainment from public television and radio. These public media receive money to operate from private citizens, organizations and government. Many of their programs are educational. But most of the American media are run by businesses for profit. These privately owned media have changed greatly in recent years. Newspapers, magazines and traditional broadcast television organizations have lost some of their popularity. At the same time, online, cable and satellite media have increased in numbers and strength. So have media that serve racial groups and those communicating in foreign languages.
In general, more media than ever now provide Americans with news and entertainment. At the same time, fewer owners control them. Huge companies have many holdings(股份). In some areas, one company controls much of the media. One dramatic change in American media is the increased success of cable television. It comes into most homes over wires. It does not use the public airwaves to present programs, as broadcast television does. Like broadcast television, most cable television programs perform advertisements. This is true although people must pay to see cable television in their homes. Thirty years ago, few people had cable. Today, about sixty-eight percent of American homes have cable television. Television by satellite also is gaining popularity.
Over the years, traditional broadcast organizations have tried to appeal to as many watchers as possible. Many cable companies, however, present programs for one special group of viewers. For example, there are cable stations for people who like books, cooking, travel, golf or comedy.Which of the following is true about American public media?
| A．They depend on the government. |
| B．They are controlled by the government |
| C．They are free |
| D．They can earn money. |
Which of the following properly shows the change in these privately owned media?
| A．Newspapers are getting more popular. |
| B．Satellite media is getting more popular. |
| C．Traditional media also serve racial groups. |
| D．Some media make their programs in foreign languages |
From the second paragraph, we learn that .
| A．broadcast TV and cable TV programs include sales messages |
| B．more media are out of control |
| C．American media is dramatic |
| D．cable TV is free |
What would be the best title for the text?
| A．American news and entertainment |
| B．Public television and radio media |
| C．media in the United States |
| D．Cable programs in the United States |
If you see a group of people dancing and singing on the street or in the railway station, you don't need to feel surprised. They are a flash mob(暴民). Who are they? Are they mobs? Don't be confused by their name. Actually, a flash mob is a group of people who gather suddenly in a public place, do something unusual for a brief period of time, and then quickly disappear.
They are usually organized with the help of the Internet or other digital communications networks. The messages may be sent to friends, who send to more people. At a predetermined time, they gather and perform some activities such as exchanging books, coming together to look at the sky, waving their hands and yelling something at the top of their voice for 30 seconds. Then, they quickly disappear before the police can arrive. Using mobile phones, the flash mob can change its place if the first one has been cancelled for any reason.
Bill Wasik, senior editor of Harper's Magazine, organized the first flash mob in Manhattan in May 2003 and the first successful flash mob gathered on June 3, 2003. Wasik claimed that he created the flash mob as a social experiment designed to laugh at fashion seekers and stress the cultural atmosphere of wanting to be an insider or part of “the next big thing”.
Flash mob gatherings can sometimes shock people. Such an activity might seem amusing and magical, but it also might frighten people who are not aware of what is taking place. Undoubtedly, flash mob can serve as good political tools and have great potential, such as using flash mob to advertise a product.
The flash mob is now becoming more and more popular. People use it to do many things. For example, in 2009, Michael Jackson’s fans took part in a flash mob to remember him. Hundreds of his fans gathered singing and dancing Michael’s famous song “Beat It” together. Flash mobs give people from all walks of life an opportunity to come together to create a memory.What is NOT the feature of the flash mob?
| A．It can get together quickly. |
| B．It can change its place freely. |
| C．It can do activities suddenly. |
| D．It can injure people seriously. |
How do flash mobs inform one another?
①By using the Internet.
②By writing letters.
③By yelling.
④By waving hands.
⑤By using mobile phones.
⑥By holding a meeting.
| A．③④ | B．①⑤ | C．②⑥ | D．⑤⑥ |
Why did Bill Wasik create the flash mob?
| A．To advertise some products. | B．To help people make friends. |
| C．To laugh at fashion seekers. | D．To create some memories. |
What can we learn about the flash mob from the passage?
| A．Bill Wasik organized the first successful flash mob in May, 2003. |
| B．People are encouraged to take a more active part in an activity. |
| C．Flash mobs tend to do something illegal for a short time. |
| D．Flash mob gathering can frighten all the people present. |
If you have a little child, who hates sitting in a car seat, then the FreedomRide is the answer to your problem.
Would you want to be stuck in an unchangeable position every time you’re in the car? No. You wouldn’t.
When an adult sits in a car for any length of time, we stretch, we change the position, we move our legs again and again. We do this without thinking. But kids in a traditional car seat can’t do this. They are stuck in one position, and they can’t move. We move because the circulation of blood needs to be recovered in our legs as we sit in the same position for any longer.
In a traditional car seat, the child can’t move to reduce the pain, so it puts them in anger.
The FreedomRide lets them have a little freedom, and still be safe. The 5-Point Harness(背带)gives them additional safety over a traditional child car seat.
I am the Webmaster for islandbreeze.com, and when JoeySafe asked us to redo their website, I was attracted by this system. That is because I have two small children, both girls, aged 3 and 4 and we obviously use car seats. I lived in Southern California, and every couple of months, my wife, the girls and I, go to see grandma who lives in Nevada. It’s a 5-hour drive, so the FreedomRide works well. Our trips are so much better now, especially since there is more room in the car without the car seats.
The FreedomRide really did make it easier to go on trips. The only thing you need when you use the JoeySafe instead of your old child car seat is a pillow. Besides, my kids want to take a pillow anyway! As a dad, I feel safe driving with the kids in the FreedomRide. I am a very safety-oriented person.From the text we can infer the FreedomRide is a _______.
| A．car seat | B．car for children |
| C．safety belt | D．game on islandbreeze.com |
The FreedomRide is likely to be designed for________.
| A．a person hating sitting in the car for long |
| B．an adult often driving a traditional car |
| C．a child requiring some freedom in the car |
| D．a driver needing comfortable seats |
The purpose of the last two paragraphs may be to ________.
| A．support the topic of the child car safety |
| B．describe the advantage of the FreedomRide |
| C．introduce the detail of the author’s work and web. |
| D．describe what the author does with his child car seat |
The next part following the last paragraph may mention________.
| A．the way of ordering | B．the way of communicating |
| C．the inventor of this product | D．the advantage of the product |
Although I started learning English during my college years, when I entered the States, I only understood two English words “Yes” and “No”. We learned many grammar rules but we could not make the language connections to the real English world. Language frustration worries almost all first generation immigrants. For example, I got a letter from a Chinese-American who has lived in the States for a long time and has a good IT job saying “My 11-year-old girl writes quite well, but as her parents, we could not even read her article.”In addition, my Chinese-American professor friend has difficulty reading a novel. Improving our English skills has become a long journey for all of us. Honestly, if I have a chance, I really want to reach out to everyone in the world who has had a similar experience: learning a second language in adulthood. I wish I could encourage them to speak out about the culture shock, frustration they felt about the differences between West and East.
I have mainly focused on my English writing since 2008 after I found “Literacy Volunteers”, an organization that specially focuses on helping immigrants improve their English. I decided to challenge myself, writing a story like an American. I saw many wonderful Americans there. As soon as I met my teacher Alice, I asked her to be my private language tutor and have taken Tims English class. Every week Alice and I have worked on my English essays sentence by sentence.
To observe the culture differences between West and East, occasionally, I posted a few of my English essays online. I mentioned previously about American culture; when people read the same article or even face the same situation, American and Chinese act very differently. In my viewpoint, these differences make America the strongest country in the world. I know you have the right to express your own opinions, but accusing others without proof is not acceptable.The underlined word “frustration” in the first paragraph means .
| A．failure and setbacks | B．words and problems |
| C．understanding and progress | D．slang and idioms |
In the passage, “Literacy Volunteers” is .
| A．only intended to help the Chinese-Americans |
| B．an organization which is set up to make a profit |
| C．of great use to people like the author |
| D．a school showing how to enjoy literature |
From the last paragraph we can learn that .
| A．Americans and Chinese are of the same idea about something |
| B．culture shock only exists between Chinese and Americans |
| C．accusing others freely can be acceptable in America |
| D．culture differences have great influence on the people |
The purpose of the passage is .
| A．to show how hard a Chinese-American lives in America |
| B．to share her experience of improving her English |
| C．to imply grammar rules are not important |
| D．to warn Chinese-Americans of English |