The more people I meet, the more I love my dog. Every day I am reminded why I love him so much.
Three weeks before Christmas in 2008 at about 2:00 in the morning, my dog woke us up out of a sound sleep because someone was knocking at our door. He barked in front of me as if to protect me from the stranger who was knocking. My husband answered, and it was a local police officer telling us that my father-in-law had called the police because he forgot our number. My mother-in-law was suffering from a brain disease and was in the hospital. We thanked the officer and raced to the hospital. We would have taken him, but the hospital would consider him to be a dirty pet.
After visiting the hospital we drove home and hugged our dog once more. At this point it was unlikely that little dog remembered waking us up. What he did remember was that we left him alone for several hours and he missed us. He thought we missed him, too, so he greeted us at the door with his tail wagging (摇摆).
Someone tried to break in our house that summer, but, once again, our little dog saved the day. Our curtains were damaged, but no one got in. When I got home from work, I found parts of my curtains lying on the floor. We called the police and the officer said that he did a great job.
My dog is a loving sweet dog who just wants some attention. I worked with him for months and now he sits, dances, sings, shakes hands, and so much more. The best part is he looks out for me as much as I look out for him.
My husband says the dog is spoiled (宠坏的); I say he finally has a loving home.The author’s dog woke her up to tell her that _____.
| A．her mother-in-law was ill |
| B．her father-in-law called her |
| C．someone was knocking at the door |
| D．someone had broke into her house |
Why did the police say the dog did a great job?
| A．The dog saved the author. |
| B．The dog stopped the thief. |
| C．The dog did well what people told it. |
| D．The dog helped to find the thief. |
The purpose of the text is to tell readers _____.
| A．why the author’s dog is her best friend |
| B．what the proper attitude towards dogs is |
| C．what dogs can bring us |
| D．how to raise dogs |
Are you a saver or a spender?
"A penny saved is a penny earned." This old saying calls attention to the wisdom of saving money. "_________________________" is another way to talk about saving for the future.
People who hate to spend money are known as "tightwads," while those who like to get the most value for their money are called "thrifty." A thrifty person is different from a "spendthrift." A spendthrift is someone who spends wastefully. People like that are often said to spend money "like a drunken sailor" or "like there's no tomorrow."
In the United States, people who want to start a savings account have different choices of where to put their money. These include banks and credit unions. Credit unions are cooperatives for people who have some kind of connection. For example, the members might work for a university or a government agency. Most credit unions are nonprofit organizations.
Credit unions, banks and other financial institutions pay interest on savings accounts. But the interest rates are low. Certificates of deposit（存款证） pay higher returns. With a certificate of deposit, or CD, a person agrees not to withdraw the money for a certain period of time. This term could be anywhere from a few months to several years. Longer terms, and larger amounts, pay higher interest. People can withdraw their money early but they have to pay a fine.
In a number of countries, people have been saving less over the years. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development is a group of thirty-four countries. The OECD says in 1990, Americans had a household savings rate of seven percent. This year, that rate is expected to be a little more thanfour percent and many European countries have higher rates like the UK and France , but Americans save more than families in countries like Japan and South Korea.Which of the following proverbs can be filled in the blank in Paragraph 2?
| A．Health is wealth. |
| B．Money is a good servant but a bad master |
| C．Put money away for a rainy day. |
| D．Money doesn’t grow on trees. |
If you have $10,000, which of the following may help you get higher interest ?
| A．Choose certificates of deposit for one year. |
| B．Put the money in banks for one year. |
| C．Put the money in credit unions for one year. |
| D．Choose certificates of deposit for one year but withdraw the money ahead of time. |
What does the passage mainly talk about ?
| A．Different choices of putting money away in the US. |
| B．The importance of saving money. |
| C．How to put money into banks. |
| D．The household savings rate in the US. |
My three-year-old granddaughter, Tegan, went with her parents to a family gathering at the home of her other grandparents. Everyone was having a wonderful time visiting and catching up on all the latest family news.
Like most children, Tegan was having a good time playing with all the toys that were different from her own and that were kept for children to play with at her grandparents’ house. In particular, Tegan had found a little tea set and had begun pretending that she was having a tea party. She set up all the place settings and arranged her table with the great care and elegance that only a three-year-old can create. Meanwhile, her Daddy was engrossed in conversation, and as he continued to chat with his family, Tegan would hand him a cup of "tea". Her Daddy, who always tries to participate in her games, would pause for a few seconds from his conversation, and say all the proper words and gestures for her tea party which would thrill Tegan. He would request two lumps of sugar. He would tell her how wonderful her tea tasted, and then he would continue his adult conversation with his family.
After going through this routine several times, her Daddy suddenly awoke to reality as he had a flash of concern in his mind: "She is only three years old, where is she getting this ‘tea’ that I've been dutifully drinking?" He quietly followed her, without her knowing, and his fears were growing stronger as he saw her turn and go through the bathroom door. Sure enough, there she was stretching up on her tippy toes reaching up to get her ‘tea’ water -- out of the container of water that grandpa used to soak his false teeth!At the family gathering, the adults __________.
| A．watched their favorite TV programs |
| B．talked about what happened at home |
| C．drank tea while chatting |
| D．arranged tables for children’s games |
Which of the following phrases can replace the underlined phrase “was engrossed in” in Paragraph 2 ?
| A．got tired of | B．got annoyed by |
| C．was absorbed in | D．was puzzled at |
What can be learned from the text ?
| A．Tegan was unhappy to be left alone at the gathering. |
| B．Tegan’s father often played with her in games. |
| C．Tegan refused to apologize for what she had done. |
| D．Tegan’s father cared nothing about what she was doing. |
Tegan’s Dad followed her secretly to find out __________.
| A．whether there was any tea left |
| B．how she made tea so wonderful |
| C．where she got the sugar for tea |
| D．what kind of tea he had drunk |
My daughter Allie is leaving for college in a week. Her room is piled with shopping bags filled with blankets, towels, jeans, sweaters. She won’t talk about going.
I say, “I’m going to miss you,” and she gives me one of her looks and leaves the room. Another time I say, in a voice so friendly it surprises even me: “Do you think you’ll take your posters and pictures with you, or will you get new ones at college?”
She answers, her voice filled with annoyance, “How should I know?”
My daughter is off with friends most of the time. Yesterday was the last day she’d have until Christmas with her friend Katharine, whom she’s known since kindergarten. Soon, it will be her last day with Sarah, Claire, Heather... and then it will be her last day with me.
My friend Karen told me, “The August before I left for college, I screamed at my mother the whole month. Be prepared.”
I stand in the kitchen, watching Allie make a glass of iced tea. Her face, once so open and trusting, is closed to me. I struggle to think of something to say to her, something meaningful and warm. I want her to know I’m excited about the college she has chosen, that I know the adventure of her life is just starting and that I am proud of her. But the look on her face is so mad that I think she might hit me if I open my mouth.
One night — after a long period of silence between us — I asked what I might have done or said to make her angry with me. She sighed and said, “Mom, you haven’t done anything. It’s fine.” It is fine — just distant.
Somehow in the past we had always found some way to connect. When Allie was a baby, I would go to the day-care center after work. I’d find a quiet spot and she would nurse — our eyes locked together, reconnecting with each other.
In middle school, when other mothers were already regretting the distant relationship they felt with their adolescent daughters, I hit upon a solution: rescue measures. I would show up occasionally at school, sign her out of class and take her somewhere — out to lunch, to the movies, once for a long walk on the beach. It may sound irresponsible, but it kept us close when other mothers and daughters were quarrelling. We talked about everything on those outings — outings we kept secret from family and friends.
When she started high school, I’d get up with her in the morning to make her a sandwich for lunch, and we’d silently drink a cup of tea together before the 6:40 bus came.
A couple of times during her senior year I went into her room at night, the light off, but before she went to sleep. I’d sit on the edge of her bed, and she’d tell me about problems: a teacher who lowered her grade because she was too shy to talk in class, a boy who teased her, a friend who had started smoking. Her voice, coming out of the darkness, was young and questioning.
A few days later I’d hear her on the phone, repeating some of the things I had said, things she had adopted for her own.
But now we are having two kinds of partings. I want to say good-bye in a romantic way. For example, we can go to lunch and lean across the table and say how much we will miss each other. I want smiles through tears, bittersweet moments of memory and the chance to offer some last bits of wisdom.
But as she prepares to depart, Allie has hidden her feelings. When I reach to touch her arm, she pulls away. She turns down every invitation I extend. She lies on her bed, reading Emily Dickinson until I say I have always loved Emily Dickinson, and then she closes the book.
Some say the tighter your bond with your child, the greater her need to break away, to establish her own identity in the world. The more it will hurt, they say. A friend of mine who went through a difficult time with her daughter but now has become close to her again, tells me, “Your daughter will be back to you.”
“I don’t know,” I say. I sometimes feel so angry that I want to go over and shake Allie. I want to say, “Talk to me — or you’re grounded!” I feel myself wanting to say that most horrible of all mother phrases: “Think of everything I’ve done for you.”
Late one night, as I’m getting ready for bed she comes to the bathroom door and watches me brush my teeth. For a moment, I think I must be brushing my teeth in a way she doesn’t approve of. But then she says, “I want to read you something.” It’s a brochure from her college. “These are tips for parents.”
I watch her face as she reads the advice aloud: “ ‘Don’t ask your child if she is homesick,’ it says. ‘She might feel bad the first few weeks, but don’t let it worry you. This is a natural time of transition. Write her letters and call her a lot. Send a package of candies...’ ”
Her voice breaks, and she comes over to me and buries her head in my shoulder. I stroke her hair, lightly, afraid she’ll run if I say a word. We stand there together for long moments, swaying. Reconnecting.
I know it will be hard again. It’s likely there will be a fight about something. But I am grateful to be standing in here at midnight, both of us tired and sad, toothpaste spread on my chin, holding tight to—while also letting go of—my daughter who is trying to say good-bye.Why is there a period of silence between the author and Allie one night?
| A．Allie is tired of the author’s suggestions. |
| B．The author is angry with Allie’s rudeness. |
| C．Allie is anxious about talking about leaving. |
| D．The author is ready to adjust her way of parenting. |
How did the author deal with the possible distance with Allie when Allie was in middle school?
| A．She would chat with Allie till late at night. |
| B．She would invite Allie and her friends home. |
| C．She would visit Allie at school and take her out. |
| D．She would communicate with Allie by telephone. |
It can be inferred from the passage that__________.
| A．Allie is emotional and only has a few good friends |
| B．the author is not satisfied with the college Allie has chosen |
| C．there is a lack of communication between the author and Allie |
| D．there are different attitudes to parting between the author and Allie |
What Allie reads to the author is__________.
| A．the tips to parents on how to educate their children |
| B．the suggestion on how to deal with the generation gap |
| C．the tips to parents on when they depart with their children |
| D．the suggestion on how to ease the homesickness of children |
The author doesn’t say anything to Allie when they are standing together because_________.
| A．she can’t read Allie’s mind |
| B．she is afraid that Allie will leave |
| C．she is too excited to speak a word |
| D．she doesn’t know how to speak to Allie |
From the underlined part in the last paragraph we can know that___________.
| A．the tie between the author and Allie is broken |
| B．Allie doesn’t need the author’s care any more |
| C．the author expects Allie to live an independent life |
| D．the author will keep a close relationship with Allie as before |
A house of cards? Sounds unbelievable, doesn’t it? Not if the architect is 31-year-old Bryan Berg. He’s made a career out of building fantastic card houses, stadiums, capitols, castles — and the world’s tallest card tower. How does he do it?
Bryan’s structures are amazing because they are made entirely of perfectly balanced, freestanding playing cards. He never uses glue, tape, or anything else to hold the cards together. Nor does he fold the cards. He’s discovered another way to make a strong house of cards, using a trick from nature.
To make plants strong, nature builds them with cells that have tough walls. Rows and rows of these cells form a grid(格子) that helps leaves and stems keep their shape. Bees use the same kind of repeating pattern to create strong honeycombs, where they live and store honey. Bryan designs similar grids, using cards to create a repeating pattern of cells.
He begins with a single cell made by balancing four cards against one another to form a box. Then he repeats the cell over and over, expanding outward to form the grid, which makes a good foundation for a strong card structure. The larger the grid, the more weight it can carry. Sometimes Bryan uses several cards, instead of just one, to construct the cell walls, making the grid even stronger. The trick, he tells kids when he speaks in classrooms, is to place your cards as tightly together as possible when laying out your grid, making sure the cards are not leaning at all.
After building this solid base, Bryan lays cards across the top to make the floor for the next “story” of the building. He may add towers, columns, steeples, or domes. Using the principle of repeating cells, Bryan builds structures of amazing strength.
In the Cards
Not surprisingly, Bryan has always been interested in building things. Growing up on a “big, old farm” in rural Iowa, he had plenty of room to play. “We were in the middle of nowhere,” Bryan remembers, “with lots of space to do whatever we wanted. I was always making something, using things like sticks or bales of hay.”
Bryan’s grandfather taught him how to stack cards. Bryan’s two interests — building and card stacking — soon combined. But stacking in his family’s farmhouse was challenging. “Our old house had wood floors that weren’t all level,” he reports. “And they weren’t very firm. When people walked around, it was like ‘earthquake action.’ It was a challenge to build something that wouldn’t fall down immediately.”
Bryan constructed tower after tower; he went through a lot of trial and error before he built anything taller than himself. When he placed a few decks of cards on top of his grid, he discovered how strong it was. Bryan’s towers began to grow taller.
How Tall Is Too Tall?
Bryan’s first Guinness World Record for the world’s tallest card tower came in the spring of 1992, when he was in high school. Learning that the world record was 12 feet 10 inches, Bryan built a slim tower that topped out at 14 feet 6 inches. Done as a project for his geometry class, it took him 40 hours and 208 decks of cards. Since then he’s gone on to win world records for even taller buildings. His latest winner measured 25 feet 3.5 inches and used about 2,400 decks of cards. The building, which tapered to a high, narrow point, had 131 stories.
Why don’t these towers fall down? The key is in a good solid base, a repeating pattern of stories, and a tapering top. Bryan likes to point out how card buildings resemble real ones. They are built cell by cell, story by story. The separate parts make one strong whole. The heavier the building, the stronger and more stable it is. But the weight can’t all be at the top.
After spending so much time building something so cool, Bryan admits it’s sometimes painful to see his structures destroyed. But he compares his work to the building of a sandcastle or an ice sculpture.
“They wouldn’t be as special if they were permanent,” he points out. “My buildings are like snowdrifts, or clouds in the sky. They can’t last forever.According to the article, which natural structure is a model for Bryan’s card structures?
| A．A sand dune. | B．A honeycomb. |
| C．A snowdrift. | D．A thundercloud. |
What was Bryan’s first world record?
| A．The tallest card tower. | B．The widest card dome. |
| C．The heaviest card house. | D．The sturdiest card structure. |
Bryan’s hobby is the result of combining which two boyhood interests?
| A．Plant cells and honeycombs. |
| B．World records and geometry. |
| C．Building things and stacking cards. |
| D．Playing cards and designing houses. |
Why was it a challenge for Bryan to build card structures in his family’s farmhouse?
| A．The floors of the house were uneven. |
| B．The ceilings in the house were too low. |
| C．The floors of the house were slippery. |
| D．The windows in the house were windy. |
In the underlined sentence, the word “tapered” means the top of the building was_________.
| A．older | B．shinier | C．stronger | D．thinner |
Successful athletes today are able to earn enormous salaries and many of them choose to share the wealth they have by donating to charities.
Perhaps the generosity displayed by these athletes will inspire others to join them in helping the less fortunate.What do we know from the passage?
| A．Donating to charities is common among famous athletes. |
| B．All the athletes mentioned in this passage are famous basketball players. |
| C．Some athletes mentioned in this passage will donate all their money in future. |
| D．Successful athletes will be scolded if they don’t donate their money to people in need. |
Who has a foundation that is named after him/ her?
| A．Ron Artest. | B．Steve Nash. |
| C．Tiger Woods. | D．Hannah Teter. |
How many athletes mentioned by the author mainly help the school children?
| A．Two. | B．Three. | C．Four. | D．Five. |
This passage was written in order to___________.
| A．tell us the successful athletes are generous |
| B．tell us there are a lot of charities in the US |
| C．inspire more and more people to help the needy |
| D．praise the successful athletes for their good deeds |