Cleverness is a gift while kindness is a choice．Gifts are easy—they’re given after all．Choice can be hard．
I got the idea to start Amazon 16 years ago．I came across the fact that the Internet usage was growing at 2300 percent per year．I’d never seen or heard of anything that grew that fast，and the idea of building all online bookstore with millions of titles was very exciting to me. I had just turned 30 years old，and I’d been married for a year．I told my wife MacKenzie that I wanted to quit my job and go to do this crazy thing that probably wouldn’t work since most start-ups don’t and I wasn’t sure what to expect．MacKenzie told me I should go for it．As a young boy，I’d been a garage inventor．I’d always wanted to be all inventor，and she wanted me to follow my passion．
I was working at a financial firm in New York City with a bunch of very smart people and I had a brilliant boss that I much admired．I went to my boss and told him I wanted to start a company selling books on the Internet．He took me on a long walk in Central Park，listened carefully to me，and finally said，“That sounds like a really good idea，but it would be an even better idea for someone who didn’t already have a good job．”That 1ogic made some sense to me，and he convinced me to think about it for 48 hours before making a final decision．Seen in that light,it really was a difficult choice，but finally，I decided I had to give it a shot．I didn’t think I’d regret trying and failing．And I suspected I would always be haunted by a decision to not try at all.
After much consideration ，I took the less safe path to follow my passion ，and I’m proud of that choice．For all of us，in the end，we are our choice．What inspired the author with the idea of building an online bookstore?
| A．His dream of being an inventor． |
| B．The support of his wife． |
| C．The greatly increasing usage of the Internet． |
| D．Millions of exciting titles, |
Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined sentence?
| A．The idea of not trying would keep coming to his mind and disturb him． |
| B．He would be very excited if he tried it out． |
| C．Be would be always having a doubt if he didn’t try． |
| D．The decision to not try the online bookstore would terrify him． |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Cleverness and Kindness | B．The Starting of Amazon |
| C．Following My Passion | D．We Are What We Choose |
We can know from the passage that_______．
| A．the boss thought the idea was suitable for the author |
| B．the author wanted someone else to try the idea |
| C．the author might not regret if he failed the idea |
| D．the author might go back to his boss if he failed |
Do you want to have a friend whom you could tell everything to, like your deepest feelings and thoughts? Or are you afraid that your friend would laugh at you, or just can’t understand what you are going through?
Anne Frank chose the first kind. She lived in Amsterdam during World War II. Her family was Jewish (犹太人) so they had to hide, or they would be caught by the German soldiers. She and her family hid away for two years before they were discovered. During this time the only true friend was her diary, which she called Kitty.
In a diary dated on Thursday 15 June, 1944, she wrote, “Dear Kitty, I wonder if it’s because I haven’t been able to be outdoors for so long that I’ve grown so mad about everything to do with nature. I can well remember that there was a time when a blue sky, the song of the birds, moonlight and flowers could never have kept me puzzled. That’s changed since I was here for a year and a half.”In Anne’s opinion, the best friend is one who_______.
| A．knows everything | B．likes to talk with you |
| C．can read your diary | D．can understand you |
Who do you think Kitty is ?
| A．Anne’s sister. | B．Anne’s mother | C．Anne’s teacher | D．Anne’s diary |
Anne had grown so mad about nature. Maybe it was because ______.
| A．she had been indoors too long | B．she had no interest in nature |
| C．she had always been such a girl | D．she had got used to living alone |
In her diary on Thursday 15, June, 1944, Anne expressed her strong wish for ______.
| A．friendship | B．schooling | C．free life | D．free weather |
There are labels(标签) inside all new clothes. The labels tell you how to take care of your clothes. The label for a shirt may tell you to wash it in warm water. A sweater label may tell you to wash in cold water. The label on a coat may say “dry clean only”, for washing may ruin（弄坏） this coat. If you do as the directions (说明)on the label, you can keep your clothes looking their best for a long time.
Many clothes today must be dry cleaned. Dry cleaning is expensive. When buying new clothes, check to see if they will need to be dry cleaned. You will save money if you buy clothes that can be washed.
You can save money if you buy clothes that are well made. Well-made clothes last longer. They look good even after they have been washed many times. Clothes that cost more money are not necessarily(不一定) better made. They do not always fit better. Sometimes less expensive clothes look and fit better than more expensive clothes.If you want to save money, you had better buy clothes that ______.
| A．don’t fit you | B．don’t last long |
| C．need to be dry cleaned | D．can be washed |
The labels inside the clothes tell you______.
| A．how to keep them looking their best |
| B．how to save money |
| C．whether they fit you or not |
| D．where to get them dry cleaned |
We learn from the passage that cheaper clothes ______.
| A．are always worse made | B．must be dry cleaned |
| C．can not be washed | D．can sometimes fit you better |
The best title for the passage should be ______.
| A．Buy Less Expensive Clothes |
| B．Taking Enough Money When Shopping |
| C．Being a Clever Clothes Shopper |
| D．Choosing the Labels inside New Clothes |
When friends come to visit us in the evening, they spend their time telling us they are in a hurry and looking at their watches. It isn’t that our friends are all very busy, it is just that we haven’t got a television. People think that we are very strange. “But what do you do in the evening?”，they are always asking. The answer is very simple. Both my wife and I have hobbies. We certainly don’t spend our evenings staring at the walls. My wife enjoys cooking and painting and often attends evening classes in foreign languages. This is particularly useful as we often go abroad for our holidays. I collect stamps and I’m always busy with my collection. Both of us enjoy listening to the music and playing chess together.
Sometimes there are power cuts and we have no electricity in the house. This does not worry us, we just light candles and carry on with what we were doing before. Our friends, however, are lost---no television!---So they don’t know what to do. On such evenings our house is very full ---they all come to us. They all have a good time. Instead of sitting in silence in front of the television, everybody talks and plays games. The couple have not got a television, because .
| A．they are not rich enough |
| B．they are strange people |
| C．they enjoy spending evenings in their own ways |
| D．they don’t know what to do when there are power cuts |
Both of them are interested in.
| A．learning languages | B．traveling |
| C．staying home alone | D．watching people play games |
At night when there is no electricity, the couple.
| A．have to stare at the walls | B．can do nothing but sit in silence |
| C．will have many visitors | D．have to go out for candles |
The best title for this passage is _____.
| A．Why Do We Need a Television? | B．Candle! But No Electricity! |
| C．Different Friends, Different Hobbies. | D．We Go Without Televisions! |
I have a rule for travel: Never carry a map. I prefer to ask for directions
Foreign visitors are often puzzled in Japan because most streets there don’t have names. In Japan, people use landmarks in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.” In the countryside of the American Midwest, usually there are not many landmarks. There are no mountains, so the land is very flat. In many places there are no towns or buildings within miles. Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”
People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map: they measure distance by means of time, not miles. “ How far away is the post office?”
You ask. “Oh,” they answer, “ It’s about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know.
People in Greece sometimes do not even try to give directions because visitors seldom understand the Greek language. Instead of gibing you the direction, a Greek will often say, “ follow me.” Then he’ll lead you through the streets of the city to the post office.
Sometimes a person doesn’t know the answer to your question. What happens in this situation? A New Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea.” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers, “I don’t know.” People in Yucatan think that “ I don’t know” is impolite. They usually give an answer, often a wrong one. A visitor can get very, very lost in Yucatan!
One thing will help you everywhere ---- in Japan, in the United States, in Greece, in Mexico, or in any other place. You might not understand a person’s words, but maybe you can understand his body language. He or she will usually turn and then point in the correct direction. Go in that direction, and you may find the post office!The passage mainly tells us that ______________.
A there are not many landmarks in the American Midwest
B never carry a map for travel
C there are different ways to give directions in different parts of the world
D New Yorkers often say, “I have no idea,” but people in Yucatan, Mexico, Never say thisThe passage says, “ In Japan, people use landmarks in their directions.” The word “landmark” means _______.
A street names
B building names
C hotels, markets and bus stops
D buildings or places are easily recognizedIn which place do people tell distance by means of time?
A Japan B American Midwest
C Los Angeles, California.D GreeceWhich of the following is wrong?
A Travelers can learn about people’s customs by asking questions about directions.
B People in some places give directions in miles, but people in other places give directions by means of time.
C A person’s body language can help you understand directions.
D People in different places always give directions in the same way: They use street names.
April Fool’s Day（愚人节）, was a day of laughing and jokes. This day is kept in many countries, not only in Britain and the USA. This is a day to play jokes and make people laugh. Nobody knows when was the beginning of this custom. Some people connect it with the end of winter and the return of spring which make people merry and ready to play jokes.
In Scotland young people were sent for hen’s teeth or bird’s milk and everybody laughed when they could find such things. In the USA and Britain some people could place a sign on a person’s back with the words “push me!” Children often tell a grown-up that his sock is torn or he has something black on his face, and then shout “April Fool!” There is also the old purse（钱包） trick. A purse is left lying in the street, but when someone wants to take it, it is quickly pulled back by a string which the hidden joker holds in his hand. Or the purse may be filled with stones. Sometimes invitations are sent to people, asking them to come and visit somebody, but when they come they see that nobody expects them. Some people like to telephone to the zoo on the day and ask for Mr. Fish, Miss Fox or Mrs. Cat. All these jokes are very old but still they make people laugh. ____________knows when the custom of April Fool’s Day started．
| A．One | B．Anyone | C．Nobody | D．Someone |
Many tricks are played on April Fool’s day except ____ ．
| A．phoning the zoo | B．placing a sign on someone’s back |
| C．playing cards | D．leaving a purse in the street |
The purpose of playing jokes is to _____ ．
| A．for fun | B．make people laugh |
| C．make fool of oneself | D．fool someone |
The best title of the passage is ____ ．
| A．How people in the west spend their April Fool’s Day |
| B．Customs are different |
| C．How British people celebrate their holidays |
| D．How April Fool’s Day comes about |