Lots of people like a good fright at Halloween(万圣节). Yet, the most frightening thing of all about the night is that twice as many children are killed while out and about on Halloween compared to any other day of the year, according to a study by Safe Kids Worldwide. It can also be a worrying time for others, especially elderly people living alone. But many people think it’s just harmless fun.
But is it harmless fun?
Police forces across Britain are giving warnings about Halloween night. They are asking all those wishing to celebrate Halloween this year to respect those who don’t want to join in.
Some forces, like West Mercia Police, have produced “Sorry, No Trick or Treat”posters which can be downloaded from their website, and put up in windows. They want people to send them to the old or anyone who may be frightened by ghosts(鬼) knocking on their doors.
A spokesman said: “Children should not call on houses where the posters are put up, neither should they call on strangers, as this can put young people at risk and also make some house owners anxious, especially those who are elderly or living alone.”
The police want all trick or treaters to remember that disturbing other people or throwing objects at their homes or cars are all criminal offences(刑事罪). “What may start off as a bit of fun could end up with someone getting a criminal record,” they warn. “Parents may want to consider having a Halloween party at home, instead.”
Kent Police are warning young people never to go into the home of someone they don’t know—and to remember not to frighten people.
Warwickshire Police are also warning that tricks may seem like harmless fun but can cause trouble to others. They say behaviour such as throwing eggs can quickly cross the line between being anti-social and causing criminal damage. This can result in fines of ￡2,500 for small offences.The study made by Safe kids Worldwide has found that _________.
| A．kids are afraid of Halloween |
| B．Halloween brings people no fun |
| C．kids are involved in criminal offences |
| D．Halloween night puts some kids at risk |
British police forces are making efforts to _________.
| A．put an end to trick or treat |
| B．control anti-social behaviours |
| C．punish those who frighten others |
| D．make Halloween safe trouble-free |
“Sorry, No Trick or Treat ” posters are designed to _________.
| A．ask people to respect the elderly. |
| B．make some people free from harm |
| C．warn little kids to behave themselves |
| D．express disagreement with Halloween |
(Reuters) — A group of Chinese scientists and explorers are looking for international help to organize a new search for the country’s answer to Bigfoot, known locally as the “Yeren”, or “wild man”.
Over the years, more than 400 people have said they saw the half-man, half-ape (半猿) Yeren in a remote, mountainous area of the central province of Hubei, state news agency Xinhua said on Saturday.
Expeditions (探险) in the 1970s and 1980s found hair, a footprint, and a sleeping nest suspected(怀疑) of belonging to the Yeren, but there has been no conclusive proof (确凿的证据), the report added.
Witnesses(目击者) describe a creature that walks upright and is more than 2 meters tall with grey, red or black hair all over its body, Xinhua said.
Now the Hubei Wild Man Research Association is looking for volunteers from around the world to join them on another expedition to look for the Yeren.
“We want the team members to be devoted, as there will be a lot of hard work in the process,” Luo Baosheng, vice president of the group, told Xinhua.
But the team will have to come up with about 10 million yuan ($1.50 million) first, and is talking to companies and other bodies to secure the money, so there is no timetable yet for when they may start, the report added.
China is no stranger to crypto zoology. There are many tales about mysterious, monster-like creatures in remote parts of the country. For example, Tibetans have long talked about the existence of the Yeti (喜马拉雅雪人), or “Abominable Snowman”, in the high mountains of their snowy homeland.What the volunteers for this expedition need most is _____.
| A．experience | B．enthusiasm |
| C．confidence | D．devotion |
The timetable for starting the trip depends on _____.
| A．the number of explorers |
| B．government’s support |
| C．the money |
| D．local people’s guiding |
According to the text, the underlined word “crypto zoology” in the last paragraph probably refers to _____.
| A．the study of mysterious animals |
| B．the study of human beings |
| C．dangerous expeditions |
| D．tourism industry |
What would be the best title for this text?
| A．Volunteers for an expedition needed |
| B．Scientists to look for China’s Bigfoot |
| C．International cooperation in finding wild animals |
| D．Yeren appeared in Hubei again |
I grew up in a neighborhood that many city kids can only dream of: a quiet street that was our adventure park: a street filled with kids whose parents had to drag us inside for dinner, most of the time long after the sun had retired for the night.
Our street was also a zoo. There were cats, dogs, birds, fish, sheep, rabbits, horses, not to mention all the little things we caught and decided to keep as pets. But these farm animals weren't just farm animals. They were our friends.
Everything was great. I loved my life and never wanted anything to change. Then a day arrived that would ruin everything. The day they said, “We're moving.” Dad's job had been relocated, and I would soon be leaving everything I had ever known. I cried. “We are going to live near the beach,” I kept hearing, but it was no comfort. I hated my parents for doing this to me, for putting an end to the series of colorful adventures. I watched as removal trucks were filled with boxes my life had been shoved（挤） into, but I knew that there was one thing that wouldn't fit into a box. My neighborhood and all the fun and adventure it contained.
I forced myself to dislike our new life and insistently(坚持地) referred to our old house as “home”. I would give no one the satisfaction of enjoying our new beachfront lifestyle, not my family, my friends or myself. To admit taking pleasure in the new meant to let go off the old. But once I allowed myself to like the town, I grew to love it and I don't want anything to change. But this time, I know it will. And as scary as that may be, it's okay because exciting adventures can happen anywhere. All I have to do is to let them happen.The best title of the text could be________.
| A．My beautiful memory |
| B．Country life and city life |
| C．My wonderful neighborhood |
| D．Adventures could be everywhere |
In my old neighborhood, children________.
| A．often moved to other places to live |
| B．lived in a zoo with a lot of farm animals |
| C．played together until late in the evening |
| D．were pulled to do homework after school |
At last the writer came to realize that one should________.
| A．keep fun in the past in a box |
| B．accept the change with an open mind |
| C．find ways to enjoy a new life |
| D．start a new life and forget the past |
When I was 12 years old, I was at a very hard stage in life. I was short and fat, which was bad for a girl, so coordination（协调）was not one of my strongest features. On the other hand, my mother was a very talented
softball player who even acted as my coach. Night after night, I would try my best to impress “my coach”.Unfortunately, I just felt like a terrible disappointment to my mother.
One summer afternoon, my mother told us we were going to visit Uncle David. Since we lived in an apartment, going to the country was quite a treat. My uncle David always had a way of making me feel special.
When we arrived, my uncle and cousin Jeff were throwing metal rings at two holes in the ground. I was curious about what they were doing so I went over to watch. Noticing that I was standing there, my uncle asked if I had ever played washers.
Being a “city girl”, my reply was that the only “washers” I knew were the ones that cleaned clothes. To my embarrassment, Uncle David, chuckling(咯咯笑)，explained that the metal rings were called washers. I was shocked to hear my uncle saying he wanted me to take his place. He then gave me the washers and gave tips on how to throw better.
Unwillingly, I joined Jeff. Gradually, I found myself not only enjoying but also wanting to win this game. The washer went into the air and began to fall. Then a cloud of dust appeared as the washer sank into the hole. My first try! I had actually thrown the washer into the hole!
Although 23 summers have gone by since that day, this small success in washer playing helped me get back self confidence lost when I struggled with the game of softball.Why did the author live a hard life at the age of twelve?
| A．Because her body has many health problems. |
| B．Because coordination was her strongest feature. |
| C．Because she was forced to learn to play softball. |
| D．Because her efforts at softball were disappointing. |
When she was told that she could visit Uncle David, the author felt ________.
| A．surprised | B．pleased |
| C．disappointed | D．nervous |
It can NOT be learned from the passage that __________.
| A．the author must be more confident now |
| B．the author’s mother was good at softball |
| C．the author had never met Uncle David before the visit |
| D．the author had never played washers before the visit |
Which is the RIGHT time order of the changes in the author’s feelings when she was at her uncle’s?
| A．Curious—Embarrassed—Shocked—Pleased |
| B．Shocked—Curious—Embarrassed—pleased |
| C．Pleased—Embarrassed—Curious—Shocked |
| D．Curious—Shocked—Pleased—Embarrassed |
Not many years ago, a wealthy and rather strange old man named Johnson lived alone in a village in the south of England. He had made a lot of money in trading with foreign countries. When he was seventy—five, he gave £ 12,000 to the village school to buy land and equipment （设备） for a children’s playground.
As a result of his kindness, many people came to visit him. Among them was a newspaperman. During their talk, Johnson remarked that he was seventy-five and expected to live to be a hundred. The newspaperman asked him how he managed to be healthy at seventy—five. Johnson had a sense of humour（幽默）. He liked whisky（威士忌酒）and drank some each day. “I have an injection（注射）in my neck each evening.” he told the newspaperman, thinking of his evening glass of whisky.
The newspaperman did not understand what Johnson meant. In his newspaper he reported that Johnson was seventy—five and had a daily injection in his neck. Within a week Johnson received thousands of letters from all over Britain, asking him for the secret of his daily injection.Johnson became a rich man through
| A．doing business. | B．making whisky. |
| C．cheating. | D．buying and selling land. |
The gift of money to the school suggests that Johnson
| A．had no children. |
| B．was a strange man. |
| C．was very fond of children. |
| D．wanted people to know how rich he was. |
Many people wrote to Johnson to find out
| A．what kind of whisky he had. |
| B．how to live happily.. |
| C．how to become wealthy. |
| D．the secret of his daily injection. |
When Johnson said he had an injection in his neck each evening, he really meant that:
| A．he liked drinking a glass of whisky in the evening. |
| B．he needed an injection in the neck. |
| C．a daily injection in the evening would make him sleep well. |
| D．there was something wrong with his neck. |
If you are looking for a creative solution to a piece of work or a school assignment，don’t lock yourself up in a quiet room.
A new study suggests that moderate background noise is a better spur(动力) to creative thinking than the sound of silence，Time magazine reported.
A paper published in the Journal of Consumer Research says that the perfect working environment should buzz(嗡嗡作响)with a little noise.
Researchers found that test subjects were at their most creative when background noise was measured at 70 decibels，the level one might find in a busy coffee shop.
A nearly silent environment(50 decibels)was too quiet. Turning up the volume to 85 decibels (a jackhammer tearing up the pavement outside your building) was counterproductive-the noise became a distraction.
The researchers asked 65 students at the University of British Columbia，Canada，to perform various creative tasks while noises recorded at a roadside restaurant were played in the background.
In one experiment，scientists asked participants to brainstorm ideas for a new type of mattress(气垫). Test subjects had the most successful discussions when the noise in the background was noticeable but not too loud.
While a quiet environment may make it easier to read a book. the authors of the study say that moderate background noise creates just enough of a distraction to force people to think more imaginatively, without breaking their focus so completely that they can’t think at all.
Should we all head for Starbucks to get creative? Not necessarily.
Researchers found limited work time surrounded by the low-level noise of a coffeehouse is what really stimulates creativity.
Equally, working in a care environment isn’t good for everybody. The productivity boost was most obvious among those who were naturally creative to begin with.The recommended level of background noise is__________.
| A．50 decibels | B．65 decibels |
| C．70 decibels | D．85 decibels |
Why is moderate background noise good for creativity?
| A．It relaxes people and stops them from getting bored. |
| B．It can help people to focus on a subject. |
| C．It can absorb sudden noises that cause distraction. |
| D．It pushes people to use their imagination but doesn’t reach a level that disturbs them. |
According to the last three paragraphs，___________.
| A．the low—level noise of a coffeehouse may be too loud for some people to work with |
| B．if a person is not a creative type, then background noise may not be of so much help to them |
| C．a person’s own creative ability is as important as the environment they are in |
| D．working in a coffeehouse is effective for most people |
Which best describes the writer’s tone in the passage?
| A．Negative. | B．Objective. |
| C．Enthusiastic. | D．Doubtful. |