Danielle Steel, America's sweetheart, is one of the hardest working woman in the book business. Unlike other productive authors who write one book at a time, she can work on up to five. Her research before writing takes at least three years. Once she has fully studied her subjects, ready to divided into a book, she can spend twenty hours nonstop at her desk.
Danielle Steel comes from New York and was sent to France for her education. After graduation, she worked in the public relations and advertising industries. Later she started a job as a writer which she was best fit for. Her achievements are unbelievable: 390 million copies of books in print, nearly fifty New York Times bestselling novels, and a series of “Max and Martha” picture books for children to help them deal with the reallife problem of death, new babies and new schools. Her 1998 book about the death of her was shot to the top of the New York Times bestselling list as soon as it came out. Twentyeight of her books have been made into films. She is listed in the Guinness Books of World Records for one of her books being the Times bestseller for 381 weeks straight.
Not content with a big house, a loving family, and a view of the Golden Gate Bridge, Danielle Steel considers her readers to be the most important resource and has kept in touch with them by email. While she is often compared to the heroines of her own invention. Her life is undoubtedly much quieter. But if she does have anything in common with them, it is her strength of will and her inimitable style. There is only one Danielle Steel.
Children who have read “Max and Martha” picture books may know ________.
| A．how to deal with affairs at school |
| B．what to do if Max and Martha die |
| C．what to do when new babies are born into their families |
| D．how to solve the difficult problems in their writing classes |
One of Danielle Steel' a achievements is that ________.
| A．some TV plays were based on her books |
| B．her picture books attracted a lot of young men |
| C．one of her books became a bestseller in 1998 |
| D．she wrote the Guinness Book of World Records |
We can learn from the passage that Danielle Steel ________.
| A．lives an exciting life |
| B．values her readers a lot |
| C．writes about quiet women |
| D．is pleased with her achievements |
A new system that scans customers’ fingerprints and deducts (扣除) the grocery bill from their bank accounts has taken supermarkets in southwestern Germany by storm and is being picked up by hardware stores, school restaurants and even bars are picking it up.
The Edeka supermarket chain is the first retail (零售) business in Germany to use the new system. “Almost a quarter of our customers pay with their fingers,” said an employee at the headquarters. Edeka has tried the system at 70 of its supermarkets and customers like it.
“At first we thought that only the young who really keep up with the latest technology would be interested, but we were wrong,” said Stefan Sewoester from IT Werke. “Almost two-thirds of the people who use the system are 40 and older,” he said.
IT Werke, a computer company, is one of the pioneers of fingerprint payment software in Germany. It has helped about 150 shops, restaurants and bars to put in the fingerprint scanning machines.
To sign up for the service, customers must have their fingerprints taken and leave their addresses and banking details with the shop. The shop then takes the cost of goods directly out of the customer’s bank account.
“It is a godsend for elderly people because they do not have to remember their pin-code to pay with their bank cards, or to look around for their glasses or cash.” Sewoester said.
The stores benefit from the system, too. It saves more than time in the check-out line. It also cuts out the hidden costs of accepting electronic card payments.
Fingerprint date profiling has long been used to control access and for other security purposes in Germany’s airports, laboratories and nuclear power plants. IT Werke plans to keep refining the retail use of the system. It wants to introduce fingerprint payment in school restaurants with an additional feature that might appeal to parents－they could disable their children’s access to junk food.
1. Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?
A. Pay with Fingers. B. New Development in Technology.
C. Supermarket Revolution. D. Change in Computer Software.
2. Most of the people who use the fingerprint system are ______.
A. youngsters B. housewives C. IT fans D. the elderly
3. The underlined word “godsend” probably means ______.
A. great fortune sent by God B. good luck sent by God
C. good things that happen unexpectedly D. gift sent by God
4. What do we know by inference from the passage?
A. Fewer shops will try the new software because of the cost.
B. The new service requires certain personal information.
C. IT Werke should be the largest computer company in Germany.
D. The new change in payment only benefits elderly people.
Tattoos (纹身) and body piercings (穿孔) have moved up on the trend list in recent years.
Around Western schools lots of teens are showing off new holes and “flesh ink” (纹身). As with all other subjects, the Chinese will surely have to deal with this situation with respect to their children. To get a better view of what has happened in the West, let’s sit down and hear what they say.
Tiara from Indiana:
I personally think body piercing is sickening. If there were supposed to be holes in your body, you would have been born with them. I do, however, think that ear piercing, is not wrong. There is a difference between ear piercing and belly button (肚脐) piercing. Ear piercing is not nearly as dangerous. I would be sick if someone stuck a needle in my belly button.
Lee from Illinois:
Hi! I live in Illinois. I am 23. I have 12 tattoos and three piercings. I love my tattoos and consider myself an art collector. You would be surprised at who has given me the thumbs-up on my art work. People on the street stop me to look at the tattoo on my leg. Most of them don’t know what it is. They just think the work itself is great.
Subotai from Califomia:
I’m not against self-expression, but when I see high school students getting these piercing, I really wonder. In some cases, the drive is deeper and darker than mere fashion. A friend of mine tried piercing her own tongue with a safety pin. It got infected and she had a tongue the size of a cow’s.
Jackson from Ohio:
I don’t think it’s wrong, but when people do it all over the place like their face and everything—I think that’s ridiculous (荒唐的). People who get the big dragons that cover their whole body—I don’t think that’s necessary. When I see naked chicks on guys, I think “You have no respect for women.”
1. We can infer from the passage that _________.
A. Tiara must have body piercing B. Subotai doesn’t have body piercing
C. Lee dislikes tattoos D. Jackson likes tattoos and piercing
2. Who doesn’t think tattoos and piercings are beautiful except ear piercing?
A. Jackson B. Lee C. Tiara D. Subotai
3. From the passage, we can make a conclusion that _________.
A. tattoos and piecrings are a new kind of art
B. all the teachers in the West are in favour of tattoos and piercings
C. everything is changeable as time goes on
D. it is necessary to live with different views of beauty
4. The best title for this passage is probably _________.
A. Body Art or Causing Damage
B. Doing Damage to the Young People’s Bodies
C. Young People’s Different Curiosities
D. The Latest Fashion
A T-shirt a day has kept unemployment away for an American man who is making about $85,000 a year by selling advertising space on his shirt．
Jason Sadler, 26, was once a former marketing expert from Florida. In 2008, he founded his own company, “iwearyourshirt”, with the idea to wear a T-shirt supplied by any company and then use social media tools to develop the company . Sadler charges the “face value”of the day for his human billboard (广告牌) service. So January 1 costs $1, while December 31 costs $365. He said this may not sound like a lot, but it adds up to $66,795 a year if he sells out every day, which he did this year. He also sells monthly sponsorships(赞助) for $1,500, adding another $18,000 to his income.
“I walk around, take photos, wear the shirt all day … I blog about those photos, I put them up on Twitter, I change my Facebook introduction…and then I do a Youtube video. I made about $83,000 this year,” he told Reuters Television. The average U.S income is about $615 a week or about $32,000 a year ,according to the U.S government.
Sadler has already begun to plan for his year 2010. He is making services larger by hiring another person to wear a shirt a day on the west coast of the United States.
1．What is Sadler’s “face value” of the day December 30?
A．$364. B．$365. C．$615. D．$1,500.
2．It can be inferred that Sadler didn’t advertise on ________.
A．Twitter B．Facebook C．Youtube D．Reuters
3．Jason Sadler has a new plan to ________ for the year 2010.
A．employ another person to replace him B．start his business on the west coast
C．stay at home on the east coast D．double the charge for the service
4．The passage is mainly about ________ in a new way.
A．taking photos B．writing blogs C．making money D．selling T-shirts
Once upon a time, two brothers who lived on neighboring farms fell into conflict(冲突) . It was the first serious one between them in 40 years of farming peacefully side by side. In the end, they fell apart.
One morning, a man with a carpenter’s toolbox came for some work. The elder brother said, “I have a job for you. Look at the farm across the creek（河沟）. My younger brother lives there. It was he who used his bulldozer（推土机）to dig the creek last week to spite(刁难) me. So I want you to build me a fence, an 8 – foot – high fence, in order not to see his place any more.” The carpenter smiled and said, “I see. I’ll try to do a job that satisfies you.” Then the elder brother went downtown.
At sunset when the farmer returned, the carpenter had just finished his job. The farmer’s eyes opened wide! To his surprise, there was no fence there at all! Instead, there was a bridge stretching from one side of the creek to the other! A fine piece of work! He saw his younger brother coming to him with the hands outstretching. The brothers stood at each end of the bridge, and then they met in the middle, taking each other’s hands. They turned to see the carpenter lift his toolbox on his shoulder.
“No, wait! Stay a few days. I’ve a lot of other work for you,” said the elder brother.
“I’d love to stay on,” the carpenter said, “but I have so many more bridges to build.”
1．What was the life like for the two brothers before the conflict?
A．They lived a poor life. B．They lived in peace.
C．They never spoke to each other. D．They lived on the same farm.
2．It can be learned that the carpenter was ________.
A．unwilling to obey the farmer B．fond of building bridges
C．unable to build a fence D．willing to help others
3．The best title for this passage is ________.
A．A Fine Piece of Work B．A Carpenter
C．A Conflict between Two Brothers D．Two Brothers
4．Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A．The elder brother used his bulldozer to dig a creek.
B．The elder brother helped the carpenter build the bridge.
C．The brothers were both satisfied with the carpenter’s work.
D．The carpenter planned to build an 8-foot - high fence as asked to.
Life is difficult.
It is a great truth because once we truly understand and accept it, then life is no longer difficult.
Most do not fully see this truth. Instead they complain about their problems and difficulties as if life should be easy. It seems to them that their difficulties represent(代表) a special kind of suffering especially forced upon them or else upon their families, their class, or even their nation.
What makes life difficult is that the process of facing and solving problems is a painful one. Problems,
depending on their nature, cause in us sadness or loneliness or regret or anger or fear. These are uncomfortable feelings, often as painful as any kind of physical pain. And since life causes an endless series of problems, life is always difficult and is full of pain as well as joy.
Yet, it is in this whole process of solving problems that life has its meaning. Problems are the serious test that tells success from failure. When we desire to encourage the growth of the human spirit, we encourage the human ability(能力) to solve problems, just as in school we set problems for our children to solve. It is through the pain of meeting and working out problems that we learn. As Benjamin Franklin said, “Those things that hurt, instruct.” It is for this reason that wise people learn not to fear but to welcome the pain of problems.
1.From the passage, it can be inferred that __________.
A. everybody has problems
B. we become stronger by facing and solving the problems of life
C. life is difficult because our problems bring us pain
D. people like to complain about their problems
2.The main idea of paragraph 3 is __________.
A. most people feel life is easy B. the writer feels life is easy
C. the writer likes to complain about his problems
D. most people complain about how hard their lives are
3. According to the passage, we give school children difficult problems to solve in order to __________.
A. encourage them to learn
B. teach them to fear the pain of solving problems
C. help them learn to deal with pain
D. teach them how to respect for problems
4.The saying from Benjamin Franklin “Those things that hurt, instruct.” suggests that __________.
A. we do not learn from experience B. we do not learn when we are in pain
C. pain teaches us important lessons D. pain cannot be avoided