Many people might think that if they had more money， then they would be happier in life． For example，people might look at what others have， like expensive clothes or nice cars， and wish they could have the same． But the things that money can buy can not bring happiness to a person for long．
①But is that really true？ Studies have found that money can， in fact， make people happier． ②Instead， it's giving money to others that makes people happy．③It could be buying a present for a friend or a family member．④It could be buying a homeless person food to eat． It could be giving money to a person in need． Just think about the last time you used your own money to do something for someone else． How did you feel？ Whether it is a small or large amount of money， people feel happier when they give． This is because making someone else happy makes the giver happy， too．
This idea of connecting your happiness to the happiness of others is described as ubuntu in an African language． There is even a story about a man visiting Africa who asked some kids to race to a nearby tree． The first child to touch the tree would get a sweet treat． Surprisingly all the children held hands and ran together． They all touched the tree at the same time． The man asked why they had done this． The children simply said they could only enjoy eating the treat if everyone had one．
（1）The writer says that buying things ．
A．can make people worried
B．can make people nervous
C．may lead to sadness for long
D．may lead to happiness for a short time
（2）Where can we best put "But it′s not having money that brings happiness．" in Paragraph 2？
A．①
B．②
C．③
D．④
（3）Why does the writer quote（引用）a story in Paragraph 3？
A．To explain Africans like sweets．
B．To show examples are not enough
C．To make the writer′s opinion clearer．
D．To express happiness is from children．
（4）What does the writer try to tell us？
A．Buying new things can make people happy．
B．The key to happiness is making others happy．
C．If you want to be happy， you can visit Africa．
D．People who have a lot of money might not be happy．
Many people think that water will never be used up（用尽）because there are many rivers and lakes. And the rain can make us get enough fresh water. Also, we can dig wells（井）to find fresh water under the ground. In fact, it is wrong and dangerous to think so. In some areas, people fight（争斗）for fresh water. There is little rain there all year round. Let’s look around us. Some factories pour（倒）dirty water into rivers. And some people drop litter into rivers. We see polluted water here and there. We must do something to help people understand about preventing water from being polluted. It’s never too late if we take action right now.Fresh water is from .
| A．rivers and lakes | B．rain |
| C．wells | D．A, B, and C |
It’s dangerous and wrong to .
| A．get enough fresh water | B．think water is endless |
| C．dig a well | D．use up water |
What do people fight for in some areas?
| A．Fresh water. | B．Little rain. |
| C．Pouring dirty water. | D．Money. |
What’s the main idea?
| A．Water will never be used up. |
| B．How to find fresh water. |
| C．Water is everywhere. |
| D．Shortage（短缺）of fresh water. |
Many young people want to be pop stars. Pop stars are rich. Many people think they are leading a happy and easy life. In fact, they have very hard lives. They spend much of their time on travel. Sometimes the travel is interesting, but in most time it is boring to pop stars. The following chart is a day’s life of a pop star.
Feb. 10, 2014
| 5:00 |
Woke up and had breakfast in the hotel, packed bags. Took taxi to airport. |
| 7:30 |
Plane took off half an hour later than usual for the bad weather. |
| 8:30 |
Plane landed. Waited for luggage for half an hour. Signed for fans at the airport. |
| 9:45 |
Arrived at the hotel and had a short rest. |
| 10:00 |
Started out to attend the meeting with fans and gave an interview to the local reporters. |
| 11:00 |
Went to radio station to attend the live show. |
| 12:00 |
Had lunch with local producer. |
| 13:00 |
Went to theatre and prepared for the night’s show. The lighting of the theatre was good, but the band(乐队) did poorly. |
| 17:00 |
Back to hotel. Tried to have a rest. Still worried about the band. |
| 18:00 |
Had supper, but eat little. |
| 18:30 |
Went to theatre again and got ready for show. |
| 19:00 |
Sang very well, and audience gave a warm welcome. The band improved a little. |
| 22:00 |
Show was over. Very tired from it. |
| 23:00 |
Back to hotel. Took a bath. Too excited to sleep, so watched TV |
| 0:00 |
Fell asleep, with TV on. |
According to the chart, the pop star was a ________________.
| A．singer | B．dancer |
| C．player | D．pianist. |
According to his plan, his plane should have taken off at ________________.
| A．6:30 | B．7:00 | C．7:30 | D．8:00 |
From this passage ,we get to know that ________.
| A．not all people like pop stars |
| B．pop stars have their own bands |
| C．fans are troublesome for pop stars |
| D．to be a pop star is not all fun |
Class trip to the zoo
Welcome to the zoo, everyone! Here is our plan. Listen carefully. First of all, we will visit the Panda House. After that, we will walk to the Bird World. Next is the Happy Forest. There are tigers and lions! Don't worry! The cages are quite strong.
Then, we will have lunch. All of you have your own lunch, right? Some of you don't have drinks. That's all right. We can buy drinks at many places in the zoo.
After lunch, we will go to the Snake Mountain. The last is the Butterfly Park. Then, we will come back here and get on the bus. Remember, don't feed the animals.
OK! Let's go! There's going to be much fun!What is next to the Bird World?
| A．The Panda House. | B．The Butterfly Park. |
| C．The Happy Forest. | D．The Snake Mountain. |
The Butterfly Park is ___________________.
| A．next to the Happy Forest |
| B．in the east of the zoo |
| C．in the centre of the zoo |
| D．north of the Snake Mountain |
If some students don't have drinks, they ________________.
| A．can buy drinks in the zoo |
| B．cannot do anything |
| C．must get drinks from classroom |
| D．will get drinks from the teacher |
These students should not ____________________.
| A．visit the Butterfly Park |
| B．look at the lions |
| C．give food to the tigers |
| D．bring their lunch |
Sue and Jim were neighbours for five years but they were never interested in each other. Then one day, Sue saw Jim’s music collection. She noticed a rare punk rock CD that she also owned. At that moment, she realized that they both had the same interest in music and they started talking. Sue said, “I thought we had nothing in common（相同）until I saw his CD by the New York Dolls.” They are now married and living with each other.
Some psychologists (心理学家) think that your taste in music is related to (有联系的) your personality. As part of a test at the University of Texas, Austin, USA, volunteers created a CD of their favourite songs. The volunteers then listened to each other’s CDs and made guesses about the CD creator’s personality—outgoing, adventurous, happy, and so on. These strangers correctly guessed much more about each others’ personalities through their CDs than through their clothes or taste in films. For example, Sue and Jim love punk music, which means they have outgoing personalities.
The psychologists who did the test found Snoop Dogg (hip-hop) fans are likely to be energetic and talkative. People who like U2 (rock/pop music) are generally independent and adventurous.
The psychologists also found that Louis Armstrong(jazz) fans tend to(倾向于) be shy. The psychologists were surprised to find that rap and heavy metal fans were also shier and quieter than many other music lovers.
| Title: Music and |
|
| An opinion |
Your |
| Findings |
One’s clothes or taste in films is It is likely that hip-hop fans are __ People who Jazz fans tend to be It’s |
| An |
After Sue noticed they both had rare punk rock CDs, she found they had They are now married and living with each other. |
Last month when I was taking part in a US college interview ， I was asked ， “ what makes you special ? ” In fact I had answered questions likes this many times since I decided to go to college in the US. College paid special attention to different achievement . For example , a person who is very good at math can go to a famous college but also can be a good football player .
This experience made me think again that I must try to find where my own interests might lead me . To be honest , it was not easy . However , I never felt sorry to choose this way because it helped me understand myself . If I took the College Entrance Examination ,as we call it gaokao in China , it could never possibly do .
When I entered high school , I took gaokao seriously because it seemed to me a great way to show how good at my lessons . However ,as I grew older , I realized gaokao did make me work hard at my lessons , but the pressure also pushed many other activities out of my life , like guitar―playing . Although I had no time for it , I will still get to it in the future .
No doubt, gaokao provides a way of choosing those who are successful in their studies . But it is really important for all of us to rethink what “ talent ” really is today . This is because we now live in a world in which all of our other human qualities ( 品质 ）are needed for success , not just the high grade .
Ken Robinson once said , “ the society depends on different kinds of talents . ” However , gaokao pays too attention to a person' s grades but little to his other qualities. And it is these qualities that makes life colorful and fun .
As high school students , we can not change the present situation of education , but we are always free to think outside of the box . Although good school grade is still useful , I hope one day we will see our education also welcomes the amazing possibilities in different people .The US College pay special attention to ________.
| A．students ' family background . |
| B．the different achievement |
| C．students ' ideas about way of life . |
| D．the school a student is from . |
When at high school, the writer ________.
| A．had a lot of activities. |
| B．did not work hard at her lessons . |
| C．did well in her lessons |
| D．had no time to play the guitar. |
From the passage, we know that the writer may ________.
| A．go to college in America. |
| B．give up the US college interview . |
| C．become a good football player in the US. |
| D．change the present situation of education . |
Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?
| A．My school life abroad. |
| B．Different exams in the US. |
| C．My view on gaokao |
| D．The importance of school grades |