One spring morning many years ago, I had been prospecting for gold along Coho Creek in southeastern Alaska. Suddenly, no more than 20 paces away was a huge Alaskan timber wolf-caught in a trap.
From her appearance, I guessed she had been trapped for several days. She needed my help, I thought. But if I tried to release her, she would turn aggressive to me. The wolf was clearly suffering. The trap's steel jaws had imprisoned two toes. They were swollen and lacerated, but she wouldn't lose the paw (爪子) — if freed. Yet each time I moved closer, she would make a frightening growl. If I could only win her confidence, I thought. It was her only hope.
Over the next few days, I divided my time between prospecting and trying to win the wolf's trust. I talked gently with her, throwing her some meat. Gradually, I kept edging closer — though I was careful to remain beyond the length of her trap chain.
At dusk on the fifth day, I delivered her dinner. Suddenly, I saw a slight wagging of her tail. I moved within the length of her chain. She remained sill. As a towering man, my heart was in my mouth, though. Within her reach, I wrapped my blanket around myself and slowly settled onto the cold ground. It was long before I fell asleep.
The next morning, I slowly placed my hand on the wolf's injured leg. Unexpectedly; she made no threatening move. Then I applied pressure, the trap sprang open, and the wolf pulled free.
My experience told me the wolf would vanish into the woods quickly. But cautiously, she crept toward me and sniffed my hands and arms. This went against everything I'd ever heard about timber wolves. Yet, strangely, it all seemed so natural.
1. What happened to the timber wolf?| A．She was stuck in a trap. | B．Her food ran out. |
| C．Her legs were swollen. | D．She was caught in the author's trap. |
| A．Some food. | B．The author's care. |
| C．Her trust in the author. | D．Winning the author's confidence. |
| A．He was too close to the wolf. | B．The ground was too cold. |
| C．The wolf remained still. | D．The wolf wagged her tail. |
| A．It was frightening and surprising. | B．It was unexpected but natural. |
| C．It was humorous and natural. | D．It was terrifying but encouraging. |
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Robert Armstrong’s favorite food has been his grandma’s cookies ever since he was a child.
Years later and armed with a business degree, Armstrong, 28, is turning his grandma’s cookie recipe into a national brand, G. Mommas Southern Style Cookies, featuring chocolate chip pecan(美洲山核桃) and “buddascotch” oatmeal(燕麦片) flavors.
In February, California-based specialty retailer(零售店), Cost Plus World-Market, with 265 stores in 31 states selling home decor(装饰), food and drink, started selling the cookies. They will also be in 800 Cracker Barrel stores this fall.
After graduating from college in 2008 and unable to find a job, Robert Armstrong asked his grandmother, Anice Morris Armstrong, to teach him how to bake, which he thought would take an afternoon.
“It was harder than college,” he said.
With basic cooking tools and an oven in an abandoned kitchen, he set up his own business, Selma Good, and began producing cookies in an old warehouse. Baking 10 to 12 hours a day, he managed to deliver cookies to 35 stores. His grandmother helped him develop the “buddascotch” recipe before her death, aged 88, last July. “She inspirited me in ways no one else ever could,” said Armstrong.
He reached out via LinkedIn, a website, to a national distributor, who asked for samples. Within a year, he found a commercial bakery in Pennsylvania and a deal to go national with World Market. “Everybody has a grandma recipe, but I was lucky to find people that would take a chance on me,” Armstrong said. “They’re crunchy, but light, like feathers, and taste extremely good,” said Judy McKinny at Mark’s Market, one of Armstrong’s first retail customers in his hometown of Selma, Alabama.
World Market is ordering two cases per store each quarter, a huge leap from the 9,000 bags he made himself per quarter.
His goal is to one day move production back to his native Selma to help its development. Selma has struggled economically since the closure of a candy factory several years ago.
1. What did Robert major in when he was in college? (1 word)2. Why did Robert choose to bake after his graduation? (no more than 10 words)
3. What does the underlined word mean in Paragraph 6? (1 word)
4. What does Robert owe his success to according to Paragraph 7? (no more than 10 words)
5. What did your grandma teach you? Please explain. (no more than 30 words)
【推荐2】I was in the fifth grade and had just moved to Westminster from London when I met Ms. May. Most of my teachers seemed to ignore me; I was one more student among hundreds. Ms. May, however, took a special interest. “You can write,” she said, explaining that she wanted to move me into the honors English class. So did I.
A decade later, when my first novel was published, I went back to Ms. May’s classroom, handing her a copy of my book. “And I wrote this for you.” Ms. May began to cry happily. She’d been considering early retirement, she said, because she felt she wasn’t having enough of an effect on her students. I didn’t know how to make Ms. May understand what she’d done for me: It was because of her that I fell in love with Shakespeare. I learned how to compose an essay. It was her belief in me that gave me the confidence to become a writer. Now I felt I owed her. I told her to forget her idea, and she did.
Fifteen years later, when I heard that she was finally ready to retire, I attended her going-away party. All Ms. May needed to do was say a few words thanking her colleagues for coming. Instead, she stood up and made an exciting speech that began like this, “Those of you are always complaining (抱怨) that kids have changed and that it’s harder to teach these days. You’re getting old and lazy. These kids haven’t changed. You have! Do not give up on these kids!”
When she finished her talk, everyone clapped hands! I went up to Ms. May and gave her a big hug. She smiled with tears rolling down her face. I came to realize that she would miss her teaching life.
1. How did most of the author’s teachers treat him when he was in the fifth grade?| A．They helped with his writing. |
| B．They paid little attention to him. |
| C．They took a special interest in him. |
| D．They encouraged him to make speeches. |
| A．Retiring earlier. | B．Influencing others. |
| C．Becoming a writer. | D．Publishing a book. |
| A．To stress the important roles of teachers. |
| B．To leave a deep impression on her colleagues. |
| C．To inform people of necessary education reform. |
| D．To call on her colleagues not to give up on their students. |
| A．Worried. | B．Regretful. |
| C．Appreciative. | D．Sympathetic. |
【推荐3】This is a true story from Guyana.One day,a boy took a piece of paper from a box.He made a paper ball and pushed it into his nose.He couldn’t get it out.He ran crying to his mother.His mother couldn’t get the paper out,either.A week later,the paper was still in the boy’s nose.His nose began to have a bad smell.
So his mother took the boy to a hospital.The doctor looked up at the child’s nose,but she couldn’t get the paper out.She said she had to cut the boy’s nose to get the paper out.
The boy’s mother came home looking sad.She didn’t want her child to have his nose cut.The next day she took the boy to her friend Sidney who lived in a house with an old lady called May.May wanted to see the child,so the child let her look up his nose.
“Yes,I can see it,” May said.“It will be out soon.”
As she spoke,she shook some black pepper on the child’s nose.The child gave a mighty sneeze(喷嚏)and the paper flew out.His mother was surprised.May told his mother to take the boy to the seaside for a swim,for the salt water would go up his nose and stop the bad smell.
So the lucky boy didn’t have to go to the hospital to have his nose cut.
1. After the boy pushed a paper ball into his nose, .| A．he took it out |
| B．his mother took it out |
| C．he did nothing but cried |
| D．he tried to take it out but failed |
| A．almost seven days | B．less than seven days |
| C．more than seven days | D．exactly seven days |
| A．The doctor helped to take the paper ball out of the boy’s nose. |
| B．May succeeded in taking the paper out. |
| C．The boy’s mother found some black pepper to solve the problem. |
| D．The boy had to have his nose cut at last. |
| A．he needed to learn to swim |
| B．the sea water would wash out the paper ball |
| C．the sea water would stop the bad smell of his nose |
| D．he needed a rest |
【推荐1】Could your next pet be a goat? New research suggests that these farm animals try to communicate with people in the same way that dogs and horses do. In a series of experiments, researchers found that when the animals had a problem that they couldn’t solve alone，the goats would gaze at a person for help. The research also shows that goats will change their actions according to a person’s behavior.
Goats were the first domesticated（驯化为）livestock species, about 10,000 years ago, according to Alan McElligott. “From our earlier research, we already know that goats are smarter than people think, but these results show how they can communicate and interact with people even though they were not domesticated as pets or working animals，” McElligott said in a statement.
To test the goats’ communication skills, the researchers trained the animals to remove the lid from a box to receive a reward. The reward was then made inaccessible（得不到的，不能接近的）, and the goats’ reactions toward the experimenters—who were either facing the goats or had turned away—were recorded. The researchers found that the goats would gaze at the forward-facing person more often, and for longer periods of time. Sometimes, the goats would also approach the forward-facing person before returning to the box.
“Goats gaze at humans in the same way as dogs when asking for a treat that is out of reach，” study researcher Christian Nawroth said in the same statement. “Our results provide strong evidence for communication directed at humans in a species that was domesticated mainly for agricultural product, and goats show similarities with animals bred to become pets or working animals，such as dogs and horses.”
The authors said that they hope the study will help people to better understand domesticated animals like goats, dogs and horses, and how they interact with humans.
1. The underlined word “they” in the first paragraph refers to .| A．the researchers | B．the horses |
| C．the goats | D．the dogs |
| A．They refused to remove the lid. |
| B．They stared at the experimenters. |
| C．They turned away. |
| D．They returned to the box quickly. |
| A．To study the habits of animals in order to understand their feelings. |
| B．To raise more domesticated animals like goats, dogs and horses. |
| C．To show the similarity between goats and dogs. |
| D．To make people better understand domesticated animals. |
【推荐2】Dutch researchers have discovered that birds living in cities are using metal spikes (尖刺) to build their nests. People put these spikes on buildings in order to keep birds off their balconies, benches, and chimneys, but birds seem to be stealing them and using them to keep people away from their eggs.
The research began when, in the courtyard of a hospital in Antwerp, Belgium, biologist AukeFlorian Hiemstra found a large nest that had been built by a magpie (喜鹊). The nest was made from about 1,500 metal spikes. They were pointing outward to create a protective system around the nest.
“I just stared at it, this strange, beautiful, weird nest,” Hiemstra told BBC News. When he investigated further, he found that magpies had moved away nearly 165 feet of metal spikes that had been glued to the hospital’s roof.
After Hiemstra made this discovery, his team heard about a similar nest created by crows in Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, and another magpie nest in Glasgow, Scotland. The crows had positioned the spikes in a different way, perhaps using the metal to support the nest’s structure.
In their report, the researchers mention many kinds of birds moving spikes off buildings, but they chose to focus their study on corvids(birds from the crow family). The researchers pointed out that there have been previous studies on how corvids use everything from telephone wires to clothes hangers to build their nests. They said the use of anti-bird spikes “hints at a functional use”—meaning the birds seem to know exactly what they’re doing.
Magpies have often been seen nesting in thorny (多刺的) places, where the thorns can prevent people from attacking the small eggs and chicks inside the nest. Thorny hedges aren’t common in cities, however, so the theory is that magpies use the human-made version instead. Hiemstra calls this the birds’ “revenge”. “We’re trying to get rid of birds, but the birds are collecting our metal spikes and actually making more birds in these nests,” he said.
1. Why are metal spikes put on buildings?| A．To draw birds’ attention to the nest. | B．To prevent strangers entering. |
| C．To keep birds off the buildings. | D．To make the buildings more beautiful. |
| A．to protect their eggs and chicks | B．to decorate their nests |
| C．to provide a strong hold | D．to support the structure of the nests |
| A．Disappointing. | B．Appreciative. |
| C．Confusing. | D．Indifferent. |
| A．To introduce a new species of bird that has adapted to city life. |
| B．To compare different nesting habits of birds in urban environments. |
| C．To emphasize the negative impact of human activities on bird habitats. |
| D．To inform readers about birds using metal spikes to build nests in cities. |
【推荐3】As a popular subject of study among evolutionary ecologists (进化生态学家), three-spined stickleback is known for their different shapes, sizes, and behaviors — they can even live in both seawater and freshwater, and under a wide range of temperatures. But what makes that?
The researchers tracked six populations of the fish before and after seasonal changes to their environment, using genome sequencing (基因组测序). Seasonal changes result in great changes in habitat structure and balance of salt and freshwater, and only those fish able to tolerate these rapid changes survive into the next season.
“These changes probably resemble the habitat shifts experienced by stickleback populations during the past 10,000 years,” says Professor Barrett. “We hope to gain insight into the genetic changes that may have resulted from natural selection long in the past.”
Remarkably, the researchers discovered the evidence of genetic changes driven by the seasonal shifts in habitats, which mirrored the differences found between long-established freshwater and saltwater populations. “These genetic changes occurred in independent populations over a single season, highlighting just how quickly the effects of natural selection can be detected,” says Professor Barrett, “The findings suggest that we may be able to use the genetic differences to predict how populations may adapt to environment.”
The research emphasizes the importance of studying species in dynamic environments to gain a better understanding of how natural selection operates. In further research, they plan to investigate how repeatable the observed genetic changes are, by testing whether they show up year after year. Doing so would demonstrate their ability to reliably forecast the evolutionary future of these populations.
1. What does the underlined word “that” refer to in Paragraph 1?| A．Stickleback has a wide range of body temperatures. |
| B．Stickleback is popular with evolutionary ecologists. |
| C．Stickleback can adapt to different living conditions. |
| D．Stickleback has different shapes, sizes, and behaviors. |
| A．The difficulties. | B．The purpose. | C．The background. | D．The methods. |
| A．Habitat shifts. | B．Genetic changes. |
| C．Seasonal changes. | D．Independent populations. |
| A．To know what natural selection is. |
| B．To study species in dynamic environments. |
| C．To test the reliability of the present discoveries. |
| D．To forecast the evolutionary future of certain species. |
【推荐1】In my ninth-grade World History class, Mrs. Bartlett announced a new project. In groups, we were to create a newspaper around the culture we were studying. On a piece of paper, we wrote the names of three friends we wanted in our group. After collecting all the requests, Mrs. Bartlett informed us that she would take into consideration the names we chose and would let us know the results the next day. I had no doubt that I would get the group of my choice.
The next day, after the bell rang, Mrs. Bartlett called for our attention. She started to call out names. When she reached Group Three, Missy, my best friend’s name, was called. The second, third and fourth members of the group were called. My name was not included. There must be some mistakes! Then I heard it. “The last group: Mauro, Juliette, Rachel, Karina.”
I could feel the tears well in my eyes. How could I face being in that group—the boy who barely spoke English, the one girl who was always covered by long skirts, and the other girl who wore strange clothes. Oh, how badly I wanted to be with my friends. I fought back tears as I walked up to Mrs. Bartlett. I was determined to convince her I should be in the “good” group. “Why...?” I started. She gently placed a hand on my shoulder. “I know what you want, Karina,” she said, “but your group needs you. I need you to help them get a passing grade on this assignment. Only you can help them.”
I was shocked. I was amazed. She had seen something in me I hadn’t seen. “Will you help them?” she asked. I stood straighter. “Yes,” I replied. I couldn’t believe it came out of my mouth, but it did. I bravely walked to my group and sat down.
Halfway through the week, I felt myself enjoying the company of these three misfits(行为怪异的人). I grew sincerely interested in learning something about them. Mauro was struggling with the English language and his lack of friends. Juliette was also alone, because people didn’t understand that she was only allowed to wear long skirts or dresses because of her religion. Rachel wanted to be a fashion designer. They weren’t misfits, just people that no one cared enough about to try to understand except Mrs. Bartlett.
I did learn something that week. I was given a chance to see other people in a new light. Mrs. Bartlett gave us an A on that assignment. We should have handed it right back, for she was the one who truly deserved it.
1. Which name is most probably included on the writer’s piece of paper?| A．Missy. | B．Mauro. | C．Rachel. | D．Juliette. |
| A．Favorable. | B．Puzzling. | C．Amazing. | D．Unacceptable. |
| A．Mrs. Bartlett was not aware of what the writer wanted |
| B．the writer was mistakenly put into Group Four |
| C．it turned out that the writer enjoyed being in the group |
| D．the three misfits liked the way they were treated |
| A．A Group of Misfits | B．An A for Mrs. Bartlett |
| C．A Challenging Assignment | D．A Wise Choice |
【推荐2】Signs posted up and down the school hallway didn’t let me forget: Snowball Dance-Next Friday Night! No one would be asking me, the junior high school outcast. My face was ruined, and my balance was off—I had seizures without warning. All these were making my middle school life miserable. I kept my head down as I hurried to the classroom.
I stepped into the office where my teacher Mrs Barrett waited. She learned that my grandmother had been teaching me to sew for years, but none of the other kids in the class knew it. Mrs Barrett called me up to her desk. “A lot of girls need help with changes on their dresses for the Snowball Dance. I thought you could help me after school, ” she said. “Sure,” I said. Together with Mrs Barrett, I sewed buttons, shortened some sleeves, and lengthened others.
Teresa, one of the most popular girls, came by to pick up her dress. “Roberta designed and sewed it by hand,” Mrs Barrett told her. “It’s fashionable! Thanks. You must have added this brilliant belt,” she said. “I tied ribbons to the end of a pearl necklace,” I said, looking down at my shabby shoes. Teresa didn’t get crowned at the dance, but her Snowball Dance dress was the talk of the school during the following week. Word quickly spread that I was actually good at something. Soon the girls were coming to me and Mrs Barrett for custom-made dresses. “We should organize a fashion show,” Mrs Barrett said one day. We asked the girls in the office and they all wanted to participate. We had a packed auditorium for the show.
“This fashion show was a great success, and better than any dance could be. I think we pushed back the boundaries of fashion, ” Mrs Barrett said after the fashion show.
Those weren’t the only boundaries we pushed back. Later, Mrs Barrett encouraged me to run for student body president. “The kids have known your talent, ” she said. And I was elected president of the grade. I must say it’s my luck to meet Mrs Barrett in my life.
1. What do we know about the author before receiving Mrs Barrett’s request?| A．She was well liked by her classmates. | B．She wasn’t interested in the dance at all. |
| C．She felt lonely, miserable and depressed. | D．She was unlucky, sensitive, but optimistic. |
| A．Design a new dress for her. | B．Help her with changes on the girls’ dresses. |
| C．Go to the Snowball Dance with her. | D．Get along with her classmates and cheer up. |
| A．The dress was specially designed. | B．She was elected Snowball Queen. |
| C．She helped design her own dress. | D．Teresa was the most popular girl. |
| A．her special talent | B．her hard work |
| C．her friendly classmates | D．her teacher Mrs Barrett |
【推荐3】Two years ago I was very lonely and didn't talk with anyone about my feelings. At the time I didn't have many friends. I wanted someone to share my experiences and secrets with. I wanted someone to understand me. I started to imagine this friend. Often I imagine our conversations and what we would do, but I didn't give my imagination a face.
Some weeks later I started a new project in school and I was working with one of my schoolmates. We had never worked together before but we got along well. After the project we started to spend some time together in school. One day we decided to take a walk. Ever since that walk we've been friends. We listened and really understood each other.
I had wished for a best friend, but the universe gave me so much more. I have met one of my soul mates(挚友). We can sense each other, and it just takes one look and we know what the other is thinking. I didn't think our friendship could grow much stronger. But now we have known each other for two years and our friendship is growing all the time.
It hasn't only been easy. We have gone through both easy and hard times. But I'm grateful for the hard times, because they have forced me to grow and taught me a lot. My best friend has changed me. She has made me believe in myself. And I am now focusing on achieving one of my biggest dreams. Without her, I wouldn't even have realized what my biggest dream is.
I know there are soul mates out in the world for you. I am so thankful to have met one of mine. Believe in them, and your paths will cross.
1. What did the author do before meeting her soul mate?| A．She chose to stay alone. | B．She spent time with other friends. |
| C．She told others about her feelings. | D．She pictured a friend in her mind. |
| A．By taking a walk. |
| B．By attending a party. |
| C．Through a school project. |
| D．Through a friend's introduction. |
| A．Their friendship is still developing. |
| B．She is the author's only soul mate. |
| C．They are trying hard to realize their dreams. |
| D．She has little confidence in their friendship. |
| A．She went through them easily. |
| B．She has learned a lot from them. |
| C．They have made her suffer. |
| D．They have made her dream come true. |
【推荐1】There are around 100 tribes that live in global isolation, mostly in South America and India.
The Sentinelese(250 people)have lived on one of the Andaman Islands in Eastern India for 60, 000 years. They protect their island by fighting against people from outside. Their language is different from any other known language.
Another Andaman tribe is the Jarawa(300 people). In the past, they were independent and fought against anybody trying to make contact with them. But in 1998, the Indian govemment built a road across their land, and since then, they’ve had more contact with the outside world.
Some Amazon tribes avoid contact because of unhappy memories. The Mashco—Piro left their vegetable gardens after rubber companies killed most of their tribe at the beginning of the 20th century. Those who survived became nomadic(游牧的)and started hunting animals in the forest.
The Awa live in the Amazon forests of Brazil. Out of 350 members, 100 have no contact with the outside world. They left their villages and adopted a nomadic lifestyle around 1850 to escape attacks by Europeans. In the following years, farmers in nearby communities started cutting the trees to expand their farmland. The Awa lost most of their hunting land.
The few Amazon tribes that still exist are fighting to keep their traditional way of life.
Survival, an organization that fights for the rights of tribal people, says that uncontacted tribes are the most vulnerable(弱势的)humans on the planet and that’s why their environment should be unavailable to the rest of us.
After years of pressure, the organization got Brazil’s government to clear invaders from the Awa land. All non-Awa people are leaving so the tribe can get their forest back. But some think it’s impossible for tribes to stay isolated forever in a connected world. Contact will be made one day. So the question is：Whose choice should it be, ours or theirs?
1. What could be learnt about the Sentinelese from the text?| A．They speak the same language as the Jarawa. |
| B．They resist contact from the outside world. |
| C．There are about 350 members in their tribe. |
| D．They received help from the Indian government. |
| A．To avoid being attacked by Europeans. |
| B．To avoid being robbed by rubber companies. |
| C．To protect their hunting land. |
| D．To maintain their traditional way of life. |
| A．They should fight for their rights by themselves. |
| B．We should show them respect and not disturb them. |
| C．It’s impossible to stay isolated from the outside world. |
| D．We should help them get used to the connected world. |
| A．Doubtfully. | B．Critically. | C．Indifferently. | D．Objectively. |
【推荐2】It's natural for parents to praise their children, but offering this praise could actually backfire, according to new science.
In the study, researchers at Michigan State University looked at 123 children who were about 7. The team assessed the children to determine whether they had a “growth mindset" (believing that you can work harder to get smarter), or a “fixed mindset" (believing that your intelligence is unable to change). They then asked the children to complete a fast-paced computer accuracy task while their brain activity was recorded.
Based on the data they collected, the researchers concluded that children with a growth mindset were much more likely to have a larger brain response after making a mistake, and in turn were more likely to improve their performance by paying closer attention to the task after making an error.
While previous research has shown that people with a fixed mindset didn't want to admit they had made a mistake, this study found that children with a fixed mindset were able to — “bounce back” after making an error, but only if they gave their full attention to the mistakes. “The main implication here is that we should pay close attention to our mistakes and use them as opportunities to learn study author Hans Schroder told Science Daily.
For parents, the lessons are clear—if a child hands you an A+ test, don't say “You're so smart! ”
Instead, say “Wow, that studying really paid off!" or “You clearly mastered this material — way to go!" Note the effort, not the intelligence.
Second, focus on using errors to work together and learn. Many teachers and parents avoid addressing children's mistakes, telling them “It's OK. You'll get it next time. . . ” Without giving them the opportunity to figure out what went wrong. Dr. Schroder says, "Instead, it's better to
reassure children that mistakes happen, and to pay attention and work to figure out where and how they made the mistakes. ”
1. The underlined word “backfire" in Paragraph 1 probably means “ ” .
| A．make a loud noise | B．leave a good impression |
| C．have an opposite result | D．produce an explosion |
| A．Tom manages to correct every mistake by heart. |
| B．Mary believes her mistakes are made by chance. |
| C．John keeps an idea that he has a good gift for studying. |
| D．Lily thinks she can get A+ without any effort. |
| A．praise him with some delicious food and money |
| B．comment him to be cleverer than other students |
| C．confirm his effort that he has made for the test |
| D．believe that he is an honest and smart child |
| A．Parents should avoid talking with child about his mistakes. |
| B．Parents should compare his mistakes with others' and criticize him. |
| C．Parents should ignore the mistakes and believe he will do better. |
| D．Parents should analyse the mistakes with their child patiently. |
【推荐3】As I jogged over the bridge and round the corner on my regular early morning run, he was standing opposite the jeweler’s, looking extremely suspicious. But the moment he saw me, instead of trying to avoid me, he came straight across the road as I drew level with the jeweler’s. Halfway across he began addressing me: “I thought you were going to…” — but his voice trailed away as he received no reply and no sign of recognition from me. It was quite obvious that he had mistaken me for someone else. But he started up again as if nothing had happened．“Good morning, ” he said．“Nice to bump into someone so early. Someone to talk to. I’ve taken to talking to myself on this job.”
I hate meeting people when I’m out early, and I was almost out of breath, so I just paused in my stride, nodded in a friendly manner, and went on up the road. The stranger had spoken quietly, and quite slowly. And I had noticed that he was well dressed, too. But if he looked suspicious dressed like that at that time of the morning, what about me? I was in a track suit, with an old sweater round my shoulders and a cap on my head．As to his odd remark about “talking to himself on this job”, I hadn’t paid any attention to it, although now it began to worry me. Was he perhaps a plain clothes policeman? At the time I somehow felt he was.
I had just turned the corner into the High Street when I heard the sound of breaking glass somewhere behind me, and I thought the sound came from the street I had just left. I stopped dead and almost without thinking looked back around the corner. The stranger was not there, but almost immediately an alarm bell in the jeweler’s began ringing furiously.
I found out later that a burglar had broken into the jeweler’s shop and stolen watches and rings worth about ￡5,000. The police are still looking into the matter, but I’m afraid to go and tell them what I know now because they might even suspect me of committing the crime, and it might be difficult for me to prove my innocence. After all, I haven’t offered my assistance as a witness, and the only other person around that morning was the “stranger” who had spoken to me.
1. From the passage we can infer that the author _____.| A．always goes past the jeweler’s |
| B．didn’t like talking to the strangers |
| C．meets a few people every morning |
| D．saw a plain clothes policeman that morning |
| A．Because the stranger took the author as someone else. |
| B．Because the stranger loved talking to people. |
| C．Because the stranger recognized the writer. |
| D．Because the stranger took a job of talking to himself. |
| A．He was about to go into the jeweler’s. |
| B．He was far too friendly. |
| C．He was dressed too well for that time. |
| D．He talked to himself a lot. |
| A．he might have been badly injured |
| B．he would have seen what happened |
| C．he wouldn’t have heard the alarm bell |
| D．the stranger wouldn’t have broken the window |
| A．he thinks the stranger is innocent |
| B．the burglar didn’t steal very much |
| C．he might commit the crime to the police |
| D．he hesitates whether to report to the police about what he knew |
