I have lived in rural America for nine years, first in Michigan, where I got my PhD; then in central Illinois and now in Indiana, where I am a professor. In a place where most people have lived the whole of their lives, I feel like a stranger. There are few things I enjoy more than complaining about my geographic isolation. I’m a vegetarian, so there’s nowhere to go for a nice dinner that isn’t 50 miles away. I’m black, so there’s nowhere to get my hair done that doesn’t involve another 50-mile drive. And the closest major airport is two hours away.
I recite these gripes to my friends. We all have grand ideas about what life would be like if only we did that, or lived there. And there’s this; I really don’t intend to change most of the things I complain about. Griping is seductive on those days when happiness requires too much energy. But it also makes me lose sight of the fact that I was born and grew up in Nebraska and have lived most of my life in one of the plains states. When I go to the coasts, I am struck by how unappealing big-city living can be.
While I may not love where I live, there are plenty of people who are proud to call this place home. At a party with colleagues, I was going on about everything I couldn’t stand in our town when I noticed that they were silent and shifting uncomfortably. That moment forced a change in me. Complaining may offer relief, but so does acceptance. There is no perfect life. By focusing on gripes, I risk missing out on precious moments of appreciation. When I get home, I stand on my balcony, look into the night sky and see the stars. I know that I have absolutely nothing to complain about.
1. What causes the author’s loneliness?| A．Dietary habits. | B．Racial prejudice. |
| C．Educational differences. | D．Identity confusion. |
| A．Attractive. | B．Temporary. | C．Violent. | D．Flexible. |
| A．Humbled. | B．Angry. | C．Touched. | D．Calm. |
| A．Every day is beautiful. | B．When in Rome, do as the Romans do. |
| C．Human must value lives themselves. | D．Don’t be penny wise and pound foolish. |
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【推荐1】A couple of weeks ago, my grandfather was explaining his favorite expression, “Nothing is ever easy.” The following day, as I tried to complete my work, I happened to notice a big bee on the skylight. It was particularly high up, but I thought removing it would take no more than 5 minutes. An hour later, the bee still remained. All that had changed was that the living room was a mess and that I was dizzy from looking up into the sunlight. I didn’t expect to waste an hour on an insect so tiny, but by doing so, I understood what my grandfather meant.
It is not only time that we tend to underestimate – we don’t account for unexpected costs.
We often imagine what can work in our favor, but we seldom think of all the negative things that can affect us. However, it is important to remember that your day or week or year may not go as planned, and that is completely normal. It is perfectly acceptable to feel challenged – even at a task you thought was simple – because that is part of life.
If you accept that nothing will ever be easy, then life may seem slightly more manageable.
In middle school, I thought high school might be easier because I could choose the classes I wanted to take. In high school, I thought college might be easier because I could have a schedule best suited for myself. Yet each time, I was both wrong and disappointed. After accepting that school wouldn’t be easy, I found myself with a more positive attitude and improved results.
Of course, there should be preparations made to account for expenses or time. Doing so can help you achieve your goals in a better way. However, there is no need to beat ourselves up when something stands in our path. Maybe we cannot see the bee coming our way, but we can always give ourselves extra time to catch it.
1. Why did the author mention his experience of removing a bee?| A．To show the unexpected costs it caused. |
| B．To share something unforgettable with us. |
| C．To tell us how easy it is to waste our time. |
| D．To lead us to what the author learned from it. |
| A．Unexpected things can happen. |
| B．It is quite easy to feel challenged. |
| C．We don’t often take time seriously. |
| D．We haven’t enough energy to control them. |
| A．To show how upsetting it is. |
| B．To link back to the beginning. |
| C．To warn us to catch it anyhow. |
| D．To use it as a reminder of valuing time. |
| A．To encourage us to make more efforts. |
| B．To persuade us not to expect things to be easy. |
| C．To explain how to make preparations for the bad. |
| D．To tell us what to do when something gets in our way. |
【推荐2】It is strange how a single moment can change a person’s life. My adult son walked to the table this morning for breakfast and as he did he opened his arms to me. I opened my arms too and gave him a big hug (拥抱). And when I did, a beautiful memory (回忆) came back to me.
My mom had grown up in a reserved (保守的) family. She hugged me sometimes but less often as I grew into my teenage years. My dad didn’t hug me much either. By the time I was a teenager then, I hadn’t been used to hugging.
When I was sixteen I left on a trip with a group of boys to tour a college in the Mid-West. And on our way we stopped by a place where monks (僧侣) live. As we entered, we were welcomed by the largest monk I had ever seen. He was over six and a half feet tall with huge arms. As he welcomed us he gave everyone a huge hug. When my own turn came, I felt frightened but stepped in and hugged him back. I felt warmth in my heart. It was amazing. Later that day I began to wonder why I had ever stopped giving and receiving hugs when they brought so much joy.When my own children were born, I decided never to stop hugging them and telling them I loved them.
I will be forever thankful because that monk showed me how much love a single hug can share. What use are arms if we don’t use them to hug each other?
1. Why does the author mention her son’s hug?| A．It changed her life. |
| B．It brought back her memory |
| C．It showed her son’s love for her |
| D．It made her realize the importance of hugs. |
| A．Her personality. | B．The social environment. |
| C．Her parents influence. | D．Her experience at school. |
| A．Annoying and frightening. | B．Surprising and moving. |
| C．Strong and encouraging. | D．Warm and enjoyable. |
| A．Try to change your lifestyle | B．Share your love with hugs |
| C．Express your thanks | D．Welcome your guest |
【推荐3】No matter what your goals are in life, there is one great law that you need to obey in order to be successful: No one else is going to climb the ladder (梯子) of success for you.
If you want a better life, you need to make better decisions.
There is nothing that you can’t achieve with hard work. People often think that their lives will suddenly change through some magical event in the future.
A great way to actively create your future is to ask yourself: If I already achieved my goals, how would I act on a daily basis? What books would I read, how often would I work out, and how would I spend my time at the office?
| A．But that is not the case. |
| B．No one else is responsible for your life. |
| C．Now these questions seem like magic to you. |
| D．Nothing else can be the drive for your success. |
| E．Once you answer these questions, you know what to do. |
| F．The biggest enemy to success is the path of least resistance. |
| G．You can blame other people for your lack of happiness all life long. |
【推荐1】Hannah Burrows isn’t able to put into words how much she loves water, but when you see the 6-year-old in a pool there’s no doubt about it. “As soon as you put her in a swimsuit, she’s flapping (摆动) her arms and getting excited,” said Hannah’s mom, Kristy Burrows.
Hannah is in kindergarten at Longview School, a school for children with severe intellectual and physical disabilities. Last year, the family was referred to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, an on-profit (非盈利的) organization that brightens the lives of kids who face health challenges. They considered what that wish might be. “We wanted to do something that would last a long time and that she would get a lot of use out of,” Kristy said. Weekly swimming is part of Hannah’s physical therapy at Longview, so they decided on a pool.
But building a pool in your back yard means getting a permit. But the Burrowses didn’t have one. If they wanted to get one, they should spend hundreds of dollars, which could be too much for the family.
AS it turned out, a local company volunteered to do a site plan free. Followed were discounted products or services. Kristy said, “The permit was issued on the 5th of June and the pool was built in the next five days...We went from, ‘Oh, it will be next summer’ to 15 days later there was a pool in my backyard.”
It’s an aboveground pool, 3.5 feet deep, perfect for Hannah.
“She loves it,” said Kristy. She’s been swimming almost every day for an hour. “Hannah is delighted to be in water, of course, but her family has noticed that the pool has improved her life out of it, too. She struggled with sleeping through the night,” Kristy said. “But now, she’s had a couple of great nights of sleep just from the activity.”
| A．She can’t express her excitement to be in water. |
| B．She is good at swimming though she is young. |
| C．Her health condition has greatly improved with the pool. |
| D．She has severe intellectual and physical disabilities. |
| A．More than satisfied. | B．Very disappointed. | C．A little annoyed. | D．Very discouraged. |
| A．Swimming Helps Improve Little Girl’s Health | B．Six-year-old Girl Enjoyed Swimming |
| C．A Special Girl’s Wish Came True | D．Building a Swimming Pool Needs a Permit |
【推荐2】A few years ago, my husband Matt offered to get me a digital piano for my 41st birthday. Matt knew that I had taken piano lessons as a kid, but stopped doing so in the seventh grade. I was at the age when I would rather go to the mall with friends than play the piano on the weekends.
I was game for a digital piano, but skeptical — I wasn’t sure I was going to play it that often. However, Matt was persistent. He reminded me that I’d mentioned wanting to play the piano again, so he bought me one and set it up in my office.
To be honest, I had only made half-hearted attempts over the years to take up various hobbies, mostly craft-related ones like knitting (编织) and cross-stitch (十字绣), to relax. But nothing really stuck.
Then, two years ago, I had a baby. The piano became even more of an afterthought as I became consumed by the challenges of parenting. I had enough on my plate, I told myself. There was no point in adding another thing that was probably just going to stress me out.
But recently, my 2-year-old son had figured out how to turn on the digital piano and loved to bang on the keys. Seeing him play so joyfully, I thought maybe I could take piano lessons and help him to prepare for the music world.
I started lessons a couple of weeks later, and it turned out that I could handle 15 minutes a day.
Sometimes, I could handle 40 minutes. I found myself completely immersed in playing the piano. The repetition calmed me. Going over difficult parts in each piece I was learning was incredibly satisfying. To my great surprise, at age 44, I have an actual hobby now, and I really look forward to performing together with my son one day.
1. How did the author feel when her husband offered to buy her a digital piano?| A．She was excited. | B．She was thankful. |
| C．She doubted herself. | D．She considered it a joke. |
| A．She devoted herself entirely to bringing up her baby. |
| B．She dropped out of school in the seven grade. |
| C．She gave up playing the piano again at her forties. |
| D．She ate a lot for parenting. |
| A．She loved knitting and cross-stitch the most. |
| B．She gave them up eventually. |
| C．They made her more patient. |
| D．They gave her too much pressure. |
| A．Her husband’s encouragement. |
| B．Her son’s interest in the piano. |
| C．Her hope to make her son happy. |
| D．Her desire to reduce the stress of parenting. |
| A．She taught her son to play the piano. |
| B．She determined to become a pianist. |
| C．She practiced harder for competition. |
| D．She felt peaceful and content while playing. |
【推荐3】John von Neumann was the oldest of 3 children of a banker, and his speed of learning new ideas and solving problems stood out early. At 17, his father tried to persuade him not to become a mathematician because he might lead a poor life being a mathematician, so von Neumann agreed to study chemistry as well. In 1926, at 23, he received a degree in chemical engineering and a Ph. D in mathematics. From then on, mathematics provided well enough for him, and he never had to turn to chemistry.
In 1930, von Neumann visited Princeton University for a year and then became a professor there. His first book was published in 1932. In 1933, the Institute for Advanced Study was formed, and he became one of the 6 full-time people in the School of Mathematics (Einstein was one of the others).
World War Ⅱ hugely changed von Neumann’s areas of interest. Until 1940 he had been a great pure mathematician. During and after the war, he became one of the best mathematicians who put mathematical theories into practice. During the last part of the war he became interested in computing machines and made several fundamental contributions. After the war, von Neumann continued his work with computers, and was generally very active in government service. He received many awards, was president of the American Mathematical Society and was a member of the Atomic Energy Commission. He died of cancer in 1957.
Von Neumann made several great contributions and any one of them would have been enough to earn him a firm place in history. He will be remembered as one of the greatest minds of the 20th century.
Von Neumann really was a legend in his own time, and there are a number of stories about him. His driving ability is a part of his legend. He reported one accident this way: “I was driving down the road. The trees on the right were passing me in an orderly fashion at 60 miles per hour. Suddenly one of them stepped in my path.”
1. John von Neumann also learned chemistry because ______.| A．his father didn’t trust his talent in learning mathematics |
| B．he believed he could live a wealthy life learning chemistry |
| C．his father worried about his income as a mathematician |
| D．he had the gift for solving problems at a high speed |
| A．25. | B．26. | C．29. | D．32. |
| A．He realized the importance of engineering. |
| B．He began to research how to put mathematics into practice. |
| C．He left college and served at the government department. |
| D．He was no longer interested in chemistry. |
| A．Intelligent and humorous. | B．Smart but indecisive. |
| C．Brave and calm. | D．Kind and easy-going. |
