【推荐1】Yesterday I had this feeling of wanting to fish by the Pearl river. As I got to the river bank, I saw two pairs of married couples walking. And a father was in his sailboat while his son was swimming right beside his sailboat. As I put my boat into the water to fish, everything seemed to be OK at least at the moment.

Then the river wind was becoming a little stronger and so were the river water at a quicker rate. Then I watched the father drinking beer in his boat happily. His son continued swimming.

About thirty minutes later, as I was in what I believed at the time was a big fish. I heard a scream that no parent ever wants to hear. The sound was a child screaming for his life as he was being washed away by the water. I looked around. There was neither his dad nor the two pairs of married couples in sight. I then dropped my fishing line and rowed as quickly as I could to the kid. I quickly got the kid to calm down and pulled him onto the shore.

I was worried about how cold he was so I called first-aid medical services. At last, his father appeared. I stayed long enough to explain what’d happened here.

Officers interviewed the child’s father and learned they were sailing on the river when the boy wanted to swim next to the boat. However, the wind pushed the sailboat far away from the boy. Then he cried for help at once.

1. What was the boy doing when the wind was becoming stronger?

A．driving the anchor.	B．Doing some fishing.
C．Playing on the bank.	D．Swimming in the river.

2. Why did the writer drop his fishing line?

A．To run away quickly.	B．To save the kid.
C．To catch the big fish.	D．To see the child’s father.

3. Which word can best describe the writer?

A．Humorous.

B．Careless.

C．Warm-hearted.

D．Impatient.

4. What can be known about the kid at last?

A．He was washed away by water.	B．He was saved by the writer.
C．He was punished by his father.	D．He was taken away by the officers.

【推荐1】Everyone tries their best in life, and sometimes a few kind words of encouragement can help people realize that their efforts are not in vain (徒劳).Ⅰ remember a time when I was in fifth grade, and I was a very shy girl.

There was a drawing competition at my school that day. As everyone started to use their creative ideas to draw, I was only trying to think of something creative that could express my thoughts and emotions. Lost in my own world, I was brought back to reality when my art teacher called my name from behind. She came to me and encouraged me, saying, “Don’t overthink it, just put whatever comes to your mind on the canvas (画布). Do your best, and you will do well.”

Taking her words of wisdom to heart, I started my painting. Time flew by, and soon the bell rang, signaling the end of the time limit. We all turned in our canvases for inspection (检查). The next day, the winners of the competition were announced in front of the whole school. To my surprise, I heard my name being called second prize. It was a bolt from the blue for me, as I had never dared to dream of winning any prize.

Later on, I expressed my gratitude to my art teacher for her words of encouragement and for believing in me. That day, I became aware of my talent and started painting more whenever I had free time. Sometimes, I think that if it weren’t for her words of encouragement, I may have never discovered the talent I have.

Overall, this experience taught me the importance of encouraging others and how a few kind words can make a significant impact on someone’s life.

1. What was the author doing when called by the art teacher?

A．Organizing a drawing competition.	B．Trying to get some creative ideas.
C．Painting her work on her canvas.	D．Trying to get help from others.

2. What did the author think of the competition?

A．Easy

B．Interesting

C．Challenging

D．Encouraging.

3. What do the underlined words “bolt from the blue” in paragraph 3 mean?

A．Addiction

B．Puzzlement

C．Disappointment

D．Surprise

4. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．The author didn’t show a talent for drawing.

B．The author was forced to participate in a drawing competition.

C．The author started her painting under the teacher’s encouragement.

D．The judge awarded the author the third prize for her picture.

5. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．The Power of Encouragement

B．The Importance of Art Competitions

C．Overcoming Shyness Through Painting

D．Discovering Your Great Natural Ability

【推荐1】Specialists say that it is not easy to get used to life in a new culture. ＂Culture shock＂ is the term these specialists use when talking about the feelings that people have in a new environment. There are three stages of culture shock, say the specialists. In the first stage, the newcomers like their new environment. Then, when the fresh experience dies, they begin to hate the city, the country, the people, and everything else. In the last stage, the newcomers begin to adjust to (适应) their surroundings and, as a result, enjoy their life more.

There are some obvious factors in culture shock. The weather may be unpleasant. The customs may be different. The public service systems — the telephone, post office, or transportation — may be difficult to work out. The simplest things seem to be big problems. The language may be difficult.

Who feels culture shock? Everyone does in this way or that. But culture shock surprises most people. Very often the people having the worst culture shock are those who never had any difficulties in their home countries and were successful in their community. Coming to a new country, these people find they do not have the same established positions. They find themselves without a role, almost without an identity. They have to build a new self-image.

Culture shock gives rise to a feeling of disorientation. This feeling may be homesickness. When homesick(想家), people feel like staying inside all the time. They want to protect themselves from the strange environment, and create an escape inside their room for a sense of security. This escape does solve the problem of culture shock for the short term, but it does nothing to make the person familiar with the culture. Getting to know the new environment and gaining experience — these are the long-term solutions to the problem of culture shock.

1. According to the passage, factors that give rise to culture shock include all of the following except __________.

A．language communication

B．weather conditions and customs

C．public service systems

D．homesickness

2. According to the passage, the more successful you are at home, ___________.

A．the fewer difficulties you may have abroad

B．the more difficulties you may have abroad

C．the more money you will earn abroad

D．the less homesick you will feel abroad

3. The underlined word in the last paragraph mostly probably means ___________.

A．being homesick

B．being lost

C．protecting oneself

D．gaining experience

4. What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A．Escape unfamiliar environment

B．The feeling of homesickness.

C．Homesickness can solve the problem of culture shock.

D．The best way to overcome culture shock: get familiar with the new culture.

【推荐2】I travel a lot, and I find out different “styles” of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”

Foreign tourists are often confused in Japan because most streets there don’t have names; in Japan, people use landmarks in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.”

In the countryside of the American Midwest, there are not usually many landmarks. There are no mountains, so the land is very flat; in many places there are no towns or buildings within miles. Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”

People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know.

It’s true that a person doesn’t know the answer to your question sometimes. What happens in such a situation? A New Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea.” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don’t know.” People in Yucatan believe that “I don’t know” is impolite. They usually give an answer, often a wrong one. A tourist can get very, very lost in Yucatan!

1. When a tourist asks the Japanese the way to a certain place they usually ________.

A．describe the place carefully	B．show him a map of the place
C．tell him the names of the streets	D．refer to recognizable buildings and places

2. What is the place where people measure distance in time?

A．New York

B．Los Angeles

C．Kansas

D．Iowa

3. People in Yucatan may give a tourist a wrong answer _______.

A．in order to save time	B．as a test
C．so as to be polite	D．for fun

【推荐3】The Enigma (谜) of Beauty

The search for beauty spans centuries and continents. Paintings of Egyptians dating back over 4,000 years show both men and women painting their nails and wearing makeup. In 18th-century France, wealthy noblemen wore large wigs (假发) of long, white hair to make themselves attractive. Today, people continue to devote a lot of time and money to their appearance.

There is at least one good reason for the desire to be attractive: beauty is power. Studies suggest that good-looking people make more money, get called on more often in class, and are regarded as friendlier.

But what exactly is beauty? It’s difficult to describe it clearly, and yet we know it when we see it. And our awareness of it may start at a very early age. In one set of studies, six-month-old babies were shown a series of photographs. The faces on the pictures had been rated for attractiveness by a group of college students. In the studies, the babies spent more time looking at the attractive faces than the unattractive ones.

The idea that even babies can judge appearance makes perfect sense to many researchers. In studies by psychologists, men consistently showed a preference for women with larger eyes, fuller lips, and a smaller nose and chin while women prefer men with large shoulders and a narrow waist. According to scientists, the mind unconsciously tells men and women that these traits — the full lips, clear skin, strong shoulders — equal health and genetic well-being.

Not everyone thinks the same way, however. “Our hardwiredness can be changed by all sorts of expectations — mostly cultural,” says C. Loring Brace, an anthropologist at the University of Michigan. What is considered attractive in one culture might not be in another. Look at most Western fashion magazines: the women on the pages are thin. But is this “perfect” body type for women worldwide? Scientists’ answer is no; what is considered beautiful is subjective and varies around the world. They found native peoples in southeast Peru preferred shapes regarded overweight in Western cultures.

For better or worse, beauty plays a role in our lives. But it is extremely difficult to describe exactly what makes one person attractive to another. Although there do seem to be certain physical traits considered universally appealing, it is also true that beauty does not always keep to a single, uniform standard. Beauty really is, as the saying goes, in the eye of the beholder.

1. People’s ideas about beauty ________.

A．have existed since ancient times

B．can be easily described

C．have little influence on a person’s success

D．are based upon strict criteria

2. In Paragraph 3, the babies in the study ________.

A．were rated for their appearance

B．were entered in a beauty contest

C．were shown photos of a group of college students

D．were able to tell attractive faces from unattractive ones

3. The underlined word “traits” in Paragraph 4 probably means ________.

A．qualities	B．measurements
C．judgments	D．standards

4. We can learn from the passage that ________.

A．the ideas of beauty vary as people grow up

B．the search for beauty is rooted in lack of confidence

C．the standards for beauty are based on scientific researches

D．the understanding of beauty depends on cultural backgrounds