1 . When I was nine years old, I loved to go fishing with my dad. But the only thing that wasn’t very fun about it was that he could catch many fish while I couldn’t catch anything. I usually got pretty upset and kept asking him why. He always answered, “Son, if you want to catch a fish, you have to think like a fish.” I remember being even more upset then because, “I’m not a fish!” I didn’t know how to think like a fish. Besides, I reasoned, how could what I think influence what a fish does?
As I got a little older I began to understand what my dad really meant. So, I read some books on fish. And I even joined the local fishing club and started attending the monthly meetings. I learned that a fish is a cold-blooded animal and therefore is very sensitive to water temperature. That is why fish prefer shallow water to deep water because the former is warmer. Besides, water is usually warmer in direct sunlight than in the shade. Yet, fish don’t have any eyelids(眼皮) and the sun hurts their eyes… The more I understood fish, the more I became effective at finding and catching them.
When I grew up and entered the business world, I remember hearing my first boss say, “We all need to think like salespeople.” But it didn’t completely make sense. My dad never once said, “If you want to catch a fish you need to think like a fisherman.” What he said was, “You need to think like a fish.” Years later, with great efforts to promote long-term services to people much older and richer than me, I gradually learned what we all need is to think more like customers. It is not an easy job. I will show you how in the following chapters.
1. Why was the author upset in fishing trips when he was nine?A.He could not influence a fish as his father did. |
B.His father was not patient with him. |
C.His father did not teach him fishing. |
D.He could not catch a fish. |
A.in shallow water under waterside trees |
B.in deep water on cloudy days |
C.in shallow water under sunlight |
D.in deep water on sunny days |
A.it easy to think like a customer |
B.his first boss’s sales ideas reasonable |
C.his father’s fishing advice inspiring |
D.it difficult to sell services to poor people |
A.a fishing guide | B.a millionaire’s biography |
C.a novel on childhood | D.a popular sales book |
2 . When I was about 12, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings(缺点). Week by week her list grew: I was very thin, I wasn’t a good student, I talked too much, I was too proud, and so on. I tried to bear all this as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.
He listened to me quietly, then he asked. “Are the things she says true or not? Janet, didn’t you ever wonder what you’re really like ? Well, you now have that girl’s opinion. Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said.”
I did as he told me. To my great surprise, I discovered that about half the things were true. Some of them I couldn’t change (like being very thin), but a good number I could—and suddenly I wanted to change. For the first time I go to fairly clear picture of myself.
I brought the list back to Daddy. He refused to take it.“That’s just for you,” he said.“You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. But you have to learn to listen, not just close your ears in anger and feeling hurt. When something said about you is true, you’ll find it will be of help to you. Our world is full of people who think they know your duty. Don’t shut your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you know is the right thing to do.”
Daddy’s advice has returned to me at many important moments. In my life, I’ve never had a better piece of advice.
1. What did the father do after he had heard his daughter’s complaint?A.He told her not to pay any attention to what her“enemy” had said. |
B.He criticized (批评) her and told her to overcome her shortcomings. |
C.He told her to write down all that her“enemy” had said about her and pay attention only to the things that were true. |
D.He refused to take the list and have a look at it. |
A.Week by week she discovered more shortcomings of mine and pointed them out to me. |
B.She had made a list of my shortcomings and she kept on adding new ones to it so that it was growing longer and longer. |
C.I was having more and more shortcomings as time went on. |
D.Week by week, my shortcomings grew more serious. |
A.Because he believed that what her daughter’s “enemy” said was mostly true. |
B.Because he had been so angry with his daughter’s shortcomings that he wanted to show this by keeping silent for a while. |
C.Because he knew that his daughter would not listen to him at that moment. |
D.Because he wasn’t quite sure which girl was telling the truth. |
A.Not an Enemy, but the Best Friend |
B.The Best Advice I’ve Ever Had |
C.My Father |
D.My Childhood |
The Malaysian population consists of Malays, Chinese, Indians and Eurasians. Its main religions are Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism and Christianity. Its national language is Malay. English is widely spoken and is used all over the country. Other languages spoken in Malaysia are some Chinese dialects, Tamil, Portuguese and Arabic.
Malaysia is an exciting and fascinating place for tourists, with something special planned throughout the year. The natural attractions are plentiful, with magnificent mountains lying in green, large stretches of sandy beaches and hospitable and friendly people.
Malaysia’s economy is the most advanced in this part of the world. The annual income is M$1, 680, one of the highest in the whole of Asia. Malaysia is the world’s leading exporter of rubber, tin, tropical hardwood, palm oil, pepper, tea, coffee and cocoa and has vast resources of oil.
Malaysia’s capital is Kuala Lumpur in the southwest of the Malay Peninsula. Kuala Lumpur arose in the 1860s when tin was discovered, grew and spread very quickly. It became the state’s capital within forty years of its founding. Now it is home to over one million inhabitants(居民), about 56% of whom are Chinese, 28% Malays and the rest are from anywhere and everywhere.
1. If you visit Malaysia, you will see ________.
A.people of the white and yellow races |
B.many temples and churches |
C.beautiful tropical scenery |
D.All of the above. |
A.over half of its population speak Chinese |
B.English is also a popular language |
C.people don’t know Malay |
D.it’s only spoken by Malays |
A.Malaysia is one of the richest countries in Asia. |
B.It rains a little now and a little then in Malaysia. |
C.Kuala Lumpur became Malaysia’s capital before 1910. |
D.Malaysia is rich in agricultural products. |
4 . Fading beauty
She is widely seen as proof that good looks can last for ever. But, at nearly 500 years of age, time is catching up with the Mona Lisa.
The health of the famous picture, painted by Leonardo Da Vinci in 1505, is getting worse by the year, according to the Louvre Museum(卢浮宫博物馆) where it is housed.
“The thin, wooden panel on which the Mona Lisa is painted in oil has changed shape since experts checked it two years ago,” the museum said. Visitors have noticed changes but repairing the world’s most famous painting is not easy. Experts are not sure about the materials the Italian artist used and their current chemical state(化学状态).
Nearly 6 million people go to see the Mona Lisa every year, many attracted by the mystery of her smile. “It is very interesting that when you’re not looking at her, she seems to be smiling, and then you look at her and she stops,” said Professor Margaret Livingstone of Harvard University. “It’s because direct vision (视觉) is excellent at picking up detail, but less suited to looking at shadows. Da Vinci painted the smile in shadows.”[
However, the actual history of the Mona Lisa is just as mysterious as the smile. Da Vinci himself loved it so much that he always carried it with him, until it was eventually sold to France’s King Francis I in 1519.
In 1911, the painting was stolen from the Louvre by a former employee, who took it out of the museum hidden under his coat. He said he planned to return it to Italy. The painting was sent back to France two years later.
During World War II, French hid the painting in small towns to keep it out of the hands of German forces.
Like many old ladies, the Mona Lisa has some interesting stories to tell.
1. What does the writer mean by “time is catching up with the Mona Lisa”?A.The painting woman is not so beautiful any more. |
B.Ageing is something that affects us all. |
C.The painting needs repairing. |
D. At such an old age, she is no longer popular. |
A.The wooden panel is thin and old. |
B.No one knows exactly what materials were used to create the painting and how it might respond to treatment. |
C.The health of the painting is suffering. |
D.Experts can’t agree on how to carry out repairs. |
A.The materials the Italian artist used. | B.The way she smiles. |
C.The way Da Vinci painted the smile. | D.It plays a trick upon the human eyes |
According to a recent study, however, if you really think about it, something about that simple answer doesn’t quite make sense. In fact, it turns out that sometimes it’s having will power that really gets you into trouble.
Think back to the time you took your very first sip (啜饮) of beer. Disgusting, wasn’t it? When my father gave me my first taste of beer as a teenager, I wondered why anyone would voluntarily drink it. And smoking? No one enjoys their first cigarette — it tastes awful. So even though smoking, and drinking alcohol or coffee, can become temptation (诱惑) you need will power to resist, they never, ever start out that way.
Just getting past those first horrible experiences actually requires a lot of self-control. Ironically (讽刺的是), only those who can control themselves well, rather than give in to them, can ever come to someday develop a “taste” for Budweiser beer, Marlboro cigarettes, or dark-roasted Starbucks coffee. We do it for social acceptance. We force ourselves to consume alcohol, cigarettes, coffee and even illegal drugs, in order to seem experienced, grown-up, and cool.
These bad habits aren’t self-control failures — far from it. They are voluntary choices, and they are in fact self-control successes. Self-control is simply a tool to be put to some use, helpful or harmful. To live happy and productive lives, we need to develop not only our self-control, but also the wisdom to make good decisions about when and where to apply it.
1. What do most people think causes bad behavior?
A.Being forced by others. |
B.Not having enough will power. |
C.Enjoying their first experiences. |
D.Following the examples of their friends. |
A.will power helps develop bad habits sometimes |
B.drinking beer is harmful to the health of teenagers |
C.self-control should be developed when one is young |
D.everyone can be challenged by different temptations |
A.without self-control, no one can succeed |
B.bad habits don’t always lead to bad results |
C.applying self-control correctly is important |
D.people can develop wisdom from bad behavior |
A.My First Sip of Beer | B.Do You Have Will Power ? |
C.Does Will Power Benefit Us? | D.Dark Side of Self-control |
The circles are called “crop circles” because they appear in the fields of grain - usually wheat or corn. The grain in the circles lies flat on the ground but never broken; it continues to grow, and farmers can later harvest it. Farmers always discover the crop circles in the morning, so the circles probably form at night. They appear only in the months from May to September.
At first, people thought that the circles were a hoax. Probably young people were making them as a joke, or farmers were making them to attract tourists. To prove that the circles were a hoax, people tried to make circles exactly like the ones that farmer had found. They couldn’t do it. They couldn’t enter a field of grain without leaving tracks(痕迹), and they couldn’t flatten the grain without breaking it.
Many people believe that beings from outer space are making the circle to communicate with us from far away and that the crop circles are messages from them.
Scientists who have studied the crop circles suggested several possibilities. Some scientists say that a downward rush of wind leads to the formation of the circles - the same downward rush of air that sometimes causes an airplane to crash. Other scientists say that forces within the earth cause the circles to appear. There is one problem with all these scientific explanations: crop circles often appear in formations, like the five-dot formation. It is hard to believe that any natural force could form those.
1. In the summer of 1978, an English farmer discovered in his field that __________.
A.some of his wheat had been damaged |
B.his grain was growing up in circles. |
C.his grain was moved into several circles |
D.some of his wheat had fallen onto the ground. |
A.an attempt made to fool people |
B.a special way to plant crops |
C.a research on the force of winds |
D.an experiment for the protection of crops. |
A.The farmer couldn’t step out of the field. |
B.The farmers couldn’t make the circles round. |
C.The farmers couldn’t leave without footprints. |
D.The farmers couldn’t keep the wheat straight up. |
A.An Unsolved Mystery |
B.Strange Flying Objects |
C.The Power of Natural Forces |
D.The discovery of Strange Circles |
7 . Green is an important color in nature. It is the color of grass and the leaves on trees. It is also the color of most growing plants.
Sometimes, the word “green” means young, fresh and growing. For example, a greenhorn is someone who has no experience. In the 15th century, a greenhorn was a young cow or an ox whose horns(角) had not yet developed. A century later, a greenhorn was a soldier who had no experience in war. By the 18th century, a greenhorn had the meaning it has today—a person who is new in a job.
Someone who is good at growing plants is said to have a green thumb(大拇指). The expression comes from the early 20th century. A person with a green thumb can make plants grow quickly and well.
Green is also the color used to describe the powerful feeling, jealousy(嫉妒). The green-eyed monster(怪物) is not a dangerous animal from outer space. It is an expression used about 400 years ago by the British writer William Shakespeare in his play “Othello”. It describes the unpleasant feeling when someone has something he wants. For example, a young man may suffer from the green-eyed monster if you get a pay rise and he does not.
In most places in the world, a green light means to move ahead. In everyday speech, a green light means agree to continue with a project.
1. A greenhorn now refers to ________.A.a person who is new in a job |
B.a new soldier |
C.a young horse |
D.a cow without horns |
A.who is good at growing plants |
B.whose thumbs are of green color |
C.whose garden is greener than others’ |
D.who is younger than his neighbors |
A.he sees a dangerous animal |
B.he reads a sad play |
C.his friend gets a prize that he wants |
D.he can’t get something |
A.a greenhorn |
B.a green thumb |
C.the Green Revolution |
D.the word “green” and its story |
However, the scale and speed of this growth seem set to destroy the very things tourists want to enjoy. In those countries where there was a rush to make quick money out of seaside holidays, overcrowded beaches and the concrete jungles of endless hotels have begun to lose their appeal.
Those countries with little experience of tourism can suffer most. In recent years, Nepal set out to attract foreign visitors to fund developments in health and education. Its forests, full of wildlife and rare flowers, were offered to tourists as one more untouched paradise. In fact, the nature all too soon felt the effects of thousands of holidaymakers traveling through the forest land. Ancient tracks became major routes for the walkers, with the consequent exploitation of precious trees and plants.
Not only can the environment of a country suffer from the sudden growth of tourism. The people as well rapidly feel its effects. Farmland makes way for hotels, roads and airports; the old way of life goes. The onetime farmer is now the servant of some multinational organization; he is no longer his own master. Once it was his back that bore the pain; now it is his smile that is exploited. No doubt he wonders whether he wasn't happier in his village working his own land.
Thankfully, the tourist industry is waking up to the responsibilities it has towards those countries that receive its customers. The protection of wildlife and the creation of national parks go hand in hand with tourist development and in fact obtain financial support from tourist companies. At the same time, tourists are being encouraged to respect not only the countryside they visit but also its people.
The way tourism is handled in the next ten years will decide its fate and that of the countries we all want to visit. Their needs and problems are more important than those of the tourist companies. Increased understanding in planning worldwide tourism can preserve the market for these companies. If not, in a few years' time the very things that attract tourists now may well have been destroyed.
1. What does the author indicate in the last sentence of Paragraph 1?
A.The Pacific island is a paradise. |
B.The Pacific island is worth visiting. |
C.The advertisement is not convincing. |
D.The advertisement is not impressive. |
A.its natural resources are untouched |
B.its forests are exploited for farmland |
C.it develops well in health and education |
D.it suffers from the heavy flow of tourists |
A.They are happy to work their own lands. |
B.They have to please the tourists for a living. |
C.They have to struggle for their independence. |
D.They are proud of working in multinational organizations. |
A.The number of tourists. |
B.The improvement of services. |
C.The promotion of new products. |
D.The management of tourism. |
A.optimistic | B.doubtful |
C.objective | D.negative |
There are various kinds of apples, but a very few make up the majority of those grown for sale. The three most common kinds grown in the United States are Delicious, golden Delicious, and McIntosh.
Apples are different in colour, size, and taste. The colour of the skin may be red, green, or yellow. They have various sizes, with Delicious apples being among the largest. The taste may be sweet or tart (酸的). Generally, sweet apples are eaten fresh while tart apples are used to make applesauce (苹果酱).
Apple trees may grow as tall as twelve metres. They do best in areas that have very cold winters. Although no fruit is yielded during the winter, this cold period is good for the tree.
1. It can be learned from the text that Delicious apples are _______________
A.grown in France. | B.sold everywhere. | C.very big. | D.quite sweet. |
A.the growth of apple trees. | B.producing large apples. |
C.improving the taste of apples. | D.the increase of water in apples. |
A.be large producers of apples. |
B.be large producers of applesauce. |
C.have the longest history in apple production. |
D.have the coldest winter among apple producing countries. |
A.improved. | B.increased. | C.produced. | D.sold. |
10 . Years ago, when I started looking for my first job, wise advisers advised, “Barbara, be enthusiastic(热情的)! Enthusiasm will take you further than any amount of experience.” How right they were!
“Nothing great was ever done without enthusiasm,” wrote Ralph Waldo Emerson. It is the paste(浆糊) that helps you hang in there when the things get tough. It is the inner voice that tells you, “I can do it!” when others shout, “No, you can’t!” It took years and years for the early work of Barbara McClintock, a geneticist who won the 1983 Nobel Prize in medicine, to be generally accepted. Yet she didn’t stop working on her experiments.
We are all born with wide-eyed, enthusiastic wonder and it is the childlike wonder that gives enthusiastic people such youthful air, whatever their age. At 90, cellist Pablo Casals would start his day by playing the cello(大提琴). As the music flowed through his fingers, his shoulders would straighten and joy would reappear in his eyes. As writer and poet Samuel Ullman once worte, “Years wrinkle(起皱纹) the skin, but to give up enthusiasm wrinkles the soul.”
Enthusiastic people also love what they do, not considering money or title or power. Patricia Mellratl, a retired director of the Missouri Rpertory Theater in Kansas City, was once asked where she got her enthusiasm. She replied, “My father, long ago, told me, ‘I never made any money until I stopped working for it.’”
We can’t afford to waste tears on “might-have-been”. We need to turn the tears into sweat as we go after “what-can-be”. We need to live each moment whole-heartedly, with all our senses finding pleasure in the sweet of a backyard garden, the simple picture of a six-year-old, and the beauty of a rainbow.
1. What is the passage mainly talking about?A.Enthusiasm is more important than experience. |
B.Enthusiasm can give people more success and fame |
C.Enthusiastic people will never get old |
D.Enthusiasm can make you succeed and enjoy life. |
A.he is in trouble | B.he is getting old |
C.he can do what he love | D.he has succeeded |
A.enthusiasm can make people feel young |
B.music can arouse people’s enthusiasm |
C.enthusiasm can give people inspiration needed to succeed |
D.enthusiasm can keep people healthy |
A.Three | B.Four | C.Five | D.Six |
A.A good beginning makes a good ending |
B.Don’t cry over the spoiled milk |
C.Love me, love my dog |
D.All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy |