1 . Going green seems to be fad (时尚) for a lot of people these days. Whether that is good or bad, we can’t really say, but for the two of us, going green is not a fad but a lifestyle.

On April 22,2011,we decided to be green every single day for an entire year. This meant doing 365 different things, and it also meant challenging ourselves to go green beyond the easy things. Rather than recycle and reduce our energy, we had to think of 365 different things to do and this was no easy task.

With the idea of going green every single day a year, Our Green Year started. My wife and I decided to educate people about how they could go green in their lives and hoped we could show people all green things that could be done to help the environment. We wanted to push the message that every little bit helps.

Over the course of Our Green Year, we completely changed our lifestyles. We now shop at organic (有机的) stores. We consume less meat, choosing green food. We have greatly reduced our buying we don’t need. We have given away half of what we owned through websites. Our home is kept clean by vinegar and lemon juice, with no chemical cleaners. We make our own butter, enjoying the smell of home-made fresh bread. In our home office anyone caught doing something ungreen might be punished.

Our minds have been changed by Our Green Year. We are grateful for the chance to have been able to go green and educate others. We believe that we do have the power to change things and help our planets.

1. What might be the best title for the passage?

A．Going Green.	B．Protecting the Planet.
C．Keeping Open-Minded	D．Celebrating Our Green Year.

2. It was difficult for the couple to live a green life for the whole year because_________.

A．they were expected to follow the green fad

B．they didn’t know how to educate other people

C．they were unwilling to reduce their energy

D．they needed to perform unusual green tasks

3. What did the couple do over the course of Our Green Year?

A．They tried to get out of their ungreen habits.

B．They ignore others’ ungreen behavior.

C．They chose better chemical cleaners.

D．They sold their home-made food.

4. What can we infer form the last paragraph?

A．The government will give support to the green people.

B．The couple may continue their project in the future.

C．Some people disagree with the couple’s green ideas.

D．Our Green Year is becoming a national campaign.

2 . Facial expressions carry meaning that is determined by situations and relationships. For example, in American culture (文化) the smile is in general an expression of pleasure. Yet it also has other uses. A woman’s smile at a police officer does not carry the same meaning as the smile she gives to a young child. A smile may show love or politeness. It can also hide true feelings. It often causes confusion (困惑) across cultures. For example, many people in Russia consider smiling at strangers in public to be unusual and even improper. Yet many Americans smile freely at strangers in public places (although this is less common in big cities).Some Russians believe that Americans smile in the wrong places; some Americans believe that Russians don’t smile enough. In Southeast Asian cultures, a smile is frequently used to cover painful feelings. Vietnamese people may tell a sad story but end the story with a smile.

Our faces show emotions (情感), but we should not attempt to "read" people from another culture as we would "read" someone from our own culture. The fact that members of one culture do not express their emotions as openly as do members of another does not mean that they do not experience emotions.

Rather, there are cultural differences in the amount of facial expressions permitted. For example, in public and in formal situations many Japanese do not show their emotions as freely as Americans do. When with friends, Japanese and Americans seem to show their emotions similarly.

It is difficult to generalize about Americans and facial expressiveness because of personal and cultural differences in the United States. People from certain cultural backgrounds in the United States seem to be more facially expressive than others. The key is to try not to judge people whose ways of showing emotion are different. If we judge according to our own cultural habits, we may make the mistake of "reading" the other person incorrectly.

1. What does the smile usually mean in America?

A．Love.	B．Politeness.
C．Joy.	D．Thankfulness.

2. The author mentions the smile of the Vietnamese to prove that smile can ___ .

A．show friendliness to strangers

B．be used to hide true feelings

C．be used in the wrong places

D．show personal habits

3. What should we do before attempting(尝试) to "read" people?

A．Learn about their relations with others.

B．Understand their cultural backgrounds.

C．Find out about their past experience.

D．Figure out what they will do next.

4. What would be the best title for the test?

A．Cultural Differences

B．Smiles and Relationship

C．Facial Expressiveness

D．Habits and Emotions

3 . Louis Armstrong had two famous nicknames (绰号). Some people called him Bagamo. They said his mouth looked like a large bag. Musicians often called him Pops, as a sign of respect for his influence on the world of music.
Born in 1901 in New Orleans, he grew up poor, but lived among great musicians. Jazz was invented in the city a few years before his birth. Armstrong often said, “Jazz and I grew up together.”
Armstrong showed a great talent for music when he was taught to play the cornet (短号) at a boy’s home. In his late teens, Armstrong began to live the life of a musician. He played in parades, clubs, and on the steamboats that traveled on the Mississippi River. At that time, New Orleans was famous for the new music of jazz and was home to many great musicians. Armstrong learned from the older musicians and soon became respected as their equal. In 1922 he went to Chicago. There, the tale of Louis Armstrong begins. From then until the end of his life, Armstrong was celebrated and loved wherever he went. Armstrong had no equal when it came to playing the American popular song.
His cornet playing had a deep humanity (仁爱) and warmth that caused many listeners to say, “Listening to Pops just makes you feel good all over.” He was the father of the jazz style and also one of the best-known and most admired people in the world. His death, on July 6, 1971, was headline news around the world.
1. Armstrong was called Pops because he         .

A．looked like a musician

B．was a musician of much influence

C．showed an interest in music

D．traveled to play modern music

2. The third paragraph is developed           .

A．by space	B．by examples
C．by time	D．by comparison

3. Which statement about Armstrong is true?

A．His tale begins in New Orleans.

B．He was born before jazz was invented.

C．His music was popular with his listeners.

D．He learned popular music at a boy’s home.

4. Which would be the best title for the text?

A．The Invention of the Jazz Music

B．The Father of the Jazz Style

C．The Making of a Musician

D．The Spread of Popular Music

4 . Since we are social beings, the quality of our lives depends in large measure on our interpersonal relationships. One strength of the human conditions is our possibility to give and receive support from one another under stressful (有压力的) conditions. Social support makes up of the exchange of resources among people based on their interpersonal ties. Those of us with strong support systems appear better able to deal with major life changes and daily problems. People with strong social ties live longer and have better health than those without such ties. Studies over types of illnesses, from depression to heart disease, show that the presence of social support helps people defend themselves against illness, and the absence of such support makes poor health more likely.
       Social support cushions stress in a number of ways. First, friends, relatives and co-workers may let us know that they value us. Our self-respect is strengthened when we feel accepted by others in spite of our faults and difficulties. Second, other people often provide us with informational support. They help us to define and understand our problems and find solutions to them. Third, we typically find social companionship supportive. Taking part in free-time activities with others helps us to meet our social needs while at the same time distracting (转移注意力) us from our worries and troubles. Finally, other people may give us instrumental support — money aid, material resources, and needed services — that reduces stress by helping us resolve and deal with our problems.
1. Interpersonal relationships are important because they can _______.

A．make people live more easily

B．smooth away daily problems

C．deal with life changes

D．cure types of illnesses

2. The researches show that people’s physical and mental health _______.

A．lies in the social medical care systems which support them

B．has much to do with the amount of support they get from others

C．depends on their ability to deal with daily worries and troubles

D．is related to their courage for dealing with major life changes

3. Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined word “cushions” ?

A．Takes place of.	B．Makes up of.
C．Lessens the effect of.	D．Gets rid of.

4. Helping a sick neighbor with some repair work in spare time is an example of _______.

A．instrumental support	B．informational support
C．social companionship	D．the strengthening of self-respect

5. What is the subject discussed in the text?

A．Interpersonal relationships.

B．Kinds of social support.

C．Ways to deal with stress.

D．Effects of stressful conditions.

5 . After the examination, the doctor told my parents my sight would get worse and that I would lose my sight finally. On the way home from hospital, no one said a word. One day, would I only imagine the scenery beyond the glass rather than see it?
That September, I entered middle school. Most nights I had homework that included an armful of books to read. To keep up with other children, I took great trouble to finish the task. With my nose a couple of inches from the page, I was tired easily. What’s worse, after I had read several pages on my own, the words slipped off the page into inky pools.
However, then I did not have audio books and electronic devices like kids do now. Instead, Mom volunteered to read out loud. Mom worked part-time, cleaned the house, cooked and spent time with Grandma. In spite of being so busy, she showed up in my room like clockwork. She put on her reading glasses. Mom always thought those glasses made her look old. To me, she looked like a teacher.
In my room, Mom’s voice raced with the ticking of the clock. Being forced to focus on listening, I found a way to keep my marks up and compete with the other kids. When the teacher asked a question, I raised my hand with confidence. Teachers praised me for having a good memory. Reading removed my fear for my failing sight, reading also made me curious about other people’s challenges and how they managed. Though I could not use my eyes to fix on each passage, my mind lit up with every new book.
True to what the doctor said, the worst came, but thanks to Mom, my sense of hearing now allows me to “see”. This was the most precious gift from a mother to her child.
1. Why did the author and his parents keep silent on their way back home from hospital?

A．They all wanted to have a good rest.

B．The author didn’t do well in the exam.

C．What the doctor said made them worried.

D．They focused on the scenery along the road.

2. How did the author manage to get high marks?

A．By being confident.

B．By listening carefully.

C．By getting help from his classmates.

D．By reading as many books as possible.

3. We can learn from the text that ____________.

A．the author’s sight recovered finally

B．reading made the author more sensitive

C．the author’s mother didn’t work to look after him

D．reading made the author not worry about his sight

4. Which of the following could be the best title of the text?

A．My eyesight trouble

B．An unforgettable experience

C．With ears wide open

D．About Mother’s love

6 . Camping wild is a wonderful way to experience the natural world and, at its best, it makes little environmental influence. But with increasing numbers of people wanting to escape into the wilderness, it is becoming more and more important to camp unobtrusively(不引人注目地) and leave no mark.

Wild camping is not permitted in many places, particularly in crowded lowland Britain. Wherever you are, find out about organizations responsible for managing wild spaces, and contact them to find out their policy on camping and shelter building. For example, it is fine to camp wild in remote parts of Scotland, but in England you must ask the landowner’s permission, except in national parks.

Camping is about having relaxation, sleeping outdoors, experiencing bad weather, and making do without modern conveniences. A busy, fully-equipped campsite(野营地) seems to go against this, so seek out smaller, more remote places with easy access to open spaces and perhaps beaches. Better still, find a campsite with no road access: walking in makes a real adventure.

Finding the right spot to camp is the first step to guaranteeing a good night’s sleep. Choose a campsite with privacy and minimum influence on others and the environment. Try to use an area where people have obviously camped before rather than creating a new spot. When camping in woodland, avoid standing dead trees, which may fall on a windy night. Avoid animal runs and caves, and possible homes of biting insects. Make sure you have most protection on the windward side. If you make a fire, do so downwind of your shelter. Always consider what influence you might have on the natural world. Avoid damaging plants. A good campsite is found, not made—changing it should be unnecessary.

1. You needn’t ask for permission when camping in ________.

A．national parks in England	B．most parts of Scotland
C．crowded lowland Britain	D．most parts of England

2. The author thinks that a good campsite is one ________.

A．with easy access	B．used previously
C．with modern conveniences	D．far away from beaches

3. The last paragraph mainly deals with ________.

A．protecting animals	B．building a campfire
C．camping in woodland	D．finding a campsite with privacy

4. The passage is mainly about ________.

A．the protection of campsites	B．the importance of wild camping
C．the human influence on campsites	D．the dos and don’ts of wild camping

7 . Facial expressions carry meaning that is determined by situations and relationships. For example, in American culture the smile is in general an expression of pleasure. Yet it also has other uses. A woman’s smile at a police officer does not carry the same meaning as the smile she gives to a young child. A smile may show love or politeness. It can also hide true feelings. It often causes confusion across cultures. For example, many people in Russia consider smiling at strangers in public to be unusual and even improper. Yet many Americans smile freely at strangers in public places (although this is less common in big cities). Some Russians believe that Americans smile in the wrong places; some Americans believe that Russians don’t smile enough. In Southeast Asian cultures, a smile is frequently used to cover painful feelings. Vietnamese people may tell a sad story but end the story with a smile.
Our faces show emotions, but we should not attempt to “read” people from another culture as we would “read” someone from our own culture. The fact that members of one culture do not express their emotions as openly as members of another culture, but it does not mean that they do not experience emotions. Rather, there are cultural differences in the amount of facial expressiveness permitted. For example, in public and in formal situations many Japanese do not show their emotions as freely as Americans do. When with friends, Japanese and Americans seem to show their emotions similarly.
It is difficult to conclude about Americans and facial expressiveness because of personal and cultural differences in the United States. People from certain cultural backgrounds in the United States seem to be more facially expressive than others. The key is to try not to judge people whose ways of showing emotion are different. If we judge according to our own cultural habits, we may make the mistake of “reading” the other person incorrectly.
1. The author mentions the smile of the Vietnamese to prove that smile can ________.

A．show friendliness to strangers

B．be used to hide true feelings

C．be used in the wrong places

D．show personal habits

2. What should we do before attempting to “read” people?

A．Learn about their relations with others.

B．Understand their cultural backgrounds.

C．Find out about their past experience.

D．Figure out what they will do next.

3. What would be the best title for the test?

A．Cultural Differences

B．Smiles and Relationships

C．Facial Expressiveness

D．Habits and Emotions

8 . When it comes to success in business and success in life, there are few qualities as important as confidence.
People naturally have different levels of confidence. Some have a higher level of confidence than others do, but even those whose confidence is lacking can learn to build their level of confidence and reach their most important goals. Increasing self-confidence is one of the most common reasons people give for seeking the help of psychologists and other professionals.
One of the many places where a greater level of confidence is useful is in the workplace. We all know how difficult it can be, for instance, to ask the boss for a raise. This process can be extremely difficult for those who lack confidence in their own abilities. After all, if you are unsure about your own abilities, how will you ever convince your boss that you deserve more money for the work you do?
Even if you are not asking for that big raise, having plenty of confidence in your abilities is important to success. If you are certain of your abilities, chances are that those around you, whether they are your coworkers, your colleagues or your superiors(上级), will see that confidence, and that will help to assure them that you are the best at what you do.
Being thought of as the person to go to, and being seen as an expert in your chosen field, is naturally very important to success on the job. If you can make yourself the person people go to for guidance and advice, you will help to protect yourself from the ever present danger of downsizing. After all, if you are a recognized expert at the office, you will be regarded as an indispensable member of the team.
Having a high level of confidence, after all, does not mean overlooking the places where you could improve. Knowing what you do well and where you need help will help you enjoy increased success and confidence.
1. What is the passage mainly about?

A．The influence of confidence on one’s life.

B．The importance of confidence to success.

C．The difference of people’s confidence.

D．The judgment on one’s confidence.

2. Psychologists and other professionals can offer help to those _____.

A．who think their goals are hard to reach

B．who expect to give guidance to others

C．who want to ask the boss for a raise

D．who dream to be recognized experts

3. What does the underlined word indispensable in Paragraph 5 probably mean?

A．important

B．attractive

C．outgoing

D．energetic

4. What message does the author want to convey (传达) in the last paragraph?

A．To overlook one’s disadvantages.

B．To make full use of one’s advantages.

C．To have great confidence in one’s abilities.

D．To make objective(客观的) evaluations of one’s abilities.

9 . A good modern newspaper is an extraordinary piece of reading. It is unusual for what it contains: the news from local crime to international politics, from sports to business to fashion to science, and the comments and special features(特写)as well, from editorial page to feature articles, from interviews to criticism of books, art, theatre, and music. A newspaper is even more unusual for the way one reads it never completely, never straight through, but always by jumping from here to there, in and out, glancing at one piece, reading another article all the way through, reading just a few paragraphs of the next.
A good modern newspaper offers a variety to attract many different readers, but far more than any one reader is interested in. What brings this variety together in one place is its topicality, that is, its immediate relation to what is happening in your world and your locality now. But this immediacy and the speed of production that goes with it also mean that much of what appears in a newspaper has no more than temporary value. For all these reasons, no two people really read the same paper: what each person does is to put together, out of the pages of that day’s paper, his own selection and order, his own newspaper. For all these reasons, reading newspapers efficiently which means getting what you want from them without missing things you need but without wasting time, demands skill and self-awareness(意识) as you change and apply the techniques of reading.
1. What does the underlined word in the second paragraph mean ?

A．wide coverage	B．speed in reporting news
C．various style	D．popularity among readers

2. According to the passage, the reason why no two people really read the same newspaper is that ___________.

A．people are interested in the same kind of news

B．different people prefer different newspapers

C．people scan for the news they are interested in

D．people have different views about what a good newspaper is

3. A good newspaper offers “a variety” to readers because ___________.

A．readers like to read different newspapers

B．it has to cover things that happen in a certain locality

C．readers are difficult to please

D．it tries to serve different readers

4. The best title for this passage would be ___________.

A．The Characteristics of a Good Newspaper

B．The Importance of a good Newspaper

C．Good Newspapers and Bad Newspapers

D．Some Advice on How to Read a Newspaper

10 . In a room at Texas Children Cancer Center in Houston, eight-year-old Simran Jatar lay in bed with a drip (点滴) above her to fight her bone cancer. Over her bald (秃的) head, she wore a pink hat that matched her clothes. But the third grader’s cheery dressing didn’t mask her pain and weary eyes.
Then a visitor showed up. “Do you want to write a song?” asked Anita Kruse, 49, rolling a cart equipped with an electronic keyboard, a microphone and speakers. Simran stared. “Have you ever written a poem?” Anita Kruse continued. “Well, yes,” Simran said.
Within minutes, Simran was reading her poem into the microphone. “Some bird soaring through the sky,” she said softly. “Imagination in its head…” Anita Kruse added piano music, a few warbling (鸣, 唱) birds, and finally the girl’s voice. Thirty minutes later, she presented Simran with a CD of her first recorded song.
That was the beginning of Anita Kruse’s project, Purple Songs Can Fly, one that has helped more than 125 young patients write and record songs. As a composer and pianist who had performed at the hospital, Kruse said that the idea of how she could help “came in one flash”.
The effect on the kids has been great. One teenage girl, curling (蜷缩) in pain in her wheelchair, stood unaided to dance to a hip-hop song she had written. A 12-year-old boy with Hodgkin’s disease who rarely spoke surprised his doctors with a song he called I Can Make It.
“My time with the kids is heartbreaking because of the severity of their illnesses,” says Anita Kruse. “But they also make you happy, when the children are smiling, excited to share their CD with their families.”
Simran is now an active sixth grader and cancer-free. From time to time, she and her mother listen to her song, Always Remembering, and they always remember the “really sweet and nice and loving” lady who gave them a shining moment in the dark hour.
1. Simran Jatar lay in bed in hospital because ________.

A．most of her hair had fallen out

B．she was receiving treatment for cancer

C．she felt depressed and quit from school

D．she was suffering from a pain in her back

2. What do we know about Anita Kruse’s project?

A．It helps young patients record songs.

B．It is supported by singers and patients.

C．It aims to replace the medical treatment.

D．It offers patients chances to realize their dreams.

3. What does the case of a 12-year-old boy suggest?

A．Most children are naturally fond of music.

B．He was brave enough to put up performance.

C．The project has positive effect on young patients.

D．Singing is the best way to treat some illnesses.

4. What is probably the best title for the passage?

A．Purple Songs Can Fly

B．Singing Can Improve Health

C．A Shining Moment in Life

D．A Kind Woman—Anita Kruse