I remember the occasion when mother sent me to the main road, about twenty yards away from our house, to invite a passing group of seasonal work-seekers for a meal. She
I
7 . Pennsylvania-When Connie Beck and her husband awoke to strange noises last weekend, they thought high winds were rattling their home. What they found was even more unexpected: A deer was taking a bubble bath in their bathtub. “I wasn’t exactly dressed for company,” Mrs. Beck said. “We were just waking up.” The deer burst through the front door early on Saturday, ran past the couple’s bedroom and into the bathroom. Somehow he managed to turn on the water in the bathtub and knock over a bottle of bubble bath into the bathtub. He then got himself into the bubbly water. “You could hear the water running over the kicking,” Beck said. The Becks called State Game Commission officials, who arrived with tranquilizers and a lot of laughter. “A guy said, ‘There’s nothing wrong… he’s just in there taking a bubble bath,’” Mrs. Beck said. The animal was soon brought under control, removed from the house and released. “He was unharmed except for a little cut above the eye,” said Mrs. Beck. “We were also fortunate. There wasn’t much damage, except for the front door, some marks on the tub, and a few hoof prints on the floor.”
1. When did the story take place?A.On the night of Friday. | B.On the late night of Saturday. |
C.On the early morning of Saturday. | D.On Sunday evening. |
A.was joking about the incident | B.meant she never liked people to visit |
C.explained she was about to go to work | D.wished she could have new clothes |
A.managed to cover himself with bubbles | B.kicked over the tub |
C.began to swim in the tub | D.happened to turn on the bath taps |
A.the deer was set free |
B.the deer destroyed the tub and the floor |
C.the officials made fun of the couple |
D.the officials discovered the deer was badly injured in the eye |
8 . A HALF-EMPTY BASKET
Once there was a poor farmer and his farm belonged to a rich man. One day he brought a basket of apples to the rich man’s house. On the doorsteps, he met two monkeys dressed like children. They jumped onto the basket to eat the apples and threw some on the ground. The farmer politely took off his hat and asked the monkeys to get off. They obeyed and the farmer went into the house. He asked to see the rich man. A servant took him to the room where the rich man was sitting."I have brought you the basket of apples you asked for," he said."But why have you brought a half-empty basket?" the rich man asked."I met your children outside, and they stole some of the apples."
1. What did the monkeys do when the farmer was on the doorsteps?A.They jumped and jumped. | B.They played. |
C.They ran away. | D.They ate some of the apples. |
A.they had thrown apples on the ground |
B.the farmer had politely asked them to get off |
C.they were afraid of the hat |
D.the farmer was angry with them |
A.pleased | B.unhappy | C.excited | D.moved |
9 . Do you ever pull your phone out of your pocket, thinking it is vibrating (振动), only to find that it isn't?
This phenomenon, which scientists call “phantom (幻觉的) phone vibration”, is very common.Around 80% of people surveyed say they have imagined their phones vibrating when they were actually still.
So, what leads to this universal behavior? According to the BBC, the explanation lies in your brain's ability to discover signals from the outside world.
When your phone is in your pocket, there are two possible states: It is either vibrating or not. Meanwhile, you also have two possible states of mind: the judgment that the phone is ⅵbrating, or that it isn't. Ideally, you match the four states correctly. However, sometimes your brain decides that the consequences of missing a call are more serious than a “false alarm”. Therefore, you become more sensitive to vibrations so that you don't miss anything.
This is just like the fire alarm in your home—it can be annoying when it goes off in response to just a tiny bit of smoke. But that's a small price to pay compared to a fire really breaking out because the alarm fails to alert you. Now, you might still ask, why can't our brains just make every judgment correctly without being too sensitive to false signals? The answer is that your brain bears a heavy burden every day. “You get a large amount of sensory information that's coining from your eyes, ears and skin, and you can't deal with all that information all the time,” Michael Rothberg, a researcher at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield, US, told Live Science.
For example, the rustling (沙沙声) of clothing or the growling (咕咕声you’re your stomach may both lead your brain to believe that they come from the vibration of your phone—it is like trying to hear your name being called in a noisy room.
So, perhaps you should just check your phone whenever you think it’s vibrating, lt isn’t too much trouble to do that, is it?
1. According to this passage, phantom phone vibration ________.A.is common among people with mental problems |
B.happens when our brains react too sensitively |
C.can measure people's ability to collect information |
D.helps our brains to make decisions quickly and accurately |
A.To help us understand the cause of phantom phone vibration better. |
B.To tell us the phone vibration usually happens when a fire breaks out. |
C.To show us the fire alarm is as sensitive as the phone vibration. |
D.To convince us it’s important to check our phones like checking a fire alarm. |
A.A lack of much attention. | B.A noisy background. |
C.An overflow of sensory information. | D.A heavy burden every day. |
A.We should always fully believe our own sense of hearing. |
B.We should just check our phones when we think they're vibrating. |
C.We should ignore the vibration bothering when our phones are actually still. |
D.We should think of the vibration carefully before we make correct judgments. |
10 . How to pass an important test
Whether it's a first grade science test or College Entrance Exam, all tests have one thing in common: you have to pass.
Tips
★1. Once you get the study guide, make plans right away to study as soon as possible. No excuses! Killing time with friends isn't worth it,since you can always hang out with them any other day.
★2. Get plenty of rest.
★3. Eat a good meal for breakfast.
★4. Bring all necessary materials.
★5.
A.The exam tests vocabulary, reading and maths skills. |
B.Studies show that if you get enough sleep, your brain will be much more efficient. |
C.Failing the test won't help you in the long run, so it's important to know how to prepare to pass that big test. |
D.Showing up without something as simple as a pencil can make a big effect on your test. |
E.One piece of cheese probably won't last until test time. |
F.Don't forget to set your alarm clock and show up on the test day on time. |
G.This test is a challenging one and every year many students are unable to qualify it just because of lack of guidance. |