Section B (10 marks)

     Directions: Read the following passage, Answer the questions according to the

information given in the passage.

Secret Santas

      On Christmas morning, Linda wakes up, and tries to imagine the wide-eyed surprise of children in another household as they unwrap the presents she carefully chose for them. Linda has never met the children, but that’s all part of the joy of giving as secret Santas, she says.

      "It's an amazing feeling to buy gifts on an anonymous (匿名的) basis," says Linda.

"It brings a whole new meaning to the holidays."

      Linda and Tony are an American couple living in Toronto, Canada, and Linda did charitable work as a member of the American Women's Club of Toronto. As the name suggests, members are U.S. citizens living in Toronto, who join together for fellowship and community service.

      To find her "adopted" family, Linda goes to the local schools and requests a wish list for a family that's struggling to survive. Last year she helped a single mother with three children. The mother works as a cleaning lady in a nursing home.

      "The list is always heartbreaking. They have an opportunity to ask for anything and do just the opposite, asking for basic clothes or simple toys," she says. "We always buy the kids a new winter coat, hats, and gloves." She also buys gifts for the parents.

      Last year Linda asked the mother for a second wish list--one that didn't include the basics. "Every child should have a Christmas that sticks with them for a lifetime." She purchased iPods for the two older children and a video game system for the youngest."I have learned a very valuable lesson in all of this," says Linda. "Pay attention to what's going on in your own backyard--no matter where you live."

      The joy of giving as secret Santas is much sweeter when the gift is anonymous.

81. What reaction does Linda imagine the children will have?

      (No more than 5 words)                                       (2 marks)

______________________________________________________________________________                                                                          

82. Why did Linda join the American Women's Club of Toronto?

      (No more than 10 words)                                         (2 marks)

______________________________________________________________________________                                                                          

83. Why did Linda ask for a second wish list?

      (No more than 15 words)                                         (3 marks)

______________________________________________________________________________                                                                         

84. What kind of people does "secret Santas" in the passage refer to?

      (No more than 12 words)                                         (3 marks)

The next morning Alex was waiting in the FMA president’s suite when Jerome Patterton arrived. Alex filled him in quickly on the Jax report. Then he said, “I want you to give an order to the trust department to sell every share of Supranational we’re holding.”
“I won’t!” Patterton’s voice rose. “Who do you think you are, giving orders-----“ “I’ll tell you who I am, Jerome. I’m the guy who warned the board against in-depth involvement with SuNatCo. I fought against heavy trust department buying of the stock, but no one-----including you -----would listen. Now Supranational is caving in.” Alex leaned across the desk and slammed a fist down hard. “Don’t you understand? Supranational can bring this bank down with it.”
Patterton was shaken. “But is SuNatCo in real trouble? Are you sure?”
“If I weren’t, do you think I’d be here? I’m giving you a chance to salvage something at least.” He pointed to his wristwatch. “It’s an hour since the New York  stock market opened. Jerome, get on the phone and give that order!”
Muscles around the bank president’s mouth twitched nervously. Never decisive, strong influence often swayed him. He hesitated, then picked up the telephone.
“Get me Mitchell in the trust department… Mitch? This is Jerome. Listen carefully. I want you to give a sell order immediately on all the Supranational stock we hold… Yes, sell every share.” Patterton listened, then said impatiently, “Yes, I know what it’ll do to the market. And I know it’s irregular.” His eyes sought Alex’s for reassurance. The hand holding the telephone trembled as he said, “There’s no time to hold meetings. So do it! Yes, I accept responsibility.”
He hung up and reached for a glass of water. “The stock is already down. Our selling will depress it more. We’ll be taking a big beating.”
“It’s our clients-----people who trusted us-----who will take the beating. And they’d have taken a bigger one still, if we’d waited. Even now we’re not out of the woods. A week from now the SEC may disallow those sales. They may rule we had inside knowledge that Supranational was about to be bankrupt, which we should have reported and which would have halted trading in the stock.
【小题1】 Alex filled him in quickly on the Jax report. The sentence means:

A.He filled his name on the Jax report quickly.
B.Alex signed his name to the Jax report quickly.
C.He offered the FMA president the Jax report smartly.
D.He prepared the Jax report for Patterton to sign smartly.
【小题2】 From the context we can infer that ________.
A.SuNatCo would bring the stock market down if it sold all the Supranational stock they held.
B.The president was stubborn and would never listen to others.
C.Alex will take the place of Patterton in the future.
D.the clients would take a bigger beating than the bank
【小题3】 The New York stock market is the place where_____.
A.the old stock can be bought and sold
B.shares can be bought and sold
C.paper stock can be bought and sold
D.some of the stock can be taken without being paid for
【小题4】 In the sentence “Even now we’re not out the woods.” The phrase “out of the woods”       means     _____.
A.free from dangerB.short of wood
C.running out of woodD.set free
【小题5】In the writer’s opinion, the president is _____.
A.good leader of the U.S.AB.a good manager of a company
C.headmasterD.banker, an indecisive sort of person

OK, I admit it: emoticons (表情符号) are popular. Some people even think they are fun. Many seem unable to get through an e-mail or Instant Message chat sentence without using one. Some feel that they add feeling and character to otherwise cold digital communications.
Some, however, such as editor and Hollywood scriptwriter John Blumenthal, blast (抨击) the use of emoticons as “infantile (幼稚的) just like the people who use them”  He believes that words themselves should be enough. “If you’re being funny, happy or sad, that should be apparent (明显的) from the comment that goes before the emoticon,” he argues.
In the eyes of Blumenthal, the use of emoticons is a gender issue. “Men don’t use emoticons very much. Maybe not at all,” he said. “Teenage girls and women seem to use them a lot. Maybe there’ s an emoticon gene.”
It’s an interesting opinion, but it is not shared by all.
In an interview with The New York Times, Dacher Keltner, professor of psychology at the University of California, said that emoticons are popular because our brains are programmed “to seek out representations of humanity”. He believes that they appeal not because they are shortcuts for the lazy, but because they tap into (融入) something beyond language. They reach to our need to be with and communicate with people.
All of these arguments may be somehow valid (正确的). Each one of us will choose to communicate in our own way. I do not have much time for emoticons. I tried to use one once and felt like I was stealing into a primary school class that I had no place being in. I’d rather let my words do the talking.
Friends, however, send me messages and e-mails full of emoticons. I have no problem with this. I don’t regard any of my friends as lazy or immature (不成熟的). It’s just a question of individuality. :)
【小题1】According to the article, emoticons are popular because ______. 

A.most of them look funny
B.they are easy for lazy people to use
C.they add feeling and character to a communication
D.a reader cannot understand a message without them
【小题2】Which of the following views would John Blumenthal agree with?  
A.Instant Message chatters are childish.
B.It’s enough to use language in digital communication.
C.Men never use emoticons.
D.There is an emoticon gene in everybody.
【小题3】From the text, we can conclude that the author ______. 
A.feels he has no difficulty using emoticons
B.thinks emoticons don’t suit him
C.encourage his friends to use emoticons
D.believes that emoticons are suitable for everyone
【小题4】What is the main point of the article? 
A.Advice on language used over the Internet.
B.The history of emoticons.
C.Arguments over the use of emoticons.
D.Reasons for the popularity of emoticons.

The 92-year-old, thin, calm and proud lady, who is fully dressed each morning by eight o’clock, even though she is nearly blind, moved to a nursing home today.

Her husband of 70 years recently passed away, making the move necessary. After many hours of waiting patiently in the hall of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly when told her room was ready.

As she walked slowly to the elevator, I provided a true description of her tiny room, including the old sheets that had been hung on her window. “I love it,” she said with the happiness of an eight-year-old girl having just been presented with a new puppy.

“Mrs. Jones, you haven’t seen the room…just wait.”

“That doesn’t matter,” she replied. “Happiness is something you decide ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn’t depend on how the furniture is arranged. It’s how I arranged my mind. I have already decided to love it. It’s a decision I make every morning when I wake up. Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open I’ll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I’ve stored away.” She went on to explain, “Old age is like a bank account. You take what you’ve put in. So, my advice to you would be to put in a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories. Thank you for your part in filling my memory bank.” And with a smile, she said, “All my memories are happy ones.”

Mrs. Jones was always happy in the nursing home and she died at the age of 108.

1.We can infer from the passage that the author ________.

A.is one of Mrs. Jones’ children

B.is a relative of Mrs. Jones

C.works in the nursing home

D.is the owner of the nursing home

2.The room in which the old lady will live ________.

A.is very comfortable

B.is fairly big

C.isn’t well equipped

D.is equipped with new furniture

3.Mrs. Jones was very happy when told about her room because she ________.

A.couldn’t see what her room was like

B.thought the nursing home was her home

C.would have to live in the nursing home

D.had already made up her mind to be happy

4.Which of the following words can best describe Mrs. Jones?

A.Proud.

B.Pleasant.

C.Determined

D.Honest

 

违法和不良信息举报电话:027-86699610 举报邮箱:58377363@163.com

精英家教网