One of my neighbors used to have a beautiful tree in her front yard. Her dad had planted it for her when it was nothing more than a twig and several years later it started to shoot towards the sky with amazing speed. Soon it blessed her with cooling shade in the summer and glorious, golden leaves in the fall.

When the two-day snowstorm struck our town, heavy snow fell on the tree’s branches that were still full of leaves. The weight split that lovely tree down the middle. It was so sad seeing half of it laying on the ground after the storm. When I talked to my neighbor later, she said that the damage had been too much and that the entire tree would have to be cut down. Thankfully she had saved a few saplings(树苗) from it that she hoped to replant in the future.

Still, it was a shock to drive by her house the other day and see nothing but a stump in her front yard. I missed that tree. I missed its beauty, its leaves shinning in the afternoon sun. I missed seeing its limbs reach towards the heavens. I thought that the stump would be a sad reminder of its loss for a long time to come. My wonderful neighbor, though, had another plan. When I drove by her home today I saw a tiny bird feeder sitting on that stump and a colorful songbird having its dinner. It was such an affirmation of life. It was such a joy to see. I could feel my heart smile.

Life by its very nature is a mixed bag. It hands us both beauty and tragedy, love and loss, pleasure and pain. What we do with it, however, is up to us. We can let it split us in two, or we can use even its hardest times to make our souls stronger and our hearts more loving. We can spend it complaining or we can use it to help others.

1.We know from the first paragraph that _____.

A. the tree grew very slowly.

B. the tree showed its beauty and benefits.

C. the author’s neighbor was good at planting trees.

D. the tree was so strong that it could bear any weight.

2.The author’s neighbor left a stump in her front yard to use it as_____.

A. a good reminder.

B. a seat after dinner.

C. a place to feed birds.

D. a beautiful sculpture.

3.What does the author mainly want to show in the passage?

A. Life has beauty and tragedy.

B. Life consists of pain and suffering.

C. Life should be pleasant rather than painful.

D. Life is determined by our attitude towards it.

If your parents take out a loan, remind themselves to make the payments on time. Otherwise it will become a negative record in their personal credit reports, which are playing an increasingly big role in people's daily lives. A story carried by Chongqing Morning Post in June, underlines this trend.

According to the report, a Chongqing student borrowed money from the bank to finance his university studies. After he graduated in 2005, he went to work in Shenzhen. Later, he wanted to buy a house using loans. But several banks turned down his loan applications. The reason was that he had not paid back 1,500 yuan he borrowed from a bank when he was at university.

A personal credit rating is becoming an essential “pass” in everyday life, as China establishes a nationwide credit database. Personal credit systems go back 150 years. In developed countries, enterprises and banks use them to decide whether or not to loan money or do other business with a person.

A credit report estimates the credit worthiness of an individual, a company, or even a country. It is an evaluation made by credit bureaus of a borrower's overall credit history and his or her ability to repay debt. A poor credit rating means a high risk of defaulting on a loan, and thus leads to the refusal of a loan by the lender.

Today in China, credit history in banks is the major content of a credit report. But in the future, reports will include information about the payment of telephone bills, water use fees, electricity and natural gas bills, and taxes, according to officials of the People's Bank of China, the central bank.

Personal information such as appearance, genetic data, fingerprints, blood type, disease history, ethnic identity, family and religious beliefs are not to be included in credit reports, according to a draft regulation on credit rating issued last year by the Sate Council. The authors of the draft have just finished soliciting(征求) public opinions.

The Credit Reference Center run by the People's Bank of China is in charge of developing a nationwide credit database. Credit reports for all people with bank transactions (交易)began in 2006.

A personal credit rating is important to the social and economic activities of a person. According to the draft, if you have a personal negative credit record, it will be kept for five years.

1.The author took the story as an example in order to ________.

A. warn us of the importance of our personal credit report

B. tell us the story of a Chongqing student

C. encourage us to use credits widely

D. inform us to apply for a loan at university

2.Credit reports will include the following except ________.

A. taxes B. telephone bills

C. water use fees D. genetic data

3.According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. Personal credit systems go back 150 years in China.

B. You can turn to the People's Bank of China for the information about your credit report.

C. Credit history in banks is the only content of a credit report.

D. Credit reports began in 2006 in China.

4.What's the best title for the passage?

A. A Credit Report Rating

B. Credit in China

C. Credit Really Counts

D. Credit Report Contents

Last fall,beekeepers from states with warm climates began to report a sudden loss of honey bees.Losses were reported in twentyfour states and spread to Canada.Today,some beekeepers say thirty percent to ninety percent of their honey bees are gone.Food price could go up as a result.And some beekeeping businesses have failed.

Many kinds of plants,trees and grasses need bees to pollinate them.Bees gather nectar from flowers during this process.The liquid gives them food and material to make honey.As the bees land on flowers,their bodies pick up and drop off particles of pollen(花粉).Most flowering plants need pollination to reproduce.

Honey bees can die during the winter.But few dead bees have been found this time.Instead,the bees seem to have disappeared.Experts call the condition “colony collapse disorder”.

Agriculture Department official Caird Rexroad said the colony collapse disorder threatens about fifteen billion dollars worth of the country's farm economy.Mr.Rexroad commented at a hearing of a House of Representatives agriculture subcommittee.

Mr.Rexroad said the cause of the sudden loss of bees was not clear.The number of honey bees had already fallen before the colony collapse disorder began.

Experts say the varroa mite is at least partly responsible for the earlier decrease in honey bees.The mite is a tiny creature that feeds on honey bees.It may play a part in colony collapse disorder by carrying bee viruses.Or the problem may be caused by other disease and weather conditions.

Diana CoxFoster of Pennsylvania State University is part of the scientific group.Ms.CoxFoster says the nation needs honey bees that can defend themselves better against disease and insects.The recent mapping of most of the honey bees' genes offers the hope of a stronger honey bee some day.

1.Some people have failed in beekeeping businesses because ________.

A.they want to make more money by doing something else

B.the climates were too warm to raise bees last fall

C.too many bees have disappeared for no reason

D.more and more people are beginning to raise bees

2.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to this passage?

A.It is normal that some bees die in the cold season.

B.The plants can't live without bees at all.

C.Many bees have died because of the bad weather.

D.Researchers have found the reason of the death of bees.

3.The passage is mainly to tell us that ________.

A.the honey bees are important to plants,trees and grasses

B.many Americans are surprised at the loss of honey bees

C.strong honey bees are in great need in America

D.something has happened to American honey bees

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