Short and shy, Ben Saunders was the last kid in his class picked for any sports team."Football, tennis Cricket-anything with a round ball, I was useless." he says now with a laugh.But back then he was the object of jokes in school gym classes in England's rural Devonshire.
It was a mountain bike he received for his 15th birthday that changed him.At first the teen went biking alone in a nearby forest.Then he began to cycle along with a runner friend.Gradually, Saunders set his mind building up his body, increasing his speed, strength and endurance.At age 18, he ran his first marathon.
The following year, he met John Ridgway, who became famous in the 1960s for rowing an open boat across the Atlantic Ocean.Saunders was hired as an instructor at Ridgway's school of Adventure in Scotland, where he learned about the older man's cold-water exploits(成就).Intrigued, Saunders read all he could about Arctic explorers and North Pole expeditions, then decided that this would be his future.Journeys to the Pole aren't the usual holidays for British country boys, and many people dismissed his dream as fantasy."John Ridgway was one of the few who didn't say, 'You are completely crazy,'" Saunders says.
In 2001, after becoming a skilled skier, Saunders started his first long-distance expedition toward the North Pole.He suffered frostbite, had a closer encounter(遭遇)with a polar bear and pushed his body to the limit.
Saunders has since become the youngest person to ski alone to the North Pole, and he's skied more of the Arctic by himself than any other Briton.His old playmates would not believe the transformation.
This October, Saunders, 27, heads south to explore from the coast of Antarctica to the South Pole and back, an 1800-mile journey that has never been completed on skis.
(1)
The turning point in Saunders' life came when ________.
[ ]
A.
he started to play ball games
B.
he got a mountain bike at age 15
C.
he ran his first marathon at age 18
D.
he started to receive Ridgway's training
(2)
We can learn from the text that Ridgway ________.
[ ]
A.
dismissed Saunders' dream as fantasy
B.
built up his body together with Saunders
C.
hired Saunders for his cold-water experience
D.
won his fame for his voyage across the Atlantic
(3)
What do we know about Saunders?
[ ]
A.
He once worked at a school in Scotland.
B.
He followed Ridgway to explore the North Pole.
C.
He was chosen for the school sports team as a kid.
D.
He was the first Briton to ski alone to the North Pole.
(4)
The underlined word "Intrigued" in the third paragraph probably means ________.
[ ]
A.
Excited
B.
Convinced
C.
Delighted
D.
Fascinated
(5)
It can be inferred that Saunders' journey to the North Pole ________.
One of the largest countries in Texas is named for Captain Erastus“Deaf”Smith-a deaf man.Captain Smith was the leader of General Sam Houston's scouts during the Texas Revolution, the war in which Texas won its freedom from Mexico.The county named in his honor is called Deaf Smith County.
A scout in the days of the Texas Revolution was much like what a spy is today.Captain“Deaf”Smith would find out where enemy troops were camped and how many men the enemy had, and he would report to Sam Houston.Even when other people could not see or hear any sign of people or animals, Captain Smith would know where they were.Sometimes he would guide Texas troops through enemy territory without the enemy even knowing they were there.
Erastus Smith was born in New York on April 19,1787; but went to live:in Mississippi when he was 11 years old.He went to Texas for a short time in 1817, and four years later returned to Texas to stay; He wandered over Texas as a surveyor(测量员)before he volunteered for army service after the start of the Texas Revolution.
Smith married a Mexican woman, and they had four children-three girls and one boy.He spent a lot of time learning the customs, manners, and language of the Mexican settlers.When the Texas Revolution began in 1835, Smith at first refused to take part in it out of respect for his family's heritage(传统).However, after Mexican troops tried to stop him from going to San Antonio to visit his family, he volunteered for service with the Texans.He was made a captain.
(1)
At first, Smith refused to take part in the Texas Revolution because ________.
[ ]
A.
he was a peace-loving person and hated fighting
B.
Mexican soldiers stopped him from going to San Antonio
C.
the Texans were not very good to him and his family
D.
his wife was Mexican and he didn't want to fight against her people
(2)
How old was Smith when he settled in Texas?
[ ]
A.
Thirty-four.
B.
Eleven.
C.
Thirty.
D.
Twenty-seven.
(3)
Which of the following is the correct order of the events?
a.A county in Texas was named after Smith.
b.Smith got married to a Mexican woman.
c.Smith volunteered for service with the Texans.
d.Mexican troops tried to stop him from seeing his family.
e.Smith went to live in Mississippi.
f.The Texas Revolution started.
[ ]
A.
a-b-c-d-e-f
B.
e-b-d-c-a-f
C.
b-e-f-d-c-a
D.
e-b-f-d-c-a
(4)
Which of the following was a great help in Smith's work as a scout?
[ ]
A.
His family's heritage.
B.
His experience as a surveyor.
C.
His deafness.
D.
His good eyesight.
(5)
Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
[ ]
A.
Deaf Smith County
B.
The Texas Revolution
C.
The Mexicans and the Texans
D.
Captain“Deaf”Smith
阅读理解:
Next time a customer comes to your office, offer him a cup of coffee.And when you’re doing your holiday shopping online, make sure you’re holding a large glass of iced tea.The physical sensation(感觉)of warmth encourages emotional warmth, while a cold drink in hand prevents you from making unwise decisions-those are the practical lesson being drawn from recent research by psychologist John A.Bargh.
Psychologists have known that one person’s perception(感知)of another’s “warmth” is a powerful determiner in social relationships.Judging someone to be either “warm” or “cold” is a primary consideration, even trumping evidence that a “cold” person may be more capable.Much of this is rooted in very early childhood experiences, Bargh argues, when babies’ conceptual sense of the world around them is shaped by physical sensations, particularly warmth and coldness.Classic studies by Harry Harlow, published in 1958, showed monkeys preferred to stay close to a cloth “mother” rather than one made of wire, even when the wire “mother” carried a food bottle.Harlow’s work and later studies have led psychologists to stress the need for warm physical contact from caregivers to help young children grow into healthy adults with normal social skills.
Feelings of “warmth” and “coldness” in social judgments appear to be universal.Although no worldwide study has been done, Bargh says that describing people as “warm” or “cold” is common to many cultures, and studies have found those perceptions influence judgment in dozens of countries.
To test the relationship between physical and psychological warmth, Bargh conducted an experiment which involved 41 college students.A research assistant who was unaware of the study’s hypotheses(假设), handed the students either a hot cup of coffee, or a cold drink, to hold while the researcher filled out a short information form:The drink was then handed back.After that, the students were asked to rate the personality of “Person A” based on a particular description.Those who had briefly held the warm drink regarded Person A as warmer than those who had held the iced drink.
“We are grounded in our physical experiences even when we think abstractly,” says Bargh.
(1)
According to Paragraph 1, a person’s emotion may be affected by _________.
[ ]
A.
the visitors to his office
B.
the psychology lessons he has
C.
his physical feeling of coldness
D.
the things he has bought online
(2)
The author mentions Harlow’s experiment to show that _________.
[ ]
A.
adults should develop social skills
B.
babies need warm physical contact
C.
caregivers should be healthy adults
D.
monkeys have social relationships
(3)
In Bargh’s experiment, the students were asked to _________.
[ ]
A.
evaluate someone’s personality
B.
write down their hypotheses
C.
fill out a personal information form
D.
hold coffee and cold drink alternatively
(4)
We can infer from the passage that _________.
[ ]
A.
abstract thinking does not come from physical experiences
B.
feelings of warmth and coldness are studied worldwide
It was a market day, so people and traffic had been pouring into the town since early morning. 1 it was an old town, even the main street was very 2 and soon became overcrowded.There was not enough 3 for all the people on the sidewalk at the roadside, 4 they overflowed into the road, 5 danger to their lives from 6 cars and buses, the drivers of 7 were constantly blowing their horns(喇叭)to 8 people to get out of their 9 .
Yet it was a(n) 10 scene.Peasants walked along the street, their heads piled high with baskets or beautifully woven blankets which they hoped to 11 to the townsfolk.Men with carts 12 their way along, shouting their goods at the top of their 13 .They were selling apples, oranges and grapes –– the 14 of their fields. 15 it all, women in bright summer clothes made their way, laughing and talking, 16 children rushed in and out of the crowds screaming with laughter when they didn’t ask for something they could not have, or crying with 17 because they were lost.
The noise went on all day.People did not even stop for a meal, but preferred to buy bits of meat cooked over a fire or bread or ice-cream from the street sellers.The 18 from this and from all the activities of the day began to collect in the street.And finally, when night at last came, the street 19 and only the rubbish 20 sadly blowing in the cooling night wind.