题目内容

Grandma celebrated her fifty-third birthday just weeks before grandpa died of cancer in 1965. Although his passing was very difficult for her, I think their shared struggle to make his life longer taught grandma that good health was not to be taken for granted, and she made up her mind to live the rest of her own life as fully and as long as she could. One day, when she announced to attend lessons at the Fred Astaire Dance Studio in Portland, Oregon, where she lived, we rolled our eyes in embarrassment and helplessly wished she would just stay home and bake cookies as normal grandmothers did. Many years filled with countless dance lessons passed before we learned to appreciate the wonder of having a dancing grandma.

I suppose grandma's primary motivation for wanting to learn to dance was social. She had been a shy girl, always very tall and heavy, and had married into grandpa's quiet lifestyle before developing any elegance or confidence in her personal appearance. Dancing, on the other hand, filled her life with flash lights, wonderful parties, beautiful dresses, handsome young dance instructors, and the challenge of learning. Although the weekly dance lessons did not change her ample, two-hundred-pound figure, grandma surprised everyone with energetic performances on the dance floor, which soon gave her as much elegance and confidence as any Miss American competitor.

Having taken weekly dance lessons for years, my grandma learned various dances easily and was soon participating in dancing matches all over the Northwest. When I was fourteen, grandma proudly invited me to watch her compete in one of these matches to be held in the grand ballroom of the Red Lion Inn. My attitude was still unenthusiastic at that point, but to make her happy, my mother and I attended the match. As if to prove me wrong, grandma made a wonderful showing in every event she entered. I thought she was truly the queen of the ball during the dance, and my thoughts were shared by the judges a short time later when she was awarded a gold cup for her outstanding performance.

1.What did grandma learn from grandpa's death?

A. Good health was not there for everyone.

B. She should take dance lessons.

C. She had to struggle to live a better life.

D. She should wear beautiful dresses.

2.Normal grandmas usually ________ in the author's point of view?

A. took dance lessons

B. did some exercises at home

C. took care of grandchildren at home

D. did some housework at home

3.The author felt ______ when he was invited to watch grandma's match.

A. happy B. proud

C. excited D. uninterested

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Picking a university is a tense period of asking yourself which institution is most relevant. That’s why university rankings play such a vital role in students searching for their next academic direction. Rankings are also an inescapable part of the reputation and brand image of universities. “No university website is complete without the claim to be in the top 100 for something or other,” reported the BBC. The reason is simple: Rankings help them to attract students, staff and research investment.

Currently there are numbers of university rankings, and each has its own list of criteria. But the main categories are the same: academic reputation, graduates' performance and faculty resources.

However, experts point out the ranking process isn't entirely reliable. Mark Kantrowitz, a US financial aid researcher, said university rankings were mostly just for show. He wrote in The New York Times. “It may give your parents better bragging rights, but that's about it.”

Moreover, it’s not difficult to see the limitations of university rankings. Many rankings focus on the number of times research work is cited (引用) by other researchers. It helps British and US universities to dominate global rankings because English is the favored language of academia, John O’Leary, a member of the QS academic advisory board, told The Gunrdian. Also, rankings such as QS mainly focus on the qualities of the university rather than its students. “Any university ranking is likely to help students make better decisions about where to study, but the need to balance them with other more human factors is also important,” said Phil Moss, an education and admissions consultant. “Advice from graduates or current students can be as valuable in providing a genuine insight into the experience or quality of a particular degree program. It can also add an element that rankings can never convey -- the actual emotion of a university experience.”

1.Why do universities consider rankings important?

A. Rankings make them more appealing.

B. Rankings are students’ only reference.

C. Rankings can increase their academic level.

D. Rankings help them complete their websites.

2.What does the underlined “It” in paragraph 4 refer to?

A. Academic research work.

B. The number of researches.

C. The way of ranking universities.

D. The limitation of university ranking.

3.According to John O’Leary, what helps British and US universities rank well?

A. The wide use of English in academia.

B. Their outstanding qualities.

C. Their graduates’ excellent performance.

D. The academia’s favor to them.

4.Besides ranking, what does Phil Moss suggest you should refer to if you're picking a university?

A. Investment in education.

B. Guidance from professors.

C. Information on websites.

D. Suggestions from students.

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