题目内容
Like many lovers of books, Mary and her husband, Richard Goldman, seldom walked past a bookstore without stopping to look inside. They often talked of opening their own store one day.
When Mary was hospitalized with heart trouble in 1989, they decided it was time to get serious. Richard, who worked for a business company, was eager to work for himself, and Mary needed to slow down from her demanding job.
They started by talking to bookstore owners and researching the industry. “We knew it had to be a speciality store because we couldn’t match the big chains dollar for dollar,” says Mary. One figure caught her attention: She’d read somewhere that roughly 20 percent of books sold were mysterious, and many buyers spent more than $300 a year on books. She and Richard were themselves mystery readers.
On Halloween 1992, they opened the Mystery Lovers Bookstore and Café near their home. With three children in college, the couple could not spend all the family’s money to start a shop. To cover the $100,000 cost, they drew some of their savings, borrowed from relatives and from a bank.
The store merely broke even in its first year, with only $120,000 in sales. But Mary was always coming up with new ways to attract consumers. The shop had a coffee bar and it offered gifts to mystery lovers and served dinners for book clubs that met in the store. She also invited dozens of writers to discuss their stories.
Today Mystery Lovers makes sales of about $420,000 a year. After paying taxes, business costs and the six part-time sales clerks, Richard and Mary together earn about $34,000.
“The job you love may not go hand in hand with a million-dollar income,” says Richard. “This has always been about an enjoyable life for ourselves, not about making a lot of money.”
57. When Mary was in hospital, the couple realized that____.
A. they had to put their plan into practice B. health was more important than wealth
C. heart trouble was a serious illness D. they both needed to stop working
58. After Mary got well from her illness they began ____.
A. to study industrial management
B. to buy and read more mystery books
C. to do market research on book business
D. to work harder to save money for the bookstore
59. How did their bookstore do in the first year?
A. They had to borrow money to keep it going.
B. They made just enough to cover all the costs.
C. They succeeded in earning a lot of money.
D. They failed though they worked hard.
60. According to Richard, the main purpose of running the bookstore is ____.
A. to pay for their children’s education B. to get to know more writers
C. to set up more bookstores D. to do what they like to do
Like many of my generation, I have a weakness for hero worship. At some point, however, we all begin to question our heroes and our need for them. This leads us to ask: What is a hero?
Despite immense differences in cultures, heroes around the world generally share a number of characteristics that instruct and inspire people.
A hero does something worth talking about. A hero has a story of adventure to tell and community who will listen. But a hero goes beyond mere fame.
Heroes serve powers or principles larger than themselves. Like high-voltage transformers, heroes take the energy of higher powers and step it down so that it can be used by ordinary people.
The hero lives a life worthy of imitation. Those who imitate a genuine hero experience life with new depth, enthusiasm, and meaning. A sure test for would-be heroes is what or whom do they serve? What are they willing to live and die for? If the answer or evidence suggests they serve only their own fame, they may be famous persons but not heroes. Madonna and Michael Jackson are famous, but who would claim that their fans find life more abundant?
Heroes are catalysts (催化剂) for change. They have a vision from the mountaintop. They have the skill and the charm to move the masses. They create new possibilities. Without Gandhi, India might still be part of the British Empire. Without Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr., we might still have segregated (隔离的) buses, restaurants, and parks. It may be possible for large-scale change to occur without leaders with magnetic personalities, but the pace of change would be slow, the vision uncertain, and the committee meetings endless.
【小题1】Although heroes may come from different cultures, they __________.
| A．generally possess certain inspiring characteristics |
| B．probably share some weaknesses of ordinary people |
| C．are often influenced by previous generations |
| D．all unknowingly attract a large number of fans |
| A．they have a vision from the mountaintop |
| B．they have warm feelings and emotions |
| C．they can serve as concrete examples of noble principles |
| D．they can make people feel stronger and more confident |
| A．they are popular only among certain groups of people |
| B．their performances do not improve their fans morally |
| C．their primary concern is their own financial interests |
| D．they are not clear about the principles they should follow |
| A．be delayed without leaders with inspiring personal qualities |
| B．not happen without heroes making the necessary sacrifices |
| C．take place if there were heroes to lead the people |
| D．produce leaders with attractive personalities |
Bicycles are a great way to get around. They’re fun to ride, especially down hills. And, as you speed along the road, you might also think of ways in which you could improve your bike— make it safer, more efficient, or more comfortable. In fact, the two-wheeled machines make for some cool science projects.
This year's Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF), held last May in Cleveland, featured（had）three bicycle projects from three countries. Like many of the other experiments presented at ISEF, the bike projects showed that some of the most interesting scientific research often begins by taking a closer look at things you care about.
Renato Angulo Chu had even grander ambitions. The 12th-grader from Lima, Peru, wanted to address some of his country's economic troubles.
"I see a problem in my country," Renato said. "If you go to the forests in Peru, in some places you cannot find electricity. If you go with my bicycle, you can turn on the lights."
Renato, 16, spent 3 years designing his special Multibike. The device looks like a fixed exercise bike. It has wires fixed along the frame and a blender strapped (fastened) to the back. Turning the pedals operates the blender. The same principle can be used to sharpen knives or sweep city streets.
The Multibike can work either as a fixed bike or as a bicycle able to travel city streets and country roads. It's made from inexpensive materials, and the user gets exercise while pedaling to operate a machine.
"You pedal the bike, and you can mix any drink you want," Renato said. More importantly, he added, the same concept could be used to bring light to houses in remote regions of the rainforest.
1.What can we learn from the first paragraph?
|
A．Bikes should be made more comfortable to ride. |
|
B．You can improve your bicycle for science research. |
|
C．Many inventions are connected with the bicycle. |
|
D．Bicycles are the best way to go about |
2.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
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A．ISEF is an exhibiton displaying bicycle experiments designed by students. |
|
B．Looking closely at things you are concerned about can lead to scientific research. |
|
C．Renato’s improvement of the bicycle has solved the country’s great problem. |
|
D．Renato’s special bicycle will soon be put into use in remote areas.’ |
3.The underlined word “address” in the third paragraph probably has the same meaning as _______.
|
A．make address written |
B．give up |
C．work at |
D．speak at |
4.Renato’s special Multibike has all the following EXCEPT ________.
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A．making knives sharp |
B．mixing any kind of drinks |
|
C．producing electricity |
D．operating a machine with its own electricity |
5.It can be inferred that Renato’s special bicycle is mainly designed for ________.
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A．distant areas in the rainforest without electricity. |
|
B．the use of his own family to make life easier. |
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C．the competition of ISEF to win money to support remote rainforests |
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D．enough exercise by pedaling it |