John, a famous musician, took his priceless antique violin and played it in the crowded subway station．The music from the violin was delicately streaming throughout the whole station．However, during the one-hour play, only six or seven people were truly appreciating the charming music．A three-year-old kid was so fascinated by the music that he forgot everything around．John only got 52 dollars for his work that day．
However, in normal days, when John is about to hold a concert, one ticket can be sold at more than 100 dollars and it is extremely hard to buy a ticket even at such a high price．Therefore, later, many passers-by in the station that day felt deeply regretful for not recognizing the famous musician and missing such a valuable but cheap music feast．
I have a very busy friend who had totally changed after knowing that his wife came down with incurable illness．He cooked by himself for the family and took a walk with his wife every day．Nonetheless, his wife still did not manage to conquer the illness and passed away after three months．After that, he often sighed miserably that due to his past busy life, he had missed a lot of beautiful time with his wife．But now, it is impossible to make up for it．
It is no use crying over spilt milk．We have missed a lot of precious things in our life without knowing to cherish them．
Actually, I also missed something precious before．The reason why we would have missed those precious things is less than simple：we had thought that we could still own them tomorrow．
Nevertheless, tomorrow is actually by no means reliable．There was a famous Buddhist monk saying that in many people's lives, they have only done two things：waiting and regretting．The result is that they were always too late to cherish what they had before they lost it．We would often claim to do something when we grow up, or when we have money or when we become old, etc．However, when we reach the condition we have expected, we could no longer realize our wish, because we have lost it by then．
(1)
The reason why people often regret may be that ________．
[ ]
A．
they are too busy to notice the beautiful things
B．
they are too careless to cherish precious things
C．
they are lazy to observe the surroundings
D．
they think that it's none of their business
(2)
The idea the author would like to get across to us seems that ________．
[ ]
A．
actions speak louder than words
B．
a bad beginning makes a bad ending
C．
the lost will never come back
D．
each day brings its own bread
(3)
What method does the author employ to support his opinion?
[ ]
A．
By listing data．
B．
By comparing the details．
C．
By explaining the procedures
D．
By taking examples．
(4)
How do we understand the underlined parts waiting and regretting?
[ ]
A．
Many people will not cherish what they have until they lost them．
Some children are natural-born bosses．They have a strong need to make decisions, manage their environment, and lead rather than follow．Stephen Jackson, a Year One student, “operates under the theory of what’s mine is mine and what’s your is mine,” says his mother．“The other day I bought two new Star Wars light sabers(剑)．Later, I saw Stephen with the two new ones while his brother was using the beat-up ones．
“Examine the extended family, and you’ll probably find a bossy grandparent, aunt, uncle or cousin in every generation．It’s an inheritable trait,” says Russell Barkley, a professor at the Medical University of South Carolina．Other children who may not be particularly bossy can gradually gain dominance(支配地位)when they sense their parents are weak, hesitant, or in disagreement with each other．
Whether it’s inborn nature or developed character at work, too much control in the hands of the young isn’t healthy for children or the family．Fear is at the root of a lot of bossy behavior, says family psychologist John Taylor．Children, he says in his book From Defiance to Cooperation, “have secret feelings of weakness” and “a desire to feel safe．” It’s the parents’ role to provide that protection．
When a “boss child” doesn’t learn limits at home, the stage is set for a host of troubles outside the family．The overly willful and unbending child may have trouble obeying teachers or coaches, for example, or trouble keeping friends．It can be pretty lonely as the top dog if no one likes your bossy ways．
“I see more and more parents giving up their power,” says Barkley, who has studied bossy behavior for more than 30 years．“They bend too far because they don’t want to be as strict as their own parents were．But they also feel less confident about their parenting skills．Their kids, in turn, feel more anxious．”
(1)
Bossy children like Stephen Jackson ________．
[ ]
A．
make good decisions
B．
show self-centeredness
C．
lack care from others
D．
have little sense of fear
(2)
The underlined phrase “inheritable trait” in Paragraph 2 means ________．
[ ]
A．
inborn nature
B．
developed character
C．
accepted theory
D．
particular environment
(3)
The study on bossy behavior implies that parents ________．
[ ]
A．
should give more power to their children
B．
should be strict with their children
C．
should not be so anxious about their children
D．
should not set limits for their children
(4)
Bossy children may probably become ________．
[ ]
A．
relaxed
B．
skillful
C．
hesitant
D．
lonely
(5)
What is the passage mainly about ________．
[ ]
A．
How bossy behavior can be controlled．
B．
How we can get along with bossy children．
C．
What leads to children's bossy behavior．
D．
What effect bossy behavior brings about．
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
C．
physical temperature affects how we see others
D．
capable persons are often cold to others
(5)
What would be the best title for the passage?
[ ]
A．
Drinking for Better Social Relationships
B．
Experiments of Personality Evaluation
C．
Developing Better Drinking Habits
D．
Physical Sensations and Emotions
阅读理解
sir,
Your shipment of twelve thousand ‘Smart' watches was received by our company this morning．However, we wish to make a number of complaints concerning the serious delay in delivery and your failure to carry out our specific instructions with regard to this order．
It was stressed from the beginning that the delivery date had to be less than six weeks from the first order, in order to meet our own customers' requirements．While we understand that delays in production are occasionally unavoidable，we must point out that the major reason why the order was placed with your company was that we were assured by you of its speed of delivery, and that your existing stocks(存货)were sufficiently high to ensure immediate shipment．Late delivery of the goods has caused us to disappoint several of our most valued customers，and is bound to have a negative effect on the potential future orders．
The second complaint concerns the difference in colour between the watches we ordered and those delivered．It was stated clearly in the original order that watches in combinations of green/purple and orange/purple only were required．However, only half the watches in the delivery received are of the colours specified．Our Hong Kong agent assures us that she stressed to you the importance of following our instructions precisely, since we consider there to be only a limited market in this country for watches of other colours at the present time．Any watches that are not of the specified colours will，of course，be returned to you．
We are also somewhat concerned about the rather poor quality of the goods received，since it is obvious that the watches that finally arrived have been produced from inferior materials and have been manufactured to a lower standard than those in the sample．We have also found that a number of the watches do not appear to be functioning．Whether the latter problem is due to poor manufacture，damage during transportation or bad batteries is not yet clear, but we should like to point out that we feel this matter to be only your responsibility．
As a result of the above problems，therefore，we feel that the most suitable course of action is to return to you unpaid any of the goods considered unsatisfactory, and to subtract(扣除)any resulting costs from our final settlement．We shall also, of course, be forced to reconsider whether any further orders should be placed with your company．
We look forward to your prompt reply．
Yours sincerely,
John Smith
(1)
The manufactures of “Smart'' watches were given the order because ________．
[ ]
A．
they claimed the order would be easy since the watches were already in stock
B．
the watches would be easy to make and the designs were already prepared
C．
they promised they could produce enough stocks quite quickly
D．
they produced the best watches of its kind in the world
(2)
Receiving watches in the wrong colours is a problem because ________．
[ ]
A．
the Hong Kong agent stressed the need to fulfill the order exactly
B．
people will not buy the watches as presents
C．
these watches will not be limited to the Hong Kong market
D．
these watches will be difficult to sell
(3)
“The latter problem” in paragraph 4 refers to ________．
[ ]
A．
the poor quality of the goods
B．
some of the watches not working
C．
the low standard of manufacture
D．
the use of inferior materials
(4)
What does the underlined words “is bound to” most probably mean?
[ ]
A．
is willing to
B．
is addicted to
C．
is certain to
D．
be attributed to
(5)
The last sentence of paragraph 5“We shall also of course，be forced to…with your company．”suggests that ________．
[ ]
A．
the writer is afraid their company might go out of business soon
B．
the company will probably reduce the number of watches to be ordered in the future
C．
the company may stop trading with the watch manufacturers
D．
the company is probably willing to give the manufactures another chance
阅读理解
Wilderness
“In wilderness(荒野)is the preservation of the world．” This is a famous saying from a writer regarded as one of the fathers of environmentalism．The frequency with which it is borrowed mirrors a heated debate on environmental protection：whether to place wilderness at the heart of what is to be preserved．
As John Sauven of Greenpeace UK points out, there is a strong appeal in images of the wild, the untouched; more than anything else, they speak of the nature that many people value most dearly．The urge to leave the subject of such images untouched is strong, and the danger exploitation(开发)brings to such landscapes(景观)is real．Some of these wildernesses also perform functions that humans need－the rainforests, for example, store carbon in vast quantities．To Mr．Sauven, these ”ecosystem services” far outweigh the gains from exploitation．
Lee Lane, a visiting fellow at the Hudson Institute, takes the opposing view．He acknowledges that wildernesses do provide useful services, such as water conservation．But that is not, he argues, a reason to avoid all human presence, or indeed commercial and industrial exploitation．There are ever more people on the Earth, and they reasonably and rightfully want to have better lives, rather than merely struggle for survival．While the ways of using resources have improved, there is still a growing need for raw materials, and some wildernesses contain them in abundance．If they can be tapped without reducing the services those wildernesses provide, the argument goes, there is no further reason not to do so．Being untouched is not, in itself, a characteristic worth valuing above all others．
I look forwards to seeing these views taken further, and to their being challenged by the other participants．One challenge that suggests itself to me is that both cases need to take on the question of spiritual value a little more directly．And there is a practical question as to whether wildernesses can be exploited without harm．
This is a topic that calls for not only free expression of feelings, but also the guidance of reason．What position wilderness should enjoy in the preservation of the world obviously deserves much more serious thinking．
(1)
John Sauven holds that ________．
[ ]
A．
many people value nature too much
B．
exploitation of wildernesses is harmful
C．
wildernesses provide humans with necessities
D．
the urge to develop the ecosystem services is strong
(2)
What is the main idea of Para．3?
[ ]
A．
The exploitation is necessary for the poor people．
B．
Wildernesses cannot guarantee better use of raw materials．
C．
Useful services of wildernesses are not the reason for no exploitation．
D．
All the characteristics concerning the exploitation should be treated equally．
(3)
What is the author's attitude towards this debate?
[ ]
A．
Objective．
B．
Disapproving．
C．
Sceptical．
D．
Optimistic．
(4)
Which of the following shows the structure of the passage?
(CP：Central Point P：Point Sp：Sub-point(次要点) C：Conclusion>
阅读快车系列答案
afraid. A person with a green thumb
