How should one invest a sum of money in these clays of inflation(通货膨胀)？Left in a bank it will hardly keep its value, however high the interest rate．Only a brave man, or a very rich one, dares to buy and sell on the Stock Market．Today it seems that one of the best ways to protect your savings, and even increase your wealth is to buy beautiful objects from the past．Here I am going to offer some advice on collecting antique clocks, which I personally consider are among the most interesting of antiques．
I sometimes wonder what a being from another planet might report back about our way of life．"The planet Earth is ruled by a mysterious creature that sits or stands in a room and makes a strange ticking sound．It has a face with twelve black marks and two hands．Men can do nothing without its permission, and it fastens its young round people's wrists so that everywhere men go they are still under its control．This creature is the real master of Earth and men are its slaves．"
Whether or not we are slaves of time today depends on our culture and personality, but it is believed that many years ago kings kept special slaves to tell the time．Certain men were very clever at measuring the time of clay according to the beating of their own hearts．They were made to stand in a fixed place and every hour or so would shout tire time．So it seems that the first clocks were human beings．
However, men quickly found more convenient and reliable ways of telling the time．They learned to use the shadows cast by the sun．They marked the hours on candles, used sand in hour- glasses, and invented water-clocks．Indeed, any serious student of antique should spend as much time as possible visiting palaces, stately homes and museums to see some of the finest examples of clocks from the past．
Antique clocks could be very expensive, but one of the joys of collecting clocks is that it is still possible to find quite cheap ones for your own home．After all, if you are going to be ruled by time, why not invest in air antique clock and perhaps make a future profit?
(1)
According to the passage, collecting antique clocks____．
[ ]
A．
can hardly keep the value of your savings
B．
will cost much of your savings
C．
may increase your wealth
D．
needs your bravery
(2)
By quoting(引用)the remark of a being from another planet, the author intends to____．
[ ]
A．
suggest human beings are controlled by a clock
B．
describe why clocks can rule the planet Earth
C．
tell readers what clocks look like
D．
compare chicks to human beings
(3)
Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a way to measure the time?
[ ]
A．
Counting the beating of one's own heart．
B．
Making use of candles, sand and water．
C．
Observing shadows cast by the sun．
D．
Keeping slaves busy day and night．
(4)
The underlined phrase stately homes in paragraph 4 means
[ ]
A．
state-owned houses
B．
houses in very good condition
C．
grand houses open to the public
D．
houses where statesmen meet regularly
(5)
The purpose of the passage is
[ ]
A．
to introduce the culture of antique clocks
B．
to offer some advice on collecting antique clocks
C．
to compare different ways to make a future profit
D．
to explain convenient and reliable ways of telling time
I began working in journalism when I was eight．It was my mother’s idea．She wanted me to“make something”of myself, and decided I had better start young if I was to have any chance of keeping up with the competition．
With my load of magazines I headed toward Belleville Avenue．The crowds were there．There were two gas stations on the corner of Belleville and Union．For several hours I made myself highly visible, making sure everyone could see me and the heavy black letters on the bag that said THE SATURDAY EVENING POST．When it was supper time, I walked back home．
“How many did you sell, my boy?”my mother asked．
“None．”
“Where did you go?”
“The corner of Belleville and Union Avenues．”
“What did you do?”
“Stood on the corner waiting for somebody to buy a Saturday Evening Post．”
“You just stood there?”
“Didn’t sell a single one．”
“My God, Russell!”
Uncle Allen put in,“Well, I’ve decided to take the Post．”I handed him a copy and he paid me a nickle(五分镍币)．It was the first nickle I earned．
Afterwards my mother taught me how to be a salesman．I would have to ring doorbells, address adults with self-confidence, and persuade them by saying that no one, no matter how poor, could afford to be without the Saturday Evening Post in the home．
One day, I told my mother I’d changed my mind．I didn’t want to make a success in the magazine business．
“If you think you can change your mind like this,”she replied,“you’ll become a good-for-nothing．”She insisted that, as soon as school was over, I should start ringing doorbells, selling magazines．Whenever I said no, she would scold me．
My mother and I had fought this battle almost as long as I could remember．My mother, dissatisfied with my father’s plain workman’s life, determined that I would not grow up like him and his people．But never did she expect that, forty years later, such a successful journalist as me would go back to her husband’s people for true life and love．
(1)
Why did the boy start his job young?
[ ]
A．
He wanted to be famous in the future．
B．
The job was quite easy for him．
C．
His mother had high hopes for him．
D．
The competition for the job was fierce．
(2)
From the dialogue between the boy and his mother, we learn that the mother was ________．
[ ]
A．
excited
B．
interested
C．
ashamed
D．
disappointed
(3)
What did the mother do when the boy wanted to give up?
[ ]
A．
She forced him to continue．
B．
She punished him．
C．
She gave him some money．
D．
She changed her plan．
(4)
What can we learn from the story?
[ ]
A．
The author wanted to be as plain as his father when he was young．
B．
The author was a success as a journalist．
C．
The author’s mother didn’t enjoy true life and love．
D．
The author’s mother hated her husband very much．
(5)
What is the text mainly about?
[ ]
A．
The early life of a journalist．
B．
The early success of a journalist．
C．
The happy childhood of the writer．
D．
The important role of the writer in his family．
阅渎理解
The Internet will open up new vistas(前景), create the global village－you can make new friends all around the world．That, at least, is what it promised us．The difficulty is that it did not take human mind into account．The reality is that we cannot keep relationships with more than a limited number of people．No matter how hard the Internet tries to put you in communication, its best efforts will be defeated by your mind．
The problem is twofold(双重的)．First, there is a limit on the number of people we can hold in mind and have a meaningful relationship with．That number is about 150 and is set by the size of our brain．Second, the quality of your relationships depends on the amount of time you invest in then．We invest a lot in a small number of people and then distribute what’s left among as many others as we can．The problem is that if we invest little time in a person, our engagement with that person will decline until eventually it dies into “someone I once knew”．
This is not, of course, to say that the Internet doesn’t serve a socially valuable function．Of course it does．But the question is not that it allows you to increase the size of your social circle to include the rest of the world, but that you can keep your relationships with your existing friends going even though you have to move to the other side of the world．
In one sense, that’s a good thing．But it also has a disadvantage．If you continue to invest in your old friends even though you can no longer see them, then certainly you aren’t using your time to make new friends where you now live．And I suspect that probably isn’t the best use of your time．Meaningful relationships are about being able to communicate with each other, face to face．The Internet will slow down the rate with which relationships end, but it won’t stop that happening eventually．
(1)
The number of friends we can keep relationships with is decided by ________．
[ ]
A．
the Internet
B．
the time we have
C．
the place we live
D．
the mind
(2)
The underlined word “engagement” in the second paragraph probably means “________”．
[ ]
A．
appointment
B．
connection
C．
interview
D．
agreement
(3)
The author holds the view that ________．
[ ]
A．
the Internet helps to keep in touch with friends far away
B．
the Internet determines the quality of social relationships
C．
the Internet greatly increases the size of social circles
D．
the Internet is of no value in social communication
(4)
What will the author encourage us to do?
[ ]
A．
To keep in touch with old friends when we have moved away．
B．
To chat with friends often on the Internet．
C．
To make more new friends face to face．
D．
To stop using the Internet to make new friends．
(5)
What is the author’s attitude towards the use of the Internet to strengthen relationships?
[ ]
A．
He thinks it useless
B．
He is hopeful of it．
C．
He approves of it．
D．
He doubts it．
阅渎理解
Rae Armantrout, who has been a poetry professor at the University of California San Diego(UCSD)for two decades, has won the 2010 Pulitzer Prize in the poetry category for her most recent book, “Versed”．
“I’m delighted and amazed at how much media recognition that the Pulitzer brings, as compared to even the National Book Critics Award, which I was also surprised and delighted to win,” said Armantrout．
“For a long time, my writing has been just below the media radar, and to have this kind of attention, suddenly, with my 10th book, is really surprising．”
Armantrout, a native Californian, received her bachelor’s degree at UC Berkeley, where she studied with noted poet Denise Levertov, and her master’s in creative writing from San Francisco State University．She is a founding member of Language Poets, a group in American poetry that analyzes the way language is used and raises questions to make the reader think．
In March, she won the National Book Critics Circle Award for “Versed．”
“This book has gotten more attention,” Armantrout said, “but I don’t feel as if it’s better．”
The first half of “Versed” focuses on the dark forces taking hold of the United States as it fought the war against Iraq．The second half looks at the dark forces casting a shadow over her own life after Armantrout was diagnosed with cancer in 2006．
Armantrout was shocked to learn she had won the Pulitzer but many of her colleagues were not．“Rae Armantrout is a unique voice in American poetry,” said Seth Lerer, head of Arts and Humanities at UCSD．
“Versed”, published by the Wesleyan University Press, did appear in a larger printing than her earlier works, which is about 2,700 copies．The new edition is scheduled to appear in May．
(1)
According to Rae Armantrout, ________．
[ ]
A．
her 10th book is much better
B．
her winning the Pulitzer is unexpected
C．
the media is surprised at her works
D．
she likes being recognized by her readers
(2)
Which of the following is true of Rae Armantrout?
[ ]
A．
She published a poetry textbook．
B．
She used to teach Denise Levertov．
C．
She started a poets’ group with others．
D．
She taught creative writing at UC Berkeley．
(3)
What can we learn about “Versed”?
[ ]
A．
It consists of three parts．
B．
It is mainly about the American army．
C．
It is a book published two decades ago．
D．
It partly concerns the poet’s own life．
(4)
Rae Armantrout’s colleagues think that she ________．
[ ]
A．
should write more
B．
has a sweet voice
C．
deserves the prize
D．
is a strange professor
(5)
What can we learn from the text?
[ ]
A．
About 2,700 copies of “Versed” will be printed．
B．
Cancer made Armantrout stop writing．
C．
Armantrout got her degrees at UCSD．
D．
“Versed” has been awarded twice．
阅渎理解
In today’s world English is the most wildly used language．It is our duty to learn English in the new situation of the reform and opening(改革开放)to the outside world．How can we master the English language? I’d like to give you some good advice．
First, get interested in it．I enjoy listening to foreign friends talking when I was a child．At the same time I watched the English programme Follow Me on TV．From then on, I kept on learning English．The more I learned, the more progress I made．
Second, practice makes perfect．Many people study English very hard, but they are very shy to speak it in public, for they are afraid of making mistakes．Remember you have to make a mistake before you can correct it．A native English speaker makes mistakes sometimes, too．
Third, the beginners should be encouraged to pay attention to idioms．The English language has many idioms．For example, you should say “ He is as strong as a cow．”
(1)
The writer wants to tell us ________．
[ ]
A．
the importance of learning English
B．
the new situation of the reform and opening to the outside world
C．
some good ideas on how to master English
D．
the wide use of the English language
(2)
If we want to learn English, we must first ________．
[ ]
A．
show interest in it
B．
enjoy listening to it
C．
watch English programmes on TV
D．
practice speaking it
(3)
When we are learning English, ________．
[ ]
A．
remember the mistakes and correct them
B．
try not to make any mistakes
C．
avoid mistakes before making them
D．
don’t be afraid of making mistakes
(4)
The underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 means “________．”
[ ]
A．
Remember to make a mistake before you can correct it
B．
You are sure to make a mistake before you can correct it
C．
Remember you have to make a mistake and then correct it
D．
You’ll make a mistake after you can correct it
(5)
According to the writer, what is the most important in learning English?
[ ]
A．
Practising, listening and speaking as much as possible．
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