When did you last see a polar bear? On a trip to a zoo, perhaps? If you had attended a winter activity in New York a few years ago, you would have seen a whole polar bear club. These "Polar Bears" are people who meet frequently in the winter to swim in freezing cold water. That day, the air temperature was 3℃, and the water temperature was a bit higher. The members of the Polar Bear Club at Coney Island, New York are usually about the age of 60. Members must satisfy two requirements. First, they must get along well with everyone else in the group. This is very important because there are so many different kinds of people in the club. Polar Bears must also agree to swim outdoors at least twice a month from November through February.

  Doctors do not agree about the medical effects of cold-water swimming. Some are worried about the dangers of a condition in which the body's temperature drops so low that finally the heart stops. Other doctors, however, point out that there is more danger of a heart attack during summer swimming because the difference between the air temperature and water temperature is much greater in summer than in winter.

The Polar Bears themselves are satisfied with the benefits (or advantages) of cold-water swimming. They say that their favorite form of exercise is very good for the circulatory system(循环系统)because it forces the blood to move fast to keep the body warm. Cold-water swimmers usually turn bright red after a few minutes in the water. A person who turns blue probably has a very poor circulatory system and should not try cold-water swimming.

  The main benefits (or advantages) of cold-water swimming are probably mental. The Polar Bears love to swim year-round; they find it fun and relaxing. As one 70-year-old woman says. "When I go into the water, I pour my troubles into the ocean and let them float away."

The members of the Polar Bear Club must meet the following requirements except that

__________.

A. they must reach the age of 60

B. they should be easy to make friends with

C. they must swim outdoors at least 8 times in the four cold months

  D. they must agree to swim outdoors from November through February

Doctors __________.

A. encourage people to take part in cold-water swimming actively

  B. point out the possible danger of blood illness during cold-water swimming

  C. believe swimming is helpful both in winter and in summer

  D. have different ideas about the medical effects of cold-water swimming

According to the passage, some doctors believe it is true that __________.

  A. you are healthy if cold-water swimming turns your skin color blue

  B. cold-water swimming causes more heart attacks in summer than in winter

  C. cold-water swimming can make the body temperature dangerously high

  D. Polar Bears are bears swimming in freezing water

The Polar Bears like to swim all the year round, for __________.

  A. they can remain young                         B. it is an easy way to keep the body warm in winter

  C. they find it enjoyable and interesting        D. they might meet fewer troubles in life

The passage is mainly about __________.

A. a group of cold-water swimming lovers              

B. the polar bears' life 

  C. doctors' ideas about cold-water swimming              

D. the requirements of the Polar Bear Club

Doreen Sykora is now a junior at McGill University. She had a difficult time when she first began college. She said, “I was always well prepared for my examinations. But when I go into class to take the exam, I would fall apart. I could just blank out because of nervousness and fear.” Hitoshi Sakamoto, an anthropology(人类学) student at Temple University in Tokyo reports similar experiences.

These two young students were experiencing something called test anxiety. Because a student worries and is stressed(加压力于) about a test, his or her mind does not work as well as it usually does. The student cannot write or think clearly because of the severe tension and nervousness.

Now there are special university courses to help students. In these courses, advisors and psychologists try to help students by teaching them to manage test anxiety. Such a course helps students learn to live with stress and not fail because of it. First students take a practice test to measure their worry level. If the tests show that their stress level is high, the students can take a short course to manage the fear. These courses teach students how to relax their bodies. They get training to become calm in very tense situations. By controlling their nervousness, they can let their minds work more easily. Learned information then comes out without difficulty on a test.

Doreen Sykora saw immediate results after taking such a course. She now has enthusiasm about the relaxation methods. “Mostly, what I do is imagine myself in a very calm place. Then I imagine myself picking up a pencil. I move slowly and carefully. I breathe easily and let all the tension out. With each breath, more worry leaves me. It really works too. My grades have improved greatly! I’m really doing well at McGill now. This relaxation method works not only on examinations, but it has improved the rest of my life as well.”

For Hitoshi in Tokyo, the results were much the same. He is enjoying school a lot more and learning more.

1. What is the similarity between Doreen Sykora and Hitoshi Sakamoto?

A. They are students from the same university.

B. They failed in all the examinations.

C. They both had experiences of test anxiety.

D. They both had the same poor studying habits.

2. The phrase “blank out” in Paragraph 1 refers to “_______.”

A. lose interest in the exam           B. refuse to take the exam

C. get an extra paper                  D. be unable to think clearly

3. What’s the purpose of some special university student-help courses?

  A. To help students to reduce test anxiety.   

  B. To show a stress level experienced by students.

  C. To learn more knowledge about test anxiety.

  D. To have a better understanding of test anxiety.

When I was in primary school, sometimes I would meet a girl of the same age as me. Lisa was never active, but she was always very sweet and nice. In the 5th grade she came to my class.

She was absent(缺席) a lot , and one day I had the courage to ask why. She told me she was sick, and she explained she wore a wig(假发) because her medicine made her lose her hair. We left it at that. Anytime Lisa came to class—seldom—I would hang around with her on the playground.

I received much ridicule (嘲笑) from my friends for this because they thought I was ignoring them for Lisa. My family education taught me to be nice, and I felt Lisa’s needs were much more important than others I knew.

It had been months since Lisa was in our class, and one day our teacher was crying. She explained Lisa died the day before and would no longer be our classmate. She told us Lisa had fought a battle (斗争)with cancer for years.

I was shocked. Lisa never spoke of her illness as if it could kill her. Well, all these years I have kept Lisa in my mind and heart. When I go through the important events in my life, I think of Lisa.

I’ve had a strong wish recently to find her mother and father. I’d like to tell them that though they never met me, their daughter had a sweet effect on my life. I have no idea what her parents’ first names are. I write to your column (栏目)and hope you can point me in the right direction.

Lisa was such a lovely girl. Maybe her parents would be comforted by the fact that after all these years they are not the only ones who remember her.

The underlined sentence in Para 2 probably means ________________.

A. we kept on talking about her illness later

B. we discussed the topic and then left together

C. we just stopped talking about her illness

D. we went away after talking about her illness

Why was the author being laughed at?

A. Because she wore a wig to school.            B. Because she always played with Lisa.

C. Because she cried in the classroom.       D. Because she lost her friends because of Lisa.

What did the author learn from Lisa?

A. To keep your illness a secret.                    B. To be nice to everyone everywhere.

C. To face challenges in life bravely.             D. To put others’ needs above yours.

The author wrote this passage mainly to __________.

A. remember a true friend                B. ask for help to find a friend’s parents

C. show her concern for a friend           D. tell her experience of fighting cancer

For years I wanted a flower garden. I spent hours and days thinking of different things I could plant that would look nice together.

    But then we had Matthew. And Marvin. And the twins, Alisa and Alan. And then Helen. Five children. I was too busy raising them to grow a garden.

    Money was tight, as well as time. Often when my children were little, one of them would want something that cost too much, and I’d have to say, “Do you see a money tree outside? Money doesn’t grow on trees, you know.”

    Finally, all five children got through high school and college and were off on their own. I started thinking again about having a garden.

I wasn’t sure, though. I mean, gardens do cost money, and after all these years I was used to living on a pretty poor, no-frills budget (预算).

Then, one spring morning, on Mother’s day, I was working in my kitchen. Suddenly, I realized that cars were tooting their horns as they drove by. I looked out of the window and there was a new tree, planted right in my yard. I thought it must be a weeping willow, because I saw things blowing around on all its branches. Then I put my glasses on—and I couldn’t believe what I saw. There was a money tree in my yard!

I went outside to look. It was true! There were dollar bills, one hundred of them, tied all over the tree. Think of all the garden flowers I could buy with one hundred dollars! There was also a note attached: “IOU eight hours of digging time. Love, Marvin.”

Marvin kept his promise, too. He dug up a nice ten-by-fifteen foot bed for me. And my other children bought me tools, a trellis (绷架), a sunflower stepping stone and gardening books.

That was three years ago. My garden’s now very pretty, just like what I wanted. When I go out to weed or tend my flowers, I don’t seem to miss my children as much as I once did. It feels like they are right there with me.

I live up in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, where winters are long and cold, and summers are too short. But every year now, when winter sets in, I look out of my window and think of the flowers I’ll see next spring in my little garden. I think about what my children did for me, and I get tears in my eyes---every time.

I’m still not sure that money grows on trees. But I know love does.

 

1.By saying “Do you see a money tree outside?”, the mother actually means _____.

  A. Observation is the best teacher            B. Seeing is believing

  C. The outsider sees the most of the game     D. It is not easy to gain money

2.The underlined word “no-frills” in the fifth paragraph is similar in meaning to _____.

  A. wasteful       B. tight        C. deserted     D. helpful

3.From the last two paragraphs we can infer that the mother is _____.

A. divorced when she was young          B. not caring for her kids any longer

C. alone but not at all lonely          D. prouder with her garden than with her kids

4.The best title for the passage would probably be _____.

  A. My flower garden                       B. Marvin helps to realize my dream

  C. Love in Michigan                       D. Money grows on trees

 

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