When we think about giving help to developing countries, we often think about giving money so that these countries can build schools and hospitals, buy food and medicine, or find clean water supplies. These seem to be the most important basic needs of the people we are trying to help. However, it's far from enough. Ladies and gentlemen, we've got to come up with some better ideas to help them.
I was very surprised, then, when I read about a plan to make cheap laptop computers for children in developing countries. A man called Nicholas Negroponte invented a cheap laptop computer and he planed to produce a lot and sell them to the children in developing countries at a low price after he visited a school in Cambodia. The laptop will be covered in rubber so that it is very strong and won't be damaged easily. The idea is that these computers will help the children's education as they will be able to surf the Internet. By improving children's education they should help people to find their own solutions to their problems in the long term.
Another idea to help children in developing countries is to recycle old mobile phones so that they can be used again. In the UK, and probably in many other countries too, millions of mobile phones are thrown away every year. The waste created by throwing away these old phones is very bad for the environment, so it seems to be an excellent idea to recycle them. In this way we will be able to achieve two important goals at the same time. We will reduce the waste we produce and help others. In other words, we will be able to 'kill two birds with one  stone’, and that is always a good thing

  1. 1.

    It's an excellent idea to recycle old mobile phones because

    1. A.
      it reduces waste and can help others
    2. B.
      it prevents waste and can earn lots of money
    3. C.
      it can send the waste produced by developed countries to other countries
    4. D.
      it is good for the environment and very educative for phone users
  2. 2.

    The author gives the example of Mr. Negroponte’s cheap computers

    1. A.
      to show what high technology can bring us
    2. B.
      to show the kindness of people in the developed countries
    3. C.
      to show how to find business opportunities in developing countries
    4. D.
      to give an example of how to help developing countries
  3. 3.

    Where does this passage probably come from?

    1. A.
      A newspaper
    2. B.
      A magazine
    3. C.
      A lecture
    4. D.
      An advertisement

Some students get so nervous before a test, they do poorly even if they know the material. Sian Beilock has studied these highly anxious test-takers.
Sian Beilock: “They start worrying about the consequences. They might even start worrying about whether this exam is going to prevent them from getting into the college they want. And when we worry, it actually uses up attention and memory resources.I talk about it as your cognitive horsepower that you could otherwise be using to focus on the exam.”
Professor Beilock and another researcher, Gerardo Ramirez, have developed a possible solution. Just before an exam, highly anxious test-takers spend ten minutes writing about their worries about the test.
Sian Beilock: “what we think happens is when students put it down on paper , they think about the worst that could happen and they reappraise the situation. They might realize it’s not as had as they might think it was before and, in essence(本质上), it prevents these thoughts from popping up when they’re actually taking a test.”
The researchers tested the idea on a group of twenty anxious college students. They gave them two short math tests. After the first one, they asked the students to either sit quietly or write about their feelings about the upcoming second test.
The researchers added to the pressure. They told the students that those who did well on the second test would get money. They also told them that their performance would affect other students as part of a team effort.
Professor Beilock says those who sat quietly scored an average of twelve percent worse on the second test. But the students who had written about their fears improved their performance by an average of five percent.
Next, the researchers used younger students in a biology class. They told them before final exams either to write about their feelings or to think about things unrelated to the test.
Prefessor Beilock says highly anxious students who did the writing got an average grade of B+, compared to a B- for those who did not.
Sian Beilock: “What we showed is that for students who are highly test-anxious, who’d done our writing intervention, all of a sudden there was no relationship between test anxiety and performance. Those students most likely to worry were performing just as well as their classmates who don’t normally get nervous in these testing situations.”
But what if students do not have a chance to write about their fears immediately before an exam or presentation? Professor Beilock says students can try it themselves at home or in the library and still improve their performance

  1. 1.

    What may happen if students have the problem of test anxiety?

    1. A.
      Test anxiety can improve students’ performance to some degree
    2. B.
      Students’ attention and memory resources run out when worried
    3. C.
      Students may not be admitted into their favorite college if worried
    4. D.
      Test anxiety is sure to cause students to fail the test
  2. 2.

    Which of the following if TRUE?

    1. A.
      In the first math test, students who sat quietly performed better
    2. B.
      In the second math test, students who wrote about their feelings did worse
    3. C.
      Some college students are highly anxious test-takers while others are not in the tests
    4. D.
      The result in the math test agrees with that in the biology test
  3. 3.

    What does the underlined phrase “popping up” mean?

    1. A.
      Giving out
    2. B.
      Fading away
    3. C.
      Becoming clearly
    4. D.
      Appearing suddenly
  4. 4.

    what is most probably Sian Beilock?

    1. A.
      A psychology professor
    2. B.
      A philosophy researcher
    3. C.
      A politics professor
    4. D.
      A tutor
  5. 5.

    What is the main idea of the passage?

    1. A.
      It is a common practice for students being worried before a test
    2. B.
      Being worried before tests does harm to students’ performance
    3. C.
      Anxious students overcome test anxiety by writing down fears
    4. D.
      It is important for students to overcome test anxiety

The bedroom door opened and a light went on, signaling an end to nap time.The toddle(初学走路的婴儿), sleepy-eyed, clambered to a swinging stand in his crib.He smiled, reached out to his father, and uttered what is fast becoming the cry of his generation: "iPhone!"
Just as adults have a hard time putting down their iPhones, so the device is now the Toy of Choice for many 1-, 2- and 3-year-olds.The phenomenon is attracting the attention and concern of some childhood development specialists.
Natasha Sykes, a mother of two in Atlanta, remembers the first time her daughter, Kelsey, now 3 but then barely 2 years old, held her husband's iPhone."She pressed the button and it lit up.I just remember her eyes.It was like 'Whoa!' "The parents were charmed by their daughter's fascination.But then, said Ms.Sykes (herself a Black Berry user), "She got serious about the phone." Kelsey would ask for it.Then she'd cry for it."It was like she'd always want the phone," Ms.Sykes said.
Apple, the iPhone's designer and manufacturer, has built its success on machines so user-friendly that even technologically blinded adults can figure out how to work them, so it makes sense that sophisticated children would follow.Tap a picture on the screen and something happens.What could be more fun?
The sleepy-eyed toddler who called for the iPhone is one of hundreds of iPhone-loving toddlers whose parents are often proud of their offspring's ability to slide fat fingers across the gadget's screen and pull up photographs of their choice.
Many iPhone apps on the market are aimed directly at preschoolers, many of them labeled "educational," such as Toddler Teasers: Shapes, which asks the child to tap a circle or square or triangle; and Pocket Zoo, which streams live video of animals at zoos around the world.
Along with fears about dropping and damage, however, many parents sharing iPhones with their young ones feel guilty.They wonder whether it is indeed an educational tool, or a passive amusement like television.The American Academy of Pediatrics is continually reassessing its guidelines to address new forms of "screen time." Dr.Gwenn Schurgin O'Keeffe, a member of the academy's council, said, "We always try to throw in the latest technology, but the cellphone industry is becoming so complex that we always come back to the table and wonder- Should we have a specific guideline for them?"
Tovah P. Klein, the director of a research center for Toddler Development worries that fixation on the iPhone screen every time a child is out with parents will limit the child's ability to experience the wider world.
As with TV in earlier generations, the world is increasingly divided into those parents who do allow iPhone use and those who don't. A recent post on UrbanBaby.com, asked if anyone had found that their child was more interested in playing with their iPhone than with real toys. The Don't mothers said on the Website: "We don't let our toddler touch our iPhones ... it takes away from creative play." "Please ... just say no. It is not too hard to distract a toddler with, say ... a book."
Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, a psychology professor who specializes in early language development, sides with the Don'ts. Research shows that children learn best through activities that help them adapt to the particular situation at hand and interacting with a screen doesn't qualify, she said.
Still, Dr. Hirsh-Pasek, struck on a recent visit to New York City by how many parents were handing over their iPhones to their little children in the subway, said she understands the impulse (冲动). "This is a magical phone," she said. "I must admit I'm addicted to this phone."

  1. 1.

    The first paragraph in the passage intends to ______

    1. A.
      get us to know a cute sleepy-eyed child in a family
    2. B.
      show us how harmful the iPhone is
    3. C.
      lead us to the topic of the toddlers' iPhone-addict
    4. D.
      explain how iPhone appeals to toddlers
  2. 2.

    According to the author, iPhones are popular with both adults and young kids because they are______

    1. A.
      easy to use
    2. B.
      beautiful in appearance
    3. C.
      cheap in price
    4. D.
      powerful in battery volume
  3. 3.

    The underlined word "them" in the seventh paragraph refers to ______

    1. A.
      televisions
    2. B.
      cellphones
    3. C.
      iPhones
    4. D.
      screens
  4. 4.

    The tone of the author towards parents sharing iPhones with their children is ______

    1. A.
      negative
    2. B.
      subjective
    3. C.
      objective
    4. D.
      supportive
  5. 5.

    The passage mainly tells us ______

    1. A.
      children's iPhone addict is becoming a concern
    2. B.
      iPhone is winning the hearts of the toddlers
    3. C.
      Apple is developing more user-friendly products
    4. D.
      ways to avoid children's being addicted to iPhone games

“It hurts me more than you”, and “This is for your own good”—these are the statements my mother used to make years ago when I had to learn Latin, clean my room, stay home and do homework.
That was before we entered the permissive period in education in which we decided it was all right not to push our children to achieve their best in school. The schools and the educators made it easy for us. They taught that it was all right to be parents who take a let-alone policy. We stopped making our children do homework. We gave them calculators, turned on the television, left the teaching to the teachers and went on vacation.
Now teachers, faced with children who have been developing at their own pace for the past 15 years, are realizing we’ve made a terrible mistake. One such teacher is Sharon Klompus who says of her students “so passive” and wonders what has happened. Nothing is demanded of them, she believes. Television, says Klompus, contributes to children’s passivity. “We’re talking about a generation of kids who’ve never been hurt or hungry. They have learned somebody will always do it for them, instead of saying ‘go and look it up’, you tell them the answer. It takes greater energy to say no to a kid.”
Yes, it does. It takes energy and it takes work. It’s time for parents to end their vacation and come back to work. It’s time to take the car away, to turn the TV off, to tell them it hurts you more than them but it’s for their own good. It’s time to start telling them no again

  1. 1.

    We learn from the passage that the author’s mother used to lay emphasis on(强调)______

    1. A.
      his learning a foreign language
    2. B.
      his ability to control behavior
    3. C.
      his natural development
    4. D.
      his school education
  2. 2.

    According to the author, “the permissive period” in Paragraph 2 means a time______

    1. A.
      when children are allowed to do what they wish to
    2. B.
      when everything can be taught at school
    3. C.
      when every child can be educated
    4. D.
      when children are permitted to receive education
  3. 3.

    What is the main idea of the passage?

    1. A.
      Parents should leave their kids alone
    2. B.
      Kids should have more activities at school
    3. C.
      It’s time to be stricter with our kids
    4. D.
      Parents should set a good example to their kids

Unknown to most Facebook users, the social network actually offers a lot of privacy controls and security features which can help you lock your account, so you can speak freely. If it’s used properly, you’ll never have to worry about whether you will have to “friend” your boss or your mom. You can friend anyone you want while staying comfortable in the knowledge that not everyone gets to see everything you post.
The problem with carrying out these privacy options is that they’re just too confusing for most non-tech clever people to handle. And often, most people don’t want to bother to take the time to learn. To simplify the process, we’re offering one easy step you can take today to help make your Facebook experience safer, more secure, and more private.
Just make “Friend Lists”. Yes, it will take some time, especially if you’re connected to a couple of hundred friends already. But this step, while not the quickest, is fairly simple. And it will be one of the most useful things you can do on Facebook.
Friend lists, as the name suggests, are lists for classifying your friends into various groups. The nice thing about this feature is that once you set these lists up, you won’t have to do it again. We suggest that you put your work colleagues and professional acquaintances into a friend list named “Work”, personal friends you’re not very close with into a list called “Acquaintances”, and people you’re related to into a list called “Family”. Those three main categories will separate out the groups of “friends” who you may want to hide some information from.
To create a friend list, click on “Friends” at the top of the Facebook homepage. In the left-hand column, click “Friends” again under the “Lists” section. Now you’ll see a button at the top that says “Create New List”. Click it. In the pop-up that appears, you can name your list and pick members. If you’ve ever shared an application with your friends, the process of doing this will be very familiar.
When you’ve finished making lists, you’ll be able to use them when selecting who can see what (or who can’t!) when configuring (配置) the security settings described below

  1. 1.

    What function isn’t understood by most people on Facebook?

    1. A.
      Surfing the Internet
    2. B.
      Setting safety protection
    3. C.
      Sharing personal information
    4. D.
      Making foreign friends
  2. 2.

    What can we learn about Facebook according to the text?

    1. A.
      Its process of privacy-setting is too complex
    2. B.
      It displays everything people post
    3. C.
      It lacks privacy controls and security features
    4. D.
      Its post is designed for technical people
  3. 3.

    What advantage can we get from making friend lists?

    1. A.
      We can avoid our bosses adding us as friends
    2. B.
      We can share applications with friends
    3. C.
      We can separate acquaintances from family
    4. D.
      We can hide different information from different friends

A rat looked through a crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife opening a package. What food might it contain? But he discovered that it was a rattrap (捕鼠夹).
Going back to the farmyard, the rat started to give a warning.
The rat turned to the pig and told him:“There is a rattrap in the house, a rattrap in the house!”
‘Tm sorry,Mr. Rat,” said the pig,“I can only say this is something terrible to you, but it is of no influence to me. I cannot be bothered with it.”
The rat turned to the cow. But the cow said,“Like wow,Mr. Rat? A rattrap? I am in danger, Huh?”
The rat returned to the house, head down and dejected. So the rat had to face the farmer's rattrap alone.
That very night, a sound was heard throughout the house,like the sound of a rattrap catching its prey (猎物)The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness,she did not notice that it was a poisonous snake whose tail had been caught by the trap. The snake bit her.
The farmer rushed her to hospital. She returned home with a fever. Everyone knows that a fever could be treated with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his knife to the farmyard for the soup. However, his wife's sickness continued.
The farmer's friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer killed the pig. But she didn't get well. Finally, she diedand so many people came for the last sight that the farmer had the cow killed to provide meat for all of them.
So the next time you hear that someone is facing a problem and think that it does not concern you, remember that the whole farmyard is at risk when there is a rattrap in the house

  1. 1.

    From the passage we know that______

    1. A.
      the pig helped the rat get rid of the trap
    2. B.
      the cow strongly believed in what the rat said
    3. C.
      no animals showed concern over the rat's warning
    4. D.
      the snake was killed immediately after being caught
  2. 2.

    The underlined word ‘‘dejected” is the closest in meaning to______

    1. A.
      disappointed
    2. B.
      surprised
    3. C.
      determined
    4. D.
      excited
  3. 3.

    We can learn from the article that_____

    1. A.
      the farmer had planned to kill the rat
    2. B.
      the rat was very wise in avoiding the trap
    3. C.
      the farmer's wife got good treatment in hospital
    4. D.
      the rat had expected what would happen to the pig and cow
  4. 4.

    What message does the story intend to pass?

    1. A.
      We should mind our own business
    2. B.
      Everything is related to something else
    3. C.
      We'd better treat animals in a friendly way
    4. D.
      The farmer couple and their friends are all foolish

Mars Was Not Always Bitterly Cold
Scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have reported evidence that Mars was warmer and wetter long ago than it is today.  The Caltech scientists say they have directly established the temperature of Mars four billion years ago. At least, they established the surface temperature on part of the planet at that time. The researchers say it is the first such evidence to be discovered and presented.
The Caltech scientists say carbonate(碳酸盐) minerals formed on Mars at about eighteen degrees Celsius. They reached the finding after studying a meteorite(陨石) that had its beginnings near the Martian surface.
Today, the average temperature on Mars is sixty-three degrees below zero Celsius.
The finding was reported on the website of the National Academy of Sciences. Caltech Assistant Professor Woody Fischer helped to prepare the report. He says eighteen degrees Celsius is not especially cold or hot. He says this makes the finding extremely interesting. Knowing the temperature can give scientists an idea of the climate on Mars long ago. It can also help them decide whether the planet had liquid water. Spacecraft orbiting Mars have shown what appear to be rivers, lakebeds and mineral deposits. These pictures suggest that, at one time, water did flow there. Mars Rover vehicles and other spacecraft have confirmed the information.
Caltech Geology Professor John Eiler was another writer of the report. He says knowing the temperature of Mars from long ago provides valuable information. It shows that early in the planet's history, at least part of Mars could support a climate like that of Earth.
The meteorite the scientists examined is one of the oldest known rocks in the world. It is called the Allan Hills meteorite. Its name came from the place in Antarctica where it was found in 1984. The meteorite is believed to have blown loose from the Mars' surface when another space rock struck its "home."

  1. 1.

    The underlined word “establish” in Paragraph 1 probably means “______”

    1. A.
      to set up
    2. B.
      to make people accept a belief
    3. C.
      to discover or prove
    4. D.
      to start having a relationship with others
  2. 2.

    How did the scientists reach the finding?

    1. A.
      By studying Allan Hills meteorite
    2. B.
      By using spacecraft orbiting Mars
    3. C.
      By studying minerals gathered on Mars
    4. D.
      By studying a meteorite on the Martian surface
  3. 3.

    According to the fourth paragraph, what have spacecraft orbiting Mars done?

    1. A.
      Measuring the temperature of Mars
    2. B.
      Taking photos of the surface of Mars
    3. C.
      Confirming that there is water flowing on Mars
    4. D.
      Finding where human beings will probably land on Mars
  4. 4.

    How did Allan Hills meteorite get its name?

    1. A.
      From its original place on Mars
    2. B.
      From where it was found on the earth
    3. C.
      From the name of the scientist who found it
    4. D.
      From the name of the aircraft that discovered it
  5. 5.

    Where can we most probably read this passage?

    1. A.
      In a biography of scientists
    2. B.
      In a geography magazine
    3. C.
      In an environment report
    4. D.
      In a science report

If you want to stay young, sit down and have a good think. This is the research finding of a team of Japanese doctors, who say that most of our brains are not getting enough exercise and, as a result, we are growing old unnecessarily soon.
Professor Taiju Matsuzawa wanted to find out why quite healthy in northern Japan appeared to be losing their ability to think and reason at a rather early age, and how the speed of getting old could be slowed down.
With a team of researchers at Tokyo National University, he set about measuring brain volumes of a thousand people of different ages with different jobs. Computer technology helped the researchers to get most exact measurements of the volume of the front and side parts of the brain, which have something to do with intellect and feelings, and decide the human character. As we all know, the back part of the brain, which controls task like eating and breathing, does not contract with age.
Contraction of front and side parts—as cells die off—was seen in some people in their thirties, but it was still not found in some sixty and seventy-year-olds.
Matsuzawa concluded from his tests that there is a simple way to prevent the contraction—using the head.
The findings show that contraction of the brain begins sooner in people in the country than in the towns. “Those with least possibility,” says Matsuzawa, “are lawyers, followed by university professors and doctors. White collar workers doing the same work day after day in government offices are, however, as possible to have contracting brains as the farm worker, bus driver and shop assistant.”

  1. 1.

    The team of doctors wanted to find out _____

    1. A.
      at what point people grow mentally old
    2. B.
      how to make people live longer
    3. C.
      the size of certain people’s brains
    4. D.
      which people are the most clever
  2. 2.

    Their research findings are based on _____

    1. A.
      an examination of farmers in northern Japan
    2. B.
      tests given on a thousand old people
    3. C.
      examining the brain volumes of different people
    4. D.
      using computer technology
  3. 3.

    The doctors’ tests show that _____

    1. A.
      our brains contract as we grow older
    2. B.
      one part of the brain does not contract
    3. C.
      sixty-year-olds have better brains than thirty-year-olds
    4. D.
      some people’s brains have contracted earlier than other people’s
  4. 4.

    The most possible conclusion of the passage is that _____

    1. A.
      most of us take more exercise
    2. B.
      it’s better to live in the town
    3. C.
      the brain contracts if it is not used
    4. D.
      the more one uses his brain, the sooner he becomes old

In the United States, friendships can be close, constant, intense, generous, and real, yet fade away in a short time if circumstances (环境) change. Neither side feels hurt by this. Both may exchange Christmas greeting for a year or two, perhaps a few letters for a while --- then no more. If the same two people meet again by chance, even years later, they pick up the friendship where it left off and are delighted.
In the States, you can feel free to visit people’s homes, share their holidays, enjoy their children and their lives without fear that you are taking on a lasting obligation. Do not hesitate to accept hospitality because you cannot give it in return. No one will expect you to do so for they know you are far from home. Americans will enjoy welcoming you and be pleased if you accept their hospitality easily.
Once you arrive there, the welcome will be full and warm and real. Most visitors find themselves readily invited into many homes there. In some countries it is considered inhospitable to entertain at home, offering what is felt as “merely” home cooked food, not “doing something” for your guest. It is felt that restaurant entertaining shows more respect and welcome. Or for various other reasons, such as crowded space, language difficulties, or family custom, outsiders are not invited into homes.
In the United States, both methods are used, but it is often considered more friendly to invite a person to one’s home than to go to a public place, except in purely business relationships. So, if your host or hostess brings you home, do not feel that you are being shown inferior (差的) treatment.
Don’t feel neglected (被忽视) if you do not find flowers awaiting you in your hotel room either. Flowers are very expensive there, hotel delivery (递送,投递) is uncertain, arrival times are delayed, changed, or canceled – so flowers are not customarily (通常) sent as a welcoming touch. Please do not feel unwanted! Outward signs vary in different lands; the inward welcome is what matters, and this will be real

  1. 1.

    In the United States, you will find friendships ______ if circumstances change

    1. A.
      die suddenly
    2. B.
      pass away
    3. C.
      disappear gradually
    4. D.
      last forever
  2. 2.

    Americans ______ their foreign friends to make a return for their hospitality

    1. A.
      ask
    2. B.
      wish
    3. C.
      never allow
    4. D.
      don’t expect
  3. 3.

    In some other countries, giving a dinner party at home is considered ______ than in a restaurant

    1. A.
      less formal
    2. B.
      less hospitable
    3. C.
      more natural
    4. D.
      more popular
  4. 4.

    According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?

    1. A.
      Flowers are available at all time
    2. B.
      Flowers are expensive
    3. C.
      Flowers are signs of outward welcome
    4. D.
      Flowers are not necessarily sent to guests
  5. 5.

    Which of the following is the best title for this passage?

    1. A.
      American Hospitality
    2. B.
      American Friendships
    3. C.
      American Invitation
    4. D.
      American Welcome
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