People think what I do is so wonderful because I interview stars. And I have to admit that when I first started working at Sassy in 1987 I was excited about that part of my job for the first couple of months,anyway. Then I noticed how stars would fool me around for months. I could never get enough time with a star to find out anything interesting,and some acted just simply rudely. I started hating the way I was treated,and I was really disappointed to see that these people I had worshipped (崇拜) before were pretty ordinary. So I decided I would just tell the truth instead of keeping up their myths(神秘) .If the star was a bad guy,I would say so. If I thought anyone was stupid,I did not hold back that information.

I thought readers would appreciate that kind of honesty. Surprisingly,many of them hated me for it. I have gotten so many attacks on my character. In their eyes,being famous is everything,even more desirable than being truly creative and talented.

Why do we need stars? In fact,the media created stars to satisfy our basic need for gossip (闲聊).Over time,talking about people we have never met and we are never likely to meet has become what we are crazy about. Thus,some people are more interested in the personal lives of the stars than in the lives of their own family and their own friends. That is why it is so ridiculous when a star wants to discuss only his or her work in an interview— as we care. We want the dirt on their personal lives.

There is another reason we worship stars. As a whole,our society is not as religious as it once was. It seems that people need something to fulfill them the way religion once did. Star worship exists as an unfulfilling desire for true heroes.

We make them stars,but then their reputation makes us feel unimportant,and we truly feel better about ourselves when they die. I am part of this whole process. No wonder I feel soiled at the end of workday.

1.What are the stars like according to the author?

A.They always treat others rudely.

B.They always talk about something dull.

C.They are actually ordinary people.

D.They are usually honest and polite.

2.We worship stars because .

A.we need true mental heroes to support us

B.we can learn something useful from famous stars

C.we concern about the stars,family and friends

D.we like talking about the stars' dressing styles

3.When the author is writing this article,his tone sounds .

A.excited B.angry C.worried D.calm

4.What is the main purpose of the author writing the passage?

A.To show the disadvantages of working with stars.

B.To remind us not to worship famous stars blindly.

C.To laugh at the failures of stars he has interviewed.

D.To talk about the reasons why we worship stars.

I was never very neat, while my roommate Kate was extremely organized. Each of her objects had its place, but mine always hid somewhere. She even labeled (贴标签)everything. I always looked for everything. Over time, Kate got neater and I got messier. She would push my dirty clothing over, and I would lay my books on her tidy desk. We both got tired of each other.

War broke out one evening. Kate came into the room. Soon, I heard her screaming, “Take your shoes away! Why under my bed! ” Deafened, I saw my shoes flying at me. I jumped to my feet and started yelling. She yelled back louder.

The room was filled with anger. We could not have stayed together for a single minute but for a phone call. Kate answered it. From her end of the conversation,I could tell right away her grandma was seriously ill. When she hung up, she quickly crawled (爬)under her covers, sobbing. Obviously, that was something she should not go through alone. All of a sudden, a warm feeling of sympathy rose up in my heart.

Slowly, I collected the pencils, took back the books, made my bed, cleaned the socks and swept the floor, even on her side. I got so into my work that I even didn’t notice Kate had sat up. She was watching, her tears dried and her expression one of disbelief. Then, she reached out her hands to grasp mine. I looked up into her eyes. She smiled at me, “Thanks. ”

Kate and I stayed roommates for the rest of the year. We didn’t always agree, but we learned the key to living together: giving in, cleaning up and holding on.

1.What made Kate so angry one evening?

A. She couldn’t find her books.

B. She heard the author shouting loud.

C. She got the news that her grandma was ill.

D. She saw the authors shoes beneath her bed.

2.The author tidied up the room most probably because .

A. she was scared by Kate’s anger

B. she hated herself for being so messy

C. she wanted to show her care

D. she was asked by Kate to do so

3.How is Paragraph 1 mainly developed?

A. By analyzing causes. B. By showing differences.

C. By describing a process. D. By following time order.

4.What might be the best title for the story?

A. My Friend Kate B. Hard Work Pays Off

C. How to Be Organized D. Learning to Be Roommates

Almost everyone stood when the bride walked down the aisle in her white dress,but not the wedding conductor,because she was fixed on her chair.

The wedding was led by “I?Fairy”,a 1.5?meter tall seated robot with flashing eyes and plastic hair. Sunday's wedding was the first time a marriage had been led by a robot,according to manufacturer,Kokoro Co.

“Please lift the bride's veil (面纱),” the robot said in a tinny voice,waving its arms in the air as the newly?married couple kissed in front of about 50 guests.

The wedding took place at a restaurant in Hibiya Park in central Tokyo,where the I?Fairy wore flowers and directed a rooftop ceremony. Wires led out from beneath it to a black curtain a few feet away,where a man clicked commands into a computer.

Japan has one of the most advanced robotics industries in the world,with the government actively supporting the field for future growth. Industrial models in factories are now standard,but recently Japanese companies have been making a push to inject robots into everyday life.

Honda makes a walking child?shaped robot,and other firms have developed robots to entertain the elderly or play baseball. Kokoro,whose corporate goal is to “touch the hearts of the people”,also makes giant dinosaur robots for exhibitions and lifelike Android models that can smile and laugh. The company is a sub?company of Sanrio Co.,which owns the rights to Hello Kitty and other Japanese characters.

“This was a lot of fun. I think that Japanese people have a strong sense that robots are our friends. Those in the robot industry mostly understand this,but people mainly want robots near them to serve some purpose,” said the bride,Satoko Inoue,36,who works at Kokoro.

The I?Fairy sells for about 6.3 million yen ($68,000) and three are in use in Singapore,the US and Japan,according to company spokeswoman,Kayako Kido.

1.The conductor of the wedding .

A.was controlled by Android system

B.was seated in a chair

C.can give an order herself

D.was the only I?Fairy in use

2.Which of the following products is NOT made by Kokoro?

A.The I?Fairy.

B.A walking child?shaped robot.

C.Giant dinosaur robots.

D.Lifelike Android models.

3.What do people mainly expect robots to do?

A.Act as a sign of technology development.

B.Be their friends.

C.Touch the hearts of people.

D.Meet their own requirements.

4.What does the text mainly convey?

A.Robot wedding conductors are becoming popular.

B.The manufacturing industry in Japan is booming.

C.The Japanese pay a lot of attention to robots.

D.Robots are increasingly entering everyday life.

It’s generally believed that people act the way they do because of their personalities and attitudes. They recycle their garbage because they care about the environment. They pay S5 for a caramel brul6e latte because they like expensive coffee drinks.

It’s undeniable that behavior comes from our inner dispositions (性情),but in many instances we also draw inferences about who we are, as suggested by the social psychologist Daryl Bern, by observing our own behavior. We can be strangers to ourselves. If we knew our own minds,why would we need to guess what our preferences are from our behavior? If our minds were an open book, we would know exactly how much we care about the environment or like lattes. Actually,we often need to look to our behavior to figure out who we are.

Moreover, we don’t just use our behavior to learn about our particular types of character we infer characters that weren’t there before. Our behavior is often shaped by little pressures around us, which we fail to recognize. Maybe we recycle because our wives and neighbors would disapprove if we didn't. Maybe we buy lattes in order to impress the people around us. We should not mistakenly believe that we always behave as a result of some inner disposition.

Whatever pressures there can be or inferences one can make, people become what they do, though it may not be in compliance (符合)with their true desires. Therefore, we should all bear in mind Kurt Vonnegufs advice: “We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be. ’’

1.According to the passage, personalities and attitudes are commonly believed to __________.

A. determine one’s behavior

B. reflect one’s taste

C. influence one’s surroundings

D. result from one’s habits

2.Which of the following would Daryl Bern most probably agree with?

A. The return of a wallet can indicate one’s honesty.

B. A kind person will offer his seat to the old.

C. One recycles plastics to protect the environment.

D. One buys latte out of true love of coffee.

3.What can be inferred from the underlined sentence in the passage?

A. We fail to realize our inner dispositions.

B. We can be influenced by outside pressures.

C. Our behavior is the result of our true desires.

D. Our characters can shape our social relationships.

根据短文内容,从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

Understanding Disabilities

There are around 650 million people in the world that have disabilities,yet most people are still quite ignorant (无知的) about it.

1.What do you think of when you see the word,‘disability’?

Wheelchairs? White sticks? The Paralympics (残奥会)? 1. The legal definition of disability is that someone has a physical or mental impairment that has a great and long?term bad effect on his or her ability to carry out normal day?to?day activities.

This affects about 650 million of us,worldwide. 2. Most become disabled during the course of their life. So maybe the term TAB (Temporarily Able?Bodied) is better for people who are not disabled,because we may not stay that way forever.

2. 3.

Imagine not being able to see,or not being able to walk. Think of all the things that would be different. How can I get my education? What about my future? Would my friends still want to hang out with me? Will strangers laugh at me in the street? Can I get my own place? What job can I do?

Clearly,having a disability can affect many things in a person's life.

3.Disability and the law

4. It is illegal and extremely unpleasant to discriminate (歧视) against someone who is differently abled. The label ‘disabled’ is not always helpful. Even if someone meets the legal definition,they may not see themselves that way. Instead of thinking about what is wrong with those people,or noticing what they can't do,we should look at how we like to live,and try to make it possible for everyone to join in.

After all—what is normal? 5. But better understanding would be a start.

A.How can the disabled find better jobs?

B.How does disability affect people?

C.People with disabilities don't need pity.

D.Most of us have never really thought about it.

E.We should consider more for people with disabilities.

F.Only 17% of people with a disability are born with it.

G.There are laws to prevent people with disabilities being treated unfairly.

完形填空

阅读下面短文,从短文后各题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中,选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项。

Orange chicken,a cup of fried rice,and you have Chinese food. At least,that's what I knew about the nation' s ________ food supply until I came here. In China,food isn't simply a meal for a foreigner. It's a(n) ________ .Failing to order the right food and ________ with my chopsticks are only parts of the adventure ________ I sit down in a restaurant.

Ordering food has been one of the most ________ aspects of this trip. Often,not every dish has a photograph ________ ,so essentially it all becomes a childish guessing game of my father and I ________ what type of vegetables or meat we're eating. The experience can be just as ________ for the waiters as it can be for us. Waiters are ________ when serving us,since we take much more time to order food in ________ with the locals. In one of our favorite Sichuan restaurants,it took three waiters and 15 minutes for us to ________ only our drinks. I simply wanted water,but my father wanted to ________ one of the fresh juice options they had listed on the menu. There were two ________ ,however. There were neither pictures nor English ________ the menu. After several hand gestures,he________ ordering just a Coca?Cola to simplify things.

Although we may have ________ regarding food,our experiences give the best stories to tell. No matter how challenging it is to ________ the menu,the waiters and waitresses are always hospitable (殷勤周到的).They are always very understanding of our ________ .They always greet us and say farewell to us with a bright smile, ________ when they realize they have to ________ the noodles that have slipped through my clumsy chopsticks.

1.A. tasty B.entire C.cheap D.poor

2.A. experience B.practice C.experiment D.feeling.

3.A. threatening B.combining C.struggling D.wondering

4.A. because B.when C.after D.before

5.A. exciting B.interesting C.challenging D.amusing

6.A. analyzed B.shared C.stored D.displayed

7.A. guessing B.imagining C.asking D.complaining

8.A. calm B.painful C.busy D.free

9.A.angry B.serious C.cautious D.anxious

10.A. comparison B.relation C.contrary D.difference

11.A. order B.pay C.call D.search

12.A. get B.seek C.try D.change

13.A. lessons B.problems C.minutes D.choices

14.A. at B.in C.on D.for

15.A. ended up B.went on C.got along D.came out

16.A. difficulties B.benefits C.devotion D.fortune

17.A. remember B.understand C.reply D.believe

18.A. training B.habit C.situation D.custom

19.A. almost B.often C.still D.even

20.A. mix up B.cut up C.pick up D.clean up

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