“Racism (种族歧视) is a grown-up disease,” declares the saying on Ruby Bridge’s website along with a photo of Mrs. Bridge today, a 6-year-old girl four decades ago. In the photo, she is walking up the steps of the William Frantz Public School in New Orleans, a little black girl accompanied by two officers who protect her on her way to school.

Her name then was Ruby Nell. It was Nov. 14, 1960. She was the first black child to enroll at this all-white elementary school according to the court order to desegregate in New Orleans schools. Her story is moving -- she was a very courageous child -- and remains a significant proof against intolerance (不宽容) of all kinds. Ruby’s photo brings out another powerful image on her website: Norman Rockwells symbolic painting for Look magazine on Jan. 14, 1964, “The Problem We All Live With.”

Rockwell was an illustrator of exceptional skill and charm. He produced a vast number of unforgettable images over a long career, many of them involving children. His American kids are innocent and appealing, but often, at the same time, decidedly naughty. His method was to photograph his models, and the resulting paintings were photographic． But it is revealing to see how the artist slightly changed facial expressions from photo to oil painting in order to make his paintings communicate with the viewer. Communication, even persuasion, lay at the back of his work; this was art for effect.

“The Problem We All Live With” belongs to Rockwell’s later work, when he began openly showing his strong belief in liberty. This is a highly persuasive image. Before he arrived at the final copy, one sketch (草图) shows the little girl closer to the two officers following her than to those in front. In the finished picture, the girl seems more determined, independent, and untouched． The unfriendly tomatoes thrown on the wall are behind her now, and she, is completely unaffected．

1.Ruby Nell was protected by officers on her way to school, because   .

2.According to the passage, “The Problem We All Live With” is a(n)     .

3.The word “desegregate” in paragraph 2 probably means“   ”.

4.The main topic of this passage is   .

Children and young people tend to have certain role models – people they want to be like when they grow   1 . Though at first children would have wished to copy their mother, father or a (n)  2  relative, gradually these role models are thought of as famous people or popular   3 . People have different opinions about  whether  popular stars or other famous people are good role models for children. Charming models, such as Katie Price, are often   4  and thought highly of by young girls. This is the biggest worry of parents and teachers. They wish to   5  their children to have the concept that success is achieved through hard work and   6  rather than an attractive looking.
Most people tend to grow up to be those 7  are close to home — their parents or family friends. Some decide to be like their favorite teacher. A child who loves to   8  may want to grow to be the next Picasso or Van Gogh; Someone who loves to   9  might imagine themselves as a famous writer; if a child enjoys dancing, he or she   10  well admire a famous dancer, but this is not the case. A lot of dance students wish to be like their  11  teacher.
Therefore, the job of a teacher is   12  just providing knowledge of a given subject. They should be able to   13  their students’ trust and  14  them well. Helping youngsters to learn from models, to learn how to accept   15  with grace(优雅) and losing with respect, is central to any parent’s or teacher’s job. Manners are very important and a dance teacher can make use of  his or her position and influence(影响) to introduce  good behaviors to youngsters.

Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

Big climate changes in the last million years might have come from something very small: dust from outer space.

   Earth changes between ice ages and warm periods in a(n) ____ that includes several cycles, including a ___ one that lasts 100,000 years. Scientists ____suggested this cycle might be due to changes in the inflow of cosmic(宇宙) dust.

   The idea is that Earth ___above and below the imaginary plane that runs through the sun and Jupiter(木星), completing a cycle every 100,000 years. So maybe it encounters ___varying amounts of dust during each cycle that produce the climate trend.

   Now there is some ____, from ancient cosmic dust recovered in ocean-floor drilling near the Azores islands west of Portugal. The large quantity of the dust rises and falls with a wonderful 100,000 year cycle during the period analyzed, 253,000 years to 458,000 years ago. Periods of more dust are related to____ climates.

   But that is a long way from showing that the dust ____ climate. Some scientists argue that it is not clear how cosmic dust would make the climate warmer while dust from volcanoes is known to make it cooler. They say the cosmic dust is so thin that it is hard to see how it could have any climate____.

   Nevertheless, the new study shows scientists have to take the cosmic dust idea seriously.

We have every reason to believe that our business has shown a(n) ____ to improve.

A．direction          B．tendency          C．aspect            D．effect

A new study shows one of the largest glaciers① in Greenland is becoming smaller and speeding to the sea faster than scientists expected. If it continues, Greenland itself could become much smaller during this century and global seas could rise as much as 3 feet.

The rates② of change that we’re noticing are much higher than expected. If these rates continue, it is not unlikely that Greenland could shrink③ by several tens of percent this century. However, it’s not known how quickly this coastal response of the Greenland ice sheet melting will have an effect on the vast inland ice.

Greenland is the world’s largest island, covering an area more than three times the size of Texas. Some 81 percent of it is covered by ice, and there are many glaciers. Glaciers are like slow-moving rivers of ice. Where a glacier meets the sea, its weight keeps it firmly resting on the bottom. A glacier’s front is the point where the water is deep enough that the glacier floats.

Since the 1970s, the front of Helheim stayed in the same place. Then it began melting rapidly, moving back 4.5 miles from 2001 through this past summer. It has also grown thinner, from top to bottom, by more than 130 feet since 2001. And over these past four years, its trip to the sea has sped up from about 70 feet per day to nearly 110.

The melting is driven by a warmer climate. Temperatures in Greenland have risen more than five degrees Fahrenheit in the last decade. Since most of Greenland’s ice is on land, seas will rise as the ice melts. If all Greenland’s ice sheet melted, oceans would be 15-20 feet higher. Nobody expects that to happen anytime soon.

Notes:

① glacier  n.  冰川

② rate  n.  比率

③ shrink  v.  缩小

1. Which of the following about the glaciers is TRUE?

  A. Glaciers only lie in Greenland.        B. Water in glaciers is more than sea water.

  C. Glaciers sometimes float on the water.  D. Glaciers can increase the water level of lakes.

2. According to the text, we know that Greenland ______.

  A. belongs to Canada                  B. is the largest island in North America

  C. is all covered with glaciers            D. is sinking under the sea level

3. Which of the following may be the result of the disappearing of Greenland glaciers?

  A. the climate of the world will be warmer.

  B. the glaciers in other area will be bigger.

  C. It will be easy for explorers to visit the island.

  D. Some coastal cities may be under the sea.