Mistrust Mars Zhengzhou Ride-share Effort

More than 300 private car owners from a central Chinese city volunteered to offer free rides to citizens to ease crowded public transportation, but many local people didn't accept the offer for fear of being cheated.

The ride-share program was begun in October in Zhengzhou, capital of Henan Province, when Ye Zhantong, a private car driver, started to gather volunteers to offer the free service. The drivers tied a green silk ribbon (丝带) on the car to differentiate themselves from unlicensed taxi drivers. But the free rides haven't been popular among the public as increasing reports of dishonesty have dried up many local citizens' trust towards strangers.

Ye said some of the volunteers have dropped out after they felt their kind intention was being questioned. Passersby walking in heavy rainfall or passengers who missed a bus would remain silent and walk away when the volunteers would stop and offer a ride.

“It's so common that people give us the cold shoulder, and sometimes, take our kindness as ill will,” said one of Ye's volunteers, identified as Binge. “Many would even say: 'Let's get out of here quickly to avoid being cheated by him.'” Some commenters on Weibo explained why they hesitated to participate in a ride-share program. “Trusting a stranger might bring huge risks. I can't take the risk,” one Internet user wrote.

Some said Ye's group wasn't authorized, and cheaters pretending to be kind drivers might volunteer. They suggested traffic authorities issue rules to regulate, protect and promote ride-share programs.

61. The ride-share cars were driven by _____ drivers.

A. licensed taxi         B. unlicensed taxi          C. private car               D. specially-trained

62. Some of the ride-share car drivers _____ .

A. were forced to join Ye’s group                   B. once behaved dishonestly

C. offered free rides only to acquaintances             D. have left Ye’s group

63. The free rides haven't been popular among the public because _____.

A. people often have enough time to wait         B. some think the drivers are cheaters

C. there are many taxies available                    D. many people choose to save money

64. Which correctly explains the expression “give sb. the cold shoulder”?

A. To be unfriendly to sb. .                                   B. To help sb. unwillingly.

C. To sit silently beside sb. .                          D. To try hard to support sb. .

65. The underlined word “mar” in the title possibly means “ _____”.

A. make sth. work the way it should                     B. make sth. less attractive or enjoyable

C.       help sth. to develop or increase                  D. damage sth. so badly that it no longer exists

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。

To dry fish, you will need either a drying table or a place to hang them. If a table is used, it should have a top made of wire screen or thin pieces of wood with space between each piece.

   1.Do not let them touch each other. Be sure that air can flow around the fish from all sides, including the top and bottom.

Build a small smoky fire under the drying table for the first day to keep the flies away. After that, you can keep the flies away by covering the fish with a thin cloth.   2.    

Fish taste better if they are out of bright sunlight while they are being dried.   3.    Turn the fish over every other day. Small fish will dry in about three days if the air is dry.   4. 

After the fish have dried, place them in a basket.   5. Then put the basket in a cool, dry place off the ground.

Make sure as much of the saltwater as possible is removed before you smoke the fish.

A．For best results, put the drying table under a tree.

B．Cover them with clean paper or large leaves.

C．Lay the cleaned and salted fish, still wet, on the table.

D．Wood from fruit trees makes good fuel for your fire.

E. Do not let the cloth touch the fish. 

F. Dried fish must be kept completely dry until they are eaten.

G. Large fish will take a week or ten days to dry.

— Why didn’t you come to Mike’s birthday party yesterday?

  — Well, I ____, but I forgot it.

A. should  B. must C. should have   D. must have

The school was across the street from our home and I would often watch the kids as they played on the playground. She seemed so small as she pushed her way     36      the crowd of boys on the playground. She    37    from them all. I began to notice her at other times, basketball in hand, playing    38   . She would practice dribbling（运球）and shooting over and over again, sometimes until   39   . One day I asked her   40    she practiced so much. She looked   41    in my eyes and without a moment of hesitation she said, “ I want to go to college. The only way I can   42    is to get a scholarship. I am going to play college basketball. I want to be the best. My daddy told me if the dream is   43    enough, the facts don’t count.”

Well, I had to give in to her—she was   44   . One day, I saw her sitting in the grass, head   45    in her arms. I walked toward her and   46    asked what was the matter. “Oh, nothing,” came a soft reply, “ I am just too short.” The coach told her that at her height she would probably   47    get to play for a top ranked team,    48    offered a scholarship. So she   49    stop dreaming about college.

She was   50    and I sensed her disappointment. I asked her if she had talked to her dad about it yet. She told me that her father said those coaches were wrong. They just did not   51    the power of the dream. He told her   52    she really wanted to pay for a good college, if she truly wanted a scholarship,   53    could stop her except one thing---her own attitude. He told her again, “If the dream is big enough, the facts don’t count.”

The next year, as she and her team went to the Northern California Championship game, she was   54    by a college recruiter(招聘人员). She was indeed offered a scholarship. She was going to get the college education that she had   55    and worked for all those years.

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。

William Shakespeare once wrote, “Better three hours too soon than a minute too late.” While this may be a stretch, the principle is correct.       1      

Throughout your life, you will encounter similar circumstances that require punctuality, such as handing in homework assignments; arriving at school, a job or a meeting; picking up someone from the airport, school, work, etc. avoid embarrassing moments by ridding yourself of any tendency to be late.

Here are some tips:

● Learn to manage your time wisely, which includes setting deadlines. There are a fixed number of minutes in a day---and only one of you.       2     

●       3       This ensures they do not assume that you will be available for other projects.

● Procrastination(拖延) is a thief of time---avoid it at all costs! This includes waiting until the last second to start a task simply because you find it unpleasant.

     4       Worrying about it will not accomplish anything!

● Before agreeing on a particular time for something, think about other events that might interfere.

● Try counting back from the scheduled time to figure out when you should begin getting ready.      5       For example, if you are scheduled to be at work at 9:00 a.m., a 30-minute car ride makes it 8:30, 15 minutes to eat breakfast makes it 8:15, and 30 minutes for grooming(洗刷) makes it 7:45, and so on.  

A．If a task is difficult, do it first.

B．It is always better to be early rather than late.

C．Make sure others are aware of your deadlines.

D．A few minutes delay may not be a serious matter.

E. Moreover, habitual unpunctuality leads to indolence (懒散) and even failure in life.

F. Do not worry about the particular order of events; just assign(分配) time values to each.

G. Taking on too many responsibilities means that something will not be finished on time.