单词拼写（满分5分，每小题各0.5分）

1.Mike r____________ our team and gave a speech at the meeting.

2.Nothing could have been more a____________.

3.Since her c____________ she had wanted to work with animals in their own environment.

4.The party then searched the whole cave t____________ but did not find anything.

5.He has pointed out that the tree is a useful source of i____________.

6.It rained and t____________ the football match was put off.

7.The Hubble will tell us a great deal about the age and size of the u____________.

8.The most u____________ car was a Benz which had only three wheels.

9.At that time, hunger was a d____________ problem in many parts of the countryside.

10.This work will not be easy; we have to o____________ the difficulty.

As you move around your home, take a good look at the things you have. It is likely that your living room will have a television set and a video, and your kitchen a washing machine and a microwave oven. Your bedroom drawers will be filled with almost three times as many clothes as you need. You almost certainly own a car and possibly a home computer, holiday abroad at least once a year and eat out at least once a week.

    Now, perhaps, more than ever before, people are wondering what life is all about, and what it is for. Seeking material success is beginning to trouble large numbers of people around the world. They feel that the long hours work culture to make more money to buy more things is eating up their lives, leaving them very little time or energy for family or pastimes. Many are turning to other ways of living and downshifting is one of them.

    Six percent of workers in Britain took the decision to downshift last year. One couple who downshifted is Daniel and Liz. They used to work in central London. He was a newspaper reporter and she used to work for an international bank. They would go to work by train every day from their large house in the suburbs (郊区), leaving their two children with a nanny (保姆). Most evenings Daniel wouldn’t get home until eight or nine o’clock, and nearly twice a month he would have to fly to New York for meetings. They both earned a large amount of money but began to feel that life was passing them by.

    Nowadays, they run a farm in the mountains of Wales. “I always wanted to have a farm here,” says Daniel, “and we took almost a year to make the decision to downshift. It’s taken some getting used to, but it has been worthy of. We have to think twice now about spending money on car repairs and we no longer have any holidays. However, I think it’s made us stronger as a family, and the children are a lot happier.”

    Liz, however, is not quite sure. “I used to enjoy my job, even though it was hard work and long hours. I’m not really a country girl, but I suppose I’m gradually getting used to looking after the animals. One thing I do like, though, is being able to see more of my children. My advice for other people wanting to do the same is not to think about it too much or you might not do it at all.”

What do the first two paragraphs tell us?

    A. People seldom work long hours to make money.

    B. People hardly buy more things than necessary.

    C. People are sure everything they own is in the right place.

D. People realize there is more to life than just making money.

When Daniel was a reporter he _____.

    A. lived in central London          B. disliked his job

    C. missed his children               D. was well paid

Daniel and Liz both agree that the move to the farm _____.

    A. was easy to organize              B. has improved family life

    C. was extremely expensive           D. has been a total success

What does the underlined “it” in the last paragraph refer to?

    A. Child-caring.        B. Liz’s advice.   C. Downshifting.   D. Liz’s job.

Do you wake up in the morning dreading the moment that your feet have to hit the floor for you to get ready for work? If that’s the case, join most of Americans. Very few people wake up to that annoying alarm clock and spring out of bed excited about having to go to work.
As if that were not enough, most of us have to fight traffic getting there, usually an hour’s drive. Then, when we get to work, we have to fight with unruly co-workers or a nagging boss. And to make matters worse, you have to fight the same traffic going in the opposite direction just to get back home.
Making dinner, fixing plates, eating and then straightening up afterwards is a job within itself. If that sounds like your life, you probably have a J-O-B. you know what J-O-B stands for? Just Over Broke, that’s what! With a job, most Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck and hating every minute of it. I know because I was doing the same thing: trading time for money. And, I came to a conclusion that it stinks (糟糕透了)! Big time!
Looking around at my co-workers, friends and relatives, I saw that they were all doing the same thing I was doing. They were complaining about the same things I was complaining about : not having enough time or money. And, I decided that I wanted to do something different.[来源:学*科*
So, I started a home-based business. There are several to choose from. The extra income has done so much for our family. We can vacation more. We have been able to give more. And, we’ve even been able to do something calling save! It’s been amazing.
Therefore, if you’re sick and tired of being sick and tired, it’s time you make a change, too. The definition of insanity (疯狂) is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. I know you aren’t stupid. If you continue to do what everyone else is doing: trading time for money, you’re going to keep getting what everyone else is getting: being broke and not having the time to do what is really important to you.
Do your due diligence. Find a home-based business that works well for you. Go to work, and live the life you’ve always imagined!
【小题1】According to Paragraph 1, which of the following statements is TRUE about most Americans?

短文填词 （共10小题，每小题1分，满分10分）
Books are our friends. They introduce us many different kinds of knowledge.
They lead us down the road to __【小题1】___(成功). Books are our teachers. They ___【小题2】___ us truth, science, literature, and philosophy of life; ____【小题3】__ (此外)，they increase our knowledge, enlarge our experience, strengthen  our character and do many o__【小题4】___ things which we can __【小题5】___  do without them. We have to learn as long as we live. Butour life is ___【小题6】___ (有限的), and the knowledge is boundless. There aremany things __【小题7】___ are very necessary to learn and there are also manywhich should be ___【小题8】__ (回避). Books tell us what is good and what is not. And only books can tell the good __【小题9】___ the bad. Therefore, to read more books is the b_【小题10】___ policy for us young students.

Do you wake up in the morning dreading the moment that your feet have to hit the floor for you to get ready for work? If that’s the case, join most of Americans. Very few people wake up to that annoying alarm clock and spring out of bed excited about having to go to work.

As if that were not enough, most of us have to fight traffic getting there, usually an hour’s drive. Then, when we get to work, we have to fight with unruly co-workers or a nagging boss. And to make matters worse, you have to fight the same traffic going in the opposite direction just to get back home.

Making dinner, fixing plates, eating and then straightening up afterwards is a job within itself. If that sounds like your life, you probably have a J-O-B. you know what J-O-B stands for? Just Over Broke, that’s what! With a job, most Americans are living paycheck-to-paycheck and hating every minute of it. I know because I was doing the same thing: trading time for money. And, I came to a conclusion that it stinks (糟糕透了)! Big time!

Looking around at my co-workers, friends and relatives, I saw that they were all doing the same thing I was doing. They were complaining about the same things I was complaining about : not having enough time or money. And, I decided that I wanted to do something different.[来源:学*科*

So, I started a home-based business. There are several to choose from. The extra income has done so much for our family. We can vacation more. We have been able to give more. And, we’ve even been able to do something calling save! It’s been amazing.

Therefore, if you’re sick and tired of being sick and tired, it’s time you make a change, too. The definition of insanity (疯狂) is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. I know you aren’t stupid. If you continue to do what everyone else is doing: trading time for money, you’re going to keep getting what everyone else is getting: being broke and not having the time to do what is really important to you.

Do your due diligence. Find a home-based business that works well for you. Go to work, and live the life you’ve always imagined!

According to Paragraph 1, which of the following statements is TRUE about most Americans?

   A. Most Americans are excited to go to work every day.

   B. Most Americans are used to sleeping in the morning.

   C. Most Americans are tired of having to go to work every morning.

   D. Most Americans have alarm clocks to wake them up in the morning.

By writing the first three paragraphs, what feeling does the writer express?

   A. Regret.               B. Joy.                  C. Pride.               D. Dissatisfaction

What does “something different” in Paragraph 4 refer to?

   A. To set up a business at home.            B. To complain about life and work.

   C. To spend more time on holidays.              D. To resign from the former job and get a new one.