C

By far the most common difficulty in studying is simple failure to get down to regular concentrated work. This difficulty is much greater for those who do not work to a plan and have no regular routine of study. Many students muddle (胡乱对付) along, doing a bit of this subject or that, as the mood takes them, or letting their set work pile up until the last possible moment.

    Few students work to a set timetable. They say that if they did work out a timetable for themselves they would not keep to it, or would have to change it frequently, since they can never predict from one day to the next what their activities will be.

No doubt some students are more willing to accept a regular routine than others. There are many who shy away from a self-controlled weekly timetable, and dislike being tied down to a fixed program of work. Many able students state that they work in cycles. When they become interested in a topic, they work on it attentively for three or four days at a time. On other days they avoid work completely. It has to be admitted that we do not fully understand the motivation (动机)to work.. Most people over 25 years of age have become used to routine, and the majority of real productive workers set aside regular hours for the more important areas of their work. The “tough-minded” school doesn’t fully accept the idea that good work can only be done naturally, under the influence of inspiration.

Those who believe that they need only work and study as the fit takes them have a mistaken belief either in their own talent or in the value of “freedom”. In fact, freedom from control and discipline（纪律）leads to unhappiness rather than to “self-expression” or “personality development”. Our society insists on regular habits, timekeeping and punctuality (准时), and whether we like it or not, if we mean to make our way in society, we have to meet its demands.

The most widespread problem in applying oneself to study is ______.

    A．changing from one subject to another

    B．the failure to keep to a set timetable of work

    C．the unwillingness to follow a systematic plan

    D．working on a subject only when one feels like it

Which of the following is true?

    A．Many students are not interested in using self-controlled timetable.

    B．Many students don’t like being told to study to a fixed timetable.

    C．Most people of over 25 years of age don’t work to a set timetable.

    D．Tough-minded people agree that good job is done naturally

The underlined part “as the fit takes them” in paragraph 4 probably means ______.

    A．when they have the energy   

    B．when they are in the mood

    C．when they feel fit      

    D．when they find conditions are suitable

A suitable title for the passage might be ______.

    A．Attitudes to Study   B．A study Plan

    C．The Difficulties in Studying D．Study and Self-discipline

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to play the character of Ronald McDonald for the McDonald's Corporation.
One day each month，we visited hospitals bringing a little happiness to the children there. But there were two rules placed on me during a visit. First, I could not go anywhere in the hospital  without permission. And second, I could not physically touch anyone within the hospital. They did not want me to carry germs(细菌)from one patient to another. Breaking either of these rules, I was told, I could lose my job. One day, as I was heading down a hallway and on my way home, I heard a little voice coming through a half­opened door，“Ronald，Ronald.”
I stepped in and saw a boy，about five years old, lying in his dad's arms, Mom with a nurse on the other side. I knew by the feeling in the room that the situation was grave. I asked his name. He told me it was Billy and that I did a few simple magic tricks for him. As I stepped back to say good­bye, he asked me “Ronald, would you hold me？”
At such a simple request, my heart was screaming, “Yes！”But my mind was screaming louder. “No！You are going to lose your job！”
“Hold me” was such a simple request, and yet I searched for any reasonable excuses that allowed me to leave, but none. It took me a moment to realize that in this situation, losing my job may not be the disaster I feared. Then, I picked up this little boy. He was so weak and so scared. We laughed and cried for 45 minutes. With tears in my eyes, I left them. Less than 48 hours later, I received a phone call from Billy's mom that Billy had passed away. She and her husband simply wanted to thank me for making a difference in their little boy's life.
Billy's mom told me shortly after I left the room. Billy looked at her and said, “Momma, I don't care any more if I see Santa this year because I was held by Ronald McDonald.”
For the record, McDonald's Corporation did find it out, but, given the situation，permitted me to go on with my job. I continued as Ronald for another year before leaving the corporation to share the story of Billy and how important it is to take risks.
【小题1】The underlined word “grave” in Paragraph 3 means “________”.

                             
C
Several years ago, I read a book Your Money or Your Life, written by Joe Domingguez and Vicki Robin. The major theme of the book is the idea that if you want to cut your spending, you’ll have to begin by stopping trying to impress other people.
The authors divide people into two groups : people whose opinions you care about, and people whose opinions you don’t care about one way or another. It’s easy to stop caring about people whose opinions you don’t care about. Who cares what they think ? As long as you’re not doing something truly immoral —— something that might potentially create a negative reputation for you —— it doesn’t matter what they think.
But shouldn’t you impress other people whose opinions you do care about ? Anyway, they are people you want to meet : customers, friends and family.
The answer is that you don’t need to impress those people with expensive, shiny things. The relationship you’ve built with them —— or you’re going to build with them —— is based on you, not on the material items. They’ll either like you for you or they won’t.
To put it simply, take care of the basics. Keep yourself clean. Keep your weight under control. Wear reasonable clothing. Work on your communication skills. If you have them covered, you don’t need to invest time and money in impressing other people.
Coming to this realization is incredibly valuable. It drops your clothing budget. It drops your automobile budget. It drops your electronics budget. It drops your housing budget. You don’t need a shiny car, an iPhone, or a ＄50 haircut.
Yes , you may actually still want one or two of these things, but the impetus(动力) comes from what your personal values are, not what other people around you seem to value or what marketing messages you receive.
For some people, it seems impossible. Their social cues come from advertising-laden media and from friends who also get their cues from advertising-laden media.They believe they need a slick cellphone and ＄100 casual clothes. Their self-worth revolves around that little burst they get from impressing others.
People should learn to break through that situation. In short, don’t play socially by the tiring old rules that revolve around needing to impress people. Instead, spend your time on things that bring real value to you and give real value to others.
46. Which of the following behaviours is “immoral”according to the second paragraph ?
A.  Caring about other people’s opinion.
B.  Dropping your clothing budget.
C.  Copying existing works.
D.  Obeying the traffic rule.
47. To build relationship with others, you should pay attention to the following EXEPT _______.
A.  dressing casually
B.  learning about weight control
C.  improving communication skills
D.  being a tidy person
48. As for people we care about, what does the author advise us to do ?
A.  To impress them in a proper way.
B.  To buy them special gifts.
C.  To spare more time to be with them.
D.  To impress them with shiny things.
49. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage ?
A.  An iPhone is totally unnecessary in our life.
B.  Your family members’ opinions are always worth caring about.
C.  Learning how to impress others helps people save money.
D.  You should always be aware of what other people around you seem to value.
50. What is the best title for the passage ?
A.  Whose opinions do you care about ?
B.  Two different groups of people.
C.  My favorite book : Your Money or Your Life
D.  Stop trying to impress other people.

B
Compassion (同情) is a desire within us to help others. With effort, we can translate compassion into actions. An experience last weekend showed me this is true. I work part—time in a supermarket across from a building for the elderly. These old people are our main customers，and it’s easy to lose patience over their slowness. But last Sunday，one aged gentleman appeared to teach me a valuable lesson. This untidy marl walked up to my register with a box of biscuits. He said he was out of cash，had just moved into his room，and had nothing in his cupboards. He asked if we could let him have the food on trust. He promised to repay me the next day.
I couldn’t help staring at him. I wondered what kind of person he had been ten or twenty years before，and what he would be like if luck had gone his way. I had a hurt in my heart for this kind of human soul，all alone in the world. I told him that I was sorry，and the store rules didn’t allow me to do so. I felt stupid and unkind saying this，but I valued my job.
Just then，another man，standing behind the first，spoke up. if anything，he looked more pitiable, “Charge it to me,” was all he said.
What I had been feeling was pity. Pity is soft，safe and easy. Compassion，on the other hand，is caring in action. I thanked the second man but told him that was not allowed，either. Then I reached into my pocket and paid for the biscuits myself I reached into my pocket because these two men had reached into my heart and taught me compassion.
59．The aged gentleman who wanted to buy the biscuits            .
A．promised to obey the store rules          
B．forgot to take any money with him
C．hoped to have the food first and pay later
D．could not afford anything more expensive
60．Which of the following best describes the old gentleman?
A．kind and lucky        B．poor and lonely
C．friendly and helpful D．hum and disappointed
61．The writer followed the store rules because        .
A．he wanted to keep his present job
B．he felt no pity for the old gentleman
C．he considered the old gentleman dishonest
D．he expected someone else to pay for the old gentleman
62．What does the writer 1earn from his experience?
A．Wealth is most important than anything else.
B．Helping others is easier said than done.
C．Experience is better gained through practice.
D．Obeying the rules means more than compassion.

A woman from Japan was telling a friend about her trip to the United States.The woman had visited major businesses and investment companies in New York City and Chicago.

“I studied English before I left home，”she said.“But I still was not sure that people were speaking English.”

Her problem is easy to understand.Americans in business are like people who are in business anywhere.They have a language of their own.Some of the words and expressions deal with the special areas of their work.Other expressions are borrowed from different kinds of work such as the theater and movie industry.

One such saying is “get your act together”．

When things go wrong in a business，an employer may get angry.He may shout，“Stop making mistakes.Get your act together.”

Or，if the employer is calmer，he may say，“Let us get our act together.”

Either way，the meaning is the same.Getting your act together is getting organized.In business，it usually means to develop a calm and orderly plan of action.

It is difficult to tell exactly where the saying began.But，it is probable that it was in the theater or movie industry.Perhaps one of the actors was nervous and made a lot of mistakes.The director may have said，“Calm down，now.Get your act together.”

Word expert James Rogers says the expression was common by the late 1970s.Mister Rogers says the Manchester Guardian newspaper used it in 1978.The newspaper said a reform policy required that the British government get its act together.

Now，this expression is heard often when officials of a company meet.One company even called its yearly report，“Getting Our Act Together.”

The Japanese visitor was confused by another expression used by American business people.It is cut to the chase.

She heard that expression when she attended an important meeting of one company.One official was giving a very long report.It was not very interesting.In fact，some people at the meeting were falling asleep.

Finally，the president of the company said，“Cut to the chase.”

Cut to the chase means to stop spending so much time on details or unimportant material.Hurry and get to the good part.

Naturally，this saying was started by people who make movies.Hollywood movie producers believe that most Americans want to see action movies.Many of their movies show scenes in which the actors chase each other in cars，or in airplanes or on foot.

Cut is the director’s word for stop.The director means to stop filming，leave out some material，and get to the chase scene now.

So，if your employer tells you to cut to the chase，be sure to get to the main point of your story quickly.

1.After the woman visited the United States she might feel that ________.

A．her English was poor

B．it’s easy to master English

C．it’s difficult to make money

D．people there weren’t very friendly

2.In which situation could the words “get your act together” be used?

A．A task is completed successfully.

B．Players perform badly in a match.

C．Audience is satisfied with the actor’s performance in a movie.

D．Visitors make a tiresome and unpleasant trip to someplace.

3.According to the text，the expression “get one’s act together” ________.

A．was first used by a Japanese businesswoman

B．was forbidden to be used in the government policy

C．originally came from a yearly report of a company

D．was commonly read by readers in a newspaper in 1978

4.What do the sayings “get your act together” and “cut to the chase” have in common?

A．Their use.? B．Their meaning.

C．Their origin.? D．Their popularity.