An eight-year-old child heard her parents talking about her little brother. All she knew was that he was very sick and they had no __26__ left. When she heard her daddy say to her __27__ mother, “Only a miracle（奇迹）can save him now”, the little girl went to her bedroom and took out her piggy bank（存钱罐）. She poured__28__ the change （零钱）out on the floor and counted it carefully. Then she walked six blocks to the local __29__.

“And what do you want?” asked the chemist.

“It’s for my little __30__,” the girl answered back. “He’s really, really sick and I want to get a __31__. His name is Andrew and he has something __32__ growing inside his head and my daddy says only a miracle can save him.”

“We don’t __33__ miracles here, child. I’m sorry,” the chemist said, smiling __34__ at the little girl.

In the shop was a __35__ customer. He bent down and asked the little girl, “What kind of miracle does your brother __36__?”

“I don’t know,” she replied. “He’s really sick and mommy says he needs an operation. But my daddy can’t __37__ for it, so I have brought my __38__.”

“How much do you have?” asked the man.

“One dollar and eleven cents, __39__ I can try and get some more,” she answered quietly.

“Well, what a coincidence（巧合）,” smiled the man. “A dollar and eleven cents－the exact __40__of a miracle for your little brother. __41__ me to where you live. I want to see your brother and __42__ your parents.”

That well-dressed man was Dr Carlton Armstrong, a surgeon（外科医生）. The operation was completed __43__ and before long Andrew was __44__ again.

The little girl was happy. She knew exactly how much the miracle __45__ —one dollar and eleven cents ... plus the faith of a little child.

26. A. time                         B. medicine                 C. money                           D. food

27. A. sad                          B. angry                      C. happy                            D. surprised

28. A. some                       B. any                         C. no                           D. all

29. A. book shop               B. drug store               C. shoe shop                     D. supermarket

30. A. father                       B. mother                           C. brother                   D. sister

31. A. drink                        B. doctor                                 C. tablet                      D. miracle

32. A. bad                          B. small                       C. extra                       D. new

33. A. show                        B. offer                        C. sell                         D. store

34. A. calmly                      B. sadly                       C. strangely                D. coldly

35. A. well-dressed                   B. kind-hearted           C. well-behaved          D. good-looking

36. A. have                        B. need                       C. make                      D. like

37. A. call                           B. look                        C. protect                           D. pay

38. A. savings                           B. wishes             C. ideas                      D. worries

39. A. because                         B. so                           C. though                           D. but

40. A. speed                      B. price                       C. height                            D. length

41. A. Bring                        B. Send                       C. Take                       D. Drive

42. A. help                         B. encourage                     C. persuade                D. meet

43. A. surprisingly         B. secretly                 C. successfully            D. separately

44. A. happy                      B. well                           C. strong                          D. fat

45. A. meant                      B. covered                  C. measured               D. cost

Recently I spoke to some of my students about what they wanted to do after they graduated, and what kind of job prospects they thought they had.
Given that I teach students who are training to be doctors, I was surprised to find that most thought that they would not be able to get the jobs they wanted without “outside help”. “What kind of help is that?” I asked, expecting them to tell me that they would need a relative or family friend to help them out.
“Surgery(外科手术)”, one replied.
I was pretty alarmed by that response. It seems that the graduates of today are increasingly willing to go under the knife to get ahead of others when it comes to getting a job.
One girl told me that she was considering surgery to increase her height. “They break your legs, put in special extending screws, and slowly expand the gap between the two ends of the bone as it regrows, you can get at least 5cm taller!”
At that point, I was shocked. I am short, I can’t deny that, but I don’t think I would put myself through months of agony(痛苦) just to be a few centimeters taller. I don’t even bother to wear shoes with thick soles, as I’m not trying to hide the fact that I am just not tall!
It seems to me that there is a trend toward wanting “perfection”, and that is an ideal that just does not exist in reality.
No one is born perfect, yet magazines, TV shows and movies present images of thin, tall, beautiful people as being the norm. Advertisements for slimming aids, beauty treatments and cosmetic surgery clinics fill the pages of newspapers, further creating an idea that “perfection” is a requirement, and that it must be purchased, no matter what the cost.
In my opinion, skills, rather than appearance, should determine how successful a person is in his chosen career.
【小题1】We can know from the passage that the author works as ________.

Recently I spoke to some of my students about what they wanted to do after they graduated, and what kind of job prospects they thought they had.
Given that I teach students who are training to be doctors, I was surprised to find that most thought that they would not be able to get the jobs they wanted without “outside help”. “What kind of help is that?” I asked, expecting them to tell me that they would need a relative or family friend to help them out.
“Surgery(外科手术)”, one replied. I was pretty alarmed by that response. It seems that the graduates of today are increasingly willing to go under the knife to get ahead of others when it comes to getting a job. One girl told me that she was considering surgery to increase her height. “They break your legs, put in special extending screws, and slowly expand the gap between the two ends of the bone as it regrows, you can get at least 5cm taller!”
At that point, I was shocked. I am short, I can’t deny that, but I don’t think I would put myself through months of agony(痛苦) just to be a few centimeters taller. I don’t even bother to wear shoes with thick soles, as I’m not trying to hide the fact that I am just not tall!
It seems to me that there is a trend toward wanting “perfection”, and that is an ideal that just does not exist in reality.
No one is born perfect, yet magazines, TV shows and movies present images of thin, tall, beautiful people as being the norm. Advertisements for slimming aids, beauty treatments and cosmetic surgery clinics fill the pages of newspapers, further creating an idea that “perfection” is a requirement, and that it must be purchased, no matter what the cost. In my opinion, skills, rather than appearance, should determine how successful a person is in his chosen career.
【小题1】We can know from the passage that the author works as ______.

Recently I spoke to some of my students about what they wanted to do after they graduated, and what kind of job prospects they thought they had.

Given that I teach students who are training to be doctors, I was surprised to find that most thought that they would not be able to get the jobs they wanted without “outside help”. “What kind of help is that?” I asked, expecting them to tell me that they would need a relative or family friend to help them out.

“Surgery(外科手术)”, one replied. I was pretty alarmed by that response. It seems that the graduates of today are increasingly willing to go under the knife to get ahead of others when it comes to getting a job. One girl told me that she was considering surgery to increase her height. “They break your legs, put in special extending screws, and slowly expand the gap between the two ends of the bone as it regrows, you can get at least 5cm taller!”

At that point, I was shocked. I am short, I can’t deny that, but I don’t think I would put myself through months of agony(痛苦) just to be a few centimeters taller. I don’t even bother to wear shoes with thick soles, as I’m not trying to hide the fact that I am just not tall! It seems to me that there is a trend toward wanting “perfection”, and that is an ideal that just does not exist in reality.

No one is born perfect, yet magazines, TV shows and movies present images of thin, tall, beautiful people as being the norm. Advertisements for slimming aids, beauty treatments and cosmetic surgery clinics fill the pages of newspapers, further creating an idea that “perfection” is a requirement, and that it must be purchased, no matter what the cost. In my opinion, skills, rather than appearance, should determine how successful a person is in his chosen career.

1.We can know from the passage that the author works as ______.

A. a doctor              B. a model              C. a teacher             D. a reporter

2.Many graduates today turn to cosmetic surgery to______.

A. marry a better man\woman

B. become a model

C. get an advantage over others in job-hunt

D. attract more admirers

3.According to the passage, the author believes that ______.

A. everyone should purchase perfection, whatever the cost

B. it’s right for graduates to ask for others to help them out in hunting for jobs

C. media are to blame for misleading young people in their seeking for surgery

D. it is one’s appearance instead of skills that really matters in one’s career

4. What does the author think of his height?

A. He hates to be called a short man.

B. He tries to increase his height through surgery.

C. He always wears shoes with thick soles to hide the fact.

D. He just accepts it as it is

Recently I spoke to some of my students about what they wanted to do after they graduated, and what kind of job prospects they thought they had.

Given that I teach students who are training to be doctors, I was surprised to find that most thought that they would not be able to get the jobs they wanted without “outside help”. “What kind of help is that?” I asked, expecting them to tell me that they would need a relative or family friend to help them out.

“Surgery(外科手术)”, one replied. I was pretty alarmed by that response. It seems that the graduates of today are increasingly willing to go under the knife to get ahead of others when it comes to getting a job. One girl told me that she was considering surgery to increase her height. “They break your legs, put in special extending screws, and slowly expand the gap between the two ends of the bone as it regrows, you can get at least 5cm taller!”

At that point, I was shocked. I am short, I can’t deny that, but I don’t think I would put myself through months of agony(痛苦) just to be a few centimeters taller. I don’t even bother to wear shoes with thick soles, as I’m not trying to hide the fact that I am just not tall!

It seems to me that there is a trend toward wanting “perfection”, and that is an ideal that just does not exist in reality.

No one is born perfect, yet magazines, TV shows and movies present images of thin, tall, beautiful people as being the norm. Advertisements for slimming aids, beauty treatments and cosmetic surgery clinics fill the pages of newspapers, further creating an idea that “perfection” is a requirement, and that it must be purchased, no matter what the cost. In my opinion, skills, rather than appearance, should determine how successful a person is in his chosen career.

1.We can know from the passage that the author works as ______.

A．a doctor          B．a model           C．a teacher          D．a reporter

2.Many graduates today turn to cosmetic surgery to______.

A．marry a better man\woman               B．become a model

C．get an advantage over others in job-hunt     D．attract more admirers

3.According to the passage, the author believes that ______.

A．everyone should purchase perfection, whatever the cost

B．it’s right for graduates to ask for others to help them out in hunting for jobs

C．media are to blame for misleading young people in their seeking for surgery

D．it is one’s appearance instead of skills that really matters in one’s career

4.What does the author think of his height?

A．He hates to be called a short man.

B．He tries to increase his height through surgery.

C．He always wears shoes with thick soles to hide the fact.

D．He just accepts it as it is