Cole Bettles had been rejected by a number of universities when he received an e-mail from the University of California, San Diego, last month, congratulating him on his admission and inviting him to tour the campus. His mother booked a hotel in San Diego, and the 18-year-old Ojai high school senior arranged for his grandfather, uncle and other family members to meet them at the campus for lunch during the Saturday tour.

“They were like ‘Oh my God, that’s so awesome （棒的）’， ” Bettles said. Right before he got in bed, he checked his e-mail one last time and found another message saying the school had made a mistake and his application had been denied.

In fact, all 28, 000 students turned away from UC San Diego, in one of the toughest college entrance seasons on record, had received the same incorrect message. The students’ hopes had been raised and then dashed （破灭） in a cruel twist that shows the danger of instant communications in the Internet age.

UCSD admissions director Mae Brown called it an “administrative error” but refused to say who had made the mistake, or if those responsible would be disciplined （受训）。

The e-mail, which began, “We’re thrilled that you’ve been admitted to UC San Diego, and we’re showcasing （展示） our beautiful campus on Admit Day, ” was sent to the full 46, 000 students who had applied, instead of just the 18, 000 who got in, Brown said.

The error was discovered almost immediately by her staff, who sent an apology within hours.

“It was really thrilling for a few hours; now he’s crushed （压垮）， ” said Cole’s mother, Tracy Bettles. “It’s really tough on them.”

The admissions director said she was in the office on Monday until midnight answering e-mails and phone calls from disappointed students and their parents. She said she took full responsibility for the error. “We accessed the wrong database. We recognize the incredible pain receiving this false encouragement caused. It was not our intent.”

1.How many students received an admission e-mail from the University of California, San Diego （UCSD）？

A. 18, 000     B. 28, 000   C. 46, 000    D. 18

2. Which of the following statements is TRUE about the wrong e-mail message?

3.The admissions director Mae Brown did what she could to __________.

4.What does the passage mainly talk about?

A. Cole Bettles was admitted to the UCSD.

B. Cole Bettles was rejected y a famous university.

C. USCD admissions office often makes “administration errors”。

D. False admission information raised the students’ hopes and then dashed them.

Cole Bettles had been rejected by a number of universities when he received an e-mail from the University of California, San Diego, last month, congratulating him on his admission and inviting him to tour the campus. His mother booked a hotel in San Diego, and the 18-year-old Ojai high school senior arranged for his grandfather, uncle and other family members to meet them at the campus for lunch during the Saturday tour.

“They were like ‘Oh my God, that’s so awesome （棒的）’， ” Bettles said. Right before he got in bed, he checked his e-mail one last time and found another message saying the school had made a mistake and his application had been denied.

In fact, all 28, 000 students turned away from UC San Diego, in one of the toughest college entrance seasons on record, had received the same incorrect message. The students’ hopes had been raised and then dashed （破灭） in a cruel twist that shows the danger of instant communications in the Internet age.

UCSD admissions director Mae Brown called it an “administrative error” but refused to say who had made the mistake, or if those responsible would be disciplined （受训）。

The e-mail, which began, “We’re thrilled that you’ve been admitted to UC San Diego, and we’re showcasing （展示） our beautiful campus on Admit Day, ” was sent to the full 46, 000 students who had applied, instead of just the 18, 000 who got in, Brown said.

The error was discovered almost immediately by her staff, who sent an apology within hours.

“It was really thrilling for a few hours; now he’s crushed （压垮）， ” said Cole’s mother, Tracy Bettles. “It’s really tough on them.”

The admissions director said she was in the office on Monday until midnight answering e-mails and phone calls from disappointed students and their parents. She said she took full responsibility for the error. “We accessed the wrong database. We recognize the incredible pain receiving this false encouragement caused. It was not our intent.”

How many students received an admission e-mail from the University of California, San Diego （UCSD）？

A. 18, 000     B. 28, 000   C. 46, 000    D. 18

Which of the following statements is TRUE about the wrong e-mail message?

A. The mistake was made on purpose to cause pain among the applicants.

B. It was UCSD admissions director Mae Brown who made the mistake.

C. UCSD admissions staff got information from the wrong database.

D. Staff did not discover the mistake until next Monday.

The admissions director Mae Brown did what she could to __________.

A. protect the person who made the mistake

B. punish herself for the mistake

C. make up for the mistake

D. help the disappointed students enter the university

What does the passage mainly talk about?

A. Cole Bettles was admitted to the UCSD.

B. Cole Bettles was rejected y a famous university.

C. USCD admissions office often makes “administration errors”。

D. False admission information raised the students’ hopes and then dashed them.

When I was growing up, I was embarrassed to be seen with my father. He was badly crippled (跛脚), and when we would walk together, his hand on my arm for balance, people would stare, I would be ashamed of the unwanted attention. If ever noticed or bothered, he never let on.
It was difficult to walk together—and because of that, we didn’t say much as we went along. But as we started out, he always said, “You set the pace. I will try to follow you.”
Our usual walk was to or from the subway, which was how he got to work. He went to work sick, and even in bad weather. He almost never missed a day, and would make it to the office even if others could not. It was a matter of pride for him.
When snow or ice was on the ground, it was impossible for him to walk, even with help... Such times my sister or I would pull him through the streets of Brooklyn, N.Y., on a child’s sleigh to the subway entrance. Once there, he would try to grasp handrail until he reached the lower steps that the warmer tunnel air kept ice free. In Manhattan the subway station was the basement of his office building, and he would not have to go outside again until we met him in Brooklyn on his way home. w.w.w.k.s.5.u.c.o.m
When I think of it now, I am surprised at how much courage it must have taken for a grown man to suffer from shame and disability. And I am also surprised at how he did it—without bitterness or complaint.
He never talked about himself as an object of pity, not did he show any envy of the more fortunate or able. What he looked for in others was a “good heart”, and if he found one, the owner was good enough for him.
Now that I am older, I believe that is a proper standard by which to judge people, even though I still don’t know exactly what a “good heart” is. But I know the times I don’t have one myself.
He has been away for many years now, but I think of him often. I wonder if he sensed my reluctance to be seen with him during our walks. If he did, I am sorry I never told him how sorry I was, how unworthy I was, how I regretted it. I think of him when I complain about my troubles, when I am envious of another’s good fortune, when I don’t have a “good heart”.
【小题1】How did the man treat his father when he was young?

I needed to buy a digital camera, one that was simply good at taking good snaps (快照), maybe occasionally for magazines. Being the cautious type, I fancied a reliable brand. So I went on the net, spent 15 minutes reading product reviews on good websites, wrote down the names of three top recommendations and headed for my nearest big friendly camera store. There in the cupboard was one of the cameras on my list. And it was on special offer. Oh joy. I pointed at it and asked an assistant, “Can I have one of those?”  He looked perturbed (不安). “Do you want to try it first?” he said. It didn’t quite sound like a question. “Do I need to?” I replied ,“There is nothing wrong with it？” This made him look a bit insulted and I started to feel bad. “No, no. But you should try it,” he said encouragingly. “Compare it with the others.”

 I looked across at the others: shelves of similar cameras placed along the wall, offering a wide range of slightly different prices and discounts, with each company selling a range of models based around the same basic box. With so many models to choose from, it seemed that I would have to spend hours weighing X against Y, always trying to take Z and possibly H into account at the same time. But when I had finished, I would still have only the same two certainties that I had entered the store with: first, soon after I carried my new camera out of the shop, it would be worth half what I paid for it; and second, my wonderful camera would very quickly be replaced by a new model.

But something in the human soul whispers that you can beat these traps by making the right choice, the clever choice, the wise choice. In the end, I agreed to try the model I had chosen. The assistant seemed a sincere man. So I let him take out of my chosen camera from cupboard, show how it took excellent pictures of my fellow shoppers… and when he started to introduce the special features, I interrupted to ask whether I needed to buy a carry-case and a memory card as well.

Why do we think that new options(选择) still offer us anything new? Perhaps it is because they offer an opportunity to avoid facing the fact that our real choices in this culture are far more limited than we would like to imagine.

1.The shop assistant insisted that the writer should               

A. try the camera to see if there was anything wrong with it.

B. compare the camera he had chosen with the others.

C. get more information about different companies.

D. trust him and stop asking questions.

2.What does the writer mean by “it would be worth half what I paid for it ”(paragraph 2)

A. He should get a 50% discount.

B. The price of the camera was unreasonably high.

C. The quality of the camera was not good.

D. The camera would soon fall in value.

3.The writer decided to try the model he had chosen because he                  

A. knew very little about it.

B. didn’t trust the shop assistant.

C. wanted to make sure the one he chose would be the best.

D. had a special interest in taking pictures of his fellow shoppers.

4.I t can be inferred from the passage that in the writer’s opinion,            .

A. people waste too much money on cameras

B. cameras have become an important part of our daily life

C. we don’t actually need so many choices when buying a product

D. famous companies care more about profit than quality

For better or worse, multiple marriages aren't just for actress Elizabeth Taylor （famous for her eight marriages） anymore．

More Americans than ever are tying the knot for the third time or more．

Lynn Y. Naugle, a 53-yeap-old family therapist in New Orleans, says that people's personal needs and desires simply change as their life evolves．

"What functions well in the first part of our lives may not function well in the second or third part of our lives," she explains．The first marriage lasted 21 years, her second marriage five years．Two years ago, she wed for a third time, and she describes this union as an "extremely easy marriage"．

Today, at an estimated one of seven weddings, the bride, the groom or both are making that trip down the aisle for at least the third time．That's twice as many as a generation ago, according to the US National Centre for Health Statistics．

In part, the sudden change in multiple marriages is a side effect of the 1970s divorce increase that has supplied an ever expanding pool of divorced singles．Even the simple fact that people are living longer has opened the door to marrying more often．No fault divorce laws （meaning no one is blamed for the failure of the marriage）, and cultural changes have also meant there's less pressure than in past generations to stay in a joyless or abusive marriage．

While a single divorce didn't block either Ronald Reagan or Bob Dole from seeking the most highly demanding job in America—the US presidency—modern society still raises an; eyebrow at more than one

marriage mistake．

Indeed, there are signs that attitudes are changing．"It's coming out of the closet or becoming more accepted," says Glenda Riley, who wrote a book on the history of divorce in the US．"There's still embarrassment on the personal level, while there is growing acceptance on the public level for three or more marriages in a lifetime．"

There is no guarantee, of course, that the third time is the best．To the contrary, second and third marriages run an equal or greater risk of divorce than first marriages, which today are given 4 out of 10 odds of failing, and they tend to end more quickly．Divorce statistics show that failed second marriages typically end two years sooner than first marriages, lasting six years on average rather than eight．That leaves some doubly divorced people open for a third try at a relatively young age．

1.What does the underlined phrase "tying the knot" （Para．2） mean?

    A．Getting married．                    B．Getting engaged．

    C．Having babies．                      D．Attending funerals,

2.What is NOT the reason for the increase in multiple marriages according to the passage?

    A．People are healthier and enjoy a longer life than ever before．

    B．Many people have become single after a divorce boom in the past years．

    C．There is no divorce law restricting people to getting divorced．

    D．People have less pressure to leave a joyless marriage．

3.What can we learn from the seventh paragraph?

    A．Ronald Reagan and Bob Dole failed in seeking the job （the US presidency） because they were divorced．

    B．Ronald Reagan and Bob Dole succeeded in seeking the job （the US presidency） because they were not divorced．

    C．Modern society accepts multiple marriages completely．

    D．There is still prejudice against multiple marriages in modern society．

4.Which of the statement is WRONG?

    A．Acceptance to multiple marriages is different on personal level and public level．

    B．Because second marriages end sooner than first ones, people get married for the third time at a relatively young age．

    C．People learn from experience so that a second or third marriage is more stable

    D．The first marriage lasts eight year on average．