21. In the eighth grade, what the author did before developing proper social behavior was to ______.

A. become serious about her study　 B. go to her friend’s house regularly

C. learn from her classmates at school D. share poems and stories with her friend

20. This is basically a letter of ________.

A. apology 　B. sympathy　 C. appreciation　 D. dissatisfaction

D

　　 When it comes to friends, I desire those who will share my happiness, who possess wings of their own and who will fly with me. I seek friends whose qualities illuminate(照亮)me and train me up for love. It is for these people that I reserve the glowing hours, too good not to share.

　　 When I was in the eighth grade, I had a friend. We were shy and “too serious” about our studies when it was becoming fashionable with our classmates to learn acceptable social behaviors. We said little at school, but she would come to my house and we would sit down with pencils and paper, and one of us would say:“Let’s start with a train whistle today.” We would sit quietly together and write separate poems or stories that grew out of a train whistle. Then we would read them aloud. At the end of that school year, we, too, were changing into social creatures and the stories and poems stopped.

　 When I lived for a time in London, I had a friend. He was in despair(失望)and I was in despair. But our friendship was based on the idea in each of us that we would be sorry later if we did not explore this great city because we had felt bad at the time. We met every Sunday for five weeks and found many excellent things. We walked until our despairs disappeared and then we parted. We gave London to each other.

　　 For almost four years I have had remarkable friend whose imagination illuminates mine. We write long letters in which we often discover our strangest selves. Each of us appears, sometimes in a funny way, in the other’s dreams. She and I agree that, at certain times, we seem to be parts of the same mind. In my most interesting moments, I often think:“Yes, I must tell….”We have never met.

　　 It is such comforting companions I wish to keep. One bright hour with their kind is worth more to me than the lifetime services of a psychologist(心理学家)，who will only fill up the healing(愈合的)silence necessary to those darkest moments in which I would rather be my own best friend.

19. Hamilton is expected to _______.

A. show more kindness.　　　　　　　　 B. discontinue the present practice

C. quit being the organizer for gift giving　

D. know more about co-workers’ families

18. The underlined word “contributions” probably means ________.

A. money　 B. suggestions　 C. reports　　 D. understanding

17. The passage is mainly about _______.

A. why humans domesticated horses

B. how humans and horses needed each other

C. why horses came in different shapes and sizes

D. how human societies and horses influenced each other

C

Dear Hamilton,

　　 We are fortunate that in such a large, high-pressure office we all get along so well. You are one of the people who keep the social temperature at such a comfortable setting. I don’t know anyone in the office who is better liked than you.

　　 You can perhaps help with this. The collection of contributions towards gifts for employees’ personal-life events is becoming a little troubling. Certainly, the group sending of a gift is reasonable now and then. In the past month, however, there have been collections for two baby shower gifts, one wedding shower gift, two wedding gifts, one funeral remembrance, four birthday gifts, and three graduation gifts.

　 It’s not only the collected-from who are growing uncomfortable (and poor), but the collected-for feel uneasy receiving gifts from people who don’t know them outside the office, who wouldn’t even recognize their graduating children, their marrying daughters and sons, or their dead relatives.

　　 This is basically a kind gesture (and one that people think well of you for), but the practice seems to have become too wide-ranging and feels improper in today’s office setting.

　　 Thank you for understanding.

16. Horses contributed to the spread of culture by ______.

A. carrying heavy loads　　　　　 B. changing farming methods

C. serving as a means of transport　 D. advancing agriculture in different areas

15. The author uses the Shetland horse as an example to show ______.

A. it is smaller than the Clydesdale horse

B. horse used to have gentle personalities

C. some horses have better shaped than others

　　 D. horses were of less variety before domestication

14. Before domestication horses were ______.

A. caught for sports 　　　B. hunted for food

C. made to pull ploughs　　 D. used to carry people

13. What can we learn from the story?

A. Giving is always a pleasure. B. People should respect each other.

C. An act of kindness can bring people great joy.

D. People should learn to appreciate others’ concern.

B

Domestic (驯养的) horses now pull ploughs, race in the Kentucky Derby, and carry police. But early horses weren’t tame (驯服的) enough to perform these kinds of tasks. Scientists think the first interactions humans had with horses were far different from those today.

Thousands of years ago, people killed the wild horses that lived around them for food. Over time, people began to catch the animals and raise them. This was the first step in domestication.

As people began to tame and ride horses, they chose to keep those animals that had more desirable characteristics. For example, people may have chosen to keep horses that had a gentle personality so they could be ridden more easily. People who used horses to pull heavy loads would have chosen to keep stronger animals. Characteristics like strength are partly controlled by the animals’ genes. So as the domesticated horses reproduced, they passed the characteristics on to their young. Each new generation of houses would show more of these chosen characteristics.

Modern day horse breeds come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. This variety didn’t exist in the horse population before domestication. The Shetland horse is one of the smallest breeds-typically reaching only one meter tall. With short, strong legs, the animals were bred to pull coal out of mine shafts (矿井) with low ceilings. Huge horses like the Clydesdale came on the scene around 1700. People bred these heavy, tall horses to pull large vehicles used for carrying heavy loads.

The domestication of horses has had great effects on societies. For example, horses were important tools in the advancement of modern agriculture. Using them to pull ploughs and carry heavy loads allowed people to farm more efficiently. Before they were able to ride horses, humans had to cross land on foot. Riding horses allowed people to travel far greater distance in much less time. That encouraged populations living in different areas to interact with one another. The new from of rapid transportation helped cultures spread around the world.

12. The taxi driver did not charge the old woman because he ______.

A. wanted to do her a favor　 B. shut off the meter by mistake

C. had received her payment in advance D. was in a hurry to take other passengers