I found out one time that doing a favor for someone could get you into a lot of trouble.
I was in the eighth grade at the time, and we were having a final test. During the test, the girl sitting next to me whispered something, but I didn’t understand. So I leaned over her way and found out that she was trying to ask me if I had an extra pen. She showed me that hers was out of ink and would not write. I happened to have an extra one, so I took it out of
my pocket and put it on her desk.
Later, after the test papers had been turned in, the teacher asked me to stay in the room when all the other students were dismissed. As soon as we were alone she began to talk to me about what it meant to grow up; she talked about how important it was to stand on your own two feet and be responsible for your own acts. For a long time, she talked about honesty and emphasized the fact that when people do something dishonest, they are really cheating themselves. She made me promise that I would think seriously about all the things she had said, and then she told me I could leave. I walked out of the room wondering why she had chosen to talk to me about all those things.
Later on, I found out that she thought I had cheated on the test. When she saw me lean over to talk to the girl next to me, it looked as if I was copying answers from the girl’s test paper. I tried to explain about the pen, but all she could say was it seemed very very strange to her that I hadn’t talked of anything about the pen the day she talked to me right after the test. Even if I tried to explain that I was just doing the girl a favor by letting her use my pen, I am sure she continued to believe that I had cheated on the test.
【小题1】The story took place(发生) exactly ____________ .
| A.in the teacher’s office | B.in an exam room |
| C.in the school | D.in the language lab |
| A.she had not brought a pen with her |
| B.she had lost her own on her way to school |
| C.there was something wrong with her own |
| D.her own had been taken away by someone |
| A.to go on writing his paper |
| B.to stop whispering |
| C.to leave the room immediately |
| D.to stay behind after the exam |
| A.honesty | B.sense of duty | C.seriousness | D.all of the above |
| A.the moment he was asked to stay behind |
| B.when the teacher started talking about honesty |
| C.only some time later |
| D.when he was walking out of the room |
Swedish master medical photographer Lennart Nilsson is a pioneer in medical photography.In association with researchers and with the help of advanced, specially designed equipment, he has documented the inside of man down to the level of a cell with his camera.
Born in Strängnäs, a satellite city of Stockholm, in 1922, Nilsson got his first camera from his father when he was 11 years old.From the early stage, he has been interested in looking at ants and taking photos of them.Throughout the years, he has devoted special attention to capturing the creation of a human being, from conception to birth.
In 2006 when his photo book Life was published in both Swedish and English, he was invited to give a lecture at the Stockholm bookstore.He vividly described to the public how he took the photos so that the development process of the embryo can be understood better.Finally when he was signing his name in the book, I asked him what made him so passionate about working on this, he stopped writing and thought for a second, “I think it is the respect for life,” Nilsson said.
Nilsson began his career as a photographic journalist in the middle of the 1940s and published a numbe
r of
pho
to-essays in Swedish and foreign magazines, including "Polar Bear Hunting in Spitzbergen" (1947) and Midwife.
“When I went to the professor to take the embryo photo, I was looking around and then I saw something which was unbelievable, it was
a tiny human embryo lies in a very special place, a 10-20 millimeter embryo with hands, arms and eyes, and I got a shock,” Nilsson said.
Nilsson began experimenting with new photographic techniques in the mid-1950s to report on the world of ants and life in the sea.H
is revealing macro-studies were published in his book on ants, Myror (1959), and in the Life in the Sea (1959), and in Close to Nature (1984).In the 1960s special designed, very slim endoscopes (内窥镜))made it possible f
or him to photograph the blood vessels and the cavities (空洞) of the body with the necessary depth of field and, in 1970, he used a scanning electron microscope for the first tim
e, he was also considered the pioneer for three dimension digital pictures of the body organs.
After his photographs of human embryo were published, he was encouraged to continue photographing the origins of human being.
Nilsson is very modest and sincere.At age of nearly 88, he is still cooperating with colleagues in Karolinska Institute where the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is selected every year.
“He can forget all the other things when
he is working and he is still working diligently,” Mrs Nilsson told People’s Daily Online.
【小题1】Why does Nilsson want to document the creation of a human being?
| A.Because he is a pioneer in medical photography. |
| B.Because he has been interested in taking photos. |
| C.Because he thinks it a way to show respect for life. |
| D.Because he wished to win a Nobel Prize. |
| A.Nilsson was the only expert in medical photography. |
| B.Nilsson’s camera is specially designed. |
| C.Nilsson’s photo book Life is better received than his other books. |
| D.Nilsson has always been working alone. |
| A.3. | B.4. | C.5. | D.6. |
| A.Passionate. | B.Devoted. | C.Forgetful. | D.Dillgent. |
| A.Nilsson, a pioneer medical photographer. |
| B.Nilsson, a pioneer medical publisher |
| C.Nilsson, a person of rich experience |
| D.Nilsson, a talented photographer |
The World's Largest Insect
This giant insect can be used as a toy.
A child ties one end of a string to a stick and the other end around the "neck" of an insect. Holding the stick, the child lets the insect go. With a loud whirring sound, the insect takes off, pulling the string in a large curve over the child's head. The child laughs as the stick jumps around. The child is African, and the toy is the African Goliath beetle, the largest insect in the world.
The Goliath is a true insect because it has six legs and a body that is divided into three parts. Like all beetles, it has two pairs of wings. The front pair are thick and stiff and protect the back pair, which are soft. It is these soft back wings that make the beetle fly forward. They also cause the loud whirring sound the beetle makes when it flies. To steer, the beetle twists and turns its legs the same way you steer a bike by turning its front wheel.
African children often use the Goliath beetle as a toy. Although it is over 15 centimeters long, it is quite harmless.
【小题1】The African Goliath beetle is _______.
| A.the world's largest insect |
| B.a toy used in many parts of the world |
| C.the only insect found in Africa |
| D.the world's smallest insect |
| A.The curved string. | B.The beetle's soft wings. |
| C.The beetle's six legs. | D.The beetle's body. |
| A.makes a whirring sound when it flies | B.has both soft and hard wings |
| C.has six legs and a body with three parts | D.can fly |
| A.turning its soft back wings |
| B.twisting and turning its hard front wings |
| C.twisting and turning its legs |
| D.twisting and turning its whole body |
Here is a question I have often asked at dinner parties:
You're on an island with only one other person, your best friend. He's dying of cancer. In his final days, he tells you, "I have 100,000 dollars in a bank back home. When I die, make sure my son goes to medical school." Then he dies. But his son is a no-good playboy who has no interest in going to medical school and will waste that money away in a very short time. But your son is entering college, and he is willing to become a doctor. Which one do you give the money to for medical school?
I've asked this question of everyone from the president of a famous university to an ordinary young soldier, and it has never failed to get a discussion going. Everyone has an opinion, most of them different, but all of them correct. Sometimes this one topic lasts the whole evening.
【小题1】Which of the following is TRUE to the passage?
| A.Only the clever people can answer the question rightly. |
| B.Some people refuse to answer such a silly question. |
| C.Everyone at the dinner party seems to be interested in the question. |
| D.Most of the people have the same answer. |
| A.not a true story | B.a true story |
| C.a strange story | D.just a joke |
| A.he wants to find the answer for a research |
| B.he is interested in such a question |
| C.he likes to make fun of people at parties |
| D.he wants to offer people a topic in which everyone could say something |
| A.You give the money to your friend's son. |
| B.You give the money to your son for medical school. |
| C.You keep the money for your future medical care. |
| D.You keep the money for your friend's son. |
My life as a ‘runner’ began by running in a playground near my home in order to lose weight about 2 years ago. As time went by, I found myself so good at running that sometimes, I even forgot how many rounds I ran around the playground.
Thanks to all this practice, I was able to win the 5th place in short course marathon game at ‘BASF Yeosu Site Athletic Competition’ held in October 2002. This event inspired(鼓舞)me to take part in public short-course marathon games such as 10km, 20km and half-course competitions. Finally, in May 2003, I was able to complete a full course (路线) marathon for the first time of my life. My next challenge was the Boston Marathon race, which is the world's oldest and most famous marathon races. To qualify for the Boston Marathon, one should meet the designated time standard of their age group at a certified marathon. So I took part in ChunCheon Marathon in Korea. I had to finish the full coursewithin 3 hours and 30 minutes to meet the time standard for my age group (45 to 49 years old). But to my pleasant surprise, I recorded 3 hours 22 minutes, which is 25 minute faster than my previous best record!
In April 2004, I was finally able to go to Boston. I was very pleased and proud because I could play a role to promote BASF all across the world through this sport. And it really happened! When I ran in the Boston Marathon wearing BASF logo(标记), people along the streets rooted for me shouting ‘BASF! BASF!’. I was very touched and so proud of my company. Of course I completed the full course successfully. After the game, I was interviewed by Korean local newspapers and had an opportunity to appear on several TV shows, which helped me to promote BASF in the community.
【小题1】The author first began running in order to ______.
| A.build up his strength | B.prepare for a marathon race |
| C.lose weight | D.train for a sport meet |
| A.a company | B.a book |
| C.a piece of sports equipment | D.a city |
| A.in his thirties | B.in his late forties |
| C.in his twenties | D.in his fifties |
| A.2002 | B.2003 | C.2004 | D.2005 |
He had travelled thousands of miles in the hope of earning some money,but 18-year-old Lin Kongming never knew danger was waiting for him.
He and six other migrant workers from Fujian Province spent 36 hours in Iraq as international hostages(人质). But luckily,they were set free last Tuesday morning,unharmed by the people who had taken them hostage.
After hard work by Chinese diplomats(外交官)in the region the Iraqi kidnappers(绑架者)agreed to hand them over to a local religious group.“The friendly relations between the Chinese and Iraqi peoples have played a key role in the release of the hostages,”said Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan. China refused to join the US-led coalition(联军)in the Iraq war.
Since April 4,over 60 hostages from 12 countries,including America,Italy and Japan,have been taken in Iraq. Some have been released, others were killed.
The Iraqi resistance groups have started taking foreigners hostage in an attempt to force the US-led troops out of their country. As a result,many foreigners have left,fearing the situation will get worse. Some nations are also considering removing their troops from Iraq. Thailand has ordered its forces not to leave their camp and may bring them home before September as originally planned. New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark is considering similar action.
But Dan Senor,spokesman for the US-led coalition in Baghdad,said that it would not negotiate(谈判)with “terrorists or kidnappers” to get hostages released.
【小题1】The seven workers from Fujian were set free mainly because ______.
| A.they were too poor to pay anything |
| B.kidnappers didn’t know they were Chinese |
| C.China didn’t take sides with the US-led coalition |
| D.kidnappers were friendly to the Chinese |
| A.To show their anger towards the occupation of foreign troops. |
| B.To tell the world they would fear nothing. |
| C.To make foreign armies leave their country. |
| D.To resist the American troops. |
| A.wouldn’t give in to Iraqi terrorists or kidnappers |
| B.had enough power to station in Iraq |
| C.wouldn’t give up unless it could get something |
| D.had no plan to bring its troops home |
| A.the hostage crises in Iraq |
| B.foreigners were not welcome in Iraq |
| C.the Chinese hostages were set free |
| D.keeping away from Iraq is a wise choice |
In 1995, Susan Boyle went to Glasgow to audition (试演) for My Kind of people, a televised talent show popular in the UK. She was immediately rejected. She was nervous during the audition, and felt she didn't perform well, but her brother said that she was rejected because of her plain looks. Boyle was not discouraged and continued to sing at church and at the karaoke nights in a local pub.
Boyle suffered a personal loss in 1997, when her father passed away. After his death. Boyle put her big dreams on hold to care for her sick mother Bridget Boyle. The mother and daughter often talked of Susan's possible fame. Bridget Boyle encouraged her daughter to take part in singing competitions. “She was the one who said I should enter Britain's Got Talent. We used to watch it together.” Susan later told reporters. “She thought I would win.”
In 1999, Boyle used all of her savings to pay for a professional demo (样本唱片) tape. which she sent to record companies. In 2002, Boyle began taking singing lessons from voice coach Fred O'Neil.
In 2007, Boyle's mother passed away at the age of 91. A neighbor reported that when Bridget Boyle died, her daughter “wouldn't come out for three or four days or answer the door or phone.” She lived alone with her cat, Pebbles. For over a year, she refused to sing. But in August of 2008, O'Neil urged her to try out for Britain's Got Talent. Convinced that the performance would be an honor to her mother, Boyle auditioned in Glasgow, Scotland. She sang I Dreamed A Dream in the first round of the show, which was aired on 11 April 2009.
The 47-year-old Scottish woman's plain looks provided a sharp contrast (对比) to her powerfully beautiful voice. The performance astonished the audience and the judges. Online videos of her performance totaled over 40 million views within a week. Although she failed to win the final of Britain's Got Talent, Susan Boyle became globally popular. Her first album I Dreamed A Dream has sold over five million copies.
【小题1】Bridget Boyle's attitude towards her daughter's musical talent can be described as .
| A.critical | B.doubtful | C.indifferent | D.optimistic |
| A.was slightly discouraged by her voice coach |
| B.entered Britain's Got Talent to prove her ability |
| C.decided to give up her singing career |
| D.was deeply affected by her mother's death |
| A.Her international fame grew rapidly in 2008. |
| B.Her audition for My Kind of People failed. |
| C.She has never stopped singing since 1995. |
| D.She was the winner of Britain's Got Talent. |
| A.tell us how Boyle's dream came true |
| B.let us know more about Boyle's personal life |
| C.show how Boyle was influenced by her family |
| D.explain how to enter and win a talent show |