It doesn’t matter when or how much a person sleeps, but everyone needs some rest to stay alive. That’s what all doctors thought, until they heard about Al Herpin. Al Herpin, it was said, never slept. Could this be true? The doctors decided to see this strange man themselves.
Al Herpin was 90 years old when the doctors came to his home in New Jersey. They thought for sure that he got some sleep of some kind. So they stayed with him and watched every movement he made. But they were surprised. Though they watched him hour after hour and day after day, they never saw Herpin sleeping. In fact, he did not even own a bed. He never needed one.
The only rest that Herpin sometimes got was sitting in a comfortable chair and reading newspapers. The doctors were puzzled by this strange continuous sleeplessness. They asked him many questions, hoping to find an answer. They found only one answer that might explain his condition. Herpin remembered some talk about his mother having been injured several days before he was born. But that was all. Was this the real reason? No one could be sure.
Herpin died at the age of 94.
1.The doctors came to Herpin’s home in order to ______.
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A.treat him for his illness |
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B.find the reason why some old people didn’t need any sleep |
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C.get some proof to show his sleeplessness was not really true |
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D.help him to have a rest in some day |
2.After watching him closely, the doctors came to believe that Al Herpin ______.
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A.needed some kind of sleep |
B.needed no sleep at all |
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C.was too old to need any sleep |
D.often slept in a chair |
3.The word “puzzled” in this passage probably refers to “______”.
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A.make you think a lot because you do not understand it |
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B.make you worry a lot because you cannot sleep well |
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C.make you sad because something unusual has happened |
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D.make you fear because something terrible has happened |
4.The main idea of this passage is that ______.
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A.large numbers of people do not need sleep |
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B.everyone needs some sleep to stay alive |
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C.people can live longer by trying not to sleep at all |
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D.a person was found who actually didn’t need any sleep |
There was a gardener who looked after his garden with great care. To water his flowers, he used two buckets. One was a shiny and new bucket. The other was a very old and dilapidated one, which had seen many years of service, but was now past its best.
Every morning, the gardener would fill up the two buckets. Then he would carry them along the path, one on each side, to the flowerbeds. The new bucket was very proud of itself. It could carry a full bucket of water without a single drop spilled (溢出). The old bucket felt very ashamed because of its holes: before it reached the flowerbeds, much water had leaked(漏水) along the path.
Sometimes the new bucket would say, “See how great I am! How good it is that the gardener has me to water the flowers every day! I don't know why he still bothers with you. What a waste of space you are!”
And all that the old bucket could say was. “I know I am not very useful, but I can only do my best. I am happy that the gardener still finds a little bit of use in me, at least.”
One day, the gardener heard that kind of conversation. After watering the flowers as usual, he said, “You both have done your work very well. Now I am going to carry you back. I want you to look carefully along the path.”
Then the two buckets did so. All along the path, they noticed, on the side where the new bucket was carried, there was just bare(光秃秃的)earth; on the other side where the old bucket was carried, there was a joyous row of wild flowers, leading all the way to the garden.
1.What does the underlined word “dilapidated” probably mean?
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A.dirty |
B.dark |
C.dusk |
D.broken |
2.What was the old bucket ashamed of?
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A.His leaking. |
B.His aging. |
C.His manner. |
D.His past. |
3.The new bucket made conversations with the old one mainly to _________.
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A.show off its beautiful looks |
B.feel sorry about the old one |
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C.laugh at the old one |
D.praise the gardener’s kindness |
4.Why was the old bucket still kept by the gardener?
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A.Because it was used to keep balance(平衡) |
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B.Because it stayed in its best condition |
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C.Because it had its own value |
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D.Because it was treated as a treasure |
You Mi, a lovely and confident 17-year-old student, is the first Chinese high school student to appear on the cover of the popular young adults’ fashion magazine Seventeen.
“You is IN,” said Wang Lihua,Editor-in-Chief of Seventeen. “She is active and mature (成熟) because of her knowledge on everything from academic studies,to books on art,to movies. We find she’s the very style we’re looking for to represent young people’s attitudes.”
You also impressed Wang with her fluent English when they first met last year. As the hostess of an English broadcasting program at the High School Affiliated to Renmin University(人大附中), You is always praised for speaking English almost like a native speaker. “I’ve built up my English by watching thousands of English DVDs since I was 10,” she explained.
But for You,watching isn’t enough. Last year,while in Senior 1, she met a talented (有才能的) boy who showed self-made DV movies at the English Corner in her school.
“I thought it was so cool and I knew that I should start making my own films,” she said. So she wrote a campus (校园) story, persuaded schoolmates to star in it and then began shooting a 30-minute DV movie,all in English. “I played one of the leading roles,actually I was everything in my film. I worked on it every day during the holidays,” she recalled. The movie finally became a big hit on campus,earning You a strong reputation(名气) as a DV movie director.
But this is not the only field she wants to master. Though a science student, You likes art, literature and fashion design very much.
“There are people who can be artists,there are people who edit books, and there are people who become film producers. But I just hope to mix all the things up!” she said. “There is an old saying I believe:Chances favor only the prepared mind.”
1.You Mi was chosen to be a cover of Seventeen, mainly because she _____.
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A.is beautiful |
B.she is lovely and full of confidence |
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C.is active and mature |
D.has rich knowledge |
2.You Mi’s fluent English is based on _____.
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A.her chance to host an English broadcasting program |
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B.the influence of her parents |
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C.her deep interest in it |
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D.her making DV movie |
3.The author mentioned a talented boy to show _____.
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A.the great influence he had on You Mi |
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B.he was admired by his schoolmates |
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C.the young can do things as well as the adults do |
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D.DV movies are popular at school |
4.In the 30-minute DV movie,You Mi didn’t act as a(n) _____.
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A.director |
B.musician |
C.actress |
D.film-maker |
5.We can learn from the passage that _____.
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A.You Mi hopes to be a mixed talent. |
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B.the success of a 30-minute DV movie surprised You Mi. |
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C.You Mi dreams of becoming a scientist. |
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D.You Mi doesn’t like to study during holidays. |
---Can I ask you a personal question?
---________.
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A.That’s all right |
B.Take it easy |
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C.You are welcome |
D.Go straight ahead |
After watering the grass, Peter a notice by its side, which reads “Keep Off”.
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A.gave up |
B.made up |
C.put up |
D.took up |
Many people can hardly______to buy a flat ,especially in big cities such as Beijing,Shanghai and Shenzhen.
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A.permit |
B.afford |
C.expect |
D.offer |
A friend has told me about_______restaurant near here.
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A.a little nice fish |
B.a nice little fish |
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C.nice a little fish |
D.a fish nice little |
We finally arrived at a(n)_____that the work must be completed within 3 days.
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A.impression |
B.approach |
C.permission |
D.conclusion |