阅读理解

　　In the future your automobile will run on water instead of gas!You will be able to buy a supercomputer that fits in your pocket!You might even drive a flying car!

　　For each prediction that has come true today, several others have missed by a mile．Many of these predictions didn’t consider how people would want to use the technology．Or if people really needed it in their lives or not．Let’s look at some predictions from the not-too-distant past．

　　Robot Helpers

　　Where’s the robot in my kitchen?Nowhere, of course．And he’s probably not coming anytime soon．Robots do exist today, but mostly in factories and other Manufacturing environments．

　　Back in the 1950s, however, people said that by now personal robots would be in most people’s home．

　　So why hasn’t happened?Probably because robots are still too expensive and clumsy．And maybe the idea of robots cooking our dinners and washing our clothes is just too weird．At home we seem to be doing fine without them．

　　Telephones of tomorrow?

　　In 1964 an American company introduced the video telephone．They said by the year 2000 most people would have a video phone in their homes．But of course the idea hasn’t caught on yet．

　　Why?The technology worked fine, but it overlooked something obvious：people’s desire for privacy．Would you want to have a video phone conversation with someone after you just stepped out of the shower?Probably not－it could be embarrassing!Just because a technology available doesn’t always mean people will want to use it．

　　And finally, how about that crazy prediction of the flying car?It’s not so crazy anymore!But a flying car remains one of the most fascinating technology ideas to capture our imagination．Keep watching the news－or perhaps the sky outside your window－to see what the future will bring．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　You can’t buy happiness but it looks like you can at least inherit(遗传)it, British and Australian researchers said on Thursday．

　　A study of nearly 1000 pairs of identical and non-identical twins found genes control half the personality traits(特性)that make people happy while factors such as relationships, health and careers are responsible for the rest of our well-being．

　　“We found that around half the differences in happiness were genetic,”said Tim Bates, a researcher at the University of Edinburgh who led the study．“It is really quite surprising．”

　　The researchers asked the volunteers–ranging in age from 25 to 75-a series of questions about their personality, how much they worried and how satisfied they were with their lives．

　　Because identical twins share the same genes and fraternal twins(异卵双胞胎)do not, the researchers could identify common genes that result in certain personality traits and predispose people to happiness．

　　People who are sociable, active, stable, hardworking and conscientious tend to be happier, the researchers reported in the journal Psychological Science．

　　“What this study showed was that the identical twins in a family were very similar in personality and in well-being, and by contrast, the fraternal twins were only around half as similar,”Bates said．“That strongly implicates genes．”

　　The findings are an important piece of the puzzle for researchers trying to better understand depression and what makes different people happy or unhappy, Bates said．

　　People with positive inherited personality traits may, in effect, also have a reserve of happiness to draw on in stressful times, he said．

　　“An important implication is that personality traits of being outgoing, calm and reliable provide a resource, we called it ‘affective reserve,’ that drives future happiness”Bates said．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　What do Eleanor Roosevelt, Big Bangs and Chrysan the moms have in common？Find out in this tale of 2 soul sisters on the last search！

　　Recent reviews of Chris Anthem by Mona Telor state,“It’s hard to describe a book like this one, it is an inspiring and encouraging story of survival, struggle, change, friendship, love and, basically, life．The relationship between Mona and Chris is one that I think most people can relate to on some level, and I think everyone has someone in their life who inspires them to be who they are．The development of the characters and the journey they take together through some of life’s hardest lessons are so beautifully written that you find yourself wrapped up in their world, and searching for them to overcome hardships and not lose sight of who they are．I highly recommend this book to anyone，especially if you need a little lift, and need to feel a bit better about the world!”

　　“I swallow Mona’s tale in a short time and didn’t want the story to end－a continuation someday perhaps?”

　　“Chris-Antem is a delightful story which offers much inspiration．Telor writes beautifully－I love the back grounding of each scene．I can just smell the coffee, taste the wine and see the moms every time they are mentioned．It’s a descriptive, word-picture type of writing that reminds me of Agarba Christie without the British accent！The story deals with the very sensitive subject of bad habits in family but does it in a way that shows love, pity and hope．In the world we live in today，this kind of writing is refreshingly welcome and uplifting．”

　　To Order This Book：visit www.kaseysbooks.com.Book will be inscribed(签名)by the author and include a free gift．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　Chair Miller and his crew picked up a new B-24 at California’s March Field on Christmas Eve, 1943, and prepared to fly to England．But they decided to have“one more hamburger”before going out for the distant land of fish and chips．

　　As the airmen sat in a local restaurant, a beautiful young waitress approached．“I understand you’re going to England,”she said to Miller．Then she told him that her fiancé, an aviation gunner like Miller, was stationed there．

　　The woman said she was waiting for him to provide an address so she could send him a picture of herself．“You might run into him,”she told Miller hopefully．“Would you take it?”

　　Miller knew it was unlikely he’d ever see her fiancé．But he didn’t want to disappoint the woman．He took the picture and placed it in his wallet．Later he realized he hadn’t even asked the man’s name．Then he was on to Europe and the war．

　　On August 9,1944, Miller’s plane was shot down, and he was forced to parachute to an island off the coast of Holland．Captured by the Nazis, he spent the next nine months as a prisoner of war．

　　It was on Christmas Eve that someone told him a 19-year-old American prisoner down the hall was badly depressed and possibly suicidal(有自杀倾向)．Miller decided to pay the man a visit．

　　To break the ice, he mentioned the POW band he’s started, with the help of the Red Gross．The young man, he learned, played the saxophone．The two began to exchange details about their families．Was he married, the kid asked．“Yeah, since 1938,”responded Miller．

　　“Have you got her picture?”the soldier asked．So Miller reached for his wallet, and pulled out a photograph of his wife．

　　“She’s beautiful!”the young man responded．Then he noticed that a second picture had fallen out, and an expression of wonder crossed his face．“Where did you get that?”Miller told the story of the waitress at the California hamburger stand．

　　“That’s my fiancée,”the surprised man said．Miller kept his promise to the beautiful girl back home and turned the picture over to its rightful owner．

(1)

(2)

(3)

有关章节

主题内容

1．Part One

A．how to take care of garden

2．Part two

B．how to feed the plants

3．Part Three

C．how to prune

4．Part Four

D．the importance of watering

5．Part Five

E．introduces different functions of tools

F．where you can buy good seeds

阅读理解

　　Last night was the last game for my eight-year-old son's soccer team．It was the final quarter．The score was two to one, my son's team in the lead．Parents surrounded the playground, offering encouragement．

　　With less than ten seconds remaining, the ball suddenly rolled in front of my son's teammate, Mickey O'Donnel．With shouts of“Kick it!”echoing across the playground, Mickey turned around and gave it everything he had．All around me the crowd erupted(沸腾)．O'Donnel had scored!

　　Then there was silence．Mickey had scored all right, but in the wrong goal, ending the game in a tie．For a moment there was a total hush．You see, Mickey has Down syndrome(唐氏综合症)and for him there is no such thing as a wrong goal．All goals were celebrated by a joyous hug from Mickey．He had even been known to hug the opposing players when they scored．

　　The silence was finally broken when Mickey, his face filled with joy, hugged my son tightly and shouted,“I scored!I scored．Everybody won!Everybody won!”For a moment I held my breath, not sure how my son would react．I need not have worried．I watched, through tears, as my son threw up his hand in the classic high-five salute and started chanting(歌唱),“Way to go Mickey!Way to go Mickey!”Within moments both teams surrounded Mickey, joining in the chant and congratulating him on his goal．

　　Later that night, when my daughter asked who had won, I smiled as I replied,“It was a tie．Everybody won．”

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

阅读理解

　　There is a popular belief among parents that schools are no longer interested in spelling．No school I have taught in has ignored spelling or considered it unimportant as a basic skill．There are, however, vastly different ideas about how to teach it, or how much priority(优先)it must be given over general language development and writing ability．The problem is, how to encourage a child to express himself freely and confidently in writing without holding him back with the complexities of spelling．

　　If spelling becomes the only focal point of his teacher’s interest, clearly a bright child will be likely to“play safe”．He will tend to write only words within his spelling range, choosing to avoid adventurous language．That’s why teachers often encourage the early use of dictionaries and pay attention to content rather than technical ability．

　　I was once shocked to read on the bottom of a sensitive piece of writing about personal experience：“This work is terrible!There are far too many spelling errors and your writing is illegible(难以辨认)”．It may have been a sharp criticism of the pupil’s technical abilities in writing, but it was also a sad reflection on the teacher who had omitted to read the essay, which contained some beautiful expressions of the child’s deep feelings．The teacher was not wrong to draw attention to the errors, but if his priorities had centred on the child’s ideas, an expression of his disappointment with the presentation would have given the pupil more motivation to seek improvement．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

阅读理解

　　Concern with money, and then more money, in order to buy the conveniences and luxuries of modern life, has brought great changes to the lives of most Frenchmen．More people are working harder than ever before in France．In the cities the traditional leisurely midday meal is disappearing．Offices, shops, and factories are discovering the great efficiency of a short lunch hour in company lunch rooms．In almost all lines of work emphasis now falls on ever increasing output．Thus the“typical”Frenchman produces more, earns more, and buys more consumer goods than his counterpart of only a generation ago．He gains in creature comfort and ease of life．What he loses to some extent is his sense of personal uniqueness, or individuality．

　　Some say that France has been Americanized．This is because the United States is a world symbol of the technological society and its consumer products．The so called Americanization of France has its critics．They fear that“assembly line life”will lead to the disappearance of the pleasures of the more graceful and leisurely(but less productive)old French style．What will happen, they ask, to taste, elegance, and the cultivation of the good things in life to joy in the smell of a freshly picked apple, a stroll by the river, or just happy hours of conversation in a local café?

　　Since the late 1950s life in France has indeed taken on qualities of rush, tension, and the pursuit of material gain．Some of the strongest critics of the new way of life are the young, especially university students．They are concerned with the future, and they fear that France is threatened by the triumph of this competitive, goods-oriented culture．Occasionally, they have reacted against the trend with considerable violence．

　　In spite of the critics, however, countless Frenchmen are committed to keeping France in the forefront of the modern economic world．They find that the present life brings more rewards, conveniences, and pleasures than that of the past．They believe that a modern, industrial France is preferable to the old．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

(5)

阅读理解

　　Blogs(博客)are the place where young people go to bare their souls, to vent(发泄), and even to gossip(造谣)．

　　Many people enjoy the freedom in blogging．Some, however, find that putting one’s life online can have a price．Some students in America got suspensions(停学)because on their blogs they posted threatening words to their teachers．

　　Recent surveys found that nearly a fifth of teens who have access to the Web have their own blogs．And 38％of teens say they read other people’s blogs．By comparison, about a tenth of adults have their own blogs and a quartet say they read other people’s online journals．

　　With the development of the Internet, more and more people will be interested in blogging．

　　In another survey, 79％of teens agreed that people at their age aren’t careful enough when giving out information about themselves online．Besides, careless blogging can also influence blog viewers．When you are angry or frustrated(气馁), your blog is the first place you turn to．The words you post then may not be rational which you may regret later．To minimize the negative effect, change the permission setting and make such posts“private”so that only you can read them．

　　As long as you are careful of what you post, blogging is a great means of staying in touch with friends and showing one’s creative works．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

阅读理解

　　Frank Lloyd Wright probably is the greatest architect that the United States has ever produced．He was very talented and had a natural ability to design buildings．His buildings were not only beautiful but they were also functional．They fit their purposes very well．Wright’s churches, for example, make people feel like thinking and praying．His office buildings make people enjoy working, and his houses make people feel comfortable at home．However, Frank Lloyd Wright’s beautiful, functional buildings are not the only reason why he is famous．There is another reason．

　　Frank Lloyd Wright is called the greatest American architect because he started an American style in architecture．Most of the architecture in the United States before Wright was really European, not American．Wright’s buildings do not look like those in old European States and in other parts of the world．

　　The most important idea in Frank Lloyd Wright’s style of architecture is that a building must fit its purpose and the land around it．His houses are often called “grass-land houses”because their lines are similar to the lines on the grass-land．Both the lines and lines of Wright’s houses are parallel(平行)to the horizon, the place where the earth and sky seem to meet．

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)