Nothing succeeds like confidence．When you are truly confident, it radiates from you like sunlight, and attracts success to you like a magnet(磁铁)．Besides, those who are self-confident can in turn inspire confidence in others：their audience, their peers, their bosses, their customers, and their friends．And gaining the confidence of others is one of the key ways in which a self-confident person finds success．
So how can we build a sense of self-confidence and prepare ourselves on the way to success?
First, do what you believe to be right, even if others laugh at or criticize you for it．Believe in yourself and believe that you can do it under any circumstances, because if you believe you can, then you really will．The belief keeps you searching for answers, which means that pretty soon you will get them．
Second, govern your behavior based on what other people think．What's more important, be willing to take risks and go the extra miles to achieve better results, in which case mistakes cannot be avoided．Don't hesitate to admit your mistakes, and learn from them．Next, work hard to settle the problems in order to cover up your mistakes before anyone notices．Building self-confidence is readily achievable, as long as you have the focus and determination to carry things through．And what's even better is that the things you'll do to build self-confidence will also build success-after all, your confidence will come from real, solid achievement．No one can take this away from you!
As you sow, sow will reap．With your perseverance and improvement, you are getting closer to success．At this stage, wait for others to congratulate you on your accomplishments and compliments graciously．“Thanks, I really worked hard on that prospect．I'm pleased you recognize my efforts．” The congratulations and compliments from others will promote you to gain further success．
Self-confidence is extremely important in almost every aspect of our lives, and it is no wonder that so many people struggle to find it．Self-confidence really can be learned and built on．Besides, whether you're working on your own self-confidence or building the confidence of people around you, it's well worth the effort!
(1)
Those who are truly confident ________．
[ ]
A．
succeed without effort and hard work
B．
appear more attractive and thus become successful
C．
encourage people around to become confident
D．
gain the confidence of others and feel successful
(2)
When others congratulate us on our achievements, we are supposed to ________．
[ ]
A．
politely accept the compliments
B．
gain further improvement
C．
praise them in return
D．
expect them to congratulate you again
(3)
Which of the following proverbs best goes with Paragraph 4?
[ ]
A．
Look before your leap．
B．
Learn from past mistakes and avoid future ones．
C．
Genius is 1％inspiration and 99％perspiration．
D．
It is no use crying over spilt milk．
(4)
The purpose of the text is to ________．
[ ]
A．
tell people how to become successful
B．
convince people to do what they believe to be right
C．
criticize people who lack confidence and thus fail in their career
D．
encourage people to build confidence and achieve success
阅读理解
Grown-ups know that people and objects are solid．At the movies, we know that if we reach out to touch Tom Cruise, all we will feel is air．But does a baby have this understanding?
To see whether babies know objects are solid．T．Bower designed a method for projecting an optical illusion(视觉影像)of a hanging ball．His plan was to first give babies a real ball, one they could be expected to show surprised in their faces and movements．All the 16 to 24-week-old babies tested were surprised when they reached for the illusion and found that the ball was not there．
Grown-ups also have a sense of object permanence．We know that if we put a box in a room and lock the door, the box will still be there when we come back．But does a baby realize that a ball that rolls under a chair does not disappear and go to never-never land?
Experiments done by Bower suggest that babies develop a sense of object permanence when they are about 18 weeks old．In his experiments, Bower used a toy train that went behind a screen．When 16-week-old and 22-week-old babies watched the toy train disappear behind the left side of the screen, they looked to the right, expecting it to re-appear．If the experiment took the train off the table and lifted the screen, all the babies seemed surprised not to see the train．This seems to show that all the babies had a sense of object permanence．But the second part of the experiment showed that this was not really the case．The researcher substituted(替换)a ball for the train when it went behind the screen．The 22-week-old babies seemed surprised and looked back to the left side for the train．But the 16-week-old babies did not seem to notice the switch(更换)．Thus, the 16-week-old babies seemed to have a sense of “something permanence,” while the 22-week-old babies had a sense of object permanence related to a particular object．
(1)
The passage is mainly about．
[ ]
A．
babies' understanding of objects
B．
effects of experiments on babies
C．
babies' sense of sight
D．
different tests on babies' feelings
(2)
What did Bower use in his experiments?
[ ]
A．
A chair
B．
A box
C．
A film
D．
A screen
(3)
Which of the following statements is true?
[ ]
A．
The babies didn't have a sense of direction．
B．
The babies couldn't tell a ball from its optical illusion．
C．
The younger babies liked looking for missing objects
D．
The older babies preferred toy trains to balls．
阅读理解
Geniuses amaze us，impress us and make us all a little jealous．How do they differ from the average person?Scientists are working hard to figure out that answer．Tune in to the National Geographic Channel to find out about the discoveries they're making in the series My Brilliant Brain．
When Marc Yu was only two years old，he began to play the piano．After a year, he started learning pieces by Beethoven．Now he's a world-famous concert pianist at age eight．He learns newer and more difficult pieces with ease and can identify any note he hears．He seems to be specially designed for music．In Born Genius, National Geographic looks at the science behind child prodigies(神童)to explain why some children seem to be born without limits．
Geniuses didn't come naturally to Tommy McHugh．His came only after he nearly died from bleeding in his brain．After recovering, McHugh's head was filled with new thoughts and picture．So, he began to express them in the form of poetry and art．Now, he's a seemingly unstoppable creative machine．Suffers of brain injury have shown that great mental ability can sometimes come from damage or disease．Accidental Genius explores this puzzling relationship．
Can normal people be trained to be geniuses?Susan Polger has shown no sign of extraordinary intelligence．Yet, during her childhood, she studied thousands of chess patterns and learned to recognize them immediately．As a result, she was able to beat skilled adult players by age 10 and can now play up to five games at the same time without even seeing the boards．Make Me a Genius examines what is takes to turn an ordinary brain into that of a genius．
If becoming a genius were easy, we'd all be done．Yet, there is much more to super intelligence than simply being born lucky．Learn more about amazing brains this month on National Geographic's My Brilliant Brain．
(1)
In paragraph 2, Marc Yu's story tells us ________．
[ ]
A．
a child prodigy has an unbelievable listening skill．
B．
a child prodigy is trained by family．
C．
a child prodigy can work easier than others．
D．
a child prodigy always practise his skills．
(2)
In paragraph 3, the sentence “Geniuses didn't come naturally to Tommy McHugh．” means that ________．
[ ]
A．
Tommy McHugh could not be called a genius．
B．
Tommy McHugh became a genius after a sudden accident．
C．
Tommy McHugh was a robot but not a real human being．
D．
Tommy McHugh became a genius when he was young．
(3)
The writer provides different examples to ________．
[ ]
A．
show geniuses are common
B．
show becoming a genius is easy．
C．
show how people can be geniuses．
D．
show people know how to explain geniuses．
(4)
The passage may come from ________．
[ ]
A．
a report
B．
a novel
C．
a TV program
D．
a newspaper
阅读理解
The old shopkeeper led me through to the back of the shop．The room was filled with boxes and photographs of people dressed in old-fashioned clothes, holding packages in their hands．
“Who are these people?” I asked．
“Satisfied customers,” answered young Mr．Hopkins．“We have a very wide choice of items for sale．Whenever I serve a new customer, I always take their picture．” Mr．Hopkins pointed to an ancient camera standing next to one wall．“Now, how can I serve you?” he added．
By this time, I had started to trust Mr．Hopkins and had begun to appreciate the lovely items on sale．I needed to buy Christmas presents for my family and friends, and this seemed to be the perfect place to purchase them．I spent a very pleasant hour being shown the commodities in Mr．Hopkins'shop．No matter what I asked for, Mr．Hopkins found it for me．Finally, I bought an antique jewelry box, a pair of riding boots, a leather-bound edition of the Complete Works of Mark Twain, and a sewing machine．
I was very excited that I had found such a good little shop．I promised Mr．Hopkins that I would come back soon．“I will tell all my friends about your lovely place,” I told the shopkeeper．
“Please do not do that, sir”, said Mr．Hopkins．“This is a special place for special people．You must keep this shop a secret．” Then he took my photograph, and handed me the picture straight away．
“That was quick!” I exclaimed．I looked at the photograph．In the picture I looked proud and excited holding the presents I had bought in Mr．Hopkins' dusty shop．
On Christmas Day, my friends and relatives were delighted with the presents I had bought for them．For weeks, my brother begged me to show him where to find this wonderful little shop．I finally agreed to take him to London to show him．
When we arrived in London, we walked along Oxford Street, past the department store and found．．．nothing．The little shop was no longer there．In its place was an empty space being used as a car park．I checked the area again．There was the music shop, and there was the department store．In between should have been Hopkins and Son, but it wasn't there．
As I was staring at the place where the shop should have been, an old policeman came along．“Are you looking for something sir?” he asked．
I turned and said “I am looking for a little shop called Hopkins and Son．I thought it was here．”
“Oh yes,” said the policeman．“There was a shop here once called Hopkins and Son．It sold all sorts of things, but it was knocked down over 30 years ago．”
I looked again at the place where the shop had been．Then I reached into my pocket and took out the photograph that Mr．Hopkins had taken of me holding my presents in the little shop．
“How strange” I exclaimed．
(1)
How did the writer like the shop?
[ ]
A．
He found it a modern big shop．
B．
He thought it a wonderful shop for all Christmas presents．
C．
He found it a dusty, old but friendly and lovely little shop．
D．
He thought it a good shop with an ancient camera．
(2)
Which of the following is true about the shop?
[ ]
A．
It was knocked down a few weeks ago．
B．
It was a well-known little shop in London．
C．
It was a special shop selling special presents．
D．
It was between a music shop and a department store．
(3)
The word “the commodities' in the 4th paragraph means ________．
[ ]
A．
the writer's works
B．
the goods in the shop
C．
Mr．Hopkins' photographs
D．
Some presents left by other customers
(4)
Which of the following is the best title of this passage?
[ ]
A．
Christmas Shopping
B．
Hopkins and His Son
C．
The Strange Little Shop
D．
The Strange Experience
阅读理解
It is commonly believed that most people go to work to make money．However, it has been said that today people earn money to go to work．The difference between making money and going to work suggested by this is important．
Would you give up your job if you had a lot of money? In a 2010 poll(民意测验)conducted by the Gallup Organization, quite a few people conducted among said they would do so, but researchers find that work is one of life’s main satisfactions for many people．
Take Liu Yan, 23, a former teacher, for example, before she quit her job in 2010, she taught at a high school．Although the salary was of the ordinary, she liked her job and worked so successfully that in only one year’s time after her graduation from college．She not only won a prize for excellence in teaching, but also enjoyed wide popularity among her students．In her second teaching year, however, she met a millionaire and got married; and went to live in Hong Kong with her husband．There she led a very comfortable and easy life, spending most of her days doing shopping and going traveling．After one year of endless vacation, though, she began to miss her work and asked for return to her teaching position．“I’m so tired of this kind of life,” she explained in her letter to the school she had previously worked for, “that I miss more than ever the days with my students．”
So what do you think of it? Which is more important：work or money?
One more question, if there are two jobs, the one offers good salary with little challenge, just like work in the government department; the other, a lot of challenge but low salary, what’s your choice?
(1)
What can be concluded from the passage?
[ ]
A．
Work is more important than money．
B．
Money is more important than work．
C．
With the development of society, more people work not only for money．
D．
It is difficult to say whether money or work is more important．
(2)
The example of Liu Yan suggests _________．
[ ]
A．
work is one of life’s main satisfactions
B．
one would give up his job if he or she had a lot of money
C．
money is more important than work
D．
one can’t go without money
(3)
What does the underlined word “quit” mean?
[ ]
A．
began
B．
found
C．
appreciate
D．
gave up
阅读理解
This is time of year when we think about giving and receiving presents．Can you find a little extra(额外的东西)to give? On this page we suggest a few organizations you might like to help．
Littleton Children’s Home
We don’t want your money, but children’s toys, books and clothes in good condition would be very welcome．
Also，we are looking for friendly families who would take our children into their homes for a few hours or days and give them not only food but also love．You have so much－will you share it?
Phone Sister Thomas on 55671．
Children’s Hospice
We look after a small number of very sick children．This important work needs skill and love．We cannot continue without gifts of money to pay for more nursing staff(员工)．We also need story books and toys suitable for quiet games．
Street Food
In the winter weather, it’s no fun being homeless．It’s even worse if you’re hungry．
We give hot food to at least fifty people every night．It’s hard work, but necessary．Can you come and help? If not, can you find a little money? We use a very old kitchen, and we urgently need some new sauce pans．Money for new would be most welcome indeed．
Contact Street Food, c/o Mary’s House, Elming Way, Littleton．Phone 27713．
Littleton Youth Club
Have you got an unwanted chair?－a record player?－a pot of paint?
Because we can use them!
We want to get to work on our meeting room!
Please phone 66231 and we’ll be happy to collect anything you can give us．
Thank you!
Night Shelter
We offer a warm bed for the night to anyone who has nowhere to go．We rent the former Commercial Hotel on Green Street．Although it is not expensive, we never seem to have quite enough money．Can you let us have a few pounds? Any amount, however small, will be such a help．
Send it to us at 15, Green St, Littleton．Please make a check payable to Night Shelter．You can also call us at 62735．
(1)
If you like children and you could offer a happy family to a homeless child, you may go to ________．
[ ]
A．
Street Food
B．
Night Shelter
C．
Littleton Children’s Home
D．
Children’s Hospice
(2)
We can infer that ________．
[ ]
A．
there are too many social problems in this country
B．
people are very poor during the time for giving
C．
warm-hearted people like to give away money
D．
this passage is taken from a local newspaper
(3)
If you want to help but you have no extra to give, you may dial _________ and offer your help．
[ ]
A．
27713
B．
55671
C．
62735
D．
66231
(4)
If your child has grown up, you may take the child’s things to ________．
[ ]
A．
Littleton Children’s Home and Children’s Hospice
B．
Littleton Youth Club and Littleton Children’s Home
C．
Children’s Hospice and Night Shelter
D．
Littleton Youth Club and Night Shelter
阅读理解
Everyone who has eaten instant noodles(方便面)before knows how it looks like．It is very easy to cook it instantly by putting the noodles into the boiling water and add in those MSG(味精)packets(小包), together with your other food like eggs or vegetables．However, have you ever wondered whether this is the correct way of cooking it? When you first took out the noodles from the packaging, you will notice that the noodles are joined together nicely as a piece．In order to make the noodles joined together nicely side by side it needs some form of wax coating(石蜡涂层)in order to show an attractive instant noodles in front of us．Many people who enjoy eating instant noodles frequently do not really think too much of it as it seems very normal to everyone to have it nicely shown in front of us．However, researches have shown that the layer(层)of wax coating on the noodles is quite harmful to our body and we should not eat it too frequently．It is advisable to have a break of 2-3 days before we start to eat another packet of instant noodles as our body need about 3 days to clear that layer of wax coating away from our body system．Do you know the danger of having too much wax coating stored in our stomach? It will lead to CANCER if it is stored in our body system for a long period of time．
There are 2 key points to take note while preparing instant noodles：
1)Wash the instant noodles with warm water first, stir(搅和)it and pour away the water containing the wax coating．
2)Repeat Step 1 and try to stir the noodles again to wash away the wax coating on the noodles before cooking it in a new pot of water．
Hope this article will let more people have self-awareness of the hidden danger of instant noodles and thus eat safely and stay healthy．
(1)
The purpose of the writer is to tell us _________．
[ ]
A．
how the instant noodles are made
B．
how to cook instant noodles
C．
something about the layer of wax coating on the noodles
D．
how to eat instant noodles safely and healthily
(2)
It is true according to the passage that _________．
[ ]
A．
the instant noodles are joined together in a mess as a piece．
B．
it is common to see the noodles nicely joined together．
C．
you can eat instant noodles as often as you like．
D．
too much wax coating does no harm to our health．
(3)
Many people don’t care about too much of the wax coating on the instant noodles because _________．
[ ]
A．
they enjoy the taste of the wax coating
B．
they take the wax coating for granted
C．
they don’t know the hidden danger at all
D．
their body clear it faster than other people
(4)
The function of the wax coating in the instant noodles is to _________．
[ ]
A．
make the noodles more delicious and tasty
B．
make it easier to cook for the consumers
C．
make the instant noodles healthier and more attractive to the consumers
D．
make the noodles joined in a piece and avoid them sticking(粘)together
阅读理解
I was sure that I was to be killed．I became terribly nervous．I felt in my pockets to see if there were any cigarettes, which had escaped their search．I found one and because of my shaking hands, I could hardly get it to my lips．But I had no matches(火柴), they had taken those．I looked through the bars at my jailer(狱卒)．He did not make eye contact with me．I called out to him：“Have you got a light?” He looked at me, shrugged and came over to light my cigarette．As he came close and lit the cigarette, his eyes inadvertently(无意)locked with mine．At that moment, I smiled．I don’t know why I did that．Perhaps it was nervousness, perhaps it was because, when you get very close, one to another, it is very hard not to smile．Anyway, I smiled．I know he didn’t want to, but my smile leaped(=went)through the bars and generated a smile on his lips, too．He lit my cigarette but stayed near, looking at me directly in the eyes and continuing to smile．
I kept smiling at him, now considering him as a person and not just a jailer．“Do you have kids?” he asked．“Yes, here, here．” I took out my wallet and nervously fumbled(摸)for the pictures of my family．He, too, took out the pictures of his family and began to talk about his plans and hopes for them．My eyes filled with tears．I said that I was scared that I’d never see my family again, never have the chance to see them grow up．Tears came to his eyes, too．Suddenly, without another word, he unlocked my cell and silently led me out and set me free．“My life was saved by a smile．” Yes, the smile－the unaffected, unplanned, natural connection between people．I really believed that if that part of you and that part of me could recognize(认可)each other, we wouldn’t be enemies．We couldn’t have hate or scare．
(1)
The true statement of the following according to the passage is _________
[ ]
A．
when I was smiling to the jailer, he didn’t smile．
B．
the jailer was moved by what I said about my family and kids．
C．
the jailer set me out of the jail as long as I kept silent over it．
D．
if we could recognize each other, we must be good friends．
(2)
Which of the following do you agree with most?
[ ]
A．
The jailer helped him because he was a friend of the author．
B．
If there is understanding there would be no hate or fear．
C．
A picture of one’s family is helpful in time of trouble．
D．
The writer had no chance to see his children again．
(3)
The underlined word “generated” probably means _________．
[ ]
A．
produced
B．
forced
C．
escaped
D．
showed
(4)
If you are asked to give the passage a title, _________ could be the best of the following．
[ ]
A．
A jailer and a prisoner
B．
The conversation between the souls
C．
A friend or an enemy
D．
The power of a smile
阅读理解
Attractions in Wisconsin
Wisconsin Historical Museum
30 N．Carroll Street on Madison's Capitol Square
Discover Wisconsin's history and culture on four floors of exhibits．Open for public program．
Admission is free．Open the second day of a week through Saturday, 9∶00 a. m.－4∶00 p. m．
(
608)2646555 www．wisconsinhistory．org/museum
Swiss Historical Village
612 Seventh Ave．, New Glares
The Swiss Historical Village offers a delightful look at pioneer life in America's heartland．14 buildings in the village give a full picture of everyday life in the nineteenth century Midwest．
Tue．Fri．, May 1st October 31st, 10∶00 a. m.－4∶00 p. m．Admission is ＄20．
(608)527－2317 www．swisshistoricalvillage．com
Artisan Gallery ＆ Creamery Café
6858 Paoli Rd．, Paoli, WI
One of the largest collections of fine arts and crafts in Wisconsin．Over 5000 sq．ft．of exhibition space in a historic creamery．While visiting, enjoy a wonderfully prepared lunch at our café overlooking the Sugar River．Just minutes from Madison!
Gallery open Tue．Sun．, 10∶00 a. m.－5∶00 p. m．
Café open Wed．Sat．, 11∶00 a. m.－3∶00 p. m．
Sun．brunch with wine, 10∶00 a. m.－3∶00 p. m．
(608)845-6600 www．artisangal．com
Christopher Columbus Museum
239 Whitney St．, Columbus
World class exhibit－2000 quality souvenirs marking Chicago's 1893 World Columbian Exhibition．Tour buses are always welcome．
Open daily, 8∶15 a. m.－4∶00 p. m．
(920)623-1992 www．columbusantiquemall．com
(1)
Which of the following is on Capitol Square?
[ ]
A．
Wisconsin Historical Museum．
B．
Swiss Historical Village．
C．
Artisan Gallery ＆ Creamery Café．
D．
Christopher Columbus Museum．
(2)
Where can you go for a visit on Monday?
[ ]
A．
Wisconsin Historical Museum．
B．
Swiss Historical Village．
C．
Artisan Gallery ＆ Creamery Café．
D．
Christopher Columbus Museum．
(3)
Where can visitors have lunch?
[ ]
A．
At Wisconsin Historical Museum．
B．
At Swiss Historical Village．
C．
At Artisan Gallery ＆ Creamery Café．
D．
At Christopher Columbus Museum．
阅读理解
A funny thing happened on the way to the communications revolution：we stopped talking to one another．
I was walking in the park with a friend recently, and his cell phone rang, interrupting our conversation．There we were walking and talking on a beautiful sunny day and…I became invisible, absent from the conversation．
The telephone used to connect you to the absent．Now it makes people sitting next to you feel absent．Why is it that the more connected we get, the more disconnected I feel? Every advance in communications technology is a tragedy to the closeness of human interaction(互动)．With email and instant messaging over the internet, we can now communicate without seeing or talking to one another．With voice mail, you can conduct entire conversations without ever reaching anyone．If my mom has a question, I just leave the answer on her machine．
As almost every contact we can imagine between human beings gets automated(自动化), the alienation index(疏远指数)goes up．You can't even call a person to get the phone number of another person any more．Directory assistance is almost always fully automated．
I am not against modern technology．I own a cell phone, an ATM card, a voice mail system, and an email account．Giving them up isn't wise…they're a great help to us．It's some of their possible consequences that make me feel uneasy．
More and more．I find myself hiding behind e-mail to do a job meant for conversation．Or being relieved that voice mail picked up because I didn't really have time to talk．The industry devoted to helping me keep in touch is making me lonelier…or at least facilitating my antisocial instincts．
So I've put myself on technology restriction：no instant messaging with people who live near me, no cell phoning in the presence of friends, no letting the voice mail pick up when I'm at home．
(1)
Which of the following would be the best title of the passage?
[ ]
A．
The Advance of Communications Technology
B．
The Consequences of modern Technology
C．
The Story of Communications Revolution
D．
The Automation of Modern Communications
(2)
The sentence “Now it makes people sitting next to you feel absent” means that _________．
[ ]
A．
the people sitting beside you have to go away to receive a phone call
B．
you can hardly get in touch with the people sitting beside you
C．
modern technology makes it hard for people to have a face to face talk
D．
people can now go to work without going to the office
(3)
The writer feels that the use of modern communications is _________．
[ ]
A．
satisfying
B．
encouraging
C．
disappointing
D．
embarrassing
(4)
The passage implies that _________．
[ ]
A．
modern technology is bridging the people
B．
modern technology is separating the people
C．
modern technology is developing too fast
D．
modern technology is interrupting our communication