阅读题

　　I was in a rush as always, but this time it was for an important date I just couldn’t be late for! I found myself at a checkout counter behind an elderly woman seemingly in no hurry as she paid for her groceries．A PhD student with not a lot of money, I had hurried into the store to pick up some flowers．I was in a huge rush, thinking of my upcoming evening．I did not want to be late for this date．

　　We were in Boston, a place not always known for small conversation between strangers．The woman stopped unloading her basket and looked up at me．She smiled．It was a nice smile-warm and reassunring-and I retuned her gift by smiling back．

　　“Must be a special lady,” whoever it is that will be getting those beautiful flowers,” she said．

　　“Yes, she’s special,” I said, and then to my embarrassment, the words kept coming out．“It‘s only our second date, but somehow I am just having the feeling she’s ‘the one ，’”jokingly, I added, “The only problem is that I can’t figure out why she’d want to date a guy like me．”

　　“Well, I think she’s very lucky to have a boyfriend who brings her such lovely flowers and who is obviously in love with her,” the woman said．”My husband used to bring me flowers every week-even when times were tough and we didn’t have much money．Those were incredible days; he was very romantic and-of course- I miss him since he’s passed away．”

　　I paid for my flowers as she was gathering up her groceries．There was no doubt in my mind as I walked up to her．I touched her on the shoulder and said “You were right, you know．These flowers are indeed for a very special lady．” I handed the flowers and thanked her for such a nice conversation．

　　It took her a moment to realize that I was giving her the flowers I had just purchased．“You have a wonderful evening,” I said．I left with a big smile and my heart warmed as I saw her smelling the beautiful flowers．

　　I remember being slightly late for my date that night and telling my girlfriend the above story．A couple of years later, when I finally worked up the courage to ask her to marry me, she told me that this story had helped to seal it for her-that was the night than I won her heart．

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阅读理解

　　If there is one thing I’m sure about, it is that in a hundred years from now we will still be reading newspaper．It is not that newspaper are a necessity．Even now some people get most of their news from television or radio．Many buy a paper only on Saturday or Sunday．But for most people reading a newspaper has become a habit passed down from generation to generation．

　　The nature of what is news may change．What basically makes news is what affects our lives－the big political stories, the coverage of the wars, earthquakes and other disasters, will continue much the same．I think there will be more coverage of scientific research, though．It’s already happening in areas that many directly affect our lives, like genetic(基因)engineering．In the future, I think there will be more coverage of scientific explanations of why we feel as we do－as we develop a better understanding of how the brain operates and what our feelings really are．

　　It’s quite possible that in the next century newspapers will be transmitted(传送)electronically from Fleet Street and printed out in our own home．In fact, I’m pretty sure that how it will happen in the future．You will probably be able to choose from a menu, making up your own newspapers by picking out the things you want to read-sports and international news, etc．

　　I think people have got it wrong when they talk about competition between the different media(媒体)．They actually feed off each other．Some people once foresaw that television would kill off newspapers, but that hasn’t happened．What it read on the printed page lasts longer than pictures on a screen or sound lost in the air．And as for the Internet, it’s never really pleasant to read something just on a screen．

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　　The food we eat seems to have a great effect on our health．Although science has made big steps in making food more fit to eat, it has at the same time, made many foods unfit to eat．Some research has shown that perhaps eighty percent of human illness is related to food and forty percent of cancer is related to food as well．That food is related to illness is not a new discovery．

　　In 1945, some researchers realized that things commonly used to keep colors in meats and other food additives(添加剂)caused cancer．Yet, these additives remain in our food, and it is difficult to know which things on the wrappings(包装纸)of foods are helpful or harmful．The additives which we eat are not all so direct．Farmers often give penicillin(盘尼西林)to their animals, and because of this, penicillin has been found in the milk of cows．Sometimes similar things are supplied to animals not for their heath, but just to make a profit(利益)．

　　The farmers are simple trying to fatten the animals in order to get a higher price on the market．Although some countries have tried to control such things, the practice continues．

　　This may worry us for a long time, which affects our life a lot．

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阅读理解

　　You have known that there is no such thing as a perfect speech．At some point in every speech, every speaker says something that is not understood exactly as he has planned．Fortunately, such moments are usually not obvious to the listeners．Why? Because the listeners do not know what the speaker plans to say．They hear only what the speaker does say．If you lose your place for a moment, wrongly change the order of a couple of sentences, or forget to pause at a certain point, no one will be any the wiser．When such moments occur, don’t worry about them．Just continue as if nothing happened．

　　Even if you do make an obvious mistake during a speech, that doesn’t really matter．If you have ever listened to Martin Luther King’s famous speech－“I Have a Dream”, you may notice that he stumbled over his words twice during the speech．Most likely, however, you don’t remember．Why? Because you were fixing your attention on his message rather than on his way of speech-making．

　　People care a lot about making a mistake in a speech because they regard speech-making as a kind of performance rather than as an act of communication．They feel the listeners are like judges in an ice-skating competition．But, in fact, the listeners are not looking for a perfect performance．They are looking for a well-thought-out speech that expresses the speaker’s ideas clearly and directly．Sometimes a mistake or two can actually increase a speaker’s attractiveness by making him more human．

　　As you work on your speech, don’t worry about being perfect．Once you free your mind of this, you will find it much easier to give your speech freely．

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　　Do you feel a little sleepy after lunch? Well, that’s normal．Your body naturally slows down．What should you do about it? Don’t reach for a coffee! Instead, take a nap(小睡)．

　　There are many benefits(好处)of a daily nap．First of all, you are more efficient after napping．You remember things better and make fewer mistakes．Also, you can learn things more easily after taking a nap．A 20-minute nap can reduce information overload．It can also reduce stress．Finally, a nap may increase you self-confidence and make you more alert(灵活)．It may even cheer you up．

　　But, there are some simple rules you should follow about taking a nap．First, take a nap in the middle of the day, about eight hours after you wake up．Otherwise, you may disturb your sleep-wake pattern(模式)．Next, a 20-minute nap is best．If you sleep longer, you may fall into a deep sleep．After waking from a deep sleep, you will feel worse．Also, you should set an alarm clock．That way, you can fully relax during your nap．You won’t have to keep looking at the clock so that you don’t oversleep．

　　Now, the next time you feel sleepy after lunch, don’t get stressed．Put your head down, close your eyes, and have forty winks．

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　　The oil resources which are left will not last very long．This means that all vehicles such as cars, trains, buses, planes and ships that need oil to work will not be able to run．So it will be necessary to develop a new system of transport which uses a fuel more than oil．Electric vehicles are one possibility．In Britain, most families have at least one car and this car is used every day．It could be that only one person in the family drives the car to work or for shopping．The number of cars on the road which are almost empty perhaps helps to explain why the oil is used up so quickly．The family car is a very useful form of transport but it is also a great waste of energy, especially if it is compared with buses or trains．Much petrol is used by a car which is traveling at 120 kilometers an hour．Clearly, it would be better if there were fewer cars on the road and more speed limits so that the oil which is left will last as long as possible．

　　About 25％ of Britain's total consumption of energy is domestic－it is used only in the home．Just over 20％ is used for transport．Most of the energy is used in industry．It is difficult to suggest any possible energy conservation in industry because many of the suggestions would mean that some people would lose their jobs．It is important that industry produces the same amount of products using the same amount of workers．

　　Obviously, conservation is not going to be the answer to the energy crisis．The most it can do is to give more time for a better solution to be found．The more time which is available for new sources of energy to be developed, the better it is because there is still a lot of work to be done in order to find suitable, safe methods of producing energy．

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　　An ichthyologist is a scientist who studies fish．Most people who do this job say they love their work because it is very rewarding and varied．They work not only inside a laboratory, but also out in the field．Fieldwork includes traveling to rivers, oceans and lakes in order to collect information and specimens．Reading, writing and speaking are also very important to the job．Fish scientists need to read the research of other scientists．They must be able to write up their own research clearly so that others can follow it．They also need to be able to give lectures about their findings, so that they can spread knowledge．

　　Ichthyologists who wish to specialize can choose any one of three areas of study．The first area is aquaculture．This involves the study and practice of fish farming and management．Because it is a rather new study, there are very few job opportunities available．However, as there is so much to discover, many see it as an exciting area for a new ichthyologist to enter．The second area is fisheries science, which means working with a team of scientists to find out more about different fish species．The third area is about the protection of natural fish populations．This is very important today, given that many fish species are in danger of dying out because of the actions of humans．

　　To become a successful fish scientist, you need to have a curious mind and be able to work on your own．You also need to be able to handle equipment and perform experiments; but most importantly, you must love fish．To become an ichthyologist, you will need to train at a university to pass a Bachelor of Science degree．For this, you will need to be good at mathematics, physical science and biology．Then, you will need to study for another year to complete an honors degree in ichthyology．This honors degree contains coursework about all aspects of fish．You also need to complete a research paper．

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　　When Josephine Cooper was growing up, she learned the importance of charity from her parents．Although they made a modest living for their family of 10, they insisted on sharing with those less fortunate．

　　Half a century later, Mrs．Cooper became a beloved volunteer at the San Diego Food Bank, where she devoted herself to helping others．She organized and ran a distribution center from a church, helping it become the organization's largest emergency food distribution center in San Diego．She was one of 25 outstanding senior volunteers in the nation selected and invited to Washington D．C．to receive the award．

　　“She was the main person who helped us make that program grow,” said Mike Doody, former director of the Food Bank．“She had a way of getting people to work together and to work hard．She was determined and stubborn, but in a good way．She had a good heart．” People knew her as “Grandma” because of her selflessness and her devotion to helping hungry children and families．“She reminded people of their Grandma．” Doody said．

　　As a widow with a young child in 1979, Mrs．Cooper was helped through a difficult financial time when the Food Bank provided her with groceries．“She dedicated her life to giving back,” said her daughter, Monica Cooper．“She loved life, and she loved people．She was very outgoing, caring and very concerned about our community．”

　　Cooper said it wasn't unusual for a local church to call Mrs．Cooper to ask her to aid a needy family．“She would give people food out of her cupboard．Sometimes we would cook a meal for a family living out of their car,” Cooper said．

　　Although Mrs．Cooper was honored to receive the national award for her volunteer work, she said being able to help others was her reward．Mrs．Cooper was confined to a wheelchair in recent years．She died of liver disease and kidney failure this year, aged 93．

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　　“Heaven(天堂)is where the police are English, the cooks are French, the mechanics are German, the lovers are Italian and everything is organized by the Swiss．Hell(地狱)is where the police are German, the cooks are English, the mechanics are French, the lovers are Swiss, and everything is organized by the Italians．”

　　Obviously the national stereotypes(模式化的思想)in this old joke are generalizations(普遍化), but such stereotypes are often said to “exist for a reason．” Is there actually a sliver(裂片)of truth in them? Not likely, an international research team now says．

　　“National and cultural stereotypes do play an important role in how people see themselves and others, and being aware that these are not dependable is a useful thing,” said study author Robert McCrae of the National Institute on Aging．“These are in fact unfounded stereotypes．They don't come from looking around you,” McCrae said．

　　If national stereotypes aren't rooted in real experiences, then where do they come from? One possibility is that they reflect national values, which may become known from historical events．For example, many historians have argued that the spirit of American individualism(个人主义)has its origins in the experiences of the pioneers in the Old West．

　　Social scientists such as psychologist Richard Robins have given several other possible explanations for stereotypes and why they may be incorrect．Robins notes that some stereotypes may have been correct at one point in history and then remained unchanged while the culture changed．

　　We may be “hard-wired”, to some degree, to keep incorrect stereotypes, since we are less likely to notice and remember information that is different from our stereotypes．Generally, according to Robins, when we meet people who are different from our stereotypes, we see them as unique individuals rather than typical national or cultural groups．

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