How is it that siblings （兄弟姐妹） can turn out so differently? One answer is that in fact each sibling grows up in a different family． The firstborn is, for a while, an only child, and therefore has a completely different experience of the parents than those born later． The next child is, for a while, the youngest, until the situation is changed by a new arrival． The mother and father themselves are changing and growing up too． One sibling might live in a stable and close family in the first few years; another might be raised in a family crisis, with a disappointed mother or an angry father．

Sibling competition was identified as an important shaping force as early as in 1918． But more recently, researchers have found many ways in which brothers and sisters are a lasting force in each others’ lives． Dr． Annette Henderson says firstborn children pick up vocabulary more quickly than their siblings． The reason for this might be that the later children aren’t getting the same one-on-one time with parents． But that doesn’t mean that the younger children have problems with language development． Later-borns don’t enjoy that much talking time with parents, but instead they harvest lessons from bigger brothers and sisters, learning entire phrases and getting an understanding of social concepts such as the difference between “I” and “me”． 

A Cambridge University study of 140 children found that siblings created a rich world of play that helped them grow socially． Love-hate relationships were common among the children． Even those siblings who fought the most had just as much positive communication as the other sibling pairs．

One way children seek more attention from parents is by making themselves different from their siblings, particularly if they are close in age． Researchers have found that the first two children in a family are typically more different from each other than the second and third． Girls with brothers show their differences to a maximum degree by being more feminine than girls with sisters． A 2003 research paper studied adolescents from 185 families over two years, finding that those who changed to make themselves different from their siblings were successful in increasing the amount of warmth they gained from their parents．

1.In terms of language development, later-borns ________．

2.What was found about fights among siblings?

3.The word “feminine” （in Para． 4） means “_______”．

If Confucius（孔子）were still alive today and could celebrate his September 28 birthday with a big cake, there would be a lot of candles． He’d need a fan or a strong wind to help him put them out．

While many people in China will remember Confucius on his special day, few people in the United States will give him a passing thought． It’s nothing personal． Most Americans don’t even remember the birthdays of their own national heroes．

But this doesn’t mean that Americans don’t care about Confucius． In many ways he has become a bridge that foreigners must cross if they want to reach a deeper understanding of China．

In the past two decades, the Chinese studies programs have gained huge popularity in Western universities． More recently, the Chinese government has set up Confucius Institutes in more than 80 countries． These schools teach both Chinese language and culture． The main courses of Chinese culture usually included Chinese art, history and philosophy． Some social scientists suggest that Westerners should take advantage of the ancient Chinese wisdom to make up for the drawbacks of Westerners philosophy． Students in the United States, at the same time, are racing to learn Chinese． So they will be ready for life in a world where China is an equal power with the United States． Businessmen who hope to make money in China are reading books about Confucius to understand their Chinese customers． 

So the old thinker’s ideas are still alive and well．

Today China attracts the West more than ever, and it will need more teachers to introduce Confucius and Chinese culture to the West．

As for the old thinker, he will not soon be forgotten by people in the West, even if his birthday is．

1.The opening paragraph is mainly intended to _______．

2.We can learn from Paragraph 4 that American students_______．

3.What is the best title for the passage?

4.The passage is likely to appear in _______．

Finally, a cell phone

That’s… a phone

With rates as low as $3．75 per week ！

“Well, I finally did it． I finally decided to enter the digital age and get a cell phone． My kids have been annoying me and the last straw was when my car broke down, and I was stuck by the highway for an hour before someone stopped to help． But when I went to the cell phone store, I almost changed my mind． The phones all have cameras, computers and a “global-positioning” something or other that’s supposed to spot me from space． Goodness, all I want to do is to be able to talk to my grandkids! The people at the store weren’t much help． They couldn’t understand why someone wouldn’t want a phone the size of a postage stamp． And the rate plans! They were confusing, and expensive… and the contract （合同）lasted for two years! I’d almost given up until a friend told me about her new Jitterbug phone． Now, I have the convenience and safety of being about to stay in touch with a phone I can actually use． ”

Affordable plans that I can understand---and no contract to sign （签订）！ Unlike other cell phones，Jitterbug has plans that make sense． Why should I pay for minutes I’m never going to use? And if I do talk more than I plan，I won’t find myself with no minutes like my friend who has a prepaid phone． Best of all, there is no contract to sign, so I’m not locked in for years at a time． The US-based customer service is second to none． And the phone gets service anywhere in the country．               

Call now and receive a FREE gift when you order． Try Jitterbug for 30 days and if you don’t love it, just return it! Why wait, the Jitterbug comes ready to use right out of the box． If you aren’t as happy with it as I am, you can return it and get your money back． Call now, the Jitterbug product experts are ready to answer your questions．

Call 1-888-809-8794 or visit www.jitlerbugdirect． com．

1.What made “I” finally think of getting a cell phone?

2.On the monthly basis of 100 minutes, the Jitterbug weekly rate is about_______．

3.An advantage of Jitterbug mentioned in the passage is _______．

4.The main purpose of the passage is to _______．

Peanuts to This

Proudly reading my words, I glanced around the room, only to find my classmates bearing big smiles on their faces and tears in their eyes． Confused, I glanced toward my stone-faced teacher． Having no choice, I slowly raised the report I had slaved over, hoping to hide myself． “What could be causing everyone to act this way?”

Quickly, I flashed back to the day Miss Lancelot gave me the task． This was the first real talk I received in my new school． It seemed simple: go on the Internet and find information about a man named George Washington． Since my idea of history came from an ancient teacher in my home country, I had never heard of that name before． As I searched the name of this fellow, it became evident that there were two people bearing the same name who looked completely different! One invented hundreds of uses for peanuts, while the other led some sort of army across America． I stared at the screen, wondering which one my teacher meant． I called my grandfather for a golden piece of advice; flip （掷） a coin． Heads—the commander, and tails—the peanuts guy． Ah! Tails, my report would be about the great man who invented peanut butter, George Washington Carver．

Weeks later, standing before this unfriendly mass, I was totally lost． Oh well, I lowered the paper and sat down at my desk, burning to find out what I had done wrong． As a classmate began his report, it all became clear, “My report is on George Washington, the man who started the American Revolution．” The whole world became quiet! How could I know that she meant that George Washington?

Obviously, my grade was awful． Heartbroken but fearless, I decided to turn this around． I talked to Miss Lancelot, but she insisted: No re-dos; no new grade． I felt that the punishment was not justified, and I believed I deserved a second chance． Consequently, I threw myself heartily into my work for the rest of the school year． Ten months later, that chance unfolded as I found myself sitting in the headmaster’s office with my grandfather, now having an entirely different conversation． I smiled and flashed back to the embarrassing moment at the beginning of the year as the headmaster informed me of my option to skip the sixth grade． Justice is sweet!

1.What did the author’s classmates think about his report?

2.Why was the author confused about the task?

3.The underlined word “burning” in Para． 3 probably means _______．

4.In the end, the author turned things around _______．

The trip to that city was eye-opening for everyone, and near its end, all the young people in our group began to reflect on what it had meant． We   41  the first night we had arrived． We had all gone into the markets of the city   42  the young people could experience its energy． But what we actually saw simply   43  us all --- the rundown houses, the children in rags, the people begging for money… Walking home,   44  under a low bridge, we came across   45  families of homeless people seeking a bit of dry ground to sleep on   46  the night． We had to step over bodies as we found our way through the darkness．

The poverty was   47  than anything my young companions had ever imagined． Back in the hotel, an air of sadness settled over the group． Many   48  and cried． Spending time in this   49  moves a person to care about humanity．

That evening, our group spent hours talking about what we had   50 ． Gently, I encouraged everyone to talk about the difficult   51  that day’s discoveries had inspired． Sitting together   52  a circle as everyone had a chance to speak, we all began to realize that  53  of us was alone in our struggle to cope with our reactions．

Based on my   54  in poverty-stricken areas, I suggested that   55  the emotions we had were painful, they could also be important in helping us to move forward． We all   56  that we had seen things that should never be allowed to happen．   57  , what could we do about it? Together, we began to brainstorm ways we could help to ease the   58  we had seen． As I encouraged group members to focus on   59  they could do, a sense of determination  60  the previous sadness． Instead of despair, these young people began to feel a call to action．

 My colleague has been recovering gradually since the operation, and it wont’ be long ______ he comes back to work．

 Don’t you know ______, my dear friend, it is you that she loves?

 She was so angry and spoke so fast that none of us understood ______ he said meant．

 What will people die of in 100 years? If you think that is a simple question, you ______ attention to the revolution taking place in biotechnology．

 The girl wearing a pair of dark glasses comes from a city in South China, ______ is evident from her accent．