John Blanchard stood up from the bench, straightened his Army uniform, and studied the crowd of people making their way through Grand Central Station. He looked for the girl whose heart he knew, but whose face he didn’t, the girl with the rose.
His interest in her had begun thirteen months before in a Florida library. Taking a book off the shelf he found himself intrigued, not with the words of the book, but with the notes penciled in the margin. The soft handwriting reflected a thoughtful soul and insightful mind. In the front of the book, he discovered the previous owner’s name, Miss Hollis Maynell. With time and effort he located her address. She lived in New York City. He wrote her a letter introducing himself and inviting her to correspond. The next day he was shipped overseas for service in World War II.
During the next year and one month the two grew to know each other through the mail. Each letter was a seed falling on a fertile heart. A romance was starting Blanchard requested a photograph, but she refused. She felt that if he really cared, it wouldn’t matter what she looked like.
When the day finally came for him to return from Europe, they scheduled their first meeting —7:00 PM at the Grand Central Station in New York. “You’ll recognize me,” she wrote, “by the red rose I’ll be wearing on my lapel.” So at 7:00 he was in the station looking for a girl whose heart he loved, but whose face he’d never seen.
I’ll let Mr. Blanchard tell you what happened: A young woman was coming toward me, her figure long and slim. Her blonde hair lay back in curls from her delicate ears; her eyes were blue as flowers. Her lips and chin had a gentle firmness, and in her pale green suit she was like springtime come alive. I stared at her, entirely forgetting to notice that she was not wearing a rose. As I moved, a small, attractive smile curved her lips. “Going my way , sailor?” she murmured.
Almost uncontrollably I made one step closer to her, and then I saw Hollis Maynell. She was standing almost directly behind the girl. A woman well past 40, she had graying hair tucked under a worn hat. She was more than plump, her thick-ankled feet thrust into low-heeled shoes. The girl in the green suit was walking quickly away. I felt as though I was split in two, so keen was my desire to follow her, and yet so deep was my longing for the woman whose spirit had truly companioned me and upheld my own.
And there she stood. Her pale, plump face was gentle and sensible, her gray eyes had a warm and kindly twinkle. I did not hesitate. My fingers gripped the small worn blue leather copy of the book that was to identify me to her.
This would not be love, but it would be something precious, something perhaps even better than love, a friendship for which I had been and must ever be grateful. I squared my shoulders and saluted and held out the book to the woman, even though while I spoke I felt choked by the bitterness of my disappointment. "I'm Lieutenant John Blanchard, and you must be Miss Maynell. I am so glad you could meet me; may I take you to dinner?"
The woman's face broadened into a tolerant smile. "I don't know what this is about, son," she answered, "but the young lady in the green suit who just went by, she begged me to wear this rose on my coat. And she said if you were to ask me out to dinner, I should go and tell you that she is waiting for you in the big restaurant across the street. She said it was some kind of test!"
It's not difficult to understand and admire Miss Maynell's wisdom. The true nature of a heart is seen in its response to the unattractive. "Tell me whom you love," Houssaye wrote, "And I will tell you who you are． "
1.How did John Blanchard get to know Miss Hollis Maynell?
A. They lived in the same city．
B. They were both interested in literature．
C. John knew Hollis's name from a library book．
D. John came across Hollis in a Florida library．
2.Hollis refused to send Blanchard a photo because .
A. she was only a middle - aged woman
B. she wasn't confident about her appearance
C. she thought true love is beyond appearance
D. she had never taken any photo before they knew
3.How could Blanchard recognize Hollis?
A. She would be wearing a rose on her coat．
B. She would be holding a book in her hand．
C. She would be standing behind a young girl．
D. She would be wearing a scarf around her neck．
4.What was the real Miss Hollis Maynell like?
A. She was a plump woman with graying hair．
B. She was a slightly fat girl, with blonde hair．
C. She was a middle - aged woman in her forties．
D. She was a young, pretty girl wearing a green suit．
5.When Blanchard went over to greet the woman, he was ．
A. satisfied and confident
B. disappointed but well - behaved
C. annoyed and bad - mannered
D. shocked but inspired
6.Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
A. A Test of Love B. The Symbol of Rose
C. Love is blind D. Don't Judge a Book by its Cover
Most people know precious gemstones (宝石) by their appearances. An emerald flashes deep green, a ruby seems to hold a red fire inside, and a diamond shines like a star. It’s more difficult to tell where the gem was mined, since a diamond from Australia or Arkansas may appear the same to one from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. However, recently, a team of scientists has found a way to identify a gemstone’s origin.
Beneath the surface of a gemstone, on the tiny level of atoms and molecules（分子）, lie clues (线索) to its origin. At this year’s meeting of the Geological Society of America in Minneapolis, Catherine McManus reported on a technique that uses lasers (激光) to clarify these clues and identify a stone’s homeland. McManus directs scientific research at Materialytics, in Killeen, Texas. The company is developing the technique. “With enough data, we could identify which country, which mining place, even the individual mine a gemstone comes from,” McManus told Science News.
Some gemstones, including many diamonds, come from war-torn countries. Sales of those “blood minerals” may encourage violent civil wars where innocent people are injured or killed. In an effort to reduce the trade in blood minerals, the U.S. government passed law in July 2010 that requires companies that sell gemstones to determine the origins of their stones.
To figure out where gemstones come from, McManus and her team focus a powerful laser on a small sample of the gemstone. The technique is called laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy. Just as heat can turn ice into water or water into steam, energy from the laser changes the state of matter of the stone. The laser changes a miniscule part of the gemstone into plasma, a gas state of matter in which tiny particles（微粒）called electrons separate from atoms.
The plasma, which is superhot, produces a light pattern. (The science of analyzing this kind of light pattern is called spectroscopy.) Different elements（元素）produce different patterns, but McManus and her team say that gemstones from the same area produce similar patterns. Materialytics has already collected patterns from thousands of gemstones, including more than 200 from diamonds. They can compare the light pattern from an unknown gemstone to patterns they do know and look for a match. The light pattern acts like a signature, telling the researchers the origin of the gemstone.
In a small test, the laser technique correctly identified the origins of 95 out of every 100 diamonds. For gemstones like emeralds and rubies, the technique proved successful for 98 out of every 100 stones. The scientists need to collect and analyze more samples, including those from war-torn countries, before the tool is ready for commercial use.
Scientists like Barbara Dutrow, a mineralogist from Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, find the technique exciting. “This is a basic new tool that could provide a better fingerprint of a material from a particular locality,” she told Science News.
1.We learn from Paragraph 1 that __________________.
A. an emerald and a ruby are names of diamonds.
B. it’s not difficult to tell where the gem was mined.
C. appearances help to identify the origin of gemstones.
D. diamonds from different places may appear the same.
2.Why did the U.S. government pass law that requires companies selling gemstones to determine the origins of their stones?
A. To look for more gemstones.
B. To encourage violent civil wars.
C. To reduce the trade in blood minerals.
D. To develop the economy.
3.Which of the following facts most probably helps McManus and her team in identifying the origin of stones?
A. Heat can turn ice into water or water into steam.
B. Gemstones from the same area produce similar light patterns.
C. Laser can changes a miniscule part of the gemstone into plasma.
D. Materialytics has already collected patterns from thousands of gemstones.
4.From the last two paragraphs, what can be inferred about the laser technique?
A. It is ready for commercial use.
B. People can use the new tool to find more gemstones.
C. It can significantly reduce the gemstones trade in blood minerals.
D. It will bring about a revolutionary change in identifying the origin of minerals.
5.The author wrote this passage mainly to ________.
A. tell us how to identify the origin of diamonds.
B. introduce a laser technique in identifying a stone’s origin
C. prove identifying the origin of gemstones are difficult
D. attract our attention to reducing trade in blood minerals
Generic Name: ASPIRIN
Pronunciation: ['æspərin]
Why it is prescribed (开药方)：
1. Aspirin relieves mild to moderate pain.
2. It reduces fever, redness, and swelling.
3. It prevents blood from clotting (凝结).
When it is to be taken:
1. Aspirin is often taken without a prescription.
2. Follow the instructions on the label and package.
3. If your doctor prescribes aspirin for you, you will receive specific instructions for how often you should take it.
4. Keep in touch with your doctor.
How it should be taken:
1. Aspirin comes in the form of suppositories (栓剂), capsules, and regular, coated, extended-release, and chewable tablets.
2. Regular, coated, and extended-release aspirin tablets and capsules should be swallowed with a full glass of water or milk after meals to avoid stomach upset.
3. Chewable aspirin tablets may be chewed, crushed, dissolved in a liquid, or swallowed whole; a full glass of water, milk, or fruit juice should be drunk immediately after taking these tablets.
Special Instruction:
1. Children should not take aspirin for fevers associated with flu or chickenpox (水痘) because such use has been linked with a serious illness known as Reye’s syndrome.
2. Adults should not take aspirin for pain for more than 10 days (five days for children) without consulting a doctor.
3. Aspirin should not be taken by adults or children for high fever, fever lasting longer than three days without a doctor’s supervision (监管).
4. Do not give more than five doses (剂量) to a child in a 24-hour period unless directed to do so by a doctor.
5. If you miss a dose, take the missed dose as soon as you remember it and resume the prescribed schedule.
Side Effects:
1. Although side effects from aspirin are not common, they can occur.
2. Nausea, vomiting, stomach pain, indigestion and heartburn are common. Take aspirin after meals, with a full glass of water or milk. If these effects continue, contact your doctor.
3. Ringing in the ears, bloody or black stools (粪便), difficulty breathing, dizziness, mental confusion and sleepiness are rare. Stop taking the drug and contact your doctor.
Other Precautions:
1. If you are pregnant or breast-feeding women, inform your doctor before taking aspirin.
2. Do not take aspirin if you are within three months of delivery.
3. Do not take aspirin if you are allergic (过敏) to it.
4. If you have diabetes (糖尿病), regular use of eight or more regular strength aspirin tablets a day may affect test result.
5. If you are taking large doses of aspirin on a long-term basis, avoid having alcoholic drinks because alcohol can increase stomach problems.
6. To prevent an overdose of aspirin, read the labels before taking other pain relievers and cold products to be sure that they do not contain aspirin.
Storage Conditions:
1. Store aspirin in a cool place or in a refrigerator.
2. Throw away aspirin that smells strongly of vinegar.
3. Keep this aspirin out of the reach of children.
1.Which of the following about Aspirin is correct?
A. It only comes in the form of regular tablets.
B. It should not be taken for more than 5 days for children.
C. It can be used to reduce fever and pain and prevent blood clotting.
D. It causes ringing in the ears or difficulty breathing after being taken
2.If you start taking aspirin, you should do all the following things EXCEPT ________.
A. keeping in touch with your doctor
B. taking aspirin tablets after meals to avoid stomach upset
C. drinking a full glass of juice immediately after taking chewable aspirin tablets
D. taking more than 8 regular strength aspirin a day while suffering from diabetes
3. The underlined word “resume” most probably means ________.
A. continue B. make up C. pause D. throw away
4.Which of the following might be a side effect caused by Aspirin?
A. blood clotting B. stomach upset C. lasting fever D. sight problem
5.Where can we probably come across such a text?
A. In a research paper.
B. In the package of a medicine
C. In a medical textbook.
D. In a scientific and technological magazine
Everyone hates to wait in lines. We get that anxious feeling that our precious life is slipping away while we’re doing something so meaningless. But it’s not always the length of the wait we find so unbearable. Some people camp outside Apple stores for an entire night just to get their hands on the latest product. But waiting 10 minutes in a grocery store just to buy a drink? Forget it.
Our behavior when waiting is only partly decided by the length of the wait. “Often the psychology of queuing is more important than the statistics of the wait itself,” notes the MIT researcher Richard Larson.
One apparent aspect of queuing psychology is that we get bored when we wait in line. This issue is solved in many ways, from magazines in hospital waiting rooms to mirrors in elevators so that we can check our appearance.
We really hate it when we expect a short wait and then get a long one. But studies show that we are much more patient when we are given an idea of how long we’ll be waiting.
Walt Disney Co knows this better than anyone else. It posts estimated waiting times for attractions in its theme parks. But according to Larson, these times are overestimated so that visitors get to the front of the queue more quickly than they expect. It keeps them happy.
But perhaps the biggest influence on our feelings about waiting in a line has to do with our sense of fairness. When it comes to queues, the universally acknowledged standard is first come, first served. Any departure from this principle is regarded as unfair and can lead to violent queue anger.
You’ve probably experienced mild queue anger yourself in fast food restaurants, watching people in the other line zoom ahead of you, cursing yourself for having chosen the “wrong” line. In order to solve this problem, the serpentine(蛇形) line was invented. The serpentine line guides all customers into one big snaking queue, separated by ropes or barriers. When you reach the head of the queue, you are directed to the next available server, or teller, or customs official. The serpentine line isn’t always faster than multi-lines before an array(排) of cash registers. But it offers important comfort: you absolutely never have to see someone arrive after you and get served before you.
In life, waiting is inevitable. But a better understanding of the psychology of waiting can help make it a bit more bearable. When all else fails, bring a book or a smart phone will also do.
1.In the 1st paragraph, the author intends to tell us_____.
A. why people are crazy about Apple’s products
B. people waste their precious time in queuing
C. waiting time is not the only cause for people’s hate in queuing
D. the psychology is the real reason why people hate to wait in lines
2.Walt Disney Co makes people queuing happily by_____.
A. having people queue in serpentine line
B. letting people know how long they will wait exactly
C. making people queue shorter than they are informed
D. offering people magazines to read when waiting in lines
3.Serpentine line was invented to_____.
A. make the waiting line move faster
B. guarantee the first-come-first-served principle
C. solve the problem of feeling bored in queuing
D. guide all customers into one big snaking queue
4.The main purpose of the passage is _____.
A. to explain the advantages of serpentine line
B. to introduce ways of saving time in queuing
C. to offer an explanation of the psychology of queuing
D. to analyze the psychology of people queuing for Apple products
I have been applying, interviewing, etc since July with no prospects(前景). I have been told mostly that I am overqualified, or they need fulltime etc. I had been getting pretty down and discouraged. I was actually asking myself why can’t someone be kind enough to take me on as an .
This past Tuesday evening it was outside and going to be 9 pm as I was waiting at a bus stop. Just as the bus a young woman approached me. She had a T-shirt, Capri pants, and slippers on. She also was wearing several hospital bracelets.
I my purse and took out $5.00 so she could get something to eat. I then took off my jacket and and gave them to her. I said, “These are a little big but they should keep warm.” She looked at me and said “Aren’t you going to be cold?” I told her my being cold for 15 minutes I got to my place was worth it if I knew she would be a little warmer. She sobbed and thanked me with a hug. I just told her to .
Then after I got on the bus that’s the miracle of spreading happened. I stepped up to pay the and the bus driver said, “Mam, I saw what you just did and your fare is me, even though technically we aren’t supposed to let you get on the bus without shoes.” he said with a wink.
A lady who was dressed in a very business suit called me over to her seat. She said, “I want to know the of the person who just did the most thing I have ever seen.” I told her my name and she said , “What can I do for you to what I just witnessed?” I said a paying job would be nice.
The next day she called me and said that she had a administrative assistant position in her company and wanted me to meet with the manager. It that the lady was the head Human Resources person.
I start Monday morning at 9am! Thank you all for inspiring me to keep passing the kindness on! I never expected to get so much back in return!
1.A. engineer B. entertainer C. employee D. employer
2.A. burning hot B. pouring C. snowing D. freezing cold
3.A. pulled up B. picked up C. broke down D. dropped off
4.A. brought out B. cut in C. dug in D. reached
5.A. gloves B. sweater C. blouse D. tennis shoes
6.A. her B. him C. you D. me
7.A. until B. before C. after D. since
8.A. pass it on B. go ahead C. cheer up D. come on
9.A. where B. why C. when D. how
10.A. luck B. kindness C. generosity D. mercy
11.A. ticket B. fare C. money D. check
12.A. to B. for C. on D. with
13.A. informal B. casual C. professional D. practical
14.A. job B. address C. religion D. name
15.A. inspiring B. courageous C. amazing D. grateful
16.A. praise B. repay C. appreciate D. admire
17.A. seriously B. eagerly C. hopefully D. jokingly
18.A. part-time B. tough C. simple D. novel
19.A. empty B. open C. offer D. opportunity
20.A. came about B. occurred to me C. turned out D. worked out
---Going to the Anne’s wedding to be held this weekend?
--- . I’ll be free then.
A. You bet! B. I can’t help it. C. Believe it or not. D. Forget it.
