Sitting on the peaceful coast of Galapagos Islands. Ecuador, watching the sun move quietly into the sea, you shouldn't forget that Charles Darwin (1809-1882) arrived here in 1835. He stayed on the islands for five weeks, observing various animals. This finally inspired (启发) his famous work, On the Origin of Species. You can certainly follow Darwin's footsteps and enjoy a trip from four to seven days to the islands. The islands are certainly a paradise (天堂) for wildlife, as there are no natural killers on the islands and the number of boats and visitors is under government control. Though you cannot walk freely as Darwin did about 200 years ago, each day is as impressive as it could be. The most well-known animal of the Galapagos is the giant tortoise(巨型海龟), which can be seen moving slowly around the highlands of Sanra Cruz, the second largest island in the archipelago(群岛). Some of these creatures are so old that they might have been seen in their youth by Darwin himself. Despite strict control over activities and timing, your stay on the Galapagos will be remembered as a chain of incomparable pictures: diving with sea lions that swim and play within inches of you; feeling small sharks touch your feet as you swim; and, most magically, seeing a whale and her baby surface with a great breath of air. Travelling between the islands and observing the wildlife that so inspired Darwin, you will feel as though you are getting a special view of an untouched world. At night you will sleep on board the ship, leaving the wildlife in complete occupation of the islands, which are as undisturbed now as they have been since the beginning of time.
1. What do we know about Darwin's visit to the islands?
A. He studied different creatures on the islands
B. He completed his famous book on the islands
C. He was touched by the geography of the islands
D. He was attracted by well-known animals of the islands
2. Which of the following plays a role in making the islands "a paradise for wildlife"?
A. Animals on the islands feed on grass.
B. Local government forbids killing wildlife.
C. People cannot visit the islands as they wish.
D. Tourists are not allowed to touch the animals.
3. Your stay on the islands will be most impressive mainly because of_________.
A. The beautiful sea views
B. Darwin's inspiring trip
C. a closer view of animals
D. various daring activities
4. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A. A Unique Attraction for Wildlife Lovers
B. Calapagos as a Paradise for Adventures
C. Charles Darwin as a Symbol of Galapagos
D. A Successful Example of Wildlife Protection
It is not often realized that women held a high place in southern European societies in the 10th and 11th centuries. As a wife, the woman was protected by the setting up of a dowry (嫁妆). Admittedly, the purpose of this was to protect her against the risk of desertion, but in reality its function in the social and family life of the time was much more important. The dowry was the wife’s right to receive a tenth of all her husband’s property. The wife had the right to with hold consent, in all transactions the husband would make, and more than just a right; the documents show that she enjoyed a real power of decision, equal to that of her husband. In no case do the documents indicate any degree of difference in the legal status of husband and wife.
The wife shared in the management of her husband’s personal property, but the opposite was not always true. Women seemed perfectly prepared to defend their own inheritance against husbands who tried to exceed their rights, and on occasion they showed a fine fighting spirit. A case in point is that of Maria Vivas. Having agreed with her husband Miro to sell a field she had inherited, for the needs of the household, she insisted on compensation. None being offered, she succeeded in dragging her husband to the scribe to have a contract duly drawn up assigning her a piece of land from Miro’s personal inheritance. The unfortunate husband was obliged to agree, as the contract says, “for the sake of peace.” Either through the dowry or through being hot-tempered, the wife knew how to win herself, with the context of the family, a powerful economic position.
1. Originally, the purpose of a dowry is to_________.
A give a woman the right to receive all her husband’s property
B help a woman to enjoy a higher position in the family
C protect a woman against the risk of desertion
D both A and C
2. According to the passage, the legal status of the wife in marriage was__________.
A higher than that of a single woman
B higher than that of her husband
C lower than that of her husband
D the same as that of her husband
3. Why does the author give us the example of Maria Vivas?
A To show that the wife shared in the management of her husbands personal property.
B To show that the wife can defend her own inheritance.
C To prove that women have powerful position.
D To illustrate how women win her property.
4. The compensation Maria Vivas got for the field is____________.
A some of the land Miro had inherited
B a tenth of Miro’s land
C money for household expenses
D money form Miro’s inheritance
5.The author’s attitude towards Maria Vivas is_____________.
A sympathetic B disapproval C indifferent D objective
It is hardly surprising that clothing manufacturers(生产商) follow certain uniform standards for various features(特征) of clothes. What seems strange, however, is that the standard adopted for women is the opposite of the one for men. Take a look at the way your clothes button. Men's clothes tend to button from the right, and women's from the left. Considering most of the world's population----men and women----are right-handed, the men's standard would appear to make more sense for women. So why do women's clothes button from the left? History really seems to matter here. Buttons first appeared only on the clothes of the rich in the 17th century, when rich women were dressed by servants. For the mostly right-handed servants, having women's shirts button from the left would be easier. On the other hand, having men's shirts button from the right made sense, too. Most men dressed themselves, and a sword drawn from the left with the right hand would be less likely to get caught in the shirt. Today women are seldom dressed by servants, but buttoning from the left is still the standard for them. Is it interesting? Actually, a standard, once set, resists change. At a time when all women's shirts buttoned from the left, it would have been risky for any single manufacturer to offer women's shirts that buttoned from the right. After all, women had grown so used to shirts which buttoned from the left and would have to develop new habits and skills to switch. Besides, some women might have found it socially awkward to appear in public wearing shirts that buttoned from the right, since anyone who noticed that would believe they were wearing men's shirts.
1. What is surprising about the standard of the clothing industry?
A. It has been followed by the industry for over 400 years.
B. It is different for men's clothing and women's.
C. It woks better with men than with women.
D. It fails to consider right-handed people.
2. What do we know about the rich men in the 17th century?
A. They tended to wear clothes without buttons.
B. They were interested in the historical matters.
C. They were mostly dressed by servants.
D. They drew their swords from the left.
3. Women's clothes still button from the left today because.
A. adopting men's style is improper for women
B. manufacturers should follow standards
C. modern women dress themselves
D. customs are hard to change
4. The passage is mainly developed by.
A. analyzing causes
B. making comparisons
C. examining differences
D. following the time order
Kids will often ignore your requests for them to shut off the TV, start their chores(杂事),or do their homework as a way to avoid following your directions. Before you know it, you’ve started to sound like a broken record as you repeatedly ask them to do their assignments, clean their room, or take out the trash. Rather than saying “Do your chores now.” you’ll be more effective if you set a target time for when the chores have to be completed. So instead of arguing about starting chores, just say, “If chores aren’t done by 4 pm, here are the consequences.” Then it’s up to your child to complete the chores. Put the ball back in their court. Don’t argue or fight with them, just say, “That’s the way it’s going to be.” It shouldn’t be punitive(惩罚性的)as much as it should be persuasive. “If your chores aren’t done by 4 pm, then no video game time until chores are done. And if finishing those chores runs into homework time, that’s going to be your loss.” On the other hand, when dealing with homework, keep it very simple. Have a time when homework starts, and at that time, all electronics go off and do not go back on until you see that their homework is done. If your kids say they have no homework, then they should use that time to study or read. Either way, there should be a time set aside when the electronics are off.
When a kid wears his iPod or headphones when you’re trying to talk to him, make no bones about it；he is not ignoring you, he is disrespecting you. At that point, everything else should stop until he takes the earplugs out of his ears. Don’t try to communicate with him when he’s wearing headphones — even if he tells you he can hear you. Wearing them while you’re talking to him is a sign of disrespect. Parents should be very tough about this kind of thing. Remember, mutual respect becomes more important as children mature.
1.According to the passage, it seldom happens that ________.
A．kids turn a deaf ear to their parents’ requests
B．parents’ directions sound like a broken record
C．children are ready to follow their parents’ directions
D．parents are unaware of what they are repeating to their kids
2.Parents will be able to deal with their children more effectively if they ________.
A．avoid direct ways of punishment B．make them do things at their request
C．argue and fight with their children D．allow their children to behave in their own way
3.When the kid is doing his homework, parents ________.
A．should provide him with a good learning environment
B．can do whatever they like
C．can stay aside watching TV
D．must switch off the power
4.It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
A．parents should take off his headphones when trying to have a talk with their child
B．it will make no difference that a kid is wearing his earplugs while talking to his parents
C．parents shouldn’t give in to their kid when he shows no sign of respect
D．kids’ purposely talking to their parents with iPod gives them a sense of power and
control
5.The main idea of the passage is ________.
A．that respecting each other is more important than anything else
B．how kids behave to ignore and disrespect their parents
C．that children should make choices and decisions on their own
D．how parents can deal with their kids’ behavior effectively
A mother from Colorado who doctors said had died while giving birth to her son, has said it is a Christmas miracle that both she and the boy are alive.
Tracey Hermanstorfer's heart stopped beating and her son Coltyn appeared lifeless after the Caesarean(剖腹产术)section on Christmas Eve. However a few minutes after he was born, both began breathing again. Dr Stephanie Martin told Good Morning America she could not explain how the pair survived. Mrs Hermanstorfer and her husband Mike told the American television show that their baby was now healthy and that they were doing “good” following the drama at Colorado Springs Memorial Hospital.
The couple, who already had two children, had to go into the hospital seven weeks earlier than planned. Her husband, 37, said his wife was tired after receiving an epidural(硬脑膜外麻醉)during the labour(分娩)but after closing her eyes, she “wasn't waking up”．She stopped breathing and she is believed to have suffered a heart attack before her heart stopped beating entirely.
Dr Martin said she was called in and that the outlook was grim since in most situations like this，“despite the best efforts of the team”， the mother was often unable to be revived. In that case doctors then tried to focus on delivering the baby but when he was born he was “completely lifeless”．
Mr Hermanstorfer told the Associated Press news agency，“I had everything in the world taken from me, and in an hour and a half I had everything given to me.”
Dr Martin said she did not have a “great explanation” for why Mrs Hermanstorfer's heartbeat returned. “Somewhere between four and five minutes she had been without heart rate and had stopped breathing a minute or two prior to her heart stopping，” she said. The doctors were then able to bring the baby back to life, and the mother was alive after that.
Despite tests, she said doctors were still not sure about what had happened. However Mrs Hermanstorfer and her husband Mike have said they believed it was down to a miracle. She said：“I got a second chance in life.”
1.The story happened on________.
A．December, 24 B．December, 25C．December, 31 D．January, 1
2.What might have happened to Tracey Hermanstorfer just before her heart stopped beating?
A．She became unconscious. B．She took a nap.
C．She had a bad headache.D．She suffered a heart attack.
3.Which of the following is the correct order of what happened to Tracey Hermanstorfer?
a．suffering a heart attack
b．stopping heart beating entirely
c．stopping breathing
d．coming back to life
e．receiving an epidural
f．producing a baby
A．acfdbe
B．fcadbe
C．eacbfd
D．eabcfd
4.What feelings did Mr Hermanstorfer experience during the incident?
A．Sad and delighted.B．Disappointed and depressed.
C．Sad and angry.D．Touched and regrettable.
5.Which of the following words best expresses Dr Martin's attitude towards Tracey Hermanstorfer's coming back to life?
A．Shocked. B．Puzzled.C．Normal. D．Curious.
“Experience may possibly be the best teacher, but it is not a particularly good teacher.” You might think that Winston Churchill or perhaps Mark Twain spoke those words, but they actually come from James March, a professor at Stanford University and a pioneer in the field of organization decision making. For years March( possibly be wisest philosopher of management) has studied how humans think and act, and he continues to do so in his new book The Ambiguities of Experience.
He begins by reminding us of just how firmly we have been sticking to the idea of experiential learning :“Experience is respected；experience is sought；experience is explained.” The problem is that learning from experience involves（涉及）serious complications（复杂化），ones that are part of the nature of experience itself and which March discusses in the body of this book.
In one interesting part of book，for example，he turns a double eye toward the use of stories as the most effective way of experiential learning. He says “The more accurately（精确的）reality is presented，the less understandable the story，and the more understandable the story, the less realistic it is.”
Besides being a broadly knowledgeable researcher. March is also a poet, and his gift shines though in the depth of views he offers and the simple language he uses. Though the book is short, it is demanding；Don’t pick it up looking for quick, easy lessons. Rather, be ready to think deeply about learning from experience in work and life.
1.According to the text, James March is ____________.
A. a poet who uses experience in his writing
B. a teacher who teachers story writing in university
C. a researcher who studies the way humans think and act
D. a professor who helps organizations make important decisions
2. According to James March, experience ______________.
A. is overvalued
B. is easy to explain
C. should be actively sought
D. should be inactively sought
3. What can we learn from Paragraph 3?
A. Experience makes stories more accurate.
B. Stories made interesting fail to fully present the truth.
C. The use of stories is the best way of experiential learning.
D. Stories are easier to understand when reality is more accurately described.
4.What’s the purpose of this text?
A. To introduce a book. B. To describe a researcher.
C. To explain experiential learning. D. To discuss organizational decision making.
