WHAT happens to a teenage kid when the world he thought he knew suddenly changes? Find out in Little Brother by American author Cory Doctorow. It is a fascinating book for a new generation of sci-fi readers.
Marcus Yallow, 17, from San Francisco is much more comfortable in front of a computer than obeying the rules of society. Smart, fast and wise to the ways of the networked world, he has no trouble outwitting （骗过） his high school's monitoring system. This way he and his friends get to head off to play a popular online game in real life.
While they are playing, a bomb explodes on the Bay Bridge. Marcus stops a military vehicle to get help for his injured friend, but this simple act throws him into a Department of Homeland Security （DHS） secret prison.There he is treated as a possible terrorist. He is eventually let go after four days, but his injured friend disappears.
When he returns, Marcus discovers that there are many "security measures" in place and that now all citizens are treated like potential terrorists.While some consider this government action necessary for public safety, Marcus sees this as a complete destruction of the rights he is supposed to have as a citizen.
He knows that no one will believe his story, which leaves him with only one thing to do: to take down the DHS himself. He helps organize a large network called Xnet to spread the truth, anonymously(匿名地).
The book presents a young man who is irresponsible, but learns about himself, and grows, in the course of the story. As part of this learning and growing he becomes aware of very serious issues about his society.
1.What kind of article does this passage belong to?
A. A fascinating story.B. A book review.
C. A news report.D. A TV programme.
2. Marcus Yallow was sent to prison because________.
A. he killed his friend
B. he bombed a military vehicle
C. he did something that a possible terrorist could do
D. his injured friend disappeared
3.From the second paragraph we can infer that______.
A. Marcus Yallow is much more comfortable obeying the rules of society
B. Marcus Yallow is smart, fast and wise in real life
C. Marcus Yallow always plays online games in real life
D. Marcus Yallow is expert at the network world
4.In the end of the book, Marcus Yallow __________.
A. is supposed to be more irresponsible
B. becomes aware of very serious issues about his society
C. presents a young man who is irresponsible
D. plays a popular online game in real life
Is crying good therapy? Experts say yes. Having a good weep at the weekend is becoming more popular among office workers in China.
“I need to cry to let my feeling out,” said 22-year-old Guo Meng, a smart-looking young woman. “I remember one day when I got home I felt so down but I had no one to talk to, so I just curled up(蜷缩) with my teddy bear and cried myself to sleep,” Guo said. The next day, she said, she felt much better and life seemed not so bad after all.
Because crying is taken as a sign of weakness, people make a great show of being strong and not displaying emotion. Psychologists and medical practitioners agree that crying is beneficial for mental health but people still regard it as a sign of failure and bottle up their feelings. A famous Chinese author once said to cry is normal, and even brave. Those who display their emotions can deal with their troubles bravely after the tears dry, while those who soldier on let problems fester（恶化）.
In the Chaoyang district of Beijing, there is a special place for people to cry their sadness out. It is called “Cry Bar”. On the door of each of its “cry rooms” there is a saying encouraging people to let the tears flow freely.
“Crying is a kind of therapy, but it needs some direction,” said Milulu, a psychologist.
“People should realize the point of crying is to relieve pressure, but some of the young people who come to the Cry Bar simply sit and weep. The purpose of crying is to make it easier to improve your life after the tears dry, not to get lost in bad memories.”
Crying is only one way of relieving pressure, and we need to face problems squarely and solve them once the tears have dried, said Mululu.
1.Crying _____ made Guo Meng feel better.
A. with some friendB. all the night with a toy
C. during her sleep D. in bed before sleep
2.According to the third paragraph, people usually make great efforts to_____.
A. get rid of their sadness B. bottle up their feelings
C. act on psychologists’ advice D. face their troubles bravely
3.What should the customers do at the Cry Bar?
A. Think of every sad experience they’ve had and cry
B. Keep crying as loudly as long as possible.
C. Satisfy any desire to cry and weep until it is gone.
D. Hold back their tears until they can’t help but cry.
4.From the text, we can learn that crying ____.
A. is to relieve pressure B. must help to solve problems
C. means facing problems squarely D. can’t weaken sad feelings.
When I was about 12, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings. Week by week her list grew: I was very thin, I wasn’t a good student, I talked too much, I was too proud, and so on. I tried to hear all this as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.
He listened to me quietly, then he asked. “Are the things she says true or not? Janet, didn’t you ever wonder what you’re really like ? Well, you now have that girl’s opinion. Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said.”
I did as he told me. To my great surprise, I discovered that about half the things were true. Some of them I couldn’t change (like being very thin), but a good number I could—and suddenly I wanted to change. For the first time I got a fairly clear picture of myself.
I brought the list back to Daddy. He refused to take it. “That’s just for you,” he said. “You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. But you have to learn to listen, not just close your ears in anger and feel hurt. When something said about you is true, you’ll find it will be of help to you. Don’t shut your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you know is the right thing to do.”
Daddy’s advice has returned to me at many important moments. In my life, I’ve never had a better piece of advice.
1.Which do you think would be the best title for this passage?
A. Not an Enemy, but the Best Friend
B. The Best Advice I’ve Ever Had
C. My Father
D. My Childhood
2.What does “Week by week her list grew” mean?
A. Week by week she discovered more shortcomings of mine and pointed them out to me.
B. She had made a list of my shortcomings and she kept on adding new ones to it so that it was growing longer and longer.
C. I was having more and more shortcomings as time went on.
D. Week by week, my shortcomings grew more serious.
3.Why did her father listen to her quietly?
A. Because he believed that what her daughter’s “enemy” said was mostly true.
B. Because he had been so angry with his daughter’s shortcomings that he wanted to show this by keeping silent for a while.
C. Because he knew that his daughter would not listen to him at that moment.
D. Because he wasn’t quite sure which girl was telling the truth.
4.What did the father do after he had heard his daughter’s complaint?
A. He told her not to pay any attention to what her “enemy” had said.
B. He criticized (批评) her and told her to overcome her shortcomings.
C. He told her to write down all that her “enemy” had said about her and pay attention only to the things that were true.
D. He refused to take the list and have a look at it.
----Do you know if Linda is willing to take charge of the program?
----_______, does it?
A. It takes no timeB. It counts for nothing
C. It doesn’t make senseD. It doesn’t hurt to ask
Not until he left his home ______ to know how important the family was for him.
A. did he begin B. had he begun C. he began D. he had begun
Peter’s jacket looked just the same as Jack’s, but it cost _____ his.
A. as much twice as B. twice as much as
C. much as twice as D. as twice much as
