Tracy Wong is a well-known Chinese-American writer. But her writing ____ was something she picked up by herself. After her first____, teaching disabled children, she became a part-time writer for IBM. ____, writing stories was simply a ____ interest. Tracy sent three of her stories to a publisher. ____, they immediately suggested that she put them together to make a single one long ____ and paid Tracy a $ 15,000 advance. “A pretty money,” said the publisher, “for ____ writer.”
____ Tracy’s characters are interesting, her stories sometimes ____ readers uneasy: those about the supernatural. “My mother believed I could ____ the afterlife world,” she told a close friend. “She used to have me speak with my grandmother, who died many years ago.”
“Can I ? I don’t think I can,” Tracy said with a laugh. “But I do have ____ when things come to me ____. “Once, she was wondering how to complete a ____ set in ancient China. ____ the doorbell rang. It was a FedEx delivery man, with a copy of a book on Chinese ____. It came without her having ____ it.
Though she has published 45 books, Tracy has remained ____ by her fame. She lives in the same ____ she lived 27 years ago — although in a more comfortable home. There’s more room for ____ in her life — and it wasn’t just __ __.
1.A. practice B. experience C. skill D. method
2.A. job B. effort C. duty D. task
3.A. Instead B. Then C. Certainly D. Normally
4.A. general B. deep C. lively D. personal
5.A. Interested B. Anxiously C. Seriously D. Encouraged
6.A. story B. film C. program D. article
7.A. a foreign B. a popular C. an unknown D. an unusual
8.A. Now that B. Even though C. Just because D. Except that
9.A. find B. turn C. hold D. leave
10.A. connect with B. make up C. control D. explain
11.A. events B. moments C. feelings D. chances
12.A. as gifts B. from a distance C. by accident D. for no reason
13.A. description B. condition C. scene D. talk
14.A. Surprisingly B. Fortunately C. Expectedly D. Suddenly
15.A. cooking B. medicine C. history D. play
16.A. ordered B. sent C. realized D. known
17.A. determined B. excited C. unchanged D. unmoved
18.A. life B. way C. house D. city
19.A. success B. joy C. work D. variety
20.A. reporting B. fun C. luck D. writing
Faces, like fingerprints, are unique. Did you ever wonder how it is possible for us to recognize people? ___1.____. Yet a very young child – or even an animal, such as a pigeon , can learn to recognize faces. We all take this for granted.
___2.____. When we talk about someone’s personality, we mean the ways in which he or she acts, speaks, thinks and feels that make that individual different from others.
Like the human face, human personality is very complex. But describing someone’s personality in words is somewhat easier than describing his face. ____3.____. But if you were asked to describe a “nice person”, you might begin to think about someone who was kind, considerate, friendly, warm, and so forth.
There are many words to describe how a person thinks, feels and acts. Gordon Airport, an American psychologist, found nearly 18,000 English words characterizing differences in people’s behavior. _ _4.___. Bookworms, conservatives, military types – people are described with such terms.
People have always tried to “type” each other. Actors in early Greek drama wore masks to show the audience whether they played the villain’s or the hero’s role. In fact, the words “person” and “personality” come from the Latin persona, meaning “mask”. Today, most television and movie actors do not wear masks. __5.____.
A. If you were asked to describe what a “nice face” look like, you probably would have a difficult time doing so.
B. But we can easily tell the “good guys” from the “bad guys” because the two types differ in appearance as well as in actions.
C. We also tell people apart by how they behave.
D. People have difficulty in describing the features of fingerprints.
E. And many of us use this information as a basis for describing, or typing one`s personality.
F. Experts say that actors differ in their behavioral and physical characteristics in acting.
G. Even a skilled writer probably could not describe all the features that make one face different from another.
A scientist turns out to be able to see the future by offering each of some four-year-olds a piece of candy and watching how he or she deals with it. Some children reach eagerly for the treat they see. Some last a few minutes before they give in. But others are determined to wait until the last moment.
By the time the children reach high school, something remarkable has happened. A survey found that those who as four-year-olds had enough self-control to hold out generally grew up to be more popular, adventurous, confident and dependable. The children who gave in to temptation early were more likely to be lonely, easily frustrated and inflexible.
Actually, the ability to delay reward is a sign of emotional intelligence which doesn’t show up on an IQ test.
The hardware of the brain and the software of the mind have long been scientists’ concerns. But brain theory can’t explain what we wonder about most, like the question why some people remain upbeat in the face of troubles that would sink a less resistant soul.
Here comes the theory of Daniel Goleman, writer of Emotional Intelligence: when it comes to predicting people’s success, brain ability as measured by IQ may actually matter less than the qualities of mind once thought of as “character”.
EQ is not the opposite of IQ. What researchers have been trying to understand is how they work together; how one’s ability to handle stress, for instance, affects the ability to concentrate and put intelligence to use. Among the elements for success, researchers now generally agree that IQ counts for about 20%; the rest depends on everything from social class to luck.
While many researchers in this relatively new field are glad to see emotional issues finally taken seriously, some few fear EQ invites misuse.
1.The experiment with the four-year-olds makes it clear that ______.
A. the age of 4 is a proper time for scientific experiment
B. emotional intelligence won’t show up until adolescence
C. candy can be used to measure a person’s emotional intelligence
D. the ability of self-control plays a role in personal success
2.Which of the following is True of EQ and IQ according to the text?
A. Scientists are trying to discover the way in which EQ and IQ work together.
B. The higher a person’s IQ is, the higher his or her EQ is.
C. Some people can be blessed with lots of both, but some with little of either.
D. There is no link between EQ and IQ.
3.The underlined word “upbeat” in Paragraph 4 probably means ______.
A. optimistic B. floating
C. excited D. kind
4.What is most likely to be written in the paragraph that follows?
A. Information about famous people with high EQ.
B. Some reasons why EQ is a relatively new field.
C. Examples showing the opposite voice about EQ.
D. Strong demand for basic emotional education.
People aren’t walking any more--- if they can figure out a way to avoid it.
I felt superior about this matter until the other day I took my car to mail a small parcel. The journey is a matter of 281 steps. But I used the car. And I wasn’t in any hurry, either, I had merely become one more victim of a national sickness: motorosis.
It is an illness to which I had thought myself immune, for I was bred in the tradition of going to places on my own two legs. At that time, we regarded 25 miles as good day’s walk and the ability to cover such a distance in ten hours as a sign of strength and skill. It did not occur to us that walking was a hardship. And the effect was lasting. When I was 45 years old I raced –and beat—a teenage football player the 168 steps up the Stature of Liberty.
Such enterprises today are regarded by many middle-aged persons as bad for the heart. But a well-known British physician, Sir Adolphe Abrhams, pointed out recently that hearts and bodies need proper exercise. A person who avoids exercise is more likely to have illnesses than one who exercises regularly. And walking is an ideal form of exercise--- the most familiar and natural of all. It was Henry Thoreau who showed mankind the richness of going on foot. The man walking can learn the trees, flower, insects, birds and animals, the significance of seasons, the very feel of himself as a living creature in a living world. He cannot learn in a car.
The car is a convenient means of transport, but we have made it our way of life. Many people don’t dare to approach Nature any more; to them the world they were born to enjoy is all threat. To them security is a steel river thundering on a concrete road. And much of their thinking takes place while waiting for the traffic light to turn green.
I say that the green of forests is the mind’s best light. And none but the man on foot can evaluate what is basic and everlasting.
1.What was life like when the author was young?
A. people often walked 25 miles a day
B. People usually went around on foot.
C. People used to climb the Statue of Liberty.
D. people considered a ten-hour walk as a hardship.
2.The author mentions Henry Thoreau to prove that ________.
A. middle-aged people like getting back to nature
B. people need regular exercise to keep fit
C. walking in nature helps enrich one’s mind
D. going on foot prevents heart disease
3.What is compared to “a steel river” in Paragraph6?
A. A ray of traffic light B. A queue of cars
C. A flash of lightning D. A stream of people
4.What is the author’s intention of writing this passage?
A. To encourage people to return to walking.
B. To recommend people to give up driving
C. To advise people to do outdoor activities.
D. To tell people to reflect more on life.
MAP ARTIST PROGRAM
Map Artist is the perfect tool for creating customized maps to include in research projects and reports. Map Artist offers endless possibilities. It has a huge collection of map styles to choose from, and they can be customized to suit your special needs. In this program, we will assume you have been asked to create a map for a social studies report.
Step 1. When you open Map Artist, a world map will be displayed. Type “USA” in the dialogue box. Click GO. A map of USA will be displayed.
Step 2. Click on the drop-down menu next to the outline map of the state. Click on the type of map you need for your report.
· OUTLINE shows only the outline shape of the state with no highways or population centers indicated.
· TOPOGRAPHIC indicates elevations（海拔）as well as the location of major cities.
· SHADED RELIEF shows only natural landforms (mountains, valleys, rivers) and national parks.
· POLITICAL shows major cities, interstates, and major highways.
· HISTORICAL recalls the oldest maps on record.
For the purposes of this program, select OUTLINE. A map showing an outline of USA will be displayed.
Step 3. Click CUSTOMIZE on the menu bar down the left side of the screen.
CUSTOMIZE allows you to place custom data on the map you have selected.
1．Click on the button next to the appropriate symbol. For practice, click on the shovel, which symbolizes archaeology.
2．Next to the word TEXT, type “The Presidio”, which is an archaeological site near San Francisco.
3．Now use your mouse to click on the spot on the map where you would like this data to be placed.
4．You can add as many sites as you wish.
Step 4. Click SAVE if you would like to save the map to a file. Later, after opening the saved document, click on the map with your right mouse button and select COPY. And then PASTE it at the location where you want the map to appear.
1. If your report is about Plants and Animals in New York, you may click on__________ map.
A. HISTORICAL B. SHADED RELIEF
C. TOPOGRAPHIC D. POLITICAL
2.Which function is required to place a specific location on a CUSTOMIZE map?
A. Clicking on GO. B. Cutting and pasting.
C. Clicking on the map. D. Opening the file.
3. Which of the following orders is true according to the Map Artist Program?
A young man returns to his hometown of Aractataca, Colombia. He visits the house where he lived as a child. Here, he remembers the most important memories of his childhood. Standing in front of his old house, the young man makes an important decision. He says to himself, “I will start my life over again. I will become a writer.”
This man is the world famous writer, Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
Gabriel Garcia Marquez was born on March 6, 1928. During his early life, Garcia Marquez’s grandmother and grandfather told him many stories. His grandmother would tell him legends as if they were real. Garcia Marquez says that his grandmother’s way of storytelling later influenced his own methods.
When Garcia Marquez was about 20 years old, he left Aractataca and attended university in Bogota. He began studying law because this was what his father wanted him to study. However, Garcia Marquez was not happy.
During this time Garcia Marquez returned to Aractataca. It was on this visit that he realized he must stop studying law. And he recognized that he must return to the dream of his childhood-writing. For the next few years, Garcia Marquez wrote for many different newspapers. And in 1955, he published his first book called “Leaf Storm”.
For many years, Garcia Marquez knew he wanted to write about his grandfather’s house in Aractataca. To write this book, Garcia Marquez and his wife had to sell almost all of their possessions to survive. But their act was worth it. The book, “One Hundred Years of Solitude” was immediately successful. And this book created a path for Garcia Marquez’s future success.
In 1982, Gabriel Garcia Marquez was given the Nobel Prize in Literature for his book “One Hundred Years of Solitude”, making him the first Colombian and the fourth Latin American to win a Nobel Prize in Literature.
1.Who influenced Garcia Marquez’s writing style?
A. His grandfather. B. His father.
C. His grandmother. D. His wife.
2.Garcia decided to take up writing_________.
A. when he worked for a newspaper
B. under the influence of his family
C. when he graduated from college
D. after a visit to his hometown
3. Garcia’s book “One Hundred Years of Solitude” .
A. was written in the 1950s
B. enjoyed a quick success
C. helped Garcia lead a better life
D. was about Garcia’s grandfather
4.What do we know from the text about Garcia Marquez?
A. He is the first Latin American to win a Nobel Prize in Literature.
B. He wrote for newspapers before publishing his own books.
C. His book “Leaf Storm” marked his great success in literature.
D. He followed his father’s wish to become a writer.
