Old age may not sound1._______ (excite).But recent findings provide good news for older people and for people 2._______ (worry) about getting older.
The findings came from 3.______ survey of more than 340,000 adults in the United States. The Gallup Organization questioned 4.______ by telephone in 2008.At that time, the people were between the ages of eighteen and eighty-five.
The researchers asked questions about emotions like happiness, 5.________(sad) and worry. They also asked about mental or emotional stress. The research team found that levels of stress were 6.________ (high) among adults between the ages of twenty-two and twenty-five. Stress levels dropped7._______ (sharp) after people reached their fifties.
Happiness8._______ highest among the youngest adults and those9._______ their early seventies. The study also showed that men and women have similar emotional patterns as they grow older. 10.______ , woman at all ages reported more sadness, stress and worry than men.
My dad has been driving a truck for almost his entire life．He's usually all the weekdays and comes home only at weekends．Sometimes he stays for two weeks at a time. I don't get to see him as often as I wish, we remain very ．
My dad is the type of person who doesn't let you up anything that you start．When I was eleven, my father bought me a piano． At first I was so about it that I would spend hours and hours learning how to play． Then it got ．I was so tired of it that I asked if I could stop． Much as I tried, he me to go on．Now I have been playing for almost five years． I love it and I'm glad I my dad's advice．
My dad is talented, for he has been playing the guitar for over 20 years． Under his influence, I also like now． Sometimes my dad can be my biggest ． He makes me smile even when I lose in a talent show sometimes he can be my biggest critic（批评家）． He ignores the small mistakes I make． He encourages me never to lose because he thinks that all my efforts will one day．
My dad is generous． Every Thursday night, he to read to the children at a children's club． When he reads, their light up with curiosity about what will happen next． I feel of having a person in my family who cares enough to volunteer to .
I love my dad with all my heart． He's a hero in my heart and the most wonderful person in the world．
1.A. on B． with C．out D．in
2.A． home B． alone C．inside D．away
3.A． Even though B． In case C．If only D．As if
4.A． polite B． kind C．different D．close
5.A． put B． give C．take D．speed
6.A． nervous B． crazy C．familiar D．anxious
7.A． rough B． difficult C．boring D．disappointing
8.A． Persuaded B． promised C．reminded D．suggested
9.A． receive B． challenged C．listened D．took
10.A． Physically B． musically C．exactly D．typically
11.A． dancing B． composing C．writing D．drawing
12.A． supporter B． director C．scholar D．sponsor
13.A． however B． so C．still D．and
14.A． ever B． often C．even D．never
15.A． aim B． dream C．heart D．strength
16.A． come true B． take risks C．let out D．pay off
17.A． agrees B． likes C．offers D．intends
18.A． bodies B． arms C．faces D．hands
19.A． jealous B． optimistic C．happy D．proud
20.A． read B． help C．work D．Drive
1.__ They provide him wood and other products; they give him shade; and they help to prevent drought and floods.
2.___ In his eagerness to draw quick profit from the trees, he has cut them down in large numbers.
Two thousand years ago, a rich and powerful country cut down its trees to build warships, with which to gain itself an empire. It gained the empire but, without its trees, its soil became bare and poor. When the empire fell to pieces, the country found itself faced by floods and starvation.
Even where a government realizes the importance of a plentiful supply of trees, it is difficult sometimes to make the people realize this. 3.__ So unless the government has a good system of control, or can educate the people, the forests slowly disappear.
4.___ The results are even more serious: for where there are trees, their roots break the soil up, allowing the rain to sink in, and also hold the soil. 5.___ But where there are no trees, the rainfalls on hard ground and flows away on the surface, and this causes floods and the rain carries away the rich topsoil in which crops grow. When all the topsoil is gone, nothing remains but worthless desert．
A. This does not only mean that there will be fewer trees.
B. Trees are useful to man in three very important ways.
C. Unfortunately, in many parts of the world, man has not realized the third of these services is the most important.
D. This prevent the soil from being washed away.
E. If there were no more trees, something terrible would happen.
F. However, a lot of trees are being cut down.
G. They cut down the trees but are too careless to plant and look after new trees.
In the summer of 1978 an English farmer was driving his tractor through a field of wheat when he discovered that some of his wheat was lying flat on the ground. The flattened wheat formed a circle about six meters across. Around this circle were four smaller circles of flattened wheat. The five circles were in a formation like five dots. During the following years, farmers in England found the strange circles in their fields more and more often.
The circles are called “crop circles” because they appear in the fields of grain ― usually wheat or corn. The grain in the circles lies flat on the ground but is never broken; it continues to grow, and farmers can later harvest it. Farmers always discover the crop circles in the morning, so the circles probably form at night. They appear only in the months from May to September.
At first, people thought that the circles were a hoax. Probably young people were making them as a joke, or farmers were making them to attract tourists. To prove that the circles were a hoax, people tried to make circles exactly like the ones that farmers had found. They couldn’t do it. They couldn’t enter a field of grain without leaving tracks, and they couldn’t flatten the grain without breaking it.
Many people believe that beings from outer space are making the circles to communicate with us from far away and that the crop circles are messages from them.
Scientists who have studied the crop circles suggested several possibilities. Some scientists say that a downward rush of wind leads to the formation of the circles — the same downward lash of air that sometimes causes an airplane to crash. Other scientists say that forces within the earth cause the circles to appear. There is one problem with all these scientific explanations: crop circles often appear in formations, like the five-dot formation. It is hard to believe that any natural force could form those.
1.In the summer of 1978, an English farmer discovered in his field that ______.
A. some of his wheat had been damaged
B. some of his wheat had fallen onto the ground
C. his grain was growing up in circles
D. his grain was moved into several circles
2.The underlined word "hoax" in Paragraph 3 is probably ______.
A. a research on the force of winds
B. a special way to plant crops
C. an experiment for the protection of crops
D. an attempt made to fool people
3.Which of the following may prove that the crop circles are not made by man?
A. The farmers couldn’t step out of the field.
B. The farmers couldn’t make the circles round.
C. The farmers couldn’t leave without footprints.
D. The farmers couldn’t keep the wheat straight up.
4.One explanation given by scientists for the crop circles is that they are made by _____.
A. airplane crashes B. air movement
C. unknown flying objects D. new farming techniques
In New York, Ma witnessed the Alibaba Group opening on the New York stock exchange with the largest initial public offering (IPO，新股发行) in American history. “Alibaba, the world’s largest Internet commerce company makes China equal to the US in the rapidly increasing global competition for technological innovation (创新) and economic transformation ” commented the South China Morning Post.
It has also made Ma China’s richest man with a fortune of around $25 billion (153 billion yuan), reported Reuters.
It’s reported that Ma’s rags-to-riches journey is just as spectacular as his Internet empire. Ma failed the national college entrance exams twice before he was finally in Hangzhou Normal University on his third attempt and failed in finding a suitable job several times. Also, Mr. Ma is a big believer in perseverance, which was proved in his English study experience.
However, it was his vision and goals that launched his career.
During a short trip to the US as an interpreter in 1995, Ma first experienced the Internet. He believed in the Internet’s business potential when few other Chinese people did. He started Alibaba in his Hangzhou apartment, with 17 friends and $60,000 of funds. At the time, when e-commerce was unheard of in China, “I called myself a blind man riding on the back of blind tigers,” he once said, according to The Guardian. His unusual ideas earned him the nickname “Crazy Jack Ma”.
Indeed, Ma is different. Although he is very thin and about 160cm tall, “Ma is yet animated and forceful, said The Guardian. “He is funny, creative, and a compelling (引人注目的) speaker.
Ma told Time magazine that he was “old for the Internet”. He started to slow down and looked around. According to The Wall Street Journal, Ma “plans to open a tai chi club with the actor Jet Li, build an entrepreneur (企业家) university in Hangzhou and continue to work on several environmental projects.”
1.What made him into e-commerce industry?
A. His foresight and ambitions.
B. His English learning experience.
C. His belief in perseverance.
D. His 17 friends and $60,000 funds.
2.What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 5 mean?
A. Ma is a blind man riding on a blind tiger.
B. Ma had no confidence in his business future.
C. Ma knew little about e-commerce.
D. Ma had not enough money at that time.
3.What’s the personality of Ma Yun according to the passage?
A. Funny and competitive.
B. Determined and creative.
C. Rich and different.
D. Attractive and believable.
4.What’s the best title of the passage?
A. The Development of Alibaba Group
B. Ma Yun’s Personal Life
C. Ma Yun’s Crazy Success
D. E-commerce in China
(Reuters) --- A stampede killed at least 36 people during New Year's Eve celebrations in Shanghai, authorities said, but the police denied reports that it was caused by people rushing to pick up fake money thrown from a building overlooking the city's famous waterfront.
It was the worst disaster in the modern city since 58 died in an apartment building fire in 2010.
The cause of the crush has still to be confirmed, though state media and some witnesses have said it was at least partly aroused when people rushed to pick up coupons that looked like bank notes.
A man named Wu said the fake money had been thrown down from a bar above the street as part of the celebrations.
"This incident happened after the stampede," police said in a brief statement, without saying what the real cause was.
Another witness said there had been a problem away from the area where the fake bills were thrown, with people trying to get on to a raised platform overlooking the river.
Xinhua news agency said that people had been trampled on after falling down on the steps up to the platform.
Authorities had shown some concern about crowd control in the days leading up to New Year's Eve. They recently canceled an annual 3D laser show on the Bund, which last year attracted as many as 300,000 people.
On New Year's Eve, Beijing also canceled a countdown event in the central business district, Chinese media said, due to police fears about overcrowding.
The Shanghai government said on its official microblog that an inquiry had begun, and that all other New Year events had been canceled.
In 2004, 37 people died in a stampede in northern Beijing, on a bridge at a scenic spot, during the Lunar New Year holiday.
1.According to the passage, why did people go to the Bund?
A. To meet their old friends and relatives.
B. To celebrate the New Year’s Eve.
C. To watch an annual 3D laser show.
D. To pick up bank notes.
2.What can be inferred according to the passage?
A. Some possible measures had been taken by authorities.
B. People like 3D laser show better than any other events.
C. The local government had shown their worry about overcrowding.
D. The celebrations in Beijing were influenced by this stampede.
3.What’s the passage about?
A. A countdown event in Beijing.
B. A laser show on the Bund.
C. An apartment fire in Shanghai.
D. A stampede on New Year’s Eve in Shanghai.
