One October morning, the sky was clear and the sun was shining. Bethany Hamilton decided to go _______ with some friends in Hawaii.
As one of the best teenage surfers in the world, the 13-year-old, shy and old American girl was planning to become a _______ surfer. Cheerfully, she was lying on her surfboard, waiting for the next big wave. Suddenly-a big shark _______ her left arm and shook her backwards and forwards. Bethany held onto her board and the shark eventually swam away—but it took her _______ away with it. _______ it attacked only once. It happened so fast that she didn’t even _______.
As Bethany started to swim back to the beach with one arm, her friends thought she was joking. But to their horror, they saw the _______ and rushed to help.
Having lost almost half the blood, Bethany’s _______ was a miracle(奇迹), according to doctors. But she wanted to do _______ just survive.
“It never crossed my mind that I might never get on a surfboard again,” she recalled later. “I wondered whether I would actually be ________ to do it or not. But ________ I left hospital, I had decided that I was going to surf.”
With the support of her family, Bethany ________ to get back on her board only one month after the attack. Her dad fixed a handle on her surfboard to help her paddle(划水) through and into waves.
When she returned to surfing at a competition in Hawaii, Bethany was ________ in dangerous waves that broke her surfboard. As a result, she gave away her remaining boards and quit. She tried using an artificial arm, but it turned out to be ________ while surfing.
After ________ in Thailand in the 2004 earthquake and helping homeless survivors who had lost everything, Bethany ________ her decision to give up the sport she loved and ________ to try professional surfing again. Less than a year after the accident, she won first place in a surfing competition in Hawaii. And all her struggles and efforts ________when she won in a world championship years later.
She also received several ________, including a special award for courage at the MTV Teen Choice Awards in 2004 and the Woman of the Year award from King Fahd of Saudi Arabia in 2006. Her ________, true story gained wider attention with the release(发行）of the film Soul Surfer.
1.A. swimming B. boating C. sailing D. surfing
2.A. professional B. free C. dream D. special
3.A. touched B. struck C. bit D. took
4.A. arm B. surfboard C. friend D. hand
5.A. Strangely B. Especially C. Surprisingly D. Fortunately
6.A. think B. fight C. scream D. escape
7.A. shark B. blood C. attack D. scene
8.A. survival B. courage C. accident D. injury
9.A. rather than B. more than C. better than D. other than
10.A. suitable B. lucky C. strong D. able
11.A. while B. after C. before D. until
12.A. hoped B. managed C. agreed D. offered
13.A. caught B. noticed C. lost D. driven
14.A. helpful B. useless C. wonderful D. meaningless
15.A. training B. setting C. traveling D. volunteering
16.A. reconsidered B. remembered C. recognized D. recalled
17.A. refused B. started C. decided D. continued
18.A. paid out B. paid for C. paid in D. paid off
19.A. gifts B. honors C. rewards D. praises
20.A. exciting B. dangerous C. inspiring D. adventurous
In many countries, it is important to have many children In the US, a few religious groups emphasize the importance of large families, but most people think one or two children are enough, and many couples have no children. 1. Having many children would restrict the freedom and individualism of the parents as well as the other children in the family.
Parents teach individualism by the way they raise their children 2. Parents begin teaching this self-reliance early, asking the child to do things on her own and praising her when she does.
3. They bring their children with them to church, to sporting events, to stores, and to social events. However, many places, such as expensive restaurants and live theatre productions, do not welcome children. Most formal social gatherings those with written invitations do not welcome children either.
Children，especially boys are expected to be energetic and assertive(果敢的).
4. Parents are expected to keep their children under control at all times, particularly in public places and in the homes of others. When a child misbehaves only the child’s patents may discipline him. 5. Most patents discipline their children by rewarding good behaviors, not by punishing bad behaviors. while a spanking，a slap to the child’s buttocks(屁股), is acceptable to some people, any punishment that wounds the child or leaves a mark is considered child abuse and is against the law.
A. The relationship between American parents and their children is harmony
B. That doesn’t mean, though, that they are allowed to “run wild” in public.
C. Because taking care of a child is very costly, financially, emotionally, and socially, many couples view large families as a disadvantage.
D. Others adults should not interfere (干涉) unless the child is doing something which may be harmful to himself
E. American children are expected to accept invitations to a formal party.
F. Many parents want to expose their children to a variety of situations.
G. They want to create a self-reliant, independent child, who can make it on her own by age eighteen.
When you hear the word “recycling”, what comes to your mind? The color green or global warming?
What if I were to tell you there is a dark side of recycling? A type of recycling that does more than good. The dark side of recycling has nothing to do with the environment but rather has a lot to do with the recycling of ideas.
Environmental unrest is not the only trouble we must face. Idea pollution is quickly becoming widespread across the online world.
Think about it. When was the last time you read an original blog post? I’m guessing it has been quite a while. Why do you think top bloggers of today win so much respect? Do you think they recycle their ideas? With each recycled idea the online world becomes much more polluted. Used content contributes to the ever increasing mass of digital smog.
The first step to reduce pollution is simple: stop recycling. When you stop recycling, you will then be forced to take up the task of creating from your own ideas. When you recycle an excellent idea, it soon becomes good. When you recycle a good idea, it soon becomes just OK. The chain continues until the key part of what used to make the idea good is saturated, leaving you nothing but a pile of mess.
In order not to pollute, your ideas must go beyond “just recycled”. Your ideas must stand out from the pollution of the web. For your voice and talent to be heard and seen, you must go far beyond the standard copy of your neighbours’ ideas.
For the next week, make a promise not to recycle. Let your ideas flourish and flow. Believe in your ability to create, because the death of recycling starts with YOU.
1.Which is true about top bloggers of today according to the writer?
A. They often recycle their ideas.
B. They tend to express many fresh ideas.
C. They are not worth much respect.
D. They make good use of others’ ideas.
2.What is the meaning of the underlined word “saturated” in paragraph 5?
A. many and good B. useful but not enough C. many but not good D. beneficial
3.This passage is written mainly for ________.
A. top bloggers B. common bloggers
C. environmental polluters D. net researchers
4.The main purpose of this passage is ________.
A. to remind people to pay attention to environmental protection
B. to prove that the web environment is becoming worse and worse
C. to warn people not to pollute our web environment with bad words
D. to call on people to write online more creatively instead of repeating
People can be addicted to different things, e.g. alcohol, drugs, certain foods, or even television. People who have such an addiction are compulsive, i.e they have a very powerful psychological need that they feel they must satisfy. According to psychologists, many people are compulsive spenders; they feel that they must spend money. This compulsion, like most others, is irrational-impossible to explain reasonably. For compulsive spenders who buy on credit, charge accounts are even more exciting than money. In other words, compulsive spenders feel that with credit, they can do anything. Their pleasure in spending enormous amounts is actually greater than the pleasures that they get from the things they buy.
There is even a special psychology of bargain hunting. To save money, of course, most people look for sales, low prices, and discounts. Compulsive bargain hunters, however, often buy things that they don’t need just because they are cheap. They want to believe that they are helping their budgets, but they are really playing an exciting game: when they can buy something for less than other people, they feel that they are winning. Most people, experts claim, have two reasons for their behavior: a good reason for the things that they do and the real reason.
It is not only scientists, of course, who understand the psychology of spending habits, but also business people. Stores, companies and advertisers use psychology to increase business: they consider people’s need for love, power, or influence, their basic values, their beliefs and opinions, and so on in their advertising and sales methods.
Psychologists often use a method called “behavior therapy” to help individuals solve their personal problems. In the same was, they can help people who feel that they have problems with money.
1.According to psychologists, a compulsive spender is one who spends large amounts of money ________.
A. and takes great pleasure from what he or she buys
B. in order to satisfy his or her basic needs in life
C. just to meet his or her strong psychological need
D. entirely with an irrational eagerness
2.The passage is mainly concerned with ________.
A. the psychology of money - spending habits
B. the purchasing habits of compulsive spenders
C. a special psychology of bargain hunting
D. the use of the psychology of spending habits in business
3.Which of the following statements is true?
A. All people spend money for exactly the same reason they need to buy things.
B. Business people and advertisers can use the psychology of money to increase sales.
C. Business people understand the psychology of compulsive buying better than scientists do.
D. Compulsive bargain hunters do not have problems with money.
4.From the passage we may safely concluded that compulsive spenders or compulsive bargain hunters ________.
A. are really unreasonable
B. need special treatment
C. are really beyond treatment
D. can never get any help to solve their problems with money
My folks bought their first house in the early 1940s after Dad got a better job in Marquette, Michigan. We lived just inside the city limits in what was still a rural area.
In the spring of 1948, when I was 6 years old, my parents bought a calf (小牛) to replace our cow, which had been killed the year before. So one day we drove to a local farm and returned with a white and brown calf we named Tubby.
We didn’t own a truck, so Tubby rode home in the backseat of Dad’s car with my 9-year-old brother Steve, and me. As you can imagine, the trip was a lot of fun for us kids.
Later that summer, Mom thought it would be cute to take a picture of me sitting on Tubby’s back. All went well unti1 the snap of the camera shutter sent Tubby charging off on a run, with me holding on for dear life. I lasted for about 30 feet before I hit the ground. Mom was quick enough to shoot a follow-up picture, so we had photos of me both on and off Tubby!
When summer had passed, the day arrived for poor Tubby to fill our freezer I must have been somewhere else with my Mom on the fateful day, because I have no memory of how it happened. All I knew was that the barn was empty, and that we had plenty of meat for dinners.
I hadn’t lived on a farm like my mother, so I didn’t understand that what happened to Tubby was not unusual. Livestock aren’t meant to be pets, and most farm kids know and accept that truth.
Whenever we had beef for dinner, I would tearfully, “Is this Tubby” This went on for a couple of weeks until Dad had finally had enough and declared, “No more cows!” That made me feel a little better about poor Tubby.
1.The writer’s parents bought Tubby so that ________.
A. they would have more cows in the future
B. it would provide their children with milk
C. the family would have enough meat to eat
D. they would no longer feel lonely on the farm
2.Which word can be used to describe the author’s mom?
A. Serious. B. Strong-willed.
C. Careless. D. Quick-minded.
3.We learn from the passage that ________.
A. Steve was not so fond of Tubby as his younger brother
B. the author had much trouble with Tubby in the summer
C. the author’s mom thought it natural to kill a cow for meat
D. the author was pleased to see their freezer filled with beef
4.We can most probably read the text above in a website on ________.
A. pets B. education
C. diet D. animals
The 87th Academy Award nominations（提名）were announced on Jan 15,and The Grand Budapest Hotel stood out as a favorite with nine nominations, including Best Picture. Check out some other Best Picture nominees to see if you missed any of last year's top Hollywood films.
The Imitation Game
This historical thriller is about British computer scientist, Alan Turing (Benedict Cumberbatch), the father of artificial intelligence. At the start of World War Ⅱ, Turing was asked to join a select team of mathematical geniuses to decode（解码）the system the Nazis used to send military messages. Besides the actual breaking of the code, Cumberbatch's portrayal（扮演）of Turing's personality, a mixture of decency（正派）and shyness, is also a highlight of the movie.
Birdman
This dark comedy film is about how Riggan Thomson, a faded star once famous for his superhero roles, struggles to regain fame. American actor Michael Keaton, 63, who has a similar experience to Thomson's, plays the leading role.
Selma
A stellar cast(主要演员) including talk show queen Oprah Winfrey may be one reason to see Selma. But that the film focuses on Martin Luther King Jr.'s struggle for civil rights also makes it worth viewing. Based on the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches, the film is a chronicle(编年史) of King's(David Oyelowo) campaign for political rights for African-American people.
The Theory of Everything
We know English theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking for his significant scientific discoveries, especially his black hole theories. This biographical film reveals the scientist's (played by Eddie Redmayne) secret romantic relationship with Jane Hawking (Felicity Jones), whom he meets and falls in love with at Cambridge and who later becomes his first wife.
Boyhood
American Director Richard Linklater did an experiment in this film, using the same cast for l2 years to record a boy's growth. In two and a half hours, we see Mason, a Texas boy from a divorced family, grow from 6-year-old boy to a freshman in college.
1.How many Best Picture nominees are mentioned in the text?
A. Five. B. Six.
C. Eight. D. Nine.
2.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the text?
A. Michael Keaton became famous overnight after starring in the movie Birdman.
B. Alan Turing is a talented and outgoing man in The Imitation Game.
C. Selma is the story of Martin Luther King Jr.'s fight for voting rights for African-Americans.
D. The Theory of Everything is about how Stephen Hawking discovered his black hole theories.
3.What is the main purpose of the text?
A. To analyze why these films were nominated for the 87th Academy Awards.
B. To give a brief introduction to the 87th Academy Award nominees.
C. To list some of the best nominees in the Academy Awards' history.
D. To prove that the Academy Award nominees cover a broad range of topics.
