We all remember seeing hitchhikers（搭便车的人）, standing by the side of the road, thu
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We all remember seeing hitchhikers（搭便车的人）, standing by the side of the road, thumb sticking out, waiting for a lift. But it is getting rare nowadays. What killed hitchhiking? Safety is often mentioned as a reason. Movies about murderous hitchhikers and real-life crime have put many drivers off picking up hitchhikers. That no single women picked me up on my journey to Manchester no doubt reflects the safety fear: a large, strangely dressed man is seen as dangerous.
But the reason may be more complex: hitchhiking happens where people don’t have cars and transport services are poor. Plenty of people still hitchhike in Poland and Romania. Perhaps the rising level of car ownership in the UK means the few people lift hitchhiking are usually considered strange. Why can’t they afford cars? Why can’t they take the coach or the train?
Three-quarters of the UK population have access to a car; many of the remainder will be quite old. The potential hitchhiking population is therefore small. Yet my trip proves it’s still possible to hitchhike. The people who picked me up were very interesting-lawyer, retired surgeon, tank commander, carpenter, man who live in an isolated farmhouse and a couple living up in the mountains. My conclusion is that only really interesting people are mad enough to pick up fat blokes in red,
spotted scarves. Most just wanted to do someone a good turn; a few said they were so surprised to see a hitchhiker that they couldn’t help stopping.
The future of hitchhiking most likely lies with car-sharing organized over the Internet, via sites such as hitchhikers. org. But for now, you can still stick your thumb out(actually, I didn’t do much of that, preferring just to hold up my destination sign) and people-wonderful, caring, sharing, unafraid people-will stop.
In the UK, with its cheap coaches and reasonable rail service, I don’t think I’ll make a habit of it. But having enjoyed it so much, I’m ready now to do a big trip across Europe and beyond. In the 1970s a female friend of my wife’s hitchhiked to India. How wonderful it would be to have another go, though Afghanistan might be a challenge. I wish I’d got that tank commander’s mobile number.
小题1:The author tried to hitchhike but was rejected by single women drivers because_____________ .| A．they were not heading towards Manchester | | B．they thought most hitchhikers were dangerous | | C．hitchhiking had been forbidden and they didn’t want to break the law | | D．he was a strong man in strange clothes who seemed dangerous |
小题2:Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?| A．That some people refuse hitchhikers may reflect the safety fear. | | B．Car ownership levels are lower in Romania than in the UK. | | C．40% of UK people don’t have access to cars. | | D．Increased car ownership has reduced the need for hitchhiking. |
小题3:The “fat blokes in red, spotted scarves” in Paragraph 3 most likely means .| A．murderous hitchhikers | | B．friendly and talkative hitchhikers | | C．typical hitchhikers | | D．strange hitchhikers like the author |
小题4:According to the author, future hitchhikers are more likely to .| A．visit websites and find people to share cars with | | B．stand by roads with their thumbs sticking out | | C．stick out signs with their destinations written on | | D．wait for some kind people to pick them up |
小题5:From the last paragraph, we know that the author .| A．frequently hitchhikes in Britain | | B．plans to hitchhike across Europe | | C．thinks public transport is safer for travel | | D．is going to contact the tank commander |
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答案
小题1:D
小题2:C
小题3:D
小题4:A
小题5:B |
解析
本文讲述了现在站在路边搭载搭便车的人越来越少。文章分析了搭便车人少的原因。
小题1:细节题 根据文章第一段a large, strangely dressed man is seen as dangerous.
可知，他被看做一个危险人物。根据第二段Plenty of people still hitchhike in Poland and Romania. Perhaps the rising level of car ownership in the UK means the few people lift hitchhiking are usually considered strange.可知B、D正确。
小题2:考查细节题 根据第一段That no single women picked me up on my journey to Manchester no doubt reflects the safety fear，可知A正确；根据第三段Three-quarters of the UK population have access to a car;可知C项错误，故选C.
小题3:细节题 根据前面提到只有足够有趣的人才会搭载他，以及My conclusion is that only really interesting people are mad enough to pick up fat blokes in red, spotted scarves。可知，这种人就是指自己。
小题4:细节题 根据倒数第二段The future of hitchhiking most likely lies with car-sharing organized over the Internet,可知答案为A.
小题5:推断题 根据But having enjoyed it so much, I’m ready now to do a big trip across Europe and beyond.可知答案为B. |
举一反三
Parents whose children show a special interest in a particular sport feel it very difficult to make a decision about their children’s careers. Should they allow their children to train to become top sports men and women? For many children it means starting school work very young, and going out with friends and other interests have to take a second place. It’s very difficult to explain to a young child why he or she has to train five hours a day, even at the weekend, when most of his or her friends are playing.
Another problem is of course money. In many countries money for training is available from government for the very best young sportsmen and women. If this help can not be given, it means that it is the parents who have to find the time and the money to support their child’s development—and sports clothes, transport to competitions, special equipment, etc. can all be very expensive.
Many parents are worried that it is dangerous to start serious training in a sport at an early age. Some doctors agree that young muscles may be damaged by training before they are properly developed. Professional trainers, however, believe that it is only by training young that you can reach the top as a successful sports person. It is clear that very few people do reach the top, and both parents and children should be prepared for failure even after many years of training.
小题1:This article is most probably taken from________.| A．a letter | | B．an advertisement | | C．a personal diary | | D．a newspaper article |
小题2:According to the passage, parents whose children show a special interest in a sport _______.| A．feel uncertain if they should let their children train to be sports men or women | | B．try to get financial（财务的）support from the government for their children’s training | | C．have to get medical advice from doctors about training methods | | D．prefer their children to be trained as young as possible |
小题3:The underlined phrase“to take a second place”means_________.| A．to repeat the activities at some other place | | B．to become less important | | C．all things considered, they are of poor quality | | D．to happen again |
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Social networking isn’t only for the under 40s. More than 25 percent of Americans 50 years and older stay connected using sites such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, according to new research.
“The latest data tells us that more and more social networking is becoming a part of everyday life for Americans 50 plus,” said Kevin Donnellan, the chief communications officer at AARP, which released the report.
Nearly a quarter of older Americans are on Facebook and 73 percent said they use it to stay in touch with relatives, but not just their children and grandchildren. “They are using the Internet to keep up with the world and the people who are important to them,” said Jean Koppen, the author of the report. She added that older adults are also on Facebook to stay connected, not only with their family, but with their friends and those in the same age group. Almost 50 percent of older adults were introduced to the social networking sites by a family member, mainly a child or grandchild. “Just under one-fifth of adults aged 50 and older say they do not use the Internet,” according to the report.
The findings are based on a telephone survey of 1,863 adults. In addition to keeping up on Facebook and Twitter older adults are aware of the latest technology. Eighty-three percent had heard about the Apple iPad and 11 percent intended to buy one.
Despite the popularity of the Internet among the over 50s, they still mostly go to print newspapers and magazines for news. Only one percent said they followed blogs.
小题1:What is the main idea of the text?
A. Social networking is becoming popular among older Americans.
B. Social networking isn’t for the under 40s in the U.S.A.
C. American old people’s way of life is quite fashionable.
D. Facebook, MySpace and Twitter are the most popular websites in the US.
小题2:Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?| A．85% of Americans 50 plus choose the Internet over print media. | | B．About 20% of adults aged 50 plus have access to the Internet. | | C．About 460 people in the telephone survey often use Facebook. | | D．Three quarters of the people surveyed got to know the Internet through their family. |
小题3:From the text, it can be concluded that______.| A．Kevin Donnellan approves of this change among older Americans | | B．many older Americans are open-minded about new developments | | C．Young people should introduce their elders to new technology | | D．In a high tech age it is difficult to avoid social networking |
小题4:Where does the text probably come from?| A．A novel. | B．A student’s research paper | | C．A technology guide. | D．A newspaper. |
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Americans love dogs, all types of dogs: small dogs, big dogs, lapdogs (供玩赏的小狗). Each year, people spend billions of dollars on their four-legged pals, making sure the lovable dogs have enough food to eat and lots of toys to play with.
Dogs love people, too. They lick their faces, protect their homes. Where did these four-legged companions come from? Some scientists believe that they have found the answer.
Scientists have long known that dogs evolved from（演化） wolves. Exactly when the transformation from wolf to dog actually took place, however, remains a mystery.
Some said dogs evolved as a separate species 135,000 years ago in two parts of the world. One group of dogs developed in Europe and Asia from Asian wolves. The other group evolved in North, Central, and South America from American wolves.
Now researchers say those theories are wrong. New studies suggest that domesticated dogs first appeared 15,000 years ago in eastern Asia. Scientists also say that every modern dog descended from approximately five female Asian wolves, the mother of all modern dogs.
Scientists suspect dogs first set paws in North America by following settlers across a land bridge that once linked northern Asia and North America.
小题1:According to recent studies, all modern dogs came from female wolves in ______.| A．Asia | B．Africa | | C．Europe | D．South America |
小题2:From this story, we can conclude that _______.| A．dogs are scientists’ best friends | | B．dogs are more like wolves than they are like any other animal | | C．most dogs are from Africa | | D．scientists have no idea how dogs evolved |
小题3:The underlined word “domesticated” means “_______”.| A．tamed | B．indoor | C．intelligent | D．friendly |
小题4:The best title for this story might be ______.| A．Why Cats Don’t Like Dogs | | B．Barking up the Wrong Tree | | C．Love Me, Love My Dog | | D．Going from Wolf to Dog |
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People have been burying the dead at Salem’s Hope Cemetery since 1833. The place is filled with old gravestones and gothic mausoleums(哥特式陵墓), the spirits of the dead hanging over the land like an early morning fog.
Keeping watch, a few steps from the road with her skirt over the pedestal (基座), is Goldie Belle Taylor, her face weathered but otherwise in good condition. On this day, she is holding a bunch of pink rises because Goldie Belle always holds flowers. Someone makes sure of that.
“And she has had fresh flowers in her hands for the last 150 years.” Karen Biery lives in Damascus, about five miles west of Hope Cemetery. She’s written a book based on the legend of Goldie Belle Taylor titled Believe. In 1886, at the age of two, young Goldie Belle used her hands to sop up (抹去) the left over elderberry juice from her father’s iron kettle. She died not long after from poisoning. She was the love of her dad’s life, and he was so upset that he sold the family farm to buy the Italian made statue, which today marks her grave.
At first, it was her father who brought the flowers and laid them in her hands. When he died in 1896, the flowers kept coming. Her flowers are different per season. Why do the flowers keep miraculously appearing? People have tried to find out by having camped by the statue, but not even the groundskeepers have been able to catch the criminal.
It’s said that a fairy arrives at Hope Cemetery looking for the grave of her birth mother. She comes across Goldie Belle’s statue.
小题1:The underlined word “that” in paragraph 2 probably refers to________.| A．her face in good condition | | B．her bunch of pink roses | | C．Goldie Belle Taylor is holding pink roses | | D．Goldie Belle Taylor always holds flowers |
小题2:It can be inferred from the third paragraph __________.| A．her father was poisonous | | B．the iron kettle was poisonous | | C．elderberry juice was poisonous | | D．it was her father that hated her |
小题3:After her father died, the flowers in the hands of Goldie Belle Taylor_______.| A．usually change | | B．were stolen | | C．are no longer fresh | | D．come from a criminal |
小题4:What would be the best title for the passage?| A．A fairy brings the flowers. | | B．The mystery of Goldie’s flowers. | | C．What happens to the girl? | | D．How do the flowers get there? |
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Parent fans, both dads and mums, are shaming British football with their bad behaviour. Hundreds of junior soccer matches had to be abandoned last season because parent fans were swearing or even fighting on the touchline. At schools and clubs across the UK, hundreds of more matches also had to be called off for the same reason.
Reports tell of abuse at referees（裁判）, players and coaches and fight breaking out on the touchline.
Enough is enough Peter Wright, a keen referee of junior soccer, finally hung up his boots last season. He decided to walk away for good. He said “Every week I have had to take abuse and I’ve had enough of it.”
“Parents’ behaviour is reducing many school teachers, referees, coaches and volunteers to despair.”
The kids are suffering Jim Peter, a referee, said, “We are getting desperate and the kids are suffering.” He described the way spectators（观众）behave as abysmal and getting worse year by year. The big question is why so many parents shame their children in this way. Aggressive Behavior Contracts may have to be introduced to stop the violence and abuse. If not, the game will suffer.
Sign up to good conduct Last season players and parents were made to sign a new good behavior contract. “If a parent breaks the contract, I take his or her child off the pitch and get him or her to explain why I have done so to the child,” said Marc Nash, Wallsend’s assistant leader.
“The next step is to ban both the parent and the child, but happily, so far this has not been necessary.”
小题1:A number of junior soccer matches were abandoned last season because .| A．players abused spectators in the matches | | B．parent fans swore and fought outside the pitch | | C．school teachers persuaded the government to call them off | | D．referees and coaches fought on the touchline |
小题2:Who’s an assistant leader in the passage?| A．Marc Nash. | B．Jim Peter. | C．Peter Wright. | D．Wallsend. |
小题3:The underlined word “abysmal” in the passage means .| A．extremely bad | B．weak | C．disappointing | D．impolite |
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