“Life is speeding up. Everyone is getting unwell.”This may sound like something

题型：不详难度：来源：

“Life is speeding up. Everyone is getting unwell.”
This may sound like something someone would say today. But in fact, an unknown citizen who lived in Rome in AD 52 wrote it.
We all love new inventions. They are exciting, amazing and can even change our lives.
But have all these developments really improved the quality of our lives?
Picture this: You’re rushing to finish your homework on the computer. Your mobile phone rings, a QQ message from your friend appears on the screen, the noise from the television is getting louder and louder. Suddenly the computer goes blank and you lose all your work. Now you have to stay up al

l night to get it done. How calm and happy do you feel?
Inventions have speeded up our lives so much that they often leave us feeling stressed and tired. Why do you think people who live far away from noisy cities, who have not telephones, no cars, not even any electricity often seem to be happier? Perhaps because they lead simpler lives.
One family in the UK went “back in time” to see what life was like without all the inventions we have today. The grandparents, with their daughter, and grandsons Benjamin, 10, and Tomas, 7, spent nine weeks in a 1940s house. They had no washing machine, microwave, computer or mobile phones.
The grandmother, Lyn, said, “It was hard physically, but not mentally.” She believed life was less materialistic. “The more things you have, the more difficult life becomes,” She said. The boys said they fought less to fight over, such as their computer. Benjamin also noticed that his grandmother had changed from being a “trendy（时髦的）, beer-drinking granny, to one who cooked things.”
Here are some simple ways to beat the stress often caused by our inventions!
Don’t be available all the time, turn off your mobile phone at certain times of the day. Don’t check your e-mail every day.
Don’t reply to somebody as soon as they leave a text message just because you can. It may be fun at first, but it soon gets annoying.
小题1:The passage is mainly about .

A．problem with technology

B．improvements of our life with technology

C．the important roles technology plays in our everyday life

D．major changes which will be likely to happen to technology

小题2:The writer quoted（引用） what a citizen in ancient Rome said at the beginning of the story in order to .

A．share a truth about life

B．tell us what life was like long time ago

C．make us wonder what causes such a thing to happen

D．point out that you experience some big problems and they may be the same

小题3:Why did the family choose to spend some time in a 1940’s house? Because .

A．they liked to live simple lives

B．they were curious about how people lived without modern inventions

C．they were troubled by modern inventions

D．living in a different time would be a lot of fun for them

小题4:What do you think the underlined word “available” in the 1^st suggestion offered by the writer mean?

A．Busy on line

B．Free.

C．Be able to

D．Be found by others.

答案

小题1:A
小题2:A
小题3:B
小题4:D

解析

略

举一反三

For years and years people have been saying that the railways are dead．“We can do without railways” people say，as if motorcars and planes made the railways unnecessary．We all keep hearing that trains are slow，that they lose money，that they’re dying．But this is far from the truth．In these days of expensive oil，the railways have become highly competitive with motorcars and planes．If you want to carry people or goods from place to place，they’re cheaper than planes．And they have much in common with planes．A plane goes in a strange line and so does a railway．What is more，it takes you from the heart of a city into the heart of another．It doesn’t 1eave you as a plane does，miles and miles from the city center．It doesn’t hold you up as a car does，in endless traffic jams．And a single train can carry goods which no plane or motorcar could ever do．Far from being dead，the railways are very much alive．Modern railway lines give you a smooth，untroubled journey．Where else can you eat well，sleep in comfort，feel safe and enjoy the scene while you are traveling at speed at the same time? And we are only at the beginning．For we have just entered the age of super-fast trains, traveling at 1 50 miles an hour and more．Soon we will be wondering why we spent so much on motorways we can"t use because we have not enough money to buy the oil and planes we can"t fly in for the same reason.
小题1:Some people think the railways are dead for many reasons except that ______ ．

A．planes and motorcars will take the place of trains	B．oil is expensive today
C．trains are slow	D．railways lose money

小题2:The writer’s idea seems to be that ______ ．

A．we can do without railways	B．trains have much in common with motorcars and planes
C．motorcars and planes are not as good as trains	D．trains are as good as motorcars and planes

小题3:According to the writer，which of the following is NOT true?

A．It is cheaper to travel by train than by plane．

B．The railway station is usually at the center of a city．

C．When you get off the plane you will find yourself right in the city center．

D．No motorcar or plane can carry as many goods as a train does．

小题4:From the underlined sentence at the end of the passage，we can infer that ．

A．1ess and less people will take planes and motorways in the future

B．the people have known that the train is better than planes and motorways

C．trains will be more popular in the future

D．nobody likes spending much money on motorways

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案

Footracing(竞走)is a popular activity in the United States．It is not only seen as a competitive sport，but also as a way to exercise，and to donate(捐赠)money to a good cause．Though serious runners may spend months training to compete，other runners and walkers might not train at a11．Those not competing to win might run in an effort to beat their own time，or simply to enjoy the fun and exercise．People of all ages, from those less than one year old to those in their 80s, enter into this sport．The races are held on city streets，on college campuses，through parks，and in suburban areas，and commonly 5 to 1 0 kilometers in length．
The largest footrace in the world is the 1 2-kilometer Bay to Breakers race that is held in San Francisco every spring．This race begins on the east side of the city near San Francisco Bay and ends on the west side at the Pacific Ocean．In 1 993 there were 80，000 people running in this race through the streets and hills of San Francisco．In the front are the serious runners who compete to win，and who might finish in as little as 34 minutes．Behind them are the thousands who take several hours to finish．In the back of the race are those who wear costumes just for fun．In 1 993 there was a group of men all of whom dressed up like Elvis Priestly．There was a group of firefighters who were all tied in a long line and were carrying a fire—hose(水龙带)．One year there was a wedding party in which the bride dressed in a long white gown(长袍)and the groom wore a tuxedo(晚礼服)．They threw flowers to by-standers，and were actually married at some point along the route．
小题1:The main purpose of this text is to__________．

A．describe a popular activity

B．encourage people to exercise

C．make fun of runners in costume

D．give reasons for the popularity of footraces

小题2:Which of the following is implied by the author?

A．Walkers don’t compete for prizes．

B．Footraces appeal to a variety of people．

C．Entering a race is a way to make friends．

D．Running is a good way to strengthen the heart．

小题3:The underlined words “to a good cause” in the first paragraph could best be replaced by ___________.

A．for a good reason	B．to support a sound principle
C．for a good purpose	D．to protect an excellent player

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案

On the whole, it’s not something we parents shout about, but one in four of us does it. Hiring private tutors for our children is now widespread.
“It’s expensive, but worth it,” says Ashan Sabri, whose daughter Zarreen, is having tuition in biology and chemistry in preparation for A-levels this summer. “My husband and I tried to tutor her at home, but we found all our knowledge was out of date and we were only confusing Zarreen. We also tried a group revision course but all the children were sitting in a room for different kinds of exams. On the whole, we think one-to-one tuition works best.”
The real reason is: does tutoring do any good?
“It’s not the magic bullet,” says Professor Judith Ireson, author of a 2005 Institute of Education report on the subject. “It’s still up to the child to do the learning. If he or she isn’t interested, sending them to a private tutor won’t do any good. However, we did find that students who had private tuition in mathematics during the two years before GCSE achieved on average just under half a grade higher than students who did not have a tutor.”
In which case, surely it’s time to break open the champagne? Not necessarily, says Elaine Tyrrell, head of The Rowans School, Wimbledon, a preparation school which regularly gets children into the best private schools.
“While we recommend private tutoring for a few children whose first language isn’t English, we don’t encourage it for the others. With the level of education they get here, children really ought to be able to pass the entrance exams without any extra teaching. And our worry is that they might just get used to getting help from last-minute tutoring, but, once they actually get to that school, they won’t be able to cope.”
But Mylene Curtis, owner of Fleet Tutors, one of the biggest tutoring agencies in the country, holds a different view.
“In some respects, the hurdles children have to leap in order to get into these schools are set at a higher level than the reality,” says Curtis. “We often find that, once a child has got into a school, the standard of work isn’t as high as was feared. The trick is to do well enough in the exam to win a place.”
小题1:What does Ashan Sabri think of the group revision course?

A．It’s expensive but worthwhile because it works the best.

B．It confuses students because the knowledge taught in it is out of date.

C．It isn’t effective because it doesn’t focus on specific exams.

D．It is effective because it doesn’t focus on specific exams.

小题2: What do the underlined words “magic bullet” in Paragraph 4 mean?

A．Something that cannot help to solve problems at all.

B．Something that solves a difficult problem in an easy way.

C．Something that seems useful but has no use at all.

D．Something that encourages interest in study.

小题3:According to Elaine Tyrrell, private tutoring is _______.

A．effective in language learning but not for exams

B．effective for foreign students but not for local students

C．unnecessary in most cases and may harm the further study of students

D．unnecessary in secondary school but helpful to further study

小题4: What can be inferred from the last two paragraphs?

A．Fleet Tutors and the Rowans School are competitors.

B．Entrance exams to schools are too difficult for most students.

C．Further study isn’t as difficult as was first thought.

D．Private tuition is worth the financial investment.

小题5:What attitude does the author hold towards home tutoring?

A．Critical

B．Objective

C．Supportive

D．Uninterested

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案

While income worry is a rather common problem of the aged, loneliness is another problem that aged parents may face. Of all the reasons that explain their loneliness, a large geographical distance between parents and their children is the major one. This phenomenon is commonly known as “ Empty Nest Syndrome”(空巢综合症). In order to seek better chances outside their countries, many young people have gone abroad, leaving their parents behind with no clear idea of when they will return home. Their parents spend countless lonely days and nights, taking care of themselves, in the hope that someday their children will come back to stay with them. The fact that most of these young people have gone to Europeanized or Americanized societies makes it unlikely that they will hold as tightly to the value of duty as they would have if they had not left their countries. Whatever the case, it has been noted that the values they hold do not necessarily match what they actually do. This geographical and cultural distance also prevents the grown-up children from providing response in time for their aged parents living by themselves.
The situation in which grown-up children live far away from their aged parents has been described as “ distant parent phenomenon”, which is common both in developed countries and in developing countries. Our society has not yet been well prepared for “ Empty Nest Syndrome”.
小题1:According to the passage, the loneliness of aged parents is mainly caused by ________.

A．their earlier experience of feeling lonely

B．the unfavorable living conditions in their native countries

C．the common worry about their income

D．the geographical distance between parents and children

小题2:Many young people have gone abroad, leaving
their aged parents behind, to _______.

A．live in the countries with more money

B．seek a better place for their aged parents

C．continue their studies abroad

D．realize their dreams in foreign countries

小题3:If young people go abroad, ________.

A．they do not hold to the value of duty at all

B．they can give some help to their parents back home

C．they cannot do what they should for their parents

D．they believe what they actually do is right

小题4:From the last paragraph, we can infer that______

A．the situation in the developed and developing countries are different

B．“Empty Nest Syndrome” has arrived unexpectedly in our society

C．children will become independent as soon as they go abroad

D．the aged parents are not fully prepared for “Empty Nest Syndrome”

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案

“I’ve changed my mind. I wanted to have a telescope, but now I want my dad back.” Lucien Lawrence’s letter to Father Christmas, written after his father had been knifed to death outside his school gate, must have touched everyone’s heart. Lucien went on to say that without his father he couldn’t see the stars in the sky. When those we love depart from us, we cannot see the stars for a while.
But Lucien, the stars are still there, and one day, when you are older and your tears have gone, you will see them again. And, in a strange way, I expect that you will find your father there too, either in your mind or heart. I find that my parents, who died years ago, still linger (留连) in many of my dreams and that I think of them perhaps more than I ever did when they were alive. I still live to please them and I’m still surprised by their reactions. I remember that when I became a professor, I was so proud, or rather so pleased with myself that I couldn’t wait to cable my parents. The reply was a long time in coming, but when it did, all my mother said was “I hope this means that now you will have more time for the children!” I haven’t forgotten. The values of my parents still live on.
It makes me pause and think about how I will live on in the hearts and minds of my children and of those for whom I care. Would I have been as ready as Philip Lawrence has been to face the aggressors（入侵者）, and to lay down my life for those in my care? How many people would want me back for Christmas? It’s a serious thought, which gives me pause.
I pray silently, sometimes, in the dead of night, that ancient cry of a poet “Deliver my soul from the sword and my darling from the power of the dog.” Yet I know death comes to us all, and sometimes comes suddenly. We must therefore plan to live together, but live as if we will die tomorrow. We live on, I’m sure, in the lives of those we loved, and therefore we ought to have a care for what they will remember and what they will treasure. If more parents knew this in their hearts to be true, there might be fewer knives on our streets today.
小题1: According to the whole text we can see that the first paragraph ___________.

A．puts forward the subject of the text

B．shows the author’s pity on the kid

C．serves as an introduction to the discussion

D．makes a clear statement of the author’s views

小题2:In the second paragraph the author mainly wants to explain to us____________.

A．how much he misses his parents now

B．why his parents often appear in his dream

C．when Lucien will get over all his sadness

D．how proud he was when he succeeded in life

小题3:What feeling did the author’s mother express in her reply?

A．Proud.

B．Happy.

C．Disappointed.

D．Worried.

小题4:In the author’s opinion, the value of a person’s life is _____________.

A．to leave a precious memory to the people related

B．to have a high sense of duty to the whole society

C．to care what others will remember and treasure

D．to share happiness and sadness with his family

小题5: What does the writer mean by the sentence taken from an old poem?

A．Call on criminals and murderers to lay down their guns.

B．Advise parents stay with their children safely at home.

C．Spend every day meaningfully in memory of death.

D．Try to keep violence and murder far away from society.

题型：不详难度：| 查看答案