On his deathbed in 1638 John Harvard gave awa...

On his deathbed in 1638 John Harvard gave away half of his estate, about £800 and his library of some 400 books to a new college in present-day Cambridge, Massachusetts. Harvard's founders decided to name their new university after its first big benefactor.

About 370 years ago the first Harvard scholarship to help ''some poor scholars'' was set up thanks to £100 donated by Ann Radcliffe. The university continues to be the beneficiary of generous donors. Last year, John Paulson, an investor, donated $400m to Harvard's engineering school, its largest gift ever. Last year it raised more than $1 billion. Some of its graduates think this ought to be sufficient to cancel tuition fees.

Among them are Ralph Nader, a veteran political activist, and Ron Unz, author of a number of searing articles on American meritocracy(英才管理). Both are hoping to win election to the university's board of overseers, from which they want to make Harvard free for all students to attend, and also pressure its admissions office to make data on how it chooses which students to admit known to the public.

America's universities raised a record $40.3 billion last year, according to the Council for Aid to Education. Donations are not usually used to lower tuition fees, but they can be used to provide scholarships and financial aid to students who cannot afford to pay (70% of students at Harvard get some assistance with fees and living costs).

Some lawmakers are wondering whether threats to change the tax-free status of donations might be used to persuade colleges to bring down the cost of tuition, which has increased by 220% in real terms since 1980. Nexus Research and Policy Centre says colleges receive $80 billion in support from state and local governments every year, which ought to give politicians some leverage(影响) in return.

In January Tom Reed, a Republican congressman from New York, proposed a bill requiring donations of more than $1 billion to allocate 25% for financial aid. Two congressional committees, the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee, have sent letters to the heads of the colleges with the biggest donations asking about spending, conflicts of interest and fee arrangements. The 56 largest private university donations have to explain how they use their tax-free investment earnings.

The colleges have their defenders. ''Most of these places are providing a fair amount of financial aid for students well beyond the poverty line, '' says Kim Rueben of the Tax Policy Centre. Kevin Weinman, Amherst's chief financial officer, says his university's donation offers $90m to the college's budget, $30m more than tuition, room board and various fees combined. This school year, it will spend $50,000 per student funding financial aid, pay faculty and fund student activities. After Congress last examined the topic in 2007, more colleges began to award grants instead of loans. Financial aid has doubled over the past decade. Rhode Island also make voluntary payments in place of property taxes.

In addition to pointing out their generosity, most colleges also argue that forcing them to spend donation money on free tuition might even be illegal. Donors can restrict their tax-free gift to a legally-binding particular purpose, such as creating a chair, establishing a scholarship or building a new lab. Around 70% of donations are restricted funds.

If the wealthiest colleges have already spent so much on financial aid, what is the problem? Mr. Unz argues that endowment-fuelled spending on new buildings, sports facilities and the hiring of administrators has created an arms-race in higher education, pushing up prices at those universities that are not fortunate enough to have lots of generous benefactors. Harvard could cancel tuition payments without damaging its finances or touching the restricted portion of its endowment, he says. Furthermore, the abolition of both complicated financial-aid forms and terrifying sticker prices for tuition could, he argues, do much to encourage applicants from beyond the plutocracy(富豪阶级).

1.The underlined word in Paragraph 1 can be replaced by　　　 .

A.founder B.donor C.defender D.innovator

2.According to the passage, Ralph Nader and Ron Unz hope that they can　　　 .

A.help Harvard to enroll new students

B.learn about how Harvard spends its donations

C.make free education to all students at Harvard possible

D.negotiate with the Harvard's board of overseers about tuition fees

3.What can we infer from Kim Rueben's words in Paragraph 7?

A.The colleges are making full use of their donations.

B.Ordinary families cannot afford the increasing tuition fees.

C.More attention should be paid to students below the poverty line.

D.Property taxes on the colleges ought to be canceled permanently.

4.According to the last but one paragraph, most colleges hold the idea that　　　 .

A.donors should keep a check on where their money goes

B.the financial aid they receive every year is far from enough

C.they shouldn't be forced to spend donation money on free tuition

D.most donations should be used to improve colleges' infrastructure

5.According to the last paragraph, Mr Unz thinks　　　 .

A.the competition between universities is necessary

B.Harvard should offer help to those who lack money

C.financial-aid forms offered by universities should be simplified

D.arms-races in higher education may lead to higher tuition fees

6.What can be the best title for this passage?

A.Should Harvard's tuition fees be canceled?

B.How does Harvard make use of its donations?

C.What do Harvard and lawmakers disagree about?

D.Why does Harvard get more donations than other universities?

高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析

He took pity on the people in the flooded areas and ____his clothes and quilts to them.

A gave away   B gave off  C sent out  D threw away

高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析

A rich landowner decided to leave possessions to one of his two sons. As he lay on the deathbed, he called the two young men to him 1  the break of dawn and even before the cock could crow (鸣叫). He then said, “I will leave all my wealth to the one 2  can best fill this room. It was in this room 3  I made plans on how to build up my fortune. Not an inch must 4  (leave) uncovered. As I am getting 5  (weak) by the hour you both must come back by midnight.” He handed them a small piece of silver and an empty bag to put their purchases in. They both went out and 6  (hurry) came back with their purchases. 7  (bring) the straw, the elder began to spread it about the floor, 8  far from filling the room. It did not even cover half the space. “This is no use, son,” said the father, “and let me see how 9  brother fills the room.” The younger son took 10  his bag a large candle, set it on the table in the centre of the room and lit it. A brilliant bright light filled up the whole room. The father was delighted and exclaimed, “Son, I am sure you will use the wealth well.”

高三英语简单题查看答案及解析

短文改错

Last summer, I participated in the Secondary School Program in Harvard. I spent half of the day in my class and homework, and then I'd be free to do I wanted. Since my course was a 8-credit one, it was a lot faster than other summer school course. I had to learn how to keep up with it the pace of my class and study efficient. For me, taking notes were of great help. I also come to know many professors who were available for extra help whenever I needed it. The resources and opportunities combined with the environment here made me want to attending Harvard even more.

高三英语短文改错中等难度题查看答案及解析

Upon waking up, Jim found himself lying on a stretch of sandy shore with his face half-buried in the sand.  He found, that his clothes had been almost torn apart.  His arms ached and his body was heavy like stone.  Before he could stand up, he was brought to his knees due to exhaustion.  As he lay on the sand, he began to study the environment for signs of human activities.  But there was nothing except for a few trees and some stones within eyesight.

He remembered how, a few hours before, he had still been struggling for survival in the vast South China Sea.  The boat that had carried his friends and him out to sea for a fun fishing trip had run into a terrible storm.  James, who was the captain of the boat, and had been at the wheel, lost control of the boat.  The boat moved from side to side in the storm.  Suddenly, it hit a sharp object, most probably a rock from the sea and was wrecked.

Jim could not remember how he had managed to drift onto land.  His friends were not in sight.  He was saddened by the fact that they might have all drowned.  Then he suddenly saw a thin column of smoke on the far side of a hill.  “Could it be a house?”  Jim asked himself.  Even if it wasn’t, it gave him some fresh hope of surviving the ordeal that he was going through.  He struggled on towards the place from where the smoke was rising.

Finally, he found himself at the top of the hill.  He saw a little green valley dotted with a few huts and trees in the sun.  His eyes were not playing tricks on him.  There was a village located at the bottom of the valley.  The sight gave him renewed hope.  He began to run toward the village with his last ounce of energy.

68. According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. Jim found himself in a desert when he woke up.

B. Jim and his friends were fishing at South China Sea.

C. Jim lost control of the boat he and his friends were in.

D. The boat hit a rock but kept steady.

69. Jim struggled toward the place of the smoke probably because ______.

A. he was afraid of being too near the sea

B. he thought his friends might be in the place of the smoke

C. the smoke implied human activities

D. All of the above.

70. What does the underlined word “ordeal” in the third paragraph probably mean?

A. bad weather        B. order   C. suffering      D. ideal state

71. According to the passage, what is NOT TRUE about Jim?

A. He survived a terrible sea storm.

B. He had the feeling that his friends survived the wreckage.

C. At first he didn’t find signs of humans but then he saw a smoke rising.

D. He finally found a village at the bottom of a valley.

高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析

76. He cut the apple ________, and gave the big to his little sister.

高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析

His promise _____ he would give away half of the year’s income to the disabled turned out a lie,

_____ made the public feel cheated.

A. which; what               B. that; which        C. what; which     D. which; that

高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析

What’s on Your Pet’s Mind?

In 1977, Irene Pepperberg of Harvard University began studying what was on another creature’s mind by talking to it. Her first experiments began with Alex. Alex was a one-year-old African grey parrot and Irene taught him to produce the sounds of the English language. “I thought if he learned to communicate, I could ask him questions about how he sees the world.”

At the time, most scientists didn’t believe animals had any thoughts. They thought animals were more like robots but didn’t have the ability to think or feel. Of course, if you own a pet you probably disagree. But it is the job of a scientist to prove this and nowadays more scientists accept that animals can think for themselves.

“That’s why I started my studies with Alex,” Irene said, “Some people actually called me crazy for trying this.”

Nowadays, we have more and more evidence that animals have all sorts of mental abilities. Sheep can recognize faces. Chimpanzees (黑猩猩) use a variety of tools and even use weapons to hunt. And Alex the parrot became a very good talker.

Thirty years after the Alex studies began. Irene was still giving him English lessons up until his recent death. For example, if Alex was hungry he could say “want grape”. Alex could count to six and was learning the sounds for seven and eight. “He has to hear the words over and over before he can correctly say them.” Irene said, after pronouncing “seven” for Alex a few times in a row. Alex could also tell the difference between colors, shapes, sizes, and materials (e.g. wood and metal). Before he finally died, Alex managed to say “seven”.

Another famous pet that proved some animals have greater mental skills was a dog called Rico. He appeared on a German TV game show in 2011. Rico knew the names of 200 different toys and easily learned the names of new ones. When Rico became famous, many other dog owners wanted to show how clever their pets were. Another dog called Betsy could understand 300 words.

One theory for dogs’ ability to learn a language is that they have been close companions to humans for many centuries and so their ability to understand us is constantly evolving (进化). While animals can’t do what humans do yet, some scientists believe that examples like Alex and Rico prove that evolution develops intelligence, as well as physical appearance.

1.Irene wanted to find out __________.

A. what a parrot thinks

B. why a parrot can speak

C. how parrots make sounds

D. if parrots speak English

2.Alex learnt new words by __________.

A. singing them

B. reading them

C. writing them

D. rehearing them

3.The two dogs mentioned in the article could _______.

A. understand some words

B. recognize strange voices

C. copy human gestures

D. tell different colors

4.The article concludes that ___________.

A. our pets understand what we say

B. dogs may speak to humans one day

C. humans are related to chimpanzees

D. mental ability can evolve in animals

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

What’s on Your Pet’s Mind?In 1977, Irene Pepperberg of Harvard University began studying what was on another creature’s mind by talking to it．Her first experiments began with Alex．Alex was a one-year-old African grey parrot and Irene taught him to produce the sounds of the English language．“I thought if he learned to communicate, I could ask him questions about how he sees the world.”

At the time, most scientists didn’t believe animals had any thoughts．They thought animals were more like robots but didn’t have the ability to think or feel．Of course, if you own a pet you probably disagree．But it is the job of a scientist to prove this and nowadays more scientists accept that animals can think for themselves．

“That’s why I started my studies with Alex,” Irene said, “Some people actually called me crazy for trying this.”

Nowadays, we have more and more evidence that animals have all sorts of mental abilities．Sheep can recognize faces．Chimpanzees (黑猩猩) use a variety of tools and even use weapons to hunt．And Alex the parrot became a very good talker.

Thirty years after the Alex studies began．Irene was still giving him English lessons up until his recent death．For example, if Alex was hungry he could say “want grape”．Alex could count to six and was learning the sounds for seven and eight．“He has to hear the words over and over before he can correctly say them.” Irene said, after pronouncing “seven” for Alex a few times in a row．Alex could also tell the difference between colors, shapes, sizes, and materials (e.g．wood and metal)．Before he finally died, Alex managed to say “seven”.

Another famous pet that proved some animals have greater mental skills was a dog called Rico．He appeared on a German TV game show in 2011．Rico knew the names of 200 different toys and easily learned the names of new ones．When Rico became famous, many other dog owners wanted to show how clever their pets were．Another dog called Betsy could understand 300 words.

One theory for dogs’ ability to learn a language is that they have ben close companions to humans for many centuries and so their ability to understand us is constantly evolving (进化)．While animals can’t do what humans do yet, some scientists believe that examples like Alex and Rico prove that evolution develops intelligence, as well as physical appearance.

1.Irene wanted to find out __________.

A． what a parrot thinks

B． why a parrot can speak

C． how parrots make sounds

D． if parrots speak English

2.Alex learnt new words by __________.

A． singing them

B． reading them

C． writing them

D． rehearing them

3.The two dogs mentioned in the article could _______.

A． understand some words

B． recognize strange voices

C． copy human gestures

D． tell different colors

4.The article concludes that ___________.

A． our pets understand what we say

B． dogs may speak to humans one day

C． humans are related to chimpanzees

D． mental ability can evolve in animals

高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析

In Daniel Gilbert's 2006 book "Stumbling(跌撞) on Happiness," the Harvard professor of psychology looks at several studies and concludes that marital(婚姻的) satisfaction decreases after the birth of the first child and increases only when the last child has left home. He also declares that parents are happier grocery shopping and even sleeping than spending time with their kids.

The most recent comprehensive study on the emotional state of those with kids shows us that the term "bundle of joy" may not be the most accurate way to describe our kids. "Parents experience lower levels of emotional well-being, less frequent positive emotions and more frequent negative emotions than their childless peers," says Florida State University's Robin Simon, a sociology professor.

Simon received plenty of hate mail in response to her research，which isn't surprising. Her findings shake the very foundation of what we've been raised to believe is true. In a recent NEWSWEEK Poll, 50 percent of Americans said that adding new children to the family tends to increase happiness levels. But which parent is willing to admit that the greatest gift life has to offer has in fact made his or her life less enjoyable?

Is it possible that American parents have always been this disillusioned(有幻觉的)? In pre-industrial America, parents certainly loved their children, but their kids also served a purpose—to work the farm, contribute to the household. Today, we have kids more for emotional reasons, but an increasingly complicated work and social environment has made finding satisfaction far more difficult. Raising children has not only become more complicated, it has become more expensive as well. The National Marriage Project's 2006 report says that parents have significantly lower marital satisfaction than nonparents because they experienced more single and child-free years than previous generations.

As for those of us with kids, all the news isn't bad. Parents still report feeling a greater sense of purpose and meaning in their lives than those who've never had kids. And there are other rewarding aspects of parenting that are impossible to quantify.

1..

What’s the main idea of the book Stumbling on Happiness?

A. Parents are happier shopping than looking after their children.

B. Once they have children, the couples can never be as happy as before.

C. Compared with their childless peers, parents are leading a sad life.

D. The adding of children at home brings down marital satisfaction.

2..

. What can we infer from Para.3?

A. The Newsweek Poll shows that people think Prof. Simon’s finding is right.

B. Many people can’t accept the fact that they are not happy with their children.

C. It isn’t surprising that Professor Simon’s controversial research made her famous.

D. Simon’s findings are based on the belief passed down from generation to generation.

3..

What can we learn about American’s families in the past?

A. People had very good parents-children relationship in the family.

B. Having children could be partly out of some practical purposes.

C. Parents loved their children but they still asked them to work a lot.

D. Children had to work very hard to make their parents love them.

4..

What’s the author’s opinion about having children?

A. The author doesn’t think having children is a good thing to the family.

B. The author feels children make the life of a family happy.

C. The author thinks parenting can still be rewarding in a certain way.

D. The author believes that parents sacrifice a lot for having children.

高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析