-
At the top of a three-storey brick house Sue and Johnsy had their studio. In November a cold, unseen stranger, whom the doctors called Pneumonia(肺炎), touched one here and there with its icy fingers. Johnsy was struck down, and she lay, hardly moving, on her bed looking through the window at the blank side of the next brick house.
One morning the busy doctor invited Sue into the hallway(走廊).
“She has one chance in ten,” he said, “And that chance is for her to want to live. She has made up her mind that she’s not going to get well. I will do all that I can. But whenever my patient begins to count the carriages in her funeral procession(队列), I subtract 50 percent from her chance to live.”
After the doctor had gone, Sue went into the workroom and cried. Then she came into Johnsy’s room with her drawing board, whistling.
Johnsy lay hardly moving with her face toward the window. Sue stopped whistling, thinking she was asleep.
She arranged her board and began a drawing. As Sue was sketching, she heard a low sound. She went quickly to the bedside.
Johnsy’s eyes were open wide. She was looking out the window and counting backward.
“Twelve,” she said, and a little later “eleven”; and then “ten”, and “nine”; and then “eight” and “seven”, almost together.
Sue looked out the window. What was there to count? There was only the blank side of the brick house twenty feet away. An old ivy vine(常春藤) climbed halfway up the brick wall. Its branches clung(紧紧缠着), almost bare, to the bricks.
“What is it, dear?” asked Sue.
“Six,” said Johnsy, in almost a whisper. “They’re falling faster now. Three days ago there were almost a hundred. There goes another one. There are only five left now”.
“Five what, dear? Tell me.”
“Leaves. On the ivy vine. When the last one falls, I must go, too. Didn’t the doctor tell you?”
“Oh, I never heard of such nonsense,” said Sue. “What have old ivy vine leaves to do with your getting well? Why, the doctor told me this morning that your chances for getting well real soon were ten to one! Try to take some soup now.”
“There goes another. No, I don’t want any soup. I want to see the last one fall before it gets dark. Then I’ll go , too.”
“Johnsy, dear,” said Sue, bending over her, “will you promise me to keep your eyes closed, and not look out the window until I’m done working? I need the light or I would draw the shade down.”
“Tell me as soon as you have finished,” said Johnsy, closing her eyes, “because I want to see the last one fall. I’m tired of waiting. I want to turn loose my hold on everything and go sailing down, down, just like one of those poor, tired leaves.”
1.By saying “Pneumonia touched one here and there” (in the first paragraph), the author means that _________.
A.some people were affected by the illnesses of others
B.pneumonia caused damage to the ivy vine
C.two people became ill
D.many people came down with the illness
2. How did Johnsy feel about the situation during the passage?
A. confident B. hopeless C. tired D. curious
3.We can learn from the passage that _____________.
A.Sue came into the room whistling perhaps because she thought Johnsy might like the music.
B.Johnsy’s life was compared to the carriages in a funeral procession
C.Sue told a lie to Johnsy about the doctor’s words
D.Johnsy wanted to know about the falling ivy leaves to meet her own curiosity
4.The underlined word “subtract” in the third paragraph probably means “________”.
A. reduce B. hope C. add D. doubt
5.The passage is probably taken out of ______________.
A. a newspaper B. a novel
C. a medical report D. a girl’s diary
-
The old house we paid a visit _____ at the top of the hill.
| A．standing | B．to stand | C．to standing | D．to stands |
-
Jackson lived on top of the hill. From his house, he could see the sea and the village ______. One day, the villagers ______ something different about the sea. The sea seemed to be moving from the ______. None of the villagers knew what was happening.
Jackson understood what was going on. He had seen such a(n)______ when he was young. A tsunami (海啸) was approaching and the villagers had to be ______, but there was no time to send a message to the whole village.
“Tom!” he ______ to his grandson. “______ a torch quickly!” The boy did what he was told Jackson took the torch and set his ______ on fire. Immediately, red ______ shot upwards and thick smoke rose into the sky.
Tom cried out, “Grandfather! Why are you setting our house on fire?” Jackson did not answer.______, he stood quietly and watched the villagers. Suddenly, some villagers noticed the ______ and shouted at everyone to run up the hill to help put out the fire. When Jackson saw everyone running towards, him, he was so ______. The villagers did their best but they ______ to control the fire. Jackson’s house was completely burned down but he stood on the hill ______. They thought Jackson had gone ______. They stared at him in disbelief.
Finally, Jackson said, “______ towards the sea.” The villagers turned and saw a huge ______ of water rushing towards the village. They were shocked to see the water ______ the whole village and destroying everything in its ______.
Nothing was left of their homes ______ everyone was safe on the hill. The villagers realized why Jackson had set fire to his house.
1.A. above B. through C. below D. off
2.A. recognized B. noticed C. overlooked D. expected
3.A. land B. hill C. shore D. village
4.A. sight B. chance C. alarm D. plot
5.A. found B. persuaded C. taught D. warned
6.A. rushed out B. figured out C. called out D. made out
7.A. Borrow B. Make C. Light D. Buy
8.A. boat B. house C. clothes D. tree
9.A. balls B. candles C. signals D. flames
10.A. Instead B. However C. Furthermore D. Therefore
11.A. torch B. boy C. sea D. fire
12.A. frightened B. confused C. happy D. crazy
13.A. managed B. refused C. intended D. failed
14.A. crying B. jumping C. shouting D. laughing
15.A. hungry B. mad C. blind D. thirsty
16.A. Look B. Wave C. Head D. Return
17.A. drop B. level C. spray D. wall
18.A. spreading B. flowing C. swallowing D. moving
19.A. course B. path C. shape D. power
20.A. but B. so C. because D. unless
-
Jackson lived on top of the hill. From his house, he could see the sea and the village________One day, the villagers_______something different about the sea. The sea seemed to be moving from the_______. None of the villagers knew what was happening.
Jackson understood what was going on, He had seen such a( n)_______when he was young. A tsunami (海啸) was approaching and the villagers had to be_______but there was no time to send a message to the whole village.
“Tom! ”he_______to his grandson,_______a torch quickly!"The boy did what he was told Jackson took the torch and set his_______on fire. Immediately, red_______shot upwards and thick smoke rose into the sky.
Tom cried out, Grandfather! Why are o wetting our house on fire?"Jackson did not answer.________, he stood quietly and watched the villagers. Suddenly, some villagers noticed the________and shouted at everyone to run up the hill to help put out the fire. When Jackson saw everyone running towards him, he was so________. The villagers did their best but they________to control the fire, Jacksons house was completely burned down but he stood on the hill________They thought Jackson had gone________.They stared at him in disbelief.
Finally, Jackson said, "________toward the sea. "The villagers turned and saw a huge________of water rushing towards the village. They were shocked to see the water ________the whole village and destroying everything in its________
Nothing was left of their homes________everyone was safe on the hill. The villagers realized why Jackson had set fire to his house.
1.A. above B. through C. below D. of
2.A. recognized B. noticed C. overlook D. expected
3.A. land B. hill C. sky D. village
4.A. sight B. chance C. alarm D. plot
5.A. found B. persuades C. laugh D. warned
6.A. rushed out B. figured out C. called out D. made out
7.A. Borrow B. Make C. Light D. Buy
8.A. boat B. house C. clothes D. tree
9.A. balls B. candles C. signal D. flames
10.A. Instead B. However C. Furthermore D. Therefore
11.A. torch B. boy C. sea D. fire
12.A. frightened B. confused C. happy D. crazy
13.A. managed B. refused C. intended D. failed
14.A. crying B. Jumping C. shouting D. laughing
15.A. hungry B. mad C. blind D. thirsty
16.A. Look B. Wave C. Head D. Return
17.A. drop B. level C. spray D. wall
18.A. spreading B. flowing C. swallowing D. moving
19.A. course B. path C. shape D. power
20.A. but B. so C. because D. unless
-
Our house is on the top of the hill, and in winter the winds ________be pretty cold .
A. must B. can C. ought to D. need
-
Our house is on the top of the hill, and in winter the winds ________ be very cold.
A. can B. need C. would D. shall
-
We were standing at the top of a tower. My father had______ me to this spot in a small town not far from our home.1 wondered______.
“Look down, Elsa," Father said. I gathered all my_____and looked down. I saw the square in the center of the village. And I saw the crisscross of twisting, turning streets leading to the ____．
“See, my dear." Father said gently." There is more than one way to a square .Life is like that. If you can't get to the place where you want to go ____ 0ne road, try another."
Now I understood why l was there. Earlier that day I had ______my mother to do something about the awful school lunches. But she ______because she could not believe the lunches were as ____as I said.
When I turned to Father, he would not help. Instead, he brought me to this high tower to give me a_____—the value of the open, searching mind. By the time, we reached home. I had a_____．
At school the next day,1______poured my lunch soup into a bottle and brought it home. Then I talked the cook into serving it to Mother at dinner. Everything went on smoothly. She swallowed one ______and spat it out．Quickly I t01d her what I had done，and Mother stated__that she would take up the matter of lunches at school the next day!
In the years that followed I often remembered what Father taught me. I began to work as a fashion designer two years ago.1 was busy getting ready to show my winter fashions. But just 13 days before presentation the sewing girls all stopped working.1 was as______as my models.” Well never make it.” one of them cried.
Accept the failure? __use wisdom to find another mad to my goa17 Then a great idea flashed through my mind———why not _______ the clothes unfinished?
And-exactly 13 days later, our showing turned out to be so______that it was a great success. Our different showing caught the_____ of the public, and orders for the clothes ____ in. Father's wise words had______me once again,” There is always more than one way to thesquare．
1.A. sent B. brought C. directed D. welcomed
2.A. who B. how C. what D. why
3.A. thoughts B. strength C. courage D. spirits
4.A. square B. tower C. town D. village
5.A. in B. on C. by D. across
6.A. persuaded B. begged C. encouraged D. ordered
7.A. failed B. agreed C. promised D. refused
8.A. bad B. expensive C. delicious D. hot
9.A. 1esson B. chance C. shock D. ride
10.A. goal B. result C. plan D. choice
11.A. skillfuUy B. actively C. carelessly D. secretly
12.A. cupful B. spoonful C. handful D. bagful
13.A. thoughtfully B. simply C. firmly D. repeatedly
14.A. positive B. cheerful C. calm D. hopeless
15.A. Or B. And C. But D. So
16.A. show B. buy C. change D. sell
17.A. famous B. poor C. unusual D. ordinary
18.A. notice B. attention C. desire D. impression
19.A. turned B. handed C. stepped D. poured
20.A. suggested B. guided C. corrected D. defeated
-
We had hoped to move into the new house at the end of the month, but things didn’t _______ as we had expected.
A．show up B．work out C．take up D．pick out
-
The Arctic Circle—the habitat of polar bears and decreasing sea ice at the top of the world—hit 32 degrees Celsius, last week.
This was the temperature in Banak, Norway on July 30, though some Norwegian areas even reached a couple degrees warmer, according to the European meteorology site severe-weather.eu. Banak sits atop northern Europe, over 350 miles above the bottom edge of the Arctic Circle.
The greater Northern Hemisphere and Europe itself have been repeatedly scorched by both record and near-record temperatures this summer, a consequence of overall rising global temperatures.
In the past 40 years, Earth’s climate has experienced an accelerated warming trend, which adds an extra level of background warming to hot spells—making heatwaves more extreme, climate scientists have said.
A photo of what appears to be Scandinavian folks taking a dip in a river while reindeer—the cold-adapted herbivores(食草动物)—cooled off in the water beside them is perhaps the best example of just how hot it is in parts of the Arctic Circle right now.
The “warm season” in Banak is short, lasting around three months, but the very warmest day of the year, around July 23, is usually around 62 degrees Fahrenheit(华氏度)—about 30 degrees cooler than temperatures there now. Overall, temperatures in northern Europe are between 14 to 21 degrees Fahrenheit, 8 to 13 degrees Celsius, above average.
All-time temperature records were set in both Norway and Finland on July 30, including 86 degrees Fahrenheit, 30 degrees Celsius, in Verde, near Banak, though extreme or near-record temperatures blanketed the region.
Persistent heat and dryness this summer have transformed normally green European countries into brown and yellow lands, and the continent’s extreme heat is expected to persist.
Andrew Derocher, a professor at the University of Alberta who studies polar bears, said climate change is shrinking the ice bears usually hunt on, making them faced with the danger of extinction.
1.What does the underlined word “scorched” in the third paragraph probably mean?
A. burned B. achieved
C. scored D. reached
2.What does the photo show according to the author?
A. Scandinavian folks like to swim in a river.
B. Reindeer have adapted to the cold climate.
C. The ice there has totally been melted into water.
D. The temperature of the Arctic Circle now is high.
3.What can you learn from Professor Derocher’s words?
A. Maybe bears will die out in the near future.
B. Climate change is threatening polar bears.
C. He is worried about the shrinking of the sea ice.
D. He advises people to do something to improve the condition.
4.Where may you find this article?
A. In a fashion magazine. B. In a news report.
C. In a geography textbook. D. In a travel handbook.
-
Look carefully and you’ll find musicians at the top of almost any industry. The television broadcaster Paula Zahn(cello) and the NBC chief White House correspondent Chuck Todd (French horn) attended college on music scholarships; Both Microsoft’s Mr. Allen and the venture capitalist Rogar McNamee have rock bands. Lorry Page, a co-founder of Google, played saxophone in high school. The former World Bank president James D. Wolfensohn has played cello at Carnegie Hall.
The connection isn’t a coincidence. I know because I asked. I put the question to top-flight professionals in industries from tech to finance to media, all of whom had serious ( if often little-known) past lives as musicians. Almost all made a connection between their music training and their professional achievements.
Will your school music program turn your kid into a Paul Allen, the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft (guitar)? Or a Woody Allen (clarinet )? Probably not. These are outstanding achievers. But the way these and other visionaries (有远见的人) I spoke to process music is interesting.
But the key question is: why does that connection exist? Paul Allen offers an answer. He says music “establish your confidence in the ability to create.” He began playing the violin at age 7 and switched to the guitar as a teenager. Even in the early days of Microsoft, he would pick up his guitar at the end of marathon days of programming. The music was the emotional analog (类比) to his day job, both of them show his different creativity. He says, “something is pushing you to look beyond what currently exists and express yourself in a new way.”
For many of the high achievers I spoke with, music functions as a “hidden language,” as Mr. Wolfensohn calls it, one that enhances the ability to connect different or even opposite ideas. When he ran the World Band, Mr. Wolfensohn traveled to more than 100 countries, often taking in local performances (and occasionally joining in on a borrowed cello), which helped him understand “the culture of people”.
Consider the qualities these high achievers say music has sharpened : cooperation, creativity, discipline and the capacity to coordinate (协调) conflicting ideas. All are qualities obviously absent from public life. Music may not make you a genius, or rich, or even a better person. But it helps train you to think differently, to process different points of views --- and most important, to take pleasure in listening.
1.The reason why the author quote so many outstanding people as examples in the first paragraph is ___________.
A. to prove the popularity and the charm of music
B. to prove all winners are musicians before
C. to encourage kids to choose school music program
D. to prove the connection between success and music
2.Which of the following is true?
A. Everybody knows those well-known people are musicians before.
B. Musicians exist in all industries.
C. Music can certainly make you become a better person.
D.Music helps Mr. Wolfensohn have a better understanding of the different culture.
3.The author develops the passage mainly _________.
A. by classification B. by comparison
C. by example D. by process