It was New Year’s Night. An aged man was standing at a window. He raised his mournful eyes towards the deep blue sky, where the stars were floating like white lilies on the surface of a clear calm lake. Then he cast them on the earth, where few more hopeless people than himself now moved towards their certain goal --- the tomb. He had already passed sixty of the stages leading to it, and he had brought from his journey nothing but errors and remorse. Now his health was poor, his mind vacant, his heart sorrowful, and his old age short of comforts.

The days of his youth appeared like dreams before him, and he recalled the serious moment when his father placed him at the entrance of the two roads --- one leading to a peaceful, sunny place, covered with flowers, fruits and filled with soft, sweet songs; the other leading to a deep, dark cave, which was endless, where poison flowed instead of water and where devils and poisonous snakes hissed and crawled.

He looked towards the sky and cried painfully, “O youth, return! O my father, place me once more at the entrance to life, and I’ll choose the better way!” But both his father and the days of his youth had passed away.

He saw the lights flowing away in the darkness. These were the days of his wasted life; he saw a star fall down from the sky and disappeared, and this was the symbol of himself. His regret, which was like a sharp arrow, struck deeply into his heart. Then he remembered his friends in his childhood, who entered on life together with him. But they had made their way to success and were now honored and happy on this New Year’s Night.

The clock in the high church tower struck and the sound made him remember his parents’ early love for him. They had taught him and prayed to God for his good. But he chose the wrong way. With shame and grief he dared no longer look towards that heaven where his father lived. His darkened eyes were full of tears, and with a despairing effort, he burst out a cry: “Come back, my early days! Come back!”

And his youth did return, for all this was only a dream which he had on New Year’s Night. He was still young though his faults were real; he had not yet entered the deep, dark cave, and he was still free to walk on the road which leads to the peaceful and sunny land.

Those who still wander on the entrance of life, hesitating to choose the bright road, remember that when years are passed and your feet stumble on the dark mountains, you will cry bitterly, but in vain: “O youth, return! Oh give me back my early days!”

1.We can learn from the passage that ____.

A．the man returned from a long journey and regretted what he had done

B．the man didn’t enter the deep, dark cave when he was young

C．the man was deserted by his parents when he was only a child

D．the man found it no use crying over the spilt milk

2.Why does the author set his story on New Year’s Night?

A．He wants to tell people it’s time to recall the past

B．he suggests the aged man will have a bright future

C．He tries to stress the man’s sad feeling

D．He expects people to share the man’s emotion

3.The aged man in the passage can be described as ________.

A．sorrowful, fearful and regretful             B．hopeful, cheerful and peaceful

C．regretful, painful and disappointed          D．disappointed, regretful and hopeful

4.The author writes the passage mainly to ________.

A．encourage young people to take the right road B．help the old man to pick up his confidence

C．describe the old man’s unsuccessful experience   D．show his compassion for the aged man

Brrriiinnng．The alarm clock announces the start of another busy weekday in the morning．You jump out of bed, rush into the shower, into your clothes and out the door with hardly a moment to think．A stressful journey to work gets your blood pressure climbing．Once at the office, you glance through the newspaper with depressing stories or reports of disasters．In that sort of mood, who can get down to work, particularly some creative, original problem-solving work?
The way most of us spend our mornings is exactly opposite to the conditions that promote flexible, open-minded thinking．Imaginative ideas are most likely to come to us when we’re unfocused．If you are one of those energetic morning people, your most inventive time comes in the early evening when you are relaxed．Sleepy people’s lack of focus leads to an increase in creative problem solving．By not giving yourself time to tune into your wandering mind, you’re missing out on the surprising solutions it may offer．
The trip you take to work doesn’t help, either．The stress slows down the speed with which signals travel between neurons （神经细胞）, making inspirations less likely to occur．And while we all should read a lot about what’s going on in the world, it would not make you feel good for sure, so put that news website or newspaper aside until after the day’s work is done．
So what would our mornings look like if we wanted to start them with a full capacity for creative problem solving? We’d set the alarm a few minutes early and lie awake in bed, following our thoughts where they lead．We’d stand a little longer under the warm water of the shower, stopping thinking about tasks in favor of a few more minutes of relaxation．We’d take some deep breaths on our way to work, instead of complaining about heavy traffic．And once in the office—after we get a cup of coffee—we’d click on links not to the news of the day but to the funniest videos the web has to offer．
【小题1】What is the purpose of the first paragraph?

Brrriiinnng．The alarm clock announces the start of another busy weekday in the morning．You jump out of bed, rush into the shower, into your clothes and out the door with hardly a moment to think．A stressful journey to work gets your blood pressure climbing．Once at the office, you glance through the newspaper with depressing stories or reports of disasters．In that sort of mood, who can get down to work, particularly some creative, original problem-solving work?
The way most of us spend our mornings is exactly opposite to the conditions that promote flexible, open-minded thinking．Imaginative ideas are most likely to come to us when we’re unfocused．If you are one of those energetic morning people, your most inventive time comes in the early evening when you are relaxed．Sleepy people’s lack of focus leads to an increase in creative problem solving．By not giving yourself time to tune into your wandering mind, you’re missing out on the surprising solutions it may offer．
The trip you take to work doesn’t help, either．The stress slows down the speed with which signals travel between neurons （神经细胞）, making inspirations less likely to occur．And while we all should read a lot about what’s going on in the world, it would not make you feel good for sure, so put that news website or newspaper aside until after the day’s work is done．
So what would our mornings look like if we wanted to start them with a full capacity for creative problem solving? We’d set the alarm a few minutes early and lie awake in bed, following our thoughts where they lead．We’d stand a little longer under the warm water of the shower, stopping thinking about tasks in favor of a few more minutes of relaxation．We’d take some deep breaths on our way to work, instead of complaining about heavy traffic．And once in the office—after we get a cup of coffee—we’d click on links not to the news of the day but to the funniest videos the web has to offer．

1. 1.

   What is the purpose of the first paragraph?

   1. A.
      To tell us a specific story．
   2. B.
      To introduce the topic of the passage．
   3. C.
      To indicate how busy one usually is in the morning．
   4. D.
      To show mornings are not suitable for creative work．
2. 2.

   What does the author imply about newspapers?

   1. A.
      They are normally full of bad news．
   2. B.
      They are solution providers．
   3. C.
      They are a source of inspiration．
   4. D.
      They are more educational than websites．
3. 3.

   By “tune into your wandering mind” （in Para．2）, the author means “_______”．

   1. A.
      wander into the wild
   2. B.
      listen to a beautiful tune
   3. C.
      stop concentrating on anything
   4. D.
      switch to the traffic channel
4. 4.

   The author writes the last paragraph in order to _______．

   1. A.
      establish a routine for the future
   2. B.
      summarize past experiences
   3. C.
      advocate diverse ways of life
   4. D.
      offer practical suggestions

Monkeys are very similar to us in many ways．Most have ten fingers and ten toes，and brains much like ours．In fact，Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution says that monkeys and humans share a common ancestor．We enjoy watching them because they often act like us，and we also love to use many expressions about monkeys in almost every language This is why many monkey expressions are about tricky people or playful acts．

Monkeyshine is one of these expressions to show tricks or foolish acts．The meaning is clear if you have ever watched a group of monkeys playfully chasing each other：pulling tails，stealing food，doing tricks．

Monkeying around with something means that you do not know what you are doing．When you feel like doing something but have no firm idea of what to do，you are monkeying around. It is just a way to pass the time．

Monkey business usually means secret，maybe illegal activities You may come across a news report that there is monkey business involved in building the new airport，with some officials getting secret payments from builders．

Monkey suits are common names for clothes or uniforms soldiers wear．In earlier years in many American cities，you would find men playing musical hand organs on the street．Dancing to the music would be the man’s small monkey that was dressed in a tight—fitting，colorful jacket similar to a military uniform．So，people began to call a military uniform a monkey suit．

1．Which of the following is NOT true about the similarities between humans and monkeys?

A．Most monkeys have ten fingers and ten toes．

B．Monkeys have the same brains as humans．

C．Monkeys often act like humans in many ways．

D．Monkeys are humans closest relatives in species．

2．According to the passage，an idle wander on the street can he described as       

A．monkeyshine                                     B．monkeying around

C．monkey suit                                       D．monkey business

3．Monkey suits are commonly used to call military uniforms because they             ．

A．are created particularly for soldiers’ uniforms

B．are originally designed for American soldiers

C．share typical features with military uniforms

D．make American soldiers look like monkeys

4．Most monkey expressions are             ．

A．used only in western cultures             B．used on some formal occasions

       C．about tricks and naughtiness D．about terrible funny behaviors