A lesson in caring

It was a cold evening. My daughter and I were walking up Broadway. I didn’t notice a guy sitting inside a cardboard box. But Nora    36    . She wasn’t even four, but she   37    at my coat and said, “That man’s cold. Daddy, can we take him home?”

    I don’t remember my   38    . But I do remember a sudden   39    feeling inside me. I had always been delighted at how much my daughter noticed in her   40     , whether it was     41    flying or children playing. But now she was noticing   42    and beggary.

    A few days later, I saw an article in the newspaper about volunteers who picked up a food package from a nearby school on a Sunday morning and   43     it to an elderly person. It was quick and easy. I signed us up. Nora was   44    about it. She could understand the importance of food, so she could easily see how   45    our job was. When Sunday came, she was ready, but I had to    46    myself to leave the house to fetch the food package. On my way to the school, I fought an urge (强烈愿望) to turn    47    . The Sunday paper and coffee were waiting for me at home. Why do this?   48    , we phoned the elderly person we’d been appointed. She   49    us right over.

    The building was in a bad state. Facing us was a silver-haired woman in an old dress. She took the package and asked us to come in. Nora ran inside. I unwillingly followed.   50     inside, I saw that the department belonged to someone poor. Our hostess showed us some photos. Nora played and when it came time to say goodbye, we three hugged. I walked home    51    .

Professionals call such a(n)   52    “a volunteer opportunity”. They are opportunities and I’ve come to see. Where else but as volunteers do you have the opportunity to do something    53     that’s good for others as well as for yourself? Nora and I regularly serve meals to needy people and   54     clothes for the homeless. Yet, as I’ve    55     her grow over these past four years, I still wonder—which of us has benefited more?

A. did                     B. was                          C. has            D. had

A. pulled　　　　     B. replaced                   C. waved        D. aimed

A. debate                   B. reply                        C. explanation D. expression

A. general　　　　    B. funny                       C. heavy         D. magical

A. web　　　　　    B. dream　　　　　    C. castle         D. world

A. insects                   B. animals　　　　      C. plants　　　D. birds

A. coldness 　　　    B. illness 　　　       C. suffering　　D. appearance

A. sent  　　           B. returned　　　      C. devoted　　 D. posted

A. concerned              B. sorry　　　　         C. worried      　D. excited

A. creative　　　      B. valuable　　　      C. shocking　　D. simple

A. warn　　　　　    B. stop　　　　  　    C. allow 　　　D. push

A. back 　　　　      B. away　　　　          C. up　　　　 D. out

A. Therefore　　　    B. But     　　          C. Anyhow　　D. Also

A. requested 　　    B. promised　　　      C. invited 　　 D. helped

A. Although            B. Once　　　　　      C. Because 　　D. Though

A. in tears                  B. in surprise                C. in reality      D. in disappointment

A. stay                    B. visit 　　　　         C. reception　　D. challenge

A. fair                    B. famous　　　　       C. difficult　　 D. enjoyable

A. collect                   B. make　　　　　      C. order 　　　D. design

A. let                         B. made　　　　　      C. watched 　　D. affected

Number　 sense is not the ability to count. It is the ability to recognize a 　 1　 in number. Human beings are born with this ability. 2 ，experiments show that many animals are, too. For example, many birds have good number sense. If a nest has four eggs and you remove one, the bird will not　 3 . However, if you remove two, the bird 4 leaves. This means that the bird knows the 　5　 between two and three.

Another interesting experiment showed a bird's 6 number sense. A man was trying to take a photo of a crow(乌鸦)that had a nest in a tower, but the crow always left when she saw him coming. The bird did not 7 until the man left the tower. The man had an 8 .He took another man with him to the tower. One man left and the other stayed, but they did not 9 the bird. The crow stayed away until the second man left, too. The experiment was　 10 with three men and then with four men. But the crow did not return to the nest until all the men were 11 .It was not until five men went into the tower and only four left that they were 12 able to fool the crow.

How good is a human's number sense? It's not very good. For example, babies about fourteen months old almost always notice if something is taken away from a 　13 group. But when the number goes beyond three or four, the children are 14　 fooled.

It seems that number sense is something we have in common with many animals in this world, and that our human 15 is not much better than a crow's.

1. A. rise　　　　　　　 B. pattern　　　　　　　　　　　　　 C. change　　　　　　　　　　 D. trend

2. A. Importantly　 B. Surprisingly　 C. Disappointedly D. Fortunately

3. A. survive　　　　　　　　 B. care　　　　　　　　 C. hatch　　　　 D. notice

4. A. generally 　　　　　　 B. sincerely　　 C. casually　　　　　 D. deliberately

5．A. distance 　　　　　 B. range　　　　 C. different　 　　　 D. interval

6．A. amazing 　　　　　 B. annoying　　　　　 C. satisfying　 D. disturbing

7. A. relax　　　　　　　　　 B. recover　　　　　　 C. react　　　　 D. return

8. A. appointment　　　　 B. excuse　　　　　　 C. idea　　　　　 D. explanation

9. A. fool　　　　　　　　　　 B. hurt　　　　　 C. catch　　　　 D. kill

10.A. repo　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. repeated　　 C. designed　　 D. approved

11.A. confused　　　　　　 B. gone　　　　 C. tired　　　　　 D. drunk

12.A. gradually　　　　　　 B. luckily　　　 C. strangely　 D. finally

13.　 A. single　　　　　　　 B. small　　　　 C. local　　　　 D. new

14. A. seldom　　　　　　　 B. temporarily C. merely　　　 D. often

15. A. sight　　　　　　　　　 B. nature　　　 C. ability　　　　 D. belief

Most of us spend our lives seeking the natural world. To this end, we walk the dog, play golf, go fishing, sit in the garden, drink outside rather than inside the pub, have a picnic, live in the suburbs, go to the seaside, buy a weekend place in the country. The most popular free time activity in Britain is going for a walk. And when joggers (慢跑者) jog, they don’t run the streets. Every one of them automatically heads to the park or the river. It is my firm belief that not only do we all need nature, but we all seek nature, whether we know we are doing so or not.
But despite this, our children are growing up nature-deprived (丧失). I spent my boyhood climbing trees. These days, children are robbed of these ancient freedoms, due to problems like crime, traffic, the loss of the open spaces and strange new ideas about what is best for children, that is to say, things that can be bought, rather than things that can be found.
The truth is to be found elsewhere. A study in the US: families had moved to better housing and the children were assessed for ADHD (多动症). Those whose housing had more natural views showed an improvement of 19%; those who had the same improvement in material surroundings but no nice view improved just 4%.
A study in Sweden indicated that kindergarten children who could play in a natural environment had less illness and greater physical ability than children used only to a normal playground. A US study suggested that when a school gave children access to a natural environment, the entire school would do better in studies.
Another study found that children play differently in a natural environment. In playgrounds, children create a hierarchy (等级) based on physical abilities, with the tough ones taking the lead. But when a grassy area was planted with bushes, the children got much more into fantasy play, and the social hierarchy was now based on imagination and creativity.
Most bullying (恃强凌弱) is found in schools where there is a tarmac (柏油碎石) playground; the least bullying is in a natural area that the children are encouraged to explore. This reminds me unpleasantly of Sunnyhill School, with its hard tarmac, where I used to hang about in corners dreaming about wildlife.
But children are frequently discouraged from involvement with natural spaces, for health and safety reasons, for fear that they might get dirty or that they might cause damage. So, instead, the damage is done to the children themselves: not to their bodies but to their souls.
One of the great problems of modern childhood is ADHD, now increasingly and expensively treated with drugs. Yet one study after another indicates that contact with nature gives huge benefits to ADHD children. However, we spend money on drugs rather than on green places.
The life of old people is much better when they have access to nature. The most important for the growing population of old people is in quality rather than quantity of years. And study after study finds that a garden is the single most important thing in finding that quality.
In wider and more difficult areas of life, there is evidence to indicate that natural surroundings improve all kinds of things. Even problems with crime and aggressive behaviour are reduced when there is contact with the natural world.
Dr William Bird, researcher from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, states in his study, “A natural environment can reduce violent behaviour because its process helps reduce anger and behavior that people might regret later.” Wild places need encouraging for this reason, no matter how small their contribution.
We tend to think human beings are doing nature some kind of favor when we are protecting nature. The error here is far too deep: not only do humans need nature for themselves, but the very idea that humanity and the natural world are separable things is damaging.
Human beings are a species of animals. For seven million years we lived on the planet as part of nature. So we miss the natural world and long for contact with non-human life. Anyone who has patted a dog, stroked a cat, sat under a tree with a glass of beer, given or received a bunch of flowers or chosen to walk through the park on a nice day, understands that.
We need the wild world. It is necessary to our well-being, our health, our happiness. Without other living things around us we are less than human.
【小题1】What is the author’s firm belief?

A．Find more effective drugs for them.

B．Provide more green spaces for them.

C．Place them under more personal care.

D．Engage them in more meaningful activities

A．They look on life optimistically.	B．They enjoy a life of better quality.
C．They are able to live longer.	D．They become good-humored

B
As a result of pollution, Lake Erie, on the borders of the USA and Canada, is now without any living things.
Pollution in water is not simply a matter of “poisons” killing large numbers of fish overnight, Very often the effects of pollution are not noticed for many months or years because the first organisms（生物体）to be affected are either plants or plankton(浮游生物). But these organisms are the food of fish and birds and other creatures. When this food disappears, the fish and birds die too. In this way a whole food chain can be wiped out, and it’s not until dead fish and water birds are seen at the river’s edge or on the seashore that people realize what is happening.
　　Where do the substances which pollute the water come from? There are two main sources of sewage（下水道污物）and industrial waste. As more detergent（洗涤剂）is used in the home, so more of it is finally put into our rivers, lakes and seas. Detergents harm water birds, dissolving the natural substances which keep their feathers water-proof (防水). Sewage itself, if not properly treated, makes the water dirty and prevents all forms of life in rivers and the sea from receiving the oxygen they need. Industrial waste is even more harmful as there are many highly poisonous things in it, such as copper and lead.
　　So, if we want to stop this pollution, the answer is simple: sewage and industrial waste must be made clear before flowing into the water. It may already be too late to save some rivers and lakes, but others can still be saved if the correct action is taken at once.
70. Pollution of water is noticed________.
　　A. when the first organisms are affected　     
B. when a good many fish and birds die
　　C. when poisonous things are poured into water　
D. as soon as the balance of nature is destroyed
71.The living things die because there is no ________in the lake or river.
　　A. water　　　　　            B. fish           　 C. poison　　　　　  D. oxygen
72. Which of the following is harmful according to the passage?
　　A. Organisms              　B. Plants and plankton in the water
　　C. Waste water from cleaning    D. Industrial waste made clear before flowing into the water
73. The way to stop water pollution is to________.
　　A. realize the serious situation clearly
　　B. put oxygen into the river
　　C. make the waste material harmless before flowing into the water
　　D. make special room in the sea for our rubbish

The Great Fire of London started in the very early hours of 2 September 1666. In four days it destroyed more than three-quarters of the old city, where most of the houses were wooden and close together. Over one hundred people became homeless, but only a few lost their lives.

　　 The fire started on Sunday morning in the house of the King’s baker（面包师）in Pudding Lane. The baker, with his wife and family, was able to get out through a window into the roof. A strong wind blew the fire from the bakery（面包房）into a small hotel next door. Then it spread quickly into Thames Street. That was the beginning.

　 　By eight o’ clock three hundred houses were on fire. On Monday nearly a kilometer of the city was burning along the River Thames. Tuesday was the worst day. The fire destroyed many well-known buildings, old St Pauls and the Guildhall among them.

　　Samuel Pepys, the famous writer, write about the fire, “People threw their things into the river. Many poor people stayed in their houses until the last moment. Birds fell out of the air because of the heat .”

　　The fire stopped only when the King finally ordered people to destroy hundreds of buildings in the path of the fire. With nothing left to burn, the fire became weak and finally died out.

　　After the fire, Christopher Wren, the architect(建筑师), wanted a city with wider streets and fine new houses of stone. In fact, the streets are still narrow, but he did build more than fifty churches, among them the mew St Pauls.

　　The fire caused great pain and loss, but after it London was a better place: a city for the future and not just of the past.

1.The fire began in_________ .

A. a hotel　　　　B. the palace　　　C. Pudding Lane　　　　D. Thames Street

2.The underlined word “family” in the second paragraph means_________ .

A. home　　     B. children　　   C. wife and husband　　  D. wife and children

3.Why did the writer cite(引用)Samuel Pepys?

A. Because Pepys was among those putting out the fire.

B. Because Pepys also wrote about the fire.

C. To show that poor people suffered most.

D. To give the reader a clearer picture of the fire.

4.How was the fire put out according to the text?

A. The soldiers came to help.

B. All the wooden houses in the city were destroyed.

C. People managed to get enough water from the river.

D. Houses standing in the path of the fire were destroyed according to the King’s order.