You must have seen ads on TV about hair care products （护发用品）. The models have shining hair like jewels （珠宝）. But now to make hair shine is no longer the task of hair care products, because hair can be made into real jewels. Believe it or not, a company called LifeGem in the US turns hair into jewels.

The company is in the business of taking hair from dead people and making it into diamonds （钻石）. The diamonds are for the families to remember the dead people.

Now the company plans to make three diamonds using Beethoven's hair to show their latest technology （技术）. The work will take about 7 months and in the end, Beethoven's long hair will become 3 shining diamonds between 0.5 to 1 carat （克拉）in size.

Since the great musician died in 1827, you may wonder how they got Beethoven's hair. Actually, the hair was given by John Rezniloff, who holds the Guinness World Record for the largest and most valuable collection of celebrities' （名人） hair. His collection also includes hair of Napoleon, Albert Einstein,  Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy. In total,  the collection is worth over 5 million dollars.

Though it sounds unbelievable （难以置信）, to have such diamonds made with hair may be a good way to show respect （尊敬） and love to those who died.

1.What does the company of LifeGem do?

A．It buys shining hair.

B．It produces hair care products.

C．It uses hair to make jewels.

D．It sells expensive diamonds to famous people.

2.Why does the company decide to make diamonds out of Beethoven's hair?

A．To show the latest technology.

B．To make the biggest diamond.

C．To make the most shining diamond.

D．To help the dead people become famous.

3.How long will the work take?

A．Half a month.

B．One month.

C．Three months.

D．Seven months.

4.What does the underlined word "it" refer to?

A．The collection of celebrities' hair.

B．The making of hair care products.

C．To make diamonds with hair.

D．The Guinness World Record.

 

Have successful people ever felt sad? Do they have any “secrets” to success? The answers to these questions can be found in US president Barack Obama’s “back to school” speech. Here is an excerpt(摘录) from his speech.
I know that sometimes, you get the sense that you can be rich and successful without any hard work—that your ticket to success is through rapping (饶舌音乐) or basketball or being a TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things.
But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won’t love every subject you study. Not all the homework will seem completely important to your life right this minute. And you may not succeed at everything the first time you try.
That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures. JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was turned down 12 times before it finally came out. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots (投篮) during his career. But he once said, “I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures beat you—you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time.
No one’s born being good at things. You become good at things through hard work.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to admit(承认) when you don’t know something, and to learn something new.
And even when you’re struggling, even when you’re discouraged (泄气), and you feel like other people have given up on you—don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.
【小题1】Why does Barack Obama mention (提到) JK Rowling and Michael Jordan in the fourth paragraph?

A．To compare these two famous persons.

B．To explain that writing and sports are difficult skills.

C．To show that the two persons were treated unfairly.

D．To prove that failure is the mother of success.

【小题2】Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．No one can be successful without working hard.

B．Failure can be good if you treat it in a right way.

C．Those who believe in themselves shouldn’t ask others for help.

D．One should try his best to make his dream come true.

【小题3】Which of the following is the closest in meaning to the underlined sentence?

A．One should change his mind when others give honest advice to him.

B．One should believe in himself no matter what difficulty he is faced with.

C．One doesn’t have to work hard when he has failed several times.

D．One doesn’t have to take others’ advice when they get away from him.

Passage 1  Mobile Phone Madness
How much do you love your mobile phone? A Chinese student had to call 110 for help this week after he got his arm stuck in a toilet trying to rescue(援救) his mobile phone. After dropping his phone in the toilet, he decided to wrap(包，裹) his arm in newspaper in the hopes of keeping clean. But the newspapers became larger in size in the water, and then even his roommates couldn't help him pull his arm out. So policemen were called and they spent an hour unsticking the stuck student.
Passage 2  Crazy Pet Lovers
How much do you love your pets? Many people in China are famous for how much they love their pets. They dress them up in fashionable clothing and buy them high quality food. But would they spend 7,000 English pounds (68,000 yuan) on a wedding(婚礼) for their pets? And that's what a couple in Brazil spent on a fancy wedding for their pet Yorkshire terriers( a kind of dog).
Passage 3  Oh, rats!
When something goes wrong, you can often hear Westerners cry “Oh, rats”. But when it comes to Southern China, “Oh, rats!” can mean it's what you want for dinner. According to a report in China Daily, some restaurants in Guangzhou serve rat meat. But, actually, most of those rats are field mice. What would Mickey Mouse say?
Passage 4  Liar(说谎者), liar
Here's some news that most women already know. Men tell more lies than women. The London Daily Mail cites(引用) a new study that says men tell about three lies a day, while women tell only two lies a day. Men are also less likely to feel guilty about lying, according to this week's survey of 3,000 people by a research organization called One Poll. According to the Poll, lying to our mothers is very popular. But then, so is lying at work. And both men and women will lie when it comes to how much they've drunk. So how easy is it to tell when someone is lying?
【小题1】Put the statements into the right order according to passage 1.
① They called policemen for help. 
② He dropped his mobile phone in the toilet.
③ His roommates tried to help him pull his arm out, but failed.
④ The newspapers expanded(膨胀) in the water, so he got his arm stuck.
⑤ He wrapped his arm in newspaper before trying to take out his phone from the toilet.

A．②⑤④③①

B．②④③⑤①

C．①⑤④②③

D．①②⑤④③

【小题2】Why does the writer call the Brazilian couple “crazy pet lovers”?

A．They dress their pets up in fashionable clothing.

B．They buy their pets high quality food.

C．They spent ￥68,000 on a wedding for their pets.

D．They spent ￡7,000 in buying a pet.

【小题3】 If you say “oh, rats” in Guangzhou, it can mean that                    .

A．something goes wrong	B．you see some field mice
C．you are a Mickey Mouse lover	D．you’d like to have rat meat for dinner

【小题4】 According to the new study on lying, which of the following is not true?

A．Women tell less lies than men.

B．Women are more likely to feel guilty about lying.

C．Lying at work is more popular than lying to our mothers.

D．Neither men nor women want to tell the truth about how much they have drunk.

【小题5】What is NOT mentioned?

A．It is difficult to unstick the stuck student.

B．The couple’s pets are Yorkshire terriers.

C．People in China enjoy eating rat meat.

D．3,000 people took part in the survey made by One Poll.

You must have seen ads on TV about hair care products （护发用品）. The models have shining hair like jewels （珠宝）. But now to make hair shine is no longer the task of hair care products, because hair can be made into real jewels. Believe it or not, a company called LifeGem in the US turns hair into jewels.
The company is in the business of taking hair from dead people and making it into diamonds （钻石）. The diamonds are for the families to remember the dead people.
Now the company plans to make three diamonds using Beethoven's hair to show their latest technology （技术）. The work will take about 7 months and in the end, Beethoven's long hair will become 3 shining diamonds between 0.5 to 1 carat （克拉）in size.
Since the great musician died in 1827, you may wonder how they got Beethoven's hair. Actually, the hair was given by John Rezniloff, who holds the Guinness World Record for the largest and most valuable collection of celebrities' （名人） hair. His collection also includes hair of Napoleon, Albert Einstein,  Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy. In total,  the collection is worth over 5 million dollars.
Though it sounds unbelievable （难以置信）, to have such diamonds made with hair may be a good way to show respect （尊敬） and love to those who died.
【小题1】What does the company of LifeGem do?

A．It buys shining hair.

B．It produces hair care products.

C．It uses hair to make jewels.

D．It sells expensive diamonds to famous people.

【小题2】Why does the company decide to make diamonds out of Beethoven's hair?

A．To show the latest technology.

B．To make the biggest diamond.

C．To make the most shining diamond.

D．To help the dead people become famous.

【小题3】How long will the work take?

A．Half a month.

B．One month.

C．Three months.

D．Seven months.

【小题4】What does the underlined word "it" refer to?

A．The collection of celebrities' hair.

B．The making of hair care products.

C．To make diamonds with hair.

D．The Guinness World Record.