If I raised the question, “What would be the last thing you would expect to happen while watching your son’s flag football game?” you probably still couldn’t come up with what happened to me and my family.

As we were sitting on the sidelines enjoying the game, a low-flying bird came swooping in attempting to land on my daughter’s head! It honestly came out of nowhere. We were seated by ourselves on the tree lined side of the field. I was able to calm my daughter’s shock and fear once I showed her that the bird was not some wild animal, it was in fact, somebody’s pet!

Now, we’re sitting at the outdoor fields of the Pontiac Silverdome, far from any populated area, wondering where this very social cockatiel, an Australian parrot (澳洲鹦鹉) could have come from. I walked up to the bird and put out my hand. Immediately, it hopped on and chirped in a friendly way. We looked around us and knew that we could not just leave and suppose that the bird would return to where it came from. This was a very domesticated bird that needed help or it would not survive.

The flag football game had ended so we walked the bird over to other groups of adults and asked if they knew of anyone who had lost a bird. All the kids were excited about the bird and fed it with some post game snacks. The bird’s nails were getting long and he was looking pretty dirty, so we knew it had been out here for a long time and was hungry. Since its wings were clipped, it could fly a little but probably not more than 100 yards or so at a try. We all just scratched our heads as a group wondering what to do with the lost bird.

We explained to the kids that this bird needed our help since it was someone’s pet and would not know how to get its own food, and it could not fly well since its wings were clipped. The kids understood, and all of them wanted to take the bird home! The parents however, knew this was not a good choice as one had a large dog, another two cats, etc. We explained to the kids that one of us could take the bird home for the night and then bring it to the Humane Society in the morning in hopes to connect it to its owners. We couldn’t keep the bird. It wasn’t ours. This was tough for the kids to understand at first. We couldn’t just leave the bird either. There was no way it could attend itself. The group of us sat around the Silverdome practice fields for quite a while trying to determine the best course of choice for the lost bird. It was getting dark out but no one was willing to leave that parking lot until we had a game plan for how to help the bird.

The owner of the football league, Chris Novak, offered to take the bird. It was extremely nice of him and he really stepped in to help while all the rest of us who had kids tugging on our shirts and begging to take it home. We took a box and put a bunch of holes in it and he brought it home for the night. Another mom went online and found a family that had lost a bird that looked just like the one we’d found. She emailed the info to Chris who got in touch with the family and the next day, reunited the bird with the family that lost it almost 3 weeks earlier! When Chris emailed us to let us know, we could not believe that this bird had traveled from The Rochester Tienken area all the way to the Silverdome!

We were so happy to be able to save this bird and get it back to its family. I showed my kids the email about how the other family got their pet back. The family has 3 kids who were so happy to see their bird. My kids realized what a nice ending this story had. Not only had we been able to save this bird’s life, but we were able to bring it back to the family that loves and misses him.

The life lesson in the missing bird story seemed to miss its mark with my kids at first. They were a little bummed out that they couldn’t keep the lost bird. I explained to them that when an animal or someone needs help, you just can’t turn a blind eye and hope everything works out OK. The “lost bird incident” was also a reminder to them that teamwork and the kindness of strangers can make a world of difference and that a group of well-meaning strangers can work together to help someone. It wasn’t a heroic act, but one that I knew had sunk in with my kids when they realized that trying to help was the best and only real course of action. 　

1.What happened when the author watched his son’s football games?

A．A parrot tried to eat their food.

B．His daughter was hurt by a parrot.

C．A parrot flew towards his daughter.

D．A parrot landed on his daughter’s head.

2.The underlined word “domesticated” in the second paragraph probably means_______.

A．having been abandoned                  B．having been used to home life

C．having been used to life in the wild          D．having been week and hungry

3.Who was the first one to find the bird’s owner?

A．The author                            B．Chris Novak

C．The Humane Society                     D．A participant’s mother

4.What can be learned from the “lost bird incident”?

A．Strangers can also work well together.

B．Humane Society helps children in teamwork.

C．Children can keep lost injured pet birds home.

D．Helping others is always regarded as a heroic act.

5.What did the author want to tell in the text?

A．How to help a lost parrot to find home.

B．The experience of watching a football games.

C．The importance of teamwork and helping others.

D．How a parrot can fly a long distance from home.

6.The best title of the text should be________. 

A．What Animals Can Teach Us

B．Complete Care for a Lost Bird

C．Life Lessons When You Least Expect It

D．Love First, Teamwork and Kindness Second

 

[1]A long time ago, there was an Emperor who told his horseman that if he could ride on his horse and cover as much land area as he liked, then the Emperor would give him the area of land he covered. Sure enough, the horseman quickly jumped onto his horse and rode as fast as possible to cover     78    .　He kept on riding and riding, whipping the horse to go as fast as possible. When he was hungry or tired, he did not stop because he wanted to cover as much area as possible. Finally he came to a point when he had covered a substantial area and he was exhausted and was dying. Then he asked himself,　"Why did I push myself so hard to cover so much land area? Now I am dying and I only need a very small area to bury myself."

   [2]The above story is similar with the journey of our Life. We push very hard everyday to make more money, to gain power and recognition. We neglect our health, time with our family　 and to appreciate the surrounding beauty and the hobbies we love.

   [3]One day when we look back, we will realize that we don't really need that much, but then we cannot turn back time for what we have missed.　

   [4]Life is not about making money, acquiring power or recognition. Life is definitely not about work! work is only necessary to keep us living so as to enjoy the beauty and pleasures of life. Life is a balance of work and play, family and personal time. You have to decide how you want to balance your Life. Define your priorities, realize what you are able to compromise but always let some of your decisions be based on your instincts. Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim of human existence.

[5]So, take it easy, do what you want to do and appreciate nature. Life is fragile, Life is short. Do not take life for granted. Live a balanced lifestyle , and enjoy life!　

1.What is the passage mainly about? (no more than 8 words)

____________________________________________________________

2.Complete the following statement with words from Paragraph3.(no more than 5 words)

It is too late to regret ______ when we realize we have wasted so much time on what we really don’t need.

3.Fill in the blank in Paragraph 1 with proper words. (no more than 8 words)

______________________________________________________________

4.List one of the suggestions that the author gives for our life. (no more than 12 words)

______________________________________________________________

5.What does the words “he”(Line 1, Paragraph 1) probably refer to? (no more than 3 words)

 

 

When I was quite young, I discovered that somewhere inside the telephone lived an amazing

person - "Information Please" and there was nothing she did not know.　

One day while my mother was out, I hit my finger with a hammer. The pain was terrible, but there was no one home to give me any sympathy. I walked around the house, finally arriving at the telephone! Quickly, I called “Information Please" and told her what happened.  She told me to open the icebox and hold a little piece of ice to my finger.

After that, I called "Information Please" for everything. When my pet bird died, I told "Information Please" the sad story. She tried to comfort me, she said quietly, "Paul, always remember that there are other worlds to sing in." Somehow I felt better. Another day I was on the telephone, “How do you spell ‘grateful’? ". All this took place in a small town in the Pacific Northwest. When I was 9, we moved to Boston.

A few years later, on my way to college, my plane put down in Seattle. I had about half an hour or so between planes. Without thinking, I dialed my hometown operator and said, "Information, please."    　　

Surprisingly, I heard the small, clear voice I knew so well, "Information." I hadn't planned on this but I heard myself saying, "Could you please tell me how to spell ‘grateful’?"  

There was a long pause. Then came the soft-spoken answer, "I guess your finger must have healed by now."   I laughed. "So it's really still you," I said, "I wonder if you have any idea how much you meant to me during that time."  I told her how often I had thought of her over the years and asked if I could call her again. "Please do," she said, "Just ask for Sally."　　

Three months later I was back in Seattle. A different voice answered me. I was told that Sally passed away five weeks before.   　　

Before I could hang up she told me that Sally left a message for me—“Tell him I still say there are other worlds to sing in. He'll know what I mean.”  I thanked her and hung up. I knew what Sally meant.

Never underestimate the impression you may make on others. Whose life have you touched today?　

1.What does “Information, Please” refer to in the passage?

A. An amazing girl.

B. A special kind of telephone.

C. A communication system.

D. A service that helps telephone users.

2.What happened to the little boy one day when he was at home alone? 

A. He was amused by the telephone.

B. He hurt his finger with a hammer.

C. He found an amazing telephone.

D. He got a piece of ice from an icebox.

3.What did “Information, Please” give the little boy whenever he was in trouble? 

A. Information and conversation.

B. Good memories and happiness.

C. Sympathy and information.

D. Friendship and cheers.

4.When did the author get in touch with “Information, Please” again after he moved to Boston?  

A. When he was in trouble on his way to college.

B. When his plane stopped in Seattle for half an hour.

C. When he went back to Seattle to visit his sister.

D. Three months later after he moved to Boston.

 

 

The food we eat seems to have profound effects on our health. Although science has made enormous steps in making food more fit to eat, it has, at the same time, made many foods unfit to eat. Some research has shown that perhaps eighty percent of all human illnesses relate to diet and forty percent of cancer relates to the diet as well, especially cancer of the colon. Different cultures are more likely to cause certain different illnesses because of the food that is characteristic in these cultures.

That food is connected with illness is not a new discovery. In 1945, about 35 years ago, government researchers realized that nitrates, commonly used to preserve color in meats, and other food additives, caused cancer. Yet, these carcinogenic  additives remain in our food, and it becomes more difficult all the time to know which things on the packaging labels of processed food are helpful or harmful. The additives which we eat are not all so direct. Farmers often give penicillin to beef and living animals, and because of this, penicillin has been found in the milk of treated cow. Sometimes similar drugs are given to animals not for medical purposes, but for financial reasons. The farmers are simply trying to fatten the animals in order to obtain a higher price on the market. Although the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has tried repeatedly to control these procedures, the practices continue.　　

1. What is the best possible title of the passage?

　 A. Drug and Food             　B. Cancer and Health

　C. Food and Health              D. Health and Drug

2. Which of the following statements is NOT true?

　 A. Drugs are always given to animals for medical reasons.

　 B. Some of the additives in our food are added to the food itself and some are

given to the living animals.

　 C. Researchers have known about the potential dangers of food additives for over

thirty-five years.

　 D. Food may cause forty percent of cancer in world.

3. How has science done something harmful to mankind?

　A. Because of science, diseases caused by polluted food haven’t been virtually

eliminated.

　 B. It has caused a lack of information concerning the value of food.

　 C. Because of the application of science, some potentially harmful substances

have been added to food.

　D. The scientists have preserved the color of meat, but not of vegetables.

4. What are nitrates used for?

　 A. They preserve flavor in packaged foods.

　 B. They preserve the color of meats.

　 C. They are the objects of research.

5. The word ‘carcinogenic’ most nearly means ‘_________’.

　 A. trouble-making                 B. color-maintaining

　 C. money-making                 D .cancer-causing

 

The young policeman, Constable Rider, walked more quickly than usual, because of the cold, but he did not consciously neglect any part of his work. His torch flashed on doorways and windows as he looked for anything that was at all suspicious, and when he even thought that anything was unusual he went to try the door and window, probably unheard by the people sleeping in the room just above his head. As he turned a comer, he heard a slight rustling sound—it might be a cat, it could even be a dog, although few dogs wandered about at night. It might be a pair of lovers or it might be anything. Rider saw nothing.

A cat then? Usually if you disturbed a cat, it ran off and jumped, and you heard or noticed something else. By doing a lot of night work, you learned to notice these things, but now all riders noticed was the silence which had followed the rustling sound. So he acted cautiously. He did not flash his torch about the houses near the comer but walked on, and, a little way from the spot where he had heard the sound, stopped and bent his head, as if he was lighting a cigarette. A policeman who stopped to light a cigarette seemed the most unsuspicious policeman in the world.

There was still no sound. There were bushes in the garden of the house where Rider had first heard it and he knew that a man could hide there out of sight. But if he went back, it would ware any such man. So instead he stood and shone his torch at the window nearest him, and as if he had noticed something unusual, he walked towards it and opened the wooden gate, which made no sound at all. He reached the entrance and shone the torch on the keyhole of the front door and as he did so, the rustle came again, this time much more softly. He looked round quickly.

　　  1. What was Constable Rider doing on this very cold evening?

　　　　   A. He was looking for anything out of the ordinary.

　　    B. He was looking for something that had been lost.

　　　　   C. He was being careful not to disturb people.

　　　　   D. He was being careless in carrying on these duties.

　　  2. When he heard the rustling sound, he

　　　　   A. thought that it was probably caused by some animal

　　 B. knew that he had disturbed a cat

　　　　   C. thought that it was caused by the wind

　　　　   D. realized that he had turned a comer

　　  3. As he then heard no more sounds, Rider decided

　　　　   A. that he had been mistaken, and walked on

　　　　   B. that he might as well have a cigarette

　　　　   C. to flash his lamp on a window near the comer

　　　　  D. not to show that he had noticed anything

　　  4. Why did Constable Rider not go right back to the house on the comer?

　　　　   A. He had seen a man hiding there.

　　　　   B. He didn't want to use his torch.

　　　　   C. It would show that he had noticed something.

　　　　   D. There was still no sound from the garden.