Misery and setbacks are not always as terrible as one imagines. Hard times can offer new ways of looking at life that would otherwise never be known. And, if you are a writer, this can be the source of much of your success.

     Popular British author, Charles Dickens' （1812-1870）family could hardly make ends meet. They could only afford to send one of their six children to school. Dickens was not that child. His parents chose to send a daughter, who had a talent for music, to an academy. Then at the age of 12, Dickens' life took another turn for the worse.

His father, a clerk, was placed in prison for unpaid debts. And, being the oldest male left at home, Dickens took up work at a factory. His horrible experience there became the fuel for his future writing. His father was freed three months later and inherited a small amount of money. Dickens was then sent to school.

From 1836 to 1837, he wrote a monthly series of stories. Thus the Pickwick Papers, came into being, which brought fame to the 23-year-old man.

Throughout his career, Dickens covers various situations in his novels. He wrote about the miserable lives of the poor in Oliver Twist, the French Revolution in Tale of Two Cities, and social reform in Hard Times. He also wrote David Copperfield, a book thought to be modeled on his own life.

“I do not write bitterly or angrily: for I know all these things have worked together to make me what I am,” he once said. His difficult childhood did indeed shape the person he became, as well as his writing career. There are shades of young Dickens in many of his most beloved characters, including David Copperfield and Oliver Twist.

Like the author, all these characters come from poor beginnings and are able to rise above their setbacks and achieve success. “Minds, like bodies, will often fall into an ill-conditioned state from too much comfort,” he once wrote. On June 9th, 1870, aged 58, Dickens died, leaving one unfinished work．The words on his tombstone read: “He was a sympathizer to the poor, the suffering and the oppressed, and by his death, one of England's greatest writers is lost to the world.”

1.The book that first called public attention to Dickens was ______.

       A．the Pickwick Papers               B．Oliver Twist

       C．Tale of Two Cities                D．David Copperfield

2.The phrase “shades of” in bold means “_____”.

       A．various shapes of            B．situations of

       C．different experiences of     D．reminders of

3.How did Dickens see his childhood?

       A．He felt grateful for it．

       B．He felt it a pity that things weren’t in his favor．

       C．He loved writing about it．

       D．He chose to forget the bitterness about it．

4.From the story, we can see Dickens’ attitude towards an easy life is ______．

       A．to enjoy it                    B．to hate it

       C．not to abandon yourself to it     D．to work hard for it

 

A different sort of generation gap is developing in the workplace. Someone --- specifically the father-daughter team of Larry and Meagan Johnson --- has figured out that on some American job sites, five generations are working side by side.
In their new book about generations in the workplace the pair argue that while such an age difference adds a lot of texture and a variety of life experiences, it can also bring tensions and conflicts.
The Johnsons are human-resource trainers and public speakers. Dad Larry is a former health-care executive; daughter Meagan is a onetime high-level sales manager.
Here are the oldest and youngest of the five generations they identify:
They call the oldest group Traditionals, born before 1945. They were heavily influenced by the lessons of the Great Depression and World War Two. They respect authority, set a high standard of workmanship, and communicate easily and confidently. But they’re also stubbornly independent. They want their opinions heard.
At the other extreme are what the Johnsons call Linksters, born after 1995 into today’s more complicated, multi-media world. They live and breathe technology and are often social activists.
You won’t find many 15-year olds in the offices of large companies, except as volunteers, of course, but quite old and quite young workers do come together in sales environments like bike shops and ice-cream stores.
The Johnsons, Larry and Meagan, represent a generation gap themselves in their work with jobsite issues. The Johnsons’ point is that as the average lifespan continues to rise and retirement dates get delayed because of the tight economy, people of different generations are working side by side, more often bringing with them very different ideas about company loyalty and work values.
The five generations are heavily influenced by quite different events, social trends, and the cultural phenomena of their times. Their experiences shape their behavior and make it difficult, sometimes, for managers to achieve a strong and efficient workplace.
Larry and Meagan Johnson discuss all this in greater detail in a new book, “Generations, Inc.: From Boomers to Linksters --- Managing the Friction Between Generations at Work,” published by Amacom Press, which is available in all good bookstore from this Friday.
【小题1】The type of generation gap in paragraph 1 refers to the difference in beliefs ________.

A．between managers and workers

B．among family members

C．among employees

D．between older and newer companies

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

A．They’ve learned much from war and economic disaster.

B．They’re difficult to work with as they are stubborn.

C．They respect their boss and hope to be respected.

D．They’re independent workers with great confidence.

【小题3】 According to the passage, the Linksters are usually ________.

A．found working in the offices of large companies

B．influenced by media and technology

C．enthusiastic multi-media activists

D．ice-cream sellers

【小题4】 According to the passage, modern workforces are more diverse because ________.

A．people want to increase their average lifespan

B．many young people are entering the workforce

C．employees with different values can benefit their companies

D．retirement dates are being delayed for economic reasons

【小题5】What’s the main purpose of the passage?

A．To promote a new book by Larry and Meagan Johnson.

B．To describe the five different workplace generations.

C．To introduce the Johnsons’ research about diverse workforces.

D．To identify a major problem in modern workforces.

The basic flag of the United States is one of the world's oldest national flags．Only the basic flags of Austria,．Denmark, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland are older．

During the discovery and settlement of what is now the United States, the flags of various European nations were flown over the land, as symbols of possession．Later, in the Colonial and Revolutionary War periods, flags representing famous persons, places, and events were flown in the American Colonies．

The first official flag of the United States was created by Congress on June 14, 1777．It consisted of 13 alternate red and white stripes? and 13 white stars in a field of blue, representing the 13colonies that had declared their independence in 1776．Congress adopted a new flag of 15 stars and 15 stripes in 1795, to give representation to the two new states admitted into the Union, Vermont and Kentucky．

By 1817 there were 20 states in the Union, and it became apparent that adding one stripe for  each new state would destroy the shape of the flag．As a result．Congress in 1818 restored the original design of 13 stripes and provided that each state was to be represented by one star．In 1921 Preside William H．Taft made the first official provision for the arrangement of the stars．He ordered that there be six even rows of eight stars each．Previously the arrangement of the stars had

been left to the flag- maker's fancy．

The evolution of the stars and stripes reflects the growth of the United States．After the admission of Hawaii into the Union in 1959, the flag was officially changed for the 26th time since its creation．

There are many government flags flown in the United States in addition to the national flag．Among them are the president's and vice-president's flags and those of the federal  epartments and some federal agencies．Each state in the Union has an official flag．The United States Navy uses special flags for signaling．   

1.The basic flag of the United States is _____．

A．the oldest national flag in the world

B．one of the world's oldest flags

C．the most beautiful flag in the West

D．as old as the basic flags of some European nations

2.Before the War of Independence the flags of various European nations flown over the land were symbols of         ．

A．self- rule                                                                B．occupation          

C．peace and friendship     D．independence

3.The first official flag of the United States was adopted _____．

A．before the Independence War

B．right after the Independence War

C．when independence was declared in 1776

D．during the War of Independence which ended in 1783

4.The 13 red and white stripes and13 white Stars represent____．

A．13 independent states                         

B．the colonies that declared independence in 1776．

C．the U．S．Congress                          

D．13 famous figures in the American colonies

 

阅读下列材料及相关信息，从所给的六个选项(A、B、C、D、E、F)中，选出符合各小题要求的最佳选项。选项中有一项是多余选项。以下是演讲会的资料：

A Are you interested in “Dream of the Red Mansion”(Hong Lou Men)? Listen to a lecture on this classical novel. Venue: National Museum of Chinese Modern Literature (Beijing) Time: 9:30 A.m. Price: free Tel: 010 – 84615522	B “Jiaguwen” is among the oldest pictographic characters in the world．How much do you know about it? Get all the answers at this free lecture. Venue: Dongcheng District Library (Beijing) Time: 9:00 A．m. Price: free Tel: 010 – 64013356
C Former United Nations interpreter Professor Wang Ruojin speaks about her experiences at the UN and shares her understanding of the cultural differences between East and West. Venue: National Library of China (Beijing) Time: 1:30 p.m. – 4:00 p. m. Price: free Tel: 010 – 68488047	D Qi Baishi, one of China’s greatest modern painters, was also a poet, calligrapher(书法家) and seal-cutter(刻印者). Can you appreciate his works? Then come to spend the time with us. Venue: Beijing Art Academy Time: 9:00 A．m. – 11:00 A．m. Price: 10 yuan Tel: 010 - 65023390
E It is the year of the Dog, and you can see “Fu” everywhere. But how much do you know about dogs – man’s best friend? What is “Fu” and where does it come from? Why do people hang “Fu” character upside down on the door? Get all the answers from this free lecture. Venue: Capital Library (Beijing) Time: 2:00 p. m. Price: free Tel: 010 - 67358114	F About 160 cultural relics from Guangdong, Macao and Hong Kong are on display to April 15th. Meanwhile experts will talk about the important roles these three cities have played in the past two thousand years of Sino–Western exchanges. Venue: Beijing Art Museum Time: 2:00 p. m. – 5:00 p. m. Price: 20 yuan, students 10 yuan Tel: 010 - 83659337

 

以下是想去听演讲的人员的基本信息，请匹配适合他们的演讲内容。

1. Alice is now studying in Beijing University, and she is especially interested in Chinese writing. In her spare time she enjoys drawing, writing poems and is fond of sharing her pieces with her classmates.

2. Simon comes from Egypt. He is now studying in Beijing Art Academy. He shows great interest in Chinese ancient characters. Now he wants to know much about it.

3. Lora and Peter, visiting professors from Australia, are both crazy about Chinese traditional culture. At weekends they like to call on Chinese families to learn about Chinese festivals as well as their history.

4. Edward is a senior student in Beijing Foreign Language University. He likes traveling very much and has made up his mind to work as an interpreter for some joint–venture enterprises (合资企业).

5. Steve and Mark are both studying in the Chinese Department of China’s Renmin University. They want to do some research on Chinese ancient literature.

 

Started in 1636, Harvard University is the oldest of all the many colleges and universities in the United States. Yale, Princeton, Columbia and Dartmouth were opened soon after Harvard.

In the early years, these schools were much alike. Only young men went to college. All the students studied the same subjects, and everyone learned Latin, Greek and Hebrew. Little was known about science then, and one kind of school could teach everything that was known about the world. When the students graduated, most of them became ministers or teachers.

In 1782, Harvard started a medical school for young men who wanted to become doctors. Later, lawyers could receive their training in Harvard's law school. In 1825, besides Latin and Greek, Harvard began teaching modern languages, such as French and German. Soon it began teaching American history.

As knowledge increased, Harvard and other colleges began to teach many new subjects. Students were allowed to choose the subjects that interested them.

Today, there are many different kinds of colleges and universities. Most of them are made up of smaller schools that deal with（涉及）special fields of learning. There's so much to learn that one kind of school can't offer it all.

1.The oldest university in the US is _________.

A．Yale

B．Harvard

C．Princeton

D．Columbia

2.From the second paragraph, we can see that in the early years,______.

A．those colleges and universities were the same

B．people, young or old, might study in the colleges

C．students studied only some languages and science

D．when the students finished their school, they became lawyers or teachers

3.Modern languages the Harvard taught in 1825 were ________.

A．Latin and Greek

B．Latin, Green, French and German

C．American history and German

D．French and German

4.As knowledge increased, colleges began to teach_______.

A．everything that was known

B．law and something about medicine

C．many new subjects

D．the subjects that interested students

5.On the whole, the passage is about___________.

A．how to start a university

B．the world-famous colleges in America

C．how colleges have changed

D．what kind of lesson each college teaches