In societies where social roles are determined, boys usually copy the behavior of their fathers, and girls usually also copy _____ of their mothers.

A．that              B．those             C．one              D．the ones

 

I believe the best heroes are often the ones who haven’t been publicly recognized. They’re someone’s hero just by living their life as 36, not necessarily struggling for anything particular outside of survival. They’re everyday ordinary people.

37, my greatest hero without doubt isn’t a famous person or someone who has a rags-to-riches (白手起家的) story. In fact, this person isn’t a 38 at all, but a heroine: my mother, who has been my greatest source of inspiration（鼓舞）.

A brief glance (一瞥) into this 39 woman’s life makes it clear. My mother was married to a man who drank like a fish almost every day. As Mother 40 to us later in life, she simply didn’t want us to be 41 by my father. So, one day she packed her seven kids into an old wagon (马车), and headed back down south to Montgomery, Alabama.

At five foot three, she was a black lady with a small figure, with no college education. She did whatever she had to do to 42 as a single(单身的) parent and to successfully 43 all her children to adulthood.

By high school I had started to 44 my mother had achieved something 45 as a single parent. Then, when I was seventeen years old, I signed up(报名) for the Marine Corps. The day I 46 for basic training, my mother told me, a very thin and nervous black kid, four 47 words: “Just do your best.” That 48 may be a cliché (套话), but coming from her , it has given me a lifetime of powerful inspiration.

I’ve had my 49 of ups and downs in my life. Whenever meeting with any difficulty, I would 50 to myself, “If Mother overcame her challenges, I have no 51 not to do the same.” 52 I grew, I admired her for what she had achieved.

I graduated from community college with highest 53, and now I’m a student at Columbia University. Every step of the 54, I’ve been encouraged by the inspiration of my mother — my heroine. I’ve never 55. I’ve tried to do my best. 

1.                A．much          B．usual           C．well D．active

 

2.                A．Indeed         B．Otherwise       C．Therefore D．Altogether

 

3.                A．hero           B．model          C．heroine  D．example

 

4.                A．educated       B．famous         C．generous D．unusual

 

5.                A．explained       B．replied         C．devoted  D．responded

 

6.                A．employed       B．fooled          C．influenced D．missed

 

7.                A．escape         B．survive         C．hide D．recover

 

8.                A．raise           B．add            C．enrich    D．attract

 

9.                A．believe         B．imagine         C．determine D．realize

 

10.               A．exciting        B．interesting      C．tiring D．amazing

 

11.               A．waited         B．returned        C．left   D．came

 

12.               A．honest         B．simple         C．useless    D．extra

 

13.               A．answer         B．praise          C．expression D．encouragement

 

14.               A．movement      B．experiences     C．origin D．advantage

 

15.               A．think          B．lie             C．react D．object

 

16.               A．demand        B．ability          C．cause D．excuse

 

17.               A．As             B．Though         C．Unless D．Before

 

18.               A．honors         B．flame          C．pressure   D．purpose

 

19.               A．escape         B．danger         C．way  D．hope

 

20.               A．appeared       B．stopped        C．knocked   D．glanced

 

 

Should parents ever hit their children?

Research suggests many of us are likely to respond “no”, and public support for spanking (打屁股) has been falling over the years. But surveys also show that 75 percent to nearly 90 percent of parents admit spanking their child at least once.

I was raised in a zero-tolerance( 零容忍) home for disrespect, and my parents often turned to physical punishment. And, no, I don’t feel I was damaged by it.

Nothing is more annoying than watching ill-mannered behavior from children.

But there is data to suggest that a return to old-school spanking isn’t the answer.

Two years ago , Newsweek reported that it had found data suggesting that teens whose parents used physical punishment were more likely to become aggressive(好斗的).

Murray Straus, professor at the University of New Hampshire in America, has studied the topic of children and spanking for decades. He said that children who were physically punished have lower IQs than their peers. It may be that children with lower IQs were more likely to get spanked, but the punishment may have been counterproductive (反作用) to their mental development, as well.

Some researchers make the argument that occasional open-handed smacks (用巴掌打) on the bottom are not only harmless but can have some benefit.

Last year, Marjorie Gunnoe, a psychologist at Calvin College, studied teens who have never been spanked. There are a greater number of children growing up without ever having been physically punished. Gunnoe’s research suggests they don’t turn out any better than those who were sometimes spanked.

There are some parents who simply cannot control their tempers. But I still believe that the best parents are the ones who are able to offer fair and firm discipline (管教) without ever turning to physical punishment.

What can we know from the research in the second paragraph?

A. Many of the parents made no response to the survey.  

B. More and more people support spanking in public.

C. Most parents have the experience of spanking their children.

D. Many of the parents think they should hit their children.

According to Marjorie Gunnoe’s research, ________ .

A. the children who have never been spanked do better than those who were sometimes spanked

B. instead of harmless, spanking can have a little benefit

C. spanking has little effect on the children’s future performance            

D. the teens who were often spanked are more likely to be aggressive

In the author’s opinion, the best parents are the ones ______.

A. who often use physical punishment        B. who never use physical punishment

C. who use physical punishment properly     D. who take physical punishment as useful tool

Which of the following is NOT TRUE according to the passage?

A. The author’s parents were strict with him when he was young.

B. The author thinks his parents’ spanking did no harm to him.

C. Murray Straus thinks spanking has nothing to do with children’s IQs.

D. Some parents spank their children because they can’t control their tempers.

When my twin sons, Chad and Brad, were born, I was concerned about everything. Five years later, our little girl, Becky   1  our family. I wanted everybody to be healthy and happy. I worked hard to see that they were.

As the kids grew older, I worried about headaches, throat infections and many other common childhood illnesses．I didn’t like it when the boys spent time “warming the bench (板凳)” during Little League football games. I worried about Becky when she  2   the ball while playing softball．Before long, the teen years were upon us. I stayed up late at night waiting for the boys to return home．Many times the   3   crossed my mind that I would call the police if they weren’t home on time.   4 , they always arrived home safe and sound before I had to take such   5  .

“Please don't ever call the police,” one of the boys said when I   6  him after a late arrival. The day the boys moved away to college was a(n)   7  day indeed. I worried about their being able to take care of themselves. Would they starve?

A few months after the boys left college, our   8  rang in the middle of the night. It startled (惊醒) us when we looked at the clock．It was 3 o’clock in the morning. “Something must be wrong,” I shouted to my husband, Roy, as we both jumped up．We ran to the door, opened it, and there stood a police officer.

“You need to call your sons,” he    9   announced. I picked up the telephone, but unfortunately, it was   10  . A line outside had been accidentally cut. Roy and I jumped into the car and   11  to the nearest telephone．My stomach ached．My husband was   12  so badly that he could hardly dial the number.

On the first   13 , Chad answered the telephone. “What's wrong?” Roy shouted into the receiver (听筒). “We were worried about you,” Chad told him. “We’ve been trying to call you all night, but you didn’t   14  .We called the police and asked them to go and check on you.”

For the first time in their lives, the boys were worried about us. And they were the ones who   15   had to call the police.

1.                A．completed      B．visited          C．tested    D．appreciated

 

2.                A．hit            B．threw          C．got  D．missed

 

3.                A．plan           B．advice          C．worry    D．thought

 

4.                A．Strangely       B．Probably        C．Luckily   D．Hopefully

 

5.                A．worries         B．places          C．measures D．telephones

 

6.                A．threatened      B．told            C．surprised D．reminded

 

7.                A．nice           B．embarrassing    C．happy    D．sad

 

8.                A．phone         B．clock           C．alarm D．doorbell

 

9.                A．seriously        B．carefully        C．anxiously D．kindly

 

10.               A．gone          B．useless         C．dead D．shortened

 

11.               A．rushed         B．headed         C．went D．moved

 

12.               A．looking         B．shaking         C．suffering  D．seeing

 

13.               A．night          B．arrival          C．try   D．ring

 

14.               A．talk            B．answer         C．wake D．care

 

15.               A．frequently      B．suddenly       C．actually   D．rarely

 

 

My destination is the River Walk, one of the most popular places in all of Texas. In the first half of 20^th century, to control flooding, the city fathers began redirecting the San Antonio River. They built a network of canals that pass through the downtown area. At nearly every street corner, stairs lead down to walkways on both sides of the canals.

The River Walk is linked with cafes, bars, shops --- and, of course, plenty of bridges. You can easily cross over to the other side without having to return to the street. It’s a constant party along the River Walk, with music and festivals throughout the year. The Mud Festival, for example, takes place each January, when the city empties this section of the river to clean it out. That’s when the Mud King and Mud Queen are crowned.

No visit to Texas would be complete without seeing a rodeo --- another aspect of this part of the country that is completely foreign to someone from New England. The announcer walks on stage and gets the crowd excited with talk about the courageous cowboys who’ll be performing. While he’s talking, a band plays sad songs about love gone wrong.

Suddenly the announcer calls for silence. He takes off his tall hat and asks us to join him in prayer. We pray for the cowboys who are, we are told, risking their lives to entertain us, as well as for the bulls and other animals taking part in the shows. We pray for the tourists who are visiting. The rodeo gets going and the fun begins.

Our prayers for the cowboys and animals are answered, and nobody gets hurt. But as we walk over to the cowboy dance hall after the show to enjoy a Texas-size barbecue, it’s clear that not enough prayers were said for the bulls’ less athletic relatives --- the ones not chosen for rodeo work. They’ll be our meal. It seems that moving too slowly has its disadvantages, too.

What do you know about the River Walk from the article?

A. People hold parties to celebrate festivals here every day.

B. It refers to the sidewalks on either side of this section of the San Antonio River.

C. There are many bridges that connect the River Walk and the Main Street.

D. Stairs link the River Walk to cafes, bars and shops in the street.

Which of the following statements about Mud festival is NOT true?

A. Mud Festival dates back to the first half of 20^th century.

B. Mud Festival is held in January every year.

C. Mud King and Mud Queen are chosen in the festival

D. Mud Festival is celebrated to clear the mud of the San Antonio River.

What does the underlined word “rodeo” refer to?

A. One aspect of the American country life. B. The concert given by a band.

C. The cowboys’ performance. D. The grand Texas-size barbecue.

Why do some bulls become the visitors’ meal?

A. Because they do not run as fast as those taking part in the shows.

B. Because the visitors do not pray enough for them before the shows.

C. Because they lose the competition to their relatives in the shows.

D. Because they are only beef cattle intended as people’s food.

Which of the following words can NOT be used to describe the writer’s mood?

A. light-hearted       B. excited          C. anxious        D. humorous