阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中选出最佳选项。

　　The interview had been going on for about 20 minutes and everything seems to be going well．Then, suddenly, the interviewer asks an unexpected question, "Which is more important, law or love? "

　　Job applicants in the west increasingly find themselves asked strange questions like this．And the signs are that this is beginning to happen in China．

　　Employers want people skilled, enthusiastic and devoted．So these are the qualities that any reasonably intelligent job applicants will try to show no matter what his or her actual feelings are．In response, employers are increasingly using questions which try and show the applicant's true personality．

　　The question in the first paragraph comes from a test called Kiersey Personality Sorter．It is an attempt to discover how people solve problems, rather than what they know．This is often called aptitude(能力)testing．

　　According to Mark Baldwin of Alliance many job applicants in China are finding this type of questions difficult．When a Chinese person fills out an aptitude test he or she will think there is a right answer and they may fail because they try to guess what the examiner wants to see．

　　This is sometimes called the prisoner's dilemma(窘境)．Applicants are trying to act cleverly in their own interest．But they fail because they don't understand what the interviewer is looking for．Remember that in an aptitude test, the correct answer is always the honest answer．

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

　　Can dogs and cats live in perfect harmony in the same home? People who are thinking about adopting a dog as a friend for their cats are worried that they will fight．A recent research has found a new recipe of success．According to the study, if the cat is adopted before the dog, and if they are introduced when still young(less than 6 months for cats, a year for dogs), it is highly probable that the two pets will get along swimmingly．Two－thirds of the homes interviewed reported a positive relationship between their cat and dog．

　　However, it wasn't all sweetness and light．There was a reported coldness between the cat and dog in 25％ of the homes, while aggression and fighting were observed in 10％ of the homes．One reason for this is probably that some of their body signals were just opposite．For example, when a cat turns its head away it signals aggression, while a dog doing the same signals submission(恭维)．

　　In homes with cats and dogs living peacefully, researchers observed a surprising behavior．They are learning how to talk each other's language．It is a surprise that cats can learn how to talk 'dog’, and dogs can learn how to talk ‘cat’．

　　What's interesting is that both cats and dogs have appeared to develop their intelligence．They can learn to read each other's body signals, suggesting that the two may have more in common than we preciously suspected．Once familiar with each other's presence and body language, cats and dogs can play together, greet each other nose to nose, and enjoy sleeping together in the sofa．They can easily share the same water bowl and in some cases groom(梳理)each other．

　　The significance of this research on cats and dogs may go beyond pets－to people who don't get along, including neighbors, colleagues at work, and even world superpowers．If cats and dogs can learn to get along, surely people have a good chance．

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

　　Do American children still learn handwriting in school? In the age of the keyboard, some people seem to think handwriting lessons are on the way out．90％ of teachers say they are required to teach handwriting．But studies have yet to answer the question of how well they are teaching it．One study published this year found that about three out of every four teachers say they are not prepared to teach handwriting．Some teachers are teaching handwriting by providing instruction for 10－15 minutes a day, and then other teachers who basically teach it for 60 to 70 minutes a day－which really for handwriting is pretty much．

　　Many adults remember learning that way－by copying letters over and over again．Today's thinking is that short periods of practice are better．Many experts also think handwriting should not be taught by itself．Instead, they say it should be used as a way to get students to express ideas．After all, that is why we write．

　　Handwriting involves two skills．One is legibility, which means forming the letters so they can be read．The other is fluency－writing without having to think about it．Fluency continues to develop up until high school．

　　But not everyone masters these skills．Teachers commonly report that about one fourth of their kids have poor handwriting．Some people might think handwriting is not important any more because of computers and voice recognition programs．

　　But Steve Graham at Vanderbilt says word processing is rarely done in elementary school, especially in the early years．American children traditionally first learn to print, and then to write in cursive(草体字), which connects the letters．But guess what we learned from a spokeswoman for the College Board, which administers the SAT college admission test．More than 75 percent of students choose to print their essay on the test rather than write in cursive．

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

　　I was 15 months old, a happy carefree(无忧无虑的)kid, until the day I fell．It was a bad fall．I landed on a piece of glass that cut my eye badly．My mom found a doctor who knew that if the eye were removed, my face would look ugly, so my scarred(有疤痕的), sightless, cloudy gray eye lived on with me．

　　Sometimes people asked me embarrassing questions．When kids played games, I was always the “monster”．I grew up imagining that everyone looked down on me．

　　Yet Mom would say to me, “Hold your head up high and face the world．” I began to rely on that saying．

　　As a child, I thought Mom meant, “Be careful or you will fall down or bump into something because you are not looking．” As a teenager, I usually looked down to hide my shame(羞愧)．But I found that when I held my head up high, people liked me．

　　In high school I even became the class president, but on the inside I still felt like a freak(怪物)．All I really wanted was to look like everyone else．When things got really bad, I would cry to my mom and she would look at me with loving eyes and say, “Hold your head up high and face the world．Let them see the beauty that is inside．”

　　When I met the man who became my husband, we looked each other straight in the eye, and he told me I was beautiful inside and out．

　　My mom's love was the spark(火花)that gave me confidence．I had faced hardships, and learned not only to appreciate myself but to have deep compassion(怜悯)for others．

　　“Hold your head up high” has been heard many times in my home．Each of my children has felt its invitation．I say it to my children．The gift my mom gave me lives on in another generation．

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

　　I needed to buy a digital camera, one that was simply good at taking good snaps(快照), maybe occasionally for magazines．Being the cautious type, I fancied a reliable brand．So I went on the net, spent 15 minutes reading product reviews on good websites, wrote down the names of three top recommendations and headed for my nearest big friendly camera store．There in the cupboard was one of the cameras on my list．And it was on special offer．Oh joy．I pointed at it and asked an assistant, “Can I have one of those? ” He looked perturbed(不安)．“Do you want to try it first? ” he said．It didn't quite sound like a question．“Do I need to? ” I replied．“There's nothing wrong with it? ” This made him look a bit insulted and I started to feel bad．‘‘No, no．But you should try．it, ’’ he said encouragingly．“Compare it with the others．”

　　I looked across at the others：shelves of similar cameras placed along the wall, offering a wide range of slightly different prices and discounts, with each company selling a range of models based around the same basic box．With so many models to choose from, it seemed that I would have to spend hours weighing X against Y, always trying to take Z and possibly H into account at the same time．But when I had finished, I would still have only the same two certainties that I had entered the store with：first, soon after I carried my new camera out of the shop, it would be worth half what I paid for it; and second, my wonderful camera would very quickly be replaced by a new model．

　　But something in the human soul whispers that you can beat these traps by making the right choice, the clever choice, the wise choice．In the end, I agreed to try the model I had chosen．The assistant seemed a sincere man．So I let him take out my chosen camera from the cupboard, show how it took excellent pictures of my fellow shoppers…and when he started to introduce the special features, I interrupted to ask whether I needed to buy a carry－case and a memory card as well．

　　Why do we think that new options(选择)still offer us anything new? Perhaps it is because they offer an opportunity to avoid facing the fact that our real choices in this culture are far more limited than we would like to imagine．

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

　　On Saturday, millions of people around the world will celebrate Saint Patrick's Day, which honors Patron Saint(a main religious figure)of Ireland．Communities across the United States will host parades, parties, and other festivities to mark the occasion．

　　This year, cities like Boston, New York, and Chicago have organized massive events celebrating Saint Patrick's Day．In New York City, hundreds of thousands of people will gather to watch the Saint Patrick's Day parade－the nation's largest．It is one of the most watched parades in the world．Last year, almost 2 million spectators and more than 150, 000 participants filled the streets．The parade, first held in 1776, is also one of the oldest．

　　Chicago also throws a big celebration．Every year, the Chicago River, which crosses the city, glows green as event organizers dump about 40 pounds of fluorescence, a powerful dye(染料), into the water．

　　Boston keeps its parade rolling for three hours or more．It is the nation's second－largest parade．The city will also salute one of its most famous former residents, President John F．Kennedy, by opening the exhibit” A Journey Home：John F．Kennedy and Ireland, ” at his official library．

　　Patron Saint lived in Britain in the early fifth century, when it was still part of the Roman Empire．He was captured and sold into slavery in Ireland when he was only 16．He eventually escaped slavery and turned to a life of religious devotion．He trained to become a minister and set out to spread Christianity throughout Ireland．After 30 years as a religious leader, Patrick died on March 17, 1461．Saint Patrick's Day is always celebrated on March 17．In Ireland, it is an official holiday．

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

　　Downing the last drop of an expensive famous brand H₂O as well as remembering to throw the empty bottle in the recycling bin, makes you feel pretty good about yourself, right? It shouldn't．Even when the bottles are recycled, there are all kinds of other effects of swallowing bottled water, says Melissa Peffers, the air－quality program manager for Environmental Defense．

　　The containers are often filled in faraway lands, then shipped from abroad, and stored in refrigerators at your local store．Compare that with the influence on environment of turning on your tap, filling a glass, and drinking up!

　　Anyone who is choosing bottled water for health reasons is misguided, says Peffers, “Most bottled water is just tap water．” And what comes out of your tap is carefully monitored to follow the strict rules．Consider another fact that bottled water is surprisingly expensive, especially when compared with the alternative, which is almost free, and it is surprising that America's desire for bottled water seems impossible to satisfy, reaching nearly 30 billion bottles a year．

　　“My parents’ generation never had bottled water, ” says Isabelle Silverman, an Environmental Defense legal adviser．She has made a commitment to going ________ bottle free． “You don't need to fetch it home from the store, and it's cheaper, ” she adds．

　　Bottled water's role as a status symbol needs to change, Peffers points out．So when a waiter at an expensive restaurant offers’’ And what's your drink? ” that's no reason to forget your conviction(信念)．“Don't be afraid to say, ‘I'll have tap．’‘Say it loud enough that the other tables nearby can hear you, ” Peffers says． “And then spend that money on a dessert．”

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

　　Only three local students won Chinese Blog Competition．And 15 of the 18 awards went to students from China．

　　170 students’ task：to get a fully－designed blog up and running, complete with many postings based on a theme of choice－all written in Chinese．

　　Themes ranged from local opinions－such as the usage of．Singlish, education and whether Singapore can be a cultural centre－to food blogs．

　　The entries were judged on Language proficiency and the quality of writing, as well as the design and level of exchanging ideas with readers．

　　Academics from the National University of Singapore and the SIM University IT experts, and a journalist from Chinese newspaper Lianhe Zaobao in Singapore made up the judges．

　　In the end, only three Singaporean students made it to the award list－the rest of the awards were swept up by students from China．

　　“No surprise．” said Mr．Chow Yaw Long, 37, teacher－in－charge from Innova Junior College．which organized the event． “Although the topics were local subjects, the foreign students were generally better in terms of the content of the posts and their grasp of the Chinese language．”

　　One of the three local students winning the first prize in the Best Language Award was blogger Christina Gao, 19, from the Saint Andrew's Junior College, who spared no effort in researching for and writing her biog．Each entry took her between five and seven days to produce, complete with pictures and even podcasts(播客)．

　　Her advice for bloggers is：Be responsible．

　　“Some bloggers out there only seek to blame the authorities and other bloggers．” said Miss Gao．‘‘I think they lack responsibilities and there is no value to their posts．”

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阅读文章，选出问题的最佳选项。

　　We can achieve knowledge either actively or passively(被动地)．We achieve it actively by direct experience, by testing and proving an idea, or by reasoning．

　　We achieve knowledge passively by being told by someone else．Most of the learning that takes place in the classroom and the kind that happens when we watch TV or read newspapers or magazines is passive．Conditioned as we are to passive learning, it's not surprising that we depend on it in our everyday communication with friends and co－workers·

　　Unfortunately, passive learning has a serious problem．It makes us tend to accept what we are told even when it is little more than hearsay and rumor(谣言)．

　　Did you ever play the game Rumor? It begins when one person writes down a message but doesn't show it to anyone．Then the person whispers it, word for word, to another person．That person, in turn, whispers it to still another, and so on, through all the people playing the game．The last person writes down the message word for word as he or she hears it．Then the two written statements are compared Typically, the original message has changed．

　　That's what happens in daily life．The simple fact that people repeat a story in their own words changes the story．Then, too, most people listen imperfectly．And many enjoy adding their own creative touch to a story, trying to improve on it, stamping(打上标记)it with their own personal style．Yet those who hear it think they know．

　　This process is also found among scholars and authors：A statement of opinion by one writer may be re－stated as fact by another, who may in turn be quoted(引用)by yet another; and this process may continue, unless it occurs to someone to question the facts on which the original writer based his opinion or to challenge the interpretation he placed upon those facts．

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