阅读理解

　　The Homeless World Cup is an international football tournament, where teams made up entirely of people who are homeless compete．The event has been held annually since 2003．

　　It was at the end of 2001 that Mel Young, a famous expert in the media industry, came up with the idea of the Homeless World Cup．18 months later the first event took place in Austria．It was such a success that people decided to do more．

　　There are some interesting and special rules of the event．For example, players(male or female at least 16 years old)must have been homeless at some time after the previous-year's World Cup, or make their main living income by selling newspapers in the street, or be asylum(政治避难)seekers．Anyone can take part, regardless of his or her abilities．

　　There are at most 4 players per team to compete in the field．Games are 14 minutes long．

　　In 2007, 48 nations, 500 players took a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent their countries for true spirit and glory in Copenhagen, Denmark．The winner in 2007 was Scotland．The 2008 Homeless World Cup took place in Melbourne, Australia．And in 2009 it was held in Milan．The latest Homeless World Cup was held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in September 2010．Paris 2011 Homeless World Cup．takes place August followed by the Mexico City 2012 Homeless World Cup．

　　The success of the competition has been in two aspects-to attract the world's attention to the problems of homelessness and also to help participants live a better life．

　　According to a survey by the Homeless World Cup Organization after 2006 Homeless World Cup, 92% of the players had a new motivation for life, 93 players successfully got rid of their dependency on drugs and alcohol, 44% improved their housing situation and 72% continued to play football．

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阅读理解

　　When I was eight, I saw a movie about an island that had an erupting volcano and jungles filled with wild animals．The island was ruled by a beautiful woman called Tondalaya, the Fire Goddess of the Volcano．It was a low budget movie, but to me, it represented the perfect life．But through the years, Tondalaya was forgotten．

　　The week I turned 50, my marriage came to a sudden end．My house, furniture and everything I'd owned was sold to pay debts that I didn't even know existed．In a week I had lost my husband, my home and my parents who had refused to accept a divorce in the family．

　　I'd lost everything except my four teenage children．I used every penny I had to buy five plane tickets from Missouri to Hawaii．Everyone said I was crazy to think I could just run off to an island and survive．I was afraid they were right．

　　I worked 18 hours a day and lost 30 pounds because I lived on one meal a day．One night as I walked alone on the beach, I saw the red orange lava(火山岩)pouring out of Kilauea Volcano in the distance．It was time to live my imagination!

　　The next day, I quit my job, bought some art supplies and began doing what I loved．I hadn't painted a picture in 15 years．I wondered if 1 could Still paint．My hands trembled the first time I picked up a brush．But before an hour had passed, I was lost in the colors spreading across the canvas(画布)in front of me．And as soon as I started believing in myself, other people started believing in me, too．The first painting sold for＄1500．

　　The past six years have been filled with adventures．My children and I have gone swimming with dolphins, watched whales and hiked around the crater rim(火山口边缘)of the volcano．We wake up every morning with the ocean in front of us and the volcano behind us．

　　The dream I had more than 40 years ago is now reality．I'm living freely and happily ever after．

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阅读理解

　　Have you ever been to the beautiful country of Holland and its capital Amsterdam? Anyone who has traveled to Amsterdam would probably agree on one thing：Amsterdam's story is a tale of two cities-one during the day and a completely different one at night．

　　During the day, the largest city in the Netherlands sits quietly on the Amstel River．You can rent a bicycle, visit the Van Gogh or Anne Frank museum, or take a water taxi．But when the sun goes down, the partying begins．In the big clubs and in coffee shops, tourists gather to hang out, talk politics and smoke．

　　Several areas of the city clearly show the two worlds that rule Amsterdam．And they're all within a short cab ride of each other．For example, Dam Square attracts daytime sightseers to its festivals, open markets, concerts and other events．Several beautiful and very popular hotels can be found there．And there's the Royal Palace and the Magna Plaza shopping mall．

　　But at night party-seekers come to the square．Hip hop or funk music is heard there．So if you come, be ready to dance．The clubs don't shut down until 4 am．

　　And while you're there, check out the various inexpensive ways to tour the city．Don't worry about getting lost．Although Dutch is the official language, most people in Amsterdam speak English and are happy to help you with directions．And you'll notice that half the people in the streets are on bicycles they rent．

　　Amsterdam also has a well-planned canal system．For about 10 dollars, you can use the canal bus or a water taxi to cruise(巡游)the "Venice of the North"．

　　The city has a historic past．One impressive place to visit is the Anne Frank House on Nine Streets．It was there that the young Jewish girl wrote her famous diary during World War II．Visitors can view Anne's original diary and climb behind the bookcase to the room where she and her family hid from the Nazis for two years．

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阅读理解

　　Your body, which has close relations with the food you eat, is the most important thing you own, so it needs proper treatment and proper nourishment(营养)．The old saying “An apple a day keeps the doctor away ”is not as silly as some people think．The body needs fruit and vegetables because they contain vitaminC．Many people take extra vitamins in pill form, believing that these will make them healthy．

　　But a good diet is made up of nourishing food and this gives all the vitamins you need．The body doesn't need or use extra vitamins, so why waste money on them?

　　In the modern western world, many people are too busy to bother about eating properly．They throw anything into their stomachs, eating hurriedly and carelessly．The list of illnesses caused or made worse by bad eating habits is frightening．

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阅读理解

　　When Christopher Columbus landed on the then unnamed Costa Rica in 1502, he saw many Indians wearing gold earrings．So he thought the land must be rich in gold．He named the place Costa Rica, which means “rich coast” in Spanish．

　　Though little gold was found, Costa Rica today is indeed rich with coffee and bananas．Coffee is the most important product in Costa Rica and most of it is exported(出口)to other countries like America and West Germany．Bananas are the country's second most important export．

　　Costa Ricans also grow many other crops such as fruits, corn and beans for their own use．Costa Ricans love colors and their houses are painted in bright colors．

　　Education is very important to the Costa Ricans．Almost every village has a school and education is a must for children between seven and fourteen years of age．Boys and girls go to separate(单独的)schools．Classes begin in March and end in November．The other three months of the year are harvest time and the children have to help their parents to pick coffee beans．

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阅读理解

　　An 80-year-old man was sitting on the sofa in his house along with his 45-year-old son．Suddenly a crow(乌鸦)landed on their window．

　　The father asked his son, “What is that?”

　　The son replied, “That is a crow．”

　　After a few minutes, the father asked his son for the second time, “What is this?”

　　The son said, “Father, I told you just now．It's a crow．”

　　After a little while, the father asked his son the same question for the third time, “What is this?”

　　This time, the son said to his father in a low and cold tone, “It's a crow, a crow．”

　　After a moment, the father yet again asked his son for the fourth time, “What is this?”

　　This time his son shouted at his father, “Why do you keep asking me the same question again and again? I have told you already, ‘IT IS A CROW'．Are you not able to understand this?”

　　A minute later the father went to his room and came back with a diary, which he had kept since his son was born．On opening a page, he asked his son to read that page．

　　Today my little son aged three was sitting with me on the sofa when a crow suddenly landed on the window edge．My son asked me 23 times what it was, and I replied him 23 times that it was a crow．I hugged him lovingly each time he asked me the same question．I didn't at all feel angry, but instead felt affection for my son．

　　If your parents reach old age, do not look at them as a burden, but speak to them gently, and be kind to them．From today say this aloud, “I want to see my parents happy forever．They have cared for me ever since I was a little child．They have always showered me with love．I will take care of my old parents in the best way no matter how they behave．”

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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。

Dear sir,

　　Your shipment of twelve thousand ‘Smart’ watches was received by our company this morning．However, we wish to make a number of complaints concerning the serious delay in delivery and your failure to carry out our specific instructions with regard to this order．

　　It was stressed from the beginning that the delivery date had to be less than six weeks from the first order, in order to meet our own customers’ requirements．While we understand that delays in production are occasionally unavoidable，we must point out that the major reason why the order was placed with your company was that we were assured by you of its speed of delivery, and that your existing stocks(存货)were sufficiently high to ensure immediate shipment．Late delivery of the goods has caused us to disappoint several of our most valued customers，and is bound to have a negative effect on the potential future orders．

　　The second complaint concerns the difference in colour between the watches we ordered and those delivered．It was stated clearly in the original order that watches in combinations of green/purple and orange/purple only were required．However, only half the watches in the delivery received are of the colours specified．Our Hong Kong agent assures us that she stressed to you the importance of following our instructions precisely, since we consider there to be only a limited market in this country for watches of other colours at the present time．Any watches that are not of the specified colours will，of course，be returned to you．

　　We are also somewhat concerned about the rather poor quality of the goods received，since it is obvious that the watches that finally arrived have been produced from inferior materials and have been manufactured to a lower standard than those in the sample．We have also found that a number of the watches do not appear to be functioning．Whether the latter problem is due to poor manufacture，damage during transportation or bad batteries is not yet clear, but we should like to point out that we feel this matter to be only your responsibility．

　　As a result of the above problems，therefore，we feel that the most suitable course of action is to return to you unpaid any of the goods considered unsatisfactory, and to subtract(扣除)any resulting costs from our final settlement．We shall also, of course, be forced to reconsider whether any further orders should be placed with your company．

　　We look forward to your prompt reply．

Yours sincerely,

John Smith

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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。

　　Have you ever wished you could solve complex math problems without thinking? What about learning to play the piano in just three days? Or mastering several foreign languages within a month?

　　Eddie Morra, the main character in the movie Limitless can do all these things．But he isn't Superman or Harry Potter．Eddie has taken pills called NZT．

　　Thriller Limitless came out in China on October 13．In the movie, Eddie is faced with “writer's block”．He hasn't written a single word of a novel, and his deadline has passed．And there's more bad news：his girlfriend breaks up with him．By chance, Eddie runs into a relative who is a drug dealer．He gives Eddie some pills called NZT that allow people to make use of 100 percent of their brains．With the magic pills, Eddie's life changes completely．He can recall everything he has ever read, seen or heard．He gains a sixth sense that allows him to predict future events．He even becomes a kungfu master by simply memorizing actions in Bruce Lee's movie．

　　Before long he has finished his novel, won back his girlfriend and stepped into the financial world．He becomes rich incredibly quickly and is soon employed by a powerful Wall Street company．However, bad side effects are just around the corner．The effects of the pill last for only one or two days, and Eddie has to find more supplies of the pills．Meanwhile, the pills start to have other effects on him．Eddies’ mind loses the ability to control the actions of his body．What does destiny hold for him? Will he be able to go back to his normal life?

　　“Eddie's fate turns out to be a barbed joke… a sharp-eyed comic fable for an age of greed and speed．” writes A．O．Scott, a movie critic with the New York Times．

　　The drug isn't real--yet, some researchers say such memory-enhancing drugs might not be far off．Would you take such a pill despite its side effects? Is the ability to remember everything a blessing or a curse?

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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。

　　From now on, never spend your precious time thinking of reasons for your failures and shortcomings．Instead, realize that the seeds of success were planted within you when you were born．Only you have the power to make those seeds grow．

　　The seeds, and the power to grow them, are contained in the most awesome machine ever created：the human mind．Success is a choice and not a chance．You were born a winner．You were born rich．You can be a success if you make the right choice．

　　You cannot be successful without first developing your self-confidence．Your level of self-confidence is always based on the degree of control that you are able to exercise over yourself, and thus over your life．People with low self-confidence are people who do not believe that they have any power, or responsibility for their lives．They are mere victims．They are leaves tossed(摇摆)by the winds of chance blown about with any sudden change in the weather．

　　You can exercise control over your life only to the degree that you believe that you are responsible for everything that happens in your life．Failures think that everything happens by accident and chance．Successful people realize that they are responsible．

　　Everything happens as a result of something．If we can identify the cause, we can control the effect．We are responsible for what we choose to think and believe．One generally rises to the level that one expects．We are responsible for setting our expectations．Our success is dependent upon our level of confidence．

　　If you associate with positive-thinking people, you are definitely going to achieve success．On the contrary, the opposite happens．We are responsible for finding, planting, and nurturing the seeds that contain future victory, born from setbacks．

　　In short, in all areas of your life, whether they are financial, physical, emotional, or spiritual, you are responsible．Once you recognize this, accept it, and firmly believe it, you are on the road to success．

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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。

　　Dr．Sylvia Earle wants you to stop eating fish．It's not because fish are endangered, though wild fish stocks in many oceans are very low．It's not because they're bad for you, though fish in many areas are exposed to poisonous substances in the water．It's because they're smart．“Fish are sensitive．They have personalities”says the marine biologist．For Earle, eating a fish would be like eating a dog or a cat．“I would never eat anyone I know personally．”

　　There's a lot more to fish than meets the eye：they talk to each other, they like to be touched, and they engage in behavior that can seem very human．They can remember things and learn from experience．Earle and a growing number of animal rights activists see these as strong arguments against eating fish altogether．

　　The activists also point out that fish feel pain and fish suffer horribly on their way from the sea to the supermarket．“While it may seem obvious that fish are able to feel pain, like every other animal, some people think of fish as swimming vegetables, ”says Dr．Lynne Sneddon．“Really, it's kind of a moral question．Is the enjoyment you get from fishing(or eating fish)more important than the pain of the fish? ”

　　Fishermen and(fried)fish lovers are doubtful．"I've never seen a smart fish, " says Marie Swaringen as she finishes off a plate of fish at a Seattle seafood restaurant．“If they were very smart, they wouldn't get caught．"

　　“For years, everyone's been telling us to eat fish because it's so good for us, ” says another diner．“Now I've got to feel guilty while I'm eating my fish? What are they going to think of next? Don't eat salad because cucumbers have feelings? "

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