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　　Jean-Francois Millet (October 4,1814－January 20, 1875) was a French painter and one of the founder of the Barbizon School in rural France．Born of a peasant family, Millet was encouraged by his father to study art in Cherbourg, France．He can be categorized as part of the movement called “naturalism”(自然主义)．His understanding of the peasant' hard life was perfectly expressed in his choice of subject and natural preference for powerful but simple drawing and coloring．

　　One of the most well-known of Millet's paintings, The Gleaners(《拾穗者》), first came in a vertical composition(垂直式构图) painted in 1854, and then there came the horizontal version in 1856, which is now preserved in the Musee d'Orsay．It depicts women bending over in the fields to collect the leftover's from the harvest, and it is a monumental composition devoted to the working class．

　　Previously, servants were depicted in paintings as obedient to a noble or a king, and picking up what was left of the harvest was regarded as one of the lowest jobs in Millet; s times．However, Millet offered these women as the heroic focus of the picture．Besides, in the painting, light lights up the women's shoulders as they carry out their work．Behind them, the field that stretches into the distance is bathed in golden light, under a wide , magnificent sky．The forms of the three figures, standing against the lighter field, show balance and harmony．

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　　I learned about life from an ant farm．When I was seven years old, my family created one．First, we put clean sand in a thin glass box, and then we waited for the live ants to arrive．Shortly after the chilly ants were dropped into the glass structure, they got to work making tunnels．I was amazed that each one knew exactly what to do．After hours of staring, I realized that the ants had assigned jobs．With my mom ' s help, I kept a diary of what happened each day and named the ants．

　　One day a tragedy struck the ant farm．The pages of the diary, still wrinkled where tear drops fell, indicate the depth of the tragedy．'I had put my face so close to the structure that I accidentally tipped it over, caving in all the tunnels．Although the ants survived their earthquake, one by one they began to die．I was terrified as I watched them give up their tunnel-building to carry the bodies to a comer of the farm．My mother reported that the ants were dying of "frustration．" They simply could not stand the reality that their tunnels had been destroyed．

　　Although much time has passed, I still think of that ant farm．Mom had hoped it would teach me about the natural world, but it taught me much more．Over the years, I came to realize the ants were a study in the benefits of teamwork．Working together, they were able to create an amazing world for themselves．I also learned that they should be admired for their hard work．Day in and day out, each labored at their task．The ant farm showed that teamwork and perseverance are indeed two key ingredients to success．But there was an even larger lesson that I did not realize until recently：Adversity (不幸、灾祸) is a natural part of life, and must be accepted．Unlike the ants, humans cannot give up when they face disappointment．Unlike the ants, we have to realize that if a tunnel caves in, we just have to build another．Giving up, I say, is not a choice．

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　　In the kitchen of my mother's houses there has always been a wooden stand with a small notepad and a hole for a pencil．

　　I'm looking for paper on which to note down the name of a book I am recommending to my mother．Over forty years since my earliest memories of the kitchen pad and pencil, five houses later, the current paper and pencil look the same as they always did．Surely it can't be the same pencil The pad is more modern, but the wooden stand is definitely the original one．

　　"I'm just amazed you still have the same stand for holding the pad and pencil after all these years．" I say to her, walking back into the living-room with a sheet of paper and the pencil．"You still use a pencil．Can't you afford a pen? "

　　My mother replies a little sharply．"It works perfectly well, I've always kept the stand in the kitchen．I never knew when I might want to note down an idea, and I was always in the kitchen in these days．

　　Immediately I can picture her, hair wild, blue housecoat covered in flour, a wooden spoon in one hand, the pencil in the other, her mouth moving silently．My mother smiles and says, "One day I was cooking and watching baby Pauline, and I had a brilliant thought, but the stand was empty．One of the children must have taken the paper．So I just picked up the breadboard and wrote it all down on the back, It turned out to be a real breakthrough for solving the mathematical problem I Was working on．"

　　This story, which happened before I was born, reminds me how extraordinary my mother was, and is also a gifted mathematician．I feel embarrassed that I complain about not having enough child-free time to work．Later, when my mother is in the bathroom, I go into her kitchen and turn over the breadboards．Sure enough, on the back of the smallest one, are some penciled marks I recognize as mathematics．Those symbols have traveled unaffected through fifty years, rooted in the soil of a

　　cheap wooden breadboard, invisible exhibits at every meal．

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D顼中，选出最佳选项。

　　They once seemed more at home on the bustling streets of Asia like Delhi, Calcutta and Bangkok but cycle-powered rickshaws can now be seen taking people across town in many European cities．Many people believe that rickshaws are a good way of experiencing a city close-up, while also cutting down on traffic jams and pollution．

　　In Berlin, one of the first cities to introduce this new mode of transport, more than 200 bike-taxis go along 15 km per hour, past many tourist attractions and city parks．

　　"It is completely environmenatally friendly; we have new models with an engine to help the driver up the hills but they use renewable energy, " said a spokesman for VELOTAX, the leading rickshaw company which has carried a quarter of a million people this year．

　　While the city still has 7, 000 motor-taxis, rickshaw company officials say their taxis' green ethics, speed and safety make them more than just a tourist attraction．While now increasingly out of fashion in Delhi, Berlin people have eagerly accepted the new fleet since their launch in 1997．

　　"It's better than a taxi, better than a bus, better than the train, " said UlfLehman, 36, as he leapt out．of a rickshaw near the world famous Brandenburg gate．"It feels so free．"

　　"This is something out of the ordinary you feel you are on holiday in Bangkok instead of Berlin, "said another traveler．

　　In Amsterdam, driver Peter Jancso said people like to be driven around in his bright yellow rickshaw and pretend to be a queen in a golden carriage．"I like my passengers to feel important, " he said as he dropped another passenger．Another visitor noted how cheap it was compared with a normal taxi．

　　Although increasingly popular in Europe, it is the opposite in India, where hand-pulled rickshaws are considered inhuman and a symbol of India's backward paSt．

　　Nearly 500 bike-rickshaws are running in London and are not required to pay the city's road tax but things may change as other taxi drivers complain of unfair treatment．

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　　Would you believe that the first outstanding deaf teacher in America was a Frenchman? His name was Laurent Clerc．He became a friend of Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet and together they founded America' s first school for the deaf．

　　Laurent Clerc was born in a small village near Lyons, France, on December 26, 1785．When he was one year old, he fell into a fire, losing both his hearing and his sense of smell．

　　At 12, Laurent entered the Royal Institution for the Deaf in Paris where he excelled in his studies．After he graduated, the school asked him to stay on as an assistant teacher．

　　Meanwhile, in America, Thomas Hopkins Galaudet was studying to be a minister．He was very concerned about the lack of educational opportunities for the deaf．Therefore, in 1815, Gallaudet sailed to London, England to seek ideas on how to teach deaf people．While he was there, he met a French educator of the deaf who invited him to go to Paris to spend three months learning at the Royal Institution for the Deaf, the school where Lauren Clerc was teaching．Gallaudet accepted the offer．The two men worked and studied well together．When the time came for Gallaudet to return, he asked Clerc to come with him．Clerc accepted on one condition：that he would stay in America only a short time．

　　The two men set sail on June 1816．The voyage across the Atlantic Ocean took 52 days; however, Clere and Gallaudet put the time to good use．Clerc studied English, and Gallaudet studied sign language．They discussed the school for the deaf which they planned to open．On the long trip, they had many conversations about education and deafness．The year after they arrived, they founded a school for the deaf in Harford, Connecticut．

　　At the school, Clerc led a busy life．He taught signs to Principal Gallaudet; he taught the pupils; and he taught hearing men who came to the school to study deaf education．

　　In 1819, Clerc married Eliza Crocker Boardman, one of his pupils．They had six children．He retired from teaching in 1858．Although he had intended to return to France, he never did．He died on July 18, 1869 in the United States．

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阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D顼中，选出最佳选项。

　　For shopoholies, the post-Christmas period means only one thing-sales! Across the country, prices are reducing sharply on clothing, electronics, home furnishings and more, but London is the place for serious shopping, and you can certainly pick up some amazing bargains．

　　The sales start on Boxing Day-26^th December, and continue for the month of January, but the keenest bargain hunters get there early to be first through the doors．In Oxford Street queues formed outside shops ahead of pre-dawn openings for the start of their sales．At Brent Cross, in north London, more than 1, 000 people were queuing at 3∶30 a．m．for the "Next" clothing store's sale which began at 4 a．m．Some eager individuals even camped outside the shops to be first in the line．

　　Consumers who hit the shops were rewarded with discounts of as much as 80％ as department stores joined the sales frenzy．The shops are absolutely crowded as the sales get into full swing, with more than half a million people gathering on London's West End．

　　Famous sales include the biggest, most popular shops such as Harrods, Selfridges, Liberty and John Lewes．Department stores are always a good bet-you're likely to find everything you need under one roof, including much-needed food and drinks!

　　It's a good time to stock up on cheap gadgets, and there's no better time to invest in some designer clothes．

　　Some people are taking their partners shopping with them, and buying their Christmas presents in the sales-a practical but unromantic way of making sure you get the gift you really want, For a less exciting but less stressful shopping experience, online sellers are also getting into the act with January sales of their own．

　　The most organized of all are those who are already doing their present shopping for next Christmas, in the January sales!

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　　Violent winds swept the ocean, and waves thundered to shore, shaking the lookout tower at Pea Island Rescue Station．Surfman Theodore Meekins was on watch that evening of 11 October 1896．A hurricane had struck the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and the tide was so strong that beach patrols(巡逻)had been canceled．Still, Meekins paid close attention to the horizon．This was the type of weather that could blow ships hundreds of miles off course．

　　Offshore, the ship E．S．Newman was caught in the storm．The captain, whose wife and child were on the ship, feared the Newman would soon break up．He made the decision to beach his ship, then fired a signal, praying that someone onshore would see it．

　　Meekins, whose eyes were trained to cut through rain and surf mists, thought he saw the signal, but so much spray(水雾)covered the lookout windows that he could hardly make sure．Still, he took no chances．After summoning(召集)the station keeper, Captain Richard Etheridge, Meekins set off a coston signal, a signal made by using lamps of different colors．Together, the two men searched the darkness for a reply．A few moments later, they saw a flash of light to the south and knew a shop was in distress．Even before the return signal burned out, Etheridge had summoned his men and begun rescue operations．

　　For the lifesavers, the rescue of the Newman was nothing unusual．Over the years, so many ships had foundered off the Outer Banks that sailors called the region the Graveyard of the Atlantic．Noting the dangerous surf and wind conditions, Captain Etheridge quickly decided the surf boats would be impossible to control．Instead, he decided to use another way to help the survivors．

　　The crew set off on the long journey down the beach to the scene of the wreck(海滩)．Captain Etheridge hoped to fire a line from a gun to the ship's mast(船桅)．After the ship's crew dragged the line onboard, the surfmen would fire a second line and carry survivors safely to shore．

　　The surfmen crossed three miles of sand to reach the ship Newman．The water was freezing, and the men often sank up to their knees in sand．Captain Etheridge noted in his diary that “the voice of gladdened hearts greeted the arrival of the station crew, ” but that “it seemed impossible for them to do anything under such circumstances．The work was often stopped by the sweeping current．”

　　Even when the rescue equipment proved useless, Etheridge refused to give up．Choosing two of his strongest surfmen, he tied rope lines around their waists and sent them into the water．The two men, holding a line from shore, walked with huge effort as far as they could before diving through the waves．Nearly worn out while swimming against the tide, they finally made it to the shop．

　　The first to be rescued were the captain's wife and child．With the two passengers tied to their backs, the surfmen fought their way back to shore．Taking turns, Etheridge and his crew made ten trips to the Newman, saving every person onboard．It was 1：00 a．m．when the crew and survivors finally made it back to the station．

　　That night, as the exhausted survivors lay sleeping and his lifesaving crew rested, Captain Etheridge picked up his pen, and in the light of an oil lantern, wrote with satisfaction that all the people onboard had been saved and were “sheltered in this station”-words he would remember for many years to come．

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　　Scientists who discovered a new way of generating electricity from water say they may have come across an alternative source of clean energy to rival wind and solar power．

　　The breakthrough, which scientists say is the first new way to generate electricity in 160 years, could lead to batteries that use water instead of poisonous substances．

　　The scientists made the discovery when they were investigating what happens when tap water is forced through extremely narrow glass tubes．Water squeezed down the tubes, each of which was narrower than a tenth the thickness of a human hair, generating a small electric current that ran the length of the tube．To produce a larger electric current, the team tried forcing water through a glass water filter(滤水器)that contained thousands of narrow channels lined up side by side．“When we took a syringe(注射器)of water and squeezed it through the filter, we got enough power to light a light bulb, ” said Larry Kostiuk of the University of Alberta in Canada．“The harder you push the syringe, the more electric current you get．”

　　The current is produced because of an effect in the glass tubes．When they are filled with water, positively charged ions(阳离子)fixed in the tubes are washed away, leaving a slight negative charge on the glass surface．When water is then forced along the tube, the surface repels negatively charged ions in the water while positively charged ions are attracted down the tube．The result is a net flow of positively charged ions that sets up an electric current．

　　According to Dr Kostiuk, no one has ever thought to use water to produce electricity in this way．“The last time someone came up with a way of generating electricity was Michael Faraday in 1839, ” he said．“So this is the first new way of generating electricity in 160 years, which is why we are so excited about it．”

　　Dr Kostiuk says water batteries might one day be used to power mobile phones and calculators, but admitted that the engineering challenges might make other applications more realistic．“You'd need to be sure it wouldn't leak, and you'd need to make sure it wouldn't freeze, ” he said．

　　More likely would be to install the electricity-generating devices where water is already being pumped, such as at city water filtration sites, he said．“It could compete with wind and solar power, ” he added．

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