阅读理解

　　Earlier, in the old days, women used to sit at home separated from the outside world．They used to manage the home and look after children．They were free of the responsibility of earning money to support the family, which was left to men．

　　With the coming of industrialization(工业化)and technological development, the lifestyles of human beings started to change．The needs of human beings started to grow．In this process, women slowly started to move outside the home．Women received the same education as men．Gradually, women slowly started to think independently and participated equally with men in all fields of life, including politics, sports and even military．

　　With changing environments, the role of women has become more important in society．To match today's standard of living, it is necessary for both men and women to support the family．

　　Today, women have been given bigger roles to play in society．They are even taking more responsibility than men．At first, men disagreed with women pursuing(追求)their careers outside the home．However, with growing needs and a shortage of money, they had no other way but to accept the reality．

　　The financial contributions from women to their families have increased, but in some places, the home is still managed only by women as in the past．It is a challenging task for women to manage both．Women are bearing the stress and suffering mental difficulties with both managing the home and pursuing their careers．

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阅读理解

　　Let children learn to judge their own work．A child learning to talk does not learn by being corrected all the time：if corrected too much, he will stop talking．He notices a thousand times a day the difference between the language he uses and the language those around him use．Bit by bit, he makes the necessary changes to make his language like other people's．In the same way, children learn to do all the other things they learn to do without being taught-to walk, run, climb, whistle, ride a bicycle-compare their own performances with those of more skilled people, and slowly make the needed changes．But in school we never give a child a chance to find out his mistakes for himself, let alone(更不用说)correct them．We do it all for him．We act as if we thought that he would never notice a mistake unless he was made to．Soon he becomes dependent on the teacher．Let him do it himself．Let him work out, with the help of other children if he wants it, what this word says, what the answer is to that problem, whether this is a good way of saying or doing this or not．

　　If it is a matter of right answers, as it may be in mathematics or science, give him the answer book．Let him correct his own papers．Why should we teachers waste time on such routine(常规的)work? Our job should be to help the child when he tells us that he can't find the way to get the right answer．Let's end all this nonsense of grades, exams and marks．Let us throw them all out, and let the children learn what all educated persons must some day learn：how to measure their own understanding, how to know what they know or do not know．

　　Let them get on with this job in the way that seems most sensible(合情理的)to them, with our help as school teachers if they ask for it．The idea that there is a body of knowledge to be learnt at school and used for the rest of one's life is nonsense(无意义的)in a world as complicated and rapidly changing as ours．Anxious parents and teachers say, “But suppose they fail to learn something essential(基本的), something they will need to get on in the world?” Don't worry! If it is essential, they will go out into the world and learnt it．

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阅读理解

　　Du Juan, the 25-year-old painting teacher is now the only graduate of an art school employed to teach students in the nine grades at Wangji School in Dongxiang County(县), Gansu Province．She graduated from Longdong College in Gansu Province in 2009 and began teaching that autumn．

　　She used to feel impatient towards naughty kids．She had never expected she would become a teacher in a rural(农村的)primary school when she was in high school．

　　She had great trouble when she first started at the school．Very few of the first-grade students, who were mostly six or seven years old, could understand what she was saying in Mandarin(普通话)．It was not until she held her first painting class that she began to realize that, besides language, one can communicate through pictures．

　　She well remembers the first time she stood before her class and painted．She drew a scene she guessed most rural children would be familiar with．It described a rabbit hiding under mushrooms(蘑菇)to avoid getting wet in a heavy rain．But she was surprised to see how excited the students became at watching her work．“Wow! A rabbit! It was so much like a real rabbit!” some students shouted．It was the first time that many of the students had seen someone painting．

　　Before she started painting, the kids were even not able to talk to her because of the language difference．She now shows her students how they can draw the pictures she has copied from books．Sometimes, though, when she asks them about a particular painting, they misunderstand her．She knows there are too many things that they have never seen, and then they have no idea about what she is trying to show them．

　　Last year, she received a notebook as a good-bye gift from a girl who had graduated from primary school．When she opened it, she saw that the girl had drawn a small flower in different colours at the corner of every page．She has been amazed by the children's cleverness and use of colour．“Beautiful things are always on their minds,” Du said, “The students are just very shy．”

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阅读理解

How Americans Began to Eat Tomatoes

　　People have strange ideas about food．For example, the tomato is a kind of very delicious vegetable．It is one of useful plants that can be prepared in many ways．It has rich nutrition and vitamin in it．But in the 18th century, Americans never ate tomatoes．They grew them in their gardens because tomato plants are so pretty．But they thought the vegetable was poisonous(有毒的)．They called tomatoes “poison apples．”

　　President Thomas Jefferson, however, knew that tomatoes were good to eat．He was a learned man．He had been to Paris, where he learned to love the taste of tomatoes．He grew many kinds of tomatoes in his garden．The President taught his cook a way for a cream of tomato soup．This beautiful pink soup was served at the President's party．The guests thought the soup tasted really good．They never thought their president would serve his honored guests poison apples．Jefferson never spoke to his honored(忠实的)guests about the fact．

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阅读理解

　　Many psychologists in the early twentieth century believed that humans use only 10 percent of their brains, and even the great Albert Einstein once wrote that most people use only a small portion of the grey matter between their ears．It's a theory that has often been put forward in television documentaries, magazines, advertisements and books over the past century．

　　But nearly all scientists now agree the 10 percent theory is completely unfounded．In fact, they question how this figure was ever arrived at in the first place and what areas of the brain are supposed to be unneeded．The theory supposes that if 90 percent of the brain were removed, a person would still be able to function normally, while in reality it is known that damage to even a small area of the brain can result in extremely serious physical injury．

　　In addition, most significant disorders of the brain involve only a small and very specific area of the brain．If the 10 percent argument was true, it's unlikely that so many problems would constantly occur in that area．And if we use only 10 percent of our brains, how would this be measured? Indeed, imaging of the brain in scans shows that all parts of the brain are used for different activities and that many areas of the brain are used at the same time for some complex activities or thought processes．Throughout the course of one day, most areas of the brain are active at some time, even during sleep．The 10 percent theory suggests that certain areas of the brain are not used, but scans show activities throughout the entire brain and not in any separate part．The final argument against the 10 percent theory is the fact that doctors carefully map the brain before removing brain cancers so that they don't affect other essential areas．

　　From an evolutionary point of view, it's highly unlikely that our comparatively larger brains would have evolved from our ancestors if the extra areas were not needed．In fact, there is absolutely no evidence to support the 10 percent theory．

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　　English families face being limited to 80 bags of rubbish a year．Households throwing away more waste will have to take it to the tip(垃圾站)or buy a limited number of extra bags．

　　Doretta Cocks, protester of the Campaign for Weekly Waste Collections, said, “They must think we are fools．How can they claim to be concerned for the environment when they tell people to drive to the local tip? And what do you do if you don't have a car? Walk?”

　　The plan ignores the voice from ministers to end such heavy–handedness(高压手段)．

　　It is to be carried out by the Tory–led council(市政厅)in Workingham, Berkshire, and is already in operation in Brozbourne in Hertfordshire．

　　Many of the 180 councils that still offer unrestricted weekly rubbish collections are watching the trial．

　　Workingham officials have told residents that 75–litre bags will be given to each household and anything not left in them will not be collected．

　　“Every household will receive 80 bags every year,” it said．“You can buy extra bags in rolls of ten but this will not be encouraged．”

　　Families of five will get 100 rubbish bags a year and households of six or more will get 120．

　　Residents will have a weekly recycling collection limited to cans, paper and card, plastic bottles and so on．

　　Plastic packaging and glass including bottles must either go with the general waste or be taken to recycling points．Green waste pick–ups cost an extra ￡60 a year．

　　The council has told residents it will save ￡922,000 a year under the new system．There will be no local consultation before it is introduced next April．

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　　Below is some advice on how to sleep better．

　　1．Maintain a regular bed and wake time schedule

　　Go to bed at the same time every night．Choose a time when you normally feel tired, so that you don' t toss or turn．Try not to break this routine on weekends when it may be tempting to stay up late．If you want to change your bedtime, help your body adjust by making the change in small daily increments(增加), such as 15 minutes earlier or later each day．As with your bedtime, try to maintain your regular wake–time even on weekends．

　　2．Fight after–dinner drowsiness(睡意)

　　If you find yourself getting sleepy way before your bedtime, get off the couch and do something mildly stimulating to avoid falling asleep, such as washing the dishes, calling a friend, or getting clothes ready for the next day．If you give in to the drowsiness, you may wake up later in the night and have trouble getting back to sleep．

　　3．Keep your room dark and cool

　　When it's time to sleep, make sure that your environment is dark．Even dim lights-especially those from TV or computer screens-can confuse the body clock．Heavy curtains or shades can help block light from windows, or you can try an eye mask to cover your eyes．The temperature of your bedroom also affects sleep．A bedroom that is too hot or too cold can interfere with quality sleep．

　　4．Turn off your television

　　Many people use the television to fall asleep or relax at the end of the day．You may even have a television in your bedroom．However, television actually stimulates the mind, rather than relaxing it．Part of this is due to content．Late night news and prime time shows frequently have disturbing, violent material．Even non–violent programs can have commercials that are loud．

　　5．Exercise early

　　Exercise helps promote restful sleep if it is done several hours before you go to bed．Exercise can help you fall asleep faster and sleep more soundly-as long as it's done at the right time．Try to finish exercising at least three hours before bed or work out earlier in the day．

　　6．Consult your doctor

　　Use a sleep diary and talk to your doctor．Note what type of sleep problem is affecting your sleep or if you are sleepy when you wish to be awake and alert．Try these tips and record your sleep and sleep–related activities in a sleep diary．If problems continue, discuss the sleep diary with your doctor．There may be an underlying cause and you will want to be properly diagnosed．Your doctor will help treat the problem or may refer you to a sleep specialist．

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阅读理解

　　When Josephine Cooper was growing up, she learned the importance of charity from her parents．Although they made a modest living for their family of 10, they insisted on sharing with those less fortunate．Her mother would make chicken soup and tortillas to distribute to people living under bridges．

　　Half a century later, Mrs．Cooper became a beloved volunteer at the San Diego Food Bank, where she devoted herself to helping others．She organized and ran a distribution center from a church, helping it become the organization's largest emergency food distribution center in San Diego．She was one of 25 outstanding senior volunteers in the nation selected and invited to WashingtonD．C．to receive the award．

　　“She was the main person who helped us make that program grow,” said Mike Doody, former director of the Food Bank．“She had a way of getting people to work together and to work hard．She was determined and stubborn, but in a good way．She had a good heart．” People knew her as “Grandma” because of her selflessness and her devotion to helping hungry children and families．“She reminded people of their Grandma．” Doody said．

　　As a widow with a young child in 1979, Mrs．Cooper was helped through a difficult financial time when the Food Bank provided her with groceries．“She dedicated her life to giving back,” said her daughter, Monica Cooper．“ She loved life, and she loved people．She was very outgoing, caring and very concerned about our community．”

　　It wasn't unusual for a local church to call Mrs．Cooper to ask her to aid a needy family．“She would give people food out of her cupboard．Sometimes we would cook a meal for a family living out of their car,” Cooper said．

　　Although Mrs．Cooper was honored to receive the national award for her volunteer work, she said being able to help others was her reward．“She just gave from her heart,” her daughter said．

　　Mrs．Cooper died of liver disease and kidney failure, aged 93．

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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。

　　Becoming more popular in North America is Iceberg Water, which is harvested from icebergs off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada．

　　Arthur von Wiesenberger is one of the few water critics in North America．As a boy, he spent time in the larger cities of Italy, France and Switzerland, where bottled water is consumed daily．Even then, he kept a record of the brands he liked best．"My dog could tell the difference between bottled and tap water, " He says．

　　But is plain tap water all that bad? Not at all．In fact．New York's drinking water for more than a century was called the champagne of tap water and until recently considered among the best in the world in terms of both taste and purity．Similarly, a magazine in England found that tap water from the Thames River tasted better than several leading brands of bottled water that were 400 times more expensive．

　　However, soft-drink companies view bottled water as the next battle-ground for market share, as bottlers and restaurateurs are longing for the profits from it．A restaurant's typical mark-up(加价)on wine is 100 to 150 percent, while on bottled water it's often 300 to 500 percent．As a result, some restaurants are trying to sell more bottled water．Some of the more shameless tactics(手段)include putting attractive bottles on the table for a visual sell, listing brands on the menu without prices, and pouring bottled water without even asking the diners whether they want it．

　　Regardless of how it's sold, the popularity of bottled water taps into our desire for better health, our wish to appear educated, and even a longing for lost purity．

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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。

　　A year ago, at the annual pre-Grammy party, Whitney Houston, the great star, walked on stage and closed the evening with a brilliant performance．

　　Last Saturday, Houston was once again the focus before the Grammy, but her presence was a regrettable one．Earlier that day, the pop music's former queen was found dead in her hotel room．She was 48．This, no doubt, is sad news to the whole music industry and her fans all over the world．

　　At her peak, Houston was the golden girl of the music world．From the mid-1980s to the late 1990s, she was one of the world's best-selling artists．She impressed audiences with her effortless, powerful and peerless performance．

　　Besides multi-million record sales, Houston made countless hits such as The Greatest Love of All, I Ha-oe Nothing, and the mostly famous I Will Always Love You．She also influenced a generation of younger singers, from Christina Aguilera to Mariah Carey．

　　But by the end of her career, there was a shocking fall for this superstar．Houston had been addicted to drugs．Her album sales declined and the hits stopped coming and her once beautiful voice became hoarse(嘶哑的), unable to hit the high notes as she used to．

　　In 2009, Houston staged a successful comeback with the album I Look To You, which fell on top of the charts．But hoarse voice, canceled concerts, and continuous illness-Houston's comeback trail wasn't smooth at all．In an interview with Oprah Winfreyin2009, Houston admitted："It(show business)is too much for me and I wanted out．"

　　Now that Houston has finally taken a break from all the chaos, may she rest in peace．

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