I was 230 pounds this spring and I decided to get down to a healthier 200.In a house full of food，including snacks bought for my 7­year­old sons，I had a hard time cutting calories. Then I noticed my neighbors were having diet meals (减肥餐)．I decided to do the same，knowing I would never be able to stick to a diet if I had to do the buying and cooking myself. I was looking for food that I could afford but I might take a diet more seriously if it hurt me in the wallet.
After online searches，I decided to compare the offerings of four companies：Zone Manhattan，Chefs Diet，Nu­Kitchen and eDiets. All four would send the meals to my door. Three send food daily，while eDiets sends a large package once a week. There were dozens of companies I could have chosen.Research suggests that the economic crisis has made diet programs less tempting.Consumers prefer do­it­yourself diets with foods bought from the supermarket.
Nu­Kitchen regards itself as the “personal chef”．I ordered the five­day plan ($230.53) and the taste was disappointing. I neither lost nor gained weight on the food.
eDiets promises “healthy，delicious meals sent to your door”．I ordered five breakfasts，five lunches and five dinners. My total cost was $119.70，or less than $25 a day. Overall，the food from eDiets was better than that from Nu­Kitchen.
Chefs Diet charged $380.99 for seven days，making it the most expensive of the four services.I never tasted anything terrible，but I never tasted anything that made me want to renew for a second week.
Zone Manhattan charged $349.80，with tax，for a week’s supply of food，or about $50 a day.I liked the food so much that I lost six pounds in the first four days on the diet.
【小题1】When the author began to have diet meals，she________.

They crossed in front of me as I was driving out of the store parking lot. I would be delayed for a whole ten seconds. However, I realized that it was an elderly couple who were briefly delaying my departure. No more anger.

         The man leaned on his wife who walked in front of him. He not only used her for support but it was obvious that he was blind．She was his eyes as well. The two of them worked as one----- each needing to function in this fast-changing world．

         That little example of true strength that day changed my whole personal perception of life. Suddenly I wasn’t so mad about having to work a few extra hours on Saturday. I had my strength, and I was still relatively young.

         That picture of those two elderly people walking with dignity and strength stayed with me the entire week. My life wasn’t so bad after all. I had my health and a good job．My wife always gave me good advice whenever I needed it. I started to think--- not wonderful old couple, who, despite the trials and hardships of a long life, still had the love and support of each other to carry them through this world．

         There are so many people out there just like that couple. My wife and I sometimes picture ourselves in our old age, walking arm-in-arm into the sunset. That image always gives us a warm feeling of comfort. Just remember, none of us would be here if it weren’t for our elders. We should spend an extra minute to listen and learn when it comes to helping our elder friends. They need it.

     1. What was the author’s first reaction when he was stopped by the old couple ?

        A．He showed great pity for the couple.

        B．He didn’t mind at all.

        C．He got angry at being delayed．

        D．He waited patiently.

     2. Before meeting the old couple, the author had a（n） ______attitude towards life.

        A．energetic        B．enthusiastic        C．doubtful     D．negative

     3. From the fourth paragraph, we can learn that ___________.

        A．the author once decided to change his job

        B．the author’s wife gave him lots of support

        C．old people are more likely to get impatient with others

        D．it is a bad thing to live a long life full of hardships

     4. The main message that the author wants to get across in the last paragraph is that ___________.

        A．everyone should live with dignity and strength

        B．we should be patient when dealing with old people

        C．old people can teach us many important lessons

        D．happiness lies in a positive attitude towards life

Kelly Reeves was getting ready for a trip when her phone slipped into a sink full of water. Panic moment! She quickly picked up the wet phone and tried to turn it on, but nothing worked. Her first reaction? She got dressed, drove to the nearest store, and bought a new mobile at full price.
A new study finds that fear of losing your phone is a common illness. About 66 percent of those surveyed suffer from nomophobia or “no mobile phone phobia”. Interestingly, more women worry about losing their phone than men.
Fortunately, there’s a solution.
The first step is to figure out if you have nomophobia. Checking your phone too often is one thing, but the true sign of a problem is that you can’t conduct business or go about your routine when the fear becomes so severe.
Do you go to unusual lengths to make sure you have your phone? That’s another sign of a problem. If you find you check your phone plenty of times per hour, or a total of an hour per day, there may be a problem.
Some of the treatments are similar to those for treating anxiety attacks: leaving the phone behind and not checking e-mail or text messages, and then learning to tolerate the after anxiety. Even if this leads to a high level of worry and stress, the solution is to push through the fear and learn to deal with not having your phone.
Of course, there are also technological alternatives. Luis Levy, a co-founder at Novy PR, says he uses an application called Cerberus that can automatically track the location of his phone. To find it, he can just go to a website and see the phone’s location.
He also insures his phone through a service called Asurion. The company’s description of its product reads like a prescription for anxiety:”60 million phones are lost, stolen or damaged each year. You’ll have complete peace of mind knowing that your phone is protected and you can quickly reconnect with family, friends and work, as soon as the very next day!”
【小题1】Why does the author mention Kelly’s experience in the first paragraph?

Kelly Reeves was getting ready for a trip when her phone slipped into a sink full of water. Panic moment! She quickly picked up the wet phone and tried to turn it on, but nothing worked. Her first reaction? She got dressed, drove to the nearest store, and bought a new mobile at full price.

A new study finds that fear of losing your phone is a common illness. About 66 percent of those surveyed suffer from nomophobia or “no mobile phone phobia”. Interestingly, more women worry about losing their phone than men.

Fortunately, there’s a solution.

The first step is to figure out if you have nomophobia. Checking your phone too often is one thing, but the true sign of a problem is that you can’t conduct business or go about your routine when the fear becomes so severe.

Do you go to unusual lengths to make sure you have your phone? That’s another sign of a problem. If you find you check your phone plenty of times per hour, or a total of an hour per day, there may be a problem.

Some of the treatments are similar to those for treating anxiety attacks: leaving the phone behind and not checking e-mail or text messages, and then learning to tolerate the after anxiety. Even if this leads to a high level of worry and stress, the solution is to push through the fear and learn to deal with not having your phone.

Of course, there are also technological alternatives. Luis Levy, a co-founder at Novy PR, says he uses an application called Cerberus that can automatically track the location of his phone. To find it, he can just go to a website and see the phone’s location.

He also insures his phone through a service called Asurion. The company’s description of its product reads like a prescription for anxiety：“60 million phones are lost, stolen or damaged each year. You’ll have complete peace of mind knowing that your phone is protected and you can quickly reconnect with family, friends and work, as soon as the very next day!”

1.Why does the author mention Kelly’s experience in the first paragraph? 

A. To introduce the topic for discussion.

B. To inform us that mobile phones are useful.

C. To warn us that we should be careful.

D. To tell us we should get phones ready for a trip.

2.The underlined word “nomophobia” in Paragraph 2 means “     ” .

A. habits of using mobile phones

B. fear of losing mobile phones

C. eagerness for new mobile phones

D. independence of mobile phones

3.Which of the following is a way to treat nomophobia?

A. Avoiding using a phone for some time

B. Learning more about modern technology

C. Protecting one’s phone against any damage

D. Not using a mobile phone in one’s daily work

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A. Attitude toward mobile phones

B. New mobile phone technology

C. Disadvantages of mobile phones

D. Solutions to nomophobia