It is not a secret that these are turbulent times that put everyone on edge all the time and it makes people angry with their families, co-workers, friends and relatives, frustrated (沮丧的)and highly annoyed just for the noise of the neighbors or the music coming from the opposite house. Anger and negative energy have a strong influence on everyone’s life, even when they don’t realize it.
Being in a calm state of mind is simply wonderful. Results of this can be seen when parents no longer shout at their children over any small thing and when one can keep him cool when bad things happen and doesn’t let the situation become worse by his negative influence.
Also results can be seen on a larger scale. In 1993 a very interesting scientific experiment called The US Transcendental Meditation experiment was conducted in Washington. A company called TM got 4,000 calm and relaxed people to simply sit and meditate (冥想) in a central Washington convention center. The results of this experiment showed that during those particular 8 weeks, violent crimes, such as murder, rape, assaults, clearly decreased by as much as 23%.
This is evident proof that meditation can change the state of mind, bring back peace of mind and collective meditation is contagious (蔓延的), just as anything done collectively is contagious. For example, a person has the urge to become aggressive (while in normal circumstances that person is very calm and normal), just because he is sitting at a stadium watching a football game and everyone around is shouting and is aggressive.
Isn’t increasing the quality of life worth spending 20 minutes of time on meditation? Yes, very few people follow through with a meditation method that should be a joy to do. Many start and leave it after only a few sessions.
So if collective meditation has proven that meditation works, that it calms people down and that it brings their levels of stress down, why not employ it in everyday life?
【小题1】The underlined word “turbulent” in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to “     ”.

A．changeless

B．disorderly

C．perfect

D．expected

【小题2】According to Paragraph 3, the scientific experiment      .

A．was to test whether meditation is useful

B．was conducted throughout America

C．asked the participants to do a lot of sports

D．had no particular requirements on the participants

【小题3】Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Violent crimes are closely related to aggressive characters.

B．People are sometimes easily annoyed by small things.

C．Many people fail to carry out a meditation method.

D．Meditation can cure people of many illnesses.

 (10·全国Ⅱ E篇)

How words came into being is unknown.All we assume is that some early men invented cortain sounds,in one way or another,to express thoughts and feelings,actions and things,so that they could talk with each other.Later they agreed upon certain signs,called letters,which could be put together to show those sounds,and which could be written down.Those sounds,whether spoken or written in letters,are called words.

The power of words,then,lies in their associations-the things they bring up to our minds.Words become filled with meaning for us by experience;and the longer we live,the more certain words bring back to us the happy and sad events of our past;and the more we read and learn,the more the number of words that mean something to us increases.

Great writers are those who not only have great thoughts but also express these thoughts in words which have powerful effects on our minds and feelings.This clever use of words is what we call literary style.Above all,the real poet is a master of words.He can express his meaning in words which sing like music,and which by their position and association can move men to tears.We should therefore learn to choose our words carefully and use then correctly,or they will make our speech silly and common.

58.We learn from the text that language might have begun with(    )

A．expressions    B．actions    C．signs    D．sounds

59.What is mainly discussed in Faragraph 2?

A．The ……of new words      B．The importance of old words

C．The relation of human experience with words  

D．The gradual change and development of words

60.In the last paragraph,what does the anthor suggest that we should do?

A．Use words skilfully    B．Make musical speeches  

C．Learn poems by heart   D．Associate with listeners

Recently, a professor of philosophy in the United States has written a book called Money and the Meaning of Life．He has discovered that how we deal with money in our day-to-day life has more meaning than we usually think．One of the exercises he asked his students to do is to keep a record of every penny they spend for a week．From the way they spend their money, they can see what they really value in life．
He says our relation with others often become clearly defined when money enters the picture．You might have wonderful friendship with somebody and you think that you are very good friends．But you’ll know him only when you ask to lend you some money．If he does, it brings something to the relationship that seems stranger than ever before．Or it can suddenly weaken the relationship if he doesn’t．This person may say that he has a certain feeling, but if it is not carried out in the money world, there is something less real about it．
Since money is important to us, we consider those who possess a lot of it to be very important．The author interviewed some millionaires in researching his book．
Answer: The most surprising thing is why people give me so much respect．I’m nothing．I don’t know much．All I am is rich．
People just have an idea of making more and more money, but what is it for? How much do I need for any given purposes in my life? In this book, the professor uncovered an important need in modern society; to bring back the idea that money is an instrument rather than the end．Money plays an important role in the modern world, but expecting money to give happiness may be missing the meaning of life．
【小题1】According to the first paragraph, people haven’t realized __________．

A．how important money is in their day-to-day life

B．how one spends money shows what is important to him

C．that money is more important than their philosophy of life

D．that their understanding of life is more important than money

【小题2】What can we learn about the millionaire from his answer in the interview is that         .

A．he does not feel that he is well -educated

B．he does not consider himself to be very successful

C．he does not think that he is a very important person

D．he does not think being rich deserves so much attention

【小题3】What does the American professor of philosophy want to explain in his book?

A．Money is a means．	B．Money is everything．
C．Money is an end．	D．Money is unimportant．

【小题4】Which of the following might the author disagree?

A．Money is important in modern society．

B．Wealth will surely bring the owner happiness．

C．The meaning of life doesn’t completely lie in money．

D．Happiness is not necessarily the result of wealth．

One day I decided to quit．I quitted my job, my relationship, my spirituality. I wanted to quit my life.

I went to the   36   to have one last talk with God． "Can you give me one good   37   not to quit?" His answer surprised me．

   "Look around． Do you see the fern（蕨类植物） and the bamboo? When I planted their seeds, I took good care of them．The fern quickly grew from the earth．   38   nothing came from the bamboo seed． During the following three years, the fern grew more plentiful． And   39  , nothing came from the bamboo seed． But I did not quit on the bamboo． Then in the fifth year a    40   sprout（新芽） emerged from the earth． Compared to the fern it was   41   small and insignificant． But just 6 months later the bamboo   42   to over 100 feet tall． It had spent the five years growing   43  ． Those roots made it strong and gave it  44   it needed to survive． I wouldn’t give any of my creations a challenge it could not   45  ．”

   He said to me． "All this time you have been struggling, you have   46   been growing roots． I would not quit on the bamboo．   47   will I ever quit on you． Don't   48   yourself with others． The bamboo had a different   49   from the fern． Yet they both make the forest beautiful． Your time will   50  ． You will rise high! "

   "How high should I rise?" I asked．

   "How high will the bamboo rise?" He asked   51  ．

   "As high as it can?" I   52  ．

   "Yes," He said． "Give me glory   53   rising as high as you can．"

   I left the forest and bring back this story． I hope it can help you see that God will never   54 on you． Never regret a day in your life． Good days give you happiness． Bad days give you   55 ． Both are necessary to life．

1.A． farm                B．heaven               C．bushes          D．woods

2.A． reason            B． sense                C．response  D．explanation

3.A． Even                B． Instead             C．Yet        D．Rather

4.A． again               B． always              C．ever     D．often

5.A． thin                  B． tiny          C．weak             D．short

6.A． largely             B． entirely            C．seemingly   D．probably

7.A． raised              B． provided      C．rose        D．produced

8.A． fruits               B． leaves               C．seeds             D.  roots

9.A． which              B． where              C．how       D．what

10.A． present              B． explore           C．handle           D .offer

11.A． particularly     B． actually             C．merely           D． obviously

12.A． Either            B． So                C．Neither           D． As

13.A． furnish      B． associate    C.  connect           D． compare

14.A． purpose             B． recognition         C.  credit           D． possibility

15.A． go                  B． come       C． get        D． leave

16.A． in nature           B． in exchange        C． in respect    D． in turn

17.A． questioned     B． required           C． requested         D． remarked

18.A． from             B． with          C． by               D． for

19.A． cut up          B． give up             C． break up     D． pick up

20.A． experiences          B． strengths           C． awards           D． ambitions

 

As the United States nears the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks that killed more than 3,000 people, President Obama announced Sunday night that the al Qaeda（基地组织） leader and mastermind of that horrific day, Osama bin Laden, has been killed.
CNN reports that a senior government official confirmed that bin Laden was shot by a small team of U.S. soldiers while in a mansion with family members outside Islamabad（伊斯兰堡）. His body is now in American custody（拘押） and is being handled according to Islamic customs. Three other adult men were killed in the firefight, including a son of bin Laden's, who was a senior member of the terrorist organization.
"Justice has been done," the president announced, saying that the operation he ordered after receiving intelligence information is "the most significant achievement to date in our nation's effort to defeat al-Qaeda."
The immediate reactions ranged from cautious to ecstatic. Crowds cheered outside the White House. But officials said a "worldwide caution" would be set for Americans in case of al Qaeda retaliation（报复）.
Will bin Laden's death be the justice Americans have sought for nearly a decade?
Gordon Felt, president of Families of Flight 93, said it does bring comfort.
"This is important news for us, and for the world. It cannot ease our pain, or bring back our loved ones. It does bring a measure of comfort that the mastermind of the September 11th tragedy and the face of global terror can no longer spread his evil," Felt said.
President Obama says this victory does not close the book.
"His death does not mark the end of our effort. There's no doubt that al Qaeda will continue to pursue attacks against us. We must and we will remain cautious," he noted.
【小题1】The underlined word “ecstatic” most probably means _________.    

A．scared	B．extremely happy and excited
C．doubtful	D．amazed

【小题2】The author mentions all of the items listed below EXCEPT_________. 

A．Four people were killed in the firefight.

B．Families of the victims in the 9/11 attacks celebrated together.

C．President Obama thought highly of the Anti-Terrorist Military Action

D．Obama thought that al Qaeda will continue attack against the United States.

【小题3】It can be inferred from the text _________. 

A．The 9/11 attacks happened on September 11, 2001.

B．Osama bin Laden has three sons.

C．Some soldiers were injured in the firefight.

D．More than 3000 people were killed in the 9/11 attacks.

【小题4】From the last paragraph we can learn that _________.  

A．Osama bin Laden’s death will put an end to terrorism.

B．President Obama doesn’t think bin Laden's death is a victory.

C．The United States will make efforts to defeat the al-Qaeda

D．The al Qaeda has a new leader now.