How difficult change is depends a lot on your attitude towards it and your resistance to it. Your attitude to change can make the whole transformation process much easier.

Imagine change as a pair of shoes and this will help you understand change and how it works. I am sure that you have ever had a comfortable pair of shoes in your life. A pair of shoes is so comfortable that you really don’t want to get rid of them.

You know you need a new pair, and may even have them, but you don’t want to wear them because you are comfortable with your current pair. Besides, the new pair may hurt your feet, give you blisters(水疱) or be awkward to wear to start with. So, you resist the new shoes. However, you know that this new pair would be much better for your feet, and after the initial discomfort they would probably be even more comfortable, yet you still resist.

Do you know I’m doing this now? I’m wearing my comfortable shoes and they feel good. They have a hole in each heel, and the sole is starting to fall off, but I’m persisting in wearing them.

This describes change exactly; change of our habits, change of our thought patterns. We stick with the old patterns because they are comfortable. Yet once we get over the initial pain of the transformation, the new pattern will be comfortable and feel good until the time comes when we need another new pair of shoes.

1.Why do people prefer old shoes to new ones?

A．They have much emotion in the old ones.

B．They are more comfortable.

C．New shoes always harm the feet.

D．They look better than the new ones.

2. According to the passage, we know that people ______.

A．don’t realize the benefit of the new shoes very well

B．are positive and open-minded to accept new things

C．actually know the change will finally be good for them

D．don’t accept new patterns because they are not good

3. What can be inferred from the passage?

A．Once we form a habit, it’s difficult to change it.

B．Most people pay more attention to the future life.

C．One’s attitude towards something is usually traditional.

D．The more often we change, the better our life will be.

 

Last Sunday turned out to be more exciting than I had expected. We were at our grandparents’ house for a visit as     31    . My cousin and I had made an appointment to go in-line skating in the nearby park. He could do some neat stunts (特技)and had promised to show me     32    .

We managed to persuade our parents to    33     us go in-line skating on our own.   34     it soon started to rain and we had to seek shelter on the empty deck (place) of a block of flats. It really dampened my     35    .

Suddenly, we heard a    36     and saw a man dashing out of a lift. Just as he ran   37      us, we saw an old woman coming out of the same lift and crying, “Thief! Thief!” My cousin immediately went after the thief in his    38     . To be honest, I was extremely    39     at the beginning .Then I heard a honk. It was my uncle and aunt. I jumped into their car and told them about the robbery. We   40    off in the thief’s direction while my aunt stayed with the old woman.

Soon, we    41   up with my cousin. He was still in hot pursuit of the thief. Seeing his 42     , my uncle sped up and turned suddenly to the right to   43    just in front of the thief. The man was   44    and fell to the ground. My uncle got out of the car and   45    the man down with his body.

By this time, we could hear the siren of a police car approaching,   46   , my aunt had phoned the police and told them the   47    in which we were heading, so they were able to locate us .

We handed the thief over to the police officers who took down our names and    48   . They informed us that we would be called up to give our   49    . After that, we returned to the empty deck in our uncle’s car to  50     my aunt up .

When we reached there, the old woman had already left to give a report to the police. Our family members were all proud of us for our courageous deed.

 

1.A．known             B．usual               C．well                      D．far

2.A．what                 B．that                      C．where                  D．how

3.A．make                B．have                     C．let                         D．see

4.A．And                   B．But                       C．As                         D．So

5.A．spirits             B．ideas               C．intentions      D．imaginations

6.A．scream            B．noise               C．story                    D．news

7.A．after                 B．over                      C．past                      D．to

8.A．place                B．boots              C．clothes                D．skates

9.A．proud               B．frightened         C．brave              D．excited

10.A．sped               B．put                        C．ran                        D．took

11.A．looked            B．kept                      C．picked                  D．caught

12.A．luck                B．chance                 C．risk                       D．hope

13.A．stand             B．move              C．stop                      D．stay

14.A．tired               B．anxious                C．confused          D．shocked

15.A．pinned           B．pulled                   C．threw                       D．broke

16.A．Surprisingly          B．Obviously         C．Certainly             D．Immediately

17.A．park               B．place               C．situation             D．direction

18.A．problems      B．pictures               C．particulars       D．possessions

19.A．statements          B．decisions          C．suggestions       D．protections

20.A．take              B．get                      C．pick                D．lift

 

In the US and Britain, the slogan around colleges was “Save water. Shower with a friend.” Now, Wuhan University has come up with another system for the campus bathhouse. It charges students for the amount of time in a shower. Before entering the bathhouse, students pay for the amount of time they want in the shower with cash or their student ID card. The clock starts ticking the minute the tape is turned on. It pauses when a button is pressed for soap. An integrated circuit(IC) card reader at each tap shows the time. No money, no water. The benefits of the new system can be seen with the old system, which charged 1 Yuan for each person regardless of time in the shower. The university used about 320 tones of water daily under the old system, but only 160 tons now.

Many students use the new system but opinions on it are divided. Some students say it is bad because bathing had become a sort of race. Many people using it for the first time are not sure how long they need to shower. Some might be embarrassed if their time is up and they’re still covered in soap. They have to ask the bathhouse worker to help them buy extra time.

“It’s a flaw in the system that you can not buy extra time on the ID card,” said Ren, a freshman in Wuhan University. The university is also considering some students’ suggestions that they be allowed to pay after they’ve finished the shower. Not surprisingly, some are complaining about losing the hour shower. But many students say the move helps them develop a water-saving sense.

Without the time limits, most students tended to shower for 30 to an hour in the bathhouse.

Some even used the hot water to wash their clothes. “In my experience, 10-20 minutes is enough,” said Dai Zhihua, a third-year student who usually takes 8 minutes.

A similar system has been installed in other universities. Shanghai Normal University introduced it at its Fengxiang Campus in September. The bathing fee there is 0.2 Yuan per minute. One male student responded by setting a record with a two-minute shower.

1. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?

A. Students pay for the amount of time they want in the shower.

B. The clock times all through while the student is bathing except when the bather paused for soap.

C. If money runs out, there will be no water.

D. Having finished bathing, the student has to pay for it.

2. The underline word “flaw” (Paragraph3) most probably means______.

A. perfection         B. advantage                 C. pity                         D. fault

3. Since the new system has performed, ______ of water can be saved.

A. a quarter                  B. one third                  C. one half                   D. two thirds

4. It can be inferred from the passage that______.

A. the new operation can solve the water crisis.

B. The new operation can raise students’ environmental awareness.

C. a similar operation has been set in other universities.

D. The university has saved a lot of water by using the new system.

5. In which column can you find this passage?

A. People.         B. Society         C. Campus Life.    D. Lifestyle.

 

A house in Clarktown caught fire on Christmas Eve,1982. The    1    who lived in the house was already in    2   .Being in poor health, she had trouble in    3    even when things were fine.    4    her house burning down around her, she was not able to go    5   .The smoke    6   her choke(窒息) .The fire was very hot. Without quick help she would have   7   .

Fire fighters    8    the house. They started to put the fire out. They did not know the old woman was still    9   .The people    10   her crying for help. The fire was still very hot    11    there was lots of smoke.

A man    12    like Santa Claus(圣诞老人) was passing by. He was on his way to give gifts to poor families.   13    had he heard the old woman’s cry when he ran into the    14    

house. After a while he rushed out with the old woman on his back and came to her safety. Then, as

   15    as he had done that, the man left. No one knew the real name of the hero who had saved the old woman’s life.

The man went on and took the gifts to the poor children. He did not return home    16   it was dark. He told his   17    what had happened. She decided that she did not    18    to keep the story a secret. She told people that Santa Claus was    19    David Rodriguez, her husband. Mr. Rodriguez is a music teacher    20    he is not playing Santa Claus.

1. A. hero　　　　 　　 B. woman　　　　　　　　　　 C. child　　   　　　　    D. man

2. A. the eighty　　   B. eighties 　　　　　　　　   C. her eightieth　　    D. her eighties

3. A. walking　　　　 B. speaking 　　　　　　　　 C. thinking　　　　     D. laughing

4. A. Because　　　　 B. For　　　　　　　　　　　　  C. With　　　　  　　   D. During

5. A. everywhere　　  　　   B. nowhere 　　　　　　　　 C. anywhere　　　　 D. somewhere

6. A. suffered　　      B. broke 　　　　　　　　　　　　    C. forced　　    　　    D. made

7. A. lived　　　　 　　 B. died　　　　　　　　　　　　 C. left　　　　  　　　　 D. stayed

8. A. looked for　　   B. searched through 　　 C. got to　　　　 　　　　　　  D. set up

9. A. out of doors　　 B. in the open air　　　　   C. outside　　　　 　　 D. inside

10. A. heard　　　　  　　   B. stopped 　　　　　　　　  C. felt　　　　  　　　　 D. kept

11. A. but　　　　 　　  B. and　　　　　　　　　　　　  C. or　　　　 　　　　    D. though

12. A. dressed  　　   B. chosen 　　　　　　　　  C. looked　　　　      D. acted

13. A. Only　　    　　 B. Hardly 　　　　　　　　    C. Never　　　　  　　 D. Badly

14. A. empty　　　　  B. crowded 　　　　　　    C. burnt　　　　  　　  D. burning

15. A. bravely　　　　 B. carefully　　　　　　　　  C. quickly　　　　 　　 D. proudly

16. A. until　　    　　  B. unless　　　　　　　　　　  C. while　　    　　　　 D. or

17. A. friend　　       B. son 　　　　　　　　　　    C. daughter　　　　  D. wife

18. A. want　　    　　 B. like　　　　　　　　　　　　  C. refuse　　　　  　　 D. need

19. A. nearly　　　　 B. really 　　　　　　　　　　  C. impossibly　　　　 D. probably

20. A. so that  　　　　B. even if 　　　　　　　　  C. when　　　　  　　  D. since

 

There was a gardener who looked after his garden with great care．To water his flowers，he used two buckets．One was a shiny and new bucket．The other was a very old and dilapidated one，which had seen many years of service，but was now past its best．
Every morning, the gardener would fill up the two buckets．Then he would carry them along the path，one on each side，to the flowerbeds．The new bucket was very proud of itself．It could carry a full bucket of water without a single drop spilled(溢出)．The old bucket felt very ashamed because of its holes：before it reached the flowerbeds，much water had leaked along the path．
Sometimes the new bucket would say，“See how capable I am ! How good it is that the gardener has me to water the flowers every day ! I don’t know why he still bothers with you．What a waste of space you are !”
And all that the old bucket could say was，“I know I’m not very useful，but I can only do my best．I'm happy that the gardener still finds a little bit of use in me，at least. ”
One day，the gardener heard that kind of conversation．After watering the flowers as usual，he said，“You both have done your work very well．Now I am going to carry you back．I want you to look carefully along the path．”
Then the two buckets did so．All along the path，they noticed，on the side where the new bucket was carried，there was just bare(光秃秃的)earth；on the other side where the old bucket was carried，there was a joyous row of wild flowers，leading all the way to the garden．
【小题1】What does the underlined word “dilapidated” probably mean ?

A．dirty．

B．dark．

C．worn-out．

D．plain-looking．

【小题2】What was the old bucket ashamed of ?   

A．His past．

B．His aging．

C．His manner．

D．His leaking．

【小题3】The new bucket made conversations with the old one mainly to _______.

A．laugh at the old one	B．take pity on the old one
C．show off its beautiful looks	D．praise the gardener’s kindness

【小题4】Why was the old bucket still kept by the gardener?

A．Because it was used to keep a balance．

B．Because it stayed in its best condition．

C．Because it was taken as a treasure．

D．Because it had its own function．