C

In some parts of the United States, farming is easy. But farming has always been difficult in the northeastern corner of the country, which is called New England.

New England has many trees and thin, rocky soil. Anyone who has wanted to start a new farm there has had to work very hard. The first job has been cutting down trees. The next job has been digging stumps (树桩) of the trees out of the soil. Then the farmer has had the difficult job of removing stones from his land.

The work of removing stones never really ends, because every winter more stones appear. They come up through the thin soil from the rocks below. Farmers have to keep removing stones from the fields. Even today, farms which have been worked on for 200 years keep producing more stones.

That is why stone walls are used instead of fences around New England fields. The stone walls are not high: A man can easily climb over them. But they keep the farmer’s cows from joining his neighbour’s cows.

64.   New England is an area ______.

in the northeastern part of Britain        

which has been newly discovered by the Englishmen

which lies between Australia and New Zealand

which lies in the northeastern part of the USA

65.   According to the passage, farming is difficult in New England because ______.

A. the winter is very long there           B. the farms are very old

C. the soil is rocky and thin                D. there are not enough machines for farming

66.   From this passage, we know the removing of stones ______.

must be done again and again             

is usually done during the winter

is an interesting job children enjoy doing

was more difficult before machines were used

67.   In New England, stone walls are used to ______.

keep dangerous beasts out

keep the farmer’s cows from wandering away

protect the farmers fields from thieves

provide comfortable living conditions for the farmer’s family

C

In some parts of the United States, farming is easy. But farming has always been difficult in the northeastern corner of the country, which is called New England.

New England has many trees and thin, rocky soil. Anyone who has wanted to start a new farm there has had to work very hard. The first job has been cutting down trees. The next job has been digging stumps (树桩) of the trees out of the soil. Then the farmer has had the difficult job of removing stones from his land.

The work of removing stones never really ends, because every winter more stones appear. They come up through the thin soil from the rocks below. Farmers have to keep removing stones from the fields. Even today, farms which have been worked on for 200 years keep producing more stones.

That is why stone walls are used instead of fences around New England fields. The stone walls are not high: A man can easily climb over them. But they keep the farmer’s cows from joining his neighbour’s cows.

64.   New England is an area ______.

in the northeastern part of Britain        

which has been newly discovered by the Englishmen

which lies between Australia and New Zealand

which lies in the northeastern part of the USA

65.   According to the passage, farming is difficult in New England because ______.

A. the winter is very long there           B. the farms are very old

C. the soil is rocky and thin                D. there are not enough machines for farming

66.   From this passage, we know the removing of stones ______.

must be done again and again             

is usually done during the winter

is an interesting job children enjoy doing

was more difficult before machines were used

67.   In New England, stone walls are used to ______.

keep dangerous beasts out

keep the farmer’s cows from wandering away

protect the farmers fields from thieves

provide comfortable living conditions for the farmer’s family

In England three foreign gentlemen came to a bus stop. They studied the information on the post sign and decided which bus to take. About five minutes later the bus they wanted came along. They prepared to get on. Suddenly people rushed onto the bus and tried to push them out of the way. Someone shouted insulting remarks about the foreigners. The bus conductor   came rushing down the stairs to see what all the trouble was about. The three foreign gentlemen looked puzzled and ashamed. No one had told them about the British custom of lining up for a bus so that the first person who arrived at a bus-stop is the first person to get on the bus.

Learning the language of a country isn’t enough. If you want to ensure a pleasant visit, find out as much as possible about the manners and customs of your hosts. You will probably be surprised just how different they can be from your own. A visitor to India would do well to remember that people there consider it impolite to use the left hand for passing food at table. The left hand is supposed to be used for washing yourself. Also in India, you might see a man apparently（显然地）shaking his head at another and assume (认为) that he is disagreeing. But in many parts of India a rotating (旋转) movement of the head is a gesture that express agreement or acceptance. Nodding your head when offered a drink in Bulgaria is likely to leave you thirsty. In that country you shake your head to express “yes” — a nod means “no”.

In Europe it is quite usual to cross your legs when sitting talking to someone, even at an important meeting. Doing this when meeting an important person in Thailand, however, could cause offence (冒犯). It is considered too informal an attitude for such an occasion. Also when in Thailand avoid touching the head of an adult — it’s just not done.

Attitudes to women vary considerably（相当地）around the world. In Japan, for example, it is quite usual for men to plan evening entertainments for themselves and leave their wives at home.

Knowing about customs and attitudes is useful when you are travelling, but you also need to know the language used to express different degrees of formality (礼节).

The three foreign gentlemen looked puzzled and ashamed because __________________.

   A. they didn’t know the English language        B. someone called their names

   C. they didn’t know the custom of lining up for a bus

   D. they knocked someone down while getting on the bus

According to the passage, which attitude to women is usual in Japan?

   A. Men always go to parties with women.  

B. Men plan evening entertainments for their wives.

   C. Men and women have equal rights to go to parties.

   D. Men plan evening entertainments for themselves, while their wives stay home.

What’s the meaning of the underlined word “insulting” in Para. 1 ?

   A. 善意的           B. 咨询的            C. 商量的         D. 无礼的

A popular saying goes, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” However, that’s not really true. Words have the power to build us up or tear us down. It doesn’t matter if the words come from someone’s else or ourselves --- the positive and negative effects are just as lasting.

    We all talk to ourselves sometimes. We’re usually too embarrassed to admit it, though. In fact, we really shouldn’t be because more and more experts believe talking to ourselves out loud is a healthy habit.

    This “self-talk” helps us motivate ourselves, remember things, solve problems, and calm ourselves down. Be aware, though, that as much as 77% of self-talk tends to be negative. So in order to stay positive, we should only speak words of encouragement to ourselves. We should also be quick to give ourselves a pat on the back. The next time you finish a project, do well in a test, or finally clean your room, join me in saying “Good job!”

    Often, words come out of our mouths without us thinking about the effect they will have. But we should be aware that our words cause certain responses in others. For example, when returning an item to a store, we might use warm, friendly language during the exchange. And the clear will probably respond in a similar manner. Or harsh（刻薄的）and critical language will most likely cause the clerk to be defensive.

    Words possess power because of their lasting effect. Many of us regret something we once said. And we remember unkind words said to us! Before speaking, we should always ask ourselves: Is it loving? Is it needed? If what we want to say doesn’t pass this test, then it’s better left unsaid.

    Words possess power: both positive and negative. Those around us receive encouragement when we speak positively. We can offer hope, build self-esteem（自尊）and motivate others to do their best. Negative words destroy all those things. Will we use our words to hurt or to heal? The choice is ours.

The main idea of the first paragraph is that ________.

A. not sticks and stones but words will hurt us 

B. inspiring words give us confidence

C. negative words may let us down

D. words have a lasting effect on us

There is no sense for us to feel embarrassed when we talk to ourselves because _______

A. almost everybody has the habit of talking to themselves

B. we can benefit from talking to ourselves

C. talking to ourselves always gives us courage

D. it does no harm to have “self-talk” when we are alone

The underlined part in the third paragraph means that we should also timely _______

A. praise ourselves                                                         B. remind ourselves

C. make ourselves relaxed                                              D. give ourselves amusement

The author would probably hold the view that ___________

A. encouraging words are sure to lead to kind offers  

B. negative words may stimulate us to make more progress

C. people tend to remember friendly words

D. it is better to think twice before talking to others

In this composition spelling mistakes ______ while grammatical ones are not so obvious.

A. stick out         B. stick  to        C. stick up      D. stick around