Because neither she nor her husband smoked, Mrs. Trench was surprised to see cigarette ash on her doorstep as she entered the house. When she opened the living-room door, she was astonished to see a strange man fast 　 1　 in an armchair! Taking care not to disturb him, Mrs. Trench left the house at once. She called a taxi and went 　2　 to the police station. When she got there, she lost no time to explain 　 3　 had happened and added that the man 　　 4　 have got into the house 　5　 an open window. Mrs. Trench returned home 　　6　　 a police car together with two policemen. But it was too late: the man had disappeared. Hurrying upstairs, she went to her dressing-table. She smiled 　 7　 relief when she saw the only thing that man had taken was an imitation diamond necklace that was almost 　 8　 !

 

We often talk about ourselves as if we have permanent genetic defects(缺陷) that can never be changed. “I’m impatient.” “I’m always behind.” “I always put things 　　1 !” You’ve surely heard them. Maybe you’ve used them to describe　　　 ___2　 .

These comments may come from stories about us that have been 　3　 for many years—often from 　4　 childhood. These stories may have no 　5　 in fact. But they can set low expectations for us. As a child, my mother said to me, “Marshall, you have no mechanical (操作机械的) skills, and you will never have any mechanical skills for the rest of your life.” How did these expectations　 6　 my development? I was never 　7　 to work on cars or be around　 8　 . When I was 18, I took the US Army’s Mechanical Aptitude Test. My scores were in the bottom for the entire nation!

Six years later,　 9　 , I was at California University, working on my doctors degree. One of my professors, Dr. Bob Tannbaum, asked me to write down things I did well and things I couldn’t do. On the positive side, I　 10　 down, “research, writing, analysis, and speaking.” On the　 11　 side, I wrote, “I have no mechanical skills.”

Bob asked me how I knew I had no mechanical skills. I explained my life 　12 and told him about my 　13　 performance on the Army test. Bob then asked, “　 14　 is it that you can solve 　 15　 mathematical problems, but you can’t solve simple mechanical problems?”

Suddenly I realized that I didn’t 　16　 from some sort of genetic defect. I was just living out expectations that I had chosen to 　17　 . At that point, it wasn’t just my family and friends who had been　 18　 my belief that I was mechanically hopeless. And it wasn’t just the Army test, either. I was the one who kept telling myself, “You can’t do this!” I realized that as long as I kept saying that, it was going to remain true. 　19　 , if we don’t treat ourselves as if we have incurable genetic defects, we can do well in almost 　20　 we choose.

1. A. away 　　　　　 B. off 　　　　　　　 C. up 　　　　　　　　　 D. down

2. A. them 　　　　 B. myself 　　　　　 C. yourself 　　　　 D. others

3. A. said 　　　　　 B. spoken 　　　　　 C. spread 　　　　　 D. repeated

4. A. as long as 　 B. as far back as 　 C. as well as 　　　 D. as much as

5. A. basis 　　　　 B. plot 　　　　　　　 C. cause 　　　　　　　　　　 D. meaning

6. A. lead 　　　　　 B. improve　　　　　　 C. affect 　　　　　 D. change

7. A. encouraged B. demanded 　　 C. hoped 　　　　　 D. agreed

8. A. means 　　　 B. tools 　　　　　　 C. facilities 　　　　 D. hammers

9. A. therefore 　 B. somehow 　　　 C. instead 　　　　　 D. however

10. A. settled 　　 B. turned 　　　　　 C. took 　　　　　　　　　　 D. got

11. A. passive 　　　 B. active 　　　　　 C. negative 　　　　　 D. subjective

12. A. experiences 　　　 B. trips 　　　　　　　　　　 C. roads 　　　　　　 D. paths

13. A. unexpected B. poor 　　　　　　 C. excellent 　　　 D. average

14. A. When 　　　 B. What 　　　　　　 C. How 　　　　　　　 D. Why

15. A. complex 　 B. advanced　　　　　 C. common 　　　　 D. primary

16. A. arise 　　　　 B. separate　　　　　　 C. suffer 　　　　　 D. come

17. A. believe 　　 B. suspect 　　　　 C. adopt 　　　　　　 D. receive

18. A. weakening B. strengthening 　 C. abandoning 　 D. accepting

19. A. As a result 　　　 B. At the same time C. In addition 　　 D. On the contrary

20. A. anything 　　 B. something 　　 C. nothing 　　　　 D. all

Many teenagers feel that the most important people in their lives are their
friends. They believe that their family members,  especially their parents,  don’t
know them as well as their friends do. In large families,  it is often for brothers and sisters to fight with each other and then they can only turn to their friends for advice.
It is very important for teenagers to have one good friend or many friends. Even when they are not with their friends,  they usually spend a lot of time talking among themselves on the phone. This communication is very important in children’s growing up,  because friends can discuss something difficult to say to their family members.
However,  parents often try to choose their children’s friends for them. Some parents may even stop their children from meeting their good friends. The question of “choice” is an interesting one. Have you ever thought of the following questions?
　　Who choose your friends?
　　Do you choose your friends or your friends choose you? 　　
　　Have you got a good friend your parents don’t like?
【小题1】 Many teenagers think their＿＿＿＿ know them better than their parents do.

A．friends	B．teachers
C．brothers and sisters	D．classmates

【小题2】When teenagers stay alone, the usual way of communication is to＿＿＿.

A．turn to their friends

B．talk with their parents

C．have a discussion with their family

D．talk with their friends on the phone

【小题3】The passage suggests (暗示) that＿＿＿ .

A．parents cannot choose friends for their children successfully

B．perhaps some children’s friends are chosen by their parents

C．children won’t let their parents choose friends for them

D．parents often try to choose their children’s friends for them

【小题4】Which of the following do you think is RIGHT according to the passage?

A．Parents should like everything their children enjoy.

B．In all families, children can choose everything they like.

C．Parents should try their best to understand their children better.

D．Teenagers can only turn to their friends for help.