D

When I walked into the house after school, I found my dad at home.

"What are you doing home already?" I asked casually.

"Andrew, I was laid off today," he answered quietly.

    I was sure he was joking. "No, you weren't. Why are you really home?"

    Then I noticed his expression and realized he was telling the truth. My father has always been a hard worker and prided himself on his career. My father's unemployment created many changes in our lives. He was home all day, which meant my bed had to be made, my room cleaned up, and my homework done right after school. I would come home every day to find him at the computer searching for jobs. I began to notice how down he seemed, and how losing his job had affected his self-esteem (自尊心), though he tried to be optimistic. He asked my brother and me to spend less money. I gave up my allowance（零用钱）, which even though it wasn't much, felt like the right thing to do. I also found a part-time job.

    After several difficult months of searching, my dad decided to go in a totally different direction. He explained that he never wanted to be laid off again, so he was going to start his own business. Day by day, I watched him build it, and I admired how much time and energy he devoted to it.

   One evening I asked if he needed help. "Only if it doesn't interfere（打扰，妨碍） with school," he said, which sounded like a yes.

I showed up at his office the next afternoon, and most afternoons after that for two months. I always knew he was a hard worker, but watching him in action really influenced me. Although this was one of the worst experiences for our family, it taught me a lot about dealing with adversity. Now I know that through creative problem-solving, I can always find Plans, ask for help, and take risks. 

54．When the father was laid off, he ________.

    A．was angry with his boss             B．didn't care about it at all

    C．couldn't accept the fact easily         D．was as happy as usual

55．We can know from the passage that ________.

    A．it was not easy for the father to find a new job

    B．the father asked his sons to give up their allowance

    C．the father found a good job when he changed his direction

    D．Andrew and his brother helped his father set up his business

56．The underlined word "adversity" in the last paragraph probably means        .

    A．poor feelings     B．bad situations     C．low spirits     D．old ideas

57．What has Andrew learned from his father?

    A．The spirit of creative problem-solving.    B．The skills of surfing the Internet.

    C．The experience of saving money.         D．The rich business skills.

What a strange world this would be if everyone told the truth! Even though all world religions caution(告诫) people against lying, it seems that lying is a universal communication style. Most of us get angry at big lies—especially those in government, business, and the social world. But how about truth-telling in our private life? Should we always tell the truth to husbands, wives, mothers, fathers and children? Do we?
We all lie. National public opinion polls find that only about one in ten Americans say they never tell a lie. One study of college students found that each student told about two lies a day. Half of all adults interviewed in a CBS New Poll last year admitted they had told a lie they regretted, and nearly as many said they had been deeply hurt by a lie someone told them.
We all lie about lies. Researchers asked subjects to describe the lies they told over a period of weeks. Subjects over-reported “white lies”(harmless lies—I really like your dress) and under-reported serious lies( I graduated with honors).
We lie differently to different types of people. We tell more lies to men than to women. Men and women tell more lies about themselves when talking to men, but more lies about others when talking to women. Men are particularly likely to lie about themselves. Women tell more lies than men, but only because women tell white lies in order to flatter or avoid confrontation (对抗).
Lies are hard to detect(察觉). Surveys show that nearly everyone believes most people are truthful. That’s why people are so bad at detecting lies.

1. 1.

   Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
   

   1. A.
      When asked, the subjects admitted they told more serious lies.
   2. B.
      People are not good at detecting lies.
   3. C.
      White lies are harmless.
   4. D.
      Men tell fewer lies than women.
2. 2.

   The underlined word “flatter (in Paragraph 4)” probably means “_______”.
   

   1. A.
      to anger somebody by telling a lie
   2. B.
      to praise somebody in order to win his favor
   3. C.
      to avoid somebody so as to escape payment
   4. D.
      to warn somebody by shouting
3. 3.

   Lies are not easy to detect because _______.
   

   1. A.
      most people get angry at big lies   
   2. B.
      people tell more lies about themselves
   3. C.
      nearly everyone believes most people are truthful
   4. D.
      everyone tells the truth

I am a good mother to three children. I have tried never to let my profession stand in the way of being a good parent.

     I no longer consider myself the center of the universe. I show up. I listen. I try to laugh. I am a good friend to my husband. I have tried to make marriage vows(誓约) mean what they say. I am a good friend to my friends, and they to me. Without them, there would be nothing to say to you today.

     So here's what I wanted to tell you today: Get a life. A real life, not a desire of the next promotion(提升), the bigger paycheck, the larger house.

     Get a life in which you are not alone. Find people you love, and who love you. And remember that love is not leisure(空闲), it is work. Pick up the phone. Send an e-mail. Write a letter. And realize that life is the best thing and that you have no business taking it for granted.

      It is so easy to waste our lives, our days, our hours, our minutes. It is so easy to exist instead of to live. I learned to live many years ago. Something really, really bad happened to me, something that changed my life in ways that, if I had my choice, it would never have been changed at all. And what I learned from it is what, today, seems to be the hardest lesson of all.

      I learned to love the journey, not the destination. I learned to look at all the good in the world and try to give some of it back because I believed in it, completely and totally. And I tried to do that, in part, by telling others what I had learned. By telling them this: Read in the backyard with the sun on your face. Learn to be happy. And think of life as a deadly illness, because if you do, you will live it with joy and passion(热情) as it ought to be lived.

The best title of this passage probably is            

      A. Love your friends                        B. Live a real life

      C. Don't waste time                         D. Be a good mother and wife

The underlined sentence "It is so easy to exist instead of to live" in the fifth paragraph probably has the same meaning as               

      A. it is so easy to keep alive but not to live a real life

      B. it is very hard to live a real life

      C. it is so easy to make a living

      D. it is more difficult to exist than to live a happy life

What's the author's attitude toward work?

      A. Do it well to serve others.

      B. To earn enough money to make life better.

      C. Try your best to get higher position and pay.

      D. Don't let it affect your real life.

It can be inferred from the passage that          

     A. the author is a success in personal life

     B. the author didn't try her best to work well

     C. the author spent all her time caring for her children

     D. the author likes traveling very much

     Habits, whether good or bad, are gradually formed. When a person does a certain thing again, he is driven by some unseen force to do the same thing repeatedly, then a habit is formed. Once a habit is formed, it is difficult, and sometimes impossible, to get rid of. It is therefore very important that we should pay great attention to the formation of habits. Children often form bad habits, some of which remain with them as long as they live. Older persons also form bad habits lasting as long as they live, and sometimes become ruined by them.

　　There are other habits which, when formed in early life, are of great help. Many successful men say that much of their success has something to do with certain habits in early life, such as early rising, honesty and so on.

　　Among the habits which children should not form are laziness, lying, stealing and so on. These are all easily formed habits. Unfortunately older persons often form habits which could have been avoided(避免).

　　We should keep away from(远离) all these bad habits, and try to form such habits as will be good for ourselves and others.

40. ________ are formed little by little.

　　A. Good habits

B. Bad habits

　　C. Both good habits and bad habits

　　D. Either good habits or bad habits

41. The underlined word "them" in the first paragraph refers to ________.

　　A. bad habits                              B. good habits

　　C. children                                 D. other persons

42. Generally speaking, it's difficult for one ________ and easy for them ________ which should be avoided.

　　A. to form bad habits; to form good habits

　　B. to form good habits; to form bad habits

　　C. to form such habits as will be good; to get rid of bad habits

　　D. to get rid of bad habits; to form good habits

43. Why should we pay much attention to the formation of habits?

　　A. Because habits are of great help to every one of us.

　　B. Because a man can never get rid of a habit.

　　C. Because it's hard and sometimes even impossible to throw away bad habits.

　　D. Because we are forced to do them again and again.

44. According to the passage, early rising ________.

　　A. has something to do with success

　　B. is an easily formed habit

　　C. is such a habit as should have been avoided

　　D. is such a habit as will be kept

Habits, whether good or bad, are gradually formed. When a person does a certain thing again, he is driven by some unseen force to do the same thing repeatedly, then a habit is formed. Once a habit is formed, it is difficult, and sometimes impossible, to get rid of. It is therefore very important that we should pay great attention to the formation of habits. Children often form bad habits, some of which remain with them as long as they live. Older persons also form bad habits lasting as long as they live, and sometimes become ruined by them.　　
There are other habits which, when formed in early life, are of great help. Many successful men say that much of their success has something to do with certain habits in early life, such as early rising, honesty and so on.
　　Among the habits which children should not form are laziness, lying, stealing and so on. These are all easily formed habits. Unfortunately older persons often form habits which could have been avoided(避免).
　　We should keep away from(远离) all these bad habits, and try to form such habits as will be good for ourselves and others.
【小题1】________ are formed little by little.