What Is a Boy?

Between the innocence of babyhood and the seriousness of manhood we find a delightful creature called a “boy”. Boys come in different sizes, weights, and colors, but all boys have the same belief: to enjoy every second of every minute of every hour of every day and to fill the air with noise until the adult males pack them off to bed at night．

Boys are found everywhere—on top of, under, inside of, climbing on, swinging from, running around, or jumping to. Mothers spoil them, little girls hate them, older sisters and brothers love them, and God protects them. A boy is TRUTH with dirt on its face, BEAUTY with a cut on its finger, WISDOM with chocolate in its hair, and the HOPE of the future with a snake in its pocket．

When you are busy, a boy is a trouble-maker and a noise. When you want him to make a good impression, his brain turns to jelly or else he becomes a wild creature bent on destroying the world and himself with it.

A boy is a mixture – he has the stomach of a horse, the digestion of stones and sand, the energy of an atomic bomb, the curiosity of a cat, the imagination of a superman, the shyness of a sweet girl, the brave nature of a bull, the violence of a firecracker, but when you ask him to make something, he has five thumbs on each hand.

He likes ice cream, knives, saws, Christmas, comic books, woods, water (in its natural habitat), large animals, Dad, trains, Saturday mornings, and fire engines． He is not much for Sunday schools, company, schools, books without pictures, music lessons, neckties, barbers, girls, overcoats, adults, or bedtime.

Nobody else is so early to rise, or so late to supper. Nobody else gets so much fun out of trees, dogs, and breezes. Nobody else can put into one pocket a rusty knife, a half eaten apple, a three-feet rope, six cents and some unknown things.

A boy is a magical creature—he is your headache but when you come home at night with only destroyed pieces of your hopes and dreams, he can mend them like new with two magic words, “Hi, Dad!”

1.The whole passage is in a tone of _________．

A．ambition and expectation                 B．respect and harmony

C．humor and affection                     D．confidence and imagination

2.By saying “he has five thumbs on each hand.”, the author means        .

A．he has altogether five fingers              B．he is slow, foolish and clumsy

C．he becomes clever and smart              D．he cuts his hand with a knife

3.According to the writer, boys appreciate everything in the following except _________．

A．ice cream                             B．comic books

C．Saturday mornings                      D．Sunday schools

4.What does the writer feel about boys?

A．He feels curious about their noise．

B．He is fed up with these creatures．

C．He is amazed by their naughtiness．

D．He feels unsafe staying with them．

 

阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑

Half a year before graduation from college, my son began to seek a job.   the financial crisis, fewer companies would like to    new staff. My son targeted a company that was   to employ only one person   there were more than 20 people filing their resumes.

After the interview, there would only be 3 who could enter the final round, which would later   one person to be employed. Everything seemed to go quite    and my son passed the first round and entered the final round in a week. 

On the day of the final interview, my son and other two    arrived at the interview place on time,   the test. The interview was unbelievably  . The interviewer only said to them, “All of you are very super. Please go home and wait for our   . We will tell you the    in 3 days. Good luck to all of you！” On the morning of the third day, my son received a text from the company shortly after breakfast that he was not employed. We all felt very   .

In nightfall that day, my son suddenly told me    on phone, “Dad, I have been employed!” Greatly surprised, I could not wait to ask him, “ What’s the whole   ?”  My son told me that he received another text saying that he was employed. Actually the first text sent to my son was also    of the test in the interview. Three men received the same text this morning and only my son ’s    was “ Thank you” while the others said “Goodbye”.

Only then did I know that my son ’s hope    in that way. That is, when you feel disappointed, do not    to say “Thank you ” to the one who disappoints you. Saying “Thank you” shows respect for others’ work and shows your grand   . Therefore, while under the same condition, you will get the upper hand in terms of    compared with others!

1.A. Due to                       B. As to             C. By way of      D. Contrary to

2.A. promote                    B. train             C. discover     D. employ

3.A. encouraged     B. allowed        C. intended       D. supposed

4.A. since                 B. while  C. because      D. if

5.A. decide               B. attract        C. meet             D. represent

6.A. slowly                B. secretly                   C. smoothly     D. silently

7.A. candidates                  B. students       C. friends         D. members

8.A. watching over             B. waiting for    C. thinking about      D. looking into

9.A. formal                       B. funny             C. simple          D. strange

10.A. information             B. order             C. notice          D. message

11.A. choice                     B. result             C. mark             D. idea

12.A. annoyed                  B. puzzled         C. shocked      D. disappointed

13.A. doubtfully               B. calmly            C. excitedly       D. worriedly

14.A. cause               B. matter            C. conclusion            D. interview

15.A. middle                     B. ending          C. course           D. part

16.A. reply                B. way               C. problem       D. question

17.A. came               B. grew              C. changed      D. developed

18.A. expect                     B. regret           C. dislike           D. forget

19.A. curiosity                    B. generosity     C. dignity          D. personality

20.A. abilities                    B. opportunities         C. challenges    D. strengths

 

Much to my _____, the student has come to realize the importance of honesty.

A．horror

B．relief

C．sorrow

D．curiosity

 

My grandmother was an iron－willed woman, the feared head of the family. When I was five years old, she invited some friends to her apartment for a party. __1__ the guests was a neighborhood big shot(大亨). They had a little girl about my age who was __2__ and very much used to getting her own way.

Grandmother spent a lot of time with the big shot and his family. She __3__ them the most important members of her social circle and tried hard to please them. At one point during the party, I __4__ my way to the bathroom and closed the door behind me. A minute or two later, the little girl __5__ the bathroom door and simply walked in. I was still sitting down. “Don't you know that little girls aren't __6__ to come into the bathroom when a little boy is using it！？” I shouted. The __7__ I had piled upon her shocked the little girl. Then she started to cry. She tearfully __8__ to her parents and my grandmother. Grandmother was waiting for me when I left the bathroom. I received the longest, sharpest __9__. After her scolding was over and I had been dismissed, the party __10__.

Twenty minutes later, all that changed. Grandmother walked by the bathroom and noticed a flood of water __11__ out from under the door. She __12__ the bathroom door and saw that the sink and tub were plugged(塞)up and that the taps __13__ at full blast(拧到最大). Everyone knew who did it. The guests quickly formed a __14__ wall around me, but Grandmother was __15__  angry that she almost got to me anyway.

My grandfather took me __16__ to the window. He was a kind and gentleman, full of wisdom and patience. __17__ did he raise his voice to anyone, and never did he __18__ his wife. He looked at me with much curiosity, __19__  angry or upset.

“Tell me，” he asked, “why did you do it？”

“Well, she shouted at me __20__，” I said earnestly. “Now she's got something to shout about.”

Grandfather didn't speak right away. He just sat there, looking at me and smiling. “Eric，” he said at last, “you are my revenge(复仇)．”

1. A. Between  B. Among  C. Around  D. Beside

2. A. spoiled  B. harmed  C. liked   D. concerned

3. A. imagined          B. told           C. evaluated           D. considered

4. A. made              B. found   C. pushed  D. wound

5. A. closed             B. opened   C. beat  D. tapped

6. A. expected        B. asked           C. supposed          D. told

7. A. happiness          B. depression       

C. embarrassment    D. anger

8. A. complained        B. apologized  

C. replied               D. referred

9. A. cry  B. blame  C. comment   D. demand

10. A. picked up         B. broke down      

C. carried on       D. took off

11. A. moving   B. stirring  C. floating  D. streaming

12. A. pushed open         B. pulled down 

C. shut up            D. knocked at

13. A. had gone               B. were going    

C. went                 D. had been going

14. A. productive       B. hard         

C. protective     D. rough

15. A. so       B. too        C. as       D. very

16. A. by his hand   B. by the hand  

C. by surprise      D. with anxiety

17. A. Often   B. Sometimes  C. Always   D. Rarely

18. A. argue with      B. talk with   

C. put up with           D. come to terms with

19. A. other than       B. instead of    

C. rather than      D. more than

20. A. for something   B. for nothing       

C. without doubt   D. with sympathy

As children grow up, they become curious about different kinds of things. When they are babies, they are interested in the parts of their bodies and in the smiles of their mothers. The they become interested in the physical world around them: the plants, the

animals, the sky. Later, they become interested in the things that people have made: wheels, bicycles, cars. And when they are adults, their curiosity continues. Sometimes this curiosity leads to a career (生涯、职业) in science.

Scientists spend their lives trying to find out about the world. Those who work with the earth sciences study the earth, the oceans, and the skies. Other scientists who study living things work with the biological sciences. A third group of scientists study the physical sciences, e. g. physics, chemistry .

These scientists have already discovered a lot about our world. For example, they tell us why your heart beats fast when you run. They say that when you are quiet, your heart normally beats sixty-five or seventy-five times a minute. Your heart is a pump (泵) that pumps blood to all parts of the body. The blood carries oxygen and nutrition. When you run, your muscles work very hard and use the nutrition that the blood carries to them. The muscles need oxygen, too . So your brain sends a signal to the heart. The signal means that the muscles need more nutrition and oxygen. Then the heart beats fast and sends blood quickly to the muscles. It may beat 90 to 140 times a minute.

Of course, scientists cannot answer all of our questions. If we ask, “Why does the ocean water taste salty?”

Scientists will say that the salt comes from rocks. When a rock gets very hot or very cold, it cracks. Rain falls into cracks. The rain then carries the salt into the earth and into the rivers. The rivers carry the salt into the ocean. But then we ask , “What happens to the salt in the ocean? The ocean does not get saltier every year.” Scientists are not sure about the answer to this question.

We know a lot about our world, but there are still many answers that we do not have, and we are curious.　

1.According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?

A．People are curious in the same way.

B．People in different countries are interested in different things.

C．Men and women are curious about different things.

D．People of different ages are interested in different things

2.Scientists who work with the biological sciences study____.

A．the earth , the oceans and the sky

B．man-made things

C．plants and animals

D．ocean water

3.When you run, your muscles need ____.

A．more nutrition and oxygen                B．more signals       C．more salt   D．water