Until last spring, Nia Parker and the other kids in her neighborhood went to school on Bus 59．But as fuel prices rose, the school district needed to find a way to cut its transportation costs. So the school’s busing company redrew its route map, canceling Nia’s bus. Now Nia and her neighbors travel the half mile to school via a “walking school bus”—a group of kids, supervised （监护） by an adult or two, who make the walk together.

Many parents are delighted to see their kids walking to school, partly because many did so themselves. According to a 1979 survey, nearly half of school kids walked or biked to school, compared with only 16 percent in 2011.Modern parents have been unwilling to let kids walk to school for fear of traffic, crime or simple bullying, but with organized adult supervision, those concerns have reduced.

Schools and busing companies are finding other ways to save．In rural areas where busing is a must, some schools have even chosen four-day school weeks. Busing companies instruct drivers to cancel extra stops from routes and to turn off the engine while idling（挂空挡）.They are also using computer software to determine the most fuel-efficient routes, which aren’t always the shortest ones.

There could be disadvantages, however, to the busing cutbacks. If every formerly bused student begins walking to school, it’s an environmental win—but if too many of their parents decide to drive them instead, the overall carbon footprint can grow. Replacing buses with many more parent-driven cars can also increase safety risks. A 2011 report concluded students are 13 times safer on a school bus than in a passenger car, since buses have fewer accidents and withstand(承受) them better due to their size. And some students complain about the long morning hikes, particularly when the route contains a really big hill.

56. In regards to walking to school, modern parents seem much concerned with the _____.

　 A. safety of their kids’　　　　　 　　　　　　　　　 B. kids’ physical strength

　 C. time spent on the way　　　　 　　　　　　　　　 D. changes in the route

57. To save money, some schools choose to _____.

A. shorten the school week B. take the shortest routes

　 C. stop using school buses　　　　　 　　D. use fuel-efficient buses

58. Busing cutbacks may lead to _____.

　 A. fewer complaints about long morning hikes

　 B. more students taking public transportation

　 C. an increase in carbon dioxide emissions

　 D. a decrease in the safety of school buses

The repairman told me, “No charge Professor Pan! We’re friends．” “I’d rather pay,” I replied．“If it’s free, I can’t afford it!”

Chinese often refuse payment for professional services, insisting, "We’re friends now!" But then they show up later to ask me to tutor them in English, or get them into an American university, and I wish I’d have just paid the 30 yuan I owed them in the first place!

According to the Americans, "There’s no free lunch," meaning that there’s a price for everything, and I’m always looking around to figure out what this means．Many of our neighbours have given us fruit or flowers or costly teas, never asking anything in return．For years, a bicycle repairman has repeatedly refused to let me pay him．"Wait until you have something major to fix! "he insists．

I mentioned to a peasant friend that I wished I had a stone mill to grind(磨)flour for bread．A month later he showed up with a beautiful mill that he’d had his uncle in the countryside carve from a solid block of granite(花岗石)．

Chinese generosity(慷慨)is a real education for Americans like me, who would rather avoid social entanglements (纠纷) and just hand over the money．But cash can’t compensate(补偿)for the greatest gift--friendship．

When an American saw some of my friends sitting on bamboo stools under the trees, sipping(呷)tea, he said, "They  must have nothing better to do．""Actually, "I said, "they are professors, with plenty to do．But probably you’re right in saying that, at this moment, they have nothing better to do．And neither do I!" And I joined the group．We chatted about tea and Chinese cooking and how much my boys have grown since we arrived．One man said, "They were pocket-sized when you came here．Now

they’re taller than you．How time flies!"

How life flies．And Chinese are smart enough to share what they know they cannot keep．They freely give of their time, never too busy to help a friend．And they are teaching me, slowly, to both give and receive．So the next time someone says, "No charge．We’re friends! " I will thank them heartily．But if they show up later asking me to tutor them in English, I’ll make sure they tutor my son in Chinese as well, because there’s still no free lunch．

64．The author insisted on paying repairman while he was offered free repairs because he     .

A．was an honest man

B．didn’t know the repairman

C．thought it natural to pay for others’ service

D．didn’t want to help others in return

65．Generally, the author thinks that Chinese are _________．

A．generous and always ready to help their friends

B．good at exchange of equal values

C．free enough to drink tea and chat with their friends

D．helpful but don’t treasure time

66．The best title of the passage should be “       ”.

A．Learn to Both Give And Receive    B．A Good Lesson from Chinese

C．True Help or Not                   D．Still No Free Lunch

67．Which of the following is TRUE?

A．The Chinese would rather not take the money to avoid problems in social communication.

B．When a peasant knew the author needed a mill, he made one for the author himself.

C．The author thinks that Chinese are wise enough to enjoy the limited life.

D．The author thinks little of Chinese way of life.

 

The repairman told me, “No charge Professor Pan! We’re friends．” “I’d rather pay,” I replied．“If it’s free, I can’t afford it!”

Chinese often refuse payment for professional services, insisting, "We’re friends now!" But then they show up later to ask me to tutor them in English, or get them into an American university, and I wish I’d have just paid the 30 yuan I owed them in the first place!

According to the Americans, "There’s no free lunch," meaning that there’s a price for everything, and I’m always looking around to figure out what this means．Many of our neighbours have given us fruit or flowers or costly teas, never asking anything in return．For years, a bicycle repairman has repeatedly refused to let me pay him．"Wait until you have something major to fix! "he insists．

I mentioned to a peasant friend that I wished I had a stone mill to grind(磨)flour for bread．A month later he showed up with a beautiful mill that he’d had his uncle in the countryside carve from a solid block of granite(花岗石)．

Chinese generosity(慷慨)is a real education for Americans like me, who would rather avoid social entanglements (纠纷) and just hand over the money．But cash can’t compensate(补偿)for the greatest gift--friendship．

When an American saw some of my friends sitting on bamboo stools under the trees, sipping(呷)tea, he said, "They  must have nothing better to do．""Actually, "I said, "they are professors, with plenty to do．But probably you’re right in saying that, at this moment, they have nothing better to do．And neither do I!" And I joined the group．We chatted about tea and Chinese cooking and how much my boys have grown since we arrived．One man said, "They were pocket-sized when you came here．Now

they’re taller than you．How time flies!"

     How life flies．And Chinese are smart enough to share what they know they cannot keep．They freely give of their time, never too busy to help a friend．And they are teaching me, slowly, to both give and receive．So the next time someone says, "No charge．We’re friends! " I will thank them heartily．But if they show up later asking me to tutor them in English, I’ll make sure they tutor my son in Chinese as well, because there’s still no free lunch．

64．The author insisted on paying repairman while he was offered free repairs because he     .

       A．was an honest man

       B．didn’t know the repairman

       C．thought it natural to pay for others’ service

       D．didn’t want to help others in return

65．Generally, the author thinks that Chinese are _________．

       A．generous and always ready to help their friends

       B．good at exchange of equal values

       C．free enough to drink tea and chat with their friends

       D．helpful but don’t treasure time

66．The best title of the passage should be “       ”.

       A．Learn to Both Give And Receive    B．A Good Lesson from Chinese

       C．True Help or Not                    D．Still No Free Lunch

67．Which of the following is TRUE?

       A．The Chinese would rather not take the money to avoid problems in social communication.

       B．When a peasant knew the author needed a mill, he made one for the author himself.

       C．The author thinks that Chinese are wise enough to enjoy the limited life.

       D．The author thinks little of Chinese way of life.

The repairman told me, “No charge Professor Pan! We’re friends．” “I’d rather pay,” I replied．“If it’s free, I can’t afford it!”

Chinese often refuse payment for professional services, insisting, "We’re friends now!" But then they show up later to ask me to tutor them in English, or get them into an American university, and I wish I’d have just paid the 30 yuan I owed them in the first place!

According to the Americans, "There’s no free lunch," meaning that there’s a price for everything, and I’m always looking around to figure out what this means．Many of our neighbours have given us fruit or flowers or costly teas, never asking anything in return．For years, a bicycle repairman has repeatedly refused to let me pay him．"Wait until you have something major to fix! "he insists．

I mentioned to a peasant friend that I wished I had a stone mill to grind(磨)flour for bread．A month later he showed up with a beautiful mill that he’d had his uncle in the countryside carve from a solid block of granite(花岗石)．

Chinese generosity(慷慨)is a real education for Americans like me, who would rather avoid social entanglements (纠纷) and just hand over the money．But cash can’t compensate(补偿)for the greatest gift--friendship．

When an American saw some of my friends sitting on bamboo stools under the trees, sipping(呷)tea, he said, "They  must have nothing better to do．""Actually, "I said, "they are professors, with plenty to do．But probably you’re right in saying that, at this moment, they have nothing better to do．And neither do I!" And I joined the group．We chatted about tea and Chinese cooking and how much my boys have grown since we arrived．One man said, "They were pocket-sized when you came here．Now

they’re taller than you．How time flies!"

     How life flies．And Chinese are smart enough to share what they know they cannot keep．They freely give of their time, never too busy to help a friend．And they are teaching me, slowly, to both give and receive．So the next time someone says, "No charge．We’re friends! " I will thank them heartily．But if they show up later asking me to tutor them in English, I’ll make sure they tutor my son in Chinese as well, because there’s still no free lunch．

64．The author insisted on paying repairman while he was offered free repairs because he     .

       A．was an honest man

       B．didn’t know the repairman

       C．thought it natural to pay for others’ service

       D．didn’t want to help others in return

65．Generally, the author thinks that Chinese are _________．

       A．generous and always ready to help their friends

       B．good at exchange of equal values

       C．free enough to drink tea and chat with their friends

       D．helpful but don’t treasure time

66．The best title of the passage should be “       ”.

       A．Learn to Both Give And Receive    B．A Good Lesson from Chinese

       C．True Help or Not                    D．Still No Free Lunch

67．Which of the following is TRUE?

       A．The Chinese would rather not take the money to avoid problems in social communication.

       B．When a peasant knew the author needed a mill, he made one for the author himself.

       C．The author thinks that Chinese are wise enough to enjoy the limited life.

       D．The author thinks little of Chinese way of life.