When someone gives you advice, listen without judgment, try to find value in what you’re hearing, and say “Thank you”．This wise advice is easy to understand yet hard to practice．I’ll give you an example from my life when I totally blew it in terms of practicing what I teach．
In my work I travel constantly．I always put off going to the airport until the last second．My wife, Lynda, was sitting next to me in the front seat．I was racing along and not paying much attention．Lynda cried out, “Look out! There is a red light up ahead．”
Being a trained behavioral science professional --- who teaches others the value of encouraging advice --- I naturally screamed at her, “I know there is a red light up ahead! Don’t you think I can see?” When we arrived at the airport, Lynda didn’t speak to me．I wondered why she seemed mad at me．
During the flight to New York, I did a cost-benefit analysis．I asked myself, “What was the cost of just listening when Lynda called out the warning? Zero．” I then reasoned, “What was the potential benefit? What could have been saved?” Several potential benefits came to mind, including her life, my life, and the lives of other people．
I landed in New York feeling ashamed of myself．I immediately called Lynda and told her my cost-benefit story．I convinced her, “The next time you help me with my driving, I am just going to say, ‘Thank you．’”
A few months passed, and I had long forgotten the incident．Again, I was racing off to the airport, when Lynda cried out, “Look out for the red light!” I was embarrassed, and then shouted, “Thank you!”
I’m a long way from perfect, but I’m getting better．My suggestion is that you get in the habit of asking the important people in your life how you can do things better．And be ready for an answer．Some people may tell you things like “Look out for the red light．” When this happens, remember that there is possibly some potential benefit．Then just say, “Thank you．”
【小题1】What do we know about the author?

第三部分：阅读理解（每小题2分；共40分）
When many people are worried that there are no more heroes in the modern era，two university students who lost their lives to rescue drowning children have shown that heroes still exist．
According to the Inner Mongolia Morning Post，the tragedy（悲剧） occurred on the afternoon of December 14,2002 when three school students skating on a frozen lake in Qingcheng Park in Hohhot fell through the ice into the freezing water．
More than 20 university students who happened to be near the spot immediately went to the rescue of the children．Two children were quickly rescued，but the third died．The child's body was not found for three hours． Two of the rescuers，Liu Ye and Hao Longbiao，also died of cold and exhaustion．The body of Hao who took the lead in jumping into the lake was not found until the next day．
A student who was unwilling to tell his name said he and his classmates from the local college were taking photos at the lake． When they heard the children's cries for help， they went to the ice hole hand in hand to rescue the children． But the ice kept breaking， causing most of them to fall into the icy water．
Local residents held mourning ceremonies（祭奠仪式） at the lake．
Eight of the students were seriously affected by the freezing water and were being kept in hospital for further observation， but their lives were no longer in danger．
56． When the three students fell into water， the university students were ＿＿＿＿＿．
A． skating on the ice              B． taking photos at the lake
C． having a picnic                 D． walking along the lake
57． Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage？
A． Three students died on the same day in all．
B． Hao Longbiao’s body was found on December 14,2002．
C． The university students didn’t think it dangerous to save the drowning children in the lake．
D． Local residents were not brave in face of danger．
58． It can be inferred that ＿＿＿＿．
A． people think little of the two university students' death
B． the ice on the lake wasn't strong enough to skate on
C． some students regretted for what they had done
D． heroes don't agree with the steps of modern times

The most important holiday in spring, especially for Christians, is Easter. This Christian holiday is not on the same date every year，but it’s always on a Sunday. It can be any Sunday between March 22 and April 25. Many people celebrate Easter by buying new clothes. Children celebrate by hunting for colored eggs that their parents have hidden around the house. People also give Easter baskets filled with candy and other goodies to one another to celebrate the day.
But the holiday is more than new clothes and good things to eat. On Easter, many people go to church to celebrate Jesus’ resurrection（复活）from the dead. Most people color Ester eggs. Some people hide them. Others just eat them. But no matter what one does with Easter eggs，they are an important Easter tradition throughout the Western world. People from many different cultures celebrate Easter. In both America and Belgium, children look for Easter eggs hidden on lawns and in bushes. In America, children believe the eggs are hidden by the Easter bunny (兔子).But in Belgium, the hidden eggs are supposed to have fallen from church bells. In Bulgaria (保加利亚), red Easter eggs are lucky in churches. Bulgarian families also hit these Easter eggs together to see whose is the strongest. The winner looks forward to good fortune that year. Still dozens of other Easter traditions exist. In parts of Austria，for example，children sing from door to door and are rewarded with colorful eggs.
56. Easter comes _______.
A. on the same date every year    B. on Sunday on March 22
C. on Sunday on April 25        D. on a Sunday between March 22 and April 25
57. To celebrate Easter, people ___________.
A. go shopping, hide colored eggs and children hunt for them
B. give Easter baskets filled candy and goodies to one another
C. buy new clothes, hide colored eggs and children look for them around the house
D. both B and C
58. For Christians the more important thing to do on Easter is________.
A. going to church to celebrate Jesus’ resurrection
B. buying new clothes
C. eating delicious food and paint color eggs
D. exchange beautiful gifts each other
59. People from different cultures have different ideas about Easter egg _________.
A. In both American and Belgium, children hunt for Easter eggs hidden in rooms and in bushes
B. In Belgium, the hidden eggs are thought to have fallen from doorbells
C. In American, children believe the eggs are hidden by the Easter bunny
D. In America, the hidden eggs are supposed to have fallen from doorbells
60. In some places of Austria, children sing from door to door for_______.
A. blesses      B. Easter eggs     C. candy and goodies     D. Easter bunny

I needed to buy a digital camera, one that was simply good at taking good snaps (快照), maybe occasionally for magazines. Being the cautious type, I fancied a reliable brand. So I went on the net, spent 15 minutes reading product reviews on good websites, wrote down the names of three top recommendations and headed for my nearest big friendly camera store. There in the cupboard was one of the cameras on my list. And it was on special offer. Oh joy. I pointed at it and asked an assistant, “Can I have one of those?”? He looked perturbed (不安). “Do you want to try it first?” he said. It didn’t quite sound like a question. “Do I need to?” I replied ,“There is nothing wrong with it？” This made him look a bit insulted and I started to feel bad. “No, no. But you should try it,” he said encouragingly. “Compare it with the others. ”
I looked across at the others: shelves of similar cameras placed along the wall, offering a wide range of slightly different prices and discounts, with each company selling a range of models based around the same basic box. With so many models to choose from, it seemed that I would have to spend hours weighing X against Y, always trying to take Z and possibly H into account at the same time. But when I had finished, I would still have only the same two certainties that I had entered the store with: first, soon after I carried my new camera out of the shop, it would be worth half what I paid for it; and second, my wonderful camera would very quickly be replaced by a new model.
But something in the human soul whispers that you can beat these traps by making the right choice, the clever choice, the wise choice. In the end, I agreed to try the model I had chosen. The assistant seemed a sincere man. So I let him take out of my chosen camera from cupboard, show how it took excellent pictures of my fellow shoppers… and when he started to introduce the special features, I interrupted to ask whether I needed to buy a carry-case and a memory card as well.
Why do we think that new options still offer us anything new? Perhaps it is because they offer an opportunity to avoid facing the fact that our real choices in this culture are far more limited than we would like to imagine.
【小题1】The shop assistant insisted that the writer should________.

We’re surrounded by chemistry in everyday life. Sometimes it is easy to see, like when your science teacher does a big experiment in class. At other times, it can be pretty hard to see everyday chemistry at work, but nearly everything you touch or use has some element of chemistry in it.
Something as simple as toothpaste contains at least three chemicals, if not more. It is the mixture of them and its chemical reaction that keeps your teeth clean. Other things you use every day are created by chemistry, such as hair products, shampoo and soap. Adding detergent (洗涤剂) to water involves chemistry. Without chemistry, we would never have known that we need soap to get the oil out of clothes or skin. Chemistry not only helps us make products for use, but it also helps us understand the world around us. Chemistry helps us understand what the ozone layer (臭氧层) is and how it protects us. Chemistry also gives us sunscreen to protect us from the sun. Thanks to chemistry, we know bleach (漂白剂) can’t be mixed with vinegar(醋), because it can produce poisonous gas.Without chemistry, we wouldn’t have fireworks displays on important days.
Chemistry plays a big role in food preparation. Cooking food causes it to go through a chemical change. That is why cooked food often tastes different from raw food. Baking is a great example of chemistry. Too much or too little of any ingredient（成分，尤指烹饪） makes a difference to the result of baking, for example, the dough (面团) won’t rise or the cake will be flat.
Chemistry isn’t something that just lives in a lab; it’s something that you meet hundreds of times every day. Knowing how chemistry works will give you a greater understanding of the science behind some of the simplest-looking things.
【小题1】What’s the main idea of Paragraph 1?