Some recent reports on the death penalty have brought some interesting responses from readers all over the country．Although I really don’t like to make fun of people who oppose the death penalty because they are so sincere, I wish they would come up with some new arguments to replace the worn-out ones．

For example, many said something like this: “Wouldn’t it be better to keep the killers alive so psychiatrists(精神科医生) can study them in order to find out what makes them the way they are?”

It takes the average psychiatrist about five years to figure why a guy wants to stop for two drinks after work and won’t quit smoking．So how long do you think it will take him to determine why somebody with an IQ of 92 decided to murder the little old lady who lives next door? Besides, we have a huge number of killers in our prisons—more than enough to keep all the nation’s psychiatrists busy for the next 20 years．

Another standard is: “The purpose of the law should be to protect society, not to give cruel punishment, such as the death penalty．”

In that case, we should tear down all the prisons and let all the criminals go because most people would consider a long period in prison to be cruel punishment—especially those who are locked up．Even 30 days in the Cook County Prison is no picnic．

And: “What gives society the right to take a life if an individual can’t?” The individuals who make up society give it that right．Societies perform many functions that individuals can’t．We can’t carry guns and shoot people, but we give that right to police．

Words can not explain the suffering the families of murder victims are left to live with．The families suffer a terrible loss, and they live with terrible memories．The knowledge that the killers are alive and will probably remain alive and cared for by society is extremely painful．Probably, people who oppose the death penalty should try explaining to these people how cruel it is to kill someone．

72．What’s the writer’s attitude towards death penalty?

A．Death penalty is a must.        

B．Death penalty doesn’t solve all the problems.

C．Death penalty should be practiced more carefully.

D．Death penalty should only be used on murderers.

73．How many arguments against death penalty are discussed in the passage?

A．Two                              B．Three                            C．Four                              D．Five

74．What does the last sentence of the text suggest?

       A．It’s cruel to use death penalty to kill someone.

       B．Murder victims need more comfort from the society.

       C．Opponents of death penalty should offer explanations.

       D．Murderers should be put to death as the punishment.

75．The author develops the passage by _______．

A．providing typical examples of death penalty 

B．following the natural time order

C．presenting and analyzing ideas                           

D．comparing opinions from different fields

Directions: Read the following text and choose the most suitable heading from A-F for each paragraph. There is one extra heading which you do not need.

Every night, for about 90 minutes, we drift into a strange, shadowy, magical world of our own creation. Poets, writers, artists and even scientists have found inspiration in their “dreamland”. Dreams are a message from the subconscious, a way of tapping your inner self. Keep a note pad and pen by your bedside, and as soon as you wake, note down whatever snatches of dreams you can recall. Dreams can solve your problems, give you advice, reveal your true feelings, and be a source of inspiration.

What are you aware of right now? Look at a familiar object in the room as if seeing it for the first time — explore it with your eyes. Next, listen intently to any sounds you can hear. What can you smell and taste at this moment? Touch whatever is within reach, run your hand over and around it — how does it feel? During the next few weeks activate all your senses. Visit an art gallery, walk in a pine forest, luxuriate in a second bubble bath, go to a concert, swim, have a massage. Try to experience it all as if it were totally new to you.

If you’re right-handed, develop the skills of your left hand or vice versa — allow it to draw something, switch TV channels or drink a cup of tea. Try this exercise: write a list of ten adjectives which characterize your personality using the hand you usually write with. A few days later, repeat the exercise writing with the other hand. Then compare the two lists. You might be surprised at the secrets of your inner self! For example, on the first list you might have written that you’re “witty”, but the second list might say “suspicious”. Then try a similar exercise, making two lists of “What I would most like to do”.

79.

Have you ever longed to paint portraits or watercolors, write a novel, draw cartoons, compose a song, design your own clothes, set up a business or landscape your garden? If so, why not start now? Yes, you might discover that your fast efforts are laughable — but try, try again. With a few notable exceptions such as Mozart, most people haven’t developed their creative talents through sheer hard work. Don’t kid yourself that you haven’t any spare time. It’s a question of making time, of seeing your talents as important enough to devote a few hours to each week. Who knows — you might be the next Laura Ashley or Agatha Christie?

Forget about being told off for daydreaming at school. Daydreaming is good for you! Whether it’s a purely fantasy, or a dream about how life might be in the future, only the right-brain has visions of this kind. Creative visualization, vividly imagining whatever you desire as if it has already happened — and really believing in it, is said to be a powerful way of getting what you want. Many top sports people imagine themselves playing and winning — and it seems to work.

Directions: Read the following text and choose the most suitable heading from the list A-F for each paragraph. There is one extra heading which you do not need.

1.

Every night, for about 90 minutes, we drift into a strange, shadowy, magical world of our own creation. Poets, writers, artists and even scientists have found inspiration in their “dreamland”. Dreams are a message from the subconscious, a way of tapping your inner self. Keep a note pad and pen by your bedside, and as soon as you wake, note down whatever snatches of dreams you can recall. Dreams can solve your problems, give you advice, reveal your true feelings, and be a source of inspiration.

2.

What are you aware of right now? Look at a familiar object in the room as if seeing it for the first time — explore it with your eyes. Next, listen intently to any sounds you can hear. What can you smell and taste at this moment? Touch whatever is within reach, run your hand over and around it — how does it feel? During the next few weeks activate all your senses. Visit an art gallery, walk in a pine forest, luxuriate in a second bubble bath, go to a concert, swim, have a massage. Try to experience it all as if it were totally new to you.

3.

If you’re right-handed, develop the skills of your left hand or vice versa — allow it to draw something, switch TV channels or drink a cup of tea. Try this exercise: write a list of ten adjectives which characterize your personality using the hand you usually write with. A few days later, repeat the exercise writing with the other hand. Then compare the two lists. You might be surprised at the secrets of your inner self! For example, on the first list you might have written that you’re “witty”, but the second list might say “suspicious”. Then try a similar exercise, making two lists of “ What I would most like to do”.

4.

Have you ever longed to paint portraits or watercolors, write a novel, draw cartoons, compose a song, design your own clothes, set up a business or landscape your garden? If so, why not start now? Yes, you might discover that your fast efforts are laughable — but try, try again. With a few notable exceptions such as Mozart, most people haven’t developed their creative talents through sheer hard work. Don’t kid yourself that you haven’t any spare time. It’s a question of making time, of seeing your talents as important enough to devote a few hours to each week. Who knows — you might be the next Laura Ashley or Agatha Christie?

5.

Forget about being told off for daydreaming at school. Daydreaming is good for you! Whether it’s a purely fantasy, or a dream about how life might be in the future, only the right-brain has visions of this kind. Creative visualization, vividly imagining whatever you desire as if it has already happened — and really believing in it, is said to be a powerful way of getting what you want. Many top sports people imagine themselves playing and winning — and it seems to work.

Everyone knows you must exercise regularly to keep good health. Indeed, staying physically fit is a big part of our culture. we consider（or rightly so）that healthy people are attractive people. Since most of us want to be attractive, there is no shortage of exercise clubs, training videos, magazines and books offering to help us stay physically fit.

    Unfortunately, however, our culture doesn’t place the same emphasis（强调） on mental fitness. Although we tend to like men and women with strong, healthy-looking bodies, we don’t have the same degree of respect or attraction for smart, educated, mentally healthy people. This is a pity, because there are great rewards for people who have developed the ability to think well.

    If your mind is well trained and flexible(灵活的), you will be able to understand a great deal of what happens around you. And if you are also well educated — that is, if you understand basic science, mathematics, music, art, literature, history and so on — you will find it much easier to make good decisions throughout your life. Over the long run(时期), this leads to a sense of control over your destiny （命运）and a much better life than otherwise(in another way).

People who are poorly educated or who don’t think well — that is, people who are not mentally fit — see things differently. Their world is controlled by mysterious, often malevolent（恶意的）forces. Such people live within a system they will never master, forced to follow rules they will never understand. Although it may not be obvious, most spend their lives being manipulated（控制）by others. They are told what to do, what to think, how to spend their money, and what they should and should not aspire（渴望）to in life.

    In my opinion, if you want to live well, you must be able to use your mind well. For this reason, I want you to be able to concentrate, to solve problems, to understand complex （复杂的）ideas, and to think clearly and quickly. Such skills will make it easier for you to make informed decisions, understand current events, choose good friends, manage your money well, make wise lone-term decisions and appreciate music, art and literature.

    The key to developing such skills is to enjoy learning, and to have the ability and motivation to teach yourself.

1. The writer of the passage feel disappointed that ____.

    A. too little has been done to help people to keep physically fit

    B. too much has been done to help people to keep physically fit

    C. mentally healthy people are not as popular as physically healthy people

    D. physically healthy people are not as popular as mentally healthy people

2. The underlined word “this” in the 3rd paragraph means ____.

    A. the understanding of a great deal of what goes on around you

    B. the understanding of basic science and mathematics

    C. good training in body and mind

    D. being able to make good decisions in life

3. The writer of this passage thinks those who are not mentally fit ____.

A. live a poor and mysterious life                    

B. can’t control over their life

C. often do what others do                              

D. enjoy being fooled and ruled

4. The best title of the passage will most probably be ____.

    A. Train Your Body                                              B. Train Your Mind  

C. Make Informed Decisions                           D. Think Hard and Work Hard

Everyone knows you must exercise regularly to keep good health. Indeed, staying physically fit is a big part of our culture. we consider（or rightly so）that healthy people are attractive people. Since most of us want to be attractive, there is no shortage of exercise clubs, training videos, magazines and books offering to help us stay physically fit.

    Unfortunately, however, our culture doesn’t place the same emphasis（强调） on mental fitness. Although we tend to like men and women with strong, healthy-looking bodies, we don’t have the same degree of respect or attraction for smart, educated, mentally healthy people. This is a pity, because there are great rewards for people who have developed the ability to think well.

    If your mind is well trained and flexible(灵活的), you will be able to understand a great deal of what happens around you. And if you are also well educated — that is, if you understand basic science, mathematics, music, art, literature, history and so on — you will find it much easier to make good decisions throughout your life. Over the long run(时期), this leads to a sense of control over your destiny （命运）and a much better life than otherwise(in another way).

People who are poorly educated or who don’t think well — that is, people who are not mentally fit — see things differently. Their world is controlled by mysterious, often malevolent（恶意的）forces. Such people live within a system they will never master, forced to follow rules they will never understand. Although it may not be obvious, most spend their lives being manipulated（控制）by others. They are told what to do, what to think, how to spend their money, and what they should and should not aspire（渴望）to in life.

    In my opinion, if you want to live well, you must be able to use your mind well. For this reason, I want you to be able to concentrate, to solve problems, to understand complex （复杂的）ideas, and to think clearly and quickly. Such skills will make it easier for you to make informed decisions, understand current events, choose good friends, manage your money well, make wise lone-term decisions and appreciate music, art and literature.

    The key to developing such skills is to enjoy learning, and to have the ability and motivation to teach yourself.

1. The writer of the passage feel disappointed that ____.

    A. too little has been done to help people to keep physically fit

    B. too much has been done to help people to keep physically fit

    C. mentally healthy people are not as popular as physically healthy people

    D. physically healthy people are not as popular as mentally healthy people

2. The underlined word “this” in the 3rd paragraph means ____.

    A. the understanding of a great deal of what goes on around you

    B. the understanding of basic science and mathematics

    C. good training in body and mind

    D. being able to make good decisions in life

3. The writer of this passage thinks those who are not mentally fit ____.

A. live a poor and mysterious life            

B. can’t control over their life

C. often do what others do                             

D. enjoy being fooled and ruled

4. The best title of the passage will most probably be ____.

    A. Train Your Body                                B. Train Your Mind  

C. Make Informed Decisions                    D. Think Hard and Work Hard