My grandmother Adele loved culture and was generous with its gifts. When I was a child, she took me to museums, restaurants, dances. She showered me with gifts from her travels around the world. But I can only remember her giving me one book—a book that, to this day, I have not read. She presented me with her own favorite childhood book: Hans Brinker. My grandmother was happy to share this book with me. She even decorated the title page with her proud writing.
I tried to read it. I adored reading, and would dive into a new pile of books from the library all at once. But something about Hans Brinker just wouldn’t let me in. The story was set in Holland, a long time ago. It felt dull and unfamiliar—even though I was a fan of classics of other times and places. I simply read the first pages over and over. I could not progress.
Standing on a bookshelf in our living room, the book was like something I avoided. It scolded me for not being interested, for not trying hard enough, for disappointing my grandmother.
The book started to fit in, almost forgotten, until Adele asked. Had I read it? Did I like it? Always determined, she wanted to know the answer. I would make some kind of excuse, feel bad, and open it again, hoping for a new reaction. The book weighed on me.
Years passed and finally Adele and I both accepted that I would never read Hans Brinker. Eventually I cleared the book from the shelf. The Hans Brinker experience led me to set a rule that I’ve lived by ever since: Do not ask about a book given as a gift. Don’t ask, despite your desire to discuss it to grow closer. The desire for such connection is what gives book-giving with special meaning—and increases the owner’s possibility to be a letdown.
Guilt is basically the same as for all gifts, though. If the giver doesn’t have the pleasure of seeing or hearing about the gift being enjoyed, and asks whether it is, then the owner—unless she can truthfully say “yes”—either has to admit to not liking the present, or else lie on the spot. Neither is pleasant. So, don’t ask.
小題1: When the author was a kid, his grandmother ________.

A．took him to travel around the world a lot

B．loved to take him to museums and stores

C．shared her childhood stories with him

D．gave him many gifts

小題2:What does the author think about the book his grandmother gave him?

A．Boring.

B．Interesting.

C．Puzzling.

D．Disappointing.

小題3:The underlined sentence “The book weighed on me” in Paragraph 4 probably means _______.

A．the book is too heavy for the author to carry

B．the author feels stressful facing the book

C．the book is full of powerful viewpoints

D．the author keeps reading the book

小題4:. The author learns from the Hans Brinker’s experience that never________.

A．give others books as gifts

B．lie to people who give you gifts

C．get close to others through gifts

D．talk about the books given as gifts

It has become the modern substitute of glancing at your watch—the furtive(偷偷的)look at a phone screen to check for new messages or have a quick look at Facebook．Researchers have now found why we often feel such a strong urge to glance at our handset．Using your mobile，they say，is easily affected by other people．
A University of Michigan team say people are twice as likely to pull out their phones to check their messages or emails if they’re with someone who has just done the same．It also found that females were more likely to use their mobile than men because it was more ‘consistent’ with the daily lives of women．
The team watched students in dining halls and coffee shops around campus，observing pairs of students sitting at tables for as long as 20 minutes and recorded their cellphone use at 1 0-second intervals．
“What we found most interesting was just how often people were using their mobile phones，” Dr Daniel Kruger， the study’s co-author, said．“Every person we observed used his／her phone at least once while one woman was on hers about half of the time．You may see others checking their incoming messages and be encouraged to check your own．’’
Overall，the students used their cellphones in an average of 24 percent，the researchers found．But they were significantly more likely to use their phones(39．5 percent)when their companion had just done so in the previous 10-second interval than without the social clue，the researchers said，adding that this behavior was often repeated．
Cell phones create an alternative way for one’s attention and may both promote and interrupt ongoing social activities，the researchers wrote．
Kruger believes this pattern could be related to the effects of social acceptance and rejection．If one person in a pair engages in another conversation through their phone，his or her companion may feel rejected．That companion then might be forced to connect with others from outside so as not to feel left out．
小題1:People’s strong desire to check their messages partly results from ___________．

A．the modern substitute of their watches

B．the new messages of their handsets

C．the same behavior of other people

D．the update service of Facebook

小題2:Why do women use their phones more frequently?

A．They want to show off their modern mobiles．

B．They are more likely to be influenced by others．

C．They try to set a good example for others．

D．They desire to meet the demands of society．

小題3:How might one feel when his companion is busy checking messages?

A．Relaxed．	B．Ashamed．
C．Surprised．	D．Ignored．

小題4: The underlined part“this behavior” in Paragraph 5 refers to _______________．

A．using the cellphones	B．receiving social clues
C．joining in activities	D．engaging in conversations

小題5:Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?

A．Social Acceptance And Rejection

B．Females Use Mobiles More than Men

C．How Do People Check Messages?

D．Cellphone Use Is Spreading

     I work in a busy Emergency Room( E. R. ) .  This weekend, I had a patient who was very nervousand paranoid.
After looking at his chart, I saw that he was seeking treatment for alcoholism. There is an immediate prejudice against substance abuse in my E. R. One -we do not have a detox(戒酒) facility.The people seeking treatment for addiction are sometimes looked down on as being less worthy of treatment  than  other  serious  physical  " ailments" .
At first glance, I found out that the man was now somewhere in his mid-thirties, was very weak and had a generally aggressive character. He could not sit still and had a cough. He had not had a drink in four days. His hands were shaking and there was a scared look in his eyes.
He told me that he began drinking about age 11 when his mother supplied him with it. He had tried to quit many times before but had not been able to." So .  what's different this time ?"I asked.
"Because I'm starting to be mean to the people I love, but now I don't want to be.  I ca:n see that  I'm changing into something else. "
That answer helped change my attitude toward him. I could see the pain behind his eyes. Behind the appearance, there was a terrified person whose goodness was being claimed by the alcohol. He  was desperate for help, but not so sure that his condition could be changed.
I, thank this man for showing me that the goodness is dressed in all sorts of disguises(偽裝) . Sometimes we have to undress it. It's worth doing. My patient was admitted to the hospital for help ,despite us not having a detox facility.
小題1: What does the underlined word " ailments" me

A． build

B． energy

C．illness

D． ability

小題2: How long has the man been drinking?

A．20 years

B． 11 years

C． Over 30 years

D． Over 20 years

小題3:From the passage we know that___ .

A．The patient was refused mainly for the hospital's lack of equipment

B．The patient once didn't want to treat the people he loved kindly

C．The patient was strong and brave at first glance

D．The patient once succeeded in giving up drinking alcohol

小題4:What conclusion can we draw from the passage?

A．Where there is a will, there's a way.

B．A friend in need is a friend indeed.

C． Never judge a book by its cover.

D．Good is rewarded with good.

     Fortunately, I've been able to avoid the traffic jam brought by presidential visits because ! don't have to commute anywhere. Barack Obama visited Los Angeles recently which paralyzed large sections of a city and you could almost hear the collective pain of unhappy commuters.
I am among the l0 percent of people in the US that regularly work from home. You could include Obama among them, although I suspect his working area in the White House is better-equipped than my small space on to the back of the garage. He also probably doesn't have a problem with three little kids interrupting his phone calls or bursting into his office at inappropriate moments.
Every day there they are, knocking on my window and peering inside, as if looking at an animal in a zoo. Once, a telephone interview I was doing with the former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was interrupted by my older son, then three years old, and completely naked "Ahaaar!" he shouted to my face. "What was that?" said Schwarzenegger. I stammered(結巴地說出) something about the joys of children and silently managed to shoo the boy out of the room without putting down the phone.
I shouldn't complain. I no longer have to stand having someone's armpit(腋窩) being pressed into my face on a crowded train and home status means ! should be a more productive worker although working from home could also lead to "avoiding duties from home". I would argue that a bigger problem is going nuts: Staring at the same walls every day and not going anywhere can do strange things to a person.
I realized I had to get out of the house at least once a day to avoid turning into an unshaven and unshoweredrecluse(隱士) who was still in his pyjamas at dinner time. I would work for an hour or so in a local coffee shop but, like most routine, this became boring because I would constantly see the same faces: Screenwriters poring over screenplays, elderly women heading to the yoga studio next door and hordes of overweight middle-aged male cycling by.
And yet here I am several years later, still working from home consciously and, I'm happy to report, not sitting at my desk in my pyjamas. Not since last Tuesday, anyway.
小題1:The author may agree that __

A．it's a bad decision to work from home

B．presidential visits bring inconvenience to the locals

C．if a person wants to be more productive, he must work from home

D．the former California governor was angry at the interruption during the interview

小題2:The incident of three-year-old son is described to prove that___

A．working from home has some drawbacks

B．working from home is a pleasant experience

C．Barack Obama has better working conditions than the author

D．it's unfortunate for the author to have a naughty boy

小題3: The reason why the author goes to the coffee shop is that __

A．he wants to get familiar with the people around

B．he doesn't like working in his pyjamas at home

C．he becomes bored with being a commuter

D．he needs some changes to get relaxation

小題4:The whole passage suggests that __

A．the author has to work from home

B．any routine definitely means boredom

C．the author is a humorous person

D．working from home contributes to avoiding duties

I had an experience once which taught me something about the ways people made a bad situation worse by blaming themselves. One January, I officiated(主持) at two funerals for two elderly women. Both died a natural death. At the first home, the son of the deceased(已故) woman said, “If only I had sent my mother to Florida and gotten her out of this cold and snow, she would be alive today. It’s my fault that she died.” At the second home, the son said, “If only I had not insisted her going to Florida, she would be alive today. That long airplane ride was more than she could take. It is my fault.”
When things don’t turn out as we would like them to, we tend to assume that had we done things differently, the story would have had a happier ending. Any time there is a death, the survivors will feel guilty. Because the course of action they took turned out bad, they believe that the opposite course, for example, keeping mother at home, would have turned out better. After all, how could it have turned out any worse?
There seem to be elements involved in our readiness to feel guilty. The first lies in our belief that the world makes sense——there is a reason for everything that happens.   
The second is the thought that we are the cause of what happens, especially the bad things that happen. The roots of this feeling may lie in our childhood. A baby comes to think that the world exists to meet his needs, and that he makes everything happen in it. He wakes up in the morning and calls the rest of the world to its tasks. He cries, and someone comes to attend to him. When he is hungry, people feed him, and when he is wet, people change him. Very often, we do not completely abandon that childish thought that our wishes cause things to happen.
小題1: What is true about the two deceased elderly women?

A．They died from accidents.

B．They both died of old age.

C．They died due to lack of care by family members.

D．They weren’t accustomed to the change in life.

小題2: People feel guilty for the death of their loved ones because______.

A．they cannot find a better way to express their sorrow

B．they don’t know that natural course of events

C．they believe that it is their fault

D．they don’t know things often turn out in the opposite direction

小題3:People have believed since early childhood that   .

A． everybody is at their command

B． life and death is an unsolved mystery

C． every story should have a happy ending

D． their wishes are the cause of everything that happens

小題4: What is the main idea of this passage?

A． Two sons blamed themselves for their mother's death.

B． Things don't always go well as we expect.

C． Two factors account for guilty sense.

D．Baby's wishes lead everything to happen.

The cash machine is 47 years old, but where was the birthplace of this world-beating invention? New York? Tokyo? No. The first ever cash machine was born in Enfield Town, north London. It was a Scottish inventor, John shepherd Barron, who realized the concept of a self-service machine that could be used 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to withdraw cash from one’s own bank account. It struck the inventor while he was in the bath. He hit upon the idea of a chocolate bar dispenser, replacing chocolate with cash.
On September 2 in 1969, America’s first automatic teller machine (ATM) appeared in public, giving out cash to customers at Chemical Bank, New York. It was only able to give out cash, but in 1971, an ATM that could handle many functions, including depositing(存款) money, was introduced. Today there are over one million ATMs around the world, with a new one added every five minutes. It is reported that Americans over the age of 18 use their ATM card six to eight times a mouth. Not surprisingly, ATMs get their busiest workouts on Fridays. In the 1990s, banks began charging fees to use ATMs, a profitable move for them and an annoying one for consumers.
Consumers were also faced with an increase in ATM crimes. Robbers preyed(搶奪) on people using money machines in poorly lit or otherwise unsafe locations, and criminals also thought up ways to steal customers’ PINs (personal identification numbers), even setting up fake money machines to capture the information. In response, city and state governments passed laws such as New York’s ATM Safety Act in 1996, which required banks to install such things as surveillance cameras (監(jiān)控攝像頭), reflective mirrors and locked entryways for their ATMs. 
小題1:What does the underlined word, “It”, in the first paragraph, probably refer to?

A．The opening time of the bank.

B．The concept of an ATM.

C．Ordinary banking service.

D．The act of withdrawing cash.

小題2: Which of the following is true about ATM?

A．It appeared earlier than the chocolate bar dispenser.

B．It was invented by a Scottish man in 1971.

C．It was at first free of charge for its consumers.

D．It was originally designed to deposit money.

小題3: What can we learn from the text? "

A． Americans under the age of 18 are not allowed to have an ATM card.

B． People are more likely to turn to ATMs for banking service on Fridays.

C． Criminals usually choose unsafe locations to steal customers' PINs.

D． The ATM crime rate in New York is much lower than that in other state

小題4: Which of the following might be the best title for the text?

A． How to Operate on an ATM

B． What is Waiting for ATMs in the Future?

C． The First ATM Opened for Business

D．The Unknown Truth about ATM

This the best time and this the worst time；this is the time of great material richness and this is the time of desert of soul．Everyone seems to be rushing around for something but they have never fulfilled they dream．Everyone tries to seek happiness but it seems to be nowhere to be found．
When asked“what on earth can make you happy?”，most modern man would give similar replies such as becoming extremely wealthy，or getting promoted in work and then becoming very wealthy．When asked“what will you do with your wealth?”，they would make a long list of things they have been longing for．However haven’t you noticed the multibillionaires are not as happy as we common guys suppose them to be?Haven’t you noticed that the multibillionaire celebrities don’t even enjoy the fundamental freedom of going shopping with their own families without being followed by annoying paparazzi?
If we hinge our happiness on such big issues，we are bound to be unhappy all through our  life, because those big issues might just occur to us once in a blue moon.
As Socrates once put it，“He is the richest who is content with the least，for content is the wealth of nature”．But how can we “be content with the least”?If you pay due attention，our life is loaded with little joys，sometime too little to be noticeable．Stop once in a while in your rush to your destination，look around and you will see that there are always little things worth cheering for. You got an“A”in a test．Good!You listened to all inspiring lecture．Great!You offered a helping hand to someone who had a flat tire! Amazing! Your dream girl／boy greeted you with a sweet smile!Fantastic!And so on and so forth!Let’s cheer for the little joys in life!
Please keep in mind that never should we wait to be happy!
小題1:What is the best title of the text?

A．Money means happiness．	B．Happiness is all around us．
C．Dreams make our life rich．	D．Satisfaction is unacceptable．

小題2:According to the text，which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．Money doesn’t necessarily bring happiness．

B．Desire for wealth makes people unhappy．

C．Great occasions are worth celebrating．

D．We should ignore little joys in our life．

小題3:What does the underlined phrase in the third paragraph probably mean?

A．Rarely．

B．Regularly．

C．Normally．

D．Frequently．

小題4:According to Socrates，people who are“content with the least”are ___________.

A．greedy

B．ambitious

C．optimistic

D．reliable

小題5:In the fourth paragraph，the author suggests that we should ___________.

A．set up great goals in life	B．make full use of opportunities
C．enjoy even moment in life	D．seek significant issues in life

Many people cannot start their day without first having a cup of coffee or tea．These drinks help them think clearly and feel more awake．This is because of caffeine，which helps to give a jump start to the nervous system．Now，a report says it may also boost long-term memory．
Mike Yassa is a neurobiology professor．He and other researchers wanted to know if caffeine could improve a person’s memory．He explains，“After you learn anything，it takes some time for that memory to strengthen．And over the first 24 hours is actually where most of   the forgetting happens．So that is where we wanted to intervene with caffeine and see if we can help reduce this forgetting．”  
They took 160 caffeine-free people and showed them pictures of everyday objects. These people were asked if the objects could be found inside the house， or outdoors．Then some of the subjects were given a caffeine pill．The others were given a placebo—a pill containing nothing. 24 hours later，the subjects were shown the exact same images from the day before．They were also shown images with slight differences，and some completely new images. Both groups correctly identified the exact same and completely new pictures．But those who took the caffeine pill were better at spottingthe pictures that were slightly different．
Professor Yassa says their answers helped to show the effects of caffeine on memory. And  we find that if they are on caffeine they are much more likely to make the right decision．”
The amount of caffeine the researchers used in the study was similar to one cup of strong coffee．The researchers did not see any improvement to memory from smaller doses of caffeine or when it was given an hour before viewing the images．
小題1:What is the focus of the text?   

A．Caffeine can make people addicted．

B．Caffeine can make people energetic.

C．Caffeine can improve long—term memory．

D．Caffeine can make people feel comfortable．

小題2:What does the third paragraph mainly talk about?

A．How the experiment was conducted．

B．Who took part in the experiment．

C．Which group of subjects did better．

D．What was used in the experiment．

小題3:In which section of a magazine can we read this text?

A．Culture．

B．Technology．

C．Health.

D．Education.

小題4:Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．Most forgetting occurs within the first 24 hours．

B．Forgetting can be positively affected by caffeine．

C．The subjects were given different pills．

D．Yassa was disappointed with the result．

小題5:What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．More caffeine means better memory．

B．Smaller doses of caffeine doesn’t work．

C．The time to take cafieine doesn’t matter．

D．Caffeine is taken before the experiment．

Have you got some paper, a pair of scissors and, above all, a desire to decorate your house? Then, we have the perfect holiday artwork for you: Make Star Wars snowflakes (雪花). Remembered as a cherished form of work in classrooms before the holidays, paper snowflakes have drawn many people's attention again.

The designer, Anthony Herrera, just recently released his 2013 collection. "The Star Wars snowflake designs began as just doing designs of characters that I and my daughter wanted to make three years ago," Herrera told us in an email. "The second year I introduced vehicles, and this year I decided to push further by designing battle scenes."
Sometimes, he feels a bit bored with his job. With each year, the designs have got more detailed and various, but the process of creating them remained the same: sketching figures on paper with a pencil until a symmetrical (對稱）pattern comes out, then scanning the designs and cut them with scissors. However, he says he has plenty of ideas for new flakes next year, so no two will ever be the same. Hopefully with Star Wars: Episode VII coming in 2015 he'll have even more work in the future.
Check out your favorite finished versions of Herrera’s flakes (from both 2013 and previous years) and download the pictures beneath them and then get down to creating your own work. A warning: Most designs aren't for the casual flake-maker, so patience you must have.
小題1: Making paper snowflakes draws many people's attention probably because ______.

A．it is a traditional form of decoration	B．it is a course of artwork in school
C．it is a way of killing time in holiday	D．it is designed by Anthony Herrera

小題2: From the text, we know that Herrera ______.

A．can make snowflakes with his daughter's help

B．made more complicated designs before 2013

C．introduced paper vehicles in 2011

D．will make a great variety of detailed paper flakes

小題3: Herrera is fed up with the job sometimes because ______

A．he has to design detailed and different patterns

B．he has to follow the fixed process of paper cutting

C．he spends much time designing, scanning and cutting

D．he has few ideas for what the next designs will be like

小題4: By writing the last paragraph, the author tries to ______.

A．offer us more information about Herrera’s paper cutting

B．tell us how to download picture of snowflakes

C．instruct people to be a real creative artist

D．remind us of being patient with Herrera’s designs

    Smoggy weather has become common in China. But these days, air pollution levels in the north eastern city of Harbin surpassed the previous record levels.
The city was essentially shut down after PM2. 5, fine Particulate(微粒物) pollution that is considered hazardous(有害的) . reached levels of 1000 micrograms per cubic meter-40 times the safety level remended by the World Health Organization. Schools, motorways and an airport were closed on Tuesday as visibility in some areas of the city dropped to less than 10 meters.
Photos from Harbin showed residents covering their mouths with masks and scarves, and moving like ghostly shadows through the fog. Cars and motorcycles are moving slowly as traffic came to a standstill with traffic lights barely visible. .
Just days previously , the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)  classified air pollution as a carcinogen(致癌物) .  It stated that there  is  " sufficient evidence" that exposure to outdoor air pollution causes lung cancer and also linked it with an increased risk of bladder cancer.  It's said that exposure has increased significantly particularly in " rapidly industrial countries with large populations".
"The air we breathe has become polluted with a mixture of cancer-causing substances" , Dr Kurt Straif , head of the IARC said in a press released.  "We now know that outdoor air pollution is not only a major risk to health in general, but also a leading environmental cause of cancer deaths. "
On the Chinese social media site Weibo , many users complained about the pollution and shared their concerns. References to "feed people with smog "have become popular on Weibo and there is a sarcastic play on the expression "serve the people" , as the two have a similar pronunciation.
"The impact of air pollution on people will be gradual. There won't be a sudden outbreak of symptoms, but normally three to five days after the smoggy weather occurs, there is a peak in the number of people seeing doctors, " Deng Ying,  a doctor at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University was quoted as saying.
小題1: As thick smog has become a common scene in Harbin, ______

A．students there can go to school as usual

B．residents in the city can see as far as 20 meters

C．traffic lights can be easily visible

D．the urban traffic has been seriously influenced

小題2: When exposed to outdoor air pollution, what kind of disease can be caused?

A．Cancer of stomach

B．Breast cancer

C．Bladder cancer

D．Ovarian cancer

小題3: According to Dr Kurt Straif , we can learn that_______.

A． the effect of the. smoggy weather is gradual

B． air pollution is the man environmental cause, of cancer deaths

C．exposure has greatly increased in countries with large populations

D．"feed people with smog" has bee a hot word

小題4: The purpose of this passage is to

A．awaken people's environmental awareness

B．warn people not to go out in smoggy weather

C．call for the public to wear their masks

D．advise people not to live in Harbin