A few years ago, Paul Gerner began to gather a group of architects in Las Vegas to ask them what it would take to design a public school that used 50 percent less energy, cost much less to build and obviously improved student learning. “I think half of them fell off their chairs,” Gerner says.

Gerner manages school facilities （設(shè)施） for Clark County, Nevada, a district roughly the size of Massachusetts. By 2018, 143,000 additional students will enter the already crowded public-education system. Gerner needs 73 new schools to house them. Four architecture teams have nearly finished designing primary school prototypes （樣品）; they plan to construct their schools starting in 2009. The district will then assess how well the schools perform, and three winners will copy those designs in 50 to 70 new buildings.

Green schools are appearing all over, but in Clark County, which stands out for its vastness, such aggressive targets are difficult because design requirements like more natural light for students go against the realities of a desert climate. “One of the biggest challenges is getting the right site orientation （朝向）,”Mark McGinty, a director at SH Architecture, says. His firm recently completed a high school in Las Vegas. “You have the same building, same set of windows, but if its orientation is incorrect and it faces the sun, it will be really expensive to cool.”

Surprisingly, the man responsible for one of the most progressive green-design competitions has doubts about ideas of eco-friendly buildings. “I don’t believe in the new green religion,” Gerner says. “Some of the building technologies that you get are impractical. I’m interested in those that work.” But he wouldn’t mind if some green features inspire students. He says he hopes to set up green energy systems that allow them to learn about the process of harvesting wind and solar power. “You never know what’s going to start the interest of a child to study math and science,” he says.

How did the architects react to Gerner’s design requirements?

A. They lost balance in excitement.                B. They showed strong disbelief.

C. They expressed little interest.                     D. They burst into cheers.

Which order of steps is followed in carrying out the project?

A. Assessment — Prototype — Design — Construction.

B. Assessment — Design — Prototype — Construction.

C. Design — Assessment — Prototype — Construction.

D. Design — Prototype — Assessment — Construction.

What makes it difficult to build green schools in Clark County?

A. The large size.                                          B. Limited facilities.

C. The desert climate.                                    D. Poor natural resources.

What does Gerner think of the ideas of green schools?

A. They are questionable.                               B. They are out of date.

C. They are advanced.                                    D. They are practical.

A few days ago I asked my sons’ governess（女家庭教師）Julia to come into my study. “Be seated, Julia, ”I said, “Let’s settle our accounts. I guess you most likely need some money, but maybe you’re too polite to mention it. Now then, we agreed on thirty dollars a month...”

　　“Forty.”

　　“No, thirty. I made a note of it. I always pay our governess thirty. Well, um, you’ve been here two months, so...”

　　“Two months and five days.”

　　“Exactly two months. I made a special note of it. That means you have sixty dollars coming to you. Take off nine Sundays... you know you didn’t work with Tom on Sundays, you only took walks. And three holidays... ”Julia was biting her finger nail nervously, her face red, but - not a word.

　　“Three holidays, therefore take off twelve dollars. Four days Tom was sick and there were no lessons, as you were occupied only with Dick. Three days you had a toothache and my wife gave you permission not to work after lunch. Twelve and seven - nineteen. Take nineteen off ... that leaves. hmm.... forty one dollars. Correct？”

　　Julia’s left eye reddened with tears welling up. Her chin trembled; she coughed nervously and blew her nose, but - still not a word.

　　“Around New Year’s Day you broke a teacup and a saucer; take off two dollars. The cup cost more, it was a treasure of the family, but- forget it. When didn’t I take a loss! Then, due to your neglect （疏忽）, Tom climbed a tree and tore his jacket; take away ten. Also due to your carelessness the maid stole Dick’s shoes. You ought to watch everything! You get paid for it. So, that means five more dollars off. The tenth of January I gave ten dollars.”

　　“You didn’t. ”sobbed Julia.

　　“But I made a note of it.”

　　“Well... if you say so.”

　　“Take twenty seven from forty one -that leaves fourteen.”

　　Both her eyes were filled with tears. Beads of sweat stood on the thin pretty little nose. Poor girl!

　　“Only once was I given any money,” she whispered, her voice trembling, “and that was by your wife. Three dollars, nothing more.”

　　“Really? You see now, and I didn’t know that! Take three from fourteen.. leaves eleven. Here’s your money, my dear. Three, three, three, one and one. Here it is !”

　　I handed her eleven dollars. She took them and pocketed them.

　　“Merci （法語(yǔ): 謝謝）,”she whispered.

　　I jumped to my feet and started pacing the room. I was overcome with anger. “For what, this - ‘merci’?” I asked.

　　“For the money. ”

　　“But you know I’ve cheated you - robbed you ! I have actually stolen from you ! Why this‘merci’？”

　　“In my other places they didn’t give me anything at all.”

　　“They didn’t give you anything? No wonder! I played a little joke on you, a cruel lesson, just to teach you... I m going to give you all the eighty dollars! Here they are in the envelope all ready for you... Is it really possible to be so spineless （懦弱）?Why didn’t you protest? Why were you silent? Is it possible in this world to be without teeth and claws（爪）—to be such a fool?”

　　Embarrassed, she smiled. And I could read her expression,“It is possible.”

　　I asked her pardon for the cruel lesson and, to her great surprise, gave her the eighty dollars. She murmured her little“merci”several times and went out. I looked after her and thought,“How easy it is to crush the weak in this world !”

While talking to Julia, the wrier expected from her ________.

　　A. a protest　　　　　　　　　　　B. gratitude

　　C. obedience　　　　　　　　　　 D. an explanation

What shocked the writer was Julia’s ________.

　　A. nervousness in front of her boss

　　B. acceptance of injustice

　　C. shyness when talking about money

　　D. reluctance to express herself

The writer said, “Is it possible in this world to be without teeth and claws?” He was actually telling the governess ________.

　　A. to be more aggressive

　　B. to be more careful in her work

　　C. to protect her right

　　D. to live independently

At the end of the story, the writer said,“ How easy it is to crush the weak in this world!”to show ________.

　　A. his understanding of Julia’s anxiety

　　B. his worry about Julia’s future

　　C. his concern on the living condition of working - class people

　　D. his sympathy for the mental state of those exploited

From the story, we can tell that Julia’s employer was ________.

　　A. greedy but honest

　　B. ill - tempered but warm - hearted

　　C. strict but forgiving

　　D. none of the above

A few years ago, Paul Gerner began to gather a group of architects in Las Vegas to ask them what it would take to design a public school that used 50 percent less energy, cost much less to build and obviously improved student learning. “I think half of them fell off their chairs,” Gerner says.  

Gerner manages school facilities （設(shè)施） for Clark County, Nevada, a district roughly the size of Massachusetts. By 2018, 143,000 additional students will enter the already crowded public-education system. Gerner needs 73 new schools to house them. Four architecture teams have nearly finished designing primary school prototypes （樣品）; they plan to construct their schools starting in 2009. The district will then assess how well the schools perform, and three winners will copy those designs in 50 to 70 new buildings.  

Green schools are appearing all over, but in Clark County, which stands out for its vastness, such aggressive targets are difficult because design requirements like more natural light for students go against the realities of a desert climate. “One of the biggest challenges is getting the right site orientation （朝向）,” Mark McGinty, a director at SH Architecture, says. His firm recently completed a high school in Las Vegas. “You have the same building, same set of windows, but if its orientation is incorrect and it faces the sun, it will be really expensive to cool.”  

Surprisingly, the man responsible for one of the most progressive green-design competitions has doubts about ideas of eco-friendly buildings. “I don’t believe in the new green religion,” Gerner says. “Some of the building technologies that you get are impractical. I’m interested in those that work.” But he wouldn’t mind if some green features inspire students. He says he hopes to set up green energy systems that allow them to learn about the process of harvesting wind and solar power. “You never know what’s going to start the interest of a child to study math and science,” he says.  

63. How did the architects react to Gerner’s design requirements?  

A. They lost balance in excitement.                B. They showed strong disbelief.  

C. They expressed little interest.                     D. They burst into cheers.  

64. Which order of steps is followed in carrying out the project?  

A. Assessment ― Prototype ― Design ― Construction.  

B. Assessment ― Design ― Prototype ― Construction.  

C. Design ― Assessment ― Prototype ― Construction.  

D. Design ― Prototype ― Assessment ― Construction.  

65. What makes it difficult to build green schools in Clark County?  

A. The large size.                                          B. Limited facilities.  

C. The desert climate.                                    D. Poor natural resources.  

66. What does Gerner think of the ideas of green schools?  

A. They are questionable.                               B. They are out of date.  

C. They are advanced.                                   D. They are practical.

A few days ago I got a call from my old college friend whom I haven’t seen for a very long time. The topic, which was about all the good old times that we had changed to a touching story when he started talking about his father.
His father’s declining health made him stay at the hospital. Because of his illness, his father suffered from insomnia (失眠) and often talked to himself. My friend, who had not been able to sleep for a few days as he had to keep watching his father’s condition, became annoyed and told his father to keep silent and try to get some sleep. His father said that he really wanted to sleep well because he was very tired and told my friend to leave him alone in the hospital if he did not want to keep him company.
After his father finished talking, he fell unconscious (失去知覺(jué)). My friend was very sorry for speaking the ill words towards his father. My friend, whom I knew as a tough person, cried as a baby on the other end of the telephone. He said that from that moment on, he prayed every day, asking God to let his father wake up from his coma. He promised himself that whatever words came out from his father’s mouth after he regained his consciousness, he would gladly take them. His only hope for God was to give him a chance to rectify his past mistake.
Often, we complain when we have to accompany or watch over our parents for years, months, days, hours or even minutes. But do we realize that our parents keep us company and watch over us for as long as we (or they) live? From the day we were born to our adulthood, and even when deaths come to us, they are always at our side.
Imagine how sad our parents will be when they hear a seemingly innocent （天真無(wú)邪的）word of “no” come out from our mouths. We can make promises to ourselves that from now on there will be no more complaints that come out from our mouths when we have to watch over or accompany our parents. No more complaints come out from our mouths when we feel that our parents have treated us like little children. There are so many unlucky ones who have neither fathers nor mothers. They long to have the things that we most complain about, but never have them.
Actually, it takes only a second to think and light the lamp that will bring us to a place where peace is dwelling.
【小題1】Which of the following word can be used to describe the writer’s friend?

A few years ago, Paul Gerner began to gather a group of architects in Las Vegas to ask them what it would take to design a public school that used 50 percent less energy, cost much less to build and obviously improved student learning. “I think half of them fell off their chairs,” Gerner says.
Gerner manages school facilities（設(shè)施）for Clark County, Nevada, a district roughly the size of Massachusetts. By 2018, 143,000 additional students will enter the already crowded public-education system. Gerner needs 73 new schools to house them. Four architecture teams have nearly finished designing primary school prototypes（樣品）; they plan to construct their schools starting in 2009. The district will then assess how well the schools perform, and three winners will copy those designs in 50 to 70 new buildings.
Green schools are appearing all over, but in Clark County, which stands out for its vastness, such aggressive targets are difficult because design requirements like more natural light for students go against the realities of a desert climate. “One of the biggest challenges is getting the right site orientation（朝向）,” Mark McGinty, a director at SH Architecture, says. His firm recently completed a high school in Las Vegas. “You have the same building, same set of windows, but if its orientation is incorrect and it faces the sun, it will be really expensive to cool.”
Surprisingly, the man responsible for one of the most progressive green-design competition has doubts about ideas of eco-friendly buildings. “I don’t believe in the new green religion,” Gerner says. “Some of the building technologies that you get are impractical. I’m interested in those that work.” But he wouldn’t mind if some green features inspire students. He says he hopes to set up green energy systems that allow them to learn about the process of harvesting wind and solar power. “You never know what’s going to start the interest of a child to study math and science,” he says.
45. How did the architects react to Gerner’s design requirements?
A. They lost balance in excitement.                  B. They showed strong disbelief.
C. They expressed little interest.                       D. They burst into cheers.
46. Which order of steps is followed in carrying out the project?
A. Assessment — Prototype — Design — Construction.
B. Assessment — Design — Prototype — Construction.
C. Design — Assessment — Prototype — Construction.
D. Design — Prototype — Assessment — Construction.
47. What makes it difficult to build green schools in Clark County?
A. The large size.                                           B. Limited facilities.
C. The desert climate.                                      D. Poor natural resources.
48. What does Gerner think of the ideas of green schools?
A. They are questionable.                                 B. They are out of date.
C. They are advanced.                                      D. They are practical.