5、My House

       My mother moved a lot when she was growing up on account of Grandpa being in the army．She hated having to adjust to new schools and make new friends．That’s why I thought she was joking when she put forward the idea of moving．But she was completely serious．“For just the two of us,” my mother said, “an apartment in the city will suit our needs much better．” Personally, I think she’s lost her mind．I guess I can understand why she would want to move, but what about me and what this house means to me?

       I suppose if you looked at my house, you might think it was just another country house．But to me it is anything but standard．I moved into this house with my parents ten years ago．I can still remember that first day like it was yesterday．The first thing I noticed was the big front yard．To me it seemed like an ocean of grass—I couldn’t wait to dive in．The backyard was full of gnarled （扭曲的, 粗糙的） and scary trees that talk on windy nights．But I grew to like them and the shadows they cast in my room．My father and I even built a small tree house, where I often go to remember all the wonderful times we had before Father’s death．

       This house is special—maybe only to me—but special nevertheless．It’s the little seemingly insignificant things that make this house so special to me: the ice-cold tile floors that make me tremble on midnight snack runs; the smell of my father’s pipe that still exists; the towering bookcases of my mother; the view outside my bedroom window．

       This house holds too many memories, memories which would be lost if we gave it up．

1．Why did the author’s mother decide to move?

       A．Because she hated the countryside．

       B．Because Grandpa was on constant move．

       C．Because Dad’s death made her lose her mind．

       D．Because she thought a city flat more fit for them．

2．What impressed the author when she first moved into the house?

       A．The tree house．                                 B．The big trees．

       C．The cold floors．                                D．The green grass．

3．How did the author let us feel that the house was special to her?

       A．By arguing whether the house was standard．

       B．By explaining why the house suited their needs．

       C．By describing the small things related to her house．

       D．By comparing the differences between country and city life．

4．My mother moved a lot when she was growing up because of   ________．

       A．Grandpa being in the army．                B．their family’s liking moving

       C．the life’s need                           D．Mother’s work

4、Summer Holiday Fun 2010!

       The summer holidays are upon us again Here is our guide to summer holiday fun in Peterborough!

       Peterborough Museum

       The Age of the Dinosaurs’is the museum’s main attraction this summer．Get up close to prehistoric creatures via some great hands—on exhibits! Watch out for monsters lurking around every ember! The museum is open from 10：00am to 5：00pm Monday to Saturday，and from 12：00pm to 4：00 pm on Sundays in August．

       Call 01733 864663 for details

       Saxon Youth Club

       School holiday fun：Young people aged 13—19 will be able to produce their own music, compete in spots activities，or try their hand at cooking at Saxon Youth Club，Saxon Community Centre, Norman Road．Peterborough every Monday and Wednesday from 3：00pm．PLUS an aero ball tournament will take place on Thursday 12th August between 3：30pm and 6：30pm．

       Call 01 353 720274 for details

       Houghton Mill

       Alice through the Looking Class—a new production of the family favorite on Monday 30th．August．Bring rugs or chairs to sit on and a picnic if you wish to eat during the play．Gates open 5：30pro，performance 6：30pm—8：30pm．Tea room will be open until end of the interval．Adult ￡10．Child￡7．Family ￡20．

       Booking advisable on 0845 4505157．

       Farmland Museum and Denny Abbey

       Farmland Gaines：From Wellie Wanging to Pretend Ploughing matches，come and join the Farmland Team．Collect your sporting stickers and create a colorful rosette that is fit for a winner！No need to book，just turn up between 12：00pm and 4：00pm on Thursday 19th August Suitable for children aged four and above，each child should be accompanied by an adult and all activities are included in the normal admission price Tickets Cost￡7 per child．

       For further information，call 01223 810080．

1．If you are interested in cooking, you can go to          ．

       A．Peterborough Museum                      B．Houghton Mill

       C．Saxon Youth Club                               D．Farmland Museum

2．You want to watch the new play with your parents，so it will cost you            ．

       A．￡7                  B．￡17                C．￡27                  D．￡20

3．Which of the following activities needs parents’ company?

       A．Playing farmland games                     B．Watching a new play．

       C．Competing in spots activities．             D．Visiting the dinosaur exhibition．

4．If Tom comes to Peterborough for amusement on August 19，he will have ____ activities to choose from for himself．

       A．one activity                                      B．two activities

       C．three activities                                    D．four activities

3、Habits are a funny thing．We reach for them mindlessly, setting our brains on auto-pilot and relaxing into the unconscious comfort of familiar routine．“Not choice, but habit rules the unreflecting creatures,” William Wordsworth said in the 19th century．In the ever-changing 21st century, even the word “habit” carries a negative meaning．

       So it seems contradictory to talk about habits in the same context as innovation （創(chuàng)新）．But brain researchers have discovered that when we consciously develop new habits, we create parallel paths, and even entirely new brain cells, that can jump our trains of thought onto new, innovative tracks．

       Rather than dismissing ourselves as unchangeable creatures of habit, we can instead direct our own change by consciously developing new habits．In fact, the more new things we try, the more creative we become．

       But don’t bother trying to kill off old habits; once those ruts of procedure are worn into the brain, they’re there to stay．Instead, the new habits we deliberately press into ourselves create parallel pathways that can bypass those old roads．

       “The first thing needed for innovation is attraction to wonder,” says Dawna Markova, author of The Open Mind．“But we are taught instead to ‘decide’, just as our president calls himself ‘the Decider’．”She adds, however, that “to decide is to kill off all possibilities but one．A good innovational thinker is always exploring the many other possibilities．”

       “All of us work through problems in ways of which we’re unaware,” she says．Researchers in the late 1960s discovered that humans are born with the ability to approach challenges in four primary ways: analytically, procedurally, collaboratively （合作地） and innovatively．At the end of adolescence, however, the brain shuts down half of that ability, preserving only those ways of thought that have seemed most valuable during the first decade or so of life．

       The current emphasis on standardized testing highlights analysis and procedure, meaning that few of us use our innovative and collaborative ways of thought．“This breaks the major rule in the American belief system—that anyone can do anything,” explains M．J．Ryan, author of the 2006 book This Year I Will…and Ms．Markova’s business partner．“That’s a lie that we have preserved, and it fosters commonness．Knowing what you’re good at and doing even more of it creates excellence．”This is where developing new habits comes in．

1．Brain researchers have discovered that      ．

       A．the forming of new habits can be guided

       B．the development of habits can be predicted

       C．the regulation of old habits can be transformed

       D．the track of new habits can be created unconsciously

2．The underlined word “ruts”in Paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to       ．

       A．zones                  B．connections         C．situations             D．tracks

3．Which of the following statements most probably agrees with Dawna Markova’s view?

       A．Decision makes no sense in choices．

       B．Curiosity makes creative minds active．

       C．Creative ideas are born of a relaxing mind．

       D．Formation of innovation comes from fantastic ideas．

4．he purpose of the author writing this article is to persuade us       ．

       A．to give up our traditional habits deliberately

       B．to create and develop new habits consciously

       C．to resist the application of standardized testing

       D．to believe that old habits conflict with new habits

2、Research by Scotland Yard published in a London newspaper, has proven that knife crime in London is a serious non – white phenomenon, with 165 of the 225 under- 18s accused of knife crime in the past three months being from the black or other non – white groups．

       According to Scotland Yard, only 60 of the 225 crimes were white．Despite being a small minority of the knife holding criminals, whites did, however, make up the single largest group of victims of knife crime．

       According to the Scotland Yard report, whites made up 222 of the 637 victims of knife crime over the last three months．This number could probably be higher, as 292 victims were not identified by race．

       This month Scotland Yard Deputy Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson suggested knife crime has replaced drug selling as the top concern for London police．

       Sir Paul said so as he announced a specialist knife crime unit to deal with teenagers carrying knives in the capital．It will use a team of 75 specialist officers to find criminal group members and their supporters．

Detective Inspector, George Rhoden, president of the National Organisation of Black Law Enforcement Executives said, “In the black community we have all noticed that there is major concern about gun and knife crime．Clearly we are not the only part of the community affected by the problem of children who have no fathers, but parental responsibility should be of major concern．”

       Around 59 percent of black Caribbean children and 54 percent of mixed – race youngsters are looked after by a lone parent．In the white British population, the number is 22 percent．

1．From the above, we can see that       in knife crimes in London．

       A．there are more whites than blacks as victims

       B．there are more blacks than whites as victims

       C．blacks make up the smallest group of criminals

       D．blacks make up the second largest group of criminals

2．What Sir Paul Stephenson said suggests that      ．

       A．drug selling has replaced knife crime as the top concern for London police

       B．drug selling had been the top concern for London police in the past

       C．knife crime used to be the top concern for London police

       D．London police now pay no attention to drug selling

3．What measure has the government taken to deal with the problem of knife crime?

       A．Punishing the parents of teenagers carrying knives．

       B．Arresting the teenagers carrying knives．

       C．Forming a specialist knife crime unit．

       D．Fining the teenagers carrying knives．

4．According to George Rhoden, which of the following factors contributes to so many young blacks turning to crime?

       A．That they are poorly educated．

       B．That they are influenced by their fathers．

       C．That many of them come from incomplete families．

       D．That their parents are too busy to take care of them．

1、The UN Environment Programme says that rising temperatures could mean the end for some migrating animals．

       Migrating or mobile animals move through several environments as they travel away from the cold of winter to warmer areas．Birds may fly from one part of the World to another, perhaps stopping at feeding grounds on the way．Whales and turtles（海龜） cover vast areas of ocean．The report says that changes in any one of the places which these animals use can cause serious harm．"Obviously these animals have developed their travelling patterns over thousands of years．But climate change is almost certain to be extreme over the next 25 to 50 years and it is extremely unlikely that these animals can change their habits fast enough, "said the report author Dr．Robert Hepworth．

       Hardest hit by rising temperatures are turtles．Scientists have found that at higher temperatures, turtles produce far more female eggs than male ones．In parts of Malaysia, turtle birthing sites are producing only females, the report says．It also provides evidence that some turtles are more likely to develop cancer as the waters get warmer．

       With birds, the main problem is climate-related damage to important areas at either end of the travels or at resting places along the way．About one-fifth of migrating birds are now in danger because of climate-related changes including rising sea levels, land loss and more violent storms, the report concludes．

       Other animals picked out as particularly in danger include:

       the North Atlantic Right Whale, whose main food （tiny shrimp） is disturbed by the change in ocean flows．

       ·the White-Nose Dolphin, which is out-competed by other kinds of dolphins in warmer waters．

       The report is not all bad news．Even with major climatic changes, protecting the environment can still help mobile animals to recover．"We need governments to start taking action at the national and international level．The clock is running," said Dr．Hepworth．And some animals are already adapting, with the report mentioning whales that are changing their feeding behaviour, finding new feeding grounds and new foods to eat．

1．What is the main topic of the text?

       A．The effect of climate change on migrating animals．

       B．How animals are adapting to changes in temperature．

       C．The actions required to save migrating animals．

       D．The need for government policies to prevent global warming．

2．By saying "The clock is running" in the last paragraph, Dr．Hepworth means that" ______"

       A．it may be too late to save some animals

       B．it is time to start protecting the animals

       C．there is not much time to solve the problem

       D．it takes time to complete the actions

       A．They will only produce female babies．

3．Which of the following is mentioned as a consequence of rising temperatures?

       A．More storms will affect the ability of whales to find their feeding grounds．

       B．20 percent of all birds are likely to die out because of land loss．

       C．Migrating animals are likely to start adapting to the changes more quickly．

       D．Warmer oceans will increase the competition between different kinds of dolphins．

4．What can be inferred about turtles from the text?

       A．They are the only animals besides humans that suffer from cancer．

       B．They have traditionally lived longer than other ocean-based animals．

       C．Those born nearer a hotter area are more likely to be female．

       D．Most kinds of turtles are likely to die out within 50 years．

20、—I heard that Mary won the prize of the ecology contest.

—______ She was not interested in it at all.

A．You’re kidding!          B．So what?         C．Why not?           D．Not really.