It’s hard to talk to Dad sometimes. His silence about his feelings and thoughts made him mysterious and hard to see through. You could never break his hard shell and get to know him. And he seemed to want to stay that way too.
But a year ago when my relationship with my wife and career took a hit, I needed my dad to pull__back__the__curtain so I could see him as real and accessible. I was facing serious problems, and I wanted to know whether he had faced them before and how he had found his way, because I felt like I had lost mine. In desperation, it occurred to me that sending an email might be the key, so I wrote him one, telling him about my regrets and fears, and I asked him to answer, if he felt like it.
Two weeks later, it showed up in my inbox: a much-thought, three-page letter. Dad, a 68-year-old retired technologist and grandfather of four, had carefully considered my message, and crafted a response. He mentioned his lost love, the foolish mistake he made in career and the stupid pride he had between him and his parents. He comforted me that “life will still find its right track despite many of its twists and turns”．
I closed the email and started to cry, because I wished I had opened it up earlier but was grateful it wasn’t too late. I cried because at 33, in the midst of my own struggles, his letter instantly put me at ease. And I cried because in the end，it was so simple：I just had to hit “Send”．
We’ve since had many email exchanges. This increasing communication opened a door into his world. My problems haven’t been magically solved, but getting to know my dad better has made the tough stuff more manageable and life sweeter. It’s hard to talk to dads sometimes, but I’m glad I found a way to talk to mine.
【解题导语】 本文是一篇记叙文。与一个沉默寡言的父亲交谈有时很难，作者却找到了一个很好的与父亲交流的方式，那就是发电子邮件。
1．The author’s dad can be best described as ________． A．quiet and caring B．optimistic and careless C．selfish and lonely D．indifferent and serious
A 解析：推理判断题。根据第一段中的“His silence about his feelings and thoughts”可知，父亲是沉默寡言的；根据第三段可知，其实父亲很关心作者。A项意为“安静和体贴的”；B项意为“乐观和粗心的”；C项意为“自私和孤独的”；D项意为“冷漠和严肃的”。故选A。
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2．The underlined part in Paragraph 2 can be best replaced by “________”． A．draw the curtain B．become more optimistic C．show his true self D．clear the misunderstanding
C 解析：词义猜测题。根据下文的“so I could see him as real and accessible”可知，作者需要父亲展现真实的自己。故选C。
3．What can be a suitable title for the text? A．Communication Is the Best Policy B．Emails from My Dad C．A Man of Few Words D．My Mysterious Dad
B 解析：标题归纳题。作者与父亲之间真正的内心情感交流是由父亲回复的邮件开始的，也是这封邮件让作者找到了与父亲交流的途径。B项紧扣主题。故选B。
4．Which of the following is NOT true? A．My dad’s email was quickly written. B．I was moved when reading the email. C．The email contained much information.
D．I wished I could have consulted my dad earlier.
A 解析：细节理解题。根据第三段中的“Two weeks later，it showed up in my inbox：a much-thought，three-page letter.”可知，父亲的邮件并不是很快写完的。故选A。
B
On Christmas Day, 2003, a woman named Nancy Sue Brown took her daughter and grandchildren to see a movie at an AMC theater. When the movie was over, the crowd made for the exits. A theater employee had just finished mopping the hallway and dutifully placed the “wet floor” sign in the slippery area. No one slipped due to the wet conditions, but someone did manage to knock over the sign. And by the time Ms. Brown got to the area, the sign was lying on the floor. And shortly thereafter, so was she. Her foot got caught in the sign, in a bad way, and she fell. Unfortunately Ms. Brown had undergone a back operation, and the fall caused more damage than it otherwise would have. So she and her husband sued(提起诉讼)．
AMC argued that the entire point of the “wet floor” sign above was to warn of danger, and therefore, courts should encourage the use by not allowing Brown’s case to proceed(继续进行). AMC referred to a case about a December, 1998 incident,
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where a “wet floor” sign, not in use, fell to the floor causing another trip－and－fall. In that case, Georgia’s Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the store, but didn’t go so far as to say that “wet floor” signs couldn’t give rise to legal liability(责任) in trip－and－fall accidents. In the Brown case, the Supreme Court therefore rejected AMC’s argument that the former case applied.
But the Browns argued something surprising that the “wet floor” sign was, itself, dangerous, because “using this type of sign in areas passed by lots of customers creates an unreasonable risk of foreseeable harm to the public in the form of tripping hazards(危险)．” That’s right—the safety sign, used in the way it was designed, was itself dangerous. The court thankfully didn’t accept that argument, at least not entirely. But it did conclude that Brown’s case could continue to a jury(陪审团)—“a merchant’s selection and use of equipment designed to warn customers of one danger that has the potential to expose them to a different one”．
【解题导语】 本文主要介绍了布朗夫人在美国一家AMC影院看完电影离开时，被“小心地滑”的指示牌绊倒受伤后，向法院提起诉讼的原因以及法院的审判结果。
5．According to the text, Ms. Brown________． A．slipped on the wet floor B．tripped over a warning sign C．knocked over a warning sign D．was knocked down by the crowd
B 解析：细节理解题。根据文章第一段中的“...Ms. Brown got to the area, the sign was lying on the floor. And shortly thereafter, so was she. Her foot got caught in the sign, in a bad way, and she fell.”可知，布朗夫人被“小心地滑”的指示牌绊倒了。B项中的tripped over 意为“被绊倒”，与文章表述相符，故选B项。
6．AMC mentioned the 1998 case in order to ________． A．accept its legal liability for Ms. Brown’s loss B．prove Ms. Brown had some physical problems
C．stress that it had no legal liability for the accident D．prove other customers were responsible for the accident
C 解析：推理判断题。根据文章第二段第一句“AMC argued that...encourage the use by not allowing Brown’s case to proceed(继续进行)．”可知，AMC影院认为布朗夫人的控诉不成立，法院应该鼓励使用这样的警示牌，接着第二句AMC影院提出1998年的案例来支持自己的观点。由此可推测，AMC影院提到这一案例是为了强调自己不应该承担本次事故的责任。故选C项。
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7．What can we learn about the Brown’s case from the last paragraph? A．It would be judged by jury. B．It would not be allowed to proceed. C．The court would rule in favor of AMC.
D．The court accepted all the arguments of the Browns.
A 解析：细节理解题。根据文章最后一段中的“But it did conclude that Brown’s case could continue to a jury(陪审团)．..”可知，法院提请陪审团来审理此案。故选A项。
8．The underlined word “one” in the last paragraph refers to “________”． A．danger B．customer C．business owner
D．equipment in public places
A 解析：代词指代题。根据文章最后一段最后一句可知，一个商人选择和使用某一种设备来警示顾客某种危险，而这种设备本身就可能将顾客置于另一种危险中。由此可猜测，one指代上文中的danger。故选A项。
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