death often recall their entire lives flashing before them in an instant. Those who have been in a serious accident often report that, as it occurred, everything happened in slow motion; apparently this is a survival tool built into the brain, an ability to accelerate to several times normal perceptual speed, thereby \down\the world and giving the victim \to think how to avoid disaster.
Because the time our society keeps has been taught to us since birth, we think of it as something that everyone everywhere must somehow share. But cultures differ in how they perceive time. In North America and the industrialized countries of northern Europe, life is tightly scheduled. To keep someone waiting is frowned upon. But in southern Europe and in the Hispanic countries of Latin America, people are given priority over schedules —and in making appointments the starting time is more flexible.
心灵的时间可以改变节奏方法多种多样。带回来的人死亡的边缘上经常会想起他们一生都在他们面前闪烁在瞬间。那些已经在一次严重的事故常常报告说,因为它发生了,一切都发生在慢速运动,显然这是一种生存的工具建立进入大脑,是一种能力,促进正常感知速度数倍,从而“减速”世界并给受害者”时间”来思考如何避免灾难。
因为我们社会保持已经人教我们自出生就被放逐,我们认为它是无处不在的东西,每个人都必须想办法分享。但不同文化在看他们是如何看待时间。在北美和欧洲北部工业化的国家,生活是紧紧地安排好了。,让对方久等都会引起人们的不满。但在南欧和西班牙裔拉美国家,人们在时间表为主——而在约会开始的时间更灵活。
Section Four Writing
Directions: “Time and tide wait for no man.” Why do we have to go to school and how to make
the most of the school days? Write an essay on the topic \the Most of the School Days\ 1) 我们为什么要上学？
2) 充分利用在校时间的意义。 3) 荒废在校时光的后果。
Make the Most of the School Days
Almost one-fourth of our lifetime is spent in school. It is also most important period，for in school we are preparing our future and our duty to the community，meanwhile，we make our life-long friends who would be a great help in our future. Therefore，we must see to ourselves that we make the most of the time in school.
Why do we go to school？ Most of us would surely think we go to school in order to be educated， to be a learned man， and to be useful when we complete our studies. Of course， this is true， but I think there is more than that. We go to school， not only to be educated，but to adjust ourselves， for school is a society in miniature。 Our classmates are of different nature， so we begin to learn human nature early. Thus it enables us to handle relationships between different kinds of people later. A school provides many extracurricular activities，which is a stepping-stone to social life. A school also trains a student to have a clear and sound mind . While we are in school ， we should can]have more contact with our teachers. Teachers are as
human as we are and with a wide range of knowledge which can solve our secret little problems. Some of us tend to go to extremities， either we are too fond of studies and become a bookworm or we are fully occupied by off-campus activities that completely make us forget our studies. The former， doubtlessly， are top pupils at school， but not likely to be successful in their career because they lack the knowledge of human nature， and their range of interests is too narrow. The latter， since they lack essential knowledge， are not likely to succeed， either. Thus， we must stand in the middle of these two extremes.
Let's make lesser fewer mistakes but have more delightful experiences while in school.
Unit 9 Science and Technology
Section One Reading Comprehension
Directions: There are 2 passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or
unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and
D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet with a single line through the center.
Passage One
Questions 1 to 5 are based on the following passage:
The question of what children learn, and how they should learn it, is continually being debated and re-debated. Nobody dares any longer to defend the old system, the learning of lessons parrot-fashion, the grammar-with-a whip system, which was good enough for our grandparents. The theorists of modern psychology have stepped in to argue that we must understand the needs of children. Children are not just small adults; they are children who must be respected as such.
Well, you may say, this is as it should be, and a good idea. But think further. What happens? ―Education‖ becomes the responsibility not of teachers, but of psychologists. What happens then? Teachers worry too much about the psychological implications of their lessons, and forget about the subjects themselves. If a child dislikes a lesson, the teacher feels that it is his fault, not the child‘s. So teachers worry whether history if ―relevant‖ to modern young children. And do they dare to recount stories about violent battles? Or will this make the children themselves violent? Can they tell their classes about children of different races, or will this encourage racial hatred? Why teach children to write grammatical sentences? Verbal (口头的) expression is better. Sums? Arithmetic? No, no: real-life mathematical situations are more understandable.
You see, you can go too far. Influenced by educational theorists, who have nothing better to do than write books about their ideas, teachers leave their teacher-training colleges filled with grand, psychological ideas about children and their needs. They make elaborate, sophisticated preparations and try out their ―modern methods‖ on the long-suffering children. Since one ―modern method‖ rapidly replaces another, the poor kids will have had a good bellyful by the time they leave school. Frequently the modern methods are so sophisticated that they fail to be understood by the teachers, let alone the children; even more often, the relaxed discipline so essential for the ―informal‖ feeling the class must have, prevents all but a handful of children from learning anything.
1. People do not dare to defend the old system mainly because under the old system _________. A) children were made to learn passively B) children were spoiled
C) children were treated as grown-ups
D) too much grammar was taught to children
2. What do the modern psychologists maintain? A) Children must be understood and respected.
B) Children are small adults and know what they need. C) Children are better off without learning lessons.
D) Education of children is the responsibility of psychologists.
3. What happens when teachers pay too much attention to the psychology of their lessons? A) They find that the children dislike the lessons.
B) They tend to blame students for their failure in teaching. C) They do not pay enough attention to the actual lessons. D) They no longer want to teach children history.
4. Grammatical sentences are regarded as unimportant because _______. A) words are uttered out of natural feelings only
B) it is better to use verbs only
C) talking freely and naturally without sentences is a better form of expression D) it is felt that formal grammar rules might cause unnatural expression
5. According to the passage, the modern methods are understood by _______. A) neither teachers nor pupils
B) only a handful of teachers and pupils C) the more sophisticated teachers
D) everyone who enjoys the relaxed discipline of the informal classes
Passage Two
Questions 6 to 10 are based on the following passage:
Humor is a most effective, yet frequently neglected, means of handling the difficult situations in our lives. It can be used for patching up differences, apologizing, saying ―no‖, criticizing, getting the other fellow to do what you want without his losing face. For some jobs, it‘s the only tool that can succeed. It is a way to discuss subjects so sensitive that serious dialogue may start a riot. For example, many believe that comedians on television are doing more today for racial and religious tolerance than are people in any other forum.
Humor is often the best way to keep a small misunderstanding from escalating into a big deal. Recently a neighbor of mine had a squabble with his wife as she drove him to the airport. Airborne, he felt miserable, and he knew she did, too. Two hours after she returned home, she received a long-distance phone call. ―Person-to-person for Mrs. I. A. Pologize,‖ intoned the operator. ―That‘s spelled ?p‘ as in…‖ In a twinkling, the whole day changed from grim to lovely at both ends of the wire.
An English hostess with a quick wit was giving a formal dinner for eight distinguished guests whom she hoped to enlist in a major charity drive. Austerity(简朴) was a fashion in England at the time, and she had asked her children to serve the meal. She knew that anything could happen – and it did, just as her son, with the studied concentration of a tightrope walker, brought in a large roast turkey. He successfully elbowed the swinging dining-room door, but the backswing dashed the bird onto the dinning-room floor.
The boy stood rooted: guests stared at their plates. Moving only her head the hostess smiled at her son, ―No harm, Daniel,‖ she said, ―Just pick him up and take him back to the kitchen‖ – she enunciated clearly so he would think about what she was saying – ― and bring in the other one.‖ A wink and a one-liner instantly changed the dinner from a red–faced embarrassment to a
conspiracy of fun.
6. What is the main idea of the passage?
A) Humor is the key to success in our work and in our lives. B) Humor enables us to cope with difficult situations effectively.
C) Humor is the only best way to criticize someone without losing his face. D) Humor makes fun of any difficult situations.
7. Which of the following is NOT stated in the passage?
A) Comedians on TV are believed to have done a lot in making people more tolerant of racial and religious differences.
B) To make up differences, humor is a most acceptable as well as a most effective means.
C) People often turn to humorous ways when meeting with difficult situations because of its effectiveness.
D) Only by adopting the means of humor can one succeed in some jobs.
8. From the context, we may guess that the word ―squabble‖ (Para.2) means_____. A) accident
B) meal
C) joke
D) quarrel
9. What caused the roast turkey to drop onto the floor? A) The backward movement of the door. B) The son‘s hasty behavior.
C) Someone happened to be at the door. D) The bird raised by the family.
10. What do you think would probably be the result if the hostess got angry and scolded the son? A) It would make the embarrassing situation worse. B) The son would refuse to serve the guests any more.
C) The son would talk back and make the mother all the more angry. D) The guests would leave before the dinner was over.
Section Two Blank-filling
Directions: In this section, there is a passage with ten blanks. You are required to fill in the blanks
with appropriate words according to the meaning.
People who were born just before World War I remember waving at automobiles as they passed. Seeing a car was like watching a 1) __A__—exciting and out of the ordinary. The airplane—it was spelled \then—was another new invention. Refrigerators were \C__ the ice for the box in the summer and the coal for the stove in the winter. Now, the ice man, like the blacksmith, 3) __K_ only in literature.
Today, change comes so fast that working people can become 4) _L_ because their occupations 5) _F_ in the middle of their lives. Knowledge, and thus the rate of change, increases geometrically. Every idea gives 6) _O_ to a dozen new ones, and each of them has a dozen children. The people of the pre-World War I generation had hardly 7) _N_ the inventions of that era before they were 8) __M__ by a new batch of even more 9) __K_inventions. The Atomic Age 10) __I__ in 1945, August 6 to be exact, and then, before we could catch our breath, the Space