1、Passage 1 Professor BumbleProfessor Bumble is not only absent-minded but short-sighted as well. /His mind is always busy with learned thoughts and he seldom notices what is going on around him./On a fine day recently he went for a walk in the countryside. /But as always he read the book as he walked
2、. /He hadnt gone far when he ran into a large cow and fell down./ He had lost his spectacles in the fall, and he thought he had stumbled over a fat lady. /“I beg your pardon, madam,“ he said politely before searching for his glasses./ As soon as he had put the glasses on，he realized his mistake./Soo
3、n he was concentrating on his book again and paying no attention to anything else./ He had scarcely been walking for five minutes when he fell over again,/ losing both his book and his glasses. /This time he became very angry./ Seizing his umbrellas, he struck the “cow“ in anger. /Then, after findin
4、g his glasses, he realized with horror that he had made a second mistake. /A large fat woman was running away from him in terror./Passage 2 TeamworkTeamwork is just as important in science/ as it is on the playing field or in the gym./ Scientific investigations are almost always carried out by teams
5、 of people working together./ Ideas are shared, experiments are designed, data are analyzed, /and results are evaluated and shared with other investigators./ Group work is necessary and is usually more productive than working alone./Several times throughout the year you may be asked to work with one
6、 or more of your classmates. /Whatever the task your group is assigned, /a few rules need to be followed to ensure a productive and successful experience/What comes first is to keep an open mind/because everyones ideas deserve consideration /and each group member can make his or her own contribution
7、./ Secondly, it makes a job easier to divide the group task among all group members./ Thirdly, always work together, take turns, and encourage each other by listening, clarifying and trusting one another. /Mutual support and trust often make a great difference. /Passage 3 Mistakes Are Good TeachersA
8、fter the birth of my second child, I got a job at a restaurant. Having worked with an experienced waitress for a few days, I was allowed to wait tables on my own. When Saturday night came, I was luckily given the tables not far from the kitchen. However, I still felt a little hard to carry the heavy
9、 trays. So I moved slowly, minding every step. I remember how happy I was when I saw the tray standing next the tables. It looked different from the one I was trained on. It had nice handles which made it easier to move around. I was pleased with everything and began to believe I was a natural at th
10、is job. Then, an old man came to me and said that was his wifes walker. I stood frozen as ice, but my face was on fire. Since then, I have learned to be more careful and not to be too sure of myself.Passage 4 Time Has the Power to Change AttitudeLast week, my youngest son and I visited my father at
11、his new home.My earliest memories of my father are of a tall, handsome, successful man devoted to his work and family but uncomfortable with his children. As a child I loved him; as a school girl and young adult, I feared him and felt bitter about him.On the first day of my visit, we did some shoppi
12、ng, ate on the street table, and laughed over my sons funny facial expressions. Gone was my fathers critical air and strict rules. Who was this person I knew as my father, who seemed so friendly and interesting to be around?The next day, my dad pulled out his childhood pictures and told me quite a f
13、ew stories about his own childhood. Although our times together became easier over the years, I never felt closet to him at that moment. After so many years, Im at last seeing another side of my father.Passage 5 Experiences SpeakThere are many different ways of seeing a town for the first time. One
14、of them is to walk around it, guidebook in hand. Of course, we may study with our guidebooks the history and special developments of a town and get to know them. But then, if we take out time and stay in a town for a while, we may get to know it better. When we look it as a whole, we begin to have s
15、ome questions, which even the best guidebooks do not answer. Why is the town just like this, this shape, this plan, this size? Here even the best guide-book fails us. We cant find in it the information about how a town has developed to the present appearance. However, we may get some idea of what it
16、 used to look like by walking around the town. A personal visit to a town may help one better understand why it is attractive than just reading about it in a guidebook. Passage 6 Representatives of Civilization: PotteryAncient people made clay pottery because they needed it for their survival. They
17、used the pots they made for cooking, storing food, and carrying things from place to place. Pottery was so important to early cultures that scientists now study it to learn more about ancient civilizations. The more advanced the pottery in terms of decoration, materials, glazes and manufacture, the
18、more advanced the culture itself. The artisan who makes pottery in North America today utilizes his or her skill and imagination to create items that are beautiful as well as al, transforming something ordinary into something special and unique. The potter uses one of the Earths most basic materials
19、, clay. Clay can be found almost anywhere. Good pottery clay must be free from all small stones and other hard materials that would make the potting process difficult. The most important tools potters use are their own hands; however, they also use wire loop tools, wooden modeling tools, plain wire,
20、 and sponges.Passage 7 Words Can Make a DifferenceOn August 26, 1999, New York City was struck by a terrible rainstorm during the morning rush hour that caused the streets to flood.Many people who were going to work were forced to go home. Some battled to call a taxi, get a bus or walk miles to get
21、to work. I soon discovered most of the subway lines had stopped service. I finally found an operating line, but there were so many people that I couldnt initially get to the platform. Finally, I got to my office, wet through, and exhausted.After an unenjoyably day, Garth, my Director, sent an e-mail
22、 to everyone:“Thanks to everyone who reported to work. It is always reassuring when employees show their devotion to their jobs. Thank you.”Garths email was short，but welcomed. It made me realize that even when times are tough, a few words can make a big difference.Passage 8 Fairy TalesTales of the
23、supernatural are common in all parts of Britain. In particular, there was a belief in fairies. Not all of these fairies are the friendly, people-loving sprites that appear in Disney films, and in some folktales they are cruel and cause much human suffering. This is true in the tales about the Change
24、ling. These tell the story of a mother whose baby grows sick and pale and has changed so much that it is almost unrecognizable to the parents. It was then feared that the fairies had come and stolen the baby away and replaced the human baby with a fairy Changeling. In those cases there was often a w
25、ay to get the real baby back. You could place the Changeling on the fire-then it would rise up the chimney, and you would hear the sound of fairies laughter and soon after you would find your own child safe and sound nearby. Passage 9 Self-ImageSelf-image is your own minds picture of yourself. This
26、image includes the way you look, the way you act, the way you talk and the way you think. Interestingly, our self-images are often quite different from the images others hold about us. Unfortunately, most of these images are more negative than they should be. Thus changing the way you think about yo
27、urself is the key to changing your self-image and your whole world.It might be that you are experiencing a negative self-image because you cant move past one flaw or weakness that you see about yourself. Well, roll up your sleeves and make a change of it as your primary task. The best way to get rid
28、 of a negative serf-image is to realize that your image is far from objective, and to actively convince yourself of your positive qualities. Changing the way you think and working on those, you will go a long way towards promoting a positive self-image. Passage 10 ShopaholicsThe word addiction usual
29、ly makes you think of alcohol or drugs, but in modern-day society we are seeing some new kinds of addictions. Some people are compulsive shoppers. Others find it impossible to pull themselves away from their work. Still others spend countless hours watching TV or playing computer games.Over the year
30、s, shopping has become a very common activity. Many people enjoy going to malls or stores more and more every day, but its more than a common hobby for some of them. They have turned into shopaholics. They are people who simply enjoy shopping and walking around spending money without being able to s
31、top doing it. They are hooked on shopping and usually buy things that they dont need. Even though they dont have enough money, they buy everything they want.Why do they have this addiction? There isnt a specific answer. Some people go shopping when they are sad, worried, upset or lonely. Some even t
32、end to have this addiction when they feel guilty.Passage 11 Time ManagementTime is something from which we cant escape. Even if we ignore it, its still going by, ticking away, second by second, minute by minute, hour by hour. So the main issue in using your time well is, “Whos in charge?” We can all
33、ow time to slip by and let it be our enemy. Or we can take control of it and make it our ally.By taking control of how you spend your time, youll increase your chances of becoming a more successful student. Perhaps more importantly, the better you are at managing the time you devote to your studies,
34、 the more time you will have to spend on your outside interests.The aim of time management is not to schedule every moment so we become slaves of a timetable that governs every waking moment of the day. Instead, the aim is to make informed choices as to how we use our time. Passage 12 Charity ShopsT
35、he charity shop is a British institution, selling everything from clothes to electric goods, all at very good prices. You can get things you wont find in the shops anymore. The thing I like best about them is that your money is going to a good cause and not into the pockets of profit-driven companie
36、s, and you are not damaging the planet, but finding a new home for unwanted goods.Most of the people working in the charity shops are volunteers, although there is often a manager who gets paid. Over 90% of the goods in the charity shops are donated by the public.The shops have very low running cost
37、s: all profits go to charity work. Charity shops raise more than 110 million a year, funding medical research, overseas aid, supporting sick and poor children, homeless and disabled people, and much more. Passage 13 Passive LearningWe can achieve knowledge either actively or passively. We achieve it
38、 actively by direct experience, by testing and proving an idea, or by reasoning. We achieve knowledge passively by being told by someone else. Most of the learning that takes place in the classroom and the kind that happens when we watch TV or read newspapers or magazines is passive. Conditioned as
39、we are to passive learning, its not surprising that we depend on it in our everyday communication with friends and co-workers.Unfortunately, passive learning has a serious problem. It makes us tend to accept what we are told even when it is little more than hearsay and rumor.Thats what happens in da
40、ily life. The simple fact that people repeat a story in their own words changes the story. Then, too, most people listen imperfectly. And many enjoy adding their own creative touch to a story, trying to improve on it, stamping it with their own personal style. Yet those who hear it think they know.P
41、assage 14 Different “Styles” of DirectionsI travel a lot, and I find out different “styles” of directions every time I ask ”How can I get to the post office?”In Japan, people use landmarks in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down
42、 to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.”In the countryside of the American Midwest, instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. For example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then
43、go another mile.”People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “its about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They dont know.Passage
44、15 Rain ForestsRainforests are the lungs of the planet storing vast quantities of carbon dioxide and producing a significant amount of the worlds oxygen. Rainforests have their own perfect system for ensuring their own survival; the tall trees make a canopy of branches and leaves which protect thems
45、elves, smaller plants, and the forest animals from heavy rain, intense dry heat from the sun and strong winds. Amazingly, the trees grow in such a way that their leaves and branches, although close together, never actually touch those of another tree. Scientists think this is a deliberate tactic to
46、prevent the spread of any tree diseases and make life more difficult for leaf-eating insects.They are not called rainforests for nothing! Rainforests can generate 75% of their own rain. At least 80 inches of rain a year is normal and in some areas there may be as much as 430 inches of rain annually.
47、 This is real rain. In just two hours, streams can rise ten to twenty feet. Passage 16 Juana Lopezs InventionOne day, Juana Lopez had an idea for a dish washing machine that worked without using water. She went to see several dish washer manufacturers about producing the machine, but none of them we
48、re interested. Joanna found investors to support her idea and founded her own production company. She spent millions of dollars on developing her dish washer, and it was lunched three years later. From then on, sales were very good, better even than Joanna had hopped. But Global Domestic, one of the
49、 companies that she has been to, made its own waterless dish washer. Joanna obtained one and found they use the technical ideas she had developed. She had obtained legal protection for these ideas so that other companies could not use them. After a long legal process, glob domestic was forced to stop making its competing dish washer and to pay Joanna several million dollars. Now Joannas waterless dish washer has 40of the worldwide dish washer market, and this is increasing every year.Passage 17 Rising Sea LevelLatest re
