In her new book, “The Smartest Kids in the World”， Amanda Ripley, an investigative journalist, tells the story of Tom, a high­school student from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, who decides to spend his senior year in Wroclaw, Poland. Poland is a surprising educational success story: in the past decade, the country raised students' test scores from significantly below average to well above it. Polish kids have now outscored American kids in math and science, even though Poland spends, on average, less than half as much per student as the United States does. One of the most striking differences between the high school Tom attended in Gettysburg and the one he ends up at in Wroclaw is that the latter has no football team or teams of any kind.
That American high schools spend more time and money on sports than on math is an old complaint. In December, when the latest Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) results are announced, it's safe to predict that American high­school students will once again show their limited skills in math and reading, outscored not just by students in Poland but also by students in places like China, Finland, Singapore, and Japan. Meanwhile, they will have played some very exciting football games, which will have been breathlessly written up in their hometown papers.
Why does this situation continue? Well, for one thing, kids like it. And for another, according to Ripley, parents seem to like the arrangement, too. She describes a tour she took of a school in Washington D．C., which costs thirty thousand dollars a year. The tour leader ­ a mother with three children in the school ­ was asked about the school's flaws (瑕疵). When she said that the math program was weak, none of the parents taking the tour reacted. When she said that the football program was weak, the parents suddenly became concerned. “Really？” one of them asked worriedly, “What do you mean？”
One of the ironies of the situation is that sports show what is possible. American kids' performance on the field shows just how well they can do when expectations are high. It's too bad that their_test_scores_show_the_same_thing._
小題1:Tom decides to spend his senior year in Poland because ________.

A．he intends to improve his scores

B．Polish kids are better at learning

C．sports are not supported at schools in Gettysburg

D．he wants to be the smartest kid in the world

小題2:According to Paragraph 2, we know that ________.

A．PISA plays a very important role in America

B．little time is spent on sports in Japanese schools

C．American students do better in both math and sports

D．too much importance is placed on sports in America

小題3:The underlined sentence in the last paragraph means ________.

A．low expectations result in American students' poor PISA performance

B．high expectations push up American students' academic performance

C．American students' academic performance worries their parents a lot

D．lacking practice contributes to American students' average performance

小題4:The purpose of this article is to ________.

A．compare Polish schools with those in America

B．call on American schools to learn from the Polish model

C．draw public attention to a weakness in American school tradition

D．explain what is wrong with American schools and provide solutions

I lost my sight when I was four years old by falling off a box car in a yard in Atlantic City and landing on my head.Now I am thirty­two.I can ____ remember the brightness of sunshine and what red color is.It would be wonderful to see again, ____ a disaster can do strange things to people.
It occurred to me the other day that I might not have come to ____ life as I do if I hadn't been blind. I believe in life now.I am not so sure that I would have believed in it so deeply, ____. I don't mean that I would prefer to go without my eyes. I simply mean that the loss of them made me ____ the more what I had left.
The hardest lesson I had to learn was to believe in myself.That was ____. If I hadn't been able to do that, I would have ____ and become a chair rocker for the rest of my life.When I say ____ in myself I am not talking about simply the kind of self­confidence that helps me down a(n) ____ staircase alone.That is part of it.But I mean something ____ than that: an assurance that there is a special place where I can make myself fit.
It took me years to discover and ____ this assurance.It had to start with the most elementary things.Once a man gave me an indoor baseball, I thought he was laughing at me and I was ____.“I can't use this，” “I said. Take it with you；” he ____ me.“and roll it around.” The words ____ in my head. “Roll it around！” By rolling the ball I could ____ where it went.This gave me an idea how to achieve a goal I had thought ____： playing baseball.At Philadelphia's Overbrook School for the Blind I ____ a successful variation of baseball. We called it ground ball.
All my life I have set ahead of me a series of ____ and then tried to reach them, one at a time.I had to learn my ____. It was no good trying for something I knew at the start was wildly out of reach because that only invited the bitterness of failure. I would fail sometimes anyway but on the average I made ____.

小題1:	A．entirely B．nearly C．vaguely D．simply

小題2:	A．a(chǎn)nd B．but C．so D．for

小題3:	A．a(chǎn)ssess B．fear C．enrich D．love

小題4:	A．otherwise B．therefore C．however D．besides

小題5:	A．understand B．a(chǎn)ppreciate C．possess D．a(chǎn)ccept

小題6:	A．enough B．specific C．tough D．basic

小題7:	A．survived B．escaped C．collapsed D．sacrificed

小題8:	A．hope B．power C．courage D．belief

小題9:	A．unfamiliar B．unbelievable C．unexpected D．uncomfortable

小題10:

A．harder B．bigger C．warmer D．heavier

小題11:

A．weaken B．strengthen C．sharpen D．brighten

小題12:

A．upset B．flattered C．a(chǎn)shamed D．hurt

小題13:

A．urged B．promised C．convinced D．a(chǎn)dvised

小題14:

A．flashed B．a(chǎn)ppeared C．stuck D．crowded

小題15:

A．notice B．hear C．smell D．touch

小題16:

A．impossible B．important C．imaginary D．impressive

小題17:

A．produced B．imitated C．invented D．spotted

小題18:

A．goals B．efforts C．directions D．barriers

小題19:

A．challenges B．strengths C．situations D．limitations

小題20:

A．history B．change C．progress D．sense

Password (密碼) strength has been a topic about the Internet lately. I have seen lots of clever methods for generating and remembering strong passwords. Some are better than others, but in my opinion, none are adequate. Here's the problem: It doesn't matter how strong your passwords are if you use the same one on multiple sites. All it takes is for a site to get hacked(侵入), like Gawker media, or even Sony did, and now your super­strong password has been stolen, and every site on which you used that password has been accessed.
So, the bottom line is that no matter how strong your passwords are, and no matter what clever tricks you use to help you remember them, if you surf internet often, the only truly secure password system is what you need.
Enter LastPass. It's not the only password manager out there, but I like it the best. You create ONE strong password that you have to memorize and use it to access your LastPass database. The LastPass database is stored online, on LastPass's servers. LastPass recognizes the site you're on and automatically logs you in (after, optionally, asking you to re­enter your master password). LastPass also has automatic form fill and automatic password generation. This means that you can have a different, unique, very strong password for every site you log into, but you only have to remember one master password. It's the best of both worlds.
One argument against LastPass is that if their database is attacked, then all of your sites are in danger, and that's true, but given that their entire line of work is keeping that information safe, I'm willing to take that chance. The alternative is rolling dice(擲骰子) or picking phrases to create passwords, writing all of them down on a piece of paper or something, and then having to manually type them in when I go to a site. A terrible mess.
There is a free version of LastPass, with some additional features unlocked if you pay a $12 a year subscription.
­Joshua Bardwell 
小題1:The writer thinks using the same password everywhere is ________.

A．dangerous	B．convenient
C．a(chǎn)ppropriate	D．a(chǎn)dequate

小題2:When using Lastpass, users have to remember ________.

A．a(chǎn)ll passwords used

B．the last password

C．unique password each time

D．the master password only

小題3:Critics are against Lastpass because ________.

A．they have better ways to create password

B．they think rolling dice is more convenient

C．they have no faith in Lastpass database's safety

D．Gawker media and Lastpass were hacked once

小題4:Joshua Bardwell writes the passage to ________.

A．share his experience

B．introduce a product of good quality

C．a(chǎn)dvertise his product

D．teach how to use a new product

Nuclear power's danger to health, safety, and even life itself can be summed up in one word: radiation.
Nuclear radiation has a certain mystery about it, partly because it cannot be detected by human senses. It can't be seen or heard, or touched or tasted, even though it may be all around us. There are other things like that. For example, radio waves are all around us but we can't detect them, sense them, without a radio receiver. Similarly, we can't sense radioactivity without a radiation detector. But unlike common radio waves, nuclear radiation is not harmless to human beings and other living things.
At very high levels, radiation can kill an animal or human being immediately by killing masses of cells in vital organs. But even the lowest levels can do serious damage. There is no levels of radiation that is completely safe. If the radiation does not hit anything important, the damage may not be serious. This is the case when only a few cells are hit, and if they are killed immediately. Your body will replace the dead cells with healthy ones. But if the few cells are only damaged, and if they reproduce themselves, you may be in trouble. They can grow into cancer. Sometimes this does not show up for many years.
This is another reason for some of the mystery about nuclear radiation. Serious damage can be done without the victim being aware at the time that damage has occurred. A person can be irradiated(輻射)and feel fine, then die for cancer five, ten, or twenty years later as a result. Or a child can be born weak as a result of radiation absorbed by its grandparents.
Radiation can hurt us. We must know the truth.
小題1:Which of the following statements is true?

A．Nuclear radiation is just like common radio waves.

B．Nuclear radiation can cause cancer to human beings.

C．Nuclear radiation can be detected by human senses.

D．Nuclear radiation can be safe to human beings if its level is low.

小題2:How can nuclear radiation kill an animal?

A．By damaging its heart.

B．By killing a few cells.

C．By hitting any place in its body.

D．By killing many cells in important organs.

小題3:If a human being is hit by nuclear radiation, he may __________.

A．die of cancer after many years

B．die immediately

C．have a child who may be born weak

D．a(chǎn)ll of the above

We sometimes think global warming or climate change is a problem very far away from our lives, and that only the government needs to worry about it. But it's hardly possible to completely stay out of it ­ scientists are now 95 percent sure that humans have been the “dominant cause” of global warming trends since the 1950s.
One of the conclusions of a report released on Sept 27 by the United Nations says that human activities have caused global temperatures to rise by 0.89 0C between 1901 and 2012. That might not seem like a lot, but the truth is that a major part of that heat has been absorbed into the oceans, which is not surprising given that they cover two thirds of Earth's surface. Also, water has a much greater capacity (容量) to absorb heat than the air does, according to The Economist.　
While many greenhouse gases occur naturally and are needed to keep the Earth warm enough to support life, humans' use of fossil fuels is the main source of excess (多余的) greenhouse gases. According to CNN, by driving cars, using electricity produced by burning coal and oil or heating our homes with coal or natural gas, we release a large amount of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
Your body can barely feel a difference of 0.89 0C, but the Earth's ecosystems are so sensitive that even small changes can disturb them. It often starts with the smallest creatures at the bottom of the food chain, eventually affecting bigger animals, many of which could end up becoming extinct.
Global warming is also linked to an increase in extreme weather. A larger amount of carbon dioxide traps more energy inside the atmosphere. This changes the patterns of storms and rainfall in many regions and can lead to droughts and floods. Worse still, melting sea ice in warmer oceans is causing sea levels to rise at a speed of more than three millimeters per year, according to The Guardian, which also increases the risk of flooding.
“The report should serve as another wake­up call that our activities today have a profound impact on society, not only for us, but for many generations to come，” French Michel Jarraud, secretary­general of the World Meteorological Organization, said at a news conference.
小題1:The underlined word “dominant” in the first paragraph means “ ________”．

A．common	B．indirect
C．secondary	D．leading

小題2:Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Greenhouse gases have been proven to harm merely the Earth .

B．There is little we can do to prevent global warming.

C．Global warming can increase the chances of droughts and floods.

D．The hugeness of oceans makes them better absorbers of heat than the air.

小題3:The rise in global temperatures between 1901 and 2012 ________.

A．is more harmful to smaller creatures than bigger ones

B．is not serious because most of the extra heat has been absorbed by the oceans

C．has made the Earth's ecosystems more sensitive to changes

D．is likely to cause many species to become extinct

小題4:What is Michel Jarraud's attitude toward the report released by the UN?

A．Negative.	B．Supportive.
C．Doubtful.	D．Uninterested.

Different Kinds of Birds
Avocets
There are 4 different species of Avocet found around the world-Pied Avocet , Red-necked Avocet, Andean Avocet, and American Avocet. This bird is found in North and South America, Europe, and even Australia. This long-legged bird has webbed feet and an upturned, thin bill.
Bald Eagles
The bald eagle is found in wetlands and near coastlines. They have very large and broad wings, with a broad tail. The head and tail are white in color, which is the major distinguishable factor of the bald eagle. The long, hooked bill is yellow in color. They feed on fish, ducks, rabbits, geese, etc.
Eastern Bluebirds
These are around 61／2 inches in length .Such birds are found mainly in gardens woodlands, and orchards with the arrival of spring. Male Eastern Bluebirds are bright blue on the upper half and have a white belly. Female Eastern Bluebirds have a grayish head with shades of blue as well. New York and Missouri have named this creature as their state bird.
Flamingos
These pink-bodied birds with a unique beak, are generally found in large groups. The beaks are capable of removing mud before they can eat their food. Flamingos can be found in many African countries, areas of Florida, and one particular type of species is found only in the Andean highlands.
Kingfishers
There are over 90 various species of Kingfishers found in the woodland areas as well as wetlands across the world. They are excellent divers when it comes to catching fish in the rivers. Their pointed bills are what help them bag the catch. Kingfishers have good eyesight whether they are in air or underwater.
小題1:____ most probably mean the same.

A．Bill and beak

B．Head and beak

C．Bill and belly

D．Leg and feet

小題2:Which of the following is true?

A．Eastern Bluebirds are all blue in color.

B．Avocets can be found around the world.

C．The white head and tail make Bald Eagles distinguishable.

D．More Kingfishers can be found in wetlands than in the woodland areas.

小題3:Birds that can be found only in the Andean highlands are ________.

A．Bald Eagles

B．Female Eastern Bluebirds

C．Andean Avocets

D．one special type of Flamingos

小題4:It can be inferred from the passage that what Bald Eagles and Kingfishers have in common is their____.

A．habitats

B．shapes

C．a(chǎn)bility to catch fish

D．eyesight in air or under water

The sound of a mosquito can mean trouble in many parts of the world. The bite of the mosquito can be deadly. The insects carry serious diseases like malaria. It is estimated that almost 630,000 people died from malaria and malaria-related causes in 2012, and most of these cases were in African countries.
In the United States, a group of California scientists is working to develop a more effective and less costly substance(物質(zhì))to protect people from mosquitoes. The researchers are investigating the sense of smell in mosquitoes. They found the insects use the same receptor(感受器)for identifying carbon dioxide in human breath as they do for the smell of our skin. Anandasankar Ray, who is leading the investigation, says scientists tested more than a million chemical compounds(化合物)until they found a substance called Ethyl pyruvate. He says Ethyl pyruvate makes the mosquitoes' receptor inactive. ”When we apply Ethyl pyruvate to a human arm and offer it to hungry mosquitoes in a cage, very few of the mosquitoes are attracted to the human arm because only a few of them are able to smell it out,” said Ray.
Genevieve Tauxe, a member of the research team, says it was not easy to find the neurons (神經(jīng)元)of nose cells that recognise both the smell of human breath and skin. "With the device used to examine mosquitoes, we are able to insert a very small electrode(電極)into the part of the mosquitoes' nose, where its smelling neurons are and where the smell is happening," said Tauxe.
Anandasankar Ray says a product based on Ethyl pyruvate may cost less to produce than DEFT，the most effective chemical treatment now in use. He says DEFT is too costly for most people who live in areas affected by malaria.
“Perhaps by finding smells that can attack other target receptors, we will be able to improve upon DEFT and finally have the next generation of insect behavior control products," said Ray.
小題1:The best title for the passage is most probably _______________________________.

A．Scientists Find New Substance to Fight Mosquitoes

B．A New Generation of DEET Has Been Developed to Kill Mosquitoes

C．Malaria一a Serious Disease Causing 630,000 Deaths

D．Ethyl Pyruvate一an Insect Behavior Control Product

小題2:According to the passage, Ethyl Pyruvate can_______________________________.

A．kill the mosquitoes' smelling neurons

B．cause the mosquitoes to lose their sense of smell

C．result in the inactiveness of the mosquitoes' receptor

D．make the mosquitoes uninterested in human breath and skin smell

小題3:Through the passage, the writer aims to_______________________________.

A．inform readers of the new development in fighting mosquitoes

B．praise the achievements made in the battle against malaria

C．introduce a cheaper product in fighting mosquitoes

D．tell the differences between Ethyl Pyruvate and DEET

小題4:This passage most probably appears in_______________________________.

A．the column of newspaper ads

B．the health column of a magazine

C．a(chǎn) textbook of medical schools

D．a(chǎn) collection of doctors' essays

To most of us，school means classes，teachers，schedules，grades，and tests.But for the children at Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts，school is very different.
Firstly，there are no lessons.All the children，aged between 4 and 19，do whatever they want.There are no teachers—only “staff members”．The idea behind this is that you do not need to make children learn，because children want to learn anyway.“You do not need to say to a three year­old，‘Go explore your environment.'You can't stop them！” says Daniel Greenberg，a founder of the school.“But if you make children do what you want all day，they will lose all taste for learning.”
At Sudbury Valley School，you will permit children to talk，read，paint，cook，work on computers，study French，play the piano，climb trees or just run around.Two boys spent three years just fishing!
The other way that Sudbury Valley School is different is that the children can decide the rules.Every week，there is a school meeting where both children and staff have one vote each—even the four­year­olds.They decide the school rules，how to spend the school budget，and even which staff they want and do not want any more.
When the school first opened in 1968，people said it would never work.But today，the school has 200 students，and 80%of its students go on to college. Even the two boys who went fishing all the time have successful careers today.One of them is a musician and the other is a computer scientist.
小題1:What is the main topic of the article?

A．An unusual school.	B．Children's hobbies.
C．A school without rules.	D．Education in the US.

小題2:What does the school believe?

A．Teachers cannot teach children Well.

B．Children learn best when they do what they want to do.

C．Learning is for adults—children should only play.

D．Children should only learn about one thing at a time.

小題3:What does Daniel Greenberg say about three­year­olds?

A．They love learning.

B．They are very naughty.

C．They want to be outside all the time.

D．They are too young to learn anything.

小題4:Who has the most power in the school meetings?

A．The older children have more power than the younger children.

B．A child has more power than an adult.

C．The younger children have more power than the older children.

D．Everybody has equal power.

Sure，it's good to get along well with your teacher because it makes the time you spend in the classroom more pleasant.
And yes，it's good to get along well with your teacher because，in general，it's smart to learn how to get along well with the different types of people you'll meet throughout your life.
In fact，kids who get along well with their teachers not only learn more，but they're more comfortable about asking questions and getting extra help.This makes it easier for them to understand new materials and do their best on tests.When you have this kind of relationship with a teacher，he or she can be someone to turn to with problems，such as problems with learning or school issues.
Here is a question：what if you don't get along well with your teachers? In fact，teachers want to get along well with you and enjoy seeing you learn.But teachers and students sometimes have personality clashes(個(gè)性沖突)，which can happen between any two people.If you show your teacher that you want to make the situation better，he or she will probably do everything possible to make that happen.By dealing with a problem like this，you learn something about how to get along with people who are different from you.
However，if a certain teacher isn't your favorite，you can still have a successful relationship with him or her，especially________.Here are some of those responsibilities：
Attend class ready to learn.
Be prepared for class with the right pencils，books，and completed assignments.
Listen when your teacher is talking.
Do your best，whether it's a classroom assignment，homework，or a test.
小題1:The passage is written for________.

A．teachers

B．a(chǎn)dvisers

C．students

D．parents

小題2:According to the passage，getting along well with your teachers will make you________.

A．get the best scores in the exams

B．have more pleasant time in the classroom

C．have no problems with study

D．get a better seat in the classroom

小題3:The underlined word “that” in the fourth paragraph refers to________.

A．getting along very well with classmates

B．the disappearance of personality differences

C．a(chǎn) better relationship between you and your teacher

D．the happy time you have in the classroom

小題4:“________” can be filled in the blank.

A．if you fulfill your basic responsibilities as a student

B．if you are easy­going and helpful

C．if you know some basic social skills

D．if you are thought of as a good student

I once worked in a charter school(特許公立學(xué)校)．There students with serious problems were put in ___ .So when the year ended in May，only ____students sitting in the classes had been there since the doors____ in August.
Chad was one of them.He started out in my first semester ___ class.He had taken the course twice already ____ earning a credit(學(xué)分)，which was ____ at the school.He was too excited at times but fairly bright，and he never ____ a day of school during the first  semester.Chad earned credit for first semester Spanish and moved on to the second.
I noticed a huge ____ in him when he returned from Christmas vacation.He was quieter and worked harder.I was ____ by his big improvement.Towards the end of the spring semester，Chad missed several weeks of school.When he returned.He told me he was soon being sent to “year­round school”．
I ____ the “year­round school” was prison.I was _____ to learn that he had broken into someone's house.____ I wanted to give him an award，some teachers said，“You should give the award to someone else.” I considered it.____ in the end I decided to ____ Chad only on what he had done in my class.
Chad's sentencing had been delayed, and he ____ to school that day.He ___ reacted when I gave him an award for Most Improved.He hugged me ____ and said，“Thank you.Now I have___to show my mom.”
Chad didn't finish second semester Spanish，and he never got ____ for the course.But I'd like to think that ____ made a difference in his life.

小題1:	A．sea B．town C．village D．prison

小題2:	A．a(chǎn) few B．many C．plenty of D．few

小題3:	A．started B．closed C．opened D．broke

小題4:	A．English B．Chinese C．Spanish D．Japanese

小題5:	A．with B．without C．on D．for

小題6:	A．special B．usual C．a(chǎn)verage D．common

小題7:	A．ignored B．missed C．spent D．wasted

小題8:	A．change B．fear C．trouble D．concern

小題9:	A．confirmed B．puzzled C．prevented D．impressed

小題10:

A．invented B．recognized C．discovered D．realized

小題11:

A．shocked B．pleased C．frightened D．terrified

小題12:

A．Before B．Until C．Unless D．When

小題13:

A．Then B．But C．Thus D．Even

小題14:

A．reward B．determine C．judge D．defend

小題15:

A．made it B．got it C．went it D．caught it

小題16:

A．excitedly B．slowly C．normally D．hardly

小題17:

A．loosely B．tightly C．unwillingly D．narrowly

小題18:

A．everything B．a(chǎn)nything C．something D．nothing

小題19:

A．credit B．honour C．support D．bond

小題20:

A．incident B．a(chǎn)ward C．sentence D．hug