Most of us grow up taking certain things for granted. We tend to assume that experts and r

eligious leaders tell us" the truth". We tend to believe that things advertised on television or in newspapers can't be bad for us.

However, encouragement of critical thinking in students is one of the goals of most colleges and universities. Few professors require students to share the professors' own beliefs. In general, professors are more concerned that students learn to question and critically examine the arguments of others, including some of their own beliefs or values. This does not mean that professors insist that you change your beliefs, either. It does mean , however, that professors will usually ask you to support the views you express in class or in your writing.

If your premises (前提) are shaky, or if your arguments are not logical, professors personally point out the false reasoning in your arguments. Most professors want you to learn to recognize the premises of your arguments, to examine whether you really accept these premises, and to understand whether or not you draw logical conclusions. Put it this way. Professors don't tell you what to think; they try to teach you how to think.

On the other hand, if you intend to disagree with your professors in class, you should be prepared to offer a strong argument in support of your ideas. Arguing just for the sake of arguing usually does not promote a critical examination of ideas. Many professors interpret it as rudeness.

In the first paragraph, the writer tries to tell us that people______.

A．easily accept certain things without a second thought

B．grow up through learning certain things in life

C．are forming their views during their growth

D．have strong beliefs in authorities while getting old

families have one or two parents and one or two children each. Children in the US will leave their parents ’ home when they grow up. They usually live far from their parents because they want to find good jobs. They often write to their parents or telephone them. And they often go to visit their parents on holiday. Parents usually let their children choose their own jobs. Americans think it important for young people to decide on their lives by themselves. Children are asked to do some work around their house. And in many families, children are paid for doing some housework so that they learn how to make money for their own use.

1.The size of most American families is() that of other countries.

A、larger than

B、smaller than

C、as big as

D、as small as

2.When children grow up, they leave their parents’ home to()

A、get married

B、be free

C、find good jobs

D、study

3.They visit their parents()

A、on weekdays

B、on weekends

C、at any time

D、on holiday

4.Which of the following statements is WRONG()

A、Children have the freedom to choose their own job

B、Parents don't ask their children to do the housework.

C、Parents think it important for children to make their own decision.

D、When children grow up, they usually live far away from their home.

5.Some parents pay their children for doing housework because ()

A、children can learn how to make money for themselves

B、their children required them to do so

C、they are rich

D、it is required by law

阅读理解：根据文章内容，完成选择题。

It can be really frustrating (使人沮丧的) for an overweight person to go to a gym and work out with a positive attitude. All one has to do is walk by almost any nice gym and notice all the healthy, sweating, “skinny” members. Sometimes they stare at those of us who are, well, zaftig. It is easy to see the judgment behind their eyes. Who wants to put up with that？

Many people are self-conscious of their bodies and feel isolated when joining workout classes of while exercising, especially if they are larger than most of the others in the group. Now the fitness industry is finally paying attention. Popular gyms are catering (迎合) to overweight and weight conscious customers by dedicating areas where the “skinny” people are not allowed.

There are even gyms or programs that require members to be at least 50 pounds overweight to participate.

Trainers recommend functional fitness as a practical goal, rather than six-pack abs(六块腹肌). (79)They often use text messages to stay in touch with customers.

Often at these specialized gyms, the trainers are overweight themselves, or working on their own weight goals, and this can help those people with anxiety caused by poor body image. The equipment has been designed for use by larger people. Wider seats, more cushioning, no mirrors, and tinted (有色的) windows for privacy, are all important changes.

(80)Hopefully these types of gyms will successfully grow in numbers in the future. The idea is a very simple and potentially popular one. If it helps those of us who are bigger exercise more and improve our fitness level, it's a step in the right direction.

1. The word zaftig in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to {A; B; C}.

A. fat B. healthy C. friendly

2. We can infer from the first two paragraphs that {A; B; C}.

A. most large gym chains really don't want members to show up frequently

B. overweight people are often frustrated and pushed away by traditional gym industry

C. regular gyms don't accept overweight people to participate in their programs

3. What is the training goal in the gyms catering to overweight members？{A; B; C}

A. To achieve functional fitness.

B. To build six-pack abs.

C. To look like a fitness model.

4. As for the gyms catering to overweight members, which of the following statements is NOT TRUE？{A; B; C}

A. The machines are designed for larger people.

B. Tinted windows are used to ensure extra privacy.

C. There are large mirrors on the walls.

5. Which of the following is the best title for the passage？{A; B; C}

A. Improving Women's Self-confidence through Exercises.

B. The traditional Gym Industry Is Losing Its Customers.

C. Specialized Gyms Designed for Overweight People.

last week, it appeared that 100 million Americans would have access to flu shots this fall. Then British authorities, concerned about quality-control problems at a production plant in Liverpool, barred all further shipments by the Chiron Corp. Overnight, the U.S. vaccine supply dwindled by nearly half and federal health officials found themselves making an unusual plea. Instead of beseeching us all to get vaccinated, they' re now urging most healthy people between the ages of 2 and 64 not to. "This reemphasizes the fragility of our vaccine supply," says Dr. Martin Myers of the National Network for Immunization Information, "and the lack of redundancy in our system."

Why is such a basic health service so easily knocked out？ Mainly because private companies have had little incentive to pursue it. To create a single dose of flu vaccine, a manufacturer has to grow live virus in a 2-week-old fertilized chicken egg, then crack the egg, harvest the virus and extract the proteins used to provoke an immune response. Profit margins are narrow, demand is fickle and, because each year's flu virus is different, any leftover vaccine goes to waste. As a result, the United States now has only two major suppliers (Chiron and Aventis Pasteur)--and when one of them runs into trouble, there isn' t much the other can do about it. "A vaccine maker can't just call up and order 40 million more fertilized eggs," says Manon Cox, of Connecticut-based Protein Sciences Corp. "There's a whole industry that's scheduled to produce a certain number of eggs at a certain time. "

Sleeker technologies are now in the works, and experts are hoping that this year's fiasco will speed the pace of innovation. The main challenge is to shift production from eggs into cell cultures--a medium already used to make most other vaccines. Flu vaccines are harder than most to produce this way, but several biotech companies are now pursuing this strategy, and one culture-based product (Solvay Pharmaceuticals' Invivac) has been cleared for marketing in Europe.

For Americans, the immediate challenge is to make the most of a limited supply. The government estimates that 95 million people still qualify for shots under the voluntary restrictions announced last week. That' s nearly twice the number of doses that clinics will have on hand, but only 60 million Americans seek out shots in a normal year. In fact, many experts are hoping the shortage will serve as an awareness campaign--encouraging the people who really need a flu shot to get one.

Shortages of flue vaccine show that ______.

A．America relies too much on foreign suppliers

B．the demand of flue vaccines is high this year

C．quality problem is a serious problem in flu vaccine production

D．the supply of flu vaccines is rather weak and America has no back-up measures to make it up

Life learning (sometimes called un-schooling or self-directed learning) is one of those concepts that are almost easier to explain by saying what it isn’t, than what it is. And that’s probably because our own schooled backgrounds have convinced us that learning happens only in a dedicated building on certain days, between certain hours, and managed by a specially trained professional.

Within that schooling framework, no matter how hard teachers try and no matter how good their textbooks, many bright students get bored, many slower students struggle and give up or lose their self-respect, and most of them reach the end of the process unprepared to enter into society. They have memorized a certain body of knowledge long enough to rush back the information on tests, but they haven’t really learnt much, at least of the official curriculum.

Life learners, on the other hand, know that learning is not difficult, that people learn things quite easily if they’re not compelled and forced, if they see a need to learn something, and if they are trusted and respected enough to learn it on their own timetable, at their own speed, in their own way. They know that learning cannot be produced in us and that we cannot produce it in others—no matter what age and no matter whether we’re at school or at home.

Life learning is independent of time, location or the presence of teacher. It does not require mom or dad to teach, or kids to work in workbooks at the kitchen table from 9 to noon from September to June. Life learning is learner-driven. It involves living and learning— in and from the real world. It is about exploring, questioning, experimenting, making messes, taking risks without fear of making mistakes, being laughed at and trying again.

Furthermore, life learning is about trusting kids to learn what they need to know and about helping them to learn and grow in their own ways. It is about providing positive experiences that enable children to understand the world and their culture and to interact with it.

It is implied in the text that it is hard to ______.

A．carry life learning though

B．tell the nature of life learning

C．learn without going to school

D．find a specially trained teacher

work out with a positive attitude.All one has to do is walk by almost any nice gym and notice all the healthy, sweating, “skinny” members.Sometimes they stare at those of us who are, well, zaftig.It is easy to see the judgment behind their eyes.Who wants to put up with that？

Many people are self-conscious of their bodies and feel isolated when joining workout classes of while exercising, especially if they are larger than most of the others in the group.Now the fitness industry is finally paying attention.Popular gyms are catering (迎合) to overweight and weight conscious customers by dedicating areas where the “skinny” people are not allowed.

There are even gyms or programs that require members to be at least 50 pounds overweight to participate.

Trainers recommend functional fitness as a practical goal, rather than six-pack abs(六块腹肌).They often use text messages to stay in touch with customers.

Often at these specialized gyms, the trainers are overweight themselves, or working on their own weight goals, and this can help those people with anxiety caused by poor body image.The equipment has been designed for use by larger people.Wider seats, more cushioning, no mirrors, and tinted (有色的) windows for privacy, are all important changes.

Hopefully these types of gyms will successfully grow in numbers in the future.The idea is a very simple and potentially popular one.If it helps those of us who are bigger exercise more and improve our fitness level, it's a step in the right direction.

1.The word zaftig in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ().

A.fat

B.healthy

C.friendly

2.We can infer from the first two paragraphs that ().

A.most large gym chains really don't want members to show up frequently

B.overweight people are often frustrated and pushed away by traditional gym industry

C.regular gyms don't accept overweight people to participate in their programs

3.What is the training goal in the gyms catering to overweight members？()

A.To achieve functional fitness.

B.To build six-pack abs.

C.To look like a fitness model.

4.As for the gyms catering to overweight members, which of the following statements is NOT TRUE？()

A.The machines are designed for larger people

B.Tinted windows are used to ensure extra privacy

C.There are large mirrors on the walls

5.Which of the following is the best title for the passage？()

A.Improving Women's Self-confidence through Exercises

B.The traditional Gym Industry Is Losing Its Customers

C.Specialized Gyms Designed for Overweight People

A.Right.

B.Wrong.

o make mor money. Because wealthy people are willing to take a risk, they are always presented with investment opportunities. It is amazing to see we don’t even stop and think for once that there could be other ways. Most of the education we receive in schools and colleges makes us think that taking up a job and working on it till you retire is the only way to make money. 二、汉译英。 公共汽车可能早到,因此我们得稳妥点,现在就动身。（）

A.while growing

B.to grow up

C.growing

D.to be growing up

A.learn of

B.sympathize with

C.put in

D.end up with

阅读文章，回答下列各题： A lot ofpeople don’t want to talk about their age，especially(尤其是)womenover 30．The thought of grow—ing older is a painful(痛苦的)one and most of US，ifpossible，would like to have nothing to do with it．However，getting older is a thing that happens to all of US．As a result，many people work hard to keep young．So the lastthing they want is for someone to askthe question，“How old are you？” Peoplemay answer this question like：“How old do you think I am？”“30 something．I’min my thirties．Let’s just leave it at that．…‘I can’t remember．…Oh，don’t ask me that．…“A lot older than what lwould like tobe．” However，if you really want to knowsomeone’s age，this is how you could find out the answer．First you estimate(估计)their age．Then you subtract(减去)ten years from thatestimation．Certainly you will get a big smilefrom thatperson who will also say．“Wow．Youare my best friend．I’m 38 already．Can you believe it？”You，ofCOUrSe,，say，“N0．I reallyCall’t．You’re,joking．You don’tlook a day over 28．” Most of men are pleased totell others how old they are．

A.Right．

B.Wrong．

C.Doesn’t Say．