Almost every day we come across situations in which we have to make decisions one way or another. Choice, we are given to believe, is a right. But for a good many people in the world，in rich and poor countries, choice is a luxury, something wonderful but hard to get, not a right. And for those who think they are exercising their right to make choices, the whole system is merely an illusion, a false idea created by companies and advertisers, hoping to sell their products.

The endless choice gives birth to anxiety in people’s lives. Buying something as basic as a coffee pot is not exactly simple. Easy access to a wide range of everyday goods leads to a sense of powerlessness in many people, ending in the shopper giving up and walking away, or just buying an unsuitable item(商品) that is not really wanted. Recent studies in England have shown that many electrical goods bought in almost every family are not really needed. More difficult decision-making is then either avoided or trusted into the hands of the professionals, lifestyle instructors, or advisors.

It is not just the availability of the goods that is the problem, but the speed with which new types of products come on the market. Advances in design and production help quicken the process. Products also need to have a short lifespan so that the public can be persuaded to replace them within a short time. The typical example is computers, which are almost out-of-date once they are bought. This indeed makes selection a problem. Gone are the days when one could just walk with ease into a shop and buy one thing; no choice, no anxiety.

1．What does the author try to argue in Paragraph l?

A. The practice of choice is difficult.

B. The right of choice is given but at a price.

C. Choice and right exist at the same time.

D. The exercise of rights is a luxury.

2．Why do more choices of goods give rise to anxiety?

A. People are likely to find themselves overcome by business persuasion.

B. Shoppers may find themselves lost in the broad range of items.

C. Companies and advertisers are often misleading about the range of choice.

D. Professionals find it hard to decide on a suitable product.

3．By using computers as an example, the author wants to prove that___________.

A. products of the latest design flood the market

B. competitions are fierce in high-tech industry

C. everyday goods need to be replaced often

D. advanced products meet the needs of people

4．What is this passage mainly about?

A. The opinions on people's right in different countries.

B. The problems about the availability of everyday goods.

C. The helplessness in purchasing decisions.

D. The variety of choices in modern society.

The next time you go grocery shopping, try speaking to other customers. One summer day, I took a smile and a warm heart into a small store in Oregon and got far more than groceries.

I love fresh produce(农产品) in the store, and not just for the amazing colors provided by summer's bounty (慷慨) or the chance to joy over new choices from other countries. It's also because I just love watching people pick their produce.

The day I was there I found a sale on amazing cherry tomatoes—along with a woman in her late 70s. Despite the fact that we were strangers, we began to discuss apples. She noted a problem with the Pink Ladies. "They tasted like I was eating an unripe green apple from the tree," she said, twisting her face as if still tasting the sour apple.

I wondered if this is something most of my generation can even remember doing. I surely do. I mentioned that I often could not resist the green yet tempting fruit swinging from an apple tree. This was the start for a series of discussions as we shopped-covering such topics as nutrition, new foods and the quality of produce.

By this time a third woman had joined in our conversation. The three of us continued along, unexpected friends, chatting about family size and the troubles a mom might have serving healthful foods that please the whole family.

Eventually we all went our separate ways, but in the dairy(奶制品) section I heard a small voice say, "I finally caught up with you." It was the first woman I'd talked to, extending a bag of apricots(杏) to me. "I don't know if your family will eat these," she added, "but they have a super deal on them."

Again I was brought back to my childhood, when I also ate apricots straight from the tree. My mouth watered at the remembered flavor.

The old lady didn't realize that she'd given me far more than produce. With that offering came a sense of community, a flashback to days when it was OK to talk to a stranger. She brought back memories of summer fruits right from the tree—and a feeling that somehow those apricots were a thank-you for sharing my time with her in a very unlikely place.

5．One reason the author likes fresh produce in grocery shop is that ________.

A. she enjoys observing people selecting fresh produce

B. she likes watching people tasting fresh produce

C. she produces fresh produce herself

D. she sells fresh produce herself

6．What might be the problem with the Pink Ladies noted by the old lady?

A. Their price was too high.

B. Their color was too green.

C. Their taste was too sour.

D. Their size was too small.

7．Why did the old lady bring a bag of apricots to the author?

A. She found the apricots were on sale in the shop.

B. She learned that the author wanted to buy apricots.

C. She wanted to send the apricots as a gift to the author.

D. She knew that the author's family liked eating apricots.

8．According to the author, what is the extra value of grocery shopping?

A. It adds flavor and color to her boring daily life.

B. It helps her to see the importance of family life.

C. It gives her a chance to learn about nutrition knowledge.

D. It brings her unexpected friendship and sweet memories.

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9．What can YES and NO buttons help you do?

A. Get clear sound.

B. Make dialing easy.

C. Order food and drink.

D. Look through the menu.

10．Why is the Jitterbug5 easy to enjoy?

A. It has powerful battery.

B. It has a wonderful speaker.

C. It is the best on the market.

D. It has a fashionable design.

11．What is the use of the 5Star button?

A. Getting you prepared for trips.

B. Recommending 5-satr hotels.

C. Offering the medical help.

D. Providing the best service.

Larger brain size linked to longer life in deer

The size of a female animals’ brain may determine whether they live longer and have more healthy offspring (后代), according to new research led by the University of Cambridge.

The study, published in the Royal Society Open Science journal, shows that female red deer with larger brains live longer and have more surviving offspring than those with smaller brains. Brain size is passed down through the generations. This is the first extensive study of individual differences in brain size in wild mammals and draws on data comparing seven generations of deer.

Across species of mammals, brain size varies widely. This is thought to be a consequence of specific differences in the benefits and costs of a larger brain. Mammals with larger brains may, for example, have greater cognitive abilities that enable them to adapt better to environmental changes or they may have longer lifespans (寿命) . But there may also be disadvantages: for instance, larger brains require more energy, so individuals that possess them may show reduced fertility (繁殖力).

The researchers, based at the University of Cambridge’s Zoology Department and Edinburgh University’s Institute of Evolutionary Biology, wanted to test if they could find more direct genetic or non-genetic evidence of the costs and benefits of large brain size by comparing the longevity (长寿) and survival of individuals of the same species with different sized brains. Using the skulls of 1,314 wild red deer whose life histories and breeding success had been monitored in the course of a long-term study on the Isle of Rum, they found that females with larger endocranial volumes (脑腔容量) lived longer and produced more surviving offspring in the course of their lives.

Lead author Dr Corina Logan, a Gates Cambridge Scholar, says, “The reasons for the association between brain size and longevity are not known, but other studies have suggested that larger brains are a consequence of the longer-lived species having longer developmental periods in which the brain can grow. These hypotheses (假设) were generated from cross-species correlations; however, testing such hypotheses requires investigations at the within-species level, which is what we did.”

Dr Logan adds, “We found that some of the cross-species predictions about brain size held for female red deer, and that none of the predictions were supported in male red deer. This indicates that each sex likely experiences its own set of trade-offs (权衡，协调) with regard to brain size.” The study also showed that females’ relative endocranial volume is smaller than that of males, despite evidence of selection for larger brains in females.

Professor Tim Clutton-Brock, who set up the Rum Red Deer study with Fiona Guinness in 1972 and initiated the work on brain size, points out, “The reason that this kind of study has not been conducted before is that it requires long term records of a large number of individuals across multiple generations and data of this kind are still rare in wild animals.”

12．What does the new research about brain size reveal?

A. Large-brain red deer tend to be more reproductive.

B. Large-brain female deer survive small-brain male deer.

C. Brain size causes individual differences in some mammals.

D. Brain size has been increasing from generation to generation.

13．For different species of mammals, brain size varies widely in that ______.

A. mammals can develop different adaptive abilities

B. a larger brain has its advantages and disadvantages

C. different mammals are born with different lifespans

D. brain size is affected by genetic or non-genetic factors

14．What can we learn about the relation between brain size and longevity?

A. The cause and effect needs to be further investigated.

B. Brain size absolutely determines animals’ longevity.

C. Longer-lived species allow brains to grow to a large size.

D. The cross-species assumptions apply to red deer of both sexes.

15．What can we infer from Professor Tim Clutton-Brock’s words?

A. Researchers can’t possibly reach a conclusion about the reason.

B. Researchers are not patient enough to keep long term records.

C. Such research has been thoroughly conducted on wild animals before.

D. Such research will witness great difficulty in the long-term process.

My wife and I were attending a wedding at St. John’s Church. The sound of _______ rang to the heavens as the ceremony continued.

At the church, I _________ an old friend. Casper, who happened to be at the _________. Now 73, Casper was a brilliant and _________ softball pitcher （投球手） back in the Men’s Leagues of  Philadelphia in the mid-60s. I did not _________ the now silver-haired fellow until my brother-in- law John mentioned his name to me! After a very pleasant _________, Casper asked if I remembered a letter of _______ I had written to him back in 1964. It appeared Casper fell on hard times, as professional pitchers _________ do, and he wasn’t pitching too well for a period of time. I did not _______ the letter, but he said, “Yes, I still have it, and I read it anytime ____________ aren’t going too well.” He said that he had read the letter many times, and the situation always seemed to improve. I was __________ and speechless!

He continued, “You don’t remember?” I said, “Sadly, no, I don’t.” But I did ask if I could have a(n) ____________ of the letter. He said he would email it to me. After the ____________, we met on the steps of the church. Casper came up to me and __________ the letter. He lived a block from the ____________ and had run home to get it. The envelope was __________ and turned yellow, and so was the letter inside. That letter had to be nearly 50 years old.

In ______________ terms, the letter read:

“These hard times are ____________ ! Keep your enthusiasm for the ____________. Never quit and you’ll be back on top again __________. Hang on there!”

16．A. wind    B. music    C. traffic    D. fireworks

17．A. took over    B. ran into    C. picked up    D. called on

18．A. meeting    B. service    C. scene    D. position

19．A. limited    B. balanced    C. devoted    D. talented

20．A. invite    B. recognize    C. disturb    D. inform

21．A. discussion    B. shaking    C. journey    D. greeting

22．A. encouragement    B. appreciation    C. apology    D. introduction

23．A. sometimes    B. entirely    C. rarely    D. forever

24．A. receive    B. write    C. remember    D. preserve

25．A. jobs    B. things    C. stages    D. effects

26．A. pleased    B. disappointed    C. puzzled    D. annoyed

27．A. address    B. copy    C. record    D. opinion

28．A. party    B. break    C. wedding    D. incident

29．A. dropped    B. delivered    C. opened    D. presented

30．A. theatre    B. church    C. office    D. station

31．A. folded    B. faded    C. painted    D. divided

32．A. gentle    B. patient    C. modest    D. simple

33．A. reasonable    B. temporary    C. relative    D. impressive

34．A. game    B. prize    C. glory    D. lesson

35．A. casually    B. properly    C. totally    D. shortly