Pete Richards was the loneliest man in town on the day that little Jean Grace opened the door of his shop. Pete's grandfather had owned the shop until his death. Then the shop became Pete's. The front window was full of beautiful old things: jewelry of a hundred years ago, gold and silver boxes, carved figures from China and Japan and other nations. On this winter afternoon, a child stood there, her face close to the window. With large and serious eyes, she studied each piece in the window. Then, looking pleased, she stepped back from the window and went into the shop. Pete himself stood behind the counter. His eyes were cold as he looked at the small girl. "Please," she began, "would you let me look at the pretty string of blue beads in the window?" Pete took the string of blue beads from the window. The beads were beautiful against his hand as he held the necklace up for her to see. "They are just right," said the child as though she were alone with the beads. "Will you wrap them up in pretty paper for me, please? I've been looking for a really wonderful Christmas present for my sister." "How much money do you have?" asked Pete. She put a handful of pennies on the counter. "This is all I have," she explained simply. "I've been saving the money for my sister's present." Pete looked at her, his eyes thoughtful. Then he carefully closed his hand over the price mark on the necklace so that she could not see it. How could he tell her the price? The happy look in her big blue eyes struck him like the pain of an old wound. "Just a minute," he said and went to the back of the shop. "What's your name?" he called out. He was very busy about something. "Jean Grace," answered the child. When Pete returned to the front of the shop, he held a package in his hand. It was wrapped in pretty Christmas paper. "There you are," he said. "Don't lose it on the way home." She smiled happily at him as she ran out of the door. Through the window he watched her go. He felt more alone than ever. Something about Jean Grace and her... A young woman came into the shop because _ . A) she was afraid that there might be some mistake B) she thought that the stones she had bought were not real C) she was not sure if she could get more stones like those D) she did not like what she had once bought
A
What makes a person a scientist?Does he have ways or tools of learning that are different from those of others?The answer is "no". It isn't the tools a scientist uses but how he uses these tools which make him a scientist. You will probably agree that knowing how to use a power is important to a carpenter .You will probably agree,too,that _ The scientist,however,goes one step further;he must be sure that he has a reasonable answer to his questions and that his answer he gets to many questions is into a large set of ideas about how the world works. The scientist's knowledge must be exact. There's no room for half right or right just half the time. He must be as nearly right as the conditions permit. What works under one set of conditions at one time must work under the same conditions at other times. If the conditions are different,any changes the scientist observes in a demonstration must be explained by the changes in the conditions. This is one reason why investigations are important in science. Albert Einstein,who developed the Theory of Relativity,arrived at this theory through mathematics. The accuracy of his mathematics was later tested through investigation. Einstein's ideas were proved to be correct. A scientist uses many tools for measurements. Then the measurements are used to make mathematical calculations that may test his investigations. What is the main idea of the passage? A) Scientists are different from ordinary people. B) The Theory of Relativity. C) Exactness is the core of science. D) Exactness and way of using tools are the keys to making of a scientist.
D
Q: Everyone may all have the experience of feeling anxious and stressed when having a rough day or having some troubles. Different people may choose different ways to deal with it, and for most people a break for a 10-minute walk may be quite useful.www.zxxk.com Anyway, here is another way around: to get a piece of chewing gum, and chew it. According to a Swinburne University of Technology study, gum-chewing has been found to "relieve anxiety, improve alertness and reduce stress among individuals in a laboratory setting." Some may argue that a laboratory is not the same as an office. But check out the conditions of the study: individuals were monitored while performing "a group of 'multi-tasking' activities." Doesn't it sound like the situation in the office?www.zxxk.com Here's a summary of some of the study's findings: Gum chewers showed a reduction in anxiety as compared to non-gum chewers by nearly 17 percent during mild stress and nearly 10 percent in appropriate stress. Gum chewers showed improvement in alertness over non-gum chewers by nearly 19 percent during mild stress and 8 percent in moderate stress. Improved Performance: Chewing gum resulted in a big improvement in overall performance on multi-tasking activities. Although these aren't major improvements, every little bit works and chewing a piece of gum is a lot quicker and easier than slipping outside for a 10-minute walk. So, how does gum work this magic? In part it does so by lowering the level of cortisol --a steroid hormone that is released in response to stress in your system. A few words of advice before you reach for the gum: don't crack your gum, and be sure to chew it with your mouth closed. In fact, I'd say keep the gum out of meetings, because it really looks impolite to others around you. What does the text mainly talk about? A) How to chew gum. B) How to relieve stress. C) Why people love chewing gum. D) Chewing gum can relieve stress.
A: D
*Question*
When people think of Hollywood, they think of the city where dreams come true. This did not apply to F. Scott Fitzgerald, a screenwriter who had his share of ups and downs in this land. Fitzgerald was not a successful Hollywood writer because he was not good at the career path he chose. He was an amazing novelist, but his efforts of turning them into screenplays ended in disappointment and confusion. It was because of a lack of potential for screenwriting as well as his addiction and desire to be famous. Growing up as a boy, Fitzgerald went to movies a lot. He wanted to write stories that would eventually turn into movies. The problem was: just because Fitzgerald wanted to do something didn't necessarily mean that he was good at it. He made his attempts, but most of these efforts ended in disappointment because he thought about the change from script to screen too much. His plot was too detailed and complicated; his tone was too serious or his dialogue too sentimental . Fitzgerald's quick rise to fame also led to his fall. In life, things are not meant to happen all at once, all that the same time but it did for Fitzgerald. At his best time, three of his early stories were made into short films, including The Great Gatsby and Babylon Revisited. As the twenties approached, he was gradually forgotten by the reading public. He became drunk and constantly took pills both to sleep and wake up. His marriage was destroyed and his wife broke down mentally. He seemed unsure about his life. Fitzgerald had another chance at success when many opportunities came his way, including revisions of Emlyn William's play The Light of Heart and production of one of his own scripts, Cosmopolitan. However, these were all put aside and he was right back where he started, left behind and called a "ruined man". Fitzgerald simply wanted too much in his life. He wanted "to be both a great novelist and a Hollywood success, to write songs like Cole Porter and poetry like John Keats". His addiction to fame held him back and led to his... When Fitzgerald had another chance at success, he _ . A) took full advantage of it B) went back home to start business C) refused to make changes D) started to write songs and poems
**Answer**
C