Helen Thomas, the pioneering White House reporter known for putting presidents on the hot seat, died at 92.
To those who regularly watch presidential press conferences, Helen Thomas is a familiar figure.Usually dressed in red and always seated in the front row, she is always the first or second reporter the president calls upon.It is an honor she has earned.Besides, it affords her the perfect opportunity to do what she does best - challenge the president and other public officials to tell the plain truth.She said, "We reporters' priority(首要事情) is the people's right to know - without fear or favor.We are the people's servants."
Helen Thomas was born in Kentucky in 1920.All the nine Thomas children were brought up to value education, and all were expected to make something of themselves through working hard.She made up her mind while still in high school to become a reporter after writing for the student newspaper.After receiving her bachelor's degree in 1942, Thomas headed straight for Washington, D.C.in search of a newspaper job.Before long, she landed one at Washington Daily News.Her duty included fetching coffee and doughnuts for the paper's reporters and editors.The eager young woman found the atmosphere exciting and was convinced she had made the right career choice.
Her big break came when she was sent to Florida to report on the vacation of President-elect John F.Kennedy and his family.Once President Kennedy took office, Thomas changed her focus from the president's family to his policies.She began attending the daily press briefings at the White House as well as presidential press conferences.Thomas has covered every president since Kennedy.Over the years, Thomas found her job "thrilling and inspiring," but never boring.And she took very seriously her duty to "keep an eye on the president" and keep American people informed.
【小题1】What can we learn about Helen Thomas from the passage?
| A.Her career took off after covering the Kennedys. |
| B.Her first job was to deliver doughnuts to a news agency. |
| C.She was born to a large family in Kentucky in 1942. |
| D.She decided to be a reporter while in college. |
| A.is a good decision maker for her career |
| B.appreciates education and hard work |
| C.wants to be famous by writing reports |
| D.has great support from her family |
| A.Unbearable. | B.Exciting. | C.Challenging. | D.Unforgettable. |
| A.A reporter sticking to the facts. |
| B.A reporter challenging President Kennedy. |
| C.A reporter from an ordinary family. |
| D.A reporter for Washington Daily News. |
【小题1】A
【小题2】B
【小题3】B
【小题4】A
解析试题分析: 本文介绍了美国著名记者海伦.托马斯。自小她的父母对于孩子们都有着很高的期望,希望他们会有所作为。而她自己也非常勤奋,立志想当记者。毕业后她找了一份在报社的工作,从最底层的工作做起,经过她的不懈努力,成了美国白宫记者团资深成员。
【小题1】A细节理解题。根据文章末段 Her big break came when she was sent to Florida to report on the vacation of President-elect John F.Kennedy and his family.可知她事业的转机是在肯尼迪总统时期,故A选项正确。
【小题2】B推理判断题。文章第三段讲述了Helen Thomas所受的教育以及她想当记者的志向,和工作中的勤奋努力,由此判断B选项正确。
【小题3】B细节理解题。根据文章末段Over the years, Thomas found her job "thrilling and inspiring," but never boring.可知B选项正确。
【小题4】A主旨大意题。本文介绍了美国著名记者海伦.托马斯。她高中时候就立志成为一名记者,后来因为她尖锐的问题,而让多位美国总统吃足苦头,根据文章介绍可知A选项内容更能体现她的特点,选A。
考点:考查人物类短文阅读。
科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
The morning had been a disaster. My tooth was aching, and I’d been in an argument with a friend. Her words still hurt: “The trouble with you is that you won’t put yourself in my place. Can’t you see things from my point of view?” I shook my head stubbornly(固执地)and felt the ache in my tooth. I’d thought I could hold out till my dentist came back from holiday, but the pain was really unbearable. I started calling the dentists in the phone book, but no one could see me immediately. Finally, at about lunchtime, I got lucky.
“If you come by right now,” the receptionist said, “the dentist will fit you in.”
I took my purse and keys and rushed to my car. But suddenly I began to doubt about the dentist. What kind of dentist would be so eager to treat someone at such short notice? Why wasn’t he as busy as the others?
In the dentist’s office, I sat down and looked around. I saw nothing but the bare walls and I became even more worried. The assistant noticed my nervousness and placed her warm hand over my ice-cold one.
When I told her my fears, she laughed and said, “Don’t worry. The dentist is very good.”
“How long do I have to wait for him?” I asked impatiently.
“Come on, he is coming. Just lie down and relax. And enjoy the artwork,” the assistant said.
“The artwork?” I was puzzled.
The chair went back. Suddenly I smiled. There was a beautiful picture, right where I could enjoy it: on the ceiling. How considerate the dentist was! At that moment, I began to understand what my friend meant by her words.
What a relief!
【小题1】Which of the following best describes the author’s feeling that morning?
| A.Upset. | B.Nervous. | C.Satisfied. | D.Cheerful. |
| A.The laughing assistant of the dentist. |
| B.The dentist’s being as busy as the other dentists. |
| C.The surroundings of the dentist’s office. |
| D.The dentist’s agreeing to treat her at very short notice. |
| A.Strike while the iron is hot. |
| B.Put oneself in others’ shoes. |
| C.Have a good word for one’s friend. |
| D.A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
The day of my holiday arrived, but I wasn’t looking forward to it. I had little money and had only been able to afford to stay with my Aunt Rosa in Spain. So, I wasn’t really excited as I knew exactly what it was going to be like: lots of noisy cousins , and Aunt Rosa begging me to take her for a ride.
After I had checked in, I made my way slowly to the departure gate. As I was waiting to board the plane, I kept thinking about my ideal holiday destination: Jamaica, with its long, sandy beaches and crystal clear water.
As soon as the plane took off, I fell fast asleep and only woke to the sound of the announcement: “Ladies and gentlemen, please fasten you seat belts, as we will shortly be landing in Kingston.” I froze in my seat. Was I dreaming? Kingston? Jamaica? I had boarded the wrong plane!
Immediately after the plane landed, I explained the situation to the authorities. It seems there were also three other passengers heading for Spain. Apparently it had been the airline’s fault, since the flight numbers for Spain and Jamaica were exactly the same! Therefore, with no flight back to London for a week, the airline had no choice but to pay for our stay.
So there I was, lying on the beach, enjoying the music and the marvelous food of Jamaica! As for Aunt Rosa, I suppose she just had to live without me!
【小题1】Why did the writer choose to spend her holiday with her aunt in Spain?
| A.She missed her cousins very much. |
| B.Her aunt begged her to go there. |
| C.She could hardly afford any better trip. |
| D.Spain was her ideal destination. |
| A.flying to London immediately | B.heading for Spain from Jamaica |
| C.complaining to the authorities | D.enjoying a free beach holiday |
| A.A Lucky Mistake | B.A Terrible Adventure |
| C.A Nice Dream | D.A Well-Planned Trip |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
Oscar-winning actress Joan Fontaine, who rose to fame during Hollywood's golden age as the star of several Alfred Hitch.cock classics, died from natural causes at her home in Carmel, northern California on December 16, 2013 aged 96, US media reports said.
Born in Japan to British parents, Fontaine moved in 1919 to California, where she and her elder sister -screen idol Olivia de Havilland-were to shape successful movie careers.Fontaine and de Havilland remain the only sisters to have won lead actress honours at the Academy Awards.Yet the two sisters also had an uneasy relationship, with Fontaine recording a bitter competition in her own account "No Bed of Roses ".
Fontaine began her acting career in her late teens with Largely less important roles on the stage and later in mostly B-movies in the 1930s. It was not before famous British film director Hitchcock spotted her a decade later that her career took off.
Greatly surprised by her expressive looks, the suspense (悬念) master cast Fontaine in his first US film, a 1940 adaptation of the Daphne du Maurier novel "Rebecca". She received an Academy Award nomination(提名) for her performance as a troubled wife. A year later, Fontaine finally won the long-sought golden figure, for her role as leading lady in "Suspicion" opposite Cary Grant, becoming the first and only actress to earn the title for a Hitchock film.
Although her sister, Olivia de Havilland, preceded her in gaining Hollywood fame, Fontaine was the first of the sisters to win an Oscar, beating Olivia's nomination as best actress in Mitchell Leisen's "Hold Back the Dawn".
The dislike ,between the sisters was felt at the Oscars ceremony."I froze. I stared across the table, where Olivia was sitting.'Get up there!' she whispered commandingly," Fontaine said."All the dislike we'd felt toward each other as children…all came rushing back in quickly changing pictures…I felt Olivia would spring across the table and seize me by the hair."
Olivia did not win her first Oscar until 1946, for her role as the lover of a World War I pilot in Leisen's " To Each His Own". Fontaine later made it known that her. sister had slighted her as she attempted to offer congratulations.“She took one look at me, ignored my hand, seized her Oscar and wheeled away,” she said.
The sisters were also reportedly competitors in love. Howard Hughes, a strange businessman who dated the elder de Havilland for a time, offered marriage to Fontaine several times."I married first, won the Oscar before Olivia did, and if I die first, she'll undoubtedly be extremely angry because I beat her to it!" Fontaine once joked.
As her film career fruited in the 1950s, Fontaine turned to television and dinner theatre, and also appeared in several Broadway productions, including the Lion in Winter". Anything but the ordinary lady, Fontaine was also a licensed pilot, a champion balloonist, an accomplished golfer, a licensed .decoration designer and a first-class cook.
【小题1】When she moved to California, Joan Fontaine was years old.
| A.two | B.twelve | C.twenty | D.twenty -two |
| A.1930s | B.1940s | C.1950s | D.1960s |
| A.Rebecca ' | B.Suspicion |
| C.To Each His Own | D.Hold Back the Dawn |
| A.Olivia preceded Fontaine in getting married. |
| B.Olivia gamed Hollywood fame after Fontaine. |
| C.Fontaine won an Oscar before her sister Olivia, |
| D.Fontaine wanted to meet her death before Olivia. |
| A.competed for an Oscar | B.competed for a husband |
| C.were small children | D.were successful actresses |
| A.disliked by her family | B.always a troubled wife |
| C.able to do few jobs | D.gifted in many ways |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
While going to the office, I found an old man lying by the side of the bus stop.He seemed very sick and poor.Instinctively.I gave him some money.After a few minutes, I realized that he was probably too sick to get up and buy something with that money.I was thinking about how to help him when my bus arrived, halting my brainstorm.I quickly got on and rode off.
However, that night I couldn't sleep.I felt very angry at my own heartless and selfish behavior.How could I just walk away from that man without a thought for his suffering? I felt restless and very upset. The next morning, while waiting at the bus stop, I hoped to run into him again.But he wasn't there.I thought he may have gone to the sidewalk to sleep for the night.I looked around for him, but he had disappeared.Disappointed, I decided to check for him again on my way back.
While returning from work that day, I came back to the bus stop and resumed my search for him. Thankfully, he was there.I quickly went to a nearby store and got him a blanket, some bread, and biscuits. When I handed them to him, he seemed very grateful."Now I will be safe from the cold," he smiled. I also gave him some more money and told him to keep it safely.After being able to help him, I felt very at peace.
【小题1】What does the underlined word "Instinctively" in Paragraph 1 mean?
| A.Immediately. | B.Constantly. |
| C.Naturally. | D.Generally. |
| A.He was regretful that didn't give the old man any money. |
| B.He was exhausted while he was working at his office. |
| C.He felt guilty in his mind for not helping the old man out |
| D.He suffered being restless and upset at night for a long period. |
| A.The author left the old man in a hurry as he didn't want to be late for work. |
| B.The next morning the author did meet the old man and give him a warm hand. |
| C.The old man was pleased with the author's offer because he wouldn't be exposed to the cold at night |
| D.The author eventually achieved his resolution to help the old man out. |
| A.The fragrance always stays in the hand that gives the rose. |
| B.If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. |
| C.God helps those who help themselves. |
| D.Don’t put off until tomorrow what you can do today. |
| A.Giving money to strangers is rather happy. |
| B.How can you help a stranger? |
| C.Don't be sony failing in helping others. |
| D.A moving story happening at a bus stop. |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
John Blanchard stood up from the bench, straightened his Army uniform, and studied the crowd of people making their way through Grand Central Station. He looked for the girl whose heart he knew, but whose face he didn’t, the girl with the rose.
His interest in her had begun thirteen months before in a Florida library. Taking a book off the shelf he found himself intrigued, not with the words of the book, but with the notes penciled in the margin. The soft handwriting reflected a thoughtful soul and insightful mind. In the front of the book, he discovered the previous owner’s name, Miss Hollis Maynell. With time and effort he located her address. She lived in New York City. He wrote her a letter introducing himself and inviting her to correspond. The next day he was shipped overseas for service in World War II.
During the next year and one month the two grew to know each other through the mail. Each letter was a seed falling on a fertile heart. A romance was starting Blanchard requested a photograph, but she refused. She felt that if he really cared, it wouldn’t matter what she looked like.
When the day finally came for him to return from Europe, they scheduled their first meeting —7:00 PM at the Grand Central Station in New York. “You’ll recognize me,” she wrote, “by the red rose I’ll be wearing on my lapel.” So at 7:00 he was in the station looking for a girl whose heart he loved, but whose face he’d never seen.
I’ll let Mr. Blanchard tell you what happened: A young woman was coming toward me, her figure long and slim. Her blonde hair lay back in curls from her delicate ears; her eyes were blue as flowers. Her lips and chin had a gentle firmness, and in her pale green suit she was like springtime come alive. I stared at her, entirely forgetting to notice that she was not wearing a rose. As I moved, a small, attractive smile curved her lips. “Going my way , sailor?” she murmured.
Almost uncontrollably I made one step closer to her, and then I saw Hollis Maynell. She was standing almost directly behind the girl. A woman well past 40, she had graying hair tucked under a worn hat. She was more than plump, her thick-ankled feet thrust into low-heeled shoes. The girl in the green suit was walking quickly away. I felt as though I was split in two, so keen was my desire to follow her, and yet so deep was my longing for the woman whose spirit had truly companioned me and upheld my own.
And there she stood. Her pale, plump face was gentle and sensible, her gray eyes had a warm and kindly twinkle. I did not hesitate. My fingers gripped the small worn blue leather copy of the book that was to identify me to her.
This would not be love, but it would be something precious, something perhaps even better than love, a friendship for which I had been and must ever be grateful. I squared my shoulders and saluted and held out the book to the woman, even though while I spoke I felt choked by the bitterness of my disappointment. "I'm Lieutenant John Blanchard, and you must be Miss Maynell. I am so glad you could meet me; may I take you to dinner?"
The woman's face broadened into a tolerant smile. "I don't know what this is about, son," she answered, "but the young lady in the green suit who just went by, she begged me to wear this rose on my coat. And she said if you were to ask me out to dinner, I should go and tell you that she is waiting for you in the big restaurant across the street. She said it was some kind of test!"
It's not difficult to understand and admire Miss Maynell's wisdom. The true nature of a heart is seen in its response to the unattractive. "Tell me whom you love," Houssaye wrote, "And I will tell you who you are. "
【小题1】How did John Blanchard get to know Miss Hollis Maynell?
| A.They lived in the same city. |
| B.They were both interested in literature. |
| C.John knew Hollis's name from a library book. |
| D.John came across Hollis in a Florida library. |
| A.she was only a middle - aged woman |
| B.she wasn't confident about her appearance |
| C.she thought true love is beyond appearance |
| D.she had never taken any photo before they knew |
| A.She would be wearing a rose on her coat. |
| B.She would be holding a book in her hand. |
| C.She would be standing behind a young girl. |
| D.She would be wearing a scarf around her neck. |
| A.She was a plump woman with graying hair. |
| B.She was a slightly fat girl, with blonde hair. |
| C.She was a middle - aged woman in her forties. |
| D.She was a young, pretty girl wearing a green suit. |
| A.satisfied and confident |
| B.disappointed but well - behaved |
| C.annoyed and bad - mannered |
| D.shocked but inspired |
| A.A Test of Love | B.The Symbol of Rose |
| C.Love is blind | D.Don't Judge a Book by its Cover |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
Harry is eighteen now. He studies in a middle school. His parents like him very much and hope he can become a famous man. So they often tell him to study hard and they do all for him. They call him at six in the morning, after breakfast his father takes him to school in a car and in the afternoon, as soon as the young man comes back, the supper is ready. Of course, he never washes his clothes or goes to buy something in the shops.
Once Harry’s father was sent to London on business. He would stay there for half a year. Leaving, he told his wife to take good care of their son. The woman had to get up earlier and did all her husband did before. And two months later she was so tired that she was ill in bed. Now the young man got into trouble. He couldn’t do any housework. He had to do as his mother told him. Even he didn’t know where to get on the bus!
Yesterday Harry’s mother found his shoes were worn out and told him to buy a new pair in the shop. But he didn’t know how to choose. The woman had a sigh(叹息) and gave him a shoe pattern(鞋样) and told him to buy a pair of shoes himself. It’s Saturday today and Harry doesn’t go to school. With a policeman’s help, he found a shop. The shopkeeper was friendly to him. The man brought a lot of shoes and asked him to choose. When he was trying on a pair, suddenly he remembered something and took them off. The man was surprised and asked, “What’s the matter, young man?”
“I’m sorry, I’ve left the shoe pattern at home!”
【小题1】_______ always does some housework in the morning.
| A.Harry’s mother | B.Harry’s father | C.Harry | D.Nobody |
| A.he’s too young |
| B.he has poor health |
| C.they hope he spends all time on studies |
| D.he’s busy with his studies |
| A.she was stronger than her husband |
| B.her husband wasn’t at home |
| C.she knew the young man well |
| D.she was freer than her husband |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
My heart sank when the man at the immigration counter gestured to the back room. I was born and raised in America, and this was Miami, where I live, but they weren’t quite ready to let me in yet.
“Please wait in here, Ms. Abujaber,” the immigration officer said. My husband, with his very American last name, accompanied me. He was getting used to this. The same thing had happened recently in Canada when I’d flown to Montreal to speak at a book event. That time they held me for 45 minutes. Today we were returning from a literary festival in Jamaica, and I was shocked that I was being sent “in back” once again.
The officer behind the counter called me up and said, “Miss, your name looks like the name of someone who’s on our wanted list. We’re going to have to check you out with Washington.”
“How long will it take?”
“Hard to say…a few minutes,” he said, “We’ll call you when we’re ready for you.” After an hour, Washington still hadn’t decided anything about me.
“Isn’t this computerized?” I asked at the counter, “Can’t you just look me up?”
“Just a few more minutes,” they assured me.
After an hour and a half, I pulled my cell phone out to call the friends I was supposed to meet that evening. An officer rushed over. “No phones!” he said, “For all we know you could be calling a terrorist cell and giving them information.”
“I’m just a university professor,” I said. My voice came out in a squeak.
“Of course you are. And we take people like you out of here in leg irons every day.”
I put my phone away.
My husband and I were getting hungry and tired. Whole families had been brought into the waiting room, and the place was packed with excitable children, exhausted parents, and even a flight attendant.
I wanted to scream, to jump on a chair and shout: “I’m an American citizen; a novelist; I probably teach English literature to your children.”
After two hours in detention (扣押), I was approached by one of the officers. “You’re free to go,” he said. No explanation or apologies. For a moment, neither of us moved. We were still in shock. Then we leaped to our feet.
“Oh, one more thing,” he handed me a tattered photocopy with an address on it, “If you aren’t happy with your treatment, you can write to this agency.”
“Will they respond?” I asked.
“I don’t know—I don’t know of anyone who’s ever written to them before.” Then he added,” By the way, this will probably keep happening each time you travel internationally.”
“What can I do to keep it from happening again?”
He smiled the empty smile we’d seen all day, “Absolutely nothing.”
After telling several friends about our ordeal, probably the most frequent advice I’ve heard in response is to change my name. Twenty years ago, my own graduate school writing professor advised me to write under a pen name so that publishers wouldn’t stick me in what he called “the ethnic ghetto”—a separate, secondary shelf in the bookstore. But a name is an integral part of anyone’s personal and professional identity—just like the town you’re born in and the place where you’re raised.
Like my father, I’ll keep the name, but my airport experience has given me a whole new perspective on what diversity and tolerance are supposed to mean. I had no idea that being an American would ever be this hard.
【小题1】The author was held at the airport because ______.
| A.she and her husband returned from Jamaica |
| B.her name was similar to a terrorist’s |
| C.she had been held in Montreal |
| D.she had spoken at a book event |
| A.her identity hadn’t been confirmed yet |
| B.she had been held for only one hour and a half |
| C.there were other families in the waiting room |
| D.she couldn’t use her own cell phone |
| A.write to the agency | B.change her name |
| C.avoid traveling abroad | D.do nothing |
| A.hatred | B.discrimination |
| C.tolerance | D.diversity |
| A.impatient | B.bitter | C.worried | D.ironic (具有讽刺意味的) |
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科目:高中英语 来源: 题型:阅读理解
Nick Petrels is a doctor in Montreal. He works 60 hours a week. He takes care of 159 patients a week in the hospital and at his office. He’s been a doctor for ten years.
Dr. Petrels gives his patients good medical advice. But he doesn’t just tell his patients what to do. He also sings to them on television! Dr. Petrels has his own TV show. The show is in Italian, English and French. The doctor starts the show with a song and then gives medical advice. He explains a medical problem or disease in simple language. After that, he sings another song.
Dr. Petrels produces and performs in his own show every week. The program is very popular with his patients and with people who enjoy his singing. His dream is to perform in Las Vegas. His favorite songs are love songs, and he has a compact disk of love songs that he wrote. Dr. Petrels says, “I always loved to sing. All my problems are gone when I sing.” But when Dr. Petrels was young, his father didn’t want him to be a singer, so he went to medical school.
Some people tell Dr. Petrels he can help people more as a doctor. But Dr. Petrels says he helps people when he sings, too. “I like to make people smile. Sometimes it’s difficult to make a sick person smile. Medicine and pleasure both try to do the same thing. They try to make people feel good.”
【小题1】Dr. Petrels works 60 hours a week, because he _______.
| A.gives his patients medical advice |
| B.takes care of 159 patients a week |
| C.sings on television |
| D.has his own TV show |
| A.also sings to his patients on TV |
| B.always loves to sing |
| C.is popular with his patients |
| D.has been a doctor for ten years |
| A.sings and gives medical advice |
| B.sings about different diseases |
| C.starts to explain diseases with a song |
| D.sings love songs he wrote |
| A.help people sing | B.make people feel better |
| C.do the same thing | D.make difficult people smile |
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