The little prince

The Most Amazing Structure on Earth There are people who say the most amazing structure on earth is the human brain. It is so complex that it took about 700 million years to develop. Humans started out as wormlike creatures that used one end of the body to move forward. Ever so slowly, a bunch of nerves began developing at that one end — the head. These nerves helped the creature to sense light, food and danger. Eventually, this bunch of nerves became the creature’s brain. To carry messages from the brain to other parts of the body, the creature grew a spinal cord. Later, the creature became a fish with eyes, ears and a nose that could send the brain information about sights, sounds and smells. More time passed, and the fish grew arms and legs so it could move about on land. For this, it needed a larger and more complex brain. It became an ape-like creature, and the parts of the brain used for seeing images and being social grew much stronger. Finally, the ape-like creature became human, with a brain that was capable of reason, emotion, creativity, memory and the ability to judge right from wrong. The human brain is very mysterious. Many questions about the brain have not yet been answered. For example, why do we need to sleep or why do we dream? There is a lot about the brain that we do not yet understand. Believe it or not, people used to think of the brain as useless stuffing. Of course, we now know the brain is our control centre. The surface of the brain is called the cerebral cortex. It is the part of the brain that makes us intelligent, and it consists of four parts called lobes. The front lobe is where much of our thinking and feeling happens. The top lobe processes information which is coming from parts of our bodies, such as our skin and muscles. The side lobe plays an important role in hearing, speech and long-term memories while the back lobe processes images from our eyes. Which do you think is more powerful: your brain or a supercomputer? You might be surprised to learn that the world’s best supercomputer is only about as powerful as half a mouse brain! Your brain is packed with 100 billion brain cells called neurons. They send information to your body telling it what to do, and they receive information from each of your senses, what you see, feel, taste, hear and touch. All of this information travels to and from parts of your body along your spinal cord, which is like a highway found down the centre of your back. As the information travels from neuron to neuron, pathways are created. When you think about or practice something again and again, those pathways get stronger. That’s how the brain learns and remembers. Actually, you were born with most of the neurons you have now, but when you were a baby, you didn’t have many pathways to connect them. As an adult, you now have more than 125 trillion connections between your neurons. No computer on earth can compete with the speed of your brain and how much information it can hold.

What is the main idea of the third paragraph? ? The cerebral cortex has three parts. ? The cerebral cortex, which has four parts, makes us intelligent. ? People used to think the brain was not important. People who injure the side lobe of the cerebral cortex ________________ . ? may have trouble remembering things ? are usually not very intelligent ? may not be able to feel happiness or sadness as well as other people The cerebral cortex consists of ________________ . ? useless stuffing ? four parts called lobes ? four parts called neurons

Love and hate are two opposite ________________ . ? structures ? emotions ? emotional ? nerves A long, thin animal with a soft body and no arms or legs could be described as ________________ . ? spinal cord ? wormlike ? complex ? capable An animal of any type could be called a ________________ . ? amazing ? image ? creature ? spinal cord Children need exercise and healthy foods in order to ________________ their bodies. ? judgement ? creativity ? judge ? develop ________________ carry messages from your brain to your body. ? Creativity ? Create ? Nerves ? Judges Machines that have many parts are ________________ . ? complex ? structure ? capable ? bunch My wife picked a ________________ of flowers from our garden and gave them to her friend. ? branch ? bunch ? brunch ________________ means able to do something. ? Creativity ? Judge ? Emotion ? Capable The Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, is a ________________ that thousands of tourists visit each year. ? amazing ? structure ? image ? complex You can't learn to play the piano in a short time, but if you practice every day, your skills will ________________ improve. ? capability ? capable ? eventually ? development

People who injure the side lobe of the cerebral cortex ________________ . ? are usually not very intelligent correct may have trouble remembering things incorrect may not be able to feel happiness or sadness as well as other people The top of the cerebral cortex ________________ . ? processes sounds that people hear correct processes things that people touch ? processes images from our eyes As used in this reading, the words "useless stuffing" refer to ________________ . ? unused or new neurons inside the brain correct unimportant material incorrect unimportant lobes on the surface of the cerebral cortex

The Monkey and the Crocodile Once there was a monkey who lived in a naval tree beside a river. This naval tree produced more fruit than any other tree in the jungle, and its fruit was fresher and sweeter than the fruit on all the other trees. Every day when the monkey ate this fruit, he was very happy. Not only could he eat his fill, but he could throw some fruit into the river when his friend the crocodile came by. The crocodile and the monkey spent many hours sitting on the shore of the river and talking, and in time they became best friends. The crocodile always took some fruit home to his dear wife. She loved the naval fruit so much that she became addicted to its taste and freshness. One day she thought, “If the monkey eats this fruit every day, then his flesh must also taste sweet, especially his liver. Oh, I want to taste the monkey’s liver.” She thought about it and thought about it until she couldn’t stand it any longer. Finally she said to her husband, “I want to taste the monkey’s liver. Please bring him home, so I can satisfy my hunger.” The crocodile was shocked! “You want to eat the monkey’s liver? But . . . he’s my friend! I love him. And he’s so generous to us. My dear, it’s impossible.” The lady crocodile became angry. She demanded that he bring the monkey to her. She demanded that he let her taste the monkey’s liver. Otherwise she would leave. The crocodile was torn apart. He loved his wife, and didn’t want to lose her. He loved his friend, and didn’t want to lose him. Why did he have to make this difficult choice? In the end, he decided to lose his monkey friend. With a heavy heart, he swam slowly back across the river and sat under the naval tree. “Oh Monkey,” he called, “It’s a lovely night, and I feel like going for a ride on the river. Why don’t you come along? I could show you the beauty of the river.” “I don’t think so,” said the monkey. “I don’t think that’s a good idea. And anyway, I can’t swim, and I’m afraid of the water.” “I am the king of the river. You don’t need to be afraid when you ride on my back. Besides, we’ve been friends for a long time. What a shame it would be if you can’t trust me by now.” The monkey thought for a minute. Perhaps the crocodile was right. Who can you trust, if not your friends? “OK,” he said, “I’ll come with you.” He jumped onto the crocodile’s back, and they sailed into the river. It was a wonderful ride, and the monkey was really happy, but the crocodile was quiet, and deep in thought. “What’s the matter?” asked the monkey. The crocodile almost burst into tears. “I’m sorry, my friend. I lied to you. I am not doing this to entertain you. Rather, I am taking you to my wife. She wants to eat your liver.” “Eat my liver!!” The monkey was astonished. “Why does she want to eat my liver?” “She knows that you eat the fruit of the naval tree every day. She thinks that your liver must be very sweet and tender, so she wants to eat it.” “I see,” said the monkey. He saw that his life was in danger. He thought for a minute. “My friend, don’t feel bad on my account,” he said. “I would be honored to give my liver to your wife. But you should have told me about this before we left the naval tree.” “Why?” asked the crocodile. “Well, I always wash my liver in the river and then hang it on a branch of the tree.” “Oh?” “If you take me back to the tree, I’ll get it for you. Then you can take it to your wife.” The crocodile swam quickly back to the naval tree. When he got to the shore, the monkey jumped off his back and climbed up the tree. “Hah! Crocodile! Don’t you know that I can’t give you my liver? This has been a good lesson to me about trust.”

Where did the monkey live? ? In the jungle. ? In a naval tree. ? Across the river. What was special about the naval tree? ? It was very beautiful. ? It had a lot of fruit. ? It had the freshest and sweetest fruit. Was the monkey generous? Why? ? Yes, because he could eat as much as he wanted. ? No, he just liked to eat a lot. ? Yes, because he gave fruit to the crocodile. What does "eat his fill" mean?" ? He could eat until he was no longer hungry. ? He could eat so much he felt sick. How did the monkey and the crocodile become friends? ? They went swimming together. ? They spent a lot of time sitting together and talking. ? They said hello to each other every day.

Where did the monkey live? ? In the jungle. correct In a naval tree. ? Across the river. What was special about the naval tree? incorrect It was very beautiful. incorrect It had a lot of fruit. ? It had the freshest and sweetest fruit. Was the monkey generous? Why? ? Yes, because he could eat as much as he wanted. incorrect No, he just liked to eat a lot. correct Yes, because he gave fruit to the crocodile. What does "eat his fill" mean?" correct He could eat until he was no longer hungry. ? He could eat so much he felt sick. How did the monkey and the crocodile become friends? ? They went swimming together. correct They spent a lot of time sitting together and talking. ? They said hello to each other every day.

The Tongue-cut Sparrow A long time ago in Japan there lived an old farmer and his wife. The old man was kind and gentle and always had a smile for everyone he met, but his wife was cold and very bad-tempered. They had no children to help them, so as they got older, they had to work even harder just to survive. The old man found and tamed a little sparrow, and taught it many kinds of tricks. When he came in from the fields at the end of each day, the sparrow would welcome him home, and sing and dance for him; so in spite of his hardships the old man went to bed happy each night. One day the old man had to go far into the forest to cut wood. It was laundry day, and his wife was in a bad mood as she prepared the starch for the clothes and set it outside to cool. While she was washing the clothes, the sparrow flew down to the starch and, as the old man had taught it to, pecked at the starch until it was gone. When the old woman came to get the starch and saw that the sparrow had eaten it, she went into a rage. She grabbed the bird in one hand and with the other she picked up her scissors and cut off the tip of its tongue. Then she threw the sparrow out the door, and it flew away as fast as it could go. That night when the old man came home there was no sparrow to greet him and warm his heart. When he questioned his wife, she admitted what she had done, adding, “And good riddance! That bird has always caused more work for me.” The poor man was devastated. Before dawn the next morning he took off to look for his little sparrow. He wandered through fields and forests, calling, “Mr. Sparrow, Mr. Sparrow, where are you now? How can I help you, my poor little tongue-cut sparrow?” After a long time searching he came to a large bamboo wood, where he finally met the sparrow again. The old man ran forward to greet his little pet. They talked for a while, and the old man could see that the sparrow no longer suffered from any injury. The sparrow invited the old man home. He introduced his family and asked his wife to prepare a delicious feast. During the meal the sparrow’s daughters danced and sang for the old man. It was the best hospitality the old man had ever experienced! When it was time for the old man to return home, the sparrow brought out two wicker baskets, one large and one small. He said, “Here is a parting gift for you. Choose the one you want.” “Thank you.” said the old man, “Since I’m not as strong as I used to be, and I have a long way to go, I’ll take the smaller one.” So he strapped the smaller one to his back and returned home. Immediately his wife began to scold him for being away so long, and didn’t stop until he opened the basket and onto their floor spilled gold and silver and all kinds of precious jewels. With the sparrow’s gift, they had enough to be comfortable in their old age. But the woman didn’t stay happy for long. “Why didn’t you choose the bigger basket?” she scolded. “Then we could be very rich indeed and live in a bigger house and have servants. How could you be so stupid?” The old woman decided to visit the sparrow. She went into the forest and walked and walked until she found the sparrow’s house in the bamboo wood. The sparrow and his family were not pleased to see her, but they were kinder than she, so they invited her in. She ate quickly and then called for her gift. When the two baskets were set out before her she chose the larger one. Without even thanking them she strapped it to her back and returned home. When she opened the basket a horde of demons sprang out and tormented her to death. The old man was comfortable and happy for the rest of his days.