For hundreds of years, artists have used cartoons to criticize bad rulers or landowners. As early as the 19th century, people produced and read books of drawings. In many ways, they were similar to modern comics（漫画）. They contained stories of naughty children and playful animals. The owl and the elephant were usually wise animals, ready to give advice. The lion and tiger were brave. The fox and wolf were cunning, greedy and dangerous.
A century ago, an American newspaper published the first-color comic strip. It was so popular that sales of the newspaper, Morning Journal, increased quickly. Since then, newspapers throughout the world have included comic strips.
In modern time, comics are popular in China, Japan, the USA and almost everywhere. Not even video games or CD-ROMs have reduced their popularity. Names such as Snoopy, Woodstock and Garfield are well known in dozens of countries. The Peanuts comic strip appears in over 2,000 newspapers and in more than 25 languages.
Perhaps one day, you may like to create your own comic strip and become a millionaire. First, you must think of a good plot. It should be funny, exciting or interesting in some way. It should have plenty of action. Moreover, the language must be realistic and simple. The words should suit the characters in your story.
Furthermore, the characters in your story must be clear to readers. They should be obviously good or bad. In many comic strips—especially those showing crime of adventure—there should also be a hero or heroine. This will attract the reader to keep on reading the story.
1. Which of the following is NOT the name of a cartoon character?
A. Snoopy B. Garfield C. Peanuts D. Woodstock
2. We can know from the first paraphaph that rulers ________.
A. asked the artists to draw cartoons B. probably did not like cartoons about them.
C. often drew cartoons many years ago. D. used cartoons to give people advice.
3. According to the passage, what makes a popular and successful comic strip?
A. Good plot B. suitable language C. clear characters D. All of above
4. The underlined word “plot” is similar in meaning to ______.
A. places B. stories C. events D. characters
There are some special traditions in Hawaii .People are very friendly and always welcome visitors. They give visitors a lei,a long necklace made of beautiful fresh flowers. Men wear bright flowered shirts and women often wear long flowered dresses. There are traditional Chinese ,Japanese and Fillipino holidays and all the holidays from the United States. They call Hawaii the Aloha State. Aloha means both hello and good-bye. It also means “I love you”.
Usually when people from different countries,races and traditions live together,there are serious problems. There are a few problems in Hawaii ,but,in general,people have learned to live together in peace.
Hawaiians get most of their money from travelers,and most of the travelers come from the mainland and from Japan. There are so many peole living in Hawaii now that there are residential（居住的） areas where there used to be farms. Some of the big sugar and apple companies have moved to the Philippines,where they don't have to pay workers as much money. The families of the first people who came from the US mainland own the important banks and companies. Japanese are also buying or starting business.What might be the best title for this text?
| A．Hawaii ,the Aloha State | B．Living Hard Together |
| C．The Flower of Hawaii | D．The Problems of Hawaii |
The underlined words “a lei”in the first paragraph here refer to____.
| A．a friendly and welcome way |
| B．a long necklace made of beautiful fresh flowers |
| C．a bright flowered shirt |
| D．a long flowered dress |
The author wants to show that____.
| A．we should all go to Hawaii to work |
| B．it is possible to learn to live together in peace |
| C．it is not likely to live together in peace |
| D．Hawaii is the only place where there is peace |
Madame Curie ,the youngest of five children ,was born in Warsaw ,Poland in 1867. Marie Curie's maiden name was Manya. Her parents were teachers,and she learned the im
portance of education at an early age. No higher education was offered to women in Poland at that time,so Manya took a job as a governess(女家庭教师). She sent part of her income to Paris to help pay for her older sister's medical studies. Her sister qualified as a doctor and married a fellow doctor in 1891. Manya went to join them in Paris ,changing her name to Marie. She entered the Sorbonne(now the Universities of Paris)and studied physics and mathematics, graduating at the top of her class. For the research she wanted to do , she was introduced to another young scientist, Pierre Curie. Later they fell in love with each other . After their marriage, they worked together on radioactivity.
Fame troubled Marie Curie and also her husband, because science was their world and in this world of science fame and honor to persons had no value. One day when a writer for a newspaper tried to ask Marie about herself and her thoughts and her beliefs, she answered him, “In science we must be interested in things,not in persons.” Much of the real character and spirit of this unusual woman was found in these few words,which she was later often to repeat. One evening, at a big party,a friend asked if she would like to meet the King of Greece,who was also a guest.She answered in her simple manner, “I don't see the value of it.” Then,seeing that she had hurt the feelings of her friend, she quickly added, “But …but…of course,I shall do whatever you please. Just as you please.”What did Marie Curie once do to help pay for her older sister's medical studies?
| A．She was a teacher. | B．She was a doctor. |
| C．She was a governess. | D．She was a waitress. |
What was valuable to Marie Curie?
| A．science and research. | B．fame and honor. |
| C．character and spirit. | D．persons and things. |
The writer for a newspaper was interested in____.
| A．things | B．Marie Curie | C．Marie's husband | D．persons |
What do you think might have happened between Marie Curie and the King of Greece?
| A．The King was angry with Marie Curie. |
| B．For the sake of her friend Marie Curie met the King of Greece. |
| C．The King of Greece wrote a letter to invite Marie Curie to meet him. |
| D．Marie Curie held another party for the King. |
Here is a humorous story. Frank Smithson woke up and leaned over to turn off the alarm clock．“Oh，no!”he thought to himself．“Another day at that office；a boss who shouts at me all the time．”
As Frank went downstairs his eyes fell on a large brown envelope by the door．He was overjoyed when he opened it and read the letter inside. “Bigwoods Football Pools(足球赌博公司)would like to congratulate you．You have won half a million pounds．”
Frank suddenly came to life．The cigarette（香烟） fell from his lips as he let out a shout that could be heard halfway down the street．
At 11：30 Frank arrived at work．“Please explain why you're so late，”his boss said．“Go and jump in the lake,” replied Frank. “I've just come into a little money so this is goodbye．Find yourself someone else to shout at．”
That evening Frank was smoking a very expensive Havana cigar(雪茄)when a knock was heard on the door．He rushed to the door．Outside were two men，neatly dressed in grey suits．“Mr Smithson,” one of them said，“We're from Bigwoods Football Pools．I'm afraid there’s been a terrible mistake……”What do we know about Frank?
| A．He was a lazy man． | B．He was a lucky person． |
| C．He made a lot of money． | D．He didn't get on well with his boss． |
Why did Frank dare to shout to his boss?
| A．Because he found a better job. |
| B．Because his boss did not like him. |
| C．Because he thought he did not need the job. |
| D．Because he was not late in fact. |
When he heard the knock at the door,Frank probably thought __.
| A．someone had come to make an apology. |
| B．someone had come to give him the money. |
| C．his friends had come to ask about the football pools. |
| D．his friends had come to congratulate him on his luck. |
On hearing“…there's been a terrible mistake…”Frank was most likely to be________．
| A．disappointed. | B．worried. | C．nervous. | D．curious. |
Are you worried by the rising crime rate? If you are, you probably know that your house and possessions are increasingly in danger of suffering from great rise in the cases of burglary(夜盗;抢劫) and attack.
Figures show an ever-increasing crime rate,
but it is only too easy to imagine "It will never happen to me"．Unfortunately, statistics show that it really can happen to you and,
if you live in a large city, you run 
twice the risk of being a victim.
Fortunately, there is something definite which you can do．Protect Alarms can help to protect your house with a burglar alarm system which is effective, simple to operate and easily affordable.
You must remember that owning a burglar alarm is no indication(暗示) that your house is packed with valuable possessions．It quite simply indicates to unwelcome visitors that yours is one house they will not break into easily, so they carry on to an unprotected house where their job is made a lot easier.
Send now for our free leaflet telling you how we can Protect Alarm your house quickly, easily and cheaply．Complete and tear off the slip below and post it to us．Postage is free．Also, telephone us on 327 6721 where we have a round-the-clock answering service．It costs nothing to find out about Protect Alarm.Anyone who takes an interest in the crime rate will, according to the text, be aware that ___________.
A．more burglars are being caught than  ever before |
| B．people have more possessions to worry about nowadays |
| C．burglars are more at risk than they used to be |
| D．homes are more likely to be broken into nowadays |
It seems that people who live in cities are ____________.
| A．more often victims than those living in other areas |
| B．of the opinion that statistics are wrong |
| C．twice as well as people living in other areas |
| D．of the opinion that burglars only rob unprotected homes |
The article claims that possessing an alarm system will _________.
| A．show burglars that you have something worth stealing |
| B．persuade burglars not to break into your house |
| C．make the burglars' job less complicated |
| D．persuade burglars to try again another time |
In order to find out more information about this alarm system one can _______.
| A．buy a leaflet |
| B．write enclosing a stamped, addressed envelope |
C．si gn a contra ct |
| D．phone at any time of day or night |
The underlined word "Figures" in the second paragraph can be replaced by “__”．
| A．Pictures | B．Fingers | C．Numbers | D．Mathematics |
Almost all theme park accidents can be prevented．Here, based on coverage of theme park safety, are some tips to help you and your family stay safe on your next visit.
If you are visiting with a child, t
ake a moment to explain the ride to them, and tell them what they should do．They are depending upon you to keep them safe．Set a g
ood example for them by following the rules of the park, and make sure that they know you expect them to follow those rules, too.
Tell them to stay seated, to hold the grab bar or put their hands in the laps, and not to stick their knees and feet outside a ride vehicle．Make them look to you for the okay to get on or off a ride, too．And never put a crying child on a ride．If
your child starts to cry, let others pass you in line until your child is calmed．Or, gently exit the queue and find something more relaxing to do．
Young kids can’t keep an adult’s pace in a theme park．Let them take plenty of breaks.
“Kids get tired,” said TPI reader Matt Johnson, a father of four．“Tired kids make parents even more tired．And tired kids and parents may get hurt — physically and emotionally.” He advises that parents plan a mid-day break, perhaps a swim back at the hotel, to avoid mid-day heat and crowds．“You will see cranky families having a miserable time while you are refreshed and having a great evening.”The second paragraph tells readers that ________.
| A．children should be trained to be more independent |
| B．adults should tell children some safety rules firstly |
| C．adults should set a good example to conduct well in a theme park |
| D．there is a danger to take young children to visit a theme park |
Which of the following is NOT right for children who are taking the rides?
| A．They cannot put their hands away from the grab bar. |
| B．They are forbidden to put their knees or feet out. |
| C．They should ask adults’ permission first to get on a ride. |
| D．Without adults’ okay sign, children shouldn’t get off a ride. |
If your child begins to cry just when he is going to take a ride, you shoul
d ________.
| A．tell him to be relaxed | B．make him share your interest |
| C．give up the present activity | D．encourage him to be brave |
We may infer from Matt Johnson’s words that ________.
| A．he doesn’t like to visit a theme park with his children |
| B．parents with many children may be tired of visiting a theme park |
C．not all the families are relaxed or happy when they visit a theme park |
| D．visitors should arrange everything carefully before starting |
What is the meaning of the underlined word “exit” in the third paragraph?
| A．等待 | B．发现 | C．进入 | D．离开 |