Dear Florence,
We arrived in India last week, and the voyage was the worst experience of my entire life. I’m lucky to be alive!
The first part of the journey was terrible, because the ship hit bad weather almost as soon as we left Liverpool. But much, much worse was to come. Later, we were involved in a collision with another boat and we had to abandon ship!
We had been at sea for about two weeks and we were in the Mediterranean. There is now a canal between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea called the Suez Canal, which opened last year. Our boat stopped at Port Said, the Egyptian port at the entrance to the canal. I remember looking through the porthole of my cabin and wishing that I could go ashore and visit this fascinating place, but mummy had ordered that I was to stay in the cabin because I was feeling ill. “you must stay here for at least another two days.” I remember her saying. How wrong she would turn out to be! The ship left the port and headed towards the canal . I was alone in the cabin and I watched the port disappear into the distance. Suddenly there was a loud bang, followed by the most awful crunching（嘎吱的）sound, and the ship shook and turned slightly on its side.
There was an eerie silence for a moment, then people started shouting. Mummy came running into the cabin and told me that we had collided with another boat. She took my hand and we ran along the deck towards the lifeboats. There was a lot of shouting and people were running everywhere, but the crew were all acting calmly, helping people into the lifeboats and telling people not to panic.
Well, clearly we survived, as did all the passengers and crew of the ship. The other boat wasn’t so lucky. It sank and several lives were lost.
I will write about the rest of the journey soon. Please give my love to Aunt Claire and Uncle Eric.
Your loving cousin,
Jane
56．When was the letter written?
| A．Before the author went to India. | B．In the mid – 19th century. |
| C．When the author arrived in Egypt. | D．Just after the author arrived in India. |
57．Why was the journey to India such a bad experience for the author?
| A．She was sick when it started and nearly died in Egypt. |
| B．Her ship left England in bad weather and crashed into another ship near the Suez Canal. |
| C．She was seasick when her ship sank. |
| D．She was alone when her ship hit another boat and she got sick. |
58．The author’s mother didn’t allow her to go ashore and visit the port city, Said because .
| A．she was homesick at that time |
| B．she didn’t feel very well then |
| C．she could meet some danger ashore |
| D．she could see the city through the porthole on board |
59．The underlined phrase “eerie silence” in the sixth paragraph means .
| A．pleasant calm silence | B．long peaceful silence |
| C．sudden long silence | D．strange uncomfortable silence |
Women turn to online shopping
Women have jumped ahead of men for the first time in using the Internet to do their holiday shopping, according to a study published last week in the US.
For years men have been more likely to shop on the Internet than women, but during the 2004 holiday season, 58 percent of those making online purchases were women.
“It shows how mainstream the Internet is becoming,” said Lee Rainie, director of the Pew Internet and American Life Project group, which carried out the study.
Rainie said it was only a matter of time before women shoppers caught up with men. This is because women traditionally make decisions about spending.
Users were more likely to shop online to save time. Internet users between the ages 18 and 29 were responsible for some of the most dramatic increase in the online gift-buying population this time around.
However, three- quarters of the US Internet users did not buy holiday gifts online in 2004. They worried about credit card security, or just compared online prices with off-line prices, then dashed off to the shops to get the best deals.
“ But even if shoppers don’t buy online , websites are becoming promotion tools for stores,” said Dan Hess, vice president of ComScore Networks Inc. Hess said that actually most stores’ websites can make customers fully believe the security of their credit card numbers. And most are able to ensure that gifts arrive on time.
“ It’s all about making the shopping experience more efficient, more reliable and more comfortable.” Hess said.Which of the following statements is true?
| A．There were fewer women online shoppers than men in 2004 |
| B．Most of the Internet users between the ages of 18 and 29 are women. |
| C．People in the US were more likely to buy gifts online. |
| D．More women shopped online than men in 2004 |
From the passage we can infer that______.
| A．Men usually decide how to spend money in the family |
| B．Women usually decide what to buy in the family |
| C．The Internet is used in all the shops |
| D．More and more shops will sell their goods online |
According to Dan Hess, shopping online_______.
| A．is unsafe | B．is convenient |
| C．is a waste of money | D．is cheaper |
What can we know from the passage?
| A．American people only gift in holidays |
| B．Shopping online is fun for women. |
| C．Shopping off-line provides better service. |
| D．Young people like to do gift-shopping online. |
Directions: Read the following passage．Answer the questions according to the information
given in the passage.
Why should you keep exercising even when cold temperatures make you want to hide under the covers? With the temperatures dropping at this time of year, many of us tend to hibernate (冬眠) inside our homes. But, hibernating is for bears. As humans it’s important to stay active through all four seasons. Yet, a poll of 5,000 people found that 30 percent get no exercise at all during the winter months.
Just because it is cold outside it is no excuse not to exercise. There are many exercise choices one can choose to take part in regardless of the cold weather. Depending on your location and likes, you can choose to exercise inside or outside.
All that is required for winter-time exercise is some planning and the following of some safety tips. If you prefer to exercise outside, keep the following tips in mind.
Get warm first. A proper warm-up is critical. Cold temperatures can make your muscles tight and therefore they are easier to be injured. So, it’s important to get them warm-up before intense (激烈的) physical activity.
No sweat. Don’t assume that you have to sweat in order to get a good workout. You should avoid sweating that causes the clothing layer closest to your skin to get wet and cause you to be cold.
Don’t undress when you get inside. While you may want to immediately remove your layers when returning inside, you should give your body time to adjust.
Drink up. It’s just as important to stay hydrated (含水的) when exercising in winter as it is in summer, even though you might not feel as thirsty.
Be seen. If possible, it’s best to exercise outdoors during daylight areas. If you exercise outdoors when it is dark, wear reflective (反光的) materials to ensure that you can be seen.
By staying fit during winter, you’ll be able to avoid gaining weight and losing strength caused from inactivity. Why is it important to get your muscles warmed-up before intense physical activity? (no more than 16 words)
_____________________________________________________________________________What are needed for exercising in winter? (no more than 6 words)
_____________________________________________________________________________What are the advantages of staying fit during winter? (no more than 9 words)
_____________________________________________________________________________What’s the main idea of the text? (no more than 4 words)
_____________________________________________________________________________
Directions: Read the following passage．Fill in the numbered blanks by using the information from the passage．Write NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS for each answer．
In a society such as the United States or Canada, which has many national, religious and cultural differences, people highly value individualism—the differences among people. Teachers place a lot of importance on the qualities that make each student special. The educational systems in these countries show these values. Students do not memorize information. Instead, they work on their own and find answers themselves. There is often a discussion in the classroom. At an early age, students learn to form their own ideas and opinions.
In most Asian societies, by contrast, people have the same language, history and culture. Perhaps for this reason, the educational system in these Asian countries reflects society’s belief in group goals and purposes rather than individualism. Children in China, Japan and Korea often work together and help one another on assignments.
There are advantages and disadvantages to both of these systems of education. For example, one advantage of the system in Japan is that students there learn much more maths and science than American students learn by the end of high school. They also study more hours each day and more days each year than North Americans do. The system is difficult, but it prepares students for a society that values discipline and self-control. There is, however, a disadvantage. Memorization is an important learning method in Japanese schools, but many students say that after an exam, they forget much of the information they have memorized.
The advantage of educational system in North America, on the other hand, is that students learn to think for themselves. The system prepares them for a society that values creative ideas. There is, however, a disadvantage. When students graduate from high school, they haven’t memorized as much basic rules as students in other countries have.
Title: A comparison of two different educational systems
| 71__________ |
Features of education |
72 __________ |
Disadvantage |
| The United States and Canada |
● 73__________ ●emphasizing qualit- -ies making each student special |
●learning to 74 ________ ●preparing them for a society valuing creative ideas |
75 ________ |
| Asian countries such as China, 76__________ |
● 77__________ in group goals and purposes |
●learning much more 78______ than American students do ●studying more hours each day and more days each year ●preparing students for a society valuing 79________ |
forgetting much of 80_______ |
About six years ago I was eating lunch in a restaurant in New York City when a woman and a young boy sat down at the next table. I couldn’t help overhearing parts of their conversation. At one point the woman asked: “So, how have you been?” And the boy—who could not have been more than seven or eight years old—replied, “Frankly, I’ve been feeling a little depressed lately.”
This incident stuck in my mind because it confirmed my growing belief that children are changing. As far as I can remember, my friends and I didn’t find out we were “depressed”, that is, in low sprits, until we were in high school.
Undoubtedly a change in children has increased steadily in recent years. Children don’t seem childlike anymore. Children speak more like adults, dress more like adults and behave more like adults than they used to.
Whether this is good or bad is difficult to say, but it certainly is different. Childhood as it once was no longer exists. Why?
Human development is based not only on born biological states, but also on patterns of access to social knowledge. Movement from one social role to another usually involves learning the secrets of the new status. Children have always been taught adult secrets, but slowly and in stages: traditionally, we tell sixth graders things we keep hidden from fifth graders.
In the last 30 years, however, a secret-revelation（揭示）machine has been installed in 98 percent of American homes. It is called television. Television passes information to all viewers alike, whether they are children or adults. Unable to resist the temptation, many children turn their attention from printed texts to the less challenging, more vivid moving pictures.
Communication through print, as a matter of fact, allows for a great deal of control over the social information to which children have access. Reading and writing involve a complex code of symbols that must be memorized and practiced. Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials.According to the author, feeling depressed is________.
| A．a sure sign of a mental problem in a child |
| B．a mental state present in all humans, including children |
| C．something that cannot be avoided in children’s mental development |
| D．something hardly to be expected in a young child |
Traditionally, a child is supposed to learn about the adult world________.
| A．through connection with society |
| B．gradually and under guidance |
| C．naturally without being taught |
| D．through watching television |
According to the author, that today’s children seem adultlike results from ________.
| A．the widespread influence of television |
| B．the poor arrangement of teaching content |
| C．the fast pace of human scientific development |
| D．the rising standard of living |
What does the author think of communication through print for children?
| A．It enables children to gain more social information. |
| B．It develops children’s interest in reading and writing. |
| C．It helps children to read and write well. |
| D．It can control what children are to learn. |
What does the author think of the change in today’s children?
| A．He feels their adultlike behavior is so funny |
| B．He thinks the change worthy of note. |
| C．He considers it a rapid development. |
| D．He seems to be upset about it. |
Japanese sailor Kenichi Horie has finished a 110-day solo (单独的) voyage across the Pacific Ocean in a boat pushed by sea waves to win another world first.
Weak waves and ocean water movements made his arrival late, which was going to be in late May.
“When waves were weak, the boat slowed down. That’s a problem that needs to be solved,” the adventure told reporters from his boat in western Japan. His 9.5-meter-long boat can move like a dolphin’s tail, and it rises or falls with the waves.
Horie reached his destination in the channel between the main Japanese islands just before midnight after covering about 7,000 kilometers from Hawaii.
Horie first made world record in 1962 when, at the age of 23, he became the first person to sail alone across the Pacific. He made the three-month voyage from his hometown in spite of breaking Japanese law, which did not allow his citizens to sail on their own out of the country, and without a passport or money.
He was arrested upon arrival in San Francisco but the city mayor freed him, gave him a 30-day visa and made him an honorary citizen. News of his achievement made him a hero back home in Japan and his book of the voyage In the Pacific was made into a film. Since then, he has completed many sailing trips across the Pacific and around the world.
After his latest adventure with an environmentally friendly theme, Horie planned to return to his hometown on Sunday. He said, “Throughout history, mankind has used wind for power, but no one has appeared to be serious about wave power.” Horie told the reporter, “I think I’m a lucky boy as this wave power system has remained untouched in fact.”Horie’s boat was mainly powered by ________.
| A．sea waves | B．sea winds | C．his strength | D．petrol |
From the passage we learn that ________.
| A．Horie undertook the voyage with a partner this time |
| B．it took Horie about twenty days more to cross the Pacific this time than in 1962 |
| C．Horie made his first voyage across the Pacific alone fifty years ago |
| D．Horie’s destination is 7,000 kilometers from San Francisco |
Horie was arrested in San Francisco after his voyage in 1962 mainly because ________.
| A．he had broken Japanese law |
| B．he had kept it a secret from others |
| C．his action had put people in danger |
| D．he had no passport to America |
Which of the following statements best proves that Horie’s latest voyage was meaningful?
| A．He was made an honorary citizen of San Francisco. |
| B．In Japan he was regarded as a hero. |
| C．His voyage had the theme of protecting the environment. |
| D．He wrote an exciting book after the voyage. |
The author wrote the article mainly to ________.
| A．start an ocean crossing movement |
| B．tell us a piece of interesting news |
| C．make Horie known to the world |
| D．encourage people to learn from Horie |