The unknown world’s mystry
The sea is the biggest unknown part of our world. It covers seventy-one percent of the earth. There is still much to be discovered about this vast blanket of water. If the waters of the ocean could be removed, the sea floor with its wide valleys, irregular mountains and rivers in the sea would be an unbelievable sight.
Tourism under the deep blue sea
Tourists can now explore the world beneath the waves without ever getting wet. From tourist submarines (潜艇) to underwater dining, undersea tourism is making a big splash.
Tourist submarines
The popularity of submarine tours has grown rapidly in the last decade. Now, tourist submarines operate in more than 20 locations worldwide, including the waters around Okinawa and Taiwan’s Green Island. The submarines carry nearly 2 million tourists each year. Large windows offer passengers spectacular views as the submarines explore colorful coral reefs and sunken ships. Most one-hour tours cost about US $80.
Under water dinning
For a more upscale experience, tourists can enjoy fine dining under the sea. Last summer the Hilton Maldives Resort opened the world’s first underwater restaurant, Ithaa. Diners walk down a staircase into the restaurant, which rests 35 feet beneath the waves of the Indian Ocean. Transparent walls surround the dining area, and you can treat guests to a panoramic (全景) ocean view.
But this excellent view doesn’t come cheap. The tasting menu costs US $200 per person. Be sure to make reservations early, too. The restaurant seats only 14 people.What does the author want to tell us in Paragraph 1?
| A．The sea is the biggest unknown part of our world. | B．The sea covers 71% of the earth. |
| C．Some information about the sea floor. | D．The reasons for researching undersea tourism. |
What does the author really mean by saying “undersea tourism is making a big splash” in Para2 ?
| A．Undersea tourism is a new fashion in travelling. | B．Your clothes will be made wet by the water splash. | C．Undersea tourism is dangerous. | D．There is still a long way for undersea tourism to go. |
Which of the following statements about tourist submarines is RIGHT?
| A．Tourist submarines only have a history of about 10 years. |
| B．There are tourist submarines in every part of the world now. |
| C．Tourist submarines have carried about 2 million tourists so far. |
| D．People can enjoy tourist submarines in the waters around Okinawa. |
The walls of the restaurant Ithaa are most probably made of .
| A．stone | B．brick | C．glass | D．steel |
Edinburgh Mela
Time: 25th – 31st August 2008
Tel / Fax: 0131 557 1400
E-mail: info@edinburgh-mela.co.uk
Website: www.edinburgh-mela.co.uk
Each year Edinburgh Mela is Scotland's biggest multicultural(多文化的) arts festival that celebrates in Scotland. Although Edinburgh Mela's roots are in South Asian cultures, this is a festival for everybody. Music, color, dance, art, fashion, food, children's activities, the Mela bazaar（集市）and much more!
Edinburgh International Book Festival
Time: 9th – 25th August 2008
Tel: 0131 718 5666
Fax: 0131 226 5335
E-mail: admin@edbookfest.co.uk
Website: www.edbookfest.co.uk
Edinburgh International Book Festival is the world's biggest book festival. We present different programs for both adults and children including discussions, lectures, debates and workshops, all in one of Edinburgh's most beautiful spaces, Charlotte Square Gardens.
Edinburgh International Festival
Time: 8th – 31st August 2008
Tel: + 44 (0) 131 473 2000
Fax: +44 (0) 131 473 2002
E-mail: eif@eif.co.uk
Website: www.eif@eif.co.uk
Each year the Edinburgh International Festival stages one of the greatest celebrations of the arts, attracting audiences from around the world to the city's exciting atmosphere. The festivities offer a special opportunity to experience the excitement of live performance by internationally well-known artists as well as the joy of discovering new and unfamiliar works.
Edinburgh International Science Festival
Time: 25th March-5th April 2008
Tel: 0131 558 7666
Fax: 0131 557 9177
E-mail: esf@scifest.demon.co.uk
Website: www.sciencefestival.co.uk
The UK's largest Science Festival is back with one of the most exciting line-ups in the Festival's 16-year history. The Science Festival is an unbelievable place for everyone, with events at all levels, all ages and all purses. On offer are 10 days of non-stop shows, workshops, presentations, hands-on activities, exhibitions and tours designed to amuse and entertain. Call our ticket hotline on 0131 557 5588.According to the passage, the four festivals .
| A．are all about arts | B．all happen in 2008 only |
| C．are all celebrated in Edinburgh | D．are all mainly for children |
What do we know about Edinburgh Mela?
| A．It is deeply rooted in Edinburgh. |
| B．It is a place to buy and sell things. |
| C．It shows kinds of cultures in Scotland. |
| D．It offers a chance for you to buy books. |
How many ways are available for you to get the information about each festival?
| A．Only one. | B．Two. | C．Three. | D．Four. |
My mother loves flowers. As soon as warm weather comes around, you will find her planting, watering, and weeding over everything. For a number of years we lived next door to each other, and she spent as much time in my garden as she did her own. After the flowers became plentiful each summer, she would cut colorful bouquets(花束) to enjoy inside the house -- both hers and mine. I would often come home from work and find a beautiful arrangement of fresh flowers on my coffee table.
Shortly before Christmas one year, a local flower shop offered a bouquet-a-month special. It seemed to be a made-to-order gift for Mom, a great way to thank her for all of the flowers she had given me through the years.
After the holidays, in early January, I drove her to the flower shop to pick up her first month's bouquet. The small fresh colorful bouquet would hardly fill a small vase.
I was so embarrassed. However, after we returned home, she began to arrange the flowers she had received. "Mom, I'm sorry," I told her. "I can't believe how skimpy that bouquet is." She looked at me and smiled. "It's okay," she said. "It allows me to better enjoy the beauty of each one."
Mom's words helped me to realize something bigger and more important --when we have too many good things, we often fail to enjoy the beauty of each one.
Thanks, Mom, for helping me understand that less is sometimes more.The author bought her mother flowers to ____.
| A．celebrate the coming Christmas |
| B．express thanks for all her mother has done |
| C．bring more flowers to her mother's garden |
| D．arrange her mother's new house |
What can you infer from the passage?
| A．The author couldn't afford a big bouquet. |
| B．The mother was not happy when receiving the bouquet. |
| C．The author would pick up another bouquet the next month. |
| D．The mother would send back the bouquet to the flower shop. |
The underlined word "skimpy" in Para. 4 means ____.
| A．beautiful | B．colorful | C．cheap | D．small |
What did the author learn from her mother?
| A．How to grow flowers. | B．How to arrange flowers. |
| C．Enjoying life if possible. | D．Considering things in other ways. |
|
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
The publication of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince pleases booksellers across China．The British and American editions were No.1 and No.3 separately on the sales chart of the Beijing Xidan Book Building last week. The book’s poster is highlighted and news about the book can often be heard on the radio．
Why is the book so attractive to children? With curiosity， I got a copy of “Harry Potter”．At first，I wanted to glance over it and made some criticisms(批评)．But，out of expectation，I have been deeply attracted by the magic world. On the other hand，one can’t help asking：Where is our own “Harry Potter”?
The Chinese nation has a history of 5，000 years．With a vast market of youngsters, China did publish many books popular among children. However, why are the present works not as good as those imported(进口的)?
There come two major reasons：Firstly，quite a number of children’s books are of strong sense of teaching, and lack interest and entertainment. Children often have a feeling of being “educated”．No wonder they don’t like them．Secondly, children’s reading materials involving “idiom stories” and “Chinese talents’ stories”，though always in different covers，are usually much the same．Some books are plagiarized．The authors take words，ideas from someone else’s work．One knows the ending as early as in the beginning．In final analysis，the authors of the books seldom take children’s requirements into consideration．
As a matter of fact，each child has his own wonderful imagination．They hope to understand the world and nature．Similarly they have their own choices．They dislike similar stories．even if the stories are excellent．First-class reading for children should be very interesting，which contains knowledge and the essence(精髓)of national culture，which are presented in children’s language．
Market is a touchstone for products．The theory also holds true for cultural products．It is hoped that the authors of children’s books can learn something from the good market of “Harry Potter” and write out more and better books loved by children．Our books have the following disadvantages EXCEPT that_______．
| A．they have little sense of interest and entertainment |
| B．many of our books are of the same |
| C．our authors know what our children need |
| D．the authors didn’t pay much attention to the children’s tastes |
What does the underlined word “plagiarized” mean in Chinese?
| A．改编 | B．杜撰 | C．印刷 | D．剽窃 |
The reason why Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is so popular is that____.
| A．it opens a magic world for children |
| B．it has little sense of teaching |
| C．it is only written in children’s language |
| D．it is advertised more on TV or poster |
What does the writer mean by writing “Where is our own Harry Potter”?
| A．We Chinese produce more books than other countries． |
| B．We are short of books for children and adults． |
| C．Our authors are expected to make the market of children’s books take off． |
| D．Authors should write books named “Harry Potter”． |
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A quarrel at home may result in you falling ill. Don’t laugh, it’s true. Family matters including living habits and even the way we speak have a big effect on our health, doctors say.
Wang Xiaoyu, a Senior 2 girl from Xichang, Sichuan Province, fainted (晕倒) in class when she heard her classmates quarrel at the top of their voices. Quarrels between her parents also put the girl into a coma. It is because she is suffering from depression (抑郁症), caused by bad relations at home, doctors explained.
“We don’t get sick or stay well by ourselves,” says Dr Robert Ferrer from the US. Ferrer shows that family forces may explain up to a quarter of health problems, in his recent research. The genes you get from your family may cause illness. If one of your parents has a heart attack, your risk of being affected may double. But effects on health are not only written in our DNA.
Unrelated people who live under the same roof also get similar problems. Diet, lifestyle and environment affect our health, too. Ferrer’s research also found that if teenagers feel they are ignored or unimportant at home they are more likely to get sick.
We may never fully understand all the effects that families have on our health. But just as individual (个别的) problems can have effects on others, a small improvement can have big benefits, Ferrer said.Which of the following can best explain why Wang Xiaoyu fainted in class?
| A．Because her classmates often quarreled in class. |
| B．Because her parents used to quarrel. |
| C．Because of her depression caused by bad family relations. |
| D．Because her classmates shouted loudly at her. |
According to Dr Ferrer, which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．We get sick or stay well by ourselves. |
| B．Only the genes we get from our family have a big effect on our health. |
| C．Our health has nothing to do with diet, lifestyle and environment. |
| D．Teenagers who are ignored at home get sick more easily than those who are not. |
The underlined word “coma” in Paragraph2 probably means ________.
| A．surprise | B．faint | C．tiredness | D．sadness |
The best title for this passage is ________.
| A．Family relations. | B．The reasons why we get sick. |
| C．Family---- another cause to health | D．A research about health. |
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
An independent college claimed to have become the first school in England to make Chinese a compulsory (强制的) subject for its pupils.
Richard Cairns, the headmaster of Brighton College, said the move aims to recognize the importance of China as the world’s fastest growing economy.
Chinese will become one of the core subjects at the 1,200-pupil college from September. At present the school has only a “handful” of native Chinese students, but it hopes to attract more in the future.
Mr Cairns, who made the announcement in his first week as head of the high-achieving college, said, “One of my key tasks is to make sure that the pupils at Brighton College are equipped for the realities of the 21st century, and one of those realities is that China has the fastest growing economy in the world.
“China has replaced Britain as the world’s fourth-largest economy. We in Britain need to face up to this challenge, see it for the trading opportunity that it is, and ensure that our nation’s children are well-placed to thrive (茁壮成长) in this new global reality.
“A better understanding of the language and culture of China will be hugely important to the advantage of the children of Brighton College.”
Mr Cairns said he hoped the Chinese children already at the college would help and encourage their fellow pupils to learn their language.
In order to lead the way, Mr Cairns, a historian from Oxford, plans to take part in the first Chinese class as a pupil. “I have agreed to join the first Chinese class as a pupil. I think it is the best way for me to show the pupils here how important I regard this new addition to our core subjects.”The passage mainly tells us ________.
| A．how to face up to new challenges in the 21st century |
| B．the realities of the 21st century |
| C．the fastest growing economy in the world |
| D．about a school which will make all its pupils learn Chinese |
The college makes its students learn Chinese mainly because ________.
| A．Chinese is a language spoken by the largest population in the world |
| B．it realizes the importance of China as the world’s fastest growing economy |
| C．Chinese is the easiest language for the students |
| D．there are many native Chinese students at the college |
What is Mr Cairns’ attitude towards the development of China?
| A．He sees it to be a threat. | B．He thinks of it as a danger. |
| C．He considers it to be an opportunity. | D．He regards it as an encouragement. |
Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．The Chinese students at the college have already helped their fellow students to learn Chinese. |
| B．The school is the first in England to make Chinese a compulsory subject. |
| C．Mr Cairns has just been made head of this high-achieving college. |
| D．In Mr Cairns’ opinion, learning Chinese will be a great help to his students. |