.
Singles Day falls on every November 11th, and as the name indicates, this relatively new holiday is one specially for people who are still living the single life. I was a bit surprised when I googled “Singles Day” on the Internet, to find that China is the only country in the world that has set up a special day for singles to celebrate their lives.
An old story goes that once there were four single men, leading very boring lives. None of them were married, or had lovers, or did anything exciting. They just sat around all day and played Mahjong. One day they played Mahjong from 11 in the morning until 11 at night. During the game, no matter who won, the winning card was always the “four columns” card (the card shows four independent, parallel columns in two lines). Even more of a coincidence, it was Nov. 11. In order to remind them of the day, they nicknamed it Singles Day.
Singles Day was first celebrated at various universities in Nanjing, capital city of Jiangsu Province during the 1990s. These college students carried their university tradition into society after they graduated. Singles Day is now a special day for all.
The main way to celebrate Singles day is to have dinner with your single friends, but it’s important that each person pay their own way to show their independence. People also hold “blind date” parties in an attempt to say goodbye to their single lives.
For breakfast on Singles Day, singles often eat four youtiao (deep-fried dough sitcks) representing the four “ones” in “11.11” and one baozi (steamed stuffed buns) representing the dot in between.
Many singles also choose to say goodbye to their single lives on the day. Many attend “blind date” parties and many people choose to marry on this day. In addition to meaning “single”, the four “ones” of the date can also mean “only one” as in “the only one for me”. Some people will use this date and this meaning to tell their special someone that they are the only “one” in their heart.
45. Which of the statement is TRUE according to the passage?
A. Singles Day has a long history.
B. Only men celebrate Singles Day.
C. Singles Day is only celebrated in China.
D. Students in Nanjing University started Singles Day.
46. People celebrate the festival mainly by .
A. playing Mahjong B. having dinner
C. getting married D. hanging out with friends
47. What is the best title of the passage?
A. Singles Day
B. Four Single Men’s Singles Day
C. University Culture on Singles Day
D. Symbolic Food on Singles Day
48. Which of the following best shows the structure of the passage?
(a-para.1 b-para.2 c-para.3 d-para.4 e-para.5 f-para.6)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Theatrical Release Date: July 1, 2011
Studio: Paramount Pictures
Director: Michael Bay
Genre: Action︱Adventure︱Sequel︱ Sci-Fi︱ 3D
The Autobots, led by Optimus Prime, are back in action, taking on the evil Deceptions. The Autobots and Deceptions become involved in a dangerous space race. The Autobots learn of a Cybertronian spacecraft on the Moon and must race against the Deceptions to find its secrets, which could turn the tide in the Transformers’ final battle. Shockwave, a longtime “Transformers” character, rules Cybertron while the Autobots and Deceptions battle it out on Earth.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part II
Theatrical Release Date: July 15, 2011
Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures
Director: David Yates
Genre: Action︱Adventure︱Sequel︱Fantasy︱3D
In part II, the battle between the good and evil forces of the Wizarding world evolves into an all-out war. This final adventure continues Harry, Ron, and Hermione’s attempt to find and destroy Voldemort’s remaining Horcruxes. Harry Potter is called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice to bring an end to his nemesis.
Winnie the Pooh
Theatrical Release Date: July 15, 2011
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
Director: Don Hall, Stephen J. Anderson
Genre: Sequel︱Family Animation
Winnie the Pooh is a 2011 American traditionally animated feature film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. Based upon the characters of the children’s books Winnie-the-Pooh, The House at Pooh Corner by A. A. Milne and Return to the Hundred Acre Wood by David Benedictus, the film features two previously unadapted stories from the original books.
In the movie, Owl sends the whole gang to save Christopher Robin from an imaginary bad character, and it turns out to be a very busy day for Winnie the Pooh who simply set out to find some honey. Which of the following is not the genre of Transformers: Dark of the Moon?
A. Action. B. Sequel. C. 3D.D. Fantasy.. According to the Movie Express above, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part IIis mainly about ______.
| A.a journey of Harry, Ron, and Hermione |
| B.high risks of the final adventure |
| C.an all-out war between good and evil forces |
| D.a fear of Lord Voldemort |
. Who might be most interested in the Movie Express of Winnie the Pooh?
| A.Would-be parents. | B.Families with children. |
| C.Writers of children’s books. | D.Honey lovers. |
London has become a cycle friendly zone after the launch of a new bike hire scheme.It has been designed to encourage more people to cycle in and around central London.
So how does it work?First you have to sign up to the scheme to be sent a key.The key will unlock one of the bikes,which are kept at docking stations in and around central London.You have to pay an access fee for the key and then you pay as you go,for the length of time you use the bike.
Transport for London, which runs the scheme,are hoping to have 6,000 bikes and 400 docking stations in place by the end of the year.The new hire system is hoping to ease congestion in London and is expected to generate up to 40,000 extra cycle trips a day into the city centre. London Mayor Boris Johnston launched the scheme and said London had been “filled with thousands of gleaming machines that will transform the look and feel of our streets and become as common place on our roads as black cabs and red buses”.
However,there have been a few problems since the scheme was launched last Friday.On the first day some people found they couldn’t dock their bike properly and their usage of the bike had not registered.Transport for London did admit they had been expecting a few “teething problems” and have said they wouldn’t charge for the first day as a“gesture of goodwill”.Some other people have criticized the lack of docking stations and locks for the bikes as well as the price it costs to hire the bicycles.
Despite the comments,the green-thinking London Mayor still seems very positive about things,saying,“My campaign for the capital to become the greatest big cycling city in the world has taken a gigantic pedal-powered push forwards.”Which is the correct order of a bike hire?
a.pay a usage charge according to the time b.pay for the key
c.cycle in and around central London d.sign up as a member to get a key
| A.b-d-c-a | B.b-c-a-d | C.d-c-b-a | D.d-b-c-a |
.Which of the following is NOT the “teething problems” of the scheme?
| A.People were unable to lock properly. |
| B.People could not dock the bikes properly. |
| C.People had no enthusiasm about the scheme. |
| D.It’s too expensive for some people to hire a bike. |
.From the passage we know __________.
| A.the ‘cycling revolution’ failed once started |
| B.the scheme will be put off due to the problems |
| C.all the citizens in London are in favor of the scheme |
| D.the London Mayor has great confidence in the scheme |
Global warming is causing more than 300,000 deaths and about $125 billion in economic losses each year, according to a report by the Global Humanitarian Forum, an organization led by Annan, the former United Nations secretary general.
The report, to be released Friday, analyzed data and existing studies of health, disaster, population and economic trends. It found that human-influenced climate change was raising the global death rates from illnesses including malnutrition (营养不良) and heat-related health problems.
But even before its release, the report drew criticism from some experts on climate and risk, who questioned its methods and conclusions.
Along with the deaths, the report said that the lives of 325 million people, primarily in poor countries, were being seriously affected by climate change. It projected that the number would double by 2030.
Roger Pielke Jr., a political scientist at the University of Colorado, Boulder, who studies disaster trends, said the Forum’s report was “a methodological embarrassment” because there was no way to distinguish deaths or economic losses related to human-driven global warming amid the much larger losses resulting from the growth in populations and economic development in vulnerable (易受伤害的) regions. Dr. Pielke said that “climate change is an important problem requiring our utmost (极度的) attention.” But the report, he said, “will harm the cause for action on both climate change and disasters because it is so deeply flawed (有瑕疵的).”
However, Soren Andreasen, a social scientist at Dalberg Global Development Partners who supervised the writing of the report, defended it, saying that it was clear that the numbers were rough estimates. He said the report was aimed at world leaders, who will meet in Copenhagen in December to negotiate a new international climate treaty.
In a press release describing the report, Mr. Annan stressed the need for the negotiations to focus on increasing the flow of money from rich to poor regions to help reduce their vulnerability(弱点) to climate hazards(危害)while still curbing (限制) the emissions of the heat-trapping gases. More than 90% of the human and economic losses from climate change are occurring in poor countries, according to the report.What is the finding of the Global Humanitarian Forum?
| A.Global temperatures affect the rate of economic development. |
| B.Rates of death from illnesses have risen due to global warming. |
| C.Malnutrition has caused serious health problems in poor countries. |
| D.Economic trends have to do with population and natural disasters. |
What do we learn about the Forum’s report from the passage?
| A.It was challenged by some climate and risk experts. |
| B.It aroused a lot of interest in the scientific circles. |
| C.It was warmly received by environmentalists. |
| D.It caused a big stir in developing countries. |
What does Dr. Pielke say about the Forum’s report?
| A.Its statistics look embarrassing. |
| B.It is invalid in terms of methodology. |
| C.It deserves our closest attention. |
| D.Its conclusion is purposely exaggerated. |
What is Soren Andreasen’s view of the report?
| A.Its conclusions are based on carefully collected data. |
| B.It is vulnerable to criticism if the statistics are closely examined. |
| C.It will give rise to heated discussions at the Copenhagen conference. |
| D.Its rough estimates are meant to draw the attention of world leaders. |
What does Kofi Annan say should be the focus of the Copenhagen conference?
| A.How rich and poor regions can share responsibility in curbing global warming. |
| B.How human and economic losses from climate change can be reduced. |
| C.How emissions of heat-trapping gases can be reduced on a global scale. |
| D.How rich countries can better help poor regions reduce climate hazards. |
You never see him, but they’re with you every time you fly. They record where you are going, how fast you’re traveling and whether everything on your airplane is functioning normally. Their ability to withstand almost any disaster makes them seem like something out of a comic book. They’re known as the black box.
When planes fall from the sky, as a Yemeni airliner did on its way to Comoros Islands in the India ocean June 30, 2009, the black box is the best bet for identifying what went wrong. So when a French submarine (潜水艇) detected the device’s homing signal five days later, the discovery marked a huge step toward determining the cause of a tragedy in which 152 passengers were killed.
In 1958, Australian scientist David Warren developed a flight-memory recorder that would track basic information like altitude and direction. That was the first mode for a black box, which became a requirement on all U.S. commercial flights by 1960. Early models often failed to withstand crashes, however, so in 1965 the device was completely redesigned and moved to the rear of the plane – the area least subject to impact – from its original position in the landing wells (起落架舱). The same year, the Federal Aviation Authority required that the boxes, which were never actually black, be painted orange or yellow to aid visibility.
Modern airplanes have two black boxes: a voice recorder, which tracks pilots’ conversations, and a flight-data recorder, which monitors fuel levels, engine noises and other operating functions that help investigators reconstruct the aircraft’s final moments. Placed in an insulated (隔绝的) case and surrounded by a quarter-inch-thick panels of stainless steel, the boxes can withstand(抵挡)massive force and temperatures up to 2,000℉. When submerged(潜入水中), they’re also able to emit signals from depths of 20,000 ft. Experts believe the boxes from Air France Flight 447, which crashed near Brazil on June 1,2009, are in water nearly that deep, but statistics say they’re still likely to turn up. In the approximately 20 deep-sea crashes over the past 30 years, only one plane’s black boxes were never recovered.What does the author say about the black box?
| A.It ensures the normal functioning of an airplane. |
| B.The idea for its design comes from a comic book. |
| C.Its ability to ward off disasters is incredible. |
| D.It is an indispensable device on an airplane. |
. What information could be found from the black box on the Yemeni airliner?
| A.Data for analyzing the cause of the crash. |
| B.The total number of passengers on board. |
| C.The scene of the crash and extent of the damage. |
| D.Homing signals sent by the pilot before the crash. |
Why was the black box redesigned in 1965?
| A.New materials became available by that time. |
| B.Too much space was needed for its installation. |
| C.The early models often got damaged in the crash. |
| D.The early models didn’t provide the needed data. |
What do we know about the black boxes from Air France Flight 447?
| A.There is still a good chance of their being recovered. |
| B.There is an urgent need for them to be reconstructed. |
| C.They have stopped sending homing signals. |
| D.They were destroyed somewhere near Brazil. |
| DONALD SLOAN |
||
| Gates Hall University of Kansas Lawrence, KS 66045 913-243-1682 |
After May 2009: 46 Clayton Drive St. Louis, MO 63130 314-726-8840 |
|
| Objective |
To work with the client (委托人) population in a social service position. |
|
| Education |
B.A., University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, 2009 Major: Social Services Minor: Applied Psychology |
|
| Experience |
Assistant Activities Supervisor, Fairview Nursing Home, Lawrence, KS, November 2006-present. Help organize and implement recreational activities for nursing home residents. Activities include crafts, dances, day trips, sing-alongs, and visiting performers. Hotline Volunteer. Teen Crisis Center, Lawrence, KS, September 2006- May 2007. Handled crisis calls from teenagers in the community. Dealt with drug use, unwanted pregnancies, failing grades, and the breakdown of parent-teen relationships. Nurse’s Aide, Danyers General Hospital, St. Louis, MO, Summer 2006. Assisted nurses in patient care. Took histories, updated charts, and helped prepare patients for surgery. |
|
| Activities |
University Concert Board. Work with other board members to plan and implement on-campus concerts. Senior Gift Campaign. Help manage the campaign to raise funds for the senior class gift to the university. Residence Hall Programming Board. Planned social events for Eggar Residence Hall. |
|
| Skills |
Fluent in French. Water safety instructor. Skilled at working with people. |
|
| Interests |
Skiing, softball, classical music, and guitar. |
|
This passage is most probably ______.
| A.an advertisement for enrolling new employees |
| B.a school report at the end of an academic year |
| C.a self-introduction meant to apply for a job |
| D.a part of a recommendation letter from a university |
According to the “Experience” section, we can infer that Donald Sloan can be _____.
| A.a wise leader | B.a skillful performer |
| C.a gifted scientist | D.a good social worker |
From the passage we can learn that Donald Sloan ______.
| A.is good at singing and dancing | B.is about to graduate from a university |
| C.has an interest in being a surgeon | D.specializes in psychology |