Whether we find a joke funny or not largely depends on where we have been brought up．The sense of humour is mysteriously(神秘地)connected with national characteristics．A Frenchman ,for instance, might find it hard to laugh at Russian joke．In the same way, a Russian might fail to see anything amusing in a joke which would make an Englishman laugh to tears．
Most funny stories are based on comic situations．In spite of national differences, certain funny situations have a worldwide request．No matter where you live, you would find it difficult not to laugh at, say ,Charlie Chaplin’s early films．However, a new type of humour, which stems largely from America, has recently come into fashion．It is called “sick humour”．Comedians base their jokes on tragic situations like violent (cause by force)death or serious accidents．Many people find this sort of joke distasteful．The following example of “sick humour” will enable you to judge for yourself．
A man who had broken his right leg was taken to hospital a few weeks before Christmas．From the moment he arrived there, he kept on pestering(纠缠) his doctor tell him when he would be able to go home．He was afraid of having to spend Christmas in hospital ．Though the doctor did his best, the patient’s recovery was slow．On Christmas day, however, the doctor consoled(安慰)him by telling him that his chances of being able to leave hospital in time for New Year celebrations were good．The man took heart and, sure enough , on New Year’s Eve he was able to hobble(跛行) along to a party．To compensate(补偿)for his unpleasant experiences in hospital , the man drank a little more than what was good for him．In the process, he enjoyed himself and kept telling everybody how much he hated hospitals．He was still mumbling something about hospitals at the end of the party when he slipped on a piece of ice and broke his left leg．Whether you find “sick humour” funny or not will depend on ________．
| A．your having been brought up in America |
| B．the joke being related to a really comic situation |
| C．your ability to see the funny side of an unpleasant event |
| D．your ability to laugh until you cry |
The man spent Christmas day feeling miserable because ________．
| A．the doctor had failed to cure him |
| B．he was not able to be with his friends |
| C．being unable to walk, he did not enjoy the celebrations at the hospital |
| D．he thought he might also miss the New Year’s Eve celebration |
The point of the joke taken to explain “sick humour” is that ________．
| A．no sooner was the out of hospital than he had to go back in again． |
| B．the man should not have said how much he hated hospitals |
| C．the man would be unable to walk for the rest of his life |
| D．the man had not got a leg to stand on |
What can you learn from this story ?
| A．On New Year’s Eve, the man was able to walk properly to the party． |
| B．At the party , he enjoyed himself but only drank a little． |
| C．He had to go to hospital again though he hated it． |
| D．The man got well soon because the doctor took good care of him． |
Do you love holidays but hate the increase weight that follows? You are not alone．
Holidays are happy days with pleasure and delicious foods．Many people, however, are worried about the weight that comes along with these delicious foods．
With proper planning, though, it is possible to
control your weight．The idea is to enjoy the holidays but not to eat too much．You don’t have to turn away from the foods that you enjoy．The following suggestions may be of some help to you．
Do not miss meals．Before you leave home for a feast （宴会）, have a small, low-fat snack．This may help to keep you from getting too excited before delicious foods．
Begin with clear soup and fruit or vegetables．A large glass of water before you eat may help you feel full．Use a small plate; a large plate will encourage you to have more than enough．
Better not have high-fat foods．Dishes that look oily or creamy have much fat in them．
Choose lean meat （瘦肉）．Fill your plate with salad and green vegetables．
If you have a sweet tooth, try mints （薄荷） and fruits．They don’t have fat content as cream and chocolate．
Don’t let exercise take a break during the holidays．A 20-minute walk after a meal can help burn off extra calories to prevent the increase of fat．Holidays are happy days with pleasure but they may______．
| A．make you hate delicious foods |
| B．bring weight problems |
| C．bring you much trouble in your life |
| D．make you worried about your foods |
Many people can’t help putting on weight after the holidays because they ___．
| A．enjoy delicious foods | B．go to too many feasts |
| C．can’t help refusing delicious foods | D．can’t control themselves |
According to the passage, ______ is necessary part to stop you from putting on weight．
| A．vegetables | B．water |
| C．physical exercise | D．calories of energy |
Extra calories can be found in your body in the form of ______．
| A．fat | B．food | C．energy | D．meal |
When we can see well, we do not think about our eyes often. It is only when we can not see perfectly that we come to see how important our eyes are.
People who are nearsighted can only see things that are very close to their eyes. Many people who do a lot of close work, such as writing and reading, become nearsighted. Then they have to wear glasses in order to see distant things clearly.
People who are farsighted face just the opposite problem. They can see things that are far away, but they have difficulty reading a book unless they hold it at arm’s length. If they want to do much reading, they must get glasses too.
Other people do not see clearly because their eyes are not exactly the right shape. This, too, can be corrected by glasses. Some people’s eyes become cloudy because of cataracts. Long ago these people often became blind. Now, however, it is possible to operate on the cataracts and remove them.
When night falls, colors become fainter to the eyes and finally disappear. After your eyes have grown used to the dark, you can see better if you use the side of your eyes rather than the centers. Sometimes, after dark, you see a small thing to one side of you, which seems to disappear if you turn your head in its direction. This is because when you turn your head, you are looking at the thing too directly. Men on guard duty sometimes think they see something moving to one side of them. When they turn to look straight at it, they can not see it any more, and they believe they were mistaken. However, this mistake happens because the center of the eye, which is very sensitive in daylight, is not as sensitive as the sides of the eye after dark.We don’t know that our eyes are of great importance until ________.
| A．we think about our eyes | B．we cannot see clearly |
| C．we wear glasses | D．we have to do much reading |
According to the passage, a ________ is more likely to be nearsighted.
| A．tailor | B．doctor | C．guard | D．painter |
People who are farsighted ________ .
| A．cannot do a lot of close work without glasses |
| B．can only see things that are very close to their eyes |
| C．have difficulty reading a book if they hold it at arm’s length |
| D．have the same problem as the nearsighted people |
To see a small thing at night, it is better to look ________ .
| A．with wide open eyes | B．with half shut or narrowed eyes |
| C．straight at it | D．in a slightly different direction |
In October, 1961. at Crowley Field in Cincinnati, Ohio, an old, deaf gentleman named William E Hey stood up to throw the first ball of the World Series. Most people at Crowley Field on that day probably did not remember Hoy because he had retired (退休) from professional baseball 58 years earlier, in 1903. However, he had been an outstanding player and the deaf people still talk about him and his years in baseball.
William E. Hoy was horn in Houckstown, Ohio, on May 23, 1862. He became deaf when he was two years old. He attended the Columbus Ohio School for the deaf. After graduation, he started playing baseball while working as a shoemaker.
Hoy began playing professional baseball in 1886 for Oshkosh (Wisconsin) of the Northwestern League. In 1888, he started as an outfielder (外场手) with the old Washington Senators. His small figure and speed made him an outstanding base runner. He was very good at stealing bases during his career. In the 1888 major league season, he stole 82 bases. He was also the Senators' leading hitter in 1888. Hoy was clever; he threw right-handed and batted left-handed. On June 19, 1889, he threw out three batters (击球手) at the plate from his outfield position.
The arm signals used by judges today to show balls and strikes began because of Hoy. The judge lifted his right arm to show that the pitch was a strike, and his left arm to signal that it was a ball. For many years, people talked about Hoy's last ball game in 1903. He was playing for Los Angeles of the Pacific Coast Winter League. It was a memorable game because Hoy made a wonderful play which won the game. It was a very foggy night and, therefore, very hard to see the ball. In the ninth inning (棒球的一局), with two men out, Hoy managed to catch a fly ball to make the third out in spite of the fog. Ms Angeles defeated their opposition and won the game.
After he retired, Hoy stayed busy. He ran a dairy farm near Cincinnati for 20 years. He also became a public speaker and traveled giving speeches. Until a few years before his death, he took 4 and 10 mile walks several mornings a week. On December 15, 1961, William Hoy died at the age of 99 In which order did the following things happen in Hoy's life?
a. Hoy worked as a shoemaker.
b. Hoy began to run a diary farm.
c. Hoy played a memorable game in the heavy fog.
d. Hoy threw the first ball of the World Series.
e. Hoy became deaf.
A. d, e, a, c, b B. e, a, C. b, d C. d, a, e, c, b D. e. a, b, c, d We can infer from the last paragraph that Hoy ________in his late years.
| A．became famous | B．led a relaxed life |
| C．traveled around the world | D．was in good physical condition |
This passage is mainly about ________.
| A．a deaf player devoted to the game of baseball |
| B．baseball game rules and important players |
| C．the rise in the social position of the deaf people |
| D．where the baseball judge hand signals came from |
What can be inferred from this passage?
| A．Hoy was the greatest baseball player in his time. |
| B．Speaking and listening are not necessary in baseball games. |
| C．The judge had to study the hand signals very seriously. |
| D．Hoy's family encouraged him to become a baseball player. |
Every day millions of letters go from one country to another. Letters mailed in Italy are received in Japan. Letters mailed in Canada are received in Africa. On the letters are many different kinds of stamps，bought in different countries．
The Universal Postal Union helps each letter get to the right place as quickly as possible. It sets up rules about the size and weight of letters，postcards，and small packages（包裹）. It has rules that all countries must follow about international postal rates（费用）．
One hundred years ago，international mail did not move so smoothly. One country did not always accept another country’s letters. Letters from some countries were too large to fit into the mailboxes of other countries. Letters travelled by many different routes（路线）．Some were lost along the way．
Sometimes the person who sent the letter could pay only part of the postage. The person receiving the letter had to pay the rest．
The United States was the first to suggest that all countries work together to settle the questions of international mail. In 1974，men from twenty-four countries met in Switzerland to form the Universal Postal Union．Today，more than 120 nations belong to this union. From its office in Switzerland，the union helps the mail to move safely and quickly around the world．From the story we can infer that ＿＿＿＿＿＿．
| A．mail is important to all countries |
| B．not enough letters are sent all over the world |
| C．all the letters must go to Switzerland first |
| D．all stamps look exactly the same |
The Universal Postal Union was formed ___________________ .
| A．to help move mail quickly around the world |
| B．to give many men a chance to work |
| C．to help men meet in Switzerland |
| D．to look for the lost letters along the way |
The underlined word “postage” in this passage means __________ .
| A．money paid when you buy a stamp |
| B．money spent on an envelope |
| C．the charge for carrying a letter by post |
| D．the pay a postman receives for his work |
This passage is mainly about ______________ .
| A．different kinds of stamps in different countries | B．an organization that makes rules |
| C．international mail | D．the size and weight of letters |
Hilton English Language Center
Information for New Students
CLASS TIME：8:30a.m.—10:00a.m.，10:30a.m.—12:00a.m.，1:30p.m.—3:00p.m..
The Language Center is open Monday to Friday. Each class has one afternoon free per week. On the first day, go to the lecture hall to check your timetable.
SELF—ACCESS：The language laboratory（Room 1110）is open Monday to Friday from 3:15p.m. to 5:00p.m. for all full-time students.
You can learn how to use computers for language games or word-processing（文字处理）. There are tapes for students to borrow to practice their English. Go in and ask the teacher to show you. If you plan to take public examinations, there are dictation and listening comprehension tapes for you to practice with. There are cloze exercises on the computers. Ask your class teacher for a list of past exam essays. Students can borrow tapes to take home but they must be returned after two days.
ATTENDANCE（出勤）: All students are expected to attend classes as it is required. Students who do not attend classes will be reported to OSS. Eighty percent attendance is required for students to receive their certificates（证书）when they finish their courses. It is also required by OSS for an extension to your visa.
BOOKS: If students are given course books, the books are their responsibility. If a book is lost, the student will be expected to pay for it.
If students wish to buy books, there is a bookshop in the college specializing in English books（Room 3520）.When do classes begin and end on a full day?
| A．8:30a.m.—1:30p.m.. | B．8:30a.m.—3:00p.m.. |
| C．8:30a.m.—3:15p.m.. | D．3:15p.m.—5:00p.m.. |
Which of the following statements is true?
| A．No teachers are in the language lab. |
| B．90% attendance is required for the students. |
| C．Books can’t be taken out of the center. |
| D．Students can prepare for exams by listening to tapes. |
Timetable can be seen in .
| A．the lecture hall | B．Room 3520 | C．the classroom | D．Room 1110 |
The books which the students wish to buy are in the .
| A．library | B．bookshop in the college | C．street | D．classroom |