C
You may have heard the term "the American Dream". In 1848, James W. Marshall found gold in California and people began having golden dreams. That 19th century "American Dream" motivated (激发起) the Gold Rush and gave California its nickname of the "Golden State".
The American Dream drove not only 1800s gold-rush prospectors but also waves of immigrants throughout that century and the next. People from Europe, and a large number of Chinese, arrived in the US in the 19th century hoping that in America they would find gold in the streets. But most, instead, worked as railroad labourers. They created the oldest Chinatown, in San Francisco, and gave the city a Chinese name "the old gold hill".
In the 20th century, some critics said that it was no longer possible to become prosperous through determination and hard work. Unfair education for students from poor families and racial discrimination almost made the American Dream a nightmare.
Then, in the 1990s, California saw a new wave of dreamers in Silicon Valley. People poured their energy into the Internet. This new chapter of the American Dream attracted many business people and young talents from China and India to form start-ups and seek fortunes in America.
Better pay, a nice house, and a rising standard of living will always be attractive. However, the new American Dream is no longer just about money. It encourages Americans to consume wisely to protect the environment, improve the quality of life, and promote social justice.
The Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger, has become the model of the new American Dream. After years of hard work, he grew from a poor young man from Austria into a movie superstar and then governor. Many people hope his story can save the American Dream and give California a brighter future.
1. It can be inferred that _____.
A. America’s golden dream could never be realized
B. America’s golden dream had bought great fortunes to Chinese immigrants
C. each period of time has its own taste of the American dream
D. determination and hard work are the best way to realize the American dream
2. Why did most of the early immigrants work as railroad laborers?
A. Because they could earn more money as railroad laborers.
B. Because they had to make a living by working as railroad laborers.
C. Because they thought railroad was the first step to find gold.
D. Because railroad laborers were greatly honored at that time.
3. The underlined sentence “his story can save the American Dream” (in the last paragraph) indicates that _____.
A. the dream of seeking fortunate in America is easy to realize
B. most of the immigrants to America don’t reach their previous goal
C. the success of Arnold Schwarzenegger is among the common examples of the immigrants
D. the immigrants have made great contributions to California
4. What’s the best title of the passage?
A. Wave of Immigrants to America B. Make Fortunes Abroad
C. Hard Work Leads to Success D. Changes of America’s Golden Dream
LONDON: The Edinburgh Festival, the biggest arts festival of its kind in the world, got under way in the Scotland capital on Sunday with a concert that included Hector Berlionz's To Deum, under the direction of Christoph von Dohnanyi.
The festival, which runs until August 31 this year, includes as its high points Peter Stein’s staging of Wagner’s Parsifal, with Claudio Abbado directing the Gustav Mahler youth orchestra. The concert programme includes American pianist Richard Goode, bass baritone Thomas Quasthoff and violinist Christian Tetzlaff. New to the programmes this year will be 25 late evening classical music concerts.
Earlier this month, the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the largest show-case in the world for performance art, officially got under way with theatre, dance, poetry and music presentations.
Many of the fringe artists, who can enter the fringe festival upon payment of a small fee, were inspired this year by the event of September 11.
Thousands of people flock to Edinburgh from around the world during the festival, which is over 50 years old. It aims to promote and encourage arts and to reflect international culture. It consists of various dance, music, opera, and theatre presentation taking place across the city during the three-week run.Who will perform in the concert on Sunday?
| A．Hector Berlionz | B．Christoph von Dohnanyi |
| C．Claudio Abbado | D．Christian Tetzlaff |
When did the Edinburgh Festival begin?
| A．August 10. | B．August 15. |
| C．August 31. | D．September 11. |
What did the Edinburgh Festival never have before?
| A．Youth orchestra’s performances. |
| B．Poetry and music presentations. |
| C．Late evening classical music concerts. |
| D．Performances of American pianists and violinists. |
Which of the following statements about the Edinburgh Festival is true?
| A．It is the only festival of its kind in the world. |
| B．The artists who want to take part in the festival have to pay a small amount of money. |
| C．People who attend the festival are all from Scotland. |
| D．It is actually a dance festival. |
People who have lost the ability to understand or use words due to brain damage are called aphasics(失语症患者). Such patients can be extremely good at something else. From the changing expressions on speakers’ faces and the tones of their voices, they can tell lies from truths.
Doctors studying the human brain have given a number of examples of this amazing power of aphasics. Some have even compared this power to that of a dog with an ability to find out the drugs hidden in the baggage.
Recently, scientists carried out tests to see if all that was said about aphasics was true. They studied a mixed group of people. Some were normal; others were aphasics. It was proved that the aphasics were far ahead of the normal people in recognizing false speeches — in most cases, the normal people were fooled by words, but the aphasics were not.
Some years ago, Dr. Oliver Sacks wrote in his book about his experiences with aphasics. He mentioned a particular case in a hospital. Some aphasics were watching the president giving a speech on TV. Since the president had been an actor earlier, making a good speech was no problem for him. He was trying to put his feelings into every word of his speech.
But his way of speaking had the opposite effect on the patients. They didn’t seem to believe him. Instead, they burst into laughter. The aphasics knew that the president did not mean a word of what he was saying. He was lying!
Many doctors see aphasics as people who are not completely normal because they lack the ability to understand words. However, according to Dr. Sacks, they are more gifted than normal people. Normal people may get carried away by words. Aphasics seem to understand human expressions better, though they cannot understand words.What is so surprising about aphasics?
| A．They can fool other people. |
| B．They can find out the hidden drugs. |
| C．They can tell whether people are lying. |
| D．They can understand language better. |
How did the scientists study aphasics?
| A．By asking them to watch TV together. |
| B．By comparing them with normal people. |
| C．By organizing them into acting groups. |
| D．By giving them chances to speak on TV. |
What do we learn from this text?
| A．People poor at one thing can be good at another. |
| B．What one says reflects how one feels. |
| C．Aphasics have richer feelings than others. |
| D．Normal people often tell lies in their speeches. |
About twenty of us had been fortunate enough to receive invitations to a film-studio(影棚)to take part in a crowd-scene. Although our "act" would last only for a short time, we could see quite a number of interesting things.
We all stood at the far end of the studio as workmen prepared the scene, setting up trees at the edge of a winding path. Very soon, bright lights were turned on and the big movie-camera was wheeled into position. The director shouted something to the camera operator and then went to speak to the two famous actors nearby. Since it was hot in the studio, it came as a surprise to us to see one of the actors put on a heavy overcoat and start walking along the path. A big fan began blowing tiny white feathers down on him, and soon the trees were covered in "snow". Two more fans were turned on, and a "strong wind" blew through the trees. The picture looked so real that it made us feel cold.
The next scene was a complete contrast (对比). The way it was filmed was quite unusual. Pictures in front taken on an island in the Pacific were shown on a glass screen (幕). An actor and actress stood of the scene so that they looked as if they were at the water’s edge on an island. By a simple trick like this, palm trees, sandy beaches, and blue, clear skies had been brought into the studio!
Since it was our turn next, we were left wondering what scene would be prepared for us. For a full three minutes in our lives we would be experiencing the excitement of being film "stars"!Who is the author?
| A．A cameraman. |
| B．A film director. |
| C．A crowd-scene actor. |
| D．A workman for scene setting. |
What made the author feel cold?
| A．The heavy snowfall. | B．The man-made scene. |
| C．The low temperature. | D．The film being shown. |
What would happen in the "three minutes" mentioned in the last paragraph?
| A．A new scene would be filmed. |
| B．More stars would act in the film. |
| C．The author would leave the studio. |
| D．The next scene would be prepared. |
Coolest Hotels in the World
Artau Aragon Towers
The Ariau Amazon Towers hotel lets you sleep in a tree house. Eight towers make up this
hotel that offers over 300 rooms. If you really want to get into the spirit, book the Tarzan Suite which is large enough for a big family. You'll be thirty feet up in the air and can travel between the towers through their wooden walkways.
Prices: starting at $300 one night for each person for a regular room and going all the way
up to $3000 for the Tarzan Suite.
For more information, visit the website: http://Hwww.ariautowers.com
The Ice Hotel
Every winter in Jukkasjarvi, Sweden, a special kind of hotel called the lee Hotel is built. Each year, world-famous artists are invited to design and produce works of art from the ice, many of which can be found in the rooms. You'll have your choice between hot or cold rooms but you will be well advised to stay at least one night in a cold room for a true experience.
Prices: starting at $318 one night for each person for either a cold room or a warm one. For more information, visit the website: http:Hwww.icehotel.com
Propeller Island
Propeller Island City Lodge is a very special hotel that was designed by a German artist Each room provides you with the possibility of living in a work of art. Every single piece of furniture in the thirty rooms of the hotel has been hand-made and each room is completely different. You'll be able to choose a room based on your own personal tastes.
Prices: starting at just $91 a night, and an additional (另外) person for only 20 extra dollars. For more information, visit the website: http://www.propeller-island.com
For information about other cool hotels In the world, visit the website: http://www.bahamabeachclub.comWhat it special about the Ariau Amazon Towers hotel?
| A．You can sleep in the tree house. |
| B．You can choose any of the towers. |
| C．It is designed for big families. |
| D．Every room has a walkway. |
For more persons spending a night in one of these hotels, they have to pay at least
A $111B. $182 C. $600 D. $636Which website should you visit if you want to find out whether there exists a hotel under the sea?
| A．http://www.icehotel.com |
| B．http：//www.ariantowers.com |
| C．http://www.propeller-island.com |
| D．htlp://www.bahamabeachclub.com |
Which hotel would invite artists to come to work every year?
| A．Propeller Bland City Lodge. |
| B．Arian Amazon Towers. |
| C．The Ice Hotel. |
| D．Bahama Beach Club. |
Somali pirates(海盗) robbed three Thai fishing ships with 77 sailors on board nearly l, 200 Miles off the Somali coast, the farthest-off-shore attack to date, an officer said Tuesday.
Pirates have gone farther south and east in answer to increased patrols(巡逻)by warships off the Somali shore. The robbing of the three ships Sunday was about 600 miles outside the normal operation area for the international force, said a spokesman.
The spokesman said the attack so far out at sea was a clear sign that the international patrols against pirates were having a “marked effect on pirate activity in the area”.
“Once they start attacking that far out, you’re not even really talking about the Somali basin or areas of water that have any connection with Somalia,” said an officer, Roger Middleton. “Once you’re that far out, it's just the Indian Ocean, and it means you’re looking at trade going from the Gulf to Asia, from Asia to South Africa. ”
“This is the farthest robbing to date. They are now operating near the Maldives and India,” said another officer.
The three ships--the MV Prantalay 11, 12, and l 4—had 77 members on board in total. All of them are Thai, the spokesman said. Before the Sunday robbing, pirates held l l ships and 228 sailors.
Pirates have increased attacks over the past year in hopes. of catching more dollar payments. Because of increased patrols and defenses on board ships, the success rate(率)has gone down, though the number of successful attacks has stayed the same year over year.The pirate attack reported in the text happened __________.
| A．far out in the Indian Ocean |
| B．in the normal patrol area |
| C．near the Somali, coast |
| D．in the south of Africa |
According to the text, which can best describe the situation of the pirate problems?
| A．More goods on board are lost. |
| B．Pirate attacks happen in a larger area now. |
| C．The number of attacks has stayed the same these years. |
| D．Pirate attacks are as serious as before along the Somali coast. |
Which is true about the warship patrols according to the text?
| A．The patrols are of little effect. |
| B．The patrols are more difficult. |
| C．More patrols are quite necessary even in Asia. |
| D．The patrols only drive the pirates to other areas. |
How many sailors were held by the pirates up to the time of the report?
| A．228. | B．77. | C．383. | D．305. |