ParishastheEiffelTower;NewYork-优题课

Pete took his seat this day on his usual bench in Union Square．Every Thanksgiving Day for nine years Pete had taken this same seat exactly at one o'clock, and each time the same pleasant thing had happened．But this time Pete had come here more from habit than from hunger．Certainly today Pete was not hungry．Two rich old ladies gave him a Thanksgiving dinner of everything he could eat．
Pete sat on the bench now, hardly able to move．The buttons on his ragged shirt and coat were about to burst．The November breeze and the first light fall of snow felt cool and pleasant to his face．He happened to look to the left and there in the distance he saw the old Gentleman coming toward him．He wanted to get up and run, but he was so full of food he stayed right there．Every Thanksgiving Day for nine years, the Old Gentleman had come there, found Pete on this same bench, and then taken him to a restaurant and bought him a Thanksgiving dinner．It was a kind of tradition which the Old Gentleman, who had no family and lived alone, had tried to continue．
"How do you do' "said the Old Gentleman．" Glad to see that the changes of another year have permitted you to move in health through this beautiful world．"
Each time the Old Gentleman had said exactly this same thin? It was part of the tradition．Pete, too, began to feel as though he himself was now a part of the tradition, and he therefore did not have the courage to tell the old man that he had already eaten．This dinner seemed to mean so much to the Old Gentleman.
"Thank you, sir, " said Pete at last. “I’ll go with you gladly. I’m very hungry, sir.” Together the Old Gentleman and Pete walked south to the same restaurant where each year Pete had his Thanksgiving dinner. The Old Gentleman seemed pleased and happy. When the waiter brought dish after dish of food to Pete, the Old Gentlenman sat quietly and smiled．Under the circumstances, Pete had to eat．It was part of the tradition, and so he ate like a hero, although when he entered the restaurant even the smell of food almost made him sick．At last Pete leaned back with the battle won．
" Thank you, sir, " he said, with some effort, " for a fine dinner．"
They parted as they did each year at the door, the Old Gentlemen going south, Pete north．
Around the corner, Pete stopped for a moment, felt a terrible pain in his stomach, and then fell to the sidewalk unconscious．A little time later an ambulance came．In the hospital they discovered that he had had an attack of indigestion （消化不良）.
An hour later, another ambulance brought the Old Gentleman to the same hospital．At first they thought it was also indigestion but later one of the nurses said, "That nice old gentleman over there—you wouldn't think that it was a case of hunger．"
Where did Pete and the Old Gentleman meet every Thanksgiving Day?

A．In the restaurant．

B．In Union Square．

C．At the Old Gentleman's house．

D．At the hospital．

Which of the following sentences in the passage doesn't show Pete was full?

A．Pete sat on the bench now, hardly able to move．

B．The buttons on his ragged shirt and coat were about to burst．

C．Glad to see that the changes of another year have

permitted you to move in health through this beautiful world．

D．When he entered the restaurant even the smell of food almost made him sick．

The underlined sentence "I'm very hungry, sir．" in Paragraph 5 implies that .

A．Pete didn't have

the heart to refuse the offer

B．Pete was so greedy that he wanted to have another dinner

C．Pete was suffering from hunger

D．Pete enjoyed having the Thanksgiving dinner for free

Which of the following words can best describe the Old Gentleman?

A．Self-centred.	B．Mosdest.
C．Stubborn．	D．Generous

Cities need to put efforts to deal with pollution and clear the air.
Chinese cities will need to put efforts to clear up the sky when a new department to improve regional air quality is set up by 2015, according to the latest plan released by the State Council．
Besides the existing pollution control program for S02, regional emission caps （区域排放上限） for other certain chemicals will be established in the three key air polluting areas— rhe Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region．Coal-consumption caps will also be tried out in some areas, according to the plan．
The plan is aimed at dealing with regional air pollution—such as acid rain and smog—which have become increasingly obvious in China in recent years and caused a severe threat to people's health, Zhang Lijun, vice-minister of environmental protection, said in an interview on Monday.
The air quality in a city affects the regions nearby because pollutants （污染物）can travel through the atmosphere, said Chai Fahe, vice-director of Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences．
“So efforts to reduce air pollution in a single city, targeting a certain pollutant will not oe enough," Chai said．
Zhang said the country's major industrial districts—the Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region—have recorded more than 100 misty days annually in recent years．
These three regions, home to at least 200 million people, occupy only 6．3 percent of the country's area but consume 40 percent of the country's coal and produce half of its steel, according to official figures．
Studies also show that the visibility （能见度） in eastern regions of China has dropped by 7 to 15 km compared to that in the early 1960s, as a result of air pollution．
Liaoning province, the Shandong Peninsula, Wuhan in Hubei province and its surrounding area, the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan region in Hunan province, the Chengdu-Chongqing region, and the western coast of the Taiwan Straits are also listed as areas to carry out such regional air pollution control programs, according to the plan．
The new plan also requires an improved air quality system, which will measure the pollution levels．"The current system, which only measures some major pollutants, cannot reflect the true picture．" said Chai．
It will not be enough to reduce air pollution in a single city because ______.

A．air pollution has b

een becoming more and more serious in recent years

B．air pollution like acid rain and smog is threatening people's health

C．air pollutants in a city can travel in the sky and affect nearby areas

D．air pollutants stay in fixed places over the cities

Suppose the visibility in eastern regions of China was 130 km in the early 1960s, the visibility there nowadays is.

A．123 to 115 km

B．137 to 145 km

C．123 to 145 km

D．115 to 137 km

The main purpose of the passage is.

A．to inform readers of the damage caused by air pollution

B．to introduce the new plan to control air pollution

C．to provide official figures of air pollution levels

D．to point out the regions affected by air pollution

What does the underlined phrase "the true picture" in the last paragraph mean?

A．The major pollutants．

B．The key polluted areas．

C．The major polluted cities．

D．The pollution levels．

Channel Islands tourist guide

Friendly communities, a rough coastline and gentle, untouched scenery make the islands ideal for anyone who wants to ‘get out there’ and explore on foot or by bike.
England tourist guide
England is the largest country in Britain, and home to the largest city in Europe, 600 miles of beautiful coastline, and a population almost three times that of Australia.
Isle of Man tourist guide
A country rich in natural history, beautiful scenery and first-class historical sites with attractions for all age groups and interests.
London tourist guide
London needs little introduction. This lively, multi-cultural capital is a world leading destination city．London is full of history, heritage and culture, yet one of the most fast-moving, cosmopolitan(世界性的) cities on the planet．
Northern Ireland tourist guide
Exciting cities with shopping, nightlife and festivals, outdoor activities, wonderful food and untouched peaceful and private places where you can relax．
Scotland tourist guide
Scotland is everything you imagine – whisky, golf and wealth of castles and historic sites. The Highlands area is one of the last wildernesses in Europe.
Wales tourist guide
Wales is different from other parts of Britain and just 2 hours from Heathrow Airport. With 400 castles, yet only one official motorway, you have to take things at a gentle pace.
What is special about England?

A．It is the largest country in Europe．

B．It enjoys a beautiful coastline of 600 miles．

C．It is one of the last wildernesses in Europe．

D．It has a large population similar to Australia．

If you want to visit castles, you are supposed to go to _______．

A．Channel Islands and Isle of Man	B．Isle of Man and London
C．Northern Ireland and Wales	D．Wales and Scotland

The passage can be classified as.

A．an advertisement	B．a geography article
C．a report	D．a diary

Discouraged by reading bad news daily and with his marriage failing, Canadian Neil Pasricha decided to try to focus on the positive and come up with 1,000 simple, free, awesome things, posting one each day on a blog.
Pasricha said his blog aimed to highlight life's simple pleasures, which were often taken for granted, such as finding forgotten money in a pocket, or fixing a TV set with a heavy blow.
Little did he realize his blog would strike a nerve and attract 40,000 people a day to join his discussions on how to enjoy the last triangle of a potato crisp, or the pleasure of laughing so hard that you cry.
Pasricha, aged 30, was amazed to win two Webby awards, known as "the Oscars of the Internet," something positive at a time when his marriage broke up and one of his closest friends committed suicide.
"I turned the worst year of my life into my best year by focusing on the positive. " Pasricha told Reuters in a telephone interview. "Every day I try to find something that is happy, free and universal to share, like the smell of a bakery or when a cashier opens up a new line at a store. "
Pasricha said when he began his blog in June 2008 he thought he might have trouble coming up with 1,000 simple, happy moments in life but now he is more than halfway through and ideas keep flooding in, from himself and from followers of his blog.
"These moments can start a huge conversation. Most of our life is really about hitting green lights on the way home from, or waking up before your alarm goes off and realizing you have more time in bed. But it is those small moments we forget about."
Despite the success of his blog, Pasricha does not want to change his daily life. “I travel regularly for an hour a day to work in the suburb. I like work because I like the people in my office. I’m not a writer and I don’t know how to use punctuations correctly. I just like observing the world and putting it down,” he said.
Neil Pasricha determined to post positive feelings or things on his blog because.

A．daily bad news and broken marriage saddened him

B．1,000 simple, free, happy things excited him

C．he wanted to forget his marriage life

D．he wanted to make his blog successful

Which of the following will Pasricha probably NOT post onto his blog?

A．Coming across an old schoolmate.

B．Finding his lost dog come back home.

C．Falling off his bike and getting injured.

D．Buying his favourite book at a special price.

According to the passage, Pasricha.

A．gets ideas for 1,000 simple, free, happy things with trouble

B．gets ideas for 1,000 simple, free, happy things on his own

C．is on his way to collecting 1,000 simple

, free, happy things

D．has finished coll

ecting 1,000 simple, free, happy things

Which of the following might be the best title for the poassage?

A．Hard life for a Canadian blogger	B．Busy life for a Canadian blogger
C．Great awards for a Canadian blogger	D．Great success for a Canadian blogger

WASHINGTON, Sept. 6 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Barack Obama on Monday announced a new plan to renew and expand the nation's roads, railways and runways, in a bid (努力) to restart the sluggish economy and to help create jobs.
Obama announced the billion-dollar infrastructure(基础设施) spending program at an event in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, marking the Labor Day holiday in the United States.
The proposal calls for investments over six years, including rebuilding and modernizing 150,000 miles (241,350 kilometers) of roads, 4,000 miles (6,430 kilometers) of railways and 150 miles ( 241 kilometers) of runways.
"It sets up an Infrastructure Bank to leverage(杠杆；利用) federal dollars and focus on the smartest investment. All of this will not only create jobs now, but will make our economy run better over the long haul," Obama said.
"This is a plan that will be fully paid for and will not add to the deficit over time," said Obama.
The U.S. unemployment rate rose to 9.6 percent in August, reflecting business reluctance to hire among uncertain economic prospects, the U.S. Labor Department reported on Friday.
The president admitted that new jobs "have not been coming fast enough" in the United States.
"These years would be some of the most difficult in our history. The problems facing working families are nothing new, but they are more serious than ever. And that makes our cause more urgent than ever," he added.
What does the underlined word “sluggish” probably mean?

A．繁荣的

B．崩溃的

C．疲软的

D．行动迅速的

What’s the main idea of this passage?

A．The US president launched a new program aiming at improving the nation’s infrastructure.

B．The US unemployment rate rose according to the Labor Department.

C．These years will be the most difficult in the American history.

D．More roads, railways and runways will be rebuilt and modernized.

Which of the following will be changed most in length?

A．Roads.

B．Railways.

C．Runways.

D．Highways.