Last year was the year of the travel deal, with resorts and
airlines practically begging for bookings, and many travelers
finding bargain airfares and hotel rooms as a result．Now the
economy looks as if it might be on a slight rebound．So now is
the perfect time to review your booking strategy（策略）．
Here are 4 simple steps you can take to help cut your travel costs in 2010．
1．Find the Cheapest Dates to Fly
ITASoftware．com, which provides the technological backbone for many airfare shopping sites, allows users to scan an entire month's fares for the least expensive rate．（Log in as a "guest" and click on "month-long search．"） In January, the 28th and 30th were the cheapest dates to fly nonstop to London from New York （$536） for a week's vacation, according to a recent search．The next best was Saturday, Jan．23, at $640．To book the ticket, users must go to another site．Kayak．com has a flexible-dates option （registration is required）and a calendar that shows the best fares found by other Kayak users in the last 48 hours．Bing Travel, the Microsoft search engine, offers a similar option, found under "plan trips," about halfway down the page．
2．Consider Nearby Airports
A recent Web search showed nonstop flights from Los Angeles International Airport to Miami International from $299 round trip on American in early January．But flying into Fort Lauderdale, roughly 30 miles north of Miami, was $219 on Virgin America, an $80 saving．
3．Go Against the Grain
If possible, avoid popular travel dates like holidays and spring break because airlines have begun to charge anywhere from $10 to $30 extra at those times．Farecompare．com offers a handy breakdown of the new fees by date, airline and amount．Early-morning and late-night flights may also be cheaper depending on the route．
4．Make Yourself at Home
For a 6 to 12 percent booking fee, AirBnB/com connects budget travelers with locals who are offering a place to bed down．The Times's Frugal Traveler, Matt Gross, described it as "a cross between CouchSurfing．com and the vacation rentals section of Craigslist．" There were more than 2,000 listings in a recent search for New York including a futon （床垫） in a one-bedroom near Gramercy Park （$65） and a bedroom with private bath and separate entrance in Hell's Kitchen （$150）．
65．According to the first paragraph, ____．
A．the economy in 2010 is surely getting better
B．2009 saw a sharp decrease in travel fees
C．the booking strategies can be put away in 2010
D．in 2009, airlines begged the travelers to buy more travel guides
66．If you want to book a ticket, you may log on to _____．
A．ITASoftware．com B．CouchSurfing．com
C．AirBnB．com D．Kayak．com
67．What does "Go Against the Grain" probably mean in the passage?
A．Going travelling in the off-season．
B．Going travelling without taking any grain．
C．Going travelling during holidays and spring break．
D．Going travelling without meals served on early-morning and late-night flights．
68．The passage is most probably taken from ____．
A．a book review B．a magazine
C．a website D．a story book
In only two decades Asian Am
ericans have become the fastest-growing US minority. As their children began moving up through the nation’s schools, it became clear that a new class of academic achievers was forming. Their achievements are reflected in the nation’s best universities, where mathematics, science and engineering departments have taken on a decidedly Asian character. This special liking for mathematics and science is partly explained by the fact that Asian-American students who began their educations abroad arrived in the US with a solid grounding in mathematics but little or no knowledge of English.They are also influenced by the promises of a good job after college. Asians feel there will be less unfair treatment in areas like mathematics and science because they will be judged more objectively. And the return on the investment in education is more immediate in something like engineering than with an arts degree.
Most Asian-American students owe their success to the influence of parents who are determined that their children take full advantage of what the American educational system has to offer. An effective measure of parental attention is homework. Asian parents spend more time with their children than American parents do, and it helps. Many researchers also believe the
re is something in Asian culture that causes success, such as ideals that stress family values and emphasize education.
Both explanations for academic success worry Asian Americans because of fears that they feed a typical racial image. Many can remember when Chinese, Japanese and Filipino immigrants were the victims of social separation. Indeed, it was not until 1952 that laws were laid down giving all Asian immigrants the right to citizenship.While making great achievements at college, Asian-American students ________.
| A．feel they are mistreated because of limited knowledge of English |
| B．are afraid that their academic successes bear a strong Asian character |
| C．still worry about unfair treatment in academic areas |
| D．generally feel it a shame to have to depend on their parents |
What are the major factors that determine the success of Asian Americans?
| A．Solid foundation in basic mathematics and Asian culture. |
| B．Hard work and intelligence. |
| C．Hard work and a limited knowledge of English. |
| D．Asian culture and the American educational system. |
Few Asian-American students major in human sciences mainly because_________.
| A．their English is not good enough |
| B．they are afraid they might meet with unfair judgment in these areas |
| C．there is a wide difference between Asian and Western cultures |
| D．they know little about American culture and society |
The author’s tone in this passage is __________.
| A．sympathetic | B．doubtful | C．critical | D．objective |
The small coastal town of Broome, in northwest Australia, is a remote village in the vast countryside.
There are no traffic jams and hardly any roads. There is only the massive Australian wild land, where some houses are 500 miles apart and some driveways are 50 miles long.
There seem to be only two main sources of entertainment out here: the sunset at the beach and Sun Pictures.
Sun Pictures is a very different movie theater：The seats are park benches and deck chairs, but you’re also welcome to sit on the grass.
It is the world’s oldest outdoor movie garden. Sun Pictures was built in 1916 on the other side of the globe from Hollywood. All the big films were shipped here and the lonely country was amazed.
Broome resident Pearl Hamaguchi has never traveled far from home. But in the Sun Pictures chairs, under the deep blue night sky, she has been almost everywhere.
“And we came back excited about Gregory Peck,” she recalled.
This is one of the few places left in the world where you can see two sets of stars at the same time-----one set in the sky, the other in the film.
Each night, dozens of people from around the world line up at the old wooden stand, with no computer in sight, and buy their tickets to the latest films.
Sun Pictures is also a museum, exhibiting projectors(放映机) that date back to the silent films, a portrait gallery of the famous people who never knew about this place---- even though they came here all the time.
Every once in a while, I’m told, you might find a non-ticket holder in your
seat. That’s why it’s always a good idea to shake out your chair to make sure there are no spiders or scorpions.
“We’ve only had a couple of scorpion incidents but no one’s been stung yet,” said Aaron Mestemaker, a tourist visi
ting from Michigan.
Sun Pictures is a holy hall of movie history and a reminder that air conditioning and carpet are no match for grass and fresh air---even when the lizards steal the scene. The first two paragraphs want to show that__________.
| A．living in Broome is inconvenient | B．the life in Broome is boring |
| C．few people like to live in Broome | D．Broome is simple but vast |
Sun Pictures is different from other theaters because _________.
| A．it is the most historical outdoor theater in the world |
| B．the audience can either sit on chairs or on the grass |
| C．it was built by some constructor from Hollywood |
| D．all the films were imported here from Hollywood |
Gregory Peck is most probably the name of_________.
| A．a place | B．a film | C．a movie star | D．a country fellow |
It can be inferred that the tourists in Broome are most attracted by ________.
| A．its peacefulness | B．its beautiful sunset |
| C．the Sun Pictures | D．the gallery of mo vie stars |
Getting your children to study can be a little like getting them to eat their vegetables.
____ Make a study time and have it at the same time every day. This will help your kids to learn to schedule their day and will give them a sense of control over how they spend their time.
Allow them to study in blocks of time，such as for half an hour with a five-minute break in the middle.____ Ideal (理想的) study times are after dinner or right after school before dinner.
Never allow your children to study in front of the television，as that will encourage passive activity.____
You’ll also need to help your kids find the right place to study. After you’ve set up a good study time for little learners，set up a good place where they can get those creative juices flowing.
____ Make sure there is a table or a desk and a comfortable chair.
___ This includes helping them out with their homework sometimes and being there for them with the answers to any questions. The input you give your children during study periods will help form a bond and help make studying enjoyable.
| A．Pick a place where your children can study properly. |
| B．Hold them to the schedule (时间表) they create for themselves. |
| C．Finally, spend time with your kids when they're studying. |
| D．Keep the atmosphere light and offer lots of encouragement，too. |
E. Instead，use TV as a treat or a reward when the homework is completed.
F. Try to stop this bad habit by offering some sort of reward.
G. One of the best ways to form good study habits for your kids is to design a schedule that they keep to.
People bury treasure to stop other people from taking it. They choose a quiet place, dig a deep hole and bury the treasure in it. Then they make a map of where the treasure is or write down other clues（线索）that will help them or someone else to find it again.
In Britain a few years ago, a writer wrote about some treasure that he had buried. He put clues in the story to help readers find it. Thousands of people hunted for the treasure. They dug holes all over Britain, hoping to find it.
One of the most popular adventure stories ever written is Robert Louis Stephenson's “Treasured Island”, an exciting story about a young boy, Jim Hawkins, who is captured by pirates (海盗) and later finds some buried treasure.
Then there is the true story about a man who had to travel overseas for a year. He did not trust banks, so he buried his life savings in a park. Then he went away. On his return, he went straight to the park. But the park was no longer there. In its place there was a huge building.
And then there was the man who buried his savings, all in bank notes, in a waterproof（防水的）bag. When he dug it up years later, there was nothing left. Worms and insects had eaten the bag and everything in it.
And of course, these are stories about people who bury things and either forget where they have buried them or lose the map.
Although it is true that people sometimes lose their money because a bank fails, banks are still the safest place to keep our savings and treasures. People who bury treasure usually.
| A．do not trust banks |
| B．have a little money . |
| C．want to live in a quiet place. |
| D．expect to lose it |
The writer in Britain.
| A．really had buried something. |
| B．started a nationwide treasure hunt. |
| C．had lost his treasure and wanted people to help him find it. |
| D．caused trouble because people dug holes everywhere. |
“Treasure Island”.
| A．is a story about pirates. |
| B．is about the adventures of Jim Hawkins. |
| C．is the most popular story ever written. |
| D．is a well-known fairy tale. |
The man who buried his money in a park.
| A．thought his money was safer there than in a bank. |
| B．travelled on the sea for a year. |
| C．got his life savings back again. |
| D．stayed away longer than he expected. |
From these stories we understand that.
| A．we cannot trust banks. |
| B．we should not trust anyone. |
| C．a waterproof bag is not proof against worms and insects. |
| D．insects eat anything. |
In one way of thinking, failure is a part of life. In another way, failure may be a way towards success. The “spider story” is often told. Robert Bruce, leader of the Scots in the 13th century, was hiding in a cave from the English. He watched a spider spinning a web（蜘蛛织网）. The spider tried to reach across a rough place in the rock. He tried six times without success. On the seventh time he made it and went on to spin his web. Bruce is said to have taken heart and to have gone on to defeat the English… Edison, the inventor of the light bulb, made hundreds of models that failed before he found the right way to make one.
So what? First, always think about your failure. What caused it? Were conditions right? Were you in top from yourself? What can you change so things will go right next time?
Second, is the goal（目标）you’re trying to reach the right one? Try to do some thinking about what your real goals may be. Think about his question, “If I do succeed in this, where will it get me?” This may help you prevent failure in things you shouldn’t be doing anyway.
The third thing to bear in mind about failure is that it’s a part of life. Learn to “live with yourself” even though you may have failed. Remember, “You can’t win them all.”This passage deals with two sides of failure. In paragraph 1, the author talks mainly about __.
| A．the value of failure |
| B．how people would fail |
| C．famous failures |
| D．the cause of failure |
The underlined phrase “made it” means ______ .
| A．succeeded |
| B．failed |
| C．gave |
| D．got |
The lesson the spider taught Robert Bruce seems ______ .
| A．productive |
| B．straight forward |
| C．sorrowful |
| D．deep |
The author tells you to do all things except ______ .
| A．The think about the cause of your failure |
| B．to check out whether your goals are right for you |
| C．to consider failure as a part or life |
| D．to bear in mind that you will never fail in your life |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．Bruce and Edison were successful examples. |
| B．Failure may be regarded as a way toward success. |
| C．Edison learned a lot from the lesson the spider taught Robert Bruce. |
| D．One may often raise a question whether his goals are worth attempting. |