A growing number of consumers, especially young people , are a
dopting more Western habits when it comes to spending money—by favoring credit cards over savings.
A survey of 11,500 people in 18 cities by The Nielson Company found the credit card market had witnessed a major change in recent years.
“Today’s consumer is clearly not interested in saving for a rainy day, as may have been the case in the past,” Bega Ng, director of financial services research with the company said. “Consumers have been adopting Western habits and attitudes in almost every way—including saving and spending habits. Consumers in their 20s spend tomorrow’s cash to fund today’s needs.”
The report found consumers aged 18 to 24 were the most eager credit card users.
Although the report did not give the amounts credit card users in each of the 18 cities spent, it mentioned the example of Xiamen, a coastal city in Fujian Province, where consumers put an average of 50 percent of their monthly incomes into their credit card accounts to indulge(沉湎于) in cashless shopping.
Included in the survey for the first time, Xiamen is reported to have a fast growing penetration rate(渗透率) for credit cards, with four out of ten consumers now owning at least one card. With more than half of cardholders in Xiamen owning two or more cards, it is catching up with key “tier one” cities, the report said. The report did not make known the figures in major cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.
Last year, the same Nielson survey showed Shanghai had the biggest population of credit card holders, with citizens owning 1.8 credit cards on average. Half of them use credit cards at least once a week, the survey said.
Yunfei, 30, from Beijing, said she spent at least 2,000 yuan a month by credit cards, most of which went on daily necessities and dining out.Which of the following best shows the young urbanites’ idea of consumption?
| A．Using credit cards in every way. |
| B．Spending tomorrow’s cash for today’s needs. |
| C．Owning more cards for cashless shopping. |
| D．Saving money for future use. |
How is the situation of credit card use in Xjamen?
| A．Forty percent of the consumers own at least one card. |
| B．Credit card users use up most of their monthly income. |
| C．The number of credit card users is larger than that in Guangzhou. |
| D．Over half of the consumers use two or more cards. |
Which city had the largest number of credit card users according to a previous survey?
| A．Xiamen. | B．Beijing. | C．Shanghai. | D．Guangzhou. |
What is the main idea of the survey reported by Nielson Company?
| A．Most credit card users are young people aged 18 to 24. |
| B．Western habits have a big influence on the Chinese people. |
| C．The number of credit card users is growing rapidly in Chinese cities. |
| D．Chinese consumers are no more interested in saving money. |
Perhaps Joe Cheng has become popular with thousands of fans and has been chased by girls and middles students. But do you know his resume(简历)?
Yes. Joe Cheng, who plays the most popular boy in high school in the popular Taiwanese drama “It Started with a Kiss.”
Although thousands of girls have fallen in love with him for his cute smile and strong body, Cheng, 27, doesn’t want to rest on his good looks. He made the move from modeling to acting six years ago, and now he is trying another career－this time, to be a singer. Cheng worked on his first album, “Joe Cheng’s Day”, for a year. It came out on September 7.
Apart from recording his CD, Cheng has been practicing dance moves for his music video. Given his height, 188cm, this was not an easy job. “I had bad dreams about dancing,” he said.
Cheng’s life has had many ups and downs. His parents divorced when he was in primary school and he has lived with his father ever since. After dropping out of high school, he took on all kinds of jobs before being spotted by a scout（星探）for a modeling agency. Cheng said his key to life is “keeping a positive outlook and making the most out of life.”
Cheng admitted that he got bad grades when he was in high school. But he was still very popular at school. “Being very active in the students union, I was elected president. I liked to organize parties and field trips, so many teachers and students knew me,” he said.
Cheng once dreamed of becoming a cartoonist, and he regrets that he never did it. Now he hopes his teenage fans can learn from his life. “When you are in school, just focus on studies,” Cheng said. “Every young heart is eager to explore the world outside. But take your time. Finish your studies first.”Which of the following can be the best title for this text?
| A．Finish Your Study First. |
| B．Life Is Full of Ups and Downs. |
| C．He Has It All, but Still Has Regrets. |
| D．The Key to Success. |
What career didn’t Joe Cheng try?
| A．Acting in some dramas. | B．Dancing for an agency. |
| C．Modeling for an agency. | D．Recording his own CDs. |
The underlined word “outlook” in Paragraph 4 means __________.
| A．attitude | B．scene | C．fame | D．appearance |
Which of the correct order of these events?
a. Joe Cheng dropped out of high school.
b. Joe Cheng worked on his first album, “Joe Cheng’s Day”.
c. Joe Cheng’s parents divorced.
d. Joe Cheng played the most popular boy in “It started with a Kiss”.
e. Joe Cheng worked in a modeling agency.
| A．acedb | B．caebd | C．caedb | D．Acebd |
I travel a lot, and I find out different “styles” of directions every time 1 ask “How can I get to the post office?”
Foreign tourists are often confused in Japan because most streets there don’t have names; in Japan, people use landmarks in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit market. The post office is across from the bus stop.”
In the countryside of the American Midwest, there are not usually many landmarks. There are no mountains, so the land is very flat; in many places there are no towns or buildings within miles. Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”
People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know.
It’s true that a person doesn’t know the answer to your question sometimes. What happens in such a situation? A New Yorker might say, ‘Sorry, I have no idea.” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don’t know.” People in Yucatan believe that “I don’t know” is impolite, They usually give an answer, often a wrong one. A tourist can get very, very lost in Yucatan!When a tourist asks the Japanese the way to a certain place they usually _________
| A．describe the place carefully |
| B．refer to recognizable buildings and places |
| C．show him a map of the place |
| D．tell him the names of the streets |
Which is the place where people measure distance in time?
| A．New York. | B．Kansas. |
| C．Los Angeles. | D．Iowa. |
People in Yucatan may give a tourist a wrong answer ________
| A．in order to save time | B．as a test |
| C．for fun | D．so as to be polite |
What can we infer from the text?
| A．It’s useful for travelers to know how to ask the way properly. |
| B．People have similar understandings of politeness. |
| C．It’s important for travelers to understand cultural differences. |
| D．New Yorkers are generally friendly to visitors. |
Can you imagine a world without the Internet? It’s surprising to think about it.
Now, China has more than 162 million Internet users, according to the China Internet Network Information Centre. This is the second highest number of user in the world after the United States. Today, 66%of Chinese “netizens （网民）” are teenagers. “They spend about thirteen hours every week online,” said Qian Hulin, an Internet expert(专家). Doctor Song in Beijing Xuanwu Hospital said about 14% of Chinese netizens who are teens often lasted over ten hours to play online games.
The main reasons why teenagers surf the Web are to search for information, to communicate with others and to have fun. On the Internet, teenagers can find out almost anything. And surfing the Web can help students with their homework and widen their knowledge.
Li Dong, a teacher at No. 41 Middle School in Shijiazhuang, likes her students to use the Internet. “When we talk in class, students who surf the Net usually know more background information than the others,” she said.
In addition, people can use the Internet to write letters or stories and send emails. Many teens keep in touch with their friends online. It is cheaper than phoning somebody far away and also much quicker._______ has the most Internet users in the world according to the article.
| A．China | B．America | C．Canada | D．Russia |
There are about _______ Chinese netizens to surf about 13 hours every week.
| A．107 million old | B．22.7 million old |
| C．107 million young | D．22.7 million young |
Song said some teenagers continued _______ more than ten hours.
| A．playing online games |
| B．searching for information |
| C．chatting with their friends |
| D．sending emails to others |
Li Dong in No. 41 Middle School likes her students to use the Internet because she ______.
| A．thinks surfing the net can help students spend less time on homework |
| B．thinks her students can get more background information than the others |
| C．wants her students to talk to her about their hobbies and interests |
| D．wants to know what her students do and think about at home |
Which way is the cheapest and quickest to learn something about friends far away?
| A．Giving them a call. |
| B．Going to see them. |
| C．Writing a letter to them. |
| D．Sending emails to them. |
Doctor Seuss was born in 1904. By the middle 1950s, he had become one of the best-loved and most successful children's book writers in the world. His books are very popular with young readers. They enjoy the invented words and the pictures of unusual funny animals and plants.
In 1954, life magazine published(刊登) a report about school children who could not read. The report said many children's books were not interesting. Doctor Seuss strongly hoped to help children and decided to write books that were interesting and easy to read. He used words with the same ending sound, like fish and wish. He did not receive training in art. Yet, he drew the pictures for most of his books.
In 1957, Dr. Seuss wrote The Cat in the Hat. He used less than 230 words to write the book and even a six-year-old should be able to read it. It was a fun story and easy to read. Children loved it. Their parents loved it, too. Today it is still one of the stories they like best. The success of The Cat in the Hat made him want to write more books for children. In 1960, he wrote a book using less than fifty words. The book is called Green Eggs and Ham.
In 1984, Doctor Seuss won a Pulitzer Prize (普利策奖). He was honored for the education and enjoyment his books provided American children and their parents.
He died at the age of 87, but his influence remains. Millions of his books have been sold worldwide. People say his books helped change the way American children learned to read. Yet, his books are loved by people of all ages. Doctor Seuss once said, "I do not write for children. I write for people.Doctor Seuss learned from the magazine that _______.
| A．some school children could not read |
| B．many children's books were interesting |
| C．children wanted to learn to read |
| D．a writer for children was wanted |
People like his books because the books ______.
| A．are cheap and easy to get |
| B．were written in different languages |
| C．are easy and interesting to read |
| D．were written with invented words |
He wrote the book The Cat in the Hat at the age of _____.
| A．50 | B．53 | C．56 | D．87 |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Doctor Seuss wrote Green Eggs and Ham with over 230 words. |
| B．Doctor Seuss wrote books only for children in the United States. |
| C．The Cat in the Hat was written only for six-year-old children. |
| D．His books provided education and enjoyment for Americans. |
From the text we know that Doctor Seuss __________.
| A．won a Pulitzer Prize soon after his death |
| B．sold millions of his books himself worldwide |
| C．changed American children's way of reading |
| D．wrote the largest number of books in the world |
The weather is getting hotter. You are thirsty playing basketball or riding home from school. A cold drink may be just the thing. But be careful what you are drinking. Something that looks cool may not be good for your health.
There are plenty of "energy drinks" on the market. Most of them have beautiful colors and cool names. The lists on them tell you they are helpful to your health. Sounds great!
But after a careful check you may find that most energy drinks have lots of caffeine (咖啡因) in them. These drinks are especially aimed at young people, students, busy people and sports players. Makers sometimes say their drinks make you better at sports and can keep you awake. But be careful not to drink too much.
Caffeine makes your heart beat fast. Because of this, the International Olympic Committee has limited( 限制) its use. Caffeine in most energy drinks is at least as strong as that in a cup of coffee or tea. Possible health dangers have something to do with energy drinks. Just one box of energy drink can make you nervous, have difficulty sleeping and can even cause heart problems. Scientists say that teenagers should be discouraged from taking drinks with a lot of caffeine in them.Many people like drinking energy drinks because of the following EXCEPT that ________.
| A．they have beautiful colors and cool names |
| B．they have lots of caffeine |
| C．they can keep them awake and better at sports |
| D．they are said to be helpful to health |
The main reason for people not to drink too much energy drinks is that they may cause _____.
| A．heart problems | B．nervousness |
| C．sleeping difficulty | D．possible health dangers |
The underlined word "discouraged" can be replaced(替换) with "________".
| A．encouraged | B．stopped | C．helped | D．disliked |
From the passage we can know that _________.
| A．advertisements are important in getting people to buy energy drinks |
| B．energy drinks are helpful to teenagers' study |
| C．sports players need to drink a lot of energy drinks |
| D．energy drinks are especially aimed at teenagers |
Which of the following can be the best title(标题) of the passage?
| A．What's the Use of Energy Drinks? |
| B．Who Can Drink Energy Drinks |
| C．What's That in Energy Drinks? |
| D．Why Can't We Buy Energy Drinks? |