Some time ago, I discovered that one of my chairs had a broken leg. I didn’t think there would be any difficulty in getting it mended, as there are a lot of antique (古董)shops near my home. So I left my home one morning carrying the chair with me. I went into the first shop expecting a friendly reception (接待). I was quite wrong. The man wouldn’t even look at my chair.
The second shop, though slightly more polite, was just the same, and the third and the fourth. So I decided that my approach must be wrong.
I entered the fifth shop with a plan in my mind. I placed the chair on the floor and said to the shopkeeper, "Would you like to buy a chair?" He looked at it over carefully and said, "Yes, not a bad chair. How much do you want for it?" "Twenty pounds." I said. "OK," he said, "I will give you twenty pounds." "It’s got a slightly broken leg," I said. "Yes, I saw that, it is nothing. "the shopkeeper answered.
Everything was going according to my plan and I was getting excited. "What will you do with it?" I asked. "It will be easy to sell once the repair is done." "I will buy it." I said. "What do you mean? You just sold it to me." "Yes, I know, but I have just changed my mind, I am sorry. I will give you twenty - seven pounds for it." "You must be crazy." he said. Suddenly the penny dropped. "I know what you want. You want me to repair your chair." " You are right," I said, "What would you have done if I had walked in and asked you to mend the chair?" "I would not have agreed to do that. We don’t do repairs, not enough money in it, and too much trouble. But! will mend this for you. Will you pay it for five? ". He was a very nice person and was greatly amused (感到有趣)by the whole thing. We can learn from the passage that in the first shop the writer________.
| A．was rather impolite |
| B．was warmly received |
| C．asked the shopkeeper to buy his chair |
| D．asked the shopkeeper to repair his chair. |
The expression" the penny dropped" in the last paragraph means the shopkeeper_________.
| A．changed his mind | B．accepted the offer |
| C．saw the writer’s purpose | D．decided to help the writer |
How much did the writer pay for the repair?
| A．5. | B．7. | C．20. | D．27. |
From the text, we can learn that the writer was___________.
| A．honest | B．careful | C．smart | D．funny |
During the last twenty years there has been increasing concern with the quality of the environment. Along with air and water pollutions, noises pollution has been recognized as a serious pollutant. As noise levels have risen, the effects of noise have become more apparent.
Noise is defined as "unwanted sound". Causes of noise pollution include traffic, aircraft, rock bands, barking dogs, televisions, garbage trucks, and noise from neighbors, voices, alarms, and watercrafts. Studies show that over forty percent of Americans are disturbed at home or lose sleep because of noise pollution.
Noise has bad effects on people and the environment. Noise causes hearing loss, interferes (妨碍) with human activities at home and work, and is in various ways dangerous to people's health and well being.
When we think, talk, listen to music, or sleep, we need quiet. Even low levels of noise can be
annoying or frustrating. Sudden increases in volume can make sounds annoying. The quieter the background is, the more penetrating a noise can be.
Noise can also make instructions or warning unclear, resulting in accidents. Louder noise bursts can be more disruptive (破坏性).Continued stress can lead to high blood pressure, which is the major cause of some diseases.
Long exposure to noise levels above eight-five decibels (分贝) can damage inner cells and lead to hearing loss. Noise can result in the involuntary fear response and can cause adrenaline (肾上腺素) to be pumped into the bloodstream, the heart rate to quicken, muscles to tense, breathing to increase, and the digestive system to slow down.
Local government has the responsibility to fight noise pollution. For example, it can regulate the speed of trains through their community. On the other hand, a responsible citizen will never make noise pollution wherever he is. How many kinds of environmental pollution are mentioned in the text?
| A．Two | B．Three | C．Four | D．Five |
According to the text, noise pollution may be caused by .
| A．parties and meetings | B．zoos and theaters |
| C．schools and factories | D．vehicles and animals |
What does the underlined word "penetrating" in paragraph 4 mean?
| A．High and exciting | B．Sharp and shocking |
| C．Loud and unpleasant | D．Clear and comfortable |
In the last paragraph, the writer suggests that .
| A．individuals and government should work together to reduce noise pollution |
| B．the government should offer it's people better education on noise pollution |
| C．the government should be responsible for noise pollution |
| D．people who make noise pollution should be punished |
Which of the following is not related to noise pollution?
| A．hearing loss | B．speeding the digestive system |
| C．high blood pressure | D．accidents |
Facebook is now used
by 30 million people in the UK, about half the population.
Joanna Shields, vice president of Facebook Europe, made the announcement this morning at a media conference in London.
She said: "We can announce today that we have reached 30 million in the UK, which we are really excited about."
Globally, Facebook has more than 500 million registered users, a milestone it hit last summer. Last July, it also revealed that it had 26 million registered UK users. In the last eight months, it has attracted four million extra UK users, bringing the UK total to 30 million, while in January 2009, Facebook had only 150 million registered users.
Last year, Zuckerberg, Facebook's founder, said it was "almost a guarantee" that the site would hit one billion users. He explained: "If we succeed in innovating, there is a good chance of bringing this to a billion people...it will be interesting to see how it comes true."
One third of women aged 18 to 34 check Facebook when they first wake up, before even going to the toilet, according to research. Twenty-one per cent of women aged between 18 to 34 check Facebook in the middle of the night, while 42 per cent of the same group think it is fine to post drunken photos of themselves onto the social network, a study by Oxygen Media found.
Shields was speaking this morning at the Financial Times Digital Media and Broadcasting Conference about the power Facebook's referrals can bring to media sites, such as newspapers and TV services.
She explained that the average Facebook user has 130 friends who they share links to media sites with on a regular basis. "Media companies which take advantage of that are really seeing the benefits", Shields said.
Shields refused to say whether Facebook would develop its own mobile phone operating system and also said it was "silly" that Google had recently disabled the feature (特点) which allowed Google users to sync their contacts with Facebook friends.What is Joanna Shields content with?
| A．the announcement | B．media conference |
| C．fast growing registered users | D．the benefits of Facebook |
How many registered users all over the world now?
A．2 6 million |
B．30 million |
| C．150 million | D．more than 500 million |
Zuckerberg, Facebook's founder, take a more view about the future of Facebook.
| A．negative | B．optimistic | C．cold | D．pessimistic |
What kind of people are more interested in Facebook according to the passage?
| A．teenagers | B．middle-aged people |
| C．old people | D．young people |
From the passage we know that .
| A．Facebook would develop its own mobile phone operating system |
| B．Google didn't allow its users to sync their contacts with Facebook friends |
| C．Shields refused to admit the power Facebook's referrals could bring |
| D．Google was always silly |
Would you eat a ready meal from the fridge rather than cook from scratch (从头开始 )? Have you been doing internet shopping rather than going to the stores? What can't you be bothered to do?
A study into how lazy British people are has found more than half of adults are so idle they'd catch the lift rather than climb two flights of stairs.
Just over 2000 people were quizzed by independent researchers at Nuffield Health, Britain's largest health charity. The results were surprising.
About one in six people surveyed said if their remote control was broken, they would continue watching the same channel rather than get up.
More than one third of those questioned said they would not run to catch a bus. Worryingly, of the 654 respondents (回答者) with children, 64% said they were often too tired to play with them.
This led the report to conclude that it's no wonder that one in six children in the UK are classified as obese (肥胖) before they start school.
Dr Sarah Dauncey, medical director of Nuffield Health, said: "People need to get fitter, not just for their own sake, but for the sake of their families, friends and obviously their pets too.
"If we don't start to take control of this problem, a whole ge
neration will become too unfit to perform even the most basic of tasks."
And Scotland's largest city,
Glasgow, was shamed as the laziest city in the UK, with 75% surveyed admitting they do not get enough exercise, followed closely by Birmingham and Southampton, both with 67%.
The results pose (对... 提出) serious challenges for the National Health Service, where obesity-related illnesses such as heart disease and cancer have been on a steady increase for the past 40 years and are costing billions of pounds every year. For the i
nterest of country people should .
| A．continue watching the same channel rather than get up to get the remote control |
| B．carry out even the most basic of tasks |
| C．get enough exercise to get fitter |
| D．admit they do not get enough exercise |
Which of the following statements agrees with British people?
| A．They are fond of climbing the stairs. |
| B．They are willing to accompany their children. |
| C．They like sports and get enough exercise. |
| D．They are suffering from obesity-related illnesses. |
What does the word "idle" in paragraph 2 mostly probably mean?
| A．active | B．lazy | C．optimistic | D．pessimistic |
Which country is the writer most likely to come from?
| A．America | B．China | C．U.K | D．France |
What's the main idea of the passage?
| A．UK is taking measures to get over laziness. |
| B．How lazy British people are. |
| C．British people are suffering from laziness. |
| D．Challenges for the National Health Service. |
Today's parents miss the golden age that their own mothers enjoyed in the 1970s and 1980s, researchers found.
Mothers have less time to themselves and feel under greater pressure to juggle work and family life than the previous generation. As a result, 88 per cent said they felt guilty about the lack of time they spent with their children.
The survey of 1,000 mothers also found that more than a third said they had less time to themselves than their mothers did — just three hours a week or 26 minutes a day.
And 64 percent said this was because they felt they 'had' to go out to work, while nearly a third (29 per cent) said they were under constant pressure to be the 'perfect mother', the report found.
Other findings showed social network and parenting website were important in proving help and support among female communities
Kate Fox, of the Social Issues Research Centre, which conducted the survey for Procter & Gamble, said: "With increasing pressure on mothers to work a 'double shift' — to be the perfect mother as well as a wage-earner — support networks are more important than ever."
It comes as a separate report examining childcare in the leading industrialized nations found that working mothers in Britain spend just 81 minutes a day caring for their children as a "primary activity".
Critics say the pressure on women to work long hours, and leave their chil
dren in the hands of nurseries or child minders, is putting the well-being of their children at risk.
The study also reveals that, despite the fact that more and more modern mothers go out to work, the 
burden of childcare still falls on them — even if their husband is not in work.
A father who is not in work tends to spend just 63 minutes a day looking after his child — 18 minutes less than a mother who goes out to work.
Working fathers spare less than three quarters of an hour with their children.What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．More and more modern mothers go out to work to support the families. |
| B．Today's parents would rather leave their children in the hands of nurseries. |
| C．Today's parents have less time to take care of their children. |
| D．To keep the balance of work and family is not an easy thing. |
What does the underlined word "juggle" in Paragraph 2 probably mean?
| A．keep objects in the air |
| B．do many things at once |
| C．change things |
| D．organize spending |
According to Kate Fox, .
| A．people should learn to relax by using the network |
| B．network plays an important role in society |
| C．mothers should make use of the network to gain support |
| D．it is impossible for woman to become the "double shift" |
Today's mothers lack the time to company their children mainly because .
| A．they have no choice but go to work |
| B．they are under constant pressure |
| C．they want to be "the perfect mother" |
| D．they have less time to themselves |
Which of the following statements is True?
| A．Mothers usually spend three hours looking after their children a day. |
| B．Since more and more modern mothers go out to work, the burden of childcare falls on fathers. |
| C．Child minders are good to the health of the children. |
| D．Mothers spend more time with their children than fathers. |
A report by the Consumer Electronics Association says electronics are among the most popular gifts
being bought this holiday season.
Jim Barry is a spokesman for the Consumer Electronics Association. He says the CEA study found that electronics represent three of the top five things on its "holiday gift wish list" this year.
JIM BARRY: "Notebook computers are at the top, followed by iPads and then e-readers. IPad is a touch-screen tablet computer and that's really the big player in that category."
The computer company Apple began selling its small, touch-screen computers in April. People use the touch-screen computers to surf the Web, write e-mails, watch movies and read books. Since the iPad's release earlier this year, several other companies have come out with their own tablet computers just in time for Christmas.
A report from the e-Marketer research group predicts that worldwide, tablet sales will reach more than eighty-one million in two thousand twelve. Still, Jim Barry says these devices are facing tough competition this year from another Christmas favorite.
JIM BARRY: "Another hot category right behind that are the e-readers. So you can read on an iPad or a touch-screen tablet, but the e-book readers are less expensive. The Kindle is the market leader there, from Amazon. But you also have the Nook from Barnes and Noble and the e-reader from Sony. And you have more and more of those e-readers coming into the market as well."
The Consumer Electronics Association report found that iPod music players are also in high demand this holiday season.
But not all of the things on the holiday gift wish list involved electronics. Clothes, cars and motorcycles also made the list. So did family togetherness and good health. And the one thing that people wanted most?
JIM BARRY: "At the top of the list was peace and happiness."
That is also our wish for you this holiday season.The best title of the passage is .
| A．How to choose a suitable gift for Christmas |
| B．iPads, E-Readers, Notebook Computers top wish lists |
| C．What we should buy for our kids this holiday season |
D．How modern technology is changing the way people relate |
People use the touch-screen computers to do all the following things except .
| A．surf the Web and write e-mails |
| B．watch movies and read books |
| C．surf the Web and contact others on phone |
| D．surf the internet and use it as an e-reader |
Which of the following sentences is TURE?
| A．iPads are the most popular gift among all the electronics. |
| B．Only the computer company Apple releases a touch-screen tablet computer. |
| C．All of the things on the holiday gift wish list are electronics. |
| D．There are more and more kinds of e-readers in the market. |
You don't have enough money for an iPad, but you can buy for a friend who enjoys reading.
| A．notebook computers | B．iPod music players |
| C．touch-screen tablet computer | D．e-book readers |
We can infer from the last paragraph that .
| A．people value peace and happiness more than anything else |
| B．clothes, cars and motorcycles are also popular gifts for Christmas |
| C．family togetherness and good health don't make the list |
| D．JIM BARRY also sends their wish for us this holiday season |