The Man behind Blue Jeans
Levi Strauss was born in 1829 in Bavaria, Germany. He was the fifth of six children. His father sold dry goods from door to door. (Dry goods include many different things: fabric, thread, scissors, combs, buttons, yarn, etc.)
In 1845, his father died. All six children decided to go to the United States. Two of Strauss’ bothers started a dry goods company in New York City. Strauss’ sister Fanny and her husband started a similar business in San Francisco. Strauss decided to go to the southeastern part of the United States. For eight years, he walked along the country roads selling dry goods from door to door –just like his father in Bavaria.
In 1853, Strauss decided to move to San Francisco. (At that time, thousands of people traveled to California to look for gold.) On the way to California, Strauss sold almost all of his dry goods. He had only one thing left—some canvas.
In California, Strauss tried to sell the canvas to the gold miners. He said they could make tents from the canvas. But they weren’t interested in canvas for tents. Strauss didn’t know what to do with the canvas. Then, he had an idea. Strauss could see that the miners needed new pants. There were holes in their pants because the fabric wasn’t strong. He decided to make the canvas into pants. They called them “Levi’s”. Later, Strauss stopped using canvas and used a different fabric. It was a heavy cotton fabric—the same kind people wear today.
Levi Strauss died in 1902. He never married and left his money to his nephews. He left the world much more—the jeans that so many people wear.________ isn’t a kind of dry goods.
| A．Thread | B．Gold | C．Comb | D．Yarn |
What is canvas?
| A．Tent. | B．Pants. | C．A very strong fabric. |
| D．Anything which is used to make all kinds of trousers. |
Why did the miners call the pants “Levi’s”?
| A．Because the pants belonged to Levi Strauss’ father | |
| B．In memory of Levi Strauss’ father. | C．It’s the name of Levi’ Strauss’ nephew. |
| D．Because the pants are Levi’s invention. |
Which of the following is NOT true about Levi Strauss?
| A．He was born in Germany. | B．His parents had six children. |
| C．He had five children. | D．He died in 1902. |
When traveling abroad, it is wise to carry your money in traveler's checks because checks are protected against loss or theft. If your checks are lost or stolen, the issuing authority will refund(赔偿) your money.
Not only are they safe, they are also convenient. They are available in different currencies and they can be cashed at most banks throughout the world. Most shops, hotels and restaurants also accept them.
Traveler's checks are very easy to use. When you collect them, you sign each check once. The cashier enters the amount in your passport. When you cash, you sign each check again. The cashier will usually ask to see your passport again too.
To get traveler's checks you usually go to your bank. They can be paid in cash or in other ways. Large amounts, however, must be ordered in advance.
For the safety and convenience of traveler's checks, you are charged two commissions(佣金，酬劳): an insurance commission when you buy them and an encashment commission when you cash them.
It is suitable to make a note of the serial numbers of your checks. Keep this separate from your traveler's checks.（词数191）People like to carry their money in traveler’s checks when traveling abroad, because______
| A．they cannot be lost or stolen | B．they can be used anywhere |
| C．they are safe and handy | D．they can save travelers plenty of money |
If your traveler's checks are lost or stolen, who will refund you?
| A．The authority that issues you the passport. | B．The insurance company. |
| C．The bank where you buy your checks. | |
| D．The travel agency that arranges your travel. |
You sign your traveler’s check for the second time in order to ________.
| A．get your passport | B．cash it |
| C．claim insurance | D．pay for commission |
Which of the following statement is TRUE?
| A．You need not pay a commission for the safety of your traveler’s checks. |
| B．People usually get traveler’s checks from foreign banks. |
| C．Traveler’s checks can be exchanged for the money of the country you visit. |
| D．You cannot get your passport until you get your traveler’s checks. |
Language is always changing. In a society where life continues year after year with few changes, the language does not change either. The earliest known languages had difficult grammar but a small, limited vocabulary. Over the century, the grammar changed, and the vocabulary grew. For example, the English and Spanish people who came to America during the sixteenth century gave names to all the new plants and animals they found. In this way, hundreds of new words were introduced into English and Spanish vocabularies. Today life is changing very fast, and language is changing fast too.
There are several major language families in the world. Some scientists say there are nine main families, but other scientists divide them differently. The languages in each family are connected, and scientists think that they came from the same parent language. About 3 percent of the people in the world speak languages that are not in these major families. （词数155）The early language had ________.
| A．a lot of problems | B．words and easy grammar |
| C．words but no grammar | D．grammar but not many words |
In the next few hundred years we can expect language to _____.
| A．stay exactly the same | B．change a great deal |
| C．change only a little | D．ask more words and drop some grammar |
What this article shows is that _____.
| A．languages change fast | B．languages really don't want to change |
| C．language really with changes in society | D．Spanish and English change |
In Canada you can find dogs，cats，horses，etc．in almost every family．These are their pets．People love these pets and have them as their good friends．Before they keep them in their houses，they take them to animal hospitals to give them injections so that they won’t carry disease．They have special animal food stores，though they can get animal food in almost every kind of store．Some people spend around two hundred Canadian dollars a month on animal food．When you visit people’s houses，they would be very glad to show you their pets and they are very proud of them．You will also find that almost every family has a bird feeder in their garden．All kinds of birds are welcomed to come and have a good meal．They are free to come and go and nobody is allowed to kill any animal in Canada．They have a law against killing wild animals．If you killed an animal，you would be punished．If an animal happened to get run over by a car，people would be very sad about it．
People in Canada have many reasons to like animals．One of them might be：Their family ties are not as close as ours．When children grow up， they leave their parents and start their own life．Then the old will feel lonely．But pets can solve this problem．They can be good friends and never leave them alone．（词数242）The passage mainly talks about．
| A．how to keep disease from pets | B．pets in Canada |
| C．how to take good care of pets | D．life of the old in Canada |
InCanada，childrenleavetheirparentswhenthey grow up because．
| A．they don’t love their parents any more |
| B．they can only find jobs far from their parents |
| C．their parents’ houses are too small |
| D．they wouldn’t depend on their parents any more |
Which of the following is TRUE？
| A．People buy animal food only at the animal food stores. |
| B．Pets eat better than people． |
| C．Almost every family has a birdcage in his house． |
| D．Any bird can come to the bird feeders to eat． |
A woman saw three old men with long white beards sitting in her front yard, hungry. She did not know them but invited them in. “ We do not go into a house together,” they replied. And she asked why.
One of the old men explained: “His name is Wealth,” pointing to one of his friends, “ and he is Success, and I am Love.” Then he added, “ Now go in and discuss with your husband which one of us you want in your home.”
The woman went in and told her husband what had happened. Her husband was overjoyed. “How nice!” he said. “Since that is the case, let Wealth come in and fill our home with wealth!” His wife disagreed, “My dear, why not invite Success?” Their daughter-in-law gave her own suggestion: “Wouldn’t it be better to invite Love? Our home will be filled with love then.” “Let’s heed our daughter-in-law’s advice,” said the husband to his wife. “ Go out and invite Love to be our guest.”
Love got up and started walking toward the house. The other two also got up and followed him. Surprised, the woman asked Wealth and Success: “ I only invited Love, why are you coming in?”
The old men replied together. “ If you had invited Wealth or Success, the other two of us would have stayed out. But since you invited Love, wherever he goes, we go with him. Wherever there is Love, there is also Wealth and Success!”The underlined word “ heed” means “”.
| A．give | B．refuse | C．follow | D．offer |
What’s the best title of the passage?
| A．The importance of Love. | B．An old couple and Love. |
| C．Which one is the best choice? | D．Wealth, success and love. |
From the story, we can know that the daughter-in-law is full of.
| A．care | B．imagination | C．love | D．cleverness |
Which of the following is TRUE?
| A．Without love, there won’t be anything. |
| B．Without wealth, the husband has nothing. |
| C．Without success, you have to love others. |
| D．Without carelessness, you will get everything. |
There is no excuse for not doing your assignments（作业）. If you can’t come to school, you should call your teacher or your classmate and ask about homework. It is your responsibility（责任）to find out what homework you have missed. It is not the teacher’s job to remind you of the missed assignments.
You must not be absent on a test day. If you are seriously ill, call and let the teacher know you will not be there for the test. If your teacher allows a make-up test（补考），you should take the test within one or two days after you return to class. Serious illness is the only reason for missing a test.
Be on time! It is impolite to be late. Also, it bothers other students. If you must come in late, be sure to do it quietly. Have your books and papers out of your bag before you come into the room. Then go to your seat and sit down quietly. In the USA, it is not necessary to knock before you enter the classroom. Most teachers will give you a low grade if you are often late.
In America, you should call your teacher by his or her last name instead of “ teacher”. Also you should use Mr, Miss, Ms or Mrs before the last name ( such as Mrs Smith or Mr Jones). This is polite. The teacher will tell you the title that he or she likes. It is impolite in the USA to eat, drink or chew gum during class. Don’t do these until the break. Also, removing your shoes in the classroom is not polite.What should you do if you miss a class?
| A．Give an excuse for missing the assignments. |
| B．Tell the teacher you can’t come to school or do the assignments. |
| C．Ask your teacher to remind you of the missed assignments. |
| D．Call your teacher or your classmate to find out what assignments were given. |
When can a student miss a test according to the passage?
| A．When he / she is late for the test. |
| B．When he/ she is really sick. |
| C．When he / she failed another test. |
| D．When he / she doesn’t want to have the test. |
In America, if your teacher’s name is Susan Black, what should you call her politely?
| A．Ms Black | B．Ms Susan | C．Susan Black | D．Teacher Black |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．A student is thought to be impolite when he / she takes off his / her shoes in the classroom. |
| B．A student is thought to be impolite when he / she eats and drinks in class. |
| C．When a student is late for class, he / she must knock before he / she enters the classroom. |
| D．A student is thought to be impolite when he/she doesn’t come for class on time. |