What do you usually expect from a pop star’s concert? Dazzling stage design, mysterious guest singers or sensational costumes? The answer is yes for most singers. But no when it comes to David Tao’s concerts. “ I won’t invite guests to perform. I won’t dance, take off my clothes or dress up like a peacock to attract attention,” Tao said.Tao insisted a concert should offer nothing more than music.
Tao has been on the music scene since 1997. Quality is the word that can best describe his works. With six albums in 10 years, the 38-year-old singer is not prolific(多产的 ), but he has achieved much more than other Chinese singers who have produced 10 or more albums in a short time.
Tao is called the “ Godfather of R&B” in China and has been a trendsetter(创新者) in China’s music industry. His albums have won various awards in Asia for his socially conscious lyrics, simple rhythms and creative mix of traditional sounds, like Peking Opera and traditional Chinese musical instruments.
Tao’s parents were famous entertainers in Taiwan. Tao spent some of his childhood in Hong Kong. His father was an actor, singer and composer, while his mother was a Peking Opera artist. His parents once moved to the United States and his father worked for Walt Disney. Later his parents returned to Taiwan where his father began his singing career, leaving David to finish his education in the United States. Tao met Taiwanese producer, Wang Zhi Ping, who offered him a job. So Tao went back to Taiwan to write and produce songs for many singers. In 1997 with the help of Wang and another Taiwanese producer, Jim Lee, Tao released his first album which set a record in Taiwan as the first album from a new singer. Tao won two awards, Best Newcomer and Best Producer, becoming the first new comer/singer to also win a Best Producer award during the 9th GMA (金曲奖). Later, Tao released his second album. In this album Tao tried many musical styles including his favorite rock music; in fact each song is different in their style and music arrangement.
“I grew up listening to the most fashionably mixed types of music with my father playing Elvis Presley’s songs in one room and my mother singing Peking Opera in another,” Tao said jokingly.
Tao said he will release a new album after the tour and then he will switch roles to become a film director. Preparation for the movie has already begun and it will be released in 2011. “ After the concert, I will switch my focus to that. I hope I can make it one thing after another.”To pop star Tao, what is the most important thing to a concert?
| A．Costumes. | B．Stage design. |
| C．Guest singers. | D．Music and interaction. |
According to the passage, the reasons for Tao’s albums to win awards are as follows EXCEPT____.
| A．socially conscious lyrics | B．simple rhythms |
| C．mix of traditional sounds | D．quantities of albums |
. Tao is successful and called the “ Godfather of R&B” because_______.
| A．his parents influenced him a lot |
| B．he himself is prolific |
| C．he is creative in music |
| D．Both A and C |
We can infer from the passage that after the concert,_______.
| A．Tao will spend less time in his music |
| B．Tao will spend all his time producing music |
| C．Tao will become an actor |
| D．Tao will make two films |
In 1975, George Carlin appeared on a popular TV show, Saturday Night Live, with his famous words about blue food. “Why is there no blue food? I can’t find blue food—I can’t find the flavor of blue! I mean yellow is lemon; orange is orange and red is cherry. Where is the blue food? ”
Well, Carlin pretty much has it right—there’s not no blue food, but there’s certainly not a lot of it. Fresh-picked blueberries are blue, though they become purple when they are turned into jam. The blue in blueberries—like the purple in grapes and the red in tomatoes—is found in nature. But it isn’t a hot color for food. People don’t seem to prefer blue food. Some diet programs even suggest that those determined to lose weight should make their food blue.
Eating, in part, begins with our eyes. Charles Spence—an experimental psychologist from Oxford University—points out that color can change our taste experience. Commonly, we consider red-colored foods up to 20% sweeter than they actually are; and green foods as being more sour. Spence suggests: human expectations may be influenced by our long history of watching - green fruits can become sweet as they grow up and turn red.
But what about blue? Except blueberries, much of the blue food we see these days is dyed blue artificially. Food producers argue that artificial color doesn’t do much harm to health. A lot of research shows that some physical problems of kids are related to food dyes—while other studies show no effects at all. Blue birthday cake or even blue-dyed chicken can be served on the dinner table. So what? George Carlin’s words are placed at the beginning of the passage to _______.
| A．show the author’s opinion |
| B．introduce a TV show |
| C．tell a famous person |
| D．lead in the topic |
. Which of the following statements of blue is true?
| A．Blueberries are always blue, whether fresh or not. |
| B．The blue in blueberries is found unnatural. |
| C．Blue is not a very popular color for foods. |
| D．People often feel cold when they eat blueberries. |
Eating sometimes begins with our eyes because _______.
| A．our taste experience can be influenced by color |
| B．red-colored food are 20% sweeter than green food |
| C．people prefer red-colored food to green food |
| D．before eating, people watch food for a long time |
The underlined words “is dyed” in Para. 4 are closest in meaning to “_______”.
| A．is eaten up | B．has grown up |
| C．is changed in color | D．is harmful to |
Everyone, please imagine, a big explosion breaks out as the plane takes us high in the sky. The plane is full of smoke and the engine sounds scary. Two minutes later, the engines are turned off. We are now sitting in a plane with no sound. And we can see: Life is over.
That really happened. In January 2009, I had a front-row seat on Flight 1549, the plane that crash-landed in the Hudson River in New York.
Now let me tell you the three things I learned when the silence came.
First, I thought about all the people I wanted to reach out to but didn’t. I thought about all the experiences I wanted to have but never did. I no longer wanted to put off anything in life. Second, I really regretted the time I wasted on things that did not matter. I decided to remove negative energy from my life. Third, I realized, wow, dying was not scary. But it was very sad just because I only wished I could have seen my kids grow up.
Fortunately, I was given the gift of a miracle of not dying that day. I was given another gift, with which I was to see into the future and come back and live differently.
About a month later, my wife and I were at a performance by my daughter, not much artistic talent. Yet, I’m crying. I realized that above all, the only goal in my life was to be a good father.
Audience, again, imagine the same thing happening on your plane. How would you change? What would you get done? And more than anything, are you being the best parent you can?
Thank you.Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
| A．Air crash is always a tragedy. |
| B．What I learned from the air crash. |
| C．Life is a miracle as we imagine. |
| D．How to become a good father. |
When does the idea “Life is over” come into being?
| A．Exactly during the explosion. |
| B．When the plane was full of smoke. |
| C．Before the engines sounded scary. |
| D．When the engines were turned off. |
What is the author’s final goal in life?
| A．Never to put off anything in life. |
| B．To remove negative energy from life. |
| C．To see his daughter grow up. |
| D．To be a good father. |
What type of writing is this text?
| A．A speech on one’s air travel experience. |
| B．An emergency crash-landing guide. |
| C．An introduction of an adventure novel. |
| D．A safety training for air passengers. |
Sri Lanka is known as the “Pearl of the Indian Ocean”, and it is easy to see why. This little country never fails to please visitors.
Arrive
The national airline is Sri Lankan Airlines, which flies from Colombo to London and a couple of other European cities. The country’s main airport is Colombo Bandaranaike, located 29km north of the capital city.
Why now?
The best time to visit Sri Lanka’s southern beaches is from November to April. So by going early in the season, you’ll get the best weather. Also in November, Deepavali, known as “Diwali” or the “Festival of Lights”, is Sri Lanka’s main religious festival, celebrated throughout the country.
See
There is plenty to see in Sri Lanka. The ancient capital cities of Polonnaruwa and Anuradhapura are worth seeing, and so are many outstanding ruins. Other mustsees are the rock fortress (要塞) of Sigiriya, towering over the jungle as far as the eye can see, and Dambulla’s cave temple, the country’s largest and best preserved. Both are UNESCO World Heritage (遗产) Sites. Kandy is a picture-like town, which was the last stronghold of the Kandyan Kings. Today it is a cultural relic centre where age-old customs, arts, and crafts remain.
Do
Sri Lanka owns about 1,600km of beautiful palm-shaded beaches as well as warm, pure seas and colorful coral reefs. You can explore the underwater world, and surfing and diving are available too. Away from the shore, wildlife is a big draw for Sri Lanka, and Yala National Park is one of the best places in the word to see wild animals including leopards (豹) and elephants.
Taste
Sri Lanka is celebrated for its excellent food, with a particular emphasis on fresh fruit and vegetables on menus everywhere. Fish and seafood are a big part of the local diet.
Did you know?
Sri Lanka is known for its tea, but it is also the world’s largest producer and exporter of cinnamon(肉桂).Which of the following is a cultural relic centre of Sri Lanka?
| A．Kandy. | B．Anuradhapura. |
| C．Polonnaruwa. | D．Colombo. |
If you want to know something about “Diwali”, you’d better go there in.
| A．September. | B．October. | C．November. | D．May. |
We learn from the passage that Sri Lanka .
| A．is in the Pacific Ocean |
| B．is famous for its excellent food |
| C．is the world’s largest producer of tea |
| D．has only flights to London |
The author wrote the article in order to.
| A．introduce the picturesque landscape of Sri Lanka |
| B．let readers know what is famous for in Sri Lanka |
| C．make Sri Lanka well known throughout the world |
| D．let people get more travel information about Sri Lanka |
In a moment of personal crisis, how much help can you expect from a New York taxi driver? I began studying this question and found the answers interesting.
One morning I got into three different taxis and announced, “Well, it’s my first day back in New York in seven years. I’ve been in prison.” Not a single driver replied, so I tried again. “Yeah, I shot a man in Reno.” I explained, hoping the driver would ask me why, but nobody asked. The only response came from a Ghanaian driver, “Reno? That is in Nevada?”
Taxi drivers were uniformly sympathetic when I said I’d just been fired. “This is America,” a Haitian driver said. “One door is closed. Another is open.” He argued against my plan to burn down my boss’s house. A Pakistani driver even turned down a chance to profit from my loss of hope; he refused to take me to the middle of George Washington Bridge—a $20 trip. “Why you want to go there? Go home and relax. Don’t worry. Take a new job.”
One very hot weekday in July, while wearing a red ski mask and holding a stuffed pillowcase with the word “BANK” on it, I tried calling a taxi five times outside different banks. The driver picked me up every time. My ride with a Haitian driver was typical of the superb assistance I received.
“Let’s go across the park.” I said. “I just robbed the bank there. I got $25,000.”
“$25,000?” He asked.
“Yeah, you think it was wrong to take it?”
“No, man. I work 8 hours and I don’t make almost $70. If I can do that, I do it too.”
As we approached 86th and Lexington, I pointed to the Chemical Bank.
“Hey, there’s another bank,” I said, “Could you wait here a minute while I go inside?”
“No, I can’t wait. Pay me now.” His reluctance may have something to do with money—taxi drivers think the rate for waiting time is too low—but I think he wanted me to learn that even a bank robber can’t expect unconditional support.Why did the Pakistani driver refuse to take the author to the middle of the George Washington Bridge?
| A．Because he was able to help the author to find a new job. |
| B．Because he wanted to go home and relax. |
| C．Because it was far away from his home. |
| D．Because he thought that the author would commit suicide. |
What is the author’s interpretation of the driver’s reluctance “to wait outside the Chemical bank”?
| A．The driver thought that the rate for waiting time was too low. |
| B．The driver thought it wrong to support a taxi rider unconditionally. |
| C．The driver was frightened and wanted to leave him as soon as possible. |
| D．The driver did not want to help a suspect to escape from a bank robbery. |
Which of the following statements is true about New York taxi drivers?
| A．They are ready to help you do whatever you want to. |
| B．they often refuse to pick up those who would kill themselves. |
| C．They are sympathetic with those who are out of work. |
| D．They work only for money. |
One day Bill went to eat at a restaurant in London．Suddenly a young woman sat down beside him．Bill could not think what she wanted．She did not look very happy．Bill asked her what was wrong．“The problem is,” she began．But then she stopped．She didn’t find it easy to tell Bill about it, it seemed．
“My husband and I wanted to meet here for lunch at 12,” she said at last, “but he hasn’t come．”
“Well, don’t you know where he is? Can you ring him up?”
“No, I can’t.” said the woman, “And I have had lunch now and I can’t pay the bill．Because I haven’t got any money with me．”
“Never mind, I’ll pay the bill for you．You can pay me back later．” Bill said．“If you give me your address, I’ll send you the money as soon as I get home．” With these words she left the restaurant．
A few weeks later, when Bill was having lunch at another restaurant, he suddenly heard a familiar（熟悉的）voice, “Excuse me．May I just sit here for a moment?” Bill turned round．It was the same young woman again．This time she was talking to a man with gray hair at a table not far from the gate．Bill smiled at the woman and got up from his chair and walked across the room．One day Bill came to eat at a restaurant _____ ．
| A．to meet a young woman |
| B．to help a woman |
| C．to have lunch |
| D．to have the last meal of the day |
The woman said she would _____ ．
| A．return Bill’s money as early as possible |
| B．go to Bill’s home to return the money |
| C．give Bill’s money back the next day |
| D．return Bill’s money at the restaurant |
Bill walked across the room _____ ．
| A．to pay the woman’s bill |
| B．to say hello to the man with gray hair |
| C．to meet the woman |
| D．to go away from the woman |