Some years ago I was offered a writing assignment that would require three months of travel through Europe. I had been abroad a couple of times，but I could hardly claim to know my way around the continent. Moreover, my knowledge of foreign languages was limited to a little college French.
I hesitated. How would I, unable to speak the language, totally unfamiliar with local geography or transportation systems, set up interviews and do research? It seemed impossible, and with considerable regret. I sat down to write a letter begging off. Halfway through, a thought ran through my mind： you can't learn if you don't try. So I accepted the assignment.
There were some bad moments. But by the time I had finished the trip I was an experienced traveler. And ever since，I have never hesitated to head for even the most remote of places，without guides or even advanced bookings, confident that somehow I will manage.
The point is that the new, the different, is almost scary by definition. But each time you try something, you learn, and as the learning piles up, the world opens to you.
I've learned to ski at 40, and flown up the Rhine River in a balloon. And I know I'll go on doing such things. It's not because I'm braver or more daring than others. I'm not. But I'll accept anxiety as another name for challenge and I believe I can accomplish wonders.The author accepted the assignment because _____
| A． he had never travelled abroad before |
| B． he hardly knew any foreign languages |
| C． he was familiar with any other country in Europe |
| D． he would learn something new and different by trying |
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A． The author had been abroad only twice. |
| B． The author thought the trip was hard but worthwhile. |
| C． The author admitted that anything different was terrible. |
| D． The author must be good at doing research and making interviews. |
We can infer from the text that the author is _____.
| A．awkward | B．generous | C．stubborn | D．brave |
What's the best title of the text?
| A．An Interesting Trip Abroad | B．My First Writing Assignment |
| C．Ready to Try and Challenge | D．How to Be Daring and Brave |
Canada’s western city of Calgary is the world’s best city when it comes to healthy living, local press reported Monday.
According to an international survey by Mercer Human Resource Consulting, a London-based consulting firm, Calgary was put at the top of a list of 144 cities. It scored 121 points, just above Honolulu’s score of 120. Helsinki（赫尔辛基，芬兰首都） and Ottawa followed at 119.5 and 118.5 respectively.
Three other Canadian cities came in the top 20. Montreal and Vancouver tied for ninth and Toronto came in at 18th.
The scores are based on air pollution levels, availability and quality of hospitals and medical supplies, as well as the efficiency of waste removal and sewage systems.
In America, the lowest scoring city was Atlanta, which was ranked 76th. Athens was the lowest scoring city in Western Europe, ranking 120th because of its air pollution. London was ranked 59th.How many Canadian cities are in the top 20?
| A．3. | B．4. | C．5. | D．6. |
Which of the following is NOT taken into account when the cities were scored?
| A．Weather conditions. | B．Air quality. |
| C．Waste removal. | D．Medical supplies. |
Among the following cities, which is the lowest scoring one?
| A．Atlanta. | B．Athens. | C．London. | D．Helsinki. |
Lucky is the man who has no “skeleton in his closet.” When a man has done something in his life that he is ashamed of, that he wants to hide, he is said to have a “skeleton in his closet.” Some people may have more than one skeleton.
As we have noted many times, it is hard to find out how these expressions begin. Sometimes, we get some hard facts. But more often we have to depend on guesswork. And that is true of this phrase, which came from England.
Before 1832, English law did not permit a doctor to cut open a dead human body for scientific examination, unless it was the corpse(尸体) of an executed(处决) criminal.
But when it became legal, more and more doctors demanded skeletons for a more scientific study of medicine. It was helping in the advance of modern medicine. The demand had become so strong that men began to rob tombs and sell skeletons to doctors at high prices.
We are told that a doctor would usually buy just one skeleton for scientific study. It became very important in his work. But he had to keep it hidden because most people objected to keeping such a thing. As a rule, the doctor keep his skeleton in some dark corner where it could not be seen, or hide it in a closet.
After a time, people began to suspect every doctor of hiding a skeleton in the closet. From this suspicion, the phrase“a skeleton in the closet”took on a broader, more general meaning: to describe anything that a man wanted to keep others from discovering. It could be proof of a criminal act, or something much less serious. Well, that is one theory.
One writer, however, believes that the phrase might have come from something that really happened. It is his guess that a hidden closet in some old English country home may have turned up a real skeleton, clear proof of some old family shame or crime. Well, one man's guess is as good as another. But this sounds like a story by the great French novelist, Balzac.
Balzac tells us of a man who suspected his wife of having a lover. The husband comes home by surprise. But she hears him and quickly hides her lover in the closet of her bedroom. He enters her room and asks her if she is hiding her lover. He says he will not open the door to the closet if she promises him there is no one there; He will believe her. She answers firmly that she is not hiding anyone in the closet.
The husband then begins to build a solid brick wall against the closet. His wife watches, knowing that her lover will never come out alive. But she will not change her story and admit her guilt.Which of the following situations is now suitable for using the phrase “skeleton in the closet”?
| A．You have stolen something precious and hide them in the closet. |
| B．You are a doctor and have to keep a skeleton for research. |
| C．If you have cut open a dead human body for scientific examination you should keep the skeleton secret. |
| D．You have done a crime or done something foolish, but you want to keep others from |
discovering it.Which of the following is right according to the text?
| A．In the 19th century, doctors realized the importance of anatomy (解剖) in the development of medicine. |
| B．The doctors of the ancient times liked to collect as many skeletons as possible |
| C．The thieves stole skeletons from tombs in order to help the doctors. |
| D．It is legal that corpses of anybody are cut open for scientific examination in history. |
From the story Balzac told we know that the wife's lover must have become ______.
| A．a corpse | B．a phrase | C．a skeleton | D．a story |
Tell our story, make your mark
Havering is one of London’s largest towns. It is a place of contrasts, from the shopping and nightlife of Romford to the cultural quarter of Hornchurch; from the industrial Thames riverside in Rainham to the ambitious regeneration(复兴) project in Harold Hill. The London Borough of Havering has a great story to tell, and we’re looking for the right people to tell it.
Campaigns and Marketing Manager
A creative strategist(战略家) is needed to plan and deliver campaigns that change behaviour across the town and form Havering’s reputation beyond its borders.
Media Manager
An experienced professional is required, who fully understands how the news media works and works well under pressure. You will manage a team of three, as well as our media message.
Communications Business Manager
As a senior member of the communications team, you will be part salesperson and part business strategist, with wide-ranging power to increase our commercial potential as much as possible and save taxpayers’ money.
Senior Media Officers
Two experienced persons are needed to turn the stories that we talk about into the stories that everyone is talking about.
Community Newspaper Journalist (12month contract at the beginning)
Our community newspaper, Living, is being expanded as an energetic publication once every two weeks. We need an editor and a journalist or writer who produces brilliant copy, even against the tightest deadlines.
Pay & grading award are yet to be decided for all posts.
Full details are available on our website. For an informal conversation about these positions, please contact Mark Leech, Head of Communications, by calling 01708 434373.
Any disabled applicants, meeting the necessary standards set out in the profile(简介) for a job, will be guaranteed an interview.
Please apply online via the Council's website at www.havering.gov.uk or contact the Recruitment Team at 01708 433039.
Closing date for completed applications is Friday, 18th April 2008.
Interviews will be scheduled for the week beginning 28th April 2008.Havering is in need of high-level personnel ________.
| A．to tell stories | B．to make it known |
| C．to understand how news media works | D．to plan and deliver campaigns |
The underlined word “contrasts” in the first paragraph means_______.
| A．differences | B．similarities | C．interests | D．achievement |
_________ has to be a salesperson, drawing business plans at the same time.
| A．Community Newspaper Journalist |
| B．Senior Media Officers |
| C．Campaigns and Marketing Manager |
| D．Communications Business Manager |
We can learn from the passage that _________.
| A．disabled applicants will be guaranteed an interview |
| B．all the applicants will be interviewed on 28th April 2008 |
| C．applicants should hand in the application forms before 18th April 2008 |
| D．applicants can talk with Mark Leech about the position on the website |
Clearly if we are to participate in the society in which we live, we must communicate with other people. A great deal of communicating is performed on a person-to-person basis by the simple means of speech. If we travel in buses, buy things in shops, or eat in restaurants, we are likely to have conversations where we give information or opinions, receive news or comment, and very likely to have our views challenged by other members of society.
Face to face contact is by no means the only form of communication and during the last two hundred years the art of mass communication has become one of the dominating factors of contemporary society. Two things, above others, have caused the enormous growth of the communication industry. Firstly, inventiveness has led to advanced imprinting, telecommunications photography, radio and television. Secondly, speed has revolutionized the transmission (传输) and reception of communications so that local news often takes a back seat to national news, which itself is often almost eclipsed( 侵蚀) by international news.
No longer is the possession of information confined to(只限于) a privileged minority. In the last century the wealthy man with his own library was indeed fortunate, but today there are public libraries. For years ago people used to flock to the cinema, but now far more people sit at home and turn on the TV to watch a programme that is being channeled into millions of homes.
Communication is no longer merely concerned with the transmission of information. The modem communication industry influences the way people live in society and broadens their horizons by allowing access to information, education and entertainment. The printing, broadcasting and advertising industries are all involved with informing, educating and entertaining.
Although a great deal of the material communicated by the mass media is very valuable to the individual and to the society of which he is part, the vast modem network of communications is open to abuse(滥用). However, the mass media are with us for better, for worse, and there is no turning back.In the first paragraph the writer emphasizes the of face-to-face contact in social setting.
| A．nature | B．limitation | C．creativity | D．usefulness |
It is implied in the passage that.
| A．local news used to be the only source of information |
| B．local news still takes a significant place |
| C．national news is becoming more popular |
| D．international news is the fastest transmitted news |
Which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．Possessing information used to be a privilege. |
| B．Public libraries have replaced the private completely. |
| C．Communication means more than transmission. |
| D．Information influences ways of life and thinking. |
From the last paragraph we can infer that the writer is.
| A．indifferent to the harmful influence of the mass media |
| B．happy about the flexible changes in the mass media |
| C．pessimistic about the future of the mass media |
| D．concerned about the wrong use of the mass media |
Traffic jam and cities, it seems, go hand in hand. Everyone complains about being stuck in traffic; but, like the weather, no one seems to do anything about it. In particular, traffic engineers, transportation planners, and public officials responsible for transportation systems in large cities are frequently criticized for failing to solve traffic jam.But is traffic jam a sign of failure? Long queues at restaurants or theater box offices are seen as signs of success. Should transportation systems be viewed any differently? I think we should recognize that traffic jam is an unpreventable by-product of successful cities, and view the “traffic problem” in a different light.
Cities exist because they promote social interactions and economic transactions.Traffic jam occurs where there are lots of people but limited spaces. Culturally and economically successful cities have the worst traffic problems, while decaying cities don’t have much traffic. New York and Los Angeles are America’s most crowded cities. But if you want access to major brokerage houses (经纪行), you will find them easier to reach in crowded New York than in any other large cities. And if your firm needs access to post-production film editors or satellite-guidance engineers, you will reach them more quickly through the crowded freeways of LA than through less crowded roads elsewhere.
Despite traffic jam, a larger number and wider variety of social interactions and economic transactions can be made perfect in large, crowded cities than elsewhere. Seen in this sight, traffic jam is an unfortunate consequence of prosperity, not a cause of economic decline and urban decay.
So while we can consider traffic jam as increasing costs on the areas of big cities, the costs of inaccessibility (交通不便) in uncrowded places are almost certainly greater.
There is no doubt that traffic jam brings the terrible economic and environmental damage in places like Bangkok, Jakarta, and Lagos. But mobility is far higher and traffic jam levels are far lower here in the US, even in our most crowded cities. That’s why, for now, we don’t see people and capital streaming out of San Francisco and Chicago, heading for cities like California, and Illinois.We can conclude from the first paragraph that_______.
| A．traffic jam and weather are the two factors preventing the development of the big city |
| B．traffic jam seems to be very difficult to deal with |
| C．if traffic engineers try their best, traffic jam can be solved |
| D．public officials are always criticized for misusing their power |
According to the passage, what’s the author’s opinion towards traffic jam？
| A．Traffic jam is unavoidable in any cities. |
| B．Traffic jam is both a sign of failure and a sign of success. |
| C．Traffic jam is one of the consequences of successful cities. |
| D．Traffic jam is a cause of economic decline. |
By saying “decaying” (in Para. 4), the writer probably means_______.
| A．declining | B．developing | C．rich and successful | D．strong and healthy |
According to this article, which statement about “New York” and “Los Angeles” is true?
| A．The traffic jam in the two cities has been worsened. |
| B．New York and Los Angeles are the least successful cities in the US. |
| C．It is easier to reach major brokerage houses in the two cities than in other cities. |
| D．Despite the traffic jam in LA, you’ll find a satellite-guidance engineer more quickly there. |