A new system that scans customers’ fingerprints and subtracts（减去）the grocery bill from their bank accounts has taken supermarkets in Germany to use the new system. “Almost a quarter of our customers pay with their fingers,” said an employee at the headquarters. Edeka has tried the system at 70 of its supermarkets. It says it will introduce it at 200 others because customers like it.
“At first we thought that only the young who really keep up with the latest technology would be interested, but we were wrong,” said Stefan Sewoester from IT Werke. “Almost two-thirds of the people who use the system are 40 and older,” he said.
IT Werke, a computer company, is one of the pioneers of fingerprint payment software in Germany. It has helped about 150 shops, canteens and bars to put in the fingerprint scanning machines. Each costs about 2,000 euros.
To sign up for the service, customers must have their fingerprints taken and leave their addresses and banking details with the shop. The shop then takes the cost of goods directly out of the customer’s bank account.
“It is especially a good thing for elderly people. Now they do not have to remember their pin to pay with their bank cards, or to scratch around for their glasses or cash.” Sewoester said.
The stores benefit from the system too. It saves more than time in the check-out line. It also cuts out the hidden costs of accepting electronic card payments.According to the passage, the fingerprint system______.
| A．was invented by the Edeka supermarket chain |
| B．has caused payment revolution in Germany |
| C．is more popular with young people |
| D．is preferred by most American customers |
To apply to pay with fingers, customers are required to do all of the following EXCEPT______.
| A．have their fingerprints taken |
| B．leave their addresses |
| C．give the shop information about the bank accounts |
| D．have their phones connected with computers |
Why do elderly people benefit much from the fingerprint machine?
| A．They will spend less time on shopping.. |
| B．They are not forgetful. |
| C．They don’t like to pay in cash |
| D．They always fail to find their bank cards. |
阅读下面的短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中，选出最佳选项。
E
Some dances gain more popularity than others because they can be performed to different kinds of music and the steps change accordingly. One such dance is the waltz.
There is a basic form for the waltz, which you can see in this drawing of a dancing couple. The man places one arm around the woman's waist and she places her opposite hand on his shoulder. Then, they stretch their arms out from their bodies and clasp hands. If someone tries to teach you a formal kind of dancing, chances are you teacher will start with the waltz. Have you ever tried to dance like this?
There are lots of different kinds of waltzes, all performed to different types of waltz music. The music might be fast or slow but what they all have is a regular onetwothree, onetwothree rhythm.
The traditional form is the oldschool waltz in which dancers turn all the time with a hopping, springy step. This waltz has a slow, smooth, gliding step. There's also the Mexican watlz, which moves much faster. Listen to this Mexican watlz music and you can imagine how fast the dancers had to move.
Formal dancing has even become a profession, with people entering competitions. Have you ever seen a formal dance competition?
Today, ballroom dancing is almost considered a competitive sport; professionals perform different dancers, each with strict rules. Everything from where the dancers place their hands to how they move is judged. In the glide waltz, dancers are judged by how smoothly they move. “I can dance with a glass of water on my head，”is a well known sentence used by skilled dancers in the old days. In the past, some people learned how to dance by reading books, while others studied with a teacher called the“dancing master.” How do people learn to dance today?When a couple are dancing, ________.
| A．the girl places one arm around the man's waist |
| B．the man puts one hand on the girl's shoulder |
| C．they stand face to face with one of their hands held together |
| D．the man puts one arm around the girl's waist and the other on her shoulder |
Why do the dancers move fast in the Mexican waltz?
| A．To keep up with the music. |
| B．To show how well they perform. |
| C．To catch up with the other dancers. |
| D．To show the difference of the dance. |
What do the different types of Waltz have in common?
| A．They use the same kind of music. |
| B．They share the same kind of steps. |
| C．Their speed are the same. |
| D．They have the same kind of rhythm. |
If one says“I can dance with a glass of water on my head”， we know that________.
| A．he is a good dancer |
| B．he is a beginner |
| C．he is practicing dancing |
| D．he is tired of dancing |
阅读下面的短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中，选出最佳选项。
D
In Britain, school is compulsory for children aged from five to sixteen, when they can leave or stay on for another two years. Primary schools take children from the ages of five to eleven; secondary schools from then until they leave.
The school year is from midSeptember to midJuly. There are three terms of about twelve weeks each. Normal school hours are from about 900 to about 400, five days a week, Monday to Friday.
Every school must give lessons in physical and religious education by law. No other subjects are compulsory in this way, but all schools consider English language and mathematics their most important subjects, and offer a wide range of other courses.
In many schools there is organized sport for all pupils at least one afternoon a week. Football, netball, hockey, tennis, cricket, swimming and athletics are the most commonly taught.
From fifteen, pupils normally take seven or eight subjects. These are two public exams: the CSE(Certificate of Secondary Education)and the more difficult GES“O”level(the“O”stand for“ordinary”). In both you pass or fail each subject. What matters is how many passes you get.
Those who do not leave at sixteen take two or three subjects for GCE“A”(advanced)level after a twoyear course. Universities and colleges differ in the way they select their students, but two good passes at “A”level is the minimum requirement for most universities. Oxford and Cambridge are more selective, and hold their own entrance exams.
University courses for a first degree normally take three or four years, and are in one main subject and possibly a second, subsidiary subject.In Britain, how many years can a child enjoy compulsory education?
| A．14. |
| B．12. |
| C．11. |
| D．13. |
Which subjects are obliged to be taught in Britain?
| A．Physical culture and law. |
| B．Religion and law. |
| C．Physical culture and religion. |
| D．English and mathematics. |
In the sentence“What matters is how many passes you get”， the word“pass”means________.
| A．a successful result in an examination |
| B．an official piece of paper with writing on which it shows |
| C．a way by which one may move |
| D．an act of moving past |
For most universities, what is the requirement for their enrollment?
| A．Not mentioned in the article. |
| B．2 good passes at“A” level of GCE. |
| C．2 good passes in GCE “O”． |
| D．2 good passes in GSE “A”． |
阅读下面的短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中，选出最佳选项。
C
Several months ago, CCTV broadcast a documentary(记录片)film about criminals(罪犯). I remembered one criminal clearly: he had killed his girlfriend just because she wanted to leave him. The journalist asked him, “Do you regret killing your girlfriend？”
“No.”
“Why？”
“It's useless to regret，”the man answered calmly.
The journalist was silent. At that moment, I felt very angry. This man had made such an unforgivable mistake but he still wouldn't say he was sorry.
Is regret really useless?
Of course, regret is an emotion linked to the past and this feeling cannot turn back the clock. But I think people who say regret is useless ignore(忽视)two points. One is that regret is useful for the future and to one's soul. Look up the word“regret”in a dictionary: there are many expressions, such as“repent(悔悟)”，“chagrin(悔恨)”and so on. All these are used to tell people not to make similar mistakes after they have realized their fault. If you don't regret, how can you repent? On the other hand, for those such as murderers, who have already lost their future, regret is still a baptism(洗礼)for the soul. A murderer won't leave the world at peace with himself unless he understands what regret is.
I have no doubt that regret is a virtue. Just like a light in the darkness, it can offer people the ray of hope they need. No matter what you have done wrong, people will always respect you for showing regret and a willingness to correct your mistakes. In this way, regret is a special feeling. Correcting mistakes is better than complaining; it makes you feel good about yourself. So why not show some regret after doing something wrong?The writer felt very angry because of________.
| A．the criminal's crime |
| B．the criminal's short answer |
| C．the criminal's not feeling sorry |
| D．the criminal's not knowing law |
Regret is useful for________of the people who do wrong.
| A．the future |
| B．the past |
| C．neither the past nor the future |
| D．both the past and the future |
To repent one should first to________.
| A．regret |
| B．remember |
| C．realize |
| D．tell |
If a person who has done great wrong shows regret people will________him at this point.
| A．hate |
| B．dislike |
| C．look down upon |
| D．respect |
If a murderer has already lost his future, regret is________for him.
| A．useless |
| B．still useful |
| C．hardly useful |
| D．almost useless |
阅读下面的短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中，选出最佳选项。
B
During the fourth China Beijing Hightech Industries Week, exhibitions, feature presentations, technological exchanges and trade talks, and other events are organized.
Exhibitions：
•China International Exhibition Center
Section for China's Key Science and Technology Achievements of the Ninth FiveYear Plan(1996～2000)
Environmental Protection and Energy Section
Section for Exhibition from Other Provinces and Municipalities(自治市)and Regions of China
•China World Trade Centre
Exchange and Trade Fair for Science and Technology Books and Sports Information Media
The Trade Fair for Modern Intelligent Houses and Beijing Urban Real Estate
•China Millenium Monument
Forum(论坛)and Exhibition of Foreign Scitech Universities
•China Agricultural Culture Centre
Hightech Construction Products Exhibition
Feature Presentation：
•Science and Education
Science Forum on the New Century
•Hightech Industry
Forum on Environmental Protection
2001 Forum on Biotechnology on Traditional Chinese Medicine and Natural Medicine
Technical Exchanges and Trade Talks：
•Trade Talks on Financial Capital Transformation
•SinoItalian Forum and Trade Fair for the Development of IT and Communications Technology.If you want to know more about the hightech achievements of different parts of China, you should go to________.
| A．China World Trade Centre |
| B．China Millenium Monument |
| C．China International Exhibition Centre |
| D．China Agricultural Cultural Centre |
These sessions mark the achievement of mankind in the fields of________.
| A．electronic communications, energy and education |
| B．sports technology, filmindustry and environmental protection |
| C．network technology, hightech industries and traffic |
| D．medicine, weather broadcast and finance |
The advertisement is mainly about________.
| A．the major activities of the hightech week |
| B．the timetable of hightech week |
| C．the names of the meeting places |
| D．the topic of trade talks |
阅读下面的短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C、D)中，选出最佳选项。
A
It was a village in India. The people were poor. However, they were not unhappy. After all, their forefathers had lived in the same way for centuries.
Then one day, some visitors from the city arrived. They told the villagers there were some people elsewhere who liked to eat frog's legs. However, they did not have enough frogs of their own, and so they wanted to buy frogs from other places.
This seemed like money for nothing. There were millions of frogs in the fields around, and they were no use to the villagers. All they had to do was catch them. Agreement was reached, and the children were sent into the fields to catch frogs. Every week a truck arrived to collect the catch and hand over the money. For the first time, the people were able to dream of a better future. But the dream didn't last long.
The change was hardly noticed at first, but it seemed as if the crops were not doing so well. More worrying was that the children fell ill more often, and, there seemed to be more insects around lately.
The villagers decided that they couldn't just wait to see the crops failing and the children getting weak. They would have to use the money earned to buy pesticides(杀虫剂)and medicines. Soon there was no money left.
Then the people realized what was happening. It was the frog. They hadn't been useless. They had been doing an important job—eating insects. Now with so many frogs killed, the insects were increasing more rapidly. They were damaging the crops and spreading diseases.
Now, the people are still poor. But in the evenings they sit in the village square and listen to sounds of insects and frogs. These sounds of the night now have a much deeper meaning.From Paragraph 1 we learn that the villagers________.
| A．worked very hard for centuries |
| B．dreamed of having a better life |
| C．were poor but somewhat content |
| D．lived a different life from their forefathers |
Why did the villagers agree to sell frogs?
| A．The frogs were easy money. |
| B．They needed money to buy medicine. |
| C．They wanted to please the visitors. |
| D．The frogs made too much noise. |
What might be the cause of the children's sickness?
| A．The crops didn't do well. |
| B．There were too many insects. |
| C．The visitors brought in diseases. |
| D．The pesticides were overused. |
What can we infer from the last sentence of the text?
| A．Happiness comes from peaceful life in the country. |
| B．Health is more important than money. |
| C．The harmony between man and nature is important. |
| D．Good old days will never be forgotten. |