Today, traditional opinions about men still exist. A man has to be strong, brave, sports loving and manly. Anything less would not be considered manly. Sports such as football, basketball and boxing all tend (往往是) to be men’s sports. However, the dance of ballet is considered feminine because it requires nice movements. This tradition is shown in the movie, Billy Elliot.
Billy Elliot is a movie that protests against this traditional view of men. Billy Elliot is an eleven-year-old boy that has a natural talent for ballet dancing, but his father will not allow it. Billy’s father wants him to take up boxing and become stronger, but Billy goes against his father’s wishes and takes up ballet dancing. This difference of opinion makes Billy sad. What’s more, his friends also laugh at him.
After saving enough money, his father sends Billy to a weekly boxing course; however, Billy doesn’t enjoy boxing because he always loses in matches and is often hurt. His ballet teacher, Mrs. Wilkinson thinks that men or women should not be judged by the activities they like to do, so she tells Billy’s father that although he wants his son to make a good living, he should let his son do what he loves to do because he has a talent for it. When his father finally realizes the truth, Billy is surprised. In the end, with the help of his father, brother and all the people around him, Billy goes to the Royal Ballet Academy in London and becomes a very successful ballet dancer.The underlined word “feminine” in the first paragraph most probably means ______
| A．of men | B．of children | C．of women | D．of students |
Why is Billy laughed at by other children?
| A．He always loses in boxing matches. | B．He isn’t strong. |
| C．He looks like a girl. | D．He loves ballet. |
What do we know about Billy?
| A．His teacher encourages him to take up ballet dancing. |
| B．He does well in ballet dancing and boxing. |
| C．He does what his father wants him to do. |
| D．He has never taken up any men’s sports. |
From Billy’s story, we can see that _______.
| A．children should accept their parents’ opinions |
| B．we should try to fight against traditional opinions |
| C．men and women play different sports |
| D．parents should let their children do what they are interested in |
The most frightening words in the English language are, “Our computer is down.” You hear it more and more when you are on business. The other day I was at the airport waiting for a ticket to Washington and the girl in the ticket office said, “I’m sorry, I can’t sell you a ticket. Our computer is down.”
“If your computer is down, just write me out a ticket.”
“I can’t write you out a ticket. The computer is the only one allowed to do so.”
I looked down on the computer and every passenger was just standing there drinking coffee and staring at the black screen. Then I asked her, “What do all you people do?”
“We give the computer the information about your trip, and then it tells us whether you can fly with us or not.”
“So when it goes down, you go down with it.”
“That’s good, sir.”
“How long will the computer be down?” I wanted to know.
“I have no idea. Sometimes it’s down for 10 minutes, sometimes for two hours. There’s no way we can find out without asking the computer, and since it’s down it won’t answer us.”
After the girl told me they had no backup(备用) computer, I said. “Let’s forget the computer. What about your planes? They’re still flying, aren’t they?”
“I couldn’t tell without asking the computer.”
“Maybe I could just go to the gate and ask the pilot if he’s flying to Washington, ” I suggested.
“I wouldn’t know what gate to send you to. Even if the pilot was going to Washington, he couldn’t take you if you didn’t have a ticket.”
“Is there any other airline flying to Washington within the next few hours?”
“I wouldn’t know, ” she said, pointing at the dark screen. “Only ‘IT’ knows. ‘It’ can’t tell me.”
By this time there were quite a few people standing in lines. The word soon spread to other travelers that the computer was down. Some people went white, some people started to cry and still others kicked their luggage. The best title for the article is _______.
| A．When the Computer Is Down | B．The Most Frightening Words |
| C．The Computer of the Airport | D．Asking the Computer |
What could the girl in the ticket office do for the passengers without asking the computer?
| A．She could sell a ticket. |
| B．She could write out a ticket. |
| C．She could answer the passengers’ questions. |
| D．She could do nothing. |
Why do you think they had not a backup computer?
| A．Because it was easy down |
| B．Because it was very expensive. |
| C．Because it was not advanced enough. |
| D．Because it was not as big as the main computer. |
The last paragraph suggests that _______.
| A．a modern computer won’t be down. |
| B．computers can take the place of humans |
| C．sometimes a computer may bring suffering to people |
| D．there will be great changes in computers |
When we were very small, we realized that having friends was important.Some of us even had imaginary(想象中的)friends. The need for friends continued as we grew into our teens.Friends played a big part in forming our personalities(性格). As adults，it is still important for us to have friends.
True friends are people who like us though we made mistakes and who listen to us and tell us the truth. Friends support our decisions and tell us when we’re foolish. They laugh with us and share our sadness. They are our partners and share interests with us. They stimulate us when we are feeling down. They are people we aren’t afraid of telling our secret wishes to or what is really on our minds.
Friends are our supporters. When you can depend on friends, you feel safe and warm. Friends offer acceptance and emotional(情感的)support. At times, they also help with our everyday lives, cooking a meal, doing chores, or giving us a lift when we need one. Friends also are there to offer advice, an ear to listen, or a shoulder to cry on.
Friends also help us reduce stress. Not only do they listen to us when we feel stressed, but they also discuss what is stressing us. Sharing interests and doing activities with friends help us forget about problems at work or at home. For a short time, we can lose ourselves in a pleasant activity and perhaps laugh and breathe more easily.What is the best title for the passage?
| A．How to Reduce Stress |
| B．How to Make New Friends |
| C．The Importance of Friends |
| D．The Qualities of Good Friends |
The underlined word“stimulate” in Paragraph 2 probably means________.
| A．educate | B．encourage |
| C．surprise | D．dislike |
We can learn from the third paragraph that friends always________.
| A．laugh at us when we’re foolish |
| B．tell us other people’s secrets |
| C．share our sadness and interests |
| D．support us when we need help |
We can learn from the passage that________.
| A．people should make friends anytime |
| B．friends are people who allow you to cry |
| C．a friend helps you in many ways |
| D．good friends are always difficult to meet |
What is language for？Some people seem to think it’s for practising grammar rules and learninglists of words－the longer the lists，the better. That’s wrong. Language is for the exchange(交流)of ideas and information. It’s meaningless knowing all about a language if you can’t use it freely. Many students I have met know hundreds of grammar rules，but they can’t speak correctly or fluently.They are afraid of making mistakes. One shouldn’t be afraid of making mistakes when speaking a foreign language. Native speakers make mistakes and break rules, too. Bernard Shaw once wrote，“Foreigners often speak English too correctly.” But the mistakes that native speakers make are different from those that Chinese students make. They’re English mistakes in the English language. And if enough native speakers break a rule，it is no longer a rule. What used to be wrong，becomes right. People not only make history，they make language. But a people can only make its own language. It can’t make another people’s language. So Chinese students of English should pay attention to grammar，but they shouldn’t overdo(做过头)it. They should put communication(交际)first.Language is used to________.
| A．express oneself |
| B．practise grammar rules |
| C．talk with foreigners only |
| D．learn lists of words |
Generally，when an American or an Englishman speaks English，he or she________.
| A．never makes mistakes |
| B．often makes mistakes |
| C．can’t avoid making mistakes |
| D．always makes mistakes |
The sentence“Foreigners often speak English too correctly.”means that________.
| A．foreigners speak correct English |
| B．foreigners speak incorrect English |
| C．foreigners speak English according to the grammar rules |
| D．foreigners never make mistakes when they speak English |
When we speak a foreign language，we should________.
| A．speak in Chinese way |
| B．speak by the rules |
| C．speak to native speakers |
| D．not be afraid of making mistakes |
Farah was sitting in the kitchen going over the party list with her mother. The exams were over and Farah wanted to invite her friends for a party.
“Farah，aren’t you going to invite Hafsa？”her mother asked. Hafsa had been her best friend since childhood.“Mother，you know I am now a part of Purple Girls Club and we have some rules about people we can be friends with，”Farah answered. “Really？And what are the rules？”her mother asked. “Well，only very pretty girls can be part of our group. And Hafsa is so...you know...dark.” “I cannot believe it，”her mother said angrily.
As Farah left the kitchen，her father calledher from the living room. Farah went to her father and paled when she saw the exam report in his hands. “Farah，what has happened to your grades？You have failed in Mathematics，”her father said. Farah had no answer. The truth was that the activities of Purple Girls Club left her with very little time for studies.
“Farah，it says that you can take part in supplementary exams(补考).If your grades don’t improve then，I’ll cancel(取消) your trip to Spain.”
Farah went to her room and called Gina，the leader of Purple Girls Club，“Gina，can you help me to complete my notes before the exams？” Gina laughed，“Exams？Who cares about exams？” One by one，she called her friends in the club but no one seemed to care or wanted to help.
Farah knew Hafsa would help her. Farah also knew Hafsa had been hurt by her，but Hafsa said，“If you need any help，just let me know. We can study together till your exams.”
Next Monday，as two friends entered the school together，Gina called out，“Farah，you know our rules.You cannot be friends with those who do not belong to our club.”
“Gina，I have a new rule about friendship，”Farah replied.After Farah became a member of Purple GirlsClub，she chose a friend according to a person’s________.
| A．looks | B．usual activities |
| C．grades | D．favorite colors |
Farah became pale after going to her father because________.
| A．he didn’t allow her to go to Spain |
| B．she didn’t do well in her exams |
| C．she had to leave Purple Girls Club |
| D．he asked her to improve her grades |
Which word can best describe Hafsa?
| A．Silly | B．Beautiful | C．Rude | D．Kind |
What lesson can we learn from the passage?
| A．A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
| B．A perfect friend will never be found. |
| C．Be slow in choosing a friend. |
| D．Friendship can be developed easily. |
We know that cigarette smoking kills． So, producers made electronic cigarettes as a safer smoking choice - safer than tobacco． Although e-cigarettes contain the drug nicotine like cigarettes, they do not use tobacco and you do not light them． They are powered by battery （电池）．
However, if e-cigarettes are so safe, why has the United States Center for Disease Control（CDC） seen an increase in telephone calls about e-cigarette poisonings?
The answer is children． Most of the calls are from people worried about children who have played with the devices, In the period of one month this year, the Center said 215 people called the Center with e-cigarette concerns． More than half of these calls were for children aged five and younger． The devices had made them sick．
Tim McAfee is director of the Center's Office on Smoking and Health, He says the problem is regulation． Meaning, the U．S． federal government does not control e-cigarettes even though they contain liquid nicotine． Mr．McAfee adds that liquid nicotine is a well-known danger． Mr．McAfee explains that nicotine poisoning happens when it gets into the skin, gets into the eyes or is swallowed． It can cause stomach pain or a sense of unbalance． And too much nicotine can kill,
Tim McAfee says e-cigarettes do not create the level of risk to people that tobacco products do．He notes that almost 500,000 Americans die each year from cigarettes． "So, cigarettes are the winner in that contest．" E-cigarettes do not contain hundreds of harmful chemicals that are found in real cigarettes． So, the U．S．Surgeon General Boris D． Lushniak has suggested that e-cigarettes may be a useful tool for adults trying to end their tobacco use．
But McAfee worries that teenagers may think electronic cigarettes are harmless． They could become addicted to the nicotine and then start smoking real cigarettes． In other words, he fears that for young people fake e-cigarettes could be a "gateway" to the real thing．What do the producers think of e-cigarettes?
| A．Dangerous． | B．Expensive． |
| C．Safer． | D．Cheaper． |
Why did the CDC receive so many calls about e-cigarettes?
| A．Parents feared that their children might get poisoned, |
| B．Parents found the device useless in quitting smoking． |
| C．Children swallowed the liquid nicotine from the device． |
| D．Children might get addicted to playing with the device． |
It can be inferred from the passage that．
A． the CDC wants to develop a better type of e-cigarettes
B． the government is in favor of the use of e-cigarettes
C． Surgeon General Boris D． Lushniak is a heavy smoker
D． smokers most probably can't quit smoking using e-cigarettesWhat is Tim McAfee's opinion about smoking?
| A．Adults should use harmless e-cigarettes． |
| B．Smoking e-cigarettes can make a person sick． |
| C．He claims that regulations should be made to ban smoking． |
| D．He is concerned about the teens using e-cigarettes． |