China news, Beijing, Feb. 9 – Housing price in China has always aroused heated discussions among property developers and ordinary Chinese. To many property developers and local government officials, housing price in China is still low compared with many developed countries. However, the average housing price in the United States is only 8,000 yuan per square meter, while in China, it is even higher than in the United States. This shows that there are some bubbles(泡沫) in Chinese real estate market, the International Finance News reported.
Although the average price of residential houses in the United States, after converted to Renminbi, is about 8,000 yuan per square meter, the houses in US are not sold in terms of building area, as most Chinese property developers do when they sell their houses. If US property developers sell their houses according to the building area, then the housing price will be even lower than 8,000 yuan per square meter. In most big Chinese cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, houses are sold at a price even higher than those in the US.
The high housing sales price in large cities in China proves that Chinese real estate market does have some bubbles. Moreover, Chinese houses can not be compared with houses in US in terms of building quality, environment and supporting facilities. Furthermore, it should be noted that American people’s average income is several dozen times higher than that of Chinese people. How can the Chinese afford to buy a house which is even more expensive than that sold in US?
At the beginning of 2007, Chinese government issued a set of policies that aimed to benefit the public. Now in order to reduce the high housing prices, the government can regulate(控制) the real estate market by raising tax on property industry and controlling the release of loans and lands to property developers. At the same time, the government should allow people to build more houses through various fund-raising channels, such as funds collected from buyers or raised by working units. By applying these multiple means, it is expected that the high housing prices can be lowered.What is the average housing price per square meter in China?
| A．8000 yuan | B．10000 yuan |
| C．7000 yuan | D．It’s not mentioned here |
Which of the following does NOT support the idea that the average housing price in China
is even higher than in the United States?
| A．Chinese houses can not be compared with houses in US in terms of building quality, environment and supporting facilities. |
| B．American people’s average income is several dozen times higher than that of Chinese people. |
| C．The houses in US are not sold in terms of building area, as most Chinese property developers do when they sell their houses. |
| D．There are more people who need houses in China. |
What is the main idea of this passage?
A The housing price in China is so high that the government should do something useful to
prevent it.
B. There are some bubbles in Chinese real estate market
C. The average housing price in China is even higher than in the United States
D. Chinese government issued a set of policies that aimed to benefit the public.How many measures are mentioned in the last paragraph in order to reduce the high housing
prices?
| A．Four | B．Three | C．Five | D．Two |
Brenda Bongos was a happy, artistic girl. She had one big ambition—to play the drums in a band. But one big obstacle lay in her way. To be good enough to play in a band, Brenda had to practice a lot, but she lived next-door to a lot of old people. Many of them are sick. She knew that the sound of beating drums would really get on their nerves. So, she had tried playing in the strangest places: a basement, a kitchen, and even in a shower. But there was always someone it would annoy.
One day, while watching a science documentary on TV, she heard that sound cannot travel in space, because there’s no air. At that moment, Brenda Bongos decided to become a sort of musical astronaut.
With the help of a lot of time, books and work, Brenda built a space bubble. This was a big glass ball connected to a machine which sucked out all the air inside. All that would be left inside was a drum kit（成套设备） and a chair. Brenda got into the space suit she had made, entered the bubble, turned on the machine, and played those drums like a wild child.
It wasn’t long before Brenda Bongos came very famous. Many people came to see her play in her space bubble. Shortly afterwards she came out of the bubble and started giving concerts. Her fame spread so much that the government suggested that she be part of a unique space journey. Finally, Brenda was a real musical astronaut, and had gone far beyond her first ambition of playing drums in a band.
Years later, when asked how she had achieved all this, she thought for a moment, and said: “If those old people next – door hadn’t mattered so much to me, I wouldn’t have found a solution, and none of this would have ever happened.”Why did Brenda try to play in the strangest places?
| A．Because she didn’t want others to hear her play. |
| B．Because she didn’t want to disturb others. |
| C．Because she didn’t have a large house. |
| D．Because she liked to play in strange places. |
Brenda started to give concerts _______ .
| A．after she practiced in her space bubble |
| B．when she became part of the unique space journey |
| C．after she became a real musical astronaut |
| D．when people came to see her in the space bubble |
Brenda became famous because _______ .
| A．she made a space suit |
| B．she became a real musical astronaut |
| C．she played drums in her space bubble |
| D．she played drums in a band |
Which of the following can be used to describe Brenda?
| A．kind, hardworking and clever |
| B．brave, kind and hardworking |
| C．lovely, brave and kind |
| D．nervous, kind and clever |
We can draw a conclusion from the passage that: “______”.
| A．He laughs best who laughs last |
| B．It’s never too old to learn |
| C．Two heads are better than one |
| D．One good turn deserves another |
How do successful people think? What drives them? Interviews and investigations show that there are several keys to success that successful people share.
First of all, successful people never blame someone or something outside of themselves for their failure to go ahead. They realize that their future lies in their own hands. They understand that they cannot control things in life, such as nature, the past and other people. But in the meantime, they are well aware that they can control their own thoughts and actions. They take responsibility for their life and regard this as one of the most empowering (给人以权力的)things they can do .Perhaps what most separates successful people from others is that they live life “on purpose”---they are doing what they believe they are put here to do .In their opinion, having a purpose in their life is the most important fact that enables them to become fully functioning people. They hold that when they live their life on purpose ,their main concern is to do the job right .They love what they do ---and it shows people want to do business with them because of their devotion to their jobs.
To live their life on purpose, successful people find a cause they believe in and create a business around it. Besides, they never easily give up. Once they have set up goals in their life, they are willing to do whatever it takes to achieve their goals. Top achievers always keep in mind that they don’t have forever. Rather than seeing it negative or depressing, they use the knowledge to encourage themselves to move on and go after what they want energetically and passionately.Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?
| A．How do people live their life on purpose? | B．How can people be successful? |
| C．How do people make plans? | D．How do people do business? |
By living life “on purpose ”successful people can ________
| A．do a lot of work without using more money. | B．concentrate on their jobs |
| C．do business with many people easily. | D．share what they have with every one unselfishly. |
The pronoun “it” (Line 10.Para.2) refers to _____
| A．the main concern of successful people |
| B．the job that successful people do |
| C．the devotion with which successful people do their job |
| D．the business that successful people do with other people. |
The year is 2094. It has been announced that a comet （彗星）is heading towards the earth. Most of it will miss our planet, but two pieces will probably hit the southern half of the earth.
On 17 July, a piece of 4 kilometers wide comet enters the Earth’s atmosphere with a massive explosion（爆炸）. About half of the piece is destroyed, but the remaining part hits the South Atlantic at 200 times the speed of sound. The sea boils and a huge hole is made in the seabed. Huge waves are created and spread outwards form the hole. The wall of water, a kilometer high, rushes towards southern Africa at 800 kilometers an hour. Cities on the African coast are totally destroyed and millions of people are drowned（淹死）.
Before the waves reach South America, the second piece of the comet lands in Argentina. Earthquakes and volcanoes ash set off in the Andes Mountains. The shock waves move north into California and all around the Pacific Ocean. The cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Tokyo are completely destroyed by earthquakes. Millions of people in the southern half of the earth are already dead, but the north won’t escape for long. Because of the explosions, the sun is hidden by clouds of dust, temperatures around the world fall to almost zero. Crops are ruined. The sun won’t be seen again for many years. Wars break out as countries fight for food. A year later, no more than 10 million people remain alive.
Could it really happen? In fact, it has already happened more than once in the history of the earth. The dinosaurs were on the Earth for over 160 million years. Then 65 million years ago they suddenly disappeared. Many scientists believe that the Earth was hit by a piece of object in space. The dinosaurs couldn’t live through the cold climate that followed and they died out. Will we meet the same end?What is mainly described in the passage?
| A．A historic discovery. |
| B．An event in imagination. |
| C．A research on space. |
| D．A scientific adventure. |
When the first piece hits the South Atlantic, it causes________.
| A．an earthquake | B．hunger |
| C．an Earth explosion | D．huge waves |
Why can’t the northern half of the earth escape for long?
| A．Because the land is covered with water. |
| B．Because the light and heat form the sun cannot reach the earth. |
| C．Because people there cannot live at the temperature of zero. |
| D．Because wars break out among countries. |
By giving the example of dinosaurs, the author tries to prove_________.
| A．animals could not live in the cold climate |
| B．what happened 65 million years ago was an invented story |
| C．the human beings will die out in 2094 |
| D．the Earth could be hit by other objects in space |
A new study of 8,000 young people in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior shows that although love can make adults live healthily and happily, it is a bad thing for young people. Puppy love(早恋) may bring stress for young people and can lead to depression(忧郁症). The study shows that girls become more depressed than boys, and younger girls are the worst of all.
The possible reason for the connection between love and higher risk of depression for girls is “loss of self”. According to the study, even though boys would say “lose themselves in a romantic relationship”, this “loss of self” is much more likely to lead to depression when it happens to girls. Young girls who have romantic relationships usually like hiding their feelings and opinions. They won’t tell that to their parents.
Dr. Marianm Kaufman, an expert on young people problems, says 15% to 20% young people will have depression during their growing. Trying romance often causes the depression.
She advises kids not to jump into romance too early. During growing up, it is important for young people to build strong friendships and a strong sense of self. She also suggests the parents should encourage their kids to keep close to their friends, attend more interesting school activities and spend enough time with family.
Parents should watch for signs of depression---eating or mood changes---and if they see signs from their daughter or son, they need to give help. The good news is that the connection between romance and depression seems to become weak with age. Love will always make us feel young, but only maturity(成熟) gives us a chance to avoid its bad side effects.What’s the main idea of the passage?
| A．Puppy love may bring young people depression. |
| B．Parents should forbid their children’s love lives. |
| C．Romance is a two-edged sword for adults. |
| D．Romance is good for young people. |
Which of the following is more likely to have depression?
| A．Young people who have a strong sense of self. |
| B．Young boys whose parents watch for their behavior. |
| C．Young girls who always hide their feelings and opinions. |
| D．Careless parents whose children are deep in love. |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．Lacking love can lead young people to grow up more quickly. |
| B．Early love makes young people keep close to their friends and parents. |
| C．Parents should help their children to be aware of the signs of depression. |
| D．The older a woman is, the less likely she seems to lose herself in romance. |
What’s the author’s attitude towards puppy love?
| A．Confused. | B．Disapproving. | C．Disinterested. | D．Scared. |
Although the New Year is already here, the great moments of the past year are still in the memory. Let’s look back at some of them.
United States
One of the world’s largest New Year’s Eve parties was held in Times Square, New York. The festival attracted hundreds of thousands of people to watch a brightly-lit ball drop on a landmark building at the stroke (击、打) of midnight.
A great amount of confetti (五彩纸屑) was released from the sky at zero o’clock.
Britain
Painted in shinning colors, blowing whistles, 50，000 party-goers arrived in London’s Millennium Dome to dance in the New Year. The Millennium Dome came to life at midnight as 50 DJs started up, competing on five separate dance floors to warm the crowd into the party mood.
Russia
New Year is the biggest holiday in Russia. It is traditional to put up a tree for celebrations with family and friends.
On the very last day of last year, Russians with a taste for a very cold swim braved freezing temperatures to plant traditional, festival trees on the bed of the Northern Ocean and at the bottom of Lake Baikal, the world’s deepest lake.
Malaysia
Brave skydivers threw themselves off the world’s tallest building near midnight and floated towards the New Year.
The jump from the 452-metre Petronas Twin Tower was called a real leap from one year to the next since the group took off in the last second of the old year and landed a minute later in the New Year. “That was really cool,” said Roland Simpson, “over crowds of onlookers to the landing spot.”In New York the brightly-lit ball dropped ____________.
| A．form the sky onto the Times Square |
| B．into the hundreds of thousands of watchers |
| C．to welcome the arrival of Christmas |
| D．at the point between the old and the New Year |
Which of the following is NOT traditional to welcome a new year?
| A．Sharing the happiness and excitement together. |
| B．Setting up a tree for celebrations. |
| C．Planting trees on the bed of a lake. |
| D．50 DJs’ competing on five separate floors. |
People jumping from the tallest buildings _________.
| A．spent two different years in the air. |
| B．stayed in the sky for two minutes. |
| C．landed over people’s heads. |
| D．floated away to the new land |
The passage mainly shows that ________.
| A．New Year has been the starting point for people to have dreams. |
| B．people in different countries welcomed New Year in different ways. |
| C．people’s ways of celebrations are exciting. |
| D．the New Year is better than the old year. |