It is "one of the few bright spots in the Chinese economy," says Zeng Ming． He is talking about e-commerce． Mr Zeng, the chief strategy officer for Alibaba, a giant Chinese Internet firm, predicts that digital transactions on his firm's platforms will top l trillion yuan （$159 billion） this year-more than Amazon's and eBay's combined． That is a bold claim, but consider what happened on Singles Sunday．
Invented a few years ago by students and seized upon by digital marketers, this festival for lonely hearts falls annually on the llth day of the llth month （since l is the loneliest number）．It is like St Valentine's Day, only worse． Singletons shower each other with tender gifts: a barrage of pearls; a storm of sweets．
This November llth they spent a surprising 19 billion yuan on Alibaba's online platforms-a fourfold increase on a year ago, and more than double what Americans spent online last Cyber Monday （the Monday after Thanksgiving, when retailers urge Americans to shop online）． About 100m purchases were logged, accounting for 80% of the packages shipped that day． Couriers（怏递员） were buried in parcels．
So life is good for China's e-tailers, then? Not exactly． The number of digital marketers is increasing and online sales are booming． Consumers are enjoying lower prices, better service and more variety． The problem? The pressure on profits in Chinese e-commerce is worse than in America, reckons Elinor Leung of CLSA, a broker． "Almost no one makes money," she says．
The fiercest battles are being fought between online retailers and their bricks-and-mortar（实体的） rivals．Dangdang, a firm． that resembles Amazon,．and 360buy, another online retailer, have cut prices fiercely． Tencent, a cash-rich online giant known for its instant-messaging software, is splashing out to win market share． 360buy has also just raised $400m from investors to do the same． But it is unclear how much longer such firms can burn through capital．What's the best title of this passage?
| A．The Ambition of Alibaba |
| B．Fierce Competition between Retailers |
| C．A Newly Sprung Festival for the Singles |
| D．Chinese Booming and Developing E-commerce |
According to Zeng Ming, this year Alibaba will ．
| A．outweigh Amazon and eBay in worldwide influence |
| B．rank top among all the Internet firms |
| C．have more than 159 billion dollars' sale |
| D．create another sales miracle just like the one on Singles Day |
How many packages were shipped on November ll th from Alibaba's online platforms?
| A．About 80 million． | B．About 100 million． |
| C．About 125 million． | D．About 180 million． |
What's the author's attitude towards online retailers in China?
| A．Optimistic． | B．Concerned． |
| C．Sympathetic． | D．Indifferent． |
SYDNEY (AFP) — Thousands of people sat down to breakfast on the Sydney Harbor Bridge on Sunday after the bridge was closed to traffic and carpeted with grass for the first time for a giant picnic.
About 6,000 early riser were on the steel bridge from 6:30 am to take part in the two-hour event designed to show Sydney’s best food and outdoor lifestyle.
As music performers provided the background music, those who had won tickets to the picnic in a random lottery (随机抽奖) began to feast on fruit, pastries, muesli, yoghurt ...
“It’s amazing to see the bridge in this perspective (角度),” said Don Fuchs who lives near the bridge, which is used by about 100,000 cars daily.
“Usually you sit in the car, you cross it, and that’s it.”
“It was beautiful,” said Linda Curnow who attended the picnic with her family. “The grass was so thick that it was like being in your backyard.”
New South Wales state Premier Nathan said the event was set to become a mark of an annual Sydney’s month-long October food festival.
About 45,000 people applied for tickets to the breakfast for which people brought their own food but were able to taste samples from some of the state’s best producers.
Organizers used about 40 percent of the grass on Sydney parks. The bridge reopened at about 1:00 pm.
64. What made Linda Curnow feel as if she were in her own backyard?
A. There being no cars passing by.
B. So much food offered by Australian producers.
C. So many people dining at the same time.
D. The thick grass covering the bridge.
65. Why was the event planned?
A. To mark the Sydney food festival. B. To attract more tourists to Sydney.
C. To promote the Australian life. D. To display the world’s best food.
66. We learn from the passage that _____.
A. the giant picnic is organized in a park in Sydney
B. the grass from Sydney parks was moved to the bridge
C. the Sydney Harbour Bridge was open to traffic all day
D. those who had won tickets to the picnic didn’t eat breakfast
67. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. Welcome to Sydney
B. October — Sydney’s art festival
C. Thousands eat breakfast on Sydney Harbour bridge
D. What is the feature of Sydney?
Spring is just around the corner and it’s a time to get outside and enjoy the great outdoors. Here is a selection of festivals around the country that are a great excuse to travel and get back in the spring sunshine.
Dana Point Festival of the Whales
Dana Point, California
March 7 to 8 and 14 to 15, 2010
Each year, over two sunny weekends in March the town of Dana Point, California celebrates the return of migratory California gray whales to this part of the Pacific Ocean. Festivities include whale-watching, an arts festival and educational hands-on activities for the entire family. Prices start at $29 per adult and $19 for children. For more information, visit:
www.dpfestivalofwhales.com
Chandler Ostrich Festival
Chandler, Arizona
March 13 to 15, 2010
Chandler is the center of ostrich ranching (鸵鸟经营) in the USA. You can see jockeys ride these feathered beasts around the ostrich track at Tumbleweed Park. General admission is $9 for adults, $8 for seniors, $7 for children aged 5 to 12 and kids 4 and under are free. For more information, visit:
www.ostrichfestival.com
Festival of Houses and Gardens
Charleston, South Carolina
March 19 to April 18, 2010
The Historic Charleston Foundation gives curious travelers the opportunity to explore gardens of some of the finest private residences in America. Each 3-hour tour (afternoons from 2 to 5 pm and evenings from 6 to 9 pm) lets you visit 8 to 10 properties dating from the American colonial period. Prices range from $25 to $45. For more information, visit:
www.historiccharleston.org
Tulip Time Festival
Holland, Michigan
May 1 to 9, 2010
You don’t need to travel to the Netherlands this spring to see and smell some of the world’s finest tulips (郁金香). The annual Tulip Time Festival, one of the largest flower festivals in the country, will kick off with fireworks on May 1. Admission fee ranges from $6 for the children’s area to $38 for theatre tickets. Tickets and more information are available at:
www.tuliptime.com
60. A couple with their 4-year-old son will go whale-watching. They have to pay _____.
A. $58 B. $38 C. $48 D. $77
61. The underlined word “jockeys” in the passage is closest in meaning to _____.
A. judges B. children C. riders D. beginners
62. A group of travelers who want to have fun in mid-April will go to _____.
A. Festival of Houses and Gardens B. Chandler Ostrich Festival
C. Dana Point Festival of the Whales D. Tulip Time Festival
63. Which of the following is TRUE of Tulip Time Festival?
A. It is held in a town in the Netherlands.
B. It will start with fireworks on the first day.
C. It is the largest flower festival in the world.
D. Admission is free for children.
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
第一节：阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。
Once a neighbour stole one of Washington’s horses. Washington went with a police officer to the neighbour’s farm to get the horse, but the neighbour refused to give the horse up; he claimed (声称) that it was his horse.
Washington placed both of his hands over the eyes of the horse and said to the neighbour, “If this is your horse, then you must tell us in which eyes he is blind.”
“In the right eye,” the neighbour said.
Washington took his hand from the right eye of the horse and showed the police officer that the horse was not blind in the right eye.
“Oh, I have made a mistake,” said the neighbor. “He is blind in the left eye.”
Washington then showed that the horse was not blind in the left eye, either.
“I have made another mistake,” said the neighbor.
“Yes,” said the police officer, “and you have also proved that the horse does not belong to you. You must return it to Mr. Washington.”
56. Why did Mr. Washington go to the neighbor’s farm with a police officer?
A. Because the neighbor was the police officer’s friend.
B. Because he wanted to make the neighbor return the horse.
C. Because the police officer was Washington’s friend.
D. Because they were invited to the neighbor’s farm.
57. When Washington and the police officer reached the neighbor’s farm, the neighbor _____.
A. immediately admitted that he had stolen the horse
B. received them warmly
C. said he had lost a horse, too
D. didn’t want to give the horse back to Washington
58. When Washington asked the neighbor to tell them in which eye the horse was blind, the neighbor _____.
A. didn’t say anything B. knew the horse wasn’t blind at all
C. thought the horse was really blind D. said he had stolen the horse
59. From the passage, we know _____.
A. Washington was a wise man
B. Washington’s neighbor was cleverer than Washington
C. the police officer was the cleverest of the three
D. all the three men were not very clever
Is there anything more important than health? I don’t think so. “Health is the greatest wealth(财富),” wise people say. You can’t be good at your studies or work well when you are ill.
If you have a headache, toothache, backache, earache or bad pain in the stomach, if you complain of a bad cough, if you run a high temperature and have a bad cold, or if you suffer from high or low blood pressure, I think you should go to the doctor.
The doctor will examine your throat, feel your pulse, test your blood pressure, take your temperature, sound your heart and lungs, test your eyes, check your teeth or have your chest X-rayed. After that he will advise some treatment, or some medicine. The only thing you have to do is to follow his advice.
Speaking about doctor’s advice, I can’t help telling you a funny story.
An old gentleman came to see the doctor. The man was very ill. He told the doctor about his weakness, memory loss and serious problems with his heart and lungs. The doctor examined him and said there was no medicine for his disease.
He told his patient to go to a quiet place for a month and have a good rest. He also advised him to eat a lot of meat, drink two glasses of red wine every day and take long walks. In other words, the doctor advised him to follow the rule: “Eat at pleasure, drink with measure and enjoy life as it is.” The doctor also said that if the man wanted to be well again, he shouldn’t smoke more than one cigarette a day.
A month later the gentleman came into the doctor’s office. He looked cheerful and happy. He thanked the doctor and said that he had never felt a healthier man.
“But you know, doctor,” he said, “it’s not easy to begin smoking at my age.”
72. The writer thinks that .
A. health is more important than wealth
B. work is as important as studies
C. medicine is more important than pleasure
D. nothing is more important than money
73. The doctor usually tells his patient what to do .
A.without examining the patient
B. after he has examined the patient
C. if the patient doesn’t take medicine
D. unless the patient feels pain
74. The underlined part means “ ”.
A.he was feeling better than ever B. he wasn’t a healthy man
C. he was feeling worse than before D. he will be well again
75. From the last sentence of the passage, we learn the man before the doctor told him not to smoke more than one cigarette a day.
A. was a heavy smoker B. didn’t smoke so much
C. didn’t smoke D. began to learn to smoke
No one wants to look silly or do the wrong thing at a new job. It is important to make the right impression(印象) from the very first day. You will face new people. You will be in a new place. It may be difficult to know what to do. Here are five tips to help you make it through the first days at a new job:
1. First impressions can last forever. Make sure you make a good one. Before your first day, find out if your new job has a dress code (rules about what you can wear to work). If so, be sure to follow it. No matter what, always be neat and clean.
2. Get to work on time. Give yourself an extra 15 minutes to make sure you arrive on time.
3. Pay attention to introductions. One of the first things that your supervisor may do is to introduce you to co-workers. These co-workers will be important to you. They are the ones who will answer your questions when the boss is not around.
4. Ask plenty of questions. Make sure that your supervisor has told you what is expected of you. If he or she has not told you your duties, ask for a list. Set daily and weekly goals for yourself.
5. Never be the first one to leave. Observe what your co-workers do around quitting time (下班时间). It does not look good for you to be eager to leave.
68. Before you arrive at work, you should __________.
A. dress in a right way B. introduce yourself
C. know your duties D. know your co-workers well
69. According to the passage, which of the following statements is True?
A. You should be the first one to arrive at work.
B. You should ask your co-workers for your duties.
C. You should not be eager to go back home.
D. You are required to arrive 15 minutes earlier.
70. According to the passage, your supervisor is most likely your ____.
A. visitor B. teacher C. workmate D. leader
71. The writer thinks that a new job is ________ to people.
A. a duty B. a challenge C. an offer D. fun