I recently ran into a friend I hadn’t seen for a long while．Our conversation was lively and full of news from both sides．Before we parted she said，“You'll have to drop in sometime.” I immediately sensed that if I simply “dropped in’’ I would take my friend by surprise，and I would be discouraged by the image of her standing in her doorway，staring at me，and asking，“Oh，err …what brings you here?”
Whatever happened to the unannounced drop-in visit? When I was growing up in the 1960s, it seemed that people - mostly relatives, but also friends - were always popping in. My parents would put coffee on，and my mom would find something in the kitchen to serve along with it．Then the conversation would begin…The neighbor lady，a worrier，was unloading her sadness while my mom quietly listened．The Irish man next door had such an accent that I remember asking what language he spoke．My Polish relatives arrived in packs…But I never heard my parents say anything like “We weren’t expecting you’’ or “This isn’t a good time．”Drop-in visitors had a certain right of way and became No．1．
What happened to such visits? Actually I know the answer．Times have changed．Everybody gets busy with work．There is no longer a stay-at-home mom keeping a pot of hot coffee or tea ready throughout the day for a surprise guest．Exploding malls and stores are now replacing homes as a central form of entertainment．
Just the other day a former student of mine showed up．“I'm sorry for the surprise visit．”my student began．“I just wanted to see if you still lived here．I'll only stay a minute．”My response was immediate.“ No, you won’t,” I said.“Just come in, sit, have coffee, and we’ll talk.’’
I had nothing in the kitchen but we ordered pizza．And we had a lovely time．I have tried to keep the drop-in tradition alive though it takes some effort．The author thought of his friend’s invitation --- “You’ll have to drop in sometime”--- as _______.
| A．a nice way of refusal |
| B．an excuse of leaving |
| C．a kind of politeness |
| D．an expression of surprise |
The underlined phrase “ pop in” in the second paragraph means _________.
| A．make many friends |
| B．make a special date |
| C．have a good time |
| D．pay a sudden visit |
The woman from the neighborhood used to visit the author’s home to ________.
| A．seek comfort from my parents |
| B．make new friends |
| C．1isten to my parents’ story |
| D．taste nice dishes |
From the third paragraph of the passage，we can infer that __________．
| A．the author misses the lost good days |
| B．unexpected visitors are still welcome now |
| C．modern people prefer outdoor activities |
| D．there are more jobs for the housewives now |
The author writes the passage intending to __________.
| A．encourage people to be drop-in visitors |
| B．explain how to deal with unexpected visitors |
| C．share his feelings about the drop-in tradition |
| D．show the importance of making friends |
If you are asked to name some national emblems of China, the dragon will probably be one of the famous images that pop into your head. We Chinese often consider ourselves "the descendants（后代）of the dragon." It is not unfamiliar to you that your parents hope that you "may become the dragon".
As a mythical（神秘的）creature, the dragon is deeply rooted in Chinese culture. Traditionally, dragons are considered to govern rainfall. They have the power to decide where and when the rain falls. In addition, the dragon is a symbol of imperial （帝王的）power. The emperors thought they were real dragons and the sons of the heaven.
But the creature is regarded differently in Western countries. In the Bible, dragons represent the devil（恶人）. Western people usually see dragons as cold-blooded reptiles（爬虫）, like snakes and cruel killers. In their eyes, dragons are also dishonest.
Dragons in Western literature are presented as monsters（怪物）. It is a common tale for a mediaeval knight（中世纪的骑士） to kill a dragon and save a princess and her country from its evil. Even the popular boy wizard Harry Potter has to battle against a dragon.
However, dragons are not all bad in the West. "Puff the Magic Dragon" is a well-known song. The lyrics(歌词) tell a bitter-sweet story of the dragon Puff and his playmate Jackie Paper, a little boy. When Jackie grows up, he loses interest in the imaginary adventures of childhood and leaves Puff upset. Puff represents the innocence of a child's imagination, which is very positive for a dragon. The underlined word” emblems” in the first paragraph means “_______”.
| A．symbols | B．names | C．places | D．parks |
What is a dragon presented as according to Western literature?
A wizard B. A mediaeval knight C. A princess D. A monster The writer gave the example of “ Puff the Magic Dragon” to show_____.
| A．dragons can represent the innocence of child’s imagination |
| B．children don’t like to play with dragons |
| C．dragons are not all bad in the West |
| D．not all people in the West like dragons |
Will it matter if you don't take your breakfast? Recently a test was given in the United States. Those tested included people of different ages, from 12 to 83. During the experiment, these people were given all kinds of breakfasts, and sometimes they got no breakfast at all. Special tests were set up to see how well their bodies worked when they had eaten a certain kind of breakfast. The results show that if a person eats a proper breakfast, he or she will work with better effect than if he or she has no breakfast. This fact appears to be especially true if a person works with his brains. If a student eats fruit, eggs, bread and milk before going to school, he will learn more quickly and listen with more attention to class.
Opposite to(与.....相反) what many people believe, if you don't eat breakfast, you will not lose weight. This is because people become so hungry at noon that they eat too much for lunch, and end up gaining weight instead of losing. You will probably lose more weight if you reduce your other meals.During the test, those who were tested were given ________.
| A．no breakfast at all |
| B．very rich breakfast |
| C．little food for breakfast |
| D．different breakfast or none |
The results of the test show that ________.
| A．breakfast has great effect on work and studies |
| B．breakfast has little to do with a person’s work |
| C．a person will work better if he has a simple(简单的) breakfast |
| D．those working with brains needn’t have anything for breakfast |
The passage mentions that many people believe that if you don't eat breakfast, you will _________.
| A．lose weight |
| B．not lose weight |
| C．be healthier |
| D．gain a lot of weight |
Which of the following is not true according to the passage?
| A．Poor breakfasts affect those who work with brains. |
| B．Eating nothing in the morning may cause one to get fatter. |
| C．Reducing lunch and supper is of less use in weight losing. |
| D．Eating less in lunch and supper may help to lose weight. |
During the summer holidays there will be a revised(修改过的)schedule of services for the students. Changes for dinning-room and library service hours and for bus schedules will be posted on the wall outside of the dining-hall．Weekly film and concert schedules,which are being arranged(安排), will be posted each Wednesday outside of the student club.
In the summer holidays, buses going to the town center will leave the main hall every hour on the half hour during the day．The dining-room will serve three meals a day from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm during the week and two meals from noon to 7:00 pm on weekends．The library will continue its usual hours during the week, but have shorter hours on Saturdays and Sundays．The weekend hours are from noon to5:00 pm.
All students who want to use the library borrowing services must have a new summer card．This announcement will also appear in the next week’s student newspaper.The main purpose of this announcement is to .
| A．tell students of important schedule changes |
| B．tell students of new bus and library services |
| C．show the excellent services for students |
| D．ask students to renew their library cards |
Times for films and concerts are not listed in this announcement because .
| A．they are not to be announced |
| B．they are hard to arrange |
| C．the full list is not ready |
| D．the full list is too long |
At which of the following times will the bus leave the main hall?
| A．8:00, 9:00, 10:00, 11:00 |
| B．8:30, 9:30, 10:30, 11:30 |
| C．8:30,9:00, 9:30,10:00 |
| D．8:00, 9:30, 11:00, 12:30 |
In the summer holidays,the library will have .
| A．no special hours |
| B．special hours on weekdays |
| C．special hours on weekends |
| D．special hours both on weekdays and weekends |
The Great Fire of London started in the very early hours of September 2, 1666. In four days it destroyed more than three-quarters of the old city, where most of the houses were wooden and close together. Over one hundred people became homeless, but only a few lost their lives .
The fire started on Sunday morning in the house of the King’s baker（面包师）in Pudding Lane. The baker, with his wife and family, was able to get out through a window into the roof. A strong wind blew the fire from the bakery（面包房）into a small hotel next door. Then it spread quickly into Thames Street. That was the beginning.
By eight o’clock three hundred houses were on fire. On Monday nearly a kilometer of the city was burning along the River Thames. Tuesday was the worst day. The fire destroyed many well-known buildings, old St Paul’s and the Guildhall among them .
Samuel Pepys , the famous writer, writer about the fire, “People threw their things into the river. Many poor people stayed in their houses until the last moment. Birds fell out of the air because of the heat .”
The fire stopped only when the King finally ordered people to destroy hundreds of buildings in the path（路径） of the fire.With nothing left to burn, the fire became weak and finally died out.
After the fire, Christopher Wren, the architect(建筑师), wanted a city with wider streets and fine new houses of stone．In fact, the streets are still narrow, but he did build more than fifty churches, among which was the new St Paul’s
The fire caused great pain and loss, but after it London was a better place: a city for the future and not just of the past.The underlined word‘family’in the second paragraph probably means____.
| A．house | B．children | C．wife and husband | D．wife and children |
It seems that the writer of the text was most sorry for the fact that .
| A．many people lost their lives |
| B．the birds in the sky were killed by the fire |
| C．many famous buildings were destroyed |
| D．the King’s bakery was burned down |
Why did the writer cite(引用)Samuel Pepys?
| A．Because Pepys was among those putting out the fire. |
| B．Because Pepys also wrote about the fire. |
| C．To show that poor people suffered most. |
| D．To give the reader a clearer picture of the fire. |
How was the fire put out according to the text?
| A．The King and his soldiers came to help. |
| B．All the wooden houses in the city were destroyed. |
| C．People managed to get enough water from the river. |
| D．Houses standing in the path of the fire were destroyed. |
A young woman carrying a three-year-old child got on a bus. The conductor(售票员) hurried to give her a warm welcome and then kindly asked the other passengers to make more room for the woman and her child. On seeing this, people began to talk. "You know this conductor used to be very rude. Now suddenly he has changed his bad behavior , "said a middle-aged man.
"Yes, he should be praised and we must write a letter to the company," said a second passenger. "That's right," another lady said, "I wish a newspaper reporter were here so that more people could learn from this conductor. "
Just then a gentleman who looked like a teacher turned to the conductor and said , "Excuse me, but can I know your name, please? Your excellent service must be praised..."
Before he could open his mouth, the three-year-old child sitting on the young woman's lap interrupted (打断谈话), "I know his name. I call him Dad."The passengers were ________ to see the conductor's kindness to the woman and the child.
| A．excited | B．pleased | C．interested | D．surprised |
One passenger suggested writing a letter to the company to ______ .
| A．make a demand for more buses |
| B．thank the conductor for his good service |
| C．criticize（批评） the conductor for his rude behavior |
| D．invite a newspaper reporter to write about the conductor |
What was the gentleman?
| A．A teacher. |
| B．A newspaper reporter. |
| C．Not known from the story. |
| D．The conductor's friend from his company. |
The word "he" in the last paragraph refers to _______.
| A．the gentleman |
| B．the conductor |
| C．the middle-aged man |
| D．the three-year-old child |