In the United States, when one becomes rich, he wants people to know it. And even if he does not become very rich, he wants people to think that he is. That is what “keeping up with the Joneses” is about. It is the story of someone who tried to look as rich as his neighbors.
The expression was first used in 1913 by a young American called Arthur Momand. He told this story about himself. He began earning $ 125 a week at the age of 23. That was a lot of money in those days. He got married and moved with his wife to a very wealthy neighborhood. When he saw that rich people rode horses, Momand went horseback riding every day. When he saw that rich people had servants. Momand and his wife also hired a servant and gave big parties for their new neighbors.
It was like a race, but one could never finish this race because one was always trying to keep up. The race ended for Momand and his wife when they could no longer pay for their new way of life. They had to move back to an apartment in New York City.
Momand looked around him and noticed that many people do things just to keep up with rich lifestyle of their neighbors. He saw the funny side of it and started to write a series of short stories. He called it “Keeping up with the Joneses” because “Jones” is a very common name in the United States. “Keeping up with the Joneses” came to mean keeping up with rich lifestyle of the people around you. Momand’s series appeared in different newspapers across the country for over 28 years.
People never seem to get tired of keeping up with the Joneses. And there are “Joneses” in every city of the world. But one must get tired of trying to keep up with the Joneses because no matter what one does, Mr. Jones always seems to be ahead.Some people want to keep up with the Joneses because they ______.
| A．want others to know or to think that they are rich |
| B．want to be as rich as their neighbours |
| C．don’t want others to know they are rich |
| D．want to be happy |
It can be inferred from the story that rich people like to ________.
| A．live in New York City | B．live outside New York City |
| C．live in apartments | D．live with many neighbours |
What’s the author’s attitude to keeping up with the Joneses?
| A．Supportive. | B．Objective. | C．Negative. | D．Positive. |
| BORDER CROSSINGS While there are no restrictions on the amount of money that you can bring across the border, you must report to both the US and Canadian border services amounts equal to or greater than $10, 000． PERSONAL EXEMPTIONS（免税）ON PURCHASES AMERICANS RETURNING TO THE US Less than 48 hours: $ 200 US 48 hours or more: $ 800 US duty-free personal exemption． next $ 1．000 US at 3% Including up to 100 cigars and 100 cigarettes． CANADIANS RETURNING TO CANADA Less than 24 hours: $ 50 CAN 48 hours or more: $ 400 CAN Including up to 100 cigars and 200 cigarettes． 7 days or more: $ 750 CAN Including up to 100 cigars and 200 cigarettes． DOCUMENTATION NEEDED FOR BORDER CROSSING LAND OR SEA TO THE US（INCLUDING FERRIES） A valid passport or passport card, or a NEXUS card． （A NEXUS card is a Trusted Traveler Program that provides quick travel for pre-approved, low risk travelers through special lanes．） A recent Washington State, New York or BC driver’s license． Note: Children 15 years of age and younger require only a birth certificate or copy．（Certified copies are not required but are advised．） AIR TRAVEL TO THE US A valid passport, an Air NEXUS card, or a U. S. Coast Guard Merchant Marine Document． |
If a Canadian who is on a 7-day trip to New York buys $ 800 CAN worth of goods, how much should he pay tax on when returning home?
| A．$ 800 CAN. | B．$750 CAN. | C．$ 400 CAN. | D．$ 50 CAN. |
For an American citizen on a 2-day tour of Canada, how much tax does he have to pay on $ 1, 600 US worth of purchases when returning to the US?
| A．$ 24 US. | B．$ 48 US. | C．$52 US. | D．$ 200 US. |
What documentation should a couple with a 7-year-old child carry when they drive a car from Canada to America?
| A．A BC driver’s license, an Air NEXUS card, and a birth certificate． |
B．An Air NE XUS card, a U．S．Coast Guard Merchant Marine Document, and a birth certificate． |
| C．Two valid passport cards and a certified copy of a birth certificate． |
| D．A NEXUS card, a U．S．Coast Guard Merchant Marine Document．,and a certified copy of a birth certificate． |
Usually, when your teacher asks a question, there is only one correct answer．But there is one question that has millions of current answers．That question is “What’s your name?” Everyone gives a different answer, but everyone is correct．
Have you ever wondered about people’s names? Where do they come from? What do they mean?
People’s first names, or given names, are chosen by their parents．Sometimes the name of a grandparent or other member of the family is used．Some parents choose the name of a well-known person．A boy could be named George Washington Smith; a girl could be named Helen Keller Jones．
Some people give their children names that mean good things．Clara means “bright”; Beatrice means “one who gives happiness”; Donald means “world ruler”; Leonard means “as brave as a lion”．
The earliest last names, or surnames, were taken from place names．A family with the name Brook or Brooks probably lived near a brook；someone who was called Longstreet probably lived on a long, paved road．The Greenwood family lived in or near a leafy forest．
Other early surnames came from people’s occupations．The most common occupational name is Smith, which means a person who makes things with iron or other metals．In the past, smiths were very important workers in every town and village．Some other occupational names are: Carter — a person who owned or drove a cart; Potter — a person who made pots and pans．
The ancestors of the Baker family probably baked bread for their neighbors in their native village．The Carpenter’s great-great-great-grandfather probably built houses and furniture．
Sometimes people were known for the color of their hair or skin, or their size, or their special abilities．When there were two men who were named John in the same village, the John with the gray hair probably became John Gray．Or the John was very tall could call himself John Tallman．John Fish was probably an excellent swimmer and John Lightfoot was probably a fast runner or a good dancer．
Some family names were made by adding something to the father’s name．English-speaking people added–s or–son．The Johnsons are descendants of John; the Roberts family’s ancestor was Robert．Irish and Scottish people added Mac or Mc or O．Perhaps all of the MacDonnells and the McDonnells and the O’Donnells are descendants of the same Donnell．Which of the following aspects do the surnames in the passage NOT cover?
| A．Places where people lived． | B．People’s characters． |
| C．Talents that people possessed． | D．People’s occupations． |
According to the passage, the ancestors of the Potter family most probably ________．
| A．owned or drove a cart | B．made things with metals |
| C．made kitchen tools or containers | D．built houses and furniture |
Suppose an English couple whose ancestors lived near a leafy forest wanted their new-born son to become a world leader, the baby might be named ________．
| A．Beatrice Smith | B．Leonard Carter | C．George Longstreet | D．Donald Greenwood |
The underlined word “descendants” in the last paragraph means a person’s ________．
| A．later generations | B．friends and relatives |
| C．colleagues and partners | D．later sponsors |
Christopher Thomas, 27, was a writer by night and a teacher by day when he noticed he was always tired and was losing weight fast．Diagnosed with diabetes（糖尿病）, Thomas would need to inject himself with insulin（胰岛素） three times a day for the rest of his life or risk nerve damage, blindness, and even death．And if that weren't bad enough, he had no health insurance．
After a month of feeling upset, Thomas decided he'd better find a way to fight back．He left Canton, Michigan for New York, got a job waiting tables, nicknamed himself the Diabetic Rockstar, and created diabeticrockstar.com, a free online community for diabetics and their loved ones — a place where over 1,100 people share personal stories, information, and resources．
Jason Swencki’s son, Kody, was diagnosed with type diabetes at six．Father and son visit the online children's forums（论坛） together most evenings．"Kody gets so excited, writing to kids from all over," says Swencki, one of the site's volunteers. “They know what he's going through, so he doesn't feel alone.”
Kody is anything but alone: Diabetes is now the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, with 24 million diagnosed cases．And more people are being diagnosed at younger ages．
These days, Thomas's main focus is his charity, Fight It, which provides medicines and supplies to people — 225 to date — who can't afford a diabetic's huge expenses．Fight-it．org has raised about $23,000 — in products and in cash．In May, Thomas will hold the first annual Diabetic Rockstar Festival in the Caribbean．
Even with a staff of 22 volunteers, Thomas often devotes up to 50 hours a week to his cause, while still doing his full-time job waiting tables．"Of the diabetes charities out there, most are putting money into finding a cure," says Bentley Gubar, one of Rockstar's original members. “But Christopher is the only person I know saying people need help now.”Which of the following is true of Christopher Thomas?
| A．He needs to go to the doctor every day． |
| B．He studies the leading cause of diabetes. |
| C．He has a positive attitude to this disease． |
| D．He encourages diabetics by writing articles． |
Diabeticrockstar.com was created for ________．
| A．diabetics to communicate | B．volunteers to find jobs |
| C．children to amuse themselves | D．rock stars to share resources． |
According to the text, Kody ________．
| A．feel lonely because of his illness | B．benefits from diabeticrockstar.com |
| C．helps create the online kid’s forums | D．writes children’s stories online |
What can we learn about Fight It?
| A．It helps the diabetics in financial difficulties． |
| B．It organizes parties for volunteer once a year． |
| C．It offers less expensive medicine to diabetics． |
| D．It owns a well-known medical website． |
The last paragraph suggests that Thomas ________．
| A．works full-time in a diabetes charity | B．employs 22 people for his website |
| C．helps diabetics in his own way | D．tries to find a cure for diabetes |
任务型阅读（共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分）
It all began with ...
Orlando Bloom was not a “good” student in school. Because of dyslexia, a reading and writing disorder (障碍), he struggled in many courses.
But Bloom says the dyslexia gave him the encouragement to overcome (克服) his difficulties.
In an interview with the Telegraph, the 32-year-old said the condition turned him into an ambitious person. “Because of the dyslexia, I always thought I had to work twice as hard as everyone else just to go the same distance,” he said. “That gave me a real kick as a kid and a lot of encouragement later on. In one sense, I guess that I'm grateful (感激的).”
Bloom is always preparing it thoroughly(充分地) when it comes to an audition (试镜) for a part. Perhaps this is what won him his role in the Lord of the Rings, a highly successful film trilogy (三部曲). “I really prepared it thoroughly for the audition and it's paid off,” he said.
It was the beginning of a fame that led to even greater success as a movie actor. But unlike some young people who aim for fame and fortune, Bloom believed an acting career “has been fulfilling (实现) his childhood fantasies”.
“Aged 9, I had this girlfriend and we used to have running races in the park to see who would be her boyfriend for the day. I wanted to be like Superman and fly in and rescue her. Once I realized Superman was an actor, I thought, ‘That's for me''.”
Bloom has always played special characters, like a knight (骑士) and a prince. It's difficult to picture him in everyman roles.
In October, Bloom was named Goodwill Ambassador (亲善大使) for the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). His first task will be to film a documentary about the importance of clean water supplies.
In fact, Bloom started work for the UNICEF in 2007. On his first visit to Nepal, he was asked by students to take a small part in a play they were performing on local radio.
| Personal record of Orlando Bloom |
|
| When he was nine years old |
He wanted to be like Superman and fly in and _____ (1) his girlfriend. That's why he became an _____ (2). |
| When he was a student at school |
_____ (3) of dyslexia, Bloom _____ (4) in many courses, which _____ (5) him to work twice as hard as everyone else. In a sense, dyslexia _____ (6) him overcome his difficulties. |
| When he chose to be an actor |
Bloom is always well _____ (7) for auditions. Perhaps this is _____ (8) won him his role in the Lord of the Rings. |
| In 2007 |
Bloom started work for the UNICEF. |
| In this October |
Bloom was _____ (9) Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF. His first task will be to _____ (10) a documentary about the importance of clean water supplies. |
By the time a student starts to apply (申请) for a US university, much of his or her record, including grades and after-school activities, has been set in stone. For this reason, the student must in his or her first year of high school start getting ready for college. He or she also has to decide on the non-academic (非学业的) tasks, which are important to improve the student’s chances of getting in.
1. After-school activities
When it comes to high school activities, quality is better than quantity (数量). Admissions (录取) officers do not want to see a student who has joined dozens of organizations (组织) for a short period of time.
Many students try to do this towards the end of their high school. But schools want to see a student who has been with one organization for all or most of high school. A student who can do this shows maturity (成熟). It is the quality that admissions officers look for as it is one of the markers of future success.
2. Leadership
Schools want to see a student who has taken on a leadership role in an organization. A student can show leadership by taking on any role that needs extra commitment (奉献) and responsibility.
If you do not have a great title (头衔) such as president, be sure to explain any leadership roles you have taken. This kind of involvement (参与) in school activities shows you a
re the responsible person that admissions officers look for.
3. Consistency (一致性)
Admissions officers like an application (申请) to be consistent. For example if there is a high school activity you particularly (特别地) love, it would help if that activity matches your future academic and career interest.
Of course not everything needs to be consistent. Otherwise (否则) the student would be narrow and this is not what schools are looking for. However, you cannot have different parts of your application saying conflicting (矛盾的) things.Who was the article written for?
| A．US college students hoping to study in China. |
| B．Chinese college students hoping to study in the US. |
| C．Third year high school students hoping to study in the US. |
| D．Teenagers hoping to study in the US. |
The underlined phrase "set in stone" in Paragraph 1 probably means ______.
| A．made clear | B．something unchangeable |
| C．become obvious | D．at the right level(水平) |
The author’s suggestion is to ______.
| A．try as many different organizations as possible |
| B．start planning for college at the beginning of high school |
| C．make everything in an application consistent |
| D．put non-academic tasks before academic tasks |
According to the article, which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．Students should choose after-school activities they have great interest in. |
| B．It’s already too late for first year students to apply for a US university. |
| C．It is necessary for a student to be a president if he/she is to apply for a US university. |
| D．Students should concentrate on just one activity in high school. |