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. |
A few months ago as I wandered through my parents’ house, the same house I grew up in, I had a sudden, scary realization. When my parents bought the house, in 1982, they were only two years older than I am now. I tried to imagine myself in two years, ready to settle down and buy the house I’d still be living in almost 30 years later.
It seemed ridiculous. On a practical level, there’s no way I could afford to buy a house anytime soon. More importantly, I wouldn’t want to. I’m not sure where I’ll be living in two years, or what kind of job I’ll have. And I don’t think I’ll be ready to settle down and stay in one place.
So this is probably the generation gap that divides my friends and me from our parents. When our parents were our age, they’d gotten their education, chosen a career, and were starting to settle into responsible adult lives.
My friends and I – “Generation Y” – still aren’t sure what we want to do with our lives. Whatever we end up doing, we want to make sure we’re happy doing it. We’d rather take risks first, try out different jobs, and move from one city to another until we find our favorite place. We’d rather spend our money on travel than put it in a savings account.
This casual attitude towards responsibility has caused some critics to call my generation “arrogant”, “impatient”, and “overprotected”. Some of these complaints have a point. As children we were encouraged to succeed in school, but also to have fun. We grew up in a world full of technological innovation: cellphones, the Internet, instant messaging, and video games.
Our parents looked to rise vertically（垂直的）– starting at the bottom of the ladder and slowly making their way to the top, on the same track, often for the same company. That doesn’t apply to my generation.
Because of that, it may take us longer than our parents to arrive at responsible, stable adulthood. But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. In our desire to find satisfaction, we will work harder, struggle for ways to keep life interesting, and gain a broader set of experiences and knowledge than our parents’ generation did.What is the main “generation gap” between the author and her friends and their parents according to the article?
| A．Their ways of gaining experience. |
| B．Their attitude towards responsibility. |
| C．Their attitude toward high technology. |
| D．Their ways of making their way to the top. |
Which of the following might the author agree with?
| A．It involves too much effort to rise vertically. |
| B．It’s better to take adult responsibility earlier. |
| C．It’s all right to try more before settling down. |
| D．It’s ridiculous to call her generation “arrogant”. |
What can we conclude from the article?
| A．The author is envious of her parents enjoying a big house at her age. |
| B．“Generation Y” people don’t want to grow up and rush into adulthood. |
| C．Growing up in a hi-tech world makes “Generation Y” feel insecure about relationships. |
| D．The author wrote this article so that others would be able to understand her generation better. |
What is the main theme of the article?
| A．Criticisms of the young generation. |
| B．The sudden realization of growing up. |
| C．A comparison between lifestyles of generations. |
| D．The factors that have changed the young generation. |
C
| Father’s Day Sunset Live Music Dinner Cruise Sunday, June 16th, 2013 6:30pm-8:30pm Join us aboard the 95’ Dana Pride for our special Father’s Day Dinner Cruise. Enjoy a unique evening of fun on the water, complete with live music by Mike O’ Brien and a delicious barbecue dinner.  Adult – $59 Kids (3-12) – $29 Two and under are Free LOCATION: Dana Point Harbor BOOK ONLINE OR CALL: 949-496-5794 |
| Rancho Days Fiesta July 13, 2013 Celebration the history of Saddleback Valley, there will be children’s activities including free crafts projects. Help make and taste homemade ice cream and butter, warm bread from the oven. Dip water and grind（磨碎）corn while learning about the early days of Orange County.  Admission is $3 for children 3 to 12 years old and $4 for adults. LOCATION: Heritage Hill Historical Park INFORMATION: 949-923-2230 |
| Annual Silverado Counter Fair and Art Festival October 5-6, 2013 The 42th Annual Silverado Country Fair explores the wonders of the area’s Old West rustic（乡村的）culture, great live music, tasty food, handmade arts, crafts and family games under the oak-trees below Orange Country’s famous Saddleback Mountain.  Daytime adult admission: $4 / Kids under 12: only $2 Saturday Night Music Fest（联欢）: $5 for everyone LOCATION: Silverado Community Center INFORMATION: 714-997-3968 |
| Starr Ranch Sanctuary October 20-21, 2013 Audubon California’s Starr Ranch Sanctuary invites you to our fall classes for adults. Join our wildlife biologist for two peaceful days at beautiful 4,000-acre Starr Ranch in southeast Orange County and experience nature hands-on as a wildlife researcher.  Cost: $95 for those not camping (including dinner) / $100 for those camping (dinner and breakfast provided) LOCATION: Starr Ranch Sanctuary RESERVATIONS OR INFORMATION: 949-858-0309 |
Which event is suitable for one who wants to enjoy dinner in a boat with live music?
| A．Rancho Days Fiesta. |
| B．Starr Ranch Sanctuary. |
| C．Father’s day Sunset Live Music Dinner Cruise. |
| D．Annual Silverado Counter Fair and Art Festival. |
At Rancho Days Fiesta, you can _______.
| A．taste food made in the local factories |
| B．join in activities for the whole family |
| C．pay a great deal of money to join in camping |
| D．experience the early life of the Orange County |
How much will a couple have to pay if they go to Saturday Night Music Fest with their 10-year-old son?
| A．$12. | B．$15. | C．$10. | D．$5. |
Mr Smith wants to take his wife and daughter to have some family games in early October. He will call _______ for information.
| A．714-997-3968 | B．949-923-2230 |
| C．949-496-5794 | D．949-858-0309 |
You may not pay much attention to your daily elevator ride. Many of us use a lift several times during the day without really thinking about it. But Lee Gray, PhD, of the University of North Carolina, US, has made it his business to examine this overlooked form of public transport. He is known as the “Elevator Guy”.
“The lift becomes this interesting social space where etiquette（礼仪）is sort of strange,” Gray told the BBC. “They are socially very interesting but often very awkward places.”
We walk in and usually turn around to face the door. If someone else comes in, we may have to move. And here, according to Gray, liftusers unthinkingly go through a set pattern of movements. He told the BBC what he had observed.
He explained that when you are the only one inside a lift, you can do whatever you want – it’s your own little box.
If there are two of you, you go into different corners, standing diagonally（对角线地）across from each other to create distance.
When a third person enters, you will unconsciously form a triangle. And when there is a fourth person it becomes a square, with someone in every corner. A fifth person is probably going to have to stand in the middle.
New entrants to the lift will need to size up the situation when the doors slide open and then act decisively. Once in, for most people the rule is simple – look down, or look at your phone.
Why are we so awkward in lifts?
“You don’t have enough space,” Professor Babette Renneberg, a clinical psychologist at the Free University of Berlin, told the BBC. “Usually when we meet other people we have about an arm’s length of distance between us. And that’s not possible in most elevators.”
In such a small, enclosed space it becomes very important to act in a way that cannot be construed（理解）as threatening or strange. “The easiest way to do this is to avoid eye contact,” she said.The main purpose of the article is to _______.
A. share an interesting but awkward elevator ride
B. tell us some unwritten rules of elevator etiquette
C. analyze what makes people feel awkward in an elevator
B. remind us not to behave strangely when in an elevatorAccording to Gray, when people enter an elevator, they usually _______.
| A．turn around and greet one another |
| B．look around or examine their phone |
| C．try to keep a distance from other people |
| D．make eye contact with those in the elevator |
Which of the following describes how people usually stand when they are in the elevator?
The underlined phrase “size up” in Paragraph 7 is closest in meaning to _______.
| A．judge | B．ignore | C．put up with | D．make the best of |
Hercule Poirot looked over the small gate which gave admission to Pine Crest. It was a modern nicely-built house. It was on a hill top, and the hill top was planted with a few sparse pines. It had a small neat garden and a large elderly man was watering with a big tin.
Spence’s hair was now grey all over. He had not shrunk much in girth（围长）, though. He stopped watering and looked at the visitor at the gate. Hercule Poirot stood there without moving.
“God bless my soul,” said Spence. “It must be. It can’t be but it is. Yes, it must be Hercule Poirot!”
“Aha,” said Poirot, “you remember me. I’m grateful.”
Spence abandoned the watering can and came down to the gate.
“What brings you down here?”
“What has brought me to many places in my time,” said Poirot, “and what once a good many years ago brought you to see me. Murder, Spence.”
“I’m done with murder since I retired,” said Spence, “except in the case of weeds. Killing weeds is never easy as you think, something’s always wrong. How did you know where to find me?” he asked as he opened the gate and Poirot passed through.
“You sent me a Christmas card. It had your new address on it.”
“Ah yes, so I did. I’m old-fashioned, you know, I like to send round cards at Christmas time to a few old friends. I’m an old man now.”
“We both are.”
“Not much grey in your hair,” said Spence.
“I take care of my hair with a bottle,” said Poirot. “There is no need to appear in public with grey hair unless you wish to do so. By the way, why have you come to live in Woodleigh Common?”
“As a matter of fact, I came here to join forces with a sister of mine. She lost her husband, her children are married and living abroad. So I moved in here. Pensions（退休金）don’t go far nowadays, but we do comfortably living together.” From their dialogue, we can learn about _______.
| A．their common friends | B．Spence’s sister’s characters |
| C．their relationship | D．Poirot’s recent life |
Which statement is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Spence used to deal with murder. |
| B．Poirot didn’t care about his appearance. |
| C．Spence moved to join his sister for lack of money. |
| D．Poirot came specially to reunite with his old friend. |
From the passage we can infer that they might _______ next.
| A．meet Spence’s family | B．discuss about a murder |
| C．visit Spence’s new home | D．water the garden together |
Too Much Happiness was written by Alice Munro，winner of the 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature，one of our greatest contemporary writers of fiction and the owner of the Man Booker Price for Fiction．Her stories have appeared in The New Yorker，The Atlantic Monthly，and other publications，and her collections have been translated into thirteen languages．
The main character is Sophia Kovalevsky，a great Russian mathematician，writer and advocator拥护者）of women’s rights in the late nineteenth century. After visiting her lover Maxsim Kovalevsky in Riviera，she travels in Europe，ending up in Sweden，where she teaches at the only university in Europe willing to employ a female mathematician．The book writes about her journey from Riviera to Sweden．
The story tells the typical struggle of an intellectual（知识分子）woman to achieve success and happiness．However，when she is going to die，Sophia says“too much happiness”．I think it’s irony（讽*11的）．As reading the story，she has too many mental problems·First，as a woman mathematician，she was born in a wrong time ．She was married to Vladimir Kovalevsky without love，called“a white marriage”．She explained that“no a young Russian woman who was unmarried could leave the country．”She satisfied her marriage to seek her career．
Furthermore，when she sees a man look like Maxsim in the station，she says to herself，“of course，it would not be Maxsim，what could he be doing in Paris？”She doesn’t want to face the fact because she doesn’t want to lose her hope．She believes they will marry in spring．And in her letter to Julia she says：“it is to be happiness after all，happiness after all．Happiness．”She is cheating herself. In fact，the man does not want to marry her，and the happiness she expected doesn’t take place at all．
Finally, I conclude that the end must be a tragedy（悲剧）．From the very first pages the atmosphere is gloomy黯淡的）and threatening.“One of us will die this year.”“Because we have gone walking in a graveyard（墓地）on the first day of the New Year.”Some pages further，“a black cat across their path”all reflect it will be a bad ending．Not because she had some problems with her lung，but because her life does not bring her happiness，and because of these disharmony things that happen in her life．We can infer from the passage that＿＿·
| A．Sophia was born in a wrong time and was mentally ill |
| B．women were not fairly treated in Europe in Sophia’s time |
| C．Sophia loved travelling around Europe to meet `different people |
| D．unmarried women were forbidden to learn mathematics at that time |
The underlined phrase“the fact”in Paragraph 4 most probably refers to the fact that
| A．her husband refuses to divorce | B．she can’t teach in university |
| C．she falls in love with Maxsim | D．Maxsim doesn’t want to marry her |
Why does the author name this book Too Much Happiness？
| A．It is used to suggest that the story must be a comedy． |
| B．It’s a phrase repeatedly used by Sophia herself to her friend． |
| C．It’s used in an ironic way to show that Sophia isn’t happy at all． |
| D．It’s to show Sophia is very happy to achieve success in her career． |
What can we conclude from Sophia’s experience？
| A．It’s hard for an educated woman to achieve success in Europe at that time． |
| B．Russian women were not allowed to go abroad without a white marriage． |
| C．Married women could travel freely across Europe in the late nineteenth century． |
| D．Seeing a black cat across the path would bring people to death in the end． |
In a newspaper，this passage is most probably in the section of____．
| A．Entertainment | B．Travel | C．Career | D．Culture |