It may be one of Britain’s most successful exports – Miss World. This 53-year-old event took place in China last week and attracted over 120 women worldwide with knockout looks in a mad struggle for the crown.
Traditional values have long kept the Chinese, especially women, from displaying beauty. But Chinese people have now changed their attitude toward beauty contest, although some men will still be shouting that the winner is no more beautiful than his wife or his former girl friend or even his mother in a sour tone. But such men are not shouting for the right reason. The question to be asked is : Why isn’t there a Mr. World Beauty Contest?
And a further question to be asked is: Does taking part in a beauty contest show a woman’s courage, wisdom and liberation or rather the opposite – a forced choice and a revolting act made under conditions of long-term discrimination?
Organizers of such beauty contests claim that the contestants are judged on qualities other than just their physical appearance. But still no answer is given to why there isn’t a Mr. Beauty or a Mr. World Contest? Or at least, why isn’t that kind of contest popular? Why is it that only women’s “qualities” need to be recognized but not men’s?
Think about who is always standing beside a fancy car on show? Is it a boy or a girl? And this is how “qualities” are judged: if the girl looks good, there is little reason why the car beside her is not of high quality.
The beauty contests go on year after year, with winners enjoying fame which quickly disappears. While such events go on and on, what never changes is the routine practice that in every fancy car show, a girl stands beside a fancy car. What never changes is the need to hold a women’s conference every year to appeal for the promotion of respect for and improvement of women. What never changes is the fate of women as a class. So let’s put more time and resources into trying to change all this rather than holding beauty contests.Miss World Beauty Contest in Britain has a history of ______.
| A．120 years | B．about half a century |
| C．100 years | D．about half a year |
Which of the following is TRUE to the passage?
| A．Miss World Beauty Contest first began in China. |
| B．Women were not allowed to show their beauty in China. |
| C．120 women took part in Beauty Contest last week. |
| D．Miss World was 54 years old. |
According to the writer, .
| A．Chinese women are not allowed to display beauty |
| B．the winner of Miss World is not as beautiful as his wife |
| C．some men are not shouting for the right person |
| D．people can accept a beauty contest in China now |
From the passage we can know the writer thinks that _____________.
| A．contestants’ qualities are more important than their physical appearance |
| B．a Mr. World Contest should be held instead of a Miss World Contest |
| C．a boy should stand by a fancy car |
| D．women’s social status is still low |
The best title for this passage is ____________.
| A．What about a Mr. World Contest? |
| B．History of Miss World Contest. |
| C．Quality or Appearance? |
| D．A Boy Standing beside a Fancy Car. |
A casual employee is one who is engaged and paid as such by agreement between the employer and employee. There is a three-hour minimum payment for each period of engagement and a four-hour minimum engagement on a Public Holiday. No notice of termination is required. For night work between 8:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. Monday to Friday a penalty of $1.28 per hour (or part of hour) shall be paid with a minimum of $4.37 for any one day on which such hours are worked.
Meals: Casual employees whose engagement extends for five hours or more shall be provided with a meal free of charge, or shall be paid in lieu of $5.00 ($6.00 from 1 May 1996)
Casual employment over eight hours: Paid at the overtime rate of full time employees.
Payment of wages: By mutual consent either weekly or on termination of engagement.
Annual leave: Pro-rata Annual Leave entitlement for casuals is on the basis of 1/12th of earnings. Many employers pay this inclusive with the hourly rate. If this is not done, it should be paid on termination of services or at the end of 12 months’ service.
Special clothing: A casual employee is required to provide and wear a black and white uniform or an equivalent standard specified by the club (e.g. blue and white, cook’s clothing, etc.) this includes how tie and cummerbund if required by the employer. The employer may launder all uniforms, or pay the employee and allowance of $1.00 per engagement ($1.20 from 1 May 1996) for general staff. Cooks shall be paid $1.50 per engagement ($1.70 from 1 May 1996).Casual employees must be given a free meal or a meal allowance if they ______.
| A．work after 7:00 a.m. | B．work over five hours a day |
| C．have had 12 months’ service | D．are paid $5.00 |
In casual employment, notice of termination is ______.
| A．not possible | B．not necessary | C．provided | D．paid in lieu |
Which of the following sentences best sums up the situation of casual staff?
| A．The employers of casual staff are well protected by regulations. |
| B．Casual staff need to provide their own uniforms. |
| C．The rights and conditions of casual staff are clearly specified. |
| D．The conditions of casual staff are as good as those of full-time staff. |
All over the world, libraries have begun the Herculean task of making faithful digital copies of the books, images and recordings that preserve the intellectual effort of humankind. For armchair scholars, the work promises to bring such a wealth of information to the desktop that the present Internet may seem amateurish in retrospect. …
Librarians see three clear benefits to going digital. First, it helps them preserve rare and fragile objects without denying access to those who wish to study them. The British Library, for example, holds the only medieval manuscript of Beowulf in London. Only qualified scholars were allowed to see it until Kevin S. Kiernan of the University of Kentucky scanned the manuscript with three different light sources (revealing detail not normally apparent to the naked eye) and put the images up on the Internet for anyone to peruse (阅览). Tokyo’s National Diet Library is similarly creating highly detailed digital photographs of 1,236 woodblock prints, scrolls and other materials it considers national treasures so that researchers can scrutinize them without handling the originals.
A second benefit is convenience. Once books are converted to digital form, patrons can retrieve them in seconds rather than minutes. Several people can simultaneously read the same book or view the same picture. Clerks are spared the chore of reshelving. And libraries could conceivably use the Internet to land their virtual collections to those who are unable to visit in person.
The third advantage of electronic copies is that they occupy millimeters of space on a magnetic disk rather than meters on a shelf. Expanding library buildings is increasingly costly. The University of California at Berkeley recently spent $46 million on an underground addition to house 1.5 million books – an average cost of $30 per volume. The price of disk storage, in contrast, has fallen to about $2 per 300-page publication and continues to drop.The best title for this passage would be __________.
| A．Three Benefits of Libraries |
| B．Libraries Going Digital |
| C．Space-saving E-learning |
| D．Security of Electronic Reading |
Which paragraph(s) in the text offer(s) further explanation of the central idea?
| A．Paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 | B．Paragraphs 3 and 4 |
| C．Paragraphs 2 and 4 | D．Paragraph 4 |
Which one of the following is mentioned as the advantages of E-libraries
| A．Old manuscripts can be moved more easily |
| B．Materials can be examined without being touched |
| C．Fewer staff will be required in libraries |
| D．Libraries will be able to move underground |
What does the word ‘scrutinize’ probably mean?
| A．keep for a while | B．reprint | C．restore | D．examine carefully |
阅读下面的短文，并根据短文后的要求答题(请注意问题后字数要求)。
Giving gifts is not a normal part of Britain business culture．Indeed，British business colleagues are qoite likely to feel embarrassed to receive any gift at all．The only exception would be at the conclusion of a desl when it might be appropriate to give a unique souvenir to mark the occasion. Such items might be gold，silver，or porcelain with a suitable inscriptiop．A-gain，to avoid embarrassment on the part of the recipient，the object must be restrained, tastefuI，and not too expensive．
Small gifts such as a lpen Or a book would be suitable gifts of genuine gratitude，and flowers or wine suffice to thank junior colleagues for their services．
Ahernatively，it will often be appreciated if you invite your hosts，or others yoU wish to thank，out for a meal or tO the theatre．
It is always good form to buy a round of drinks for your colleagues after work．This is also the most common way of celebrating someone's birthday．
Business gifts are never exchanged at Christmas but it may be appropriate to send a card，particularly as an．expression of thanks to your business associates but also as a means of maintaining valuable contacts．Bear in mind that the UK postal services was founded at about the same time as the old railways so ensure that your cards are mailed in good time．
If you are invited to a British home，it is standard practice to bring wine，flowers or chocolate for your hosts．The usual European warnings apply when giving flowers：no red roses or white lilies．
If you know that you are going to stay with a family，it is a good idea to bring something．If you are unprepared，then your time in your host's house should allow you to think of something they would really appreciate even if you have to mail it from home on your return．What's the best title of the passage?(within 8 words)
How do colleagues often celebrate each other's birthday in Britain based on the passage?(within 15 words)
Fill in the black in the last paragraph with proper words．(within 5 words)
Is it always appropriate to bring flowers when you visit a British home?Why?(within 15words)
Translate the underlined sentence in Paragraph 1 into Chinese．
European Work Experience Program(E．W．E．P．)is an independent British organization which began in 1991 in the city of London．E．W．E．P．provides the opportunity for students from the 25 countries of the European Union and nationals(公民)from Norway，Iceland，Switzerland and Liechtenstein to live in England，to gain work experience，to practice their English and to get a better insight into the British social and eulturallife．
To apply you must meet the following requirements：
*Preferred age: 18 to 28 years old
*Be able to work in the UK for a period of at least two months．
*Must have a good knowledge of English．
*Due to work permit restrictions，European Work Experience Program Ltd will only select you if you are a European Union Member or national from Norway，Iceland，Switzerland and Liechtenstein．
European Work Experience Program Ltd will find you a suitable job and an accommodation．A representative of E．W．E．P．will be available during your stay to help you and you will get a 24-hour help line service during your stay．The TOTAl fee for our services is ￡264.63(394.35 Euros)．
Should you require any further information，please contact us：
European Work Experience Program Ltd
Unit 1，Red Lion Court, Alexandra Road
Hounslow，Middlesex，TW3 1JS
United Kingdom
Tel: 44 208 572 2993
Fax：44 208 572 1114
E—mail：sales@ewep．comWhat's the purpose of writing the text?
| A．To introduce a new program in England． |
| B．To attract more students to work in England． |
| C．To describe the working conditions in England． |
| D．To make clear the requirements for students working in England． |
Which of the following is NOT the purpose of the program?
| A．To get a lot of work experience． |
| B．To improve their English rapidly． |
| C．To have better understanding of the British culture． |
| D．To make more money in Britain． |
If you apply for the program．you.
| A．must be 18 to 26 years old |
| B．must be able to speak at least three languages |
| C．must be nationals from the countries mentioned in the text |
| D．should have some working experience in a foreign country |
You can get in touch with E．W．E．P．by the following ways EXCEPT by.
| A．making a teJephone call | B．sending the organization a fax |
| C．writing an e-mail to the organization | D．going there in person by air |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the text?
| A．European Work Experience Program Was set up in the 19th century． |
| B．You'll work in the UK for at least two months if you attend the program． |
| C．You can get a 24-hour help from a representative during your stay． |
| D．You don't have to hand in 394.35 Euros after you have got a job in Britain． |
It seems that some people go out of their way to get into trouble．That's more or less what happened the night that Nashville Police Officer Floyd Hyde was on duty．
“I was on the way to a personal—injury accident in West Nashville．As I got onto Highway 40，blue lights and sirens(警笛)going，I fell in behind a gold Pontiac Firebird that suddenly seemed to take off quickly down the highway．The driver somehow flustered at the sight of me．He was going more than a hundred miles an hour and began passing cars on the shoulder．”
But Hyde couldn’t go after him．Taking care of injured people is always more important than worrying about speeders，so the officer had to stay on his way to the accident．But he did try to keep the Firebird in sight as he drove，hoping another nearby unit would be able to step in and stop the speeding car．As it．turned out，keeping the Firebird in sight was not that difficult．Every turn the Pontiac made was the very turn the officer needed to get to the accident scene．
Hyde followed the Pontiac all the way to his destination。At that point he found another unit had already arrived at the accident scene．His help wasn't needed．Now he was free to try to stop the driver of the Firebird，who by this time had developed something new to panic about．
“Just about that time，”Hyde says，“I saw fire coming out from under that car，with blue smoke and oil going everywhere．He'd blown his engine．Now he had to stop．”
“After I arrested him，I asked him why he was running。He told me he didn't have a driver's license．”
That accident cost the driver of the Firehird plenty-a thousand dollars for the new engine-not to mention the charges for driving without a license，attempting to run away, and dangerous driving．The meaning of“flustered”in Paragraph 2 is related to.
| A．shame | B．hate | C．anger | D．fear |
Why did the driver of the Firebird suddenly speed down the highway?
| A．Because he was racing with another driver on the road． |
| B．Because he realized he had to hurry to the accident scene． |
| C．Because he thought the police officer wanted to stop him． |
| D．Because he wanted to overtake other cars on the shoulder． |
Which of the following statements is true?
| A．Someone else was taking care of the injured person． |
| B．The Pontiac reached its destination at the accident scene． |
| C．Hyde knew where he was going by following the right car． |
| D．The policeman was running after a speeder on Highway 40． |
The driver of the Firebird.
| A．took a wrong turn on the way | B．had some trouble with his car |
| C．was stopped by the police officer | D．paid for the expenses of the accident |
What is probably the best title for the article?
| A．Losing His Way? | B．Going My Way? |
| C．Fun All the Way? | D．Help on the Way? |