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. |
Commander was my parents` cat but I knew him first. In fact, Commander was my college roommate`s cat. My roommate wanted to sell Commander, but no one would buy him. I called my parents to see if they would like to adopt him. My mom had always loved cats but my dad disliked cats very much. As predicted my dad said, “No way. No cats” Fortunately for me, my dad was out of town at a math conference. So I brought Commander home. By the time he returned, both my mom and Commander had decided that Commander was going to stay.
My mom said that Commander was going to live at our house for a “trial period” while we looked for a buyer. As the months went by there was absolutely no effort to sell Commander and it became clear to my dad that Commander was there to stay. Commander started sitting by my dad as he read the newspaper and slowly my dad began to like Commander---just a little bit.
By the time I came home that summer, I was surprised to see my dad carrying Commander around the house. Over the years, my parents` love for Commander grew to the point where they could not imagine life without him.
Once I finished college, my parents built their dream house and they named the floor plan（平面图） The Commander! They worked with the architect to design the house so that it was perfectly suited both for them and for Commander.
Commander died at the age of eighteen. My mom still talks about him often and misses him, and so does my dad, which proves that not even the most determined cat-hating human being in the world can resist the charms(魅力)of a cat once the cat decides he is moving in to your heart.When the author`s dad returned from the conference,_________.
| A．the author had decided to sell Commander. |
| B．the author`s roommate sold commander to someone else |
| C．the author`s mother decided to keep Commander |
| D．the author`s mother started looking for a buyer |
What was the father`s feeling towards Commander when the author came home that summer?
| A．He still hated the cat very much |
| B．He began to like the cat |
| C．He wanted to sell the cat |
| D．He wanted to keep another cat |
What did the author`s parents do when they designed their new house?
| A．They designed a room for Commander. |
| B．They named the floor plan the Commander. |
| C．They opened a door in the wall for Commander. |
| D．They worked with the architect to build a cathouse |
Put the following events into the correct order.
a.The author`s father changed his attitude towards Commander.
b.The author brought Commander home
c.The author finished college.
d.The author`s parents built their dream house.
e.Commander died.
| A．a-e-b-c-d | B．b-a-d-c-e |
| C．d-b-c-a-e | D．b-a-c-d-e |
Nowadays, with the busy working hours, parents have no time left to spend with their children. However, spending time with children is of extreme importance. Giving some time for children will play an important role in their development. Therefore, it is a must for parents to spend time with children. Here are some tips for parents which will help them spend time with their little wonder.
Having Dinner with Children
Even if you are not there at home for a whole day, you should make sure that you have dinner with your children. Moreover, you should make it a point that you are having dinner with your entire family. Also, you should avoid watching TV when you are having dinner with your family.
Helping Child Comlete Homework
Helping your child complete homework will help you know how he/she is at studies. It is not that you have to spend hours regularly helping your child with homework. But, sometimes you can help your child solve some questions. In this way, you will get to spend time with your child as well as get to know about his or her studies.
Fun Activities
During weekends you can indulge your child in fun activities like gardening, painting etc. However, do not force your child to do so. You can also spend some time in teaching your child finger painting, vegetable painting and craft work. You may even help your child complete his or her art and craft assignments. These activities will help you improve creativity of your child as well as the interaction between you and your child.The passage is mainly about_______.
| A．the importance of spending time with children |
| B．the ways to spend time with children |
| C．the reasons to spend time with children |
| D．the activities children like to take part in |
In the second paragraph, the author suggests that parents should________.
| A．watch TV with their children |
| B．stay at home a whole day |
| C．spend time with the whole family |
| D．avoid listening to some music |
The underlined word “indulge” in the last paragraph means_______.
| A．push | B．put | C．ask | D．allow |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Helping children with homework will help improve their creativity. |
| B．Parents should spend time regularly with children`s homework |
| C．Spending time with children for parents is a must |
| D．Parents should pick up their children regularly. |
When we talked about the upcoming start of school, Seth hadn`t expressed anything but excitement. So when the sunny and promising “big day” arrived, he was ready. He was armed with a cool haircut, wearing his prized shoes, and was ready for the action.
Ten minutes before the bus was to arrive, he asked me to take him in my car. I complained about it being at the last minute. I said “no” at first. He begged me again and I finally agreed.
In the car , I secretly had a look at him through the rearivew mirror(后视镜). He looked sad. “What is the matter, honey?” “I am nervous. I don`t know if I will be able to learn everything in the first grade. What if I can`t pay attention in class?”
My heart melted. I remembered being nervous on the first day of school and I thought I was the only student who felt that way. I was a nervous kid full of self-doubt. Seth behaved much better than I did.
We walked into his school together. He remembered where his new classroom was and recognized his teacher from the ice cream social party they had the day before. He sat down at his desk and chatted with a few of his classmates. He took a few photos of them (with a camera phone because I didn`t allow him to bring the real camera) and then he said in a very serious manner, “Mom, you can go home now. I`ll be OK.” And so he was.Seth asked his mother to take him to school probably because_________.
| A．he was afraid to be late for class. |
| B．he wanted to share his joy with his mother |
| C．he felt worried about his school life |
| D．he was frightened of his new teacher |
What did the writer mean by saying “My heart melted” in Paragraph 4?
| A．She was very angry with her son |
| B．She felt sad because of her son`s words. |
| C．She was too weak in the mind to face it. |
| D．She became more understanding of her son. |
From the last paragraph we learn that_________.
| A．Seth had never seen his new classroom |
| B．the ice cream social party was to be held soon |
| C．Seth got along well with his classmates |
| D．Seth took some photos using a real camera |
It can be inferred that in the end Seth felt_________.
| A． relaxed | B．frightened |
| C．serious | D．worried |
Without most people realizing it, there has been revolution in office work over the last ten years. Before that time, large computers were only used by large rich companies that could afford the investment. With the advancement of technology, small computers have come onto the market which are capable of doing the work which used to be done by much larger and expensive computers, so now most smaller companies can use them.
The main development in small computers has been in the field of word processor system, or WPS as they are often called. 40% of British offices are now estimated to have a word processor and this percentage is growing fast.
There are many advantages in using a word processor for both secretary and manager. The secretary is freed from a lot of daily work, such as retyping letters and storing papers. He or she can use this time to do other more interesting work for the boss. From a manager's point of view, secretarial time is being made better use of and money can be saved by doing daily jobs automatically outside office hours.
But is it all good? If a lot of daily secretarial work can be done automatically, surely this will mean that fewer secretaries will be needed. Another worry is the increasing medical problems related to work with visual display units (显示器). The unease of a slow loss of sight among people using word processors seems to have risen greatly. It is also feared that if a woman works at a VDU for long hours, the unborn child in her body might be killed. Safety screens to put over a VDU have been invented but few companies in England bother to buy them.
Whatever the arguments for and against word processors, they are a key feature of this revolution in office practice.Ten years ago, large computers were only used by large companies because _________.
| A．small companies did not have enough money to buy such expensive computers |
| B．large computers could not do the work that small companies can do today |
| C．large computers did not come onto the market |
| D．small companies did not need to use this new technology |
According to the writer, the main progress made in office work over the last ten years is ________.
| A．the saving of time and money |
| B．the use of computers in big companies |
| C．the wide use of word processors |
| D．the decreasing number of secretaries |
We can infer from the passage that with the use of word processors, _________.
| A．some secretaries will lose their jobs |
| B．all jobs can be done automatically outside office hours |
| C．medical problems related to work with a VDU must have increased |
| D．the British companies will make less money |
Which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．There are both advantages and disadvantages in using a word processor. |
| B．The British companies care much for the health of the people using word processors. |
| C．The technology in the field of computers has been greatly advanced over the last ten years. |
| D．Using word processors, secretaries can get more time to do more interesting work for their bosses. |
A small piece of fish each day may keep the heart doctor away. That’s the finding of a study of Dutch men in which deaths from heart disease were more than 50 percent lower among those who consumed at least an ounce of salt-water fish per day compared to those who never ate fish.
The Dutch research is one of three human studies that give strong scientific support to the long held belief that eating fish can provide health benefits, particularly to the heart.
Heart disease is the number-one killer in the United States, with more than 550,000 deaths occurring from heart attacks each year. But previous research has shown that the level of heart disease is lower in cultures that consume more fish than Americans do. There are fewer heart disease deaths, for example, among the Eskimos of Greenland, who consume about 14 ounces of fish a day, and among the Japanese, whose daily fish consumption averages more than 3 ounces.
For 20 years, the Dutch study followed 852 middle-aged men, 20 percent of whom ate no fish. At the start of the study, average fish consumption was about two-thirds of an ounce each day, with more men eating lean fish than fatty fish.
During the next two decades, 78 of the men died from heart disease. The fewest deaths were among the group who regularly ate fish, even at levels far lower than those of the Japanese or Eskimos. This relationship was true regardless of other factors such as age, high blood pressure, or blood cholesterol（胆固醇）levels.In which section of a newspaper can we read this passage?
| A．Ads | B．Movies |
| C．Briefs | D．Health and Diet |
The passage is mainly about _________.
| A．the high incidence of heart disease in some countries |
| B．the changes in people’s diet |
| C．the effect of fish eating on people’s health |
| D．the daily fish consumption of people in different cultures |
The phrase “this relationship” in paragraph 6 refers to the connection between ____ and the level of heart disease.
| A．the amount of fish eaten | B．regular fish-eating |
| C．the kind of fish eaten | D．people of different areas |
From the passage we know the author is most probably ___________.
| A．a heart doctor | B．a science researcher |
| C．a supporter of healthy eating | D．a university student |