The world is filled with smart, talented, educated and gifted people. We meet them every day. A few days ago, my car was not running well. I pulled it into a garage and the young mechanic had it fixed in just a few minutes. He knew what was wrong by simply listening to the engine. I was amazed. The sad truth is, great talent is not enough.
I am shocked at how little talented people earn. I heard the other day that less than 5 percent of American earn more than $100,000 a year. A business consultant (顾问) who specializes in the medical trade was telling me how many doctors, dentists and people like them struggle financially. All this time, I thought that when those students studying medicine graduated, the dollars would pour in. It was this business consultant who gave me the phrase “They are one skill away from great wealth.” When I ask the classes I teach “How many of you can cook a better hamburger than McDonald’s ?”, almost all the students raise their hands. I then ask, “So if most of you can cook a better hamburger, how come McDonald’s makes more money than you?” The answer is obvious---McDonald’s is excellent at business systems. The reason why so many talented people are poor is that they focus on building a better hamburger and know little or nothing about business systems. The world is filled with talented poor people. All too often, they’re poor or struggle financially or earn less than they are capable of , not because of what they know but because of what they do not know.The example mentioned in the first paragraph is to show ______.
| A．how little talented people earn |
| B．the world is filled with talented people |
| C．he is not good at repairing cars |
| D．the mechanic is good at repairing cars |
According to the writer, of 300 million Americans, ____ Americans earn over 100 thousand dollars a year.
| A．about 0.15 million | B．about 1.5 million |
| C．about 15 million | D．about 150 million |
The writer seems to believe that _____.
| A．all talented people are not rich |
| B．a person with a talent is sure to become rich |
| C．a talented person is poor just because he knows too much |
| D．many talented people earn little because of something they don’t know |
Hello. I’m Jan from Mrs. Lake’s class. My class wants to work together to help the public. We think we have found a great way to do this. Last month we did a class project on the highways near our town. We learned about the Adopt-a-Highway Program. This program brings people together to pick up litter along the roads. We think it would be a great idea for all students in our school to join the program and adopt a highway.
Adopting a highway is not like adopting a pet. When a highway is adopted, only part of the highway is cared for by a group of people. The group agrees to work every week to keep its part of the highway clean. Each group gets its own sign that has the name of the group printed on it. The sign is put up at the side of the road. This sign lets drivers know who is keeping that area of the road clean.
The Adopt-a-Highway Program is a great way for people to help their environment look nicer. Also, the government does not have to send out as many road workers. This saves money. Finally, people may try harder to keep roads clean if they see people, especially teenagers like us, cleaning them up.
We will need helpers to care for our adopted highway. If you want to feel great and keep our roads clean，please come with your parents to the meeting next week. We will meet in Mrs. Lake’ room on Wednesday at 6:00 P.M. At the meeting, we will talk about which roads are the dirtiest as a result of people's unkind acts. Then we' ll try to pick an area to adopt and clean.
I look forward to seeing you at the meeting. Remember to keep our roads clean!What is the purpose of this speech?
| A．To introduce the traffic system. |
| B．To tell a story about adopting a pet. |
| C．To show drivers how to drive safely. |
| D．To encourage students to join the program. |
What is the Adopt-a-Highway Program about?
| A．Giving names to the highways. |
| B．Picking up litter along the roads. |
| C．Drawing pictures of highways. |
| D．Putting up signs near the roads. |
What should the students do first if they want to join the program?
| A．Go to a meeting on Wednesday. |
| B．Pick a spot to care for. |
| C．Write a letter to their parents. |
| D．Call Mrs. Lake next week. |
Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?
| A．Adopt-a-Pet | B．Ways to Protect the Environment |
| C．Adopt-a-Highway | D．Volunteers on Roads |
It was once common to regard Britain as a society with class distinction. Each class had unique characteristics.
In recent years, many writers have begun to speak the ‘decline of class’ and ‘classless society’ in Britain. And in modern day consumer society everyone is considered to be middle class.
But pronouncing the death of class is too early. A recent wide-ranging society of public opinion found 90 percent of people still placing themselves in particular class; 73 percent agreed that class was still a vital part of British society; and 52 percent thought there were still sharp class differences. Thus, class may not be culturally and politically obvious, yet it remains an important part of British society. Britain seems to have a love of stratification.
One unchanging aspect of a British person's class position is accent. The words a person speaks tell her or his class. A study of British accents during 1970s found that a voice sounding like a BBC newsreader was viewed as the most attractive voice. Most people said this accent sounded ‘educated’ and ‘soft’. The accents placed at the bottom in this study, on the other hand, were regional（地区的）city accents. These accents were seen as ‘common’ and ‘ugly’. However, a similar study of British accents in the US turned these results upside down and placed some regional accents as the most attractive and BBC English as the least. This suggests that British attitudes towards accent have deep roots and are based on class prejudice.
In recent years, however, young upper middle-class people in London, have begun to adopt some regional accents, in order to hide their class origins. This is an indication of class becoming unnoticed. However, the 1995 pop song ‘Common People’ puts forward the view that though a middle-class person may ‘want to live like common people' they can never appreciate the reality of a working-class life.A recent study of public opinion shows that in modern Britain ________.
| A．it is time to end class distinction |
| B．most people belong to middle class |
| C．it is easy to recognize a person’s class |
| D．people regard themselves socially different |
The word stratification in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to ________.
| A．variety | B．division | C．authority | D．qualification |
British attitudes towards accent _________.
| A．have a long tradition |
| B．are based on regional status |
| C．are shared by the Americans |
| D．have changed in recent years |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．The middle class is expanding |
| B．A person’s accent reflects his class |
| C．Class is a key part of British society |
| D．Each class has unique characteristics. |
Black has long been praised for its ability to better women’s figures and suit every occasion. But the color has a side-effect—it ages the face.
While black does give the appearance of a slimmer figure by making the shadows less visible, wearing it next to the face brings out a negative effect. Black clothing can highlight （突出） dark lines under the chin, shadows around the eyes and wrinkles on the face. The effect can be as serious as making women feel exhausted, self-conscious and upset. Wrinkles and sunken areas appear deeper and more pronounced, meaning the effect is more obvious in older women.
Dark scarves, hats and high-collared coats are apparently particularly likely to emphasize aging features of the face. But fear not. The effect can be tempered by a splash of color around the neck—in the form of a scarf or a piece of jewelry—or a low neckline.
Famous actress Joan Collins is among the few who can get away with the side-effect. But those who should consider changing their dresses include many European stars. The majority of women who have what is known as a “warm” skin tone, based on yellow and gold colors, will not look young and healthy with black against their faces. Warm skins do not match well with black against their faces as it takes away all the golden glow that they have as a basic skin tone. Black looks for dark things on the face and highlights them, particularly as women age.
The good news for those who like black dress is that a simple test can help determine whether they can wear black well: Hold the color up against your face, stand in front of the mirror and look for dark lines under the chin, shadows around the eyes or lines on the face that are highlighted. If there are no dark areas or shadows, you can probably wear black close to your face and look great. Otherwise, change your ways.According to the passage, wearing black clothes probably ________________.
| A．makes the wearer less energetic |
| B．gives away the wearer’s age |
| C．darkens the wearer’s skin tone |
| D．makes the wearer feel confident |
The underlined word “tempered” in Paragraph 3 can be replaced by _______________.
| A．observed | B．ignored | C．weakened | D．measured |
We can infer from the passage that _______________.
| A．high-collared coats are not suitable for warm-skinned women |
| B．a woman from eastern Asia may not look young with black against her face |
| C．men with deep wrinkles would look unhealthy in black |
| D．Joan Collins has a warm skin tone |
The black dress will be probably suitable for you on condition that there are no ___________.
| A．wrinkles on your face |
| B．dark circles around your eyes |
| C．sunken areas that are highlighted |
| D．dark areas or shadows on the face |
If you are heading for Paris this year, be sure to include at least one of these shopping malls in your schedule.
Au Printemps
Tel: 01133014282
Located near the Paris Opera, this huge store is well-known for household goods as well as its fashion. The store also offers many services to overseas visitors, including shipping, translation and a personal shopping service. Au Printemps, whose name means springtime, hosts several free fashion shows each week. The store’s beauty department has one of the world’s largest selections of perfumes（香水）.
Galeries Lafayette
Tel: 01133014283
The Galeries Lafayette was built in 1906. It is as much fun to look at as it is to shop in this 10-storey shopping palace. In fact, the flagship store is the second most visited attraction in Paris, after the Louvre Museum. This shopping palace specializes in women’s clothing. Make sure to take in the view from the tea shop on the top floor; it’s well worth the visit.
Le Bon Marche
Tel: 01133014439
This stylish Left Bank department store was Paris’ first such store. Designed by Gustave Eiffel, Le Bon Marche is particularly known for its food hall, its wedding shops and its selection of modern clothes.
La Forum des Halles
Tel: 01133014476
This modern, underground shopping center was built in 1979. La Forum des Halles, the three-storey-tall shopping center offers everything from souvenirs to haute couture（高级女子时装）to entertainment, such as first-run movies and street performers. The shopping center is attached to the busy La Halle-Chatelet metro station and can be easily reached from all over Paris.Which of the following places attracts the most visitors according to the passage?
| A．Au Printemps. | B．The Paris Opera. |
| C．La Forum des Halles. | D．The Louvre Museum. |
Which of the stores pays its special attention to women’s dressing?
| A．Le Bon Marche. | B．Galeries Lafayette. |
| C．La Forum des Halles. | D．Au Printemps. |
We can learn from the passage that ___________________.
| A．La Forum des Halles is next to the metro station |
| B．Au Printemps is famous for its food hall |
| C．the clothes in Le Bon Marche are usually very cheap |
| D．the tea shop that is worth visiting is on the ninth floor of Galeries Lafayette |
On a stormy day last August, Tim heard some shouting. Looking out to the sea carefully, he saw a couple of kids in a rowboat were being pulled out to sea.
Two 12-year-old boys, Christian and Jack, rowed out a boat to search a football. Once they’d rowed beyond the calm waters, a beach umbrella tied to the boat caught the wind and pulled the boat into open water. The pair panicked and tried to row back to shore. But they were no match for it and the boat was out of control.
Tim knew it would soon be swallowed by the waves.
“Everything went quiet in my head,” Tim recalls（回忆）. “I’m trying to figure out how to swim to the boys in a straight line.”
Tim took off his clothes and jumped into the water. Every 500 yards or so, he raised his head to judge his progress. “At one point, I considered turning back,” he says. “I wondered if I was putting my life at risk.” After 30 minutes of struggling, he was close enough to yell to the boys, “Take down the umbrella!”
Christian made much effort to take down the umbrella. Then Tim was able to catch up and climb aboard the boat. He took over rowing, but the waves were almost too strong for him.
“Let’s aim for the pier（码头）,” Jack said. Tim turned the boat toward it. Soon afterward, waves crashed over the boat, and it began to sink. “Can you guys swim?” he cried. “A little bit,” the boys said.
Once they were in the water, Tim decided it would be safer and faster for him to pull the boys toward the pier. Christian and Jack were wearing life jackets and floated on their backs. Tim swam toward land as water washed over the boys’ faces.
“Are we almost there?” they asked again and again. “Yes,” Tim told them each time.
After 30 minutes, they reached the pier.Why did the two boys go to the sea?
| A．To go boat rowing. |
| B．To get back their football. |
| C．To swim in the open water. |
| D．To test the umbrella as a sail. |
What does “it” in Paragraph 2 refer to?
| A．The beach | B．The water |
| C．The boat | D．The wind |
Why did Tim raise his head regularly?
| A．To take in enough fresh air. |
| B．To consider turning back or not. |
| C．To check his distance from the boys. |
| D．To ask the boys to take down the umbrella. |
How can the two boys finally reach the pier?
| A．They were dragged to the pier by Tim. |
| B．They swam to the pier all by themselves. |
| C．They were washed to the pier by the waves. |
| D．They were carried to the pier by Tim on his back. |