Yasuda is 95 years old. Looking for easier ways to search the Web and send email, he bought Apple’s iPad. The company has sold 3.27 million iPads since they entered the market in April. Although it’s impossible to know with certainty how many seniors (老年人) are buying them, evidence suggests that it’s a hit with seniors.
The iPad’s intuitive interface (直观界面) makes it attractive to seniors around the world, says Takahiro Miura, a researcher at the University of Tokyou. “The iPad is a good tool for seniors because it’s very easy to use,” he says. “Unlike the PC, it doesn’t require former knowledge.”
James Cordwell, a researcher in London, says the iPad’s popularity with seniors is helping Apple reach beyond its traditional base of young customers. “The world’s population, especially in developed markets, is getting older. It’s probably a market where Apple has least entered, ” Cordwell says. Senior users are “a key source of growth for them in the future.”
Seniors make up about 22 percent of the population in Japan. They may prove that seniors are willing to accept the iPad. Besides the customer group under 30, they spend more than any other group in the country, according to a report. Motoo Kitamura, 78, a former gas salesman, bought an iPad to help him communicate with his 2-year-old grandson and prevent him from experiencing some of the mental problems that sometimes come with getting older. “Trying new things like that is good mental exercise,” he says.The underlined part “a hit” in Paragraph 1 probably means ______ .
A.a sudden attack | B.a heavy burden | C.quite popular | D.very familiar |
Which of the following is NOT an advantage of the iPad?
A.It has intuitive interface. |
B.It is easy to operate. |
C.Beginners can use it without similar experiences. |
D.People can use it as a way to do mental exercise. |
What can we learn from the text?
A.People above thirty are Apple’s largest customer group in Japan. |
B.The traditional customers of Apple’s products are usually the young. |
C.Seniors will soon grow into Apple’s largest customer group. |
D.Seniors in Japan are fond of buying latest hi-tech products. |
What is the text mainly about?
A. iPad leading Apple to seniors.
B. iPad influencing the customer group.
C. iPad’s arrival causing Japanese to think.
D. iPad beating the traditional PC.
PEOPLE
NOBLE SMUGGLER
This Thursday, Irena Sendler will be honoured for her work as a smuggler(偷运者). During World WarⅡ, the Polish social worker smuggled nearly2,500 Jewish children out of the Warsaw ghetto(聚居区). She gave them new identities, found them safe places with good-hearted Christians, and kept the children’s real names buried in jars in her neighbours’ gardens.(The play, Life in a Jar, based on her story, is being performed.)At 93, Sendler lives in a Warsaw nursing home and is too weak to travel to Washington D.C., to receive the 2003 Jan Karski Award for Valorand Compassion from the American Center of Polish Culture. One of the children she saved will accept the award for her.
You risked your life to save the children.
I was taught by my father that when someone is drowning, you don’t ask if they can swim,you just jump in and help. During the war, everyone was drowning, but mostly the Jewish children.
How did you persuade parents to give up their children?
I had to answer honestly that I didn’t even know if we would get past the guards.
What was the most frightening moment?
When I saw a priest(牧师)in charge of an orphan age for Jewish children in the ghetto walk with them out to be killed. The children were in then best Sunday suits. The priest was killed with them.
How did you get the children to be have as you smuggled them out?
I told the older children to act as if they were sick and sometimes gave the younger ones a sleeping pill. They were told to remember their new names. I also told the children to tell guards they had only been visiting a servant in the ghetto and were going back to their real homes outside.
Did you tell your own two children what you did?
I never told them. Only when my daughter went to Israel did she learn all about me. I thought it was only normal to do so. And it was a very painful subject. It was always on my mind that I couldn’t do more.
——Samantha Levine
1. We can learn from the passage that Irena Sendler____.
A. will go to Washington to accept the award with her daughter
B. was caught a few times while she was rescuing the Jewish children
C. told those parents that their children’s lives would be guaranteed
D. saved thousands of Jewish children at the risk of her ownlife
2. The expression “everyone was drowning” can best be replaced by“______”.
A. everyone was involved in the war
B. all the people were drowned
C. people were facing danger and death
D. Jewish children were being killed
3. Which of the following could NOT be expected when Sendler was smuggling the Jewish children?
A. Some children were told to pretend to be sick in front of the guards.
B. Some children pretended to be returning home after visiting servants in the ghetto.
C. The children were asked to remember and use new names instead of real ones.
D. The children pretended to be brothers and sisters from one big family.
4. Sendler didn’t tell her own children what she did in the war because ______.
A. she thought it was the most frightening experience
B. the topic was too painful and heart-breaking to mention
C. it was already recorded and made known to the public
D. she planned to bury the secret in her heart until her death
How could we possibly think that keeping animals in cages in unnatural environments-mostly for entertainment purposes-is fair and respectful?
Zoo officials say they are concerned about animals. How ever, most zoos remain “collections” of interesting “things” rather than protective habitats (栖息地). Zoos teach people that it is acceptable to keep animals bored, lonely, and far from their natural bones.
Zoos claim (声称) to educate people and save endangered species(物种), but visitors leave zoos without having learned anything meaningful about the animals’ natural behavior, intelligence, or beauty. Zoos keep animals in small spaces or cages, and most signs only mention the species’ name, diet, and natural range(分布区). The animals’ normal behavior is seldom noticed because zoos don’t usually take care of the animals’ natural needs.
The animals are kept together in small spaces, with no privacy and little opportunity for mental and physical exercise. This results in unusual and self-destructive behavior called zoochosis. A worldwide study of zoos found that zoochosis is common among animals kept in small spaces or cages. Another study showed that elephants spend 22 percent of their time making repeated head movements or biting cage bars, and bears spend 30 percent of their time walking back and forth, a sign of unhappiness and pain.
Furthermore, most animals in zoos are not endangered. Captive breeding (圈养繁殖) of endangered big cats, Asian elephants, and other species has not resulted n their being sent back to the wild. Zoos talk a lot about their captive breeding programs because they do not want people to worry about a species dying out. In fact, baby animals also attract a lot of paying customers. Haven’t we seen enough competitions to name baby animals?
Actually, we will save endangered species only if we save their habitats and put an end to the reasons people kill them. Instead of supporting zoos, we should support groups that work to protect animals’ natural habitats.
64. How would the author describe the animals’ life in zoos?
A. Dangerous. B. Unhappy. C. Natural. D. Easy.
65. In the state of zoochosis, animals _________.
A. remain in cages B. behave strangely
C. attack other animals D. enjoy moving around
66. What does the author try to argue n the passage?
A. Zoos are not worth the public support.
B. Zoos fail in their attempt to save animals.
C. Zoos should treat animals as human beings.
D. Zoos use animals as a means of entertainment.
67. The author tries to persuade readers to accept his argument mainly by _____.
A. pointing out the faults in what zoos do
B. using evidence he has collected at zoos
C. questioning the way animals are protected
D. discussing the advantages of natural habitats
68. Although he argues against zoos, the author would still agree that _______.
A. zoos have to keep animals in small cages
B. most animals in zoos are endangered species
C. some endangered animals are reproduced in zoos
D. it’s acceptable to keep animals away from their habitats
If you walk slowly through downtown Helsinki(赫尔辛基)during the day, taking in the splendid 19th century buildings, white boats and noise of passing trams(有轨电车), you will start to understand why it is called a city of two colors: white and blue.
The sea is always present in Helsinki. When you take a walk over the great open space of the central square, you will hear seabirds screaming. When you take the tram, suddenly and unexpectedly, you are faced with a calm, shining blue sea. You may notice that people in Helsinki do not rush about as in other cities. Instead, they walk along the roads, politely letting other people by.
A usual way to see Helsinki for the first time is to start out by the boats. You will walk by the elderly women selling fish and vegetables in the market square and find yourself in front of a beautiful park. You may enjoy a pleasant walk in the park for a few hours and then take the tram. Trams are the perfect way to get around in Helsinki. Watching the old houses, parks, theatres, churches, shops, restaurants and people in the streets, you may have a slightly sad film feeling to it.
The pale summer nights are another wonder in the city. Following the waterfront(滨水区)of the city after sunset, you couldn’t help stopping and listening to the sweet silence, interrupted only by the screaming seabirds and leaving fishing boats.
However, in some way, Helsinki is also the most modern city in northern Europe. You will surely want to visit the white Glass Palace, the modern art museum, and all those extremely popular cafes and design stores.
68.Helsinki is called a city of two colors mainly because of the colors of its ________.
A.19th century buildings, boats and parks
B.19th century buildings, boats and seabirds
C.old houses, parks and trams
D.old buildings, boats and the sea
69.The best way to see most of Helsinki is to go ________.
A.by boat B.by bus C.by tram D.on foot
70.The 19th century buildings, the White Glass Palace, popular cafes and design shops in Helsinki all show that Helsinki is _________.
A.both splendid and traditional B.both quiet and noisy
C.both historical and modern D.both old and new
71.This passage is most likely to be found in _________.
A.a story-book B.a geography textbook
C.a research report D.a travel magazine
The Home of My People
When Lewis and Clark stepped onto the Weippe Prairie in present-day Idaho in September 1805, they met the Nez Perce Indians. In the following years, the white explorers(探险者)began to fight with the Indians for their land. Some Nez Perce chiefs signed agreements with the U.S. government, selling part of their lands. But the government always broke those agreements and demanded more land.
Other chiefs refused to go along with the government’s plans. The most famous was Chief Joseph, whose people lived in the Wallowa Valley(present-day Oregon).
“In order to have all people understand how much land we owned,” he once explained, “my father planted poles around it and said: ‘Inside is the home of my people…It circled around the graves(坟墓)of our fathers, and we will never give up these graves to any man.’”
But in 1874, the U.S. government declared the valley open for white settlement and ordered the Nez Perce onto a reservation(保留地). Seeing that resistance was useless, Chief Joseph agreed to move.
Later fighting broke out between the Nez Perce and U.S. soldiers. Chief Joseph tried to lead his people to Canada, winning several battles against the soldiers during their flight. But finally, he was forced to give in.
56. Which historic site (on the map)lies in the south of today’s Nez Perce Reservation?
A. Buffalo Eddy. B. Dug Bar.
C. Joseph Canyon Viewpoint. D. Chief Looking Glass Camp.
57. What can we learn about the Nez Perce lands from the map?
A. They were in the state of Oregon.
B. They have become a historic site.
C. They have become much smaller.
D. They were limited to the Wallowa Valley.
58. From Paragraph 3, we know that the Indians wanted to ______.
A. show off their land B. keep their land
C. turn their place into a graveyard D. build their homes around the poles
Say you are a 17th century construction worker who’s worked long and hard to build a splendid tower for the dead wife of your emperor.
Now say that the emperor orders your fingertips cut off so you can never build another one. Yes, that is the Taj Mahal, one of the most famous buildings in the world. And the tale behind the construction is just as impressive(印象深刻的)as the building itself.
First, there’s the emperor of northern India, Shah Jehan, also called the King of the World. In 1612, Shah Jehan married Mumtaz Mahal. Madly in love, they had 14 children over the next 20 years. But then sadness came. As Mumtaz was about to give birth to child number 14, she said she had heard her unborn baby cry out. It was a sign of death. And as Mumtaz lay dying, she asked Jehan to build a lasting memorial(纪念物) to celebrate their love.
When the heartbroken Jehan appeared eight days after his wife’s death, his people were shocked to see that his coal-black hair had turned snow-white.
Putting away his sadness, Jehan ordered his wife’s dying wish carried out. More than 20,000 workers labored nearly 22 years to complete the construction. In 1653, Jehan placed Mumtaz’s remains in the center under the building.
And then, son number five, Aurangzeb, murdered his brothers and took over the power from his aging father. Hehan lived the rest of his days-eight years, to be exact - imprisoned not far from the Taj Mahal. Jehan was only allowed to climb onto the top of his prison to see the timeless treasure from a distance. But never again would he be allowed to visit it-until he was buried next to his wife.
Today 25,000 people visit the Taj Mahal each day. Though the reason for building the tower was a strange, sad story, those who see its breath-taking beauty are reminded of the happiness that inspired(激发……的灵感) its construction.
59.The first two paragraphs were written to show that _____.
A.the Taj Mahal is an unusual historic building
B. ancient Indian emperors were cruel
C. construction workers led a hard life in ancient India
D. India has some of the most famous buildings in the world
60.The Taj Mahal was first built as _____.
A. a prison B. a gift to Mumtaz
C. a memorial building D. a tourist attraction
61.We learn from the text that Mumtaz probably died in _____.
A. 1626 B. 1632 C. 1634 D. 1653
62.The underlined word “happiness” in the last sentence refers to _____.
A. the married happiness of the emperor and his wife
B. the great pleasure Jehan once found in exercising his power
C. the happiness Jehan felt on completing the Taj Mahal
D. the pleasure tourists experience when visiting the Taj Mahal