Online grocery shopping was counted as the next great innovation to make our lives easier. In China more than 3,000 websites offer the service, but none have turned a profit.
Xiang Nian has had a hard day at the office but at least she can skip the trip to the grocery store. A text message on her phone lets her know the order she placed earlier in the day has been delivered to a locker outside her apartment.
"It’s really convenient for an office worker like me. My fresh products are waiting for me when I get home and can start cooking. No need to go to the supermarket any more," Xiang says.
One of the largest online supermarkets in Wuhan is Just-easy Fresh Produce. Over the past 3 years, the company has developed its online retail grocery business by guaranteeing fresh produce and an innovative delivery system. They've installed thousands of lockers in communitieshttp:// / around downtown Wuhan.
"We get an average of 8,000 orders per day. That's the most in China, I'm proud of it. We have placed over 20 thousand lockers in more than half of the communities in Wuhan and we plan to expand to all of them. Many e-commerce giants, like Taobao, are talking about cooperation with us," Jie Xiaofeng, manager of Wuhan Just-easy Agricultural Science & Technology Co., says.
While Just-easy may have thousands of customers, a staff of almost 300 and 40 delivery trucks, it's still operating in the red.
"There are over 3,000 companies selling fresh products online in China. But none is making a profit. It will take them at least 3 years before they make a profit. The major challenge is the cost of delivery. But they do have many advantages. The price of their goods is lower than the supermarkets," professor He Dehua at Huazhong Agricultural University, says.
A number of China's e-commerce giants are making moves into online grocery sales, with Taobao opening an online platform it calls "Cainiao". And traditional retailers(零售店) including Wal-Mart and Carrefour are also looking to start selling their produce online.
Many big B2C e-commerce players usually take fresh farm produce as the last category to add to their offerings. But now more and more large businesses have set their eyes on the industry. They want to prove the fresh food market is definitely suited to online sales. What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．The online grocery shopping is making our life easier. |
| B．Just-easy Fresh Produce is a pioneer of the online retail grocery business. |
| C．Conventional retailers are facing challenges. |
| D．None of the online grocery supermarkets has made a profit. |
The underlined part “it's still operating in the red” probably means _______.
| A．the present situation of the company makes them angry |
| B．the company is not making a profit |
| C．the company is very popular with customers |
| D．the staff of the company are aggressive |
What can we learn from the last two paragraphs?
| A．The fresh food market is definitely suited to online sales. |
| B．Fresh farm produce is the last category that people will buy online. |
| C．Online grocery sales have drawn the attention of e-commerce giants. |
| D．Traditional retailers choose to sell their produce on Cainiao. |
What’s the author’s attitude towards online grocery shopping?
| A．Pessimistic. | B．Indifferent. | C．Objective. | D．Supportive. |
Mr. Brown worked in a factory of a small town. He had been there for twenty years before one day he was sent to the capital for important business. He was quite excited because he had never been there before. Before he set off, he asked his wife and three daughters if they wanted him to buy something for them in London. Mrs. Brown began to think it over and then she said she wished her husband would be able to buy a nice umbrella for her, and so did their three daughters. As he was afraid he would forget it, he drew an umbrella on his hand. To his regret, he lost it at the station.
On the train Mr. Brown sat opposite to an old woman. The woman’s umbrella was so nice that he carefully looked at it and said to himself not to forget to buy a few umbrellas like it. When the train arrived at the station in London, he said good-bye to the old woman, took his bag and her umbrella and was going to get off.
“Wait a minute, sir,” shouted the old woman. “That’s my umbrella!”
Now Mr. Brown noticed that he had taken her umbrella. His face turned red at once and said in a hurry,“Oh, I’m very sorry, Madam! I didn’t mean it!”
Seven days later Mr. Brown left the capital. To his surprise, he met the old woman and sat opposite to her again. Looking at the four umbrellas, the old woman was satisfied with herself. “It seems that I had a better choice than the other four women.” She thought.We can learn from the passage that Mr. Brown was ______.
| A．a conductor | B．a thief |
| C． a worker | D．an umbrella maker |
The underlined word “it” in the first paragraph refers to ______.
| A．his ticket | B．his drawing | C．his bag | D．his umbrella |
Why did Mr. Brown take the woman’s umbrella?
| A．Because the woman misplaced it beside Mr. Brown. |
| B．Because it was much like his own umbrella. |
| C．Because he thought the woman would not notice it. |
| D．Because he was lost in thought. |
How did Mr. Brown get the four umbrellas?
| A．He picked them on the train. |
| B．He bought them in London. |
| C．He brought them from his small town. |
| D．He stole them from four women. |
Hundreds of years ago, news was carried from place to place by people on foot or by horse. It took days, weeks and sometimes months for people to receive news. Now it is possible to send words and pictures around the world in seconds. Billions of people learn about news stories of their own country and all over the world every day, either by watching TV or reading newspapers.
Newspapers have been an important part of everyday life since the 18th century. Many countries have hundreds of different newspapers. How do newspaper editors decide which news stories to print? Why do they print some stories and not others? What makes a good newspaper story?
Firstly, it is important to report news stories. TV stations can report news much faster than newspapers. Yet, newspapers give more about the same story. They may also look at the story in another way, or they may print completely different stories to those on TV.
Secondly, a news story has to be interesting and unusual. People don’t want to read stories about everyday life. As a result, many stories are about some kind of danger and seem to be “bad” news. For example, newspapers never print stories about planes landing safely; instead they print stories about plane accidents.
Another factor(因素) is also very important in many news stories. Many people are interested in news in foreign countries, but more prefer to read stories about people, places and events in their own country. So the stories on the front page in Chinese newspapers are usually very different from the ones in British, French and American newspapers.According to the passage, how do people learn about news stories in the world now?
| A．They carry news stories and tell others from place to place on foot or by horse. |
| B．They tell each other what they have seen with their eyes. |
| C．They watch TV or read newspapers. |
| D．They listen to the radio every day. |
The difference between newspaper stories and TV news reports is that _______ .
| A．people can learn more about the same news story from a newspaper |
| B．people can read the news story more quickly in a newspaper |
| C．people can read news stories in other countries |
| D．people can read news stories about their own country |
To make a good newspaper story, how many factors does the passage talk about?
| A．Two. | B．Three. | C．Five. | D．Six. |
According to the passage, which of the following can you most possibly watch on TV?
| A．You often play football with your friends after school. |
| B．Your teacher has got a cold. |
| C．A tiger in the city zoo has run out and hasn’t been caught. |
| D．The bike in front of your house is lost. |
Tykoon is an online website that allows you to teach your child financial principles through allowances assignment(零钱分配) of tasks and daily chores. As the parent，you can assign a cash value to the things you want your child to do. Then，your child can go in，accept the task and add to their wish list of what they would like to purchase with the money that they earn.
Let's start with the parent side of things. The parent must be the one to set up the account. You simply enter your information and your child's information to get started. You are then able to assign allowance amounts to your child.
Then you can add tasks for your child to accept and connect them with their weekly allowance. Your child is then able to accept or decline their tasks. They can see how much each task earns，how often they need to do it and what they will get if they do!They can even earn no cash encouragement such as extra TV time or staying up late!
Tykoon is a great way to start teaching your child about responsibility and financial principles in fun and safe way. Through the ability to accept or decline tasks，they are taught the skills that they will need later in life when they are managing their own budgets(预算)! if you share Tykoon with your friends and have five friends sign up and stay active for more than a month，you'll earn a $25 Amazon.com gift card!So get your child enrolled(注册)，tell your friends and let's start teaching all our kids about the important financial principles today!The purpose of the text is to________.
| A．make an advertisement |
| B．share teaching experience |
| C．describe an online website |
| D．present a way of making money |
What can kids learn from Tykoon?
| A．The ability to manage their budgets. |
| B．The responsibility to do daily chores. |
| C．The skills to earn their own living. |
| D．The tricks to accept or refuse tasks. |
It can be inferred from the last paragraph that________.
| A．no parents will resist the special reward |
| B．Amazon is a very popular website |
| C．Tykoon wants to attract more visitors |
| D．friends should share information |
What is the text mainly talk about?
| A．Tykoon—A Safe Way to Manage Your Financial Issues |
| B．How to Create Funny Tasks for Your Kids on the Website |
| C．Opening an Online Account with the Help of Tykoon |
| D．Teaching Your Kids Financial Principles with Tykoon |
Tree-planting is an important part of the ongoing Richmond renaissance that has been changing the city for the last few years. And you are invited to be a part of this transformation on Saturday, November 2, 2013, from 9 am to 1 pm. Volunteers of all ages and abilities are invited to participate.
Residents of the City of Richmond will be joined by community volunteers from Richmond Trees, Groundwork Richmond and The Watershed Project to celebrate the fall’s Harvest Festival and Tree Planting event.
9:00 am Harvest festivities begin with a volunteer orientation about planting trees.
9:30 am Volunteers will divide into seven planting teams, each captained by an experienced Tree Steward, to plant 30 new street trees along Roosevelt, and on the 500 and 600 blocks of 29th, 30th, 31st, 32nd, 35th & 36th streets in the surrounding neighborhood. Richmond Trees and the City of Richmond will provide shovels (铲子) and vests. Those who would like to participate in planting trees are encouraged to wear sturdy shoes.
11 am La Rondalla del Sagrado Corazón, a local musical ensemble, will play traditional Mexican serenade music.
12 pm Speakers including Chris Magnus, Richmond’s Chief of Police and Chris Chamberlain, Superintendent of Parks & Landscaping will speak about the many benefits of growing the urban forest.
Healthy harvest refreshments, water and coffee will be available for a small donation that will support the work Richmond Trees is doing in the community to grow the urban forest. There will be art activities and games for children.
For more information about the Harvest Festival and Tree Planting event, or planting trees in your own Richmond neighborhood, contact gro.seertdnomhcir@ofni, 510.843.8844.The underlined word “orientation” probably means ______.
| A．introduction of the people involved in the activity |
| B．basic (基本的) information and training |
| C．introduction of the area covered |
| D．distribution (分发) of fliers (传单) |
If you want to join the activity, you ______.
| A．should bring your own shovel |
| B．must wear a special type of shoes |
| C．needn’t have experience in tree planting |
| D．will be able to enjoy music while planting trees |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
| A．In total, 30 trees will be planted in the neighborhood. |
| B．This is the first time that the neighborhood has done tree-planting. |
| C．Richmond Trees made a donation so there will be refreshments and coffee to enjoy. |
| D．Chief Magnus will give a reward to those who attended planting trees. |
Recently, I came across an interesting article on the differences between British English and American English. I had a lot of fun reading it and thinking of as many differences as I could as an American.
Their cars have “bonnets(发动机罩)”，while ours have “hoods”. They park their cars in a “car park” while we leave our in a “parking lot”. Our “cookies” are their “biscuits”, while their “rubbers” are our “erasers”.
Then there are the food words. Would you want to eat something called “Toad in the Hole” or “Bangers and Mash” or “Spotted Dick”? I’m here to report they are all very tasty. There are American equivalents(相等物)， of course. We’ve got “Shoofly Mud Pie”. What they call “crisps” is what we call “potato chips” and when we ask for “chips” in England we will get what we know at home in America as “French fries”.
They find it hysterical that we call the “toilet” the “bathroom” and they really double over (弯腰) with laughter when we ask for the “restroom”. American ladies in England who ask for the “little girl’s room” or the “power room” will be met with blank stares. A “fag” is a “cigarette” in the UK, which can lead to endless confusion for British visitors looking for a cigarette in America. Americans on the other hand are endlessly confused by English signs put up over doorways saying “Way Out”. We Americans walk on the sidewalk not the pavement. “Pavement” in America is the actual cement(水泥)the sidewalk is made of.What do British people call French fries?
| A．Chips. | B．Crisps. |
| C．Shoofly Pie. | D．Mississippi Mud Pie. |
The examples given at the end of the passage mainly show that ____.
| A．Americans don’t like dealing with the British |
| B．American English is very different from British English |
| C．English signs are very hard for people to understand |
| D．Americans and the British may find it hard to understand each other |
What does the underlined word “hysterical” in paragraph 4 probably mean?
| A．Funny | B．Difficult | C．Perfect | D．Normal |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．Some similar habits between Americans and the British. |
| B．Different communicating ways between Americans and the British. |
| C．Different body languages between Americans and the British. |
| D．Some differences between American English and British English. |