In China, people usually set off firecrackers to celebrate Spring Festival. But this year seemed very quiet. It was really different. A man called Zhang Wei was asked by a reporter in an interview. He said that his friends and he hadn’t set off a single firecracker.
“We all suffered from last month’s smog(雾霾). If we don’t call an end to the firecracker, the environment will get worse and worse during the holiday.” Said Zhang Wei. He put up a notice in his community in Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province. In the notice, he called on more people to set off fewer firecrackers during this year’s Spring Festival holiday.
Lots of parents agreed with Zhang Wei’s idea. They said that they hated the noise of firecrackers. The noise used to wake up their babies too early. The babies really needed quiet mornings,
More Chinese looked forward to celebrating the holiday in a greener way. They decided not to set off firecrackers. They also decided not to waste food. They said that the new celebrations sounded fashionable.
“My family didn’t buy any fireworks this year. Instead, we donated the money to charity. It’s good for the environment and charity as well.” Internet user “Fighter” wrote on Sina Weibo.How do people usually celebrate Spring Festival in China?
| A．By setting off firecrackers. |
| B．By donating the money to charity. |
| C．By not wasting food. |
| D．By putting up a notice. |
Lots of parents hated the noise of firecrackers because____.
| A．they couldn’t afford to buy them. |
| B．firecrackers were too expensive. |
| C．the noise might wake up their babies. |
| D．firecrackers might cause fire |
More people decided _____.
| A．not to get together |
| B．not to set off firecrackers |
| C．not to throw away more food |
| D．to call an end to all the celebrations |
What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．Don’t Waste Food | B．Spring Festival Celebrations |
| C．Spring Festival Goes Green | D．Firecrackers and Noise |
“Grandma, Grandma, tell us a story ! ”Four darling children sat by my feet, looking up at me expectantly． Suddenly, we were interrupted clapping．“Terrific, ” the director said, stepping up the stage from the aisle（过道）．“Except, could you kids face the audience a bit more? ”
The kids shifted to face the empty seats, which would be filled in a few days for the church play．“Perfect,” the director said． “Now, Grandma, read to your grandchildren．” A pang of sadness hit me． If' only I could read to my real grandchild!
I had a granddaughter, but I'd never met her． Sixteen years earlier my son was involved in a relationship that ended badly． But out of' it came a blessing: a baby girl named Lena． I hoped to be a grandmother to her-but shortly after the birth, the mother moved without any address left． Over the years, I asked around town to try and find my son’s ex-wife （前妻）,but it seemed that she didn’t want to be found．
I'd just joined this new church a week earlier and was at once offered the part of Grandma in the play． At least now I could pretend to be a grandma． The rehearsals went well, and finally the day of' the show arrived． The performance was great． “You all looked so natural up there, ”one of' my friends said．
Afterward, we went to the church basement for refreshments （茶点）．I walked over to one of the girls in the play． Rehearsals had been such a whirlwind （一片忙乱） that we never really got to talk． “How's my granddaughter? ” I joked．
“Fine !” she answered． Just then, someone else walked up and asked the girl her name．
I wasn't sure I heard the girl's answer correctly． But it made me ask her another question．“What's your mother's name? ”
She told me, I was still in shock．“And what's your father's name? ”I asked． She told me．It was my son．
She'd only started going to that church a week before I did． Since that day of 'the play, we've stayed close． Not long ago, she even made me a great grandma．What was the author doing at the beginning of' the story?
| A．Telling a story． | B．Playing a game． |
| C．Preparing for a play． | D．Acting in a movie． |
Why did the author feel “a pang of' sadness” at the words of' the director'?
| A．The director's words reminded her of 'her lost granddaughter． |
| B．The director's words hurt her so badly． |
| C．She wished that she had a real grandchild． |
| D．The director wasn’t content with her performance． |
What happened in the church basement after the play'?
| A．The author played a joke on Lena． |
| B．Lena treated the author as a friend． |
| C．The author got to know who Lena was． |
| D．Lena mistook the author for her grandmother． |
This passage is mainly organized in the pattern of ．
| A．time and events |
| B．contrast and conclusion |
| C．cause and effect |
| D．questions and answers |
We can infer that when writing the story, the author felt.
| A．light-hearted | B．Heartbroken | C．confused | D．anxious |
You’re standing in the dairy section at the grocery store, searching for your favorite brand. Suddenly, you catch a smell of chocolate cookies. You forget about dairy and head for the bakery (烘烤食品) section. Guess what? You just walked into an odor (气味) trap (陷阱)! The odor was cooked up by scientists in a lab.
For years, scientists have been studying the special powers of smell. They found that more than our other senses, smell changes our mood and helps us remember things.
So companies have begun spending thousands of dollars to scent (使充满香味) entire stores. Artificial (人造的) scents are being used to lead customers by the nose. These smells help to get people inside and put them in the mood to buy. They even make customers remember the store later, so they’ll come back for more. Also, many companies have smartly made use of product smells. A company added lemon fragrance to its dish cleaner. They wanted people to think the soap contained “natural” cleaners. It worked!
New uses for smells are being created every day. One bank, for example, gives customers coupons (优惠券) advertising car loans (贷款). To get people to take out a loan, bank officials hope to coat these coupons with the fresh leather smell of a new car. In Australia, telephone offices are putting sweat odor on unpaid bills. Since some people sweat when they’re scared, this smell might remind them of when they were frightened. And they’ll pay the bills right away!
What lies ahead for our noses? Smell scientists are working on some pretty far-out ideas. Would you believe TV sets that produce smells? Or how about scent diets? Certain food smells will fool your stomach into thinking it’s full. Alarm clocks will scent your bedroom with a strong pleasant smell designed to wake you up. Scientists are even working on ways to keep garbage from smelling. Researchers expect scents to help students make more sense of what they’re learning.
And just think. Someday soon, even your homework may smell nice!How do sales methods affect customers in the stores?
| A．They change customers’ preferences. |
| B．They persuade customers to use credit cards. |
| C．They make customers avoid bad and unsafe products. |
| D．They influence customers to make unplanned purchases. |
Why do telephone offices put sweat odor on unpaid bills?
| A．Because the sweat odor is a reminder of terrifying experience. |
| B．Because the sweat odor can change people’s attitude. |
| C．Because most people don’t think much of sweating. |
| D．Because many people dislike paying bills. |
What does the author mean by saying “Someday soon, even your homework may smell nice!”?
| A．Students would benefit more from smell research. |
| B．Students would be more willing to do homework. |
| C．Smell research would develop beyond our imagination. |
| D．Smell research would make great differences to our life. |
Why does the author write this passage?
| A．To encourage the store owners to use smells. |
| B．To expose wrong practices by smell scientists. |
| C．To inform the readers of an interesting subject. |
| D．To blame the advertisers that use smells to sell. |
It’s really true what people say about English politeness: it’s everywhere. When squeezing (挤过去) past someone in a narrow passage, people say “sorry”. When getting off a bus, English passengers say “thank you” rather than the driver. In Germany, people would never dream of doing these things. After all, squeezing past others is sometimes unavoidable, and the bus driver is only doing his job. I used to think the same way, without questioning it, until I started traveling to the British Isles, and here are some more polite ways of interacting (交往) with people in UK.
People thank each other everywhere in England, all the time. When people buy something in a shop, customer and shop assistant in most cases thank each other twice or more. In Germany, it would be exceptional to hear more than one thank you in such a conversation. British students thank their lecturers when leaving the room. English employers thank their employees for doing their jobs, as opposite to Germans, who would normally think that paying their workers money is already enough.
Another thing I observed during my stay was that English people rarely criticize (批评) others. Even when I was working and mistakes were pointed out to me, my employers emphasized several times but none of their explanations were intended as criticism. It has been my impression that by avoiding criticism, English people are making an effort to make others feel comfortable. This also is showed in other ways. British men still open doors for women, and British men are more likely to treat women to a meal than German men. However, I do need to point out here that this applies to English men a bit more than it would to Scottish men! Yes, the latter are a bit tightfisted.What is the author’s attitude towards English politeness?
| A．He thinks it is unnecessary. | B．He thinks little of it. |
| C．He appreciates it very much. | D．He thinks it goes too far. |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．German men never treat a woman to dinner. |
| B．The author think it’s unnecessary to say “thank you” to the bus driver. |
| C．In Germany, employers often say “thank you” to employees for their job. |
| D．Germans think it is unnecessary to thank workers because payment is enough. |
We can learn from the last paragraph that Scottish men ______.
| A．like to fight with each other |
| B．treat women in a polite way |
| C．are as generous as English men |
| D．are unwilling to spend money for women |
The author develops the text through the method of ______.
| A．making comparisons | B．telling stories |
| C．giving reasons | D．giving examples |
Whether they’re project documents, trade journals, blogs, business books or ebooks, most of us read regularly as part of our jobs, and to develop our skills and knowledge.
But do you ever read what should be a useful document, yet fail to gain any helpful information from it? Or, re-read something several times to get a full understanding of the content? If so, look at the following strategies (策略) that will help you read more effectively.
●Think About What You Want to Know
Before you start reading anything, ask yourself why you’re reading it. Are you reading with a purpose, or just for pleasure? What do you want to know after you’ve read it? Once you know your purpose, you can examine the resource (资源) to see whether it’s going to help you.
Ask yourself whether the resource meets your needs, and try to work out if it will give you the right amount of knowledge. If you think that the resource isn’t consummate, don’t waste time reading it.
●Know How Deeply to Study the Material
Where you only need the shallowest knowledge of a subject, you can skim material. Here you read only chapter headings, introductions, and summaries.
If you need a moderate (中等的) level of information on a subject, then you can scan the text. This is when you read the chapter introductions and summaries in detail. You can then speed read the contents of the chapters, picking out and understanding key words and concepts.
Only when you need full knowledge of a subject is it worth studying the text in detail (细节). Here it’s best to skim the material first to get an overview of the subject. This gives you an understanding of its structure, into which you can then fit the detail gained from a full reading of the material. Why should we know our purpose before reading?
| A．Because we can develop our skills and knowledge. |
| B．Because we can get a full understanding of the content. |
| C．Because we can avoid re-reading something several times. |
| D．Because we can check it out whether the material will be helpful. |
What does the underlined word “consummate” in the 5th paragraph mean?
| A．Legal. | B．Natural. | C．Perfect. | D．Formal. |
According to the depth to study the material, how many reading strategies are mentioned?
| A．2. | B．3. | C．4. | D．5. |
The best title for this passage should be ______.
| A．Reading Strategies |
| B．Think About What You Want to Know |
| C．Know How Deeply to Study the Material |
| D．How to Develop our Skills and Knowledge |
Come for the Latest Movies
It’s summer movie time again. And heroes are ready to try their strength and magic on the silver screen. Check out our list of four films that look most promising to young audiences.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Release Date: June 4
Story: It’s the summer before Harry Potter’s third year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. A shadow is hanging over Hogwarts. A dangerous murderer, Sirius Black, has escaped the Wizards’ Prison. And he broke out to fulfill one task to kill Harry Potter.
Around the World in 80 Days
Release Date: June 16
Story: This version of the classic novel set in 1872 focuses on Passepartout (Hong Kong actor Jackie Chan), a Chinese thief who seeks refuge with a strange London adventurer, Phileas Fogg. Passepartout uses his martial arts skills to defend Fogg from danger as he travels around the world in 80 days to win a bet.
Spider-Man 2
Release Date: June 30
Story: Peter Parker is still coming to terms with his dual identity as the crime superhero Spider-Man. He wants to reveal his secret identity to Mary Jane, meanwhile, his Aunt May has fallen on hard times. A new villain (坏人), Dr Otto Octavius, has appeared to cause more troubles.
King Arthur
Release Date: July 7
Story: King Arthur is presented as a clever ruler who manages to unite all the knights (骑士) in Britain after the fall of the Roman Empire. Under the guidance of Merlin and the beautiful, brave Guinevere, Arthur will struggle to realize his dreams.To enjoy the performance of Jackie Chan, you can go to the cinema on ______.
| A．June 4 | B．June 16 | C．June 30 | D．July 7 |
In Spider-Man 2, Aunt May’s trouble is caused by ______.
| A．Peter Parker | B．Mary Jane |
| C．Dr Otto Octavius | D．Spider Man |
Which of the following films is set in ancient Britain?
| A．King Arthur. | B．Spider-Man 2. |
| C．Around the World in 80 Days. | D．Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. |
In which part of a website are you most likely to find the passage?
| A．Travel. | B．Entertainment. | C．News. | D．Comments. |