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The first flights of the new airlines that will take tourists into space are ready to take off in 2012, and getting a seat on one is not all that different from booking a trip someplace on Earth. You can sign up on the website of, say, Virgin Galactic,the most wellknown of the new space tourism companies, or go to an approved travel agency and put down a large deposit. Soon you will be able to buy travel insurance,just as you can for any other vacation.
Until now,space tourism has been limited to the ultrawealthy. Just seven people have paid tens of millions of dollars each for a trip to the International Space Station aboard a Russian rocket.
But that could change this year, when Virgin Galactic intends to start offering flights just beyond the space barrier on a rocket ship it has built, featuring five minutes of weightlessness during a twoandahalfhour tour. At $ 200,000 a seat, this will open the final frontier to far more people.
At least two other specialty airlines have jumped in as well, taking reservations and deposits for future space flights.Allianz, the big insurer, will introduce an insurance product in 2012, lending space tourism the trappings of the regular travel industry.
“Just to be able to sell space travel as a regular part of your business, really, just how cool is that?” said Lynda Turley Garrett, president of Alpine Travel of Saratoga, Calif.,who is one of 58 accredited space agents for Virgin Galactic in the United States.
In five years,Ms.Garrett has sold three seats. But she expects that to change once passengers start going up and coming down to tell their friends. “By 2017,it'll be just like scheduling a flight to L.A.,” Ms.Garrett predicted.
If you want to book a flight to space in 2012, you can________.

A.go to any travel agency
B.telephone Virgin Galactic
C.pay a visit to Allianz
D.sign up on the website of Virgin Galactic

From Paragraph 2 we can know that ________.

A.only the extremely rich people can afford the space trip
B.seven people have paid tens of millions of dollars for a space trip
C.Russia is the first country to build the space station
D.ordinary people are not allowed to take space tour

Which of the following is true of Virgin Galactic?

A.It is one of the approved space agencies.
B.It is a famous space tourism company.
C.It sells insurance products to space tourists.
D.Its rocket has carried space passengers successfully.

What does the underlined word “trappings” in Paragraph 4 probably refer to?

A.Standard uniforms.
B.Traditional decorations.
C.Symbolic signs.
D.Personal belongings.

What does Ms. Garrett think of the future space travel?

A.Common.  B.Changeable.
C.Flexible.  D.Reasonable.
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Young people can have problems with their minds. Some students become worried because they have to study very hard. Others have trouble getting on well with people like their parents and classmates.
Liu Wei, a Junior 2 student from Hefei, could not understand his teacher and was doing badly in his lessons. He became so worried about it that he started to cut his finger with a knife. Another student, 14-year-old Yan Fang from Guangzhou, was afraid of exams. She got very worried in the test, and when she looked at the exam papers, she couldn’t think of anything to write.
A recent report from Jiefang Daily says about 18% of Shanghai teenagers have mental problems. Their troubles include being worried and very unhappy, and having problems in learning and getting on well with people. Many students who have problems won’t go for advice or help. Some think they will look stupid if they go to see a doctor. Others don’t want to talk about their secret.
Liang Yuezhu, an expert on teenagers from Beijing Anding Hospital has the following advice for teenagers.
1). Talk to your parents or teachers often.
2). Take part in group activities and play sports.
3). Go to see a doctor if you feel unhappy or unwell.
The students who often become worried or have trouble getting on well with others may have___________.

A.a headache B.mental problems
C.knives with them D.no parents

Liu Wei cut his finger with a knife because____________.

A.he was afraid of his teacher B.he wanted to frighten his parents
C.his finger was badly hurt D.he was so worried about his study

Yan Fang’s problems happened whenever ______________.

A.she studied very hard B.she talked with her parents
C.she had exams D.she thought of something

Students who have problems won’t ask others for help because _____________.

A.they won’t let others think they are stupid
B.they don’t think doctors can help them
C.they don’t want to tell their secret to others
D.both A and C

Liang Yuezhu’s advice tells us that_________________.

A.it’s unnecessary for them to be with others
B.it’s better for the students who have mental problems to join others
C.only group activities and sports can help them
D.teachers and parents can’t do anything about mental problems

Dolphins and sharks are showing up in surprisingly shallow water just off the Florida coast. Mullets, crabs, rays and small fish gather by the thousands off an Alabama pirer. Birds covered in oil are crawling deep into marshes(沼泽), never to be seen again.
Marine scientists studying the effects of the BP disaster(英国石油公司漏油事件)are seeing some strange phenomena. Fish and other wildlife seem to be fleeing the oil out in the Gulf and clustering in cleaner waters along the coast in a trend that some researchers see as a potentially troubling sign. The animals’ presence close to shore means their usual habitat is badly polluted, and the crowding could result in mass die-offs as fish run out of oxygen. Also, the animals could easily be captured by their enemies.
The nearly two-month-old spill(漏油)has created an environmental disaster in US history as tens of millions of gallons have flown into the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem. Scientists are seeing some unusual things as they try to understand the effects on thousands of species of marine life.
For nearly four hours Monday, a three-person crew with Greenpeace cruised past delicate islands and mangrove-dotted inlets in Barataria Bay off southern Louisiana. They saw dolphins by the dozen frolicking(嬉戏)in the oily sheen(光泽)and oil-tinged pelicans feeding their young. But they spotted no dead animals.
"I think part of the reason why we’re not seeing more yet is that the impacts of this crisis are really just beginning," Greenpeace marine biologist John Hocevar said.
The counting of dead wildlife in the Gulf is more than an academic exercise; the deaths will help determine how much BP pays in damages.
What do the marine life react to the BP disaster?

A.Birds crawl deep into caves.
B.Dolphins and sharks show up in deep water.
C.Tens of thousands of marine animals are found dead.
D.Sea creatures flee from oil spill, gathering near seashore.

The environmental disaster was caused by .

A.the damage of the Mexico Gulf ecosystem
B.the lack of environmental sense of BP
C.the nearly two-month-old oil spill
D.the crowding marine life

What is John Hocevar’s attitude towards the disaster?

A.Worried. B.Disappointed. C.Depressed. D.Neutral.

From the passage, we can infer that .

A.BP will pay much money according to the number of dead wildlife there
B.marine scientists have seen some strange phenomena
C.the disaster has little influence on dolphins
D.a three-person crew reached no conclusion

The test is most probably a ______.

A.newspaper ad B.book review
C.science news report D.science fiction story

There are many older people in the world and there will be many more. A little-known fact is that over 60 percent of the older people live in developing countries. According to the World Health Organization, by 2020 there will be 1 billion, with over 700 million living in developing countries.
 It is a surprising fact that the population aging is particularly rapid in developing countries. For example, it took France 115 years for the rate of older people to double from 7 percent to 14 percent. It is estimated to take China a mere 27 years to achieve this same increase.
 What are the implications of these increased numbers of older folk? One of the biggest worries for governments is that the longer people live, the more likelihood there is for diseases and for disability. Attention is being paid to the need to keep people as healthy as possible, including during old age, to lessen the financial burden on the state.
 Another significant problem is the need for the younger generations to understand and value the older people in their society. In some African countries, certainly in Asia, older people are respected and regarded as the ones with special knowledge. Yet traditions are fading away daily, which does not make sure the continued high regard of older people. As society changes, attitudes will change.
 Much needs to be done to get rid of age discrimination in employment. Life-long learning programs need to be provided to enable older people to be active members in a country’s development.
 Social security policies need to be established to provide adequate income protection for older people. Both public and private schemes are vital in order to build a suitable safety net.
The rate of older people________.
A. is bigger in developed countries than in developing countries
B. B. is one-seventh of the population in developing countries
C. C. will increase much faster in China than in France
D. D. will be sixty percent in developing countries by 2020
2.According topassage,whichofthefollowingaregovernmentsmostworried
About______.
A.Thediseasesanddisabilityofolderpeople.
B.Thelongerlifeandgoodhealthofpeople.
C.Thelossoftaxesonolderpeople.
D.Theincreasingrespectforolderpeople.
It is stated directly in the passage that older people should ________.

A.be treated differently in different cultures
B.enjoy a similar lifestyle
C.be ignored as society changes
D.be valued by the younger generations

Which of the following measure is NOT mentioned to solve the population aging problem?

A.Getting rid of age discrimination in employment.
B.Supplying life-long learning programs to older people.
C.Making sure adequate income protection for older people.
D.Providing free health care for sick older people.

The author concludes in the last paragraph that ________.

A.governments have spent lots of time in solving the aging problem
B.population aging is a hard problem, but it needs to be solved urgently
C.people are too busy to solve the population aging problem
D.much time and effort will be lost in solving the aging problem

Engineering students are supposed to be examples of practicality and rationality (理性), but when it comes to my college education I am an idealist and a fool. In high school I wanted to be an electrical engineer and, of course, any reasonable student with my aims would have chosen a college with a large engineering department, many famous professors and lots of good labs and research equipment. But that’s not what I did.
I chose to study engineering at a small liberal-arts (文科) university that doesn’t even offer a major in electrical engineering. Obviously, this was not a practical choice; I came here for more noble reasons. I wanted a broad education that would provide me with flexibility and a value system to guide me in my job. I wanted to open my eyes and expand my vision by communicating with people who weren’t studying science or engineering. My parents, teachers and other adults praised me for such a wise choice. They told me I was wise and grown-up beyond my 18 years, and I believed them.
 I headed off to the college and sure I was going to have an advantage over those students who went to big engineering "factories" where they didn’t care if you had values or were flexible. I was going to be a complete engineer: technical expert and excellent humanist all in one.
 Now I’m not so sure. Somewhere along the way my noble ideas crashed into reality, as all noble ideas finally do. After three years of struggling to balance math, physics and engineering courses with liberal-arts courses, I have learned there are reasons why few engineering students try to reconcile engineering with liberal-arts courses in college.
 The reality that has blocked my path to become the typical successful student is that engineering and the liberal arts simply don’t mix as easily as I supposed in high school. Individually they shape a person in very different ways. The struggle to reconcile the two fields of study is difficult.
Why did the author choose to study engineering at a small liberal-arts university?

A.He intended to become an engineer and humanist.
B.He intended to be a reasonable student with noble ideals.
C.He wanted to be an example of practicality and rationality.
D.He wanted to communicate with liberal-arts students.

According to the author, by communicating with people who study liberal arts, engineering students can ___________.

A.become noble idealists
B.broaden their knowledge
C.find a better job in the future
D.balance engineering and liberal arts

Which word below can replace the underlined word “reconcile”?

A.confuse B.compare C.combine D.compete

The underlined sentence in 1st paragraph means ___________.

A.he has failed to achieve his ideal aims
B.he is not a practical and rational student
C.his choice of attending to a small liberal-arts university is reasonable
D.his idea of combining engineering with liberal - arts is noble and wise

The author suggests in this passage that ___________.

A.liberal-arts students are supported to take engineering courses
B.technical experts with a wide vision are expected in the society
C.successful engineering students are more welcomed in the society
D.engineering universities with liberal-arts courses are needed

Few of us haven’t read Cinderella, the story of a young woman living in poverty who meets the prince of her dreams. Some might not want to admit it, but there is a hidden Cinderella in everyone’s heart—we all wish we could achieve recognition or success after a period of obscurity(默默无闻).
Mary Santiago has that secret dream, too. Her story is featured in Another Cinderella Story, a film set in a US high school.
Mary is shy but loves to dance. Compared with other girls, she is invisible. However, her world changes completely when a famous teenager pop singer, Joey Parker, appears.
Joey is everything the rest of the boys in her class are not—kind, handsome and desirable. Mary and Joey’s paths cross at a ball. They meet and fall in love with each other. But when Mary has to rush back home, she leaves behind her MP3 player, which becomes the only clue Joey has to find the girl of his dreams. Of course, there is a wicked(邪恶的) stepmother, who turns out to be Dominique Blatt and she takes in Mary after her dancer mother dies. Dominique treats Mary like a maid and does everything she can to make sure Mary doesn’t get into the top dance school. Her two daughters are equally determined to stop Joey falling for Mary, even if that means embarrassing her.
The story, though it mostly follows Cinderella, does add a few modern day twists to the classic fairy tale. Refreshingly, the film, unlike many high school films, does not focus on looks, although the actors are all beautiful. There is also a lot less materialism in Another Cinderella Story than in many similar movies.
“The movie takes the Cinderella fairytale as its jumping off point,” writes movie critic Amber Wilkinson. “The focus is firmly on following your dream.”
The first paragraph is mainly to ____________.

A.build interest and lead us to Mary’s secret dream
B.remind us why Cinderella is popular all the years
C.inform us of the main topic of the whole passage
D.tell us how interesting the fairy tale Cinderella is

In the movie, Mary Santiago is the main character who _____________.

A.is brave in expressing her love
B.is attended badly by the stepmother
C.has a dream of meeting a prince
D.is embarrassed by the pop singer

What can we infer from the passage?

A.Joey is just like other boys in Mary’s class.
B.Mary’s mother influences her a lot in singing.
C.Not many people have a dream to be realized.
D.The MP3 player helps Joey in finding Mary.

The passage is mainly about ___________.

A.an introduction to a film
B.a review about a film
C.an essay about dreams
D.an advertisement of Cinderella

According to the passage, Another Cinderella Story ________.

A.follows Cinderella with nothing new
B.pays more attention to the looks of the actors
C.encourages young people to follow their dreams
D.focuses more on materialism than other films

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