Laptop computers are popular all over the world. People use them on trains and airplanes, in airports and hotels. These laptops connect people to their workplace. In the United States today, laptops also connect students to their classrooms.
Westlake College in Virginia will start a laptop computer program that allows students to do schoolwork anywhere they want. Within five years, each of the 1500 students at the college will receive a laptop. The laptops are part of a $10 million computer program at Westlake, a 110-year-old college. The students with laptops will also have access to the Internet. In addition, they will be able to use e-mail to “speak” with their teachers, their classmates, and their families. However, the most important part of the laptop program is that students will be able to use computers without going to computer labs. They can work with it at home, in a fast-food restaurant or under the trees-anywhere at all!
Because of the many changes in computer technology , laptop use in higher education, such as colleges and universities, is workable. As laptops become more powerful, they become more similar to desktop computers. In addition, the portable computers can connect students to not only the Internet, but also libraries and other resources. State higher-education officials are studying how laptops can help students. State officials are also testing laptop programs at other universities, too.
At Westlake College, more than 60 percent of the staff use computers. The laptops will allow all teachers to use computers in their lessons. As one Westlake teacher said, “ Here we are in the middle of Virginia and we’re giving students a window on the world. They can see everything and do everything.”
| A．use for their schoolwork |
| B．access the Internet |
| C．work at home |
| D．connect them to libraries |
| A．They don’t really talk. |
| B．They use the computer language. |
| C．Laptops have speakers. |
| D．None of the above reasons is correct. |
| A．All teachers use computers. |
| B．1500 students have laptops. |
| C．It is an old college in America. |
| D．Students there can do everything. |
| A．attend lectures on information technology |
| B．travel around the world |
| C．get information from around the world |
| D．have free laptops |
| A．The program is successful. |
| B．The program is not workable. |
| C．The program is too expensive. |
| D．We don’t know the result yet. |
Do you want to be the most popular person in the class? You don’t need to change your character; you just need to improve your personality (人格). In fact, people trust and love the most popular people because they stay normal but still have something that makes them different from the rest of us. Here are some pieces of advice about becoming the most popular person in the class.
◆If you want others to like and respect (尊重) you, you have to start by liking and accepting yourself. Do not change yourself in order to please others.
◆Be helpful to everyone and do it happily. Being nice to people is almost like helping them, because by being nice you make others happy.
◆Be active and have a positive view towards life. Develop confidence in yourself.
◆Stay clean and wear fresh clothes. Do not try to follow fashion to please others.
◆Big words and power cannot bring you respect. You have to get it by being honest. It also helps your personal growth. You must be a person that can be trusted to get respect.If you want to become the most popular person, you should __________.
| A．improve your personality | B．trust and please others |
| C．change your character | D．make yourself different from others |
According to the article, __________ can bring you respect.
| A．following fashion | B．using big words |
| C．being honest and helpful | D．saying hello to others every day |
The underlined sentence shows that __________.
| A．you should be polite when you help others | B．you should make yourself happy[ |
| C．we can help others only by being happy | D．you should always be nice to others |
One night I was sitting in my room half-listening as my 15-year-old brother Tommy fought with my 12-year-old brother Kevin. I didn’t pay attention when Kevin rushed up the stairs with the hurt on his face.
About 20 minutes later, as I was walking upstairs I heard Kevin crying inside the bathroom. I knocked on the door and asked, “Hey Kevin, do you want to talk?”
No answer.
I tried again, “Why don’t you come out of there?”
Again, no answer.
So, joking around, I grabbed a stack of （一摞）cards and a pencil and wrote, “If you don’t want to talk, we can write notes to each other.”
An hour later I was still sitting on the floor outside the bathroom with two stacks of cards in front of me. One was blank and one was cards from Kevin on which he had translated all his yucky feelings into words for me. As I read one of Kevin’s notes, tears came to my eyes. It said, “Nobody in this family cares about me. I’m not the youngest, and I’m not the oldest. Tommy thinks I’m silly and Dad wishes he had the other Kevin as a kid because he’s better at basketball. And you’re never around to even notice me.”
Tears came to my eyes as I wrote back to him. “You know Kevin, I really do love you and I’m sorry I don’t always show it. I am here for you and you are loved in this family.”
There was no answer for a while, but then I heard a tearing sound coming from inside the bathroom. Kevin, who had run out of cards wrote on a torn paper cup. “Thanks.”
I wrote back “For what?” it returned to me with “Loving me” on it.
Since then, I try my best to never only half-notice my family members any more. Kevin and I have a closer relationship now. And sometimes when one of us notices that the other is upset, we’ll smile and say “Write it on a paper cup.”The underlined word “yucky” most probably means ____.
| A．upset | B．exciting | C．terrible | D．amazing |
What could be the reason that Kevin’s Dad doesn’t like him?
| A．Kevin is not as clever as his brother. |
| B．He is neither the youngest nor the oldest. |
| C．Kevin doesn’t like to make friends with others. |
| D．Kevin is not good at playing basketball. |
What do we know about the writer?
| A．She has two children in her family. |
| B．She didn’t pay enough attention to Kevin before. |
| C．She used to show her love to Kevin. |
| D．She has a closer relationship with Tommy after that. |
What does the writer want to tell us?
| A．Everyone should show how they love their family members. |
| B．It’s hard to get on well with family members. |
| C．It’s important to keep peace in the family. |
| D．We should try our best to stop our children from fighting. |
When he was 16, his father seriously said to him, “I’ll give you whatever you want before you are 18. But after that, I won’t care much about you, and you should give me whatever I want.” When his 18th birthday was coming, the young man began thinking about looking for a job. So he sent resumes(简历) to many companies he liked on the Internet. But, most got no reply, he said, “Maybe they were surprised about my primary school education.”
By chance, one of his friends was looking for someone, who could work as an egg porter(搬运工) in the supermarket, for 0.5 Yuan a box. Facing lots of difficulties in getting a job, he said, “I’ll take this job. At least I can make some money for my petrol(汽油).” Then every day, he drove his car, his 18th birthday gift, to work in the supermarket. He did that for three months.
Later, he heard that a newspaper was looking for a network technician(网络技术员), so he asked for it. But they were also worried about his school education. He practiced his skill right in front of the computer, and showed the managers web pages he had designed. He started to work the next day, and became the director of network department in less than a year.
And now, the 23-year-old man is a boss. In January 2005, he started a magazine for children, with himself as the editor in chief（主编）. And the only writer was his father.It was difficult for the young man to get a job because _______.
| A．he was only 18 years old |
| B．his father cared too much about him. |
| C．he had an expensive car |
| D．he didn’t have enough school education |
What did the 18th birthday mean to the young man?
| A．He could get a car as a gift. |
| B．He had to make a living all by himself. |
| C．He had to leave his parents. |
| D．He had to work in a supermarket. |
The young man’s father might be_______.
| A．a well-know and rich writer | B．a computer programmer |
| C．a very old and kind man | D．a manager of a big company |
The magazine the young man started was perhaps______.
| A．about network technicians | B．about working for newspapers |
| C．made of many funny stories | D．sold only in supermarkets |
As we know, there are differences between western culture and Chinese culture. We can see differences when we pay attention to the way words are used. Let’s look at the words about animals and plants. Most expressions in Chinese about the dog, for example, “a homeless dog”, “a mad dog”, “a running dog” and “a dog catching mouse”, have negative meanings. But in western countries, dogs are thought to be honest and good friends of humans. In English, people use the dog to describe positive actions. For example, “You are a lucky dog.” means you are a lucky person. And “every dog has its day.” means each person has good luck sometimes. To describe a person’s serious illness, they say “sick as a dog”. The word “dog-tired” means very tired. However, Chinese love cats very much. But in western culture, “cat” is often used to describe a woman who is cruel.
The rose is regarded as symbol of love in both China and some western countries. People think the rose means love, peace, courage and friendship. And the rose is the national flower of England, America and many other countries.
The words about plants and animals are used in positive or negative ways in different cultures. We can learn about many differences in cultures by comparing how some words are used. “Every dog has its day.” means “________”.
| A．Everybody in the world is lucky. |
| B．Each person lives his own way of life. |
| C．If one works hard, he’s sure to succeed. |
| D．Everybody has a time in life to be lucky. |
What can we know from the passage?
| A．Words show differences in culture. |
| B．Chinese people prefer dogs to cats. |
| C．Western people think cats to be good friends. |
| D．Rose is the national flower of all western countries. |
Which statement is right according to passage?
| A．People think the rose means love, peace, luck and friendship. |
| B．The words about plants and animals are used both in positive and negative ways in different cultures. |
| C．In China, people use the dog to describe negative actions. |
| D．In eastern culture, “cat” is often used to describe a woman who is cruel. |
What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．Negative or Positive |
| B．Different Countries Have Different Culture |
| C．Rose Means the Same in Chinese and English |
| D．What Dog and Cat Mean in English and Chinese |
| Sichuan Restaurant Type: Chinese food Hours: Mon~ Fri (7:30 am to 10:30 pm) Sat~ Sun (7:30 am to 12:30 pm) Services: Eat—in About Us: We have all kinds of Chinese food and are famous for our hot Sichuan dishes. Dinner starts from $55 per person. Tel: 555 0980 |
Italian Pizza Restaurant Type: Italian food Hours: Tue ~ Sun (12 noon to 11 pm) Mon (closed) Services: Take—away, Home delivery(送餐) About Us: Cheapest and best food in town. Pizza for four people $7.50 and up Tel: 555 7887 |
If you want to buy breakfast on your way to school in the morning , where should you go?
| A．Before 7:30 am in Italian Pizza Restaurant. |
| B．Before 7:30 am in Sichuan Restaurant |
| C．After 7:30 am in Italian Pizza Restaurant. |
| D．After 7:30 am in Sichuan Restaurant. |
You and your friend want to go out to a restaurant for dinner. It is Monday evening and you have a total of $ 50 to spend. Where will you go?
| A．Sichuan Restaurant. | B．Italian Pizza Restaurant. |
| C．Neither of them. | D．Both of them. |
Which of the following is true about Italian Pizza Restaurant?
| A．It has good but expensive food. |
| B．It is open earlier than the other restaurant. |
| C．It is the restaurant that allows take—away. |
| D．It is a great place for people to get together. |