“It is one of the few bright spots in the Chinese economy,” says Zeng Ming. He is talking about ecommerce. Mr. Zeng, the chief strategy officer for Alibaba, a giant Chinese Internet firm, predicts that digital transactions on his firm's platforms will top 1 trillion yuan($159 billion) this year—more than Amazon's and eBay's combined. That is a bold claim, but consider what happened on Singles Day.
Invented a few years ago by students and seized upon by digital marketers, this festival for lonely hearts falls annually on the 11th day of the 11th month(since 1 is the loneliest number). It is like St Valentine's Day, only worse. Singletons show each other with tender gifts: a barrage of pearls; a storm of sweets.
This November 11th they spent a surprising 19 billion yuan on Alibaba's online platforms—a fourfold increase on a year ago, and more than double what Americans spent online last Cyber Monday(the Monday after Thanksgiving, when retailers urge Americans to shop online). About 100 million purchases were logged, accounting for 80% of the packages shipped that day. Couriers(快递员) were buried in parcels.
So life is good for China's etailers. Then? Not exactly. The number of digital marketers is increasing and online sales are booming. Consumers are enjoying lower prices, better service and more variety. The problem? The pressure on profits in Chinese ecommerce is worse than in America, reckons Elinor Leung of CLSA, a broker. “Almost no one makes money,” she says.
The fiercest battles are being fought between online retailers and their bricksandmortar(实体的) rivals. Dangdang, a firm that resembles Amazon, and 360buy, another online retailer, have cut prices fiercely. Tencent, a cashrich online giant known for its instantmessaging software, is splashing out to win market share. 360buy has also just raised $400 millon from investors to do the same. But it is unclear how much longer such firms can burn through capital.What's the best title of this passage?
A.The Ambition of Alibaba |
B.Fierce Competition between Retailers |
C.A New Festival for the Singles |
D.Chinese Booming Ecommerce |
According to Zeng Ming, this year Alibaba will ________.
A.outweigh Amazon and eBay in worldwide influence |
B.rank top among all the Internet firms |
C.have more than 159 billion dollars' sale |
D.create another sales miracle just like the one on Singles Day |
How many packages were shipped on November 11th from Alibaba's online platforms?
A.About 80 million. | B.About 100 million. |
C.About 125 million. | D.About 180 million. |
What's the author's attitude towards online retailers in China?
A.Optimistic. | B.Concerned. |
C.Sympathetic. | D.Indifferent. |
Nothing can spoil a vacation quicker than losing your money or credit cards. A few simple steps before you head out of the door can help protect your cash, card and personal information while you’re traveling.
Paul Stephens, a policy analyst San Diego, notes that people spend a lot of time planning their trips, from buying guidebooks to finding just the right beach outfits(装备).“But their eyes glaze(呆滞) over when the subject of keeping money safe comes up,” he said.
“Why not take a few minutes to do something that could probably save your vacation?” Stephens asked.“In most cases, they can go on your to-do list with‘ buy travel bags’ and everything else,” he added.
The top recommendation is to clean your wallet. Remove unnecessary credit cards and any other unneeded documents that could compromise(危及...的安全)your identity if lost or stolen while you’re on vocation.
Then make a photocopy of the cards you’ve decided to take along and keep it in a secure location with you(not in your wallet)or leave it with a trusted relative or friend back home. Then you will know who you need to contact and how to reach it if your wallet is missing.
“Travelers should never leave their wallets or any identifying documents in their hotel room when they’re not there,” he said.” Choose a hotel with a safe to keep your valuable things in. Or keep your wallet and documents with you at all times. ”
56.According to passage, _______can destroy one’s vacation the most quickly.
A.being lost on vacation B.losing money or credit cards
C.living in a bad hotel. D.losing contact with family
57.What does the underlined word stand for?
A.The people who are going traveling.
B.The outfits that are prepare4d for traveling.
C.The suggestions on what to buy when traveling.
D.The steps to avoid losing money or credit cards.
58.What should people do with their wallet before they go on vacation?
A.Take it with them all the time.
B.Put it in a safe place at the hotel
C.Remove unnecessary cards and documents.
D.Leave it with family or friend.
59.What is the topic of the passage?
A.How to prepare for travel.
B.How to be happy during your vacation.
C.How to keep cash and cards safe on vacation.
D.How to protect your luggage on vacation.
60.According to the passage, we know ______.
A.people don’t always know how to protect their money or credit cards
B.people should take a lot of money with them while traveling
C.people can leave their identifying documents in rooms, if the hotel is expensive
D.people can spend a few minutes preparing the luggage for travelling
E
Support for renewable energy technology to figllt global warming is weakening in the face of
worldwide economic problems and the true scale of the carbon reductions required,a survey pub-
lished today has suggested.
Figures presented at the UN climate talks in Poznan,Poland,show that climate experts have
less faitll in alternative energy than they did 12 months ago.
The survey shows less support for wind energy,solar power,biofuels,biomass and hydrogen
energy as technologies with“high potential”to reduce carbon levels in the atmosphere over the next
25 years.
Eric Whan of Globesean,which carried out t}le survey of“climate decision makers”.said.
“As the climate crisis deepens they could be becoming less optimistic that individual technologies
may be able to solve the problem.’’
The survey,supported by groups including the World Bank,the United Nations Environment
Programme and the Pew Center for Global Climate Change,questioned l,000 senior figures across
governments,pressure groups and companies in 1 15 countries over the last few weeks.
Almost three—quarters of the experts agreed in the survey that“equitable(公平的,平等的)e—
eonomic growth and development and significant progress in combating(与…斗争)climate change
Call be achieved at the salne time.’’
Asked to rate the likely Success of low—carbon technologies in the mid—term,they showed
less confidence than a similar survey 12 months ago.Support for offshore wind farms,was down
61%from 65%last year.Solar electricity generation was rated as having high—potential by 66%of respondents,down from 74%.Support for hydrogen power was 32%,down form 36%in 2007.
The respondents also warned that a deep recession(衰退)would make a new global deal on climate harder to achieve.Some 44%agreed that the current economic crisis will significantly delay orcompromise the“achievement of effective climate change agreements.’’
72.Which of the following is NOT the alternative energy? ·
A.Wind energy. B.Solar power. C.Hydrogen energy.D.Conventional energy.
73.Which of the following altemative energy sees the most remarkable reduction in support'?
A.Offshore wind farms. B.Solar electricity.
C.Hydrogen power. D.Natural gas.
Why is support for renewable energy technology to fight dobal warming weakening?
A.The technology has no use at all.
B.People don’t want to use the technology.
C.Nothing can be done to reduce carbon levels in the atmosphere.
D.The current economic crisis iS to blame.
75.What’S the best title of the passage?
A.Experts Lost Faith in Renewable Technology B.Global Environment Is Worsening
C.Who Is to Blame f.0r tIle Environment D.What Can Be Done to Save the Earth
D
As school fl,tats again,there’s SO much mole for an American parent to nag(唠叨)about,like
homework,bedtime and lost hours on the Intemet.But in the age of digital childhood,Jacky Long-well,45,of McLean,Virginia,often text—messages(发短信)what she OnCe told her children bymouth_"Be nice to your brother;walk the dog;remember your reading.
This is the world of the modem family,in which even reminding children to do something has
become electronic.
There are changes in how parents nag and in what they nag about and in the frequency of their
nagging.
With technology,“you nag more,and you are a little bit more:precise with your nagging.’’said
Reginald Black,46,of Woodbridge,Virginia.
For many young people,electronic nagging is part of the experience of growing up.Charles Flowers,17,131.$enior at St.John“College High School in Washington.says his mothel-reminds him about everything from laundry,being Oil time to baseball practice and mowing the lawn by text.
When she uses capitals he knows she is serious:GET HOME!
Some say technology has made nagging less annoying.
Jaeky Longwell thinks texts ale less emotional than spoken messages and less likely to be resisted by teenagers.
It’s not as painful for them to hear it by text.It becomes grouped with the friendly communication,”she said.“They can’t hear the nagging.”
She thinks a good way to do it is to mix friendliness with nagging.A parent Call always start by
saying hello.
Not all parents like the new electronic r,agging.Joyce Bouehard,51,a mother of four in Fairfax,Virginia,texts her 14一year—old son but says that for many things — chores,homework— the
old—fashioned way works better.Nagging by text has risks,she notes:I always think,if you are texting them something and they are with their friends,they ale getting a big laugh out of it.’’
68.We can conclude from the first two paragraphs that————————.
A.American children often stay up late studying
B.Jacky Long'well had a happy aigital childhood
C.American parents pay too much attention to their children’s studies
D.American parents think a lot about their children’s characters
69.The example of Reginald Black is used to show readers————————.
A.that her nagging is thoughtful
B.how the amount and kind of nagging have changed with the arrival of the digital age
C.the kind of skills a parent needs to nag effectively
D.that she likes nagging her children very much
70.We can infer that—————————.
A.It’S better for parents to nag in a friendly,way
B.whether、nagging is e]ectronic or not,it is annoying
C.American parents generally don’t like to nag
D.American parents like to llse capital letters in messages
7 1.The main idea of the article is———————一.
A.the subjects American parents like to nag about
B.the reaSOliS American parents like to nag their children
C.that electronic nagging is becoming commoll in the U.S
D.how American parents began to nag their children by text messages
C
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64.What is this ad mainly about?
A.It mainly show8 US some way8 to spend weekends.
B.It mainly 8bows us a place to relax Olll',sehTe8.
C.It shows the way8 saving OUr time.
D.It shows US a lot of ways to spend OUr holidays.
65.Which of the following is TRUE according to this passage?
A.Men and women swim in the SPORTS CENTER separately.
B.People can play termi8 day and night.
C.Children at any age can pky golf in the SPORTS CENTER.
D.People under 20 can all take gymllfltstic8.
66.How many sports items title mentioned in the passage?
A.5. B.7 C.9 D.12.
67.Where carl we find this ad in your opinion?
A·In a company. B.In a restaurant. C.In a park D.On a newspaper.
B
How does it happen that children learn their mother tongue SO well?When we compare them
With adults learning a foreign language,we often find this interesting fact.A little child without
knowledge or experience often succeeds in a complete mastery of the language.A grown—up person with fully developed mental powers,in most cases,may end up with a faulty and inexact corflllland.What accounts for tllis difference?
Despite other explanations。tlle real answer in my opinion hes partly in the child himself,partly in the behaviour of the people around him.In the first place,the time of learning the mother tongue in the most favorable of all,namely,the first years of hfe.A child hears it spoken from morning till night and,what is more important,always in its genuine form,with the right pronunciation,rightIntonation,right use of words and right structure.He drinksin all the words and expressions which come to him in a hsh.ever—bubbhng spring.There is no resistance:there is perfect assimilation.
Then the child has,as it were,private lessons all the year round,while an adult language—
student has each week a limited number of hours which he generally shares with others.The child
has another advantage:he hears the language in all possible situations,always accompanied by the
right kind of gestures and facial expressions.Here there is nothing unnatural,such as is often found
In language lessons in schools,when one talks about ice and snow in June or scorching heat in January And what a child hears is generally what immediately interests him.Again and again,when his attempts at speech a聪successful,his desires are understood and fulfilled.
Finally,though a child’S“teachers”may not have been trained in language teaching,their re-
lations with him are always close and personal.ney take great pains to Inske their lessons easy.
60.’rhe main idea of the passage is——.
A.to tell why the native language is learnt SO well by children
B.to teach children to learn their lllothei"language we
C.to show that children’S teacher should take great p8ins to make their lessons easy
D.to do research into the difference between children and adults
61.What does the underlined phrase“dlq.nks in”in paragraph 2 mean?
A.drinks alcohol B.has a drink of C.takes in D.tastes
62.An adult has more difflculties in learning foreign languages well for the reason that_____.
A.children are more indiligent than adults
B.adults pay less attention to learning/anguages than children.
C.children have private lessons all the year around
D.an adult language—student has limited time to share with others
63.Ⅵmo ale the teachers teaching a child to learn his mother language?
A。His parents. B.His teachers. C.People around him.D.Himself.