Hi, everybody. Over the past couple months, most of the political headlines you’ve read have probably been about the government shutdown and the launch of the Affordable Care Act(平价医疗法案). And I know that many of you have rightly never been more frustrated with Washington.
But if you look beyond those headlines, there are some good things happening in our economy. And that’s been my top priority（优先考虑）since the day I walked into the Oval Office.
After decades in which the middle class was working harder and harder just to keep up, and a punishing recession（衰退）that made it worse, we made the tough choices required not just to recover from crisis, but to rebuild on a new foundation for stronger, more durable economic growth.
Five years later, we have fought our way back. Our businesses have created 7.8 million new jobs in the past 44 months. Another 200,000 Americans went back to work last month.
The American auto industry has come back with more than 350,000 new jobs –-- jobs putting out and selling the high-tech, fuel-efficient cars the world wants to buy. And they’re leading the charge in a business that has added jobs for the first time since the 1990s –-- a big reason why our businesses sell more goods and services “Made in America” than ever before.
We decided to stop our addiction to foreign oil. And today, we produce more renewable energy than ever, more natural gas than anybody, and for the first time in nearly 20 years, America now produces more oil than we buy from other countries.
We decided to fix a broken health care system. And even though the task has been rough, so far, about 500,000 Americans gain health coverage starting January 1st. And by the way, health care costs are growing at the slowest rate in 50 years.
And one more thing: since I took office, we’ve cut our deficits (赤字) by more than half. And that makes it easier to invest in the things that create jobs –-- education, research, and so on.
Imagine how much farther along we could be if both parties were working together. Think about what we could do if the few didn’t hold the economy hostage (人质) every few months, or waste time on dozens of votes to repeal the Affordable Care Act rather than try to help us fix it.
In the weeks ahead, I’ll keep talking about my plan to build a better bargain for the middle class. Good jobs. A good education. A chance to buy a home, save, and retire. And yes, the financial security of affordable health care. And I’ll look for any willing partners who want to help.
Because of your hard work and tough sacrifices over the past five years, we’re pointed in the right direction. But we’ve got more work to do to keep moving that way. And as long as I’m President, I’ll keep doing everything I can to create jobs, grow the economy, and make sure that everyone who works hard has a chance to get ahead. Thanks, and have a great weekend.Which of the following is not the reason for people’s frustration with the government?
| A．The government shutdown |
| B．Unemployment rate |
| C．The addiction to foreign oil |
| D．Cancelling the Affordable Care Act |
Why does the president mention more goods and services “Made in America”?
| A．To show that American goods and services are very popular. |
| B．To indicate that American people should be dependent on themselves. |
| C．To show that the employment rate has been increased. |
| D．To show that American auto industry enjoys high technology. |
What’s the meaning of the underlined word “repeal”?
| A．put an end to | B．try hard to fix | C．make stronger | D．get accustomed to |
According to the speech, which of the following can be implied?
| A．American people have every reason to feel frustrated with the government. |
| B．Health care costs are growing at the slowest rate in 50 years. |
| C．The president feels sorry that the economy is not moving in the right direction. |
| D．Some government officials don’t agree with the president on the medical care system. |
Paul couldn’t sleep last night. He woke up early and sat up, and then he lay down again. He felt terrible. “I must be sick,” he thought. “but I must study for that test.”
He got up and looked for his history notebook. He finally found it under a pile of clothes on a chair. He went over his history notes, but he couldn’t remember any of the facts in the notes. “What shall I do?” he thought. He felt terrible.
Just then Paul’s telephone rang. He put down his notebook and picked up the telephone.
“Good morning,” Jack’s voice said, “You must be wrong about that test.”
“What do you mean?” Paul asked weakly.
“We’re not going to have the test today.” Jack said. “I wrote down the date in my notebook. The test will be next Wednesday; it isn’t today. How do you feel this morning?”
“Fine,” said Paul. “Just fine!” Suddenly he really felt fine.Paul felt uneasy because he
| A．was seriously ill. | B．was too tired. |
| C．was worried about the coming test. | D．couldn’t find his history notebook. |
It seemed that Paul __________
| A．was good at history. | B．liked to study history. |
| C．lost interest in history. | D．was ready for the history test. |
What made Paul feel fine at once?
| A．The telephone call |
| B．the coming test. |
| C．Jack’s notebook |
| D．The fact that the test was not to be given that day. |
“How do you feel this morning?” From this question we can see Jack________
| A．knew Paul. | B．knew Paul very well. |
| C．wanted to help Paul with his history. | D．would lend Paul his notebook.. |
A man once said how useless it was to put advertisements in the newspaper. “Last week,” he said, “my umbrella was stolen from a London church. As it was a present, I spent twice its worth in advertising, but didn’t get it back.”
“How did you write your advertisement?” asked one of the listeners, a merchant. “Here it is,” said the man, taking out of his pocket a slip cut from a newspaper. The other man took it and read, “Lost from the City Church last Sunday evening, a black silk umbrella. The gentleman who finds it will receive ten shillings on leaving it at No. 10 Broad Street.”
“Now,” said the merchant, “I often advertise, and find that it pays me well. But the way in which an advertisement is expressed is of extreme importance. Let us try for your umbrella again, and if it fails, I'll buy you a new one.”
The merchant then took a slip of paper out of his pocket and wrote: “If the man who was seen to take an umbrella from the City Church last Sunday evening doesn’t wish to get into trouble, he will return the umbrella to No.10 Broad Street. He is well known.”
This appeared in the newspaper, and on the following morning, the man was astonished when he opened the front door. In the doorway lay at least twelve umbrellas of all sizes and colors, and his own was among them. Many of them had notes fastened to them saying that they had been taken by mistake, and begging the loser not to say anything about matter. The result of the first advertisement was that ______________.
| A．the man got his umbrella back |
| B．the man wasted some money advertising |
| C．nobody found the missing umbrella |
| D．the umbrella was found somewhere near the church |
The merchant suggested that the man should _______________.
| A．buy a new umbrella |
| B．go on looking for his umbrella |
| C．write another and better advertisement |
| D．report the police |
“If it fails, I’ll buy you a new one,” suggested that the merchant
_______________.
| A．was quite sure of success |
| B．wanted to buy him a new umbrella |
| C．didn’t know what to do |
| D．was rich enough to buy one |
The story is mainly about _________________.
| A．a useless advertisement |
| B．how to make an effective advertisement |
| C．how the man lost and found his umbrella |
| D．what the merchant did for the umbrella owner |
What is your favorite English letter? Many of you may say Q. Why? Because so many of you chat with your friends on QQ. What do you like about QQ? What do you talk about? The CCTV reporter, Miss Wang, interviews three kids. Let’s listen to what they say.
When do you chat on QQ? What do you talk about?
Lin yuhan, Xi’an: On weekends. We talk about homework and chat with each other.
Tang Xuting, Shanghai: At weekends and when I don’t have much homework. We exchange test answers and chat.
Yang yuhang, Dalian: Our class goes online together at 4:00----6:00pm on weekends. We complain about homework, chat and talk about computer games.
What do you put on your QQ blog(博客)？
Lin: I put good articles I have found online on my blog. I also write articles myself. They are about funny things that have happened in my class.
Tang: I put picture on my blog. Not my own photos, but pictures from my favorite Japanese cartoons(动画片)like Tennis Prince Conan.
Yang: I put DV films on my blog. I shoot(拍摄)them during sports meetings and school parties. The most popular one is about a dancing teacher, he is so funny that everyone watches it.
How do you like QQ?
Lin: It’s a good space for us to make a record of our lives of both good times and sad times.
Tang: My friends and I may not have time to chat at school. But we can do it on QQ. It’s very helpful to our friendships.
Yang: If you chat with friends on the telephone, your parents sometimes listen to your conversation. There’s no such problem with QQ. You can relax and talk freely.What does Yang yuhang talk about on QQ on weekends?
①homework②chat③test answers④computer games
| A．①② | B．②③ | C．①②④ | D．②③④ |
What does Lin Yuhan put on her QQ blog?
| A．Some pictures. | B．Good articles. | C．DV films | D．Japanese cartoons |
Which one is TURE according to this article?
| A．Lin says QQ is very helpful to their friendships. |
| B．Yang says he can chat freely with many friends and relax on QQ. |
| C．Tang says QQ is a good space for them to make a record of their lives. |
| D．Tang says he chats on QQ on weekends though he has lots of homework. |
The first day of school our professor introduced himself and challenged us to get to know someone we didn't already know.
I stood up to look around when a gentle hand touched my shoulder. I turned around to find a wrinkled，little old lady beaming up at me with a smile that lit up her entire being. She said，“Hi, handsome. My name is Rose. I' m eighty－seven years old. Can I give you a hug？”I laughed and enthusiastically responded，“Of course you may.”and she gave me a giant squeeze. “Why are you in college at such a young，innocent age？”I asked. She jokingly replied，“I'm here to meet a rich husband，get married，have a couple of children，and then retire and travel.”“No，seriously？”I asked. I was curious what may have motivated her to be taking on this challenge at her age.
“I always dreamed of having a college education and now I'm getting one. ”she told me. After class we walked to the student union building and shared a chocolate milk- shake. We became instant friends. Every day for the next three months, we would leave class together and talk nonstop. I was always attracted listening to this “time machine” as she shared her wisdom and experience with me.
Over the course of the year，Rose became a campus icon and she easily made friends wherever she went. She loved to dress up and she enjoyed the attention from the other students. She was living it up.
At the end of the semester we invited Rose to speak at our football banquet. I'll never forget what she taught us. She was introduced and stepped up to the podium(讲台). As she began to deliver her prepared speech，she dropped her 3x5 cards on the floor. Frustrated and a little embarrassed, she leaned into the microphone and simply said，“I'm sorry I'm so nervous. I gave up beer for Lent(一种威士忌的牌子) and this whisky is killing me. I'll never get my speech back in order to let me just tell you what I know.”
As we laughed she cleared her throat and began：“We do not stop playing because we are old；we grow old because we stop playing. There are only four secrets to staying young，being happy，and achieving success.” “You have to laugh and find humor every day.” You've got to have a dream. When you lose your dreams，you die. We have so many people walking around who are dead and don't even know it.” “There is a huge difference between growing older and growing up. If you are nineteen years old and lie in bed for one full year and don't do one productive thing，you will turn twenty years old. If I am eighty－seven years old and stay in bed for a year and never do anything, I will turn eighty－eight. Anybody can grow older. It’s non-optional but that doesn't take any talent or ability. The idea is to grow up by always finding the opportunity in change.” “Have no regrets. The elderly usually don't have regrets for what we did，but rather for things we did not do. The only people who fear death are those with regrets.” She concluded her speech by courageously singing “The Rose.” She challenged each of us to study the lyrics and live them out in our daily lives. At the year's end Rose finished the college degree she had begun all those years ago.
One week after graduation Rose died peacefully in her sleep. Over two thousand college students attended her funeral in honor of the wonderful woman who taught by example that it's never too late to be all you can possibly be. When you finish reading this, please send this peaceful word of advice to your friends and family, they’ll really enjoy it! These words have been passed along in loving memory of ROSE.The writer provides the details about Rose in Paragraph 2 to show that_______.
| A．she was an innocent and enthusiastic person |
| B．she was an optimistic and humorous person |
| C．she was an aggressive person with a strong sense of honor |
| D．she was an intelligent person with highly motivated personality |
Why does the writer compare Rose to “time machine” in Paragraph 3?
| A．To describe the friendship between Rose and her young schoolmates. |
| B．To stress her old age and rich wisdom and experience. |
| C．To show that she enjoyed dressing up in spite of her old age. |
| D．To emphasize that she took on the challenge at such an old age. |
Which of the following best explains the sentence ”We do not stop playing because we are old; we grow old because we stop playing”(Paragraph 6)?
| A．“If we lose our dreams, we will regret for what we did when young.” |
| B．“If we don’t laugh every day, we will easily get old.” |
| C．“Once we stop seeking and working for our dreams, we will really become old.” |
| D．“Once we stop exercising, we will get weaker physically and mentally.” |
It can be inferred from Paragraph 6 that________.
| A．those who don’t have dreams are as good as dead |
| B．growing old is uncontrollable but growing up is optional |
| C．the elderly usually feel regretful for what they did |
| D．our talent and ability decline with age |
The method the writer uses to describe the character of Rose is________.
| A．making comments | B．making comparisons |
| C．providing arguments | D．giving examples |
Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
| A．Meeting challenges | B．Secrets to success |
| C．Dream in heart | D．My best friend |
This winter, the air quality over the north China plain was so bad that it was actually off the standard scale. The air pollution reached levels that the World Health Organization describes as dangerous. On Thursday, heavy smog blanketed most of northern and eastern China again.
It is reasonable to ask why the air pollution is so bad this winter. Weather conditions and topographic(地形学的) factors have been given as reasons, but, although contributing factors, these are not to blame. The worsening air pollution is linked to an energy mix that relies heavily on coal and to motor vehicle emissions(排放).But despite the astonishing growth of motor vehicles in our cities, it is the burning of coal that is the biggest cause of air pollution. More than half of the country's power plants are located in the eastern region and China's coal consumption has more than doubled in the past decade, reaching 3.8 billion tons last year, accounting for almost half the world's total coal consumption. And with coal occupying nearly 70 percent of the country's primary energy consumption, it has become critical to reduce the use of coal if we are to solve the nation's overall air pollution problem.
In the face of the poisonous air recently, one citizen said, "we have nothing but hot air to purify the skies". In fact, the government plans to have 350 billion yuan ($55.67 billion) investment in improving coal-fired facilities and limiting the use of yellow-label cars that do not meet the Euro I emissions standard and so on.
However, it would be far more effective to reduce emissions at the source, which means that the biggest challenge currently facing government departments is saying "no" to the country's air polluting offenders. According to the Joint Prevention and Control Plan on Air Pollution in Key Regions released recently by the State Council, the amount of coal the nation consumes is set to rise by 30 percent during the period of the 12th Five-Year Plan. This is not going to let anyone breathe easier.
This highlights a key problem when it comes to environmental issues in this country - economic development comes first. The fundamental cause of the worsening air pollution is the idea of economic growth at any cost, which has resulted in ever-worsening pollution. And the priority(优先权)given to economic growth presents another problem, namely the failure of existing environmental protection policies and regulations to control pollution. For instance, the current weak regulations covering emissions would suggest there has been a significant reduction in emissions when clearly this is not the case. Also those enterprises found breaking the regulations are still far lower than the cost of treating the pollution they produce. This means even if many large-scale enterprises with lagging production capacity(能力) fail to meet the requirements for environmental protection, the environmental protection department is incapable of shutting these enterprises down or forcing their relocation.
Dealing with air pollution requires taking action at the local level to reduce vehicle emissions and at the regional level to reduce industrial emissions. But it also requires giving more priority to environmental issues in policymaking. Our hope is that the environmental protection department will be truly capable of saying "no" to pollution, and it will raise standards and effectively enforce them, and that governments at all levels will prioritize quality of life not just economic growth.The writer mentions the heavy smog in parts of China in Paragraph1 in order to_____.
| A．remind people to stay in doors because of the bad air quality |
| B．show people’s concern about the priority to economic growth |
| C．introduce the issue about the serious air pollution |
| D．highlight the importance of government’s policies and regulations |
Why is it a big challenge for the government to say “no” to the air polluting offenders in China?
| A．Because enterprises are encouraged to develop economy at the cost of the environment. |
| B．Because much emphasis has been laid on economic growth regardless of the cost. |
| C．Because it’s impossible to relocate the enterprises for lack of money. |
| D．Because the production capacity of enterprises falls behind the required speed. |
It can be learned from the passage that the essential reason for the worsening air conditions in China is_______.
| A．the sharp growth of coal consumption in recent years |
| B．the rapid increase of motor vehicles in cities |
| C．the building of power plants in northern China |
| D．the poor weather conditions caused by complex geographical factors |
According to the writer, which of the following is the key to solving the air pollution problem?
| A．Giving priority to economic development in policymaking. |
| B．Making environment-friendly policies and carrying them out effectively. |
| C．Increasing investment in the construction of coal-fired facilities. |
| D．Limiting the use of cars not meeting the required emission standard |
Which best describes the writer’s tone in the passage?
| A．Pessimistic. | B．Convincing. | C．Doubtful. | D．Concerned. |