A Smashing tradition: MIT Students Drop Piano
One of the highlights of the school year at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology only lasts a few seconds but has a big influence. Residents of an MIT dormitory dropped an upright piano from their roof on 26th April to celebrate the last day students can drop classes without having them appear on their college report.
About 200 onlookers watched as the piano crashed into a second piano, a baby grand, positioned on the ground six stories below for a better smash. People scrambled (争先恐后) for souvenir pieces-keys, hammers, strings and splinters. The tradition began in 1972 at the Baker House dormitory and has been observed irregularly until 2006 when it became an annual event.
Crafton Family Comes Back Home after 7 Years at Sea
While most of us will love to go on a vacation for a week or two on a small private sailboat, without doubt, spending seven precious years on sea is something most of us will never imagine or dare to do. However, that is what an American family has done. Tom Crafton and Kathy Crafton along with their three children have traveled across the world on their 43-foot sailboat named Nueva Vida. Over the past seven years the family had sailed 30,000 miles and visited more than 20 different countries. The family has recently come back to their homeland.
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Living in the limelight（聚光灯）can be difficult but as these splendid pictures show for one bear the tourist train never stops. This arctic animal loves nothing more than an audience and will even climb out of his snowy bed to give the crowd a wave. The funny poses(姿态) of the friendly polar bear were caught on camera by Swedish photographer, Hams Strand.Which of the following is true about the first incident?
| A．The typical style of celebration has been kept alive every year since1972. |
| B．Another small piano on the ground is meant to hold the falling one. |
| C．The students dropped the piano in celebration of their graduation. |
| D．The tradition became an annual event for MIT students several years ago. |
The writer thinks Crafton family’s seven-year sailing is ______.
| A．unusual | B．strange | C．common | D．doubtful |
What would be the best subtitle for the third incident?
| A．The Limelight Makes Polar Bear Live Hard |
| B．Splendid Pictures of Polar Bear Attract Tourists |
| C．The Tourist Train Would Stop without Polar Bear |
| D．Polar Bear Says Hello to Tourists with a Friendly Wave |
The passage is probably taken out of ______.
| A．a novel | B．a magazine | C．a diary | D．a report |
I love this healthy diet program because, it helps you lose weight, lose inches, feel healthy and look beautiful.
This healthy diet is an 8 week's program which is unlike other diet regimes （食物疗法）. In that it focuses on proper nutrition first and weight loss second. Your body must have proper levels of minerals, vitamin, and protein in order to work well. It provides a simple lifestyle change to give you more energy and improve your health most greatly. It offers control over stomach and continuing hunger
with a dense diet allowing 1,700 to 2,000 calories a day. If a person has a weight problem, their body probably is not working at proper levels of basic nutrients. We invite you to follow this program, so you can be the slim person who lives inside you.
You too, can love dieting especially if you are losing weight and losing inches.
For more information about our program, please get to our address in the internet:
http://www. Shaidee. net/lifestyle-for-heath/products This passage is mainly about ________.
| A．how people should keep fit | B．a healthy diet program |
| C．why people should keep fit | D．ways to lose weight |
The underlined phrase "
lose inches" in the passage means ________.
| A．become shorter | B．become taller |
| C．become fatter | D．become thinner |
According to this passage, all of the following are true except that ________.
| A．this program makes a change in your lifestyle |
| B．this program can stop you from feeling hungry all the time |
| C．this program allows you 1,700 to 2,000 calories for each meal |
| D．this program tries to tell us what people should do to become slim |
I decided early in my college years that I wanted to experience living abroad before entering in the real world. During my senior year, while most of my friends were interviewing for “real world” jobs, I was investigating how I could go work in a different country. At that early stage of my inquiry I was pretty open about where to go and what kind of work to undertake. My desire to live abroad was so strong that I was willing to do anything anywhere.
Soon I learned about BUNAC, a program that seemed to be designed precisely for student with such interests. BUNAC offers work visas ( 签证 ) for students or recent graduates to work overseas. Of the six countries available, I chose England because of the language and opportunities for employment.
Two months after I graduated from college I went to Britain. I traveled throughout Europe for six weeks before arriving in London. I got to London on August 24, 1997 with a work visa, but no job or place to live. I have to admit it was pretty scary! The day after I arrived, I experienced my first British holiday --- a Bank Holiday, a national holiday that everything is closed for the day. It wasn’t until my third day that I visited the BUNAC office and I learned all about living and working in Britain, paying taxes, getting health insurance, traveling around Britain, finding accommodations and most importantly, finding a job. I was most scared about finding a job since my financial resources were running low and I needed to get my pay soon.
It turned out that finding a job was not so difficult. The BUNAC program is very well known in London and many employers participate in the program. As a result there are many employers in many different fields to choose from. My job search began when I chose three different business employers and faxed them my resume (简历). That first week I had three interviews. I accepted my first offer working for Merrill Lynch International Bank. The Merrill Lynch office I worked at was in a beautiful, old building located two blocks from Buckingham Palace. The people were nice and the work interesting.
It was easy to adjust to life in London. And there is so much to see that after six months exploring I probably covered only half of what I intended. When the author studied at college she decided _________.
| A．to enter the “real world” after graduation |
| B．to go and work in a foreign country |
| C．to settle in a different country |
| D．to find a job in the home country |
The author chose England because ______.
| A．it is a beautiful country and people there are nice |
| B．England is spoken there and it is easy to find a job |
| C．it is in Europe, not far from her own country |
| D．the BUNAC office is located there |
After the author arrived in London, what worried her most was ________.
| A．getting a job | B．buying health insurance |
| C．traveling around Britain | D．finding a place to live |
Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?
| A．A Trip to Britain | B．What I Want to Be |
| C．Living in a Different Country | D．My Work Experience |
Holidays
Holiday News
Vacations(空位) now and in the school holidays at a country hotel in Devon. This comfortable, friendly home-from-home lies near the beautiful quiet countryside, but just a drive away from the sea. The food is simple but good. Children and pets are welcome. Reduced prices for low season.
The Snowdonia Centre
The Snowdonia Centre for young mountain climbers has a mountain climbing lesson. The beginners’ costs are 57 for a week, including food and rooms. Equipment is included except walking shoes, which can be hired at a low cost.
You must be in good health and prepared to go through a period of body exercises. This could be the beginning of a lifetime of mountain climbing adventure.
The world Sea Trip of a Lifetime
Our World Sea Trip of 2008 will be unlike any holiday you have ever been on before. Instead of one hotel after another, with all its packing and unpacking, waiting and travelling, you just go to bed in one country and wake up in another.
On board the ship, you will be well taken care of . Every meal will be first-class and every cabin like your home.
During the trip, you can rest on deck(甲板)，enjoy yourself in the games rooms and in the evening dance to our musical team and watch our wonderful play.
You will visit all the places most people only dream about---from Acapulco and Hawaii to Tokyo and Hong Kong.
For a few thousand, all you’ve ever hoped for can be yours. What can you do if you like to go on holidays with pets?
| A．Choose the holiday in Devon. | B．Go to the Snowdonia Centre. |
| C．Join the World Sea Trip of 2008. | D．Visit Acapulco and Hawaii. |
In what way is the Snowdonia Centre different from the other two holidays?
| A．It provides chances of family gatherings. |
| B．It provides customers with good food. |
C．It offers a sports lesson.  |
| D．It offers comfortable rooms. |
What is special about the World Sea Trip of 2008?
| A．You can have free meals on deck every day. |
| B．You can sleep on a ship and tour many places. |
C．You will have chances to watch and act i n a play. |
| D．You have to do your own packing and unpacking. |
If a person tells you that something is “the real McCoy”，he is telling you it is the real thing，not a copy or replacement．There is nothing false about “the real McCoy”．It is the best that can be found．
There are different ideas on how the expression came into common use．Perhaps the most popular story is about a famous boxer，Charles Kid McCoy，a one-time world famous welter-weigh champion．One day，McCoy was having a drink in a bar with a lady friend．A man came up and began to talk to her．He was not a nice man．
McCoy wanted no trouble．He asked the man to leave．He said．“I'm Kid McCoy．”McCoy thought his name was so well-known that he didn’t need to say more．But the man did not believe him．“Oh，yeah?” he said．“Well，if you are Kid McCoy，then I am George Washington!” And he continued to speak to the prize-fighter’s friend in all unpleasant way．
McCoy hit the man with a fist－not hard－actually it was really a light touch．But the man fell to the ground，unconscious．Ten minutes later，when he came to sense，he called out. “That was the real McCoy!” And so，as told by kid McCoy，that was how the expression “the real McCoy” got started．
There are other versions，however．One is that the expression goes back to the days of prohibition（禁止）when it was illegal in the United States to sell whiskey．Although whiskey was against the law，many sold it．And many sold bad whiskey．They were not afraid to do so，because there was so little that anybody could do about it．Buying whiskey，good or had，was as illegal as selling it．
But there was one whiskey dealer who was honest．His name was McCoy．He refused to sell bad whiskey．He sold only the best imported whiskey．His product became recognized as the best．It was called “the real McCoy”．
The expression survived prohibition days and soon became a general term．One way or another，no matter how the expression began，“the real McCoy” is an expression that everyone unders
tands．It means the one and only—the best one．They are indeed words of special praise．What is the main idea of the first paragraph?
| A．It is about the exact meaning of the version． |
| B．It tells how a person gets his name． |
| C．It shows how to tell the real from the false． |
| D．It explains how to find the best． |
In the third paragraph，“the prize-fighter” refers to______．
| A．a champion | B．George Washington |
| C．a fellow | D．McCoy |
Which of the following is TRUE about the days prohibition?
| A．A national law forbade the sale of alcoholic drinks． |
| B．Bad whiskey was not allowed to sell． |
| C．People at that time preferred nothing but whiskey． |
| D．The days of prohibition resulted in MeCoy’s selling wine． |
What is the main idea of the whole passage?
| A．The story of a famous boxer． |
| B．The general use of the version． |
| C．The expression and its story． |
| D．The friendship between an athlete and a seller． |
New 
York Time—A gunman killed eight people at a mall in Omaha this afternoon and then killed himself, setting off panic among holiday shoppers, the police said．
“The person who we believe to be the shooter has died from self-inflicted gunshot wounds,” Sgt． Teresa Negron of the Omaha Police Department said at televised news． “We have been able to clear the mall,” she said． “We don’t believe we have any other
shooters．” The police said that at least five other people had been injured in the shootings．
She did not give the shooter’s identity． “We are still conducting the investigation,” Sergeant Negron said, adding that the city’s mayor, who was out of town, was on his way back to Omaha． She said the police received a 911 call from someone inside the Westroads Mall on the west side of Omaha, and shots could be heard in the background． The first police officers arrived at the mall six minutes after the first call, she said, but by then the shootings were over． It is reported that the gunman left a suicide note that was found at his home by relatives． A law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity （匿名） said the note indicated that the gunman wanted to “go out in style．”
The shootings broke the usually banal rou
tine of holiday shopping． The gunman was said by some witnesses to have fired about 20 shots into a crowd． Some customers and workers ran screaming from the mall, while others dived into dressing rooms to hide from the shooter．
Shoppers and store workers were trapped inside the mall, which has roughly 135 stores． Others streamed out of mall exits with their hands raised． President Bush was in Omaha this morning to deliver a speech, but he had left the city by the time the shootings took place． Where did the shooting first come out?
| A．In a newspaper | B．On the Internet |
| C．In TV news | D．In a police poster |
What do the underlined words “go out in style” probably mean?
| A．go out of the mall in particular clothes |
| B．walk in the mall with everybody focused on |
| C．go to a socially event by fashionable means |
| D．stop his life in a impressive way |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．Nobody knows why the shooter did so and nothing was found at his home． |
| B．The city’s mayor happened not to be in the city when the shooting took place． |
| C．Police arrived at the mall before the shootings were over and rescued customers． |
| D．The official who showed what the note mean have no request of his own identity． |
We can infer from the passage that ______．
| A．There is only one shooter in this event． |
| B．The shooting created fears among the customers． |
| C．An important holiday is coming soon． |
| D．President Bush came here for the shooting． |