Here is a true story about a famous man who worked in the White House and a criminal. They once faced the same thing: their mother gave them apples when they were young.
The criminal said: one day, my mother brought some apples and asked my brother and me: “Which do you want?” “The reddest and biggest one,” my little brother said. My mother stared at him and said to him angrily: “You should learn to give the good things to others; you shouldn’t always think of yourself.” Seeing this, I suddenly changed my idea and then said to my mother: “Mum, please give me the smaller one and give the bigger one to my little brother.” Hearing my words, my mother was very happy. She kissed me on my face and gave the reddest and biggest apple to me as a prize. From then on, I learned to tell lies, fight, steal and rob. In order to get what I wanted, I played hard. As a result, I was sent into prison.
The famous man from the White House said: One day, my mother brought some apples. She said to my brother and me: “You all want the reddest and biggest one, right? Well, let’s have a competition. Now I divide the grassland in front of the gate into two and I will give one to each of you and you must shear(修剪) it well. And I will give the reddest and biggest apple to him who does it the most quickly and best.”
After the competition, I won and I got the biggest apple. In our family, as long as you want to get the best things, you must take part in competition. I think it is fair. No matter what you want, you must pay lots of efforts.The criminal got the reddest and biggest apple because .
| A．he told the truth that he wanted a smaller one |
| B．his mother loved him more than she loved the younger brother |
| C．elder brother should of course have the bigger one |
| D．he knew how to make his mother happy from his answer |
We can conclude from the passage that .
| A．it’s important to make children aware that no matter what they want, they must pay work |
| B．it’s wrong to ask children to choose apples when they are not old enough |
| C．it’s wrong to ask children not to always think of themselves |
| D．it’s always necessary to have a competition when we give children apple |
The writer tells the story by .
| A．organizing it in the order of time |
| B．making a comparison between two men |
| C．providing some scientific information |
| D．describing it in the order of space |
It is implied in the passage that .
| A．we should always try to win competitions which can bring us a lot |
| B．in order to get what we want, we should play hard |
| C．giving children apples will lead them to become criminals |
| D．a mother’s educational method has a great influence on a child’s growing |
Why do you need British Accent Training? With the growth in the number of employees from Egypt, Spain and China, organizations need to ensure that their workers are able to communicate effectively with customers and colleagues alike.
First Language Influence (FLI) can have a great effect on an employee’s accent. British Accent Training from Communicaid will help your overseas workers decrease the influence of their first language.
Whether through online training courses or face- to- face classes, Communicaid offers suitable training solutions for your organisation’s international business.
A Communicaid’s British Accent Training course will provide your workers with the ability to :
---increase their customer experience and satisfaction,
---communicate more effectively with customers and colleagues by decreasing first language influenced accent,
---strengthen relationships with customers and colleagues through more successful communication.
Course content
All Communicaid’s British Accent Training courses are designed to meet the specific needs of our clients depending on their specific situations.
Generally, a British Accent Training course includes:
---rhythm and stress patterns,
---pausing and breathing,
---relationship between spelling and pronunciation,
---accent familiarisation and listening practice.
Ways to learn
Training can be received worldwide through either face-to-face classes or one of our many online learning methods. Using a combination of published materials and those offered only by Communicaid, we design and offer programmes that will meet the need of our clients.
Our trainers
All Communicaid’s British Accent course trainers are native speakers with at least 3 years’ professional training experience in the field. A client’s British Accent trainer will be decided according to his goals and areas of focus.We can learn from the article that Communicaid is a company that .
| A．sells books |
| B．designs ads |
| C．offers communication skill training |
| D．offers language training |
Who are the target readers of the article?
| A．Overseas students. |
| B．Overseas workers. |
| C．Bosses employing workers whose first language is not English. |
| D．People whose partners come from a non- English-speaking country. |
The article was written mainly to .
| A．attract people to attend Communicaid’s courses |
| B．introduce the history of the company Commuicaid |
| C．give instructions on English pronunciation |
| D．tell the readers the importance of the British accent |
For years scientists have been worried about the effects of air pollution on the earth’s natural conditions. Some believe the air inside many houses may be more dangerous than the air outside. It may be one hundred times worse.
Indoor air pollution can cause a person to feel tired, to suffer eye pain, headache and other problems. Some pollutants（污染物）can cause breathing disorders, diseases of blood and even cancer. Most scientists agree that every modern house has some kind of indoor pollution.
People have paid more attention to the problem now. It is true that when builders began making houses and offices they did not waste energy. To do this they build buildings that limited the flow of air between inside and outside. They also began using man-made building materials. These materials are now known to let out harmful gases.
As the problem became more serious, scientists began searching for a way to deal with it. They discovered a natural pollution control system for building—green plants. Scientists do not really know how plants control air pollution. They believe that a plant’s leaves absorb（吸收）or take in the pollutants. In exchange the plant lets out oxygen through its leaves and tiny organizations on its roots. Scientists suggest that all buildings should have one large plant or several small plants inside for every nine square meters of space. Studies of different plants show that each absorbs different chemicals. So the most effective way to clean the air is to use different kinds of plants. Having green plants inside your house can make it a prettier and healthier place.Generally speaking, indoor air pollution may be more harmful than the air outside because .
| A．indoor air pollution can often make people seriously ill |
| B．man-made building materials give off dangerous gases |
| C．there may be more harmful gases outside the buildings |
| D．the air indoors is polluted, which is very harmful |
Some kind of indoor pollution can be found in .
| A．every modern house | B．every old house |
| C．all kinds of houses | D．all kinds of offices |
The indoor air pollution is caused by .
| A．the limit of the flow of air between inside and outside |
| B．the building way that the builders want to save energy |
| C．the building things that are made of man-made materials |
| D．the man-made building materials and the limit of air-flow |
The reason why we should use different kinds of plants to clean the air is that
| A．plants can let out all kinds of pollutants indoors |
| B．plants may take in more oxygen （氧气）which people need |
| C．plants can absorb all kinds of harmful indoor chemicals |
| D．plants can make our houses prettier and more healthy |
Most of us are used to seasons. Each year, spring follows winter, which follows autumn, which follows summer, which follows spring. And winter is colder than summer. But the earth goes through temperature cycles over much longer periods than those that we experience.
Between 65,000 and 35,000 years ago, the planet was much colder than it is now. During that time the temperature also changed a lot, with periods of warming and cooling. Ice melted during the warm periods, which made sea levels rise. Water froze again during the cold periods.
A new study from Switzerland sheds light on where ice sheets melted during the ice age.
It now seems that the ice melted at both ends of the earth, rather than just in either northern or southern areas. This surprised the researchers from the University of Bern.
Scientists have long assumed（认为） that most of the ice that melted was in the Northern hemisphere(半球) during the 30,000-year long ice age. That belief was held because the North Pole is surrounded by land, while the South Pole is surrounded by the Antarctic Ocean. It is easier for ice sheets to grow on land. If surrounded by sea the ice can easily just slip into the ocean instead of building up.
The researchers used a computer model to look at ways the ice could melt and how it might affect sea levels. They compared these results to evidence of how temperatures and currents actually changed during that time.
The model showed that if it was only in the Northern hemisphere that ice melted, there would have been a bigger impact(影响) on ocean currents(洋流) and sea temperatures than what actually happened. Studies suggest that melting just in the Southern hemisphere would have been impossible, too.
The only reasonable conclusion, the scientists could make, was that ice melted equally in the North and the South.
It is still a mystery as to what caused the temperature changes that caused the ice to melt.The underlined phrase “sheds light on” (in paragraph 3) can be replaced by.
| A．throws doubts on |
| B．beats down on |
| C．makes it clear |
| D．makes light of |
We can infer from the passage .
| A．the ice can easily just slip into the ocean |
| B．melting just in the Northern hemisphere would have been impossible |
| C．volcanoes caused the ice to melt |
| D．researchers often use the computer models help their research work. |
The scientists are not sure .
| A．what caused the temperature changes |
| B．where ice sheets melted during the ice age |
| C．how long the ice age lasted |
| D．what the earth is made up of |
Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
| A．A computer model |
| B．Studies show ice melted equally in the North and the South during the ice age |
| C．Most of the ice melted in the Northern hemisphere during the 30,000-year long ice age. |
| D．A survey result |
In 1978, I was 18 and was working as a nurse in a small town about 270 km away from Sydney, Australia. I was looking forward to having five days off from duty. Unfortunately, the only one train a day back to my home in Sydney had already left. So I thought I’d hitch a ride (搭便车).
I waited by the side of the highway for three hours but no one stopped for me. Finally, a man walked over and introduced himself as Gordon. He said that although he couldn’t give me a lift, I should come back to his house for lunch. He noticed me standing for hours in the November heat and thought I must be hungry. I was doubtful as a young girl but he assured （使…放心）me I was safe, and he also offered to help me find a lift home afterwards. When we arrived at his house, he made us sandwiches. After lunch, he helped me find a lift home.
Twenty-five years later, in 2003, while I was driving to a nearby town one day, I saw an elderly man standing in the glaring heat, trying to hitch a ride. I thought it was another chance to repay someone for the favour I’d been given decades earlier. I pulled over and picked him up. I made him comfortable on the back seat and offered him some water.
After a few moments of small talk, the man said to me, “You haven’t changed a bit, even your red hair is still the same.”
I couldn’t remember where I’d met him. He then told me he was the man who had given me lunch and helped me find a lift all those years ago. It was Gordon.The author had to hitch a ride one day in 1978 because .
| A．her work delayed her trip to Sydney |
| B．she was going home for her holidays |
| C．the town was far away from Sydney |
| D．she missed the only train back home |
Which of the following did Gordon do according to Paragraph 2?
| A．He helped the girl find a ride. |
| B．He gave the girl a ride back home. |
| C．He bought sandwiches for the girl. |
| D．He watched the girl for three hours. |
The reason why the author offered a lift to the elderly man was that .
| A．she realized he was Gordon |
| B．she had known him for decades |
| C．she was going to the nearby town |
| D．she wanted to repay the favour she once got |
What does the author want to tell the readers through the story?
| A．Giving sometimes produces nice results. |
| B．Those who give rides will be rapid. |
| C．Good manners bring about happiness. |
| D．People should offer free rides to others. |
“Teenager” is the new term being used in the UK to describe kids at either 8—12 or 10—13 years old.
More and more companies are beginning to create products and services for teenagers. The Disney Company sells music and film to teenagers and their parents. You can get everything from lunchboxes and mobile phone covers, to monthly fan magazines and clothing. It’s all about sales, which suggests that teenagers must have more money, freedom and influence upon their parents than they’ve ever had before.
Most kids in the UK today get more pocket money than kids did ten years ago. Parents have more money to give their kids than before, since parents are having fewer children. In addition, the divorce（离婚） rate in the UK is continually rising and parents spend less time with their children than they used to, so many parents try to please their children by buying them presents. It’s a bad habit for both parents and kids to get into, but parents are under pressure from commercial marketing and the pleas（请求） of their children.
UK kids today are very media and computer-literate. A lot of kids have a TV, if not a computer, in their bedrooms. They have easy access to much more information about life and the world. They may have experienced a lot in life as well, since 24% of UK kids live in single-parent families, so people now say that “kids are getting older younger”. With such maturity (成熟)at such a young age, it’s no wonder teenagers are able to influence their parents and have more freedom than previous generations.
UK teenagers never used to be worried about spending money on clothes. That’s changed. Now, they are much more fashion(时尚) conscious and concerned about their image(形象). Many of them outgrow the bright colors and fashions of kids years ago and go for something darker and more rebellious(叛逆).
Surely none of the above is a good thing. The UK government is certainly concerned, and for that reason has strict laws preventing companies from marketing their products and services at children.Why are more products and services created for teenagers?
| A．Because companies are creating better products and services. |
| B．Because children education is becoming more important. |
| C．Because it is better to study music from an early age. |
| D．.Because children have more money to buy them. |
Kids today can get more money partly because ________.
| A．parents always accompany(陪) their kids |
| B．more parents divorce nowadays |
| C．parents have more expectation(期望) of kids |
| D．kids know how to make money |
Teenagers have more freedom due to the following facts EXCEPT that ________.
| A．they become mature at a younger age |
| B．they know more information than kids before |
| C．they have a lot of experience in life |
| D．parents can no longer influence them |
Which is true about kids in the past?
| A．They used to have more money to spend. |
| B．They couldn’t influence their parents. |
| C．They preferred to wear brighter clothes. |
| D．They looked older than their age. |
What is the purpose of the passage?
| A．To introduce a new phenomenon(现象). |
| B．To teach a new word “teenager”. |
| C．To warn parents to care about their kids. |
| D．To blame（责怪）today’s young people |