READY or not, the college application season has begun. There are two main kinds of early admissions programs: Early Action and Early Decision.
Early Action is a great choice for the well-prepared student. Students apply early, and are allowed to apply under an Early Action program to as many colleges as they choose. The biggest advantage for students is that colleges let them know early – in most cases, before Jan 1. Roughly 15 percent of colleges and universities offer an Early Action option. Oct 15 is now the first deadline for many colleges and universities.This movement toward earlier deadlines is especially popular in the Southeast, with many of the large public universities leading the way. North Carolina State University, the University of South Carolina and the University of Georgia all have an Oct 15 Early Action deadline.
Early Decision is a promise that cannot be reversed. Students who are accepted must take back their other applications and should attend that school. Students are allowed to apply to just one school under an Early Decision program. Early Decision deadlines are in early November, with colleges letting students know by mid-December.Many students believe that they are more likely to be accepted if they apply for Early Decision, but it actually depends.
In some cases there is big increase in students being accepted, and at other colleges it is not that big at all. Generally, the strongest students are applying early. Athletes and students with focused interests are encouraged to apply for Early Decision
Choose the best answer:
| A．To explain the process of applying to study in the US. |
| B．To describe two types of US college early admissions programs. |
| C．To encourage students who want to study in the US to apply early. |
| D．To list the advantages of early admissions programs. |
| A．A student who is accepted as an Early Action applicant must attend the college they apply to. |
| B．The deadline for Early Action is usually two months earlier than the one for Early Decision. |
| C．Students can apply to several colleges at the same time under an Early Action program. |
| D．Students can apply for Early Action at the majority of universities and colleges in the US. |
| A．changed | B．balanced | C．accepted | D．arranged |
| A．Students are not allowed to apply for both Early Decision and Early Action at the same time. |
| B．Students applying for Early Decision impress colleges because they tend to be more active than others. |
| C．Early Decision is most fit for students who are skilled in some field. |
| D．Those applying for Early Decision have a better chance of being accepted than those applying for Early Action. |
London is the capital of the United Kingdom. It has about seven million people. The river Thames runs through London.
People from all over the world visit London to see Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey and the Tower of London. There are many museums, theatres and parks in London, as well as offices and factories. London began as a Roman settlement called Londinium. The plague(瘟疫) came to London in the 1600s, followed by the Great Fire of 1666. The city was badly bombed in World War II.
London is very slowly sinking into its foundations and the level of the river Thames is slowly rising. As a result, extra-high tides could flood a large part of London. To prevent this happening, a great barrier（屏障）has been built across the Thames at Woolwich. If very high tides happen, the barrier can be raised and London will be safe.London is the capital of _________, which began as a __________ settlement.
| A．England; Norman | B．UK; Frenchman |
| C．Scotland; English | D．UK; Roman |
According to the passage, from 1600 to now, ________ great disasters have happened in London.
| A．one | B．two | C．three | D．four |
The reason why a great barrierhas been built across the Thames at Woolwich is that_________.
| A．London is very slowly sinking into its foundations |
| B．the level of the river Thames is slowly rising |
| C．extra-high tides could flood a large part of London |
| D．all of the above. |
Even if you are naturally shy, these three tricks will help you to quickly build a new social circle in any new city．
1．Take pictures
One of the great things about taking pictures at an event or party is that it gives you an excuse to get in touch with a person．Everybody loves seeing pictures of themselves，and it’s very easy after taking a picture to say “If you’d like I can email it to you”．This can be the seed that leads to new connections．The next time you hear about a fun event email your new contacts to let them know about it．
2．Eat alone in public
You might feel self-conscious eating by yourself but it has an important benefit：you are much easier to approach when you are alone．People may be afraid of interrupting you or being rude if you are in a conversation with someone else．Bring a book or newspaper to read (this will make you feel less self-conscious)．Plus，having an interesting book with you will give others an excuse to start a conversation if they’ve read it．
3．Join a
class，sports team，or club
Yoga，salsa dancing，volleyball，Toastmasters (a public speaking club)，a class for work，etc. Take up a new hobby or continue an old one!
These are all great places to meet new people，primarily because you will be forced to see the same people over and over again in the
class．You will automatically make friends with them if you have a common interest and are forced to see each other again．
Tips：
* In the beginning．never turn down an invitation from someone，even if it’s something you wouldn’t normally do．
* Email your new friends with fun things to do instead of always asking what their plans are, If t
hey have a better plan you can drop (放弃) yours and join them．This will help establish（建立） you as someone who is contributing value instead of just taking it (people want this in a friend) ．
*Don’t let little things in life upset you or be a negative person．People don’t want to be around someone like that！can give you an excuse to start new connections．
| A．Taking pictures of others | B．Eating by yourself in public |
C．Reading i nteresting books |
D．Joining group activities |
According to the text，which of the following is NOT mentioned as an advantage of joining a class?
| A．It helps you find out your interest and take up a new hobby． |
| B．It helps you find out people who share a common interest with you． |
| C．It offers an opportunity to meet the same people repeatedly． |
| D．It is a good way to meet new people and make friends in a new city． |
Which of the following pieces of advice is a tip from the text?
| A．Try to be outgoing and talkative instead of being shy． |
| B．Never turn down an invitation from your friends． |
| C．Offer suggestions on how to spend time together． |
| D．Don’t give a negative response to any request． |
Why do parents deny their kids’ weight?
Experts in childhood nutrition aren’t surprised by an investigation this summer that shows 50％of parents who have overweight children don’t realize their children Weigh too much．Many parents deny their children’s weight because they don’t want to have to change their own eating and exercise habits，says Keith Ayoob, a doctor who works with overweight children and their families in New York City．
Parents frequently ask him whether their children have a thyroid(甲状腺) problem, but that’s rarely the case．“1t’s usually a dietary(有关饮食的) and lifestyle issue．It’s very difficult for parents to deal with their own food issues，”Ayoob says．An estimated 25 million children in the USA are overweight, which puts them at risk of developing diabetes(糖尿病), high blood Pressure and other health problems．A Consumer Reports magazine investigation released on July 25，2009 of 3．048 parents who have children aged 5 to 17 found that 91% say childhood obesity (肥胖) is a problem in the USA．
Only 36％of the parents
with heavy children say their family doctors have suggested their children lose weight；the other 64％say the doctors didn’t mention it．“Many parents simply don’t realize their children are overweight．”says Keith Ayoob．“The doctors never told them．Other kids in the class look like their children．and their kids seem pretty healthy
．”he says．
He has parents go to the calculator on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website to figure out whether their children are too heavy．Why do many parents fail to admit their children are overweight?
| A．Because they think it a shame to be overweight. |
| B．Because they want to keep their own eating and exercise habits. |
| C．Because they want to change their own eating and exercise habits． |
| D．Because they want their children to have more nutrition． |
What is the probable cause of childhood obesity?
| A．Thyroid problem． | B．High blood pressure． |
| C．Dietary and lifestyle habit． | D．Diabetes． |
It can be inferred from the fourth paragraph that the family doctors’ advice ．
| A．has no influence on many parents |
| B．has much influence on many parents |
| C．has little influence on many parents |
| D．is totally accepted by many parents |
What advice does Keith Ayoob give to parents?
| A．He advises that parents should go and ask their family doctors in person． |
| B．He advises that the children should have a medical examination regularly． |
| C．He advises that school should force the children to eat less and exercise more． |
| D．He advises parents to go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website for the information． |
There is probably no field of human activity in which our values and lifestyles are shown more clearly and strongly than they are in theclothes that we choose to wear．The dress of an individual is a kind of “sign language” that communicates a set of information and is usually the basis on which immediate impressions are formed．Traditionally, a concern
for clothes was considered to be an affair of females，while men took pride in the fact that they were completely lacking clothes consciousness．
This type of American culture is gradually changing as man’s dress takes on greater variety and color．Even as early as 1955，a research in Michigan said that men considered that the value of clothing in daily life was very important．White—collar workers in particular viewed dress as a symbol of ability，which could be used to impress or influence others，especially in the work situation．The white-collar worker was described as extremely concerned about the impression his clothing made on his boss．Although blue-collar workers were less aware that they might be judged on the basis of their clothing，they recognized that any difference from the accepted pattern of dress would be made fun of by fellow workers．
Since that time，of course，the patterns have changed，the typical white-collar worker may now be wearing the blue shirt，while the blue-
collar may be wearing a white shirt，but the importance of dress has not become less. Other researchers in recent years have helped to prove its importance in the lives of individuals at various age levels and in different social and economic status groups.The passage tells us that .
| A．our values and lifestyles are in no field of human activity |
| B．the clothes that we choose to wear have something to do with our values and lifestyles |
| C．our values and lifestyles are from the sign language |
| D．the clothes we choose to wear depend on a set of information and immediate impression |
Traditionally，people usually thought that .
| A．men cared very much for clothes |
| B．neither men nor women showed interest in clothes |
| C．both men and women paid great attention to their clothes |
| D．women concerned greatly about what they wore while men didn’t |
White-collar workers pay great attention to their clothes because ．
| A．they extremely concern about the impression their clothes make on their bosses |
| B．they know that people might judge them on the basisof their clothes |
| C．they want to impress and influence others |
| D．they don’t want to be laughed at |
What does the underlined word“status”in the last paragraph mean？
| A．雕塑 | B．身份 | C．状况 | D．资格 |
Whatever we may need to buy，we can use our credit cards．This is a change from the older days when we had to first check whether cards were accepted．Today，everybody, from retailers（零售商) to lenders，accepts credit cards．Attitudes towards credit cards have also changed a lot．People used to be
very careful of using their cards；but this is no longer the case. People today prefer to take out their c
ards as soon as they get to the cash counter．A swipe (刷卡) and a sign are all it takes，and you can walk home with the bill and all the things you buy．
The credit card is much easier to carry than cash and it is not at all surprising that the former becomes the most preferred way of payment．A credit card takes up very little space in our wallets，and yet，it holds the 
power of a large sum of cash．Paying by credit cards is also a good way of keeping bills on where all of our money goes．
Moreover，it has become much easier to get credit cards these days．I constantly have cold callers calling up to offer me “great new credit card deals”．Salesmen occasionally walk into our office offering discounts if a group of people decide to sign up a certain kind of credit card plan at the same time．However，this can also cause a problem．Nowadays，we always run the
risk of getting some kinds of wastes．When the terms seem too good to be true，we should make sure that we always read the printed items carefully．Before signing for a creditcard，it is necessary to know its advantages and disadvantages．The only way to deal with this is to do our homework, before we go credit card hunting．We learn from Paragraph 1 that ．
| A．people can use credit cards anytime，anywhere |
| B．people used to have to check up on credit cards |
| C．people are more careful using credit cards nowadays |
| D．people can take their goods home just by swiping their cards |
One of the main advantages of credit cards is that．
| A．they occupy less space compared with other modes of payment |
| B．they are more powerful than cash |
| C．they are easy to get，and save money |
| D．they help users keep track of what they spend on |
When signing for a credit card，people should .
| A．ask for a discount |
| B．understand the dangers |
| C．read every word of the contract carefully |
| D．understand that the salesman is most likely to offer false information |
In the last sentence the writer tells us that ．
| A．we should know the advantages and disadvantages of credit cards before using them |
| B．we should finish work before going shopping with a credit card |
| C．we should check which credit cards are accepted before using them |
| D．we should make sure that our credit cards are real before using them |