One day an American called Simon went to London to visit his friend, Rick. Rick told him that his flat was on the first floor. When he arrived, Simon went straight to the first floor of the building. But he was told that there was no Rick on that floor. Do you know why?
In fact, the British call the first floor of a building the ground floor. The floor above the ground floor is the first floor, which Americans would call the second floor.
The story shows that there are a few culture differences between Britain and America, though the British and Americans both speak English.
The British usually hide their feelings. They seldom start a conversation with strangers. For example, on the train the British often spend their time reading newspapers or books. But Americans are quite different. They’re more active and easier to talk with.
The British and Americans may use different terms for many things. The British usually use football, eraser and mail while Americans prefer to use soccer, rubber and post. Simon went to London to ______.
A.visit his friend | B.spend his holiday |
C.study English | D.have a meeting |
Which picture shows us where Rick’s flat was? ______.
According to the passage, the British usually spend their time ______ on the train.
A.playing cards | B.talking loudly |
C.doing some reading | D.singing and dancing |
What does the underlined word “terms” mean in Chinese in the passage? ______.
A.成果 | B.学期 | C.会议 | D.用语 |
Chinese netizens who like to create and use cyber words such as “geilivable” might find a new regulation very “ungeilivable”. The new regulation by the General Administration of Press and Publication last week banned the use of Chinglish words created by netizens for publishing in the Chinese language.
“Geilivable”, combining the pinyin geili (giving strength) with the English suffix (后缀) for adjectives, literally means “giving power” or “cool”. Different suffixes and prefixes were then added to the word. “Hengeilivable” means “very cool”, and “ungeilivable” means “dull, not cool at all”.
Cyber language is popular among Chinese netizens, who create Chinglish words to reflect phenomenon in society. One example is “antizen”, which refers to college graduates who earn a meager salary and live in small rented apartments, like tiny and laborious ants.
David Tool, a professor with the Beijing International Studies University, said it’s very interesting to combine Chinese with English to create new words. “English is no longer mysterious to the Chinese people. They can use the language in a flexible way according to their own experiences,” Tool said.
At the announcement of the regulation by the General Administration of Press and Publication, netizens expressed their concern.
“The administration is totally ‘ungeilivable’,” said a netizen named laoda1713. “I know other netizens will shed tears with me... it is a good chance to enrich our language”.
“Language is always developing,” said a columnist, Wang Pei. “It needs to be updated to absorb foreign culture and folk wisdom.”
But an unnamed official with the administration said that, in fact, many senior staff from news media who supported the regulation were worried that years later, the younger generation would forget how to use formal Chinese expressions. The official also pointed out that the regulation was only for formal publications in Chinese language, and it only banned Chinglish words in the publication.The new regulation by the General Administration of Press and Publication may be aimed at .
A.simplifying the Chinese language | B.limiting the development of language |
C.banning the use of Chinglish | D.making the netizens more serious |
The underlined word meager in the th
ird paragraph probably means.
A.poor | B.flexible | C.high | D.plentiful |
From this passage we can infer that .
A.the Chinese people like their own language only |
B.the English words are considered informal in China |
C.nobody in China will support the new regulation |
D.“geilivable” will be popular among Chinese netizens |
On which column of China Daily can you find this passage?
A.Entertainment | B.Business | C.Travel | D.Opinion |
The five clearest role-related behaviours of travellers (in order of relative importance )
Tourist |
takes photos, buys souvenirs, goes to famous places, stays briefly in one place, does not understand the local people |
Traveller |
stays briefly in one place, experiments with local food, goes to famous places, takes photos, explores places privately |
Holidaymaker |
takes photos, goes to famous places, is separated from the local society, buys souvenirs, contributes to the visited economy |
Jet-setter |
lives a life of luxury (奢侈) , concerned with social status, seeks physical pleasures, prefers communicating with people of his/her own kind, goes to famous places |
Businessperson |
concerned with social status, contributes to the economy, does not take photos prefers interacting with people of his/her own kind, lives a life of luxury |
Conservationist |
interested in the environment, does not buy souvenirs, does not exploit the local people, explores places privately, takes photos |
Explorer |
explores places privately, interested in the environment, takes physical risks, does not buy souvenirs, observes the visited economy |
Overseas student |
experiments with local food, does not exploit the people, takes photos, observes the visited society, takes physical risks |
International athlete |
is not separated from their own society, does not exploit the local people, does not understand the local people, explores places privately, searches for the meaning of life |
Overseas journalist |
takes photos, observes the visited society, goes to famous places, takes physical risks, explores places privately |
Which of the following behaviours do Tourist, Traveller and Holidaymaker share?
A.Stay briefly in one place. | B.Buy souvenirs. |
C.Go to famous places. | D.Explore places privately |
We can learn that overseas students ________.
A.are curious about the society they visit |
B.like to do experiments with local food |
C.take photos as their teachers have instructed |
D.enjoy taking physical risks because they are brave |
According to the passage, which of the following is true?
A.Three groups are interested in exploring places privately. |
B.More than two groups live a life of luxury. |
C.Six groups are fond of taking photos. |
D.Two groups don’t like buying souvenirs. |
London has a new magazine. But it’s not printed on paper. Everyone who has a television can receive it because it is on TV.
In order to read this magazine you have to have a decoder. Each page of it is numbered, so you only have to dial the number to choose which subject you want to read about. There’s a wide choice--- everything is included from cooking to the latest sports news.
If you want to read the news, the first thing you have to do is to turn to the index page which has an easy-to-remember page number, 100 for example. Then you start choosing what you want to read. The news is on pages 101 to 109, so you push out the numbers and the news appears written across your screen. Perhaps you want to go out in the afternoon, so you press 181, and a brightly colored weather map appears on the screen. But the weather is terrible so you decide to go shopping and dial 162 for a list of the week’s best bargains. But should you drive or take the train ? To answer the question you only have to press 189 for the traffic report. It’s very simple to use. But probably the best thing about the service is that it’s being updated all the time. Journalists type new material directly onto the screen and whole pages of the magazine can be replaced in minutes.
London has already had three services. One, transmitted(传输)by ITV, is called ORACLE, while the other two, on BBC, are called CEEFAX, because they let you see facts. Although CEEFAX and ORACLE have been operating for some time, they have not been well publicized. BBC engineers do not think that their idea will ever replace books and newspapers because they can be taken with you everywhere. But many people agree that this is a breakthrough as great as the invention of printing, which could change not just our reading habits but our whole way of life.
What is unusual about the mew magazine in London?
A.You can find any subject you want in it. |
B.No paper is used to print the magazine. |
C.There 1,000 page numbers in the index. |
D.The speed of transmitting is astonishing. |
It’s clearly seen from the passage that ________.
A.it takes long for the service![]() |
B.most of the postmen will be out of work![]() |
C.the readers can get all kinds of information without leaving home |
D.everyone can read the magazine if there is a television at hand |
According to the passage, the “decoder” is used to help people to ________.
A.read the information transmitted by TV signals |
B.broadcast special TV programs at home and abroad |
C.dial the number to choose which subject you want to read a![]() |
D.find the exact page in which you can get information you need |
The passage is mainly about.
A.a new magazine printed in London | B.a popular TV program with three services |
C.a great breakthrough in printing | D.an up-to-date way of keeping up to date |
Eight – year – old Jesse Abrogate was playing in the sea late one evening in July 2001 when a 7-foot bull shark attacked him and tore off his arm. Jesse’s uncle jumped into the sea and dragged the boy to shore. The boy was not breathing. His aunt gave him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation (人工呼吸) while his uncle rang the emergency services. Pretty soon, a helicopter arrived and flew the boy to hospital. It was a much quicker journey than the journey by road.
Jesse’s uncle, Vance Folsenzier, ran back into to the sea and found the shark that had attacked his nephew. He picked the shark up and threw it onto the beach. A coastguard shot the fish four times and although this did not kill it, the shark’s jaws relaxed so that they could open them, and reach down into its stomach, and pull out the boy’s arm.
At the Baptist Hospital in Pensacola, Dr. Ian Rogers spent eleven hours reattaching Jesse’s arm. “It was a complicated operation,” he said, “but we were lucky. If the arm hadn’t been recovered in time, we wouldn’t have been able to do the operation at all. What I mean is that if they hadn’t found the shark, well then we wouldn’t have had a chance.’
According to local park ranger Jack Tomosvic, shark attacks are not that common. “Jesse was just unlucky,” he says, “evening is the shark’s feeding time. And Jesse was in area without lifeguards. This would never have happened if he had been in area where swimming is allowed.’
When reporters asked Jesse’s uncle how he had had the courage to fight a shark, he replied, “I was mad and you do some strange things when you’re mad.”What was the boy doing when the accident happened?
A.Feeding a hungry shark. | B.Jumping into the rough sea. |
C.Dragging a boy to the shore. | D.Swimming in a dangerous area. |
In which way did the boy’s uncle help with the operation?
A.By finding his lost arm. | B.By shooting the fish. |
C.By flying him to hospital. | D.By blowing into his mouth. |
How was his uncle in time of danger?
A.Careful. | B.Brave. | C.Optimistic. | D.Patient. |
Which of the following statements can be infe
rred from the passage?
A.Jesse’s uncle was mad. |
B.Jesse was playing in area where swimming is allowed. |
C.It was very difficult for the doctor to reattach Jesse’s arm. |
D.Evening is the shark’s feeding time. |
More perhaps than any other European nation, the Swiss have got used to looking after foreign travelers. As early as the 18th century, wealthy French, Germans and Italians were treating the country as an amusement center while, in the 19th century, it became the major holiday playground for the British nobles. Today, it attracts visitors from all over the world.
The Swiss are clear about the importance of tourism to their economy, which makes up about eight percent of the Gross Domestic Product, and helps industry greatly. Managers of hotels from all over the world go to Switzerland to learn how to do the job, and a high standard can be expected from the great majority of the country’s hotels, most of which are small and pride themselves on personalized service. Public transport is the best in Europe. Both the Swiss Federal railways and the private railways are fully electric-powered, and the total network consists of about 5,000 kilometers of track.
Under the Fly Baggage system passengers can check luggage in at 116 railway stations and have it automatically transferred to their flight. The national highway system is equally well planned, and the mountain roads offer views of some of the country’s most breathtaking scenery. Also serving the mountains is an effective system of railways and cable ways, while more than 160 passenger cars cross the lakes and rivers. Hiking in the mountains is equally popular with Swiss nationals and foreign visitors. For those who want to view the country from a great height without having to climb the mountain themselves, it is always possible to take in the view from a balloon.
Compared with other European countries, Switzerland ________.
A.places more importance on entertainment |
B.thinks more about foreign travelers |
C.has more convenient public transport |
D.has more five-star hotels |
According to the passage, Switzerland is now visited by ________.
A.wealthy French people | B.rich Germans and Italians |
C.British nobles | D.people from various countries |
According to the passage we learn that ________.
A.most of the hotels in Switzerland are big |
B.all the hotels in Switzerland offer exactly the same service |
C.most of the hotels in Switzerland offer first class service |
D.the hotels in Switzerland are accustomed to learning from the rest of the world |
The Fly Rail Baggage system is a service to transport your luggage between the railway station and ________.
A.the airpor![]() |
B.the hotel | C.the motorway station | D.the cable ways |
The passage mainly tells us about ________.
A.scenery in Switzerland | B.the life in Switzerland |
C.tourism in Switzerland | D.the transportation in Switzerland |