Different countries have different customs. When you travel to another countries, please follow their customs, just as the saying goes, “ .”
Very often people who travel to the United States forget to tip. It is usual to tip porters who help carry your bags, taxi drivers and waiters. Waiters expect to get a 15% tip on the cost of your meal. Taxi drivers expect about the same amount.
In England, make sure to stand in line even if there are only two of you. It’s important to respect lines there. It’s a good idea to talk about the weather. It’s a favorite subject of conversation with the British.
In Spain, it’s a good idea to have a light meal in the afternoon if someone invites you for dinner. People have dinner very late, and restaurants do not generally open until after 9 pm.
In Arab countries, men kiss one another on the cheek. Your host may welcome you with a kiss on both cheeks. It is polite for you to do the same.
In Japan, people usually give personal or business cards to each other when they meet for the first time. When a person gives you a card, don’t put it into your pocket right away. The person expects you to read it.
Don’t forget to be careful of your body language to express something in conversation. A kind of body language that is acceptable in one culture may be impolite in another.When you travel to the USA, you don’t need to tip .
A.porters | B.waiters |
C.teachers | D.taxi drivers |
The missing sentence in the first paragraph should be“ .”
A.Love me, love my dog |
B.He who laughs last laughs best |
C.When in Rome, do as the Romans do |
D.Where there is a will, there is a way |
The underline word “porters” in the passage means .
A.搬运工 | B.清洁工 |
C.接线员 | D.售票员 |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A.In Spain, People usually have dinner very early. |
B.In England, It’s a not polite to talk about the weather. |
C.In Arab countries, men kiss one another on the cheek. |
D.In Japan you should not read the business card as soon as you get it. |
What’s the best title of the passage?
A.How to Tip |
B.Body Language |
C.When to Have Dinne |
D.Advice to International Travelers |
Imagine a mass of floating waste is two times the size of the state of Texas. Texas has a land area of more than 678 000 square kilometers. So it might be difficult to imagine anything twice as big.
All together, this mass of waste flowing in the North Pacific Ocean is known as the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch. It weighs about 3 500 000 tons. The waste includes bags,bottles and containers—plastic products of all kinds.
The eastern part of the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch is about l 600 kilometers west of California. The western part is west of the Hawaiian Islands and east of Japan. The area has been described as a kind of oceanic desert,with light winds and slow moving water currents. The water moves so slow that garbage from all over the world collects there.
In recent years,there have been growing concerns about the floating garbage and its effect on sea creatures and human health. Scientists say thousands of animals get trapped in the floating waste,resulting in death or injury. Even more die from a lack of food or water after swallowing pieces of plastic. The trash can also make animals feel full,lessening their desire to eat or drink.
The floating garbage also can have harmful effects on people. There is an increased threat of infection of disease from polluted waste,and from eating fish that swallowed waste. Divers can also get trapped in the plastic.
Its existence first gained public attention in l997. That was when racing boat captain and oceanographer Charles Moore and his crew sailed into the garbage while returning from a racing event. Five years earlier,another oceanographer learned of the trash after a shipment of rubber duckies got lost at sea. Many of those toys are now part of the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch.
In August,2009,a team from the University of California,San Diego became the latest group to travel to it. They were shocked by the amount of waste they saw. They gathered hundreds of sea creatures and water samples to measure the garbage patch’s effect on ocean environment.What do we know about the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch?
A.It is made up of various kinds of plastic products. |
B.It is a solid mass of floating waste materials. |
C.It lies l60 000 kilometers east of California. |
D.It is described as a kind of oceanic desert. |
Why do people pay attention to the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch?
A.Because it may prevent the flow of ocean water. |
B.Because the polluted plastic articles will move up the food chain. |
C.Because it may be from an island in the pacific. |
D.Because ships may be trapped in the floating waste. |
Which column can you find the passage on a newspaper?
A.Sports and entertainment. | B.Media and culture. |
C.Environment and society. | D.Science and technology. |
The purpose of writing this passage is to____________.
A.warn people of the danger to travel in the pacific |
B.analyze what caused the waste patch in the pacific |
C.give advice on how to recycle waste in the ocean |
D.introduce the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch |
I was working a double shift at the Southwest Airlines ticket counter. It was about 9:00 PM on Christmas Eve, and I was feeling really miserable inside. When it was time for me to call the next person to the counter,, I looked out to see the sweetest-looking old man standing with a walking stick.He walked very slowly over to the counter and in the faintest voice told me that he had to go to New Orleans. I tried to explain to him that there were no more flights that night and that he would have to go in the morning. He looked so confused and very worded. I tried to find out more information by asking if he had a reservation or if he remembered when he was supposed to travel, but he seemed to become more confused with each question. He just kept saying, "She said I have to go to New Orleans."
After much time, I was able to at least find out that this old man had been dropped off at the road on Christmas Eve by his sister-in-law and told to go to New Orleans, where he had family. She had given him some cash and told him just to go inside and buy a ticket. When I asked if he could come back tomorrow, he said that she was gone and that he had no place to stay. He then said he would wait at the airport until tomorrow. Naturally, I felt a little ashamed. Here I was feeling very sorry for myself about being alone on Christmas, when this angel named Clarence MacDonald was sent to me to remind me of what being alone really meant. It broke my heart.
Immediately, our Customer Service agent helped to book him a seat for the earliest flight the next morning. When I stepped around the counter to ask him if he was all right, I saw that his leg was wrapped in a bandage. He had been standing on it that whole time, holding a plastic bag full of clothes.I called for a wheelchair. He said that he had just had bypass surgery(分流手术)and an artery was taken from his leg. I never really had a situation like this, and I wasn't sure what I could do. I went back to ask my supervisors(主管)if we could find a place for him to stay. They both said yes, and they obtained a hotel voucher(收据) for Mr. MacDonald for one night and a meal ticket for dinner and breakfast.
The moment he left, he said, "Thank you," bending his head and starting to cry. I cried too.When I went back to thank my supervisor, she just smiled and said, "I love stories like that. He is your Christmas Man."The writer's first impression of the old man was that he was.
A.gentle-looking and weak |
B.tired out and worded |
C.confused and very sick |
D.sad and anxious |
On hearing the old man say that he would wait at the airport the whole night, the writer felt a bit ashamed because.
A.she felt sorry that she couldn't do the old man a favor |
B.she realized that someone was even more miserable than she felt |
C.it took her a long time to find out how helpless the old man was |
D.the old man was like an angel in the writer's eyes |
The writer called for a wheelchair for the old man because.
A.the old man had broken his leg when he was dropped off at the road |
B.the old man could spend the whole night on it at the airport |
C.the old man was carrying a whole lot of clothes |
D.the old man had had surgery just before and was very weak by then |
By calling the old man the writer's Christmas Man, the writer's supervisor implied that.
A.the old man had told the writer a love story on Christmas |
B.the old man had caused a lot of trouble for the writer on Christmas |
C.the old man was the best gift the writer could have received on Christmas |
D.the old man was the only customer the writer had served on Christmas |
Sometimes it is difficult to talk to taxi drivers. They must give all their attention to the road as they work out the shortest way to the place where you are going. However, passengers from Wangfujing were in surprise when they took a taxi. The driver just would not stop talking - in English.
Organized by the Cultural and Education Section of the British Embassy, “Dare to Speak” examines if Chinese people will speak English in “real-life” situations.
Matthew Knowles, an acting student from South Carolina at Beijing Film Academy, acted the part as the “driver”. He collected six passengers on Saturday morning, most of whom were female white-collar (白领)workers.
“Of course they were surprised at first, wondering why I’m driving a taxi, and wondering whether this is a real taxi, but then most of them were pretty willing to speak,” he said. Knowles said he was also surprised by his “passengers”. “Apart from my first ‘passenger’, who could speak very little English, all the rest spoke English very well, and it was fun to communicate with them,” he said, adding that some “passengers” were quite talkative.
The “foreign taxi driver” project was just one of the “Dare to Speak” activities, which have been going on since the end of October. Other projects included a foreign store owner near a high school in Beijing, a cook in a Shanghai university canteen. They were testing the willingness of Chinese people, especially students and white-collar workers, to speak to foreigners in English.
Rong Xin, senior manager of IELTS (雅思) with the British Embassy, said they hoped to let IELTS takers in China know that communication is the ultimate goal of IELTS.
“We hope that more and more IELTS takers in China can realize the importance of communicating in English in real life, instead of just getting high test scores,” she said.Why did Matthew Knowles drive a taxi?
A.He took part in the project “Dear to speak” |
B.He played the role of a taxi driver in a film. |
C.He enjoyed chatting with people in English. |
D.He wanted to improve his Chinese while driving. |
The Chinese may meet and talk to _______ in “Dear to speak” projects.
A.a white-collar worker | B.a foreign store owner |
C.a restaurant manager | D.a high school student |
The underlined word ultimate is closest in meaning to ________.
A.most difficult | B.most common |
C.most famous | D.most important |
The purpose of the project “Dear to Speak” is to _______ .
A.attract more foreigners to start business in China |
B.draw Chinese people’s attention to IELT |
C.remind language learners of the goal of learning |
D.give more chances for English learners in China |
Early risers are most likely to be healthy, wealthy and wise, according to the old saying. But those who are early to bed and early to rise do not always have advantages, researchers say. They have found that night owls(夜猫子) are generally brighter and wealthier than those who are able to get up early in the morning.
Experts from the University of Madrid carried out tests on around 1,000 teenagers and found that those who preferred to stay up late showed the kind of intelligence to find good jobs and earn much money. Larks or “morning people”, however, often get better exam results, possibly because lessons are held at the wrong time of day for night owls.
The researchers examined the habits and body clocks of the young people to determine whether they liked to stay up late and sleep later in the morning, or preferred to go to bed early and were at their best state in the morning. School performance and problem solving ability, were judged and test grades in the major subjects were also taken into consideration.
Jim Horne, professor of psychophysiology at Loughborough University, said: “Evening types tend(倾向) to be the more creative types, the poets, artists and inventors, while the morning types are considered to be civil servants and accountants(会计). ”The researchers from the University of Madrid found _______.
A.morning people will probably find good jobs and earn a lot |
B.morning people show higher intelligence from an early age |
C.night owls may earn more money than morning people |
D.night owls might be healthier than morning people |
Early risers often do well in exams possibly because_______.
A.they go to bed by 10p.m. regularly |
B.they make full preparations before exam |
C.lessons are held at the right time for them |
D.they have longer time to prepare for their lessons |
The research may include questions about the following EXCEPT_______.
A.favorite sports |
B.grades in main subjects |
C.living habits and body clocks |
D.school performance |
In Jim Horne’ opinion, Larks may choose to be _______ in the future.
A.inventors | B.artists |
C.poets | D.civil servants |
My 3-year-old son and I lived a very hard life because I had been out of work since two years ago. Being poor is a terrible feeling when your 3-year-old finishes his meal and says: “Can I have some more bread and jam (果酱) please, Mummy?” And you break down in tears, because you don’t know how to tell him that there is no more food. With £6, I went to the supermarket, picked up some food and started to cook at home. It was time for me to make a change and get back on my feet. I began to write a series of articles for the website named Hunger Hurt in July 2011.
A few months later, local food bank gave me some help-- with some free vegetables every month, which made my life a little easier. I began to write recipes(食谱), posting them on my blog. To my surprise, families, students and those poor people told me how much it helped to see healthy recipes made from affordable supermarket vegetables.
My Life took unexpected turns. I was invited to give a speech on food , interviewed for an Oxfam report on food banks and asked to write a cookery book.
When I got the money from the book, for the first night in almost two years, I went to bed without worrying. Now, I have a well-paid job and a beautiful home, and I’ll never forget the days when I worked hard for a good life.The writer started to cook because _______.
A.the food at the supermarket was unhealthy |
B.she had to feed themselves in a cheap way |
C.she was advised to do so by someone |
D.her son preferred home-cooked food |
According to the text, the food bank _______.
A.helps sell the food in supermarkets |
B.gives out food to those people who are in need |
C.brings people together who care about food waste |
D.write healthy recipes to food lovers around the world |
The writer’s first post of recipes _______.
A.drew much attention | B.was given little notice |
C.moved the readers | D.attracted only housewives |
Which could be the best title?
A.what a loving mother |
B.A lesson hard life teaches me |
C.A mother’s dream job |
D.Success lies in your own hands |