Walt Disney is credited for creating such wonderful things as Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse. However, he cannot take the credit for creating other well-loved characters, such as Cinderella and Snow White. They are almost automatically associated with Disney because Disney turned old fables(寓言) into cartoon movies.
The original Cinderella varies very much from the Disney version we know today. It started off with the girl mourning her mother’s death and going to her tomb three times a day. In addition, there were only birds that helped Cinderella; there was no such thing as a fairy godmother or helpful mice, nor was there mention of a horse and carriage.
The stepsisters were cruel: they always threw Cinderella’s food into the ashes of the fire and made her sleep on the ashes on the floor, hence（因此）her name.
In the original story, the king’s ball actually lasted for three days. With the help of the birds, the girl, beautifully dressed, danced with the prince on all three nights and the prince fell in love with her. However, she broke away from him to rush back home each night. On the last night, the prince placed soothing sticky on the stairs; as Cinderella made her escape, a shoe got stuck on it.
Here now is where the story becomes unpleasant: when the prince went to the house looking for the girl whose foot fit the shoe, the wicked(邪恶的) stepmother told one of her two daughters to cut off her big toe to fit into the shoe. The daughter did as told. So the prince took her away to be his bride. But when they passed the tomb of Cinderella’s mother, the birds called out to the prince,
“Turn and peep, there’s blood in the shoe;
the shoe is too small, the true bride waits for you.”
Realizing he had been tricked, the prince returned the daughter to her mother. The other then had to cut off part of her heel in order to fit into the shoe, with the same result. Only Cinderella’s foot fit perfectly and so the prince chose to marry her. The story ends with the wedding day: as Cinderella’s two stepsisters followed her, pretending to be devoted to her so that they could enjoy the king’s riches, two birds flew by and plucked(啄) out their eyes. Because of their wickedness and falsehood, they had to spend the rest of their days blind.
The original Cinderella is so different from the Disney version. Thank goodness Disney made such changes; it indeed was a wise move. What dose the underlined word “They” in the first paragraph refer to?
| A．Such wonderful things. |
| B．Other well-loved characters. |
| C．Old fables. |
| D．Cartoon movies. |
How did Cinderella get her name?
| A．The Birds came up with it. |
| B．It was given by Disney. |
| C．It came from the word “ash”. |
| D．She got it from her mother. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the original story?
| A．Helpful mice got Cinderella a beautiful dress. |
| B．The ball was held to celebrate the prince’s wedding. |
| C．Cinderella left her shoe on the stairs on purpose. |
| D．The birds told the prince that he had been cheated. |
What does the author think of the Disney version?
| A．Excellent. |
| B．Ordinary |
| C．Dull. |
| D．Ridiculous. |
Scientists are trying to make the deserts into good land again. They want to bring water to the deserts， so people can live and grow food. They are learning a lot about the deserts. But more and more of the earth is becoming desert all the time. Scientists may not be able to change the desert in time.
Why is more and more land becoming desert？Scientists think that people make deserts. People are doing bad things to the earth.
Some places on the earth don’t get much rain. But they still don’t become deserts. This is because some green plants are growing there. Small green plants and grass are very important to dry places. Plants don’t let the sun make the earth even drier. Plants do not let the wind blow the dirt away. When a bit of rain falls，the plants hold the water. Without plants，the land can become desert more easily. Deserts ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿ .
| A．never have any plants or animals in them |
| B．can all be turned into good land before long |
| C．are becoming smaller and smaller |
| D．get very little rain |
Smallgreenplantsareveryimportanttodryplaces because ＿＿＿＿＿＿.
| A．they don’t let the sun make the earth even drier |
| B．they don’t let the wind blow the soil away |
| C．they hold water |
| D．All of the above. |
Landisbecomingdesertlittlebylittlebecause ＿＿＿＿＿＿.
| A．plants can’t grow there |
| B．there is not enough rain |
| C．people haven’t done what scientists wish them to do |
| D．scientists know little about the deserts |
After reading this passage， we learn that ＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿.
| A．plants can keep dry land from becoming desert |
| B．it is good to get rid of the grass in the deserts |
| C．all places without much rain will become deserts |
| D．it is better to grow crops on dry land than to cut them |
When I was small and my grandmother died, I couldn’t understand why I had no tears. But that night when my dad tried to cheer me up, my laugh turned into crying.
.So it came as no surprise to learn that researchers believe crying and laughing come from the same part of the brain. Just as laughing has many health advantages, scientists are discovering that so, too, does crying.
Whatever it takes for us to reduce pressure is important to our emotional (情感的) health, and crying seems to study found that 85 percent of women and 73 percent of men report feeling better after crying.
Besides, tears attract help from other people. Researchers agree that when we cry, people around us become kinder and friendly and they are more ready to provide support and comfort. Tears also enable us to understand our emotions better; sometimes we don't even know we' re very sad until we cry. We learn about our emotions through Crying, and then we can deal with them.
Just as crying can be healthy, not crying — holding back tears of anger, pain or suffering — can be bad for physical (身体的) health, Studies have shown that too much control of emotions can lead to high blood pressure, heart problems and some other illnesses. If you have a health problem, doctors will certainly not ask you to cry. But when you feel like crying, don't fight it. It's a natural— and healthy — emotional response (反应).Why didn't the author cry when her grandmother died?
| A．Because her father did not --ant her to feel too sad. |
| B．Because she did not love her grandmother. |
| C．Because she was too shy to cry at that time. |
| D．Tie author doesn’t give the explanation. |
According to the author, which of the following statements is true?
| A．Crying is the best way to get help from others. |
| B．Fighting back tears may cause some health problems. |
| C．We will never know our deep feelings unless we cry. |
| D．We must cry if we want to reduce pressure. |
What might be the most suitable title for the text?
| A．Power of Tears | B．How to Keep Healthy |
| C．Why We Cry | D．A New Scientific Discovery |
Pet owners are being encouraged to take their animals to work , a move scientists say can be good for productivity , workplace morale (士气), and the well-being of animals .
A study found that 25% of Australian women would like to keep an office pet . Sue Chaseling of Petcare Information Service said the practice of keeping office pets was good both for the people and the pets . “On the pets’ side , they are not left on their own and won’t feel lonely and unhappy,” she said . A study of major US companies showed that 73% found office pets beneficial (有益的) , while 27% experienced a drop in absenteeism (缺勤).
Xarni Riggs has two cats walking around her Global Hair Salon in Paddington . “My customers love them. They are their favorites ,” she said . “They are not troublesome . They know when to go and have a sleep in the sun .”
Little black BJ has spent nearly all his two years “working” at Punch Gallery in Balmain . Owner Iain Powell said he had had cats at the gallery for 15 years . “BJ often lies in the shop window and people walking past tap on the glass ,” he said .
Ms Chaseling said cats were popular in service industries because they enabled a point of conversation . But she said owners had to make sure both their co-workers and the cats were comfortable .The percentage of American companies that are in favor of keeping office pets is
| A．73% | B．27% | C．25% | D．15% |
We know from the text that “BJ”
| A．works in the Global Hair Salon | B．often greets the passers-by |
| C．likes to sleep in the sun | D．is a two-year-old cat |
The best title for this text would be .
| A．Pets Help Attract Customers | B．Your Favorite Office Pets |
| C．Pets Join the Workforce | D．Busy Life for Pets |
Reading is very important to help you learn English. To learn as much as you can from reading, you need to read different kinds of English. This book provides not only different kinds of English but also a good way to check your reading ability.
There are four parts in the book:
Part 1 is Messages: In this part somebody wants to wad information in writing to somebody else. There is a test on timetables and a test on text messages.
Part 2 is People: In this part all the tests are about people. For example, there is an informal letter between friends. There is formal ( 正式的) English in biography ( 传记). There is a job application as a model to help with your writing, as welt as testing your reading.
Part 3 is Places: In this part, too many different kinds of English are shown, some informal and some formal. There is the informal English of a holiday postcard. There is also the formal English in a letter of complaint.
Part 4 is Things: You will find some descriptive writing in this part. There are descriptions of clothes and of a computer.
You can do these tests in any order you like, or you can do alt the tests with a formal or informal text. I enjoyed writing this book and I hope you enjoy using it,We can find the introduction to a product in ______,
| A．Part 1 | B．Part 2 | C．Part 3 | D．Part 4 |
Which of the following is most probably written in informal English?
| A．A letter of complaint. | B．A computer handbook. |
| C．A letter to a friend. | D．A story of a president. |
The passage is most probably written for _____.
| A．test designers | B．students | C．test-takers | D．teachers |
What is the best title of the book?
| A．Test Your Reading | B．Help with Your Writing |
| C．Learn Different Kinds a/English | D．Practise English in Different Ways |
Television has opened windows in everybody’s life. 55Millions of people now have seen the effects of a battle. And the result has been a general dislike of the war and perhaps more interest in helping those who suffer from all the terrible things that have been shown on the screen.
56The most distant areas can now follow state affairs, see and hear the politicians before an election. Better informed, people are more likely to vote, and so to make their opinion count.
57 Children do not have enough experience to realize that TV shows present an unreal world, that TV advertisements lie to sell products that are sometimes bad or useless. They believe and want to practice what they see. 58.
All educators agree that the “television generation” are more violent than their parents and grandparents. Also, the young are less patient. Used to TV shows, where everything is quick and interesting, they do not have the patience to read an article without pictures, t read a book that requires thinking, to listen to a teacher who doesn’t do funny things like the people on children’s programs. And they expect all problems to be solved happily in ten, fifteen , or thirty minutes.59 .
| A．Unfortunately, television’s influence has been extremely harmful to the young. |
| B．Young men will never again go to war as they did in 1914. |
| C．That’s the time it takes on the screen. |
| D．They do believe that the violence they see is normal and acceptable. |
E. People have become used to crimes now.
F. Television has also changed politics.
G. In the past, many young people were willing to be soldiers.