Disease, poverty, hate, love－Charles Dickens’ stories opened his readers eyes to the most important themes of his age. Two hundred years on, his stories still speak volumes across the world, proving that Dickens’ legacy（遗产）was far greater than just “great-literature”.
February 7 marks the 200th anniversary of the writer’s birthday. To mark this date, BBC writer Alex Hudson listed six things Dickens gave the modern world. Let’s take a look at two of them.
A White Christmas
Dickens is described as “the man who invented Christmas” － not the religious festival, but the cultural aspects that we associate with the festive season today.
In the early 19th century, Christmas was barely worth mentioning, according to critic and writer Leigh Hunt. The committee which ran the Conservative Party even held ordinary business meetings on Christmas Day－unthinkable in the West nowadays, when everyone but the most necessary workers takes at least three days off.
Many people believe that Dickens’ popular descriptions of the festive period became a blueprint for generations to come. In his classic novel, A Christmas Carol, he not only put forward the idea of snow at Christmas, but also painted a picture of glowing warmth－“home enjoyments, affections and hopes”.
In his biography of Dickens, Peter Ackroyd wrote: “Dickens can be said to have almost single-handedly created the modern idea of Christmas.”
“Dickens” poverty(贫穷)
Dickens was one of the first to take an honest look at the underclass and the poor of Victorian London.He helped popularize the term “red tape” to describe situations where people in power use needless amounts of bureaucracy(官僚作风) in a way that particularly hurts the weaker and poorer members of society.
“Dickensian” has now become a powerful word for describing an unacceptable level of poverty. In 2009, when the president of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers in the UK wanted to talk about poverty in some areas of Britain, she did not use words like “terrible” or “horrific”, but rather described it as “life mirroring the times of Dickens”.The article is mainly about____________
| A．a brief introduction to Charles Dickens |
| B．Charles Dickens’ influence on the world |
| C．the characters in Charles Dickens’ stories |
| D．Charles Dickens’ achievements in literature |
Why is Dickens called “the man who invented Christmas”?
| A．Because he created both religious and culture festival. |
| B．Because all his novels have something to do with Christmas. |
| C．Because one of his novels helped to shape Christmas celebrations. |
| D．Because he was the first man to have proposed celebrating Christmas. |
We can learn from the passage that______.
| A．Dickensian is widely used to describe the Christmas |
| B．Charles Dickens’ novels reflect the true life at his age |
| C．Every person can take three days off for Christmas |
| D．The theme of Charles Dickens’ stories is about poverty |
Try and see inside your mind a wide open blue sky and a wide green sea far away. Breathe in as you circle your hands high above your head, then bend back a little. Breathe out as you circle your arms back down to your sides..."
Following the yoga teacher's gentle instructions, Bai Yunuo,15, from the High School attached to Beijing Normal University tried to get each of her poses correct.
Bai's school offered 24 e
lective courses (选修课) for Senor 1 students this term and she chose two. It was her first yoga class.
"I'm happy that I can learn yoga at school. I love dancing but I had some injuries on my knees when I was a kid. So I decide to try something soft. Simply stretching into different poses makes me feel free and quiet. And the music is quite comforting. The class is relaxing after a whole day's work," Bai said.
Liu Zehao,15, found his interest was Junior Achievement (企业经营模拟). The course brought students into the real world of business. In their first class, Liu and his group members named their company "Vision". Liu was elected as CEO of the company.
"Here we learn to think like an adult. We have to make our company get more money. It's new and different from other courses," he said.
Liu and Bai take their elective courses twice a week with students from other classes who share the same interest. The students will get two credits (学分) from each course at the end of this term. They have to achieve eight credit points from electives to graduate from high school.
If you are interested in more about elective courses, please CLICK HERE to register for general elective courses. What’s the main idea of the first paragraph?
| A．Skills for imagination. | B．Learning tips. |
| C．Instruction for yoga students. | D．Breathing rules. |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．Bai does not like dancing. | B．Yoga is softer than dancing. |
| C．Students study hard for credits. | D．The elective courses are easy. |
Which of the sentence is NOT true about Liu Zehao?
| A．He was interested in Junior Achievement which brought him the real world of business. |
| B．He was elected as CEO of the company named "Vision". |
| C．He was an adult and he tried to make more money for his company. |
| D．He took their Junior Achievement twice a week. |
Where can you possibly find this passage?
| A．A textbook | B．A newspaper | C．A magazine | D．The internet |
It is possible that the majority of the teenagers accepted the advantages of the iPad. In most cases they were expressing strong opinions about it. But today we already know that another three high-end computer tablets(平板电脑) are going on sale, with the aim of taking a bite out of the iPad's market. For tablet computer fans, iPad may not be the only choice, as the Motorola Xoom, the HP Touchpad and the BlackBerry PlayBook will have been launched (推出)by this summer, according to foreign media reports on Tuesday. Here is Product Information Guide as follows. We would like to listen to your reviews later.
| Apple iPad2 Size: 9.7 inch screen, 8.8mm thick Weight: 601g (Wi-Fi only version) Battery life: 10 hours of heavy use Price: a base price of $499(3,278yuan) Available(可使用的): March 11, 2011 in the US Strength: over 65,000 *apps that are fit for the iPad Weakness: lack of USB port and flash support |
| Motorola Xoom Size: 10.1 inch screen, 13mm thick Weight: 730g Battery life: 8hours of heavy use Price: $800(5,252RMByuan) Available: now Strength: great multi-tasking feature, better cameras than the iPad2 Weakness: limited options（选择权）of apps |
| HP Touchpad Size: 9.7 inch screen, 13mm thick Weight: 740g Battery life: 8hours of heavy use Price: not yet announced Available: summer 2011 Strength: killer software features, including a virtual(虚拟的) keyboard which comes in four sizes Weakness: lack of a rear-mounted（后置式） camera which would allow users to get images and photos |
| BlackBerry PlayBook Size: 7- inch screen, 10mm thick Weight: 400g Battery life: 8hours of heavy use Price: not yet announced Available: Spring 2011 Strength: business-oriented, powerful multitasker, excellent data security（安全） Weakness: Some features require users to have a Black-Berry phone |
Which type is the biggest one?
| A．Apple iPad 2 | B．Motorola Xoom | C．HP Touchpad | D．BlackBerry PlayBook |
Which is True according to the passage?
A. Apple ipad 2 has excellent data security.
B. Four t
ypes above of Battery life are the same.
C. Most people are satisfied with HP Touchpad. Which one can you buy as a present with only 4000yuan RMB at
hand?
| A．Apple iPad 2 | B．Motorola Xroom | C．None of the four | D．Any of the four |
I know what you’re thinking : pizza （比萨饼）? For breakfast? But the truth is that you can have last night’s leftovers in the a. m. if you want to
I know lots of women who skip breakfast （不吃早餐）, and they have a ton of different excuses for doing it . Some say they don’t have time,others think they’re “saving” calories （卡路里）, and still others just don’t like breakfast food .
But the bottom line is that eating in the morning is very important when you
’re trying to lose weight. “Eating just about anything from 300 to 400 calories would be better than nothing at all,” says Katherine Brooking , R , D , who developed the super-easy eating plan for this year’s “SELF CHALLENGE”. And even pizza can be healthy if it’s loaded with vegetables, and you stick to one small piece.
Breakfast is one meal I never miss, and the same goes for most weight loss success stories. Research shows that eating breakfast keeps you from overeating later in the day. Researchers at the University of Southem California found that breakfast skippers have a bigger chance of gaining weight than those who regularly have a morning meal.
So eat something in the morning, anything. I know plenty of friends who end up having no breakfast altogether, and have just coffee or orange juice. I say, try heating up last night’s leftovers-it may sound crazy, but if it works for you, do it! I find if I tell myself, “You can always eat it tomorrow,” I put away the leftovers instead of eating more that night. Try it,and then you may save yourself some pre-bedtime calories. And watch your body gain the fat-burning effects. The underlined word “leftovers” in Paragraph 1 probably means__________.
| A．food remaining after a meal | B．things left undone |
| C．meals made of vegetables | D．pizza topped with fruit |
What can we infer from the text?
| A．Working women usually have breakfast in a hurry. |
| B．Many people have wrong ideas about breakfast. |
| C．There are some easy ways of cooking a meal. |
| D．Eating vegetables helps save energy. |
According to the last paragraph, it is important to____________.
| A．eat something for breakfast | B．be careful about what you eat |
| C．heat up food before eating it | D．eat calorie-controlled food |
The text is written mainly for those_____________.
| A．who go to work early | B．who want to lose weight |
| C．who stay up late | D．who eat before sleep |
Here is the Nine O’clock News：
1. President Absul Krim of Syria says that the danger of war in the Middle East is greater now than for the past two years. His country does not want war，he says，but the Syrian people have waited too long for an end to the troubles with their neighbors. If war comes，says Mr. Krim， Syria will be ready.
2. Ben Kitson，a writer of stories and plays for children，has died at his home in California. Mr. Kitson was 82. His most famous book of stories，“The Gentleman‘s House” sells all over the world，in more than twenty-five languages.
3. Policemen in New York have gone on
strike. Their leader Mr. Paul Angeli says that they will return to work only when they receive more money for working long hours and doing what Mr. Angeli calls “the most dangerous job in the city”。
4. It has been a good year on the farm. The warm， wet spring and the fine summer have been very good for all kinds of food plants. This means that fruits and vegetables will cost less in the shops this year.
5. MORE than 1，100 people committed suicide（自杀）in Beijing last year， and experts have been encouraging the capital to set up a mental health care system as soon as possible，local media reported last week. About 20 per cent of the people of Beijing live in unhealthy conditions，with 3 per cent of these suffering from affective disorder and 5 per cent reporting symptoms（症状）of depression，according to the Beijing Mental Health Service Centre.The Syrian people _______.
| A．are ready and waiting for war |
| B．are ready to wait another two years for war |
| C．do not want war，but will be ready if it comes |
| D．are a great danger of peace in the Middle East |
Mr. Kitson wrote _______.
| A．plays and stories for children |
| B．82 stories about his home in California |
| C．in more than twenty-five languages |
| D．books，and then sold them all over the world |
It can be inferred from the third piece of news that _________.
| A．policemen in New York hate their dangerous jobs |
| B．policemen in New York love their important jobs |
| C．the government will refuse to raise the policemen‘s salary and the policemen will never return to work |
| D．the government will be forced to raise the policemen‘s salary and the policemen will return to work |
As food plants have grown well， _______.
| A．fruit and vegetables will be cheaper this year |
| B．there will be a warm，wet spring and a fine summer |
| C．food will be cheaper than it was in the spring |
| D．plants will be cheaper in the shops this year |
What is the best title for the last pieces of news？
| A．MORE than 1,100 people committed suicide（自杀）in Beijing last year. |
| B．About 20 per cent of the people of Beijing live in unhealthy conditions. |
| C．Beijing needs mental health care |
| D．People living in Beijing suffer a lot. |
According to the dictionary definition of ‘create’，ordinary people are creative every day. To create means to bring into being，to cause to exist something each of us does daily. We are creative whenever we look at or think about something in a new way.
First，this includes an awareness（意识）of our surroundings. It means using all of our senses to become aware of our world. This may be as simple as being aware of color and texture（质地），as well as taste， when we plan a meal. Above all，it is the ability to notice things that others might miss.
A second part of creativity is an ability to see relationships among things. If we believe the ex
pression，there is nothing new under the sun，the creativity is remaking or recombining（重组）the old in new ways. For example，we might do this by finding a more effective way to study or a better way to arrange our furniture，or we might make a new combination of camera lenses and filters to create an unusual photograph.
A third part of creativity is the courage and drive to make use of our new ideas，to ask for them to achieve some new results. To think up a new idea is one thing；to put the idea to work is another. These three parts of creativity are included in all the great works of geniuses，but they are also included in many of our daytoday activities.Which of the following activities is NOT a creative one according to the passage？
| A．To prepare for a meal. |
| B．To arrange the furniture in a special way. |
| C．To buy some books from a bookstore. |
| D．To write a letter with the computer. |
There is nothing new under the sun really implies that__________.
| A．a new thing can only be created at the basis of earliest things |
| B．a new thing is only a tale |
| C．we can seldom create new things |
| D．we can hardly see really new things in the world |
What does the author think about the relationship between a new thought and its being put into practice？
| A．It's more difficult to create a new thought than to use it in practice. |
| B．To find a new thought will clearly lead to the production of a new thing. |
| C．A man with an excellent ability of practice can easily become an inventor. |
| D．One may come up with a new thought，but can not put it into practice. |