The first tape recorder didn't use tape. It used long thin wire. It was invented in 1900 by Valdermar Poulsen. In 1930, German scientists invented the tape we use today. Back then the tape was on big rolls. In 1964 the Philips company in Holland invented the cassette. It's pretty much a holder for the tape. People use cassettes all over the world. If you don't have a cassette recorder, borrow one.
Think of a book your parents read out loud to you. That might be a great book to read out loud to your mom or dad in their car. Put a cassette in the recorder, open the book, hit the record button and start reading out loud.
Remember there is not such a thing as a wrong way to do this. You might think you've made a mistake, but this gift is part of you，and nothing about that can be a mistake. It's impossible.
You get to be all artistic and creative here. You might want to play music in the background. Do whatever you want. The gift is you, so you decide. Remember to say “I love you” at the end of your reading. That's like the prize at the end of the book.Choose the right order that shows the development of the tape recorder.
a．Using big rolls.
b．Using cassettes.
c．Using thin wire.
| A．a，b，c |
| B．b，c，a |
| C．c，a，b |
| D．c，b，a |
Why does the author mention the history of tape recorders in Paragraph 1?
| A．To inform readers of new inventions. |
| B．To lead into his following suggestion. |
| C．To give an example of his suggestion. |
| D．To show the importance of tape recorders. |
What does the author advise us to do?
| A．To read a book to our parents in their car. |
| B．To ask our parents to record a book. |
| C．To make a gift for our parents. |
| D．To practice reading out loud. |
America is a mobile society. Friendships between Americans can be close and real, yet disappear soon if situations change. Neither side feels hurt by this. Both may exchange Christmas greetings for a year or two, perhaps a few letters for a while — then no more. If the same two people meet again by chance, even years later, they pick up the friendship. This can be quite difficult for us Chinese to understand, because friendships between us flow more slowly but then may become lifelong feelings, extending (延伸) sometimes deeply into both families.
Americans are ready to receive us foreigners at their homes, share their holidays, and their home life. They will enjoy welcoming us and be pleased if we accept their hospitality (好客) easily.
Another difficult point for us Chinese to understand Americans is that although they welcome us warmly in their personal everyday lives, they don’t show their politeness to us if it requires a great deal of time. This is usually the opposite of the practice in our country where we may be generous with our time. Sometimes, we, as hosts, will appear at airports even in the middle of the night to meet a friend. We may take days off to act as guides to our foreign friends. The Americans, however, express their welcome usually at homes, but truly cannot manage the time to do a great deal with a visitor outside their daily routine. They will probably expect us to get ourselves from the airport to our own hotel by bus. And they expect that we will phone them from there. Once we arrive at their homes, the welcome will be full, warm and real. We will find ourselves treated hospitably.
For the Americans, it is often considered more friendly to invite a friend to their homes than to go to restaurants, except for purely business matters. So accept their hospitality at home!The writer of this passage must be ______.
| A．an American | B．a professor |
| C．a Chinese | D．a student |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Friendships between Americans usually last for all their lives. |
| B．Friendships between Americans usually extend deeply into their families. |
| C．Americans will continue their friendships again even after a long break. |
| D．Americans always show their warmth even if they are very busy. |
From the last two paragraphs we can learn that when we arrive in America to visit an American friend, we will probably be ____________.
| A．warmly welcomed at the airport |
| B．offered a ride to his home |
| C．treated to dinner in a restaurant |
| D．treated hospitably at his home |
A suitable title for this passage would probably be “_____________”.
| A．Friendships between Chinese |
| B．Americans’ and Chinese’s views of friendships |
| C．Americans’ hospitality |
| D．Friendships between Americans |
When a tornado touched down in a small town nearby, many families were left completely destroyed. Afterward all the local newspapers carried many human-interest stories featuring some of the families who suffered the hardest.
One Sunday, a particular picture especially touched me. A young woman stood in front of an entirely shattered mobile home, a depressed expression twisting her features. A young boy, seven or eight years old, stood at her side, eyes downcast. Clutching (紧握) at her skirt was a tiny girl who stared into the camera, eyes wide with confusion and fear.
The article that went with the picture gave the clothing sizes of each family member. With growing interest, I noticed that their sizes closely matched ours. This would be a good opportunity to teach my children to help those less fortunate than themselves. I taped the picture of the young family to our refrigerator, explaining their difficulty to my seven-year-old twins, Brad and Brett, and to three-year-old Meghan.
“We have so much. And these poor people now have nothing,” I said. “We’ll share what we have with them.”
I brought three large boxes down from the room upstairs and placed them on the living room floor. Meghan watched seriously, as the boys and I filled one of the boxes with canned goods and foods.
While I sorted through our clothes, I encouraged the boys to go through their toys and donate some of their less favorite things. Meghan watched quietly as the boys piled up discarded toys and games.
“I’ll help you find something for the little girl when I’m done with this,” I said.
The boys placed the toys they had chosen to donate into one of the boxes while I filled the third box with clothes. Meghan walked up with Lucy, her worn, faded, much-loved rag doll hugged tightly to her chest. She paused in front of the box that held the toys, pressed her round little face into Lucy’s flat, painted-on-face, gave her a final kiss, then laid her gently on the top of other toys.
“Oh, Honey,” I said. “You don’t have to give Lucy. You love her so much. “
Meghan nodded seriously, eyes glistening with held-back tears. “Lucy makes me happy, Mommy. Maybe she’ll make that other little girl happy, too. “
Swallowing hard, I stared at Meghan for a long moment, wondering how I could teach the boys the lesson she had just taught me. For I suddenly realized that anyone can give their cast-offs away. True generosity is giving what you value most.
Honest benevolence (善行) is a three-year-old offering a valuable, though shabby, doll to a little
girl she doesn’t know with the hope that it will bring this child as much pleasure as it brought her. I, who had wanted to teach, had been taught.
The boys had watched, open-mouthed, as their baby sister placed her favorite doll in the box. Without a word, Brad rose and went to his room. He came back carrying one of his favorite action figures. He hesitated briefly, clutching the toy, then looked over at Meghan and placed it in the box next to Lucy.
A slow smile spread across Brett’s face. Then he jumped up, eyes twinkling as he ran to fetch some of his prized Matchbox cars.
Astonished, I realized that the boys had also recognized what little Meghan’s gesture meant. Swallowing back tears, I pulled all three of them into my arms.
Taking the cue from my little one, I removed my old jacket from the box of clothes. I replaced it with the new hunter green jacket that I had found on sale last week. I hoped the young woman in the picture would love it as much as I did.
It’s easy to give what we don’t want any more, but harder to let go of things we cherish, isn’t it? However, the true spirit of giving is to give with your heart.Why does the author give a detailed description of a particular picture in the Sunday newspaper?
| A．To create an atmosphere of fear and depression brought by the tornado. |
| B．To appeal to unconcerned people to donate for the poor families. |
| C．To show the helplessness and hopelessness of the family mentioned in the paper. |
| D．To stress what touched her and made her decide to help the hopeless family. |
Why did Brad and Brett also donate their favorite things finally?
| A．They were encouraged to donate some valuable things by the mother. |
| B．Meghan’s decision inspired them to donate their favorite things. |
| C．They also wanted to show generosity by giving away their valuable things. |
| D．Meghan’s gesture reminded them to replace their favorite things with new ones. |
By “swallowing hard”, the writer means that .
| A．she was deeply puzzled by what the little girl did |
| B．she had trouble persuading Meghan not to give away Lucy |
| C．she was greatly moved by Meghan’s unexpected decision |
| D．she was uncertain what consequences Meghan’s action would bring about |
What’s the best title for this passage?
| A．The Greatest Love | B．A Beautiful Heart |
| C．True Generosity | D．A Precious Gift |
Don’t be surprised if you see a group of people dancing or shouting on the square. They are a flash mob (快闪族). Confused by their name? Actually, a flash mob, organized with the help of the Internet or other digital communications networks, is a group of people who gather suddenly in a public place, do something unusual for a period of time, such as exchanging books, coming together to look at the sky, waving their hands and shouting something at the top of their lungs for 30 seconds, and then quickly disappear before the police can arrive.
Bill Wasik, senior editor of Harper’s Magazine, organized the first flash mob in Manhattan in May 2003 and the first successful flash mob gathered on June 3, 2003 at Macy’s department store involving 100 people gathering on Macy’s Department Store. Following this, about 200 people flooded the lobby of the Hyatt hotel, applauding in one voice for fifteen seconds, and next participants pretending to be tourists on a trip invaded a shoe shop in Soho. A later mob saw hundreds of people in Central Park making bird noises.
Wasik claimed that he created flash mobs as a social experiment designed to tease hipsters (追逐时尚的人), and highlight the cultural atmosphere of agreement and of being part of “the next big thing”. Many web logs, chat rooms and Web groups are devoted to the craze. Though flash mobs were originally regarded as useless, the concept has already developed for the benefit of political and social events. Flash mobbing takes advantage of the efficiency of communicating information on Websites and by email, and protesters can similarly use the “on and off” concept to be involved in political events. Such flash mob gatherings can sometimes shock or frighten people who are not aware of what is taking place. They also have enormous economic potential, such as using flash mobs to advertise a product.
The flash mob is now becoming more and more popular. People use it to do many things. For example, in 2009, hundreds of Michael Jackson’s fans took part in a flash mob to remember him, gathering outside the railway station in Liverpool, singing and dancing Michael’s famous song Beat It together. In another example, some people took part in a flash mob to warn people against negative words. Flash mobs give people from all walks of life an opportunity to come together to create a memory. The writer indicates that the flash mob .
| A．may perform some positive functions |
| B．is always a headache for the police |
| C．is now a social experiment to criticize fashion followers |
| D．helps to improve the efficiency of communication |
A flash mob is most likely to .
| A．give out leaflets of a brand bicycle to the passers-by |
| B．gather in public places performing and leave quickly |
| C．plan to go mountaineering on the first day of Horse Year |
| D．sit for days in front of the city hall for higher wages |
According to the passage, what contribute(s) most to the popularity of the flash mob?
| A．Harper’s Magazine | B．the government |
| C．political events | D．digital networks |
The purpose of the writing is .
| A．to amuse and interest | B．to argue and advise |
| C．to describe and introduce | D．to question and comment |
LONDON－Scientists have found an unusual way to prevent our planet from overheating: move it to a cooler spot. All you have to do is send a few comets (彗星) in the direction of Earth, and its orbit will be changed too. Our world will then be sent spinning into a safer, colder part of the solar system.
This idea for improving our climate comes from a group of U. S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) engineers and American astronomers. They say their plan could add another six billion years to the useful lifetime of our planet－effectively doubling its working life.
The plan put forward by Dr. Laughlin, and his colleagues Don Korycansky and Fred Adams, needs carefully directing a comet or asteroid so that it passes close by our planet and sends some of its gravitational energy to Earth.
“Earth’s orbital speed would increase as a result and we would move to a higher orbit away from the Sun,” Laughlin said.
Engineers would then direct their comet so that it passed close to Jupiter or Saturn. The comet would pick up energy from one of these giant planets. Later its orbit would bring it back to Earth, and the process would be repeated.
In the short term, the plan provides an ideal way to global warming, although the team was actually concerned with a much greater danger. The Sun is certain to heat up in about a billion years and so “seriously compromise” our biosphere (生物圈) －by cooking us.
That’s why the group decided to try to save Earth.
The plan has one or two worrying aspects, however. For a start, space engineers would have to be very careful about how they directed their asteroid or comet towards Earth. The smallest miscalculation (误算) in orbit could fire it straight at Earth--with deadly consequences.
There is also the question of the Moon. As the current issue of Scientific American magazine points out, if Earth was pushed out of its current position, it is “most likely the Moon would be stripped away from Earth”. This would greatly change our planet’s climate.
What makes the scientists plan to move Earth?
| A．A few comets are moving to the direction of Earth. |
| B．Earth’s working life is coming to an end soon. |
| C．Earth will become too hot for mankind to keep alive. |
| D．The moon is moving farther and farther away from Earth. |
If the plan is successful, Earth will have a working life of years.
| A．12 billion | B．6 billion |
| C．18 billion | D．24 billion |
What serious problems might the plan cause according to the passage?
| A．The comet might hit Earth and man might lose the Moon. |
| B．Earth might be moved too far away and man might be frozen to death. |
| C．The comet might hit Jupiter or Saturn and never return to Earth. |
| D．Earth’s working life might be greatly shortened. |
What does the underlined word “compromise” mean?
| A．Provide. | B．Recover |
| C．Share. | D．Endanger. |
Huttopia
Created in Europe, but tailored to perfection in Quebec, Huttopia tents provide convenient, comfortable accommodation in 16 of Quebec’s 23 national parks. Built atop a 4 by 7 meters wooden platform, the walls and roof enclose a roomy space that can sleep up to 5 people. Beds, lighting, heating, a small fridge, dishes, and an outdoor twoburner stove provide comforts. Open summer through fall, Huttopia tents can be booked for as little as $ 99 per night.
Tree Sphere
This creative option takes wilderness camping to a whole new level. Setting up camp in a Free Spirit Sphere you can sleep among the trees and stretch your wings in Qualicum Bay, Vancouver Island. Part tree house, part space capsule, founder Tom Chudleigh’s handcrafted wooden spheres gently dangle in the breeze thanks to a series of ropes tied to the forest’s cover. Suspended at 3.1, 4.3 and 4.6 meters off the ground, each of the three spheres offers comfortable and unique lodging for adults age 16 and over.
Four-Season Tents
Gatineau Park’s Philippe Lake has the perfect winter accommodation for you. Standing above the freezing ground on wooden platforms, two four-season tents are attractive with amenities (便利设施) that will keep you comfortable. With sleeping space for up to four people, the park’s four-season tents feature double-sized beds, a fridge and a stove for cooking meals.
Houseboats
Why limit your camping adventures to dry land? Lakeway Houseboat Vacations in New Brunswick offers grand accommodation in their “cottages on the water”. Choose from three luxurious floating vacation homes with full kitchens, full bathrooms, multiple bedrooms ( one boat sleeps 14!) , TVs, hot tubs, fireplaces and even waterslides. Sail along the St. John River, sunbathe on the upper deck, or stop at picturesque Mactaquac Provincial Park for a round of golf. Do as little or as much as you desire.Which of the following is the most popular in the Province of Quebec?
| A．Huttopia. | B．Tree Sphere. |
| C．Four-Season Tents. | D．Houseboats. |
Which statement is correct about the houseboat?
| A．It has only one type. |
| B．It is large enough for four to live in. |
| C．It is supplied with some baked food. |
| D．By house boat, you can find a place to play golf. |
The underlined word “dangle” in the second paragraph probably means .
| A．move | B．swing |
| C．escape | D．quake |
Which of the following is not the advantage of the Four-Season Tents?
| A．The large wooden platforms. |
| B．Convenient facilities. |
| C．The sense of floating. |
| D．The large sleeping space. |