STRANGERS parties go wild these days. The main idea of them is to never let the people know who their matches are until the last minute. These are some popular practices that are storming the world’s youth on this V-day.
Speed dating
It’s exactly what the name implies. Complete with a timer, a whistle and 50 willing singles, speed dating is not the traditional dinner and a movie type of first date. Singles pay US $35 for three minutes with more than two dozen future dates. They ask questions and try to get to know each other. At the sound of a whistle, they do the same thing all over again―25 times in all.
Lock and key party
Women are given a lock and men are given a key, upon arriving at the party. Each key and lock has several matches. One can hunt for his/her later-to-be sweetheart in various groups, and try out the key or lock. Each time a lock and key match the pair are entered into a ballot（票数） for top prizes!
Dinner in the dark
Waiters wearing night vision glasses guide the guests through the pitch-black dining room. They are seated at the table and familiarized with the wine glass and plate. Food is handled with the fingers. People will not see the food they are eating or the guests at their table until the dessert course. At that moment, dining partners will appear.
Message party
Have A Cocktail, Leave A Message! When you arrive, you get a tag with a number and a pad of post-it notes. If you see someone you like, write a message on the message board. But wait… You’ve got a message… Go and collect it! You can make new friends and win lots of gifts. The more messages you leave on the bulletin board, the more chances you have of winning prizes.What do you think the similarities of these parties are?
| A．All the parties have very strict rules for their members. |
| B．If you want to go to any of the parties, you have to buy a ticket. |
| C．All the parties are aimed at strangers who want to be lovers. |
| D．All the parties are suitable not only for the young but for the old. |
In which party does a participant have to be careful with the time?
| A．Speed dating. | B．Lock and key party. |
| C．Dinner in the dark. | D．Message party. |
If you go to the Dinner in the dark, ____________.
| A．you have to wear night vision glasses |
| B．you have to eat with your hands |
| C．guests eat all the courses in the darkness |
| D．your dining partners will help you choose the food |
How many of the parties offer gifts or prizes?
| A．1. | B．2. | C．3. | D．4. |
If we are to help students develop reading skills in a foreign language, it is important to understand what is involved in the reading process itself. If we have a clear idea of how “good readers” read, either in their own or a foreign language, this will enable us to decide whether particular reading techniques are likely to help learners or not.
In considering the reading process, it is important to distinguish between two quite separate activities: reading for meaning (or “silent reading”) and reading aloud. Reading for meaning is the activity we normally engage in when we read books, newspapers, road signs, etc.; it is what you are doing as you read this text. It involves looking at sentences and understanding the message they convey, in other words “making sense” of a written text. It doesn’t normally involve saying the words we read, not even silently inside our heads.
Reading aloud is a completely different activity; its purpose is not just to understand a text but to convey the information to someone else. It is not an activity we engage in very often outside the classroom; common examples are reading out parts of a newspaper article to a friend, or reading a notice to other people who can’t see it. Obviously, reading aloud involves looking at a text, understanding it and also saying it. Because our attention is divided between reading and speaking, it is a much more difficult activity than reading silently; we often stumble and make mistakes when reading aloud in our own language, and reading aloud in a foreign language is even more difficult.
When we read for meaning, we do not need to read every letter or every word, nor even every word in each sentence. This is because, if the text makes sense, we can guess much of what it says as we read it.The passage is mainly about ____________.
| A．reading skills | B．silent reading |
| C．reading processes | D．reading aloud |
The underlined word “stumble” in Paragraph 3 means ____________.
| A．step over something and fall |
| B．repeat something or pause for too long |
| C．walk with heavy movements |
| D．speak in a fluent and confident way |
We can infer from the passage that the author will continue to ____________.
| A．discuss in detail how to read aloud |
| B．introduce some more reading activities |
| C．tell how good readers read in their own language |
| D．explain why we needn’t say the words when reading for meaning |
We can conclude that ____________.
| A．reading silently is easier than reading aloud |
| B．to understand a sentence, you have to read all the words in it |
| C．silent reading involves looking at a text and saying the words silently to yourself |
| D．there’s no difference between reading in one’s own language and in a foreign one |
Over 500 dogs being delivered to a butcher house were saved by a Chinese animal protection organization. The incident then triggered debate among Chinese netizens about the necessity of pouring so much money and efforts into saving dogs.
On Friday, a truck loaded with over 500 dogs were stopped by volunteers from animal protection organization on Jingha expressway Beijing section. Beijing Times reported these dogs were being delivered to slaughter houses in the city of Changchun, northeast Jilin province and would be eventually served on dinner tables.
After negotiations with the truck driver, pet service provider Leepet Holding Corp. and a philanthropic foundation, Shangshan Foundation, purchased these dogs, each paying 50,000 yuan. Dogs were then delivered to the headquarter of China Small Animal Protection Association (CS APA), being taken care of and waiting for adoption.
After the “dog saving mission” was reported, Chinese net users debate over whether saving dogs worth so much efforts and money while there are still many poor and needy people in China lacking assistance.
Some net users argue the dog saving mission is placing over attention to animals while lots of needy people are still left unattended.
A microblogger “Xiaowulaitajie” said on China’s twitter-like website, weibo.com, “Dogs are saved, adopted and they attracted media spotlight. We'd better spend such money and take such efforts in helping the needy people.”
Another microblogger, Liluping, said "We poured such huge sum of money into saving dogs. I would rather the money be spent on disaster relief."
Some applaud volunteers’ actions and show eagerness of offering their helping hands to those saved dogs.
Still many disapprove those "saving dogs" critics, but they argue that such act nonetheless embodies social progress.
A microblogger named "broken bridge" said, saving dogs does not run counter to taking care of people. Such enthusiasm in public affairs will help raise social awareness in helping the needy.
I think people and animals are created equal .Attention should be paid to people as well as animals.Where did the article come from ___________?
| A．newspaper | B．Internet |
| C．a TV programme | D．a magazine |
Whose opinion is closest to the writer's?
| A．Some net users' | B．Xiaowulaitajie's |
| C．Liluping's | D．Broken bridge's |
Which statement is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．All the people think it right to save these dogs with so much money. |
| B．These dogs were finally saved and sent back to their owners. |
| C．Some volunteers support the actions to save these dogs and the people who offered their helping hands to those saved dogs. |
| D．100,000 yuan was given to the truck driver to purchase these dogs. |
When I was about 14, I decided to make money, so I got a part-time job at a local restaurant. With my first paycheck, I realized that I would have to work awfully hard to make very little money. My boss had been making just above minimum wage for 20 years, and I knew I didn't want to spend the rest of my life working to death. Around the same time, my godparents took me to an investment(投资) workshop. Immediately, my eyes were opened to the power of compound growth in investing. I knew that this was a way to financial freedom. I left the workshop, determined to make my money work for me instead of just me working for money.
Honoring what my mother had taught me, to share whatever I had, I donated part of my paychecks to raise money for breast cancer, and saved everything else to build up a large enough nest egg to open a brokerage account (经纪人账户). Too excited to wait, I began reading everything I could about investing. With most of my life savings (which wasn't very much money), I invested in DuPont, AT&T, Caterpillar, and International Paper. The pride in being a shareholder （股东）in a company, along with watching my stocks increase in value, fueled my desire to learn more. I went to three more investment workshops with my godparents and browsed(浏览) books at the library.
I began with $4,000 in my account and have added about $2,000 since then. My portfolio is now worth roughly $12,000, five years later, having grown about 18% per year, on average. My favorite holdings are biotechnology companies that I know a fair amount about because they're based near me.
In the years since then, I have experienced many moments of gratitude for discovering investing so early in my life. I'm in college now, and plan to go on to medical school and become a family practice physician. And I know that, thanks to investing, my road will be much easier. Not only have I taken an active step towards improving my long-term financial future, but I am confident that I will also be able to generously support the causes I believe in with more ease than I otherwise would have imagined.What can we learn from the first paragraph?
| A．The working condition in the local restaurant was awful. |
| B．The writer didn’t make much money because he took a temporary job. |
| C．People can’t make a lot of money unless they work hard as hard work always pays. |
| D．The investment workshop taught the writer that he could make money through investment. |
The writer was eager to learn more about investing because ________.
| A．he had invested all his life savings in stocks |
| B．he was too excited to wait to open a brokerage account |
| C．he wanted to donate more to raise money for breast cancer |
| D．he felt proud of being a shareholder with his stocks increasing in value |
Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Investing made his wealth grow effectively. |
| B．Investing enabled him to achieve his life goals. |
| C．Investing allowed him to pay off all his debts. |
| D．Investing helped him to reach financial independence. |
The best title of the passage should be __________.
| A．The Rewards of Investing |
| B．My Dream Career |
| C．The Key to Successful Investment |
| D．Thank You, My Godparents |
Marketing Professionals
A major US corporation in the health and nutritional industry has announced the opening of its direct selling division in Taiwan.
The company offers the most lucrative compensation plan in the industry and has paid over NTD (新台币) 3.5 billion in commissions in just 6 years in the US. We are a group of top earners.
Applicants should meet the requirements：
(1) Taiwan citizen
(2) Have experience in marketing
(3) Aggressive, energetic, and willing to learn
If you believe you have what it takes to develop this business, please dial 2742－6996.
Job B
An international company requires a Service Technician
To service and maintain electronic medical equipment，applicants should have degree in electronics. The selected candidate will have a training program to be conducted by our manufacturer's trained technical personnel.
Interested candidates please apply immediately with a resume(简历) and mail to P．O. Box 594. Or telephone Ms Chang at 2945－0027 for an immediate interview.
Job C
Wanted: Reporters & Editors
Qualifications：
* Strong command of English language
* Chinese speaking and reading ability a must
* A university degree
* Journalism education and/or experience preferred
* Flexible working hours (30 hours per week)
* Good work environment and medical insurance, etc.
Fax resume and work samples, if any, to The China Post at(03) 2595－7952.
Job D
Southeastern Travel Services Tour Guides
Duties: To conduct escorted tours(陪游) for foreign visitors；to assist with travel and transportation arrangements.
Qualifications: Good appearance. High school diploma.
Good knowledge of English. Outgoing personality.
Dial 2703－2172 after 3 p.m.. Ask for Gary.Which of the following is required for marketing professionals?
| A．A university degree. |
| B．Good appearance. |
| C．Good computer knowledge. |
| D．Some marketing experience. |
Wendy is good at Chinese and doesn't like to work on fixed schedules. Which of the four jobs might be suitable for her?
A. Job A． B. Job B． C. Job C. D. Job D.Charles has a strong interest in technology service. Which phone number should he dial?
| A．2742－6996. | B．2945－0027. |
| C．2595－7952. | D．2703－2172. |
Mary has attractive looks and a good command of English with an outgoing character. Which of the following would she choose?
A. Job A.B. Job B. C. Job C.D. Job D.
Most people today think of sleep as one continuous period of downtime．This is not the way people used to sleep．According to researchers，in earlier times，people divided sleep by first sleeping a few hours，waking up，then going back to sleep．In the first period，you would typically sleep until midnight or shortly afterwards．Halfway through the night，you came out of first sleep，you would stay in bed and relax quietly．It was called the watching period．Then you would start to feel sleepy．so would return to bed and tall asleep again for your second sleep．This period would continue until early morning when daylight arrived．With no artificial lighting in homes，people naturally woke up early to take advantage of sunlight．
Before the 18th century, people had no gas or electricity in their homes．Fire，candles，or oil lamps were the common forms of lighting．This lack of artificial lighting in homes contributed to people’s sleep patterns．It made sense for people to go to bed early．
Today，human may consider divided sleep a strange habit，but sleep researchers say that it is actually a more natural sleep pattern．Dr．Thomas Wehr of the U．S．National Institute of Mental Health has studied human sleep．He thinks that modern sleep problems occur because the older, natural way of sleep is breaking through the more recent continuous sleep pattern．Wehr and other scientists believe that artificial lighting has altered the way people sleep．In a research study，he asked 15 adults to rest and sleep in darkness for 14 hours(from 6：00 P．M．to 8：00 A．M．)．At first，the subjects took a few hours to get to sleep，and then slept 11 hours a night．Then overtime，they switched to divided sleep．They fell asleep for about three to five hours in the evening，stay awake for an hour or two，and then slept again for four hours till early morning．
We modern humans generally do not practice divided sleep．However, many of us have the experience of waking up in the middle of the night．We usually consider this a sleeping“problem”．but perhaps we should look at it as natural behavior．Divided sleep may be the way we should all be sleeping．A first sleep followed by a relaxation period and a second period of sleep could help all of us to beat the stress of our fast-paced lives．According to the first paragraph，we know the people in the past ____________．
| A．did not sleep as well as people today |
| B．divided their sleep into two parts |
| C．woke up and went out during the night |
| D．fell asleep easily because of hard work |
In Paragraph 3，what does the research study suggest?
| A．Divided sleep is a strange way to sleep． |
| B．Divided sleep means sleeping 11 hours in one period． |
| C．Divided sleep is a natural sleep pattern for humans． |
| D．Divided sleep occurs when people sleep with artificial lights． |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the text?
| A．People had a divided sleep pattern only in the 18th century． |
| B．It may be natural to wake up in the middle of the night． |
| C．Scientists agree that artificial lighting has changed the way people sleep． |
| D．Some of the people today are not familiar with the practice of divided sleep． |
What conclusion does the author make about divided sleep?
| A．It is one type of sleeping problems． |
| B．It is not the best sleep pattern for everyone． |
| C．It shouldn’t be accepted by modern humans． |
| D．It could be helpful for people to handle daily stress． |