(Reuters) --- A stampede killed at least 36 people during New Year's Eve celebrations in Shanghai, authorities said, but the police denied reports that it was caused by people rushing to pick up fake money thrown from a building overlooking the city's famous waterfront.
It was the worst disaster in the modern city since 58 died in an apartment building fire in 2010.
The cause of the crush has still to be confirmed, though state media and some witnesses have said it was at least partly aroused when people rushed to pick up coupons that looked like bank notes.
A man named Wu said the fake money had been thrown down from a bar above the street as part of the celebrations.
"This incident happened after the stampede," police said in a brief statement, without saying what the real cause was.
Another witness said there had been a problem away from the area where the fake bills were thrown, with people trying to get on to a raised platform overlooking the river.
Xinhua news agency said that people had been trampled on after falling down on the steps up to the platform.
Authorities had shown some concern about crowd control in the days leading up to New Year's Eve. They recently canceled an annual 3D laser show on the Bund, which last year attracted as many as 300,000 people.
On New Year's Eve, Beijing also canceled a countdown event in the central business district, Chinese media said, due to police fears about overcrowding.
The Shanghai government said on its official microblog that an inquiry had begun, and that all other New Year events had been canceled.
In 2004, 37 people died in a stampede in northern Beijing, on a bridge at a scenic spot, during the Lunar New Year holiday.According to the passage, why did people go to the Bund?
| A．To meet their old friends and relatives. |
| B．To celebrate the New Year’s Eve. |
| C．To watch an annual 3D laser show. |
| D．To pick up bank notes. |
What can be inferred according to the passage?
| A．Some possible measures had been taken by authorities. |
| B．People like 3D laser show better than any other events. |
| C．The local government had shown their worry about overcrowding. |
| D．The celebrations in Beijing were influenced by this stampede. |
What’s the passage about?
| A．A countdown event in Beijing. |
| B．A laser show on the Bund. |
| C．An apartment fire in Shanghai. |
| D．A stampede on New Year’s Eve in Shanghai. |
Dear Ana,
In your last letter, you told me that your boss Stephanie was probably looking for a new job and you didn’t know how to tell her that you wanted to take her position if she left. Well, I’d like to tell you that there is no polite way to talk about this situation with your boss. After all, you are not one-hundred-percent sure that she is actually job-hunting. Even if you know for sure that she is, you can’t, because it’s not your business. Still, there are a couple of things that you can do to put yourself in a good position in case your boss does ride out of Dodge in the near future.
First, you can have a general conversation with her about your career plans. Say something like, “You’ve always been supportive of me, Stephanie, and I’d love you to give me some advice on my professional development.” This will let your boss know that you’re ready for a new challenge. Ask her to give you feedback about how she thinks you can improve as a future leader.
Second, ask for your manager’s approval (同意) to talk with the training department about any program the company offers. There may or may not be any training, but making the request will still communicate your desire to get into a people-management role.
Third, you could say to your boss, “If there is anything you need my help with, I’d love it if you let me know. I am very interested in supporting you with anything you want to hand off.”
Taking those three steps will make it clear to Stephanie that you’re ready to be her No. 2.
Best regards,
Liz The underlined part “ride out of Dodge” in the first paragraph probably means “______”.
| A．get fired by the boss | B．go to take a vacation |
| C．change to a new job | D．get a higher position |
We can infer that Ana’s purpose for writing to Liz was to.
| A．tell Liz that her boss is looking for a new job |
| B．ask Liz if she has the ability to take her boss’s position |
| C．ask Liz for advice on how to find a much better job |
| D．seek advice on how to make her boss know she wants her position |
Which of the following didn’t Liz ask Ana to do?
| A．To let her manager know her desire for training. |
| B．To ask her boss if she needs any help from her. |
| C．To ask her boss for advice on her career plans. |
| D．To find out who is also trying to get that position. |
We can learn from Liz’s reply that.
| A．Ana has never talked about her career plans before |
| B．Ana is very sad to see her boss go as she has helped her a lot |
| C．Ana’s boss Stephanie may not be looking for a new job |
| D．there are some training courses in Ana’s company now |
According to Liz, if your boss is leaving for another job, you can.
| A．ask your manager to give the position to you |
| B．write to let him know you want his position |
| C．let him know you want his position indirectly |
| D．write a letter to your best friend for advice |
| Ａｃａｄｅｍｙ ｏｆ Ｆｉｎｅ Ａｒｔｓ Ｍｕｓｅｕｍ Although this is hardly the most impressive art collection in town, you will still find some excellent pieces and gain an interesting insight into art education of the past in St. Petersburg, Russia. A number of works by the Academy’s teaching staff and various paintings are related to the history of the Academy. After entering the building through the main entrance, go upstairs and buy your entrance ticket from the small booth. Address: Universitetskaya Naberezhnaya 17 Open: Wednesday to Sunday, 11am to 7 pm Closed: Monday and Tuesday Telephone: +7 (812) 213-6496 |
Ｃｅｎｔｒａｌ Ｒａｉｌｗａｙ Ｍｕｓｅｕｍ This is undoubtedly the country’s best museum concerned with railways and the development of railways in Russia and the former USSR, from the very first Russian steam engine to the modern railways and engines of today. The Central Railway Museum also owns a collection of old cars. Address: Ulitsa Marata 24-a Telephone: +7 (812) 311-2549 +7 (812) 311-2547 Open: Wednesday to Sunday, 10 am to 5 pm (last admission 4:35 pm) Closed: Monday, Tuesday and the last Saturday of the month |
| Ｔｈｅ Ａｐｐｌｉｅｄ Ａｒｔ Ｍｕｓｅｕｍ This is one of St. Petersburg’s best-kept secrets! The Applied Art Museum is little known and rarely included in a tourist routine. Yet the museum is a real treasure for anyone interested in the fine arts. Its collection of over 30 thousand exhibits includes various decorative arts and crafts, including furniture, porcelain, and carvings. As with most Russian museums, all visitors are asked to leave coats and larger bags in the cloakroom. Don’t be surprised to see dozens of students throughout the museum, busy sketching (画素描) the museum’s exhibits as well as the building. Location: Solyanoy Pereulok 13-15 Open: Daily, 11am to 5 pm Telephone: +7 (812) 273-3258 |
You could call _____ for information if you are interested in art education of the past in St. Petersburg.
| A．+7 (812) 311-2549 | B．+7 (812) 213-6496 |
| C．+7 (812) 273-3258 | D．+7 (812) 311-2547 |
If you want to visit the Central Railway Museum, you can enter at ____.
| A．9 am on Wednesday | B．11 am on Tuesday |
| C．11 am on Thursday | D．4:40 pm on Sunday |
It is implied that ____.
| A．the Applied Art Museum is well-known in Russia |
| B．students are allowed to practice drawing in the Applied Art Museum |
| C．there are only works by the Academy’s teaching staff in the Academy of Fine Arts Museum |
| D．you can see both old and new cars on display in the Central Railway Museum |
You may see all the following EXCEPT ____ in the Applied Art Museum.
| A．furniture | B．paintings | C．carvings | D．engines |
Why did the author write this passage?
| A．To introduce three museums in Russia to us. |
| B．To tell us how to go to the finest museums in Russia. |
| C．To tell us the differences among these museums in Russia. |
| D．To give us a brief introduction to some artistic museums in Russia. |
I cheated on a unit test in math class this morning during second period with Mr. Burke. Afterward, I was too sick to eat lunch just thinking about it.
I came straight home from school, went to my room, and lay on the floor trying to decide whether it would be better to run away from home now or after supper. Mostly I wished I was dead. It wasn't even an accident that I cheated.
Yesterday Mr. Burke announced there'd be a unit test and anyone who didn't pass would have to come to school on Saturday, most particularly me, since I didn't pass the last unit test. I did plan to study just to prove to him that I'm plenty smart—which I am mostly—except in math.
Anyway, I got my desk ready to study on . Just when I was ready to work, Nicho came into my room with our new rabbit and it jumped on my desk and knocked the flashcards all over the floor. What a mess! Nicho and I finally took the rabbit outside but then Philip came to my room and also Marty from next door and before long it was dinner.
After dinner my father said I could watch a special on television if I'd done all my homework. Of course I said I had. That was the beginning. I felt terrible telling my father a lie about the homework.
It was nine o'clock when I got up to my room and that was too late to study for the unit test so I lay in my bed with the light off and decided what I would do the next day when I was in Mr. Burke's math class not knowing the 8- and 9-times tables. So, you see, the cheating was planned after all.
The next day, I'd go into class as usual, acting like things were going just great. I'd sit down next to Stanley Plummer—he is so smart in math it makes you sick—and from time to time, I'd glance over at his paper to copy the answers.
Lying on the floor of my room, I begin to think that probably I've been bad all along. It just took this math test to clinch it. I'll probably never tell the truth again. I tell my mother I'm sick when she calls me to come down for dinner. She doesn't believe me, but puts me to bed anyhow. I lie there in the early winter darkness wondering what terrible thing I'll be doing next when my father comes in and sits down on my bed.
"What's the matter?" he asks. "I've got a stomachache," I say. Luckily, it's too dark to see his face. "Is that all?" "Yeah." "Mommy says you've been in your room since school." "I was sick there too," I say. "She thinks something happened today and you're upset." That's the thing that really drives me crazy about my mother. She knows things sitting inside my head the same as if I was turned inside out.
"Well," my father says. I can tell he doesn't believe me. "My stomach is feeling sort of upset." I hedge. "Okay," he says and he pats my leg and gets up.
Just as he shuts the door to my room I call out to him in a voice I don't even recognize as my own. "How come?" he calls back not surprised or anything. So I tell him I cheated on this math test. To tell the truth, I'm pretty much surprised at myself. I didn't plan to tell him anything.
He doesn't say anything at first and that just about kills me. I'd be fine if he'd spank me or something. And then he says I'll have to call Mr. Burke. It's not what I had in mind. "Now?" I ask surprised. "Now," he says. He turns on the light and pulls off my covers. "I'm not going to," I say.
But I do it. I call Mr. Burke, and I tell him exactly what happened, even that I decided to cheat the night before the test. He says I'll come on Saturday to take another test, which is okay with me, and I thank him a whole lot for being understanding and all.
"Today I thought I was turning into a criminal," I tell my father when he turns out my light. Sometimes my father kisses me good night and sometimes he doesn't. I never know. But tonight he does.After the author cheated on the math test, he felt ____________.
| A．frightened because he might be caught |
| B．excited that he had succeeded |
| C．pleased that nobody knew it |
| D．unhappy because he had done something wrong |
By “It wasn't even an accident that I cheated”, the author means that ________.
| A．he had planned not to study before the test |
| B．he decided to cheat when he knew there was going to be a test |
| C．he decided to cheat after he had wasted the whole evening |
| D．he had planned to cheat with Plummer before the test |
The author’ mother often drives him crazy because _____-.
| A．She really knows what he is thinking |
| B．she was very strict with him |
| C．she doesn’t believe him |
| D．she asks him to come down for dinner |
After he was informed of what he had done, the father _______.
| A．scolded the author severely |
| B．didn’t say anything and left |
| C．called Mr. Burke immediately |
| D．let the author make a call to Mr. Burke |
The author’s father kissed the author good night because ________-.
| A．he had done something unusual |
| B．he promised to study math harder |
| C．he was willing to take a make-up test |
| D．he realized his mistake and had the courage to admit it |
Every day 25 million U.S. children ride school buses. The safety record for these buses is much better than for passenger cars; but nevertheless, about 10 children are killed each year riding on large school buses, and nearly four times that number are killed outside buses in the loading zones. By and large, however, the nation’s school children are transported to and from school safely.
Even though the number of school bus accidents is not large, the safety of children is always of intense public concern. While everyone wants to see children transported safely, people are divided about what needs to be done-particularly whether seat belts should be compulsory.
People in favor of seat belts on school buses-many of them parents and medical organizations-argue that seat belts are necessary not only to reduce fatality and injury, but also to teach children lessons about the importance of using them routinely in any moving vehicle. A side benefit, they point out, is that seat belts help keep children in their seats, away from the bus driver.
People who object to seat belt installation suggest that children are already well protected by the school buses that follow the Nation Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) safety requirements set in 1977. They also believe that many children won’t wear seat belts anyway, and that may damage the belts or use them as weapons to hurt other children.
A new research council report on school bus safety suggest that there are alternate safety devices and procedures that may be more effective and less expensive. For example, the study committee suggested that raising seat backs four inches may have the same safety effectiveness as seat belts.
The report sponsored by the Department of transportation at the request of Congress, reviews seat belts extensively while taking a broader look at safety in and around school buses.According to the passage, the “school bus” is _________.
| A．the bus offered by the school and different from the public bus |
| B．the bus that has no difference from the public bus |
| C．the bus that is driven by the students |
| D．the bus that is not safe |
According to the passage, who has the greatest degree of control of the school buses “safety”?
| A．A new Research Council. |
| B．The Department of Transportation. |
| C．The Medical Organization. |
| D．National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. |
It may be inferred from this passage that __________.
| A．many of the opponents(反对者) of seat belt installation are parents and officials of the Department of Transportation |
| B．proposals of seat belts on school buses would be seriously considered |
| C．an alternate safety device (raising seat backs four inches) may be taken into consideration |
| D．The Department of Transportation may either take the idea of seat belts or other measures when it reviews the whole situation |
The title below which best expresses the idea of the passage is“_______”.
| A．Making School Buses Even Safer for Children |
| B．Seat Belts Needed on School Buses |
| C．Alternate Safety Devices and Procedures |
| D．Safety in and around School Buses |
What is the writer’ s attitude towards the safety of the school bus is _______.
| A．Critical | B．Negative | C．Objective | D．Indifferent |
Stephen Hawking, one of the world’s smartest physicists, once said: “I’m obsessed by time.”Many of us are, and the popularity of time travel TV series has just proved that.
After Palace and Startling by Each Step 《步步惊心》achieved startling ratings last year, Palace 2 aired on January 20, attracting time travel fans back to TV.“It’s fun to watch characters travel back in time and deal with the conflicts between modernity and ancient times,” Xia Xiaoyan, who works for a foreign-owned enterprise in Shanghai, told China Daily. “Time travel series connect both today and the past, thus offering room for imagination,” said Cai Yinong, the producer of Startling by Each Step.
“I’m hooked by the shows because they are characterized by dramatic and poetic love and have eye-pleasing actors,” Xia explained her love for time travel TV series.Her comment echoes a 2011 survey by Great Marketing Research Co Ltd in China. When asked about what’s so appealing about time travel TV series, 21 percent of respondents answered: “Those attractive characters.”
A bigger reason behind the popularity of time travel stories, however, is the relaxation they offer, according to the survey.Cai Yinong agrees. “Many people are facing tremendous pressures in their fast-paced lives, so this genre is more relaxing than other shows as it provides people with a terrific outlet to escape reality,” Cai told China Daily.
The love for time traveling is universal.Woody Allen’s latest movie Midnight in Paris, which has been nominated for Best Picture, Directing, Original Screenplay and Art Direction for the 2012 Academy Awards, features modernity versus cultural nostalgia.Which might be the best title for this passage ?
| A．Time travel is universal | B．Time travel TV series |
| C．A introduction to Startling by Each Step | D．Time travel wins fans |
The reasons why people like time travel are as followings except______.
| A．It’s fun to watch characters travel back and deal with the conflicts between modernity and ancient times. |
| B．Time travel series offer room for imagination. |
| C．The characters are attractive. |
| D．After watching time travel series, you can escape reality. |
Which word can replace the underlined word “hooked” in the third paragraph.
| A．pleased | B．moved | C．attracted | D．surprised |
It can be inferred from the passage that________.
| A．Stephen Hawking likes time travel TV series. |
| B．A bigger reason behind the popularity of time travel stories, however, is the relaxation they offer. |
| C．Not only Chinese audience but also foreigners like watching time travel stories. |
| D．Startling by Each Step has been nominated for Best Picture, Directing, Original Screenplay and Art Direction for the 2012 Academy Awards. |
We can learn form what Cai Yinong said in the fourth paragraph that ________.
| A．Everyone likes watching time travel stories. |
| B．Many people want to escape reality because of the pressures in their fast-paced lives. |
| C．Many people want to go back to the ancient times. |
| D．People can get more relaxation in the ancient times. |