On October 19, 1959, the first Special English program was broadcast on the Voice of America. It was an experiment. The goal was to communicate by radio in clear and simple English with people whose native language is not English. Experts said the goal was admirable, but the method would not work. They were proved wrong. The Special English programs quickly became some of the most popular on VOA. And they still are.
Forty years later, Special English continues to communicate with people who are not fluent in English. But during the years its role has expanded. It also helps people learn American English. And it provides listeners, even those who are native English speakers, with information they cannot find elsewhere.
Today, Special English broadcasts around the world seven days a week, five times a day. Each half-hour broadcast begins with ten minutes of the latest news followed by 20 minutes of feature programming. There is a different short feature every weekday about science, development, agriculture and environment, and on the weekend, about news events and American idioms.
Three elements make Special English unique. It has a limited vocabulary of 1500 words. Most are simple words that describe objects, actions or emotions. Some are more difficult. They are used for reporting world events and describing discoveries in medicine and science. Special English is written in short, simple sentences that contain only one idea. No idioms are used. And Special English is spoken at a slower pace, about two-thirds the speed of Standard English. This helps people learning English hear each word clearly. It also helps people who are English speakers understand complex subjects.
Through the years, Special English has become a very popular tool for teaching English, even though it was not designed as teaching program. It succeeds in helping people learn English in a non-traditional way. Individuals record the programs and play them over and over to practice their listening skills. In countries around the world, English teachers assign Special English to their students. They praise it for improving their students' ability to understand American English and for the content of the programs. Universities and private companies in many countries produce packages of Special English materials for student use.
At the beginning, Special English program was .
| A．well received |
| B．rejected by native people |
| C．doubted by some professionals |
| D．intended for teaching English |
What kind of English is spoken on Special English?
| A．British English. |
| B．American English. |
| C．Both British and American English. |
| D．Not certain. |
Which of the following are the elements that make Special English unique?
a. limited vocabulary
b. short simple sentences
c. good communication method
d. slow speed
e. interesting feature programming
| A．a, b, c | B．a, c, d |
| C．a, b, d | D．b, d, e |
From the last paragraph we can infer that .
| A．listening to Special English can be a student’s homework |
| B．listening to Special English can improve the content of the program |
| C．some student record the Special English material for sale |
| D．learning English from VOA is a traditional way for English learner. |
TOKYO -- The number of domestic infections cases of influenza A/H1N1 in Japan hits 42 on Sunday after a total of 34 people in Osaka and Hyogo counties were confirmed to have been infected, local media reported.
The total number of the infection in the country now stands at 46, including the first four cases contracted abroad.
The country is now facing the risk of grass-root outbreak which could lead the WHO to raise its new flu pandemic alert（传染病预警）to the highest level of 6 from the current 5, experts has warned.
The 34 newly confirmed domestic cases, 11 in Osaka and 23 in Hyogo, included high school students, college students and teachers, the health ministry and local governments said Sunday.
Japan on Saturday confirmed the first eight cases of domestic infection on students of a Kobe high school. The later confirmed cases in Osaka are said to have contacted the Kobe students in a volleyball match. Osaka and Hyogo are neighboring in the Kansai region.
All of the 42 people had no record of overseas travel.
Meanwhile, a total of 143 students at the Kansai Okura Senior High School where many infections in Osaka were found, have shown symptoms of influenza since around Monday, according to local media reports.
The privately run school said it will be closed from Monday through Saturday.
More than 1,000 educational facilities -- kindergartens, and elementary, junior and senior high schools -- in Osaka and Hyogo counties have decided to suspend classes for certain periods following the confirmation of new flu infections in the counties, Kyodo News reported.
The two counties have requested private schools to follow suit.
Osaka Governor Toru Hashimoto held a meeting of a new flu task force on Sunday and decided to ask facilities such as movie theaters to suspend operations to prevent the spread of the flu.
TV clips showed people in Kansai region started to wear masks in public spaces and rushed to drug stores for buying medicines.
The Japanese government on Saturday shifted the stage of its new-flu action program from “a period of overseas outbreak” to “a period of domestic outbreak” and called for companies and schools in the areas concerned to allow individuals to avoid commuting（出行） during rush hours.
The Kyodo News quoted Masato Tashiro, a member of the World Health Organization's emergency committee, as saying that several hundred people in Japan already may have been infected with the new flu. According to the passage, the total number of the A/H1N1 infection in Japan now is __________.
| A．42 | B．34 | C．46 | D．143 |
The reasons for the happening of the later confirmed cases in Osaka are the following Except __________.
| A．143 students at the Kansai Okura Senior High School have shown symptoms of influenza. |
| B．Some students in a Kobe High school got infected. |
| C．Osaka and Hyogo are next to each other in the Kansai region. |
| D．The later infected people contacted the Kobe students in a volleyball match. |
What is the implied meaning of what Masato Tashiro said in the last paragraph?
| A．The real situation about the new flu in Japan may be worse than it has been reported. |
| B．Several hundred people have been infected but they don’t know it. |
| C．The WHO has to raise its new flu pandemic alert to the highest level. |
| D．The WHO’s emergency committee are trying to confirm the number of infection in Japan. |
Which of the following is one of the measures already taken by the Japanese government?
| A．Raising the new flu pandemic alert to the highest level. |
| B．Holding a meeting to ask some facilities in the country to stop their operations. |
| C．Calling for individuals in the whole country to avoid commuting during rush hours. |
| D．Changing its stage of its new-flu action program to a more serious level. |
The purpose of the passage is __________.
| A．to introduce the domestic infection cases in Japan. |
| B．to draw people’s attention to the worsening situation. |
| C．to give some advice on preventing the spread of the flu. |
| D．to call for educational facilities in Japan to suspend classes for some time. |
In the earliest stages of man’s development he had no more need of money than animals have. He was content with very simple forms of shelter, made his own rough tools and weapons and could provide food and clothing for himself and his family from natural materials around him. As he became more civilized, however, he began to want better shelter, more efficient tools and weapons, and more comfortable and more lasting clothing than could be provided by his own neighborhood or by the work of his own unskilled hands. For these things he had to turn to the skilled people such as smiths, leather workers or carpenters. It was then that the question of payment arose.
At first he got what he wanted by a simple process of exchange. The smith who had not the time to look after land or cattle was glad to take meat or grain from the farmer in exchange for an axe or a plough (犁). But as more and more goods which had no fixed exchange value came on the market, exchange became too complicated to be satisfactory. Another problem arose when those who made things wanted to get stocks of wood or leather, or iron, but had nothing to offer in exchange until their finished goods were ready.
Thus the difficulties of exchange led by degree to the invention of money. In some countries easily handled things like seeds or shells were given a certain value and farmer, instead of paying the smith for a new axe by giving him some meat or grain, gave him so many shells. If the smith had any shells left when he had bought his food, he could get stocks of the raw materials of his trade. In some countries quite large things such as cows or camels or even big flat stones were used for trade. Later, pieces of metal, bearing values according to the rarity (稀有) of the metal and the size of the pieces, or coins were used. Money as we know it had arrived.What does the first paragraph mainly tell us?
| A．Man needed little in the earliest stages of development. |
| B．Man preferred to make tools by himself. |
| C．How the simple process of exchange arose. |
| D．What the early man needed from others. |
As men became more civilized they __________.
| A．all learnt to make by themselves the things needed |
| B．had to travel a lot to look for what they wanted |
| C．wanted better things than those they themselves could provide |
| D．no longer provided food and clothing for themselves |
Exchange of goods became difficult because __________.
| A．man became more civilized |
| B．there was not a marketplace for farmers and smiths to exchange their goods |
| C．farmers hadn’t enough grain or meat to provide for skilled workers |
| D．more and more goods which had no fixed exchange values appeared on the market. |
Money was not used until __________.
| A．paper was invented |
| B．nothing could be offered in exchange |
| C．people practiced a simple process of exchange |
| D．the exchange of one thing for another became too complicated |
What was used for trade according to the text?
| A．Shells | B．Tea | C．Salt | D．Horses |
Xu Shu was much valued by Liu Bei for his strategic talents. After several victories on the battleground against Cao Cao, Xu was made the chief military advisor. Cao Cao was greatly surprised at the news. “If you want this person,” one of his advisors said, “you can bring his mother to Xuchang and send a forged letter in his mother's handwriting, asking Xu Shu to desert Liu Bei and come here. As Xu is well-known for a strong filial（孝顺的） affection, surely he will come.” This plot worked. For Xu, on receiving the letter, cried tearfully, asking Liu Bei for an immediate departure. Feeling sad, though, Liu persisted in his stay for another night, during which the two aired their sad feelings.
The next day Liu laid a banquet outside the city for Xu. Holding the latter's hand, Liu said, “After we separate today, only heaven knows when and where we will meet again.” He wept bitter tears.
After setting off on his way, Xu suddenly turned his horse and returned. “I almost forgot an important matter.” He said to Liu. “Ten kilometers from Xiangyang City, in a place called Long zhong, there is a talent called Zhuge Liang. Do you want to meet him？” Liu expressed his willingness at once, but also aired doubt about whether Zhuge Liang was as talented as Xu. “He tells positions of stars in the heavens,” Xu assured him, “and recognizes everything on earth. He knows a person's real nature at the first meeting----the number one talent under the heaven. If you have him as your military advisor, you'll have the country under your name.” Liu suggested a visit to Zhuge by Xu on his behalf. At this, the latter shook his head in disapproval. “You must go and offer your invitation personally, and his acceptance depends entirely on your sincerity.” With these words said, Xu turned his horse and left. Later, Liu paid three trips to Zhuge's straw house, another favorite story among Chinese people.The underlined word “forged” in Paragraph 1 probably means__________.
| A．forced | B．false | C．friendly | D．touching |
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．Zhuge was able to tell a person’s personality at first sight. |
| B．No sooner did Xu receive the letter than he departed for Cao Cao. |
| C．Liu showed little interest in visiting Zhuge because he was doubtful of the stranger’s ability. |
| D．Liu showed his disapproval when Xu advised him to call on Zhuge in person. |
The underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 probably means __________.
| A．There was no doubt that Zhuge was competent as a military advisor |
| B．No one would be better than Zhuge in terms of giving military advice |
| C．Zhuge was such a talent that he could make the country named after Liu |
| D．With the help of Zhuge, Liu would be able to rule the whole country |
The paragraph following the last one most probably deals with __________.
| A．why people considered Zhuge as a talent |
| B．the difficulty Xu met with on the way to meet his mother |
| C．the plot Cao Cao made to bring Xu’s mother to Xuchang |
| D．how Liu sincerely invited Zhuge to assist him in military affairs |
The text is developed in the order of __________.
| A．space | B．logic | C．time | D．cause and result |
Pat O’Burke was a poor Irishman with a large family, and one morning, waking up very early from cold and hunger, he decided to go shooting in a wood near his cottage. The wood belonged to Lord Northwood, a rich gentleman, Pat had no right to go there, but in it there were swarms of rabbits and flocks of birds that were good to eat, and Pat determined to take the risk. Suddenly he saw the owner, with a group of friends, coming towards him in the wood. There was a look of anger on Lord Northwood's face as he caught sight of the gun in Pat's hands. Pat's heart sank with fear, but he saw there was no hope of escape, so he walked boldly (大胆) up to the group and said to Lord Northwood, “Good morning, sir, and what has brought you out so early this morning?” Lord Northwood, rather surprised, said he and his friends were taking a little exercise to get an appetite(食欲) for their breakfast. Then, looking at Pat with suspicion(怀疑), he said, “but why are you out so early in the morning?” “Well, sir” said Pat, “I just came out to see if I could get a breakfast for my appetite.” The whole crowed burst into laughter at Pat's ready wit(机智，风趣), and with a smile Lord Northwood walked on, leaving Pat to try his luck with the rabbits.This is a story about _____.
| A．a rich man who owned a big wood |
| B．a poor Irishman who lived all by himself |
| C．a clever man who tried to get something to eat |
| D．an Irish hunter with a large family |
There was a look of anger on Lord Northwood's face. Why?
| A．He was not expecting Pat at this early hour. |
| B．He knew Pat was coming for shooting. |
| C．He didn't like the poor Irishman at all. |
| D．Pat had not told him he would come. |
Why was Lord Northwood surprised?
| A．He had not expected such a bold question from Pat. |
| B．He wondered why Pat didn't run away. |
| C．Pat wasn't afraid of him. |
| D．Pat had a gun in his hands. |
What made the whole crowd burst into laughter?
| A．Pat's funny looks | B．Pat's interesting remarks |
| C．Pat's quick and humorous response | D．Pat's promise to leave fight away |
Guess the meaning of the underlined word “right”.
| A．对的 | B．右边 | C．正好 | D．权利 |
Do you always understand the directions on a bottle of medicine? Do you know what is meant by “Take only as directed”? Read the following directions and see if you understand them.
To reduce pain, take two tablets with water, followed by one tablet every eight hours, as required. For night time and early morning relief take two tablets at bedtime. Do not take more than six tablets in twenty-four hours.
For children six to twelve years old, give half the amount. For children under six years old, ask your doctor’s advice.
Reduce the amount if you suffer from restlessness or sleeplessness after taking the medicine. How many tablets at most can a person over 12 have in 24 hours?
| A．Three | B．Four | C．Six | D．Eight |
How many tablets should a nine-year-old child normally take in 24 hours?
| A．Half a tablet | B．One tablet | C．Two tablets | D．Four tablets |
What is the advice for one who can not sleep well after taking the medicine?
| A．Stop taking the medicine at bedtime | B．Continue to take the normal amount |
| C．Take more than the normal amount | D．Take less than the normal amount |
It can be inferred from the directions that this medicine ___________ .
| A．helps you to fall asleep quickly | B．may be dangerous to small children |
| C．cannot be taken if one feels sleepy | D．should not be taken by children under six |
This text is most probably taken from a _____________ .
| A．textbook | B．newsreel | C．doctor’s notebook | D．bottle of medicine |