In 1947 a group of famous people from the art world headed by an Austrian conductor decided to hold an international festival of music, dance and theatre in Edinburgh. The idea was to reunite Europe after the Second World War.
It quickly attracted famous names such as Alec Guinness, Richard Button, Dame Margot Fonteyn and Marlene Dietrich as well as the big symphony orchestras(交响乐团). It became fixed event every August and now attracts 400,000 people yearly.
At the Same time, the “Fringe” appeared as a challenge to the official festival. Eight theatre groups turned up uninvited in1947, in the belief that everyone should have the right to perform, and they did so in a public house disused for years.
Soon, groups of students firstly from Edinburgh University, and later from the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, Durham and Birmingham were making the journey to the Scottish capital each summer to perform theatre by little-known writers of plays in small church halls to the people of Edinburgh.
Today the “Fringe”, once less recognized, has far outgrown the festival with around 1,500 performances of theatre, music and dance on every one of the 21 days it lasts. And yet as early as 1959, with only 19 theatre groups performing, some said it was getting too big.
A paid administrator was first employed only in 1971, and today there are eight administrators working all year round and the number rises to 150 during August itself. In 2004 there were 200 places housing 1,695 shows by over 600 different groups from 50 different countries. More than 1.25 million tickets were sold.
What was the purpose of Edinburgh Festival at the beginning?
| A．To bring Europe together again. |
| B．To honor heroes of World War II. |
| C．To introduce young theatre groups. |
| D．To attract great artists from Europe. |
Why did some uninvited theatre groups come to Edinburgh in 1947?
| A．They owned a public house there. |
| B．They came to take up a challenge. |
| C．They thought they were also famous. |
| D．They wanted to take part in the festival. |
Who joined the “Fringe” after it appeared?
| A．Popular writers. |
| B．University students. |
| C．Artists from around the world. |
| D．Performers of music and dance. |
We may learn from the text that Edinburgh Festival .
| A．has become a non-official event |
| B．has gone beyond an art festival |
| C．gives shows all year round |
| D．keeps growing rapidly |
Fifteen people were killed and 38 others injured in a road accident early Wednesday morning in Ens hi， Central China’s Hu bei Province．
The bus， travelling from Wanzhou in Southwest China’s Chongqing Municipality to Shen zhen in South China’s Guangdong Province， had 53 passengers on board，three more than permitted．
At around 1 am on Wednesday， the bus increased speed gradually on a curve（弯路）and plunged（往前冲） more than 30 metres into a valley below． Thirteen people， including one of the two drivers， died at once． Two others died on the way to hospital．
Although the cause of the accident is still unclear， the local police said the driver paid no attention to the official warning signs on the expressway(高速公路)．
It hit a section which had been closed as a result of snow．
Because of the cold weather and icy roads，the expressway had been closed by police since Tuesday morning． But the bus drivers took the dangerous route, paying no attention to the warnings．
The rescue team， which included more than 30 medical workers and 120 local villagers，joined together and rushed to the scene at the news of the accident． By 5 am， all of the injured had been sent to three local hospitals for emergency treatment． A hospital source said most of the patients were in a stable（稳定的）condition but a few were still in danger．
According to a 2009 national public opinion poll， traffic accidents ranked as people’s third biggest security（安全） concern． When the accident took place，＿＿＿＿．
| A．the bus was on the way to Shenzhen |
| B．most of the passengers were sound asleep |
| C．all the passengers were given immediate rescue |
| D．it was snowing hard |
The expressway was closed to ＿＿＿＿．
| A．protect the passengers from being frozen |
| B．make the police have a good rest |
| C．stop cars traveling around |
| D．avoid（避免） the happening of traffic accidents |
What the local villagers did showed that they were ＿＿＿＿．
| A．curious（好奇的） | B．warm hearted | C．frightened | D．simple minded |
Not many years ago, a wealthy and rather strange old man named Johnson lived alone in a village in the south of England. He had made a lot of money in trading with foreign countries. When he was seventy—five, he gave £ 12,000 to the village school to buy land and equipment (设备) for a children’s playground.
As a result of his kindness, many people came to visit him. Among them was a newspaperman. During their talk, Johnson remarked that he was seventy-five and expected to live to be a hundred. The newspaperman asked him how he managed to be healthy at seventy—five. Johnson had a sense of humour (幽默). He liked whisky (威士忌酒) and drank some each day. “I have an injection (注射) in my neck each evening.”he told the newspaperman, thinking of his evening glass of whisky.
The newspaperman did not understand what Johnson meant. In his newspaper he reported that Johnson was seventy—five and had a daily injection in his neck. Within a week Johnson received thousands of letters from all over Britain, asking him for the secret of his daily injection.Johnson became a rich man through
| A．doing business. | B．making whisky. | C．cheating. | D．buying and selling land. |
The gift of money to the school suggests that Johnson
| A．had no children. | B．was a strange man. |
| C．was very fond of children. | D．wanted people to know how rich he was. |
Many people wrote to Johnson to find out
| A．why he gave so much money to the school. | B．how to live longer. |
| C．how to become wealthy. | D．in which part of the neck to have an injection. |
The newspaperman
| A．should have reported what Johnson had told him. |
| B．shouldn’t have asked Johnson what injection he had. |
| C．was eager to live a long life. |
| D．should have found out what Johnson really meant. |
For many people today, reading is no longer relaxation. To keep up with their work they must read letters, reports, trade publications, interoffice communications: a never-ending flood of words. In getting a job or advancing in one, the ability to read and comprehend quickly can mean the difference between success and failure. Yet the unfortunate fact is that most of us are poor readers.
Most reading faults can be traced to early school training. According to Dr. Betts, two persons out of five in school were forced to read material too difficult for them to understand at the time, a frustration experience which left them with bad reading habits.
Fortunately, almost anyone can learn to read faster and with more comprehension. Age makes little difference. According to a recent study of 138 students at The Reading Laboratory, Inc. , all age groups showed a marked increase in reading rate after training from 93 percent for the 50-90 age group to 142 percent for the 20-29.Dr. Mila Banton Smith, director of New York University’s Reading Institute, says that the average adult student, in 28 training hours, nearly triples (三倍的) his reading speed and boosts(增长) his comprehension by about 30 percent.
The best way to improve your reading, of course, is to enroll(登记) in a reading clinic. If there’s no clinic handy, you can improve your reading ability yourself--- provided you have no eyes troubles. (if reading tires you easily or makes your eyes or head ache, you should consult a doctor.)To many people today, _______.
| A．reading quickly is easy |
| B．reading quickly and comprehending quickly can ensure their success |
| C．reading is only for fun |
| D．reading can ensure their success |
Most reading faults are_______
| A．due to early school training |
| B．a frustrating experience |
| C．made by reading difficult materials |
| D．made by reading carelessly |
Who can learn to read fast and with comprehension?
| A．teachers only | B．students only |
| C．a few people | D．almost everybody |
According to the passage, what is the best way to improve one’s reading？
| A．go to a doctor |
| B．review what has been learnt at school |
| C．go to reading remedial class for special training |
| D．consult a dictionary |
While income worry is a rather common problem of the aged, loneliness is another problem that aged parents may face. Of all the reasons that explain their loneliness, a large geographical distance between parents and their children is the major one. This phenomenon is commonly known as “ Empty Nest Syndrome”(空巢综合症). In order to seek better chances outside their countries, many young people have gone abroad, leaving their parents behind with no clear idea of when they will return home. Their parents spend countless lonely days and nights, taking care of themselves, in the hope that someday their children will come back to stay with them. The fact that most of these young people have gone to Europeanized or Americanized societies makes it unlikely that they will hold as tightly to the value of duty as they would have if they had not left their countries. Whatever the case, it has been noted that the values they hold do not necessarily match what they actually do. This geographical and cultural distance also prevents the grown-up children from providing response in time for their aged parents living by themselves.
The situation in which grown-up children live far away from their aged parents has been described as “ distant parent phenomenon”, which is common both in developed countries and in developing countries. Our society has not yet been well prepared for “ Empty Nest Syndrome”.According to the passage, the loneliness of aged parents is mainly caused by ________.
| A．their earlier experience of feeling lonely |
| B．the unfavorable living conditions in their native countries |
| C．the common worry about their income |
| D．the geographical distance between parents and children |
Many young people have gone abroad, leaving
their aged parents behind, to _______.
| A．live in the countries with more money |
| B．seek a better place for their aged parents |
| C．continue their studies abroad |
| D．realize their dreams in foreign countries |
If young people go abroad, ________.
| A．they do not hold to the value of duty at all |
| B．they can give some help to their parents back home |
| C．they cannot do what they should for their parents |
| D．they believe what they actually do is right |
From the last paragraph, we can infer that______
| A．the situation in the developed and developing countries are different |
| B．“Empty Nest Syndrome” has arrived unexpectedly in our society |
| C．children will become independent as soon as they go abroad |
| D．the aged parents are not fully prepared for “Empty Nest Syndrome” |
BRITAIN is apopular tourist place. But tours
of the country have pros and cons.
Good News
Free museums. No charge for outstanding collections of art and antiquities.
Pop music. Britain is the only country to rival(与---匹敌) the US on this score.
Black cabs. London taxi drivers know where they are going even if there are never enough of them at weekends or night.
Choice of food. Visitors can find everything from Ethiopian to Swedish restaurant.
Fashion. Not only do fashion junkies love deeply and respect highly brand names such as Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen, street styles are justly loved, too.
Bad News
Poor service. “ It’s part of the image of the place. People can dine out on the rudeness they have experienced,” says professor Tony Seaton, of Luton University’s International Tourism Research Center.
Poor public transport. Trains and buses are promised to defeat the keenest tourists, although the overcrowded London tube is inexplicably(无法解释的) popular.
Lack of languages. Speaking slowly and clearly may not get many foreign visitors very far, even in the tourist traps(圈套).
Rain. Still in the number one complaint(抱怨).
An air-conditioning. So that even splendidly hot summers become as unbearable as the down- pours.
Overpriced hotels. The only European country with a higher rate of tax on hotel rooms is Denmark.
Licensing hours. Alcohol(酒精) is in short supply after 11p. m. even in “ 24-hour cities”What do tourists complain most?
| A．poor service | B．poor public transport |
| C．rain | D．overpriced hotels |
What do we learn about pop music in Britain and the US through this passage?
| A．pop music in Britain is better than that in the US. |
| B．pop music in Britain is as good as that in the US. |
| C．pop music in Britain is worse than that in the US |
| D．pop music in Britain is quite different from that in the US |
When is alcohol not able to get?
| A．at 9:00 p. m. | B．at 10:00 p. m. |
| C．at 11:00 p. m. | D．at 12:00 p. m. |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．you have to pay to visit the museum |
| B．it’s very cheap to travel by taxi there |
| C．you cannot find Chinese food there |
| D．the public transport is poor there |