Cheaters called “pirates” often use camcorders(便携式摄像机) and cell phones to make illegal copies of blockbusters in the local theater. These pirates then sell those recordings on the street or over the Internet for very low prices. Some share them for free.
“It’s unfair for people to pirate movies,” says 15-year-old Hadaia Azad Ezzulddin. Movie piracy “takes money out of the pockets of thousands of people in the movie industry,” she notes. Victims include famous actors and directors as well as local theater owners and their employees.
Hadaia came up with an idea that could help stop movie piracy. Hadaia’s idea uses infrared(红外线的) light. This range of light is invisible to the human eye. It is visible, however, to many types of cameras. Theater owners could place small infrared lights on their movie screens. The lights would not disturb people watching the movie. It would, however, distort the recordings made by many types of cameras.
To test her idea, Hadaia built a box with a movie screen inside. Then, she projected images on that screen through a hole in the box. She took recordings of those images, using nine different types of cameras. These included the types found in cell phones as well as camcorders. During some tests, she also turned on light emitting diodes(发光二极管), or LEDs. The LEDs were embedded（植入的）in a certain place behind the movie screen. They gave out infrared light.
Sure enough, she showed, a pirated movie included odd stripes or spots if it had been recorded while the LEDs were on. It might be possible to use the LEDs to flash the date and time on the movie screen. The information would then appear in the illegal recordings. Theater owners or police might use the information to track down the pirates.
Cutting down on piracy might get more people into theaters to watch the real movie instead of an illegal copy. Six out of every ten films now produced aren’t profitable. They don’t make enough money to recover how much was spent to make and market them. Such a poor payback can discourage filmmakers from producing anything but the types expected to become blockbuster hits. It might also keep smaller theaters from showing a wider variety of movie types.From what Hadaia says in Paragraph 2, we can infer that _______.
| A．most people spend less money on pirates moves |
| B．the pirates don’t have to pay for the movie tickets |
| C．theater owners will increase the price of movie tickets |
| D．she strongly criticizes those who video movies in the theater |
Infrared lights are put on the movie screens to _______.
| A．adjust the brightness of the movie screens |
| B．make sure the images of movies are dark |
| C．make illegal copies of movies unpleasant to see |
| D．protect the eyesight of viewers in the darkness |
What is the correct order of the steps in Hadaia’s test?
a. She projected pictures on the screen.
b. She used cameras to record the pictures.
c. She turned on the LEDs placed behind the screen.
d. She made a special box with a movie screen inside.
| A．d c a b | B．d b a c |
| C．b a c d | D．b c a d |
According to the last paragraph, we can know that _______.
| A．forty percent of movies now are profitable |
| B．small theaters often choose to show low-cost movies |
| C．more and more people go to theaters to fight movie piracy |
| D．filmmakers prefer to produce ordinary movies than blockbusters |
During my free time one day, I wandered down a lonely path into the woods and sat against a tree. Then I saw one of the camp counselors approaching me. "Oh great," I thought, since counselors were always trying to cheer you up or make you laugh.
"Hey," he said, "mind if I have a seat?" I shrugged(耸肩). I wasn't going to encourage him, but I couldn't exactly stop him, either. He sat down alongside me and extended a hand. "I'm Gary," he said, "and you're Erica, right?" I nodded. "You don't exactly look like you're having a good time," he began.
I crossed my arms and gritted my teeth. "Look," I said, "I didn't want to come to camp, I don't like it, I'm not having fun, and it basically stinks." I glared at Gary.
"So there's nothing here at all for you, huh?" he asked.
"Nothing," I answered.
"Let me show you something," said Gary. He got up, and I followed him along the path until I heard a sound like a roaring freight train.
"What's that?" I asked.
"Wait and see," he replied, with a small smile.
When we rounded the corner, I couldn't believe what I saw. There was the biggest waterfall I could ever imagine, right in front of me. "Cool!" I said, and I could feel my eyes getting bigger and a smile tugging at my mouth.
"Still think there's nothing here for you?" asked Gary. "Because there's a whole lot more of this kind of 'nothing' around here."
I had to admit, the waterfall was impressive.
"Look," said Gary, "camp is what you make it. You can be sullen(阴郁的) and closed-minded and have a rotten four weeks, or you can take a look around you and see some of the incredible sights and appreciate the opportunity. It would be useless for me to try to make you have fun. You can only do that for yourself. But if you loosen up a little, you might actually have a good time." With that, he turned and walked away, leaving me on the path.
That night, by the campfire, I found myself singing along with everyone else. By the time the four weeks were up, I didn't want to leave. I'd seen some amazing things and made some great friends.
Beauty is where you find it. Life is what you make it. I think it's going to be a good year this year. I mean, I'm going to work to make it one. Maybe if I'm lucky, I'll get to go back to camp next year!When Gary walked to Erica, you could predict that ________ .
| A．he would help her feel better |
| B．she would say hello to him |
| C．he would talk about his life |
| D．she would tell him to go away |
What can you tell about Erica from the beginning of the story?
| A．She looks forward to this camp trip very much. |
| B．She has won a camp trip because of her good performance at school. |
| C．She knows Gary very well so they camp together. |
| D．She doesn’t see anything fun in the camp trip. |
What can you tell about Erica from the ending of this story?
| A．She has many close friends at home. |
| B．She is looking forward to the future. |
| C．She's a good student who gets mostly A's. |
| D．She often gets into trouble at school. |
What does the underlined word “counselor” most probably mean in Para 1?
| A．A person who teaches you how to make fun of others. |
| B．A person who gives you help and advice. |
| C．A person who guides you when you are travelling. |
| D．A person who teaches you how to make a camp. |
Which is the theme(主题) of this story?
| A．What you get out of life depends on what you put into it. |
| B．Parents are always making kids do things they don't want to do. |
| C．You will forget your trouble by the campfire. |
| D．Waterfalls always make you feel better. |
Mother stayed at home cooking and cleaning while Father left for work. Two or more children took the bus to school. In the evening, all the family members got together at home again. This is what a traditional family was like twenty years ago. But now great changes have happened in British families.
As many as 2 out of 3 marriages now end in divorce(离婚), and many children have to live with one parent and only see the other at weekends or during holidays.
There has been a great increase in the number of working women with children. Many women have to work to support themselves and their children. Even in the family where there is no divorce, both parents have to work in order to survive.
Also women are no longer happy to stay at home taking care of children. Many of them have jobs and some of them can even make more money than men, the traditional breadwinners.
What’s more, the increasing number of single-parent families have caused an increase in the crime rate (犯罪率) among children in a way. It is thought that if a child doesn’t have a father, he or she will be harmed.
However the changes may be good for some people. For women it’s now much easier to have well-paid jobs. Although it is difficult to be a working mother, it is no longer seen as a bad thing for children.
As for some children, they learn how to solve problems by themselves at an early age.Which of the following statements is TRUE about a traditional family in Britain twenty years ago?
| A．Both the mother and the father had to work to support the family. |
| B．The father stayed at home taking care of the children. |
| C．The mother didn’t need to work. |
| D．A family had only one child. |
Which of the following things is NOT mentioned in the passage ?
| A．The increasing number of divorces. |
| B．The increasing number of fathers who stay at home. |
| C．The increasing number of working mothers. |
| D．The increasing crime rate among children. |
According to the passage, a “breadwinner” refers to a person who ________.
| A．has got some bread |
| B．is good at making bread |
| C．stays at home raising children |
| D．works to support the family |
From the passage we can learn that ________.
| A．In a family where the parents are not divorced in Britain，the mother doesn’t have to work. |
| B．Children whose parents are divorced have to start working early. |
| C．The father is very important to a child’s growth. |
| D．The changes in British families do no goo |
Read the advertisements carefully. Then answer the questions that follow.
| FLORLST WANTED! Are you a creative and trained florist with at least two years of experience? Then this may be just what you are hunting. The city’s leading Florist Artist Studio needs another part-time member on their wedding team. Please phone 6098 7888 now! |
| WE NEED OFFICE CLRANERS! Three people are required for professional cleaning in the CBD area. Working hours from 5:00 pm on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays. Approximately five hours per shift. A good record is necessary. Experience preferred. Phone 6345 7843 now. |
| WANT TO WORK AS A DENTAL NURSE? This is an exciting opportunity for a qualified dental nurse with a confident and cheerful personality to work in the School Dental Health Schema. You must be able to get along well with children because work involves talking to group about dental health practices. For further information, visit our website at schooledntalservices@gov.sg. And fax your resume to 6234 4567. |
| INTERESTED IN CHILDCARE? Qualified person or preschool teacher needed for busy childcare center, south of the river. Full-time work guaranteed. Immediate start necessary. The candidate must be able to work as a co-operative team member. Phone 6345 2345 for an interview and fax resume to 6345 2345. |
You may find the advertisements above.
| A．in a store window | B．in a school magazine |
| C．in a newspaper | D．on a company notice-board |
The position of a(n)is a part-time job.
| A．florist | B．artist |
| C．preschool teacher | D．dental nurse |
Which of the following is the most important for the childcare job?
| A．Child food cooking skills. |
| B．Childcare experience and outgoing. |
| C．The ability to start work in 2 weeks. |
| D．The ability to work well with other people. |
The office cleaners will be required to work abouthours a week.
| A．5 | B．10 | C．15 | D．20 |
You wake up in the morning，the day is beautiful and the plans for the day are what you have been looking forward to for a long time．Then the telephone rings，you say hello, and the drama starts．The person on the other end has a depressing(令人沮丧的) tone in his voice as he starts to tell you how terrible his morning is and that there is nothing to look forward to．You are still in a wonderful mood? Impossible!
Communicating with negative people can wash out your happiness．It may not change what you think，but communicating long enough with them will make you feel depressed for a moment or a long time．
Life brings ups and downs，but some people are stuck in the wrong idea that life has no happiness to offer．They only feel glad when they make others feel bad．No wonder they can hardly win others’ pity or respect．
When you communicate with positive people，your spirit stays happy and therefore more positive things are attracted．When the dagger(匕首)of a negative person is put in you．you feel the heavy feeling that all in all，brings you down．
Sometimes we have no choice but to communicate with negative people．This could be a co-worker，or relative．In this case，say what needs to be said as little as possible． Sometimes it feels good to let out your anger back to a negative person，but all this does is to lower you to that same negative level and they won’t feel ashamed of themselves about that．
Negativity often affects happiness without even being realized．The negative words of another at the start of the day can cling to(附着)you throughout the rest of your day，which makes you feel bad and steals your happiness．Life is too short to feel negative．Stay positive and avoid negativity as much as possible．The purpose of the first paragraph is to __________ ．
| A．make a comparison | B．offer an evidence |
| C．introduce a topic | D．describe a daily scene |
How can negative people have effect on us?
| A．By influencing our emotion． |
| B．By telling US the nature of life． |
| C．By changing our way of thinking． |
| D．By comparing their attitude to life with ours． |
Some negative people base their happiness on _________ ．
| A．other people’s pity for them |
| B．making other people unhappy |
| C．building up a positive attitude |
| D．other people’s respect for them |
According to the passage, to reduce negative people's influence on us，
we are advised _______ ．
| A．to change negative people’s attitude to life |
| B．to show our dissatisfaction to negative people |
| C．to make negative people feel ashamed of themselves |
| D．to communicate with negative people as little as possible |
Having returned from her round trip, the angry woman stood outside the ticket office. "The railway owes me $12, " she said to Harry Jenks, the young man working at the office. "You sold me a ticket for May 22nd, but there was no ship from Jersey that night. So my daughter and I had to stay in a hotel. It cost me $12. “
Harry was worried. He remembered selling the woman a return ticket. "Come into the office, Madam, "he said politely. "I'll check the Jersey timetable for May 22nd."
The woman and her little girl followed him inside. She was quite right, as Harry soon discovered. There was no sailing on May 22nd. How could he have made such a careless mistake? He shouldn't have sold her a ticket for that day. Wondering what to do, he smiled at the child. "You look sunburnt, "he said to her. "Did you have a nice holiday in Jersey?"
"Yes", she answered, shyly. "The beach was lovely. And I can swim too!"
"That's fine, "said Harry. "My little girl can't swim a bit yet. Of course, she's only three”
"I'm four, "the child said proudly. "I'll be four and a half. "
Harry turned to the mother." I remember your ticket, Madam, "he said. "But you didn't get one for your daughter, did you?"
"Er, well", "the woman looked at the child." I mean … she hasn't started school yet. She's only four. "
"A four-year-old child must have a ticket, Madam. A child's return ticket to Jersey costs' "let me see … $ 13. 5. So if the railway pays your hotel, you will owe $1. 5. The law is law, but since the fault (过错) was mine…".
The woman stood up, took the child's hand and left the office.The woman was angry because .
| A．she returned home one day later than she thought |
| B．she spent more money than she had planned |
| C．there was no ship when she arrived at the station in Jersey |
| D．the young man didn't sell her the ticket for a round trip |
Harry felt worried because .
| A．he didn't change the timetable in time |
| B．the woman was too angry with him |
| C．the woman didn't buy a ticket for her daughter |
| D．he didn't do his work carefully enough |
Harry started talking to the little girl because .
| A．he had a little girl about the same age as this girl |
| B．he wanted to find a way out from the little girl |
| C．he was in difficulty and did not know what to do |
| D．he wanted to show his friendliness to the little girl |
The underlined sentence means that.
| A．she should pay $1. 5, but as he had made a mistake, she could go without paying |
| B．the woman had to pay him $1. 5, and the railway would pay for the hotel |
| C．they have to follow it without other choice, even though the fault was his |
| D．he must be strict with the woman because of the laws, though he didn't want to |