Britain’s high streets are dying slowly
Twenty years ago, the prosperous high street(繁华商业区) was the heart of most cities.It was crowded with customers.Nowadays, high streets are declining, with very few shops and shoppers.With about 14 shops down every day, Britain’s high streets are dying little by little.
It’s fairly easy to understand.To start with, people are spending less because of the economic recession(衰退).On top of that, more and more people are using the Internet to do their shopping.And it is not easy for shopkeepers in the high streets, either.
Finally, there are the out-of-town retail parks with free car parking that sell just about everything at very low prices.
What can be done? Prime Minister David Cameron has hired Mary Portas, a British business woman and star of TV show Mary Queen of Shops, to bring some life back into Britain’s high streets.She’s talked about creating “magnets(磁石)” to attract people back to the centre. In one town, a bicycle rickshaw(人力车) service is delivering people’s shopping to their homes.
where children can be cared for while parents are shopping.
Members of the public have also voiced their opinions.“My ideal shopping center is one where there’s a wide selection of attractive looking shops, with cheap parking and good public transport links,” said a 28-year-old man.“I’d like to see Night Shopping evenings where shops are open through to 10 pm or later,” said a 22-year-old girl.
A.They have to pay increasing high rents. |
B.But he is not the only one to solve the problem. |
C.But that’s all changed. |
D.In another town, they set up night shopping centers, |
E. In another town, they set up a nursery,
F. They can make a fortune overnight.
G. Why are high streets in such a desperate situation?
根据短文内容,从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项,选项中有两项为多余选项。
In many parts of the world, cars play an important role in daily life and many societies would not exist without them. 1 But this is the prediction made by a team of transport researchers who are taken seriously, not only by government but also by car manufacturers.
The Human Science and Advanced Technology Institute at Loughborough in the UK is part of an international research program. 2 That will mean much saving, no accidents and better use of roads. The super-intelligent car in the future will drive itself. 3 Instead, we will have a choice of cars and change them as frequently as we change our clothing.
According to Dr. David Davis, who leads the research team, these predictions are based on the rising cost of the car culture, which had blocked up our cities, polluted our air, and caused more deaths than both world wars put together.
Davis says, cars will be fitted with some intelligent devices(装置) to regulate(调节) the distance between one car and another. 4 computers are much safer drivers than people, so cars in a road train will be able to drive much closer together than cars driven by people.
By 2010, Dr. David Davis believes, car technology will give motorists a clear view of the road, whatever the weather conditions, by projecting an image of the road ahead on to the car’s windscreen. 5 Cars will be connected by an electronic tow bar to the car in front to form “road-trains”. “The front vehicle in such a train burns the normal amount.” says Davis. “but all the others in the train would burn about ten percent of the normal amount, and so produce about ten percent of the pollution.”
A.The team there believes that by 2030 all cars will be computerized. |
B.They believe that cars will become more important in 20 years. |
C.And it will not be owned by one individual. |
D.And by 2030, cars will travel in line, linked to each other electronically. |
E. So the idea that in 20 years’ time, no one will own cars may be hard to believe.
F. Every driver will use less fuel in the car he owns.
G. The car will automatically speed up, or slow down, to match the speed of the car in front.
Curiosity is an important characteristic of a genius(天才). You can’t find an intellectual giant who is not a curious person.This is necessary if you are to have a curious mind. Some things you know and believe might be wrong, and you should be prepared to accept things you don’t know or you don’t quite agree on.
If you just accept the world as it is, you will certainly lose your “ curiosity”. Try to discover what is beneath(在…下面) the surfaces of things around you.
Ask questions from time to time. A sure way to discover what is beneath the surface is by
asking questions: What is that? Why does it make that way? How does it work? And so on.
See learning as something that is fun. If you see learning as a burden, it will just make the
burden heavier. But if you can find learning interesting, it will open another door.
Read different kinds of reading materials. Don’t spend too much time on just one
subject.It will introduce you to other possibilities that may interest you.
A.Keep an open mind. |
B.Try to look into the things. |
C.Search for ideas to write about. |
D.Discuss your ideas with other people. |
E. So make an effort to enjoy the learning process.
F. Feed your mind with interesting facts about different subjects.
G. It is the simplest way for curious people to increase their knowledge.
根据短文内容,从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白出的最佳选项.选项中有两项为多余选项.
Is there anything more important than health? I don’t think so.“Health is the greatest wealth,” wise people say. _____
If you have a headache, toothache, backache, or bad pain in the stomach, if you complain of a bad cough, or if you suffer from high or low blood pressure, I think you go to the doctor.
The doctor will examine your throat, test your blood pressure, take your temperature, sound your heart and lungs, check your teeth or have your chest X-rayed. _____The only thing you have to do is to follow his advice.
_____
An old gentleman came to see the doctor.The man was very ill.He told the doctor about his weakness, memory loss and serious problems with his heart and lungs.The doctor examined him and said there was no medicine for his disease.He told his patient to go to a quiet place for a month and have a good rest.____In other words, the doctor advised him to follow the rule: “Eat at pleasure, drink with measure and enjoy life as it is.” The doctor also said that if the man wanted to be well again, he shouldn’t smoke more than one cigarette a day.
A month later the gentleman came into the doctor’s office.____He thanked the doctor and said that he had never felt a healthier man.
“But you know, doctor,” he said, “it’s not easy to begin smoking at my age”
A.He also advised him to eat a lot of meat, drink two glasses of red wine every day and take long walks. |
B.You can’t be good at your studies or work well when you are ill. |
C.After that he will advise some treatment or some medicine. |
D.All these will cost a lot of money. |
E.He looked cheerful and happy.
F.He was more worried about his illness.
G.Speaking about doctor’s advice, I can’t help telling you a funny story.
下面文章中有5处(第61~65题)需要添加小标题,请从以下选项中选出符合各段意思的小标题,并在答题卡上将该项涂黑,选项中一项为多余选项.
A. Slow Down Your Life
B. Escape Now and Then
C. Separate Your Actions
D. Allow Yourself to Be Weak
E. Relieve Pressure by Firmly Saying " No"
F. Stop Expecting Everything to Be Perfect
How to Simplify Your Life
Less is more. This is why we say: reduce things by half instead of doubling them, get rid of junk instead of piling it up, relax instead of stressing, slow down instead of speeding up. Apply these principles in your everyday life in a conscious way. You will then find yourself well along on your journey to simplification.
When you concentrate on one task, you find you have energy that you didn't even know you had. Just imagine: you arc at a fair and you have to carry two heavy pigs over 100 yards. If you keep grabbing one and then the other, it will take forever, because one of them will keep slipping out from under your arm and running off. But if you tie one pig in a place, pick up the other, gather all your strength and make a dash for the finish line, pause for a moment, run bock and get the other one, and with great determination, carry the second pig to the finish line, then you can be sure of succcss.
The pressure at work is on the increase in all occupations. In the modem nuclear family, the expectations that formerly would have been shared among all the relatives are now concentrated on the individual partner.
If you have the feeling that 24 hours per day are not enough for nil the things you need to do, then it’s not because the day has too few hours, but because you have too many activities. A simple fact that overloaded people often tend to forget. The solution is equally simple; refuse to accept so many work assignments in your private life or your working life.
“I can handle stress” is regarded as a positive statement in the world of work. People who can handle stress are given more and more to cope with — until one day they break.
Pay careful attention to the signs that tell you that you arc under more stress than you can cope with. These signals came from various areas of life. You become ill, or your work efficiency decreases.
If you have any of these symptoms, change your life goals and decrease your tolerance of stress. Say quite openly, "I can't manage that. "
"If only I were slimmer, more beautiful, richer, more clever, then I would be happier. " This is a dream that makes a lot of people ill, depressed, and unhappy. Life has its flaws, defects, comets, and edges. Only those who accept this reality can lead a really full life.
Of course there are activities in which errors are dangerous; driving a car, crossing the road. But life doesn't consist entirely of these things. In among them there is a lot of room for small and large mistakes.
Successful people ail have their own places where they can withdraw in order to work. Find out which places improve your creativity. For me it's the train. When I know that I'm going to be traveling for four hours without phone calls and people knocking on my door, I find my mind is free and I can read or write complex articles. There can be problems working on the train, of course: if the person sitting opposite you keeps talking away, or if train trips make you tired (some people fall asleep after a few miles).
根据短文内容,从下框的A~F选项中选出能概括每一段主题的最佳选项,并在答题卡上将该选项涂黑。选项中有一项为多余项。
A. Be well-organised. B. Close with a Q & A. C. Don't be contradictory. D. Bring it to a specific end E. Speak slowly and pause. F. Drop unnecessary words |
Speaking to a group can be difficult, but listening to a bad speech is truly a tiresome task-especially when the speaker is confusing. Don't want to confuse your audience? Follow these suggestions:
1. |
When it comes to understanding new information, the human brain needs a little time. First, we hear the words; then, we compare the new information to what we already know. If the two are different, we need to pause and think. But a breathless speaker never stops to let us think about what he or she is saying and risks confusing us. Slow it down. And breathe.() |
2. |
Sometimes we all start a sentence one way and then switch directions, which is very difficult to follow. When you confuse your listeners with opposing information, you leave the audience wondering what part of the information is right and what part they should remember. Instead of relying and keeping correcting yourself, work to get the facts clear and straight.() |
3. |
Jumping from point to point as it comes to your mind puts the onus (责任)on your listeners to make up for your lack of organisation. And it's confusing for them to listen, reorganise, and figure out what you're saying all at once. But going smoothly from one point to the next helps them understand information more easily. You can arrange things from beginning to end, small to large, top to bottom or by some other order. Just be sure to organise.() |
4. |
Repeated use of um, ah, like, you know and some other useless noises can drive an audience crazy. It makes the speaker sound uncertain and unprepared, and it can leave listeners so annoyed that they can't pay attention. Recently I attended a speech that was marked by so many ums that audience members were rolling their eyes. Was anybody grasping the intended message? Um, probably not.() |
5. |
Many speakers finish up their speeches with question-and-answer (Q & A) sessions, but some let the Q & A go on without a clear end. The audience is often left confused about whether the meeting is over and when they can get up and leave. Do your listeners a favour by setting a time limit on questions, and close your speech with a specific signal-even if it's something simple like, "If you have any more questions, you know where to reach me." |