You may think, salt is just a simple cooking element we shake on our food for a little extra taste. But salt is much more than that. Without salt our muscles would not move. Our nervous systems would not operate. Our hearts would not beat.
But do not think rubbing salt in a wound will help. Doing that would be painful and not heal the wound. To rub salt in a wound is an idiom that means to purposefully make a bad situation worse.
Early humans got the salt they needed to stay alive from the animals they killed. But advances in agriculture led to a diet low in salt. So, humans needed to find other sources. Those who lived near the ocean or other natural sources for salt were lucky. Those who did not had to trade for salt. In fact, people used salt as a method of payment in many parts of the ancient world. The word "salary" comes from the word "salt".
Salt also played an important part in population movement and world exploration. Explorers understood that if they could keep food fresh，they could travel longer distances. So they used salt to preserve food and explored the world.
Salt was so important that, according to food historians. it was traded pound-for-pound for gold. Today, people still use the expressions "to be worth one's salt" or "worth one's weight in salt". The expressions describe a person of value.
A person might also be called salt of the earth. That description means he or she is dependable and trustworthy. However, when you say "I think we should take what he said with a grain of salt" you mean you accept it but maintain a degree of doubt about its truth.
What can we learn from the first paragraph?
| A．Salt plays an important part in our life. |
| B．Salt makes food tasty. |
| C．Salt is considered to be part of our muscles. |
| D．Salt is sure to damage nervous systems. |
A beggar's bread was stolen last night.，which means .
| A．salt of the earth | B．rubbing salt in a wound |
| C．a diet low in salt | D．worth his salt |
If you describe a person as a great help, you mean .
| A．he is called salt of the earth |
| B．he is often taken as a grain of salt |
| C．he often uses salt to preserve meat |
| D．he is worth his weight in salt |
Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
| A．Salt Is More Than a Four-letter Word. |
| B．Salt Is a Basic Element in Cooking. |
| C．Salt Is a Word with a Long History. |
| D．Salt Is Popular with Different Persons. |
C
Still want a laptop? That was so yesterday. Get ready for the next stage in the personal computer revolution: It's the ultrathin (超薄的), cheap netbook.
According to a New York Times report last week, personal computers are about to go through their biggest change since the rise of the laptop. By the end of the year, consumers are likely to see laptops the size of thin paperback books that can run all day on a single charge and are equipped with touch screens or slide-out keyboards. The netbook is a kind of portable computer with learner functions for online surfing and basic computing activities, for example, word processing. To cut the cost and weight, they usually have a low-powered processor, small screen, narrow keyboard, and no ODD.
Currently, some of the devices look more like a toy than a full-feature computer. That's because most of the netbooks sold today run on an Intel chip called Atom. This is a lower-power version of the company's standard laptop chip, so they have trouble running demanding software like games and photo-editing programs.
This year, a group of companies who make cheap, power-saving chips used in cell phones are applying that expert skill to PCs. That means they will break Atom's netbook dominance (统治地位) and reduce the size while letting it run complicated programs.
The big winner in the rise of netbooks will be the consumer. AT&T announced last week that customers in Atlanta, Georgia, US, could get a netbook for just $50 (342 yuan) if they signed up for an Internet service plan. This trend will soon spread to Asia, according to industry experts.
University campuses are a major target of Shanzhai netbooks—uncopyrighted (无版权的) domestic copies of foreign brands. These products are usually sold at less than 2,000 yuan. But industry insiders suggest students not use these nameless products because many of them don't provide good after-safes services.
49．The following are all advantages of netbooks EXCEPT that .
A．people can easily edit photographs with them
B．they cost less than other personal computers
C．they are very thin and easy to carry
D．they save power
50．Why are students advised not to use Shanzhai netbooks?
A．Because they are of poor quality.
B．Because they are not easy to operate.
C．Because they will soon be out of date.
D．Because they lack good after-sales services.
51．What can be inferred from the passage?
A．Laptops are becoming more and more popular.
B．University students seldom buy Shanzhai netbooks.
C．Shanzhai netbooks are sold better than those of famous foreign brands.
D．Atom's netbooks make up the largest part of the sales of portable computers at present.
52．What is the general idea of this passage?
A．Shanzhai netbooks are taking control of laptop market.
B．Netbooks have advantages over laptops in everything.
C．Netbooks are becoming the trend of personal computers.
D．Most of the netbooks sold today run on an Intel chip called Atom.
B
Jobs for abroad students in Shanghai
Ad No. 37120
Posted Nov. 23, 2009 10:44 by castellari
We are an Italian company engaged in high leveled Italian coffee and coffee machines. Now, we have a program which requires involving of foreign students in Shanghai.
This is a job about selling our products online in the office to individuals or offices or any place where there's a need for coffee. You're required to work only at weekends. We'll offer you a favorable payment. For those who're interested, please contact Ava.
Reply to: zhangaihui@live. cn Tel: 61212021
Office assistant needed (Full-time)
Ad No. 40944
Posted Nov. 23, 2009 10:55 by roybivExpire
UK Accessories Brand is looking for a new talented person to develop with the company. You must be able to speak a little English and understand emails written in English. Please send your personal information with expected salary to us.
Contact: Josie
Reply to: info@josiechenrange. com Tel: 63573038
Teaching in China
Ad No. 40894
Posted Nov. 23, 2009 09:23 by Sh shifter
We have contacted most schools all over China and agreed to introduce many good foreign teachers to the schools. This is one of the best positions because you can work in different cities of China at different times.
Position: Oral English teachers (Full-time)
Salary: 8,000 RMB~10,000 RMB per month
Working 1oad: 20~22 hours per week
Apartment: Free fully furnished single accommodation, equipped with telephone, TV, air conditioner, fridge and so on.
Teacher's qualification: BA/BS/TESL and having teaching experience is preferred.
Contact: Foreign Affairs Manager, International Department
Address: No. 9 Jiefang road, Wuhan, Hubei
Te1: 86(0)2782300522
Email : teachinglanguage2009@gmail. com
Logistics (后勤) manager needed in Shanghai
Ad No. 41055
Posted Nov. 23, 2009 17:01 by jobtrans
We want to find 2 full-time logistics managers for our forwarding company.
Requirements:
(1) Female; (2) Bachelor's degree or above; (3) 3-year working experience required.
For more information, please visit our website: http: / /www. jobtrans. cn
Tel: 62875341
45．What do these advertisements have in common?
A．They all employ only applicants with work experience.
B．The employment agencies are all based in Shanghai.
C．They are all posted on the same day.
D．They are all for China-based foreign companies.
46．Miss Green wants to find a part-time job, which telephone number should she dial?
A．63573038. B．61212021.
C．86(0)2782300522. D．62875341.
47．Li Ming has just finished high school, which position might suit him?
A．Salesman in the Italian company.
B．A logistics manager.
C．An oral English teacher.
D．Office assistant in UK Accessories Brand.
48．Your American friend Mr Smith wants to find a job in China which offers a flexible workplace, you may recommend him to .
A．write to teachinglanguage2009@gmail. com
B．visit http: / /www. jobtrans. cn
C．write to zhangaihui@live. cn
D．write to info@josiechenrange. Corn
第二部分：阅读理解（共两节，满分50分）
第一节阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
A
I knew something was wrong when I woke up on April 7th, 2008. My morn was cooking eggs. She never cooked eggs on a school morning. I dragged myself out of bed to see what terrible thing had happened. "Nothing's wrong; I just feel like cooking," was the lie I was told.
I got on the school bus just in time to realize that Melissa wasn't there. When I got to school and found out that Melissa still wasn't there, I pretended to be sick so I could go home and call her. When I called, I was surprised at how weak her voice sounded. Toward the end of the conversation, she went into a series of coughing fits and hung up the phone. Later that night I got the call that changed my life forever. Melissa had terminal (晚期的) cancer and was given a year to live.
Melissa started chemotherapy (化疗) and soon lost her hair. Lots of kids made fun of her, but I stuck by her. Melissa's cancer deteriorated. The doctors said she could go anytime. She was then given one wish. Her wish was to go to the park with me. The doctors wouldn't let us go alone, so her mother agreed to stay in her car down the street.
On April 3rd, 2009, we set off for the park. We went on the swings first and I gently pushed her. After a few minutes, she said with great difficulty, "You walked in when the rest of the world walked out... You're my best friend and I love you." "I know," I said as I hugged her. Her breathing slowed until it faded, and she was gone.
I attended the funeral against my will. As I said goodbye to my dear friend for the final time, I repeated those words she had said to me, "I love you." As I said those words, I knew that she felt the same way up in heaven. She would be looking down on me somehow knowing that would help me go on. Now I realize that a real friend walks in when the rest of the world walks out.
41．In the first paragraph, the author mentioned that .
A．he liked eating eggs very much
B．his mother often told lies to him
C．he found it hard to get up early every morning
D．it was unusual for his mother to cook eggs that morning
42．Melissa didn't go to school that day because she .
A．pretended to be sick
B．was terribly ill
C．went to the park with her mother
D．wouldn't go to school with her hair gone
43．What do we know about the author from the passage?
A．He lived next door to Melissa.
B．He missed the school bus that morning.
C．He asked for sick leave that day.
D．He was absent-minded in class without Melissa that day.
44．The author writes the passage mainly to tell us .
A．what a real friend means
B．how one of his dear friends died
C．how a good friendship is developed
D．how hard it is to say goodbye to a dear friend
Here are two letters from our readers expressing their concern about school assessment:
(1)
Students should be allowed to study without worrying about grades. Fortunately, most educators realize that students have different interests and abilities. However, gradebased assessment(评价) is still very common.Grades often hold back creativity. Competing for better grades causes many students to turn down opportunities to go in for music,drama and sports.Grades are also an unfair measure of a student’s ability. I do not demand,as some extremists do,that grades should no longer be recorded.However,I do believe that less importance should be placed on grades.I hope that someday grades will become optional(可要可不要) at Village High School.
Magdalena Smith, President,
Drama Club
(2)
Let’s face the facts about grades.Grades perform three basic functions.First,grades get students to work at their highest level of competence.Second,they act as an encouragement for hardworking students and as a warning to those who are not.Finally,grades are an effective standard by which to measure students achievement.Good grades help students to get jobs and to get into university.I’ve spoken with a number of students who have jobs,and most of them say that they were hired mainly because of their grades.My grades helped me get a parttime job and will help me get into university next year.I think grades are extremely important at Village High School.
Simon Harper, Member,
Science Club Simon Harper writes from the viewpoint of someone who _______.
| A．insists grades should become optional in the near future |
| B．believes in the advantages of assessment based on grades |
| C．is concerned about improving students creativity |
| D．supports using students interests to measure their abilities |
Magdalena Smith thinks it is important for _______.
| A．educators to assess the students by grades |
| B．educators to pay more attention to grades |
| C．students to compete for better grades |
| D．students to take part in music, drama, and sports |
According to the letters, which of the following is true about Village High School?
| A．Grades are effective in every way. |
| B．Grades hold back students creativity. |
| C．Grades bring about unnecessary competition. |
| D．Grades are still in use at present. |
What are the two letters mainly about?
| A．The role that grades should play in assessing students. |
| B．The importance of art and music in students life. |
| C．The need to have a standard measure for students success. |
| D．The reasons why grades shouldn’t be used to assess students. |
If women are exploited year after year,they have only themselves to blame.Because they tremble at the thought of being seen in public in clothes that are out of fashion(过时),they are always made use of by the designers and the big stores.Clothes which have been worn only a few times have to be put aside because of the change of fashion.When you come to think of it,only a woman is able to stand in front of a wardrobe(衣柜) packed full of clothes and announcing sadly that she has nothing to wear.
Changing fashions are nothing more than the intentional(故意的) waste.Many women spend vast sums of money each year to replace clothes that have hardly been worn.Women who cannot afford to throw away clothing in this way waste hours of their time changing the dresses they have.Skirts are lengthened; necklines are lowered or raised, and so on.
No one can say that the fashion industry makes anything really important to society.Fashion designers are seldom concerned with important things like warmth and that woman will put up with any amount of discomfort,as long as they look right.There can hardly be a man who hasnt at some time in his life smiled at the sight of woman shaking in a thin dress on a winter day,or picking her way through deep snow in high-heeled shoes.What do you think of the writer’s idea about “fashion” ?
| A．It is neither a waste of money nor a waste of time. |
| B．It makes something really important to the society. |
| C．It makes its followers suffer a lot. |
| D．It is practical opinion to women. |
Who are to blame, according to the passage, for the quickly changing fashion industry in the following?
(a)Women themselves (b)Men themselves (c)Fashion designers
(d)Attractive clothes (e)Big stores (f)High-heeled shoes
| A．(a); (c); (e) | B．(a); (b); (d) |
| C．(c); (e); (f) | D．(a); (e); (f) |
We can learn from the passage that _______.
| A．most men share different opinions with women on dressing,as well as fashion designers |
| B．a woman doesn’t feel cold while she’s in a thin dress on a winter day |
| C．whenever women find their clothes out of date, they’ll get rid of them |
| D．you didn’t feel strange when seeing a young girl walking in deep snow in high-heeled shoes |
Fashion designers care little for _______.
| A．outward appearance | B．woman’s interests |
| C．the comfort of the clothes | D．the cost of the materials |