London’s Chinese community(社区) dates back to the 18th century, when a small number of Chinese sailors moved to the city to work in Limhouse, east London. As time went on, other Chinese people came to this area and Limhouse began to be known as “Chinatown”. However London’s Chinese community remained very small for many years: at the start of the 20th century, there were just 545 Chinese people in Britain.
After the Second World War, many farmers in Hong Kong lost their jobs and came to London. As Limhouse had been almost destroyed during the war, they settled(定居) in different area—a part of central London near Leicester Square. This area is now what Londoners call Chinatown.
At first, the new immigrants (移民) found it difficult to get jobs. In the 1950s, however, a small Chinese restaurant opened in London. Many British people visited it and said that Chinese food was wonderful! Suddenly, Chinese restaurants and take-aways started opening in every part of the city. Instead of too little work, the new Chinese immigrants now found that they had too much! They worked as cooks, managers or waiters. Most of them enjoyed their lives and arranged their friends and relatives to join them from overseas.
As time went by, London’s Chinese community became more and more successful. The sons and daughters of the original restaurant workers studied and worked very hard. And most went on to get highly paid jobs. Many Chinese families left Chinatown and moved to the more expensive outskirts. Chinatown, however, is still as lively as ever.Why did many Chinese immigrants come to London in 1950s?
A.Because it was easy for them to get jobs there. |
B.Because Limhouse had been almost destroyed during the war. |
C.Because many British people enjoyed Chinese food. |
D.Because their children could study there and get well-paid jobs. |
Where is London’s Chinatown now?
A.In the east of London |
B.In Limhousse |
C.Not far from Leicester Square. |
D.Outside the city |
The word “outskirts” in this passage probably means a place ______.
A.in the village |
B.far away from the city |
C.in the city center |
D.in the outer areas of the city |
Nowadays people are making themselves beautiful in Korean ways.
“Thank goodness you have double eyelids(双眼皮). Your parents will save a lot of money.” said a family friend when I was five years old. Double eyelids, which almost all the white people have, are rare among Northeast Asians. Only 25% of South Koreans are born with double eyelids.
I never quite understood how having double eyelids saved my parents money until this summer. When I came back to Seoul, everywhere I noticed cosmetic surgery clinics(整形诊所) and advertisements with South Korean women—tall, thin, with milky skin, long legs, nice big eyes and perfect noses. I found that South Korean beauty meant looking as “white” as possible.
Cosmetic surgery has a kind of magical attraction(吸引) to women — the promise of beauty. Women are often sure that suffering is necessary and worthy in order to be beautiful. This suffering is not for nothing. It is believed that beauty leads to attracting a better-looking partner, which then leads to a better-looking child and a better life.
Appearance is starting to be more important in work places. People with good appearance can have more chances. For example, my 29-year-old brother, who is slim and very tall, gets more job chances than his best friend, who is short and heavy, though both of them came from the same college, had the same good marks in their studies. In fact, many South Koreans believe that physical beauty equals happiness.How many South Koreans are born with double eyelids?
_____________________________________________________________________When did the writer understand having eyelids saved his parents money?
_____________________________________________________________________Does cosmetic surgery have much attraction to women according to the writer?
_____________________________________________________________________What kind of people can get more job chances?
_____________________________________________________________________What do you think of cosmetic surgery?
_____________________________________________________________________
Daniel Olin was 11 years old when his parents moved to Canada. He liked his new school and made friends there, but then things at home started to change. His mum and dad began to argue and the arguments got worse and worse until one day, Daniel's mum left. With his father working long hours, Daniel felt very lonely and very unhappy. He wanted to escape, to run away. And that's what he did.
Very early one terribly cold morning when the snow was deep on the ground, he packed a bag with some clothes, some chocolate and a map of Canada and set off to a forest. He ran and ran until he could hardly breathe. His feet were heavy with the snow but he still walked on through deep snow, not even watching where he was going.
Then, disaster struck. A rock hidden by the deep snow caught his feet and Daniel fell to the ground. He had broken the bone. He was very cold and was starting to feel tired, but he knew that if he fell asleep in the snow, he would certainly die from the cold.
A tree shook ahead. From within the branches(树枝), a pair of yellow eyes watched Daniel. The puma had been following him. A puma is a large wild cat with claws that could tear(撕开) Daniel into pieces. But instead of moving in for the kill, the puma walked up to Daniel and lay across his chest, arms and legs. Daniel was too frightened to move, but soon the warmth of the animal reached Daniel and he began to feel better. From time to time, the puma pressed his muzzle (口鼻) against Daniel and rocked his head gently. Clearly, the puma knew that Daniel must not fall asleep. This animal should have been a real danger to Daniel and yet the boy began to feel safe.
They remained like that for several hours until Daniel and the puma heard voices. The rescue (援救) team had found them.Daniel ran away from home because ______.
A.he had a big argument with his father |
B.he wanted to learn to be independent |
C.he didn’t get enough care from his parents |
D.his parents were always arguing at home |
What was the ‘disaster’?
A.Daniel lost his way in the forest. |
B.The heavy snow blocked the way. |
C.Daniel fell down and got hurt. |
D.A puma wanted to attack Daniel. |
Why didn’t Daniel notice the rock that caused him to fall?
A.Because it was getting dark. |
B.Because the rock was hidden by snow. |
C.Because he was frightened by a puma. |
D.Because he was too sad to notice it. |
Where was the puma when Daniel first saw it?
A.In the tree. |
B.On the top of a rock. |
C.Behind the rock |
D.Before a cave. |
What is the best title for the story?
A.Puma in danger | B.A caring puma |
C.Rescue of a boy | D.A homeless boy |
I started learning English when I was 6 years old. For 8 years I have learned English in the way everybody else did—by going to English classes. It was useless. I did everything that the teachers told me to do. But I didn’t get any results. I mean, I was always one of the best students in class. However, it took me a long time to read English texts. I made lots of mistakes when writing, and my pronunciation was bad, and I could only speak English very slowly. After my eight years of studying hard, these were the results.
In 2003, I went to the best high school in Wroclaw. It was a special school with a lot of English classes. I owe(感激) a lot to the people I met there, both students and teachers. My first two years in high school were very important for my English. My English teacher, Mr Janusz Laskosz, gave me a lot of good advice, especially on pronunciation and vocabulary. My talented friends, Wojtek and Michael Ryszard, who are my partners now, were both fantastic English learners. What’s more, every time I heard them speak, they seemed to have a bigger vocabulary(词汇). I wanted to be as good as them, so I studied harder. And my English improved. Wojtek and Michael also introduced me to SuperMemo, which has been very important in my life. And, of course, I could discuss the English language with them, which was a great thing.The writer studied hard at English in the first eight years, _________.
A.but he was still not good at it |
B.and then he could read English articles very quickly |
C.so his pronunciation was quite good |
D.and then he invented an effective way to learn it |
The writer made great progress in learning English _________.
A.after he read many English texts |
B.because he spoke English very slowly |
C.even before he went to the high school in Wroclaw |
D.because of his English teacher, his friends Wojtek and Michael |
We can learn from the passage that _________ could help people learn English better.
A.good texts |
B.beautiful environment |
C.studying harder alone |
D.good teachers and friends |
The best title for the passage is “_________”.
A.How to make friends | B.How I learn English |
C.My good English teacher | D.My high school |
Mum, what does it mean when someone tells you that they have a skeleton(骨骼) in the closet (衣橱)?” Jessica asked. “A skeleton in the closet?” her mother thought for a while. “Well, it’s something that you would rather not have anyone else know about. For example, if in the past, someone in Dad’s family had been arrested for stealing a horse, it would be ‘a skeleton in his family’s closet’. He really wouldn’t want any neighbor to know about it.”
“Why pick on my family?” Jessica’s father said with anger. “Your family history isn’t so good, you know. Wasn’t your great-great-grandfather a prisoner who was brought to Australia for his crimes?” “Yes, but people these days say that you are not a real Australian unless your ancestors(祖先) arrived as prisoners.” “Gosh, sorry I asked. I think I understand now,” Jessica cut in before things grew worse.
After dinner, the house was very quiet. Jessica’s parents were still quite angry with each other. Her mother was ironing clothes and from time to time she looked angrily at her husband, who hid behind his newspaper pretending to read. When she finished, she gathered the freshly pressed clothes in her arms and walked to Jessica’s closet. Just as she opened the door and reached in to hang a skirt, a bony arm stuck out from the dark depths and a bundle of white bones fell to the floor. Jessica’s mother sank in a faint(晕倒), waking only when Jessica put a cold, wet cloth on her forehead. She looked up to see the worried faces of her husband and daughter.
“What happened? Where am I?” she asked. “You just destroyed the school’s skeleton, Mum,” explained Jessica. “I brought it home to help me with my health project. I wanted to tell you, but it seemed that as soon as I said something about skeletons and closets, it caused a problem between you and Dad.” Jessica looked in amazement as her parents began to laugh madly. “They’re both crazy,” she thought.According to Jessica’s mother, “a skeleton in the closet” means ________.
A.a family honor | B.a family secret |
C.a family story | D.a family treasure |
Why did Jessica bring a skeleton home?
A.She was curious about it. |
B.She planned to keep it for fun. |
C.She needed it for her school task. |
D.She wanted to scare her parents. |
Jessica’s parents laughed madly at the end of the story probably because ________.
A.they realized their misunderstanding |
B.they were crazy |
C.they were over excited |
D.they both thought they had won the quarrel |
You may never be in an emergency situation. But if it happens, you should know how to get help. The telephone book in the United States has emergency numbers on the inside front cover. Look at the following table from the Boston telephone book. Notice that the numbers for the police and the fire department (部门) are the same. And it is an easy number to remember. If you are too unhappy or excited to remember any numbers at all, you can simply dial (拨打) “0” for an operator (接线员) in any emergency.
EMERGENCY NUMBERS FIRE POLICE DOCTOR BOSTON 911 BOSTON 911 BOSTON 482-5252 CAMBRIDGE 876-5800 CAMBRIDGE 846-1212 CAMBRIDGE 856-3585 SOMERVILLE 023-1500 SOMERVILLE 645-1212 SOMERVILLE 025-4774 Other Places _________ Other Places _________ Other Places ________ Write in your number here Write in your number here Write in your number here ★ COAST GUARD 223-6978 OR DIAL “0” (OPERATIOR) IN ANY EMERGENCY WE ARE ALWAYS THERE AND READY TO HELP! |
If you see a fire in Cambridge, you should dial _________.
A.023-1500 | B.846-1212 | C.645-1212 | D.876-5800 |
If you dial “0”, ________ will answer your call.
A.the police | B.the doctor |
C.the operator | D.the fire department |
This passage is most probably taken from _________.
A.a sports magazine | B.an emergency leaflet |
C.a TV guide | D.a telephone book |