I remember a time I went shopping on my first visit to Hongkong． Coming from cold and cloudy England， I prepared for the sun and dressed in a T﹣shirt and a short skirt． Not having many chances to enjoy the sun in the UK， my legs were very white．In the UK，this is not a fashionablelook at all．Most women spend every sunny day out in the sun trying to get darker skin．The darker the skin is，the better the look is．I have tried to get darker but nothing works for me!
As I walked around one shop， two shop girls didn't take their eyes off me the whole time， talking quietly to each other in Chinese． I began to feel uncomfortable and asked my friend if we could leave．After we left the shop， she asked me what was wrong． I complained（抱怨） about the shop girls being very rude and always looking at my legs． I was embarrassed that they were talking about my white skin．My friend laughed，" they weren't laughing at you． They were saying how nice your legs are． Many Chinese women want to have white skin like yours． In fact， there are many beauty products in the shops to make skin white and a lot of money is spent on them．"
It just goes to show that we are never happy with what we have． The grass is always greener on other side． If the woman of the west and east thought the same way， western women wouldn't spend so much money on cream that makes skin darker and women from the east wouldn't need to use cream that makes skin whiter．
（1）The writer had white legs because ．
| A． |
She spent so much money on her legs |
| B． |
She lived in a cold and cloudy country |
| C． |
She wanted them to be white |
| D． |
She didn't like dark skin |
（2）What does the underlined （划线的） word in the first paragraph mean in Chinese？
| A． |
时尚的 |
| B． |
和谐的 |
| C． |
好玩的 |
| D． |
有气质的 |
（3）How do you understand the underlined sentence in the last paragraph？
| A． |
People are always happy with what they have． |
| B． |
The grass on both sides is green． |
| C． |
People in the west have the best skin． |
| D． |
People are always unhappy with what they have． |
A 15-year-old student who invented a flashlight(手电筒) getting power from the holder's body heat is going home today from California with a big prize and a chance to do further research.
Ann Makosinski was the only Canadian among the four winners at Google's international science competition. Thousands of young scientists from around the world took part in the competition.
Winning the science and technology competition was "a surprise". Ann said, "I think it will have a great influence on my future."
Ann thanked her family for encouraging her interest in science and said that her first toy was a box of transistors(晶体管).
Ann's prize includes $ 25,000 and a "once in a-lifetime expericnce" from Google for her Hollow Flashlight, which has no moving parts or batteries.
The idea for the invention came from seeing unwanted batteries and her friend's experience. When Ann visited a friend in the Philippines, she s«w the friend couldn't study when it became dark because there was no electricity or light. She saw the need for a flashlight that has no batteries - Hollow Flashlight.
In her project, Ann wrote "I made two flashlights that do not use any batteries or harmful materials. They do not create any noise and will always work. The flashlight needs at least a 5℃temperature difference between the holder's body and the environment around to produce light."
A video of Ann explaining how she creatcd the flashlight has been watched more than 1.4 million times on the Internet.
Though Ann was successful, she has not made a decision about her career path. Ann hope that she can find a way to join her love of film and science together.
The four winners were chosen from 15 final competitors from eight countries. The competition attracted thousands of students in 120 countries.
| A．Travel. | B．Culture. |
| C．Technology. | D．Advertisement. |
| A．introduction | B．Warning |
| C．argument | D．discussion |
| A．what Ann saw in the Philippines |
| B．why Ann invented Hollow Flashlight |
| C．how Ann's family encouraged her interest |
| D．what prize Ann got for Hollow Flashlight |
| A．easy to win the international science competition |
| B．Hollow Flashlight is safe, noiseless and can save energy |
| C．Ann has made a decision to be a scientist in the future |
| D．few people are interested in how Ann created the flashlight |
A “Gap Year” is a period of time when a student takes a break before going to university. It is often spent travelling or working. It can give young people useful learning experiences and new skills.
Gap years are popular with European and Australian students, but remain less popular in America. However, in recent years, more and more American students are preparing for college by taking a gap year. The advantages of taking a gap year are as follows：
Learn about the World and Yourself
Although you don’t have to go abroad to experience gap years, most gap year students catch the chance to travel abroad. You are able to work out who you are and what you are for. The experiences of different cultures offer you interesting lessons. You can learn more about the world and get to know yourself better.
Face Challenges and Have Fun
A gap year is not only a time to take a vacation, but also a time to face challenges. Gap year students usually work, volunteer or take service projects. You have to learn how to get along in the real world. This process isn’t always easy, but it is an important part of growing up. Only in this way can you enjoy life and have fun.
Save Money and Improve Your College Admission Chances
There’s a common thought that gap years are only for rich students, but it’ s not true. Actually, taking a gap year can save your money. Gap year students often take a part-time job. Besides, at the end of a gap year, students are much more likely to know what to study in college. Clear learning goals ran keep the students working hard instead of wasting time and money playing.
Imagine an admission officer trying to admit (录取) only one between two students. Both of them are excellent and have high grades. However, one student has much practical experience or has volunteered in his vacation. Who do you think the admission officer will choose?
| A．going abroad in a year for further education |
| B．travelling around the world in a year |
| C．taking a break before going to a university |
| D．doing a part-time job to make money during a vacation |
| A．money | B．information |
| C．vacations | D．challenges |
| A．become very rich |
| B．remain less popular |
| C．experience foreign cultures |
| D．have no chance to break |
| A．either of the two students |
| B．the student with high grades |
| C．neither of the two students |
| D．the .student with a gap year experience |
Today, after many days of practice and lots of matches, we entered the basketball final.
I was the leader of the team. At the very beginning, one student from our team got the ball and quickly shot a basket. Oh, it went in, 2:0. All our classmates cheered.
But after a few minutes there were some mistakes and we lost eight points. I changed two players, but it didn’t help.
At that time all our teammates felt worried and we even quarreled with each other angrily. “It’s no use crying over spilt milk!” I shouted, “We must face it!” Let’s think about our mistakes and stop making them!”
We had a short meeting. The second half of the match began. There was a big change. At first, our team got the ball and I shot from the three-point line at once. The ball did a beautiful curve and went straight into the basket.
I become very confident. The other team was still very strong.
A good chance came! I got the ball again and shot into the basket! 12:9! I couldn’t believe my eyes! Am I that good at shooting? How could I get so many points?
We stayed in the lead. Finally the score was 18:16. We won!
| A．a basketball match |
| B．a basketball team |
| C．skills of playing basketball |
| D．a famous basketball plaer |
| A．they felt upset |
| B．they kept arguing |
| C．they made mistakes |
| D．their classmates cheered too loud! |
| A．熟能生巧 | B．勤能补拙 | C．破釜沉舟 | D．覆水难收 |
| A．basketball is too hard a game to play |
| B．confidence comes from failure |
| C．failure can surely bring success |
| D．learning from failure can make one succeed |
Most schools in England require children to wear a school uniform.
There are at least four advantages. Firstly, when they go on a school trip they all look the same and so they can’t get lost. Secondly, it stops kids worrying about what to wear each day. Everyone is equal. Thirdly, parents don’t have to shop for expensive and different clothes for their children to show off. Fourthly, wearing a uniform gives a sense of being proud and discipline(纪律约束) in them.
| A．White | B．Grey | C．Black | D．Yellow |
| A．On the tie | B．On the sweater |
| C．On the shirt | D．On the skirt |
| A．It gives students a sense of being proud |
| B．It helps children show off |
| C．It helps children choose different clothes |
| D．It makes children strange |
It is true that people with better education are usually able to get better paying jobs. In other words, they have more chances to choose a good job while people with little or no education don't. It seems that the purpose of education is to make people get jobs. But this isn't accepted by all people.
Some people may think that a person should spend the best years of his life to get education only for a way of living. This was probably one of the earliest reasons of education. In fact, if education is just a way of making a living, people don't need to spend so much time in school. People can get education for a living in a short time. Subjects like history and geography need not be taught to everyone. Even language and maths need not be taught in detail, either. Here it is clear that education is much more than teaching a man to get a way of living.
Education is well-rounded (全面的) and it is mainly for improving a man. It is not only to teach him to speak, read and write, but also to develop his creative thinking and other abilities. After that, it is to make him a wise man and thankfully enjoy the achievements of human. Education is to make a man lead a better life. Educated people are expected to be able to listen to good music, read good books, watch plays and take an interest in the world.
I would agree that making a good living is an important reason for education, but certainly not the most important or the main reason.
| A．spend a long time in school |
| B．have a good chance to get a job |
| C．spend the best years to choose jobs |
| D．have fewer chances to get a good job |
| A．make a man lead a better life |
| B．teach a man to write and read |
| C．make people get a way of living |
| D．teach people to read good books |
| A．accept education as a way of living |
| B．take an interest in the whole world |
| C．develop their abilities to make plays |
| D．learn subjects like language and math |
| A．education should make a man improve |
| B．people can get education in a short time |
| C．people should be able to get good paying jobs |
| D．all subjects are so important for a way of living |