How could we tell time if there were no watches or clocks anywhere in the world?
The sun was probably the world’s first “clock”, except in the far north, where the Eskimos(爱斯基摩人) live. There it’s dark most of the winter, and light most of the summer. But in most of the world, people have used the sun for a clock. Even today if you don’t have a clock that shows time, you still know that when the sun shines, it’s day; and when it’s dark, it’s night. The sun can not only tell you whether it’s day or night but also it’s morning, noon, or afternoon. When the sun is almost directly overhead, it’s noon.
People who live near the sea can tell time from the tides. In the daytime, for about six hours, the water rises higher and higher on the beach. And then it goes down and down for another six hours. The same thing happens again at night. There are two high tides and two low tides every 24 hours.
Seamen on a ship learn how to tell time by looking at the moon and the stars .The whole sky is their clock.
In some places in the world the wind comes up at about the same time every day or changes direction or stops blowing. In these places, the wind can be the clock.
A sand clock is an even better clock. If you had fine dry sand in a glass shaped like the one in the picture above, you would have what is called an hourglass. The sand in the hourglass goes from the top part to the bottom part in exactly one hour. When the hourglass it turned over, the sand will take another hour to go back again.
1.The Eskimos in the far north can’t use the sun for a clock because ______.
A. they know very little about the sun
B. the sun there never goes down in winter.
C. it’s too cold for them to go out to watch the sun
D. there are long dark winters and long light summers in the far north
2.The underlined word “tides” in paragraph 3 means ___________.
A. ocean current
B. storm
C. a regular rise and fall of the sea
D. wave
3.In which part of the newspaper can you probably read this passage?
A. News B. Science
C. Business D. Advertisement
4.What’s the best title for the passage?
A. Different Ways to Tell Time
B. Useful Machine to Tell Time
C. The History of the Clock
D. The Development of the Clock
5.How many ways are mentioned in the passage to tell time?
A. Five B. Four C. Six D. Three
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Win a Week in England
You still don’t know what to do this summer? Well, here’s your chance to win a one-week language course in Kent, England! Free4Fun and ETC(English Travel Connections) are giving away two trips to Rochester. This historic city is less than an hour’s drive from London and close to the sea resort of Herne Bay. It is also the home of one of England’s most famous writers, Charles Dickens. The town of the Rochester is in Southeast England. Charles Dickens often wrote about it in his books. His home, Gad’s Hill，is there too. A popular attraction is Rochester Castle，a large Norman fortress（堡垒）. It was built in the 11th century and rebuilt during the 14th century. Other attractions are Rochester Cathedral, which was built during the 13th century, and Dickens Centre. It has got it’s name in honour of Dickens himself.
The trip to England includes:
* travel by train (via the Eurotunnel) to and from any railway station in Germany
* room and full board with a guest family for one week
* language course in small groups
* two trips to London
* large choice of sports and entertainment
* German-speaking advisors available 24 hours a day
Interested? All you have to do is to answer the following question: When was Charles Dickens born?
So, take the chance and send your answer by May1 to:
Free4Fun “Rochester”
Free4Fun, 24 Elphinstone Road, Hastings, 2FQ6VJ
Fax: 089/85-763-103
e-mail: free4fun@netlight.com
The two winners will be contacted directly before May5. They will also be announced in the June issue of Free4Fun. Good luck!
For further information contact:
Phone: (03212)144-43
Fax: (03212) 144-42
e-mail: info@etc.com
1.Rochester Cathedral was built in the ___________.
A. 1400s B.1300s C. 1200s D. 1100s
2.What activities can you participate in during the trip?
A. Enjoying sports and entertainment.
B. Learning the German language.
C. Traveling by train with a guest family.
D. Working as a language advisor.
3.This advertisement was designed to target _______.
A. Italians B. Germans
C. Europeans D. Americans
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
“Indeed,” George Washington wrote in his diary in 1785, “some kind of fly, or bug, had begun to eat the leaves before I left home.” But the father of America was not the father of bug. When Washington wrote that, Englishmen had been referring to insects as bugs for more than a century, and Americans had already created lightning-bug(萤火虫). But the English were soon to stop using the bugs in their language, leaving it to the Americans to call a bug a bug in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
The American bug could also be a person, referring to someone who was crazy about a particular activity. Although fan became the usual term, sports fans used to be called racing bugs, baseball bugs, and the like.
Or the bug could be a small machine or object, for example, a bug-shaped car. The bug could also be a burglar alarm, from which comes the expression to bug, that is, “to install (安装) an alarm”. Now it means a small piece of equipment that people use for listening secretly to others’ conversation. Since the 1840s, to bug has long meant “to cheat”, and since the 1940s it has been annoying.
We also know the bug as a flaw in a computer program or other design. That meaning dates back to the time of Thomas Edison. In 1878 he explained bugs as “little problems and difficulties” that required months of study and labor to overcome in developing a successful product. In 1889 it was recorded that Edison “had been up the two previous nights discovering ‘a bug’ in his invented record player.”
1.We learn from Paragraph 1 that ___________.
A. Americans had difficulty in learning to use the word bug
B. George Washington was the first person to call an insect a bug
C. the word bug was still popularly used in English in the nineteenth century
D. both Englishmen and Americans used the word bug in the eighteenth century
2. What does the word “flaw” in the last paragraph probably mean?
A. Explanation. B. Finding.
C. Origin. D. Fault.
3.The passage is mainly concerned with__________.
A. the misunderstanding of the word bug
B. the development of the word bug
C. the public views of the word bug
D. the special characteristics of the word bug
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Dress codes cause us arguments
The first day of school is always a chaotic(混乱的) time. For many students in the US, this year was even more so. It was all due to one extra school policy. They are now required to wear clothes that meet a new standardized dress code(规范).
According to the handbooks of all high schools in Allentown, Pennsylvania, students must wear short or long sleeve polo shirts and khaki(卡其色的) or black pants. Skinny jeans, leggings(紧身裤), and open toe shoes are not allowed.
Allentown schools are not alone. Overall, about 57 percent of American public schools now have a “strict dress code”, up from more than 47 percent a decade earlier, said USA Today.
Some students don’t mind wearing a similar attire(服装) every day. “It takes away the daily fashion show and helps level the playing fields a little bit with the haves and have-nots,” longtime school safety consultant Ken Trump told USA Today.
But others aren’t happy, claiming that uniforms rob students of individuality(个性).
While school uniforms have been a popular topic to discuss recently in the US, however, in the UK there are much fewer questions about them-they are a tradition.
School uniforms in England were first introduced during the reign(统治) of King Henry VIII in the 16th century. They became popular following the Elementary Education Act of 1870. The UK Department of Education’s website states: “The Department strongly encourages schools to have a uniform as it can…contribute to the beliefs of a school and set the correct tone.
The uniform is now a strong part of school culture in the UK. Schools sometimes even have “Mufti”(便服) days on which students can wear their own clothes if they make a small donation(捐赠) to charity.
However, the tradition does not mean that school uniforms are popular there.
Many “children hate them”, according to Aisha on the BBC Newsround website. Ask UK students why they wear a school uniform and their answer will mostly likely be, “because we have to”.
1. We can infer from the first three paragraphs that ________.
A. there is a strict standardized dress code in most American public schools
B. the high schools in Allentown, Pennsylvania have the strictest dress code in the US
C. there has been a growing trend of strict dress codes in US high schools in the last decade
D. the new standardized dress code in Allentown’s high schools was put forward by teachers and parents
2. We can learn from the article that students’ attitudes towards dress codes are _____
A. negative B. divided
C. supportive D. doubtful
3.What does paragraph 7 mainly talk about?
A. The popularity of school uniforms in the UK.
B. The history and tradition of school uniforms in the UK.
C. The benefits of promoting school uniforms in the UK.
D. The UK Department of Education’s requirements on school uniforms.
4.According to the article, on Mufti days, students in some UK schools ______.
A. are required to make a donation to charity
B. can vote to choose their own school uniforms
C. can wear their own clothes if they contribute to charity
D. are allowed to wear whatever they like for the morning
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
In America, seldom do you go anywhere without hearing a principle called WIN-WIN.__ 1.___ However, as time goes by, I have gradually comprehended the meaning of WIN-WIN principle---it is the attitude of seeking mutual(相互的) benefit.
When I was little, I used to play Chinese checkers(跳棋) which include two basic tactics(战术): ___2.___ The other is to block the passages of your rival. Players may apply these two totally different approaches in the game, but the key for the player to win is to continuously create paths for himself even if his opponent（对手） may take advantage of it. ____3._____ Meanwhile, some player may take another approach to prevent his opponent from moving forward at all costs. By this he may get a short-term benefit, but couldn’t fix attention on the final goal, thus he would never truly develop further.
___4.____ Its core is to achieve your objective while giving other people some benefits, so there is no real loser. One example of applying the WIN-WIN principle is the voluntary system in the US. __5.__
It is quite usual that some people are too selfish and never take other people’s interests into consideration, while someone who really has courage to do something for the public is often called “foolish” or “stupid”. Actually helping other people can be of great delight to the helper, for he can also learn something important for his life such as sympathy, care, devotion, etc. So taking other people’s interests into earnest consideration can you assure your own gain.
A.Playing Chinese checkers really needs skill.
B. In the 1990s, a strategy（策略） called WIN-WIN became widespread in the western world.
C. It was important for me after I knew its meaning.
D. One is to create paths for yourself.
E. Most Americans advocate（提倡,拥护） the spirit of social service and voluntary contribution.
F. It sounded strange to me at first.
G. Finally he can always reach the destination a few steps ahead of the other player.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
William: Hello! Nice to meet you again!
Mary: How have you ____1.____ recently? And how’s your new apartment working out?
William: Well, that’s ___2._____ I’m calling about. You see, I’ve decided to look for a new place.
Mary: Oh, what’s the problem with your ___3.___ now? I thought you liked it.
William: I do, but it’s a little far from the campus. Do you think you could help?
Mary: All right. So, what kind of place are you ___4.___ (look) for?
William: Well, I’d like to share an apartment ____5.___ one or two roommates within walking distance of school.
Mary: Okay, how much do you want to spend ___6.__ rent?
William: Oh, somewhere under $200 a month.
Mary: Hmm. And anything ___7.___?
William: Yeah, I need a ____8.______ (park) space.
Mary: Well, I know there’s an apartment ___9.___ (near). I’ll drop by there on my way to class today.
William: ____10.______.
Mary: No problem.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
1._________ __________(聚精会神) writing an essay, he couldn’t go with us.
2.It ________ _______(有道理) to work on the problem before it get out of control.
3.This club ________ ________ (由…组成) more than 200 members.
4.The elevators in the building are always _________ _______(出故障).
5.When I returned to my office, I found my desk _________(remove).
6.The teachers request the students remain _________(seat) when they are in class.
难度: 简单查看答案及解析
Adele Green was just 11 weeks old when her father left the family. ________, he’s never returned. Now, after having a Facebook campaign to find him, the _________ daughter has finally found her father, more than three ________ later.
Adele posted an old photo of her _______ on the social networking site. Then, she was _______ by a man who said he knew her father. “The man had seen my post, which had been ______ more than 21,000 times. They had ______ each other because of a homeless charity. An hour later, he called me and gave me a _____. I rang it and then there he was my dad, on the other end of the _____.”
Derek is now 63, who was 33 when he walked out of the family home. The family had ______ he worked at his office, but he didn’t appear there at all. They spent days ______, but in vain. Police also conducted inquiries, ______ were unable to find Derek. He himself ________ made contact with his friends or family again.
Though her father never contacted her family, Adele says she is excited to _____ him and isn’t looking for answers. “When I first got to his house, I was very scared,” ____ Adele “I knew I couldn’t go and expect anything. But it ______ out quite well. We got on like a house on fire(极好地), and it’s the _______ 24 hours of my life. I wasn’t looking for _______, and just getting to know him was ______ for me. I want to thank every person, who read and shared my post online. Because _____ all of you, I would never have found him. It is a fairy tale ending and I’m just so happy.”
1.A. Soon after B. Before long C. Since then D. In future
2.A. crazy B. angry C. young D. devoted
3.A. decades B. years C. months D. centuries
4.A. sister B. father C. mother D. friend
5.A. stopped B. noticed C. followed D. contacted
6.A. changed B. shared C. collected D. bought
7.A. visited B.avoided C. known D. harmed
8.A. number B. photo C. letter D. telephone
9.A. phone B. street C. world D. story
10.A. thought B. fooled C. imagined D. feared
11.A. helping B. searching C. hearing D. worrying
12.A. though B. unless C. but D. so
13.A. even B. seldom C. often D. never
14.A. find B. doubt C. invite D. follow
15.A. thanks B. watches C. recalls D. lies
16.A. stood B. worked C. picked D. moved
17.A. longest B. worst C. best D. latest
18.A. effects B. plans C. pains D. answers
19.A. usual B. common C. unfair D. enough
20.A. without B. with C. about D. for
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
写作（共两节，满分30分）
第一节:短文改错（共10小题；每小题1分，满分10分）
文中共有10处错误，每句中最多有两处。错误涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。增加：在缺词处加一个漏词符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。修改：在错的词下画一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。注意：1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词。2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
Dear Lucy,
Glad to have accepted your e-mail. You asked me something about how to make friends. Now I’ll give you some advices.
Everyone need friends, so knowing how to make friends are very important. First, you must be friendly to the others if you want to make friends with them. Try to make strangers feel easily and care more about others than you. When you’ve different opinions, discuss with the other people rather than arguing with them. Don’t trust those who turn away you when you’re in trouble. Though a friend in need is a friend indeed.
I do hope that you would make a lot of good friends in life.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假定你是高中生李华，对西方文化非常感兴趣，想在暑期去英国旅游。请你给你的英国网友戴维（David）发一封电子邮件。内容包括：1. 旅游目的；2. 旅游计划；3. 需要的帮助。注意：1.词数100左右 2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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难度: 中等查看答案及解析