【推荐1】Riding a bicycle at night is much more dangerous than during the day. At night, motorists can only see what's illuminated (照亮) by their headlights. Bob Mionske, author of Bicycling & the Law says cycling accidents happening at night account for more than 70% of all cycling accidents in the past ten years.    1     If you still plan to ride a bicycle at night, proper preparation can help keep you safe.

In many states, bicycles ridden at night are required to have a red light on the back and a white headlight.     2     The bicycle's headlight should be strong enough to illuminate the road for several feet. For example, when you're cycling at 15 mph, the headlight should allow you to see at least 35 to 50 feet in front of you.

    3     Cycling clothing with built-in reflective material can be found on gloves, shirts and shorts. Many vest and jacket designs have large areas of reflective material along the arms, chest, back and shoulders.    4     If you're short of money, you can buy reflective tape, cut it into strips and attach it to your clothes.

Remain in well-lit and familiar streets. Don't take unfamiliar routes if it's not necessary.     5    .By doing so, you can avoid becoming lost in unfamiliar dark streets.

A．Choose streets that are well-lit.

B．Besides, they'll keep you warm too.

C．Riding a bicycle is a good sport for teenagers.

D．So riding a bicycle at night is really dangerous.

E．Reflectors (反射镜) are usually fixed on a bicycle's wheels.

F．These lights let motorists know which direction you're heading.

G．While lights can keep cyclists safe to some level, night cyclists still need to dress in bright colors.

【推荐2】The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that the St. Louis Outlet Mall is expanding its restrictions on unaccompanied teenagers. In 2006, a parental-escort (陪同)policy was established: on Fridays and Saturdays starting at 6 p.m., anyone under 17 that isn’t accompanied by a guardian who is at least 21 years old will be kicked out of the mall. It was around this time that other malls around the U.S. likewise banned unaccompanied teens during certain evening hours.

Starting from this Friday, the St. Louis Outlet Mall is pushing its parental-escort rule back to 3 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Similarly, the Mall of America expanded its parental-escort policy during the recent holiday shopping season. Normally, the policy bans kids under 16 without guardians(监护人) from 4 p.m. until closing time just on Fridays and Saturdays. But because of a fight in the mall involving dozens of young people that took place on Dec. 18, 2012---- a weekday, the policy was broadened to include peak 2013 holiday shopping hours, including Thanksgiving Day and all of the Christmas week.

Teen disturbances in other malls may cause more shopping centers to introduce or expand parental-escort policies. The Indianapolis Star noted that two incidents in 2013 in area shopping centers raised the possibility that Indianapolis malls might need to consider banning unaccompanied teenagers.

Obviously, such bans are aimed at stopping violence and other outbursts involving teenagers. More importantly, from a purely business perspective, these bans aim to attract shoppers who might otherwise be hesitant to go to the mall because of concerns about violence and outbursts involving teenagers. The restrictions allow mall security officers to systematically kick out a group of people that are considered to be loud, thuggish and bad for business overall. But they attract much criticism from online communities. Some argue that teens have the right to shop without a guardian. “Not all teens are disrespectful and troublemakers,” Pamela Chapman wrote. “In fact, it’s been my experience that most are good kids.”

Again, the biggest influence on stricter mall policies for teens seems to be that they’re just plain good for business. Malls reported strong sales growth after they first carried out the policies six years ago. “We’ve had some success with the parental-escort policy, and families like shopping out here together,” the manager of the St. Louis Outlet Mall told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch . If there’s one rule in retail, it’s this---- if a small initiative proves successful in boosting sales, then it’s all but guaranteed that a larger initiative will follow.

1. What made malls restrict unaccompanied teenagers?

A．Teenagers’ disturbances.

B．Teenagers’ safety.

C．Limited holiday shopping hours.

D．Teenagers’ potential purchasing power.

2. What might be Pamela Chapman’s attitude towards the parental-escort policy?

A．Unconcerned.	B．Skeptical.
C．Opposed.	D．Positive.

3. The manager of the St. Louis Outlet Mall seemed to believe the parental-escort policy ______.

A．was temporary	B．helped increase sales
C．was unfair to teenagers	D．discouraged some families

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A．Violent incidents happening in St. Louis.

B．Malls’ bans on unaccompanied teens.

C．Security measures at American malls.

D．Parents’ duty to protect teenagers.

【推荐3】You're in a department store and you see a couple of attractive young women looking at a sweater．You listen to their conversation：

“I can't believe it－Lorenzo Bertolla! They are almost impossible to find．Isn't it beautiful? And it's a lot cheaper than the one Sara bought in Rome．”

They leave and you go over to see this incredible sweater．It's nice and the price is right．You've never heard of Lorenzo Bertolla, but those girls looked really stylish．They must know．So, you buy it．You never realize that those young women are employees of an advertising agency．They are actually paid to go from store to store, talking loudly about Lorenzo Bertolla clothes．

Every day we notice what people are wearing, driving and eating．If the person looks cool, the product seems cool, too．This is the secret of undercover marketing．Companies from Ford to Nike are starting to use it．

Undercover marketing is important because it reaches people that don't pay attention to traditional advertising．This is particularly true of the MTV generation－consumers between the age of 18 and 34．It's a golden group．They have a lot of money to spend, but they don't trust ads．

So advertising agencies hire young actors to “perform” in bars and other places where young adults go．Some people might call this practice misleading, but marketing executive Jonathan Ressler calls it creative．“Look at traditional advertising．Its effectiveness is decreasing．”It is true, because everyone knows an ad is trying to persuade you to buy something．However, you don't know when a conversation you overhear is just a performance．

1. The two attractive young women were talking so as to ________．

A．get the sweater at a lower price

B．be heard by people around

C．be admired by other shoppers

D．decide on buying the sweater

2. Lorenzo Bertolla is ________．

A．a very popular male singer

B．an advertising agency

C．a clothing company in Rome

D．the brand name of clothes

3. What can we infer from the passage?

A．Traditional advertising will soon disappear in the market．

B．The MTV generation tends to be more easily influenced by all kinds of ads．

C．That traditional advertising is too direct may lead to its decreasing effectiveness．

D．Undercover marketing will surely be banned soon by the government．

4. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A．Two Attractive Shoppers

B．Lorenzo Bertolla Sweaters

C．Undercover Marketing

D．Ways of Advertising

【推荐2】Have you ever argued with a friend, and said or done something you regretted? Sometimes it can be hard to put things right, especially when feelings have been hurt. Knowing how to apologise can help you become friends again and to understand why you fell out in the first place.

We argue for all kinds of reasons. You might think your football team is fantastic but your friend disagrees; or maybe your sister is being really annoying. Sometimes, especially if you’re angry, things can spiral out of control and you’ll say or do something you regret. Arguing and disagreeing with others occasionally is normal — we all do it — but it’s important to resolve your differences afterwards so bad feelings don’t get worse. This is where an apology can help.

We all make mistakes, and apologising is a way of admitting we’ve got something wrong and will try not to do it again. Dr. Jennifer Thomas, a psychologist and author, believes an apology needs to show the other person that we’re genuinely (真诚地) sorry, we accept responsibility for our actions and we want their forgiveness.

Sometimes another person may pressure you into taking the blame when it’s not your fault. If you feel this is happening, try talking about why you argued in the first place and explain how it made you feel. If you still can’t agree, you could ask a parent or teacher to help you resolve the problem.

Sorry on its own might not always be enough, so try to ask the other person how they felt while you were arguing. Explain your side too, and make it clear you’ll try not to repeat the same mistake again. A genuine apology isn’t a magic wand (魔杖); it may take some time for someone to understand and forgive. Even after you’ve said sorry, you could still feel bad but you can feel good about trying to fix things and promising yourself to do better next time.

1. Why is it important to resolve differences after an argument?

A．To ensure that bad feelings worsen over time.	B．To maintain relationship and prevent damage.
C．To avoid taking responsibility for one’s action.	D．To establish leading power over one’s friends.

2. What does the underlined word “spiral” mean in paragraph 2?

A．Stop.

B．Decrease.

C．Increase.

D．Win.

3. Which of the following situation can happen after a genuine apology?

A．Both parties will forget the argument.	B．Forgiveness could take quite a while.
C．The person apologizing can calm down.	D．Relationships will improve immediately.

4. Which can be a suitable title for the text?

A．The Power of Apologies	B．The Causes of Arguments
C．The Significance of Forgiveness	D．The Benefits of Communication

【推荐3】Tim Richter and his wife，Linda，had taught for over 30 years near Buffalo，New York-he in computers,she in special education．“Teaching means everything to us，”Tim would say．In April 1998,he learned he would need a heart operation．It was the kind of news that leads to some serious thinking about life’s purpose．

Not long after the surgery，Tim saw a brochure describing Imagination Library,a program started by Dolly Parton’s foundation（基金会）that mailed a book every month to children from birth to age five in the singer’s home town of Sevier，Tennessee．“I thought，maybe Linda and I could do something like this when we retire，”Tim recalls．He placed the brochure on his desk，“as a reminder．”

Five years later，now retired and with that brochure still on the desk，Tim clicked on imaginationlibrary．com．The program had been opened up to partners who could take advantage of book and postage discounts．

The quality of the books was of great concern to the Richters．Rather than sign up online，they went to Dollywood for a look-see．“We didn’t want to give the children rubbish，”says Linda．The books-reviewed each year by teachers，literacy specialists，and Dollywood board members-included classics such as Ezra Jack Keats’s The Snowy Day and newer books like Anna Dewdney’s Llama Llama series．

Satisfied，the couple set up the Richter Family Foundation and got to work．Since 2004，they have shipped more than 12，200 books to preschoolers in their area．Megan Williams，a mother of four，is more than appreciative：“This program introduces us to books I’ve never heard of．”

The Richters spend about﹩400 a month sending books to 200 children．“Some people sit there and wait to die，”says Tim．“Others get as busy as they can in the time they have left．”

1. What led Tim to think seriously about the meaning of life？________

A．His health problem．

B．His love for teaching．

C．The influence of his wife．

D．The news from the Web．

2. What did Tim want to do after learning about Imagination Library？________

A．Give out brochures．

B．Do something similar．

C．Write books for children．

D．Retire from being a teacher．

3. Why did the Richters go to Dollywood？________

A．To avoid signing up online．

B．To meet Dollywood board members．

C．To make sure the books were the newest．

D．To see if the books were of good quality．

4. What can we learn from Tim’s words in the last paragraph？________

A．He needs more money to help the children．

B．He wonders why some people are so busy．

C．He tries to save those waiting to die．

D．He considers his efforts worthwhile．