1 . Ask someone what they have done to help the environment recently and they will almost certainly mention recycling. Recycling in the home is very important of course. However, being forced to recycle often means we already have more material than we need. We are dealing with the results of that over-consumption in the greenest way possible, but it would be far better if we did not bring so much material home in the first place.

The total amount of packaging increased by 12% between 1999 and 2005. It now makes up a third of a typical household’s waste in the UK. In many supermarkets nowadays food items are packaged twice with plastic and cardboard.

Too much packaging is doing serious damage to the environment. The UK, for example, is running out of it for carrying this unnecessary waste. If such packaging is burnt, it gives off greenhouse gases which go on to cause the greenhouse effect. Recycling helps, but the process itself uses energy. The solution is not to produce such items in the first place. Food waste is a serious problem, too. Too many supermarkets encourage customers to buy more than they need. However, a few of them are coming round to the idea that this cannot continue, encouraging customers to reuse their plastic bags, for example.

But this is not just about supermarkets. It is about all of us. We have learned to associate packaging with quality. We have learned to think that something unpackaged is of poor quality. This is especially true of food. But it also applies to a wide range of consumer products, which often have far more packaging than necessary.

There are signs of hope. As more of us recycle, we are beginning to realize just how much unnecessary material we are collecting. We need to face the wastefulness of our consumer culture, but we have a mountain to climb.

1. What does the underlined word “over-consumption” refer to?

A．Using too much packaging.

B．Recycling too much waste.

C．Making more products than necessary.

D．Having more material than is needed.

2. The author uses figures in Paragraph 2 to show ________.

A．the tendency of cutting household waste

B．the increase of packaging recycling

C．the rapid growth of supermarkets

D．the fact of packaging overuse

3. What can be inferred from Paragraph 4?

A．Unpackaged products are of bad quality.

B．Supermarkets care more about packaging.

C．It is improper to judge quality by packaging.

D．Other products are better packaged than food.

4. What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A．Fighting wastefulness is difficult.

B．Needless material is mostly recycled.

C．People like collecting recyclable waste.

D．The author is proud of his consumer culture.

2 . If English means endless new words, difficult grammar and sometimes strange pronunciation, you are wrong. Haven't you noticed that you have become smarter since you started to learn a language?
According to a new study by a British university, learning a second language can lead to an increase in your brain power. Researchers found that learning other languages changes grey matter. This is the area of the brain which processes information.             It is similar to the way that exercise builds muscles.
The study also found the effect is greater, the younger people learn a second language.
A team led by Dr Andrea Mechelli, from University College London, took a group of Britons who only spoke English. They were compared with a group of "early bilinguals" who had learnt a second language before the age of five, as well as a number of later learners.
Scans showed that grey matter density (密度) in the brain was greater in bilinguals than in people without a second language. But the longer a person waited before mastering a new language, the smaller the difference.
"Our findings suggest that the structure of the brain is changed by the experience of learning a second language," said the scientists.
It means that the change itself increases the ability to learn.
Professor Dylan Vaughan Jones of the University of Wales, has researched the link between bilingualism and maths skills. "Having two languages gives you two windows on the world and makes the brain more flexible (灵活的),"he said. "You are actually going             beyond language and have a better understanding of different ideas."
The findings were matched in a study of native Italian speakers who had learned English as a second language between the ages of two and 34. Reading, writing, and comprehension were all tested. The results showed that the younger they started to learn,             the better. "Studying a language means you get an entrance to another world," explained the scientists.
1. The main subject talked about in this passage is ______.

A．science on learning a second language

B．man’s ability of learning a second language

C．1anguage can help brain power

D．1anguage learning and maths study

2. In the second paragraph, the writer mentions “exercise” in order to ______.

A．say language is also a kind of physical labor

B．prove that one needs more practice when he (she) is learning a language

C．to show the importance of using the language when you learn the language

D．make people believe language learning helps grey matter work well

3. We may know from the scientific findings that ______.

A．the earlier you start to learn a second language, the higher the grey matter density is

B．there is no difference between a later second language learner and one who doesn't know a second language

C．the experience of learning a second language has bad effect on people's brain

D．the ability of learning a second language is changing all the time

4. The underlined word “bilinguals'’ probably means ______.

A．a researcher on language learning

B．a person who is good at learning foreign languages

C．a person who can speak two languages

D．an active language learner

3 . In the fall of 1985. I was a bright-eyed girl heading off to Howard University, aiming at a legal career and dreaming of sitting on a Supreme Court bench somewhere. Twenty-one years later I am later I am still a bright-eyed dreamer and one with quite a different tale to tell.
My grandma, an amazing woman, graduated from college an the age of 65. She was the first in our family to reach that goal. But one year after I started college, she developed cancer. I made the choice to withdraw from college to care for her. It meant that school and my personal dream would have to wait.
Then I got married with another dream: building my family with a combination of adopt and biological children. In 1999, we adopted our first son. To lay eyes on him was fantastic---and very emotional. A year later came our second adopted boy. Then followed son No. 3. In 2003, I gave birth to another boy.
You can imagine how fully occupied I became, raising four boys under the age of 81. Our home was a complete zoo---a joyous zoo. Not surprising, I never did make it back to college full-time. But I never gave up on the dream either. I had only one choice: to find a way. That meant talking as few as one class each semester.
The hardest part was feeling guilty about the time I spent away from the boys. They often wanted me to stay home with them. There certainly were times I wanted to quit, But I knew I should set an example for them to follow through the rest of their lives.
In 2007, I graduated from the University of North Carolina. It took me over 21 years to get my college degree！
I am not special, just single-minded. It always struck me that when you’re looking at a big challenge from the outside it looks huge, but when you’re in the midst of it, it just seems normal. Everything you want won’t arrive in your life on one day. It’s a process. Remember；little steps add up to big dreams.
1. When the author went to Howard University, her dream was to be____.

A．a writer

B．a teacher

C．a judge

D．a doctor

2. Why did the author quit school in her second year of college?

A．She wanted to study by herself.

B．She fell in love and got married.

C．She suffered from a serious illness.

D．She decided to look after her grandma.

3. What can we learn about the author from Paragraphs 4 and 5?

A．She was busy yet happy with her family life.

B．She ignored her guilty feeling for her sons.

C．She wanted to remain a full-time housewife.

D．She was too confused to make a correct choice.

4. What dose the author mostly want to tell us in the last paragraph?

A．Failure is the mother of success.

B．Little by little, one goes far.

C．Every coin has two sides.

D．Well begun, half done.

5. Which of the following can best describe the author?

A．Caring and determined.

B．Honest and responsible.

C．Ambitious and sensitive.

D．Innocent and single-minded.

4 . 根据短文内容,从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中的两项为多余选项。
There was a park near my home. But I didn’t go there very often. Many people said there was nothing special. One afternoon I went into the park and found it was really small. I walked quickly because there wasn’t much to see. I walked for some time and found myself standing in front of two paths.    1    I found that the two paths were different from each other.
The left one was wide and clean. There were lots of flowers on both sides of the path. Though the flowers weren’t very beautiful, they made me feel good. I decided to take this path. But wait! I looked at the right one. The path didn’t look nice.    2    Grass grew everywhere. For a long time I couldn’t make up my mind.
    3    It wasn’t nice , but I didn’t want to give up. At last, I came to the end of the path. Ah! There was a small garden there. It was beautiful, perhaps the most beautiful garden I had ever seen.    4    
Many people told me that there was nothing much to see in the park. Now I’d like to tell them that if they had followed the right way, they would have felt differently. But when I told them about what I had seen in the park, they just smiled at me without saying a word. I knew they didn’t believe me. They couldn’t even remember that path because it was so small.
    5    Don’t be afraid to choose a different path. You may get a big surprise!

A．There is nothing that I want to see.

B．It looked like it had not been cleaned for months.

C．After a while a strange feeling made me follow the dirty path.

D．“ Which way should I go?”   I asked myself. I looked at one way, then the other.

E．I told them what happened.

F．My trip to the park that day made me understand something about life.

G．There were trees, flowers and chairs. I thought it was the nicest part of the park.

5 . Mr. Lang worked in a factory. As a driver, he was busy but he was paid much. His wife was an able woman and did all the housework. When he came back, she took good care of him and he never did anything at home. So he had enough time when he had a holiday. A few friends of his liked gambling (赌博) and he learned it soon. So he was interested in it and forgot anything except gambling. He lost all his money and later he began to sell the television, watches and so on. His wife told him not to do it but he didn’t listen to her. She had to tell the police. He and his friends were punished for it. And he lost his job. After he came out of lockup (拘留所), he hated her very much and the woman had to leave him.
It was New Year’s Day. Mr. Lang didn’t go to work. He felt lonely and wanted to gamble again. He called his friends and they came soon. But they were afraid the police would come. He told his five-year-old son to go to find out if there were the policemen outside. They waited for a long time and didn’t think the police would come and began to gamble. Suddenly opened the door and in came a few policemen.
“I saw there weren’t any policemen outside, daddy,” said the boy, “so I went to the crossing and asked some to come.”
1. Mr. Lang was paid much because _______.

A．he was a driver

B．he worked in a factory

C．he had a lot of work to do

D．he had worked there for a long time

2. Mrs. Lang did all housework because _______.

A．she couldn’t find any work

B．she thought her husband was tired

C．her husband spent all time in gambling

D．she wouldn’t stop her husband gambling

3. _______, so he was put into lockup.

A．Mr. Lang often gambled

B．Mr. Lang was late for work

C．Mr. Lang didn’t help his wife at home

D．Mr. Lang wasn’t polite to the police

4. The woman had to leave Mr. Lang because _______.

A．he didn’t love her any longer

B．he wouldn’t stop gambling

C．he had been put into lockup

D．he was hardly sent away by the factory

5. Which of the following is right?

A．The boy hoped his father to be put into lockup again.

B．The boy thought his father needed some policemen.

C．The boy hoped his father to stop gambling soon.

D．The boy hoped his mother to come back.

6 . Frank Woolworth was born in Rodman, New York, in 1852. His family were very poor farmers, and there was never enough to eat. Frank did not want to be a farmer. He took a short business course, and went to work as a salesman in a large city.
Woolworth realized he had a natural skill for showing goods to attract people’s interest, but he soon learned something more important. One day his boss told him to sell some odds and ends（小商品）for as much as he could get. Frank put all these things on one table with a sign which said “FIVE CENTS EACH’. People fought and pushed to buy the things and the table was soon cleared.
Soon afterwards, Woolworth opened his own store, selling goods at five and ten cents. But he had another lesson to learn before he became successful. That is, if you want to make money by selling low-price goods, you have to buy them in large quantities directly from the factories. Once, for example, Woolworth went to Germany and placed an order for knives. The order was so large that the factory had to keep running 24 hours a day for a whole year. In this way, the price of the knives was cut down by half.
By 1919, Woolworth had over 1000 stores in the US and Canada, and opened his first store in London. He made many millions and his name became famous throughout the world. He always ran his business according to strict rules, of which the most important was : ‘THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT.”
1. Frank took a short business course in order to __________.

A．earn more money for his family

B．learn something from a salesman

C．get away from the farm

D．get enough to eat

2. Frank sold the odds and ends quickly because ________.

A．he knew how to get people to buy his goods

B．he cut down the price by half

C．he had put the goods on a table in a very nice way

D．the sign he put on the table was well designed

3. The price of the knives was cut down by half because _________.

A．the factory workers worked 24 hours a day

B．knives were ordered in large quantities directly from the factory

C．the knives were made in German, where labour was cheap

D．the knives were produced in one factory

4. __________   make Woolworth a world-famous man.

A．His business skills and his wealth

B．The low price of the goods he sold

C．His trip to Germany and his huge order of knives

D．His natural skill for showing things

5. The belief that “The customer is always right” suggests that __________.

A．whenever there is a quarrel between the customer and shop assistant, the customers are always right.

B．If you want to succeed, the rule is the only way

C．stores must always follow the customer’s orders if they want to make more money

D．stores should do their best to meet the customer’s needs if they want to be successful

7 . 根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。
What is your favorite color? Do you like yellow, orange, red?     1    . Do you prefer grays and blues? Then you are probably quiet, shy, and you would rather follow than lead. You tend to be pessimist. At least, this is what psychologists tell us, and they should know, because they have been seriously studying the meaning of color preference, as well as the effect that colors have on human beings.     2    . If you happen to love brown, you did so, as soon as you opened your eyes, or at least as soon as you could see clearly.
    3    . A yellow room makes most people feel more cheerful and more relaxed than a dark green one; and a red dress brings warmth and cheer to the saddest winter day.     4    . A black bridge over the Thames River, near London, used to be the scene of more suicides(自杀) than any other bridge in the area — until it was repainted green. The number of suicide attempts immediately fell sharply. Perhaps it would have fallen even more if the bridge had been done in pink or baby blue.
    5    . It is an established fact that factory workers work better, harder, and have fewer accidents when their machines are painted orange rather than black or grey.

A．On the other hand, black is depressing.

B．They tell us, among other facts, that we do not choose our favorite color as grow up — we are born with our preference.

C．The rooms are painted in different colors as you like.

D．If you do, you must be an optimist, a leader, an active person who enjoys life, people and excitement.

E．Light and bright colors make people not only happier but more active.

F．Life is like a picture or a poem, full of different colors.

G．Colors do influence our moods—there is no doubt about it

8 . On August 26, 1999, New York City was struck by a terrible rainstorm. The rain caused the streets to ______ and the subway system almost came to a stop.

Unfortunately, this happened during the morning rush hour. Many people who were going to work were ______ to go home. Some battled to ______ a taxi or to get on a bus. Still others faced the ______ bravely, walking miles to get to work.

I ______ to be one of people on the way to work that morning. I went from subway line to subway line only to find that most ______ had stopped. After making my way ______ crowds of people, I finally found a subway line that was ______. Unfortunately, there were so many people waiting to ______ the subway that I could not even get down the stairs to the ______. So I took the train going in the opposite direction, and then switched back to the downtown train. Finally, after what seemed like forever, the train ______ my stop. Then I had to walk several blocks in the increasingly heavy rain. When I finally got to my office, I was ______ through, exhausted and ______.

My co-workers and I spent most of the day drying off. When it was 5:00 pm, I was ready to go home, I was about to turn off my computer ______ I received an email from Garth, my Director:

I would like to thank all of you who made the effort and ______ reported to work. It is always reassuring (令人欣慰), at times like these, when employees so clearly show their ______ to their jobs. Thank you.

Garth’s email was short, but I learned more from that ______ message than I ever did from a textbook, The email taught me that a few words of ______ can make a big difference. The rainstorm and the traffic ______ had made me tired and upset. But Garth’s words immediately ______ me and put a smile back on my face.

1.

A．break

B．flood

C．sink

D．crash

2.

A．forced

B．refused

C．adjusted

D．gathered

3.

A．order

B．pay

C．call

D．search

4.

A．climate

B．scenery

C．storm

D．burden

5.

A．used

B．promised

C．deserved

D．happened

6.

A．practice

B．routine

C．process

D．service

7.

A．to

B．through

C．over

D．for

8.

A．operating

B．cycling

C．turning

D．rushing

9.

A．check

B．carry

C．find

D．board

10.

A．street

B．ground

C．floor

D．platform

11.

A．paused

B．crossed

C．reached

D．parked

12.

A．wet

B．weak

C．sick

D．hurt

13.

A．ashamed

B．discouraged

C．surprised

D．puzzled

14.

A．while

B．when

C．where

D．after

15.

A．hardly

B．causally

C．absolutely

D．eventually

16.

A．devotion

B．donation

C．connection

D．reaction

17.

A．accurate

B．urgent

C．brief

D．humorous

18.

A．promise

B．appreciation

C．advice

D．guidance

19.

A．troubles

B．signals

C．rules

D．signs

20.

A．corrected

B．supported

C．amazed

D．refreshed

9 . A study involving 8,500 teenagers from all social backgrounds found that most of them are ignorant when it comes to money. The findings, the first in a series of reports from NatWest that has started a five-year researeh project into teenagers and money, are particularly worrying as this generation of young people is likely to be burdened with greater debts man any before.
University tuition fees (学费) are currently capped at £3,000 annually, but this will be reviewed next year and the Government is under enormous pressure to raise the ceiling.
In the researeh, the teenagers were presented with die terms of four different loans but 76 per cent failed to identify the cheapest. The young people also predicted that they would be earning on average £ 31.000 by the age of 25, although the average salary for those aged 22 to 29 is just £ 17,815. The teenagers expected to be in debt when they finished university or training, although half said that they assumed the debts would be less than £ 10.000. Average debts for graduates are £ 12，363.
Stephen Moir, head of community investment at the Royal Bank of Scotland Group which owns NatWest, said. "The more exposed young people are to financial issues, and the younger they become aware of them, the more likely they are to become responsible, forward-planning adults who manage their finances confidently and effectively."
Ministers are deeply concerned about the financial pressures on teenagers and young people because of student loans and rising housing costs. They have just introduced new lessons in how to manage debts. Nikki Fairweathcr. aged 15. from St Helens, said that she had benefited from lessons on personal finance, but admitted that she still had a lot to learn about money.
1. Which of the following can be found from the five-year researeh project?

A．Students understand personal finances differently.

B．University tuition fees in England have been rising.

C．Teenagers tend to overestimate their future earnings.

D．The students' payback ability has become a major issue.

2. The phrase "to raise the ceiling" in paragraph 2 probably means "______".

A．to raise the student loans	B．to improve the school facilities
C．to increase the upper limit of the tuition	D．to lift the school building roofs

3. According to Stephen Moir, students_______.

A．are too young 10 be exposed 10 financial issues

B．should learn 10 manage their finances wellC- should maintain a positive attitude when facing loans

C．benefit a lot from lessons on personal finance

4. What can we learn from the passage?

A．Many British teenagers do not know money matters well

B．Teenagers in Britain are heavily burdened with debts.

C．Financial planning is a required course at college.

D．Young people should become responsible adults.

10 . Liverpool, my hometown, is a unique city. It is so unique that in 2004 it became a World Heritage （遗产） Site.
I recently returned to my home city and my first stop was at a museum on the River Mersey. Blanketed in mist （薄雾）, Victorian architecture rose from the banks of the river, responded to the sounds of sea-birds, and appeared unbelievably charming. When I headed toward the centre, I found myself surrounded by buildings that mirror the best palaces of Europe. It is not hard to imagine why, on first seeing the city, most visitors would be overpowered by the beauty of the noble buildings, which are solid signs of Liverpool’s history.
As if stress its cultural role, Liverpool has more museums and galleries （美术馆） than most cities in Britain. At Walker Art Gallery, I was told that it has best collections of Victorian paintings in the world, and is the home of modern art in the north of England. However, culture is more than galleries. Liverpool offers many music events. As Britain’s No.1 music city, it has the biggest city music festival in Europe, and its musicians are famous all over the world. Liverpool is also well-known for its football and other sports events. Every year, the Mersey River Festival attracts thousands of visitors, madding the city a place of wonder.
As you would expect from such a city, there are restaurants serving food from around the world. When my trip was about to complete, I chose to rest my legs in Liverpool’s famous Philharmonic pub（酒馆）. It is a monument to perfection, and a heritage attraction itself.
Being a World Heritage Site, my home city is certainly a place of “outstanding universal value”. It is a treasure house with plenty of secrets for the world to explore.
1. Visitors who see the city for the first time would be deeply impressed by __________.

A．its charming banks

B．its famous museums

C．its wonderful palaces

D．its attractive buildings

2. The third paragraph is developed mainly by __________.

A．providing different examples

B．following the order of space

C．making comparisons

D．analyzing causes

3. The author uses the Philharmonic pub to prove that _________.

A．Liverpool is a well-known city for its restaurants

B．Liverpool is an impressive place full of attraction

C．a pub is a wonderful place for visitors to relax themselves

D．a pub is a perfect choice for visitors to complete their journey

4. What is the passage mainly about?

A．The universal value of the world heritage in Liverpool.

B．The exciting experience of the author in Liverpool.

C．The special cultural atmosphere of Liverpool.

D．The beautiful historic sites of Liverpool.