2 . When I lived in Spain, some Spanish friends of mine decided to visit England by car. Before they left, they asked me for advice about how to find accommodation (住所). I suggested that they should stay at “bed and breakfast” houses, because this kind of accommodation gives a foreign visitor a good chance to speak English with the family. My friends listened to my advice, but they came back with some funny stories.
“We didn’t stay at ‘bed and breakfast houses’,” they said, “because we found that most families were away on holiday.”
I thought this was strange. Finally I understood what had happened. My friends spoke little English, and they thought “VACANCIES” meant “holidays”, because the Spanish word for “holidays” is “vacaciones”. So they did not go to the house where the sign outside said “VACANCIES”, which in English means there are free rooms. Then my friends went to the house where the sign said “NO VACANCIES”, because they thought this meant the people who owned the house were not away on holiday. But they found that these houses were all full. As a result, they stayed at hotels!
We laughed about this and about mistakes my friends made in reading other signs. In Spanish, the word” DIVERSION” means fun. In English, it means that workmen are repairing the road, and that you must take a different road. When my friends saw the word “DIVERSION” on a road sign, the thought they were going to have fun. Instead, the road ended in a large hole.
English people have problems too when they learn foreign languages. Once in Paris, when someone offered me some more coffee, I said “Thank you” in French. I meant that I would like some more. However, to my surprise the coffee pot was taken away! Later I found out that ‘Thank you’ in French means “No, thank you.”
1. My Spanish friends wanted advice about ______.| A．driving their car on English roads | B．going to England by car |
| C．finding places to stay in England | D．learning English |
| A．Because it would be much cheaper than staying in hotels |
| B．Because It would be convenient for them to have dinner |
| C．Because they would be able to practice their English. |
| D．Because there would be no problem in finding accommodation there |
| A．Free rooms. | B．No free rooms. |
| C．Not away on holiday. | D．Holidays. |
| A．wanted them to take the coffee pot away |
| B．didn’t really want any more coffee |
| C．wanted to express my politeness |
| D．really wanted some more coffee |
3 . Doctors say you had better use it before you lose it. The more you sit each day, the more chance you have of getting sick.
Richard Rosenkranz of Kansas State University was among the researchers. He said people who sat for long periods were at great risk of diseases when compared with those who sat less. He said that was especially true for some chronic (慢性的) diseases.
Richard Rosenkranz studied the relationship between sitting and chronic diseases in middle-aged Australian men. He worked with researchers from the University of Western Sydney. They examined the health records of more than 63,000 men from New South Wales. The men were between the ages of 45 and 65. The men reported about what diseases they had, or did not have. And they kept record of the amount of time each day that they sat.
The study also showed that exercising every morning for 30 minutes did not reduce the health risk if you spend the next eight hours sitting at the desk. Mr. Rosenkranz said it was important to make sure you exercise. But he said it was also important to find ways not to sit so much during the day.
Many jobs today require sitting and working at the desk all day. James Levine works at the Mayo Clinic in the United Sates. He suggests working while standing at high table some of the time instead of sitting at a desk. Dr. Levine also suggests standing while using the telephone or eating. Or he advises walking with the people you work with for an on-foot meeting. And he notes that if you spend more time on your feet,you may have muscle activity that helps burn fats and sugars in your body.
1. What does the underlined sentence in the first paragraph imply?| A．Doctors should treat all the patients well. |
| B．Doctors should make use of every method. |
| C．One should value his health before he loses it. |
| D．One should depend on himself to keep healthy. |
| A．By examining some records and reports. |
| B．By making some laboratory experiments. |
| C．By talking with the doctors and patients. |
| D．By watching the men’s daily performance. |
| A．Exercise more often. | B．Change their jobs. |
| C．Stay away from the desk. | D．Stand or walk more. |
| A．A fashion magazine. | B．A health magazine. |
| C．A biology textbook. | D．A life guide. |
4 . The European Commission has recently proposed classifying nuclear and natural gas as sustainable sources of energy. The proposal will place the sources on the EU’s “green” list. However, the proposal has already divided member countries.
France, Hungary, Poland, and Romania have supported the proposal as a stepping stone to clean energy. Much of Eastern and Central Europe still depends on fossil fuels like coal for energy. While renewable energy sources like the wind and sun have become more affordable, technology has not advanced enough to store power for long periods of time. Therefore, an immediate transition (转变) might not be possible for Europe.
Proponents of the proposal agree that natural gas is still a fossil fuel. Nevertheless, it emits less carbon dioxide than coal and could serve as a more sustainable alternative during the transition to greener energy sources. Nuclear energy plants are another promising energy source and release water vapor instead of carbon dioxide as a by-product. Because of this, proponents view nuclear and natural gas as “bridge” sources that can pave the way to a low-carbon future.
Other European member states are opposing the proposal for a number of reasons. Under the proposal, gas power plants labeled “sustainable” could emit 270g worth of CO2 for each kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity they produce. A panel of experts has criticized these guidelines, recommending that only 100g of CO2 per kWh could be considered sustainable.
Spain, Denmark, and Luxembourg have charged that the proposal would distract from renewable energy goals. Germany, a long-time opponent, has questioned about including nuclear power in the list. Nuclear power plants may be low-carbon, but the storage of nuclear waste continues to be an issue. It is also costly to construct them and would use up financial resources that could be invested in other renewable energies.
1. What can we know about the proposal put forward by the European Commission recently?| A．It divides sustainable sources of energy into two categories. |
| B．It has been copied by many other international organizations. |
| C．It aims to put nuclear and natural gas on the EU’s “green” list. |
| D．It is supported by all the countries in Eastern and Central Europe. |
| A．Objectors. | B．Advocates. | C．Competitors. | D．Representatives. |
| A．Because nuclear waste is harmful to people. |
| B．Because nuclear energy is not sustainable energy. |
| C．Because the proposal will distract from other goals. |
| D．Because it is expensive to build nuclear power plants. |
| A．The transition from wind and sun power. |
| B．The advances in the technology of storing power. |
| C．The debate over a proposal on renewable energy. |
| D．The regulations of the European commission. |
1.写信目的；
2.英语能力及相关经验。
注意：1.写作词数应为80左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Mr. James,
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
6 . Despite being there for your safety, many people still ignore the red man at traffic lights and cross early, running the risk of a deadly accident. Now Smart, a car maker, has come up with a smart idea for an experiment to see if safety could be improved at traffic lights by encouraging pedestrians to wait for the green man with a “Dancing Traffic Light”.
The Dancing Traffic Light was designed to draw the attention of people who were standing waiting to cross the road in Portugal. It shows a dancing red figure, as opposed to the static (静态的) figure that is normally shown. The figure is a low-resolution (低分辨率的) representation of someone who is in a room nearby, dancing.
Those who want to dance can go into the room and then select music of their choice. When the traffic light turns red, the music plays and the individual can then start to dance. A video is fed of the person dancing in real lime to the traffic light and the dancing red figure can keep pedestrians amused while they wait.
Apart from providing entertainment for pedestrians as they wait to cross the road, there is also the “gaming” side to the Dancing Traffic Light as anyone can be the dancing figure and so he or she can contribute to the project.
This isn’t the first time that entertainment has been used for positive social outcomes. The Volkswagen Fun Theory campaign involved a Piano Staircase which encouraged people to walk up the stairs instead of using an elevator and the Bottle Bank Arcade that was made to encourage people to recycle.
Smart said that 81 % more people stopped at die red light to watch it dance while they waited for the green light to appear.
1. Why did Smart design the Dancing Traffic Light?| A．To help reduce traffic accidents. | B．To make traffic lights more interesting. |
| C．To provide entertainment for pedestrians. | D．To draw the attention of pedestrians. |
| A．A real person dances beside the traffic light. | B．A pedestrian performs a dance while waiting. |
| C．An individual dances to various music in a room. | D．A figure dances in real time to red traffic lights. |
| A．The needs for more such campaigns. | B．The use of entertainment in some social activities. |
| C．The influence of the Dancing Traffic Light. | D．The good results of safety products. |
| A．Road Safety—An Essential Task | B．A Campaign—A Solution from the Air |
| C．A Dancing Traffic Light—A Guardian of Life | D．Smart—A Pioneer in Traffic Light Research |
1.约定时间见面；
2.请她给予指导；
3.邀请她扮演一个角色。
4.表达期待。
注意：1. 词数80左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Susan,
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours ,
Li Hua
China’s Shenzhou-13 crew members Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping and Ye Guangfu livestreamed the first science lecture from the country’s space station on Thursday afternoon,
The lecture started at 3:40 p.m.(Beijing Time) and lasted about 45 minutes. A total of 1,420 primary and middle school students
At the beginning of the class, Wang, the first female taikonaut
The Shenzhou-13 crew went into space aboard the Shenzhou-13 spaceship and entered the Tianhe core module on October 16, setting out on their six-month stay in space, which is China’s longest-ever crewed mission.
9 . “Daily Star, sir,” called Jason, carrying some newspapers under his arm. The little boy had been running up and down the street, but there were still twenty
“You don’t know the
Jason thought of his bird with no
The next afternoon Jason went to the office for his papers
| A．copies | B．shops | C．coins | D．people |
| A．weak | B．open | C．pure | D．heavy |
| A．in exchange for | B．instead of | C．regardless of | D．in return for |
| A．card | B．cup | C．cake | D．comb |
| A．broke down | B．gave in | C．got away | D．showed up |
| A．difficulty | B．process | C．secret | D．goal |
| A．drop | B．call | C．reach | D．sell |
| A．bread | B．insects | C．water | D．seeds |
| A．concerned | B．determined | C．excited | D．amazed |
| A．by chance | B．as usual | C．at once | D．at last |
| A．warm | B．gentle | C．proud | D．polite |
| A．made | B．saved | C．borrowed | D．lost |
| A．shouted | B．laughed | C．nodded | D．started |
| A．gently | B．gratefully | C．bravely | D．sadly |
| A．business | B．duty | C．method | D．job |
10 . Festivals are a great way to experience a destination in a different way. Whether you are looking for a unique cultural difference or the experience of sheer joy, there is something here for everyone in this article.
St. Patrick's Day
Dublin, Ireland & New York, the USA, March 17th
It has been a cultural and religious celebration held in memory of the death date of Saint Patrick, the foremost patron saint of Ireland, since 1762. On that day, the whole city turns green and many Irish make traditional bread. It is also one of the most fun days of the year, when the whole city turns into a big green party.
South by Southwest (SXSW)
Austin, the USA, March
Founded in 1987, SXSW has been praised by music fans and the media worldwide as one of the top 10 music festivals in the world. It is not only a music feast but also dedicated to the integration of technology and films. You can also enjoy free food, drinks and music. Sounds good?
King's Day
Amsterdam, Netherlands, April 27th
King's Day may well be the best party in Holland and Amsterdam turns a very bright color of orange on April 27th. People celebrate King Willem Alexander's birthday with music, street parties, flea markets, and fun fairs. The king himself travels through the country with his family.
Just for Laughs
Montreal, Canada, July 14th—30th
For comedy lovers there is no other festival in the word better than Montreal's Just for Laughs. The festival concentrates most of its shows in the Latin Quarter. During the day street performers delight the crowds and at night the city comes alive with comedy all over the city.
1. Which of the four festivals mainly involves music and films?| A．St. Patrick's Day. | B．South by Southwest. |
| C．King's Day. | D．Just for Laughs. |
| A．They are both religious festivals. |
| B．They are celebrated in the same month. |
| C．They are in honour of the birthday of a great person. |
| D．They both feature a color. |
| A．It lasts for a month. | B．It provides free food for all. |
| C．It's the best comedy feast. | D．It is concerned about the royal family. |
