1 . Sun Tours: Short breaks in New York

DAY 1: TIMES SQUARE AND THE LINCOLN CENTER

Welcome to New York—the Big Apple! Here in New York the wonders of the Big Apple exceed (超出) all expectations—the fantastic skyline, wonderful restaurants, theaters, museums, shops and attractions. On your first day you will visit the famous Lincoln and Rockefeller Centers, and drive down Fifth Avenue. You will drive through Times Square, the “Crossroads of the World”. You will then travel to Central Park, a miracle in the center of Manhattan. Lunch is on your own, but this evening you will have dinner at the famous Jekyll and Hyde club, where the waiters are all dressed as vampires（吸血鬼）, and at some point in the evening Frankenstein （科学怪人）comes to life.

DAY 2: EXPLORING THE CITY

The entire day is yours for sightseeing and shopping. Explore the attractive city of New York with its skyscrapers, bridges, historic landmarks and Broadway theaters.

DAY 3: DOWNTOWN AND SOUTH STREET SEAPORT

Today you will visit Greenwich Village, Wall Street and the World Trade Center. You will visit South Street Seaport, a 19th-century seaport with narrow streets, hundreds of shops, an international food stand and street entertainment. This afternoon you will visit Chinatown, and finally the Empire State Building Observatory, which towers 1,250 feet above New York City. You will use the high-speed elevators to go to the top, unlike King Kong who climbed up the outside of the building. This evening, you will have dinner at the well-known   Tavern-on-the-Green restaurant overlooking Central Park.

ARRIVING IN NEW YORK

A Sun Tours representative will meet you at JFK airport and take you to your hotel, which is in the center of the city. When you check in, you will receive further information about this evening’s “Getting-to know-each-other” party at the Manhattan Restaurant.

1. If you want to join in this tour, which of the following will you contact?

A．Sun Tours	B．Hyde Club
C．Greenwich Village	D．JFK Airport

2. How many places will you visit on the third day?

A．Five	B．Six
C．Seven	D．Eight

3. What can we know from the last paragraph?

A．You will go to the hotel in the center of the city by yourself.

B．When you arrive at the airport, you will be told about the tour plan.

C．You have known all about the Manhattan Restaurant before your arrival.

D．When you check in, you will know more about the evening party.

2 . Monday 2nd January

I am in a small village in the Carpathian Mountains, north of Bucharest, the capital of Romania. I’ve come to see the brown bears, which come to the villages at night to look for food. They walk 20 kilometres a night to get here. A farmer told me that some of his sheep have been killed by bears. But this is unusual. Usually, the bears just take bits of food which people have thrown away. Tonight I hope I’ll see them.

Tuesday 3rd January

Last night I waited with a group of tourists and as it grew dark, we saw the huge black shapes of bears. It seems the bears don’t go for people, unless they are attacked first. They were not afraid of the tourists, who took photos of them. Those clever bears knew where to go for their dinner. They jumped straight into the rubbish, where there was lots of food which people had thrown away.

Wednesday 4th January

Although it’s wonderful to see the bears in the village, it can only mean one thing: their habitat is disappearing. They would prefer to stay hidden in the mountain forests, but the trees have been cut down for firewood. So they cannot find enough food any more.

Thursday 5th January

Today I met the head of the Carpathian Animal Protection Group. He says that there are only about 2,500 bears left, and is worried that they will soon become extinct. Rich people from other countries pay a lot of money to come and shoot the bears for sport. The poor people from these villages need the money. But perhaps they could make more money from the tourists who want to come just watch the bears; and this would continue in the future. Once the bears are all dead, the tourists will stop visiting the village. But if the bears keep visiting the villages, then, perhaps, so will the tourists.

1. The best title for this passage would be _____________.

A．Hungry Brown Bears	B．Brown Bears in the Forest
C．Wandering Brown Bears	D．Brown Bears—A Wonder

2. It is unusual to the writer that ________________.

A．the brown bears like to be taken photos of.

B．the bears come out at night to look for food

C．the bears just take bits of food thrown away

D．the bears have attacked a farmer’s sheep

3. The villagers could continue to earn money from the bears if _________.

A．they shot the bears for sport

B．people paid more money to kill them

C．more tourists came to see the bears

D．the villagers sold the bears’ skins to tourists

4. What will happen to the bears in the future?

A．They may be kept in zoos.

B．They may become extinct.

C．They may keep eating rubbish.

D．They may be watched by visitors.

3 . It was one of my first lessons as an international student in New York City. My US history teacher had just finished his lesson. He sat back in his armchair comfortably, and asked: “Was there anybody doing anything interesting yesterday?”

“I drew a panda, which was lovely!” a girl beside me shouted.Then, the talk developed rapidly. Someone said he had received his learner’s driving permit, while another mentioned that she had spent the first salary from her part-time job. Everybody seemed to have something to say. Although there was a range of people, from different backgrounds, people seemed to feel at home with each other.

Not me. I stayed aloof from the discussion. I looked through my notes until I looked up to see another teacher come in and share some cookies he had made yesterday. The beautifully baked cookies sent out a good smell, which made it impossible to concentrate on my work any longer. However, my seat was in the back row, and I was too shy to stand up and take a cookie for myself.

“Go ahead and have one!” It was the history teacher: “If you don’t stand up, nobody is going to feed you!”

I was still hesitant, but I got up and took a cookie with some other classmates. Now I felt more at ease. We laughed about how “greedy” we were.

The “cookie crisis” had taught me a lesson. I would have to be less shy in the United States. Here was a mixed and various culture, and if I wanted to get anywhere I would have to brave its newness and difference and make myself heard, just as the teacher had said. Otherwise, “Nobody is going to feed you.” It was something a person new to the US, such as myself, needed to learn.

1. The atmosphere in a US classroom is quite __________.

A．lively	B．lonely
C．bad	D．quiet

2. What does the underlined phrase “aloof from” mean?

A．in spite of	B．instead of
C．apart from	D．away from

3. What prevented the writer from getting a cookie for himself at first?

A．His bravery.	B．His shyness.
C．His strangeness.	D．His weakness.

4. The “cookie crisis” in the last paragraph was __________ to the writer.

A．an important problem	B．a kind of valuable food
C．a turning point in his life attitude	D．a dream in his school life

4 . If you say, “The cat’s out of the bag” instead of “The secret is given away,” you’re using an idiom. The meaning of an idiom is different from the actual meaning of the words used. “An apple a day keeps the doctor away” is a proverb. Proverbs are old but familiar sayings that usually give advice. Both idioms and proverbs are part of our daily expressions. Many are very old and have interesting histories. See how many of these expressions you know.

“Bury the hatchet.”

Native Americans used to bury weapons to show that fighting had ended and enemies were now at peace. Today, the idiom means to make up with a friend after an argument of fight.

“A close shave.”

In the past, student barbers learned to shave on customers. If they shaved too close, their customers might be cut or even hardly escape serious injury. Today, we use the idiom if a person narrowly escapes disaster.

“Raining cats and dogs.”

In Norse mythology the dog is associated with wind and the cat with storms. This expression means it’s raining very heavily.

To “shed crocodile tears.”

Crocodiles have a reflex that causes their eyes to tear when they open their mouths. That makes it look as though they are crying while swallowing their food. In fact, neither crocodiles nor people who shed “crocodile” tears feel sorry for their actions.

“Saved by the bell.”

In 17th-century England, a guard at Windsor Castle was accused of falling asleep at his post. He claimed he was wrongly accused and could prove it; he had heard the church bell chime (鸣响) thirteen times at midnight. Townspeople supported his claim and he was saved. Today we think of the bell that ends a round in boxing, often saving the boxer from injury, or the bell at the end of a class period, saving you from more work. Now this idiom means rescue from a situation at the last possible moment.

1. The best title of this passage will probably be ___________.

A．Everyday Expressions	B．Not Idioms But Proverbs
C．Idioms and proverbs are old	D．Idioms or proverbs

2. The purpose of this article is to ________.

A．compare some useful and interesting idioms and proverbs

B．tell us some idioms and proverbs which can be used today

C．explain the meaning of some interesting everyday expressions

D．show the importance of using proverbs and idioms in your writing

3. It can be inferred from the article that _________.

A．idioms and proverbs are a must in our life

B．proverbs are more common than idioms

C．idioms are more interesting than proverbs

D．it is difficult to guess the meaning of idioms

4. Which of these statements is an example of “a close shave”?

A．My brother bought a new computer yesterday.

B．My friend will come to my city to see me.

C．A car nearly hit me on my way to school.

D．No one in my school has ever been to Canada.

5 . Public speaking and critical thinking

What is critical thinking? To a certain degree, it’s a matter of logic (逻辑) — of being able to spot weaknesses in other people’s argument and to avoid them in your own, it also includes related skills such as distinguishing fact from opinion and assessing the soundness of evidence. In the broad sense, critical thinking is focused, organized thinking — the ability to see clearly their lationships among ideas.    1    The greatest thinkers, scientists, and inventors have often taken information that was readily available and put it together differently to produce new ideas.that, too, is critical thinking.

    2     As the class goes on, for example, you will probably spend a good deal of time organizing your speeches. While this may seem like a purely mechanical (机械的) exercise, it is closely connected with critical thinking. If the structure of your speech is loose and confused, chances are that your thinking. If the structure of your speech is loose and confused, chances are that your thinking is also discovered and confused. If, on the other hand, the structure is clear, there is a good chance your thinking is too. Organizing a speech is not a matter of arranging the ideas your already have.    3    

What is true of organization is true of many aspects of public speaking.    4    As you work on expressing your ideas in clear, accurate language, you will Improve your ability to think clearly and accurately.    5     As you learn to listen critically to speeches in class,You will be better able to assess the ideas of speakers in a variety of situations.

If you take full advantage of your speech class, you will be able to develop your skills as critical thinker in many circumstances. This is one reason public speaking has been regarded as a vital part of education since the days of ancient Greece.

A．Rather, it is an important part of shaping the ideas themselves.

B．This may seem like a lot of time, but the rewards are well worth it.

C．It may also help you to know that there is no such thing as a perfect speech.

D．It has often been said that there are few new ideas in the world, only reorganized ideas.

E．If you are wondering what this has to do with your public speaking class, the answer is quite a lot.

F．The skills you learn in your speech class can help you become a more effective thinker in a number of ways.

G．As you study the role of evidence and reasoning in speech making, you will see how they can be used in other forms of communication as well.

6 . Every student has tests when they are at school. But have you ever been so worried about the tests that you can’t fall asleep at night? Have you ever felt sick or had a headache during a test?       1    . This worry in your mind can make your body feel bad. You may feel angry, frustrated, scared, or afraid ---- which can give you a stomachache or a headache.

    2    . Good or normal stress might happen when you are called to answer a question in class or when you have to give a speech. This kind of stress can help you to get things better done.    3    .

But bad stress can happen if the stressful feelings keep going over a long time. You may not feel well if your parents are fighting, if a family member is ill, if you are having problems at school, or if you are going through anything else that makes you upset every day.     4     .

    5     . That means making good decision about how to spend your time. If you are only dealing with school stuff and have no time to play, you can get stressed. Make sure you keep your SELF in mind: Sleep, Exercise, Leisure and Food. If you take care of yourself and get enough sleep and food, and if you exercise and leave time for fun stuff, you will probably be less stressed out!

A．However, there are two different kinds of stress.

B．Can you tell a kind of stress from another one?

C．The best way to keep stress away is to have a balanced life.

D．That kind of stress isn’t going to help you, and it can actually make you sick.

E．Since bad stress is harmful for us, you’d better try to change it into good stress.

F．If so, then you know what stress is. Stress is what you feel when you are worried or uncomfortable about something.

G．For example, you may do a better job on your test if the stress pushes you to prepare well before the test.

7 . A three-year independent investigation into the September 11, 2001 attack on the Pentagon has yielded new eyewitness evidence which, according to the Southern California-based researchers who conducted the investigation conclusively (and unfortunately), establishes as a historical fact that the violence which took place in Arlington that day was not the result of a surprise attack by suicide hijackers, but rather a military black operation involving a carefully planned and skillfully executed deception."
A CNN Reporter at the scene states that there is no evidence that a 757 hit the Pentagon.
　   What hit the Pentagon? A Boeing 757 loaded with passengers and fuel right? Who was on Flight 757? According to the Flight Information there were No Arabs on it. That makes me wonder if Flight 757 actually existed at all.
　　From the pictures and the videos, people can find that there are several doubtful points that need to be taken into consideration, for example the marker line on the grass in the satellite and ground pictures, the different colors of the smoke, the hole which the plane impacted, and the standing pylons (架线塔).
　　Also, from the comparison of the different pictures, people can find some other strange points. For example, the gear (齿轮) is not the matching one. The wreckage of the plane is not the one from the American Airlines. The glass on the pavement of the pole is another doubtful point. The last thing that need considering is about the collapse. One of the gif video shows the plane impacting the Pentagon. The only problem with this video footage is that it has been altered (改变) and can not be fully trusted.
　　These crash photos and videos shown here clearly have been doctored (篡改) and don't even match the physics of what happened. So where is the real video? It leaves me many questions. Is this a missile? It is a real enigma.
1. Where can you possibly read this article?

A．In a newspaper.

B．In a book.

C．On a website.

D．In a magazine.

2. What the word “yielded” mean in the first sentence?

A．given in

B．surrendered

C．given away

D．produced

3. Which of the following doubtful points is not mentioned in the passage?

A．the colors of the smoke

B．the model of the plane

C．the standing pylons

D．the marker line on the grass

4. What is the author’s attitude towards the 911 investigation?

A．Positive.

B．Neutral.

C．Skeptical.

D．Negative.

8 . About six years ago I was eating lunch in a restaurant in New York City when a woman and a young boy sat down at the next table. I couldn’t help overhearing parts of their conversation. At one point the woman asked,“So, how have you been?”And the boy who could not have been more than seven or eight years old replied,“Frankly, I’ve been feeling a little depressed lately.”
This incident stuck in my mind because it strengthened my growing belief that children are changing. As far as I can remember, my friends and I didn’t find out we were“depressed”until we were in high school.
The evidence of a change in children has increased steadily in recent years. Children don’t seem childlike any more. Children speak more like adults, dress more like adults and behave more like adults than they used to.
Whether this is good or bad is difficult to say, but it certainly is different. Childhood as it once was no longer exists. Why?
Human development is based not only on born biological states, but also on patterns of access to social knowledge. Movement from one social role to another usually involves learning the secrets of the new situation. Children have always been taught adult secrets, but slowly and in stages: traditionally, we tell sixth graders things we keep hidden from fifth graders.
In the last 30 years, however, a secret-revelation machine has been fixed in 98 percent of American homes. It is called television. Television passes information, indiscriminately, to all viewers alike, whether they are children or adults. Unable to resist the temptation, many children turn their attention from printed texts to the less challenging, more vivid moving pictures.
Communication through print, as a matter of fact, allows for a great deal of control over the social information to which children have access. Reading and writing involve a complex code of symbols that must be memorized and practised. Children must read simple books before they can read complex materials.
1. Traditionally, a child is supposed to learn about the adult world _________ .

A．through touch with society

B．gradually and under guidance

C．naturally and by biological instinct

D．through exposure to social information

2. In the author’s opinion, the phenomenon that today’s children seem adultlike is caused by _____.

A．the widespread influence of television

B．the poor arrangement of teaching content

C．the fast step of human intellectual development

D．the constantly rising standard of living

3. Why is the author in favor of communication through print for children?

A．It enables children to gain more social information.

B．It develops children’s interest in reading and writing.

C．It helps children to memorize and practise more.

D．It can control what children are to learn.

4. What does the author think of the change in today’s children?

A．He feels amused by the children’s adultlike behavior.

B．He thinks it is a phenomenon worthy of note.

C．He considers it a positive development.

D．He seems to be upset about it.

9 . News that Microsoft made a $44.6 billion bid to buy Yahoo resulted in heated discussions made by many Internet users. Here are some responses:
Diane Burke of Weeks bury, Kentucky
I think it would definitely be an interesting combination. Everyone recognizes the names Yahoo and Microsoft, but everyone also says, “Did you Google it?” Such a catchphrase is going to be hard to beat.
Shaun Carney of Laurelville, Ohio
I think the merger will provide more competitions for Google. I don’t think the merger will allow Microsoft to develop faster than Google, though. I believe the increased competition this merger brings will force Google to stay on top of its game by offering more fresh and original Internet tools and expanding on the tools it already offers.
Toni Suarez of Hacienda Heights, California
I view the merger as a necessary element in preventing a monopolization. Perhaps it would bring better high technology innovations to e-mail and help in researching and developing a better Internet!
Rick R. of Edgewater, Florida
It sounds like a disaster to me. If this were to happen, I would stop using my Yahoo e-mail account because I don’t like the feeling of Microsoft spying upon my business. I will sign up for Google.
Antonio Glosser of Kansas City, Missouri
Right now, Yahoo offers a lot of features and tools at no cost for all different levels of Internet users. Microsoft seeks nothing but profit. Undoubtedly, they’ll do nothing other than find ways to start removing Yahoo’s formerly non-priced features. Microsoft’s greed will ruin the great thing that Yahoo currently is.
1. How many companies are mentioned in the passage?

A．One.

B．Two.

C．Three.

D．Four.

2. Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Shaun’s attitude towards Google is passive.

B．Toni believes the Internet will have a promising future.

C．Rick will support Google after the merger.

D．Antonio is afraid that the merger will cost Yahoo’s free features.

3. The passage is mainly about ______.

A．opinions on the merger of Yahoo and Microsoft

B．the strengths of Yahoo and Microsoft

C．the strengths and weaknesses of large companies

D．the future of Yahoo and Microsoft

10 . Apple Seeds

Circulation(发行量): 1 Year, 9 Issues

Cover Price: $44.55

Price For You: $33.95

Product Description: Apple Seeds is an award winning magazine filled with stories for kids aged from 7 to 9. The cover is very soft, providing durability that allows each issue to be enjoyed for many years to come. Besides, there is a big surprise for you --- it's being sold at a more favorable discount than usual.

Better Life

Circulation: 1 Year, 12 Issues

Cover Price: $44.55

Price For You: $15.00

Product Description: Designed for those who have a strong interest in personal lifestyle, Better Life is America's complete home and family service magazine. It offers help with food, recipes, decorating, building, gardening, family health, money management, and education.

Humor Times

Circulation: 1 Year, 12 Issues

Cover Price: $36.00

Price For You: $11.95

Product Description: Humor Times Magazine is for those who love to laugh! Full of cartoons and humor columns, it shows up in your mailbox once a month and keeps you smiling all year round! In today's world, you need a reason to laugh. So let's find it in Humor Times.

News China

Circulation: 1 Year, 12 Issues

Cover Price: $47.88

Price For You: $19.99

Product Description: News China Magazine is the English edition of China Newsweek. The magazine covers the latest Chinese domestic news in politics, business, society, environment, culture, sports and travels, etc. It is the first comprehensive news magazine for readers interested in China.

1. What do we know about Apple Seeds?

A．The soft cover enables it to be read and kept long.

B．It can be purchased as an award for your children.

C．It offers the biggest discount among all the magazines.

D．The magazine is going to surprise you for many years.

2. Tom wants to beautify his house, so he may choose ______.

A．Apple Seeds	B．Better Life
C．Humor Times	D．News China

3. What kind of people may buy News China?

A．People who have an interest in Personal lifestyle of the Chinese.

B．People who have a strong sense of humor and love to laugh.

C．People who want to enlarge the knowledge of their kids.

D．People who are interested in China's politics, business and culture.

4. Which magazine may best help relieve your work stress?

A．Apple Seeds	B．Better Life
C．Humor Times	D．News China