1 . Now, a growing number of companies are offering subscriptions (订购) for something most people are used to owning: cars.
Car subscription plans are mainly aimed at drivers who do not want to have long-term agreements for one single car. Many people using the services say they like being able to use a number of different kinds of vehicles depending on their needs.
Steve Barnes uses a car subscription service in Atlanta, Georgia. He says that every time he orders a new car “it feels like New Year’s morning”. Barnes signed up for the service in 2018 to be able to use many kinds of vehicles for different purposes. He says for some activities with his children, he chooses a large SUV. But when he wants to have fun or go out at night, he chooses a Tesla or some other kinds of sports car. But the comfort of such services can come at a high cost. Barnes pays $1,400 a month for his subscription. This is much higher than the $ 900 a month he used to pay to hire an SUV with insurance. Sill, he has no desire to own or hire a car again. He says his subscription has allowed him to drive many different vehicles which would have cost more than $1 million to own.
Some of the world’s biggest automakers are currently offering subscription plans for vehicles. One of them is Ford Motor Company. The company signed a deal last year with the San Francisco-based Monthly subscription service-Canvas. Canvas offers several models, including used vehicles. Monthly subscriptions start at $379 for small cars and go up to $1,125 for large SUVs. But these plans limit drivers to 800 kilometers per month. For another $100, users can get unlimited travel.
Adela Spulber works at the U.S. -based Center for Automotive Research in Michigan. She said that the effects of vehicle subscription services remain unknown.
1. What is the main purpose of car subscription plans?| A．To get people to buy cars more actively. |
| B．To encourage people to own their own cars. |
| C．To meet some people’s needs to drive different cars. |
| D．To reach an agreement with people having a single car. |
| A．He is satisfied with the car subscription service. |
| B．He always likes to use different types of sports cars. |
| C．He hopes to own another car some day. |
| D．The cost of a month for his subscription is lower. |
| A．Canvas doesn’t provide second-hand cars. |
| B．There are different monthly subscriptions to choose from. |
| C．A driver may drive Canvas cars without limitation. |
| D．Now the subscription services are welcome in San Francisco. |
| A．Hopeless. | B．Pessimistic. | C．Optimistic. | D．Uncertain. |
2 . Stress is everywhere in our daily life. And it is not just men who suffer from it, but women and young and old people, too.
The main causes of stress are: death, divorce, marriage, money, moving house, changing jobs, ending relationships and taking exams.
So how do you know if you suffer from stress? Do the Stress Test and find out!
Stress Test
| Do you | Yes | No |
| 1. often sleep badly? | ||
| 2. get headaches a lot? | ||
| 3. find it difficult to relax? | ||
| 4. need alcohol or cigarettes to keep calm? | ||
| 5. usually hide your feeling? | ||
| 6. find it difficult to put your heart into something? | ||
| 7. take sleeping pills? | ||
| 8. get angry when things go wrong? |
If you answer Yes to more than two of these questions, you are one of many people who suffer from stress. So what can you do about it?
Doing yoga (瑜伽) or relaxation exercises, chewing gum and playing with worry beads (念珠) are all common ways of relieving (减轻) stress.
However doctors now say that there are simpler ways. Their advice is that people should laugh and smile more often. When you laugh and smile , your body relaxes. They also say that people--and especially men--ought to cry more frequently, because crying is the natural way of relieving stress.
1. What can you learn from the passage?| A．Young people suffer from more stress than the old. |
| B．Many social problems cause stress. |
| C．If you answer YES to more than three of these questions, you are one of many people who suffer from stress. |
| D．Doing yoga is the most useful way to relieve stress. |
(1) drink too much (2) often sleepy (3) usually hide your feeling (4) find it difficult to relax
| A．(1) and (2) | B．(1) and (4) | C．(2) and (3) | D．(3) and (4) |
| A．chewing gum | B．playing with worry beads | C．laugh and cry | D．above all |
| A．Living with stress | B．Social problems | C．Ways of relieving stress | D．Stress Test |
3 . One day, a woman walked into a pet store to buy a bird for her Thanksgiving Day party. The guy said, “We only have one parrot. But I think you do not want it because it can talk…” The woman said happily, “That’s great. I’ve always wanted a talking bird.” So the guy said, “Since you are a nice lady, I’ll give it to you as a gift.”
And the lady went home and put the bird on her bed and walked out of the room. But as soon as she walked into the kitchen, the bird started to speak dirty words as loud as it could. The woman walked back into the room thinking, “I can’t have this at my party!” So she took the bird and put it in the fridge. A few hours later, while the woman was eating, she remembered that her bird was still in the fridge. Quickly, she opened the door and found it was shivering. Then she took out the bird at once. She said to the bird, “I’ll keep you out of there if you don’t use that language again. Do you agree with me?”
The bird nodded and asked, “Can I just ask a quick question?” The lady nodded and said, “Yes, you may.” The bird pointed at the turkey behind him and asked, “What did he do?”
1. The woman went into the pet store because ________.| A．there were lots of nice birds in it |
| B．she wanted to buy a bird to make a big meal |
| C．she wanted to buy a bird for Thanksgiving Day party |
| D．she wanted to buy a bird for his son’s birthday |
| A．发抖 | B．睡觉 | C．生气 | D．跳动 |
| A．how the turkey was put into the fridge. | B．why itself was in the fridge. |
| C．who could be in the fridge. | D．why the turkey was in the fridge. |
| A．she wanted to cook it on Thanksgiving Day | B．the bird spoke dirty words |
| C．the bird liked living in the cold place | D．she thought it’s the best place for it to live in |
4 . China has a lot to offer. Do you want to take a China tour? Here are some of our best sellers.
Tour 1 Wonders of China ( Price: $2,699 )
Beijing—Xi’an—Guilin—Yangshuo—Yangtze River—Shanghai
Suitable for those who love splendid Chinese culture, unique natural scenery and more leisure holiday. Visit Forbidden City, walk up to Great Wall, see amazing Terracotta Warriors, take cruise along Yangtze River and ride bikes along Yangshuo country.
Tour 2 Water Town and Yellow Mountains Tour ( Price: $1,409 )
Shanghai—Suzhou—Huangshan—Hangzhou—Shanghai
Suitable for those who like interesting water town traditions and amazing scenery. See gorgeous Yellow Mountains scenery and the prosperous Shanghai, visit a famous water town - Tongli, explore the classical beauty of Hangzhou and Suzhou.
Tour 3 Authentic Yunnan Discovery ( Price: $1,629 )
Kunming—Dali—Lijiang—Shangri-La
Suitable for those who are interested in minority (少数民族) culture and snow mountain. The Stone Forest, Jade Dragon Snow Mountain and Tiger Leaping Gorge show you the creativity of the nature and the Lijiang Ancient Townand Shangri-La show you the colorful culture of the minorities there.
Tour 4 Golden Silk Road ( Price: $1,749 )
Xi’an—Dunhuang—Turpan—Urumqi
Suitable for those who are eager to uncover the secret of the Silk Road. Listen to the stories about the ancient Silk Road and see the relics on the channel which connected the eastern and western world.
Tour 5 In Pursuit of Kungfu Tour ( Price:$1,509 )
Shanghai—Xi’an—Luoyang—Dengfeng—Beijing
Suitable for Kungfu fans who want to learn Kungfu in Shaolin Temple. Lighten your trip by learning the most authentic Chinese Kungfu at Shaolin Temple, and the Longmen Grottoesc石窟) in Luoyang help you understand the spirit of Kungfu.
1. If the tourists want to explore the beauty of the snow mountain, they would probably choose ________.| A．In Pursuit of Kungfu Tour | B．Golden Silk Road |
| C．Authentic Yunnan Discovery | D．Wonders of China |
| A．Tongli is famous for the interesting water town traditions. |
| B．Beijing and Shanghai are the two common cities in Tour 1 and Tour 2. |
| C．Tourists can experience the culture of the minorities on the Silk Road. |
| D．Kungfu fans can learn Kungfu in the Longmen Grottoes. |
| A．show visitors the importance of some cities |
| B．supply visitors with the information of some China tours |
| C．offer visitors some trip tips |
| D．tell visitors the splendid Chinese culture |
5 . Scotland is a country in Great Britain, to the north of England. Scotland has nearly 800 islands, but people only live on some of them. About five million people live in Scotland, which is 8.5% of the UK population. Most people live in the south of the country, in and around the cities of Edinburgh, Glasgow, Perth and Dundee.
Language
In Scotland, most people speak English and Scots and a minority speak Scottish Gaelic, an old Celtic language which is very different from English. Scots is spoken by young and old people and sometimes people mix Scots and English. Some words in Scots are the same as in English and some are different.
Sport
The most popular sport in Scotland is football and famous teams include Celtic and Rangers, from Glasgow, Scotland’s biggest city. Another popular game, golf, was invented in Scotland in the Middle Ages. You can go skiing in winter at Scotland’s five mountain ski fields and any time of the year at snow sports centers around the country.
Food
When people think of Scottish food, they often think of haggis, a type of sausage made from parts of a sheep. However, Scotland is also known for its variety of seafood and beef.
Symbols
Blue is a colour which is often connected with Scotland. The Scottish flag is blue with a white X-shaped cross called the Saint Andrew’s cross. St Andrew is the Patron Saint(守护神) of Scotland. Everywhere you go in Scotland, you will see tartan(苏格兰格子呢), kilts and bagpipes. Also, look out for the national animal, the unicorn, and the thistle, the national flower of Scotland.
1. What can we learn from the first paragraph?| A．The Scottish live separately on 800 islands. |
| B．Most of the Scottish live in big cities. |
| C．8.5% of the UK population live in Scotland. |
| D．Scotland lies to the north of Great Britain. |
| A．Two. | B．Three. | C．Four. | D．Five. |
| A．Scotland is the birthplace of golf. |
| B．Celtic and Rangers are famous golf clubs. |
| C．The special Scottish food is its seafood. |
| D．The Scottish flag is white with a blue cross. |
6 . When I was young, I lived on an island in the north of Scotland, but I went to school in Edinburgh. It was a music school, and I studied the violin. We practiced for six hours every day. Our school was a boarding school. At the end of the term, we all packed our bags and our instruments to go home for the holidays. Most kids went by train, or bus, or their parents took them home by car. Not me! I went home by ferry (渡船) — 14 hours overnight on the open sea. I loved it!
One summer I packed my suitcase and violin and said goodbye to my friends. I took the train to the ferry station and then got on the ferry. When we started moving away, I remembered a terrible thing! I left my violin on the train! I went to ask one of the crew (船员) what to do, but he said he couldn’t stop the ferry for me.
What should I do? What would my dad say? He’d be really angry! I was worried, and didn’t sleep all night. The next morning I got off the ferry to meet my dad. I didn’t want to look at him. I told him what happened. He laughed. I looked at him and couldn’t believe it. Why was he laughing?
In my violin case, I always have a label with my address and a telephone number. My dad told me, “A cleaner found your violin by the label on the train in London and took it to the police. They called me. They put the violin on a plane and it arrived an hour before you did.” My dad had it in his car! Thanks to those people, my violin was safe home!
1. Where was the writer’s home?| A．On an island. | B．In London. |
| C．In Edinburgh. | D．In the south of Scotland. |
| A．He didn’t sleep all night. | B．He went back home alone. |
| C．His dad would be angry. | D．He left his address on the train. |
| A．模型 | B．标签 | C．绰号 | D．唱片公司 |
| A．His father. | B．The police. | C．A cleaner. | D．A crewman. |
| A．Travelling Violin | B．Boarding School |
| C．Unforgettable Train | D．Missing Suitcase |
7 . If you walk through the doors of one of the Smithsonian Institution’s museums in Washington, D.C., you may be greeted by an unusual guide. A Japanese tech company recently sent 25 humanoid robots to the Smithsonian. All of them are named Pepper.
Each Pepper stands 4 feet tall and has a computer screen attached to its body. Built by SoftBank Robotics, the robots are programmed to share information about the museum in which they are based.
“Pepper is basically an experiment,” Goslins, director of the Smithsonian’s Arts and Industries Museum, said. “The idea is to explore and see how a robot performs in this kind of environment.”
Museum visitors communicating with Pepper. The robot can tell stories and answer basic questions. People even take pictures and dance with it.
“The robot draws big crowds,” said Allison Peck, director of marketing at the Hirshhorn. “People just love Pepper.”
According to the Smithsonian Institution’s website: “Pepper gives our museum workers a new way to reach and serve visitors.” For example, Pepper teaches Swahili words to visitors of the “World on the Horizon” exhibit at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African Art.
Pepper also has the special ability to draw guests to less-visited areas of the Smithsonian’s museum. When Pepper is placed in a spot, crowds are attracted to that place.
When not educating museum visitors, Pepper stays in the Smithsonian offices, getting charged and programmed. After being charged, Pepper can run for about 8 hours at a time.
Pepper plays an important role, but the robot“ is not meant to take away human jobs at the museum, ” Goslins explained. “It is meant to give our visitors a more enjoyable experience while they are here with us.”
1. What do you know about Pepper?| A．It measures 4 feet in width. | B．It serves as a guide. |
| C．It is named after a robot. | D．It is made in the US. |
| A．Draw pictures. | B．Take pictures. |
| C．Ask questions. | D．Tell stories. |
| A．Reasonable cost. | B．Pepper’s appearance. |
| C．Workers’service. | D．Attractive scenery. |
| A．To please visitors. | B．To replace humans. |
| C．To perform programs. | D．To educate visitors |
8 . “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade (柠檬水).” It is a good saying, but life throws at us more serious problems than lemons, doesn’t it? What do we do when we lose a family member? What do we do when we have been through events that leave us feelings? Can any failure be turned into success?
Most of us realize we can learn one or two things from failure. When we fail, we think, “Well, I won’t try that again! ”or “I won’t trust anyone again! ”But this is not useful learning. It is suggested that we ask challenging questions. For example, “How could I try that again?” There are a lot we can learn and get from failure if we keep asking good questions on how to do better next time.
Failure or pain can be good for developing our character if we choose to face it in a positive way. Our own suffering often makes us understand others better. It can give us wisdom or knowledge to share with others, which can prevent them from similar failure. If we have been hurt by others because of another person’s poor character, it may improve us to be better persons.
Failures can make us experience many things that we didn’t experience before. If you lose your job, it doesn’t mean you lose everything and probably you may get more. As we know, no job often leads to self employment; no job has been the beginning of many highly successful businesses. It is common that we don’t like changing, but change, even unfortunate change, brings new opportunities. Sometimes only failure brings us better opportunities or greater success.
1. The underlined sentence in Paragraph 1 means that ________.| A．any lemons can be made into lemonade |
| B．problems always bring us lots of trouble |
| C．problems can never be avoided in our life |
| D．failure can also be turned into a success |
| A．We should learn more when we fail |
| B．We must be careful to trust anyone |
| C．We must ask questions when we fail |
| D．We should deal with failure positively |
| A．avoid hurting others in the same way |
| B．find a better way to hurt him bravely |
| C．try to prevent him from hurting others |
| D．thank him for making you more perfect |
| A．Failure Decides success | B．Failure Creates Opportunities |
| C．Failure Brings Everything | D．Failure Makes a Perfect Person |
9 . Be Healthy! Be Slim! Be Beautiful!
Discover the secret for a healthy, slim, and beautiful you!
I love this healthy diet program because it helps you lose weight, lose inches, feel healthy and look beautiful.
This healthy diet is an 8 week’s program which is unlike other diet regimes (食物疗法). In that it focuses on proper nutrition(营养) first and weight loss second. Your body must have proper levels of minerals, vitamin, and protein in order to work well. It provides a simple lifestyle change to give you more energy and improve your health most greatly. It offers control over hunger with a dense diet allowing 1,700 to 2,000 calories a day. If a person has a weight problem, their body probably is not working at proper levels of basic nutrients(营养物). We invite you to follow this program, so you can be the slim person who lives inside you.
You too, can love dieting especially if you are losing weight and losing inches. For more information about our program, please get to our address in the internet: http://www.Shaklee.net/ lifestyle_for_heath/products.
1. This passage is mainly about _____.| A．how people should keep fit | B．why people should keep fit |
| C．a healthy diet program | D．ways to lose weight |
| A．become shorter | B．become thinner |
| C．become fatter | D．become taller |
| A．this program makes a change in your lifestyle |
| B．this program can stop you from feeling hungry |
| C．this program tries to tell us what people should do to become slim |
| D．this program allows you 1,700 to 2,000 calories for each meal |
| A．the content of this program | B．some other programs |
| C．some interesting foods | D．some products you can buy |
10 .
| Summer 2016 Art Camps The Harn Museum of Art offers Art Camp for kids, aged 7 to 11, during school breaks. Fees: Half-day: $ 150 per week ($ 130 Harn members) Full-day: $ 290 per week ($ 250 Harn members) | ||
| Dates | Camp Descriptions | |
| Morning: | Afternoon | |
| July 11-15 | Comics for Kids. Learn the art of comics. Create original characters, design backgrounds, and use comics to tell stories. Instructor: Tom Hart. | Asian Art & Anime Explore the art of Asia, from traditional ink painting and block printing to Japanese drawing and Anime. Instructor: Sunny Heo. |
| July 18-22 | Printmaking: Line, Color, and Shape Master the printing press and discover a variety of printmaking techniques. Instructor: Katie McDonald. | Painting a Rainbow: The Art & Science of Color Learn from museum professional and paint a variety of subjects. Instructor: Katie McDonald. |
| July 25-29 | Faces in Art: Masks and Mirrors Explore the face in art, from portraits to masks. Practice working with your own face to create a self-portrait. Instructor: Katie McDonald. | 3D Art: Build It, Shape It, Sculpt It! Move beyond the surface and have fun playing around with 3D art using a variety of techniques, tools and media. Instructor: Katie McDonald. |
| August 1-5 | People in Art Learn how to draw, paint and sculpt people. Instructor: Linda Zidonik. | Wild Things: Animals in Art Go wild and create animal-inspired artwork. Look at animals in art in the museum, and make animal paintings, drawings, sculptures. Instructor: Linda, Zidonik. |
| A．$ 130. | B．$ 150. | C．$ 250. | D．$ 290. |
| A．July 11-15 | B．July 18-22 | C．July 25-29 | D．August 1-5 |
| A．Faces in art. | B．Printmaking. | C．The art of Asia. | D．Animals in Art. |
