1 . When almost everyone has a mobile phone, why are more than half of Australian homes still paying for a landline (座机)?
These days you’d be hard pressed to find anyone in Australia over the age of 15 who doesn’t own a mobile phone. In fact plenty of younger kids have one in their pocket. Practically everyone can make and receive calls anywhere, anytime.
Still, 55 percent of Australians have a landline phone at home and only just over a quarter (29%) rely only on their smartphones according to a survey (调查). Of those Australians who still have a landline, a third concede that it’s not really necessary and they’re keeping it as a security blanket — 19 percent say they never use it while a further 13 percent keep it in case of emergencies. I think my home falls into that category.
More than half of Australian homes are still choosing to stick with their home phone. Age is naturally a factor (因素)— only 58 percent of Generation Ys still use landlines now and then, compared to 84 percent of Baby Boomers who’ve perhaps had the same home number for 50 years. Age isn’t the only factor; I’d say it’s also to do with the makeup of your household.
Generation Xers with young families, like my wife and I, can still find it convenient to have a home phone rather than providing a mobile phone for every family member. That said, to be honest the only people who ever ring our home phone are our Baby Boomers parents, to the point where we play a game and guess who is calling before we pick up the phone (using Caller ID would take the fun out of it).
How attached are you to your landline? How long until they go the way of gas street lamps and morning milk deliveries?
1. What does paragraph 2 mainly tell us about mobile phones?| A．Their target users. | B．Their wide popularity. |
| C．Their major functions. | D．Their complex design. |
| A．Admit. | B．Argue. |
| C．Remember. | D．Remark. |
| A．They like smartphone games. | B．They enjoy guessing callers’ identity. |
| C．They keep using landline phones. | D．They are attached to their family. |
| A．It remains a family necessity. |
| B．It will fall out of use some day. |
| C．It may increase daily expenses. |
| D．It is as important as the gas light. |
2 . If having to make a choice between reading an e-book and a printed book, which would most people choose? Some would go for an e-book while some still prefer the hard-printed book.
Undoubtedly, e-books do have benefits. Firstly, changes to an electronic publication are relatively easy to make. They are quicker to obtain. E-books are more easily updated. The printed books on many subjects can become outdated very quickly. Secondly, e-books can be easily and quickly kept up to date. You usually get far more than just the e-books. Most e-books are sold with bonuses and related information that usually do not come with the purchase of a printed book. Moreover, they take up less space. Instead of a big library, you can fit literally thousands of books on your computer. It also makes it easier to share this information with families and friends.
For nearly twenty years, additionally, futurists have been predicting the development of printed books. The conventional view has been that digital e-books are on the verge of replacing paper books. However, this has not been the case. A printed book has its advantages too. Firstly, it is an object that can be carried and used alone. It needs no electric outlet (插座), no batteries, nothing. Secondly, e-books will always require some forms of support that the printed book does not need.
I believe that the online publishing has not taken off because people want real books. What is being published online more and more are pamphlets (小册子) and things that really do not need to be in print. These are stuff that people throw away afterward. More often, people do not want to read a book on the computer. What could be better than a paper book? It lasts a long time. These books are designed to last a long time without disappearing.
To sum up, there is no denying that the printed book is still very much preferred over its digital cousins. Reading electronic publications is just not the same when it comes to books. People are still very interested in real books and notebooks.
1. What can we know about an e-book?| A．It will never be out of date. | B．It always gives you an added bonus. |
| C．It can deliver information quickly. | D．It has taken the place of printed books. |
| A．Printed books will disappear. | B．Printed books can be used alone. |
| C．E-books have many restrictions. | D．E-books have no drawbacks. |
| A．The low demand for book industry. | B．The expectations from people. |
| C．The guidance of policy. | D．The desire for the printed books. |
| A．Hopeless. | B．Unpredictable. | C．Costly. | D．Promising. |
3 . Four Interesting Science Museums
Polytechnic Museum, Russia
For many guests of the capital, some of the most vivid childhood memories are associated with this museum. A variety of technical fields are presented in 65 halls-Mining, Space, Energy, and Transportation, etc. And the exposition（博览会）is the only museum project in Russia about the history of the bike. The interactive division "Technoplay" is open, where you not only can but also need touch most of the exhibits with your hands. In addition to self-experimentation, for personal requests the museum's experts will show many entertaining experiments.
Eureka, England
The Eureka educational center is a huge complex where modern science and technology are becoming clear, even to kids. The main exhibition is devoted to the human body, the laws of physics and natural things. Visitors can obtain energy or create paper with their own hands. On the area of the Eureka educational park there is a botanical garden and a collection of minerals from the rock types of Finland is presented there.
Deutsches Museum, Germany
In this museum you can see more than 100 thousand different items from windmills（风车）to medical equipment. All aspects of industrial production appear before the eyes. Several museum rooms are arranged especially for children-there are exhibits that entertain kids starting from three.
NEMO, the Netherlands
The largest Dutch research centre stands ready to share its secrets with everyone. This immersion（沉浸）in the world of science and technology will not be dull. All significant information is presented in the form of exciting games. All exhibits are interactive; visitors are allowed to touch, pull and press on anything. The museum is for children from 6 to 16, as well as for their parents-it will be interesting to all.
1. What can visitors do at Polytechnic Museum?| A．Learn how the bike developed. | B．Touch all of the exhibits. |
| C．Watch entertaining movies. | D．Show entertaining experiments. |
| A．Polytechnic Museum. | B．Eureka. |
| C．Deutsches Museum. | D．NEMO. |
| A．It is specially designed for children. |
| B．It is the largest museum in the world. |
| C．It shows information of exhibits in games. |
| D．Some exhibits can be touched or pressed. |
4 . A young English teacher saved the lives of 30 students when he took
Harvold, who has not
The bus driver never regained consciousness and died at Easy Surrey Hospital. He had worked regulary with the
The head of the language school told the local newspaper that the school is going to send Harvold on a weekend
| A．control | B．care | C．advantage | D．note |
| A．taken in | B．picked up | C．tracked down | D．helped out |
| A．greet | B．thank | C．invite | D．meet |
| A．present | B．introduce | C．take | D．organize |
| A．drive | B．doctor | C．librarian | D．teacher |
| A．given | B．marked | C．passed | D．conducted |
| A．speaking to | B．waiting for | C．returning to | D．looking for |
| A．learned | B．noticed | C．mentioned | D．doubted |
| A．sleep | B．cry | C．move | D．recover |
| A．ran over | B．went by | C．carried | D．hit |
| A．remembered | B．continued | C．prepared | D．managed |
| A．witnessed | B．recorded | C．praised | D．understood |
| A．appeared | B．reacted | C．escaped | D．interrupted |
| A．delay | B．accident | C．mistake | D．experience |
| A．airport | B．hospital | C．school | D．police |
| A．happy | B．fortunate | C．touched | D．sorry |
| A．survive | B．retire | C．relax | D．succeed |
| A．project | B．trip | C．dinner | D．duty |
| A．bravery | B．skill | C．quality | D．knowledge |
| A．necessary | B．easy | C．different | D．free |
5 . It is hard to say the first day of school in the United States because when the first day of school is and what happens on the first day of school usually are different by districts（地区）.
The first day of school for many school districts in different states is on the day after the first Monday in September. In some other school districts, school begins in mid-to-late August. For example, the Denver, Colorado schools go back in mid-August and schools in Cleveland, Ohio start back usually one week before the first Monday in September. The Boston, Chicago, New York City and San Diego schools start back on the Tuesday or Wednesday after the first Monday in September.
Schools in Cleveland, Ohio used to start the school year on the day after the first Monday in September, but in the 1976-1977 and 1977-1978 academic years, the school year was affected by several bad snowstorms, extreme cold. In the 1978-1979 school year, the Ohio Department of Education moved the start of the year to late August, one week before the first Monday in September. This went into effect in the 1980-1981 school year.
In most school districts in Utah, the school year starts between August 25 and August 30, and goes until the last week of May or the first week in June next year.
In American high schools, the freshmen class usually goes back one or two days before the rest of the school body for an orientation（迎新）period. An orientation period helps the freshmen get familiar with their new school, its rules, and surroundings.
In some schools, the freshmen classes have their photographs taken for identification purposes. Some high schools have tried to make the first week of school fun for incoming freshmen.
1. According to the passage, which schools start their school year the earliest?| A．Schools in Denver. |
| B．Schools in Cleveland. |
| C．Schools in New York City. |
| D．Schools in Boston. |
| A．Because of some political events. |
| B．Because of the entrance examinations. |
| C．Because of the increasing number of students. |
| D．Because of the extreme weather. |
| A．About seven months. |
| B．About eight months. |
| C．About nine months. |
| D．About ten months. |
| A．a book about one's life story |
| B．an official website of education |
| C．an advertisement in a newspaper |
| D．a sports magazine |
For the past few years, several Internet buzzwords (流行语) have gone popular, “
“I still remember some 10 years ago, my weekends were spent
Such a phenomenon is very common in our competitive society. Many parents are extremely afraid that their children will get off to a slow start, so they would rather do
7 . Farming and Gardening
Agriculture has a long history in China. Much of the wisdom
Around 540 AD, he wrote a book called Qimin Yaoshu.The book is about both farming and
Other scientists said that wheat should be planted with
| A．recovered | B．discovered | C．reported | D．impressed |
| A．research | B．theory | C．experiment | D．statistics |
| A．adventure | B．experience | C．tradition | D．association |
| A．nursing | B．producing | C．gardening | D．trading |
| A．programs | B．topics | C．events | D．subjects |
| A．grow | B．mix | C．drop | D．throw |
| A．results | B．bonds | C．hopes | D．dreams |
| A．application | B．situation | C．combination | D．condition |
| A．gently | B．carefully | C．gradually | D．frequently |
| A．loosen | B．relieve | C．remove | D．lower |
| A．surround | B．enhance | C．change | D．improve |
| A．one after another | B．now and then | C．year after year | D．here and there |
| A．harvest | B．collect | C．generate | D．export |
| A．layers | B．patterns | C．balance | D．space |
| A．decided | B．bet | C．intended | D．showed |
An article describing the attitude of post-1990s generations toward life has
“It is fine to have something or not, there is no need to fight for or win anything, and they are easy
The phrase has been received well by netizens
9 . If you want to travel on holiday, the very first question you must ask is, “How much is it going to cost?” With little money, you are not going to get very far.
However, it seems that many young people have found a different way to see the world. They usually come from a western country and are from well-off families. They pay for a flight from their home to an Asian country, and then try to beg for money once they arrive.
It is now quite usual to see begpackers sitting on the streets in some of Asia’s popular shopping districts.
In many Asian countries, poverty is never far away. Citizens of popular holiday destinations are asking why visitors arrive on their streets and expect the locals to pay for their travels. When these locals want to travel to a western country, they have to prove that they have enough money to travel.
There have been recent reports that some countries are beginning to tire of begpackers. A law was passed in Thailand recently. The local government can now take action against any foreigner begging on the street.
| A．It’s so unfair. |
| B．Something similar has happened in Indonesia. |
| C．Backpacking costs a traveller a lot of money. |
| D．They carry with them handwritten cards asking for help. |
| E．But backpacking is a very popular and inexpensive way to travel. |
| F．In other words, they want the locals to pay for the rest of their trip. |
| G．Don’t let a little thing like money stand in between you and your dream trip. |
10 . The biggest and the smallest of the world’s animals are most at risk of dying out, according to a new analysis, with vertebrates (脊椎动物) in the so-called “Goldilocks zone”—not too big and not too small—winning out. Action is needed to protect animals at both ends of the scale, they say. The research adds to evidence that animals are dying out on such a scale that a sixth extinction is considered under way.
One clue is body size. Research on birds and mammals has shown that those with larger bodies are more likely to go extinct. Yet, when the researchers made a database of thousands of birds, mammals, fish, amphibians (两栖动物) and reptiles (爬行动物) at risk of extinction, they found disproportionate (不成比例的) losses at the large and small ends of the scale.
“Surprisingly, we found that not only the largest of all vertebrate animal species are most threatened, but the very tiniest ones are also highly threatened with extinction,” Prof. Ripple told BBC News.
Large animals, such as elephants, rhinos (犀牛) and lions have long been the target of protection efforts. However, fish, birds, reptiles and amphibians that are the giants of their kind, such as the whale shark, Somali ostrich (鸵鸟) and the Chinese giant salamander (蝾螈), tend to be overlooked. Meanwhile, small species at risk--such as frogs and shrews (鼩鼱)--receive very little attention.
“I think, for the smallest species, first of all we need to bring higher awareness to them, because the larger ones get a lot of attention, but the smaller ones get very little,” said Prof. Ripple.
In the study, vertebrates with the smallest and the largest bodies were found to be most at risk of disappearing, whether they were on land or living in oceans, streams or rivers.
Heavyweights are threatened mainly by hunting, while featherweights are losing out to pollution and cutting down forests. “Ultimately, reducing global consumption of wild meat is a key step to reduce negative impacts of hunting, fishing, and trapping on the world’s vertebrates,” they write in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
1. What made the researchers feel surprised?| A．A sixth of animals are dying out. |
| B．Small animals are in great danger. |
| C．Great losses of birds and mammals. |
| D．Big animals are at risk of disappearing. |
| A．Transform our habits. | B．Change our concepts. |
| C．Find ways to save small animals. | D．Take measures to stop pollution. |
| A．Loss of forests. | B．Climate change. |
| C．Human activities. | D．Environmental pollution. |
| A．Size Matters When It Comes to Extinction Risk |
| B．Large Animals Are Badly in Need of Protection |
| C．Why a Great Number of Animals Are Dying out |
| D．What We Should Do to Protect Endangered Species |
