阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项。

I had to knock on the taxi to get his attention． Finally， the driver， a man about 60，looked up from behind the wheel and apologized，“I’m sorry， but I was reading a letter．” He sounded as if he had a cold or a cough．

Since I was in no hurry， I told him to finish his letter． He shook his head， explaining that he had already read it several times and almost knew it by heart． Curious， I asked whether it was from a child or maybe a grandchild． “This isn’t family，”he replied． “though he might just as well have been a regular member of the family． Old Edand I grew up together．”

They were always friends． But since he moved away from the neighborhood 30 years ago， it’d generally just been postcards at Christmas time between them． A couple of weeks ago， Ed died． “I should have kept in touch．” He repeated this， more to himself than to me． To comfort him， I said sometimes we just didn’t seem to find the time．“But we used to find the time，” he said． “Take a look．” He handed the letter over to me．

The first sentence “I’ve been meaning to write for some time， but I’ve always delayed it．” reminded me of myself． It went on to say that he often thought about the good times they had had together． When I read the part where it said “Your friendship really means a lot to me， more than I can say because I’m not good at saying things like that”，I found myself nodding in agreement．

We had gone several kilometers and were almost at my hotel, so I read the last paragraph: “So I thought you’d like to know that I was thinking of you.” And it was ended with “Your Old Friend, Tom.”

“I thought your friend’s name was Ed,” I said.

“I’m Tom,” he explained. “It’s a letter I wrote to Ed before I knew he’d died. I never put it in the mailbox. I guess I should have written it sooner.” His face was pale as he wiped his eyes with a handkerchief.

When I got to my hotel room I didn’t unpack right away． I had to write a letter and post it．

1.Who wrote the letter？

A． Tom

B． Old ED．

C． The author．

D． The driver’s grandchild．

2.It can be inferred from the passage that the driver regretted_____．

A． missing Ed’s funeral

B． moving away from his neighborhood

C． forgetting to send Ed Christmas cards

D． not being able to keep in touch with Ed

3.From Paragraph 4，we learn that the author _______．

A． often fails to write to his friends

B． has no intention to write to his friends

C． had many great moments with his friends

D． was good at expressing his feelings to friends

4.What message does the passage probably try to convey？

A． Comfort your friends when they are feeling down．

B． Life is unpredictable so live each day as if it were your last．

C． Remember to always mail your letters after expressing your words．

D． Always make time to value and experience your lasting friendships．

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。

1.People traveled in search of food and shelter or in order to flee from their enemies． Sometimes they were looking for gold or silver in order to become rich． On other occasions they were searching for rich farmland．

This is not to say that no one ever traveled just for fun． Even in ancient times， some pleasure travel occurred． During a typical season，700，000 tourists would crowd into the ancient city of Rome， where animals performed and magicians entertained them．2.__

3.International tourist arrivals alone reached as many as 546 million in 1994 and are forecast to rise to 937 million in 2010，according to the World Trade Organization．

4.Probably the most common reason for traveling is related to our physical wellbeing． Actually， traveling to sports events is one of the fastest growing types of travel． In our fast developing society where stress has become part of people's life， people can rest and relax by having a change of environment and activities．

5.No one seems to doubt that travel broadens the mind． In 18th century Europe， young men would go on a Grand Tour to various countries in order to complete their education． Today the desire to travel to different countries is encouraged by modern mass media． People who travel to other countries can at the same time learn more about their own country and culture．

A． Throughout history， most travel was not for pleasure．

B． But why do people like traveling so much？

C． So they travel to a lake for a swim or a park for a bike．

D． The improvement in transportation has also encouraged people to travel．

E． Wealthy Romans made trips to Greece to take part in the Olympic Games．

F． The growth of tourism has become a modern phenomenon experienced by all countries in the world．

G． Another important reason for traveling is to satisfy our curiosity about different places and cultures．

Consumer electronics once again topped the list of the most wanted gifts this holiday season．“Seventy-six percent of consumers who plan to buy holiday gifts say that they will spend money buying at least one technology product; definitely a solid vote of confidence for technology．” Steve Koenig is with the Consumer Electronics Association． He says the group’s latest research also shows that Americans this year are spending more on technology products．

“Here in 2012，$252 on average–the technology spend for consumers this year．” From tablet computers to smart phones， American shoppers have been lining up to get the newest and coolest electronic devices on the market． There are more choices today than ever before．“It’s kind of hard to make a decision．”

Tablet computers are one of the best-selling products this year． Brian Tong is Senior Editor of CNET． com． The website reports on tech news and examines the latest electronic products． He says the Apple iPad Mini is one of the most popular tablets． Its starting price is $329．One of Apple’s biggest competitors is the Google Nexus 7．It starts at $199．

“The hardware inside is more powerful than what’s in the iPad Mini， but also it offers you a lot of things like maps that work better than Apple’s maps．” Brian Tong says there is one reason why people may like the iPad Mini more than the Nexus 7．“If you just want to read books and surf the Internet， you don’t really need to get an iPad Mini， but if you want the largest group of apps that’s where the iPad and Apple’s ecosystem shines the most．”

Elman Chacon is with the electronics store Best Buy．He says another hot product this season is smart cameras． They connect to the Internet through Wi-Fi． This makes it easy for users to email or upload photographs directly from the camera． “You can literally take a picture， upload it into your Facebook in a matter of seconds． These things are pretty cool because they do a lot of things．”

Streaming media boxes also connect to the Internet．People are able to watch web content such as movies and YouTube videos on their televisions．Another popular item is wireless speaker systems．The newest ones work with any device that has Bluetooth technology，including smart phones，laptops and tablets．

With the growing popularity of Internet shopping，many consumers will visit a store first to look at a product，and then go online to find it at a lower price．Stores like Best Buy understand that and they want to stay competitive．

“We have something called the perfect match promise which means if you buy a certain device and you find it cheaper within 30 days we’ll go ahead and price match that for you．” Elman Chacon said．

1.According to Brain Tong，________．

A． the Apple’s iPad Mini is more suitable for enthusiastic readers

B． the hardware in iPad Mini is more advanced than that in Nexus 7

C． iPad Mini is more eco-friendly

D． Nexus 7 has fewer apps than iPad Mini

2.If you’ve discovered that a certain device you bought at Best Buy is more expensive than one at another store，________．

A． you are sure to get double the amount you paid

B． the store will return the price differences

C． you can return the device and get your money back

D． the store will lower the price within 30 days

3.Which of the following would be the best gift for a cab driver？

A． Smart cameras．

B． Streaming media boxes．

C． Tablet computers．

D． Wireless speaker systems．

4.What is true about the smart cameras？

A． To show the varieties of products

B． The smart cameras are more powerful

C． It can make the users upload their photographs easily

D． The smart cameras makes it more convenient to go on Internet

5.From the passage ，we can infer _______．

A． Electronics have become one of the biggest consumer industries in the US．

B． There are many electronics in the United States．

C． The US becomes the Number One electronics consumers．

D． We can buy much cheaper products in US．

The result of the study indicated that it was the type of fat, ______ is often the case, ________ made the difference.
A． as; that B． which; what

C． that; who D． which; that

— Jessie, it’s a pity you didn’t go shopping online on Nov.11th．It was really fantastic!
— Really? If I ________ so busy, I would have shopped for fun too.
A． shouldn’t be B． weren’t

C． hadn’t been D． wouldn’t be

We need a logo that will be the perfect symbol of our new Wheelsville Skate Park． We would like those of you who are counting the days until the opening of the park to design a proper logo.
LOGO REQUIREMENTS
?Designs must be original and easy to recognize.
?They should include no more than two colors in addition to black and white.
?Artwork should be reproducible at different sizes from business cards to posters.
?The words “ Wheelsville Skate Park” must appear in the logo.
SUBMISSION (提交) DETAILS
?Competitors are required to be 18 years old or younger.
?There is no limit to the number of submissions.
?The name and address of the designer must appear on the back of the logo design.
?Competitors need to include a one-page written explanation describing the key features of the design.
?All submissions sent to Wheelsville Skate Park will not be returned.
?All works must be sent to skateman4x@comlink.com no later than May 15.
?Files (文件) should be .jpg, .gif, .png, .pict, or Photoshop files.
?The winning design will be posted on our website at www.wheelsville.skatepark.com on May 20, one week before the opening celebration.
PRIZES
?First Prize: Digital camera, one-year pass to Wheelsville Skate Park, and two T-shirts with the prize-winning logo.
?Second Prize: Six-month pass to Wheelsville Skate Park and a T-shirt with the prize-winning logo.
?Honorable Mention: One free ticket to Wheelsville Skate Park and a T-shirt with the prize-winning logo to two competitors from grades 6–8, and two from grades 9–12.
JUDGES
?Among the judges are a professional designer, two technology teachers, four local skaters, and three members of Wheelsville Skate Park Board of Directors.
?The judges’ decisions are final.
1.In Paragraph 1, the underlined part “ counting the days” suggests a feeling of ________.
A． nervousness
B． amusement
C． excitement
D． uncertainty
2.Why does the following logo design show a misunderstanding of the rules?

A． It does not use the full park name.
B． It is not as big as it is expected.
C． It does not use three colors.
D． It just shows a skateboard.
3.As the top winner of the activity, you may ________.
A． win a camera and a free ticket to the park
B． get a T-shirt with your own photo on it
C． visit the park free of charge for one year
D． receive a half-a-year pass to the park
4.The text is probably a(n) ________.
A． news report
B． advertisement
C． lesson plan
D． travel guide

阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（不多于3个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
For certain reasons I 1.(stay) with relatives currently, and in their living room sits a piano which is my favourite musical instrument.
As 2.child I started learning to play the piano but soon decided to stop so that I could concentrate more3.my studies．This is one of my biggest regrets．Every year I would say, “I’m going back to it soon” but I never managed to．Some years later, my teacher 4. had taught me to play the piano died．I was heartbroken.
5.(sit) sat their piano, I think of the times when I used to practice．One time my teacher hugged me after I played an entire sheet of music6.(correct) in front of her colleagues．I was so 7.(embarrass) but her efforts to comfort me helped in easing the shame．These occurrences, good or bad, never decrease my desire 8.(play) the piano．I still want to make music.
This 9.(think) then leads me to think that life is like music．Sometimes the music10.
(produce) is perfect while other times we are out of tune．However, we all coutinue to create our own unique style of music．

完形填空。

There are many brands of chocolate．If you love it，you can’t forget DOVE --the most famous chocolate brand．But do you know what the meaning of DOVE is?

Dove chocolate is born because of．One day in 1919 Princess Bazaar of Luxembourg's royal family first met the royal kitchen helper Leon．Many nights Leon slipped into the kitchen and various ice creams for Bazaar．They soon fell in love．Unfortunately owing to their quite different social ，both of them had to the deep feelings in heart．

Afterwards Bazaar was made to an arranged royal marriage against her wishes．For many days Leon could not see Bazaar，and he was burning with ．Finally Bazaar turned up at the table a month later．While serving desserts，Leon the letters "DOVE" which is an abbreviation of DO YOU LOVE ME with hot chocolate on Bazaar's ice cream．Leon that Bazaar could understand his feeling．

A few days later，Bazaar got．Leon，broken-hearted，could not the mental suffering and left for America，where he and his own family a candy store years later but lived unhappily．

Many years later，they met again before Bazaar’s death．Bazaar that she did eat the ice cream that afternoon but didn't see the letters and also didn't receive any promise from Leon and she had to to her fate and missed him all her lifetime．

Hearing this，Leon broke down in tears．If that chocolate had been，those letters would never have melted and he would not have lost his last．Leon decided to create a solid chocolate which can a long time．

After lots of research，he succeeded and each piece of chocolate was engraved(刻) with the letters –DOVE．It is a of the love between Leon and Bazaar．

Now more and more people fall in love with this chocolate．Giving someone DOVE means sending the of love DO YOU LOVE ME?

1.A． anger B． sorrow C． love D． envy

2.A． served B． made C． drew D． heated

3.A． opinion B． view C． attitude D． status

4.A． discover B． forget C． bury D． struggle

5.A． know B． accept C． try D． practise

6.A． sympathy B． impatience C． joy D． humor

7.A． mixed B． sent C． wrote D． pressed

8.A． allowed B． promised C． declared D． expected

9.A． married B． sick C． bored D． changed

10.A． repeat B． bear C． reduce D． keep

11.A． supported B． found C． ran D． sold

12.A． learned B． recalled C． heard D． believed

13.A． annoying B． confusing C． interesting D． melting

14.A． give in B． give up C． give out D． give away

15.A． powerful B． liquid C． solid D． frozen

16.A． belief B． promise C． courage D． chance

17.A． eat B． preserve C． miss D． sell

18.A． quickly B． happily C． firmly D． lightly

19.A． symbol B． sign C． survey D． study

20.A． story B． secret C． rumor D． whisper

Here is the tour that's voted “3rd best tour in London” on the Best Things to Do－TripAdvisor! Hairy Goat is the best and most original tour company in London．

Do you like walking around a city and discovering something that makes a great photo? London is full of interesting photo chances and maybe you need someone to lead you to them．The tour is perfect for team events，families，groups of friends and school or college classes．

Bring A fully charged camera and plenty of memory cards or film，a drink and wear comfortable walking shoes．Dress for three hours' walking outside．

Price ￡45 per adult (18yrs and over)，￡40 per child (12-15yrs) and full-time students (student ID required)．Some tours to be booked and paid in advance．Please call or email for details．Please follow the links on the website or call Corinna at +44(0)7540832771．

Meet in front of the Royal Exchange Building at Bank Underground Station．Take Exit 3 or 4 from the underground station．

When See the website for scheduled dates．

Duration Three hours，at a comfortable walking pace．

Finish By an underground station within the city．Location varies daily．

1.A family of four，including a son of 19 and a daughter of 13，should pay ________．

A．￡180

B．￡160

C．￡170

D．￡175

2.According to the passage，the tour．

A． is intended for individuals only

B． offers chances to take great photos

C． has been voted the best tour in London three times

D． takes three hours on a sightseeing vehicle

3.According to the passage，which statement is NOT true?

A． Hairy Goat organizes the tour．

B． The tour finishes at the same location every day．

C． People can go through the website to find the date．

D． All the tours are not to be booked in advance．