Laptop computers are popular all over the world. People use them on trains and airplanes, in airports and hotels. These laptops connect people to their workplace. In the United States today, laptops also connect students to their classrooms.
Westlake College in Virginia will start a laptop computer program that allows students to do schoolwork anywhere they want. Within five years, each of the 1,500 students at the college will receive a laptop. The laptops are part of a ＄10 million computer program at Westlake, a 110-year-old college. The students with laptops will also be able to use the Internet. In addition, they will be able to use e-mails to “speak” with their teachers, classmates, and families. However, the most important part of the laptop program is that students will be able to use computers without going to computer labs. They can work with it at home, in a fast-food restaurant or under the trees—anywhere at all!
Because of the many changes in computer technology, laptops used in higher education, such as colleges and universities, are workable. As laptops become more powerful, they become more similar to desktop computers. In addition, the laptops can connect students to not only the Internet, but also libraries and other resources. State higher-education officials are studyinghow laptops can help students. State officials are also testing laptop programs at other universities, too.
At Westlake College, more than 80 percent of the staff use computers. The laptops will allow all teachers to use computers in their lessons. As one Westlake teacher said, “Here we are in the middle of Virginia and we’re giving students a window on the world. They can see everything and do everything.”
【小题1】The main purpose of the laptop program is to give each student a laptop to ________.

A．connect them to the Internet	B．use for their schoolwork
C．work at home	D．connect them to libraries

【小题2】The underlined word “speak” in the 2nd paragraph is in quotation marks(引号) because ________.

A．they don’t really talk	B．they use the computer language
C．laptops have speakers	D．laptops can be used to speak with others

【小题3】Which of the following is True about Westlake College?

A．All teachers use computers.	B．1, 500 students have laptops.
C．Students there can do everything.	D．It is an old college in America.

【小题4】The underlined “a window on the world” in the last paragraph means that students can ________.

A．attend lectures on information technology	B．travel around the world
C．get information from around the world	D．have free laptops

【小题5】What can we infer from the text?

A．The program is successful.	B．The program is not workable.
C．The program is too expensive.	D．The program isn’t accepted by teachers.

It is a common fear among users of Facebook and other social media around the world—how to deal with a friend request from your boss or employee.
A survey released on Thursday found that 56 percent of Americans say it is irresponsible to be friends with a boss and 62 percent say it is wrong to be friends with an employee. But 76 percent believe it is acceptable to be friends with a workplace peer，according to the survey of 1，000 people by Liberty Mutual’s Responsibility Project.
"When the roles change what do you do then? Do you unfriend someone if they have now been promoted to be your boss or if you’re now their boss，”said researcher Kelly Holland. "We get into some really sticky situations there in terms of what people will think is responsible，”she said.
When using social media at work，73 percent say it is not appropriate to update your Facebook status，82 percent say you should not upload photos，72 percent believe tweeting is wrong and 79 percent say it is not acceptable to watch online videos. Yet 66 percent say it is fine to check your personal email while at work.
“When people focus on responsibility，they know what the responsible thing is to do but whether they are doing that in practice or not is a different story,”said Holland.
Americans are split on whether companies should review the social media profiles of job candidates with 52 percent saying it is appropriate and 48 percent saying it is unacceptable. Social media can also lead to some difficult decisions when it comes to family and relationships. Sixty percent of those polled say that it is“completely acceptable" to unfriend an ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfriend. More than 40 percent of parents believe it is irresponsible to post photos of children online. Thirty one percent monitor their children's Facebook accounts and almost 70 percent are friends with their children on Facebook or MySpace. But 72 percent limit the time their children spend on social media networks.
The poll was taken between January 12一15．
【小题1】The text is mainly about________

A．social，family and relationships.	B．ways of making friends
C．not using social media at work	D．action of responsibility

【小题2】 The underlined word "Facebook" in the first paragraph refers to________

A．a book about face	B．an Internet site of making friends
C．a broadcasting media	D．a newspaper or magazine

【小题3】Which the following is TRUE according to the text?

A．thirty one percent of the parents keep watching on their children’s Fecebook accounts.

B．Forty eight percent agree to review the social media profiles of job candidates.

C．Eighty two percent say it isn’t appropriate to upload photos at work.

D．Seventy six percent believe it is acceptable to be friends with employee,

【小题4】 What was the writer’s attitude towards the result of survey?

A．Defensive.

B．Critical.

C．Objective.

D．Doubtful

  Remember how great exercise was when you were a little kid? Back then, racing around the playground or skipping rope for hours, you weren’t thinking fitness, you were thinking entertainment. But in this age of high-tech home equipment and underused gym memberships, the simple joy of jumping rope has been forgotten. Rediscovering it will give you a total-body exercise you can find.
Although considered an excellent form of exercise, jumping rope has never gained widespread acceptance because of two fundamental reasons. First, most people recognize jumping rope as an excellent form of cardiovascular (心血管的) exercise, but they also believe that it is simply too difficult. In other words, they don’t think they’ll be able to continue jumping for the near 20 minutes that it takes to achieve a beneficial physical outcome. Second, many view it as somewhat boring and overly repetitive—not as something fun or enjoyable.
As a matter of fact, jumping rope can be great fun if you find a proper way to practice it. Instead of doing the usual two-foot bounce over and over again, people good at rope-jumping often change their pattern every 10 or 20 jumps. A single bounce, a double–bounce, a skip, a knee-up, side swings, as well as a variety of other easy-to-learn free-style rope-jumping.
Now researchers are learning that jumping rope also prepares the brain for learning. It is an exercise allowing both brain hemispheres to perform in parallel to each other. In short , jumping rope can be a life-long activity requiring little equipment, time and space, yet leading to a much healthier life.
【小题1】 From the first paragraph we learn that         .

A．jumping rope has faded from people’s memories

B．people now have more advanced equipment

C．racing around the playground was preferred

D．people now like to have exercise in a gym

【小题2】 Rope jumping has not spread widely because       .

A．it benefits the cardiovascular system	B．it is neither easy nor enjoyable
C．it is considered boring and repetitive	D．it requires little equipment, time and space

【小题3】 The first sentence in the 3rd paragraph implies         .

A．there is only one proper way to follow	B．the usual way should not be used
C．the easiest way is always the best	D．there are many ways to follow

【小题4】What is the author’s attitude towards rope jumping?

A．He is arguing against it.	B．He is in favor of it.
C．He is sitting on the fence of it.	D．He is not clear about it.

A primary school teacher who left a class of 25 pupils in tears after she told them Santa Claus did not exist has been fired. When excited youngsters became rowdy as they talked about Santa, the supply teacher said out suddenly, "It's your parents who leave out presents on Christmas Day."
The class of seven-year-olds at Blackshaw Lane Primary School, Royton, Greater Manchester burst into tears and told their parents when they arrived home. Mothers and fathers then complained about the incident and were sent a letter by the school saying the teacher, who only worked at the school for one day last week, has been punished.
The school has now said it will not hire her again.
One father said, "My son came home and said that his teacher had told the class that Santa doesn't exist and it’s their mum and dad that put out presents for them. Obviously, they were all talking about Christmas and being a bit rowdy. She just came straight out with it. "
"My son was in tears and so was everyone else in the class — especially as it was so close to Christmas. I thought it was wrong. He was crazy about it. He’s only seven-year-old and it's part of the magic of Christmas to him. "
"We told him that she did not believe in Father Christmas because of her religion and he's fine now."
"The father described the incident as ' shocking' and believed it was done with malicious intent (恶意地). A lot of parents were angry and complained to the school. The teacher, who was supplied by Rochdale and Oldham Supply Agency, is still listed and will work with other schools," the agency said.
However, the head teacher in Angela McCormick refused to comment on the incident.
【小题1】 Who felt the angriest about the incident?

A．The teacher who was fired.	B．The parents whose children cried.
C．The pupils who were in tears.	D．Santa Claus the teacher talked about.

【小题2】 We can infer from the passage that       .

A．the teacher was fired and couldn't continue her career in teaching

B．the parents complained about the discipline of the school

C．the little pupils felt disappointed after hearing the words said by the teacher

D．in reality, Santa Claus exists and gives out presents once a year

【小题3】 What’s the meaning of the underlined word "rowdy"?

A．surprised.

B．noisy.

C．discouraged.

D．annoyed.

Chinese politeness have always been formal to follow strict rules, although sometimes Chinese people seem to be impolite according to Western standards in public places. To well understand Chinese, some concepts should not be ignored.
Mianzi
The idea of shame, usually expressed as 'face' could be loosely defined as the 'status' or 'self-respect' in Chinese and by no means alien to foreigners. It is the worst thing for a Chinese to lose face. Never insult, embarrass, shame, yell at or otherwise demean a person. Since all these actions would risk putting a Chinese in a situation that he might lose face, neither try to prove someone wrong nor shout at him in public. In order to get a successful effect without letting a Chinese lose face, any criticism should be delivered privately, carefully, or else, just opposite to what you wish.
Guanxi
Throughout much of Chinese history, the fundamental glue that has held society together is the concept of guanxi, relationships between people. It is very important for the Chinese to have good relationships. They often regard good social relations as a symbol of personal ability and influence. Someone who has no connections would be disrespected and is only half-Chinese.
Keqi
Keqi not only means considerate, polite, and well mannered, but also represents respect and modesty. It is impolite to talk too proudly about oneself or one's inner circle. The expression is most often used in the negative, as in buyao keqi, meaning "you shouldn't be so kind and polite to me," or "you're welcome."
Besides, Chinese seldom express what they think directly and they prefer a roundabout way. Neither show their emotions and feelings in public. They rarely greet people with a handshake, though it is very popular among foreigners, and say nothing of embracing or kissing when greeting or saying good-bye. Consequently, it is better not to behave too carefree in public, even though you are well-intentioned. Also, it is advisable to be fairly cautious in political discussions. Do not particularly push yourself forward, or else you are unwelcome.
To sum up, do in Rome as Rome does, but you need not worry about these cultural barriers since most Chinese are hospitable and friendly and will not mind your no accomplishment.
【小题1】In most Chinese’s eyes, the fundamental glue holding society together is the idea of ____.

A．relationships between people	B．influences upon others
C．dependence on others	D．kindness to others

【小题2】The underlined word “demean” in the first paragraph means make people _____.

A．respectful

B．happy

C．shameful

D．weak

【小题3】Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

A．It is impolite to insult, embarrass, shame or shout at a person.

B．It is polite that you should bring gifts to others when invited to dinner.

C．It is necessary to show your character of being considerate, polite, and well mannered.

D．It is important for the Chinese to have good relationships between people.

【小题4】 Which of the following proverbs has the same meaning as the underlined sentence “Do in Rome as Rome does.”?

A．Caution is the parent of safety.	B．Many hands make light work.
C．There’s no smoke without fire.	D．If you are elsewhere, live as they do there.

In many parts of the world cars play an essential role in daily life and many societies would stop to function without them. So the claim that in 20 years’ time no one will own cars may be hard to believe. But this is the prediction made by a team of transport researchers who are taken seriously not only by governments but also by car manufacturers.
The Human Science and Advanced Technology Institute at Loughborough in the UK is part of an international research program. The team there believes that by 2020 all cars will be computerized, which will mean extremely large fuel savings, no accidents and better use of roads. The super-intelligent car of the 21st century will drive itself and it will not be owned by on individual. Instead, we will have a choice of cars and change them as frequently as we change our clothing.
According to Dr. David Davis, who leads the research team, these predictions are based on the rising cost of the car culture ,which had blocked up our cities, polluted our air and caused more deaths than both world wars put together.
Davis says cars will be fitted with intelligent cruise control devices to regulate the distance between one car and another. Brakes and accelerators (加速器) will become redundant（多余的） because the car will automatically speed up or slow down to match the speed of the car in front. Computers are much safer drivers than people, so cars in a road train will be able to drive much closer together than cars driven by people.
By 2010 Dr. David Davis believes car technology will give motorists a clear view of the road whatever the weather conditions by projecting an image of the road ahead onto the car’s windscreen. And by 2020 cars will travel in convoy linked to each other electronically. Cars will be connected by an electronic tow(牵引) bar to the car in front to form “road-trains”. “The front vehicle in such a train burns the ordinary fuel” says Davis. “But all the others in the train would burn about ten percent of the normal amount and so produce about ten percent of the pollution.
【小题1】We know from the passage that governments and car manufactures ________.

A．don’t believe the prediction that no one will own cars by 2020.

B．are devoted to the technological innovation (创新) in car industry.

C．consider the predictions made by the researchers seriously.

D．have put the super-intelligent car into mass production.

【小题2】Which of the following will NOT be the characteristics of the cars of 2020 ?

A．There will be no brake and accelerator in cars.

B．We will own as many cars as we want .

C．All cars will be driven by computers.

D．Car accident will no longer happen.

【小题3】The expression closest in meaning to the underlined phrase “ in convoy”(Para 5) is ______.

A．in line

B．sidelong

C．side by side

D．next to one another

【小题4】What will happen if cars are linked to each other electronically in 2020 ?

A．Motorists will get a clear view of the road.

B．The weather conditions won’t have effect on motorists.

C．There will be a decrease in the pollution caused by car .

D．All trains will burn less fuel than present.

Drunken driving — sometimes called America’s socially accepted form of murder — has become a national epidemic (流行病). Every hour of every day about three Americans on average are killed by drunken drivers, adding up to an incredible 250,000 over the past ten years. A drunken driver is usually referred to as one with 0.10-blood alcohol content or roughly three beer glasses of wine or shots of whisky drunk within two hours. Heavy drinking used to be an acceptable part of the American manly image and judges were lenient in most courts, but the drunken killing has recently caused so many well-publicized tragedies, especially concerning young children, that public opinion is no longer so tolerant.
Twenty states have raised the legal drinking age to 21, reversing a trend in the 1960s to reduce it to 18. After New Jersey lowered it to 18, the number of people killed by 18-20 years old drivers more than doubled, so the state recently upped it back to 21.
Reformers, however, fear raising the drinking age will have little effect unless accompanied by educational programs to help young people to develop “responsible attitudes” about drinking and teach them to resist peer pressure to drink.
Though new laws have led to increased arrests and tests in many areas already, to a marked decline in accidents, some states are also punishing bars for serving customers too many drinks. A bar in Massachusetts was fined for serving six or more double brandies to a customer who was “obviously drunk” and later drove off the road, killing a 9-year-old boy.
As the accidents continue to occur daily in every state, some Americans are even beginning to speak well of the 13 years national prohibition of alcohol that began in 1919, which President Hoover called the “noble experiment”. They forgot that legal prohibition didn’t stop drinking, but encouraged political corruption（腐败) and organized crime. As with the booming drug trade generally, there is no easy solution.
【小题1】What can be inferred from the fact of the traffic accidents in New Jersey?

A．many drivers were not of legal age.

B．young drivers were often bad drivers.

C．Drivers should not be allowed to drink.

D．the legal drinking age should be raised.

【小题2】 The underlined word “lenient” in the first paragraph means “_________”.

A．serious

B．cruel

C．merciful

D．determined

【小题3】 In America, public opinion about drunken driving has changed because __________.

A．judges are giving more severe sentences

B．new laws are introduced in some states

C．the news media have highlighted the problem

D．drivers are more conscious of their image

【小题4】 Why is the problem of drinking and driving difficult to solve？

A．Because alcohol is easily obtained.

B．Because drinking is linked to organized crime.

C．Because legal prohibition has already failed.

D．Because making laws alone is not sufficient.

Whenever human populations have lived in forest areas, they have always cut down trees which they used for a number of purposes, for housing and ships and served as a source of heating fuel and timber. Growth of cities often meant expansion into forest areas, while even more trees were removed to provide space for agriculture. With the growing demand for paper, vast quantities of trees have also been cut down for paper production. These factors, along with many others, have been contributing to a dangerous phenomenon known as deforestation.
In the last 5,000 years, humans have reduced forest from roughly 50 percent of the earth’s land surface to less than 20 percent. Most of this original, or old growth, forest cover is concentrated in three large areas: the Canadian and Alaskan boreal forest, the boreal forest of Russia, and the tropical forest of the northwestern Amazon Basin and the Guyana Shield. These areas comprise almost 70 percent of the world’s remaining original forest cover. In most places, the rate of deforestation is increasing, with the alarming result of 16 million hectares disappearing worldwide every year.
Loss of forest does not just mean the decline of natural resources. There are several other factors that make deforestation seriously harmful to both the human and natural worlds. One of them is changes in the global climate. For example, forest clearance is releasing substantial volumes of carbon dioxide (CO₂) into the atmosphere as vegetation is burnt or decays. It has been suggested that this is a significant factor in global warming. Moreover, about 10 percent of the world’s tree species are in danger of extinction as a result of deforestation. Deforestation also threatens biological diversity through the destruction of wildlife habitats, which endangers a number of animal species and leads to their potential disappearance. Species are particularly easy to extinction in tropical rainforests because many species have few individuals per unit area, which makes reproduction more difficult. Finally, since forests play an important role in storing water and stabilizing soil, deforestation and the resulting change in land use cause soil erosion (腐蚀) and other forms of land degradation.
【小题1】The passage discusses all of the following EXCEPT the ________.

A．causes of deforestation	B．consequences of deforestation
C．management of deforestation	D．rate of deforestation

【小题2】   The word “diversity” in the last paragraph probably means “________”.

A．variety	B．expansion
C．development	D．advantage

【小题3】Why does the author mention fuel and timber in Paragraph 1?

A．To explain the rate of deforestation.

B．To compare them with housing and ships.

C．To show the dangers of deforestation.

D．To illustrate the causes of deforestation.

【小题4】Which of the following sentences summarizes Paragraph 3 best?

A．Deforestation threatens biological diversity.

B．Deforestation has many harmful consequences.

C．Deforestation causes changes in global climate.

D．Deforestation should be stopped.

E
Once upon a time in a land far away, there was a wonderful old man who loved everything：animals, spiders, insects...
One day while walking through the woods the nice old man found a cocoon（茧）of a butterfly. He took it home. A few days later, a small opening appeared; he sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no farther. Then the man decided to help the butterfly, so he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon.
The butterfly then emerged（露出）easily.
But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract（收缩） in time. Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings.
It never was able to fly.
What the man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were Nature's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If we were allowed to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been.
And we could never fly.
【小题1】In the story, what happened to the cocoon of the butterfly after the man’s help?

A．The cocoon was broken and the butterfly died.

B．The man helped the butterfly out of the cocoon more easily

C．The butterfly couldn’t fly for ever normally.

D．The butterfly should spend more time practicing flying.

【小题2】What would have happened to the butterfly without the old man’s help?

A．It would have died in the cocoon.

B．It would have become a true butterfly.

C．It would have been strong enough to go farther.

D．It would have stopped struggling through the cocoon.

【小题3】The underlined word “cripple” in Paragraph 7 probably means ______.

A．disable

B．climb

C．enable

D．beat

【小题4】What can we learn from this story?

A．Man can never go against nature.

B．It’s necessary to live with some difficulties.

C．One cannot help others without thinking twice.

D．Mankind should take good care of insects.

D
This brief book is aimed at high school students , but speaks to anyone learning at any stage of life.
Its formal ,serious style closely matches its content ,a school-masterly book on schooling .The author , W .H . Armstrong ,starts with the basics : reading and writing . In his opinion , reading doesn’t just mean recognizing each word on the page ; it means taking in the information, digesting it and incorporating it into oneself just as one digests a sandwich and makes it a part of himself .The goal is to bring the information back to life , not just to treat it as dead facts on paper from dead trees . Reading and writing cannot be completely separated from each other ; in fact ,the aim of reading is to express the information you have got from the text .I’ve seen it again and again ：someone who can’t express an idea after reading a text is just as ineffective as someone who hasn’t read it at all.
Only a third of the book remains after that discussion, which Armstrong devotes to specific tips for studying languages, math, science and history. He generally handles these topics thoroughly and equally, except for some weakness in the science and math sections and a bit too much passion regarding history. Well, he was a history teacher---if conveyed only a tenth of his passion to his students, that was a hundred times more than my history teachers ever got across .To my disappointment, in this part of the book he ignores the arts. As a matter of fact, they demand all the concentration and study that math and science do, though the study differs slightly in kind. Although it’s commonly believed that the arts can only be naturally acquired ,actually ,learning the arts is no more natural than learning French or mathematics.
My other comment is that the text aged. The first edition apparently dates to the 1960s—none of the references(参考文献)seem newer than the late 1950s. As a result, the discussion misses the entire computer age.
These are small points, though, and don’t affect the main discussion. I recommend it to any student and any teacher, including the self-taught student.
【小题1】According to Armstrong, the goal of reading is to________.

A．gain knowledge and expand one’s view

B．understand the meaning between the lines

C．express ideas based on what one has read

D．get information and keep it alive in memory

【小题2】The author of the passage insists that learning the arts_________.

A．requires great efforts

B．demands real passion

C．is less natural than learning math

D．is as natural as learning a language

【小题3】 What is a shortcoming of Armstrong’s work according to the author?

A．Some ideas are slightly contradictory.

B．There is too much discussion on studying science.

C．The style is too serious.

D．It lacks new information.

【小题4】This passage can be classified as________.

A．an advertisement

B．a book review

C．a feature story

D．A news report