阅读理解

　　In the past, Americans used to think of the United States as a“melting pot”of immigrants(移民) from many different cultures to the United States, their old ways melted away and they became part of a completely new culture. The United States was likened to a big pot of soup, which had bits of flavor(味道，滋味) from each different culture. All of the different cultures were so well blended(混合，掺杂) together that it formed its own new flavor.

　　Today, Americans realize that the simple“melting pot”theory is less true. Instead, different groups of people keep many of their old customs. Often groups of Americans from the same culture band together. They live together in distinctive communities, such as“Chinatowns”or“Little Italy”--areas populated almost exclusively(惟一，仅) by Americans of a single ethnic group--which can be found in many large American cities. Living in ethnic neighborhoods gives new Americans the security of sharing a common language and common traditions with people who understand them.

　　In time, however, people from different backgrounds mix together. They also mix with native-born Americans. Old traditions give way to new customs. The children of immigrants are often eager to adopt new, American ways. They often want to dress in American fashions, to speak English and to follow American social customs. By one estimate(估计), about 80 percent of European immigrants marry outside their own ethnic groups by the time they reach the third generation. Third generation means that their great-grandparents were immigrants. Yet as successive generations become more“Americanized”, they often retain significant elements of their ethnic heritage.

1．Ｗhat does the text mainly talk about?

[　　]

A．The American way of life.

B．Immigrants vs．native-born Americans.

C．Old traditions vs．new customs.

D．The multi-cultural heritage of the United States.

2．Why does the author mention“Chinatowns”in the 2nd paragraph?

[　　]

A．To give an example that many people keep their old customs.

B．To show that Chinese cherish their old traditions.

C．To contrast(对比) the Chinese way of life with that of the Italian's.

D．To give an example of the Americanization(美国化).

3．The underlined word“ethnic”in the last sentence most probably means _____.

[　　]

A．moral　　　　B．national

C．cultural　　　D．social

4．The underlined word“Americanized”generally means _____.

[　　]

A．immigrants who still retain their tradition, but behave like Americans in some ways

B．immigrants who still retain their own language, but speak English sometimes

C．immigrants who reject the traditions of their parents, and accept Western culture only

D．immigrants, naturalized by native American culture, in character, way of thinking etc. though still retaining some ethnic heritage

“Long time no see!” is a very interesting sentence. When I first read this sentence from an American friend’s email, I laughed. I thought it was a typical 　1 of Clingfish.

Obviously it is a word-by-word literal translation of the Chinese greeting with a 　2 English grammar and structure! Later on, my friend told me that it is a standard American 　3 .

I was 　4 thrilled to believe her. Her words could not convince me at all. So I did a 　5 on Google. To my surprise, there are over 60 thousand web pages 　6 “Long time no see”. This sentence has been 　7 used in emails, letters, newspapers, 　8 , or any other possible place. Though it is sort of informal, it is part of the language 　9 Americans use daily. However, if you type this phrase in Microsoft Word, the 　10 will tell you that the grammar needs to be corrected.

Nobody knows the origin of this Clingfish sentence. Some people believe that it came from Charlie Chan’s movies. In 1910s, Hollywood moviemakers successfully created a world wide famous Chinese detective named “Charlie Chan” on wide screens. Detective Chan liked to teach Americans some Chinese wisdom by 　11 Confucius(孔子). “Long time no see” was his trademark. Soon “Long time no see” became a 　12 phrase in America thanks to the popularity of these movies.

Some people 　13 America to a huge melting pot(大熔炉). All kinds of culture are mixed in the pot together, and they 　14 the color and taste of each other. American Chinese, though a minority ethnic group in the United States, is also contributing some changes to be 　15 in the mixed pot. 　

1．　A example 　　　　　　　　 B. sign 　　　　　　　 C. word　 　　　　　　　　 D. change

2．　A. correct　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. practical　　　　　 C. ruined 　　　　　　　　　 D. handy

3．　A. custom 　　　　　　　　 B. greeting 　　　　 C. habit　 　　　　　　　　　 D. proverb

4．　A. \　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. little　　　　　　　　 C. too 　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. very

5．　A. job　 　　　　　　　　　　 B. research 　　　　 C. survey　 　　　　　　　 D. search

6．　A. containing 　　　　　　 B. printing 　　　　 C. publishing 　　　　　　 D. expressing

7．　A. widely　 　　　　　　　 B. hardly　 　　　　 C. seldom　 　　　　　　　 D. search

8．　A. essays　　　　　　　　　　 B. movies 　　　　　 C. biography　　　　　　　　 D. files

9．　A. what　　　　　　　　　　　 B. how　　　　　　　　 C. whether　　　　　　　　　 D. that

10．A. hardware 　　　　　　　　　　 B. software 　　　 C. operator 　　　　　　　 D. speaker

11．A. quoting 　　　　　　　　　 B. quoted 　　　　　　 C. having quoted 　　　　 D. being quoted

12．A. ordinary 　　　　　　　 B. rare 　　　　　　　 C. modern　 　　　　　　　 D. popular

13．A. compare 　　　　　　　 B. add 　　　　　　　 C. join 　　　　　　　　　　 D. owe

14．A. improve 　　　　　　　 B. change 　　　　　 C. lower 　　　　　　　　　 D. promote

15．A. influenced　 　　　　　 B. mentioned 　　 C. used　 　　　　　　　　　 D. considered

‘Long time no see’ is a very interesting sentence. When I first read this sentence from an American friend’s E-mail, I 　36 . I thought it was a classic example of Chinglish.

　 Obviously, it is a word-to-word 　37 translation of the Chinese greetings with a ruined English structure and grammar! Later on, my friend told me that it is a standard American greeting. I had too many 　38 to believe her. Her words were not convincing enough. So I did a 　39 on google.com. To my surprise, there are over 60 thousand web pages 　40 ‘Long time no see’. This sentence has been 　41 used in E-mails, letters, newspapers, movies, books or any other possible place. Though it is 　42 informal, it is part of the language Americans use daily. Ironically(讽刺地说), if you type this sentence in Microsoft Word, the 　43 will tell you that the grammar needs to be corrected.

　 Nobody knows the 　44 of this Chinglish sentence. Some people believe that it came from Charlie Chan’s movies. In the 1930s, Hollywood moviemakers successfully 　45 a world wide famous Chinese detective named ‘Charlie Chan’ on wide screens. Detective Chan liked to teach Americans some Chinese wisdom 　46 using what Confucius said. ‘Long time no see’ was his trademark. 　47 Charlie Chan, ‘Long time no see’ became a popular phrase in the real world thanks to the popularity of the movies.

　 Some people 　48 America to a huge melting pot（大熔炉）. All kinds of culture are 　49 in the pot together, and then change the color and taste of each other. American Chinese though a minority ethnic group in the United States, has also contributed some changes to the stew（大杂烩）! Language is usually the first thing to be 　50 in the mixed pot.

BEIJING — China's education authority will tighten the widely criticized policy of “extra credits” for the national college entrance examination to ensure a fairer chance for all exam-takers.

Under the policy, high school students who win awards in national Olympic competitions could get ‘‘extra credits’，up to 20 points for the national college entrance exam. Students with talent in sports and students who are from ethnic groups can also benefit from this policy. The extra credits have increased these students' chances of being admitted by famous universities. Some parents were found to have helped their children fabricate(伪造)award experiences or falsify qualifications to get extra credits.

“It has harmed education equality，” the ministry said.

Xiong Bingqi, vice-chief of the 21st Century Education Research Institute, said the policy is designed to help students who have special talents but may be weak in academic performance to have a chance to receive higher education. uIt will still be needed but it is time to make the rules fairer," he said.

The ministry said it will reduce the range of competitions whose winners can get extra credits, and limit the winners, privileges(优先权).

The new policy will apply to students who begin high school in 2011, it said.

Chen Lei, a mother of a 10-year-old girl, said she welcomed the ministry's policy adjustment as she does not want her daughter to become an Olympic competition geek.

But not all the Chinese parents welcomed the new policy. “It is like a thunderbolt for me. My - 13-year-old son has spent so much time studying Olympic math，and participated in so many technological competitions during vacations. It is useless now,” said Dong Wen, a 43-year-old mother.

A student said, “Many students have changed the current study plan, and they can abandon the competition. I will be interested in learning the courses which can improve my abilities.”　

Yuan Guiren, minister of education, told China Daily that the reform is an attempt to consider the overall quality of an applicant. “But the country will not stop the national college entrance examination as it is still the most objective way to evaluate talent in China，” lie said.