— We are too busy to take ________ holiday at ________ present.

　— But I think we’ll be able to take ________ two weeks from now.

A. a ; / ; one　　    B. the ; / ; that　　   C. a ; the ; it　　   D  a; / ; it

 

Bum rate is the speed at which a startup business consumes money. My rate would be $ 50,000 a month when my new media company started. So, I began looking around for individuals who would be my first investors. “Angel money” it was called. But when I reviewed my list of acquaintances to find those who might be able to help, I found the number got small.

　　With no other choices, I began meeting with the venture-capital companies. But I was warned they took a huge share of your company for the money they put in. And if you struggled, they could drop you cold.

　　As I was searching for “angel money”, I started to build a team who trusted me even though I didn't have money for paychecks yet.

　　Bill Becker was an expert in computer programming and image processing at a very famous Media Lab at M. I.T. With his arrival, my company suddenly had a major technology “guy” in-house.

　　Katherine Henderson, a filmmaker and a former real-estate dealer, joined us as our director of market research. Steve White came on as operating officer. He had worked for the developer of a home-finance software, Quicken. We grabbed him.

　　We had some really good people, but we still didn't have enough money. One night, my neighbor, Louise Johnson, came for a visit. She and I were only nodding acquaintances, but her boys and ours were constant companions. She ran a very good business at the time.

　　Louise was brilliant and missed nothing. She had been watching my progress closely. She knew I was dying for money and I had prospects but could offer no guarantees of success.

　　She told me that her attorney had talked to mine and the terms had been agreed upon. She handed me an envelope. Inside was a check for $ 500,000.

　　I almost fell down. I heard her voice as if from heaven.

　　“I have confidence in your plan,” she said. “You' 11 do well. You're going to work hard for it, but it' s satisfying when you build your own company.”

　　Who would have thought I'd find an angel so close to home? There were no words sufficient for the moment. We just said good night. She left and I just stood there, completely humbled and completely committed.

1.For a newly-established business, bum rate refers to___________.

A. the salary it pays to its staff

B. the interest it pays to the bank

C. the way in which it raises capital

D. the speed at which it spends money

2.By "Angel money", the author refers to__________.

A. the money borrowed from banks

B. the money spent to promote sales

C. the money raised from close friends

D. the money needed to start a business

3.To get help from a venture-capital company, you may have to__________.

A. put up with unfair terms　         B. change your business line

C. enlarge your business scope      　D. let them operate your business

4.The author easily built a team for his company because__________.

A. they were underpaid at their previous jobs

B. they were turned down by other companies

C. they were confident of the author and his business

D. they were satisfied with the salaries in his company

5.Louise decided to lend money to the author because__________.

A. she wanted to join his company

B. she knew he would build a team

C. she knew his plan would succeed

D. she wanted to help promote his sales

 

第二部分 阅读（共两节，满分80分）

第一节：阅读理解（共35小题；每小题2分，满分70分）

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从21~55各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C、D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

　　August has always been difficult for me. It is the time when I realize that the books my English teacher assigned to me are not going to read themselves and that I have a difficult month in front of me.

　　You might think that I don’t want to spend my summer reading, but that’s not the problem: I love reading. On the first day of my summer holidays this year, I went to the library and got “A Gathering of Old Men” by African-American writer Ernest Gaines. I enjoyed it very much. I read all the magazines that my parents subscribe to and spend about 30 minutes every day with the morning paper. So why do I hate summer reading for school? Because the books on summer reading lists are often slow-going and just uninviting. Teachers and librarians don’t understand that summer reading can be entertaining as well as educational. They choose books that a friend of my mother’s calls “spinach books”: good for you, but not much fun to take in. Every summer, I read them, hate them and get bitter about the experience.

　　This bitterness started three years ago when I was about to begin high school. As preparation, my English teacher told me to read “The Age of Innocence” by American author Edith Wharton. I’m sure there are many people who enjoyed “The Age of Innocence” — some might even say it’s their favorite book.

　　But I don’t think any of these people read it as a 14-year-old boy on his summer vacation.

　　“The Age of Innocence” is the story of a forbidden romance in New York 100 years ago. At 14, my only experience with romance was my love for baseball. I couldn’t imagine being in love, much less being in love in 1900. “The Age of Innocence” was totally different to my life.

　　Most of my required summer reading has been like that — books written in a style that plays up the adjectives and plays down the verbs. I guess teachers don’t think exciting plots make for “good literature”. To me, though, a good writer describes events and characters in a way that makes the reader want to know what happens next.

　　If I were making up a summer reading list, it would include “The Friends of Eddie Coyle” by George V. Higgins, “The Right Stuff” by Tom Wolfe, and “Into Thin Air” by Jon Krakauer. These are all books that have literary value but, just as important, can also entertain kids on vacation. If the teachers could stand a little fun in the books they assign, my Augusts would be a lot more enjoyable.

1. The author thinks he will have a difficult August because ____________.

A. he doesn’t like reading in summer vacation

B. he is to read the books boring and not right for kids

C. he hates the English teacher assigning homework

D. he hates August

2. What can make students interested in August reading ought to be ___________.

A. romantic                                                      B. out of date

C. entertaining and educational                            D. pure

3. The author listed such books as “The Friends of Eddie Coyle” because he thinks __________.

A. they can change his opinion                            B. he can learn a lot more from them

C. they are of literary value, and enjoyable    D. he has to do as teachers tell him to

4. In the opinion of the author of this passage, a good writer should be ___________.

A. one who describes events and characters in different ways

B. one who is full of imagination         

C. one who is learned

D. one who uses a way of describing that makes the reader wish to know what to happen next

5. Which of the following could be the best title of this passage?

A. Why Can’t Teachers Set Us Fun Books?

B. I Don’t Like Reading on the Vacation

C. Teachers, Don’t Set Us Any Reading Assignments

D. Teachers, Set Us Free

 

 —Will you attend the meeting this afternoon?　　

—But I ________ told anything about it.

　 A. wasn't　　　 B. am not       C. haven't been　　 D. won’t be

 

　　------ Alice, you feed the bid today, _______ ?

　　------ But I fed it yesterday .

　　A. do you  B. will you   C. didn't you    D. don't you