The red phone box in Britain is a perfect example of the British traditional culture. However, with the fast development of mobile phones, it has lost its place in people’s everyday life. In order to save their loved red phone boxes, people have come up with many ideas, for example, to turn them into toilets or art houses. 

In a village in Somerset, a place in South West England, villagers have found a new way to save their red phone box. They turned it into a mini library to deal with the shortage of libraries in their area. The idea was given by a local villager, Janet Fisher, who lives opposite the phone box. Villagers got together to set up the book box. Over 100 books and a lot of movies and music CDs are available at this mini library. The books are of different kinds, including from cooking books to the classics and children’s books. People can put the books that they have read inside the phone box, and take away the books that they’d like to read. The books are always changing. There is a regular check on the books to keep the phone box collection fresh.

Anyone is free to come to read books there. The phone box library is open every day around the clock and is lit (the past form of “light”) at night.  “ It’s very pleasing that the red phone box has been saved. More importantly, it can continue providing a service for us,” said one of the villagers.

1.The red phone box has been a symbol of _________.

A．the British culture

B．the European art of building

C．the development of mobile phones

D．British people’s daily life

2. People in Somerset turned the red phone box into a mini library to _________.

A．make it like the new one

B．help solve the shortage of library service

C．provide a place to exchange ideas

D．make the collection of the local library larger

3.Which of the following statements is TRUE about the red phone box?

A．People can borrow books and enjoy the films and CDs there.

B．The library was set up by a local villager living opposite a phone box.

C．The library is open to the public day and night.

D．Regular check is made to keep the books in good order.

 

In Britain, some people say they will do anything if a famous person they love asks them to. One in three people in Britain have a new kind of disease(病)—they love a famous person too much.

Some people love famous stars like Britney Spears, David Beckham or even Tony Blair. It is not just the young, grown-ups have the same problem. One in four people are so interested in their heroes that it affects their life.

There are two ways of worshipping(崇拜) famous people. One way is just to follow them or talk about them with friends for fun. The other is a more serious way. People have very strong feelings for them and think they are their friends. People who do so for fun are found to be happier. But those who have strong feelings for a famous person are perhaps to feel more lonely and worried.

“Worshipping famous people is not certainly a bad thing,” Dr.John, an expert said, “But like many things, overdoing it may not always be good for you.”

阅读上面的短文，从每题所给的四个选项中，选出一个最佳答案。

1.From what some people say, we know         .

A．they are friends of the famous people

B．famous people can pay them a lot of money

C．they must go to the hospital

D．there is something wrong with their mind

2.How many people in Britain have got this kind of disease?

A．About one third	B．About a quarter
C．More than half	D．Just two or three

3.What does the writer think of the two ways of worshipping famous people?

A．The first one is better

B．The second one is better

C．Both of them are good

D．Neither of them is good

4.People who have strong feeling for a famous person often feel worried because           .

A．they cannot become famous themselves

B．they think the famous person may be in trouble

C．they are afraid the famous person may not like them

D．they cannot get anything in return from the famous person

5.Dr. John tells us         .

A．worshipping of famous people is a good thing

B．anything overdone may bring some trouble

C．famous people are not always friendly to us

D．we mustn’t worship anybody or anything

 

Do you think there is too much noise in our city? If you live near an airport，you will be unhappy because of a plane often make a loud noise．The sound of planes or heavy vehicles is likely to cause deafness if heard continuously（不断地）．

However, most people in our city do not seem to mind noise. They like to enjoy music when they are doing uninteresting jobs．It is a new danger because pop music，when played through powerful amplifiers（放大器），can reach 120 decibels（120分贝的）at a distance of five feet．A continuous noise of over 85 decibels can cause deafness．It was discovered that many young people in America could hear no better than 65-year-old people．

In the past we used to think that only workers in very noisy places would become deaf．For example，when newspapers and books are being printed，the noise level is over 85 decibels，and some of the workers become deaf．Today，however，scientists believe that 10 percent of the workers in Britain are being deafened by the noise．

Sometimes noise of less than 85 decibels can make some people tired and stressed．We all know that too much noise makes life difficult and unpleasant．It can do great harm to people's health and prevent people from working well．Workers in noisy offices are not as efficient（效率高的）as those in quiet offices．Noise makes people less efficient．Can anything be done to reduce or control noise?

In Britain the government has made several laws to reduce noise．Though the government has spent a lot of money in making airports and main roads quieter，many people think that there are still not enough laws．For example，there are no laws to control the noise of machines．In Japan，America and Norway there are such laws．As a result，workers can be given compensation（赔偿）if they become deaf．

1.Some workers become deaf because of ________．

A．hard work              B．a continuous noise of over 85 decibels

C. powerful amplifiers    D．uninteresting jobs

2.In Britain there are laws to ________．

A．stop workers from becoming deaf       B．control the noise of machines

C．keep down noise                       D．help deaf workers in need

3.Who can be given compensation if they become deaf?

A．American workers．

B．British workers．

C．Both American workers and British workers．

D．None of the above answers．

 

People from other contries will find many different suprising things in Britain.

Greek: A man from Greece sees a special way of driving in Britain. People drive on the left in the British street, but the British people never feel surprised. The Greek man said,“I’ve been in Britain for nearly a month now. But at first, I couldn’t always remember to drive on the left. Every time,my friend reminded me.”

Japanese:Japanese people can’t ucderstand why British people keep their shoes on at home. In Japan,people walk in the room without shoes. If visitor keeps his shoes on at home in Japan, the Japanese people think he is very impolite.

Spanish:The Spanish people mind the way that the British people greet each other. They themselves seem to be afraid of touching（接触）.When they meet,they just smile or nod but never kiss or hug（拥抱） in Spain. But the British people think kissing is a very usual greeting when they meet!

There is an old saying,“When in Rome,do as Romans do.”When we go to a foreign country, we should follow the etiquette of country.

1.The Greek visitor________.

  A.always drives on the left

  B.used to drive on the left

  C.drove correctly in Britain with his friend’s help

2.______think it’s impolite to wear shoes at home.

  A.The Japanese          B.The Greek           C.The English

3.When greeting,the Spanish _______.

  A.kiss each other         B.hug each other        C.smile at each other

4._____seem not to be afraid of touching each other.

  A.The Spanish           B.The British           C.The Japanese

5.Etiquette in the world______.

  A.is the same            B.is important         C.is sometimes different and interesting

 

 

The red phone box in Britain is a perfect example of the British traditional culture. However, with the fast development of mobile phones, it has lost its place in people’s everyday life. In order to save their loved red phone boxes, people have come up with many ideas, for example, to turn them into toilets or art houses. 
In a village in Somerset, a place in South West England, villagers have found a new way to save their red phone box. They turned it into a mini library to deal with the shortage of libraries in their area. The idea was given by a local villager, Janet Fisher, who lives opposite the phone box. Villagers got together to set up the book box. Over 100 books and a lot of movies and music CDs are available at this mini library. The books are of different kinds, including from cooking books to the classics and children’s books. People can put the books that they have read inside the phone box, and take away the books that they’d like to read. The books are always changing. There is a regular check on the books to keep the phone box collection fresh.
Anyone is free to come to read books there. The phone box library is open every day around the clock and is lit (the past form of “light”) at night.  “ It’s very pleasing that the red phone box has been saved. More importantly, it can continue providing a service for us,” said one of the villagers.
【小题1】The red phone box has been a symbol of _________.

A．the British culture

B．the European art of building

C．the development of mobile phones

D．British people’s daily life

【小题2】 People in Somerset turned the red phone box into a mini library to _________.

A．make it like the new one

B．help solve the shortage of library service

C．provide a place to exchange ideas

D．make the collection of the local library larger

【小题3】Which of the following statements is TRUE about the red phone box?

A．People can borrow books and enjoy the films and CDs there.

B．The library was set up by a local villager living opposite a phone box.

C．The library is open to the public day and night.

D．Regular check is made to keep the books in good order.