24. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

　 A. Broadway’s original Marie was played by Julie Andrews.

　 B. There were many famous stars in the live show.

　 C. Stephen Moyer was inexperienced in musicals.

　 D. Cinderella was another live performance produced by Craig Zadan.

23. The “real experiment” in Paragraph 1 refers to 　　　　　.

　 A. the actors and actresses working with each other for the first time

　 B. the experiment in the Long Island studio

　 C. performing the musical live in the theater

　 D. the updated adaptation of the original musical

22. How many measures are mentioned in the last paragraph in order to reduce the high housing prices?

A. Four.　 　　　　　　　　　 B. There.　 　　　　　　　　 C. Five.　 　　　　　　　　　　 D. two.

F

BETHPAGE, N.Y. — The Dec 5 (2013) broadcast, starring Carrie Underwood and Stephen Moyer, was a “real experiment.”

It was the first day of camera blocking for a rehearsal (排练) of National Broadcasting Company’s live broadcast of the original stage version of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music. Inside a Long Island studio, a pop star, a group of kids and a well-known actor were rehearsing scenes on a copy of a grand estate (庄园) in Salzburg, Austria.

As the youngsters ran through So Long, Farewell, a tune they would perform as the children of Captain von Trapp, True Blood star Stephen Moyer cast as their widower dad, running through lines with Carrie Underwood, who was playing Maria, the bright-eyed novitiate (见习修女) who became the children’s tutor and, eventually, the Captain’s wife. Around the corner, Broadway darling Audra McDonald, winner of five Tony Awards, performed as the Mother Abbess, Maria’s guardian (监护人) . Fellow Tony winners Laura Benanti and Christian Borle — the Captain’s charming companion, Elsa, and their buddy Max — were just outside the studio.

This The Sound of Music would mark the first time that a well-known Broadway musical had been performed live since a 1955 production of Peter Pan starring Mary Martin, who played Broadway’s original Maria. Another Rodgers and Hammerstein’s show, Cinderella, was written for the small screen, where it was performed live in 1957 — starring the young Julie Andrews, who later played Maria in the screen adaptation of The Sound of Music.

When choosing their cast, the producers were cautious about “using movie people who are used to performing take after take”. “Moyer has a musical theater background,” the producer Craig Zadan noted, “ and Underwood has done a million live concerts.”

Still, Zadan said, “There is a fear factor. There won’t be auto-tuning here; if someone hits a bad note, you’re going to hear it. Someone could make a mistake or forget lyrics (歌词) . We’re throwing them in front of a national audience, and anything may happen.

　Moyer admitted, “There’s no way not to feel the pressure. We’ve still got two weeks to go, and we’re in good shape — we all know what we’re doing. But, that doesn’t mean that things won’t go wrong, because they will. If I make a mistake, so be it (顺其自然) . That’s the challenge and the thrill of live theater.”

21. What is the main idea of this passage?

A. The Chinese government should do something to control the housing price.

B. There are some bubbles in Chinese real estate market.

C. The average housing price in China is even higher than in the United States.

D. The Chinese government issued a set of policies that aimed to benefit the public.

20. Which of the following does NOT support the idea that the average housing price in China is

　even higher than in the United States?

　 　A. Chinese houses can not be compared with houses in US in terms of building quality,

environment and supporting facilities.

　 　B. American people’s average income is several dozen times higher than that of Chinese

　people.

　 　C. The houses in US are not sold in terms of building area, as most Chinese property

　developers do when they sell their houses.

　 　D. There are more people who need houses in China than in the United States.

19. What is the main idea for this passage?

　 A. The messier the desks are, the more efficient the employees are.

　 B. Messy desks in the office can have a positive effect on employees.

　 C. We should make our office messy to improve our work efficiency.

　 D. Clean desks can boost the employees’ productivity and creativity.

E

China news, Beijing, Feb. 9 — Housing price in China has always aroused heated discussions among property developers and ordinary Chinese. To many property developers and local government officials, housing price in China is still low compared with many developed countries. However, the average housing price in the United States is only 8, 000 yuan per square meter, while in China; it is even higher than in the United States. This shows that there are some bubbles (泡沫) in Chinese real estate (房地产) market, the International Finance News reported.

Although the average price of residential houses in the United States, after being converted to Renminbi, is about 8,000 yuan per square meter, the houses in US are not sold in terms of building area, as most Chinese property developers do when they sell their houses, If US property developers sell their houses according to the building area, then the housing price will be even lower than 8,000 yuan per square meter. In most big Chinese cities, such as Beijing, Shanghai, and Shenzhen, houses are sold at a price even higher than those in the US.

The high housing sales price in large cities in China proves that Chinese real estate market does have some bubbles. Moreover, Chinese houses can not be compared with houses in US in terms of building quality, environment and supporting facilities. Furthermore, it should be noted that American people’s average income is several dozen times higher than that of Chinese people. How can the Chinese afford to buy a house which is even more expensive than that sold in US?

At the beginning of 2007, the Chinese government issued a set of policies that aimed to benefit the public. Now in order to reduce the high housing prices, the government can regulate (控制) the real estate market by raising tax on property industry and controlling the release of loans and lands to property developers. At the same time, the government should allow people to build more houses through various fund-raising channels, such as funds collected from buyers or raised by working units. By applying these multiple means, it is expected that the high housing prices can be lowered.

18. The underlined word “detrimental” probably means 　　.

　 A. disadvantageous　 B. useful　　　　 　　　　　　 C. beneficial　　　 D. accessible

17. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

　 A. A messy environment will certainly lead to a messy mind.

　 B. A clean environment will do great harm to work efficiency.

　 C. People tend to clear up the mess before thinking clearly.

　 D. All people are not in favor of “clean desk” in the office.

16. Why did the author take Albert Einstein and Ronald Dahl for example?

　 A. To tell readers untidy desks can make you as famous as celebrities.

　 B.To convince readers that untidiness is not all that bad.

　 C. To inform readers of one way to success-untidy desks.

　 D. To attract readers and show the author’s wide range of knowledge.

15. According to the text, a proper way to lead people towards clearer thinking is to ___　　 .

　 　A. make a list of priorities　　　　 　　　　 B. simplify the tasks at hand

　 　C. follow famous people　　　　　 　　　 D. mess up their mind