1. Summer came early to Middlesbrough yesterday, as temperatures shot up to 22°C (71°F), a record for March. But local NFU agent Jim Wilkes says it could be bad news for farmers. “The crops will think it's summer,” he told our reporter, “and start sprouting (发芽) four weeks before time.”
2. The death toll (死亡人数) of the Burnside train crash rose to four yesterday when John Phillips, 32, of Petersville died in Wallsend Hospital. Another six people are still on the danger list. Mr. Phillips, an electrical engineer leaves a wife and two children.
3. China and the United States reached an agreement on the protection of intellectual property rights (知识产权) yesterday, after difficult marathon talks.
The agreement is good news for all parties concerned. The Chinese Foreign Trade Minister described the agreement as a "turning point" in Sino-US trade relations that "promises further progress" in the future. The agreement will not only favorably influence trade relations between China and the United States. It may favorably influence the overall relations between the two countries.
【小题1】What do you get to know from article 1?

The UN Security Council was created in 1945. It is made up of 10 rotating (轮值的) members and five permanent members, which have a veto, the power to stop a resolution (决议). Most UN members now consider the organization's structure outdated． But any changes need the agreement of two-thirds of the 191 members, and no veto from any of the five permanent council members.

Last year, Japan, Germany, Brazil and India formed a lobbying (游说) group to get permanent council seats. But North and South Korea have doubts about Japan, Italy opposes Germany for a seat, Pakistan is against India's candidacy (候选资格) and Mexico and Argentina frown on Brazil.

A wave of emotion swept through China last week as millions voiced their opposition to Japan's permanent membership of the United Nations (UN) Security Council. By last Friday over 22 million Chinese had signed an online petition (请愿) against Japan's bid for a permanent seat on the council.

According to major Chinese websites, such as sina.com, more than 170,000 overseas Chinese also signed． This is the first online activity of its kind．

The petition was started by US-based Alliance for Preserving the Truth of the Sino-Japanese War (抗日战争史实维护会). They want Japan to apologize for crimes during World War II. The group also plans to present the petition to the UN this autumn.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said he didn't think the petition shows anti-Japanese feeling. He believed instead it is a request for Japan to take a responsible attitude towards history.

What’s the main idea of the first paragraph?

       A．Function of the UN in world affairs.     B．Members of the UN.

       C．Facts about the UN Security Council.    D．Reform of the UN Security Council.

Which statement is true according to the text?

       A．Four countries, such as Japan, Germany, Brazil and India are applying for joining the UN.

       B．Some countries, such as North and South Korea, Italy, Pakistan, Mexico and Argentina

propose ticking the four countries out of the UN.

       C．If the countries’ bids for permanent membership of the Council are turned down, the

opponent countries will take the place.

       D．The UN Security Council is going to take in new members.

The underlined phrase “frown on” in the third paragraph can be replaced by _____.

       A．agree on         B．disapprove of  

       C．give a firm support to          D．say yes to

What’s the main reason for China’s opposition to Japan’s permanent membership of the

Council?

       A．Japan is unwilling to admit to its crimes against the Chinese in the World War II.

       B．Millions of people in Asia signed a petition against it.

       C．The Chinese people have strong anti-Japanese feeling.

       D．Japan is an irresponsible country that once had a history of invasion.

（共5小题，每小题2分，满分10分）
先阅读短文，然后根据短文的内容判断正误，并将结果转涂到答题卡上。正确的涂A，错误的涂B。
As high school students, Sang Tian and Huang Yunru dreamed of attending one of the world’s top universities. They slaved over their studies and were in the end admitted to famous schools – only one turned out to be far more famous than the other, according to new ranking (排名)of Asia’s top schools.
Huang Yunru, 19, went to the University of Hong Kong, the No 1 school in Asia. Sang, also 19, went to Tsinghua University, which was ranked a disappointing 16th in Asia. When Sang heard the news, he couldn’t believe his ears. “What? How can it be?” he said, greatly surprised.
The new list of Asia’s top 200 universities was published last month by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), a UK-based career and education company. The ranking have started heated discussions among Chinese people, since the mainland’s top two schools – Peking University (PKU) and Tsinghua University – were not in the top 10.
Actually, this isn’t the first time that the schools have gone on poorly in regional or global ranking. The 2010 world university list released by the magazine US News & World Report ranked Peking University at 50th and Tsinghua University at 56th. They were the only two mainland schools in the top 100. Meanwhile, 37 US universities made the top 100 list. And three of 10 Hong Kong universities made the top 50.Chinese universities’ poor performance has saddened many students. “I can’t understand their standards,” said Sang. “At least we are a university with a long, proud history.”
According to the QS list, Chinese universities are doing OK in academic peer review, with both Tsinghua and Peking University scoring a full 100. But when it comes to student-to-faculty ratio（师生比）, their ranking drops, with Tsinghua at 22th and Peking at 23rd.John Hennessy, president of Stanford University, said at the Fourth Chinese-Foreign University Presidents Forum in early May that a lack of small-group discussions has seriously affected the teaching quality at Chinese universities. This has also resulted in students being afraid to question or challenge teachers.
【小题1】Peking University (PKU) and Tsinghua University were in the top 10 in the ranking of Asia’s top schools.
【小题2】There were no top 100 universities in the mainland according to the ranking.
【小题3】Hong Kong universities are doing much better than the Chinese mainland ones in the ranking.
【小题4】Peking University (PKU) and Tsinghua University are so famous that they are not worried about the result at all.
【小题5】 One of the reasons for the mainland’s universities’ disappointing ranking is that there are simply not enough teachers for the large number of students.

Foreign Minister of China used plain language to make the Chinese foreign policy__   to the        whole world at the press meeting last week．

       A, get through                   B．get across

       C．get over                     D．get around

Six Chinese surveillance ships have entered waters near islands claimed by both China and Japan.
China said the ships were carrying out "law enforcement" to demonstrate its jurisdiction(管辖权) over the islands, known as Diaoyu in China and Senkaku in Japan.
At least two of the vessels left after the Japanese coast guard issued a warning, Japanese officials say.
The move came after Japan sealed a deal to buy three of the islands from their private Japanese owner. Japan controls the uninhabited but resource-rich East China Sea islands, which are also claimed by Taiwan.
The Japanese Coast Guard said the first two Chinese boats entered Japan's territorial waters at 06:18 local time (21:18 GMT Thursday), followed by another fleet of four other ships just after 07:00. The first two ships then left the area. A third ship left later on Friday morning, one report said. No force was used, Japanese officials added. "Our patrol vessels are currently telling them to leave our country's territorial waters," the coastguard said in a statement.
The Chinese foreign ministry confirmed that its ships were there. “These law enforcement and patrol activities are aimed to demonstrate China's jurisdiction over the Diaoyu Islands and its affiliated(附属的) islets and ensure the country's maritime(海事的) interests,” a statement said.
The US has called for ''cooler heads to prevail'' as tension intensifies between China and Japan over the islands, which lie south of Okinawa and north of Taiwan. US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is due to visit both Japan and China from this weekend as part of a tour of the region that also includes New Zealand.
The dispute has seriously marred diplomatic relations between China and Japan and threatens to damage the strong trading relationship, says the BBC's John Sudworth in Beijing. The row(争端) has also generated strong nationalist sentiment on both sides that observers say now makes it very difficult to be seen to be backing down, says our correspondent.
The Japanese government says it is buying the islands to promote their stable and peaceful management. Its move followed a bid by right-wing Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara to buy the islands using public donations - an action that would likely have further provoked(触怒) China.
China, on the other hand, says the islands have historically been its territory and fishing grounds.
Meanwhile Japan's newly-appointed ambassador to China, Shinichi Nishimiya, remains in hospital in Tokyo after he was found unconscious near his home in Tokyo on Thursday. No details have been given on his condition. He was appointed on Tuesday to replace Uichiro Niwa, who has been criticised for his handling of one of the worse diplomatic rows between Japan and China in recent years.
【小题1】The Diaoyu Islands are actually inhabited by           .