Red is used in many American expressions. It can be used to show happiness, as in the expression “a red-letter day”. This is a day when something special happens. The expression is probably based on church customs. For almost 600 years, church calendars have been marked with red to show special holy(神圣的)days. Today’s calendars are still marked that way with the dates of holidays and special days printed in red.

The expression “a red-letter day”is often heard in daily life. “A red-letter day” is a day that people are especially happy. It may be a day that you have waited for a long time, a wedding day, for example. Or it may be a day with a happy surprise. You might tell a friend that yesterday was a red-letter day, because you won some money in the lottery.

“Rolling out the red carpet” is another commonly heard expression. It describes an especially warm welcome of any kind. A city may “roll out the carpet ”for its baseball team, when the team arrives home after winning a championship. A group of supporters go to the air port to the greet the team. The red-carpet welcome includes a lot of cheering by thousands of fans, a parade, music and speech of praise by local statesmen.

Red is also used in some expressions that are not happy. “Red-handed ” is an example. To be caught “red-handed” is to be found in an act of wrong doing. The evidence is clear. You are guilty. Today we use the expression “ to be caught red-handed ”in situation(情况)that are not serious. For example, a mother might say she caught her son red-handed, taking cookies out of the cookie jar.

Some American Expressions with __1.___

Be used for_2.__ happiness	a red -letter day	a day that people are happy a day with a ___3.__
rolling out the red carpet	describes an especially warm___4._____
Be used in_5.expressions	to be caught red-hanged	to be found doing a wrong action can’t be used in a serious situation

 

As we know, there are differences between western culture and Chinese culture. We can see differences when we pay attention to the way words are used. Let’s look at the words about animals and plants. Most expressions in Chinese about the dog, for example, “a homeless dog”, “a mad dog”, “a running dog” and “a dog catching mouse”, have negative meanings. But in western countries, dogs are thought to be honest and good friends of humans. In English, people use the dog to describe positive actions. For example, “You are a lucky dog.” means you are a lucky person. And “every dog has its day.” means each person has good luck sometimes. To describe a person’s serious illness, they say “sick as a dog”. The word “dog-tired” means very tired. However, Chinese love cats very much. But in western culture, “cat” is often used to describe a woman who is cruel.
The rose is regarded as symbol of love in both China and some western countries. People think the rose means love, peace, courage and friendship. And the rose is the national flower of England, America and many other countries.
The words about plants and animals are used in positive or negative ways in different cultures. We can learn about many differences in cultures by comparing how some words are used.
【小题1】 “Every dog has its day.” means “________”.

A．Everybody in the world is lucky.

B．Each person lives his own way of life.

C．If one works hard, he’s sure to succeed.

D．Everybody has a time in life to be lucky.

【小题2】What can we know from the passage?

A．Words show differences in culture.

B．Chinese people prefer dogs to cats.

C．Western people think cats to be good friends.

D．Rose is the national flower of all western countries.

【小题3】Which statement is right according to passage?

A．People think the rose means love, peace, luck and friendship.

B．The words about plants and animals are used both in positive and negative ways in different cultures.

C．In China, people use the dog to describe negative actions.

D．In eastern culture, “cat” is often used to describe a woman who is cruel.

【小题4】What’s the best title for the passage?

A．Negative or Positive

B．Different Countries Have Different Culture

C．Rose Means the Same in Chinese and English

D．What Dog and Cat Mean in English and Chinese

Cyber Café (网吧) or computer centers are found in many cities around world.Now，a few American high schools are opening these centers.For example，a high school in the state of Maryland began operating a Cyber Café last March.All students at Bethesde­Chevy Chase High School in Bethesda can use the Cyber Café.But school officials say it’s set especially to help students who have no computer or cannot use the Internet at home.

The officials say thirteen percent of the students at the school are from poor families.Many students have arrived in the United States from other countries recently.Students in the school’s program for learning English speak twenty­three languages.

The idea for a Cyber Café at Bethesda­Chevy Chase High School began three years ago.At that time officials were planning to restore the school building.Parents interested in technology proposed (建议) to build a Cyber Café.

Over two years，money for a Cyber Café and other new computers was collected.It received more than one hundred seventy thousand dollars.The Café now has sixteen computers，a printer and a scanner (扫描仪)．School official Ann Hengerer says students use the Internet to complete research.They also write homework and required papers on the computer.In addition，they can send and receive electronic mails.That is especially helpful for many students who have family members in other nations.

The Cyber Café also serves a social purpose.Visitors can stop by for a drink of coffee，tea or hot chocolate.

5．According to the passage，who do you think can use the Cyber Café at Bethesda­Chevy Chose High School?

A．Only the students from foreign countries.

B．Only the students who have no computer at home.

C．All the teachers at school.                      D．All the students at school.

6．What does the underlined word “purpose” in the last paragraph probably mean?

A．Function.                                           B．Committee.

C．Attitude.                                             D．Organization.

7．Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Students can write homework on line in the Cyber Café.

B．Students can send and receive electronic mails in the Cyber Café.

C．Students can play some computer games in the Cyber Café.

D．The Cyber Cafe also provides some drinks for students.

8．What column may the passage be taken from in the newspaper?

A．Travel.                                               B．Business.

C．Education.                                          D．Entertainment.

9．What is the best title for the passage?

A．Cyber Café at High Schools                   B．How to Use Computers

C．How to Surf the Internet                       D．Cyber Café in America

These days, many students like playing 3Dgames. Do you know what 3D games are like? In most 3D games, game players need to control a character (人物). The character can be a robot or a soldier. Game players usually use the mouse to make the character move around in his own world. Game players can find things such as food and weapons to help them go on with the game. The character can go straight, sit down, turn left, turn right or pick up things in the game.

Some 3D games have many levels(等级). The character needs to finish different goals（目标） for each level. Game players can against their computers, and sometimes they can play with other players online（在线）. It’s great fun to play 3D games. But playing 3D games for long is not good for our study.

1.In most 3D games, game players need to _______.

A．control a character

B．find a robot

C．act as a soldier

D．control the computer

2.How do game players make the character move around?

A．By using the keyboard.

B．By using the mouse.

C．By telling the directions

D．By moving the computer.

3.In the game, the character can _________.

A．go straight and sit down

B．turn left and turn right

C．pick up things

D．All the aboves.

4.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Some 3D games have many levels.

B．The character needs to finish different goals for each level.

C．Game players can only play against their computers.

D．Game players can go online and play with other players together.

 

As we all know, the Internet has become part of teenagers(青少年)        . A new reporter on 3,375 students aged from 10 to 18 in seven Chinese cities found that 38 percent of them used the Internet very        .

     Most of them get useful information and use the Internet to help in their studies, but some are not using it in a        way .Many are playing online games too much.       even visit websites (网站)they should not look at. A teacher from Yucai Middle School says that bad things can happen if young people       too much time on the Internet. She had a student who used to be (曾经)good at school.      then he started visiting unhealthy websites. He went mad（变得疯狂）,cheated（欺骗）a girl and was taken away by the police.

     In order to help young people use the Internet       a good way, a textbook on good Internet behavior(行为) has started to be used in some middle schools this term. The book uses real examples to       students about good ways of using the Internet. The book gives useful advice such as to read news or to find helpful      to study. Teachers and parents all think the book is very good.

     The book will be a guide (向导) for teens to use the Internet. We believe it will keep students away from bad websites, and teach students       to be a good person in the online world.

1.A.study          B.life             C.food              D.work

2.A.often          B.never           C.seldom            D.less

3.A.bad           B.well            C.right              D.quick

4.A.A little        B.Little           C.A few             D.Few

5.A.cost          B.pay             C.take              D.spend

6.A.And          B.What’s more    C.But              D.Or

7.A.in            B.at              C.for               D.with

8.A.speak         B.teach           C.call              D.warn

9.A.pictures       B.persons         C.information        D.people

10.A.what        B.which          C.how              D.when