Husband and wife by Arrangement
Some Japanese still get married by parents’ arrangement. Yoshio and Hiromi Tanaka, a young Japanese couple living in the United States, told the story of their arranged marriage. “We didn’t marry for love in the western sense. We got married in the traditional Japanese way. Our parents arranged our marriage through a matchmaker（媒人）. In Japan we believe that marriage is something affecting the whole family rather than a matter concerning only the young couple. So we think it is very important to match people according to their social background, education and so on. When our parents thought it was time for us to get married, they went to a local matchmaker and asked her for some suggestions. We discuss the details and looked at the photos she sent, and then our parents asked her to arrange a marriage interview for the two of us.
A Japanese marriage interview is held in a public place, such as a hotel or a restaurant, and is attended by the boy and the girl, their parents and the matchmaker. Information about the couple and their families is exchanged over a cup of tea or a meal. Then the boy and the girl are left alone for a short time to get to know each other. When they returned home they have to tell the matchmaker whether they want to meet again or not.
Yoshio continued, “When our parents realized we were serious about each other, they started to make arrangements for our wedding. My family paid the marriage money to Hiromi’s. This is money to help pay for the wedding ceremony and for setting up the house afterwards. We also gave her family a beautiful ornament to put in the best room of their house, so everyone knew that Hiromi was going to marry.”
13．The Japanese think of the marriage of a young couple as .
A．a sign showing the love between them
B．an opportunity for their parents to show their love for their children
C．a private affair for the boy and the girl
D．an important matter having influence on the whole family
14．In arranging a marriage in Japan, the matchmaker plays all of the following roles except .
A．making arrangements for the wedding
B．providing the information the family need
C．arranging the marriage interview
D．attending the marriage interview
15．According to the passage, the best time to make arrangement for the wedding is .
A．when the young couple agree to meet again
B．when the young couple are sincere about their relation
C．when the parents think it is time for their children to get married.
D．when the parents are well-informed about each other’s family
16．According to the passage, what plays the most important role in the matching of young people in Japan? .
A．Their parents’ attitude B．Their family background
C．Their occupation D．Their love for each other
As computers become all the more popular in China, Chinese people are increasingly relying on computer keyboards to input Chinese characters. But if they use the computer too much, they may end up forgetting the exact strokes of each Chinese character when writing on paper. Experts suggest people, especially students, write by hand more.
Do you write by hand more or type more? In Beijing, students start using a computer as early as primary school. And computer dependence is more widespread among university students. Almost all their assignments and essays are typed on a computer.
All the students interviewed say they usually use a computer.
It’s faster and easier to correct if using a computer. And that’s why computers are being applied more and more often to modern education. But when people are taking stock in computers increasingly, problems appear.
“When I’m writing with a pen, I find I often can’t remember how to write a character, though I feel I’m familiar with it.”
“I’m not in the mood to write when faced with a pen and paper.”
Many students don’t feel this is something to worry about. Now that it’s more convenient and efficient to write on a computer, why bother to handwrite?
Many educators think differently. Shi Liwei, the headmaster of a famous primary school in the capital said, “Chinese characters enjoy both practical and aesthetic (审美的) value. But those characters typed with computer keyboards only maintain their practical value. All the artistic beauty of the characters is lost. And handwriting contains the writer’s emotion. Through one’s handwriting, people can get to know one’s thinking and personality. Beautiful writing will give people a better first impression of them.”
To encourage students to handwrite more, many primary schools in Beijing have made writing classes compulsory(必修的) and in universities, some professors are asking students to turn in their homework and essays written by hand. Which of the following can best serve as the title of the passage?
| A．The Importance of Handwriting and Typing. |
| B．To type or to Handwrite. |
| C．Writing by Computer will Replace Writing by Hand. |
| D．Practical and Aesthetic Value of Chinese Characters. |
The students interviewed prefer to write using a computer mainly because __________.
| A．they are usually asked to e-mail their homework and essays. |
| B．they can correct the mistakes they make quickly and conveniently. |
| C．they found it not easy to remember how to write a character. |
| D．computers have become a trend and fashion in China. |
Which of the following statements in NOT the advantage of handwriting?
| A．Handwriting contains the writer’s emotion. |
| B．The writer’s thinking and personality are shown in his or her handwriting. |
| C．Handwriting can impress people well and build one’s self-confidence. |
| D．Chinese characters enjoy both practical and aesthetic value. |
The underlined expression “taking stock in” probably means ___________.
| A．getting bored with |
| B．getting dependent on |
| C．becoming curious about |
| D．getting curious about |
We can draw the conclusion from the passage that ___________.
| A．more and more students will give up writing on a computer. |
| B．writing by hand will give way to typing by computer one day. |
| C．more and more students will pay attention to handwriting. |
| D．the typing article better expresses one’s emotion and quality. |
He almost didn’t see the old lady, stranded on the side of the road, but even in the dim light of day, he could see she needed help. So he pulled up in front her Mercedes and got out.
Even with the smile on his face, she was worried. No one had stopped to help for the last hour or so. Was he going to hurt her? He didn’t look safe; he looked poor and hungry. He could see that she was frightened, standing out there in the cold. He knew how she felt.
He said, “I am here to help you, ma’am. Why don’t you wait in the car where it’s warm? By the way, my name is Bryan Anderson.”
Well, all she had was a flat tire, but for an old lady, that was bad enough. Bryan crawled under the car looking for a place to put the jack, skinning his knuckles a time or two. Soon he was able to change the tire. But he had to get dirty and his hands hurt.
As he was tightening up the lug nuts, she rolled down the window and began to talk to him. She told him that she was from St. Louis and was just passing through. She couldn’t thank him enough for coming to her aid.
Bryan just smiled as he closed her trunk. The lady asked how much she owed him. Any amount would have been all right with her. She already imagined all the awful things that could have happened, had he not stopped. Bryan never thought twice about being paid. This was not a job to him. This was helping someone in need, and God knows there were many people who had given him a hand in the past. He had lived his whole life that way, and it never occurred to him to act any other way.
He told her that if she really wanted to pay him back, the next time she saw someone who needed help, she could give that person the assistance they needed, and Bryan added, “And think of me.”
He waited until she started her car and drove off. It had been a cold and depressing day, but he felt good as he headed for home, disappearing into the twilight.This story most probably took place_______.
| A．in a garage | B．on a highway | C．in a busy street | D．near a gas station |
When the man approached the old lady, the first thing he did was to______.
| A．ask what was wrong with her car |
| B．get the old lady out of her car |
| C．change her tire as soon as possible |
| D．make her know he wanted to help her |
The underlined part in Paragraph 6 suggests that________.
| A．the old lady had got ready to pay the man |
| B．the old lady was grateful to the man |
| C．the man had a lot of difficulty changing the tire |
| D．the man didn’t stop changing the tire |
Which of the following words can best describe the man?
| A．Warm-hearted and sensitive. |
| B．Careful and serious. |
| C．Thoughtful and helpful. |
| D．Generous and open-minded. |
It can be inferred from the last paragraph that ______________.
| A．the man was happy after helping the old lady |
| B．the man received a lot of money from the old lady |
| C．the man made the old lady feel cold and depressed |
| D．the man felt extremely frustrated all the way home |
When you see homework covering the kitchen table and toys are piling up around the sofa, you probably wish there was a bit more space. You are not alone. Nearly a third of parents say they feel squeezed into their homes but cannot afford to move to a bigger property, a report reveals today.
Twenty-nine percent say "their property is too small to fit the size of their family—rising to 40 percent for those 34 and under". One in four children is 'forced to share' a bedroom, according to the Finda-Property. Com website. Property analyst Samantha Baden said: "Afford-ability remains a key issue for families, with the average cost of a three-bedroom home around ￡193,000."Very few can afford to buy or to rent a property of the size they want and in the area they desire to live in, according to Miss Baden.
A recent report, from investment firm LV, also found that many 'space-starved parents’are pushed into a two-bedroom home which was perfect when they were a young couple, but has no space for three or so children. Grown-up children who cannot afford to leave homo are also adding to the problem facing families in Britain's 'big squeeze'.
For a home to be the correct size, which means it is not overcrowded, parents must have their own bedroom. Children under ten can share, as well as same-sex children between ten and 20.Anyone over 21 also needs their own room.
The report comes as official figures, published yesterday by the Land Registry, revealing house prices are falling sharply in every region except London. The worst – hit area is the North East where average house prices have fallen to below ￡100, 000 for the first time in seven years. However, they remain unaffordable for millions.According to Paragraph 1, the report reveals .
| A．children like to do homework in the kitchen |
| B．some families can't afford a bigger property |
| C．only a few families have housing problem |
| D．people are satisfied with their living condition |
What Miss Baden said in Paragraph 2 means .
| A．most families don't have enough money yet |
| B．no family could afford a three - bedroom home |
| C．it is common to live in a three - bedroom home |
| D．the price of a bigger property is still acceptable |
The report from the investment firm LV shows .
| A．young couples should live in a two - bedroom home |
| B．families with three or so children couldn't afford a home |
| C．parents should buy houses for their grown - up children |
| D．some grown - up children couldn't afford a separate home |
What can we learn from the last paragraph?
| A．House prices are falling down everywhere. |
| B．People are able to buy a home of correct size. |
| C．The house prices in London has not fallen down. |
| D．The North East is now an area suitable to live in. |
Ban Fur? Then Why Not Leather?
Much to the displeasure of some local businesses, the City Council in West Hollywood, California, voted without opposition last week to ban the sale of fur products. Should laws be involved in this issue? Is it unfair to ban sales of fur, but not sales of leather and hides (兽皮)?
Animals Do Not Have Rights
By Tibor R. Machan
My view is that animals do not have basic rights. It is a matter of ethics (伦理学) and not of the laws of human societies. If animals had such rights as human beings do, they would have to be held responsible for killing fellow animals in the wild. That way of thinking about animals makes a category mistake. Using animals, including their fur or organs, to improve people's lives is acceptable.
A Small Step Against Cruelty
By Kate Carter
Both fur and leather are the skins of dead animals. Why should we think that the lovable furry ones deserve more of a life than the less pleasing ones? Some say leather is less cruel because it's a byproduct (副产品) of the meat industry. But this isn't really true. Some cheap leather may be a byproduct of the meat industry, but often it's the other way round. In South Africa, where there is a developing market for ostrich(鸵鸟)farms, the skins account for roughly 80 percent of the slaughtered (宰杀)birds' value, a mere 20 percent of which comes from the meat.
"Who" Are You Wearing?
By Marc Bekoff
West Hollywood's ban is a move in the right direction. However, we must work to ban the sales of leather and hides, too. Furs come from animals who are attacked to become clothing, while some leather and hides come from slaughterhouse(屠宰场) animals. We must remember that when people choose to wear fur, leather and hides, they are wearing formering conscious beings. So it's a matter of who they are wearing, not what they are wearing because these animals must be referred to as who and not what or that.What is the passage mainly about?
| A．West Hollywood's ban on fur products. |
| B．Differences between fur and leather sales. |
| C．The government's role in protecting animals. |
| D．The ecological imbalance in West Hollywood. |
Tibor R. Machan seems to believe that .
| A．laws should be passed to protect animals |
| B．humans are respornsible for killing animals |
| C．it is not reasonable to use animals to improve life |
| D．animals and humans aren't supposed to share equal rights |
What is Kate Carter's opinion about wearing fur and wearing leather?
| A．Both are decided by the meat industry. |
| B．There is little distinction (区别) between them. |
| C．Wearing fur is generally more acceptable. |
| D．Wearing leather is cheaper than wearing fur. |
What is Marc Bekoff’s attitude towards sales of fur?
| A．Sympathetic. | B．Careless. | C．Tolerant. | D．Opposed. |
The International Space Station allows astronauts to live in space for extended amounts of time, enabling them to explore the outside universe and conduct many experiments. However, nothing like that exists for our oceans, and thanks to the high water pressure, ocean researchers are able to explore what lies undersea for very short periods of time.
They are therefore never able to fully explore the deep inside areas of our oceans. However, if French architect Jacques Rougerie has his way, that will change soon.
Jacqucs has designed a ship that will allow researchers to spend a long period of time observing the sea life and conducting experiments. The huge 167ft ship, named 'Sea Orbiter', consists of two areas—one above the water where the scientists and crew will live, and a lower pressurized deck (甲板), where scientists will be able to spend as much time as they wish. Since it is powered by sea currents and wind, he expects it to drift (漂流) along the oceans slowly, taking about two years to circumvent the globe.
Jacques will make their life as comfortable as possible in the ship. Besides being equipped with the latest sailing tools and communication equipment, the ship will also have a gym, a television and a DVD player. And these guys will not be eating freeze-dried food like astronauts. Instead, Jacques, an accomplished chef, plans on cooking them delicious meals every day.
The biggest problem to this giant ship is the cost, which is expected to be over $500 million—per ship! However, Jacques, who strongly believes that the secrets of our oceans may be the key to solving global warming and a vital supply for food and medicine in the future, is confident he will be able to convince governments all over the world to help out, and expects to start construction on not one, but four or five of these amazing ships soon!Why can’t ocean researchers explore the deep oceans for a long time?
| A．Because they can’t stand the high water pressure. |
| B．Because it’s too cold in deep ocean. |
| C．Because time for experiments is too limited. |
| D．Because it’s dangerous to observe the sea life. |
The underlined word "circumvent" probably means .
| A．fly away | B．get around | C．travel through | D．move into |
From the fourth paragraph we can learn that .
| A．Jacques intends to design the ship mainly for sightseeing and traveling |
| B．living a comfortable life helps to do the ocean research quickly |
| C．it’s much more expensive to eat freeze-dried food |
| D．researchers on Jacque’s ship will live more comfortably than astronauts |
Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
| A．Sea Orbiter—the ship of the future |
| B．A new way to explore the deep oceans |
| C．A great architect—Jacques Rougerie |
| D．Travel around the globe in Sea Orbiter |
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