Section B
Directions: Read the following four passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage you have just read.
(A)
Matsushita, the world’s largest provider of consumer electronics, has decided to move in on Hollywood. Last weekend, Matsushita company leaders met with movies VIPs from MCA, Inc., the entertainment community that produced the movies as “Jaws” and “E.T. the Extra-terrestrial”. If the negotiations are successful, Matsushita will pay somewhere between $6 billion and $7.5 billion for MCA, by far the largest U.S. buying by a Japanese company.
The deal is larger than last year’s $5 billion buying of Columbia Pictures by Matsushita’s competitor, Sony Corporation. The movement by the Japanese companies shows Tokyo’s growing interest in the entertainment world. It is surprising for both sides of the Pacific Ocean. Why does a disciplined, no-nonsense nation like Japan want to get into show business? The answer is quite simple: To make money. Japanese corporation leaders feel the global potential of the entertainment business and recognize that there is an increasing market for movies and television in the rapidly industrializing world.
1. The movement of buying American entertainment companies by the Japanese shows that____ _.
A. American movies are better than Japanese
B. Japan has growing interest in the entertainment worl
d
C. Japanese market is larger than American market
D. Japanese people are richer
2. A disciplined nation like Japan wants to get into show business because _____
A. they want to make money
B. they want to learn from American people
C. they want to entertain their people
D. they want to win in the competition
3. Matsushita would pay ______ for MCA.
A.$5 billion
B.$6 billion
C.$7.5 billion
D. Somewhere between $6 billion to $7.5 billion
It is winter in many parts of the world. For some areas, that means snow. Maybe even lots of snow. If you don’t have to drive in it or remove it, snow can be very beautiful. When snow covers everything around you, the world looks like a “winter wonderland”. That is the name of a very popular song about winter. Richard Smith and Felix Bernard wrote the song back in 1934. There are hundreds of recordings of this happy song.
But winter is not always such a beautiful and happy time. It’s cold outside. You try hard to keep warm. The days are darker and shorter. The sun rarely shines. The leaves on the trees are brown. It isn’t surprising that some people are sad in winter. And some people dream about being somewhere else where it’s warm and pretty—like the state of California. The Mamas and the Papas recorded this famous song “California Dreaming”.
During the 1960s, many other famous rock groups released songs about winter. Here is a poetic song by Simon and Garfunkel called “A Hazy Shade of Winter”. They sing about life and hope and possibilities.
In 1968, the group Blood, Sweat and Tears recorded this gentle, sad song about winter. They sing about a lost love and forgotten memories in “Sometimes in Winter”.
In the early 1990s, Tori Amos wrote and recorded the beautiful song called “Winter”. She enjoyed singing about winter when she was a child.
Finally, on a happier note comes this song written and recorded by Fountains of Wayne in 2003. They sing about a snowstorm in a New England town. Nothing unusual there. But instead of being sad or tense about the snow, they write a song about it. The underlined sentence “For some areas, that means snow.” probably means
_____ .
| A．In some areas, when it’s winter, it must snow |
| B．In some areas, it often snows in winter |
| C．In some areas, it’s important to snow |
| D．In some areas, people like snow in winter |
According to the second paragraph, winter is _____ .
| A．beautiful and happy | B．happy and warm |
| C．lovely and hopeful | D．cold and sad |
Which of the songs can bring us hope of life?
| A．Winter Wonderland. | B．California Dreaming. |
| C．A Hazy Shade of Winter. | D．Sometimes in Winter. |
What does the passage mainly talk about?
| A．Winter in different areas. | B．Different ideas about winter. |
| C．Songs about winter. | D．Winter is cold but happy. |
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Dozens of conditions are covered, from headaches, sunburn, bad breath, and blisters to allergies, and hiccups.You can most probably read the passage in a _____ .
| A．newspaper | B．travel guide | C．reference book | D．textbook |
How much money could you save if you want to buy a travel book?
| A．$6.46 | B．$10.20 | C．$13.96 | D．$19.8 |
Which of the following could help you deal with common diseases without a doctor?
| A．Off the Beaten Path. | B．Container Gardens by Number. |
| C．1801 Home Remedies. | D．Best Weekend Projects. |
What’s the purpose of the passage?
| A．To share opinions about the books with readers. |
| B．To advise readers to read more in spare time. |
| C．To share the pleasure of reading with readers. |
| D．To advise readers to buy their books. |
“Hurry, Mommy! Let’s go trick-or-treating!” My daughter waited by the door in her pink princess skirt while I prayed in the living room. Usually I liked taking her out on Halloween, but this year I was sad. I was worried about my mother, who was in China on vacation. I got a call that afternoon that she had slipped and fallen on the hard floor of her hotel and broken her leg. She was taken to a hospital in Beijing. Mom was nervous because she couldn’t understand any of the doctors. If only I could do something to help her!
I knew I couldn’t let my worries spoil my daughter’s fun. There was nothing I could do for Mom except pray, I thought. We left the house and went down the block. I was so upset that I hardly took notice of the kids around me. There came the man to whose son I’d once given piano lessons. “Hello there,” I said, greeting him and the boy at his side.
“Hello,” the father answered. “Having fun?”“I’m trying,” I said. “Why, what’s wrong?” he asked. I told him the whole story. “My mother, in China, broke her leg and didn’t understand any of the doctors. And I’m too far away to do anything!” I said.
He raised his eyebrows. “Beijing, you said?” he asked. I nodded. He smiled. “Believe it or not, my sister is a doctor at an English-speaking hospital there. If you want, I’ll make a call right away and we’ll try and get your mom transferred (转移).”
A few days later I sat in the living room with my daughter as she finished the last of the candy. “Mommy, how far away is China?” she asked. “Not as far as I thought,” I said.What did the author’s daughter want to do?
| A．Pray with the author. | B．Enjoy herself outside. |
| C．Play a trick on her mom. | D．Go to the theatre to see a play. |
What was the author’s mother worried about most?
| A．She couldn’t get used to the life in Beijing. |
| B．She was hurt in the leg badly while travelling. |
| C．She was too old and weak to pray for her daughter. |
| D．She couldn’t make herself understood by the doctor. |
The author hardly took notice of the kids around because _____ .
| A．she was calling her mother | B．she felt very sad at that time |
| C．she was about to give a lesson | D．she couldn’t find her daughter |
We can infer from the text that _____ .
| A．the man’s sister would help the author’s mother |
| B．the author would come to China to see her mother |
| C．the author was a famous music teacher in the town |
| D．the author’s daughter wanted to travel in China |
Holidays are often associated with no work and all play. People seek to enjoy their holidays in different ways. Vacation packages (一揽子交易) have been in existence for a long time. ------ So now people can choose from the different packages according to their own tastes.
Sky diving, hiking and many other extreme sports are packaged with hotel tours to attract the younger generation. Tour service providers enjoy the benefits of the increase in bookings from hotel tours. Holiday-makers enjoy the exciting experiences without making efforts to look for hotels. ------
----- These holiday-makers enjoy student discount and packages while learning about history and culture of different places.
Summer vacation packages have never fallen down the rankings. ------ Having a warm sunny day at the beach is one of the fast selling vacation packages in the leisure industry.
Safari (游猎) adventures have always attracted some of the modern adventurers. The animals of Africa continue to amaze crowds that have only seen these creatures on educational channels. Many activities like outdoor camping, safari day tours and hiking in protected parks are always welcomed by holiday-makers.
----- Alaways try something new or fun to do and your days of relaxation will be always exciting.
| A．Picking out a vacation package can keep yourself from boring vacations. |
| B．Everyone is in a winning situation. |
| C．You can’t miss vacation packages if you want to have a good vacation. |
| D．Educational vacation packages are quite suitable for students. |
E. They are one of the favorite choices for most holiday-makers who like sunny beaches.
F. They are continually being improved to meet people’s demands.
G. Vacation needs your plan.
Learning to play a musical instrument can change your brain, with a US review finding musical training can lead to improved speech and foreign language skills.
Although it was suggested in the past that listening to Mozart’s music or other classical music could make you smarter, there has been little evidence to show that music can boost(使增长) brain power.
But a data-driven review by Northwestern University has pulled reaserch together that links musical training to learning that spills over into (波及) skills including language, speech, memory, attention and even vocal emotion.
Researcher Nina Kraus said the data strongly suggested that the nervous connections made during musical training also prepared the brain for other aspects of human communication.
“ The effect of musical training suggests that, like physical exercise and its effect on body fitness, music is a resource that tones the brain for auditory fitness and thus requires society to re-examine the role of music in shaping individual development, ” the researchers said in their study.
Kraus said learning musical sounds could improve the brain’s ability to adapt and change and also enable the nervous system to provide constructing patterns that are important to learning.
The study, published in Nature Review Neuroscience , looked at the explosion of research in recent years focusing on the effect of musical training on the nervous system which could have impacts for education.
The study found that playing an instrument prepares the brain to choose what is related in a complex process that may involve reading or remembering a score, timing issues and coordination with other musicians.What is the text mainly about ?
| A．The effect of physical exercise. | B．The researcher named Kraus. |
| C．The benefit of musical training. | D．Musicians’ improved skills. |
The underlined word “ auditory ” in Paragraph 5 probably means “ __________”.
| A．of the body | B．connected with seeing |
| C．of the mind | D．connected with hearing |
It was believed but not proved that listening to classical music could __________.
| A．add to your intelligence | B．improve your speech |
| C．boost your memory | D．make you think faster |
According to Kraus, musical training contributes to the following EXCEPT __________.
| A．body fitness | B．the way to speak |
| C．langugage learning | D．mental concentration |
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