Although the US is so big and its people have so many different racial backgrounds, it is in some ways less varied than Europe．The English language is used almost everywhere in its American form．The American way of speaking has developed independently of English and is on the whole closer to what can be heard in Ireland.
Another example of uniformity(一致)is in habits and ways of living．From Boston to Los Angeles it is as far as from France to Central Asia, and from east to west there are five time zones; but everywhere people get up and go to bed at about the same time, eat the same kind of food, buy in the same kind of shops, work and rest at the same time of the day and have the same pattern of holidays．In most of the things that matter there is less difference between rich people and ordinary people or between town and country, than in any single European nation.
Although far more food is produced than the present population needs, America is actually an urban society．Less than a tenth of the people are engaged in (从事) agriculture and most of the rest live in or around towns large and small．Here the traditional picture is changing; most Americans do not live in small towns any more．Half the population now live in some thirty metropolitan (大城市的) areas.
The fact that the United States has always been a single economic unit has contributed to uniformity．Modern industry favors large organization, and it is no accident that the world’s biggest commercial firms are American．The people can choose between the products of competing manufacturers (制造商) but the products are all much alike.In describing the uniformity in the U.S．the author does not mention that the American people .
| A．get up and go to work at the same time |
| B．spend their holidays in the same pattern |
| C．buy and eat the same kind of food |
| D．have more or less the same income |
What can we learn from the passage about the U.S．agriculture?
| A．The American farmers need more land. |
| B．Americans are interested in farming. |
| C．It is now going backward. |
| D．It is quite developed. |
The last paragraph suggests that ___ .
| A．the production size in the United States is very big |
| B．a single economic unit produces the same kind of products |
| C．there are more and more competing manufactures |
| D．people can choose from all kinds of products that are similar. |
The underlined part “In most of the things that matter” probably refers to .
| A．in most basic things such as food, clothing and houses |
| B．in the more expensive things such as cars, TV sets, etc |
| C．in their land, housing and bank savings |
| D．in their wealth and income |
When I walk through the streets, I pass strange rooms where people are doing strange things. Some are biking madly. Others are holding metal bars to keep them from dropping down. Still others are jumping around while someone is shouting at them. It looks like something out of Dante’s Inferno (但丁《神曲》中的《地狱篇》). But what is the most amazing is that people pay for these sufferings!
The strange rooms are gyms(健身房). It is reported that some 41 million Americans are gym members. 12% of the memberships are born in January, as they are determined to lose the holiday fat. Maybe it is good to exercise in the gym. However, should they know they can keep in good shape, spending little money, would they still agree with its necessity(必要性)?
At the age of 23, I joined a gym. I lifted weights twice a week in Muscle’s Gym. I paid as little as $200 per year. You can’t find such gyms in every city any more. Too often, the gym is fancy (花哨的) with lots of equipment. If you ask how much it costs to join it, the person at the front desk often won’t tell you straight. Instead, he’ll let you meet with a fitness consultant (健身顾问), who will provide you with a great number of reasons and suggestions, such as losing weight and getting healthier, just in order to put pressure on you to spend much money joining the gym and becoming a member there.
Working out(锻炼) with the help of equipment at home has problems, too. In the early 2000’s, I bought a spinning bike (动感单车) at a cost of $700 for home use. I tried a few times only to find that it brought me a neck problem.
Now I’m back to my old way. I do Yoga (瑜伽) every morning and evening. Total cost: $60 for an exercise mat(垫子) . I’m enjoying fitness.The strange rooms are places where people _________.
| A．do strange things |
| B．suffer from great pains |
| C．play Dante’s Inferno |
| D．take physical(身体的) exercise |
In the author’s opinion, joining a gym nowadays is __________.
| A．exciting | B．inexpensive |
| C．unnecessary | D．helpful |
The author wrote something about Muscle’s Gym to __________.
| A．tell us he was fat when he was young |
| B．suggest a new way of losing weight |
| C．provide us with an example of gyms |
| D．compare it with the gyms of today |
From the text we can infer that _________.
| A．many Americans put on weight after Christmas and New Year’s Day |
| B．the author and his family had spent a lot of money exercising in gyms |
| C．12% of the American people are members of gyms |
| D．spinning bikes are good equipment for exercise |
At just six years old, Joey Kilpatrick is Australia’s unofficial hide-and-seek(捉迷藏)champion after he hid in a bedroom cupboard for eight hours while playing his favorite game，causing a big rescue operation.
The determined little boy’s disappearing act led to a careful search, including nice police officers, five State Emergency Service volunteers, tracker dogs and almost all of the people of the town of Goombungee.
His mother, Chris, says she called the police when Joey disappeared one afternoon after telling his older brother, Lachlan, 14, that he was off to play hide-and-seek.
“I called the two boys for dinner,” Chris says. “After about 20 minutes I started to worry, I was shouting to Joey, ‘OK, we can’t find you, time to come out!’”
But there was no sign of her little boy. Within minutes of Chris calling the police, the policemen started one of the biggest ground searches in the town’s history.
“I was really frightened. I rang my husband, Kris, who works out of town, and he immediately hit the road, calling me every 10 minutes.” Chris recalls．“They searched the house from top to bottom; everyone was out looking for him. When a neighbor asked if I’d checked the water tank, that’s when reality hit. I was afraid.”
After hours of searching the town, confused police decided to search the house one more time.
“I just sat there waiting,” Chris says, “Then a strange feeling came over me, and I rushed into the bedroom and put my hand on a pile of blankets in the cupboard. As I pulled then out，there he was---asleep and completely not realizing what was going on! I’ve never held him in my arms so hard.”
Senior officer, Chris Brameld，from Goombungee police，says he is glad that Joey’s game had a happy ending: “When we realized he was safe, we agreed that it didn’t get much better than that!”
And young Joey promises that next time he won’t be so intent(专注于) on finding the best hiding place. “I want to say sorry to the policemen and to Mummy for scaring them,” he says, “I promise next time I’ll hide where they can find me and I won’t fall asleep!”Why did the boy hide in a bedroom cupboard?
| A．He thought it was a good place to sleep |
| B．He wanted to start a big rescue operation |
| C．He didn’t think he could be easily found there |
| D．He is Australia’s unofficial hide-and-seek champion. |
What did the boy’s mother do when she couldn’t find her son?
| A．She checked the water tank. |
| B．She called the police and her husband. |
| C．She turned to her neighbor for help. |
| D．She searched the town from top to bottom. |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．The boy felt very cold when he was found. |
| B．The boy knew clearly what was going on. |
| C．The mother usually hugged her boy very hard. |
| D．The mother was very grateful to find her boy. |
How did the boy feel after he found out what had happened?
| A．Pitiful. | B．Funny. |
| C．Frightened. | D．Sorry. |
I ran into quite a few language problems while vacationing (度假) with my family last summer. The most embarrassing was when my Mom apologized to the people we were staying with because her “pants were dirty”. They looked at her in amazement, not knowing how to react. You see, Mom had fallen over and gotten mud on her jeans. But in Britain, “pants” means underpants or knickers( 内裤), not trousers as it does back home.
Katie — From America
I went to stay with a friend on the west coast last summer. Her flat was on the first floor of a high-rise building so I got the lift up. Then I wandered round for ages looking for her flat but couldn’t find it. Fed up and tired, I finally had to go out to find a phone box. She explained that her flat was on the first floor, which for me meant the ground floor.
David — From Britain
When I asked for the “restroom” in a big department store, people kept directing(指引) me to a room with seats where I could sit and “rest”. It took me years to get through to (使...明白)someone that I only wanted the toilet!
Tom — From America
Last summer we went on a two-week family touring holiday, so Dad hired a car over the Internet. This was an old vehicle and there turned out to be lots of things wrong with it. When he phoned the hire company and tried to explain that the lock on the boot was broken, they thought he was talking about footwear! He had no idea their word for “boot” was “trunk”. In the end we went to a garage and just solved the problem.
Mary — From BritainHearing Katie’s mother’s words, Katie’s friends were in amazement because _______.
| A．Katie’s mother got mud on her jeans |
| B．Katie’s mother’s underpants were dirty |
| C．they mistook “pants” in American for underpants |
| D．they didn’t know English |
Which of the following words is from British English？
| A．Pants. | B．Ground floor. |
| C．Restroom. | D．Trunk. |
When Tom asked for the “restroom”, the people around him thought ________.
| A．he wanted to have a rest |
| B．he wanted the toilet |
| C．he wanted a chair |
| D．He wanted to go to a department store |
The underlined word “garage” is probably ________.
| A．a parking place | B．a car |
| C．a gas station | D．a place to repair cars |
Can you imagine that several hundred years ago, tomatoes were seen as toxic food in Europe?
What made Europeans believe this was John Gerard’s publication of Herbal in 1597. Gerard wrote: “The leaves and stalks of the tomato plant are toxic.” Undoubtedly, Gerard’s opinion was based on a misunderstanding of tomatoes. But his opinion was widely spread in Britain and North America for over two hundred years.
In the late 1700s, a lot of Europeans held more fears for tomatoes. A nick name for the fruit was “poison apple” because it was believed that aristocrats(贵族) got sick and died after eating them. But the actual reason was the pewter plates they used. Since tomatoes are high in acidity, when placed on the plates, the lead(铅) in the plates would dissolve(溶解). This caused many deaths. Unluckily, no one knew this at that time. So the innocent tomatoes were picked as the killer.
Today, more than one and a half billion tons of tomatoes are produced every year around the world. Tomatoes are cooked in various ways. This healthy and tasty food finally wins its innocence(清白) back.Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?
| A．Europeans’ fears for tomatoes |
| B．History of tomato planting |
| C．Why do people eat so many tomatoes |
| D．How did the tomato prove its value |
What does the underlined word “toxic” in paragraph 1 mean?
| A．delicious | B．nutritious(有营养的) |
| C．poisonous | D．safe |
When did people begin to eat tomatoes according to the text?
| A．About 100 years ago. | B．About 200 years ago. |
| C．About 300 years ago. | D．About 400 years ago. |
What’s the key point for the death of the aristocrats mentioned in the passage?
| A．Tomatoes. | B．The pewter plate. |
| C．Serious illness. | D．Chemical reaction. |
YOU probably think you know about London’s problems. The people are unfriendly, it’s way too expensive, and the food is terrible - so why do so many tourists flock (蜂拥) there?
London was named the world’s most popular city between July and September 2013. It edged out other world-famous cities such as New York and Paris, welcoming 4.9 million visitors, according to the UK Office for National Statistics.
Amazingly, this was an increase of almost 19.5 percent on 2012 - the year when the Olympics happened in summer.
So can London’s success be explained? Well, maybe. As the English writer Samuel Johnson once said, “when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life”. London life is often crazy and expensive, but if you can think of something, you can probably do it there.
Anywhere in the city, you can often look around a great museum such as the British Museum, watch a concert at a historic venue (场所) like the Royal Albert Hall, or dance the night away in a cool nightclub such as Fabric.
And it’s not just about culture – there are also world-famous sporting venues around the city. Many tourists like to watch soccer matches at stadiums such as Chelsea’s Stamford Bridge, Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium, or Tottenham’s White Hart Lane. Tourists even came to watch British tennis player Andy Murray’s famous victory at the Wimbledon tennis tournament (锦标赛) in 2013.
Yes, but what about the food? Well, even if you don’t like British food – and if you’ve never had real fish and chips, or a summer pudding, then perhaps you should wait until you’ve tried them – there is plenty of great food from all over the world available in London’s many restaurants.
London, like many of its buildings, has a long history, but also never lacks a vibrant pulse (充满活力的脉搏). All over the city, history and modernity come together to make it an essential place for tourists to discover. What is the author’s main purpose in writing the article?
| A．To show the effects of the 2012 London Olympics. |
| B．To analyze why London appeals to tourists. |
| C．To compare London with other world-famous cities. |
| D．To talk about common problems in London. |
The underlined phrase “edged out” in the second paragraph probably means ______.
| A．took the lead of |
| B．had a lot in common with |
| C．followed the example of |
| D．became more popular than |
In Samuel Johnson’s eyes, life in London is probably ______.
| A．relaxed | B．boring |
| C． colorful | D．challenging |
According to the article, London is attracting many visitors from across the world, mainly because ______.
a. it is a city rich in culture and attractions
b. most local people are friendly
c. the sporting venues around the city are worthy of a visit
d. British food enjoys a good reputation among visitors
e. the city has a combination of history and modernity
| A．abc | B．ace | C．bcd | D．bde |
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