People who traveled in the past had to put up with many discomforts which we do not have nowadays, and of course they traveled far more slowly. Roads were bad indeed and you often found you could not get along at all because of the mud. In dry weather many places were thick in dust and when it was stormy, trees might fall across the road and it was nobody’s business to clear them away.
Ordinary people traveled on foot or on horseback, but everyone who could afford it kept a private coach. There were public coaches too. called “stage coaches” because long journeys took several days and were done in stages, with stops over night at inns. Some stage, coaches ran only in the summer months. Others all the year around. They were very slow and crowded and passengers often became in on the way because of the swaying (摇晃).
Break downs were frequent, since many roads were not smooth. So a coach might very easily turn right over. Early in the century coach and wagon builders were encouraged to put very wide wheels on their vehicles. So that these might level the roads a little. But many people complained of this since it slowed travel down a good deal.
Most travelers during the 18th century wrote bitterly about the state of the roads. One visitor to Sussex took six hours to travel nine miles in his coach; another wrote to a friend that on time of his journeys “almost every mile was marked by the overturn of a carriage”.Which of the following mainly prevented people from travelling fast in the past?
| A．Falling trees | B．Thick dust |
| C．Muddy road | D．Many discomforts |
The underlined word “them” in the first paragraph refers to _____.
| A．the discomforts | B．the blocked roads |
| C．the dusty places | D．the fallen trees |
Public coaches were called “stage-coaches” because ______.
| A．the long journey was broken into several parts |
| B．they were slow and crowded |
| C．they stopped for meals at inns |
| D．they served public people only |
The sentence “almost every mile was marked by the overturn of a carriage” suggests that ______.
| A．the coaches were of poor quality |
| B．the writers liked to describe the road bitterly |
| C．the road condition was really poor |
| D．travelling about in the past was extremely slow |
Shopping in the United States changes a lot．About ninety years ago most people shopped in small stores that were owned by one person or a family．Women went from the bakery to the butcher’s to the grocer and on to the fruit and vegetable seller in order to get their food for the week．Then, about sixty years ago, supermarkets were born．In a supermarket, people could get all the different kinds of food they needed without going to different stores．
The next big change in shopping in the United States was the shopping mall．A shopping mall is a group of stores under one roof．Because malls allowed people to shop without worrying about the weather, they soon became very popular．The mall became a place for people to socialize in addition to shopping．If you walk through a mall, you will see older people sitting, chatting and drinking coffee．Malls are places for teenagers to hang out．Many teens will often just “go to the mall” and spend time with their friends．
The recent change in American shopping was the superstore．Large chain stores such as Wal-Mart, Office Depot and Toys “R” Us have been built all across the United States．Because they are so large, they can buy goods at a great discount and sell them much cheaper than smaller stores．Sometimes, when they are built near small towns, many of the small town stores have to close．They just cannot compete with their giant neighbors．
And now, online shopping is becoming more and more popular all over the States．People are too busy to go to the physical stores, so they go shopping over the Internet．Online shopping has lots of advantages．For instance, online stores are usually available 24 hours a day．Searching or browsing online shops can be faster than browsing the physical stores．While, online shopping also has its disadvantages．People are at higher risk of being cheated on the part of the merchant than in a physical store．And privacy of personal information may be let out．Which of the following shows the right order of shopping development in the United States?
①small stores ②superstores ③shopping malls ④shopping online ⑤supermarkets
| A．①②③④⑤ | B．①⑤③②④ | C．②③④①⑤ | D．①⑤②③④ |
Which is the place for people to spend time with others according to the passage?
| A．Small stores． | B．Supermarkets． | C．Shopping malls | D．Superstores． |
Why can the superstores sell products at much lower prices?
| A．Because they can buy goods at a reduction in price． |
| B．Because they are across the United States． |
| C．Because they sell all kinds of products people need． |
| D．Because they are built near small towns． |
What’s the disadvantage of online shopping according to the passage?
| A．Wasting time． | B．Fixed prices． |
| C．No chance to do physical activities. | D．Leaking personal information. |
根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。
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 |
The hardworking blacksmith Jones used to work all day in his shop and so hard-working was he that at times he would make the sparks(火星) fly from his hammer.
The son of Mr.Smith, a rich neighbour, used to come to see the blacksmith every day and for hours and hours he would enjoy himself watching how the tradesman worked.
“ Young man, why don’t you try your hand to learn to make shoe tacks (钉) , even if it is only to pass the time ? ” said the blacksmith. “ Who knows, one day, it may be of use to you .”
The lazy boy began to see what he could do. But after a little practice he found that he was becoming very skilled and soon he was making some of the finest tacks.
Old Mr. Smith died and the son on account of the war lost all his goods. He had to leave home and was forced to live in another country. It so happened that in this village there were many shoemakers who were spending a lot of money buying tacks for their shoes and even at times when they paid high prices they were not always able to get what they wanted, because in that part of the country there was a high demand for soldiers’ shoes.
Our young Mr. Smith, who was finding it difficult to earn his daily bread, remembered that once upon a time he had learned the art of making tacks and had the sudden idea of making a bargain with the shoemakers. He told them that he would make the tacks if they would help to get him settled in the workshop. The shoemakers were only too glad of the offer. And after a while, Mr. Smith found that he was soon making the finest tacks in the village.
“ How funny it seems, ” he used to say, “ even making tacks can make money. My trade is more useful to me than all my former riches.”The young man learnt to make shoe tacks because ___________.
| A．his father told him to | B．he wanted to learn a skill |
| C．Jones encouraged him to | D．he just wanted to pass his time |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage ?
| A．Old Mr. Smith enjoyed making the shoe tacks. |
| B．The blacksmith had predicted the young man would be in need of the skill. |
| C．The higher prices they paid, the more tacks the shoemakers would get. |
| D．The young man earned his living by his skills learnt when he was young. |
What can we learn from the story ?
| A．Practice makes perfect. |
| B．Skill makes life easy. |
| C．A good beginning makes good ending. |
| D．Every man has his gift. |
Our grand China tour will show you a different China !
But you are required to present a U.S. Passport as an American when entering China. For some important information on how to apply for a passport, see the following forms.
What is most probably talked about before this passage?
| A．International travel information. |
| B．An introduction to a journey to China. |
| C．The great changes happening in China. |
| D．Matters needed to be dealt with before going to China. |
You can apply for a U.S. passport by mail if you ____.
| A．have never had a U.S. passport before |
| B．got your most recent U.S. passport 17 years ago |
| C．were 17 when you received your previous passport |
| D．changed your name after getting your passport last time |
Before submitting Form DS-11, you should____.
| A．fill in all information on the form |
| B．print the form on both sides of the paper |
| C．fill the form in either black or blue ink |
| D．make an appointment with a Passport Agency |
If you don’t fill Form DS-11 clearly, ____.
| A．you must get another form from your local Passport Agency and refill it |
| B．you should ask for advice from Tips for Americans Traveling Abroad |
| C．you may get a late reply from a Passport Agency |
| D．you must hand it in and explain it personally |
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