Zoe Chambers was a successful PR (Public Relations) consultant and life was going well — she had a great job, a beautiful flat and a busy social life in London. Then one evening in June last year, she received a text message telling her she was out of work. The first two weeks were the most difficult to live through." she said. "After everything I'd done for the company, they dismissed me by text! I was so angry and I just didn't feel like looking for another job. I hated everything about the city and my life."
Then, Zoe received an invitation from an old school friend, Kathy, to come and stay. Kathy and her husband had just bought a farm in north-west Wales. Zoe jumped at the chance to spend a weekend away from London, and now, ten months later, she is still on the farm.
"The moment I arrived at Kathy's farm, I loved it and I knew I wanted to stay." said Zoe. "Everything about my past life suddenly seemed meaningless."
Zoe has been working on the farm since then and says she has no regrets. "It's a hard life, physically very tiring." she says. "In London 1 was stressed and often mentally exhausted. But this is a good, healthy tiredness. Here, all I need to put me in a good mood is a hot bath and Kathy's wonderful dinners."
Zoe has never felt bored on the farm. Every day brings a new experience. She has learned how to ride a horse and drive a tractor. She has been helping with the lambing. "Watching a lamb being born is one of the most moving experiences for me. I could never go back to city life now," she says.When working as a PR consultant in London, Zoe thought she lived a ______ life.
| A．satisfying | B．tough | C．meaningless | D．boring |
The most important reason why Zoe went to visit Kathy's farm is that______.
| A．Zoe lost her job as a PR consultant |
| B．Kathy persuaded her to do so |
| C．Zoe got tired of the city life |
| D．Zoe loved Wales more than London |
How does Zoe feel about the country life according to the passage?
| A．Tiresome and troublesome. |
| B．Romantic and peaceful |
| C．Mentally exhausting but healthy |
| D．Physically tiring but rewarding. |
Which of the following is closest to the main idea of the passage?
| A．A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
| B．Where there is a will, there is a way. |
| C．A misfortune may turn out a blessing. |
| D．Kill two birds with one stone. |
The most important use of drifting (漂流) bottles is to find ocean currents. When the position and direction of currents are known, ships can use the forward movement of a current or stay away from currents that would carry them off their course. Benjamin Franklin was one of the first to use bottles in the study of currents. He wondered why British mall ships needed a week or two longer than U.S. ships needed in order to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Franklin thought the Gulf Stream (墨西哥湾流) might explain this difference.
Franklin talked with captains of U.S. ships. He found that they knew each turn of the Gulf Stream. They used the current in every possible way. From his talks with the captains. Franklin made his first map of the Gulf Stream. Then he checked his map by using sealed (密封的) bottles. The map that he finally made is still used, with only a few changes, today. Why are drifting bottles used?
| A．To determine the position of a ship |
| B．To carry message across the ocean |
| C．To predict the direction of a ship. |
| D．To find the direction of a current |
What led Franklin to talk with U.S. captains?
| A．U.S. ships were longer than British ones. |
| B．British ships could sail the Atlantic faster than U.S. ones. |
| C．U.S captains knew more about maps. |
| D．U.S. ships could sail the Atlantic faster than U.S. ones. |
What did Franklin make after his talks with U.S. captains?
| A．A map of the Atlantic Ocean. | B．A map of the Gulf Stream.. |
| C．A map of ocean currents. | D．A map of his first voyage. |
What did Franklin do in order to make an exact map?
A. He compared his own map with other maps
B. He talked with many U.S. captains.
C. Both B and C.
D. He used drifting bottles to check his map.
When Scotsman Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876, it was a revolution in communication．Over the last two decades a new means of spoken communication has emerged: the mobile phone．
The modern mobile phone is a more complex version of the two-way radio．Traditional two-way radio was a very limited means of communication．As soon as the users moved out of range of each other’s broadcast area, the signal was lost．In the 1940s, researchers began experimenting with the idea of using a number of radio masts （天线杆）located around to pick up signals from two-way radios．A caller would always be within range of one of the masts; when he or she moved too far away from one mast, the next mast would pick up the signal．（Scientists referred to each mast’s reception area as being a separate "cell"; this is why in．many countries mobile phones are called "cell phones"．）
The first real mobile telephone call was made in 1973 by Dr Martin Cooper．As soon as his invention was completed,, he tested it by calling another scientist to announce his success．Within a decade, mobile phones became available to the public．They have changed the way we do a lot of things．One powerful feature is the Short Message Service （SMS） or text message．It’s the perfect communication method for the busy modern lifestyle．Going to be late? Send a text message! The text message has changed the way we write in English．The language construction became less strict．Traditional rules of grammar and spelling are much less important when you’re sitting on the bus, hurriedly typing "Will B 15mm late-C U @ the bar．（I will be 15 minutes late to see you at the
bar．） Sorry!"．
Over the last few years mobiles have become more and more advanced．We have seen the instruction of cameras, global positioning system and Internet access．
Alexander Graham Bell would be surprised if he could see how far the science of telephone has progressed in less than 150 years．If he were around today, he might say: "That’s gr8（great）! But I’m busy rite now（I am very busy right now）．Will call U2nite（I will call you tonight．）．"The writing style of the passage is a （an）___．
| A．narrative | B．description | C．essay | D．review |
The article is intended to__ _．
| A．warn people of the possible risks in using mobile phones |
| B．inform readers of the history and benefits of mobile phones |
| C．convince people of the uses of mobile phones |
| D．predict the applications of mobile phones |
What do you think of the writer according to the last paragraph．
| A．Humorous. | B．Ironic. | C．Kind. | D．Worried. |
"Hey, little boy, will you support me when I’m getting old?" Wang Wenshan, 35, asked his newborn baby as he picked him up at home．
The Chinese tradition of raising sons to support parents in their old age has been weakened by the rapidly growing economy and improving standard of living．As is the case with more and more developed countries, China faces an aging society．People are living longer and having fewer children．Therefore, many Chinese families are falling into a 4-2-1 family pattern: a couple raises one child and supports four elderly parents．But few realize that a problem is likely to happen ahead．
The aging of the population is a trend that now affects a growing number of countries．Not long ago, the Information Office of the State Council, China’s cabinet, issued a white paper on measures China is taking to help its elderly population．The paper said China s population entered the aging period at the end of the 20th century as the proportion rote） of people aged 60 and above accounted for over 10 percent of the entire population, By the end of 2005, China had nearly 144 million people over 60, accounting for 11 percent of the population, according to the white paper．
An expanding aged population inevitably means that many issues must be settled, as the problem concerns every aspect of society．It puts more pressure on each family, causing disturbing economic consequences and serious social problems．It also challenges the labor force supply and the pension system．
"I used to think that it’s not an issue for me to provide, for the aged," said Wang, whose parents and parents-in-law all enjoy pensions and medical insurance．But last year Wang s father suffered a serious illness and afterward Wang began to feel the pressure on his shoulders．
After his father recovered, Wang opened bank accounts for each parent and deposited some money into the account every month to prepare for future uncertainties．In addition, he has to save money every month to provide for his son s future education．"I m now breaking my back working to support my family: saving pensions for the parents, my son s education funds, and living costs．"
Wang also bought some commercial old-age insurance for himself．"We have to take precautions before it is too late, and many of my colleagues share the same view," he said．Which of the following is not caused by an aging society?
| A．Social problem． | B．The problem of the pension system． |
| C．More pressure on the family． | D．Unemployment． |
From the passage, we can infer___．
| A．the aging people problem is one of the concerns for the Chinese government |
| B．China will encourage young couples to have more than one child |
| C．many people have realized the problem of aging society |
| D．children will not support their parents in an aging society |
Which of the following can be used to replace the underlined word inevitably?
| A．Surprisingly． | B．Certainly． |
| C．Hopefully． | D．Unluckily |
From the text we can see that .
| A．China is the only country to face an aging society |
| B．most of the developing countries face an aging society |
| C．countries with a large population face an aging society |
| D．more and more developed countries face an aging society |
The China Daily newspaper group is looking for English-language senior business editors, senior copy-editors, copy-editors and graphic designers to strengthen its international team．We offer a competitive salary package, free accommodations with useful things paid for, 90 percent medical reimbursement （补偿）, seven days of paid leave, eleven public holidays and a return ticket to the country of residence．
Senior Business Editor
You must：
●assist the Business editor in setting goals and working on achieving them;
●be an excellent team person who can generate ideas and think creatively, be able to rewrite totally if needed and give advice to junior staff;
●ideally be working or have worked in a position of responsibility and understand what leadership involves;
●have had at least five years’ editing experience working on editing the Business Desk and be familiar with industry software．
Business Copy-editor
You must:
●work on shifts in the Business Desk and usually have the last word before the page is sent to print;
●edit or rewrite copy and give smart headlines and titles;
●have had at least two years’ editing experience working on editing desks and be familiar with industry software．
Copy-editor
You must:
●be good at editing or rewriting copy and writing interesting headlines and explanations;
●be able to work on shifts for different pages, and usually have the last word before the page is sent to print;
●have had two years of editing experience working on copy desks, and be familiar with industry software．
Senior Graphic Designer
You must:
●have excellent skills in information graphics;
●be good with illustrations and freehand drawings;
●be experienced in newspaper or magazine layouts（排版）；
●have a good sense of typography;
●have good news judgment;
●be well-skilled with Macintosh software: In design; Illustrator, Photoshop;
●be fluent in English．
●For enquiries or to apply, write to job @ chinadaily．com.cnWhich is NOT required about copy-editor?
| A．Being familiar with industry software． |
| B．Having two years of editing experience． |
| C．Having a good sense of typography． |
| D．Writing interesting headlines and captions． |
Which position doesn’t need the editing experience?
| A．Senior Business Editor． | B．Business copy-editor． |
| C．Copy-editor． | D．Senior Graphic Designer |
Which of the following can be used as the title of the advertisement?
| A．China Daily Needs New Members |
| B．China Daily Is very Interesting |
| C．China Daily Is an International Team |
| D．China Daily Has Good Working Conditions |
If you are admitted into China Daily, you can enjoy all the following EXCEPT
| A．free accommodations |
| B．seven days leave without pay |
| C．a return ticket to the country of residence |
| D．eleven public holidays |
A Charlotte, NC, lawyer bought a box of very rare and expensive cigars, and then insured them against fire among other things．Having smoked his entire great cigars within a month, the lawyer filed claim （索赔） against the insurance company．
In his claim, the lawyer stated the cigars were lost "in a series of small fires"．Of course the insurance company refused to pay, giving the obvious reason that the man had consumed the cigars in the normal way．
The lawyer brought the case to the court and out of everybody’s expectation, he actually won! At the end of the trial the judge agreed with the insurance company that the claim was crazy．But the judge said that the lawyer held a policy （保险单） from the company in which it had promised that the cigars were insured and that it would insure them against fire．Because the company didn’t say what is considered to be unacceptable fire, it had to pay the claim．
Rather than put up with long and costly appeal process, the insurance company accepted the punishment and paid $ 15 ,000 to the lawyer for his loss of the rare cigars lost in the "fires．"
After the lawyer cashed the check, the insurance company had him arrested and accused him of arson （纵火罪）．With his own insurance claim from the previous case being used against him, the lawyer was charged with burning his insured possessions on purpose and was sentenced to 24 months in prison and a $ 24,000 fine．The lawyer had smoked all the cigars ___．
| A．by design | B．by mistake | C．by accident | D．by contract |
The proper order of the lawyer’s activities is ___．
a．having the company paying his claim
b．having himself put in prison and fined
c．having smoked all the cigars
d．bringing the company to the court
e．insuring the box of cigars
| A．ecabd | B．acebd | C．ecdab | D．cedba |
The underlined word "it" in the third paragraph refers to ___．
| A．the box of cigars | B．the insurance company |
| C．the policy | D．the claim |
Which of the following sayings is the best suitable for the lawyer?
| A．Whoever sits against heaven, it falls in his face． |
| B．A bad beginning makes a bad ending． |
| C．Accidents will happen． |
| D．Even the wise make mistakes sometimes． |
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