Traffic TV
Avoid the jams — see where tailbacks are before you set off and while on the move. Traffic TV is free to use on your personal computer and only £4 per month (see below for other network charges) on your mobile.
How does it work?
Over 7,500 Trafficmaster cameras monitor traffic flow on over 8,000 miles of motorways and roads across the UK keeping you up to date 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Traffic TV on your mobile
This downloadable application lets you see where jams are building up, the speed of vehicles at hotspots, and live pictures from thousands of roadside cameras.
Traffic TV is £4 a month for Orange mobile customers, after a 30 day free trial. On other networks Traffic TV is £5 a month, after a 7 day free trial.
Listen to live traffic news
Don’t want the download? Then simply dial the numbers below from your mobile to hear the latest traffic updates.
＊Orange mobile users call 177 (calls cost up to 55p a minute)
＊Other mobile users call 1740 (calls cost up to 59p a minute)
Help friends avoid jams
Simply enter your friend’s email address to send them a link to this service.
You may read this advertisement most probably ___________.
| A．in a travel guide | B．on a web page |
| C．on a road sign | D．in a newspaper |
How long may a customer use the service if his/her network is Orange and pays £20?
| A．About 120 days. | B．About 127 days. |
| C．Five months. | D．Six months. |
What is the purpose of this advertisement?
| A．To provide readers with live traffic information. |
| B．To help Orange customers to avoid traffic jam. |
| C．To attract mobile users to buy Traffic TV service. |
| D．To explain how Traffic TV and live traffic news work. |
How can users get live traffic information?
| A．By telephone or through Internet. |
| B．By watching a TV programme. |
| C．By listening to the radio report. |
| D．By 7,500 Trafficmaster cameras. |
Make some noise on May 7 for Music Monday.People in the U．S. and Canada will be celebrating the day by singing and playing musical instruments together.
Music Monday is the first day of National Wanna Play Music Week，which runs from May 7 to 13.The National Association of Music Merchants(NAMM) organizes the weeklong celebration every year.This marks the seventh year the organization is teaming up with Canada’s Coalition for Music Education(CME)，the group that started Music Monday.
“It’s a day to fill the skies with music and bring young people together in song，” CME Executive Director Holly Nimmons said.
The CME started Music Monday in 2005.It is held every year on the first Monday of May.It was created to help people realize the importance of music education programs in schools and in communities.The day also celebrates the benefits of playing music for people of all ages.
NAMM researches the effects of music on children.They found that playing music has positive effects on thinking skills and on confidence.It also teaches selfdiscipline(自律) and helps kids bond with their peers(同龄人)．“Learning musical skills can also help in your studies of other subjects，such as math，reading and language，” Lora Bodmer，who works at NAMM，said.
Their studies show that music can also help people form friendships and connect with different groups.Nimmons says anyone can join in on the day，not just those who are musically gifted.“I think that we all have the music in us，and it’s a matter of confidence，” she said.“Sing with other people or beat drums，just enjoy the music.”
Participants can turn on the radio to join the fun.Each year a song is assigned to Music Monday.This year the song is “Tomorrow Is Coming” by Luke Doucet.The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation(CBC) will be playing the tune at 1 p．m. Eastern Time.People across North America will play or sing the song at the exact same time.The performance is meant to connect people through melody(旋律)．More than 700,000 students took part in the concert last year.
Schools，afterschool programs，organizations，groups and individuals throughout the U．S. and Canada can all participate in Music Monday.Students who would like to share in the celebration should let their teachers or organization leaders know.But NAMM also encourages people to pick up any instrument and play anytime on the day.What can we learn about Music Monday?
| A．National Wanna Play Music Week begins on Music Monday. |
| B．People can’t sing every day except on Music Monday. |
| C．Music Monday will last at least seven days. |
| D．Students can enjoy music on Music Monday freely. |
The purpose of National Wanna Play Music Week is to ________.
| A．advise young people to learn music |
| B．help students to learn music better |
| C．get schools and communities closely united |
| D．call on people to pay more attention to music education |
Which of the following may be the benefit of music to kids?
| A．Kids can get rid of many bad habits. |
| B．Kids are most likely to do well in their lessons. |
| C．Kids would like to play with other friends more. |
| D．Kids will get on well with their parents at home. |
What do the last two paragraphs mainly tell us?
| A．How people will celebrate Music Monday. |
| B．What students should do on Music Monday. |
| C．Why a theme song is chosen for Music Monday. |
| D．Where the celebration of Music Monday will be held. |
When I was 12，all I wanted was a signet(图章) ring.They were the “in” thing and it seemed every girl except me had one.On my 13th birthday，my Mum gave me a signet ring with my initials(姓名首字母) carved into it.I was in heaven.
What made it even more special was that it was about the only thing that wasn’t being “replaced”．We’d been burnt out in fires that swept through our area earlier that year and had lost everything—so most of the “new” stuff(东西) we got was really just to replace what we’d lost.But not my ring.My ring was new.
Then，only one month later，I lost it.I took it off before bed and it was missing in the morning.I was sad and searched everywhere for it.But it seemed to have disappeared.Eventually，I gave up and stopped looking for it.And two years later，we sold the house and moved away.
Years passed，and a couple of moves later，I was visiting my parents’ when Mum told me that she had something for me.It wasn’t my birthday，nor was it Easter or Christmas or any other giftgiving occasion.Mum noticed my questioning look.“You’ll recognize this one，” she said，smiling.
Then she handed me a small ring box.I took it from her and opened it to find my beautiful signet ring inside.
The family who had bought our house 13 years earlier had recently decided to do some redecorations，which included replacing the carpets.When they pulled the carpet up in my old bedroom，they found the ring.As it had my initials carved into it，they realized who owned the ring.They’d had it professionally cleaned up by a jeweler before sending it to my mother.
And it still fits me. (2013·福建，A)The underlined word “in” in the first paragraph probably means “________”．
| A．fashionable | B．available |
| C．practical | D．renewable |
When she got the ring back，the writer was about ________.
| A．13 years old | B．15 years old |
| C．26 years old | D．28 years old |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．The writer’s family moved several times. |
| B．The writer never stopped looking for her ring. |
| C．The writer’s ring was cleaned up by the new house owner. |
| D．The writer lost her ring in the morning when she took it off. |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．My New Ring | B．Lost and Found |
| C．Lost and Replaced | D．An Expensive Ring |
I’ve always known my kids use digital communications gear (装置) a lot.But my cellphone bill last month really grabbed my attention.My son had come up to nearly 2,000 incoming text messages，and had sent nearly as many.Of course，he was out of school for the summer and communicating more with friends from a distance.Nevertheless，he found time to hold down a summer job and complete a college course in between all that typing with his thumb.
I was even more surprised to learn that my son is normal.“Teenagers with cellphones each send and receive 2,272 text messages a month on average，” Nielsen Mobile says.
Some experts regret that all that keyboard jabber is making our kids stupid，unable to read nonverbal cues such as facial expressions，gestures，posture and other silent signals of mood and attitude.Unlike phones，text messaging doesn’t even allow transmission of tone of voice or pauses，says Mark Bauerlein，author of a book called The Dumbest Generation：How the Digital Age Stupefies Young Americans and Jeopardizes Our Future.
Beyond that，though，I’m not sure I see as much harm as critics of this trend.I’ve posted before on how I initially tried to control my kids’ texting.But over time，I have seen my son suffer no apparent ill effects，and he gains a big benefit，of easy，continuing contact with others.
I don’t think texting make kids stupid.It may make them annoying，when they try to text and talk to you at the same time.And it may make them distracted，when buzzing text messages interrupt efforts to noodle out a math problem or finish reading for school.
But I don’t see texting harming teens’ability to communicate.My son is as accustomed to nonverbal cues as any older members of our family.I have found him more engaged and easier to communicate with from a great distance，because he is constantly available via text message and responds with faithfulness and speed.What does the underlined word “distracted” in the fifth paragraph mean?
| A．Confused. | B．Absentminded. |
| C．Comfortable. | D．Badtempered. |
What would be the best title for this passage?
| A．For Teens，Texting Instead of Talking |
| B．For Parents，Caring Much for Their Kids |
| C．Advantages and Disadvantages of Texting |
| D．The Effect of Communication |
The author’s attitude towards texting is________.
| A．objective | B．opposed |
| C．supportive | D．doubtful |
According to the passage，which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．It is normal for a teen to send or receive 60 text messages a day. |
| B．Texting is a very popular way of communication among teens. |
| C．When texting，teens never mind talking with others. |
| D．The writer limited his son to send or receive text messages at first. |
Should you stay at home to look after your child，or return to work?
Maybe you don’t have the option.Combining work and motherhood is an issue faced by increasing numbers of women every day.
New research for the Institute for Economic and Social Research could solve this quandary once and for all.In short，it concludes that going back to work after the birth of a child can have a negative impact on the child’s development—unless you have lots of money.
“Growing up in a family in which the mother chooses to work appears to have some adverse consequences for children’s welfare，” the research says.However，it adds that extra money brought in by both parents can reduce the negative effect.The negative effect is also less apparent in children of bettereducated mothers.
The research by John Ermisch and Marco Francesconi is especially downbeat about welfare to work programmes，and especially，the prospects for the children of some single parents.
“It is hard to see anything but gloomy (阴暗的) prospects for the children of single parents (who are generally poor)，” the researchers said.This is because in a common family where both parents work，extra money brought in by the mother’s working would compensate for less time spent with the children.
In contrast，the researchers said the effects of paternal (父亲的) employment were far more modest，but this did not mean that fathers had no role in shaping their children’s welfare.Money brought in by the father would be a major resource for helping children develop.
The research says，however，that before parents get too carried away by worrying about working，there are more important issues facing a child’s development.Parents’ personalities and emotional stability，parenting practices，and the friends and networks that children experience while growing up will be much bigger factors than whether their mothers work.The extra money brought in by both parents________.
| A．plays different roles in shaping a child’s welfare |
| B．can reduce the negative effect on a child |
| C．has negative effect on a child’s development |
| D．may damage the life of children |
The researchers would agree that________.
| A．mothers should keep a balance between work and family life |
| B．the more money mothers make，the worse their children will be |
| C．mothers should make as much money as they can |
| D．it would be better for mothers to be with children at home |
We can conclude from the passage that________.
| A．it doesn’t matter how much money a father brings home |
| B．education is the only factor in shaping a child’s welfare |
| C．money made by mothers can also contribute to a child’s wellbeing |
| D．mothers’ income can have a deeper effect on a child’s development |
What can we learn from the last paragraph?
| A．Whether mothers work is not worth considering. |
| B．The research shows family stability is important. |
| C．Parents should stop worrying about working. |
| D．More important factors are involved in a child’s development. |
Scott Langteau has this message for kids：spend less time playing video games.
It’s a message that many a mom and dad have tried to impress upon many a youngster (and some notsoyoungsters) who spend perhaps a bit too much time with game controllers in hand.
But the 40yearold Langteau isn’t a parent.He’s a veteran (老手) of the video game industry—one who played producer on three “Medal of Honor” games and cofounded his own game development company.
Langteau has just published a children’s books called Sofa Boy，which tells the story of a kid who spends too much time sitting on the couch with controller clutched in hand and the rather terrible consequences that follow.
It’s a fairy tale plucked straight from Langteau’s own experiences as a lad with a fondness for video games and his own bouts with a bit of game addiction.But first，Langteau would like to make one thing clear，“I’m not saying that you shouldn’t play video games.I think video games are great.I think they do great things for kids.”Instead，Langteau says his book is all about a little something called moderation (克制)．
“It’s about being well rounded，” he says.“Just like with anything else，we all need to make sure that there’s a variety in what we do.”
Video gamers can be rather badtempered when it comes to accepting criticism about their favorite entertainment.And understandably so.After all，most people who go around talking about the dangers of playing video games tend to be outsiders—people who don’t play video games and certainly don’t understand that they can be a valuable and healthy form of entertainment.
But Langteau and Sofa Boy seem to be in a unique position to deliver a message of gaming moderation that the young game masses might actually listen to.After all，this is a man who understands what it means to be a kid with a passion for games.His early experience has taught him a lesson.Scott Langteau published Sofa Boy to________.
| A．share his great skills on games |
| B．warn kids against game addiction |
| C．tell about his fairy tale as a kid |
| D．deliver a message for video games |
Which of the following is TRUE about Sofa Boy?
| A．The book implies the writer’s own story. |
| B．The book describes a veteran of games. |
| C．The boy in the book wins a medal in games. |
| D．The boy in the book is not a video game addict. |
We can learn from the passage that________.
| A．Langteau advises the young to play games within limits |
| B．Langteau advises the young not to play games |
| C．playing video games ruins the future of kids |
| D．playing video games doesn’t benefit kids |
By saying “It’s about being well rounded，...” (in Para.6)，Langteau means________.
| A．games do great good to kids |
| B．gamers are usually fat and round |
| C．games should be viewed from all sides |
| D．gamers are to blame for their behaviors |
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