The price of milk may be going up. There was not enough rain in some parts of the country last year and the bad weather may mean that a gallon (加仑) of milk will cost 41 cents more after October 1st.
California already has high milk prices and the California court does not want the price to go any higher. High milk prices will be very hard for some people. Families with many children will have to spend more money to buy milk. The poor and older people without much money will also be hurt by higher prices.
The court said that more milk from other states should be sold in California as the price of milk from other states is not as high. Some states got enough rain so their costs did not go up. People will then be able to buy the cheaper milk, meaning that unless milk producers bring their milk prices down, their milk will not sell.
The drought (干旱) around the country has meant market forces are likely to push milk prices up by as much as 41-cent a gallon by October 1st. Experts said this decision by the Californian court could reduce (减少) the effect of the price rise here.
The 41-cent increase would add to California’s already high milk prices so California must allow more milk producers from outside the state to sell their products there. This would then lead to increased supplies (供应), which would, as a result, stop milk prices from increasing.Who will be hurt by high milk prices?
| A．Young people. | B．Milk producers from outside California. |
| C．Rich people. | D．Families with lots of children. |
What caused milk prices in California to increase?
| A．Short supplies from other states. | B．Being short of rain. |
| C．The California court. | D．Children’s need for milk. |
What will California do to keep milk prices down?
| A．Force milk producers to lower their price. |
| B．Encourage people to drink less milk. |
| C．Get men to produce more rain. |
| D．Increase the supply of milk in the state. |
The search for beauty spans centuries and continents. Paintings of Egyptians dating back over 4,000 years show both men and women painting their nails and wearing makeup. In 8th-centuryFrance, wealthy noblemen wore large wigs (假发）of long, white hair to make themselves attractive. Today, people continue to devote a lot of time and money to their appearance.
There is at least one good reason for the desire to be attractive：beauty is power. Studies suggest that good-looking people make more money, get called on more often in class, and are regarded as friendlier.
But what exactly is beauty? It's difficult to describe it clearly, and yet we know it when we see it. And our awareness of it may start at a very early age. In one set of studies, six-month-old babies were shown a series of photographs. The faces on the pictures had been rated for attractiveness by a group of college students .In the studies, the babies spent more time looking at the attractive faces than the unattractive ones.
The idea that even babies can judge appearance makes perfect sense to many researchers. In studies by psychologists, men consistently showed a preference for women with larger eyes, fuller lips, and a smaller nose and chin while women prefer men with large shoulders and narrow waist.
According to scientists, the mind unconsciously tells men and women that these traits —the full lips, clear skin , strong shoulders —equal health and genetic well-being.
Not everyone thinks the same way, however. " Our hardwiredness can be changed by all sorts of expectations —mostly cultural, " say C. Loring Brace, an anthropologist at the University of Michigan. What is considered attractive in one culture might not be in another. Look at most Western fashion magazines：the women on the pages are thin. But is this "perfect" body type for women worldwide? Scientists' answer is no; what is considered beautiful is subjective and varies around the world. They found native peoples in southeast Peru preferred shapes regarded overweight in Western cultures.
For better or worse, beauty plays a role in our lives. But it is extremely difficult to describe exactly what makes one person attractive to another. Although there do seem to be certain physical traits considered universally appealing, it is also true that beauty does not always keep to a single, uniform standard. Beauty really is, as the saying goes, in the eye of the beholder.People's ideas about beauty __________
| A．have existed since ancient times |
| B．can be easily described |
| C．have little influence on a person's success |
| D．are based upon strict criteria |
In Paragraph 3, the babies in the study __________.
| A．were rated for their appearance |
| B．were entered in a beauty contest |
| C．were shown photos of a group of college students |
| D．were able to tell attractive faces from unattractive ones |
A skinny woman in southeast Peru is more likely to be considered as _______ by the locals
| A．unattractive | B．charming |
| C．unknown | D．ordinary |
We can learn from the passage that __________
| A．the ideas of beauty vary as people grow up |
| B．the search for beauty is rooted in lack of confidence |
| C．the standards for beauty are based on scientific researches |
| D．the understanding of beauty depends on cultural backgrounds |
The English proficiency of Chinese women is much better than that of men, according to a study released in Shanghai yesterday, Chinese women scored three points higher than men in the English Proficiency Index(英语水平指数) released by EF Education, a language training company, mainly English. Worldside, women scored one point higher than men on average.
“This shows that Chinese women are more used to the Chinese education mode, the report said. Chinese women use their gift of language to gain success.”
However, Chinese mainlanders English proficiency ranked second to last in Asia, despite the great time and effort that many people invest in learning the language, the report said, China’s mainland is ranked the 36th in the index of 54 countries and regions where English is not the native language. That’s down by seven places comparing with that last year. The Chinese mainland belongs to the low-proficiency tier(低水平层次) and is ranked just above Thailand in Asia. This year’s index has increased the weight of listening tests, while decreasing the importance of grammar and vocabulary exams, which partly caused the ranking change, researchers said. Moreover, test-oriented(以考试为目的) and rote-based(死记硬背)learning methods often used in China hurt the language skills of Chinese students, education experts said.
The study compared test scores of more than 1.7 million adults in the 54 countries and regions. Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands have the best command of English, while Libya has the lowest English proficiency level. European countries generally performed well. But Italy, Spain and Portugal, some of the countries at the heart of the euro zone crisis, are being dragged down by poor English, according to the report. Singapore is 12th, the best in Asia, followed by Malaysia and India, South Korea; at 21st, and Japan, at 22nd, performed disappointingly low despite their focus on education; the report said.
One in every four people frequently uses English at work on China’s mainland, nevertheless nearly 15 percent said they never use English, lower than the world average level, according to the study.What is EF Education?
| A．It is a language test organization. |
| B．It is an English teaching school. |
| C．It is a language training company. |
| D．It is an organization studying human. |
By what do Chinese women gain success in English learning?
| A．Cheating. | B．Gift. |
| C．Learning by heart. | D．Asking for help. |
What can we learn from paragraph 3?
| A．Chinese mainlanders’ English proficiency ranked second in the index of 54 countries and regions. |
| B．Chinese mainlanders’ English proficiency ranked 29th last year. |
| C．The Chinese mainland belongs to the mid proficiency tier. |
| D．This year’s index has increased the weight of grammar and vocabulary exams. |
Which of the following order is TRUE in the ranking of the English Proficiency Index?
| A．Denmark > India > Japan > Singapore > Libya |
| B．Denmark > Japan > Singapore > India > Libya |
| C．India>Japan > Denmark > Singapore > Libya |
| D．Denmark > Singapore > India > Japan > Libya |
No one would much like the idea of eating 61 pounds of tomatoes a day. But if their goodness was put into an easy-to-swallow pill that you were told might prevent strokes(中风) and heart attacks you would probably be putting in an order tomorrow.
Researchers believe they may have come up with just that after trials. The daily pill contains a chemical called lycopene which makes tomatoes red and is known to break down fat in the vessels(血管). A Cambridge University study found taking the pills improved blood flow and the lining of vessels in patients with pre-existing heart conditions. It also increased the flexibility(灵活性) of their vessels by 50 percent. The scientists believe it could limit the damage caused by heart disease-responsible for 180,000 deaths a year-and help cut the 49,000 deaths a year from strokes. They also hope it could benefit those with arthritis(关节炎), diabetes(糖尿病) and even slow the progress of cancer.
Each pill is equal to eating around 61 pounds of ripe tomatoes. Studies have shown eating a Mediterranean-style diet rich in tomatoes fish, vegetables, nuts and olive oil can significantly reduce cholesterol(胆固醇) and help prevent cardiovascular disease.
Preliminary results from a two-month trial, in which the pill was given to 36 heart disease patients and 36 healthy volunteers with an average age of 67, were presented at a meeting of the American Heart Association. It was shown to improve the function of the endothelium- the layer of cells lining blood vessels. It also improved their sensitivity to nitric oxide, the gas which causes the enlargement of the vessels in response to exercise.
Ian Wilkinson, head of Cambridge University’s clinical trials unit, said “These results are potentially very significant and it meets the goal, but we need more trials to see if they translate into fewer heart attacks and strokes.”
Further studies are planned, with researchers hoping it could offer a choice for heart disease sufferers who can not take the cholesterol-lowing drugs.
Mike Knapton, head of the British Heart Foundation, said, “Although this showed lycopene improved blood flow in people with heart disease, that’s a long way from demonstrating that taking it could improve outcomes for people with heart disease. The best way to get the benefits of a good diet is to eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables.” What can we infer from Paragraph 1?
| A．We can eat too much tomato food. |
| B．Tomatoes are helpful to strokes and heart attacks. |
| C．Tomatoes will lose healthy elements were put into pills. |
| D．We had better not eat tomatoes. |
We can learn from the passage that the pills ____.
| A．are at the experiment stage |
| B．can cure all the disease |
| C．are widely used among patients |
| D．cost patients so little money |
Who were the volunteers by taking part in the trial?
| A．Children. | B．Youth. |
| C．Working people. | D．old healthy people. |
What Was Ian Wilkinson’s opinion on the trial?
| A．Disappointing. | B．Surprising. |
| C．Satisfactory. | D．Terrible. |
The new world of today introduced new threats that were not known in the previous generations: Internet predators(掠夺者). Often we do a lot of our researching, shopping, talking; just about everything online nowadays. New advancements in revolution comes along with the unwanted attackers. There are people out there who gain pleasure from, interrupting and taking from our peaceful lives what’s not rightfully theirs. But like with everything, there are indeed counteractive measures that can be set in place to fend off these predators from such damage. I’d like to introduce the Guardian Eye.
Within this program is a complex program which has several functions to create a safe atmosphere for whomever uses the computer, It has the ability to track and log every key stroke, every website that has ever been accessed, takes screenshots of web pages, blocks web pages according to content and even sends you messages via email once conspicuous(可疑的) activity has been reported and logged. Just think, you or child could be browsing and searching through the Internet and inappropriate content pops up with several different windows. You try to click out of the windows but you accidentally click one which releases spyware, infecting your computer. Guardian Eye blocks unwanted content from popping up or appearing to the users, which I thought was extremely convenient. In this way there is not even the slightest temptation.
This product helps prevent damage from being done to your computer and worse, your identity. It’s quite the product and it offers a little version so you may try it out first. If you’d like the full package, it’s a once time fee 39.99 and can be installed on unlimited computers for your convenience. It’s a nice deal and I’m considering getting it again considering I do a lot of writing on various websites myself. In what way is Guardian Eye most useful to kids?
| A．It stops them from opening too many windows. |
| B．It makes them aware of conspicuous activity. |
| C．It keeps them from seeing unwanted contents. |
| D．It stops spyware from entering the computer. |
We can infer from the last paragraph?
| A．you have to pay for Guardian Eye every year. |
| B．the author has never used Guardian Eye. |
| C．you can use Guardian Eye for free. |
| D．Guardian Eye is economical to use |
For what purpose does the author writer the text?
| A．To recommend a software to us. |
| B．To describe how to use a software. |
| C．To ask us to pay attention to online safety. |
| D．To tell us how to fend off online predators. |
Cleverness is a gift while kindness is a choice. Gifts are easy---they’re given after all. Choice can be hard.
I got the idea to start Amazon 16 years ago. I came across the fact that the Internet usage was growing at 2300 percent per year. I’d never seen or heard of anything that grew that fast, and the idea of building an online bookstore with millions of titles was very exciting to me, I had just turned 30 years old , and I’d been married for a year, I told my wife MacKenzie that I wanted to quit my job and go to do this crazy thing that probably wouldn’t work since most start-ups don’t , and I wasn’t sure what to expect, MacKenzie told me I should go for it. As a young boy, I’d been a garage inventor, I’d always wanted to be an inventor, and she wanted me to follow my passion.
I was working at a financial firm in New York City with a bunch of very smart people, and I had a brilliant boss that I much admired. I went to my boss and told him I wanted to start a company selling books on the Internet. He took me on a long walk in Central Park, listened carefully to me, and finally said, “That sounds like a really good idea, but it would be an even better idea for someone who didn’t already have a good job.” That logic made some sense to me, and he convinced me to think about it for 48 hours before making a final decision. Seen in that light, it really was a difficult choice, but ultimately, I decided I had to give it a shot. I didn’t think I’d regret trying and failing. And I suspected I would always be haunted by a decision to not try at all.
After much consideration, I took the less safe path to follow my passion, and I’m proud of that choice, For all of us, in the end, we are our choice. What inspired the author with the idea of building an online bookstore?
| A．His dream if being an inventor. |
| B．The support of his wife. |
| C．The greatly increasing usage of the Internet. |
| D．Millions of exciting titles. |
Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined sentence?
| A．The idea of not trying would keep coming to his mind and disturb him. |
| B．He would be very excited if he tried it out. |
| C．He would be always having a doubt if he didn’t try. |
| D．The decision to not try the online bookstore would terrify him. |
We can know from the passage that ______.
| A．the boss thought the idea was suitable for the author |
| B．the author wanted someone else to try the idea |
| C．the author might not regret if he failed the idea |
| D．the author might go back to his boss if he failed |
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Cleverness and Kindness | B．The Starting of Amzon |
| C．Following My Passion | D．We Are What We Choose |
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