There are many special hotels around the world. In Greenland, there is a hotel made out of ice. In Turkey, there is a cave hotel. And in Bolivia, there is the Salt Palace Hotel.
Thousands of years ago, the area around the Salt Palace Hotel was a large lake. But over time, all the water disappeared. Today, the area has only two small lakes and two salt deserts.
In the early 1990s, a man named Juan Quesada built the hotel. He cut big blocks of salt from the desert and used the blocks to build it. Everything in the hotel is made out of salt: the walls, the roof, the tables, the chairs and the beds.
The sun heats the walls and roof during the day. So the rooms stay warm at night, though it’s cold outside in the desert. The hotel has twelve rooms. A single room costs $40 a night, and a double room $60.
A sign on the hotel’s wall tells guests, “Please don’t lick (舔) the walls.”Where did the salt for the hotel come from?
| A．A cave. | B．The lake. | C．The salt desert. | D．A salt field. |
What keeps the rooms in the Salt Palace Hotel warm at night?
| A．The water in the lake. | B．The sand in the desert. |
| C．The furniture in the rooms. | D．The heat from the walls and roof. |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．A large lake. | B．A special hotel. | C．A beautiful wall. | D．A famous desert. |
A few years ago, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, where I was employed. purchased Norand Corporation. Pioneer's sales representatives in the field used Norand hand-held terminals to upload daily sales information and download new price and sales incentive information. Pioneer bought so many of these hand-held-terminals, the economies made the purchase of Norand look interesting. Owning Norand also allowed Pioneer to explore high-technology markets outside agriculture.
But after a few years, the emerging laptop PC technology made the hand-held units obsolete (已废弃的). Pioneer sold Norand at a loss. Pioneer always took a given percent of the annual profits to divide equally among all employees, so our profit-sharing checks were lower than if Pioneer had not purchased Norand. Additionally, my Pioneer stock was lower than it had been before the purchase of Norand. I was not pleased.
The CEO of Pioneer, Tom Urban, made annual formal visits to each of the Pioneer divisions to talk about the state of the business and to listen to employees' concerns. When he walked into the meeting room for his first visit after the sale of Norand, he acknowledged the group, remove his jacket, and neatly folded it across the back of the chair. He loosened his tie, undid his collar and rolled up his sleeves.The next thing he said was the last thing I ever expected to hear a CEO say.
He said, "I made a mistake buying Norand and I am sorry. I am sorry your profit-sharing was lower because of the purchase, and I am sorry your stock was hurt by the purchase. I will continue to take risks, but I am a bit smarter now, and I will work harder for you."
A great man and leader stood before us that day. As I sat listening to him, I knew I could trust him, and that he deserved every bit of loyalty I could give to him and to Pioneer. I also knew I could take risks in my own job.
In the brief moment of silence before the questions started, I recall thinking that follow him into any battle.All of the following are the results brought by Pioneer's purchase of Norand except .
| A．Pioneer can explore high-technology markets outside agriculture |
| B．Pioneer's sales representatives can upload information using Norand hand-held terminals |
| C．some of Norand's employees joined the Pioneer |
| D．it later led to the lower of profit-sharing checks of Pioneer's original employees |
The underlined sentence in the third paragraph is closest in meaning to .
| A．the next thing he said was what I expected least to hear a CEO say |
| B．the next thing he said was the last thing I heard from a CEO |
| C．the next thing he said was what I expected most to hear a CEO say |
| D．the next thing he said was what I heard from the last CEO |
Why did Tom Urban remove his jacket, loosen his tie, undo his collar and roll up his sleeves before he spoke?
| A．He felt hot in the room. |
| B．He wanted to look cool by doing this. |
| C．He was too excited. |
| D．He wanted to be close and frank with his employees. |
What did the employees feel after Tom Urban apologized to them?
| A．They felt he was a stupid CEO. |
| B．They felt he did not deserve their loyalty |
| C．They felt he was more trustworthy. |
| D．They didn't want to take risks with him. |
Chinese White Collars（白领） Go Down on the Farm
The latest craze among China’s white collar workers, reported in the British newspaper the Daily Telegraph, is an online virtual agricultural game called “Happy Farm.” Virtual farmers can visit each other’s farm, trade livestock and can use real cash to buy virtual (虚拟的) items such as special tools, quality seeds, and animals. The free game is played through social networking sites like kaixin001.com, Face book or xiaonei.com.
Urban office workers can escape the pressures and stresses of everyday life and enter a peaceful virtual existence where players can grow vegetables, practice animal farming and receive satisfaction that comes with a hard-won harvest. Because most Chinese white collars have little amusement after work, Happy Farm gives them a virtual world to make their dreams come true.
Global Times, an English language daily based in Beijing, recently reported that there are more than 15 million Chinese urbanites spending more than five hours a day on their virtual “farms.”
According to the English language website of the People’s Daily newspaper, the increased interest in farming among some urban office workers has resulted in some of them becoming real hobby farmers, tending small plots of land in their free time. Mr. Liu, a white collar worker, has rented a piece of farmland for RMB 3000. Mr. Liu and his family like to drive down to their farm on the weekend and do different farming tasks such as watering, weeding, fertilizing and worming. Later on, cabins will be built on agricultural land making it possible for part-time farmers like Mr. Liu to stay on their land for two weeks enabling them to get a little taste of a farmer’s life.
It is a rather interesting social development that some of urban office workers are becoming interested in farming and agriculture, while large numbers of farmers and agricultural workers continue to move to the cities.What is “Happy Farm”? (No more than 7 words)
Why do more and more Chinese white collars go down on Happy Farm?
(No more than 14 words)List 4 farming tasks Mr. Liu and his family do on their farms. (No more than 5 words)
How long do Chinese urbanites spend on their virtual farms every day? (No more than 4 words)
Many animals recognize their food because they see it. So do humans. When you see an apple or a piece of chocolate you know that these are things you can eat. You can also use other senses when you choose your food. You may like it because it smells good or because it tastes good. You may dislike some types of food because they do not look, smell or taste very nice. Different animals use different senses to find and choose their food. A few animals depend on only one of their senses, while most animals use more than one sense.
Although there are many different types of food, some animals spend their lives eating only one type. The giant panda（大熊猫） eats only one particular type of bamboo. Other animals eat only one type of food even when given the choice. A kind of white butterfly will stay on the leaves of a cabbage, even though there are plenty of other vegetables in the garden. However, most animals have a more varied diet. The bear eats fruits and fish. The fox eats small animals, birds and fruits. The diet of these animals will be different depending on the season.
Humans have a very varied diet. We often eat food because we like it and not because it is good for us. In countries such as France and Britain, people eat foods with too much sugar. This makes them overweight, which is bad for their health. Eating too much red meat and animal products, such as butter, can also be bad for the health. Choosing the right food, therefore, has become an area of study in modern life.
Senses to 1.___________ food
| Animals that depend on only 2. ______ sense |
|
| ●the giant panda |
bamboo |
| ●a kind of butterfly |
3. ________ |
| Animals that 4. ________ more than one sense |
|
| ●the bear |
5. ____________ |
| ●the fox |
small animals, birds and fruits |
| Humans’ diets are 6. ____________. The 7.___________for French and British people becoming overweight is that they eat foods with 8.________. |
|
| 9. _____________ |
We should 10. _______the right food in modern life. |
Nickname: Hawaii's Island of Adventure
Size: 4,028 square miles
Population: 148,677. The most heavily populated areas are Hilo on the east side and Kailua-Kona on the west.
Temperature: Averages between 71℉and 77℉ year around (expect the mercury(水银柱) to drop at higher heights).
Beaches: 47 Golf Courts: 20 Highest Peak: Mauna Kea, 13,796 feet.
Agriculture: The bulk of Hawaii's farming products are grown and processed on the Big Island, including coffee, macadamia nuts and papaya.
Lodging: 9,655 rooms total; nightly rates range from $35-$5,000.
Airports: Hilo International Airport on the east side and Kona International Airport on the west side.
Rental Cars: All of the nationally known rental car companies have locations at Hilo International and Kona International Airports as well as many resorts. In addition, Hilo, Kona and the major resort areas are serviced by taxis.
Resources: Call (800) 648-2441 to order a video, poster, brochures and maps from the Big Island Visitors Bureau. See www.bigisland.org for updated information.
Shopping: The largest shopping centers are in Hilo, Kona, Waimea and the Kona Coast._______ are mostly interested in reading the passage.
| A．Students | B．Tourists | C．Businessmen | D．Officials |
The average population per square mile on the island is about _________.
| A．28 | B．32 | C．37 | D．44 |
The underlined part "expect the mercury (水银柱) to drop at higher heights" means _________.
| A．Things are easy to lose weight at higher places |
| B．Dropping things from higher places is expected |
| C．Temperature is expected to be higher at higher places |
| D．Temperature is expected to be lower at higher places |
______ are not mentioned as traffic means to get around the Big Island.
| A．Trains | B．Planes | C．Rental cars | D．Taxis |
Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?
| A．You can see www.bigisland.org for updated information. |
| B．You can call (800) 648-2441 to order some food. |
| C．You can find some courts to play tennis on the island. |
| D．You may pay a high price for spending one night on the island. |
As computers become more popular in China, Chinese people are increasingly relying on computer keyboards to input Chinese characters. But if they use the computer too much, they may end up forgetting the exact strokes（笔画）of each Chinese character when writing on paper. Experts suggest people, especially students, write by hand more.
Do you write by hand more or type more? In Beijing, students start using a computer as early as primary school. And computer dependence is more wide-spread among university students. Almost all their assignments and essays are typed on a computer.
All the students interviewed say they usually use a computer.
It's faster and easier to correct if using a computer. And that's why computers are being applied more and more often to modern education. But when people are taking stock in computers increasingly, problems appear.
“When I'm writing with a pen, I find I often can't remember how to write a character, though I feel I’m familiar with it.”
“I'm not in the mood to write when faced with a pen and paper.”
Many students don't feel this is something to worry about. Now that it's more convenient and efficient to write on a computer, why bother to handwrite?
Many educators think differently. Shi Liwei, the headmaster of a famous primary school in the capital said, “Chinese characters enjoy both practical and aesthetic (审美的) value. But those characters typed with computer keyboards only maintain their practical value. All the artistic beauty of the characters is lost. And handwriting contains the writer's emotion. Through one's handwriting, people can get to know one's thinking and personality. Beautiful writing will give people a better first impression of them.”
To encourage students to handwrite more, many primary schools in Beijing have made writing classes compulsory (必修的) and in universities, some professors are asking students to turn in their homework and essays written by hand.Which of the following can best serve as the title of the passage?
| A．The Importance of Handwriting and Typing |
| B．To Type or To Hand Write |
| C．Writing By Computer Will Replace Writing By Hand |
| D．Practical and Aesthetic Value of Chinese Characters |
The students interviewed prefer to write using a computer mainly because ______.
| A．they are usually asked to e-mail their Homework and Essays |
| B．they can correct the mistakes they make quickly and conveniently |
| C．they find it not easy to remember how to write a character |
| D．computers have become a trend and fashion in China |
Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE of the advantages of handwriting?
| A．Handwriting contains the writer's emotion. |
| B．The writer’s thinking and personality are shown in his or her handwriting. |
| C．Handwriting can impress people well and build one’s self-confidence. |
| D．Chinese characters enjoy both practical and aesthetic value. |
The underlined expression “taking stock in” (Paragraph 4) probably means _____.
| A．getting bored with | B．getting dependent on |
| C．becoming crazy about | D．getting curious about |
We can draw the conclusion from the passage that _______.
| A．more and more students will give up writing on a computer |
| B．writing by hand will give way to typing by computer one day |
| C．more and more students will pay attention to handwriting |
| D．the typing article better expresses one’s emotion and quality |
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