At age 11, Ghulam was married off to 40-year-old Jaiz in a rural Afghan village, making her only one of more than 10 million young girls who are being forced to wed men old enough to be their fathers of grandfather every year.
In an effort to start a global conversation about the devastating effects of early marriages, which are currently practiced in more than 50 developing countries, the United Nations designed October 11 as International Day of the Girl Child this year.
Although child marriage is against the law in many countries, and international treaties forbid the practice, it is estimated that about 51 million girls below age 18 are currently married, often under the cover of darkness and in secret. In Afghanistan alone, it is believed that approximately 57 percent of girls wed before the legal age of 16.
Various factors drive parents of child bridges to marry off their daughters, from the community’s pressure to confirm to age-old cultural customs to economic considerations. In poor, developing nations, it is not uncommon for families to settle debts by offering their daughters as payment.
Experts agree that early marriage denies the girl education and robs them of their childhood because most young wives, burdened by grownup responsibilities, do not get a chance to interact with their peers or carry on friendships outside the household. In many cases, the girls are lorded over by their husbands and in-laws, leaving them vulnerable(易受伤害的) to domestic violence as well as physical, sexual and verbal abuse. Underage wives who are lucky enough to escape from their husbands end up living in poverty, or worse. Most girls who enter early marriages are expected to get pregnant right away, which often leads to tragedy for both the mothers, who are still children themselves, and their babies.
Unless international organizations take steps to reverse the troubling trend, it is estimated that over the next decade, 100 million more girls—or about 25,000 girls a day ---will marry before they turn 18.
To learn more about campaign to end the practice of early marriages, please click: Too Young To Wed.The purpose of the first paragraph is to _________.
| A．attract readers’ attention |
| B．introduce the following topic |
| C．list the countries practicing early marriages |
| D．give readers an example of early marriages |
The fifth paragraph mainly talks about __________.
| A．the number of girls involved in early marriages |
| B．the causes of early marriages in developing counties |
| C．the tragic effects of early marriages |
| D．the countries that allow early marriages |
The UN made October 11 as International Day of the Girl Child in order to __
| A．urge parents to treat girls equally as boy |
| B．call on people to pay more attention to girls’ education |
| C．call on people to pay more attention to girls in poor countries or areas |
| D．start a global campaign against early marriages |
Which of the following is a cause of early marriages?
| A．The present girls develop much earlier than before |
| B．Some poor parents marry off their young girls for economic problems. |
| C．Many young girls receive little or no education for different reasons. |
| D．Most girls suffer from domestic violence and have babies too early. |
Did you know that the position you choose to sleep in says something about what kind of person you are?
A study of 1,000 British people has been done by Chris, a British professor and director of the Sleep Assessment and Advisory Service in the UK. It looked at the six most common sleeping positions and which personalities tend to match them. Have a look.
1. Fetus (胎儿) position – This is the most common sleeping position. About 41 percent of the participants said they sleep in this position. These sleepers may appear to be strong but they are usually sensitive (敏感的) and shy. The more they curl (蜷缩) up, the more worried they are.
2. Log position (树干睡姿) – This is the second most common position. People who sleep like a log are usually stubborn.
3. Yearner position (向往型睡姿) – This position says that you are open-minded and eager (急切的) to face challenges.
4. Soldier position – These sleepers lie on their backs with their arms down and close to the body. They are usually reserved and quiet.
5. Freefall position – People who sleep in this position are outgoing (外向的) but feel a lack of control in their lives. This is the least comfortable position.
6. Starfish position – People who sleep like this are good listeners, helpful, and uncomfortable being the center of attention.
| A．Sleeping position decides personality. |
| B．Sleeping position reflects personality. |
| C．What the six different sleeping positions are like. |
| D．Different people have different sleeping positions. |
| A．Those sleeping in fetus position are always strong. |
| B．Those sleeping in log position changes their ideas easily. |
| C．Those sleeping in freefall position usually feel uncomfortable in their lives. |
| D．Those sleeping in starfish position may feel uneasy when focused on. |
| A．Fetus | B．British people |
| C．People surveyed | D．Sleepers |
In most languages, a greeting is usually followed by “small talk”. Small talk means the little things we talk about at the start of a conversation. In English-speaking countries people often make small talk about the weather. “Nice day, isn’t it?” “Terrible weather, isn’t it?” But there is something special about small talk. It must be about something that both people have the same opinion about. The purpose of small talk is to let both people agree on something. This makes meeting people easier and more comfortable. In the UK people usually agree about the weather, so it is a safe topic for small talk. But people often disagree about religion or politics so these are not suitable topics for small talk. The topics for small talk also depend on where the conversation is taking place. At football matches, people make small talk about the game they are watching. “Great game, isn’t it?” At bus-stops, people may comment on the transport system. “The bus service is terrible, isn’t it?”
| A．a kind of conversation with short words |
| B．a greeting used when people meet each other |
| C．to let people disagree about something |
| D．something we talk about to start a conversation |
| A．the weather | B．politics |
| C．games | D．languages |
| A．we should learn about the transport system of the country |
| B．we should only master the grammar and the vocabulary |
| C．we should learn the culture of the country |
| D．we should understand the importance of the language |
| A．asking a question | B．having a conversation |
| C．make a comment | D．making small talk |
If you're wondering what the top things people do on their Hawaii vacations (besides enjoying the magnificent Hawaii beaches)，look on further.
Whether you're here to see an incredible Hawaii volcano or you want to laze on a beach at a top resort in Kona , Hawaii, knowing ahead of time what you want to do will help you make the most of your trip to Hawaii.
Volcanoes National Park
Most visitors to Hawaii want to see lava from an active Hawaii volcano, and the big island does not disappoint when it comes to this. Spreading out over333,000 acres, the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park takes up a large portion on the southern part of the Big Island. Mauna Loa, rising at 13,677 feet, is easily the largest dormant volcano in the world. Kilauea volcano is where you can see the lava flows (溶岩流）and terrible volcanic landscapes. You can spend days hiking and camping in the Hawaii volcano park, since over half of it is set aside as wilderness. Kona Coast
The Kona coast, on the west side of the Big Island，is home to the top resorts on the big island and the popular Kona vacation rentals. The Kona ar-ea enjoys great weather all year round, in addition to other activities like deep-sea fishing and snorkeling ,making this a popular place for Hawaii beaches. You can also take a tour of the coffee farms that produce the world famous Kona coffee, which is organic and all natural. Kona vacation rentals are popular because many of these look out over the Pacific Ocean, and are close to excellent beaches. Whether your Hawaii vacation includes Hawaii beaches, staying at a resort or booking one of the Kona vacation rentals, this area is one of the best of all islands to stay. Iao Valley
Iao Valley's beauty has inspired Hawaiians to gather here to honor the agriculture god, Lono , during an annual festival called the Makahiki festival. For over a hundred years visitors have been coming to the valley to enjoy the scenic beauty of this lush (青葱的）valley. There are trails in the park, so you can see the best scenery of the cloud-covered valley. These clouds have a lot to do with the shape of the valley, since these feed the streams that carved the shape of the Lao Valley. The best title for this passage is __________.
| A．Things to do in Hawaii |
| B．Rich tourism resources in Hawaii |
| C．Hawaii's charming beauty |
| D．Wandering in Hawaii |
This passage is meant for __________
| A．American students |
| B．potential travelers |
| C．local residents |
| D．geographer |
We can guess the meaning of "organic” is __________
| A．man-made |
| B．green |
| C．chemical |
| D．animal |
We can read this passage from __________ in a newspaper.
| A．a tour edition |
| B．a sport edition |
| C．a social life edition |
| D．a science and technology edition |
Without proper planning, tourism can cause problems. For example too many tourists can crowd public places that are also enjoyed by the inhabitants of the country. If tourists create too much traffic ,the inhabitants become annoyed and unhappy. They begin to dislike tourists and to treat them impolitely. They forget how much tourism can help the country's economy. It is important to think about the people of a destination country and how tourism affects them. Tourism should help a country keep the customs and beauty that attract tourists. Tourism should also advance the wealth and happiness of local inhabit-ants.
Too much tourism can be a problem. If tourism grows too quickly, people must leave other jobs to work in the tourism industry. This means that other parts of the country's economy can suffer.
On the other hand, if there is not enough tourism ,people can lose jobs. Businesses can also lose money. It costs a great deal of money to build large hotels, airports, first-class roads, and other support facilities (配套设施）needed by tourist attractions. For example，a major international class tourism hotel can cost as much as 50 thousand dollars per room to build. If this room is not used most of the time, the owners of the hotel will lose money.
Building a hotel is just a beginning. There must be many other support facilities as well，including roads to get to the hotel, electricity, sewers (下水道）to handle waste, and water. All of these support facilities cost money. If they are not used because there are not enough tourists, jobs and money are lost. Which of the following do you think has been discussed in the part before this selection?
| A．It is extremely important to develop tourism. |
| B．Building roads and hotels is important. |
| C．Support facilities are highly necessary. |
| D．Planning is of great importance to tourism. |
The underlined word “inhabitants” (in Paragraph1) probably means “__________”
| A．citizens |
| B．passengers |
| C．population |
| D．tourists |
Too much tourism can cause all these problems EXCEPT __________
| A．a bad effect on other industries |
| B．a change of tourists' customs |
| C．over - crowdedness of places of interest |
| D．pressure on traffic |
It can be inferred from the text that __________.
| A．the author doesn't like tourism developing so fast |
| B．local people will benefit from tourist attractions |
| C．other parts of a country's economy won't benefit from tourism much |
| D．we can't build too many support facilities |
Host in Toronto, Canada
By ： Mabel <Show &Mail>
Date： 18 June ,2009
Hi, I have a room to share in my 3-bedroom house. 2 oriental females living in the house. The room is furnished with bed and mattress, a computer table and a closet. Cable and Internet not included in the rent but available if needed. If you are looking for a family style living in a safe environment, this is the right place. Close to subway, 15 minutes to downtown Toronto, grocery and restaurants. Available June 18 .
Host Edmonton, Alberta, Canada By ： Frank <Show E-Mail>
Date： 18 June ,2009
Hi! After having taught ESL for 12 years in Seoul, Korea ( Sangmyung University) and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam ( AUSP，ILA) , we would like to invite students and business people to share our home in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
Please visit our website http://www. Whitley -homestay . com.
Contact us for more information. We would do our best to make your homestay as pleasant as possible. Hope to hear from you soon.
Take care,
Frank, Uyen and Jennife
Host in Toronto, Ontario
By： Hoang〈Show E-Mail〉
Date： 15 June, 2009
$ 500 Shared Accommodation available at Keels St / Teston Rd. Includes Internet and Cable Television. Option with Room and Board for $ 800. Loca-tion great for York University Students or Seneca College in King City. Contact 416-520-9502.
Maple Ridge, BC
By ： Cindi & David Holt <Show E-Mail>
Date： 17 June, 2009
Hi! We are the Holt Family. We are currently looking for a homestay that would like to attend Maple Ridge College or Thomas Haney Secondary School. We are a large family of 6 that would like to open our doors to someone that is looking to stay. Room and board, breakfast, lunch and dinner included. $ 700 per month. We are a fun, loving family. We live on 5 acres. Have an above-ground pool and live 5 minutes from a lake. It is quiet in a country setting. I can drive to school and sometimes home but there is a community bus that my children always take as they are very independent and go with their friends. If you are interested ,contact me. Which has told the shared price?
| A．Mabel and Frank. |
| B．Frank and Cindi. |
| C．Hoang and Cindi. |
| D．Mabel and Hoang. |
Which will Betty choose if she enjoys swimming?
| A．Mabel. |
| B．Frank. |
| C．Hoang. |
| D．Cindi. |
Where can we find this information?
| A．In a magazine. |
| B．In a newspaper. |
| C．On a website. |
| D．In a house agency. |
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