You’ve just come home, after living abroad for a few years. Since you’ve been away, has this country changed for the better—or for the worse?
If you’ve just arrived back in the UK after a fortnight’s holiday, small changes have probably surprised you—anything from a local greengrocer suddenly being replaced by a mobile-phone shop to someone in your street moving house.
So how have things changed to people coming back to Britain after seven, ten or even 15 years living abroad? What changes in society can they see that the rest of us have hardly noticed—or now take for granted? To find out, we asked some people who recently returned.
Debi: When we left, Cheltenham, my home town, was a town of white, middle-class families—all very conservative (保守的). The town is now home to many eastern Europeans and lots of Australians, who come here mainly to work in hotels and tourism. There are even several shops only for foreigners.
Having been an immigrant (移民) myself, I admire people who go overseas to find a job. Maybe if I lived in an inner city where unemployment was high, I’d think differently, but I believe foreign settlers have improved this country because they’re more open-minded and often work harder than the natives.
Christine: As we flew home over Britain, both of us remarked how green everything looked. But the differences between the place we’d left behind and the one we returned to were brought sharply into focus as soon as we landed.
To see policemen with guns in the airport for the first time was frightening—in Cyprus, they’re very relaxed—and I got pulled over by customs officers just for taking a woolen sweater with some metal-made buttons out of my case in the arrivals hall. Everyone seemed to be on guard. Even the airport car-hire firm wanted a credit card rather than cash because they said their vehicles had been used by bank robbers.
But anyway, this is still a green, beautiful country. I just wish more people would appreciate what they’ve got. After a short overseas holiday, people tend to _______.
| A．notice small changes |
| B．expect small changes |
| C．welcome small changes |
| D．exaggerate small changes |
How does Debi look at the foreign settlers?
| A．Cautiously. |
| B．Positively. |
| C．Sceptically. |
| D．Critically. |
When arriving at the airport in Britain, Christine was shocked by _______.
| A．the relaxed policemen |
| B．the messy arrivals hall |
| C．the tight security |
| D．the bank robbers |
Which might be the best title for the passage?
| A．Life in Britain. |
| B．Back in Britain. |
| C．Britain in Future. |
| D．Britain in Memory. |
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑
A
The old man walked slowly into the restaurant. With head tilted, and shoulders bent forward he leaned on his trusty stick with each unhurried step. His torn cloth jacket, patched trousers, worn out shoes, and warm personality made him stand out from the usual Saturday morning breakfast crowd. He stopped, turned with his whole body, and winked at a little girl seated by the door. She flashed a big smile right back at him.
A young waitress named Mary watched him walk toward a table by the window. She ran over to him, and said, "Here, Sir. Let me give you a hand with that chair." She pulled the chair away from the table. Steadying him with one arm, she helped him move in front of the chair, and get comfortably seated. Then she moved the table up close to him, and leaned his stick against the table where he could reach it.
In a soft, clear voice he said, "Thank you, Miss. And bless you for your kind gestures."
"You're welcome, Sir." She replied. "And my name is Mary. I'll be back in a moment, and if you need anything at all in the mean time, just wave at me!"
After he had finished a hearty meal, Mary brought him the change from his ticket. He left it on the table. She helped him and walked with him to the front door. Holding the door open for him, she said, "Come back and see us, Sir!" He turned and nodded a thank-you. "You are very kind." he said softly, smiling.
When Mary went to clean his table, she almost fainted. Under his plate she found a business card, and a note scribbled on a napkin. Under the napkin was a one-hundred-dollar bill.
The note on the napkin read, "Dear Mary, I respect you very much, and you respect yourself too. It shows by the way you treat others. You have found the secret of happiness. Your kind gestures will shine through those who meet you."
The man she had waited on was the owner of the restaurant where she worked. This was the first time that she, or any of his employees had ever seen him in person.
56．The old man left $ 100 under the napkin because he ____．
A．was grateful for Mary's kindness
B．wanted to encourage Mary to do more good deeds
C．appreciated Mary's kindness and work attitude
D．thought highly of the tasty meal in the restaurant
57．What do we know about Mary and the old man?
A．Mary knew who the old man was from the note．
B．Mary recognized the old man when she served him．
C．The old man intended to have Mary as his secretary．
D．It was the first time that Mary had seen her boss in the flesh．
58．It can be inferred that the old man went to the restaurant to ____．
A．have a good meal B．enjoy good service
C．have an on-site visit D．show his generosity
59．The passage is developed mainly by ____．
A．following the order of space B．following the order of events
C．making comparisons D．providing examples
60．The best title of the passage would be ____．
A．Employer and Employee B．The Secret of Happiness
C．A Gift from the Manager D．Good Service in the Restaurant
E
Could we "terraform" Mars —that is, change its frozen, thin-aired surface into something more friendly and Earthlike? Should we? The first question has a clear answer: Yes, we probably could．Spacecraft, including the ones now exploring Mars, have found evidence that it was warm in its youth, with rivers flowing into vast seas．And right here on Earth, we've learned how to warm a planet: just add greenhouse gases to its atmosphere．Much of the CO2 that once warmed Mars is probably still there, in frozen dirt and polar ice caps, and so is the water．
Most of the work in terraforming, says NASA scientist Chris Mackay, would be done by life itself． "You don't build Mars," Mackay says．"You just warm it up and throw some seeds．" Powerful greenhouse gases could be produced from elements in dirt and air on Mars and blown into the atmosphere; by warming the planet, they would release the frozen CO2, which would quicken the warming and increase atmospheric pressure to the point where liquid water could flow．Meanwhile, says botanist James Graham of the University of Wisconsin, human settlers could seed the red rock with a succession （系列） of ecosystems ?first bacteria and lichens （地衣）, which survive in Antarctica, later mosses （苔藓）, and after one thousand years or so, redwoods．Getting breathable oxygen levels out of those forests, though, could take thousands of years．
However, Mars is in no immediate danger．Some space scientists recently recommended going to the moon or an asteroid （小行星） first, and pointed out the space agency lacks the funds to go anywhere．It didn't estimate the cost of gardening a dead planet．
72．What is the most essential to make Mars fit for living?
A．Turn ice into flowing water． B．Clean the dirty atmosphere．
C．Make the atmosphere more suitable． D．Go to the moon or an asteroid first．
73．What does the author think of the idea ofterraforming Mars?
A．We could do it． B．We couldn't do it．
C．We should do it． D．We shouldn't do it．
74．In the botanist's opinion, man needs to __________.
A．enable Mars to clean its atmosphere
B．build a greenhouse on Mars
C．send some people to settle on Mars
D．cultivate ecosystems from lower to higher life form
75．What is the best title for the passage?
A．Making Mars the New Earth． B．A Good Way to Change the Universe
C．Humans' Great Power． D．Terrible Science and Technology．
D
If you want to live longer and lower the risk of heart disease, a move to the mountains may help． Research by scientists in Greece shows that living in the mountains is good for the heart and longevity． People living at higher altitude have lower possibility of dying from heart disease than those closer to sea level, even if they have factors that could increase their risk．"Residence in mountainous areas seems to have a 'protective effect' from heart disease," said Dr Nikos Baibas of the University of Athens．He and his colleagues suspect that the increased exercise from walking up mountainous area gives the heart a good workout and enables it to cope with lower levels of oxygen．
Researchers studied the health records and death rates of 1,150 Greeks who lived in three villages near Athens over 15 years．One village was 1,000 metres above sea level and the other two were in low-lying areas．Although men and women living in the mountainous village had higher blood pressure rates and other risk factors than people in the other villages, they had a lower rate of death from heart disease and other causes after a fifteen year follow-up．"The contrast was more evident among men than among women," Baibas added in a report in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health．Heart disease is one of the world's top killers．Smoking, high blood pressure, raised cholesterol levels, being overweight or obese and a family history of the illness increase the odds of developing the disease．
68．The first sentence in the passage is used to __________．
A．tell readers what the passage focuses on
B．give a very good guessing
C．warn people of the risk of heart disease
D．name a new unknown illness
69．According to the passage, a person _________ may have less possibility of having heart attack.
A．with more money B．with a better living habit
C．from higher altitude D．in a happier mood
70．How long does the research of the Greeks last?
A．At most 10 years． B．About 15 years．
C．More than 20 years． D．Not mentioned．
71．Apart from altitude, how many factors raise the chance of developing heart disease?
A．three B．Four C．Five D．Six
C
I'm really nervous opening Chatroulette （a website）．I don't know if I'm more scared of the possibility of coming face-to-face with a naked （裸体的） guy doing improper things, or the possibility of having to speak to someone normal．But it's that uncertainty that's caused the "game" to explode into an Internet phenomenon．
So, I hesitantly click "play"．My face appears in a small box to the left of the screen．I'm a 22-year-old guy, wearing jeans and a T-shirt, and sitting in my warmly lit bedroom —not too threatening, I think．Believing I look welcoming and friendly, I open all features: visual, audio and text．The user can disable these at any time if they feel uncomfortable．
Quickly I find myself face-to-face with my first "partner"．A guy with glasses is staring back at me．He looks like he spends too much time in front of the computer．"Hey", I say, "how are you going?" "Good," says the guy．Sensing that he was not going to be very talkative, I hit the "next" button．
Just like that, I'm thrown across the world into someone else's bedroom．This time it looks like a middle-aged woman．I must have hit gold because 85 percent of Chatroulette users are male, according to the Wall Street Journal．She's wearing sunglasses and smiles back．Before I can even say a word, she "nexts" me．"WHAT?!"
Then, I fly through the Internet and arrive at my next partner．My nightmare, a man is sitting in his computer chair half-naked taking off his pants．Argghh! "Next, next, next!" For the next 30 minutes I keep my cursor （光标） over the "next" button．My experiences continue to be short, shocking, and largely uninteresting．I discouragingly hit "next" after seeing another naked man, and decide to end my session and close the window．This wasn't "the new social media experience" I was hoping for．Maybe it was just a little bit too random （随机的）．
64．It is the author's __________ that leads him into Chatroulette．
A．curiosity B．unwillingness C．enthusiasm D．ignorance
65．The underlined word "disable" in Paragraph 2 means __________．
A．store B．close C．misuse D．copy
66．Among all the partners, __________ seemed to be the least interested in talking with the author.
A．the guy with glasses B．the middle-aged woman
C．the man in his computer chair D．the last man mentioned
67．What is the author's attitude toward Charoulette?
A．Positive． B．Supportive． C．Objective． D．Negative．
B
Here are two letters in WORKWORRIES, a column in a newspaper:
| Dear Ariel, I got a job offer from a high-tech company with a fairly satisfactory paycheck and benefits．Even the work environment is cool．But I heard that the job requires a lot of overtime and even weekends．I know it's important for newcomers to work hard to get their feet planted firmly on the ground, but I'm scared of the idea of having nearly no free time．I still need to find a girlfriend．So, shall I accept the job or give it up for another one with much less pay and more freedom? Amoretto |
| Dear Amoretto, I have two things to say: First, you're lucky to have such an excellent offer, especially at a time when so many qualified people are struggling to find any work at all; and second, you can't figure out your work-life balance until you're actually working． Take the job．You'll be learning, doing interesting things, working in a cool environment, and making money．If you're given a contract （合同）, make sure you understand the terms before you sign．Ask your boss how many hours a week you're expected to work．If they tell you a number that is much lower than what you find once you're working, you'll be in a better position to talk to them about it． Give your work 100 percent．Work energetically and efficiently．If you're dedicated and focused, you might accomplish more than your co-workers in less time．Showing yourself to be a productive and talented worker for the beginning will give you more bargaining power．Finally, remember that taking a job doesn't have to be a life commitment．Try to give it at least a year （two is better）．If you're really miserable after that time, look for another job that will give you more freedom．By then, you'll have workplace experience, bosses and colleagues who can speak positively about your work and some  savings．Good luck!Ariel |
60．From Amoretto's letter, we know that he __________.
A．has been working for a long time B．is likely a green hand
C．expects to change his job D．is quite satisfied with the job
61．How can a man arrange his work-life balance according to Ariel?
A．By taking a training course． B．By asking people for advice．
C．By comparing with others． D．Through his own work experience
62．All of the following are advised byArial EXCEPT__________.
A．understanding the terms before signing
B．working hard and efficiently
C．getting a better position
D．doing the job at least a year
63．What does Ariel advise to do in the reply?
A．Take the job offered． B．Give up and find a new job．
C．Depend on your feeling． D．Choose jobs with great care
粤公网安备 44130202000953号