A funny thing happened on the way to the communications revolution: we stopped talking to one another.
I was walking in the park with a friend recently, and his cell phone rang, interrupting our conversation. There we were walking and talking on a beautiful sunny day and... I became invisible, absent from the conversation. The telephone used to connect you to the absent. Now it makes people sitting next to you feel absent. Why is it that the more connected we get, the more disconnected I feel? Every advance in communications technology is a tragedy to the closeness of human interaction（互动）. With email and instant messaging over the internet, we can now communicate without seeing or talking to one another. With voice mail, you can conduct entire conversations without ever reaching anyone. If my mom has a question, I just leave the answer on her machine.
As almost every contact we can imagine between human beings gets automated（自动化）, the alienation index（疏远指数） goes up. You can't even call a person to get the phone number of another person any more. Directory assistance is almost always fully automated.
I am not against modern technology. I own a cell phone, an ATM card, a voice mail system, and an email account. Giving them up isn't wise... they're a great help to us. It's some of their possible consequences that make me feel uneasy.
More and more. I find myself hiding behind email to do a job meant for conversation. Or being relieved that voice mail picked up because I didn't really have time to talk. The industry devoted to helping me keep in touch is making me lonelier ...or at least facilitating my antisocial instincts.
So I've put myself on technology restriction: no instant messaging with people who live near me, no cell phoning in the presence of friends, no letting the voice mail pick up when I'm at home.Which of the following would be the best title of the passage?
| A．The Advance of Communications Technology |
| B．The Consequences of modern Technology |
| C．The Story of Communications Revolution |
| D．The Automation of Modern Communications |
The sentence “Now it makes people sitting next to you feel absent” means that ________.
| A．the people sitting beside you have to go away to receive a phone call |
| B．you can hardly get in touch with the people sitting beside you |
| C．modern technology makes it hard for people to have a face-to-face talk |
| D．people can now go to work without going to the office |
The writer feels that the use of modern communications is ________.
| A．satisfying | B．encouraging | C．disappointing | D．embarrassing |
The passage implies that ________.
| A．modern technology is bridging the people |
| B．modern technology is separating the people |
| C．modern technology is developing too fast |
| D．modern technology is interrupting our communication |
Not all memories are sweet. Some people spend all their lives trying to forget bad experiences. Violence and traffic accidents can leave people with terrible physical and emotional scars. Often they relive these experiences in nightmares（噩梦）.
Now American researchers think they are close to developing a pill, which will help people forget bad memories. The pill is designed to be taken immediately after a frightening experience. They hope it might reduce, or possibly wipe out, the effect of painful memories.
In November, experts tested a drug on people in the US and France. The drug stops the body releasing (释放) chemicals that fix memories in the brain. So far the research has suggested that only the emotional effects of memories may be reduced, not that the memories are wiped out. They are not sure to what degree people’s memories are affected.
The research has caused a great deal of argument（争议）. Some think it is a bad idea, while others support it. Supporters say it could lead to pills that prevent or treat soldiers' troubling memories after war. They say that there are many people who suffer from terrible memories.
"Some memories can ruin people's lives. They come back to you when you don't want to have them in a daydream or nightmare. They usually come with very painful emotions," said Roger Pitman, a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. "This could relieve a lot of that suffering."
But those who are against the research say that maybe the pills can change people’s memories and changing memories is very dangerous because memories give us our identity (特质). They also help us all avoid the mistakes of the past.
"All of us can think of bad events in our lives that were terrible at the time but make us who we are. I'm not sure we want to wipe those memories out, "said Rebecca Dresser, a medical ethicist. The passage is mainly about .
| A．a new medical invention | B．a new research on the pill |
| C．a way of wiping out painful memories | D．an argument about the research on the pill |
The drug tested on people can .
| A．cause the brain to fix memories | B．stop people remembering bad experiences |
| C．stop body producing certain chemicals | D．wipe out the emotional effects of memories |
We can infer from the passage that .
| A．people doubt the effects of the pills |
| B．the pill will certainly stop people's emotional memories |
| C．taking the pill will do harm to people's physical health |
| D．the pill has already been produced and used by the public in America |
Which of the following does Rebecca Dresser agree with in the last paragraph ?
| A．some memories can ruin people's lives. |
| B．people want to get rid of bad memories. |
| C．experiencing bad events makes us different from others. |
| D．the pill will reduce people's sufferings from bad memories. |
You may probably read the passage in a __________
| A．guidebook | B．medical magazine | C．textbook | D．science fiction |
On Halloween Night, children go trick-treating in their neighborhoods. Dressed up as ghosts, skeleton devils, and various other characters, children knock on doors to collect their treats. Seldom do they actually perform a “trick”.
It is thought that trick-or-treating comes from an old English custom. On All Souls Day, poor people went begging and promised to say prayers in exchange for food. Apple bobbing, still a favorite Halloween game, was originally an ancient ceremony honoring the harvest time.
A jack-o’-lantern is placed on porches and windows to tell children that treats are available. The legend was that a man named Jack could enter heaven because he played tricks on the devil. As punishment, he had to wander the earth carrying a lantern waiting to be judged fit to get into heaven.
People believed that Halloween marked the connection between the world of the living and the world of the dead. This meant that ghosts would roam the earth on this night. Some believed that these ghosts would go back to the homes they lived in before they died.
Thankfully, Halloween is an amusing night when children can dress up and get a bag full of candy. We don’t have to worry about ghosts. Or do we?Apple bobbing was an ancient ceremony held originally to ____.
| A．honor the harvest time | B．honor the dead |
| C．honor the living | D．play a trick on each other |
The underlined word “roam” is close in meaning to ____.
| A．come back | B．place | C．collect | D．walk around |
Which of the following is not true?
A. On Halloween Night, children often dress up as ghosts.
B. On Halloween Night, children often perform tricks.
C,. Trick-or-treating comes from an old English custom.
D. Children can get a lot of candy on Halloween Night.According to the passage, Halloween is a(n) ____ festival.
| A．sad | B．bad | C．interesting | D．boring |
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People can buy used books in ______.
| A．None | B．Harry Potter Store |
C．B argain Books Store |
D．The Textbook Store |
If you order one 8.75-dollar book, two 4. 55-dollar books and one 3.99-dollar book in the Bargain Books Store, then you can get ______free.
| A．none | B．the 3.99-dollar book |
| C．the two 4.55-dollar books | D．the 8.75-dollar book |
What can we infer from the advertisement?
| A．People can only get books about Harry Potter in Harry Potter Store. |
| B．People can get any book free if he buys four books in Bargain Books Store. |
| C．The editors in Bargain Books Store often recommend(推荐) books to readers. |
| D．In the Textbook Store people can save 40% off the list prices of all the books. |
Some places in the world have strange laws. It’s important for you to know about them before going there.
People who like to chew gum(口香糖) may have to leave Singapore. The government really wants to keep the city clean and will fine you for chewing gum.
Before you leave for the United Arab Emirates you’d better make sure you aren’t visiting during Ramadan(斋月). During that time you aren’t allowed to eat or drink in public. Tourists have been fined up to $275 for drinking in public.
Lovers spend so much time kissing each other goodbye at train stations that trains often start late. This law — no kissing your lover goodbye at train stations – is rather old, and is
n’t in use today in France.
In Thailand it’s against the law to drive a car or motorcycle without a shirt on, no matter how hot it is. Punishments are different in different areas and can include warnings and tickets costing about $10. No joke -- the local police will stop you.
Studies in Denmark have shown that cars with their headlights on are more noticeable by other drivers than those with their headlights off. Drivers there are required to leave their headlights on even during the day, or they may face a fine up to $100.
Do you often buy things using coins? Don’t do it in Canada. The Currency Law of 1985 doesn’t allow using only coins to buy things. Even the use of the dollar-coin is limited (受限制的). The shop owner has the right to choose whether to take your coins or not.
Make sure you know about these laws before your next trip. Better safe than sorry.What is mainly talked about in the text?
| A．How to make your trip around the world safe. |
| B．Why there are strange laws in the world. |
| C．Some strange laws you should know about for your trip. |
| D．interesting places you can go to around the world. |
If you are driving a car in Thailand, _____.
| A．the police will play a joke on you |
| B．you should wear your shirt even though it’s hot |
| C．the police will give you tickets costing about $10 |
| D．you should always keep your headlights on |
What can we learn from the text?
| A．The Singaporean government cares a lot about its environment. |
| B．Kissing goodbye at train stations isn’t allowed in France today. |
| C．Tourists in the United Arab Emirates shouldn’t eat in public. |
| D．You can turn your headlights off in daytime in Denmark. |
What do we know about the strange law in Canada?
| A．It is a newly invented law. | B．You aren’t allowed to use dollar-coins. |
| C．You will be fined if you use coins. | D．Shop owners can decide if you can use coins. |
Chaplin, one of the greatest and funniest actors, was born in London in 1889. When a poor boy, he was often seen waiting outside the London theatres, hoping to get work in show business. He could sing and dance, and above all, he knew how to make people laugh. But he couldn’t get work and therefore wandered about the city streets.
Charlie Chaplin first acted when he was five. He broke into show business because his mother, a music-hall performer, lost her voice during the performance and had to leave the stage, and Charlie went on and sang a well-known song. Halfway through the song, a shower of money poured onto 
the stage. Charlie stopped singing and told audiences he would pick the money first and then finish the song. The audiences laughed. This was the first of millions of laughs in Charlie Chaplin’s fabulous(神话) career.
Twenty years later the same Chaplin became the greatest and best loved comedian in the world. His dream came true in the world. His dream came true in the end. Chaplin became world-famous and almost a king in the world of the film.
Even people who don’t understand English can enjoy Chaplin’s films because they are mostly silent. The equipment for adding sound to films had not yet been developed. The development of films with sound became a problem for Chaplin, as he was uncertain about making films with dialogues. Instead, he coninued to make films without dialogue, but he added music, which he wrote himself. It isn’t what he says that makes us laugh. His comedy doesn’t depend on words. It depends on little actions which mean the same thing to people the world over.
Chaplin lived most of his life in America and the last years in Switzerland, where he was buried at Christmas 1977, at the age of eighty-eight. There was sadness all over the world at the news of his death.
In his book, Chaplin tells us how to succeed in life. He says, “You have to believe in yourself. That’s the secret.”Chaplin is regarded as king of comedy mainly because______.
| A．lots of people have seen his films |
| B．he could sing and dance well |
| C．he knew how to make people laugh |
| D．he acted out the common human situations best in his comedy |
What makes people laugh in Chaplin’s films?
| A．It isn’t his words but his actions. | B．Neither his words nor actions. |
| C．Either his words or his actions. | D．Not only his words but also his actions. |
The only secret of Charles Chaplin’s huge success is that______.
| A．he can make all people, men and women, old and young laugh |
| B．he has full trust in himself |
| C．he is always active and hard-working all his life |
| D．though he is always in trouble, he never loses heart |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．He was too shy to meet the managers of the theatres. |
| B．People won’t stop laughing until tears run down Chaplin’s face. |
| C．People all over the world can enjoy Chaplin’s films without translation because most of them are silent. |
| D．He wouldn’t like to work at the theatre. |
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