Singles Day (光棍节)falls on every November 11th, and as the name suggests, this holiday is one specially for people who are still living the single life. It’s surprising that China is the only country in the world that has set up a special day for singles to celebrate(庆祝) their lives. To find out more about this celebration, read on.
An old story goes that once there were four single men, leading very boring lives. None of them were married（结婚）, or had lovers, or did anything exciting. They just sat around all day and played Mahjong（麻将）.
One day they played Mahjong from 11am until 11 pm. During the game, no matter who won, the winning card was always the 'Sitiao' card. And that day happened to be November 11th. In order to remember the day, they called it Singles Day.
For breakfast on Singles Day, singles often eat four youtiao, which means the four "ones" in "11.11". Many singles also choose to say goodbye to their single lives on this day. So they take part in 'blind date' parties , trying to find someone they love and many people choose to marry on this day. Besides the meaning of 'single', the four 'ones' of the date can also mean the 'only one' in one’s heart.__________ first called November 11th Singles Day.
| A．The Chinese government |
| B．People who have been married |
| C．Four people playing Marjong |
| D．People who don’t want to get married |
The Chinese meaning of the word “'blind date' parties” in this passage is “________”.
| A．盲人聚会 | B．相亲会 |
| C．化妆舞会 | D．慈善晚会 |
Singles often have ________ for breakfast on Singles Day.
| A．some bread | B．noodles |
| C．4 youtiao | D．nothing |
Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Singles Day is on November 11th. |
| B．Singles Day is celebrated by no countries but China. |
| C．Singles Day is for people who are still living the single life. |
| D．Singles Day should be celebrated by playing Marjong from 11am to 11pm. |
History
Water polo (水球) or water ball is a team water sport. It started in England in the nineteenth century. The sport has been popular ever since.
The Sport
Water polo is played between two teams in a swimming pool. Players swim in the pool, carrying and throwing the ball to their team members. They try to score as many goals as possible.
There are 6 players and 1 goalkeeper (守门员) on a team. The teams have two different coloured caps. Visiting team field players usually wear white caps, and home team field players usually wear blue caps. Both goalkeepers wear red caps, numbered “1”. During the game, the goalkeepers can use two hands, but the other team members can only use one hand when carrying or throwing the ball. The game is divided (划分) into 4 periods. Each goal is one point.
In the Olympics
Water polo was introduced in the Olympics of 1900. The only two teams were Great Britain and Belgium (比利时). Great Britain beat Belgium at last. Water polo used to be a sport for men only, but after a long wait, women’s water polo became an official sport in the Olympic Games in 2000 in Sydney.Water polo started in America in the 1800s.
There are 7 players on a team in a water polo game, including a goalkeeper.
The goalkeepers usually wear blue caps in water polo games.
Each water polo game has 4 periods.
Women’s water polo was introduced in the Olympic Games in 1900.
The human brain weighs about 1.4 kilograms, but it can hold much more information than most computers. However, there is another difference between humans and computers. Computers don't forget information they are given, but humans often do. No one remembers everything, and luckily we don't usually have to. But everyone can improve their memory if they want to. Here are some suggestions.
◆Try to use new information immediately（立刻）. For example, if you meet someone who says "Hi! I'm Carlos," don't just say "Hello." Repeat the person's name. Say"____"
◆Break a big number into smaller parts. For example, it's hard to memorize (记忆) 109244153. But if you break it into three parts--109/244/153—it becomes easier.
◆Write out what you need to remember over and over again. This will help you keep it in mind longer, especially for memorizing formulas (公式) or facts.
◆Always review information. If you bring what you've learned back to your mind, they become easier to remember. For example, before you go to sleep, it’s a good idea to review the new things you learned that day.
◆Discuss with a friend. It is always easier to remember things through discussions. You can have a discussion about what's right and what's wrong, and it will lead to the right answer.
◆Never tell yourself that you have a bad memory. You can always do something to help improve your memory. And everyone's memory gets better if they use it often enough.
All of the suggestions are helpful. If you follow them, you are certain to improve your memory.How many suggestions are mentioned in the passage?
| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Five. | D．Six. |
Which should be put in the blank (空格) in Paragraph 2？
| A．Hello, Carlos. | B．How do you do? | C．Hello, I am Sophia. | D．Glad to meet you! |
What can help memorize a big number more easily according to the passage?
| A．To store it in a computer. |
| B．To break it into smaller parts. |
| C．To discuss it with a friend. |
| D．To review it before you sleep. |
What does the sentence "Never tell yourself that you have a bad memory” mean?
| A．You should tell others about your bad memory. |
| B．You should believe in other people all the time. |
| C．You should ask others to improve their memory. |
| D．You should be confident in your memory ability. |
Have successful people ever felt sad? Do they have any “secrets” to success? The answers to these questions can be found in US president Barack Obama’s “back to school” speech. Here is an excerpt(摘录) from his speech.
I know that sometimes, you get the sense that you can be rich and successful without any hard work—that your ticket to success is through pop music or basketball or being a TV star, when chances are, you’re not going to be any of those things.
But the truth is, being successful is hard. You won’t love every subject you study. Not all the homework will seem rather important to your life right this minute. And you may not succeed at everything the first time you try.
That’s OK. Some of the most successful people in the world are the ones who’ve had the most failures (the opposite of success). JK Rowling’s first Harry Potter book was turned down 12 times before it finally came out. Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, and he lost hundreds of games and missed thousands of shots (投篮) during his career. But he once said, “I have failed over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”
These people succeeded because they understand that you can’t let your failures beat(打败) you—you have to let them teach you. You have to let them show you what to do differently next time.
No one’s born being good at things. You become good at things through hard work.
Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Don’t be afraid to ask for help when you need it. I do that every day. Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness; it’s a sign of strength. It shows you have the courage to tell when you don’t know something, and to learn something new.
And even when you’re struggling(奋斗), even when you’re discouraged (泄气), and you feel other people have given up on you—don’t ever give up on yourself. Because when you give up on yourself, you give up on your country.Why does Barack Obama mention (提到) JK Rowling and Michael Jordan in the third paragraph?
| A．To compare these two famous persons. |
| B．To explain that the more failures he has, the more successful he is. |
| C．If you want to be successful, you should fail first. |
| D．To show that failure is the mother of success. |
Which of the following statements is NOT true?
| A．No one can be successful without working hard. |
| B．Failure can be good if you treat it in a right way. |
| C．Those who believe in themselves shouldn’t ask others for help. |
| D．One should try his best to make his dream come true. |
Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined sentence?
| A．One shouldn’t ask questions because it is a sign of strength. |
| B．One should believe in himself though he will face much difficulty. |
| C．One doesn’t have to work hard when he has failed several times. |
| D．One doesn’t have to ask for help because it is a sign of weakness. |
What’s the most important thing for you to have in your life? Somebody mentions hard-work, others suggest knowledge, love and luck.
If you arrange the 26 English letters alphabetically(按字母表的顺序) and use numbers to represent each of them, for example, 1 for a, 2 for b, 3 for c…, you can change an English word into a number. So hard-work becomes 8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11="98," meaning 98 is its mark; knowledge: 11+14+15+23 +12+5+4+7+5="96," while love: 12+15+22+5="54," and luck: 12+21+3+11="47," a small mark. None of these words can give one a full mark. What about money or prayer(祈祷)? They can’t, either.
Then what else? Don’t be worried. You can always find an answer to a problem in your life, when you change your way of looking at things or doing things, or your attitude(态度).Yes, attitude is the word. See for yourself: attitude:1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5=100，a full mark.
Different attitudes lead to different courses of life. Most times people hope for a better life. It is possible that one will have a change for the better after one has changed one’s attitude.
When you change your manner and became friendly towards others, you’ll meet more smiling faces towards you. In the same way, if you take a positive (积极地) attitude towards failure(失败), you’ll find it’s also rewarding though it has caused you losses.In the writer’s opinion, what is the most important thing in a person’s life?
| A．Hard-work. | B．Knowledge. |
| C．Money. | D．Attitude. |
According to the passage, if you meet with problems, the best way out is to _______.
| A．ask for help from others |
| B．say your prayers to God |
| C．change your attitude |
| D．try maths-solving methods (方法) |
From the passage we can learn that ______.
| A．different attitudes come from different courses of life |
| B．mathematics can solve every problem easily in our daily life |
| C．failure sometimes can bring you good if you take a positive attitude |
| D．none of the English words except “attitude” equals to 100 or more |
| Canbury Youth Hotel |
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| Facilities(设施) 120 beds Open 24 hours, all year Car park No family rooms Games room Washing machines No smoking |
Meal Times Breakfast: 7:00 a.m. Dinner: 6:p.m. – 7:00 p.m. |
| Travel Information Citycentre three kilometers Bus service to city centre No.14 (take ten minutes), last bus 8:00 p.m. |
Next Hotels Charlestown 8 kilometres Kinscombe 15 kilometres Oxton 20 kilometre |
| Charges Under 18 $6.15 Adult $ 9.10 |
If you stay in Canbury Youth Hotel, you can’t __________.
| A．smoke | B．play games |
| C．park your car | D．camp |
What is the farthest hotel?
| A．Canbury. | B．Kinscombe. |
| C．Oxton. | D．Charlestown |
How much is it for two 15-year-olds to stay one night?
| A．$6.15. | B．$9.10. | C．$12.30. | D．$18.20. |
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