Machu Picchu is considered to be a truly extraordinary archaeological(考古学的) discovery and is one of South America’s largest tourist sites. As many as one thousand visitors visit the ancient Incan（印加文化的） ruins daily. What draws vacationers and adventurers to this remote location high in the Andes Mountains of Peru（秘鲁）? A large part of the attraction is the mysteries that surround Machu Picchu. For example, Machu Picchu is considered “the lost city” of the Incas because it was never found by Spanish invaders and was known to only a few local peasants for almost four hundred years.
The “city in the clouds”, Machu Picchu’s lasting beauty comes from the careful blending of its striking architecture with its mountaintop environment. Its greatest skill shows are in the stone structures, which equals that of the ancient Egyptians. The stone blocks were so appropriately cut that they fit together without the need for mud. The largest stones at Machu Picchu weigh as much as fifteen tons! It has been difficult to explain how the huge blocks were transported. The buildings, including many that have survived lots of earthquakes, contain stones which interlock so perfectly that a knife cannot be forced between them. When compared to other ancient civilizations, it is difficult to understand how Machu Picchu could have been missed by the Spanish and lost from history for four hundred years.
For many of the mysteries of Machu Picchu being unsolved, it is clear why Machu Picchu remains “the most famous ruins in all of South America”. Which of the followings is NOT a mystery of Machu Picchu?
| A．Machu Picchu is called the “city in the clouds”. |
| B．Machu Picchu remains “the most famous ruins of South America”. |
| C．Machu Picchu is “the lost city” of the Incas. |
| D．Machu Picchu is the largest stone city of the world. |
The underlined word “interlock” probably means _________
| A．put |
| B．fit |
| C．meet |
| D．lie |
From the passage we can learn that __________.
| A．Machu Picchu has gone through lots of earthquakes |
| B．all of the mysteries of Machu Picchu have been solved |
| C．the city has never been discovered by people outside |
| D．Machu Picchu is the most valuable ruins in history. |
The purpose of writing the passage is to __________.
| A．ask us to pay a visit to Machu Picchu |
| B．show us the beauty of Machu Picchu |
| C．introduce Machu Picchu’s mysteries |
| D．make the ancient Incan ruins known |
Endless playing of songs like All I want for Christmas in shops during the festive season doesn’t just drive us mad —the songs also make us more careless with our money, research has warned.
While repeated performance of Jingle Bells may seem like an innocent attempt to raise customers’ spirits during the nightmare of Christmas shopping, the songs also have a more delicate impact.
“Background music, or “Muzak”,can be used by marketers to impose cultures ---such as the commercialization of Christmas--- onto consumers and influence their behaviour,” experts said.
Dr. Alan Bradshaw of Royal Holloway, University of London, said, “Festive jingles are force-fed to Christmas shoppers in a bid to change their mood, influence their sense of time and what sort of products they buy. In other words, this is an attempt to control your shopping habits in a way that you might hardly be aware of.”
“Often we are told that we have the freedom to choose where we want to shop, but during Christmas the use of music in this way is so common that our freedom to choose disappears.”
Dr. Bradshaw and Prof Morris Holbrook of Columbia University examined the phenomenon and found that retailers often “dumb down” the music played in shops to relax customers, meaning it is easier to control their behaviour.
It is thought that slowing down the rhythm of music in shops can trick customers into thinking less time has passed, and therefore spend more time examining the shelves, for example.
Some providers of background music have been known to promote their services by claiming they can boost profits by controlling the behaviour of customers.
“A common trick is to take a popular current song and record an instrumental version which can be slowed down or sped up at different time of the day to influence behaviour in different ways,” Dr. Bradshaw said.
Background music is often classed as “Muzak” in honor of the Seattle-based company which began producing its soft-sounding melodies in the 1930s.According to Dr. Bradshaw, in what ways does Christmas music influence customers?
①their mood ②their income
③their sense of time ④ the sort of products they buy
| A．①②③ | B．①③④ | C．②③④ | D．①②④ |
Shopkeepers slow down the rhythm of music in shops to ___________.
| A．let customers spend more time shopping |
| B．make customers and sales assistants relaxed |
| C．let customers enjoy the beautiful music |
| D．help customers find what they really want |
What kind of music is now often adapted to influence customers in shops?
| A．Classical music | B．Popular modern songs. |
| C．Folk songs. | D．Jazz music. |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．Music makes happy Christmas |
| B．Christmas “Muzak” |
| C．How to make Christmas music? |
| D．Christmas music makes us spend more |
According to the US Geological Survey, about seven million earthquakes strike worldwide every year—but fortunately, only about 1500 of these are of a magnitude(震级) of 5 or greater on the Richter scale. Certain areas, such as California and Japan, are more prone to earthquakes than others. Although the chance of being caught in “The Big one” is remote, it’s wise to be prepared if you live in a region where earthquakes are common.
Educate your family about earthquakes before a big one strikes. For example, they need to know to take shelter in a doorway or under a strong object if indoors, and never to run outdoors if they are inside. If outside, they need to know to stay away from power lines and buildings where objects could fall.
Teach family members how to turn off gas or water lines or electrical power that may need to be shut off after a quake if severe damage occurs.
Develop a plan. Where will your family meet in the event of a disaster? What if some people are at work or school? How will you know if they are safe? Where will you all meet up?
Pack a preparedness kit(衣物装备) and keep it in a safe location. In a major earthquake, it’s possible that you won’t be able to get into your house. Keep supplies in your car trunk or an outside storage shed if possible. Pack whatever your family is likely to need, enough for three days to a week, including food, water, medication, first aid and personal hygiene supplies, flashlights, a portable radio, blankets, clothes and shoes, cash, or camp stove, candles, matches or lighters, and a whistle.
Consider earthquake insurance for your home if you live in an earthquake-prone area. Regular homeowner’s insurance doesn’t cover earthquake damage.The underlined words “prone to ” in paragraph 1 can be replaced by___________.
| A．likely to suffer | B．frequent to explore |
| C．regular to measure | D．impossible to experience |
According to the passage, if you are outside in an earthquake, you should_________.
| A．stay where you are | B．hide under a big tree |
| C．avoid power lines | D．sit on the ground |
We can learn from the passage that_________.
| A．about 1,500 earthquakes happen every year |
| B．people should store some clothes in their houses in advance |
| C．family members should meet in their home after an earthquake |
| D．people suffering earthquakes often should buy earthquake insurance |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．How to Keep Safe in an Earthquake |
| B．How to Prepare for an Earthquake |
| C．Who Can Help Us After an Earthquake? |
| D．Where Is an Earthquake-prone Area? |
Micro bloggers：have you ever compared the number of fans on your Sina Weibo or Tencent micro blog with those of your friends ?Don’t imagine you have more fans just because your number is bigger——some of them might be “zombie fans”，or fake(假的)followers．
That’s what Chen Chuanliang ，creator of Leijian Network，found when he bet against his friend several months ago．Chen，who used to do data mining for Microsoft Asia Research Institute，discovered that there were far more invalid(无效的)micro blog accounts than he had imagined．
Later Chen picked 1 0 users on Sina Weibo and analyzed their statistics．Kai-Fu Lee，the former CEO of Google China，who’s on Chen’s list of research，posted a message on his micro blog after he found out that he had more than 1 million fake fans(out of about 5 million)，joking“I have 1 million zombie fans ?If united，we can finally defeat those plants．”
According to a report by S Weekly in March，zombie fans on micro blogs are defined as invalid accounts signed up by network companies for the purpose of increasing the number of fans for certain users and getting them more attention．
And this kind of fake followers are also very much alive on Western social networks such as Twitter and Facebook ．
The Financial Times reported in August，that Newt Gingrich，a Republican candidate in the US presidential election，bought about 80 percent of his 1．3 million Twitter followers and tried to use them as help in his campaign．
Now there are also business deals through which users can get hundreds of thousands of fans for their micro blog accounts，by paying a small amount of money．
“We have been working to find ways to block or delete those invalid accounts，”Mao Taotao，a spokesperson for Sina Weibo told S Weekly.
“But as the fake accounts grow so fast，they’re going to be here for a while．Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?
| A．Micro Bloggers | B．Blog Accounts |
| C．Zombie Fans | D．Micro Blog Fans |
Users get zombie fans for their micro blog accounts by________.
| A．making friends with people |
| B．paying a little money |
| C．helping their weibo followers |
| D．doing search on the Internet |
It can be learnt from the passage that________.
| A．there are more fake fans in America than in China |
| B．invalid accounts for micro blogs will be deleted in no time |
| C．there exist many fake fans on western social networks as well |
| D．Newt Gingrich had 1．3 millions followers in his presidential election |
The underlined word“their” in the passage refers to
| A．deals’ | B．fans’ | C．campaigns’ | D．users’ |
There’s a guy like me in every state and federal prison in America，I guess—I’m the guy who can get these for you：cigarettes，a bag of cigar，if you want that，a bottle of wine to celebrate your son or daughter’s high school graduation，or almost anything else．．．within reason，that is．It wasn’t always that way．
I came to Shawshank when I was just twenty，and I am one of the few people in the prison who is willing to admit what he did．I committed murder．I put a large insurance policy on my wife，who was three years older than 1 was，and then I fixed the brakes of the car her father had given us as a wedding present．It worked out exactly as I had planned，except I hadn’t planned on her stopping to pick up the neighbour woman and the woman’s son on the way down Castle Hill and into town．The brakes let go and the car crashed through the bushes，gathering speed．Bystanders said it must have been doing fifty or better when it hit the base of the Civil War statue in the town arid burst into flames．
I also hadn’t planned on getting caught，but caught 1 was．I got a pass into this place．My state has no death penalty(死刑)，but I was tried for all three deaths and given three life sentences，to run one after the other．That fixed up any chance of parole(假释)I might have，for a long，long time．The judge called what I had done‘an extremely evil crime’, and it was ,but it is also in the past now．
Have I transformed myself，you ask ?I don’t know what that word means，at least as far as prisons and corrections go．I think it’s a politician’s word．It may have some other meaning，and it may be that 1 will have a chance to find out，but that is the future．．．
I was young，good—looking，and from the poor side of town．I met a pretty，headstrong girl who lived in one of the fine old houses on Carbine Street．She got pregnant later．Her father was agreeable to the marriage if 1 would take a job in the company he owned and ‘work my way up’．I found out that what he really had in mind was keeping me in his house and under his thumb，like a disagreeable pet that has not quite been housebroken and which may bite．Enough hate eventually piled up to cause me to do what I did．
Given a second chance 1 would not do it again，but I'm not sure that means I am transformed．What do we know about the man from the passage?
| A．He is treated unfairly in the prison． |
| B．He is in charge of the federal prison． |
| C．He is quite an able person as a prisoner． |
| D．He is the most powerful man in the prison． |
By saying that“I got a pass into this place”(in Para．3)，the man means that________.
| A．he has got to stay in prison |
| B．he was allowed to go home |
| C．he was caught by the police without a pass |
| D．he has stayed in the federal prison before |
The man committed such an evil crime because__________.
| A．he had made a secret deal with an insurance company |
| B．he had been angry for a long time with his father—in—law |
| C．his wife’s family members had disapproved of their marriage |
| D．his wife had looked on him as a pet and he didn’t feel respected |
Which of the following is TRUE about the man?
| A．He regrets having committed the crime． |
| B．He will be out of prison in the near future． |
| C．He thinks the trial a mistake and is unfair． |
| D．He has found out the |
Any day we wish；we can discipline ourselves to change it a11．Any day we wish；we can open the book that will open our mind to new knowledge．Any day we wish；we can start a new activity．Any day we wish；we can start the process of life change．We can do it immediately，or next week，or next month，or next year．
We can also do nothing．We can pretend rather than perform．And if the idea of having to change ourselves makes us uncomfortable，we can remain as we are．We can choose rest over labor，entertainment over education，delusion(幻想)over truth，and doubt over confidence．The choices are ours to make．But while we complain about the effect，we continue to nourish(助长)the cause．
As Shakespeare uniquely observed，“The fault is not in the stars，but in ourselves．’’We created our circumstances by our past choices．We have both the ability and the responsibility to make better choices beginning today．
Those who are in search of the good life do not need more answers or more time to think things over to reach better conclusions. They need the truth .They need the whole truth .And the responsibility to nothing but the truth．
We cannot allow our errors in judgment，repeated every day，to lead us down the wrong path．
We must keep coming back to those basics that make the biggest difference in how our life works out．And then we must make the very choices that will bring life，happiness and joy into our daily lives .
And if I may be so bold to offer my last piece of advice for someone seeking and needing to make changes in their life—If you don’t like how things are，change it !You’re not a tree．You have the ability to totally transform every area in your life — and it all begins with your very own power of choice．The first paragraph tells us that_________.
| A．no one wants to be disciplined |
| B．we often need some new knowledge |
| C．taking activities does good to our health |
| D．we want to change all the time |
We may conclude from the second paragraph that
| A．whatever happens, we have to change ourselves |
| B．people tend to nourish the cause of bad results |
| C．whether we change or not depends on ourselves |
| D．most choices we made are not good enough |
From Shakespeare’s words，we know________.
| A．it is our duty to change for the better |
| B．we complain a lot about our past choices |
| C．sometimes we have to face the fate |
| D．we should believe in ourselves in life |
In the author’s opinion，if。you want a good life，what you need most is_______.
| A．self confidence | B．good choices | C．strong wills | D．the truth |
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