If your boss asks you to work in Moscow this year, he'd better offer you more money to do so—or even double that depending on where you live now. That's because Moscow has just been found to be the world's most expensive city for the second year in a row by Mercer Human Resources Consulting.
Using the cost of living in New York as a base, Mercer determined Moscow is 34. 4 percent more expensive including the cost of housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment(娱乐）
A two-bedroom flat in Moscow now costs $4，000 a month； a CD $24. 83，and an international news-paper $6. 30，according to Mercer. By comparison, a fast food meal with a hamburger(汉堡包)is a steal at $4. 80.
London takes the No. 2 place, up from No. 5 a year ago, thanks to higher cost of housing and a stronger British pound relative to the dollar. Mercer estimates(估算）London is 26 percent more expensive than New York these days. Following London closely are Seoul and Tokyo, both of which are 22 percent more expensive than New York, while No. 5 Hong Kong is 19 percent more costly.
Among North American cities, New York and Los Angeles are the most expensive and are the only two listed in the top 50 of the world's most expensive cities. But both have fallen since last year's study—New York came in 15th, down from 10th place, while Los Angeles fell to 42nd from 29th place a year ago. San Francisco came in a distant third at No. 54，down 20 places from a year earlier.
Toronto, meanwhile, is Canada's most expensive city but fell 35 places to take 82nd place worldwide. In Australia, Sydney is the priciest place to live in and No. 21 worldwide. What do the underlined words “a steal” in Para-graph 3 mean?
| A．An act of stealing. | B．Something delicious. | C．Something very cheap. | D．An act of buying. |
London has become the second most expensive city because of __________.
| A．the high cost of clothing |
| B．the stronger pound against the dollar |
| C．its expensive transportation |
| D．the high prices of fast food meals |
Which city is the third most expensive on the list?
| A．Tokyo. |
| B．Hong Kong. |
| C．Moscow. |
| D．Sydney. |
Which city has dropped most on the list in North America?
| A．New York. |
| B．Los Angeles. |
| C．San Francisco. |
| D．Toronto. |
第二部分：阅读理解（每小题2 分，满分30分）
第一节: 阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项
A
Books which give instructions on how to do things are very popular in the United States today. Thousands of these “How to” books are available; in fact, there are about four thousand books with titles that begin with the words “How to”. One book may tell you how to earn more money, another may tell you how to save or spend it, and another may explain how to give your money away. Many “How to” books give advice on careers (职业). They tell you how to choose a career and how to succeed at it. If you fail, however, you can buy a book called “How to Turn Failure into Success”. If you would like to become very rich, you can buy the book “How to Make a Million”. If you never make any money at all, you may need a book called “How to Live on Nothing?”. One of the most popular types of books is one that helps you with personal problems. If you want to have a better love of life, you can read “How to Succeed at Love Every Minute of Your Life.?”. If you are tired of books on happiness, you may prefer a book called “How to Make Yourself miserable?”.
Many of these books help people use their time better. Some people want books which will give them useful information about sports, hobbies, and travel. Other people use their free time to make repairs and improvements on their homes. They prefer books which give step by step instruction on how to repair things like plumbing (卫生管道工程) and electrical wiring, or on how to redecorate (重新装饰) or enlarge a house.
Why have “How to” books become so popular? Probably because life has become so complex. Today people have far more free time to use, more choices to make, and more problems to solve. “How to” books help people deal with modern life.
51. These “How to” books are written to______.
A. tell people on how to love their daily life
B. earn money for the companies to survive in the competition
C. give people some good advice on how to do something they want to do
D. give readers who want to know about America a deep impression
52. Before someone wants to find a good job, he had better______.
A. buy a book on “How to Make a Million?”
B. read a book on how to choose a career and how to succeed at it
C. make better use of his time in his daily life
D. use his free time to look for it
53. If people will not succeed in what he is doing, a book called________ can give help.
A. “How to Turn Failure into Success”
B. “How to Make a Million?”
C. “How to Succeed at Love Every Minute of Your Life?”
D. “How to Make Yourself Miserable?”
D
Everyone knows you must exercise regularly to keep good health. Indeed, staying physically fit is a big part of our culture. we consider（or rightly so）that healthy people are attractive people. Since most of us want to be attractive, there is no shortage of exercise clubs, training videos, magazines and books offering to help us stay physically fit.
Unfortunately, however, our culture doesn’t place the same emphasis on mental fitness. Although we tend to like men and women with strong, healthy-looking bodies, we don’t have the same degree of respect or attraction for smart, educated, mentally healthy people. This is a pity, because there are great rewards for people who have developed the ability to think well.
If your mind is well trained and flexible, you will be able to understand a great deal of what ha
ppens around you. And if you are also well educated --- that is, if you understand basic science, mathematics, music, art, literature, history and so on --- you will find it much easier to make good decisions throughout your life. Over the long run, this leads to a sense of control over your destiny and a much better life than otherwise.
People who are poorly educated or who don’t think well --- that is, people who are not mentally fit --- see things differently. Their world is controlled by mysterious, often malevolent（恶意的）forces. Such people live within a system they will never master, forced to follow rules they will never understand. Although it may not be obvious, most spend their lives being manipulated（控制）by others. They are told what to do, what to think, how to spend their money, and what they should and should not aspire（渴望）to in life.
In my opinion, if you want to live well, you must be able to use your mind well. For this reason, I want you to be able to concentrate, to solve problems, to understand complex ideas, and to think clearly and quickly. Such skills will make it easier for you to make informed decisions, understand current events, choose good friends, manage your money well, make wise lone-term decisions and appreciate music, art and literature.
The key to developing such skills is to enjoy learning, and to have the ability and motivation to teach yourself.
63. The writer of the passage feel disappointed that ____.
A. too little has been done to help people to keep physically fit
B. too much has been done to help people to keep physically fit
C. mentally healthy people are not as popular as physically healthy people
D. physically healthy people are not as popular as mentally healthy people
64. The underlined word “this” in the 3rd paragraph means ____.
A. the understanding of a great deal of what goes on around you
B. the understanding of basic science and mathematics
C. good t
raining in body and mind
D. being able to make good decisions in life
65. The writer of this passage thinks those who are not mentally fit ____.
A. live a poor and mysterious life B. can’t control over their life
C. often do what others do D. enjoy being fooled and ruled
66. The best title of the passage will most probably be ____.
A. Train Your Body B. Train Your Mind
C. Make Informed Decisions D. Think Hard and Work Hard
C
James Blunt is one of the most popular singers in the UK. His first album, Back to Bedlam, and his number one hit, You’re Beautiful, brought him fame in 2005. his music is a mix of pop, rock and folk.
Blunt comes to China for the first time this month, he will hold two concerts, one in Beijing and one in Shanghai on April 18 and 19 respectively.
Blunt, 34, took an unusual path to stardom. His father was a soldier and so was his grandfather.
“The only music he heard growing up was Happy Birthday and Silent Night. His father considered all music, even classical, to be unnecessary noise,’ reads Blunt’s official website.
Even though Blunt did not want to join the military, he eventually followed his father’s wishes, and served as a soldier in Kosovo on peacekeeping duty.
“Like any parents, mine wanted me to have a secure job with a regular wage and career prospects,” Blunt said. “And the one job my father knew of, that he’d had experience of himself, was the army, so he could help me in that direction.”
Blunt eventually became a Captain. One of his final duties in the army before retirement was carrying the coffin(棺材) at the funeral of the Queen Mother of England in 2002.
But Blunt couldn’t escape his love for music. So, after leaving the British Army he moved to Los Angeles and worked on his first album. While in LA, Blunt lived with the actress Carrie Fisher, who played the lead female role in the Star Wars movie. He recorded his song, Goodbye My Lover, in his bathroom, where he kept a piano.
Blunt took his new album back to England where it was not very successful. But he kept performing and eventually his song, You’re Beautiful, became a number one hit.
Now Blunt has won numerous awards, sold millions of records and dated super models.
But his greatest accomplishment might be that his father now enjoys music!
59. All of the following belongs to Blunt EXCEPT__________.
A. Back to Bedlam B. Silent Night
C. Goodbye My Lover D. You’re Beautiful
60. Which of the following proves “Blunt took an unusual path to stardom”?
A. Blunt was 34 when be became famous.
B. Blunt recorded his most famous song in a bathroom.
C. Blunt’s father wanted him to have a secure job.
D. Blunt began to pursue a career in music after military service.
61. We can infer from the passage that __________.
A. Blunt is living in Los Angeles at present
B. Blunt rose to fame two years after he left the army
C. Blunt became successful immediately he recorded his first song
D. Blunt has changed his father’s attitude towards music
62. What is the passage mainly about?
A. Blunt’s visit to China B. Blunt’s military life.
C. How Blunt became famous D. How Blunt father fell in love with music.
B
Kids Wall Art
Large wall posters for kids. Your kids will love these cool posters by artist Darla Daly. Zebras boarding in the skateboard park, a group of jungle animals play in the playground and two giraffes take a drive in the city. Your kids will enjoy decorating their bedroom walls with these posters and their friends will think they are the coolest!
Displaying 1 to 4 (of 4 products)
| Name: Alphabet Wall Art Size: 44×72cm(17.5″×28″) Dispatch time: at 9:00 am. every day Prices: $6.8/piece Colorful alphabet art for your kids’ bedroom and playroom. A fun, educational art piece that all kids will enjoy. Kids and babies will love learning their animals and the ABC at the same time! |
| Name : Kids World Map Size: 45×75cm(17.5″×29.5″) Dispatch time: at 5:00 am. on Wednesday Prices: $7.2/piece A Colorful, large print by artist Carla Daly. Your kids will love this illustrated world map showing the lands, oceans and the fun animals that live in them. An educational map that will keep your kids amused for hours! |
| Name : Skateboard Park Size: 44×60cm(17.5″×23.5″) Dispatch time: at 9:00 am. on weekends Prices: $8.8/piece Fun zebra children’s wall art! Children and kids will love these fun animals enjoying this popular kids’ sport. Boys and girls will enjoy decorating their bedroom walls with this colorful bedroom wall art. |
| Name: City slickers Size: 44×55cm(17.5″×23.5″) Dispatch time: at 2:00 pm. every day except Friday Prices: $6.5/piece Cute kids wall art of two cool giraffes taking a drive through the city, unusual, fun style for kids walls! Your kids will love this fun giraffe wall art. Boys and girls will have fun decorating their bedroom walls with this colorful bedroom wall art. |
55. Of the four posters, which one is the cheapest?
A. Alphabet Wall Art. B. Kids World Map. C. Skateboard Park. D. City Slickers.
56. Which poster has the biggest size?
A. Alphabet Wall Art. B. Kids World Map. C. Skateboard Park. D. City Slickers.
57. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. Kids can just learn some English letters on Alphabet Wall Art.
B. City Slickers posters can be bought at 2:00 pm every day in a week.
C. Kids can get some geography knowledge on Kids World Map.
D. Kids can find two cool giraffes on Skateboard Park.
58. The underlined word “illustrated” in Poster II most probably means “ _________”in Chinese.
A. 印刷 B. 装饰 C. 展示 D.图解
三、阅读理解(40%)
A
February has long been a month of romance. With the sweet smell of roses in the air, romantic films hit cinemas and love stories fill newspapers and magazines.
On the 14th day, it is a custom for a boy to take his girlfriend out to dinner, buy her flowers and chocolates, write poems, sing to her or even spell out her name with rose petals! This is what you see on Valentine’s Day, a day named after Valentine who was a priest in the third century Rome. When the emperor decided that single men could become better soldiers than those with wives, he didn’t allow marriage. But Valentine continued to perform marriage ceremonies for young lovers in secret. When his actions were discovered, the emperor sentenced him to death. While in prison, it is said that Valentine fell in love with the daughter of his prison guard. Before his death, he wrote her a letter, which he signed “From your Valentine”, an expression that is still in use today. Valentine died for what he believed in and so he was made a Saint (圣徒), as well as becoming one of history’s most romantic characters. Nowadays, Valentine’s Day is also popular among Chinese young people. Some students are planning to make Valentine’s cards for parents, teachers and friends. Others want to hold parties at which they will exchange small gifts and eat heart-shaped cakes. The idea is to have fun and encourage people to share in the spirit of St. Valentine.51. Which of the following is not a custom for a boy to do on Valentine’s Day? A. to take his girlfriend out to dinner B. to buy his girlfriend flowers and chocolates C. to make Valentine’s cards for teachers and friends D. to spell out his girlfriend’s name with rose petals52. Why did the emperor in Rome not allow marriage in his country? A. Because there were few women in his country at that time. B. Because he thought men without wives could be bet
ter soldiers. C. Because there wasn’t enough food for so many people. D. Because he wanted to control the birth rate.53. Valentine was put into prison because ______. A. he killed one of the soldiers B. he stole a lot of food C. he didn’t obey the emperor’s order D. he didn’t want to be a soldier
54. The last paragraph mainly tells us ______. A. students in China send cards to their teachers B. it is a good idea to celebrate Valentine’s Day in China C. it is interesting to celebrate Valentine’s Day in China D. Valentine’s Day is also popular in China now
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