What is eBay? The simple answer is that it is a global trading platform where nearly anyone can trade practically anything. People can sell and buy all kinds of products and goods. Including cars, movies and DVDs, sporting goods, travel tickets, musical instruments, clothes and shoes—the list goes on and on.
The idea came from Peter Omidyar, who was born in Paris and moved to Washington when he was still a child. At high school, he became very interested in computer programming and after graduating from Tuft University in 1988，he worked for the next few years as a computer engineer. In his free time he started eBay as a kind of hobby, at first offering the service free by word of mouth. By 1996 there was so much traffic on the web-site that he had to upgrade (升级)and he began charging a fee to members. Joined by a friend, Peter Skill, and in 1998 by his capable CEO, Meg Whitman, he has never looked back. Even in the great. com crashes of the late 1990s, eBay has gone from strength to strength. It is now one of the the most visited online shopping websites on the Internet.
eBay sells connections, not goods* putting buyers and sellers into contact with each other. All you have to do is make an e-photo, write a description, fill out a sales form and you are in business： the world is your market place. Of course for each item (商品)sold eBay gets a percentage and that is a great deal of money. Every day there are more than sixteen million items listed on eBay and eighty percent of the items are sold.We learn from the text that eBay provides people with ________ .
| A．a way of buying and selling goods |
| B．a website for them to upgrade |
| C．a place to exhibit their own photos |
| D．a chance to buy things at low prices |
Why did Peter create eBay after graduating from university?
| A．For fun. |
| B．To make money. |
| C．For gathering the engineers. |
| D．To fulfill a task of his company. |
From "he has never looked back" in Paragraph 2 we learn that Peter ________ .
| A．did not feel lonely |
| B．was always hopeful |
| C．did not think about the past |
| D．became more and more successful |
How does eBay make money from its website?
| A．By bringing callers together. |
| B．By charging for each sale. |
| C．By listing items online. |
| D．By making e-photos. |
Britain's most popular lie has been disclosed, with one in four people admitting using "sorry I had no signal" when returning a missed mobile phone call, a survey found．
Researchers found the average Briton tells on average four lies every day or almost 1500 every year． Almost one in six men admitted they were most likely to lie to their wife or girlfriend, on average a
t least twice a day．The most popular lie was saying you had no mobile phone signal．with one in four people admitting regularly using the little white He．It usually came after they hit the "ignore" button when their mobile rang．
Three quarters of people think women are better Hare．The research found 46 per cent of girls have been caught lying, compared to 58 of men．
The second most common fib（无关紧要的谎言） is “I haven't got a
ny cash on me" when asked for money by tramps （流浪者）．beggars and Big Issue sellers．"Nothing's wrong - I'm fine" came third followed by "You look lovely" and "Nice to see you"．
Modern technology turned out to have contributed to many lies with "I didn't get your text" in 18th．"Our server was down" in 20th and "My battery died" in 26th place．
Other lies to make the top ten included "I'll give you a ring", "We're ju
st good friends" and "We'll have to meet up soon"．"I'm on my way" and "No, your bum doesn't look big in that" completed the top ten．
Men tell the most fibs, coming out with five every day compared to women who lie just three times． In many cases perhaps it is better to flatter with a fib than destroy someone with the truth, according to a spokesman for OnePoll, which carried out the research of 4．300 adults．Whether the person being called has pushed the "ignore" button or _____．the caller at the other end hears the same tone．
| A．really has no signal | B．can't get the text |
| C．has a battery failure | D．answers the call |
Most people think women are better liars because _____．
| A．there're more women liars | B．fewer women liars are found out |
| C．women tell less harmful lies | D．women are harder to convince |
"Our server was down" is perhaps a lie told as an excuse for not _____．
| A．inviting a friend to dinner | B．responding to an e - mail |
C．coming to a party on  time |
D．cleaning one's room |
"You look lovely" and "I'm on my way" rank _____ on the popular - lie list．
| A．3rd and 8th | B．5th and 10th |
| C．4th and 9th | D．5th and 12th |
The OnePoll spokesman seems to think it's _____ for the British to lie so much．
| A．puzzling | B．disgusting | C．impossible | D．reasonable |
Europe's first major university department to promote research into government and public policy will open in Oxford under new plans．
In a hugely significant move, Oxford University will create a new school of government in 2012 following a￡75 million donation by Leonard Blavatnik, the American industrialist and philanthropist（慈善家）．The school is intended to train outstanding graduates from across the world in the skills and responsibilities of government．The move is being backed by world leaders including Nelson Mandela, Bill Clinton and Kofi Annan．
Andrew Hamilton, Oxford's vice - chancellor, said: "The school represents a huge milestone in Oxford's history．It will give tomorrow leaders the best of Oxford's traditional strengths alongside new and practical ways of understanding and meeting the challenges of good governance．
"The university has educated 26 British Prime Ministers and over 30 other world leaders, yet until how the major international schools of government have all been outside Europe, principally in the United States．"
Under plans, the Blavatnik School of Government will provide a series of practical courses leading to a Master's degree．It will cover a range of subjects including the humanities, social sciences, law, science, technology, health, finance, energy and security policy．
Oxford said Mr Blavatnik's donation was one of the most generous in the university' s 900 year history The university itself will be investing an additional￡26m in the school, as well as land in the Radcliffe Observatory Quarter, where the school will be located．
Lord Patten, Oxford's chancellor, said: "This is a once - in - a - century opportunity for Oxford through the Blavatnik donation, Oxford will now become the world's leading centre for the training of future leaders in government and public policy - and in ways that take proper account of the very different additions, institutions and cultures that those leaders will serve．It is an important moment for the future good government throughout the world．"What is the text mainly about?
| A．Political leaders from Oxford． |
| B．Traditions and strengths of Oxford． |
| C．Oxford ways to train future leaders． |
| D．Oxford school of government under plans． |
The move is meant to _____．
| A．provide varieties of courses |
| B．promote popularity of Oxford |
| C．find talented graduates in Europe |
| D．educate tomorrow’s political leaders |
What can students learn in the new school?
| A．Politics and economics． |
| B．Philosophy and humanities． |
| C．Traditional and practical courses． |
| D．Modern science and technology． |
Which of the following is true of the school?
| A．It is named after Leonard Blavatnik． |
| B．It will not provide traditional courses． |
| C．It is wholly financed by Leonard Blavatnik． |
D．It is the first international school of gover nment. |
What can be inferred from the last paragraph?
| A．Public policy is the present focus． |
| B．More world leaders will rise from Oxford． |
| C．World leaders need to respect each other． |
| D．Lord Patten has different opinions of the plan． |
Dublin has the benefit of being a home to unequaled beaches．They can be especially attractive during the summer season．Experience this scenery for yourself and see what these beaches have to offer you．
Finding yourself at Dollymont makes you a fortunate tourist especially if you find beaches irresistible． Here you can swim away your worries through the Dollymont Blue Flag Beach．The beach provides a wonderful view which is perfect for some relaxing moments．Its shoreline is well recommended for a few quiet and unworried walks along the beach．
For s
ome beach adventure, you can drive your way down the M50 and M 1 motorways to Donabate． This village in North County Dublin offers an attractive Blue Flag beach which is perfect for your swimming addictions．Lifeguards are on call during bathing period．The water is as overpowering as the surrounding．
For a double purpose beach, check out Killiney．This beach is a top off destination for a swimming adventure and it is equally grand for relaxing walks. The shoreline is covered with pebbles and rocks．This may seem averred with ordinary stony beach for some but for those who have strong interest in geological processes, Killiney is a best spot to discover part of．Dublin's history and Killiney's formation．
Another accessible Blue Flag Beach lies on Malahide in Fingal．You can enjoy the distinctive attraction of the water while still getting yourself amazed with the wonderful sights around Malahide．Beach is sandy and holds a harbor designed for pleasure boats at the Northern end．
For a bit of challenge and thrill, consider a swim at Seapoint Beach in Dun Laoghaire Rathdown．You can have the pleasure of an exciting surf adventure here apart from the usual swimming activity．This is often visited by tourists due to its various appeals: swimming on the north part of the beach while surfing, boating and jet skiing at the south．
Need to beat the heat off your summer vacation? There is nothing as satisfying as a visit to some of these outstanding beaches.How many beaches are mentioned in this article?
| A．Five | B．Four | C．Three | D．Two |
If you are visiting Killiney, which of the following activities can't you do?
| A．Having a swimming adventure． | B．Having some relaxing walks． |
| C．Discovering some Dublin's history． | D．Practising operating boats for pleasure． |
Some tourists choose a swim at Sea
point Beach probably because they can _____．
A．get themsel ves interested in the sights around |
| B．have a wonderful surf on the north of the beach |
| C．enjoy several unusual and exciting activities |
| D．call the lifeguards during bathing period |
If you want to be quiet and have same relaxing walks, you may pay a visit to _____．
| A．Dollymont and Donabate | B．Donabate and Malahide |
| C．Dollymont and Killiney | D．Killinev and Malahide |
The best title of this article should be _____．
| A．Where to go swimming in summer | B．Beating off the heat in Dublin |
| C．Benifits of staying at beaches | D．Geological researches in vacation |
Making greener choices and encouraging healthy lifestyles can promote your health and benefit the environment．Here are some guidelines to follow:
Choose foods thoughtfully
Americans have never had such a variety or abundance of food to choose from．Besides so many choice
s, we now hear about our "food print", the amount of land needed to supply o
ne person's nutritional needs for a year．Do we buy cherry tomatoes from Mexico or tomatoes grown locally in a hothouse? Do．we get the Granny Smiths from the fanners' market or the supermarket? Is organic produce healthier for us and the planet?
These are very complex issues that require analysis of many criteria, including the energy used in producing and transporting the food, as well as the type of soil and methods of raising the food．
Despite the complexities, there are some general guidelines you can follow．For instance, eat less meat or eat low on the food chain．Your doctor may have recommended you to restrict your consume red meat because of its too much fat content．Beyond that, there are environmental reasons, too. Raise food animals contributes substantially to climate change because a meat-based diet requires more land, energy and water than a plant - based one．
Drinking plenty of fluids is significant during hot weather or when exercising．But is bottled water the way to go? You may not think so when seeing the true costs．Based on a survey, manufacturing the 30 - plus billion plastic water bottles can produce more than 2．5 million tons of carbon dioxide and use here times the amount of water in the bottle．Adding in transportation, the energy used comes to over 50 million barrels of oil equiv
alent （等价物）．Consequently, skip the bottled water and drink tap water, both at home and at restaurants．Additionally, bottled water is not necessarily cleaner than tap.In Paragraph 2 the author puts forward three questions mainly _____．
| A．to prove Americans have less food to choose from |
| B．to show us the shopping habits of most Americans |
| C．to indicate Americans tend to buy food from abroad |
| D．to remind people to reconsider their food purchase |
The doctor recommends eating less red meat partly because _____．
| A．it contains too much fat | B．it costs a lot in transportation |
| C．it is too low on the food chain | D．it isn't related to climate change |
According to the text, which of the following is true?
| A．Americans all prefer to buy cherry tomatoes from Mexico． |
| B．The plant - based diet is responsible for the climate change． |
| C．Americans have a variety of food to choose from． |
| D．Organic produce is the only choice for Americans． |
Based on the last paragraph, we know that _____．
| A．bottled water is cleaner than tap water |
| B．tap water is economical as well as eco - friendly |
| C．bottled water is more available than tap water |
| D．tap water uses one - third the cost of bottled water |
What is the best subtitle for the last paragraph?
| A．Skip bottled water, carry tap | B．Drink bottled water |
| C．Produce plastic water bottles | D．Save water resources |
The United States is one of the few countries in the world that has an official day on which fathers are honored by their children．On the third Sunday in June, fathers all across the United States are given presents, treated to dinner or otherwise made to feel special．
However, the idea for creating a day for children to honor their fathers began in Spokane, Washington．A woman by the name of Sonora Smart Dodd thought of the idea for Father’s Day while listening to a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909．Having been raised by her father, Henry Jackson Smart, after her mother died, Sonora wanted her father to know how special he was to her．It was her father that made all the parental sacrifices（牺牲） and was, in the eyes of his daughter, a selfless and loving man．Sonora’s father was born in June, so she chose to hold the first Father’s Day celebration in Spikane, Washington on the 19th of June, 1910．
In 1924 President Calvin Coolidge declared the third Sunday in June as Father’s Day．Roses are the Father’s Day flowers: red to be worn for a living father and white if the father has died．
When children can’t visit their fathers or take them out to dinner, they send a greeting card．Traditionally, fathers prefer greeting cards that are not too sentimental（伤感的）．Most greeting cards are too special so fathers laugh when they open them．Some give heartfelt thanks for being there whenever the child need Dad． The United States is special in Father’s Day because ______．
| A．many people celebrate the day | B．only America celebrates the day |
| C．America makes it an official day | D．all men are honored in America |
．At first, Father’s Day was fixed on June 19th because ______．
| A．Sonora honored her father on her father’s birthday |
| B．Sonora’s birthday was June 19 |
| C．it was decided by the president at that time |
| D．her mother died on June 19 |
How many years has passed before Father’s Day became an official day since the father’s day was celebrated?
| A．4 | B．10 | C．14 | D．24 |
According to the passage, on Father’s Day, ______．
| A．people will wear the same flowers to honor their fathers |
| B．only daughters wear red flowers to honor their fathers |
| C．children must go home to honor their fathers |
| D．fathers are often honored in different ways |
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