The influence of America is increasing in my country. Spanish people drink Coca Cola, wear blue jeans, watch Hollywood movies, listen to American music, and eat fast food, and they do these things every day.
I think that American movies are a good way to spread American culture because people are often influenced by what they see in the movies. Most of the programs and documentaries (纪录片) we watch on TV are from America, and most of the movies we go to see are made in Hollywood.
In the last few years, the government has tried to protect the Spanish movies. Now, in our cinemas, at least twenty percent of the movies which are shown must be from Spain or from other countries in Europe.
American culture is a part of Spanish life now. It’s certain that many things from America are as much a part of people’s lives as Spanish things. For example, Coca Cola is as familiar to everybody as any typical Spanish product. I’ve known about Coca Cola for my whole life.
However, it’s different with Western fast food. For example, I don’t think McDonald’s is as successful in Spain as it is in other countries. In my opinion, one of the reasons may be the lifestyle of the Spanish people. The Spanish people normally eat at home.
On the other hand, maybe McDonald’s hamburgers will eventually replace the famous Spanish tapas. It’s true that in every city in Spain you can find a McDonald’s, and it is more popular among the Spanish children than among the adults. In any case, it’s obvious that American culture is becoming more and more a part of our lives every day.From the first paragraph we can know that ____.
| A．the influence of America on Spain can be found everywhere |
| B．most Spanish people don’t like to listen to their own music |
| C．fast food spreads from Spain to the United States |
| D．some Spanish actors go to America to improve their acting skills |
What plays an important part in the spreading of American culture in Spain?
| A．American novels. | B．Hollywood movies. |
| C．McDonald’s. | D．American music. |
Why did the government set some rules for the films shown in Spain?
| A．To protect foreign culture in Spain. |
| B．To earn more money from Spanish films. |
| C．To limit the number of foreign movies. |
| D．To unite the European Community. |
What do you think Spanish tapas (in the last paragraph)might be?
| A．The name of a drink. | B．The name of a restaurant. |
| C．A clothing brand. | D．A certain kind of food. |
Science, as we think, was born when the Greek philosopher ( 哲学家 ) Thales ( about 640-546 B.C.) asked a difficult question: What makes up our universe?
No one had a ready answer, so Thales went on studying the earth around him, the sky and the stars. He saw so much water on earth and so much water falling from the sky as rain that he decided water must be the basic substance ( 物质 ) of the universe.
Other Greek thinkers became interested in this question. They suggested other answers. One said that because air lies around the earth, it must be air that makes up all things. Another said that fire, appearing in different forms, was the building block of the universe.
The Greek philosophers were feeling their way towards the ideas on which chemistry is based. Centuries later, scientists proved that the universe is made up of certain basic substances. But the list is much more complicated than the Greeks realized. We now know of 103 basic substances which we call “ elements ( 元素 )”.Thales, the famous Greek philosopher, died when he was about _______________.
| A．94 years old | B．106years old |
| C．40 years old | D．46 years old |
The meaning of the underlined word “complicated” in the last paragraph is “ ____________”.
| A．not difficult | B．not simple | C．not famous | D．not different |
After reading the passage, we can be sure that________________.
| A．nothing ever changes in the universe |
| B．Thales decided that the basic substance of the universe was air |
| C．the universe is made up of four different substances |
| D．the early Greek thinkers did much valuable work for the progress of science |
Ten years ago I used to be very fit (健康的). I rode a bike to work and I got a lot of exercise at weekends. I used to play tennis a lot and go for long walks. In those days I didn’t earn very much. I had a job in an office. It wasn’t a very good job but I had a lot of time to do the things I enjoyed doing.
Then, about eight years ago, I got a much better job. The pay was better, but the hours were a lot longer. I bought a car and drove to work every day. I began to take people out to lunch. And I began to put on weight, too. I stopped playing tennis and going for long walks at weekends because I just didn’t have any time for things like that any more.
There’s a lot of stress (压力) in my job. Perhaps that’s why I started drinking more than I used to. For example, I used to have only half a glass of whisky when I got home, but then I started filling my glass to the top, and instead of having one glass, I would have several. I started smoking a lot, too. I never used to smoke at all.
Two months ago I had a heart attack. At first I just couldn’t believe it. Luckily it wasn’t very serious. The doctor advised me to stop smoking and to eat less. He also advised me to work less and get more exercise. But I just haven’t any time! My job takes everything out of me!
Sometimes I wonder if I should get another job. Perhaps I could do something like I used to do. But if I do that, I won’t earn as much. I have a family to support. I have to think of them, too. I just don’t know what I should do. What do you think? Compared with ten years ago, what is worse for the author now?
| A．His job. | B．His pay. |
| C．His means of transport. | D．His health. |
According to the passage, when the author got the better job, which of the following is NOT true?
| A．He got higher pay. |
| B．His working hours weren’t long. |
| C．He found it very stressful. |
| D．He had little free time at weekends. |
After the author had a heart attack, the doctor advised him _____.
| A．not to work any longer |
| B．to take a long vacation abroad |
| C．to stop smoking and take exercise |
| D．not to eat out any more |
Mark Twain was a great writer. He was from the USA. He was born in 1835. He was also a famous speaker. He was famous for his sense of humour. Many people liked to listen to him talk because he liked to tell some interesting stories to make people laugh all the time.
One day Mark Twain was going to a small town because of his writing. Before he was going to leave, one of his friends said to him that there were always a lot of mosquitoes（蚊子） in the town and told him that he’d better not go there. Mark Twain waved (摇动) his hand and said, “It doesn’t matter. The mosquitoes are no relatives of mine. I don’t think they will come to visit me.”
After he arrived at the town, Mark Twain stayed in a small hotel near the station. He went into his room, but when he was just about to have a rest, quite a few mosquitoes flew about him. The waiters felt very sorry about that. “I’m very sorry, Mr. Mark Twain. There are too many mosquitoes in our town.” One of them said to him.
Mark Twain, however, made a joke, saying to the waiter, “The mosquitoes are very clever. They know my room number. They didn’t come into the wrong room.” What he said made all the people present laugh heartily.
But that night Mark Twain slept well. Do you know why? That was because all the waiters in the hotel were driving the mosquitoes away for him during the whole night. That day Mark Twain went to the town _____.
| A．to see one of his friends |
| B．because he wanted to do something there for his writing |
| C．because he was told there were a lot of mosquitoes there |
| D．to see one of his relatives |
The waiters felt sorry because _____.
| A．they did something wrong to Mark Twain |
| B．their hotel was too small |
| C．the room was not very clean |
| D．there were quite a few mosquitoes in Mark Twain’s room |
All the people present laughed heartily because _____.
| A．the mosquitoes were very clever and they didn’t come into the wrong room |
| B．the mosquitoes knew Mark Twain’s room number |
| C．Mark Twain gave the waiters some nice presents |
| D．Mark Twain made a joke |
From the story we know _____.
| A．no mosquitoes troubled Mark Twain in the night |
| B．the owner of the hotel told the waiters to look after Mark Twain well at night |
| C．Mark Twain didn’t have a good rest that night |
| D．there were not mosquitoes in the hotel any longer |
Mark was walking home from school one day when he saw the boy in front of him fall over and drop all of the books. He was carrying, along with two sweaters, a basketball and a walkman（随身听）. Mark stopped and helped the boy pick up these things. Since they were going the same way, he helped to carry some of his things. As they walked, Mark knew that the boy’s name was Bill, that he loved computer games, basketball and history, and that he was having lots of trouble with his other subjects and that he had just broken up with his girlfriend.
They arrived at Bill’s home first and Mark was invited in for a Coke and to watch some television. The afternoon passed happily with a few laughs and some small talk, and then Mark went home. They often saw each other at school, had lunch together once or twice, and then they both finished middle school. They ended up in the same high school where they sometimes saw and talked with each other over the years. At last just three weeks before they finished high school, Bill asked Mark if they could talk.
Bill asked Mark if he still remembered the day years ago when they had first met. “Did you ever think why I was carrying so many things home that day?” asked Bill. “You see, I cleaned out my locker(锁柜) because I didn’t want to leave anything for anyone else. I had put away some of my mother’s sleeping pills and I was going home to kill myself. But after we spent some time together talking and laughing, I began to understand that if I killed myself, I would have missed that time and so many others that might follow. So you see, Mark, when you picked up those books that day, you did a lot more. You saved my life.” When Mark met him the first time, Bill was going _______.
| A．to have a basketball game | B．to his classroom |
| C．to see Mark | D．back home |
From what Bill was carrying, we can know that he _______.
| A．was a good student | B．liked sports and music |
| C．liked all the subjects in school | D．was a good friend |
Mark and Bill _______.
| A．were in the same middle school and high school |
| B．were in the same middle school but not in the same high school |
| C．often had lunch together at school |
| D．had known each other before they began to study in middle school |
In this passage, the phrase “break up” means _______.
| A．相处很好 | B．和好如初 | C．关系破裂 | D．保持联系 |
When Mark helped Bill to pick up some of his things, he _______.
| A．knew he could save Bill’s life |
| B．knew who Bill was and wanted to help him |
| C．didn’t know why he was going to help him |
| D．didn’t know what he was doing was very important to Bill |
Hobbs was an orphan(孤儿). He worked in a factory and every day he got a little money. Hard work changed him thin and weak. He wanted to borrow a lot of money to learn to paint pictures, but he did not think he could pay off the debts.One day the lawyer said to him, “One thousand dollars, and here is the money.” As Hobbs took the package of notes, he was very dumbfounded（目瞪口呆的）. He didn’t know where the money came from and how to spend it. He said to himself, “I could go to find a hotel and live like a rich man for a few days; or I give up my work in the factory and do what I’d like to do: painting pictures I could do that for a few weeks, but what would I do after that? I should have lost my place of the factory and have no money to live on. If it were a little less money, I would buy a new coat, or a radio, or give a dinner to my friends. If it were more, I could give up the work and pay for painting pictures. But it’s too much for one and too little for the other.”
“Here is the reading of your uncle’s will（遗嘱）,” said the lawyer, “telling what is to be done with this money after his death. I must ask you to remember one point. Your uncle has said you must bring me a paper showing exactly what you did with his money, as soon as you have spent it.”
“Yes, I see. I’ll do that.” said the young man.He wanted to borrow money because he wanted to_____.
| A．study abroad | B．work abroad |
| C．pay for the debts | D．learn to paint pictures |
Hobbs was dumbfounded on receiving the money because he thought_____.
| A．the money was too much |
| B．the money was too little |
| C．he would be dismissed |
| D．the lawyer meant to punish him |
With the money he got, first Hobbs_____.
| A．planned to have a happy life for a few days |
| B．decided to give up his work in the office |
| C．was to give a dinner to his friends |
| D．had no idea what to do |
What Hobbs was asked to do was_____.
| A．to tell the lawyer what he did with the money after spending it |
| B．to read his uncle’s will |
| C．to tell the lawyer what was to be done with the money |
| D．nothing but to buy some pictures |
What Hobbs really loved to do was_____.
| A．working in the factory |
| B．living in a fine hotel |
| C．painting pictures |
| D．saving the money |
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