The new high-speed railway line between Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uygur self-governing region，and Lanzhou, capital of Gansu province，has cut train travel time by half to less than 12 hours.
The dramatic improvement will benefit many families planning reunions for Spring Festival.
“For the first time，I feel home is not that far away after all，”said Liang Shaofu as he boarded a high-speed train in Urumqi with six members of his family．
The 35-year-old left Lanzhou to set up a dry fruit business in Xinjiang eight years ago，and he has now settled in Urumqi．
The 1,776-km line, which passes through Qinghai province and is the country’s first high-speed railway to be built in a high-altitude region, came into service on Dec 26.
“We normally drive home for Spring Festival to avoid the difficulties of buying seven train tickets for the whole family during the peak season.” Liang said. “Driving can be very tiring and dangerous sometimes，so one year we even decided not to go back to Lanzhou simply to avoid the trip.”
More than 600,000 passengers traveled on the line during its first month，and the Urumqi Railway Bureau said the introduction of high-speed services will ease transport pressure during the Spring Festival peak season.
The existing usual railway line could no longer support Xinjiang’s development. All passenger trains will gradually shift to the new link，leaving the old one to be used for goods. As a result，Xinjiang’s annual goods ability could reach 200 million metric tons from the current 70 million．
The line passes through areas that experience high winds, and it also crosses parts of the deserted Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the bone-dry sands of the Gobi Desert．
The project could help China to promote its high-speed railway technology abroad，said Ma Xi zhang, director of the Lanzhou-Xinjiang railway project’s management department in Xinjiang.How long did it take to go from Urumqi to Lanzhou by the usual train before?
| A．about 12 hours | B．About 6 hours |
| C．About 18 hours | D．About 24 hours |
What’s the main advantage of the new high-speed railway?
| A．It takes more time to go to Urumqi to Lanzhou. |
| B．It will be more convenient for people all over the country to Xinjiang. |
| C．All the people in Lanzhou can return home on festivals. |
| D．It helps to improve Xinjiang’s development. |
From the passage we can learn________.
| A．Xinjiang’s annual goods ability can increase nearly four times |
| B．the new railway technology may help more railway lines to be built abroad |
| C．the high-speed railway lines can’t be built across the bone-dry sands |
| D．the old railway lines can only carry goods now |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．The new high-speed railway line is good for all people to go home. |
| B．The new high-speed railway line benefits businessmen to carry goods. |
| C．Taking the new train is safer than driving home from Urumqi to Lanzhou. |
| D．Businessmen seldom went home for Spring Festival before. |
Knott’s Berry Farm is the nation’s oldest, and first, theme park and draws around five million visitors each year. Knott’s Berry Farm hardly had a very good start. Arriving in Southern California in the 1920s, the Knott Family farmed about 20 acres of land and finally started a restaurant called Mrs. Knott’ s Chicken Dinner Restaurant. Mrs. Knott’s food became well known and her husband Walter built a Ghost Town as a way of entertaining waiting customers. Today Knott’s Berry Farm has 165 rides, shows, attractions and restaurants. For more than 80 years, Knott’s Berry Farm has been entertaining families and visitors from around the world.
There are six different themed areas with rides and attractions in Knott’s Berry Farm. Fiesta Village throws attention to California’s Spanish heritage（遗产）. Indian Trails is similar to Fiesta Village but with an accent on Native American legends, crafts, music and dancing. The heart and soul of Knott’s, Ghost Town is an 1880s California Boom Town with cowboys, gunfights, and a real steam train. The Boardwalk makes people think of Southern California beach. Wild Water Wilderness is an 1800s-style park with water rapids and a magical journey into Native North America. For Peanuts fans, Camp Snoopy is a six-acre children’s wonderland with 30 rides and attractions. Knott’s Berry Farm is in Buena Vista, Orange County, California. It is about half an hour from downtown Los Angeles and 10 minutes from Disneyland. Knott’s Berry Farm is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the week. The park is open on Saturdays from 10 a. m. to 10 p.m. and from 10 a. m. to 7 p.m. on Sundays. During the summer months, the park is open later. The theme park is closed on Christmas Day.The first paragraph is mainly about Knott’s Berry Farm’s __________.
| A．attractions | B．history |
| C．services | D．prices |
Besides Indian Trails, you can also experience Native American culture in __________.
| A．Fiesta Village | B．the Boardwalk |
| C．Wild Water Wilderness | D．Camp Snoopy |
What do we know about Knott’s Berry Farm from the passage?
| A．It is in Northern California. | B．It is open all the year round. |
| C．It has eight themed areas. | D．It is not far from Disneyland. |
In high school, George Lucas didn’t do much work because he spent all his time dreaming about racing cars.
Just a few days before graduation, George was driving home from the library in his Fiat; he prepared for a left turn by looking in the minor. But as he started the turn, he heard the sound of another car, a blowing horn（喇叭）, and the speeding Chevy hit the driver side of his car. The little Fiat turned over four or five times before it was stopped by a big tree. Luckily, George did not die in the accident, but his recovery was slow and he needed months of physical treatment. He would never be able to race ears now.
The accident really changed George’s life. He decided there must be some reason he survived, and made up his mind to get his act together and make something out of his life. He decided to go to university and developed an interest in reading and writing. He got on quite well in his studies. He didn’t quite forget about racing cars. At that time instead of driving race cars, he began filming them.
You may have seen one or all of George Lucas’s most famous films from the Star Wars series or the Indiana Jones trilogy. Not only has George produced movies, but also he has helped invent and develop new technologies to modernize the movie industry.
Today, Lucas, who earns as much as ＄3.0 billion, is one of the American film industry’s most successful directors and producers.What was George Lueas’s life like in high school?
| A．He was the best race ear driver. |
| B．He did very well in his school subjects. |
| C．He didn’t spend much time on his studies. |
| D．He was one of the worst students in school. |
We can learn from this passage that __________.
| A．George’s Fiat was not seriously damaged |
| B．the Chevy driver didn’t break the traffic law |
| C．George was seriously injured in the accident |
| D．the Chevy driver wasn’t injured in the accident |
The greatness of George Lucas mainly lies in his __________.
| A．earning a great deal of money |
| B．directing several famous movies |
| C．making movies about racing cars |
| D．making the film industry more modern |
根据短文内容，从下面A—F 选项中选出能概括每一段主题的最佳选项。选项中有一项为多余项。
A．Different ways of making friends over the Internet
B．Forming a regular “chat”community
C．The changes the Internet has brought to our life
D．Meeting Internet friends face to face
E. Extension（延伸） of friends over the Internet
F. Maintenance（维持） of friendship by keeping contact 1 .We live in the information age,which is changing many of the ways in our daily life. One of the most interesting developments of the information age is the Internet, which is a vast network of computers that link people ,businesses and communities around the world.
2. How do we make friends using the Internet? One way is to search for websites that have topics that interest us. For example , you might be interested in football. Then you search for a site run by a popular football club.there are hundreds of football sites, and most of them have a special website for their fans . The same is true of popular culture ,and many popular music bands have websites . Once you have located the right football club or pop group , then you will see where to click in order to “chat” with other fans. The word “chat”has got popular because of the Internet, which means a light conversation among friends . Another way to make friends is to access sites that are devoted to this purpose . When you search the Internet for these sites you will find that there are plenty of opportunities to meet people of all ages and from many different backgrounds.
3. Making a new friend is only the first step. The key to a successful relationship over the Internet is to keep in touch with your friend . When the relationship works in this way .it is very rewarding for both parters .You can set the style and pace of the exchange to suit each other .If you use “instant messenger” systems,your chat becomes a dialogue,which is a lot of fun and can help strengthen the growing friendship.
4. You will soon find that the topics go far beyond a discussion of football or music,even though these topics brought you both together . Another way to strengthen the friendship is to include your school friends in your conversations too , and then you can form your own “chat”group that meets regularly and becomes a small community of friends.
5. It’s like belonging to a club.Your club can extend to many new and old friends. And their conversations will enrich your life in ways that you could have never imagined .If your Internet club grows then perhaps you will find ways to meet your friends face to face, which will be another story.
French lessons in France
Whatever your level is, choosing to take French lessons in France is the best way to learn French. Place yourself in the local culture and practice your newly found skills in your free time.
You will be taught by native (本地的) French speakers who have a love for teaching and use excellent teaching techniques. Lessons are interesting and you will speak French on the first day both inside and outside the classroom.
Learners
● Suitable for all levels from beginners to advanced (高级的)
● Over 18 years old
Class Schedule (课表)
● Classes start on Mondays and run throughout the summer.
● Please arrive at the school by 8:15 am on your first day for a short level test. It will help to place you in the right class.
● Classes run from Monday to Friday each week.
● Classes start at 8:45 am each day depending on your level.
● You will have 3 classes per day lasting 55 minutes each.
● You will have a short break between classes.
Free Time and Tours
● The school offers a lot of cultural activities throughout the week. These activities can include cooking lessons, wine and cheese tasting, visits to Paris, cycling, movies and much more.
● You will have plenty of free time to explore (探索) the local area and practice your newly found language skills or just relax on this learning holiday with a difference.
Other Information
● You should bring a small dictionary, pens and paper with you.
Get more from your holiday, have fun, meet new people and take home a new language skill that will stay with you forever.What is special about the French courses?
| A．They are taught in small groups. |
| B．The teachers are young French speakers. |
| C．People learn French in and out of class. |
| D．They will offer a wine tasting license. |
On the first day, the students should ______.
| A．take a language test | B．pay for their study |
| C．do a survey | D．introduce themselves to the class |
How many lessons are there in a week?
| A．21. | B．30. | C．15. | D．12. |
We can learn from the text that the course ______.
| A．is not suitable for teenagers | B．offers cooking classes as well |
| C．provides dictionaries for students | D．has a short game between classes |
Many teenagers feel that the most important people in their lives are their friends. They believe that their family members, especially their parents, don’t know them as well their friends do. In large families, it is often for brothers and sisters to fight with each other and then they can only go to their friends for advice. It is very important for teenagers to have one good friend or many friends. Even when they are not with their friends, they usually spend a lot of time talking among themselves on the phone. This communication is very important in children’s growing up, because friends can discuss something difficult to say to their family members.
However, parents often try to choose their children’s friends for them. Some parents may even stop their children from meeting their good friends. The question of “choice” is an interesting one. Have you ever thought of the following questions?
Who choose your friends?
Do you choose your friends or your friends choose you?
Have you got a good friend your parents don’t like?When teenagers stay alone, the usual way of communication is to _________.
| A．go to their friends | B．talk with their parents |
| C．have a discussion with their family | D．talk with their friends on the phone |
Which of the following is DIFFERENT in meaning from the sentence “Some parents may even stop their children from meeting their good friends.”?
| A．Some parents may even not allow their children to meet their good friends. |
| B．Some parents may even ask their children to stay away from their good friends. |
| C．Some parents may even not let their children meet their good friends. |
| D．Some parents may want their children to stop to meet their good friends. |
Which of the following sentences is TRUE?
| A．Parents should like everything their children enjoy. |
| B．In all families, children can choose everything they like. |
| C．Parents should try their best to understand their children better. |
| D．Teenagers can only go to their friends for help. |
The main idea of this passage is that ___________.
| A．Teenagers need friends |
| B．Friends can give good advice |
| C．Parents often choose their children’s friends for them |
| D．Good friends can communicate with each other |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号