When almost everyone has a mobile phone,why are more than half of Australian homes still paying for a landline (座机)?
These days you'd be hard pressed to find anyone in Australia over the age of 15 who doesn't own a mobile phone. In fact plenty of younger kids have one in their pocket. Practically everyone can make and receive calls anywhere,anytime.
Still,55 percent of Australians have a landline phone at home and only just over a quarter（29%） rely only on their smartphones ,according to a survey（调查）.Of those Australians who still have a landline,a third concedethat it's not really necessary and they're keeping it as a security blanket - 19 percent say they never use it while afurther 13 percent keep it in case of emergencies. I think my home falls into that category.
More than half of Australian homes are still choosing to stick with their home phone .Age is naturally a factor （因素）-only 58 percent of Generation Ys still use landlines now and then, compared to 84 percent of Baby Boomers who've perhaps had the same home number for 50years.Age isn't the only factor;I'd say it's also to do with the makeup of your household.
Generation Xers with young families,like my wife and I,can still find it convenient to have a home phone rather than providing a mobile phone for every family member. That said, to be honest the only people who ever ring our home phone are our Baby Boomers parents,to the point where we play a game and guess who is calling before we pick up the phone （using Caller ID would take the fun out of it）.
How attached are you to your landline? How long until they go the way of gas street lamps and morning milk deliveries?
4.What does paragraph 2 mainly tell us about mobile phones?
| A． |
Their target users. |
| B． |
Their wide popularity. |
| C． |
Their major functions. |
| D． |
Their complex design. |
5.What does the underlined word "concede"in paragraph 3 mean?
| A． |
Admit. |
| B． |
Argue. |
| C． |
Remember. |
| D． |
Remark. |
6.What can we say about Baby Boomers?
| A． |
They like smartphone games. |
| B． |
They enjoy guessing callers'identity. |
| C． |
They keep using landline phones. |
| D． |
They are attached to their family. |
7.What can be inferred about the landline from the last paragraph?
| A． |
It remains a family necessity. |
| B． |
It will fall out of use someday. |
| C． |
It may increase daily expenses. |
| D． |
It is as important as the gas light. |
Section One
The city is an accumulation of human civilization. Just as the American social philosopher (哲学家) Lewis Mumford put it, it is a special system which, fine and compact, has been designed to preserve the fruits of human civilization. Many Western languages have developed their versions of the term “civilization” from the same Latin (拉丁语的) word “civitas”(meaning “city” ), and it is by no means a coincidence. The city has played a significant role in the perfection of order in human society.
Section Two
The emblem, showing the image of three people ― you, me, him/her holding hands together, symbolizes the big family of mankind. Inspired by the shape of the Chinese character “世” (meaning the world), the design conveys the organizers' wish to host an Expo which is of global scale and which displays the various urban cultures of the world.
Section Three
Created from the inspi
ration of Chinese character “人”, the design roots deeply in Chinese culture. It tells the world the eternal core (永恒的核心) and theme of Shanghai World Expo will be always human. The mascot “Haibao” will become the messenger for the theme of World Expo 2010 Shanghai China “Better City, Better Life”.
The basic structure of the Chinese character “人” in which each stroke supports each other also shows the concept that the beautiful life should depends on mutual-help. If the human are willing to support one another, the harmony among human, nature, and society will be available. Such an urban life will be nice.
Haibao’s confident smile is expressing his sincere greeting from China ― “World Expo 2010 Shanghai China welcomes you!”
1. Section One mainly tells us about ______.
A. the part cities play in human civilization B. the development of the word “city”
C. why the Expo is held in Shanghai D. where human civilization originated
2 The underlined word “it” in Section One refers to ______.
A. the civilization B. the philosopher C. the word D. the city
3. Which correctly matches the sections with the pictures described in the passage?
| Pictures |
 |
 |
 |
| A. |
Section One |
Section Two |
Section Three |
| B. |
Section Two |
Section Three |
Section One |
| C. |
Section Three |
Section Two |
Section One |
| D. |
Section Three |
Section One |
Section Two |
4. The second paragraph in Section Three explains how the creation is connected with the _____ of the Chinese word “人”.
A. story B. meaning C. shape D. usage
Anchors on China Central Television (CCTV) will need to do some fast talking to replace the popular English acronyms(首字母缩略词) they’re now banned from using. Shanghai Daily reports that “anchors at (CCTV) have been banned from saying the English acronyms NBA, CBA, GDP, and the like in their programs.”
The replacement for those handy acronyms? Chinese presenters must use t
he full Chinese name, standardized by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television.
Although CCTV presenters must already have a score of at least 94 in their government-rated oral Mandarin proficiency exam, saying the full name of organizations like the CBA or WTO ― 10 and 6 character’s long separately ― is sure to challenge e
ven the most skillful anchors. CCTV sports anchor Sun Zhengping 
tells Shanghai Daily, “A full Chinese explanation of the English initials must be followed if my tongue slips. It is a little trouble but a necessary one because not every audience member can understand the initials.”
Although the government isn’t giving any official explanation for the shift, it is believed to have to do with a proposal by Huang Youyi, director of the China International Publishing Group, at March’s NPC meeting. In his speech, Huang said, “With more and more publications mixing Chinese with English, measures and regulations should be adopted to avoid English invading Chinese. If we don’t pay attention and don’t take measures to stop the expansion of mixing Chinese with English, Chinese won’t be a pure language in a couple of years.”
Although China is far from the first country to take measures to protect local languages (the French and Québécois beat them to it by a long way), acronyms are more about saving time than they are about corrupting a language, we would think. Good luck to the CCTV anchors.
1. CCTV anchors have to “do some fast talking” because they can no longer ______.
A. speak as slowly as they like B. mix English into Chinese
C. use shortened Chinese expressions D. have so much time for their program
2. When 
Sun Zhengping said “if my tongue slips”, he meant “if I _____”.
A. habitually use an English acronym B. speak a little bit too fast
C. make a mistake in pronunciation D. say something impolite or improper
3. What’s Huang Youyi’s proposal?
A. Using full English names instead of short forms.
B. Translating Chinese terms into proper English.
C. Avoiding Chinese words mixing into English.
D. Keeping our mother tongue as a pure language.
4. What’s the main idea of the last paragraph？
A. China has fallen behind in the matter. B. The ban is not necessary.
C. Chinese shouldn’t be corrupted. D. CCTV anchors will have a hard time.
Munish Bansal has amassed(积累)8,500 digital images of daughter Suman, 12, and her brother Jay, 10, since the day they were born. He has enough pictures to fill 600 albums and shows them on a website named “delightful kids”.
Mr. Bansal, 36, an accountant from Gillingham, Kent: “It started when I took a picture of Suman on the day when she was born. I did the same the following day, and the day after, and the day after that. Before I knew it, she had turned one and I had 365 images. It seemed a shame to stop, so I kept going - and did the same when Jay came along.” Mr. Bansal, who lives with housewife Rita, 39, began the family album on the day Suman was born in 1996. With a digital camera, he takes the picture usually before school or during dinner.
The photographs capture her life from a baby and toddler, through to early school days and into her teens. They include important landmarks like walking, the day she spoke, her first words and the beginning of school. He did the same with her younger brother Jay who was born two years later.
Mr. Bansal admits both Suman and Jay are “quite em
barrassed” about the website - and their father. Suman, who turns 13 tomorrow, said: “It's interesting because when I look at the baby photos I don't recognize myself - but I'm not planning on letting Dad do this for ever.” Mr. Bansal has said he will continue until they are old enough to leave home. “As they get older, Sunam and Jay have become quite embarrassed about what I'm doing,” he said. “But I hope that one day both of them will appreciate what I’ve done, and look back on their childhoods with happy memories.”
1. People can see their pictures by ______.
A. looking at the 600 albums B. visiting a website named “delightful kids”
C. collecting all the 8,500 digital images D. using all their digital camera
2. When Mr. Bansal started to take the picture, he was ______.
A. 24 years old B. 26 years old. C. 28 years old D. 30 years old
3. How do Suman and Jay think of what their father has done?
A. They feel very pleased with what their father has done
B. They think highly of what their father has done
C. They feel uncomfortable with what their father has done
D. They are surprised at what their father has done
4. From the passage we can infer that ______.
A. Mr. Bansal is sorry for taking so many pictures.
B. Mr. Bansal will stop taking photos next year
C. Mr. Bansal wants his children to leave home now
D. Mr. Bansal love his children very much
We live in a digital world now, and a student's technology needs have changed. For the early years, say when you are in primary school, you can get by with no technology at all. Even if you have a computer, it's a good idea to get children familiar with libraries. At this age, trips to the library are like family outings.
As you get closer to middle school, a computer with Internet access becomes more of a necessity. Teachers will often give assignments that require a student to use the Internet for research. After a computer, technology choices for students become more difficult to make – especially when it comes to cell-phones. Kids will beg their parents for a cell-phone, especially in middle school. For many parents, it's a safety issue: They want to know that their kids can reach them quickly if necessary. For teachers, cell phones can be used to record lessons when students are absent. But many teachers dislike cell-phones. Some kids send messages or have talks in the class. Sending messages also raises the problem of cheating on exams. More and more schools are now forbidding the use of cell-phones.
Many kids see iPods as necessary things to have. iPods are great for music, but do they do anything good for your children’s education? Maybe they do. That’s the opinion of Doug Johnson, an educator for 30 years. Johnson says that educators should accept all new forms of technology in the classroom, including iPods. “Some do more with their cell- phones than we can do with our laptops,” he jokes. “I don’t think we should be afraid. The truth is that it’s easier to change the way we teach than to change the technology habits of an entire generation.”
1. According to author, primary school children should___.
A. use the computer and the Internet regularly B. ask their parents to buy them cell-phones
C. buy iPods to listen to music D. go to libraries to read more books
2. Why do parents agree to buy their children cell-phones?
A. They want their children to be cool.
B. They think cell-phones be helpful to their study.
C. They want to keep in touch with their children.
D. They want their children to keep up to date.
3. The following are all reasons why many teachers dislike cell-phones EXCEPT ____.
A. cell-phones can be used to cheat on exams
B. schoolchildren will send messages during class
C. cell-phones can be used to record lessons
D. schoolchildren might talk on them during class
4. What does the underlined word “that” refers to?
A. iPods can be used to listen to music.
B. 
iPods can be helpful for children’s education.
C. iPods can be used to play games.
D. iPods are necessary for children’s lives.
5. We can infer from what Doug Johnson said that _____.
A. cell-phones are not useful to students
B. teachers should let students use cell-phones
C. it’s better for teachers to change their teaching methods
D. schoolchildren should follow the trends(潮流) of fashion
Claude and Louris are “giraffes”. So are police officers Hankins and Pearson. These men and women don’t look like giraffes; they look like you and me. Then, why do people call them “giraffes”?
A giraffe, they say, is an animal that sticks its neck out, can see places far away and has a large heart. It lives a quiet life and moves about in an easy and beautiful way. In the same way, a “giraffe” can be a person who likes to “stick his or her neck out” for other people, always watches for future happenings, has a warm heart for people around, and at the same time lives a quiet and beautiful life himself or herself.
“The Giraffe Project” is a 10-year-old group which finds and honors “giraffes” in the US and in the world. The group wants to teach people to do something to build a better world. The group members believe that a person shouldn’t draw his or her head back; instead, they tell people to “stick their neck out” and help others. Claude and Louris, Hankins and Pearson are only a few of the nearly 1,000 “giraffes” that the group found and honored.
Claude and Louris were getting old and they left their work with some money that they saved for future use. One day, however, they saw a homeless man looking for a place to keep warm and they decided that they should “stick their neck out” and give him some help. Today, they lived in Friends’ House, where they invite twelve homeless people to stay every night.
P
olice officers Hankins and Pearson work in a large city. They see crimes every day and their work is sometimes dangerous. They work hard for their money. However, these two men put their savings together and even borrowed money to 
start an educational center to teach young people in a poor part of the city. Hankins and Pearson are certainly “giraffes”.
1. Which of the following is true?
A. Some of the people around us look like giraffes.
B.
Giraffes are the most beautiful animal in the world.
C. “Giraffes” is a beautiful name for those who are ready to help other people.
D. A “giraffe” is someone who can stick his neck out and see the future.
2. “The Giraffe Project” is a group _____.
A. of police officers B. which appeared ten years ago
C. of ten-year-old children D. which t
akes care of children
3. People call Claude and Hankins “giraffes” because they _____.
A. do what is needed for a good world B. are not afraid of dangerous work
C. found a home for some homeless people D. made money only for other people
4. What does “The Giraffe Project” do?
A. It tells people how to live a quiet life.
B. It helps the homeless and teaches the young people.
C. It tries to find 1,000 warm-hearted people in the US.
D. It shows people what their duty is for a better world.
5. The underlined word “crime” in the last paragraph has the similar meaning to ____.
A. mistake B. happiness C. failure D. wrongdoing
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