高中英语阅读理解

When you are invited to attend a party in the West, the first important thing you need to know is that you should arrive late.
It is a great embarrassment to arrive at a party early or even on time. Therefore, unless you are the host of the party, you never want to be the first person present at a party. Why? Because others may think that you have no life or nothing better to do than wait for a party to start. Many people try to project（展现）an image（形象）of always being busy, which, whether true or not, has something to do with success. So, by arriving late, you are implying: “I live a full life and it's really exciting.”
Therefore, an 8 o'clock party usually doesn't really start until maybe 9 o'clock, as everyone wants to be thought of as a busy and important person with lots of things to do. In other words, a party is one of those rare occasions（极少数场合）in which your punctuality can actually hurt you. It's quite a strange thing, isn't it? Anyhow, remember to be late!
The passage is most likely to have been taken from a book about______.

A．life in the West	B．health and medicine
C．politics in the West	D．behavioral science

What is the reason that people want to be late for parties?

A．They are not the host of the party.

B．They are too busy to arrive on time.

C．They want others to think they are busy.

D．They don’t want to wait for a party to start.

What does the word "punctuality" in the last paragraph mean?

A．Being polite	B．Being late
C．Being smart	D．Being on time

We can infer from the passage that______.

A．Sometimes people pretend to be what they want to be.

B．Lateness is not a problem when you are attending a meeting.

C．You need to be late on every occasion.

D．Going to a party can be a waste of time.

Absence
If a student is absent, parents are asked to contact the school and report that absence. Simply ring the school and you will be directed to the absence phone system. You should then give the name of the student and their tutor teacher.
Attendance
School hours are 08:35 to 15:00. If a student is late, they must sign in at the Student Office.
School times are as follows: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.
08:35 - 09:35  Period 1
09:35 - 10:35  Period 2
10:35 - 10:50  Tutor Time
10:50 - 11:10  Interval
11:10 - 12:05  Period 3
12:05 - 13:00  Period 4
13:00 - 13.45  Lunch
13:45 - 14:05  School-wide reading
14:05 - 15:00  Period 5
Wednesday Only
09:00 - 09:55  Period 1
09:55 - 10:50  Period 2
Rest of the times are the same as for the other days.
Cellphones
The current cell phone policy is that, although permitted at school, they must not be used or turned on during class time.
If a student is absent, ______ should call the school and report the absence.
the student’s parents         B. the student himself
C. the student’s tutor         D. the student’s teacher
The school doesn’t have Tutor Time ______.

A．on Monday and Friday	B．on Tuesday
C．on Thursday	D．on Wednesday

Students can use their cell phones at ______ every day.

A．09:00	B．10:00
C．11:00	D．12:00

Which of the following is true?

A．When you report an absence, you speak directly to the Student Office.

B．You are not late if you go to your classroom at 8 o’clock on Thursday.

C．You must ring the school if you are late.

D．Wednesday afternoon is free.

Old-Fashioned Play-For Pay
Kids! Come to have a ball! Or 60,000 of them! There’s a new type of business franchise（特许经销权）that is appearing in shopping malls and neighborhood across America offering pay-per-use  indoor playgrounds, which feature toys, games, guided fun and a workout that doesn’t break the family bank.
As public playgrounds grow increasingly worn and dirty, the for-profit centers offer clean, safe guided activity as well as a variety of challenging exercises to develop kids’ physical fitness, usually for a fee of around $ 5 an hour. “Playgrounds are dirty, not guided,” says Dick Guggenheimer, owner of the two-month-old Discovery Zone in Yonkers, N. Y., part of Kansas City-based chain, “We are indoors; we are padded; parents can feel their child is safe”.
In order to satisfy the need of two-earner families, the new franchise stays open in the evenings, long after traditional public playgrounds have grown dark and unusable. However, these new playgrounds are not meant to be day-care centers. Parents are expected to go stay and play with their kids rather than drop them off. But several also provide high-tech baby-sitting services. At some of the Discovery Zones, parents can register their children in special guided programs, then leave them and slip away for a couple of hours to enjoy a movie or dinner. If there is a problem, Mom and Dad are called.
The most fun of all, though, is getting to do what parents used to do in the days before two-earner families and two-hour commutes（两小时上下班往返）, play with their kids. That, at least, is old-fashioned, even at per-hour rates.
What is this article mainly talking about?

A．Children can play without parent’s care.

B．The fast development of Discovery Zone.

C．A new type of business franchise of kids.

D．The disadvantages of outdoor playgrounds.

According to the article, which of the following is TRUE to the new playground?

A．The cost is high for a family.

B．It doesn't allow parents to leave their kids.

C．It stays open in the evening just as traditional playgrounds.

D．It's a place where parents can play together with their kids.

What does the writer mean by saying "old-fashioned"?

A．The so-called new playground is out of date.

B．The new playground is actually enjoyed by parents.

C．The new playground is also enjoyed by old people.

D．The new playground offers a fashion which is popular in the past.

The writer’s attitude toward the new playground is_______________.

A．agreeable	B．negative
C．doubtful	D．unknown

Life is difficult.
But life is no longer difficult once we truly understand and accept it. Most do not fully see this truth. Instead they complain about their problems and difficulties as if life should be easy. It seems to them that their difficulties represent a special kind of suffering especially forced upon them or else upon their families, their class, or even their nation.
What makes life difficult is that the process of facing and solving problems is painful. Problems, depending on their nature, cause us sadness or loneliness or regret or anger or fear. These are uncomfortable feelings, often as any kind of physical pain. And since life causes an endless series of problems, life is always difficult and is full of pain as well as joy.
Yet, it is in this whole of solving problems that life has its meaning.
Problems are the serious test that tells success from failure. When we desire to encourage the growth of the human spirit, we encourage the human ability to solve problems just as in school we set problems for our children to solve. It is through the pain of meeting and working our problems that we learn. As Benjamin Franklin said, “Those things that hurt, instruct.” It is for this reason that wise people learn not to fear but to welcome the pain of problems.
The writer uses just one short sentence in the first paragraph probably to _________.

A．make a suggestion	B．persuade readers
C．make readers laugh	D．get readers’ attention

According to the passage, we give school children difficult problems to solve in order to __________ .

A．encourage them to learn

B．make them suffer

C．make their life easier

D．help them understand life is difficult

“Those things that hurt, instruct.” from Benjamin Franklin suggests that ________ .

A．we do not learn from experience

B．we do not learn when we are in pain

C．pain teaches us important lessons

D．pain cannot be forgotten

From the passage, it can be inferred that __________.

A．not everybody has the same problems

B．we become stronger by facing and solving the problems in life

C．life is difficult because our problems bring us pain

D．people like to complain about their problems

Tea, the most important of English drinks, is a relative latecomer to British shores. Although the custom of drinking tea dates back to the third millennium BC in China, it was not until the mid 17th century that tea first appeared in England.
Afternoon tea was introduced in England by Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford, in the year 1840. The Duchess would become hungry around four o’clock in the afternoon. The evening meal in her household was served fashionably late at eight o’clock, thus leaving a long period of time between lunch and dinner. The Duchess asked her servant to bring a tray of tea, bread, butter and cake to her room during the late afternoon. This became a habit of hers and she began inviting friends to join her.
This pause for tea became a fashionable social event. During the 1880’s upper class and society women would change into long gowns(长袍), gloves and hats for their afternoon tea which was usually served in the drawing room between four and five o’clock.
Traditional afternoon tea consists of a selection of dainty(讲究的) sandwiches, scones(烤饼)served with cream and jams. Cakes and pastries(面团) are also served. Tea grown in India or Ceylon is poured from silver teapots into delicate bone china cups.
Nowadays, however, in the average suburban home, afternoon tea is likely to be just a biscuit or small cake and a mug of tea, usually produced using a teabag.
The title of the passage is __________.

A．Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford

B．Tea, the most important of English drinks

C．Anna, a person introducing afternoon tea to England

D．Afternoon tea, a very British tradition

Afternoon tea was introduced in English in _________.

A．1880	B．the mid 17th century
C．1840	D．3 BC

Traditional afternoon tea is made up of __________.

A．sandwiches, scones as well as cakes and pastries

B．a biscuit or small cake and a mug of tea

C．a tray of tea, bread, butter and cake

D．a selection of dainty sandwiches

According to the passage, we can learn that _________.

A．Tea appeared in England much earlier than in China

B．The reason why the Duchess was hungry at 4 p.m. is that dinner time came quite late

C．In the suburban home, afternoon tea is also served in a dainty way

D．Tea grown in India or Ceylon is poured from china teapots into delicate bone silver cups.

A team of engineers at Harvard University has been inspired by Nature to create the first robotic fly. The mechanical fly has become a platform for a series of new high-tech integrated systems. Designed to do what a fly does naturally, the tiny machine is the size of a fat housefly. Its mini wings allow it to stay in the air and perform controlled flight tasks.
“It’s extremely important for us to think about this as a whole system and not just the sum of a bunch of individual components (元件),” said Robert Wood, the Harvard engineering professor who has been working on the robotic fly project for over a decade. A few years ago, his team got the go-ahead to start piecing together the components. “The added difficulty with a project like this is that actually none of those components are off the shelf and so we have to develop them all on our own,” he said.
They engineered a series of systems to start and drive the robotic fly. “The seemingly simple system which just moves the wings has a number of interdependencies on the individual components, each of which individually has to perform well, but then has to be matched well to everything it’s connected to,” said Wood. The flight device was built into a set of power, computation, sensing and control systems. Wood says the success of the project proves that the flying robot with these tiny components can be built and manufactured.
While this first robotic flyer is linked to a small, off-board power source, the goal is eventually to equip it with a built-in power source, so that it might someday perform data-gathering work at rescue sites, in farmers’ fields or on the battlefield. “Basically it should be able to take off, land and fly around,” he said.
Wood says the design offers a new way to study flight mechanics and control at insect-scale. Yet, the power, sensing and computation technologies on board could have much broader applications. “You can start thinking about using them to answer open scientific questions, you know, to study biology in ways that would be difficult with the animals, but using these robots instead,” he said. “So there are a lot of technologies and open interesting scientific questions that are really what drives us on a day to day basis.”
The robotic fly project has been conducted __________.

A．just by accident

B．within a decade

C．just by a professor

D．for more than ten years

The difficulty the team of engineers met with while making the robotic fly was that __________.

A．they had no model in their mind

B．they did not have sufficient time

C．they had no ready-made components

D．they could not assemble the components

Which of the following can be learned from the passage?

A．The robotic flyer is designed to learn about insects.

B．Animals are not allowed in biological experiments.

C．There used to be few ways to study how insects fly.

D．Wood’s design can replace animals in some experiments.

Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?

A．Father of Robotic Fly

B．Inspiration from Engineering Science

C．Robotic Fly Imitates Real Life Insect

D．Harvard Breaks Through in Insect Study

From the health point of view we are living in a wonderful age. A large number of once fatal illnesses can now be cured by modern drugs and surgery. But though the possibility of living a long and happy life is greater than ever before, every day we witness the incredible killing of people on the roads. Man is opposite to the motor-car! It is a never ending battle which man is losing. Thousands of people are killed each year and we are quietly sitting back and letting it happen.
It  has been rightly said that when a man is sitting behind a steering-wheel(方向盘) , his car becomes the extension of his personality. There is no doubt that the motor-car often brings out a man's worst qualities. People who are normally quiet and pleasant may become unrecognizable when they are behind a steering-wheel. They are rude, ill-mannered and aggressive. All their hidden frustrations and disappointments seem to be brought to the surface by the act of driving.
The surprising thing is that society smiles on the motorist and seems to forgive the behaviour. Everything is done for his convenience. Cities and towns are made ugly by huge car parks.
It is high time a world law were created to reduce this senseless waste of human life. With regard to driving, the laws of some countries are not strict and even the strictest are not strict enough. A law which was universally accepted could only have a beneficial effect on the accident rate. Here are a few examples of some things that might be done. The driving test should be made to a fixed standard and far more difficult than it is; all the drivers should be made to take a test every three years or so; the age at which young people are allowed to drive any vehicle should be raised to at least 21 ; all vehicles should be put through strict annual tests for safety. Present drinking and driving laws (where they exist) should be mad much stricter. Driving speed should be limited on all roads. These measures may sound extremely severe. But surely nothing should be considered difficult if it results in reducing the annual toll of human life. After all, the world is for human beings, not motor-cars.
The main idea of this passage is______.

A．traffic accidents are mainly caused by motorists

B．thousands of people in the world are killed each year

C．only stricter traffic laws can prevent accidents

D．the laws of some countries about driving are too strict

Which of the following is right according to the passage?

A．It is right to build huge car parks in cities and towns.

B．all the drivers must be asked to take a test every year.

C．Working by car can save time and money.

D．Society overlooks their rude driving.

Why does the author say" his car becomes the extension of his personality" ?

A．Driving can show his real self.

B．Driving can bring out his good character.

C．Driving can make a man excited and joyful.

D．Driving can make a man quiet and pleasant.

The attitude of the author is______.

A．approving	B．critical
C．sympathetic	D．aggressive

Home stay provides English language students with the opportunity to speak English outside the classroom and the experience of being part of a British home.
What to Expect
The host will provide accommodation and meals. Rooms will be cleaned and bedcovers changed at least once a week. You will be given the house key and the host is there to offer help and advice as well as to take an interest in your physical and mental health.
Accommodation Zones
Home stays are located in London mainly in Zones2,3 and of the transport system. Most hosts do not live in the town centre as much of central London is commercial and not residential(居住的). Zones3 and 4often offer larger accommodation in a less crowned area. It is very convenient to travel in London by Underground.
Meal Plans Available
♢ Continental Breakfast
♢ Breakfast and Dinner
♢ Breakfast, Packed Lunch and Dinner
It’s important to note that few English families still provide a traditional cooked breakfast. Your accommodation includes Continental Breakfast which normally consists of fruit juice, cereal（谷物类食品），bread and tea or coffee. Cheese, fruit and cold meat are not normally
part of a Continental Breakfast in England. Dinners usually consist of meat or fish with vegetables followed by desert, fruit and coffee.
Friends
If you wish to invite a friend over to visit. You must first ask your host’s permission. You have no right to entertain friends in a family home as some families feel it is an invasion of their privacy.
Self-Catering Accommodation in Private Homes
Accommodation on a room-only basis includes shared kitchen and bathroom facilities and often a main living room. This kind of accommodation offers an independent lifestyle and is more suitable for the long-stay student. However, it does not provide the same family atmosphere as an ordinary home stay and may not benefit those who need to practise English at home quite as much.
The passage is probably written for ____________.

A．host willing to receive foreign students

B．foreigners hoping to build British culture

C．travellers planning to visit families in London

D．English learners applying to like in English homes

Which of the following will the host provide?

A．Room cleaning.	B．Medical care.
C．Free transport.	D．Physical training.

What can be inferred from Paragraph3?
Zone 4 is more crowded than Zone 2
B. The business centre of London is in Zone.
C. Hosts dislike travelling to the city centre.
D. Zone 2 is more crowded than Zone 4.
According to the passage. What does continental Breakfast include?

A．Dessert and coffee	B．Fruit and vegetables.
C．bread and fruit juice	D．Centre and cold meat.

Usually, when your teacher asks a question, there is only one correct answer. But there is one question that has millions of current answers. That question is “What’s your name?” Everyone gives a different answer, but everyone is correct.
Have you ever wondered about people’s names? Where do they come from? What do they mean?
People’s first names, or given names, are chosen by their parents. Sometimes the name of a grandparent or other member of the family is used. Some parents choose the name of a well-known person. A boy could be named George Washington Smith; a girl could be named Helen Keller Jones.
Some people give their children names that mean good things. Clara means “bright”; Beatrice means “one who gives happiness”; Donald means “world ruler”; Leonard means “as brave as a lion”.
The earliest last names, or surnames, were taken from place names. A family with the name Brook or Brooks probably lived near brook(小溪)；someone who was called Longstreet probably lived on a long, paved road. The Greenwood family lived in or near a leafy forest.
Other early surnames came from people’s occupations. The most common occupational name is Smith, which means a person who makes things with iron or other metals. In the past, smiths were very important workers in every town and village. Some other occupational names are: Carter — a person who owned or drove a cart; Potter  —a person who made pots and pans.
The ancestors of the Baker family probably baked bread for their neighbors in their native village. The Carpenter’s great-great-great-grandfather probably built houses and furniture.
Sometimes people were known for the color of their hair or skin, or their size, or their special abilities. When there were two men who were named John in the same village, the John with the gray hair probably became John Gray. Or the John was very tall could call himself John Tallman. John Fish was probably an excellent swimmer and John Lightfoot was probably a fast runner or a good dancer.
Some family names were made by adding something to the father’s name. English-speaking people added –s or –son. The Johnsons are descendants of John; the Roberts family’s ancestor was Robert. Irish and Scottish people added Mac or Mc or O. Perhaps all of the MacDonnells and the MacDonnells and the O’Donnells are descendants of the same Donnell.
Which of the following aspects do the surnames in the passage NOT cover?

A．Places where people lived.

B．People’s characters.

C．Talents that people possessed.

D．People’s occupations.

According to the passage, the ancestors of the Potter family most probably _______.

A．owned or drove a cart

B．made things with metals

C．made kitchen tools or contains

D．built houses and furniture

Suppose and English couple whose ancestors lived near a leafy forest wanted their new-born son to become a world leader, the baby might be named _______.

A．Beatrice Smith	B．Leonard Carter
C．George Longstreet	D．Donald Greenwood

The underlined word “descendants” in the last paragraph means a person’s _____

A．later generations	B．friends and relatives
C．colleagues and partners	D．later sponsors

What can help you make a fortune in the future? Graduating from a top university might not be enough. A new study from the University of Essex in Britain has shown that the more friends you have in school, the more money you'll earn later.
The idea that popularity could have a serious impact on one's earning potential shouldn't come as too much of a surprise. The researchers noted that if you want to get ahead in life, social skills and networking are easily as powerful as talent and hard work.
“If a person has lots of friends, it means that he or she has the ability to get along with others in all kinds of different situations," said XuYanchun, 17, from Nantou High School in Shenzhen, who totally agreed with the recent finding. "Also, friends always help each other. They not only create wider social circles for you but lift your mood when you occasionally feel depressed," said Xu. She believed that all this helps you "earn a higher salary”.
Maybe that's why some people think the younger generations are in the age of Friendalholism (交友狂症). A woman even complained that the networking website Face book's 5,000-friend limit was too low for her large reserve of social contacts.
But what does a friend mean? Should friends be regarded as a form of currency?
“Call me uncoil, but I think of a friend as an actual person with whom I have an actual history and whom I enjoy actually seeing. It seems, however, that this is no longer the definition (定义) of ‘friend',” said Meghan Daum, who works with The Los Angeles Times in the US.
The new study from the University of Essex in Britain shows that _________.

A．if you have more friends you will not live happily.

B．the more friends you have in school, the more money you'll earn in your late life.

C．the less friends you have, the poor lives you will live.

D．friends can make more money for you.

According to Xu Yanchun, when you have lots of friends, it means_____

A．You have the ability to earn more money.

B．You will not feel lonely.

C．You are quite content with your life.

D．You have the ability to get along with others in various situations.

What’s the main idea of the passage ?

A．The passage mainly tells us something about the friendship.

B．Friends plays an more important part in our daily life than anything else.

C．Friends are currency.

D．Friends give you success.

We can learn from the passage that _________.

A．If you have more friends, you can make a fortune in the future.

B．Graduating from college means that you can make a fortune in the future.

C．Friends means a form of currency.

D．Friends can make you wider social circle and make you feel better when you feel depressed.

In recent years, temperatures in the polar areas are rising faster than anywhere else on Earth. As a result, the ice and the snow are melting at record-setting rates. One result is that sea levels are rising around the world, putting animals and people at risk.
A sheet of ice acts like a huge mirror, reflecting the sun’s energy. But ocean water, which is darker than ice, absorbs a lot of it. This causes the ocean to warm, which in turn speeds up ice melting and which leads to even more open waters. The cycle continues until all the ice is gone.
“As the ice melts, water flows into the oceans, making them less salty. That, along with warmer water temperatures, can harm the creatures that live in, under, and near the ice,” says zoologist Michael Stoddard. “Cold-adapted animals — including polar bears, foxes, hares, and seals — also need ice for travel and survival.”
“Most species of fish, sea spiders, and many other animals and plants that live in the waters of Antarctica don’t live anywhere else,” Stoddard says. “Many of them have special proteins in their bodies keeping them from freezing to death and have other adaptation to the cold that has yet to be explored.”
Therefore, experts are urging us to reconsider the way we live. The fuels that we burn in cars, power stations, and factories are largely to blame for the carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that are trapping overmuch heat in our atmosphere. If we can produce fewer of these gases, we can help save the polar ice. “Even small things would make a difference, if everyone did them.” Michael Stoddard says, “That’s what we have to figure out in the near future to help save the polar ice and thus protect the oceans and us.”
The passage is mainly written to _____.

A．introduce the present situation of the polar areas

B．warn people against extreme weather

C．call on people to protect the oceans and humans

D．advertise for volunteers to protect the environment

Paragraph 2 mainly tells us about _______.

A．the ice’s functions

B．ocean’s quick growing

C．the cause of sea level rising

D．the ways of more waters

From the passage, we can know that _______.

A．most polar animals prefer to live in less salty water

B．some of the cold-adapted animals mainly feed on ice

C．many polar creatures have special proteins to keep alive

D．scientists still don’t know how polar creatures have adapted to the cold

Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A．Polar bears are expanding at a high speed.

B．Experts advise people not to use fuels at all.

C．Wildlife worldwide is in the process of dying out.

D．Global warm is putting animals and humans at risk.

“Image is everything.” An entire industry has been built upon the concept that image is everything, but an appealing image isn’t enough when there’s no substance behind it.
First of all, one should consider how important image is in selling products and services. Advertising agencies have raised the art of creating an image to a state of near perfection. But if the product or service doesn’t live up to it, customers will be very dissatisfied. The recent scandal (丑闻) about the Arthur Andersen accounting firm showed that behind that image, it had unfair business practices under the table. Despite the previous positive image, the firm is being accused of criminal actions. Although the image had been nearly perfect, the reality behind the image has led to its downfall.
Similarly, personal consultants(顾问) can build up a very positive public image for politicians and movie stars in the view of the general commons. But once again, history is filled with examples of both that fell from grace (体面) like the story of the Hollywood actor giving in to the pressures of fame and fortune. With people, just as with products and services, image is certainly important, but without positive substance behind it, failure is close.
To conclude, it’s clear that an appealing image is extremely important to success, whether that image is related to selling a product or service or to the “selling” of a person. But image is only half of the equation(等式). What lies behind that image is every bit as important as the image itself — the person or product must live up to that image or there’s little chance for long-term success.
The downfall of the Arthur Andersen accounting firm is due to ______.

A．its dishonesty in business

B．its bad management

C．its previous images

D．its poor service

Some famous people fall from grace because _____.

A．their images were not well built up

B．they failed to live up to their images

C．they felt much pressure from the public

D．they paid little attention to fame and fortune

The structure of the passage is probably        .

(A: Argument        P: Point        C: Conclusion)
The author might support that______.

A．image is the basis of everything

B．truth and image are equally important

C．truth goes hand in hand with image

D．image holds the key to success

Dangerous as they are, extreme sports remain appealing among many Australian young people! Camp Xtreme is the perfect test of your heart.
Kite Surfing
It’s the exciting mixture of kite, board and waves. The idea of using a kite to accelerate speed seems like a new challenge, yet the art of kite flying dates back to the 13th-century Chinese when it was used as a simple means of transport.
Catch a wind and you’re moving — up, down and across the surf. “It’s always exciting. You’d jump 5 feet or 35 feet. You never know if you’re going to go up in the air, and your heart is just going boom, boom, boom.”
Coasteering
It is by far the best activity and the event that everyone is still talking about. This is exploring the coastline without worrying about a coastal path or finding a rocky bay blocking your route. You climb, dive and swim from one place to another. With Coasteering, you don’t have to be able to swim as the wet suit and buoyancy(浮力) aid will keep you floating when you are in the water.
Sky Diving
Traditional parachuting(跳伞) doesn’t sound risky enough. So now sky diving is the name for jumping from a plane and listening to your heart beating heavily as you move fast towards earth before you open your parachute at the last moment.
Mountain Biking
It’s been around so long that bikers are no longer satisfied with just going up and down a mountain. Mountain biking is a sport which consists of riding bicycles off-road, often over rough land, using specially adapted mountain bikes. Mountain bikes share similarities with other bikes, but include features designed to improve strength and performance in rough areas.
For details, please call us on 1300-792-668 or click here: www.xtremecamp.com.au.
All the four extreme sports are mainly intended to test one’s _____.

A．heart beat	B．physical health
C．potential strength	D．courage

The underlined word in the second paragraph “it” refers to _____.

A．the kite	B．kite surfing
C．kite flying	D．the art of kites

Which of the following sports can be the most risky?

A．Kite surfing.	B．Coasteering.
C．Sky diving.	D．Mountain biking.

We can infer from the passage that _______.

A．kites were the main means of transport in China

B．swimming skills play a key role in Coasteering

C．parachuting is the least popular sports at present

D．mountain biking requires more than riding common bikes

Amy Chua, a professor of law in Yale, nicknamed as Tiger Mother, has started a debate over Chinese-style parenting. Amy sets “10 Rules” for her two daughters. For instance, they’ve to get As in all subjects and play the piano or violin and practice hours every day.
There has been wide criticism(批评) across the US. “It’s kind of extreme,” said Jeffrey Seinfeld, a professor at New York University. “Children need parents who can guide them, not force them...”
Lawrence Solomon, a famous journalist for Canada’s Globe and Mail, has quoted statistics to show the failure of Chinese parenting. He writes that only 10 Chinese scientists outside the Chinese mainland have won the Nobel Prize in the past century. In contrast, American scientists have won more than 300 Nobel prizes, and Jews(犹太人), who take up only 1% of the world’s population, have got at least 180 (or almost one-fourth) of the prizes.
However, Amy’s strict rules help her daughters shine in their studies. The elder sister is known for her piano presentation at the Carnegie Hall, and the younger boasts an excellent academic record.
Besides, US statistics show that Chinese-Americans take up only 5% of the US population but 20% of the students in Ivy League schools（常春藤学校）.
Likewise, Chinese-Canadians take up more than one-third of the students in Canada’s two most famous universities, Toronto University and the University of British Columbia. Influenced by Confucius’ teachings, students from Korea and Japan are also excelling in academic fields.
Therefore, the Nobel Prize should not be taken as the yardstick of a country’s education. No culture or tradition, whether Eastern or Western, is better or worse. The same applies to Eastern and Western education systems. Both sides should stop using their concepts and criteria to judge the other. They should learn the good aspects of each other’s systems and clear the misunderstandings.
It can be inferred from the passage that _______.

A．there’re about 720 Nobel Prizes in the 20th century

B．Jeffrey Seinfeld agrees children need pushing to succeed

C．Amy Chua’s parenting style is widely accepted across America

D．Western concepts should be adopted to judge all education systems

What does the author think of the Chinese-style parenting?

A．Valuable.	B．Unreliable.
C．Unchangeable.	D．Flexible.

The underlined word “yardstick” in the last paragraph can be replaced by ______.

A．yard	B．footstep
C．standard	D．chopsticks

How does this passage develop?

A．By inferring.	B．By comparing.
C．By reasoning.	D．By explaining.

The iPhone, the iPad, each of Apple’s products sounds cool and has become a fashion. Apple has cleverly taken advantage of the power of the letter “i” — and many other brands are following suit. The BBC’s iPlayer — which allows Web users to watch TV programs on the Internet — adopted the title in 2008. A lovely bear — popular in the US and UK — that plays music and video is called “iTeddy”. A slimmed-down version of London’s Independent newspaper was launched last week under the name “i”.
In general, single-letter prefixes have been popular since the 1990s, when terms such as e-mail and e-commerce first came into use.
Most “i” products are targeted at young people and considering the major readers of Independent’s “i”, it’s no surprise that they’ve selected this fashionable name.
But it’s hard to see what’s so special about the letter “i”. Why not use “a”, “b”, or “c” instead? According to Tony Thorne, head of the Language Center at King’s College, London, “i” works because its meaning has become ambiguous. When Apple uses “i”, no one knows whether it means Internet, information, individual or interactive, Thorne told BBC Magazines. “Even when Apple created the iPod, it seems it didn’t have one clear definition,” he says.
“However, thanks to Apple, the term is now associated with portability (轻便) .”adds Thorne.
Clearly the letter “i” also agrees with the idea that the Western World is centered on the individual. Each person believes they have their own needs, and we love personalized products for this reason.
Along with “Google” and “blog”, readers of BBC Magazines voted “i” as one of the top 20 words that have come to define the last decade.
But as history shows, people grow tired of fads(一时的狂热). From the 1900s to 1990s, products with “2000” in their names became fashionable as the year was associated with all things advanced and modern. However, as we entered the new century, the trend eventually disappeared.
People use iPlayer to ______.

A．listen to music

B．make a call

C．watch TV programs online

D．play computer games

We can infer that the Independent’s “i” is aimed at ______.

A．fashionable women	B．young readers
C．old readers	D．engineers

Nowadays, the “i” term often reminds people of the products which are ______.

A．environmentally friendly	B．advanced
C．recyclable	D．portable

The writer suggests that ______.

A．the popularity of “i” products may not last long

B．“i” products are often of high quality

C．iTeddy is a live bear popular in the US and UK

D．the letter “b” replaces letter “i” to name the products