If your boss asks you to work in Moscow this year, he’d better offer you more money to do so — or even double that depending on where you live now．That’s because Moscow has just been found to be the world’s most expensive city for the second year in a row by Mercer Human Resources Consulting．
Using the cost of living in New York as a base, Mercer determined Moscow is 34．4 percent more expensive including the cost of housing, transportation, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment．
A two-bedroom flat in Moscow now costs $4,000 a month; a CD $24．83, and an international newspaper $6．30, according to Mercer．By comparison, a fast food meal with a hamburger （汉堡包） is a steal at $4．80．
London takes the No．2 place, up from No．5 a year ago, thanks to higher cost of housing and a stronger British pound relative to the dollar．Mercer estimates （估算） London is 26 percent more expensive than New York these days．Following London closely are Seoul and Tokyo, both of which are 22 percent more expensive than New York, while No．5 Hong Kong is 19 percent more costly．
Among North American cities, New York and Los Angeles are the most expensive and are the only two listed in the top 50 of the world’s most expensive cities．But both have fallen since last year’s study — New York came in 15th, down from 10th place, while Los Angeles fell to 42nd from 29th place a year ago．San Francisco came in a distant third at No．54, down 20 places from a year earlier．
Toronto, meanwhile, is Canada’s most expensive city but fell 35 places to take 82nd place worldwide．In Australia, Sydney is the priciest place to live in and No．21 worldwide．
1.What do the underlined words “a steal” in Paragraph 3 mean?
A．an act of stealing B．something delicious
C．something very cheap D．an act of buying
2.London has become the second most expensive city because of ______．
A．the high cost of clothing
B．the stronger pound against the dollar
C．its expensive transportation
D．the high prices of fast food meals
3.Which city is the third most expensive on the list?
A．Tokyo． B．Hong Kong． C．Moscow． D．Sydney．
4.Which city has dropped most on the list in North America?
A．New York． B．Los Angeles． C．San Francisco． D．Toronto．
Vending machines （投币式自动售货机） are found in 16% of U．S．elementary schools, 52% of middle schools and 88% of high schools．About 22% of students in grades 1 through 12 buy food in vending machines each day—and those purchases added an average of 253 calories to their diets, according to a new study in the September issue of the Journal of School Health．
Just to be clear, those were not 253 calories' worth of tofu, yogurt or carrot．The most popular vending machine items included soft drinks, candy, chips, crackers, cookies, cakes and ice cream．On the plus side （好的方面）, kids also bought low-fat milk, fruit juice and even fruit, the study found．
But the eventual effect on kids' diets was not good．Those who bought from vending machines ate an average of 156 grams of sugar per day, compared with 146 grams for those who abstained （节制）．They also consumed less fiber, iron and vitamin B．
One silver lining: Vending machine customers ate 4% less sodium （钠） than other students--an average of 3,287 milligrams per day compared with 3,436 mg for those who didn't buy from vending machines．That's probably because the extra snacks made kids too full to eat as much at mealtimes, when dishes are especially Salty．In any event, kids should eat no more than 1,200 to 1,500 mg of sodium each day, according to the Mayo Clinic．Even for adults, the government recommends a daily limit of 2,300 mg．
Overall, vending machines in school appear to be a threat to children's health．The researchers calculated that all that snacking adds up to about14 extra pounds per child per school year．For some students this might be a serious contributor to weight issues．The study was based on data collected from 2,309 children nationwide for the third School Nutrition Dietary Assessment Study, which was
conducted by the U．S．Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service．
1.The students using vending machines take in less of all the following EXCEPT ．
A．sugar B．fiber C．vitamin D．iron
2.The underlined words “One silver lining” mean “ ”．
A．a discouraging condition at present
B．a bright side of a difficult situation
C．an urgent warning from health experts
D．an increasing concern from the public
3.Why do kids buying food from vending machines take less salt probably?
A．They prefer less salty food．
B．They have formed healthy eating habits．
C．They eat less food at mealtimes．
D．They take less junk food as snacks．
4.What's the purpose of the text?
A．To teach children a balanced diet．
B．To introduce the finding of a new study．
C．To remind parents of children's health．
D．To tell the history of vending machines．
A simple piece of clothesline hangs between some environmentally friendly Americans and their neighbors．
On one side stand those who see clothes dryers （干衣机） as a waste of energy and a major polluter of the environment．As a result, they are turning to clotheslines as part of the “what-I-can-do environmentalism．”
On the other side are people who are against drying clothes outside, arguing that clotheslines are unpleasant to look at．They have persuaded Homeowners Associations （HOAs） access the U．S．to ban outdoor clotheslines, because clothesline drying also tends to lower home value in the neighborhood．
This has led to a Right-to-Dry Movement that is calling for laws to be passed to protect people’s right to use clotheslines．So far, only three states have laws to protect clothesline．Right-to-Dry supporters argue that there should be more．
Matt Reck, 37, is the kind of eco-conscious（有生态意识的）person who feeds his trees with bathwater and reuses water drops from his air conditioners to water plants．His family also uses a clothesline．But on July 9, 2007, the HOA in Wake Forest, North Carolina, told him that a dissatisfied neighbor had telephoned them about his clothesline．The Recks paid no attention to the warning and still dried their clothes on a line in the yard．“Many people say they are environmentally friendly but they don’t take matters into their own hands,” says Reck．The local HOA has decided not to take any action, unless more neighbors come to them．
North Carolina lawmakers are saying that banning clotheslines is not the right thing to do．But HOAs and housing businesses believe that clothesline drying reminds people of poor neighborhoods．They worry that if buyers think their future neighbors can’t even afford dryers, housing prices will fall．
Environmentalists say such worries are not necessary, and in view of global warming, that idea needs to change．As they say, “The clothesline is beautiful．Hanging clothes outside should be encouraged．We all have to do at least something to slow down the process of global warming．”
1.One of the reasons why supporters of clothes dryers are trying to ban clothesline drying is that ______．
A．clothes dryers are more efficient
B．clothesline drying reduces home value
C．clothes dryers are energy-saving
D．clothesline drying is not allowed in most U．S．states
2.Who are in favor of clothesline drying?
A．Housing businesses.
B．Environmentalists．
C．Homeowners Associations．
D．Reck’s dissatisfied neighbors．
3.What is mainly discussed in the text?
A．Clothesline drying: a way to save energy and money．
B．Clothesline drying: a lost art rediscovered．
C．Opposite opinions on clothesline drying．
D．Different varieties of clotheslines．
Waiting for the airplane to take off, I was happy to have a seat by myself．Just then, an air hostess approached me and asked, “Would you mind 26 your seat? A couple would like to sit together．” The only 27 seat was next to a girl with her arms in casts（石膏），a black-and-blue face, and a sad expression．“ 28 am I going to sit there,” I thought immediately．But a soft voice spoke, “She needs help．” Finally, I 29 to move to that seat．
The girl was named Kathy．She 30 in a car accident and now was on her way for 31 When the snack and juice arrived, it did not take me long to 32 that Kathy would not be able to 33 herself．I considered 34 to feed her but hesitated, as it seemed too 35 to offer a service to a 36 ．But then I realized that Kathy’s need was more 37 than any of my discomfort．I offered to help her eat, and 38 she was uncomfortable to accept, she 39 as I expected．We became closer and closer in a short period of time．By the end of the five-hour trip, my heart 40 , and the 41 was really better spent than if I had just sat by myself．
I was glad I had reached 42 my comfort zone to sit next to Kathy and feed her．Love 43 flows beyond human borders and remove the fears that keep us 44 ．When we 45 to serve another, we grow to live in a larger and more rewarding world．
1.A．losing B．changing C．taking D．giving
2.A．comfortable B．suitable C．available D．favorable
3.A．No problem B．No way C．Nowhere D．No doubt
4.A．decided B．wanted C．regretted D．promised
5.A．was B．would be C．used to be D．had been
6.A．treatment B．travel C．pleasure D．business
7.A．know B．say C．realize D．recognize
8.A．eat B．feed C．choose D．support
9.A．offering B．needing C．stopping D．trying
10.A．impolite B．far C．close D．fast
11.A．girl B．neighbor C．passenger D．stranger
12.A．unusual B．direct C．important D．shameful
13.A．when B．although C．since D．as
14.A．refused B．wondered C．cried D．did
15.A．had warmed B．had jumped C．had broken D．had cheered
16.A．life B．money C．time D．energy
17.A．below B．through C．across D．beyond
18.A．seldom B．never C．hardly D．sometimes
19.A．separate B．independent C．silent D．upset
20.A．happen B．stretch C．wait D．continue
I don't like to travel to big cities because it seems to me that one city is very much like___ ．
A．one B．another C．the other D．others
----It shouldn’t take long to clear up after the party if we all volunteer to help．
-----That’s right．______________．
A．Many hands make light work．
B．Something is better than nothing．
C．The more, the merrier．
D．The sooner begun, the sooner done．
