In our world today, the media and entertainment industries are constantly focusing on beauty over brains. Movies, television shows, commercials, and magazines all make use of models and actors whose physical attributes(特性) will sell their product.

As our country is trying to reduce the obesity numbers, eating disorder statistics continue to increase due to the push for thinner people. While obesity is a serious medical condition that can lead to many health problems, many of us try to lose weight for appearance purposes. Children as young as elementary school age have begun to worry about the numbers that appear on the scale. In my opinion, it seems that “fat” has become the new“ugly”.

Two weeks ago, 37-year-old Wisconsin television reporter Livingston, who is 235 pounds, received an email from a man named Krause. In the email Krause attacked her, writing,“Your physical condition hasn’t improved for many years. Surely you don’t consider yourself a suitable example for this community’s young people, girls in particular.”

Today, it seems that a vast majority of people care more about how they look and appear to their peers rather than what is inside. The truth is that every person is built differently; we all come in different shapes and sizes. Just because someone is heavier, that doesn’t mean they eat large amounts of junk food around the day. Likewise, even though a person is thin, that doesn’t mean they are necessarily healthy and fit.

If you are reading this and you struggle with your weight or your appearance, please recognize that you are beautiful and special in your own way. You are worth so much more than you realize, and even if I don’t know you, understand that I respect and support you. Beauty is not defined by size; it is defined by how we treat others and respect ourselves. In the words of the talented film actress Kirstie Alley, “There’s a lot more to life than how fat or thin you are.”

1.With so many people losing weight, it will end in        .

A. models’ and actors’ appearance in ads

B. the fall of media and entertainment industries

C. more and more people becoming obesity

D. more people’s suffering from eating disorder

2.The underlined phrase “the numbers that appear on the scale” in the second paragraph may mean     .

A. intelligenceB. weightC. patienceD. strength

3.The writer used the example of Jennifer Livingston to show        .

A. people think “fat” looks ugly

B. fat people are becoming cleverer

C. physical condition is good

D. young people never follow example

4.What Kirstie Alley said means         .

A. people should pay attention to the appearance

B. there is no need for any people to go on diet

C. people are beautiful when they concern others

D. there’s always someone who understands and supports you

What is a six-letter word that immediately comes to mind when you need some information on the Internet? You probably thought of Google. But Google wasn’t always the name of the famous search engine. In fact, the original name was BackRub!

BackRub was the name two graduate students gave to the new search engine they developed in 1996. They called it BackRub because the engine used backlinks to measure the popularity of Web sites. Later, they wanted a better name — a name that suggests huge quantities of data. They thought of the word googol. (A googol is a number followed by 100 zeros.) When they checked the Internet registry of names to see if googol was already taken, one of the students misspelled the word by mistake, and that’s how Google was born.

Google is just one example of a name change in the business world. Many other companies have decided to change their names or the names of their products. Here are some more examples:

Jerry Yang and David Filo, two young computer specialists, developed a guide to Internet content in 1994. They called it “Jerry and David’s Guide to World Wide Web.” But they soon realized that this wasn’t a very catchy name, so they searched through a dictionary and found a better one: “Yahoo.”

Sometimes companies change their names because of the popularity of one of their products. In 1962, a young runner named Phil Knight started a company called Blue Ribbon Sports. In 1971, Knight decided to design and manufacture his own brand of shoes. He named the shoes after the Greek goddess of victory — Nike. Nike shoes became so well known that Knight changed the name of the whole company to Nike.

1.According to the text, Google        .

A. has been famous since 1996

B. is a result of a spelling mistake 

C. means a number followed by 100 zeros

D. is the original name of the search engine

2.Jerry and David changed the guide’s name to Yahoo because the original name        .

A. had been registeredB. had been forgotten  

C. was not attractiveD. was too short

3.The company Nike got its name from        .

A. its foundersB. its customers    

C. its popular productsD. its advanced techniques

4.Which of the following can be the best title for the text?

A. The name changesB. The history of Google

C. How to choose a name?D. Why are names important?

假设你是李华，你在读美国中学生Jack的博客时了解到他即将作为一名交换生来北京学习，希望能够寄宿在一名擅长英语的中学生家里，以便更好地了解中国文化。请根据以下要点给Jack写一封电子邮件：

1．欢迎他来中国学习；  

2．介绍你个人情况；   

3．邀请他住在你家并愿意为他提供帮助。

注意：l．词数120—150；2．可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。

阅读下面的短文，并根据短文后的要求答题。（请注意问题后的词数要求）

The Japanese love to give gifts．This habit is not practiced only on special occasions，but it’s widely accepted as social responsibility．Because gift-giving is an important social aspect of Japanese life．It’s important to be aware of some key factors．

Devalue the gifts you give．The important thing is to act and seem modest．You don’t want the receiver to think that you are arrogant or proud．Denigrate（贬低）your gift as much as possible．It doesn’t matter if the label on the box bears the symbol for a famous brand，The Japanese value the appearance of a modest gift-giver who tries to stay from praise．

Praise the gift you receive．Although praising may seem obvious，overpraising the gift is the key．It’s also important to praise the fine taste of the gift-giver in making that particular choice for you．And don’t forget to give a thousand and one thanks．

__________________, unless you are urged to do so．And when you do，you must take the utmost care in unwrapping it．Don’t look eager，and be careful that you don’t tear the paper or cut the ribbon．After observing，praising，and thanking，be sure to rewrap the gift as if it had never been opened．Try to appear as if you take great pride in the value of it the gift．

Choose gifts with practical value．In general，don’t buy things such as ornaments，vases，and kitchenware，it’s already assumed that everyone has these things．To do so may suggest that you don’t approve of the other person’s taste．Also，most Japanese houses are very small and don’t have extra space for useless junk．

1.What is the best title for the passage?（no more than l0 words）．

2.Fill in the blank in the fourth paragraph with proper words．（no more than 6 words）

3.List three kinds of things you’d better not buy for a Japanese friend．

①           _____    ②             _____   ③              

4.Translate the underlined sentence in the first paragraph into Chinese．

5.What do the Japanese usually do when they receive a gift? （no more than l0 words）

Phil White has just returned from an 18,000-mile, around-the-world bicycle trip．White had two reasons for making this epic journey．First of all, he wanted to use the trip to raise money for charity, which he did．He raised ￡70,000 for the British charity, Oxfam．White's second reason for making the trip was to break the world record and become the fastest person to cycle around the world．He is still waiting to find out if he has broken the record or not.

White set off from Trafalgar Square, in London, on 19th June 2004 and was back 299 days later．He spent more than l,300 hours in the saddle（车座） and destroyed four sets of tyres and three bike chains．He had the adventure of his life crossing Europe, the Middle East, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and the Americas．Amazingly, he did all of this with absolutely no support team．No jeep carrying food, water and medicine．No doctor．Nothing! Just a bike and a very, very long road.

The journey was lonely and desperate at times．He also had to fight his way across deserts, through jungles and over mountains．He cycled through heavy rains and temperatures of up to 45 degrees, all to help people in need．There were other dangers along the road．In Iran, he was chased by armed robbers and was lucky to escape with his life and the little money he had．The worst thing that happened to him was having to cycle into a headwind on a road that crosses the south of Australia．For l,000 kilometres he battled against the wind that was constantly pushing him．This part of the trip was slow, hard work and depressing, but he made it in the end．Now Mr．White is back and intends to write a book about his adventures.

1.When Phil White returned from his trip, he __________.

A．broke the world recordB．collected money for Oxfam

C．destroyed several bikes D．travelled about l,300 hours

2.What does the underlined word "epic" in Paragraph l most probably mean?

A．Very slow but exciting．B．Very long and difficult.

C．Very smooth but tiring．D．Very lonely and depressing.

3.During his journey around the world, Phil White __________.

A．fought heroically against robbers in Iran

B．experienced the extremes of heat and cold

C．managed to ride against the wind in Australia

D．had a team of people who travelled with him

4.Which of the following words can best describe Phil White?

A．Imaginative．   B．Patriotic． 

C．Modest．      D．Determined.

5.What actually inspired Phil White to overcome all the difficulties?

A．To help people in need.B．To test his new bicycle.

C．To prove his potential.D．To show off his ability.

The world is filled with smart，talented and gifted people．We meet them every day．A few days ago，my car was not running well．I pulled it into a garage，and the young mechanic had it fixed in just a few minutes．He knew what was wrong by simply listening to the engine．I was amazed．The sad truth is，great talent is not enough．

I am constantly shocked at how little talented people earn．I heard the other day that less than 5 percent of Americans earn more than $100，000 a year．A business consultant who specializes in the medical trade was telling me how many doctors and dentists struggle financially．It was this business consultant who gave me the phrase，“They are one skill away from great wealth．”

There is an old saying that goes，“Job means ‘just over broke（破产）’”．And unfortunately，I would say that the saying applies to millions of people．Because school does not think financial intelligence is intelligence，most workers“ live within their means”．They work and they pay the bills．Instead I recommend young people to seek work for what they will learn，more than what they will earn．

When I ask the classes I teach，“How many of you can cook a better hamburger than McDonald’s?” almost all the students raise their hands．I then ask，“So if most of you can cook a better hamburger，how come McDonald’s makes more money than you?” The answer is obvious: McDonald’s is excellent at business systems．The reason why so many talented people are poor is that they focus on building a better hamburger and know little or nothing about business systems．The world is filled with talented poor people ．They focus on perfecting their skills at building a better hamburger rather than the skills of selling and delivering the hamburger．

1.The author mentions the mechanic in the first paragraph that    ．

A．he is just one of the talented people

B．he is ready to help others

C．he has a sharp sense of hearing

D．he knows little about car repairing

2.The underlined part in the third paragraph can be best replaced by    ．

A．spend more than they can afford       

B．do in their own way

C．live in their own circle              

D．live within what they earn

3.Why do talented people earn so 1ittle according to the author?

A．They don’t work hard enough   

B．They lack financial intelligence

C．They don’t make full use of their talents

D．They have no specialized skills．

4.The success of McDonald's lies in its          ．

A．skills at making hamburgersB．good business systems

C．talented workers  D．excellent service

5.The main purpose of the author is to tell us          ．

A．how young people can find a satisfactory job

B．what schools should teach students

C．why so many talented people are poor 

D．how McDonald’s makes much money

“Confidence” is probably one of the most noticeable traits（品质）in the Americans．They show confidence in the way they talk，the way they smile，the way they dress and the way they walk．Living and competing with all these confidence American students，I find it extremely important to be confident as an international student and instructor．As a student，being confident means you should never hesitate to raise your hand whenever a question or a point comes to your mind．Don’t mind if it sounds simple or silly．Otherwise you will never get a chance to speak in class at all．What’s worse，the professors may think you are not prepared for the discussion or you do not have your own opinion on the issue—this is the last comment any graduate would like to receive．

Being confidence for me as a foreign instructor means calmly asking the student to repeat what he or she has said if I did not get it．Pretending to understand what you actually did not may just bring yourself embarrassment or even disgrace．But the time I most need to be confident is when my students come to my office and bargain about the grades I have given for their Speeches．（The course I’m teaching here is Public Speaking）．Modesty is a trait highly valued in China，but it won’t be of much help here if you want to survive and succeed in a good American graduate program．

1.To compete with American students it’s very important to    ．

A．be quite confident

B．be polite and friendly

C．have more discussions with them

D．understand what they think about

2.A professor will have the worst opinion of a student who           ．

A．gives a silly or simple answer

B．tries to seize any chance to speak in class

C．shows no interest in the course

D．is considered to have no opinion of his own

3.The author is most likely to feel embarrassed if          ．

A．he asks a student to repeat what he has said

B．the students bargain with him

C．he pretends to know what he doesn’t

D．he has to give a speech

4.We learn from the second paragraph that      ．

A．we should also remain modest in America

B．modesty doesn’t help you much in America

C．Americans also like modest people

D．modesty can help you through an American graduate program

5.The passage is mainly developed by       ．

A．providing examples            

B．making comparisons

C．giving different figures         

D．telling personal experiences

A cancer-stricken British teenage girl said Thursday she had been moved by messages of support from around the world after writing an online “Bucket List” of things she wanted to do before dying．

Alice Pyne，l5，created an Internet blog in which she described her fight against a cancer of the white blood cells．“I’ve been fighting cancer for almost four years and now I know that the cancer is gaining on me and it doesn’t look like I’m going to win this one，” she wrote ．

For her list，the teenager took inspiration from the 2007 film “The Bucket List” in which two men who were badly ill，draw up a list of things they wish to do before they die．

On her list，at the site www．alicepyne．blogspot．com，she has included making everyone sign up to be a bone marrow donor（骨髓捐赠者），swimming with sharks ，meeting boy band Take That and getting a purple iPad computer．

Messages of support and offers of help quickly flooded her webpage and it became one of the most talked about subjects on Twitter．

“Oh, dear and I thought that I was just doing a little blog for a few friends!” she wrote after her site attracted huge attention．“Thank you so much for all your lovely messages to me．”

Pyne，who lives with her family in the northwest English town of Ulverston，revealed（透露）the management of Take That had arranged for her to see the band after reading her blog．A group of local lawmakers have also joined forces with the Anthony blood cancer charity to encourage people to join its stem cell register．

1.What happened after Alice Pyne wrote her “Bucket List”?

A．People around the world sent messages to support her．

B．People sent gifts to her from all over the world．

C．A lot of people offered to donate bone marrow to her．

D．The media called on people to help her．

2.Alice Pyne wrote her “Bucket List” to      ．

A．catch people’s  attention             

B．say goodbye to a few friends

C．give comfort to two terminally ill men   

D．express her last few wishes

3.It can be inferred from the second paragraph that Alice Pyne    ．

A．is unaware of her own conditions

B．is very sad to know that she will die 

C．is calm to know that death is approaching

D．is still quite confident in fighting against cancer

4.Which of the following is NOT on Alice Pyne’s “Bucket List”?

A．To ask people to donate bone marrow．B．To get a cool computer．

C．To swim with shark．D．To meet a boy． 

5.Take That will arrange to        ．

A．meet Pyne in person         

B．help Pyne in any possible way

C．donate money to Pyne         

D．invite Pyne to join the band

In a cab, a woman seemed in such a hurry．She constantly rushed the cab driver to drive quickly．She was so absorbed in her own thoughts of getting to the airport as soon as possible that she was not aware they were going by a different route.

All of a sudden, a young man got inside the cab．He took her handbag in which she had put her visa, passport, and all the money for the trip.

The cab driver, who was in collusion with the robber, left her in the exactly middle of a dark street．She thought that she was rather unfortunate in the very situation.

During the very night, she was told a piece of shocking news．Tears came down her cheek．Flight 360, the plane that she should have got on board, had crashed．Had she not lost her important belongings, she could surely have lost the thing far more precious——her life.

Sometimes bad things really happen．There are times when nothing seems to go our way．So what should we do about it? We must get rid of all these frustrations and start all over again in the faith that we will get what we deserve．

Don’t waste your time and energy on things that can’t be changed．Continuous worrying will only affect your health and you’ll be doing much more damage than what was previously done.

What if it was the other way round? What if we never ran out of good luck?

There was a man who won the lottery．He became greedy and wasted all his money on everything he could get his hands on.

But when he one day made it to the front page of the newspaper again, it was a different story．He had been killed because of his riches．If you attain good luck, you can never be too secure about it．Life is so unpredictable．You never know what will happen next.

Live one day at a time．We sometimes subject ourselves to unnecessary emotional trouble．But please don’t forget: sometimes misfortune can be the source of happiness．Live for the moment．Do what must be done for the present and the future will turn out just fine．Believe me．And believe in yourself．As Captain Planet always says, “The power is yours！”

1.The underlined phrase “in collusion with” in Paragraph 3 probably means “________.”

A．was forced by               B．was fighting bravely against 

C．was doing one’s best to beg        D．had cooperated with

2.From the passage, we learn that ________.

A．robbers are sure to get what they want

B．somebody never runs out of good luck

C．the woman was lucky to miss her flight

D．if one feels oneself lucky, he or she will continue to be so

3.The writer presents the second example in order to ________.

A．warn people of the danger of winning the lottery

B．tell people life is unpredictable

C．encourage people to buy lottery

D．persuade people not to be greedy

4.According to the author, which of the following choices is the correct attitude to adopt to life?

A．Never waste any time or energy because time is so limited.

B．One needn’t be worried or feel frustrated．Believe in yourself.

C．Even while everything appears to be going smoothly, we should keep fully alert.

D．Worrying about what you don’t have

5.The passage above is intended to tell us ________.

A．misfortune sometimes is a blessing

B．we should save up for a rainy day

C．fortune just goes with those prepared minds

D．both losses and gains go hand in hand

Years ago，there was a very wealthy man who，with his devoted young son，shared a passion for art collecting ．Together，they traveled around the world，adding only       art treasures to their collection．

One year，as winter approached，    engulfed（吞没） the nation，and the young man left to     in the army．After only a few short weeks，his father received a telegram．His beloved son was     in action．The art collector    awaited more news，     he would never see his son again．Within days，his fears were     ．The young man had died while rushing a fellow soldier to a doctor．

Upset and      ，the old man faced the coming Christmas holidays with sadness．On Christmas morning，a knock on the door awakened the      old man．As he opened the door，he was greeted by a       with a large package in his hands．

He introduced himself to the old man by saying，“I was a     of your son .I was the one he was     when he died．May I come in for a few moments? I have something to show you．”

As the two began to    ，the soldier told of how the man’s son had told everyone of his，not to mention his father’s，     of fine art．“I am no    ，”said the soldier，“but I want to give you this．”

As the old man unwrapped the package ，he saw a portrait （画像）of his son．Though the world would       consider it the work of a genius，the painting featured the young man’s face      detail．

Overcome with emotion，the man      the soldier．After the soldier had left，the old man put the painting above the fireplace，pushing     thousands of dollars worth of art．His task completed，the old man sat in his chair and spent Christmas gazing at the       he had been given．

1.A．poorest      B．richest       C．finest       D．cheapest

2.A．flood       B．fire         C．storm       D．war

3.A．save        B．protect       C．serve        D．build

4.A．missing     B．acting       C．fighting      D．dying

5.A．calmly      B．anxiously     C．quietly       D．secretly

6.A．fearing      B．doubting     C．wondering    D．expecting

7.A．completed    B．doubled      C．removed      D．confirmed

8.A．nervous     B．tired           C．lonely        D．frightened

9.A．sad             B．puzzled        C．angry         D．worried

10.A．farmer     B．soldier         C．painter        D．seller

11.A．guard      B．photographer    C．partner        D．friend

12.A．rescuing     B．commanding   C．guarding      D．hiding

13.A．argue       B．move        C．talk           D．eat

14.A．description       B．love          C．sense         D．understanding

15.A．artist        B．businessman   C．hero          D．reporter

16.A．sometimes        B．never         C．often          D．still

17.A．for              B．of            C．in             D．on

18.A．thanked           B．questioned     C．welcomed      D．treated

19.A．down        B．up            C．aside          D．off

20.A．treasure          B．gift           C．souvenir       D．package