The Internet has led to a huge increase in credit-card(信用卡) fraud. Your card information can even be on sale on an illegal website. Websites offering cheap goods and services should be regarded with care. Online shoppers who enter their credit-card information may never receive the goods they thought they had bought.
The thieves then go shopping with your card number—or sell the information over the Internet. Computer hackers(黑客)have broken down security system, raising questions about the safety of card holder information.
Several months ago, 25,000 customers of a CD universe, an online music retailer(批发商), were not lucky. Their names, addresses and credit-card numbers were posted on a Website after the retailer refused to pay $ 157,828 to get back the information.
Credit-card firms are now fighting against online fraud. Master-card is working on plans for web-only credit-cards, with a lower credit limit. The card can be used only for shopping online. However , there are a few simple steps you can take to keep from being cheated.
Ask about your credit-card firm’s online rules: under British law, cardholders are responsible for the first $ 78 of any fraudulent spending. And shop only at secure sites: send your credit-card information only if the website offers advanced security system.
If the security is in place, a letter will appear in the bottom right-hand corner of your screen. The website address may also start with https://--the extra “s” stands for security. If in doubt, give your credit-card information over the telephone.
Keep your password safe: most online sites require a user name and password before placing an order. Treat your password with care.
1.The underlined word “fraud” in the first paragraph probably means ______.
A. cheating B. sale C. payment D. use
2.According to this passage most people worry about shopping on the Internet because ______.
A. a great number of stolen credit-cards are sold on the Internet every day
B. fraud on the Internet happens very often
C. many Websites break down every day
D. there are too many illegal Websites on the Internet
3.Thieves usually get the information of the credit-card ______.
A. because many customers lost their cards
B. by paying money for people working in the information companies
C. because of the carelessness of the customers
D. by stealing the information from Websites
4.If the passwords of your credit-cards are not properly kept, _____.
A. the bank and the shop will suffer great losses
B. you will not be able to get back your information
C. you might suffer great losses
D. the bank will answer for your loss
5.What’s the best title of the passage?
A. How to Beat Online Credit-card Thieves
B. How to Shop on the Internet
C. Never Use Credit-card Without an Advanced Computer
D. Why Thieves Steal Credit-card Information
I had an experience some years ago, which taught me something about the ways in which people make a bad situation worse by blaming themselves. One January, I had to hold two funerals on successive days for two elderly women in my community. Both had died “ full of years”, as the Bible would say. Their homes happened to be near each other, so I paid condolence(吊唁) calls on the two families on the same afternoon.
At the first home, the son of the deceased(已故的)woman said to me, “ If only I had sent my mother to Florida and gotten her out of this cold and snow, she would be alive today. It’s my fault that she died.” At the second home, the son of the other deceased woman said, “ If only I hadn’t insisted on my mother’s going to Florida, she would be alive today.That long airplane ride, the sudden change of climate, was more than she could take. It’s my fault that she’s dead.”
You see that any time there is a death, the survivors will feel guilty. Because the course of action they took turned out bad, they believe that the opposite course—keeping Mother at home, putting off the operation—would have turned out better. After all, how could it have turned out any worse?
There seem to be two elements involved in our willingness to feel guilty. The first is our pressing need to believe that the world makes sense, that there is a cause for every effect and a reason for everything that happens that leads us to find patterns and connections both where they really exist and where they exist only in our minds.
The second element is the view that we are the cause of what happens , especially the bad things that happen. It seems to be a short step from believing that every event has a cause to believe that every disaster is our fault. The roots of this feeling may lie in our childhood.
A baby comes to think that the world exists to meet his needs, and that he makes everything happen in it. He wakes up in the morning and summons the rest of the world to its tasks. He cries, and someone comes to attend to him. When he is hungry, people feed him , and when he is wet, people change him. Very often, we do not completely outgrow that childish view that our wishes cause things to happen.
1.What is said about the two deceased elderly women?
A. They lived out a natural life.
B. They died of exhaustion after the long plane ride.
C. They weren’t used to the change in weather.
D. They died due to lack of care by family members.
2.The author had to conduct the two women’s funerals probably because ______.
A. he wanted to comfort the two families
B. he was an official from the community
C. he had great pity for the deceased
D. he was minister of the local church
3.People feel guilty for the deaths of their loved ones because _____.
A. they couldn’t find a better way to express their sorrow
B. they believe that they were responsible
C. they had neglected the natural course of events
D. they didn’t know things often turn in the opposite direction
4.According to the passage, the underlined part in paragraph 4 probably means that_____.
A. everything in the world is predetermined
B. the world can be explained in different ways
C. there is an explanation for everything in the world
D. we have to be sensible in order to understand the world
5.What’s the idea of the passage?
A. Life and death is an unsolved mystery.
B. Every story should have a happy ending.
C. Never feel guilty all the time because not every disaster is our fault.
D. In general, the survivors will feel guilty about the people who passed away.
Riding was the favourite activity of Thomas Jefferson, who was the third President of the United States. He usually rode good horses.
One day, he was riding outside Washington, when a jockey (赛马师) came near. He did not know the President, but his professional eye was attracted by Mr. Jefferson’s horse. He stopped and said that he wanted to buy the horse, but Mr. Jefferson politely refused his offer.
The jockey offered more money for the horse, because the closer he looked at the horse, the more he liked it. All of his offers were refused, which made him angry. He then became rude, but his rudeness left as little an impression as his money, for Jefferson had a very good temper. At last, he hit Mr. Jefferson’s horse with his whip, getting it to run suddenly. This would have thrown a less skillful rider to the ground, but Jefferson stayed on his seat, and controlled his horse well.
The jockey then gave up. He rode with Mr. Jefferson side by side and began to talk with him about politics. Jefferson joined in the conversation. When they got into the city and came close to the gate of the presidential mansion (总统府), Mr. Jefferson stopped, and politely invited the man to enter.
The jockey was surprised and asked, “Why? Do you live here?”
“Yes” was the simple reply.
“Why, stranger, what’s your name?”
“My name is Thomas Jefferson.”
Embarrassed, the man quickly left, while the President looked at him with a smile and then rode through the gate.
1.Which is the best title for the passage?
A. Jefferson and the Jockey B. Jefferson’s Interest
C. Be Polite to Everyone D. No Pain, No Gain
2.Which word can best describe the jockey?
A. Professional. B. Skillful. C. Impatient. D. Impolite.
3.The underlined word “embarrassed” can be replaced by “__________”.
A. worried B. pleased C. hurried D. ashamed
4.We can infer from the passage that __________.
A. the jockey had once bought a horse from another stranger
B. Mr. Jefferson was very good at riding a horse
C. Mr. Jefferson would invite the jockey to his own house later
D. the jockey would not talk about this experience to others
5.According to the passage, which of the following statement is true?
A. The President of the US is fond of riding.
B. The jockey managed to buy the horse from Mr. Jefferson.
C. Mr. Jefferson, the third President of the United States, was a man of good manners.
D. All the presidents of the US have expensive horses.
Directions: For each blank in the following passages there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.
I teach biology at UNLV three times per week. Last Monday, at the beginning of class, I cheerfully asked my 1how their weekend had been. One young man said that his weekend had not been so 2. He had his wisdom teeth removed. Then he went on to ask me why I always seemed to be so 3.
His question 4me of something I’d read somewhere before: “Every morning when you get up, you have a 5about how you want to deal with life that day,” I said. “I choose to be cheerful.”
“Let me give you an example,”I continued, 6all sixty students in the class. “In 7to teaching here at UNLV, I also teach out at a 8in Henderson, 17 miles down the highway from where I live. One day a few weeks ago I drove those 17 miles to Henderson. I 9the highway and turned onto College Drive. I only had to drive another quarter mile down the road to the college. But just then my car 10. I tried to start it again, but the 11wouldn’t work. 12I turned my flashers on, took my books, and 13down the road to the college.”
“As soon as I got there, I called and 14for a tow truck to meet me at my car after 15. The secretary there asked me what had happened. ‘This is my 16day.’ ” I replied, smiling.
She was 17. “What do you mean?”
“My car could have broken down anywhere along the highway. It didn’t.” I replied. “18, it broke down in the perfect place: off the highway,19walking distance of here.
I’m still able to teach my class, and I’ve been able to arrange for the tow truck to meet me after class. If my car was meant to break down today, it couldn’t have been arranged in a more convenient 20.”
I ended my story. In spite of the early hour, no one in my class seemed to be asleep. Somehow, my story had touched them.
1.A.schoolmates B. children C. teachers D.students
2.A. had B. good C. sad D.free
3.A. cheerful B. grateful C. hopeful D. thankful
4.A. informed B.told C. reminded D. warned
5.A. decision B. choice C. preference D. judgment
6.A. showing B. demanding C. addressing D. commanding
7.A. contribution B. devotion C. application D. addition
8.A. school B. college C. university D. institute
9.A. exited B. found C. crossed D. entered
10.A. broke B. died C. ended D. finished
11.A. instrument B. wheel C. light D. engine
12.A. But B. And C. So D. Or
13.A. marched B. drove C. rode D. followed
14.A. prepared B. looked C. waited D. arranged
15.A. class B. work C. study D. lunch
16.A. usual B. unusual C. unlucky D. lucky
17.A. astonished B. excited C. puzzled D. pleased
18.A. Anyway B. Instead C. Also D. Still
19.A. within B. beyond C. without D. along
20.A. order B. need C. way D. situation
People try to avoid public transportation delays by using their own cars, and this ____ creates further problems.
A. in turn B. on contrary C. in return D. by turns
It is the test system, _____ the teachers, that is to blame for the heavy burden of middle school students nowadays.
A. other than B. or rather C. rather than D. more than
