Twenty-first century humanity has mapped oceans and mountains, visited the moon, and surveyed the planets. But for all the progress, people still don’t know one another very well.
That brings about Theodore Zeldin’s “feast of conversation”-events where individuals pair with persons they don’t know for three hours of guided talk designed to forget the past “Where are you from?”
Mr. Zeldin, an Oxford University professor, heads Oxford Muse, a 10-year-old foundation based on the idea that what people need is not more information, but more inspiration and encouragement.
The “feast” in London looks not at politics or events, but at how people have felt about work, relations among the sexes, hopes and fears, enemies and authority, the shape of their lives. The “menu of conversation” includes topics like “How have your priorities changed over the years?” Or, “What have you rebelled against the past?”
As participants gathered, Zeldin opened with a speech: that despite instant communications in a globalized age, issues of human heart remain. Many people are lonely, or in routines that discourage knowing the depth of one another. “We are trapped in shallow conversations and the whole point now is to think, which is sometimes painful,” he says. “But thinking interaction is what separates us from other species, except maybe dogs…who do have generations of human interactions.”
The main rules of the “feast”: Don’t pair with someone you know or ask questions you would not answer. The only awkward moment came when the multi-racial crowd of young adults to seniors, in sun hats, ties and dresses, looked to see whom with for hours. But 15 minutes later, everyone was seated and talking, continuing full force until organizers interrupted them 180 minutes later.
“It’s encouraging to see the world is not just a place of oppression and distance from each other,” Zeldin summed up. “What we did is not ordinary, but it can’t be madder than the world already is.”
Some said they felt “liberated” to talk on sensitive topics. Thirty-something Peter, from East London, said that “it might take weeks or months to get to the level of interaction we suddenly opened up.”
1.What can the “conversations” be best described as?
A. Deep and one-on-one. B. Sensitive and mad.
C. Instant and inspiring. D. Ordinary and encouraging.
2.In a “feast of conversations”, participants ______.
A. pair freely with anyone they like
B. have a guided talk for a set of period of time
C. ask questions they themselves would not answer
D. wear clothes reflecting multi-racial features.
3.From the passage, we can conclude that what Zeldin does is ______.
A. an attempt to promote thinking interaction
B. one of the maddest activities ever conducted
C. a try to liberate people from old-fashioned ideas
D. an effort to give people a chance of talking freely
They like using the Internet. They have lots of pocket money to spend. And they spend a higher proportion of it online than the rest of us. Teenagers are just the sort of people an online seller is interested in, and the things they want to buy-games, CDs and clothing-are easily sold on the Web.
But paying online is a troublesome business for consumers who are too young to own credit cards. Most have to use a parent’s card. They want a facility that allows them to spend money.
That may come sooner than they think: new ways to take pocket money into cyber (网络的) space are coming out rapidly on both sides of the Atlantic. If successful, these products can stimulate online sales.
In general, teenagers spend huge amounts: $153bn (billion) in the US last year and £20bn annually in the UK. Most teenagers have access to the Internet at home or at school-88 percent in the US, 69 percent in the UK. According to the Jupiter Research, one in eight of those with Internet access has bought something online-mainly CDs and books.
In most cases, parents pay for these purchases with credit cards, an arrangement that is often unsatisfactory for them and their children. Pressing parents to spend online is less productive than pressing them to spend on the high street. They are more likely to ask “Why?” if you ask to spend some money online.
One way to help teenagers change notes and coins into cybercash is through prepaid cards such as InternetCash in the US and Smart cards in the UK. Similar to those for pay-as-you-go mobile telephones, they are sold in amounts such as£20 or $50 with a concealed 14-digit number that can be used to load the cash into an online account.
1.What does the word “They” in paragraph 1 refer to?
A. Sellers. B. Buyers. C. Teenagers. D. Parents.
2.According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. More than half of the teenagers in the US and the UK have Internet access.
B. Teenagers pay for goods online with their own credit cards.
C. Most teenagers in the US and the UK have bought something online.
D. Teenagers found it easier to persuade parents to buy online than in a shop.
3.New way to help teenagers shop online is to use ______.
A. a new machine B. special coins and notes
C. prepaid cards D. pay-as-you-go mobile phones
4.What is the passage mainly about?
A. Online shopping traps.
B. Internet users in the US and the UK.
C. New credit cards for parents.
D. The arrival of cyber pocket money.
Student Membership-----Cambridge Arts Cinema
Cambridge Arts Cinema is one of the art houses in Britain and home of the internationally celebrated Cambridge Film Festival. Since 1947 generations of students have discovered the wealth of world cinema. Now you too can make most of it and save money.
1.Which of the following is the most famous event held at Cambridge Arts Cinema?
A. The Cambridge Film Festival. B. Meetings with filmmakers.
C. The preview screening. D. Monthly premieres.
2.If you're a member of Cambridge Arts Cinema, you will enjoy free_
A. Darkroom Gallery shows B. mailed programmes
C. special film events D. film shows
3.How long will the membership for Cambridge Arts Cinema last?
A. Four months. B. Eight months.
C. Nine months. D. One year.
4.For what purpose is the text written?
A. Offering students cheaper tickets.
B. Announcing the opening of a premiere.
C. Telling the public of the cinema's address.
D. Increasing the cinema's membership.
While attending a conference, I returned to my hotel room late one evening. The overhead light outside my door was burned out and I had finding the keyhole. When I to open the door, I around the wall for a light switch. I found a plate where a switch was installed... but no switch!
Not discouraged easily, I remembered a lamp by the bed when I deposited my luggage in the day. I found the bed in the and then the lamp, but when I switched it on, nothing ! I thought that perhaps if I opened the curtains I might be able to use whatever light comes in from the to find another lamp. So I my way slowly across the room to the curtains and... no drawstring(拉绳)! I finally stumbled(跌跌撞撞地走)around I found a desk lamp which actually !
That evening I discovered in a whole new way just how dark the world be and how necessary light is! But even more necessary than light is the light that shines from people --the light of and faith. Because, for many people, the world is a dark and place. For someone today just may be stumbling in discouragement or sadness or fear and in of some light. So let your light shine. Whatever light you may be a beacon(灯塔) of hope and encouragement. And if you feel that your light is a candle in a forest remember -- there isn’t enough darkness in all the world to the light of one small candle.
1.A. confidence B. respect C . admiration D. difficulty
2.A. managed B. failed C. wished D. meant
3.A. touched B. felt C. sensed D. looked
4.A. already B. never C. still D. once
5.A. equipping B. producing C. noticing D. removing
6.A. later B. earlier C. lower D. upper
7.A. light B. dark C. room D. corner
8.A. happened B. operated C. fired D. developed
9.A. machine B. street C. room D. car
10.A. wound B. forced C. made D. lost
11.A. after B. until C. while D. since
12.A. helped B. affected C. worked D. inspired
13.A. can B. shall C. will D. must
14.A. mental B. psychologicalC. electrical D. physical
15.A. existence B. love C. truth D. wisdom
16.A. lonely B. colorful C. friendly D. complex
17.A. short B. favor C. face D. need
18.A. make B. offer C. take D. contribute
19.A. not more than B. other than C. no more than D. rather than
20.A. put out B. give out C. get over D. set up
– At first he was not good at playing basketball but after a long time of training hard, he stood out.
– It’s easy to understand, ____________________.
A. Make hay while the sun shines.
B. Practice makes perfect.
C. The early bird catches the worm
D. Actions speak louder than words.
It is __________ you do rather than __________ you say __________ matters.
A. what; what; that B. that; what; that C. what; that; what D. what; that; that