A British shopper, Emma Mumford, who was named “the Coupon(优惠券) Queen” has spent just £350 on a luxury(奢侈) Christmas for her and her family-but got £2,500 worth of food, drink and presents thanks to coupons and offers.
Ms Mumford is a so-called “extreme couponer” and spends hours hunting out the best deals and bargains. She has been preparing for this Christmas since the end of the last one. Ms Mumford made the huge savings by checking price comparison websites and as a result collected more presents than she needed for Christmas. After sorting out gifts for all of her family, she has even been able to donate £1,000 worth of presents to her local hospital.
“It has been so nice to have Christmas sorted and not having to worry about breaking the bank. I wanted to get high quality presents for my family and show that you can do it without spending a fortune. There is a misconception that everyone who does couponing only gets value products but through my careful shopping I have managed to purchase designer perfumes(香水), a high-end coffee machine.” she explained.
She said “What started as a hobby to help me save money has turned into my life and I am able to run a business helping people save money. I know what it feels like to struggle as my ex-partner had a lot of debt which I took on for him. We were in a poor situation where every penny counted. That’s what really inspired me.”
She has now turned her bargain-hunting addiction into a business where she searches for the best deals and offer tips to the general public through video blogging and her Facebook Page.
“I try and show people that it is just a little bit of work in the beginning but it will eventually pay off. One of the best things to do is just to be a bit forward thinking and save throughout the year.”
1.How did Emma make the huge savings?
She compared prices through websites.
She hunted out bargains in real shops.
She used coupons and offers worth £2,500.
She collected more Christmas presents than needed.
2.What does “breaking the bank” in the third paragraph mean?
A. Buying presents of low quality.
B. Spending more money than you have.
C. Breaking into the bank.
D. Taking out money from the bank.
3.What really inspired Emma to help people save money?
A. Her addiction to bargain-hunting.
B. The financial difficulties she shared with her ex-partner.
C. The poor situation people around her were going through.
D. Her experience of running an unsuccessful business.
4.Which of the following can best describe Emma?
A. Ambitious and creative.
B. Sensitive and determined.
C. Brave and lucky.
D. Careful and caring.
A Hong Kong Disneyland park admission ticket is your passport to a full day of magical adventures. Learn the ways to buy your tickets now.
Three types of 1-Day ticket are available:
Ticket Type | Price |
General Admission Ticket (aged 12-64) | HK $499 |
Child Ticket (aged 3-11) | HK $355 |
Senior Ticket (aged 65 or above) | HK $100 |
Free admission for Child aged under 3.
Book Online Now
Purchase tickets conveniently through our website, then pick up your tickets starting from 1 hour after you have purchased online.
Purchase Tickets Directly at Hong Kong Disneyland Ticket Express
You can purchase tickets at the Hong Kong Disneyland Ticket Express, conveniently located at the MTR Hong Kong Station. Open from 9:00am-8:00pm on Monday to Friday and from 9:00am-5:00pm on Saturdays, Sundays and Public Holidays.
Purchase 2 Park Tickets at one of the following locations and receive a FREE limited-edition Disney gift:
Avenue of Stars Kiosks
You can purchase tickets at Avenue of Stars Kiosks in Tsim Sha Tsui. Open daily from 9:00am-10:30pm.
AsiaWorld-Expo Box Office
You can purchase tickets at AsiaWorld-Expo Box Office. Open Mondays to Fridays from 10:00am-6:00pm.
Reserve Tickets for Hotel Guest
As a hotel Guest of Hong Kong Disneyland Hotel or Disney’s Hollywood Hotel, Park tickets are reserved for
your purchase at front desk. Open daily from 9:00am - 8:00pm.
Buy at Hong Kong Disneyland Main Entrance
Guests can purchase tickets on the day of their visit at the Main Entrance Ticket Booths or Guest Relations Windows. Open daily from 30 minutes before Park opening until Park closes.
1.In which place can you get a free gift for buying two tickets?
A. Hong Kong Disneyland Ticket Express.
B. Hong Kong Disneyland Main Entrance.
C. AsiaWorld-Expo Box Office.
D. Disney’s Hollywood Hotel.
2.For a young couple with a 2-year-old kid spending a day in the park, they have to pay at least______.
A. HK $ 499 B. HK $ 854
C. HK $ 998 D. HK $ 1353
3.To buy tickets at Hong Kong Disneyland Ticket Express on Sundays, you have to get there before _____.
A. 5:00 pm B. 6:00 pm C. 8:00 pm D. 10:30 pm
Recently many universities have used the school beauty and a handsome boy as a way of advertising to attract new students.
Web celebrity Zhang Zetian, who is popularly known by her online nickname 'Milk Tea Sister' appeared on the cover page of Tsinghua University's magazine, along with other famous people in the university in 2012.
Renmin University, a top university in Beijing featured graduation photos of a beautiful girl, Kang Yikun in 2013 in its website's homepage. The photo won praise from netizens who said it showed the atmosphere of the graduation season in a creative way.
Famous school beauties and handsome boys also appeared in Wuhan University, Northwest University, Beijing Language and Culture University and many other schools.
Some approve of this way of advertising. A young writer, Zhang Lechen, who was born in the 1980s, said this promotional method was creative and had a strong visual impact and as a result was a much more effective way to communicate.
However, others argue against the method, saying that it is not a good way for the university to use attractive girls or boys to make advertisements.
[写作内容]
1.以约30个词概括上文的主要内容。
2.以约120个词就“大学招生”这个话题谈谈你的看法，内容包括：
（1）你对大学利用美女、帅哥打招生广告的看法；
（2）你会根据大学哪些条件来决定报读；
（3）你希望在大学结识什么样的人。
[写作要求]
1.作文中可以使用亲身经历或虚构的故事，也可以参照阅读材料的内容，但不得直接引用原文中的句子。
2.作文中不能出现真实姓名和学校名称。
[评分标准]
概括准确，语言规范，内容合适，语篇连贯。
请用英语写一篇短文，介绍《时代》杂志2014年度人物“埃博拉斗士”。内容如下：
[写作内容]
《时代》年度人物评选概况 方式：每年由《时代》杂志编辑们选出 标准：给新闻和人们生活带来最大影响的个人或团体
2014年度人物情况 获选者：“埃博拉斗士” 宣布时间：2014年12月10日 获选原因：护理人员为抗击埃博拉病毒而努力工作，此病毒在西部非洲爆发，夺去数以千计患者的生命。 封面人物：两名医生，一名护士，一名救护车司机，一名卫生保健工作者，共五人登上杂志封面。其中有： Salome Karwah，父母均死于埃博拉, 她幸存下来，康复后照料其它病患者； Kent Brantly，美国医生，在非洲医治病人时染上埃博拉病毒，后康复
|
参考词汇：埃博拉斗士 the Ebola fighters
《时代》年度人物 Time's Person of the Year
卫生保健工作者 health care worker
[写作要求]
只能用5个句子表达全部内容。
[评分标准]
句子结构准确，信息内容完整，篇章连贯。
阅读下列应用文及相关信息，并按照要求匹配信息, 请在答题卡上将对应题号的相应选项字母涂黑。
首先请阅读下列图片及文字说明：
A. Drop-Bar Road Bikes
Generally lighter in weight than the typical mountain or comfort bike, road bikes are good for multiple pavement uses including fitness riding, commuting, long-distance/event rides, touring and racing.
Drop-bar handlebars are lightweight and aerodynamic and are a better choice if you want to go faster or are more concerned with efficiently transferring your energy into making the bike move forward. They also allow for a greater number of riding and hand positions than flat-bars. Their more aerodynamic riding position (bent over at the waist) may put more strain on your back if you are less flexible.
B. Flat-Bar Road Bikes
Flat-bar handlebars combine the efficiency of drop-bar road bikes with a slightly more upright riding position. This allows you to sit up in a higher and more relaxed position so you can better see the road and potential risks. An upright position also reduces strain on your hands, wrists and shoulders. This increased versatility comes with the tradeoff of being slightly less efficient (from an aerodynamic standpoint) than the typical drop-bar road bike.
C. Hardtail Mountain Bikes
Mountain Bikes are best for dirt or rocky trails and gravel roads; they are OK for pavement too (with tire change).
Hardtail bikes feature a front suspension fork and a rigid back with no rear suspension shocks. This type of mountain bike is much less expensive and lighter in weight than a typical full-suspension mountain bike. A hardtail is the more versatile choice if you plan to use it for both paved and unpaved surfaces. The tradeoffs from a full-suspension mountain bike? A hardtail is less able to safely handle more technical singletrack trails, provides less overall shock absorption and, in some situations, delivers less rear wheel traction.
D. Full-Suspension Mountain Bikes
Full-suspension mountain bikes have both front and rear suspension shocks making them ideal for backcountry trails or technical (steep, bumpy, twisty) singletrack. They also stand up to more aggressive riding including jumps or drops of up to 5 feet. As mentioned above, full-suspension bikes are more expensive and generally heavier than hardtail bikes.
E. Folding bikes
These bikes can be folded up and placed in a carrying bag, which makes them handy for commuters with limited storage space at home or the office. They are lightweight yet strong and can be folded up quickly and easily. Folding bikes are also a good choice for those who want to travel with their bike.
F. Electric-assist bikes
These bikes feature a battery-powered motor that can help you climb hills easily or make your commute less strenuous. Built-in sensors can monitor how much pressure you're putting on the pedals and then apply battery power accordingly.
以下是一些用户信息，请把图片与相关介绍匹配起来。
1. Tom is a bike lover. He wants to buy a road bike that can go fast on the road. Speed is important but it is more important for him to see the road and stay safe, since the road on which he rides is often full of traffic.
2. Jack is an office worker. Every day he goes to work by subway. There is still a long way from where he lives to the subway station, so he decides to buy a bike, which can be easily put at home, on the subway train and his office.
3. Peter loves making long-distance journey by bike. When travelling, he has to climb hills or ride on rocky trails, which makes him too tired to go. He wants to continue his journey even when he is tired, but he doesn’t want to travel by car or ride his motorbike.
4. Mark is a bike enthusiast who often rides in the mountainous areas. Unfortunately, his bike was damaged when he was riding on the mountain. Now he is going to buy a new mountain bike. Being a rich man, Mark doesn’t care about the price of the bike, but it must be tough and flexible enough to jump and drop on the mountain road.
5. Jim needs a new mountain bike that can be ridden on both paved and unpaved surfaces. It doesn’t need to be too expensive. He hopes to buy a bike that is lighter in weight than a typical full-suspension mountain bike
Engineers should embrace（接受） the arts, Sir John O'Reilly, a fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, argued in a lecture.
About 59% of engineering companies in the IET's 2014 survey feared skill shortages could threaten（威胁） business.
"There is nothing as creative as engineering," Sir John told the reporter. He says science, technology, engineering and mathematics - often known as "Stem" subjects, are vital for a modern knowledge economy. But there is a massive shortfall in the number of recruits（招聘） - with a recent study by the Royal Academy of Engineering saying the UK needs to increase by as much as 50% the number of Stem graduates it produces.
Delivering this year's Mountbatten Lecture at the Royal Institution, Sir John argued that engineers should recognise the role of the arts in their work - among other benefits; this could attract more people into the profession. The lecture, Full Steam Ahead for Growth, advocated a wider adoption -- Steam, or science, technology, engineering, arts and maths. Engineers should embrace the arts as being key to creativity and an important component of innovation（创新）, crucial to creating new products and boosting future competitiveness, he argued. "Engineering and technology is an increasingly diverse and creative field," said Sir John.
Some university engineering departments already cooperated with art schools to develop understanding, he told the reporter. In particular he mentioned Cranfield University's Centre for Creative Competitive Design and Imperial College's work with the Royal College of Art. The two sets of people could work well together and more emphasis on the creative side of engineering could improve the success of products, he said.
"Aesthetics(美学) is part of it," he told the reporter, adding that Apple's iPod was not the first digital media player, nor the only one that worked - but it came to dominate the market "because it was nice to have".
Sir John said he was not suggesting universities started requiring A-level art from engineering applicants - the key subjects for admission would continue to be maths and the sciences. But an emphasis on creative skills would help "broaden the pool and attract more people in".
1.According to a recent study by the Royal Academy _______ .
A. skill shortages could threaten business
B. engineering graduates are not as creative as expected
C. there are not enough arts graduates produced in the UK.
D. the UK needs more graduates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics
2. According to the lecture Full Steam Ahead for Growth, _______ .
A. engineers should cooperate with arts majors
B. Accepting the arts could attract more people into engineering
C. engineers should realize arts play the most important part in their work
D. engineering and technology is as diverse and creative as before
3. By giving the example of Apple's iPod, Sir John intends to _______ .
A. stress the importance of arts
B. stress the importance of marketing
C. stress the importance of communication
D. stress the importance of science and technology
4. Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A. More university students should study arts instead of engineering.
B. Engineering and technology is increasingly different and unrelated fields.
C. The IET's skills survey raised concerns about the number of recruits to engineering.
D. Students from some university engineering departments have already transferred to art schools
5. What is the passage mainly about?
A. Lack of creativity makes it difficult for the engineering major to find a satisfactory job.
B. The key subjects for engineering majors remain to be maths and the sciences rather than arts.
C. University engineering departments should cooperate with art schools to improve the success of products.
D. Engineering needs to emphasize its creative side to encourage more young people to choose it as a career.
