For over one hundred and fifty years,Americans of all social classes have worn blue jeans.1..Whether they are worn for work or for fashion today,Strauss' invention continues to be popular not only among Americans but also among people around the world.
Levis Strauss was born in Germany in 1829.2..He grew up in Kentucky before moving to New York in 1847, before becoming an American citizen and moving to the West in 1853,Strauss worked in his brother's dry goods business.This gave him a chance to produce his famous invention.After the gold rush of 1849,Strauss decided to move to the West to seek his fortunes.
Strauss did not want to be a person who searched an area for minerals.Instead,he knew he could make a good living by selling supplies to the miners.At first,he planned to sell sewing supplies and cloth.3..When he heard miners complaining that their clothes were easily broken or they usually tore their pockets during mining he decided to use a special fabric to make pants for the miners.These pants proved so popular that he quickly ran out of materials to make more.
In 1873,Strauss received a letter from a Jewish tailor named Jacob Davis who had invented a process of connecting pockets with copper rivets（铆钉）.This made the pants last a long time.Because Davis did not have the money to patent his idea,he offered to share it with Strauss if Strauss would agree to pay for the patent.4..
By the time Strauss died in 1902,he had made a great contribution to American fashion.
5..The business has been growing ever since and Levi Strauss & Company is now one of the largest clothing companies in the world.
A.As a young boy,he moved with his family to the United States.
B.Nobody knew what kind of material was suitable.
C.He did and Levi jeans have been made with metal rivets ever since.
D.However,he did not get lunch business from those products.
E.He also made a great contribution to America's clothing-industry.
F.Since they were invented by Levi Strauss,they have become a symbol of American consumer culture.
G.As the business grew,Strauss got much money from it.
In the far,far future,bicycles and perhaps skates may be run by jet power,and a new thing to ride may be a small flying saucer（飞碟）.Imagine a race between them!
There may be telepathy helmets（心灵感应帽）that send thought waves from your brain to that of your friend miles away.You just think a thought and your friend knows it!You can have secrets with each other that nobody else can turn in on!
What about the food of the future?Scientists think.that much of it will be artificial—made in factories from such surprising things as coal,limestone,air,and water.The artificial food will be healthful because all the things that you need to live a long and healthy life will be put into it.
The future hospitals will probably have "body banks" that can give you almost any new part you need to keep on living.People of the future may live to be a lot older than 100 years.
What about highways of the future?Well,a very small child probably will be able to drive a car.Nobody will need to steer（驾驶）.Electric signals will hold each car on the right road to get wherever the "driver" wants to go. And it probably will be impossible for cars to smash together.Controls that won't even have to be touched will make all speeding cars miss each other or will put on the brakes.Driving cars will be as safe as being at home.
But maybe the most wonderful surprise in the future will be weather control.Cities may have giant plastic domes（圆顶罩）over them to keep out snow,rain,or storms.When you plan a picnic in a park,you won't have to worry about rain.It will rain only when the "weatherman" thinks it is necessary to fresh the air inside the city.All other days will be fair and warm.
The future should be a wonderful time in which to live and the time we are living in now is also a wonderful future to the people who lived 100 years ago.
1.What can we learn from the passage?
A. With telepathy helmets,we can share our thoughts without any word.
B. The artificial food made from coal and limestone tastes the most delicious in the future.
C. There will be “body banks” instead of hospitals in the future.
D. Plastic domes themselves can automatically control the weather.
2.With the future highways,_______.
A. small children have to learn to drive
B. car accidents still couldn't be avoided
C. we can be taken to the destination without steering
D. cars will be no longer equipped with brakes
3.The author's attitude towards the future life is_______.
A. optimistic B. pessimistic
C. satisfied D. doubtful
A scientist who developed a way to calculate how much water is used in the production of anything from a cup of coffee to a hamburger was awarded the 2008 Stockholm.Water Prize.
Professor John Anthony Allan of the University of London in Britain won the award for introducing the idea of “virtual water（虚拟水）”,a calculation method that has changed the nature of trade policy and research.
Allan has written seven books and published more than 100 papers.
The Stockholm International Water Institute said this idea is now embedded（埋藏）in the production of foods and industrial products.The institute said Allan's work had made a big effect on global trade policy and research, especially in water-scarce（缺水的）regions.
“The improved understanding of trade and water management issues on local,regional and global scales are of the highest value for the successful and sustainable（可持续的）use of water resources,”it said.
“People do not only use water when they drink it or take a shower,”the institute said.“Behind the morning cup of coffee,there are 140 liters of water that was used to grow,produce,package and ship the beans.”That is about as much water as a person in England uses on average for all daily drinking and household needs.
"For a single hamburger,about 2,400 liters of water are needed.In the USA,the average person uses nearly 7,000 liters of virtual water every day."It said that was more than three times the average use of a Chinese person.
1.Allan was awarded the prize because______.
A. he wrote seven books on trade policy
B. he published more than 100 papers on water management
C. lie found a new kind of water in water-scarce areas
D. he came up with the idea of virtual water
2.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. The average American uses about 7,000 liters of water a day.
B. The average Chinese uses nearly 2,300 liters of virtual water a day.
C. An Englishman usually drinks about 140 liters of coffee a day.
D. A hamburger usually contains about 2,400 liters of water.
3.What do we learn about John Anthony Allan from the passage? .
A. He won the 2008 Nobel Prize.
B. He has written over 100 books.
C. He works at the University of London.
D. He lives in the USA.
4.What effect does the idea of virtual water have?
A. It helps us realize the importance of trade.
B. It helps people do successful business.
C. It helps us make use of water scientifically.
D. It tells us how much water we use a day.
Tales From Animal Hospital
David Grant
David Grant has become a familiar face to millions of fans of Animal Hospital.Here Dr Grant tells us the very best of his personal stories about the animals he has treated,including familiar patients such as the dogs Snowy and Duchess,the delightful cat Marigold Serendipity Diamond.He also takes the reader behind the scenes at Harmsworth Memorial Animal Hospital as he describes his day,from ordinary medical check-ups to surgery（外科手术）.Tales From Animal Hospital will delight all fans of the programme and anyone who has a lively interest in their pet, whether it be cat,dog or snake!
￡14.99 Hardback 272 pp Simon Schuster
ISBN 0751304417
Isaac Newton: The Last Sorcerer
Michael White
From the author of Stephen Hawking: A Life in Science,comes this colourful description of the life of the world's first modern scientist.Interesting yet based on fact,Michael White's new book offers a true picture of Newton completely different from what people commonly know about him.Newton is shown as a gifted scientist with very human weaknesses who stood at the point in history where magic ended and science began.
￡18.99 Hardback 320 pp Fourth Estate
ISBN 1857024168
Fermat's Last Theorem
Simon Singh
In 1963 a schoolboy called Andrew Wiles reading in his school library came across the world's greatest mathematical problem: Fermat's Last Theorem（费马大定理）.First put forward by the French mathematician Pierre de Fermat in the 17th century,the theorem had baffled and beaten the finest mathematical minds,including a French woman scientist who made a major advance in working out the problem,and who had to dress like a man in order to be able to study at the Ecole Polytechnique（巴黎综合理工大学）.Through unbelievable determination Andrew Wiles finally worked out the problem in 1995.An unusual story of human effort over three centuries,Fermat's Last Theorem will delight specialists and general readers alike.
￡12.99 Hardback 384 pp Fourth Estate
ISBN 1857025210
1.What is Animal Hospital?
A. A news story. B. A popular book.
C. A research report. D. A TV programme.
2.In Michael White's book,Newton is described as _____.
A. a person who did not look the same as in many pictures
B. a person who lived a colourful and meaningful life
C. a great but not perfect man
D. an old-time magician
3.Which of the following best explains the meaning of the word “baffle” as it is used in the text?
A. To encourage people to raise questions.
B. To cause difficulty in understanding.
C. To provide a person with an explanation.
D. To limit people's imagination.
4.What is the purpose of writing these three texts?
A. To make the books easier to read.
B. To show the importance of science.
C. To introduce new authors.
D. To sell the books.
Work is a part of living—my grandparents understood that.They lived and worked on a farm that has been in my family for 150 years.They raised chickens for eggs,pigs and cattle for meat.Cows were kept for milk and the cream,from which Grandma made butter and cheese.What little yard they had became a garden.
The Depression（大萧条时期）,therefore,didn’t make much change in their lives.But it did bring a lot of men out of work,drifting from job to job,to the farm.The first to show up at the door of the kitchen was a man in rags.He took off his hat and quietly explained that he hadn’t eaten for a while.Grandpa stood watching him a bit,then said, “There’s a stack of firewood against the fence behind the barn（谷仓）.I’ve been needing to get it moved to the other side of the fence.You have just about enough time to finish the job before lunch.”
Grandma said a surprising thing happened.The man got a shine in his eyes and he hurried to the barn at once. She set another place at the table and made an apple pie.During lunch,the stranger didn’t say much,but when he left, his shoulders had straightened.“Nothing ruins a man like losing his self-respect,”Grandpa later told me.
Soon after,another man showed up asking for a meal.This one was dressed in a suit and carried a small old suitcase.Grandpa came out when he heard voices.He looked at the man and then offered a handshake.“There is a stack of firewood along the fence down behind the barn I’ve been meaning to get it moved.It’d sure be a help to me. And we’d be pleased to have you stay for lunch.”The fellow set his suitcase aside and neatly laid his coat on top. Then he set off to work.
Grandma says she doesn’t remember how many strangers they shared a meal with during those Depression days-or how many times that stack of wood got moved.
1.When he was asked to move a stack of firewood,the first man who asked for a meal got a shine in his eyes for he was glad that .
A. he had found a good job
B. he would have something to eat
C. he would no longer suffer from the Depression
D. he would get what he wanted without losing his self-respect
2.The writer’s grandfather asked those jobless men to move the stack of firewood because .
A. he didn’t want them to have a meal free of charge
B. he had been needing to get it moved
C. he wanted to help them in his own way
D. he wanted to show them his kindness and respect
3.The writer’s grandfather was all of the following but .
A. kind B. thoughtful
C. wealthy D. sympathetic
4.The best title for the story would be .
A. The Depression B. The Pleasure of Helping Others
C. No Pains,No Gains D. Work-A Part of Living
假如你叫李华，今年18岁。想利用暑假打工，你在报纸上看到了某咖啡厅的招聘广告。轻根据报纸内容写一封120词左右的求职信。
报纸广告：TEMPORARY JOB OFFER
Ｐart－ｔiｍｅ waiter/waitress
Age 18-24
To work in busy city centre café.
Must enjoy working with people
Previous experience necessary.
Good pay.
Tel. 01 222 643977.
个人信息: available during the week, friendly, helpful, three months in t he fast—food restaurant.
Dear sir,
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Yours sincerely,
Li Hua
