A community garden is a shared garden. A group of people get together and share a piece of land for their garden. This could be an empty place, or simply one at a neighbor's house.
Community gardens are not limited to urban locations. Many rural communities share garden space as well . Some communities will divide their garden into individual plots and others will work on the entire garden together. You may find some community gardens on rooftops. This provides a platform for city citizen, where they can communicate with nature even when there no yard space.
community garden can be used to grow flowers and other plants as well as produce. Some community gardeners choose to sell their homegrown goods. Others choose to use it themselves and some do a combination of both . Some community gardeners donate part of their produce to local food banks . Besides, homegrown produce is also much fresher and tastier.
When you belong to a community garden it also gives you a chance to socialize with your neighbor. You'll develop a better sense of involvement and belonging. You'll be communicating with people of similar interests, as well as people with different ideas .Community gardening often leads to setting up other community projects.
It brings a sense of achievement to know that you've taken apiece of waste land and turned it into something beautiful .The entire neighborhood will enjoy the benefits of your bard work.
A community garden is an opportunity for education as well .You may learn from your fellow gardeners .You can also ask local children to join you .This gives them a way to show their creativity and keep them busy, and points them in the right direction.
小題1:People can find a community garden________

A．near the river

B．only in rural areas

C．only in urban locations

D．both in rural and urban communities

小題2:Which of the following is NOT one of the benefits of the community garden?

A．A sense of achievement.

B．A sense of involvement and belonging

C．An opportunity for education

D．A method to ease urban crowdedness

小題3:According to the passage, a community garden_________

A．will replace other community projects

B．is especially suitable for rural areas

C．can sometimes be on the top of a roof

D．can only be shared where there is no yard space

小題4:What does Paragraph 3 mainly talk abort?
A. The produce of a community garden.
B. The location of a community garden.
C The definition of a community garden
D. The popularity of a community garden.
小題5:It can be learned from the passage that a community garden can __________
A. make it unnecessary to go shopping
B improve your study a lot at school
C. make you richer and healthier
D. help you to avoid feeling lonely

Thousands of people began pouring into Pennsylvania from other states. They wanted to buy lottery(彩票) tickets. The tickets cost only $0.9each. But that small spending could bring them a reward of $90 million. That was the second largest lottery jackpot(積累獎(jiǎng)金) in history。
More than 87 million tickets were bought for the Pennsylvania lottery drawing . Those who bought tickets had to choose seven numbers from 1 to 80 The chance of winning was one in 9.6 million. But that little chance certainly did not affect tickets sales. In the last few days before the drawing , tickets were selling at the unbelievable rate of 500 per second .
Experts say many people buy lottery tickets because they just want to have a piece of the action .Others say the lottery is a stock market for poor people . It allows them to dream about wealth they will  probably never have .
But many people believe lotteries are no better than legalized(合法化) gambling . Some critics note that most people who play are poor and may not be able to afford the tickets .There are also many addicts who take the game seriously, They may pour their life savings into lottery tickets .Some clubs have been formed to help them kick the habit.
Politicians like lotteries because they provide money that would otherwise have to come from new taxes. The profits from lotteries are usually used to pay for education or programs for senior citizens. But critics say this arrangement just allows states to legalize vice(惡習(xí)) under the name of social progress . No matter whether you regard state lotteries right or not , you can not refuse to accept their extreme popularity with many Americans .
小題1:The main idea of the passage is that________________.

A．lotteries are of great benefit to everyone who buys them.

B．play a lottery is just like investing in the stock market

C．a(chǎn) lot of people buy lottry tickets ,but lotteries cause disagreement

D．lotteries are just legalized vice

小題2:Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage ?

A．Politicians like lotteries because they do not have to pay extra tax.

B．The popularity of lotteries in America actually is social progress .

C．Some critics do not like lotteries because many poor people waste their money on them .

D．People love the lottery because it is a stock market.

小題3:In just one hour in the last few days , the Pennsylvania lottery sold tickets totaling about ______________.

A．$1.62million

B．$90 million

C．$9.6million

D．$87million

小題4:People who are addicted to playing lotteries should __________.

A．join a club	B．kick the habit
C．win the Pennsylvania	D．save every cent

The iPhone has become one of the most popular mobile phones in the United States. An 18-year-o1d student in California has used his knowledge of the device to create his own business,gaining national recognition for his work.
Vincent Quigg is the CEO of TechWorld. His company is kind of like a hospital for iPhones,specializing in customizing and repairing iPhones. Vincent Quigg launched TechWorld while in high school. “My mom became single a couple of years ago and I had to grow up. And in order to keep my lifestyle, I had to find different ways to keep my phone, keep a car, transportation and all that stuff. So I had to find ways to be entrepreneurial.” An organization cal1ed the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship. or NFTE, helped the young man get started. His mother, Carla Quigg: “He quit the class, which made me very disappointed.”
“It was extremely hard for myself to find a business to start and run with it. But once I had that ‘aha moment’or what I knew I wanted to go with, it was really easy and extremely fun.”
At the time, Vincent worked for the electronics store BestBuy. He says people always came into the store with broken electronic devices. He decided that repairing those devices was what he wanted to do. He not only re-registered for the NFTE class, but he also won the organization’s national competition for best young entrepreneur.His business has grown through word-of-mouth. Vincent says he now fixes up to l0 phones per week. He earns about $l,500 each month in sales. TechWorld has two other employees. Kacee Wheeler is one of them. He works on the technical side of the business while Vincent Quigg now deals with finances and planning. He says he wants to continue to grow his business.
小題1:What is Vincent Quigg’s company specialized in?

A．Customizing and repairing iPhones.	B．Advertising and selling iPhones.
C．Helping students set up business.	D．Offering people medical advice.

小題2:What drove Vincent to start his own business?

A．His special family education background.

B．The need to keep his former way of 1ife.

C．The desire to be the CEO of a company.

D．The encouragement from another company.

小題3:What does the underlined phrase “aha moment” probably mean?

A．The moment to celebrate success.

B．The moment to comp1ain hardship.

C．The moment to have a great idea.

D．The moment to have great fun.

小題4:What can we 1earn from the text?

A．Vincent started his own business with the help of his col1ege.

B．Vincent went through great difficulty in the beginning.

C．Vincent promotes his business by large scale advertisements.

D．Vincent’s mother was disappointed by his achievement.

Many crimes and social problems are caused by children. Despite the damage these teenage criminals cause, parents are not responsible in most countries. This article will discuss whether parents should be forced to pay for their children’s crimes.
There are many reasons why parents should not be responsible for crimes committed by teenage children. First of all, teenagers today are independent. They often move out of the parents’ house at 18 years of age or younger. They are expected to learn to take care of themselves and make their own decisions, and not to stay like small children attached to their parents. Secondly, parents are working. They cannot watch their adolescent children all the time. A third point is that even children from good families can sometimes commit crimes. Parents should not be responsible if they have worked hard to raise their children properly.
However, young troublemakers cause many problems, and I feel we should make parents responsible. Firstly, most juvenile（未成年的）crimes are committed by adolescents whose parents do not care or make any effort to control their children. If parents had to pay fines（罰款）, they might make more effort. Another point is that even though the children may seem mature, they are not really able to make good decisions. Parents should be responsible for raising and teaching their children until they are fully grown. Furthermore, if children know that their parents will have to pay, they will think carefully before getting into trouble.
In summary, there are good reasons both for and against making parents pay for acts committed by their children. However, I feel strongly that if we want to reduce the number of such crimes, we need to make parents take more responsibility.
小題1:Those who insist that parents should not be responsible for their children’s crimes believe that ________.
a. teenagers are able to deal with things on their own
b. children need to experience difficulties to be fully grown
c. it’s impossible for parents to be with their children all the time
d. parents are not to blame as long as they try their best to educate their children

A．a(chǎn), c, d

B．a(chǎn), b, c

C．b, c, d

D．a(chǎn), b, d

小題2:According to Paragraph 3, the main reason for children’s crimes is ________.

A．unstable social environment	B．parents’ carelessness
C．bad family relationship	D．heavy financial burden

小題3:The author thinks that making parents pay for their children’s crimes is ________.

A．useless

B．easy

C．necessary

D．impractical

小題4:What can be the best title for the passage?

A．Proper ways to educate children	B．Reasons for children’s crimes
C．Should children move out?	D．Should parents pay?

Lisa is ten years old. She is disabled because she has brain damage. She could not do even the simplest thing until a year ago. She could not comb her hair or feed herself. Her parents loved her. And they treated her like a baby.
Mr. Ching has a daughter and a son. They are both grown. They live far from their father. Mr. Cling felt lonely. He decided to become a foster grandfather to a handicapped child. And that was how he met Lisa.
Foster grandparents are grandparents who are not related by birth but foster parents love the children they care for. They also help the handicapped children in special ways. They help to dress and feed the children. They read to them and tell them stories. They also help with handicapped children’s therapy. Therapy is the treatment of a disease or disorder. It helps the children overcome their handicaps.
Mr. Cling became a foster grandparent to Lisa when she was nine years old. At first, Lisa was shy. She was afraid because Mr. Cling was a stranger. But he came to see her every day, gradually she began to trust him. At last, Lisa let Mr. Cling do things for her.
Cling speaks for most foster grandparents when he say, “We all benefit. The handicapped children benefit because we help them live more useful lives. And we benefit because we know the children need us and love us. For any person, there is no greater happiness than that.”
小題1:Why did Lisa need help?

A．She was a baby

B．She did not want to do anything.

C．She had brain damage.

D．She was a blind girl.

小題2:What does the underlined word “foster” in paragraph 2 mean?

A．Elderly	B．Related by birth
C．Not related by birth	D．King-hearted

小題3:Which five things do foster grandparents do for handicapped children?
a  help with their treatment   b dress them    c live in their homes
d feed them          e charge them money    f read to them
g tell them stories    h make fun of them

A．a(chǎn),b,d,e,f

B．a(chǎn),c,e,f,h

C．b,c,d,f,g

D．a(chǎn),b,d,f,g

小題4:Why did Mr. Cling foster Lisa?

A．Lisa needs looking after.

B．The passage doesn’t mention of.

C．Lisa need caring for and Mr. Cling also gets enjoyment from it.

D．Mr. Cling is too lonely.

小題5:The best title for this passage is ________.

A．Lisa, A Handicapped Girl

B．Why Did He Do That?

C．Foster Grandparents

D．The Greatest Happiness!

Aggressive pedestrians are in fact as dangerous as careless drivers. They cause traffic accidents, injury and death.
These dangerous walkers can be seen in any big city over the world. About 69% of last year’s pedestrian deaths in the US occurred in urban areas. They cross streets ignoring “DON’T WALK” signals, suddenly appear without warning from behind parked vehicles, walk slowly at crossroads with cell phones attached to heads, blocking traffic.
These pedestrians and drivers share a common disregard for the rules of the road, both for selfish reasons. The drivers believe in the power of their machines. If their machines can go faster, they believe they have the right to go faster. If their machines are bigger, they believe they have the right to push smaller vehicles aside. Aggressive pedestrians, on the other hand, believe in the primacy(首位) of the individual, the idea that they are first in any environment, under any circumstances, even when they are on foot in a roaring tide of steel and rubber.
Last year, an estimated 5,220 pedestrians died in traffic accidents. Some 69,000 pedestrians were injured. On average, that worked out to one pedestrian killed in a traffic crash every 101 minutes, and one injured every eight minutes.
The good news is that the accident rate is dropping. For example, the number of pedestrians killed last year was 24 percent less than the number killed in traffic accidents a decade earlier. The bad news is that the basic causes of pedestrian deaths remain pretty much the same----disregard for traffic signals, inattention and crossing roads under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Alcohol, in fact, was involved in 46 percent of the traffic accidents that resulted in pedestrian deaths. Of those, 31 percent of the pedestrians were found to be drunk.
The bottom line is that the pedestrians must do more to protect their lives as well as the lives of other road users. They can start by obeying traffic signals, using marked cross-walks and calling a cab when they’ve had too much to drink.
小題1:The passage is mainly about __________.

A．how aggressive pedestrians cause traffic accidents

B．why so many Americans were killed on roads last year

C．what the traffic rules of the road about pedestrians were

D．who are to blame for pedestrian deaths, drunk drivers or the aggressive pedestrians

小題2:What is the pedestrians’ selfish reason for traffic jams?

A．They know all drivers are skilled and with great care.

B．They believe individuals are always first.

C．They think traffic rules have nothing to do with them.

D．They guess all vehicles will slow down at crossroads.

小題3:What was NOT the basic cause of pedestrian deaths in the US a decade ago?

A．Disregard for traffic signals	B．Paying no attention to surroundings.
C．Crossing roads drunk.	D．Overspeeding driving.

小題4:As one of all the road users, what should we students do on busy roads?

A．Obey traffic signals at crossroads.

B．Run as fast as possible at crossroads.

C．Talk on your cell phone if necessary.

D．Always watch out for big trucks.

小題5:What word can best describe the author’s attitude to the traffic accidents caused by pedestrians?

A．Excited.

B．Cold.

C．Concerned

D．Inconnected.

There is a saying in French—“Si vieillesse pouvait, si jeunesse savait”—which means roughly “if age had the ability, if youth had the knowledge.” I was reminded of this saying the other day when I saw an interview with a distinguished Asian neurosurgeon(神經(jīng)外科醫(yī)生), now retired, about the impact of computer technology on modern surgery.
He was referring to the difficulty people of his age had in using the new techniques, but also to the fact that younger surgeons, who are more comfortable with the technology, lack some of the wisdom of experience.
It struck me that this problem is not just confined(局限于) to specialized fields such as medicine, but is widespread in modern life. There are many areas where the rapid growth of technology has widened the generation gap.
Young people are at ease with modern technology and propose all sorts of ways for using and developing it. But they often lack the experience needed to see further into the future to the possible dangers that a particular development may cause.
Older people see all sorts of difficulties and dangers, but are sometimes ignored, or even accused of being against progress, if they point out potential problems. Equally, they may see potential uses, but not have the technical skills to put them into practice themselves or the trust in the younger generation to do so.
Enthusiasm and inexperience come into conflict with caution and arrogance, usually with unsatisfactory results for both sides.
What is needed is the development of a partnership, based on mutual respect, which can deliver real progress by combining enthusiasm and caution in a constructive way, rather than in conflict with each other. The old need to give the younger generation the time, the resources and, above all, the authority to develop new ideas and use their skills. In exchange, the young need to turn more actively to the older generation to seek their advice and exploit their greater experience of the world in foreseeing and overcoming potential problems.
小題1:The passage is mainly about ________.

A．the impact of computer technology on modern surgery

B．a(chǎn)n interview with a distinguished Asian neurosurgeon

C．new generation gap between the old and the young

D．a(chǎn) conflict between knowledge and experience

小題2:The French saying in the first paragraph is used to ________.

A．introduce the topic

B．show the difference between French and English

C．make readers confused

D．prove the writer’s wisdom

小題3:What did the retired neurosurgeon probably mention in his interview?

A．Old people’s enthusiasm in obtaining new technology.

B．Old people’s difficulty in using computers.

C．Young surgeons’ bad manners in working.

D．Young surgeons’ difficulty in getting experience.

小題4:In the writer’s view, what advantage do the older generation have?

A．They are happy with modern technology.

B．They are easy to learn new techniques.

C．They can foresee the future of the young generation.

D．They are rich in work experience.

小題5:What conclusion can be drawn from the last paragraph?

A．The young and the old should respect and learn from each other.

B．The young should teach the old modern technology.

C．The old should maintain their authority in every field.

D．The young and the old should work independently.

The number of smokers in England is about 8 million. According to the Department of Health, smoking is the biggest cause of early death in the country. Smokers in England have been asked to give up smoking for 28 days this month, in an action backed by Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation.
Research shows people who manage not to light up for this length of time are 5 times more likely to kick the habit. Public health experts say campaigns that include a combination of hard-hitting ads and supportive messages work best.
Quitting smoking can be difficult. However, people are much more likely to succeed if other people are doing the same than if they try to do it alone and go cold turkey. Robert West, Director of Tobacco Studies at University College London, points out how pressure from people around can prevent a smoker going on smoking. “We are social animals,” he said.
The action has met some doubts among readers of the BBC News Online website. Some compared it to asking people to stop eating as a way of fighting overweight. Others doubt the action’s effectiveness. “Its weakness is that it fails to explain why a person smokes, and the reasons are as many as the number of smokers”, says someone who signed as BluesBerry.
Another reader, Cazz, has decided to give it some credit. He says:“ Campaigns like this won’t necessarily inspire the majority of smokers to quit, but may encourage those thinking about quitting to set a date and try. Surely it’s worth a shot. ”
小題1:What does the text mainly talk about?

A．A new action to quit smoking.

B．A way of fighting overweight.

C．A country with the most smokers.

D．The biggest cause of early death.

小題2:The underlined phrase “go cold turkey” in the third paragraph means “_______”.

A．buy a cold turkey

B．eat too much food

C．stop a bad habit

D．get much support

小題3:Why is it easier to stop smoking when other people are doing the same?

A．Because people usually respect each other.

B．Because they’re faced with the same pressure.

C．Because people are influenced by each other.

D．Because they keep the same animals as pets.

小題4:What’s Cazz’ s attitude in the last paragraph?

A．Distant．

B．Doubtful．

C．Surprised．

D．Approving

For years and years people have been saying that the railways are dead. “ We can do without railways.” People say…as if motorcars and planes have made the railways unnecessary. We all keep hearing that trains are slow, that they lose money, and that they’re dying .But this is far from the truth: in these days of expensive oil, the railways have become highly competitive with motorcars and planes. If you want to carry people or goods from place to place, they are cheaper than planes. And they have much in common with planes. A plane goes in a straight line and so does a railway. What is more, it takes you from the heart of a city into the heart of another. It doesn’t leave you up as a plane does, miles and miles from the city center. It doesn’t hold you up as a car does, in endless traffic jams, and a single train carry goods which a plane or a motorcar could never do.
Far from being dead, the railways are very much alive. Modern railway lines give you a smooth, untroubled journey. Where else can you eat well, sleep in comfort, feel safe and enjoy the scene while you are traveling at speed at the same time? And we are only at the beginning, for we have just entered the age of super-fast trains, trains traveling at 150 miles an hour and more. Soon we will be wondering why we spent so much on motorcars we can’t use because we have not enough money to buy the oil and planes we can’t fly for the same reason..
小題1:Some people think the railways are unnecessary for many reasons except that       .

A．planes and motorcars have taken the place of trains

B．oil is expensive today

C．trains are slow

D．railways lose money

小題2:According to the writer, which of the following is Not true?

A．It is cheaper to travel by train than by plane.

B．The railway station is usually at the center of the city.

C．When you get off the plane you will find yourself right in the city center.

D．No motorcar or plane can carry as many goods as a train does.

小題3:The writer thinks that the railways, far from being dead, are very much alive because      .

A．we can have a smooth and untroubled journey

B．we’ll not have enough money to fly in planes

C．we can now travel in super-fast train

D．a(chǎn)ll of the above

小題4:The best title for this passage may be”        ”

A．Not the End but the Beginning

B．Which is the Best: Train, Motorcar or Plane

C．Trains are More Competitive than Motorcars or Planes

D．Oh, Super-fast Trains

Narayana Hrudayalaya, a complex of health centers based in southern India, offers low-cost, high-quality specialty care in a largely poor country of 1.2 billion people. By thinking differently about everything from the unusually high number of patients it treats to the millions for whom it provides insurance, the hospital group is able to continually reduce costs. Narayana Hrudayalaya’s operations include the world’s largest and most productive cardiac (心臟病的) hospital, where the average open-heart surgery runs less than $2,000, a third or less what it costs elsewhere in India.
Narayana Hrudayalaya’s origins date back to 2001, when it built its massive cardiac center on the outskirts （市郊）of Bangalore. But it has expanded since then into what founder Dr. Devi Shetty calls a "health city," a series of centers specializing in eye, trauma, and cancer care. Narayana Hrudayalaya now manages or owns hospitals in 14 other Indian cities.
Expanding access is paired with a ongoing focus on efficiency. Typically, says Shetty, private hospitals in India focus on patients who can easily afford treatment. "We did it the other way around," he says. "This hospital is for poor people, but we also treat some rich people. We don’t look at people who are sgabbily dressed and have trouble paying as outsiders. "  Narayana Hrudayalaya’s flagship hospital has 3,000 beds and negotiates for better prices and buys directly from manufacturers, cutting out distributors.
In addition to cost-cutting, Narayana Hrudayalaya finds creative ways to make the economics work. The company started a micro-insurance program backed by the government that enables 3 million farmers to have coverage for as little as 22 cents a month in premiums（保險(xiǎn)費(fèi)）. Patients who pay discounted rates are in effect compensated by those who pay full price
Doing something--doing more, actually--is the point. By 2017, Shetty, 58, plans to expand from 5,000 beds throughout India to 30,000. Before becoming one of India’s best-known health-care entrepreneurs, Shetty was its best-known heart surgeon. He was interrupted in surgery one day during the 1990s by a request to make a house call. "I said, 'I don’t make home visits,'?" Shetty says, "and the caller said, 'If you see this patient, the experience may transform your life.'?" The request was from Mother Teresa. Inspired by the her work with the poor, he then set out to create a hospital to deliver care based on need, not wealth.  "One lesson she taught me," he says, quoting a saying he keeps framed in his office, "is 'Hands that sew are holier than lips that pray.'?"
小題1:Narayana Hrudayalayastarted a micro-insurance to _______.

A．cut down on the cost of the treatment	B．get the support of the government
C．make the company run smoothly	D．a(chǎn)ttract more people to its hospital

小題2:We can infer from the passage that _______.

A．the cost of medicine care in India is very low

B．Shetty wouldn’t have succeeded without Mother Teresa

C．Shetty and his colleagues are likely to make home visits now

D．Shetty has expanded his hospitals to most of other cities in India

小題3:Why did Shetty build the massive cardiac center in 2001?

A．He wanted to build a health city.

B．He was motivated and decided to help more people.

C．He intended to develop his career in different areas.

D．He meant to help more poor people get free treatment.

小題4:How would you understand the underlined sentence in the last paragraph ?

A．It’s doing something and doing more that really matters.

B．It’s not easy to take positive action to contribute to society.

C．Healthcare workers are the holiest persons in the world.

D．Praying alone is of no significance in face of difficult situation.