Nowadays people are troubled by the violence that spreads throughout the media. Movies, television and video games are full of gunplay and bloodshed, and one might reasonably ask what’s wrong with a society that presents videos of violence as entertainment.
Viewing large amounts of violent television and video games may well contribute to violent behavior in certain individuals. The trouble comes when researchers downplay uncertainties in their studies or overstate the case for causality（因果關(guān)系）. Skeptics were dismayed several years ago when a group of societies including the American Medical Association tried to end the debate by issuing a joint statement: “At this time, well over 1,000 studies… point to a causal connection between media violence and aggressive behavior in some children.”
Freedom-of-speech advocates accused the societies of catering to politicians, and even disputed the number of studies (most were review articles and essays, they said). When Jonathan Freedman, a social psychologist at the University of Toronto, reviewed the literature, he found only 200 or so studies of television-watching and aggression. And when he weeded out “the most doubtful measures of aggression”, only 28% supported a connection.
The critical point here is causality. The alarmists say they have proved that violent media cause aggression. But the assumptions behind their observations need to be examined. When labeling games as violent or non-violent, should a hero eating a ghost really be counted as a violent event? And when experimenters record the time it takes game players to read “aggressive” or “non-aggressive” words from a list, can we be sure what they are actually measuring? The intention of the new Harvard Center on Media and Child Health to collect and standardize studies of media violence in order to compare their methodologies, assumptions and conclusions is an important step in the right direction.
Another appropriate step would be to tone down the criticism until we know more. Several researchers write, speak and testify quite a lot on the threat posed by violence in the media. That is, of course, their privilege. But when doing so, they often come out with statements that the matter has now been settled, drawing criticism from colleagues. In response, the alarmists accuse critics and news reporters of being deceived by the entertainment industry. Such clashes help neither science nor society.
小題1:Why is there so much violence shown in movies, TV and video games?

A．Showing violence is thought to be entertaining.

B．Something has gone wrong with today’s society

C．Many people are fond of gunplay and bloodshed.

D．There is a lot of violence in the real world today.

小題2:What is the skeptics’ view of media violence?

A．Violence on television is fairly accurate reflection of real-world life.

B．Most studies exaggerate (夸大) the effect of media violence on the viewers.

C．A causal relationship exists between media and real-world violence.

D．The influence of media violence on children has been underestimated.

小題3:The author uses the term “alarmists” to refer to those who _________.

A．use standardized measurements in the studies of media violence

B．initiated the debate over the influence of violent media on reality

C．insist on a direct link between violent media and aggressive behavior

D．use appropriate methodology in examining aggressive behavior

小題4:The underlined phrase “weeded out” in Paragraph 3 most probably means _________.

A．got rid of things that are not good	B．removed unwanted parts from something
C．picked out things that are useful	D．took away unnecessary details of a report

小題5:What does the writer think of the debate concerning the relationship between the media and violence?

A．He more than agrees with the views held by the alarmists.

B．It should come to an end since the matter has now been settled.

C．The past studies in this field have proved to be misleading.

D．More studies should be conducted before conclusions are drawn.

NEW YORK- One in five U.S. workers regularly attends after-work drinks with coworkers, where the most common mishaps range from badmouthing another worker to drinking too much, according to a study released on Tuesday.
Most workers attend so-called happy hours to bond with colleagues, although 15 percent go to hear the latest office gossip and 13 percent go because they feel necessary, said the survey conducted for CareerBuilder.com, an online job site. As to what happens when the after-work drinks flow, 16 percent reported bad-mouthing a colleague, 10 percent shared a secret about a colleague and 8 percent said they drank too much and acted unprofessionally. Five percent said they had shared a secret about the company, and 4 percent confessed to singing karaoke. While 21 percent of those who attended said happy hours were good for networking, 85 percent said attending had not helped them get closer to someone higher up or get a better position. An equal number of men and women said they attended happy hours with co-workers, with younger workers aged 25 to 34 most likely and workers over 55 least likely to attend. Overall, 21 percent of workers attend happy hours with co-workers and; of those nearly a quarter go at least once a month.
The survey was conducted online by Harris Interactive on behalf of CareerBuilder.com among 6,987 full-time employees between February 11 and March 13. Harris Interactive said the results had a sampling error of plus or minus 1.2 percentage points.
56. Harris Interactive made the survey to find out ________.
A. how U.S. workers spend their after-work time
B. what U.S. workers do at after-work drinks
C. the relationships between U.S. workers
D. who are most likely to attend after-work drinks
57. ________ of workers who attend after-work drinks speak ill of a colleague.
A. 4 percent                        B. 8 percent                        C. 16 percent                    D. 10 percent    
58. According to the passage, most of those surveyed believed attending after-work drinks ________.
A. benefited them a lot                                                  B. could provide information
C. only made them relaxed                                           D. was of no help to them
59. We can learn from the text that _________.
A. workers over 55 don’t like to attend happy hours at all
B. about 75% of workers go more than once a month
C. 10.5% of male workers attend happy hours with co-workers
D. about 700 workers surveyed shared a secret about a co-worker
60. After the survey, it can be inferred that_________.
A. all the workers oppose after-work drinks
B. the workers may change their attitudes towards after-work drinks
C. all the workers support after-work drinks
D. all the workers are suggested going to attend after-work drinks

Money, or the lack of it, changes everything, and that includes how people will be working out in 2010.
In these belt-tightening times  1 , cost-conscious workouts（鍛煉）at home and at the gym topped the list of fitness trends for this year in a survey, followed  2  by shorter, more time-efficient regimens, such as  3  boot camp（強(qiáng)力集中訓(xùn)練） and circuit training.
"People are looking  4  for ways to accomplish as much as possible with as little  5  time and money as necessary," said Cedric X. Bryant, chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise (ACE), which conducted the online poll of fitness professionals.
"Last year money was on the list but this  6  year the majority of the respondents put  7  it as one of the top," he added.
Bryant said some 600 ACE-certified fitness  8  professionals responded to the annual poll  9 , which the non-profit organization has been conducting for a decade.
Other money-saving measures  10 , such as the shift from personal training sessions to small group training  11  classes and in-home workouts  12  using smaller, more portable equipment, also made the list.
"Personal trainers are seeing they've got to respond to market needs  13  . Working with two to four clients at a  14  time they can charge less  15  but still get their hourly fee," Bryant said.
Boot-camp workouts and circuit training, both of which burn  16  calories while building strength and endurance（持久性）, will be among the most popular trends in 2010, as time-constrained（受壓制的） consumers  17  seek shorter, more intense activities.
One bright spot is the rise of exergaming-type systems, like Nintendo's Wii Sports, Wii Fit and the PC-based Dancetown. Bryant says the fitness-based video games are turning up  18  in health clubs and senior centers.
Functional training workouts, which are geared to improving the quality of life and the ability to perform everyday tasks, will remain strong  19 , and the use of computerized tracking and online training and scheduling tools will increase  20  in the coming year.
(   ) 1. A. times           B. years            C. centuries        D. societies
(   ) 2. A. caught          B. followed         C. covered      D. conducted
(   ) 3. A. such like       B. in other words   C. such as      D. that is to say
(   ) 4. A. taking          B. developing   C. opening      D. looking
(   ) 5. A. little          B. much             C. many             D. few
(   ) 6. A. that            B. next             C. this             D. previous
(   ) 7. A. manage      B. put         C. try          D. organize
(   ) 8. A. medicine        B. train           C. economy      D. fitness
(   ) 9. A. poll            B. conference   C. observation D. reception
(   ) 10. A. measures       B. procedures   C. policies         D. systems
(   ) 11. A. speaking       B. training         C. exercising       D. processing
(   ) 12. A. work         B. workouts         C. rest             D. race
(   ) 13. A. changes        B. prices       C. needs            D. habits
(   ) 14. A. some           B. no           C. any          D. a
(   ) 15. A. less           B. fewer            C. more             D. much
(   ) 16. A. produce        B. burn             C. cut          D. add
(   ) 17. A. professionals B. students         C. consumers        D. trainers
(   ) 18. A. turning up         B. turning down     C. turning around   D. turning out
(   ) 19. A. weak           B. useful       C. strong       D. possible
(   ) 20. A. decrease       B. appear       C. increase         D. want

1. Summer came early to Middlesbrough yesterday, as temperatures shot up to 22°C (71°F), a record for March. But local NFU agent Jim Wilkes says it could be bad news for farmers. “The crops will think it's summer,” he told our reporter, “and start sprouting (發(fā)芽) four weeks before time.”
2. The death toll (死亡人數(shù)) of the Burnside train crash rose to four yesterday when John Phillips, 32, of Petersville died in Wallsend Hospital. Another six people are still on the danger list. Mr. Phillips, an electrical engineer leaves a wife and two children.
3. China and the United States reached an agreement on the protection of intellectual property rights (知識(shí)產(chǎn)權(quán)) yesterday, after difficult marathon talks.
The agreement is good news for all parties concerned. The Chinese Foreign Trade Minister described the agreement as a "turning point" in Sino-US trade relations that "promises further progress" in the future. The agreement will not only favorably influence trade relations between China and the United States. It may favorably influence the overall relations between the two countries.
小題1:What do you get to know from article 1?

A．It is as cold as usual in Middlesbrough, and the farmers are pleased.

B．It is hotter than usual in Middlesbrough, and the farmers are pleased.

C．It is hotter than usual in Middlesbrough, and the farmers are worried.

D．It is colder than usual in Middlesbrough, and the farmers are worried.

小題2:How many people have died in the train crash in article 2 ?

A．Only John Phillips has died.

B．Ten people have died in the crash, including John Phillips.

C．Four people have died in the crash, including John Phillips.

D．John Phillips, his wife and children all died in the crash.

小題3:Who are on the danger list?

A．Petersville and Wallsend.	B．An electrical engineer and John Phillips.
C．John Phillips' wife and two children.	D．Another six people who were on the train.

小題4:What agreement did China and the United States reach in article 3?

A．It is an agreement on a marathon race.

B．It is an agreement on trade relations.

C．It is an agreement on overall relations.

D．It is an agreement on intellectual property rights protection.

小題5:What are relations going to be like between China and the United States?

A．Relations between China and the United States are going to be sometimes worse and sometimes better.

B．Relations between China and the United States are going to be better.

C．Relations between China and the United States are going to be worse.

D．Relations between China and the United States are going to remain the same.

Section B (10 points)
Directions: Read the following passage. Answer the questions according to the information given in the passage and required words limit
What is eBay? The simple answer is that it is a global trading platform where nearly anyone can trade practically anything. People can sell and buy all kinds of products and goods. Including cars, movies and DVDs, sporting goods, travel tickets, musical instruments, clothes and shoes---the list goes on and on.
The idea came from Peter Omidyar, who was born in Paris and moved to Washington when he was still a child, at high school,he became very interested in computer programming and after graduating from Tuft University in 1988, He worked for the next few years as a computer engineer. In his free time he started Bay as a kind of hobby, at first offering the service free by word of mouth. By 1996 there was so much traffic on the website that he had to upgrade and he began charging a fee to members. Joined by a friend, Peter Skill, and in 1998 by his capable CEO, Meg Whitman, he has never looked back. Even in the great.com crashes of the late 1990s, eBay has gone from strength to strength. It is now one of the ten most visited online shopping websites on the Internet.
EBay sells connections, not goods, putting buyer and seller into contact with each other. All you have to do is to take an e-photo, write a description, fill out a sales form and you are in business; the world is your market place. Of course for each item sold eBay gets a percentage and that is a great deal of money. Every day there are more than sixteen million items listed on eBay and eighty percent of the items are sold.
小題1:According to the passage, what is eBay? (no more than 6 words)
小題2:How does eBay make money from its website? (no more than 10 words)
小題3: From the underlined sentence “he has never looked back”, what can we learn about Peter? (no more than 11 words)
小題4: What do you need to do if you want to start your business on eBay? (no more than 14 words)

This is the age of the quick action. We have instant satisfaction, fast food, speed reading, mobile phones; even the stress management books have titles like “Stress Management in 60 Seconds”.
Canadian Classics Professor Margaret Visser points out that the perception that we have “no time” is one of the most strict concepts of Western culture. Visser says that “no time” is used as an excuse and also as a spur(刺激); it both stimulates us and forces us, just as a concept such as ‘honour’ did for the ancient Greeks. According to Visser, the feeling that Westerners have “no time” is abstract, quantitative, amoral(非道德性的), unarguable, bringing pressure on each person as an individual. At the same time, the “no time” excuse escapes censure by claiming to be a condition created entirely out of our good fortune.
Life offers “so many pleasures, so many choices”.
The fact that women now work outside the home has contributed to the “no time” trend. But more important, Visser says, is the fact that feeling rushed has become an important component(成分) of our economy. Marketing of “time-saving” products causes people to buy more and work longer. So we eat out or buy prepared food to save time. The fax-it-to-my-car technology only contributes to the constant hurry. In our rushed and exhausted state, even the obligation(義務(wù)) to sit down to casual meal with family seems like a pressure. In comparison with the decision to act on a sudden whimz (一時(shí)的興致) to consume a microwave mug of soup， the act of eating together and not getting up from the table until everyone else has finished seems an incredibly time-consuming event. Being in one’s own personal hurry in the West is somehow “free and preferable”
小題1:The word “censure” in the second paragraph is closest in meaning to “            ”

A．examination

B．force

C．blame

D．pressure

小題2:Which of the following doesn’t contribute to feeling rushed?

A．Marketing of time-saving products.

B．The fax-it-to-me-car technology.

C．Eating together and not getting up until everybody has finished

D．Longer working hours.

小題3:We can learn from the passage that “no time” trend ___________.

A．brings pressure on the individual

B．is very desirable to the individual

C．is not harmful if you have no control of events

D．has caused heart diseases and psychological problems

A bully(欺凌弱小的人) is a boy or a girl who acts mean (unkind) or hurtful to others, especially weaker persons bullies sometimes hit, kick, or push people, and they sometimes use words to call names or scare them. A bully might say mean things about someone, take a kid’s possessions or make fun of someone on purpose. Some bullies force people to do things they don’t want to do.
Why do bullies act so badly? Just to look for attention. They might think bullying is a way to be popular or a way to get what they want. Most bullies are trying to make themselves felt more important-when they pick on someone else, it makes them fell big and powerful. Some bullies come from families where everyone around has a normal way to act. Some bullies are copying what they’ve seen someone else do. Some have been bullied themselves.
Bullying can be a big pain, but you don’t have to let bullying get the best of you. Sometimes just acting bravely is enough to stop a bully. If you walk by and hold your head high as though you’re not afraid, a bully may be less likely to give you trouble. Bullies want a big reaction to their meanness. Acting as if you don’t notice and don’t care is like giving no reaction at all, and this just might stop a bully’s behavior. If you are being bullied, it’s very important to tell an adult. Teachers, principals, parents, and lunchroom helpers at school can all help to stop bullying. Don’t hit, kick, or push back to deal with someone bullying you or your friends. Fighting back just satisfies a bully, and it’s dangerous, too, because someone could get hurt.
小題1:Which of the following is advisable if you are being bullied?

A．Giving the bullies a satisfactory reaction.

B．Putting up with the bullies’ behavior.

C．Turning to grown-ups for help.

D．Acting bravely and fight back.

小題2:According to the writer, the bullies’ purpose of bullying others is to ____________.

A．find people to take care of them	B．shout and let out their anger
C．make people notice them	D．show their ability

小題3:The underlined phrase “get the best of” in paragraph 3 means __________.

A．get rid of	B．look down upon
C．do one’s best	D．get the upper hand of

小題4:What might be the best title for this passage?

A．Bullying those who bully	B．Getting the best of bullies
C．Dealing with bullies	D．Caring about bullying

nickname is a shortened form of a person's name. A nickname also can be a descriptive name for a person, place or thing. Many American cities have nicknames. These can help establish an identity, spread pride among citizens and build unity.
A few years ago, some marketing and advertising experts were asked to name the best nickname for an American city. The winner was the nation's largest city, New York. The top nickname was The Big Apple.
You might wonder how New York got this nickname. In the early nineteen seventies, the city had many problems. The number of visitors was falling. So a campaign was launched to give the city a new image. The head of the New York Conventions and Visitors Bureau decided to call the city, The Big Apple.
There are several explanations for where this name came from. Language expert Barry Popik studied the question and wrote about it on his Web site. He says John Fitz Gerald, a writer for a New York newspaper, used the name The Big Apple to mean New York in the nineteen twenties. Mister Fitz Gerald wrote about horse races. He heard the name used by men who worked at a racetrack in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Mister Fitz Gerald wrote: "The Big Apple. The dream of every lad that ever threw a leg over a thoroughbred and the goal of all horsemen. There's only one Big Apple. That's New York."
In horse racing, the expression meant "the big time," the place where large amounts of money could be won. The Big Apple became the name of a night club in the Harlem area of New York City in nineteen thirty-four. It also was the name of a popular dance and a hit song in the nineteen thirties.
But it is not the only nickname for America's largest city. Barry Popik's web site lists almost one hundred nicknames that describe New York. The best known are The Capital of the World. Empire City. Gotham. The City So Nice They Named it Twice. And, The City That Never Sleeps. You can hear about the city in the song, "New York, New York," by Frank Sinatra.
小題1:Why do many American cities have nicknames?（回答詞數(shù)不超過(guò)15個(gè)）
小題2:What did John Fitz Gerald write about for the New York newspaper?（回答詞數(shù)不超過(guò)5個(gè)）
小題3:Besides “The Big Apple”, how many best known nicknames that describe New York are listed according to Barry Popik's web site?（回答詞數(shù)不超過(guò)2個(gè)）

The food we eat seems to have great effects on our health. Although science has made great steps in making food more fit to eat, it has, at the same time, made many foods unfit to eat. Some research has shown that perhaps eighty percent of all human illnesses are related to diet and forty percent of cancer is related to diet as well. Different cultures are subject to certain illnesses because of the food that is characteristic in these cultures. That food is related to illness is not a new discovery.
In 1945, government researchers realized that nitrates(硝酸鹽) and nitrites(亞硝酸鹽), commonly used to keep color in meats, and other food additives, caused cancer. Yet, these additives remain in our food, and it becomes more difficult all the time to know which things on the packaging labels(標(biāo)簽) of processed food are helpful or harmful. The additives which we eat are not all so direct. Farmers often give penicillin to cows and chick and because of this, penicillin has been found in the milk of treated cows.
Sometimes similar drugs are given to animals not for medicinal purposes, but for financial reasons. The farmers are simply trying to fatten the animals in order to get a higher price on the market. Although the FDA has tried repeatedly to control these, the practices continue.
小題1:How has science done a bad service to mankind?

A．Diseases caused by food have been done away with.

B．It has caused a lack of information about the value of food.

C．Some harmful materials have been added to our food.

D．Scientists have made food more expensive to eat.

小題2:What are nitrates used for?

A．They help process packaged food.

B．They keep the color in meats.

C．They cure diseases of cows and chickens.

D．They cause the animals to become fatter.

小題3:Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．You can find out harmful additives on the packaging labels of food.

B．Drugs given to animals are not all for medical reasons.

C．Researchers knew about the harm of food additives about 60 years ago.

D．Food may cause forty percent of cancer in the world.

小題4:According to the passage, the FDA might be _________.

A．a(chǎn)n organization which controls the safety of food

B．a(chǎn) producer which makes additives

C．a(chǎn) factory which processes food

D．a(chǎn) hospital which cures cancer

閱讀下面短文，掌握其大意，然后從36—55各題所給的四個(gè)選項(xiàng)（A、B、C、D）中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在答題卡上將該項(xiàng)涂黑。（共20小題；每小題1.5分，滿分30）
Have you just been fired? Don’t worry. Cheer yourself up and send your  36  . Perhaps another much better opportunity is awaiting you.  37   sometimes you don’t realize it, you are asking to be fired.
Dan Zawacki was a happy camper, selling computers for Honeywell. One holiday he was  38  creative gifts and then a good idea  39 him---- selling dinner live lobsters(龍蝦) to his favorite customers. He  40  them himself with butter and put them in the trunk of his car between the computers and started delivering. It was a huge  41 . As a result, one of his customers   42  they go into the lobster business together. Dan laughed. Still, this landlocked computer salesman 43  get the idea of lobsters out of his  44  . Why not turn this into a hobby and  45  a few extra dollar? While on a job assignment in Chicago, he  46  a local radio station to give him a few ads in 47 for lobster. Unfortunately, his boss’s boss heard his prize salesman 48  lobster, not computers. No surprised. Dan was let go. After  49  the company’s car, he started to think maybe this was a  50 . Playing with his phone that night, Dan tried dialing 1-800-LIVE-LOB. The number was   51  , and Dan the lobsterman was born. Today, 20 years later, Dan is still selling dinners, through his company, Lobster Gram. And he couldn’t be  52 .
Many of the fired people found ways back to fulfilling   53  and learned the pain and humiliation(羞辱) are 54  . So do not be afraid to move  55   and try your wings. Gather your support system. Persevere! Firing doesn’t mean your life is over. It might turn out to be the best thing that ever happened to you.
36. A. dreams          B. wings               C. needs           D. minds
37. A. Because         B. When                C. Though          D. If
38. A. searching for   B. making up           C. giving away     D. thinking up
39. A. came about      B. took place          C. went on         D. came to
40. A. packaged        B. sold                C. tied            D. placed
41. A. matter          B. business            C. failure         D. success
42. A.said             B. thought             C. suggested       D. hoped
43. A. couldn’t       B. mustn’t            C. shouldn’t      D. wouldn’t
44. A. heart           B. mind                C. head            D. hand 
45. A. make            B. get                 C. gather          D. spend
46. A. permitted       B. hoped               C. persuaded       D. suggested
47. A. change         B. exchange            C. place           D. need
48. A. hunting         B. seeking             C. collecting      D. selling
49. A. selling     B. paying              C. returning       D. using
50. A. thing       B. sign                C. pity            D. please
51. A.wrong        B. right               C. free            D. available
52. A. happier     B. worse               C. lower           D. higher
53. A. jobs        B. wishes              C. careers         D. promises
54. A. short       B.long                C. forever         D. temporary（臨時(shí)）
55. A. back        B. on                  C. in              D. away