Let's face it. No one drinks diet sodas for the taste. People drink diet sodas in the hope that it will help them lose weight or at least keep them from gaining it. Yet it seems to have exactly the opposite effect, according to a new study.

Researchers from the University of Texas said those who drank two or more diet sodas a day had waist size increases that were six times greater than those who didn't drink diet sodas. “What we saw was that the more diet sodas a person drank, the more weight they were likely to gain,” said Sharon Fowler.

The study was based on data from 474 participants in a large, ongoing research project, where the participants were followed for nearly 10 years.

While the findings are surprising，they also offer some explanations.

Nutrition expert, Melanie Rogers, who works with overweight patients in New York, has found that when patients are switched from regular to diet sodas, they don't lose weight at all. “We weren't seeing weight loss necessarily, and that was confusing to us,” said Rogers.

So why would diet soda cause weight gain? No one knows for sure yet，but it could be that people think they can eat more if they drink diet sodas, and so over－compensate(彌補(bǔ)) for the missing calories.

A related study found some sweeteners (甜味劑) raised blood sugar levels in some mice. “Data from this and other potential studies suggest that the promotion of diet sodas and artificial sweeteners may be risky,” said Helen P. Hazuda, professor at School of Medicine of the University of Texas. “They may be free of calories, but not of consequences.”

1.People drink diet sodas to________.

A. enjoy its taste B. stay in fashion

C. achieve weight loss D. gain more energy

2.We can learn from the passage that________.

A. regular sodas make people lose more weight

B. diet soda drinkers tend to eat more food

C. diet sodas do help reduce calories

D. most blood diseases come from diet sodas

3.The underlined word “They” in the last paragraph probably refers to“________”.

A. sweeteners

B. diet sodas and artificial sweeteners

C. sodas

D. diet soda drinkers and sweetener takers

根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容，從短文后的選項(xiàng)中選出能填入空白處的最佳選項(xiàng)。選項(xiàng)中有兩項(xiàng)為多余選項(xiàng)。（溫馨提示：E=AB, F=AC, G=AD）

How to Make Friends

Friendship is a very important human relationship and everyone needs good friends. Good friendship has many benefits. It offers companionship, improves self-worth and promotes good health. There are times in our lives such as when we have recently moved into a new town or changed our jobs or schools. Such changes often leave us without a friend. Making new friends comes easy for some people. But for many of us the process is difficult and requires courage. Below are some helpful suggestions on how to make and keep friends.

*Associate with others.

_1.You can go to public places to meet new people. Besides, you will need to make yourself known by becoming an active member of such places.

*Start a conversation is the second most important step in making new friends. 2. You can always start the conversation, Being able to make small talk is a very useful skill in relating with other people.

* 3.

Choosing friends with common interests is important in building friendship as these interests would always bring you and your friend together. Hanging out will always be a pleasant experience.

*Let it grow.

It is a good thing to stay in touch. However, try not to press your new friend with calls, messages or visits as this would likely wear him or her out and finally you may lose your friend._ 4. The best friendships are the ones that grow naturally.

*Enjoy your friendship.

The best way to enjoy your friendship is to allow your friends to be themselves._ 5._Try not to change them from who they are to what you want them to be. Become the kind of friend you will want your friend to be to you.

A. Do things together.

B. Try not to find fault with your friends.

C. So you will need to give your friend time to keep in touch with you.

D. The first step to make friends is associating with other people.

E. Be cheerful.

F. For a friendship to develop you need to stay in touch.

G. Do not wait to be spoken to.

完形填空

閱讀下面短文，掌握其大意，從每題所給的A、B、C、D四個選項(xiàng)中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在答題卡上將該項(xiàng)涂黑。

Born in 1963 in Sierra Visa, Arizona, USA, Jessica learned to live her life with her feet. Born without arms, she faced many _________ .

There were many questions at the time about whether Jessica would be able to live a “ _________ ” life. However, Jessica’s father said he _________ had a tear about her birth condition. He had full confidence in her potential.

With the _________of her parents and family, Jessica became confident in herself as an adult and continued to _________ the world with her feet.

As a child, Jessica studied dance in her hometown. When her first _________ arrived, she asked to be put in the back row. Her dance teacher told her there was no_________ row.

Tentatively she took the stage with the other students and performed her _________ . When she finished, the applause from the audience gave her encouragement and _________to continue dancing for 14 years. _________, Jessica earned her first Black Belt in the International Taekwondo Federation at the age of 14.

After _________ from high school, Jessica attended the University of Arizona _________ she earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology. When talking about her degree, she frequently _________ that psychology(心理) trusts the way people think has a greater _________on their lives than a physical limitation.

Jessica’s most famous accomplishment was learning how to _________ . It took three states, four airplanes, two flight instructors and a discouraging year to _________ the right aircraft: a 1946 415C Ercoupe Airplane. She _________ the Guinness World Record _________ being the first person certified to fly an airplane with only her feet.

Jessica now _________ a motivational speaker. She travels the world sharing her story and _________ people to be creative and innovative.

1.A. challenges B. trouble C. advantages D. influences

2.A. simple B. special C. normal D. unusual

3.A. frequently B. never C. ever D. certainly

4.A. argument B. understanding C. opposition D. support

5.A. decorate B. explore C. explode D. fight

6.A. performance B. image C. exhibition D. appearance

7.A. back B. front C. side D. middle

8.A. line B. emotion C. dance D. behaviour

9.A. patience B. sorrow C. doubt D. confidence

10.A. Unfortunately B. Delightedly C. Disappointedly D. Hopefully

11.A. admitting B. entering C. graduating D. settling

12.A. which B. when C. what D. where

13.A. dreamed B. ignored C. explained D. refused

14.A. symbol B. frustration C. evidence D. effect

15.A. board B. fly C. seat D. launch

16.A. find B. lose C. cancel D. look

17.A. experienced B. scheduled C. received D. praised

18.A. for B. against C. beyond D. within

19.A. describes as B. considers as C. treats as D. works as

20.A. amazing B. encouraging C. enjoying D. surprising

閱讀下面對話，在空白處填入適當(dāng)?shù)膬?nèi)容（只限一個單詞）或括號內(nèi)單詞的正確形式。

W: Hi，dad! Come over here! Be quick!

M: Yes? What for?

W: There’s a football match 1.______TV. Hurry up, dad?

M: Yes, I’m coming.

W: Let’s turn_2.______ the TV a little so that we won’t bother our neighbors. It’s too late now.

M: Yes. Ah, what time is it now?

W: Let me have a look first. Er. It’s half past eleven by 3._______ (I) watch.

M: Eleven thirty? I think 4._____is high time that you went to bed now, Rose.

W: But the football match is so exciting! I enjoy5._______(watch) football matches just like you. I don’t want to miss such 6._____exciting game.

M: You will be late for school if you stay up too late watching TV. Furthermore, if you get to school late, you 7._____(punish) by your teacher tomorrow. Therefore, you’d better go to bed 8.________(immediate) and take a good sleep.

W: No, I won’t , dad. I will turn on my alarm clock , and it will wake me 9._________ at the right time.

M: But it doesn’t do if you don’t take enough sleep. That will be too10.________(harm) to your health.

W: Never mind, dad. I will go to sleep at twelve sharp.

單詞拼寫

1.The diet in Wang Peng’s restaurant has ________(優(yōu)點(diǎn))and weaknesses.

2.In the USA, Columbus Day is in memory of the _______ (到達(dá)) of Christopher Columbus in the new world.

3.China and Japan have mid-autumn festivals, when people _______ (欣賞) the moon and in China, enjoy the mooncakes.

4.When we met again, he _________ (道歉) to me for not having kept his word and asked me to forgive him.

5.It is ______ (明顯的) that he was trying to hold his breath.

6.What will happen to you if you don’t eat a _______ (平衡的) diet.

7.In the lab, don’t touch anything without your teacher’s__________(允許).

8.Experts say eating carrots ________ (有益于) your eyes.

9.It doesn’t seem ugly to me; on the _______(相反的), I think it’s rather beautiful.

10.My father and I ________ (漫步) around the path enjoying the spring sun last weekend.

短文改錯

假定英語課上老師要求同桌中間交換修改作文，請你修改你同桌寫的以下作文。文中共有10處語言錯誤 ，每處錯誤僅涉及一個單詞的增加、刪除增加：在缺詞處加一個漏字符號（^），并在其下面寫出該加的詞。

刪除：把多余的詞用斜線（\）劃掉。

修改：在錯的詞下劃一個橫線，并在該詞下面寫出修改后的詞。

或修改。

注意：1. 每處錯誤及其修改均僅限一詞；

2. 只允許修改10處，多者（從第11處起）不計分。

On February last year, my teacher told us about the city speech contest, which topic was “People who have overcome difficulties in their lives”. I thought of my grandma would be my perfect topic. Then I carefully prepared for contest. A couple of weeks later, after the first round I was choosing to be one of the seven finalists! The final was held soon. I was the sixth to present the speech. How a relief when I finished it! After the last person finished, the judge made their final decisions and announced that I have won first prize. The audience were clapping and cheering wild! I was extremely happy. It was such exciting a moment!

英國Warwickshire學(xué)校將組織學(xué)生來你校交流學(xué)習(xí)中文。經(jīng)安排，Tracy住在你家。假設(shè)你是李華，請你給Tracy寫封電子郵件，介紹她來中國后的有關(guān)事宜，信的要點(diǎn)如下：

★表達(dá)歡迎；

★生活安排：食宿，交通；

★漢語學(xué)習(xí)：每周一至周五，每天四節(jié)課；

★課外活動：文體活動，社會實(shí)踐活動。

要求：100字左右；可適當(dāng)增加細(xì)節(jié)，使行文連貫。

完型填空

閱讀下面短文，從短文后各題所給四個選項(xiàng)（A、B、C和D）中，選出可以填入空白處的最佳選項(xiàng)，并在答題卡上將該項(xiàng)涂黑。

Suddenly my mobile phone rang. “Where are you?” the urgent voice demanded on my phone.

The woman on the other end of the phone had news—news that would change my life forever. Apparently my was on his way home at lunchtime he suffered an unexpected heart attack. a neighbor’s sharp eyes had spotted him. By now it was after 1pm and Ueli was on his way to the nearest hospital. It turned out that, a huge effort by a large team of medical staff, nine hours after the , Ueli, the father of two of my sons, died.

But Ueli’s story didn’t there. Ever since I met him, he had that, should he die before me, I must ensure that if it were possible his would be donated. So on that awful night I the medical staff to help make his wishes . Once the were made, I thought that I had honored Ueli’s final act of selflessness and would hear no more of it.

Some time later, , I received a letter telling me that the corneas(角膜) had been successfully transplanted into the eyes of two young women who would benefit greatly from improved vision. What a it was to know that this generous man’s would have such a positive impact on these women. But the best news was to come. More than a year after Ueli died, a lovely card arrived in the mail from the organ donor organization, me that a young man who may not have lived much longer had successfully Ueli’s heart valve(心瓣膜).

What happiness I have! I know Ueli would have been extremely to have had a part in this young man’s life and ensuring that he would now pursue his own dreams with much improved health. Now I can forever say, “Rest in peace, Ueli; you’ll be remembered—even by strangers.”

1.A．strange B．exciting C．different D．terrible

2.A．brother B．father C．husband D．son

3.A．when B．while C．a(chǎn)fter D．since

4.A．Interestingly B．Luckily C．Urgently D．Nervously

5.A．instead of B．due to C．in spite of D．except for

6.A．donation B．drive C．a(chǎn)ttack D．a(chǎn)ccident

7.A．work B．change C．happen D．end

8.A．decided B．predicted C．realized D．remembered

9.A．blood B．clothes C．money D．organs

10.A．challenged B．a(chǎn)sked C．a(chǎn)dvised D．a(chǎn)llowed

11.A．come about B．come true C．come across D．come out

12.A．a(chǎn)rrangements B．experiments C．suggestions D．promises

13.A．therefore B．besides C．a(chǎn)nyhow D．however

14.A．surprise B．wealth C．delight D．regret

15.A．wishes B．plans C．rules D．tips

16.A．just B．soon C．a(chǎn)lready D．yet

17.A． informing B．teaching C．suggesting D．encouraging

18.A．protected B．received C．liked D．a(chǎn)ccepted

19.A．a(chǎn)nxious B．patient C．proud D．calm

20.A．saving B．controlling C．a(chǎn)ffecting D．completing

Some people make art with paint, and others use pencil or clay. However, Jean Shin makes sculptures that change everyday objects into thoughtful and beautiful works of art. Shin makes art from broken umbrellas, old clothing or computer parts. Her show “Common Threads” is currently at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C.

One of the first works in the “Common Threads” exhibit looks like glowing orange cave formations coming out of the floor and ceiling. If you move closer to the sculptures, you realize they are made up of thousands of carefully stacked small plastic bottles for storing medicines.

Jean Shin made this work, Chemical Balance, by gathering the bottles from friends, family and retirement communities. Like much of Shin’s art, this work is both about individuals and large groups of people. Each personal object once belonged to an individual. But it takes a large community of such individuals to make Shin’s art possible.

Chance City is made up of more than thirty-two thousand dollars worth of old lottery tickets. People buy tickets in hopes of winning large amounts of money. Shin collected the tickets in New York City and Washington, D.C. over a period of three years. The small pieces of paper are carefully stacked to create buildings. The sculptures were made using no supports, so they could fall over at any time. The work makes a statement about the unsure nature of money and chance.

Jean Shin was born in 1971 in the Republic of Korea. Her parents moved to the United States when she was six years old. Shin studied art at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. She has chosen to make art that takes a long time to create. She says this is because her parents taught her about the value of hard work.

Other works in “Common Threads” include TEXTile. It is a piece of flowing fabric covered with thousands of old computer keys. Visitors can add to the work by typing their own message.

Shin’s latest work is called Everyday Monuments. It is made of almost 2,000 sports awards called trophies(獎品). The trophies showed people doing sports like baseball, tennis or bowling. Shin changed the human forms on every trophy so that each is doing an everyday act like cleaning, driving or carrying shopping bags. The sculpture was influenced by many large monuments in Washington which honor important heroes. Jean Shin’s smaller monument celebrates the heroism of people in their everyday actions.

1.How many works made by Jean Shin are mentioned in the text?

A. 6. B. 5.

C. 4. D. 7.

2.It can be inferred from the text that Jean Shin’s works is _________.

A. dirty but beautiful

B. made from rubbish

C. environmental and meaningful

D. valuable and natural

3.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the text?

A. Jean Shin’s parents took a long time to teach her art.

B. Jean Shin created Chance City in hopes of winning large amounts of money.

C. Everyday Monuments was created to honor important heroes.

D. Visitors can participate in the creation of the work TEXTile.

4.Which of the following could be the best title of the text?

A. The life of Jean Shin

B. Jean Shin Makes Art from Everyday Objects

C. Sculptures Made by Jean Shin

D. Jean Shin’s Latest Work

Recently there has been a discussion on a website about “what would you miss most and least if you were stuck on a desert island?”

Here are some of the answers:

Post 1

Steve USA—Hi, everyone. What would you miss most and least if you were stuck on a desert island? For me, it would be the changing seasons in New England. I guess this will sound stupid but I'd probably miss the rain, too. I wouldn't miss getting up at six every day to go to work, though! What about you?

Post 2

Tomas Germany—Good question. Steve, I think I'd miss different types of bread, and shopping at the supermarket. I'd miss the food most. What would I miss least? My mobile phone—I'd like to be completely quiet—at least for a little while.

Post 3

Paola Italy—I would miss the company of people because I know I'd like to have someone to share experiences with. I'd go mad on my own. And I sure wouldn't miss junk mail—I hate coming home every evening and a pile of junk mail in my post box.

Post 4

Miko Japan—Hi, I would miss Manga cartoon, the Internet and Japanese food, like sushi. I'd also miss TV shows and shopping for clothes… In fact, I'd miss everything.

Post 5

Roger UK—I would miss my daily newspaper and listening to the news on TV and radio. I'd feel very cut off if I didn't know what was happening in the world. What I'd miss least would be traffic jams in the city, particularly my journey to work.

Post 6

Jayne Russia—Why hasn't anyone mentioned their family? I'd be lost without my husband and two kids. They're the most important for me. And I can't get started in the morning without a cup of black coffee. I wouldn't miss doing the housework!

Post 7

Jaime Mexico—It would have to be music. I couldn't live without my music. I wouldn't miss going to school at all or doing homework!

1.Who would miss his or her family most?

A. Jayne B. Jaime

C. Miko. D. Paola.

2.Which of the following people would feel most uncomfortable without the news media?

A. Steve. B. Jaime.

C. Roger. D. Tomas.

3.We can infer that sushi is ______.

A. a kind of Japanese food

B. a Japanese cartoon

C. a black tea

D. a kind of bread