Water is very important to living things. Without water there can be no life on the earth. All animals
and plants need water. Man also needs water. We need water to drink, to cook our food and to clean
ourselves. Water is needed in offices, factories and schools. Water is needed everywhere.
      There is water in seas, rivers and lakes. Water is found almost everywhere. Even in the desert part
of the world, there is some water in the air. You can not see or feel it when it is a part of the air. The
water in the seas, rivers and lakes is a liquid, the water in the air is a gas, and we call it water vapor (蒸氣).
      Clouds are made of water. They may be made of very small drops of water. They may also be made
of snow crystals(結(jié)晶體). Snow crystals are very small crystals of ice. Ice is frozen water. It is a solid.
There can be snow and ice everywhere in winter.
     Water may be a solid or a liquid or a gas. When it is a solid, it may be as hard as a stone. When it is
a liquid, you can drink it. When it is a gas, you can not see or feel it.

1. Where can we find water?

A. We can find water when it turns into vapor.
B. Water can be found almost everywhere.
C. We can see water in deserts here and there.
D. Water is only in seas and rivers.

2. We can drink water when it is____.

A. a liquid  
B. a solid  
C. in the air  
D. turned into ice

3. Clouds are made of

A. seas, rivers and lakes      
B. blocks of ice
C. very small drops of water or snow crystals
D. solid, liquid and gas

4. Water has three states(狀態(tài)). They are ____.

A. ice, snow and air    
B. solid, vapor, snow
C. drops of water, blocks of ice and crystals of water
D. solid, liquid and gas

     We know, painkillers in a tablet can make your headache go away, and antibiotic from a tube can
prevent your cuts from becoming infected. Can medicine come in chicken eggs? A team of scientists
from Scotland says "yes." They've kept some special chickens that lay eggs with disease-treating drugs
inside.
     These drugs are made of molecules called proteins. Animals make thousands of proteins-they're the
main ingredients(成分) in skin, hair, milk, and meat. Since animals can make proteins easily, they're
good animals for making protein drugs.
     Researchers have already made cows, sheep, and goats that pump out protein drugs in their milk.
But chickens are cheaper to take care of, need less room, and grow faster than these other animals.
"Those qualities could make chickens a better choice to become living drug factories." says Simon
Lillico of the Roslin Institute near Edinburgh, Scotland.
     Lillico and a team of researchers changed chickens' DNA-the code that tells cells how to make
proteins-so that the birds' cells made two protein drugs. One drug can treat skin cancer, and the other
treats a nerve disease called multiple sclerosis.
     The scientists changed the chickens' DNA so that the birds made these drugs only in their egg whites.
This protects the chickens' bodies from the drugs' possible harmful effects and makes it easy for scientists
to collect the drugs.
     These special chickens can pass on their drug-laying abilities to their chicks. So far, the Scottish
researchers have kept five generations of drug-producing chickens. But the scientists need to improve
these chickens. The chickens don't make enough drugs to treat people yet. Once the researchers perfect
their technique, you might eventually take your medicine from chicken eggs.

1. What is the best title of the passage?

A. Animals and Protein Drugs.
B. Medicine Packaged in Various Forms.
C. A Scotland Scientist and His Chickens.
D.Chickens: a Better Choice of Living Drug Factories.

2. Which of the following is Not True according to the passage?

A. It takes much shorter time for chickens to grow than cows, sheep and goats.
B. Compared to cows, sheep and goats, chickens are less expensive to be raised.
C. Chickens can produce the best quality of drugs among the drug-producing animals.
D. Chickens are smaller in size than cows, sheep and goats and therefore need less room.

3. Why did the chickens make the drugs only in the egg whites?

A. Because it will help to collect the drugs easily.
B. Because it will not change the DNA of the chickens.
C. Because it will be easy for the patients to take the drugs.
D. Because it will prevent possible harmful effects on the patients.

4. What can be inferred from the passage?

A.Scottish researchers have kept five more drug-producing chickens.
B.This technique still needs improving so as to satisfy the normal application.
C.In the future people with diseases will take eggs instead of pills.
D.  The chicks need to be improved so as to carry the same ability as their parents.

     Nowadays everybody seems to think that they know English. Many people speak it but few speak it
really well. Practice is necessary in speaking English well.
      Reading is also one of the things that will help you to speak English better. Read whenever you can
and whatever you like! Read papers and Internet sites that you like in English every day. Then, you will
see that the number of known words is increasing and you are able to speak with more skills. Then you
will have made the foundations (基礎(chǔ)) and a good basis of English. It is not good to stop and get stuck
there.
     Going to England or an English - speaking country is a good choice, but many people cannot afford it.
If you cannot go, reading and speaking with your friends will also help you to practice your English.
However, I think it is very good to visit some English - speaking country to see and test you knowledge
in everyday life. You will understand the everyday usage of the language in its natural environment. There
your level of English is going to improve even faster. You ability to speak English is better. Nothing can
match the excitement and happiness when a native speaker tells you that your English is very good!
     Finally, in order to speak English well, you must be persistent (堅持的) and do it every day. It is like
playing the piano. Pianists play it every day and so should you. Include English in your life and you will
see where it is going. Practice, practice! Read, write and improve your language skills and you are on
you way when you will be able to speak it with more and more confidence!

1. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A. How to Improve Your Language Skills
B. How to Speak English Well
C. Speaking English
D. Practice, Practice!

2. What does the writer suggest about reading?

A. Trying to improve your vocabulary.
B. Keeping on reading when you have time.
C. Stopping when you have a good basis of English.
D. Looking up every unknown word when reading.

3. In the writer's eyes, the essential way to improve your speaking skills is _______.

A. practicing
B. going abroad
C. reading
D. writing

4. The main idea of the last paragraph is that ________.

A. we should play the piano every day
B. speaking English is fun and entertaining
C. we should practice English every day to improve our speaking skills
D. if we've learned to read and write, we'll certainly be able to speak

5. According to the passage, what may make the author excited?

A. Reading papers and Internet sites.
B. Having a good basis of English.
C. Going to an English - speaking country.
D. A native speaker's praise.

    Reading is very important to help you learn English. To learn as much as you can from reading, you
need to read different kinds of English. This book provides not only different kinds of English but also a
good way to check your reading ability.
   There are four parts in the book:
   Part 1 is Messages: In this part somebody wants to wad information in writing to somebody else. There
is a test on timetables and a test on text messages.
   Part 2 is People: In this part all the tests are about people. For example, there is an informal letter
between friends. There is formal ( 正式的) English in biography ( 傳記). There is a job application as
a model to help with your writing, as welt as testing your reading.
   Part 3 is Places: In this part, too many different kinds of English are shown, some informal and some
formal. There is the informal English of a holiday postcard. There is also the formal English in a letter of
complaint.
   Part 4 is Things: You will find some descriptive writing in this part. There are descriptions of clothes
and of a computer.
   You can do these tests in any order you like, or you can do alt the tests with a formal or informal text.
I enjoyed writing this book and I hope you enjoy using it,

1. We can find the introduction to a product in ______,

A. Part 1        
B. Part 2      
C. Part 3      
D. Part 4

2. Which of the following is most probably written in informal English? 

A. A letter of complaint.                  
B. A computer handbook. 
C. A letter to a friend.                    
D. A story of a president.

3. The passage is most probably written for _____. 

A. test designers    
B. students    
C. test-takers    
D. teachers

4. What is the best title of the book? 

A. Test Your Reading                
B. Help with Your Writing 
C. Learn Different Kinds a/English      
D. Practise English in Different Ways

     Nuclearpowered aircraft carriers are considered one of the most important marine weapons in the
20th century. So far, only two countries in the world, the USA and France, have ever produced them.
But these fearful fighting machines are about to enter Asia.
     The US Navy said last month that one of its nine nuclearpowered aircraft carriers will be sent to
Japan to replace the diesel(柴油)powered carrier Kitty Hawk in 2008. In an agreement on October
30, the two countries also planned to level up their military (軍事的) cooperation and the USA called
for Japan to take a larger role in alliance military moves.
      It will be the first time that a nuclearpowered carrier is based in Japan. Bombed by US forces in
World War ? at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan is the only world country to have been attacked by
a nuclear weapon. Therefore, the citizens are highly sensitive to where nuclearpowered weapons are
based.
      "A radiation leak at Yokosuka would kill 100,000 people as far away as Tokyo, and could cause
billions of dollars in damage, " said Masahiko Goto, leader of a protest group in Yokosuka. His group
has collected more than 300,000 signatures of people across Japan opposed to the nuclear carrier.
     The 44yearold Kitty Hawk, the US Navy's oldest active ship, has been based in Yokosuka since
1998. It had returned to the US to be decommissioned in 2008. The new carrier, yet to be unveiled,_
will travel faster, be capable of supporting longer operations and carry with it the Navy's most modern
technology.
     Experts pointed that this change is not only to strengthen the USJapan military alliance but also to
keep the military power of China and North Korea within limits. However, even Japanese experts don't
believe that the two countries are threats to the region.
     "There is no need for Japan to have a nuclear carrier as defense, " said Tetsuo Maeda, an
international relations professor at Tokyo International University. He said that the change of ship
indicates an increased military capability in the region, much more than what is needed.

1. With such a formidable weapon to enter its country, Japanese citizens ________.
A. are aware of its benefits to the country
B. are anxious about its potential danger
C. are curious about the advanced technology
D. are against where the carrier will be based

2. The replacement of the aircraft carrier is intended to________.
A. set up a kind of base in Japan
B. strengthen the USJapan military alliance
C. show Japan's greater military capability
D. get rid of the dated marine weapon

3. From the story, we learn that________.
A. no other countries except the USA and France possess aircraft carriers
B. Japan has long planned to increase its military capability with new weapons
C. Japan will be the first country in Asia to have a nuclear aircraft carrier
D. Japan will be the third country to produce a nuclearpowered aircraft carrier

4. The underlined word "unveiled" in the fifth paragraph probably means________.
A. perfected  
B. discussed about
C. produced  
D. brought to view

5. By his remark in the last paragraph, the professor means that________.
A. he is quite confident of their military defense
B. he is completely opposed to a new nuclear carrier
C. what is needed is far more than a nuclear carrier
D. it is unnecessary to guard against the two countries

     The poverty line is the minimum income that people need for an acceptable standard of living. People
with incomes below the poverty line are considered poor. Economists study the causes of poverty in
order to find solutions to the problem.
     As the general standard of living in the country rises, the poverty line does, too. Therefore, even with
today's relatively high standard of living, about 10 percent of the people in the United States are below
the poverty line.However, if these people had stable jobs, they could have an acceptable standard of
living. Economists suggest several reasons why poor people do not have jobs.
     For one thing, more than half of the poor people in the United States are not qualified to work. Over
40 percent of the poor people are children.By law, children less than 16 years old cannot work in many
industries. A large number of poor people are old. Many companies do not hire people over 65 years
old, the normal retirement age.
     Some poor adults do not look for jobs for a variety of personal reasons: they are sick, they do not
have any motivation, they have family problems, or they do not believe that they can find a job.
     Other poor people look for a job but cannot find one. Many poor adults never went to high school.
Therefore, when they look for jobs, they have few skills that they can offer.
     At the present time, the government thinks it can reduce poverty in the country in the following ways.
First, if the national economy grows, businesses and industries hire more workers.Some of the poor who
are qualified to look for jobs may find employment. Then they will no longer be below the poverty line.
Second, if society invests in the poor, the poor will become more productive.If the government spends
money on social programs, education, and training for poor people, the poor will have the skills to offer.
Then it is more likely that they can find jobs.
     Finally, if the government distributes society's income differently, it raises some poor people above
the poverty line. The government collects taxes from the non－poor and gives money to the poor. These
payments to the poor are called welfare. In 1975 over 18 million people in the United States received
welfare.
    Some economists are looking for better solutions to the poverty problem. However, at the present
time, many people depend on welfare for a minimally acceptable standard of living.

1. The author's main purpose to write this article is________.

A. to define what the poverty line is
B. to explain why some people live the poverty line
C. to find solutions to the problem of poverty
D. to show sympathy for those poor people

2. Which of the following is NOT true?

A. Ten percent of the Americans live a poor life.
B. Poor people are those who live below the poverty line.
C. The poverty line rises as the general standard of living rises.
D. The poverty line tends to be at the same level.

3. More than 40 percent of the poor people are children. This is mainly because________.

A. they do not have enough motivation
B. they are so young that they don’t have the right to work
C. they fail to get enough education
D. they are very poor in health

4. Most of the American poor people are not qualified for employment because________.

A. they do not have any motivation to work
B. they are not very self－confident
C. they are too young or too old to work
D. they have physical and family problems

5. We may concluded from the passage that________.

A. better solutions to the poverty problem are not yet found
B. welfare will enable them to be rich
C. poor people are sure to go out of the poverty line if they have chances to do business
D. employment is the best solution to the poverty problem