The number of speakers of English in Shakespeare's time is estimated(估計) to have been about five
million. Today it is estimated that some 260 million people speak it as a native language, mainly in the
United States, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. In addition to
thestandard varieties of English found in these areas, there are a great many regional and social varieties
of  the language as well as various levels of usage that are employed both in its spoken and written forms.
    In fact, it is impossible to estimate the number of people in the world who have acquired an adequate(足夠的) working knowledge of English in addition to their own languages. The purpose for English learning
and the situations in which such learning takes place are so varied that it is difficult to explain and still more difficult to judge what forms an adequate working knowledge for each situation.
     The main reason for the widespread demand for English is its presentday importance as a world
language. Besides serving the indefinite needs of its native speakers, English is a language in which some
of important works in science, technology, and other fields are being produced, and not always by native
speakers. It is widely used for such purposes as meteorological and airport communications, international
conferences, and the spread of information over the radio and television networks of many nations. It is a
language of wider communication for a number of developing countries, especially former British colonies. Many of these countries have multilingual populations and need a language for internal communication
in such matters as government,  commerce,  industry,  law and education  as  well  as for international
communication and for entrance to the scientific and technological developments in the West.

1．What would be the best title for this passage?

A．The Difficulties of Learning English
B．International Communications
C．The Standard Varieties of English
D．English as a World Language

2．Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．Some 260 million people in the world have an adequate working knowledge of English.
B．There are some 260 million native speakers of English in the world.
C．It is almost impossible to estimate the number of people with an adequate working knowledge of
English.
D．People learn English for a variety of reasons.

3．According to the passage, what is the main reason for the widespread use of English?

A．It was popular during Shakespeare's time.
B．It is used in former British colonies.
C．It serves the needs of its native speakers.
D．It is a world language that is used for international communication.

4．What forms an adequate working knowledge of English?

A．The ability to read a newspaper.
B．It is difficult to judge because it differs for each situation.
C．Being a multilingual.
D．Being a native speaker.

     The early 1900s were very different from today.Toys,though they have evolved in many ways,were
still the delight of children everywhere.
     Theodore Roosevelt's Presidency marks the beginning of the "Teddy Bear". In the year 1902,toy
bears were named "Teddy" after the president's nickname.The Teddy Bear became known worldwide
,and is still known and loved today.It was only a few years later that the Teddy Bears were mass
produced.
    In 1913,an item called the Erector Set was invented.It was a steel,motorized toy that children could
use to build models of anything.Its creator was A. C.Gilbert,a medical doctor.
    Charles Pajeau created a similar wooden set called Tinker Toys in the year 1914.Tinker Toys were
made for younger children.
     Raggedy Ann dolls first came on the scene after newspaper cartoonist Johnny Gruelle reproduced the
doll he made for his daughter.That was in 1915.
     The following year,an architect's son named John Lloyd Wright,invented Lincoln Logs,which were
interlocked to make structures.
     Two years after Mickey Mouse was created,stuffed(填塞)Mickey Mouse dolls were made by
Charlotte Clark.This was the start of Disney merchandise.
     The yoyo became popular in the United States after Donald Duncan bought a yoyo company in
1929.
    The ViewMaster,a three dimensional viewer,was developed by a camera enthusiast named William
Gruber.The toy became popular when Gruber licensed Disney characters to make still,3D images from
Disney movies and television programs.
    Finally,in 1940,model airplanes were mass produced.They started out as a way for manufacturers to
sell planes to the military,but later caught on as a toy.
    The toys that we know and love today have had their roots from these ancient times.Isn't it interesting
to know that if it hadn't been for all these creative people,most of the games you know today would
never have been?

1. Why were toy bears named "Teddy"?
A. To be suitable for mass production.
B. To be easily pronounced by children.
C. To meet the advertisers' needs.
D. To memorize President Theodore Roosevelt.

2. In which aspect do the toys created by Gilbert differ from those by Charles?
A. Shape.  
B. Material used.
C. Themes.  
D. Price.

3. When did the ViewMaster become popular?
A. After William Gruber was born.
B. After Gruber licensed Disney characters.
C. Two years after Mickey Mouse was created.
D. When Disney merchandise was started.

4. From the last paragraph we can learn that________.
A. those people who created these games should never be forgotten
B. some toys created in ancient times now disappear
C. creativity exists in every field all the time
D. toys nowadays are totally different from those in ancient times

5. What does the passage talk about?
A. The function of toys.
B. The history of Disney characters.
C. Toys in the early 1900s.
D. The financial meaning of toys.

     "In only six days I lost seven pounds of weight."
     "Two full inches in the first three days!"
     These are the kinds of statements used in magazine,newspaper,radio and television ads,promising new
shapes and new looks to those who buy the medicine or the device.The promoters of products say they
can shape the legs,slim the face,smooth wrinkles,or in some other way to add to beauty or desirability.
     Often such products are nothing more than moneymaking things for their promoters.The results they
produce are questionable,and some are dangerous to health.
     To understand how these products can be legally promoted to the public,it is necessary to understand
something of the laws covering their regulation.If the product is a drug,FDA(Food and Drug
Administration)can require proof under the Food,Drug,and Cosmetic Act that is safe and effective before
it is put on the market.But if the product is a device,FDA has no authority to require premarketing proof
of safety or effectiveness.If a product already on the market is a danger to health,FDA can request the
producer or distributor to remove it from the market voluntarily,or it can take legal action,including
seizure(查封)of the product.
     One notable case a few years ago involved an electrical device called the Relaxacisor,which had been
sold for reducing the waistline.The Relaxacisor produced electrical shocks to the body through contact
pads.FDA took legal action against the distributor to stop the sale of the device on the grounds that it
was dangerous to health and life.
     Obviously,most of the devices on the market have never been the subject of court proceedings(法律
訴訟),and new devices appear continually.Before buying,it is up to the consumer to judge the safety or
effectiveness of such items.

1. It can be inferred that the ads mentioned in the text are________.
A. objective  
B. costly
C. unreliable  
D. illegal

2.Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
A. The court is in charge of removing dangerous products.
B. New products are more likely to be questionable.
C. The production of a device must be approved by FDA.
D. The promoters usually just care about profits.

3. FDA can ask for the proof of safety and effectiveness of a product________.
A. if it is a drug
B. if it is a device
C. if its consumers make complaints
D. if its distributors challenge FDA's authority

4. The Relaxacisor is mentioned as________.
A. a product which was designed to produce electricity
B. a product whose distributor was involved in a legal case
C. a successful advertisement of a beauty product
D. an example of a quality beauty product

5. The author intends to________.
A. make consumers aware of the promoters' false promises
B. show the weakness of the law on product safety
C. give advice on how to keep young and beautiful
D. introduce the organization of FDA

     Motorists who used to listen to the radio or their favorite tunes on CDs may have a new way to
entertain themselves, after engineers in Japan developed a musical road surface.
     A team from the Hokkaido Industrial Research Institute has built a number of "melody roads",
which use cars as tuning forks(音叉)to play music as they travel.
     The concept works by using grooves(凹槽). They are cut at very specific intervals in the road
surface. The melody road uses the spaces between to create different notes.
     Depending on how far apart the grooves are, a car moving over them will produce a series of high
or low notes, and designers are able to create a distinct tune.
Patent documents for the design describe it as notches(刻痕)"formed in a road surface so as to play
a melody without producing simple sound or rhythm and reproduce melodylike tones".
      There are three musical strips in central and northern Japan-one of which plays the tune of a
Japanese pop song. Reports say the system was invented by Shizuo Shinoda.He scraped some
markings into a road with a bulldozer(推土機)before driving over them and found that they helped
to produce all kinds of tones.
     The optimal speed for melody road is 44 kph,but people say it is not always easy to get the intended
sound.
      "You need to keep the car windows closed to hear well,"wrote one Japanese blogger."Driving too
fast will sound like playing fast forward, while driving around 12 mph[20 km/h]has a slowmotion effect,
making you almost carsick."

1.According to the passage,melody roads use________to create different notes.
A. cars  
B. grooves
C. spaces between intervals  
D. bulldozers

2. We can learn from the passage that the highness of notes is depended on________.
A. how far the grooves are
B. how big the grooves are
C. the number of the grooves
D. the speed of the car

3. The underlined word "optimal" in the passage might mean________.
A. fastest  
B. possible
C. best  
D. suitable

4. In order to hear the music well,you have to________.
A. drive very fast
B. drive slowly
C. open the windows wide
D. keep the windows closed

5. What's the best title of the passage?
A. A New Type of Music
B. Melody Roads in Japan
C. A Musical Road Surface
D. A New Invention in Japan

     Big storms. High waves. Technical failures. Loneliness. After battling hard times and danger for over
nine months, British teenager Mike Perham made history last month as the youngest person to sail solo
(單獨) around the world.
     The 17yearold made the record after he cleared the Panama Canal (巴拿馬運河) and then sailed
through the Caribbean and home across the Atlantic.
     Mike is only three months younger than Zac Sunderland, the 17yearold American boy who had taken
the crown as the youngest solo aroundtheworld sailor in July.
     The two youngsters met in Cape Town in South Africa as they crossed the globe in different
directions. Mike insisted they were not rival (競爭對手). "No. It's two teenagers going out there, living
their dream and having the adventure of a lifetime," he said.
   Mike may be young, but he is no stranger to sailing adventures. He picked up the hobby at age 6 when
his father took him out in a small boat on a local lake. Father and son sailed separate boats across the
Atlantic when Mike was 14, making him the youngest person to cross that ocean solo. That record gave
him the taste for this even greater challenge.
   On the recent journey, the scariest moment for Mike came when his sailboat was hit by storms in the
southern Indian Ocean.
   "We were picked up by what felt like a 60foot wave and threw down on our side at 90 degrees," he
said.
   "It felt like I was going right over. Stuff was flying around and I just thought'Oh no'. "
   At other times, he had to dive into the Pacific and fix problems. He tied himself to the boat, jumped
into the water and went to work with a knife in 30second dives underneath (在……之下) the boat to
cut a rope away.
   Mike said he felt proud that he made his dream come true. "You've got to have confidence in yourself
that you will make it," he said.
1. What's the main idea of the passage?(No more than 15 words)
________________________________________________________________________
2. Which canal did Mike Perham cross? (No more than 3 words)
________________________________________________________________________
3. What does the underlined word "taste" in the fifth paragraph mean? (1 word)
________________________________________________________________________
4. What did Mike believe in? (No more than 10 words)
________________________________________________________________________
5. What do you think of Mike Perham? (No more than 10 words)
____________________________________________________________________

      The Beatles were the most influential band in pop history. In their 8year, 12album history,
Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison and Ringo Starr altered (改變) popular culture
dramatically. And it wasn't just the suits and changing lengths of hair the four Liverpool boys wore
that had such an impact, but what they seemed to stand for. The world saw them as the voice of a
new generation, one with a very different attitude to life.
      Their influence was at its height in the 1960s, but their music continues to stir listeners today.
However, up until recently one aspect of the Beatles was struck in Yesterday: The music had never
been remastered (重新灌錄). But on September 9 that situation came to an end, with the release
of the entire band's music in a digital makeover. It is probably the biggest reissue (重新發(fā)行) in pop
music history, said British newspaper the Financial Times.
     The albums were remastered at Abbey Road Studios in London, the location where the band
produced much of their work. The cover of their last album, Abbey Road of 1969, featured the four
young men striding (大步行走) across a zebra crossing on Abbey Road itself. It is one of the most
famous of all Beatles images.
     Recently, to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the album, hundreds of Beatles lovers gathered there
to show their appreciation.
     Pop groups come and go. The boy band pursued by screaming fans one year will be forgotten
the next. But the Beatles are one of the few groups whose music seems to have endured (持久).
Why? Paul McCartney's biographer Barry Miles has an explanation: "They were the first rock band…
and they just happened to be the best. They were the first band to play stadiums, to have their own
products. They were groundbreaking in every way, " he says.

1. Why did the Beatles change popular culture?
A. Because of the suits of the four Liverpool boys.
B. Because of changing lengths of hair the four Liverpool boys wore.
C. Because of their albums.
D. Because of their different attitude to life.

2. Which of the following statements is FALSE according to the second paragraph?
A. The Beatles influenced people at its height in the 1960s.
B. Their music Yesterday had never been remastered.
C. The entire band's music in a digital makeover will be remastered.
D. On September 9, their music came to an end.

3. What is their last album?
A. Yesterday.  
B. Abbey Road of 1969.
C. Come Together.  
D. In My life.

4. What is NOT the reason why their music can endure?
A. They were the first rock band.
B. They were the best one.
C. They were the first band to play stadiums and to have their own works.
D. They wore special suits.

5. What's the main idea of the passage?
A. What is the Beatles?
B. Legendary band stays on top in digital times.
C. The origin of the Beatles.
D. Why is the Beatles popular with people?

       You love Jay Chou's songs and you can sing some quite well. So you make a video of your
performance and post it online for your friends to see. But what if this led to something beyond
your wildest imagination-a career in music?
      Canadian teenager Justin Bieber, 16, has just had the magical experience: He posted homemade
videos of his versions of songs by American singer Chris Brown online for his relatives. He received
a phone call from Brown, telling him how much he liked his performance. His singing eventually
earned him a fan base and a record contract. After releasing a popular EP (extended play密紋唱片)
record in November 2009, his album My world 2.0 came out last Tuesday.
      Bieber sings ballads and songs about puppy love. But is he just another gooey (甜膩的) teen
idol?
David Malitz, a columnist with the Washington Post, doesn't think so. "If we truly want the best for
American children, let us pause and give thanks for Justin Bieber, " he writes. "After years of humdrum
bubblegum (乏味的搖滾舞曲) from Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers, the 16yearold has thrown
a candycoated wrench (扭轉) into Disney's heartthrob (甜心) assembly line (生產線) by giving young
fans something worth screaming their lungs out for: lovable pop songs."
     From a boy who grew up below the poverty line with his divorced mom to a star who caused
nearriots (近乎失控) in shopping malls, even Bieber himself can't believe his overnight fame, although
his kind of success is becoming more and more common in the Internet era.
      Interested in hockey (冰球), the national sport of Canada, the boy once put up pictures of players
on the walls of his bedroom. He dreamed of being a hockey star and used to practice signing his
autograph (簽名). He doesn't need practice now. He signs autographs, if the girls can get close enough,
as a music star.

1. What did Chris Brown think of Justin Bieber's singing?
A. He didn't like it.
B. He liked it very much.
C. He didn't say anything.
D. He supported Justin Bieber.

2. Who is a columnist?
A. Chris Brown.  
B. Jay Chou.
C. David Malitz.  
D. Miley Cyrus.

3. What can we learn from the fourth paragraph?
A. He had a happy family.
B. His family was very poor once.
C. His family was rich.
D. His family helped him a lot.

4. What's Justin Bieber's hobby?
A. Singing.  
B. Hockey.
C. Signing.  
D. Making records.

5.What's the best title of the passage?
A. Justin Bieber's overnight singing online.
B. Justin Bieber's common experience.
C. Justin Bieber's life.
D. Justin Bieber's records.

     As civilization proceeds in the direction of technology, it passes the point of supplying all the basic
essentials of life-food, shelter, clothes and warmth. Then we are faced with a choice between using
technology to provide and fulfill needs which have now been regarded as unnecessary or, on the other
hand, using technology to reduce the number of hours of work which a man must do in order to earn a
given standard of living. In other words, we either raise our standard of living above that necessary for
comfort and happiness or we leave it at this level and work shorter hours.
     I shall take it for granted that mankind has, by that time, chosen the latter alternative. Men will be
working shorter and shorter hours in their paid employment. It follows that the housewife will also
expect to be able to have more leisure in her life without lowering her standard of living. It also follows
that human domestic servants will have completely ceased to exist. Yet the great majority of the
housewives will wish to be relieved completely from the routine operations of the home such as scrubbing
the floors or the bath of the cooker, or washing the clothes or washing up, or dusting or sweeping, or
making beds.
     By far the most logical step to relieve the housewife of routine is to provide a robot which can be
trained to the requirements of a particular home and can be programmed to carry out half a dozen or
more standard operations, when switched by the housewife.

1. As civilization develops in the direction of technology, ________.
A. the basic essentials of life must be supplied
B. it is important to supply the basic essentials of life
C. it is no longer so important as it was in the past to supply all the basic essentials of life
D. it is not necessary to supply the basic essentials of life

2. According to the author, we are faced with________.
A. the choice of providing and fulfilling our needs
B. the choice of using technology
C. the choice of earning a standard of living
D. a choice between using technology to provide and fulfill needs to reduce the number of working hours

3. What alternative will mankind have chosen in future?
A. To leave our standard of living at this level and work shorter hours.
B. To raise our standard of living.
C. To fulfill needs which have been regarded as unnecessary.
D. To lower our standard of living and work shorter hours.

4. Now most housewives wish to________.
A. stop doing their housework
B. do more housework to improve their life
C. get rid of the heavy burden of their housework
D. do only simple and light housework

5. It can be inferred that robots will be invented ______.
A. to take the place of housewives
B. to help manage a family
C. to do the routine of housework instead of human
D. to provide the daily necessities for man