BRITAIN is a popular tourist place. But tours of the country have pros and cons.

GOOD NEWS

Free museums. No charge for outstanding collections of art and antiquities.

Pop music. Britain is the only country to rival(與…匹敵)the US on this score.

Black cabs. London taxi drivers know where they are going even if there are never enough of them at weekends or night.

Choice of food. Visitors can find everything from Ethiopian to Swedish restaurants.

Fashion. Not only do fashion junkies love deeply and respect highly brand names such as Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen; street styles are justly loved, too.

　　BAD NEWS

　　Poor service. “It’s part of the image of the place. People can dine out on the rudeness they have experienced,” says Professor Tony Seaton, of Luton University’s International Tourism Research Center.

　　Poor public transport. Trains and buses are promised to defeat the keenest tourists, although the over crowded London tube is inexplicably(難以理解的) popular.

Lack of languages. Speaking slowly and clearly may not get many foreign visitors very far, even in the tourist traps(圈套).

　　Rain. Still in the number one complaint.

　　No air-conditioning. So that even splendidly hot summers become as unbearable as the downpours.

　　Overpriced hotels. The only European country with a higher rate of tax on hotel rooms is Denmark.

Licensing hours. Alcohol(酒) is in short supply after 11 pm even in “24-hour cities”.

1. What do tourists complain most?

　　A. Poor service.           　　B. Poor public transport.

C. Rain.               　　       D. Overpriced hotels.

2. What do we learn about pop music in Britain and the US through this passage?

A. Pop music in Britain is better than that in the US.

B. Pop music in Britain is as good as that in the US.

C. Pop music in Britain is worse than that in the US.

D. Pop music in Britain is quite different from that in the US.

3. When is alcohol not able to get?

　　A. At 9: 00 pm      B. At 10: 00 pm     C. At 11: 00 pm     D. At 12: 00 pm

4. Which of the following is true according to the passage?

　　A. You have to pay to visit the museums.

　　B. It’s very cheap to travel by taxi there.

　　C. You cannot find Chinese food there.

    D. The public transport is poor there.

Believe it or not, optical illusion(錯覺) can cut highway crashes.

Japan is a case in point. It has reduced automobile crashes on some roads by nearly 75 percent using a simple optical illusion. But stripes, called chevrons(人字形), painted on the roads make drivers think that they are driving faster than they really are, and thus drivers slow down.

Now the American Automobile Association Foundation(基金會) for Traffic Safety in Washington D.C. is planning to repeat Japan’s success. Starting next year, the foundation will paint chevrons and other patterns of stripes on selected roads around the country to test how well the patterns reduce highway crashes.

Excessive (too great) speed plays a major role in as much as one fifth of all fatal traffic accidents, according to the foundation. To help reduce those accidents, the foundation will conduct its tests in areas where speed-related hazards (danger) are the greatest curves, exit slopes, traffic circles, and bridges.

Some studies suggest that straight, horizontal bars painted across roads can initially cut the average speed of drivers in half. However, traffic often returns to full speed within months as drivers become used to seeing the painted bars.

Chevrons, scientists say, not only give drivers the impression that they are driving faster than they really are but also make a lane appear to be narrower. The result is a longer lasting reduction in highway speed and the number of traffic accidents.

1. The passage mainly discusses ________.

A. a new way of highway speed control

B. a new pattern for painting highways

C. a new way of training drivers

D. a new type of optical illusion

2. On roads painted with chevrons, drivers tend to feel that ________.

A. they should avoid speed-related hazards

B. they are driving in the wrong lane

C. they should slow down their speed

D. they are coming near to the speed limit

3. The advantage of chevrons over straight, horizontal bars is that the former ________.

A. can keep drivers awake     B. can cut road accidents in half

C. will look more attractive   D. will have a longer effect on drivers

4. The American Automobile Association Foundation for Traffic Safety plans to ________.

A. try out the Japanese method in certain areas

B. change the road signs across the country

C. replace straight, horizontal bars with chevrons

D. repeat the Japanese road patterns

5. What does the author say about straight, horizontal bars painted across roads?

A. They are suitable only on broad roads.   

B. They are falling out of use in the United States.

C. They are ignored in a long period of time.

D. They cannot be used successfully to traffic circles.

I was giving a talk to a large group of people, the same talk I ____ to half a dozen other groups.

A. was giving      B. am giving      C. had given      D. have given

—You speak very good French!  

—Thanks. I __________ French in Sichuan University for four years.  

A. studied    B. study   C. was studying      D. had studied  

Since I won the big prize, my telephone hasn't stopped ringing. People ____to ask how I am going to spend the money.

A. phone               B. will phone        C. were phoning  D. are phoning

He placed one of the arrows __ his bow.

A. in  B. on  C.at   D.against

     Maybe ten?year?old Elizabeth put it best when she said to her father,“But, Dad, you can't be healthy if you're dead.”

     Dad, in a hurry to get home before dark so he could go for a run, had forgotten to wear his safety belt—a mistake 75% of the US population make every day. The big question is why.

    There have been many myths about safety belts ever since their first appearance in cars some forty years ago. The following are three of the most common.

    Myth Number One:It's best to be “thrown clear ”of a serious accident.

    Truth:Sorry, but any accident serious enough to “throw you clear” is also going to be serious ?enough? to give you a very bad landing. And chances are you'll have traveled through a windshield (擋風(fēng)玻璃) or door to do it. Studies show that chances of dying after a car accident are twenty?five times greater in cases where people are “thrown clear”.

Myth Number Two:Safety belts “trap” people in cars that are burning or sinking in water.

Truth: Sorry again, but studies show that people knocked unconscious(昏迷)due to not wearing safety belts have a greater chance of dying in these accidents. People wearing safety belts are usually protected to the point of having a clear head to free themselves from such dangerous situations ,not to be trapped in them.

   Myth Number Three:Safety belts aren't needed at speeds of less than 30 miles per hour(mph).

    Truth:When two cars traveling at 30 mph hit each other, an unbelted driver would meet the windshield with a force equal to diving headfirst into the ground from a height of 10 meters.

1.Why did Elizabeth say to her father,“But，Dad, you can't be healthy  if you're dead?”

A. He was driving at great speed.        B. He was running across the street.

C. He didn't have his safety belt on.    D. He didn't take his medicine on time. 

2.The reason Father was in a hurry to get home was that he  ________.

A. wasn't feeling very well              B. hated to drive in the dark

C. wanted to take some exercise          D. didn't want to be caught by the police 

3.According to the text, to be “thrown clear” of a serious accident is very dangerous because you  ________.

A. may be knocked down by other cars

B. may get seriously hurt being thrown out of the car

C. may find it impossible to get away from the seat

D. may get caught in the car door 

4.Some people prefer to drive without wearing a safety belt because they believe  ________.

A. the belt prevents them from escaping in an accident

B. they will be unable to think clearly in an accident

C. they will be caught when help comes

D. cars catch fire easily 

5.What is the advice given in the text?

A. Never drive faster than 30 miles an hour.

B. Try your best to save yourself in a car accident.

C. Never forget to wear the safety belt while driving.

D. Drive slowly while you're not wearing a safety belt. 

If there is no difference in general intelligence(智力)between boys and girls,what can explain girls' poor performance in science and mathematics?

It seems to be that their treatment at school is a direct cause.Mathematics and science are seen as subjects mainly for boys,and therefore ,as girls become tee

nagers,they are less likely to take them.Interestingly,both boys and girls often

regard the subjects for boys as more difficult.Yet it has been suggested that girls do not take mathematics courses ,not because they are difficult,but for social reasons.Girls do not want to be in open competition with boys because they are afraid to appear less feminine(女性的)and attractive.

However,if we examine the performance of boys and girls who have taken mathematics courses,there are still more high?achieving boys than there are girls.This difference appears to be world?wide.Biological explanations have been offered for this,but there are other explanations too.

Perhaps the difference which comes out during the teenage years has its roots in much earlier experiences.From their first days in kindergarten,boys are encouraged to work on their own and to complete tasks.Facts show that outstanding(杰出的)mathematicians and scientists have not had teachers who supplied answers.

Besides,there can be little doubt that teachers of mathematics and science expect their boy students to do better at these subjects than their girl students.They even appear to encourage the difference between boys and girls.They spend more time with the boy students ,giving them more time to answer questions and working harder to get correct answers from them.They are more likely to call on boys for answers and to allow them to take the lead in classroom discussion.They also praise boys more frequently.All of this seems to encourage boys to work harder in science and mathematics and to give them confidence(信心)that they are able to succeed.

Such a way of teaching is not likely to encourage girls to take many mathematics

 and science courses,nor is it likely to support girls who do.When it comes to these subjects it seems certain that school widens the difference between boys and girls.

1.Girls are likely to think that____________.

A.science courses are for both boys and girls

B.science courses make them more popular

C.science courses make them successful        

D.science courses are difficult for them          

2.The text mainly discusses_____________reasons for the difference between boys and girls in scientific achievements. 

A.biological         B.historical          C.social       D.personal          

3.What are boys usually encouraged to do at school?

A.To get help with their homework.        

B.To play the leading role in class.        

C.To work with girl students in class.        

D.To learn to take care of others.          

4.What does the passage say about great mathematicians?        

A.Their teachers did not supply answers to them.        

B.They started learning mathematics at an earlier age.        

C.They showed mathematical abilities in their teenage years.

D.Their success resulted from their strong interest in mathematics.?

5.The author would probably agree that_____________.

A.boys and girls learn in the same way        

B.boys and girls are equal in general intelligence        

C.girls are more confident in themselves than before        

D.girls should take fewer science courses than boys           

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