The engineer Camillo Olivetti was 40 years old when he started the company in 1908. At his factory in Ivrea, he designed and produced the first Italian typewriter. Today the company’s head office is still in Ivrea, near Turin, but the company is much larger than it was in those days and there are offices all

around the world,

By 1930, there was a staff of 700 and the company turned out 13,000 machines a year. Some went

to customers in Italy, but Olivetti exported more typewriters to other countries.

Camillo’s son, Adriano, started working for the company in 1924 and later he became the boss. He introduced a standard speed for the production line and he employed technology and design specialists. The company developed new and better typewriters and then calculators. In 1959 it produced the ELEA computer system. This was the first mainframe (主機) computer designed and made in Italy.

After Adriano died in 1960, the company had a period of financial problem. Other companies, especially the Japanese, made faster progress in electronic technology than the Italian company.

In 1978, Carlo de Benedetti became the new boss. Olivetti increased its marketing and service networks and made agreements with other companies to design and produce more advanced office equipment. Soon it became one of the world’s leading companies in information technology and communication. There are now five independent companies in the Olivetti group — one for personal computers, one for other office equipment, one for systems and service, and two for telecommunications.

From the text we learn that       .

A. by 1930 Olivetti produced 13,000 typewriters a year

B. Olivetti earned more in the 1960s than in the 1950s

C. some of Olivetti’s 700 staff regularly visited customers in Italy

D. Olivetti set up offices in other countries from the very beginning

What was probably the direct result of Olivetti’s falling behind in electronic technology?

A. Adriano’s death.                      B. A period of financial problems.

C. Its faster progress.                  D. Its agreements with other companies.

What do we know about Olivetti?

A. It produced the best typewriter in the world.

B. It designed the world’s first mainframe computer.

C. It exported more typewriters than other companies.

D. It has five independent companies with its head office in Ivrea.

The best title for the text would be       .

A. The Origin of Olivetti.                B. The Success of Olivetti.

C. The History of Olivetti                D. The Production of Olivetti.

— Was the driving pleasant when you vacationed in Mexico last summer?

— No, it ______ for four days when we arrived so that the roads were very muddy.

A. was raining               B. had been raining    C. would be raining      D. had rained

It's quite necessary to be prepared for a job interview. ______ the possible answers ready will be of great help.

A. To have had          B. Having                     C. Have                    D. Having had 

He has the habit of ________ useful information while reading.

A. getting down                B. setting down          C. going down                         D. bringing down

短文改錯(共10小題；每小題l分，滿分l0分)

假如英語課上老師要求同學(xué)們交換修改作文，請你修改你同桌寫的作文。文中共有十處語言錯誤，要求你在錯誤的地方增加、刪除或修改某個詞。

增加：在缺詞處加上一個漏字符號（∧），并在其下面寫上該加的詞。

刪除：把多余的詞用斜線（\）劃掉。

修改：在錯的詞下劃一橫線，并在該詞下面寫上修改后的詞。

注意：1.每處錯誤及修改均僅限一詞；

          2.只允許修改十處，多者（從第11處起）不計分。

Dear Sir,

How are you? As a exchange student, I am writing to tell you I would prefer to move into a single room in next term, as I find it inconvenient to share a room with others. My roommate often held parties at night, made much noise. Besides, his friends are always visiting him, that disturbs me a lot. So I hope to draw your attentions to this problem. If you think in my position, I am sure he will agree that the only solution for me is get a room of my own, one not in the same building and as near to the school campus as possible. I would be gratefully if you could do me the favor.

Best wishes.

　　                                                       Yours sincerely,

　                                                   　        Li Ming

It was reported that 115 miners _____ in the flooded mine for eight days were pulled out alive at last.

     A. trapped     B. being trapped    C. were trapped     D. had trapped

One minute she burst into ____, and the next she burst out ____. We just couldn’t

catch her mood at any moment.

       A. crying; laughter                                 B. tears; laughing  

       C. tears; laughter                                       D. crying; laughing

Read the passage carefully and answer the questions or complete the statements in the fewest possible words.

Americans are proud of their variety and individuality, yet they love and respect few things more than a uniform, whether it is the uniform of a lift operator or the uniform of a five-star

general. Why are uniforms so popular in the United States?

　　Among the arguments for uniforms, one of the first is that in the eyes of most people they look more professional than civilian clothes. People have become conditioned to expect superior quality from a man who wears a uniform. The television repairman who wears a uniform tends to inspire more trust than one who appears in civilian clothes, Faith in the skill of a garage mechanic is increased by a uniform . What easier way is there for a nurse, a policeman, a barber, or a waiter to lost professional identity than to step out of uniform?

　　Uniforms also have many practical benefits. They save on other clothes, They save on laundry bills. They are tax - deductible. They are often more comfortable and more durable than civilian clothes.

　　Primary among the arguments against uniforms is their lack of variety and the consequent loss of individuality experienced by people who must wear them. Though there are many types of uniforms, the wearer of any particular type is generally stuck with it, without change, until retirement. When people look alike, they tend to think, speak, and act similarly, on the job at least.

　　Uniforms also give rise to some practical problems. Though they are long - lasting, often their initial expense is greater than the cost of civilian clothes. Some uniforms are also expensive to maintain, requiring professional dry cleaning rather than the home laundering possible with many types of civilian clothes.

What surprises us is that                               .

What are people likely to think of a man in uniform?

Why are some people against uniforms?

The underlined sentence tells us that                             .

It has been amounted that candidates        remain in their seats until all the papers have been collected.

       A．can   B．shall  C．will   D．may

   Many problems concerning the improvement of our school remain ________.

       A. solving      B. solved C. to solve      D. to be solved