I needed to buy a digital camera, one that was simply good at taking good snaps（快照）, maybe occasionally for magazines. Being the cautious type, I fancied a reliable brand. So I went on the net, spent 15 minutes reading product reviews on good websites, wrote down the names of three top recommendations and headed for my nearest big friendly camera store. There in the cupboard was one of the cameras on my list. And it was on special offer. Oh joy. I pointed at it and asked an assistant, “Can I have one of those?” He looked perturbed（不安）. “Do you want to try it first?” he said. It didn’t quite sound like a question. “Do I need to?” I replied. “There’s nothing wrong with it?” This made him look a bit insulted and I started to feel bad. ‘‘No, no. But you should try. it,’’ he said encouragingly. “Compare it with the others.”

　 I looked across at the others：shelves of similar cameras placed along the wall, offering a wide range of slightly different prices and discounts, with each company selling a range of models based around the same basic box. With so many models to choose from, it seemed that I would have to spend hours weighing X against Y, always trying to take Z and possibly H into account at the same time. But when I had finished, I would still have only the same two certainties that I had entered the store with：first, soon after I carried my new camera out of the shop, it would be worth half what I paid for it; and second, my wonderful camera would very quickly be replaced by a new model.

　 But something in the human soul whispers that you can beat these traps by making the right choice, the clever choice, the wise choice. In the end, I agreed to try the model I had chosen. The assistant seemed a sincere man. So I let him take out my chosen camera from the cupboard, show how it took excellent pictures of my fellow shoppers…and when he started to introduce the special features, I interrupted to ask whether I needed to buy a carry-case and a memory card as well.

　 Why do we think that new options（選擇）still offer us anything new? Perhaps it is because they offer an opportunity to avoid facing the fact that our real choices in this culture are far more limited than we would like to imagine.

68. The shop assistant insisted that the writer should　　 .

　A. try the camera to see if there was anything wrong with it

　B. compare the camera he had chosen with the others

　C. get more information about different companies

　 D. trust him and stop asking questions

69. What does the writer mean by “it would be worth half what I paid for it”（Paragraph2）？

　 A. He should get a 50％discount.

　 B. The price of the camera was unreasonably high.

　C. The quality of the camera was not good.

　D. The camera would soon fall in value.

70. It can be inferred from the passage that in the writer’s opinion.

　A. people waste too much money on cameras

　 B. cameras have become an important part of our daily life

　 C. we don’t actually need so many choices when buying a product

　 D. famous companies care more about profit than quality

    On Saturday, millions of people around the world will celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day, which honors Patron Saint（a main religious figure）of Ireland. Communities across the United States will host parades, parties, and other festivities to mark the occasion.

    This year, cities like Boston, New York, and Chicago have organized massive events celebrating Saint Patrick’s Day. In New York City, hundreds of thousands of people will gather to watch the Saint Patrick’s Day parade－the nation’s largest. It is one of the most watched parades in the world. Last year, almost 2 million spectators and more than 150,000 participants filled the streets. The parade, first held in 1776, is also one of the oldest.

    Chicago also throws a big celebration. Every year, the Chicago River, which crosses the city, glows green as event organizers dump about 40 pounds of fluorescence, a powerful dye（染料）, into the water.  

    Boston keeps its parade rolling for three hours or more. It is the nation’s second-largest parade. The city will also salute one of its most famous former residents, President John F. Kennedy, by opening the exhibit” A Journey Home：John F. Kennedy and Ireland,” at his official library.

    Patron Saint lived in Britain in the early fifth century, when it was still part of the Roman Empire. He was captured and sold into slavery in Ireland when he was only 16. He eventually escaped slavery and turned to a life of religious devotion. He trained to become a minister and set out to spread Christianity throughout Ireland. After 30 years as a religious leader, Patrick died on March 17, 1461. Saint Patrick’s Day is always celebrated on March 17. In Ireland, it is an official holiday.

64. What’s the best title of the passage?

    A. Celebrations across the Country           B. An Official Holiday in US

    C. The Largest Parade in the World          D. Saint Patrick’s Day

65. What do you think is the official color of St. Patrick’s Day?

    A. Green.     B. Red.     C. Black.     D. Yellow.

66. The last paragraph is mainly about      .

    A. the cruel slave trade                   B. Saint Patrick’s childhood

    C. activities during Saint Patrick’s Day      D. Ireland’s Patron Saint

67. Which of the following is NOT correct according to the passage?

    A. Parade is a most important event to observe Saint Patrick’s Day.

    B. Millions of Americans celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day every year.

    C. Chicago paints a bridge green for Saint Patrick’s Day.

    D. The Saint Patrick’s Day parade has a history of over two centuries.

    Downing the last drop of an expensive famous brand H₂O as well as remembering to throw the empty bottle in the recycling bin, makes you feel pretty good about yourself, right? It shouldn’t. Even when the bottles are recycled, there are all kinds of other effects of swallowing bottled water, says Melissa Peffers, the air-quality program manager for Environmental Defense.

    The containers are often filled in faraway lands, then shipped from abroad, and stored in refrigerators at your local store. Compare that with the influence on environment of turning on your tap, filling a glass, and drinking up!

    Anyone who is choosing bottled water for health reasons is misguided, says Peffers, “Most bottled water is just tap water.” And what comes out of your tap is carefully monitored to follow the strict rules. Consider another fact that bottled water is surprisingly expensive, especially when compared with the alternative, which is almost free, and it is surprising that America’s desire for bottled water seems impossible to satisfy, reaching nearly 30 billion bottles a year.

    “My parents’ generation never had bottled water,” says Isabelle Silverman, an Environmental Defense legal adviser. She has made a commitment to going bottle free. “You don’t need to fetch it home from the store, and it’s cheaper,” she adds.

    Bottled water’s role as a status symbol needs to change, Peffers points out. So when a waiter at an expensive restaurant offers’’ And what’s your drink?” that’s no reason to forget your conviction（信念）. “Don’t be afraid to say, ‘I’ll have tap. ’‘Say it loud enough that the other tables nearby can hear you,” Peffers says. “And then spend that money on a dessert.”

  60. In the first paragraph, the underlined sentence “It shouldn’t.” suggests that people     .

    A. shouldn’t feel pleased with finishing the water in the bottle

    B. shouldn’t feel good about drinking an expensive brand H₂O

    C. shouldn’t be content with just recycling empty bottles

    D. shouldn’t be satisfied with drinking only bottled water

  61. According to the author, tap water is          .

    A. as safe as bottled water                    B. morel likely to be polluted

    C. healthier than bottled water           D. less convenient than bottled water

62. The underlined part “going bottle free”（in Para. 4）means“      ”.

    A. making bottled water free

    B. giving up bottled water

    C. recycling used water bottles

    D. providing free water containers

63. Why does Peffers ask people to say “I’ll have tap.” loudly?

    A. To encourage them to set an example for others to follow.

    B. To advise them to save the money for one more dessert.

    C. To remind them to be aware of their social status.

    D. To persuade them to speak confidently in public.

    Only three local students won Chinese Blog Competition. And 15 of the 18 awards went to students from China.

    170 students’ task：to get a fully-designed blog up and running, complete with many postings based on a theme of choice—all written in Chinese.

    Themes ranged from local opinions—such as the usage of. Singlish, education and whether Singapore can be a cultural centre—to food blogs.

    The entries were judged on Language proficiency and the quality of writing, as well as the design and level of exchanging ideas with readers.

    Academics from the National University of Singapore and the SIM University IT experts, and a journalist from Chinese newspaper Lianhe Zaobao in Singapore made up the judges.

    In the end, only three Singaporean students made it to the award list—the rest of the awards were swept up by students from China.

    “No surprise.” said Mr. Chow Yaw Long, 37, teacher-in-charge from Innova Junior College. which organized the event. “Although the topics were local subjects, the foreign students were generally better in terms of the content of the posts and their grasp of the Chinese language.”

    One of the three local students winning the first prize in the Best Language Award was blogger Christina Gao, 19, from the Saint Andrew’s Junior College, who spared no effort in researching for and writing her biog. Each entry took her between five and seven days to produce, complete with pictures and even podcasts（播客）.

    Her advice for bloggers is：Be responsible.

    “Some bloggers out there only seek to blame the authorities and other bloggers.” said Miss Gao. ‘‘I think they lack responsibilities and there is no value to their posts. ”

  56. The competition was organized by          .

    A. the National University of Singapore

    B. Chinese newspaper Lianhe Zaobao

    C. Innova Junior College

    D. the Saint Andrew’s Junior College

  57. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

    A. Chinese students won most of the awards.

    B. Not all the themes were about local subjects.

    C. The blogs could be written in Chinese or Singiish.

    D. The judges were from universities in Singapore and China.

  58. What Miss Gao said suggests that          .

    A. she likes to blame the authorities          B. she has a sense of responsibility

    C. she thinks highly of the others’ blogs    D. she loves to read valuable posts

59. The passage is mainly about          .

    A. how Chinese students won the awards in the competition

    B. why bloggers should take responsibility for their blogs

    C. how Miss Gao won the first prize in the competition

    D. what the result of the competition was

  Every winter, we children would build a snowman in our backyard. One  36   by packing a snowball, and then rolling it in the fresh snow. Like  37  up a balloon, the ball magically grows larger. We would  38  to see who could make theirs the largest, although an occasional snowball  39  would break out to divert（轉(zhuǎn)移……的注意力）us from the competition.  

    The  40  snowball from the winner was used as our base（底座，基底）. After this competition, it was  41  teamwork. My twin brother Evan and I would balance the second largest on the base. It was a perfect torso（軀干）. My older brother Stephen would pack snow between the  42  , while my sister got water to strengthen the newly packed snow. The process was repeated using another  43  for the head.

    Two branches were then stuck into the  44  for arms. Stones formed a smile, a row of buttons, and a pair of eyes. A carrot was used for the  45  . Finally, we threw a bucket of water   46  our snowman, giving him an icy coating that shone in the light. A scarf and a pair of gloves introduced a（n）  47  touch to our cold friend. We would stand back and admire our collective efforts.

    This snowman making process was a  48  throughout my childhood. One winter, however, we  49  . We were growing up, and growing apart. And I hated it.

    So last year, I wandered out into the snow  50  . I built the base. and made a torso and a head. I stuck in the  51  , the stones, and the carrot. I threw a bucket of water over my creation. I gladly gave my gloves to it. It took a lot longer alone, than it  52  as a team.  

    By making that snowman on my own, I have voiced my worries about the growing 53 between us. The  54  is approaching again. Perhaps you’ll find a snowman in our backyard this year. Hopefully, it will have been made by more  55  than one.

  36. A. starts                  B. creates                  C. continues       D. settles

  37. A. making         B. blowing          C. taking            D. looking

  38. A. race             B. run                C. stop               D. hide

  39. A. struggle        B. joke               C. dance                      D. fight

  40. A. smallest        B. largest            C. oldest             D. youngest

  41. A. little             B. all                  C. partly             D. hardly

  42. A. places          B. rooms            C. spaces              D. areas

  43. A. snowman       B. base               C. torso                D. snowball

  44. A. front            B. sides              C. back                D. bottom

  45. A. nose             B. mouth            C. tongue              D. breast

  46. A. above           B. towards          C. off                   D. over  

  47. A. artificial        B. human            C. real                  D. animal

  48. A. celebration     B. tradition          C. reception          D. destination

  49. A. stopped        B. progressed       C continued          D. retired

  50. A. angrily          B. amazingly         C. awfully             D. alone

  51. A. branches        B. buttons           C. coat                 D. bucket

  52. A. did               B. lasted             C. worked            D. happened

  53. A. tiredness        B. distance          C. anger                      D. disappointment

  54. A. winter          B. spring            C. summer            D. autumn

  55. A. minds           B. legs                C. feet                  D. hands

 —Did you go to watch the basketball match last night?

    —No. I didn’t feel well but I would have gone if I       .

    A. were    B. did    C. should    D. had

 If he      his legs in the last training, he      in the coming World Cup, which he has been longing to compete in.

    A. hadn’t hurt；would join        B. didn’t hurt；would have joined

    C. didn’t hurt would join          D. hadn’t hurt；would have joined.

 If we had taken such effective measures much earlier, the river      so seriously now.

    A. is not polluted           B. would not be polluted

    C. had not been polluted      D. would not have been polluted

 If it       tomorrow, the sports meet would be put off.

    A. rain    B. rains    C. should rain    D. will rain

 —Shall we take the 10: 30 train?

    —No. If we took that train, we      too late.

    A. arrive    B. arrived    C. will arrive    D. would arrive