To Friend or Not to Friend
We all love our parents and turn to them when we're in need, but would you like them to hear the conversations you have with your friends on the school playground or lunch queue? Social networking sites have become extensions of the school hallways, so would you add your parents as “friends” and allow them to view your online activities and conversations with friends?
In the past the generation gap included a technology gap, where children were up to date with latest technology and parents were left behind, content to continue their day to day lives as they always had because they had no need to know more about technology. However, more and more parents are beginning to realize just how important social networks are in their lives. This realization has given many parents the motivation to educate themselves about social networking sites.
These days many people are attracted to social networking sites because they can choose who they have around them; there's also a certain amount of control over privacy that we don't get in real life. Sometimes we feel that privacy is violated when we must accept a “friend” request from a parent or family member.
It's a difficult choice whether or not to allow a parent to become a part of our online lives. On the one hand we don't want to “reject” their request because that might hurt their feelings or make them feel you have something to hide. On the other hand if you do accept, then you could have a sense of being watched and no longer feel free to comment or communicate the way you did before.
A recent survey suggested that parents shouldn't take it personally if their child ignores their request: “When a teen ignores a parent's friend request, it doesn't necessarily mean that they are hiding something, but it could mean that this is one part of their life where they want to be independent.”
Perhaps talking with parents and giving explanations would help soften the blow if you do choose not to add them to your friends list.
【小題1】From Paragraph 2, we learn that ________.

A．parents feel secure about their privacy online

B．social networks successfully fill the generation gap

C．parents have realized the importance of social networks

D．social networks offer a platform for parents to communicate

【小題2】Teenagers may refuse a parent's friend request because ________.

A．they hide something from their parents

B．they are unwilling to be watched by parents

C．their parents tend to fall behind in technology

D．their parents make negative comments on them

【小題3】The passage is mainly about ________.

A．privacy online

B．social networks

C．the generation gap

D．parents' friend requests

【小題4】The passage is written mainly for ________.

A．parents	B．teenagers
C．teachers	D．researchers

A dentist’s office may not be everyone’s idea of a perfect holiday destination.But a growing number of Europeans are travelling abroad for medical treatment to save money，or maybe to combine a visit to the doctor with some sightseeing，creating a potential but fast­growing market for traditional tour operators.
“It was simply cheaper for me to go to a dentist in Hungary，” said a 42­year­old physical therapist from Berlin.He chose the clinic near Budapest from an Internet advertisement，attracted by hundreds of euros in savings compared with the same treatment in Germany.He was happy to find when he got there that the clinic was clean，the staff qualified and the work thorough.
People travel abroad for medical treatment for various reasons：it’s cheaper，they face a long wait at home，or the treatment they want is not available in their own country.The British­based Medical Tourist Company refers about 100 patients a year to hospitals in India for treatments.And Chief Executive Premhar Shah reports rapid growth in demand from customers in Africa，where it can be harder to find well­equipped medical facilities for complex surgeries.
Some patients who have immigrated may prefer to return to be close to their families when they undergo surgery.“People will want to take the opportunity to seek treatment in places where they have relatives who might be able to look after them.I’m seeing that especially with younger people from eastern Europe，” said a professor at the University of Oxford.
For some，there is the attraction of free treatment abroad.British law­makers have called for tighter checks on patients arriving for treatment，out of concerns that foreign citizens are travelling to Britain to take advantage of the free service.
The global medical tourism market is believed to be worth $40 billion to $60 billion and growing at about 20 percent per year.
【小題1】The 42­year­old physical therapist was satisfied with________in Hungary.

A．the price instead of the service

B．the service instead of the price

C．both the price and the service

D．neither the price nor the service

【小題2】How many reasons are mentioned to explain why people go abroad for medical treatment?

A．Four.	B．Five.
C．Six.	D．Seven.

【小題3】According to the article，________for medical treatment.

A．more Africans want to travel abroad

B．more Europeans want to travel to Africa

C．more Britons want to travel to India

D．no one would come to Great Britain

【小題4】Young people from eastern Europe return to their mother countries for surgery in order to________.

A．get cheaper medical service

B．be looked after by relatives

C．have better medical treatment

D．enjoy free medical treatment

【小題5】What does the article mainly talk about?

A．Overseas sightseeing.	B．Hospital treatment.
C．Medical tourism.	D．Travelers’ health problems.

Do you want to live with a strong sense of peacefulness，happiness，goodness，and  self­respect？The collection  of happiness actions broadly categorized  (把……歸類)  as “honor” help you create this life of good feelings.
Here’s an example to show how honorable actions create happiness.
Say a store clerk fails to charge us for an item.If we keep silent，and profit from the clerk’s mistake，we would drive home with a sense of sneaky (暗中的) excitement.Later we might tell our family or friends about our good fortune.On the other hand，if we tell the clerk about the uncharged item，the clerk would be grateful and thank us for our honesty.We would leave the store with a quiet sense of honor that we might never share with another soul.
Then，what is it to do with our sense of happiness?
In the first case，where we don’t tell the clerk，a couple of things would happen.Deep down inside we would know ourselves as a type of thief.In the process，we would lose some peace of  mind  and  self­respect.We  would also demonstrate that we cannot be trusted，since we advertise our dishonor by telling our family and friends.We damage our own reputations by telling others.In contrast，bringing_the_error_to_the__clerk’s__attention  causes  different  things  to happen.Immediately the clerk knows us to be honorable.Upon leaving the store，we feel honorable and our self­respect is increased.Whenever we take honorable actions we gain the deep internal rewards of goodness and a sense of nobility.
There is a beautiful positive cycle that is created by living a life of honorable actions.Honorable  thoughts lead  to honorable actions.Honorable actions lead us to a happier existence.And it’s easy to think and act honorably again when we’re happy.While the positive cycle can be difficult to start，once it’s started，it’s easy to continue.Keeping on doing good deeds brings us peace of mind，which is important for our happiness.
【小題1】According to the passage，the positive action in the example contributes to our________.

A．self­respect	B．financial rewards
C．a(chǎn)dvertising ability	D．friendly relationship

【小題2】The author thinks that keeping silent about the uncharged item is equal to________.

A．lying	B．stealing
C．cheating	D．a(chǎn)dvertising

【小題3】The underlined phrase “bringing the error to the clerk’s attention”  means________.

A．telling the truth to the clerk

B．offering advice to the clerk

C．a(chǎn)sking the clerk to be more attentive

D．reminding the clerk of the charged items

【小題4】How will we feel if we let the clerk know the mistake?

A．We’ll be very excited.

B．We’ll feel unfortunate.

C．We’ll have a sense of honor.

D．We’ll feel sorry for the clerk.

【小題5】Which of the following can be the best title of this passage?

A．How to Live Truthfully

B．Importance of Peacefulness

C．Ways of Gaining Self­respect

D．Happiness through Honorable Actions

Having finished her homework，Ma Li wants some music for relaxation(娛樂(lè))．As usual，she starts her computer and goes to Baidu.Come to download music files.But this time she is surprised when an announcement about protecting songs'copyright bursts onto the screen.The age of free music and movie downloads may have come to an end as Web companies like Baidu are accused of pirating copyright.Lawsuits(訴訟)have been filed against four websites offering free downloads.In September 2005, a Beijing court ordered Baidu to pay recording company Shanghai Push compensation(賠償)for their losses.Baidu was also told to block the links to the pirated music on the website.This caused a heated discussion on Internet file sharing.
“Baidu's defeat in the lawsuit shows it is not right to get copyrighted songs without paying.Downloaders may face lawsuits or fines，”said an official.
Like many teens，Huang Ruoru，an 18­year­old girl from Puning in Guangdong Province，doesn't think that getting music from websites is wrong.She always shares her favourite songs downloaded from Baidu with her friends.When told about the lawsuit，she began to feel a little guilty about obtaining others' work without paying.
However，other teenagers have different ideas.Wang Yafei，a Senior 2 girl from Jinan，Shandong Province pointed out that file sharing is a good way to promote pop singers.“If I download a song and really like it，I will buy the CD，”she said.“So what the recording companies really should concentrate on is improving their music，rather than pursuing(追趕，追擊)file­sharers.”
【小題1】Which of the following best describes the passage?

A．Music on the Internet is of better quality.

B．Downloading material can be illegal.

C．It's good to get free music on the Internet.

D．Baidu is a popular Web company.

【小題2】The four Web companies were put to court because ________.

A．they got copyrighted songs without paying

B．they downloaded copyrighted music for people

C．they make copyrighted files for free downloads

D．they offer free music on line

【小題3】How do some of the teenagers feel while downloading free music after the lawsuits?

A．A bit guilty.	B．A little sad.
C．Extremely angry.	D．Awfully sorry.

When first entered, Vanak Restaurant does not look like much of a restaurant, but once the pleasant smells of kabob (烤肉串)hit the senses, you are incapable of calling it anything less.
Owned by a local couple, this Persian restaurant has an inviting, homelike atmosphere that many restaurants lack.
The space is small with only a few dining tables and nearly no decoration, but the environment is truly charming.
Lying in a hardly noticeable street corner, the restaurant still attracts all customer especially those experienced in the delights of Middle Eastern cooking.
A common sight is that of old Persian men sitting in the corner talking loudly about world topics, watching news events on TV, drinking a black tea known as Persian chai, an reading local Persian newspapers all the while trying to finish off their plates piled with food.
The variety of food at the restaurant is limited, but the amount of each dish is fairly large. Most of the meals can serve two people and are under $10, so not only is it affordably but practical as well.
The food, especially appeals to health­conscious eaters because each dish is very healthy, made with limited fat and oil and served straight off the grill(烤肉架)．
The main dish that the restaurant is popular for is its kabobs, which are different style of grilled meat.
One delicious and extremely healthy dish is the Joojeh Kabob, which is made of grille chicken pieces served with either rice or bread. Another great kabob is the Chelo Kabob, kabob consisting of grilled beef.
Although the restaurant is small, the atmosphere and the food is delicious. It is a plan that should not be overlooked.
【小題1】When first entering the restaurant，one can find that it________.

A．is splendidly decorated

B．has pleasant smells of kabobs

C．is crowded with dining table

D．looks like a common restaurant

【小題2】 What activity is also mentioned apart from dining in the restaurant?

A．Watching news events on TV.

B．Drinking a kind of black coffee.

C．Reading local English newspaper.

D．Discussing world topics in low voices.

【小題3】The food of the restaurant_________.

A．is served in small amounts	B．is rather expensive
C．is rich in variety	D．is very healthy

【小題4】What is the dish Joojeh Kabob mainly made of?

A．Rice.

B．Chicken.

C．Bread.

D．Beef.

For more than two days in September 1974, the people of Honduras shut their windows, locked their doors and covered in their homes. Fifi was outside, and they were frightened.
By the time Fifi had left, 8,000 people were dead, Fifi wasn't a pet dog as the name suggests. It was a hurricane, one of the most destructive natural phenomena in the world.
Why do we give human names to storms and hurricanes?
We didn't always. Two hundred years ago, many hurricanes in the Caribbean were named after the saint's(基督徒的)day on which the storm occurred. Later, storms were known by the name of the city where they came ashore.
Meteorologists (氣象學(xué)家) then tried naming storms after the latitude (緯度) and longitude (經(jīng)度) where they occurred.
Finally, in 1953, hurricanes started getting people's names —specifically, female names. Male names were added in 1979.
There are six sets of names for what the experts call “Atlantic tropical cyclones”( 熱帶風(fēng)暴)．
Each list is used every six years and consists of 21 names, starting with every letter but Q, U, X, Y ，Z. the names alternate (交替)between male and female.
A storm won't get a name until its winds reach 39 mph or about 62.4 kph, at which point it becomes a tropical storm. At 74 mph or 118.4 kph it's declared a hurricane.
The 126 names on the list are used only for storms that form off the Atlantic coast of the US. There are separate lists for the Pacific.
So what happens if a hurricane should cross from the Atlantic to the Pacific? It's happened before. The storm just gets a new name and sometimes a new sex.
Max Mayfield is the director of the National Hurricane Centre, headquartered in Miami, Florida. He is in charge of picking new names for storms off the Atlantic coast.
He doesn't do it alone, though. His counterparts in two dozen other countries in the Caribbean, Central America and North America vote on what names will replace retired names.
【小題1】From the first paragraph we can find that ________.

A．Honduras is a country which was destroyed by Fifi

B．Honduras is a country which has no mountains

C．Honduras is a country which faces the ocean

D．Honduras is a country which lies at high latitude

【小題2】Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A．There were no hurricanes two centuries ago.

B．The Caribbean is a state of the United States.

C．The Caribbean is a place where hurricanes occur often.

D．Fifi was formed off the Pacific.

【小題3】The names for storms and hurricanes, as this passage shows，________.

A．a(chǎn)re set for use.

B．a(chǎn)re all from American English

C．a(chǎn)re difficult to spell

D．a(chǎn)re easy to fix

【小題4】The underlined word “counterparts” in the last paragraph means ________.

A．citizens holding the same opinion

B．people with a similar position or function

C．passengers traveling by sea

D．a(chǎn)ssistants working abroad

Most mornings, the line begins to form at dawn: scores of silent women with babies on their backs, buckets balanced on their heads, and in each hand a bright­blue plastic jug. On good days, they will wait less than an hour before a water tanker goes across the dirt path that serves as a road in Kesum Purbahari, a slum on the southern edge of New Delhi. On bad days, when there is no electricity for the pumps, the tankers don't come at all. “That water kills people，” a young mother named Shoba said one recent Saturday morning, pointing to a row of pails filled with thick, caramel (焦糖)­colored liquid. “Whoever drinks it will die.” The water was from a pipe shared by thousands of people in the poor neibourhood. Women often use it to wash clothes and bathe their children, but nobody is desperate enough to drink it.
There is no standard for how much water a person needs each day, but experts usually put the minimum at fifty litres. The government of India promises (but rarely provides) forty. Most people drink two or three litres—less than it takes to wash a toilet. The rest is typically used for cooking and bathing. Americans consume between four hundred and six hundred litres of water each day, more than any other people on earth. Most Europeans use less than half that. The women of Kesum Purbahari each hoped to drag away a hundred litres that day—two or three buckets' worth. Shoba has a husband and five children, and that much water doesn't go far in a family of seven, particularly when the temperature reaches a hundred and ten degrees before noon. She often makes up the difference with bottled water, which costs more than water delivered any other way. Sometimes she just buys milk; it's cheaper. Like the poorest people everywhere, the people of New Delhi's slums spend a far greater percentage of their incomes on water than anyone lucky enough to live in a house connected to a system of pipes.
【小題1】The underlined word “slum” most likely means________.

A．a(chǎn) village

B．a(chǎn) small town

C．a(chǎn)n area of a town with badly­built, over­crowded buildings

D．the part of a town that lacks water badly

【小題2】Sometimes the water tanker doesn't come because________.

A．the weather is bad

B．there is no electricity

C．there is no water

D．people don't want the dirty water

【小題3】A person needs at least________litres of water a day.

A．a(chǎn) hundred	B．four hundred
C．forty	D．fifty

【小題4】Which of the following statements is WRONG?

A．A hundred litres of water a day is enough for Shoba's family.

B．Americans uses the largest amount of water each day.

C．In Kesum Purbahari milk is cheaper than bottled water.

D．Shoba has a family of seven people.

Today，people all over the world are moving out of small villages in the country to go and live in big，noisy cities.They are moving from the peaceful hills，mountains，fields，rivers and streams of the countryside to the busy world of streets，buildings，traffic and crowds.This movement from rural areas to urban_areas has been going on for over two hundred years.
In many countries，the main reason why people come to live in towns and cities is work.After one or two large factories have been built in or near a town，people come to find work，and soon an industrial area begins to grow.There is usually a residential area nearby，where the factory workers can live.The families of these workers need schools，hospitals and shops，so more people come to live in the area to provide these services and a city grows.
In every major city in the world，there is a business district where the big companies have their main offices.In the United States，this area is usually in the city centre.It is here that you can see the huge skyscraper office blocks.The people who work here often travel a long way to work each day.Many of them live in the suburbs of the city，far away from the industrial area and the city centre.Some suburbs are very pleasant，with nice houses and big gardens.There are usually parks for children to play in and large department stores where you can buy all you need.
But what is the future of the big cities? Will they continue to get bigger? Perhaps not.Some major cities have actually become smaller in the last ten years，and it is quite possible that one day we will see people moving out of the major cities and back into smaller towns and villages.
【小題1】We can easily know that the underlined phrase “urban areas” means________.

A．a(chǎn)reas of the countryside

B．a(chǎn)reas of a town or city

C．a(chǎn)reas near the countryside

D．a(chǎn)reas near a town or city

【小題2】Why do people move to live in cities or towns?

A．Because they can live more comfortably there.

B．Because they prefer a noisy life to a peaceful life.

C．Because they want to find work.

D．Because they are sure of having a better life there.

【小題3】In a residential area，you can see________.

A．rows of houses，schools and shops

B．many offices and factories

C．a(chǎn) lot of factories and farms

D．many houses with offices and factories

【小題4】In the United States many people work in the centre of a big city________.

A．while living on the faraway edge of the city

B．a(chǎn)nd live there

C．but live in another city

D．but live far away out of the city

They can be seen more frequently than ever before on college campuses, wearing flannel(法蘭絨) and thick­framed glasses while listening to music. One might find them playing unusual musical instruments, shopping at second­hand stores or expressing themselves in other unique ways.
They call themselves hipsters. Being “hip” used to mean following the latest fashion. But gradually the word has become a sign of “being cool, unique and unusual”．
Hipsters value independent thinking, progressive politics, an appreciation of creativity and intelligence. Hipsters take pains and pride in not being mainstream. However, their culture has become quite trendy. This irony(諷刺) is central to their culture and offers an interesting conflict.
“I do take things in the mainstream with a positive attitude，” says Ben Polson, a college student at Brown University. “But sometimes I also question what determines popularity, especially regarding music.” Polson represents many hipsters.
When less­known bands become popular, they often lose their former fan base in exchange for a new one. There is a famous hipster saying that goes, “I used to like that band before it got popular，” Polson quoted.
According to Polson, bands' music changes when they go mainstream. They become less experimental, doing things just to save popularity and fans. The original elements that we were drawn to slowly disappear for the sake of popularity.
Many young adults have started to view hipsters' outlook as cool and they are adopting hipsters' anti­mainstream culture mind to themselves. This has led to specialized brands, stores and music for the hipster consumers. But on the other hand, some such stores, including clothing labels Urban Outfitters and American Apparel, have gained mainstream popularity. This has seemingly made the anti­mainstream culture become weaker.
“A lot of people that are self­defined hipsters aren't really hipsters. They're just trying to act as hipsters to seem cooler，” says Amanda Leopold, a college student from Oberlin College, US. Although Leopold has many unusual tastes and seems quite individualist, she refuses to classify herself as a hipster.
【小題1】In the passage, hipsters refer to people ________.

A．who are fans of pop music

B．who study in different colleges

C．who appear cool and unusual

D．who try to attract others

【小題2】According to the author, ________.

A．hipsters are the pioneers of the mainstream

B．hipsters are unhappy with the mainstream

C．hipsters' culture exists mainly in music field

D．hipsters' culture can also become popular

【小題3】What is the main idea of the seventh paragraph?

A．Urban Outfitters and American Apparel are famous clothing labels.

B．Hipster consumers have more specialized brands, stores and music.

C．Anti­mainstream culture can gain mainstream popularity.

D．The culture of hipsters is becoming more and more terrible.

【小題4】When describing hipsters, the author speaks ________.

A．in an ironic voice	B．in an objective voice
C．in an angry voice	D．in a funny voice

Have you ever had travel problems because your airplane was late? It is a common problem and it is getting worse. Airport delays make people angry and cost the country billions in lost work time.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the government agency that oversees air travel. They studied the problem of airline delays.
They found eleven major problems and suggested eleven ways to fix them. Some of the problems are caused because different regions of the country do things differently. The regions don't talk to each other enough. Some of them need new computers.
Also, more planes are flying. A strong economy has more people using airplanes to get around. Airplanes are a form of mass transportation now, like trains and buses were in the past. More planes in the airport cause delays.
The airport in San Francisco is a good example. It is growing fast. Many people go through San Francisco to get to other places around the world. Ron Wilson of the San Francisco International Airport says, “If you've got 18 flights that all want to take off at 8：00 am and you're on the 18^th plane in line, you're going to be 40 minutes late.”
Weather is another main reason for delays. Weather causes about 70% of delays. Fog or freezing rain can cause delays.
The first thing the FAA wants to do is take control away from the regions during heavy traffic times and bad weather. A national center would make decisions on things that affect the whole country. The FAA also wants to put more distance between planes in the sky when the weather is bad. This rule could cause even more delays.
The FAA knows that their solutions will not solve the problems with airport delays. But, they hope to make things better. There are just too many planes, too few traffic controllers, and not enough new technology.
【小題1】FAA found that some of the delay problems are caused by ________ between two regions.

A．different languages

B．technical misunderstanding

C．misunderstanding of the rules

D．lack of communication

【小題2】Which of the following is NOT mentioned as a reason for airline delays?

A．A growing number of flights.

B．Bad weather.

C．A growing population.

D．Lack of new technology.

【小題3】From the passage we can infer that ________.

A．FAA is a national center which controls all the flight matters

B．FAA has taken control to solve airport delays

C．in San Francisco, each plane will delay about 40 minutes

D．safety rules during bad weather may cause more delays

【小題4】Which of the statements best gives the idea of the passage?

A．FAA should make decisions to stop airport delays.

B．Airport delays are on the rise.

C．Travel problems cost billions in lost work time.

D．FAA has taken control of air traffic nationwide.