Many young people these days adore the advertised magazine body and become too focused on attaining this image instead of worrying more about what lasts and even grows over time. But could you imagine being considered beautiful for years, and suddenly being ugly after moving to another continent? It is a sad reality that people don’t realize how vacillating the idea of beauty can be from one country to another.

Think of the most typical American girl you know. Is she blonde haired with white skin and light eyes, and does she love shopping or sports? Now place this girl in the heart of Africa, a place where beauty is placed on what you can control. The Maasai tribe in Kenya focuses on how clean people are, and how stylish their piercings (穿孔) are. This tribe’s culture is to be a brave fighter, so they will cut their skin with patterns in it to show that they are strong. If you don’t look fierce, you are not beautiful.

Other countries like North Korea and South Korea have their own unique views on beauty. In an interview, a woman who has lived in both North and South Korea claims that beauty in North Korea is based more on your ability to be a good woman and wife. She says that women in North Korea are less concerned about fashion and beauty in the physical sense. She says they did have a time when big eyes were a big deal and everyone wanted to get double eyelid surgery. This is something extreme and could perhaps be influenced by Western culture. And the idea of getting surgery done to look more attractive is crazy.

1.What does the underlined word “vacillating” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?

A. Inconsistent. B. Reasonable. C. Unusual. D. Similar.

2.The Maasai tribe in Kenya is mentioned to show that in their eyes _______.

A. getting dirty is stylish

B. looking fierce is beautiful

C. strong people cut their skin

D. American girls love shopping

3.According to the woman interviewed, women in North Korea now_______.

A. care a lot about their appearance

B. put the beauty of eyes in the first place

C. pay great attention to their ability

D. are crazy about double eyelid surgery

4.What does the text mainly tell us?

A. Inner beauty is of great importance.

B. Ideas of beauty vary among culture groups.

C. Different ways are needed to admire true beauty.

D. Fashion magazines easily influence young people.

Last week, Education Secretary Arne Duncan declared a war on paper textbooks. “Over the next few years,” he said in a speech at the National Press Club, “textbooks should be abandoned.” In their place would come a variety of digital-learning technologies, like e-readers and multi-media websites.

Such technologies certainly have their place. But Secretary Duncan is threatening to light a fire to a tried-and-true technology—good old paper—that has been the foundation for one of the great educational systems on the planet. And while e-readers and multi-media may seem appealing, the idea of replacing an effective learning platform with a widely hyped (炒作) but still unproven one is extremely dangerous.

An expert on reading, Maryanne Wolf, has recently begun studying the effects of digital reading on learning, and so far the results are mixed. She worries that Internet reading, in particular, could be such a source of distractions(分散注意力) for the student that they may cancel out most other potential benefits of a web-linked, e-learning environment, and while it’s true that the high-tech industry has sponsored substantial amounts of research on the potential benefits of Web-based learning, not enough time has passed for longitudinal(纵向的) studies to demonstrate the full effects.

In addition, digital-reading advocates claim that lightweight e-books benefit students’ backs and save schools money. But the rolling backpack seems to have solved the weight problem, and the astounding costs to outfit every student with an e-reader, provide technical support and pay for regular software updates promise to make the e-textbook a very pricey choice.

As both a teacher who uses paper textbooks and a student of urban history, I can’t help but wonder what parallels exist between my own field and this sudden, wholesale abandonment of the technology of paper.

1.Which of the following statements is true according to the passage?

A. A tried and true technology is paper, long used in educational system.

B. Digital learning technologies will replace the paper textbooks sooner or later.

C. E-readers and multimedia websites are learning methods that are proved effective.

D. Multi-media websites and a good old paper are kinds of digital-learning technologies.

2.What are drawbacks of textbooks according to the passage?

A. Its price. B. Its weight. C. Its content. D. Its appearance.

3.What worries Maryanne Wolf is that ________.

A. paper learning can provide more potential benefits

B. the results of digital reading effects are understandable

C. students may not focus on learning by digital reading

D. digital reading can’t provide potential benefits for users

4.What is the author’s attitude towards digital-learning?

A. disapproving. B. supportive. C. positive. D. objective.

What’s on?

Electric Underground 7.30pm-1.00am Free at the Cyclops Theatre

Do you know who’s playing in your area? We’re bringing you an evening of live rock and pop music from the best local bands. Are you interested in becoming a musician and getting a recording contract(合同)? If so, come early to the talk at 7.30pm by Jules Skye, a successful record producer.

He’s going to talk about how you can find the right person to produce you music.

Gee Whizz 8.30pm-10.30pm Comedy at Kaleidoscope

Come and see Gee Whizz perform. He’s the funniest stand-up comedian on the comedy scene. This joyful show will please everyone, from the youngest to the oldest. Gee Whizz really knows how to make you laugh! Our bar is open from 7.00pm for drinks and snacks(快餐).

Simon’s Workshop 5.00pm-7.30pm Wednesdays at Victoria Stage

This is a good chance for anyone who wants to learn how to do comedy. The workshop looks at every kind of comedy, and practices many different ways of making people laugh. Simon is a comedian and actor who has 10 years’ experience of teaching comedy(喜剧). His workshops are exciting and fun. An evening with Simon will give you the confidence to be funny.

Charlotte Stone 8. 00pm-11.00pm Pizza World

Fine food with beautiful jazz music; this is a great evening out. Charlotte Stone will perform songs from her new best-selling CD, with James Pickering on the piano. The menu is Italian, with excellent meat and fresh fish, pizzas and pasta(面食). Book early to get a table. Our bar is open all day, and serves cocktails, coffee, beer, and white wine.

1.Who can help you if you want to have your music produced?

A. Jules Skye. B. Gee Whizz. C. Charlotte Stone. D. James Pickering.

2.At which place can people of different ages enjoy a good laugh?

A. The Cyclops Theatre B. Kaleidoscope C. Victoria Stage D. Pizza World

3.What do we know about Simon’s Workshop?

A. It requires membership status. B. It lasts three hours each time.

C. It is run by a comedy club. D. It is held every Wednesday.

4.When will Charlotte Stone perform her songs?

A. 5.00pm-7.30pm. B. 7.30pm-1.00am.

C. 8.00pm-11.00pm. D. 8.30pm-10.30pm.

Green:More than just a colour

Green is an important colour in nature.It is the colour of grass and the leaves on trees.1..

Sometimes,the word green means young.fresh and growing.Sometimes,it describes something that is not yet ripe or finished.

2.A person with a green thumb seems to have a magic touch that makes plants grow quickly and well.You might say that woman next door has a green thumb if her garden continues to grow long after your plants have died.

The Green Revolution is the name given some years ago to the development of new kinds of rice and other grains.3.The Green Revolution was the result of hard work by agricultural scientists who had green thumbs.

4.The green-eyed monster is not a frightening creature from outer space.It is an expression used about four hundred years ago by British writer William Shakespeare in his play Othello.

In most places in the world,a green light is a sign to move ahead.5.In everyday speech,a green light means approval to continue with a project.We want you to know we have a green light to continue this series next week.

A.For example,a greenhorn is someone who has no experience,who is new to a situation.

B.Someone is also the colour used to describe the powerful emotion,jealousy.

C.Someone who has the ability to grow plants well is said to have a green thumb.

D.A green light on a traffic signal means your car can continue on.

E.The new plants produced much larger crops

F.It is also the colour of most growing plants.

G.About one hundred years ago,having a green thumb was a popular expression in the American west.

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