As you move around your home, take a good look at the things you have．It is likely that your living room will have a television set and a video, and your kitchen a washing machine and a microwave oven．Your bedroom drawers will be filled with almost three times as many clothes as you need．You almost certainly own a car and possibly a home computer, holiday abroad at least once a year and eat out at least once a week．
Now, perhaps, more than ever before, people are wondering what life is all about, and what it is for．Seeking material success is beginning to trouble large numbers of people around the world．They feel that the long-hours work culture to make more money to buy more things is eating up their lives, leaving them very little time or energy for family or pastimes．Many are turning to other ways of living and downshifting is one of them．
Six percent of workers in Britain took the decision to downshift last year．One couple who downshifted is Daniel and Liz．They used to work in central London．He was a newspaper reporter and she used to work for an international bank．They would go to work by train every day from their large house in the suburbs, leaving their two children with a nanny(保姆)．Most evenings Daniel wouldn’t get home until eight or nine o’clock, and nearly twice a month he would have to fly to New York for meetings．They both earned a large amount of money but began to feel that life was passing them by．
Nowadays, they run a farm in the mountains of Wales, “I always wanted to have a farm here,” says Daniel, “and we took almost a year to make the decision to downshift．It’s taken some getting used to, but it’s been worth it．We have to think twice now about spending money on car repairs and we no longer have any holidays．However, I think it’s made us stronger as a family, and the children are a lot happier．”
Liz, however, is not quite sure．“I used to enjoy my job, even though it was hard work and long hours．I’m not really a country girl, but I suppose I’m gradually getting used to looking after the animals．One thing I do like, though, is being able to see more of my children．My advice for other people wanting to do the same is not to think about it too much or you might not do it at all．”
(1)
When Daniel was a reporter, he ________．
[ ]
A．
lived in central London
B．
disliked his job
C．
missed his children
D．
was well paid
(2)
Daniel and Liz both agree that the move to the farm _________．
[ ]
A．
was easy to organize
B．
has improved family life
C．
was extremely expensive
D．
have been a total success
(3)
What does the underlined “it” in the last paragraph refer to?
[ ]
A．
Child-caring．
B．
Liz’s advice．
C．
Downshifting．
D．
Liz’s job．
(4)
The underlined word “downshifting” in the second paragraph means _________．
[ ]
A．
repairing your car by yourself
B．
spending money carefully
C．
moving out to the countryside to live a simpler and better life
D．
living in a big house in the suburbs and dining out once a week
Israeli paintings－Israeli artist Menashe Kadishman will hold a personal show named “Flock of Sheep” from November 26 to December 20 at the China National Art Museum．On show are 550 colorful oil paintings of sheep heads．
His works have been on show in the Metropolitan Museum in New York and Tate Gallery in London over the past 30 years．
Time：9∶00 a. m.－4∶00 p. m., November 26-December 20．
Place：China National Art Museum,1 Wusi Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing．
Tel：6401-2252
Russia Ballet－The Kremlin Ballet from Russia will perform two immortal classical ballets－“Swiss Lake” and “The Nutcracker”－at the Beijing Beizhan Theatre．Set up in 1990, the theatre has a number of first-class ballet dancers with pride．Most of their performances are classical．
Time：7∶15 p. m., December 5 and 6(“Swan Lake”); 7∶15 p. m., December 7(“Nutcracker”)
Folk concert－The Central Conservatory of Music(音乐学院)will hold a folk concert in memory of the late musician Situ Huacheng．
On the programme are many popular folks such as “Moon Night on the Bamboo Tower” “Celebrating Harvest” “Deep and Lasting Friendship” “Golden Snake Dancers Wildly”, and “Children?s Holiday”．
Time：7∶30 p. m., November 25．
Place：Beijing Concert Hall, 1 Beixinhua Street．
Tel：6605-5812
(1)
If a child is very fond of dancing, his parent should take him to ________．
[ ]
A．
China National Art Museum
B．
Beizhan Theatre
C．
Beijing Concert Hall
D．
1 Wusi Street
(2)
Menashe Kadishman is well known for painting ________．
[ ]
A．
deer
B．
birds
C．
sheep
D．
flowers
(3)
Which of the following is TRUE?
[ ]
A．
The folk concert will last three days．
B．
The ballet “The Nutcracker” will be put on once．
C．
The Israeli paintings will be on show for a month．
D．
China National Art Museum lies in Xicheng District．
(4)
If you dial the telephone number 6605-3388 on Dec．8, you can ________．
[ ]
A．
go to the folk concert
B．
visit the Art Museum
C．
watch the ballet
D．
none of the above
阅读理解
ISC(HS)Reference No．S006864 New South Wales
Student Date of Birth：19/08/1988 Department of Education and Training
International Students Centre
Hong Xue 827-839 George Street PO Box 707
60 Waratah Street Broadway NSW 21007
Croydon Park NSW 2133 Phone：(612)9217 4801 1300 302 456
Fax：(612)9212 6721
http：//www.tafensw.edu.au/international/
WARNING LETTER
Dear Hong Xue,
As you are aware, your student visa regulations set out a number of conditions applying to your visa．It has come to our attention that you are failing to meet the following conditions：You must maintain accommodation, support and general welfare arrangements that have been approved by your education provider if you：
●have not turned 18; and
●are not staying in Australia with：
－a parent
－a custodian(监护人); or
－a relative who has been nominated(指定)by your parent or a custodian, is aged at least 21 and is of good character．
Note：You must not change those arrangements without the written approval of your education provider．
You must obey the following rules：
1．During term time you must：
a)remain in your homestay during the school term;
b)come home every night; and
c)inform your guardian at all times of your whereabouts．
2．On weekends you must：
a)have your guardian's permission to stay with friends; and
b)inform your guardian of the name, address and phone numbers of people you are visiting．
3．You must return your guardian's telephone calls．
This will be your only warning．If you continue to breach(违反)your student visa regulations we will report you to the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs．Such action may lead to the cancellation(取消)of your student visa．Please contact me on(612)9217 4801 or fax(612)9212 6721 if you have questions about your enrolment．
Yours sincerely
Tracey Carlon
Student Advisor
International Students Centre
NSW Department of Education and Training
(1)
What's the purpose of writing this letter?
[ ]
A．
To remind the recipient of the conditions for applying for a student visa．
B．
To warn the recipient not to do anything against his student visa regulations again．
C．
To tell the recipient how to contact his student advisor．
D．
To inform the recipient of the student visa regulations．
(2)
What can be learned about the recipient from this letter?
[ ]
A．
He is under 18 and studies in Australia with his parents．
B．
He is required to come home every night according to the rules．
C．
He can stay with his friends on weekends if permitted．
D．
His student Visa has been cancelled．
(3)
To which address should the recipient reply if he feels like answering the letter?
[ ]
A．
Hong Xue at 60 Waratah Street, Croydon Park NSW 2133．
B．
Tracey Carlon at the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs．
C．
Hong Xue at NSW Department of Education and Training．
D．
Tracey Carlon at 827-839 George Street, PO Box 707, Broadway NSW 21007．
阅读理解
Watching 3D films such as Avatar could give some viewers headaches, experts have warned．
The success of James Cameron's science-fiction blockbuster(卖座的大片), which has already taken more than ＄1 billion(￡600 million)at the box office, is fuelling a surge in popularity for three-dimensional movies and new 3D television sets．
But prolonged viewing may result in an aching head, according to Dr Michael Rosenberg, an ophthalmology(眼科学)professor at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago．
He said："There are a lot of people walking around with very minor eye problems, for example a minor muscle imbalance, which under normal circumstances the brain deals with naturally．"
Watching a 3D movie confronts viewers with an entirely new sensory experience．"That translates into greater mental effort, making it easier to get a headache," he said．
Dr Deborah Friedman, a professor of ophthalmology and neurology(神经学)at the University of Rochester Medical Center in New York, said："If your eyes are a little off to begin with then it's really throwing a whole degree of effort that your brain now needs to exert．This disparity for some people will give them a headache．"
Experts say there are no studies tracking how common it is to get a headache after watching a 3D film．
Rick Heineman, a spokesman for RealD, which provides 3D equipment to cinemas, said headaches and nausea were the main reasons 3D technology never took off before．
But he said new digital technology addresses many of the problems that had previously caused sore heads．
(1)
What can we learn from what Dr Michael Rosenberg said?
[ ]
A．
A lot of people prefer walking around with very minor eye problems to sitting silently watching 3D films．
B．
The brain can deal with very minor eye problems under normal circumstances naturally．
C．
A lot of people haven’t got very minor eye problems when viewing films under normal circumstances．
D．
People come into very minor eye problems and a minor muscle imbalance when watching 3D films．
(2)
What does the underlined word “prolonged” in the 3rd paragraph mean?
[ ]
A．
continuous
B．
constant
C．
regular
D．
long-time
(3)
According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?
[ ]
A．
It has taken less than ＄1 billion to make the popularity of three-dimensional movies and new 3D television sets．
B．
Watching a 3D movie leaves viewers confronted with an entirely new sensory experience．
C．
There are studies tracking how common it is to get a headache after watching a 3D film．
D．
Rick Heineman said that 3D technology would never take off headaches and nausea in future．
(4)
What’s the main idea of the passage?
[ ]
A．
The expert warns the readers not to watch 3D films because of resulting in an aching head．
B．
New digital technology gives viewers headaches and eye problems．
C．
The experts are studying how to get rid of many of the problems that have previously caused sore heads．
D．
Viewing 3D films may result in some side-effect problems such as headaches．
阅读理解
Once upon a time the colors of the world started to quarrel．Green said,“Clearly I am the most important．I am the sign of life and hope．I was chosen for grass, trees and leaves．Without me, all animals would 1 ．”
Blue interrupted,“You only think about the 2 , but consider the sky and the sea． 3 the water that is the basis of life and drawn up by the clouds from the deep sea．Without my peace, you would all be 4 ．”
Yellow chuckled(笑道),“You are all so serious．I bring laughter, fun, and 5 into the world．”
Orange started next to blow her trumpet,“I am the color of health and strength．I may be 6 , but I am precious for I serve the needs of human life．When I fill the sky 7 , my beauty is so striking that no one gives another 8 to any of you．”
Red could stand it 9 and he shouted out,“I am the ruler of all of you．I am the color of danger and of bravery．I am willing to 10 truth．I am also the color of passion and of love．”
Then came Purple and Indigo(深蓝)…．
The colors went on boasting, each convinced of his or her own 11 ．Their quarreling became louder and louder．Suddenly there was a startling flash of bright lightening thunder．Rain started to pour down 12 ．The colors crouched(蜷缩)down 13 , drawing close to one another for comfort．
In the midst of the clamor(叫嚷), rain began to speak,“You foolish colors, fighting 14 yourselves, each trying to dominate 15 ．Don't you know that you were each made for a special purpose, 16 ?Join hands with 17 and come to me．”
Doing as they were told, the colors 18 and joined hands．They formed a colorful rainbow．From then on, whenever a good rain 19 the world, a rainbow appears in the sky．They remember to 20 one another．
