In the late nineteenth century, ^5,000 pianos were sold in the United States each year and, with over half a million youths learning to play the instrument, there was a huge demand for sheet music (活页乐谱).Indeed the demand was so huge that publishers rushed to enter the profitable market.During the last fifteen years of the century, many publishers began to set up shops in New York, the center for the production of the musical arts

       By the turn of the nineteenth century many important publishers had their offices on 28th Street between Broadway and 5th Avenue, and this Is the area that became known as Tin Pan Alley.It was here that publishers adopted new, aggressive business practices and marketing techniques to achieve great sales.

       How it became to be known by that name is unclear, but the general opinion is that it is down to a visiting journalist by the name of Monroe Rosenfeld.He described the area as being drowned in the noise coming from the producers' offices, sounding as though hundreds of people were hitting tin pans(锡锅).He used it several times in his newspaper articles in the early twentieth century and the term stuck.With time this name was popularly embraced and many years later it came to describe the U.S.music publishing industry in general.

       The start of Tin Pan Alley is usually dated to about 1885,.but the end of Tin Pan Alley is less clear-cut .Some date it to the start of the Great.Depression in the 1930s when the phonograph(留声机) and radio replaced sheet music, as the driving force of American popular music, while others consider Tin Pan Alley to have continued into thel950s when earlier styles of American popular music were upstaged (抢风头) by the rise of rock & roll.

       There's a plaque(纪念匾牌)on the sidewalk on 28th Street in honor of the influence of Tin Pan Alley on American popular culture, but the buildings that were home to the legendary Tin Pan Alley publishers and songwriters are up for sale and may be torn down to make room for modern high-rise buildings.

What.is the passage mainly about ?                     

       A.American popular music.

       B.Tin Pan Alley's future。 

       C.American music Industry.

       D.The history of Tin Pan Alley.

In the early 20th century.Tin Pan Alley was used to refer to ____.

       A.the American popular culture.    B.the American printing media

       C.the American rock-music center              D.the American music publishing industry.

In the nineteenth century, the driving force of American popular music was:____.

       A.rock & roll                         B.sheet music

       C.country music                        D.phonographs and radios

When visiting Tin Pan Alley , Rosenfeld probably felt it was ____.

       A.very noisy      B.very quiet           C.wide           D.narrow

We can learn from the passage that ______.

       A.the term " Tin Pan Alley" was perhaps first used by Rosenfeld.

       B.the old shops of Tin Pan Alley will be well protected.

       C.Tin Pan Alley got its name in the early nineteenth century.

       D.there were once some factories in Tin Pan Alley

“Sending thank-you notes is becoming a lost art,” mourns May Mitchell, a syndicated columnist known as “Ms Demeanor” and author of six etiquette(礼节) books. In her view, each generation, compared with the one before, is losing a sense of consideration for other people. “Without respect,” she says, “you have conflict.”

       Ms. Demeanor would be proud of me: I have figured out a way to ensure that my children always send thank-you notes. And such a gesture is important, says Ms. Demeanor, because “a grateful attitude is a tremendous life skill, an efficient and inexpensive way to set ourselves apart in the work force and in our adult lives. Teach your children that the habit of manners comes from inside---it’s an attitude based on respecting other people.”

       A few years ago, as my children descended like piranhas (一种南美淡水鱼,喜吞食或攻击) on their presents under the Christmas tree, the only attitude I could see was greed. Where was the appreciation of time and effort?

       A thank-you note should contain three things: an acknowledgement of the gift (Love the tie with the picture of a hose on it); a recognition of the time and effort spent to select it (You must have shopped all over the state find such a unique item!); a prediction of how you will use your gift or the way it has enhanced your life (I’ll be sure to wear it to the next Mr. Ed convention!).

       So, five years ago, in one of my rare flashes of parental insight, I decided that the most appropriate time to teach this basic courtesy is while the tinsel (装饰用光亮金属) is hot. To the horror of my children, I announced that henceforth every gift received will be an occasion for a thank-you note written immediately, on the spot.

       I have reluctantly given my kids the green light to send e-mail thank-you notes; though hand-lettered ones (at least to me) still seem friendlier. But pretty much any thank-you makes the gift giver feel special—just as, we hope, the recipient feels. It’s a gesture that perfectly captures the spirit of the holidays.

41. in Ms. Demeanor’s point of view, children born in the ______ is probably the least respectful generation.

       A. 1960s        B. 1970s         C. 1980s         D. 1990s

42. The phrase “set oneself apart” (Para. 2) means _______.

       A. to reserve to a particular use            B. to put to one side

       C. to make noticeable or outstanding    D. to determine to purse

43. According to the passage, a thank-you note may contain the following information EXCEPT “_______”.

       A. I love the pearl necklace you bought me for my birthday

       B. it must have taken you a long time to find just the right thing for me

       C. is it very expensive         D. I promise I will wear it on my wedding day

44. How did the author feel when she saw her children searching under the Christmas tree for their presents?

       A. Greedy.      B. Cheerful.           C. Laughable.        D. Disheartened.

45. Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE about the author?

       A. She feels hand-written letters are friendlier than word-processed ones.

       B. She does not allow her children to sent email thank-you note.

       C. She thinks the best time to teach her children the basic etiquette of  

appreciation is to strike while the iron is still not.

       D. She thinks a thank-you note can make the gift giver feel special just as the   

recipient does.

    More than 10 years ago, it was difficult to buy a tasty pineapple (菠萝). The fruits that made it to the UK were green on the outside and, more often than not, hard with an unpleasant taste within. Then in 1966, the Del Monte Gold pineapple produced in Hawaii first hit our shelves.

    The new type of pineapple looked more yellowy-gold than green. It was slightly softer on the outside and had a lot of juice inside. But the most important thing about this new type of pineapple was that it was twice as sweet as the hit-and-miss pineapples we had known. In no time, the Del Monte Gold took the market by storm, rapidly becoming the world’s best-selling pineapple variety, and delivering natural levels of sweetness in the mouth, up until then only found in tinned pineapple.

    In nutrition (营养) it was all good news too. This nice tasting pineapple contained four times more vitamin C(维生素C) than the old green variety. Nutritionists said that it was not only full of vitamins, but also good against some diseases. People were understandably eager to be able to buy this wonderful fruit. The new type of pineapple was selling fast, and the Del Monte Gold pineapple rapidly became a fixture in the shopping basket of the healthy eater.

    Seeing the growing market for its winning pineapple, Del Monte tried to keep market to itself. But other fruit companies developed similar pineapples. Del Monte turned to law for help, but failed. Those companies argued successfully that Del Monte’s attempts to keep the golden pineapple for itself were just a way to knock them out the market.

    介绍一种产于夏威夷的可口的、营养丰富的菠萝。

60. We learn from the text that the new type at pineapple is __________.

   A. green outside and sweet inside

   B. good-looking outside and soft inside

   C. yellowy-gold outside and hard inside

   D. a little soft outside and sweet inside

61. Why was the new type of pineapple selling well?

   A. It was rich in nutrition and tasted nice.

   B. It was less sweet and good for health.

   C. It was developed by Del Monte.

   D. It was used as medicine.

62. The underlined word “fixture” in Paragraph 3 probably refers to something _________.

   A. that people enjoy eating         B. that is always present

   C. that is difficult to get            D. that people use as a gift

63. We learn from the last paragraph that Del Monte _________.

   A. slowed other companies to develop pineapples

   B. succeeded in keeping the pineapple for itself

   C. tried hard to control the pineapple market

   D. planned to help the other companies

Only three local students won Chinese Blog(博客) Competition. And 15 of the 18 awards want to students from China.   

170 students’ task: to get a fully-designed blog up and running, complete with many posting 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( 熟练程度)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 , teachers in charge from Ianova Junior Collage, 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 Collage, who spared no effort in researching for and writing her blog. 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 Singlish.   

D. The judges were from university 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 in 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  

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