“Sesame Street” has been called “the longest street in the world”. That is because the television program by that name can now be seen in so many parts of the world. That program became one of American’s exports soon after it went on the air in New York in 1969.

In the United States more than six million children watch the program regularly. The viewers include more than half the nation’s pre-school children, from every kind of economic(经济的), racial(种族的), and geographical group.

Although some educators object to certain elements in the program, parents praise it highly. Many teachers also consider it a great help, though some teachers find that problems arise when first graders who have learned from “Sesame Street” are in the same class with children who have not watched the program.

Tests have shown that children from all racial, geographical, and economic backgrounds have benefited from watching it. Those who watch it five times a week learn more than occasional(偶然的) viewers. In the US the program is shown at different hours during the week in order to increase the number of children who can watch it regularly.

The programs all use songs, stories, jokes, and pictures to give children a basic understanding of numbers, letters and human relationships. But there are some differences. For example, the Spanish program, produced in Mexico City, devotes more time to teaching whole words than to teaching separate letters.

Why has “Sesame Street” been so much more successful than other children’s shows? Many reasons have been suggested. People mention the educational theories(理论) of its creators, the support by the government and private(私人的) businesses, and the skillful use of a variety of TV tricks. Perhaps an equally important reason is that mothers watch it along with their children. This is partly because famous adult stars often appear on it. But the best reason for the success of the program may be that it makes every child watching feel able to learn. The child finds himself learning, and he wants to learn more.

1. “Sesame Street” is actually _______.

A. a street in the US            B. a program for children

C. a program for teachers      D. a program for students

2. Children who often watch the program _______.

A. can have problems in school    

B. will find it a great help

C. will take no interest in their studies

D. will be well educated

3. What is special about the program?

A. It offers great fun.

B. It makes children feel able to learn.

C. It is shown at different hours during the week.

D. Children learn and enjoy themselves while watching.

4. Why is “Sesame Street” so popular in the world?

A. Because it is supported by the government and businesses.

B. Because it uses a variety of skillful tricks.

C. Because mothers watch it along with their children.

D. Because it makes every child watching it feel able to learn.

5. The best title for this passage can be _______.

A. TV Programs                                 B. Educating Children

C. Sesame Street                                D. A Great Success

China is having such a huge influence on the United States that many Americans are struggling to learn the Chinese language in a bid to keep competitive.
"Interest in learning Chinese among American youth and their parents has grown quickly in the past five years," said Vivien Stewart, vice president at the Asia Society. China's quick rise to near-superpower and its effects politically, economically and culturally are driving the American's interest to learn the language, experts say. From kindergartens to high schools, studies by the Asia Society show, there is a "rapid rise" in interest among pupils to study the Chinese language.
"The Chinese rich cultural traditions and blossoming economy mean that it is now important for all of our students to be better prepared," said Michael Levine, Asia Society's executive director of education. A survey found that 2,400 high students—an unbelievable high number—would be interested in offering the Advanced Placement(AP) courses in Chinese language and culture when the courses become available in 2006.
China, the world's most populous nation, is important to the United States because it is a leading trader, consumer and investor. Its political influence is also rising across the world. It has replaced the United States as the world's largest consumer and could become the second largest economy in the world, after the United States, in the next two to three decades.
Even though the US State Department has described the Chinese language "critical" to national prosperity and security, "the current facilities to support recruitment (招募)of students and teachers as well as the growth of high quality programs is terribly not enough," an Asia Society study says. The Society has set an aim of having at least five percent of American high school students learning Chinese by 2015.
"Millions of Chinese are learning English, but only 24,000 Americans are learning Chinese," said Andrew Corcoran of the San Francisco-based Chinese American International School. The most popular languages after English in US schools at present are Spanish and French while Japanese is the most popular Asian language.
53. The underlined word blossoming (Para. 3) means _________.
A. developed               B. developing           C. old                   D. weak
54. Why do more and more Americans begin to learn the Chinese language?
A. To keep competitive.                    B. To gain advantage in trade.
C. Because they are always interested in it.  
D. To be a bridge between the two big countries.
55. What problem is the US faced with when it comes to learning Chinese?
A. Too many Chinese are learning English.
B. Not many people want to learn foreign languages.
C. The language is rather difficult compared with English.
D. A lack in current facilities to support recruitment of students and teachers and programs.
56. What is the best title for this passage?
A. Danger from China               
B. Foreign Language Learning
C. The Chinese Language gets More Popular  
D. Difficulties in Learning the Chinese Language

WASHINGTON---At least four more U.S. air-traffic controllers are caught nodding off on the job at three separate airports across the nation, the government said Wednesday.

The controller working alone in the tower fell asleep and was out of communication for 16 minutes while a medical flight carrying a patient was trying to land at about 2 A.M. Wednesday at Reno-Tahoe International Airport in Nevada, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said in a statement.

The FAA announced that it is also investigating a controller who fell asleep Monday at Boeing King County International Airport in Seattle and two controllers who were unresponsive at McGhee Tyson Airport in Knoxville, Tennessee on Feb.19.

“I am sick of this,” Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Chairman Jay Rockefeller, a West Virginia Democrat, said in a statement. “We can’t have a system where some of the people responsible for safety are asleep at the switch.”

As the incidents pile up, sleep experts say it demonstrates that the agency faces a systemic issue with the thousands of people expected to work through the night in safety-critical jobs. Scientific research shows that workers on midnight shifts make more errors because it is so difficult for the body to adapt to sleeping during the day, they say.

The agency will add an extra controller at the 27 towers staffed with one worker on the midnight shift, the FAA statement said.

Representative John Mica, the Florida Republican who chairs the House transportation committee, criticized the decision to add controllers. “Only in the federal government would you double up on workers, averaging $161,000 per year in salary and benefits, that aren’t doing their job,” Mica said in a statement. Mica has pushed legislation that would allow as many as 90 smaller airports to switch from federal to private controllers.

“People have known these problems with fatigue(疲劳)have existed for years,” said John Goglia, a Boston-based aviation safety consultant. “They’re now showing up. The FAA is admitting they exist. Now the FAA needs to work on it.”

The four controllers in Nevada, Seattle and Texas have been suspended(暂时停职) during the investigations, the FAA said.

1.The underlined part “double up on workers” means “______”.

A.add two more workers

B.staff two workers at a post

C.settle two workers in a double room

D.give the workers double pay

2.According to John Goglia, fatigue problem ______.

A.is a known potential danger

B.has never appeared before

C.is common for day-time shift workers

D.seldom shows up at night

3.Which statement is true?

A.A controller fell asleep without communication for 16 minutes in Knoxville, Tennessee.

B.A medical flight carrying a patient failed to land with the controller asleep.

C.Jay Rockefeller pays little attention to sleeping at the switch.

D.Mica refused to support the decision to staff more controllers on the midnight shift.

4.We can infer from the passage that ______.

A.All the controllers in the US were working alone while they were on duty

B.The incidents are rooted in fatigue problems and those on midnight shifts need an extra nap

C.In the U.S. , thousands of people expect to work through the night in safety-critical jobs

D.The agency has added an extra controller at the 27 towers

 

Beijing ?(13, July) China sent up a new data relays atellite (数据中继卫星), Tianlian I -02, on Monday at the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in South-western Sichuan province.The new satellite will promote the country's satellite communication network for space docking (对接).

The satellite was launched on a Long-March-SC carrier rocket at 11:41 p.m., sources at the centre told Xinhua News Agency.The satellite separated from the rocket 26 minutes after its launch and was then successfully delivered into a geostationary transfer orbit (地球同步转移轨道).

Developed by the China Academy of Space Technology under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, the satellite is the country's second data relay satellite.The first, Tianlian I -01, was launched on April 25.2008.

The two satellites will form a network to improve communications between China's spacecraft and bases on Earth, according to the centre.They will also be used to help the nation's first space docking, scheduled for the second half of this year.

As planned, China will launch space module Tiangong-I (天宫1号), which was designed as a platform that will dock with an unmanned spaceship, Shenzhou, for the county's first space-docking mission this year.

Two more Shenzhou spaceships will dock with Tiangong-I next year, and one will be manned by two or three astronauts, according to China Manned Space Engineering Office, which was the main user of the Tianlian I series data relay satellites.

"The new satellite can cover a greater area to track and command the country's space vehicles m low-Earth orbits, such as manned spacecraft and remote sensing satellites, from a higher position m outer space.Only three satellites of this kind are needed to form a global communication network, and China has two now." Pang Zhihao, a researcher and deputy editor-in-chief of Space International, said.

The satellite could also equip astronauts with real-time communications, which will benefit the county s future manned space flights, he said.

1.What is the main purpose to send up Tianlian I -02 ?

A.To test the function of a Long-March-SC carrier rocket.

B.To carry some astronauts into space to do some research.

C.To send more information and clearer pictures to mobile phones on the earth.

D.To promote the country's satellite communication network for space docking'

2.From the passage we know           .

A.one more such satellite is needed to form a global communication network

B.the satellite was developed by China Manned Space Engineering Office

C.it was less than three years since China launched its first date relay satellite of this kind

D.the satellite could help track and command space vehicles in orbits because it's lower in position

3.Which of the following is TRUE according to the news report?

A.Shenzhou Ⅷ is a manned spaceship.

B.Tiangong- I will dock with three Shenzhou spaceships next year.

C.the satellite is of great importance to China's space exploration.

D.china’s first ^a06 docking will be done in the second half of next year.

4.The best title of the passage could be _____.

A.China Launched a New Space Shuttle

B.China's Plan for Space Exploration

C.China’s Progress m China's Space Exploration

D.New Satellite Helps China's Space Exploration

 

At one time, people used to travel to foreign countries because they thought the building, the food, the national dress there would be different from home. Nowadays, however, one large city is very like another. They all have their Hilton or Sheraton Hotels which look like Hilton or Sheraton Hotels everywhere. They all have their McDonald’s, their KFCs, their Pizza Huts. Office buildings look the same everywhere, and most city centers are full of office buildings. And, of course, people are driving the same brands of Japanese or European cars, usually wearing the same kinds of clothing and watching the same American movies and TV shows. Airports are the same everywhere and the world’s airlines are all flying the same aircraft, Boeings or Airbuses.

    What, therefore, is the purpose of foreign travel for people who are not on business? What do tourists hope to experience in a foreign country that they cannot experience at home? Why do they travel to foreign countries at all?  The answer could be that people are very interested in the past. It is a nation’s history that is its main attraction. Most of today’s tourists travel overseas to find out what foreign countries and cultures used to be like, not what they are like today. The words “cultural tourism” are now part of the language of tourism, and it is the museums and works of art in many countries that are their main attractions.

    If they are lucky many countries also usually have at least a few beautiful places for tourists to visit.

    Finally there is perhaps a nation’s greatest attraction: its people. A nation is not just its historical buildings, its works of art or beautiful places, and it is also the people who live in it. This is why a country such as Thailand attracts millions of people every year. They come mainly because of the friendliness of the Thai people, and it is why the Pacific Islands are also so popular. There may not be much to see or do in Fiji, but there are lots of friendly, smiling people to make visitors feel welcome.

1.The passage is mainly about __________.

  A. the importance of tourism              B. different foreign cultures

  C. how to plan an overseas trip           D. why people travel to foreign countries

2.The writer thinks that large cities in foreign countries __________.

  A. are similar to one another         B. share the same aircraft

  C. do not have good hotels            D. do not offer a warm service to foreigners

3.The writer believes that many tourists are interested in foreign ________.

  A. hotels          B. history          C. cars          D. programs

 

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