I was waiting for a phone call from my agent. He had left a message the night before, telling me that my show was to be canceled. I called him several times, but each time his secretary told me that he was in a meeting and that he would call me later. So I waited and waited, but there was still no call. Three hours passing by, I became more and more impatient. I was certain that my agent didn’t care about my work, and he didn't care about me. I was overcome with that thought. I started to shout at the phone, "Let me wait, will you? Who do you think you are?"

??? At that time I didn't realize my wife was looking on. Without showing her surprise, she rushed in, seized the phone, tore off the wires, and shouted at the phone, "Yeah! Who do you think you are? Bad telephone! Bad telephone!" And she swept it into the wastebasket.

??? I stood watching her, speechless. What on earth?

??? She stepped to the doorway and shouted at the rest of the house, "Now hear this! All objects in this room—if you do anything to upset my husband, out you go!"

??? Then she turned to me, kissed me, and said calmly, "Honey, you just have to learn how to take control." With that, she left the room.

??? After watching a crazy woman rushing in and out, shouting at everything in sight, I noticed that something in my mood had changed. I was laughing. How could I have trouble with that phone? Her antics helped me realize I had been driven crazy by small things. Twenty minutes later my agent did call. I was able to listen to him and talk to him calmly.

1.Why did the author shout at the telephone?

A. He was mad at the telephone.??????????????

B. He was angry with his agent.

C. He was anxious about his wife.????????????

D. He was impatient with the secretary.

2.What did the author’s wife do after she heard his shouting?

A. She said nothing.??????????????????????? B. She shouted at him.

C. She called the agent.???????????????????? D. She threw the phone away.

3.What made the author laugh?

A. His own crazy behavior.????????????????? B. His wife’s suggestions.

C. His changeable feeling.?????????????????? D. His wife’s sweet kiss.

4.What does the underlined word “ antics” refer to?

A. Smart words??? B. Unusual actions.???? C. Surprising looks.??? D. Anxious feelings

 

They say that "seeing is believing", but when it comes to TV commercials, this is not always the case.

The world's leading mobile phone maker, Nokia, released its latest model Lumia 920 on Sept. 5. The smart phone was supposed to possess an advanced camera, which let customers shoot better pictures at night and record stabilized videos. To show how well these features work, the Finnish company released an ad showing a man and a woman riding bicycles side by side, with the man taking a video of the woman on the phone. However, several hours later, technology website The Verge uncovered that the video was neither shot with the new product, nor shot from someone riding a bicycle. Instead, someone in a lorry next to the woman took the video using a professional video camera.

       The next day Nokia apologized, "In an effort to demonstrate the benefits of visual image stabilization, we produced a video that simulates(看起来像)what we will be able to deliver." Indeed, what we have seen in ads is more or less a simulation——a practice called "advertising photography".

       McDonald's video in June explained the "art". It showed how its burgers get dolled up(装扮)before going on camera. Like models preparing for a magazine cover shoot, burgers also get designed in a photography studio. They are prepared for hours and put together with absolute precision so they look their best before photo shoots. Each ingredient, such as onions and sauce, is carefully put into place to make the burger look much juicier, bigger and tastier. Computer software Photoshop is also used to add visual effects.

       So don't feel ____________________when you get a burger that never looks like what you see in ads.

1. What do the underlined words "the case" in Paragraph l refer to? (within 5 words)

2. For what purpose did Nokia create the video? (within 8 words)

3.Why did Nokia apologize based on the text? (within 10 words)

4.Why does the author give the example of McDonald's video in Paragraph 4? (within 10 words)

5.Fill in the blank in Paragraph 5 with proper words.(within 2 words)

 

A funny thing happened on the way to the communication revolution: we stopped talking to one another.

I was walking in the park with a friend recently, and his cell phone rang, interrupting our conversation. There we were, walking and talking on a beautiful sunny day and suddenly, I became invisible, absent from the conversation.

The telephone used to connect you to the absent. Now it makes people sitting next to you feel absent. Why is it that the more connected we get, the more disconnected I feel? Every advance in communication technology is a tragedy to the closeness of human interaction. With email and instant messaging over the Internet, we can now communicate without seeing or talking to one another. With voice-mail, you can conduct entire conversations without ever reaching anyone. If my mom has a question, I just leave the answer on her machine.

As almost every contact we can imagine between human beings gets automated, the emotional distance index goes up. You can’t even call a person to get the phone number of another person any more. Directory assistance is almost always fully automated.

I am not against modern technology. I own a cell phone, an ATM card, a voice-mail system, and an email account. Giving them up isn’t wise. They’re a great help to us. It's some of their possible consequences that make me feel uneasy.

More and more, I find myself hiding behind e­mail to do a job meant for conversations or being relieved with voice-mail picking up because I don't really have time to talk. The industry devoted to helping me keep in touch is making me lonelier.

1.Which of the following would be the best title of the passage?

A. The Advance of Modern Technology

B. The Consequences of Communication Technology

C. The Story of Communication Revolution

D. The Automation of Modern Communication

2.Which is NOT TURE according to the passage?

A. The author has decided not to use his phone when he is with his friend.

B. Modern technology makes it hard for people to have a face-to-face talk.

C. The limited use of communication device brings much inconvenience to the author.

D. The industry intended to keep people in touch is taking them away from each other.

3.The writer feels that the use of modern communication is ______.

A. satisfying          B. encouraging

C. disappointing       D. embarrassing

4.The passage implies that ______.

A. modern technology is bridging the people   

B. modern technology is separating the people

C. modern technology is developing too fast

D. modern technology is interrupting people

 

Mr. Harris used to work in Dover, but then he changed his work, and he and his wife moved to another town. They did not have many friends there, but they soon met a lot of interesting people, and after a few weeks, they often went to dinner or to parties at other people's houses.

Then Mrs. Harris said to her husband, "We've been to a lot of other people's houses, and now we must invite them to our house, mustn't we?"

"Yes, certainly," answered her husband, "A big party will be the easiest thing, won't it? Then we can start to invite people to dinner in small numbers next month."

So Mrs. Harris said, "Yes, I'll invite all our friends here to a big party on 5th December."

"How many will that be?" Mr. Harris asked. "Don't invite too many."

Mrs. Harris was beginning to write the invitations when her husband saw that she was writing, "Party: 6:30 to 8:30 p.m."

"That isn't very nice, is it?" he said. "You're telling our guests that they must go at 8:30." So Mrs. Harris just wrote "Party: 6:30 p.m."

A lot of guests came, and they all had a good time, so they did not go home at 8:30. In fact they were still there at mid-night when the door bell rang and a policeman arrived. He said, "You must stop making a noise, because someone has complained(抱怨)."

Mr. Harris said he did not want to quarrel with the policeman, so everyone went home. They were sorry to have to go.

When Mr. and Mrs. Harris were alone again, she said to him. "That was a surprise, wasn't it? Who complained about the noise?"

"I did," Mr. Harris answered in a tired voice.

1.Why did Mr. Harris and his wife move to another town?

A.Mr. Harris changed his work.

B.They wanted to make some new friends.

C.They wanted to meet a lot of interesting people.

D.They enjoyed going to parties and visiting other people's houses.

2.What made Mr. and Mrs. Harris hold a party at their house?

A.It was easy to hold a big party at home.

B.They could ask people to dinner in small numbers.

C.They had gone to other people's parties many times.

D.They liked making friends with others.

3.How long would Mrs. Harris like the party to last?

A.From the morning till night.                B.About two hours.

C.About fourteen hours.                   D.Till midnight

4.When did the party end that evening?

A.At about 8:30.

B.About twelve o'clock..  

C.When the policeman talked with Mr. Harris on the phone.

D.When someone telephoned the police station.

5.Why did Mr. Harris telephoned the policeman about the noise?

A.Because someone rang his door bell many times at mid-night.

B.He did not want his friends to stay late that night.

C.His friends had a good time that night and also feel tired.

D.Because he hated the noise.

 

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