Almost one-fourth of all personal spending in the United States takes place during the holiday season．There are gifts to give this month for Christmas, Hanukkah and the African American celebration of Kwanzaa．The traditional shopping season began last Friday, after Thanksgiving Day．Personal spending represents two-thids of the economy, so holiday sales are especially important．
Reports on November results have just come out．Wal-Mart is the biggest seller in the world．The company had expected growth of two to four percent in November, fueled by sales on“Black Friday．”
The day after Thanksgiving is called that．Storekeepers used to record profits(利润)in black ink and losses in red ink．A day in the black means a return to profit．
The National Retail Federation estimated(估计)in September that holiday sales would increase four and one-half percent this year．Holiday sales increased five percent last year, after poor sales the year before．
The business group estimated that Americans will spend two hundred twenty thousand million dollars this season．It says they spent just over ten percent of that last weekend．
Also, it says more Americans for the first time this season plan to use a debit card than a credit card for purchases．A debit card, also called a check card, is linked to the money that a person has in a bank．In other words, users must have the money before they can spend it．
About thirty-five percent of shoppers said they would mainly use debit cards, compared to thirty percent for credit cards．Financial experts say this change might mean that more people want to keep to a budget this holiday season．
(1)
What would be the best title for this passage?
[ ]
A．
Thanksgiving Day Shopping．
B．
The Importance of Holiday Sales．
C．
Holiday Shopping Season in the US．
D．
Giving Gifts to Each Other at Christmas．
(2)
When does the holiday season usually begin in the US?
[ ]
A．
Last Friday．
B．
On“Black Friday”．
C．
On a Friday before Christmas Day．
D．
The day before Thanksgiving Day．
(3)
More people plan to use the debit card in that ________．
[ ]
A．
they have no other choices
B．
they can get some extra money
C．
it is more convenient to carry about
D．
they want to limit their expenditure(开支)
(4)
From the passage, it can be inferred that ________．
[ ]
A．
holiday sales seem to increase year by year
B．
credit cards and debit cards are the same thing
C．
it is the first year that people have used debit cards for purchases
D．
storekeepers used to record profits in red ink and losses in black ink
Suppose we built a robot(机器人)to explore the planet Mars．We provide the robot with seeing detectors(探测器)to keep it away from danger．It is powered entirely by the sun．Should we program the robot to be equally active at all times?No．The robot would be using up energy at a time when it was not receiving any．So we would probably program it to stop its activity at night and to wake up at dawn the next morning．
According to the evolutionary(进化的)theory of sleep, evolution equipped us with a regular pattern of sleeping and waking for the same reason．The theory does not deny(否认)that sleep provides some important restorative functions(恢复功能)．It merely says that evolution has programmed us to perform those functions at a time when activity would be inefficient and possibly dangerous．However, sleep protects us only from the sort of trouble we might walk into; it does not protect us from trouble that comes looking for us．So we sleep well when we are in a familiar, safe place, but we sleep lightly, if at all, when we fear that bears will nose into the tent．
The evolutionary theory explains the differences in sleep among creatures．Why do eats, for instance, sleep so much, while horses sleep so little?Surely cats do not need five times as much repair and restoration as horses do．But cats can afford to have long periods of inactivity because they spend little time eating and are unlikely to be attacked while they sleep．Horses must spend almost all their waking hours eating, because what they eat is very low in energy value．Moreover, they cannot afford to sleep too long or too deeply, because their survival(生存)depends on their ability to run away from attackers．
(1)
The author uses the example of the robot in space exploration to tell us ________．
[ ]
A．
the differences between robots and men
B．
the reason why men need to sleep
C．
about the need for robots to save power
D．
about the danger of men working at night
(2)
Evolution has programmed man to sleep at night chiefly to help him ________．
[ ]
A．
keep up a regular pattern of life
B．
prevent trouble that comes looking for him
C．
avoid danger and inefficient labour
D．
restore his bodily functions
(3)
According to the author, we cannot sleep well when we ________．
[ ]
A．
are worrying about our safety
B．
are overworked
C．
are in a tent
D．
are away from home
(4)
Cats sleep much more than horses do partly because cats ________．
[ ]
A．
need more time for restoration
B．
are unlikely to be attackers
C．
axe more active than homes when they are awake
D．
spend less time eating to get enough energy
(5)
Which of the following is the main idea of the passage?
[ ]
A．
Evolution has equipped all creatures with a regular pattern of sleeping and waking．
B．
The study of sleep is an important part of the evolutionary theory．
C．
Sleeping patterns must be taken into consideration in the designing of robots．
D．
The sleeping pattern of a living creature is determined by the food it eats．
阅读理解：
Several years ago, my parents, my wife, my son and I ate at one of those restaurants where the menu is written on a blackboard．After a wonderful dinner, the waiter set the check in the middle of the table．That’s when it happened：my father did not reach for the check．
Conversation continued．Finally I realized that I should pick up the check!After hundreds of restaurant meals with my parents, after a lifetime of thinking of my father as the one with dollars, it had all changed．I reached for the check, and my view of myself suddenly changed．I was an adult．I was no longer a kid．
Some people mark off(区分)their lives in years, I measure mine in small events．I didn’t become a young man at a particular age, like 16, but rather when a kid who wandered in the streets called me “mister．” These events in my life are called “milestones”(里程碑)
There have been other milestones．The cops(policemen)of my youth always seemed big, even huge, and of course they were older than I was．Then one day they were suddenly realized that all the football players in the game I was watching were younger than I was．They were just big kids．With that milestone gone was the dream that someday, maybe I, too, could be a football player．Without ever having reached the hill, I was over it．
I never thought that I would fall asleep in front of the TV set as my father did．Now it’s what I do best．I never thought that I would go to the beach and not swim, yet I spent all of August at the shore and never once went into the ocean．I never thought that I would appreciate opera, but now the combination of voice and orchestra attract me．I never thought that I would prefer to stay home in the evenings, but now I find myself passing up parties．I used to think that people who watched birds were strange, but this summer I fond myself watching them, and maybe I’ll get a book on the subject．I feel a strong desire for a religious belief that I never thought I’d want, feel close to my ancestors(祖先)long gone, and echo my father in arguments with my son．I still lose…
One day I bought a house．One day－what a day!–I became a father, and not too long after that I picked up the check for my own father．I thought then it was a milestone for me．One day, when I was a little older, I realized it was one for him, too, another milestone．
(1)
The tone established in the passage is one of ________．
[ ]
A．
sad regret
B．
amusement
C．
happiness
D．
deep feeling
(2)
The author mentions the event in the restaurant because ________．
[ ]
A．
that was one of his milestone
B．
he paid the bill but he didn’t want to
C．
he became a father with dollars
D．
that was the last restaurant meal with his parents
(3)
“Then they were suddenly neither．” Suggests that ________．
[ ]
A．
suddenly they became older than I was
B．
suddenly I knew that they was neither bigger nor older than I was
C．
suddenly I realized that I made mistake
D．
suddenly I found myself no longer a kid
(4)
Which of the following best expresses the author’s thinking?
[ ]
A．
One day is worth two tomorrow
B．
To save time is to length life
C．
When an opportunity is lost, it never comes back to you
D．
Time and tide wait for no man
阅读理解：
It was at least two months before Christmas when nine-year-old Almie Rose told her father and me that she wanted a new bicycle．As Christmas drew near, her desire for a bicycle seemed to fade, or so we thought．We bought the latest rages．Baby-Sitter’s Club dolls, and a doll house．Then, much to our surprise, on December 23rd, she said that she “really wanted a bike more than anything else．”
It was just too late, what will all the details of preparing Christmas dinner and buying last-minute gifts, to take the time to select the “right bike” for our little girl．So here we were－Christmas Eve around 9∶00 p. m., with Almie and her six-year-old brother, Dylan, nested snug in their beds．Now we could only think of the bicycle and the disappointment of our child．“What if the bicycle out of clay(a kind of earth)and write a note that she could trade the clay model in for a real bike?” her dad asked．“This is an expensive item and she is ‘such a big girl,’ and it would be much better for her to pick it out．”So he spent the next four hours painstakingly working with clay to make a tiny bike．
On Christmas morning, we were excited for Almie to open the little heart-shaped package with the beautiful red and white clay bike and the note．Finally, she opened it and read the note aloud．“Does this mean that I trade in this bike that Daddy made me for a real one?”Beaming, I said,“Yes．”Almie had tears in her eyes when she replied,“I could never trade in this beautiful bicycle that Daddy made me．I’d rather keep this than get a real bike．”At that moment, we would have moved heaven and earth to buy every bicycle on the planet!
(1)
Which is the right time order of the following events?
a．The girl asked for a new bike
b．The girl opened the little heart-shaped package
c．The parents bought the girl a modern and popular doll．
d．The father made the girl a bike with clay．
e．The girl would rather keep the clay bike than get a real one．
[ ]
A．
b, c, e ,d
B．
a, c, d, b, e
C．
a, c, b, d, e
D．
a, b, d, c, e
(2)
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
[ ]
A．
The parents wanted the girl to have the clay bike forever．
B．
Tears were in the girl’s eyes because she didn’t like the present at all．
C．
The girl never lost her desire for a bike．
D．
The parents paid little attention to the daughter’s desire for a bike．
(3)
Why did Dad make the clay bicycle?
[ ]
A．
Because he wanted to buy a real one, but he had no money．
B．
Because he didn’t want to disappoint his daughter．
C．
Because he thought his daughter would like it．
D．
Because he wanted to give his daughter a surprise．
(4)
What can be inferred from the last sentence of the text?
[ ]
A．
The parents were happy and encouraged．
B．
The parents felt comfortable and relaxed．
C．
The parents were moved and felt proud of the girl．
D．
The parents felt disappointed and sorry for the girl．
afraid. A person with a green thumb