Machines in the home have a short history．Sewing machines, washing machines and tumble dries are common enough today, but a hundred years ago few people could even imagine such things．However, inventors have designed and built a wide range of household machines since then．In most cases the inventor tried to patent(申请专利)his machine, to stop anyone copying it．Then he tried to produce a lot of them．If the machine became popular, the inventor could make a lot of money．
In 1790 the first sewing machine was patented．The inventor was an Englishman called Thomas Saint．There was nothing to match his machine for forty years, and then someone built a similar device．He was a Frenchman, Bartelemy Thimonier．Neither of these early machines worked very well, however．It wasn't until 1846 that an inventor came up with a really efficient sewing machine．He was an American, Elias Howe and his machine was good enough to beat five skilled sewing women．He didn't make much money from it, however．The first commercially successful sewing machine was patented by Isaac Singer five years later．
Today, we take washing machines for granted, but there was none before 1869．The revolving drum(旋转桶)of that first machine set a pattern for the future, but it was crude by today's standards．The drum was turned by hand, and needed a lot of effort．Eight years passed before someone produced an electric washing machine．The world had to wait even longer for a machine to dry clothes．The first spin-drier was another American invention, patented in 1924; but it was 20 years before such machines were widely used．
It was yet another American, called Bissell, who introduced the carpet sweeper．He patented the original machine back in 1876．It didn't pick up dirt very well, but it was quicker than a dustpan and brush．Thirty-six years later, even the carpet sweeper was old-fashioned：modern homes now have a vacuum cleaner(吸尘器)with an electric motor to suck the dust．
(1)
Whose sewing machine could do far more than the work that was done by five skilled sewing women?
[ ]
A．
Thomas Saint's．
B．
Bartelemy Thimonier's．
C．
Elias Howe's．
D．
Isaac Singer's．
(2)
According to the article, modern inventors ________．
[ ]
A．
follow the pattern of the first revolving drum but improve it much
B．
only imitate the first washing machine
C．
power the first ever-made washing machine by electricity
D．
have to wait for the first spin-drier for a long time
(3)
The underlined word“crude”in the sentence“but it was crude by today's standards”probably means ________．
The English language is changing fast, thanks to the rapid progress of technology．We all have a rapid choice：we can either bury our heads in the sand and spend the rest of our lives wishing Shakespeare were alive and well．Or we can embrace(拥抱)the new English, enter into the spirit of the Internet age called Weblish．
“You can't avoid it, for the simple reason that whenever a new variety of language comes along, it inevitably impacts(冲击)on the language as a whole．” Says Dr．David Crystal, honorary professor of linguistics(语言学家)at the University of Wales in Bangor, whose book “Language and the Internet” has just been published．
The trouble with keeping up with the new English is not so much that there are so many new words but that the old words no longer mean what we thought they did．In the past, if someone said they did not have Windows, you would have to suppose they lived in a cave．These days, it is probably because they use a Mac(which is a computer, not a rain coat)．Spam is as disliked as it ever was, but whereas it once meant an unappetizing(引不起食欲的)canned meat, it now stands for unwanted “junk” email．Spellings are changing, too．Not only is text-messaging playing “hvc wth vrbs” [havoc(混乱)with verbs], but the conventions of email communication place little emphasis on “perfect speaking”．
Weblish loves to see nouns happily become verbs(“Please bookmark this site”), and verbs become nouns(“Send me the download”)．Verbs and prepositions are regularly thrown together to become new nouns or adjectives(dial-up, logon, print-on, pull-down, uplead), while others are created from simply pairing nouns：cyberspace．Etl, emit Internet．hyperlink．metatag, netspeak．
(1)
The best title of this passage would be ________．
[ ]
A．
Technology and English
B．
Keep Up with the Latest Development in English
C．
Keep Up with the Latest Weblish
D．
Newly invented English Words
(2)
What can we infer from the first paragraph?
[ ]
A．
Some people wish Shakespeare were still alive．
B．
People may have different attitudes towards weblish．
C．
All people welcome weblish．
D．
Weblish causes fear among people．
阅读理解
The English language is changing, and fast, thanks to the rapid progress of technology．We all have a choice：we can either bury our heads in the sand and spend the rest of our lives wishing Shakespeare were alive and well, or we can embrace(拥抱)the new English, enter into the spirit of the Internet age and call it “weblish”．
“You can’t avoid it, for the simple reason that whenever a new variety of language comes along, it inevitably impacts(冲击)on the language as a whole, ”says Dr．David Crystal, honorary professor of linguistics(语言学)at the University of Wales in Bangor, whose book “Language and the Internet” has just been published．
The trouble with keeping up with the new English is not so much that there are so many new words but that the old words no longer mean what we thought they did．In the past, if someone said they did not have Windows, you would have to suppose they lived in a cave．These days, it is probably because they use a Mac(which is a computer, not a raincoat)．Spam is as disliked as it ever was, but whereas it once meant an unappetizing(没有食欲的)canned meat, it now stands for unwanted “junk” email．Spellings are changing, too．Not only is text－messaging playing “hvc wth vrbs” [havoc(混乱)with verbs], but the conventions of email communication place little emphasis on “perfect spelling”．
Weblish loves to see nouns happily become verbs(“Please bookmark this site”), and verbs become nouns(“Send me the download”)．Verbs and prepositions are regularly thrown together to become new nouns or adjectives(dial－up, logon, print－out, pull－down, upload), while others are created from simply pairing nouns：cyberspace, ethernet, Internet, hyperlink, metatag, netspeak．
(1)
The best title of this passage would be “________”．
[ ]
A．
Keep Up with the Latest Weblish
B．
Keep Up with the Latest Development in English
C．
Newly-invented English Words
D．
Technology and English
(2)
We can infer from the first paragraph that ________．
[ ]
A．
some people wish Shakespeare were still alive
B．
people may have different attitudes towards weblish
C．
all people welcome weblish
D．
weblish causes fear among people
(3)
The third paragraph is mainly about ________．
[ ]
A．
different meanings of English words
B．
the rapid changes of English words
C．
the difficulty in understanding words related to computer and the Internet
D．
common words used on the Internet
(4)
The author thinks the main difficulty people in keeping up with weblish is that ________．
[ ]
A．
old words take on new meanings
B．
there are so many new words
C．
the technology is changing too fast
D．
weblish words are full of spelling mistakes
(5)
David Crystal would probably agree that ________．
[ ]
A．
people should not accept weblish
B．
weblish can cause misunderstandings among people
C．
weblish will destroy the English language
D．
people should know something about weblish
阅读理解
Usually, when your teacher asks a question, there is only one correct answer．But there is one question that has millions of current answers．That question is“What's your name?”Everyone gives a different answer, but everyone is correct．
Have you ever wondered about people's names?Where do they come from?What do they mean?
People's first names, or given names, are chosen by their parents．Sometimes the name of a grandparent or other member of the family is used．Some parents choose the name of a well-known person．A boy could be named George Washington Smith; a girl could be named Helen Keller Jones．
Some people give their children names that mean good things．Clara means“bright”; Beatrice means“one who gives happiness”; Donald means“world ruler”; Leonard means“as brave as a lion”．
The earliest last names, or surnames, were taken from place names．A family with the name Brook or Brooks probably lived near brook(小溪)；someone who was called Longstreet probably lived on a long, paved road．The Greenwood family lived in or near a leafy forest．
Other early surnames came from people's occupations．The most common occupational name is Smith, which means a person who makes things with iron or other metals．In the past, smiths were very important workers in every town and village．Some other occupational names are：Carter－a person who owned or drove a cart; Potter－a person who made pots and pans．
The ancestors of the Baker family probably baked bread for their neighbors in their native village．The Carpenter's great-great-great-grandfather probably built houses and furniture．
Sometimes people were known for the color of their hair or skin, or their size, or their special abilities．When there were two men who were named John in the same village, the John with the gray hair probably became John Gray．Or the John was very tall could call himself John Tallman．John Fish was probably an excellent swimmer and John Lightfoot was probably a fast runner or a good dancer．
Some family names were made by adding something to the father's name．English-speaking people added –s or–son．The Johnsons are descendants of John; the Roberts family's ancestor was Robert．Irish and Scottish people added Mac or Mc or O．Perhaps all of the MacDonnells and the McDonnells and the O'Donnells are descendants of the same Donnell．
(1)
Which of the following aspects do the surnames in the passage NOT cover?
[ ]
A．
Places where people lived．
B．
People's characters．
C．
Talents that people possessed．
D．
People's occupations．
(2)
According to the passage, the ancestors of the Potter family most probably ________．
[ ]
A．
owned or drove a cart
B．
made things with metals
C．
made kitchen tools or contains
D．
built houses and furniture
(3)
Suppose and English couple whose ancestors lived near a leafy forest wanted their new-born son to become a world leader, the baby might be named ________．
[ ]
A．
Beatrice Smith
B．
Leonard Carter
C．
George Longstreet
D．
Donald Greenwood
(4)
The underlined word“descendants”in the last paragraph means a person's ________
[ ]
A．
later generations
B．
friends and relatives
C．
colleagues and partners
D．
later sponsors
阅读理解
He has vowed that he will not stop building his business until it is worth ￡100 million．But hard-working Owens can stop for at least a moment's celebration after making his first ￡1 million at the age of 16．Owens, who has used a computer since the age of seven, began teaching himself basic web design at the age of ten when he was given his first Mac computer．He used his pocket money to fund his first business project, website Mac Box Bundle at just 14 which has made ￡700,000 since its establishment in 2008．Mac Box Bundle sells a combination of popular Mac applications which are worth up to ＄400 together for under just ＄100 and donates 10 percent of the money to charities．
He then established an advertising company Branchr a year later and worked on the business after school and at weekends．Branchr made a surprising ￡500,000 in its first year．Branchr works as a platform for website owners to sell advertising．
Owens, from Northampton, currently employs eight staff－all adults－around the UK and America as sales and technical assistants．The young man lives with his parents．His mother who is a company secretary said he was inspired to go into business after observing the huge success achieved by Apple's chief executive officers(首席执行官)Steve Jobs．
Owens said, "I think everyone has business sense in them, and they just need to gain experience and be determined to make it．There is no magical formula(法则)for business, It takes hard work, determination and the drive to do something great．My aim is to become a leading name in the world of Internet and mobile advertising and push myself right to the top of the game．
The teenager insists his professional success has not affected his personal life, and says his interests include photography and playing the guitar．"My friends and I don't really talk about my success．To them I'm just a normal teenager and it doesn't change anything between us．"
(1)
What can we know from Paragraph 1?
[ ]
A．
Owens' company is worth ￡1 million now．
B．
Owens learned to use computers at the age of 10．
C．
Owens made ￡700,000 from Mac Box Bundle in 2008．
D．
Owens is successful and enthusiastic about public welfare．
(2)
From Paragraph 2 we know that Branchr ________．
[ ]
A．
takes up all Owens' spare time
B．
offers a platform for advertising business
C．
designs practical software for website owners
D．
takes up advertising business for Nac Box Bundle
(3)
Why did Owens come up with the idea of doing business?
[ ]
A．
Because eight adults were ready to help．
B．
Because it was easy to establish web companies．
C．
Because his parents wanted him to have a try．
D．
Because he drew inspiration from Steve jobs．
(4)
Owens tends to think that ________．
[ ]
A．
every person has potential talent for business
B．
getting experienced in business needs determination
C．
it is hard work for people to decide to do something great．
D．
he is sure to play a leading part in the world of the Internet．
(5)
What do Ownes' friends think about him?
[ ]
A．
He sets a good example．
B．
He does quite well in music．
C．
He is a common school boy．
D．
He puts friendship above anything else．
阅读理解
He has vowed that he will not stop building his business until it is worth ￡100 million．But hard-working Owens can stop for at least a moment's celebration after making his first ￡1 million at the age of 16．Owens, who has used a computer since the age of seven, began teaching himself basic web design at the age of ten when he was given his first Mac computer．He used his pocket money to fund his first business project, website Mac Box Bundle at just 14 which has made ￡700,000 since its establishment in 2008．Mac Box Bundle sells a combination of popular Mac applications which are worth up to ＄400 together for under just ＄100 and donates 10 percent of the money to charities．
He then established an advertising company Branchr a year later and worked on the business after school and at weekends．Branchr made a surprising ￡500,000 in its first year．Branchr works as a platform for website owners to sell advertising．
Owens, from Northampton, currently employs eight staff－all adults－around the UK and America as sales and technical assistants．The young man lives with his parents．His mother who is a company secretary said he was inspired to go into business after observing the huge success achieved by Apple's chief executive officers(首席执行官)Steve Jobs．
Owens said, "I think everyone has business sense in them, and they just need to gain experience and be determined to make it．There is no magical formula(法则)for business, It takes hard work, determination and the drive to do something great．My aim is to become a leading name in the world of Internet and mobile advertising and push myself right to the top of the game．
The teenager insists his professional success has not affected his personal life, and says his interests include photography and playing the guitar．"My friends and I don't really talk about my success．To them I'm just a normal teenager and it doesn't change anything between us．"
(1)
What can we know from Paragraph 1?
[ ]
A．
Owens' company is worth ￡1 million now．
B．
Owens learned to use computers at the age of 10．
C．
Owens made ￡700,000 from Mac Box Bundle in 2008．
D．
Owens is successful and enthusiastic about public welfare．
(2)
From Paragraph 2 we know that Branchr ________．
[ ]
A．
takes up all Owens' spare time
B．
offers a platform for advertising business
C．
designs practical software for website owners
D．
takes up advertising business for Nac Box Bundle
(3)
Why did Owens come up with the idea of doing business?
[ ]
A．
Because eight adults were ready to help．
B．
Because it was easy to establish web companies．
C．
Because his parents wanted him to have a try．
D．
Because he drew inspiration from Steve jobs．
(4)
Owens tends to think that ________．
[ ]
A．
every person has potential talent for business
B．
getting experienced in business needs determination
C．
it is hard work for people to decide to do something great．
D．
he is sure to play a leading part in the world of the Internet．
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