It's not often you get information about a destination from a heavy metal band, but in Debrecen, Hungary's second largest city, locals are used to having to make a noise to get heard.

Just off the historic center, Roncs bar is a pub that also hosts live music. It has the atmosphere of a student party in an old building that might soon be knocked down.

Roncs is owned by Hungary's best-known heavy metal rock band, Tankcsapda. Sometimes referred to as the “Hungarian Metallica", the band has taken a type of music that is famous worldwide and-through lyrics, album covers, and an annual New Year's party and concert-made it all about their home city.

It's perhaps fitting that Tankcsapda should be seen as ambassadors for Debrecen-the city sometimes needs loud heavy metal rock music to get noticed. “Foreigners think that Hungary is Budapest and there's nothing else," is a familiar saying on Debrecen's:streets.

Debrecen has, at times, been more important than the current seat of power, with locals claiming it takes over in times of trouble.

That doesn't quite add up.

Debrecen survived an attack from the Mongols in the 13th century, the Black Death, 150 years of struggle against the Ottomans and numerous conflicts, and yet it has still only briefly been the country's capital twice. This happened for the first time after a short-lived revolution in 1849, and for a second time at the end of World War II.

Today, Debrecen may not be well known to tourists, but that only adds to the charm of this relaxed city. It's a small place; the historical center is sized for strolling (散步) and regular cafe stops. There's also a view of Debrecen's mix of architectural styles, a result of the frequent large fires that back in the 19th century led the city's students to form one of Europe's first-ever fire brigades (消防队).

You can also see traditional weathercocks from the rooftops, featuring Islamic star and crescent moon symbols that once advertised to Ottoman invaders that the city preferred trading to fighting.

Trade meant that Debrecen's skilled people became very successful and the city became famous for-among other things-fine foods, hats and clay pipes. In the early 19th century, 10 million clay pipes were reportedly made a year, with thousands bought for Britain's navy.

1.What do Debrecen citizens expect Tankcsapda to do?

A. Introduce heavy metal music to Hungary.

B. Hold parties featuring live heavy metal music shows.

C. Try to make Debrecen known with its music.

D. Create a unique type of heavy metal music.

2.Why are locals used to having to make a noise to get heard?

A. Because they feel their city is too quiet and relaxed.

B. Because they dislike it that the world only knows Budapest in Hungary.

C. Because they think it helps create a powerful image of their city.

D. Because all kinds of music bars bring their city alive.

3.What does the underlined word refer to?

A. Styles. B. Conditions.

C. Atmosphere. D. Climate.

4.What is the key message the author wants to deliver in this passage?

A. Debrecen actually is more important than Budapest.

B. Debrecen is a place which is worth visiting.

C. Debrecen citizens love music and create their unique culture.

D. Debrecen citizens are proud of their culture and history.

Breathe, wave and smile. Along with more than 300 other seniors, I marched into the stadium on the afternoon of May 10. The audience burst into deafening cheers. The huge stadium shook with all the whistling and clapping.

It was as if a Hollywood superstar had walked on stage. And indeed, every single senior that day was a star of the moment. Each deserved it. The seniors had been preparing for four years for this once-in-a-lifetime moment—the commencement (graduation ceremony).

Seated, I waited anxiously for the opening address. As a foreign exchange student, I was not able to receive a diploma. However, I still had the wonderful feeling of being part of things. Like the other graduates, I was dressed in marron cap and gown.

Our principal, Mr. Glover, delivered a short, warm greeting. The US national anthem followed and then, hands on chests, a solemn Pledge of Allegiance(美国的爱国誓言).

Students who had excelled academically gave farewell speeches. The tears in some eyes convinced me that many had deep feelings about the occasion. It was as the class motto says, “Life brings us tears, smiles and memories. The tears dry; the smiles fade; but the memories last forever.”

Then came the core (the most important part) of the commencement. Hundreds of names were announced. Each graduate walked across the stage to receive his or her diploma from the principal. From the different cheers each graduate got, we had the funny sense that it was a kind of competition of who could cheer the loudest.

To be honest, the presentation of diplomas got boring. A girl sitting next to me even started yawning. But it wasn’t boring for those receiving the diploma: they would treasure the moment the principal placed the sacred brown document in their hands for the rest of their lives.

A new page in the book of that person’s life had turned. They were glimpsing their futures: futures of challenge, hardship, perhaps loneliness too, which would take all of their courage.

1.What’s the article mainly about?

A. An American high school’s graduation ceremony.

B. The opening ceremony of a sports meeting.

C. A presentation of college diplomas.

D. A US college’s farewell party.

2.Which of the following statements about the author is FALSE?

A. She was one of the graduates.

B. She was a foreign exchange student.

C. She was excited to receive her diploma.

D. She felt it great to be at the ceremony.

3.The right order of the following events is______.

a. Diplomas were presented to graduates.

b. Students gave farewell speeches.

c. The US national anthem was played.

d. The principal gave a short, warm speech.

e. Seniors went into the stadium.

A. b,c,a,d,e B. c,d,b,e,a

C. d,b,e,a,c D. e,d,c,b,a

4.From the text, we can conclude that_______.

A. a diploma ensures a good job

B. a diploma guarantees a bright future

C. the commencement symbolizes the beginning of a new stage in life

D. everyone felt excited at the presentation of the diploma

I just realized that while children are dogs-loyal and affectionate-teenagers are cats.

1. You feed it, train it, and boss it around. It puts its head on your knee and gazes at you as if you were a Rembrandt painting. It bounds indoors with enthusiasm when you call it. However, around age 13, your adoring little puppy(child) turns into a big old cat(teenager). Then when you tell it to come inside, it looks amazed, as if wondering who died. Instead of following your doorsteps, it disappears. 2.

Not realizing that the dog is now a cat, you think something must be desperately wrong within. Since you're the one who raised it, you assume that you did something wrong. Now you're dealing with a cat. Filled with guilt and fear, you redouble your efforts to make your pet behave. 3. Call it, and it runs way. Tell it to sit, and it jumps on the counter.

Instead of continuing to act like a dog owner, you can learn to behave like a cat owner. Put a dish of food near the door, and let it come to you. 4. You sit still, and it will come, seeking that warm, comforting lap it has not entirely forgotten. Be there to open the door for it. One day your grown-up child will walk into the kitchen, give you a big kiss and say, "You've been working hard all day. Let me get those dishes for you."5.

A. It's so easy to be a dog owner.

B. Children as cats can turn to their parents.

C. You won't see it again until it gets hungry.

D. Then you'll realize your cat is a dog again.

E. Teenagers can understand and appreciate their parents' love.

F. But remember that a cat needs your help and your affection, too.

G. However, all the efforts made before now produce the opposite of the desired result.

Geography is an important tool for learning and understanding history. Geography affects history—just look at the changes in world geography over recent years. Governments change, and _______ countries were born. Many countries no longer have the same names they _______even five years ago. Climate changes _______events such as droughts(干旱) and floods that cause lots of loss of life and the movements of people from one place to another in search of_______. Environmental changes can change the entire _______of a community or region.

As with history, children have a natural interest in_______. Watch a group of children playing in the sand. One child makes streets for his cars, _______ a second child builds houses along the_______. A third scoops out a hole and _______ the dirt to make a hill, then pours water in the ________ to make a lake, using sticks for ________. The children name the streets, and ________ may even use a watering can to make________ that washes away a house. They may not realize it, ________these children are learning some core features(核心特征)of geography—how people interact with the Earth, how climate ________land, and how places ________each other through the movement of things from one place to another. Turning to maps or globes, when we talk with our children about vacation plans, events ________around the world or historical events, we teach them a great deal about geography. Not only can such activities help our children learn how to use key reference tools, ________ over time, they help them form their own mental maps of the world, which allows children to better organize and ________information about other people, places, times and________. Such activities also help our children learn to how to work together in the future.

1.A. new B. some C. many D. old

2.A. did B. do C. are D. have

3.A. bring about B. come about C. take place D. happen

4.A. relative B. safe C. help D. safety

5.A. people B. history C. nature D. housing

6.A. climate B. building C. environment D. geography

7.A. while B. but C. and D. so

8.A. paths B. streets C. railway D. ways

9.A. makes B. create C. pull D. uses

10.A. house B. street C. hole D. hill

11.A. houses B. bridges C. streets D. road

12.A. we B. he C. they D. workers

13.A. cloudy B. cover C. snow D. rain

14.A. but B. and C. yet D. still

15.A. effects B. affects C. affect D. influence

16.A. relate to B. concerned C. involving D. refer to

17.A. to happen B. happening C. happen D. happened

18.A. but B. and C. besides D. so

19.A. write B. read C. understand D. know

20.A. weather B. history C. climate D. events

It is sad but true that people die in earthquakes 1.falling furniture and bricks. Earthquake2.(safe) is very important and there is more to it3.just keeping buildings from falling down. So if your home is in an earthquake area, you should prepare carefully before the earthquake4. (come).

First, make sure you buy a house which is earthquake safe. All pipes should be fixed to the walls and all walls should be 5. (especial) thick and strong. Make sure the building has no6.(break) windows and is well repaired.

Second, look at the objects in your house. Objects7. computers, televisions and lamps can be tied to tables or8.(stick) to them so they won’t easily move around. The cupboards, 9. many small things are stored, should have strong doors. Always remember,10. (good) safe than sorry.

下面短文中有10处语言错误。请在有错误的地方增加、删除或修改某个单词。

增加：在缺词处加一个漏词符号（∧），并在其下面写出该加的词。

删除：把多余的词用斜线（\）划掉。

修改：在错的词下划一横线,并在该词下面写出修改后的词。

注意：

1.每句不超过两个错误；

2.每处错误及其修改均仅限一次；

3.只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。

Dear John,

I am very sorry to tell you that I unable to go to your party this Sunday. It is very kind for you to invite me to your house. I really look forward to go to your party and sharing your happy experiences abroad. Much to my regret I would be absent from your party because the final exam is just in the corner. What's worst, I have caught a bad cold lately and I am really not me. Anyway, we will have much more chances to get together. I am true sorry. I hope you will forgive me but accept my sincere apology.

I am looking forward to your reply.

Yours,

Li Hua

昨天我校邀请知名校友李先生为高三学生作报告,请你根据以下要点为我校英文期刊Shoots写一篇100字左右的报道：

1. 校友回忆在我校学习的经历；

2. 校友的成功及对母校的感激；

3. 自己听报告后的感想。

注意：1. 词数100左右；

2. 可以适当增加情节,以使行文连贯；

3. 开头语已为你写好。

Yesterday we invited Mr. Li, a famous scholar and schoolmate of our school, to give a speech to us Senior 3 students. _________________________________________________________________________________

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Pete Sparks was a sensitive (敏感的) boy. So sensitive that even his hair was ticklish (怕痒的). You only had to touch his hair a little bit and he would start laughing. When this ticklish laughter started, no one could make him stop.

Pete tried everything to control his ticklishness, but nothing worked. So he began to feel sad for being different.

One day in the street, he met a special clown. The clown was very old and could hardly walk, but when he saw Pete in tears, he went to cheer him up. It didn’t take long to make Pete laugh. Later Pete told him about his ticklish problem, and he asked the clown how such an old man could carry on being a clown.

“I have no one to take my place,” said the clown. “I have a very serious job to do.” Pete looked at him, surprised. “Come, I’ll show you,” said the clown. So the clown took Pete to many hospitals full of children who were sick. As soon as they saw the clown, their faces changed completely and lit up with a smile. Their short while spent with the clown changed everything for them. That day was even more special, because in every show Pete’s laughter would end up with the kids lying on the floor, dying with laughter. When the visit came to an end, the old clown said to Pete, “Now do you see why I can’t retire (退休), even at my age?”

That was how Pete became a clown, and took the special old man’s place. From that day on, the fact that Pete was different actually made him happy, thanks to his special gift (天赋).

1.Pete wanted to change because he wanted to _____.

A. make a difference

B. just be a normal boy

C. make everyone happy

D. just be a special clown

2.The clown took Pete to the hospitals in order to _____.

A. treat his ticklishness

B. encourage him to be a clown

C. show him the meaning of his job

D. know whether Pete had told a lie

3.What does the story teach us?

A. Practice makes perfect.

B. Everyone is born useful.

C. Well begun is half done.

D. Where there is life, there is hope.

Reporter: Why did you start this new website for Alcott Middle School?

Sarah: Three months ago, my mom was complaining about how she never hears about the days our school ends early until after the fact. She works late and sometimes she has to ask our neighbor at the last minute to pick me up after school. It happened several times, and she was frustrated that there wasn’t better notification (通知) from the school.

Reporter: Didn’t your school already have a website with that information?

Sarah: We had a website. But there wasn’t much information on it, and nobody was in charge of keeping it up to date (包含最新信息的). I asked my teacher if our class could update the school calendar. That seemed pretty easy.

Reporter: Was it?

Sarah: Yeah, and it was kind of fun. So then we asked the principal (校长) if we could redo the whole site. He said okay, so we went to work. We discovered websites that taught us how to make our site look better and added more hot links that people could click to get more information about a subject. We posted photos from basketball games. Our class even started a blog about what’s going on at school. Then we persuaded the teachers to create their own pages.

Reporter: So what’s next?

Sarah: A few friends and I started a small Web design business. We’re asking other schools if they’ll employ (雇用) us to set up a site like the one we created.

Reporter: Wow! That’s pretty enterprising (有事业心的) for a 13-year-old.

Sarah: I guess so. But it doesn’t seem like work when you’re doing something you enjoy.

1.How did Sarah’s mom feel about her school three months ago?

A. Hopeful. B. Thankful.

C. Dissatisfied. D. Uninterested.

2.The underlined part “in charge of” is closest in meaning to _____.

A. in keeping with B. in touch with

C. in need of D. in control of

3.Sarah set up the new school website _____.

A. with the help of her teachers

B. by researching on other websites

C. in order to please her principal

D. to make her school more famous

4.What can we learn about Sarah?

A. She doesn’t like working at all.

B. She dreams of being a boss.

C. She enjoys what she does now.

D. She wants to make lots of money.

National Potato Day was back on Friday 23rd August 2013. Along with BordBia (Irish Food Board) and many other potato growers in Ireland, Keogh’s Farm brought you a day that was all about potatoes and showing love for our national vegetable.

Keogh’s invited the public to Spud Fest, which took place on Dublin’s South King Street from 12 pm to 4 pm. This festival brought the farm to the city with potato performers, face painters, balloon modeling, music, tastings and plenty of other festival fun to celebrate the most delicious day of the year. There were lots of potatoes, of course.

Keogh’s along with the support of BordBia called on everyone to enjoy at least one potato on National Potato Day. Potatoes are naturally low in fat, a great source of vitamins and minerals and are a great way to support local Irish homegrown produce and businesses.

Tom Keogh, General Manager of Keogh’s Farm said, “We can’t believe we were getting ready for our third year of National Potato Day. When we dreamt the idea up in 2011, we had no idea it would attract so many people. Since the first National Potato Day we have received nothing but interest in potatoes at home and all over the world.

“Ireland is now recognized as one of the finest producers of top quality vegetables, with the potato leading the field. We are happy that BordBia have joined us this year to bring all our fellow potato producers together and join forces to promote (提升) the enjoyment of the potato. We are hoping National Potato Day is a day to encourage everyone to love potatoes!”

1.According to the text, Spud Fest _____.

A. was open to everyone

B. lasted about five hours

C. sold different vegetables

D. was held in the countryside

2.What did Tom Keogh think of the first National Potato Day?

A. It was world-famous.

B. It was rather terrible.

C. It was very worthless.

D. It was quite successful.

3.The text is mainly to introduce _____.

A. a popular vegetable

B. a well-known capital

C. an interesting festival

D. a famous potato grower