Few people realize that there is a big difference between formal English and informal English. Formal English is used for most writing, and often in public speaking and formal meetings. It pays close attention to grammar rules, because if we use proper grammar, our meaning is often more precise. Also, on important occasions, we do not want to appear uneducated or to offend (冒犯) others, so we are very careful about how we speak. Informal English is used in speaking or writing to our friends and family. It often does not pay such close attention to grammar rules, because when we speak or write to them, we want our words to flow quickly. Also, with our friends and family, we are usually not so worried about appearing uneducated or about offending them by how we write or speak.
A big difference between formal and informal English is the use of contractions. A contraction is where we make a word shorter or where we put two words together and take away some of the letters. For example, instead of saying “do not”, many people say “don’t”. Using contractions in our speech is fine because it sounds natural, especially when we speak to our friends. In formal writing, however, contractions are usually avoided because people might think that you have made a mistake, or that you do not know proper grammar.
In the same way we might make words shorter, in informal English we often make sentences shorter as well. For example, if someone asks you your name, you will likely answer with one word: your first name. However, in formal English we usually use complete sentences. For example, we might write “My name is John”. In most speaking, we may not need to use every word in a sentence because the person we are speaking to will probably still understand us. In most writing, however, every word in a sentence must be written out in order to make sure that we can be understood.
【小题1】When we use formal English, _______.

What do you want to be when you grow up? A teacher? A doctor? How about an ice-Cream taster?

Yes, there really is a job where you can get paid to taste ice cream. Just ask John Harrison, an “Official Taste Tester” for the past 21 years. Testing helps manufacturers to be sure of a product’s quality. During his career Harrison has been responsible for approving large quantities of the sweet ice cream as well as for developing over 75 flavors （味道）.

Some people think that it would be easy to do this job; after all, you just have to like ice cream, right? No there’s more to the job than that, says Harrison, who has a degree in chemistry. He points out that a dairy or food science degree would be very useful to someone wanting a career in this “cool” field.

In a typical morning on the job, Harrison tastes and assesses 60 ice-cream samples. He lets the ice cream warm up to about 12 F. Harrison explains, “You get more flavor from warmer ice cream, which is why some kids like to stir it, creating ice-cream soup.”

While the ice cream warms up, Harrison looks over the samples and grades each one on its appearance. “Tasting begins with the eyes,”he explains. He checks to see if the ice cream is attractive and asks himself, “Does the product have the color expected from that flavor?”Next it’s time to taste!

Continuing to think up new ideas、try out new flavors、and test samples from so many kinds of ice cream each day keeps Harrison busy but happy working at once cool job.

65．what is John Harrison’s job?

A．An official.

B．An ice-cream taster.

C．A chemist.

D．An ice-cream manufacturer.

66．According to John Harrison, to be qualified in the “cool field”, it is helpful to         .

A．keep a diary of work

B．have a degree in related subjects

C．have new ideas every day

D．find out new flavors each day

67．What does Harrison do first when testing ice cream?

A．He stirs the ice cream.

B．He examines the color of the ice cream.

C．He tastes the flavor of the ice cream.

D．He lets the ice cream warm up.

68．Which of the following is probably the best title of the passage?

A．Tasting with Eyes

B．Flavors of Ice Cream

C．John Harrison’s Life

D．One Cool Job

      Music has often been used in movies to create mood and add dimension to the images which the audience sees on the screen. One man who is famous for his ability to write powerful and highly effective music for movies is John Williams. Mr. Williams has been writing music for movies since 1960, but he is perhaps best known for his award-winning scores for movies such as Jaws, Star Wars, and Schindler's List. Before he began writing music for the movies, Mr. Williams dreamed of being a concert pianist. He studied at both the University of California, Los Angeles and Juilliard School. During the 1950s, Mr. Williams was into jazz and he worked in New York City with many jazz artists. Later, he moved back to Los Angeles where he continued to play the piano for jazz musicians. He also got a job writing music for television shows. It was this television job that led him into movies.

Throughout the 1960s, Mr. Williams wrote the music that can be heard in more than 20 movies. Most of these movies were light comedies. Then, in 1975, the director of the movie Jaws, Steven Spielberg, hired Mr. Williams. The director thought that Mr. William's music added so much to the scary （引起恐慌的）scenes of the movie that he insisted on working with Mr. Williams in all of his future movies. Other directors and Hollywood film studios also demanded to work with Mr. Williams, and his career as a composer of movie soundtracks took off. Many of these movies have soundtracks that are still available in music stores today. They include The Deer Hunter, Raiders of the Lost Ark, ET, and Jurassic Park.

In 1980, Mr. Williams had another chance to expand his musical experience. He was chosen to be the new conductor for the Boston Pops Orchestra when Arthur Fiedler retired. Mr. Williams gladly accepted the position because it only required that he conduct the orchestra during the summer. This left him free to continue writing music for the movies during the rest of the year. Mr. Williams conducted the Boston Pops for more than 12 years before he decided to retire and write music full-time. Along with the many movie music scores he has written, Mr. Williams has also written two symphonies, a flute concerto, and a violin concerto. Up to now, Mr. Williams has written music for more than 60 movies. It is no wonder that he is today's most famous Hollywood composer.

69. What is John Williams most famous for?

A. Conducting.                 B. Making movies.

C. Playing jazz.                 D. Writing music for movies.

70. What happened to Mr. Williams in 1975?

A. He began writing music for movies.      B. He moved to Hollywood.

C. He worked with Steven Spielberg.        D. He worked for the Boston Pops.

71. Which of the following things has Mr. Williams not done?

A. Conducted an orchestra.              B. Directed a movie.

C. Played jazz piano.                   D. Writing classical music.

Few people realize that there is a big difference between formal English and informal English. Formal English is used for most writing, and often in public speaking and formal meetings. It pays close attention to grammar rules, because if we use proper grammar, our meaning is often more precise. Also, on important occasions, we do not want to appear uneducated or to offend (冒犯) others, so we are very careful about how we speak. Informal English is used in speaking or writing to our friends and family. It often does not pay such close attention to grammar rules, because when we speak or write to them, we want our words to flow quickly. Also, with our friends and family, we are usually not so worried about appearing uneducated or about offending them by how we write or speak.

A big difference between formal and informal English is the use of contractions. A contraction is where we make a word shorter or where we put two words together and take away some of the letters. For example, instead of saying “do not”, many people say “don’t”. Using contractions in our speech is fine because it sounds natural, especially when we speak to our friends. In formal writing, however, contractions are usually avoided because people might think that you have made a mistake, or that you do not know proper grammar.

In the same way we might make words shorter, in informal English we often make sentences shorter as well. For example, if someone asks you your name, you will likely answer with one word: your first name. However, in formal English we usually use complete sentences. For example, we might write “My name is John”. In most speaking, we may not need to use every word in a sentence because the person we are speaking to will probably still understand us. In most writing, however, every word in a sentence must be written out in order to make sure that we can be understood.

1.When we use formal English, _______.

A．we will offend others

B．we will appear educated on important occasions

C．we needn’t pay more attention to grammar rules

D．we can express ourselves more directly and more quickly

2.What’s the meaning of the underlined word “precise”?

A．clear             B．direct            C．puzzling           D．simple

3.Contractions are best used when we are _______.

A．speaking at a formal meeting               B．speaking in public

C．speaking to our friends                   D．writing an application (申请) letter

4.In speaking, we do not always use complete sentences because ______.

A．we do not care about grammar             B．we do not want to sound stupid

C．we can still be understood                D．we don’t want to waste time