Many Americans have been leaving their cars at home and riding to work on bicycles. Andy Clark is the leader of the League of American Bicyclists. His group supports bicycling for fun, fitness and transportation.

Clark says this is good news for the environment. He says riding a bicycle to work does not burn fossil fuel or creates dangerous pollutions. Experts say the effects are the most important on short trips. The Department of Transportation says fifty percent of Americans drive eight kilometers or fewer to work. Shorter car trips set out more pollution into the air for each kilometer drive. This is because the car engine will set out the harmful air when it warms up before it can work well.

James, a members of Congress (国会), is a strong supporter of bicycle use. He says cities, counties, state governments and state highway transportation agencies are planning the roadways of the future. They are creating roads and paths for bicycles in cities and between communities.

Last year, Portland, the Pacific Northwest city in the state of Oregon, had the highest percentage of bicycle users in the United States. Portland has been doing progressive city planning for many years to create special paths for bike riders.

What happened in America now according to the news?

   A. Many Americans lost jobs now.           

B. Many Americans prefer short trips.

   C. There are more and more bicyclists now in America.

   D. The pollution is getting worse and worse in America.

Where is Portland?

   A. One  of the cities in the USA.    B. One of the counties in the USA.

C. One of the states in the USA.    D. A country in the northwest of the USA.

What does the underlined word “harmful” mean in the second paragraph? The closest meaning is “_______”.

   A. polluted         B. dangerous             C. clean         D. foolish

What is the main idea of the passage?

   A. Many Americans like bike-riding for fun.

   B. Short car trips can reduce pollution.

   C. American government suggests people riding bicycles.

   D. Many Americans ride bicycles to support environment protection.

Last year my wife and I spent a most interesting month in Turkey. Before we left, we were reminded of the difficulties of driving in Turkey. We certainly did not find this to be the case and, except for a few places in faraway mountainous areas, the roads were wide, and well-paved (铺). We drove for 12 days along the Western Coast of Turkey and had no problems at all. We found the Turkish drivers very polite and well-educated. We also found that eating lunch in the smaller towns was difficult so we picnicked almost every day.

    The following day after our arrival was Turkey’s Children’s Day, started by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. Ataturk loved children and he often said, “Children are a new beginning of tomorrow.” He even devoted the day 23rd of April to the children which today is celebrated as Children’s Day as well as the date when the Republic of Turkey was founded.

    On that day certain children are picked to take over the places of the government, and a lucky kid will be the president of Turkey for a whole day. He can decide what’s going to happen and whether or not he is going to have the president next to him. There are a very large number of possibilities of things he can do but some shops aren’t open because they are celebrating the day as well.

    All in all, it was a more enjoyable trip. I would recommend (推荐) a trip to Turkey to anyone with an adventurous spirit!

Before the author and his wife went on a trip to Turkey, they were told that ________.

A. it was difficult to travel in Turkey

B. it was not easy to drive in Turkey

C. the streets in Turkey were dangerous

D. there were many mountain roads

What do we know from the first paragraph?

A. Places in mountainous areas were difficult to reach.

B. It took the couple 12 days to drive to Turkey.

C. The Turkish drivers had good manners.

D. It was difficult to eat meals in Turkey.

The underlined word “He” in paragraph 3 refers to “________”.

A. everyone of us              B. the government

C. the president of Turkey    D. the lucky child

What can be inferred(推断) from the passage?

A. The couple had little difficulty making their way in Turkey.

B. Turkey doesn’t celebrate International Children’s Day.

C. The author joined in celebrating Turkey’s Children’s Day.

D. On Turkey’s Children’s Day, everyone had holidays.

When a group of children politely stop a conversation with you, saying，“We have to go to work now.” you're left feeling surprised and certainly uneasy. After all, this is the 1990s and the idea of children working is just unthinkable. That is , until you are told that they are all pupils of stage schools, and that the “work” they go off to is to go on the stage in a theatre.

Stage schools often act as agencies (代理机构) to supply children for stage and television work. More worthy of the name “stage school” are those few places where children attend full time, with a training for the theatre and a general education.

A visit to such schools will leave you in no doubt that the children enjoy themselves. After all, what lively children wouldn't settle for spending only hal

f the day doing ordinary school work, and acting, singing or dancing their way through the other half of the day?

Then of course there are times for the children to make a name and make a little money in some big shows. Some stage schools give their children too much professional work at such a young age. But the law is very tight on the amount they can do. Those under 13 are limited to 40 days in the year; those over 13 do 80 days.

The schools themselves admit that not all children will be successful in the profession for which they are being trained. So what happens to those who don't make it? While all the leading schools say they place great importance on children getting good study results, the facts seem to suggest this is not always the case.

1.People would stop feeling uneasy when realising that the children they're talking to  ________.

A. attend a stage school

B. are going to the theatre

C. have got some work to do

D. love singing and dancing 

2.In the writer's opinion, a good stage school should  ________ .

A. produce star performers

B. help pupils improve their study skills

C. train pupils in language and performing arts

D. provide a general education and stage training 

3.“Professional work” as used in the text means  ________ .

A. ordinary school work

B. money?making performances

C. stage training at school

D. acting, singing or dancing after class 

4.Which of the following best describes how the writer feels about stage schools?

A. He thinks highly of what they have to offer.

B. He favours an early start in the training of performing arts.

C. He feels uncomfortable about children putting on night shows.

D. He doubts the standard of ordinary education they have reached. 

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

An independent college claimed to have become the first school in England to make Chinese a compulsory (强制的) subject for its pupils.

 Richard Cairns, the headmaster of Brighton College, said the move aims to recognize the importance of China as the world’s fastest growing economy.

    Chinese will become one of the core subjects at the 1,200-pupil college from September. At present the school has only a “handful” of native Chinese students, but it hopes to attract more in the future.

    Mr Cairns, who made the announcement in his first week as head of the high-achieving college, said, “One of my key tasks is to make sure that the pupils at Brighton College are equipped for the realities of the 21st century, and one of those realities is that China has the fastest growing economy in the world.

“China has replaced Britain as the world’s fourth-largest economy. We in Britain need to face up to this challenge, see it for the trading opportunity that it is, and ensure that our nation’s children are well-placed to thrive (茁壮成长) in this new global reality.

“A better understanding of the language and culture of China will be hugely important to the advantage of the children of Brighton College.”

    Mr Cairns said he hoped the Chinese children already at the college would help and encourage their fellow pupils to learn their language.

    In order to lead the way, Mr Cairns, a historian from Oxford, plans to take part in the first Chinese class as a pupil. “I have agreed to join the first Chinese class as a pupil. I think it is the best way for me to show the pupils here how important I regard this new addition to our core subjects.”

The passage mainly tells us ________.

A. how to face up to new challenges in the 21st century

B. the realities of the 21st century

C. the fastest growing economy in the world

D. about a school which will make all its pupils learn Chinese

The college makes its students learn Chinese mainly because ________.

A. Chinese is a language spoken by the largest population in the world

B. it realizes the importance of China as the world’s fastest growing economy

C. Chinese is the easiest language for the students

D. there are many native Chinese students at the college

What is Mr Cairns’ attitude towards the development of China?

A. He sees it to be a threat.                  B. He thinks of it as a danger.

C. He considers it to be an opportunity.        D. He regards it as an encouragement.

Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

A. The Chinese students at the college have already helped their fellow students

to learn Chinese.

B. The school is the first in England to make Chinese a compulsory subject.

C. Mr Cairns has just been made head of this high-achieving college.

D. In Mr Cairns’ opinion, learning Chinese will be a great help to his students.

填空（共10小题；每小题1分，满分l0分）

    阅读短文，根据所读内容在表中的空格处填上适当的单词或短语。注意：每空不超过3个单词。

What causes traffic jams? Too many cars，right? No! Some Brits are now saying that trafficlights are to blame for much of the congestion.

They suggest that traffic lights be removed at busy roads．They believe people are a better judge of when it’s safe to go，not a traffic light programmed by an absent regulator．

A report from the Institute of Economic Affairs，a UK think tank（智囊团），argues that

abolishing traffic signals would decrease congestion，reduce exhaust（废气）emissions（排放）and improve safety．

The report said that removing lights should also prevent other bad behavior caused by signals．such、as speeding up to catch a green light It would also avoid the wasted time when drivers have to sit at a red light even if no one is using the green

The idea may sound strange，but it’s not new．Seven cities and regions in Europe are experimenting with no-lights roads．

Drachten in the Netherlands has gotten rid of 16 of its traffic light crossings and changed the other two to roundabouts under a“shared space”scheme．At crossings, cyclists dutifully raise their arm when they want to make a turn，and drivers follow a first．arrived，first．through approach and communicate by hand signs，nods and waving．The result? Typical journey time has been cut in half and accidents and congestion have mostly disappeared．

There have been small collisions but no problem，said Hans Monderman，creator of the scheme．“We want small accidents，in order to prevent serious ones．It works well because it’s dangerous．The driver has to be responsible for his or her own risk

 “The many rules take away the ability to be considerate”Monderman added．“We’re losing our responsibility for socially responsible behavior．”

 So far，Drachten’s locals have called the experiment a success．“I am used to it now，”said Helena Spaanstra．24．“You drive more slowly and carefully．but somehow you seem to get around town quicker．

    Tony Ooostward，70，was equally enthusiastic．“I am a walker and now you are the boss at the crossroads，everyone waits for you．But at the same time walkers wait until there are a number of people wanting to cross at the same time．”

    Owen Paterson，UK’s Shadow Transport Minister。visited Drachten．He said Britain should learn from the model．“The idea is to create space where there is mild anxiety among everyone so they all behave cautiously．No one drives fast along a busy street thinking that they have right of way．”

The model is being tested in London’s Kensington neighborhood．