Handshaking, though a European practise is often seen in big cities of China. Nobody knows exactly when the practice started in Europe. It is said that long long ago in Europe when people met, they showed their unarmed (无武器的) hands to each other as a sign of goodwill. As time went on and trade in cities grew rapidly, people in cities began to clap each other’s hands to make a deal or to reach an agreement. This practice was later changed into shaking hands among friends on meeting or leaving each other. “Let’s shake (hands) on it” sometimes means agreement reached.

Do the Europeans shake hands wherever they go and with whomever they meet? No. Sometimes the Chinese abroad reach out their hands too often to be polite. It is really very impolite to give your hand when the other party, especially when it is a woman, shows little interest in shaking hands with you and when the meeting does not mean anything to him or-her. Even if, for politeness, he holds out his unwilling hand in answer to your uninvited hand, just touch it slightly- There is generally a misunderstanding (误解) among the Chinese that westerners are usually open and straight forward, while the Chinese are rather reserved (保守的) in manner. But in fact some people in western countries more reserved than some Chinese today. So it is a good idea to shake hands with a westerner only when he shows interest in further relations with you.

64. In the old days in Europe, people put out their unarmed hands to each other ______.

A. to make a deal                           B. to greet each other

C. to show friendliness                       D. to reach an agreement

65. The first paragraph mainly tells us ______.

A. where handshaking was first practised

B. how handshaking came about

C. about the relationship between handshaking and trade

D. about the practice of handshaking both in Europe and in China

66. According to the text. which of the following statements is true?

A. Westerners are more reserved than the Chinese.

B. Westerners are unwilling to shake hands.

C. We should make a judgment before shaking hands.

D. We shouldn’t shake hands with European women.

67. The main purpose of the text is ______.

A. to tell us some differences between the East and the West

B. to offer us some important facts about handshaking

C. to introduce us to some different customs in the West

D. to give us some advice before we travel abroad

No one knows yet the accurate number of lives which have been lost in this terrible fire .But reports suggest that it is more than one hundred .
A wall of flames fifty feet high and at least one hundred and fifty miles wide is now racing towards the forests and rich farmlands of southern Victoria . Towns less than one hundred miles from Melbourne will be in danger unless the wind changes . People are rushing excitedly into the streets . The police have warned them not to see the fire but many people are doing so .
The cause of the fire is unknown . No rain has fallen in this part of Australia for three months , and the hot , north-west wind from the great central desert is blowing at more than thirty miles an hour .
The firefighters are travelling to the fire by road , rail and air . But it is not easy to get there . Flames and fallen trees have cut off or blocked roads and railway lines . The thick smoke often prevents them from finding the air strips (飞机跑道).
It is said that the fire has brought the greater danger to the country since the Second World War .
【小题1】By the time the article was written , the fire        .

Dior was born in Normandy in 1905, and his family’s original plans for him included a career in the diplomatic service, but by the time he was twenty-three, with his parents’ money , he opened a small art gallery in Paris．By 1931, the money had been used up．Dior’s friends in the art gallery, asked him to draw and he took his first step at designing and drawing．His first job was with Lucien Lelong from whom Dior learned his craft（手艺）．

       In February,1947, Dior started the New Look in his first major Paris collection．He was backed by a famous textile producer, Boussac, who looked after the dollars, while Dior looked after the fashions．Dior knew nothing about cutting and sewing, but he was good at fashion design．

       The New Look started an entirely different look to costume, with a tiny waist, a rounded shoulder and a shapely bust（胸围）, usually with a low-cut neckline and a long full skirt．To women who had lived through the war years, the femaleness of the New look was a great success, for people were tired of tile extremely plain, wartime restrictive fashions．

       It is said that dresses by Dior were “constructed like buildings”, but young people were attracted to his design, and all over the western world, manufacturers plunged（投入） into the production of his new style．Dior’s revolutionary designs lighted up a whole cycle of fashion, rounded, gentle, feminine, a delight in elegance．A New Look House of Dior opened in 1948, followed by one in London．Considered as King of Couture（women’s clothing）for years, the Dior empire grew until it covered every country in the western world, and included furs, hosiery, jewelry, perfumes, men’s wear and on and on．More than 1,000 people worked at the Paris headquarters then．

       His sudden death in 1957 when he was 53 years old did not stop the growth of the House of Dior．Even now, so many years after his death, his name is closely connected with fashion throughout the world, and indeed is one of the most recognized names in the world, His first, great New Look, with its long skirts was an expression of freedom in the late 1940s．

Which of the following designs is close to Dior’s?

       A．                   B．                   C．           D．

According to the passage．in Dior’s life, he did NOT___________．

       A．make creative fashion designs 

      B．work in a diplomatic service

       C．1earn craft as his first job

       D．open a New Look House

We can infer from the passage that _________．

       A．Dior and his supporter had different interests in business

       B．Dior’s New Look had little influence on people then

       C．Dior is only a brand of women’s fashion

       D．Dior’s fashion was not accepted at first

What is probably the best title for the passage?         ．

       A．The History of the New Look       

       B．The Growth of the Dior Empire

       C．An Expression of Freedom—Dior       

D．The Founder of the New Look—Dior

 It is said that Mr. White will ________ Mr. Green in this school.

A．in place of         B．instead of          C．take the place of    D．take place

Here is the Eight O’clock News.

…

Chinese people spent about 120 billion yuan during the first three days of the May Golden Week last year. This year it has increased to 140 billion yuan.

The children of Beijing No.2 Middle School sang with students from Toronto in Canada to celebrate（庆祝）the 20th anniversary. They had been sister schools since 1986. They spent about two weeks together in Beijing. They visited the Great Wall and the Summer Palace. They took a lot of photos in Beihai Park.

Have you ever got tired of heavy shopping bags? A new shopping assistant robot which was invented by a Japanese company could be the answer. The helpful robot can follow you around and carry several bags. The robot was tested at a shopping center in February 2006.

About 500 people from different countries were in the 2006 “Rock Paper Scissors (剪刀)” World Match in Canada. This event was founded in 1842. It is said that playing this game is fun, and also a good way to solve problems among people.

…

And now it’s time for Morning Music.

1.The students from Canada and Beijing No. 2 Middle School didn’t _________.

A．take photos                            B．visit places of interest

C．sing songs                             D．have a football match

2.Which of the following is NOT talked about in the news?

A．The robot can help with shopping bags.

B．A Japanese company invented the robot.

C．The robot was tested at a shopping centre.

D．There are such robots in people’s homes now.

3.The underlined word “anniversary” means_________.

A．No.2 Middle School

B．yearly return of the date of an event

C．university

D．the new beginning of something important

4.Which of the following is a game?

A．Shopping assistant robot.                 B．May Golden Week.

C．Rock Paper Scissors.                     D．A visit to the school.