Imagine，one day，getting out of bed in Beijing and being at your office in Shanghai in only a couple of hours，and then，after a full day of work，going back home to Beijing and having dinner there．

Sounds unusual，doesn't it? But it's not that unrealistic，with the development of China’s high—speed railway system．And that’s not a11．China has an even greater high—speed railway plan—to connect the country with Southeast Asia，and eventually Eastern Europe．

China is negotiating to extend its own high·-speed railway network to up to 17 countries in 1 0 to 15 years，eventually reaching London and Singapore．

China has proposed three such projects．The first would possibly connect Kunming with

Singapore via Vietnam and Malaysia．Another could start in Urumqi and go through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan，and possibly to Germany．The third would start in the northeast and go north through Russia and then into Western Europe．

If China’s plan for the high-speed railway goes forward，people could zip over from London to Beijing in under two days．

The new system would still follow China’s high—speed railway standard．And the trains would be able to go 346 kilometers an hour，almost as fast as some airplanes．

    China’s bullet train(高速客车)，the one connecting Wuhan to Guangzhou，already has the

 World’s fastest average speed．It covers 1,069 kilometers in about three hours．

Of course，there are some technical challenges to overcome．There are so many issues that need to be settled，such as safety，rail gauge(轨距)，maintenance of railway tracks．So，it’s important to pay attention to every detail．

But the key issue is really money．China is already spending hundreds of billions of yuan on

domestic railway expansion．

China prefers that the other countries pay in natural resources rather than with capital

investment．Resources from those countries could stream into China to sustain development．

It’11 be a win-win project. For other countries，the railway network will definitely create more opportunities for business，tourism and so on，not to mention the better communication among those countries．

For China，such a project would not only connect it with the rest of Asia and bring some much-needed resources，but would also help develop China’s far west．We foresee that in the coming decades，millions of people will migrate to the western regions，where the land is empty and resources unused．With high-speed trains，people will set up factories and business centers in the west once and for a11．And they’11 trade with Central Asian and Eastern European countries．

1.China’s new high-speed railway plan will be a win-win project because      ．

  A．China will get much-needed resources and develop its western regions

  B．China and the countries involved will benefit from the project in various ways

  C．China will develop its railway system and communication with other countries

  D．the foreign countries involved will develop their railway transportation，business and tourism

2.According to the passage，the greatest challenge to the new high-speed railway plan is      ．

  A．technical issues                     

B．safety of the system  C．financial problems                   

D．maintenance of railway tracks

3.Which of the following words best describes the author’s attitude towards China’s high-speed

   railway plan?

  A．Critical．        B．Reserved．      C．Doubtful         D. Positive．

4.Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?

  A．New Railway Standards               

B．Big Railway Dreams

  C．High—speed Bullet Trains             

D．International Railway Network

Bicycles for rent could become as common as newspaper stands and mail boxes on Germany’s street corners if a scheme launched by Deutsche Bahn is successful.

The German rail operator has launched a bicycle-hire scheme designed for simple one-way trips.

“It’s a new concept,”said Andreas Knie, head of the project.

Users must first register with Call-A-Bike at a cost of 15 euros（US$14.7）. With a simple phone call, they can hire one of the many bikes parked outside stations, at a cost of 3 to 5 cents per minute. At the end of their journey, they ring a computer and tell it where the bike is parked.

The bikes are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

No one will be breaking speed records with Call-A-Bike bicycles. They weigh in at 25 kilograms, at least double the weight of a normal bicycle, though they do have eight gears（齿轮）.

“They are pretty heavy, but we don’t want people taking them on the train or into the subway,” Knie said.

They are also designed with parts that do not fit a normal bicycle. Even the screws are irregular and the bike looks so odd that thieves would stand out.

Vandalism and theft have led to the downfall of previous schemes which date back to Amsterdam’s 1966“White Bike”scheme.

In that short-lived experiment, anti-establishment groups painted bikes white and left them around the Dutch capital.

However, many were taken permanently and repainted, while the police took away others on the basis that ownerless bikes were street rubbish.

Copenhagen, Vienna and Helsinki also have free bike schemes, in which users deposit a coin in Copenhagen’s case 20 crowns（US$2.50）—to free a bike from a rack.

“The advantage these schemes have is ease of use. But because they’re so cheap, people tend to hold on to the bikes and then there are none on the streets,”the person in charge said.

Oslo is also planning a bike-hire system where users will pay a symbolic fee of 50 Norwegian crowns（US$6.50）for unlimited use in the city for a year.

Users will buy an electronic identity card as a key that will register when the bike is parked or taken from a rack.

59. How many European countries have already launched the free bike schemes?

A. Four.                                B. Five.                                C. Six.                                   D. Seven.

60.What can be learned about Amsterdam’s 1966“White Bike”scheme?

A. The bicycles were twice as heavy as a normal bicycle.

B. A heavy rain stopped the scheme from being carried out.

C. Some bicycles were damaged or stolen and the scheme failed.

D. The police ended the scheme for traffic safety

61.What can be inferred from the text?

A. Bicycles for rent have become as common as newspaper stands and mail boxes on Germany’s street corners.

B. The bikes in Germany are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

C. German bicycles for rent are designed specially so that they will draw people’s attention.

D. Germany has taken some measures to stop the bicycles for rent from being taken away.

62.Which do you think is the best title?

A. Free Bicycles for Europeans.                                  

B. Tough Transporters.

C. Customer is King.                                                      

D. Unpractical Scheme.

Imagine, one day, getting out of bed in Beijing and being at your office in Shanghai in only a couple of hours, and then, after a full day of work, going back home to Beijing and having dinner there.

Sounds unusual, doesn't it? But it's not that unrealistic, with the development of China’s high—speed railway system. And that’s not all. China has an even greater high-speed railway plan—to connect the country with Southeast Asia, and eventually Eastern Europe.

China is negotiating to extend its own high·-speed railway network to up to 17 countries in 10 to 15 years, eventually reaching London and Singapore.

China has proposed three such projects. The first would possibly connect Kunming with  Singapore via Vietnam and Malaysia. Another could start in Urumqi and go through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, and possibly to Germany. The third would start in the northeast and go north through Russia and then into Western Europe.

If China’s plan for the high-speed railway goes forward, people could zip over from London to Berlin in under two days.

The new system would still follow China’s high-speed railway standard. And the trains would be able to go 346 kilometers an hour, almost as fast as some airplanes.

China’s bullet train(高速客车),the one connecting Wuhan to Guangzhou, already has the   World’s fastest average speed. It covers 1,069 kilometers in about three hours.

Of course, there are some technical challenges to overcome. There are so many issues that need to be settled, such as safety, rail gauge(轨距),maintenance of railway tracks. So, it’s important to pay attention to every detail.

But the key issue is really money. China is already spending hundreds of billions of yuan on domestic railway expansion.

China prefers that the other countries pay in natural resources rather than with capital  investment. Resources from those countries could stream into China to sustain development.

It’ll be a win-win project. For other countries, the railway network will definitely create more opportunities for business, tourism and so on, not to mention the better communication among those countries.

For China, such a project would not only connect it with the rest of Asia and bring some much-needed resources, but would also help develop China’s far west. We foresee that in the coming decades, millions of people will migrate to the western regions, where the land is empty and resources unused. With high-speed trains, people will set up factories and business centers in the west once and for all. And they’11 trade with Central Asian and Eastern European countries.

1.China’s new high-speed railway plan will be a win-win project because     .

2.According to the passage, the greatest challenge to the new high-speed railway plan is     .

3.Which of the following words best describes the author’s attitude towards China’s high-speed railway plan?

4.Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?

       Imagine, one day，getting out of bed in Beijing and being at your office in Shanghai in only a couple of hours，and then，after a full day of work，going back home to Beijing and having dinner there．

       Sounds unusual，doesn't it? But it's not that unrealistic，with the development of China’s high-speed railway system．And that’s not all．China has an even greater high-speed railway plan — to connect the country with Southeast Asia，and eventually Eastern Europe．

       China is negotiating to extend its own high-speed railway network to up to 17 countries in 10 to 15 years，eventually reaching London and Singapore．

       China has proposed three such projects．The first would possibly connect Kunming with Singapore via Vietnam and Malaysia．Another could start in Urumqi and go through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan，and possibly to Germany．The third would start in the northeast and go north through Russia and then into Western Europe．

       If China’s plan for the high-speed railway goes forward，people could zip over from London to Beijing in under two days．

       The new system would still follow China’s high-speed railway standard．And the trains would be able to go 346 kilometers an hour，almost as fast as some airplanes．

       China’s bullet train（高速客车），the one connecting Wuhan to Guangzhou，already has the World’s fastest average speed．It covers 1,069 kilometers in about three hours．

       Of course，there are some technical challenges to overcome．There are so many issues that need to be settled，such as safety，rail gauge（轨距），maintenance of railway tracks．So，it’s important to pay attention to every detail．

       But the key issue is really money．China is already spending hundreds of billions of yuan on domestic railway expansion．

       China prefers that the other countries pay in natural resources rather than with capital investment．Resources from those countries could stream into China to sustain development．

       It’ll be a win-win project．For other countries，the railway network will definitely create more opportunities for business，tourism and so on，not to mention the better communication among those countries．

       For China，such a project would not only connect it with the rest of Asia and bring some much-needed resources，but would also help develop China’s far west．We foresee that in the coming decades，millions of people will migrate to the western regions，where the land is empty and resources unused．With high-speed trains，people will set up factories and business centers in the west once and for all．And they’ll trade with Central Asian and Eastern European countries．

China’s new high-speed railway plan will be a win-win project because ________．

       A．China will get much-needed resources and develop its western regions

       B．China and the countries involved will benefit from the project in various ways

       C．China will develop its railway system and communication with other countries

       D．the foreign countries involved will develop their railway transportation, business and tourism

According to the passage，the greatest challenge to the new high-speed railway plan is ________．

       A．technical issues                                        B．safety of the system

       C．financial problems                                     D．maintenance of railway tracks

Which of the following words best describes the author’s attitude towards China’s high-speed railway plan?

       A．Critical．             B．Reserved．           C．Doubtful．          D．Positive．

Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?

       A．New Railway Standards.                          B．Big Railway Dreams.

       C．High-speed Bullet Trains.                           D．International Railway Network

Imagine, one day, getting out of bed in Beijing and being at your office in Shanghai in only a couple of hours, and then, after a full day of work, going back home to Beijing and having dinner there.
Sounds unusual, doesn't it? But it's not that unrealistic, with the development of China’s high—speed railway system. And that’s not all. China has an even greater high-speed railway plan—to connect the country with Southeast Asia, and eventually Eastern Europe.
China is negotiating to extend its own high·-speed railway network to up to 17 countries in 10 to 15 years, eventually reaching London and Singapore.
China has proposed three such projects. The first would possibly connect Kunming with  Singapore via Vietnam and Malaysia. Another could start in Urumqi and go through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, and possibly to Germany. The third would start in the northeast and go north through Russia and then into Western Europe.
If China’s plan for the high-speed railway goes forward, people could zip over from London to Berlin in under two days.
The new system would still follow China’s high-speed railway standard. And the trains would be able to go 346 kilometers an hour, almost as fast as some airplanes.
China’s bullet train(高速客车),the one connecting Wuhan to Guangzhou, already has the   World’s fastest average speed. It covers 1,069 kilometers in about three hours.
Of course, there are some technical challenges to overcome. There are so many issues that need to be settled, such as safety, rail gauge(轨距),maintenance of railway tracks. So, it’s important to pay attention to every detail.
But the key issue is really money. China is already spending hundreds of billions of yuan on domestic railway expansion.
China prefers that the other countries pay in natural resources rather than with capital  investment. Resources from those countries could stream into China to sustain development.
It’ll be a win-win project. For other countries, the railway network will definitely create more opportunities for business, tourism and so on, not to mention the better communication among those countries.
For China, such a project would not only connect it with the rest of Asia and bring some much-needed resources, but would also help develop China’s far west. We foresee that in the coming decades, millions of people will migrate to the western regions, where the land is empty and resources unused. With high-speed trains, people will set up factories and business centers in the west once and for all. And they’11 trade with Central Asian and Eastern European countries.
【小题1】China’s new high-speed railway plan will be a win-win project because     .