The holiday shopping season is once again upon us.The super malls and smaller shopping centers will all be packed as hurried Americans search for the perfect gift.The crooks and thieves that prey upon innocent shoppers are well aware of this fact.

　 Even if you don’t involve yourself with holiday gift buying，you could end up a victim of theft.Thieves do not distinguish the holiday shopper from the everyday shopper.Thieves only know that there are more potential targets of opportunity at this time of year.

　 They also know that many people are complacent (不以为然的) about personal safety issues year round.They’ll factor in the belief that many people take on added stress this time of year while running from store to store with so much to do and so little time to do it.Shoppers who might normally consider personal safety an afterthought push it back even further as they try to negotiate their way through the month of December.College students are not an exception to the rule!

　 As a member of our university community，you’re also easily influenced by the dangers of mall shopping this time of year.Take a minute and picture any of the local area malls.Close your eyes and think about the overflowing parking lots and the crowds moving around.The sights，sounds and distractions all can lull you into a state of personal safety complacency.

　 Aside from the shoplifters who steal merchandise from store shelves are the thieves who perpetrate (犯) snatch and grab crimes.And this is the sort of crime that you’re most vulnerable to，especially when you find yourself carrying a large number of shopping bags and packages.However，as is the case with most other types of criminal behavior，there are a number of crime prevention measures you can take to lessen or stop your chances of becoming a victim.So take the time to read and then put into practice the following holiday shopping tips.

1.The author is most probably　　　　 .

　 A.a newspaper reporter

　 B.a novelist

　 C.a member of university community

　 D.a police spokesman

2.What does the underlined word “They” in Paragraph 3 refer to?

　 A.Shoppers. 　　　　　　　　　 B.Thieves.

　 C.Personal safety issues.　　　　　　 D.College students.

3.Why is a person more likely to become a victim of theft during holiday shopping?

　 A.Because he often has much to buy.

　 B.Because he often does shopping in a hurry.

　 C.Because there are crowds of shoppers.

　 D.All of the above.

4.What is the writer’s purpose in writing this passage?

　 A.To tell readers different kinds of crimes.

　 B.To make readers aware of holiday shopping dangers.

　 C.To give advice on selecting the perfect gift.

　 D.To introduce American public security situation.

5.Which of the following would be the best title of the passage?

　 A.Holiday Shopping Safety

　 B.Suitable Shopping Places

　 C.Personal Safety During Holidays

　 D.How to Identify a Thief

 It is not always easy for the public to see ________ use a new invention can be of to human life.

A. whose　　　B. what　　　C. which　　　D. that

—Is there any _______ to the time that I can keep the book?

—Yes, you must return it within 2 weeks.

A. number　　　　　　　　　 B. length　　　　　　　 C. limit　　　　　　　　 D. matter

　　Rats eat our food or make it so dirty that it isn't fit for people at all. That's why people often kill them by laying down poison. After a day or two, they find the poison still there. The rats haven't touched it, even though it is near the food which they eat. People think they must be clever and cunning. Some scientists have been trying to find the best way to poison rats. They have watched to see just what a rat does day and night. They have found out that rats aren't so clever. They are just very shy.

　　Rats usually live in holes. They run from these holes to the places where they eat and drink. They have special paths on which they travel each time. So they know their paths quite well.

　　If anything new, such as stone or wood, is put in the path, the rats won't go near it at first as they are too frightened. It will take them many days to get over the fear. They are also frightened to go near a place that they know, where something has been taken away. If a path goes around a rock, the rats follow the same path around the rock each time. If the rock is taken away, they will still run round the place where the rock was! They won't cross the empty place, which is now open to them, even though it would be quicker.

　　Rats will always keep away from anything unusual to them. That's why they won't eat poison on the first or second night. They usually won't go anywhere near it for about four days until they get used to being there. Even then they only eat a little at a time.

　　If people want to kill rats with poison, all they have to do is to leave it out for a few days. Once the rats have got used to it, they will eat it and die.

　　1．This passage mainly tells us

　　　　A. how a rat destroys our food

　　　　B. how to poison a rat

　　　　C. what's a rat's habit

　　　　D. poisoning a rat is not easy

　　2．How does the writer feel about rats?

　　　　A. They are clever and cunning.

　　　　B. They are the most dangerous enemy.

　　　　C. They are smart and shy.

　　　　D. It's easy for them to get close to an unknown object.

　　3．________ rats have special paths to travel each time.

　　　　A. Because they live in holes most of the time

　　　　B. To find more food to eat and water to drink

　　　　C. In order not to eat anything poisonous

　　　　D. To protect themselves

　　4．If you want to kill a rat, ________.

　　　　A. you should make it get used to the poison

　　　　B. you should drive it out of the hole

　　　　C. you should place a rock on the path along which it runs

　　　　D. you should make it get over the fear to cross the empty place

The cartoon is jokingly updating Shylock, a leading figure from William Shakespeare’s classic play The Merchant of Venice, to fit into the new age of the Internet. In the play, the Christian merchant Antonio has borrowed money from Shylock ,who is Jewish. Because of their religion Jews like Shylock have been regarded as low and worthless and badly mistreated by the noble-styled gentleman Antonio and his friends, who at that time contained the very Christian society of Venice and indeed all Europe .On account of the conflict between members of the two religions, despite their being willing to enter into business deals, there is little love or friendship between the two.

Shylock agrees to lend Antonio the money but as part of the written agreement he insist that should Antonio fail to repay him on time he must cut a pound of his own flesh from his body and present it to Shylock. This of course would kill him but nonetheless Antonio agrees. In the end, Antonio’s business fails as the ships carrying his goods sink （Antonio is truly a gentlemen but not much of a businessman）,and Antonio has to be forced to threateningly face Shylock and his demands.

In the cartoon, Shylock is a merchant who operates, as many businessmen do today, on the Internet. His website, www.poundoffflesh, com. is probably where Antonio would log on to get terms of his loan. The humor lies in the contrast between the very modern business technology and the very old-fashioned costume Shylock is wearing.

1.We may learn from the text that the writer of the article is for the purpose of ____.

A. grandly advertising the new cartoon to the audience

B. warning us not to borrow money from the merchants like Shylock

C. simply introducing a new cartoon on the net to the public

D. telling readers to be sincere and honest when you deal with your friends

2.The underlined word “contain” probably means ____.

A. control　 B. cover　　　　　　 C .include　　　　　 D. create

3.You will find it very funny when you see the cartoon that ____.

A. large amounts of money go into Shylock’s cashbox

B. Antonio doesn’t suffer from his flesh being cut off his body

C. many famous actors and actress are invited to perform the updated classic play

D. all the characters in the cartoon are not in today’s clothes though they do nowaday business

4.What would be the best title for the text?

A. The E-merchant of Venice

B. Business between Shylock and Antonio

C. Never Borrow Money from Shylock

D. Sow the Wind and Reap（gain） the Whirlwind