Do you now who Stefani Germanotta is? Perhaps not, but you’ll almost certainly know the star called Lady Gaga, a 24-year-old American famous for her cutting edge pop videos and strange fashion sense. She was the biggest winner at the MTV Europe Music Awards in Madrid on November 7, 2010. Her awards included the best female artist and the best song.

  Her popularity doesn’t end there. The BBC reports that the University of South Carolina has a sociology course about the life, work and rise to fame of Lady Gaga. The course is due to start in spring 2011. “We’re going to look at Lady Gaga as a social event,” said professor Mathieu, who will teach Lady Gaga and the Sociology of Fame.

  Germanotta, in fact, is a college student. She learned to play the piano by age 4. At age 17, she was one of the only 20 young people to get early admission to New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, the famous music school. Yet after her second semester, she took a big risk—she decided to quit and concentrate on a music career. But hwo did she manage to go from nowhere to supar star in just two years?

  She may well have had a plan for the top. She created “The Ultimate Pop Burlesque Show” with another artist. It was the first of many strange images. The pair gained enough attention to get a spot at a famous music festival in Chicago. Later, a record company signed Germanotta.

  While Lady Gaga enjoys popularity, there are critics accusing her of regularly using rude language in her lyrics(歌词) and wearing overly sexy clothing.

1. According to the article, Lady Gaga is famous for _______.

 A. her fashion shows                       B. her strange images

 C. her talents in university                   D. her winning awards

2. Which of the following is the correct order for the stages of Gaga’s career?

A. b—f—c—a—d—e      B. b—f—c—d—a—e

C. c—d—a—e—b—f      D. c—d—a—e—f—b

3.The main reason why Lady Gaga could become famous is that ______.

 A. she knew her dream of life              B. she knew what she would do next

 C. she learned music at a young age        D. she ws brave enough to quit university

4. From this passage, we can infer that ________.

 A. a good performance in university may lead to one’s success.

 B. cooperation with other artists is important in becoming successful

 C. Lady Gaga will become less famous because of her lyrics and clothing

 D. Professor Mathieu believes that Lady Gaga’s success is worth studying

阅读下面短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空，并将答案填写在答题卡标号为16—25的相应位置上。

Once upon a time there was a rich merchant   16 __      _____ had four wives. He loved the 4^th wife the most.  He took great care of her and gave her nothing   17___  _______ the best. He also loved the 3^rd wife very much. He was very  18         __ (pride) of her and always wanted to show off her to his friends. He also loved his 2^nd wife. She is __  19 ___________very considerate person, always patient and in fact is the merchant’s close friend. __20__________ the merchant faced some problems, he always turned to his 2^nd  wife and __21____________ would always help him out and tide(帮助渡过) him   22__________ difficult times. Now, the merchant’s 1^st wife is a very loyal partner and has made great 23___________  (contribute) in maintaining his wealth and business as well as   24____________  (take) care of the household. _ 25   ________, the merchant did not love the first wife and although she loved him deeply, he hardly took notice of her.

In fact___ is a hard job for the police to keep order in an important football match.

1. A.
   this
2. B.
   that
3. C.
   there
4. D.
   it

   Could you stand the noise of a street-sweeper truck going up and down the street outside of your house three times a week at 4 a.m.? The noise —described by Blomberg as “loud as a NASCAR(全国赛车联合会) race car but at a speed of 5 miles per hour” — annoyed him so much that he tried to persuade the city to reschedule street sweeping to begin at 6 a.m. He also founded the nonprofit Noise Pollution Clearinghouse, an organization that provides research and information to others whose request for quiet might otherwise fall on deaf ears.
Hearing loss, in fact, is the most obvious medical consequence of noise pollution, but it is hardly the only one, explains environmental psychologist Arline Bronaft. In her research, Bronzaft found that constant noise exposure could reduce children’s learning ability and cognitive(认知的) development. Beyond all that, regularly, “you’ve got to take a break
from sound,” says Bronzaft.
The bad news, says Blomberg, is that “the last century was the noisiest in history.” The good news, he continues, is that the greener we get, the quieter we’ll also get. Electric cars and lawn equipment, for instance, make less noise, just as more fuel-efficient vehicles do. Improved technology can also provide measures to make the problem less serious. Fire engines and police cars could replace those loud sirens(警报器) with other models; and you can turn down the volume inside your home by replacing noisy household appliances with quieter, energy-saving models.
“ I don’t think you can name a noise source that I can’t find a way to make quieter,” says Blomberg. But the real challenge is to change people’s attitudes. “ In the 1960s, we made it unacceptable to throw litter out of the window of your car,” he says. Today it’s time to recognize that “noise is to the soundscape as litter is to the landscape.” The goal is to “create a culture where you do not throw your aural (听觉的) litter out of the window.
64. What do we know about the Noise Pollution Clearinghouse?
A. It was founded by the city leaders.
B. It was supported by NASCSR.
C. It can rearrange the time of street sweeping.
D. It aims to help those who want more peace and quiet.
65. Which of the following makes the most noise?
A. Electric cars.         B. Loud sirens.                  C. Lawn equipment.     D. Police cars.
66. As Blomberg says, _____________.
A. it’s impossible to make a noise-maker quieter
B. it’s difficult to quiet people down
C. in the 1960s, throwing “sound” out of the window was forbidden
D. street sweeping should be stopped forever
67. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
A. Reducing Noise Pollution                      B. Children’s Mental Development
C. Vehicles that Make Less Noise                        D. Forbidding Throwing Litter

Museums in Germany

Germany is one of the most important countries in Europe. You can visit many museums in Germany and learn about the country, its culture and people.

If you are interested in learning about the history of the country, then you can have a look at the displays in the wonderful museum in the Roman Open Air Museum in Hechingen Stein. This museum, with its large numbers of artifacts (手工艺品) like paintings, pieces of pottery, tools, jewelry and other items, provides a complete picture of Roman history in Germany. The museum is built inside an ancient Roman house called “Villa Rustica”.

Apart from this, another German museum that is worth visiting is the DB Museum, or the German Railway Museum. It is the oldest railway museum in the country, and it offers a comprehensive insight into the history of the railways in Germany. Here, you can see models of trains and engines from an ancient era. If this interests you, you can also visit the Museum of Communication, where you can learn a lot about the transport in Germany. It is a great place to visit with your family.

Another famous museum in Germany, where you can learn a lot about the culture, is the Gutenberg Museum. This museum is filled with ancient memorabilia and artifacts that deal with the history of printing, not only of Germany, but of the whole world. This, in fact, is the oldest printing museum in the world. Amongst the many displays of interesting objects, the most famous is the second Gutenberg Bible. Apart from the museums mentioned above, other museums that are worth visiting include the German Leather Museum, Kingspor Museum, Optical Museum Jena, Deutsches Museums and others. Each of the museums in Germany deals with a different theme.

You can visit the museums in Germany with your family and have a good time looking at the displays.

1.Which of the following is not displayed in the Roman Open Air Museum?

A．Pieces of pottery.   B．Jewelry.           C．Paintings.          D．Models of trains.

2.What can we learn about the German Railway Museum?

A．It is the oldest railway museum in Europe.

B．It covers the history of the railways in Germany.

C．It offers information about the transport in Germany.

D．It is built inside an ancient Roman house.

3.If you want to learn about the history of Germany, you can go to the _______.

A．Roman Open Air Museum                 B．Kingspor Museum

C．Optical Museum Jena                    D．Deutsches Museums

4.What is the author’s purpose in writing the text?

A．To attract more visitors to the museums.

B．To act as an introduction to the history of Germany.

C．To make Germany more popular.

D．To call on people to do something for the museums.