Everyday, 340 million people speak it. One billion people are learning it and it is said that by 2050, half of the world’s population will be using it. What are we talking about? That is the global language—English.
The English language started in Britain in the 5th century. It is a mixed language. It was built up when German. Scandinavian and French invaders settled in England and created a common language for communication.
Today it is the official language of the UK, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and Ireland as well as many islands in the Caribbean. Many other countries and regions use it for politics and business, for example, India. Pakistan, Nigeria and the Philippines. English is also one of the official languages of Hong Kong.
But global advertising and pop music mean that in most countries, you will see or hear some English. Thanks to McDonalds, we all know about “burgers”. “fries” and “milkshakes”. Songs by Madonna, Britney Spears and Celine Dion are in English. We can sing along, even if we do not understand what we are singing!
English is a messy (杂乱的) language. Every year, dictionaries include new words that talk about popular culture, for example, computer-related words such as "blogging", "download" and "chartroom". Also included are words that teenagers use. Who does not know “cool”, “OK” and “hello”?
Other languages also influence English. Many English words come from French. Words like “café” and expressions like “c'est la vie” (that is life) are all part of the English language. On the other hand, the French language includes English words like "le weekend" and "le camping". German words are also part of English. Words like "kindergarten" come from the German language.
Recently, British people have become interested in “yoga”. But the word comes from an ancient Hindu language in India.
【小题1】The English language has a history of ______.

A．It has been changing all the time.

B．It has borrowed words from all the other languages.

C．French words are used by the English because dictionaries have French words.

D．Singers and film stars have the greatest influence on language.

The Internationa1 Space Station allows astronauts to live in space for extended amounts of time, enabling them to explore the outside universe and conduct many experiments. However, nothing like that exists for our oceans, and thanks to the high water pressure, ocean researchers are able to explore what lies undersea for very short periods of time.

They are therefore never able to fully explore the deep inside areas of our oceans. However, if French architect Jacques Rougerie has his way, that will change soon.

Jacques has designed a ship that will allow researchers to spend a long period of time observing the sea life and conducting experiments. The huge l67ft. ship, named ‘Sea Orbiter’, consists of two areas—one above the water where the scientists and crew will live, and a lower pressurized deck (甲板), where scientists will be able to spend as much time as they wish. Since it is powered by sea currents and wind, he expects it to drift (漂流) along the oceans slowly, taking about two years to circumvent the globe.

Jacques will make their life as comfortable as possible in the ship. Besides being equipped with the latest sailing tools and communication equipment, the ship will also have a gym, a television and a DVD player! And these guys will not be eating freeze-dried food like astronauts. Instead, Jacques, an accomplished chef, plans on cooking them delicious meals every day.

The biggest problem to this giant ship is the cost, which is expected to be over $500 million—per ship! However, Jacques, who strongly believes that the secrets of our oceans may be the key to solving global warming and a vital supply for food and medicine in the future, is confident he will be able to convince governments all over the world to help out, and expects to start construction on not one, but four or five of these amazing ships soon!

1.Why can’t ocean researchers explore the deep oceans for a long time?

A. Because they can’t stand the high water pressure.

B. Because it’s too cold in deep ocean.

C. Because time for experiments is too limited.

D. Because it’s dangerous to observe the sea life.

2.The underlined word “circumvent ” probably means      .

A. fly away     B. go around     C. travel through     D. move into

3.From the fourth paragraph we can learn that      .

A. Jacques intends to design the ship mainly for sightseeing and traveling

B. living a comfortable life helps to do the ocean research quickly

C. it’s much more expensive to eat freeze-dried food

D. researchers on Jacques ’ ship will live more comfortably than astronauts

4.In Jacques’ opinion, which of the following is not the purpose of the undersea research?

A. To find supply for food in the future.

B. To find supply for medicine in the future.

C. To draw governments’ attention to the construction of the ship.

D. To solve the global warming.

5.Which of the fol1owing would be the best title for the text?

A. Sea Orbiter—the ship of the future

B. A new way to explore the deep oceans

C. A great architect—Jacques Rogerie

D. Travel around the globe in Sea Orbiter

         Tired of Working in Your Country! 

With over 500 instructors and 20 years of experience, we are the leader in the field of teaching foreign languages. We now have positions open in Osaka starting September/October 2004 for instructors of English, German, Spanish and French. 

?? Teach many different kinds of classes using the latest technology in small classes of up to 3 students.

??Accommodation (住宿), and other necessary documents (文件) will be ready before you leave.

?? Applicants will teach their first language only.

?? Excellent teacher training programs. 

If you are young with a university degree and are willing to experience different cultures, apply (申请) now. Experience in teaching is an advantage but not specially required. Knowledge of the Japanese language is not necessary but good English skills and practical computer knowledge are basic requirements. 

Apply with C. V. and send letters to:

NOVA France, Mr. Sampy (IHT3/2) 

34, Bd. Haussmann, 75009 Paris, France

Fax: 33148014804

Or visit our website: www. teadyp. com

The manager expects to meet and talk with successful applicants in Paris in June and July. 

What is the purpose of the text?

A. To introduce a language school in Japan.

B. To hire language teachers to work in Japan.

C. To describe working conditions in Japan.

D. To make clear the requirements for Japanese teachers.

Before going to Japan, you need _______.

A. to see the manager of NOVA France

B. to take some computer courses

C. to write a letter to Japan

D. to find a place to live

If you want to work in Japan you should _______.

A. have some working experience

B. know how to use computers

C. present good teaching plans

D. speak several languages 

Tara、Claudia、Monica、Terry 和Tony正在挑选自己所需要的网站。第56至60题是他们的个人情况介绍。阅读下面六个网站的简介(A、B、C、D、E、F)，选出符合各人需要的最佳选项，选项中有一项是多余选项。

56. Tara has got a new video camera and is crazy about it. Wherever she goes, she’d like to take it with her and record everything she finds interesting. She thinks it cool to share her life with others through the recordings.

57. As a newcomer to this city, Claudia wants to make new friends with people around her. She likes this city except for one thing, that is, she is not allowed to raise any pet due to the flat rules. That’s too much for an animal lover like her.

58. Monica is clever with her hands and likes making toys. She wants to find a way to show her work to others and share the pleasure with them. If possible, she’d like to make pocket money by selling the toys.

59. Terry worries about his phone bill every month. As he has lots of friends, making phone calls, sending and receiving messages are a necessary part of his life. Sometimes he has to say hello to each of his friends by mobile phone. It costs him lots of time and money.

60. In his spare time, Tony travels a lot. It’s hard for his friends to get in touch with him when he’s away. He’d like to find a way to share his travel experiences with his friends and let them know where he is.

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A. www.ddff.com

The site enables users to keep track of where their friends are and get informed of who is visiting their hometown. Users put in their travel plan and link to their friends. It allows them to see where everyone is.

B. www.euke.com

A New York-based Internet businessman once said it was “your place to buy and sell all things handmade”. You can sell everything made by yourself from clothes and furniture to music on Euke.com. The site was founded in 2005 and now has more than half a million users and 60,000 sellers.

C. www.momo.com

Created by a London games firm, Momo combines computer pet games with social communication and questions. Players keep “pets”, and look after them by answering regular questions. “Pets” can play with each other online, providing “pet owners” with chances to socialize. With its funny pictures and attractive qualities, Momo wants to become the next craze for young people.

D. www.png.canwest.com

The site provides a platform for companies and individuals that try to satisfy every need of today’s customers. The practice has moved from the office to the customer’s kitchen and beyond. And the services provided include everything from dog walking to laundry. Founded this year, the site already has more than 5,000 users.

E. www.cosm.com

Instead of marketing videos, Cosm centers on online video diaries. The site has not gone public yet, but has had positive reviews from testers. The website’s founder was once an Internet advisor to an international company.

F. www.ttter.com

Ttter enables you to text messages to large groups of people at a time, and for free. Sign up and send it a message, from a phone or the Internet, and it will be sent to receivers. The message is limited to just 140 characters. Set up in March, 2006, Ttter.com has already attracted over 500,000 users.

C
Shaping the Future of TV
Nobody can predict the future of TV with any certainty but some major figures in the industry have recently put forward their thoughts on what will shape TV of the future.
The shaping of a personalized television future is starting to take place, says Intel. The chip giant, who makes the processors found in most personal computers, states that by 2015 there will be just over 12 million devices using IPTV services that will be capable of connecting to over 500 billion hours of TV & video.
This supports the idea to make television a more social, personalized and readily accessible device available anywhere through IPTV services. As more and more people consume TV & video through various mediums, there is now a greater need to distribute and manage this content.
As such, companies like TV Genius are accepting this announcement made at Intel’s Developer Forum (IDF) in the USA by their chief technology officer, Justin Rattner.
With such a variety of content likely to become available, technology firms will need to assist in making personalized TV recommendations more readily accessible.
Mr. Rattner, speaking to the BBC said, “TV will remain at the centre of our lives and you will be able to watch what you want and where you want. We are talking about more than one TV-capable device for every man and woman on the planet. People are going to feel connected to the screen in ways they haven’t in the past.”
One way in which this will happen will also be assisted by a more united service of material combining including video content, internet content, broadcast content, and personal content.
This content will become much more accessible through remote devices like mobile phones using IPTV technology. This means that users will be able to watch their favorite programs away from the traditional media hub, the home.
63. The author uses the passage mainly to ________.
A. recommend a new type of TV          B. introduce a possible shape of future TV
C. describe the function of future TV    D. support the new type of TV
64. We know from the passage that the future TV might have major features like _______.
a. being capable of connecting to many more hours
b. changing the shape very easily        c. receiving programs at any place
d. displaying the advanced materials
e. using services accessing the Internet, video, radio, etc
A. a, b, c  B. c, d, e     C. a, c, e     D. b, c, e
65. The underlined word “this” in the third paragraph refers to __________.
A. Intel, the chip giant                  B. TV and video
C. readily accessible device            D. Widely used IPTV services
66. We can infer from the passage that _________.
A. the present TV will disappear in the near future
B. the future TV will have a beautiful look
C. people are developing the technology of TV very quickly
D. people will spend more time watching TV at home