We may have hosted some difficult house guests once or on even more occasions. Are you still worrying about how to deal with them? Here below are some tips on how to deal with those difficult house guests.

You’ve been waiting an hour to eat breakfast but your guests are still sleeping.

“Unless you adjusted a time for breakfast the evening before, let your guests sleep-in and enjoy your breakfast without them. If possible, keep their breakfast warm. Or better yet, when entertaining it’s always a good idea to have cold breakfast (as well as lunch, dinner and snack) food on-hand.”

——Pamela Eyring，president and director of The Protocol School of Washington

Your guest’s teenage son is a Facebook addict and hogs your computer all day long.

“If you have a guest whose fingers are fixated to your keyboard, kindly let him know that you are expecting work email and give him enough time to finish using it.”

——Ummu Bradley Thomas, founder of the Freddie Bell Jones Modeling and Finishing School, Inc.

Your couch surfing, unemployed nephew has been here a month and is showing no sign of leaving.

“There is nothing wrong with saying ‘John, you have been here a month and have not put in any applications. What can I do to help you get your resume together? I would like to make a plan that will assist you in getting back on your feet and allow me to eventually have my extra room back for guests that will soon be arriving.’”

——Diane Gottsman, owner of The Protocol School of Texas

Your guests expect you to accompany them to every single tourist attraction in your city. It’s tiring and expensive.

“If your guests didn’t offer to treat you, politely decline and offer to meet them afterwards for dinner or drinks. That way they know you enjoy their company.”

——Pamela Eyring, president and director of The Protocol School of Washington

You gave your friend a closet shelf for her stuff but her clothes are thrown all over the place.

“You should simply say ‘I am happy to have you use my closet but your clothes seem to have a mind of their own. Would you mind keeping your clothes on the top shelf? It would make it easier for me to find my things when I am in a rush and looking for them. Thank you.’”

——Diane Gottsman, owner of The Protocol School of Texas

1.According to Ummu Bradley Thomas, which of the following is the best way to deal with the guests?

A．Kindly explaining to him you need to use the computer.

B．Politely asking him to stop using the computer at once.

C．Introducing other toys to him to play with.

D．Simply letting him keep using the computer as he likes.

2.The passage gives the following tips EXCEPT that _______.

A．declining the guests’ requests if you hate to accompany them everywhere

B．reminding them to keep their clothes on the top shelf

C．trying to offer at least one dish based on his or her preferences

D．keeping their breakfast warm or having cold breakfast food on-hand

3.Which of the following is the best title for this passage?

A．How to Entertain Your Guests

B．How to Keep Good Personal Relations

C．How to Find the Best Solution

D．How to Deal with Difficult House Guests

4.In which section of a magazine can we most probably see this passage?

A．Science           B．Society           C．Economy          D．Education

Few people ever took notice of Mr. Jimmy Tan whenever he entered a room. He was a shy, quiet and simple man who preferred to keep to himself in public. On the other hand, Mr. Thomas Kim, a fellow scientist, was a man everyone would notice on the streets. He wore bright outfits with huge flower prints, spoke with a booming voice, and his laughter could be heard from all corners of a room. In addition to the differences in their characters, Mr. Kim and Mr. Tan were also great rivals at work in the Institute of Future Science.

On Christmas Eve, everyone left work early to celebrate the special occasion, except for Mr. Tan and Mr. Kim. They were in their laboratory analyzing the results of their latest experiments. Mr. Tan realized that something special was taking place in his experiment —the bacteria he had cultured were growing extremely quickly under high pressure and at a very low temperature. After noting down the findings in his notebook, he left the room to prepare for another round of tests. Shortly after, Mr. Kim entered.

“Hey Jimmy,” Mr. Kim called out, “do you have an extra copy of the laboratory booking form?”

There was no reply, so Mr. Kim looked through Mr. Tan’s things. He soon found Mr. Tan's notebook and was horrified to see that Mr. Tan had managed to make one of the most important discoveries in modern science. He then looked into the deep-freeze cupboard where a dish containing the bacteria was kept. He put them into his pocket and returned to his own laboratory.

Mr. Tan came back an hour later to find his notebook and the dish missing. He knew that Mr. Kim had taken them and went to Mr. Kim's laboratory to find out. When he opened the door, he found Mr. Kim lying on the floor motionless. His face was pale and his skin had turned black. The deadly bacteria had been handled improperly. He shook his head and left.

1.From the first paragraph we know Mr. Kim was a quite    person.

A．famous                               B．hardworking

C．wealthy                               D．outgoing

2.The underlined word "rivals" in the first paragraph is closest in meaning to   .

A．enemies                              B．colleagues

C．competitors                            D．friends

3.What does the underlined word “them” refer to in the 4th paragraph?

A．the most important discoveries

B．the notebook and the dish

C．the cupboard and the bacteria

D．the dish and the bacteria

4.Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A．Mr. Kim was afraid Mr. Tan might succeed ahead of him.

B．Mr. Tan's bacteria grew very fast in a warm container.

C．Mr. Tan worked much harder than Mr. Kim.

D．Mr. Kim was so tired that he fell down into sleep.

5.What happened to Mr. Kim in the end?

A．He died on Christmas Eve.

B．He was arrested by the police.

C．He shared the success with Mr. Tan.

D．He succeeded ahead of Mr. Tan.

Section C

Direction：Read the following text and choose the most suitable summary from A—F for each paragraph. There is one extra summary which you do not need.

A. Promotion by the press and media.

B. Foreign influences into British cuisine.

C. The variety of British cuisine.

D. The effect of history and climate.

E. Traditional meals for different times of the day.

F. International awards to British cuisine.

1 ______

They say a country’s cuisine（烹饪） is a reflection of its culture and national character. Therefore, the UK has always been a diverse country, since every region has its own traditional foods. For example, traditional Scottish cuisine is famous for its robust character： haggis, Aberdeen Angus beef, shortbread and whisky. Wales is well known for its lamb and leeks. Ireland is synonymous with Guinness, Irish whiskey and Irish stew.

2 ______

There are of course dishes common to the whole UK as well. Everyone （except vegetarians） likes a full English breakfast in the morning, followed by a Sunday roast for lunch, perhaps followed by fish and chips or a pork pie for dinner. For dessert, there are dozens of famous British cheeses to choose from.

3 ______

British cuisine has had a better international reputation for the last decade or so. Why is that？One reason is definitely that the wide range of ethnic groups in the UK has given British cuisine new ingredients, flavours, combinations and techniques. Curry, which is originally an Asian dish, is now officially the most popular food in the UK, whereas sandwiches used to be the most popular. With significant numbers of Polish people coming to the UK recently, Polish food shops can be found in almost every British city. Most cities have a Chinese quarter as well.

4 ______

Another reason for the improvement, however, is the large number of cookery programmes on British television. British people are more educated about food than they ever before. British chefs like Gordon Ramsay and Marco Pierre White are internationally famous and even have television shows in the USA.

5 ______

So what are the results？In 2009, British restaurants received more Michelin stars than in any other previous year. The Michelin Guide （first established in France） sets the international standard for restaurant cuisine. With so much good food to eat, perhaps it is not surprising the UK now has an obesity problem.

In ancient Japan, if you saved someone’s life, they would make it their duty to spend the rest of their life serving you. Nowadays, if you rescue someone’s story, he or she will feel the same kind of gratitude(感激).

It happens all the time. Someone in a group is telling a story and, just before their big point, BOOM! There’s an interruption. Someone new joins the group, a waiter with a plate of biscuits comes over, or a baby starts crying. Suddenly everyone’s attention turns to the new arrival, the food on the plate, or the “charming” little child. Nobody is aware of the interruption — except the speaker. They forget all about the fact that the speaker hasn’t made his or her point.

Or you’re all sitting around the living room and someone is telling a joke. Suddenly, just before his big punch line(妙语), little Johnny drops a dish or the phone rings. After the crash, everyone talks about little Johnny’s carelessness. After the call, the subject turns to the upcoming marriage or medical operation of the caller. Nobody remembers the great punch line got unfinished — except the joke teller. When it’s you entertaining everyone at a restaurant, have you ever noticed how you can almost set your clock by the waiter coming to take everyone’s order just before your funny punch line?

Most joke and story tellers are too shy to say, after the interruption, “Now, as I was saying…” Instead, they’ll spend the rest of the evening feeling bad they didn’t get to finish. Here’s where you come in. Rescue them with the technique I call “Lend a Helping Tongue.”

Watch the gratitude in the storyteller’s eyes as he stabilizes where his story sunk and he sails off again toward the center of attention. His expression and the appreciation of your consideration by the rest of the group are often reward enough. You are even more fortunate if you can rescue the story of someone who can hire you, promote you, buy from you, or otherwise lift your life. Big winners have excellent memories. When you do them subtle favors like Lend a Helping Tongue, they find a way to pay you back.

Very often, a storyteller cannot make his point because ______.

A. people are more interested in food than his story

B. many guests bring their babies to the party

C. his story is easily forgotten by the listeners

D. he is interrupted by something unexpected

From Paragraph 3, we know that when someone is telling a joke, ______.

A. something bad will surely happen just before their punch line

B. the only person really interested in the joke is the joke teller

C. listeners’ attention is often drawn to something else

D. the waiter knows when to take everyone’s order

How can we “Lend a Helping Tongue” to the story tellers, according to the writer?

A. Comfort them to make them happy.            B. Give them a chance to finish.

C. Go on telling the story for them.                    D. Teach them some useful techniques.

What is the text mainly about?

A. People should learn how to take turns in a conversation.

B. Telling jokes will make you the center of attention.

C. We can win someone’s heart by getting him back to his story.

D. It is impolite to cut in on someone’s talk.

（共5小题；每小题2分，满分10分）

根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

Almost everyone likes to eat apples. Apples grow in nearly every part of the world. The United States produces more apples than any other country except France. The states of Washington and New York grow the most apples.   71   New York is on the east coast and Washington is on the west near Canada.

Apples are red, yellow or green. They are very popular in the United States.   72   Most American people are often too busy or too tired to cook dinner, so they often have their dinners very simply. Apple juice is also a popular drink and apple pie is the favorite sweet dish for many Americans.

  73   The trees there produce nearly five billion apples every year—one apple for every man, woman and child in the whole world.

  74   For example, “You are the apple of my eye.” means “You are actually the one I love best and care most.” In China, it is a custom in some places for the marrying couple to hold an apple in each one’s hand, promising that their marriage will be “safe” without anything bad and that their marriage will never be broken. “To apple polish” often refers to a man who fawns (奉承) on somebody for the purpose of getting some benefits. So you can easily get “apple polisher”. However, “in apple-pie order” usually has the same meaning as “in good order”.   75   In fact, it’s another saying about “compare two things that can’t be compared”.

A. The state of Washington is proud of its apples.

B. Apples play an important part in people’s health.

  There are many stories and sayings about apples.

D. Perhaps this is why “New York” is often called “Big Apple” by some people.

E. The apples in France are better than those in America.

F. Many people like to carry apples to work or to school to eat with their lunches.

G. It is likely that you hear about “compare apples and oranges”