When I was seven my father gave me a Timex, my first watch. I loved it, wore it for years, and haven’t had another one since it stopped ticking a decade ago. Why? Because I don’t need one. I have a mobile phone and I’m always near someone with an iPod or something like that. All these devices （装置） tell the time ― which is why, if you look around, you’ll see lots of empty wrists; sales of watches to young adults have been going down since 2007.  

But while the wise have realized that they don’t need them, others ― apparently including some distinguished men of our time ― are spending total fortunes on them. Brands such as Rolex, Patek Philippe and Breitling command shocking prices, up to ￡250,000 for a piece.  

This is ridiculous. Expensive cars go faster than cheap cars. Expensive clothes hang better than cheap clothes. But these days all watches tell the time as well as all other watches. Expensive watches come with extra functions ― but who needs them? How often do you dive to 300 metres into the sea or need to find your direction in the area around the South Pole? So why pay that much of five years’ school fees for watches that allow you to do these things?  

If justice were done, the Swiss watch industry should have closed down when the Japanese discovered how to make accurate watches for a five-pound note. Instead the Swiss reinvented the watch, with the aid of millions of pounds’ worth of advertising, as a message about the man wearing it. Rolexes are for those who spend their weekends climbing icy mountains; a Patek Philippe is for one from a rich or noble family; a Breitling suggests you like to pilot planes across the world.  

Watches are now classified as “investments” （投资）. A 1994 Patek Philippe recently sold for nearly ￡350,000, while 1960s Rolexes have gone from ￡15,000 to ￡30,000 plus in a year. But a watch is not an investment. It’s a toy for self-satisfaction, a matter of fashion. Prices may keep going up ― they’ve been rising for 15 years. But when fashion moves on, the owner of that ￡350,000 beauty will suddenly find his pride and joy is no more a good investment than my childhood Timex.  

59. The sales of watches to young people have fallen because they      .  

A. have other devices to tell the time                      B. think watches too expensive  

C. prefer to wear an iPod                                      D. have no sense of time  

60. It seems ridiculous to the writer that ______.  

A. people dive 300 metres into the sea  

B. expensive clothes sell better than cheap ones  

C. cheap cars don’t run as fast as expensive ones  

D. expensive watches with unnecessary functions still sell  

61. What can be learnt about Swiss watch industry from the passage?  

A. It targets rich people as its potential customers.  

B. It’s hard for the industry to beat its competitors.  

C. It wastes a huge amount of money in advertising.  

D. It’s easy for the industry to reinvent cheap watches.  

62. Which would be the best title for the passage?  

A. Timex or Rolex?                                      B. My Childhood Timex  

C. Watches? Not for Me!                              D. Watches ― a Valuable Collection  

When I was seven my father gave me a Timex, my first watch. I loved it, wore it for years, and haven’t had another one since it stopped ticking a decade ago. Why? Because I don’t need one. I have a mobile phone and I’m always near someone with an iPod or something like that. All these devices（装置）tell the time—which is why, if you look around, you’ll see lots of empty wrists; sales of watches to young adults have been going down since 2007. 
But while the wise have realized that they don’t need them, others—apparently including some distinguished men of our time—are spending total fortunes on them. Brands such as Rolex, Patek Philippe and Breitling command shocking prices, up to £250.000 for a piece.
This is ridiculous. Expensive cars go faster than cheap cars. Expensive clothes hang better than cheap clothes. But these days all watches tell the time as well as all other watches. Expensive watches come with extra functions—but who needs them? How often do you dive to 300 metres into the sea or need to find your direction in the area around the South Pole? So why pay that much of five years’ school fees for watches that allow you to do these things?
If justice were done, the Swiss watch industry should have closed down when the Japanese discovered how to make accurate watches for a five-pound note. Instead the Swiss reinvented the watch, with the aid of millions of pounds’ worth of advertising, as a message about the man wearing it. Rolexes are for those who spend their weekends climbing icy mountains; a Patek Philippe is for one from a rich or noble family; a Breitling suggests you like to pilot planes across the world. 
Watches are now classified as“investments”(投资). A 1994 Philippe recently sold for nearly £350, 000, while 1960s Rolexes have gone from £15, 000 to £30, 000 plus in a year. But a watch is not an investment. It's a toy for self-satisfaction, a matter of fashion. Prices may keep going up—they’ve been rising for 15 years. But when fashion moves on, the owner of that £350, 000 beauty will suddenly find his pride and joy is no more a good investment than my childhood Timex. 
【小题1】It seems ridiculous to the writer that_______________. 

Zhang Lili, a 29-year-old middle school teacher at the No 19 middle school in the city of Jiamusi in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province was crossing the road just outside the school's gate when a school bus suddenly came rushing toward nearby students at 8:38 pm on May 8, 2012.

"There were three buses at the school gate ready to pick up students, but the one in the back suddenly crashed into the second bus and pushed it into the first one. There were several students standing between the first and the second buses and they were about to be crushed," said Liu Ye, a student of No. 19 middle school.

"We were waiting to board the bus when suddenly it began moving toward the teachers and students. Zhang Lili immediately pushed the students out of the way, but unfortunately she didn't escape. The bus crushed her legs. " added Liu.

Zhang Lili was sent to hospital at about 9 pm and she was critically injured and her blood pressure was low. The situation was quite serious when rushed to hospital.

After consulting specialists, the doctors decided that the only way to save her life was cut off both of her legs.

Upon learning about the accident, the deputy mayor of the city, Sun Zhe, asked the hospital to "save the young teacher regardless of the cost"  

"If necessary, we will invite more specialists from the capital city, even from whole nation," said Sun.

Fortunately, after 58 hours of emergency medical attention after being transferred to the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Zhang finally regained consciousness on May 15.

"But it cannot be ruled out that her condition may worsen, and the doctors are still working full out to save the heroic teacher," said Zhao Mingyan, ICU director at the hospital, where Zhang is now receiving treatment.

"Her courage moved all of our staff, and we will try our best to help the brave teacher in her future life. " said Wang Jianwei, the director of center.

The Ministry of Education has also named her "National Outstanding Teacher" and called on the country's educators to learn from her.

1.What does the underlined word “it” in the third paragraph refers to ________.

2.What can be inferred from the remark of the deputy Mayor Sun Zhe?

3.What does the underlined sentence in the ninth paragraph attempt to tell us?

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

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从各题所给四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。

Once there was a king who liked pictures very much. One day, he1. a prize to the artist who would paint the best picture of peace. Many artists 2.. The king looked at all the pictures. But there were only two he 3.liked, and he had to choose between them.

One picture was of a calm lake. The lake was a perfect 4.for peaceful towering mountains all around it. 5. was a blue sky with fluffy (蓬松的) white clouds. All who saw this 6. thought that it was a perfect picture of peace.

7. picture had mountains, too. But these were large, rough and 8.. Above was an angry sky, from which rain fell and in which lightning 9.. Down the side of the mountain   10.a foaming (起泡沫的) waterfall. This did not look 11. at all.

But when the king looked 12., he saw behind the waterfall a tiny 13. growing in a crack in the rock. In the bush a mother bird had built her 14.. There, in the midst of the rush of angry water, sat the mother bird on her nest —15. perfect peace.

Which picture do you think won the prize? The king 16. the second picture. Do you know why?

“Because,” 17. the king, “peace does not mean to be in a place 18. there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. Peace means to be in the midst of all those things and 19. be calm in your heart. That is the real 20. of peace.”

21. A. afforded             B. offered                  C. accepted            D. canceled

22.A. collected              B. planned             C. tried                 D. directed

23.A. hardly                 B. slightly             C. really                D. generally

24.A. bowl                   B. mirror               C. plate                 D. cover

25.A. Outward              B. Indoors             C. Overhead          D. Downhill

26.A. prize                   B. result                C. artist                 D. picture

27. A. The one                     B. Another             C. Other                D. The other

28. A. bare                   B. fresh                 C. green                D. distant

29. A. played                B. screamed           C. wandered          D. cheered

30.A. connected            B. floated                     C. fell                   D. rose

31.A. hopeful               B. peaceful            C. successful          D. careful

32. A. regularly             B. suddenly           C. closely                     D. casually

33.A. flower                 B. ground                  C. tree                   D. bush

34. A. house                 B. business            C. nest                  D. relationship

35.A. of                       B. in                            C. by                        D. for

36.A. protect                B. forced               C. depended           D. chose

37.A. explained             B. described           C. reminded           D. persuaded

38.A. which                  B. where               C. whose               D. that

39.A. thus                    B. even                 C. also                  D. still

40.A. story                   B. meaning            C. source               D. history

When I was seven my father gave me a Timex, my first watch. I loved it, wore it for years, and haven’t had another one since it stopped ticking a decade ago. Why? Because I don’t need one. I have a mobile phone and I’m always near someone with an iPod or something like that. All these devices（装置）tell the time — which is why, if you look around, you’ll see lots of empty wrists; sales of watches to young adults have been going down since 2007.

But while the wise have realized that they don’t need them, others—apparently including some distinguished men of our time—are spending total fortunes on them. Brands such as Rolex, Patek Philippe and Breitling command shocking prices, up to ￡250,000 for a piece.

This is ridiculous. Expensive cars go faster than cheap cars. Expensive clothes hang better than cheap clothes. But these days all watches tell the time as well as all other watches. Expensive watches come with extra functions — but who needs them? How often do you dive to 300 metres into the sea or need to find your direction in the area around the South Pole? So why pay that much of five years’ school fees for watches that allow you to do these things?

If justice were done, the Swiss watch industry should have closed down when the Japanese discovered how to make accurate watches for a five-pound note. Instead the Swiss reinvented the watch, with the aid of millions of pounds’ worth of advertising, as a message about the man wearing it. Rolexes are for those who spend their weekends climbing icy mountains; a Patek Philippe is for one from a rich or noble family; a Breitling suggests you like to pilot planes across the world.

Watches are now classified as “investments”（投资）. A 1994 Patek Philippe recently sold for nearly ￡350,000, while 1960s Rolexes have gone from ￡15,000 to ￡30,000 plus in a year. But a watch is not an investment. It’s a toy for self-satisfaction, a matter of fashion. Prices may keep going up—they’ve been rising for 15 years. But when fashion moves on, the owner of that ￡350,000 beauty will suddenly find his pride and joy is no more a good investment than my childhood Timex.

The sales of watches to young people have fallen because they______.        

A. have other devices to tell the time                      B. think watches too expensive

C. prefer to wear an iPod                                      D. have no sense of time

It seems ridiculous to the writer that ______.

A. people dive 300 metres into the sea

B. expensive clothes sell better than cheap ones

C. cheap cars don’t run as fast as expensive ones

D. expensive watches with unnecessary functions still sell

What can be learnt about Swiss watch industry from the passage?

A. It targets rich people as its potential customers.

B. It’s hard for the industry to beat its competitors.

C. It wastes a huge amount of money in advertising.

D. It’s easy for the industry to reinvent cheap watches.

Which would be the best title for the passage?

A. Timex or Rolex?                                      B. My Childhood Timex

C. Watches? Not for Me!                               D. Watches — a Valuable Collection