When families gather for Christmas dinner, some will stick to formal traditions dating back to grandma’s generation. Their tables will be set with the good dishes and silver, and the dress code will be Sunday best.

    But in many other homes, this china-and-silver elegance has given way to a stoneware (粗陶) and stainless informality, with dresses assuming an equally casual-Friday look. For hosts and guests, the change means greater simplicity and comfort. For makers of fine china in Britain, it spells economic hard times.

    Last week Royal Doulton, the largest employer in Stoke-on-Trent, announced that it is eliminating 1,000 jobs－one-fifth of its total workforce. That brings to more than 4,000 the number of positions lost in 18 months in the pottery (陶瓷) region. Wedgwood and other pottery factories made cuts earlier.

    Although a strong pound and weak markets in Asia play a role in the downsizing, the layoffs in Stoke have their roots in earthshaking social shifts. A spokesman for Royal Doulton admitted that the company “has been somewhat slow in catching up with the trend” toward casual dining. Families eat together less often, he explained, and more people eat alone, either because they are single or they eat in front of television.

    Even dinner parties, if they happen at all, have gone casual. In a time of long work hours and demanding family schedules, busy hosts insist, rightly, that it’s better to share a takeout pizza on paper plates in the family room than to wait for the perfect moment or a “real” dinner party. Too often, the perfect moment never comes. Iron a fine-patterned tablecloth? Forget it. Polish the silver? Who has time?

    Yet the loss of formality has its down side. The fine points of etiquette (礼节) that children might once have learned at the table by observation or instruction from parents and grandparents (“Chew with your mouth closed.” “Keep your elbows off the table.”) must be picked up elsewhere. Some companies now offer etiquette seminars for employees who may be able professionally but inexperienced socially.

67．Why do people tend to follow the trend to casual dining?

    A. Family members need more time to relax.

    B. Busy schedules leave people no time for formality.

    C. People prefer to live a comfortable life.

    D. Young people won’t follow the etiquette of the older generation

68．It can be learned from the passage that Royal Doulton is ________.

    A. a seller of stainless steel tableware                      B. a dealer in stoneware

    C. a pottery chain store                                                 D. a producer of fine china

69．The main cause of the layoffs in the pottery industry is ________.

A. the increased value of the pound                          

B. the worsening economy in Asia

C. the change in people’s way of life

D. the fierce competition at home and abroad

70．Formal table manners, though less popular than before in current social life, ________.

    A. are still a must on certain occasions                     B. are certain to return sooner or later

    C. are still being taught by parents at home                    D. can help improve personal relationships

Good health is the most valuable thing a person can have, but one cannot take good health for granted. It is important to remember that the body needs proper care in order to be healthy. There are three things that a person can do to help stay in good shape: eat right food, get enough sleep, and exercise regularly.

    Proper nutrition (营养) is important for good health. Your body cannot work well unless it receives the proper kind of “fuel”(燃料). Don't eat too much food with lots of sugar and fat. Eat plenty of foods high in protein, like meat, fish, eggs and nuts. Vegetables and fruits are very important because they provide necessary vitamins and minerals. However, don't overeat. It is not helpful to be overweight.

    Getting the proper amount of sleep is also important. If you don't get enough sleep, you will feel tired and easily get angry. You have no energy. Over a long period of time a little amount of sleep may even result in a change of personality (个性). Be sure to allow yourself from seven to nine hours of sleep each night. If you do, your body will feel strong and refreshed, and your mind will be sharp.

    Finally, get plenty of exercise. Exercise makes the body strong and and prevents you from putting on weight. It also improves your heart and lungs. If you follow a regular exercise program, you will probably increase your life-span (寿命). Any kind of exercise is good. Most sports are excellent for keeping the body in good shapes: basketball, swimming, bicycling, running and so on, are good examples. Sports are not only good for your body, but they are enjoyable and interesting, too.

    If everybody were to eat the right foods, get plenty of sleep and exercise regularly, the world would be a happier and healthier place. We would all live to be much older and wiser.

In order to keep good health, ________.

A. we should eat a lot of sweets B. one needs a large amount of fat

C. people should eat according to the foods nutrition

D we must try to sleep now and then

Eating more and sleeping less ________.

A. can keep healthy  B. are no good for you 

C. gets you more energy D. will keep your personality

The title of the article should be ________.

A. Eating and Exercising                B. How Vitamins Work in Man's Body

C. How to Stay Healthy                    D. Sleeping Well

The passage is probably taken from ________.

A. an advertisement B. a travel journal C. an English dictionary D. a magazine

第二部分：语言知识及运用   第一节完形填空 (共10小题；每小题2分，满分20分)
As waiters, we deal with customers every day and when something goes wrong, somehow we have the ability to keep on going．It’s our responsibility to  16  the customer．   
I remember my first waiter job was at a fine restaurant. One afternoon，the manager informed all the cooks and waiters that a VIP group were coming for lunch. The group were  17  VIPs in the city’s fashion industry．
After the group arrived and got  18  comfortably, drinks were ordered. Normally, the head waiter would be in charge of wine service. However, the manager asked me to serve that afternoon. I had never done wine service, nor had l ever served a group of twelve．
I arranged 12 wine glasses on the tray and went to the table. As I set one of the glasses in front of the first customer, somehow I had  19  my grip and six glasses fell on top of a young woman, and then to the floor and lay in pieces. I felt frightened and my face turned red. I apologized many times to the woman and to the rest of the group． 
Quickly, the manager  20  my aid and helped in the clean-up and sent out their drinks right away. I didn’t understand why, but the group were forgiving me and the young woman  21  informed me it was OK.
My manager pulled me to the side and said, “If you know why an accident happened, learn from it and move on. You still have a table to serve and you can’t show your  22 or your disappointment. Mistakes and accidents do happen. Keep your  23  up and be confident. The glasses are replaceable.”
I understood why he was truly a well-respected restaurant manager within the neighborhood. His  24  relationship with the group made the situation  25  and the group forgave me for that．
16．A. welcome         B. feed                       C. invite                    D. please
17．A. let in as             B. made up of          C. added up to              D. recognized as
18．A. introduced         B. satisfied               C. seated                      D. dressed
19．A. got                    B. caught             C. forgot                   D. lost
20．A. took over        B. came to             C. gave up                     D. rushed against
21．A. repeatedly          B. regretfully       C. impatiently            D. angrily
22．A. apology            B. excitement           C. nervousness        D. carelessness
23．A. nose               B. face                       C. head                    D. hand
24．A. new                     B. famous                 C. terrible                    D. close
25．A. calm                B. comfortable       C. special                  D. possible

When you want to go shopping, decide how much money you can spend on new clothes. Think about the kind of clothes you really need. Then look for those clothes you really need. Then look for those clothes on sale.
There are labels(标签)inside all new clothes. The labels tell you how to take care of your clothes. The label for a shirt may tell you to wash it in warm water. A sweater label may tell you to wash in cold water. The label on a coat may say “dry clean only ”, for washing may uin this coat. If you do as the directions (说明) on the label, you can keep your clothes looking their best for a long time.
Many clothes today must be dry cleaned. Dry cleaning is expensive. When buying new clothes, check to see if they will need to be dry cleaned. You will save money if you buy clothes that can be washed.
You can save money if you buy clothes that are well made. Well-made clothes last longer. They look good even after they have been washed many times. Clothes that cost more money are not necessarily better made. They do not always fit better. Sometimes less expensive clothes look and fit better than more expensive clothes.
68. If you want to save money , you had better buy clothes that_____.
A. don’t fit you   B. don’t last long   C. need to be dry cleaned   D. can be washed
69. The label inside the clothes tell you________.
A. how to keep the clothes looking their best     B. how to save money
C. whether the clothes fit you or not            D. where to get the clothes dry cleaned
70. The first thing for you to do before you buy clothes is ______
A. to look for well-made clothes     B. to see how much money you can spend on it
C. to know how to wash them       D. to read the labels inside them
71. We learn from the passage that cheaper clothes_______.
A. are always worse made         B. must be dry cleaned
C. can not be washed             D. can sometimes fit you better

Do you often play with your pet dog or cat? Do you like touching wild animals such as squirrels? They are cute. But be careful. If they bite you, you may get a terrible disease——rabies.

Believe it or not, in the last five months, rabies killed more people in China than any other disease. 2,254 people got rabies in the first nine months of this year. In September, 318 people died of rabies. That is 37 per cent more than last September.

Animals like dogs, cats, squirrels and bats can have rabies. If they bite or scratch（抓）someone, rabies could infect（感染）the person’s nervous system（神经系统）. The person could even die. It’s important to get the right treatment as soon as possible.

Every year, more than 50,000 people around the world die of rabies. Most of them are from developing countries. India has the most deaths. China is second.

1.Rabies is the name of _____.

2.Paragraphs two and three _____.

3.Which of the following animals might NOT have rabies?

4.The Chinese for the underlined word “treatment” probably is _____.

5.What the best title for the passage?