Coffee has a history dating back to at least the 9th century and has been a catalyst for social interaction across cultures and eras. Originally discovered in Ethiopia, coffee beans were brought into the Middle East by Arab traders, spreading to Egypt, Yemen, Persia, Turkey, and North Africa by the 15th century. Muslim merchants eventually brought the beans to the thriving port city of Venice, where they sold them to wealthy Italian buyers. Soon, the Dutch began importing and growing coffee in places like Java and Ceylon (largely through slave labor), and the British East India Trading Company was popularizing the beverage in England. Coffee spread across Europe and even reached America.

Where there has been coffee, there has been the coffeehouse. From the 15th century Middle Eastern establishments where men gathered to listen to music, play chess, and hear recitations from works of literature, to Paris' Cafe le Procope where luminaries of the French Enlightenment such as Voltaire, Rousseau, and Diderot came to enjoy a hot cup of joe, coffeehouses have traditionally served as centers of social interaction, places where people can come to relax, chat, and exchange ideas.

The modern coffee shop is modeled on the espresso and pastry-centered Italian coffeehouses that arose with the establishment of Italian-American immigrant communities in major US cities such as New York City's Little Italy and Greenwich Village, Boston's North End, and San Francisco's North Beach. New York coffee shops were often frequented by the Beats in the 1950's. It wasn't long before Seattle and other parts of the Pacific Northwest were developing coffee shops as part of a thriving counterculture scene. The Seattle-based Starbucks took this model and brought it into mainstream culture.

Although coffeehouses today continue to serve their traditional purpose as lively social hubs in many communities, they have noticeably adapted to the times. Rediscovering their purpose as centers of information exchange and communication, many coffee shops now provide their customers with internet access and newspapers. It has become extremely common to see someone sitting at a Starbucks listening to music or surfing the web on his or her laptop. Coffee stores today also maintain a fairly identifiable, yet unique aesthetic: wooden furniture and plush couches, paintings and murals drawn on walls, and soft-lighting combine to give coffee shops the cozy feeling of a home away from home.

Today, big business retail coffee shops are expanding quickly all over the world. Starbucks alone has stores in over 40 countries and plans to add more. Despite its popularity, Starbucks has been criticized and labeled by many as a blood-sucking corporate machine, driving smaller coffee shops out of business through unfair practices. This has even spawned an anti-corporate coffee counterculture, with those subscribing to this culture boycotting big business coffee chains. Increasingly popular coffee stores such as The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf are also giving Starbucks some stiff competition. In any case, it seems pretty clear that coffee has weaved itself into the fabric of our consumer-oriented culture.

1.

 Which of the following is the correct order of coffee spreading in history?

   ①Egypt    ②America    ③the Middle East    ④Netherlands    ⑤Venice

   A. ①③④②⑤       B. ③①⑤④②              C. ①⑤④③②             D. ③②⑤④①

2.

We can infer from the passage ________.

   A. Starbucks has beaten all the competitors  

B. there are no changes in the development of coffee culture

C. the taste of coffee has changed a lot

D. Starbucks has some effect on the development of coffee culture

3.

The famous coffeehouse “Starbucks” originally come from _______.

   A. Seattle                     B. Ethiopia                          C. Java                                 D. France

4.

Nowadays, if you come to a coffeehouse, you can _______.

   A. play chess with other customers                   

B. enjoy delicious dishes from South America

   C. surf the internet                                                 

D. watch a TV play

Weighed down by study? Pushed to the limit by the fast pace of life ? Frightened by the possible war ? Well, you’re not alone. Men and women in France are seeking relief using the world’s best medicine-----laughter.
In the past year, more than 15 laughter clubs have been set up across the country. People of all ages go to release their stress with an hour group laughs. “People telephoned me and said they have forgotten what it is to laugh. They want to find a place where they can escape all their problems for a while. So they come,” said 40—year—old Jocelyne Le Moan. She usually takes a class of around 60 people through a series of laughter techniques.
Her pupils range from teenagers to 70 years old, but most are middle---aged white collars seeking 60 minutes of relaxation at the end of a busy day. Le Moan takes them through the “Lion Laugh”and the “Laugh Contest”, where participants “speak”to each other in different ways. And instead of talking, they break into fits of laughter. At the end there are 15 minutes of “meditation”, when they lie on their backs and let the laughs burst out of their mouths.
“I love it. It’s an experience that has changed my life. Through it I rediscovered the child’s laugh inside me,”Said Romain Jouffroy, 24. “US President George W. Bush should give it a try. He has lost his laugh,”she joked . Like Jouffroy, many laughter club members find themselves changed into children again, and why not ? The average preschooler laughs up to 400 times a day.
The average adult only a day seven to 15.
The physical benefits of laughter are already well—recognized. Doctors say the act of laughing releases good chemicals into the blood—stream, while the quick breathing that accompanies it helps massage（按摩）the digestive organs and strengthens the heart.
“A full hour is like having your inside go jogging！One finishes out of breath, but feels revitalized（产生新活力. And on top of that , you’ve had a laugh,”said doctor Alexisd’ Estaing.And many participants in Paris also emphasize the psychological benefits. They believe that laughter is a way of making oneself feel more confident.
【小题1】Which of the following is not included among the benefits of laughing?

Weighed down by study? Pushed to the limit by the fast pace of life ? Frightened by the possible war ? Well, you’re not alone. Men and women in France are seeking relief using the world’s best medicine-----laughter.

In the past year, more than 15 laughter clubs have been set up across the country. People of all ages go to release their stress with an hour group laughs. “People telephoned me and said they have forgotten what it is to laugh. They want to find a place where they can escape all their problems for a while. So they come,” said 40—year—old Jocelyne Le Moan. She usually takes a class of around 60 people through a series of laughter techniques.

Her pupils range from teenagers to 70 years old, but most are middle---aged white collars seeking 60 minutes of relaxation at the end of a busy day. Le Moan takes them through the “Lion Laugh”and the “Laugh Contest”, where participants “speak”to each other in different ways. And instead of talking, they break into fits of laughter. At the end there are 15 minutes of “meditation”, when they lie on their backs and let the laughs burst out of their mouths.

“I love it. It’s an experience that has changed my life. Through it I rediscovered the child’s laugh inside me,”Said Romain Jouffroy, 24. “US President George W. Bush should give it a try. He has lost his laugh,”she joked . Like Jouffroy, many laughter club members find themselves changed into children again, and why not ? The average preschooler laughs up to 400 times a day.

The average adult only a day seven to 15.

The physical benefits of laughter are already well—recognized. Doctors say the act of laughing releases good chemicals into the blood—stream, while the quick breathing that accompanies it helps massage（按摩）the digestive organs and strengthens the heart.

“A full hour is like having your inside go jogging！One finishes out of breath, but feels revitalized（产生新活力. And on top of that , you’ve had a laugh,”said doctor Alexisd’ Estaing.And many participants in Paris also emphasize the psychological benefits. They believe that laughter is a way of making oneself feel more confident.

1.Which of the following is not included among the benefits of laughing?

A．It can make people rediscover their children’s laugh.

B．It can release good chemical into blood streams.

C．It can make you feel self—confident.

D．It can cure the illness of people.

2.The writer suggested that you should_____________.

A．take the world’s best medicine.

B．talk to each other about what troubles you.

C．learn series of laughter techniques.

D．have a good laugh after a busy day.

3.From the passage , we can conclude the following but___________.

A．Jocelyne Le Moan is a teacher of the club.

B．the members are mostly middle---aged white collars.

C．people always need some way to relax in life.

D．laugh freely and everything goes well.

4.Which of the following is not the reason why so many people join the laughter clubs ?

A．Those members feel too much pressure on them.

B．They want to find a place to relax themselves.

C．Laughters help massage the digestive organs.

D．The members don’t know how to laugh.

I hated dinner parties .But I decided to give them another shot because I’m  in London. And my friend Mallery invited me . And because dinner parties in London are very different from those  in New York,  “I’m having a dinner party ” means : “I’m booking a table for 12 at a restaurant  you can’t afford ang we’ll be sharing the cheque evenly , no matter what you eat.” Wors , in  Manhattan there  is  always someone who  leaves before  the  bill arrives  .They’ll throw  down cash, half of what  they owe, and then people like me, who don’t  drink, end  up paying even  more . But if try to use the same  trick  , the hostess will shout; “Where are you going ?” And it’s not like I can  say I have somewhere to go : everyone knows I have  nowhere to go.

But in London, dinner patise are in people’s homes . Not only that, the guests  are an interesting  mix .The last time I went to one , the guests were from France , India ,Denmark and  Nigeria; it was like a gathering  at the United Nations . In New York ,the mix is less striking . It’s  like a gathering at Bloomingdat=le’s , a well-known de partment  store.

For New Yorkers, talking ,talking  about  other  parts  of the world  means Brooklyn  and Queens in New Yorkers.But at Mallery’s ,when I side that I had been to Myanmar recently, peo ple knew where it was , In New Yorkers people would think it was a usual culb.

1.What does the word “shot” in Paragraph I pro baly mean?

A.  Choice B. Try   C. Style   D.Goal

2. What does  the writer  dislike most about  dinner  parties  in New Yorkers

A. There  is a stange mix of people.

B. The restaurants are expensive.

C. The bill is not fairly shared.

D. People  have  to  pay cash 

3.What does the author think of the parties in London?

A. A bit unusual   B. Full of tricks  C.Less costly  D. More interesting

4.What  is the author’s opininon of some New Yorkers from her experience?

A.Easy-going B. Self-centred.   C.Generous D.Conservative

“Choo, Choo!” Here comes the Chunnel train. Get aboard if you want to learn more about this underground transportation system. This is an unusual form of transportation, because it is a tunnel that trains travel through and not an actual form of transportation.

The Chunnel is actually the English nickname for the Channel Tunnel. In French, it is called le tunnel sous la Manche. It is a rail tunnel beneath the English Channel at the Straits of Dover. It connects Cheriton in Kent, England with Sangatte in northern France. It is the second longest rail tunnel in the world.

Did you know that the British and the French had a race whi1e they were building the Chunnel? The race was to see who could get to the middle of the tunnel first. The British won by a little bit. It took 15,000 workers over seven years to dig the tunnel. The tunnel was finished in 1994.

The completed Chunnel cost about $ 21 billion. But it all paid off, because it became very popular, very quick. Millions of people use it. Now it is getting even more popular.

There are three complete tunnels in the Chunnel. The two outside ones are the passenger trains. The small inner one is a guidance train. The guidance train is not used for transportation. Each track is exactly parallel to each other.

There are four different train systems in the Chunnel. The Eurostar is a high speed passenger service that connects London, Paris, Brussels, and Lille. The Eurotunnel shuttle is a rail ferry service. These shuttles carry cars. These are railcars that allow drivers to drive their vehicles on and off. There are also two Eurotunnel goods service trains.

Now you know more about the Chunnel. Everybody off, this is the last stop.

1.The Channel Tunnel links ______ with _______.

A. Dover; Kent          B. London; Paris      C. Lille; Brussels        D.Cheriton; Sangatte

2.Which of the following shows the structure of the tunnels in the Chunnel?

3.The Eurotunnel shuttle is intended to carry _________.

A. passengers                 B. drivers and their vehicles

C. goods              D. staff members of the Chunnel

4.The text can most probably be __________.

A. found in a textbook                                               B. read in a magazine

C. broadcast on a train                                           D. heard in a railway station