In the mid 1990s, people started doing business on the Internet. At that time, there were two kinds of companies. First, there were traditional companies which sold things in stores. Then, there were Internet companies which didn’t have stores, they sold things only over the Net.

Traditional companies didn’t want to lose any business. Quickly, they created their own websites and began selling things over the Net. These are the so-called “brick and click” companies. Many stores are made of brick, and you click on your mouse to buy things with your computer. That’s where the name “brick and click” comes from.

By the late 1990s, e-businesses like Amazon.com, Buy.com, and eToys.com were in trouble. Their profits(利润) were not very high, and there was a lot of competition. Many of these businesses lost a lot of money, and in 2000, many e-businesses were out of business.

In the world of e-commerce(电子商务), companies are fighting for every dollar and every customer. Will brick and click companies win the war? Only time will tell.

1.Many traditional companies created their own websites in               .

2.Why were Internet companies in a lot of trouble in the late 1990s?

3.Which would be a brick and click company?

Comets(彗星) are parts of our solar system. Like the planets, they go around the sun.

But comets are not made of solid rocks like planets. A comet is a ball of dust, stones, and ice. Many people call comets dirty snowballs.

The “snowball” may be only a few miles across. But when the sun heats the “snowball,” much of it is changed to gases. The gases spread out and form the comet’s head, which may be thousands of miles across.

A comet moves fast in its trip around the sun. But when we see it, the comet does not seem to move. That’s because it is so far away. The moon moves fast, but when you look at it, you can’t see any motion(运动). That’s because the moon is far away.

Each year astronomers(天文学家) discover new comets. Some of them are seen only once. They make one trip around the sun and then go away out into space. The sun’s gravity cannot hold them.

Other comets, like Halley, keep returning. They have been captured by the sun. Halley’s earliest visit was probably 3,000 years ago. It may keep returning for another 3,000 years.

But every time a comet goes around the sun, the comet loses part of itself. Gases and dust are pulled out of the comet. That’s why Halley is now dimmer（暗淡的） than it used to be. Next time it visits us, in 2062, it may be even dimmer. Each visit it may get dimmer and dimmer, until it finally disappears.

1.What is this passage mostly about?

2.How does the writer help the reader understand what a comet looks like?

3.What is the most likely reason the writer wrote this passage?

If the rose can be said to be a special flower, then the apple can be said to be a special fruit. It is very important in American culture. American stories speak of Johnny Appleseed, who went throughout America collecting apple seeds and planting apple trees. He had a great love for nature and went through fields and farms adding richness and beauty to the country.

One of the first sayings taught to school children is, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.” This short saying encourages children to eat fresh fruit to keep healthy. If someone always says good words to a person, people will call him an “apple polisher”. This, however, is not a good name. If someone is very dear to us, we say that he or she is the “apple of our eye”.

Most people believe that the fruit which Eve gave to Adam was an apple, even though the Bible(圣经) never says so. The apple, therefore, is a deep part of the language and stories of America.

An apple is also delicious. Apples can be cooked in many ways, used as a dessert, and made into sweet juice.

In many parts of the country during the harvest season, a popular activity is to go into an apple garden to pick apples. Washington, D. C. and New York are both famous for their apples.

Finally, when it’s time to take a vacation to American cities, one can always visit New York, which is “the biggest apple” of all the American cities.

1.What does the underlined phrase “apple polisher” mean?

2.Which of the following is TRUE with apples?

3.The passage is mainly about                             .

In the opinion of many people, the two­parent family is the correct way to raise children. Traditionally, this has been as the most natural way, but single­parent families have had to face prejudices(偏见) against their life­style. However, the single­parent family is the fastest growing type of family. In the United States, a national survey showed that at least 50% of children will be members of a single­parent family. So we think it is important to throw prejudices away and to see the advantages of single­parent families.

When compared to two­parent families, single­parent families are usually at a disadvantage in some ways. They are often in short of money, and children receive less attention. What’s more, single parents can find themselves under too much pressure(压力) of both work and home. Despite(尽管) these disadvantages, it is possible for single­parent families to look for support from friends, schools, communities or other organizations. They need to remember that nobody can do it alone.

Surprisingly, single­parent families also have some advantages over two­parent families. Single parents have greater flexibility(灵活性) in spending time with children, because they don’t have to consider the needs of a husband or wife. So they can develop closer relationships with their children. Another advantage comes from the fact that single parents often work together with their children to solve problems, which makes children feel more needed and valued.

It’s important to remember that single­parent families have, until now suffered prejudices from some people. They think that it’s easier for the children in single­parent families to drop out of school in teens, and to be jobless in their early twenties. But, with the support from friends, schools and communities, single­parent families become more accepted by society, and this situation is certain to improve. In the future we will probably see these prejudices disappear.

1.What does the writer mainly tell us in Paragraph 1?

A. People shouldn’t have prejudices against single­parent families.

B. The single­parent family is not good for raising children.

C. The two­parent family is the correct way to raise children.

D. 50% of children will be members of a single­parent family in the USA.

2.Which disadvantage of single­parent families is NOT mentioned in Paragraph 2?

3.How can single parents make their children feel more needed and valued?

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

根据句意，在相应的横线上，写出括号内所给单词的适当形式。

1.An advantage of using the solar energy is that it won’t create any        (pollute).

2.Our headmaster is the        (strict) with us among the teachers who teach us.

3.What an          (enjoy) journey they had the day before yesterday!

4.Those volunteers always think more of others than of          (they).

根据句意和汉语注释，在相应的横线上，写出单词的正确形式。

1.The hostess          （点头）to show that she agreed with us at the show.

2.I am often           (提供) some useful help by my teachers and classmates.

3.I have ordered several ________(册)of this book from abroad. Would you like to have one?

4.Can this kind of robot be           (可获得的) in the nearest supermarket?

用括号内所给动词的适当形式填空。

1.Daniel told me that he__________ (take) care of my pet for me in the next few days..

2.Britain was the first country in the world__________ (have) a free health system.

3.Boats float in the direction of wind if they__________ (not control).

4.You can show your support to our school football team by_________ (cheer) for our players.

5.When I came into the house, my daughter__________ (sweep) the floor clean.

6.It’s said the prices for house sale _________ (fall) a lot in the past ten months.

7.Cold viruses can also__________ (spread) by objects, such as telephones, plates and keyboards.

8.Our Maths teacher__________ (prepare) the new lesson with other teachers in the office from 2 to 4 yesterday afternoon.

先通读下面的短文，掌握其大意，然后根据短文内容和所给首字母，在空格内填入一个适当的词，使短文意思完整，所填单词在题后横线上必须完整写出。

Japanese people often ask people what blood group they are. This is b  1    they believe that a person’s blood group says a lot about their character and personality. The Japanese also believe that k  2    blood group can help them decide that if a person will be a person’s good friend. It is strange that this idea is so popular in Japan because it is not a traditional idea, but a m  3    one. Blood groups were only d  4    in 1901 and in 1916 a Japanese doctor suggested that blood groups were related to temperament (气质、性情).

In 1927, a writer did a large study of people and wrote a guide to blood groups. He said that people from blood group O are calm, patient and in c  5    of their emotions (情绪). They are f  6    of self-confidence but are also quiet. People from blood group A are gentle and careful, worry a lot, find it hard to make a d  7   , and do not like arguments. People from blood group B are cheerful and “independent”(独立). They can talk and do things w  8    needing help from others. Blood group AB is quite a strange group. These people may seem like people from blood group B but they are actually more like people from blood group A. They are shy and confident, trustworthy (可信赖的) and like to help others. The Japanese also think that your blood group a  9    your choice of job and even your choice of m  10    partner!

按所给的汉语，用英语完成下列句子。

1.对于一个学生来说学会做到劳逸结合是十分重要的。

It’s very important for a student to learn                                  .

2.我想知道你是否对测试的结果感到满意。 

I wanted to know                                the result of the test or not.

3.他很难向我解释为什么他又迟到了。

He _______________________________________________why he was late again.

4.目前所有学生都全身心投入到复习迎考之中。

At the moment, all the students                            revising for exams.

5.我有两个方法学习英语。一是大声朗读，另一个是坚持尽可能的多做阅读。

I have two ways of learning English. One is reading loud,               possible.

6.我相信我们的政府一定能够尽它最大的努力来阻止一些人再次使用瘦肉精。

I believe our government can try ___________________the lean meat powder again.

请你以编辑的身份给21世纪报中学生版（21st Century School Edition）一位时常感到孤独的中学生读者写封回信。内容要点如下：

1．首先要学会与人交流，多交朋友；

2．可以求助于同学和朋友，因为年龄相仿，容易相互理解；

3．可以求助于……。

注意：

1．回信须包括所有内容要点，要求语句通顺、意思连贯；

2．第3要点的内容须用2、3句话展开合理想象；

3．词数80个左右，回信的开头和结尾已经给出，不计入总词数。

Dear Lucy,

What you said is common with some middle school students. Here is my advice.

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Hope you can get out of your trouble soon.

Yours,

Peter