Close contacts between Japan and the rest of the world were created in the twentieth century. In the last
forty years, business contacts between Japan and the West have become very important. Many foreign
companies now have offices in Japan and Japanese businessmen do business around the world. Differences
between Japanese and Western ways of doing business, however, often bewilder foreign businessmen and
make doing business in Japan difficult for foreigners.
     The American businessman, for example, wants to start talking business immediately. He does not want to
wait. The Japanese businessman, on the other hand, likes to arrive at decisions after giving them serious
thought. Another thing foreign businessmen have difficulty in understanding is when a Japanese means "Yes"
or "No". This is because of cultural differences between Japanese and Western society (社会), Which make it
difficult for a Japanese to say "No" directly.
     In the USA, it is easy to say "No" to something one does not want to do. But in Japan, it is very difficult to
say "No". To refuse an invitation or a request (请求) with "No" is felt to be impolite. It is thought to be selfish
and unfriendly. So instead of saying "No" directly, the Japanese have developed many ways to avoid (避免)
saying "No". These can help them avoid hurting other people's feelings. However, this often makes their ways
of doing business rather difficult for foreigners to understand and follow.

1. What often makes foreigners feel difficult to do business in Japan?

A. Their different ways of doing business.
B. Their different lifestyles.
C. The fact that the Japanese never say "No".
D. The fact that the Japanese are slow to take action.

2. Which of the following is the closest in meaning to the underlined expression "bewilder foreign
    businessmen" in Paragraph One?

A. cause foreign businessmen to change their minds.
B. give a feeling of surprise to foreign businessmen.
C. attract foreign businessmen's attention.
D. make foreign businessmen think wrongly.

3. What fact does the passage lead you to believe?

A. American businessmen do things more slowly than Japanese ones.
B. American businessmen like to say "Yes" and "No".
C. Americans usually say what they are thinking.
D. Americans do not say what they think or feel clearly.

4. From the passage we can infer (推断) that __________.

A. Japanese businessmen are good at business
B. foreign businessmen should try to know Japanese ways of doing business
C. foreign businessmen must be more polite
D. you must learn from Japanese businessmen if you want to succeed

(     )1. William Shakespeare was an English writer of plays and poetry.
(     )2. It was Louis Braille who developed the writing system for the blind people.
(     )3. Sunday lunch is a very important meal in Britain for many families.
(     ) 4. If an invitation is for eight o'clock, that means eight o'clock exactly. Don't be late.
(     )5. In Britain, they have dinner with a knife in their right hands and a fork in their left hands.

     Dragon-boat Festival (端午节) Dragon-boat Festival also called the Duanwu Festival, is celebrated on the
fifth day of the fifth month according to the Chinese calendar. For thousands of years, the festival has been
marked by eating Zong Zi and racing dragon boats. To hold the dragon-boat races is in memory of Qu Yuan, one
of the greatest poets (诗人) in China. 
     QU Yuan was born in Zigui of Hubei Province over 2,200 years ago. Qu Yuan was an honest minister (大臣)
of the State of Chu, during the Warring States Period (475-221BC) (战国时期). He was upright and wise. He
wanted to bring his country peace and make the State more stronger, but the country was in the hands of bad of
ficials, he failed. At last, he was very discouraged. (1) the Miluo River, throwing, he, into, himself, life, by, his,
ended. (2) 据说当时人们从船上跳下去试图救他。But it was too late. Also, they were very sad and they threw
rice into the water to feed Qu Yuan's spirit.
     (3) Now we read his poem Li Sao which was filled with deep love for his country. We can see the
dragon-boat races and have a kind of Chinese food named Zong Zi to eat during the Dragon-boat Festival.
1．What are the two important things on the Dragon-boat Festival?
                                                                                                    
2．把(1)划线部分的单词组成句子。
                                                                                                    
3．将文中(2)处的汉语句子译成英语。
                                                                                                    
4．把文中(3)处的划线部分译成汉语。
                                                                                                    
5．List the words that can describe the qualities (品质) of Qu Yuan. (at least 3) 
                                                                                                      

     Have you ever heard of the language Esperanto (世界语) ? This is a man-made language for world
 use.  But it hasn't been known by most of people around the world, let alone (更不必说) worldwide 
use.  There are more than 3 000 languages in the world today,  but only about ten are major (主要的)
 languages. Among them English is the most popular one in the world.       
     More than 350 million people speak English as their first language. Major English-speaking countries
 are Britain, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and the USA. Another 400 million speak it as a second
 language.  No one knows how many people speak English as a foreign language.  They usually learn
 English as a school subject instead of learning it from their parents. Chinese is the only language with
 more speakers than English.  This is because of the large population of China.        
     English is the language for a better understanding between people of   the world.  It is also the
 language for business and science.  Nearly half  of all the business deals  (交易)  in Europe are done
 in English,  and  more than half of the science magazines (杂志) are in English.  English is widely used
 in the world's computer network  (计算机网络).  And children should begin with English when they 
learn how to use computers and learn online.  Through the English language people of different countries
 are able to work together and make things even better.     

1. Esperanto hasn't been widely used because ______.

A.  not many people know it
B.  it is very difficult to learn
C.  people don't like it at all
D.  it's a bad language

2. Most Chinese people learn English ______.                 

A.  as the first language                        
B.  as the second language                 
C.  as a foreign language                 
D.  from their parents

3. Which of the following language is spoken by the largest  number of people in the world?        

A. English.   
B. Chinese.          
C. Japanese.  
D. Esperanto.

4. Which of the following is true?               

A.  If you know English, you will be able to use computers.               
B.  Scientists from different countries can only speak English at the international (国际的)  meetings.
C.  English is the only language used in the world's computer network.               
D.  English is more widely used than any other languages.

5.The passage is about ______.               

A. the difference between Esperanto and English               
B. the major languages in the world               
C. the importance (重要性)  of English
D. the use of foreign languages

     Walking up to a stranger and starting a conversation matters much to making new friends. Making small
talk can also lead to important business relationships, but it takes confidence, preparation and practice. Do it
well, and people will feel relaxed with you and enjoy your company. So how can you learn the art of small
talk?
      Before you go to a business convention (正式会议) or other social situation, prepare three things that you
can talk about. They can be something in the news, a good movie or a popular sports team's recent win. Then
you have a topic to start with when you meet a new person. Also, don't wait for someone to approach you.
Look for someone who is standing alone, and start a conversation. Try a simple statement that you share
something in common:"The food looks delicious." Or There sure are a lot of people here." Then introduce
yourself, "Hi, I'm Helen. (Hold out your hand for a handshake.) I just moved here, and I love this weather."
     After you start a conversation, keep it going. Instead of asking questions that can be answered with a yes
or no, ask open-ended questions like,"What do you think of the meeting?" It's time to move on once you've
made a good impression. Be bright (smart and cheerful), be brief (don't talk too long), and be gone (there are
more people to meet).
     Use a goodbye line. To someone you enjoyed meeting at a gathering, say,"I really must be going, but it
was really nice to meet you. Here's my card." If they hand you their card, be sure to show interest in it. Read
it over briefly, and then put it in your pocket to show that it is valued.
     Making small talk will open doors to meeting many interesting people. When you show an interest in others,
they become interested in talking to you. Listening carefully and remembering a fascinating (迷人的) bit of
information about each person will come in use if you meet again.

1. What is the passage mainly about?

A. How to make new friends.
B. What's good about small talk.
C. The importance of business conversations.
D. How to make small talk.

2. According to the passage, being good at small talk ______.

A. decides the success of any business relationship
B. is a key to making new friends
C. doesn't need any practice
D. always makes people feel at home with strangers

3. The underlined word "approach" in Paragraph 2 probably means "______".

A. reach
B. introduce
C. like
D. teach

4. We learn from the passage that ______.

A. in a way small talk is a big challenge
B. most people like talking about food in small talk
C. personal cards are necessary in small talk
D. people can get much useful information in small talk

     Zhao Tao, a student from No.2 Middle School, has just come back from Shanghai. This morning, he told
us something about his pleasant trip. When he talked about the Shanghai World Expo (上海世博会), he was
so excited and so proud that he kept telling about it for several hours. The Shanghai World Expo held by China
has been on for more than one month.It started on May 1st,and will end on October 31st,2010. Its main idea
is "Better City, Better Life." About 242 countries and organizations are attending (参加) this expo. Many new
products can be seen here, such as we can see the snow in the South Korea Corporate Pavilion(展馆) every
day during this hot summer though it seldom snows in Shanghai. And we can see, hear, touch and smell the
4-D films at the Oil Pavilion. How wonderful all these new products are!
     China Pavilion is in the center of the expo garden. It is very beautiful. It represents the development of China
from ancient time to now. It's a pride of our China!
     Thousands of people from all over the world are coming to the expo every day. And many volunteers are
working for them. All the tourists are very pleased and they say that the Shanghai World Expo is the greatest
one in the world so far.
     However, Zhao said, "The expo garden is now so crowded. If you want to visit it, you'd better go there
during the summer vacation."

1. The main idea of the Shanghai World Expo is "_____".

A. Better City, Better Life.
B. How to Protect the Environment.
C. No War in the World.
D. No Earthquake.

2. In which pavilion can we see the snow during this hot summer?

A. China Pavilion.
B. the Oil Pavilion.
C. the South Korea Corporate Pavilion.
D. I don't know.

3. So far, how long has the Shanghai World Expo been on?

A. For 20 days.
B. For a month.
C. For four weeks.
D. For about 50 days.

4. How many countries and organizations are attending the Shanghai World Expo?

A. 150.
B. Less than 180.
C. 242.
D. 220

5. Which of the following is NOT talked about in this passage?

A. Zhao Tao is a middle school student.
B. China's new products are excellent.
C. The volunteers are working very hard.
D. The expo garden is now very crowded.

     Halloween falls on October 31st. It is one of the most favourite holidays for children in the USA.
People dress up in costumes like a witch, a ghost or a skeleton (骷髅). The children go to houses to
say "Trick or treat!" Long ago, if a child was not good, he or she would get a trick like having a stone in
his or her bag instead of some candy. Nowadays(如今), no one gets tricks. All the children receive lots
of candy. Parties are also popular in the evening. People go to parties in costumes and play different
games. People also like listening to ghost stories and watching scary movies.

根据短文内容完成下列句子。

1. Halloween usually happens on______.
2. It is one of the most favourite holidays for children in the______.
3. The children go to houses to say______ to get some candy.
4. Nowadays, all the children ______ lots of candy.
5. The best title of this passage is ______.