My old digital camera broke down, so I wanted to buy a new one. Being the cautious type, I fancied a reliable brand. So I went on the Net, spent 15 minutes reading product reviews on good websites, wrote down the names of three top recommendations and headed for my nearest big friendly camera store. There in the cupboard was one of the cameras on my list. And it was on special offer. Oh joy. I pointed at it and asked an assistant, "Can I have one of those? " He looked perturbed(不安). "Do you want to try it first?" he said. It didn’t quite sound like a question. "Do I need to?" I replied, "There’s nothing wrong with it." This made him look a bit offended and I started to feel bad. "No, no. But you should try it," he said encouragingly, "compare it with the others.

I looked across at the others: shelves of similar cameras placed along the wall, offering a wide range of slightly different prices and discounts, with each company selling a range of models based around the same basic box. With so many models to choose from, it seemed that I would have to spend hours weighing X against Y, always trying to take Z and possibly H into account at the same time. But when I had finished, I would still have only the same two certainties that I had entered the store with: first, soon after I carried my new camera out of the shop, it would be worth half what I paid for it; and second, my wonderful camera would very quickly be replaced by a new model.

But something in the human soul whispers that you can beat these traps by making the right choice, the clever choice, the wise choice. In the end, I agreed to try the model I had chosen. The assistant seemed a sincere man. So I let him take out my chosen camera from the cupboard, show how it took excellent pictures of my fellow shoppers... and when he started to introduce the special features, I interrupted to ask whether I needed to buy a carry-case and a memory card as well. Why do we think that new options still offer us anything new? Perhaps it is because they offer an opportunity to avoid facing the fact that our real choices in this culture are far more limited than we would like to imagine.

1.The shop assistant insisted that the writer should ____.

A. trust him and stop asking questions

B. try the camera to see if there was anything wrong with it

C. get more information about different companies

D. compare the camera he had chosen with the others

2.What does the writer mean by "it would be worth half what I paid for it"(Paragraph 2)?

A. He should get a 50% discount.

B. The price of the camera would soon fall.

C. The quality of the camera was not good.

D. The price of the camera was unreasonably high.

3.The writer decided to try the model he had chosen because he _______.

A. knew very little about it

B. wanted to make sure the one he chose would be the best

C. didn't trust the shop assistant

D. had a special interest in taking pictures of his fellow shoppers

4.It can be inferred from the passage that in the writer’s opinion, _______.

A. we waste too much money on cameras

B. cameras have become an important part of our daily life

C. we don’t actually need so many choices when buying a product

D. famous companies care more about profit than quality

People laugh and people cry. But it is thought that emotions such as anger, or joy, typically make Americans feel uncomfortable and embarrassed. The shedder of tears(落泪者) is likely to apologize, even when a great tragedy was the cause. The observer of tears is likely to do everything possible to put an end to the emotional tears. But judging from recent studies of crying behavior, both those responses to tears are often inappropriate and may even be counterproductive (适得其反).

Humans are the only animals clearly known to shed emotional tears. Since evolution has given rise to few purposeless physiological responses, it is logical to assume that crying has one or more functions that increase survival.

Although some observers have suggested that crying is a way to ask for assistance form others (as a crying baby might from its mother), the shedding of tears is hardly necessary to get help. Vo-cal (出声的) cries would have been quite enough, more likely than tears to gain attention. So, it appears that there must be something special about tears themselves.

Indeed, the new studies suggest that emotional tears may play a direct role in easing stress. University of Minnesota researchers who are studying the chemical composition of tears have recently separated two important chemicals from emotional tears. Both chemicals are found only in tears that are shed in response to emotion. Tears shed because of exposure to cut onion would contain no such substance.

Other researchers are looking into the usefulness of tears as a means of diagnosing human ills and monitoring drugs. At Tulane University’s Teat Analysis Laboratory Dr. Peter Kastl and his colleagues report that they can use tears to detect drug abuse, to study the causes of "dry eye" syndrome(综合症) and the effects of eye surgery, and perhaps even to measure exposure to environmental pollutants.

1.What does the phrase "both those responses" in Paragraph 1 refer to?

A. Crying out of sorrow and shedding tears for happiness.

B. The embarrassment and unpleasant feelings of the observers.

C. Linking illness with crying and finding the chemical composition of tears.

D. The tear shedder’s apology and the observer’s effort to stop the crying.

2.It is known from the first paragraph that____.

A. shedding tears gives unpleasant feelings to Americans

B. crying may often result in tragedy

C. crying usually wins sympathy from other people

D. one who sheds tears in public will be blamed

3.What does the author say about crying?

A. It is a pointless physiological response to the environment.

B. It must have a role to play in man' s survival.

C. It is meant to get attention and assistance.

D. It usually produces the desired effect.

4.From the passage we can infer that____.

A. it is unnatural for people to shed tears

B. we can reduce our stress by shedding tears

C. shedders of tears can' t get help by crying loudly

D. unlike animals, humans can shed tears for survival

Whenever people think of charity, the first word that jumps into their mind may be money donated to the needy. However, Wugging, or web-use giving, describes the act of giving to charity at no cost to the user. By using Everyclick. com, which is being added to a number of university computers across the UK, students can raise money every time they search, but it won’t cost them a penny.

Research shows that students are extremely enthusiastic about supporting charity--88% of full time students have used the Internet to give to charity. This figure is high considering this age group is often the least likely to have their own income. 19% of 22 to 24 year olds have short-term debts of more than & 5, 000. With rising personal debt levels in this age group, due to university tuition fees or personal loans and a lack of long-term savings, traditional methods of donating to charity are often not appealing or possible.

Beth Truman, a 21-year-old recent university graduate, has used Everyclick. com to donate to her chosen charity, the RSPCA, for two years and has seen the "Wugging" grow in popularity with students. "When you’re at university you become more socially aware, but it’s sometimes hard to give to others when you have little money yourself," says Beth. "Wugging is great for people in this age group as it allows them to use the technology on a daily basis to give to charity, without costing them a single penny."

Wugging is perfect for people who want to be more socially aware and supportive but don’t feel they have the means to do so. Students using the web can raise money for causes they care about without costing them anything in terms of time or money, and charities get a valuable source of funding.

Everyclick. com works like any other search engine, allowing users to search for information, news and images but users can decide which of the UK’s 170, 000 charities they would like to support through their clicks. Everyclick. com then makes monthly payments to every registered charity. Launched in June 2005, Everyclick. com is now the eighth largest search engine and one of the busiest charity websites in the UK.

1.According to the passage, "Wugging" is actually____.

A. a charity-related action

B. a website

C. a school organization

D. a student movement

2.In the case of charity, Everyclick. com____.

A. receives much money from students

B. frees students of the financial worries

C. offers valuable information to students

D. praises students for their money-raising

3.From the passage, we can conclude that____.

A. most full time students do charity on the Internet every day

B. Everyclick. com is the busiest charity website in the UK

C. Everyclick. com helps students pay for further education

D. "Wugging" is a win-win idea for both students and charities

4.What would be the best title for the passage?

A. "Wugging", a popular term on the Internet

B. Students collect money for charity by "Wugging"

C. More British charities benefit from the Internet

D. Charity enjoys increasing popularity with the British

People talk about energy everywhere. Green energy, for example. Then, energy independence. It has a nice ring to it. Doesn’t it? If you think so, you’re not alone, because energy independence has been the dream of American president for decades, and never more so than in the past few years, when the most recent oil price shock has been partly responsible for kicking off the great recession(经济衰退).

"Energy independence" and its rhetorical(修辞的) companion "energy security" are, however, unreliable concepts that are rarely thought through. What is it that we want independence from, exactly?

Most people would probably say that they want to be independent from imported oil. But there are reasons that we buy all that oil from elsewhere.

The first reason is that we need it to keep our economy running. Yes, there is a trickle(涓涓细流) of biofuel(生物燃料) available, and more may become available, but most biofuels cause economic waste and environmental destruction.

Second, Americans have basically decided that they don’t really want to produce all their own oil. They value the environmental quality they preserve over their oil imports from abroad. Vast areas of the United States are off-limits to oil exploration and production in the name of environmental protection. To what extent are Americans really willing to tolerate the environmental influence of domestic(国内的) energy production in order to cut back imports?

Third, there are benefits to trade. It allows for economic efficiency, and when we buy things from places that have lower production costs than we do, we benefit. And although you don’t read about this much, the United States is also a large exporter of oil products, selling about 2 million barrels of petroleum products per day to about 90 countries.

There is no question that the United States imports a great deal of energy and, in fact, relies on that steady flow to keep its economy stable. When that flow is interrupted, we feel the pain in short supplies and higher prices. At the same time, we get massive economic benefits when we buy the most affordable energy on the world market and when we engage in energy trade around the world.

1.What does the author say about energy independence for America?

A. It sounds very attractive.

B. It ensures national security.

C. It will bring oil prices down.

D. It will protect the environment.

2.Why does America rely heavily on oil imports?

A. It wants to expand its storage of raw oil.

B. Its own oil reserves are quickly running out.

C. Its own oil production falls short of demand.

D. It wants to keep its own environment untouched.

3.What does the author say about oil trade?

A. It improves economic efficiency.

B. It makes for economic recession.

C. It brings benefit only to the sellers.

D. It saves the cost of oil exploration.

4.What is the author’s purpose in writing the passage?

A. To explain the increase of international oil trade.

B. To raise Americans' awareness of the energy crisis.

C. To argue for America’s dependence on oil imports.

D. To stress the importance of energy protection.

What makes people successful? Take a look around and talk to your friends and seniors who are very successful, you will see all of them have adopted certain values which have proved vital for their success.

It is evident that successful people take initiative （主动性）. When they find something needs to be done, they never hesitate to do it. They believe that responsibility is taken, not given. They weigh immediately what has to be done and then do it with pleasure thus strengthening their reputation.

Successful people do things with great enthusiasm, especially when they believe in what they are doing. They are motivated by their own satisfaction and the joy they get from doing their work. They work hard even when no one is watching and they devote themselves to their work.

They do not fear failure. Failures and disappointments in life are unavoidable. It is failure that teaches us much more than success. Successful people pick themselves up after a fall and try again with more determination and commitment and learn from each failure. They associate with those they can learn from and enjoy the company of those appreciating their achievement.

Having good IQ often gets a person what he wants but it's really the EQ that keeps him there and helps him enjoy a high reputation. Successful people are polite to everyone and treat others with respect. By giving respect to others, they command respect for themselves.

Another important quality of successful persons is that they never complain. It's better to praise others and win favor with them. So instead of complaining about a situation, successful people always try to solve it.

To put it shortly, take initiative and be enthusiastic about them. Do not be afraid to fail, but get up and start again. When you do so, success will be just around the corner.

Title: What Makes People Successful?

本学期，合肥一中开设了“七彩课程”，二外课是“七彩课程”的重要组成部分，即在语言课上为学生提供学习除英语以外的第二门外语如俄语、法语等语言的机会，对此大家有不同的看法。英语社就此事开展了一场讨论。请你谈谈对设置此类课程的看法并说明理由。

注意： 1. 词数120左右；

2. 参考词汇: 七彩课程Colorful Course；开设establish vt.

______ the good chance to get promoted then, he would be a sales manager now.

A. If he seized B. If he were to seized

C. If he had seized D. If he should seize

--I often confuse the locations of and Wangjiang Senior High School.

---The former is located on the Phenix Mound(凤凰墩), ______ the latter beside the Nine Dragons’ Pool.

A. while B.however

C. although D. since

When my friend, Li Hua, came to Wangjiang Senior High School for the first time, he was ______, remarking, “What an amazingly beautiful school!”

A.travelled around B. turned around

C. looked around D. showed around

Being most potential, the Wuchang Lake is being ______ into a tourist attraction.

A. adopted B. admired

C. developed D. preferred