Heading back to the room for dinner and a hot shower may sound like the act of a tired tourist ,but in a traditional Japanese inn ─ or ryokan ─ those activities can be as interesting as anything along the sightseeing trail.“People going looking for a sort of nostalgic(怀旧的),old-fashioned ,and traditional view of Japanese life will find it most easily in a ryokan,”said Peter Grilli, the president of Japan Society of Boston, Massachusetts.

Many ryokans sprang up in the 17th century to put up feudal lords traveling along the Tokaido highway to Edo(now Tokyo). Today tourists looking for a taste of the country’s historic lifestyle find varying levels of understated elegance in ryokans throughout the country.

A typical stay starts with a greeting from the inn’s staff and a change from street shoes into slippers .An attendant leads guests to their rooms, where slippers are removed before walking on the rice-straw flooring, called tatami. Walking slowly along behind a kimonoclad（身穿和服的）attendant on the creaky wood floors of Fukuzumiro ryokan,s hallways is like stepping back in time. The inn was established in 1890 by a former samurai（武士）.

Tim Paterson ,33, a banker living in Tokyo, has stayed at several ryokans. This New Zealand native leaves after a recent stay at Fukuzumiro. “I think it’s quite good mixing culture with history and not just going to see it ,but living in it, staying in it,”he said. Sliding glass doors line the inn’s rural hallways, bringing in the sound of tricking water and the quietness of the stone and tree-filled courtyards outside.

From the first paragraph, we can see that_________________ .

A. there is no dinner and a hot shower in the ryokan

B. such activities as dinner and shower in the ryokan can take you back in time

C. such activities as dinner and shower mean the same both in ordinary inns and traditional inns

D. such activities as dinner and shower are more important than the sightseeing for tourists

What’s the purpose of building so many ryokans in the 17th century?

A. Providing rooms for the noble when they traveled.

B. Keeping the Japanese traditional style of life.

C. Making people feel elegant in the ryokan.

D. Attracting more tourists to put up in the ryokan.

Which of the following shows the right order of tourists entering the ryokan?

  a. An attendant shows guests to their room;

b. The guests take off their shoes; 

c. The staff greet the guests; 

d. The guests walk on tatami; 

e. The guests take off slippers; 

f. The guests put on slippers.

A. b ; c ; d ; e ; f ; a             B. c ; b ; f ; a ; e ; d  

C. c ; a ; d ; b ; e ; f             D b ; a ; d ; e ; c ; f

From Tim Paterson’s words in the last paragraph ,we can infer that      .

A. he will never stay in such a ryokan again

B. he stays in such a ryokan just for its long history

C. he feels relaxed and culturally enriched after staying in such a ryokan

D. he would rather live in such a ryokan than go back home

Electricity, like clean water, is a resource that’s often taken for granted. But last summer, when blackouts struck much of the northeastern US, Ontario and Rome, consumers on two continents were given a painful reminder of just how easily broken electricity supplies can be. The massive disorder stranded (使陷入困境)commuters, stopped freezers, shut down businesses and refocused attention on where most of the planet’s power comes from：oil-and-gas-fired generators and nuclear plants, These sources not only pollute the environment but also make many consumers feel unacceptable health risks.

Companies are trying to offer an alternative, clean energy from renewable resources that’s plentiful and portable. Lifton’s Medis Technologies, as well as companies like Hydrogenics and Nanosys, is tapping into fuel cells and dolor panels to give people power whenever and wherever they want it, free from dependence on local grids(电网).

The search for alternative energy is nothing new, but the current trend of innovators is focusing on the goal of making clean and sustainable power a mainstream commodity. For example, the fuel cell, which produces electricity from the chemical reaction between oxygen and hydrogen, has been around for about 150 years, though its commercial development did not begin until the 1960s and then only as part of NASA spacecraft. Today this technology is coming down to Earth in places like Tokyo; in nine European cities, from Stockholm to Porto, each operating three hydrogen-fuel-cell buses; and in Iceland, which is trying to create the first fuel free hydrogen economy by 2030.

When hydrogen and oxygen molecules(分子)combine, the reaction produces heat and water. Fuel cells use this reaction to generate electricity. With the cell phone and gadget(小机件)market in mind, Medis has developed a fuel cell with cheap components that produces little heat and effortlessly reduces waste water without turning to energy consuming pumps.

What is the passage mainly about?

A．The future of alternative energy

B．How the fuel cells works

C．People’s search for alternative energy

D．The damage done by the blackout last summer.

What can we know about the fuel cell?

A．Its commercial use began in the 1960s.

B．Today it’s being used in almost every corner of the world.

C．It has been in widespread used for about 150 years.

D．It supplies electricity to make the combination of oxygen and hydrogen possible.

Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Lifton’s Medis Technologies is tapping into fuel cells and solar panels.

B．The fuel cell has been around for about 150 years.

C．The fuel cell’s commercial development did not begin until the 1960s.

D．When hydrogen and oxygen molecules combine, the reaction produces o2 and H2O.

The underlined word “blackouts” in the 1 st paragraph means_____.

A．power failure                 B．the delivering of electricity

C．the power of electricity         D．power station

There are about fifteen hundred languages in the world.

But ___1___ a few of them are very ___2___. English is one of these. Many, many people use it, not only in England and the U. S. A, but in other parts of the world. About 200, 000, 000 speak it as their own language. It is difficult to say how many people are learning it as a ___3___ language. Many millions are ___4___ to do so.

Is it easy or difficult to learn English? Different people may have different ___5___. Have you ever ___6___ the ads of this kind in the newspapers or magazines?

“Learn English in six month, or your ___7___ back ...” “Easy and funny? Our records and tapes ___8___ you master your English in a month. ___9___ the first day your ___10___ will be excellent. Just send ...” Of course, it never ___11___ quite like this.

The only language that seems easy to learn is the mother tongue. We should ___12___ that we all learned our own language well when we were ___13___. If we could learn English in the same way, it would not seem so difficult. ___14___ what a small child does. He listens to what people say. He tries what he hears. When he is using the language, talking in it, and ___15___ in it all the time, just imagine how much ___16___ that gets!

So it is ___17___ to say that learning English is easy, because a good command of English ___18___ upon a lot of practice. And practice needs great effort and ___19___ much time. Good teachers, records, tapes, books, and dictionaries will ___20___. But they cannot do the student’s work for him.

1. A. not  B. quite   C. only    D. very

2. A. difficult  B. important   C. necessary    D. easy

3. A. native     B. foreign       C. useful D. mother

4. A. learning  B. enjoying     C. trying D. liking

5. A. questions       B. problems    C. ideas   D. answers

6. A. found     B. watched     C. noticed       D. known

7. A. knowledge     B. time    C. money       D. English

8. A. make      B. help    C. let      D. allow

9. A. From     B. On      C. Since  D. After

10. A. spelling       B. grammar    C. English      D. pronunciation

11. A. happened     B. know  C. seemed       D. felt

12. A. know    B. remember   C. understand  D. think

13. A. students       B. children     C. babies D. grown-ups

14. A. Imagine       B. Mind  C. Do      D. Think of

15. A. using    B. thinking     C. trying D. practicing

16. A. time     B. money       C. language    D. practice

17. A. hard     B. easy    C. funny  D. silly

18. A. depends       B. tries    C. has     D. takes

19. A. uses      B. takes   C. gets    D. costs

20. A. do B. work   C. help    D. master

TYPING

This course is for those who want to learn to type, as well as those who want to improve their typing. The course is not common. You are tested in the first class and begin practicing at one of eight different skill levels. This allows you to learn at your own speed. Each program lasts 20 hours. Bring your own paper.

Course fee: $ 125   Materials: $25

Two hours each evening for two weeks. New classes begin every two weeks.

This course is taught by a number of qualified business education teachers who have successfully taught typing courses before.

UNDERSTANDING COMPUTERS

This twelve-hour course is for people who do not know very much about computers, but who need to learn about them. You will learn what computers are, what they can and can’t do and how to use them.

Course fee: $75    Equipment fee: $ 10

Jan. 4, 7, 11, 14, 18, Wed. & Sat. 9—11:30 a.m.

Joseph Saunders is Professor of Computer Science at New Urban University. He has over twenty years of experience in the computer field.

STOP SMOKING

Do you want to stop smoking? Have you already tried to stop and failed? Now is the time to stop smoking using the latest methods. You can stop smoking, and this twelve-hour course will help you do it.

Course fee: $30

Jan. 2, 9, 16, 23 Mon. 2—5 p. m.

Dr John Good is a practicing psychologist who had helped hundreds of people stop smoking.

If you choose the UNDERSTANDING COMPUTERS course, you will have classes _______.

A. from Monday to Sunday                

B. from Monday to Friday

C. on Wednesday and Saturday                 

D. on Saturday and Sunday

The STOP SMOKING course will last ______.

A. for half a day                            

B. for three hours         

C. for a week                                      

D. for four weeks

Mr. Black works every morning and evening, but he wants to take part in one of the three courses. The most probable course he will attend is ______.

A. typing                                           B. understanding computers  

C. stop smoking                                     D. all the courses

If you want to learn computer and at the same time you want to improve your typing, you will pay _______.

A. $ 75                        B. $ 15                  C. $ 115                       D. $ 235

The typical difference of “Typing” from the other two is ______.

A. people with different skill levels may learn at different speed

B. you will take a test after the course

C. you will pay the fee before practicing

D. you will pay less money

Modern life is a lot les s to the advantage of friendships and neighborliness than it used to be. The average American moves every five years. People drive straight into their garages, hire lawn services, hang out in their backyards instead of their front porches (前走廊). These days, neighbors don't even know each other's names. 

Good neighbors and good friends are a lot like electricity or running water: We don't know how much we depend on them until we don't have them. In fact, the authors of a recent book, Refrigerator Rights, claim that refrigerators are signs of close relationships--after all, you wouldn't snatch a drumstick(鸡腿) from the refrigerator of a stranger.

The surprising thing is that all it takes to strengthen your relationship with friends and neighbors is respect for their feelings, concern for their property, and a helping hand when it's needed. Here's how to develop your relationships with two types of vitally important people in your life. 

_________________. A true friend doesn't flee when changes occur. The sign of a good friend is one who stays true through it all--marriage, parenthood, new jobs, new homes, the losses. Just because situations change doesn't mean the person has to.

Friendships fade away if there isn't an balance between the give and the take. So make sure you aren't being a burden to your friends. Be sensitive to how much your friend can and can't offer you--be it time, energy, or help -- and don't step over the line. Meanwhile, friendships that drain(耗尽) you will not last. If a friendship is out of balance in this way, you'll need to talk the situation through.

1. Which sentence in the passage is the closest in meaning to the following one?

A true friend will stay the same even when the situations change. 

2. Fill in the blank in Paragraph 4 with a proper sentence. (Within 10 words)

3. What advice is given in the last paragraph? (Within 10 words)

4. What do you think the author will go on talking about if the passage continues?(Within 10 words)

5. Translate the underlined sentence in the last paragraph into Chinese．

Imagine landing in a foreign country where you cannot speak the language, understand the culture and don’t know anybody. Wouldn’t it be nice to have a friend who could help you out?

    John Smith, an English explorer who landed in America in 1607, found the best friend ever. She was a Native American named Pocahontas (1595-1617). And she did more than teach Smith the language: she saved his life, twice.

   Smith was captured by members of Pocahontas’s tribe (部落) and was going to be killed. But for some reason, the Chief’s daughter, Pocahontas, felt sorry for Smith (who was probably the first white man she had ever seen) and threw her body over his to protect him. Smith returned safely to the small village he was living in.

   During the winter the English settlers did not know how to get food from nature. Pocahontas often brought food for Smith and his friends.

   A year later Pocahontas’s father tried to kill Smith again because the Native Americans were very scared the English would try to take over their land. Pocahontas warned him and he was able to escape.

   Later she became a Christian and eventually married an Englishman named John Rolfe.

   She spent the last year of her life in London.

   Pocahontas has become an American legend(传奇). Her life story has been re-created in many books and films, including Disney’s 1995 film, Pocahontas.

   One of the reasons she is so popular is that many Europeans look at Pocahontas as an excellent example of how a minority can adjust into the majority. Pocahontas is also respected because of her selfless love. She proved that people can be kind and loving even to people of a different race or culture. John Smith was very different from Pocahontas but she could see he was a good man and that was all that mattered. No race or country owns goodness, love and loyalty.

41. What difficulties might early European settlers meet in America EXCEPT ________?

   A. the fierce conflict with Native Americans

   B. bad-tempered natives who enjoyed killing

   C. unfamiliarity with a foreign land

   D. lack of food in winter

42. Pocahontas saved John Smith twice because ______.

A. he was the first white man she had ever seen in her life

B. she wanted to become a Christian and marry an Englishman

C. she believed in general kindness even to people of a different race

D. she was on the settlers’ side and against her cruel father

43. Which is NOT an element to make Pocahontas a legend?

A. Her tribal background and her marriage to a white settler.

B. Her selfless help to people regarded as enemy of her tribe.

C. Her complicated life story different from common people’s.

D. The recreation of her life story in the 1995 Disney film.

44. According to the text, Europeans think Pocahontas _____.

A. was brave to break away from her own tribe

B. set a good example for other natives to accept the white settlers

C. was a selfless Christian who can love her enemy

D. was open to a more advanced culture

45. What can we infer from the passage?

A. The battles between early settlers and Native Americans resulted from their     fighting for land.

B. The Europeans think the early settlers should have learned to adjust to the local  cultures.

C. The creation of America is based on the settlers’ victory over the Native  Americans.

根据下面的英文提示所提供的情景，请你帮助李明出主意，写出你解决问题的想法。词数不少于50。

  On the morning of June 7, Li Ming is taking a bus on his way to take the entrance examination. Unfortunately, he is caught in a traffic jam because of an accident. How can he manage to get there in time? Please think out two or three different ways for him.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

About ten years ago, a young and very successful businessman named Josh was traveling down a Chicago neighborhood street. He was going a bit too fast in his shiny, black, 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE, which was only two months old.

He was watching for kids rushing out from between parked cars and slowed down when he thought he saw something. As his car passed, no child came out, but a brick sailed out and — WHUMP! — it hit the Jag’s shiny black side door! SCREECH...!!!! Immediately Josh stopped the car, jumped out, seized the kid and pushed him up against a parked car. He shouted at the kid, "What was that all about and who are you? Just what the heck are you doing?!" Building up a head of steam, he went on. " That’s my new Jag, that brick you threw is gonna cost you a lot of money. Why did you throw it?"

"Please, mister, please....I’m sorry! I didn’t know what else to do!" begged the youngster. "I threw the brick because no one else would stop!" tears were streaming down the boy’s face as he pointed around the parked car. "It’s my brother, mister," he said. "He rolled of the curb (路沿) and fell out of his wheelchair and I can’t lift him up. "Sobbing, the boy asked the businessman," Would you please help me get him back into his wheelchair? He’s hurt and he’s too heavy for me.

Moved beyond words, the young businessman tried hard to swallow the rapidly swelling lump in his throat. Straining, he lifted the young man back into the wheelchair and took out his handkerchief and wiped the scrapers and cuts, checking to see that everything was going to be OK. He then watched the younger brother push him down the sidewalk toward their home.

It was a long walk back to the black, shining 12 cylinder Jaguar XKE — a long and slow walk. Josh never did fix the side door of his Jaguar. He kept the dent (凹痕) to remind him not to go through life so fast that someone has to throw a brick at him to get his attention. Feel for the bricks of life coming at you.

The boy threw a brick at the businessman’s car because ________.

A. the businessman drove at a high speed

B. he envied the brand-new car very much

C. he wanted to ask for some money

D. he wanted to get help from the driver

Which of the following is the right order of the story?

A. The younger brother threw a brick at Josh’s car.

B. The elder brother fell out of his wheelchair.

C. The younger brother begged Josh for help.

D. Josh lifted the elder brother back into his wheelchair.

e. Josh shouted at the younger brother.

A.b, a, e, c, d        B. a, c, d, b, e           C. b, a, c, e, d    D. a, c, b, e, d

What can we learn from the passage?

A. Josh would accept the money from the kids.

B. The two kids were Josh’s neighbors.

C. Josh was a kind-hearted man.

D. Josh’s new car broke down easily.

according to the passage, the last sentence means ________.

A. trying to get ready for the trouble in your future life

B. driving fast in a neighborhood street is dangerous

C. trying to be more understanding seeing others in trouble

D. protecting oneself from being hurt

"I’ve changed my mind. I wanted to have a telescope, but now I want my dad back." Lucien Lawence’s letter to Father Christmas written after his father had been knifed to death outside his school gate, must have touched every heart. Lucien went on to say that without his father he couldn’t see the stars in the sky. When those whom we love depart from us, we cannot see the stars for a while.

But Lucien, the stars are still there, and one day, when you are older and your tears have gone, you will see them again. And, in a strange way, I expect that you will find your father is there too, in your mind and in your heart. I find that my parents, long dead now, still figure in many of my dreams and that I think of them perhaps more than I ever did when they were alive. I still live to please them and I’m still surprised by their reactions. I remember that when I became a professor, I was so proud, or rather so pleased with myself, that I couldn’t wait to cable my parents. The reply was a long time in coming, but when it did, all mother said was, "I hope this means that now you will have more time for the children.” I haven’t forgotten. The values of my parents still live on.

It makes me pause and think about how I will live on in the hearts and minds of my children and of those for whom I care. Would I have been as ready as Philip Lawrence have been to face the aggressors (挑衅者),and to lay down my life for those in my care? How many people would want me back for Christmas? It’s a serious thought, one to give me pause.

I pray silently, sometimes, in the dead of night, that ancient cry of a poet "Deliver my soul from the sword, and my darling from the power of the dog." Yet I know the death comes to us all, and sometimes comes suddenly. We must therefore plan to live forever, but live as if we will die tomor??row. We live on, in the lives of those we loved, and therefore we ought to have a care for what they will remember and what they will treasure. If more parents knew this in their hearts to be true, there might be fewer knives on our streets today.

according to the whole text we can see that the first paragraph ________.

A. puts forward the subject of the text

B. shows the author’s pity on the kid

C. acts as an introduction to the discussion

D. makes a clear statement of the author’s views

In the second paragraph the author mainly wants to explain to us ________.

A. how much he misses his parents now

B. why his parents often appear in his dreams

C. when Lucien will get over all his sadness

D. how proud he was when he succeeded in life

What feeling did the author’s mother express in her reply?

A. Proud.     B. Happy.     C. Disappointed.    D. Worried.

In the author’s opinion, the value of a person’s life is ________.

A. to leave behind a precious memory to the people related

B. to have a high sense of duty to the whole society

C. to care what others will remember and treasure

D. to share happiness and sadness with his family

What does the writer mean by the sentence taken from an old poem?

A. Call on criminals and murderers to lay down their guns.

B. Advise parents stay with their children safely at home.

C. Spend every day meaningfully in memory of the death.

D. Try to keep violence and murder far away from society.

LONDON — Life for Cathy Hagner and her three children is set to permanent(永久的) fast-forward.

Their full school day and her job as a lawyer's assistant are busy enough. But Hanger also has to take the two boys to soccer or hockey or basketball while dropping off her daughter at piano lessons or Girl Scout Club.

Often, the exhausted family doesn't get home until 7 pm. There is just time for a quick supper before homework. In today's world, middle-class American and British parents treat their children as if they are competitors racing for some finishing line.

Parents take their children from activity to activity in order to make their future bright. It seems that raising a genius has become a more important goal than raising a happy and well-balanced child.

“Doctors across the country are reporting a growing number of children suffering from stomachaches and headaches due to exhaustion and stress,” says child expert William Doherty of the University of Minnesota.

Teachers are dealing with exhausted kids in the classroom. It's a very serious problem. Many children attend after-school clubs by necessity. But competitive pressures also create an explosion of activities. They include sports, language, music and math classes for children as young as four.

“There is a new parenting trend(趋势) under way which says that you have to tap all your child’s potential(潜能) at a young age; otherwise you will let him down,” says Terry Apter, a Cambridge-based child and adolescent psychiatrist(青少年精神病专家).

“It isn't entirely new: there have always been pushy parents. But what was previously(以前) seen as strange behaviour is now well accepted.”

From the second paragraph of this passage we can find that _______.

A. Hagner wastes much time helping her children's lessons

B. Hagner doesn't spend much time on her full-time job

C. Hagner is interested in sports and music

D. Hagner busies herself by following a trend

British parents, as the writer described in this passage, _______.

A. treat their children as sports players

B. pay no attention to their children's lessons

C. bring up their children in a simple way

D. give their children little time to develop freely

The writer's opinion about after-school clubs is that ________.

A. activities in the country are too competitive

B. children should attend four clubs at a time

C. some clubs result in competitive pressures

D. clubs should have more subjects for school children

The last paragraph tells us that in Britain _______.

A. parents used to take their children to every club

B. parents used to be wise on how to raise children

C. parents have all benefited from children’s clubs

D. parents have come to know the standard of education