Marilyn Monroe was certainly one of the most famous actresses of the twentieth century. She was known as the “Blonde Bombshell” and the “Sex Goddess of the Silver Screen”. However, surprisingly, this famous actress never won any major acting awards throughout her 15-year career in the movies. Critics(评论家)may not have thought highly of her acting ability, but the huge number of her fans flocking to see her movies propelled(推进)her to fame and fortune.

Being a teenager, she found a job in a parachute packing factory during World War Ⅱ. A picture of young Ms Mortenson in a magazine led her into modelling. Hoping to move from modeling into acting, the young woman began trying out for acting jobs with several movie studios in Hollywood. She finally got a one-year contract(合同)with Twentieth Century-Fox. However, Ms Monroe’s career as an actress did not start well. She was given small parts in several films which did not do very well at the box office, and the studio decided to drop her contract. With no money and no work, the actress agreed to let a photographer take pictures without any clothes on for a calendar, for which she was paid $50.

In 1951, with the help of a friend, Ms Monroe got a seven-year contract with the same studio again. The studio began putting the actress in movies playing a “dumb blonde”and Ms Monroe became a hit. After playing “dumb blonde” in six more movies, she got her first lead role in the movie Niagara in 1953, which did well in box office. She proved that she could sing and dance in her own sexy way in movies like Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire. She also showed that she could perform as a comic actress.

While her movie career went on well, her private life was not quite as successful. She had got married for three times, but all her marriage didn’t last long. Probably due to her addiction to alcohol and sleeping pills, she was difficult to work with and was fired. Two months later, she was found dead from an overdose.

1. How long did she stay in the field of the movie?

A. 5 years. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. 15 years.

C. 10 years. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　   D. 20 years.

2. According to the passage, which is true?

A. Ms Monroe’s career as an actress did start very well.

B. Her private life was as successful as her movie career.

C. In spite of her wonderful acting, she never won any major acting awards.

D. As critics may not have thought highly of her acting ability, her movies were not well received.

3. What did Ms Monroe do before she became an actress?

A. She made a calendar.

B. She worked in a factory.

C. She designed clothes.

D. All of the above.

4. In which movie did Ms Monroe have her first staring role?

A. Niagara.

B. How to Marry a Millionaire.

C. Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.

D. Some like It Hot.

5. We can infer from the passage that________________.

A. what she was after were fame and fortune

B. what she liked most were alcohol and sleeping pills

C. she couldn’t get on well with others

D. she didn’t feel happy in spite of her fame and fortune

The printed word is just about the most important way we have of communication with one another. Look around you at the books in school, at the newspapers at home, at the posters on walls and the stamps you stick on envelopes before posting them. Consider, too, the importance of being able to understand the instructions printed on packages of food and medicine sold in shops.

In these and in many other ways, the printed word has become so important that it is difficult to imagine how life could go on without it. In everyday life there are hundreds of situations in which people need to communicate with one another, and the printed word is nearly always the best method of communication where large numbers of people are involved.

As you may know, communication intended to reach a large number of people is called mass communication. The main present-day forms of mass communication using the printed word are newspapers, magazines and books. In the case of a modern national newspaper, thousands of copies of each issue(期)may be printed and read in a single day.

The best known forms of modern mass communication which do not use the printed word are television and radio. Television or radio broadcasts may also reach millions of people at a time.

Printing is so important nowadays that it is difficult to imagine how people could manage without it. In fact, though, it was many centuries before man even had a language. Early cave men communicated with one another by sign language or by drawing on the walls of their caves.

1. We use the printed word mainly to________________.

A. communicate with each other

B. read books and newspapers

C. study knowledge

D. write articles

2. The printed word has become very important because________________.

A. it is almost the best method of communication

B. it is difficult to imagine how life could go on without it

C. it is the best way for large numbers of people to communicate with each other

D. there are hundreds of situations in which two people need to talk with each other

3. The best known printed forms of mass communication are________________.

A. letters and advertisements

B. newspapers, magazines and books

C. packets of food and medicine

D. television and radio

4. The passage means to tell us________________.

A. how people communicate with each other

B. how people use the printed word

C. that mass communication is very important to us

D. that the printed word is very important to us

Sometime in the next century, the familiar early-morning newspaper on the front porch will disappear. And instead of reading your newspaper, it will read to you. You’ll get up and turn on the computer newspaper just like switching on the TV. An electronic voice will distribute stories about the latest events, guided by a program that selects the type of news you want. You’ll even get to choose the kind of voice you want to hear. Want more information on the brief story? A simple touch makes the entire text appear. Save it in your own personal computer file if you like. These are among the predictions from communications experts working on the newspapers of the future. Pictured as part of broader home-based media and entertainment systems, computer newspapers would unite print and broadcast reporting, offering news and analysis with video images of news events.

Most of the technology is available now, but convincing more people that they don’t need paper to read a newspaper is the next step. But resistance to computer newspapers may be stronger from within journalism(新闻界). Since it is such a cultural change, it may be that the present generation of journalists and publishers will have to die off before the next generation realizes that the newspaper industry is no longer a newspaper industry. Technology is making the end of traditional newspapers unavoidable.

Despite technological advances, it could take decades to replace newsprint with computer screens. It might take 30 to 40 years to complete the change over because people need to buy computers and because newspapers have established financial interests in the paper industry.

1. The best title of this passage is________________.

A. Computer Newspapers are Well Liked

B. Newspapers of the Future will likely be on Computer

C. Newspapers are out of Fashion

D. New Communications Technology

2. It might take 30 to 40 years for computer newspapers to replace traditional newspapers, because________________.

A. it is technologically impossible now

B. computer newspapers are too expensive

C. there is strong resistance from both the general population and professional journalists

D. traditional newspapers are easier to read

3. Which of the following is NOT an advantage of computer newspapers?

A. They are cheaper than traditional newspapers.

B. They are very convenient to use.

C. You can get more information from them quickly.

D. You can easily save information for future use.

4. We can infer from the passage that________________.

A. all technological changes are good

B. all technologies will eventually replace old ones

C. new technologies will eventually replace old ones

D. traditional newspapers are here to stay for another century

The first newspaper was written by hand and put up on walls in public places. The earliest daily newspaper was started in Rome in 59 B. C.  In the 700’s the world’s first printed newspaper was published. Europe didn’t have a regularly published newspaper until 1609, when one was started in Germany.

The first regularly published newspaper in England was printed in Amsterdam in 1620. In 1621, an English newspaper was started in London and was published once a week. The first daily English newspaper was the Daily Courtant, which came out in March 1702.

In 1690, Benjamin Harris printed the first American newspaper in Boston. But not long after it was first published, the government stopped the paper. In 1704, John Campbell started the Boston newspaper, the first newspaper published daily in the American Colonies(殖民地). By 1760, the colonies had more than thirty daily newspapers. There are now about 1 800 daily papers in the United States.

Today, as a group, English language newspapers have the largest circulation(发行量)in the world. But the largest circulation for a newspaper is that of the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun. It sells more than eleven million copies every year.

1. The first regularly printed European newspaper started in ________________.

A. Rome in 59 B. C.

B. Germany in 1609

C. Amsterdam in 1620

D. England in 1621

2. The first daily newspaper in English started in________________.

A. 1620　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　    B. 1621

C. 1690　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　    D. 1702

3. From the article, we know that________________.

A. newspapers have the longest history in the United States

B. English language newspaper has the largest circulation in the world

C. the first daily newspaper was printed in Rome in 59 B. C.

D. there are all kinds of newspapers all over the world today

4. The best title for this passage should be________________.

A. History of newspaper

B. History of Daily newspapers

C. The Beginning of newspapers

D. On Reading newspapers

People living on part of the south coast of England face a serious problem. In 1993, the owners of a large hotel and of several houses discovered, to their horror that their gardens had disappeared overnight. The sea had eaten into the soft limestones(石灰岩)cliffs on which they had been built. While experts were studying the problem, the hotel and several houses disappeared altogether, sliding down the cliff and into the sea.

Erosion(侵蚀)of the white cliffs along the south coast of England has always been a problem but it has become more serious in recent years. Dozens of homes have had to be rejected as the sea has crept farther and farther inland. Experts have studied the areas most affected and have drawn up a map for local people, forecasting(预测)the year in which their homes will be swallowed up by the hungry sea.

Angry owners have called on the Government to set up sea defenses to protect their homes. Government surveyors have pointed out that in most cases, this is impossible. New sea walls would cost hundreds of millions of pounds and would merely make the waves and currents go further along the coast, transferring the problem from one area to another. The danger is likely to continue, they say, until the waves reach an inland area of hard rock which will not be eaten as limestone is. Meanwhile, if you want to buy a cheap house with an uncertain future, apply to a house agent(代理商)in one of the threatened areas on the south coast of England. You can get a house for a knockdown price but it may turn out to be a knockdown home.

1. What is the cause of the problem that people living on parts of the south coast face?

A. The rising of the sea level.

B. The washing-away of limestone cliffs.

C. The experts’ lack of knowledge.

D. The disappearance of hotels, houses and gardens.

2. The erosion of the white cliffs in the south of England________________.

A. will soon become a problem for people living in central England

B. has now become a threat to the local residents (居民)

C. can be stopped if proper measures are taken

D. is quickly changing the map of England

3. The experts’ study on the problem of erosion can________________.

A. warn people whose homes are in danger

B. help to its final solution

C. provide an effective way to slow it down

D. lead to its final solution

4. It is not feasible(可行的)to build sea defenses to protect against erosion because ________________.

A. house agents along the coast do not support the idea

B. the government is too slow in taking action

C. it is too costly and will endanger neighboring areas

D. they will be easily knocked down by waves and currents

The following is about the BBC and some other broadcasting stations in Britain.

1. On which radio can you hear a commercial?

A. Radio 3. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　    B. Radio 4.

C. Capital Radio. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 D. Radio London.

2. You need to listen to 　　　　　　    for a program on outer space.

A. Radio 2. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　    B. Radio 3.

C. Radio Wales. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　  D. LBC.

Here in the hills were buffaloes. I had even, in my very young days—when I could not live till I had killed one of each kind of African animal—shot a bull out here. Later on, when I was not so interested to shoot as to watch the wild animals, I had been out to see them again, but twice I had to go back without success.

But one afternoon as I was having tea with some friends outside the house, Denys came flying from Nairobi and went over our heads westwards; a little while after he turned and came back and landed on the farm. I drove down to the plain to bring him back, but he would not get out of his plane.

“The buffaloes are out feeding in the fields, ”he said, “come out and have a look them. ”

“I cannot come, ”I said, “I have got tea-party up at the house. ”

“But we will go and see them and be back in a quarter of an hour, ”he said.

This sounded to me like the suggestions which people make to you in a dream. So I went up with him. It did not take us long to see the buffaloes from the air; we counted them as they peacefully mixed and separated on the open ground closed in by bushes. There was one very old big black bull, and a number of young ones;  if a stranger had come near to them they would have heard or smelt him at once, but they were not prepared for something from the air. They heard the noise of our machine and stopped feeding, but they did not seem to be able to look up. In the end they realized that something very strange was about;  the old bull first walked out in front of the others. Suddenly he began to go down the valley side and after a moment he broke into a run. The whole group now followed him, rushing hurriedly down into the bushes. In a small wood of low trees they stopped and kept close together. Here they believed themselves to be out of sight. We flew up and away. It was like having been taken there by a secret unknown route.

When I came back to my tea-party the teapot on the stone was still so hot that I burned my fingers on it.

1. When young, the writer 　　　　　　   .

A. was interested to kill as many animals as possible

B. had failed to find the buffaloes

C. enjoyed shooting one of every sort of African animal

D. used to camp in the hills and watch the buffaloes in a plane

2. The writer went to the plane 　　　　　　   .

A. to pick Denys up and take him back to the tea-party

B. to have a talk with Denys

C. to persuade Denys to leave the plane

D. because they wanted to go up in the plane

3. When the buffaloes heard the noise of the plane, they 　　　　　　   .

A. looked up at it

B. ran away immediately

C. continued feeding

D. were uncertain what to do

4. The buffaloes felt safe when they reached the wood because they 　　　　　　   .

A. thought they couldn’t be seen

B. could only be seen from the ground

C. could only be seen if the plane flew higher

D. could not see the plane

Our boat floated on, between walls of forest too thick to allow us a view of the land we were passing through, though we knew from the map that our river must from time to time be passing through chairs of hills which crossed the jungle plains. Nowhere did we find a place where we could have landed: where the jungle did not actually spread right down into the river, banks of soft mud prevented us going ashore. In any case, where would we have sailed by landing? The country was full of snakes and other dangerous creatures, and the jungle was so thick that one would be able to advance only slowly, cutting one’s way with knives the whole way. So we stayed in the boat, hoping that when we reached the sea, a friendly fisherman would pick us up and take us to civilization.

We lived on fish, caught with a home-made net of string(we had no books), and fruits and nuts we could pick up out of the water. As we had no fire, we had to eat everything, including the fish, raw. I had never tasted raw fish before. And I must say I didn’t much enjoy the experience: perhaps sea fish, which do not live in the mud, are less tasteless. After eating my raw fish, I lay back and dreamed of such things as fried chicken and rice, and ice-cream. In the never-ending damp heat of the jungle, ice-cream was particularly frequent dream.

As for water, there was a choice: we could drink the muddy river water, or die of thirst. We drank the water. Men who had just escaped what had appeared to be certain death lost all worries about such small things as diseases caused by dirty water. In fact, none of us suffered from any illness as a result.

One day we passed another village, but unfortunately nobody saw us. We did not wish to risk being taken prisoners a second time: we might not be so lucky to escape in a stolen boat again.

1. What they could see in the boat was　　　　　　   .

A. high walls

B. villagers from time to time

C. vast land

D. heavy woods

2. They couldn’t land because　　　　　　   .

A. the mud on the shore was too soft

B. the forest was too thick to let them go through

C. they could not find the mark on the lamp

D. they could not find anyone to lead them out of the forest

3. The passage implies that the forest was　　　　　　   .

A. rich of fruits and animals to be served as food

B. not very thick as they could advance slowly by cutting the branches

C. full of various dangerous beings

D. full of ancient trees

4. The most appropriate title for this passage might be　　　　　　   .

A. Escape

B. Exploration of A River

C. How to Survive on A Boat

D. A New Experience

Japan has a new craze:“the virtual pet”—Tama gotchi(电子鸡). The new object of consumer desire is the latest in high-tech—an electronic bird creature, the size of an egg that has been sold out everywhere and is now only available on the streets at more than 20 times its original price of 1 980 yen or$19.

You can feed it, stroke(抚摸)it, carry it in your pocket and even take it to the bathroom—all with the push of a button. But be aware that if you don’t take care of your Tamagotchi(Japanese work for“lovely egg”. )—your pet will die before your eyes and before its time.

The Tamagotchi starts life as a bird-like image on the screen of an egg-shaped key-ring device. It changes from a chick to a fully-grown adult in around 10 days. However, the owner must feed, clean and calm the digital creature by pushing the proper buttons to prevent it from dying from neglect. The owner may choose to feed the creature digital sweets and enjoy its sounds of delight by pressing buttons in response to the creature’s movements.

1. What is the present price of Tamagotchi?

A. Over 18 dollars.

B. Over 60 dollars.

C. Over 380 dollars.

D. Over 1 200 dollars.

2. The underlined word “neglect” in the passage means “　　　　　　   ”.

A. lack of care or attention

B. pushing the wrong buttons

C. paying too much attention

D. lack of electricity

3. Which of the following statements is NOT true about Tamagotchi?

A. It can grow up in around 10 days.

B. It has to be fed, cleaned and calmed in case it might die.

C. It can produce a sound of delight.

D. It can be bought everywhere now.

4. What is the best title for the passage?

A. A new type of pet

B. Take good care of the Tamagotchi

C. The popularity of the Tamagotchi in Japan

D. A newly found bird—the Tamagotchi

Some scientists say that animals in the ocean are increasingly threatened by noise pollution caused by human beings.

The noise that affects sea creatures comes from a number of human activities. It is caused mainly by industrial underwater explosions, ocean drilling, and ship engines. Such noises are added to natural sounds. These sounds include the breaking of ice fields, underwater earthquakes, and sounds made by animals themselves.

Decibels(分贝)measured in water are different from those measured on land. A noise of one hundred and twenty decibels on land causes pain to human ears. In water, a decibel level of one hundred and ninety-five would have the same effect.

Some scientists have proposed setting a noise limit of one hundred and twenty decibels in oceans. They have observed that noises at the level can frighten and confuse whales.

A team of American and Canadian scientists discovered that louder noises can seriously injure some animals. The research team found that powerful underwater explosions were causing whales in the area to lose their hearing. This seriously affected the whales’ ability to exchange information and find their way. Some of the whales even died. The explosions had caused their ears to bleed and become infected.

Many researchers whose work depends on ocean sounds object to a limit of one hundred and twenty decibels. They say such a limit would mean an end to important industrial and scientific research.

Scientists do not know how much and what kinds of noises are harmful to ocean animals. However, many scientists suspect(认为……是可能的)that noise is a greater danger than they believed. They want to prevent noises from harming creatures in the ocean.

1. According to the passage, which of the following is increasingly dangerous to sea creatures?

A. The man-made noises.

B. The noises made by themselves.

C. The sound of earthquakes.

D. The sound of ice-breaking.

2. As to the influence of noises on whales, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. They are deaf to noises.

B. Noises at a certain level may hurt them.

C. They are easily confused by noises.

D. Noises will limit their ability to reproduce.

3. We can know from the passage that many scientists think that the noise limit of one hundred and twenty decibels would  　　　　　　 .

A. prevent them from doing their research work

B. benefit them a lot in their research work

C. do good to their health

D. increase the industrial output

4. According to the passage, what will scientists most probably do in the future?

A. They will try their best to decrease noise.

B. They will work hard to cut down noise pollution.

C. They will study the effect of different noises.

D. They will protect animals from harmful noises.