Everybody hates it, but everybody does it. A recent report said that 40％of Americans hate tipping. In America alone, tipping is a $16 billion-a-year industry. Consumers acting politely ought not to pay more than they have to for a given service. Tips should not exist. So why do they? The common opinion in the past was that tips both rewarded the efforts of good service and reduced uncomfortable feelings of inequality. And also, tipping makes for closer relations. It went without saying that the better the service, the bigger the tip.

But according to a new research from Cornell University, tips no longer serve any useful function. The paper analyzes numbers they got from 2,547 groups dining at 20 different restaurants. The connection between larger tips and better service was very weak. Only a tiny part of the size of the tip had anything to do with the quality of service.

Tipping is better explained, by culture than by the money people spend. In America, the custom came into being a long time ago. It is regarded as part of the accepted cost of a service. In New York restaurants, failing to tip at least l5% could well mean dissatisfaction from the customers. Hairdressers can expect to get l5%-20%, and the man who delivers your fast food $2. In Europe, tipping is less common. In many restaurants the amount of tip is decided by a standard service charge. In many Asian countries, tipping has never really caught on at all. Only a few have really taken to tipping.

According to Michael Lynn, the Cornell papers’ author, countries in which people are more social or outgoing tend to tip more. Tipping may reduce anxiety about being served by strangers. And Mr. Lynn says, “In America, where people are expressive and eager to mix up with others, tipping is about social approval. If you tip badly, people think less of you. Tipping well is a chance to show off.”

1. This passage is mainly about ________.

2.Which of the following best explains the underlined phrase “caught on” ?

3. Among the following situations, in your opinion, who is likely to tip most?

4. We can infer from this passage that ________.

One day, a young man was cleaning out his late grandfather’s belongings when he came across a bright red envelope. Written on the front were the words, "To my grandson." Recognizing his grandfather's handwriting ,the young man opened the enbelope. A letter inside read:

Dear Ronny, 

    Years ago you came to me for help .You said, "Grandpa, how is it that you've accomplished so much in your life? You're still full of energy, and I'm already tired of struggling. How can I get that same enthusiasm that you've got?"

    I didn't know what to say to you then. But knowing my days are numbered, I figure that I owe you an answer. So here is what I believe.

    I think a lot of it has to do with how a person looks at things. I call it "keeping your eyes wide open."

    First ,realize that life is filled with surprises, but many are good ones .If you don't keep watching for them, you'll miss half the excitement. Expect to be thrilled once in a while ,and you will be.

    When you meet up with challenges, welcome them. They'll leave you wiser ,stronger, and more capable than you were the day before .when you make a mistake ,be grateful for the things it taught you .Resolve to use that lesson to help you reach your goals.

    And always follow the rules. Even the little ones. When you follow the rules, life works. If you think you ever really get by with breaking the rules, you're only fooling yourself.

    It's also important to decide exactly what you want. Then keep your ming focused on it, and be prepared to receive it.

    But be ready to end up in some new places too ,As you grow with the years, you'll be given bigger shoes to fill. So be ready for endings as well as challenging beginnings.

    Sometimes we have to be brave enough to move from the familiar to the unfamiliar .Life isn't just reaching peaks, Part of it is moving from one peak to the next .If you rest too long in between, you might be tempted to quit .Leave the past in the past .Climb the next mountain and enjoy the view.

    Dump things that weigh you down emotionally and spiritually. When an old resentment, belief, or attitude becomes heavy ,lighten your load. Shed those hurtful attitudes that slow you down and drain your energy.

    Remember that your choices will create your successes and your failures. So consider all the pathways ahead, and decide which ones to follow. Then believe in yourself, get up, and get going.

    And be sure to take breaks once in a while .They'll give you a renewed commitment to your dreams and a cheerful, healthy perception of the things that matter the most to you .

    Most important of all. never give up on yourself. The person that ends up a winner is the once who resolves to win. Give life everything you've got, and life will give its best back to you.

 Love always,

Grandpa

The underlined part “But knowing my days are numbered” implies that        .

       A．his grandpa could count days  B．his grandpa’s cach day was important

       C．his grandpa knew he was dying      D．his grandpa was eager to tell the young man

Why did the young man’s grandpa write this letter? Because       .

       A．he wanted to recall his whole life

       B．he wanted to tell his grandson how great he was

       C．he wanted to explain how to keep energy

       D．he wanted to show how to succeed

The young man’s grandpa may agree      .

       A．how a person looks at things has nothing to do with one’s future

       B．we should be thankful for what mistakes teach us

       C．successful life is just reaching peaks

       D．It’s not so important to decide exactly what you want

According to the passage,          .

       A．learning to give up is very important     B．we’d better stay in the familiar

       C．obeying little rules doesn’t matter   D．taking breaks once in a while is good to us

A few days ago I got a call from my old college friend whom I haven’t seen for a very long time. The topic, which was about all the good old times that we had changed to a touching story when he started talking about his father.　　

His father’s declining health made him stay at the hospital. Because of his illness, his father suffered from insomnia (失眠) and often talked to himself. My friend, who had not been able to sleep for a few days as he had to keep watching his father’s condition, became irritated and told his father to keep silent and try to get some sleep. His father said that he really wanted to sleep well because he was very tired and told my friend to leave him alone in the hospital if he did not want to keep him company.　　

After his father finished talking, he fell unconscious (失去知觉). My friend was very sorry for speaking the ill words towards his father. My friend, whom I knew as a tough person, cried as a baby on the other end of the telephone. He said that from that moment on, he prayed every day, asking God to let his father wake up from his coma. He promised himself that whatever words came out from his father’s mouth after he regained his consciousness, he would gladly take them. His only hope for God was to give him a chance to rectify his past mistake.　　

Often, we complain when we have to accompany or watch over our parents for years, months, days, hours or even minutes. But do we realize that our parents keep us company and watch over us for as long as we (or they) live? From the day we were born to our adulthood, and even when deaths come to us, they are always at our side.

    Imagine how sad our parents will be when they hear a seemingly innocent word of “no” come out from our mouths. We can make promises to ourselves that from now on there will be no more complaints that come out from our mouths when we have to watch over or accompany our parents. No more complaints come out from our mouths when we feel that our parents have treated us like little children. There are so many unlucky ones who have neither fathers nor mothers. They long to have the things that we most complain about, but never have them.

    Actually, it takes only a second to think and light the lamp that will bring us to a place where peace is dwelling.

1.Which of the following word can be used to describe the writer’s friend?

A. Sad      B. Sorry      C. Regretful        D. Pitiful

2.What does the underlined word “rectify” mean in Para. 3?

A. put…right    B. recite…by heart   C. realize    D. recognize

3.What does the writer want to tell us in the passage?

A. Your parents will keep talking to themselves when they are old.

B. Be good to your parents when you still have the chance.

C. You will regret in your life if you don’t show your kindness to your parents.

D. It is not easy to take good care of sick old parents.

阅读下面短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空，并将答案填写在答题卡标号为16—25的相应位置上。

Although it could not compete with the speed of email today, the 1800’s experienced a revolution in communication that played an important role in creating the tradition of the Christmas greeting card. ____(help) by the new railway system, the public postal service made corresponding a popular past time. In England, Sir Henry Cole recognized the advantage of ___more efficient mail service and initiated (开始) the practice of sending Christmas greeting cards ____ friends. 

The first card ____ (design) by J.C. Horsley as a commercial endeavor(尝试,努力). One thousand copies were sold in London, ____ soon others followed suit. An English __ (art), William Egley, produced a popular card in 1849. Louis Prang, a German born printer, working from ___ shop in Massachusetts, printed his first American cards in 1875. Even more ____ (importance) than his printing was the fact ___ he did more than anyone else to popularize the cards by instituting nationwide contests for the best Christmas designs, ___ were awarded cash prizes.

单词拼写(共15小题; 每小题1分, 满分15分)

根据下列句子及所给汉语注释,在横线上写出空缺处各单词的正确形式。

1. Since her _______（童年时代）she had wanted to work with animals in their own environment.

2. It is hard to imagine that she should be so ________（粗鲁的） to an old lady.

3. It is generally accepted that smoking is ______（有害的）. 64.Over the past half century, using_______（化学的） fertilizers has become very common in farming.

4. Be a little ________ (耐心). I will be ready in a few minutes.

5. They did everything for the ______ （福利）of their children.

6. His ________ (行为) was becoming more than ever strange.

7. Go _______ (向东)to the end of the street and you will find the hotel.

8. Jane always makes ______ （评论）on David’s clothes.

9. Generally speaking, the more learned a man is, the more ______（谦虚的）he will be.

10. After finishing every unit you should make a ______.（总结）

11.He enjoys ______（聊天）on the intenet.

12. What will happen to you if you don’t eat a ______（平衡的）diet?

13. Take all the ______（行李） and come with me.

14.Flying across the Atlantic for the first time was a great ______.（成就）