Just 25 years ago, the top three career hopes for young people in Britain were teacher, banker and
doctor. Now, they want to be sports star, pop star and actor, according to survey by the Guardian
newspaper.
     Rachel, a character in the popular TV show Glee, may be said to speak for British teenagers.
"Nowadays being nobody is worse than being poor." He said.
     Emma Brockes, a reporter with the Guardian, believes it is "the bad influence of celebrity(名人)
culture" that is to blame. "When children wanted to be doctor, it wasn't because they were really more
interested in the functions of human organs than they are now; you go where the respect is." She wrote.
     It could explain why there has been such an increase in levels of anxiety and depression. Dr Carlo
Stranger, of Tel Aviv University, studied the sense of self for his new book The Fear of Insignificance:
Searching for Meaning in the 21st Century. He told the Daily Mail that young people now are "affected
by the close connection to the global entertainment network, which has turned ranking and rating people
according to wealth and celebrity into an obsession(癡迷)."
     "As humans, we naturally measure ourselves to those around us, but now we live in a global village.
We are comparing ourselves with the most 'important' people in the world and finding ourselves wanting," he said. Today, even high achievers constantly fear that they are insignificant when they compare
themselves to success stories in the media.
      The way out? Simply stop measuring your achievement through a fantasy of wealth and celebrity.
Dr Strenger said that it is a process called "active self-acceptance through a constant search for
self-knowledge through life."
     "The fear of insignificance can only be overcome through strong individual and cultural identity over
and above measurable achievement," he said.

1. Nowadays, young people in Britain want to         .      

A．choose jobs based on interests
B．become famous        
C．be teacher, banker and doctor            
D．earn more money

2. According to Emma Brockes, what causes the increasing level of anxiety?

A．Choices of future careers.  
B．Access to the global network.
C．Bad influences of celebrities.
D．Endless comparison with others.

3. Which of the following is true of Dr Carlo Strenger?

A．He is a newspaper reporter
B．He is the spokesman of teenagers.
C．He tells success stories on TV.
D．He is against ranking people with wealth.

4. Dr Carlo Strenger suggests that young people should         .

A．seek active self-acceptance
B．stick to their own dreams
C．make great achievements
D．search for the secret of wealth

5. The text is mainly written to         .

A．talk about job choices
B．a(chǎn)nalyse a social phenomenon
C．encourage celebrity culture
D．introduce three famous people

      Mrs. Blake teaches English in a large school in the inner area of a big city on the west of coast. Even
since she was a young girl,she has wanted to become a teacher. She has taught eight years now and hasn't
changed her mind. After she graduated from high school, she went on to college. Four years later, she
received her bachelor's degree (B A) in English and her teaching certificate (證書). Then she went to teach
in the secondary schools of her state. In the summers, Mrs. Blake takes more classes; she hopes to get a
master's degree (M A). With an MA, she will receive a higher salary and if possible, she hopes to get a doctor's
degree as well. The school day at Mrs. Blake's high school, like that in many high schools in the United States,
is divided into one hour each. Mrs. Blake must teach five of these periods. During her free period, which for
her is from 2 to 3 P.M., Mrs. Blake must meet with parents, make out examinations, check assignments at all,
Mrs. Blake works continuously from the time she arrives at school in the morning till the time she leaves for
home late in the afternoon.

1. How long is it since Mrs. Blake graduated from middle school?

A. four years
B. eight years
C. twelve years
D. twenty years

2. According to the article, which is the right order of the degrees a person can receive after going to
    university?

A. a doctor's degree - a bachelor's degree - a master's degree
B. a bachelor's degree - a master's degree - a doctor's degree
C. a master's degree - a bachelor's degree - a doctor's degree
D. a bachelor's degree - a doctor's degree - a master's degree

3. How many degrees has Mrs. Blake achieved so far?

A. one
B. two
C. three
D. none

4. Which of the following sentences is not true?

A. Mrs. Blake teaches in the inner area of big city on the east of the United Sates
B. Mrs. Blake has turned her wish of becoming a teacher into reality.
C. Mrs. Blake is still studying in her holidays in order to get higher degrees.
D. The working hours in the school where Mrs. Blake works are similar to those of many other high schools in the states.

     For the past two years, 8-year-old Harli Jordean from Stoke Newington, London, has
been selling marbles(彈珠). His successful marble company, Marble King, sells all things
marble-related－from affordable tubs of the glass playthings to significantly expensive items
like Duke of York solitaire tables － sourced, purchased and processed by the mini-CEO
himself.
    "I like having my own company. I like being the boss," Harli told the Mirror.
    With profits now in the thousands, "the world's youngest CEO" has had to get his mother
and older brothers to help him meet the growing demand.
    Harli launched Marble King after swapping marbles at school led to schoolchildren consuming
his marble collection. Yes, he literally "lost his marbles." Harli and his mother, Tina, turned to
the Internet to find replacements.
    Harli saw an empty space online: the marbles he wanted were hard to find. Within months,
Harli had his own marble-selling website － and orders started pouring in.
    Tina says her son's attachment to marbles started when he was just 6.
    "His attachment became so passionate that we started calling him the Marble King - so when
he wanted to set up a website it was the natural name for it," she told The Sun.
    "I never thought it would become so popular － we are struggling to cope with the number
of orders at times."
     The 8-year-old boy has his sights set on expanding his business and launching his own brand
of marbles.
    "Sometimes his ideas are so grand we have to scale them back a bit. But his dream is still to
own Britain's biggest marble shop and open stores around the world," Tina told The Daily Mail.
    "At the moment he is annoying me by creating his own Marble King marbles－so that could
well be the next step for him."

1.Harli's Marble Company became popular as soon as he launched it because ______.

A. it was run by "the world's youngest CEO"
B. it filled the gap of online marble trade
C. Harli was fascinated with marble collection
D. Harli met the growing demand of the customers

2. How many mass media are mentioned in the passage?

A. One
B. Two
C. Three
D. Four

3. The underlined expression "scale them back" is closest in meaning to ______.

A. hold them down
B. carry them out
C. set them aside
D. clear them away

4. What message do the last two paragraphs carry?

A. Conflicts often occur between Harli Jordean and his family.
B. Harli's mother and brothers are worried about Marble King's future.
C. Marble King marbles will surely attract more fans around the world.
D. The "Marble King" has great ambition for his Marble King company.

     Christmas was just a week away and I had five people left to shop for but only three dollars.
     "Let's set a price limit on our gifts this year,"I suggested to my best friend Joanie.
     "That's a good idea," Joanie agreed. "How about something over five dollars?"
     "How about sixty cents?" I felt like the biggest cheapskate in the world.
     "I guess this is where I'm supposed to say it's not the gift but the thought that counts," Joanie smiled.
     It is almost impossible to buy anything under sixty cents, so it was really going to have to be very
small gifts with very big thoughts.
     Finally, Christmas Day arrived. I gave my mother a candle with a note that said, "You are the brightest
light in my life." She almost cried when she read the note.
     I gave my brother a wooden ruler. On the back of it I had painted, "No brother in the world could
measure up to you." He gave me a bag of sugar and wrote on it, "You're my sweet sister."
     For Joanie, I painted a pair of shoes with a note that said, "No one could ever fill your shoes. "She
thanked me and said I always tickled (使……高興) her and made her laugh.
     To my other two friends, I gave Annie a paper fan and a note on it, "I'm your biggest fan." I gave
Helen a calculator that cost one dollar and I painted a message on the back, "You can always count
on me."
     My mother knows she is the most important person in my life. My brother thinks I'm sweet. Joanie
thinks I'm funny and make her laugh, which is important because her dad moved away last year and she
misses him and is sad sometimes...

1. When Christmas neared, the author worried that she________.

A. had few friends to give her gifts
B. had little money to buy gifts for others
C. didn't know what gifts her friends would like
D. didn't have enough time to go shopping

2. The underlined word "cheapskate" in Paragraph 4 probably    refers to a person who________.

A. is the poorest in the world
B. buys the cheapest skateboards
C. spends as little money as possible
D. buys the cheapest things in the world

3. The girl gave her mother a candle because it stands for________.

A.  the girl's own life
B. her mother's life
C. the girl's role in her mother's life
D.  the mother's role in the girl's life

4. What can we learn from the passage?

A. It is an art to choose gifts.
B. It is the thought not the gift that matters.
C. How to choose cheap gifts.
D. Giving gifts improves friendships.

     The poor are very wonderful people. One evening we went out and we picked up four people from
the street. And one of them was in a most terrible condition-and I told the sisters: You take care of the
other three. I take care of this one who looked worse. So I did for her all that my love can do. I put her
in bed, and there was such a beautiful smile on her face. She took hold of my hand as she said just the
words "Thank you" and she died.
    I could not help but examine my conscience before her and I asked what I would say if I was in her
place. And my answer was very simple. I would have tried to draw a little attention to myself. I would
have said I am hungry, I am dying, I am cold, I am in pain, or something, but she gave me much
more-she gave me her grateful love. And she died with a smile on her face. So did that man whom we
picked up from the drain, half eaten with worms, and we brought him to the home. "I have lived like an
animal in the street, but I am going to die like an angel, loved and cared for," he said at the end. And it
was so wonderful to see the greatness of that man who could speak like that, who could die like that
without blaming anybody, without cursing anybody, without comparing anything. Like an angel-this is
the greatness of our people. And that is why we believe what Jesus has said: I was hungry, I was
naked, I was homeless, I was unwanted, unloved, uncared for, and you did it to me.
    And with this prize that I received as a Prize of Peace, I am going to try to make the home for many
people who have no home. Because I believe that love begins at home and if we can create a home for
the poor I think that more and more love will spread. And we will be able through this understanding
love to bring peace, the good news to the poor, the poor in our own family first, in our country and in
the world. When I pick up a person from the street, hungry and I give him a plate of rice or a piece of
bread, I am satisfied. I have removed that hunger. But to a person who is shut out, who feels unwanted,
unloved, terrified, who has been thrown out from society, that poverty is so full of hurt and so
unbearable... And so let us always meet each other with a smile, for the smile is the beginning of love,
and once we begin to love each other naturally we want to do something.

1. What can be learned from the second paragraph? 

A. The woman should have paid more attention to herself.
B. The man couldn't blame anyone.
C. The author is religious.
D. The man died in the street.

2. The purpose of this passage is ________. 

A. to appeal for more donation for the poor
B. to call on the public to love each other
C. to tell the readers the poor are wonderful
D. to express how moved the author is to receive the prize

3. Which of the following can NOT be inferred from the passage?

A. The author has few supporters.
B. The author was somewhat surprised at what the man said.
C. The author is delighted to help others in trouble.
D. The author may agree to solve social problems in soft ways.

4. What's the best title of this passage?  

A. Have Sympathy for the Poor
B. The Poor Are Wonderful
C. Smile and Love
D. Relieve Poverty

      Jennifer got off the bus from the university and began walking towards the flat she shared with two
other students.   1   She picked up a wire basket and walked towards the back of the shop, where the
rice was kept. The shop was divided by three long aisles, with rows of shelves crammed with all sorts
of things. Except for her and Mr. Patel, the owner, there were only two other people there. They were
two teenage boys, and they were standing at the end of one of the aisles.
     She glanced at them as she passed. They were both wearing long, oldfashioned overcoats and they
looked rather ridiculous in them because the coats were too big.   2   "Watch out, stupid," she heard
one of them whisper to the other. She walked on to the next aisle and found the rice she was looking
for.
     Then she heard something else.   3    She peered through a gap in the shelf and caught a glimpse of
one of the boys bending down. She saw him pick up a tin of food. But instead of putting it in the
shopping basket, he dropped it into the inside pocket of his long overcoat. Jennifer glanced back down
the aisle. She could see Mr. Patel at the cash till, still checking through his list.
        4   The boys still had their backs to her. "Come on, let's get out of here," she heard one of them
say. At the same time, she saw one of them put another tin in his overcoat pocket. They moved away
from her. She could no longer see what they were doing or hear what they were saying.
     When she got to the still, the two boys were in front of her. She watched them pay for the few things
they had in the basket. They had both buttoned their coats and fastened them with their belts.   5   He
even smiled at them as they were about to leave. Jennifer opened her mouth to say something.
A. It sounded like a tin dropping on the floor.
B. But such things were popular with some teenagers at the time.
C. Then she looked through the gap in the shelf again.
D. On her way she had to buy some food and stopped in one of the shops in the street.
E. They were picking many things to their basket.
F. Mr. Patel was so friendly to his customers.
G. Mr. Patel did not seem suspicious at all.