More American people take their troubles with them on holiday, according to a new survey. Although 40
percent said that the main reason for going away is to escape pressure (壓力) from work, almost all said they
worry more than they do at home. Only four in every 100 said that they are happy and free of care.
     The most common worry is burglary (入室盜竊), with four out of 10 worrying about their homes being
broken into while they' re abroad. More than a quarter fear they will feel crazy with some other noisy and
rough holiday-makers and 22 percent worry they may be attacked or their possessions will be missing. One in
five think the car may break down, and the same number worry about the chances of bad weather.
     The survey also showed that the stay-at-home Americans are no more. Three out of every five want to
have a holiday abroad, a great increase from the figures only three years ago. The hotel holiday is still a winner, with about one third of all Americans preferring to go on a self-catering (自助) holiday.

1. The underlined word "survey" in the first paragraph most probably means _______.

A. research
B. review
C. exhibition
D. examination

2. According to the text, about _____ of people worry more on holiday than when they are at home.

A. 25%
B. 40%
C. 80%
D. 95% 

3. The third most common worry of American holiday-makers is that they may______.

A. be attacked or lose their possessions
B. have problems with their cam on the road
C. have bad weather on holiday
D. get mixed with some rough fellow holiday-makers

4. Where do American holiday-makers like to stay most?

A. At a hotel.
B. In a quiet place.
C. At a friend' s house.
D. Where they can cook for themselves.

     When I was small and my grandmother died, I couldn't' t understand why I had no tears. But that night
when my dad tried to cheer me up, my laugh turned into crying.
     So it came as no surprise to learn that researchers believe crying and laughing come from the same part
of the brain. Just as laughing has many health advantages, scientists are discovering that so, too, does crying.
     Whatever it takes for us to reduce pressure is important to our emotional (情感的) health, and crying
seems to work weft. One study found that 85 percent of women and 73 percent of men report feeling better
after crying.
     Besides, tears attract help from other people. Researchers agree that when we cry, people around us
become kinder and friendlier and they are more ready to provide support and comfort. Tears also enable us to
understand our emotions better; sometimes we don' t even know we' re very sad until we cry. We learn about
our emotions through crying, and then we can deal with them.
     Just as crying can be healthy, not crying-holding back tears of anger, pain or suffering-can be bad for
physical (身體的) health. Studies have shown that too much control of emotions can lead to high good
pressure, heart problems and some other illnesses. If you have a health problem, doctors will certainly not ask
you to cry. But when you feel like crying, don't fight it. It's a natural-and healthy-emotional response (反應).

1. Why didn't' t the author cry when her grandmother died?

A. Because her father did not want her to feel too sad.
B. Because she did not love her grandmother.
C. Because she was too shy to cry at that time.
D. The author doesn't' t give the explanation.

2. It can be inferred from the text that ______.

A. there are two ways to keep healthy
B. crying does more good to health than laughing
C. crying and laughing play the same roles
D. emotional health has a dose relationship to physical health

3. According to the author, which of the following statements is true?

A. Crying is the best way to get help from others.
B. Fighting back tears may cause some health problems.
C. We will never know our deep feelings unless we cry.
D. We must cry if we want to reduce pressure.

4. What might he the most suitable title for the text?

A. Power of Tears
B. How to Keep Healthy
C. Why We Cry
D. A New Scientific Discovery

    It's school time again! You're probably feeling excited and maybe a little sad that summer is over. Some
kids feel nervous or a little afaid on the first day of school because of all the new things: new teachers, new
friends, and even a new school. Luckily, these "new" worries only stay for a little while. Let's find out more
about going to a new school.
    Most teachers kick off the new school year by introducing themselves and talking about all the things
you'll be doing that year. Some teachers give students a chance to tell something about themselves to the rest
of the class, too. When teachers do the talking on the first day, they often go over classroom rules and school
rules so you'll know what's allowed and what's not. Please pay close attention.
    You might already know a lot of people in your classes on the first day, but it's a great day to make a new
friend, so try to say hello to kids you know and new ones that you don't. Make the first move and you'll be
glad you did, and so will your new friend!
    Seeing friends you haven't seen in a while can make the first day an exciting one. You can make the day
feel special by wearing clothes that you really like. Maybe you got a great T-shirt on one of your vacations,
or a pair of shoes. It also can make you feel good to be prepared and have all the things you need, such as
pencils, paper, and whatever else you'll be needing. But make sure that you pack (打包) them the night before
in case you don't have time in the morning.

1. The underlined phrase "kick off" in the second paragraph probably means "_____".

A. start
B. study
C. find
D. teach

2. The last paragraphs mainly tell us about _____.

A. what to know about a new school.
B. how to prepare for a new school.
C. what to do on your first day of school.
D. how to spend your first day of school.

3. According to the passage you usually do everything on the first day of school except _____.

A. introduce yourself.
B. learn about the school rules.
C. make new friends.
D. go over your new lessons.

4. If you happen to see an old friend on the first day of school, from the passage we know that you
    will feel _____.

A. nervous.
B. lucky.
C. happy.
D. excited.

     He wishes the holiday season would end already. His back aches, his red suit feels like a spacesuit, his
cheeks have gone tight from smiling for 12 hours-and still the kids keep coming and coming, like ants at a
picnic. As Christmas becomes more commercialized (商業(yè)化) across the U. S. And Canada, so must Santas.
As the holiday begins earlier each year, so must its spokesmen.
     The questions from children these days are harder than ever. Now, with thousands of children expecting
a father or mother serving in Iraq or Afghanistan, the questions are as heart-breaking as they are unanswerable. For example, "Can you please bring Daddy home from the war in time for Christmas morning?"
     Santas also have a pretty good chance of getting sued (指控). A professional Santa Claus in Canada told a
story: A Santa had a girl on his knee, and he commented, "You have nice eyes and nice hair." The girl later
said it was sexual harassment (騷擾). When a Santa feels anxious, he often shows it in the same ways ordinary people do: The Santas were always seen to hang around at the dinner table when the show ended. Many of them just sleep in bed for several days and don't see other children again.

1. In the first paragraph, "spokesmen" refers to _____.

A. businessmen
B. political leaders
C. organisers of the activities
D. Santa Clauses

2. The passage implies that the job of Santa Claus is _____.

A. well-paid
B. very hard
C. worth doing
D. dangerous

3. According to the third paragraph, Santas may sometimes be blamed for _____.

A. doing something against the law
B. hanging around the dinner table
C. being lazy and sleeping in bed for days
D. not playing their roles as expected

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

A. Christmas: Not a Good Festival for Santas
B. Is Santa Claus Really Alive?
C. A Christmas Story
D. What Does Santa Claus Do for Children?

     When a rather dirty, poorly dressed person kneels at your feet and puts out his hands to beg for a few
coins, do you hurry on, not knowing what to do, or do you feel sad and hurriedly hand over some money?
What should our attitude to beggars be? There can be no question that the world is full of terribly sad
stories. It must be terrible to have no idea where our next meal is going to come from. It seems cruel not
to give some money to beggars.
     Certainly, most of the world's great religions (宗教) order us to be open-hearted and share what we
have with those less fortunate than ourselves.But has the world changed? Maybe what was morally (道德
方面) right in the old days,when one knew exactly who in the village had suffered misfortune and needed
help,is no longer the best idea. Quite a few people will not give to beggars. Let us look at their arguments.
     First, some believe that many city beggars dress up on purpose to look pitiable and actually make a good
living from begging. Giving to beggars only encourages this sort of evil (惡行). Secondly, there is the worry
that the money you give will be spent on beer, wine or drugs.Thirdly,there is the opinion that there is no real
excuse for begging. One might be poor,but that is no reason for losing one's sense of pride and
self-dependence.
     Related to this is the opinion that the problem should be dealt with by the government rather than ordinary
people. Some people think beggars should go to the local government department and receive help.
     It is hard to come to any final conclusion; there are various cases and we must deal with them differently.
A few coins can save a life in some situations, and even if the money is wasted, that does not take away the
moral goodness of the giver.

1. What is mainly discussed in the passage?

A. Moral deeds of people.
B. Religious activities of the church.
C. Moral goodness of the giver.
D. Arguments on giving to beggars.

2. What can we infer from the sentence "But has the world changed?" in the second paragraph?

A. People no longer know who suffers misfortune in the village.
B. Some people will not do what was morally right in the past.
C. We don't meet with those who need help any more.
D. Now it is the government's duty to help the beggars.

3. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

A. Some people dress up to pretend to be beggars.
B. Some beggars want money to help their children go to school.
C. Some beggars use the money to buy drugs.
D. Some beggars have no excuse for begging.

4. In the last paragraph,the writer thinks that it is hard to come to any final conclusion, because _____.

A. the cases can be so different
B. there are so many beggars
C. there is so much money wasted
D. there are so many different arguments

From Mr. Ward Hoffman.
      Sir, I was halfway through Professor Raj Persaud's article "What's the tipping point" (Financial Times
Weekend, April 9-l0) when it occurred to me that what I was reading was not ironic (諷刺的). If Prof
Persaud wants to know why Americans tip in restaurants, he need only ask the first American he meets in
London.
     Americans tip in restarts for one reason, and one reason only: we tip to supplement (補貼) the salary of
restaurant workers. Quality of service does not enter into it, beyond the fact that one may tip a bit less for
poor service, or a little more for good service.
     Not tipping at all in a non-fast-food restaurant is not a choice. In the US, one used to tip about 15 per
cent for dining in a family-style restaurant or in an up-market (高檔的) restaurant. Here, in San Francisco
Bay area restaurants, we me encouraged to tip 20 per cent or more, to help restart workers live in this very
expensive area.
     After eating at an Italian restart in my city, I left a tip of 20 per cent on the non-tax part of our dinner bill.
It was expected. There is nothing more complicated (復雜的) than that about Americas tipping in restaurants.
                                                                                                                  Ward Hoffman,
                                                                                                             Palo Alto, CA 94306, US 
From Mr. Philip McBride Johnson.
     Sir, I agree with most of Raj Persaud's opinion about the doubtful value of tipping, but with one exception
(例外). Tips can be very useful when one is a repeat customer or diner.
     It is only when the tipper is a stranger and likely to remain so that the system does not work to his or her
advantage. But frequent a hotel or a restaurant, always tip a bit more, and the difference in service and
treatment will ba easily felt.
                                                                                                                   Phfiip McBnde Johnson,
                                                                                                                 Great Falls, VA 22066, US

1. What can we learn from Hoffrnan's letter?

A. Quality of service determines tipping in the US.
B. Americans don't tip in non fast-food restaurants.
C. Tipping in US upmarknt restarts is unnecessary.
D. How to tip in the United States is not complicated.

2. Johnson's letter shows ______.

A. a stranger in a restaurant is likely to tip a bit more
B. diners receive better service if they frequent a restaurant
C. repeat dinners may get good service if they tip a bit more
D. the tipping system works to the advantage of new customers

3. From tbe two letters, we can learn Professor Raj Persaud ______.

A. feels doubtful about the value of tipping
B. believes tipping improves quality of service
C. wats to ask Hoffman about tipping m the US
D. thinks tipping a bit mom one can get good service

4. The two letters most probably appears in a ______.

A. notice
B. handbook
C. book review
D. newspaper

     At Dallm/Fort Worth Airport, the lights are controlled by sensors that measure sunlight. They dim
immediately when it's sunny md brighten when a passing cloud blocks the sun.
     A wall of windows at a University of Pennsylvania engineering budding has built-in blinds (百頁窗)
controlled by a computer program that follows the sun's path.
     Buildings are getting smarter-and the next generation of building materials expected to do even more.
     Windows could catch the sun's energy to heat water. Sensors that measure the carbon dioxide breathed
out by people in a mom could determine whether the air conditioning needs to be turned up.
     Many new materials and technology have been designed in the last 15 years. They now being used in a
wave of buildings designed to save as much energy as possible. They include old ideas, like"green roofs,"
where a belt of plants on a roof helps the building keep heat in winter and stay cool in summer, and new
ideas, like special coating for windows that lets light in, but keeps heat out.
     As technologies such as sensors become cheaper, their uses spread.
     The elevators (電梯) at Seven World Trade Center, which is under construction in New York, use a
system that groups people traveling to nearby floor into the same elevator, thus saving elevator stops.
People who work in the building will enter it by swiping (刷) ID cards that will tell the elevators their floor;
readouts will then tell them which elevator to use. The building also has windows with a coating that blocks
heal while letting in light.
     More new building materials and technology are in development. A Philadelphia building farm is now
working on"smart wrap" that uses tiny solar collectors to catch the sun's energy and transmitters (傳感器)
the width of a human hair to move it. They are expected to change the face of the construction industry in
the next ten years or so.

1. ____ will be developed and used in the construcction industry.

A. "Green mops" that cool or heat buildings
B. "Smart wrap" that catches the sun's energy
C. Sunlight-measuring sensors that control lights
D. Window coating that lets light in, but keeps heat out

2. The elevators at Seven World Trade Center are special because they can _____.

A. send people to floors with fewer stops
B. teach people how to use their ID cards
C. make people stay very cool in summer
D. help people go traveling in the building

3. The underlined word "it' in the last paragraph refers to _____.

A. a human being
B. smart wrap
C. the sun's energy
D. a transmitter

4. What might be the most suitable title for the text?

A. Buildings Are Becoming Smarter
B. Buildings Are Getting More Sunlight
C. Buildings Are Lacking in Much Energy
D. Buildings Are Using Cheaper Materials

     The days of elderly women doing nothing but cooking huge meals on holidays are gone. Enter the Red Hat
Society-a group holding the belief that old ladies should have fun.
     "My grandmothers didn't do anything but keep house and serve everybody. They were programmed to do
that," said Emils Comette, head of a chapter of the 7-year-old Red Hat Society.
     While men have long spent their time fishing and playing golf, women have sometimes seemed to become
unnoticed as they age. But the generation now turning 50 is the baby boomers (生育高峰期出生的人), and the
same people who refused their parents' way of being young are now trying a new way of growing old.
      If you take into consideration feminism (女權主義), a bit of spare money, and better health for most elderly, the Red Hat Society looks almost inevitable (必然的). In this society, women over 50 wear red hats and purple(紫色的) clothes, while the women under 50 wear pink hats and light purple clothing.
     "The organization took the idea from a poem by Jenny Joseph that begins: "When I am an old woman, I
shall wear purple. With a red hat which doesn't go," said Ellen Cooper, who founded the Red Hat Society in
1998. When the ladies started to wear the red hats, they attracted lots of attention.
      "The point of this is that we need a rest from always doing something for someone else," Cooper said.
"Women feel so ashamed and sorry when they do something for themselves." This is why chapters are
discouraged from raising money or doing anything useful. "We're a ladies' play group. It couldn't be more
simple," added Cooper's assistant Joe Heywood.

1. The underlined word "chapter" in paragraph 2 means _____.

A. one branch of an organization
B. a written agreement of a club
C. one part of a collection of poems
D. a period in a society's history

2. From the text, we know that the "baby boomers" are a group of people who _____. 

A. have gradually become more noticeable
B. are worried about getting old too quickly
C. are enjoying a good life with plenty of money to spend
D. tried living a different life from their parents when they were young

3. It could be inferred from the text that members of the Red Hat Society are _____.

A. interested in raising money for social work
B. programmers who can plan well for their future
C. believers in equality between men and women
D. good at cooking big meals and taking care of others

4. Who set up the Red Hat Society?

A. Emily Cornette.
B. Ellen Cooper.
C. Jenny Joseph.
D. Joe Heywood.

5. Women join the Red Hat Society because _____.

A. they want to stay young
B. they would like to appear more attractive
C. they would like to have fun and live for themselves
D. they want to be more like their parents

     Decision-thinking is not unlike it often matters not only what you think, but also what others think you think what you think they think you think. The mental process (過程) is similar. Naturally, this card game has often
been of considerable interest to people who are, by any standards, good thinkers. 　　
     The great mathematician John von Neumann was one of the founders of game theory. In particular, he
showed that all games fall into two classes; there are what he called games of 'perfect information', games like
chess where the players can't hide anything or play tricks; they don't win by chance, but by means of logic and
skills. Then there are games of 'imperfect information', like poker, in which it is impossible to know in advance
that one course of action is better than another. 　　
     One mistaken idea about business is that it can be treated as a game of perfect information. Quite the
reverse Business, life itself are games which we must normally play with very imperfect information. Business
decisions are often made with many unknown and unknowable factors (因素), best poker players. But few
business people find it comfortable to admit that they are taking a chance, and many still prefer to believe that
they are playing chess, not poker.

1. The subject discussed in this text is ______. 　　

A. the process of reaching decisions 　　
B. the difference between poker and chess. 　　
C. the secret of making good business plans 　　
D. the value of information in winning games

2. An important factor in a game of imperfect information is _______. 　　

A. rules
B. luck
C. time
D. ideas

3. Which of the following can be used in place of "Quite the reverse"? 　　

A. Quite right.
B. True enough. 　　
C. Most unlikely.
D. Just the opposite.

4. In the writer's opinion, when making business decisions one should _______. 　　

A. put perfect information before imperfect information 　　
B. accept the existence of unknown factors 　　
C. regard business as a game of chess 　　
D. mix known and unknown factors