Americans are buying more products and services than ever before through the Internet, and the popularity of online sales is likely to spread to other countries. Online sales now represent as much as one-tenth of all retail(零售) sales in the United States，which has led traditional stores to seek new ways to keep their customers loyal.
Lynne Shaner used the Internet to buy everything she needed for her wedding and holiday gifts for her husband. Other than food, 90 percent of her purchases(購買的東西) were made on her home computer. “I find that, by being able to go online and opt for the things that I need to select and have them delivered to me right at my doorstep, I’m free from all the driving, all the crowds, all the noise, and I usually get a better selection.”
There are a lot of people like her. Experts say American online shopping hit records in both November and December. Fifty-seven percent of Americans have bought something electronically. Store owners worry that this growing amount of online sales will hurt their business. Cornell University marketing professor Ed McLaughlin says, “They should be worried. Anything that can move online will be sold online. And it's just a matter of time. However, traditional stores can keep their customers by selling goods like clothing, which buyers may want to see and try on before purchasing. The stores could also offer things that are difficult to ship. ”
Bill Martin, whose business helps stores learn about their customers, says, “Traditional stores offer a social experience that some people enjoy. There is still a lot of emotion in the buying decision that takes place, and you can't always get that on-line. It's a rather cold process. Traditional stores can provide goods for buyers more quickly than online stores. And some retailers are using websites to persuade people to visit their stores. ”
While online shopping worries some business owners, the only worry for delivery services like FedEx and UPS is keeping up with the number of packages. UPS Manager Dana Kline says her company is very busy at this time of year. UPS is so busy that it has filled 55,000 temporary worker positions during the holiday season.
【小題1】According to Lynne Shaner, shopping online ________.

A．helps choose things she needs most

B．will replace traditional shopping soon

C．offer many benefits to customers

D．seldom provides a better selection

【小題2】What does the underlined phrase “opt for” in the second paragraph mean?

A．choose

B．sell

C．design

D．purchase

【小題3】Professor Ed McLaughlin thinks that _________.

A．online shopping has little effect on traditional stores

B．it is time for store owners to be anxious about their business

C．traditional stores can do nothing to stop challenges from online shopping

D．traditional stores should sell more things that are difficult to ship

【小題4】What can we know from the fourth paragraph?

A．Online sales fail to offer customers sense of emotion.

B．Customers enjoy social experience when shopping online.

C．Traditional stores can help customers decide what to buy.

D．Customers can buy goods more quickly after visiting websites.

【小題5】From the passage we can infer _______.

A．UPS has filled more worker positions than FedEx

B．business owners are concerned about delivery services

C．FedEx is keeping up with UPS on the number of packages

D．delivery services are facing more and more pressure from online sales

Science Daily (May 1S, 2012) - People who rate themselves as having high emotional    intelligence (El) tend to overestimate (高估) their ability to detect deception(欺騙) in others.      This is the finding of a paper published in the journal Legal and Criminological Psychology on 18 May 2012.
Professor Stephen Porter. director of the Centre for the Advancement of Psychological     Science and Law at University of British Columbia Canada along with colleagues Dr. Leanne Brinke and Alysha Baker used a standard questionnaire to measure the EI of 116 participants.
These participants were then asked to view 20 videos from around the world of people     pleading （祈求） for the safe return of a missing family member. In half the videos the person     making the plea was responsible for the missing person's disappearance or murder.
The participants were asked to judge whether the pleas were honest or deceptive say how much confidence they had in their judgments, report the clues (線索) they had used to make those judgments and rate their emotional response to each plea.
Professor Porter found that higher EI was associated with overconfidence in assessing the sincerity of the pleas and sympathetic feelings towards people in the videos who turned out to be responsible for the disappearance.
Although EI, in general, was not associated with being better or worse at telling the difference between truths and lies. people with a higher ability to notice and express emotion (a component of EI) were not so good at spotting when people were telling lies.
Professor Porter says: "Taken together, these findings suggest findings features of emotional     intelligence and the decision-making processes they lead to may nave the paradoxical (適得其反的) effect of weakening people's ability to detect deception."
"These findings are important because El is a well-accepted concept and is used in a variety of fields, including the workplace"
【小題1】Which of the following is true about the study and its findings?

A．EI has something to do with telling truths and 1ies.

B．The participants were asked to identify liars on the spot.

C．The participants had to tell reasons for their judgments.

D．Those confident participants all made wrong judgments.

【小題2】According to Professor Porter's finding, people with higher EI

A．were actually less confident

B．were easy to be cheated for their kindness

C．had sympathy for the missing people

D．were good at spotting deception

【小題3】What does the underlined word "they" refer to?

A．Features of EI

B．People with high Ef

C．The findings

D．The researchers

【小題4】Workplace is specially mentioned in the last paragraph to ______.

A．indicate that people with high EI are mostly adults

B．indicate that EI is very important in the workplace

C．warn employers not to trust employees with high EI

D．warn people with high EI of deception in the workplace

【小題5】What is the best title for the passage?

A．How to detect deception in our daily life.

B．The disadvantages of high emotional intelligence.

C．The relationship between one's El and recognition.

D．Emotionally intelligent people are less good at spotting liars.

There is an old Chinese proverb that states "One Generation plants the trees; another gets the shade," and this is how it should be with mothers and daughters. The relationship between a mother and daughter is sometimes confusing. If close, the relationship can be similar to friendship. However, the mother and daughter relationship has unique characteristics that distinguish it from a friendship. These characteristics include a hierarchy (等級) of responsibility and unconditional love, which preclude mothers and daughters from being best friends. 
Marina, 27 years old, says, "I love spending time with my mom, but I wouldn't consider her my best friend. Best friends don't pay for your wedding. Best friends don't remind you how they carried you in their body and gave you life! Best friends don't tell you how wise they are because they have been alive at least 20 years longer than you.” This doesn't mean that the mother and daughter relationship can't be very close and satisfying.
While some adult relationships are still troubled, many find them to be extremely rewarding.     This generation of mothers and adult daughters has a lot in common which increases the likelihood of shared companionship. Mothers and daughters have always shared the common experience of being homemakers, responsible for maintaining and passing on family values and traditions. Today contemporary mothers and daughters also share the experience of the workforce and technology, which may bring them even closer together.
Best friends may or may not continue to be best friends, but for better or worse, the mother and daughter relationship is permanent, even if for some unfortunate reason they aren't speaking. The mother and child relationship is closer than any other. There is not an equal relationship. Daughters should not feel responsible for their mother's emotional well-being. It isn’t that they don't care deeply about their mothers. It's just that they shouldn't be burdened with their mother's well being.
The mother and daughter relationship is a relationship that is not replaceable by any other. Mothers never stop being mothers, which includes frequently wanting to protect their daughters and often feeling responsible for their happiness. Mother always "trumps" friend.
【小題1】The underlined word “preclude” in Paragraph 1 probably means “_________”.

A．differ

B．prevent

C．benefit

D．change

【小題2】Why do many mothers and adult daughters keep a rewarding relationship?

A．Because they have a lot in common.

B．Because they have common family values.

C．Because they have no generation gap.

D．Because they keep a constant relationship.

【小題3】What do we know from the passage?

A．The mother and daughter relationship can be replaced by a best friend.

B．A mother’s love brings her and her daughter a close friendship.

C．The mother and daughter relationship goes beyond best friends’ friendship.

D．Marina has a troubled relationship with her mother.

【小題4】The author proves his statements mainly by _________.

A．listing data

B．giving explanations

C．quoting sayings

D．making examples

【小題5】What is the best title for the passage?

A．How to be a good mother and daughter

B．Who is a mother’s best friend?

C．A friend in need is a friend indeed.

D．Can a mother be a daughter’s best friend?

Teeth are important．Strong，healthy teeth help you chew foods that help you grow．They help you speak clearly．And，they help you look your best．Here are some tips for you to take care of your teeth．
1．Brush your teeth in the right way．
Brush your teeth at least twice a day—after breakfast and lunch or after sweet snacks，too．
Brush all of your teeth，not just the front ones，Spend time brushing teeth along the sides and back of your mouth．Brush away from your gums，too．
Spend at least three minutes each time you brush．Play a song you like to help pass the time．Get a new toothbrush every three months．When you buy your toothbrush，be sure it has soft bristles．
2．Learn how to floss your teeth．
Flossing is a very important way to keep your teeth healthy．Food may hide in places where a toothbrush cannot get to，like the space between two teeth．Flossing can help get rid of it．Carefully move floss between two teeth．Up and down．You’ll need to floss your teeth at least once a day．
3．Have good eating habits．
You need to be careful about what you eat and drink. Eating sugar is a major of tooth decay．Eating sugar before you go to bed can make things even worse，eat lots of fruit and vegetables and drink water instead of soda．
【小題1】The passage is mainly about          ．

A．teeth are important.

B．how to brush and floss your teeth

C．how to form good eating habits

D．how to take care of your teeth

【小題2】The underlined word “tips” in this passage means          ．

A．money given to the waiter for personal services

B．piece of advice on how to do something

C．light blow, tap

D．thin end of something

【小題3】Which is NOT mentioned in this passage？

A．Flossing your teeth．	B．Having good eating habits．
C．Brushing your teeth．	D．Going to see the dentist．

【小題4】Which of the following statements is NOT true according to this article？

A．We should brush our teeth at least twice a day．

B．Flossing can help to get rid of the food hidden between two teeth．

C．One of the major causes of tooth decay is eating sugar．

D．We don’t have to brush our teeth if we eat a lot of fruit and vegetables．

Is veg food healthier than non-veg food? I feel this is a very common topic that people speak on．Please give me your opinions on this topic．
Rao 12-18-08	So far as veg food is concerned, it is also proved to be a healthy and nutritious diet, but has very few items which can provide us with proteins, but if you see non-veg food like eggs, chicken, and many more, such foods have a large content of proteins in them.
Sai 12-19-08	Man basically is herbivorous（食草的）. If we look at the animal kingdom We can see that all the herbivorous animals have the similar dental（牙齒的） structure, which clearly shows that the human being also ought to be vegetarian by birth. It is only the living conditions that make man carnivorous（食肉的）. The vegetarian foods are easily digestible.
Santos 12-20-08	Non-veg food items are better than veg items. A healthy person requires complete diet and veg + meat makes the diet complete. The only caution that needs to be taken is not to have non-veg items on a daily basis. Once in a week or couple of weeks will be best.
Krishna 01-03-09	When we eat non-veg, we are all veg by nature. The chicken that we eat feeds on grains, the mutton that we eat feeds on grass, and the fish that we eat feeds on simple plants. So non-veg food by logic（邏輯）is better and suited for hauman beings.
Khan 01-05-09	Non-veg food is equally important in our diet as it helps in many ways, especially fish and other seafood as fish contains omega 3 which makes our immune system（免疫系統(tǒng)）stronger. Do you know that most of the veg food put together does not contain as much omega 3 as fish alone contains!

【小題1】According to Rao, what is the problem with veg food?

A．It damages our immune system.	B．It has few nutrients.
C．It contains too much omega 3.	D．It is lacking in protein.

【小題2】In the opinion of Sai, humans are born vegetarian because humans        .

A．have the same teeth structure as plant-eating animals

B．believe that veg foods are good for their teeth

C．belong to the plant-eating animal family

D．can adapt to the living conditions like plant-eating animals

【小題3】What advice is given by Santos?

A．To have a daily veg + meat diet.

B．Not to eat non-veg food every day.

C．To eat digestible food every day.

D．Not to eat food without protein.

As demand for power and fuel grows steadily in the coming decades, we must consider every possible energy source（來源）on hand if we're to meet the world's needs. And because clean natural gas is found in great plenty, there is little doubt that it will play a major role on the world energy stage in this century, much like oil did in the last. But, like oil, gas reserves are concentrated in just a few places in the world, usually far from where they're needed most. And that's only part of the challenge. The world has had well over 100 years to search for oil and to build the necessary facilities（設(shè)施）to bring it to market; the natural gas facilities, particularly when it comes to liquefied（液化）natural gas（LNG）, are not nearly as developed.
So what needs to be done? On the supply side, producing nations need policies that allow for better development of their natural gas in an open, stable business environment, not one in which the rules of the game change without warning. The governments of consuming nations, on the other hand, must make policies for sustainable（可持續(xù)的）development to ensure they'll have enough supplies in the future. That means building the related facilities, including LNG stations. This, in turn, will require coastal areas to allow these necessary, but not necessarily pretty, facilities to be built in their backyards. And energy companies have a responsibility to be good neighbors in those areas by operating these facilities responsibly and safely. They must also continue to put in the billions of dollars needed to build the complex transport and storage facilities required to bring more gas to market.
Expanding and diversifying（使多樣化）energy sources by using more natural gas could lead to lower fuel prices and to greater energy security. We've taken some of the steps to get started, but we need your help to get the rest of the way.
【小題1】Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Gas played a major part in the 20th century.

B．Natural gas facilities are far from satisfactory.

C．Gas reserves are widely spread around the world.

D．Necessary facilities are ready to bring gas to market.

【小題2】 The underlined word "one"（in Paragraph 2）refers to _____________.

A．a(chǎn) gas supply side	B．a(chǎn) business environment
C．a(chǎn) gas consuming nation	D．a(chǎn) policy for gas development

【小題3】Consuming nations of natural gas need to ___________.

A．change the rules of the game

B．open markets in their backyards

C．build pretty facilities along the coast

D．have long-term policies for gas supply

【小題4】 The main purpose of the passage is to _______.

A．warn people of the lack of power and fuel

B．discuss the importance of oil and natural gas

C．call for better use and development of natural gas

D．instruct people how to make use of energy sources

【小題5】 The passage might be followed by a paragraph about

A．what kind of help you can offer

B．where energy sources are concentrated

C．which countries are in great need of gas

D．what problems of energy sources we may face

Human beings are the most intelligent of all animals because we are gifted with the ability to think and reason logically. Scientists and even common people with special intelligence have made a lot of inventions and contributions to modern lifestyle in the past. "Houses" have been the most popular area for discoveries and inventions in the past and even now.
Many household items have been the result of inventions of people who desired better functioning of the existent products. Every individual has intelligence and if it is used properly for the right purpose it leads to invention of a new tool or device. Many new household inventions are made almost every day and there are specific companies, which particularly keep a record of all these inventions.
A lot of inventions have been made recently in the household field. These products are patented（專利的）and have trade mark licenses（許可）. The patented sliding cinch is a very simple but effective method to prevent shoulder stress and injury for those who work before computers all day long. Vanity PC is a type of computer furniture that specifically hides all the computer wires and keeps a clean and good look. All the outdoor dust, mud and snow can be kept out of the house by installing（安裝）the dirt drain（排水管）at the entrance of the door. Another important invention is the automatic toilet night-light, in which a small light starts when the lid of the toilet seat is opened and closes as soon as the lid（蓋子）is closed.
These are some of the new household inventions invented mostly by common people. Thus, a variety of new household items are invented every day, which helps in a better functioning of household chores（家務(wù)）and in a more useful manner.
【小題1】The first paragraph is intended to _____________.

A．stress the importance of inventions

B．introduce the topic of the article

C．show the advantages of modern lifestyle

D．tell the differences between human beings and animals

【小題2】 According to the passage, people make house inventions to _____________.

A．earn more money and gain awards

B．a(chǎn)ccumulate their wealth

C．improve the present living conditions

D．meet the new demands of new science

【小題3】 It can be inferred that the sliding cinch is used to ___________.

A．prevent your shoulder from being over-pressured

B．keep your shoulder safe and sound when you are in an accident or an operation

C．help you practice your shoulder more often and reduce shoulder pains

D．cover your shoulder and make it stronger to resist the outside strike

【小題4】Common people can also make good inventions because ___________.

A．wisdom and inspiration sometimes come from everyday life

B．some inventions are easy to be made and can be mastered by them

C．common people have a strong desire to do something for science research

D．success is often connected with hardship and bitter experience of common people

【小題5】The passage mainly talks about _______________.

A．the correct use of household facilities

B．different ideas about household inventions

C．the history of household inventions

D．household inventions and their influence

Nowadays the problem of the generation gap is becoming more and more serious. Poor relationship between parents and their children are very common.
Whether we like it or not, our parents are responsible for us at least until we’re out of high school. So rather than get upset about that fact, maybe we should focus on some ways to make our relationship better. The best way, in my opinion, is to learn to really communicate with my parents.
When I find myself arguing with my mom and dad, I try to stop. If I can manage to stop myself from talking, I usually find that I can calm down quickly. I guess I’m usually acting out of emotion rather than logic(邏輯). But if I can stop arguing for a minute, it seems that my opinion changes and I start to realize that I’m a bit childish. Emotionally I may still be upset, but logically I understand that yelling(大叫大嚷) and fighting surely won’t make things better.
Once I’ve stopped arguing, I look at my parents in the eye. You’d be amazed at how much easier it is to communicate with your parents when you’ve actually looking at them. Looking away doesn’t do much of anything except for giving them the impression that I’m not listening or that I don’t care. It’s much easier to see things eye to eye when you’re physically seeing them eye to eye.
Finally, I listen to what they’re saying (or at least I try). Communication can’t happen unless both sides hear and listen to each other. There is nothing wrong with my hearing, but that doesn’t mean I always listen to the sounds that people are making. When I argue with my parents, I can physically hear what they’re saying without mentally listening to it.
Whether I admit it or not, my parents’ experience can actually help them give me some pretty sound advice at times. I don’t always agree with them, but I think it’s safe to say that it has truly helped our relationship in the long run.
【小題1】What can we learn from the passage?

A．Listening is better than yelling and fighting.

B．It is impolite to see your parents eye to eye.

C．Be careful when you take your parents’ advice.

D．Parents are sometimes easy to get upset.

【小題2】 Parents and children can communicate only when_______.

A．both sides stop yelling and fighting

B．both sides start thinking what to say next

C．both sides agree with each other

D．both sides can listen to each other

【小題3】Which of the following advice is NOT mentioned in the passage?

A．Looking	B．Smiling warmly
C．Listening	D．Stopping arguing

【小題4】The author thinks we should first _______ when arguing with our parents.

A．look at their eyes	B．fight for the truth
C．stop arguing	D．talk in a low voice

The smartphone has become the centerpiece of many students' digital lives.
Yes, it can be a distraction(困擾，分心), but it is also an incredible tool that can transform classroom learning and late-night studying.
Professors and students are starting to explore what the smartphone can contribute to learning-and there is a whole host of apps（設(shè)備） to help that process along. There are also plenty of apps to help students with the less academic parts of college life.
To download any of these apps, search the iTunes App Store or Android Market. iOS apps are built for Apple's mobile platform and can run on the iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad.
Skype
Cost: Free
Platform: Android, BlackBerry, iOS
More and more smartphones now ship with front-facing cameras that make them great video chat tools.
There are several competitors here ---- including Apple's FaceTime ----but Skype is still the best cross-platform tool for keeping in touch with faraway friends and family. Users on either end can be on a computer, smartphone.
Grades 2
Cost: Free
Platform: iOS
This app is a sophisticated tool for calculating grades. Students can use it to figure out what grade they'll need on a test to achieve their target grade and also keeps track of overall GPA, weighted by each class's credit count.
Students can also enter due dates for assignments as reminders.
The app is free and supported by ads, but users can pay $1 inside the app to turn them off.
Snoozerr Recordings
Cost: 99 cents
Platform: iOS
This is a great tool for logging long lecture classes or smaller study sessions(授課時間）． It records audio and pairs that with time-stamped pictures that the student takes of presentations--- say, equations（方程）on a blackboard----or of his or her own notes.
When the student wants to review, he or she can use the pictures as a visual guide to what the instructor was saying and replay that section.
TED
Cost: Free
Platform: iOS
This app is great for the student in everyone. It compiles（編輯）video from hundreds of presentations at technology, entertainment and design----a conference that features short speeches focused on new ways of thinking.
Presenters often speak about technology, social good or education and challenge societal norms.
It's a great way to spend an hour or so hearing from some of the world's leading minds for free. All of the videos are also available at www.ted.com.
AroundMe
Cost: Free
Platform: Android and iOS
This app uses a smartphone's GPS to find nearby locations by category such as banks, gas stations, bars, coffee shops, restaurants and supermarkets---- all the college staples(主要產(chǎn)品).
【小題1】In which section of a newspaper could you find this article?

A．Science & Tech.

B．Entertainment.

C．Life.

D．Tourism.

【小題2】What might be the best title for the text?

A．How to Improve College Students' Studies

B．How to Download Computer Games

C．How to Choose the Latest Smartphone

D．Five Tech Tools for College Students

【小題3】Many college students use Grades 2 mainly for _____.

A．chatting	B．calculating
C．hearing speeches	D．recording lectures

【小題4】If you want to use your smartphone to find a nearby supermarket, you should download _____.          .

A．TED

B．AroundMe

C．Skype

D．Grades 2

【小題5】ios means _____.

A．TED

B．VCS

C．OS

D．ECX

Near the village, there is an old famous temple. Some people want to build new houses where the temple now stands, because they can find no other area to build them, while others disagree with them. They meet to decide how to solve the problem. Here are their opinions about it.
The expert wants to protect the temple and believes that there are some interesting things buried in the ground. If it is destroyed or moved, people may never learn about how people lived in the past.
The businessman thinks that the houses should be built. History is important, but we must think about the future. The village needs development and building new houses will offer jobs to hundreds of people.
Villager A says, “We should build the new houses because we need houses to live in.”
Villager B says, “We should protect the temple because it can attract many tourists to come for a visit. If the temple is destroyed or moved, we will lose a lot of business.”
The village leader thinks that he has a duty to make life better for the villagers. They need jobs and new houses. He also thinks the cultural site (遺跡) is important and they should be careful with it as well.
【小題1】The expert doesn’t want to _______ the old famous temple.

A．rebuild

B．protect

C．pull down

D．fall down

【小題2】The businessman thinks building houses there can _______.

A．help the village develop

B．a(chǎn)ttract many tourists to come for a visit

C．help people learn about how people lived in the past

D．help people learn about the interesting things buried in the ground

【小題3】_______ agree that they should build new houses there.

A．The expert and the village leader

B．The businessman and Villager

C．Villager A and Villager

D．Villager B and the businessman

【小題4】The village leader thinks _______.

A．they should destroy the temple

B．they needn’t build new houses

C．They should build the temple to make life better

D．they should not only build new houses but also be careful with the temple

【小題5】According to the passage, which of the following is RIGHT?

A．It’s difficult to satisfy everyone.

B．The cultural site is not so important.

C．It’s easy to make a decision on the problem.

D．The villagers will lose their jobs with the development of their hometown