It’s often said of British people that they are very aware of each other’s social rank. Britons can usually work out a fellow countryman’s background from the way they speak or dress, and may even treat them differently based on this. But although this may have been truer in the past than it is today, visitors to Britain say that they still notice it. The comic play Pygmalion (1913), by the Irishman George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), is a famous exploration of the importance of social rank in British society.
The main story of the play concerns a working class girl, Eliza Doolittle, a flower seller from London. Two upper class gentlemen try to see if they can get Doolittle to appear like an upper class lady after sending her for elocution lessons. Professor Henry Higgins, a language expert, says it can be done; his friend Colonel Pickering says that it’s impossible. Even so, Higgins sets out to teach Eliza how to “speak properly”.
Of course, Eliza isn’t a lump of clay; she has her own will. She can see that it’s in her best interest to go along with Higgins’ plan to “improve herself”. She wants to be able to sell flowers in a shop rather than on the street. After the training, Eliza proves that a flower girl can pass herself off as a lady at a ball. She is a triumph (赢家), and Higgins has won his bet.
But what happens next? Eliza has her future to worry about. She may be able to fool the upper class into thinking she’s one of them, but she isn’t really one of them.
Shaw seems to be telling us that social rank is about more than the way someone talks-it’s about wealth and privilege. The whole experiment proves the idea that accents and classes are very superficial (肤浅的). The way one speaks and dresses are only markers of class. The class system itself, however, is something completely different.
1.What can we learn about speaking and dressing from Paragraph 1?
A.They determine Britons’ social rank.
B.Britons are stricter in them nowadays.
C.Britons no longer care about them.
D.They could affect others’ opinion of a person.
2.Which can replace the underlined word “elocution”?
A.dress B.manners
C.speech D.dance
3.What happens to Eliza Doolittle during the experiment?
A.She is forced to give up selling flowers on the street.
B.She is unwilling to participate in the experiment.
C.She is thought of as an upper-class lady at the ball.
D.She is hopeful about her future.
4.Which of the following would Shaw probably agree with?
A.One can enter the upper class after receiving training.
B.People should try their best to improve their accents.
C.The way people speak greatly affects their social status.
D.Social rank can t he judged by dressing or speaking.
Although Paris is often considered the city of romance, close to a million adults who call it home are single. Many single people say that France’s capital is one of the most difficult places to meet people. The complaints of this lonely group have inspired a new phenomenon known as “supermarket dating”. At Galerie Lafayette Gourmet, singles can shop for more than just the items on their grocery list. They can look for someone who has blue eyes, brown hair, and is 1.8 meters tall, or whatever may be on their romantic shopping list.
At this Paris location, single people of all ages can schedule their shopping for Thursday nights between 6:30 and 9:00 p.m. When they walk through the door, they pick up a purple basket to advise that they are looking for love. They try to arrive early because the baskets disappear quickly, and then they have to wait in line for their turn to wander the store aisles. With purple baskets in hand, shoppers can consider their romantic options while they pick out their groceries. When they are ready to pay, they can go to the checkout line for singles who want to chat.
Most of the people who look for love in the supermarket are skeptical of Internet dating. They know that it is easy to embellish (美化) one’s appearance or to lie about one’s age over the Internet. The supermarket, on the other hand, is considered a safe and casual environment in which to meet a potential match. In addition, what one finds in another’s grocery basket can say a thing or two about that person’s character or intentions. Buying pet food can be a man’s way of showing a potential match that he has a sensitive side. Women who fill their baskets with low-fat food show their healthy style of living. These days it’s possible to find much more than food at a grocery store.
1.What do many single people in Pairs complain about?
A.The difficulty in finding a match.
B.The idea of supermarket dating.
C.The items on their grocery list.
D.The inconvenience in shopping.
2.Which of the following can be inferred but is not clearly stated in the second paragraph?
A.The dating supermarket is located in Paris.
B.The dating supermarket is open only on Thursday evenings.
C.Only single people can shop in the supermarket.
D.The dating supermarket has very good business.
3.How do love shoppers meet one another?
A.They schedule their meeting in advance.
B.They go through a special checkout.
C.They pick out their groceries with great care.
D.They dial the phone numbers on their shopping items.
4.Why do the people prefer the supermarket dating to Internet dating?
A.The supermarket dating is more convenient.
B.The supermarket dating is more fun.
C.The supermarket dating is more trustworthy.
D.The supermarket dating is more economical.
Full of old-style houses, Wuzhen in Zhejiang province has long been a tourist attraction. But a few days ago, this ancient town was unusually full of people. It hosted the third annual World Internet Conference, held between Nov 16 and 18.
Tech firm bosses, academics and government officials went there to share their understanding of the event’s theme – “Innovation-driven (创新驱动的) Internet Development for the Benefit of All – Building a Community of Common Future in Cyberspace (网络空间)”.
When it comes to innovation, many tech firms in China are looking at artificial intelligence.
Baidu’s latest development is based on AI technology. It’s called Baidu Brain, an artificial intelligence project that aims to greatly improve computing by copying the way the human brain operates. It can be used to tell which diseases patients have. According to a test at Peking University International Hospital, 80 percent of its technology’s diagnosis (诊断) results agree with the opinions of doctors.
Another tech giant, Alibaba, is also trying to make use of AI.
During the conference, Alibaba’s Ant Financial company showed off its “Smile to Pay” technology. Registered (注册的) users can complete transactions (交易) by simply having their face scanned by a computer screen at the cashier’s (收银员的) desk, without having to put in a PIN number or open an app, according to China Radio International.
The Chinese market for AI technology is huge. But Zhang Yaqin, president of Baidu, told Xinhua, “AI cannot do everything, but it will certainly free people from repetitive jobs. Our ultimate (最终的) goal is to let people do more creative and interesting things.”
1.Wuzhen is mentioned at the beginning of the passage because ______.
A.it is full of people
B.it has many old-style houses
C.it has long been a tourist attraction
D.it hosted the World Internet Conference
2.What do we know about Baidu Brain?
A.It aims to replace the human brain.
B.It can be used to diagnose diseases.
C.It can cure 80% patients of their diseases.
D.It is developed by Peking University International Hospital.
3.Who are most likely to use “Smile to Pay” technology?
A.The cashiers at the desk.
B.China Radio International.
C.Alibaba’s Registered customers.
D.Alibaba’s Ant Financial company.
4.The main purpose of developing AI technology is to ______.
A.help people do repetitive jobs
B.free people from creative work
C.let people share their understanding of AI
D.inspire people to be more innovation-driven
Dear daughters,
Most parents tell their children, “You can be anything you want when you grow up.” I feel the same and I say this often. But I also want you to understand that realizing your dreams comes from hard work, some good luck and good timing.
Here are some words of wisdom for you as you make your way in the world, from an entrepreneur (企业家) and from your mama.
1. Be open-minded to changing your path along the way
In high school, I wanted to be a politician. I left my hometown and went off to college in Washington,
DC. There, I discovered that I loved to support women. It taught me that I’m creative, a strong leader and great at marketing. As a result, I moved on to be the head of a national healthcare nonprofit. Becoming a mother while in that job opened my mind to launching a breast pump bag (储奶袋) business. Now I run a highly successful company that I started up on my own. I'm not a politician!
2. Failure is critical to your success
Failure can be heartbreaking. But I will tell you that every failure I’ve had along the way has absolutely made me better.
Failing the big math exam in high school and going to summer school was embarrassing. I eventually passed, and I’ve never failed an exam again. I learned from that experience to ask for help. Now, I ask for help in business all the time.
I’m proud to be a role model to you as a mom and an entrepreneur. I hope I inspire you to believe that you can be anything you want. It will be my pleasure to watch your lives unfold before my eyes.
Love,
Your mom
1.In the writer’s opinion, what does it take to realize one’s dream?
A.Failure, hard work and good timing.
B.An open mind, failure and hard work.
C.Hard work, good luck and good timing.
D.A good dream, an open mind and hard work.
2.What did the writer learn from her failure?
A.Failure can make us embarrassed.
B.We shouldn’t get angry when we fail.
C.Don’t care too much about your failure.
D.It’s important to turn to others for help.
3.Which of the following words best describe the writer?
A.Political and proud.
B.Caring and cautious.
C.Modest and unlucky.
D.Flexible and successful.
假定你是李华，本学期你的美国朋友Tom在你所在的城市做交换生。请你给他写一封邮件，邀请他参加“英语角”，内容包括：
1. 地点：中央公园第二广场（the second square of Central Park）；
2. 活动时间：每周六上午8:30-11:00；
3. 活动的意义。
注意：
1. 词数100左右；
2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
根据下列句子中所给的汉语提示，写出相应单词的正确形式（请将完整单词写在答题卡相应的位置上）。
1.The club provides all kinds of __________ (活动) including tennis, swimming and Yoga.
2.The river was so __________ (污染) that it actually caught fire and burned.
3.The introduction __________ (解释) the author’s purpose for writing this article.
4.When someone says something __________ (无聊的) I usually shut my eyes and pretend to go to sleep.
5.We are all proud of the __________ (传统) culture of our nation.
6.I wonder if you can give me a ____________ (描述) of the celebration.
7.Then they told the other ____________ (好奇的) travelers about their adventure in the desert in details!
8.The book obviously has a ____________ (负面的，消极的) impact on the readers, so don’t let the students read it.
9.Thank you for sharing this ____________ (鼓舞人心的) story with us, which has increased our confidence and passion.
10.In the old days, it usually took weeks for letters to be ____________ (递送).
