Is war unavoidable? Can war be prevented?

History tells that there were wars, great or small, in every century, in every decade. Throughout the ages, from the Stone age to the Atomic Age, men have been fighting, first with swords and shields(盾), then with guns and cannons, and now, hydrogen bombs and missiles are used for military purpose. But, in spite of all these, it is still my belief that war can be prevented and peace can be won, but it requires the effort of every one of us.

I am sure that we would not like to experience another world war. If it ever happens, two-thirds of the world and much of the civilization which men have gained through time, patience and effort will be destroyed. Will then the remaining one-third of the world be able to survive on its own?

Our task now is not to blame the past, but to plan for the future.

If there is peace in the world, men can use their rockets to explore the mystery of space, their submarines to explore the depth of the sea, their missiles to deliver mails and their fine equipment to penetrate(穿透) the jungles of Africa, instead of using them military.

Governments can use their money to build more schools, so that more children can be educated to be useful citizens. Scientists can use atomic energy to propel (推动) steamships and planes. They can also design new machines to increase the production of goods and thus improve the way of living of the people.

How can a peaceful world be achieved? It requires, in my opinion, the understanding and friendship between all people from all nations. Let no one suffer discrimination by reason of color, race, religion, or national origin. Let the rich support the poor and the strong help the weak.

We know that neither peace nor such a dream world can come true in a day or a month. It may even take decades or centuries. But let us plan and begin now.

1.The best title for this passage is _________.

2.In the writer’s opinion, __________.

3.We can infer from the passage that __________.

4.What should we do to achieve peace?

5.Which word can best describe the writer’s picture of the future of the world?

The UK has a well-­respected higher education system and some of the top universities and research institutions in the world. But to those who are new to it all, sometimes it can be confusing.

October is usually the busiest month in the college calendar. Universities have something called Freshers’ Week for their newcomers. It’s a great opportunity to make new friends, join lots of clubs and settle into university life．

However, having just left the comfort of home and all your friends behind, the prospect（前景）of meeting lots of strangers in big halls can be nerve-­wracking（令人头痛的）. Where do you start? Who should you make friends with? Which clubs should you join?

Luckily, there will be thousands of others in the same boat as you worrying about starting their university social life on the right foot. So just take it all in slowly. Don’t rush into anything that you’ll regret for the next three years.

Here is some top advice from past students on how to survive Freshers’ Week：

●Learn rules. Make sure you know British social etiquette（礼节）. Have a few wine glasses and snacks handy for your housemates and friends.

●Be kind. Sometimes cups of tea or even slices of toast can give you a head start in making friends.

●Be sociable. The more active you are, the more likely you’ll be to meet new people than those who never leave their room.

●Bring a doorstop. Keep your door open when you’re in and that sends positive messages to your neighbors that you’re friendly.

So with a bit of clever planning and effort, Freshers’ Week can give you a great start to your university life and soon you’ll be passing on your experience to next year’s new recruits．

1.Which of the following statements is FALSE according to the passage？

2.The underlined word “recruits” in the last paragraph refers to 　　　　．

3.We can infer from the 4th paragraph that 　　　　．

4.Why does the author suggest having wine glasses and snacks handy？

5.The main purpose of the passage is to 　　　　．

How I Turned to Be Optimistic

I began to grow up that winter night when my parents and I were returning from my aunt's house, and my mother said that we might soon be leaving for America. We were on the bus then. I was crying, and some people on the bus were turning around to look at me. I remember that I could not bear the thought of never hearing again the radio program for school children to which I listened every morning.

I do not remember myself crying for this reason again. In fact, I think I cried very little when I was saying goodbye to my friends and relatives. When we were leaving I thought about all the places I was going to see-—the strange and magical places I had known only from books and pictures. The country I was leaving never to come back was hardly in my head then.

The four years that followed taught me the importance of optimism, but the idea did not come to me at once. For the first two years in New York I was really lost—having to study in three schools as a result of family moves. I did not quite know what I was or what I should be. Mother remarried, and things became even more complex for me. Some time passed before my stepfather and I got used to each other. I was often sad, and saw no end to "the hard times."

My responsibilities in the family increased a lot since I knew English better than everyone else at home. I wrote letters, filled out forms, translated at interviews with Immigration officers, took my grandparents to the doctor and translated there, and even discussed telephone bills with company representatives.

From my experiences I have learned one important rule: almost all common troubles eventually go away! Something good is certain to happen in the end when you do not give up, and just wait a little! I believe that my life will turn out all right, even though it will not be that easy.

1.How did the author get to know America?

2.Upon leaving for America the author felt_______.

3.For the first two years in New York, the author _________.

4.What can we learn about the author from Paragraph 4?

5.The author believes that______.

Everyone has his own attitude____1____ getting old. The night before her eighth birthday, I found my daughter Lizzy sat on her bed ____2____ (weep). “I love being seven,” she cried. “I don’t want to be eight!” I held her in my arms and explained that____3____ was going to be even better to be eight than being seven. I told her how much I loved her and ____4____a wonderful birthday she was going to have. Eventually she was comforted. It’s always strange ____5____ (tell) that you are a year older, even when you aren’t very old. Now I’m in my early 60s, and I don’t always recognize the face in the mirror, _____6____ something has changed the way that I think. The process of aging ____7____(increasing) interests and amazes me, annoys and irritates me, and sometimes still makes me ____8___(frighten), too, but much, much less than it used to. There is ____9____ ongoing sadness at the absence of the friends and family members____10____ have died before me.

I can still remember when I met my best friend．She had just moved into the neighborhood and her grandmother brought her down to   1  me．I hid behind my mother she hid behind her grandmother，   2   to look at each other．Soon we lost the    3 and started playing with each other．

In the 7^th grade，I first intentionally distanced myself from her．At that time, she was  4  family problems and I deserted her to be with me because she got _  5 than ever before．None of my new friends liked her as much as I did because they knew she had_  6 ．However，every summer we couldalways sit at each other’s house and watch soap operas，and talk about all the boys we liked．

It was last year when I noticed the problem．I guess I was too devoted in high school to    7   she needed someone there for her．Anyway，she made a new best friend and so did I．Then I didn’t know why，but she started cutting herself!

She then was diagnosed（诊断）with clinical depression．At first，I was very 8 ，but we still stayed in  __9___．I wanted to be there for her since her new best friend basically  10 __ her and people were calling her  11 ．

Yesterday she came to me and said：“I never knew what a best friend was until you were the only person that would stop me cutting．I  12 you so much，and you didn’t even know you were ___13 me．”

We both cried．And a kind of  14 that I learn from my life so far is never to give up on your friends．Even if they aren’t as warm as others，or people think they are crazy，they need someonethere．If you desert them，you will only be  15 yourself.

In junior high school, one of my classmates, Ethan, was addicted to TV. This boy simply knew everything about such pop shows as Who’s the Boss?

    Then one day Ethan’s mother made an offer in order to draw him back to his school subjects. She promised that she would give him $200 if he could go a full month without watching any TV. None of us thought Ethan could do it, but he did quite well. His mom paid him $200. He went out and bought a TV, the biggest he could find.

    In recent years, hundreds of schools have carried out experiments with paying kids with each for showing up or getting good grades. All school kids admire this trend. But it upsets adults. Teachers say that we are rewarding kids for doing what they should be doing of their own will. Psychologists warn that money can actually make kids perform worse by making the act of learning cheap. The debate has become a typical battle over why our kids are not learning at the rate they should he despite decades of reforms and budget increases.

[写作内容] 1. 以约30词概括上文的主要内容。

2. 以约120词对用金钱鼓励孩子学习的现象进行议论，内容包括：

(1)你对用金钱鼓励孩子学习的看法;

(2)你的父母(或其他亲人)是如何鼓励你学习的；

(3)你认为怎样才能更好地鼓励孩子学习。

[写作要求]

1. 可以使用实例或其它论述方法支持你的论点，也可以参照阅读材料的内容，但不得直接引用原文中的句子；

2. 标题自定。

3. 作文中不能出现真实姓名和学校名称。

[评分标准] 概括准确，语言规范，内容合适，篇章连贯。

首先，请先阅读下列的应用文：

A. Gesichter of Orients

Documents of the life of the various cultures who lived in the region of present-day Jordan, from the early Neolithic (8th century B.C.) to the early Islamic period. Besides, there are documents about other religious group.

B. Covering the Real

Works by Warhol, Richter, Polke, Baldessari and another 20 artists show the relationship between art of different ages in different ways—photography, painting, video, installation and the press picture.

C. At Home with ter Borch

While Gerard ter Borch the younger is well known as a Dutch master, few people know that the other members of the family were also highly skilled in art. The exhibition shows about 80 drawings by ter Broch, his father and his half-brothers and sister.

D. Robert Couturier: 100Ans of Sculptor

Celebrate the 100th birthday of the French sculptor, the exhibition brings together more than 100 sculptures and drawings. Couturier, who developed a close relationship with Maillol, found his inspiration in the human body, and use stone, plaster and bronze to express it.

E. Follow me! Chinese Art at the Threshold of the New Millennium

Looks at the work of 19 artists born after 1960 who escaped the ideological influence of the Cultural Revolution. Everyday life and separation in the new age and in the big cities, as well as marks of the Revolution.

F. China Crossroads of Culture

Explores the development of Chinese art from the Han through the Tang dynasties, a period when waves of conquest, trade and immigration along the Silk Road set off a new Chinese creativity. The 200 items include objects in jade, gold, silver, textiles, works on paper and wall painting.

请阅读以下个人信息，然后为其选择合适的地方。

1.Bessy: Having been interested in painting for 3 years, she now falls in love with sculpture. She feels the form can express fully what she sees, feels, and thinks. Recently, she has joined in the local sculpture club.

2.Collins: He is an exchange scholar on art. Since childhood, he has been fascinated in Chinese ancient art. The land with a long history, the “great inventions”, the hard-working nation with full wisdom, has played a world leading role in human history for thousands of years. He always wonders, how they achieved this?

3.Mr. Chang: An overseas Chinese. He left China soon after the founding of New China. All things are proving the success of China’s opening-up policy, and he feels inspired and proud. He’d like to know more about its recent development.

4.Paul: He is a graduate of Leeds University. Working on a report about religion, especially Christianity, Muslim and Islam, he has made many visits to famous religious places and spent much time in libraries searching for related information and proof.

5.Denny: He is a college student who majors in art. As an excellent student in the department, he has done some research on the art expressing ways of different times. He’d like to find out that with the development of science and technology, what new ways can be adopted to show art?

When I was six years old, my mom told me that I could find anyone's number in the phone book. I used to look through the phone book for hours trying to find Michael Jordan's phone number. When I couldn't find it, I just dialed seven numbers. When someone answered, I'd ask, "Is that Michael Jordan?" Obviously, I always had the wrong number.

A year later I started playing basketball at my local recreation center. It was very big. I never thought in my wildest dreams that a basketball court could be inside a building. The recreation center had a special smell in it, sort of like hot rubber. I guessed it was from the shoes hitting the floor so fast and hard. The atmosphere on the court was carefree. Our biggest excitement of the day was when we actually made a shot. We celebrated wins over ice cream at a fast food restaurant.

I got good at it, and my confidence grew. I played it all the time until the sixth grade. As soon as junior high school came, I stopped playing basketball and focused on school. When senior high school started, I tried out for the school team and made it. We worked hard. Every week we did 300 push-ups and 300 sit-ups on our own. Our coach encouraged the sit-ups to keep stomach power, because it gave us so much control when we were playing basketball. If we didn't want to do the sit-ups and push-ups, we could practice dribbling (����) and shooting more. It's just us, the ball, the court and the net. But don't take my word for it. See for yourself. After all, I'm just one kid playing the game.

1.From Paragraph 1 we know that ____.

A. the author's mother gave him some wrong phone numbers

B. the phone book contained everyone's phone number except Michael Jordan's

C. the author wanted to contact Michael Jordan very much

D. the author didn't know how to use a phone at that time

2.What is Paragraph 2 mainly about?

A. The days of the author playing basketball at a recreation center.

B. The author's excitement of making shots when playing basketball.

C. The days before the author went to senior high school.

D. The author's happy childhood with his teammates.

3.What surprised the author most at the recreation center?

A. That it was very near to his home.

B. That there was a basketball court inside the building.

C. That there was a special smell in it.

D. That there was a fast food restaurant in it.

4.The author's coach encouraged them to do sit-ups because ____.

A. it is the basic preparation to play basketball

B. it is more useful than dribbling and shooting

C. it is the only way to make people stronger

D. it helps keep stomach power

5.What's the author's purpose in writing this passage?

A. To introduce some skills in playing basketball.

B. To tell us about his dream of becoming a basketball star.

C. To introduce his own experience of playing basketball.

D. To tell us how to balance playing basketball and studying.

There are robots all around us. Some do very complicated jobs like flying airplanes and driving subway trains. and some do one simple job. When an automatic washing machine is switched on, water pours in. The machine waits until the water is warm enough for washing clothes. It does this by “feedback”(反馈). Information about what is happening is feedback into the robot to tell what to do next. Our eyes, ears and other senses are our feedback. They tell us what is going on around us. So robots are like human beings in two ways. They work and they have feedback.

In some ways robots are better than human beings. They work quickly and do not make mistakes. They do not get bored doing the same job over and over again. And they never get tired. So robots are very useful in factories. They can be taught to do many different jobs. First their electronic brain must be shown how the job is done. A person moves the robot’s “arms” and “hands” through each part of the job.

The most intelligent robots can move and see. Their eyes are cameras. Their fingers can feel shapes and sizes of the objects. These robots have computer brains linked to their eyes and fingers, which control their actions. The expensive robots are used in scientific research. They do such job as handling radioactive materials.

1.In this passage the author tells us that ________.

A. robots are very popular

B. there are various kinds of robots

C. we see robots only at certain times

D. robots can be easily controlled

2.What does the author seem to inform you about robots?

A. They should be greatly improved.           

B. They will probably take over in the future.

C. They are very helpful and useful to humans.  

D. They are machines that break down a lot.

3.The author says that in industry ________.

A. robots break down a lot

B. robots can do many jobs

C. robots only get in the way

D. robots sometimes cause troubles

4.The fact that a robot never gets bored doing the same job means that _______.

A. it is very much like human beings    

B. it can do boring jobs for people

C. it will never bore people             

D. it will work much better than human beings

5.The robots used for scientific research _______.

A. are not very clever             B. are very cheap

C. are very big                   D. are very costly

For the first time in Hong Kong’s history, an entertainer has been written into middle school textbooks. He is considered one of the best actors in Hong Kong. Yes, he is Chow Yun-fat.

The example of his long hard struggle for success has been used in a chapter in a Hong Kong middle school textbook. Using his experience, students can learn to make the most of their time and to grab every opportunity to succeed．

    On hearing about this, Chow said happily, “I really hope that my experiences can make young people understand that one should not be afraid of difficulties and setbacks (挫折), for they are the only way to success.”

    Indeed, Chow has travelled a long and difficult path to reach his success. In 1955, he was born into a poor family in Hong Kong. When he was 17, he had to leave school. He worked in a number of jobs—as a postman, camera salesman and taxi driver. These experiences paved (铺路) the way for him to play all kinds of roles later in life.

    Chow broke into the film industry in the late 1970s. He was one of the hardest working actors and starred in a number of popular TV dramas and films including “Shanghai Bund”(《上海滩》) and “A Better Tomorrow”. Since 1985, he has won many awards including Taiwan's Golden Horse Awards and Hong Kong Film Awards.

In 1995, he went to Hollywood. Although he was already over 40, he had to learn English. He even put chopsticks in his mouth to practise pronouncing certain sounds. His film, “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”, began to gain him more fame and recognition around the world. In 1998, the mayor of Chicago set aside January 12 as “Chow Yun-fat Day”.

1.Chow Yun-fat has been written into middle school textbooks mainly because ________.

A. he plays best in Hong Kong

B. he keeps on struggling for success

C. his experiences are very special

D. he is well thought of

2.Chow felt ________ when he learned that he had been written into middle school textbooks.

   A. surprised        B. shy           C. sad          D. happy

3.What can we infer from the passage?

A. Chow Yun-fat is proud of his success.

B. Chow Yun-fat prefers to make a living by selling cameras rather than by    performing.

   C. Chow Yun-fat has won more awards than other actors.

   D. Chow Yun-fat is popular both at home and abroad.

4.The underlined sentence (in paragraph 6) suggests ________.

   A. chopsticks is of great help to practise English pronunciation

   B. Chow Yun-fat is willing to struggle with difficulties

   C. Chow Yun-fat has suffered a lot before he went to Hollywood

   D. it is hard for a person who is over 40 years old to learn spoken English

5.The author wrote this passage to ________.

A. introduce Chow’s films

B. praise Chow for his excellent performance

C. call on people to learn from Chow 

D. show why Chow is popular