We all remember seeing hitchhikers, standing by the side of the road, thumb, sticking out, waiting for a lift. But it is getting rare nowadays. What killed hitchhiking? Safety is often mentioned as a reason. Movies about murderous hitchhikers and real-life crime have put many drivers off picking up hitchhikers. That no single women picked me up on my journey to Manchester no doubt reflects the safety fear: a large, strangely dressed man is seen as dangerous.
But the reason may be more complex: hitchhiking happens where people don’t have cars and transport services are poor. Plenty of people still hitchhike in Poland and Romania. Perhaps the rising level of car ownership in the UK means the few people lift hitchhiking are usually considered strange. Why can’t they afford cars? Why can’t they take the coach or the train?
Three-quarters of the UK population have access to a car; many of the remainder will be quite old. The potential hitchhiking population is therefore small. Yet my trip proves it’s still possible to hitchhike. The people who picked me up were very interesting-lawyer, retired surgeon, tank commander, carpenter, man who live in an isolated farmhouse and a couple living up in the mountains. My conclusion is that only really interesting people are mad enough to pick up fat blokes in red, spotted scarves. Most just wanted to do someone a good turn; a few said they were so surprised to see a hitchhiker that they couldn’t help stopping.
The future of hitchhiking most likely lies with car-sharing organized over the Internet, via sites such as hitchhikers.org. But for now, you can still stick your thumb out (actually, I didn’t do much of that, preferring just to hold up my destination sign) and people-wonderful, caring, sharing, unafraid people-will stop.
In the UK, with its cheap coaches and reasonable rail service, I don’t think I’ll make a habit of it. But having enjoyed it so much, I’m ready now to do a big trip across Europe and beyond. In the 1970s a female friend of my wife’s hitchhiked to India. How wonderful it would be to have another go, though Afghanistan might be a challenge. I wish I’d got that tank commander’s mobile number.
1.The author tried to hitchhike but was rejected by single women drivers because .
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A．they were not heading towards Manchester |
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B．they thought most hitchhikers were dangerous |
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C．hitchhiking had been handed and they didn’t want to break the law |
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D．he was a strong man in strange clothes who seemed dangerous |
2.Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
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A．Movies have discouraged people from hitchhiking |
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B．Car ownership levels are lower in Romania than in the UK. |
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C．25% of UK people don’t have access to cars. |
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D．Increased car ownership has reduced the need for hitchhiking. |
3.The “fat blokes in red, spotted scarves” in Paragraph 3 most likely means .
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A．murderous hitchhikers |
B．friendly and talkative hitchhikers |
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C．typical hitchhikers |
D．strange hitchhikers like the author |
4.According to the author, future hitchhikers are more likely to .
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A．visit websites and find people to share cars with |
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B．stand by roads with their thumbs sticking out |
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C．stick out signs with their destinations written on |
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D．wait for some kind people to pick them up |
5.From the last paragraph, we know that the author .
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A．frequently hitchhikes in Britain |
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B．plans to hitchhike across Europe |
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C．thinks public transport is safer for travel |
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D．is going to contact the tank commander |
A federal agency on Tuesday called for a ban on all cellphone use by drivers -- the most far-reaching recommendation up to now — saying its decision was based on a decade of investigations into distraction-related(与分散注意力有关的) accidents, as well as growing concerns that powerful mobile devices are giving drivers even more reasons to look away from the road.
As part of its recommendation, the National Transportation Safety Board is urging states to ban drivers from using hands-free devices, including wireless headsets. No state now has made laws to ban such activity, but the Board said that drivers faced serious risks from talking on wireless headsets, just as they do by taking a hand off the wheel to hold a phone to their ears.
However, the concern was heightened by increasingly powerful phones that people can use to send e-mails, watch movies and play games.
"Every year, new devices are being on sale." she said. "People are attracted to update their Facebook page, to play music with cellphone, as if sitting at a desk. But they are driving a car."
The agency based its recommendation on evidence from its investigation of numerous crashes in which electronic distraction was a major contributing factor.
Ms. Hersman said she understood that this recommendation would be unwelcome in some circles, given the number of drivers who talk and text. But she compared distracted driving to drunken driving and even smoking, which required wholesale cultural shifts to change behavior.
"It's going to be very unpopular with some people." she said. "We're not here to win a popularity contest. We're here to do the right thing. This is a difficult recommendation, but it's the right recommendation and it is time."
The agency's recommendation is not required for states to adopt such a ban. And it won't likely be agreed upon by state lawmakers who are unwillingly to anger those who have grown accustomed to using their device behind the wheel.
The ban also deserves attention because it is the first call by a federal agency to end the practice completely, rather than the partial ban that some lawmakers have put in place by allowing hands-free talking.
1.The ban on all cellphone use by drivers was put forward______.
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A．after a long discussion and recommendation |
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B．after about ten years' investigation in it |
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C．because of the most powerful mobile devices |
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D．for the reason of heading away from the road |
2.From the second paragraph we know that now______.
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A．it is legal to use wireless headsets while driving |
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B．wireless headsets are illegal in some states |
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C．it is safe to talk on wireless headsets while driving |
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D．hands-free devices can be used in some states |
3.We can know from the passage that______.
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A．electronic distraction resulted in numerous crashes |
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B．numerous crashes were caused by drunk driving |
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C．electronic distraction contributed much to the ban |
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D．the recommendation was based on electronic distraction |
4.Ms Hersman thinks that distracted driving, drunken driving and smoking______.
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A．are just common behaviors |
B．can be shifted to behaviors |
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C．are behaviors to be changed |
D．are just cultural behaviors |
5.Which of the following is the best title of the passage?
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A．Cellphone Ban inCars |
B．Valuable Ban for Cellphones |
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C．Drivers Ban Cellphones |
D．Cellphone Ban while Driving |
We now think of chocolate as sweet, but once it was bitter. We think of it as a candy, but once it was a medicine. Today, chocolate can be a hot drink, a frozen dessert, or just a snack. Sometimes it’s an ingredient(配料) in the main course of a meal. Mexicans make a hot chocolate sauce called mole and pour it over chicken. The Mexicans also eat chocolate with spices like chili peppers.
Chocolate is a product of the tropical cacao tree. The beans taste so bitter that even the monkeys say “Ugh!” and run away. Workers must first dry and then roast the beans. This removes the bitter taste.
The word “chocolate” comes from a Mayan word. The Mayas were an ancient people who once lived in Mexico. They valued the cacao tree. Some used the beans for money, while others crushed them to make a drink.
When the Spaniards came to Mexico in the sixteenth century, they started drinking cacao too. Because the drink was strong and bitter, they thought it was a medicine. No one had the idea of adding sugar. The Spaniards took some beans back to Europe and opened cafes. Wealthy people drank cacao and said it was good for the digestion.
In the 1800s, the owner of a chocolate factory in England discovered that sugar removed the bitter taste of cacao. It quickly became a cheap and popular drink. Soon afterwards, a factory made the first solid block of sweetened chocolate. Later on, another factory mixed milk and chocolate together. People liked the taste of milk chocolate even better.
Besides the chocolate candy bar, one of the most popular American snacks is the chocolate chip cookie. Favorite desserts are chocolate cream pie and, of course, an ice cream sundae with hot fudge sauce.
1.It was ________that discovered sugar could remove the bitter taste of cacao.
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A．The workers in the chocolate factory |
B．The Spaniards |
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C．The people in England |
D．The owner of a chocolate factory |
2.According to the passage which of the following statements is true?
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A．Nobody had the idea of adding sugar until the sixteenth century. |
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B．The word “chocolate” comes from a Mexican word. |
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C．The beans taste so bitter that even the monkeys like them. |
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D．Workers must dry and roast the beans to remove the bitter taste. |
3.The Spaniards think that cacao was a medicine because________
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A．it was strong and bitter. |
B．it was good for digestion. |
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C．it cured man’s diseases. |
D．it was a kind of drink for good health. |
4.Which is the right time order of the events regarding chocolate?
a. Chocolate became a cheap and popular drink in England.
b. A factory made the first solid block of sweetened chocolate.
c. The Spaniards started drinking cacao.
d. It was found that sugar removed the bitter taste of cacao.
e. A factory mixed milk and chocolate together.
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A．a-b-c-d-e |
B．c-d-e-b-a |
C．c-d-a-b-e |
D．c-d-b-e-a |
5.It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
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A．chocolate can be a hot drink, a frozen dessert, or a candy bar |
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B．Mexicans like chocolate very much |
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C．chocolate is a product of the cacao tree |
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D．people liked the taste of chocolate mixed with milk |
阅读下面的短文，并根据文章后的题目要求回答76-80小题。
Tibet lies high in the mountains, where there are few trees for fuel and the ground is too hard to dig a grave. Therefore, for centuries, one of the most common ways for Tibetans to dispose of dead bodies has been by sky burials. Basically, this means allowing vultures（秃鹰）to eat the corpses.
In many cultures, allowing animals to eat the bodies of relatives would show a lack of respect for them. But Tibetan views on dead bodies are different. Tibetans believe that the body is simply a container for the spirit, and it is only the spirit that is important.
After a Tibetan dies, the body is not touched for three days. The spirit is allowed to leave peacefully. Lengthy prayers are said for the spirit, and then the body is taken for sky burial.
Sky burials take place outside temples, with monks in attendance. People might travel for days with the dead to reach an auspicious（吉利的）temple. In the whole of Tibet there are only three temples that are considered particularly auspicious.
The burial itself takes place quickly, with little ceremony. First the body is stripped naked and placed on holy stones. It is then cut into small pieces and the bones are broken. When everything has been made easy to digest, the monks say prayers for the deceased and move back. Vultures flock to the remains, and within a short time, there is nothing left.
Tibetans believe that ___________________ the body will be returned to the mountains and the spirit will be allowed to fly free.
1.What is the best title of the passage? (Please answer within 5 words.)
___________________________________________________________________________
2.Which sentence in the passage can be replaced by the following one?
Only three temples are considered very auspicious throughout the Tibet.
_______________________________________________________________________________
3.Please fill in the blank in the last paragraph with proper words or phrases to complete the sentence. (Please answer within 10 words.)
___________________________________________________________________________
4.Do you agree with this kind of burial? Why? (Please answer within 30 words.)
___________________________________________________________________________
5.Translate the underlined sentence in the second paragraph into Chinese.
___________________________________________________________________________
Most Americans believe that someone isn’t grown-up until the age of 26 and they should complete their education, have a full-time job, have a family to support and be financially independent. They also believe that becoming a real grown-up is a process which begins at about the age of 20 and takes about five years, according to the report from the University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center.
The findings are based on a representative sample of 1,398 people over the age of 18 who were surveyed in person. The survey found that people expect the transitions to grown-up status to be completed at the following ages: age 20.9 self-supporting; age 21.1 no longer living with parents; age 21.2 having a full-time job; age 22.3 education completed; age 24.5 being able to support a family financially; age 25.7 getting married; and age 26.2 having a child.
“There is a large degree of agreement across social groups on the relative importance of the seven transitions,” said Tom Smith, director of the survey. The only obvious pattern of differences is on views about supporting a family, having children and getting married. Older adults consider these more important than younger adults do. This probably shows in large part a change in values across generations away from traditional family values. The most valued step toward reaching adulthood, the survey found, is completing education, followed by full-time employment, supporting a family, financial independence, living independently, and marriage.
1.According to the first paragraph, someone is a grown-up when he _______.
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A．has found a full-time job |
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B．has finished his study in university |
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C．can make money and support himself after completing his education |
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D．can support a family and be financially independent after graduation |
2.A young man of 24 may be busy ________.
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A．finding a job |
B．finding a girl friend |
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C．making money |
D．preparing for his wedding |
3.The underlined word “status” in the second paragraph probably means “________”.
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A．position |
B．rank |
C．level |
D．situation |
4.From the passage, we learn that _________.
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A．being grown-up is just a matter of age |
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B．being grown-up is a process which takes some time |
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C．all people think completing education means being grown-up |
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D．the survey found everyone had a different view about being grown-up |
5.The best title for the passage should be “________”
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A．It takes a long time to grown up. |
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B．Are we grown-up yet? |
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C．Getting married means being grown-up. |
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D．Completing education means being grown-up. |
From their beginnings New England towns had a special democratic system of government. At a stated time all the citizens would assemble at a town meeting, where they would discuss local problems and express opinions freely. They also elected the town’s officials at these gatherings and made decisions about the taxes they would pay and about other community matters. These meetings were usually held at the town hall, which was located in the central square.
In the eighteenth-century town meetings, only men who owned property and who were church members actually voted, although everyone present was allowed to express their opinions. Later, all citizens were allowed to vote. Thus the town meeting became truly democratic. Town meetings are still common in New England communities.
In recent years the town meeting idea has been widely imitated. There are open sessions of this kind on radio and television. Occasionally a meeting of this type is called by a government agency in order to give an opportunity for free and open discussion on current problems and policies.
1.At a town meeting, people do the following things EXCEPT __________.
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A．express their opinions about the government |
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B．elect officials of the towns |
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C．make a decision about whom they should marry |
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D．discuss some community matters |
2.In the 18th century, who had the right to vote?
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A．All the citizens. |
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B．All the men except those who were church members. |
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C．The rich. |
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D．The rich men and the church members. |
3.Why has the town meeting been widely imitated?
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A．Because many people are interested in it. |
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B．Because it is very democratic. |
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C．Because many people enjoy themselves at town meetings. |
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D．Because sometimes government agencies call them. |
4.According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true?
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A．Citizens can elect the officials in the town meeting. |
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B．In recent years, town meetings are often called by a government agency. |
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C．People can say what they want to say at the town meeting. |
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D．Nowadays this kind of meeting is also held on radio and television. |
5.This passage mainly talks about _______.
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A．the New England town meeting |
B．modern town meetings |
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C．a democratic meeting |
D．New England towns |
