Must-Read about Notting Hill Carnival(狂欢节)
Route
The carnival procession itself begins at 9am on both Sunday and Monday. It starts on Great Western Road, winding its way along Chepstow Road, then on to Westbourne Grove, and then down Ladbroke Grove. See our Notting Hill Carnival map for the full route.
While extra services will be in operation, no buses will enter the Carnival area from first thing Sunday morning until the first service on Tuesday morning. On both days bus services begin from Notting Hill Gate in the south and from Harrow Rd (close to Elgin Avenue) in the north.
Bike
Last year the nearest bike-parking stations – Chepstow Villas and Pembridge Road – were removed for Carnival, so don’t rely on being able to park your bike nearby this year.
Safety
Avoid carrying expensive items, such as jewellery and digital cameras. Take a bag with a secure zip to keep your more valuable possessions in and avoid putting your valuables in your back pocket.
Do tell police if you see an incident. Officers will be stationed throughout the Carnival area. Don’t try to walk against the flow of the crowd, as you won’t get far. Drink plenty of water on the day too, especially if the sun makes an appearance.
Children
Children’s Day on Sunday is recommended for families as the smaller crowds and kid-friendly floats(游行花车) create a fun atmosphere. Arrange meeting points in case you become separated. The smaller the buggy(婴儿车), the better. Ear defenders may be necessary for very young children.
1.Visitors are warned not to bike to the Carnival because _________.
A. there are an increasing number of bike thefts there
B. there are no bike-parking stations nearby
C. roads to the Carnival area are closed to bikes
D. they will be charged with extra parking fees
2.Visitors had better_________.
A. wear trousers without back pockets
B. bring plenty of beer with them
C. leave their valuables in the hotel
D. walk along the flow of the crowd
3.People who go to the carnival with children are advised_________.
A. to be there on Sunday
B. to let their children go wherever they like
C. to arrange a meeting time
D. to bring ear defenders for each child.
A few days ago we – that’s me and the husband – took a cab to the station. Chat with the driver fell to the wrong of cyclists, and the misunderstanding of the road rules. So far as the rules of the road go, there seems to be one basic principle: when you are driving a car you hate bikes, when you are riding a bike you hate cars (and I guess walkers hate everyone).
There is an obvious difference of viewpoint built in here. It wasn’t until I started to drive a car (almost 20years after I had first rode a bike) that I actually realized that you could not see a cyclist at night without lights. In fact I now want to shout at late night cyclists without lights(like motortists once did at me): “You’ll get killed, sunshine, I can’t see you.”
The problem is that cyclists do ride headlong into danger. It's not just not having lights. It’s biking on pavements (and so threatening to injure a load of innocent walkers in the process) and biking down one-way streets the wrong way.
I admit that I do bike the wrong way down a one-way street sometimes. My feeble(软弱无力) defense is that I try always to do it as if I know I was doing wrong. That is slowly, with an apologetic look on the face, and ready to get off at any minute. I can’t bear the guys(一伙人) (usually, but not always it is guys) who do it as if they owned the place, and at high speed.
So cyclists are not entirely innocent. But they are among the disadvantaged groups, because the bottom line is that a car or a lorry can kill a cyclist and not the other way around.
1.When did the writer realize the danger for late night cyclists without lights?
A. Not until she became a driver herself.
B. Not until she had driven a car for 20 years.
C. After she was shouted at by a motorist.
D. After she was once knocked down by a group of guys.
2.When the writer biked the wrong way down a one way street, she felt_________.
A. angry B. guilty C. innocent D. proud
3.Which group is most likely to face danger according to the writer?
A. walkers B. passers-by C. cyclists D. motorists
4.What can we learn about the writer?
A. She often took a cab with her husband.
B. She has been a motorist for over 20 years.
C. She used to ride a bike without lights at night.
D. She often biked the wrong way down a one way street.
A research found that people shown silent videos of piano competitions could pick out the winners more often than those who could also hear the music. It underlines the importance of our sense of vision, say scientists. Their study concludes that the best predictor of a winner’s musical performance was the visible passion they displayed, followed closely by their uniqueness and creativity.
Chia-Jung Tsay, from University College London, UK, is the study’s author and herself a concert pianist. She was interested in how music was judged and found that even professional musicians were unaware of how much they were using visual information over sound. “For the last two decades, I’ve taken part in various competitions. Through this experience, I found that depending on what type of evaluations were used, the results might vary widely. This led me to wonder about how much visual information really affects these important decisions,” she explained.
More than 1,000 participants in the study were given samples of either audio, silent video or video with sound, and asked to rate the top three finalists from 10 international classical music competitions. The actual competition winners were only correctly identified by those who were randomly assigned(分配) the silent videos.
Dr Tasy said the findings were quite surprising, especially because both trained musicians and those without training had stated that sound was most important for their evaluation. “Regardless of levels of expertise, we still seem to be led primarily by visual information, even in this field of music,” she said. “Classical music training is often focused on improving the quality of the sound, but this research is about getting to the bottom of what is really being evaluated at the highest levels of competitive performance. She added, “We must be more mindful of our inclination(倾向) to depend on visual information at the expense of the content that we actually value as more relevant to our decisions.”
1.According to the study, who would most probably win a piano competition?
A. One who plays with great passion.
B. One who plays unique music.
C. One who plays creatively.
D. One who has a sense of vision.
2.The participates in the study were asked to__________.
A. watch classical music competitions
B. assign the silent videos
C. pick out the best three competitors
D. decide who the winner is
3.What probably led Dr Tsay to carry out the study?
A. Her love for music.
B. Her desire to explore.
C. Her experience as a competitor.
D. Her curiosity in musical education.
4.Where does this text probably come from?
A. A text book. B. A sports magazine.
C. A story book. D. A science website.
Recently I fully understood that a little favor could really make a big difference. My daughter and I were, accidentally, in time to catch a falling heart just before it hit the ground.
It all started when Charlene, one of my co-volunteers at the library, asked if I could do her duty on Tuesday since her doctor appointment had been unexpectedly changed. I agreed, which meant I was home on Friday instead of volunteering as previously planned.
My daughter, Mary, managers a book store in town. Mid-morning, she called to ask me for help. Would I buy a fifty dollar gift card, birthday card, and cake for one of Mary’s assistant managers, Cindy?
Mary explained she had to call Cindy in to take the place of another assistant manager who was sick, but felt terrible about it when she discovered it was Cindy’s birthday. Cindy insisted that it was just fine. But that was not what Mary thought, so she gathered enough money from other employees to throw a surprise party for Cindy. Since neither Mary, nor any of the other employees, could leave to pick up the goodies, they were turning to me for help. Days later, Mary told me the wonderful rest of the story, “Cindy cried and cried when we surprised her. After the party, Cindy told us that her boyfriend had chosen that morning to break up with her. To top that off, she only had 26 cents left in her bank account.”
We were surprised at the series of unexpected events that took place in order to circle Cindy with love and catch her falling heart just before it hit the ground.
1.Why did Charlene ask a favor of the writer?
A. She had to see the doctor on Friday.
B. She wanted to celebrate her daughter’s birthday.
C. She had an unexpected appointment on Tuesday.
D. She needed to prepare for her daughter’s birthday.
2.What can we learn about Mary?
A. She was a learned career woman.
B. She had uneasy relationships with her assistants.
C. She knew Cindy’s love story before the surprise party.
D. She played the most important role in this circle of love.
3.Which of the following couldn’t be the reason why Cindy cried?
A. She had to work on her birthday.
B.She had little money in her bank account.
C.She was greatly moved by Mary’s care and kindness.
D.She and her boyfriend parted that very morning.
4.The underlined word “goodies” refers to_________.
A. Gifts for Cindy B. Good stories C. Close friends D. Goods on sale
阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Never would I forget the other night when I came across an unforgettable sight while watching the Olympics. It was not a gold medal, or a world record broken, but a 36 of determination and courage.
The 37 was swimming and started with only three men on the blocks. Two of them, however, were disqualified(取消资格) due to 38 starts. That left only one to 39 . That would have been difficult enough, not having anyone to race 40 . I watched the man dive off the 41 and knew right away that something was 42 . Now I’m not an expert swimmer but I do know a good dive from a poor one, and this man was far from being a medal winner. When he 43 , it was clear that the man was not out for gold. I listened to the crowd begin to 44 at this poor man that was clearly having a 45 time. Finally he 46 his turn to start back. It was pitiful. He made a few all-out strokes(划水) and you could 47 he was worn out.
__48___in those few awkward strokes, the crowd had ____49____. No longer were they laughing, but beginning to ____50____. Some ____51___began to stand and yell things like, “Come on, you can do it!” and, “Go for it!” He did. A clear minute slower than the average swimmer, this young man finally finished his 52 . The crowd went 53 . You would have thought that he had won the gold, and he should have. Even though he recorded one of the slowest times in Olympic history, this man gave more heart than any of the other 54 .
A man that gave his all -- knowing that he had no chance, but competed because of the 55 of the games.
1.A. taste B. show C. sense D. member
2.A. program B. sport C. event D. accident
3.A. straight B. false C. eager D. right
4.A. compete B. match C. win D. succeed
5.A. against B. for C. to D. with
6.A. banks B. blocks C. benches D. boards
7.A. new B. funny C. wrong D. terrible
8.A. recovered B. resurfaced C. renewed D. returned
9.A. stare B. point C. laugh D. glare
10.A. happy B. hard C. good D. long
11.A. miss B. made C. catch D. carry
12.A. forget B. believe C. admit D. tell
13.A. But B. So C. Or D. Thus
14.A. moved B. left C. changed D. stopped
15.A. cheer B. chat C. quarrel D. debate
16.A. ever B. still C. even D. never
17.A. duty B. turn C. action D. race
18.A. bad B. wrong C. hungry D. wild
19.A. audience B. athletes C. judges D. experts
20.A. spirit B. progress C. skill D. secret
He _________in the early morning so he packed everything he needed the night before.
A. leaves B. had left C. was leaving D. has left
