Alibaba started taking the lead in China by connecting big Chinese manufacturers(制造商) with big buyers across the world. Its business-to-business site, Alibaba.com allowed business to buy almost everything. Alibaba’s advantage wasn’t hard to judge: size. Alibaba is just big, even by Chinese standards. Its market attracts 231 million active buyers, 8 million sellers, 11.3 billion orders a year — and Alibaba is just the middleman. It encourages people to use its markets — not charging small sellers a percentage of the sale.
If you want a quick look into the influence of Alibaba on daily Chinese life, take my experience. I moved to Beijing a year ago and quickly got tired of visiting small stores across the crowded, polluted city of 20 million people in search of new electronics, bathroom furnishings, and anything else my wife wanted. “You’re looking for what exactly? Why not try it? ” my Chinese teacher asked me one day. With that, my wonderful new relationship with Alibaba began.
Alibaba’s original business-to-business model now is second to consumer buying. Chinese retail(零售) buying makes up 80% of Alibaba’s profit, and leading that group is Taobao, with 800 million items for sale and the most unbelievable selection of things you’ll ever find. TMall.com is Alibaba’s other big site, where you can find brand name goods from Nike and Unilever near the lowest prices.
What I have a hard time explaining to friends and family back in the U.S. is how China has gone beyond traditional shopping — big-box retailers especially —in favor of online purchases on Taobao and a few other sites. In smaller towns than Beijing, where big retailers have not yet traveled, shopping online is shopping, and shopping is Taobao.
I have a list of some of my recent purchases on Taobao for a sense of how wide the marketplace is. Almost everything arrived a day or two after ordering with free shipping. I’m not even a big buyer, because I need friends to help me search the Chinese-language site. When I was searching my purchase history on my Chinese teacher’s iPad, which helps me buy goods, I looked through with great difficulty about 10 of her purchases for every one of mine.
1.Alibaba’s advantage mainly lies in .
A. its low price
B. its big size
C. its not charging small sellers
D. its business-to-business service
2.What can we learn from the underlined sentence in the passage?
A. Alibaba will continue to develop.
B. Alibaba stands out as the best online site.
C. Alibaba acts as a bridge between the buyers and sellers.
D. Alibaba is of middle size among all the online sites.
3.What can be inferred from the passage?
A. TMall.com provides more profit than Taobao.
B.The author’s Chinese teacher is also an online purchase lover.
C. Taobao has no obvious advantage over other similar online sites.
D. Alibaba’s business-to-business service earns more money than retail.
4.What is the passage mainly about?
A. Shopping online in China is TaoBao.
B. How the author purchases online in China.
C. Shopping online goes beyond traditional shopping.
D. Alibaba influences people’s daily purchase in China.
BRITAIN is a popular tourist place. But tours of the country have pros and cons.
Good news
Free museums. No charge for outstanding collections of art and antiquities.
Pop music. Britain is the only country to rival (与……比敌) the US on this score.
Black cabs. London taxi drivers know where they are going even if there are never enough of them at weekends or night.
Choice of food. Visitors can find everything from Ethiopian to Swedish restaurants.
Fashion. Not only do fashion followers love deeply and respect highly brand names such as Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen; street styles are justly loved, too.
Bad news
Poor service. “It’s part of the image of the place. People can dine out on the rudeness they have experienced,” says Professor Tony Seaton, of Luton University’s International Tourism Research Center.
Poor public transport. Trains and buses are promised to defeat the keenest tourists, although the over-crowded London tube is unbelievable popular.
Lack of languages. Speaking slowly and clearly may not get many foreign visitors very far, even in the tourist traps .
Rain. Still in the number one complaint.
No air-conditioning. So that even splendidly hot summers become as unbearable as the down-pours.
Overpriced hotels. The only European country with a higher rate of tax on hotel rooms is Denmark.
Licensing hours. Alcohol is in short supply after 11p.m. even in “24-hour cities.”
1.What do tourists complain most?
A. Poor service. B. Poor public transport.
C. Rain. D. Overpriced hotels.
2.What do we learn about pop music in Britain and the US through this passage?
A. Pop music in Britain is better than that in the US.
B. Pop music in Britain is as good as that in the US.
C. Pop music in Britain is worse than that in the US.
D. Pop music in Britain is quite different from that in the US.
3.When is alcohol not able to get easily?
A. At 12:00p.m. B. At 9:00 p.m.
C. At 10:00 p.m. D. At 11:00 p.m.
4.Which of the following is true according to the passage?
A.You have to pay to visit the museums.
B. It’s very cheap to travel by taxi there.
C. You cannot find Chinese food there.
D. The public transport is poor there.
Have you ever had a day when everything seemed to go wrong, and nothing seemed to go right? Not too long ago I was having one of those days.I was discouraged, tired, and plain sad. My focus was on me.After all, no one else was experiencing the same trials I was.
I expressed my upset state to my mother, hoping for some pity.Instead, she said, “I heard Jamie was having a difficult day too.Why don't you make her some cookies and take them to her this afternoon?”
I didn't really want to, but decided that I didn't want to go back to my other problems just yet.I made the cookies and arranged them on a little plate.Then I made a card with a sunflower on it and wrote a small note of empathy(共鸣）.
That afternoon I dropped by my friend's house.I went to the door and rang the bell. Soon, Jamie came to the door and looked at me in surprise for the unexpected visit. Before she could say anything I rushed, “I heard you were having a hard day and decided to bring you something. I hope your day goes better.” The look that came over Jamie's face was one that I could never put into words.It was as if a darkened sky was suddenly lit with the golden rays of the sun；it was as if in that small act, her day was brightened.
I got back into the car and for some amazing reason. I felt a lot better myself. That day I experienced the truth that James Barrie attempted to describe, “Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves.”
1.The author made cookies and arranged them on a plate______.
A. so as to show off his skills
B. to stop thinking about his own worries
C. not to let his mother feel down
D. not to show his sadness to others
2.How did Jamie feel when seeing the author's coming?
A. She lit up very soon.
B She was surprised and scared.
C. he couldn't express herself.
D. She poured out all her worries.
3.What do you think of the author's mother?
A. Sympathetic. B. Willing.
C. Instructional. D. Selfish.
学习英语的方法有很多，你最喜欢的方法是什么？请以My Favorite English Study Method 为题写一篇100词左右的短文。
要求：1.列举至少三种你熟悉与常见的学英语的方法。
2.谈谈你最喜欢的其中一种英语学习方法，并给出至少三条以上的理由。
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文， 请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加: 在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除: 把多余的词用斜线( \ )划掉。
修改: 在错词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意: 1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2. 只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。
Yesterday I showed to my friend Peter around Beijing city. We started off at 8:00 a.m. First we went to the Forbidden City, which was one of the most popular tourist spot in Beijing. Then we visited the History Museum. We observed a lot of valuable things in them and we learned a lot about Chinese history. After a quick meal, we went to Beihai Park. Upon arrival, we were all struck by its beautiful scenes. We spent a whole afternoon appreciated the wonder. It was until 18:00 p. m. that we went back.
We did have a wonderful time. Peter was very pleased with my arrangement that he invited me to a new-built western restaurant to have a big meal.
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的的正确形式。
Night after night, she came to tuck me in (盖被子), even long after my childhood years. __1. (follow) her longstanding custom, she’d lean down and push my long hair out of the way, then kiss my forehead.
I don’t remember 2. it first started annoying me — her hands pushing my hair that way. Finally, one night, I shouted out at her, “Don’t do that anymore — your hands are too rough!” She didn’t say 3. in reply. But never again 4. my mother close out (结束) my day 5. that familiar expression of her love.
Time after time, with the passing years, my 6. (think) returned to that night. By then I missed my mother’s hands, — missed her goodnight kiss on my forehead.
Now those hands I once thought to be so rough were still doing things for me and my family. I 7. (frequent) recalled the night my young voice complained. One night, catching Mom’s hand in hand, I blurted out how sorry I was for that night. I thought she’d remember as I did. But Mom didn’t know what I 8. (talk) about. She had forgotten — and forgiven — long ago.
That night, I fell asleep with a new 9. (appreciate) for my gentle mother and ___10. caring hands. And the guilt that I had carried around for so long was nowhere to be found.
