Liverpool city council want to clear the city of fat pigeons. They say that people are feeding the birds, which makes them fat. The pigeons get bigger because their normal diet would consist of seeds and insects, not high-fat junk food they are eating in the city centre.
The council want people to know that everyone who feeds the pigeons is responsible for the streets being so crowded with these birds. They hope to encourage the birds to move away from the city centre and into parks and open spaces.
Ten robotic birds have been brought into the city centre to scare the pigeons away and visitors are asked not to give the pigeons any food. The mechanical birds - known as “robops” - will sit on the roofs of buildings. They can be moved around to different locations. They look like a peregrine falcon, which is a bird that kills pigeons. They even make noises and flap their wings to scare the pigeons. They hope that the pigeons will go away before the city becomes the European Capital of Culture in two years.
1.Pigeons in Liverpool get fat because they eat ________ .
A．birds B．seeds
C．insects D．high-fat junk food
2.What do Liverpool city council try to do?
A．They want the pigeons to move out of the city centre.
B．They want people to feed the pigeons with healthy food.
C．They want people to keep the pigeons at home.
D．They want to keep robotic birds instead of pigeons.
3.The robotic birds are used to _________.
A．make the city colorful
B．drive away the pigeons
C．help feed the pigeons
D．show people directions
4.This passage is most probably a(n) __________.
A．notice B．news report
C．short story D．advertisement
Today is Sarah’s birthday. She is seventy-five. We asked a few old friends to dinner.
Like most elderly people, I suppose, we spent most of the evening talking about old times. Thirty years ago, the village used to be a quiet place. Now it has changed. Every Sunday hundreds of cars pass through the village at what I think a dangerous speed. They make the village almost as noisy as the streets of a large town. As a boy I enjoyed riding on the backs of the farm horses. Things are different now. Today there are very few horses working on the farms. The farm workers today drive tractors, not horses. A man is not of much use on a farm unless he knows all about machines. Now almost every house in the village has a TV set. Is it a good thing for children to spend the evening sitting in front of a TV set? When I was young I did not waste my time indoors. I would spend the long summer evenings outdoors. I would play with my friends, go fishing or walk by the river. When my grandchildren asked me the reason why I haven’t bought a TV set, I tell them there are many books I still want to read. I can’t find time for both reading and watching TV.
1.The old like to talk about _______.
A. themselves B. others C. the past D. nothing
2.When I was a boy, I _______ riding on farm horses.
A. used to see people
B. disliked
C. was fond of
D. saw some elderly people
3.Which is NOT right according to the passage?
A. In the past the village was a quiet place.
B. It is a good time for children to watch TV all evening.
C. On Sundays many cars pass through the village at a dangerous speed.
D. When I was young I didn’t waste my time indoors.
4.I would rather _______ than _______.
A. watch TV; do some reading
B. play with friends; go fishing
C. do some reading; watch TV
D. go fishing; play with friends
Shakespeare’s Birthplace and Exhibition of Shakespeare’s World
Welcome to the world-famous house where William Shakespeare was born in l564 and where he grew up. The property (房产) remained in the ownership of Shakespeare’s family until 1806. The House has welcomed visitors traveling from all over the world, for over 250 years.
◆Enter through the Visitors’ Centre and see the highly-praised exhibition Shakespeare's World, a lively and full introduction to the life and work of Shakespeare.
◆Stand in the rooms where Shakespeare grew up.
◆Discover examples of furniture and needlework from Shakespeare’s period.
◆Enjoy the traditional English garden, planted with trees and flowers mentioned in the poet’s works.
The Birthplace is within easy walking distance of all the car parks shown on the map: nearest is Windsor Street (3 minutes’ Walk).
㊣The House may present difficulties but the Visitors’ Centre, its exhibition, and the garden are accessible (可进入的) to wheelchair users.
⊙The Shakespeare Coffee House (opposite the Birthplace).
1.How much is the admission for a family of two grown-ups and two children?
A. ￡9.80. B. ￡12.00. C. ￡14.20. D. ￡16.40.
2.Where is the nearest parking place to Shakespeare’s Birthplace?
A. Behind the exhibition hall.
B. Opposite the Visitors’ Centre.
C. At Windsor Street.
D. Near the Coffee House.
3.A wheelchair user may need help to enter .
A. the House B. the garden
C. the Visitors’ Centre D. the exhibition hall
Computer programmer David Jones earns ￡35,000 a year designing new computer games, yet he cannot find a bank ready to let him have a credit card (信用卡). Instead, he has been told to wait another two years, until he is 18. The 16-year-old works for a small firm in Liverpool, where the problem of most young people of his age is finding a job. David’s firm releases (推出) two new games for the fast throwing computer market each month.
But David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money. Even though he earns a lot, he cannot drive a car, take out a mortgage (抵押贷款), or get credit cards. David got his job with the Liverpool-based company four months ago, a year after leaving school with six O-levels and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs,” he said. David spends some of his money on records and clothes, and gives his mother 50 pounds a week. But most of his spare time is spent working.
“Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school,” he said. “But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time. I knew what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school. Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway.” David added:“I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement is a possibility. You never know when the market might die away.”
1.In what way is David different from people of his age?
A. He often goes out with friends.
B. He lives with his mother.
C. He has a handsome income.
D. He graduated with six O-levels.
2.What is one of the problems that David is facing now?
A. He is too young to get a credit card.
B. He has no time to learn driving.
C. He has very little spare time.
D. He will soon lose his job.
3.Why was David able to get the job in the company?
A. He had done well in all his exams.
B. He had written some computer programs.
C. He was good at playing computer games.
D. He had learnt to use computers at school.
4.Why did David decide to leave school and start working?
A. He received lots of job offers.
B. He was eager to help his mother.
C. He lost interest in school studies.
D. He wanted to earn his own living.
书面表达
假定你是杨明，作为一名交换生（an exchange student）刚结束在英国为期一个月的学习。学习期间，你和房东Mr．Wilson结下了深厚的友谊。请按下列要点给Mr．Wilson发一封邮件：
1．对Mr．Wilson在你生活上的照顾和学习上的帮助表示感谢；
2．希望保持联系；
3．邀请他来中国游玩。
注意：
1．词数：100左右；
2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3．开头已经写好，不计人总词数。
Dear Mr．Wilson,
Time flies! I've been back home．
Best wishes．
Yours,
Yang Ming
短文改错
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：在错的词下划一横线，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。
I can’t swim so I have a strong fear of water. Look back at my childhood, I think that three reasons might explain fear. Firstly, I am not allowed to go near the water when I was a child, as my mother had an unreasonable fear of it. Therefore, I was taught to see to the water as something danger. Secondly, my eyes became bad when I was five. If I took off my glass in the water, I couldn’t see something, and this increased my fear. What’s worse, for a child I once saw a neighbor drowned. Since then I have been more frightening.
