It happened to me recently. I was telling someone how much I had enjoyed reading Barack Obama’s Dreams From My Father and how it had changed my views of our President. A friend I was talking to agreed with me that it was, in his words, “a brilliantly （精彩地）written book”. However, he then went on to talk about Mr. Obama in a way which suggested he had no idea of his background at all. I sensed that I was talking to a book liar.
And it seems that my friend is not the only one. Approximately two thirds of people have lied about reading a book which they haven’t. In the World Book Day’s “Report on Guilty Secrets”, Dreams From My Father is at number 9. The report lists ten books, and various authors, which people have lied about reading, and as I’m not one to lie too often (I’d hate to be caught out), I’ll admit here and now that I haven’t read the entire top ten. But I am pleased to say that, unlike 42 percent of people, I have read the book at number one, George Orwell’s 1984. I think it’s really brilliant.
The World Book Day report also has some other interesting information in it. It says that many people lie about having read Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Fyodor Dostoevsky (I haven’t read him, but haven’t lied about it either) and Herman Melville.
Asked why they lied, the most common reason was to “impress” someone they were speaking to. This could be tricky if the conversation became more in–depth!
But when asked which authors they actually enjoy, people named J. K. Rowling, John Grisham, Sophie Kinsella (ah, the big sellers, in other words). Forty-two percent of people asked admitted they turned to the back of the book to read the end before finishing the story (I’ll come clean: I do this and am astonished that 58 percent said they had never done so).
1.How did the author find his friend a book liar?
A. By judging his manner of speaking.
B. By looking into his background.
C. By mentioning a famous name.
D. By discussing the book itself.
2.Which of the following is a “guilty secret” according to the World Book Day report?
A. Charles Dickens is very low on the top-ten list.
B. 42% of people pretended to have read 1984.
C. The author admitted having read 9 books
D. Dreams From My Father is hardly read.
3.By lying about reading, a person hopes to .
A. control the conversation
B. appear knowledgeable
C. learn about the book
D. make more friends
4.What is the author’s attitude to 58% of readers?
A. Favorable. B. Uncaring
C. Doubtful D. Friendly
The baby is just one day old and has not yet left hospital. She is quiet but alert （警觉）. Twenty centimeters from her face researchers have placed a white card with two black spots on it. She stares at it carefully. A researcher removes the card and replaces it by another, this time with the spots differently spaced. As the cards change from one to the other, her gaze（凝视） starts to lose its focus — until a third, with three black spots, is presented. Her gaze returns: she looks at it for twice as long as she did at the previous card. Can she tell that the number two is different from three, just 24 hours after coming into the world?
Or do newborns simply prefer more to fewer? The same experiment, but with three spots shown before two, shows the same return of interest when the number of spots changes. Perhaps it is just the newness? When slightly older babies were shown cards with pictures of objects (a comb, a key, an orange and so on), changing the number of objects had an effect separate from changing the objects themselves. Could it be the pattern that two things make, as opposed to three? No again. Babies paid more attention to squares moving randomly on a screen when their number changed from two to three, or three to two. The effect even crosses between senses. Babies who were repeatedly shown two spots became more excited when they then heard three drumbeats than when they heard just two; likewise （同样地） when the researchers started with drumbeats and moved to spots.
1.The experiment described in Paragraph 1 is related to the baby’s__.
A. sense of hearing B. sense of sight
C. sense of touch D. sense of smell
2.Babies are sensitive to the change in______.
A. the size of cards B. the colour of pictures
C. the shape of patterns D. the number of objects
3.Why did the researchers test the babies with drumbeats?
A. To reduce the difficulty of the experiment.
B. To see how babies recognize sounds.
C. To carry their experiment further.
D. To keep the babies’ interest.
4.Where does this text probably come from?
A. Science fiction. B. Children’s literature.
C. An advertisement. D. A science report.
Some people will do just about anything to save money. And I am one of them. Take my family’s last vacation. It was my six-year-old son’s winter break form school, and we were heading home from Fort Lauderdale after a weeklong trip. The flight was overbooked, and Delta, the airline, offered us $400 per person in credits to give up our seats and leave the next day. I had meetings in New York，So I had to get back. But that didn't mean my husband and my son couldn't stay. I took my nine-month-old and took off for home.
The next day, my husband and son were offered more credits to take an even later flight. Yes, I encouraged—okay, ordered—them to wait it out at the airport, to "earn" more Delta Dollars. Our total take: $1,600. Not bad, huh?
Now some people may think I'm a bad mother and not such a great wife either. But as a big-time bargain hunter, I know the value of a dollar. And these days, a good deal is something few of us can afford to pass up.
I've made living looking for the best deals and exposing （揭露） the worst tricks. I have been the consumer reporter of NBC's Today show for over a decade. I have written a couple of books including one titled Tricks of the Trade: A Consumer Survival Guide. And I really do what I believe in.
I tell you this because there is no shame in getting your money’s worth. I’m also tightfisted when it comes to shoes, clothes for my children, and expensive restaurants. But I wouldn't hesitate to spend on a good haircut. It keeps its shape longer, and it's the first thing people notice. And I will also spend on a classic piece of furniture. Quality lasts.
1.Why did Delta give the author's family credits?
A. They took a later flight.
B. They had early bookings.
C. Their flight had been delayed.
D. Their flight had been cancelled.
2.What can we learn about the author?
A. She rarely misses a good deal.
B. She seldom makes a compromise.
C. She is very strict with her children.
D. She is interested in cheap products.
3.What does the author do?
A. She's a teacher. B. She's a housewife.
C. She's a media person. D. She's a businesswoman.
4.What does the author want to tell us?
A. How to expose bad tricks.
B. How to reserve airline seats.
C. How to spend money wisely.
D. How to make a business deal.
书面表达
假定你是李华，你班同学决定为小明举办生日聚会。请你写信邀请外教Susan参加，要点包括：
1．时间：周五晚8点至9点2．地点：学生俱乐部
3．内容：生日歌、蛋糕、游戏等4．要求：备小礼物意：
1．词数100左右，开头语已为你写好；
2．可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3．答案必须写在答题卡相应的位置上。
Dear Susan，
We're throwing a surprise party for Xiaoming's birthday.
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________
Yours，
Li Hua
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处错误，每句中最多有两处。错误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（八），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：在错的词下画一横线，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。
Dear Mr. President,
I am writing to express my concern about the sports facilities in campus. I have noticed that our school has very limited resources in term of students’ opportunities to do sports.
It is known to all what sports are very important to young people. If they have an access to good sports facilities, young people can adopt a healthy lifestyle and become more confident.
I suggest build a new playground, where should be designed for students with different interests. They should have a different section for each activity and available to students all year round. I believe so a sports area will meet our sporting needs.
Thanks for your reading.
Yours faithfully,
Li Ming
阅读下面材料，在空白处填人适当的内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
Are you facing a situation that looks impossible to fix?
In 1969，the pollution was terrible along the Cuyahoga River near Cleveland，Ohio．It_1.__（be）unimaginable that it could ever be cleaned up．The river was so polluted that it__2.__（actual）caught fire and burned．Now，years later，this river is one of_3.___most outstanding examples of environmental cleanup．
But the river wasn't changed in a few days___4.___even a few months．It took years of work__5.__（reduce）the industrial pollution and clean the water．Finally，that hard work paid off and now the water in the river is_6.___（clean）than ever．
Maybe you are facing an impossible situation．Maybe you have a habit__7._is driving your family crazy．Possibly you drink too much or don't know how to control your credit card use．When you face such an impossible situation，don't you want a quick fix and something to change immediately?
While there are_8.___（amaze）stories of instant transformation，for most of us the__9.__（change）are gradual and require a lot of effort and work，like cleaning up a polluted river．Just be__10.__（patience）．
