In today's world of smart phones and laptops, most people have at least one time-telling thing with them. Since these digital products are so common, is time running out for the 500-year-old watch? According to some consumers, the answer is yes. New Jersey teenager Charlie Wollman says a watch is “an extra piece of equipment with no necessary function.” Many young adults think so and use their smart phones to tell time. It is said that fewer young people wear watches today than ten years ago. As a result, some people say that the watch industry is at a crossroads.
However, watchmakers optimistically say that watches redeem（挽回） popularity when consumers reach their 20s and 30s. By then, they are willing to spend money on a quality watch that doesn’t just keep good time. Fifty years ago, watchmakers took pride in their products’ accuracy. But in recent years, the watch industry has changed itself into an accessory(配饰) business. And today, the image a watch conveys has become more important than the time it tells.
“Complications” — features that go beyond simple timekeeping — are an important part of a watch’s image. Today’s watches offer lots of features that meet almost any personality. These features include compasses, USB drivers, and even other functions that measure the effectiveness of golf swings!
Creativity also plays a key role in designing today’s watches. For example, Japanese watchmaker Tokyoflash makes watches that don’t even look like watches. The company’s popular Shinshoku model uses different color lights to tell time. It looks more like a fashionable bracelet（手镯） than a watch.
Whether a watch conveys fashion sense, creative talent or a love of sports, consumers want their watches to stand out. Nowadays, everyone has the same kind of little things in their bags, so people want to make a statement with what’s on their wrists. Will this interest in wrist fashion last? Only time will tell!
1.What can we know from the first paragraph?
A. As most people see, watches are out of fashion.
B. Some people feel that watches have been of no use.
C. The watch industry will close down sooner or later.
D. There are so many choices of watches for teenagers today.
2.According to the passage, what image does a watch convey nowadays?
A. It simply tells time.
B. It appeals to many teenagers.
C. It has many complex functions.
D. It has an impact on creativity and imagination.
3.Japanese watchmaker Tokyoflash is mentioned in Paragraph 4 to _________.
A. show why Shinshoku watches are popular
B. advertise Shinshoku watches made by Tokyoflash
C. make a comparison between watches and bracelets
D. tell that today’s watches need more imagination
4.What may be the best title for the passage?
A. Watches Tell More Than Time
B. Japanese Watches Stand Out
C. Watch Industry Is in a Bad Situation
D. Watches Are Becoming Less Popular
The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, California is one of the world's most beautiful bridges. It is also one of the most visited places in the world. Vehicles cross the bridge an average of 41 million times each year. More than 1,800 hundred million vehicles have used the bridge since it opened more than 70 years ago.
The bridge was painted “International Orange” because that color went well with the natural surroundings. The color also is easier to see in the heavy fog that often covers the area. But the Golden Gate Bridge was not named for its orange color. It was named for the body of water that it crosses，the Golden Gate Strait.
The Golden Gate Strait is the entrance to the San Francisco Bay from the Pacific Ocean. The Golden Gate Bridge links the city of San Francisco with Marin County, California.
Planning for the bridge began in the 1920s when the area around San Francisco was growing. People living in the area needed another way to get to the city besides small ferries．
Joseph Strauss was the chief engineer for the project. Work began in 1934. Mr.Strauss demanded the strongest safy protections in the history of bridge building. These included the first use of “hard hats” to protect the workers' heads and special glasses to protect their eyes.
A special safety net was suspended(挂) under the bridge. This net saved the lives of 19 men during the construction. However, 11 other workers were killed when they fell from the bridge through the net. Still, this was a new safety record for the time.
The Golden Gate Bridge opened in 1937. It extends 1,280 meters across the water. The total length is 2,737 meters. It was the largest suspension bridge in the world until 1964.That is when the Verrazano Narrows Bridge opened in New York City. Today, the Golden Gate Bridge is the ninth longest suspension bridge in the world.
1.The Golden Gate Bridge was named after ________.
A．the local climate
B．the color of a paint
C．the strait it crosses
D．its natural surroundings
2.The purpose of suspending a special safety net is to ________.
A．protect the environment
B．make construction easier
C．prevent workers from falling
D．save building materials from falling
3.What do we know about Joseph Strauss?
A．He attached importance to the workers' safety.
B．His safety measures were not of practical value.
C．He built the first suspension bridge in the world.
D．He demanded strong measures to ensure the safety of the bridge.
4.The passage is written to ________.
A．invite readers to San Francisco
B．introduce the Golden Gate Bridge
C．describe how the Golden Gate Bridge was built
D．tell the story of an engineer called Joseph Strauss
From a college designed specifically for high school students to one that doesn’t provide students with grades, here are some of the country’s most unique institutions.
●Berea College, Berea, Kentucky
The first interracial, co-educational college in the South, Berea specializes in attracting students who may be otherwise unable to afford a college education. Berea students come from families with an average household income of $30,000, which is why the school’s financial aid program is so important.
●Deep Springs College, Deep Springs, California
Deep Springs, formerly an all-male school, has one of the smallest student bodies in the country at 26. The college accepts only 10% of its applicants, and maintains its own cattle herd. Students enjoy the school’s isolated location — 45 miles away from the nearest established town. Electricity is produced mainly through solar power, and the college sometimes even sells electricity to Pacific Gas & Electric.
●The Evergreen State College, Olympia, Washington
At Evergreen, students don’t receive traditional letter grades. Instead, professors issue narrative (叙述的) evaluations of students’ work at the end of each term. The curriculum is structured around the "Coordinated Studies Program", which focuses on providing students with a well-rounded education across a number of different areas. The college sits on 1,000 breathtaking acres, a portion of it on Puget Sound.
●Hampshire College, Amherst, Massachusetts
Considered an "experimenting" college because of its constantly changing curriculum, Hampshire College doesn’t feature a traditional grading system. Instead, the school requires students to complete three different divisions, which feature different classes. Once the project is completed, it’s not given a grade, but a written evaluation, as other projects students complete throughout their time at Hampshire are.
1.Which of the following suits students from families with a lower income?
A. The Evergreen State College.B. Deep Springs College.
C. Hampshire College.D. Berea College.
2.What can we learn about The Evergreen State College?
A. It attaches great value to students’ different kinds of knowledge.
B. It’s most famous for its outstanding teaching quality.
C. It only provides examination scores for students.
D. It focuses on students’ hands-on experience.
3.How are the students judged in Hampshire College?
A. By receiving traditional letter grades.
B. By using a computer examination grading system
C. By evaluating their performance of three divisions.
D. By checking if they can design financial aid programs.
假定你是中学生李华。在一位名叫Tiger Mom的学生家长的博客上，你看到如下内容。请你根据要点和要求，给这位家长回复。
I’m the mother of a fourteen-year-old girl. I have a rule for my daughter: Be among the top 5 students, or get punished in one way or another. She has been doing very well in school, but some friends of mine keep telling me that I put too much pressure on her. Am I wrong?
写作要点：1. 表明自己的看法；
2. 陈述自己的理由（可举例说明）；
3. 提出至少两条建议。
要求：1. 短文必须写在指定区域；
2. 短文词数不少于100（不含已写好的部分）；
3. 内容充实，结构完整，语意连贯；
4. 书写需清晰、工整。
Hi, Tiger Mom,
What puzzles you is actually a puzzle for many parents in China. My idea is _______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
Yours faithfully,
Li Hua
此题要求改正所给短文中的错误。短文中有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（ ∧ ），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多于的词用斜线（ \ ）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。
Jim,
I am pleased to hear from you and I am written to tell you some changes in my school.
You are right. Great changes have been taken place in my school. It is no longer that it used to be three years ago, when there were only one teaching building and a playground. I am happy to tell you two new building have been built and are in use. One of them is a new classroom building, in it there are rooms for music, arts and computer teaching. The other is a library, where there are all kinds of books, newspapers and magazines. Therefore, my school is well equipped about sports facilities and musical instruments. The number of students has also grown from 1,500 to 2,500. What’s more, we had planted a lot of trees and flowers in and around the school.
I believe my school become better and better, and I hope you will visit my school again.
Yours,
Li Hua
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容或括号内单词的正确形式。
An old Spanish proverb goes, “Tomorrow is often the __1.____(busy) day of the week.” How many times have we put off our dreams until tomorrow? Our dreams should not, and cannot wait. It is universally ___2.___(acknowledge) that everybody is going to die at one point. None of us know the day, or the hour. You can dream about writing a great American play, __3.____ it is never going to happen if you don’t actually put pen to paper. In other words, dreams can’t come true __4.___ you take action. Tomorrow is not ____5.____ (promise). Today is all we have. Therefore, don’t go to your grave (坟墓) __6.____ unfulfilled(未完成的) dreams. One of the biggest dream killers is fear. There are so many people who could have achieved___7.___ （amaze）things if only they weren’t afraid. Just think about all the things you want to do, but never allow fear to convince you __8.____ you weren’t capable（有能力的）or good enough. In the movie After Earth, Will Smith’s character says, “Fear is not real. It is a product of thoughts you create.” Choose not to let fear stop you from __9.____ ( achieve ) your dreams. All in all, make the ___10.____ （decide）to go after every dream, big or small, right now.
