Three men traveling on a train began a conversation about the world's greatest wonders.
“In my opinion，”the first man said，“the Egyptian pyramids are the world's greatest wonder.Although they were built thousands of years ago，they are still standing.And remember：the people who built them had only simple tools.They did not have the kind of machinery that builders and engineers have today.”
“I agree that the pyramids in Egypt are wonderful，”the second man said，“but I do not think they are the greatest wonder.I believe computers are more wonderful than the pyramids.They have taken people to the moon and brought them back safely.In seconds，they carry out mathematical calculations that would take a person a hundred years to do.”
He turned to the third man and asked，“What do you think is the greatest wonder in the world？”
The third man thought for a long time，and then he said，“Well，I agree that the pyramids are wonderful，and I agree that computers are wonderful，too.However，in my opinion，the most wonderful thing in the world is this thermos.”
And he took a thermos out of his bag and held it up.
The other two men were very surprised.“A thermos？”they exclaimed.“But that's a simple thing.”
“Oh，no，it's not，”the third man said.“In the winter you put in a hot drink and it stays hot.In the summer you put in a cold drink and it stays cold.How does the thermos know whether it's winter or summer？”
1.The three men could not agree on what the world's greatest wonder was because ．
A. they could not think of anything very wonderful
B. they all had different ideas
C. they could not prove that their opinions were right
D. the journey ended too soon
2.The first man thought the pyramids were the most wonderful things in the world because ．
A. they were very beautiful
B. they were Egyptian
C. they had been built with very simple tools
D. they could do mathematical calculations
3.The third man thought a thermos was the most wonderful thing in the world because ．
A. it lasted longer than the pyramids
B. it cost less than a computer
C. he thought it knew whether it was winter or summer
D. the other two men were surprised when he told them about it
Londoners are great readers.They buy vast numbers of newspapers and magazines and of books－especially paperbacks，which are still comparatively cheap in spite of everincreasing rises in the costs of printing.They still continue to buy “proper”books，too，printed on good paper and bound(装订)between hard covers.
There are many streets in London containing shops which specialize in bookselling.Perhaps the best known of these is Charring Cross Road in the very heart of London.Here bookshops of all sorts and sizes are to be found，from the celebrated one which boasts of being “the biggest bookshop in the world”to the tiny，dusty little places which seem to have been left over from Dickens' time.Some of these shops stock，or will obtain，any kind of books，but many of them specialize in secondhand books，in art books，in foreign books，in books on philosophy，politics or any other of the countless subjects about which books may be written.One shop in this area specializes only in books about ballet!
Although it may be the most convenient place for Londoners to buy books，Charring Cross Road is not the cheapest.For the really cheap secondhand books，the collector must venture off the beaten track，to Farringdon Road，for example，in the East Central district of London.Here there is nothing so impressive as bookshops.The booksellers come along each morning and pour out their sacks of books onto small handcarts.And the collectors，some professionals and some amateurs，have been waiting for them.In places like this they can still，occasionally，pick up for a few pence an old one that may be worth many pounds.
1.“Londoners are great readers.”means that ．
A. Londoners are great because they read a lot
B. there are a great number of readers in London
C. Londoners are readers who read only great books
D. Londoners read a lot
2.According to this passage，Charring Cross Road ．
A. is in the suburbs of London
B. is famous for its bookshops
C. contains various kinds of shops
D. is the busiest street in London
3.In this passage，what does the underlined part “venture off the beaten track”mean?
A. Buy books in a most busy street.
B. Move away from a busy street.
C. Waste time looking for books.
D. Take a risk of losing one's life.
4.On Farringdon Road， ．
A. you can find fine bookshops for the latest books
B. there are only small bookshops for the secondhand books
C. you can see booksellers selling books on handcarts
D. the same books as the ones in the bookshops of Charring Cross Road are sold
Without proper planning，tourism can cause problems.For example，too many tourists can crowd public places that are also enjoyed by the inhabitants of a country.If tourists create too much traffic，the inhabitants become annoyed and unhappy.They began to dislike tourists and to treat them impolitely.They forget how much tourism can help the country's economy.It is important to think about the people of a destination country and how tourism affects them.Tourism should help a country keep the customs and beauty that attract tourists.Tourism should also advance the wealth and happiness of local inhabitants.
Too much tourism can be a problem.If tourism grows too quickly，people must leave other jobs to work in the tourism industry.This means that other parts of the country's economy can suffer.
On the other hand，if there is not enough tourism，people can lose jobs.Business can also lose money.It costs a great deal of money to build large hotels，airports，air terminals，firstclass roads，and other support facilities needed by tourist attractions.For example，a major international class tourism hotel can cost as much as 50 thousand dollars per room to build.If this room is not used most of the time，the owner of the hotel lose money.
Building a hotel is just a beginning.There must be many support facilities as well，including roads to get to the hotel，electricity，sewers to handle waste，and water.All of these support facilities cost money.If they are not used because there are not enough tourists，jobs and money are lost.
1.Which of the following do you think has been discussed in the part before this selection?
A. It is extremely important to develop tourism.
B. Building roads and hotel is essential.
C. Support facilities are highly necessary.
D. Planning is of great importance to tourism.
2.Too much tourism can cause all these problems EXCEPT ．
A. a bad effect on other industries
B. a change of tourists' customs
C. overcrowdedness of places of interest
D. pressure on traffic
3.It can be inferred from the text that ．
A. the author doesn't like tourism developing so fast
B. local people will benefit from tourist attractions
C. other parts of a country's economy won't benefit from tourism much
D. we can't build too many support facilities
4.The author thinks it is good for local people to know that tourism will ．
A. waste a lot of money
B. weaken their economy
C. help establish their customs
D. help improve their life
The brain is a remarkable part.It's responsible for thoughts and feelings.Now a new study finds that going through tough times as a kid also can have an impact.The adult brains of people who lived through lots of stress before the age of six—and then became depressed or anxious as teenagers—were different compared with adults who had an easier childhood.It seems that teens changed the shape of their brains by internalizing (使内在化) the stresses experienced years earlier.
Researchers already knew that the shape and size of a child's brain can change in response to lots of stress.They also knew that adults were more likely to be depressed if，as kids，they'd lived in poverty.Some studies showed that these depressed adults had unusual changes in their brain shape.But no one had tested if the early stress and later brain changes were linked.
Scientists in England studied almost 500 boys from birth until the ages of 18 to 21.Sarah Jensen is one of the new study's authors.Almost all of the boys her team studied experienced some hard times as kids.And，she concludes，“This is not necessarily harmful.”To some extent，that's just life.What can be dangerous，she says，is when children experience too many forms of difficulties.Her team's new data suggest that the tougher the childhood，the stronger the impact on the brain might be.
What's happening in the world around us relates to how we feel.Her team linked more childhood stress to more depression.Still，she notes，it's possible that if you find support for anxiety or depression，you might be able to prevent the changes seen here.“If you can change the environment，you can change the course of things，”Sarah says.So，she recommends，if teens develop anxiety or depression，it's good to ask for psychological doctors to give advice.
1.When people had a hard childhood， ．
A. they will have a brave attitude to life
B. their way of thinking may be strange
C. they will be good at dealing with stress
D. the shape of their brain may be changed
2.What is the breakthrough of the new research?
A. The size of the brain can change.
B. The brain can be influenced by stress.
C. Poverty can affect the brain's shape in future.
D. Changes in brain are connected with earlier hardship.
3.It's a problem when children ．
A. had a lonely childhood
B. led a peaceful childhood
C. got different kinds of hardship
D. experienced limited hard times
4.For teenagers with anxiety，Sarah suggests .
A. they adapt to their life
B. they seek professional help
C. they talk to friends or relatives
D. they become confident and optimistic
假定你是李华，你的美国笔友Peter邀请你下周去他们学校参加文化交流活动，并向外国朋友介绍中国的传统绘画。但你忙于准备国庆节演出，不得不谢绝。请根据下面要点用英语写一封信，内容包括：
1.谢绝邀请及理由；
2.推荐朋友李明参加，并说明原因。
注意：词数100左右； 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Peter,
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hua
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（＼）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。
Getting rid of the bad habit of procrastination(拖延症)is now my goal in life. My first step was to set small targets what can be reached realistically. For example, I plan to set a timetable for my study. So after school, I will put finishing homework in the last place. Additionally, I will make a list of my important task including their due dates but follow my schedule strictly. I will avoid find excuses for putting them off. At same time, I will ask for my friends and parents to help me. By achieving this small targets, I have confident that I will overcome procrastination.
