Check out all the new releases (发布) in the next four weeks.
Wednesday 16 march
Chalet Girl (12A )Watch the Trailer (预告片)
A British comedy about a girl who decides to give up her job at a fried chicken fast food place to try out being a chalet (木屋) girl in the Alps. Starring Bill Nighy and Ed Westwick.
Friday 18 March
Submarine (15)
A comedy following a teenager who wants to lose his virginity and stop his father from leaving his mother. Directed by Richard Ayoade.
Friday 25 March
Country Strong (12A) Watch the Trailer
Rising country music songwriter (Garrett Hedlund) falls in love with a fallen star (Gwyneth Paltrow), and together they plan his rising and her comeback.
A Turtle’s Tale: Sammy’s Adventures (3D) (U)
A sea turtle who was hatched in 1959 spends the next 50 years travelling the world as it changes through global warming.
Friday 1 April
Killing Bono (15) Watch the Trailer
Two brothers attempt to become global rock stars but can only look on as old school friends U2 become the biggest hand in the world.
Passenger Side (D)
Two brothers spend the day driving around Los Angeles county looking for the meaning of their lives, or cheap street drugs, depending on whom you believe.
Friday 8 April
The Silent House
A horror movie based on a true story about a small house in a village in Uruguay which holds some dark secrets
Rio (3D) Watch the trailer
An animated film about a domesticated (家养的) macaw (金刚鹦鹉) from Minnesota who sets off on an adventure

1. 1.

   If you like seeing the 3D films, you can choose to see ______

   1. A.
      The Silent House and Rio
   2. B.
      Submarine and Passenger Side
   3. C.
      A Turtle’s Tale: Sammy’s Adventures and Rio
   4. D.
      Killing Bono and Country Strong
2. 2.

   If you want to see a horrible film, you can see _______

   1. A.
      The Silent House
   2. B.
      Country Strong
   3. C.
      Killing Bono
   4. D.
      Rio
3. 3.

   Which of the following films is a love film?

   1. A.
      A Turtle’s Tale: Sammy’s Adventures
   2. B.
      Passenger Side
   3. C.
      Killing Bono
   4. D.
      Country strong
4. 4.

   The common point of all the films is that ______

   1. A.
      they are all set in Britain
   2. B.
      they will all be released in March
   3. C.
      they are all new films
   4. D.
      they are all produced in Hollywood

Strictly Ban smoking
If you smoke and you still don’t believe that there’s a definite（一定的）link between smoking and bronchial（支气管的）troubles, heart disease and lung cancer, then you are certainly deceiving yourself. No one will accuse you of hypocrisy. Let us just say that you are suffering from a bad case of wishful thinking. This needn’t make you too uncomfortable because you are in good company. Whenever the subject of smoking and health is raised, the governments of most countries hear no evil, see no evil and smell no evil. Admittedly, a few governments have taken timid measures. In Britain for instance, cigarette advertising has been banned on television. The conscience of the nation is appeased, while the population continues to puff its way to smoky, cancerous death.
You don’t have to look very far to find out why the official reactions to medical findings have been so lukewarm. The answer is simply money. Tobacco is a wonderful commodity to tax. It’s almost like a tax on our daily bread. In tax revenue alone, the government of Britain collects enough from smokers to pay for its entire educational facilities. So while the authorities point out ever so discreetly that smoking may, conceivable, be harmful, it doesn’t do to shout too loudly about it.
This is surely the most short-sighted policy you could imagine. While money is eagerly collected in vast sums with one hand, it is paid out in increasingly vaster sums with the other. Enormous amounts are spent on cancer research and on efforts to cure people suffering from the disease. Countless valuable lives are lost. In the long run, there is no doubt that everybody would be much better-off if smoking were banned altogether.
Of course, we are not ready for such a drastic action. But if the governments of the world were honestly concerned about the welfare of their peoples, you’d think they’d conduct aggressive anti-smoking campaigns. Far from it! The tobacco industry is allowed to spend staggering sums on advertising. Its advertising is as insidious as it is dishonest. We are never shown pictures of real smokers coughing up their lungs early in the morning. That would never do. The advertisement always depict virile, clean-shaven young men. They suggest it is manly to smoke, even positively healthy! Smoking is associated with the great open-air life, with beautiful girls, true love and togetherness. What utter nonsense!
For a start, governments could begin by banning all cigarette and tobacco advertising and should then conduct anti-smoking advertising campaigns of their own. Smoking should be banned in all public places like theatres, cinemas and restaurants. Great efforts should be made to inform young people especially of the dire consequences of taking up the habit. A horrific warning – say, a picture of a death’s head – should be included in every packet of cigarettes that is sold. As individuals, we are certainly weak, but if governments acted honestly and courageously, they could protect us from ourselves

1. 1.

   Why do a few governments take timid measures toward smoking?

   1. A.
      because they are afraid of people
   2. B.
      Because diseases cost a lot
   3. C.
      Because they are afraid of the cutting down of their revenue
   4. D.
      Because they are afraid of manufacturers
2. 2.

   The tone of this passage is______.

   1. A.
      critical
   2. B.
      ironical（讽刺的用反语的）
   3. C.
      distaste（不喜欢）
   4. D.
      amusing
3. 3.

   What does the sentence “because you are in good company” mean?

   1. A.
      you are backed by the government
   2. B.
      You are not alone
   3. C.
      You have good colleagues
   4. D.
      overnments are blind to evils of smoking too
4. 4.

   What is the best title of this passage?

   1. A.
      World Governments should conduct serious campaigns against smoking
   2. B.
      World governments take timid measures against smoking
   3. C.
      smoking is the most important source of income to many countries
   4. D.
      tobacco industry spends a large sum of money on medical research

I became what I am today at the age of twelve, on a freezing cold wet day in the winter of 1975. I remember the right moment, hiding behind a fragile mud wall, peeking (窥视）into the alley (胡同）near the frozen stream. That was a long time ago ，but it’s wrong what they say about the past, I，ve learned, about how you can bury it, because the past claws its way out. Looking back now, I realize I，ve been peeking into that deserted alley for the last twenty-six years.
One day in summer, my friend, Rahim Khan called from Pakistan. He asked me to come to see him. Standing in the kitchen with the receiver to my ear, I knew it wasn’t just Rahim Khan on the line. It was my past of unatoned sins (未能弥补的罪行) After I hung up, I went for a walk along Spreckels Lane on the northern edge of Golden Gate Park. The early afternoon sun sparkled on the water where dozens of small boats sailed, driven by a gentle breeze. Then I glanced up and saw a pair of kites with long blue tails, soaring in the sky. They danced high above the trees on the west end of the park, over the windmill, floating side by side like a pair of eyes looking down on San Francisco, the city I now call home.
And suddenly Hassan5S voice whispered in my head: For you, a thousand times over. Hassan the hare-lipped kite runner. I sat on a park bench near a willow tree. I thought about something Rahim Khan said just before he hung up, almost as an after thought. There is a way to be good again. I looked up at those twin kites. I thought about Hassan. Thought about Baba. AU. Kabul. I thought of the life I had lived until the winter of 1975 came along and changed everything. And made me what I am today

1. 1.

   After 1975，the hero of the story spent his life_____

   1. A.
      with happiness
   2. B.
      with regret
   3. C.
      in peace
   4. D.
      in danger
2. 2.

   It can be inferred from the passage that_____

   1. A.
      Rahim Khan spoke ill of the hero
   2. B.
      the hero had made up for his wrong-doings
   3. C.
      San Francisco was the birthplace of the hero
   4. D.
      something bad might have happened in the alley
3. 3.

   The writer attracts the readers by using_____
   a.an impressive opening b.a lively description of inner thoughts
   c.concrete and vivid language   d.a detailed plot of the story

   1. A.
      abc
   2. B.
      bcd
   3. C.
      acd
   4. D.
      abd
4. 4.

   What is the passage mainly about?

   1. A.
      A hide-and-seek game
   2. B.
      A forget-me-not event
   3. C.
      kite-flying competition
   4. D.
      A coming-of-age story

Worried about how many calories you will get in that piece of pizza, chocolate cake or bag of chips? A new iphone application Mealsnap may help. Users just need to take a picture of the meal with the phone, and it will give a calorie read-out almost immediately.
Mealsnap was developed by DailyBurn, a health social network that focuses on helping its users lead healthier lifestyles. It has created several other health and diet-related iphone applications. The applications gives users a quick reply. To do that, it matches the taken picture to a databank containing the calorie information of nearly 500,000 kinds of food. Users then get the range of calories for the meal that is photographed.
We started with something simple — an apple. A couple of minutes later the application replied that it was an apple and between 64 and 96 calories. More impressive was the reply we received after sending a photo of mixed salad bowl. Mealsnap replied that the bowl contained “yellow rice with corn, boiled eggs and beans” and that the food was between 532 and 798 calories.
Mr. Smith, director of DailyBurn, said that usual calorie counting needed a long time, but that the application made it easier to know the calories in food. That’s why it is so popular among those who are trying hard to lose weight.
In addition, Mealsnap can serve as a food diary. No need to write down what they’ve eaten, the photos will be stored. Then users can keep a visual log (记录). Mr. Smith said: “It’s like a food journal, but easier. All you do is to take the picture. The simple act of recording something can cause a psychological change that can help people on their health journey. Knowing the calorie range makes me think more about what I’m eating.
60

1. 1.

   The purpose of DailyBurn is to _______

   1. A.
      help people have a healthy life
   2. B.
      make iphone more popular
   3. C.
      help people find ways to lose weight
   4. D.
      persuade people to buy iphone products61
2. 2.

   We can know from the passage that Mealsnap is ________

   1. A.
      a camera
   2. B.
      a phone
   3. C.
      a calculator
   4. D.
      an application62
3. 3.

   What can be learned from the third paragraph?

   1. A.
      Mealsnap can also tell what the food is
   2. B.
      Mealsnap is only useful for simple things
   3. C.
      The result of Mealsnap isn’t always right
   4. D.
      Mealsnap needs a long time to show the calorie range.63
4. 4.

   Which would be the best title for the passage?

   1. A.
      Mealsnap iphones work as a health signal
   2. B.
      Mealsnap iphones offer you a health signal
   3. C.
      Mealsnap iphones — the best-selling phones
   4. D.
      Mealsnap iphones count your calories

I moved to the small, busy town of Edison in New Jersey six years ago. It was during the second term of my fifth grade. My parents got new jobs and higher income, so they decided it was time to move from Woodbridge to a better, more educational town.
In the US, it is unnecessary to take a test to get into a “good” middle or high school. You just attend the school close to where you live. So, many parents will think about the quality of the local school when they decide to buy a new house. My parents did the same. We finally chose Edison mainly because of the high quality of its school.
In New Jersey, an area with a good school usually means a concentration of Asian people. There are about 300 students in our school. 55% are Asians and just under half of that are Chinese. There are so many Chinese people nearby that we even have our own Chinese school.
Edison is an old town, just like thousands of others in the United States. However, I have treated it as my hometown. That’s where I spend much of my youth, and the memories there can’t be moved anywhere else

1. 1.

   Why did the writer’s parents move to Edison?

   1. A.
      Because they were born there
   2. B.
      Because it was a better educational town
   3. C.
      Because the writer began his fifth grade
   4. D.
      Because the writer didn’t need to take a test
2. 2.

   How many students are from Asia in the writer’s school?

   1. A.
      About 80
   2. B.
      About 160
   3. C.
      About 220
   4. D.
      About 300
3. 3.

   What does the underlined expression “a concentration of” mean in Paragraph 3?

   1. A.
      None of
   2. B.
      The whole of
   3. C.
      A large number of
   4. D.
      A small number of
4. 4.

   Why can’t the writer forget Edison?

   1. A.
      Because he regards it as his hometown
   2. B.
      Because his parents got new jobs there
   3. C.
      Because there are many Asians there
   4. D.
      Because it is in the state of New Jersey

On the first day of the 11th grade, our new math teacher Mr Washington asked me to go to the blackboard to do a math problem. I told him that I couldn’t do it. He asked, “Why not?” I paused, and then I said, “Because I’m educable mentally retarded (可教育智能迟滞).”
He came from behind his desk and looked at me. “Don’t ever say that again. Someone’s opinion of you does not have to become your reality,” he said.
It was a very special moment for me. Doctors said that I was educable mentally retarded in the fifth grade, and I was put back into the fourth grade. When I was in the eighth grade, I failed again.
But Mr Washington changed my life. This person always gave students the feeling that he had high expectations of them, and then all of the students did their best to live up to what those expectations were. He often said, “You have greatness within you.”
One day, I caught up with him in the parking place and said, “Mr Washington, is there greatness within me, sir?”
He said, “Yes, Mr Brown.”
“But what about the fact that I failed English, math, and history? What about that, sir? I’m slower than most kids.”
“It doesn’t matter. It just means that you have to work harder. Your grades don’t determine who you are or what you can produce in your life.”
“I want to buy my mother a house.”
“It is possible, Mr Brown. You can do that.” And he turned to walk away.
“Mr Washington?”
“What do you want now?”
“Uh, I’m the one, sir. One day you’re going to hear my name. I’m the one, sir.”
School was a real struggle for me. Mr   Washington put many demands on me. He made me believe that I could do it. At the end of that year, I was on the honor roll for the first time in my life.
Years later, I produced five programs on public television. When one of my programs was shown on the educational television channel, I had some friends call him. I was sitting by the phone waiting when he called me. He said, “May I speak to Mr Brown, please?”
“Oh, Mr Washington, is that you?”
“Yes, it’s me. You were the one, weren’t you?”
“Yes, sir, I was.”

1. 1.

   What does Mr Washington mean by saying “Someone’s opinion of you does not have to become your reality”?

   1. A.
      You needn’t have the same opinion as others
   2. B.
      You should believe what other people say
   3. C.
      What other people say about you may not be correct
   4. D.
      The doctor made a mistake
2. 2.

   What happened to the author at last?

   1. A.
      He entered a good university
   2. B.
      He earned much honor
   3. C.
      He got a good job
   4. D.
      He made television programs
3. 3.

   In the passage, the author implies that______．

   1. A.
      people shouldn’t believe what doctors say
   2. B.
      no one can be successful with hard work and confidence
   3. C.
      no one is really educable mentally retarded
   4. D.
      a good teacher can change a student’s life
4. 4.

   The best title for the passage would be “______”

   1. A.
      Don’t believe others
   2. B.
      I am the one
   3. C.
      My best teacher
   4. D.
      I succeeded at last

Tragedy at the Circus
In yesterday’s circus（马戏团）show, a tiger suddenly attacked its trainer and had to be shot dead. As the circus packed up and left, circus officials said the show would go on, even without tigers.
However, the officials cann’t simply turn a blind eye to the ethical（道德的） problems left behind. Even before this tragedy(悲剧), animal rights activists protested（抗议） against keeping wild animals in unnatural conditions and forcing them to suffer for the profit(利润)of circus organizers.
It is now time for us to take effective steps to make sure that circus animals are treated properly.
*******************************
Circus Safe for Animals
Our circus recently suffered a most tragic event in its history. While we are thankful for the pity from the public, we are also astonished by the opinion expressed in “Tragedy at the Circus. ”
First, our performing animals are not taken from the wild. As to the ethical problems. we always believe humans and animals can—and should—live together nicely. To us, the performing animals are representatives of their species(物种), and our circus is one of the only places left willing to support this special role of performing animals in the existence of the species. Those who argue that circus life is harmful to animals show little knowledge of these facts. Life in the “wild” is unsafe, but a continuous struggle for existence. To overlook these realities is the greatest fault against the animal kingdom.
This circus has proven that animals are stronger and smarter than we could imagine. Within the circus is a joyful atmosphere for both animals and humans: people are educated, and species saved

1. 1.

   What is the main purpose of the first passage?

   1. A.
      To show pity for the performing animals
   2. B.
      To express worries about animal trainers' safety
   3. C.
      To deal with the difficult situations of the circus
   4. D.
      To call for action to protect circus animals
2. 2.

   What will the circus most probably do?

   1. A.
      Take no notice of the tragedy
   2. B.
      Continue its performances
   3. C.
      Use fewer wild animals
   4. D.
      Limit its profit
3. 3.

   What does the circus think of its performing animals?

   1. A.
      They are as clever as human beings
   2. B.
      They struggle continuously with human beings for existence
   3. C.
      They are helpful in saving their species
   4. D.
      They have equally natural living conditions as wild animals
4. 4.

   What is the most probable relationship between the two passages?

   1. A.
      A public request and a newspaper report
   2. B.
      A newspaper article and a reply to it
   3. C.
      Two parts of a newspaper article
   4. D.
      Two newspaper reports

When I was a kid, I used to spend hours listening to Adam Carolla and Dr. Drew Pinsky on their Sunday night radio show Loveline. I listened so often that I began to use one of their well-known phrases—“good times”—in my daily conversations. Scientists have a name for this phenomenon: behavioral mimicry.
You’ve probably experienced this before: after spending enough time with another person, you might start to pick up on his or her behavior or speech habits. You might even start to develop your friend’s habits without realizing it. There is a large body of literature concerning this sort of phenomenon, and it regularly happens for everything from body gesture to accents to drink patterns（模式）. For example, one study found that young adults were more likely to drink their drink directly after their same-sex drinking partners, than for the two individuals to drink at their own paces.
And the effect isn’t limited to real-life face-to-face activities. Another study found that the same you-drink-then-I-drink pattern held even when watching a movie! In other words, people were more likely to take a drink of their drinks in a theater after watching the actors on the screen enjoy a drink. At least I don’t feel so strange anymore, having picked up on Adam Carolla’s “good times”.
New research published today in the journal PLOS ONE indicates that the same sort of behavioral mimicry is responsible for social eating, at least among university-age women of normal weight. That’s right: the young women were more likely to adjust their eating according to the eating pace of their same-sex dining companion.
As with most experiments, these results raise a whole new set of questions. However, the finding that behavioral mimicry may at least partly explain eating behavior is important, and has real effects on health. The researchers note that “as long as people don’t fully recognize such important influences on intake (eating), it will be difficult to make healthy food choices and keep a healthy diet, especially when people are exposed to the eating behavior of others”

1. 1.

   The author takes his own example of using “good times” to_______

   1. A.
      express his love for radio shows
   2. B.
      prove the popularity of the show
   3. C.
      show the influence of the hosts’ words
   4. D.
      introduce the topic of the passage
2. 2.

   Which of the following is NOT an example of behavioral mimicry?

   1. A.
      A boy eats his popcorn after watching the actor eat
   2. B.
      A boy buys a Nike shirt when he finds his desk-mate has one
   3. C.
      A girl unconsciously sits straight just as others do
   4. D.
      A girl takes on the Yorkshire accent after a month’s stay
3. 3.

   It can be inferred from the last paragraph that _______

   1. A.
      behavioral mimicry is beneficial to our health
   2. B.
      behavioral mimicry decides our eating behavior
   3. C.
      people have realized the effect of behavioral mimicry on our health
   4. D.
      It’s impossible to keep a healthy diet without knowing behavioral mimicry
4. 4.

   What is probably the author’s purpose of writing this passage?

   1. A.
      To draw readers’ attention to popular radio shows
   2. B.
      To introduce behavioral mimicry and its influence
   3. C.
      To appeal to readers not to fall into others’ habits
   4. D.
      To advocate healthy food choices among readers

1. 1.

   Who is writing the postcard?

   1. A.
      Fiona
   2. B.
      Janet
   3. C.
      Terry
   4. D.
      Jacqui
2. 2.

   Where are they staying now?

   1. A.
      North of the Great Wall
   2. B.
      In the south of England
   3. C.
      In a big city
   4. D.
      In a village
3. 3.

   Which one is NOT right?

   1. A.
      John is reading a newspaper
   2. B.
      The children are swimming in the river
   3. C.
      Terry is lying in the sun
   4. D.
      Janet is in the house
4. 4.

   How do they like the holiday？

   1. A.
      enjoyable
   2. B.
      terrible
   3. C.
      boring
   4. D.
      bad

Life is to be enjoyed. There’s no point in giving up something you enjoy unless you get something back that’s even better. When people eat more healthfully, exercise, quit smoking, and manage stress better, they find that they feel so much better that it reconstructs the reason for making these changes from fear of dying to joy of living. The latest studies show that when you exercise and eat right:
YOUR BRAIN receives more blood flow and oxygen, so you become smarter, think more clearly, have more energy, and need less sleep. Two studies showed that just walking for three hours per week for only three months caused so many new neurons (神经细胞) to grow that it actually increased the size of people’s brains!
YOUR FACE receives more blood flow, so your skin glows more and wrinkles less. You look younger and more attractive. In contrast, an unhealthy diet, chronic emotional stress and smoking reduce blood flow to your face so you age more quickly. Smoking accelerates aging because nicotine causes your arteries (动脉) to narrow down, which decreases blood flow to your face and makes it wrinkle earlier. This is why smokers look years older than they really are.
YOUR GENES change. In May, a study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences showing that changing your lifestyle changes your genes.
YOUR TELOMERES (染色体端粒) get longer. Telomeres are the ends of our chromosomes (染色体) that control how long we live. As telomeres become shorter, then cells age more quickly, thus shortening your life.
Besides, one of the most interesting findings in the study was that the mothers’ awareness of stress was more important than what was really occurring in their lives. The researchers gave the women a questionnaire and asked them to rate on a three-point scale how stressed they felt each day, and how out of control their lives felt to them. The women who were aware that they were under heavy stress had significantly shortened and damaged telomeres compared with those who felt more relaxed. On the contrary, some of the women who felt relaxed despite raising a disabled child had more normal-appearing telomeres.
In other words, if you feel stressed, you are stressed; if you feel fine, you are fine

1. 1.

   Which of the following are good for lengthening one’s life, according to the passage?
   ① eat healthy food ② drink plenty of water ③ take exercise ④ get up early
   ⑤ go to sleep early ⑥ release one’s stress

   1. A.
      ①③⑥
   2. B.
      ①②③
   3. C.
      ①⑤⑥
   4. D.
      ③④⑥
2. 2.

   The underlined words “your skin glows” in Paragraph 3 are closest in meaning to ______．

   1. A.
      your skin becomes white as there is plenty of sunshine
   2. B.
      your skin becomes smooth as there is much blood in it
   3. C.
      your skin looks pink as you are healthy
   4. D.
      your skin becomes soft as you exercise enough
3. 3.

   In the author’s opinion, when you exercise and eat right, you will experience some changes EXCEPT ______．

   1. A.
      brains becoming cleverer
   2. B.
      faces having fewer wrinkles
   3. C.
      arteries turning narrower
   4. D.
      genes being changed
4. 4.

   From the last but one paragraph we learn that ______．

   1. A.
      mothers will have more damaged telomeres if they raise a disabled child
   2. B.
      mothers don’t know how to handle stress effectively
   3. C.
      some women were asked to fill out a questionnaire about educating children
   4. D.
      mothers’ positive attitudes are the key to managing their stress
5. 5.

   The best title for the passage would be ______．

   1. A.
      Eat better, live better
   2. B.
      Feel better, live longer
   3. C.
      Less stress, fewer diseases
   4. D.
      Smoke more, age sooner