Think of some of your favorite singers．When you listen, they can make you happy or sad, peaceful or angry．They can make you relax or want to get up and dance．Gifted singers have the power to affect us in many ways—emotionally, physically and mentally．

       But becoming a great singer isn’t as easy as listening to one．It takes practice, devotion and strong lungs! Just ask the well-known American opera（歌剧）star Carol Vaness．

       At the Metropolitan Opera in New York City where she often sings, Carol’s voice must be loud enough to be heard by four thousand people．It must reach every person in the theater, without a microphone, even when she’s singing softly．The reason Carol can project her voice that far is the way she breathes．

       “When you breathe, it’s like a swimmer taking a deep breath before going underwater,” Carol explains．“You have to take a lot of air into your lungs．”

       According to Carol, the main difference between pop singing and opera is “how you breathe, how much air you take in, and how you control it coming out．Regular singing is more like speaking, and it’s lot softer．When I sing for children, they’re often surprised by how the vibrations strike their ears—like waves on a beach, ”Carol says．“In opera, the air doesn’t just go out of your mouth—it vibrates in your chest，the way a guitar vibrates when it’s played．”

       Ever since she started piano lessons at the age of ten, Carol has loved music．As she got older, she decided to become a music teacher．When she went to college, she took singing lessons as part of her studies．Her voice teacher discovered that nineteen-year-old Carol had an exceptionally beautiful soprano voice-the highest singing voice for women．

       Carol decided to make opera her goal, not only because she loved to sing but also because she loved the drama．Opera is a play in which the characters sing the words instead of speaking them．The stories of opera can be tragic or comical．They can be personal stories about two people falling in love or grand stories about kings and queens who lived long ago．As the characters in an opera sing, the emotions（情感）expressed by words and music come to life．

       Today, Carol performs throughout the United States and Europe and she has song for almost twenty years．But she has never forgotten where she started singing in the first palace．

       “Put your heart into your singing and enjoy it,” says Carol, “because singing is a great joy．That’s why I sing．In fact, that’s why everybody sings．”

1．According to the passage,  the Metropolitan Opera in New York City      ．

       A．is a five-story building                          B．can seat 4,000 people

       C．has no microphone in it                        D．can project the singer’s voice

2．Which statement is true?

       A．A pop singer’s lungs are usually stronger than those of an opera singer’s

       B．Opera singing is more like speaking．

       C．A pop singer takes in much more air than an opera singer when singing．

       D．An opera singer breathes differently from a pop singer when singing．

3．From the passage you can conclude all the following EXCEPT that      ．

       A．Carol once learned to play the piano

       B．Carol worked as a music teacher

       C．Carol has been singing opera for 20 years or so

       D．Carol is popular with Americans and Europeans

Thousands of people began pouring into Pennsylvania from other states．They wanted to buy lottery tickets．The tickets cost only ﹩0．9 each．But that small spending could bring them a reward of ﹩90 million．That was the second largest lottery jackpot（积累奖金）in history．

       More than 87 million tickets were bought for the Pennsylvania lottery drawing．Those who bought tickets had to choose seven numbers from 1 to 80．The chance of winning was one in 9．6 million．But that little chance certainly didn’t affect ticket sales．In the last few days before the drawing, tickets were selling at the unbelievable rate of 500 per second．

       Experts say many people buy lottery tickets because they just want to have a piece of the action．Others say the lottery is a stock market for poor people．It allows them to dream about wealth they’ll probably never have．

       But many people believe lotteries are no better than legalized（合法化的） gambling．Some critics note that most people who play are poor and may not be able to afford the tickets．There are also many addicts who take the game seriously．They may pour their life savings into lottery tickets．Some clubs have been formed to help them kick the habit．

       Politicians like lotteries because they provide money that would otherwise have to come from new taxes．The profits from lotteries are usually used to pay for education or programs for senior citizens．But critics say this arrangement just allows states to legalize vice（恶习）, under the name of social progress．No matter whether you regard state lotteries right or not, you cannot refuse to accept their extreme popularity with many Americans．

1．The main idea of the passage is that       ．

       A．lotteries are of great benefit to everyone who buys them

       B．playing a lottery is just like investing in the stock market

       C．a lot of people buy lottery tickets, but lotteries cause disagreement

       D．lotteries are just legalized vice

2．Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

       A．Politicians like lotteries because they don’t have to pay extra tax．

       B．The popularity of lotteries in America actually is social progress．

       C．Some critics don’t like lotteries because many poor people waste their money on them．

       D．People love the lottery because it is a stock market．

3．In just one hour in the last few days, the Pennsylvania lottery sold tickets totaling     ．

       A．$1．62million      B．﹩90million         C．﹩9．6million      D．﹩87million

4．People who are addicted to playing lotteries should         ．

       A．join a club                                           B．kick the habit

       C．win the Pennsylvania                         D．save every cent

This is time of year when we think about giving and receiving presents．Can you find a little extra to give? On this page we suggest a few organizations you might like to help．

       Littleton Children’s Home

       We don’t want your money, but children’s toys, books and clothes in good condition would be very welcome．

       Also—we are looking for friendly families who would take our children into their homes for a few hours or days as guests．You have so much—will you share it?

       Phone Sister Thomas on 55671．

       Children’s Hospice

       We look after a small number of very sick children．This important work needs skill and love．We cannot continue without gifts of money to pay for more nursing staff．We also need story books and toys suitable for quiet games．

       Please contact The Secretary, Little Children’s Hospice, Newby Road．

       Street Food

       In the winter weather, it’s no fun being homeless．It’s even worse if you’re hungry．We give hot food to at least fifty people every night．It’s hard work, but necessary．Can you come and help? If not, can you find a little money? We use a very old kitchen, and we urgently need some new saucepans．Money for new ones would be most welcome indeed．

       Contact Street Food, c/o Mary’s House, Elming Way, Littleton．Phone 27713．

       Littleton Youth Club

       Have you got an unwanted chair?—a record player?—a pot of paint?

       Because we can use them!

       We want to get to work on our meeting room!

       Please phone 66231 and we’ll be happy to collect anything you can give us．

       Thank you!

       The Night Shelter

       We offer a warm bed for the night to anyone who has nowhere to go．We rent the former Commercial Hotel on Green Street．Although it is not expensive, we never seem to have quite enough money．Can you let us have a few pounds? Any amount, however small, will be such a help．

       Send it to us at 15, Green St, Littleton．Please make check payable to Night Shelter．

1．Reading the passage, you might like to help these organizations which work for

       A．homeless and sick children

       B．less fortunate members of our society

       C．hungry people who have no beds to sleep in

       D．friendly members of our society to help others

2．If you like children and can offer a happy family to a homeless child, you may go to      ．

       A．Street Food                                        B．Night Shelter

       C．Children’s Home                                D．Children’s Hospice

3．We can infer that       ．

       A．there are too many social problems in this country

       B．people are very poor during the time for giving presents

       C．warm-hearted people like to give away money

       D．this passage is taken from a local newspaper

4．If your child has grown up, you may take the child’s things to        ．

       A．Children’s Home and Children’s Hospice   B．Youth Club and Children’s Home

       C．Children’s Hospice and Night Shelter            D．Youth Club and Night Shelter

My father's reaction to the bank building at 43rd Street and Fifth Avenue in New York city was immediate and definite: "You won't catch me putting my money in there!" he declared, "Not in that glass box!"

       Of course, my father is a gentleman of the old school, a member of the generation to whom a good deal of modern architecture is upsetting, but I am convinced that his negative response was not so much to the architecture as to a violation of his concept of the nature of money ．

       In his generation money was thought of as a real commodity （实物）that could be carried, or stolen．Consequently, to attract the custom of a sensible man, a bank had to have heavy walls, barred windows, and bronze（青铜） doors, to affirm the fact, however untrue, that money would be safe inside．If a building's design made it appear impenetrable（难以渗透的）, the institution（公共机构, 协会, 制度）was necessarily reliable, and the meaning of the heavy wall as an architecture symbol dwelt in the prevailing attitude toward money．

       But the attitude toward money has, of course, changed．Excepting pocket money, cash of any kind is now rarely used; money as a tangible（切实，实在）commodity has largely been replaced by credit．A deficit （赤字） economy, accompanied by huge expansion, has led us to think of money as product of the creative imagination．The banker no longer offers us a safe: he offers us a service in which the most valuable element is the creativity for the invention of large numbers．It is in no way surprising, in view of this change in attitude, that we are witnessing the disappearance of the heavy-walled bank．

       Just as the older bank emphasized its strength, this bank by its architecture boasts of imaginative powers．From this point of view it is hard to say where architecture ends and human assertion （人们的说法）begins．

1．The main idea of this passage is that________．

       A．money is not as valuable as it was in the past

       B．changes have taken place in both the appearance and the concept of banks

       C．the architectural style of the older bank is superior to that of the modern bank

       D．prejudice makes the older generation think that the modern bank is unreliable

2．How do the older generation and the younger one think about money?

       A．The former thinks more of money than the latter．

       B．The younger generation values money more than the older generation．

       C．Both generations rely on the imaginative power of bankers to make money．

       D．To the former money is a real commodity but to the latter be a means to produce more money．

3．According to this passage, a modern banker should be ．

       A．ambitious and friendly                         B．reliable and powerful

       C．sensible and impenetrable                     D．imaginative and creative

4．It can be inferred from the passage that the author's attitude towards the new trend in banking is ．

       A．cautious   B．regretful    C．positive    D．hostile（敌意的）

Everyone knows that the Frenchmen are romantic, the Italians are fashionable and the Germans are serious．Are these just stereotypes or is there really such a thing as national character? And if there is, can it affect how a nation succeed or fail?

       At least one group of people is certain that it can．A recent survey of the top 500 entrepreneurs （企业家） in the UK found that 70% felt that their efforts were not appreciated by the British public．Britain is hostile （敌意的） to success, they said．It has a culture of jealousy．____1_____ Jealousy is sometimes known as the “green – eyed monster” and the UK is its home．

       Scientists at Warwich University in the UK recently tested this idea．They gathered a group of people together and gave each an imaginary amount of money．___2______ Those given a little were given the chance to destroy the large amount of money given to others – but at the cost of losing their own．Two thirds of the people tested agreed to do this．

       ___3_____ But there is also conflicting evidence．The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development recently reported that the UK is now the world’s fourth largest economy．That is not bad for people who are supposed to hate success．People in the UK also work longer hours than anyone else in Europe．So the British people are not lazy, either．

       “It is not really success that the British dislike,” says Carey Cooper, a professor of management at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology．“It’s people using their success in a way that seems proud or unfair or which separates them from their roots．”

       __4_____ They set out to do things in their way．They work long hours．By their own efforts they become millionaires．__5_____ It hardly seems worth following their example．If they were more friendly, people would like them more．And more people want to be like them．

       A．This seems to prove that the entrepreneurs were right to complain．

       B．The one who owns most money in the end is the winter．

       C．As a result, the survey said, entrepreneurs were “unloved, unwanted and misunderstood．”

       D．it is not true that British people are born jealous of others success．

       E．Some were given a little, others a great deal．

       F．But instead of being happy they complain that nobody loves them．

       G．Perhaps it is the entrepreneurs who are the problem．

王虹想利用高考结束到大学入学前这段时间打工，下面是她的一份不完整的求职简表，请根据该表提供的内容替她写一份100词左右的自荐信。

A man who knows how to write a personal letter has a very powerful tool．A letter can be enjoyed, read and   1  ．It can set up a warm conversation between two people far apart; it can keep a   2   with very little effort．

       I will give   3   ． A few years ago my older brother and I were not getting along well．We had been close as    4    but had grown apart．Our meetings were not   5  ; our conversation was filled with arguments and quarrels: and every effort to clear the air seemed to only   6   our misunderstanding．Then he   7   a small island in the Caribbean and we   8   touch．One day he wrote me a letter．He described his island and its people, told me what he was doing, said how he felt．Rereading the letter, I was   9   by its humor and clever expressions．These were all qualities for which I had  10   respected my older brother but   11   he no longer had them．I had never known he could write so well．And with that one letter we became friends   12 ．

       It might never have occurred to him to write me if he had not been in a place where there were no   13  ．For him, writing was a necessity．It also turned out to be the best way for us to get back in touch．Because we live in an age of   14   communication, people often forget   that they don’t always have to phone or email．They have a   15 ．And that is to write．

1．  A．received              B．rewritten             C．returned            D．reread

2．  A．record                 B．promise              C．friendship          D．secret

3．  A．an example          B．a lesson             C．an experience      D．a talk

4．  A．brothers              B．children             C．fellows          D．classmates

5．  A．normal                B．necessary           C．pleasant         D．possible

6．  A．deepen                B．start                  C．express         D．settle

7．  A．toured                B．stopped over       C．reached         D．moved to

8．  A．lost                   B．kept in              C．needed          D．got in

9．  A．driven                B．beaten                C．surprised        D．honored

10．A．never          B．seldom               C．sometimes       D．once

11．                                A．realized        B．judged               C．thought         D．expected．

12．A．later                   B．anyhow             C．too             D．again．

13．A．mail services    B．transport services C．phones          D．relative

14．A．poor                   B．easy                  C．popular          D．busy

15．A． habit               B．choice         C．method         D．plan

阅读下面短文，按照句子结构的语法性和上下文连贯的要求，在空格处填入一个适当的词或使用括号中词语的正确形式填空。

       Anna pushed herself up from the bench and walked steadily with her walking sticks toward the office．As soon as she entered the room, she saw it．_____1______ blue umbrella was there, unopened, ___2______ a floor-to-ceiling window．_____3___（see） it so near, nearly within reach, Anna forgot herself and pointed to her possession．

       “That is mine,” she said．“My son brought it to me from Paris and I want it back．”

       The man had risen when she entered and he __4_______（remain） standing．He turned to look at the umbrella ____5______ she pointed．“Yes．I know the umbrella is from Paris, ” he said, showing a mix of innocence and curiosity．“Actually, it ___6______（make） in Italy, but it’s sold in Paris．It’s not the one your son gave you．I bought it myself．”

       Anna stared at him．Was he claiming that it was his own umbrella? She had run all the way to this office building from the shop _____7______ her umbrella was stolen．

       “My son gave _____8____ to me,” Anna countered．“ It means everything to me, because my son is ____9____（die）．”

       As soon as she said them, Anna knew she had made a mistake．She had opened herself up to a stranger．He had no business knowing the most important fact of her life, a grief she kept private．___10____ could anyone understand what her son’s death meant to her?

How I Turned to Be Optimistic

       I began to grow up that winter night when my parents and I were returning from my aunt's house, and my mother said that we might soon be leaving for America．We were on the bus then．I was crying, and some people on the bus were turning around to look at me．I remember that I could not bear the thought of never hearing again the radio program for school children to which I listened every morning．

       I do not remember myself crying for this reason again．In fact, I think I cried very little when I was saying goodbye to my friends and relatives．When we were leaving I thought about all the places I was going to see-—the strange and magical places I had known only from books and pictures．The country I was leaving never to come back was hardly in my head then．

       The four years that followed taught me the importance of optimism, but the idea did not come to me at once．For the first two years in New York I was really lost—having to study in three schools as a result of family moves．I did not quite know what I was or what I should be．Mother remarried, and things became even more complex for me．Some time passed before my stepfather and I got used to each other．I was often sad, and saw no end to "the hard times．"

       My responsibilities in the family increased a lot since I knew English better than everyone else at home．I wrote letters, filled out forms, translated at interviews with Immigration officers, took my grandparents to the doctor and translated there, and even discussed telephone bills with company representatives．

       From my experiences I have learned one important rule: almost all common troubles eventually go away! Something good is certain to happen in the end when you do not give up, and just wait a little! I believe that my life will turn out all right, even though it will not be that easy．

1．How did the author get to know America?

     A．From her relatives．                            B．From her mother．

     C．From books and pictures．                  D．From radio programs．

2．Upon leaving for America the author felt_______．

     A．confused           B．excited              C．worried             zed

3．For the first two years in New York, the author _________．

     A．often lost her way                               

       B．did not think about her future

     C．studied in three different schools

       D．got on well with her stepfather

4．What can we learn about the author from Paragraph 4?

     A．She worked as a translator．

     B．She attended a lot of job interviews．

     C．She paid telephone bills for her family．

     D．She helped her family with her English．

5．The author believes that______．

     A．her future will be free from troubles

     B．it is difficult to learn to become patient 

     C．there are more good things than bad things

     D．good things will happen if one keeps trying

Phys ed （physical education） is making a comeback as a part of the school core curriculum（核心课程）， but with a difference．While group sports are still part of the curriculum, the new way is to teach skills that are useful beyond gym class．Instead of learning how to climb a rope, children are taught to lift weights, balance their diets and build physical endurance（忍耐力）．In this way，kids are given the tools and skills and experiences so they can lead a physically active life the rest of their life．

       Considering that 15 percent of American children 6 to 18 are overweight, supporters say more money and thought must be put into phys ed curriculum．In many cases, that may mean not just replacing the old gym-class model with fitness programs but also starting up phys ed programs because school boards often "put P．E．on the chopping block（砧板）, cutting it entirely or decreasing its teachers or the days it is offered," says Alicia Moag-Stahlberg, the executive director of Action for Health Kids．The difference in phys ed programs is partly due to the lack of a national standard．"Physical education needs to be part of the core curriculum," she added．

       The wisdom of the new approach has some scientific support．Researchers at the University of Wisconsin have showed how effective the fit-for-life model of gym class can be．They observed how 50 overweight children lost more weight when they cycled and skied cross-country （越野）than when they played sports．The researchers also found that teaching sports like football resulted in less overall movement, partly because some reluctant students were able to sit on the bench．

       Another problem with simply teaching group sports in gym class is that only a small percentage of students continue playing them after graduating from high school．The new method teaches skills that translate to adulthood．

1．According to the passage, what is usually taught in the old gym class?

       A．Lift weights                                      B．Climb a rope     

       C．Cycle                                           D．Have a balanced diet

2．What does Alicia Moag-Stahlberg mean by saying “some school boards put P．E．on the chopping block”?

     A．Schools do not pay enough attention to P．E．

     B．Schools welcome P．E．but do not have time for it．

     C．Schools put P．E．in the first place．

     D．Schools cut down other subjects’ time for P．E．

3．Which is NOT the reason to carry out phys ed programs according to the passage?

     A．More teenagers are overweight．

     B．Traditional group sports teaching is not effective．

     C．Students need to learn some skills to help them lead a physically active life．

     D．Phys ed programs need less money to support．

4．How many problems are mentioned in the passage with simply teaching group sports?

     A．Two                B．Three             C．Four               D．One

5．What’s the difference between the come-back phys ed and the ordinary gym-class model？

     A．The Phys ed teaches group sports．

     B．The Phys ed provides more fitness programs．

     C．The Phys ed teaches tools and skills which could be used in the future life．

     D．The Phys ed has more support from the government．