— I hear your new head is a little arbitrary in making decisions.

— _________, he often listens to our suggestions!

A. In addition             B. As a result                        C. In other words           D. On the contrary 

I need complete quietness when I am writing. A little noise from the outside _________ my inspiration will go.

A. otherwise          B. but                               C. and                               D. while

— Hello, Tom. This is Mary speaking.

 — What a coincidence! I __________ about you.

A. was just thinking B. just thought

C. have just thought  D. would just think

In the English language, sentence stress is like word stress and is _________ gives English its rhythm.

A. when                  B. why                   C. that                   D. what

Generally, senior citizens enjoy their freedom and they prefer to live on their own _________ they can.

A. as long as       B. as far as            C. now that                     D. even though

— I’ve studied your program, Peter. Could I make some suggestions?

— _________. I am all ears.

A. By no means          B. Take it easy                    C. Go right ahead               D. With pleasure

“Scotty!” Mr. Brown, my Year 11 English teacher, called me by my nickname (绰号) across the classroom. His eyes were bright and a secret   36   was half hidden behind the beard.

Once he finished joking over my unbearable   37  , I realized he was going to read my story aloud to the class. I turned red, feeling at once both embarrassed and   38  . I had my very   39   reading audience! Though my classmates were a ‘passive audience’, it didn’t weaken my feeling of being   40  .

After that, I came to   41   those Year 11 English classes. Throughout school I had always studied hard and achieved well in my school subjects. But creative   42   was a passion, and it was not an assignment, but a way of understanding the world and of   43   my thoughts and feelings about events and attitudes.

Mr. Brown was the first to   44   me for my writing so openly. My scores were always 19/20 or 20/20. My stories were often read out to the class. He even   45   one with the respected Head of English teachers, which was the most   46   part that is impressed on my memory. But   47   that, he offered a belief in me that no other teacher had.

My school   48   often stated, ‘Candice is a quiet achiever.’ I thought it was meant as a(n)   49   for being hard-working. I was someone that no one really   50   before, but Mr. Brown managed to   51   all that by bringing me to the attention of the world. Though it was the relatively   52   world of school, it put the seed of belief in myself that some day I could be an   53   person rather than the person who faded into the background.

I   54   touch with my teacher long ago, as we do when we move away from the school system and enter life. I wish I could tell him now how much he   55   me.

1.A. trick            B. fear                                   C. surprise                    D. smile

2.A. sadness      B. shyness          C. weakness      D. kindness

3.A. ashamed    B. calm      C. thrilled D. depressed

4.A. unfriendly B. devoted         C. small     D. first

5.A. special        B. intelligent      C. famous D. diligent

6.A. love   B. hate      C. attend   D. miss

7.A. thinking      B. reading C. writing  D. speaking

8.A. organizing  B. collecting      C. expressing    D. hiding

9.A. train  B. recommend  C. criticize          D. acknowledge

10.A. compared         B. shared  C. composed    D. exchanged

11.A. interesting B. shocking     C. challenging D. exciting

12.A. more than        B. other than     C. instead of     D. in spite of

13.A. days         B. efforts           C. books    D. reports

14.A. praise       B. urge           C. reason    D. competition

15.A. believed  B. noticed C. supported     D. respected

16.A. forget       B. compensate  C. change D. prove

17.A. developed        B. limited  C. preserved     D. disturbed

18.A. important  B. educated   C. honest  D. optimistic

19.A. sought      B. regained        C. lost      D. ignored

20.A. owed        B. influenced    C. satisfied         D. attracted

The argument over a Philadelphia school district accused of secretly spying on pupils through laptop cameras became fiercer today after it acknowledged obtaining more than 56,000 images of its students, many of them in their homes.

When the scandal (丑闻) first broke, it was believed that only a few pictures had been taken of one pupil, Blake Robbins. But court papers released this week showed that thousands of images were taken of Robbins and other students.

Robbins and his parents have filed an action against the school district. Court papers from the Robbins’s lawyers said that at first it was thought that the laptops’ technology had produced a few images but they found more than 400 of Robbins, including images “showing him partially undressed and sleeping”.

Robbins said he did not know why the spying device was activated (激活) as his laptop had not been reported stolen or missing. Other students whose pictures were taken said their laptops had not been reported stolen or missing either.

An administrator at the school, one of the few with authority to track the laptops, remained silent, refusing to answer questions.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that 38,500 of the images came from six laptops that had been reported missing from the Harriton gym in September 2008. These apparently helped the police catch a suspect. Another set of images were from cameras in laptops which employees responsible for tracking failed or forgot to turn off.

The court papers, filed by Robbins’ lawyers, said that the technology was activated between 20 October and 4 November last year, with most of the 400 shots of him while he was in his home, and included his family. “There were additional webcam pictures and screen shots taken of Blake Robbins which, up to now, have not been recovered because the evidence was deleted by the IT department,” the court papers say.

One of Robbins’ lawyers is trying to obtain access to the administrator’s home computer to confirm whether she downloaded any of the pictures. The court papers indicate she may be a voyeur (窥隐私者) though it has not been proved.

1.We can learn from the passage that _________.

A. Robbins’ parents remained calm over the scandal

B. Robbins had his laptop stolen before the scandal

C. the laptops’ technology produced some images

D. the private rights of the students were offended

2.What did The Philadelphia Inquirer say about the case?

A. The police had found some evidence.

B. Most of the laptops in Harriton gym were missing.

C. Employees in charge of tracking deliberately left the laptops on.

D. There was obviously more than one suspect related to the case.

3.According to the court papers, the administrator _________.

A. may have spied her students on purpose

B. may have broken into Robbin’s house

C. has downloaded many students’ pictures

D. has removed evidence from computers

4. What does the passage mainly talk about?

A. Modern technology has negative effects on our lives.

B. Students in Philadelphia are accustomed to being spied on secretly.

C. A Philadelphia school is charged with spying students through laptop cameras.

D. The American government should take measures to improve teachers’ qualities.

Why 2012 was the best year ever

It may not feel like it, but 2012 has been the greatest year in the history of the world. Never has there been less hunger, less disease or more prosperity (繁荣). The West remains in the economic depression, but most developing countries are charging ahead, and people are being lifted out of poverty at the fastest rate ever recorded. The number of deaths caused by war and natural disasters is also mercifully low. We are living in a golden age.

Take global poverty as an example. In 1990, the UN announced Millennium Development Goals, the first of which was to halve the number of people in extreme poverty by 2015. It turned out this year that the target was met in 2008.

The doom-mongers (末世论者) will tell you that we cannot maintain worldwide economic growth without ruining our environment. But while the rich world’s economies grew by 6 per cent over the last seven years, fossil fuel (矿物燃料) consumption in those countries fell by 4 per cent. This remarkable achievement has nothing to do with green taxes or wind-farms. It is down to consumer demand for more efficient cars.

Advances in medicine and technology mean that people across the world are living longer. The average life span in Africa reached 55 this year. Ten years ago, it was 50. The number of people dying from Aids has been in decline for the last eight years. Deaths from malaria have fallen by a fifth in half a decade.

War has historically been human’s biggest killer. But in most of the world today, a generation is growing up that knows little of it. The Peace Research Institute in Oslo says there have been fewer war deaths in the last decade than any time in the last century.

Fifty years ago, the world was breathing a sigh of relief after the Cuban missile crisis. Young couples would discuss whether it was responsible to have children when the future seemed so dark. But now, it’s worth remembering that, in spite of all our problems, the forces of peace, progress and prosperity are prevailing (占优势).

1.What has caused the decrease in the fossil fuel consumption?

A. People have to pay heavier taxes on fossil fuel.

B. There are more and more renewable resources now.

C. There is a sharp decline in the number of cars.

D. People are purchasing more energy-saving cars.

2. Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. People don’t suffer from malaria any more.

B. There were many more war deaths in the last century.

C. The young generation shows little interest in war.

D. The number of Aids-affected people is declining.

3. Which one does NOT help prove that 2012 was the best year ever?

A. Fewer natural disasters occurred.                         B. Global poverty relieved.

C. Cuban missile crisis ended.                                      D. Technology and medicine advanced.

4. The author tries to inform people that _______.

A. 2012 witnessed more advances in developed countries

B. 2012 brought us less starvation and more prosperity

C. 2012 saw economic growth as well as environmental destruction

D. 2012 provided us with a peaceful world free from conflicts

SAS Institute 2012 rank: 1 (2011 rank: 2)

Headquarters: Cary, N.C., USA

Software company SAS climbed to the top of the global list this year, edging up from the No. 2 spot it held last year. So what makes this company so great to work for? Well, for one thing, its leaders are certainly accessible. CEO Jim Goodnight hosts monthly “Conversations Over Coffee,” unscripted breakfast meetings that are open to all employees. These conversations are so popular that other division heads have begun to hold similar events for their employees.  

Google 2012 rank: 2 (2011 rank: 4)

Headquarters: Mountain View, Calif., USA

Google moved up by two spots in this year’s ranking of global workplaces. The highly desirable tech receives 61 times as many applicants as they have existing jobs, and for good reason. Google seems to be all about coaching. The company’s “CareerGuru” program makes 43 of its senior leaders available for one-on-one, confidential career coaching sessions with other Googlers.  

Engineering employees at all levels can also get advice from “EngAdvisors”, senior engineers at Google who can discuss any number of issues, like work-life balance, conflict resolution, and performance reviews.

NetApp 2012 rank: 3 (2011 rank: 3)

Headquarters: Sunnyvale, Calif., USA

All new employees at data storage provider NetApp participate in the TOAST (“Training On All Special Things”) orientation program, which introduces new arrivals to NetApp’s senior management. The meetings are held every month and are always led by the executive team.  

Microsoft 2012 rank: 4 (2011 rank: 1)

Headquarters: Redmond, Wash., USA

As part of Microsoft’s commitment to promoting women in technology, the company established its DigiGirlz program in 2000. Microsoft hosts a series of DigiGirlz Day events where female high school students meet Microsoft employees and learn about careers in technology. In 2011, some 36 Microsoft locations across the world hosted more than 2,000 girls. Microsoft also holds DigiGirlz High Tech Camps, multi-day programs where participants get hands-on experience with technology during workshops and meet with tech executives.

1. What helped make SAS climb to the top of the list in 2012?

A. Accessible leaders.                                         B. Popular divisions.

C. Qualified employees.                                               D. Quality software.

2.Which statement is TRUE according to the passage?

A. Microsoft employed over 2,000 girl workers in 2011.

B. New engineering Googlers could get advice from senior Googlers.

C. All NetApp employees had to attend a special training.

D. All leaders in SAS had the same conversations with their employees.

3.These American companies are ranked according to _________.

A. the training program each company establishes 

B. the wealth each company possesses now

C. the level of technology each of the company reaches

D. the number of people willing to work for the company