If you travel around the world, you will be surprised to find just how different the foreign customs can be from your own.

A visitor to India would do well to remember that people there consider it impolite to use the left hand for passing food at table. The left hand is supposed to be used for washing yourself. Also in India, you might see a man apparently shaking his head at another and assume that he is disagreeing. But in many parts of India a shake of the head is a gesture that shows agreement or acceptance. Nodding your head when offered a drink in Bulgaria is likely to leave you thirsty. In that country you shake your head to indicate “yes”—a nod indicates “no”. The Arabs are known for their hospitality. At a meal in countries on the Arabic Peninsula, you will find that any drinking vessel(容器，器皿) is repeatedly refilled as soon as you drink it up.

In Europe it is quite usual to cross your legs when sitting talking to someone, even at an important meeting. Doing this when meeting an important person in Thailand, however, could cause offence. It is too informal an attitude for such an occasion. Also when in Thailand you are not supposed to touch the head of an adult—it’s just not done. In Japan, it is quite usual for men to plan evening entertainments for themselves and leave their wives at home. In Europe such attitudes are disappearing.

Customs vary from country to country. Visitors may be at a loss as to what to do ina foreign environment. In such circumstances, the golden rule to follow is when in Rome, do as the Romans do.

1.  In which country, a left-hander is not welcomed?

A.  Thailand.

B.  India.

C.  Arabic Peninsula.

D.  Bulgaria.

2. In which country, if someone shakes his head at another, it shows that he agrees or accepts?

A. Bulgaria.

B. Thailand.

C. China.

D. Arabic Peninsula.

3. Which of the following is impolite in Europe?

A. To cross your legs.

B. To touch the head of an adult.

C. That men plan evening entertainments and leave their wives at home.

D. To drain the glass in your hand.

4. If you don’t know the customs in the country where you visit, the golden rule to follow is_______.

A. to do as the Romans do

B. to do nothing

C. to visit Rome only

D. to do as the natives do

Americans like to travel on their yearly holiday. Today, more and more travelers in the United States are spending nights at small houses or inns (客栈) instead of hotels. They get a room for the night and the breakfast the next morning.

Rooms for the night in private homes with breakfast have been popular with travelers in Europe for many years. In the past five to ten years, these bed-and-breakfast places have become popular in the United States. Many of these America’s bed-and-breakfast inns have only a few rooms, while others are much larger. Some inns do not provide telephones or televisions in the rooms, while others do.

Staying at a bed-and-breakfast inn is much different from staying at a hotel. Usually the cost is much less. Staying at an inn is almost like visiting someone’s home. The owners are glad to tell about the areas and the interesting places to visit. Many vacationers say that they enjoy the chance to meet local families.

1. Americans take a holiday trip_______.

A. all the year round  

B. for years

C. every year  

D. every other year

2. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT true?

A. Some Americans like to stay at bed-and-breakfast homes instead of at hotels.

B. The bed-and-breakfast inns are private homes opened to vacationers.

C. The bed-and-breakfast inns have been popular in America for a long time.

D. The bed-and-breakfast inns owners provide a morning meal for their visitors and a room for the night.

3. Why do American travelers prefer staying at bed-and-breakfast inns?

A. It is like visiting someone’s home.

B. The money they spend there is much less.

C. They can meet local families.

D. All of the above.

4. Staying at the bed-and-breakfast inns, _______.

A. the travelers needn’t pay anything

B. the travelers don’t have to pay for the telephone or television

C. the travelers can meet and talk with the local people

D. the owners will show the travelers around the area

5. Which is TRUE according to the passage?

A. European and American vacationers like staying at bed-and-breakfast inns.

B. All Americans enjoy traveling.

C. These bed-and-breakfast inns are all old historic buildings.

D. Staying at a bed-and-breakfast inn is just like at the traveler’s home.

People who travel long distances will have to decide whether they would prefer to go by land, sea, or air. Maybe nobody would say they enjoy sitting in a train for more than a few hours. The train will soon get crowded and dirty. It is almost impossible to take your mind off the journey. Reading may help you to kill time but soon the clicking on the rails will bring you to sleep. During the day, sleep never lasts long. At night, when you really wish to go to sleep, you find you can hardly manage to do so. If you are lucky to get a sleeping seat, you spend half the night looking at the small blue light over your head, and when you finally arrive at the station, you are so tired that you don’t want to leave.

Long car journeys are even less pleasant, for it is impossible even to read. On motor-ways, you can, at least, travel fairly safely at high speeds, but more often, the greater part of the journey is spent on narrow, bumpy (不平的) roads which are crowded with traffic.

When traveling by sea, you have a different experience. You can have a walk on the board, play games, swim, meet interesting people and enjoy good food, and of course, only when the sea is calm. If it is not, you are likely to get seasick(晕船), you will find no journey that can be worse than that. Even if you travel in good weather, sea journeys take a long time. Few people would like to spend a third of their holidays for the pleasure of traveling on a ship.

Traveling by plane seems to be dangerous to some people, and, it is also the most expensive of all traveling forms, though nothing can match planes for speed and comfort. Flying at a height of 30 000 feet, far above the clouds, and at 500 miles an hour is a very exciting experience. The journey is so smooth(平稳的) that there is nothing to prevent you from reading or sleeping. However you decide to spend your time, one thing is certain: you will arrive at your destination fresh and easy. You will not have to spend the next few days recovering from a long and tiring journey.

1. From the passage, we can know that traveling by train_______.

A. is the most comfortable for passengers

B. is so slow and dirty that no one wants to take a train

C. seems to be very tiring and usually takes a long time

D. will keep you awake all the time

2. What prevents people from traveling by plane?

A. Planes are very dangerous.

B. You will feel sorry after traveling by air.

C. Flying so high brings no comfort.

D. Air traveling takes a long time.

3. In the writer’s opinion, _______.

A. you should never travel by train

B. traveling by air is the most comfortable

C. traveling by sea is the best form

D. car traveling is comfortable

Traveling Animals

Animals traveling from one country to another have to follow laws, just as people do. They do not have to have passports(护照), but they have to obey other rules. Most countries have laws about animals coming into their country. The laws were made to stop the spread of diseases(疾病) that animals carry.

Traveling animals include cats and dogs going with their masters on trips. Others are rare animals going to zoos. Some are birds and fish on their way to pet(宠物) shops.

Some animals cannot go into a country unless their owners can prove (证明)that they have been vaccinated（为……接种疫苗） against certain diseases. Others must be studied carefully by animal doctors.

Sometimes animals must spend a month or more in a special place before they can enter a country. The animals are fenced in. There they are kept away from other animals until it is certain that they do not have a disease. Only the people who care for the animals can go near.

There are many different laws in each country. Anyone who wants to take a pet to another country should check with the government first. Laws are made to protect(保护) both people and animals.

1. Animals that travel from one country to another_______.

A. must have passports like humans

B. have to follow rules and laws

C. have to travel with their masters

D. must see a doctor

2. The underlined word “rare” in this passage means “_______”.

A. not often found

B. not be found everywhere

C. strong and beautiful

D. expensive but not beautiful

3. Why are some animals kept in a special place before entering a country?

A. Their masters are trying to sell them.

B. They must be checked on.

C. They are waiting for the rules to be made.

D. People don’t want them to run about.

Strange thing happens when you travel. Because the earth is divided into twenty-four time zones one hour apart. You can have days with more or fewer than twenty-four hours, and weeks with more or fewer than seven days.

If you make a five-day trip across the Atlantic Ocean, your ship enters a different zone and time changes one hour. Traveling west, you set your clock back; traveling east, you set it ahead. Each day of your trip iseither twenty-five or twenty-three hours.

If you travel by ship across the Pacific, you cross the International Date Line. By agreement, this is the point where a new day begins. When you cross the line, you change your calendar(日历) the full day, backward or forward. Traveling east, today becomes yesterday; traveling west, it is tomorrow!

1. The best title for this selection is_______.

A. A Trip Across the Atlantic

B. How Time Changes around the World

C. Crossing the International Date Line

D. How Time Zones Were Set Up

2. The International Date Line is the name for_______.

A. the beginning of any new time zone

B. the point where time changes by one hour

C. the point where a new day begins

D. any time zone in the Pacific Ocean

3. If you cross the ocean going east, you set your clock_______.

A. ahead one hour in each new time zone

B. ahead one time for the whole trip

C. back one full day for each one full day

D. ahead by twenty-three hours

A Way of Life for Students

The Internet is a way of life for US college students, with research showing them to be one of the most connected groups.

A recent study by Harris Interactive and 360 Youths found that 93 percent of American college students visit the Internet, and this market is expected to grow from 15.2 million in 2003 to 16.4 million in 2007.

That is slow but it could be the result of the already high number of college Internet users.

About 88 percent of American college students own a computer, and more than half have broadband(宽带)connections. Furthermore, 67 percent own cell phones and 36 percent use their mobile devices to visit the Internet.

Study findings are that 42 percent go online mainly to communicate socially, and 72 percent of college students check emails at least once a day, with 66 percent using at least two email addresses.

The most popular online social activity is forwarding messages to friends or family, with 37 percent of college students saying they do so.

The study also looked beyond the Internet surfing(冲浪)habits and into the buying habits of this group, and found them responsible for more than US $210 billion in sales last year alone.

College students have learned how to spend their money, with 93 percent saying low prices were important when shopping.

The study also showed that 65 percent make loan(贷款)payments;41 percent of freshmen have a credit card; and 79 percent of seniors have a credit card.

A significant number of charges on those credit cards are likely to be for entertainment and leisure expenses.

1. College students in the US, as this passage shows, ________________.

A. don’t have to learn their lessons in their classrooms

B. spend too much time visiting the Internet

C. lead an exciting life by using the Internet

D. waste much time visiting the Internet

2. From the fourth paragraph we can find that in the US________________.

A. most college students are from rich families

B. college students can have a computer from their colleges

C. cell phones will take the place of computers in colleges

D. mobile phones make Internet life easy for college students

3. By using the Internet, college students in the US can do the following except________________.

A. reading newspapers

B. chatting with friends

C. buying goods

D. going swimming

4. The underlined word “charges” in the last paragraph means________________.

A. cost for goods or services

B. work given as a duty

C. sudden attack at high speed

D. money in small unit

In Europe, many people make friends across the borders(边界)through town twinning. Two towns in different countries decide to become twin towns.

Their citizens find pen-friends in the twin towns. They exchange newspapers and stamps. The school teachers discuss teaching methods with the teachers in the twin town. Officials visit the twin town for celebrations. Ordinary citizens travel to the twin town, too, but not very often if it is far away.

Sometimes, schools even exchange school classes for two or three weeks! For example, German middle school students study for a while at the school in their twin town in Britain, staying with British families. A few months later, their British friends come to study in Germany.

Some towns even arrange exchange visits for theatre groups, choirs(歌唱队)and orchestras(管弦乐队). Others send lectures to the twin towns who tell the people there all about their own town, and show photos and slides.

Some towns organize exhibitions to show works of art, for example, paintings by artists from their twin town. Many British towns are so pleased with the results of the twinning that they set out to find more than one twin town!

Tonbridge, a middle-sized town in Kent, for example, has twin towns in Germany and in France. Richmond near London has links with Germany, France and a town in former Yugoslavia!

Town twinning can help to make friends and helps people to help each other. It helps students to improve the language skill, and it contributes(有助于)to international peace and understanding.

1. Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the text?

A. Twin towns exchange newspapers and stamps.

B. Twin towns exchange business trade.

C. Schools in the twin towns exchange school classes for a period of time.

D. Lectures are sent to the twin town who tell the people there about their own town.

2. Twin towns develop ________________.

A. between European countries and China

B. in the English speaking countries

C. in the same country

D. between different countries

3. How many countries are mentioned in the passage?

A. 3. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 　　   B. 6.

C. 5. 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 　　   D. 4.

4. One of the advantages of town twinning is ________________.

A. to earn more money

B. to set up schools

C. to improve students’ language skills

D. to develop industry and agriculture

Einstein was the greatest scientist of his age. But he was almost as strange as his Theory of Relativity(相对论).

Once, while riding a street car in Berlin, he told the conductor that he hadn’t given him the right change. The conductor counted the change again and found it to be correct, so he handed it back to Einstein, saying, “The trouble with you is you don’t know your figures. ”

Einstein said that there were only twelve people living who understood his Theory of Relativity, although a good many books had been written to explain it.

He himself explained relativity in this very simple way: When you sit with a pretty girl for an hour, it seems like a minute; but when you sit on a hot stove(烤炉)for a minute, it seems like an hour.

He had nothing but contempt(轻视)for the things most people set their hearts on—for fame and money. He didn’t want money or praise. He made his own happiness out of such simple things as his work and playing the violin and sailing his boat. Einstein’s violin brought him more joy than anything else in life.

He led a very simple sort of life, went around in old clothes that needed pressing, seldom wore a hat. He shaved(刮胡子)with the same soap that he used for his bath. The man who was trying to solve the most difficult problems of the universe said that using two kinds of soap made his life completely too complicated(复杂的).

1. From this passage we know Einstein was________________.

A. the greatest scientist of his age

B. a strange man

C. a simple but noble man

D. all of the above

2. From the 2nd paragraph we know________________.

A. Einstein didn’t care about money at all

B. Einstein didn’t know his figures

C. Einstein met with a trouble in figures

D. Einstein didn’t get along well with the conductor

3. In this passage Einstein took an example to explain________________.

A. the relationship between a boy and a girl

B. the relationship between a man and a thing

C. relativity

D. time

4. Einstein’s happiness came from________________.

A. fame and money

B. money and praise

C. simple things

D. work

5. “…using two kinds of soap made Einstein’s life completely too complicated” suggests that________________.

A. Einstein wanted to live a simple life

B. Einstein was a man of humor

C. Einstein didn’t listen to others

D. Einstein has his own freedom of choice

Gardening has a long history. It is one of the oldest pastimes(消遣)in the world. Roses are known to be on the earth before there are human beings, and now there are 300 kinds of roses grown in gardens. Gardening is so big a subject that you spend your whole life learning about it.

People have different preferences(偏爱)for gardening. Some may enjoy having their own flower gardens and cutting flowers for their homes. Some may prefer to grow fruit and vegetables for food. Many like keeping plants in their homes, which is light work. With flowers or plants in a room, the house can be more beautiful.

There are different things to be done in a garden in different seasons. There is time to sow, to cut off branches and to do many other jobs. Besides, you must also have some knowledge about the soil in your garden, and about fertilizers(化肥)and weed killers, if you want to get high yields.

Today, indoor gardening is more and more popular. Hundreds of plants are grown indoors. To keep the indoor plant healthy, you have to follow certain rules. In heated rooms, plants need plenty of moisture(水分). They have to be carefully watered and leaves should be sprayed. Potted plants are better to be kept on window sills. The sun and daylight help to keep the leaves green. Fresh air is also needed if the weather is good.

1. In which of the following do we consider fresh air very important?

A. Keeping plants inside houses.

B. Cutting off branches.

C. Learning how to use weed killers.

D. Fertilizing the soil.

2. The work in a garden will take your whole life to learn because________________.

A. the seasons are quite different

B. gardening is so popular

C. there is much knowledge involved

D. many people have preference for it

3. The following are considered important when plants are kept indoors except ________________.

A. sunlight　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　   B. moisture

C. seasons　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　   　　   D. fresh air

4. If you want to get high yields in your garden, you should________________.

A. learn all the details about the species of your plants

B. have knowledge about the soil, fertilizers and weed killers

C. water your plants and always keep them green

D. keep your plants away from too much sunlight

There is an English saying: “Laughter is the best medicine. ” Until recently, few people took the saying seriously. Now, however, doctors have begun to look into laughter and the effects it has on the human body. They have found that laughter really can improve people’s health.

Tests were carried out to study the effects of laughter on the body. People watched funny films while doctors checked their heart, blood pressure, breathing and muscles. It was found that laughter has similar effects to physical exercise. It increases blood pressure, the heart beating and breathing; it also works several groups of muscles in the face, the stomach, and even the feet. If laughter exercises the body, it must be beneficial.

Other tests have shown that laughter appears to be able to reduce the effect of pain on the body. In one experiment doctors produced pain in groups of students who listened to different radio programs. The group that tolerated(忍耐)the pain for the longest time was the groups which listened to a funny programs. The reason why laughter can reduce pain seems to be that it helps to produce a kind of chemicals in the brain which diminish both stress and pain.

As a result of these discoveries, some doctors in the United States now hold laughter clinics, in which they help to improve their patients’ condition by encouraging them to laugh. They have found that even if their patients do not really feel like laughing, making them smile is enough to produce beneficial effects similar to those caused by laughter.

1. Doctors have proved the following except that________________.

A. smiling does good to health

B. laughter can be tolerated

C. there is a way to reduce pain

D. laughter can work the muscles in the feet

2. The main idea of the passage is________________.

A. laughter and physical exercises have similar effects on the human body

B. smile can produce the same effects as laughter

C. pain can be reduced by laughter

D. laughter is the best medicine

3. The students who________________ tolerated the pain for the longest time.

A. listened to different radio programmes

B. could produce a kind of chemical

C. don’t have stress of pain

D. listened to a funny programme

4. The underlined word “diminish” is similar to________________.

A. test　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　 B. stop

C. reduce　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　    　　   D. increase

5. Doctors hold laughter clinics________________.

A. to give better condition to their patients

B. in order to improve patients’ health

C. to make patients smile

D. to prove smile and laughter have the same effect