阅读理解(Reading Comprehension)

　　Midsummer was the festival throughout most of England, most of Scotland, Shetland Islands, and the Orkneys．Fires, dancing, games, and various shenanigans(胡闹)were the general rule on this“longest day of the year”．But the festival has lost some of its color in the passing centuries

　　By the 1680s, British folklorist(民俗学家)John Aubrey reported that“still in many places, they make fires on the hills：but the Civil War in Britain in the 1640s have put all these customs quite out of fashion”．

　　Thousands of years ago, builders of Stonehenge(巨石阵)no doubt celebrated their own midsummer festival among the stones．More recently a British group called the Ancient Order of Druids, founded in 1781 by Hurle, suggested celebrating the festival on June 21 every year at the site．In the later years this day attracted huge crowds．Bread and wine, candles, bells, incense(熏香)，and priests(神甫)in white and purple shared wine from a silver cup as the midsummer sun shone across the old stones．It remained a local festival for a long time in history．In the mid-1980s, vandalism(故意破坏艺术的行为)and unruly people imperiled(危害)the festival's future．

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阅读理解

　　The ancient Chinese celebrated their harvest festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, with the full moon that fell on the 15th day of the 8th month．This day was considered the birthday of the moon and special“moon cakes”, round and yellow like the moon, would be baked．Each cake was stamped with the picture of a rabbit－as it was a rabbit, not a man, that the Chinese saw on the face of the moon．Special moon cakes were distributed(分配)to every family．In each cake was a secret message which contained the time for the attack．When the time came the invaders(侵略者)were surprised and easily defeated．Every year moon cakes are eaten in memory of this victory．

　　Mid-Autumn is a time for family and loved ones to gather and enjoy the full moon that is a symbol of abundance(丰裕)，harmony(融洽)and luck．

　　Almost four centuries ago, the Pilgrims in the New World celebrated a harvest feast to thank God after suffering through a brutal winter．The custom of an annually celebrated thanksgiving, held after the harvest, continued through the years．During the Civil War President Abraham Lincoln appointed a national day of thanksgiving, asking Americans to give thanks with“one heart and one voice”．Since then, in times of war and in times of peace, Americans have gathered with family and friends and given thanks to God for blessings．Families get together for a big feast with turkey, which has become the most well known of all the Thanksgiving symbols, and grandma's apple pie．Each president has issued(发布)a Thanksgiving Day proclamation(公告)，usually designating the fourth Thursday of each November as the holiday．

　　While the harvest is celebrated differently in different parts of the world, there are many common themes．The spirit of thanksgiving, the love of family, the value of hard work and the appreciation of the land and celestial powers are found in all cultures．

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阅读理解

　　According to the airline industry statistics(统计)，about 90％ of airline accidents are survivable or partially survivable．Passengers can increase their chances of survival by learning and following certain tips．Experts say that you should read and listen to safety instructions before takeoff and ask questions if you have uncertainties．You should fasten your seat belt low on your hips(臀)，and as tightly as possible．Of course, you should also know how to untie it．During takeoffs and landings, you are advised to keep your feet flat on the floor．Before takeoff you should locate the nearest exit and an alternative(备选的)exit and count the rows of seats between you and the exits so that you can find them in the dark if necessary．

　　In the event that you are forewarned of a possible accident, you should put your hands on your ankles(踝)and keep your head down until the plane comes to a complete stop．If smoke is present in the cabin(机舱)，you should keep your head low and cover your face with napkins, towels or clothing．If possible, wet them for added protection against smoke inhalation(吸入)．To escape as quickly as possible, follow crew(全体乘务员)commands and do not take personal belongings with you．Don't jump on escape slides before they are fully inflated(膨胀)；and when you jump, do so with your arms and legs extended in front of you．When you get to the ground, you should move from the plane as quickly as possible, and never smoke near the wreckage(残骸)．

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阅读理解

Tsunami(海啸)Death Toll to Rise Greatly

A senior UN official has described the Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami as among the worst-ever natural disasters(灾难)．The United Nations'top emergency(紧急事件)relief(救济)official, Jan Egeland, says the death toll from the December 26 tsunami may rise much higher as more information becomes available from the isolated(孤立的)western coast of Sumatra．Mr．Egeland says relief workers are now focusing on the western coast of northern Sumatra．He says they are just beginning to fully grasp the level of destruction caused by the earthquake and tsunami in that area．“The coast is low．It takes the full blast(冲击波)of the tsunami which was at its highest and many, many of these villages are gone ,”he said．“There is no trace(踪迹)left of them．They had hardly roads before．Now they have nothing．The death toll will grow highly on the west coast of Sumatra．What will be the final toll, we will never know．But we may be talking of tens of thousands of further deaths in this area．The town of Meulaboh, nearly 50,000 inhabitants(居民)，has perhaps been the most destructed of any town anywhere, even much more than Banda Aceh．”Mr．Egeland describes reaching the isolated parts of Sumatra as a nightmare(噩梦)．Mr．Egeland said international response to the disaster has been, in his words “greatly positive”．He said much of the aid is being directed at the water and sanitation sectors(卫生设备)in the worst-hit countries．

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阅读理解

　　Today our lives are changing faster than at any time in history．Here we report on some important changes that will have a big impact(影响)on our everyday lives in the future．

　　■The Cashless Society

　　Cash and bank-notes will disappear almost completely．They will be replaced by smart cards, namely plastic cards：microchip (微芯片)processors(处理器)loaded with some money．When we pay for goods, the shop assistant will put our smart card into a payment terminal(终端)and money will come into his card from our card．When all the money is used up, we will be able to reload it by putting it into a telephone, dialing our bank account and money will be put into the card from the account．

　　■Interactive Telephones

　　Talking computers will play an important part．They will recognize speech, ask us what information we need, look through a database, and put the information into speech．If we want to book a flight or pay a bill by phone, we will interact with a talking computer to do so．Human telephone operators will be used only for more complex operations such as dealing with complaints or solving special problems．

　　■________

　　Traffic jams in cities will be reduced because drivers will use electronic route maps to find the quickest route to their destination．Electronic systems will start changing motorists for driving in cities．As soon as motorists have to pay to drive in cities, they will stop using their cars and use public transport instead．Speed control systems will be built into cars．These systems will automatically(自动地)regulate the speed of the car to take account of traffic and weather conditions and prevent accidents．It will be many years before these changes bring results but when they do, there will be a titanic improvement in road safety．

　　With the development of science and technology, more and more advanced things will be invented or created．Life in the future is undoubtedly different from that at the present．

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阅读理解

　　The view over a valley of a tiny village with thatched (草盖的)roof cottages(村舍)around a church, a drive through a narrow village street lined with thatched cottages painted pink or white, the sight over the rolling hills of a pretty collection of thatched farm buildings－these are still common sights in parts of England．Most people will agree that the thatched roof is an essential(基本的)part of the attraction of the English countryside．

　　Thatching is in fact the oldest of all the building crafts(工艺)practiced in the British Isles．Although thatch has always been used for cottages and farm buildings, it was once used for castles and churches, too．

　　Thatching is a solitary(独自的)craft, which often runs in families．The craft of thatching as it is practiced today has changed very little since the Middle Ages．Over 800 full-time thatchers are employed in England and Wales today, keeping and renewing the old roofs as well as thatching newer houses．Many property owners choose thatch not only for its beauty but because they know it will keep them cool in summer and warm in winter

　　In fact, if we look at developing countries, over half the world lives under thatch, but they all do it in different ways．People in developing countries are often unwilling to go back to traditional materials and would prefer modern building．However, they may lack the money to allow them to get the necessary materials．Their temporary(暂时的)mud huts with thatched roofs of wild grasses often only last six months．Thatch which has been done the British way lasts from twenty to sixty years, and is an effective defense against the heat．

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阅读理解

　　Ask most American children what they want to be when they grow up, and they probably will say“doctor”or“lawyer”．

　　Though our culture, our economy(经济)，indeed our very security(安全)are heavily dependent on science and engineering, only 12 percent of American high school students graduate with the prerequisites(先决条件)for a career in science or engineering．

　　Don't be too surprised．If you ask further why the majority of the high school students would choose a career in medicine or law, the answers will be straight out of some popular TV shows．

　　“Doctors help people．They save lives．”“Lawyers beat the bad guys．”Most students would say．

　　Now, how about science or engineering as a career choice?The answers will be just as predictable(可预见的)，“Get real!Who wants to be a geek?They all are nerds．Besides I hate maths．”

　　In our media, scientists and engineers typically are described as introverted(内向的)and humorless．They always wear white lab coats with a collection of pencils in their pocket protectors．They wear glasses with black plastic frames．

　　If more students are to choose technical careers, they must have a better view presented to them．

　　They need to be told, for example, that the invention of lifesaving equipment saves lives just as surely as the application(应用)of it in the hospital．

　　It also might help if someone points out to students that the lawyer who saved the defendant(被告)by introducing the DNA evidence(证据)would have seen him hanged had it not been for the scientists who discovered DNA．

　　Whatever we do, until students stop thinking of the term“engineer”as a synonym (同义词)“geek”, it is impossible to expect our children to change their views towards scientists and engineers．

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阅读理解(Reading Comprehension)

　　British higher education has had a long history．There are over forty universities in Britain．The world famous universities, Oxford and Cambridge, are the oldest ones dating from 1167 and 1284．Of cabinet ministers(内阁部长)who went to universities, nearly all went to one or the other of these two, and to Oxford in particular．Oxford gets started in the twelfth century．It has twenty-three ordinary colleges for men, five for women, with about 12,000 students in all．There is no single building which can be called“the University”and no definite area which could be called a“campus”because the colleges and university buildings are scattered(分散的)about the town．The university prescribes syllabi (规定教学大纲)，arranges examinations and awards degrees．Part of the teaching is by means of lectures organized by the university; any students may attend any university lecture．The average don(教师)gives one or two lectures a week on a subject which is his special field of interest．

　　At the beginning of each term a list is published showing all the lectures being given during the term．Every student can choose the lectures he likes．Attendance at university lectures is not compulsory(要求的，强迫的)and no records of attendance are kept．Apart from lectures teaching is by means of the“tutorial system”(导师制)，which is one of the two Oxford and Cambridge features that are widely admired and are being gradually extended to other universities．Each student gets personal tuition once a week in his or her tutor's own room, sitting in an armchair and reading out an essay which he or she and the tutor then discuss．This, with a weekly programme of private study, is considered so important at Oxford and Cambridge that students are not even compelled(强迫)to attend general lectures, which must therefore be of high quality if they are to attract a large student audience．

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阅读理解(Reading Comprehension)

　　Scottish men and kilts

　　Generally men do not wear skirts．But the Scottish native costume (服装样式)for men is a kind of skirt．It's called kilt(有褶短裙)．The Scottish like to be different．They are also proud of their country and its history, and they feel the kilt is part of that history．That's why the men still wear kilts at old-style dances and on national holidays．They believe they are wearing the same clothes that Scottish men always used to wear．

　　That's what they believe．However, kilts are not really so old．Before 1730, Scottish men wore a long shirt and blanket around their shoulders．These clothes got in the way when the men started to work in the factories．So in 1730, a factory owner changed the blanket into a skirt：the kilt．That's how the first kilt was made．

　　Then, in the late 1700s, Scottish soldiers in the British Army began to wear kilts．One reason for this was national feeling．The Scottish soldiers wanted to look different from the English soldiers．The British Army probably had a different reason：A Scottish soldier in a kilt was always easy to find!The Scottish soldier fought very hard and became famous．The kilt was part of that fame, and in the early 1800s, men all round Scotland began to wear kilts．

　　The British policemen

　　The British policemen have several nicknames．But the most popular are“copper”and“bobby”．The first name comes from the verb “cop”meaning to“take”or“capture”．and the second comes from the first name of Sir Robert Peel, a 19th century politician, who was the founder of the police force．An early nickname of the policemen was “peeler”, but this name has died out．

　　Visitors to England seem, nearly always, to be very impressed by the English police．In fact, it has become a joke that the visitor to Britain, when asked for his views of the country, will always say, at some point or other, “I think your policemen are wonderful．”

　　Well, the British bobby may not always be wonderful but he is usually a very friendly and helpful character．

　　There was a music-hall song of some years ago called“If you want to know the time, ask a policeman”．Nowadays, most people own watches but they still seem to find plenty of other questions to ask the policemen．In London, the policemen spend so much of their time directing visitors about the city that one wonders how they ever find time to do anything else!

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阅读理解

　　London：The Capital of Britain

　　Like Paris, London is a famous city with long history．Beautiful scenes, mild climate(温和的气候)，old culture, advanced education and flourishing(繁华的)business…．London attracts many foreigners every year．

　　If you want to take a trip to London, you shouldn't miss these places．

　　Buckingham Palace：It's the permanent residence(永久住所)of the Queen．It was built for the Duke of Buckingham(白金汉公爵)in 1703, and during the later years many buildings were added to it．In the Palace, there are large sum of art works．The Palace is opened to public for two months each summer．

　　Big Ben：The famous London Clock is at the northern end of the House of Parliament (议院)．The clock is very big．The tower is 320 feet high and the clock is 23 feet wide．The minute hands are 14 feet long．It was completed in 1859．

　　Westminster Cathedral：People used eight years to build the Westminster Cathedral(1895-1903)．It has one of the finest choirs(唱诗班)in Britain．On the Bell Tower, which is 273 feet high, people can see much of London．It is the place for famous people to“live”after their death．

　　Tower Bridge：It's London's most famous landmark．Inside the twin towers, there are exhibitions about the stories of the bridge．

　　London Zoo：Children must be interested in it!It was opened in 1828 and it's the most famous zoo in the world．You can see 650 animal species in the zoo．

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