阅读理解

　　We are all interested in equality, but while some people try to protect the school and examination system in the name of equality, others, still in the name of equality, want only to destroy it．

　　Any society which is interested in equality of opportunity and standards of achievement must regularly test its pupils．The standards may be changed –no examination is perfect－but to have no tests or examinations would mean the end of equality and of standards．There are groups of people who oppose this view and who do not believe either in examinations or in any controls in schools or on teachers．This would mean that everything would depend on luck since every pupil would depend on the efficien, the values and the purpose of each teacher．

　　Without examinations, employers will look for employees from the highly respected schools and from families known to them－a form of favourtism will replace equality．At the moment, the bright child from an ill-respected school can show certificates to prove he or she is suitable for a job, while the lack of certificate indicates the unsuitability of a dull child attending a well-respected school．This defence of excellence and opportunity would disappear if examinations were taken away, and the bright child from a poor family would be a prisoner of his or her school’s reputation, unable to compete for employment with the child from the favoured school．

　　The opponents of the examination system suggest that examinations are an evil force because they show differences between pupils．According to these people, there must be no special, different, academic class．They have even suggested that there should be no form of difference in sport or any other area：all jobs or posts should be filled by unsystematic selection．The selection would be made by people who themselves are probably selected by some computer．

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　　For almost two months Dominic York, a 23-year-old hairdresser, wandered about hospitals at night, wearing a white coat and pretending he was a doctor．Yesterday he proudly claimed in court that despite his complete lack of medical experience or qualifications, he had saved several people’s lives．He had even been allowed to assist a surgeon during an emergen operation on a patient who was about to die on something she had swallowed．

　　“I watched one of those TV dramas about a hospital and suddenly I felt like playing one of the roles myself．So I put on a white jacket and a stetho-scope(听诊器)and walked around one of the biggest hospitals in London．At first I just watched．Once you learn how doctors talk to patients, nurses and other doctors, it’s easy to take people in, ” he said．

　　One of the patients he treated was Laura Kennan．She had been knocked down by a car and fainted．When she came to in hospital, York was standing over her．

　　“He looked very professional．He told me his name was Doctor Simon．Then be gave me some sort of injection, ” she said．And then he suddenly cleared off when a nurse asked who he was．She didn’t think there was anything wrong．“I would never have realized he was a fake if a policewoman hadn’t showed me his photograph a week later．When the policewoman told me who he really was, I could hardly believe my ears．”

　　Judge Raymond Adams told York that he was “shocked and horrified” that he got away with his deceiving for so long, and then sentenced him to eighteen months in a special prison for criminal with mental disorders．

　　“I can only hope that this will not lead to further problems．After all, you will have considerable opportunity to study the behavior of the pshiatrists(精神科医生)who will look after you while you are there．If you try to persuade people that you yourself are a pshiatrist after you are set free, I shall make sure that you are given a much longer sentence, ” Judge Adams warned York．

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阅读理解

　　Most of us use the telephone several times a day to talk with friends or make social arrangements．These calls are usually quite easy and require little planning．

　　Using the telephone for business purpose is different．In any organization the person on the telephone represents the company and gives an impression of the firm to the outside world．

　　If you want to ensure good public relations, you need to master effective telephone techniques．

　　You should try to give an impression of an efficient, friendly, progressive company eager to give good service．

　　Choose the right time．Consider the cost, urgen and convenience．When calling overseas you need to consider the time difference．

　　Check the number．A great deal of money is wasted each year on dialing wrong numbers．

　　Plan your call．Make a list of points and questions to be raised．

　　Be prepared．Gather any files, papers or information that may be needed during the call．It is unprofessional to have to say “Hold on while I look for that．”

　　If you have to ask a caller to hold on, keep going back and assuring him/her that you will be as quick as possible．

　　Avoid interruptions．Call at a time when you are unlikely to be distracted．

　　Be courteous, polite．Make time for suitable greetings like “How are you today, Jim?” and “Did you enjoy your holiday”?

　　Put a smile in your voice．Remember, your caller can’t see you, so use intonation to good effect and try to sound confident, decisive, helpful, and interested．

　　Check your notes．Look back at your notes to ensure that you have covered everything and quote figures and other data correctly．

　　Obtain feedback．Make sure the caller under-stands the message correctly, especially where deadlines and actions that are involved．

　　Be courteous．Finish by thanking the caller for his or her time and trouble．

　　Make notes．Let it become a habit to make notes of the call and place them in an appropriate file．

　　Take actions．If you need to send a letter of confirmation or inform someone in your organization about any details of the call, do some immediately so that you do not forget important points．

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　　“Long time no see” is a very interesting sentence．When I first read this sentence from an American friend’s email, I laughed．I thought it was a perfect example of Chinglish．

　　Obviously, it is a word-by-word literal translation of the Chinese greetings with a ruled English grammar and structure! Later on, my friend told me that it is a standard American greeting, I was too thrilled to believe her, her words could not convince me at all．So I did a research on google．com．To my surprise, there are over 60 thousand web pages containing “Long time no see, ” This sentence has been widely used in emails, letters, newspapers, movies, books, or any other possible place．Though it is sort of informal, it is part of the language that Americans use daily．Ironically, if you type this phrase in Microsoft Word, the soft-ware will tell you that the grammar needs to be corrected．

　　Nobody knows the origin of this Chinglish sentence．Some people believe that it came from Charlie Chan’s movies．In the 1930s, Hollywood moviemakers successfully created a world wide famous Chinese detective named “Charlie Chan” on wide screens．Detective Chan likes to teach Americans some Chinese wisdom by quoting Confucius．“Long time no see” was his trademark．Soon after Charlie Chan, “Long time no see” became a popular phrase in the real world with thanks to the popularity of these movies．

　　Some scholars refer America as a huge pot of stew．All kinds of culture are mixed in the stew together, and they change the color and taste to each other．American Chinese, though a minority ethnic group in the United States, is also contributing some changes to the stew! Language is usually the first thing to be influenced in the mixed stew．

　　You can have some other examples than adoptions from Chinese, such as pizza from Italian, susi from Japanese, and déjà vu from French etc．There is a long list! Americans do not just simply borrow something from others．They will modify it and make it their own, so you would not be surprised to find a tofu and peanut butter hamburger in a restaurant, or to buy a bottle of iced Chinese green tea with honey in a grocery store．Since Americans appreciate Chinese culture more and more nowadays, I believe more Chinese words will become American English in the future．In this way the American stew keeps adding richness and flavor．

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　　Despite the cold morning wind in Montreal last weekend, Ahmad Al-Bahely was busy handing out candies．He was overjoyed at hearing that Saddam Hussein had been sentenced to death．

　　“That’s how we celebrate in Iraq, ” said the 15-year-old high school student．Al-Bahely’s family was forced to leave Iraq in 1991 after the first Gulf War．They fled life under Saddam Hussein for a new beginning in Canada．“We are proud that this terrible man will get what he deserves．”

　　An Iraqi court has sentenced Saddam, 69, to death after a 13-month trial．He was found responsible for the killings of 148 people in a village, north of Baghdad in 1982．The murders were carried out in revenge for an attempt on Saddam’s life．

　　Thousands of Iraqis oppressed during Saddam’s 24-year rule took, to the streets to celebrate．Meanwhile, groups near Saddam’s hometown of Tikrit gathered to support the former president．“We’ll avenge you, Saddam, ” the crowd shouted．

　　But many simply remained calm．“Whether Saddam lives or dies is not important to me?, ” said Imad Mohammed, a computer engineer．“I’m not even sure whether my family and I will live or die．”

　　Iraqis were not the only ones to have different views on the court’s decision．The international community was also divided over the sentence．

　　US President George W．Bush called the trial a milestone in the Iraqi people’s efforts to replace a tyrant with the rule of law．But many European countries said Saddam should not be put to death．The Catholic Church called the sentence “eye for an eye” revenge．

　　“This is not the way to present the new Iraq to the world．It should be different from the way of Saddam, who was behind hundreds of thousands of deaths, ” said an Italian organization opposed to the death penalty．

　　Islamic leaders warned that hanging Saddam could lead to revenge by Saddam’s supporters, deepening the rift(不和)in the war-torn country．According to new research by a leading US university, over 650,000 Iraqis have been killed since the 2003 Iraq War began．

　　“They blame Saddam for killing people．But who will judge the leaders for the killings that happen every day now?” said 30-year-old Bahjat．He refused to give his full name out of fear．

　　“The sentence is just an important settlement with the past, but the big challenge for Iraq’s people is the future．Big compromises are required for lasting freedom and secured peace, ” said Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt．

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　　During a winter’s night in 1935, Xia Xinmin, a 21-year-old soldier in the Red Army, was climbing a snowy mountain．With heavy snowflakes flying around him, Xia felt shattered by the piercing cold wind? He couldn’t move one more step．So his friends tied him to the tail of a horse, dragging him forward．

　　“You can’t imagine the cold, fighting for breath on the high mountain, ” said Xia．“But I survived thanks to help from other soldiers and our strong willpower．”

　　Xia was among the soldiers who overcame the dangers of the 12,500-kilometre Long March．Surrounded by Chiang Kai-shek’s Kuomintang Army, the Red Army began the two-year march to escape．On October 22, 1936, they finally succeeded, arriving at Shaan’xi．

　　This year marks the 70^th anniversary of the victory? Seventy years have passed, but stories of the Red Army’s bravery have been passed down through families．“I was quite touched when my grandfather told me his wartime stories, ” said Guan Yingran, 17．His grandfather experienced countless dangers after he joined the Red Army at the age of eight．

　　“Gradfather said it was their belief in winning a better life for all the people that finally led them out of darkness, ” said Guan．

　　Yin Weidong a policeman who retraced the full route in October, fully understands the power of belief．The 34-year-old was really frightened when he fell into a swamp．“It helped me understand the spirit of the Long March which means you must never give up hope．”

　　Recent years have seen groups of people like Yin retrace the march．Two Englishmen finished their new Long March in 2003．This summer students from 13 universities took part in a relay to cover the full route．In this way they figured out what young people could learn from the Long March．

　　Lin Lu, a 17-year-old girl said the Long March encouraged her to work hard during Senior 3．“Like the soldiers, I believe in myself and that I can win a place at my dream school．” However, she said her bitterness is nothing compared to that of the army．“They lost their lives, but all that I lost was a few hours’ sleep．”

　　“In modern society where beliefs tend to be lost, the Long March teaches people to search for them again, ” said Wang Shuzeng, author of the book “Long March” in 2006．

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　　Adama, 24, almost died making the journey from Burkina Faso in Africa to Spain．Because he was an illegal migrant, he had to make the dangerous journey in a small boat which nearly sank．

　　He finally arrived in Madrid, Spain hoping for a better life, but his troubles didn’t end there．He has found it difficult to get a job, and has often had to sleep on the streets．

　　“In my country, at least I was able to eat．I felt very miserable．But I kept fighting, because I had to make a life for myself, ” he said．

　　Adama is one of 191 million people who have left their birthplace for a new life in another country, according to a United Nations report published on September 6．“State of the World Population” tells varied stories of people who leave home to look for a better life．

　　Most migrants move to wealthy nations, since they offer opportunities for higher wages, better education and healthcare．In the report, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan emphasized the positive effects of migration．Migrants are prepared to take jobs, which local people don’t want to do such as cleaning and agricultural labour．

　　Migrants work very hard because many want to earn money to send back to their poor families．The report showed that money sent home by migrants totalled US$232 billion in 2005, more than twice the amount 10 years ago? India, China and Mexico benefit most．

　　Many migrants move to Europe, which has an ageing population and not enough young workers．Migrants help to fill gaps in the labour market and support older people in retirement．

　　But critics of immigration say migrants are a threat to people’s jobs．They claim migrants lower working standards because they are prepared to accept less money and fewer benefits．Many people fear too much immigration will destroy their traditional societies．

　　Other critics say Western countries should not encourage skilled workers to leave their homelands．It can lead to a shortage of skilled labour in less developed places like Africa, where there are now too few nurses to work in the hospitals．

　　“There is an urgent need for stronger co-operation between countries to make migration safe and fair, ” said Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, executive director of the United Nations population Fund．

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　　What would happen if the sea level rose 25 metres? What kind of planet would we live on if global temperatures went up two or three degrees Celsius?

　　A recent report by the United States’ National Aeronautics and Space Administration(NASA) makes depressing reading．It says the earth would be a totally different place if temperatures went up．

　　James Hansen who led the study explains that, “If warming is kept less than one degree Celsius, the effects of global warming may be relatively manageable．” But he said, “If it rose 2 to 3 degrees the sea level would be about 25 meters higher than today．”

　　What effects would a 25-metre increase in sea level have? Well, it would leave Shanghai’s under 23 metres of water．Its 17 million residents would have to leave, or be washed away．Around the world billions of people would have to give up their homes and jobs to escape floods．

　　Humans would not be the only ones affected．If global warming continues, animals and humans will be forced to share a much smaller amount of land．Moreover, along with the rise in world population, can you guess the result of more people living on less land? It will mean greater competition for resources like food and clean water．Competition could easily become conflict．

　　But Professor Thomas Gale Moore of Stanford University, California, US, disagrees．In an article titled “Why Global Warming Would be Good for You”, Moore argues that” 6,000 years ago the earth experienced much hotter temperatures? The desert was full of plants? There was plenty of water for humans and animals．”

　　NASA says the rise in temperature is related to so-called greenhouse gasses such as carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide．But Moore claims this is wrong．“Some scientists believe that ‘polluting’ gasses cause temperatures to rise．In the past, temperatures rose before levels of gasses, not after gasses rose．”

　　The professor concludes that sea levels will rise by no more than 30 centimetres and this will not be noticed by most people around the world．

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　　In April 2004 local farmer Ma Yun was taking a walk on a hillside near Lingwu, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region when he saw several “brown stones”．Two years later scientists have found that these “stones” are, in fact, the priceless fossils of eight giant dinosaurs．They are thought to be the largest ever found in Asia．

　　We know that these animals walked the earth in the Jurassic period, around 160 million years ago．According to scientists, these plant-eating dinosaurs weighed 100 tons and had before only been found in Africa and South America．How did one end up on a Chinese hillside? The answer lies in continental drift, says Professor Xu Xing, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences．

　　According to this theory, the earth began as a solid mass of land．Pieces of the land went their separate ways over the course of the following millions of years．That’s why the discovery of these dinosaurs today is far away from their original home．

　　A complete dinosaur fossil has also been unearthed in Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region．

　　The digging is being televised nationwide by China Central Television．It is the first time a dinosaur fossil excavation has been shown live in China．

　　How is a fossil formed?

　　①The dinosaur died．The flesh rotted and left hard parts like the bones and teeth．

　　②The body was quickly covered by sand and mud．

　　③After a long time, water put minerals into the bones and replaced the chemicals in the bones with rock-like minerals．

　　④This process left a rock-like copy of the original animal-a fossil．

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阅读下面短文，从题后所给的A、B、C、D四个答案中选出最佳选项。

　　“It takes an entire village to raise a child．”That’s an old proverb(谚语)that is being quoted more and more often these days．And I’m pleased about that．

　　Today, more and more schools are reaching out to involve parents, community members and businesses(工商企业)to help shape a child’s future．

　　Parents need to be involved in their children’s education in many ways．Helping children with homework and studying, going on a field trip, teaching a craft(手工艺)or coaching a child’s sports team are all great ways to be involved with your child’s education．And don’t forget to communicate with teachers－they need and respect your input．Studies show that children learn more and schools function better when parents and schools work together．It’s important to stay in touch with your child’s education all through his or her school career．

　　Communities can help children create and achieve new goals．Help with homework, read to a child, coach a children’s team, or provide emotional(情感上的)support．Help solve problems and build self－esteem(自尊心)．Kids need role models and advisers can be role models by sharing their experiences and wisdom．

　　Businesses can also help shape our children’s future．Invite a class from your local school to visit your workplace．You may be providing a glimpse that opens a new world of possibilities．Show students what goes on during a typical day．Give a mini course for students：how to use a computer; how products are made; how machinery works．You may have a developing electrician, teacher, nurse, or even a newspaper reporter on your hands．

　　It really does take an entire village to raise a child．So share the responsibility(职责)－and the joy－of bringing a child to his or her full potential(潜能)．

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