Everyone’s at it, even my neighbors. I thought I might be the only person left in the world who hadn’t done an eBay deal. So, I decided to try my hand at online auction（网上拍卖）.
Buying for Beginners
Sign up on www. eBay. co. uk. Most items (e.g. tables, computers and books) ready for auction will come with a picture and a short description; others may be marked with “Buy It Now ” and have a fixed price. You can buy these right away.
If the item is being auctioned, you offer the highest price you are prepared to pay and eBay bids (出价) for you. The bid will be increased little by little until it goes beyond your highest bid, then you are emailed and asked if you would like to bid again. Auctions last up to 10 days and when they finish, you get an email telling you whether you have won the item.
How to Pay
Sellers decide how they would like to be paid and you need to check this before placing a bid as you might not want to post a check or postal orders. The easiest way is through PayPal, an online payment system that takes the money away from your credit card.
Selling Made Simple
If you plan to sell on eBay, it helps to include a picture of the item. I followed my friends’ advice and put up the items I wanted to sell for a 10-day auction, starting on a Thursday. This way buyers had two weekends to bid.
The big Things in Life
It’s easy to post a small item, but furniture is a big part of eBay and this has to be collectively sent by deliverymen. Check the ways of delivery before you bid.
64. What is the passage mainly about?
A. How to make payment online.                       B. Ways of making delivery online.
C. How to use an online-auction system.             D. Advantages of an online auction system.
65. After bidding for an item, a buyer ________.
A. has chances to make higher bids                    B. will get what he wants in ten days
C. should make payment immediately          D. may check its picture and description
66. The easiest way of making payment mentioned in the passage is ________.
A. through a local banking system                      B. by sending the money to the seller
C. through an online payment system                 D. by paying the deliveryman directly

Living and dealing with kids can be a tough job these days，but living and dealing with parents can be even tougher．

If I have learned anything in my 16 years，it is that communication is very important，both when you disagree and when you get along．With any relationship，you need to let the other person know how you are feeling．If you are not able to communicate，your relationship drifts apart．When you are mad at your parents or anyone else，not talking to them doesn’t solve anything．

Communication begins with the concerns of another．It means that you can’t just come home from school，go up to your room and talk to nobody．Even if you just say “Hi” and see how their day is for five minutes，it is better than nothing．

If you look up the word “communication” in the dictionary，it will say “the exchange of ideas，conveyance (传递) of information，correspondence (通信)，means of communication；a letter or message”．To keep a good relationship，you must keep the communication strong．Let people know how you feel，even if it’s just by writing a note．

When dealing with parents，you always have to make them feel good about how they are doing as parents．If you are trying to make them see something as you see it，tell them that you listen to what they have to say，but ask them politely to listen to you．Shouting or walking away only makes the situation worse．

Here is an example．One night，Sophie went to a street party with her friends．She knew she had to be home by midnight after the fireworks．but they didn’t feel she could just ask to go home．That would be rude．After all，they had been nice enough to take her along with them．Needless to say，she was late getting home．Her parents were mad at first，but when Sophie explained why she was late，they weren’t as mad and let the incident go．Communication was the key factor here．If Sophie’s parents had not been willing to listen，Sophie would have been in a lot of trouble．

Communication isn’t a one-way deal．It goes both ways．Just remember：if you get into a situation like Sophie’s，telling the other person how you feel and listening are key factors to communication．

68．The second paragraph mainly talks about ________．

A．the importance of friendship

B．making your feelings known to others

C．the importance of communication

D．the disagreement between generations

69．The key to happy relationship between parents and children is that _______．

A．children should always obey their parents

B．parents play the leading part

C．parents should mind their own business

D．both should make the other know their feelings

70．The example in the passage proves that ________．

A．Sophie’s parents were willing to listen to her

B．Sophie was very polite to her parents

C．Sophie did the right thing when she explained the reason of her being late

D．communication is the key to solving misunderstanding

71．All of the following statements are true EXCEPT ________．

A．if you don’t agree with others，you’d better let them know

B．it is better to say “Hi” to others than to say nothing

C．if you are too busy to communicate，just walk away

D．communication is a two-way deal

A black hole is created when a large star burns out. Like our sun, stars are unbelievably hot furnaces (熔炉) that burn their own matter as fuel. When most of the fuel is used up, the star begins to die.

The death of a star is not a quiet event. First there is a huge explosion. As its outer layer is blasted off into space, the dying star shines as brightly as a billion suns.

After the explosion gravity pulls in what’s left of the star. As the outside of the star sinks toward the center, the star gets smaller and smaller. The material the star is made of becomes tightly packed together. A star is so dense that a teaspoon of matter from it weighs billion of pounds.

The more the star shrinks, the stronger the gravity inside it becomes. Soon the star is very tiny, and the gravity pulling it in is unbelievably strong. In fact, the gravity is so strong that it even pulls light into the star! Since all the light is pulled in, none can go out. The star becomes black when there is no light. Then a black hole is born!

That’s what we know about black holes. What we don’t know is this: What happens inside a black hole after the star has been squeezed into a tiny ball? Does it keep getting smaller and smaller forever? Such a possibility is hard to imagine.

But if the black hole doesn’t keep shrinking, what happens to it? Some scientists think black holes are like doorways to another world. They say that as the star disappears from our universe, it goes into another universe. In other words a black hole in our universe could turn into a “white hole” in a different universe. As the black hole swallows light, the white hole shines brightly—somewhere else. But where? A different place, perhaps, or a different time — many years in the past or future.

Could you travel through a black hole? Right now, no. Nothing we know of could go into a black hole without being crushed. So far the time being, black hole must remain a mystery.

Black holes are a mystery—but that hasn’t stopped scientists from dreaming about them. One scientist suggested that in the future we might make use of the power of black holes. They would supply all of Earth’s energy needs, with plenty to spare. Another scientist wondered if a black hole could some day be used to swallow earthly waste—a sort of huge waste disposal(处理) in the sky!

When the star begins to die ______.

A. there is no fuel left in it                                B. its outer layer goes into space first

C. a huge explosion will happen                         D. it doesn’t give off light any longer

Which of the following doesn’t help produce a black hole?

A. The gravity inside the star is very strong.        B. The light can’t go out of the star.

C. The star becomes smaller and smaller             D. The dying star shines very brightly.

The black hole ______.

A. continues becoming smaller and smaller all the time

B. goes into another universe and becomes a white hole

C. can pull in everything we know of in the world

D. will appear at another place at a different time

What’s the best title for this passage?

A. A New Scientific Discovery: Black Holes

B. How Do Black Holes Come Into Being?

C. What Are Black Holes?

D. Travel Through A Black Hole

Honey(蜂蜜)from the African forest is not only a kind of natural sugar, it is also delicious. Most people, and many animals, like eating it. However, the only way for them to get that honey is to find a wild bees' nest(巢)and take the honey from it. Often, these nests are high up in trees, and it is difficult to find them. In parts of Africa, though, people and animals looking for honey have a strange and unexpected helper一a little bird called a honey guide.
The honey guide does not actually like honey, but it does like the wax (蜂蜡) in the beehives (蜂房). The little bird cannot reach this wax, which is deep inside the bees’ nest. So, when it finds a suitable nest, it looks for someone to help it. The honey guide gives a loud cry that attracts the attention of both passing animals and people. Once it has their attention, it flies through the forest, waiting from time to time for the curious animal or people as it leads them to the nest. When they
finally arrive at the nest, the follower reaches in to get at the delicious honey as the bird patiently waits and watches. Some of the honey, and the wax, always falls to the ground, and this is when the honey guide takes its share.
Scientists do not know why the honey guide likes eating the wax, but it is very determined in its efforts to get it. The birds seem to be able to smell wax from a long distance away. They will quickly arrive whenever a beekeeper is taking honey from his beehives, and will even enter churches when beeswax candles are being lit.
【小题1】Why is it difficult to find a wild bees' nest?