People in Britain often talk about their homes: their mortgages (按揭), the interest rates, and rising prices. Here’s a guide to some of the words and phrases you might come across.

        It’s a good idea in the UK to arrange a mortgage with a bank before you start looking. This is when the bank tells you how much money they will lend you so you have a good idea of how much you can afford.

        The next step is to go to an estate agent and see what sort of properties they have available in your budget range and in your area. If you see something you like, the estate agent will arrange for you to view the property, so that you can see the house or flat for yourself.

        If you see something that takes your eye, you put in an offer. The vendor (卖家) can accept or decline this offer, and if the vendor accepts it, you can move forward with the sale. However, as you don’t pay any money at this point, the offer isn’t legally binding (具有约束力), and in theory, you can pull out of the offer at any time that you like.

        Your next step will probably be to get a structural survey done. A qualified surveyor will inspect the house and write a report that illustrates any structural problems, like damp or drainage problems.

        If you still want to go ahead with the sale, you need to appoint a lawyer to do the legal paperwork, if you already own a house you might also be busy trying to sell it Many house owners prefer to sell to first-time buyers (those people who don’t already own a home), as they are not in a chain (waiting for other people to buyer house before they can buy their next house).

        Finally, once the contracts are signed and exchanged, you complete on your house. You get the keys and you can move in whenever you want. Then you might want to throw a house-warming party. Congratulation!

Which of the following shows the right order of what happens before the people in the UK move into a new house?

      a. ask for a company which represents others of properties

      b. decide how much to borrow from the bank

      c. examine the structure of the house

      d. hire a lawyer and make a contract

      e. offer the seller the right money

      f. visit the house and discuss a price with the seller

       A. b, a, f, d, c, e                                B. b, a, f, e, d, c

C. b, a, f, c, d, e                                     D. b, f, d, e, c, a

According to the passage, these statements are correct EXCEPT ___________.

       A. After getting the keys, the owners sometimes have a party.

       B. People care for mortgages, interest rates and the prices &house.

       C. The sellers are more interested in the first-time buyers.

       D. People can borrow the whole money for a new house from a bank.

Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

       A. Collectors.                             B. Owners.

C. Lawyers.                                   D. Surveyors.

The passage is maybe one that _______________.

       A. give some advice on the house         B. give some tips to buyers

       C. introduces a book on travelers         D. introduces a guide to visitors

When the TV viewer turns on his set, what sort of programs does he have to choose from? You might think there would be more programs devoted to entertainment than to anything else, but that’s not the case. In most countries, fewer than 20% of broadcasting hours are devoted to entertainment. U.S. figures are high----34.8% , and the unloving Canadians are even higher with 44%. Except Canada and Italy, all countries give more broadcasting time to education than to either information (news , documentaries and so on) or entertainment programs. Of course, few educational broadcasts take place during peak viewing times. In Japan though , more than 60%of broadcasting time is taken up with education of one kind of anther----just another example of the businesslike Japanese philosophy. In the U.K., the figure is 56.4% . the Italians have fewer educational programs than anyone else. They don’t go in for entertainment either. Only about ten percent of viewing time is devoted to dramas and serials, quiz shows, music, sports etc. You will find more news information programs on Italian TV than anything else. That’s understandable in a country experiencing social and political changes. Italians rely on TV to tell them what’s going on---and events are happening almost too fast to follow. The percentage of time the U.S. devoted to news and documentary programs is much smaller. After education, most TV time is given to entertainment. Many of these programs are shown around the world.
【小题1】Based on this passage, the greatest percentage of TV broadcasting hours to educational is in __.

——What sort of house do you want to have?  Something big?

——Well, it          be big--that’s not important.

The triathlon(铁人三项运动) promises to be one of the most popular Olympic sports.Recently it has drawn huge crowds attracted by athletes swimming 1,500m，cycling 40km，then running 10km without stopping.But what makes an attractive 17?year?old girl give up everything for the doubtful pleasure it offers?

Melanie Sears has not yet learnt those often?repeated phrases about personal satisfaction，mental challenge and higher targets that most athletes use when asked similar questions.“You swim for 1,500m，then run out of the water and jump on your bike，still wet.Of course，then you freeze.When the 40km cycle ride is over，you have to run 10km，which is a long way when you’re feeling exhausted.But it’s great fun，and all worth it in the end，” she says.

Melanie entered her first triathlon at 14 and she won the junior section.Full of confidence，she entered the National Championships，and although she had the second fastest swim and the fastest run，she came nowhere.“I was following this man and suddenly we came to the sea.We realised then that we had gone wrong.I ended up cycling 20 kilometres too far.I cried all the way through the running.”

But she did not give up and was determined that she never will.“Sometimes I wish I could stop，because then the pain would be over，but I am afraid that if I let myself stop just once，I would be tempted(诱惑) to do it again.”Such doggedness draws admiration from Steve Trew，the sport’s director of coaching.“I’ve just been testing her fitness，” he says, “and she worked so hard on the running machine that it finally threw her off and into a wall.She had given it everything，and she just kept on.”

Melanie was top junior in this year’s European Triathlon Championships，finishing 13th.“I was almost as good as the top three in swimming and running，but much slower in cycling.That’s why I’m working very hard at it.” She is trying to talk her long?suffering parents，who will carry the ￡1,300 cost of her trip to New Zealand for this year’s world championships，into buying a ￡2,000 bike，so she can try 25km and 100km races later this year.

But there is another price to pay.“I don’t have a social life，”she says.“After two hours’ hard swimming on Friday night，I just want to go to sleep.But I phone and write to the other girls in the team.” What does she talk about？Boys？Clothes？“No，what sort of times they are achieving.”

1.How does Melanie differ from other athletes，according to the writer?

A．She worries less than they do.

B．She expresses herself differently.

C．Her family background is not like theirs.

D．Her aims are different from theirs.

2.What upset Melanie during the National Championships?

A．She was tricked by another competitor.

B．She felt she had let her team?mates down.

C．She made a mistake during part of the race.

D．She realized she couldn’t cycle as fast as she thought.

3.What is Melanie trying to persuade her parents to do?

A．Buy an expensive bike for her.

B．Give her half the cost of a bike.

C．Let her compete in longer races.

D．Pay for her to go to New Zealand.

4.What does Melanie say about her relationships with her team?mates?

A．She would like to see them more often.

B．She only discusses the triathlon with them.

C．She thinks they find her way of life strange.

D．She dislikes discussing boys or clothes with them.

—What sort of house do you want to have? Something big?

    —Well, it _______ be big—that’s not important. But it _________ have a nice garden—that’s important for me.

A. mustn’t; need                B. needn’t; must   

C. couldn’t; need               D. shouldn’t; must