Last week Adele's second album, 21, sold 257,000 copies in the UK, a sales figure that would look incredible as an opening sales week for any album by any global superstar. The fact that the album was celebrating its 10th week at No.1, and that each of the previous nine weeks it had sold over 100,000 copies, makes what Adele has achieved look miraculous. The last female singer to spend that long at No.1 in the UK was Madonna in 1990 with her greatest hits compilation, The Immaculate Collection.
For Adele, the success of 21 is part of a perfect storm of talent, timing and a connection that went beyond gender, age and credibility. But what does it say about the state of the music industry? Does Adele's success signal a return to the MOR(适合大众口味的音乐) musical depression, when the likes of James Blunt dominated the charts? Her success may well lead to a great many similar acts aiming for an MOR audience, but that's more the fault of an industry desperate to recreate any kind of success by creating poor copies until the world shouts "stop now".
What seems to have set Adele apart is her apparent ordinariness, besides that incredible voice. While Gaga parades around in a dress made of meat and Beyonce orbits a world out of touch to the majority of most human beings, Adele's chain-smoking, girl-you'd-like-to-go-to-the-pub-with persona stands out. Even for a British act, her ordinariness goes against trend, with fellow Jessie J adopting a very American habit of over-emoting, talking about a "journey" and making the idea of being a pop star seem fairly difficult.
It's this universality and broad appeal that's helped her translate talent into sales. While the first single from 21, Rolling in the Deep, appealed to Radio 1 listeners and bloggers, the second single, Someone Like You, is so successful that silenced the grand O2 Arena during this year's Brit Awards. The press can write pages and pages in that there's enough of a connection of musicians – Rick Rubin worked on the album, there's a cover of the Cure, Mumford & Sons were an influence – while the gossip magazines have been excited by the fact that the album is one long break-up record, eager to find the ex.
In 1990, Madonna was a global superstar with a back catalogue of era-defining hits to her name. She was untouchable and, tellingly, unknowable. She was (and still is) a megastar, but a megastar of a different age. These days, we want to know a bit more about our artists; that they have relationship problems, walk their dog. Her selling point and appeal is precisely the fact that she exists at the point between everyday ordinariness and pop star.
For now, Adele's success should be celebrated, especially for becoming an unlikely global star on her own terms. The danger is that we're headed for a lot of fairly boring pop, a situation that led to the "birth" of Gaga a few years back. Pop goes in cycles and it feels like we're headed back towards the very middle of MOR.
【小题1】Adele’s achievement seems unbelievable for the reason that ____________.

Part B: Vocabulary 9%

F. negative       G. failures         H. defined          I. mark          J. reliable  

We might be surprised at the progress made in every field of study, but the methods of testing a person’s knowledge and ability remain as primitive as ever they were. It is really extraordinary that after all years, educationists have still failed to devise something more 41 than examinations. For all the 42 that examinations test what you know, it is common knowledge that they more often do the exact 43. They may be a good means of testing memory, or the knack of working rapidly under extreme pressure, but they can tell you nothing about a person’s true ability.

As anxiety-makers, examinations are 44 to none. That is because so much depends on them. They are the 45 of success or failure in our society. Your whole future may be decided in one fateful day. It doesn’t matter that you weren’t feeling very well, or that your mother died. Little things like that don’t 46: the exam goes on. No one can bring out the 47 in him when he is in terror, or after a sleepless night, yet this is precisely what the examination system expects him to do. The moment a child begins school, he enters a world of fierce competition where success and failure are clearly 48 and measured. Can we wonder at the increasing number of “dropouts”: young people who are written off as 49 before they have started a career? Can we be surprised at the suicide rate among students?

It happened to me recently that I was telling someone how much I had enjoyed reading Barack Obama’s DreamsfromMyFather and how it had changed my views of the current US president.The person I was talking to agreed with me that it was，in his words，“a wonderfully written book”. However，he then proceeded to talk about Mr Obama in a way that suggested he had no idea of his background at all.I sensed that I was talking to a book liar.
And it seems that he is not the only one.Clearly two thirds of people have lied about reading a book which they haven’t.In the World Book Day survey，DreamsfromMyFather is at number 9.The survey lists top ten books，and various authors，which people have lied about reading.As I’m not one to lie too often，I’ll admit here and now that I haven’t read the entire ten books.But I am pleased to say that I have read the book at number one，GeorgeOrwell’s 1984.I think it’s absolutely outstanding.
Asked why they lied，the most common reason was to impress someone they were speaking to.This could be difficult if the conversation became more in­depth!
The World Book Day survey also has some other interesting information in it.It shows that many people lie about having read classical works by Jane Austen，the Bronte sisters，Charles Dickens and so on.But when asked which authors they actually enjoy，they named J．K.Rowling，Jilly Cooper，and Stephen King (ah，the big sellers，in other words)．Forty­one percent of people asked admitted they turned to the back of the book to read the end before finishing the story.
So which books have you lied about reading—if any—and which is your favourite?
【小题1】The main reason why people lie about reading is to________.

第三部分阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
James Cleveland Owens was the son of a farmer and the grandson of black slaves. His family moved to Cleveland when he was 9.There, a school teacher asked the youth his name.
“J.C.,” he replied.
She thought he had said “Jesse”, and he had a new name.
Owens ran his first race at age 13. After high school, he went to Ohio State University. He had to work part time so as to pay for his education. As a second year student, in the Big Ten games in 1935, he set even more records than he would in the Olympic Games a year later.
A week before the Big Ten meet, Owens accidentally fell down a flight of stairs. His back hurt so much that he could not exercise all week, and he had to be helped in and out of the car that drove him to the meet. He refused to listen to the suggestions that he give up and said he would try, event by event. He did try, and the results are in the record book.
The stage was set for Owens’ victory at the Olympic Games in Berlin the next year, and his success would come to be regarded as not only athletic but also political. Hitler did not congratulate any of the African American winners.
“It was all right with me,” he said years later. “I didn’t go to Berlin to shake hands with him, anyway.”
Having returned from Berlin, he received no telephone calls from the president of his own country, either. In fact, he was not honored by the United States until 1976, four years before his death.
Owens Olympic victories made little difference to him. He earned his living by looking after a school playground, and accepted money to race against cars, trucks, motorcycles and dogs.
“Sure, it bothered me,” he said later. “But at least it was an honest living. I had to eat.”
In time, however, his gold medals changed his life. “They have kept me alive over the years,” he once said. “Time has stood still for me. That golden moment dies hard.”
56.   Owens got his other name “Jesse” when _____.
A. he went to Ohio State University     B. his teacher made fun of him
C. his teacher took “J. C.” for “Jesse”   D. he won gold medals in the Big Ten meet
57.   In the Big Ten meet, Owens _____.     
A. hurt himself in the back    B. succeeded in setting many records
C. tried every sports event but failed    D. had to give up some events
58.   We can infer from the text that Owens was treated unfairly in the US at that time because _____.
A. he was not of the right race      B. he was the son of a poor farmer
C. he didn’t shake hands with Hitler    
D. he didn’t talk to the US president on the phone
59.   When Owens says “They have kept me alive over the years”, he means that the medals_____.
A. have been changed for money to help him live on
B. have made him famous in the US
C. have encouraged him to overcome difficulties in life
D. have kept him busy with all kinds of jobs
60.   What would be the best title for the text?
A. Jesse Owens, a Great American Athlete
B. Making a Living as a Sportsman
C. Golden Moment — a Life Time Struggle
D. How to Be a Successful Athlete

You have heard of Webster Toys.Websters have made good，safe and interesting toys for more than a hundred years.Now we sell them，and children play with them，in countries from New Zealand to Norway，and from Japan to Brazil.We are looking for someone to sell our toys in the Far East.He (or she) will be between the age of thirty and forty.He will already have some years of selling in world markets behind him.He will speak good English，and at least one other language of the Far East.

The person we are looking for will live in Singapore，and work in our office there，but he will travel for up to six months in other countries in one year.He will know the Far East quite well already.He will know how to sell in old markets and where to find new ones.He will understand money and more than ever before，for himself，and for Webster Toys.

Websters want someone who can stand on his own feet.If you think you are the person we are looking for，write to Mr J Sloman at our head office.

Webster Toys Company

Church Mill，Watford

Hert，WD 36 HE

36．What are Webster Toys?

A．A kind of old toys.

B．Factories where good，safe and interesting toys are made.

C．People who are famous for making toys for children.

D．A company that has been making and selling toys.

37．The passage is written because________.

A．they need a right person to work for them

B．they are trying to find the man they have lost

C．they want to have a choice between a man and a woman

D．they are looking for a man living in Singapore

38．The person must be good at speaking________.

A．English and any other language

B．English or any other language

C．English and any other Far Eastern language

D．English or any other Far Eastern language

39．“Someone who can stand on his own feet” means________.

A．someone who can deal with all the business all by himself

B．someone who doesn’t stand on other people’s feet

C．someone who has nothing wrong with his feet

D．someone who can understand and can earn a lot of money

40．Where can you probably read above passage?

A．In a book.                                          B．In a dictionary.

C．In a magazine.                                    D．In a newspaper.