－What about going to the cinema this evening?

－Oh, I don't know．I've got a bit of a headache．________ , John's coming to see me, so I ought to stay in．

However

In other words

What's more

Though

听力

第一节

听下面5段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听完每段对话后，你都有10秒钟的时间来回答有关小题和阅读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。

M：Oh you’re doing the painting all by yourself．Where is David?

W：He’s so lazy．He doesn’t do anything to help me．

1．What is the woman doing?

A．Cleaning her house．

B．Washing clothes．

C．Painting her rooms．

W：Ow! I’ve burnt myself．

M：How did you do that?

W：I picked up a hot dish．

2．Where does this conversation most probably take place?

A．In a kitchen．

B．In a restaurant．

C．In a shop．

M：Look! Somebody has spilt milk on the carpet．

W：Well, it wasn’t me．I didn’t do it．

M：I wonder who it was then．

3．What does the man want to know?

A．Who poured the milk into the cup．

B．Who drank the milk in the cupboard．

C．Who spilt milk on the carpet．

M：This food is awful, isn’t it?

W：Yes, it’s disgusting．I’m going to complain．

4．Where does the conversation probably take place?

A．In a restaurant．

B．At home．

C．In a shop．

W：The weather’s too nice to stay indoors．I’m going to sit in the garden．

M：That’s a good idea．I think I’ll join you．

5．What are they going to do?

A．To go to the garden．

B．To stay indoors．

C．To join a party．

第二节

听下面5段对话。每段对话后有几个小题．从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听每段对话前．你将有时间阅读各个小题．每小题5秒钟；听完后．各小题将给出5秒钟的作答时间。每段对话读两遍。

听第6段材料，回答第6～7题。

M：Where do you live?

W：In Boston．

M：How long have you lived there?

W：Five years．

M：Where did you live before that?

W：In Chicago．

M：And how long did you live in Chicago?

W：Two years．

6．How long has the woman lived in Boston?

A．Four years．

B．Five years．

C．Six years．

7．How long did the woman live in Chicago?

A．Two years．

B．Four years．

C．Five years．

听第7段材料，回答第8～10题。

W：Well, what time shall we meet?

M：Come to the cafe by the station at four o’clock．I’ll be waiting for you when you arrive．I’ll be sitting by the window and I’ll be wearing a bright green sweater．

W：OK．Is Agent 307 coming too?

M：No, she can’t be there．

W：Oh．Shall I bring the documents?

M：Yes．I’ll explain everything when I see you．And don’t be late．

W：OK．I’ll try to be on time．

8．What time will they meet?

A．At four o’clock．

B．At five o’clock．

C．At six o’clock．

9．What can be inferred from their conversation?

A．They are old friends and haven’t seen each other for a long time．

B．They are going to meet another person in the cafe．

C．The two speakers have never seen each other before．

10．What will the woman bring?

A．An umbrella．

B．The documents．

C．A bright green sweater．

听第8段材料，回答第11～13题。

M：Do you have any plans for next year?

W：Well, I’d travel if I could afford it．But I don’t have any money．

M：If you found a job abroad, would you take it?

W：If it were somewhere I want to go, I’d certainly consider it carefully．

M：What about working as an “au pair”(家庭打工留学生), living with a family and doing some housework?

W：I’d only consider that if I were sure about the family．If they didn’t treat me well, I’d be very miserable．

M：Yes．You’d have to be sure to use a reputable agency．We have a list in the office．I will get you one if you’re interested．

W：Yes, I am．Um, if I decided to apply, would you give me a reference?

M：Of course．Well, I hope you succeed, whatever you decide to do．

W：Thank you very much．I’ll let you know．

M：Yes, I’d like that．Goodbye．

W：Goodbye．

11．Why does the man suggest that the woman should find a job?

A．Because it is necessary for the woman to have some experience of doing a job．

B．Because the woman needs money for the travel．

C．Because they need the money to support the family．

12．What worries the woman if she works as an “au pair”?

A．Whether she could get used to the life style of the family．

B．Whether the family are friendly to her．

C．Whether she could get as much money as she expects．

13．Which of the following is true?

A．The woman has not decided what to do．

B．The man has given the woman a list of agencies．

C．The woman is not interested in the man’s suggestion．

听第9段材料，回答第14～17题。

M：Shall we ask the girl Garlo’s been going out with to the party?

W：Who’s that?

M：Celia’s her name．She works in that cinema where they show all the foreign films．

W：But will she be free on Thursday evening?

M：Yes, it’s her evening off．That’s the reason I suggested Thursday．

W：OK．Who else? What about Nicky and Cherry?

M：Are they the girls you went to France with?

W：Yes．If they bring their boyfriends, that’ll be ten of us．But have you got a room that is big enough? My mother says we can’t use our sitting-room because we made too much mess the last time she let us have a party．

M：It’s all right．We’ve got a basement(地下室)where we store old furniture．If we clean it up, it’ll be fine．

W：Great．Let’s go and have a look at it．

14．Where does Celia work?

A．In a cinema．

B．In a hotel．

C．In a hospital．

15．On what day is Celia free?

A．On Tuesday．

B．On Thursday．

C．On Saturday．

16．How many people will their party?

A．Ten．

B．Five．

C．Six．

17．Where will they have their party?

A．In the woman’s house．

B．In the man’s house．

C．A restaurant owner．

听第10段材料，回答第18～20题。

W：Hi, Tom．What is your plan for the summer break?

M：I’m going to work on the coast at Nantucket．

W：What are you planning to do on the coast?

M：My uncle owns a restaurant there, so I’ll be working as a waiter at night and then helping him do some accounting(会计, 清算账目)a few days each week．I have to save a lot of money for the next school year．Maybe we can get together and go to the beach this summer since we’ll be living near each other．

W：That sounds good．I’ll be working on a boat during July, and I won’t return to shore for the entire month．But in June and later in August I’ll be working in the lab, and I could drive up and see you in Nantucket．

M：OK．My uncle tells me June is the best time to go there before the town gets too crowded with tourists．Call me before you leave tomorrow, and I’ll give you a phone number where I can be reached this summer．

W：All right．I’ll talk to you later．

M：Thanks．

18．What is the man’s uncle?

A．A tourist．

B．A waiter．

C．A restaurant owner．

19．Where will the woman be working during July?

A．In the lab．

B．On a boat．

C．On the shore．

20．When is the best time to go to the shore?

A．July．

B．June．

C．August．

听力(共两节，满分30分)

第一节(共5小题；每小题1.5分，满分7.5分)

听下面5段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听完每段对话后，你都有10秒钟的时间来回答有关小题和阅读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。

W：I think it is going to rain．

M：Going to rain?The ground is already wet!

1．What does the man mean?

A．It won’t rain．

B．It is raining．

C．It’s going to rain．

W：What happens in the first part of the film?

M：To tell the truth, I don’t exactly remember because it almost put me to sleep．

2．What does the man think of the film?

A．Frightening．

B．Interesting．

C．Boring．

M：I’d like to have this film developed．

W：Just write down your name and address here please．

M：Oh…, it’s for a friend．I don’t know his address．I guess I’ll have to make a phone call and come back later．

3．What will the man do when he comes back?

A．He will make a telephone call．

B．He will write down his friend’s address．

C．He will get his photos back．

M：Hi, Jane．Long time no see!

W：Hi, George．How are you doing?

M：Not so well．I’ve been working overtime a lot．Besides, I go to night classes, and I’m on my way to school now．

W：That’s terrible!Why don’t you take it easy for a while?

4．What does George need most of all?

A．Having a rest．

B．Going to school．

C．Keeping on working．

W：Tickets, please．

M：We want to catch the eighteen to London．

W：You’ve just missed it!

M：Goodness me!What should we do then?

W：You can come in the afternoon and catch the three sixteen．

5．Where does this dialogue take place?

A．At the cinema．

B．At the police station．

C．At the railway station．

第二节(共15小题；每小题1.5分，满分22.5分)

听下面5段对话或独白。每段对话或独白后有几个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听每段对话或独白前，你将有时间阅读各个小题，每小题5秒钟；听完后，各小题将给出5秒钟的作答时间。每段对话或独白读两遍。

听第6段材料，回答第6～8题。

M：I’d like to book a ticket to Los Angeles for next Monday．

W：Just a second．

M：I’ll need a ticket with an open return．

W：TWA has a flight leaving at 9：25．

M：I guess that’s OK．What time should I check in?

W：You have to be there half an hour before it leaves．

6．What does the man want to do?

A．Buy a ticket．

B．Book a ticket．

C．Book a room．

7．When will the man go to Los Angeles?

A．Next Monday．

B．This Monday．

C．Not settled．

8．When should the man check in?

A．9∶25．

B．9∶55．

C．8∶55．

听第7段材料，回答第9～11题。

W：Having visited so many different countries you must be able to speak several different languages．

M：I wish I could, but French and English are the only ones that I have ever learned to speak．

W：Have you ever tried Chinese?

M：Yes, but I gave up halfway．The Chinese characters are too difficult to practise．

W：How about Japanese?

M：I attended class for two or three months, but the more I learned, the more difficult the grammar became．

W：Do you like travelling?

M：No, I don’t, but I have to．I work in the sales department．

W：If only all the countries used the same language, then I would be able to work in different countries．

M：But to tell you the truth, I hope not．As a matter of fact, I am quite interested in language learning．

9．How many languages can the man speak?

A．One．

B．Two．

C．Three．

10．What’s the man’s job?

A．A doctor．

B．A businessman．

C．A teacher．

11．What does the woman wish?

A．She wishes she could speak French．

B．She wishes she could speak Japanese．

C．She wishes there were just one language in the world．

听第8段材料，回答第12～14题。

W：Have you been chased by a dog?

M：No, I haven’t．But by a bull．

W：Really?

M：Yes, a couple of years ago．When I was walking in the country, the field was full of bulls．And I was wearing a bright red coat．They suddenly jumped up and down and started chasing me．

W：What happened then?

M：I just ran for the nearest fence and jumped over it．

W：You’re lucky．But I know a man who was bitten by a dog while he was jogging．

M：How did that happen?

W：He was running past a farm when a sheepdog started barking at him．He tried to kick it out of the way．But the dog jumped up and bit him in the leg．

12．When was the man chased by bulls?

A．A couple of years ago．

B．A couple of months ago．

C．A couple of weeks ago．

13．What was the man doing when he was chased by a dog?

A．He was walking．

B．He was working．

C．He was running．

14．Why did the bulls chase the man?

A．He was wearing a red coat．

B．He ran past a farm．

C．He walked in the country．

听第9段材料，回答第15～17题。

M：Have you ever eaten here before?

W：Only in the evenings．I didn’t know until now that they served breakfast too．

M：That’s what the Carolina Coffee Shop is famous for．People have been coming here for over 60 years for breakfast before going to the university football and basketball games．It’s a tradition．

W：Oh, what’s good here?

M：The best is their French toast．They take some pieces of French bread and dip them in eggs．Then they bake them．It’s delicious．

W：I think I’ll try it．

M：OK．Since this is your first visit to the Carolina Coffee Shop in the morning, I’ll buy you breakfast．

W：Thanks．

15．What time of day is the conversation taking place?

A．In the morning．

B．In the afternoon．

C．In the evening．

16．What does the man suggest the woman have?

A．French bread．

B．French toast．

C．French eggs．

17．Who will pay the breakfast?

A．The man．

B．The woman．

C．It will be free．

听第10段材料，回答第18～20题。

“We are not training future poets．”said a school’s headmaster．“We just hope the class makes students more creative．”The class has 56 poem-loving students in it．They get half a day’s teaching every week from Zhu Tiewu, a poet from the Shanghai City Poets Group．Zhu has a three-term teaching plan for the class．He will ask them to study many poems in the first two terms．They will only get to write poems in the final term．Students will study both old and new poems．These will come from both China and foreign countries．But are students interested in poems today?Yes．According to a study of 90 students at the school, about half of them read poems and about a third want to be poets．They are learning about poems not because they want to be poets, but because poems teach them a lot about life．

18．What’s the purpose of teaching poems to students in this school?

A．To train them into future poets．

B．To make the class more lively．

C．To make the students more creative．

19．What’s Mr．Zhu’s three-term teaching plan for the class?

A．He will ask them to study poems in the first two terms and then get to write．

B．He will ask them to study Chinese poems for two terms and then to study foreign poems．

C．He will ask them to study poems in the first term and then write in the following terms．

20．How many students in this school want to be poets?

A．About 1/2．

B．About 1/3．

C．About 1/4．

听力

第一节

听下面5段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听完每段对话后，你都有10秒钟的时间来回答有关小题和阅读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。

W：How do you make this machine work?

M：I’m not sure．Try pressing that button and see what happens．

1．What can we learn from the conversation?

A．Neither of them knows how to make the machine work．

B．The man knows how to make the machine work．

C．It’s really very difficult to make the machine work．

M：Who’s that going into the shop?

W：It must be the cleaners．They always do the floors before we open．

2．What do the cleaners do before the shop opens?

A．Clean the windows．

B．Clean the floors．

C．Clean the counters．

W：Are you going to stay in the office over lunchtime?

M：Yes．It’s important to check these figures．We’ll be using them in this afternoon’s meeting．

W：Oh, right, yes．Look, should Gareth call, will you say I’m not available until tomorrow? I really haven’t got time for him today．

3．What is the man going to do over lunchtime?

A．To attend a meeting．

B．To check the figures．

C．To meet somebody in the office．

M：Could you explain how this coffee machine works?

W：It’s quite simple．You put a coin in here and press the red knob(球形把手)．

4．What does the man want to get?

A．A coin．

B．Coffee．

C．A machine．

W：I can’t understand why the car has stopped．

M：You’ve run out of gas, that’s why!

5．Why has the woman’s car stopped?

A．There is no gas．

B．It has broken down．

C．It has failed to climb the slope．

第二节

听下面5段对话或独白。每段对话或独白后有几个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听每段对话或独白前，你将有时间阅读各个小题，每小题5秒钟；听完后，各小题将给出5秒钟的作答时间。每段对话或独白读两遍。

听第6段材料，回答第6～7题。

M：Hey，look at that motorbike．What a beauty!

W：Look out! Mind that litter bin．

M：Ouch! I’ve hurt my leg．

W：Serves you right．You wouldn’t have hurt yourself if you’d been looking where you were going．

6．What attracted the man?

A．A beautiful girl．

B．A motorbike．

C．A litter bin．

7．How did he hurt his leg?

A．He fell down his motorbike．

B．He didn’t see the litter bin．

C．He didn’t notice the stairs．

听第7段材料，回答第8～10题。

M：Hey, Kathy．I’m thinking about renting a movie for tonight’s party, and I want to know what kind of movies you like．

W：Okay．What kind of movies do you have in mind?

M：Well, what about action movies？

W：Ah, I don’t really like action movies．Too much violence．

M：Okay, do you like comedies？

W：Wow, I do enjoy comedies．

M：Fine．Well, what do you think of horror movies or love stories?

W：Uh…I’m not really crazy about horror movies, but love stories are often fun to watch．Oh, and I really like foreign films, too．

M：Okay．I’ll go to the video store and see what I can find．Thanks．

8．What are they going to do tonight?

A．Go to the cinema．

B．Go to a party．

C．Go and buy tickets for the movie．

9．What movies doesn’t the woman like?

A．Love stories．

B．Foreign films．

C．Action movies．

10．What is the man most probably going to do right now?

A．To rent some videos．

B．To buy some books．

C．To find out what films are on the show．

听第8段材料，回答第11～14题。

　　Hello everyone, this is the captain speaking, and I want to welcome you to Flight 18 bound for Seattle．

　　Our flight time today is 2 hours and 14 minutes, and we will be flying at an average altitude of 29 000 feet．The local time in Seattle is a quarter to twelve, and the current weather is sunny, but there is a slight chance of rain later in the day．We will be arriving at Gate 13, and we will be announcing connecting flights on our approach to the Seattle airport．

　　On behalf of Sky Airlines and the crew, I want to wish you an enjoyable stay in the Seattle area or at your final destination．Sit back and enjoy the flight．

11．What is the number of this flight?

A．80．

B．18．

C．81．

12．How long is the flight time?

A．2 hours and 40 minutes．

B．2 hours and 14 minutes．

C．2 hours and 4 minutes．

13．What is the current weather in Seattle?

A．Partly cloudy．

B．Rainy．

C．Sunny．

14．At what gate will the plane arrive?

A．13．

B．3．

C．30．

听第9段材料，回答第15～17题。

M：Susan, are you free after class this afternoon?

W：Hardly．I have to pick my brother up from football practice at 4∶30, and my mom asked me to cook dinner for the family at 5∶30．I feel like a slave sometimes．Then, I have to clean the dishes and finish reading my history assignment．Who knows how long that’ll take?

M：Hey listen, why don’t I come over later in the evening?And we can make some popcorn and watch a movie．

W：Oh, that’d be great, but our video machine is broken．

M：Huh．Well, let’s just play a game or something．

W：Sounds good, but give me a call before you come．My mom might try to come up with something else for me to do．

15．What will Susan have to do at 4∶30 that afternoon?

A．To finish her homework．

B．To cook dinner for the family．

C．To pick up her brother．

16．What can be inferred from what Susan says?

A．She gets really angry with her mother．

B．She is tired of having to do so many things．

C．She does not want the man to come over this evening．

17．Why can’t they watch a video at Susan’s house?

A．The machine isn’t working．

B．Susan’s mother is going to use it．

C．Susan’s mother has asked Susan to do something else．

听第10段材料，回答第18～20题。

　　You’d think by now that everyone would be aware of the dangers of cigarette smoking．So why are more women lighting up?

　　Since 1980, some 3 million women have died of smoking-related illnesses．A new study reports women now account for 39 percent of all smoking-related deaths, a figure that has more than doubled since 1965．

　　In the early decades smoking was mainly popular among men, and it took nearly 25 years before the gap narrowed and smoking became quite common among women．

　　Nearly all women who smoke picked up the habit as teenagers－and 30 percent of today’s high school seniors smoke．Dr Thompson says, “We must begin this battle in schools before girls even begin to smoke．We must share with teenage girls that smoking is really harmful．”

18．How many women died of smoking-related illnesses since 1980?

A．About 3 million．

B．About 2 million．

C．About 6 million．

19．What can be inferred from the talk?

A．More and more women start smoking．

B．The number of male smokers is decreasing．

C．Smoking-related illness is one of the major threats to women．

20．When did most of women smokers pick up the habit of smoking?

A．When they entered high school．

B．Soon after they graduate from high school．

C．When they were teenagers．

听力(共两节，满分30分)

第一节(共5小题；每小题1.5分，满分7.5分)

听下面5段对话。每段对话后有一个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听完每段对话后，你都有10秒钟的时间来回答有关小题和阅读下一小题。每段对话仅读一遍。

1．What’s the man’s opinion about the woman’s dress?

A．He thinks it pretty．

B．He thinks it awful．

C．He thinks it kidding．

2．What’s the man’s job?

A．A traveler．

B．A teacher．

C．A news reporter．

3．What’s Lisa wearing?

A．A blue dress．

B．A red dress．

C．A yellow dress．

4．What will the man do?

A．He will take woman to a lovely garden．

B．He will go to see a film with the woman．

C．He will pick up the woman at 6：30．

5．Why is the woman’s father going go retire?

A．He is old．

B．He is in good health．

C．He is in poor health．

听力原文：(Text 1)

W：Do you like my new dress?

M：It looks awful．Just kidding．You look really pretty in it．

(Text 2)

W：What do you do for a living?

M：I am a journalist．

W：Really?Do you like it?

M：Yes, I do．It’s very interesting．

(Text 3)

M：Who is that girl over there?

W：Which one?

M：The tall one in a yellow dress．

W：That’s Lisa．

(Text 4)

M：Would you like to come to the cinema this evening?

W：That would be lovely．

M：I shall pick you up at six．

(Text 5)

W：My father is going to retire soon．

M：Is he?Why?

W：He is not in good health now．

M：I am sorry to hear that．

第二节(共15小题；每小题1.5分，满分22.5分)

听下面5段对话或独白。每段对话或独白后有几个小题，从题中所给的A、B、C三个选项中选出最佳选项。听每段对话或独白前，你将有时间阅读各个小题，每小题5秒钟；听完后，各小题将给出5秒钟的作答时间。每段对话或独白读两遍。

6．Where are the two speakers?

A．On a ship．

B．On a plane．

C．On a train．

7．Why isn’t the man going straight to London?

A．To visit other places．

B．To save money．

C．To meet some Romanian friends．

听力原文：(Text 6)

M：The plane is leaving in three minutes．

W：Yes, it is．

M：Excuse me, may I know your nationality?

W：I’m from the States．You’re Chinese, I guess．

M：Yes, you are right．

W：Are you going to Romania?I mean what’s your destination?

M：I’m on my way to London．Where are you going?

W：Same here．But why don’t you fly straight to London?

M：It’s cheaper this way for both Chinese and Romanian passengers．

W：Is that so? That’s fine．

听第7段材料，回答第8～9题。

8．Where does the man live?

A．In a beautiful garden．

B．In a camp．

C．In the mountains．

9．Why does he live there?

A．Because there is no pollution．

B．Because there is a beautiful lake．

C．Because there is a cabin．

听力原文：(Text 7)

W：Welcome to the mountains!

M：We’re delighted to be here．It’s really beautiful．

W：Yes, it is．

M：No pollution!Not many care and in fact, not much traffic of any kind!How long have you been in this place?

W：Oh…about five years．

M：Did you build the cabin yourself?

W：Friends, family, everybody joined in．It took us one whole summer．We camped outside and used the lake water for drinking and washing．

M：Interesting, wasn’t it?

W：It was．

听第8段材料，回答第10～12题。

10．What’s wrong with the two speakers?

A．They don’t have an engine．

B．Their tank is half full．

C．The run out of gas．

11．Where are they going?

A．To the sea port．

B．To the railway station．

C．To the airport．

12．What should they do now?

A．Do nothing but wait．

B．Find a policeman．

C．Telephone the nearest gas station．

听力原文：(Text 8)

W：What’s the matter?

M：I don’t know．All of a sudden, the engine died．

W：Well, can you start it?

M：No…No, it won’t start now．

W：Could we be out of gas?

M：No, I’m sure we are not out of gas．

W：Let’s check the gas gauge．Oh, see, it’s on “empty”．

M：I was sure the tank was half full!

W：Obviously, it wasn’t．Well…, too bad．

M：What time is it now?

W：It’s five to eight．I am afraid we can’t get the airport on time．He’s probably looking for us right now．

M：Let’s stand by the side of the road for a few minutes．Maybe somebody will stop and pick us up．

听第9段材料，回答第13～16题。

13．What is the man asking about?

A．The woman’s last job．

B．Ideal Systems．

C．The woman’s work experience．

14．How many companies has the woman worked for?

A．3．

B．2．

C．4．

15．Why did the woman leave Format?

A．She had a quarrel with her boss．

B．She needed a change．

C．The company closed down．

16．How many years did the woman work for Ideal Systems?

A．Ten．

B．Five．

C．Two．

听力原文：(Text 9)

M：Miss Helen, can you tell us a little bit about where you have worked before?

W：Well, my last job was with Format．

M：And when did you start with them?

W：Two years ago．

M：I see．So why did you decide to leave?

W：Well, perhaps you’ve heard that the company closed down earlier this year．

M：Yes, we’ve heard about it．And where did you work before Format?

W：Ideal Systems．

M：How long did you work for them?

W：For ten years, as a secretary．

M：And why did you leave that job as a secretary?

W：Well, I felt I needed a change．I think I learnt all I could there．

M：OK, that’s enough on your work experience．Thank you．

听第10段材料，回答第17～20题。

17．What destroyed Tokyo the second time this century?

A．Pollution．

B．Earthquake．

C．War．

18．What happened during the earthquake?

A．People lost their homes．

B．People pulled down their houses．

C．People lost their jobs．

19．What caused Tokyo to develop fast during the 1960’s?

A．The Olympic Games．

B．The rapid growing population．

C．The world wars．

20．What challenges is the government facing now?

A．Waste disposal and job problems．

B．Housing problems and pollution．

C．Pollution and crimes．

听力原文：(Text 10)?

　　Tokyo, the capital of Japan, is one of the largest cities of the world．It is also one of the world’s most modern cities．Twice this century, the city was destroyed and rebuilt．In 1923, a major earthquake struck the city．Thousands of people were killed and millions were left homeless as buildings collapsed and fires broke out throughout Tokyo．It took seven years to rebuild the city．During World War Ⅱ, Tokyo was destroyed once again．As a result of these disasters there is nothing old Tokyo remaining in the downtown area．

　　After the war, the people of Tokyo began to rebuild their city．Buildings went up at a fantastic rate, and between 1945 and 1960, the city’s population is more than doubled．Because of the Olympic games held in Tokyo in 1964, many new stadiums, parks, and hotels were built to accommodate visitors from all over the world．As a result of this rapid development, however, many problems have arisen．Housing shortage, pollution, and waste disposal have presented serious challenges to the city, but the government has begun programs to answer them．