Sunday, October 5

Clear, 69°F

My wife, Eleanor, and I took the train from Paris to Strasbourg, where we were met by our driver and guide, and the minibus which goes along with the boat. We stopped off in Barn for an hour on the way. Then we were taken to Nancy where the boat was kept.

After the other passengers arrived, we had our first dinner on the boat. After dinner we walked into downtown Nancy, a village with a large square and wooden houses.

Monday, October 6

Rained last night, cloudy in the morning,   69°F

We spent about two hours in Nancy, then sailed on the Canal de la Marne au Rhine. Kind of a lazy day, eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner. After dinner we watched a tape on Baccarat, where we will visit tomorrow.

It was pleasant to sit out on deck (甲板) and watch the scenery go by at about 3 mph.

Tuesday, October 7

Light rain, 64°F

This morning we drove over to Baccarat and toured its museum and the church, which has this unbelievable lamp that is going on a world tour the next day. We did lots of shopping, then walked across the bridge to see a very, very modern Catholic church with special Beccarat windows.

We drove to the top of the Voges Mountains and started down the eastern side, Later we drove to Sorrenbourg to see the 13^th century church at the Cordeliers. It contains the largest window by Marc Chagall – 24 feet wide by 40 feet high.

Wednesday, October 8

Cloudy, 65°F

Today we sailed from Schneckenbush to Saverne. We went through two caves, an extremely unusual part of the journey. This river scenery is very different. We were in a mountain valley with grassland on one side and a forest beginning to show some color on the other.

Thursday, October 9

Cloudy, 66°F

Our dependable minibus was waiting to load the luggage and take us to the hotel where everyone went their separate ways. Our boating days are over until next time.

1.Where did the author get off the train?

A. Paris.     B. Strasbourg.    C. Nancy.     D. Barn.

2.On which days did the tourists spend most of their time on the boat?

A. Monday and Tuesday.       B. Tuesday and Wednesday.

C. Wednesday and Thursday.    D. Monday and Wednesday.

3.From the text, we learn that Baccarat and Sorrenbourg are the names of _____.

A. towns    B. churches    C. museums    D. mountains

4.What does the author think of the tour?

A. Tiring.    B. Expensive.    C. Enjoyable.    D. Quick.

 

Nicknames for Los Angeles

A nickname is a shortened form of a person's name. A nickname can also be a descriptive name for a person, place or thing. Many American cities have nicknames. These can help establish an identity, spread pride among citizens and build unity. Nicknames can also be funny.

Los Angeles, California is the second largest city in population, after New York City. Los Angeles has several nicknames. One is simply the city’s initials, L.A. It is also called the City of Angels because Los Angeles means “the angels” in Spanish.

Los Angeles often has warm, sunny weather. So another nickname is City of Flowers and Sunshine. New York is called The Big Apple. So Los Angeles is sometimes called The Big Orange because of the fruit that grows in that city’s warm climate.

The American motion picture and television industries are based in Los Angeles. So it is not surprising that it is called The Entertainment Capital of the World. Many films are made in the area of Los Angeles called Hollywood. Millions of people visit the area. No trip to Los Angeles is complete without seeing the word "Hollywood" spelled out in huge letters on a hillside.

Many movie stars live in Los Angeles. The city is sometimes called Tinseltown. This nickname comes from the shiny, bright and often unreal nature of Hollywood and the movie industry.

Another nickname for Los Angeles is La-La Land, using the first letters of Los and Angeles. This means a place that is fun and not serious, and maybe even out of touch with reality.

The city of Los Angeles is part of Los Angeles County. There are many smaller cities in the county. Beverly Hills, with its rich people, is one of them. So is Pasadena, with its Rose Parade each New Year's Day. So are the coastal cities of Santa Monica and Malibu, where people like to ride surfboards on the Pacific Ocean waves.

A good place for watching unusual-looking people is Venice, an area on the west side of Los Angeles. A system of waterways designed after the Italian city of Venice has been built there.

Many people love Los Angeles for its warm sunny weather, beautiful mountains and beaches, and movie stars. That includes Randy Newman, who sings about his hometown.

1.A nickname of a place can have the following functions except ___________.

A．building up identity

B．entertainment

C．bringing pride to the locals

D．uniting surrounding cities

2.The underlined sentence can best be replaced by __________.

A．Your trip to Los Angeles is not perfect if you miss the big letters "Hollywood" on a hillside

B．Not seeing the word "Hollywood" on a hillside means you haven’t been to Los Angeles.

C．If you visit Los Angeles you should first pay a visit to "Hollywood" s on a hillside.

D．Seeing the big letters "Hollywood" on a hillside means you’ve been really to Los Angeles.

3.How many nicknames have been given to Los Angeles?

A．4

B．5

C．6

D．7

4.Which of the following is conveyed in this article?

A．Los Angeles is most famous for its nicknames.

B．Hollywood alone adds fame to Los Angeles.

C．All the nicknames increase the charm of Los Angeles.

D．Los Angeles was built after the Italian city of Venice.

 

The lights dimmed，the musical hall grew quiet and out walked the conductor (指挥) shiny and white and 4 feet and 3 inches tall.

ASIMO, a robot designed by Honda Motor Co., met its latest challenge Tuesday evening: Conducting the Detroit Symphony (底特律交响乐团), in a performance of “The Impossible  Dream” from “Man of La Mancha”．

“Hello, everyone，” ASIMO said to the audience in a childlike voice, then waved to the orchestra. As it conducted, it perfectly mimicked (模仿) the actions of a conductor,

nodding its head at various sections and gesturing with one or both hands. ASIMO took a final bow to excited shouts from the audience. Later, cellist Yo－Yo Ma joined ASIMO onstage to receive an award for his efforts in music education.

Honda spokeswoman Alicia Jones says it is the first time ASIMO has conducted an orchestra, and it may be the first time any robot has conducted a live performance. But ASIMO has its  limits. ASIMO's engineers programmed the robot to mimic Charles Burke, the Detroit Symphony's education director, as he conducted the piece in front of a pianist about six months ago. But it can't respond to the musicians.

“It's not a communicative device. It simply is programmed to do a set of gestures，” said Leonard Slatkin, the orchestra's musical director. “If the orchestra decides to go faster, there's nothing the robot can do about it. Hopefully, I keep that under control.”

But several musicians also said ASIMO was more realistic than they expected. “The movements are still a little stiff (僵硬的), but very humanlike, much better than I thought，” Hutchinson said.

1.What's the audience's response to ASIMO's performance?

A．Disappointed.	B．Moved.
C．Excited.	D．Astonished.

2.Whose conducting was ASIMO made to copy?

A．Yo－Yo Ma's.	B．Charles Burke's.
C．Leonard Slatkin's.	D．Alicia Jones's.

3.We can learn from the passage that ASIMO ________.

A．was designed and trained by Yo－Yo Ma

B．can communicate with the audience freely

C．only performs according to the designed programs

D．can change its conducting style freely

4.What would be the best title for this passage?

A．Detroit Symphony gives a good performance

B．Honda robot conducts Detroit Symphony

C．“The Impossible Dream” from Detroit Symphony

D．Cooperation between Honda and Detroit Symphony

 

Everyday, 340 million people speak it. One billion people are learning it and it is said that by 2050, half of the world’s population will be using it. What are we talking about? That global language—English.
The English language started in Britain in the 5th century. It is a mixed language. It was built up when German. Scandinavian and French invaders settled in England and created a common language for communication.
Today it is the official language of the UK, the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa and Ireland as well as many islands in the Caribbean . Many other countries and regions use it for politics and business, for example, India. Pakistan, Nigeria and the Philippines. English is also one of the official languages of Hong Kong.
But global advertising and pop music mean that in most countries, you will see or hear some English. Thanks to McDonalds, we all know about "burgers". "fries" and "milkshakes". Songs by Madonna, Britney Spears and Celine Dion are in English. We can sing along, even if we do not understand what we are singing!
English is a messy (杂乱的) language. Every year, dictionaries include new words that talk about popular culture, for example, computer-related words such as "blogging", "download" and "chatroom". Also included are words that teenagers use. Who does not know "cool", "OK" and “hello” ?
Other languages also influence English. Many English words come from French. Words like "cafe" and expressions like "c'est la vie" (that is life) are all part of the English language. On the other hand, the French language includes English words like "le weekend" and "le camping". German words are also part of English. Words like "kindergarten" come from the German language.
Recently, British people have become interested in "yoga". But the word comes from an ancient Hindu language in India.
【小题1】The English language has a history of  ______.

A．over 2000 years

B．over 500 years

C．over 1500 years

D．over 1000 years

【小题2】The underlined expression “thanks to ” can be replaced by ______.

A．because of

B．thankful to

C．not until

D．as if.

【小题3】Which of the following statements is true about the language of English ?

A．It has been changing all the time.

B．It has borrowed words from all the other languages.

C．French words are used by the English because dictionaries have French words.

D．Singers and film stars have the greatest influence on language.

【小题4】 Many countries and regions use it for politics and business except______.

A．the USA

B．Nigeria

C．the Philippines

D．Norway

 阅读下面相关信息介绍，并按照要求匹配信息。

首先请阅读下面的旅游路线信息。

Here is a selection of the tours organized for the coming year.

A. 8 days mountaineering trip --- climb Yunnan’s third highest peak, the Haba snow mountain. This is ideal for people loving adventure. You need to be fit and healthy.

B. 8 days cycling tour from Qiaotou Town--- visit the spectacular Tiger Leaping Gorge. It is a leisurely tour suitable for anyone who is reasonably fit and healthy. No previous cycling experience is necessary and all our routes are on flat land.

C. 8 days river rafting—white water adventure on the Yangtze from the old town of Lijiang. This adults-only tour is exclusively for good swimmers, physically fit.

D. 10 days rainforest trek--- spend 5 days in the forest and meet the local people. This is a walking tour and no previous experience is needed, just a curious mind and an interest in traditional cultures.

E. 10 days horse trekking tour—visit authentic Tibetan villages of Shangri-la. The ultimate horse-riding experience in a spectacular mountain environment. This trip is for confirmed riders only. Don’t expect three-star hotels on this trip

F. 7 days camping--- backpacking is the top activity at this camp, including classes in backpacking stove operation, back country first aid, water purification, and map and compass skills.

请阅读下面有出游意向的人的要求，然后匹配出相应的路线。

46. The Smiths: a family of four, including parents, a sixteen-year-old son and a thirteen-year-old daughter, who are looking for a fun holiday. All four are good riders.

47. Mr. and Mrs. Green: a retired couple who are reasonably fit and who want to find out more about ethnic minorities’ cultures.

48. A group of four young adults: they are into all extreme sports and looking for something with plenty of excitement. They are more interested in the scenery than in the life of the locals.

49. The Simpsons: a family of five including a ten-year-old girl. They have many different interests and they are looking for a relaxing holiday.

50. Robert and Lisa: a honeymoon couple who want the holiday of a lifetime. They are both sporty types and love water sports.

人名                                路线

46 .The Smiths                          A. 8 days mountaineering trip

47 .Mr. and Mrs. Green               B. 8 days cycling tour from Qiaotou Town

48. A group of four young adults         C. 8 days river rafting

49. The Simpsons                     D. 10 days rainforest trek

50. Robert and Lisa                    E. 10 days horse trekking tour

F. 7 days camping