As we all know, all the governments in the world collect taxes, but what are they and what are they used for? Some people may know about them.

There are two kinds of taxes. One of the most important taxes is income-taxes which a person pays according to the amount of his income. Whatever he is, he must pay tax if income is more than a certain amount. This is called a “direct” tax, because it is paid in money directly to the government.

Another tax is paid on goods. When they are brought into a country, such a tax is paid as part of the price of these goods if they are later sold in shops. We call it “indirect” tax, because it is paid indirectly through the shopkeepers.

People usually complain about having to pay taxes, but they forget that the money is spent on what they need. On one hand, we need policemen and soldiers to protect us from danger. Meanwhile, we also need schools and teachers for our children. On the other hand, we need officials and workers to serve us. Above all, we need money to develop our nation.

Taxes, therefore, cann’t be avoided. We have no real reason to complain when we are asked to supply money to be spent for the good of ourselves and for our fellow-citizen.

Ⅲ阅读(共两节，满分40分)   

第一节 阅读理解(共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分)

    阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答

题卡上将该项涂黑。

                           The Diet Zone: A Dangerous Place

   Diet Coke, diet Pepsi, diet pills, no-fat diet, vegetable diet... We are surroundedby the word "diet" everywhere we look and listen. We have so easily been attractedby the promise and potential of diet products that we have stopped thinking aboutwhat diet products are doing to us. We are paying for products that harm us

psychologically and physically.

   Diet products significantly weakenus psychologically. On one level, we are not

allowing our brain to admit that our weight problems lie not in actually losing the

weight, but in controlling the consumption of fatty, high-calorie, unhealthy foods.

Diet products allow us to jump over the thinking stage and go straight for the scale

instead. All we have to do is to swallow or recognize the word "diet" in food labels.

   On another level, diet products have greater psychological effects. Every time wehave a zero-calorie drink, we are telling ourselves without our awareness that wedon't have to work to get results. Diet products make people believe that gain comes without pain, and that life can be without resistance and struggle.

   The danger of diet products lies not only in the psychological effects they have onus, but also in the physical harm that they cause. Diet foods can indirectly harm ourbodies because consuming them instead of healthy foods means we are preventing ourbodies from having basic nutrients (营养成分). Diet foods and diet pills contain zerocalorie only because the diet industry has created chemicals to produce these wonderproducts. Diet products, may not be nutritional, and the chemical that go into dietproducts are potentially dangerous.                                                                                                                                                                                          

   Now that we are aware of the effects that diet products have on us, it is time toseriously think about buying them. Losing weight lies in the power of minds, not inthe power of chemicals. Once we realize this, we will be much better able to resist

diet products, and therefore prevent the psychological harm that comes from using

them.

41. From Paragraph 1, we learn that__________.

  A. diet products fail to bring out people's potential

  B. people have difficulty in choosing diet products

  C. diet products are misleading people

  D. people are fed up with diet products

42. One psychological effect of diet products is that people tend to__________.

  A. try out a variety of diet foods

  B. hesitate before they enjoy diet foods.

  C. pay attention to their own eating habits

  D. watch their weight rather than their diet

43. In Paragraph 3, "gain comes without pain" probably means________.

  A. losing weight is effortless

  B. it costs a lot to lose weight

  C. diet products bring no pain

  D. diet products are free from calories                        ,

44. Diet products indirectly harm people physically because such products_________.

  A. are over-consumed

  B. lack basic nutrients

  C. are short of chemicals

  D. provide too much energy

45. Which of the following shows the structure of the passage?

There are many American expressions about insects--- like bees, for example. Bees are known as very hard workers. They appear to be busy, moving around their homes, or hives (蜂窝). So you might say you were as busy as a bee if you spent your weekend cleaning your house. In fact, you might say your house was a beehive of activity if your whole family was helping you clean. You also might say you made a beeline for something if you went there right away. When we go to see a movie, my friend always makes a beeline for the place where they sell popcorn (爆米花) .

   Here is an expression about bees that is not used much any more, but we like it anyway. We think it was first used in the 1920s. If something was the best of its kind, you might say it was the bee’s knees. Now, we admit that we do not know how this expression developed. In fact, we do not even know if bees have knees!

   If your friend cannot stop talking about something because she thinks it is important, you might say she has a bee in her bonnet (女帽). If  someone asks you a personal question, you might say “that is none of your beeswax”. This means none of your business.

   Speaking of personal questions, there is an expression when their children ask, “Where do babies come from?” Parents who discuss sex and reproduction (生殖) say this is talking about the birds and bees.

   Butterflies are beautiful insects, but you would not want to have butterflies in your stomach. That means to be nervous about having to do something, like speaking in front of a crowd. You would also not want to have ants in your trousers. That is, to be unable to sit still.

If you make a beeline for something, you _____ .

A. are as busy as a bee            B. go quickly and directly towards it

C. always go to the same place     D. buy something at a certain place

The underlined expression “ it is the bee’s knees” ______ .

A. is not used at all now          B. was first used in the 1820s

C. reminds us that bees have knees  D. means “it is very good”

If you ask your American friend Jack “How old is your wife?” he may say “_____.”

A. It is none of your beeswax      B. You have a bee in your bonnet

C. It is the bee’s knees            D. You are talking about the birds and bees

When you have butterflies in your stomach, you _____ .

A. are too sick to sit still           B. have ants in your trousers

C. are nervous about something     D. have a stomachache

Apple Inc co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs, counted among the greatest American CEOs of his generation, died on Wednesday at the age of 56, after a-year-long and highly public battle with cancer. Jobs' death was announced by Apple in a statement late on Wednesday. The Apple.com homepage featured a black-and-white picture of him with the words "Steve Jobs, 1955-2011".

A message on the site read, "Apple has lost an imaginary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring leader."

"His greatest love was for his wife, Laurene, and his family. Our hearts go out to them and to all who were touched by his extraordinary gifts."

"Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple." The Silicon Valley hero who gave the world the iPod and the iPhone had resigned as CEO of the world's largest technology corporation in August, handing the position to current chief executive Tim Cook.

Two years before the iPhone that forever transformed the way people around the world access and use the Internet, Jobs talked about how a sense of his death was a major driver behind that vision.

"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever got to help me make the big choices in life," Jobs said during a Stanford commencement ceremony in 2005. "Because almost everything－all others' expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure－these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important."

"Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart."

1.According to the passage, which statement of Steve Jobs is RIGHT?

    A. Steve Jobs was the present CEO of Apple.

    B. Steve Jobs was thought to have great talent.

    C. Steve Jobs had no idea about his death before.

    D. Steve Jobs fought against cancer for a year secretly.

2.What can we learn about iPhone from the passage?

    A. People can use it to do anything they want.

B. It can teach people how to surf the Internet.

    C. People can learn the spirit of Apple from it.

D. It can change the way people use the Internet.

3.In Jobs's speech in Stanford, we can learn that                         .

    A. to make great achievements, you must lose everything

B. people should try to achieve everything regardless of death

    C. people who will be dead soon must make big choices in life

    D. in the face of death, nothing is truly important except to follow your dream

4.What’s the main idea of the passage?

    A. Steve Jobs changed the world.

    B. Steve Jobs died on Wednesday.

    C. Who will be the next Steve Jobs?

    D. Steve Jobs, the greatest American CEO.

“Creativity is the key to a brighter future,” say education and business experts. Here is how schools and parents can encourage this important skill in children.

If Dick had listened to his boss in 1925, we might not have a product that we now think of as of great importance: a new type of tape. Dick worked for the Minnesota Mining Company. At work he developed a kind of material strong enough to hold things together. But his boss told him not to think more about the idea. Finally, using his own time, Dick improved the tape, which now is used everywhere by many people. And his former company learned from its mistake. Now it encourages people to spend 15 percent of their work time just thinking about and developing new ideas.

Creativity is not something one is just born with, nor is it necessarily a character of high intelligence. The fact that a person is highly intelligent does not mean that he uses it creatively. Creativity is the matter of using the resources one has to produce new ideas that are good for something.

Unfortunately, schools have not tried to encourage creativity. With strong attention to test results and the development of reading, writing and mathematical skills, many educators give up creativity for correct answers. The result is that children can give back information but can’t recognize ways to use it in new situation. They may know the rules correctly but they are unable to use them to Work out practical problems.

It is important to give children choices. From the earlier age, children should be allowed to make decisions and understand their results. Even if it’s choosing between two food items for lunch, decision-making helps thinking skills. As children grow older, parents should let their children decide how to use their time or spend their money. This is because the most important character of creative people is a very strong desire to find a way out of trouble.

1.What did the company where Dick once worked learn from its mistake?

  A. They encouraged people to work a longer time.

  B. They discouraged people to think freely.

  C. They asked people to spend all their work time developing new ideas.

  D. They encouraged people to spend some of their work time considering and improving new ideas.

2. Creativity is something __

   A. that people are born with

   B. that depends on intelligence

   C. that is a way of using what one has learnt to work out new problems

   D. that is not important at all

3.Why don’t schools try to encourage creativity?

   A. They don’t understand the importance of education.

   B. They don’t want their students to make mistakes.

   C. They pay too much attention to exam marks, language and mathematical skills.

   D. They think it more important to remember some information.

4. What should the parents do when their children decide how to spend their money?

   A. Try to help them as much as possible. B. Take no notice of whatever they do.

   C. Leave them as they are.   D. Help them if their decision is wrong, but not too much..