Imagine，one day，getting out of bed in Beijing and being at your office in Shanghai in only a couple of hours，and then，after a full day of work，going back home to Beijing and having dinner there．

Sounds unusual，doesn't it? But it's not that unrealistic，with the development of China’s high—speed railway system．And that’s not a11．China has an even greater high—speed railway plan—to connect the country with Southeast Asia，and eventually Eastern Europe．

China is negotiating to extend its own high·-speed railway network to up to 17 countries in 1 0 to 15 years，eventually reaching London and Singapore．

China has proposed three such projects．The first would possibly connect Kunming withSingapore via Vietnam and Malaysia．Another could start in Urumqi and go through Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan，and possibly

to Germany．The third would start in the northeast and go north through Russia and then into Western Europe．

If China’s plan for the high-speed railway goes forward，people could zip over from London to Beiling in under two days．

The new system would still follow China’s high—speed railway standard．And the trains would be able to go 346 kilometers an hour，almost as fast as some airplanes．

    China’s bullet train(高速客车)，the one connecting Wuhan to Guangzhou，already has the

 World’s fastest average speed．It covers 1,069 kilometers in about three hours．

Of course，there are some technical challenges to overcome．There are so many issues that need to be settled，such as safety，rail gauge(轨距)，maintenance of railway tracks．So，it’s important to pay attention to every detail．

But the key issue is really money．China is already spending hundreds of billions of yuan on

domestic railway expansion．

China prefers that the other countries pay in natural resources rather than with capital

investment．Resources from those countries could stream into China to sustain development．

It’11 be a win-win project. For other countries，the railway network will definitely create more opportunities for business，tourism and so on，not to mention the better communication among those countnes．

For China，such a project would not only connect it with the rest of Asia and bring some much-needed resources，but would also help develop China’s far west．We foresee that in the coming decades，millions of people will migrate to the western regions，where the land is empty and resources unused．With high-speed trains，people will set up factories and business centers in the west once and for a11．And they’11 trade with Central Asian and Eastern European countries．

1．China’s new high-speed railway plan will be a win-win project because ____________．

  A．China will get much-needed resources and develop its western regions

  B．China and the countries involved will benefit from the project in various ways

  C．China will develop its railway system and communication with other countries

  D． the foreign countries involved will develop their railway transportation，business and tourism

2．According to the passage，the greatest challenge to the new high-speed railway plan is____________．

  A．technical issues    B．safety of the system

  C．financial problems  D．maintenance of railway tracks

3.Which of the following words best describes the author’s attitude towards China’s high-speed

  railway plan?

  A．Critical．    B．Reserved．    C．Doubtful     D. Positive．

4．Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?

  A．New Railway Standards    B．Big Railway Dreams

  C．High—speed Bullet Trains D．International Railway Network

The main cause of HIV / AIDS infection in China is drug abuse,  ______ is very serious in Yunnan.

A. what                 B. who               C. that           D. which

Gyber language is popular among Chinese netizens, who create English words to reflect novel phenomenon in society.

"Gelivable", combining pinyin of Chinese characters Geili (giving strength) with the English suffix for adjectives, literally means "giving power" or "cool". Similarly, "Hengelivable" means "very cool", and "ungelivable" means "dull, not cool at all". "Antizen" referred to the group of college graduates who, earning a meager salary and living in small rented apartments, are like the tiny and laborious ants.

David Tool, a professor with the Beijing International Studies University said it’s very interesting to combine Chinese with English to create new words. “English is no longer mysterious to the Chinese people. They can use the language in a flexible way according to their own experiences,” he said. Chinese words and expressions were created, as well, by netizens. One example was “Suan Ni Hen”. This three-charessions were created, as well, by netizens. One example was “Suan Ni Hen”. This three-character expression, which originally meant “you win” with the first character carrying the same pronunciation as garlic in Chinese, is used to satirize（讽刺）high garlic and food prices this winter.

Chinese people use the character “bei” before a verb to show a passive voice, and it is used by netizens to show the helplessness in front of false conclusions and fake media reports. For instance, “zisha” means “suicide” while “beizisha” means “be officially presumed to have committed suicide”, and xiaokang means “fairly comfortable life” while “beixiaokang” means “be said to be living a fairly comfortable life”.

Wu Zhongmin, a professor at the Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, saw the phenomenon of word creation as a natural response of young people to social issues. “Cyber language is more vivid and it shortens people’s distances,” he said.

The passage mainly tells us that            .

    A．cyber language is popular among all people

    B．cyber language is of great fun

    C．cyber language needs to be taught at coolege

    D．cyber language in China is popular for it’s relation with society

Which of the following is NOT true?

    A．Ungeilivable means “dull, not cool at all”.

    B．Antizens live in small rented apartments with small salaries.   

    C．Suan Ni Hen refers to the highest food prices ever.

    D．Beixiaokang means “be said” to be living a comfortable life.

What can we infer from the phenomenon of word creation?

    A．It’s getting more difficult to understand cyber language.

    B．Young people are more likely to respond to nature.

    C．Social phenomena are more easily reflected in cyber language.

    D．The best way to create new cyber words is to combine Chinese and English.

Chinese netizens created English words by          .

    A．combining pinyin of Chinese characters with the English suffix

    B．using the character carrying the same pronunciaton

    C．combining Chinese characters with the English

    D．putting the character “bei” before an English word

The main cause of HIV / AIDS infection in China is drug abuse,  ______ is very serious in Yunnan.

A. what                B. who             C. that         D. which

 

A. What are SIGs?

B. What types of memberships are available?

C. Who can join IATEFL China?

D. What and where is IATEFL China?

E. What links does IATEFL China have?

F. What happens at the Annual Conference?

1.                          

IATEFL China is the International Association of English Language Teachers of English as a Foreign Language, China Branch. Its mother organization IATEFL was founded in the UK in 1967; it now has over 3,500 members in more than 100 countries throughout the world.

IATEFL China core activities are managed by the Secretariat headed by the President. The others include, Volunteer activities, SIG Coordinators, and the Publication Committee.

It is based in Tonghua City, Jilin Province of the People’s Republic of China and is managed by the President of the association. Other office staff include the General Secretary, the International Affairs Administrator, the Membership Secretary, the Newsletter Distribution, and the General Assistant.

2.

You can join as a full member and receive the association’s newsletter six times per year, two free publications, free membership to one SIG (Special Interest Group), discounts on publications, reduced conference registration fees, and voting rights.

There are also special membership packages for institutional members and for members of IATEFL China’s associates (basic members).

By the end of this year, members of IATEFL China can benefit from the special rights provided by the mother organization (IATEFL) at some rate.

3.

This is the most important event in the association’s calendar and takes place each year in August somewhere in China. It is attended by around 800 delegates each year and includes plenary sessions by eminent practitioners, a large number of workshops, talks and round table discussions given by able speakers, as ELT Exhibition and Pre-Conference Events organized by Special Interest Groups.

4.

Members can join any number of the 10 Special Interest Groups (SIGs) including: FLT Teaching & Learning Policy; FLT Curriculum & Syllabus Study; Coherence Research on Primary-secondary School and Secondary-Tertiary Transition; Primary School Classroom Instruction Model; Secondary School Classroom Instruction Model; Modern IT in FLT; Applied Linquistics; FL Learning Strategies; FL Teacher Development and Training; FL Textbook, Materials and Teaching Aids Design.

5.

IATEFL China has associate agreements with other teachers’ associations throughout the world. Among other things, there are usual agreements to exchange newsletters and to provide a speaker to attend each other’s conference at least once every year. More so, committee members from IATEFL China are willing to attend the conferences, meetings, etc. of related associations upon invitation.