The year was 1932. Amelia Earhart was flying alone from North America to England in a small single-engined aeroplane. At midnight, several hours after she had left Newfoundland, she ran into bad weather. To make things worse, her altimeter (高度表) failed and she didn't know how high she was flying. At night, and in a storm, a pilot is in great difficulty without an altimeter. At times. her plane nearly plunged (冲) into the sea.

      Just before dawn, there was further trouble. Amelia noticed flames coming from the engine. Would she be able to reach land? There was nothing to do except to keep going and to hope.

     In the end, Amelia Earhart did reach Ireland, and for the courage she had shown, she was warmly welcomed in England and Europe. When she retumed to the United States, she was honored by President Hoover at a special dinner in the White House. From that time on, Amelia Earhart was famous.

     What was so important about her flight? Amelia Earhart was the first woman to fly the Atlantic Ocean alone, and she had set a record of fourteen hours and fifty-six minutes.

     In the years that followed, Amelia Earhart made several flights across the United States, and on each occasion she set a new record for flying time. Amelia Earhart made these flights to show that women had a place in aviation (航空) and that air travel was useful.

1.Which of the following statements is NOT the difficulty which Amelia Earhart met in her flight from north America to England?

A. She was caught in a storm.

B. The altimeter went out of order.

C. Her engine went wrong.

D. She lost her direction.

2.When Amelia Earhart saw flames coming from the engine. what did she do?

A. She did nothing but pr ay for herself

B. She changed her direction and landed in Ireland.

C. She continued flying.

D. She lost hope of reaching land.

3.According to the passage, what was Amelia Earhart's reason for making her flights?

A. To set a new record for flying time.

B. To be the first woman to fly around the world.

C. To show that aviation was not just for men.

D. To become famous in the world.

4.Which of the following statements was NOT mentioned?

A. She was the first woman who succeeded in flying across the Atlantic Oceanalone.

B. She showed great courage in overcoming the difficulties during the flight.

C She was warmly welcomed in England, Europe and the United States.

D. She made plans to fly around the world.

5.Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

A. Amelia Earhart-First Across the Atlantic.

B. Amelia Earhart-Pioneer in Women's Aviation.

C. A New Record for Flying Time.

D. A Dangerous Flight from North America to England.

 

Now let’s talk about doing well by doing good—many people who have ever been volunteers for the community find their place in relative jobs or even make their way to be corporate(团体的)leaders.

Consider the case of Kimberly Mulcahy. Throughout her career, Mulcahy has actively volunteered in her community, profession and industry. Though she put in long hours as Vice President at a Fortune 500 company, she also found time to professional and community organizations.

Then last year, the unexpected thing happened. The company where she’d worked for more than 20 years was bought out and she was laid off.

On hearing the news, those who she served were quick not only to offer her support—but actual jobs! In the end, Mulcahy was hired by a PR agency—she used to work as a director of her industry association. And she brought with her several accounts based on relationships she had formed through volunteering.

Volunteering was a godsend(天赐之物)to Todd, who has been a mid-level manager at the same company for many years. After he was out of work, he felt old and disappointed. But Todd knew he needed a change. Todd became involved in community service. He joined his town’s volunteer fire department and was soon appointed to the finance committee.

Sometimes volunteering helps you bring passion to your work, other times it can turn your life’s passion into your work. Cape Cod Baseball League President Judy Scarafile is a registered pharmacist(药剂师)whose love of the game led her to volunteered as league publicist(宣传员), secretary and deputy commissioner woman to hold the top post.

Whether you are to enter the workforce, build your resume, or follow your passion, volunteering is good for the soul and the career.

By saying “doing well by doing good” in Paragraph 1, the author wants to_____.

  A．encourage us just to do it, and it will be better

  B．encourage us to try as hard as possible

  C．tell us not to give up

  D．tell us that people who have volunteered their way into

Which of the following is NOT true about Mulcahy according to the passage?

  A．Mulcahy put in long hours as Vice President at a Fortune 500 company.

  B．Mulcahy becomes a famous football player.

  C．Mulcahy brought with her several accounts based on relationships she had formed through volunteering.

  D．Mulcahy was hired by a PR agency.

Which of the following words can best describe Todd?

  A．Learned         B．Lucky        C．Rude          D．Realistic

Which of the following can be the best title for the passage?

  A．Volunteer Work Can Boost Your Career.

  B．Mulcahy’s Voluntary Work Experience.

  C．It’s a Good Chance to Be a Volunteer.

  D．Volunteer Work.

Zoe Chambers was a successful PR(Public Relations) consultant and life was going well — she had a great job, beautiful flat and a busy social life in London. Then one evening in June last year, she received a text message telling her she was out of work. “The first two weeks were the most difficult to live through.” she said. “After everything I’d done for the company, they dismissed me by text! I was so angry and I just didn’t feel like looking for another job. I hate everything about the city and my life.”

Then, Zoe received an invitation from an old school friend, Kathy, to come and stay. Kathy and her husband, Huw, had just bought a farm in north-west Wales. Zoe jumped at the chance to spend a weekend away from London, and now, ten months later she is still on the farm.

"The moment I arrived at Kathy's farm, I loved it and I knew I wanted to stay." said Zoe. "Everything about my past life suddenly seemed meaningless."

Zoe has been working on the farm since October of last year and says she has no regrets. "It's a hard life, physically very tiring." she says. "In London 1 was stressed and often mentally exhausted. But this is a good, healthy tiredness. Here, all I need to put me in a good mood is a hot bath and one of Kathy's wonderful dinners."

Zoe says she has never felt bored on the farm. Every day brings a new experience. Kathy has been teaching her how to ride a horse and she has learnt to drive a tractor. Since Christmas, she has been helping with the lambing — watching a lamb being born is unbelievable, she says, "It's one of the most moving experiences I've ever had. I could never go back to city life now."

1.When working as a PR consultant in London, Zoe thought she lived a ______life.

A．satisfying          B．tough             C．meaningless        D．boring

2.The most important reason why Zoe went to visit Kathy's farm is that______.

A．Zoe lost her job as a PR consultant

B．Kathy persuaded her to do so

C．Zoe got tired of the city life

D．Zoe loved Wales more than London

3.How docs Zoe feel about the country life according to the passage?

A．Tiresome and troublesome.

B．Romantic and peaceful

C．Mentally exhausting but healthy

D．Physically tiring but rewarding.

4.Which of the following is closest to the main idea of the passage?

A．A friend in need is a friend indeed.

B．Where there is a will, there is a way.

C．A misfortune may turn out a blessing.

D．Kill two birds with one stone.

 

The snow has paralysed(使瘫痪) transport in China during the country’s most important vacation period, the celebration of the Chinese New Year. Not only have transport delays hindered personal trips, but they have also slowed the delivery of fresh produce to markets. Consequently, in Zhengzhou, the capital city of the Henan province, tomato prices have doubled, and the cost of 47 other vegetables has increased by 36%, as reported by local media at the end of January.

     According to an inside PR source, “wholesalers in Beijing were quoted as saying that only about 20% of the usual fresh vegetable supplies were reaching the city.” As an Asian country with a diet based on fresh produce, the shortage of vegetables and the rise in prices is not only affecting fresh food producers, but also the final consumers.

     In terms of production, this is the worst snow disaster to hit China in the last 50 years, affecting a total of 9.4 million hectares of farmland in the country, according to a report published on 4 February 2008 by Feng Tao of Xinhua News, at the Chinese government website. Most of the crops devastated（毁坏）by the frost are located in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, the traditional natural border between North and South China.

Chen Xiwen, Director of the Office of the Central Leading Group on Rural Work, pointed out at the end of last week that “the blizzard disaster in the south has had a severe impact on winter crops, and the impact on fresh vegetables could be catastrophic in certain areas”, as stated in the Xinhua News report.

     The Chinese government has been quick to take extreme measures. The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) has sent 13 teams of experts to 8 of the areas most seriously affected by the harsh weather. The aim of this initiative is to provide farmers with technical assistance to minimize their losses.

From this passage, we can know that the snow happened _____.

   A. During the Spring Festival

   B. In the coldest days of the winter

   C. In the North of China.

   D. It’s not mentioned here.

What’s the meaning of the underlined word in paragraph four?

   A. worst  B. snowstorm  C. cold weather  D. biggest

This passage mainly tells us _____ .

   A. The snow in the south of China caused many problems.

   B. The effect of the snow in the south of China on the fresh food

   C. The snow in the south of China slowed the delivery of fresh produce to markets.

   D. The Chinese government has taken extreme measures to help the suffered farmers.

The Chinese Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) has sent 13 teams of experts to 8 of the areas to _____ .

   A. help the farmers plant crops          B. give money to the farmers

   C. give directions to the farmers with their technic（技术；技巧）.

   D. deliver crops for the farmers.

The rise of multinational corporations （跨国公司）, global marketing, new communications technologies, and shrinking cultural differences have led to an unparalleled increase in global public relations or PR．
　　Surprisingly, since modern PR was largely an American invention, America’s relations is being threatened by PR efforts in other countries. Ten years ago, for example, the world’s top five public relations agencies were American-owned． In 1991, only one was． The British in particular are becoming more sophisticated and creative． A recent survey found that more than half of all British companies include PR as part of their corporate （公司的） planning activities, compared to about one-third of U.S. companies．It may not be long before London replaces New York as the capital of PR．
　　Why is America lagging behind in the global PR race? Firstly, Americans as a whole tend to be fairly provincial and take more of an interest in local affairs． Knowledge of world geography, for example, has never been strong in this country． Secondly, Americans lag behind their European and Asian counterparts （相对应的人） in knowing a second language． Less than 5 percent of Burson—Marshall’s U．S．employees know two languages． Ogilvy and Mather have about the same percentage． Conversely, some European firms have half or more of their employees fluent in a second language． Finally, people involved in PR abroad tend to keep a closer eye on international affairs． In the financial PR area, for instance, most Americans read the Wall Street Journal． Overseas, their counterparts read the Journal as well as the Financial Times of London and The Economist, publications not often read in this country．
Perhaps the PR industry might take a lesson from Ted Turner of CNN （Cable News Network）． Turner recently announced that the word “foreign” would no longer be used on CNN news
broadcasts. According to Turner, global communications have made the nations of the world so interdependent that there is no longer any such thing as foreign．
【小题1】Compared with the American PR personnel, what is/are an advantage (s) of the non-Americans involved in PR?
A． They tend to be more internationally minded
B． They speak more and better foreign languages．
C． They usually pay more attention to global financial situation．
D． Both A and B．
【小题2】What is the immediate cause of the downfall of America’s public relations?

A．The number of US public relations agencies had greatly decreased by 1991．

B．Other countries have increased their efforts in public relations．

C．On the global scale, cultural differences have significantly shrunk．

D．The British companies are becoming especially sophisticated and creative in public relations．

【小题3】It could be inferred that the author of the passage is______．

A．an American

B．a Briton

C．Ted Turner

D．an Asian

【小题4】The underlined word “provincial” in paragraph 3 could possibly mean “      ”．

A．strict in thinking	B．like people from rural areas
C．limited in outlook	D．interested in geographical knowledge