In today’s throw away society, dealing with the city’s growing mountain of waste is an inereasing challenge for the city countil(市议会)。

   Recently. Edinburgh is faced with the problem of dssposing of(处理)about250,000

Million tons of waster a year . Despite different ways to dispose of much of it in a green manner---largely through encouraging tecycling---its aging facilities such as the Powderhall landfill do not have the ability to deal with it.

   The European Union(EU) has issued a new policy, regulating how such mountains of waster are to hr disposed of. The five councils (Edinburgh. East Lothian. West Lothian. Midlethian and Borders) face fine around $18million a year from 2013 it they don’t inerease recycling levels and rely less on landfill. With this in mind, the coumlls got together with the idea of building a lage incinerator plant (垃圾焚烧厂)to burn half of the waste produced in their districts. But the plan fell apart after the change of target levels by a new UK government waste policy which required that no more than 25% of the city’s waste should be disposed of in this way by 2025.

After the plan was abandoned, a private company which already transported millions of tons of the city’s wast by train to a landfill site near Dunbar, offered an alternative soution when it suggested opening a huge waste site near Portobello.

Since Powderhall is supposed to close in 2015, it seemed necessary for the members of the Edinburgh Council to accept the suggestion. But soon they turned it down—after 700 local objections reached them—because it would have meant hundreds of lorries a day making loud noise through heavily populated areas.

That still leaves eth council with a problem. By 2013,only50%of 1995 levels of waste will benllewed to be sent to landfill. Even if recveling large are met, there will still be a large amount of rubbish to be burnt up. Due build an Edinburgh and Midlothian councils have now decided to work together to build an ineinerator plant as time to find a solution is fast running out.

1.The main way of handling waste in a green manmer in Edinburgh is       .

A. recyeling    B. restoring   C. burying   D. burning

2.The five councils worked out a plan to build an incinerator plant to       .

A. reduce the roast of burying waste

B. meets the EU requirements

C. speed up waste recycling

D. tempter landfill sites

3.The city council of Edinburgh rejected the suggestion to open a huge landfill site near Portobello because     .

A. a name from a private company

B. the comelier was not interested in it

C. it was not supports by EU

D. the local poodle was waist it

4.What is the final dream an Edinburgh and Midlothian Country?

A. To open a new landfill nearby

B. To close the powder hall landfill in 2015

C. To set up a plan for burning waste

D. To persuade people to deduce their waste.

 

I used to work in an office, which had a Iocust tree growing outside the window. It had grown into a tall tree and must have been there for a long time. The tree blocked the view and made the office seem dull. Unfortunately, this happened to be the room assigned to me, and l was depressed by it for quite some time.

When the first spring came, everything was green except the locust tree.I felt very happy because I had thought it had died!

One morning, when I opened the window for some fresh air, I unexpectedly smelt a familiar sweet scent floating into my office which I could not name. Suddenly,I realized it was the locust tree!The tree that I thought dead was in full bloom!

From then on, I usually came to the office very early to see dew forming on the locust tree blossoms, and was eager to see spring again every year.

During summer, the green leaves provided shade protecting me from the harsh sunlight, but allowing enough light in to make it pleasant. In autumn, the leaves turned many different colors. Its beauty touched my soul. Many times, I thought to take photos but never did. Then, I had to leave in a hurry. Later in life, it became a great regret that I had not done so.

Actually, many times in our lives we think we own something and thus do not value it. We don't feel regretful until we lose it one day! Moreover, sometimes, we have to accept the things we don't want and need to discover the hidden beauty to find unexpected joy!

1. The locust tree first attracted the author most by____.

A. the way it blocked the view     B. its height

C. the smell of its flowers         D. its green leaves

2.In which season do you think the author paid the least attention to the locust tree?

 A. Spring.    B. Summer    C. Autumn.    D. Winter.

3.Which of the following statements is true of the author according to the passage?

 A. He would have regretted if the locust tree had died as he had thought it had.

 B. The locust tree turned out to be a lovely memory for him.

 C. He felt unhappy as he had forgotten to take the photos with him.

 D. His work in the office changed with the seasons every year.

4.It can be inferred from the passage that _______.

 A. the locust tree died soon after the author left the office

 B. the author worked in the office for at least a few years

 C. it was summer when the author took his job in the office

 D. the weather was dry when the author first saw the tree

5.What advice does the author intend to give us?

 A. Treasure what we've owned.                B. Look before you leap.

 C. Treat everything calmly.                   D. Never forget the past.   

 

 

II. 语言知识及应用（共两节，满分35分）

第一节：完形填空（共10小题；每小题2分，满分20分）

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，然后从21～30各题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

A proud father has named his son after a computer software term. Jon Blake Cusack, from Michigan, told local newspapers the US traditional way of adding “Junior” after a boy’s name was too   21  .

    So, when his son was born last week, he decided on the name Jon Blake Cusack 2.0, as if he were a __22__ upgrade. Mr. Cusack admitted that it took months to   23   his wife, Jamie, to accept the idea. Mrs. Cusack said she asked several friends whether they can accept this name or not. All the men, she said, felt the name was __24   . However, her women friends did not think so. “I think the women ___25__ like it,” she said.

    Mr. Cusack told the local newspaper he got the   26   from a film called The Legend of l900, in which an abandoned baby is given the name 1900 to remember the year of its   27  . “I thought if they could do this. Why can’t we?” After little Jon 2.0 was born, Mr. Cusack even sent a celebratory e-mail to the family and friends designed to look as if he and his wife had   28   a new software.

    “I wrote things like there are a lot of new features from Version 1.0 with   29   features from Jamie”, he said. And he is already planning for his son’s future. “If he has a   30  , he could name it 3.0,” he said.

21. A. ordinary                       B. usual                        C. normal                           D. common

22. A. software                          B. program                        C. machine                          D. computer

23. A. advise                     B. suggest             C. persuade                       D. ask

24. A. cool                                   B. bad                           C. out-of-date               D. strange

25. A. take up                             B. add up                        C. end up                            D. get up

26. A. plan                               B. opinion                 C. thought                        D. idea

27. A. growth                     B. birth                     C. name                        D. time

28. A. created                   B. founded                    C. discovered                        D. found

29. A. newer                     B. common               C. additional                D. scarce

30. A. son                                B. child                            C. friend                           D. daughter

 

A used book or nearly-new kitchen gadget (配件) may not be at the top of every Christmas wish list, but hard economic times coupled with a new green awareness are changing attitudes about gift-giving in France.

    French holiday shoppers are choosing larger numbers for “green” gifting this Christmas, studies show. About 30 percent of French consumers will give second-hand items as gifts to stretch out their tight budgets but also to do their little bit for recycling, according to a study by international consulting firm Deloitte.

    The survey of Christmas consumer behaviors in 18 European countries found the French were more than twice as likely as other Europeans to give second-hand items. Websites promoting re-gifting and green gifting are popular in France, with many reporting a rise in business.

    “Concerns about the ecology and the economy have come together and we are now seeing people who accept the types of gifts that were not appreciated just a short time ago,” said Sebastien Ravut, who runs a website promoting eco-friendly consumerism. His site lists shops in France that offer fair trade products, bio-friendly goods and recycled items. Over the Christmas holidays, the number of visits to the site has doubled from last year, reaching 60,000 a month.

    A study by online survey firm Vivodi for PriceMinister showed eight out of 10 people would be happy to receive a used item as a gift and that younger consumers were more open to the idea.

    But Gilles Goldenberg, author of the Deloitte study, said that environmental concerns are not why customers buy used goods. “The number one concern is getting the lowest possible price,” said Goldenberg. “Eco-friendly products are drawing a lot of interest, but not if that means paying more.”

    Theatre tickets and other low-carbon gifts are fashionable, and eco-friendly websites are also encouraging gift givers to offer time and services instead of stuff. “The order of the day is to spend less time shopping and more time connecting” over the holidays, said Florence de Monclin from the Nicolas Helot foundation for Nature and Humanity.

1.We can judge from the Deloitte study that _________.

   A. over a quarter of the French give second-hand Christmas gifts

   B. the French are less willing to buy eco-friendly gifts than other Europeans

   C. 80% of French people are happy to receive second-hand gifts

   D. less than 10% of European consumers are likely to give second-hand gifts

2.According to Goldenberg, the main reason for customers to buy used goods is that _______.

   A. they want to be eco-friendly        B. they want to save money

   C. it is encouraged by websites        D. it is a new fashion in Europe

3. All the following might be a promoted gift EXCEPT ________.

   A. a theatre ticket

   B. a second-hand book

   C. a nearly-new digital toaster

   D. a box of heavily packaged chocolate

4.Which of the following statements is TRUE?

   A. Old people are not open minded enough to accept second-hand gifts.

   B. People wish to receive second-hand gifts because of the economic downturn.

   C. Ravut’s website received a sharp decrease in visits during the Christmas holidays.

   D. In de Monclin’s opinion, people should spend more time with friends and family during holidays

 

根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。

    Friends play an important part in our lives，and although we may take the fact of friendship for granted, we often don’t clearly understand how we make friends. While we get on well with a number of people,   1.  ．

    Moreover, a great many relationships come under the general term “friendship”．In all cases，two people like one another and enjoy being together，but beyond that，the degree of closeness between them and the reasons for their interest in each other change greatly．

    At the beginning, much depends on how people meet，and on good first impressions. As we

get to know people,   2.  . Although these factors are not of the greatest importance，it is more

difficult to have a good relationship with people when there is a big difference in age and background．

    Then,  3. ．Friends will stand closer together and will spend more time looking at each other than ordinary friends．Smiles and soft voices also express friendliness，and it is because they may give the wrong signals that shy people often have difficulty making friends. A friendly look with a wrong facial expression can turn into an unfriendly stare，and nervousness may be wrongly understood as unfriendliness．

    Some relationships are a result of argument and discussion，but it is usual for close friends to have the same ideas and beliefs，the same opinion and interests. The more closely involved people become．the more they depend on each other. And   4.  . Equally, friends have to learn to make allowances for each other, to put up with annoying habits，and to accept differences in opinion.

    In contrast with marriage,   5. . But the support and understanding that results from shared experiences and affections does seem to create a close and lasting relationship

A．we are usually friends with only a few

B．many factors can affect friendship and relationship

C．people want to do friends favors and hate to let them down

D．argument and discussion can improve personal relationships

E．we consider things like age，race，looks，economic and social status，etc

F．we pay attention to actual behavior，facial expression，and the way a person speaks

G．there are no friendship ceremonies to strengthen the relationship between two people