One of my China Dialogue colleagues in Beijing recently bought a Philips energy-saving light bulb to replace a standard one．He was happy with his choice．It may have cost 30 yuan （just under US$4．50） - ten times the price of a filament （灯丝） bulb - but he wanted to save energy as part of his low-carbon lifestyle．And according to the shopkeeper, he would save, in the long run, much more than the 30 yuan he was spending．

Yet only one month later, his expensive light bulb blew up, before he had saved even a small part of the purchase price．Will he stick to his high-cost, low-carbon lifestyle?

China's environmental organizations have started to advocate low-carbon lifestyles and the decrease of carbon footprints to help fight against climate change．But they have overlooked one fact: in China, low-carbon living comes at a high cost．It means buying energy-saving bulbs and appliances, and environmentally friendly building materials and daily goods．Cost can no longer be the only standard for purchases．An energy-saving and environmentally friendly product is more expensive than a standard alternative - whether it's a simple light bulb or the house it shines．For average consumers, even buying an ordinary bulb is a huge burden．How can we persuade ordinary people to choose an energy-saving residence? This is not a trend they can afford to follow; perhaps this fashion is only for the rich．

Most consumers today do not cause huge carbon dioxide （CO₂） emissions．Their responsibility lies not in choosing a low-carbon lifestyle today, but in avoiding a high-carbon life in the future．The principle of "common but differentiated responsibility" - a basis of sustainable development - can be applied here as well．

In China, low-carbon living still is resisted by a lack of social infrastructure（基础设施）. Even if your salary allows you to make that choice, nobody is there to help you accomplish it．

Consider energy-saving homes. You need to find out whether or not the developer has used natural materials wherever possible; how effective the insulation（绝缘物、隔热物） is; and what the green credentials of installed equipment are．You can read up a little, but you'll still be lucky to avoid being puzzled by the developers' marketing．Many so-called energy-saving buildings are nothing of the sort, and some are even more energy-hungry than the average home - as Li Taige warned in his article "Energy-efficient buildings? Not always", on China Dialogue last August．

1. What may probably be the best title of this passage?

A. To purchase a cheap bulb - your wise alternative．

B. To choose an energy-saving residence - a must of your life

C. To learn a low-carbon lifestyle - each citizen's responsibility

D. To learn a low-carbon lifestyle - a promising but difficult purpose

2.Why does the writer say this fashion is only for the rich in the fourth paragraph?

A. Because the cost is a very important standard for purchases.        

B. Because buying an ordinary bulb is very expensive.

C. Because energy-saving products are more expensive than the common alternatives.

D. Because rich people like to follow this trend.

3. What does the writer think of energy-saving homes?

A. Most of them are environmentally friendly.

B. They are musts of low-carbon lifestyle of Chinese.

C. They are huge burdens for Chinese people.

D. Many of them are more in name than in reality.

4.We can infer from the passage that ____．

A. Using energy-saving bulbs and appliances is a fashion．

B. It's easy for most Chinese to try to learn a low-carbon lifestyle．

C. All citizens in China don’t have the same responsibility in living a low-carbon lifestyle．

D. Most Chinese families cannot afford to purchase an energy-saving residence.

5.What is the writer's attitude towards the low-carbon lifestyle?

A. informative and entertaining           B. supportive but cautious

C. negative but wise                      D. positive and active

 

One of my China Dialogue colleagues in Beijing recently bought a Philips energy-saving light bulb to replace a standard one．He was happy with his choice．It may have cost 30 yuan （just under US$4．50） - ten times the price of a filament （灯丝） bulb - but he wanted to save energy as part of his low-carbon lifestyle．And according to the shopkeeper, he would save, in the long run, much more than the 30 yuan he was spending．

Yet only one month later, his expensive light bulb blew up, before he had saved even a small part of the purchase price．Will he stick to his high-cost, low-carbon lifestyle?

China's environmental organizations have started to advocate low-carbon lifestyles and the decrease of carbon footprints to help fight against climate change．But they have overlooked one fact: in China, low-carbon living comes at a high cost．It means buying energy-saving bulbs and appliances, and environmentally friendly building materials and daily goods．Cost can no longer be the only standard for purchases．An energy-saving and environmentally friendly product is more expensive than a standard alternative - whether it's a simple light bulb or the house it shines．For average consumers, even buying an ordinary bulb is a huge burden．How can we persuade ordinary people to choose an energy-saving residence? This is not a trend they can afford to follow; perhaps this fashion is only for the rich．

Most consumers today do not cause huge carbon dioxide （CO₂） emissions．Their responsibility lies not in choosing a low-carbon lifestyle today, but in avoiding a high-carbon life in the future．The principle of "common but differentiated responsibility" - a basis of sustainable development - can be applied here as well．

In China, low-carbon living still is resisted by a lack of social infrastructure（基础设施）. Even if your salary allows you to make that choice, nobody is there to help you accomplish it．

Consider energy-saving homes. You need to find out whether or not the developer has used natural materials wherever possible; how effective the insulation（绝缘物、隔热物） is; and what the green credentials of installed equipment are．You can read up a little, but you'll still be lucky to avoid being puzzled by the developers' marketing．Many so-called energy-saving buildings are nothing of the sort, and some are even more energy-hungry than the average home - as Li Taige warned in his article "Energy-efficient buildings? Not always", on China Dialogue last August．

1.What may probably be the best title of this passage?

A. To purchase a cheap bulb - your wise alternative．

B. To choose an energy-saving residence - a must of your life

C. To learn a low-carbon lifestyle - each citizen's responsibility

D. To learn a low-carbon lifestyle - a promising but difficult purpose

2.Why does the writer say this fashion is only for the rich in the fourth paragraph?

A. Because the cost is a very important standard for purchases.        

B. Because buying an ordinary bulb is very expensive.

C. Because energy-saving products are more expensive than the common alternatives.

D. Because rich people like to follow this trend.

3.What does the writer think of energy-saving homes?

A. Most of them are environmentally friendly.

B. They are musts of low-carbon lifestyle of Chinese.

C. They are huge burdens for Chinese people.

D. Many of them are more in name than in reality.

4.We can infer from the passage that ____．

A. Using energy-saving bulbs and appliances is a fashion．

B. It's easy for most Chinese to try to learn a low-carbon lifestyle．

C. All citizens in China don’t have the same responsibility in living a low-carbon lifestyle．

D. Most Chinese families cannot afford to purchase an energy-saving residence.

5.What is the writer's attitude towards the low-carbon lifestyle?

A. informative and entertaining           B. supportive but cautious

C. negative but wise                      D. positive and active

 

Someday a stranger will read your e-mail without your permission or scan the websites you’ve visited. Or perhaps someone will casually glance through your credit card purchases or cell phone bills to find out your shopping preferences or calling habits.

In fact, it’s likely some of these things have already happened to you. Who would watch you without your permission? It might be a spouse, a girlfriend, a marketing company, a boss, a cop or a criminal. Whoever it is, they will see you in a way you never intended to be seen—the 21st century equivalent (相等物) of being caught naked.

Psychologists tell us boundaries are healthy, that it’s important to reveal yourself to friends, family and lovers in stages, at appropriate times. But few boundaries remain. The digital bread pieces you leave everywhere make it easy for strangers to reconstruct who you are, where you are and what you like. In some cases, a simple Google search can reveal what you think. Like it or not, increasingly we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret.

The key question is: Does that matter?

For many Americans, the answer apparently is “no.”

When opinion polls (民意测验) ask Americans about privacy, most say they are concerned about losing it. A survey found a serious depression about privacy, with 60 percent of respondents saying they feel their privacy is “slipping away, and that bothers me.”

But people say one thing and do another. Only a tiny part of Americans change any behaviors in an effort to preserve their privacy. Few people turn down a discount at tollbooths (收费站) to avoid using the EZ-Pass system that can track automobile movements. And few turn down supermarket loyalty cards. Privacy economist Alessanfro Acquisti has run a series of tests that reveal people will surrender personal information like Social Security numbers just to get their hands on a pitiful 50-cents-off coupon (优惠券).

But privacy does matter—at least sometimes. It’s like health: when you have it, you don’t notice it. Only when it’s gone do you wish you’d done more to protect it.

 

1.What would psychologists advise on the relationships between friends?

A. Friends should open their hearts to each other.

B. Friends should always be faithful to each other.

C. There should be a distance even between friends.

D. There should be fewer disagreements between friends.

2.Why does the author say “we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret”?

A. Modern society has finally developed into an open society.

B. People leave traces around when using modern technology.

C. There are always people who are curious about others’ affairs.

D. Many search engines profit by revealing people’s identities.

3.What do most Americans do about privacy protection?

A. They change behaviors that might disclose their identity.

B. They use various loyalty cards for business deals.

C. They rely more and more on electronic devices.

D. They talk a lot but hardly do anything about it.

4.According to the passage, privacy is like health because __________.

A. people will make every effort to keep it    

B. its importance is rarely understood

C. it is something that can easily be lost 

D. people don’t cherish it until they lose it

 

Someday a stranger will read your e-mail without your permission or scan the websites you’ve visited. Or perhaps someone will casually glance through your credit card purchases or cell phone bills to find out your shopping preferences or calling habits.

In fact, it’s likely some of these things have already happened to you. Who would watch you without your permission? It might be a spouse, a girlfriend, a marketing company, a boss, a cop or a criminal. Whoever it is, they will see you in a way you never intended to be seen—the 21st century equivalent (相等物) of being caught naked.

Psychologists tell us boundaries are healthy, that it’s important to reveal yourself to friends, family and lovers in stages, at appropriate times. But few boundaries remain. The digital bread pieces you leave everywhere make it easy for strangers to reconstruct who you are, where you are and what you like. In some cases, a simple Google search can reveal what you think. Like it or not, increasingly we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret.

The key question is: Does that matter?

For many Americans, the answer apparently is “no.”

When opinion polls (民意测验) ask Americans about privacy, most say they are concerned about losing it. A survey found a serious depression about privacy, with 60 percent of respondents saying they feel their privacy is “slipping away, and that bothers me.”

But people say one thing and do another. Only a tiny part of Americans change any behaviors in an effort to preserve their privacy. Few people turn down a discount at tollbooths (收费站) to avoid using the EZ-Pass system that can track automobile movements. And few turn down supermarket loyalty cards. Privacy economist Alessanfro Acquisti has run a series of tests that reveal people will surrender personal information like Social Security numbers just to get their hands on a pitiful 50-cents-off coupon (优惠券).

But privacy does matter—at least sometimes. It’s like health: when you have it, you don’t notice it. Only when it’s gone do you wish you’d done more to protect it.

 

1.What would psychologists advise on the relationships between friends?

A. Friends should open their hearts to each other.

B. Friends should always be faithful to each other.

C. There should be a distance even between friends.

D. There should be fewer disagreements between friends.

2. Why does the author say “we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret”?

A. Modern society has finally developed into an open society.

B. People leave traces around when using modern technology.

C. There are always people who are curious about others’ affairs.

D. Many search engines profit by revealing people’s identities.

3.What do most Americans do about privacy protection?

A. They change behaviors that might disclose their identity.

B. They use various loyalty cards for business deals.

C. They rely more and more on electronic devices.

D. They talk a lot but hardly do anything about it.

4.According to the passage, privacy is like health because __________.

A. people will make every effort to keep it    

B. its importance is rarely understood

C. it is something that can easily be lost 

D. people don’t cherish it until they lose it

 

One day an out of work mimic(滑稽演员) is visiting the zoo and attempts to earn some money as a street performer. As soon as he starts to draw the crowd，a zoo keeper grabs him and drags him into his office. The zoo keeper explains to the mimic that the zoo's most popular attraction，a gorilla(大猩猩)，has died suddenly and the keeper fears that attendance at the zoo will fall off. He offers the mimic a job to dress up as the gorilla until they can get another one. The mimic accepts.

So the next morning the mimic puts on the gorilla suit and enters the cage before the crowd comes. He discovers that it's a great job. He can sleep all he wants，play and make fun of people and he draws bigger crowds than he ever did as a mimic. However，eventually the crowds tire of him and he tires of just swinging on wires. He begins to notice that the people are paying more attention to the lion in the cage next to his. Not wanting to lose the attention of his audience，he climbs to the top of his cage，crawls across a partition(隔离物)，and dangles from the top to the lion's cage. Of course，this makes the lion very angry，but the crowd loves it.

At the end of the day the zoo keeper comes and gives the mimic a raise for being such a good attraction. Well，this goes on for some time－the mimic keeps taunting the lion，the crowds grow larger，and his salary keeps going up. Then one terrible day when he is dangling over the angry lion he slips and falls. The mimic is terrified.

The lion gathers itself and prepares to attack. The mimic is so scared that he begins to run round and round the cage with the lion close behind. Finally，the mimic starts screaming and yelling，“Help me，help me！”But the lion is quick and attacks. The mimic soon finds himself flat on his back looking up at the angry lion and the lion says，“Shut up，you idiot！Do you want to get us both fired？”

36．The mimic visits the zoo to________.

A．take care of the dying gorilla           B．beg some money from the zoo keeper

C．ask for a job there                     D．perform and earn some money there

37．The zoo keeper offers the mimic a job to act as the gorilla because________.

A．it is more expensive to hire a real gorilla

B．the real gorilla died but the keeper does not want to lose its visitors

C．he likes the mimic's performance

D．he wants to help the mimic who is out of work

38．What does the mimic feel about the new job at first?

A．He likes it because he has enough freedom in the job.

B．He likes it but he prefers to working as a mimic.

C．He doesn't like it for people do not respect him.

D．He doesn't like it because he gets little pay.

39．The mimic climbs to the lion's cage because________.

A．he finds it more interesting to climb the cage

B．he wants to play with the lion

C．he wants to attract the attention of his audience

D．he has never seen a lion before

40．What does the passage mainly tell us?

A. The mimic and his job                B. The mimic and his success

C. The actor and the mimic              D. The mimic and his animals