Last Sunday, I waked into the house in the afternoon to find my brother rushing around in a hurry. As soon as I took my coat off, my little brother placed a bunch of papers in my hands and asked me to fold them up so they could fit into an envelope as quickly as possible. He said it needed to get done quickly before it turned dark.
I was a little surprised that something could be so urgent on a Sunday. It wasn’t until I was halfway through that I actually looked at what I was folding. After I read it, it put the biggest smile on my face. It was a lovely letter to all the residents （居民）in my neighborhood. My brother was asking everyone to let him know if anyone needed help. He left his contact information and said that anyone that needed help should get in touch with him and he would figure something out. He also asked people to get in touch if they were able to help out.
London received an unusual amount of snow last week, and the city was completely under- prepared for it. So it was quite difficult to get anywhere. Only the major roads had been cleared, and smaller roads and pavements could be quite treacherous. There are a good number of old people in our little community. So my brother thought that the snow may have posed （造成）some difficulty for some of them, particularly because we live on a hill.
A few elderly people got in touch with him asking for help for things they needed. One of them was especially grateful because his caregiver couldn’t make it. To our surprise, he got more responses from people offering to help. Then he received help from people who wanted to help. Everyone was really touched and wrote to my brother wonderful email. One of our neighbors wrote email saying that although she wasn’t able to help, she was “very proud of having a neighbor like him who puts other people’s interests first.”

1. 1.

   The author’s brother wrote the letter to _______.

   1. A.
      ask for help from his neighbors
   2. B.
      give a hand to those in need of help
   3. C.
      require his neighbors to clear the snow
   4. D.
      raise money for the old people in his community
2. 2.

   What can we learn from the text?

   1. A.
      Few people were willing to help out.
   2. B.
      The snow was unexpectedly heavy.
   3. C.
      Most residents in the community are elderly people.
   4. D.
      The community was completely cut off from the outside world.
3. 3.

   The underlined word “treacherous” in Paragraph 3 probably means “_______”.

   1. A.
      dirty
   2. B.
      dangerous
   3. C.
      safe
   4. D.
      crowded
4. 4.

   One of their neighbors sent email to the author’s brother to ________.

   1. A.
      express thanks
   2. B.
      lend a hand
   3. C.
      show appreciation
   4. D.
      ask for help

I was sitting in the room reading when I heard a loud noise. To defend my home from break-in, I picked up my defense weapon--- a broom and went out. There on the roof of my porch（门廊）, I saw a grey fluffy squirrel. I drove her away with the broom, but the next day I heard her again.

I searched squirrels on the net and found because their teeth keep growing, they have to constantly chew on things to shorten their teeth. This was disturbing so I asked my husband to call in some wildlife control people.

On Monday morning two men showed up, with guns in their hands. I pointed uneasily to the hole in my porch roof. They held up their guns. Suddenly I saw in my mind the baby nursery inside. I stopped them and confirmed that they wouldn’t harm her. They hesitated, but finally put down their guns. Then they brought out a bottle of deodorizer（除臭剂）and sprayed it into the squirrel’s home. They told me she would not like the smell and would leave.

There was no sign of Mrs. Squirrel, so they blocked the hole, took my cheque for $250 and left. Shortly after they left, Mrs. Squirrel returned from her shopping trip. She was mad at being driven out and began feverishly clawing at the porch roof. In order to stop the destruction of my home, I drove her away with the broom again.

Each day thereafter, Mrs. Squirrel continued her attack on my possession. I then called the company to report that “SHE’S BAAAAAACK…” The receptionist said that if Mrs. Squirrel had managed to find another way into my porch roof, it would be a new charge. I replied I couldn’t continue contributing my husband’s hard-earned income to their silly wildlife experts and hang up.

I went to the porch and banged on the roof. Mrs. Squirrel came out and glared at me. We negotiated some terms, came to an agreeable arrangement and went back into our respective homes.

All is quiet these days, although large quantities of materials have been removed from my garage wall and my daughter claims that some of her doll-house furniture has disappeared. I still hope that Mrs. Squirrel would leave, but I will wait until it is warmer and hopefully until after the birth of the little ones.

1.What did the author think of the squirrel at first?

A．Troublesome.      B．Dangerous.        C．Interesting.        D．Clever.

2.Why didn’t the author ask the wildlife control people to come again?

A．She worried about the safety of the squirrel.

B．She thought the company charged too much.

C．She decided to drive away the squirrel herself.

D．She doubted the ability of the wildlife control people.

3.What can we learn from the passage?

A．Getting rid of the squirrel needs patience.

B．The squirrel has destroyed the author’s house.

C．The author has developed affection for the squirrel.

D．The author singed an agreement with Mrs. Squirrel.

4.The author has written the passage in a (an) ________ way.

A．persuasive        B．serious           C．informative        D．amusing

As the Internet’s influence grows, the potential for danger also escalates (逐步上升). One of these dangers is from cyber-bullying. Cyber-bullying (网络欺凌) is repeatedly hurting someone else through the use of technology. It consists of sending or posting cruel messages, photos, or videos on the Internet or other electronic media with the intent of damaging the reputation of the target. Imagine being a 13-year-old girl discovering a cell phone picture of her changing clothes for gym class has been sent to all her classmates. Or imagine being an 11-year-old boy who is scared to go to school because an unknown bully sent him an instant message saying that he is so fat that he should kill himself. Cases such as these are happening every day, leading kids to be depressed and unable to concentrate.
Worse yet, parents are oblivious (忽视的) to what is happening. Only 15 percent of parents even know what cyber-bullying is. And anyone who thinks that their child is not a victim or a bully is probably wrong. 90 percent of middle school students have had their feelings hurt online and 75 percent have admitted to visiting a website attacking another student.
Unlike traditional schoolyard bullying, where a bully has a name and a face, cyber-bullying gets much of its power from anonymity (匿名). A cyber bully might design a website posting cruel remarks about a classmate and never tell anyone that he or she was the creator. The cyber-bullying also gets its power from the scope (范围) of its audience. Within seconds, a cyber bully can send an e-mail to everyone he or she knows, inviting them to take part in an online poll (民意测验) of who is the ugliest kid in their class. Victims can be picked on day and night from any place.
The good news is that you can help stop cyber-bullying. By making parents and educators aware of what is going on and encouraging them to take quick and strong action when cyber-bullying cases happen, you can help make technology constructive, not destructive, for young people.

1. 1.

   What can we learn from the second paragraph?

   1. A.
      Not many students have known of cyber-bullying.
   2. B.
      Parents may not know their child is a victim of cyber-bullying.
   3. C.
      Parents know a lot of cyber-bullying.
   4. D.
      Most of the students have not been hurt by cyber-bullying.
2. 2.

   What does the author think of the cyber-bullying?

   1. A.
      It is not as harmful as people think.
   2. B.
      It is too complex a problem to settle.
   3. C.
      It will not affect the relationship between classmates.
   4. D.
      It can be stopped through our efforts.
3. 3.

   What will probably be discussed in the following passage?

   1. A.
      How to prevent cyber-bullying.
   2. B.
      What parents and educators think of cyber-bullying.
   3. C.
      How to make parents aware of cyber-bullying.
   4. D.
      How to make good use of technology.

Last Sunday I made a visit to some new neighbors down the block. No specific purpose in mind, just an opportunity to sit at the kitchen table, have some tea and chat. As I did so, it occurred to me how rare the Sunday visit has become.
When I was a kid in the New Jersey of the 1960s, Sunday visits were routine. Most stores were closed and almost nobody worked. My family normally traveled eight city blocks to the home of my grandmother, where adults would sit on the front porch and chat while we children played hide-and-seek.
The Sunday visit was something to desire strongly. It was the repetition to church, our reward for and hour of devotion, and opportunity to take advantage of the fact that Dad was not at work, we were not in school, and there were no chores that couldn’t wait until Monday. Sunday was, indeed, which means that there was one day when everyone seemed to have time for everybody else.
Sunday as a day of rest is, or was, so deeply rooted in the culture that it’s surprising to consider that, in a short span of time, it has almost entirely lost this association.^① In my childhood, it was assumed that everyone would either be home or visit someone else’s home on Sunday. But now the question is, “What do you plan to Do this Sunday?” The answer can range from going to the mall to participating in a road to jetting to Montreal for lunch. If one were to respond, “I’m making a Sunday visit to family,” such and answer would feel strange, an echo from another era.
I suppose I should be grateful to live in Maine, a state of small towns, abundant land tight relationships. Even though folks work as hard here as they do anywhere else, the state’s powerfully rural cast（特质）still harbors at least remnants（剩余部分）of the ethic of yesterday’s America, where people had to depend on one another in the face of economic vagaries（反复无常的情况）and a challenging environment.^②

1. 1.

   The writer’s general impression of the Sunday in the past was a day when_________.

   1. A.
      everyone would pay a visit to some relative far away
   2. B.
      everyone seemed to be free and could have some leisure
   3. C.
      Dad was not at work while Mom was busy cleaning the house
   4. D.
      nearly every adult would go to church and children were not at school
2. 2.

   What can we learn from the underlined sentence in paragraph 4?

   1. A.
      People nowadays prefer staying at home on Sunday
   2. B.
      People in the city dislike being disturbed on Sunday
   3. C.
      Such answers are rarely heard in our modern society
   4. D.
      Visiting someone on Sunday might take a lot of time
3. 3.

   From the last paragraph we may infer that people in Maine____________.

   1. A.
      suffer more from economic depression and the changed environment
   2. B.
      have abandoned their tradition and lived an absolute new life
   3. C.
      have tense relationships with each other
   4. D.
      always help each other when they are in need
4. 4.

   What is the writer’s attitude towards the Sunday today?

   1. A.
      Unsatisfied
   2. B.
      confused
   3. C.
      Respectful
   4. D.
      Thankful

One might expect that the ever-growing demands of the tourist trade would bring nothing but good for the countries that receive the holiday-makers. Indeed, a rosy picture is painted for the long-term future of the holiday industry. Every month sees the building of a new hotel somewhere, and every month another rock-bound Pacific island is advertised as the 'last paradise(天堂) on earth'.

However, the scale and speed of this growth seem set to destroy the very things tourists want to enjoy. In those countries where there was a rush to make quick money out of sea-side holidays, over-crowded beaches and the concrete jungles of endless hotels have begun to lose their appeal.

Those countries with little experience of tourism can suffer most. In recent years, Nepal set out to attract foreign visitors to fund developments in health and education. Its forests, full of wildlife and rare flowers, were offered to tourists as one more untouched paradise. In fact, the nature all too soon felt the effects of thousands of holiday-makers traveling through the forest land. Ancient tacks became major routes for the walkers, with the consequent exploitation of precious trees and plants.

Not only can the environment of a country suffer from the sudden growth of tourism. The people as well rapidly feel its effects. Farmland makes way for hotels, roads and airports; the old way of life goes. The one-time farmer is now the servant of some multi-national organization; he is no longer his own master. Once it was his back that bore the pain; now it is his smile that is exploited. No doubt he wonders whether he wasn't happier in his village working his own land.

Thankfully, the tourist industry is waking up to the responsibilities it has towards those countries that receive its customers. The protection of wildlife and the creation of national parks go hand in hand with tourist development and in fact obtain financial support from tourist companies. At the same time, tourists are being encouraged to respect not only the countryside they visit but also its people.

The way tourism is handled in the next ten years will decide its fate and that of the countries we all want to visit. Their needs and problems are more important than those of the tourist companies. Increased understanding in planning world-wide tourism can preserve the market for these companies. If not, in a few years’ time the very things that attract tourists now may well have been destroyed.

1.What does the author indicate in the last sentence of Paragraph 1?

A．The Pacific Island is a paradise.             B．The Pacific Island is worth visiting.

C．The advertisement is not convincing.         D．The advertisement is not impressive

2.The example of Nepal is used to suggest _________.

A．its natural resources are untouched

B．its forests are exploited for farmland

C．it develops well in health and education

D．it suffers from the heavy flow of tourists.

3.What can we learn about the farmers from Paragraph 4?

A．They are happy to work their own lands.

B．They have to please the tourists for a living.

C．They have to struggle for their independence.

D．They are proud of working in multi-national organizations.

4.Which of the following determines the future of tourism?

A．The number of tourists                   B．The improvement of services.

C．The promotion of new products.            D．The management of tourism

5.The author’s attitude towards the development of the tourist industry is __________.

A．optimistic         B．doubtful          C．objective          D．negative