Searching for airfares (飞机票价) often seems like a game that passengers are bound to lose.

Prices change from day to day, even minute to minute. Looking through multiple websites for the best deal can be a big challenge. Even when you do book, there’s no guarantee that you are going to get the best price.

“You just don’t know when to pull the trigger. It’s not like buying anything else I can think of,” said George Hobica, founder of Airfarewatchdog.com.

Harriet Levy paid $179 for a recent round-trip flight on American Airlines between New York and Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Sitting just one row behind her, Shirley Harrison paid $215. A few rows back, Ellis and Dianne Traub paid $317 each. There were at least 12 fares on the flight, ranging from $169 to $360.

There’s no reason for it, Harrison said.

Fares can fluctuate significantly in just a few hours. One Delta flight from New York to Los Angeles jumped from $755 to $1,143 from a Friday to Saturday in late April, then fell to $718 on Sunday.

The flight was one of a dozen the Associated Press followed over three months for a vacation between July 16 and 22. The number one finding: avoid booking tickets on weekends. It’s the most expensive time to buy.

There’s no way to guarantee the best fare. But before booking, travelers should pay attention to this additional advice:

? Book on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. That’s when airlines most often offer sales.

? Buy in advance, but not too early. The best time is four to six weeks before traveling. In general, prices for any given flight are highest eight to 10 weeks and two to three weeks in advance.

? Make use of social media. Airlines are giving more benefits like exclusive (独家) sales to travelers who interact (互动) with them on Twitter and Facebook. Those specials are often gone within hours.

? The so-called discount (折扣) airlines – JetBlue, Air-Tran, Southwest and Frontier – adjust their fares less frequently than other airlines, so you can feel more confident that the price will stay the same. But their prices aren’t always the lowest. Researching multiple airlines’ fares is the only way to get a good deal.

1.What can we infer from the first sentence of the text?

2.The underlined phrase “pull the trigger” in Paragraph 3 probably means _______.

3.By using a lot of figures, the author intends to _______.

4.Passengers are advised to book flights _______.

Books which give instructions on how to do things are very popular in the USA today. Thousands of books __1__this begin with __2__ that start with the words "how to". Many of "how to " books __3__ advice on careers. They tell you how to __4__ a career and how to __5__ it. If you fail, __6__, you can buy a book called How to Turn Failure into Success. If you never make any money __7__, you need a book called How to Live on Nothing.

One of the most popular types of books is one that __8__ you with personal problems. If you are unhappy with your __9__, you can read How to Love Every Minute of Your Life. If you are tired of books on __10__, you may prefer a book called How to Make Yourself Sad.

Many of these books help people use their __11__ time better. Some people __12__ books which will give them __13__ information about sports, hobbies and travel. __14__ people use their free time to make __15__ and improvements on their homes. They like books which given __16__ instructions on how to repair things.

__17__ have "how to" books become so __18__? Probably because life has become so complex. Today people have far more problems to __19__. "How to" books help people __20__ modern life.

1.A. as    B. like     C. of       D. about

2.A. books      B. sentences    C. words D. titles

3.A. give B. take    C. follow      D. suggest

4.A. pick B. search C. find    D. choose

5.A. get into   B. take part into     C. succeed in D. fail in

6.A. however B. but      C. besides     D. otherwise

7.A. for all     B. in all   C. at all D. all too

8.A. gets B. helps   C. does    D. deals

9.A. book       B. study  C. work   D. life

10.A. sadness  B. happiness   C. anger  D. violence

11.A. free       B. busy   C. working     D. meaningful

12.A. lose       B. sell     C. use    D. want

13.A. little      B. much  C. useful D. useless

14.A. Other    B. Others C. The other   D. The others

15.A. money   B. fun     C. cleaning     D. repairs

16.A. one-by one   B. step-by-step       C. little-by-little     D. day-by-day

17.A. Why     B. How   C. When  D. Where

18.A. good     B. little   C. popular      D. bad

19.A. answer  B. do      C. work out    D. solve

20.A. go away with       B. deal with    C. take with    D. fight with

How long have you been busy, rushing around all day? We are always on, talking, emailing, sending and reading messages. There is just no   1   for stillness.

   And when we are   2   to be still because we’re in line for something, or waiting for a bus or train, we often   3    something to do. Some will play with mobile devices, others will read something. Being still isn’t something we’re   4    .

   This comes at a   5    : we lose time for   6   , for observing and listening. We lose peace. And worse yet: sometimes too much action is worse than no action at all. You can run around crazily, but get   7    done.

   Take a moment to think about how you spend your days. Are you constantly rushing around? Are you constantly reading and answering    8     ？Are you always   9   through your schedule?

   Is this how you want to spend your   10    ? If so, peace is with you. If not, take a moment to be    11    . Then after a minute of doing that, consider your life, and how you’d like it to be. See your life with less movement, more stillness and more    12    .

   Then be that vision.

It’s pretty simple: all you have to do is to sit still for a little bit each day. Breathe when you feel yourself moving too    13   . Slow down; find happiness now, at this moment, instead of   14     for it.

15    the stillness. It’s a treasure, and it’s available to us, always.

Brenda was a young woman who was invited to go rock climbing.  36  she was very scared，she went with her  37  to a cliff. She took hold of the rope and started   38   the face of that rock. She got to a place where she could take a breath. As she was  39  there，the safety  rope suddenly struck Brenda's eye and   40  out her contact lens（隐形镜片).

Well, here she was, on a rock face，with hundreds of feet below her and hundreds of feet  41  her. She was desperate and began to get  42  , so she prayed to the Lord to help her to  43  it.

When she got to the top，a friend  44  her eye and her clothing for the lens，but there was no contact lens to be found. She  45  across the mountains，thinking of that verse（诗句）that says, “The  46 of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth. ” She thought，“Lord，you can see all these mountains. You know every  47  and leaf，and you know  48  where my contact lens is. Please help me.”

Finally，they  49  down the trail to the bottom. At the bottom there was a new party of climbers just starting up the face of the cliff. One of them shouted out，“Hey，you guys! Anybody  50  a contact lens?”

Well，that would be  51  enough，but you know  52  the climber saw it? An ant was moving  53   across the face of the rock，carrying it on it's back.

Brenda told her father about the story of the  54  ，the prayer，and the contact lens. He then drew a picture of an ant carrying that contact lens with the words，“Lord，I don't know why you want me to do this. I can't eat it，and it's awfully   55 . But if this is what you want me to do，I'll carry it for you. ”

36. A. Although     B. As           C. Because          D. Except

37. A. friend           B. group        C. guide             D. leader

38. A. down        B. off              C. on              D. up

39. A. taking off       B. hanging on       C. getting along       D. putting up

40. A. pulled           B. carried          C. left               D. knocked

41. A、over             B. across           C. beyond          D. above

42. A. hopeful          B. upset            C. eager                D. proud

43. A. search           B. dream         C. find                D. imagine

44. A. watched          B. tested           C. treated              D. examined

45. A. looked up        B. looked on        C. looked out           D. looked for

46. A. eyes             B. arms          C. hands               D. legs

47. A. person           B. stone            C. tree            D. bird

48. A. exactly          B. simply           C. generally            D. totally

49. A. walked           B. climbed          C. ran             D. flew

50. A. find             B. own              C. buy             D. lose

51. A. annoying         B. surprising       C. disappointing        D. frightening

52. A. which            B. why         C when             D. whether

53. A. quickly          B. happily          C. slowly               D. sadly

54. A. rock             B. rope             C. ant              D. Lord

55. A. heavy        B. light          C. valuable           D. dirty

Searching for airfares (飞机票价) often seems like a game that passengers are bound to lose.
Prices change from day to day, even minute to minute. Looking through multiple websites for the best deal can be a big challenge. Even when you do book, there’s no guarantee that you are going to get the best price.
“You just don’t know when to pull the trigger. It’s not like buying anything else I can think of,” said George Hobica, founder of Airfarewatchdog.com.
Harriet Levy paid $179 for a recent round-trip flight on American Airlines between New York and Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Sitting just one row behind her, Shirley Harrison paid $215. A few rows back, Ellis and Dianne Traub paid $317 each. There were at least 12 fares on the flight, ranging from $169 to $360.
There’s no reason for it, Harrison said.
Fares can fluctuate significantly in just a few hours. One Delta flight from New York to Los Angeles jumped from $755 to $1,143 from a Friday to Saturday in late April, then fell to $718 on Sunday.
The flight was one of a dozen the Associated Press followed over three months for a vacation between July 16 and 22. The number one finding: avoid booking tickets on weekends. It’s the most expensive time to buy.
There’s no way to guarantee the best fare. But before booking, travelers should pay attention to this additional advice:
? Book on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. That’s when airlines most often offer sales.
? Buy in advance, but not too early. The best time is four to six weeks before traveling. In general, prices for any given flight are highest eight to 10 weeks and two to three weeks in advance.
? Make use of social media. Airlines are giving more benefits like exclusive (独家) sales to travelers who interact (互动) with them on Twitter and Facebook. Those specials are often gone within hours.
? The so-called discount (折扣) airlines – JetBlue, Air-Tran, Southwest and Frontier – adjust their fares less frequently than other airlines, so you can feel more confident that the price will stay the same. But their prices aren’t always the lowest. Researching multiple airlines’ fares is the only way to get a good deal.

1. 1.

   What can we infer from the first sentence of the text?

   1. A.
      Passengers are unable to search for airfares.
   2. B.
      Airlines often play games with passengers.
   3. C.
      Airfares are set in different situations.
   4. D.
      It’s difficult for passengers to get the best price.
2. 2.

   The underlined phrase “pull the trigger” in Paragraph 3 probably means _______.

   1. A.
      start searching
   2. B.
      get the highest price
   3. C.
      make a purchase
   4. D.
      get on board the plane
3. 3.

   By using a lot of figures, the author intends to _______.

   1. A.
      show there is standard price for every single airline
   2. B.
      discover the rules behind airfares
   3. C.
      guarantee passengers a low price
   4. D.
      prove airfares can vary widely
4. 4.

   Passengers are advised to book flights _______.

   1. A.
      in the middle of the week
   2. B.
      on special websites
   3. C.
      several months before traveling
   4. D.
      with airlines which are famous for offering discount prices