◆A◆

"Time is a problem for children," states a news report for a new Swiss watch. Children in some countries" learn time slowly" because" they don’t wear watches" and " parents don’t really know how to teach them time. " The children grow up with this handicap and become adults (成人) —and then can’t get to work on time. Is there an answer to this problem? Of course — it’s the Flik Flak, made by a famous Swiss watch company.

The Flik Flak is being marketed as something teaching watch for children aged 4 to 10. The watch itself does not teach children how to tell time, of course; it merely " takes their imagination" by presenting the " hour" hand as a beautiful red girl named Flak and the " minute" hand as a tall blue boy named Flik. Flik points to related" blue" minutes on the dial, while Flak points to " red" hour numbers. The characters and colors combined with parental help, are supposed to teach young children how to tell time.

The watch comes equipped with a standard battery (电池) and a nylon band (尼龙表带). Peter Lipkin, the United States sales manager for the Flik Flak, calls it " childproof if it gets dirty you can throw the whole watch in the washing ma­chine. " The product is being sold in select department stores in Europe, Asia and the United States for a suggested price of $25. Parents who buy the watch may discover that it is one thing to tell time; it’s quite another for them to be on time.

1. From the news report we know that ______.

A. parents are patient when teaching children time

B. parents have little idea of how to teach children time

C. children are likely to learn time quickly

D. children enjoy wearing the Flik Flak watch

2. The author doesn’t seem to believe ______.

A. children will be on time if they have learnt how to tell time

B. a Flik Flak can help parents teach their children how to tell time

C. the Flik Flak can take children’s imagination

D. children usually have trouble telling time if they don’t wear watches

3. The underlined word handicap (Para. 1, Line 3) means

A. displeasure        B. discouragement        C. disappointment D. disadvantage

4. The United State sales manager calls the new watch " childproof" because ______.

A.it is designed to teach children to be on time

B. it proves to be effective in teaching children time

C. it is made so as not to be easily damaged by children

D. it is the children’s favorite watch

◆B◆

Company:             KinderCare

Location:                    US-TX-College Station

Base Pay;             600$                       ,.

Employee Type:        Full-Time Employee

Industry:               Education-Teaching-Management

Job Type:              Education

Req’d Education;        2 Years Degree

Req’ d Experience:      At Least 1 Year

Jobs So Desirable, We Hate To Call It Work... Looking for a great opportunity and the chance to make a difference? f

KinderCare Learning Centers, Inc. is the leading for-profit provider of early childhood educational services and care in the country with nearly 120,000 children enrolled. Kinder­Care ‘s training is the key to providing high quality education and care for children 6 weeks to 12 years old. We are looking for devoted, responsible, and creative people for full-time and part-time positions at our centers located in College Station and Bryan, TX. REQUIREMENTS

Successful applicants will possess a High School diploma or GED, and at least 1 year of childcare experience. You must also have 12 credits (学分) in Early Childhood Education or be now enrolled in ECE classes and possess 6 credits in ECE.

We offer a wonderful work environment ! If you have pre­vious education and/or experience in childcare and a love for children, we want to hear from you ! Salary goes with experi­ence and position.

KinderCare offers a comprehensive benefits package, a competitive salary, and childcare discount. KinderCare is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

To apply, please contact us at:

Kinder Care Learning Centers

1711 Village Drive

College Station, TX 77840

Fax: (979) 696-6616

Email: [ Click here for email ] www. kindercare. corn

5. From the ad above, it seems that the company wants ______.

A. nurses            B. managers        C. trainees           D. teachers

6. According to the job requirements, people need to have _ __ to get the job.

A. experience and educational services

B. required education and experience

C. High School education and experience

D. 12 credits in Early Childhood Education

7. This ad probably appears in ______.

A. a radio program                      B. a newspaper

C. the introduction to the company

D. the website of the company

◆C◆

The volcano is one of the most surprising frightening things of nature. Maybe you have seen pic­tures of these " fireworks " of nature. Sometimes when a volcano erupts, a very large wall of melted rock moves down the side of a mountain. It looks like a " river of fire". Sometimes volcanoes ex­plode, throwing the melted rock and ashes high into the air. But where does this melted rock come from?

The earth is made up of many layers (层). The top layer that we see is called the crust. Under the crust are many layers of hard rock. But far, far beneath the crust the rock is so hot that it is soft. In some places it even melts. The melted rock is called magma. Sometimes the magma breaks out to the surface through cracks (裂缝) in the crust. These cracks are volcanoes.

Most people think of mountains when they think of volcanoes. But not every mountain is a volca­no. A volcano is simply the opening in the earth from which the magma escapes. The hot magma, or lava as it is called, cools and builds up on the surface of the earth. Over thousands of years, this pile of cooled lava can grow to be very, very big. For example, the highest mountain in Africa, Kilimanja­ro, is a volcano. It rises more than 16,000 feet above the ground around it.

8. The underlined word "erupts" means ______.

A. moves down                       B. breaks away

C. builds up                          D. suddenly throws out lava

9. Which words in the passage have the same meaning as "melted rock"?

A. volcano and crust                 B. crust and hard rock

C. magma and lava                  D. volcano and magma

10. Which is the correct order of the layers of the earth (beginning with the top layer)?

A. crust — hard rock — magma — soft rock

B. crust — hard rock — soft rock — magma

C. agma — soft rock — hard rock — crust

D. volcano — cracks — magma — crust

11. The best title of the passage should be______.

A. The Volcano                  B. Kilimanjaro Volcano

C. The Mountains                 D. The Melted Rock

◆D◆

Most British telephone cards are just plain green, but card collecting is becoming a popular hobby in Britain and collectors even have their own magazine, International Telephone Cards. One reason for their interests is that cards from around the world come in a wide variety of different and often very attractive design. There are 100, 000 different cards in Japan alone, and there you can put your own design onto a bank card simply by using a photograph or a business card.

The first telephone cards, produced in 1976, were Italian. Five years later the first British telephone cards appeared, and now you can buy cards in more than a hundred countries. People usually start collecting cards because they are attractive, small and light, and they do not need much space. It is also a cheap hobby for beginners, although for some people it becomes a serious business. In Paris, for example, there is a market where you can buy only telephone cards, and some French cards cost up to 4,000 pounds. The first Japanese card has a value of about 28,000 pounds. Most people only see cards with prices like these in their collectors’ magazine.

12. The passage is mainly about ______.

the history of phone cards           B. phone cards collecting as a hobby

C. reasons for phone cards collecting D. the great variety of phone cards

13. When did people in Britain begin to use phone cards?

A. In 1971.           B. In 1975.           C. In 1976.          D. In 1981.

14. The main reason for most people to collect phone cards is that ______.

A. they find the cards beautiful and easy to keep

B. they like to have something from different countries

C. they want to make money with cards

D. they think the cards are convenient to use

15. The writer mentions a market in Paris in order to show that

A. card collecting is popular among young people

B. French and Japanese cards are the most valuable

C. people can make money out of card collecting

D. card collectors’ magazines are very useful

◆E◆

WASHINGTON, Sept. 23 — The House of Representatives, which prides itself on being " the People’s House" has been turning into, a rich men’s club.

The representatives newly elected in 1984 were almost four times as wealthy as the first term lawmakers elected only six years before, according to a new study on the members’ financial reports.

Behind this remarkable swing, the study says, there are two main factors: a court decision that outlawed limits on what candidates could give to their own campaigns, and the enormous growth in the cost of pursuing a seat in Congress. As a result, it is increasingly difficult for candidates of modest means, particularly women to amount successful challenges to entrenched office holders.

One solution, the authors contend, is a system of public financing for campaigns, but Congress seems in no mood to change the political rules any time soon.

" The lower chamber is going upper class," said Mark Green, the President of the Democracy Project, a public policy institute based in New York. ".But this evolution from a House of Representa­tives to a House of Lords denies the diversity of our democracy. It establishes a de facto property qual­ification for office that increasingly says: The people with low and middle income need not apply. "

The Democracy Project produced the study in cooperation with the United States Public Interests Research Group, a similar institute situated in Washington. But their research was not entirely theo­retical. In 1980 Mr. Green was the unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Congress in New York’s 15th District, in Manhattan. The winner was. Bill Green, one of the wealthiest members of Congress.

16. What can we know from the passage?

A. The House of Representatives is poor men’s club.

B. The House of Representatives was made up of people with low and middle income.

C. The House of Representatives, was rich men’s club;

D. The House of Representatives is made up of people with low and middle income.

17. What does "this remarkable swing" in the third paragraph refer to?

A. The House of Representatives prides itself on being" the people’s House".

B. The new study based on the members’ financial reports.

C. A court decision that outlawed limits on what candidates could give to their own campaigns.

D. The representatives elected now are much wealthier than those elected a few years ago.

18. Which of the following is wrong according to the study?

A. Any honest man can become a representative of the House.

B. Women are more difficult than men to be an entrenched office holder.

C. Limits on what a candidate could give to his campaign are outlawed.

D. One must spend much money getting a seat in the Congress.

19. What is the United States Public Interests Research Group like?

A. The House of Representatives.

B. A public policy institute based in New York.

C. A public policy institute based in Washington.

D. The House of Lords.

20. What does the writer think of the study?

A. Doubtful.        B. Believable.         C. Opposed.          D. Normal.

答案与简析：

(A)文章介绍了一种帮助孩子掌握时间的手表，这对孩子们掌握时间、树立时间观念是很有帮助的。

1. B 细节题。由文中的parents don’t really know how to teach them time可知。

2. A 主旨题。由第一段内容可知。

3. D 词义题。handicap意为“障碍、不利条件”，它与disadvantage的意思一致，故正确答案为D。

4. C 细节题。从第三段中的销售人员把它叫作childproof及后面的解释可让if it gets dirty you can throw the whole watch in the washing machine就知道这种表是不容易被毁坏的。

(B)本文是一篇为一家儿童教育中心招聘老师的广告。

5. D 细节题。因为广告主要介绍了Kinder Care的一些情况，目的是为了招聘一些老师。

6. B 细节题。由文中的You must also have 12 credits in Early Childhood Education可知

7. D 推断题。从文章最后一句中Email：[Click here for email]我们就可以知道这是网上的一则广告。

(C)本文介绍了火山的形成过程及相关知识。第一段叙述火山爆发时的景象；第二、三段描述火山构成及爆发的原因。

8. D 词义题。火山爆发时溶岩有时顺山坡流下，有时被抛向空中。

9. C 词义题。文章第二段中说到：in some places it even melts. The melted rock is called magma. 另外文章第三段中也说到：The hot magma, or lava as让is called... 由此可知答案为C。

10. B 细节题。第二段提到，地壳最上层为 crust，在 crust 之下是 hard rock，其次是 soft rock，最后是 magma。

11. A 主旨题。从整篇文章可以看出，该文主要介绍火山的形成过程。

(D)本文讲述了电话卡的收集及其原因，也谈及了电话卡的起源。

12. B 主旨题。从文章中的第一句话以及第二段的第三句话可知。

13. D 细节题。从文章中的The first telephone cards produced…cards appeared可知。

14. A 推断题。从文章中的because they are attractive, small and light，and they do not need much space可知

15. C 推断题。从文章最后几句可知，在巴黎的电话卡交易市场可进行电话卡的买卖，有的还特别值钱。

(E)本文对美国众议院(The House of Representatives)人员组成的变化进行了介绍，并对其变化原因进行了分析，同时指出：which prides itself on being the People’s House has been turning into a rich men’s club。

16. B 细节题。由第一段及倒数第二段最后一句low and middle income need not apply可知。

17. D 词义题。根据句子结构及下文的内容可知，这里指上文所提到的事情。

18. A 细节题。根据文章倒数第二段最后一句It establishes…and middle income need not apply 可知，收入中、低档的人不具备资格。

19. C 细节题。由倒数第二段the Democracy Project，a public policy institute based in New York及最后一段a similar institute situated in Washington可知。

20. B 推断题。由最后一段第二句But their research was not entirely，theoretical可推知。