【小题1】It is mainly reported in this news that in order to promote table tennis in the United States, _______.

A.ITTF will cooperate with Gates

B.Gates watched Hsing’s match

C.some rules have been changed

D.Hsing pushed Li Xiaoxia to the limit

【小题2】What gave Gates more confidence to promote table tennis in the United States?

A.The Olympic spirits.

B.The popularity of table tennis.

C.Sharara’s patient persuasion.

D.Ariel Hsing’s wonderful performance.

【小题3】Which of the following is ITTF’s purpose of making changes to the London Games?

A.To attract more local audience to the matches.

B.To prevent strong table tennis teams developing.

C.To promote the popularity of table tennis.

D.To give Asian teams chances to join in the match.

【小题4】The following paragraph will most probably talk about_____________.

A.the table tennis rules B.Gate’s detailed plan

C.what China has done D.sports in the United States

14、ORTOTROT? I heard that word while studying in Australia. It is a local language for “Are you ready (to go)?”. And at Sydney Airport, I asked the way to the train station and a man told me“Go ask that “bloke” over there.” “Bloke” is used in Australia and refers to a person. “Day” and “die” sound almost alike and since “a”, “i” and “o” all sound almost the same, I have always told my Australian friends, jokingly, that they only need 24 letters, and not 26 like the rest of us do.

Australian English began to be different from British English in 1788 and has many words that some consider unique (独特的) to the language, such as outback, meaning a remote, sparsely-populated (人口稀少的) area. Early settlers from England brought other similar words, phrases and usages to Australia. “Bonzer”, which was once a common Australian word meaning “great” or “beautiful”, is thought to have been an American term. The American influence on language in Australia has come from pop culture, the mass media (books, magazines and television programmes) and the Internet. Australian English is most similar to New Zealand English for their similar history.

Words of Irish origin are used, some of which are also common elsewhere in Irish, such as “tucker” for “food”. Some native English words whose meanings have changed under Irish influence, such as “paddock” for “field”, which has exactly the same meaning as the Australian “paddock”are still in use.

【小题1】According to the passage, we know Australian English         .

A.has special characters

B.is a kind of old language

C.is very difficult to learn

D.is the same as British English

【小题2】Why did the writer tell his Australian friends they only need 24 letters?

A.Because Australians never use “a” or “i”.

B.Because Australians speak very easy English.

C.Because there are 3 letters having similar pronunciation.

D.Because there are some different ways to call the same thing.

【小题3】Australian English is most similar to New Zealand English because         .

A.they learn from each other

B.they have similar history

C.the two countries have the same political system

D.people from the two countries often travel to each other’s country

【小题4】The American influence on Australian English comes from the following EXCEPT        .

A.pop culture B.the Internet

C.computer software D.the mass media

15、C

More surprising，perhaps，than the current difficulties of traditional marriage is the fact that marriage itself is alive and thriving (兴盛).As Skolnick notes，Americans are marrying people—relative to Europeans，more of us marry and we marry at a younger age.Moreover，after a decline in the early 1970s，the rate of marriage in the United States is now increasing.Even the divorce rate needs to be taken in this pro-marriage context: some 80 percent of divorced individuals remarry.Thus，marriage remains，by far，the preferred way of life for the vast majority of people in our society.

What has changed more than marriage is the nuclear family.Twenty-five years ago，the typical American family consisted of a husband，a wife and two or three children.Now，there are many marriages in which couples have decided not to have any children.And there are many marriages where at least some of the children are from the wife’s previous marriage，or the husband’s，or both.Sometimes these children spend all of their time with one parent from the former marriage;sometimes they are shared between the two former spouses.

Thus，one can find the very type of family arrangement.There are marriages without children;marriages with children from only the present marriage;marriages with “full time”children from the present marriage and “part-time” children from former marriages.There are stepfathers，stepmothers，half-brothers，and half-sisters.It is not all the unusual for a child to have four parents and eight grandparents! There are enormous changes from the traditional nuclear family.But even so，even in the midst of all this，one thing remains constant: most Americans spend most of their adult lives married.

【小题1】By calling Americans marrying people the author means that ______.

A.more of Americans，as compared with Europeans，prefer marriage and they accept it at a younger age

B.Americans expect more out of marriage than Europeans

C.there are more married couples in USA than in Europe

D.Americans are more traditional than Europeans

【小题2】Which of the following can be presented as the picture of today’s American families?

A.A typical American family consists of only a husband and a wife.

B.Many types of family arrangements have become socially acceptable.

C.Americans prefer to have more kids than before.

D.There are no nuclear families any more.

【小题3】Even though great changes have taken place in the structure of American families ______.

A.the functions of marriage remain unchanged

B.most Americans prefer a second marriage

C.the vast majority of Americans still have faith in marriage

D.marriage is still enjoyed by all Americans

16、B

In Britain and other countries，young people sometimes take a “gap year，” a year off between high school and college.This idea never gained a big following in America.Recent news reports have suggested that interest may be growing，though there are no official numbers.

Charles Deacon，Dean of Admissions at Georgetown University in Washington，D.C.，estimates that in the current first-year class of 1，600 students，only about 25 decided to take a year off.He says this number hasn’t changed much over the years.

Mr.Deacon says the most common reason for taking a “gap year” is to have a chance to travel，but he says international students may take a “gap year” to meet requirements at home for military duty.

Some high school graduates see a year off as a chance to recover after twelve years of required education，but it can also give students a chance to explore their interests.Students hoping to be doctors，for example，could learn about the profession by volunteering in a hospital.

Many colleges and universities support gap-year projects by permitting students to delay their admission.Experts say students can grow emotionally and intellectually as they work at something they enjoy.

The Harvard admissions office has an essay on its Web site called “Time Out or Burn Out for the Next Generation.” It praises the idea of taking time off to step back，think and enjoy gaining life experiences outside the pressure of studies.It also notes that students are sometimes admitted to Harvard or other colleges partly because they did something unusual with that time.

Of course，a gap year is not for everyone.Students might miss their friends who go on directly to college，and parents might worry that their children will decide not to go to college once they take time off.Another concern is money.A year off，away from home，can be costly.

Holly Bull’s job is to specialize in helping students plan their gap year.She notes that several books have been written about this subject.She says these books along with media attention and the availability of information on the Internet have increased interest in the idea of a year off，and she points out that many gap-year programs cost far less than a year of college.

【小题1】What is the passage mainly about?

A.If you want to go to an American university，take a gap year first.

B.More and more American students are choosing to take a year off.

C.It is likely that taking a “gap year” is becoming popular in America.

D.Americans hold different opinions towards students’ taking a “gap year”.

【小题2】How many reasons for students’ taking a “gap year” are mentioned in the passage?

A.2 B.3 C.4 D.5.

【小题3】The essay “Time Out or Burn Out for the Next Generation.” suggests that ______.

A.every student must take a“gap year”before applying for a famous university

B.some famous universities encourage students to gain more life experiences

C.taking a‘gap year’can make students free from life learning

D.the stress of studies does harm to the students’ health

【小题4】What can we learn from the passage?

A.Charles Deacon doesn’t support the idea of the students’ taking a “gap year”.

B.Books and media have contributed to the students’ interest in school learning.

C.Parents might disagree with the program，concerned about their children’s future.

D.Experts agree taking a year off will benefit the students emotionally and physically.

17、(D)  Only two countries in the advanced world provide no guarantee for paid leave from work to care for a newborn child.Last spring one of the two，Australia，gave up the bad distinction by setting up paid family leave starting in 2011.I wasn’t surprised when this didn’t make the news here in the United States—we’re now the only wealthy country without such a policy.

The United States does have one explicit family policy，the Family and Medical Leave Act，passed in 1993.It entitles workers to as much as 12 weeks’ unpaid leave for care of a newborn or dealing with a family medical problem.Despite the modesty of the benefit，the Chamber of Commerce and other business groups fought it bitterly，describing it as “government-run personnel management” and a “dangerous precedent(先例).” In fact，every step of the way，as (usually) Democratic leaders have tried to introduce work-family balance measures into the law，business groups have been strongly opposed.

As Yale law professor Anne Alstott argues，justifying parental support depends on defining(定义)the family as a social good that，in some sense，society must pay for.Parents are burdened in many ways in their lives: there is “no exit” when it comes to children.Society expects—and needs—parents to provide their children with continuity of care.And society expects—and needs—parents to persist in their roles for 18 years，or longer if needed.

【小题1】What do we learn about paid family leave according to Paragraph 1?

A.It came as a surprise when Australia adopted the policy.

B.Setting up this policy made Australia less influential.

C.It has now become a hot topic in the United States.

D.No such policy is applied in the United States.

【小题2】What makes it hard to take work-family balance measures in the States?

A.The incompetence of the Democrats.

B.The opposition from business circles.

C.The lack of a precedent in American history.

D.The existing Family and Medical Leave Act.

【小题3】What is Professor Anne Alstott’s argument for parental support?

A.Children need continuous care.

B.Good parenting benefits society.

C.The cost of raising children has been growing.

D.The U.S.should keep up with other developed countries.

【小题4】Why is the author against classifying parenting as a personal choice?

A.Parenting is regarded as a moral duty.

B.Parenting relies largely on social support.

C.Parenting produces huge moral benefits.

D.Parenting is basically a social responsibility.

18、What benefits can you have from a film? A well-made film offers a whole world of things to watch. First there are the story aspects — the plot,characters, dialogue and themes. Then there are the technical aspects — the camera work, cuttings and special effects. And there are many other things, like the credits, musical score and the acting. Awell-made film offers much more than you see in one viewing (观看).

Films are a means of communication. They can tell you things, just as newspapers do, or television,or any other means of communication. Sometimes they communicate important things to you, like ideasor lifestyles or ways of looking at the world. Sometimes people are aware of this, and sometimes not.The more you are aware of this, the better you are.

Notice, for example, the way films