When former American President Bill Clinton travelled to South Korea to visit President Kim Young Sam,
he repeatedly referred to the Korean president's wife as Mrs. Kim. By mistake, President Clinton's advisers
thought that Koreans have the same naming customs as the Japanese. Clinton had not been told that, in Korea,
wives keep their family names. President Kim Young Sam's wife was named Sohn Myong Suk. Therefore,
she should be addressed (稱謂) as Mrs. Sohn.
     President Clinton arrived in Korea directly after leaving Japan and had not changed his culture gears. His
failure to follow Korean customs gave the impression that Korea was not as important to him as Japan.
     In addition to Koreans, some Asian husbands and wives do not share the same family names. This practice
often puzzles (使困惑) English-speaking teachers when talking with a pupil's parents. They become puzzled
about the student's correct last name. Placing the family name first is common among a number of Asian
cultures.
     Mexican naming customs are different as well. When a woman marries, she keeps her family name and
adds her husband's name after the word de (of). This affects (影響) how they fill in forms in the United States.
When requested to fill in a middle name, they generally write the father's family name. But Mexicans are
addressed by the family name of the mother. This often causes puzzlement.
     Here are a few ways to deal with such difficult situations: don't always think that a married woman uses
her husband's last name. Remember that in many Asian cultures, the order of first and last names is reversed
(顛倒), Ask which name a person would prefer to use. If the name is difficult to pronounce, admit it, and
ask the person to help you say it correctly.

1. The story of Bill Clinton is used to _____.

A. improve US-Korean relations
B. introduce the topic of the text
C. describe his visit to Korea
D. tell us how to address a person

2. The word "gears"in paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to _____. 

A. action plans
B. naming customs
C. travel maps
D. thinking patterns

3. When a woman marries in Korea, she _____. 

A. continues to use her family name
B. uses her husband's given name
C. shares her husband's family name
D. adds her husband's given name to hers

4. To address a married woman properly, you'd better _____. 

A. use her middle name
B. use her husband's first name
C. ask her which name she likes
D. change the order of her names

     Chinese Valentine's Day (情人節(jié)) is on the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar (陰歷).
It is a traditional festival for Chinese people. It comes from a romantic ancient Chinese story. Niu Lang and
Zhi Nv, two lovers who got separated by the Queen Mother of the Western Heavens, can only meet that night.
Thanks to this touching story, Chinese people regard the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar as Chinese Valentine's Day. In China people also call it "Qixi".
     Meanwhile, February 14 of the solar calendar is European Valentine's Day. It is related to a moving story
too. The story goes that, there was a cruel king in ancient Rome whose name was Claudius. He forbade the
youth to get married during the wars, which made the lovers angry. There was a monk (修道士) named
Valentine who was very angry at the rule and the king. One day a couple of lovers came to his temple to ask
for help to get married. Valentine helped them. Later, many couples got married with Valentine's help. But
Claudius knew it soon. He put Valentine to death cruelly. And that day was February 14, the year of 270.
     Compared with European Valentine's Day, Qixi is less popular in China though it is a traditional Chinese
festival. There may be many reasons. First of all, the lunar calendar is not easy to remember for most of the
young people who are used to the solar calendar. Secondly, to many businessmen, European Valentine's Day is
not only a festival for lovers but also a good chance to make money. Most of the flower shops can sell their
flowers at a good price on European Valentine's Day while the business drops in Qixi, because on European
Valentine's Day lovers know more about how to enjoy it. They exchange cards, flowers and go out to date.
But most of them don't know the culture of Chinese Valentine's Day or how to celebrate it.

1. This text is mainly about ______.

A. two moving romantic stories
B. something about Qixi and Valentine's Day
C. why young people prefer Western festivals
D. how Qixi is different from European Valentine's Day

2. Qixi is less popular than European Valentine's Day because _____.

A. businessmen think that European Valentine's Day is more important than Qixi
B. the government encourages people to celebrate foreign festivals
C. the costs on Qixi are higher than those on European Valentine's Day
D. the lunar calendar is not easy to remember and people don't know how to enjoy Qixi

3. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the text?

A. Lovers exchange cards, flowers and go out to date on Qixi.
B. Valentine helped a couple of lovers kill the cruel king.
C. European Valentine's Day was named after a person.
D. Old people in China dislike young people celebrating European Valentine's Day.

4. If the text goes on, what will probably be talked about in the next paragraph?

A. Young people should fight for love and happiness.
B. Chinese people should treasure traditional Chinese festivals more.
C. Qixi will also become an international festival in the future.
D. Chinese people should stop celebrating European Valentine's Day.

     Washington D. C. is the capital of the United States. It's the center of the national gov-ernment. It's a
busy, working city with a large population. But what is more, Washington is also a city of history and culture.
     Washington was created in 1790, when Congress (the highest law-making body of the U. S. A.) decided
to place the nation' new capital in the east of the country. It was built half-way between the northern and the
southern states of the America. And of course it was named after George Washington, the first President of
the United States.
     There are many tourist sights in Washington. One of them is the White House. This is the home and office
of the President of the United States. Most visitors are, however, surprised by how small the White House
actually is.
     Washington is also a great culture city. The Library of Congress contains (包括) one of the largest library
collections in the world. The Smithsonian Museum holds the nation's largest collection of cultural materials.
And me John F. Kennedy Center is a famous center of art and culture. It. has many great musical and theatre
performances throughout the year.

1. The writer mainly talks about _____.

A. Washington
B. the history of Washington
C. buildings and sights-in Washington
D. the history and culture of Washington

2. From the passage we know that Washington is situated(位于) in ______ .

A. the east of the U. S. A.
B. the center of the U. S. A
C. the east, on the middle point from north to south, of the country
D. the east and half-way away from the north

3. The White House impresses (給人印象) the people most for _____ .

A. its white color
B. its size
C. its history
D. it is the home and office of the president

4. The writer introduces Washington in the order of_____  .

A. general introduction, history, sights and culture
B. population, history and culture
C. general introduction, history, sights, buildings and culture
D. history and culture

      1  This date was the old mid-winter festival in pre-Christmas times, around the time of the longest night
and the shortest day. Christmas in the 21st century has many traditions: Christmas trees, cards and presents.
Shops can make about 60 percent f their year's income in the three months before Christmas, so most shops
get ready for it in October.   2   The first time this happened was in 1867 when Macy's famous shop in New
York, stayed open until midnight on Christmas Eve.
     By mid-December, almost every shop and street has a Christmas tree.   3   In the northern countries, winter
is cold and dark and most trees are decorated with lights and colored glass balls give people hope that spring
will come.
     Father Christmas is known across the world with his white hair, red coat and big bag of toys. Young
children are told that he lives in the north of Finland and makes toys for them.   4   
     On Christmas Day a traditional meal is eaten, usually a turkey and a rich, spicy cake. Some people hate
Christmas.   5   They love seeing family and friends; they also love the traditions. Love it or hate it, Christmas
is a time to look back over the old year and forward to the new one.

A. This tradition was started by the Germans as early as 700 AD.
B. Believe it or not.
C. Since about 400 AD, Christmas Day has been celebrated.
D. Others feel it is a magical and exciting time.
E. The shopping centers are beautifully decorated and stay open late at night.
F. It was really beautiful indeed.
G. By tradition, he brings the toys to children at night, on the night before Christmas.

     One day Walt Disney had a vision. It was a vision of a place where children and parents could have fun
together. The more Walt dreamed of a"magical park," the more imaginative and elaborate it became.
     The original plans for the park were on 8 acres next to the Burbank studios where his employees and
families could go to relax. Although, World War II put those plans on hold. During the war, Disney had time
to come up with new ideas, and creations for his magical park. It was soon clear that 8 acres wouldn't be
enough.
     Finally in 1953, he had the Stanford Research Institute conduct a survey for a 100-acre site, outside of
Los Angeles. He needed space to build rivers, waterfalls, and mountains; he would have flying elephants and
giant teacups; a fairy-tale castle, moon rockets, and a scenic railway; all inside a magic kingdom he called
"Disneyland."
     The search for the best venue for the park ended in the rural Anaheim, California with a purchase of a
160-acre orange grove near the junction of the Santa Ana Freeway (I-5) and Harbor Boulevard. Construction
for Disneyland began on July 21, 1954, 12 months before the park was scheduled to open.
     Some 160-acres of citrus trees had been cleared and 15 houses moved to make room for the park.
However, when the real designing came around, Disney met with inevitable questions. How do you make
believable wild animals, that aren't real? How do you make a Mississippi paddle ship? How do you go about
building a huge castle in the middle of Anaheim, California? Disney asked his movie studio staff for answers.
The design of Disneyland was something never done before. There would be four uniquely different theme
parts: Adventureland, Frontierland, Fantasyland Tomorrow land. Bit by bit, Disneyland got ready for Opening
Day. The staff worked around the clock to get ready.
     But opening day was a terrible disaster. Besides the terrible opening day conditions, the park did eventually
pick up. By 1965, ten years after opening day, 50 Million visitors had come through the gates.

1. The passage is mainly about _______.

A. How Disneyland came into being
B. The difficulties Disney met in building Disneyland
C. What visitors can enjoy in Disneyland.
D. A brief introduction to Disneyland

2. Which of the following dates would probably be the opening date of Disneyland?

A. 1953
B. 1954
C. 1955
D. 1965

3. Which of the following statements is Not True?

A. World War II had some influence on the building plan of the Disneyland.
B. Disney must have met many difficulties in building Disneyland.
C. Disney was a great man with great imagination and creativity.
D. About 50 million visitors have visited Disneyland so far.

4. The underlined phrase in the last paragraph probably means _____.

A. collect
B. improve
C. find
D. open

     Everybody hates it, but everybody does it. A recent report said that 40％of Americans hate tipping. In
America alone, tipping is a $16 billion-a-year industry. Consumers acting politely ought not to pay more than
they have to for a given service. Tips should not exist. So why do they? The common opinion in the past was
that tips both rewarded the efforts of good service and reduced uncomfortable feelings of inequality. And also,
tipping makes for closer relations. It went without saying that the better the service, the bigger the tip.
     But according to a new research from Cornell University, tips no longer serve any useful function. The
paper analyzes numbers they got from 2,547 groups dining at 20 different restaurants. The connection between
larger tips and better service was very weak. Only a tiny part of the size of the tip had anything to do with the
quality of service.
     Tipping is better explained, by culture than by the money people spend. In America, the custom came into
being a long time ago. It is regarded as part of the accepted cost of a service. In New York restaurants, failing
to tip at least l5% could well mean dissatisfaction from the customers. Hairdressers can expect to get l5%-20%, and the man who delivers your fast food $2. In Europe, tipping is less common. In many restaurants the
amount of tip is decided by a standard service charge. In many Asian countries, tipping has never really caught
on at all. Only a few have really taken to tipping.
     According to Michael Lynn, the Cornell papers' author, countries in which people are more social or
outgoing tend to tip more. Tipping may reduce anxiety about being served by strangers. And Mr. Lynn says,
"In America, where people are expressive and eager to mix up with others, tipping is about social approval. If
you tip badly, people think less of you. Tipping well is a chance to show off."

1. This passage is mainly about ________.

A. different kinds of tipping in different countries
B. the relationship between tipping and custom
C. the origin and present meaning of tipping
D. most American people hate tipping

2. Which of the following best explains the underlined phrase "caught on"?

A. become popular.
B. been hated.
C. been stopped.
D. been permitted

3. Among the following situations, in your opinion, who is likely to tip most?

A. A Frenchman just quarreled with the barber who did his hair badly in New York.
B. An American just had a wonderful dinner in a well known restaurant in New York.
C. A Japanese businessman asked for a pizza delivery from a Pizza Hut in New York.
D. A Chinese student enjoyed his meal in a famous fast food restaurant in New York.

4. We can infer from this passage that ________.

A. tipping is no longer a good way to satisfy some customers themselves
B. tipping is especially popular in New York
C. tipping in America can make service better now
D. tipping has something to do with people's character

     Farmers grow cocoa trees in the shady areas of rainforests near the Earth's equator. These trees can be
difficult to grow. They require an exact amount of water, warmth, soil and protection. After about five years,
cocoa trees start producing large fruits called pods. The seeds inside these pods are harvested to make
chocolate.
     Today we travel around the world exploring the history of chocolate. Its story begins with a plant whose
scientific name, The obroma cocoa, means "food of the gods". People have been enjoying the rich flavor of
chocolate, a product made from this plant.
     Most people know that chocolate is made from cocoa and that the origins of chocolate can be traced back
to Central and South America. For centuries, the natives there regarded cocoa as a gift from the gods. But how
did chocolate go from being the food of the gods to being the food of love?
     Historians believe the Maya of Central America first learned to farm cocoa plants around two thousand
years ago. The Maya took the cocoa trees from the rainforests and grew them in their gardens. They cooked
the cocoa seeds, and then crushed them into a soft substance. They used the cocoa bean as the main part in a
dark, bitter drink that we would call"chocolate". They believed that chocolate had mystical characteristics-but
cocoa also had commercial (商業(yè)的)value. In fact, cocoa beans were used as a form of currency that was
worth its weight in gold!
     The explorer Christopher Columbus brought cocoa seeds to Spain after his trip to Central America in 1502.
But the Spanish explorer Conquistador Hernando Cortez was the first European explorer to realize cocoa's
commercial possibilities. When he arrived in the New World in 1519, he soon established his own cocoa
factory. In 1529, Cortez returned to Spain and introduced chocolate - as a drink mixed with sugar, vanilla, and
cinnamon-to European society.
     The wealthy people of Spain first enjoyed a sweetened type of the chocolate drink. Later, the popularity
of the drink spread throughout Europe. The English, Dutch and French began to plant cocoa trees in their own
countries. Chocolate remained a drink that only wealthy people could afford to drink until the eighteenth
century. During the period known as the Industrial Revolution, new technologies helped make chocolate less
costly to produce.
     It caught on-especially with the noble people, who enjoyed hot chocolate as an aphrodisiac (a kind of
medicine). As its popularity spread, people found new ways to make and use chocolate. These days, chocolate
is enjoyed as both a tasty treat and a romantic gift everywhere.

1. According to historians, cacao trees were first planted in _____.

A. South America
B. Central America
C. Spain.
D. Africa

2. Cocoa trees are difficult to grow because they require these EXCEPT _____.

A. protection
B. warmth
C. soil of good quality
D. plenty of fertilizer

3. According to the passage, which one is NOT RIGHT?

A. Christopher Columbus brought cacao seeds to Central America.
B. The wealthy people of Spain first didn't enjoy a chocolate drink.
C. Chocolate is made from the branches of coco trees.
D. At first only wealthy people could afford to drink chocolate.

4. Which is the right order of the events according to when they happened?
① The English, Dutch and French began to plant cocoa trees in their own colonies.
② Christopher Columbus brought cocoa seeds to Spain.
③ Cortez set up his own cocoa plantation.
④ Cortez introduced chocolate to European society.

A. ②③④①
B. ②③①④
C. ②④③①
D. ③②④①

5. Which of the following might be the best title for the passage?

A. History of chocolate, as rich as its taste.
B. Chocolate, food of the gods.
C. Value of chocolate, as costly as gold.
D. Chocolate, food of love.

     The writings of Shakespeare are today little read by young people in Britain. His young readership is limited
to those who choose to study literature at university.
     Shakespeare's work, together with most other classics, is seen as remote, and written in a 400-year-old
version of English that is about as inviting as toothache.
     Still, in British schools, it is compulsory to study the bard (詩人), and when something is made compulsory,
usually the result is boredom, resentment (憎恨) or both.
     This was my experience of the classics at school. But when I reached my late teenage years, I had a change
of heart. Like every other young person since the dawn of time, the world confused me. I wanted answers, so
I turned to books to find them.
     I went on to take a PhD in literature and have taught it in Britain and China. I have never regretted it. There
is something in literature that people want, even if they don't read books. You see this in the popularity of TV
and movie adaptations of great works, the recent film version of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice being a case
in point. These popular adaptations may help increase people's interest in the classics.
     Reading a simplified Romeo and Juliet may perhaps lead to a reading of Shakespeare play. If that is the case,
then I welcome the trend. But do not make the mistake of thinking that it is the same thing. Shakespeare is a
poet. His greatness is in his language. Reading someone else's rewriting of his work is like peeling a banana,
throwing away the fruit, and eating the skin. Take on the original. It really is worth the effort.

1. Which of the following is true according to the passage?

A. The language used in classics is no longer in use today.
B. British students usually find compulsory reading dull.
C. Only those studying literature read Shakespeare's works.
D. For British people, Shakespeare's works are no longer classics.

2. According to the passage, the writer _____.

A. has liked literary classics since an early age
B. was forced to read the classics for a PhD
C. turned to literature to seek answers in his teens
D. thinks only people who read books like literature

3. The popularity of TV and movie adaptations of great works may help people _____.

A. learn more about tradition
B. get a PhD in literature
C. seek their answers about the world
D. become more interested in the classics

4. What does the writer intend to tell us in the last paragraph?

A. The fruit of a banana is more useful than its skin.
B. The rewriting trend does more harm than good.
C. Readers should try to read the original versions.
D. Readers need to learn the language in the classics.

     For nine days in October, the New Mexico skies are painted as hundreds of balloons lift off from
Albuquerque's Balloon Fiesta (or festival) Park. For ballooning fans worldwide, the Albuquerque International
Balloon Fiesta is a pilgrimage(朝圣). There's something for everyone to enjoy-special shapes filled with equal
parts of hot air and wonder, and Balloon Glows that create a magical night landscape for spectators(or audience)to wander.
     The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is a world-famous attraction and destination for kids of all ages. For more than three decades, the first week in October brings the smell of roasting chiles(辣椒) and the
beautiful, magical moving picture show of hot air balloons sailing silently through the crisp fall air.
     Guests from all over the world come to Albuquerque to celebrate ballooning. Literally hundreds of balloons
will be taking flight from the Balloon Fiesta Park this year.
     From its beginnings in 1972 with 13 balloons launching from a shopping mall parking lot, the Balloon Fiesta
has grown to various events launching year-round at the custom-designed, 365-acre Balloon Fiesta Park. Our
signature event remains Balloon Fiesta-which, with 700 balloons, is the largest ballooning event on earth, the
most photographed event on earth, and the largest yearly international event held in the United States.
     Imagine 54 football fields, all put together. That's the size of Balloon Fiesta Park's 78-acre launch field! And
at this Park's "playing field", there are no losing teams and no viewing stands. Guests walk the field and are part
of the action....
     Balloon Fiesta Park is located north of Alameda Boulevard, one mile west of Interstate-25.

1. This text is mainly about ______.

A. the fantastic scene of a balloon festival
B. the history of a balloon festival
C. where to enjoy the biggest balloon festival
D. what is a balloon festival

2. Which of the following is true according to the text?

A. Balloon Fiesta has a history of 30 years.
B. Balloon Fiesta is only held in the daytime.
C. During Balloon Fiesta moving show or cartoons will be played.
D. The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta is held at the beginning of October.

3. The part omitted in Paragraph 5 is probably about ______.

A. how the festival begins
B. when the Balloon Fiesta Park was built
C. the description of the busy festival scene
D. why so many visitors are present at the festival

4. This text comes most probably from ______.

A. a news report
B. an advertisement
C. a diary
D. a guide's explanation