A

This year some twenty-three hundred teenagers（young people aged from 13 —19）from all over the world will spend about ten months in U. S. homes. They will attend U.S. schools, meet U.S. teenagers, and form impressions of the real America. At the same time, about thirteen hundred American teenagers will go to other countries to learn new languages and gain a new understanding of the rest of the world.

Here is a two-way student exchange in action. Fred, nineteen, spent last year in Germany with George’s family. In turn, George’s son Mike spent a year in Fred’s home in America.

Fred, a lively young man, knew little German when he arrived, but after two months’ study, the

language began to come to him. The school was completely different from what he had expected — much harder. Students rose respectfully(尊敬地) when the teacher entered the room. They took fourteen subjects instead of the six that are usual in the United States. There were almost no outside activities.

Family life, too, was different. The father’s word was law, and all activities were around the family rather than the individual. Fred found the food too simple at first. Also, he missed having a car.

“Back home, you pick up some friends in a car and go out and have a good time. In Germany, you walk, but you soon learn to like it.”

At the same time, in America, Mike, a friendly German boy, was also forming his idea. “I suppose I should criticize(批评) American schools,” he says. “It is far too easy by our level. But I have to say that I like it very much. In Germany we do nothing but study. Here we take part in many outside activities. I think that maybe your schools are better in training for citizens. There ought to be some middle ground between the two.”

21.This year ________ teenagers will take part in the exchange programme between

America and other countries.

A. twenty-three hundred B. thirteen hundred

C. over three thousand D. less than two thousand

22.The whole exchange programme is mainly to ________.

A. help teenagers in other countries know the real America

B. send students in America to travel in Germany

C. let students learn something about other countries

D. have teenagers learn new languages

23.What is particular in America schools is that ________.

A. there is some middle ground between the two teaching buildings

B. there are a lot of outside activities

C. students usually take fourteen subjects in all

D. students go outside to enjoy themselves in a car

24.After experiencing the American school life, Mike thought ________.

A. a better education should include something good from both America and

Germany

B. German schools trained students to be better citizens

C. American schools were not as good as German schools

D. the easy life in the American school was more helpful to students

B

The decisions that we make shape us throughout our lives. No matter what decision we make, good or bad, each one puts us on a new road in the future. Make a bad decision ? No problem. Learn from the decision and make another decision to get on a different path. This is advice that I got from Tony Robbins in his book Awaken the Giant Within. This is a book that I recommend to anyone wanting to develop a fire to make changes in their life. It helped me to understand how fear of making poor choices was hindering me from becoming the great man who I am today. Now I am not saying I am a well-known person in any particular circle. But I am the king of my castle working hard and trying to make good decisions in regard to the paths that I have chosen. I am a great man in the eyes of my wife and my children. And that is all the recognition that I need in my lifetime. And I know that my past failures have been the building block that I continue to use to build my career and self-image in my community that I live in.

Ben Lerer, cofounder of the CEO of Thrillist Media Group, is a good example of this. In an article on the Fast Company website, Lerer talks about this very subject. He says, “ I’ve had to make some really tough decisions but finally, I think the best companies are those that can recognize when something isn’t going right, and fix it, instead of just turning a blind eye because it’s easier.” Great people make decisions. When a decision does not have the desired result, make a different decision. It does not get any simpler than that.

From Tony Robbin’s Awaken the Giant Within, the writer knew ________.

A. making a bad decision is very terrible

B. making decisions helps us become a great man

C. being afraid to make a bad decision is very natural

D. learning from the bad decision can help make a new choice

The underlined word “ hindering ” can be replaced by ________.

A. stopping B. stealing C. preserving D. requiring

What can be inferred from the last paragraph?

A. A bad decision has a bad effect on people.

B. The best company can admit and correct a bad decision.

C. People should learn how to make a good decision.

D. Making a decision is much simpler than changing one.

What could be the best title of the passage?

A. Overcome your fears B. Take Action

C. Make decisions D. Trust yourself

C

An old story goes that once there were four single men, leading very boring lives. None of them were married, or had lovers, or did anything exciting. They just sat around all day and played Mahjong. One day they played Mahjong from 11 in the morning until 11 at night. During the game, no matter who won, the winning card was always the “ four columns ” card . The card shows four independent, parallel (平行) columns in two lines. Even more of a coincidence, it was Nov.11th, or 11/11. In order to memorize the day, they nicknamed it Singles Day.

Singles Day was first celebrated at various universities in Nanjing, capital city of Jiangsu Province during the 1990s. It got the name Singles Day because the date is comprised of four “ ones ”. These college students have since graduated, and carried their university tradition into society. Singles Day is now a special day for all fashionable youths.

The main way to celebrate Singles Day is to have dinner with your Singles friends, but it is important that each person pay their own fee to show their independence. People also hold “ blind date ” parties in an attempt to bid goodbye to their Singles lives.

Many singles also choose to say goodbye to their Singles lives on this day. Many attend “ blind date ” parties and many people choose to marry on this day. In addition to meaning “ Singles ”, the four “ ones ” of the date can also mean “ only one ” as in “ the only one for me ”. Some people will use this date and this meaning to tell their special someone that they are the only “ one ” in their heart.

Singles Day got its name because ________.

A. the persons who play Mahjong are four Singles

B. the date is comprised of four “ ones ”

C. only Singles person celebrated the day

D. It was first celebrated at universities in Nanjing

Which of the following is wrong ?

A. Singles Day was first celebrated in Nanjing’s universities

B. Many Singles choose Singles Day to say goodbye to their Singles lives

C. The only way to celebrate the Singles Day is to have dinner with your Single

friends.

D. It was these college graduated students that carried their university’s tradition

into society.

We can infer from the passage that ________.

A. the four Singles did not get married

B. Singles Day receives great popularity among young people

C. when having dinner, one pays the fee for all his friends

D. on Singles Day many attend parties where blind people were present

What is the best title for the passage?

A. The Origin of Singles Day B. How to Celebrate Singles Day

C. Singles Day D. Say Goodbye to Singles Day

D

All of us should keep a kitchen diary, showing how much food are left uneaten as garbage.

We all waste food, you and me, millions of tons of it. In China, enough food is wasted in restaurants every year to feed 200 million people. In the United States, 40 percent of food is wasted from farm to fork. Each year, the amount of food thrown away in rich countries is almost the same as that produced in sub-Saharan Africa. This raises some important questions.

In developing countries, food is lost because farmers do not have appropriate cooling, storage and market access for their crops. Their grains, fruits and vegetables dry up and rot away. In developed countries, the picture is different, and food is wasted in supermarket, restaurants and at home. China faces both problems, significant losses in farms, as well as at the sale and consumption stages. And the amount of food wasted by Chinese consumers is rapidly increasing.

Consumer culture has filled China and urban residents can get quality food from anywhere in the country and from across the planet. Chinese consumers are as particular about their food as those in other countries. In supermarkets, they refuse to buy vegetables that don’t look fresh or have an irregular shape, or milk and other products close to their expiry (有效期) date.

Besides, Chinese consumers tend to be generous. In restaurants or at home, often too much food is ordered or cooked and served. So while trooping out of a restaurant, full and happy, with colleagues or friends, they never look back at what’s left untouched on the table. Should Chinese consumers take more responsibility for the waste they create?

Everyone deserves to have enough food to eat. Despite China’s impressive success in reducing hunger over the past three decades, the job is not completed yet.

In developing countries, food is lost mainly ________.

A. for the