When families gather for Christmas dinner, some will stick to formal traditions, that is, their tables will be set with the good dishes and silver bowls. But now in many other homes, this china-and-silver elegance (優(yōu)雅)has given way to a stoneware (粗陶) and informality, with dresses in an informal and ordinary look. For hosts and guests, the change means greater simplicity and comfort. For makers of fine china in Britain, it means economic hard times.
Last week Royal Doulton, the largest employer in Stoke-on-Trent, announced that it is removing 1,000 jobs -- one-fifth of its total workforce. That brings to more than 4, 000  the number of positions lost in 18 months in the pottery (陶瓷) field. Wedgwood and other pottery factories made cuts earlier.
Although a strong pound and weak markets in Asia play a role in the downsizing, the layoffs（失業(yè)） in Stoke have their roots in great social changes. A spokesman for Royal Doulton admitted that the company "has been somewhat slow in catching up with the trend(潮流)" toward informal dining. Families eat together less often, he explained, and more people eat alone, either because they are single or because they want to eat in front of television. Even dinner parties, if they happen at all, have gone informal. In a time of long work hours and busy family schedules, busy hosts insist, rightly, that it's better to share a takeout pizza on paper plates in the family room than to wait for the perfect moment or a "real" dinner party. Too often, the perfect moment never comes. Iron a fine-patterned tablecloth? Forget it. Clean the silver bowls ? Who has time?
Yet the loss of formality has its down side. The fine points of etiquette (禮節(jié)) that children might once have learned before at the table by observation or instruction from parents and grandparents (" Chew with your mouth closed." "Keep your elbows off the table. ") must be picked up else-where. Some companies now offer etiquette courses for employees who may be able professionally but inexperienced socially.
71. In many homes nowadays, people tend to ______________________
A. stick to formal traditions when they dine
B. set their tables with the good dishes and silver bowls
C. have dinner informally
D. buy many sets of fine china
72. Why do people tend to follow the trend towards informal dining?
A. Family members need more time to relax.
B. Busy schedules leave people no time for formality.
C. People prefer to live a comfortable life.
D. Young people won't follow the etiquette of the older generation.
73. It can be learned from the passage that ‘Royal Doulton’ is              .
A. a store of steel tableware                 B. a store of stoneware
C. a store of pottery chain                 D. a producer of fine china
74. The main cause of the layoffs in the pottery industry is              .
A. the increased value of the pound          B. the worsening economy in Asia
C. the change in people's way of life         D. the fierce competition at home and abroad
75. In the last paragraph, we can find that formal table manners, though less popular than before in present social life,               .
A. are still a must on certain occasions       B. are certain to return sooner or later
C. are still being taught by parents at home   D. can help improve personal relationships

小題1:C
小題2:B
小題3:D
小題4:C
小題5:A
         
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


Specialists say it is not easy to get used to life in a new culture. “Culture shock” is the term these specialists use when talking about the feelings that people have in a new environment. There are three stages of culture shock, say the specialists. In the first stage, the newcomers like their new environment. Then, when the fresh experience dies, they begin to hate the city, the country, the people, and everything else. In the last stage, the newcomers begin to adjust to their surroundings and, as a result, enjoy their life more.
There are some obvious factors（因素）in culture shock. The weather may be unpleasant. The customs may be different. The public service systems—the telephones, post office, or transportation—may be difficult to work out. The simplest things seem to be big problems. The language may be difficult.
Who feels culture shock? Everyone does in this way or that. But culture shock surprises most people. Very often the people having the worst culture shock are those who never had any difficulties in their own community. Coming to a new country, these people find they do not have the same established positions. They find themselves without any identity. They have to build a new self-image.
Culture shock gives rise to a feeling of disorientation（迷失方向）. This feeling may be homesickness. When homesick, people feel like staying inside all the time. They want to protect themselves from the strange environment, and create an escape inside their room for a sense of security. This escape does solve the problem of culture shock for the short term, but it does nothing to make the person familiar with the culture. Getting to know the new environment and gaining experience — these are the long-term solutions to the problem of culture shock.
76. When people move to a new country, they _______.
A. will get used to their new surroundings with difficulty
B. have well prepared for the new surroundings
C. will get used to the culture of the country quickly
D. will never be familiar with the culture of the country
77. According to the passage, factors that give rise to culture shock include all of the following except __________.
A. language communication                          B. weather conditions and customs
C. public service systems                                   D. homesickness
78. According to the passage, the more successful you are at home, _______.
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C. the more money you will earn abroad          
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C. visit their friends far away                                   D. stay indoors all the time
80. The writer tells us that the best way to overcome culture shock is to ______.
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B. develop a strange sense of self-protection
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

It was not a good day today. Everything went wrong. First, I slept late and Mom shouted at me to wake up. When I went to the kitchen for breakfast, there was no cereal. I decided to have some toast instead, but I burned it. I had to eat it anyway because there was no more bread. There was no juice, either. I just had a glass of water.
When I was almost at the bus stop, I realized that I had forgotten my wallet, so I had to go back home and get it. Of course, I missed the bus and had to wait for the next bus.
I was late for school and the teacher told me to stay in the classroom at lunchtime to catch up on（彌補(bǔ)）the schoolwork I had missed.
After lunch, it was the time to give the teacher our homework. I reached into my bag to get it but it wasn’t there. I had left it at home. I was in trouble again.
When I got home, I went straight to my room to catch up on my homework. Mom cooked fish for dinner. She knows I don’t like fish, but she thinks it is good for her son. It was a horrible day. I hope tomorrow will be better.
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A．The writer argued with his parents.B．The writer heard some terrible news.
C．Many small things went wrong.D．Part of the writer’s house was on fire.
小題2:When did the writer’s bad day begin?
A．At nightB．In the morning.
C．At lunchtime.D．In the afternoon.
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A．He did some homework.B．He made a telephone call.
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For those who were born in the year of the pig, good luck and much success! This is your year. When talking to a westerner, however, you’ve got to be a little careful when talk about pigs. Chinese people view the pig as a small and prosperous (rich, luckily) animal. Western ideas tend to be a little more negative.(否定).
A pig in the West is seen as a dirty , lazy and fat animal. If anyone ever called you a pig, you wouldn’t be smiling. When a person doesn’t like someone, something he will call that person a pig.
If you ever meet a Westerner who was born in the year of the pig, don’t say, “Oh , you’re a pig!” Most Westerners will be misunderstanding. They will be sure that you made some kind of mistakes. However, don’t take any chances. You might just offend someone who does not share your positive ideas about.
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A. different people have different ideas about the same thing.
B. Westerners do not like pigs as much as the Chinese do
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

We all enjoy the colors of autumn leaves. Did you ever wonder how and why a fall leaf changes color? Where do the yellows and oranges come from? To answer those questions, we first have to understand what leaves are and what they do.
Leaves are nature's food factories. Plants take water from the ground through their roots. They take a gas called carbon dioxide from the air. Plants use sunlight to turn water and carbon dioxide into glucose, which is a kind of sugar. Plants use glucose as food for energy and as a building block for growing. The way plants turn water and carbon dioxide into sugar is called photosynthesis, which means " putting together with light. " A chemical called chlorophyll helps make photosynthesis happen. Chlorophyll is what gives plants their green color.
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The bright reds and purples we see in leaves are made mostly in the fall. In some trees, like maples, glucose is trapped in the leaves after photosynthesis stops. Sunlight and the cool nights of autumn cause the leaves turn this glucose into a red color. The brown color of trees like oaks is made from wastes left in the leaves.
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Send us your old jeans and other denim (牛仔布)!
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All the denim will be donated to COTTON FROM BLUE TO GREEN.®. This denim drive is a call-to-action to donate denim and give it "new life" by changing it into UltraTouchtm Natural Cotton Fiber Insulation (纖維隔熱材料), which is used to help build houses in places that have been damaged by hurricanes, tornadoes, and other natural disasters. Your jeans will help set a record, keep clothes out of landfills (垃圾場), and build houses for families to live in! UltraTouehtm is made of 85% recycled fibers and is an environmentally safe, natural cotton fiber insulation.
It's a Fact
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3. The denim can be any brand.
4. The denim can be of any color or size but must have been worn by a human (no doll clothes!).
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6. Send as many jeans or denim items as you wish to:
NG Kids P.O. Box 98001 Washington, D.C. 20090-8001
Jeans must be received by June 30, 2009!
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


When you enter a supermarket, you see shelves full of food. You walk between the shelves. You carry a shopping basket with your food in it.
You probably hear soft, slow music as you walk between the shelves. If you hear fast music, you walk quickly. The supermarket plays slow music. You walk slowly and have more time to buy things.
Maybe you go to the meat department first. There is some meat on sale, and you want to find it. The manager of the supermarket knows where customers enter the meat department. The cheaper meat is at the other end of the meat department, away from where the customers enter. You have to walk by all the expensive meat before you find the cheaper meat. Maybe you will buy some of the expensive meat instead of the meat on sale.
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Most of the food in supermarkets is very pleasing. It all says “Buy me!” to the customers. The expensive meat says “Buy me” as you walk by. The expensive milk jar says “Buy me! I have less fat.”
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


Experts say that agriculture provides fourteen percent of the world's greenhouse gas emissions each year．The gases released include carbon dioxide, a major cause of global warming．
Twenty-one nations around the world recently joined forces to better understand and prevent greenhouse gas emissions from farms．The Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases was launched at the United Nations conference on climate change．The meeting took place in Copenhagen, Denmark last month．
Agricultural experts blame a number of farm activities for producing greenhouse gases．For example, animal waste and cattle digestive systems release methane （甲烷，沼氣） gas．Fertilized soil and the burning of crop waste also release harmful gases into the air．Experts say some methods of farming ?turning the soil to prepare for planting ?also release harmful carbon dioxide．
An official of the European Commission's Directorate General for Research says agricultural greenhouse gas emissions can be cut．Maive Rute suggests feeding animals a diet designed to reduce emissions．
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The United States Department of Agriculture will increase spending on farm emissions research by ninety million dollars over the next four years．The total will reach one hundred thirty million dollars．The U．S．D．A．will share the research with other countries in the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases and support researchers from developing countries that belong to the alliance．Money from the Borlaug Fellowship program will let the researchers study agricultural climate change with American scientists．
Mister Vilsack said that just as climate change has no borders, there should be no borders for research．
72．In Paragraph 4, Maive Rute recommends _____．
A．increasing food production
B．changing cattle digestive systems
C．developing better fanning methods
D．giving animals the food meant to produce fewer emissions
73．The underlined word "alliance" in Paragraph 6 probably means _____．
A．Action or state being joined together
B．An agreement signed between countries
C．A program or project set up for a research
D．An organization formed for different goals
74．How much has the U．S．D．A．spent on farm emissions research so far?
A．130 million dollars．           B．220 million dollars．
C．40 million dollars．                D．90 million dollars．
75．The purpose of the passage is to ____．
A．suggest a total ban on farm activities
B．introduce Copenhagen conference held last month
C．a(chǎn)ppeal to more countries to cut agricultural emissions
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解


We can make mistakes at any age. Some mistakes we make are about money. but most mistakes are about people. "Did Jerry really care when I broke up with Helen?" "When I got that great job, did Jim, as a friend, really feel good about it? Or did he envy my luck?" "And was Paul friendly just because I had a car? " When we look back, doubts like these can make us feel bad.
But when we look back, it is too late.
Why do we go wrong about our friends, or our enemies? Sometimes what people say hides their real meanings. And if we do not really listen, we miss the feeling behind the words. Suppose someone tells you, "You're a lucky dog!"(你真幸運(yùn)!) Is he really on your side? If he says, "You're a lucky guy!", that is being friendly. But "a lucky dog?" There is a bit of envy in those words. What he may be saying is that he does not think you deserve your luck.
"Just think of all the things you have to be thankful for" is another phrase that says one thing and means another. It could mean that the speaker is trying to get you to see your problem. But this phrase contains the thought that your problem is not at all important.
How can you tell the real meaning behind someone's words? One way is to take a good look at the person talking. Do his words fit the way he looks? Is what he says shown by the tone of voice? The look in his eyes? Stop and think. The minute you spend thinking about the real meaning of what people say to you may save your another mistake.
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A. feels happy, thinking how nice his friends were to him
B. feels he might not have understood his friends' true feelings
C. think it a mistake to have broken up with his girl friend
D. is sorry that his friends let him down
58.When the writer talks about someone saying, "You're a lucky dog!", he is saying that
_____.    
A. the speaker is just friendly
B. this sentence suggests the same as "You're a lucky guy!"
C. the word "dog" should not be used to apply to people
D. sometimes the words show that the speaker is a bit envious
59.This passage tries to tell you how to ______.
A. avoid mistakes about money and friends
B. get an idea of friendly people
C. avoid mistakes in understanding what people tell you
D. keep people friendly without trusting them
60.The writer suggests that ______ be trusted.
A. everybody   B. nobody    C. all the people  D. all the people not

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