Over the past century, all kinds of unfairness and discrimination have been made illegal. But one popular form continues to exist, that is alphabetism (字母排序法). This, for those as yet unaware of such a disadvantage, refers to discrimination against those whose surnames(姓氏)begin with a letter in the lower half of the alphabet.
It has long been known that the cars of a taxi firm called AAAA have a big advantage over Zodiac cars when customers look through their phone directories. Less well known is the advantage that Adam Abbot has in life over Zoe Zysman. English names are fairly spread between the halves of the alphabet. Yet a quite large number of top people have surnames beginning with letters between A and K.
Thus the American presidents and vice-presidents have surnames starting with B and  C separately and 26 of those before George Bush took office (including his father ) had surnames in the first half of the alphabet against just 16 in the second half. Even more striking, six of the seven heads of government of the G7 rich countries are alphabetically advantaged (Berlusconi, Blair, Bush, Chirac, Chretien and Koizumi). The world's three top central bankers ( Greenspan, Duisenberg and Hayami)are all close to the top of the alphabet, even if one of them really uses Japanese characters. The same case are the world's five richest men ( Gates, Buffet and so on) .
Can this merely happen by chance? At the start of the first year in primary school, teachers seat pupils, alphabetically from the front, to make it easier to remember their names. So shortsighted and small-sized Zysman junior gets stuck in the back row, and is seldom asked the improving questions by those teachers. At that time the alphabetically disadvantaged may think they have had a lucky escape. Yet the result may be worse qualifications, because they get less attention, as well as less confidence in speaking publicly.
The unfairness continues. At university graduation parties, the ABCs proudly get their awards first. However, by the time they reach the Zysmans most people are a little tired. Lists of job interviews and conference speakers and attendees all tend to be drawn up alphabetically, and their readers lose interest as they plough through them.
小題1:What does the author intend to show with AAAA cars and Zodiac cars?
A．An example of competition of two kinds of cars.
B．Some advantages of AAAA cars in the taxi firm.
C．An example of unfairness caused by alphabetism.
D．Some disadvantages of Zodiac cars in the taxi firm.
小題2:What can we infer from the first three paragraphs?
A．The alphabet is to blame for the failure of Zoe Zysman.
B．In both East and West, names are important to success.
C．Customers often pay a lot of attention to companies' names.
D．The discrimination in alphabetism can be found in many areas.
小題3:The fourth paragraph suggests that         .
A．a(chǎn)lphabetically disadvantaged often escape from class
B．teachers should pay equal attention to all their students
C．questions are often put to the more intelligent students
D．students should be seated according to their eyesight
小題4:Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A．VIPs in the western world gain a great deal from alphabetism.
B．People with surnames beginning with N to Z are often misunderstood.
C．Putting things alphabetically may lead to unintentional unfairness.
D．The movement to get rid of alphabetism still has a long way to go.

小題1:C
小題2:D
小題3:B
小題4:C

試題分析：本文作者介紹了按字母順序排列對姓氏首字母在字母表后半部分不利。作者列舉了許多例子來說明這種情況。
小題1:細(xì)節(jié)題：根據(jù)第二段第一句“It has long been known that the cars of a taxi firm called AAAA have a big advantage over Zodiac cars when customers look through their phone directories. ”人們早就知曉一個叫4個A的汽車公司比一個叫Zodiac的汽車公司在做生意時享 有便利，因為顧客在翻看電話簿時，4個A汽車的名字排在前面，所以這是一種看似平等，實 際上并不平等的安排。故選C。
小題2:推理題：閱讀前三段內(nèi)容可知第一段講按字母順序排列對姓氏首字母在字母表后半部分不利。第二段舉兩個例子， 一個是以A開頭的汽車公司，另一個是以A開頭的人名，都比以Z開頭的汽車公司和人名 享有更多的好處，并指出有許多杰出人士的姓氏首字母都在A到K之間。第三段講美國的總統(tǒng)、副總統(tǒng)、7個經(jīng)濟(jì)強(qiáng)國的政府首腦、世界上3個頂尖的銀行家以及世界上最有錢的5個人的名字都在字母表的前一半。故選D。
小題3:推理題：閱讀第四段內(nèi)容可知老師把學(xué)生按字母順序排座位，結(jié)果，名字在字母表后面的學(xué)生雖有近視也得坐在后面，這樣不利于學(xué)生的學(xué)習(xí)，也會影響他們以后在公眾場合講話的自信心。這反過來說明教師應(yīng)當(dāng)關(guān)心每個學(xué)生，故C項正確。故選B。
小題4:細(xì)節(jié)題：文章的前4段都講到了按字母排列而引起的對一些人的不公平，所以C對�！鞍醋� 母順序排列會導(dǎo)致非故意的不公正”。故選C。
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：完形填空

Most people give little thought to the pens they write with，especially since the printers in modern homes and offices mean that very ____things are handwritten.All too often，people buy a pen based only on ____，and wonder why they are not satisfied ___ they begin to use it.However，buying a pen that you’ll enjoy is not ____ if you keep the following in mind.
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Then，the writing point of the pen should ____ the ink to flow evenly(均勻地) while the pen remains in touch with the paper.____ will make it possible for you to create a ____ line of writing.The point should also be sensitive enough to ____ink from running when the pen is lifted.A point that does not block the ____ may leave drops of ink，____ you pick the pen up and put it down again.
___，the pen should make a thick，dark line.Fine­line pens may ____ bad handwriting，but fine，delicate lines do not command ____ next to printed text，as，____，a signature on a printed letter.A broader line，on the other hand，gives an impression of confidence and authority(權(quán)威)．
小題1:
A．manyB．few
C．pleasantD．important
小題2:
A．looksB．reason
C．valueD．a(chǎn)dvantages
小題3:
A．onceB．if
C．becauseD．though
小題4:
A．convenientB．practical
C．strangeD．difficult
小題5:
A．heavyB．easy
C．hardD．safe
小題6:
A．takingB．finding
C．determiningD．seeking
小題7:
A．strongerB．weaker
C．smallerD．larger
小題8:
A．preferB．recommend
C．prepareD．demand
小題9:
A．hardlyB．a(chǎn)lso
C．neverD．still
小題10:
A．thickB．light
C．longD．soft
小題11:．
A．changeB．a(chǎn)llow
C．reduceD．press
小題12:
A．TheyB．One
C．ThisD．Some
小題13:
A．thinB．rough
C．blackD．smooth
小題14:
A．preventB．free
C．protectD．remove
小題15:
A．wayB．sight
C．flowD．stream
小題16:．
A．soB．a(chǎn)s
C．a(chǎn)nd D．yet
小題17:
A．MeanwhileB．Generally
C．AfterwardsD．Finally
小題18:
A．show upB．differ from
C．break down D．compensate for
小題19:
A．a(chǎn)ttentionB．support
C．respectD．a(chǎn)dmission
小題20:
A．a(chǎn)t mostB．for example
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：完形填空

A Leap(跳躍)to Honor
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That's especially impressive，____she is legally blind, born with a rare condition that causes her eyes to shift(移動)constantly.She often sees double and can't ____ how far away things are.
When she was little, her mom ___ that even though she couldn't see ____ , she was fearless.So her mom signed her up for gymnastics when she was three.She loved the ____ right away and gymnastics became her favorite.
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A．runsB．teachesC．trainsD．dances
小題2:
A．sinceB．unlessC．a(chǎn)fterD．though
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A．tellB．guessC．a(chǎn)ssumeD．predict
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A．deeplyB．wellC．a(chǎn)headD．closely
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小題7:
A．boringB．enjoyableC．difficultD．satisfactory
小題8:
A．talentB．qualityC．natureD．condition
小題9:
A．doubtB．a(chǎn)dvantageC．challengeD．progress
小題10:
A．examineB．expressC．openD．trust
小題11:
A．fearfulB．harmful C．unfairD．inconvenient
小題12:
A．toB．onC．offD．a(chǎn)gainst
小題13:
A．greetedB．treatedC．servedD．paid
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A．painsB．stressesC．injuriesD．problems
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A．positiveB．friendlyC．flexibleD．cautious
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A．defendingB．quittingC．winningD．bargaining
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A．standardB．rangeC．viewD．goal
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A．untilB．a(chǎn)sC．whenD．before
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A．proudB．tiredC．a(chǎn)shamedD．confident
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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Comment on CRI
Here are the comments on CRI (China Radio International) given by people from different countries on the Internet.
People
Comments
Yingtian Hu
Guangzhou, China
This is the first time that I participate in CRI. And I like it very much. I hope its website will become the most excellent one with the foreign languages. And I choose the important news which I think has a great influence on our society and our lives. In the end, I hope that more and more persons join in CRI and make it perfect!
SujanParajuli,
Select city, Nepal
I am both a regular listener of CRI and visitor of its wonderful Website. First of all, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to CRI for its great efforts to keep the listeners up-to-date during the year 2008. We, the listeners, are greatly grateful to CRI for its praise-worthy efforts to quench the thirst of its dear listeners. During the Year 2008, I found all of your programs quite interesting, informative and educational.  Once again, thanks a lot for offering bonanza of information, news, entertainment and many items which have indeed broaden the horizons of our knowledge and understanding as well.
Ibrahim
Rustamov,
Tajikistan
With CRI, I was impressed by China’s rapid development in all spheres. But I felt so sorry to get to know about the snowstorms in China and Wenchuan earthquake. CRI and CCTV play a great role in introducing China to the world! Kudos! My friends and I wish CRI all the best!
Mike Thatcher,
London
My family and I are all keen on Chinese Culture, especially the beautiful Chinese folk music. Various interesting programs by CRI just open a window for us foreigners, through which we can know more about China and have a better understanding of the Chinese culture. Best wishes to CRI! Best wishes to China!
小題1:Which of the following benefits of CRI is NOT mentioned above?
A．CRI helps to keep its listeners up-to-date.
B．CRI helps its listeners to better understand China.
C．CRI helps its listeners to practice and improve foreign languages.
D．CRI helps its listeners broaden their knowledge with its rich contents.
小題2:The underlined phrase “quench the thirst” refers to _____.
A．satisfy one’s needB．supply drinks
C．take care ofD．keep in touch with
小題3:What can be concluded from the four comments?
A．CRI has a great influence on our society and lives.
B．Wonderful though CRI is, there are still many weaknesses.
C．CRI plays an important role in introducing the world to China.
D．CRI has made great efforts to make itself better and gained popularity.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

Donna is 19 years old and loves animals, which is why I’m always happy to leave my dog with her when I go on holiday. Donna also helps to train hunting dogs, but recently, her boyfriend told me, she returned home from a farm in tears after being told to hit some dogs.
“She wasn’t being asked to hit them because they didn’t behave well,” he said. “She was told to punch these puppies with a closed fist simply to let them know who is the boss,” Donna refused. Good for Donna. In my view, you hit an animal for only two reasons: as a way to teach it an important lesson to protect it from danger, such as not into the road; or because you like hurting animals.
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The horse began the race, but later it fell heavily. It had broken its leg. The next thing I saw was its dead body in a bag, being driven past. No one seemed to care, except those who had bet on it. I know people care for horse racing, but do they really care for horses? I doubt it.
Oh, but it’s a tradition, I hear you say. Wouldn’t the world be a boring place if we didn’t occasionally hit, shoot and chase animals? Traditions are made by man and can be unmade. It was once acceptable to kill servants when their master died, to visit the mental hospitals to laugh at the patients or to watch public execution (執(zhí)行死刑).
Nor should it be forgotten that in our progress to a more civilized world, animals have played an important role: they have fed us, carried us, worked for us, rescued us, died for us and sometimes just saved us from loneliness. Surely by now they deserve our kindness. At the very least, they deserve our respect.
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A．they misbehaved
B．their owner disliked them
C．people on the farm enjoy hurting them
D．it was a way to train them to obey people
小題2:What does the underlined word in paragraph 2 probably mean?
A．strikeB．strokeC．scoldD．pump
小題3:What is the author’s purpose in telling the readers the story about the horse?
A．To explain the traditional horse race to readers.
B．To prove that the weak horse can’t win in the race.
C．To show that animals are treated unfairly by humans.
D．To say that people care more for horses than horse racing.
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A．People no longer watch killing criminals in public.
B．The author cannot accept anyone who hits the animals.
C．It was a traditional practice to kill servants for their dead master.
D．The author thinks it is possible to change the traditions made by man.
小題5:What’s the best title of the passage?
A．No One Cares for Animals Nowadays.
B．Let’s Protect the Endangered Animals.
C．Show Animals the Respect They Deserve.
D．The Stories Between Animals and People.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

A quarter of US adults say they read no books at all in the past year, according to an Associated Press-Ipsos survey. The typical person said that he / she read four books in the last year and, excluding those who had not read any books at all, the usual number of books read was seven.
Of those who did read, women and pensioners (領(lǐng)養(yǎng)老金者) were the most eager readers, and religious works and popular fiction were the top choices. The number of books read was nine books for women and five for men. The number also showed that those with college degrees read the most, and people aged 50 and over read more than those who are younger.
People from the West and Midwest are more likely to have read at least one book in the past year. Southerners who do read tend to read more books — mostly religious books and romance novels — than people from other regions.
Those who said they never attend religious services read nearly twice as many books as those who attend frequently, but the Bible and religious works were read by two thirds of the people in the survey, more than all the other categories. Popular fiction, histories, biographies and mysteries took up about half, while one in five read romance novels. Politics, poetry and classical literature were named by fewer than 5% of readers. More women than men read every major category of books except for history and biography books. Men tend to prefer non-fiction.
Book sales in the US have been flat in recent years and are expected to stay that way, which, experts think, results from competition from the Internet and other media, and the unsteady economy.
小題1:The passage mainly tells us ______.
A．the number of Americans who read books last year dropped
B．the book sales in the US have been dropping in recent years
C．the reasons why one in four Americans read no books last year
D．a(chǎn)bout region differences in the number and kind of books read last year
小題2:Which kind of Americans read the most last year according to the survey?
A．Older men with college degrees from the South.
B．Older women with college degrees from the South.
C．Younger educated men from the Midwest.
D．Younger educated women from the West.
小題3:What kind of books was read most according to the passage?
A．Religious works.B．Popular fiction.
C．Poetry.D．History.
小題4:Which of the following reasons why people read fewer books is true?
①. Competition from the Internet.  
②. Competition from other media.
③. The unsteady economy.
④. People attend religious services
⑤. No time for reading.
A．①②③B．②③⑤C．①③⑤D．②③④

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

When 19­year­old Sophia Giorgi said she was thinking of volunteering to help the Make­A­Wish Foundation(基金會), nobody understood what she was talking about. But Sophia knew just how important Make­A­Wish could be because this special organization had helped to make a dream come true for one of her best friends. We were interested in finding out more, so we went along to meet Sophia and listen to what she had to say.
Sophia told us that Make­A­Wish is a worldwide organization that started in the United States in 1980. “It's a charity(慈善機(jī)構(gòu)) that helps children who have got very serious illnesses. Make­A­Wish helps children feel happy even though they are sick, by making their wishes and dreams come true，” Sophia explained.
We asked Sophia how Make­A­Wish had first started. She said it had all begun with a very sick young boy called Chris, who had been dreaming for a long time of becoming a policeman. Sophia said lots of people had wanted to find a way to make Chris's dream come true—so, with everybody's help, Chris, only seven years old at the time, had been a “policeman” for a day. “When people saw how delighted Chris was when his dream came true, they decided to try and help other sick children too, and that was the beginning of Make­A­Wish，” explained Sophia.
Sophia also told us the Foundation tries to give children and their families a special, happy time. A Make­A­Wish volunteer visits the families and asks the children what they would wish for if they could have anything in the world. Sophia said the volunteers were important because they were the ones who helped to make the wishes come true. They do this either by providing things that are necessary, or by raising money or helping out in whatever way they can.
小題1:Sophia found out about Make­A­Wish because her best friend had ________.
A．benefited from itB．volunteered to help it
C．dreamed about itD．told the author about it
小題2:According to Sophia, Make­A­Wish ________.
A．is an international charity
B．was understood by nobody at first
C．raises money for very poor families
D．started by drawing the interest of the public
小題3:What is said about Chris in Paragraph 3?
A．He has been a policeman since he was seven.
B．He gave people the idea of starting Make­A­Wish.
C．He wanted people to help make his dream come true.
D．He was the first child Make­A­Wish helped after it had been set up.
小題4:Which of the following is true about Make­A­Wish volunteers?
A．They are important for making wishes come true.
B．They try to help children get over their illnesses.
C．They visit sick children to make them feel special.
D．They provide what is necessary to make Make­A­Wish popular.

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科目：高中英語 來源：不詳 題型：閱讀理解

In ancient Egypt，the pharaoh（法老）treated the poor message runner like a prince when he arrived at the palace, if he brought good news. However，if the exhausted runner had the misfortune to bring the pharaoh unhappy news，his head was cut off.
Shades of that spirit spread over today's conversations. Once a friend and I packed up some peanut butter and sandwiches for an outing. As we walked light-heartedly out of the door，picnic basket in hand，a smiling neighbor looked up at the sky and said，"Oh boy，bad day for a picnic. The weatherman says it's going to rain." I wanted to strike him on the face with the peanut butter and sandwiches. Not for his stupid weather report，for his smile.
Several months ago I was racing to catch a bus. As I breathlessly put my handful of cash across the Greyhound counter，the sales agent said with a broad smile，"Oh that bus left five minutes ago." Dreams of head-cutting！
It’s not the news that makes someone angry. It’s the unsym pathetic attitude with which it’s delivered(遞送). Everyone must give bad news from time to time, and winning professionals do it with the proper attitude. A doctor advising a patient that she needs an operation does it in a caring way . A boss informing an employee he didn’t get the job takes on a sympathetic tone. Big winners know, when delivering any bad news, they should share the feeling fo the receiver.
Unfortunately，many people are not aware of this. When you're tired from a long flight，has a hotel clerk cheerfully said that your room isn't ready yet？When you had your heart set on the toast beef，has your waiter merrily told you that he just served the last piece？It makes you as traveler or diner want to land your fist right on their unsympathetic faces.
Had my neighbor told me of the upcoming rainstorm with sympathy（同情），I would have appreciated his warning. Had the Greyhound salesclerk sympathetically informed me that my bus had already left，I probably would have said，"Oh，that's all right I'll catch the next one." Big winners，when they bear bad news，deliver bombs with the emotion the bombarded（被轟炸的）person is sure to have.
小題1:In Paragraph 1，the writer tells the story of the pharaoh to ____.   
A．make a comparisonB．introduce a topic
C．describe a sceneD．offer an argument
小題2:In the writer's opinion，his neighbor was ___.   
A．friendlyB．warm-heartedC．not considerateD．not helpful
小題3:From "Dreams of head-cutting！"（Paragraph3），we learn that the writer___.   
A．was mad at the sales agent
B．was reminded of the cruel pharaoh
C．wished that the sales agent would have had dreams
D．dreamed of cutting the sales agent's head that night.
小題4:What is the main idea of the text？   
A．Delivering bad news properly is important in communication.
B．Helping others sincerely is the key to business success.
C．Receiving bad news requires great courage.
D．Learning ancient traditions can be useful.

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