"Life is speeding up. Everyone is getting unwell." This may sound like something someone would say today. But in fact, an unknown person who lived in Rome in AD 53 wrote it. We all love new inventions. They are exciting, amazing and can even change our lives. But have all these developments really improved the quality of our lives? Picture this. You're rushing to finish your homework on the computer. Your mobile phone rings, a QQ message from your friend appears on the screen, the noise from the television is getting louder and louder. Suddenly the computer goes blank and you lose all your work. Now you have to stay up all night to get it done. How happy do you feel? Inventions have speeded up our lives so much that they often leave up feeling stressed and tired. Why do you think people who live far away from noisy cities, who have no telephones, no cars, not even any electricity often seem to be happier? Perhaps because they live simpler lives. One family in the UK went "back in time" to see what life was like without all the inventions we have today. The grandparents, with their daughter, and grandsons Benjamin, 10 and Thomas, 7, spent nine weeks in a 1940s house. They had no washing machine, microwave , computer or mobile phones. The grandmother, Lyn, said, "The more things you have, the more difficult life becomes." The boys said they fought less. Probably, they said, because there was less to fight over, such as their computer. Benjamin also noticed that his grandmother had changed from being a "trendy , beer-drinking granny", to one who cooked things. In the passage the writer describes a picture to show that new inventions _ . A) have speeded up our lives B) have improved the quality of our lives C) may make people feel very happy D) may bring people some trouble
D
(Question)
Mrs Jones was still cleaning the house when her husband came back from work. She was wearing dirty, old clothes and no stockings and her hair was not tidy. She looked dirty and tired. Her husband looked at her and said, "Is this what I come home to see after a hard day's work?" Mr Jones' neighbour, Mrs Smith, was there. When she heard Mr Jones' words, she quickly said goodbye and ran back to her house. Then she washed and combed her hair carefully, put on her best dress and her most beautiful stockings, painted her face, and waited for her husband to come home. When he arrived, he was tired. He walked slowly into the house, saw his wife and stopped. Then he shouted angrily, " And where are you going this evening ?" What was Mrs Jones doing when her husband came back from work? A) She was cleaning the house. B) She was making some cakes. C) She was putting on her old clothes. D) She was talking off her stockings.
(Answer)
A
Ques: "You are welcome to have dinner with me on Sunday," said John. "But I don't know where your house is," said Henry. "It's easy. You get off the bus. Then cross the road, and take the first turning on the left. Walk for five minutes. Then you will see a big tree. Take the second on the right after the tree. Walk about a hundred metres down this road. There is a big red house. Go past the big house about five hundred metres, and you will see a small yellow house beside a little tree. Open the door with your foot. " "With my foot?" said Henry, "Why?" "Well, you won't come to my house empty-handed will you? " said John. "Take the second on the right" means "You _ ." A) take the second bus on the right B) must buy something secondly C) take the second turning on the right D) go ahead on the right
Ans: C
(Q).
What's your favorite English letter ? Many of you may say Q. Why ? Because so many of you chat with your friends on QQ . What do you like about QQ? What do you talk about ? The CCTV reporter ,Miss Wang interviews three kids . Let's listen to what they say . When do you chat on QQ ? What do you talk about ? Lin Yuhan , Xi'an : On weekends . We talk about homework and chat with each other . Tang Yuting ,Shanghai : On weekends and when I don't have much homework .We exchange test answers and chat . Yang Yuhang , Dalian : Our class goes online together at 4--6pm on weekends , We complain about homework ,chat and talk about computer games . What do you put on your QQ blog ( )? Lin : I put good articles. I have found online on my blog . I also write articles myself . They are about funny things that have happened in my class . Tang : I put pictures on my blog . Not my own photos , but pictures from my favorite Japanese cartoons likeTennis Prince and Conan . Yang: I put DV films on my blog . I shoot ( )them during sports meetings and school parties .The most popular one is about a dancing teacher .It is so funny that everyone watches it . How do you like QQ? Lin : It's a good place for us to make a record of our lives of both good times and sad times . Tang : My friends and I may not have time to chat at school .But we can do it on QQ. It's very helpful to our friendships . Yang : If you chat with your friends on the telephone ,your parents sometimes listen in on your convercation . There is no such problem with QQ . You can relax and talk freely . How many kids are interviewed about QQ? A) Nine B) Six C) Three D) Two
(A).
C
Little Mike's grandma died weeks ago. He missed her very much. One afternoon Mike went to the city park where his grandma used to go. There he saw an old lady. She looked very kind. She was sitting there, watching pigeons . Little Mike went up and sat next to her. He took out his food and drinks and gave some to her. She smiled at him. Her smile was so sweet that Mike wanted to see it again. She seemed to understand him, so once again she smiled. Mike was very glad. They sat there all the afternoon, eating and talking. As it got dark, Mike got up to leave. Before he left, he hugged the old lady and she gave him her sweetest smile. When Mike got home, his mother was surprised by the look of joy on his face. "I met a granny in the park. Her smile was like the kind of smile I had seen on Grandma's face." The old lady also returned to her home happily. She told her son that she had food and drinks with a little boy. "He was as lovely as Brittany," she said. Her son was surprised, because he had never seen her so happy since Brittany, her grandson, died weeks ago. . The old lady's smile showed that _ . A) she had hoped to meet the boy B) she wanted to get some drinks C) she missed her grandson D) she liked the little boy
D