James Blunt is one of the most popular singers in the UK. His first album, Back to Bedlam, and his number one hit, You're Beautiful, brought him fame in 2005. his music is a mix of pop, rock and folk. Blunt comes to China for the first time this month, he will hold two concerts, one in Beijing and one in Shanghai on April 18 and 19 respectively. Blunt, 34, took an unusual path to stardom. His father was a soldier and so was his grandfather. "The only music he heard growing up was Happy Birthday and Silent Night. His father considered all music, even classical, to be unnecessary noise,' reads Blunt's official website. Even though Blunt did not want to join the military, he eventually followed his father's wishes, and served as a soldier in Kosovo on peacekeeping duty. "Like any parents, mine wanted me to have a secure job with a regular wage and career prospects," Blunt said. "And the one job my father knew of, that he'd had experience of himself, was the army, so he could help me in that direction." Blunt eventually became a Captain. One of his final duties in the army before retirement was carrying the coffin at the funeral of the Queen Mother of England in 2002. But Blunt couldn't escape his love for music. So, after leaving the British Army he moved to Los Angeles and worked on his first album. While in LA, Blunt lived with the actress Carrie Fisher, who played the lead female role in the Star Wars movie. He recorded his song, Goodbye My Lover, in his bathroom, where he kept a piano. Blunt took his new album back to England where it was not very successful. But he kept performing and eventually his song, You're Beautiful, became a number one hit. Now Blunt has won numerous awards, sold millions of records and dated super models. But his greatest accomplishment might be that his father now enjoys music! What is the passage mainly about? A) Blunt's visit to China B) Blunt's military life. C) How Blunt became famous D) How Blunt father fell in love with music.
C
(Question)
Don't you just love ice skating every winter?I am sure,that since winter is approaching,your skates are set to come out,just waiting to be used.Impress your friends with your new trick on how to iceskate backwards with the help of these tips.Skating backwards on ice is a bit difficult but once you master the basic,there's nothing like it.Follow the steps given below and you will be able to skate backwards in no time. Stand Straight The first thing that you need to do is,stand straight.If you feel that you are falling backwards,then just put your chin up and slightly bend your knees.Don't worry;this happens to all. Confidence Is What You Need The most important step while learning how to skate backwards,is having enough confidence in yourself and in what you are doing.How can you achieve this?By practice.Just practice rolling backwards down a gentle slop every single day or just by pushing off from a wall or something of that sort.But before you do that,make sure that the place where you are practicing is free from any kind of debris because otherwise,you could land up in the hospital due to some accident.While going backwards,just get used to the feeling of moving backwards.One of the important ice skating tips and techniques is that if you feel that you are losing your balance,then scissor your skates.Keep practicing this till you are confident about it. Maintain Speed Confident now?Great!Now the next step is to maintain your speed.While rolling in a straight line with one skate,with the other try sculling ,that is,keep pushing yourself backwards with an outwards stroke .Now bring the skate which you were using to scull,and then again,repeat the same process.Make sure that you put most of your weight on the skate which is moving straight and not the one with which you are sculling.Now,try the same thing using the other foot.Again keep doing this till you are confident enough. Increase Your Speed Now Once you are confident that you can scull with either foot,the next thing that you have to do is increase... The purpose of the text is _ . A) to compare different ways of iceskating backwards B) to introduce the culture of iceskating backwards C) to explain advantages of iceskating backwards D) to offer some advice on iceskating backwards
(Answer)
D
Ques: Talking behind someone's back is considered to be rude and mean. Such a conversation can cover all kinds of criticism, from their looks to their work and personality. The other day at lunch I was with a group of colleagues, and we were talking about our boss. She is the new headmaster of our middle school. We talked about how kind she is to us. She handwrites notes to wish us happy holidays or to thank us for jobs well done. She checks on us when she knows we're facing difficulties outside school with our health or with our families. We talked about the good role model that she is for the young women in our school and the fair but firm way she treats students and parents. I thought about this after lunch. Sometimes we have the good fortune to be part of another kind of "talking behind someone's back". And too often when we say something good about someone behind their backs, they never know about it! That night, I sent her an email to report the conversation. She replied by saying how much she appreciated hearing about this, and how it made a bright spot in a tough week of testing. Watch for your next opportunity to be the reporter! Make sure you tell them about the nice things said behind their backs! Because how will they know unless we tell them? What do you conclude from the text the writer might be? A) A student B) A teacher C) A parent D) A boss
Ans: B
An expensive car speeding down the main street of a small town was soon caught up with by a young motorcycle policeman. As he started to make out the ticket, the woman behind the wheel said proudly, "Before you go any further, young man, I think you should know that the mayor of this city is a good friend of mine."The officer did not say a word, but kept writing. "I am also a friend of chief of police Barens,"continued the woman, getting more angrier each moment. Still he kept on writing. "Young man ,"she persisted, "I know Judge Lawson and State Senator Patton." Handing the ticket to the woman, the officer asked pleasantly, "Tell me, do you know Bill Bronson." "Why, no,"She answered. "Well, that is the man you should have known,"he said, heading back to his motorcycle, "I am Bill Bronson." The policeman was _ . A) an honourable fellow B) a stupid fellow C) an impolite man D) a shy man
A