New Zealand, which is a beautiful beach country, draws many people looking for a new life. Its cities are considered as some of the best places to live in the world, and with a population of only 4.4 million there remain plenty of untouched lands to explore and enjoy.

The big draw for modern-day visitors is the country's beautiful scenery and natural wonders. Sailing, surfing, hiking, camping and any outdoor activity you know can be done in New Zealand. With an increasing number of visitors arriving every year, environmentalists and the government are concerned about protecting the nature.

Auckland is the largest city in New Zealand, with a population of 1.3 million. Known as the City of Sails, it sits on a narrow land between the Waitemata and Manukau Bays. The city's suburbs Lynn, Ellerslie and Meadowbank. These are the areas seeing the highest home prices in the country.

At the southern of the North Island sits Wellington, the capital and diplomatic centre of the country, built in the hills above the Cook Strait that separates the North Island from the South Island. It has the country's best public transport, Metlink, and considers itself the coolest city in New Zealand.

“No matter where we live, beach culture has always been a big part of our culture," said Shane Mason. "It's pretty common to leave town during the summer and spend Christmas and New Year at the beach." "New Zealand is a good place to visit and a great place to live," said Mason, who now lives in Berlin. "I've discovered there is no place like home.”

21. Many people move to New Zealand because _________________

A. they want to live a new life in the place fit to live.

B. it has a lot of beautiful scenery and natural wonders.

C. they want to explore and enjoy plenty of untouched lands.

D. it has a population of only 4.4 million.

22. What has caused environmentalists and the government to be concerned about protecting the nature?

A. Its rising population.            B. Plenty of untouched lands.

C. The increasing visitors.          D. Its rich natural resource.

23. From what Mason said we can infer ___________________

A. its beach culture is the most unimportant culture.

B. she hopes to live in New Zealand for the rest of her life.

C. people seldom leave their homes to the beach.

D. she thinks New Zealand is the best place to live.

You may have experienced the annoyance of being fined because of parking illegally or finding your car towed away(拖走)after leaving it parked somewhere for a couple of minutes．But now a high-tech car sticker that’s designed to be stuck to a car’s windscreen could help motorists avoid such a situation．
   The TowStop sticker sends a text message to a driver when touched by a traffic policeman，to allow motorists to send a reply and give them time to move their cars immediately．Frankfurt-based IT consultant，Daniel Kalliontzis，came up with the idea and is raising money to put his ￡43 sticker into production．
   Car owners can put the sticker inside their car’s windscreen，having set it up with key information，such as their phone number．The slim design will include a sensor(传感器)that，when touched by a traffic policeman，will send a text message warning a driver of a possible fine．The driver could then type a reply for the policeman using a smartphone，which will appear on the sticker’s screen．
    The smart sticker system will rely on the good will of traffic policemen and in a way，a German law．The law states：an officer has to choose the most efficient and inexpensive way for the car owner to remove the vehicle．It could be cheaper for the government to call the driver than to tow his car．
    Mail Online asked the Department of Transport whether the sticker could be used in the UK in a similar way．A spokesman said，“In England there is no legal duty to warn the motorist before issuing the ticket．However，a policeman does have the freedom not to issue a ticket if he doesn’t think the situation is that bad or he just wants to issue a warning．”
   So far，Mr．Kalliontzis has raised just over￡2,362 of his￡39,381goal．If he manages to raise the money，the stickers will be shipped in June 2015．But it appears that car owners using the smart system could get some unnecessary warning messages，because anyone could touch the smart sticker．
24．The author wrote the third paragraph to _______________
A. explain how a smart car sticker works.        B. advise drivers to buy a car sticker.
C. show the importance of a sensor.             D. tell drivers how to park a car.
25.What may probably lead to the application of the TowStop sticker in Germany?
A．The sticker’s low cost．                            B．The mass production．
C．The law of the country．                 D．The goodwill of motorists．
26．What would be the best title for the text?
A. Daniel Kalliontzis — a great inventor        B. Environment-friendly car stickers
C. Parking systems in Europe                 D. End of the parking ticket

In her outstanding book, “Choose the Happiness Habit”, Pam Golden wrote, “Take the story of two twin brothers for example. One grew up and became an alcoholic (酒鬼), while the other became a successful businessman. When asked why he became an alcoholic, the alcoholic replied, “Because my father was a drunk.” However, the successful businessman’s answer was also “Because my father was a drunk.” when asked why he succeeded. The same background. The same upbringing (培养). However, the results were quite different. Why? The reason is that they had different choices. The brothers chose different thoughts which formed the situations they found themselves in at last, so they had different experiences.

There was a time in my life when I thought difficulty was due to “bad luck”. Have you ever heard the saying “When it rains, it pours”? That was my answer when others asked me how things were going on when I was in trouble. So what do you think I got? “RAIN”. More and more “RAIN”. I couldn’t understand why bad luck was always with me.

Pam Golden says, “You’re either living in the problem or you’re living in the solution.” Now, when I’m faced with what I used to think was a negative (消极的) situation, I use a different way to think about it. I force myself to replace those negative thoughts that make me lose heart in my mind with positive thoughts which encourage me to fight against the difficulty bravely. Sometimes I write down some ideas that may be a solution, which I combine with the lessons I have learned from the bad situations and the difficulties that troubled me in the past, and often, I find a solution to the problem soon. It seems that I should thank the difficulty I met with. The RAIN that poured in my world has become great experiences that provide me with valuable experience, from which I can benefit.

Now, it doesn’t “rain” as much in my life as it used to. In fact, most days are beautiful, cloudless and sunny! Sometimes I do get a rain, but I think it makes me stronger just like the rain helps plants grow up.

27. The example of the twin brothers shows that ______________

A. making good choices is the most important.          B. education decides a person’s future.

C. upbringing makes a big difference.                       D. it is luck that leads to success.

28. What does “RAIN” mentioned in the second paragraph refer to?

A. Water.               B. Good luck.                      C. Success.                  D. Difficulty.

29. Now, the author’s attitude towards “RAIN” is _______________.

A. negative       B. unclear                C. positive           D. unknown

30. Which of the following agrees with the author’s attitude now in the text?

A. All things are difficult before they are easy.       B. Meeting with difficulty is not a bad thing.

C. Fortune is what it takes to succeed                 D. Things at the worst will mend.

When students and parents are asked to rate subjects according to their importance, the arts are unavoidably at the bottom of the list. Music is nice, people seem to say, but not important. Too often it is viewed as entertainment, but certainly not an education priority (优先). This view is shortsighted.     31  

Music tells us who we are, because music is an expression of the beings who create it. It shows their thinking and values, as well as the social environment it came from. Rock music represents a lifestyle just as surely as does a Schubert song. The jazz influence is obviously American because it came from American musical traditions. Music expresses our character and values.    32  

Music provides a kind of perception(感知)that cannot be gained any other way.    33    The arts explore the emotive(情感的) meaning of the same phenomenon. We need every possible way to discover and respond to our world for one simple but powerful reason: No one way can get it all.

The arts are forms of thought as powerful in what they communicate as mathematical and scientific symbols.    34    They are the language of civilization through which we express our fears, our curiosities, our hungers, our discoveries, our hopes. They are ways we give form to our ideas and imagination so that they can be shared with others. When we do not allow children an important way of expressing themselves such as music, we take away from them the meanings that music expresses.

   35  

A. It gives us identity as a society.

B. Science can explain how the sun rises and sets.

C. They are ways we human beings “talk” to each other.

D. Science and technology do not tell us what it means to be human.

E. In fact, music education is beneficial and important for all students.

F. So music education is far more necessary than people seem to realize.

G. Music influences people’s lifestyle.

It’s said   56   dinosaurs died out because of an unexpected incident. But wildlife today disappears or is in danger just because humans do harm to it. For example, tigers are hunted for fur to make carpets so that they can only live in   57   (secure) reserves; grassland is destroyed without mercy so that dust storms come into being    58   (affect) distant cities.

Last year, scientists saw some monkeys rubbing themselves with a certain kind of insects to protect themselves   59   fierce mosquitoes biting. According to the result of the inspection, they found that the insect contained a powerful drug, so local farmers   60    (employ) to catch the insects. The ending was that the insects disappeared from the whole zone. When   61   (tell) that it was   62   loss to humans, the farmers burst into   63   (laugh) and responded, “Our real loss is our decreasing income.”

We should   64   (appreciation) the natural balance and pay more attention to the importance of wildlife protection. Not until we succeed in letting wildlife live in peace,   65   we smile in relief.