A DAY OUT IN BRITAIN

Are you planning to visit Britain? Here are a few suggestions for a beautiful weekend away.

Bournemouth

This famous tourist town has 11 km of beautiful beaches. Last year, 10,000 tourists visited this beautiful town. It’s the perfect place to go swimming or sailing. There are lots of lovely parks and gardens to visit and it’s a great place to eat out. You can also go to classical concert or go dancing in one of the nightclubs.

Stratford-upon-Avon

This was William Shakespeare’s hometown. He spent most of his life in this town and wrote his plays here. You can visit his house or see his plays at one of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s theatres. There are some interesting museums and lots of beautiful 500-year-old houses. You can also go on boat trips and visit traditional English villages.

Alford

Deep in the Lincolnshire countryside is the pleasant market town of Alford. It is known for its five-sailed windmill (风车). Have a walk round this lovely old place and you’ll see many pleasant houses from as far back as the 17^th century. Captain James Smith, who was one of the founders of Jamestown in Virginia, USA, was educated in Alford.

Bath

Most people come here to see the 2,000-year-old Roman Baths. But this city is also famous for its beautiful 18^th century buildings and was the home of the writer Jane Austen. You can learn about her life at the Jane Austen Centre near Queen’s Square. In the past, Bath was also popular with the royal family and Queen Elizabeth I spent one or two weeks every year here.

21. What can visitors do in Bournemouth?

A. Enjoy plays        B. Go to Museums      C. Do sea sports       D. Visit fishing villages

22. What is Alford famous for?

A. Its stars           B. Its market           C. Its windmill        D. Its nightclubs

23. Which place did queen of England use to visit regularly?

A. Bath              B. Alford            C. Stratford-up-Avon       D. Bournemouth

There lived in South Carolina a young woman named Eliza Lucas. Her father was governor of one of the islands of the West Indies. Miss Lucas often got seeds (种子) from her father, and then she planted them in South Carolina.

Once, her father sent her some seeds of the indigo plant. She planted some of these in March, but a frost (霜冻) came and killed all plants. However, she decided to plant some more seeds in April. These grew very well until a cutworm found them and ate her plants. Once more Miss Lucas planted some of the seeds. This time the plants grew very well. She wrote to her father about it. He sent her a man who knew how to get the indigo out of the plant.

However, the man tried not to show Miss Lucas how to make the indigo. He did not want the people in the South Carolina to learn how to make. He was afraid his own people would not get so much money for their indigo if other people made it as well. So he destroyed the indigo on purpose. But Miss Lucas watched him closely. She worked out how the indigo could be made. Some of her father’s land in South Carolina was now planted with indigo plant.

Then Miss Lucas got married, and became Mrs. Pinckney. Her father gave her all the indigo growing on his land in South Carolina. It was all saved for seed. Some of the seed Mrs. Pinckney gave to her friends. Some of it her husband sowed (播种). It all grew and was made into that blue dye (染料) that we call indigo. In a few years, South Carolina was producing more than a million pounds of indigo every year.

24. The indigo plant died at first because of ___________.

A. a frost        B. a cutworm         C. heavy rain       D. strong sunlight

25. The man Miss Lucas’s father sent her ___________.

A. knew little about planting seeds          B. was not as helpful as she expected

C. helped her a lot in making the indigo      D. made a lot of money in South Carolina

26. What might be people’s attitude toward Eliza Lucas in South Carolina?

A. They were afraid of her.        B. They were thankful to her.

C. They were doubtful of her.       D. They were worried about her.

27. What’s the main idea of the text?

A. Eliza Lucas learned to plant seeds.

B. Eliza Lucas became Mrs. Pinckney.

C. Eliza Lucas introduced indigo to South Carolina.

D. Eliza Lucas got her father’s land in South Carolina.

Nearly two years ago, Lauren Kornacki, a recent college graduate, walked outside her family’s home in Glen Allen, Virginia, USA, to ask her dad if she could use his car. As she rounded the corner from the front yard into the garage, Lauren, then 23, saw her father, Alec, was lying under the 1995 BMW and unable to move. The car had fallen off the jack (a piece of equipment used to lift a car) while he was doing repair work under it.

Lauren shouted inside to her mother to call an ambulance, and then ran to the car. “I thought, I’m going to lose my dad,” she says. Unsure of what to do, she immediately stuck both hands under the wheel hub(轮毂) where Alec had removed the tyre and pulled up with all her strength. To her surprise, she lifted the car. Then she held it up with one arm and, with the other, pulled her father out from under the car by his trouser leg.

Alec wasn’t breathing, so Lauren began performing chest compressions (胸外心脏按压). Within seconds, Alec took a breath and opened his eyes. “Stay with me,” Lauren said to her dad as they waited for the ambulance. “Just keep breathing.” Two months later, Alec was able to return to his job. Lauren, now a computer engineer, says she didn’t stop to think. “Everyone has a basic instinct(本能) to help the ones they love,” she says.

28. Why did Lauren walk into the garage?

A. to try to borrow her dad’s car      B. to see what happened there

C. to help her dad fix car            D. to look for her mother

29. What’s the main idea of Paragraph 2?

A. It’s important to act quickly.            B. Lauren almost lost her dad.

C. Lauren did her best to save her dad.      D. It is dangerous to work alone in a garage.

30. Which of the following words can best describe Lauren?

A. creative and confident         B. clever and friendly

C. careful and honest            D. calm and brave

31. What can we learn from the story?

A. Love is power.              B. Seeing is believing.

C. Love me, love my dog.       D. It is never too late to learn.

A young woman sits alone in a café drinking tea and reading a book. She pauses briefly to write in a nearby notepad before showing her words to a passing waiter: “Where are the toilets please?” This is a familiar scene in Tokyo’s so-called “silent cafes”, spaces which appear at first glance to be conventional café but where customers are not allowed to produce sounds, communicating instead by writing in notepads.

The concept is becoming more and more popular due to rising desires among young Japanese to be alone, a situation fuelled by economic uncertainty, a shift in traditional family support structures and growing social isolation. The phenomenon is not confined (限制) to coffee shops but covers everything from silent discos, where participants dance alone wearing wireless headphones connected to the DJ, to products such as small desk tents designed for conversation-free privacy in the office. The trend has its own media expression “botchi-zoku”, referring to individuals who consciously choose to do things completely on their own.

One recent weekday afternoon, Chihiro Higashikokubaru, a 23-year-old nurse, traveled 90 minutes from her home to a silent café in Tokyo on her day off in order to enjoy some time alone. At the entrance of the café, Miss Higashikokubaru said quietly, “I heard about this place in magazines, and I like the idea of coming here. I work as a nurse and it’s always very busy. There are very few quiet places in Tokyo. It’s a big busy city. I just wanted to come and sit somewhere quietly on my own. I’m going to drink a cup of tea and maybe do some drawings.”

While visitors may be banned from talking, electronic devices such as phones (without speaking) are generally permitted, reflecting how the concept is as much about avoiding the stresses of human interaction as switching off.

The desire to be alone is not a new concept in Japan, a nation with about 3.6 million “hikikomori”—a more extreme example of social recluses (隐居者) who withdraw completely from society.

32. According to Paragraph 1, why does the young woman write in a notepad?

A. Because she doesn’t like the waiter.       B. Because the waiter cannot hear her.

C. Because she is not allowed to speak.      D. Because the waiter needs her handwriting.

33. What does the underlined part “The trend” in Paragraph 2 refer to?

A. People like dancing together.             B. People want to do things alone.

C. People like to use wireless headphones.   D. People often use popular media expressions.

34. We can know from the text that many Japanese _________.

A. enjoy reading     B. prefer coffee to tea    C. trend to avoid others   D. like electronic devices

35. The author writes the text mainly __________.

A. to advertise    B. to introduce       C. to persuade      D. to encourage

DIY errors to avoid at all costs

Not taking out necessary permits

Many home repair projects—such as building a new garage, for instance—require building permission. Your local council’s website will have information about what projects you might need permits for and how to apply for them.

____36_____

An action plan will guarantee you have all the necessary equipment and materials for the project at hand. _____37_______ Thus it can limit the likelihood of mistakes that cost you time and money.

Overlooking safety

DIY renovators (修理者) can risk serious injuries and even death if they don’t follow recommended safety procedures. Most injuries are caused by not using personal protective equipment and procedures, using the wrong tools or ignoring warning labels. _____38______

Measuring only once

You don’t want to end up cutting your titles or laminate (薄板状的) flooring multiple times. _____39______ Inaccurate cuts can result in a poor finish, not to mention cost more as you may need to buy tiles, other equipment, or even hire a professional to complete the job properly.

Saving money on equipment or materials

While DIY is a great way to save money, it doesn’t mean you need to do everything on the cheap. ______40______ You can find plenty of tools and materials for reasonable prices, yet still be sure they are quality products.

A. Making a detailed plan 

B. Starting without a plan

C. But repairing a house isn’t easy, quick or cheap.

D. It will ensure that you know what to do at each step.

E. The best way to avoid this is by measuring everything at least twice.

F. Never attempt activities or repairs beyond your level of knowledge or skill.

G. For example, don’t pick the cheapest material for your walls just because it costs less.