British potato farmers were angry and wanted the expression “couch potato” to be taken out of the dictionary because it harmed the vegetable’s image.
The British Potato Council wants the Oxford English Dictionary to replace the expression with the term “couch slouch”, with protests being outside Parliament in London and the offices of Oxford University Press.
Kathryn Race, head of marketing at the Council, which represents some 4,000 planters and processors, said the group had complained in writing to the OED but had yet to receive a response.
“We are trying to get rid of the image that potatoes are bad for you,” she said on Monday.
“The potato has had its knocks in the past. Of course it is not the Oxford English Dictionary’s fault but we want to use another term instead of “couch potato” because potatoes are naturally healthy.”
The OED says that “couch potato” began as American slang, meaning “a person who spends his or her leisure time sitting around, especially watching television or video tapes.”
The Potato Council says its campaign is backed by dieticians (飲食學(xué)家) who say the vegetable is low in fat and high in vitamin C.
Supporting the campaign, famous cook Antony Worrall Thompson said the vegetable was one of Britain’s favorite foods.
“Not only are they healthy, they are also convenient and yummy (美味). Life without potato is like a sandwich without a filling,” he said.
John Simpson, chief editor of the Oxford English Dictionary, said the dictionary first included the term “couch potato” in 1993 and said “dictionaries just reflect the words that society uses.”
Simpson said words were never taken out of the full-length dictionary, which includes some 650,000 words in 20 volumes.
But little-used words can be removed from the smaller dictionaries to make way for newer ones.
“If society stops using words then they get taken out of the smaller dictionaries,” he added.
The first known recorded use of the expression “couch potato” was in an article in Los Angeles Times, in 1979, Simpson said.
Nigel Evans, a member of Parliament for the Ribble Valley in Lancashire, has made a motion in support of the campaign, highlighting the nutritional value of the British potato.
小題1:British potato farmers wanted to _________.

A．a(chǎn)dvertise their produces

B．call for a higher price for their potatoes

C．remove the expression “couch potato” from the dictionary

D．let people know how important the potato is in people’s lives

小題2:The farmers think that _________.

A．potatoes have had a bad image

B．Potatoes are good for people by nature

C．potatoes sometimes do harm to people

D．it’s the dictionary’s fault to use the expression “couch potato”

小題3:John Simpson thinks that _________.

A．the expression can be taken out of every kind of dictionary

B．dictionaries do not necessarily reflect the words the society uses

C．little-used words can remain in the smaller dictionaries

D．it is impossible for them to take the expression out of the dictionary

小題4:What is wrong with the expression “couch potato” according to the farmers in this passage?

A．It is connected with unfavorable meaning.

B．Potato should be used in the expression.

C．It is borrowed from America English.

D．It refers to a kind of person.

The increase in tuition fees has led to a “clear drop” in the number of English students applying for university places this autumn. There are 15,000 “missing” applicants（申請(qǐng)人） this academic year, according to the Independent Commission on Fees. Chairman Will Hutton said: “We’re asking our young men and women to have more debt than any other country in the world — it’s higher than the average debt in the US. It’s not clear whether those lost students this year will return next year, or if it’s a storm warming of a worrying trend.”
But the commission’s report says there does not seem to be an impact on poorer communities. The commission found there was no significant change in the application rate to the key universities, such as Oxford or Cambridge. The decline（下降） in England has not been mirrored（再現(xiàn)） in other parts of the UK where fees have not been raised, and the drop can only partly be explained by falling numbers of young people in the population. Students from Scotland attending Scottish universities do not pay fees, while the Welsh Assembly says it will pay fees above ￡3,465 for Welsh students attending UK institutions.
The average tuition fee at English universities this year is ￡ 8,385, rising to ￡ 8,507 next year. UK and EU students have access to government-backed loans to pay the fees. And the survey of 1,000 pupils aged 15-18, carried out this April, found that the majority expected to go on to higher education as people continue to understand that university remains a good long term investment（投資） in their future.
A spokeswoman at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which is responsible for universities, said: “Students shouldn’t be forced to put off going to university for financial reasons. Most students will not have to pay in advance, and no one will have to start paying back their student loan until they start to earn at least ￡ 2l,000 per year.”
小題1:From the first paragraph, we know that        .

A．the rising tuition fees have a great effect on English students

B．many English students are missing the final examinations

C．the lost English students will find their way back

D．it’s a trend that English students are dropping out of school

小題2: Why is there still a drop of applicants though fees have not been raised?

A．Because the students live in poor communities.

B．Because education is free for Scottish students.

C．Because there are less young students in the area.

D．Because Welsh students will pay fees above￡3,465.

小題3:What’s the students’ attitude to universities in the survey?

A．They will stop applying for university places this autumn.

B．They feel universities takes up too much time.

C．They are anxious to go to a key university.

D．Most of them are willing to go to university.

小題4:The spokeswoman in the last paragraph advises students to        .

A．put off going to university

B．pay for the fees in advance

C．reduce the anxiety about the rising fees

D．pay back their loan soon aller graduation

Lately, Bolivia has outlawed (宣布……為非法) the use of animals in circus (馬戲團(tuán)) performances, and officials in the South American nation aren’t doing it in a silly way! They say all Bolivian circuses must stop using animals.
Some people welcome the law. They say animals should not be forced to work and that circus creatures are caged in tight spaces when they travel. However, other people say that many of the four legged performers are cared for by animal experts. Plus, they point out, circus animals entertain millions of fans.
Should animals perform in circuses? Student reporters Michael and Emily have done some work on the issue.
Yes, I think animals should be allowed in circus acts. Most circus trainers love and respect the animals they work with and treat them well. Certain rules and regulations also help to ensure that the animals are treated humanely, or with kindness. Millions of people love circus animals. They look forward to seeing elephants and tigers perform. Many of the animals are exotic (奇特的), so people might not get the chance to see them anywhere else. “Circus animals shouldn’t be banned,” says Parker, a sixth grader from Oregon City, “One of the main reasons people go to the circus is to see animals they don’t see every day and to see them do cool tricks.”
Animals should not perform in circuses. When animals are in circuses, they are forced to learn new behaviors in order to entertain humans. Those behaviors may go against their natural instincts (本性). For example, bears  hibernate  in the winter, but bears in a circus have to perform and can’t hibernate as their bodies tell them to. Also, circus animals have to travel all the time in cages. All that traveling may cause them to become confused or upset because their environment keeps changing. “When animals are removed from their habitat and held in cages ... it changes their behaviors,” points out Anne Northam, a teacher from Friendswood, Texas.  “They are no longer selfsufficient (自給自足的).”
小題1:Which of the following can be a reason why people support the law?

A．Animals in circuses are given more respect and care.

B．Animals in circuses bring a lot of fun for people.

C．Animals in circuses can’t live their life naturally.

D．Animals in circuses are protected by many regulations.

小題2:What’s Anne’s attitude towards the new law?

A．She welcomes it.

B．She is against it.

C．She thinks it acceptable.

D．She thinks it useless.

小題3:Which would be the best title for the text?

A．Enjoy more fun in circuses

B．More respect and kindness to animals

C．Circuses in Bolivia Open or Closed

D．Animals belong in circuses Yes or No

小題4:The underlined word “hibernate” in the last paragraph probably means __________.

A．sleep

B．look for food

C．move from one place to another

D．perform

In today’s congratulatory phone call to the team behind NASA's Mars Curiosity rover（火星車）, President Barack Obama made sure that if the mission discovers Martians, he'll be one of the first to know.
"If in fact you do make contact with Martians, please let me know right away," Obama said during the call, "I've got a lot of things on my plate, but I expect that that will go to the top of the list. Even if they're just microbes(微生物), it will be pretty exciting."
Obama also said he was impressed by the attention that's been paid to flight director Bobak Ferdowsi, the "Mohawk Guy" whose star-spangled haircut and warmhearted behavior during Curiosity's Aug. 5 landing won him Internet fame.
"I, in the past, thought about getting a Mohawk myself," Obama joked. "But my team keeps on discouraging me. And now that he's received marriage proposals and thousands of new Twitter followers, I think I'm going to go back to my team and see if it makes sense."
The congratulatory phone call is a tradition for the White House. But it was clear that Obama particularly enjoyed congratulating the scientists and engineers behind the amazingly successful landing of NASA's newest Mars exploration.
He also said the achievement reflected the American spirit, and he gave his personal promise to protect these critical investments in science and technology.
"This is the kind of thing that inspires kids across the country," he said. "They’re telling their moms and dads they want to be part of a Mars mission, maybe even the first person to walk on Mars. And that kind of inspiration is the byproduct of work of the sort that you guys have done."
The Curiosity rover's $2.5 billion mission focuses on studying billions of years' worth of geology on Mars and determining whether the planet was ever potentially suitable for people to live in. The mission is not specifically designed to explore life, even on the range of microbes, but it could point the way for future life-exploration experiments.
小題1:Obama phoned the team behind NASA's Mars Curiosity rover in order to _______.

A．congratulate them on finding Martians

B．praise the flight director

C．congratulate on the rover’s landing

D．encourage them to contact with Martians

小題2:What is the main idea of Paragraph 2 ?

A．Obama is very busy now.

B．Obama longs for the finding of life on Mars.

C．Obama is interested in biology.

D．Obama wants to contact Martians.

小題3:Which of the following about the Curiosity rover is TRUE ?

A．It costs billions of dollars.

B．It mainly aims to find life on Mars.

C．It carries the first person to Mars.

D．It proves Mars fit to live on.

小題4:What can we learn from the passage ?

A．Bobak Ferdowsi got a Mohawk haircut to win great Internet fame.

B．Obama called on the government and companies to invest in science.

C．America’s president seldom congratulates on scientific achievements.

D．Children showed special interest in the landing of Curiosity.

LaMar Baylor, an American performer in the Broadway musical, spends most of his time in New York City．But since 2011, he has also spent weeks in Kigali, the capital of Rwanda．There, he teaches dance to boys who live on the street．His teaching is part of an effort by the Rebecca  Davis Dance Company．The project helps young people learn more about dance and learn how to  behave in a classroom environment．
Rebecca Davis and LaMar Baylor teach ballet to street children in Kigali, Rwanda．The  children have lost all of their families．Some have been in prison; others have sold their bodies for sex．Dance classes provide the children with structured learning and self-expression that they've never had before．
Rebecca Davis is the founder and director of the dance company．She got the idea for the project after visiting Rwanda in 2008．There she met a large number of street children who were dancing, and she thought that dance could be used to get them off the street and into a safe place．She believes that learning to dance is a step toward education．She says children can take classes in information and technology after they have learned to attend classes and follow directions．
Boys who have done best in the classes win scholarships and are sent to the Sunrise Boarding School．About 30 boys have won this kind of financial aid．
As for LaMar Baylor, he knows from his own experience how dance can lead to a better life．He is from Camden, New Jersey．Camden has sometimes been called America's poorest and most dangerous city．He now thanks dancing for saving his life．
The Rwanda program is the largest one set up by the Rebecca Davis Dance Company, and Ms．Davis has also set up dance programs in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Guinea．About 2,000 children in the three countries have taken part in the project since it was begun in 2010．
小題1:The dance project aims to____．

A．give the street children parental care

B．provide scholarship for the street children

C．help the street children receive some education

D．keep the street children in good health

小題2:What do we learn about the street children from the passage?

A．All of them can be sent to the Sunrise Boarding School．

B．It may be hard for them to adapt to classroom rules at first．

C．They only take classes in dancing．

D．Many of them have been in prison．

小題3:What LaMar Baylor and the street children in the project have in common is that _．

A．they all benefit from dancing

B．they borrowed money from the project

C．they learn to express themselves in dance class

D．they were homeless at one time

小題4:We can infer from the last paragraph that          -．

A．the dance project was started in Guinea

B．the Rwanda program is the first program by Rebecca Davis

C．the Rwanda program has attracted about 2,000 children

D．the dance project gains popularity and grows quickly

They already guide blind and disabled people; now dogs are to be trained to help people with dementia（癡呆） or Alzheimer's．Alzheimer's can make people confuse night and day or forget basic things such as washing or drinking enough water．
The dogs will be trained to respond to sound triggers（觸發(fā)器） in the home that cause them to perform tasks．The duties will include reminding their owners to take medicine, as well as encouraging them to eat, drink and sleep regularly．
The idea was developed by design students at the Glasgow School of Art and will now be put into practice by Alzheimer's Scotland and Dogs for the Disabled．The first dogs will be distributed to four Scottish couples, where one of the partners is in the early stages of dementia．Some 670,000 people in Britain have dementia and one in three over 65s will develop the condition．By 2021 this is expected to rise to one million．
Joyce Gray of Alzheimer's Scotland said, "People in the early stages of dementia are still able to live a relatively normal life, and dogs help to maintain routine．" Another advantage of using the pets as companions is that dogs can give them a sense of silent support and companionship．Ms Gray said, "The evidence is that people may forget familiar faces but not pets．It's such a strong bond that people often remember them longest．People don't need to communicate verbally （言語地） but they can still interact．You can have a speechless bond．"
Helen McCain, director of Dogs for the Disabled, said, "People with dementia often forget to take the medicine．If a dog presents them with a bag with pills in it there's a greater chance of them taking it．The dog would also encourage the owner to take them out for walks, ensuring they keep exercising and interacting with other people．"
小題1:In Britain people with dementia _          _．

A．a(chǎn)re likely to increase in number

B．a(chǎn)re mostly over 65 years old

C．will be trained to respond to sound triggers

D．will be able to live a relatively normal life

小題2:The dogs are taught to perform tasks by -．

A．making some sound signals

B．communicating with the patients

C．reminding the patients by barking

D．reacting to some sound triggers

小題3:What does the underlined word "them" in Paragraph 4 refer to?

A．Faces．

B．Triggers．

C．Pets．

D．Companions．

小題4:What is mainly talked about in the passage?

A．The idea of dementia dogs was developed by students．

B．Dogs are trained to assist Alzheimer's patients．

C．British people with Alzheimer's are in poor condition．

D．The dementia dogs perform most duties of a doctor．

Cao Min couldn’t believe she was experiencing exactly what she had seen years ago in the film “Titanic”.
Cao and her two children from Anhui Province were traveling on board the “Liaoludu 7” on February 22. They were among the first people on the ship who were rescued by lifeboats. Cao’s one-year-old son was the youngest passenger on board.
The “Liaoludu 7” was traveling in the Bohai Straits from Lvshun in Liaoning Province to the port city of Longkou in Shandong Province. It suddenly lost its power at 2:30 pm and tilted(傾斜) on its side. With 81 people on board, the ferry began to sink.
“I was so scared that my legs couldn’t move forward. They kept shaking even when I was asked to jump onto a lifeboat,” Cao recalled.
Upon receiving the mayday appeal (緊急呼救), China Marine Search and Rescue Centre immediately informed the State Council. The center sent eight lifeboats to the fishing boats.
After more than four hours of fighting strong winds and freezing ocean water, the passengers were recovered. All but four survived. These four died after spending too long time in the freezing waters, according to a spokesperson for the Beijing-based center.
小題1:According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?

A．The film “Titanic” had been on show again in Shanghai.

B．Cao Min and her children experienced the terrible accident.

C．“Liaoludu 7” with all passengers on board were saved.

D．The ferry began to sink on the way to the port of Liaoning.

小題2:From the passage we can infer that                  .

A．China Marine Search and Rescue Centre quickly carried out the rescue task

B．the center sent eight lifeboats and asked for help from the United Nations

C．the passengers were fighting strong winds and freezing ocean water for one hour

D．the ferry sank into the sea immediately it tilted on its side at 2:30 pm

小題3:According to the passage, ________ passengers on board were still alive.

A．four

B．seventy-seven

C．eight

D．eighty-one

The world’s oldest person, Ms. Baines, died. She celebrated her 115th birthday with congratulations from Barack Obama, President of the United States.  Over her life she lived through the terms of 21 US presidents.
Gertrude Baines passed away(去世) peacefully in her sleep at the Western Convalescent Hospital in Los Angeles, where she had lived for her last ten years. Emma Camanag , the hospital’s leader ，said she was a respectable lady. "It is really an honor for the hospital to take care of her over the last 10 years and we will greatly miss her. It is just like we have lost a relative（親戚）," said Emma.
Ms. Baines, who was born in Shellman, Georgia, in 1894, had no living relatives. She grew up in the southern US during difficult times. During that time, African American people were required to use separate, often poor, public services. She married young and later divorced (離婚). Her only child, a daughter, was born in 1909 and died of a terrible disease at the age of 18. Ms. Baines worked as a maid (女傭) in Ohio before moving to Los Angeles where she lived on her own until she was well over 100.
She once told an interviewer（記者）, "As for the secrets of long life, I do not have any disappointments（失望） in my own life."
She gained some fame when she voted for Mr. Obama in the US presidential election（總統(tǒng)大選）, saying she supported him "because he’s for the colored people". It was only the second time in her life she had voted, the first time being for John F. Kennedy.
Ms. Baines became the world’s oldest person in January. Japanese woman, Kama Chien, 114, has now taken over the title.
小題1:It was an honor for the hospital to take care of Ms. Baines because ________.

A．she was a respectable lady

B．she was a relative of the hospital’s leader

C．she lived in the hospital for years

D．she voted for Mr. Obama in the election

小題2:Ms. Baines voted for Mr. Obama because he ________.

A．was very popular in the hospital

B．did even better than John F. Kennedy

C．did good things for African Americans

D．congratulated her on her birthday

小題3:Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Ms. Baines used to serve others in Ohio.

B．Ms. Baines died in a hospital in Los Angeles.

C．Ms. Baines and her husband had only one child.

D．Ms. Baines liked to live alone.

小題4:The passage is mainly about ________.

A．the world’s oldest person, Ms. Baines

B．why Ms. Baines voted for Mr. Obama

C．how Ms. Baines lived for so long

D．Ms. Baines and President Obama

LONDON, Feb. 18，2014 （Xinhua News agency） —Britain will send experts to East China's Shanghai to learn from the city's experience in maths teaching in an attempt to raise the teaching standards.
British Education Minister Elizabeth Truss is to lead a delegation of experts on a fact-finding mission to Shanghai's schools next week to see how children there have become the best in the world at maths, to get a first-hand look at maths classes and teaching methods there, and particularly to investigate why the performance of almost all children in Shanghai is high, regardless of gender or income.
Britain was last year placed 50th out of 148 countries and regions in the World Economic Forum's competitiveness ranking in quality of maths and science education. Two years ago, Shanghai topped the 2012 international PISA tables for maths, while England was ranked in 26th place. The top five were all in Southeast Asia, with 15-year-olds in Shanghai judged to be three years ahead of their peers in maths.
The education department said: "England's performance in maths has lagged behind while other countries have improved and overtaken us, including Poland and Germany." Actually, it is the latest step in the government's drive to raise standards in maths, looking at what has made schools in the far East the most successful in the world in teaching the subject.
"Shanghai is the top-performing part of the world for maths—their children are streets ahead. Shanghai and Singapore have teaching practices and a positive mind that make the difference. They have a belief that diligence makes up for lack of ability," Truss said. "Our new curriculum has borrowed from theirs because we know it works—early learning of key arithmetic, and a focus on times tables and long division（長除法）, for instance."
She was determined to change the situation as performance in maths is weakening the country's skills base and threatening the productivity and growth. The government is emphasizing maths because of the importance of good grades in the subject to young people competing for good jobs in a global labor market and to the economy more generally.
An education and skills survey released by the Confederation of British Industry last year showed that 30 percent of employers reported dissatisfaction with the standard of school and college leavers' numeracy. More than two-thirds of employers said they wanted both maths and science promoted more in schools.
小題1:Why does the British government send a delegation of experts to Shanghai?

A．To see how children from rich families have become the best at maths.

B．To investigate why the performance of almost all children in China is high.

C．To get a first-hand look at science classes and teaching methods there.

D．To raise the teaching standards in maths in Britain.

小題2:Which of the following statements is true according to the two international competition results?

A．British students performed better in 2013 than in 2012.

B．British students did better than the students from Poland in 2013.

C．The students from Singapore did better than the students from Germany.

D．The students from Germany did better than the students from Poland.

小題3:What has made schools in Shanghai the most successful in teaching maths in the eye of Truss?

A．Curriculum and teaching methods.

B．Teaching practices and a positive mind.

C．Early learning of key arithmetic and times tables.

D．A focus on times tables and long division.

小題4:How will students’ poor performance in maths affect the country eventually?

A．By threatening the country's competitiveness of economy.

B．By weakening the country's political system.

C．By losing international competitions in education.

D．By failing to find jobs in a global labor market.

小題5:What can we infer from the news?

A．The students in Britain don’t work hard at Maths.

B．The students in shanghai are the smartest in the world.

C．The education of science in Britain is no better than that of maths.

D．Most British citizens are dissatisfied with teachers’ work.

The kindly “Chinese Fortune Grandpa” wearing Han Chinese clothing and holding a fortune bag debuted(亮相) at the Imperial Ancestral Shrine in Beijing on the day after Christmas. The final image of the Chinese gift-giver was selected through a global design competition that cost millions of yuan. Its debut seems to be a sign of competition against “Santa Claus”, according to a report by Guangming Daily.

Many Chinese cities have been filled with Christmas neon lights, Christmas songs, Christmas trees, and the images of “Santa Claus” in recent days. As a matter of fact, foreign festivals are becoming more popular than certain traditional Chinese festivals among the Chinese people, particularly the youth. “Certain traditional festivals have died out because people have forgotten their spiritual meanings,” said noted writer Feng Jicai. More and more Chinese people are beginning to exchange gifts on Valentine’s Day and Christmas. However, many of them know nothing about Chinese New Year pictures or sugarcoated figurines(小糖人), and have never heard suona music. Certain folk customs on the Dragon Boat Festival, Tomb Sweeping Day, and other traditional festivals have gradually disappeared. Under such circumstances, even the “Chinese Fortune Grandpa” is unlikely to defeat “Santa Claus”.
However, it is not a bad thing to some extent. It constantly reminds people to restore the “true face” of traditional festivals. China has listed traditional Tomb Sweeping Day, Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival as legal holidays, which brings more paid leaves to the public, and helps to awaken the public awareness of traditional festivals.
In modern society, festival is a carrier of culture and its meaning largely depends on their understandings and usages by people. Compared with foreign festivals, traditional Chinese festivals are not inferior(次于) in cultural meanings, but lack of fashion sought by modern people. If people do not appreciate the historical culture contained by traditional festivals, and only take pleasure-seeking as the most important, the significance of traditional festivals will fade away and the inheritance(繼承) of fine traditional culture will be cut off.
小題1:The second paragraph implies that______________.

A．traditional festivals should co-exist with foreign festivals

B．a(chǎn)ll the Chinese festivals are disappearing in the near future

C．western festivals are constantly impacting on our festivals

D．Chinese people have the public awareness of traditional festivals

小題2:We can learn from the passage that _________.

A．a(chǎn)n image design by Chinese people will be displayed

B．many foreigners know nothing about Chinese Festivals

C．the Chinese gift-giver was intended to symbolize traditional culture

D．the Chinese are beginning to exchange gifts on the Mid-Autumn Festival

小題3:Many Chinese youth dislike traditional festivals because they think _________.

A．traditional festivals are out of fashion now

B．the historical culture is more difficult to understand

C．western festivals contain more cultural meanings

D．the inheritance will cut off their contact with western festivals

小題4:What would be the best title of the passage?

A．Gone are Chinese Traditional Festivals

B．True Face of Chinese Traditional Culture

C．Foreign Festivals Popular with Chinese

D．Chinese Fortune Grandpa VS. Santa Claus