In the past, people who graduated from college felt proud of their academic (學(xué)業(yè)的) achievements and felt confident that their degree would help them to find a good job.
However, in the past five years the job market has changed greatly. This year’s college graduates are facing one of the worst job markets. For example, Ryan Stewart, a graduate of San Jose State University, got a degree in religious studies, but no job prospects. He points out that many people already working are getting laid off and don’t have jobs, so it’s even harder for new college graduates to find jobs.
Five years ago, the future looked bright for the class of 2006. There were many high-tech job chances. Graduates received many job offers, and they were able to get jobs with high salaries and benefits such as insurance (保險) and paid vacations. However, "Times have changed and it's a new market," according to an officer of the San Jose State Career Center.
The officer says students who do find jobs started preparing two years ago. They worked during summer vacations, they have had several short-time jobs, and they’ve majored in one of the few fields that are still hot, like chemical engineering, accounting, or nursing, where average starting salaries have actually increased over last year. Other popular fields (like information system management, computer science, and political science) have seen big declines (下降) in starting salaries.
Ryan Stewart (he had hoped to become a teacher) may go back to school in order to become a college teacher. He thinks college teaching could be a good career even in a bad economy.
In conclusion, these days a degree may not be a ticket to instant wealth for some students. For now, they can only hope the value of their degree will increase over time.
小題1:The underlined word in the second paragraph probably means _____.

A．skills

B．interests

C．chances

D．ideas

小題2:Which of the following majors has the best job offers?

A．teaching	B．a(chǎn)ccounting
C．political science	D．computer science

小題3: Ryan Stewart will have to ____________.

A．go back to school	B．get a job teaching
C．change his major	D．become a religious leader

小題4:The underlined sentence in the last paragraph means ____________.

A．the best way to get rich is not to get a college degree

B．most students with degrees will not be able to find jobs

C．having a college degree does not mean that one has money for travelling

D．a(chǎn) college degree does not mean that one will find a well-paid job

小題5: The main idea of the passage is that _________.

A．a(chǎn) lot of graduates are losing their jobs

B．Ryan Stewart has been able to find a job

C．salaries in some fields have increased in the past year

D．the job market has changed greatly over the past five years

A certain student passed all his examinations. Then he went to college to  16  his studies. There he wrote down his  17  for a course (課程) in English, but after the first  18  , he didn’t go to it any more.
The English lecturer  19  this student was always absent (缺席的) and thought he had  20  another course, so he was   21  when he saw the boy’s name on the list of students who wanted to take the English  22  at the end of this year.
The lecturer had  23  a difficult paper, which followed his  24  closely, and he was eager (熱切的) to see  25  this student would answer the questions. He  26  the boy’s answers would be very bad, but when they  27  him and he examined them  28  , he was able to find only one small mistake in them. As this surprised him greatly, he  29  the paper repeatedly but still couldn’t find more than one mistake, so he  30  for the student to question him about it.
When he came and sat down, the lecturer asked him, “I  31  you came to my first lecture and you’ve been absent from all the others. But I’ve examined your  32  carefully and I’ve found only one small mistake in it. I’m curious (好奇的) to know your  33  .”
“I’m very  34  about that mistake,” answered the student. “After the examination, I 35  what I should have done. I would not have made that mistake if I had not been confused by your first lecture.”
小題1:
小題2:
小題3:
小題4:
小題5:
小題6:
小題7:
小題8:
小題9:
小題10:
小題11:
小題12:
小題13:

小題14:

A．enjoyed B．kept C．examined D．did

小題15:

A．cared B．called C．looked D．sent

小題16:

A．promise B．know C．a(chǎn)dvise D．guess

小題17:

A．paper B．lessons C．notebook D．exercises

小題18:

A．wisdom B．experience C．explanation D．method

小題19:

A．glad B．proud C．content D．sorry

小題20:

A．understood B．realized C．remembered D．suffered

Learning experiences happen to us throughout our lives. Not long ago, I had one that I would like to  16 .
I was going to Marblehead with my sailboat team. The team was racing down the highway at 85 mph 17 we realized we were   18  . Luckily, we saw a rest area ahead. I had a brand new $20 bill. I was so   19  because I had never had that kind of cash before. But spending it on   20  seemed like throwing it away. We all rushed into the pizza line.   21  I got a pizza and a drink, and walked to my table. About half way through the meal, I   22   I had not actually handed any money to the cashier. I had just   23   out, and nobody had noticed, I felt terrible.
My conscience( 良心) opened its mouth and swallowed me in one big bite. I couldn’t  24 over it. I just couldn’t go back to the cashier and   25   for my stolen pizza. I was so upset that I  26  to give myself the pleasure of an ice-cream for   27   that someone would say, “ Hey, Jeff, why don’t you use the change   28   the pizza instead of that nice, new $20 bill?” I was not so   29  of my cash now.
For the next two years, whenever I was   30  of the “pizza incident”, I would say to myself, “ Don’t think about it...”
I have learned two things from this   31 . Maybe I was a fool for   32 in to my conscience, and being too stupid to appreciate a   33  pizza. But the real lesson is that even if you get away from what you have done, your conscience   34  up with you.
This reflect the saying, “ A coward(懦夫) dies a thousand deaths; a hero dies one.” I was a coward and have felt terrible about that incident at least a thousand times. If I had been a “ 35 ” and gone back to pay for the pizza, I would have felt a little uncomfortable about it only once, or maybe twice.

小題1: A．say B．talk C．share D．explain

小題2: A．a(chǎn)s B．while C．then D．when

小題3: A．lost B．tried C．hungry D．a(chǎn)nxious

小題4: A．excited B．eager C．satisfied D．encouraged

小題5: A．rest B．food C．travel D．drink

小題6: A．Luckily B．Finally C．Immediately D．Actually

小題7: A．thought B．recognized C．noticed D．realized

小題8: A．walked B．left C．worked D．found

小題9: A．look B．get C．turn D．think

小題10: A．a(chǎn)sk B．pay C．a(chǎn)pologize D．send

小題11: A．refused B．wanted C．hoped D．meant

小題12: A．hope B．surprise C．a(chǎn)nger D．fear

小題13: A．into B．with C．for D．from

小題14: A．sure B．upset C．proud D．pleased

小題15: A．warned B．reminded C．thought D．told

小題16: A．experience B．experiment C．story D．mistake

小題17: A．turning B．taking C．handing D．giving

小題18: A．free B．cheap C．plain D．delicious

小題19: A．make B．wake C．catch D．put

小題20: A．coward B．fool C．loser D．hero

For any person who must speak in public, to business or pleasure groups, humor is a helpful, and necessary, tool for getting your message across. Why does humor work a lot? There are several reasons.
People will enjoy what you have to say if it is presented with humor. But, more importantly, if you are in a situation where important, and perhaps controversial（有爭議的）, ideas must be presented to less than open minds, humor allows those ideas to be presented in a non-threatening (無威脅的) manner. Abraham Lincoln was famous for his ability to relate humorous stories to make a point. Humor used carefully throughout a presentation will also keep the listener’s interest high. In a word, individuals learning how to use humor in their speeches can strengthen arguments, support interesting presentations and, most of all, entertain their audience in a positive and comfortable way. 
While popular culture may well hold many kinds of humor, some of it has no place in presentations that are designed to educate and encourage the audience. If you want to become a professional stand-up (單人表演的) comedian whose goal is 100% entertainment, then you may be able to use some of the reference materials like The Art of Using Humor in Public Speaking. They can help you develop your skills and sources of humor. To that end, your participation in this study of humor will become necessary. Hopefully, you will come to appreciate the special difficulty of entertaining the audience with good and clean humor.
小題1: How many reasons does the author give for using humor?

A．Two.

B．Three.

C．Four.

D．Five.

小題2:What’s the purpose of stand-up comedians?

A．To educate the audience.	B．To encourage the audience.
C．To entertain the audience.	D．To exchange with the audience.

小題3:Why did the author suggest reading The Art of Using Humor in Public Speaking?

A．It was good for training one’s skills of humor.

B．It helped the readers relax after work.

C．It gave some tips on how to live a positive life.

D．It was a textbook for professional stand-up comedians.

小題4: Which of the following has a similar meaning to the underlined word “end” in the last paragraph?

A．Finishing.

B．Conclusion.

C．Stop.

D．Result.

小題5:The passage is most likely to benefit________ a lot.

A．science researchers	B．public speakers
C．dress designers	D．sports players

My elder brother Steve, in the absence of my father who died when I was six, gave me important lessons in values that helped me grow into an adult.
For instance, Steve taught me to face the results of my behavior. Once when I returned in tears from a Saturday baseball game, it was Steve who took the time to ask me what happened. When I explained that my baseball had soared through Mrs. Holt’s basement window, breaking the glass with a crash, Steve encouraged me to confess（承認(rèn)）to her. After all, I should have been playing in the park down Fifth Street and not in the path between buildings. Although my knees knocked as I explained to Mrs. Holt, I offered to pay for the window from my pocket money if she would return my ball. I also learned from Steve that personal property is a sacred（神圣的） thing. After I found a shiny silver pen in my fifth-grade classroom, I wanted to keep it, but Steve explained that it might be important to someone else in spite of the fact that it had little value. He reminded me of how much I’d hate to lose to someone else the small dog that my father carved from a piece of cheap wood. I returned the pen to my teacher, Mrs. Davids, and still remembered the smell of her perfume as she patted me on my shoulder.
Yet of all the instructions Steve gave me, his respect for life is the most vivid in my mind. When I was twelve, I killed an old brown sparrow in the yard with a BB gun. Excited with my accuracy, I screamed to Steve to come from the house to take a look. I shall never forget the way he stood for a long moment and stared at the bird on the ground. Then in a dead, quiet voice, he asked, “Did it hurt you first, Mark?” I didn’t know what to answer. He continued with his eyes firm, “The only time you should even think of hurting a living thing is if it hurts you first. And then you think a long, long time.” I really felt terrible then, but that moment stands out as the most important lesson my brother taught me.
小題1: What is the main subject of the passage?

A．The relationship between Mark and Steve.

B．The important lesson Mark learned in school

C．Steve’s important role in mark’s growing process.

D．Mark and Steve’s respect for living things.

小題2:It can be inferred from the passage that when Mark confessed to Mrs. Holt, __________.

A．he felt surprised	B．he was light-hearted
C．he felt frightened	D．he knelt before her

小題3:In the story about the pen, which of the following lessons did Steve teach his brother?

A．Respect for personal property.	B．Respect for life.
C．Sympathy for people with problems.	D．The value of honesty.

小題4:According to the writer, which was the most important lesson Steve taught his young brother?

A．Respect for living things.	B．Responsibility for one’s actions.
C．The value of the honesty.	D．Care for the property of others.

小題5:Which of the follow is true according to the passage?

A．Mark was still a boy when he wrote this passage.

B．Mark lost the small dog his father carved somewhere.

C．When a living thing hurts you, you should kill it.

D．Even if a living thing hurts you, you should not kill it without hesitation.

The 47-year-old singer talks about the new album Symphony（交響樂） that came out of a “very dark time”, including her decision to give up trying to have children. “People have suggested I could adopt,” Brightman says. “But work is central to my life now. And so I am going to put it to one side. After a while not having children becomes the norm and perhaps that might sound alarming, to parents especially, but I have never known anything different. I’m not hurt by not having children. My life and career are incredibly rich.”
Talking about growing up in a large family in Berkhamsted (father a property developer who later committed suicide), she says: “I was gifted as a child, and very musical. I seemed to be good at anything to do with the arts. At 5，I understood the music I was dancing to and had an eye for costume.” She first appeared in a West End musical at 11 and hated boarding school.
Brightman led the saucy dance troupe（辣妹三人舞） Hot Gossip and had her first hit with I Lost My Heart to a Starship Trooper in 1978. At 18 she married a music manager called Andrew Graham Stewart. “I was probably in love but I can’t remember. Girls change such a lot between 18 and 22. It didn’t really work out.” In 1981 she was spotted by Lloyd Webber. She became his leading lady in Song and Dance, Requiem and Phantom of the Opera. They married in 1984.
Brightman says she felt hostility(敵意) “from the beginning. I haven’t tried to understand it. I’ve done very well everywhere else, especially the US, where I now live, I just accept it for what it is. The more you are away from Britain, the more you appreciate it. But I don’t miss it, although I miss my family. Our profession can be uncomfortable but I enjoy what I do. I get on with it.”
小題1: The first paragraph tells us that _____.

A．Brightman is very popular around the world except in America

B．Brightman’s musical style is a mixture of opera, pop and jazz

C．the British people don’t like her for her style of music

D．Brightman is much older than Andrew Lloyd Webber

小題2: Brightman decided to give up having children because _____.

A．she could adopt one

B．her life and career were unbelievably rich without children

C．she felt it normal not to have children

D．she was too busy

小題3:The following statements are true except ______.

A．Brightman first appeared in a West End musical at 5

B．Brightman disliked life on the campus

C．Brightman was very gifted when she was young

D．The saucy dance troupe made Brightman famous

小題4:The underlined word in the fourth paragraph probably means _____.

A．located

B．a(chǎn)dmired

C．followed

D．found

小題5: What does the author try to say in the last paragraph by quoting Brightman’s words?

A．Brightman has to accept the fact that she is not liked in Britain

B．Brightman lives in America but she loves her own country

C．The British coldness towards Brightman led to her hatred to her homeland

D．Brightman was at a loss why she was not welcome in Britain

Well, when the huge wave hit the boat, my safety belt broke and I was swept overboard. I don’t really understand how it happened, but it did. I heard someone yell out, but then my boat, Wild One, went off into the darkness and I was alone in a very rough sea. I then spent five and a half hours in the water. The place where it happened was, oh, about 50 kilometers from shore. It was likely that I wouldn’t see another day, but I always thought I’d overcome the difficulties. At first I was watching out for Wild One. The rest of the crew knew I was gone, so they were sure to come back and look for me. After a while, I saw the boat’s lights when it came looking for me. They were within about 300 meters of me, but the spotlight just missed me. The reason why they didn’t see me was because of the huge waves. You know, I started sailing when I was seven, and started ocean racing when I was about eighteen, but I’d never been overboard before. I believed I was going to survive, but it was very cold, and as the hours passed I started to get desperate——and frozen! It was around 5 am when I saw the lights of a tanker coming towards me. I figured it was probably my last chance. At first, I thought they were going to miss me, and then they made a slight turn and I yelled out “Help!” and they heard me. Then another yacht appeared. These guys were terrific. They gave me dry clothes, and then one jumped into the bunk and hung onto me. They covered us with as much dry clothing as they could, and the guy in with me stayed to transfer his body heat to me.
小題1:The author of the passage was alone in the sea NOT because ______.

A．the wind was too strong	B．the wave hit the boat
C．the safety belt was broken	D．his boat was in the darkness

小題2:He was not saved by his crew because ______.

A．he didn’t yell out “Help!”	B．300 meters was long distance
C．he was not found	D．he didn’t see the spotlight

小題3:It was inferred from the passage that ______.

A．he was swept overboard at about midnight

B．Wild One was the name of a crew member

C．he started ocean racing at about seven

D．he was too hopeless to take the last chance

小題4: One of the guys who saved him jumped into the bunk in order to ______.

A．cover him with more dry clothes

B．warm him with his body heat

C．comfort him

D．congratulate him

“Hurry, Mommy! Let’s go trick-or-treating!” My daughter waited by the door in her pink princess skirt while I prayed in the living room. Usually I liked taking her out on Halloween, but this year I was sad. I was worried about my mother, who was in China on vacation. I got a call that afternoon that she had slipped and fallen on the hard floor of her hotel and broken her leg. She was taken to a hospital in Beijing. Mom was nervous because she couldn’t understand any of the doctors. If only I could do something to help her!
I knew I couldn’t let my worries spoil my daughter’s fun. There was nothing I could do for Mom except pray, I thought. We left the house and went down the block. I was so upset that I hardly took notice of the kids around me. There came the man to whose son I’d once given piano lessons. “Hello there,” I said, greeting him and the boy at his side.
“Hello,” the father answered. “Having fun?”“I’m trying,” I said. “Why, what’s wrong?” he asked. I told him the whole story. “My mother, in China, broke her leg and didn’t understand any of the doctors. And I’m too far away to do anything!” I said.
He raised his eyebrows. “Beijing, you said?” he asked. I nodded. He smiled. “Believe it or not, my sister is a doctor at an English-speaking hospital there. If you want, I’ll make a call right away and we’ll try and get your mom transferred (轉(zhuǎn)移).”
A few days later I sat in the living room with my daughter as she finished the last of the candy. “Mommy, how far away is China?” she asked. “Not as far as I thought,” I said.
小題1:What did the author’s daughter want to do?

A．Pray with the author.	B．Enjoy herself outside.
C．Play a trick on her mom.	D．Go to the theatre to see a play.

小題2:What was the author’s mother worried about most?

A．She couldn’t get used to the life in Beijing.

B．She was hurt in the leg badly while travelling.

C．She was too old and weak to pray for her daughter.

D．She couldn’t make herself understood by the doctor.

小題3:The author hardly took notice of the kids around because _____ .

A．she was calling her mother	B．she felt very sad at that time
C．she was about to give a lesson	D．she couldn’t find her daughter

小題4: We can infer from the text that _____ .

A．the man’s sister would help the author’s mother

B．the author would come to China to see her mother

C．the author was a famous music teacher in the town

D．the author’s daughter wanted to travel in China

It is winter in many parts of the world. For some areas, that means snow. Maybe even lots of snow. If you don’t have to drive in it or remove it, snow can be very beautiful. When snow covers everything around you, the world looks like a “winter wonderland”. That is the name of a very popular song about winter. Richard Smith and Felix Bernard wrote the song back in 1934. There are hundreds of recordings of this happy song.
But winter is not always such a beautiful and happy time. It’s cold outside. You try hard to keep warm. The days are darker and shorter. The sun rarely shines. The leaves on the trees are brown. It isn’t surprising that some people are sad in winter. And some people dream about being somewhere else where it’s warm and pretty—like the state of California. The Mamas and the Papas recorded this famous song “California Dreaming”.
During the 1960s, many other famous rock groups released songs about winter. Here is a poetic song by Simon and Garfunkel called “A Hazy Shade of Winter”. They sing about life and hope and possibilities.
In 1968, the group Blood, Sweat and Tears recorded this gentle, sad song about winter. They sing about a lost love and forgotten memories in “Sometimes in Winter”.
In the early 1990s, Tori Amos wrote and recorded the beautiful song called “Winter”. She enjoyed singing about winter when she was a child.
Finally, on a happier note comes this song written and recorded by Fountains of Wayne in 2003. They sing about a snowstorm in a New England town. Nothing unusual there. But instead of being sad or tense about the snow, they write a song about it.
小題1: The underlined sentence “For some areas, that means snow.” probably means 
_____ .

A．In some areas, when it’s winter, it must snow

B．In some areas, it often snows in winter

C．In some areas, it’s important to snow

D．In some areas, people like snow in winter

小題2: According to the second paragraph, winter is _____ .

A．beautiful and happy	B．happy and warm
C．lovely and hopeful	D．cold and sad

小題3:Which of the songs can bring us hope of life?

A．Winter Wonderland.	B．California Dreaming.
C．A Hazy Shade of Winter.	D．Sometimes in Winter.

小題4:What does the passage mainly talk about?

A．Winter in different areas.	B．Different ideas about winter.
C．Songs about winter.	D．Winter is cold but happy.

Holidays are often associated with no work and all play. People seek to enjoy their holidays in different ways. Vacation packages (一攬子交易) have been in existence for a long time. ---小題1:--- So now people can choose from the different packages according to their own tastes.
Sky diving, hiking and many other extreme sports are packaged with hotel tours to attract the younger generation. Tour service providers enjoy the benefits of the increase in bookings from hotel tours. Holiday-makers enjoy the exciting experiences without making efforts to look for hotels. ---小題2:---
---小題3:-- These holiday-makers enjoy student discount and packages while learning about history and culture of different places.
Summer vacation packages have never fallen down the rankings. ---小題4:--- Having a warm sunny day at the beach is one of the fast selling vacation packages in the leisure industry.
Safari (游獵) adventures have always attracted some of the modern adventurers. The animals of Africa continue to amaze crowds that have only seen these creatures on educational channels. Many activities like outdoor camping, safari day tours and hiking in protected parks are always welcomed by holiday-makers.
--小題5:--- Alaways try something new or fun to do and your days of relaxation will be always exciting.

A．Picking out a vacation package can keep yourself from boring vacations.

B．Everyone is in a winning situation.

C．You can’t miss vacation packages if you want to have a good vacation.

D．Educational vacation packages are quite suitable for students.

E. They are one of the favorite choices for most holiday-makers who like sunny beaches.
F. They are continually being improved to meet people’s demands.
G.  Vacation needs your plan.