Sagrada Familia ( 2,056,448 visits/year)

Opening hours: 09:00—18:00 (October—March); 09:00—20:00 (April—September)

Admission: $ 11, or $ 10 with the Barcelona Card.

Disabled Access: Yes.

The temple have been under construction since 1882 and they’ve still got another 30 to 80 years to go before it will be finished. The project’s vast scale and its special design have made it one of Barcelona’s top tourist attractions for many years.

La Pedrera (1,133,220 visits/year)

Opening hours: November—February: 09:00—18:30; March—October: 09:00—20:00

Admission: $ 9.50. Save 20% with the Barcelona Card.

Disabled Access: No.

This building used to be called Casa Mila but nowadays it’s more commonly known as La Pedrera. It is a unique modernist building in Barcelona and was made of bricks and had colorful tiles (瓦). It was built between 1906 and 1912 by famous Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi (1852—1926) and in 1984 it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site with other Gaudi buildings in Barcelona. Visitors to La Pedrera can see the amazing 800 square meters attic with 270 brick arches that give you a feeling that you are walking inside the skeleton (骨架) of a whale. The roof is equally impressive and is preserved exactly the way that it was built in 1912 with six staircases and seven chimneys each made in a unique style.

Barcelona FC Museum (1,032,763 visits/year) 

Opening hours: 6^th April—4^th October: (Monday to Saturday) 10:00—20:00; the rest of the year: 10:00—18:30

Admission: $ 8.50 for entry to the museum and $ 17 for a guided tour.

Disabled Access: Yes.

   When you buy your ticket you have two options. You can buy a ticket for the museum to see the football stadium or you can buy a dual (雙的) ticket for $ 15 where you get to see the museum and the scenes at the club.

Miro Museum (518,869 visits/year)

Opening hours: Check the web site for details as they vary depending on the time of the year.

Admission: $ 8. Save 20% with the Barcelona Card.

Disabled Access: Yes.

This museum has a wide range of Miro’s work dating back as far as 1914. This artwork collection not only includes his paintings but also a good selection of sculptures (雕塑).

L’Aquarium de Barcelona (1,375,271 visits/year)

Opening hours: 09:00—19:00 (October—March); 09:00—20:00 (April—September)

Admission: $ 7. Save 10 % on the entrance fee to the aquarium with the Barcelona Card.

Barcelona Aquarium is a popular Barcelona attraction to take the kids and young ones. I have to admit I love the aquarium.

Picasso Museum (887,958 visits/year)

Opening hours: Check the website for details as they vary depending on the time of the year.

Admission: $ 9 for main exhibition—extra for special showings. Save 50% with the Barcelona Card.

Disabled Access: Yes. The museum has arranged Picasso’s paintings in chronological order from his early days to his final works. Arranging the paintings in this way gives you a fascinating insight into the development of Picasso thinking over time and shows how he developed the distinctive designs that he is famous for today. Very popular art gallery.

1.Which of the following attractions is the most popular with people?

A. Sagrada Familia                     B. La Pedrera

C. Barcelona FC Museum            D.Picasso Museum

2.What do we know about the tourist attractions mentioned in the above passage?

A. Sagrada Familia is the largest building in Barcelona.

B. La Pedrera is well-known for its colorful material.

C. Barcelona FC Museum may attract football fans.

D. Miro Museum was built in 1914.

3.If you visit the stadium and the club with a tour guide in Barcelona FC Museum, you should pay ________.

A. $ 25.5                               B. $ 32                         C. $ 42.5                                 D. $ 34

4.What do the attractions have in common?

A. They are all famous for their architectural style.

B. They are available for the disabled people.

C. Their opening hours are changeable in different seasons.

D. Tourists can have a discount of 20% with the Barcelona Card.

 

 (09·上海)

Most people believe they don’t have much imagination. They are    50   .Everyone has imagination, but most of us, once we become adults, forget how to    51   it. Creativity isn’t always   52   with great works of art or ideas. People at work and in their free time   53   think of creative ways to solve problems. Maybe you have a goal to achieve, a tricky question to answer or you just want to expand your mind! Here are three techniques to help you.

Making connections This technique involves taking   54   ideas and trying to find links between them. First, think about the problem you have to solve or the job you need to do. Then find an image, word, idea or object, for example, a candle. Write down all the idea/words   55   with candles: light, fire, matches, wax, night, silence, etc. Think of as many as you can. The next stage is to relate the   56   to the job you have to do. So imagine you want to but a friend an original   57   ; you could buy him tickets to match or take him out for the night.

NO limits! Imagine that normal limitations don’t   58   . You have as much time/space/money, etc. as you want. Think about your goal and the new   59   .If your goal is to learn to ski,   60   , you can now practise skiing every day of your life （because you have the time and the money）. Now    61    this to reality.  Maybe you can practise skiing ever day in December, or every Monday in January.

Be someone else! Look at the situation from a    62   point of view. Good businessmen use this technique in trade, and so do writes. Fiction writers often imagine they are the   63   in their books. They ask question: What does this character want? Why can’t she get it? What changes must she make to get what she wants? If your goal involves other people, put yourself in their    64   . The best fishermen think like fish!

50. A. wrong                  B. unbelievable            C. reasonable              D. realistic

51. A. put up with           B. catch up with          C. make use of            D. keep track of

52. A. equipped               B. compared               C. covered                  D. connected

53. A. skillfully                B. routinely                 C. vividly                    D. deeply

54. A. familiar                 B. unrelated                 C. creative                  D. imaginary

55. A. presented              B. marked                   C. lit                           D. associated

56. A. ideas                    B. ambitions                C. achievement         D. technique

57. A. experience            B. service                   C. present                   D. object

58. A. work                    B. last                         C. exist                       D. change

59. A. possibilities           B. limitations               C. tendency                D. practice

60. A. in fact                  B. in particular             C. as a whole              D. for example

61. A. devote                  B. adapt                      C. lead                        D. keep

62. A. private                  B. global                     C. different                 D. practical

63. A. positions               B. dreams                   C. images                   D. directions

64. A. positions               B. dreams                   C. images                   D. directions

  

 (09·上海C篇)

“Get your hands off me, I have been stolen,” the laptop, a portable computer, shouted. That is a new solution to laptop computer theft: a program that lets owners give their property a voice when it has been taken.

The program allows users to display alerts on the missing computer’s screen and even to set a spoken message. Tracking software for stolen laptops has been on the market for some time, but this is thought to be the first that allows owners to give the thief a piece of their mind.

Owners must report their laptop missing by visiting a website, which sends a message to the model: a red and yellow “l(fā)ost or stolen” sign appears on its screen when it is started. Under the latest version（版本）of the software, users can also send a spoken message.

The message can be set to reappear every 30 seconds, no matter how many times the thief closes it.” One customer sent a message saying,’ You are being tracked. I am right at your door’,” said Carrie Hafeman, chief executive of the company which produces the program, Retriever.

In the latest version, people can add a spoken message. For example, the laptop’s speakers will say: “Help, this laptop is reported lost or stolen. If you are not my owner, report me now.”

The Retriever software package, which costs $29.95 but has a free trial period, has the functions of many security software programs .Owners can remotely switch to an alternative password if they fear that the thief has also got hold of the access details.

If a thief accesses the internet with the stolen laptop, Retriever will collect information on the internet service provider in use, so that the police can be alerted to its location.

Thousands of laptops are stolen every year form homes and offices, but with the use of laptops increasing, the number stolen while their owners are out and about has been rising sharply.

Other security software allows users to erase data remotely or lock down the computer.

72. The expression “to give the thief a piece of their mind “can be understood as “_______”

A. to give the thief an alert mind       

B. to express the owners’ anger to the thief

C. to remind the thief of this conscience  

D. to make the thief give up his mind

73. Different from other security software, Retriever can         .

A. record the stealing process          B. help recognize the lost laptop

C. lock down the computer remotely     D. send a spoken message

74. One function of the program is that it allows the owner to           at a distance.

A. change some access details for switching on the laptop

B. turn on the laptop by using the original password

C. operate the laptop by means of and alternative password

D. erase the information kept in the stolen laptop

75. Which of the following can best summarize the main idea of the passage?

A. With no Retriever, thousands of laptops are stolen every year.

B. A new soft ware provides a means to reduce laptop theft.

C. Retriever has helped to find thieves and lost computers.

D. A new program offers a communication platform with the thief.

 (09·上海A篇)

Even at school there had been an unhealthy competition between George and Richard.

 “I’ll be the first millionaire in Coleford!” Richard used to boast.

 “And you’ll be sorry you knew me,” George would reply “because I’ll be the best lawyer in town!”

George never did become a lawyer and Richard never made any money. Instead both men opened bookshops on opposite sides of Coleford High Street. It was hard to make money from books, which made the competition between them worse.

Now with only one bookshop in town, business was better for George. But sometimes he sat in his narrow , old kitchen and gazed out of the dirty window , thinking about his former rival （競爭對手）。Perhaps he missed him?

George was very interested in old dictionaries, He’d recently found a collector in Australia who was selling a rare first edition. When the parcel arrived, the book was in perfect condition and George was delighted. But while he was having lunch, George glanced at the photo in the newspaper that the book had been wrapped in. He was astonished—the smiling face was older than he remembered but unmistakable! Trembling, George started reading.

 “Bookends have bought ten bookstores from their rivals Dylans. The company, owned by multi-millionaire Richard Pike, is now the largest bookseller in Australia. ”

65. George and Rivhard were      at school.

A. roommates         B. good friends        C. competitors        D. booksellers

66. How did George feel about Richard after his disappearance?

A. He envied Richard’s marriage.           

B. He thought of Richard from time to time.

C. He felt lucky with no rival in town.       

D. He was guilty of Richard’s death.

67. George got information about Richard from         .

A. a dictionary collector in Australia  

B. the latter’s rivals Dylans

C. a rare first edition of a dictionary  

D. the wrapping paper of a book

68. What happened to George and Richard in the end?

A. Both George and Richard became millionaires.

B. Both of them realized their original ambitions.

C. George established a successful business white Richard was missing.

D. Richard became a millionaire while George had no great success.

  

 (09·上海D篇)

The latest research suggests that the key factor separating geniuses from the merely accomplished is not I.Q., a generally bad predictor of success. Instead, it’s purposeful practice. Top performers spend more hours practising their craft. It you wanted to picture how a typical genius might develop, you’d take a girl who possessed a slightly above average language ability. It wouldn’t have to be a big talent, just enough so that she might gain some sense of distinction. Then you would want her to meet, say, a novelist, who coincidentally shared some similar qualities. Maybe the writer was from the same town, had the same family background, or shared the same birthday.

This contact would give the girl a vision of her future self. It would hive her some idea of a fascinating circle who might someday join. It would also help if one of her parents died when she was 12, giving her a strong sense of insecurity and fuelling a desperate need for success. Armed with this ambition, she would read novels and life stories of writers without end. This would give her a primary knowledge of her field. She’s be able to see new writing in deeper ways and quickly understand its inner workings.

Then she would practise writing. Her practice would be slow, painstaking and error-focused. By practising in this way, he delays the automatizing process. Her mind wants to turn conscious, newly learned skills into unconscious. Automatically performed skills. By practising slowly, by breaking skills down into tiny parts and repeating, she forces the brain to internalize a better pattern of performance. Then she would find an adviser who would provide a constant stream of feedback, viewing her performance form the outside, correcting the smallest errors, pushing her to take on tougher challenges. By now she is redoing problems—how do I get characters into a room—dozens and dozens of times. She is establishing habits of thought she can call upon in order to understand or solve future problems.

The primary quality our young writer possesses is not some mysterious genius. It’s the ability to develop a purposeful, laborious and boring practice routine; the latest research takes some of the magic out of great achievement. But it underlines a fact that is often neglected. Public discussion is affected by genetics and what we’re “hard-wired” to do. And it’s true that genes play a role in our capabilities. But the brain is also very plastic. We construct ourselves through behaviour.

76. The passage mainly deals with          .

A. the function of I.Q. in cultivating a writer

B. the relationship between genius and success

C. the decisive factor in making a genius

D. the way of gaining some sense of distinction

77. By reading novels and writers’ stories, the girl could         .

A. come to understand the inner structure of writing

B. join a fascinating circle of writers someday

C. share with a novelist her likes and dislikes

D. learn from the living examples to establish a sense of security

78.  In the girl’s long painstaking training process, ________.

A. her adviser forms a primary challenging force to her success.

B. her writing turns into an automatic pattern of performance

C. she acquires the magic of some great achievement

D. she comes to realize she is “hard-wired” to write

79. What can be concluded from the passage?

A. A fuelling ambition plays a leading role in one’s success

B. A responsible adviser is more important than the knowledge of writing.

C. As to the growth of a genius, I.Q. Doesn’t matter, but just his|her effort.

D. What really matters is what you do rather than who you are.