Switching telephone providers used to be the only way homeowners could save money on telephone bills. Now thanks to new technology, comsumers have another choice-making phone calls over the internet. And this can be completely free if you call another person with an internet phone set-up.
The technology is called voice over internet protocol (協(xié)議), or VoIP. In 2005, consumer demand for VoIP dramatically grew. In the US, where popularity has grown faster than here in the UK, 8.4 million are predicted to subscribe this year. For the past couple years, VoIP pioneers such as Skype have accounted for the majority of internet phone subscribers.
VoIP is attractive to consumers because it’s cheaper than traditional phone services. With the basic equipment of PC, microphone and headset, and VoIP software and broadband internet for optimum (最適宜的) voice quality, consumers can save a fortune chatting for free to other internet phone owners and save money calling regular landlines (通訊電纜). But, as the saying goes, you get what you pay for. Many of these services suffer from uncontinuous lapses (失效) in quality. While some users may tolerate echoes or a dropped call, improved quality is needed to attract more customers.
Computing has examined the benefits of using a PC as a telephone with VoIP in how easy they were to set up, how effective they were and the range of their features.
Skype(www. skype.com) came top for its bother-free approach, easy set-up and exceptional voice clarity. Sipgate (www. sipgate. co. uk), MSN(www. messenger. msn. co. uk) and Yahoo! Messenger (uk. messenger. yahoo. com) provide an audio “wizard” that improves sound levels. Google Talk (www. google. com/ talk) was less helpful and Babble. net (www. babble. net) was let down by its poor help files. Yahoo! Messenger provides some of the best features, including the option of landline calls, webcam chats, instant messaging, voice-mail and conference calls.
【小題1】Which one of the following if you call others?

A．VolP,voice over internet protocol

B．Switching telephone

C．New technology

D．letters

【小題2】The underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 implies that ______.

A．VoIP can save money but it has some disadvantages

B．whatever you buy is related to how much you pay

C．what you pay for will belong to you forever

D．what you buy is not always high in quality

【小題3】Which of the following statement is true according to the passage?

A．Sipgate is less helpful.

B．Yahoo! Messenger offers some best features.

C．Skype is the best one in the new technology.

D．Google Talk provides very good audio “wizard”.

Section C (25 points)

Directions: Write an English composition according to the instructions given below in Chinese.

2009年12月7－18日在丹麥首都哥本哈根召開了哥本哈根世界氣候大會。來自192個國家的談判代表召開峰會，商討《京都議定書》一期承諾到期后的后續(xù)方案，即2012年至2020年的全球減排協(xié)議。環(huán)境保護、氣候變化等問題應引起我們所有人的關注。請寫一篇英語作文，結合現(xiàn)實生活及你周圍的現(xiàn)象談談你對環(huán)境保護的認識并提出合理化建議。要求：不少于120個單詞。

相關詞匯：哥本哈根世界氣候大會 the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen；全球變暖 global warming；減排 reduce (greenhouse gas) emission；汽車尾氣car exhaust ；清潔能源clean energy ；可再生資源renewable resources

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Prince Charles yesterday promised to reduce the royal impact on the environment through sweeping changes to his personal lifestyle and official schedule. The prince will replace carbon-heavy private jets and helicopters with scheduled flights and train services.

The move came as Prince Charles urged business leaders to publish the environmental pact(條款、協(xié)議) of their activities.

He said, “Few accountants and business decision-makers ask, ‘How much of our critical natural resource is left? How many miles of polar ice cap has our business helped melt this year? By how many inches have we raised sea levels? How many species have we put at risk? How many homes will be flooded, how many people will die of thirst or starvation because of our activities? ’ These are not comfortable questions, but, by God, they need to be asked.”

He added, “At the moment these costs do not appear in anyone’s books… Yet they are real, they are incurred now and in a relatively short time, the damage being caused may be beyond remedy.” He said the world was “running up the biggest global credit card debt in history, but with little or no thought for how the bill will ever be paid”.

Flanked by the prime minister and business and community leaders at St James’ Palace, the prince said his new “accounting for sustainability” project would give consumers the power to choose products that caused less damage to the planet.

Duchy Originals, the prince’s food company, is taking steps to work out how much carbon dioxide and other green-house gas are emitted in growing, processing and distributing its products. The changes to the prince’s travel arrangements announced yesterday are part of a wider review of the carbon footprint associated with activities at all three of his residences. Clarence House in London, Highgrove and Birkhall on the Balmorals estate, as well as the activities of his 21 personal and 105 full-time staff. Measures include a review of electricity use, commuter and other staff travel and are intended to identify further reductions in carbon dioxide emissions. The review will report in June , when Clarence House will announce annual targets to reduce carbon emission.

1.How does Prince Charles feel about business leaders in terms of environmental protection?

A．Dissatisfied.	B．Disappointed.
C．Doubtful.	D．Impatient.

2.In response to Prince Charles’ calls, Duchy Originals will ______.

A．make as much green food as possible

B．cut down its cost

C．figure out its greenhouse gas emission

D．continue its greenhouse gas emission

3.The underlined phrase in paragraph 4 probably refers to ______.

A．the great amount of waste produced by industry

B．the high cost of industry in their producing process

C．the great amount of debts of the royal family

D．the great damage caused to the environment

4.What would be the best title for the passage?

A．Prince Charles promised Greener Royal Lifestyle

B．Better Late than Never

C．Prince Charles and His Concern for Environment

D．The Royal Family Has a Role to Play in Environment Protection

 

Our planet is in trouble．Polluting industries and corporations are destroying our planet, resulting in increasing global temperatures, melting ice caps, and economic turmoil（混亂）．All across the country, folks are waking up to the reality that if they do not ad now to solve the environmental problems of today, the consequences are unthinkable．If we don't i ct now, who will? Fortunately, an amazing team of young leaders are taking action．They a e getting involved with the Greenpeace Student Network!

The Student Network has student leaders who deal with the most pressing environmental issues．We have organized and won inspiring campaigns．Convincing corporations to change their ways and politicians to do the right thing．All thanks to our team of leaders, known as Campus Coordinators．

Campus Coordinators are located all across the United States, and even Canada! They work on Greenpeace Student Network campaigns at their schools and in their communities．They organize events like film screenings and days of action．They hold meetings with elected officials, work with the media, recruit（招募） volunteers, and mobilize（動員） their campus to take action! They do all of this with excellent training and expert support from our team of Student: Network staff．Campus Coordinators develop their leadership skins and become an unstoppable force for green solutions on pus and in their community．

Currently, the Greenpeace Student Network is campaigning to solve the largest environmental threat to humankind: global warming．With only months until a new international treaty（協(xié)議）on global warming is decided this December, the time to stand up and take the lead has never been

more important,

If you are concerned with environmental issues, want to mobilize your scho4l and community, nd are ready to become a skilled organizer and strong leader, then the Campus Coordinator position is for you! We are now accepting applications for the Fall 2009-Spring 2010 academic year．

Are you ready to be a leader on your campus?

       Apply to be a Campus Coordinator today!        

Why does the author write the passage?                        

       A．To describe the serious environmental problems．               

       B．To call on students to apply to be Campus Coordinators,        

       C．To explain the advantage of the Greenpeace Student Network．．

       D．To stress the importance of solving environmental problems．

We can learn from the passage that the Greenpeace Student Network _____．

       A．is a place where school leaders are framed

       B．is a worldwide organization helping student leaders

       C．helps solve corporations' economic problems

       D．helps deal with global warming at present

If you are a Campus Coordinator, you may probably _____．

       A．have．the chance to play a role in a film             

       B．find a job at a TV station

       C．develop your leadership skills               

       D．build up your strength．

Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

       A．The duty of Campus Coordinators．

       B．The distribution of Campus Coordinators．

       C．The aim of the Greenpeace Student Network．

       D．The history of the Greenpeace Student Network．

The Red Cross is an international organization which cares for people who are in need of help. A man in a Paris hospital who needs blood, a woman in Mexico who was injured in an earthquake, and a family in India that lost their home in a storm may all be aided by the Red Cross.

  The Red Cross exists in almost every country around the world. The world Red Cross organizations are sometimes called the Red Crescent, the Red Mogen Daid, the Sun, and the Red Lion. All of these agencies share a common goal of trying to help people in need.

  The idea of forming an organization to help the sick and wounded during a war started with Jean Henri Dunant. In 1859, he observed how people were suffering on a battlefield in Italy. He wanted to help all the wounded people regardless of which side they were fighting for. The most important result of his work was an international treaty called the Geneva Convention(日內瓦協(xié)定). It protects prisoners of war, the sick and wounded, and other citizens during a war.

  The American Red Cross was set up by Clara Barton in 1881. Today the Red Cross in the United States provides a number of services for the public, such as helping people in need, teaching first aid and providing blood.

A good title for this passage is     .

 A. People in Need of Help       B. Safety and Protection

 C. The International Red Cross   D. Forming an Organization to Help People

The word “aided ” in the first paragraph means     .

  A. needed                 B. helped               C. caught               D. protected

The author really tries to make the reader see that this organization     .

  A. costs very little money            B. works in many nations

  C. teaches first aid if necessary        D. is called the Sun

We may draw a conclusion (下結論)that      during a war.

  A. the Red Cross only protects the wounded

  B. the Red Cross only helps prisoners of war

  C. the Red Cross only helps citizens

  D. the Red Cross helps all the people in need no matter which side they are fighting for