One of the main challenges facing many countries is how to maintain their identity in the face of globalization and the growing multi-language trend. "One of the main reasons for economic failure in many African countries is the fact that, with a few important exceptions, mother-tongue education is not practiced in any of the independent African states." said Neville Alexander, Director of the Project for the Study of Alternative Education in South Africa at the University of Cape Town.

In response to the spread of English and the increased multi-language trends arising from immigration, many countries have introduced language laws in the last decade. In some, the use of languages other than the national language is banned in public spaces such as advertising posters. One of the first such legal provisions(规定) was the 1994 "Toubon law" in France, and the idea has been copied in many countries since then. Such efforts to govern language use are often considered as futile by language experts, who are well aware of the difficulty in controlling fashions in speech and know from research that language switching among bilinguals is a natural process.

It is especially difficult for native speakers of English to understand the desire to maintain the "purity" of a language by law. Since the time of Shakespeare, English has continually absorbed foreign words into its own language. English is one of the most mixed and rapidly changing languages in the world, but that has not been a barrier to acquiring superiority and power. Another reason for the failure of many native English speakers to understand the role of the state regulation is that it has never been the Anglo-Saxon way of doing things. English has never had a state-controlled authority for the language, similar, for example, to the Academic Francaise in France.

The need to protect national languages is, for most western Europeans, a recent phenomenon-------especially the need to ensure that English does not unnecessarily take over too many fields. Public communication, education and new ways of communication promoted by technology, may be key fields to defend.

【小题1】Neville Alexander believes that __________.

A．mother-tongue education is not practiced in all African countries

B．globalization has resulted in the economic failure of Africa

C．globalization has led to the rise of multi-language trend

D．lack of mother-tongue education can lead to economic failure

【小题2】The underlined word "futile" (in paragraph 2) most probably means " ___________".

A．workable	B．practical
C．useless	D．unnecessary

【小题3】What can we infer from the last paragraph?

A．English has taken over fields like public communication and education.

B．Many aspects of national culture are threatened by the spread of English.

C．Most language experts believe it is important to promote a national language.

D．Europeans have long realized the need to protect a national language.

【小题4】The best title for the passage is __________.

A．Fighting against the rule of English

B．Protecting local languages and identities

C．Globalization and multi-language trend

D．To maintain the purity of language by law

   How could we possibly think that keeping animals in cages in unnatural environments -mostly for entertainment purposes - is fair and respectful? Zoo officials say they are concerned about animals. However, most zoos remain “collections” of interesting “things” rather than protective habitats.
Zoos teach people that it is acceptable to keep animals bored, lonely, and far from their natural homes. Zoos claim to educate people and save endangered species, but visitors leave zoos without having learned anything meaningful about the animals’ natural behavior, intelligence, or beauty. Zoos keep animals in small spaces or cages, and most signs only mention the species’ name, diet, and natural range.
The animals’ normal behavior is seldom noticed because zoos don’t usually take care of the animals’ natural needs. The animals are kept together in small spaces, with no privacy and little opportunity for mental and physical exercise. This results in unusually and self-destructive behavior called zoochosis. A worldwide study of zoos found that zoochosis is common among animals kept in small spaces or cages. Another study showed that elephants spend 22 percent of their time making repeated head movements or biting cage bars, and bears spend 30 percent of their time walking back and forth, a sign of unhappiness and pain.
Furthermore, most animals in zoos are not endangered. Captive breeding (圈养繁殖) of endangered big cats, Asian elephants, and other species has not resulted in their being sent back to the wild. Zoos talk a lot about their captive breeding programs because they do not want people to worry about a species dying out. In fact, baby animals also attract a lot of paying customers. Haven’t we seen enough competitions to name baby animals?
Actually, we will save endangered species only if we save their habitats and put an end to the reasons people kill them. Instead of supporting zoos, we should support groups that work to protect animals’ natural habitats.
【小题1】How would the author describe the animals’ life in zoos?

A．Dangerous.	B．Unhappy.
C．Natural.	D．Easy.

【小题2】In the state of zoochosis, animals _________.

A．remain in cages	B．behave strangely
C．attack other animals	D．enjoy moving around

【小题3】What does the author try to argue in the passage?

A．Zoos are not worth the public support.

B．Zoos fail in their attempt to save animals.

C．Zoos should treat animals as human beings.

D．Zoos use animals as a means of entertainment.

【小题4】The author tries to persuade readers to accept his argument mainly by _________.

A．pointing out the faults in what zoos do

B．using evidence he has collected at zoos

C．questioning the way animals are protected

D．discussing the advantages of natural habitats

   Students from Oceanside High School in Rockland will be able to sleep a little longer from this autumn.

The superintendent （负责人） of Regional School Unit 13 Lew Collins said during the school’s Thursday night meeting that the schedule （时刻表） for the schools will be changed. Oceanside East and West will start half an hour later, at 8 a. m. for the new school year.

Research has shown that teenagers’ brains are often not fully awake at 6: 30 a. m. Collins said the schedule, which is used to get students to go to school for classes that begin at 7: 30 a. m., calls for some to get on buses before 6 a. m. to get to school on time. Teachers are having meetings at 6: 40 a. m., which is too early, he thinks.

Collins visited the high schools in Rockland and asked students when they would like classes to begin. Most of them said 8 a. m. "I was surprised. I thought they would have said 9:00 or 10:00, "he said.

The National Sleep Foundation says on its website that teenagers’ biological clocks （生物钟） are designed to stay up later and get up later. The Foundation calls for schools to change their schedules, which mean a later start for elementary students （小学生） as well.

"We do not have enough buses to run, because all the high school and elementary school buses run almost at the same time," Collins said. He suggested, "We should buy six more buses and get six more drivers to keep the new schedule working."

Elementary school classes in Rockland now start at 8: 30 a. m., but they will be moved to 8:45 a. m, starting in the autumn. "I know this is a problem for working parents, but we will see what we can come up with," said Jane Brown, a teacher at Bardonia Elementary School. "Anyway, I believe if students get more sleep they’ll be more ready to learn when classes start," she added.

【小题1】A new schedule will be made to __________.

A．add more interesting subjects

B．help students do better in class

C．ask parents to learn about schools

D．cut the number of meetings down

【小题2】One of the problems the schools are faced with in Rockland is that they will __________.

A．be afraid of working parents’ disagreement

B．be worried about children’s safety

C．be short of school buses

D．be short of teachers

【小题3】What does Jane Brown think of the new schedule?

A．She is not certain about it.

B．She is not interested in it.

C．She is worried about it.

D．She is hopeful about it.

语法填空

E-business（电子商务）has changed the lives of people across the world. With fewer people 【小题1】（leave）home for shopping, physical stores are having a 【小题2】（difficult）time. It seems that one kind of physical store is not being hit-the convenience store.

Convenience store sales in 2016 in China increased by 13 percent 【小题3】（compare）with those of 2015, according to China Daily. There are now 【小题4】（near）100,000 convenience stores in China. And in Japan, there are 11,000 more convenience stores in 2017 than in 2010.

Why are these 24-hour stores with 【小题5】 average area of 110 square meters enjoying such rapid 【小题6】（develop）?

One of the most important 【小题7】（reason）is that young people have grown into the habit of shopping at convenience stores, noted Convenience Store News. Convenience stores not only have everything for daily use, but also have fresh food like sushi, bread and salads, 【小题8】 are all quite popular among young people.

What's more, different 【小题9】 supermarkets, many convenience stores sell things they make themselves, like bread and cakes. As these products can only 【小题10】（find） in these stores, many people go there just to buy them.

   Everybody sleeps，but what people stay up late to catch or wake up early in order not to miss varies by culture.

From data collected，it seems the things that cause us to lose the most sleep，on average，are sporting events，time changes，and holidays.

Around the world，people change sleep patterns thanks to the start or end of daylight-saving time（夏令时间）. Russians，for example，began to wake up about a half-hour later each day after President Vladimir Putin shifted the country permanently to“winter time”starting on October 26.

Russia's other late nights and early mornings generally correspond（相一致）to public holidays. On New Year's Eve，Russians have the world's latest bedtime，hitting the hay at around 3:30 a. m.

Russians also get up an hour later on International Women's Day，the day for treating and celebrating female relatives.

Similarly，Americans' late nights，late mornings，and longest sleep fall on three-day weekends.

Canada got the least sleep of the year the night it beat Sweden in the Olympic hockey（冰球）final.

The World Cup is also chiefly responsible for sleep deprivation. The worst night for sleep in the U. K. was the night of the England-Italy match on June 14. Brits stayed up a half-hour later to watch it，and then they woke up earlier than usual the next morning thanks to summer nights，the phenomenon in which the sun barely sets in northern countries in the summertime. That was nothing，though，compared to Germans，Italians，and the French，who stayed up around an hour and a half later on various days throughout the summer to watch the World Cup.

It should be made clear that not everyone has a tool to record their sleep patterns；in some of these nations，it's likely that only the richest people do. And people who elect to track their sleep may try to get more sleep than the average person. Even if that's the case，the above findings are still striking. If the most health-conscious among us have such deep swings（明显改变）in our sleep levels throughout the year，how much sleep are the rest of us losing？

【小题1】What do we learn about the Russians regarding sleep?
A. They don't fall asleep until very late.
B. They don't sleep much on weekends.
C. They sleep longer than people elsewhere.
D. They get less sleep on public holidays.
【小题2】The underlined word“deprivation”in the last paragraph but one means ___________.
A. depression B. loss
C. observation     D. trouble
【小题3】What is the most probable reason for some rich people to use a tool to record their sleep patterns?
A. They have trouble falling asleep.
B. They are involved in sleep research.
C. They want to get more sleep.
D. They want to go to bed on regular hours.
【小题4】What does the author imply in the last paragraph?
A. Sleeplessness does harm to people's health.
B. It is important to study our sleep patterns.
C. Few people really know the importance of sleep.
D. Average people probably sleep more than the rich.