单选题 An increase in free parks in Shanghai might be pleasant, but they bring with them their own problems. There are already 122 free parks for citizens to enjoy. But visitors are often hassled by beggars and fortune-tellers, and put off by the smell of urine left behind by someone using the grass as a toilet.
Law and order in free parks are also worrying the city's park operators. They couldn't take any mandatory measures on those who do indecent things in parks except to try to persuade them to stop according to local regulations on park operations, which were laid out many years ago and many parts are not in line with the need for maintenance of the increasing number of free parks. Patrols could be introduced to help park managers.
On April 1,2005, Shanghai opened 23 new free parks, bringing the total number of such parks to 122.
A lack of cash has also hindered park operations. The local government has allowed for subsidies to cover the cost of not charging for tickets, but attendance is often more than expected, adding to maintenance and security costs.
Many parks manage to be self-supporting by running businesses such as convenient stores and cafeterias. Some also rent out areas to companies who want to do outdoor promotions. But the bottom line is that parks should be comfortable places for visitors and should not be turned into outdoor markets.
As well as not charging for tickets, parks are cutting back on staff, having a few staff members for daily operations. Most construction and maintenance jobs are commissioned to enterprises through public bidding so as to evaluate costs in a transparent and economical way.
So far, more than 12,000 citizens are working as volunteers to help with park operations in Shanghai.
Shanghai has spent more than 3 per cent of its GDP on environmental protection in recent years. Its heavy expenditure in landscaping also paid off as it won the "National Garden City" award last year.
Shanghai's goal is to increase its green area to 12 square metres per capita. It now has more than 17 million permanent residents.

单选题 Which of the following is NOT a problem in the free parks in Shanghai?
A. Visitors are often entangled by the beggars and fortune-tellers.
B. Regulations on park operations are no longer adaptable.
C. Parks don't have enough money for the operations.
D. There are too many toilets in the free parks.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】本题是要求通过阅读了解具体信息。文章的第一，二段主要讲的是开放免费公园带来的种种问题。游客被那些算命的纠缠(第一段)，过去的法规不适合现今的免费公园管理(第二段)，不收门票导致公园经费紧张(第二段)。公园厕所太多，并未提到，只是有人在草地上随地大小便才是问题(第一段)。因此应该选D。这题主要考学生在不同的段落中捕捉所需的信息。
单选题 Which of the following is NOT the way how free parks make money to support themselves according to the text?
A. Parks run businesses on their own.
B. Parks rent out areas to companies to do outdoor promotions.
C. Parks cut back on staff.
D. Parks run convenient stores and cafeterias.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】本题是要求通过阅读选择所需的具体信息。第五段中的几种做法是使免费公园能够self-supporting，而题目问的是make money。裁员只是紧缩开支不能赚钱。
单选题 Free Parks are cutting back on staff because ______.
A. they are not charging for tickets
B. only a few staff members are needed for park operations
C. the park operators are short of cash and they have to operate in an economical way
D. Both A and B.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】本题是要求通过阅读选择所需的具体信息。免费公园裁员不是因为不用派人收门票或工作量减少，而主要是资金不足，不得不减少开支，赖以生存。因此，A和B不是裁员的原因。D也就不可能了。
单选题 The phrase "to pay off" in paragraph eight can be replaced by ______.
A. to be worthwhile
B. to make profit
C. to pay up
D. to succeed
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】这是通过上下文理解判断词义的题。“to pay off”可以有“偿付，付清”的意思，也可以有“使……值得”的含义。上海花了那么多财力美化城市环境，去年获得了“National Garden City” award，是值得的。
单选题 Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
A. An increase in free parks is two-edged.
B. There were 99 free parks in Shanghai before April 1,2005.
C. Shanghai spent more than 3 per cent of its GDP for the "National Garden City" award in 2004.
D. Shanghai's goal is to increase its green area to more than 204 million square meters.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】这是一道综合理解并需要计算的题。上海在2005年4月1日又开了23家免费公园，从而使总数达到122家。显然此前上海只有99家。上海花了GDP的3%是用于环境保护，不是仅仅为了获奖。因此C是错的。